Mourners continue to pay tribute outside the US Supreme Court to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died on Friday.

Washington, DC  Wearing black jeans tucked into leather boots and a shirt featuring the face of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Kelli Midgley stood still in front of the United States Supreme Court on Saturday morning, flanked by dozens of other mourners.

In Midgleys hands was a sign: What would RBG do?

The Baltimore, Maryland, teacher told Al Jazeera that the question highlights how the jurist, who died on Friday night at age 87, acted as the moral compass of the nation.

I was so upset last night, and I thought, What can I do? One thing I can do is help make sure that at least my interpretation of her legacy is shared, Midgley said.





She set an example for us. And that example is still here, and her legacy can still inspire us.

Dozens of people rallied around the USs top court on Saturday morning to honour Ginsburg and celebrate her decades-long legacy. Thousands had gathered there on Friday night after the news of her death broke.

However, long before Ginsburgs death, the late justice had become a cultural icon  a rare feat for a member of a court that operates away from the cameras.

Piles of flowers and written tributes covered a sidewalk near the court as the crowd of mostly women hailed Ginsburgs accomplishments and discussed the future of the court and the nation.

Dear RBG, thank you for helping me find my voice, a message written in chalk reads near the court steps.

Civil rights advocacy

Ginsburg was the second woman ever to serve as a Supreme Court justice when she was appointed to the court in 1993 by then-President Bill Clinton. She was known for her scathing dissenting legal opinions and advocacy for civil rights.

Before joining the judiciary, she co-founded the Womens Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

Jarcelynn Hart and Sue Danielson, two educators from neighbouring northern Virginia, said they came to Washington, DC to pay tribute to Ginsburgs contributions to civil and womens rights.

This is just one way that we can show our respect for her legacy, Hart told Al Jazeera.

Danielson also stressed that Ginsburgs seat on the bench should not be filled by US President Donald Trump before the election on November 3.

Supreme Court justices are appointed for a lifetime by the president, but they have to be confirmed by the Senate.

Baltimore teacher Kelli Midgley, centre, said Ginsburg acted as the countrys moral compass [Ali Harb/Al Jazeera]

In 2016, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked then-President Obama from filling a vacancy on the court, arguing that presidents should not be able to appoint justices in their last term. But on Friday night, hours after Ginsburgs death, the Republican legislator said he would move forward to confirm a Trump nominee.

Days before her death, Ginsburg said in a parting message: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

The debate over Ginsburgs replacement has already ignited a fierce political battle in Washington, DC, and on Saturday, Trump urged the Republican-controlled Senate to approve his future pick without delay. It remains unclear who the president intends to nominate.

Danielson said Trump should abide by the same rules that McConnell set in 2016. Lets honour her with that request. To me, its just the right thing to do, she said.

People across the US have paid tribute to Ginsburg since her death was announced on Friday [Ali Harb/Al Jazeera]

The Supreme Courts nine justices have the final say on most federal legal matters, including assessing the constitutionality of laws and presidential decrees.

Throughout history, the high court has issued decisions that altered the US governing system and drastically changed Americans lives.

Alisha Harris, a recent graduate in public policy from the University of Chicago who was wearing a Black Lives Matter mask outside the court on Saturday, said it is difficult not to question Ginsburgs refusal to retire early in the Obama presidency.

Had she stepped down at that time, Ginsburg would have been replaced by a liberal justice.

Harris acknowledged Ginsburgs advocacy for civil rights, but she said lifetime appointments to the Supreme Court are an impediment to progress in the US because they prevent the court from reflecting a shifting ideological spectrum.

A person considered left-leaning in the 1980s would be a centrist today, Harris said.

If the death of one person can drastically change the political landscape in a democracy, it is not truly a democracy; its not by the people for the people, she told Al Jazeera.

A monumental figure

Politicians and activists outside the US capital also paid tribute to Ginsburg on Saturday, with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo pledging to erect a statue for the late justice in her birthplace of Brooklyn.

She was a monumental figure of equality, and we can all agree that she deserves a monument in her honour, Cuomo said in a statement.

She set an example for us. And that example is still here, and her legacy can still inspire us. Kelli Midgley, teacher

Earlier on Saturday, mourners solemn chants of R-B-G near the steps of the Supreme Court were interrupted by a young man in a black suit who said he was a Trump supporter.

I love Trump; Trump 2020, he shouted.

The man was quickly surrounded by mourners who asked him why he was not wearing a mask to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. He responded by saying he does not believe the virus is real.

A woman who was observing the incident from a few feet away could be heard telling a child standing next to her: And then, there are people like this in America, kid.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Ruth Bader Ginsburg Getty/Jim Watson

This is a breaking news story. Stay with Salon for updates.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a pioneering advocate for gender equality who became a cultural icon among liberals, died on Friday, the Supreme Court announced.

She was 87 years old.

"Our nation has lost a justice of historic stature," Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement. "We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her  a tried and resolute champion of justice."

Ginsburg, who had battled cancer over the last several years, died of "complications of metastatic pancreas cancer" at her home, the court said. She was surrounded by her family.

Ginsburg served 27 years on the court, and was widely seen as a diminutive firebrand with a brilliant mind, whose legal acumen was revered across the political spectrum. One of her closest friends was the late Justice Antonin Scalia, although they were ideologically opposed on many issues.

In her final years Ginsburg became the leader of the court's liberal wing, a partisan figure and cultural totem whose fans dubbed her "Notorious RBG" after rapper and fellow Brooklynite Notorious BIG. She accrued a cult following thanks to her physical and mental endurance, her commitment to equality and her frequent rebukes of President Donald Trump, whose candidacy she publicly criticized, breaking with long-held court norms.

Her death will have profound political implications amid a volatile campaign season, and presumably gives Trump the chance to name a replacement, an option he has so far reserved for himself even at such a late point in his first term.

Just hours after news of Ginsburg's passing, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell  who took the unprecedented step in 2016 of blocking President Barack Obama's nomination of Judge Merrick Garland for Scalia's former seat, which Trump filled with Justice Neil Gorsuch in the first months of his term  confirmed that he intended to hold a vote on a replacement before the election. That is likely to launch a firestorm, with activists on both the right and left highly engaged.

Story continues

Confirmation hearings held this late in an election cycle already riven with vitriol and social unrest are certain to be explosive, and the vacancy is certain to play a central role the presidential campaign. The court is just weeks away from starting its next term, and Ginsburg's passing means that Chief Justice John Roberts, a conservative who has sided with liberals on multiple landmark decisions, will no longer wield the controlling vote in tight cases  rendering outcomes uncertain until the seat is filled.

Several major cases loom. The week after the election, the court will once again hear a Republican challenge to the Affordable Care Act, a law it upheld in 2012 by a 5-4 vote, with Roberts writing the majority opinion.

Ginsburg was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1933. She attended Cornell, where she met her future husband, Marty, moving to Oklahoma, where she gave birth to their first child. The family returned to the East Coast, where Ginsburg entered Harvard Law School  one of nine women in a class of over 500. The dean at the time, Ginsburg recounted later, asked her why she'd taken a slot that "should go to a man."

Her husband then took a job in New York and she transferred to law school at Columbia, where she received her degree.

In the 1970s Ginsburg became the director of the Women's Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union, arguing and winning precedent-setting gender discrimination cases before the Supreme Court.

In an NPR interview, she explained the theory behind those arguments.

"The words of the 14th Amendment's equal protection clause: 'Nor shall any state deny to any person the equal protection of the laws.' Well that word, 'any person,' covers women as well as men," Ginsburg said. "And the Supreme Court woke up to that reality in 1971."

President Jimmy Carter named her to the U.S. Court of Appeals in 1980. In a statement upon her death, he called her "a powerful legal mind" and "a beacon of justice."

President Bill Clinton nominated Ginsburg for the Supreme Court in 1993, when she was 60. She was the second woman named to the court after Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who had been appointed by Ronald Reagan in 1981.

During Obama's administration, some liberals called on Ginsburg to retire so a Democratic president could name her successor. She declined, out of dedication to her life's work, as well as a wariness that the Republican-controlled Senate might not hold hearings for a successor  a hunch that eventually played out after Scalia's death.

Ginsburg publicly criticized Trump ahead of the 2016 election, and in response he tweeted that "her mind is shot" and demanded that she resign. Ginsburg later acknowledged she had made a mistake by weighing in on a presidential campaign.

Days before she died, Ginsburg reportedly dictated a statement to her granddaughter: "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

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The death of Supreme Court Justice and liberal titan Ruth Bader Ginsburg gives Republicans the chance to do the right thing. For a president up for reelection in just six weeks, the right thing to do would be to hold off until the people have had their say. The right course for Republican senators, who refused to even hold a hearing for Barack Obamas nominee when Antonin Scalia died nine months before the 2016 presidential election, would be to decline a vote on any nominee before Election Day.
Dawn Pittman in front of the Davis School in East Camden where she was a teacher for years. Camden schools are shuttered because of the pandemic and teachers are doing remote learning. Pittman wants to return to the district as a substitute when students are back in the classroom. Read more

Dawn Pittman retired from teaching in 2013 after more than three decades. But Pittman has no plans to give up her passion  even in a pandemic. When Camden resumes in-person learning, possibly in January, she hopes to answer the call as a substitute.

I absolutely love teaching, said Pittman, 58, of Merchantville.

Retired Philadelphia teacher Janice Richardson has already been getting those calls. She says she has turned down lucrative offers from parents and districts  as much as $2,000 a week to substitute-teach, something she hasnt done since 2016.

I get calls every day to come back, said Richardson, 65, of North Wales, who spends her days caring for her grandson, Amari, 3. Its not always about money.

Across the region, substitute teachers are in high demand that could increase as school districts scramble to find replacements to fill in for regular teachers who are reluctant to return to the classroom because of COVID-19 health concerns.

Some districts, including Camden and Cherry Hill, cited a substitute-teacher shortage in their decision to reopen schools this year with virtual learning only. There were fears districts wouldnt have enough teachers to staff classrooms.

The shortage concerns are national and worsening. Before the pandemic, schools across the country were able to fill just 54% of the 250,000 substitute jobs open daily during the school year, according to a survey commissioned by Kelly Education, a nationwide staffing agency.

More substitutes will be needed to fill in for teachers who become ill, need to quarantine, take leaves of absence, or choose to work remotely because of the coronavirus.

There is much uncertainty around the future education landscape but what is certain is the fact that substitute educators, either in-person or remote-base, will be in demand, the Kelly report stated.

But not all substitute teachers are committed to returning.

 READ MORE: Declaring teachers essential workers means nothing without giving real support | Opinion

Glynnis Gradwell, who became a substitute after retiring from the Philadelphia School District several years ago, said she cant see herself returning when students go back to school in November.

Im leery, to be honest," Gradwell said. I probably will go back and do online teaching, but me and everyone else  when we see a vacancy, we will wonder, why is that teacher out? Do they have COVID symptoms? I cant imagine how theyre going to get subs.

Districts typically hire their own substitutes or use an agency such as Kelly and ESS  which has a pool of 60,000 substitutes in 28 states  to fill daily and long-term vacancies for substitute teachers, paraprofessionals, and support staff.

The Lower Merion School District, which began with virtual learning and plans to start bringing some of its 8,700 students back to classrooms Sept. 29, has two substitutes assigned full time to each of its 10 schools.

These `building subs are our first people we go to when teachers call out, spokesperson Amy Buckman said. Naturally, we think there is going to be an increased need.

 READ MORE: Students, parents, teachers, and school leaders share their hopes and worries as they head back to school

In anticipation of a shortage, the Washington Township school system, in Gloucester County, has hired 19 permanent substitutes, spokesperson Jan Giel said. They will report to an assigned school every day and provide class coverage or other services as needed, she said.

The pandemic is just making it worse, said Laurie Haines, assistant director of the office of clinical experiences in the College of Education at Rowan University.

Substitutes' pay can vary, depending on the need and the teachers qualifications and certifications, from about $65 a day to about $150 a day. In South Jersey, Hammonton Schools this year upped its pay to $225 a day for substitutes. A Morris County district has offered $195 a day.

 READ MORE: Our kids need consistency now: Philly will soon move some teachers out of their schools. Advocates are angry.

Retired math teacher Geri Andrews-Savage, of Berlin Township, has no plans to enter the substitute pool. She retired from Overbrook High School in Winslow Township after nearly 40 years.

I dont care how much they offer. Im not risking my life, said Andrews-Savage, 68. My life is more important than money.

Substitutes must have at least 60 college credits and some form of certification. Most are usually retired teachers or recent graduates looking for their first jobs.

The solution isnt we need more substitutes, said Steve Baker, a spokesperson for the New Jersey Education Association, which represents the states roughly 120,000 teachers. "Substitutes were never intended as full-time replacements for teachers. We have to make sure all schools are safe enough.

 READ MORE: As virtual school year begins, frustrated parents are pushing school boards to reconsider

Some districts like West Deptford, which plans to transition from remote learning to in-person in November, are seeking substitutes now, said Superintendent Gregory Cappello. The district cannot compete with higher-paying districts to recruit substitutes, he said.

We are concerned, but we are closely guarding our budget right now, so we are in a wait-and-see pattern, Cappello said.

State regulations limit the number of days a substitute can serve without certain subject certifications before a district must fill the vacancy with a teacher who has the required certification. Retirees must also follow guidelines to avoid affecting their pension.

Of all the challenges that school districts are facing this year, one of them has been trying to keep an adequate supply of substitute teachers, said Michael Yaple, a spokesperson for the New Jersey Department of Education.

Once he works out some technical issues, Stuart London hopes to jump into substituting virtually again in Philadelphia schools. He completed the districts training for new teachers and feels ready to handle online learning platforms.

And when students return to buildings, London will be going back, too. A spokesperson said the district is nearly 97% staffed and had record-low teacher absences the first seven days of the school year, averaging about 100 daily. During this same time last year, the number was three times that amount.

I feel that the school districts are going to make things as safe as possible, said London, whos been substituting in district schools for four years. If you can go to the local department store and sit at the local restaurant [and] if you can go to the beach and walk on the boardwalk, you can go to school, said London.

Pittman, too, is looking forward to getting back into the classroom in Camden. She worries that the citys mostly minority children will fall further behind their counterparts in other districts that have in-person learning. Besides, she said, it doesnt seem like work to her.

I love those kids," she said.
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Gordon Ramsay has branded a fan an 'idiot sandwich' after the chef came under fire for sharing a picture of his lacklustre 19 Full English breakfast.

The Scotland-born chef, 53, shared a picture to Twitter earlier this week of his new breakfast dish which will be served as part of his menu at his central London restaurant the Savoy Grill from Monday.

'The most amazing Full English.... can't wait for you to try it from 21st September at Savoy Grill!' he wrote, with an accompanying picture of the cooked dish, showing one sausage, two fried eggs, one tomato, a mushroom and three rashers of bacon.

Gordon Ramsay has branded a fan an 'idiot sandwich' after the chef came under fire for sharing a picture of his lacklustre 19 Full English breakfast. The Scotland-born chef, 53, shared a picture to Twitter earlier this week of his new breakfast dish which will be served as part of his menu at his central London restaurant the Savoy Grill from Monday

But as soon as it was shared online, many questioned the size of the 'quintessentially British' dish, given it's 19 price tag.

Essex-based Tony Moore, shared a a snap of a fry up made by the 'Fry Up Police',writing : 'THIS is a full English Gordon. Take a leaf out of @fryuppolice 's book....'

The dish consisted of six slices of toast, two eggs, two black puddings, three sausages, baked beans, a hash brown, bacon, mushroom and tomaotes.

Not taking criticism for an amateur cook, Gordon quipped back 'Thats called a Full English Classic Heart Attack you idiot sandwich'.

Essex-based Tony Moore, shared a a snap of a fry up made by the 'Fry Up Police',writing : 'THIS is a full English Gordon. Take a leaf out of @fryuppolice 's book....'

The phrase is a reference to a sketch Gordon acted in on the Late Late show with James Corden in 2016.

In the sketch - dubbed Hell's Cafeteria, a parody of his own show Hell's Kitchen - Gordon holds two pieces of bread either side of TV host's Julie Chen head and calls her an 'idiot sandwich'.

The photo has since become viral meme, and Gordon has revealed he's often asked by fans to reenact the scene.

Fans were quick to question the size of Gordon's meal, with many upset the dish had no hash browns

Earlier this year, the celebrity chef took to TikTok to brand a food writer an idiot sandwich after she made a 'low carb sandwich'.

In one of the clips in his new #RamsayReacts series, Gordon shows his disgust to a 'low carb' meal by influencer My Nguyen.

To make the dish, the food writer from Brentwood, California smears cream cheese over an orange bell pepper, before adding seasoning, turkey ham and slathering it in mustard.

Shaking his head in disgust, Gordon shouts: 'That is not a sandwich. Young lady, that is an idiot sandwich'.
Uber wants to become part of the net-zero emissions alliance by switching over its fleet to electric vehicles. All of its rides could take place in EVs by 2030 in the US, Canada, and Europe; and the rest of the world by 2040. That will mean quite a lot is being asked of its driver network, who own these vehicles.

Uber's new pledge is to put $800 million initially into its plan to offer rides exclusively in electric vehicles by 2030 in US, Canadian and European cities, and to be entirely free of emissions by 2040. Drivers will be getting $1.50 more per ride for going electric, and fares will go up for riders choosing an EV.

Uber wants to catch up with its top competitor, Lyft, on bringing EVs to ride-hailing, ride-sharing customers. Theyre hoping it will be as big a move as 2011 when Uber first rolled out the concept of skipping a taxi ride and getting a good, cheap ride in someone elses car.

Their customers  mostly in the younger Millennial and Generation Z age groups  embraced the Uber concept from the very beginning. Its made Uber and Lyft rides even more common for many customers than owning their first car. Millennials and Gen Zers tend to be concerned about climate change and air quality, which could be a strong marketing hook for Uber and Lyft.

Uber and Lyft drivers are usually not the most informed about the latest offerings in electric cars from Tesla, Chevrolet, BMW, Nissan, and their startup competitors.

For those of who've taken several Uber and Lyft rides, they may be riding in a popular hybrid like the entry-level Toyota Prius. Uber and Lyft customers will probably be getting a ride from the airport, or to the nightclub, in a five-year-old, fuel efficient small car or crossover, which are more common than hybrids. That could be vehicle models such as a Honda Accord, Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, Toyota Yaris, Kia Sportage, or a Hyundai Sonata.

What many of these drivers dont know is that few of them can really compare the total cost of ownership of their small gasoline-powered car to a Chevrolet Bolt or a Tesla Model 3. Even with federal and state incentives, EVs are still at a higher starting price than buying a used, fuel-efficient vehicle. Low gasoline prices make the differential even more pronounced.

Uber and Lyft have always tapped into their drivers not having clear understanding of the business sense of putting in lots of hours and massive amounts of miles on their odometers. Their vehicles will be hit with depreciation loss, and many of them will have to spend more on vehicle maintenance and repair. They also pay their own income tax and receive no benefits from being part of the Uber and Lyft networks beyond a few discounts on popular consumer products that these companies pull together for their drivers.

Drivers who rent or lease a car to see how much side income they can make with Uber or Lyft are usually hit with frustration after a month or so of trying it out. Uber and Lyft  along with other popular brands in the mobility market like Postmates, DoorDash, and Instacart  are well known for seeing high levels of turnover among their independent contractor drivers. While the state of California has attempted to reverse this business model to turn drivers into employees with its AB5 law enacted last year, the mobility companies have amassed a huge budget to promote a November state ballot initiative that could reverse AB5.

For now, Uber is rolling out its Uber Green surcharge in 15 cities in the US and Canada. Riders are charged an extra dollar for their ride to be picked up in a hybrid or EV, and theyll get an extra 50 cents per ride from Uber  meaning drivers will get an extra $1.50 per ride for supplying these Uber Green vehicles.

Lyft started this EV move in June 2020 by committing to make 100 percent of its fleet zero emission by 2030. The initiative was launched in collaboration with Environmental Defense Fund. The ambitious plan also included its Express Drive rental car partner program for ride-share drivers, Lyfts campaign to bring in autonomous vehicles, and rental cars for riders.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been promising to bring out a similar service for several years  which hes called the Tesla Network. Musk has tied it into the companys autonomous vehicle plans, but during last years 4th quarter earnings call, he said it will have to be done at first by human drivers instead of Teslas full self-driving system.

I think it will probably make sense to enable car sharing in advance of the kind of robotaxi fleet because the car sharing can be done before full self-driving is approved by regulators. So its probably something that we would enable before a sort of robotaxi fleet is enabled, Musk told shareholders.

Shareholders and other analysts will be watching to see if Uber and Lyft can keep their promises to hit their net-zero targets over the next decade. They have had a previous promise fall apart  that of shared rides removing enough polluting vehicles from the roads to clean up air quality and fight climate change.

That was illustrated by a Union of Concerned Scientists study released in February. Ride-hailing trips typically displace low-carbon trips, such as public transportation, biking, or walking. The study found that Uber and Lyft trips result in an estimated 69 percent more air pollution than the trips they displace.

Switching over their fleets to EVs would reverse it. But convincing all of their independent contractor drivers to only bring in EVs will be a very tough sell for Uber and Lyft.

By Jon LeSage for Oilprice.com



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Lack of laws, lack of awareness sink Lankas right to make claims over MT New Diamond fire By Sandun Jayawardana and Tharushi Weerasinghe View(s): View(s):

In the aftermath of the incident involving the stricken oil supertanker MT New Diamond, authorities here have acknowledged local laws have not been properly updated to meet such potential disasters.

While the current Marine Pollution Prevention Act did not limit Sri Lankas ability to place claims, the Act was still severely limited in other ways, Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) Chairperson Dharshani Lahandapura told the Sunday Times.

The basics are missing and we have not ratified six major conventions, she revealed.

She also added that the current Act has no provisions to prosecute any attempts to degrade Sri Lankas marine environment. She cited a recent incident where a well known company had been exposed during their attempt to dispose chemical waste into Sri Lankas seas. The lack of any provision had severely impaired the MEPAs ability to penalise the guilty parties.

While there are deficiencies in local laws, in the incident involving MT New Diamond, Sri Lanka would have still been entitled to one-fourth of the ships value and cargo under the Law of Salvage if authorities had been more aware, Maritime Lawyer Dr. Dan Malika Gunasekara alleged.

In coming to the rescue of the ships crew and protecting the countrys maritime environment, the Sri Lanka Navy had performed the role of statutory salvor. The reward however, is entitled to those performing the role of contractual salvor. In this case, that is Boskalis Smit Singapore Pte Ltd, the Singapore based company appointed by the ships Greek owners.

What Sri Lanka should have done is to sign the proper legal documents to take the Singapore based company onboard under our supervision, said Dr. Gunasekara, adding that failure to do so meant that the company has been given a free hand to function as the contractual salvor, making it eligible for the reward.

The opportunity to claim the reward is now lost. All we can do now is to claim the costs incurred towards the operation.

Ms. Lahanadapura though, stated that the Singapore company had been appointed the contractual salvor while the ships captain was still onboard the New Diamond. As long as the captain is aboard the ship, they will remain the highest authority in it, she explained. At the time of the rescue the owners of the MT New Diamond had appointed their contractual salvor while the captain was aboard the ship and before he had waived his authority as captain over to the Sri Lanka Navy. Thus, claim to the cargo was automatically transferred from the captain to the contractual salvor from Singapore. She also added that this was one of the reasons why legal action against the captain was filed.

On Wednesday, the Attorney Generals Department also submitted an interim claim of Rs. 340 million to the lawyers representing the owners of the oil tanker for costs incurred in rendering assistance to the vessel after it first caught fire on September 3.

The stricken tanker was still under Sri Lankan Jurisdiction, especially where marine resource destruction and pollution were concerned, Navy spokesman Captain Indika De Silva told the Sunday Times. Sri Lanka has the authority to enact the provisions of the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea where necessary as well, he said. As of Friday afternoon the MT New Diamond was 63 nautical miles off of Batticaloa and was being surveyed by two ships of the Sri Lankan Navy only.

Meanwhile, the National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA) has conducted several expeditions to the location of the ship to collect samples to conduct tests on whether environmental damage has been caused due to the incident.

Shyamali Weerasekara, Principal Scientist of the Environmental Studies Division of NARA revealed that the agency had been part of three research expeditions on the sea surrounding the MT New Diamond.

The first was done in collaboration with the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) and the University of Ruhuna on September 8. Water samples were collected from the area surrounding the ship, mostly from the stern area where the ship sustained fire damage. These samples are currently being tested in laboratories for oil and grease content, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, and heavy metals such as arsenic, lead, and cadmium. In-situ tests had been done aboard the ship to check for dissolved oxygen, sturdiness, salinity, electrical conductivity and total dissolved solids. GPS location information of the sample collection spots was also gathered. A second multidisciplinary NARA team led by Dr. Prabath Jayasinghe also approached the vicinity of the oil spill to gauge environmental impacts and possible damage. The team, which consisted of water quality management experts, marine biologists, environmentalists, coral reef specialists and oceanographers, submitted a preliminary report of observations to the Chairman of NARA Prof. A. Navaratnerajah.

A third NARA team conducted surveys of socio-economic impact on segments like fisheries. Fishermen from the area were interviewed and information was collected for the assessment of a coastal area impact should a leak occur. Thirteen impact locations were identified off the east coast and water samples were collected for quality checking.

Final reports on the research being conducted is expected next week.

Captain of supertanker committed a criminal offence: AGs Dept. By Ranjith Padmasiri The Captain of MT New Diamond failed to activate the fire suppression system onboard the vessel when the fire initially began and also did not promptly inform relevant authorities of the emergency, the Attorney Generals Department charged. Deputy Solicitor General Dileepa Peiris told the Colombo Magistrates Court on Thursday (17) that through his actions, the tankers Greek Captain, Steiros Ilias (60), had committed a criminal offence as well as offences coming under Sections 25, 26, 38 and 53 of the Marine Pollution Prevention Act of 2008. As such, the AG had taken steps to name him as a suspect in this case, he added. He further told the court that an oil layer with a thickness of 2 metres and 400 metres in width, had been observed over an area measuring 2 nautical miles near the stricken vessel. Accordingly, there has been marine environmental pollution over a 2 nautical mile area, he asserted. Taking the submissions given by the AG into consideration, Colombo Additional Magistrate Priyantha Liyanage ordered that the suspect be produced in court on September 28. This was after DSG Peiris notified the court that the ships captain and crew were currently undergoing quarantine in Galle and would be released from quarantine on September 24. As such, the AGs department requested court to order that the suspect be produced in court on a date falling after September 24.
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The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a supplementary charge-sheet in the 3,727 crore AgustaWestland chopper scam naming 15 individuals and entities, including British middleman Christian Michel James and Rajiv Saxena, who allegedly played key a role in facilitating kickbacks for politicians, bureaucrats and Indian Air Force (IAF) officials, people familiar with the matter said.

The second charge-sheet filed on Friday has not named any politician or senior bureaucrat so far. The first charge-sheet in the case was filed in September 2017 and named former IAF chief SP Tyagi.

Also read: Ex-defence secy played key role in AgustaWestland deal, says CBI

The agency in March sought prosecution sanction against former defence secretary Shashi Kant Sharma, Air Vice Marshal (retired) Jasbir Singh Panesar and three other IAF officers, S A Kunte, Wing Commander Thomas Mathew and retired Group Captain N Santosh. But it decided to file the charge-sheet without naming them as a sanction is awaited from the ministry of defence (MOD).

Officials familiar with the matter said another supplementary charge-sheet will be filed against Sharma and others when the sanction is accorded.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) made Saxena, who was brought to India from Dubai in January 2019, an approver in the case. But the agency later sought revocation of this status saying he misled the investigators.

ED has accused Saxena of being a hawala operator who ran accommodation entry business in Dubai through companies like Matrix Group. Saxena is accused of laundering proceeds of crime in the scam.

Anglo-Italian firm AgustaWestland allegedly paid Michel, who was extradited to India in December 2018 from Dubai, Euro 42 million ( 295 crore) to bribe politicians, bureaucrats and defence ministry personnel for swinging the deal for 12 VVIP choppers in favour of the company.

He was a frequent visitor to India and was operating as a middleman for defence procurements through a wide network of sources cultivated in the IAF and Ministry of Defence at different levels including retired and serving IAF officials. He was tracking the movements of the procurement process files and was sending periodical reports/despatches on the developments to the accused persons connected with M/s AgustaWestland. In this process, he shared the information collected from IAF and MoD with his associate(s), who used to transmit the despatches through FAX to the other counterparts sitting abroad in Italy and Switzerland, said a CBI officer, who did not wish to be named.

A second CBI officer said Michel was imposed as a controller on the other two middlemen, Ralph Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa, as they had no specific knowledge in the specific sector of helicopters.

According to CBIs investigation documents accessed by HT, at a meeting held in Cascina Costa (Italy) in July 2006, it was proposed that Michel will join Haschke and Gerosa in monitoring activities with regard to the acquisition of helicopters in India, keeping in view of his knowledge of Indian military operational mechanism. During this meeting, they had negotiated a comprehensive fee equal to 7% of the supply contract amount to cover the expenses and fees of both of them, said the second officer.

Michel signed 12 contracts through two of his firms with Finmeccanica, AgustaWestland, Westland Helicopters UK etc to legitimise the illicit commission on the procurement of VVIP helicopters.

Finmeccanica paid total Euro 42.27million [ 295.00 crore approx] to the firms of Christian Michel as kickbacks/bribe without undertaking any work against the receipt of such amount, said the second officer.

Michel had prepared a note in which alleged bribes worth Euro 30 million meant for politicians and bureaucrats were mentioned. CBI pinned hopes on his interrogation, particularly to identify individuals who were referred to as AP, Pol, Bur and AF in the note.

The note used abbreviations of designations like DCH, PDSR, DG Maintt and FTT under the head AF (air force). Under the head BUR, it had entries like DS, JS Air, AFA Air, DG Acq, VC and Auditor Gen and under the head POL, it had AP. The note had a separate entry Fam, believed to be S P Tyagis family  his three cousins Sanjeev, Rajiv and Sandeep Tyagi. It mentioned that Euro 6 million were for AF (Air Force), 8.4 million for BUR (bureaucrats), 3 million for AP and 15-16 million for Fam.

In its first charge-sheet, CBI said it had established the money trail of Euro 62 million (around 415 crore) out of suspected 67 million ( 452 crore) bribe paid to Indians through middlemen.

The irregularities in the award of the contract to AgustaWestland led to an estimated loss of Euro 398.21 million (around 2,666 crore) to the government in the Euro 556.262 million ( 3726.9 crore) contract, according to CBI.

The contract was cancelled in January 2014.
First-time buyers are being asked to save at least 20 per cent for a deposit on a house as there are little deals for mortgages on the market.

In the past week, not one high street bank has offered mortgages for those with a 10 per cent deposit according to The Times.

Brokers have also warned that deals for those with a 15 per cent deposit are also disappearing as more than 300 of them have been pulled since January.

First-time buyers are being asked to save at least 20 per cent for a deposit on a house as mortgage deals for those with a 10 per cent deposit disappear

For those with smaller deposits there are only a small number of these deals available.

According to Moneyfacts, there are only 44 deals left for those with a 10 per cent deposit, but most have restrictive criteria.

David Hollingworth from the mortgage broker London & Country said that its already a 'big ask to require a first-time buyer who has scrimped and saved to come up with a bigger deposit'.

This comes after Rishi Sunak's stamp duty holiday, which can save buyers up to 15,000.

Rishi Sunak's stamp duty holiday could save buyers up to 15,000, but first-time buyers are being asked to save at least 20 per cent for a mortgage

The Chancellor said he would immediately raise the threshold on stamp duty to 500,000 until March 31 2021.

The measure, which temporarily increases the 'nil rate' band of stamp duty from 125,000 to 500,000, will reduce the average stamp duty bill for a main home from 4,500 to zero.

The Chancellor's crucial coronavirus recovery package includes a six-month 'holiday' from paying the charge on most homes to kickstart the market.

However, economists voiced alarm at the idea that the move could be announced to the House of Commons, but not implemented until the Autumn.

Fears were raised that purchases would grind to a halt as people would simply wait in order save thousands of pounds.

But UK house prices hit a record high following a post-lockdown boom, with the average home now worth 245,747.

A newly-released report by Halifax said property prices were 5.2% higher than the same month a year earlier and property values were up by 1.6% month on month.

But with household incomes under pressure and job loss announcements mounting, the report said it is 'highly unlikely' that current levels of house price growth will be sustained.

Mortgage deals for first-time buyers There are only 44 deals left for those with a 10 per cent deposit, down from 772 before lockdown was implemented, according to finance experts Moneyfacts.

TSB offered small deposit mortgages to buyers with a 10 per cent deposit for a limited time but only on houses not flats.

Nationwide offers 90 per cent loan-to-value deals on a full time basis but is restrictive about who it lends to, insisting borrowers have good employment records.

Coventry Building Society has also been offering mortgages for buyers with a 10 per cent deposits, but only in three day bursts as flash sales become more common.

Accord - part of Yorkshire Building Society - offered these deals recently but only over a 48-hour window. Advertisement
Bhubaneswar, Sep 19 : Odisha's Covid-19 tally touched 1,75,550 as 4,209 more people tested positive for the infection while the toll reached 691 as nine new fatalities were reported in the last 24 hours, a health official said on Saturday.

The number of active cases in the state increased to 37,239 while 1,37,567 patients have recovered till now.

While two deaths were reported from Bargarh district, one each were reported from Bhadrak, Bolangir, Cuttack, Gajapati, Puri, Rayagada and Sambalpur.

Of the fresh cases reported from across 30 districts, 2,441 were detected in various quarantine centres while 1,768 were local contact cases.

Khordha district continued to record the highest positive cases (663) followed by Cuttack (491), Puri (326), Balasore (183) and Jajpur (176).
By Jerri-Lynn Scofield, who has worked as a securities lawyer and a derivatives trader. She is currently writing a book about textile artisans.

I rarely do hot takes on big breaking political stories, but I felt I cant ignore the untimely death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (1933-2020).

Shes most recently been known for her stinging dissents and has been the Courts most consistently reliable progressive..

But before she was appointed by Bill Clinton in 1993, she shaped the practice of American civil rights litigation, especially during the 1970s, Ginsburg did for gender rights roughly what Thurgood Mashall had previously done for race.

In the blogging world, sometimes timeliness must trump all, so a few thoughts.

Mitch McConnell has already promised his own hot take, a quick Senate conformation vote on Trumps possible nominee of a replacement. Im not going to speculate on possible candidates at this point, but for those of you who are interested in that kind of thing, I will post the NY Postss take  a Republican wishlist if I ever saw one, Heres who might succeed Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court.

Trump must announce an appointee soon enough, and if he has a prayer of quick confirmation, especially if hes aiming to do so before the election.

Biden has said the confirmation vote should come in the next administration;I guess hes banking on a Democratic win.

Recall that in a similar situation, when Scalia, the Courts then most prominent conservative, died in February 2016, Republicans delayed throughout the final year of the last administration and refused to confirm the compromise candidate of Merrick Garland, saying confirmation should follow the November 2016 election results, Alas, Garland was middle of the road enough so that his nomination didnt enthuse progressive Democratic. Yet nor were Republicans fooled either (see Doing Time: Prison, Law Schools, and the Membership of the US Supreme Court).

Garlands nomination never came to a vote, thus leaving Trump to fill Justice Antonin Scalias empty seat with conservative Neil Gorsuch early in his term, and following with the confirmation of fellow conservative Brett Kananaugh for centrist Justin Anthony Kennedy. Neither of these replacements materially changed the ideological balance of the court.

By contrast, replacing Ginsburg with a judicial conservative would cement the rightward lean of the Court, setting it in stone for a generation (unless Democrats are willing to consider some Court expansion plan or mandatory retirement, and have votes to do so  although there remain formidable Constitutional challenges).

Now it seems the same arguments about waiting for the election results should prevail, and even moreso with 3rd November general election less than seven weeks away, whereas the Garland mess played out over the better part of a year.

Not so fast.

McConnell says this time is different. As the last situation was one of divided government, with Democrats holding the White House, and Republicans the Senate. Whereas this time, both branches are in Republican hands.

Well, all I can say is: its an argument. Not a particularly good one, but an argument.

Republicans will clearly try to force through a candidate. That would mean that if successful, Trump would have been able to confirm three justices during his first term.

Does McConnell have enough time to force through a confirmation? According to Politico, Whats next in the Senates colossal Supreme Court fight:

Yes, if he has the votes. Since 1975, the Congressional Research Service estimates that its taken an average of 40 days for a Supreme Court nominee simply to get a hearing, let alone win the support of the Judiciary Committee and full Senate. But that timetable isnt etched in marble; its up to GOP leadership. The nominee has to be approved by the Judiciary Committee before reaching the floor, and Judiciary Committee Chair Lindsey Graham, working closely with McConnell, can tailor a schedule to their liking. Theres also nothing to stop Republicans from voting on a Supreme Court nomination after the election in a lame duck session. The real deadline may be when the next Senate convenes on Jan. 3, 2021.

Practical Considerations

Will Republicans be able to do this? The filibuster is gone. That means they need only a simple majority for confirmation. With the current make-up of the Senate 53-47, can they get there? Especially since if they get to a 50-50 vote VP Mike Pence would cast the deciding vote.

Unclear. But they will certainly try.

Will Democrats be able to block a nomination?

What tools do they have at their disposal? With no filibuster available, as it was eliminated to push through the Gorsuch nomination, it looks like with only their own Democratic votes they will not be able to do so, and will require support from at least some Republicans.

Again, according to Politico::

Democrats can raise objections about a potential nominee, raise hell in confirmation hearings and on the floor of the Senate, but ultimately, the committee and McConnell will decide when the key votes occur.

Who are those wavering Republicans?

Lets begin with following tweet from Harvard constitutional law icon Laurence Tribe. Alas, the good professor has been suffering from a bad case of Trump Derangement Syndrome since November 2016. Yet I think hes still sound on confirmation issues. And recall, he was largely responsible back in 1987 for derailing the nomination of Yale law professor and Reagan Supreme Court nominee Robert Bork. An act for which Republicans never forgave him and which probably scuppered any chance he might otherwise have had to serve on the Supreme Court.

Senators Collins, Graham, Grassley, and Murkowski are on record as of 2018 that no Justice should be confirmed this close to a presidential election. Senator Romney should join them. Leader McConnells monumental hypocrisy cannot be allowed to prevail.  Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) September 19, 2020

Politico adds the following possibilities to Tribes list:

Other GOP senators to keep an eye on are incumbents who face potentially tough races and may want to boost their bipartisan credibility, such as Cory Gardner of Colorado, Martha McSally of Arizona, Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Joni Ernst of Iowa. But these senators have also stuck close to Trump and may not want to upset his supporters. McSally already announced her support for holding a vote on Trumps nominee.

Court Has Already Moved Far to the Right

Now, Democrats dont want you to know this. But over the last couple of decades, even some of their nominees have helped push the Court to the right, on a variety of issues, such police procedural questions, various business-friendly decisions  such as class action limitations and caps on punitive damages  and civil liberties, search and seizure, and mandatory sentencing issues.

Even moreso than when the leadership knifed Bernie to appoint Biden, this election will now shape us between team Red and team Blue. The alternative would be to embracing the position of casting a pox on both these oligarchic houses, essentially one business party with two wings.

As Caitlin Johnstone explains in RBG Death Means Two-Headed Uniparty Will Threaten Americans With Removal Of Civil Rights:

The opportunistic galvanization process has already begun before Ginsburgs body is even cold, with liberal influencers calling Democrats to rally to a November win for the notorious RBG and Trump supporters dropping their faux anti-establishment schtick and metamorphosing into a bunch of mini-Mitch McConnells. Leftists are being shrieked at by mainstream Dems that they need to fall in line and support Biden or theyre personally responsible for every civil right that is taken away by Ginsburgs replacement. Im not here to tell Americans how to vote in November. Id just like to quickly point out once again that an establishment which threatens to remove your civil rights if you dont support it is an establishment that doesnt deserve to exist. Of course it doesnt look like thats whats happening if you subscribe to the mainstream consensus perspective that Americas political system has two separate and oppositional parties. If that is your viewpoint, you will see one bad party trying to take away peoples civil liberties and one good party trying to stop them. If however you recognize that America has two parties that are owned and operated by a single oligarchic class which has more or less the same overarching goal as far as ordinary people are concerned, it looks completely different. If you understand that America has a two-headed one-party system designed to shrink the spectrum of acceptable debate down to arguments about how oligarchic agendas should be facilitated rather than if they should, what you see is a single entity threatening to take away your civil liberties if you dont support it. A single establishment threatening to punch you with its right hand if you dont let it punch you with its left.

Johnstone asks what is the correct stance to follow in this situation? Im not so sure.

But I believe that there are plenty of arguments the commentariat can come up with. So I turn the issue over to you, dear readers, for discussion.
An event in the garden area of the FCJ in the early 1980s

Some of FCJ sisters with members of the clergy outside the school

This year marked a very significant event in the life of the community in Bunclody and within the education sector across the county as an association dating back 159 years came to an end.

On May 31, the religious order of nuns, Faithful Companions of Jesus (FCJ) formally left their convent in Bunclody which was their home for that entire period.

Unfortunately, due to the Covid-19 lockdown their departure was a quiet event and while the event was marked with a mass of thanksgiving with the FCJ school community in March it wasn't possible to hold the mass in the parish church as had been planned.

However, the sisters are looking forward to having a Mass of Thanksgiving when it's permissible to gather again in large groups.

In this article, Sr Brid Liston, FCJ, on behalf of the FCJ Sisters, outlines the significance of the links between her order and Bunclody and highlights how the FCJ Sisters entrust their name, their home and their school to education.

'We want to celebrate the gift of these years to the FCJ Society and to the people of Bunclody and way beyond its immediate environs, so when the school opens this year it will be living with Covid-19 and a school now extended into the convent building, with FCJ Sisters no longer present.

In 1861, when the FCJ sisters first arrived in Bunclody they took charge of the girl's primary school.

It is known from an advertisement placed in the People newspaper, five days after the arrival of the sisters, that they immediately opened a boarding school for girls.

Within four years, they had 54 boarders and 10 Sisters in the community. From the beginning of the FCJ presence in Bunclody, the gospel values of companionship, deep respect for each individual, justice, integrity, faithfulness, excellence, gentleness and compassion, as lived by Marie Madeleine, the foundress, were foundational to the life of the schools.

These values have been handed down from generation to generation and have always remained central to FCJ education.

In 2009, the FCJ Society handed over the trusteeship of the school to the Le Cheile Schools Trust with the confidence of knowing we had such a fine staff to carry forward this FCJ tradition in education.

This year, the FCJ Sisters mark the bicentenary of the foundation of the FCJ Society by Marie Madeleine d'Houet, in 1820.

In closing the convent, we have deep gratitude and joy, knowing the work of education, that the sisters began all those years ago, is continuing in such competent, professional, and caring hands.

As we leave, we remind staff, students and parents of the school motto: Le diogrias 's le dilseacht - Companionship with Fidelity.

In a world where many things are possible, we ask you most of all to be kind. Yes, work at gaining the best result you can from education, but be a friend, a companion, to the person beside you, to the people you meet each day.

Life is fragile and it can change in a split second; we need each other, we need to watch out for each other and we need God in a life that is transient and vulnerable.

As we leave the convent in Bunclody, the FCJ Sisters, say a very big thank you and pray for a fruitful future, full of hope to the people of Bunclody and its wider environment, the primary schools, Mr Brendan Daly, the FCJ School Principal, the Deputy Principals, the academic and ancillary school staff, the Board of Management and Parents Council, the students and parents and all who ensure Christian education is treasured in our lives.

As a school of the Le Cheile Schools Trust, the FCJ Society entrust to each one of you our name, Faithful Companions of Jesus, our greatest treasure; our home, the FCJ Convent, and the FCJ Secondary School, Bunclody.

We know you will guard this name carefully and always hold it with love, justice, and integrity.

We ask you in your turn, to pass-on this name and this great school to the next generation.

This is our parting gift to you as we begin the third century of the FCJ Society and may the bright light of the FCJ Secondary School be as blest as it was in its past.

Shining still with radiant light - brightly beaming to the last.'

We always knew the day would come but it was something you never thought about

When the FCJ sisters left their convent in Bunclody earlier this year, it was the end of an era and a historical link dating back to 1861.

A tradition of spiritual and curricular guidance and teaching culminated in two sisters remaining in the convent, Sr Madeleine Ryan and Sr Madeleine Hayes.

The former spoke to this newspaper about her time in the convent and her association with teaching, stretching back to the 1960s.

Sr Ryan, who now lives in Bunclody town, was resident in the FCJ convent for 40 years - albeit not continuously.

'I was there for 40 years in the convent and I started my teaching career in Bunclody,' said Sr Madeleine.

'I wasn't there continuously for the 40 years but I came back there in 1986 and remained there until I retired in 2008,' she added.

Originally from County Limerick, Sr Madeleine joined the order in 1965 and attended UCD where she qualified as a teacher; she taught English, History and Maths.

'When I was a student I stayed at Christmas and Easter in Bunclody,' she said.

'Then when I was sent to Bunclody, I absolutely loved it,' she added.

When she first arrived at the school, it had around 100 boarders and Sr Madeleine said she was very fond of everyone there.

'I loved the parents and the kids, I thought they were great,' she said.

From her initial time in FCJ, she went to America for a year but came back again to Bunclody for another year.

'I then went to the USA again and when I came home I became the Deputy Principal of St Tiernan's in Dublin,' she said.

'We had 54 first year students and we built it up each year,' she added. 'It was what you might call now a green field site and it was a great way to start it off.'

She remained there from 1980 to 1985 and then went for a year to Laurel Hill, in Limerick, before returning to Bunclody in 1986.

'I was 21 years in Bunclody when I went there first,' she said.

She said the nuns at the time ranged in age from their 80s to seven sisters who were active in the school.

'Gradually, as they got older and retired, lay teachers took over the place,' she said.

Sr Madeleine almost took up a position at a school in London. However, in 1971, the Principal of FCJ Bunclody had written to the General Superior to see if there was an FCJ sister who could teach and that led to Sr Madeleine being invited to take up a teaching post at the school.

'At the time, it was the start of free education and as that took root, the children's school got bigger,' she said.

'There were 160 pupils when I came and when I left there were over 400,' she added.

Sr Madeleine said there were two classes in the school when she started and that number grew during her time there.

'The kids went through the primary school and then to secondary,' she said.

'They didn't have that opportunity up until 1968,' she added.

She said that prior to that most children didn't get the opportunity to attend college and that many finished school and took up employment in the community.

Sr Madeleine said there are much more opportunities for young people now and that is a very positive thing. She said there was a gradual change from people leaving school to take up jobs to going on to Third Level college.

'Now the majority of students go on to Third Level college and that's good,' she said.

'That's a good thing, it's wonderful to witness,' she added.

She said her time associated with the FCJ led to her encountering many fantastic people.

Sr Madeleine was Principal in the school for 17 years and thoroughly enjoyed her time in that role. She said there have been many changes within the education sector over the years but reiterated the point that ,when it comes to college courses, people have such a vast choice now, it's difficult to keep up with the wide range of options available.

'It's all good though because it's good for people to have a choice,' she said.

Sr Madeleine retired from teaching in 2008 but she did come back to Bunclody to teach maths for a while.

Before she retired, there were three sisters left in the community and then one of them went to Laurel Hill Nursing Home in Limerick.

'That led to the final change,' she said.

'I supposed we always knew the day would come but it was something you never thought about,' she said.

'The expectation was always there that when we would go, the school would take over the convent,' she added. 'It's a sound building and it's good for the school because it gives them room to expand a bit.'

Sr Madeleine said it's good that the school will now have more room and space to do things - especially in the current climate of social distancing.

'As it turned out, it proved to be a lifeline for the school,' she said.

The FCJ has been a mixed school for many years but it wasn't always that way and began life as a girls boarding school.

How that dynamic changed came about under quirky circumstances, as Sr Madeline outlined.

'In 1969, after free education came in, three boys who would have been going into secondary school arrived at the door of the convent and asked to speak to the Reverend Mother,' she said.

'They asked if they could attend the school and that was it. She said yes, and that September 14 boys started in the school,' said Sr Madeleine.

With regard to the nuns' association with the school coming to an end, she said: 'We left very quickly in the end.'

It was planned there would be a special Mass to mark the occasion of the FCJ sisters leaving the convent, however, when the pandemic hit, those plans were curtailed.

However, the school did hold an in-house Mass, which Sr Madeleine was very appreciate of.

'Both Sr Madeleine [Hayes] and I were given drawings of the convent and I have it here beside me [in the house],' she said.

Career guidance teacher, Sr Gerardine Curran, was the last FCJ sister to teach in the school and when Sr Madeleine left the convent, alongside Sr Hayes, they brought an end to a 159-year link.
Serving the community is at the heart of what Carly Gasparini does as executive director with the Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation, and in mid-October she will bring that same motivation with her to a new role.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 19/9/2020 (489 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Advertisement Advertise With Us

Carly Casparini, executive director of the Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation, will be leaving the organization to head Westman Immigrant Services as of Oct. 12. (Matt Goerzen/The Brandon Sun)

Serving the community is at the heart of what Carly Gasparini does as executive director with the Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation, and in mid-October she will bring that same motivation with her to a new role.

After five years with the renewal corporation, Gasparini moves a few blocks over to Westman Immigrant Services.

Gasparini said while the move is a new adventure, offering personal and professional growth, the nature of the work is similar.

"I was raised in a world where the golden rule mattered  you treated others as you wanted to be treated," Gasparini said.

"I watched my parents and my grandparents, they all believed in doing good work where they served their community in one way or another. I think Ive always known that doing good work that mattered was part of who I was."

Gasparini graduated with a Masters degree in downtown revitalization, after acquiring an undergraduate degree in sociology. Her work with the renewal corporation was a culmination of those interests.

"Weve had a lot of great successes working for some of our most vulnerable populations in our community, particularly those that utilize the downtown. But we have also been a champion for downtown and a force for the renewal and creating vibrancy in our downtown," she said.

The renewal corporation was created 20 years ago and is one of 13 in the province. Gasparini calls it a made-in-Manitoba model for community development. The role of the corporation is to work with the community to create five-year plans that indicate what the priorities are for the community and what issues need looking at, as well as what strategies can be used.

The current five-year plan has priorities such as art, the creation of art downtown, and using art to celebrate culture downtown. Ending homelessness and creating employment opportunities are also priorities.

"Theres always work to do on our downtown, but weve had some major wins. We had 10 murals installed in our downtown. Weve seen some major affordable housing opportunities come downtown. Massey Manor had just opened when I started in this position, and its been reopened since (after a fire). We support a lot of those types of projects through some of the work we do around homelessness," Gasparini said.

"The Safe and Warm Shelter moved into Samaritan while I was here. All of those things are certainly work done by our community partners, but we pride ourselves on being a good support for our agencies downtown."

The work has been more than a job for her. It allowed her to live the values of her upbringing. Going to bed feeling good about the days work matters to her, and thats a defining factor of her time with the renewal corporation. She knows that will continue at Westman Immigrant Services.

As the executive director, Gasparini will lead a team of 45 paid employees and 100 volunteers. The non-profit organization provides settlement services, language programs and employment services to newcomers in Brandon and the western Manitoba region.

"Its not so different when you think of it on those terms. Our immigrant population is also one where building capacity within that population is an important piece," she said.

"And thats what I try and do in my current role at BNRC, to build capacity within individuals who are vulnerable. That is true about new immigrants. To build in that capacity in individuals is important to me. Serving our community in a new way is important to me."

Despite her excitement in embarking on a new path, leaving the renewal corporation isnt easy for Gasparini.

"I cannot say enough good things about my board, and my staff are so brilliant here. Weve got an incredible team at the BNRC that I will be very sad to leave," she said.

In a news release, board chairperson for Westman Immigrant Services Steven Robinson stated the board members welcome Gasparinis as their new executive director. She takes over from Lois MacDonald, who left in early summer.

"We are very excited about the addition to the WIS team," Robinson said.

"Carly will bring a new perspective to our expanding regional operations, and we anticipate that she will bring her demonstrated vitality to our programming and continue to move this organization forward."

 mletourneau@brandonsun.com

 Michele LeTourneau covers Indigenous matters for The Brandon Sun under the Local Journalism Initiative, a federally funded program that supports the creation of original civic journalism.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose 27-year tenure as the second female justice on the U.S. Supreme Court culminated a legal career dedicated to advancing the rights of women, has died. She was 87.

She died due to complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer and was surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, the court said in a statement Friday. Ginsburg battled with five bouts of cancer.

Her death comes less than two months before an election and gives President Donald Trump a chance to try to shift the already conservative nine-member court further to the right by filling a third seat. Senate confirmation of his nominee would increase the chances of a decision overturning or severely curtailing the Roe v. Wade abortion-rights ruling.

Only days before her death, National Public Radio reported that Ginsburg dictated this statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera: "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., previously has said the Senate would move to confirm any nominee this year, even though in 2016 McConnell blocked President Barack Obama from having a hearing on his nominee, Merrick Garland. That set the stage for Trump to nominate Neil Gorsuch instead.

"Our nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague," Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement. "Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her -- a tireless and resolute champion of justice."

Long before President Bill Clinton appointed her to the Supreme Court in 1993, Ginsburg argued cases before the court as a scholar and advocate of the women's rights movement. She was a high-profile proponent of the unsuccessful effort to adopt an Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

On the court, she built a record as one of the most liberal members, supporting gay and abortion rights, Obama's health-care law and restrictions on the death penalty.

Her strong dissents from rulings that cut back on voting rights and affirmative action won her the admiring nickname "Notorious R.B.G." Two films about her were released in 2018: the documentary "RBG" and a Hollywood biography, "On the Basis of Sex."

She drew criticism during the 2016 presidential campaign when she denounced Trump, who had clinched the Republican nomination, as a "faker" in a media interview. Ginsburg later said she regretted the comments. Trump called on her to resign, saying on Twitter that "her mind is shot."

Ginsburg said she experienced gender discrimination personally when she tried, without success, to join New York City's major law firms after being a star law student at Harvard and Columbia universities in the late 1950s.

Her experience was similar to that of the first female justice, Sandra Day O'Connor, a Ronald Reagan appointee who joined the court in 1981 and retired in 2006.

Ginsburg made her clearest mark on the Supreme Court when she was fighting what she saw as gender discrimination, often challenging her male colleagues on views she considered sexist.

When the court voted 5-4 in 2007 to uphold a federal ban on a late-term abortion procedure, Ginsburg took issue with the all-male majority's professed concern that women might regret having an abortion and thus suffer a loss of self-esteem. Such thinking "reflects ancient notions about women's place in the family and under the Constitution," she wrote.

"I was a law school teacher," she said during a 2015 interview at the court. "And that's how I regard my role here with my colleagues, who haven't had the experience of growing up female and don't fully appreciate the arbitrary barriers that have been put in women's way."

Ginsburg wrote the court's 7-1 decision in 1996 that ended the men-only admission policy at the state-funded Virginia Military Institute. In 2003, she joined the majority in upholding an affirmative action plan at the University of Michigan Law School, while dissenting from a second decision that overturned a race-conscious undergraduate admissions policy at the University of Michigan.

In 2013, she was the first justice to officiate at a same-sex marriage, and two years later was part of the 5-4 majority that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. She voted in two cases to uphold key provisions of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, and dissented from the 5-4 Citizens United ruling in 2010 that struck down decades-old restrictions on corporate campaign spending.

Since 2010, Ginsburg was the senior member of the court's liberal wing, with the prerogative to write the main dissenting opinion.

She did just that in 2013, when a 5-4 court threw out a core part of the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965, citing reduced incidents of discrimination as a reason. Ginsburg said the majority's approach was "like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet."

That dissent, and another one in an affirmative action case, inspired New York University law student Shana Knizhnik to create a Tumblr site dedicated to Ginsburg. She titled it Notorious R.B.G. -- a play on the late rapper Notorious B.I.G. -- offering T-shirts and an admiring book about Ginsburg.

Ginsburg became a devotee of the site. "I think it's amusing," she said in 2015. "It's quite well done. There are some serious things on it. There are some funny things."

In 2015 Ginsburg joined Justice Stephen Breyer in calling for the court to consider whether the death penalty is constitutional.

In the bitterly fought case that decided the 2000 presidential election for Republican George W. Bush, Ginsburg said in dissent that thousands of votes had not been counted.

In a 2009 interview with USA Today, Ginsburg said the Supreme Court needed more female justices. "Women belong in all places where decisions are being made," said Ginsburg, who was the only woman on the high court from 2006, when O'Connor retired, to August 2009, when she was joined by Sonia Sotomayor. In 2010, the appointment of Elena Kagan raised the number of women to three.

Ginsburg was one of the most durable justices in history. Before a liver tumor, she had contracted colon, lung and on two occasions pancreatic cancer, and she was hospitalized on multiple occasions for less serious ailments. Until 2019, when she was recovering from surgery to remove masses from one of her lungs, Ginsburg never missed an argument because of illness.

Ruth Joan Bader was born on March 15, 1933, in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn, N.Y. Her father, Nathan Bader, owned clothing stores. Her mother, the former Celia Amster, died of cervical cancer when Ruth was 17.

In an interview for the PBS series "The Jewish Americans," Ginsburg recalled her first experience with anti-Semitism, during a car trip with her parents: "There was a bed-and-breakfast and there was a sign outside and it read, 'No dogs or Jews allowed.' I had never seen that before. And that was obviously unsettling."

At Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., she had a blind date with a classmate, Martin Ginsburg, and found him to be, as she later said, "the only young man I dated who cared that I had a brain." They married after she graduated, first in her class, in 1954.

Ginsburg joined her husband as a student at Harvard Law School where "women were not looked upon as people who should be there," she later told the New York Times.

She finished legal studies at the top of her class at Columbia Law School after her husband got a job in New York City. At both Harvard and Columbia, she won election to the law review. Unable to land a job with a major law firm, she clerked for a federal district judge.

"The traditional law firms were just beginning to turn around on hiring Jews," she later wrote. "But to be a woman, a Jew and a mother to boot -- that combination was a bit too much."

In 1963, she joined the faculty at Rutgers University School of Law in New Jersey. In 1972, Columbia Law School made her the first female tenured professor in its 114-year history, and she became the first director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Women's Rights Project.

At the ACLU, Ginsburg became a leading practitioner before the Supreme Court, planning and arguing sex-discrimination cases that cumulatively established for the first time that discrimination against women was banned by the Constitution's equal-protection clause.

Step by gradual step, sometimes using men as the lead client, Ginsburg challenged unequal treatment of men and women in six cases, winning five. Her steady, incremental assault brought comparisons to how Thurgood Marshall challenged racial discrimination in the years before he joined the Supreme Court.

In one early win, Ginsburg helped argue the case of a female Air Force lieutenant whose husband was denied the housing allowances and medical benefits automatically given to military wives. In another case, she successfully represented a man seeking survivor benefits from Social Security after his wife died in childbirth, leaving him to raise his infant son. A subsequent case also won by Ginsburg extended the survivor benefits to all widowers, regardless of whether they had children.

President Jimmy Carter appointed her to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in 1980. In 13 years on that court, Ginsburg staked out the center as a swing vote who sided not infrequently with her Republican colleagues.

Justice Byron White's announcement in March 1993 that he would retire gave Democrats their first Supreme Court pick in more than 25 years.

The Senate confirmed Ginsburg 96-3. She offered a straightforward response when asked at her Senate hearing about abortion, saying the Constitution's equal-protection guarantee assured women "that she be the decision maker, that her choice be controlling" on such matters.

On the court she was known for working long hours, often working from home until well past midnight, and for her collegiality, continuing a close friendship with her ideological opposite on the court, Justice Antonin Scalia. Opera lovers, they appeared together as extras in Washington National Opera productions, and they were photographed riding an elephant together in India. Scalia died in 2016.

Ginsburg and her husband, who died in 2010, had two children, Jane, a professor at Columbia Law School, and James, a producer of classical music recordings.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 23:28:57|Editor: huaxia

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YAOUNDE, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- At least two civilians were killed and several others injured in incursions by the terror group Boko Haram that took place late Friday in Cameroon's Far North region, local sources said on Saturday.

Military sources said, Bok Haram targeted Kassa locality of Mora subdivision, killed a man and a woman.

Members of community defense groups commonly known as vigilante groups attempted to protect the civilians during the onslaught but were outnumbered by the militants who came in huge numbers, local authorities said.

Villagers interviewed by Xinhua said, hundreds of civilians have started fleeing the subdivision following repeated attacks from the terror group. Enditem
To me, a road trip is a form of escape. Sometimes I have a destination. Others, I hop in my car, cue my favorite tunes and change the scenery around me at 65 miles per hour. One hot late-summer day, I wanted to chase a road to its conclusion. So, I passed containers piled high at Port Houston Bayport Container Terminal, continued through a small neighborhood of unassuming homes, until the road ended at El Jardin Beach, a small bayside park in Pasadenas El Jardin del Mar neighborhood.

As wind and kite surfers took advantage of the breeze and container ships made their way to the port in the distance, I chatted with beachgoers, distancing from each other, but all enjoying their escape.

I try to come here every day, said Doug Janda, of El Jardin del Mar, as he sat with his cooler close by, waiting for his neighbors to join him. Its just a happy place.

Dee Acosta, of Seabrook, kept cool sitting in the waves with her 1-year-old, Zachariah Guillot. We come here a lot. My husband grew up around here; we are thinking about buying a house here.

Though El Jardins mailing address is Seabrook, its technically located in Pasadena, thanks to lawsuits and annexations over the course of its nearly 100-year history.

Developer Edwin Kennedy of Houston founded the community in 1923 as a quieter waterfront experience compared to the casinos in Kemah or the large dance halls in La Porte. A 1924 advertisement for El Jardin in the Houston Chronicle listed 296 available lots, with over fifty acres devoted to parks and beach and an abundant supply of artesian water.

The old ad boasted that no public dance hall, and no week-end or tourist camping will be permitted. Even today, peaceful privacy prevails.

Most visit to escape the Texas heat without dealing with Galveston crowds. With only a few parking spaces and no street parking, social distancing didnt seem to be an issue during my visit.

It was a typical Texas hot and muggy August day. Lea Rutherford, of Sugar Land, and her friend, Shundra Cannon, of Pearland, had just finished laying out their blankets and books to read.

The pair had come in search of a slice of normalcy  a grounding moment in a time when many things feel out of our control.

A friend of mine is really sick with COVID, Rutherford said. I first came to this beach with her, so today, Im here to embody her spirit. Water is serenity for me.

Its nice to get away from so much uncertainty, Cannon added. A getaway where you can still feel safe.

Below are some of my favorite moments from the beach.

Elizabeth Conley is a staff photographer for the Houston Chronicle. A professional photojournalist for more than 20 years, she still feels she has the best job in the world every time people let her share their stories. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram, or reach out to her by email at elizabeth.conley@chron.com.

Photo editing and design by Jasmine Goldband.

***
A police officer has been left bruised and with serious cuts to his face, arms, and head after a violent incident in a home in Perth's northern suburbs on Friday evening.

Police are investigating the attack, in which another officer was punched in the face and spat at.

Police are investigating the incident. Credit:Marina Neil

Officers were called to an address on Nanovich Avenue, in Girrawheen, around 5pm, where four men not known to the resident of the property had entered the house.

According to police, as officers were writing down their details, one of the men, a 29-year-old from Kenwick, attempted to escape by climbing over the fence.
Senate Republicans may be forced to eat their own words four years after they blocked Barack Obama from filling a vacant supreme court seat in an election. The circumstances are the same  only the years, the names and the sides have changed.

In February of 2016, conservative legal giant Justice Antonin Scalia, died, leaving a space on the Supreme Court. The process is relatively straightforward: The sitting president nominates a qualified candidate, and the Senate votes to confirm with a simple majority.

But just hours after Scalias death, Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced that he would block any such move. It was an election year, he said; the American people should have a voice in deciding who should sit on the court, and the appointment should wait until after the election. Senate Republicans joined with him in blocking the appointment.

It was an unprecedented decision, a new principle, that sparked an almighty political battle in Washington. In the end, Mitch McConnell got his way, and Merrick Garland, the moderate candidate nominated by Barack Obama, did not take a seat on the court. Instead, Donald Trump nominated and confirmed Neil Gorsuch.

Four years later, and the tables are turned. Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on Friday aged 87, leaving a space on the Supreme Court to be filled. Her death comes much closer to the election, just six weeks away.

The Republican-controlled senate now has the power to confirm a justice nominated by the current president, Donald Trump. But to do so, many would have to directly contradict their own 2016 position.

Here is what Republicans said in 2016 about appointing Supreme Court justices in an election year:

The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.  Sen. Mitch McConnell, 13 February 2016.

This nomination will be determined by whoever wins the presidency in the polls.  Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), 23 February 2016.

This is the last year of a lame-duck, and if Ted Cruz or Donald Trump get to be president, theyve all asked us not to confirm or take up a selection by president Obama. So if a vacancy occurs in their last year, of their first term, guess what, you will use their words against them. You will use their words against them. I want you to use my words against me. If there is a Republican president in 2016 and a vacancy occurs in the last year of the first term, you can say Lindsey Graham said lets let the next president, whoever it might be, make that nomination, and you could use my words against me and you'd be absolutely right.  Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R-SC) 10 March, 2016

I'll tell you this, if an opening comes in President Trump's term, and the primary process has started, we will wait until the next election.  Lindsey Graham (R-SC), 3 October, 2018 .

We have a unique opportunity for the American people to have a voice in the direction of the Supreme Court. Our side believes very strongly that the people deserve to be heard, and they should be allowed to decide, through their vote for the next president, the type of person who should be on the Supreme Court.  Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), 7 April, 2016.

The president [Obama] exercised his unquestioned authority under the constitution, to nominate someone to this vacancy. But that same constitution reserves to the United States senate, and the United States senate alone, the right to either grant or withhold consent to that nominee.  Sen. John Cornyn, (R-Texas). 16 March, 2016.

Justice Scalia was an American hero. We owe it to him, & the Nation, for the Senate to ensure that the next President names his replacement.  Ted Cruz (R-Texas) 13 February, 2016.

It has been 80 years since the Senate has confirmed any judicial vacancy for the Supreme Court that occurred during a presidential election and the Republican majority in the Senate last year announced before Merrick Garland was nominated, before anyone was nominated, that we were going to keep this seat open and let the American people decide.  Ted Cruz, (R-Texas) 31 January, 2016.
Image Credit... International Herald Tribune

M. Rocher, commissary of police at Levallois, has, on the demand of a number of the inhabitants, opened an inquiry in regard to an old man popularly known as le pere Harang.

Harang, who is over sixty years of age, is said to have saved over a hundred persons from drowning and has never claimed the modest sum awarded in each case by the Prefecture of Police. He is employed on one of the floating warehouses on the Seine.

When M. Rocher asked him how many people he had saved the courageous old man replied, Oh, Monsieur le Commissaire, I dont really remember. I did my duty, didnt I? Well, then, thats all that is necessary.

Nothing that the commissaire could say could draw anything further from him.

 The New York Herald, European Edition, September 19, 1895.
The Daily Beast

Reuters/Arnd WiegmannTheatrical rock superstar Meat Loaf, whose Bat Out of Hell is one of the bestselling albums of all time, has died at the age of 74. Reports say the singer and actor had recently fallen sick with COVID-19.In an emotional statement posted to Facebook early Friday, the performers family said he was with his wife when he died and had said his final goodbyes to his two daughters in the past 24 hours. The star sold 100 million albums in his five-decade career and starred in movie
The Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL), a PSU under the Dept. of Atomic Energy (DAE), Govt. of India, has called for online applications from eligible and interested Indian nationals for filling Seventeen (17) vacancies to the post of Technical Officer on contract on a fulltime basis to be posted at ECIL units in Hyderabad, Cochin, Chennai, Mumbai, Mundra, Durgapur and Chandigarh in India on a fulltime basis. The registration-cum-application process towards the same started on September 18, 2020 and closes on September 30, 2020 by 4:00 pm.

CRITERIA DETAILS Name Of The Posts Technical Officer Organisation Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL) Educational Qualification B.E/B.Tech/Degree in Electronics & Communication/Electrical and Electronics/Computer Science Engineering/Information Technology engineering disciplines Experience Freshers can apply Job Responsibilities null Skills Required Desirable Job Location Hyderabad, Cochin, Chennai, Mumbai, Mundra, Durgapur and Chandigarh Salary Scale Rs. 23,000 per month Industry Electronics Application Start Date September 18, 2020 Application End Date September 30, 2020

ECIL Recruitment 2020: Age Criteria And Fees

Candidates interested in applying for the post of Technical Officer through ECIL Recruitment 2020 must not be more than 30 years of age as on August 31, 2020 with relaxation (upper age limit) up to 3 years (OBC) and 5 years (SC/ST) respectively as mentioned in the ECIL Recruitment notification.

For details regarding application fee for Technical Officer post through ECIL Recruitment 2020, refer to the official ECIL Recruitment notification given at the end of the article.

SBI SO Recruitment 2020 For 26 Specialist Cadre Officer Posts, Register Online From Today

ECIL Recruitment 2020: Education And Experience

Candidates interested in applying for the post of Technical Officer through ECIL Recruitment 2020 must possess a B.E/B.Tech/Degree in Electronics & Communication/Electrical and Electronics/Computer Science Engineering/Information Technology engineering disciplines with minimum 60% marks (aggregate) from a AICTE/UGC recognised Institution/University with minimum one-year (post-qualification) industrial experience as detailed in ECIL Recruitment notification.

ECIL Recruitment 2020: Selection And Pay Scale

The selection of candidates as Technical Officer through ECIL Recruitment 2020 will be done based on Merit, Academic Performance and Document Verification as specified in ECIL Recruitment notification.

Candidates selected as Technical Officer through ECIL Recruitment 2020 will be paid an emolument of Rs. 23,000 per month as notified in ECIL Recruitment notification.

SBI Recruitment 2020 For 33 Deputy Manager And Manager Posts, Register Online Starting Today

ECIL Recruitment 2020: How To Apply

Candidates interested in joining as Technical Officer through ECIL Recruitment 2020 must register online on the official ECIL website in the ECIL Careers section, and submit their applications on or before September 30, 2020 by 4:00 pm.

Download ECIL Recruitment 2020 PDF Notification for Technical Officer
TRENTON  Youre fired!

Mayor Reed Gusciora axed council-appointed attorney Edward Kologi on Friday.

In a letter, he accused the lawyer of breaching his contract by unilaterally providing advice to city legislators.

Kologi was supposed to operate under the direction of city law director John Morelli but allegedly went rogue for council in the shady Roebling Wire Works deal.

Unfortunately, you have breached your contract in certain instances wherein you have unilaterally provided legal advice and direction to the Council that is in contravention of your contract as well as the direction of our Law Department, the mayor wrote.

Indeed, the Robertson Court warned, [h]aving two attorneys doing duplicate work creates the potential for confusion and even stalemate in the event that the advice given by both differs.  You are not authorized from this point forward to perform any further legal duties for council.

The named partner of Kologi Simitz had an $84,000 contract with the city to serve as special counsel for legislators who distrust Morellis legal advice.

The lawyers were at odds recently over whether legislators could change the date of Trentons municipal election by referendum.

Morelli said nothing in the law precluded council from adopting the change as a ballot question while Kologi said it could be done by ordinance and hed have to research whether the city could also do it by referendum.

Councilwoman Robin Vaughns previously adopted ordinance called for a referendum, but the governing body backtracked choosing to adopt the election change by ordinance at Thursdays meeting.

The decision drew the ire of critics who dont want council members to get another six months in office.

Kologis contract with the city was approved in July and paid him a flat rate of $7,000 a month, according to records.

Attempts to reach the attorney, who was admitted to the New Jersey bar in 1983, at his office were unsuccessful.

Council president Kathy McBride did not respond to a phone call seeking comment about Kologis sudden dismissal.

The lawyers firing is sure to escalate high tensions between Gusciora and some members of the governing body.

He didnt seem to care much during an interview Friday.

Hes run afoul of the Faulkner Act, and he stood by while they tried to sell the Art All Night building, said Gusciora, a former assemblyman and municipal prosecutor.

State records show hes no longer licensed to practice law in New Jersey.

Who would you stand by while they tried to sell a building in the cover of darkness? the mayor added.

The Trentonian and Gusciora called on AG Gurbir Grewal to investigate council for violation of the Open Public Meetings Act.

It met in executive session Sept. 3 with redeveloper John Liu, who pitched his vision to buy Wire Works for $200,000.

The Trentonian cannot independently confirm whether Kologi attempted to advise legislators not to hold the closed-door session, as a recording of the meeting doesnt exist, city clerk Matthew Conlon confirmed.

Those who sat in the session, speaking on condition of anonymity, say neither Kologi nor Morellii advised them against going forward with the private meeting.

Governing bodies can meet in executive session to discuss contract negotiations among themselves but not with the interested party.

Morelli has told The Trentonian he did not agree with the councils decision to hold the private session.

He said he tried getting more clarity about councils stated exception to OPMA. The agenda cited attorney-client privilege as the basis for going into executive session.

But, Morelli said, he was shunned by McBride, who wanted to exclude him from the closed-door meeting, audio shows.

The redeveloper Liu planned to turn the historic building, home to the annual Art All Night festival, into a face mask/PPE manufacturing plant.

He has since rescinded interest in the building after The Trentonian raised questions about his past.

Liu owed more than $100,000 in unpaid loans and taxes to a New Jersey man and the feds, records show. The IRS has two tax liens on his Elite Spiders LLC.

Liu balked on a previous redevelopment deal with Mercer County Community College to rehab a separate abandoned building in the capital city.

The wholesale retailer owner that imports merchandise from China was also accused of flouting environmental laws in California.

One city lawmaker was unswayed by Lius issues, instructing councils redevelopment attorney John Hoffman to draw up an ordinance that makes Liu the redeveloper of the Wire Works project.
Queen Letizia of Spain stunned in a red dress yesterday as she joined her husband King Felipe at the Royal Theatre in Madrid.

The royal, 48, donned a face mask and striking lace A-line dress as she attended the inaugural theatre opening for the 2020/21 season.

The mother-of-two, who recently returned from a nationwide tour with her husband and daughters, Princess Leonor, 14, and Princess Sofia, 12, looked relaxed as she waved at cameras.

Queen Letizia of Spain stunned in a red dress yesterday as she joined her husband King Felipe at the Royal Theatre in Madrid

The royal, 48, donned a face mask and striking lace A-line dress as she attended the inaugural theatre opening for the 2020/21 season. She is pictured with King Felipe, 52

The former journalist, who is known to reign high in the style stakes, paired her lace dress with a matching slingback stilettos which she complemented with a golden clutch bag.

Keeping jewellery to a minimum, Letizia opted for just a ring and dainty golden hoops.

Meanwhile, her husband Felipe donned a double breasted navy suit and powder blue tie with a pin-striped shirt.

Showing off her natural beauty, Letizia wore minimal make-up, donning a light lashing of mascara and a smokey-eyed look.

The mother-of-two, who recently returned from a nationwide tour with her husband and daughters, Princess Leonor, 14, and Princess Sofia, 12, looked relaxed as she waved at cameras

Meanwhile, her husband Felipe donned a double breasted navy suit and powder blue tie with a pin-striped shirt. The couple are pictured with other theatre goers

It comes a day after the couple attended an event at the National Library in Madrid, again donning protective face coverings for the grand opening.

Queen Letizia opted for a midi length blue dress for the occasion, matching the stunning gown with a simple navy bag and set of heels.

The couple looked relaxed as they arrived at the reception and posed for pictures outside with Spanish Minister of Culture and Sports, Jose Manuel Rodriguez Uribes and the regional president of Castilla y Leon, Alfonso Fernandez Manueco.

The former journalist, who is known to reign high in the style stakes, paired her lace dress with a matching slingback stilettos which she complemented with a golden clutch bag

Keeping jewellery to a minimum, Letizia opted for just a ring and dainty golden hoops which she paired with a red dress

The exhibition is opening on what would have been the author's 100th birthday held at the National Library in the city.

It comes amid a busy period for the royal couple, with Queen Letizia and King Felipe marking the 125th anniversary of local paper El Heraldo de Aragon (Aragon Herald) earlier this week at the newspaper's headquarters.

Letizia married King Felipe 16 years ago at Cathedral Santa Maria la Real de la Almudena in Madrid.

Letizia married King Felipe ten years ago at Cathedral Santa Maria la Real de la Almudena in Madrid. They are pictured yesterday at the theatre

The relationship began in November 2002 and in 2003, just months after she had been promoted to the position of anchor on the national news channel.

She then quit her job and days later the royal engagement was announced.

The former newsreader is the granddaughter of a taxi driver and the eldest daughter of Jesus Jose Ortiz Alvarez, a journalist, and first wife Maria de la Paloma Rocasolano Rodriguez, a nurse and hospital union representative.

She attended public high school and did a degree at the Complutense University of Madrid. She later gained an MA in Audiovisual Journalism at the Institute for Studies in Audiovisual Journalism.

King Juan Carlos abdicated in 2014 in favour of his son, now King Felipe VI.

Letizia married King Felipe 16 years ago at Cathedral Santa Maria la Real de la Almudena in Madrid. The couple are pictured inside the theatre today
By Express News Service

MYSURU: Amid the Covid-19 surge, schools in the state are all set to reopen from September 21 for the current academic year. However, regular classes will commence only after the Union Government issues guidelines in this regard.Primary Education Minister S Suresh Kumar on Friday said schools will be open from 9 am to 12 noon and students can interact with teachers to clarify doubts, as they have been attending only online classes for the past tow months. Wearing of masks, maintaining social distancing will be mandatory. The admission process for classes 1 to 10 will be completed before September 30, he pointed out.

Speaking to media persons here, he said schools have been directed to collect fees for only one term, based on last years structure. The DDPI and BEOs will look into any violations or lapses by school managements and aggrieved parents can approach the BEO concerned, he added.Children are curious to know when schools will reopen. But, on the other hand, parents are apprehensive about sending their wards to schools. The Education Department will address all the concerns of the parents, the minister said.

On the trend of children from private institutions joining government schools, he said this is a positive development and assured that the government is prepared to provide all facilities to students. If private school managements refuse to issue transfer certificates, the BEOs are empowered to issue them in time to help children join schools of their choice, he said.

The Education Departments Vidyagama and Sethubanda programmes, being aired on Doordarshan, have had an overwhelming response, which may have also prompted parents to rethink about admitting their wards in government schools, he felt.
On the evening of September 2, Sarala Khawas, 22, of Chandragiri-9, Kathmandu gave birth to a child. Amidst the fear of the coronavirus infection and the resultant prohibitory order in the capital, it was very difficult for her family to find an ambulance and take her to a hospital. So, her family considered it safer to make her deliver the child at home.

Though Khawas gave birth to her child at around 7 pm, she was not out of risks as her placenta was not taken out till midnight. Due to that, the family members were left with no choice but to take her to a hospital.

Her brother-in-law Ram Chandra says, We called a taxi. But, the taxi driver refused to take her to the hospital saying that he will have problems while returning (the prohibitory order was in effect). Then, we somehow managed a vehicle from near our house. It was already midnight by then.

The new mothers condition was getting worse and worse. The family rushed her to Paropakar Maternity and Womens Hospital.

Sangeeta Mishra, the director of the hospital, says, She was dead on arrival at the hospital.

Khawas, a resident of the countrys capital, died at an early age only because she could not reach the hospital on time.

Coronavirus positive report after funeral

After the death of Khawas, her swab sample was collected and sent for a test for coronavirus at around 6 in the morning. However, the hospital allowed her family to take the body from the hospital.

Before giving birth, Khawas neither had fever nor cough. Hence, the family was convinced that she did not have coronavirus. Ram Chandra shares, We didnt have any PPE. We took her body to Swayambhu wearing a mask and buried the body as per our ethnic traditions.

However, the next day, at 11 in the morning, Ram Chandra got a call from the hospital. He was informed that Khawas tested positive for the virus.

After knowing this, we were frightened as there were about 30-35 people present in her funeral and she was taken to and brought from the hospital in a vehicle, shares Ram Chandra.

This news also stopped all the rites and rituals after the funeral. Subsequently, Ram Chandra got a call from the Ministry of Health. Afterwards, their ward chairperson came to their house and asked them to register their names for testing. But, the tests did not happen immediately.

Ram Chandra laments, We have not been able to come out out of fear. If the tests had been done soon, we would have been able to complete the ritual without any fear.

Difficulty in finding hospitals for pregnant women

It is not only Khawas who has died. according to the Family Health Division of the Ministry of Health and Population, 80 new mothers died in the last five months. In most of the cases, the causes of death have been non-admission and referrals by hospitals to other institutions.

The fear of contracting the virus and the lack of transportation facilities to reach the hospital have made it very difficult for pregnant women to visit hospitals for regular checkups, explains director Dr Mishra.

On August 8, after suffering from labour pains, a 17-year-old pregnant woman from Sindhuli was rushed to the provincial maternity hospital in Janakpur. By then, the condition of the pregnant woman was already very serious.

However, instead of admitting her, the hospital referred her to Dhulikhel Hospital. Despite a request of the pregnant family, Dhulikhel Hospital also did not admit her due to the fear of coronavirus.

Then, the patient was rushed to the Paropakar Maternity Hospital in Kathmandu. Dr Mishra recalls, That was Saturday. By the time she was brought here, she had only two per cent of haemoglobin left in her body.

Mishra further says, We immediately operated on the patient by transfusing blood. If only the operation had been delayed by a few hours, she would have died.

Last week only, Sabina Thapa, a pregnant woman from Biratnagar, lost her life after she was not admitted by six hospitals. Thapa died in the emergency room of the BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, 7th Hospital, Dharan.

A woman died of labour pains in Morang after Koshi Hospital denied her admission, on Wednesday, September 9, 2020.

More difficulties for infected women

A pregnant woman of Devinagar, Butwal, was scheduled to give birth on September 4. However, she was diagnosed with Covid-19 around 20 days before the date. After that, the private hospital that was conducting regular checkups for her refused to take care of her.

Then, the family informed the Lumbini Provincial Hospital. However, the hospital responded that there was no provision for the delivery of the an infected womans child and nothing could happen for 10 days.

But, the scheduled delivery date was coming closer. Also, the pregnant woman was very scared as she was infected, Durga Sapkota, a relative of the pregnant woman, told OnlineKhabar, We could not get an ambulance on time. We finally reached Kohalpur Medical College in Nepalgunj on August 17.

Due to complications, the pregnant woman had to have a caesarean on August 21. How many others may have suffered and how many lives may have been lost as the delivery ward has not been built for such a long time? questions Sapkota, who is also a health worker.

At present, Lumbini Hospital has managed the delivery ward so that infected pregnant women can also give birth.

Extreme fear of contracting virus

President of Midwifery Society of Nepal, Dr Laxmi Tamang, says pregnant women are suffering due to unnecessary panic and inconvenience of transportation.

Recently, a pregnant woman died on her way to a primary health post after delivery could not be done at the health post in Mahakulung rural municipality, Solukhumbu, Dr Tamang says, I tried to arrange a helicopter to rescue her, but they did not pick my phone. When the phone was received, she had already died of excessive bleeding due to the inability to reach the hospital on time.

Tamang explains most of the pregnant women die due to excessive bleeding.

She also informs the number of pregnant women refusing to go to hospitals and favouring delivery at home or in a rural health facility due to the fear of coronavirus has increased.

I got the news that a pregnant woman from Tarakeshwar refused to go to a hospital due to fear of the virus. The pregnant woman had decided not to go to the hospital under any circumstances, even if she died, she would die at home, Tamang says.

Adding to this, Tamand briefs that due to the lack of referral mechanisms of the government of Nepal and the lack of ambulances in remote places, pregnant women are suffering.

There is no mechanism to refer the case to a higher level when the treatment at one level is not possible. If the patient that has to be referred to a higher-level treatment is kept in the same health facility for a maximum of two hours, there is a risk of death of the patient.

The number of pregnant women coming to hospitals for regular checkups has also come down due to the virus fear and restrictive orders. According to Dr Mishra, the number of obstetric OPD patients has dropped by 10 per cent recently. However, the number of pregnant women coming for delivery has not changed much.

Dr Mishra informs in the last five months (mid-March-mid-August), 8,398 women have given birth at various hospitals. In the same period of the previous year, 7,332 pregnant women gave birth at the facilities.

She warns that pregnant women have to face more complications in the treatment as they come to a hospital only in a critical condition.
Which 8 Indian beaches have been recommended for 'Blue Flag' eco-label for 1st time?

India

oi-Briti Roy Barman

New Delhi, Sep 19: On the eve of International Coastal Clean-Up Day which is celebrated across 100 countries since 1986, Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) on Friday announced at a virtual event that for the first time eight beaches of India have been recommended for the International eco-label, the Blue flag certification.

The eight beaches are Gujarat's Shivrajpur, Ghoghla in Daman and Diu, Kasarkod and Padubidri in Karnataka, Kerala's Kappad, Andhra Pradesh's Rushikonda, Odisha's Golden beach and Andaman and Nicobar's Radhanagar beach.

The recommendations are done by an independent national jury composed of eminent environmentalists and scientists.

Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar who couldn't attend the event said through a video message that the government is committed to clean the beaches across the country.

The minister said clean beaches are a testimony to good environment in coastal areas and India's many beaches are among the best in the world.

Javadekar mentioned about the issue of marine litter and oil spilling that has caused disturbances to the aquatic life and the Government of India is undertaking various efforts for the sustainable development of coastal regions.

The event also included the launch of India's own eco-label BEAMS by e-hoisting the flag -#IAMSAVINGMYBEACH simultaneously at these eight beaches under ICZM (Integrated Coastal Zone Management) project.

The flag hoisting program was conducted simultaneously at these 8 beaches virtually from MOEFCC and physically at the beaches by respective States/UTs through its MLAs and/or Chairman of Beach Management Committees (BMCs).

What is Blue Flag certification

Blue Flag beaches are considered world's cleanest beaches.

Blue Flag certification is a globally recognised eco-label accorded by an international agency ''Foundation for Environment Education, Denmark'' based on 33 stringent criteria in four major heads--environmental education and information, bathing water quality, environment management and conservation and safety and services in the beaches.

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

The ''Blue Flag'' beach is an eco-tourism model endeavouring to provide the tourists/beachgoers clean and hygienic bathing water, facilities/amenities, safe and healthy environment and sustainable development of the area.

In a video message, World Bank's country director Zunaid Khan lauded India's efforts towards cleaning up its beaches.

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Story first published: Saturday, September 19, 2020, 10:18 [IST]
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On the Frontline Against China, the US Coast Guard Is Taking on Missions the US Navy Can't Do

Competition with China has drawn more Pentagon resources to the Pacific, but the most visible U.S. military presence there...
"First and foremost, I would like to extend an apology on behalf of the District and the Board of School Directors to the student who was involved and to his family. They did not ask for this incident to occur, nor do they deserve the negative attention that it has brought." - school board President Tina Stoll
The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg aged 87 on Friday has presented President Donald Trump with the opportunity to appoint a further conservative judge to the court, pushing it further to the right.

Earlier in September, after it was revealed that Bader Ginsburg was undergoing treatment for cancer, Trump added 20 names to a shortlist of candidates he pledged to choose from if he had future vacancies to fill.

The list includes a variety of conservative judges who have ruled in Trump's favor, as well as three sitting GOP senators who have backed Trump's agenda while defending him during impeachment.

According to ABC, the current frontrunner is U.S. Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett, 48, a devout Catholic and pro-lifer.

Frontrunner U.S. Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett, 48, a devout Catholic and pro-lifer

Senator Ted Cruz is among those named by President Trump on his shortlist

Senator Tom Cotton suggested overturning Roe v Wade in appointed

She was already a finalist for the nomination in 2018 which eventually went to Brett Kavanaugh.

Barrett has previously written that Supreme Court precedents are not sacrosanct.

Liberals have taken these comments as a threat to the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide.

Barrett wrote that she agrees 'with those who say that a justice's duty is to the Constitution, and that it is thus more legitimate for her to enforce her best understanding of the Constitution rather than a precedent she thinks clearly in conflict with it'.

WHO'S WHO ON TRUMP'S SUPREME COURT SHORTLIST REPUBLICAN SENATORS Ted Cruz, Texas. 49 Josh Hawley, Missouri. 40 Tom Cotton, Arkansas. 43 JUDGES Bridget Bade, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. 54 Stuart Kyle Duncan, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. 48 James Ho, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, 47 Gregory Katsas, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. 56 Barbara Lagoa, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. 52 Carlos Muniz, Supreme Court of Florida. 51 Martha Pacold, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. 41 Peter Phipps, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. 47 Sarah Pitlyk, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. 43 Allison Jones Rushing, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. 38 Lawrence VanDyke, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. 47 CURRENT AND FORMER REPUBLICAN OFFICIALS Daniel Cameron, Kentucky Attorney General. 34 Paul Clement, partner with Kirkland & Ellis, former solicitor general. 54 Steven Engel, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel. 46 Noel Francisco, former U.S. solicitor general. 51 Christopher Landau, U.S. ambassador to Mexico. 56 Kate Todd, deputy White House counsel. 45 Advertisement

She is a former member of the Notre Dame's 'Faculty for Life' and in 2015 signed a letter to the Catholic Church affirming the 'teachings of the Church as truth.'

Among those teachings were the 'value of human life from conception to natural death' and marriage-family values 'founded on the indissoluble commitment of a man and a woman'.

Her deep Catholic faith was cited by Democrats as a large disadvantage, however, during her 2017 confirmation hearing for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit.

'If you're asking whether I take my faith seriously and I'm a faithful Catholic, I am,' Barrett responded during that hearing, 'although I would stress that my personal church affiliation or my religious belief would not bear in the discharge of my duties as a judge.'

Among the others on Trump's list are Senator Ted Cruz, Trump's closest competition for the Republican nomination in 2016; Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas, who immediately tweeted he would get rid of Roe v Wade if confirmed; and Department of Justice official Stephen Engel, who drafted a memo justifying denying cooperation with House investigations.

And also in the running are Christopher Landau, the current ambassador to Mexico; Republican Senator and Trump loyalist Josh Hawley; and Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, among others.

Trump's list includes several controversial choices, compiled of six women and fourteen men.

During a campaign speech in Bemidji, Minnesota on Friday night, delivered while unaware of Bader Ginsburg's death, Trump declared that Senator Cruz would be the appointment he would make if given the opportunity.

He stated that 'one of the things we have done that is so good with the Supreme Court, we have two Supreme Court justices. We will have at the end of my term approximately 300 federal judges'.

He later called Bader Ginsburg an 'amazing woman' having learned of her death.

Despite Cruz being named by Trump on Friday, the senator has said he does not want to sit on the court.

During an interview with Fox News on Sunday he was asked whether he wanted the job, to which he replied: 'I don't. It is deeply honoring, it's humbling to be included in the list  but it's not the desire of my heart. I want to be in the political fight.'

He was repeating a statement from 2016 in which he also said that the high court is 'not the desire of my heart', despite him writing a book about it that is set to be published on October 6.

James Ho is another Texas choice on the list, currently a judge on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and former Texas solicitor general.

One controversial potential choice is Senator Cotton, who immediately tweeted about overturning Roe v Wade if confirmed.

'The Supreme Court could use some more justices who understand the difference between applying the law and making the law, which the Court does when it invents a right to an abortion, infringes on religious freedom, and erodes the Second Amendment,' he wrote.

He added in another tweet: 'It's time for Roe v. Wade to go,' in reference to the landmark abortion rights ruling.'

On Friday night, however, he tweeted his condolences over Bader Ginsburg's death.

'I extend my condolences to the family of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg for their loss. She dedicated her life to public service, and now she is at peace,' he wrote.

Also on list is DOJ official Steven Engel, an assistant attorney general for office of legal counsel in Bill Barr's Justice Department.

Engel drafted memo justifying the White House posture of stonewalling House committee requests for administration documents before there was a formal impeachment inquiry.

'We conclude that the House must expressly authorize a committee to conduct an impeachment investigation and to use compulsory process in that investigation before the committee may compel the production of documents or testimony in support of the House's sole power of impeachment,' Engel wrote.

Steven A. Engel and U.S. Ambassador to Mexico - Christopher Landau

Senator Josh Hawley, R-Mo., asks a question during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing

Another potential nomination is Kentucky Attorney General David Cameron, who was many of a skein of black officials who spoke at the Republican National Convention.

Cameron attacked Joe Biden and 'anarchists' in his remarks, but also said: 'Republicans will never turn a blind eye to unjust acts,' adding, 'but neither will we accept an all-out assault on Western civilization.'

Joan Larsen is among the other women listed. She was appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court in 2015, elected to that court the following year, and to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in 2017.

She also clerked for the late Justice Antonin Scalia.

'We have differing views on law, politics and religion,' she wrote in The New York Times about Scalia's former law clerks. 'But I have yet to meet a Scalia clerk who was not grateful to the man who taught us, shaped us, and launched us into our lives in the law.'

Britt Grant is the youngest contender for Ginsburg's seat at 42 years old.

Ted Cruz is publishing a book about the Supreme Court but does not want to be appointed

She was a former Georgia Supreme Court justice and solicitor general, nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in April 2018 and confirmed 52-46 three months later.

She was sworn in by Justice Kavanaugh who lauded her as a 'fair and even-handed' judge.

Also on the list is Christopher Landau, the current US Ambassador to Mexico.

Ambassador Landau served as a law clerk to Justice Clarence Thomas, both on the Supreme Court of the United States and the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and to Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court of the United States, according to WNEP.

Senator Josh Hawley is a further controversial name on the list.

Prior to his election as Senator in Missouri in 2018, Senator Hawley served as Attorney General of the State of Missouri, was an Associate Professor at the University of Missouri School of Law, and was an attorney with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.

Senator Hawley also served as a law clerk to Chief Justice John Roberts on the Supreme Court of the United States and Judge Michael McConnell on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.

James C. Ho, nominee to be a judge for the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, testifies during his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing in Dirksen Building

Hawley is deeply religious and has argued about keeping places of worship open during the pandemic.

'It's time for the Department of Justice to bring lawsuits to enforce the first amendment. Period,' Senator Hawley said Thursday.

'What we're seeing in way too many states and cities across the country is these places have one set of rules for bars and for gyms and for businesses and they have a different set of rules for churches.'

Trump is on a tight deadline to push through the nomination with only 46 days left until the election and if he loses, just 124 days until inauguration.

Even if he wins in November, his ability to confirm a nomination may be held back if Democrats take the Senate.

It took months for Trump's second Supreme Court nomination Brett Kavaunagh to finally be appointed after sexual assault allegations were made against him. Having being nominated by Trump on July 6, the Senate voted in favor of him joining the court on October 6.

Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron speaks during the Republican National Convention. He is among the contenders for the Supreme Court

On Friday night, however, the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, said that he would move forward quickly with the nomination process.

'Americans re-elected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary,' McConnell said in a statement.

'Once again, we will keep our promise. President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.'

Before Bader Ginburg's death, the high court was divided 5-4 between conservatives and liberals.

Through other members of the court are in their 70s and 80s.

Trump has already remade the federal bench for a generation and the new vacancy in the highest court gives the president the ability to shape its future for decades to come if he is reelected in November.

The president is on a tight 46-day deadline to push another nomination for the Supreme Court through before the November election

The Supreme Court is seen on Capitol Hill in Washington.

Trump has stressed that power as he has campaigned, claiming that the winner of the upcoming presidential election 'could have anywhere from two to four, to maybe even five' Supreme Court justices to pick, though that would require an extraordinary level of turnover.

'You will change this country around. It will be irreversible,' he said last month in Minnesota.

Trump released his list of names two month before the election with the aim of at repeating the strategy he employed during his 2016 campaign, when he released a similar list of could-be judges in a bid to win over conservative and evangelical voters who had doubts about his conservative bonafides.

'The president is very excited to share who he would nominate to the Supreme Court,' White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said of the announcement.

She said Trump 'wants Constitution-abiding judges, he wants textualists who believe the words of a statute actually are what they are, not subject to interpretation.'

During his previous presidential campaign, he released two lists with a total of 21 names of potential Supreme Court nominees and added another five names in 2017 after becoming president.

Trump's two nominees to the court, Justice Neil Gorsuch and Justice Brett Kavanaugh, were both drawn from Trumps list.

Even in a race reshaped by the pandemic and the national reckoning over race, Trump's appointments of Justices Gorsuch and Kavanaugh remain among his crowning achievements and are frequently noted at his rallies.

The cultural battle over Kavanaughs confirmation, in particular, remains an electrifying moment for many on the right and one that Trump continues to highlight as he tries to replicate the excitement that fight generated on the right and make the race an us-vs.-them battle over American values and cancel culture.

'Did you ever see anything like that? Justice Kavanaugh. People forget. You know, time goes by, they forget. We dont forget. I dont forget,' Trump told a rally crowd last month in New Hampshire. 'Theyre destroying the livelihoods of innocent people.'

For the president's allies, the list is seen as a way to excite his base as well as well as remind voters of what's at stake come November.

'I think it's very important way for the president to reaffirm his commitment to an issue that many conservatives and Republicans see as a priority,' said Leonard Leo, the longtime executive vice president of the conservative Federalist Society who participated in the Kavanaugh and Gorsuch confirmations. 'This a great way to remind people pf the legacy hes already established for himself in this area.'

Trump's rival for the presidency, Joe Biden, has promised to nominate a Black woman to the high court if given the chance. Biden, too, has said hes working on a list of potential nominees, but the campaign has given no indication that it will release names before the November election.

Democrats believe doing so would unnecessarily distract from Bidens focus on Trump's handling of the pandemic and the economy, while also giving the president and his allies fresh targets to attack.

People gather in front of the U.S. Supreme Court following the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, in Washington

People gather in front of the U.S. Supreme Court following the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday night

'We are putting together a list of a group of African American women who are qualified and have the experience to be in the court. I am not going to release that until we go further down the line of vetting them as well,' Biden said in June.

Biden advisers acknowledge that the Supreme Court vacancy four years ago helped Trump with white evangelicals and some chamber-of-commerce Republicans who disliked the first-time candidate or were wary of his conservative credentials.

This year, Biden's team sees those same groups as less up for grabs. Many remain firmly with Trump, they reason, while others already have bailed on him and wont be wooed back by another list of potential justices for a vacancy that doesnt yet exist.

But Trump pushed back. He said that, apart from 'matters of war and peace, the nomination of a Supreme Court justice is the most important decision an American president can make' and that, 'For this reason, candidates for president owe the American people a specific list of individuals theyd consider for the United States Supreme Court.'

If not completed before the election, Trump, or Biden's, ability to confirm a new Justice would be fully dependent on which party holds the majority in the Senate, which confirms nominees.

Republicans currently hold 53 seats in the chamber to Democrats 45, with two independents who caucus with the Democrats.

Regardless of party, presidents tend to look for the same characteristics in potential Supreme Court picks. Stellar legal credentials are a must. And they tend to be old enough to have a distinguished legal career but young enough to serve for decades. That generally means nominees are in their late 40s or 50s.

More recently, nominees have also previously clerked for a Supreme Court justice, an early mark of legal smarts. Five of the current justices previously clerked at the Supreme Court.
President Trump will move within days to nominate his third Supreme Court justice in just three-plus short years  and shape the court for literally decades to come, top Republican sources tell Axios.

Driving the news: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Republicans are ready to move to confirm Trump's nominee before Election Day, just 46 days away, setting up one of the most consequential periods of our lifetimes, the sources say.

What they're saying: "In the last midterm election before Justice Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year," McConnell said in a statement.

"By contrast, Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise."

"President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."

Why it matters: We know Trump's list of potential nominees, we know the process, and we fully know the politics set to explode. Republicans, assuming they stay united as they have through thick and thin, hold all the cards.

A Democrat involved in the machinations tells us: "[U]ltimately if their caucus hangs together, you can't block them."

Within moments of the news breaking, a top Democrat texted: "Catastrophe."

The other side: Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer plans to fight the nomination. In a statement dictated to her granddaughter days before her death, Ginsburg said: "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

Between the lines: The Senate Republicans' precedent of stonewalling Merrick Garland, after he was nominated by President Obama in 2016  and the reported desire of Justice Ginsburg to be replaced only after a new president is installed  will do nothing to slow or sway Trump or McConnell, the sources tell us.
Image: Netflix

Evil is fascinating. Because most of us are too chicken to even steal a bar of chocolate from the local store. We are so civilised, we dont even wish the virus gets the better of a neighbour who is constantly nasty to everyone. That's why I watched The Devil All The Time as soon as it released on September 16.

You feel a shiver of anticipation go down your spine when the film starts with:Four hundred or so people lived in Knockemstiff in 1957. Nearly all of them connected by blood through one godforsaken calamity or another, be it lust or necessity or just plain ignorance.

The faces you see in this film are stellar. From It's Pennywise Bill Skarsgard, to Sebastian Stan (Captain America: Winter Soldier), from the new Batman (Robert Pattinson) to Harry Potters Dudley (Harry Melling) this movie has it all. And of course there is Spidey: Tom Holland who plays Arvin Russell, the protagonist of this grim film. The female cast is just as enviable in their filmographies (Mia Wasikowska, Eliza Scanlen, Riley Keough) as the men. When you see grandma (played brilliantly by Kristin Griffith) seethe as she comes out of church and sits in the car, knowing the priest insulted her, you wish this were a mini series that delved more into characters like her and not this film held together with narration. But as with stories of rural Bible belt, women do get relegated to minor roles that leave you wishing for more.

I said rural, not pastoral. Thats why even though we see lots of green - the serial killers driving off the main road and into the woods, the priest parking his car by the woods to seduce young girls - there is a constant colour palette through the movie that seems to be brown. Yes, this film has serial killers as well as creepy pastors and more. But framed by an all pervasive brown that depressing and more than sad. It reminds you what all religious texts promise as concepts: redemption and saving, but it shows a reality where the poorest of the poor will never get saved.

But, all is not depressing. The film begins with two young men finding their destiny at a diner. Willard Russell is back after a harrowing time in the war in the South Pacific and discovers his angel in Charlotte (played by the gorgeous Haley Bennett) who serves him a coffee and a donut. And the other waitress, Sandy - new to her job - finds love in a photographer who disarms her by praising her smile.

Willard marries Charlotte and they live in a house on top of the Mitchell Flats, and as the omnipresent voice of the narrator tells you, They lived there for nine years and yet the people called them outsiders. In a flash it reminds you of being the new kid in a new school in a new city all through your childhood because your father had a government job. In a flash you like the little boy Arvin who only has his dog Jack for company. Its not that the whole movie is sad. The scene between Charlotte and her son Arvin singing and humming a song together as she sits flour and he reads a comic book is such a wonderful scene of domestic bliss, it makes you wish there were more of those in this film.

Sandy on the other hand, chooses to run with the photographer (played by Jason Clark, you have seen him in Mudbound, Zero Dark Thirty and even The Terminator films). This film is set in the years between 1957 and 1968, and there sure were no records of police investigating serial killings of hitchhikers. This pair made me pause the film and read the book online. The author, Donald Ray Pollock who also narrates the film in his very interesting MidWest accent actually lived in the town called Knockemstiff. And says in his interviews that he wrote about the people around him.

The result is a book and film that makes you worry about your belief in God. Everyone in this town goes to church, there is a constant presence of the bible, the belief in God as savior and redeemer and images of crucifixion everywhere. Its like events and reality that is so different from the faith the people have in God. Of course there are creepy pastors who will take advantage of the poor folk! They make the struggle to believe that much more difficult.

Little Arvin who has seen his father put up a cross outside their home to pray to God, has also seen his father sacrifice his dog so that his wife can be saved. Arvin has grown up learning from his dad that he has to wait for revenge because there are a lot of sons of ****** who deserve it. Arvin (Tom Holland) has grown up in his grandmas home who is already taking care of Lenora, his sort of step sister. Grandma wanted his dad to marry Lenoras mum but she chose to marry the local Bible thumper. That is a thread you will watch with jaws on the floor.

Lenora is religious like her mum and grandma. Arvin has seen too much and isnt a believer. Halfway through the movie, arrives a priest from out of town. He reminded me of the traveling churches in tents I have seen in Oregon and Washington. The priests mesmerise rural folk and run away with their money in the middle of the night, folding their tents. Pastor Preston Teagardin is all powder blue suits and white ruffled shirts and drives a flashy baby blue Cadillac with fins. He speaks of fire and damnation and scares the townsfolk into praying to the good god like theyve never done before. In his spare time he seduces young girls and when he tells Lenora, Show yourself to God as he made you, you stop the movie and get yourself some good old fashioned chai.

I hated Robert Pattinson when he played the vampire again and again in the incessant Twilight movies. It was only afterwards that my respect for the actor shot sky high. I watched him amaze the audiences in a crime thriller called Good Time (available on American Netflix) as a bank robber who will not stop trying to get his mentally challenged brother out of lock up. Of course he is stupendous in the recent film The Lighthouse with Willem Dafoe. In this film Robert Pattinson is so good, you want to throw the remote, the popcorn bowl and everything at him.

Ive never felt so satisfied at seeing someone receive his comeuppance in a film as I did here. And you suddenly realise that this film has so much violence hidden in the shadows. It speaks about God, but all you see is evil. Even the small town sheriff (played by our Winter Soldier) is a tobacco chewing sleazebag in uniform. And you watch the screen with fascination while you clutch at your little book of Hanuman Chalisa.

There are small touches of clever direction by Antonio Campos everywhere. Look out for what Willard sees when he goes to the pub for a drink when he learns that his wife is going to die. The female bartender points to a bunch of rooms at the back where he could find comfort if he needed. Willard turns to look, and he sees the head of a stag mounted over the door. Thats when he gets the idea of sacrificing something to save his wife...It is a small scene, but so clever! I would also normally complain about a constant narrator, but wont in this case because you cannot unhear lines like, Some people were born just so they could be buried.

Even though there is a smell of death pervading this film, I think there is hope too. Arvin gets out of Knockemstiff in a little red van driven by a hippie. That little bit of red of the van is somewhat the redemption the narrative seeks.

You will not get over the scene of the pastor and the spiders out of your head ever. I also promise you, that this film is unlike anything you have seen. And no, despite small town sins and violence, you will wish it were a mini series, putting these evil characters into a proverbial meat grinder so you could understand what drives them. And yes, in the future, if you are tempted to drive into small American towns with names like Knockemstiff, on a road trip, and stop for coffee and donut at their diners, take heed from the film, dont.

Manisha Lakhe Is A Poet, Film Critic, Traveller, Founder Of Caferati  An Online Writers Forum, Hosts Mumbais Oldest Open Mic, And Teaches Advertising, Films And Communication.
London Confidential

Director: Kanwal Sethi

Cast: Mouni Roy, Purab Kohli, Kulraj Randhawa



London Confidential, the new offering from Zee5, is grounded in contemporary socio-political realities of the India-China border tensions and deadly pandemic. The film, directed by Kanwal Sethi and based on a concept by S Hussain Zaidi, feels like a hasty and almost gimmicky grab at topical issues. With an uninspired storyline and no consistent tone, London Confidential does not quite make the grade.

Even as the world is reeling from the coronavirus pandemic, the outbreak of an even deadlier virus with Chinese origins looms on the horizon. London Confidential hints at a zoonotic intrusion, as we are told that the virus is spreading across the Indo-China border, but the Chinese intelligence is doing its best to keep a lid on it.

A week before he could present evidence of Chinese involvement at a virology summit in London, Biren Ghosh, an agent of the Indian intelligence agency Research & Analysis Wing (RAW), is intercepted by the Chinese intelligence and killed. RAW officer Uma (Mouni Roy) and her colleague Arjun (Purab Kohli) must find the mole in the Indian ranks and the Chinese source before the Chinese intelligence does. They are supported by the Indian ambassador to the UK, Nirupa, played by Kulraj Randhawa.

To its credit, London Confidential neither has lengthy jingoistic monologues nor in-your-face Chinese-bashing. The film is centred on Uma and Arjun chasing red herrings and false leads instead of the biowarfare angle.

Also read | Sushant Singh Rajputs sister Meetu shares artwork on actor, their mother: My mother was my source of energy, bhai was my pride

Time and again, there are reminders of how the slightest mistake from either side could lead to war between India and China, and how necessary it is to keep involvement of the intelligence agencies strictly under wraps. We are told that if British authorities get a whiff, the MI6 could get involved. Heck, even the title stresses the importance of keeping it confidential. Despite this, attacks are carried out in full view of CCTV cameras and multiple eyewitnesses. Suspects conveniently go about their shady business in houses with glass windows and the curtains never drawn. Even a high-ranking diplomat is bumped off.

The lack of consistency extends to the setting. A voiceover at the beginning reveals that the world is still reeling from the coronavirus pandemic. Establishing shots of London show people wearing masks and an outdoor advertisement saying stay home, do not travel, save lives. Two minutes into London Confidential, this is conveniently forgotten, with elaborate parties and characters going to crowded strip clubs.

Mouni, on several occasions, looks ill-at-ease as a pregnant woman. Sharad Kelkar makes a special appearance as her husband in an ill-conceived scene that seems shoehorned into the plot. Purab, who frequently makes shopkeeping jokes that fail to land, is also given a backstory, which is summed up in a two-minute exchange between him and Mouni. This, too, has no bearing on the main story whatsoever.

London Confidential is a crisp espionage thriller, at one hour and 14 minutes, but the trite and predictable climax does not live up to the interesting premise. How did I not see this coming?, Mouni asks, at one point. You can only sigh.

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Public rants have been a feature of lockdown life, especially in Victoria, but they do not help people cope with pandemic restrictions or boost mental health.

"Venting" - several spectacular examples of which have trended during Australia's pandemic - is one of several coping strategies that have been found to have a negative influence on mental health, according to a Monash University study.

Rather than helping, a good rant contributed to worse mental health.

"Normally it's good to have a vent but in our study we found it was associated with higher stress levels," said associate professor Caroline Gurvich, deputy director of the Monash Alfred Psychiatry research centre.
Date nights during this ongoing pandemic can sometimes be tricky if distance is the dampener. While going out for movies is a luxury we all have forgotten and also crave, thanks to the magic of the internet, it is still possible to catch a movie with bae while you both are miles apart. Here are some romantic Punjabi movies which are easy to understand and also easily available on OTT platforms for the next date night:



1. Sufna

The last 2 years have seen Punjabi star Ammy Virk rise up high in terms of his music, selection of movies and his highly anticipated Bollywood debut in 83. Sufna is a very simple, sweet love story between two people struggling with their own circumstances and dreaming of being with each other. A really good pick for that movie date night.





2. Laung Laachi

If you havent watched the movie then you obviously have heard this song and danced to it at some point of time last year. Starring the gorgeous Neeru Bajwa in the lead role, this is a simple tale of a woman and a man trying to make sense of life after an arranged marriage gets them together. The husband tries to woo his wife and help her chase all her dreams. This movie is a good reminder that dreams that are fulfilled together, bring two people closer than ever.

3. Qismat

I like to call it the Punjabi version of Rockstar , or something on those lines at least. The fact that a super hit song inspired the makers to plan and produce a whole movie is proof enough that besides being a wonderfully made movie, the songs of this film are something that need to be on your playlist.

4. Afsar

Another innocent tale of two people trying to get together in a world full of people with cruel intentions. This is an old-school romance movie and hence it is perfect to watch it with bae when all you want is some mush with that tub of popcorn.

5. Manje Bistre

This two part romcom stars Gippy Grewal and Sonam Bajwa in the lead roles. The romantic tale follows a man who falls for his sisters friend while she is already engaged to another man. A lot of confusion follows as love blossoms in between.
The death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has a resulted in a partisan debate mirroring one four years earlier: How late in a presidents term is too late to appoint a new justice?

Ginsburg, the high courts second female justice and a champion of womens rights, died Friday at her home in Washington, D.C. She was 87.

Within hours, Sen. Mitch McConnell, the Republican majority leader from Kentucky, said he would move to confirm a Supreme Court nominee from President Donald Trump this year. But in 2016, McConnell refused to act on President Barack Obamas nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to fill the opening following the death of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia because it was a presidential election year.

The Senate and the nation mourn the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the conclusion of her extraordinary American life.



My full statement: pic.twitter.com/NOwYLhDxIk  Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) September 19, 2020

Garlands nomination was submitted in March of that year, eight months before Election Day. Ginsburgs death comes a matter of weeks before the next presidential election, in which Trump faces Democrat Joe Biden.

Both of Pennsylvanias senators, Democrat Bob Casey and Republican Pat Toomey, have expressed their condolences at Ginsburgs death. Only one has indicated his stance on appointing a new justice this year.

BOB CASEY

Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., holds a town hall at Northampton Community College on Aug. 21, 2019.Steve Novak | For lehighvalleylive.com

2020: Casey, of Scranton, tweeted a brief statement Friday evening mourning Ginsburg and calling on McConnell to adhere to his own precedent.

Consistent with the precedent set by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in 2016, the Democrat wrote, Justice Ginsburgs seat should not be filled until the presidential election concludes and the candidate chosen by voters is sworn into office.

Tonight our Nation mourns the passing of Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Justice Ginsburg was a pioneer for gender equality, a champion for human rights and a fierce defender of workers on an increasingly corporate Supreme Court.  Senator Bob Casey (@SenBobCasey) September 19, 2020

Consistent with the precedent set by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in 2016, Justice Ginsburgs seat should not be filled until the presidential election concludes and the candidate chosen by voters is sworn into office.  Senator Bob Casey (@SenBobCasey) September 19, 2020

2016: After Garlands nomination in March, Caseys statement referenced the Senates history of acting on every Supreme Court nominee over the previous century, including 17 in presidential election years, and called for a fair hearing and a timely vote.

The history of independence that the Senate Judiciary Committee has earned will evaporate if Committee Republicans continue down this path, Casey said at the time.

PAT TOOMEY

Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., tapes a WFMZ "Business Matters" segment with Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce President Tony Iannelli before a live audience Aug. 29, 2019, at Lehigh Country Club.Steve Novak | For lehighvalleylive.com

2020: Toomey, a Lehigh County resident, on Saturday issued a statement reflecting on Ginsburgs legacy, calling her a trailblazer.

While I usually disagreed with her legal and political views, the Republican said in a statement from his office and on Twitter, she proved time and again that it is possible to disagree with someone without being disagreeable. Simply put, Justice Ginsburg left an indelible mark that will resonate for generations.

Our nation mourns the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Renowned for her legal intellect and sharp opinions, Justice Ginsburg served on our nations highest court for nearly three decades with distinction and honor.  Senator Pat Toomey (@SenToomey) September 19, 2020

Simply put, Justice Ginsburg left an indelible mark that will resonate for generations. I extend my prayers and deepest condolences to Justice Ginsburgs family, friends, and colleagues.  Senator Pat Toomey (@SenToomey) September 19, 2020

However, Toomey did not indicate his stance on a potential judicial appointment this year. His office declined to comment further.

2016: Following Garlands nomination in March, Toomey, in a brief statement, said voters should have a say in the next justice via the presidential election that November.

With the U.S. Supreme Courts balance at stake, Toomey said at the time, and with the presidential election fewer than eight months away, it is wise to give the American people a more direct voice in the selection and confirmation of the next justice. Should Merrick Garland be nominated again by the next president, I would be happy to carefully consider his nomination, as I have done with dozens of judges submitted by President Obama.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.

Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com.
A murder investigation is underway after a man was stabbed to death in the Liverpool suburb of Dingle this afternoon.

A wide police cordon remains in Prince William Street while forensic investigators continue to make enquiries.

Merseyside Police say officers were called to the scene around 4.30pm after reports a man had sustained a stab wound to the chest.

Police have cordoned off Prince William Street in the residential Liverpool suburb of Dingle after a man, 30, was stabbed in the chest. He was taken to hospital but later died. Merseyside Police have detained a man in his 20s for questioning.

Emergency services attended and the victim, in his 30s, was taken to hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

A spokeswoman for the Force said a man in his 20s was detained and will then be taken for questioning.

The victim's next of kin have been informed and are being supported by specially trained officers.

Police believe the attack may have been 'targeted' and are appealing for any witnesses to come forward. A cordon remains in place and a full investigation is being pursued.

Officers remain in the area to speak to witnesses and carry out further enquiries, while detectives believe the attack was 'targeted'.

Detective Superintendent Dave McCaughrean said: 'We are appealing for anyone who was in Prince William Street or the surrounding area, and witnessed the incident or saw any suspicious behaviour to please get in touch.

'A man has tragically lost his life and at this stage, we are treating the incident as targeted, however an investigation is now underway to establish the full circumstances.'

An air ambulance helicopter had landed on a patch of grass near the Baltic Market this afternoon, and is believed to have been deployed in relation to the stabbing.
German NGO Sea-Eye said Saturday it had rescued 114 migrants from two vessels stranded off the Libyan coast.

Sea-Eye said its Alan-Kurdi rescue boat first picked up 90 people from an "overloaded rubber boat" before taking aboard a further 24 from a fishing boat.

Eight of those rescued were children and another eight were woman, one of whom was pregnant, according to the NGO.

"For fear of being picked up by Libyan militia these people did not put out a distress call, putting themselves at high risk," Sea-Eye president Gorden Isler said.

Jan Ribbeck, Sea-Eye director of operations, said that whereas migrants usually had to choose between the Libyans and the sea they were "now on a German vessel and are finally being treated as human beings."

The NGO did not indicate where it intended to bring the group ashore.

This year has seen a renewed spike in the number of vessels, many of them barely seaworthy, taking a chance on reaching Europe.

Attempts from Libya rose by 91 percent from January to July over the same period last year with 14,481 people attempting the risky crossing.

The same period saw 10,174 people make an attempt from Tunisia -- a rise of 462 percent on 2019.

At least 300 people have died in the process -- though the International Organization for Migration says the figure could be far higher.

Earlier this month, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the closure of migrant detention centres in Libya, denouncing what he called rights violations committed there in "horrendous conditions."

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How strange to see the name of Paul Staines, otherwise known as the blogger Guido Fawkes, on the guest list among the billionaires, oligarchs and Cabinet ministers at the Tories fund raising summer party, obtained by the Bureau for Investigative Journalism. The Leveson Inquiry was warned against such fraternisation during one its hearings, three years ago. Senior politicians, editors and proprietors mix freely, all too easily, their witness said.

He added that political journalists from the mainstream are particularly prone to being sucked into a system that encourages a trade in favours, because a client media has developed whereby journalists who recycle the party line are encouraged and rewarded with titbits and exclusives, with interviews granted to journalists who please party spin doctors.

Those observations  as you may have guessed  were from the evidence given by Paul Staines. There is truth in what he said. It is to avoid being sucked into that sort of cycle of mutual indebtedness that most mainstream political journalists would think twice about turning up at a lavish political fund raising dinner.

For a long time Staines has posed as the outsider prising open the cosy world of Westminster. But as he and Mrs Staines tucked into their 400-a-head meal at a table close to David Camerons, he could congratulate himself that now he is definitely in with the Tory in crowd.

Look behind you...

When you look at the Labour party candidates and take out of the mix the fact that they have got son of Blair, son of Straw, son of Prescott, son of Dromey  the red princes. said David Cameron, at Prime Ministers Questions, as he laid into how Labour selects its future MPs.

Will Straw, son of Jack, is indeed Labours candidate in the marginal Tory seat of Rossendale and Darwen. But what do Euan Blair, David Prescott and Joe Dromey have in common? Answer  they are not Labour candidates anywhere.

If David Cameron is genuinely concerned about parliamentary seats passed through generations of the same family, he could look around at the benches behind him. There he would see Richard Benyon, Ben Gummer, Nick Hurd, Bernard Jenkin, Francis Maude, Nicholas Soames, Robin Walker and Bill Wiggin  every one a Tory MP, and every one the son of a Tory MP.

By the way, that phrase Cameron used, red princes, comes off the Guido Fawkes blog. As well as feasting with Conservatives, Staines is feeding them attack lines.

Green shoots of discipline

The Greens are to hold a disciplinary hearing about Ben Duncan, the Brighton councillor who tweeted on Armed Forces Day that hired killers were on the streets. You might well think that Greens and discipline are words that never go together. Perhaps they will prove that in this instance, they do.

Silencing of Skinner Part II

A lot of long standing Labour Party members will not be too pleased with their MPs today as they learn that the old left wing firebrand, Dennis Skinner, has been removed from the National Executive, taking out one of the few members prepared to challenge Ed Miliband.

Skinner was first elected to the NEC in 1978, but Neil Kinnock got him out by introducing a rule banning MPs from running in that section of the NEC elections in which the party rank and file can vote. Tony Blair had a soft spot for the old rebel, whereupon in 1999 the MPs dutifully voted Skinner back on. He lost out this time because John Healy, another well liked MP, decided to stand, and he is too proud to stoop to asking anyone to vote for him.
This article will reflect on the compensation paid to Sean Connolly who has served as CEO of Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) since 2015. This analysis will also look to assess whether the CEO is appropriately paid, considering recent earnings growth and investor returns for Conagra Brands.

Check out our latest analysis for Conagra Brands

Comparing Conagra Brands, Inc.'s CEO Compensation With the industry

Our data indicates that Conagra Brands, Inc. has a market capitalization of US$17b, and total annual CEO compensation was reported as US$12m for the year to May 2020. Notably, that's a decrease of 17% over the year before. While this analysis focuses on total compensation, it's worth acknowledging that the salary portion is lower, valued at US$1.2m.

For comparison, other companies in the industry with market capitalizations above US$8.0b, reported a median total CEO compensation of US$12m. This suggests that Conagra Brands remunerates its CEO largely in line with the industry average. Moreover, Sean Connolly also holds US$18m worth of Conagra Brands stock directly under their own name, which reveals to us that they have a significant personal stake in the company.

Component 2020 2019 Proportion (2020) Salary US$1.2m US$1.2m 10% Other US$11m US$13m 90% Total Compensation US$12m US$14m 100%

On an industry level, around 22% of total compensation represents salary and 78% is other remuneration. Conagra Brands pays a modest slice of remuneration through salary, as compared to the broader industry. It's important to note that a slant towards non-salary compensation suggests that total pay is tied to the company's performance.

A Look at Conagra Brands, Inc.'s Growth Numbers

Conagra Brands, Inc.'s earnings per share (EPS) grew 12% per year over the last three years. Its revenue is up 15% over the last year.

This demonstrates that the company has been improving recently and is good news for the shareholders. This sort of respectable year-on-year revenue growth is often seen at a healthy, growing business. Moving away from current form for a second, it could be important to check this free visual depiction of what analysts expect for the future.

Story continues

Has Conagra Brands, Inc. Been A Good Investment?

With a total shareholder return of 13% over three years, Conagra Brands, Inc. shareholders would, in general, be reasonably content. But they probably don't want to see the CEO paid more than is normal for companies around the same size.

To Conclude...

As we touched on above, Conagra Brands, Inc. is currently paying a compensation that's close to the median pay for CEOs of companies belonging to the same industry and with similar market capitalizations. But EPS growth for the company has been strong over the last three years, though shareholder returns in comparison haven't been as impressive. So considering these factors, we think the compensation is probably quite reasonable, but investor returns need a boost moving forward.

CEO compensation is an important area to keep your eyes on, but we've also need to pay attention to other attributes of the company. That's why we did our research, and identified 4 warning signs for Conagra Brands (of which 1 can't be ignored!) that you should know about in order to have a holistic understanding of the stock.

Arguably, business quality is much more important than CEO compensation levels. So check out this free list of interesting companies that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.



Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com.
For most of the year, Uman in central Ukraine is almost indistinguishable from any other sleepy provincial city in the post-Soviet country.

But during one week each autumn, it is transformed as tens of thousands of Hasidic pilgrims dressed in traditional black garb flood the streets for loud Jewish New Year celebrations.

This years pilgrimage to the Uman tomb of Rabbi Nahman, founder of the Breslov Hasidic movement, was upset by the coronavirus pandemic, with many believers journeys ending hundreds of kilometres away on Ukraines border with Belarus.

With cases already climbing, Kiev shuttered its borders to foreigners in August over fears travellers could bring a further spike in infections.

The decision ultimately stranded more than 1,000 pilgrims in the no mans land between frontier checkpoints.

Several thousand pilgrims entered the country before the ban, making to Uman for the September 18-20 festivities and swelling the citys normally 80,000-strong population.

Despite problems with the pandemic, the pilgrims came because they believe that Rabbi Nahman will always heal," Uman resident Jonathan Cohen told AFP, wearing a black kippa and facemask.

Rabbi Nahman is one of the main figures of Hasidism, a mystical branch of Judaism that emerged in the 18th century and developed in particular in Poland and Ukraine.

We are very afraid of the coronavirus. But we are supported by our faith," 43-year-old Cohen said.

Massed in no-mans land

Those who reached Uman in good time think that their fellow believers should have been allowed in.

We think everything possible should be done to allow them to come here," Mota Frank, a rabbi who had travelled from Jerusalem, told AFP in the days leading up to the New Year celebrations.

They needed to make it clear that they would observe quarantine rules, and pass all checks," said the 50-year-old, who has been travelling to Uman for 33 years.

But Ukraine remained adamant that it would not grant them passage, angrily accusing Belarus of giving the pilgrims false hope that safe passage could be negotiated.

Kievs refusal to wave the pilgrims through led to tense scenes, with crowds of hopeful believers on the border pushing up against riot police cordons.

By Friday, however, nearly everyone waiting along the border had given up and left crossing points, Ukraine and Belarus border guards said.

Pandemic fears

Uman mayor Oleksandr Tsebriy told AFP he had travelled to Kiev and camped outside President Volodymyr Zelenskys office to persuade him to call off the pilgrimage this year over the coronavirus crisis.

Ukrainian authorities had reacted too late" by not cancelling the event altogether, he said in his office. I feel sorry" for those pilgrims who made it to Uman, Tsebriy added, as they now face far-reaching coronavirus restrictions on their celebration.

Dozens of signs on Pushkin street, the centre of the festivities, warned pilgrims to Wear a mask!" and each believer entering Rabbi Nahmans tomb had their temperatures checked.

Inside the shrine of white walls and columns, pilgrims approached and kissed the stone tomb one by one, before other worshippers in yellow vests wiped the stone with disinfectant.

The measures were not enough to reassure local people that the pilgrims would not bring a rise in new infections with them  fears that worsened after mandatory testing among pilgrims revealed 10 cases.

Tightened security

Ukraine, one Europes poorest countries with a population of some 40 million, registered a record increase in new cases Thursday at 3,584.

The countrys total cases have climbed steadily to above 169,000, with more than 3,000 fatalities. Some Uman locals were frustrated the pilgrims were allowed to freely congregate in the town while residents were forced to live with restrictions.

My childs education is being limited," 35-year-old resident Liliya Pogrebnyak told AFP, referring to an official decision to close two schools near the pilgrimage site for one week.

Local people had a right for them not to come this year," she fumed, referring to the Hasidic pilgrims. To prevent frustrations from boiling over, police on Wednesday tightened security in areas around the shrine.

Tsebriy said the tension around this years pilgrimage was temporary and that Uman will welcome all tourists" again at some point in the future. But now, health and life are paramount," he said.
Capella cleaning house of corrupt Cancun cops

Cancun, Q.R.  More than 300 transit police officers in Cancun remain under review as both the Mayor and Chief of Police initiate a program designed to eliminate acts of extortion and abuses of authority committed by this corporation. The announcement was made by Cancun mayor Mara Lezama who issued an ultimatum to the Transit elements, warning that whomever does not pass the trust tests will be immediately dismissed from their duties.

The Secretary of Public Security (SSP) of Quintana Roo, Alberto Capella has also confirmed the purging of corrupt officers from the Policia de Transito de Cancun. He said one of the first tests given was anti-doping of which eight officers failed and were relieved of their duties.

The Secretario de Seguridad Publica (SSP) added that process has been ongoing since August 28, as part of the joint program called Crusade for Honesty and Efficiency of the Traffic Police.

The official explained that the SSP, in coordination with Cancun City Council, have some 300 elements of the Municipal Police Traffic Directorate under observation with the aim of submitting them to extraordinary tests of control and confidence.

We are going to continue advancing. Honesty and efficiency is the priority. We have been doing it hand-in-hand with Mayor Mara Lezama. It is one of the unprecedented projects because this situation of corruption is extremely old, Capella said.

Alberto Capella, Secretario de Seguridad Publica (SSP)

The only thing that has happened is that during the renewal of governments, someone else simply continues with the vicious cycle, which evidently generates damage to the image of the institutions and evidently a patrimonial damage to citizens.

Capella revealed that an investigation is also being processed with the Quintana Roo Prosecutors Office on the patrimony of the officers that the institution in order to detect their possible illicit enrichment.

We are working with the internal affairs area to see which personnel are salvageable. This is one of the strategies to restore honesty and efficiency to that Traffic Directorate, which unfortunately for many years, has been contaminated, he stressed.

Eight Cancun officers were fired after failing an anti-doping drug test

The clean up by the SSP of Quintana Roo includes investigating a corrupt network of heads of the Cancun Transit Directorate who charge fees to their own agents to patrol and place them in strategic places to extort money.

It is estimated that in the Traffic Directorate, where 300 agents and 100 administrative people work, up to 2.8 million peso a month is collected as a result of driver roadway extortion.

We are also investing in the acquisition of body cameras so that any intervention made by traffic elements is videotaped while also socializing with citizens the fact that they can videotape the interaction they have with traffic or any other police, Capella explained.

I must recognize the determination and political will of the municipal government, for without that determination, it would be impossible to fix this, he added.
Sennett, N.Y. -- A fire significantly damaged a popular restaurant near Auburn on Friday afternoon, according to officials with the Sennett Fire Department.

Firefighters were called to the Route 20 Tap & Grill, located at 3193 E. Genesee St., at 3:34 p.m. on Friday, according to second assistant chief Don Phetteplace.

An employee at the bar called in the fire and all those at the restaurant were evacuated from the building before firefighters arrived, Phetteplace said.

It took nearly five hours for firefighters to clear from the scene, according to Phetteplace.

The fire was still under investigation Friday night and Phetteplace said he could not give more information about where or how the fire started.

Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact Chris Libonati via the Signal app for encrypted messaging at 585-290-0718, by phone at the same number, by email or on Twitter.
When it became obvious that the Titanic was not going to survive its tragic collision with the iceberg in the North Atlantic, those in positions of authority started to do the human triage necessary in emergencies. Who would be saved, who would perish, and who would be empowered with those i
- Eliud Owalo warned members of Luo community not carry all their eggs in one basket as far as presidential election is concerned

- The management consultant urged Raila to join forces with Ruto whom he claimed has a realistic chance of becoming president

- The politician will be instrumental in leading Ruto's presidential campaigns in Nyanza to wrestle the region from Raila's tight grip

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Former ODM leader Raila Odinga's personal aide Eliud Owalo has called on the Luo community to stop relying on one leader presidency.

Owalo who fell out with the ODM boss in 2019 to run for Kibra parliamentary seat on Amani National Congress, said the community must not carry all its eggs in one basket.

READ ALSO: William Ruto, Uhuru join hands to help family that lost 5 relatives on accident

Owalo (left) and Ruto when he joined the DP's team for 2022. Photo: Eliud Owalo.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Uproar as Pumwani Maternity workers lockout woman giving birth from facility

We must not only rely on the handshake because I have seen signs that it wont help achieve anything. This country is characterised by politics of betrayal, we must therefore not allow our community to be used as a ladder for some people. Luo community must not carry all their eggs in the same basket," he said.

Speaking to Nam Lolwe FM on Friday, September 18, the management consultant urged Raila to join forces with Deputy President William Ruto whom he claimed has a realistic chance of becoming president.

READ ALSO: Coronavirus: Wedding leaves 7 people dead, 175 get infected after attending event

Raila Odinga addressing media at past function. Photo: Raila Odinga.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Safaricom lists 10 services that won't be available from Sat 19 night to Sunday 20

Possible coalition

It is important for Raila to work with Ruto, who remains ahead in most of the opinion polls conducted since March. We are urging him to work with Ruto to enhance good neighborhood between Luo and Kalenjin communities, he said.

He pointed out that even though opinion polls showed the deputy president was a head of the pack, he must strike a coalition pact with the like-minded party leaders.

The fact is that Kenyas elections are characterised by tribal voting patterns and every candidate must enter into a coalition. There is nothing wrong if Raila works with the DP in 2022, he added.

Ruto Nyanza team

Owalo will be instrumental in leading Ruto's presidential campaigns in Nyanza with an aim of wrestling the region from Raila's tight political grip.

The politician joined "team hustler", a term used in reference to Ruto's support base and promised to go the full-hog with DP's 2022 agenda.

"Based on the foregoing and informed by a contextual analysis of all the probable 2022 presidential candidates, I have with effect from today made a deliberate and conscious decision to stand with Kenyans by pursuing my political interests and aspirations within the ambit of the hustler political matrix," he said on Monday, September 14.

Apart from Owalo, Ruto will also rely on the services of former ODM confidant Caroli Omondi and Kisumu politician Richard Ogendo who also ditched the Orange team.

The team will work closely with two youth groups championing DP's course; the Nyanza Youth Movement for Ruto 2022 and the Nyanza Young Aspirants Movement for William Ruto 2022.

TUKO.co.ke understands Ruto is expected in the lakeside Kisumu city next week to fish more followers for his presidential bid.

However, ODM officials in the region sounded a warning to Ruto against any attempt to badmouth their party leader Raila during his functions.

If he decides to insult the party leader, most likely, his utterances would cause problems at the function. Chances are high that some people who will attend his event wont be his supporters, but those of the former prime minister.

Therefore, if he insults the party leader in their presence, they might yell at him, and that wont be good, said ex-MP Ayiecho Olwenye who is also ODM county co-ordinating committee chairperson.

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The police destroyed my son's life, left him halfway paralysed then my husband left -Maureen Razoa/TUKO TV.

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National Investigation Agency or the NIA on Saturday nabbed 9 terrorists after the NIA held simultaneous raids at multiple locations in Ernakulam and Murshidabad early in the morning.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) busted Pakistan sponsored Al-Qaeda modules in Murshidabad, West Bengal and Ernakulam, Kerala and arrested nine terrorists on Saturday. The NIA conducted simultaneous raids at multiple locations in Ernakulam and Murshidabad early morning today in which nine arrests were made, six from West Bengal and three from Kerala, according to the probe agency.

The NIA had received inputs about an inter-state module of Al-Qaeda operatives at various locations in the country who were planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital places with the aim to kill innocent people and create terror. Based on these inputs, the NIA had registered a case on September 11, 2020, and initiated investigations.

Large quantities of incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from the possession of the terrorists.

Also read: Indian Ambassador discusses issues pertaining to political processes on post-Soviet space with Russias Deputy FM

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According to the agency, preliminary investigations have revealed that they were radicalised by Pakistan-based Al-Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the National Capital Region.

The arrested individuals include Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas, Mosaraf Hossen (all from Ernakulam), and Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal, and Atitur Rehman (Murshidabad residents).

The module was actively indulging in fundraising and a few members of the gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country.

The agency said that the arrested terrorists will be produced before the concerned courts in Kerala and West Bengal for police custody. Further investigation is underway.

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Attorneys and other legal professionals at the Tennessee Valley Authority, Office of the General Counsel, have launched TVAs first pro bono program, Generating Justice, to provide free legal assistance in local communities. As part of the Generating Justice program, TVAs OGC is working with several legal aid organizations and law firms to address community legal needs. TVA is one of the largest federal agencies in the Southeast whose attorneys are donating their time to help those in need, officials said.

The number of unaddressed legal issues is increasing throughout TVAs seven state region due to the economic impact of COVID-19, said Kendra Mansur, attorney, TVAs Office of the General Counsel and chair of Generating Justice. Attorneys and other professionals in TVAs Office of the General Counsel have the skills that can help fill the gap to help our neighbors in need of legal services.



According to Ms. Mansur, prior to COVID 19, at least 86 percent of lower income populations were already unable to afford legal advice or representation on civil legal matters.



Many moratoriums on evictions during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic have expired - leaving those with limited means vulnerable to evictions in many states. By working through legal aid organizations, TVA attorneys can help people facing eviction and other legal issues, such as debt relief and discrimination issues, by using virtual tele-meetings or other on-line platforms, such as ABA Free Legal Answers.



In the legal field, we have an ethical obligation to serve those less fortunate by providing much needed legal assistance, said Sherry Quirk, TVA executive vice president and general counsel. Making life better for all the people of the Valley is more than what we do; it is who we are as TVA employees.



In February, before the COVID-19 pandemic halted in-person events, TVAs OGC top attorneys co-hosted a pro bono clinic in Memphis. In a first-of-its-kind partnership, working alongside attorneys from the pro bono programs of Memphis Area Legal Services and the Baker Donelson law firm, TVAs attorneys helped lower-income Memphians prepare wills and powers of attorney so they had peace of mind in their estate planning. TVAs OGC will be providing pro bono legal services to lower-income Memphians later this month through a virtual clinic.



Residents across TVAs seven-state region interested in receiving legal assistance may inquire about eligibility for services through websites like ABA Free Legal Answers or their local legal aid office. Plans are already underway for future pro bono events; TVAs OGC attorneys will continue to provide remote assistance for the near future through their collaborations with legal aid organizations and will participate in clinics in-person when safe to do so.
A Birmingham officer shot a gun-wielding suspect Friday afternoon following a chase in Ensley, police said.

The suspect, who was driving a car stolen out of Montgomery, was taken to UAB Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, said Birmingham police spokesman Sgt. Rod Mauldin. No officers were hurt in the incident, Mauldin said.

Just after 2 p.m. Friday, Birmingham patrol officers spotted the stolen vehicle -- a white sedan -- in the 1500 block of Court R. A brief pursuit ensued after the suspect did not comply with orders to pull over and ultimately wrecked the sedan in the 6500 block of Avenue R.

Shortly before the wreck, the suspect tried to bail from the vehilce and brandished a gun, causing an officer to fire his weapon at the suspect. Officers rendered aid to the suspect before Birmingham Fire & Rescue medics arrived on the scene to transport the suspect to UAB.

Police recovered a weapon from the scene, Mauldin said, adding that the state Bureau of Investigation will be handling the probe of the incident since an officer fired shots.

Mauldin said the department was grateful that this was resolved in a manner that no lives were taken.

Each and every day we come out and we have to make split-second decisions. In this case the suspect did present a weapon to our officers. Those decisions, that is what we train for  and we are fortunate today that no lives were taken," he said.
It behoves me to tell you there is a dead man in Derren Brown's house. He's on the living room sofa and, being dead, he's not moving much  his head has lolled back and his arms hang limp by his sides. I notice him when I pop upstairs to use the toilet in Brown's extraordinary four-storey house.

Can I feel it? I ask Brown, once I've established that the man is a highly convincing dummy, a breath-taking scoop having been cruelly snatched from me. I rub the creepy face. It's the model that the illusionist used in his 2016 Channel 4 experiment Pushed to the Edge, in which an unwitting protagonist almost succumbs to social compliance when pressured to push a man off the top of a building. Having to look and feel exactly like a real man, it looks and feels exactly like a real man. And, while I sip dark tea from a Desert Island Discs mug, with The Essential Jung sitting on the glass coffee table, the dead man eavesdrops. I am not sure until I leave that it isn't someone on Brown's payroll who is largely employed to impersonate a corpse.

Death and facsimile. It's in keeping with the rest of the house, which is in a part of London Brown has asked me not to disclose. (He has spoken before about the problem of stalkers who believe they are in relationships with him.) The vast 19th-century rooms are lovingly littered with stuffed animals, real and mythical  a unicorn, most of a giraffe, two peacocks flanking the fireplace  and portraits by Brown himself, which attempt to distil their subjects into one image. Brown is in thrall to the idea of things appearing real when they're not, he tells me. There are flecks of blue paint on his right hand: he is in the middle of a Freddie Mercury portrait. We wind our way up to his studio on the second floor, where Freddie's face  uncharacteristically realistic for one of Brown's caricatured paintings  sits on an easel. (Brown is now selling a range of prints on his website for 150 or 250 each, but the originals can go for up to 15,000. Matt Lucas has reserved Freddie.) Strewn around us are dozens of faces: Benedict Cumberbatch; Anthony Hopkins; Marilyn Monroe; a colossal Maggie Smith, whom Brown once met by chance in a crumbling 15th-century Venetian palace.

Brown painting a portrait of Marilyn Monroe in his studio (Christopher Andreou)

This, he says, is what he loves more than perhaps anything else  painting and writing. The plague, as he refers to Covid-19, has been good for him: a chance to hole himself up in his studio and spend days with his art. (He's two days into Freddie. Marilyn took a week.) If he's frustrated, normally it's because he'd like to be left alone. The danger is its so solitary that if youre in a relationship and trying to function as a good enough partner, and actually all you want to do is tuck yourself away and paint, its not ideal. He lives with his boyfriend Justin, who moved in five years ago, and of whom there is a large portrait in the living room. They are selling the house; Brown has been here since 2012 and would like to live somewhere quieter, leafier. Picturing a removals van carting off the aquarium, ceiling-high bookshelves and hundreds of animals is quite an image.

When he was a child, Brown was obsessed with drawing witches in profile: big noses, big chins. He also drew his teachers at Whitgift School, an independent day school in Croydon. At A-level, he grew tired of painting peppers and didn't pursue the subject. But then, in the mid-Nineties, he took it seriously again, after graduating from the University of Bristol, where he studied Law and German. I wonder if his ability to capture someone's likeness has any parallels with his capacity to read people so well? He thinks it is more to do with having been a closeted gay man for so long. If youve been coy or reticent or just felt shame about whats going on underneath, he says, you do get very good at creating dazzling surfaces. As he talks I pick up on a tiny tic I had never noticed before: his chin bobs up and down almost imperceptibly in the gaps between his sentences.

The illusionists portrait of Anthony Hopkins (Christopher Andreou)

The first time Brown appeared on TV was in 2000 with his own show, Mind Control. Then, from 2003 onward, every year or so he has staged a TV special in which he pulls off an extraordinary feat: holding a loaded gun to his head and pulling the trigger several times without dying (Russian Roulette, 2003); convincing a man to land what he thinks is a real plane after the captain is taken ill (Hero at 30,000 Feet, 2010); and leading a man to believe he is one of the few survivors in a zombie wasteland after a meteorite strikes the Earth (Apocalypse, 2012). His last special on terrestrial TV was in 2016; his 2018 stunt, Sacrifice, went straight to Netflix. The programmes have run parallel with Brown's career as a stage performer, where he has racked up eight different UK shows. He made his Broadway debut last year.

I ask if there are any ideas he has only been prevented from doing for legal reasons. Yes, he says. What? The moment I say it, we could never do it. He doesn't tell me what it is but from his description  It might actually be that in this day and age we shouldn't do it anyway  it sounds like it might be morally as well as legally dubious.

I'm not sure Brown would gleefully court that controversy today. There is a shift happening in him. You can hear it in his voice. Back in 2000, with goatee and spiky hair, he was a more ostentatious figure. With an intense stare, dressed in black, and with sideburns like shards of glass, the 29-year-old looked as though he was being deliberately modelled on the Devil. (He has said that his hair was dyed black for TV.) But in the intervening years his persona has mellowed along with his sideburns. His more recent shows have been about not what he can do but what he can make his participants do.

Brown performs a Russian Roulette stunt on live television in 2003 (Rex Features)

He doesn't seem to have missed the limelight. In fact, he says, it looks as though the TV work could soon be behind him. Id love to just be painting and writing  that feels like the dream, he says. He doesn't think he'd miss TV. He might miss the stage shows, ego-fluffing as they are. But his priorities are shifting as he ages. In that second half of life, and I guess at 50 [he's 49] I'm kind of feeling that now, it's important to find those things that are bigger than you.

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Brown is a magician at heart, but you can't help feel he thinks the art form is a little hard to stick up for. (When he talks about not particularly enjoying a Uri Geller show he says that the part that stayed with him was when Geller had to don glasses to read the time on people's watches. Amongst all the sort of self-aggrandisement there was this beautiful human moment in it.) In interviews, Brown has always seemed a little apologetic about magic, and I suspect that he may be beginning to consider his own TV work a tiny bit gimmicky. As each show comes with a message of sorts, there is a delicate line to tread, he says, to avoid them coming across as preachy and unpleasant.

One of the accusations with which Brown has had to reckon is that his TV stunts subject people to traumatising experiences with no guarantee that they will be grateful for having gone through them. (In Pushed to the Edge, the participant we saw on TV didn't push the man to his death, but all the others did.) How does he know the stunt will be worth the potential damage? Here he gets a tiny bit more defensive and points out all of the psychological safeguards in place. It has never gone wrong, he says. But he concedes that with Pushed the life lesson was less obvious. He says that viewers do wonder, Why aren't they just angry, why don't they just punch you? What's his answer? Partly it's the sheer relief on the participant's part, he says, but it's also that the whole experiment was being done just for them, which is a strangely positive thing.

For the majority in Pushed who did push a man to his apparent death, Brown says, the experience is positive because they are now equipped to deal with a similar real-life situation. We make sure what they take away from it is what they're supposed to take away from it, he says. And also, they've done the thing that everybody does, so they're not the bad, psychotic person that's done a bad thing. On the whole, however, he is now wondering if the messages in the TV experiments might be better suited to book writing.

Brown's most recent stunt was 'Sacrifice' for Netflix (Netflix)

Brown has the serene exterior of someone untroubled by what people make of him. I wonder whether this exterior is ever dented by being submitted to public judgment so regularly. Plenty of people find him inauthentic. Plenty of people don't like him, or think that he fakes his tricks. Has this given him sleepless nights? A little, he says. Hes tempted to check Twitter when a show goes out. It's amazing, Twitter's capacity to... even though you think you're armed for it, to still... There's anguish there. He remembers one specific comment from a fan who claimed he was selling out and using stooges. Brown desperately wanted to pick up the phone and call him. Now, when his shows are on air, he goes away if he can, to forget.

Seemingly because he is painting more, Brown thinks he's happier than ever. Coming from the author of Happy: Why More or Less Everything Is Absolutely Fine (a short version of which  A Little Happier  is out on 15 October), this is worth noting. A few years ago, after he had written Happy and was doing press about it, the irony was that he was oddly unhappy. He felt restless, muggy, useless, and couldn't quite identify why. In the end he realised it was because he had just come to the end of a huge writing project. Having experienced that abrupt emptiness, he clearly wants to avoid it at all costs now.

And so it is almost though he is trying to reach a state of constant creativity, like a bicycle whose wheels never stop turning: if a project never truly ends because it simply overlaps with another, what space is there for unhappiness? For Brown's sake, hopefully as little as there is between all of the bizarre artefacts crammed into his house. In other words, not much at all.
The chief of Iran's Revolutionary Guard has threatened revenge on everyone who played a role in the death of General Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in a US drone strike in January.

On Saturday, the Revolutionary Guard released a statement from General Hossein Salami, which featured a direct message to US President Donald Trump.

'Mr. Trump! Our revenge for martyrdom of our great general is obvious, serious and real!' the statement - posted on the Revolutionary Guard's website - read.

Earlier this week, Trump warned that Washington would harshly respond to any Iranian attempts to take revenge for the death of Soleimani.

He tweeted: 'If they [Iran] hit us in any way, any form, written instructions already done were going to hit them 1000 times harder.'

The chief of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, General Hossein Salami (LEFT)), has threatened revenge on everyone who played a role in the death of General Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in a US drone strike in January

General Qassem Soleimani (pictured) was killed in a US drone strike in January.

The president's warning came in response to a report that Iran was plotting to assassinate the US Ambassador to South Africa Lana Marks, in retaliation for Soleimani's killing.

'We took out the world's number one terrorist and the mass murderer of American troops and many, many troops and many people all over the world,' Trump said. 'Qasem Soleimani is dead. He'ss dead. Bad guy. Bad guy. Very bad guy.'

But in the statement put out on Saturday, Salami rejected the report of an Iranian plot to assassinate Marks, but made clear that Iran intends to avenge the general's death.

'Do you think we hit a female ambassador in return to our martyred brother? the general said.

We will hit those who had direct and indirect roles. You should know that everybody who had role in the event will be hit, and this is a serious message. We do prove everything in practice.'

US ambassador to South Africa Lana Marks was a fashion designer and longtime friend of Trump's who has a home in Palm Beach and is a member of Mar-a-Lago

American officials said they had been made aware of threats towards Marks, 66, since the spring but the intelligence detail has suddenly become more specific in recent weeks.

Marks was a fashion designer and is a longtime friend of Trump's who has a home in Palm Beach and is a member of Mar-a-Lago

Relations between Washington and Tehran have been tense since the Iranian revolution, and have spiraled since Trump unilaterally pulled out of a landmark international nuclear deal with Iran in May 2018.

Additionally, Washington is pushing to extend an arms embargo on Iran that starts to progressively expire in October as well as reimposing UN sanctions on the Islamic republic.

Earlier this week, Trump warned that Washington would harshly respond to any Iranian attempts to take revenge for the death of Soleimani

The Iranian navy last week said it drove off American aircraft that flew close to an area where military exercises were underway near the Strait of Hormuz.

The military said three US aircraft were detected by Iran's air force radars after they entered the country's air defense identification zone.

General Kenneth McKenzie, the head of U.S. Central Command, has said that he had been expecting a 'response' from Iran over the US's presence in Iraq.

'I do not know what the nature of that response will be, but we will certainly be ready for it, should it occur,' he said.
Like a lot of you, I spend a lot of my life with guys like Donald Trump looking down on me. Looking down on people who make a living with their hands, people who take care of our kids, clean our streets, he added. These are the guys who always thought they were better than me, better than us, because they had a lot of money. Guys who inherited everything they got and still managed to squander it. . . . I just have a little bit of a chip on my shoulder because of these guys.
WASHINGTON  It was the day before Donald Trumps inauguration and Turkeys top diplomat was looking to make inroads with the new administration.

At Washingtons Watergate Hotel, Turkeys foreign minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, sat down with Brian Ballard, a well-connected lobbyist serving as vice chairman of Trumps inaugural committee.

Also at the table were the two men who set up the meeting: Mubariz Mansimov, a Turkish-Azerbaijani shipping magnate now in a Turkish jail facing terrorism charges, and Lev Parnas, a colorful Florida businessman whose backchannel dealings in Ukraine would, two years later, feature prominently in President Trumps impeachment.

The Jan. 19, 2017, meeting, which has never before been disclosed, marked the start of Turkeys ambitious lobbying of the Trump administration that involved back-channels, Russian-linked oligarchs and Parnas, a key figure in the Ukraine case, according to an investigation by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, Courthouse News Service and NBC News.

A text sent by Brian Ballard to Lev Parnas shortly before the Watergate lunch (Courtesy Lev Parnas)

Parnas and his former associate Igor Fruman made headlines for their role in the Ukraine affair and now face federal charges that they funneled illegal campaign contributions to Republican Party causes. Both men have pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors filed additional charges Thursday against Parnas, alleging he misled investors in his company. Parnas has denied the charges.

President Trump and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, soon developed a warm relationship, according to Trump, resulting in decisions by the U.S. president that recast American foreign policy on Syria, causing consternation among U.S. allies and provoking the resignation of Trumps defense secretary, ret. Gen. James Mattis.

"I get along very well with Erdogan, even though you're not supposed to because everyone says what a horrible guy, but for me it works out good," Trump told journalist Bob Woodward in a recently released recorded conversation featured in the new book "Rage."

Story continues

Turkeys sway with Trump was on display last October. After a phone call with Erdogan, Trump abruptly announced he was greenlighting a Turkish incursion in northern Syria. The chaotic U.S. troop withdrawal that resulted from that decision was criticized across the political spectrum, and many saw it as an abandonment of Americas Kurdish allies.

A table setting with Donald Trump, Brian Ballard and Lev Parnas seated close together for a Republican fundraising dinner at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla. on April 20, 2018. (Courtesy Lev Parnas)

Trumps former national security adviser, John Bolton, wrote in his recent memoir that the two men had a "bromance," even though Erdogan, an Islamist, appeared at odds with much of Americas agenda.

Behind the rapport was a wider effort by Turkey to exert influence with the Trump administration via an international network of businessmen and oligarchs, several of whom are linked to former Soviet republics, according to the investigation. Two are facing criminal charges in the United States and one in Turkey.

The reporting for this story is based on a review of court records, government documents and financial statements, as well as a 90-minute video interview with Parnas, who is awaiting trial on federal campaign finance charges.

The Watergate lunch eventually led to multi-million-dollar contracts for Ballard Partners to lobby on behalf of Turkey and Erdogan in the U.S., according to foreign lobbying contracts filed with the Justice Department.

The 2017 meal at the Watergate Hotel was recounted by Parnas, who also shared text messages with other participants setting up the lunch. Ballard Partners acknowledged the meeting and says it was an introductory, get-to-know-you meeting.

"There was a lot of bodyguards, Turkish bodyguards," Parnas said, recounting the meeting. "It was in a little restaurant," adding that Foreign Minister Cavusoglu "was sitting in the restaurant with a couple of other Turkish dignitaries."

"Mubariz introduced Brian Ballard as Trumps number one guy," Parnas said of the top Trump fundraiser whom Politico dubbed "The Most Powerful Lobbyist in Trumps Washington."

The lobbying contracts with Ballard Partners were established with the help of both Parnas and the shipping tycoon Mansimov, as well as Farkhad Akhmedov, who has since been listed by the U.S. Treasury as a Russian oligarch closely tied to Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to Parnas, and to screen shots of his text messages with Mansimov and Akhemdov. Ballard Partners denied that Akhmedov played any role in the Azerbaijan lobbying contract.

Foreign lobbying records show that Ballard Partners contracts eventually included a $125,000-per-month deal for the firm to represent Halkbank, a Turkish state bank being prosecuted in the U.S. for fraud, money laundering and violating sanctions on Iran, public records show.

According to Bolton and congressional investigators, Trump has tried to discourage the Halkbank prosecution. Bolton says in his book that he was a witness to Trump more than once promising Erdogan to intervene in the case and that federal prosecutors would soon be more amenable to his wishes.

Members of Congress are investigating the issue and have cited Boltons account as well as statements from Treasury officials saying Trump had asked Attorney General William Barr to handle the concerns raised by Erdogan. In 2018, Erdogan said publicly that he had asked Trump to intervene in the case and that talks were underway with U.S. officials.

The White House has denied the Halkbank allegations and declined to comment for this story. The bank has denied the charges and filed a motion to dismiss.

The Halkbank case, which involved laundering billions of dollars out of Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions, is based in part on testimony from a Turkish-Iranian gold trader, who alleged that Erdogan ordered illicit trade with Iran when he was prime minister. Erdogan has rejected the allegations and insisted Turkey did not violate the U.S. embargo.

"Turkish officials were fast learners when it came to dealing with the Trump administration," said Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, who has pushed the White House for more information about how the Halkbank case was handled.

"They hired a favored Republican lobbyist right out of the gate, and pulled out all the stops in their efforts to avoid sanctions for Turkish state-owned Halkbank. Their work paid off, with President Trump doing President Erdogans bidding in an effort to get Halkbank off the hook for its role in the largest sanctions evasion scheme in U.S. history. Its corruption, plain and simple."

Turkeys ambassador to the U.S., Serdar Klc, said the Ballard Partners contract was one of many avenues the government used to further relations with the United States, and that Ankaras lobbying arrangements were legal and transparent.

"Turkey has been working with a multitude of U.S. lobbying firms for decades. Contracts are naturally being constantly re-evaluated according to evolving needs and requirements," Klc said. "Turkeys dealings with U.S. lobbying firms have always been in total agreement with U.S. legal requirements."

Ballard Partners paid Parnas $45,000 for setting up the deals with Turkey, bank statements reviewed by reporters for this story show.

A bank statement showing a check from Ballard Partners deposited by Lev Parnas. (Courtesy Lev Parnas)

Ballard Partners acknowledged the payment, but discounted Parnass role in securing the contracts. Turkey selected the firm for its expertise, the company said, citing one of its partners, Robert Wexler, a former Democratic congressman from Florida whose "knowledge and understanding of the region is deep and rare."

Mansimov, the shipping magnate, was at the time also a business associate of Lev Aslan Derrmen, an Armenian-American recently convicted of working with members of a Utah polygamist sect in a billion-dollar tax credit fraud scheme. A federal agent has alleged in court that Dermen and his accomplices were linked to Erdogan and had bought the protection of Turkeys government.

Well-connected to Erdogan

Parnas said his introduction to shipping tycoon Mansimov came via another figure at the center of the Ukraine impeachment case, Belarusian-born Florida businessman Igor Fruman, who had worked with Trumps personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, on efforts to find political dirt on Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his family.

Parnas said the encounter with Mansimov happened on Dec. 5, 2016, during a night at the Buddha-Bar, a flashy nightclub Fruman owned in Ukraines capital, Kyiv.

Igor Fruman, Turkish shipping magnate Mubariz Mansimov, Turkish businessman Fikret Orman, Lev Parnas at the Buddha -Bar in Kyiv, on Dec 5, 2016, the night that Parnas said he met Mansimov for the first time. (Courtesy Lev Parnas)

Born in Soviet-era Ukraine and raised in Brooklyn, Parnas was at the time a relatively unknown businessman with a string of failed ventures and unpaid debts. During the 2016 campaign, Parnas had managed to raise enough money to become a major donor to pro-Trump causes. When Trump won in November 2016, Parnas found himself with an inside track to the White House.

According to Parnas, his conversation with Mansimov at Buddha-Bar turned to his relationship with Brian Ballard, who was already seen as an influential power broker in Trumps world. That October, Parnas had met Ballard at a Florida function for V.I.P. Trump donors, where the two men "clicked," he said. Mansimov wanted an introduction.

A photograph from the night out in Kyiv shows the men in high spirits and arm in arm. According to Parnas, Mansimov touted his personal links to Erdogan, including his reported gift of a $25 million oil tanker to the Turkish presidents family.

"He used to brag that he was very well connected to Erdogan," Parnas said.

Mansimov did not respond to written requests sent to an executive at his company.

Mansimov now sits in a Turkish jail, facing what he says are trumped up charges of involvement with Fethullah Gulen, a Turkish cleric living in exile in the U.S. who Erdogans government claims is behind a 2016 coup attempt. Members of Gulens movement, formerly allied with Erdogans government, are now accused of belonging to a terrorist organization and hunted by Turkey.

But on that winter night in Kyiv, Mansimov was still an influential figure. His company, Palmali, was a major shipper of oil across the Black Sea, and he enjoyed high-level connections in Turkey, Russia, and his native Azerbaijan.

Parnas said he bonded with Mansimov on their evening out and they later attended a string of V.I.P. inauguration balls around Washington as Trump prepared to assume the presidency.

It wasnt a bad gig

After the inauguration, Parnas says Mansimov gave him a new assignment related to Turkey: spend time entertaining the Russian oligarch Akhmedov, who had just docked his superyacht, the Luna, at a mooring in South Florida.

"It wasnt a bad gig," Parnas recalled with a laugh. "I mean, 70 people on staff, four chefs, every toy in the book." The yacht is listed in directories at 377 feet.

Like Mansimov, Akhmedov was born in Azerbaijan. But unlike Akhmedov, he rose in Russia to become a top Kremlin-linked oligarch. The Treasury Department later included him on a 2017 list of top oligarchs tied to President Vladimir Putin.

Akhmedov was keen on cultivating ties with Ballard for Turkey as well as for his native Azerbaijan, according to Parnas. Azerbajians government would later hire Ballard Partners. According to Parnas, he and Ballard introduced Akhmedov to Steve Wynn, a casino billionaire and G.O.P. megadonor.

Parnas with casino magnate Steve Wynn and Russian oligarch Farkhad Akhmedov at an RNC event on March 4, 2017. (Courtesy Lev Parnas)

Parnas said he made that introduction at a Republican National Committee retreat in Palm Beach, Florida, on March 4. A photo obtained by reporters shows the three men embracing each other at the event. Trump had been there the day before, attending the first day of the retreat.

Akhmedov did not respond to requests for comment.

Even though Parnas had tried to make himself useful, he said he was soon iced out of the Turkey-Ballard relationship.

On May 11, 2017  just days before an incident in which Erdogans bodyguards beat protesters on a Washington street  Ballard Partners signed its first Turkey-related lobbying contract, with the Turkish government. The second contract, with Halkbank, was signed in August. Combined, the two contracts brought in more than $4 million, according to foreign lobbying records with the Justice Department.

Parnas only learned that Ballard Partners and Turkey had signed a deal after reading a May 2017 article in Politico. A WhatsApp message seen by reporters showed that Parnas questioned Ballard and another of his employees about it in early June. He believed he was due part of the contract because he had helped open the door to the introductions.

Parnas said that Ballard attempted to minimize his role in setting up the contracts. "We got into a heated argument."

Bank records obtained by reporters show Ballards lobbying firm, Ballard Partners, made two payments of $22,500 each to Parnas in 2018, over a year after he had helped set up the deal.

Ballard Partners said Parnas was compensated in a "timely manner," and said his payment was a finder's fee for securing Turkey as a client.

A check from Ballard Partners to Lev Parnas. (Courtesy Lev Parnas)

Ballard Partners terminated the lobbying contract with the Turkish government on Nov. 15, 2018, a few days after the Trump administration gave sanctions relief letting Erdogans regime purchase oil from Iran. The firms Halkbank contract was terminated last October, after the bank was indicted by U.S. federal prosecutors.

Turkey also explored other routes to influence the Trump administration.

During the 2016 presidential campaign Turkey sought out Trump adviser Mike Flynn to help advance Erdogans agenda, and paid more than $500,000 in Turkish government money to Flynns consultancy. The Turkish government wanted Flynn's help in winning the extradition of Erdogan's rival, Gulen, from the U.S. On Election Day 2016, Flynn published an opinion piece in The Hill criticizing Gulen.

Flynn's lobbying partner, Bijan Kian, was later charged with illegally acting as an unregistered agent for Turkey and for lobbying the U.S. for Gulen's extradition. He was found guilty at trial but his conviction was overturned by a judge, who said there was insufficient evidence to convict.

Former CIA Director James Woolsey told the Wall Street Journal he was at September 2016 meeting with Flynn and two Turkish ministers at which the ministers discussed kidnapping Gulen from his home in Pennsylvania and "whisking" him to Turkey to face charges. Flynn has denied the report.

Flynn would briefly serve as Trump's first national security adviser before he was forced to resign on Feb. 13, 2017, for lying about his contacts with Russias ambassador to the U.S.

Records filed under the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act show that Turkeys government and related agencies spent more than $7.8 million on five U.S. lobbying firms in 2018 alone. Apart from Ballard Partners, another beneficiary has been the Washington lobbying firm Mercury Public Affairs.

Mercury has contracts with Turkeys government and the Turkish-U.S. Business Council. The council is now headed by Mehmet Ali Yalcndag, a Turkish businessman who partnered with the U.S. president in a Trump Towers Istanbul project. Trump described the development in 2015, without elaborating, as a "little conflict of interest."
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Actor Meyne Wyatt, winner of the Packer's Prize in the Archibald Prize for his self portrait, at the Art Gallery of NSW. The Packing Room Prize is selected by gallery staff who receive, unpack and hang entries. Wyatt was locked down in Sydney, at a loose end with filming suspended, when he started to sketch his face after not having painted formally in 10 years. It's the first time an Indigenous artist has won any of the prizes on offer in the Archibald Prize in its 99-year history. Credit:Janie Barrett
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Poland on Saturday reported a record of 1,002 new coronavirus cases, while neighbouring EU members Lithuania and Slovakia also logged their largest daily tallies since the pandemic began.

The Eastern European figures are in line with a surge in cases across Europe since August that has caused many countries to move back towards tougher restrictions.

"The numbers that we're seeing now are a result of people having returned to normal, everyday life, a return to work," Polish health ministry spokesman Wojciech Andrusiewicz said.

"It's what we're seeing in the streets everyday: more people, more contact," he told the Polish news agency PAP.

The increase brings the total of reported coronavirus cases in the nation of 38 million people to 78,330.

The ministry also reported Saturday 12 new COVID deaths, putting that total at close to 2,300.

In neighbouring Slovakia, a nation of 5.4 million people, the latest figure of 290 new infections brought its total to more than 6,500 cases.

"Now we have a new record. Today, the situation is becoming critical," Slovak Prime Minister Igor Matovic wrote on Facebook.

"However, if we remain responsible, we will live relatively freely despite the pandemic."

Lithuania, a Baltic state with a population of 2.8 million, reported its highest daily count as well.

The 99 new infections put the country's total at more than 3,600 cases.

The Czech Republic for its part reported more than 2,100 new cases, a day after registering a record of 3,130 new infections.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

 2020 AFP
An NIA press release said that the agency 'carried out the simultaneous raids at several locations in Ernakulam (Kerala) and Murshidabad (West Bengal)'

Nine suspected terror operatives were arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) following raids in West Bengal and Kerala, the agency announced on Saturday.

The arrests were made following raids on a group allegedly linked to the Pakistan-sponsored Al Qaeda.

An NIA press release said that the agency "carried out the simultaneous raids at several locations in Ernakulam (Kerala) and Murshidabad (West Bengal)". This was after it learnt about an inter-state module of Al Qaeda operatives at various locations in India, according to an official statement.

NIA Arrests Nine Al-Qaeda Terrorists from West Bengal and Kerala pic.twitter.com/qL7p4rR9lc  NIA India (@NIA_India) September 19, 2020

"Large quantity of materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession. As per preliminary investigation, these individuals were radicalised by the Pakistan-based Al Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the National Capital Region," the NIA said.

While six persons were arrested from Bengal, three were arrested from Kerala.

Those who have been arrested from Kerala's Ernakulam have been identified as Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswa and Mosaraf Hossen. The names of those who have been arrested from West Bengal's Murshidabad are Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman.

The Indian Express quoted a source from the agency as saying that Murshid Hassan was leading the group, and that all the individuals in the group were connected to each other.

The report also quoted an official as saying that the group had to be arrested as they had procured batteries, switches, wires and firecrackers that could be used to make a bomb.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : Air India is not finding any takers and the privatisation may be put off by three years, delivering a blow to the efforts to divest the national carrier.

It seems that due to the turbulence caused in the aviation sector by the Covid 19 pandemic, airlines are already struggling and in that scenario, there are no buyers for Air India. Tatas were supposedly frontrunners for the divestiture, but for some reason have backed out of the race for the moment after completing the due diligence process. The question is therefore whether the books revealed a bigger financial mess than what was anticipated.

The government has already postponed the last date for inviting bids after having said that the date would not be advanced. Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Puri has remarked that the options on the table are either to sell the airlines or close it down. October 30th was the latest deadline for finalizing the sale of Air India, but Govt will be forced to extend that as well. The deadlines of Air India sale have been extended quite a few times in the last couple of years.

If the privatisation is put off by three years then the government will have to find a plan to keep the national carrier running for that period.

Reports suggest that the huge debt of Air India is a major reason for buyers not being extended. The government is examining how the debt exposure of the potential buyer can be reduced.

Out of Rs 60,074 crore debt of Air India, the government had already announced a reduced debt exposure of Rs 23,286 crore for the buyer. This means, that instead of Rs 60,074 crore debt, the new buyer will be needed to repay only Rs 23,286 crore of debt. The rest of the debt will be transferred to a special purpose vehicle called Air India Assets Holding Ltd.

Discussions are on to evolve a formula where the buyers can put in a bid based on the enterprise value and bids will be evaluated based on that.

However, due to the stress in the aviation sector, buyers may not interested even with reduced debt given that their core operations are pressure.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Jammu, Sep 19 (UNI) Asserting that drones were being used by the Pakistani agencies and it's sponsored terror outfits to supply arms, ammunition and drugs inside the territory of Jammu and Kashmir, Director General of Police Dibag Singh said here on Saturday that three terrorists of Lashkar-e-Toiba were arrested with the cache of weapons, dropped by drone in Rajouri district.

'The Rajouri Police, along with the Army's Rashtriya Rifle troops, had launched a Cordon and Search Operation in the general area of Gurdan on Saturday morning, where three suspected persons carrying a bag each were spotted,' the J&K Police Chief, flanked by IG Jammu Mukesh Singh and other officers from intelligence agencies and the Army, told reporters during a media briefing in Rajouri.

'They attempted to flee, after throwing a grenade on the search party, but the grenade did not explode and the brave personnel of the police and army managed to nab all of them, along with a huge cache of arms and ammunition, which was dropped by a drone from Pakistan,' he added.

Mr Singh said the arrested terrorists have been identified and they all hail from South Kashmir.

'Few days back, Poonch Police, along with the Army, also arrested two terrorist operatives and seized arms and ammunition from them,' added the DGP.

He further said that Rajouri Police, with the assistance of Poonch police, busted a narco-terrorism module by recovering 11 kg heroin, during the past few days.

This is a cache, the cost of which runs into crores of rupees and the sale proceeds of this were to be used by the Hizbul Mujahideen outfit to finance the terrorist activities in J&K, said the top cop.

More UNI VBH RJ 2205
Health workers go house by house in La Paz on August 21, 2020, to find cases of Covid-19 so that they can be treated at home, to avoid overtaxing the hospital system

Bolivia will ease national measures combatting the spread of the coronavirus from next week while maintaining border closures, interim President Jeanine Anez said Friday.

Anez and her cabinet signed a decree stating that the South American country, which will hold a general election in October, will begin a "post-confinement phase" on September 1.

It said "the closure of land, river and lake borders" and "the suspension of public events, cultural, sports, festive and political activities, and all types of meetings that generate a crowd" will be maintained.

People and vehicles will be allowed to circulate for longer periods, between 5:00 am and 8:00 pm -- an extension of two hours from current rules -- and a weekend prohibition on movement will be lifted on Saturdays.

Anez told reporters Friday that the possibility of a resurgence of the virus remained as restrictions eased.

"People need to go out to work," she said, adding that if people don't suffer "because of the coronavirus, it will be because of corona-hunger".

Experts believe the virus could reach its peak in Bolivia between September and November, including the period in which the country will hold a twice-delayed general election, on October 18.

Strict measures have been in place since March after the country registered its first coronavirus infections, though a more flexible regime has been in place since June.

To date Bolivia has more than 113,000 infections with 4,800 deaths.

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Celebrity tributes poured in this Friday for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who died at the age of 87.

The liberal lion of the nation's highest court succumbed to pancreatic cancer at home, surrounded by her family and a host of stars took to social media to express their sadness in the minutes and hours after the news broke.

'Thank you for a lifetime of service. Thank you for changing history. We will never let it be undone. RIP RBG,' wrote Mariah Carey on Twitter.

Beloved: Celebrity tributes poured for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who died on Friday at the age of 87

Her fellow pop star Katy Perry also expressed her condolences via Twitter, writing: '#RIPRBG' with a broken heart emoji.

Morning talk show host Kelly Ripa posted a picture of Ginsburg and wrote: '#rip RBG. The right kind of notorious. What a loss,' with a heart emoji.

She was referring to Ginsburg's affectionate nickname 'Notorious RBG,' which was a play on the moniker of late rapper, the Notorious BIG.

Avengers star Chris Evans posted a picture of Ginsburg to his Instagram Stories and called her: 'ONE OF ONE,' also adding a heart.

'Thank you for a lifetime of service': The liberal lion of the nation's highest court received a flood of tributes from such names as Mariah Carey and Katy Perry

'What a loss': Morning talk show host Kelly Ripa posted a picture of Ginsburg and wrote that she was 'The right kind of notorious,' a reference to her affectionate nickname Notorious RBG

In memoriam: Meanwhile his fellow Marvel Cinematic Universe stalwart Zoe Saldana wrote: 'R.I.P. Ruth Bader Ginsburg' on her Insta Stories

Meanwhile, his fellow Marvel Cinematic Universe stalwart Zoe Saldana wrote: 'R.I.P. Ruth Bader Ginsburg' on her Insta Stories.

'I know we can't live forever, I only wish she could have,' wrote Goldie Hawn while Kerry Washington tweeted: 'Her rest is earned. It is our turn to fight.'

Martha Stewart uploaded a picture taken this Valentine's Day of her own meeting with Ginsburg at the Library Of Congress.

They were gathered at a ceremony where the Supreme Court Justice gave a Woman Of Leadership Award to philanthropist Agnes Gund.

'Please vote': Sharing Ginsburg's high school yearbook photo, January Jones wrote: 'Rest in sweet peace to this beautiful champion of the people'

Recent throwback: Martha Stewart uploaded a picture taken this Valentine's Day of her own meeting with Ginsburg at the Library Of Congress

'Her rest is earned': 'I know we can't live forever, I only wish she could have,' wrote Goldie Hawn while Kerry Washington tweeted that 'It is our turn to fight'

'February 14, 2020. I was with Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg honoring her great work What an accomplished and very great lady!!!!!! May she Rest In Peace amidst this utter chaos!!!!!!!!!,' wrote Martha.

'May you Rest In Peace RBG. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!' wrote Real Housewife Of Beverly Hills Lisa Rinna.

Star Wars icon Mark Hamill wrote: 'Gut wrenching loss...Could 2020 be any more brutal and cruel? #RIPRuthBaderGinsburg.'

Orange Is The New Black star Uzo Aduba toasted: 'To Ruth,' and Shameless lead Emmy Rossum tweeted that the news was 'f***ing heart breaking.'

Icons: Real Housewife Of Beverly Hills Lisa Rinna, Star Wars legend Mark Hamill, Orange Is The New Black star Uzo Aduba and Shameless' Emmy Rossum all paid tribute to the late judge

'Ahhhhhhh mannnnnnnnn,' wrote Glee actor Darren Criss, as Rosie O'Donnell lamented: 'nooooooooooooo #rbg.'

Rosie's former The View co-host Joy Behar wrote: 'This is terrible news. They must not be allowed to put another conservative on the court. They must not!!!'

'No one fought harder. We must continue in her footsteps,' wrote Billy Eichner on his Twitter page in response to the news. 'She refused to rest up until the bitter end. Neither should we. RIP the great, great, GREAT RBG.'

Sophia Bush declared she was 'Truly and utterly gutted. And grateful. And in awe. And just so devastated. An icon and a hero. #RBG.'

The One Tree Hill star swung by her Instagram page and broke down in tears in sadness over Ginsburg's passing.

Stars of the small screen: Darren Criss, Rosie O'Donnell, Billy Eichner and Sophia Bush were among the long list of famous names showing their respect

Alyssa MIlano wrote: 'She was my hero. I never got to meet her. But I loved her and the way she moved through this world with such strength and grace and conviction. Rest In Peace, Ruth Bader Ginsberg. #RIPRBG.'

'If there is a God, may She bless and keep RBG,' wrote Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who recently won a string of Emmys on the political sitcom Veep.

Jennifer Lopez shared an Instagram album showing the meeting she and her fiance Alex Rodriguez got to have with Ginsburg.

'I am heartbroken to hear of the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She was a true champion of gender equality and was a strong woman for me and all the little girls of the world to look up to,' wrote Lopez.

Making their voices heard: Actresses and activists Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Alyssa Milano shared their feelings about the death

Throwback: Jennifer Lopez shared an Instagram album showing the meeting she and her fiance Alex Rodriguez got to have with Ginsburg

'Heartbroken': She was a true champion of gender equality and was a strong woman for me and all the little girls of the world to look up to,' wrote Lopez

'Simple yet profound': The pop star remembered: 'I will always remember what she said to us the day we met her: "Be the best you"'

Her promise: Lopez vowed: 'We will honor you by continuing to fight for equality, empathy and justice for all. #RIPRBG'

'Throughout my life, Ive been fortunate to meet so many amazing people  but theres those select few where theres an instinct inside you that tells you to pay close attention. And I did. When I met her I was hanging on to her every word'

The pop star remembered: 'I will always remember what she said to us the day we met her: "Be the best you." It was simple yet profound. Thank you RBG for fighting all these years. We will honor you by continuing to fight for equality, empathy and justice for all. #RIPRBG.'

Kevin McHale tweeted: 'What an actual legend. Thank you RBG for a life of fighting for whats right against all odds and for her family for sharing her with us. We are better off for having had her and I fear her absence.'

'Ruth Bader Ginsburg. A model for fairness, rational thought, and progress. She will be missed more than we can yet imagine,' wrote Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane.

Warm words: Kevin McHale called Ginsburg 'an actual legend' and Seth MacFarlane said she was 'A model for fairness, rational thought, and progress'

Shortly before her death Ginsburg said: 'My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.'

The election in November pits Republican incumbent U.S. President Donald Trump against the Democrat former vice president Joe Biden.

Supreme Court Justices are nominated by the President Of The United States and then confirmed by the Senate.

Early this month Trump unveiled a short-list of potential Supreme Court nominees including Republican Senators Ted Cruz, Tom Cotton and Josh Hawley.

Her say: Shortly before her death Ginsburg said: 'My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed'

Process: Supreme Court Justices are nominated by the president and then confirmed by the Senate; Ginsburg was nominated by Bill Clinton and confirmed by a Democratic Senate

If Trump picks Ginsburg's replacement the balance of the court will be six Republican appointees to three Democrat ones, whereas if Biden chooses there will be four Democrat appointees to five Republican ones, as when Ginsburg was alive.

January Jones of Mad Men fame acknowledged the impact of Ginsburg's death on the election when she posted a tribute to the late judge this Friday.

Sharing Ginsburg's high school yearbook photo, Jones wrote: 'Rest in sweet peace to this beautiful champion of the people. Please vote. #RBG.'

Andy Cohen posted the hashtag: '#MerrickGarland,' the name of the judge President Obama nominated to the Supreme Court in March 2016.

Invoking history: Andy Cohen posted the hashtag: '#MerrickGarland,' the name of the judge President Obama nominated to the Supreme Court in March 2016

Obama submitted Garland as a nominee after the death of the court's conservative firebrand Antonin Scalia precipitating a huge row.

The Republican Senate refused to hold confirmation hearings for him, saying the next president should get to pick Scalia's as it was Obama's last year.

When Obama was replaced by Donald Trump the new Republican president nominated Neil Gorsuch whom the Senate confirmed.

Sarah Silverman also had an eye on the prospect of a conservative Ginsburg replacement as she paid her respects.

Broken-hearted: Demi Moore quote-tweeted journalist Jamil Smith who wrote: 'She carried too much weight, and for too long'

Fearful: Sarah Silverman also had an eye on the prospect of a conservative Ginsburg replacement as she paid her respects

'RIP RBG. Gutted Sad. Grateful for all she did. And very very scared,' wrote the acclaimed comedian and actress.

Demi Moore quote-tweeted journalist Jamil Smith who wrote: 'She carried too much weight, and for too long. We should live in an America where we only need to send condolences to everyone who knew and loved Justice Ginsburg, and not to the nation and democracy as a whole. I wish that we could simply mourn her. Alas.'

Iron Man star Robert Downey Jr. paid tribute with her quote: 'Fight for the things you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.'

The Facts Of Life actress Mindy Cohn posted an Insta Stories portrait of Ginsburg and wrote: 'RIP TO YOU RBG.'

'Rest in ferocity': Robert Downey Jr. shared an inspirational quote from the late Justice while Lena Dunham 'Truly believed she was eternal'

'Devastating for our country': Jennifer Aniston urged the public: 'Everyone, PLEASE, right now, make a plan to VOTE'

Jennifer Aniston wrote: 'This is so devastating for our country. Thank you for everything you did... Rest in Power RBG,' and urged the public: 'Everyone, PLEASE, right now, make a plan to VOTE.'

'Truly believed she was eternal- we needed her to be eternal. What she means to our past was only rival led by what she still meant for our futures. There are no proper words to thank #RuthBaderGinsburg,' wrote Lena Dunham.

'All we can do is promise to keep fighting in her name, for the many freedoms she gave us and the rights she proclaimed as unassailable. Rest in ferocity, #RBG, knowing you really did it,' she added.

Bette Midler erupted over a CNN headline about Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell saying the Senate would vote on a Trump nominee to replace Ginsburg.

Hands in prayer: The Facts Of Life actress Mindy Cohn posted an Insta Stories portrait of Ginsburg and wrote: 'RIP TO YOU RBG'

Fury: Bette Midler erupted over a CNN headline about Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell saying the Senate would vote on a Trump nominee to replace Ginsburg

'What do you expect? Her bodys not even cold, and #MoscowMitch is on the horn looking for #RuthBaderGinsbergs replacement. So Mitch. Im sure the candidate he shoves into her chair will be a pisser. Literally. I wouldnt be surprised if it were #BillBarr. Or worse. #Rudy,' she wrote in an impassioned tweet.

Child star Storm Reid tweeted: 'A warrior. RBG took up space undeniably. She reiterated that women arent and shouldnt be the exception. We belong in all places. She led an extraordinary life and operated from a space of selflessness. All I can say is thank you. Rest in power. Godspeed.'

Hilaria Baldwin shared Ruth's quote: '[I would like to be remembered as] someone who used whatever talent she had to do her work to the very best of her ability.'

Jamie Lee Curtis posted a picture of a ball that read: 'november third 2020,' the date of the upcoming presidential election.

Looking back: Hilaria Baldwin shared Ruth's quote: '[I would like to be remembered as] someone who used whatever talent she had to do her work to the very best of her ability'

She also had 'A celebration dinner' of Ginsburg's life at Dear John's Restaurant in New York complete with a memorial candle.

'I met Justice Ginsburg, or "Ruth" as I grew to call her, last year while filming Taste the Nation. She was so kind, curious and lovely,' wrote Padma Lakshmi.

'I wrote this of our meeting at the time: "There are meals in your life you will never forget. Meals you will tell your grandkids about. Last night was one of them. I had dinner with someone Ive admired for a long long time.

'"And she did not disappoint. Witty and whip smart, she had a twinkle in her eye the whole night. We sipped champagne, savored our gazpacho and crab and talked of India in the 80s and so much more."'

Planning ahead: Jamie Lee Curtis posted a picture of a ball that read: 'november third 2020,' the date of the upcoming presidential election

Living it up: She also had 'A celebration dinner' of Ginsburg's life at Dear John's Restaurant in New York complete with a memorial candle

Referring to her daughter Krishna she wrote: 'Afterwards Ruth invited me and Littlehands to meet her in her chambers at the Supreme Court where she patiently explained the many cases she had to Littlehands. She sent us books in the mail, beautifully wrapped with handwritten notes.'

Padma continued: 'I went back to visit her at court when the ACLU had a case on immigration there. I cannot tell you what a loss this is for me personally, for women everywhere and for our country.'

The Top Chef star added: 'She started the womens rights project at the ACLU many years ago and my work and the work of so many would not be possible if she hadnt paved the way for us. She was someone I have admired so much for so many years, someone I looked up to.

'With so much going on in her life, she took the time to befriend me and Littlehands and I will never forget her. A tall tree has fallen in our forest... #RIPRBG #RIPRuth.'

Family trip: 'I met Justice Ginsburg, or "Ruth" as I grew to call her, last year while filming Taste the Nation,' wrote Padma Lakshmi

'Ruth Bader Ginsberg was such an inspiring person. I'm so sad that she died,' Heather Graham wrote.

'A legend, a hero and an inspiration to millions! Ruth Bader Ginsburg dedicated her life to justice and gender equality, and we must continue to fight for true equality for all in her memory,' Kris Jenner wrote on Instagram.

'Such an incredible and courageous woman who inspired generations of women with her strength, determination and belief that we can accomplish anything we set our minds to. My prayers are with Ruth's family and friends.'

Olivia Munn posted the same quote Robert Downey Jr. did and wrote: 'You lead millions to join you. Thank you for everything you have done for us. Hope you're resting peacefully. We'll continue to fight down here.'

Celebs turning out in force: Heather Graham, Kris Jenner and Olivia Munn joined the outpouring of grief for her

'RIP Your Honor. And Godspeed,' Sarah Jessica Parker wished the late jurist while Sharon Stone wrote: 'RIP RBG we've got your back.'

Cindy Crawford's daughter Kaia Gerber wrote that it was 'devastating. rest in peace RBG, let's all vote in her honor.'

'Thank you thank you thank you. I'm without words. Eyes full of tears and a heart full of gratitude,' gushed Christina Hendricks.

Viola Davis wrote in anguish: 'No 2020!!!! No! No! Not now! Not this WOMAN!!!! Please work your supreme magic, brilliant mind, and courage from Heaven!! Help us down here! Thank you for your service Queen!! Rest in glorious peace.'

So many stars: Acclaimed actress Viola Davis, Sharon Stone, Christina Hendricks and Sarah Jessica Parker expressed their sadness as did model Kaia Gerber

Justin Theroux uploaded an Instagram album of his meeting with Justice Ginsburg including one of him shaking her hand as she sat before him.

'I am heartbroken. I have no words for the hole that has just been blown through us. Thank you for your service Justice Ginsburg. Well miss you RBG. I love you Ruth,' he wrote.

Rachel Brosnahan of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel fame wrote: 'Gutted. Rest well, RBG. Thank you,' adding an uncredited Desmond Tutu quote: 'If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen to side with the oppressors.'

Beyonce's mother Tina Lawson wrote: 'So saddened by this great loss ! Supreme Court Justice Ms Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Was a hero that fought tirelessly for justice for all people. God Bless her and prayers up for her family.'

'I love you Ruth': Justin Theroux uploaded an Instagram album of his meeting with Justice Ginsburg including one of him shaking her hand as she sat before him

'I am heartbroken': He wrote: 'I have no words for the hole that has just been blown through us'

'Prayers up for her family': Beyonce's mother Tina Lawson wrote: 'So saddened by this great loss ! Supreme Court Justice Ms Ruth Bader Ginsberg

'Few women who've lived on planet earth have been as committed to helping others as Queen Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I am deeply saddened by this loss, for everyone. Most of all, my little girls,' Kristen Bell wrote.

'Who know the story of Ruth's tireless work ethic and commitment to the rights of both men and women, to nursing he husband through cancer while working AND getting her law degree, to raising 2 children, from numerous books weve read about her,' the Frozen star continued.

'Rest in Peace Queen, and thank you for everything you did for us on earth. You will always be a true north,' she added.

Ashley Tisdale wrote: 'Thank you for fighting for us. We will not stop fighting and thats all because of YOU. Rest In Peace RBG.'

Family business: 'My mother, a magistrate in her own life was also determined and focused but RGB was a major player in our justice system in her own incredible life,' wrote Selma Blair

'Small but determined, the notorious RBG will always be a leader for equal rights. A visionary. An original,' wrote Selma Blair.

'My mother, a magistrate in her own life was also determined and focused but RGB was a major player in our justice system in her own incredible life. She was radical and cool. She shook up preconceived notions pleasing supporters and skeptics alike. She was a true bipartisan,' Selma argued.

'She could see both sides. May we remember this. What is good for the country. Her death is Rosh Hashanah makes her tzaddik. A person of great righteousness. Rest In Peace RBG. You earned it.'

Pharrell wrote: 'A true giant. Thank you for your service RBG,' while Ashley Benson, Vanessa Hudgens and Gabrielle Union also joined the choir.

'A true giant': Pharrell wrote: 'Thank you for your service RBG,' while Ashley Benson, Vanessa Hudgens and Gabrielle Union also joined the choir

'RUTH BADER GINSBURG. She was a champion for good. We lost a very powerful and fair-minded champion. Bless her soul, bless her work, bless her courage and her vision. Be active! VOTE!' wrote Tracee Ellis Ross.

'This is not a game. Know whats at stake and VOTE! Up and down and all around the ballot. VOTE! Sending love and condolences to her family and loved ones. Im so sorry for your loss. I know what she meant to me and I never even met her, so I can only imagine what she meant to you,' added the daughter of Diana Ross.

'An indescribable honor to have been in her presence. She never stopped showing up for us. Now we'll keep showing up to honor her life and her legacy. #rbg,' wrote America Ferrera alongside a picture of her meeting with Ginsburg.

'Devastated. Rest In Peace RBG,' wrote Brooke Shields. 'Thank you for all that you've done for this country. Everyone, please go make a plan to vote.'

'An indescribable honor': America Ferrera shared a picture of her meeting with Ginsburg, while Tracee Ellis Ross and Brooke Shields also posted about her

Ginsburg's death brought tributes from international celebrities including Israeli star Gal Gadot who offered gratitude 'for everything you brought to this world.'

'A trailblazer in every way. We will honor your life and legacy by voting to protect all you stood for. Thank you endlessly for fighting for justice and equality until the very end. #rbg,' gushed Mandy Moore.

'I don't know why I just thought she would hold on indefinitely. Because we needed her so much right now. Because she's such an icon and role model to all women.

'To all people. Because she was a true warrior for human rights and justice. A real upstanding human. A QUEEN. Rest in Power,' wrote Milla Jovovich.

Global legend: Ginsburg's death brought tributes from international stars such as Israeli actress Gal Gadot as well as Americans like Milla Jovovich and Mandy Moore

'Thank you #RBG': Laverne Cox of Orange Is The New Black wrote that 'Your work and life made so much possible for all of us'

Selena Gomez called Ginsburg a 'Legend,' Lily Collins urged fans to 'make a plan to vote...,' and Lizzo said simply: 'Thank you.'

Jake Gyllenhaal shared a couple of texts he got from his mother Naomi: 'She held us in her arms as long as she could. Now it's up to us.'

'Rest In Peace Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Thank you for everything you have done for women's rights, you will be missed,' tweeted Bebe Rexha.

'THANK YOU FOR BEING A WARRIOR FOR JUSTICE, EQUALITY AND WOMEN'S RIGHTS,' wrote pop icon Christina Aguilera.

'This is a devastating loss for our country...thank you for all you've done,' wrote former NSYNC star Justin Timberlake.

Gratitude: Selena Gomez called Ginsburg a 'Legend,' Lily Collins urged fans to 'make a plan to vote...,' and Lizzo said simply: 'Thank you'

Grieving family: Jake Gyllenhaal shared a couple of texts he got from his mother Naomi: 'She held us in her arms as long as she could. Now it's up to us'

Legend to legend: 'THANK YOU FOR BEING A WARRIOR FOR JUSTICE, EQUALITY AND WOMEN'S RIGHTS,' wrote pop icon Christina Aguilera

'Rest In Peace Ruth Bader Ginsburg': 'Thank you for everything you have done for women's rights, you will be missed,' tweeted Bebe Rexha

'Celebrating your incredible life... but we are heartbroken for what you're leaving behind,' wrote his wife Jessica Biel.

Jada Pinkett Smith noted: 'We've lost another real one,' whilst Julia Roberts was 'Gutted' and thanked Ginsburg 'for your compass.'

Katy Perry's fiance Orlando Bloom, with whom she just welcomed her firstborn daughter Daisy, wrote just: 'Thank you. RIP #ruthbaderginsburg.'

Laura Dern touchingly posted a childhood snap of Ruth and wrote: 'To think of all she would become. All she would do. What a gift we were given in this beautiful, warrior soul. Thank you, Justice Ginsburg. Rest In Peace. #RBG.'

Power couple: Justin Timberlake called Ginsburg's death 'a devastating loss for our country' while his wife Jessica Biel was 'heartbroken for what you're leaving behind'

'Gutted': Jada Pinkett Smith noted: 'We've lost another real one,' whilst Julia Roberts was 'Gutted' and thanked Ginsburg 'for your compass'

Short and sweet: Katy Perry's fiance Orlando Bloom, with whom she just welcomed her firstborn daughter Daisy, wrote just: 'Thank you'

'All she would do': Laura Dern touchingly posted a childhood snap of Ruth and wrote: 'To think of all she would become'

Bollywood superstar Priyanka Chopra was another one of the international stars to pay her respects upon the passing of Justice Ginsburg.

She shared a quote from the late judge: 'For both men and women the first step in getting power is to become visible to others, and then to put on an impressive show...

'As women achieve power, the barriers will fall. As society sees what women can do, as women see what women can do, there will be more women out there doing things, and well all be better off for it.'

Chopra then added her own words: 'Your impact and contribution will never be forgotten. Thank you, RBG. Your legacy lives on. Rest in Peace.'

German film star Diane Kruger posted: 'Im at a loss for words. RIP to a true pioneer and icon who brought out the best in all of America. And now...we are truly f.....'

What an array: Hollywood stars like Reese Witherspoon joined global figures like German actress Diane Kruger and Bollywood icon Priyanka Chopra in their grief

Reese Witherspoon wrote: 'Thank you for fighting for us. May your legacy be our motivation to be actively in pursuit of true justice for all. Rest in Power // Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.'

Jared Leto thanked Ginsburg 'for your life and service' and Brittany Snow wrote that 'We can't & we won't let you down.'

"May her memory be a revolution!! We MUST VOTE!!' wrote actress and activist Eva Longoria with three raised fist emoji.

Buffy The Vampire Slayer star Sarah Michelle Gellar wrote: '#rip #ruthbaderginsburg #inspiration Thank you for showing us the way.'

Supermodel sensation Naomi Campbell and sitcom star Zooey Deschanel shared their wishes that Ginsburg rest in peace.

Stars of the screen: Oscar-winner Jared Leto as well as famous TV figures Brittany Snow, Eva lOngoria and Sarah Michelle Gellar posted about Ginsburg as well

'I respect this woman more than I respect most. Thank you for your service RBG,' wrote the pop star Pink.

'The world is mourning your leaving us. R.I.P. Ruth Bader Ginsburg God Bless,' wrote Working Girl superstar Melanie Griffith.

'Today we have lost a true champion who protected the rights of all Americans. We have lost an ally and a trailblazer who fought long and hard against injustice. Ruth Bader Ginsburg you inspired generations of women,' Queen Latifah posted.

'Your words and powerful dissents are part of the impressive legacy you leave behind. We will continue the work. Thank you Notorious RBG #RestInPower #VOTE #VOTE2020,' the Girls Trip star continued.

'Where would we be without women like you?' wrote Baby Driver star Eiza Gonzalez adding a black heart emoji.
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Why cant our leaders just repair relations with China? If only Canberra toned down its rhetoric, restored a dialogue and rebuilt trust with Beijing, all would be well. Instead, the federal government needlessly provokes our largest trade partner by implementing foreign interference laws, rejecting the Huawei 5G network bid, and calling for an inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus.

Security trumps prosperity in international politics. Credit:Matt Davidson

Many Australian academics, business leaders and former diplomats are deeply invested in this perspective. They believe China can rise peacefully and, when there is trouble, it is invariably the fault of either Washingtons hawkish policies or inept Australian diplomacy.

This line of thinking is unsurprising since so many of us came of age in what the prominent American columnist Charles Krauthammer called in 1990 the unipolar moment. The dangerous bipolar world of the Cold War had been replaced by a unipolar world in which the US had no serious rivals. Thus, Washington was ideally situated to help shape a rules-based liberal international order.

Indeed, a year earlier, in 1989, political scientist Francis Fukuyama had declared the end of history, which meant the world had entered a liberal and democratic epoch, which was likely to bring peace and prosperity all across the planet.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 19)  The National Democratic Front of the Philippines, which represents communist rebels in peace talks with the government, wants to discuss the resumption of negotiations with Vice President Leni Robredo after botched efforts with the Duterte administration.

The NDFP, including its panel, should hold discussions with opposition parties, in particular, the Liberal Party, said Julie de Lima, the newly-appointed NDFP negotiating panel interim chairperson who replaced the late Fidel Agcaoli. Robredo is chairperson of the Liberal Party.

De Lima added that the communist organization should engage with Robredo as constitutional successor "to press for the resumption of the peace negotiation as a rallying point in the effort to oust Duterte.

The Communist Party of the Philippines released a statement on Friday on these remarks that De Lima made in a Thursday interview with Ang Bayan, its official publication.

The CPP and its armed wing New Peoples Army are waging Asias longest-running insurgency which has spanned over five decades. President Rodrigo Duterte formally terminated the on-and-off peace talks in November 2017, just more than a year in office, as both sides accused each other of ceasefire violations.

READ: How peace talks with communist rebels failed

Prospects for resuming the peace negotiations after Duterte, whether he is ousted or he finishes his term, are possible and desirable, De Lima said.

She said priority would be given to tackling social and economic reforms in a post-Duterte scenario. The CPP has been pushing for the signing of the Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms (CASER), even making it a condition for its self-exiled founding chairman Jose Maria Sison to accept Dutertes previous invitations for a face-to-face meeting in the Philippines.

De Lima said the CASER seeks to establish quality health services for all and disaster preparedness and response which are necessary amid the coronavirus pandemic. It also has provisions to hold corrupt and negligent government officials criminally and civilly liable, she said.

Robredo's office and the Palace have yet to respond to the NDFP's statement.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : The Centre on Saturday withdrew three Bills moved by the Labour Ministry in the Lok Sabha and reintroduced them with fresh labour code provisions as part of the labour reforms initiative.

The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2019; Industrial Relations Code, 2019; and Code on Social Security, 2019 were withdrawn from the Lower House when it assembled for the day at 3 p.m.

Minister of State (independent charge) in the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Santosh Kumar Gangwar, moved the proposal for the withdrawal of these Bills and later reintroduced them with fresh provisions.

In his speech, Gangwar said various changes have been made in the provisions related to the labour Codes as well as their Preamble, necessitating their withdrawal and introduction of new ones.

"Because of various changes in the Bills, it is necessary to withdraw earlier ones and introduce Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020; Industrial Relations Code, 2020; and Code on Social Security, 2020 in their place." The original Codes were introduced in the Lok Sabha in 2019 but later referred to the Parliament's Standing Committee on Labour, which discussed all the three.

"Standing Committee led by Chairman Bhartruhari Mahtab, a Biju Janata Dal MP from Cuttack, made 233 recommendations and we accepted 174 of them." The Minister said all these changes in the new Bills are part of the labour reforms initiative. "When the country got independence, there were 44 labour laws. As some of them were later repealed, we are now working to change 29 labour laws into four Codes. This House passed the first Code with full support; we have come with three more Codes." Later, the Minister said that his ministry held nine tripartite consultations, four sub-committee meetings, 10 regional conferences, discussed labour court provisions at various places in the country, 10 inter-ministerial consultations and also took suggestions from various departments and Ministries as well as the public.

The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2019 aimed to consolidate and amend the laws regulating the occupational safety, health and working conditions of the persons employed in an establishment. The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on July 23 last year.

The Industrial Relations Code, 2019 consolidated and amended the laws relating to trade unions, conditions of employment in industrial establishment or undertaking, investigation and settlement of industrial disputes and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on November 28 last year.

The Code on Social Security, 2019 sought amendment and consolidated the laws relating to social security of the employees. The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on December 11 last year.
The sister of a woman shot and killed while getting ready with friends for a night on the town has labelled witnesses 'gutless' and one of them a 'sacred dog' for not revealing exactly how her sibling died.

Ivona Jovanovic, 27, died after being shot in the chest at a her ex-boyfriend's Highland Park home on September 8, 2019.

She was with four friends at the time of the incident, including ex-boyfriend Christos Panagakos who has alleged links to bikies.

The friends allegedly fled the house, despite Ms Jovanovic's injuries, while Mr Panagakos' mother phoned for help.

The investigation is before the coroner, and uncertainty around how Ms Jovanovic came to be shot still persists.

The weapon, believed to be a handgun, is yet to be located and there have been zero arrests since the tragedy.

Ivona Jovanovic (pictured), 27, died after being shot in the chest at a Highland Park home on September 8, 2019, while getting ready for a night out

She was with four others at the time of the incident, including ex-boyfriend Christos Panagakos. Pictured: Ivona Jovanovic (right) with her sister, Annette (left)

Annette Jovanovic told Daily Mail Australia one person knows what really happened on that tragic night.

'They're a scared dog' she said.

Police believe witnesses are withholding details of the incident from investigators out of fear of alleged bikie links.

Annette also penned a heartbreaking post detailing her pain and confusion over why witnesses 'can't speak up and give my family any closure'.

She labelled them as 'gutless' and said the incident 'destroyed' her family's life.

'Why every time when I attempt to go to bed my mind begins to race and I'm wide awake still trying to figure out what happened to my sister,' she wrote on Facebook.

In a heartbreaking post on Facebook (pictured), Ms Jovanovic's sister, Annette, penned her pain and confusion over why any of the witnesses 'can't speak up and give my family any closure'

'What makes it so much harder is knowing there are four people who know the truth and exactly what happened but yet they can't speak up and give my family any closure.

'Ivona's life was taken and her families lives are being destroyed each day and night.

'Four people who know but are gutless to speak ... I just don't understand.'

Detective Superintendent Brendan Smith said he was disappointed 'all the people inside at the time haven't given us a full and frank version (of what happened that night)', the Gold Coast Bulletin reported.

Every witness to the incident has been questioned by police.

Superintendent Smith said there were 'concerns that people are withholding information which would progress it.'

The investigation is before the coroner, and uncertainty around how Ms Jovanovic (pictured) came to be shot still persists

It is alleged the group fled the house, despite Ms Jovanovic's injuries. Mr Panagakos (pictured) allegedly left his mother to phone for help

'The only people that know exactly what happened are those people who were in the house at the time. There is certainly that potential that it was an accident and if that's the case that's all more reason that someone should come forward and give a version,' he said, the Gold Coast Bulletin reported.

Mr Panagakos appeared in court in January, where he pleaded guilty to a string of charges - including unlawful possession of a weapon, failing to dispose of a syringe, receiving tainted property and other related offences.

The charges are relation to a butterfly knife, taser and police cap allegedly found in the 27-year-old's bedroom at a home where he lived with his mother in September. 2019.

The court heard the items were found at the house his ex-girlfriend, Ms Jovanovic, was fatally shot three days prior - on September 8 - while getting ready for a night out.

Mr Panagakos (pictured) appeared in court in January, where he pleaded guilty to a string of charges - including unlawful possession of a weapon, failing to dispose of a syringe, receiving tainted property and other related offences

Mr Panagakos had been in custody since his arrest on a return-to-prison warrant hours after the tragic shooting.

Daily Mail Australia does not suggest Mr Panagakos was involved in his former girlfriend's death.

Mr Panagakos' solicitor Michael Gatenby told the court at the time the butterfly knife was among his client's large collection which 'regrettably, two of the items were unlawful,' The Gold Coast Bulletin reported.

He added his client had no idea the police hat, which belonged to a woman, was genuine.

Mr Panagakos' ex-girlfriend (pictured) was shot in the chest at a home on the Gold Coast and later died in hospital

'What's occurred is there's an incident at the home, for which my client is not charged,' Mr Gatenby told the court.

'And you can see a crime scene warrant is executed as a consequence of that, after my client's in police custody and police enter the home.'

Mr Panagakos has an extensive criminal history and allegedly has links to the Mongols outlaw bikie gang.

He was sentenced to three-and-a-half years behind bars in Mackay Supreme Court in 2017 for drug offences.

Mr Panagakos was then convicted of trying to smuggle drugs into jail after meth and valium dropped from his rectum as he was being searched after his sentencing.

Mr Panagakos (pictured) will be eligible for parole next month, despite facing more jail time

Ivona Jovanovic (pictured) was fatally shot in the chest while getting ready for a night out

He was released on parole after serving 10 months behind bars, which he breached by committing the most recent offences last September.

Mr Panagakos was also recently released on parole after appearing in court in January.
Not at all. It just seems like a lot of back-and-forth talk.

Yes. I'm growing very worried over what might happen.

If it keeps up, I might be a little more concerned.

I think there are much larger things to concern us as a country.

It's hard to tell; I can't take the leader of either country seriously.

Vote

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If Democrat Mark Kelly defeats incumbent Sen. Martha McSally in Arizona's high-stakes U.S. Senate race, he may not have to wait long to start work in Washington, D.C.

Two Republican and Democratic election attorneys agree that state law and Senate practices would make Kelly eligible to take over the seat once held by Sen. John McCain as soon as Nov. 30, when the state election results are expected to be canvassed.

If that happens, Kelly would help to narrow Republicans 53-47 majority in the chamber in a post-election, lame-duck session when the GOP could seek to confirm President Donald Trumps nominee to succeed Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who passed away Friday.

Everything in statute suggests it happens very quickly after the election results are finalized, Mary OGrady, an attorney specializing in election law and a Democrat, said.

Who might succeed Justice Ginsburg? Trump's short list begins with these five women (and one man)

Thomas Basile, a Republican who also specializes in election law, added, "In the ordinary course, in an ordinary Senate election, the winner of the election would begin his or her term until January. But in this context, a special election to fill a vacancy in a pending term ... the winner could be sworn in and seated earlier than he or she otherwise would be if this were a regular election."

Barring litigation contesting the results of the election, state law requires the canvassing of election results on the fourth Monday after the election. This cycle, that would fall on Nov. 30.

Under this scenario, which is possible because McSally was appointed to the seat, Kelly would get another advantage. He would take office well before the crop of freshman senators are traditionally sworn in on at the opening of the new congressional session, which is typically in early January. That would give him a seniority advantage on several fronts, including the selection of committee assignments.

Story continues

'Republicans ... need every vote'

Kellys presence wouldnt upend the GOP majority before a new Congress is seated, but it has the potential to complicate things for Republicans, said Jessica Taylor, Senate editor for the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, which projects that the Arizona Senate race leans in Kelly's favor. Cook, along with Kaiser Family Foundation, released new polling Thursday that showed Kelly leading by 8 percentage points.

Certainly there are things that a Republican-controlled Senate that has just lost their majority, with perhaps a lame-duck president, can try to push through in that final month, and that would be one less vote that they have, she said. And then if you have, you know, moderate defections  the Senate is still very close right now and Republicans still very much need every vote.

The winner of the special election can begin his or her term of office after the Senate receives credentials from the state, and by taking the constitutionally-required oath of office in open Senate session, according to a 2010 report by the Congressional Research Service.

The Senate could also waive its long-standing rule requiring proper certification from a state via unanimous consent, the report said. The Senate has waived the rule on some rare occasions when, for example, there was an inadvertent delay of transmitting paperwork affirming a win.

More: McConnell says Senate will vote on Trump's nominee to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Supreme Court seat

Democrat Mark Kelly has opened up a 10-point lead on Arizona Sen. Martha McSally, according to the September tracking poll from OH Predictive Insights.

If the Senate isn't in session, there are other procedures that would allow the seating of senators-elect, said Don Ritchie, the Senates former historian.

Usually, the Secretary of the Senates office goes out of its way to accommodate the new senators coming in, he said. The old senator is out of their office there. I mean, they actually literally put a lock on the door so their staff cant go in.  Even if the Senate isnt in session, there is a mechanism for swearing in a senator and taking care of things.  They dont have to wait for the Senate to be formally in session.

The Senate is in session until Oct. 9 and they are scheduled to return Nov. 9, after Election Day. After a one-week break for Thanksgiving, the Senate is scheduled to reconvene on Nov. 30, the same day Arizonas election results would be canvassed.

The Senate is scheduled to work through Dec. 18.

Spokespeople for both Kelly and McSally's campaigns declined to comment.

Senate Leader Mitch McConnell has indicated he will remain focused on confirming conservative judges to federal courts, pushing his party to, in McConnell's words, leave no vacancy behind.

Controversial judicial appointments still outstanding

Controversial judicial appointments that could be considered include Toby Crouse, who was nominated months ago to serve on the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas and Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, who the American Bar Association deemed not qualified to serve on the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

Kelly would make a difference: it would be 52-48 on any kind of nominee either to the executive branch or especially for judges, said Carl Tobias, the Williams Chair in Law at the University of Richmond School of Law and who specializes in federal judicial selection.

There likely will be some judicial nominees up, for sure. That makes it tighter and tougher, and Kelly being there, I think, would be important.

Theres a financial element, as well, Basile and OGrady said: once the election is decided, the senator-elect would begin drawing a salary.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona U.S. Senate race could be a factor in Ginsburg's successor
This was the position the Republican Senate took in 2016 when there were almost 10 months to go before the election, Mr. Biden said. Thats the position the United States Senate must take today.

The death of Justice Ginsburg upended what had been a relatively conventional day on an unconventional campaign trail. Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump had both turned their attention on Friday to Minnesota, where victory barely eluded Mr. Trump four years ago, with dueling events on the first day of in-person early voting in the state.

Mr. Trump called his largely maskless rally at the Bemidji Regional Airport a protest against stupidity and portrayed himself as the one thing protecting Minnesota from a flood of radical Islamic terrorists that he claimed wanted to infiltrate the state.

Im your wall, he said, between the American dream and chaos.

Mr. Trump delivered a typically discursive performance in a state that he has long been determined to flip. Speaking in a small city in the northern part of the state, Mr. Trump leaned into the states urban-rural divide by stoking fears about refugees flooding Minnesota if he loses and speaking of far-left rioters wreaking havoc in Minneapolis.

Mr. Trump also launched into a string of sexist attacks against women who are not running for president. He noted that Hillary Clinton, the 2016 Democratic nominee, was not big into yoga, which she claimed was the subject of some of her deleted emails on her personal server. If she is, shes not getting her moneys worth, he said, eventually prompting vintage chants of Lock her up! that the president did nothing to quell. He also attacked Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota.

The competing campaign events came in a state where Mr. Trump is going on the offensive, even as he simultaneously plays defense in a number of critical battlegrounds, including neighboring Wisconsin. In 2016, Mr. Trump lost Minnesota to Mrs. Clinton by only 1.5 percentage points, or about 45,000 votes, and the Trump campaign is targeting the state as a pickup opportunity this time around.

But no Republican presidential candidate has won Minnesota since President Richard M. Nixons re-election in 1972, and Mr. Biden appears to be in a substantially stronger position in the state than Mrs. Clinton was, with time running out for Mr. Trump to improve his fortunes. Mr. Biden held a nine-point lead among likely voters in a poll conducted this month by The New York Times and Siena College.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, speaks with teachers and students at the Yuelu Academy in Changsha, capital of central China's Hunan Province, Sept. 17, 2020. Xi on Thursday inspected Changsha. (Xinhua/Yue Yuewei)

CHANGSHA, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping has called for efforts to blaze a new path of high-quality development.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks during an inspection tour in central China's Hunan Province from Wednesday to Friday.

Xi called on Hunan to develop itself into a hub of advanced manufacturing industry of national importance, a hub of technological innovation with core competitiveness, and a hub of reform and opening up in inland regions.

He also asked the province to demonstrate a renewed sense of responsibility in promoting the rise of the country's central region and the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt.

During the inspection tour, Xi researched coordinating COVID-19 control and economic and social development, and making plans for the economic and social development in the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).

On Wednesday afternoon, Xi visited a revolution-themed exhibition hall at the village of Shazhou to learn about Party building at the primary level, local tourism, and education programs promoting revolutionary traditions.

The exhibition chronicles the story of an impoverished villager named Xu Jiexiu, who offered shelter to three female Red Army soldiers during the Long March in the 1930s. Before their departure, the soliders cut their only quilt into two pieces, leaving one part with Xu to show their care.

Xi required strengthened confidence in the socialist path, urging CPC members to deliver on the Party's commitments and promises and stand together with the people on the Long March of the new era.

Visiting the village's service center and infirmary, he stressed providing better services to the people.

Xi also learned about the progress on poverty alleviation while visiting a modern farming and tourism demonstration base, and checked the collocations of food in student meals and food safety when he toured a township primary school.

In the home of Zhu Xiaohong, grandson of Xu Jiexiu, Xi said the CPC's goal is to lead the Chinese people to liberation and a better life, and the Party must stick to its fundamental purpose of serving the people wholeheartedly.

Leaving Zhu's home, Xi told villagers and tourists who came to greet him that it is because of the support of the people that the CPC has gone through a glorious course and created great achievements.

He said the Party remains committed to serving the people, which is not only a slogan, but also an action of persistence.

The Party is striving to make people live a richer and happier life, Xi said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, inspects the production line of Sunward, an advanced machinery manufacturer, in Changsha, capital of central China's Hunan Province, Sept. 17, 2020. Xi on Thursday inspected Changsha. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

While visiting Sunward, an advanced machinery manufacturer in the provincial capital city of Changsha on Thursday afternoon, Xi inspected the workshop and spoke highly of the innovation spirit of the employees.

Independent innovation is the life of an enterprise, Xi stressed. "Key and core technologies must be firmly held in our hands," he added.

Xi required resolute efforts to support manufacturing and the real economy to become bigger and stronger, and pledged to continue opening up in the new phase of development.

Xi underscored the healthy and continuous development of the cultural industry while visiting a cultural industry park in the city.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, speaks with teachers and students while visiting a university in Changsha, capital of central China's Hunan Province, Sept. 17, 2020. Xi on Thursday inspected Changsha. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

He also inspected the thousand-year-old Yuelu Academy in Hunan University. Xi stressed combining teaching and practices, making full use of rich historical and cultural resources to promote the understanding of why history and the people have chosen the CPC and socialism.

He encouraged young people to live up to the expectations of times.

On Friday morning, after hearing the Party's Hunan provincial committee and the provincial government report their work, Xi noted the emergence of new opportunities and challenges while the country remains in an important period of strategic opportunity for development.

Xi stressed the need to nurture new drivers and advantages for high-quality development, advance the modernization of industrial chains, increase effective investment, and expand consumer spending.

He also called for strengthening enterprises' abilities to innovate, breaking deep-rooted institutional barriers, and pushing for the innovative development of foreign trade.

When addressing the prioritization of the development of agriculture and rural areas, Xi stressed the need to steadily raise grain production capability, deepen agricultural supply-side structural reform, activate the internal forces driving rural vitalization, and synchronize poverty eradication with rural vitalization.

Xi called for progress in ecological civilization, and continuous improvement in the environment and rural living conditions.

Emphasizing the people-centered philosophy of development, Xi demanded solid efforts to solve problems of pressing public concern.

He said work should be done to facilitate employment among key groups, including college graduates, demobilized military personnel, rural migrant workers, and urban residents who have had difficulty finding jobs.

Problems concerning inaccessible and expensive medical resources should be addressed, and ethnic solidarity should be strengthened, Xi added.

More efforts should be made to encourage and guide Party members and officials in carrying forward the revolutionary traditions, Xi said, adding that a system under which officials "don't dare to, are unable to and have no desire to commit acts of corruption" must be advanced as a whole.
What we can learn from the justices, though  beyond how to be a friend  is how to welcome debate and differences. The two justices had central roles in addressing some of the most divisive issues of the day, including cases on abortion, same-sex marriage and who would be president. Not for a moment did one think the other should be condemned or ostracized. More than that, they believed that what they were doing  arriving at their own opinions thoughtfully and advancing them vigorously  was essential to the national good. With less debate, their friendship would have been diminished, and so, they believed, would our democracy.
If the president truly wanted to help Puerto Ricans with new aid, Mr. Caraballo said, he could approve earthquake assistance for residents of municipalities that were not included in the federal governments disaster declaration, even though the temblors were felt far across the island.

Now everyone wants to be friends with Puerto Rico, he said. Well have to see who is really a friend, with their actions.

Mr. Trumps response to Hurricanes Irma and Maria in September 2017 proved to be a singular moment in his first year in office. Critics accused him of being slow and uncaring after he repeatedly attacked the islands governor and the mayor of San Juan, its capital, saying that the territorys finances and infrastructure were a wreck long before the hurricanes and threatening to cut off assistance.

When the president eventually visited in person, he tossed rolls of paper towels to those who had lost homes in an image that struck many there as out of touch.

Mr. Trump privately railed about the situation in Puerto Rico, eager to leave it to others to deal with. Elaine C. Duke, who was then acting secretary of homeland security, told The New York Times this summer that she was in a meeting with him when he broached the idea of divesting or selling the island. A year later, according to others who heard him, Mr. Trump returned to that topic, suggesting trading Puerto Rico to Denmark for Greenland.

He saw Puerto Rico through political eyes. After academics calculated that nearly 3,000 people died in the two hurricanes, Mr. Trump accused opponents of inventing a high death toll to make me look as bad as possible.

Even after Congress passed tens of billions of dollars in aid, Mr. Trumps administration either slowed its release or put restrictions on its use over the objections of Puerto Rican officials and the president himself suggested such aid was unjustified.
With the Trump administration blocking what Congress learns about election threats, private companies are called upon to fill the breach.

This file photo taken on August 4, 2020 shows Prince, a member of the hacking group Red Hacker Alliance, who refused to give his real name, using a website that monitors global cyberattacks on his computer at their office in Dongguan, China's southern Guangdong province. Beijing on September 11, 2020 denied trying to meddle in US presidential election after American tech giant Microsoft said it had parried cyberattacks from overseas groups  including from China  against both the Republican and Democratic campaigns. (Photo | AFP)

Washington: Adam Schiff was in the audience at the 2018 Aspen Security Forum when a Microsoft executive mentioned an attempted hacking of three politicians up for reelection. It was the first that Schiff, then the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, had ever heard of it.

Schiff said he thought it was odd that Congress hadnt been briefed. He got in touch with high-ranking officials in the intelligence agencies, and they didnt know about it, either. It turned out that Russian hackers had unsuccessfully tried to infiltrate the Senate computer network of then-Sen. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., and other unidentified candidates.

Two years later, Schiff says that breakdown is still emblematic of the disjointed effort among government agencies, Congress and private companies as they try to identify and address foreign election interference. But this year, with President Donald Trump adamant that Russia is not interfering and his administration often trying to block what Congress learns about election threats, its those private companies that often are being called upon to fill the breach.

Lawmakers welcome the help from the private sector and say the companies have become increasingly forthcoming, but its a haphazard way to get information. It allows the companies to control much of what the public knows, and some are more cooperative than others.

If a company wants to publicize it, thats great, says Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee. But what happens when they dont want to bring it to the attention of the government?

Thats what happened in 2016, when Russia spread disinformation through social media, including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Those companies were slow to recognise the problem and they initially balked at government requests for more information. But after Congress pushed them publicly, they gradually became more cooperative.

Now, Facebook and Twitter give Congress regular briefings to the intelligence committees, issue frequent reports about malicious activity and are part of a group that regularly meets with law enforcement and intelligence officials in the administration.

Microsoft, which is part of that group, announced last week that Russian hackers had tried to breach computers at more than 200 organisations, including political campaigns and their consultants. Most of the hacking attempts by Russian, Chinese and Iranian agents were halted by Microsoft security software and the targets notified. But the company would not say which candidates or entities may have been breached.

Lawmakers say the private sector can only do so much.

Its certainly important that the social media companies participate and cooperate, which they have not always done in the past, but that does not in any way replace the analysis that is done by the intelligence community, and I believe that analysis should be shared with Congress, says Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

That relationship between intelligence agencies and Congress has grown strained since Trump took office. He has doubted the agencies conclusions about Russian interference in 2016 and he fired, demoted and criticized officials who shared information he didnt like.

The current director of national intelligence, John Ratcliffe, a close Trump ally, tried to end most in-person election security briefings _ a decision he later reversed after criticism from lawmakers from both parties. But Ratcliffe maintains that his office will not provide all member briefings for all lawmakers, citing what he says were leaks from some of those meetings this year.

Lawmakers say that in restricting whats given to Congress, the administration is effectively restricting what it tells the public about election security and misinformation. That threatens to sow confusion, just as foreign adversaries such as Russia are hoping for.

Schiff, now chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, has pressured the companies to act more quickly, including taking down misinformation before it goes viral, not after. He has particular concerns about Google, which owns YouTube, and says it has been less transparent than others. Schiff and other lawmakers have stepped up concerns about doctored videos and foreign-owned news outlets spreading fake news on the video platform.

At a hearing with tech companies in June, Schiff pressed Google, saying that it has essentially adopted a strategy of keeping its head down and avoiding attention to its platform while others draw heat.

Richard Salgado, Googles director for law enforcement and information security, told Schiff: I certainly hope that is not the perception. If it is, it is a misperception, Mr. Chairman.

Google has made some disclosures, including recently revealing a Chinese effort to target Trump campaign staffers and an Iranian groups attempt to target the Biden campaign. But the company gave little detail on the attacks, including when they took place or how many were targeted.

Still, the companies have stepped up in many cases.

Facebook and Microsoft have been making disclosures to the public while also working behind the scenes with the federal government and the intelligence committees. Facebook issues a monthly release on foreign and domestic election activity, and Microsoft has publicly disclosed more than a dozen instances of threat activity since Schiff was caught unaware at the Aspen event in 2018.

The executive who revealed the Russian activity at that event, Microsofts Tom Burt, says the company has learned to be more proactive with the federal government. He says the attempted hackings were not something he had planned to announce at the security forum, but he answered honestly when asked a question by the moderator. Today, Burt says the company gives federal and congressional authorities a heads-up when they have announcements about election interference.

Foreign attackers are persistent, they are skilled, they are super well-resourced, and they are going to continue to try and interfere with the electoral process and try to sow distrust with the American people, Burt said.

As lawmakers pursue other channels of information, there are still places where the public sector cannot help. Florida Rep. Stephanie Murphy, a Democrat, has been fighting for more than a year to have the administration publicly identify the two Florida counties where Russian hackers gained access to voter databases before the 2016 election.

The only way you can fight that disinformation is with transparency, and the US government has to be transparent about the attacks on our democracy by providing the information, Murphy said. I think maybe companies are accustomed to disclosing when they have had breaches, and that is why you are seeing corporate America leading.
Minister of State for Finance on Saturday said that Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM-CARES) Fund has been registered under relevant provisions of law unlike Prime Minister Relief Fund (PMNRF) which is still not registered.

Participating to the debate in the Lok Sabha on Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020, Thakur targeted Congress and said provisions of PMNRF provided that President of Indian Congress will be its member.

He also targeted Congress over trusts "managed by one family".

"The PM-CARES fund was registered on March 27, 2020, under the 1908 Act. An independent auditor was appointed. Nobody is forced to donate to this fund. The members of the trust are all ex officio members such as Prime Minister, Minister of Defence, Minister of Home Affairs and Minister of Finance," Thakur said.

"The first Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru constituted PMNRF in 1948. PMNRF is still not registered. The members of the trust were Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and the President of Indian Congress and a nominee of Tata Trust," Thakur added.

He said PM-CARES Fund is a public charitable trust so it was suggested that CAG audit is not required.

"Those who are demanding CAG audit for this trust, are they ready for the audit of all the trusts being managed by one family?" he asked.

Thakur said questions were raised by opposition members on PM-CARES while there are over 49,000 other trusts which have got exemption under Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA).

"There were 49,483 trusts in addition to this corpus which got an exemption on FCRA. Why is concern being raised on PM-CARES fund alone then?" he asked.

He said was created in response to the situation created by COVID-19.

"PM Narendra Modi donated an initial corpus of Rs 2.25 lakh. The Prime Minister's mother and former CJI Ranjan Gogoi's mother also donated to PM-CARES fund. A beggar also donated Rs 5,000 to the fund. People from various occupations have donated to PM-CARES Fund," he added.

(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.)
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton speak to the media during a Media Conference at the Victoria Police Centre in Melbourne, Australia on April 23, 2020. (Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)

Former Police Chief Holds Victoria Premiers Office Accountable in Hotel Plan

A former chief of Victoria Police has told the Victorian government quarantine inquiry that the critical decision to use private security guards in the hotel quarantine programme came from the Premiers office.

Former Police Commissioner Graham Ashton told the Hotel Quarantine Inquiry on Thursday that the Department of Premier and Cabinets (DPC) secretary Chris Eccles had reached an agreement to use private security guards.

Ashton retired as Victoria Police Commissioner in June amidst a second wave of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

A series of text messages between former Police Commissioner Ashton and Federal Commissioner Reece Kershaw reveal Ashton questioned why Australian Federal Police (AFP) were not utilised for the hotel quarantine.

Mate. Question. Why wouldnt AFP Guard people At The hotel?? Ashton wrote to in a text message to Kershaw on the afternoon of March 27.

Ashton sent a follow-up text moments later: Mate. My advice (sic) is the ADF do passenger transfer, and private security will be used.

Ok, thats new, Kershaw replied.

I think thats the deal set up by our DPC. I understand NSW (New South Wales) will be a different arrangement, Ashton wrote.

He was unable to recall exactly whos idea it was to use private security guards but implied it came from Eccles who he was in contact with before communicating with Kershaw around 1.20 p.m.

Further evidence submitted to the inquiry showed the directive came from the Premiers adviser.

An email from then Deputy Commissioner of Capability, Rick Nugent to Ashton on March 28 said that private security will be employed for this health intervention, he wrote.

Nugent said he received a late-night call from the DPC confirming this deal.

Victorian Police Deputy Commissioner Rick Nugent speaks to the media during a press conference in Melbourne, Australia on July 24, 2020. (Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images)

In response to Victorias second wave of COVID-19 infections and deaths, Premier Dan Andrews has implemented strict stage four restrictions for Greater Melbourne and stage three for regional Victoria.

Melbournes lockdown, which includes restricted travel, compulsory masks everywhere, and outdoor exercises capped at two hours only, has stirred global human rights concerns. Furthermore, it has caused a significant economic downturn in the state.

Andrews admitted to errors in the hotel quarantine system, that have potentially contributed to the second virus outbreak.

Mistakes have been made in relation to this program. The communitys entitled to answers, Andrews said in parliament on Sept. 17.

The victorian premier is expected to front the inquiry on Sept. 23.

The Hotel Quarantine Inquiry, head by former judge Jennifer Coate began early July. Its purpose is to examine the quarantine system and investigate the decisions made by state government agencies and private companies.
All clear for Bohra Chief and entourage to come to Sri Lanka View(s):

The Government has cleared the arrival of a special flight carrying the Head of the Dawoodi Bohra community and his entourage from Mumbai in India.

His Holiness Dr. Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin was first scheduled to arrive in June but the visit was delayed. The Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA) revealed this week that permission had been granted for the community leader and his team54 from Mumbai and eight from Dubaito arrive in Sri Lanka within the next few days. It said the Foreign Ministry had sanctioned the visit without concurrence of Health Ministry officials.

The Sunday Times first reported in June that Dr Syedna was to sojourn here amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. He will take a special aircraft and retire to the Bohra communitys retreat in Bandarawela, the Anasa Wellness Resort.

Sri Lanka has become a favoured destination of the community in the recent past. Last year, the sects annual Ashara Mubaraka gathering was held here, drawing thousands of followers.
Jobs and Economy Most Important Election Issue in Rust Belt States: Poll

A new Epoch Times poll of registered voters in the Rust Belt shows that by far the most important issues in Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin are the state of the economy and jobs.

More voters cited the economy and jobs as the issues most important to their vote in the November presidential election, at 33.8 percent, beating out coronavirus at 22.9 percent, healthcare at 19.2 percent, and policing and crime at 8.5 percent. Nearly 70 percent of likely voters who cited the economy and jobs as their top issues also identified as supporters of President Donald Trump.

Rust Belt state voters also overwhelmingly support tariffs on other nations (45 percent support, while 21.5 percent oppose). Trump, who notably called himself Tariff Man, has used this policy tool multiple times as a way to exert pressure on countries that he believes prior administrations have allowed to establish inequitable trading relationships that are skewed against the interests of the United States.

I am a Tariff Man. When people or countries come in to raid the great wealth of our Nation, I want them to pay for the privilege of doing so. It will always be the best way to max out our economic power. We are right now taking in $billions in Tariffs. MAKE AMERICA RICH AGAIN, Trump wrote in a 2018 tweet.

The rank distribution scores can help to underscore the inevitable trend in voters priorities, Big Data Poll Director Rich Baris said in a statement. The more the president makes this election about the economy and jobs and policing and crime, the more likely it is he will be reelected. The more this election is about coronavirus and healthcare in general, the more likely it is Mr. Biden will be the next president.

Trump and Biden on Sept. 18 brought their campaigns to the battleground state of Minnesota, both highlighting their visions for job creation but laying out different approaches. The Trump campaign organized a large airport rally in Bemidji, while Biden met with a handful of labor leaders at the Jerry Alander Carpenter Training Center in Hermantown.

Trump, who narrowly lost the state in 2016, stressed his signature policies of deregulation and reduced government intervention in the free market. Biden, who in a Labor Day speech vowed to be the strongest labor president weve ever had, toured a labor union training center, where he highlighted his plan to promote American-made goods by the sweeping use of the federal governments regulatory and spending power.

In a speech, Biden sought to portray himself as a champion of working-class Americans, picking up on the Scranton versus Park Avenue theme he has raised in recent days of campaigning.

Like a lot of you, I spent a lot of my life with guys like Donald Trump looking down on me; looking down on people who make a living with their hands, people who take care of our kids [or] clean our streets, Biden said. These are the guys who always thought they were better than me, better than us, because they had a lot of money.

He criticized Trumps touting of stock market gains that the president has referred to repeatedly as part of his record on the economy.

What the hells he talking about? Biden said. People I grew up with in Scranton, Claymont, [Delaware], they dont have money in stocks. Every penny we made was to pay the bills and take care of the families, put clothes on the back and a roof overhead.

Before speaking at his Bemidji rally, Trump referenced Bidens Scranton versus Park Avenue claim, framing the challenger as an internationalist who will put other countries interests ahead of the United States.

Joe Biden says this is a race between Scranton and Park Avenue, Trump wrote in a tweet. This is a race between Scranton and China. Joe Biden betrayed Scranton, and America, to China and foreign countries. I will always put America First!

In follow-up tweets, Trump wrote: Joe Biden delivered remarks to union members after spending 47 years giving their jobs to China and foreign countries in exchange for campaign cash   Biden is a corrupt globalist sellout who never missed a chance to stab American workers in the back. If Biden wins, China wins  its just that simple!

The Epoch Times Rust Belt Poll also showed Biden holds an overall 6-point lead (46.7 percent to 40.7 percent) among registered voters in Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. However, among likely voters with no undecideds, the race between the two candidates tightens to nearly dead-even (48.7 percent to 48.6 percent), fueled by greater enthusiasm among Trump voters.

The Epoch Times Rust Belt Poll was conducted by Big Data Poll from Sept. 11 to Sept. 15, interviewing 2,191 registered voters and 1,440 likely voters in the Midwest via online panel targeting Iowa (7 percent), Michigan (20 percent), Minnesota (12 percent), Ohio (23 percent), Pennsylvania (26 percent), and Wisconsin (12 percent). The sampling error is  2.1 percent for registered voters and  2.6 percent for likely voters at a 95 percent confidence interval.

For more information on the methodology and survey design, please refer to the AAPOR Transparency Initiative Checklist, for an overview of survey results click here.

Ivan Pentchoukov contributed to this report.
Police are asking for the publics help to identify suspects related to a stabbing in Fort Erie Friday.

Niagara Regional Police said officers attended the Big Texas bar and restaurant on Niagara Boulevard for a stabbing report at 5:46 p.m.

Police said officers arrived on scene and located a male victim suffering from a stab wound. The victim was taken to an out-of-region hospital in serious but stable condition.

Police are seeking the publics assistance in identifying two suspects and a suspect vehicle.

One suspect is described as male, Indigenous/Latino, 510, medium build, 20-25 years old, brown hair in a bun, unshaven, wearing a green/blue Nike jacket.

The second suspect is described as male, white, 59, 20-30 years old, brush cut, wearing a grey sweater.

The suspect vehicle is a black Mercedes or black BMW. It was last seen southbound on Niagara Parkway towards the Peace Bridge.

Police ask anyone with information, who may have been in the area at the time of the incident, or witnessed the incident, to call them at 905-688-4111, ext. 9369.
Three Quarters of Canadians Agree With Shutting Down Most Businesses If Second Wave Hits: Poll

Canadians would largely support shutting down most businesses if the second wave of COVID-19 occurs, poll results suggest.

A new Ipsos poll indicates that 75 percent of Canadians agree with shutting down most non-essential businesses quickly in the event of a second wave, with 37 percent strongly agreeing and 38 percent somewhat agreeing.

The survey, conducted between Sept. 11 and Sept. 14, found that about three-quarters of the respondents expected their communities to be hit with a second wave this fall, with 85 percent of Alberta residents the most likely to believe that will be the case, followed by Ontario residents (78 percent), Quebec (77 percent), British Columbia (74 percent), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (69 percent), and Atlantic Canada (65 percent).

On Sept. 17, Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa said in a statement that the upswing of new COVID-19 cases is a cause for concern.

An average of 779 new cases have been reported daily during the most recent seven days, Tam said.

With continued circulation of the virus, the situation could change quickly and we could lose the ability to keep COVID-19 cases at manageable levels.

Chief Public Health Officer of Canada Dr. Theresa Tam speaks during a news conference on the COVID-19 pandemic on Parliament Hill on Sept. 18, 2020. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press)

The poll found that gender to be a more determinant factor than age when it comes to concerns about being infected with the virus. Seventy-two percent of women said they were concerned, whereas 55 percent of men were.

Ipsos Public Affairs CEO Darrell Bricker told Global News that the mens results reflect the general pattern shown in health polling data.

They tend to pay less attention to their health, Bricker said. They tend to be less concerned about things that are risky.

As for age, people within the age range of 55+ and 35-54 show only a one percent difference66 percent and 65 percent. The exception is the 18-34 age range, which is slightly below 60 percent. But overall, close to two-thirds of Canadians said they were concerned about contracting COVID-19.

When asked whether vaccination should be mandatory after a vaccine is developed, 63 percent of respondents were supportive. However, that support has dropped 9 points since July, according to Ipsos.

In response to how confident respondents feel about their provinces ability to be ready to deal with a potential second wave, 71 percent responded positively, with 14 percent strongly agreeing, and 57 percent somewhat agreeing.

In Saskatchewan and Manitoba, however, 42 percent disagreedthe highest among the other provinces, which range between 16 percent and 33 percent.

Tam said in her statement that local public health authorities cant do this alone; the actions of individuals of Canadians are key to keeping COVID-19 cases at manageable levels.

Regarding schools reopening, 38 percent of the poll respondents felt that the governments opened the schools too soon, while more than half said the pace of reopening schools has been just right.

As of Thursday, Ontario reported 11 new COVID-19 cases among students and staff in publicly funded schools provincewide, adding up to a total of 72 cases.

The poll also asked respondents about the federal governments support programs initiated after the lockdown began in March, such as the Canada Emergency Response Benefit for individuals and Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy for businesses.

Most of the respondents (63 percent) agreed that the monetary amount given to those who lost their jobs has been just right, 17 percent said it wasnt enough, and 20 percent felt that the government gave too much.

Nearly 70 percent believed the funds given to businesses to keep their employees was about right, with 21 percent thinking the support was too little, and 12 percent too much.
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Academic medicine generally encompasses a tripartite mission of research discovery, clinical innovation, and the next generation of physicians and scientists education.

It is the ethics and social justice principles, practices, policies, and innovation that advance research and education in the health sciences, ultimately improving the health and well-being of all.

This is its socially responsible mission. Yet, it seems chief diversity officers, equity practitioners, and scholars everywhere have been lifting even heavier weights within our institutions in recent times. The progress in equity, diversity, inclusion, and justice (EDIJ) within our campus environments has been hard to celebrate while we continue witnessing an overt display of systemic racism and structural violence.

Systemic racism that has been seen throughout the experiences of minoritized groups navigating higher education: racism, discrimination, and (micro)aggressions; cultural taxation and tokenism; bias in recruitment, promotion, and tenure; and challenges to their credibility and expertise.

The additional systemic violence that the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted to be pervasive of health inequities in communities of color. Being part of academic medicine also means witnessing  and at times being complicit of working in  systems that perpetuate these inequities and health disparities.

But we are also hopeful because of the many ways our committed colleagues, students, trainees, and staff championed the combat against racism and discrimination.

Many of us have been asked: What can I do within my academic role? Although not exhaustive, the list below offers a list of 42 actions faculty, and members of the academic community can do to advance racial equity in academic medicine, in no particular order.

We hope you find this list helpful and that in discussions with your own institutional communities.

1. Reflect on your own identity and privilege. What is your positionality? Positionality is the socio-political context that forms your identity in terms of race, class, gender, sexuality, and ability status (to name a few). How does your identity influence and biases your perspectives?

2. Commit to being part of EDIJ efforts in your unit, at your institution, and your professional societies. If there are no efforts or are not sufficient, name your impression, reaction, and desired action.

3. Engage and share the burden with faculty of color. Did you know that physicians of color care for over 50% of diverse populations and over 70% of nonEnglish-speaking patients in the U.S. Patients from underserved populations are significantly more likely to see a physician of color. Did you know that faculty of color tend to take on more service than their counterparts? Did you know that they do most of the mentoring for minoritized students? Scholars refer to this as cultural taxation and invisible work, except that it is evident to those that do it.

4. Work to ensure that invisible work becomes desirable contributions that are expected, quantified, and valued in the hiring, promotion, and tenure processes at your institution. Especially now, this must call for an overhaul on the way we credit and reward EDIJ work.

5. Engage in equity-based training, such as anti-bias, anti-discrimination, and anti-racist. Seek educational development in areas of cultural competence and culturally relevant and inclusive pedagogies. Approach these with a commitment to a growth mindset. Do not fall on the trap of relabeling your efforts as anti-racism  especially if it does not challenge the status quo, institutional barriers, structures, and power.

6. Ask what is the percentage of the schools budget allotted to EDIJ initiatives and efforts, excluding external EDIJ-related grants. You can help advocate for more and request that it is not decreased as a result of COVID-19-related financial impact.

7. Know what EDIJ resources are already available at your institution. Some institutions excel at inventorying and listing these resources but need accountability in identifying the gaps. Ensure your EDIJ contribution is visible.

8. Create new and join affinity groups that include people from groups different from yours, especially those that advance equity and inclusion.

9. Ask yourself if the representation in decision-making committees is adequately diverse, and if the decision is equitable across all diverse groups.

10. Engage with students and trainees in ways that are holistic. Consider their backgrounds, social identities, and lived experiences in relation to fostering meaningful engagement and sense of belonging.

11. Assist in the promotion and tenure process by helping faculty of color get promoted. Assure that mentorship and support are adequate to minimize common obstacles for the promotion of faculty of color. Help identify and remove those obstacles.

12. Engage in promotion and tenure committees to guarantee equitable reviews of dossiers.

13. Call for recruitment practices of faculty/staff/leadership and trainees that guarantee a diverse pool of candidates, fair processes for assessment, affirming interviews and campus visit experiences, and commitment to hire successful candidates who offer the added values of diversity. Participate and help lead in those searches.

14. Understand different communication styles and develop skills in communication across cultures. While affirming people from other cultures, help them navigate the culture and climates at your institution.

15. Contribute to the examination of curriculum content and experiences for cultural competence and biases. Work towards a culturally aware and socially responsible medical education and be mindful of values imparted in the hidden curriculum. Hidden messages perpetuate health disparities through the irrelevant addition of race, ethnicity, and gender in clinical cases.

16. Hold executive leadership accountable for EDIJ action plans. Ask that senior diversity officials be appointed to the highest structural level at your institution (the C-suite) and participate in a structure that empowers their effectiveness. If you find yourself in this role, it is your responsibility to acquire the knowledge and expertise in equity and inclusion scholarship and strategic approaches.

17. Acknowledge that you have biases even if you identify as an ally, an immigrant, a person of color, and even a senior diversity official. White supremacy, racism, and ethnocentrism present in many internalized ways.

18. Take the time to learn names and how to pronounce them correctly.

Individualize people by being curious about the meaning or the story behind the individuals names. Learning to pronounce a name is about respect.

19. Examine institutional-academic partners and health system policies and processes that perpetuate barriers to racial equity.

20. Be uncomfortable and vulnerable. Speaking about race and/or ethnicity is not easy, but it is a must. It is OK to intervene as a bystander, be generous and humble.

21. Learn about student activism and movements; you may not quite realize the power of students driving change.

22. Do not opt for a path of least resistance in fear of being labeled as a troublemaker when it comes to issues about equity. Leverage your friends in high places, keep your integrity and advocate for the mission of equity.

23. Consider the meaning of words and what they may convey depending on context: minority, politically correct, color-blind, allies, melting pot, resilience, and grit, fit, etc. It is not always what we say or means, but what people hear and how it makes them feel that influences our climate, relationships, and behaviors.

24. Invest in much-needed diverse leadership. Build a pipeline from early on  support and sponsor pre-faculty and faculty of color.

25. When you make a mistake while trying to promote racial equity, admit it. Name the mistake, specifically say why the mistake is a problem, and share how you plan to correct the outcome and not to repeat the error.

26. Practice culturally competent and inclusive research. Does your research engage with marginalized communities? Can you address inequities within your research agenda?

27. Ask about the staff of color at your institution. They deserve respect and attention to equity issues, perhaps more than often acknowledged. Staff often represents the institutional memory, the face and culture of an institution before trainees, community, and patients.

28. Ask leaders for transparency  advocate for metrics around promotion rates, turnover, salary, and patient outcomes to assure equity across your institution. We dont know is only acceptable is followed by we will do something about it. Evidence of inequities must trigger action-oriented interventions to resolve these issues urgently.

29. Choose your advocacy lane. Physicians vote less often than the general public. We should at least vote. Others may do more to engage the community and legislators for true systemic and structural changes. Bring advocacy to practice, teaching, community presence, professional society, and publications.

30. Commit to concrete ways to be a better upstander (recognizing something is wrong and doing something to correct it) and push yourself to act in real-time.

31. Stay up to date with geopolitical and local events that affect your colleagues and learners.

32. Avoid loose terms such as difficult times and lost their lives when describing what your Black colleagues are grieving. It is something much greater.

33. Pour into economic improvement by adhering to supplier diversity, like ordering team lunches from Black-owned and minority-owned businesses.

34. Show up at public events such as rallies, lectures, town-halls, etc. Your absence may be noticed more than your presence. Stay beyond the photo op and be fully engaged.

35. Role model patient advocacy. Identify and root out policies such as segregated care and care that propagates health and healthcare disparities.

36. Advocate for an institutional quality strategy that commits to addressing health and healthcare disparities and that provides quality data to faculty and trainees.

37. Suggest diverse patients, families, and communities to be included in institutional committees.

38. Engage with community members and service organizations.

39. Speak up against injustice and discrimination! Your voice matters to peers, trainees, communities.

40. Ensure that the medical education curriculum is culturally relevant and threads cultural humility. Center how students and trainees can learn to be providers who practice patient advocacy.

41. Review representation in regards to the content, speakers, and consultants you invite to campus.

42. Learn the history of the land and communities where your school of medicine is located. Recognize indigenous land with a formal acknowledgment in presentations, gatherings, media presence. Also, acknowledge the displacement of communities of color depending on where your institution is located.

Sylk Sotto is a bioethicist. Jada Bussey-Jones, Inginia Genao, Maria Maldonado, and Kimberly D. Manning are internal medicine physicians. Francisco A. Moreno is a psychiatrist.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
Evangelicals for Social Action drops evangelical, calls term too 'political

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Lamenting that the term evangelical is now too largely political and hasn't been helpful in conveying the character of their organization, Evangelicals for Social Action, a Christian scholar-activist group started in 1973, announced Monday that they have changed their name to Christians for Social Action.

Today the word evangelical in the popular mind has largely political connotations. For significant numbers of people, it signifies a right-wing political movement irrevocably committed to Donald Trump. Many young people raised in evangelical churches are turning away in disgustabandoning evangelical churches and even sometimes the Christian faith itself. And the larger society thinks of evangelicals not as people committed to Jesus Christ and the biblical gospel but as pro-Trump political activists, Ron Sider, the organizations founder and president emeritus, said in a statement.

After careful thought and prayer, we have decided to change our namea little! Our new name is Christians for Social Action (CSA). We believe it will help us win a listening ear with more people. And it certainly will avoid people refusing to even take a minute to see who we are because they see a word that for many people immediately signals political folks, he noted.

Sider contends that while the word evangelical is a rich theological term that refers to historic Christian orthodoxy and a commitment to Jesus Gospel, the political activism of popular evangelical figures such as Jerry Falwell Sr., who formed the Moral Majority in the 1970s, and Pat Robertson, who mobilized charismatics and Pentecostals in his 1987-1988 presidential run, distorted that narrative.

He explained that while ESA believed biblical faith called Christians to a completely pro-life agenda, Falwell, Robertson others in their camp preferred to focus on a much narrower range of issues, particularly abortion and marriage.

They identified more and more with the politically conservative part of the Republican Party. Increasingly, the media equated evangelicals with the Religious Right. And in 2016, 81% of white evangelicals voted for Donald Trump. And they have continued to support this twice divorced sexist, who had boasted of sexual affairs, stoked racism, promoted policies that largely benefit the richest 20%, ignored the overwhelming scientific consensus on global warming, and lied constantly, undermining democracy by dismissing anything he disliked as fake news, Sider said.

A new book titled, The Spiritual Danger of Donald Trump: 30 Evangelical Christians on Justice, Truth, and Moral Integrity, edited by Sider and published earlier this summer, raises similar concerns. It calls on white evangelicals to rethink their support for the president and warns that Trump is damaging the witness of evangelical Christianity in American culture.

Our plea is to white evangelicals to please take another look and ask, Does this person measure up to biblical norms? Sider told The Christian Post in an earlier interview. We are not telling you what to include. But please prayerfully think about that. Even if you think the book will make you mad, given the title, I challenge you to read it and decide for yourself if there are any valid points that we are making there.

In his statement Monday, Sider explained that as the reputation of the term evangelical evolved over time, holding on to the term in their name simply caused more confusion about his organizations commitment to working for justice for everyone.

The result is that ESA increasingly found that our name failed to communicate who we really are. And it also led people to click off any message with that name before we had any opportunity to explain that (the word comes from the Greek word, evangel, for gospel.) Because of a shameful history of white evangelical racism, the black church has long refused to use the term evangelical for itself even though its theology and piety are very close to what the word evangelical used to mean, he said.
ARLINGTON, Va., Sept. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Apartment Association (NAA) today joined the New Civil Liberties Alliance (NCLA) in their lawsuit challenging the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) national eviction moratorium. The CDC's overreaching order directly harms the apartment industry and jeopardizes the long-term viability of rental housing. Rental housing providers, especially small "mom-and-pop" owners, do not have the ability to absorb delinquent rent and still pay their bills required to keep communities operational and Americans in their apartment homes.

The suit, Richard Lee Brown, et al. v. Secretary Alex Azar, et al., argues that rental housing providers have been irreparably damaged by the CDC order and its unwarranted overreach. Federal agencies do not have powers to waive state laws and the CDC has encroached on private property rights with no legal authority. Under the order, many rental housing providers are unable to collect rent, including rental debt, which limits the ability to pay taxes, mortgages, insurance and utilities and provide contracted services to other residents who have paid their rent.

"Eviction moratoria saddle the apartment industry solely with the responsibility of offering a service without compensation, all while operating at a potential deficit," said NAA President & CEO Bob Pinnegar. "Rental housing works on extremely narrow margins and, though last paid themselves, owners still need to pay extensive bills."

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, NAA has called for direct rental assistance, which is the only policy that keeps people housed and directly addresses the needs of owners and operators alike. Despite continued calls for this much needed relief from a chorus of voices, including renter advocates and real estate groups, Congress has failed to enact direct rental assistance. This inaction, paired with the CDC eviction moratorium, devastates the industry in the short-term and furthers the housing affordability crisis, to the detriment of the broader economy in the long-term.

"A nationwide eviction moratorium without any kind of financial or direct rental assistance will exacerbate the nation's housing affordability crisis and reverberate into national, state and local economies," Pinnegar said. "If owners and operators cannot pay their bills  including apartment staff payroll, taxes, mortgages and insurance  rental units lose financial viability and money stops flowing to other sectors of the economy. Further, many rental housing units may be permanently lost from our already insufficient housing stock, whether by foreclosure, government liens or even the sale of the property."

The rental housing industry should not be held solely responsible for solving our nation's housing crisis, which has been exacerbated in this pandemic, and government agencies should not trade one crisis for another.

About NAA

The National Apartment Association (NAA) serves as the leading voice and preeminent resource through advocacy, education and collaboration on behalf of the rental housing industry. As a federation of 152 affiliates, NAA encompasses over 85,000 members representing more than 10 million apartment homes globally. NAA believes that rental housing is a valuable partner in every community that emphasizes integrity, accountability, collaboration, community responsibility, inclusivity and innovation. To learn more, visit www.naahq.org.

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Kate Mulvany owes her 25-year career as a playwright in part to a light-fingered thief in a Bondi let.

Taken was a laptop on which was notes for a draft novel, loosely based on her own experience as the daughter of a Vietnam War veteran.

Mulvany had just arrived in Sydney from her home town of Perth when she reported the theft to a detective who looked "like Magnum P.I" and seemed more concerned with the missing software she had borrowed from fellow actor Steve Bisley than the manuscript.

Kate Mulvany likes to tease out the hiccups in history. Credit:Janie Barrett

"I didn't know it was illegal to download software then," she says. "He got on his little walky-talky and I had to call Steve [at home] and say, 'Get out of there'. Never found the laptop, never found the software and Biso was halfway across the Nullarbor on a bike anyway."
Hyderabad: The waiting list for organs like kidneys, livers, corneas and heart valves has lengthened to more than six months after the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown. Patients who had registered with Jeevandan, the government scheme, and with private hospitals face a long wait as it is difficult to carry out elective transplant procedures. According to the guidelines issued by the Indian Council of Medical Research, only emergency cases where the patients are suffering from chronic failure of organs must be taken up.

Doctors are facing a challenge wherein brain dead patients are acquiring infections in the inte-nsive care unit. These infections are leading to COVID-19 in most cases, making it difficult to harvest organs. Those brain dead patients in facilities where infection control is upgr aded can facilitate organ harvesting but their numbers are very low.

Dr Ch. Madhusudhan, head of the department of surgical gastroenterology and liver specialist at Osmania General Hospital, stated The risk factors in brain dead donors are also high. Since they are in intensive care units, it has been noted that they are acquiring Covid-19 and that makes it difficult to harvest the-ir organs. Those who are not infected by Covid, are very few. Infection control measures have been upgraded by all hospitals and we are only now, in the month of September, seeing a few cadaver donations.

Live donation is a challenge and it requires a proper non-Covid 19 section to opt for these donations.

A senior doctor on condition of anonymity explained, The donors health is at risk when they are called to hospitals for medical evaluation. Besides, the recipient is already in a compromised state and if infected with Covid-19, it is very difficult to save the patient

He said it is a double-edged sword due to which live donations have stopped. Patients who are in the waiting list will have to wait for a longer time. They have to be managed with medicines for some time more, he said.

Patients are consulting doctors via tele-counselling. There is also a section of patients not responding to the follow-up as they have financial and other social constraints.

The Jeevandan programme noted zero donations in May and July. In April, there were three, June had 11 and August, 4. It is only in September that there have been 12 donations till date.

Dr G. Swarnalatha, associate professor at Nizams Institute of Medical Sciences, said, We now have proper guidelines and also protocols in place for separate pathways for transplants. This will ensure that the donor and recipient both are safe. There is more clarity now on how to carry out non-COVID-19 procedures and that is helping us harvest organs from braindead patients. The programme has suffered during lockdown and post-lockdown and we are now taking up cases, Dr Swarnalatha said.
WASHINGTON  Hours after news broke that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died Friday, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz said President Donald Trump should nominate her successor next week and that the Senate should confirm that nomination before the election.

Cruzs comments, on Sean Hannitys Fox News program, came after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made clear that any Trump nominee would get a vote on the Senate floor, even as voters are already heading to the polls in a number of states in an election in which the presidency and Senate majority are on the line.

Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican up for reelection in November, didnt go as far as Cruz on Friday night, though he said as recently as May that the Senate has a responsibility to fill a Supreme Court vacancy this year, despite it being an election year.

Cornyn issued a statement Friday calling Ginsburg a titan of the Supreme Court. He also retweeted a Politico reporter quoting McConnell as saying: President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.

His statement did not mention the possibility of Trump choosing Ginsburgs successor. Cornyn and Cruz serve on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which oversees Supreme Court nominations.

Despite our ideological differences, I have always maintained a deep respect for Justice Ginsburg, Cornyn said. Her unwavering commitment to public service has inspired a generation of young Americans  particularly women  to reach for their dreams.

RESPONSIBILITY TO FILL: Cornyn says Senate must fill any 2020 Supreme Court vacancy. He felt differently in 2016.

Ginsburg, 87, died Friday in her home in Washington, D.C. NPR reported that just days before her death, she dictated this statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

Democrat MJ Hegar, who is running against Cornyn, reacted quickly to the incumbents affirmation of McConnell. It took @JohnCornyn less than two minutes to fall in line with Mitch McConnell, she said on twitter. The Supreme Court is on the ballot.

Senate Republicans four years ago denied even a hearing for Merrick Garland, whom former President Barack Obama nominated to fill a vacancy left by Antonin Scalia, who died on a ranch in West Texas in February 2016. Republicans have said that was a different case because Obama couldnt run again in 2016 and the Senate was controlled by a different party than the White House. It has been more than a century since the Senate confirmed an election-year nominee by a president from a different party.

Obama also nominated Garland in March, months before the 2016 election. Early voting already has begun in several states in this years election and begins in Texas on Oct. 13.

Cruz said he argued before Ginsburg nine times as Texas solicitor general. He said she was brilliant and she was a very careful lawyer and she was a trailblazer and she leaves a large legacy.

CRUZ WAS ON TRUMPS LIST: Ted Cruz explains why he doesnt want to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court

But Cruz said, This nomination is why Donald Trump was elected. This confirmation is why the voters voted for a Republican majority in the Senate.

Its going to take a lot of work to get it done before Election Day, but I think we should do our job, Cruz said.

Cruz is one of dozens of names Trump has listed as possible Supreme Court nominees, though the senator repeatedly has said he has no interest in the job, including earlier this week when he told supporters on a fundraising call, I dont want to stay out of political fights.  I dont want to stay out of policy fights.

Since 1900, there have been only six times a Supreme Court vacancy popped up in a presidential election year before 2016: in 1968, 1956, 1940, 1932, 1916 and 1912, according to the New York Times. In four of those years, the presidents party also controlled the Senate, which successfully confirmed the nominee, according to the Times.

Some GOP senators, however, have said they wont vote for a replacement before the election this year, including Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, who said in an interview with Alaska Public Radio on Friday: I would not vote to confirm a Supreme Court nominee. We are 50 some days away from an election.

ben.wermund@chron.com
Within nine days of arriving in pretrial detention at the Bi-State Jail facility in Texarkana, Texas, in April 2019, Holly Barlow-Austin's health started to deteriorate. Ten weeks later, the 46-year-old woman, who lived with HIV, was dead.

A federal civil rights lawsuit filed this week against the for-profit jail alleges Barlow-Austin died following 10 weeks of abuse and neglect during which she suffered inhumane conditions and "deliberate indifference" by jail staff that left her emaciated, blind and unable to walk.

According to the 56-page complaint filed Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, jail staffers ignored obvious signs of Barlow-Austin's worsening health, left her in a dirty cell littered with trash and denied her pleas for water during her final hours in detention.

"Her last 48 hours [in custody] were tantamount to torture," said Erik J. Heipt, the attorney representing Barlow-Austin's estate and family members. When Barlow-Austin was finally taken to the emergency room on the night of June 10, 2019, she was immediately given an IV and a feeding tube.

"She was beyond saving by the time they took her to the hospital," Heipt told The Post Friday. "It wasn't a situation where you could not think of it as essentially an in-custody death."

The lawsuit names LaSalle Corrections, the for-profit company that runs the Bi-State Jail, as a defendant, along with Bowie County and individual jail staffers. Neither LaSalle Corrections nor Bowie County officials responded to requests for comment Friday.

When Barlow-Austin was taken into custody on April 5, 2019, on a probation violation, she had been managing HIV and mental health issues with regular medication and had otherwise healthy vitals, according to the complaint. She was not given her full therapy of medication in the jail and staff failed to follow up on an outstanding request for her health records for more than a month. Her conditioned worsened over the next several weeks into early June, when she was placed in a medical observation cell.

Heipt obtained video footage of Barlow-Austin's final 48-hours in custody - which he said was unexpectedly delivered in 2,000 clips less than a minute long.

"The only way I was able to know, for example, that [Holly] only had three small cups of water during 48 hours because I watched all 48 hours," Heipt told The Post. "If you look at just the medical records provided by the company, LaSalle, you would have no idea of her blindness, inability to walk, difficulty even crawling or malnourished state."

Nearly 50 clips viewed by The Post show an emaciated Barlow-Austin laying on a mat in her cell in distress, struggling to crawl around, blindly feeling around her cell for food and water and knocking on the glass window in attempt to summon help. According to the lawsuit, Barlow-Austin had lost her vision by the time she was placed in the observation cell; multiple video clips show unable to locate boxes of food or cups of water placed in her cell.

"Holly is unrecognizable. It's haunting," her husband, Michael Glenn Austin, said through Heipt. "Losing her has left me heartbroken."

Photos of Barlow-Austin shared with The Post from before her detention show her smiling and posing for the camera, while images of her after she's been moved to the hospital show her intubated and looking wan.

Mary Margaret Mathis, Barlow-Austin's mother still can't bring herself to watch the videos. She says that reading about her suffering had been difficult enough.

"I can't stop thinking about how badly she was treated," Mathis said through Heipt. She described her daughter as a generous spirit, willing to share whatever she had with those who needed help.

"She made the world a better place. And she loved her family. She treated her nieces and nephews like they were her own babies," Mathis said.

Heipt said he was troubled not only by the jail's treatment of Barlow-Austin, but how it handled her case once she was taken to the hospital: Her family only discovered she had been hospitalized after going to the jail to visit and being told she was no longer in custody. Heipt said her husband was able to track down the sheriff to personally ask for her whereabouts.

"One of the biggest problems in this case is that there has not been an investigation," Heipt said, noting that it's typical for an outside agency to investigate any death that results from being in custody of law enforcement." The fact that they got around the in-custody death reporting requirements by simply releasing her from custody when her death is imminent and then not reporting it to the state is a problem."

LaSalle Corrections and its specific facilities, including Bi-State Jail, have faced several previous lawsuits over alleged inadequate staff training and abusive or neglectful care, particularly related to health and medical issues.

The Louisiana-based LaSalle Corrections runs the Irwin County Detention Center, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Georgia that on Monday was the subject of a whistleblower complaint by a nurse at the facility who alleged immigrant detainees have been denied basic medical care and possibly subjected to hysterectomies without their informed consent.

Since 2015, at least four detainees at Bi-State have died in custody, including some whose cases bear similarities to Barlow-Austin's. In 2016, Morgan Angerbauer died after staff failed to follow health protocols and check on the 20-year-old diabetic. A nurse at the jail later pleaded guilty to negligent homicide. The year prior, 35-year-old Michael Sabbie told jail guards he couldn't breathe after he was pepper-sprayed and handcuffed. He was left in his cell unmonitored and found dead the next day.

Barlow-Austin's suit alleges LaSalle has a history of hiring detention staffers with "little or no corrections experience, and it was foreseeable that the lack of such training would cause harm to inmates and detainees."

Heipt, who also represented Michael Sabbie's estate in a suit against LaSalle that was later settled, said the problems at LaSalle's facilities could have been avoided.

"I think it's a company that sees inmates as dollar signs and puts profits over people's lives. They could easily fix the problems in their jails, but it would cost money to do so," he said. "Unless they're held accountable in some fashion, there's going to be another Michael Sabbie, another Holly, another Morgan."
By Caitlin Johnstone

September 19, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - The Sydney Morning Herald just published an article titled Julian Assange interrupts extradition hearing again about the WikiLeaks founders correct interjection that he never put anyones lives in danger with the publication of the Manning leaks a decade ago.

Its actually a rather shocking smear piece for the SMH, who has been one of the better Australian publications at giving Assange a fair hearing over the years. The articles author Latika Bourke spends an inordinate amount of time waxing on about Assanges naughty outburst and how he was reprimanded for it by the judge, telling readers that the prosecution separates Assange from the press which also published information revealed by WikiLeaks but without naming journalists, human rights advocates and dissidents who were informing on their governments and repressive regimes, and bringing up Osama bin Ladens possession of WikiLeaks documents apropos of precisely nothing.

At no time does Bourke (who has been a regular smearer of Assange) bother to provide the reader with any of the readily available information showing that Assange never caused anyone harm and was not responsible for the unredacted documents being made public. She weaves a narrative about Assange being badly behaved in the courtroom, insinuates that the accusations he objected to could be true to the furthest extent possible without actually making a claim that would need to be retracted, and gets out.

Your headline writers misspelled "Julian Assange being prosecuted for journalism in historic case that threatens press freedoms worldwide", @smh.https://t.co/xQ1O0z8BUh  Caitlin Johnstone  (@caitoz) September 17, 2020

And unfortunately this drivel is more or less typical of the coverage Assanges historic, world-shaping extradition trial has been receiving from the mass media since it resumed this month. To the extent that they report on the trial at all, mainstream news outlets have mostly limited their coverage to trivialities like trouble with courtroom audio equipment or postponement due to a coronavirus scare. No mainstream outlet has been covering this immensely important trial in-depth to anywhere near the extent that former UK ambassador Craig Murray has been doing every night, or explaining to their audience the significance of a precedent which will allow journalists all over the world to be extradited and jailed for exposing embarrassing truths about the US government.

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This dereliction of journalistic responsibility was damning enough back when the prosecution was trying to argue that Assange doesnt have First Amendment protections because he was engaged in espionage and not journalistic behavior. But now that the prosecution has pivoted to arguing that it doesnt matter that Assange is a journalist because the US government is allowed to imprison people for journalism, this dereliction of duty has become far more pronounced.

Murray writes the following in his latest update:

"The prosecutions line represented a radical departure from their earlier approach which was to claim that Julian Assange is not a journalist and to try and distinguish between his behaviour and that of newspapers. In the first three days of evidence, legal experts had stated that this gloss on the prosecution did not stand up to investigation of the actual charges in the indictment. Experts in journalism also testified that Assanges relationship with Manning was not materially different from cultivation and encouragement by other journalists of official sources to leak. By general consent, those first evidence days had gone badly for the prosecution. There was then a timeout for (ahem) suspected Covid among the prosecution team. The approach has now changed and on Tuesday a radically more aggressive approach was adopted by the prosecution asserting the right to prosecute all journalists and all media who publish classified information under the Espionage Act (1917). The purpose of the earlier approach was plainly to reduce media support for Assange by differentiating him from other journalists. It had become obvious such an approach ran a real risk of failure, if it could be proved that Assange is a journalist, which line was going well for the defence. So now we have any journalist can be prosecuted for publishing classified information as the US government line. I strongly suspect that they have decided they do not have to mitigate against media reaction, as the media is paying no attention to this hearing anyway."

Corporate journalists have barely bothered to cover Assange's trial. But while they doze, the US has changed its argument, as ex-ambassador Craig Murray reports. Now the US is threatening to lock up other journalists for espionage if they expose its crimes https://t.co/4dpYUQ0EAZ  Jonathan Cook (@Jonathan_K_Cook) September 16, 2020

Murrays subsequent breakdown of the prosecutions arguments makes it clear that he was not over-selling this change in strategy. His notes on attorney for the prosecution James Lewis arguments contain lines as blatant as There are Supreme Court judgements that make it clear that at times the governments interest in national security must override the First Amendment and serial, continuing disclosure of secrets which harm the national interest cannot be justified. It therefore follows that journalists can be prosecuted in arguing against witness testimony that Assanges publishing behavior should be protected by the First Amendment.

The United States Supreme Court has never held that a journalist cannot be prosecuted for publishing national defence information, Murray reports Lewis argued.

So thats the precedent the prosecution is setting now. No longer We can extradite and imprison Assange because he isnt a journalist, but We can extradite and imprison Assange because were allowed to extradite and imprison journalists.

The argument that Assange isnt a journalist has always been transparently false, whether made in the courtroom or in the court of public opinion. Publishing important information so that the public can understand whats going on in their world is exactly the thing that journalism is. All WikiLeaks publications have included extensive written analyses of their contents, and its staff have received many esteemed awards for journalism.

WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange has been awarded the 2019 GUE/NGL Award for Journalists, Whistleblowers & Defenders of the Right to Information.

The award, sponsored by European parliamentarians, was established in honour of assassinated Maltese journalist, Daphne Galizia. pic.twitter.com/5DaMWcMFM9  WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) April 16, 2019

But the fact that the prosecution is no longer even attempting to argue against the journalistic nature of the actions they are attempting to criminalize means they have ceased trying to pretend that they are not waging a war against worldwide press freedoms. Which means that all journalists and news media outlets have lost their last excuse for not condemning Assanges persecution with great force and urgency.

Now that it is out in the open that the US government plans to prosecute any journalist anywhere in the world who it deems to have committed disclosure of secrets which harm the national interest (which in Assanges case means exposing US war crimes), anyone on earth who actually plans on doing real journalism which holds real power to account is at risk. If someone isnt using whatever platform they can to denounce Assanges persecution, they are showing the world that they have no interest in ever doing real journalism which holds real power to account.

News reporters and news outlets are showing us what they are right at this moment. If they are not speaking out for Assanges freedom right now they are telling you that his persecution poses no threat to them. They are telling you that they never plan on doing anything that might hold power to account with the light of truth. They are telling you that they will side with power every time. They are telling you they are propagandists.

The prosecutions new line of argumentation should have drawn massive headlines from all the major news outlets whove been bloviating about the dangers posed by Trumps war on the press with flamboyant preening and self-aggrandizement. Instead they are silent, because they do not care.

To quote Maya Angelou, when someone shows you who they are, believe them.

Caitlin's articles are entirely reader-supported, so if you enjoyed this piece please consider sharing it around, liking her on Facebook, following her antics on Twitter, checking out her podcast, throwing some money into her hat on Patreon or Paypal, or buying her book Woke: A Field Guide for Utopia Preppers. https://caitlinjohnstone.com
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 22:16:58|Editor: huaxia

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WUHAN, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- A tourist train carrying 950 passengers departed Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province, on Saturday morning for a two-day recreational tour of the province's Xiangyang City.

It was the first tourist train that originated from Wuhan and launched by the China Railway's Wuhan bureau since the city was hit hard by the COVID-19 epidemic.

The tourists will visit the ancient city wall, Xiangshui River, and other historical and cultural scenic spots in Xiangyang over the weekend, according to the bureau.

To ensure their comfort while observing regular epidemic prevention and control rules, the bureau has made arrangements for boarding and alighting times and opened dedicated entrance passages and a waiting area for the passengers.

Special staff members were assigned to provide the tourists with travel consultations, taking photos, and porter services.

More tourist train routes will be launched to boost tourism within Hubei and trans-provincial tourism, the bureau said. Enditem
Lord Hill is best known as the minister who once went into the Prime Ministers office intending to resign, but spoke so softly that David Cameron did not hear, and so he kept him on. So whether he meant to accept the post of European Commissioner can only be guessed: perhaps he turned it down, sotto voce, and the Prime Minister thought he was saying yes.

Whatever, Jonathan Hill goes off to Brussels to reinforce the point Cameron made so forcefully as he battled to block the elevation of Jean-Claude Juncker  that we thoroughly deprecate the practice of handing out top Europe jobs to people nobody has ever heard of.

The name Jonathan Hill is well known in Brussels, as deputy head of the private office of the Commissioner for Education, Androulla Vassilou, from Cyprus. But that is just confusing.

Ms Vassilou tweeted in bewilderment: Is it possible that the deputy head of my Cabinet has been nominated as the next UK Commissioner? On second thoughts, she tweeted: No, I dont think so. My Jonathan is not a Lord and he is pro-European!

The real Jonathan Hill was the one who, when asked by the Conservative Home website if he was going to be an EU Commissioner, exclaimed: Non! Non! Non! Or was he? Who knows?

Exit from the goon squad

In case anyone is wondering why William Hague proposes to throw up a political career at the age of 54, his father Nigel told the Daily Telegraph: He plans to enjoy himself, and to do some writing and go to places and make a lot more money because he loses money working with all those goons.

This is true. Back numbers of the MPs Register of Interest show that Hague was raking in between 170,000 and 220,000 a year, on top of his MPs salary of 60,675, when he was out of government. As Foreign Secretary he has had to scrape by on 134,565.

A matter of proportions

Speaking to the press gallery lunch today, the Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin proudly declared We have increased the size of women in the Conservative Party. I do not think that he quite meant to say that.

Whitehall Kremlinology

While David Cameron was reshuffling, his old school chum Boris Johnson was on the location of what used to be Catford dog track in south-east London. It is more than 10 years since dogs last raced there, and the land is being developed for much-needed housing.

I put it to the Mayor that the cull of pro-EU ministers then under way was a sign that the Tory party is veering off to the right, and was bluntly told: Thats an old-fashioned Kremlinology. Thats the kind of dialectic that was used in the old days to analyse reshuffles. Its actually about refreshing the team  that sort of thing.

Kremlinology was the science of studying bland official Soviet pronouncements for clues as to what was really happening. There was one famous occasion when the New York Times took the mickey out of the Kremlinologists for getting all excited because the chief of police, Lavrentry Beria, was not included in a list of top people at a show at the Bolshoi. Perhaps Mr Beria doesnt like the theatre, they suggested.

Actually, Mr Beria had been arrested and was later shot. So, Boris, let us not diss Kremlinology.
With total recoveries in the country crossing 42 lakh, India has overtaken the United States to register the highest number of Covid-19 recoveries in the world.

India has overtaken the United States to register the highest number of COVID-19 recoveries in the world, informed the Union Health Ministry on Saturday. The total recoveries in the country crossed 42 lakh.

India overtakes the USA and becomes No.1 in terms of global COVID19 RECOVERIES. TOTAL RECOVERIES cross 42 lakh, it tweeted. The Ministry further stated that timely steps taken by the government to detect the virus have resulted in this global achievement. Centre-led focussed, calibrated, responsive and effective measures of early identification through high and aggressive testing, prompt surveillance and tracking coupled with standardised high-quality clinical care have together resulted in this global achievement, it said in another tweet.

Indias COVID-19 case tally crossed the 53-lakh mark with a spike of 93,337 new cases and 1,247 deaths in the last 24 hours, informed Health Ministry on Saturday. The total case tally stands at 53,08,015 including 10,13,964 active cases, 42,08,432 cured/discharged/migrated and 85,619 deaths.

Also Read: With over 93,000 cases reported in 24-hrs, Indias Covid tally breaches 53 L mark

Also read: With Akalis set to oppose the farm bills, Govt reaches out to friendly parties as RS numbers look uncertain

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the cumulative total samples tested up to September 18 are 6,24,54,254. The number of samples tested on September 18 is 8,81,911. As far as the active cases are concerned in the states, as per the Health Ministry, Maharashtra has 301273 active cases, Karnataka 101148, Andhra Pradesh 84423, Uttar Pradesh 67825 and Tamil Nadu 46506. (ANI)

Also Read: NIA arrests 9 terrorists from Kerala, West Bengal after multiple raids
Faith Adventures is a fun-loving story of a mouse, his explorations, and friendships

Author Kay Biggs shares Gods Word with children through The Faith Adventures of Charlie Mouse ($9.99, paperback, 9781632214553; $4.99, e-book, 9781632214560).

The story begins when Charlie Mouse decides to meet the boy in his house. Along the way, Charlie ends up going to school, meeting an angel, and struggling with a cat, all the while teaching his friends about Jesus and Gods Word.

Faith Adventures is a fun-loving story of a mouse, his explorations, and friendships, said Biggs.

Kay Biggs is a mother and grandmother who has always loved writing, storytelling, and entertaining children. She works in the nursing profession and hold degrees in nursing, nutrition, and theology. Biggs and her husband, Myron live in Georgia. They raised three sons and have six grandchildren.

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Xulon Press, a division of Salem Media Group, is the worlds largest Christian self-publisher, with more than 15,000 titles published to date. The Faith Adventures of Charlie Mouse is available online through xulonpress.com/bookstore, amazon.com, and barnesandnoble.com.


(Newser)  A Florida man is accused of ramming a 13-year-old girl in the face with a flagpole while demonstrating for President Trump, ActionNewsJax reports. Norbert Logsdon, 67, allegedly jammed the pole in Crystal Ledoux's car and struck her daughter Wednesday in the town of Orange Park. "I was scared out of my mind, we were in shock, and my daughters petrified now," says Ledoux. According to Ledoux, she saw Logsdon demonstrating with other pro-Trump supporters on the sidewalk and giving passing cars the finger. So she pulled a u-ie and gave him the finger while shouting, "Biden 2020." Seems that's when Logsdon slammed his pole through the open window, striking Ledoux's daughteras partly seen in this Facebook video.

story continues below

A deputy reporting on the incident that "I did observe redness to the victim's right face." Logsdon was later arrested at home without incident and charged with felony child abuse. A reporter who called Logsdon asked him why he did it, to which Logsdon replied, "You can talk to my attorney, goodbye," and hung up. He then responded to a reporter's text by providing the name of a nonexistent law firm. The Florida Times-Union has dug up another apparent Logsdon video in which he tells a woman in a parking lot that "I don't need to wear a mask. I'm not voting for Biden! I'm not voting for Biden!" He then huffs air loudly in her direction several times. (Read more child abuse stories.)
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday busted an inter-state module of Al Qaeda operatives as it conducted raids in West Bengal and Kerala on Saturday morning. Three of the nine Qaeda men were arrested from Ernakulam district.

Kerala Police chief Lokanath Behera confirmed the arrests from Ernakulam that has the highest migrant labourers population in the state. The three were picked from two places in Kochi. Those arrested are Murshid Hassan, Yakoob Bishwas and Morshraf Hussien.

Kerala Police has found out that Hussien was in Kerala for the past one decade and was working in a textile shop at Perumbavoor, near Aluva.

Speaking to the media, a person who was staying with Murshid Hassan said the police came around 2 a.m. and arrested Hassan and also recovered incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature.

"It was during the national lockdown, he started to stay with us. Generally he used to work only for two days a week and rest of the time, he was in the room. We do not know details of him or his family," said the person who was his roommate.

Police has now taken away the mobile of all those staying with Hassan and have asked them to report at the NIA office.

According to the anti-terror probe agency officials in Delhi, the arrests were made after raids in West Bengal's Murshidabad, from where six people have been arrested.

The NIA spokesperson said that the agency carried out simultaneous raids at several locations in Ernakulam and Murshidabad after learning about the inter-state terror module operational from various locations in India.

"The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds," the spokesperson said, adding that it has registered a case on September 11.

Sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession.

Those arrested in Kerala are presently under the custody of NIA officials and later in the day they would be produced before a special NIA court here and after that they would be moved to Delhi.




A controversial decision on a paving contract for New KCI now confronts legal push back and a federal complaint.



To wit and because legal action over this bad deal in the name (only) of diversity was inevitable . . .



ESCO FIRES OFF SCATHING COMPLAINT TO FAA AND LAWYERS UP AFTER COUNCIL FLIPPED AN 80-MILLION DOLLAR BID!!!



Weve talked extensively about this battle royale with cheese but heres the official story with no paywall:



Ideker Inc. obtains KCI terminal concrete contract



This afternoon the complaint hit city hall with NUKE force.



Theres a lot to unpack but heres the money line that says it all:



"The City Council intervened even though it had no legal authority or standing to participate in the procurement process given its decision to contractually delegate that authority to Director of Aviation Mr. Patrick Klein."

For those who want to delve into the deets we've got FIRST NEWS on this new airport legal hot mess in Kansas City:



CHECK THE EPIC ESCO LAWYER LETTER!!!



And then . . .



Heres an itemized breakdown of the complaint that name checks a great many locals, Council Lady Kathryn Shields AND Heavy Constructor Boss Bridgette Williams.



Developing . . .
Two Armada cannon recovered on deck in 2015 over 400 years after they were lost from La Juliana during storms at Streedagh in 1588. Photo UAU

The discovery of the St Peter cannon of the Spanish Armada at Streedagh in 2015 by the Underwater Archaeology Unit - photo UAU

The annual Remembering the Armada commemoration of the Spanish Armada at Streedagh will take place online only this month due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Now in its 10th year, this year's Remembering the Armada programme will take place between 18th-20th September and is available completely free of charge to the public on SpanishArmadaIreland.com.

"We have a wonderful series of online events this year," says Eddie O'Gorman, Chair of Spanish Armada Ireland. "Despite the challenges involved in running an online-only festival, this has enabled our committee to think outside the box in terms of what we can offer viewers in Spain and Ireland, people who normally would like to be here in person."

The main innovations in this year's festival is a series of three online lectures which will give a fascinating insight into the Armada's local history in Sligo.

The two main dive and recovery operations of 1985 and 2015 which yielded several Spanish Armada cannon will be discussed with some of the central characters involved.

The original Streedagh dives which took place after the three wrecks were discovered in May 1985 will be discussed in detail (Saturday September 19th at 9pm). Colin Martin was an advisor to the dive team led by Stephen Birch and Alan King which first found the wreck site, and he describes what it

was like to clearly see the remains of the three ships lying in shallow water just a short distance from the shoreline at Streedagh Beach. Nessa O'Connor was an archaeologist and curator working for the National Museum, and this was her first dive - what an experience this must have been for her to see the wrecks that were clearly visible under the water.

"I was most impressed by what I saw," says Colin Martin of his memories of the Streedagh dives of 1985. "The guns (cannon) weren't exactly shining, but

they weren't corroded and they were in remarkable condition." Nessa O'Connor adds "As I recall it, the Juliana (one of the wrecks) was only in around 10 metres of water. I can remember very clearly seeing the rudder,

running my hands along the edge of it, and seeing gun carriage wheels, and I think I also saw a cannon at that time. It was really exciting, for effectively the first wreck I had ever dived on."

35 years after the event, both will describe the recovery operation which yielded three cannon and a smaller falcon pedrero gun, and they will also delve into the complex legal case which followed the Streedagh dives, and which went all the way to the Supreme Court. An interesting webcast for anyone with a passion for local history. Both speakers portray Streedagh as a historical site of great international importance, pointing out that it is the only Armada wreck site which contains three ships, and they also point to the accessibility of the site when the wrecks become uncovered, a somewhat rare event which only happens infrequently when the sands that cover the wrecks are removed by the sea.

On Sunday September 20th at 5pm, we will hear about the more recent dives of 2015. These events, which brought the Streedagh wrecks to worldwide attention, led to the recovery of 9 Spanish Armada cannon and other artefacts. The dive team involved - Fionnbarr Moore, Connie Kelleher and Karl Brady, of the Underwater Archaeology Unit of the National Museum of Ireland, will describe this incredible dive and recovery operation, and they will also outline the conservation process which is currently underway and which will ultimately lead to the cannon being available for public viewing.

A third online discussion will start the online weekend programme. Following a free screening of the recently produced 'Armada 1588 : Shipwreck & Survival' film on the life of Spanish Armada Captain Francisco de Cuellar, who survived the wrecks at Streedagh, we hear from members of the cast and crew who bring us behind the scenes. Director Al Butler of Mediacoop will be joined by lead actor Fernando Corral and set designer Lynne Williams in conversation with one of the film's producers, Micheal O Domhnaill. So if you want to know what is involved in the production of a high quality television docudrama, join the team online on Friday September 18th at 9pm, following the screening of the film an hour earlier.

Finally, to the centrepiece Remembering the Armada event This takes place on Streedagh Beach every year and usually involves hundreds of people from home and abroad congregating to pay tribute to the lives of almost 1,000 Spaniards who died at Streedagh in 1588. The remembrance event will take place again this year, but unfortunately, the public will be unable to attend. The Spanish Ambassador to Ireland, H.E, Mr. Indefonso Castro will be joined by Cathaoirleach of Sligo County Council,

Councillor Dara Mulvey, for a private commemorative ceremony at the Armada monument which overlooks Streedagh Beach, and where a wreath will be laid at the monument in tribute to the fallen. This will be streamed online on Sunday 20th September at 4pm.

This year, the Spanish Armada Ireland committee want to make a special effort to reach out to our many friends, patrons and supporters here and abroad.

"We have built up a wonderful friendship with so many people in Spain, Ireland and elsewhere over the past decade," says O'Gorman. "We want these events to show that, although we cannot be together in person this year, we are together in spirit. And to our many friends in Spain, our heartfelt wish is that we will all be able to be here in person at Streedagh for the Armada commemoration in 2021."

All events from Remembering the Armada 2020 will be streamed FREE via SpanishArmadaIreland.com.
In a swift operation, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) raided a migrant workers settlement in Kochi in the early hours of Saturday and arrested three alleged al-Qaeda operatives who were planning a series of terror attacks.

The NIA said the terror module was operational for some time and they were planning a series of attacks in major cities including Delhi, Mumbai and Kochi. It said raids were carried out at the same time in Kerala and West Bengal-- six people were arrested from Murshidabad also. Kerala police chief Loknath Behra said the state police was informed and they helped the premier agency in the raid.

All three arrested in Kochi-- Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas and Mosaraf Hossen-- hailed from West Bengal and they were discreetly staying as migrant workers. They were staying separately to avoid detection but they were in constant touch, NIA officials said. Some of the workers staying with them told the NIA that they never had any idea about their dubious activities but they were very religious and always hooked to their phones. But the NIA suspects that they might have got local support.

Hasan is reported to be the leader of Kerala module and they were planning lone wolf attacks and suicide bombings. They also planned to target vital installations like southern naval command and Cochin Shipyard, officials said.

Though in Kerala many Islamic State sympathisers were arrested earlier, this is the first time an al-Qaeda module has been busted. According to officers investigating the case, those arrested were radicalised by al-Qaeda leaders in Pakistan and they were in touch with some of them through encrypted Telegram app. Some of the workers told investigators that they were not regular at construction sites and they spent enough time on their phones. A laptop, terror leaflets and bomb-making materials were seized from their hideouts.

One of them, Murshid Hasan, was staying in the state for more than five years and another Biswas had worked in a tea shop in Idukki for eight months before shifting his base to Kochi. They led a normal life and produced all papers before their stay. One of them was staying with his family. We are really shocked to hear their terror-related activities, one of the locals said adding Kochi will have to be on high alert as around five lakh migrant workers are working in the city and outskirts.

Kerala police also suspect that some local people might have extended help to them. We are keeping a close vigil on all migrant camps and employers have been instructed to keep personal details of all employees, said a senior police officer.

In 2016, at least 21 people from the state had slipped out of the country to join the Islamic State and most of them have reportedly died in Afghanistan and Iraq. Some of their widows and children are reportedly lodged in prisons in Afghanistan.
A man in his 20s is in a serious condition after he was shot in Broadmeadows on Saturday.

Police and paramedics were called to Camp Road at 1.55pm on Saturday after reports that a man had been shot in the leg.

Police at the scene of the Broadmeadows shooting on Saturday. Credit:Nine News

The man in his 20s was taken to the Royal Melbourne Hospital with serious injuries.

A Victoria Police spokeswoman said exact circumstances of the incident are unknown, with an investigation by the Armed Crime Squad ongoing.
The authorities are hoping that if they round up the key figures who are leading this, then that will somehow decapitate the movement and drain its ability to organize itself and to strategize and so on, said Gould-Davies, now with the International Institute for Strategic Studies. But intimidating them or forcing them abroad or arresting them wont change the fundamentals of the situation, so that tactic is unlikely to work.
Irish government handout photo of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex with President Michael D Higgins, his wife Sabina and their dogs Brod and Sioda at Aras an Uachtarain on the second day of their visit to Dublin, Ireland (PA)

One of Irish president Michael D Higgins dogs has died.

The Bernese Mountain dog Sioda, along with Brod, a male of the same breed, charmed scores of special guests to the presidents residence in Dublin, including the Duke and Duchess of Sussex during their visit to Ireland in 2018.

Expand Close President Michael D Higgins and Sabina Higgins, with their dog (Joe Giddens/PA) PA / Facebook

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Whatsapp President Michael D Higgins and Sabina Higgins, with their dog (Joe Giddens/PA)

The pair of canines had an unofficial Twitter fan page with more than 18,000 followers.

The news of Siodas passing was included in the presidents online newsletter, with the announcement that Sioda has passed away, after a short illness.
Awaiting BJP high command's nod for Cabinet expansion: CM Yediyurappa

India

oi-Deepika S

New Delhi, Sep 19: Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Saturday said if the BJP high command gives nod, the much-awaited cabinet expansion could take place before the start of the Assembly session next week.

Terming his Delhi trip as "successful", he reiterated that his desire was to complete the process before the monsoon session of the legislature from September 21, but everything will depend on what the high command decides.

"I have explained to the party president (J P Nadda) about my intention to expand the cabinet. I hope the party leaders will communicate with me about their decision by today evening. The top leaders will decide on whom I have to induct," Yediyurappa told reporters here.

The chief minister discussed the cabinet expansion with BJP president J P Nadda on Friday evening.

"If the party leaders agreed, expansion will be held before the assembly session (on September 21)," he said before leaving for Bengaluru after his two-day visit to the national capital.

Karnataka schools colleges set to reopen from September 21

Responding to a question on how many will be inducted into the cabinet, Yediyurappa said, "We will have to see, based on the suggestions given by the prime minister and the national president, I will have to take the decision."

The monsoon session of the state legislature is scheduled from September 21 to 30.

He said his Delhi visit was "successful" as he got positive responses to several proposals of the Karnataka government from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other union ministers.

Last night, Yediyurappa had even hinted at the possibility of a cabinet reshuffle, stating that it will depend on the directions from the prime minister and the BJP president.

Cabinet expansion or reshuffle is expected to be a tightrope for 77-year-old Yediyurappa, considering too many aspirants.

While several of the old guard are waiting for a chance to be inducted into the ministry, those who defected from the Congress and JD(S) like A H Vishwanath, R Shankar and MTB Nagaraj, who are now BJP MLCs, are also aspiring for slots.

The cabinet currently has 28 members and six berths are still vacant.

On reports of change in leadership in Karnataka, Yediyurappa on Friday night brushed aside the speculation and asserted that he will continue as chief minister for the entire term.

"There is no truth in the news of leadership change. Some people keep spreading such news, but there is no truth in it. I will remain as CM for the entire term," he had told reporters.

Earlier during the day, Yediyurappa made a courtesy call to Vice President Venkaiah Naidu.

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Story first published: Saturday, September 19, 2020, 17:40 [IST]
The failure to award bravery medals to the surviving soldiers from The Siege of Jadotville, even though cabinet decided over three years ago to award the medals, was raised in the Dail this week, with Joe Flaherty TD appealing to the Minister for Defence to intervene.

During the final day in office of former Taoiseach Enda Kenny in June 2017, cabinet decided that medals of bravery were to be awarded to those who fought in The Siege of Jadotville in 1961. However, those medals were never presented.

The Siege of Jadotville raged for four days 59 years ago this week and Longford / Westmeath Fianna Fail TD Joe Flaherty said he appreciates and understands the Department's position in that medals are time bound - two years in the case of the military medal for gallantry, MMG, and four years in the case of the distinguished service medal, DSM.

He added, "The Department also makes the point that it feels that the issue was comprehensively dealt with in 1965. However, that is not a view shared by many members of the public, and especially in Longford Westmeath where we have a great tradition and affinity with those who featured in the Siege of Jadotville.

"The Minister (Simon Conveney TD) himself is on record as having said that he will consider any new information to support a reconsideration to award the medals. Equally, I know the Minister is incredibly proud of this nation's record in peacekeeping, overseas duty and the Jadotville Congo era, which is a hugely important part of our military history.

"I also understand that there is a precedent that will enable the Minister with responsibility for defence to order the rules on time limits to be waived in certain circumstances and I earnestly hope that the Minister will give this due consideration."

Deputy Flaherty remarked, "In Longford-Westmeath, we are especially proud of our association with this chapter in our peacekeeping history.

"Fifteen soldiers from County Longford and a further 22 from Westmeath featured in Jadotville. Indeed, the two counties accounted for more than 20% of the complement of soldiers there.

"One of those who featured was Michael Tighe, a Longford town man. He is currently recuperating from surgery, but he has been at the forefront of trying to get the recognition that he and his fellow soldiers have long been denied."

Deputy Flaherty continued, "Regrettably, it has been decided that the surviving soldiers will not be awarded the bravery medals recommended by their commanding officer, Colonel Pat Quinlan. The soldiers have in recent times received many honours and accolades as a result of the campaign headed up by the late colonel's son, Leo, but, alas, they have been denied the individual medals for bravery which were recommended for them following the siege in the Congo in 1961.

"During the siege, which was subsequently dramatised in a Netflix movie, 150 Irish peacekeepers with no battle experience held out for an unprecedented five days against 3,000 mercenaries and local militia without suffering a single fatality. Alas, for years afterwards, Colonel Quinlan and his men were derided in Ireland because they had eventually surrendered. Sadly, several of the soldiers who featured in Jadotville subsequently died by suicide.

"After achieving recognition for the achievements of his father and the men in recent years, Leo Quinlan has continued to campaign for them to be awarded the distinguished service medal or military medal for gallantry - the two highest honours afforded to anybody in the proud Irish Defence Forces. He has thankfully found the original list of recommendations made by his father after the battle which put forward 33 men for these awards. Eight of those men are still alive, including our own Michael Tighe."

Read this interview with Longford's Michael Tighe from October 2016 as he reflected on walking the red carpet alongside celebrities and movie stars, but more poignantly, his fellow Irish soldiers while attending the film premiere of The Siege of Jadotville. He also revealed how having the charge of cowardice cleared from over their heads was precious to him.

Michael launched his book, The Tiger of Jadotville, on Wednesday, December 7, 2016 in Longford Library.

Although 6,000 Irish soldiers served in the Congo in the early 1960s, Michael was one of only a handful who served three tours of duty, all of which are recounted in the publication. He also details a full account of his subsequent court martial, despite having been nominated for the Armys highest bravery award.

The book was launched by RTE's Sinead Hussey and special guest was Leo Quinlan, son of Commandant Pat Quinlan who was the officer commanding in Jadotville, and on whom the movie The Siege of Jadotville is based.

Caption: Leo Quinlan, Michael Tighe, Sinead Hussey, Tiernan Dolan and Larry Mitchell at the launch of Michael Tighe's book 'The Tiger of Jadotville' in December 2016 Picture: Shelley Corcoran

Longford Chamber of Commerce secured the Longford premiere of the film, The Siege of Jadotville, and it was screened in Longford Omniplex on Thursday, March 16, 2017. The evening was a tribute to the twelve soldiers from Longford who featured in The Siege of Jadotville.

Also read: 'The Siege of Jadotville' premieres in Longford

In February 2017, Michael Tighe met with An Taoiseach Enda Kenny and presented him with a copy of his book 'The Tiger of Jadotville'.

The following June, during his final day in office, cabinet decided that medals of bravery were to be awarded to those who fought in The Siege of Jadotville.

Former Taoiseach Kenny, at the time, said that the medals would fully recognise the bravery and courage of the soldiers during the unique circumstances of the Siege of Jadotville.

It is now over three years since that cabinet decision and the medals of bravery still haven't been awarded.

Also read: Calls for Longford Siege of Jadotville heroes to be recognised
Somebody at Conservative HQ blundered in style by giving out too much information when they uploaded the photographs of hundreds of wannabe Tory MPs. The captions under 112 of the pictures categorised the seats they are fighting as non-targets  meaning that the Tories plan to put minimal effort into winning them.

The incriminating information has been taken down, but not before it was spotted and stored by a blogger named Richard Taylor, who posted the full list. Some of the designated non-targets are seats the Tories already hold with comfortable majorities, but most are not.

I imagine the Labour Party will be grateful for this glimpse of the Conservative battle order. Going by the 2010 results, Labours most marginal Birmingham seat  the 19th most marginal in the UK  is Edgbaston, held by Gisela Stuart with a majority of just 1,274. Yet the Conservatives have been pouring all the money and resources they can spare into Birmingham Northfield, held by Richard Burden with a majority of 2,782. Now Labour organisers have confirmation of what they suspected: that Edgbaston is a non-target and Northfield is the battle ground.

Another non-target is Plymouth Moor View, which Labours Alison Seabeck held last time by only 1,588 votes. Seemingly, the Ukip surge in Plymouth has made the Conservatives give up there. The leak implies they have also given up on Rochester and Strood, where the MP Mark Reckless deserted the Tories and won a by-election for Ukip.

Imagine what it does to the morale of a Conservative candidate struggling to build up support to be publicly written off by party headquarters as a no-hoper.

Kramers goes off track

The Lib Dem Transport minister Susan Kramer produced a fine example of politicians speak and how it corresponds to the world outside when she answered a question about people who commit suicide by throwing themselves under trains.

A comprehensive national rail suicide prevention programme is in place, she proudly announced. The evaluation has indicated that the programme has been particularly successful in bringing together a wide range of different organisations in planning, promoting and delivering complex activities at both national and local levels.

Meanwhile, in 2013-14, the most recent year for which figures are available, 279 people killed themselves on the railways: the highest annual total on record.

Building up to a punchline

Philip Collins, a former Labour adviser who now writes for The Times, told an amusing anecdote in todays paper about a politician who fluffed a witty line that Collins had written for him.

There is a story about Samuel Johnson  probably apocryphal  that he once saw two women leaning out of windows on either side of a narrow street, arguing furiously. Those two women will never agree, he reputedly said, because they are arguing from different premises.

Collins wrote: It struck me as a perfect speech opening. If only I hadnt given it to a politician for whom it made no sense. He related the set-up perfectly but then concluded with the immortal line: Those two women will never agree  because theyre arguing from different buildings.

How loyally he avoided naming the guilty politician. But something stirs in the memory. There was a speech delivered in Salford last June by Collinss former editor, James Harding. He told the same story, except he named the obtuse politician who ruined the punch line. It was the only politician known to have employed Collins as a speech writer. Tony Blair.
China is increasingly worried that President Trump will try to provoke a confrontation - perhaps through military action - to boost his chances of re-election.

Mr Trump's hostility toward China, which began over trade but now encompasses technology, science, journalism and the novel coronavirus, has proved popular with his base.

Influential academics in Beijing fear he will turbocharge his attacks to generate support and distract from domestic problems, such as unemployment and the devastating coronavirus death toll that has highlighted Mr Trump's slow response to the pandemic.

"These guys are crazy. There's nothing they won't do to hurt China, to try to destroy China, even when it comes at a cost that previous administrations believed unacceptable to the US," said Jia Qingguo, a professor of international studies at Peking University who advises the Chinese government.

"As the chances of him getting re-elected diminish, we worry he will try to provoke a crisis with China."

When Mr Trump took office, many here thought he was looking for a tweetable victory in his trade war with Beijing. Some quietly cheered him on, hoping he might inject momentum into market-oriented reforms that Chinese leader Xi Jinping had promised but not delivered.

Now, advisers to the ruling Communist Party concede they may have been wrong to think there would be limits to what Mr Trump would do against China.

The administration has expanded its campaign against Huawei Technologies to include Chinese-owned social media apps WeChat and TikTok - the latter hugely popular with young Americans - and Chinese students in the US, a major source of revenue for American universities.

This has come as US coronavirus deaths near 200,000 and after Mr Trump acknowledged he played down the risks to avoid panicking people.

Fatalities in mainland China, where the virus started late last year but was contained through widespread lockdowns, stand at 4,634.

Mr Trump has sought to deflect criticism of his pandemic response, repeatedly blaming China for what he has termed the "Wuhan virus" and the offensive "kung flu".

"The strategic rivalry and the reversal of globalization were already happening, but Covid-19 has intensified and accelerated" these shifts, said Shi Yinhong, an international relations professor at Tsinghua University and a doyen of Beijing's academic establishment.

"Trump is a special guy. It's difficult to find any rationale or intellectual background for what he's done," Prof Shi said.

Just as concern about China's rise has become a bipartisan issue in Washington, so too has it spread among the US public. The latest Pew Research Center survey of Americans' views of China found 73pc of respondents had an unfavourable view of the country.

With Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden enjoying a lead in polls, analysts in China say Mr Trump could resort to fomenting nationalist outrage.

Indeed, the president recently has taken up human rights issues, such as China's abuses in the Xinjiang region and its crackdown in Hong Kong, with a vigour unseen previously. This is prompting predictions that Beijing's actions toward Taiwan and in the South China Sea will be next on his target list.

Beijing views Taiwan as a breakaway province that should be "reunited" with it - though Taiwan has never been a part of the People's Republic of China, which was founded in 1949.

China's current leader, Mr Xi, has made assertive noises about seizing control of the democratic, self-ruled island, portraying it as an existential issue as young Taiwanese feel ever more distant from China.

Mr Xi has also overseen an aggressive military expansion in the South China Sea, reclaiming land in disputed waters to build artificial islands, then constructing military installations on them.

Given the intensity of Mr Trump's anti-China approach, the possibility of a limited US attack on reclaimed islands in the South China Sea suddenly seem plausible.

"It's still not likely but before, the possibility was unimaginable. Now it's imaginable," said Prof Shi.

 Washington Post
Young people are now coping better with the COVID-19 pandemic than they were in April, but many still feel like they are "swimming with sandbags" as they juggle disruptions to schooling and increased family responsibilities.

A national survey of 1289 young people for Unicef in August found most felt they had a good ability to cope. However, young people in Melbourne are particularly struggling with the extended lockdown and more imminent virus threat, with only 44 per cent saying they had a good ability to cope compared with 55 per cent nationally.

Emily Thornton, 18, is a year 12 student at the Conservatorium High School. Credit:Rhett Wyman

When Unicef first did the research in April, only 45 per cent of young people nationally felt they had a good ability to cope. At that time, 81 per cent of young people estimated they had a good ability to cope in January before the pandemic made news, while only 30 per cent expected to be coping well by August.

Unicef program and advocacy manager Juliet Attenborough said young people were resilient, with many reporting they had learned coping skills during the pandemic, while the lifting of lockdown across most of the country had also helped.
Agricultural Enzymes Market Research Report by Type (Beta-Glucosidase, Cellulases, Dehydrogenases, Phosphatases, and Proteases), by Product (Growth Enhancing Products and Soil Fertility Products), by Crop Type - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19

New York, Sept. 18, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Agricultural Enzymes Market Research Report by Type, by Product, by Crop Type - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05953124/?utm_source=GNW



The Global Agricultural Enzymes Market is expected to grow from USD 293.46 Million in 2019 to USD 582.79 Million by the end of 2025 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 12.11%.



Market Segmentation & Coverage:

This research report categorizes the Agricultural Enzymes to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following sub-markets:



Based on Type, the Agricultural Enzymes Market studied across Beta-Glucosidase, Cellulases, Dehydrogenases, Phosphatases, Proteases, Sulfatases, and Ureases.



Based on Product, the Agricultural Enzymes Market studied across Growth Enhancing Products and Soil Fertility Products.



Based on Crop Type, the Agricultural Enzymes Market studied across Cereals & Grains, Fruits & Vegetables, Herbs, Oilseeds & Pulses, Plantation, Spices, and Turfs & Ornamentals.



Based on Geography, the Agricultural Enzymes Market studied across Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe, Middle East & Africa. The Americas region surveyed across Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and United States. The Asia-Pacific region surveyed across Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand. The Europe, Middle East & Africa region surveyed across France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, United Arab Emirates, and United Kingdom.



Company Usability Profiles:

The report deeply explores the recent significant developments by the leading vendors and innovation profiles in the Global Agricultural Enzymes Market including AB Enzymes, Agri Life, Agrinos AS, Aries Agro Limited, BASF SE, Bayer Cropscience AG, Bioresource International, Inc., Bioworks, Inc., Camson Bio Technologies Limited, Chr. Hansen, Deepak Fertilisers and Petrochemicals Corporation Limited, E. I. Du Pont De Nemours and Company, Koninklijke DSM N.V., Lonza Group, Monsanto Company, Novozymes A/S, Stoller USA Inc., and Syngenta AG.



FPNV Positioning Matrix:

The FPNV Positioning Matrix evaluates and categorizes the vendors in the Agricultural Enzymes Market on the basis of Business Strategy (Business Growth, Industry Coverage, Financial Viability, and Channel Support) and Product Satisfaction (Value for Money, Ease of Use, Product Features, and Customer Support) that aids businesses in better decision making and understanding the competitive landscape.



Competitive Strategic Window:

The Competitive Strategic Window analyses the competitive landscape in terms of markets, applications, and geographies. The Competitive Strategic Window helps the vendor define an alignment or fit between their capabilities and opportunities for future growth prospects. During a forecast period, it defines the optimal or favorable fit for the vendors to adopt successive merger and acquisition strategies, geography expansion, research & development, and new product introduction strategies to execute further business expansion and growth.



Cumulative Impact of COVID-19:

COVID-19 is an incomparable global public health emergency that has affected almost every industry, so for and, the long-term effects projected to impact the industry growth during the forecast period. Our ongoing research amplifies our research framework to ensure the inclusion of underlaying COVID-19 issues and potential paths forward. The report is delivering insights on COVID-19 considering the changes in consumer behavior and demand, purchasing patterns, re-routing of the supply chain, dynamics of current market forces, and the significant interventions of governments. The updated study provides insights, analysis, estimations, and forecast, considering the COVID-19 impact on the market.



The report provides insights on the following pointers:

1. Market Penetration: Provides comprehensive information on the market offered by the key players

2. Market Development: Provides in-depth information about lucrative emerging markets and analyzes the markets

3. Market Diversification: Provides detailed information about new product launches, untapped geographies, recent developments, and investments

4. Competitive Assessment & Intelligence: Provides an exhaustive assessment of market shares, strategies, products, and manufacturing capabilities of the leading players

5. Product Development & Innovation: Provides intelligent insights on future technologies, R&D activities, and new product developments



The report answers questions such as:

1. What is the market size and forecast of the Global Agricultural Enzymes Market?

2. What are the inhibiting factors and impact of COVID-19 shaping the Global Agricultural Enzymes Market during the forecast period?

3. Which are the products/segments/applications/areas to invest in over the forecast period in the Global Agricultural Enzymes Market?

4. What is the competitive strategic window for opportunities in the Global Agricultural Enzymes Market?

5. What are the technology trends and regulatory frameworks in the Global Agricultural Enzymes Market?

6. What are the modes and strategic moves considered suitable for entering the Global Agricultural Enzymes Market?

Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05953124/?utm_source=GNW



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Phukets wild weather fells trees, cuts off power across island

PHUKET: Strong winds and driving felled large trees and caused major power outages across the island this morning (Sept 19) as the heavy weather across Phuket continues.

weatheraccidents

By The Phuket News

Saturday 19 September 2020, 11:32AM

Power lines have also been brought down by trees falling across them. Photo: Tanyaluk Sakoot

Power lines have also been brought down by trees falling across them. Photo: Tanyaluk Sakoot

At about 10am strong winds felled a tree across the main road onto the island, between the bridge onto the island and the Phuket Check Point, blocking all vehicular traffic onto Phuket. Workers have been dispatched to clear the tree.

Power outages have also struck across the island as power lines have been downed by trees. The Phuket office of the Provincial electricity Authority (PEA) confirmed that one incident at 10:10am affected all power on the island. Main power supply to Phuket has been restored, but teams of PEA workers have been dispatched to restore power supply in areas still affected.

Rescue workers yesterday urged motorists to drive carefully after a car overturned on Thepkrasattri Rd during the wet conditions. That accident occurred just four kilometres north of where a horrific accident occurred on Wednesday night, when a 9-year-old girl was killed and seven others were injured by a pickup truck that had slid off the wet road and ploughed through people dining at a roadside restaurant.

Meanwhile, Chalong Police have reported that a foreign woman riding a motorbike in Rawai was struck by a car yesterday (Sept 18). The woman was rushed to Chalong Hospital, but pronounced dead.

Chalong Police have yet to reveal any more details about the accident.

The Phuket Provincial Office re-issued another weather warning for the island this morning, following emergency services being ordered on alert on Thursday as the foul weather started to take hold, forcing the closure of beaches and the cancellation of events in some areas, including Patong.

The TMD also re-issued its weather warning today, noting that Category 3 tropical storm NOUL had been downgraded to a tropical depression over Khon Kaen.

The strong southwest monsoon across the Andaman Sea, Thailand and the Gulf. Torrential rain with isolated heavy to very heavy rain will be possible in the North, the Northeast, the Central, the East and the South. People in the risky areas should beware of the severe rains that may cause flash floods and water runoff. Beware of strong winds by keeping away from outdoor places, large trees and unsecured buildings, the warning repeated.

Strong wind waves are likely in the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand. In the upper portion of both seas, the waves will be likely 2-4 meters high and more than 4 meters high in thundershowers. In the lower portion, the waves will be likely about 2 meters and in thundershower areas more than 3 meters high. All ships keep ashore through 20 September, the warning noted.
Millions of low-income children are likely to miss out on special benefits that help their families buy groceries this month because the Trump administration has imposed eligibility requirements that prevent some states from getting the payments out before the money expires.

Congress created the program earlier this year to help make up for free and subsidized meals that children were missing while schools were either shut down or virtual due to coronavirus.

States were able to figure out who should get the payments in the spring and summer, when schools nationwide were fully closed for in-person learning. But now, as some schools re-open with a mix of virtual and in-person classes, the Agriculture Department says states must also tackle the complex job of figuring out how many days each student is not physically in school and distribute the aid to all who are spending all or part of their weeks learning virtually. That decision came the first week of September, too late for many state agencies to determine whos eligible before the money runs out on Sept. 30.

Anti-hunger advocates worry the loss of extra payments for food will further exacerbate childhood hunger rates, which are already at the highest levels the country has seen in decades. Families who received the first tranche of payments in the spring or summer spent it almost immediately, and Census data showed that child hunger rates dropped markedly in the week after the benefits started going out in each state.

We are very frustrated, said Robert Gordon, director of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Its unfortunate that our students will be the ones that suffer.

A spokesperson for the USDA acknowledged that some states are finding it difficult to meet the statutory requirements.

Unlike in the spring when schools across entire states were closed, there is currently a lot of variation, the spokesperson said in an email to POLITICO. This makes this complicated benefit even more difficult to administer. The department is continuing to work with states on the issue, the spokesperson said.

Story continues

Children collect their free meal at East Silver Spring Elementary School, Tuesday, March 24, 2020, in Silver Spring, Md, provided by the Montgomery (Md) County Public School to school children for the duration of the state-mandated coronavirus pandemic emergency school closure. The Monday to Friday food distribution which includes breakfast, lunch and dinner has been expanded to include weekends in collaboration with Manna Food Center, many restaurants, nonprofit partners, PTAs and other organizations who have stepped up and are providing meals, groceries and gift cards to families in need. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

The program, known as Pandemic-EBT or P-EBT, gives households about $5.70 per day for every school day missed. The money is distributed exactly like food stamps  on debit-like EBT cards. The aid can only be used to buy food.

Millions of households have so far received one-time payments of about $250 to $450 per child, depending on where they live.

The problem now, state officials say, is that the Agriculture Department has made it too cumbersome to apply for another round of benefits before funding runs out on Sept. 30. Congressional leaders and the White House have failed to get anywhere close to a deal on another round of stimulus aid and Congress has yet to pass a spending bill to keep the government funded past the end of the fiscal year.

As the school year began for many districts in August and early September, USDA was slow in deciding whether states could re-start P-EBT benefits. Officials at USDAs Food and Nutrition Service finally told states in late August that they could go ahead and plan for another set of payments.

At first, USDA suggested it was acceptable for states to issue benefits only to students in districts where all instruction was virtual because of the extremely short time frame to determine who qualified.

About a week later, however, officials at USDA changed their mind and said that this simpler option was not going to be allowed. That last-minute decision sent states scrambling.

The logistics of reaching all eligible kids  including those in schools doing a mix of in-person and online instruction  are so complicated that several states say they will be unable to get aid to any of qualifying schoolchildren this month.

Two weeks ahead of the deadline to get the last tranche of the money out, only nine states have been approved: Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee and Virginia.

USDA did not answer questions from POLITICO about how many other states have submitted plans to issue more Pandemic-EBT aid.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services had planned to issue $93 per student to the families of more than 100,000 kids across the state that they know qualify for free and reduced lunch and whose districts are conducting virtual classes.

But officials were informed of the change in policy on Friday Sept. 4, the afternoon before the Labor Day weekend. The decision means that Michigan wont be able to distribute aid at all in September, state officials said.

Its too late to comply with their new directive, Gordon said. They opened the door and then they closed the door  and the result is leaving tens of thousands of kids in Michigan without food.

In Pennsylvania, officials had planned to give out $128 per student to some 330,000 low-income students. But there simply isn't time to do so under USDAs new directive, officials told POLITICO.

Its just hard to understand why the federal government is doing what its doing, said Teresa Miller, secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services. This is the latest in a series of really frustrating decisions  at every turn recently they have been very keen on returning everything back to normal. But we all know the world is not back to normal.

Pennsylvania intended to get benefits to the students in low-income schools that were doing virtual-only learning, leaving off hybrid-option schools, because officials said they didnt have the time or the data to reach all students before the program lapsed.

The USDAs change in policy means they are not able to issue any Pandemic-EBT benefits to students this month.

The multiple school district setups  all virtual, all in-person or hybrid of the two  has made the program much more complicated than it was when the vast majority of schools were shut down.

At hybrid schools  where students are doing some combination of virtual and in-person instruction  its extremely complicated to get data on each individual students schedule as the school year started: Should one student receive P-EBT benefits to replace three days of missed meals, or two? Another student may be learning remotely all five days. A single family with multiple children might have students in all different setups.

Many school districts also dont know how many students qualify for free and reduced lunch until a few weeks into the school year after families fill out necessary paperwork.

Once school districts have the lists of eligible students, that information has to be transferred over to the state agencies that administer the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, still known to many as food stamps.

Those agencies then determine which students at different schools are in the same households. Then, they check to see if the families are already on SNAP. If they are on the program, the benefits can be directly loaded on their EBT card. If theyre not, the state has to mail a new EBT card to the household.

Over the spring and summer, some states were issuing hundreds of thousands of new cards to households that had never before used a government EBT card.

When Congress created Pandemic-EBT in the first major coronavirus stimulus package in March, lawmakers did not foresee how long the current crisis would last. They authorized the program to go through the end of the government fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30.

But schools are still widely disrupted. Millions of kids are not going to get the meals they normally would at school, and childhood food insecurity rates are extremely high.

"We need an 'all of the above' strategy, said Lauren Bauer, a fellow in economic studies at the Brookings Institution.

In July, Bauer and a team of researchers found that P-EBT benefits significantly reduced the number of children struggling to get access to enough food.

Using Census Bureau data, the researchers could see that the week after P-EBT benefits were issued in a particular state, the rate of children not getting enough to eat dropped by 30 percent. The effect started to wear off by the second week.

The programs benefits, targeted at families with school-age children, were used quickly when they were doled out over the spring and summer, Bauer noted.

When a low-income family gets help from SNAP each month, those benefits often last a couple of weeks, but when researchers looked at P-EBT they noticed that families spent the money almost immediately.

That suggests to me that this was a pretty important infusion of cash, said Bauer.

With the program now set to expire in less than two weeks, anti-hunger advocates are trying to ramp up pressure on Congress to extend the program through the end of the school year. With stimulus talks seemingly dead for now, advocates are asking lawmakers to include an extension of P-EBT in any short term spending package.

Congress needs to act, said Crystal FitzSimons, director of school and out of school programs at the Food Research & Action Center. We need to make sure the benefits are available for September, but its going to be a really long school year for families if their children are learning remotely."
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a supplementary charge sheet in the AgustaWestland scam against key middlemen Christian Michel James and Rajiv Saxena and 13 others, officials familiar with the development said on Saturday. The latest charge sheet details alleged role played by British middleman James in bringing bribes for politicians, bureaucrats and Indian Air Force (IAF) officials in India in the 3,727 crore scandal.

The second charge sheet was filed on Friday and doesnt name any politician or senior bureaucrat so far. The first charge sheet in the case was filed in September 2017 naming former IAF chief SP Tyagi and others.

In its first chargesheet, CBI had established money trail of 62 million euros (around 415 crore) out of suspected 67 million euros ( 452 crore) total bribe paid to Indians through middlemen. According to the agency, the irregularities in the award of contract to AgustaWestland led to estimated loss of 398.21 million euros (around 2,666 crore) to the Indian government in the 556.262 million euros ( 3726.9 crore) contract.

Here are the 10 big developments in the case:

* The agency had, in March this year, sought prosecution sanction against former defence secretary Shashi Kant Sharma, former Air vice marshal Jasbir Singh Panesar and three other IAF officers - deputy chief test pilot SA Kunte, wing commander Thomas Mathew and former group captain N Santosh, However, it decided to file a charge sheet without naming them as the ministry of defence (MoD) is yet to give its sanction.

* A supplementary charge sheet will be filed against Sharma and others when the sanction is accorded, according to officials familiar with the development.

* Rajiv Saxena was brought from Dubai in January 2019 and made an approver by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the case but the agency later sought revocation of this status saying he misled the investigators. ED had claimed that Saxena is a hawala operator and accommodation entry provider who runs the accommodation entry business in Dubai through numerous companies known as Matrix Group companies and has laundered proceeds of crime in the cases of AgustaWestland scam, or VVIP chopper scam.

* Michel was extradited to India on December 4, 2018, from Dubai. He was allegedly paid 42 million euros ( 295 crore) bribe by Anglo-Italian firm AgustaWestland for further paying to Indian politicians, bureaucrats and defence ministry personnel for swinging the deal for 12 VVIP choppers in favour of the company.

* He was a frequent visitor to India and was operating as a middleman for defence procurements through a wide network of sources cultivated in the IAF and ministry of defence at different levels including retired and serving IAF officials. He was tracking the movements of the procurement process files and was sending periodical reports/despatches on the developments to the accused persons connected with M/s AgustaWestland. In this process, he shared the information collected from IAF and MoD with his associate(s), who used to transmit the despatches through FAX to the other counterparts sitting abroad in Italy and Switzerland, said a CBI officer who didnt wish to be named.

* According to second CBI officer, Christian Michel was imposed as a controller on the other two middlemen namely Ralph Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa (already roped in by AgustaWestland) as they had no specific knowledge in the specific sector of helicopters.

Also read | How India got UAE to deliver AgustaWestland accused Rajiv Saxena, lobbyist Deepak Talwar

* CBI investigation documents accessed by HT reveal that a meeting was held in Cascina Costa, Italy during July, 2006 in which it was proposed that Michel will join Ralph Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa in carrying out scouting and monitoring activities with regard to the acquisition of helicopters in India, keeping in view of his knowledge of Indian military operational mechanism. During this meeting, they had negotiated a comprehensive fees equal to 7% of the supply contract amount to cover the expenses and fees of both of them, said the second officer.

* Michel entered into as many as 12 contracts through two of his firms - M/s Global Trade and Commerce Ltd London and M/s Global Services FZE, Dubai, UAE with Finmeccanica, AgustaWestland, Westland Helicopters UK etc to legitimise the illicit commission on the procurement of the VVIP helicopters. Finmeccanica paid total 42.27million euros ( 295 crore approximately) to the firms of Christian Michel as kickbacks/bribe without undertaking any work against the receipt of such amount, said the officer.

* Michel had prepared a note in which alleged bribes worth 30 million euros meant for Indian politicians and bureaucrats were mentioned. CBI pinned hopes on his interrogation, particularly to identify individuals who were referred to as AP, Pol, Bur and AF mentioned in this note.

* Abbreviations of designations like DCH, PDSR, DG Maintt and FTT under the head AF (air force) were used in the note. It had entries like DS, JS Air, AFA Air under the head BUR, DG Acq, CVC and Auditor Gen and under the head POL, it had AP. The note had a separate entry Fam, believed to be SP Tyagis three cousins - Sanjeev, Rajiv and Sandeep Tyagi. It said 6 million euros were for AF (Air Force), 8.4 million euros for BUR (bureaucrats), 3 million euros for AP and 15-16 million euros for Fam.

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Courtesy /Bexar County Sheriffs Office

A Von Ormy police officer is expected to make a full, but long, recovery after her vehicle was hit by an alleged drunken driver Friday morning in Southwest Bexar County, deputies said.

Mark Andrew Seemann, 45, is charged with intoxication assault of a peace officer with bail set at $100,000, according to the Bexar County Sheriffs Office.
19.09.2020 LISTEN

The Ablekuma Central Constituency is one of the largest constituency in Accra, it shares a boundary with Dansoman, Kaneshie and Mamprobi. The constituency is a cosmopolitan one comprising people from all the sixteen regions in Ghana and has a voter population of about ninety thousand.

The seat is currently held by the New Patriotic Party Member of Parliament Hon. Ebenezer Nii Narh Nartey. The MP won the 2016 general elections on the back of numerous promises made by his party to the electorate. The NPP has failed to deliver on its promise to Ghanaians and Ablekuma Central Constituency is no exception.

Some of the major promises that the NPP used to hoodwinked Ghanaians was the one district, one factory and the one million dollar per constituency which was to be earmarked for developmental projects in every constituency. The NPP has failed to establish any factory in the constituency, it has also failed to disburse the one million dollar they promised the people of Ablekuma Central. This has worsened the plight of the teeming unemployed youth in the constituency. The MP has also failed to redeem his promise of helping members of the constituency to gain employment in some government agencies, something which was done in the past by previous MPs and other government appointees from the constituency.

In the area of infrastructure, there is little to show by this government, the constituency is blessed with a lot of government schools but the member of Parliament has failed to invest in the education of the people in the constituency, it is worthy to note that the constituency benefitted from a lot of infrastructural development during the tenure of Hon. Theophilus Tetteh Chai, the former NDC candidate. It is also important to note that the current member of Parliament for Ablekuma South Hon. Okoe Vanderpuye helped in ending the shift system that was patronized by school kids in the constituency. He was able to construct 2 millennium city schools at Salvation park and Zambrama line respectively, even though these communities are not part of the constituency, most of the children in the constituency are enrolled in these schools. Hon. Theophilus Tetteh Chaie also supported most of the private schools in the constituency during his tenure.

It is also an undisputed fact that all the major road constructions in the constituency were done by the National Democratic Congress, the First light - Flamingo asphalt road was constructed under the first National Democratic Congress government lead by Flight Lt. Jerry John Rawlings, other roads that were done by the NDC includes some parts of the Shukura inner roads, Mambrouk and Abossey Okai roads.

Recently, the MP was in the constituency cutting sod for the reconstruction of the Zongo and the Shukura markets respectively. The Shukura market was a project the NDC had held consultation with stakeholders and was about to start before we lost the elections. The Zongo market had enjoyed some facelift during the NDC era but it was left to rot under the Nana Addo led NPP. The current MP realizing he has failed the constituents recently went to the Shukura market with the first lady to cut sod for the market project, a project which source of funding is unknown.

Under the current Member of Parliament, the NPP tried to asphalt some of the roads in the constituency but the projects carried out by the MP have all started deteriorating, the roads from Blacksmith through PPAG to Borla junction and the road that connects Borla junction to Salvation park had to be asphalted again after the NPP had done so some few months back, this is as a result of the shoddy work done on those roads by the NPP government. Currently, the MP has started constructing some roads around Mataheko and the work being done is of less quality compared to what was carried out under the NDC.

In 2016, the NPP had the Zongo constituency voting massively for them because of the promise of a Zongo development fund and other lofty ones which they have failed to fulfil. Ablekuma Central arguably has one of the biggest Zongo constituency and this government has left them to their fate, the deception of this government is evident in the lack of development in the Zongos. The only persons who have benefited as people from the Zongos are the Vice President and the minister of Zongo and inner cities development. These people have failed to uplift the Zongos and have left the people to experience abject poverty and total neglect.

The era of false generosity shown to our Zongo communities would be gone with this current government on 7th December 2020. The people of Zongo have bought into the soyaya agenda of the NDC and are waiting patiently for December 7th to kick the NPP out.

Advocacy, lobbying and contribution to the enactment of laws for the citizenry are some of the attributes of a good legislator, the Ablekuma Central constituency under the current MP has failed to exhibit such traits and it is time the MP is replaced. Hardly does the MP contribute to debates in parliament, he has failed to lobby for projects for the constituency, failed the people of Ablekuma Central and it is only fair that he gives way for a competent person to represent us in Parliament.

The current NPP government has enjoyed a lot of resources but has failed to use these resources diligently, they have borrowed more money than any other government under the fourth republic, they have received more oil revenue than any other government under this republic and have little to show for all the borrowing.

Abdul-Latif Dan of the National Democratic Congress is our best bet for Ablekuma Central Constituency in this elections. The man to rescue the constituency from underdevelopment, the man with international connections and links to help support our unemployed youth. He is a development oriented person, an astute businessman and very passionate about the development of Ablekuma Central

Fellow constituents, the current NPP government has failed to fulfill its promise to the people of Ablekuma Central and the best person to deliver us from this corrupt, clueless and nepotistic government is His Excellency John Dramani Mahama and Hon. Abdul- Latif Dan.

Chief Jimah

[email protected]

Member, Ablekuma Central Communication Team, NDC

IMC Secretary of TEIN, Kings University College- Bortianor Accra.
We all listen to our friends, but word of mouth can matter more in communities that have historically not trusted the establishment. The way Black people have gotten information about politics or social issues  those are churches, sororities and fraternities, neighborhood block clubs, said Adrianne Shropshire, the executive director of BlackPAC, which seeks to facilitate Black activism. These social structures are longstanding.

Many relational organizing tools are apps that allow campaign activists to find and reach key contacts in their address books. Mr. Reynolds points out that 97 percent of voters are non-activists. They wont download an app. But theyll text three friends  and those unexpected nudges will carry more weight. Ordinary voters are also more likely to have friends who need a reminder. to vote.

Vote tripling away from polling places works throughout the campaign. When a volunteer reaches a supporter  by canvassing, text or phone  she asks him to promise to nudge three friends to vote. The campaign writes down the friends first names: Rachel, Ross and Chandler. On Election Day, the campaign texts the supporter and says: Hey, remember to nudge Rachel, Ross and Chandler to vote.

Many campaigns and state Democratic parties, in addition to liberal get-out-the-vote groups like MoveOn, use this kind of vote tripling, It can work with early voting and with vote-by-mail. Mr. Stanley recently spent several hours calling people who had requested absentee ballots to thank them  and to ask them to reach out to three friends to get them to request ballots. I think theres opportunity to vote triple at every step in the absentee ballot process, he said.

Vote tripling is a substitute for what campaigns usually ask supporters: Please pledge to vote, and tell us your plan for voting. A lot of people find this condescending. Effectively, youre saying, I dont trust you to vote, Mr. Stanley said. But asking them to recruit friends says that you do trust them, and that theyre important.

Vote tripling is most effective at the polling place, when people feel moved by the good feeling of voting. But polling place vote tripling may not be widely used this year.

Why? Not because of Covid  talking to people outside is not that dangerous if everyone is masked and at a good distance. Its because campaigns are slow to adopt new ideas. Theres so little time, and its so scary to experiment that most people dont, Ms. Gallagher said. So we do things the way theyre always done.
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Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 23:38:46|Editor: huaxia

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DAR ES SALAAM, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania and Burundi are in talks over the construction of a joint nickel processing plant, Tanzania's President John Magufuli said on Saturday.

Magufuli revealed the deal shortly after he had introduced visiting Burundi's President Evariste Ndayishimiye to a public rally at Lake Tanganyika stadium in Kigoma region.

"Today we will hold talks with the Burundian leader to see how we can speed up the construction of the joint nickel processing plant," Magufuli told the rally.

"Tanzania and Burundi are producers of nickel that is exported unprocessed," he said.

Magufuli said the one-day working visit by Ndayishimiye was aimed at strengthening investment and trade relations between the two east African countries.

Magufuli said the Tanzania Investment Center has registered Burundian investments worth about 29.42 million dollars with 544 employment opportunities, adding that more than 10 Tanzanian companies have invested in Burundi.

For his part, Burundi's President Ndayishimiye commended President Magufuli for transforming Tanzania within a short period of time, saying the transformation was a lesson to his country.

"My visit will help Burundi to learn Tanzania's experience towards the transformation process," said the Burundian leader. Enditem
These are stressful times, depressing times. Everyone has been impacted, coping hasn't been easy. It's no surprise there's been an increase in anti-depressant prescriptions, a rise in the numbers seeking professional help.

Yet in a way we're lucky; a decade ago if you had an issue with your mental health you didn't tell anyone, you kept it to yourself, suffered in silence, the shame almost as damaging as the problem itself.

But now, things are different. The stigma surrounding depression, anxiety and its associated conditions has been removed, those hit hardest by the pandemic know what to do, where to go, for help.

Yet something else has also happened during that decade. This new mindset has led to 1,593 children under the age of 11 being prescribed anti-depressants between 2011 and 2019. And that figure only accounts for those whose parents have a medical card or GP card.

For some context, the number of prescriptions in 2010 was just 43.

So while we've all been opening up about our problems, unburdening ourselves in the doctor's clinic, on the airwaves, on social media; our children have been listening, absorbing this information - as they are wont to do.

Or have they? Because there are any number of explanations for this stark increase.

The first argument is that doctors, GPs, specialists aren't showing enough constraint; they should be refusing to prescribe anti-depressants to such young children unless there is no other option.

Have you seen the waiting lists for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in this country, in your locality? Children often face months, sometimes years, of waiting; time in which their mental state could deteriorate to the point where a parent, panic-stricken themselves, is willing to try anything to alleviate the problem.

Our health system is bursting at the seams. Hospitals are understaffed, doctors are overworked, a visit to the GP akin to a ride on a carousel; hop up there, hold on tight, a quick spin round, and away you go.

In a situation like that, where time is always of the essence, where hedging your bets isn't really an option, an over-encumbered doctor could be forgiven for going against their better judgement.

But the odd rash decision can't account for this massive surge in numbers. Nor can a perceived increase in mental health issues among our younger populace.

I say 'perceived' because that is what a lot of people think; that the children of today are softer, more sensitive, than those who came before.

Whereas their predecessors walked 15 miles to school in their bare feet, their only sustenance apples scrumped from a nearby orchard, today's kids are monitored at all times, their every move planned weeks in advance.

Not only are their activities monitored, so are their feelings. From an environment where children would be told to 'shut your mouth and eat your dinner', the little ones of today are listened to; their thoughts, their opinions, their grievances, given due consideration.

Which is a good thing. But at what point does that stray from careful assessment into cosseting, into unnecessary analysis? It's inevitable that some children will require medical help for mental health issues, their condition so acute, so harmful, that both doctor and parent are left with no other option.

But even the rise of social media, the Internet and all that's contained therein, can't explain the rise in anti-depressant prescriptions. Yes, it's scary being a kid in 2020, but is it any scarier than living through the Cuban Missile Crisis, the AIDS epidemic, The Troubles?

The welfare of a child is the responsibility of a parent, and the decision to put them on medication for any problem, physical or mental, is theirs.

And while it's impossible to estimate how many of those 1,593 children could have been treated without recourse to anti-depressants, the likelihood is that some will progress from one medication to the next, become dependent on pills, carry this dependency into adulthood. When perhaps all that was needed was a little time.
NEW CANAAN - The Adirondack Store and Gallery, offering rustic luxury goods and a north-country atmosphere, has reopened at 39 Elm St.

Owner Steve Shin encourages people to visit with their dogs and drink coffee from the store's Tall Pine coffee bar while browsing the many themed items, ranging from chaga teas, to Old Hickory furniture, engraved glass and pet accessories.

"It was very important for this to be an experience when you walk in," Shin said during a tour he gave of the store on Tuesday, Sept. 8. "Bring your dog, walk around with a cup."

The walls and supporting beams in the store, which opened Aug. 27, are covered with wood from Adirondack forests of upstate New York.

To add to the rustic decor, a display of antlers from the small roe deer found in the Black Forest of Germany hang on a wall near the entrance and much larger, naturally-shed antler chandeliers are suspended from the ceiling.

Part of the atmosphere is enhanced with the vintage and antique items curated by Shin's partner, Christopher English, which includes collectibles such as a 1940 Spanish Foosball game, Louis Tiffany lamps, art and an antique beverage server.
Barnes, who is now the state Democratic Party chair, said theres no similar disconnect with the Biden campaign. We feel very good about where we are, she said. Yes, we would love a world where we could be out on the doors, unmasked, the way we would have been in 2016 had we had an operation like the one we have right now. But we cant, because of this pandemic. So we are doing everything we can do and more.
Veteran BJP leader and former Mulund legislator Sardar Tara Singh died on Saturday morning due to prolonged illness. The 81-year old leader was being treated at Bandra Lilawati hospital from the last one month and finally succumbed to his illness on Saturday.

BJP legislator Mihir Kotecha, who succeeded Tara Singh in the Mulund constituency, said he was suffering from multiple illnesses. He was very sick and on a ventilator for a long time, said Kotecha.

Also read: Uttar Pradesh police adds sedition to case against AAP MP Sanjay Singh, summons him

With the demise of Sardar TaraSingh ji, we lost a senior and our valued colleague in @BJP4Maharashtra .

His active participation during assembly proceedings, commitment for his constituency and common man will be remembered forever.  Devendra Fadnavis (@Dev_Fadnavis) September 19, 2020

Former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis tweeted that his active participation during assembly proceedings, commitment for his constituency and towards the common man will be remembered forever.

Four-time legislator from Mulund was one of the most popular and accessible legislators in Mumbai. He started as the corporator in the Mumbai civic body before graduating as a legislator. However, he was denied the BJP ticket in 2019 due to his advanced age and also as his son Rajneet Singhs name cropped up in the Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank scam.
Massachusetts health officials on Saturday reported that another 569 cases of coronavirus have been identified and 26 more people have died in connection with the illness.

The number of new cases is a notable increase from earlier this week. New case amounts were in the 400s the last two days and remained below 300 for several days before.

So far through the pandemic, Massachusetts has seen at least 125,139 cases of COVID-19 and 9,085 deaths, according to data from the Department of Public Health.

Saturdays new cases are based on 21,298 molecular tests. The seven-day, weighted average of positive tests stands at 0.8%, where it has been the last few days. The rate has remained just below 1% since the beginning of the month.

As of Saturday, there are 362 people hospitalized with coronavirus, 65 of whom are in the intensive care unit.

During the pandemic, 3,337,292 molecular tests have been administered in Massachusetts.

Starting Saturday, travel restrictions are in place for anyone coming to Massachusetts from Wyoming. Travelers or residents returning to the Bay State from Wyoming must quarantine for 14 days or produce a negative coronavirus test taken within 72 hours of their arrival in Massachusetts.

This week, a rise in cases has been reported in communities including Nantucket and Worcester. In Nantucket, rising cases happened after the pre-Labor Day spike in island visitations, while in Worcester, City Manager Edward Augustus Jr. has attributed new cases to family gatherings and a fatigue for wearing masks and social distancing.

Across the country, there have been at least 6,656,799 coronavirus cases and 197,116 related deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

As of Saturday, here are the number of coronavirus cases in each Massachusetts county:

Barnstable County: 1,705

Berkshire County: 701

Bristol County: 9,746

Dukes County: 62

Essex County: 19,022

Franklin County: 403

Hampden County: 7,966

Hampshire County: 1,205

Middlesex County: 26,644

Nantucket County: 88

Norfolk County: 10,015

Plymouth County: 9,516

Suffolk County: 23,674

Worcester County: 14,050

Unknown location: 342

Related Content:
Photograph: Mike Segar/Reuters

The US will break with almost every other UN security council member state including its closest allies on Saturday night by declaring UN sanctions back in effect on Iran.

Administration officials say they will launch a raft of new punitive measures on Monday, which some observers believe may be aimed at seeking to provoke a confrontation with Tehran in the run up to the US election.

The Trump administration has said it will consider UN sanctions, mostly involving the arms trade, as having resumed at midnight GMT on Saturday night, and has threatened to take new measures to enforce them.

The sanctions were suspended in 2015 following a multilateral nuclear deal with Iran in July that year. The US walked out of the deal in 2018, but this summer claimed to be still a participant for the purposes for reimposing sanctions. Thirteen out fifteen members of the UN security council disagreed and rejected the US position, saying it was no longer a participant in the 2015 agreement and had no standing to trigger a sanctions snapback.

The overwhelming majority of UN member states see the Saturday night deadline as being meaningless, and intend to ignore it.

Related: Iran sanctions: nearly all UN security council unites against 'unpleasant' US

Donald Trump is expected to shrug off US isolation when he addresses the UN general assembly by video on Tuesday.

We will return to the United Nations to reimpose sanctions so that the arms embargo will become permanent next week, secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, said this week. We believe deeply that this is good for the peoples of all nations.

Elliott Abrams, the US special envoy on Venezuela and Iran, said there would be a major announcement on Monday about the scale of US actions.

The arms embargo will now be re-imposed indefinitely and other restrictions will return, including the ban on Iran engaging in enrichment and reprocessing-related activities, the prohibition on ballistic missile testing and development, and sanctions on the transfer of nuclear and missile-related technologies to Iran, Abrams said.

Story continues

Analysts said they expected the US to unveil sanction threats against companies or countries trading arms with Iran. Russia and China, in particular, are expected to defy that threat, but may defer major new weapons sales until under the US election.

I think what were going to see is an instance of where US sanctions policy is reaching its exhaustion because the whole premise of the snapback was to try isolate Iran on the political stage  which it hasnt done so far, said Ellie Geranmayeh, senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations.

New sanctions on arms trading are likely to have little real impact on Iran. However, some experts suggest the US could try to go further, and seek to stop and search ships in international waters ostensibly in search for weapons being shipped to or from Iran.

Trita Parsi, co-founder of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft in Washington and author of three books on US-Iranian relations, said this more aggressive approach is being driven by hawks in the administration who want to provoke Iran into reacting in a way that will make it impossible to salvage the 2015 nuclear deal, even if Trump loses the November election.

For that specific faction that I think is playing Trump, this may be the last couple of weeks that they can do anything, Parsi said So now is not the time to save your last bullet, nows the time to just throw everything you have.
An artist's impression of the proposed nuclear power station at Sizewell in Suffolk

Up to 10,000 UK jobs could be lost if the Sizewell C nuclear plant in Suffolk does not go ahead, businesses and trade unions have warned.

As many as a third of workers would be laid off at some firms in the nuclear industry supply chain, mostly in high-skilled construction and engineering roles, according to the Sizewell C Consortium.

Days ago Japanese group Hitachi pulled out of the Wylfa nuclear power plant on Anglesey, dealing another blow to the UKs nuclear plans.

Sizewell C needs Government approval.

This is tricky because although it is being led by Frances EDF, Chinese state-backed nuclear group CGN owns a minority stake.

Tensions between London and Beijing have flared since the Governments decision to exclude Huaweis equipment from 5G networks.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : The NIA on Saturday busted an inter-state terror module sponsored by Al Qaeda from Pakistan. There were nine men arrested from West Bengal and Kerala who were planning attacks with IEDS, made from potassium procured from firecrackers. They planned to go to Kashmir for weapons delivery.

The National Investigation Agency arrested six of these terrorists from West Bengal's Mushidabad and three from Kerala's Ernakulum district in early morning raids. The nine were planning attacks on several vital installations in Delhi-NCR and several parts of the country to spread terror in the mind of the people.

"During the raids the agency got huge cache of firecrackers. They bought the firecrackers to hide procurement of huge amount of potassium required to make the IEDs," a senior NIA official related to the probe told IANS.

The arrested terrorists have been identified as Murshid Hassan, Yakoob Bishwas and Morshraf Hussien, all three residents of Ernakulam. While Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman, all residents of Murshidabad. Those arrested from Kerala were originally from West Bengal.

The official said that the potassium present in the firecrackers were taken out and then was used to make the IEDS. The official also said that they have recovered the crude IEDs along with the switches, batteries etc from terrorist Sufiyan's residential premises in Murshidabad.

The official said that Hassan was the main leader of the terror module. Earlier, an NIA spokesperson said that the group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds.

The NIA has registered a case on September 11 after it received some vital intel about the Al Qaeda group.

During the raids, large quantity of incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession.

"As per preliminary investigation, these individuals were radicalised by the Pakistan-based Al Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the National Capital Region," the NIA spokesperson said.

The official said that the module was actively indulging in fund raising and a few members of gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. However, these pre-empted arrests could have stopped the attacks.

The nabbed terrorists will be produced before courts in Murshidabad and Ernalulam and the agency will seek their custody for interrogation.

(Anand Singh can be contacted at anand.s@ians.in)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 20:20:36|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken on Sept. 16, 2020 shows a kangaroo jumping in the Namadgi National Park in Canberra, Australia. As spring comes to Australian capital Canberra, trees are blossoming and new leaves are growing out. But on the mountains of the Namadgi National Park, charred trunks are still visible. (Photo by Liu Changchang/Xinhua)

CANBERRA, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- As spring comes to Australian capital Canberra, trees are blossoming and new leaves are growing out. But on the mountains of the Namadgi National Park, charred trunks are still visible.

The Orroral Valley fire, which was ignited by a military helicopter on Jan. 27 in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), destroyed 80 percent of the Namadgi National Park.

"It's very evident the scars of the summer of 2020 will be evident on the landscape for many many years to come," said Brett McNamara, manager of Namadgi National Park which is about 40 minutes' drive from the city center of Canberra.

Covering more than 106,000 hectares, or more than 45 percent of the ACT, the park partially reopened about half a year after the fire. But McNamara said they saw parts of the park they had never seen before.

"The granite rocks are now exposed," he told Xinhua. "It's almost like the bare bones of the mountain being laid. The canopy in most of the park has been removed. The vegetation has been completely incinerated."

The summer of 2020 saw devastating bushfires raging across Australia, which killed more than 30 people. According to local media, about 18.6 million hectares of land have been burned.

McNamara said they also saw huge amount of sedimentation moving off the mountains. "It's changing environment out there," he said.

Although he noted that fire has crafted and molded the landscape for centuries, McNamara said what's concerning was frequency and intensity of the fires.

"It was incredibly dry prior to the fire starting in January this year," he recalled. "The Murrumbidgee River, which is a river that flows through the park, stopped flowing. In the 30 years that I've been out here in the park I've never seen that river stopped flowing. We had a situation here whereby the canopy of the trees were dying."

He said that mega fires are seen not only here in Australia, but also elsewhere in the world, and now in California of the United States driven by climate change.

"These fires we have now seen are unprecedented in terms of the impact they're having upon the environment," he said. "And if we keep having fires on a regular basis ... that will fundamentally change the ecosystem."

One example was the water system. McNamara said that one of the reasons the park was set aside was for water catchment. "Eighty percent of Canberra and Queanbeyan water comes out of these mountains. The impact of fire on that catchment overtime may will compromise the water system."

Apart from the cost of ecosystem, the fire also inflicted infrastructure costs on the park, as a lot of walking tracks are to be rebuilt.

Now that only about a quarter of the park reopened, McNamara hoped that the visitors could be patient. "These sort of recovery programs can't happen overnight."

Visitor Denis Graham was excited at the reopening.

"I've been to Namadgi National Park quite a few times before," he said. "It's a beautiful part of the bushland very close to Canberra (city center) ... There are many kangaroos here and many wombats and koalas as well."

Graham liked taking photos of nature and saw Namadgi, away from city with very dark sky at night, a good place to see stars.

"It's a very good place for astrophotography, which is what I very much like to do," he said. "There have been some good comets coming over the last six months. And unfortunately, it had been closed so we weren't granted access."

As it is getting warmer in the Southern Hemisphere, McNamara said while grass fire potential impacting upon Canberra is certainly real, they might not see the same damaging fires this summer. "We don't have the deficit of moisture that we had leading up to last summer. There has also been a significant reduction in the available fuels out there."

While Xinhua reporters drove through the park, a group of kangaroos hopped across the road and disappeared in the bush.

Graham said he hoped that they would not see the tragedy again in Namadgi. "There are going to be more and more people coming down here to enjoy the beauty of the nature and animals here," he said. Enditem
1. Yes. Too many kids are staying home. They need a virtual learning option to keep up.

2. Yes. Teachers are out sick and subs cant handle the load. Online learning is needed.

3. No. Its too late in the school year to make a wholesale switch in teaching platforms.

4.No. Many parents arent in a position to stay home while their kids learn virtually.

5. Unsure. It may seem like a good idea from a health standpoint, but it has shortcomings.

Vote

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Thousands of cases of a life-threatening condition caused by mould lurking in compost heaps, pillows and duvets are being missed in UK hospitals, experts warn.

The illness  called invasive aspergillosis  develops when tiny particles of a common fungus, called aspergillus are inhaled into the lungs, causing an infection which sometimes reaches other organs via the bloodstream.

The average person breathes in hundreds of these invisible spores every single day  and to most people, they are harmless.

But for millions of Britons with lung conditions, weakened immune systems, or even severe flu and Covid-19, they can pose a risk  growing out of control, and invading the delicate lining of the lungs.

Balls of fungus can even grow, blocking the airways and causing damage.

Thousands of cases of a life-threatening condition caused by mould lurking in compost heaps, pillows and duvets are being missed in UK hospitals, experts warn. Pictured: File image

Early symptoms include shortness of breath, a fever and a cough that produces bloody phlegm.

Although it is treatable with antifungal medication, half of patients still do not survive because diagnosis is delayed.

Now, alarming new research carried out by the University of Manchester suggests thousands of cases among people with chronic pulmonary disease (COPD)  a common group of lung conditions thought to affect three million people in the UK  could be going undiagnosed every year.

Up to two-thirds of those with COPD do not know they have the condition, which also puts them at an increased risk of aspergillosis.

And experts say symptoms of the fungal infection among hospital patients are often confused for other illnesses, including pneumonia and it could be wrongly treated with bacteria-fighting antibiotics, which have no effect on fungal infections, or other medicines that could make matters worse.

According to the analysis, as many as 11,000 UK patients with COPD  including some who have not been diagnosed  may be dying as a result of aspergillosis every year.

The researchers say this figure has been greatly underestimated until now.

Aspergillus is found in soil, compost, rotting leaves, dust, bedding and old air-conditioning systems.

Studies have also shown that drying wet clothes on radiators indoors raises moisture levels, creating an ideal breeding ground for it to form.

David Denning, a professor of infectious diseases at the University of Manchester, says the fungus often grows in pillows and duvets, thriving alongside house dust mites and moisture from sweat.

The illness  called invasive aspergillosis  develops when tiny particles of a common fungus, called aspergillus are inhaled into the lungs, causing an infection which sometimes reaches other organs via the bloodstream. Pictured: File image

Some experts suggest those with lung problems should change their pillows as often as every six months  with the most vulnerable, every three months.

'Pillows and duvets have a lot of aspergillus in them,' he says. 'If you fluff up your pillows, you won't breathe in too much. But the moment you start banging them, a lot of aspergillus can be released into the air that you can then breathe in.'

He adds: 'For healthy people, the risk of having invasive aspergillosis is close to zero. They breathe these spores in everyday and are able to kill off the mould in the lungs. But patients with COPD are not able to kill off the aspergillus spores very well.

'The normal defence mechanisms in the lungs are also likely to be less effective.'

Prof Denning says steroid medication prescribed to help COPD symptoms actually help the mould grow faster and spread once it has got into the lungs.

While it was known that people with COPD were at risk of developing aspergillosis, the true scale of the problem was not previously clear.

The new study, published in journal BMC Pulmonary Medicine, suggests the most severe form of the fungal infection affects up to 26,000 patients with COPD every year  many of whom are not diagnosed.

Prof Denning says hospitals often fail to test patients for aspergillosis. 'If a patient is breathless and admitted to hospital, and anything abnormal shows up on their chest X-ray, doctors should consider aspergillosis,' he says.

'They should not assume it's a bacterial infection, and just give routine antibiotics.'

John Liley, from Manchester, died in September last year at the age of 87 from emphysema  a form of COPD  and aspergillosis.

The father-of-two was unaware of the risk posed by common mould, says his daughter Donna Liley, 61.

In his early 80s, he tested positive for the fungal infection after being hospitalised several times with pneumonia. 'We'd never even heard of it until then,' Donna says. 'Not many people have.'

John was put on anti-fungal medication and remained on it for the remainder of his life, which Donna says gave them extra precious years together.

'I'm not sure he would have survived much longer without it. If anyone has underlying lung conditions and they are repeatedly getting pneumonia or are seriously unwell with infections, like my dad, ask for a test.'
Retired judges perturbed over proposed 20A View(s):

The Retired Judges Association (RJA) says it is gravely perturbed by the potential impact of the draft 20th Amendment on the constitutional separation of powers, particularly in relation to the selection and appointment of judges to the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

In a letter to Justice Minister Ali Sabry, the association notes that as emphasised in the Commonwealth (Latimer House) principles on the three branches of government, an accountable and publicly transparent process of appointment of judges is integral to upholding the Rule of Law, engendering public confidence and dispensing justice.

As such, we are concerned by the amendment of Article 41A of the Constitution to replace the Constitutional Council having the power of issuing recommendations by a Parliamentary Council which can only make observations in regard to pending judicial appointments. We note that the Parliamentary Council lacks an important element of non-political membership. We also note that the inclusion of civil society membership in the Constitutional Council was a feature of the Seventeenth Amendment to the Constitution, as continued by the Nineteenth Amendment, both amendments being passed to public and parliamentary acclaim.

Further, it is relevant to note that the proposed Parliamentary Council is seriously compromised by presidential power to remove nominees of the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition without cause at any given time, the letter points out.

`Accordingly, the RJA has proposed that the mechanism of the Constitutional Council (CC) with a recommendatory role is retained with the said council subjected to a publicly transparent and accountable process. It also recommends that the CCs composition be expanded to include an eminent legal profession member who may be selected through a consultative process with the Chief Justice and the Attorney General.

We are of the opinion that executive appointment of judges of the Superior Courts of record are made taking into account the recommendations of the Chief Justice and the Attorney General, the association adds.

The RJA further stresses that it is greatly disquieting that Article 109 of the Constitution has been proposed to be amended, permitting the President to appoint another person to act in the place of a judge of the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court when that judge is temporarily unable to perform that judicial function.

It has also raised concerns over the proposed amendment to Article 111 (D) deleting the requirement that the two senior-most judges of the Supreme Court constitute the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) with the Chief Justice as Chairman, along with the the removal of the condition that a judge with judicial experience serving as a judge of a court of the first instance be part of the JSC.

Given the important role played by the JSC in the appointment, promotion, transfer, dismissal and disciplinary control of judicial officers, the constitution and selection process of the JSC is of paramount importance in securing the independence of the Sri Lankan Judiciary. We request the Government and Parliament to ensure the same. We recommend that Article 109 and Article 111 of the Constitution are left unchanged, the letter adds.
The Associated Press checks out some of the most popular but completely untrue stories and visuals of the week. This one is bogus, even though it was shared widely on social media. Here are the facts:

CLAIM: CDC warns that non-N95 masks will do nothing to protect you from wildfire smoke because they do not catch small particles. Smoke particles are larger than those of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, so masks do not work.

THE FACTS: Cloth and surgical masks are designed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus by catching respiratory droplets coming from the person wearing the mask. Respiratory droplets are larger than smoke particles.

Social media posts are misrepresenting information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention regarding masks and wildfires to claim that masks do not work.

The CDC recently updated its guidance on wildfires to include information about the coronavirus. On the page titled Wildfire Smoke and COVID-19, the agency said that cloth masks would not protect anyone from wildfire smoke.

Cloth masks that are used to slow the spread of COVID-19 by blocking respiratory droplets offer little protection against wildfire smoke. They do not catch small, harmful particles in smoke that can harm your health, the agency said.

Online posts are using that information to say that if smoke particles are larger than those of the coronavirus, then how could masks be effective in stopping COVID-19.

Mask wont prevent smoke inhalation. But keep thinking they are protecting you from a virus, one post on Facebook said. The posts were shared across Facebook and Twitter with one post on Twitter receiving more than 8,000 likes.

Such posts miss the point of wearing cloth or surgical masks.

If the wearer has a respiratory droplet that has a virus, facial coverings keep that droplet from going out into the area around them which is why facial coverings are recommended when people are not social distancing, said Dr. Albert Rizzo, chief medical officer for the American Lung Association. Its never been designed to protect the person wearing the mask.

N95 masks are engineered to protect against inhaling very small particles about .3 microns in size and larger, making them effective against smoke and virus particles, said Dr. Jonathan Parsons, a pulmonologist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center.

Wildfire particles are up to 2.5 microns. A coronavirus particle is about .125 microns in size.

Cloth masks and surgical masks are not designed to protect you against particles that small so the smoke goes through, Parsons said. Respiratory droplets are much larger than the harmful materials in the wildfire smoke.

Parsons recommends wearing cloth and surgical masks to curb the spread of COVID-19 in wildfire areas even if they do not protect against smoke particles.
Singh, who was in New Delhi on Friday, said he will visit Lucknow on 20 September and surrender himself to the Uttar Pradesh Police

New Delhi/Lucknow: AAP leader Sanjay Singh on Friday said a case of sedition has been filed against him in Uttar Pradesh after he exposed the corruption and scams taking place under the Yogi Adityanath government in Parliament.

Singh, who is in-charge of state unit of the Aam Aadmi Party, said he will visit the state on Sunday and get himself arrested.

The Uttar Pradesh Police had lodged an FIR against the AAP leader under various sections of the IPC, including 501A (printing or engraving matter knowing it to be defamatory), 120 (a) (conspiracy) and IT Act, on 2 September at the Hazratganj police station, for undertaking a survey, a senior state government official said.

However, besides these sections, a sedition charge under 124 (A) has also been included in the notice sent to Singh by the Lucknow police on Thursday, sources said.

The notice, sent to Singh on his New Delhi address, besides other charges mentions charges under IPC 124 A, 153 A (promoting enmity between classes), and 153 B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration).

"The charges against you are serious and non-bailable. You are requested to reach on 20 September at 11 am for presenting facts and evidences. If you fail to remain present, action will be taken against you," the notice, sent by Investigation Officer (IO) at Hazratganj police station, AK Singh said.

Singh on Friday said, "I know I will be sent to jail soon because I exposed the Yogi government. Why, just because I raised the issue of killings and scams in Uttar Pradesh," he said.

Addressing a press conference, Singh said he has been slapped with charges of being "anti-national" after he exposed the ongoing corruption and killing in the state.

"In Uttar Pradesh, I raised my voice against injustice and crime. I raised my voice against the corona scandal. Hence, a case of sedition has been filed against me (sic)," he said.

He said he raised the issue in Rajya Sabha and got support from various parties on this issue. "In Rajya Sabha, 37 MPs from 12 parties, including the Congress and the NCP, supported me and I was also assured by the Rajya Sabha Chairman that the matter will be looked into," Singh said.

A UP police spokesperson said besides Singh, three directors of a private company, which conducted the survey, have also been slapped with the charges of sedition and fraud.

In the survey, whose finding was released by Singh himself, it was said that the Yogi Adityanath government was working for a particular caste.

After the survey, at least 13 FIRs were lodged against Singh in various districts of the state.
By Associated Press

KYIV: Police in the capital of Belarus cracked down sharply Saturday on a womens protest march demanding the authoritarian presidents resignation, arresting more than 200 including an elderly woman who has become a symbol of the six weeks of protest that have roiled the country.

More than 2,000 women took part in the march in Minsk. Such anti-government marches have become a regular feature of the unprecedented wave of large, persistent protests that began after the Aug. 9 presidential election. Officials said President Alexander Lukashenko won a sixth term in office with 80% support in that vote but opponents and some poll workers say the results were rigged.

During Lukashenko's 26 years in office, he has consistently repressed opposition and independent news media.

Large demonstrations have been held in cities throughout the country and some Sunday protests in Minsk have attracted crowds estimated at up to 200,000 people.

The human rights group Viasna said more than 200 people were arrested in Saturday's march.

There were so many people detained that lines formed at the prisoner transports, Viasna member Valentin Stepanovich told The Associated Press.

Among those detained was Nina Bahinskaya, a 73-year-old former geologist whose defiance and tart tongue have made her a popular figure in the protests. Many of the women in Saturday's march chanted We're walking! referring to when police told Bahinskaya that she was taking part in unauthorized protest and she snapped back I'm taking a walk.

Such anti-government marches have become a regular feature of the unprecedented wave of large, persistent protests that began after the Aug. 9 presidential election. (Photo | AP)

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Lukashenko's main opponent in the election, praised the women's march in a video statement from Lithuania, where she took refuge after the election.

They have frightened and put pressure on women for the second month, but despite this, Belarusians are continuing their peaceful protest and showing their amazing fortitude, she said.

Several top members of the Coordination Council the opposition has created to push for a new election have been jailed and others have been forced to leave the country. Maxim Znak, a leading member of the council, declared a hunger strike in prison on Friday.

Last month thousands of protesters were detained and some displayed deep bruises from police beatings. Still, that did not stop the protests from growing to include strikes at major factories that had previously been a source of support for the embattled Lukashenko.

In a new strategy to stem the huge Sunday rallies, the Belarusian Prosecutor Generals office said it has tracked down parents who took their children to opposition demonstrations.
PARIS  LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton said on Friday it has submitted the proposed acquisition of Tiffany & Co. to the European Commission for antitrust review, in a move that appeared calculated to deprive the American jeweler of some of its ammunition in the pending lawsuit over the deal.

LVMH said earlier this month it could not go through with the $16.2 billion acquisition, the largest in the history of the luxury sector, because the French government had asked it to delay the closing in light of an ongoing trade spat with Washington.

In a lawsuit filed in Delaware Chancery Court, Tiffany accused LVMH of slow-walking the regulatory approval of the agreement in the European Union. LVMH countered that it was working through the regulatory approvals and also said it was disappointed in how Tiffany was managed during the coronavirus crisis.

LVMH confirms that earlier today, immediately after receiving approval to proceed by the European Commission, it has submitted the proposed acquisition of Tiffany for antitrust review, as it has always stated it would do, the luxury group said in a statement late on Friday.

Eight of the 10 requisite antitrust clearances have already been obtained. LVMH expects to receive approval from the European Commission and Taiwan well before the Nov. 24, 2020 outside date, it added.

It appears to be a purely technical move, since LVMH has opposed Tiffanys motion to hold an expedited trial and asked the court to hold off for six or seven months.

The New York-based jeweler said in its own statement: Tiffany is delighted that the EU filing has finally been made. The speed with which LVMH acted after Tiffany filed its complaint in Delaware only underscores LVMHs delays and lack of compliance with the merger agreement over the prior months.

Tiffany and LVMH will face off in court for the first time on Monday.

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A slow-moving Tropical Storm Beta formed in the Gulf of Mexico on Friday, carrying the potential for heavy rains and flooding along the Texas coast.

A hurricane watch was issued along the Texas coast from Port Aransas to High Island, including Galveston. A tropical storm watch was put in place by the National Hurricane Center from south of Port Aransas to the mouth of the Rio Grande and east of High Island to Morgan City, La. A storm surge watch was announced from Port Mansfield to High Island.

The system strengthened into a tropical storm on Friday afternoon, becoming the 23rd named storm of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season. Wilfred was the last of 21 names selected for this season. In the case where all 21 names are used  which, before Friday, hadnt occurred in 15 years  storms are named using the Greek alphabet.

Wilfred, Alpha and Beta received names on Friday.

FLOOD TRACKER: Interact with the map for real-time flood updates in the Houston region

As of 10 p.m. Friday, Tropical Storm Beta was forecast to move north through Saturday and then shift to the west, where the storm's center could approach South Texas or the Coastal Bend regions Sunday night and Monday. It could be near hurricane strength Sunday.

It is then expected to track slowly up the Texas coast, prompting the National Hurricane Center to warn of an increasing risk of heavy rainfall and flooding along the northwest Gulf Coast from Sunday through at least the middle of next week.

A presentation from the National Weather Services Houston/Galveston office said its most immediate concern was minor to moderate coastal flooding.

And while it's too early to determine what areas of Texas could see direct wind and storm surge, the Houston/Galveston office said Texans should prepare for significant beach erosion, possible water inundation in some beach and bay communities, and poor street drainage.

As of 4 p.m., Tropical Storm Wilfred was in the east Atlantic Ocean and was not expected to make landfall. Subtropical Storm Alpha had made landfall in Portugal and was expected to dissipate on Saturday, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The 2020 Atlantic hurricane season continues through Nov. 30. Its the first time since 2005 that the Greek alphabet has been required. There were 27 named storms (through Zeta in the Greek alphabet) in 2005.
Cardi B and Offset appear at THE 62ND ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS, broadcast live from the STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, Sunday, January 26th (8:00-11:30 PM, live ET/5:00-8:30 PM, live PT) on the CBS Television Network. (Photo by Francis Specker/CBS via Getty Images)

Cardi B isn't feeling tearful in the wake of her split from her husband Offset.

Documents show the WAP rapper said their marriage was "irretrievably broken" when she filed for divorce earlier this week in the state of Georgia, where the couple and their daughter Kulture have been living.

In the wake of the news, Cardi B - real name Belcalis Almanzar - thanked fans for their support on an Instagram Live.

Read more: Cardi B defends buying 2-year-old daughter a 10,000 bag

"I want to say thank you so much. However, like, I don't really need it," the 27-year-old shared.

Cardi B with baby Kulture and Offset perform at Offset In Concert at Sony Hall on October 16, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Johnny Nunez/WireImage)

"I'm okay. I want to let you know I have not shed not one tear," she said.

The couple wed in secret in 2017 with Cardi B announcing they had tied the knot the following year. They also welcomed their daughter in 2018.

The relationship has not been without its difficulties as cheating rumours have followed 28-year-old Offset - who was born Kiari Kendrell Cephus - and they previously broke-up in 2018 although went on to reconcile.

Cardi B arrives at the Pre-Grammy Gala And Salute To Industry Icons at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo by Mark Von Holden/Invision/AP)

The documents obtained by the PA new agency state Cardi B is seeking primary physical custody of Kulture and requests Offset contributes to the childs support and maintenance.

In her video, the Bodak Yellow hitmaker went on to explain why she wanted to go her own way.

Read more: Cardi B unveils giant back tattoo

"This time, I wasn't crying. Wanna know why? The reason my divorce is not because of none of that s*** that ever happened before. It's not because the cheating," she explained before adding she was "tired of f***ing arguing".
The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday will put intense political pressure on Republican senators like Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, who cited an approaching presidential election when they refused to even allow a vote on filling an open seat in the final year of Barack Obamas presidency.

In a March 2016 statement, Toomey pointed to the election less than eight months away, as well as the fact that Obamas nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to the seat left open by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia would tip the ideological balance of the high court.

With the U.S. Supreme Courts balance at stake, and with a presidential election fewer than eight months away, it is wise to give the American people a more direct voice in the selection and confirmation of the next justice, Toomey said then.

 READ MORE: Mitch McConnell pledges quick vote on next Supreme Court Justice; Joe Biden says no

In an op-ed in the Patriot-News that April, Toomey wrote: With lifetime tenure, the next justice will determine the Courts balance for a generation. In that light, I believe it is sensible to allow the American people to participate in the choice of Justice Scalias successor less than seven months from now.

This time, a presidential election is mere weeks away, with early voting already underway in some states, and counties in Pennsylvania expected to begin sending mail ballots to voters soon. Republicans in 2016 made the coming election the core of their argument for holding open the seat, an unprecedented political maneuver that, in the end, denied Obama the chance to fill the seat and handed it instead to Trump.

The other condition of Toomeys 2016 argument has changed: With Scalias death, the courts liberal and conservative wings were split, 4 to 4. Now the court is already controlled by Republican appointees, as President Donald Trump has elevated two justices to the bench.

That wont assuage Pennsylvania progressives, who have long loathed Toomey and are sure to accuse him of rank hypocrisy if he supports a Trump nominee just weeks before an election  four years after he joined Republicans in blocking a floor vote on Obamas nominee months before an election.

A Supreme Court confirmation battle weeks before Election Day is sure to roil the presidential campaign between Trump and Democrat Joe Biden in unpredictable ways. It adds yet another contentious issue to an election season already rocked by crises like the coronavirus pandemic, the accompanying recession, and a national reckoning over systemic racism.

In a statement Saturday, Toomey said Ginsburg served on our nations highest court for nearly three decades with distinction and honor.

As just the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer in the legal profession, he said. While I usually disagreed with her legal and political views, she proved time and again that it is possible to disagree with someone without being disagreeable. Simply put, Justice Ginsburg left an indelible mark that will resonate for generations.

 READ MORE: Pennsylvania braces for a presidential election reshaped by a Supreme Court fight

Toomey did not address whether he would support filling her seat before the election. First elected to the Senate in 2010, Toomey isnt up for reelection again until 2022. He is widely seen as considering a run for governor that year.

Sen Bob Casey (D., Pa.) is likely to vote against any Trump nominee this year. During the fight over Garlands nomination, he said: Senators are free to vote however they choose on a Supreme Court nominee, but they must do their job and give that nominee a fair hearing and a timely vote.

In a statement late Friday, Casey called Ginsburg a pioneer for gender equality, a champion for human rights and a fierce defender of workers on an increasingly corporate Supreme Court.

Justice Ginsburg served our Nation honorably and with distinction for four decades, he said. Her heroic battles with cancer inspired countless Americans.

And he pointed back to Republicans' refusal to consider Garlands nomination.

Consistent with the precedent set by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in 2016, Casey said, Justice Ginsburgs seat should not be filled until the presidential election concludes and the candidate chosen by voters is sworn into office.

 READ MORE: Biden warns in Philly that confirming a new Supreme Court justice now would cause irreversible damage

But McConnell quickly made clear Friday that whomever Trump nominates would receive a floor vote in the Senate. And Trump said Saturday that Senate Republicans should help him fill the seat without delay.

We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices, he said on Twitter. We have this obligation, without delay!
WASHINGTON  The enormous crowds that spontaneously gathered on the steps of the Supreme Court in the hours after Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on Friday are a tribute to what she represented to many Americans.

People are mourning her death because they admired her spirit, her fearlessness and her determination to fight for equal justice under the law, in part because they knew she understood what many of them were facing in their lives.

She became a cultural icon in her 80s because while small in physical stature, Ginsburg was a warrior, an intellectual giant whose passion for womens rights was forged in the sexism she herself experienced in law school and as a young lawyer. Her fearlessness was as legendary as her determination and her work ethic.

Image: People gather in front of the U.S. Supreme Court following the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, in Washington (Al Drago / Reuters)

Most recently, diagnosed with yet another cancer, she developed an infection that required hospitalization, was taken to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, had the procedure and was on the telephone participating in oral arguments the next day.

I knew her personally, and my husband and I were honored when she officiated at our wedding in 1997. I was fortunate to also get to know her extraordinary husband, Martin Ginsburg, a very successful lawyer and professor who supported her in every way, glorying in her successes while cooking and managing the homefront.

It was an extraordinary marriage. They shared a mutual love of classical music, especially opera. She was theatrical, even appearing onstage in full costume as a supernumerary at the Washington National Opera in a 2016 performance at the Kennedy Center.

Opera, in fact, helped her develop a close bond with the late Justice Antonin Scalia. Intellectually, they were polar opposites. But they had become fast friends while serving together on the U.S. Court of Appeals, where she developed an appreciation for his sense of humor.

The two couples celebrated New Years Eve together. It was an unlikely friendship, but a tribute to the humanity of each that they got along so well across the partisan divide.

Story continues

Ginsburg was unfazed by the celebrity and acclaim she enjoyed into her 80s. The Notorious RBG became the subject of a documentary that featured her working out with a trainer. Another feature film portrayed her fighting to be taken seriously as a woman in law school and as a young lawyer, leading up to her triumphant first argument in front of the Supreme Court, where she won a foundational case against sex discrimination.

Her courage in successfully battling cancer over the years perhaps made us think nothing could conquer this incredible woman. Her spirit endured until the end, when she dictated her final fervent wish to her granddaughter: that she not be replaced until the next president takes office.

In truth, she is irreplaceable. Her legacy will live forever.
Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, said on Saturday that she was opposed to holding a vote on President Trumps Supreme Court nominee before the November election, and suggested that were he to lose, his successor should ultimately choose a nominee to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The statement from Ms. Collins, who is considered a swing vote and is facing a bruising re-election fight, narrowed the already slim margin in the Senate in favor of confirming a Supreme Court nominee less than two months before Election Day, complicating the task of Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and the majority leader, who has promised a vote.

It made her the first Republican senator to explicitly say, in the aftermath of Justice Ginsburgs death, that she would not support such a vote before Nov. 3. Mr. McConnell can afford to lose no more than three Republicans.

President Trump has the constitutional authority to make a nomination to fill the Supreme Court vacancy, and I would have no objection to the Senate Judiciary Committees beginning the process of reviewing his nominees credentials, Ms. Collins said.
Labour is urging the government to bring forward the phasing out of petrol cars to help the UK meet its climate targets and reduce air pollution

The party says the government's current plans for a ban on new petrol and diesel cars beginning in 2035 do not go far enough and that ministers also need to explain what action it will take to physically achieve their goal.

The government was previously planning to ban the sale of new petrol cars from 2040, but in February Boris Johnson announced that the ban on selling new petrol and diesel cars would actually come in in 2035 - just 15 years away.

Dozens of Conservative MPs in the moderate "One Nation" groups said last month that they want the government to move more quickly on restricting petrol cars.

Matthew Pennycook, Labour shadow climate change minister, said an enhanced 2030 target was "ambitious but achievable", while environmentalists also welcomed the plan.

Rebecca Newsom, head of politics at Greenpeace UK, said: Hats off to Labour for backing a 2030 ban for all new petrol, diesel and hybrid cars and vans.

"They have joined the chorus of businesses and councils that have also been calling for a more ambitious phase out date and policies to support workers to transition, in order to dramatically reduce emissions and help secure a future for the UK automotive industry.

"Now that Labour and over 100 Conservative MPs have thrown down the gauntlet, will the government live up to their claims of being a world leader on climate, and back a 2030 ban too?

The proposal is a slight strengthening of similar plans in Labour 2019 manifesto, which said the party would "aim" for 2030 without a solid commitment to put it into law.

Shadow minister Mr Penncook said: "2030 is an ambitious but achievable date by which to phase out the sale of new petrol, diesel, and hybrid vehicles, one that would give a new lease of life to the UK car industry, whilst combatting climate breakdown and cleaning up the air that dangerously pollutes so many of our towns and cities.

"But as well as accelerating the phase out, the Government must also set out a credible plan to get there - one that backs the low-carbon jobs and industries of the future and ensures that workers and communities are properly supported in the transition to a fairer and cleaner economy.

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"It's time for Ministers to seize this opportunity as part of a world-leading green recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, creating good jobs across the country, and generating real momentum for next year's COP26 climate summit."

Labour shadow business secretary Ed Miliband said the government needed to show "greater climate leadership" and should "match the rhetoric with action".

He said a 2030 phase-out was "the right thing to do environmentally and will create jobs across the country".
Daily tasks involve communicating with students, family members and other significantly involved people over the phone, face to face and via email. It involves supporting and challenging staff to achieve the high standards expected of public education. On some days, I lead staff meetings or Professional Learning, on other days I consult the student leaders in the school or P&C and every day I manage aspects of the financial running of the school including budgeting and expenditure management and the physical maintenance and improvement of school grounds and facilities.

There is no typical workday or week for a principal or deputy principal. The nature of our work requires us to respond to the varied and changing needs of our students, families and staff as they arise. This ranges from practical support to emotional support.

What do you do  what does a typical work day/week look like for you?

How long have you been doing this job and what first sparked your interest in this area?

I became a teacher 25 years ago. I always loved to learn and still love learning new things. Like so many others who find themselves in education, I was inspired by a number of amazing teachers when I was in high school. I never wanted to be in a job that would have me sitting or standing at a counter all day. Having said that I find myself sitting at my desk an awful lot these days but at least my office has a revolving door with plenty of different people coming and going.

What do you like most about the job?

One of the aspects of the job that I enjoy is the social nature of the job that has a primary focus on helping others. I like the unpredictability and constant change; you can never claim to be bored as a principal. Education is such a great place to be, it is wonderful interacting on a regular basis with so many bright young people and the staff both teaching and non-teaching are of the highest calibre.

What was the most unexpected thing you have had to do in your job?
Prince Harry has reportedly joined a helicopter club in California in order to take Meghan Markle and his son Archie out on family trips.

The Duke of Sussex, 36, needs to practice flying in order to to keep his helicopter licence current, a royal insider told the Sun.

In 2013, the royal qualified as an Apache helicopter commander while serving in the Regiment Army Air Corps but left the military less than a year later to pursue charity work.

Prince Harry has reportedly joined a helicopter club in California in order to take Meghan Markle and his son Archie out on family trips. The Duke of Sussex, 36, needs to practice flying in order to to keep his helicopter licence current. He is pictured in the army on a helicopter in 2012

'He's very proud of that licence; he worked hard to get first the basic and then the Apache.

'He's hardly likely to be recalled for military service in England again but he wants to keep the hours up for personal use, so he and Meghan can just take off for expeditions if they want to,' the friend of Harry told the paper.

While it is believed Harry doesn't own his own helicopter yet, the source added that there will be 'plenty of rich benefactors' who would be happy to lend Harry their choppers because they would 'love the royal association'.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped down as senior royals in March and moved to Vancouver Island, Canada.

While it is believed Harry doesn't own his own helicopter yet, the source added that there will be 'plenty of rich benefactors' who would be happy to lend Harry their choppers because they would 'love the royal association'. Harry is pictured with Meghan and Archie in 2019 in South Africa

They spent some time in 39-year-old Meghan's native Los Angeles before moving to Santa Barbara, California, where they are currently living in an 11million mansion with son Archie, one.

Last month, the couple signed a 112million Netflix deal that 'could include a documentary on Princess Diana'.

An insider told The Mirror the documentary will focus on Diana's family history and heritage, but voiced fears over it widening the rift with brother William.

Rumours of Harry and Meghan seeking to gain a foothold in Hollywood have run rampant ever since the couple announced their plans to quit as senior royals, seek financial independence and move to North America in January.

Harry is pictured in 2013 after qualifying as a Apache pilot in the British Army. Less than a year later he left to pursue charity work

Meghan's first post-Megxit job in showbiz was as a narrator of the Disney Plus docuseries Elephants, which came out in April.

The Los Angeles native nabbed the job after Harry bragged about her voiceover skills to Disney chairman Bob Iger at the London premiere of The Lion King live action remake last summer.

Her fee for the project went entirely to the Elephants Without Borders charity - an organisation dedicated to conserving wildlife and helps protect the animals from poaching.

Harry followed in her footsteps by appearing in a new Netflix documentary about about the Paralympic Games called Rising Phoenix, which aired on August 26.

Rumours of Harry and Meghan seeking to gain a foothold in Hollywood have run rampant ever since the couple announced their plans to quit as senior royals, seek financial independence and move to North America in January

In 2014, Harry confessed he missed his role as an Apache helicopter pilot and would like to return to flying in the future.

The Prince loved his five-month posting to Afghanistan in winter 2012-13 where he served as a top gun co-pilot, often providing top cover for medical evacuations. But he did not enjoy the social side of life on base at Wattisham, Suffolk.

As an Apache pilot, it was his regular job to provide cover from above as the teams retrieved casualties from the battlefield, often under enemy fire.
The president of the United States, Donald Trump on Friday said that his administration is certain that they would produce enough coronavirus vaccines for every American by April 2021.

US President Donald Trump on Friday (local time) said that his administration expects to have enough doses of coronavirus vaccines for every American citizen by April 2021. Trump said at a press briefing that as soon as the vaccine is approved, the administration would deliver it to the American people immediately, hundreds of millions of doses would be available every month and they expect to have enough vaccines for every American by April (2021).

He said brilliant doctors and scientists of the US have been working around the clock to produce a COVID-19 vaccine and informed that three vaccines are in the final stage of clinical trials. He said that a lot of work had been going on with respect to vaccines, the vaccine should be developed as soon as possible to end the pandemic and get life back to normal. He said that a successful vaccine would not only save millions of lives, it would put an end to restrictions.

He stressed that all vaccine candidates were going through the gold standard of clinical trials with a heavy emphasis on safety. As part of Operation Warp Speed, initiated by the Trump administration to facilitate and accelerate the development of COVID-19 vaccines, Trump said all of the most promising vaccine candidates are being manufactured in advance.

Also read: Trump trusted less than Russias Putin, Chinas Xi because of Covid-19, says Joe Biden

Also read: US: Five Chinese nationals charged for global hacking operations

He further said that vaccine development was their top priority and they were moving forward swiftly with great success. He added that when a vaccine is approved, it would be distributed within 24 hours. According to the latest data by Johns Hopkins University, the US remains the worst-affected country by the COVID-19 pandemic and has 6,705,114 cases and 198,197 deaths.

Also read: PM Modi, Putin reiterate strong commitment to India-Russia partnership
And should former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. win in November, the resumption of sanctions will make it more complicated to reassemble some version of the agreement. Mr. Biden would have to reverse the move, making it appear he had made a concession to Iran even as it has resumed work on its nuclear program in reaction to Mr. Trumps decision to abandon the deal.

But for the presidents critics, the move underlines how his administration has splintered alliances and fractured understandings with the United States superpower adversaries, Russia and China. They had been unified in reaching the 2015 agreement. Now the United States has gone its own way, and Russia and China seem poised to resume conventional weapons sales to Iran next month when an arms embargo against Iran expires, over the objections of Washington.

The irony I see here is that Trump is actually doing the U.N. and multilateralism a big favor, because by invoking the snapback, he is putting on display that the kind of clumsy unilateralism that he is known for doesnt work, said Ian Johnstone, a professor of international law at the Fletcher School at Tufts University.

He predicted the sanctions would not be enforced by other countries and would be met with a collective shrug.

The U.S. will insist that the sanctions are back on and most other countries will say, No, theyre not, said Mr. Johnstone, who advised Kofi Annan, the former United Nations secretary general.

In fact, the Trump administrations insistence on reimposing the original United Nations sanctions, which had been formulated during the Bush and Obama administrations to force Tehran to the negotiating table, means that the United States alone will enforce them. That has raised doubts over whether the sanctions will bring much, if any, additional economic pain; one Security Council diplomat compared the American saber-rattling to pulling the trigger of an unloaded gun.

Administration officials disagree. In his statement on Saturday, Mr. Pompeo rapped the Security Council for refusing to extend a global arms embargo against Iran that is set to expire on Oct. 18. Only the Dominican Republic voted with the United States, and Mr. Pompeo made clear that the American demand to snap back the broader sanctions was in direct response to the arms embargo being allowed to expire, under the terms of the nuclear accord.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday said Turkey was ready to meet with Greece's leader to resolve the standoff over energy exploration in contested waters in the eastern Mediterranean.

The search for gas and oil in the region has sparked a row that has seen the two NATO neighbours stage rival air and navy drills in strategic waters between Cyprus and the Greek island of Crete.

"Could there be a meeting with Greek Prime Minister (Kyriakos) Mitsotakis? What's essential is what we discuss and in what framework," Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul after Friday prayers.

"We can meet if there is goodwill. We can talk via videoconference or meet in a third country," Erdogan said, adding that Turkey would not be the party fleeing the table.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu later on Friday said the Greek ambassador Michael-Christos Diamessi was summoned to the foreign ministry in Ankara over an item in Dimokratia newspaper, seen atop its website.

The words "Siktir Git Mr. Erdogan," which means "fuck off" in Turkish, appeared next to a photo of the president in the Greek newspaper. It also appeared in English.

"A Greek newspaper had a vile front page," Cavusoglu said in Ankara. "We summoned the Greek ambassador to the ministry," he added, quoted by state news agency Anadolu.

At the centre of the Greece-Turkey row was Ankara's deployment last month of a seismic research vessel, the Oruc Reis, and an accompanying fleet of warships in disputed waters near the Greek island of Kastellorizo.

Turkish officials ended the month-long mission and ordered the vessel back to shore last weekend for maintanance and replenishment.

Erdogan also signalled that Oruc Reis would return to its work, while also saying that its withdrawal was deliberate.

"If we pulled Oruc Reis back to the port for maintenance, it has a meaning," he said. "It means 'let's give a chance to diplomacy, let's show a positive approach'."

- 'Open to dialogue' -

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias in Prague on Friday said Greece believed "a dialogue should start and that international law should not be violated. Of course in this area nobody should try to prevail by force."

He added Greece was "always open to a dialogue with Turkey as regards coastal waters in the exclusive economic zone, provided that Turkey stops its provocative acts in the area."

Turkey's Yavuz drillship, meanwhile, will continue it search for oil and gas off Cyprus until October 12 despite international calls to withdraw.

Ankara's dispute with Athens has sparked a crisis that has drawn in some EU member states, particularly France which sent navy vessels and fighter jets to the region in support of Greece.

EU leaders are due to discuss possible sanctions against Ankara at their meeting on September 24-25.

"We would like our partners and friends in the EU to draft a list of sanctions which should not be imposed on Turkey immediately but rather serve as an example of sanctions that could be imposed on Turkey if it doesn't stop its unlawful acts," Dendias said.

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New Delhi, Sep 19 : There have been no attacks by Pakistani forces on Indian positions along the Line of Control and international border, Minister of State for Defence Shripad Naik said in Parliament on Saturday.

The minister however said that Pakistan troops have been resorting to persistent ceasefire violations along the Line of Control.

There have been 2,453 incidents of ceasefire violations along Line of Control in Jammu region this year from March 1, to September 7. In addition, 192 incidents of cross-border firing have occurred along the Indo-Pak international border in Jammu region from March 1 to August 31.

There have been 10 fatal casualties of Army personnel occurred along Line of Control and international border in cross-border firing by Pakistani forces in the last six months. The details of casualties on the Pakistani side cannot be ascertained accurately.

Appropriate retaliation to the ceasefire violations, as required, has been carried out by the Indian Army and Border Security Force.

In addition, all the cases of ceasefire violations are taken up with Pakistani authorities through the established mechanisms of hotlines, flag meetings, Directorate Generals of Military Operations talks as well as diplomatic channels between the two countries.

The BSF too holds talks at various levels with its counterpart Pakistan Rangers.

Diplomatically, India has repeatedly emphasised, including at the highest level, the need for Pakistan to uphold the sanctity of the Line of Control and the international border in Jammu & Kashmir as part of its obligations emanating from the Shimla Agreement and the Lahore Declaration.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
China's Commerce Ministry said on Saturday it was "resolutely opposed" to the U.S. decision to ban WeChat and video-sharing app TikTok from U.S. app stores starting Sunday night.

If the United States does not correct its mistakes, then China will take necessary measures to safeguard the legitimate interests of Chinese companies, the ministry added without giving details.
The social-democrat leader Marcel Ciolacu announces on Saturday he has signed with the leader of Pro Romania, Victor Ponta a post-electoral agreement based on which the PSD (Social Democratic Party) and Pro Romania will be able to make up majorities in the local and county councils, following the 27 September local elections.

"It is for the first time, in past 30 years, when the decision was made for each organisation have their local alliances by themselves. A few days ago, indeed I have signed with Victor Ponta an agreement to making majorities at the county, local councils' level, a sort of post-electoral accord. And you've seen the decision of the National Political Committee to run alone for the legislative elections on 6 December, in a way like the decision of Gabriela Firea to run by herself, with no political arrangements the citizens sometimes do not understand, for the Bucharest City Hall," Ciolacu said on Saturday in southern Pitesti, at a press conference.
(Photo : (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)) WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 11: Facebook co-founder, Chairman and CEO Mark Zuckerberg prepares to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill April 11, 2018 in Washington, DC. This is the second day of testimony before Congress by Zuckerberg, 33, after it was reported that 87 million Facebook users had their personal information harvested by Cambridge Analytica, a British political consulting firm linked to the Trump campaign. (Photo : (Photo illustration by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)) NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 09: In this photo illustration, an Instagram photo of the Facebook website app is seen on an Apple iPhone on April 9, 2012 in New York City. Facebook Inc. is acquiring photo-sharing app Instagram for approx. $1 billion. (Photo : (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)) LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 03: The Facebook app logo is displayed on an iPad next to a picture of the Facebook logo on an iPhone on August 3, 2016 in London, England.

The world's biggest multinational social media company in the world, Facebook, is now facing multiple charges and lawsuits regarding its alleged use of Instagram cameras to illegally surveil and spy on several users for company profits and research. Facebook is now declining to comment on the issue and stays silent despite what is being thrown at them.

The social media company, Facebook, is being accused of serious charges that violate the privacy of a considerable number of people worldwide. Facebook is facing serious charges and a new scandal that questions the company's integrity down to its very core.

According to Bloomberg's report, Facebook allegedly uses and accesses iPhone cameras through Instagram despite users not actively using the social media application.

Facebook is known to hold and be major stake players to the world's data and privacy due to the large volume of the users that patronizes the company's social media platforms. Facebook, Inc. owns Instagram, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Oculus, apart from the pioneer website and application of the company, the self-titled Facebook.

Facebook's only denial to the case is that the company is not actively using and taking part in the massive user data and information access claims that are imposed against them. The social media company still declines to comment despite the severity of the case and accusation.

Facebook's Instagram Camera Spying Lawsuit

Facebook is facing a case entitled Conditi v. Instagram, LLC, 20-cv-06534, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco). This particular lawsuit was filed last month against the social media giant and was filed on San Fransisco courts last Thursday.

The case is currently being reviewed in the U.S. District Court of California and sees to it that Facebook reveal if the allegations were truly or falsely happening. The issue is about Instagram sending out notifications to several users in accessing iPhone cameras even out of the application.

New Jersey-based Instagram user, Brittany Conditi, filed the report against Facebook that prompted the photo-sharing application in her iPhone device to use her camera. Facebook denies this report saying that it is only a bug that triggers false 'camera access' notifications.

Conditi claims that the social media company intentionally accesses cameras to collect valuable data on its users for useful insights and market research. Facebook's illegal access pushes beyond the boundaries of one's own home.

Facebook's Back-to-Back Scandals and Issues

With the Conditi v. Instagram, LLC case pushing through in courts, Facebook receives significant backlash and issues that pit the company in an unfavorable light. Over 2020's past months, Facebook faced numerous scandals that tested the company's integrity and values as a social media service provider.

Just last week, Stop the Hate for Profit spearheaded a 24-hour Instagram blackout that even Hollywood celebrities advocated and supported. A considerable number of people are now pushing for the social media's boycott, together with the other subsidiary applications within the company.

Facebook also faces a significant backlash in the recent events of Kenosha Militia and the armed riots that took over the streets of Wisconsin. Facebook played a huge part in the event taking place because rioters used social media for a 'call-to-arms.'

ALSO READ: The US to Ban TikTok, WeChat: What Difference Would it Make?

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Written by Isaiah Alonzo

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By PTI

NEW DELHI: A "dramatic" decline in the number of incidents of violence against health workers has been witnessed in the country after an ordinance was brought, making such activities a non-bailable offence, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan informed the Rajya Sabha on Saturday.

The government brought an ordinance on April 22 to amend the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 to make incidents of violence on health workers treating COVID-19 patients a non-bailable offence with provisions of penalty and a jail term of up to seven years.

Moving an amendment bill in this regard for passage in the Upper House, the health minister said after the ordinance, such incidents against healthcare workers have declined.

"We have all noticed that there has been a dramatic decline in the incidents of violence against health workers all over the country," he said.

Vardhan explained that the ordinance had to be brought as there was a rising number of incidents of harassment and violence against health workers while they were returning from their duty amid a lack of awareness about the coronavirus.

They were treated with stigma and not allowed to enter their houses or residential societies.

They were beaten up and chased away when they went out for surveillance, he said, adding that this had significantly reduced the morale of the health workers.

"Everyone was feeling sad and bad. That was the time the government thought of taking a proactive step. When the government reviewed, it found there were minimal laws and powers in some states. There was a need to have a central law to put in place a prohibitory mechanism to stop such activities," Vardhan said.

Binoy Viswam of the Communist Party of India (CPI), who moved a statutory resolution on the bill, said there are serious lapses in it as it does not address the issue of violence on health professionals within the hospitals.

Many hospitals are not paying the salaries of the doctors and nurses, PPE kits are not being given and safety concerns are being ignored -- these issues have not been addressed by the bill, he added.

Participating in the debate, Saroj Pandey of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spoke in favour of the bill and said it aims to instill confidence in the health workers, who are treating patients during the COVID-19 pandemic risking their lives.

She also attacked Neeraj Dangi of the Congress, who spoke just before her on the bill without touching upon the sensitive issue of health workers.

She said it is saddening to see that the opposition member chose to politicise even the issue of COVID-19 and did not even bother to mention the bill in his maiden speech.
The testing chaos was last night blamed on a mad rush by parents needlessly seeking Covid tests for children with common colds.

Typically, coughs and colds spike every September when children head back to class, and become even more common during the winter.

But a No 10 source said the surge in demand for tests was due in part by people not understanding when they should and shouldnt get a test.

The source said: For example, whole classes of children and their families have been sent for tests after one positive case, which is mad.

Loads of kids get sniffles in the autumn  the difference now is theyre all being kept off school and trying to get corona tests.

A graphic shows how parents can tell the difference between a cold, flu and coronavirus

Public health experts echoed the sentiments. Linda Bauld, Professor of Public Health at the University of Edinburgh, said the same pattern of over-testing was evident in Scotland, where schools returned around a fortnight before those south of the border.

It was apparent from the Scottish example that a lot of unnecessary tests were taken up by parents for their children and the same thing has happened in England and Wales, she told The Mail on Sunday.

Dido Harding, head of NHS Test and Trace, told MPs that there had been a very marked increase in the number of young children being tested, a doubling of children under 17 being tested, with even larger rises in those aged five to nine.

According to some reports, more than 300 schools had sent either some or all pupils home after reported or suspected cases by last week.

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health advises that children with simple cold symptoms such as a runny nose or sore throats without fever should not be tested.

But The Mail on Sunday discovered dozens of examples of parents ignoring the advice.

On the website forum Mumsnet, one mother told how she had ordered a home test for her daughter because she had a cough and cold, but did not have a high temperature. Trust me I dont really want to test her. It isnt fun for either of us. Shes been coughing on and off all morning now. Yes, Im sure it is a cold but Ive been told to get a test so I am, she wrote.

Another wrote: It is bonkers. My son has a cold  sneezing, snotty, no temp, (mild) sore throat, no cough.

He felt well enough to be in school but I said to ask to come home at lunchtime if he was struggling. He texted at lunchtime to say that if he asks to come home, we will all have to self-isolate and get a test. So hes staying at school. No wonder there is a massive shortage of tests, people have lost all common sense and perspective. Of course children are going to get colds in the autumn term, especially when they havent been mixing over the summer.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock reinforced the point, telling the BBC Radio 4 Today programme last week: It is so important that we ensure that the tests are used for the people who really need them.
Imperial Valley News Center

Proclamation on National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week, 2020

Washington, DC - Proclamation on National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week, 2020:

For more than 180 years, our Nations Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have exhibited remarkable excellence in higher education and served as engines of opportunity and advancement for thousands of Black Americans. During National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week, we celebrate the achievements of HBCUs and their students and pledge our continuing support to the nearly 300,000 individuals currently pursuing their dreams at HBCUs throughout the United States.

For nearly two centuries, HBCU graduates have profoundly shaped American life and culture. In science and technology, HBCU graduates have led the way in innovation, like engineer and inventor Otis Boykin, who held more than 20 patents during his lifetime, including for a wire precision resistor used in radios and televisions, and for a control unit used in pacemakers that helped save countless lives. From thought leaders like Booker T. Washington and civil rights heroes like Martin Luther King, Jr., to great legal minds like Thurgood Marshall and renowned authors like James Weldon Johnson, our Republic is more vibrant because of HBCUs and their students.

My Administration will always stand beside these wonderful colleges and universities as they pursue their mission to provide their students with a high-quality education. In order to further promote the success of HBCUs in the years to come, I signed an Executive Order in February of 2017 on the White House Initiative to Promote Excellence and Innovation at Historically Black Colleges and Universities. This action established the Presidents Board of Advisors on HBCUs, and as a result, 32 Federal departments and agencies now have plans in place to help HBCUs secure available Federal resources and opportunities. Additionally, my Administration recently released a Framework for the Development of a Federal HBCU Competitiveness Strategy, further facilitating productive partnerships between HBCU students and faculty members and public and private-sector entities.

This year, National HBCU Week also coincides with the 150th anniversary of two of South Carolinas great historically black institutions: Allen University and Benedict College. Our Nation joins these schools in celebrating this significant milestone and their incredible legacies. Last year, at Benedict College, I was proud to highlight an increase of more than 13 percent in Federal funding for HBCUs under my Administration. In addition, I signed into law the FUTURE Act, which reauthorized more than $85 million in funding for HBCUs, securing permanent funding for our Nations historically black institutions and helping ensure their financial security for future generations.

My Administration has also continued to prioritize HBCUs during the coronavirus pandemic, and we remain committed to helping them safely reopen for in-person classes. As part of this effort, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which I signed into law in March of this year, provided $930 million in higher education emergency relief funds for HBCUs. During these challenging times, my Administration is working to meet the needs of these great institutions and their students as they seek to safely reopen their doors. We know full well the important role they will play in our ongoing national recovery.

HBCUs help empower young Americans from all backgrounds to achieve their American Dream. This week, we proudly reaffirm our support for HBCUs and pledge to continue to promote their success and provide support to their vital educational mission.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 20 through September 26, 2020, as National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week, and further proclaim September 21, 2020, as National HBCU Colors Day. I call upon educators, public officials, professional organizations, corporations, and all Americans to proudly don institutional colors and observe this week and day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities that acknowledge the countless contributions these institutions and their alumni have made to our country. I call upon all Americans to observe this week with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities and to boldly, joyfully, and proudly don institutional colors.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eleventh day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.

DONALD J. TRUMP
Jaipur, Sep 19 : Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee chief Govind Singh Dotasara on Friday slammed the Centre over the three farm bills passed in Lok Sabha on Thursday and accused the government of promoting corporate culture while limiting the farmers' role to mere labourers.

"All three ordinances of agriculture shall encourage middlemen and will promote the big industrialists. Also, black marketing will shoot up and a farmer will remain as a labourer as the Mandi system will collapse too. However, big businessmen will benefit from this system," Dotasara said while interacting with the media.

"The Congress stands with farmers and shall protest the anti-farmer bills," he added.

He said that under the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Ordinance, the government is talking of one nation, one market.

However, "this system will kill the Mandi system and corporates and big traders will be able to buy crops at their own prices", he said.

Similarly, under the the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance, 2020, contract farming shall be promoted under which companies will till the land while farmers will be working as labourers. Also there will be no security for their future, he said.

Also, the amendment in the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 will increase black marketing and hoarding, the Congress leader added.

He termed all three bills as anti-farmer and said that the Centre did not take opinion from allies.

Meanwhile, BJP's Deputy Leader of Opposition Rajendra Rathore said that it would have been better had Dotasara read the three bills passed in the Lok Sabha on Thursday. "Then, he would not have tried to mislead the farmers of the state." Rathore said that in the Lok Sabha elections, the Congress had announced in its own manifesto to amend the Agricultural Produce Market Act and provide a common market for the farmers of the country to sell their produce.

"Accordingly, the Central government made a historic decision to free the farmers from the chains of Krishi Upaj Mandi system by allowing them to sell their produce to any person and any merchant at any place," he said.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Leeds has become the largest city in the UK to call for a universal basic income to be trialled, after a vote of the city's council on Wednesday night.

Councillors from Labour, the Liberal Democrats, and Greens backed a motion on Thursday arguing that the policy could provide financial security to people hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

A universal basic income or UBI involves a flat unconditional payment to all citizens whether they are working or not, instead of means-tested benefits.

The policy has been widely discussed across the developed world in recent years, and has gained new prominence during the coronavirus pandemic.

The most high-profile trial so far took place in Finland, where a two-year study found that those involved were happier and had greater wellbeing, in addition to being no less likely to get jobs.

Following the vote, Leeds City Council officers will now write to the government asking for a pilot scheme to take place in the city.

But Conservatives councillors in the city opposed the plan, with one saying it should be "consigned to the dustbin".

The west Yorkshire city joins Sheffield, which backed a trial last year, and Liverpool the year before. This year Hull, Norwich and Belfast are among councils that have voted for pilot studies in their areas.

Leeds Liberal Democrat councillor Jonathan Bentley, said: The Covid pandemic has caused immense financial and social hardship to thousands of residents and families in Leeds. This will only get worse.

"The current overly complicated, means-tested benefits system is inadequate to deal with the effects of a declining economy and increased unemployment. To achieve a fair recovery it is time for new thinking.

"A Universal Basic Income will have the twin effects of offering protection from poverty for all our citizens and a boost to our economy for our future prosperity.

Lib Dem leader Ed Davey said the coronavirus pandemic had shown that the welfare system was broken, adding: "UBI is a hugely powerful tool that will allow us to address this issue, along with many other emerging challenges such as automation and changing work patterns. I am fully committed to campaigning for a UBI that will give everyone the support they deserve and the opportunities they need."

Sian Berry, co-leader of the Green Party, said: Universal Basic Income is an idea whose time has come. The coronavirus crisis has shown that we need to mend the social security net for the decades ahead, helping us to build back a greener, fairer economy. This can be our generations NHS, and its amazing to see Greens in Leeds leading the way.

The government does not support exploring the idea of a universal basic income, and ministers have gone on record say they do not support the policy.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 18 January 2022 Surfers enter the sea as the sun rises over Tynemouth on the North East coast PA UK news in pictures 17 January 2022 Bonhams Danny McIlwraith holds a Nigerian polycrome carved wood mask during a photocall for the sale of the Jim Lennon Collection at Bonhams in Edinburgh PA UK news in pictures 16 January 2022 The moon rises above the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth, Hampshire PA UK news in pictures 15 January 2022 Demonstrators outside Downing Street during a Kill The Bill protest against The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill in London PA UK news in pictures 14 January 2022 Ecologist Emma Smart (left) and retired GP Dr Diana Warner outside HMP Bronzefield, in Surrey, following their release from the prison where Emma undertook a 26-day hunger strike during her incarceration. Ms Smart was sentenced in November, along with other members of Insulate Britain, to serve four months for breaking a High Court injunction by taking part in a blockade at junction 25 of the M25 motorway during the morning rush hour on 8 October last year PA UK news in pictures 13 January 2022 A TV presenter holds a copy of a newspaper outside 10 Downing Streetafter the Prime Minister apologised for attending a gathering of colleagues in the Number Ten garden in May 2020, while the UK was in strict lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic Getty UK news in pictures 12 January 2022 Fitness guru Derrick Evans after receiving an MBE during an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 11 January 2022 A couple walk underneath an umbrella during wet weather on Westminster Bridge in central London PA UK news in pictures 10 January 2022 A jogger passes the Covid Memorial Wall in London AP UK news in pictures 9 January 2021 The sun rises over horses at Seaton Sluice in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 8 January 2022 Riders compete during the Veterans Men's race at the UK Cyclo-Cross National Championships 2022 in Ardingly, south of London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 7 January 2022 A dog looks out of a car window at the wintry conditions in Killeshin, Co. Laois PA UK news in pictures 6 January 2022 People walk through frost and mist alongside a frozen lake during sunrise in Bushy Park, London REUTERS UK news in pictures 5 January 2022 A skier jumps on the slopes at Allenheads in the Pennines to the north of Weardale in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 4 January 2022 Freshly-fallen snow covers houses in Corbridge, near Hexham in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 3 January 2022 Dean Morrison, 13, receives his Covid-19 vaccine from student nurse Anthony McLaughlin during a vaccination clinic at the Glasgow Central Mosque PA UK news in pictures 2 January 2022 Konastantinos Tsimikas of Liverpool with Chelseas Mason Mount during the Premier League match at Stamfrod Bridge Liverpool FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 January 2022 New Years Eve Lasers, drones and fireworks illuminate the sky in front of the Royal Naval College in Greenwich shortly after midnight in London EPA UK news in pictures 31 December 2021 Competitors in fancy dress run across the Pennine tops near Haworth, West Yorkshire, in the annual Auld Lang Syne Fell race which attracts hundreds of runners every year PA UK news in pictures 30 December 2021 Sunrise at Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 29 December 2021 The Very Revd Dr Robert Willis, Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, looks at Becket, a six month old red-billed chough as he visits Wildwood Wildlife Park in Kent on the anniversary of the murder of Thomas Becket PA UK news in pictures 28 December 2021 Troops of the Household Cavalry are seen reflected in a puddle during the changing of the Queens Life Guard, on Horse Guards Parade, in central London PA UK news in pictures 27 December 2021 A pedestrian walks past a winter sale sign outside a John Lewis store on Oxford street in London Getty UK news in pictures 26 December 2021 Riders take their bikes through the snow near Castleside, County Durham PA UK news in pictures 25 December 2021 Patrick Corkery wears a santa hat and beard as waves crash over him at Forty Foot near Dublin during a Christmas Day dip PA UK news in pictures 24 December 2021 People stand inside Kings Cross Station on Christmas Eve in London Reuters UK news in pictures 23 December 2021 Christmas shoppers fill the car park at Fosse Shopping Park in Leicester PA UK news in pictures 22 December 2021 The sun rises behind the stones as people gather for the winter solstice at Stonehenge. Getty UK news in pictures 21 December 2021 People take part in a winter solstice swim at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh to mark the solstice and to witness the dawn after the longest night of the year PA UK news in pictures 20 December 2021 An auction employee displays poultry to buyers and sellers attending the Christmas Poultry Sale at York Auction Centre in Murton PA UK news in pictures 19 December 2021 Joao Moutinho of Wolverhampton Wanderers looks on during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Chelsea at Molineux Getty Images UK news in pictures 18 December 2021 Freight lorries queuing at the port of Dover in Kent PA UK news in pictures 17 December 2021 Newly elected Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan, bursts 'Boris' bubble' held by colleague Tim Farron, as she celebrates following her victory in the North Shropshire by-election PA UK news in pictures 16 December 2021 Brussels sprouts are harvested by workers as they prepare for the busy Christmas period near Boston in Lincolnshire PA UK news in pictures 15 December 2021 Lewis Hamilton is made a Knight Bachelor by the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 14 December 2021 The Royal Liver Buildings surrounded by early morning fog in Liverpool PA UK news in pictures 13 December 2021 People queue outside a walk-in Covid-19 vaccination centre at St Thomas's Hospital in Westminster Getty Images UK news in pictures 12 December 2021 People take part in the Big Leeds Santa Dash in Roundhay Park, Leeds PA UK news in pictures 11 December 2021 People arrive at a Covid-19 vaccination centre at Elland Road in Leeds, PA UK news in pictures 10 December 2021 Stella Moris speaks to the media after the US Government won its High Court bid to overturn a judges decision not to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange PA UK news in pictures 9 December 2021 Camels are lead around Salisbury Cathedral during a rehearsal for the Christmas Eve Service PA UK news in pictures 8 December 2021 Margaret Keenan and Nurse May Parsons, a year after Margaret was the first person in the UK to receive the Pfizer vaccine PA UK news in pictures 7 December 2021 Snowfall in Leadhills, South Lanarkshire as Storm Barra hits the UK with disruptive winds, heavy rain and snow PA UK news in pictures 6 December 2021 A person tries to avoid sea spray on New Brighton promenade in Wallasey as the UK readies for the arrival of Storm Barra Getty UK news in pictures 5 December 2021 People release balloons during a tribute to six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes outside Emma Tustin's former address in Solihull, West Midlands, where he was murdered by his stepmother PA UK news in pictures 4 December 2021 People walk through a Christmas market in Trafalgar Square Reuters UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 A pedestrian carries a dog as they dodge shoppers on Oxford Street in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 2 December 2021 Duchess of Cambridge inspects a Faberge egg at the Victoria and Albert Museum Getty UK news in pictures 1 December 2021 Meerkats at London Zoo with an advent calendar PA UK news in pictures 30 November 2021 Workers put the finishing touches to the Trafalgar Square Christmas Tree ahead of the lighting ceremony later in the week PA

Former work and pensions secretary Iain Duncan Smith recently argued that the policy would be a disincentive for people to work during the pandemic.

The Green party has long backed the policy, while Lib Dem leader Ed Davey has also called for one, arguing that payments should be funded by creating a national investment fund and distributing the proceeds to the population.

Former shadow chancellor John McDonnell has also said the policy should be explored in pilot form.
(Newser)  A Massachusetts man tired of people stealing his Donald Trump campaign sign has come up with a shocking solution: an electrified fence around it, the AP reports. John Oliveira, 54, a disabled Navy veteran and a member of the New Bedford School Committee, put the fence up a few weeks ago. Oliveira told Southcoasttoday.com, which first reported the story, that he started displaying a Trump sign on his lawn in late May. The first one disappeared in July. In all, six signs were taken, he told the Boston Globe. His latest sign has not been stolen since the fence went up.

story continues below

"I'm defending my property and my right to free speech," he said. The yellow and black solar-powered fence, purchased from a farm supply store, is about 3 1/2 feet high. It has warning signs in English, Spanish, and French. He has informed police of the thefts. The fence is not pretty, he acknowledged. "But I'm not going to not put a sign up because somebody keeps stealing it or somebody keeps taking it because they don't like what I'm saying," he said.

(Read more Election 2020 stories.)
The latest plans to develop the former garbage landfill on Laurel Island into a new Charleston neighborhood will be presented to City Council on Tuesday.

The 196 acres of Laurel Island, connected now by Romney Street and north of the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge, would be transformed from an overgrown green space full of wildlife into a new community with office, residential, retail and a walking and biking path surrounding it.

"Almost think of it as a miniature Daniel Island," City Planner Jacob Lindsey said of the plan.

The area, if approved, would become a planned unit development, instead of designated as a heavy industrial zone, as it is now. The area would eventually have its own board of architectural review panel and architecture strategies.

The property is owned by Lubert Adler Real Estate Funds and ideas for the island have circulated unsuccessfully for years. There was a proposal for a resort and, recently, a retail hub.

Mayor John Tecklenburg, who saw the plans at a recent City Council community development committee meeting, said this idea is "so much better" than ideas presented in the past.

City Councilman Robert Mitchell, who represents neighborhoods near Laurel Island, said, "So far the plans look pretty good," but he wants to make sure the neighborhoods are taken care of, especially Singleton Park.

"The way I'm looking at it, this is the best proposal," Mitchell said. "The next one might not be as good."

Developer Robert Clement III of Clement Development said it could take up to 40 years to complete the community.

Of the newest proposal for Laurel Island, he said: "Is it perfect? No. But it's a monumental step forward."

Clement said the Laurel Island plan is structured similarly to the Magnolia project under way on the upper peninsula near an unfinished bridge on Petty Street on the neck and the Ashley River.

All told, the Laurel Island development would allow for 276,500 square feet of retail, 2,200,000 square feet of office space, up to 400 hotel rooms, 4,260 dwelling units and an eight-screen movie theater. There is some flexibility for the developer as it is built out, a point of concern for the Preservation Society, that would allow developers to swap out some of those elements and allowing more of another.

Developers said they will keep to traffic studies of the area, which will be routinely studied as they build.

Clements said they expect some site cleanup, but are optimistic about it since the landfill was household garbage. Cleanup would include venting some methane, but the site has already been capped with soil.

Eddie Bello, master planner of Bello Garris Architects, said 6 feet of "clean fill" would be added on top to raise the elevation to 20 feet.

The roads would continue the peninsula's grid approach, and "all would have view corridors to the water," Bello said.

Two additional island entry points will be built  at Brigade Street and a flyover bridge onto Cool Blow Street. They'd both be two-lane roads, one way in each direction. They would also have bike and pedestrian walkways.

The flyover onto Cool Blow Street has prompted some concern from the East Central Neighborhood. Cool Blow is a dead-end road with a beloved park, called Singleton Park, on it. The park was built after a young boy was killed nearby. Because there wasn't a park in the area or somewhere safe for him to play, he climbed on giant tires and was crushed by one.

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Clement said a flyover bridge to Cool Blow Street was "the only choice and it worked," compared with other options, which included raising the railroad tracks over Romney Street. He also said there would be extensive public input as plans for the flyover are finalized with the state and county.

While some are concerned about building a bridge that connects to the current Cool Blow Street dead-end, Tecklenburg called the newest plan "much improved."

"When you really have a community development over there, for fire and medical emergencies, I do think having the bridge is appropriate," Tecklenburg said.

On the island, roadways would continue bicycle and pedestrian access, including a nearly 2-mile loop around the island.

Tecklenburg also said the perimeter walkway around the island, overlooking the Ravenel Bridge will be similar to the Battery.

"It's going to be a classic, iconic place for people to visit and exercise," Tecklenburg said.

Remnants of circular armories designed by Robert Mills in 1827, knocked down in the 1950s, will be preserved, as will Navy oil ruins on the edge of the northern part of the island.

There would be two docks, a longer one on the eastern side of the island  ideally for water taxis  and one on the southern side more for crabbing, he said.

The development would have just under 40 acres of usable open space even though the city requires just under 10 acres. Ball fields would be laid out on the northwestern part of the island.

Some buildings, in the middle of the island, could grow to 12 stories, with others reaching 2, 2.5-3.5 and 8 floors.

The proposal boasts an initiative that would reserve some affordable housing units forever  the first of its kind in the city. The proposal would allow for 10 percent of the housing built on Laurel Island to remain affordable. Another 10 percent of the housing would be deemed affordable for 10 years after certificates of occupancy are issued.

Tecklenburg also said the developer's commitment to affordable housing was "way more" than the city requires, noting the affordable housing element that will remain forever.

Kristopher King at the Preservation Society was concerned about when the affordable housing time clock would begin. He called the decision to have 10 years of affordable housing after the certificate of occupancy is issued a "marked improvement" over earlier plans that he said would have started the 10 year tick down after the PUD's approval.

He was also critical of the development team's efforts to work with the community and reach out to leaders ahead of the planning commission's meeting. Developers this week said they've been meeting regularly with the community.

To comment on the Laurel Island proposal, City Council clerks ask that those who want to speak via Zoom or telephone to leave a voicemail saying so at 843-579-6313 by noon on Tuesday. People can also fill out comment forms at http://innovate.charleston-sc.gov/comments/. Mailed comments should be addressed to Clerk of Council, 80 Broad St., Charleston, SC 29401.

The meeting begins at 5 p.m. Tuesday and will be live-streamed through the city's YouTube channel.
With no ferry traffic since March, the pink dolphin population rose by 30 per cent in the Pearl River estuary to about 2,500. In recent years, the species has experienced a worrying decline. Overfishing, pollution, coastal development and marine traffic threaten its survival.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews/Agencies)  Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, the rare Chinese pink dolphin has reappeared in Hong Kong waters.

According to research by the University of St Andrews, the numbers of this rare mammal present in the Pearl River estuary, which separates the former British colony from Macau, jumped by 30 per cent since the start of the pandemic.

Back in March, the COVID-19 outbreak led local authorities to suspend ferry traffic between the two autonomous regions, a step that helped the animal's resurgence.

According to the local branch of the World Wildlife Federation (WWF), the first recorded sighting of the pink dolphin in the Hong Kong area dates back to 1600s.

At present, the population in the Pearl River Estuary is estimated to be around 2,500 individuals, but the nature conservation group says that it has experienced a "worrisome decrease" in recent years as a result of overfishing, water pollution, heavy marine traffic and coastal development.
Its been two weeks since New Haven Public Schools, the states largest school system, began all-remote learning, and 23 percent of its student body has missed some instruction.

District officials told the state Education Accountability Committee Thursday that during the first week of remote learning, an estimated 65 percent of students participated. The second week, 77 percent of students fully participated, while 12 percent attended partially and 11 percent did not engage.

But New Haven officials, who have been adamant about remote coursework in the face of Gov. Ned Lamonts disagreement, told the state education board that they are working diligently to improve attendance.

We are tracking down very, very consistently those students we cannot find, Superintendent Iline Tracey said. It could be that theyre having some connectivity issues; it could be that they have moved and we dont have some of the information that we need to have to track them down.

School officials also saw attendance increase from week one to two among English Language learners, whose engagement went from 75 percent participating to 89 percent, while special education students participation increased from 72 percent to 86 percent. The district expects those numbers to rise as they pass out hotspots this week to over 1,000 students whose families requested one.

Tracey also told committee members that as of last Wednesday, 18,000 of the districts 21,000 students were connected to the classroom and that theyre monitoring what that engagement looks like.

Lamont has urged the states largest district to reopen its schools for in-person learning, partially because the state did not want a repeat of the spring, where a quarter of students in the state went unaccounted for.

New Haven schools did vote Monday to start bringing 125 special education students back into the classroom for in-person learning next week. About half of those students will actually return to school while the rest will gradually be brought in over the next few weeks.

The district plans to reopen, partially, to all students on a hybrid learning model by November.

We continue to find resolutions for families to improve their experiences, Tracey said. That experience has greatly changed from the spring with everyone connected through mobile classroom and Google Meet and the standard for live instruction.

When New Haven reopens its classrooms, it will join 40.7 percent of districts across Connecticut that started the school year with a hybrid model.

But as COVID-19 outbreaks rise in schools throughout the state, some districts have had to make changes to their plans, going from in-person or hybrid to remote for a few weeks.

During his Thursday coronavirus briefing, Lamont said that there have been 48 positive cases among students and 27 among staff so far this fall.
BEIJING, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- "The Blue Defensive Line," the first documentary about Chinese armed forces on a peacekeeping mission in an overseas war zone, hit the big screen across China Friday.

The documentary features a Chinese peacekeeping infantry battalion protecting local refugee camps in the war-torn South Sudan.

The film, shot over five years from China to Africa, is a true and vivid account of efforts made by Chinese "blue helmets" to safeguard world peace and development.

2020 marks 30 years since China's armed forces first participated in UN peacekeeping operations. Over the three decades, the country's armed forces have sent over 40,000 peacekeepers to 25 UN peacekeeping missions.
Bengaluru, Sep 19 : Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister Ashwath Narayan tested positive for coronavirus on Saturday and is under home isolation in the city.

"Ahead of the Monsoon Session of the Assembly from Monday, I underwent a Covid-19 test and the result has turned positive. I am asymptomatic and will be under home isolation," tweeted Narayan.

Narayan, 51, is one of the three Deputy Chief Ministers in the ruling BJP government and is a legislator from the Malleshwaram Assembly segment in the city's northwest suburb.

The other two Deputy Chief Ministers are Govind Karjol and Laxman Savadi.

"I request those who have come in contact with me to take precautions," Narayan added.

Narayan is the latest Minister to be infected by the coronavirus after state Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai tested positive for the disease on September 16 and state Food and Civil Supplies Minister K. Gopalaiah on September 15.

Bommai, 61, is under home quarantine, while Gopalaiah, 57, has been admitted to a private hospital in the city though both are asymptomatic.

Gopalaiah is also a lawmaker from the Mahalakshmi Layout Assembly segment in the city's northwest suburb. He defected from the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) in July 2019 and joined the BJP in November 2019.

The state legislature secretariat has directed all legislators, including Ministers to undertake Covid test by Friday and informed them that only those whose results are negative would be allowed to attend the 8-day session.

The secretariat made it mandatory for all officials, security personnel and media persons attending the session to take the test by Saturday to ensure they are virus free to enter the Assembly and the Council.

Urban Development Minister Byrathi Basavaraj tested Covid positive and was admitted to a private hospital in the city on September 14.

Basavaraj, 56, is the legislator from the K.R. Puram Assembly segment in the city's eastern suburb.

"As the ministers under treatment are required to be under quarantine for at least 14 days, they are likely to miss the ensuing legislative session.

State Animal Husbandry Minister Prabhu Chauhan also tested positive for the coronavirus on September 9 at Bidar in the state's northern region.

Early this month, state Labour Minister Shivaram Hebbar tested positive on September 5 and has been in home quarantine for treatment at Yellapur in Uttara Kannada district in the state's northwest coastal region.

Besides state Chief Minister B.S. Yeddiyurappa, half-a-dozen Ministers, including B.R. Sriramulu (Health), C.T. Ravi (Tourism), Shashikala Jolle (Women and Child Development), K.S. Eshwarappa (Rural Development), Anand Singh (Forests & Environment) and S.T. Somashekar (Cooperation) tested for the virus and were discharged after they recovered over the last one month.

Opposition Congress leader Siddaramaiah, his party's state unit president D.K. Shivakumar and scores of lawmakers of the BJP, Congress and Janata Dal-Secular were affected by the virus and recovered after treatment since July.

Party's newly elected Rajya Sabha member Ashok Gasti succumbed to the virus on Thursday a fortnight after he was admitted to a private hospital in the city.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
The NIA conducted simultaneous raids at multiple locations in Ernakulam and Murshidabad early morning today

KOCHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday arrested nine Al-Qaeda operatives during the raids conducted at multiple locations in Murshidabad, West Bengal and Ernakulam, Kerala. Six were held from Murshidabad while three were arrested from Ernakulam.

The NIA team conducted the raids on Saturday early morning and picked the terrorists associated with Pakistan sponsored module of Al-Qaeda.

Terrorists arrested from Ernakulam are Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas and Mosaraf Hossen. They were picked from Mudikkal near Perumbavoor in Ernakulam district where they have been staying among migrant workers. According to reports they have been working in the area for long.

The arrested terrorists will be produced before the concerned Courts in Kerala and West Bengal for police custody and further investigation.

According to the press release by the NIA, the agency had learnt about an inter-state module of Al-Qaeda operatives at various locations in India including West-Bengal and Kerala. The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds. Accordingly, NIA registered a case and initiated investigation.

Large quantity of incriminating materials, including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession.

As per preliminary investigation, these individuals were radicalised by Pakistan-based Al-Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including capital city. For this purpose, the module was actively indulging in fund raising and a few members of gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country.

Those arrested from West Bengal are Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman.
Chennai, Sep 19 : The Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation (TNSDC) on Saturday said it has partnered with leading online learning platform Coursera to train 50,000 unemployed youth during the Covid-19 crisis.

The partnership is part of Coursera's global roll-out of the "Workforce Recovery Initiative", where any state and country can provide unemployed workers with free access to online learning.

TNSDC is making 4,000 courses on Coursera available to 50,000 unemployed youths across the state through this partnership.

"Tamil Nadu has been taking various initiatives to build a skilled workforce that companies around the world find attractive to employ," V Vishnu, Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation, said in a statement.

"The present pandemic induced slowdown is an opportunity for students and graduates seeking jobs as well as professionals who are aspiring for a career growth, to equip themselves in future skills," he said.

The programme aims to develop high-demand skills like data science, Cloud computing, Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence, and the Internet of Things (IoT).

It will also include access to highly sought after professional certificates like the Google IT Support Professional Certificate, designed to train people with no tech background for IT jobs.

"Employability and skilling is a major challenge around the world, and Covid-19 has made it worse," said Jeff Maggioncalda, CEO Coursera.

"We are honoured to partner with the State of Tamil Nadu, known for its innovative policies and rich talent pool, during a crucial phase of employment recovery." Learners can enrol in the courses offered through the initiative by October 31, and will have access until the end of the year to complete the courses.
Former Macomb County prosecutor Eric Smith was arraigned Friday on a federal obstruction charge, though he has already agreed to plead guilty to it.

Smith, 53, of Macomb County, appeared remotely by Zoom video in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Anthony Patti with his two attorneys, Marty Crandell and John Dakmak, at a conference-room table.

A not-guilty plea was entered, but Smith last week stated he will plead guilty to the charge for trying to get potential witnesses to lie for him regarding his alleged illegal use of $75,000 in campaign finance funds.

Smith agreed to a probable sentence of between 15 to 21 months in prison. The two sides were unable to agree on a fine, which could be up to $250,000, though Smith agreed to pay $70,000 in restitution.

A plea hearing date was not set.

During the 10-minute hearing, Smith provided brief replies to questions from Patti.

Smith was arraigned on the information by Patti and waived his right for a grand jury to indict him. He also waived his right to appear in person.

He is free on an unsecured $10,000 bond.

Patti ordered Smith to give up his certified pistol license and must turn in any firearms to federal officials by next Friday.

While on bond, he cannot leave the state unless approved by Pretrial Services or the magistrate or judge, Patti said.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Bullotta and Robert Moran also attended.

U.S. Attorneys on Sept. 9 revealed allegations that Smith told two assistant prosecutors and a friend to lie when questioned by federal authorities about his use of campaign funds.

Smith devised a scheme in January 2012 to steal money from his campaign fund by false pretenses, according to U.S. attorneys. Over the next seven years, he wrote checks totaling $55,000 from the campaign fund account to be paid to his friend, known as Person A, supposedly for rent payments of the friends Shelby Township office for Sunset Homes, that was being used for Smiths campaign.

But instead of being used to pay for rent, authorities said, the checks were cashed at Person As bank and the full amount was kicked back to Smith for his personal use. Smith later asked that individual to tell federal investigators the money returned to Smith was actually a loan he intended to repay.

After learning he was under federal investigation, Smith in February met with Assistant Macomb Prosecutor Josh Van Laan in a stairwell of the county Administration Building. He asked Van Laan to lie to investigators by saying he had conducted campaign-related research at the Sunset office to justify the purported campaign rent payments, authorities said.

Van Laan notified law enforcement officials. Van Laan is not the subject of a criminal investigation.

In another alleged scheme, Smith earlier in February met with another one of his employees, Assistant Macomb Prosecutor Paul Bukowski, also in a stairwell. Smith had Bukowski help create a fake contract with a consultant company, Code Red Political Consulting, to justify $20,000 that Smith stole in 2016 from his campaign fund, authorities said. Of the $20,000, Smith gave Bukowski $5,000 and kept the remaining $15,000 for his personal use, records show.

Bukowski has not been criminally charged but was suspended with pay Monday by the county and is under investigation for discipline up to termination.

Smith also faces criminal allegations by state Attorney General Dana Nessel that he illicitly spent $600,000 from a slush fund he maintained in obscure forfeiture accounts from 2012 to 2018. Nessel says Smith spent money on personal expenses or items to benefit him instead of for law enforcement purposes as required.

He was charged last March with 10 felonies, including five counts of embezzlement by a public official, and one count each of operation of a criminal enterprise, official misconduct in office, tampering with evidence in a civil proceeding, accessory after the fact and conspiracy to commit forgery. The most serious offense is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

Smith, who served nearly four four-year terms, resigned three days after his state arraignment.

Two former top assistant prosecutors also were charged in the case around the same time.

Ben Liston, who retired in 2018 as chief of staff, was originally charged with four felonies  two counts of embezzlement by a public official, both 10-year offenses, and one count each of conducting a criminal enterprise, a 20-year offense, and misconduct in office, which carries a five-year sentence.

On Thursday, Liston pleaded guilty to three misdemeanors and agreed to a two-month jail sentence in exchange for his testimony against Smith. He admitted to being reimbursed for the purchase of laptop computers, sound equipment and travel expenses to a second home in Arizona.

Listons sentence will take place following the resolution of Smiths case.

Suspended Assistant Macomb Prosecutor Derek Miller has been charged with misconduct in office and conspiracy to commit a legal act in an illegal manner, both punishable by up to five years in prison. Miller, until his suspension, had been chief of operations for two years.

Also charged is Macomb Township businessman William Weber, who allegedly supplied a security system for Smiths home. He faces charges of forgery, a 14-year felony, as well as larceny by conversion in an amount of $20,000 or more, aiding and abetting Smiths alleged embezzlement by a public official, and receiving and concealing stolen property, all 10-year offenses.

Smith, Miller and Weber face an Oct. 9 probable-cause conference in 41B District Court in Clinton Township.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : Al Qaeda terrorists, who were nabbed early Saturday by NIA teams from Kerala and West Bengal, had plans to travel to Jammu and Kashmir for weapons delivery along with home-made explosives for their other associates even as they continued to take orders from their Pakistan-based handlers, NIA officials said on Saturday.

The revelations came as the NIA busted the inter-state terror module after it carried out searches at multiple locations in Murshidabad and Ernakulum. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested nine Al Qaeda terrorists -- three from Kerala and six from West Bengal.

The Qaeda men have been identified as Murshid Hassan, Yakoob Bishwas and Morshraf Hussien, all three residents of Ernakulam. They were picked up from Kochi. While Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman, were all residents of Murshidabad.

These men were from diverse walks of life from second year graduate student to farmer, tailor, cook, electrician, computer science graduate.

Those arrested from Kerala were also originally from West Bengal. A man who was staying in the same building as Hassan, said the men came to stay on rent during the pandemic-induced lockdown.

An NIA official related to the probe told IANS, "These terrorists were planning to go to Kashmir for weapons delivery to their handlers." They had amassed potassium nitrate from firecrackers bought in large amount.

"During the raids the agency got huge cache of firecrackers. They bought the firecrackers to hide procurement of huge amount of potassium required to make the IEDs," a senior NIA official related to the probe told IANS.

The official said that the arrested were touch in with their Pakistan based handler Hamza. They planned attack on several vital installation in Delhi-NCR and other parts of the country with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds.

The agency has registered a case on September 11. "NIA also recovered the crude IEDs along with the switches, batteries etc from terrorist Sufiyan's residential premises in Murshidabad," the official said.

The official said that Hassan was the main leader of the terror module. The NIA also recovered sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices from their possession.

Kerala Police discovered that Hussien was in Kerala for the past one decade and was working in a textile shop at Perumbavoor, near Aluva. While Hassan started to live in Kerala since the beginning of the nationwide lockdown.

According to NIA officials, Hassan was casual labourer, Bishwas was sales man in garments shop, Hussein was a cook, Rahman has been pursuing graduation and is a second year arts student, Sufiyan is engaged in farming and was a tailor earlier, Ahmed is an electrician in a college, Mondal is a cook, Sakib is pursuing graduation in computer science and Mamun is a mason and also a driver.

(Anand Singh can be contacted at anand.s@ians.in)
A Kildare school was forced to close yesterday after several students tested positive for Covid-19.

The HSE advised the school on Thursday that following a risk assessment, it was recommending that students and staff remain home as it investigates the outbreak.

"Following today's risk assessment we recommend that the school would close while the investigation is ongoing," the HSE said in a letter to the school principal.

"We will keep in regular contact with you as the results of further testing come through."

Social Democrats councillor Nuala Killeen said there had been several positive cases.

"Any student that develops symptoms is advised to contact their GP to seek a test. In the interim and in line with procedure all identified close contacts are advised to restrict their movements," she said.

"Wishing all the students and educators a speedy recovery."

Tested

Meanwhile, new figures show there have been 142 positive cases of Covid-19 in schools since they reopened, the HSE has confirmed.

More than 2,000 schoolchildren and teachers have been tested so far.

The confirmed cases are from 99 schools across the country.

Separately, concerns have been raised following reports that teachers who would be marked as close contacts by the HSE Covid Tracker app are now having that status removed and not being advised to isolate or seek testing.

Sinn Fein education spokesperson Donnchadh O Laoghaire has raised the issue with the Government and is awaiting a response.

"Teachers are just as susceptible to Covid-19 as any other user of the Covid Tracker app," he said.

"It cannot be that there is one rule for the public, and another rule for teachers.

"Surely, a close contact is a close contact, regardless of profession. It is completely unfair to have lower standards for school staff."

As Dublin enters lockdown this weekend, universities in the capital are to carry out most teaching online and suspend all on-campus club activities.

All universities have agreed to set measures, with students having limited access to college campuses. Some on-campus elements of orientation will still go ahead for first year students but will be staggered.

Libraries will remain open but will be subjected to social distancing protocols."
Om Birla says it pained him that Lok Sabha did not run smoothly during Monsoon session

Farm Bills face Rajya Sabha test today: How the numbers stack up

India

oi-Deepika S

New Delhi, Sep 19: The government has reached out to few "friendly" opposition parties in the Rajya Sabha as it gears up to table the contentious farm bills in the Upper House tomorrow.

While the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance is yet to have a clear majority of its own in the 245-member Rajya Sabha, many regional parties have backed it for the last several sessions to ensure passage of various legislations proposed by the government.

BJP leaders expressed confidence that they will get the support of over 130 members, including nine of the AIADMK, and seven of the TRS and six of the YSR Congress -- all three of whom are not part of the ruling alliance, if a division of votes is sought on these bills.

The BJP has the highest tally with 86 seats, followed by 40 of the Congress.

The three members of the SAD are sure to vote against the bills, but Shiv Sena, a former BJP ally and now in opposition, has expressed it support for these bills. The Maharashtra party has three members in Rajya Sabha.

Farm bill: BJP 'maliciously distorted Congress manifesto, says Chidambaram

Several other regional parties, including three-member Aam Aadmi Party, Samajwadi Party with eight seats, and BSP with four, have joined the opposition's ranks in protest against these bills but it may not prove enough to hinder their passage.

A number count of parties that have come out against these draft legislations suggests that there are as of now nearly 100 MPs opposing them. There is no clarity about the stand of some small parties which have around a dozen members put together.

Since the Modi government assumed office for its second time in 2019, its rivals have not been able to scuttle any of its major bills due to a rise in the ranks of treasury benches and a corresponding fall in the opposition ranks.

The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill were passed by Lok Sabha on Thursday, while the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill was passed on Tuesday.

These bills seek to replace ordinances already promulgated by the government.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday arrested nine persons following raids in West Bengal and Kerala for allegedly planning a terror conspiracy and being part of an al-Qaeda module. After preliminary questioning, the NIA has learnt that Delhi, Bangalore and Bihar were on the suspected operatives targets. Officials told News18 that the plan was to carry out a blast or targeted killings at these locations but lockdown had delayed their plans.

NIA sources also told News18 that the module was being guided by a Pakistan-based online handler and was involved in active planning of conducting terrorist strikes/targeted killings in the near future."

NIA officials claim that the suspected terror operatives were collecting funds for procuring sophisticated arms and ammunition. They were about to finalise the deal and receive the arms consignment from Delhi. They were aiming to execute terrorist strikes immediately upon receipt of these weapons," an official told News18.

As per NIAs investigation, the group is headed by Murshid Hasan, who was arrested from Keralas Ernakulam. Hasan, according to the NIA, was inspired by al-Qaedas ideology and involved in raising and collecting funds for the procurement of arms with the intention to commit terrorist activities. The central investigation agency claimed that he was living in Kerala as a migrant labourer but was using that as cover to recruit and radicalize individuals.

He posts radical jihadi videos on social media, speaks about killing infidels without any excuse," an officer told News18.

NIA, during the raids at Hasans premises, recovered digital devices which allegedly show that he was in contact with a Pakistani handler named Hamza through encrypted platforms. Hasan remained in touch with Hamza through encrypted communication platforms. He was reportedly planning to visit Thanda Ilqa i.e. Kashmir where Hamzas contact was to deliver arms and ammunition to him. However, due to the lockdown, this could not materialise and the place of delivery was shifted to Delhi," a source aware of the investigation said.

Officials allege that Hasan, along with a few of his gang members, were planning to travel to Delhi to execute the terror conspiracy but NIA was able to thwart their attempts on time.

The second most important member of their group, according to NIA, is Mosaraf Hoseen, a close confidant of Murshid Hasan. NIA sources allege that Hoseen was involved in raising funds and was also in charge of logistical arrangements like scheduling meetings and figuring routes for the purchase of arms. He was planning to purchase weapons from across the border in Bangladesh for Rs 1 lakh for the purpose of jihadist activities," the officer alleged.

Other suspected members of the group are Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ansary, Najmus Sakib, Iyakub Biswas, Abu Sufiyan, Atitur Rehman and Al Mamun Kamal.

The NIA source alleged that Mondal had contributed Rs 10,000 for the purpose of buying arms and was involved in planning and procurement of arms and ammunition from across the border in Bangladesh.

Leu Yean Ansary procured country-made weapons which were recovered from him by NIA. A self-fabricated armour jacket has also been recovered from him, the source said. Najmus Sakib has been accused by NIA of being highly radicalized and further radicalizing youth through jihadi ideology. He, too, was allegedly communicating with other group members regarding the procurement of arms and ammunition. Iyakub Biswas was arrested from Kerala, and has been accused of helping with recruitment and radicalising others, the source added.

Abu Sufiyan and Atitur Rehman, both residents of Murshidabad, West Bengal were purportedly involved in furthering the jihadist activities of the group. The source alleged that Sufiyan was planning to establish a shed for explosives and during the search of his house. Al Mamun Kamal is another suspected West Bengal-based member of the operative. He allegedly provided a secure venue for a fundraising meeting in his house for the group members, the source said.
Google's event on September 30 won't all be just about the Pixel 5 and Pixel 4a 5G, as we're also expecting a new Nest smart speaker to make an appearance, as well as the long leaked Android TV streaming stick/dongle codenamed Sabrina.

Think of this like an Android TV box, but in dongle form. Or a Chromecast dongle that runs Android TV. And comes with a remote control, and access to the full suite of Android TV apps, of course. Here are some newly outed official-looking images of it.



Google's HDMI stick with remote

By the way, according to the source of this leak, Google will once again rebrand Android TV - taking it back to the Google TV name it used to have before it was rebranded to Android TV. If you're confused, don't worry - so are we. But we gave up trying to understand Google's naming strategy a long time ago.

The new streaming stick will be powered by an Amlogic S905X2 SoC, which has a quad-core Cortex-A53 CPU and Mali-G31MP2 GPU. It's unclear how much RAM and storage Google's device will get, but for smooth operation we're hoping to see at least 2GB and 16GB, respectively. In fact, a previous rumor did mention 2GB of RAM.

The remote control is minimalist as you can see, but still finds the room to fit dedicated buttons for Netflix and YouTube, with the former undoubtedly being paid for by the eponymous streaming service. You also get a Google Assistant button, of course, as with all Android TV remotes, which have voice control. The volume buttons are oddly on the side of the remote, as if it's a smartphone or something. This is a weird design decision, considering how much empty space is left at the bottom of the remote's front fascia.

Source (in German)
London Fashion Week talent Molly Goddard, the designer famous for creating Killing Eve's Villanelle's frou-frou pink tulle gown, has designed a capsule collection for Californian footwear label UGG.

Known for her love of maximalist silhouettes and bold colour, Goddard has applied her frothy, fun aesthetic to three classic UGG styles; the classic boot, to which she added floral applique; the slipper, which she's reworked in a hot pink fluff with pointy toe; and the platform, which now come extra vertiginous in an array of bold hues - from apple green to magenta and fuchsia.

We wanted to make something bold and colourful, to play with the UGG DNA, said Molly Goddard, Working with UGG gave me the opportunity to explore new fabrications and ways of working. The outcome is shoes that are wearable, fun, with a much-needed sense of humour and I think still very elegant!

Molly Goddard x UGG (Jason Lloyd Evans)

Founded in 1978 by an Australian surfer on the coast of California, UGG has in recent months seen its status elevated thanks to the launch of its Fluff Yeah slides which everybody from Gigi Hadid to Kylie Jenner has worn recently.

Molly Goddard x UGG (Jason Lloyd Evans)

The brand has also just announced an upcoming collaboration with New York-based brand of the moment, Telfar.

Goddard showed her SS21 collection via YouTube as part of London Fashion Week.

Molly Goddard x UGG (Jason Lloyd Evans) / Jason Lloyd-Evans

London Fashion Week kicked off yesterday with a mixture of both physical and digital shows.

The Spring/Summer 2021 UGG x Molly Goddard collaboration will be available for purchase from March 2021.
Donald Trump once said Covid-19 might be a good thing because it would stop him from having to shake hands with disgusting people, according to a former top adviser to US vice president Mike Pence.

Olivia Troye, who served on the White House coronavirus task force, is the latest ex-member of the Trump administration to urge US voters to stop him winning a second term.

In a video released by the group Republican Voters Against Trump, Ms Troye said working with the president was terrifying and claimed he was more concerned about re-election than protecting the nation from the virus.

Ms Troye alleges that, during one task force meeting she attended, the president said: Maybe this Covid thing is a good thing. I dont like shaking hands with people. I dont have to shake hands with these disgusting people.

She said: Those disgusting people are the same people that he claims to care about. These are the people still going to his rallies today who have complete faith in who he is. The truth is he doesnt actually care about anyone else but himself.

Ms Troye, who was Mr Pences homeland security adviser, added: If the president had taken this virus seriously, or if he had actually made an effort to tell how serious it was, he would have slowed the virus spread, he would have saved lives.

Asked about her comments he left the White House for a campaign rally in Wisconsin, Mr Trump said he had no idea who she is. She worked for the vice president. She was on the task force as some kind of a lower-level person. I have no idea who she is, he told reporters.

I never met her to the best of my knowledge. Maybe she was in a room. I have no idea who she is. She doesnt know me. Its just another person that leaves, and whether its CNN or Washington Post, they say negative things.

Despite claiming he had no idea who she is, Mr Trump also claimed he had been told about the most beautiful going away letter written by Ms Troye.

Olivia Troye speaks out against Trump in new video (Republican Voters Against Trump / YouTube)

She wrote a beautiful letter as I understand it, a letter praising the administration, Mr Trump said. But then the people get a hold of her and say: Lets say some bad things about Donald Trump.

The White House adamantly denied the remarks Ms Troye described to the president, with White House spokesperson Judd Deere saying her assertions have no basis in reality and are flat-out inaccurate.

A lifelong Republican, Ms Troye said she plans to vote for the Democratic challenger, Joe Biden, in Novembers presidential election.

The White House adamantly denied the remarks Ms Troye ascribed to the president, with White House spokesperson Judd Deere saying her assertions have no basis in reality and are flat-out inaccurate.

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Mr Pence said he had not read her comments, but said it sounded like one more disgruntled employee that has decided to play politics during election year.

Mr Trump told journalist Bob Woodward in recorded interviews that he intentionally downplayed the virus in public comments even though he was fully aware of the danger it posed. He is also a self-described germophobe and denounced the practice of shaking hands before he ran for office.

A lifelong Republican, Ms Troye said she plans to vote for the Democratic challenger, Joe Biden, in Novembers presidential election.

She joins a growing list of former Trump officials backing the Democrat, which includes Miles Taylor, former chief of staff at the Department of Homeland Security, and former White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci.
The Rajasthan government has started the process of legalising mining in Banshi Pahadpur area of Bandh Banetha wildlife sanctuary in Bharatpur district from where stones are being sent to Ayodhya for building Ram temple. This comes days after seers in Ayodhya warned the Congress of facing peoples wrath if the supply of stones from Rajasthan slows down.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in the Bhoomi Pujan ceremony for Ram temple in Ayodhya on August 5, 2020, seven months after the Supreme Court resolved the Ram Janambhoomi dispute in Ayodhya and allowed the constructed of the temple. The temple is to be constructed in three years.

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad, which has been sourcing stones from Banshi Pahadpur for some time now, had complained of supply getting stalled because of a crackdown on September 6 and 7 by Bharatpur district administration. The district administration had claimed the stones were being illegally mined from Banshi Pahadpur, a forest block in the north-east corner of the wildlife sanctuary.

The state government will send a proposal to the ministry of environment and forest (MoEF) by the end of this month for denotification of the forest land to legalise mining there (Banshi Pahadpur). This will provide employment to people and the state will earn revenue, said additional chief secretary of mines department, Subodh Agarwal.

Also read: Covid-19 - Red tape delays Bihar CMs Rs 4 lakh ex-gratia to kin of deceased

The Bharatpur collector is working on the proposal. We should be able to prepare the report in a few days; and then after the state approvals, the proposal will be sent to Centre, he said.

According to the state mines department, until December 1996, around 42 legal mines of pink, red and yellow sandstone operated in the Banshi Pahadpur forest area. The Supreme Court, by its order on December 12, 1996, prohibited non-forest activities in forest areas without diversion under section 2 of the Forest Act, 1980.

Later when the concept of eco-sensitive zone was introduced, again by the apex court, mining was banned within one km of boundary of wildlife sanctuaries and national parks.

The MoEF mandated environment clearance for mines from June 1, 2016. These developments led to the closure of legal mines in the area but the famous pink stone continued to be mined illegally, said forest officials.

The pink and yellow sandstone is in high demand. Illegal mining activity in the area feeds processing units in the district. The district administration takes action against illegal mining randomly, said Bharatpur collector Nathmal Didel.

On September 6-7, joint teams of forest, mines, and police departments seized 27 trucks full of stones. Each of these trucks had 5-8 blocks of stone. We have sent notices to owners of these trucks as part of process for confiscation under the Rajasthan Forest Act, 1953, said Mohit Gupta, deputy conservator of forest in Bharatpur. He said the forest produce the stones in this case  will also be confiscated.

According to mines department officials, each of the blocks seized during the crackdown weighed more than 1,000 kilograms and cost around Rs 50,000 in the local market. Gupta said earlier the department caught tractors during action against illegal mining but the use of trucks to transport stone is a recent phenomenon in this forest area.

Narpat Singh Shekhawat, central joint secretary and Rajasthan president of Vishwa Hindu Parishad, said there is enough stock of the Banshi Pahadpur stone in Ayodhya for building one storey of the temple.

Also read: Malicious actors trying to exploit digital payment platforms - NSA Doval

We will talk to the state government to find a way out if mining activity continues to be hit in Bharatpur, he said, adding the Ram temple is being built with the sandstone from Banshi Pahadpur because of its unique colour and texture.

The VHP and seers of Ayodhya on Saturday welcomed the Rajasthan governments decision and said the decision would fasten Ram temple construction.

Earlier this week, saints of Ayodhya and the VHP had warned the Rajasthan government to resolve mining issue in Bansi Paharpur else be prepared for a nationwide stir. Any obstruction in supply of stones by the Rajasthan government will be construed as another ploy by the Congress party to stop the construction work of Ram mandir, said Sharad Sharma, regional spokesperson, VHP, who operates from Karsevakpuram, Ayodhya.

The Rajasthan governments decision to make mining legal in Bansi Paharpur is commendable, said Sharma and added that the Rajasthan governments decision will ensure a steady supply of stones for Ram mandir.

Mahant Kamal Nayan Das, successor designate to Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, chairman of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, also welcomed the Rajasthan governments decision.

The Rajasthan government has taken a wise decision. Lord Ram belongs to everyone. So, everyone must help in the construction of Ram mandir, said Das.

The temple trust, on September 11, had started the piling work for testing foundation - pillars for the Ram temple in Ayodhya. Around 1,200 pillars will be laid about 100 feet below the surface to prepare the temples foundation. In technical terms, this process is called piling. From around October 15, after all the testing work is done, remaining pillars will be laid.

Bandh Banetha, spread across 198 square kilometres, was notified as a wildlife sanctuary in 1985. Local traders said mining has been going on in the forest area since the 1960s. Bharatpur and Dholpur are famous for red sandstone; the stone in Banshi Pahadpur has a pink shade, which makes it more beautiful and it is also stronger, said a trader requesting anonymity.
Police forces are suffering from diminishing ranks, slumping morale and declining public support as the nation nears the end of a long, fraught summer defined by protests against policing tactics and racial injustice.

Agency leaders and experts say the months of demonstrations have left officers strained and departments struggling to both recruit officers and keep the ones they have. The Portland Police Bureau in Oregon lost 49 officers to retirement in August, more than during all of 2019. The Atlanta Police Department, which became the focus of protests after a police shooting this summer, said about 140 officers have resigned so far this year, up from 80 during the same period last year.

"Our workforce in general is pretty emotionally and physically fatigued," said William H. "Skip" Holbrook, the police chief in Columbia, S.C.

Weary officers were further shaken by the Sept. 12 ambush shooting of two Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies as they sat in a police car. One is still hospitalized while the other has been released.

After the shooting, Sheriff Alex Villanueva said that critics of police need to "stop fanning the flames of hatred." Officials have not identified a potential suspect or motive in the attack.

There has been no spike in fatal shootings of police this year, and deaths in the line of duty have declined since the 1970s. But officials say an attack on an officer resonates everywhere, and the coronavirus pandemic has only added to the toll on police.

Combined with the surge in nationwide demonstrations and calls to defund their departments, police in the United States say they feel under siege.

"The police feel really . . . pushed into a corner," said Chuck Wexler, executive director of Police Executive Research Forum, which works with police agencies.

"The George Floyd incident was a defining moment in the country," he said. "But for policing, every day putting on that uniform, and having to respond to people thinking . . . 'Are they a good cop or are they a bad cop?' And that's difficult to live with."

This summer also brought a string of high-profile videos of police violence, including the footage of Floyd begging for air beneath an officer's knee and the recording of a Kenosha, Wis., officer firing into Jacob Blake's back. A wave of videos in between captured police using force on demonstrators both peaceful and destructive.

Public opinion on policing has shifted. In a survey this summer, the Pew Research Center found that while most Americans still believe police do an excellent or a good job protecting people from crime, the percentage of people who think they use the right amount of force, treat racial groups equally and hold officers accountable for misconduct all fell by double-digit points since 2016.

Amid the spate of viral videos of police violence, declining public faith in law enforcement could have an impact on how well officers can police communities, said Dennis Kenney, a professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice and a former police officer.

"The police are in a precarious position, where their ability to be effective is dependent on the willingness of the public to . . . collaborate with police," he said. "It's not so much that people no longer fear the police, which is what the law and order argument is. It's that they no longer trust the police."

Being filmed by bystanders is now the norm, some police say. Officers with the Ann Arbor Police Department in Michigan have reported that drivers pass police cars with a middle finger raised or shouting profanities, according to Lt. Mike Scherba, who leads the department's special services section.

"It's kind of different now," he said. "I think people are maybe a little more brazen about doing things like that to show their displeasure with law enforcement."

Activists and advocates for police reform say fundamental change is needed in how law enforcement operates, including calls to slash funding.

"In the Ferguson period, the talk was how do we change police," Wexler said. "In the George Floyd period, it's how do we do without the police."

These issues have become a significant part of the presidential campaign, as President Trump has touted his support for police, denounced Black Lives Matter protesters as "agitators and thugs" and sought to highlight unrest in big cities. Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, has said he believes most police officers are good and called for policing overhauls, including linking federal funding to agencies' adoption of use-of-force policies and body-worn cameras.

After the Los Angeles deputies were shot, Trump tweeted: "Animals that must be hit hard!" In a statement, Biden condemned the shooting and called violence against police "unacceptable, outrageous, and entirely counterproductive to the pursuit of greater peace and justice in America."

Phillip Atiba Goff, co-founder and chief executive of the Center for Policing Equity, called the shooting horrifying and said "high profile ambush-style assaults on law enforcement make it harder" for discussions of reform to happen, since they can leave police feeling even more under attack.

"It heightens the foxhole mentality that many law enforcement are feeling right now," he said.

Najee Ali, a prominent community activist in Los Angeles, said he saw the accusations on social media that rhetoric from critics of the police was to blame for the shooting.

"The only thing we've tried to do is hold law enforcement accountable. . . . we are not anti-law enforcement," said Ali, adding that he brought flowers and balloons to the hospital for the injured deputies. "We support law enforcement. We are simply anti-law enforcement police abuse and police shooting of unarmed people."

That shooting came a few months after an Air Force sergeant was charged with murder and accused of fatally shooting a federal security officer near an Oakland, Calif., courthouse. He has also been charged with killing a Santa Cruz County sheriff's deputy. The FBI said he was a supporter of the "boogaloo" movement seeking to overthrow the government and, authorities alleged, sought to use racial-justice protests in Oakland as a cover for the attack near the courthouse.

So far this year, 37 officers in the line of duty have been fatally shot, compared to 35 at the same point last year, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, which tracks line-of-duty deaths. (In a report on the first six months of the year, the fund found that most of the fatal shootings of officers occurred while they were investigating reports of suspicious people or activities, trying to arrest someone or responding to a domestic disturbance call.)

The coronavirus pandemic has posed a far greater mortal threat to police this year, killing at least 102 officers, more than gunfire, car crashes and other causes combined, according to preliminary data from the memorial fund.

But some big cities are also facing an increase in gun violence, which police say creates its own risks. In Chicago, which has seen an increase in murders, David Brown, the police superintendent, said officers were "taking guns off the street at great risk to our personal safety."

Brown said 65 police officers had been shot at, and 10 of them struck, so far this year. "There's not a comparable year," Brown said during a briefing Monday. "That's five times any previous year that anyone can recall in this city."

"We're risking everything," he said.

Public distrust of police is not new in many communities of color. About 7 in 10 officers in police departments in 2016 were White, according to Justice Department data, with smaller departments likely to have even larger shares of White officers. The percentage of Black officers, meanwhile, has remained essentially even at about 11 percent between 1997 and 2016.

Capt. Aaron McCraney of the Los Angeles Police Department, who oversees its hiring and recruiting, said he and Michel Moore, the police chief, are focused on recruiting women and African American officers. But, he said, recruiting Black officers is particularly challenging because of the public distrust.

"Anyone who gets hired on this department is going to go through me," said McCraney, who is Black. "It's important as an African American to be in this position and to be able to have that kind of impact. If I'm not here to do that, then who is?"

Departments are also struggling to keep officers in place as well as to recruit.

"Most places would report difficulty in hiring and retaining police officers," said Holbrook, the chief in Columbia, the South Carolina capital. "The environment surrounding law enforcement in the last five years in particular has . . . given people pause, that [this] may not be the profession for them."

The New York Police Department, the country's largest local force, said that between the beginning of March and this week, more than 1,600 officers retired and more than 1,800 filed for retirement, both significantly up from the same period last year.

In Minneapolis, at least 100 officers have left the department since Floyd's death in May, accounting for more than 10 percent of the force, according to Chief Medaria Arradondo. That number is expected to increase as the city makes its way through medical claims filed by officers who say they are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or other injuries resulting from the protests.

In a public meeting Tuesday with the Minneapolis City Council, Arradondo said the retirements have come amid a wave of violence since Floyd's death. Nearly 400 people have been shot across the city and more than 50 killed so far this year - the highest numbers in five years, with most of the incidents reported in the nearly four months since Floyd's Memorial Day death.

Several city council members questioned the police responses in Minneapolis and whether officers were deliberately not responding to incidents, citing reports from constituents who said their 911 calls often went unanswered or that officers told them they lacked resources to stop crime.

"Rank and file officers on the street are telling them that they are not enforcing crime," said Lisa Bender, the president of the city council who represents an area of South Minneapolis, suggesting that officers were trying to make a political point.

Arradondo has denied that police are pulling back and said he would investigate the claims presented at the meeting.

- - -

The Washington Post's Holly Bailey in Minneapolis contributed to this report.
Keralas migrant camps and how terrorists from Bengal use it to their benefit

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 19: Three of the nine persons arrested by the National Investigation Agency in connection with an Al-Qaeda module case are from Kerala.

Al Qaeda operatives arrested from #Kerala & #WestBengal | Oneindia News

The NIA after receiving concrete information about the presence of an Al-Qaeda module arrested nine persons from West Bengal and Kerala. The NIA said that they were planning major attacks in the country and were in the process of procuring arms from the national capital.

The three who were arrested from Kerala are also from Bengal. They had settled among the migrant labour in the state. The Kerala police has kept a close watch on these migrant worker camps since there is a 20 lakh work force from other states which is engaged in construction, hotels and small scale units.

In August 2019, it came to light that one Ejaz Ahmed alias Taufique Raza, the emir of the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, Bangladesh was arrested. His team had persons outside Bengal and even set up modules in Bihar, Karnataka, Kerala. He had mainly targeted migrant labour in these places and roped several of them into the module, officials part of the investigation also said.

A statistic of 2013 showed that there were around 2.5 million migrant workers in Kerala. Most persons were eager to take in the migrants for work as the labour costs in Kerala is too high.

Also Read:

The migrants too prefer Kerala to earn their livelihood and annually they remit around Rs 18,000 crore back to their home states in Bengal, Assam, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh. Each one of them is paid Rs 300 as daily wages. This again is cheaper compared to what the locals charge in Kerala.

On March 16 2017, the Kerala police arrested seven Bangladeshi nationals employed at a plywood factory and charged them with illegal immigration. This is just one of the many cases that were reported from Kerala over the years where several lakhs of Bangladeshis live illegally.

It becomes important to discuss the Kerala scenario in the wake of an Intelligence Bureau report stating that there would be more influx of illegal immigrants into South India after the NRC was published by the Assam government. There are already reports that suggest that the touts in Kerala are already active and would look to facilitate the entry of more such persons into the state.

Officials say that the route into South India would be through Kerala, following which attempts would be made to infiltrate into the other southern states such as Telangana and Karnataka. They would be brought in as estate labour like has been done in the past officials say. In the midst of all this, there is also talk in Kodagu district, Karnataka, not to employe such persons until and unless they have a valid Indian citizenship document.

Kerala has always had an issue with migrant labour. There has been a high influx of migrant population from West Bengal and this has made it easy for the illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.

An official from Kerala tells OneIndia that the Bangladeshi's blend with the Bengali speaking population and there is no proper or effective mechanism to identify them.

Officials point out that the problem becomes harder to deal with as the population is a floating one. They move from one state to another with the help of touts and this makes it even harder to keep tabs on them.

Officials point out that the problem becomes harder to deal with as the population is a floating one. They move from one state to another with the help of touts and this makes it even harder to keep tabs on them.

Moreover illegal immigration from Bangladesh extended up to Kerala through the migration corridor. This corridor starting at Bangladesh connects to Kerala through Assam and West Bengal. The illegal immigrants also find Kerala to be a good place to live in as it has the country's highest wage rate in the unorganised sector. Further the chances of interceptions are less in Kerala and this has made the place even more ideal to be in.

The AAWAZ health insurance scheme too has come in handy for the illegal immigrants.

Data with the Ministry for Home Affairs states that, Kerala has issued nearly 62,000 registration cards to migrant workers. Moreover no real effort has gone in to sort out the illegal immigrants including Rohingyas from the migrants, officials in the Home Ministry tell OneIndia.

The IB had after the publication of the NRC had sounded an alert stating that more people from Assam could infiltrate into southern states. The respective state police have been told to keep a close watch on the borders and also track down touts who have been aiding illegal Bangladeshi immigrants. The alert is particularly high in states such as Karnataka, Odisha, Telangana and West Bengal.

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Story first published: Saturday, September 19, 2020, 13:43 [IST]
People in Bahrain rallied in their hundreds for a sixth straight night against the ruling regimes recent United States-enabled normalization with Israel.

AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): People in Bahrain rallied in their hundreds for a sixth straight night against the ruling regimes recent United States-enabled normalization with Israel.



Defying trigger-ready security forces, the protesters took to the streets throughout the kingdom on Thursday night, Bahrain's Lulu TV satellite channel reported.



They carried signs that read, Down with US and Israel and No to normalization with the occupying regime as well as placards that condemned any facilitation of the Israeli regimes intervention in the Persian Gulf region.



Others carried Palestinian flags, asserting that Manamas stance towards Tel Aviv and the ongoing favorable coverage of the rapprochement by some media outlets did not serve to represent the Bahraini publics opinion.



The protesters say they stand by the Palestinian nation and are against all instances of treachery targeting them such as acts of normalization with the occupying entity, the channel said.



Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates signed official agreements at the White House on Tuesday enabling full normalization of their relations with Israel. The deals had been announced by US President Donald Trump respectively earlier in September and last month.



During the event, Trump claimed five or six more Arab countries were poised to agree to follow suit.



"Were very far down the road with about five countries, five additional countries, Trump said as he was hosting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Emirati Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and Bahrain's FM Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani.



All Palestinian factions, Bahrains opposition groups, and numerous independent Muslim circles have roundly denounced the normalization trend as a stab in the back of the Palestinian nation and sheer betrayal of their cause of liberation from the Israeli occupation and aggression.



Observers say the wave of Arab-Israel detente serves to both woo the US-based Zionist lobbys votes for Trump in the upcoming presidential election and deflect attention from a political and legitimacy crisis that Netanyahu is grappling with.



.........................................................

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Through this fortnightly column, Tales From TJ Road, Bachi Karkaria tells the story of Mumbai's metromorphosis

Read more columns in this series here.

***

Flamingoing, Going, Gone?

Last week I was asked to sign a petition addressed to our young, woke environment minister, Aditya Uddhav Thackeray. It was an appeal from the cheesily named Ministry of Mumbais Magic to save the citys wrung-out wetlands, and thereby the flamingos. I happily added my signature. It wasnt the usual NIMBY Factor but a YIMBY one: Yes (I want these massed beauties) In My Backyard. As wave upon wave of flamingos arrive between January and March, my neighbouring mudflats splash out in flamboyant rani-pink. This surreal sight elevates what snobby Bombay pronounces Sewer-i. The other bank of the Thane Creek near Navi Mumbai is their first port of call usually after September, when their home in the Rann of Kutch starts drying.

Rahul Khot, flamingo expert of the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), tells me that, while the odd bird was spotted during the Raj, the migration proper is recent. In 1994, the spectacle of 2,000 Greater and Lesser Flamingos had stunned an MbPT official, TV Sowrirajan. The discovery was duly hailed in the BNHS journal, Hornbill. In the last decade, Lesser Flamingos have accounted for 75 percent of the population. In 2019, there were 1,54,000 at peak season.

You know what? These migratory birds have much in common with their human counterparts. Not the shaming columns of pandemic-abandoned workers trudging their long, weary way back to their home states, but those who had arrived here bright-eyed with hope a century and more ago to make a better life for themselves. In the process they had made Bombay; contributing to its glory as much if not much more than the sons of the soil so doughtily championed by Adityas grandfather. Most of these migrants had fueled the textile mills which spun gold for the city, earning it the crown of urbs prima in indis. And where were these mills concentrated? Right here in Parel, the hinterland of Sewri creek, seasonal home to the winged migrants.

Two, the early migrant workers had been driven to this mill-hub by the impoverishment of their Bihar/Uttar Pradesh villages; the migrant birds too had to fly west because of the depletion of their wetland homes in eastern India.

Three, the traders, craftsmen and entrepreneurs of 18th/19th century Bombay were originally from the hamlets of Gujarat; the Lesser Flamingo now migrates here from its home in the Rann of Kutch. The Greater Flamingo travels far greater distances from West Asia, Iran, Iraq, even South Africa

Four, just as human migrants came to Bombay to earn their daily bread, these wetlands are merely the flamingos feeding ground; both went/go home to breed. However, unlike the earlier mill-workers, the avian migrants bring their family of sub-adults back to the big city of better pickings.

Much before I came to live in Sewri, I would join the hundreds of flamingo-watchers flocking here at low tide, winding past the detritus of dockside industry, gingerly picking my way through the oil slicks and flotsam of plastic. These gorgeous birds determinedly returning to the increasing squalor became something of an article of faith, telling me that there must be something wondrous about this depressing part of the city that eluded us mortals, but was evident to the flamingos inner eye.

I have since dismissed that soppy bit of romanticism. I now know that organisms such as the blue-green algae  on which flamingoes feed  flourish in water with a high nitrogenous content, and the major source of that is untreated sewage. The death of the mills has forced its once-migrant workers into open-drain squalor, but thats just the just the kind of pollution in which the avian migrants thrive. The lockdown has been party time thanks to the greater output of domestic sewage.

I had hoped to add one last comparison: that just as gentrification had drastically changed the migrant-centric mill hubs, progress aka the Sewri-Nhava Sheva Trans Harbour Link would impact this flamingo habitat. But Mr Khot plays spoiler. He insists, More research is needed to conclude that the lights, clamour and vibrations of construction will have a negative impact. There were 40,000 birds just 100 metres from the bridge site. If there are fewer it could be that better rainfall in Kutch is keeping more of them at home there. Pollution is the main factor; the greater, the better for the flamingos food supply.

Whatever works for them is fine by me. I told you in my introductory column that I live in a complex called Dosti Flamingos which, according to Friend Namita, sounds like a Gay Nightclub. To borrow the title of the recent, rah-rah-ed book of Friend Parmesh Shahani, I dont want to lose my neighbouring splashy pink Queeristan of the Sewri wetlands.
The Indonesian government has set out a new rule; villagers who refuse to wear masks will be forced to dig graves for the victims of COVID-19.

This rule is being implemented in one part of rural Indonesia, as the government hopes that the rule will convince the public to do their part to help stop the spread of the virus in the country.

Grave-digging for COVID-19 deaths

On September 9, three middle-aged men and five minors in the Cerme district of Gresik Regency, East Jave, were the first ones to be given the unique punishment, according to authorities.

Though wearing a mask is mandatory in public throughout Indonesia, there have been a few of the population that is reluctant to wear masks and practice social distancing.

According to medical experts, the lack of public vigilance has made it more difficult for Indonesian authorities to stop the spread of the virus, which has infected almost 230,000 people in the country.

More than 160,000 of the patients have recovered from the virus, while 9,100 have died, according to the data shown by the Indonesian Health Ministry.

Also Read: China Says No Need to Vaccinate Entire Population, Only Frontliners

As the cases of coronavirus increased in the recent months, the government in Indonesia passed a law in July 2020 requiring everyone to wear masks in public but left it to local officials to determine punishments for noncompliance.

A joint team called the "three pillars," which consists of the Indonesian National Armed Forces, Indonesian National Police, and local law enforcement are now in charge of enforcing mask restrictions across the country.

Social punishment

In Cerme, the three pillars give those people caught not wearing a mask the option of accepting a fine of 150,000 rupiahs or $10 or accepting a "social punishment," according to Suyono, the district leader.

Suyono told the media that most people had accepted the social punishment set by the local government. Social punishment usually involves push-ups or cleaning, according to Insider.

However, he hopes options like grave-digging would be educational, and it can help show firsthand the real and serious effect of COVID-19.

Meanwhile, the authorities in the capital of Jakarta adopted a similar idea earlier this month. A man was required to sit in a coffin in public after he was caught not wearing a mask.

But it is not clear if these types of punishments have a positive effect, and if it did increase mask-wearing in the country.

Indonesia has failed to flatten the curve for months, and the infections are still on the rise. In Southeast Asia, the Philippines has recorded more cases.

On September 13, large-scale social restrictions were put in place in Jakarta; the second time authorities have been forced to do so since the pandemic began, according to USA Today.

With cases still increasing, the health infrastructure in the city is nearing a breaking point. The emergency units in all 20 Jakarta hospitals approved to treat COVID-19 patients are now full, according to the statement released by officials on September 14.

As there are still no signs of the cases going down, traveling is still prohibited in the country. The borders and the airports are still closed until further notice.

Related Article: Boris Johnson Announces "Rule of Six" COVID-19 Restrictions Set to Start this Week

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Embedded System Market Manufacturing Process, Leading Consumers and Forecast Report

Posted by Publisher Semiconductors

The global Embedded System Market research report provides complete insights on industry scope, global trends, regional estimates, key application, competitive landscape and financial performance of prominent players. It also offers ready, data-driven answers to several industry-level questions. This study enables numerous opportunities for the market players to invest in research and development.

Market Overview:

In 2013, the Embedded System Market was valued USD 140.32 billion and is predicted to reach USD 214.39 billion by 2020 growing at CAGR of 6.3% from 2014 to 2020. The increased investment in automation technologies and growth in sales of electronic devices are key factors that are expected to drive the market.

Key Players:

Altera Corporation

ARM Holdings

Atmel Corporation

Freescale Semiconductor

Infineon Technologies

Intel Corporation

Microchip Technology

Request free sample to get a complete analysis of top-performing companies @ https://www.millioninsights.com/industry-reports/embedded-system-market/request-sample

Growth Drivers:

The increased investment in automation technologies and growth in sales of electronic devices are key factors that are expected to drive the market. The use of embedded system has increased in many sectors. The Automotive industry is dominating among other industries. Embedded system is application-specific system that ensures accurate and desired functionality. The demand for devices such as smart electric meter is expected to propel the market.

The demand for smart meter has increased due to its capabilities such as sending accurate reading to suppliers and is expected to increase even more in forecast period. Technological advancement and availability of electronic components at low price will have positive impact on market. Embedded system has numerous applications in various fields; as a result the demand for systems is high. Besides, the demand from areas such as healthcare is expected to fuel market in next six years.

Product Outlook:

Embedded Hardware

Embedded Software

Application Outlook:

Automotive

Consumer Electronics

Healthcare

Industrial

Military and Aerospace

Telecommunication

Regional Insights:

In 2013, the North America was largest market and is expected to dominate in forecast period. Asia-pacific is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.7% from 2014 to 2020. The number of trained professional and Taiwan semiconductor manufacturing company (TSMC) is main reason for growth of industry in the region. The use of java in mobiles in-order to develop different applications and to control NFC will eventually boost the market.

Browse Related Category Research Reports @ https://blog.naver.com/tomclark
In a move that no one expected, the CEO of TikTok has appealed to Facebook and Instagram for help fighting its ban. As reported by The Verge, TikToks interim CEO, Vanessa Pappas has asked for public support from the aforementioned companies.

The story of TikToks ban just keeps twisting and turning. Earlier in September, Oracle agreed a deal to acquire the social media company which looked to avert the ban on the company.

However, after investigations into the deal, Trumps administration decided the deal did not meet their standards. As a result, this means the ban into TikTok will go ahead in September meaning that the app will disappear off app stores in the near future.

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Despite this, TikTok hopes to fight this ban to its bitter conclusion. Now aiming to enlist the support of other social media companies to fight its corner.

TikTok wants Facebook to help it fight Trumps ban

The executive order banning TikTok will take effect on September 20. The likelihood is that the app will continue to work after the ban takes effect. However, no one new will be able to download the app.

Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram has responded to Pappas call for help. He said, US TikTok ban would be quite bad for Instagram, Facebook, and the internet more broadly.

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The interim CEO hoped the call for help to fight the ban would establish some solidarity amongst Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. She said this was the time to put aside our competition and focus on core principles like freedom of expression.

This all comes as reports surfaced that Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom is in talks to replace recently departed TikTok CEO, Kevin Mayer. Therefore, this all might mean a bit more corporation between the social media companies.

Overall, this shows that TikTok aims to continue to fight this executive order ban despite all the setbacks. The company says that the ban was enacted without due process and threatens to deprive the American people and small businesses across the US of a significant platform.

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How this all ends is anybodys guess. This story has twisted and turned for months and at all stages what was to come next was always unpredictable.

TikTok clearly will not go down without a fight but it seems like Trump administration is hell-bent on enacting his ban. However, support from other social media companies may have some sway in helping TikTok survive in the U.S.
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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 19)  A large crowd of visitors was seen at a segment of Manila Bay's shoreline recently covered with white sand, after authorities temporarily opened it for public viewing.

The "white beach" opened Saturday afternoon with people waiting in line to take a peek at the controversial project. Pictures of the throng caught the attention and ire of netizens after noticing that most of the visitors were not practicing physical distancing.

Meanwhile, some of the residents were pleased with their visit.

"Sobrang ganda. Parang Boracay beach 'yung nakikita din namin," said Cathy Gerona.

[Translation: Very beautiful. It looks like Boracay beach.]

Another said the project would be a good way for residents to enjoy a beach they would not have been able to afford to visit otherwise.

"Okay siya maging pasyalan lalo na sa mga kababayan natin na can't afford na mamasyal sa magandang pasyalan," said Mirabell Malapitan.

[Translation: It is a nice place to visit for residents who cannot afford to go to other beautiful places.]

Environment Undersecretary Benny Antiporda said the beach will be opened to the public again on Sunday from 5 a.m. to 6 p.m., with plans to close it afterwards for the next phase of its development. He said they plan to expand the beach by another 380 meters, making it a three-hectare project.

The P389-million facelift, which involved the crushing of dolomite boulders and transporting the materials from Cebu province, was heavily criticized, with groups claiming the project was ill-advised and not beneficial to the environment. Some quarters are even blaming the dolomite for the fishkill that occurred near the Baseco compound a few days before the project's opening.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) in Washington during a Senate hearing on Sept. 9, 2020. (Greg Nash/Pool/Getty Images)

Moderate Senators Silent for Now on When to Vote for Ginsburgs Replacement

The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg leaves a hole in the nations highest court that leading Republicans are keen to fill before the upcoming election, leading to fevered speculation regarding the position of moderates who could swing the vote one way or another.

Senators narrowly confirmed Brett Kavanaugh, President Donald Trumps pick to replace retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy, in 2018 after a tense battle. The confirmation was in serious doubt as moderate senators including Susan Collins (R-Maine), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) weighed whether to back Kavanaugh amid sexual assault allegations.

Collins became the deciding vote when she took the Senate floor and denounced a confirmation process that she called a caricature of a gutter-level political campaign.

Collins has thus far declined to say whether shed support filling Ginsburgs seat before Nov. 3 or inauguration day.

A spokesman for the senator declined to answer the Portland Press Herald, a Maine newspaper, when asked. Her office didnt respond to an inquiry from The Epoch Times.

Flake is no longer in office but his role has been filled by Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), the only Republican to vote to impeach or convict President Donald Trump.

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) speaks on the Senate floor about the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Feb. 5, 2020. (Senate Television via AP)

While many senators late Friday issued statements clearly outlining their support or opposition of a quick vote for the vacant Supreme Court seat, others didnt mention it at allincluding Romney, Manchin, and Murkowski.

Sens. Doug Jones (D-Ala.), Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) and Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)other potential swing voteshave also not stated their positions.

Their offices didnt respond to requests for comment.

Liz Johnson, a Romney spokeswoman, said on Twitter a claim that the senator has committed to not confirming a nominee until after inauguration day is grossly false.

Some senators are facing serious challenges this election, including Jones, Gardner, and Collins. Others, like Alexander, are retiring.

Collins said this month, prior to Ginsburgs death, that she would not support replacing a vacancy in October.

I think thats too close, she told The New York Times.

Murkowski earlier this year expressed the opinion that a vacancy shouldnt be filled if one arose before Nov. 3.

Other Republicans swiftly staked out their positions on Friday.

Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) speaks to reporters in Washington on Aug. 6, 2020. (Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images)

Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), in his first term, announced his unequivocal support for moving to confirm Ginsburgs replacement.

It would be irresponsible to allow an extended vacancy on the Supreme Court, Scott said in a statement. I believe that President Trumps nominee should get a vote in the U.S. Senate.

Senate Majority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) also said they believe Trumps nominee should get a vote.

Top Democrat senators oppose voting on Ginsburgs replacement before the election.

Republicans control the Senate with 53 members, compared to 45 Democrats and two Independents who often side with the latter.

Judicial confirmations only require a simple majority, instead of a 60-vote threshold.

Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) eliminated the threshold in 2013 for most judicial nominations. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) extended it to Supreme Court nominations in 2017.

McConnell, who announced publicly Friday that the Senate would vote before the election on whomever Trump picks to replace Ginsburg, wrote in letter to colleagues leaked to reporters that they would come under tremendous pressure from the press to announce how we will handle the coming nomination.

For those of you who are unsure how to answer, or for those inclined to oppose giving a nominee a vote, I urge you to keep your powder dry, he added. This is not the time to prematurely lock yourselves into a position you may later regret.
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By Emma Farge

GENEVA (Reuters) - Three women, two of them from Africa, advanced to the second round of selection to become the next director-general of the World Trade Organization as the field was cut from eight to five, the Geneva-based body said on Friday.

The WTO is looking for a new director-general to replace Brazilian Roberto Azevedo, who stepped down a year earlier than expected at the end of August.

The 25-year-old trade body has never had a leader who is female or from Africa.

The five to go through to the next round are Kenyan minister Amina Mohamed, former Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, South Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee, Saudi Arabia's Mohammad Al-Tuwaijri and British ex-minister Liam Fox.

This confirms Reuters' reporting on Thursday that Mexico's Jesus Seade, Egypt's Hamid Mamdouh and Moldovan Tudor Ulianovschi were eliminated.

Azevedo's successor will face a considerable challenge with rising global tensions and protectionism during a COVID-induced slowdown, most obviously between Beijing and President Donald Trump's U.S. administration, and pressure to drive reform.

Round two, in which the WTO's 164 members will give their preferences from Sept 24 to Oct 6, will whittle the candidates down to two. The WTO has said it wants to select the winner by early November.

Trade experts and former WTO officials say that the U.S. presidential election, on Nov. 3. could extend the process, even if that goes against the WTO's prescribed deadline.

However, the WTO said the process had gone well so far and that all members had taken part.

"The objective is to have this process completed within 2 months - it began on 7 September so on or about 7 November, so we are on track for this. The process has gone smoothly," WTO spokesman Keith Rockwell told reporters.

(Reporting by Emma Farge and Philip Blenkinsop; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)
Before Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg even said a word at The Glimmerglass Festival, the crowd rose to their feet and applauded when they saw their most renowned and respected advocate for the arts enter the theater.

She was a phenomenon. It was like having a rock star here, said Francesca Zambello, director of Glimmerglass Festival and the Washington National Opera. It was very moving because she would enter the theater, and people would start cheering. She would always get a standing ovation.

Ginsburg, who died on Friday at the age of 87, was a frequent attendee and speaker at The Glimmerglass Festival, an opera presenter in Cooperstown.

Zambello remembers how Ginsburg connected issues of her work as a supreme court justice to opera. In 2017, Ginsburg held a Q&A session after a revised version of Scalia/Ginsburg, a comedy based on the Supreme Court decisions of longtime friends Ginsburg and her fellow late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, who were famously in opposition on many legal matters.

It humanizes the supreme court when audience goers see a woman so taken with such a passionate art form, Zambello said.

Ginsburg was extremely knowledgeable about opera, Zambello said. She knew the music, the story, the libretto. And she was always gracious in conversations about opera.

Even when she didnt like something, she would say it in such kind terms, that youd be like, 'Oh, O.K., slay me some more, Zambello said. She was amazing. She was so, so gracious.

Zambello said Ginsburg often talked about how the arts could be another way to communicate and try to overcome differences  or to at least have dialogue.

Joseph Dalton, a Times Union classical music writer and critic, recalled when Ginsburg got on stage at Glimmerglass to make remarks about law in the arts.

She was a very quiet and humble presence that everyone was aware of when she was attending opera, Dalton said. Her passion for opera benefited all of us.

Derrick Wang, the composer-librettist of Scalia/Ginsburg, said it was a privilege to hear her speak about so many topics where she had a very considered and deep perspective.

When he was working on the opera, Wang would send Ginsburg a script with footnotes that detailed how he was making the choices for the lyrics and music. He could tell she was looking at every little detail.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

Sometime when I had made an error here or there, she would find it and she would ever so gently and politely point me in the right direction, Wang said. Momentarily, I was just slightly embarrassed, but more than that, I was just so honored because I thought, A supreme court justice is reading the tiny little footnote in the opera libretto that Im writing.

Wang said two of his most vivid memories of Ginsburg are from upstate New York.

One was in Saratoga Springs when he presented excerpts from Scalia/Ginsburg at the Second Circuit Judicial Conference in June 2018.

The other was at The Glimmerglass Festival when he sat a few rows back from Ginsburg, who was there to watch a new revised version of the show.

He was a bit nervous to hear her thoughts. When the show ended, she told him: It gets better every time I see it.

My journey with this opera and getting to know her is one of the great highlights of my life, Wang said. Im so thankful that I got to be a part, however small, of her own journey as a lawyer, as a music lover and as a human being.
A high school student in Hamiltons Catholic board has tested positive for COVID-19.

In a statement Friday, Hamilton public health confirmed a student at Bishop Tonnos Catholic Secondary School in Ancaster has tested positive for the virus.

A letter to parents posted on the schools website says the student was last in the school on Monday. The test was confirmed by public health Friday. The letter doesnt say when the student was tested.

Out of respect for the privacy of the individual, personal health information and identifiers will not be released, the letter states.

Hamilton public health is working with the school to identify anyone who came in contact with the student. Public health follows up with all contacts directly.

The Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board is undertaking a deep clean and disinfection of all areas at the school occupied by symptomatic individuals.

The student who tested positive can only return when cleared by public health.

This is the second school-related case in Hamilton in two days and the first in a student enrolled in a public school.

On Thursday, public health confirmed a staff member in the before- and after-school program at Templemead Elementary School tested positive. Templemead is located on the east Mountain and is part of the Hamilton-Wentworth Public School Board.

A student at Hillfield Strathallan College, a private school for students from toddler-age to Grade 12 located on the Mountain, tested positive on Sept. 10.
Amid the surge in COVID cases in India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called for a meeting with Chief Ministers of seven states on September 23 via video conferencing. The Centre has been regularly reviewing the assistance provided to the State/UT governments. Several high level multi-specialist Central teams have been deployed in States/UTs.

Chief Ministers of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Andhra Pradesh will be present at the meeting. From the list of states, it is apparent that the focus is COVID as these states are the wost affected by the deadly virus. However, the health ministry had earlier said that the worst-hit states, five states -- Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh, are also the ones that are reporting a high level of recoveries.

The Centre has also been regularly reviewing the availability of medical oxygen in hospitals/health facilities. These have played a critical intervention role in Indias high recoveries and maintained a low Case Fatality Rate (CFR), which currently stands at 1.61%.

READ: Pune hospital to resume Oxford-Serum vaccine 'COVISHIELD' Phase-3 trials next week

READ: Coronavirus: India overtakes US in highest number of recoveries, tally cross 42 lakh

India's battle against COVID-19

So far the total number of positive Coronavirus cases recorded in India are 53,08,014, out of which 42,08,431 have successfully recovered while 85,619 died fighting the pandemic. As per the latest MOHFW reports, in the past 24 hours, 93337 new cases and 1247 new deaths have been reported. The tally of active COVID-19 cases in India stands at 10,13,964.

As the number of Coronavirus cases to surge across the world, India's MEA has offered medical aid to many African and East Asian Countries including Zimbabwe, the United States of America, Egypt, Armenia, Kenya, Maldives, Netherlands, etc.

READ: India hands over 13 essential medicines to Mozambique to battle against COVID-19 outbreak

READ: Coronavirus LIVE Updates: India's tally crosses 53 lakh; Parliament may be curtailed
Pentagon guidance strengthens religious liberty protections for service members

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The U.S. Department of Defense issued new guidance this month bolstering military service members' religious freedom rights, a move praised by advocates who have voiced concern for years.

Instruction 1300.17 was issued on Sept. 1 establishing DoD policy in furtherance of the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

The instruction falls in line with President Donald Trumps 2017 executive order on religious liberty and free speech.

The policy requires Defense Department entities to oversee the development and provision of education and training on the policies and procedures pertaining to the accommodation of religious practices of Service members to high-ranking military personnel.

Under the instruction, those who are to receive training and education on religious freedom rights of service members include commanders, judge advocates, chaplains, recruiters and other personnel deemed appropriate by a military entity.

The directive declares that Service members have the right to observe the tenets of their religion or to observe no religion at all.

The policy also forbids service members from requiring chaplains to perform any rite, ritual, or ceremony that is contrary to the conscience, moral principles, or religious beliefs of the chaplain.

The guidance also makes clear that military leadership must accommodate individual expressions of sincerely held beliefs, adding that a Service members expression of such beliefs may not, in so far as practicable, be used as the basis of any adverse personnel action, discrimination, or denial of promotion, schooling, training, or assignment.

In addition to laying out the rights of service members to express their First Amendment rights, the document illustrates the responsibilities that DOD officials have in ensuring that the guidance is implemented.

The third section of the directive explains the process for submitting and reviewing requests for accommodation by service members.

Mike Berry, deputy general counsel for the nonprofit law firm First Liberty Institute, which is often involved in defending the First Amendment rights of military service members, told The Christian Post that the new instruction addresses the concerns that First Liberty Institute has been raising for a number of years.

The guidance comes four months after the First Liberty Institute, which describes itself as the largest legal organization in the nation dedicated exclusively to defending religious freedom for all Americans, wrote a letter to Secretary of Defense Mark Esper.

In the letter, Berry urged Esper to issue clear DOD guidance, consistent with Congress directive, that strongly protects religious freedom within the DOD.

He argued that such guidance was necessary to slow the spread of misinformation, flawed legal arguments and religious discrimination.

In 2017, the President issued Executive Order 13798-Promoting Free Speech and Religious Liberty, the letter noted. Shortly thereafter, the United States Attorney General issued a guidance memorandum interpreting religious liberty protections in federal law.

The letter expressed concern that the Department of Defense had yet to comply with Congress 2018 directive to implement a comprehensive training program for chaplains and judge advocates that further incorporates EO 13798 and the Attorney Generals guidance within DOD.

First Liberty wrote the letter in response to the Armys compliance with demands from the Military Religious Freedom Foundation to remove social media posts featuring Army chaplains offering words of prayer and encouragement to service members amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The letter also mentioned the Armys decision to investigate an Army chaplain for sending an e-mail fellow Christian chaplains a book by theologian John Piper he had recently read.

Its really a breath of fresh air to see the Department of Defense, first of all, applying federal law, applying the Constitution and following the Presidents executive order on free speech and religious liberty and applying that to the military, Berry told CP.

And this is something that First Liberty and many others have been asking for. So we are very pleased to see this happen.

In addition to First Liberty, members of Congress have also urged Esper to protect religious service members.

Even though this is a  fantastic step in the right direction and our hope is that this will provide a lot of clarity and a lot of guidance to military leaders, theres still a lot of work to be done, Berry stressed.

I think there are going to continue to be issues regarding religious liberty but  this new regulation should go a long way to at least providing clarity and  strong protections for religious freedom in the military.

This wont prevent future issues from arising, but it will certainly help ensure that when those issues arrive, that they are adjudicated properly, he continued.

Berry said the debate about religious freedom in the military has never been an issue of what service members could or could not do, adding the Constitution and the First Amendment havent changed.

The Department of Defense has now revised its regulations and its guidance to be far more consistent with the Constitution and the First Amendment, he asserted. Instead of it being a matter of what can troops do now that they couldnt do before, the DOD regulations now recognize and affirmatively protect the things that people were perhaps not sure whether they could do before.



While some religious freedom advocates are praising the new instruction, it also has critics.

MRFF founder Mikey Weinstein said in a statement shared with CP that the "all-encompassing incorporation and prominence of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act" in the instruction is "extremely concerning" for his organization.

He vowed that MRFF, which advocates for the strict adherence to the principle of separation of church and state, will fight "tooth and nail" to stop the new instruction. He claimed that the new guidance buttresses the efforts of a "fundamentalist Christian religious right" that seeks to force its "version of the Gospel of Jesus Christ upon otherwise defenseless military subordinates.

"In recent years, this 1993 Act has become the go-to law for fundamentalist Christian legal organizations in their ignoble and wholly reprehensible defense of completely unconstitutional promotions of uber-conservative Christianity in the United States armed forces," he argued.

"This law is the sick epitome of the right-wing Christians tortured view of the First Amendments religion clauses as creating only a one-way wall  in other words, that that the 'Free Exercise' clause of the First Amendment is THE only religion clause that matters, and that the other direction of the wall, the 'No Establishment' clause, simply doesnt even exist. Such a preposterous position is utterly bereft of any semblance of Constitutional legality and allowance."

Weinstein went on to argue that the instruction is a "Constitutionally abhorrent ticking time bomb."

"The critical term 'religious practice' has now been almost infinitely expanded to include 'An action, behavior, or course of conduct constituting individual expressions of religious beliefs, whether or not compelled by, or central to, the religion concerned,'" he contended.

"This shocking, sudden definitional expansion, specifically the 'whether or not compelled by, or central to, the religion concerned' may well now allow military superiors to proselytize their lower-ranking troops without ANY cognizable Constitutional constraints as to time, place and manner."

"And, in MRFFs considerable civil rights advocacy experience, gleaned from our over 70,000 MRFF client cases (95% of whom are practicing Christians themselves), the oppressors in this precise dynamic are fundamentalist/dominionist Christian military superiors approximately 99.9% of the time," Weinstein continued.

"These miserably wretched, instantaneous DoD Instruction 1300.17 mauling actions by Trumps DoD cannot be allowed to tar and feather the Constitution's clear and incontrovertible, foundational prohibition of allowing the State to establish religion!"
The Expo Centre Sharjah is currently hosting the "Expo Electronics Exhibition", the first event the centre has organised after the gradual return to normal life and the resumption of activities and events in Sharjah.

The three-day event, which concludes today (September 19), offers a wide range of exclusive deals and attractive discounts on high-quality products, including the most renowned international electronics brands.

This is in line with the decision of the Sharjah Executive Council to resume the organisation of exhibitions and conferences under the supervision of the competent government authorities, while taking all the Covid-19 precautionary measures, said the organisers.

This includes sterilisation of the building and the halls, temperature checks when entering the centre, installation of AI thermal cameras, and rearrangement of spaces to ensure the implementation of safe distancing rules.

This is in addition to hanging Covid-19 posters and protection kits, including face masks, gloves, and disinfectants, they stated.

This event is a perfect opportunity for exhibitors to boost their sales, enhance communication with their existing customers, and attract new customers as well.

It is also an ideal destination for families to restyle their kitchen through the latest smart appliances at competitive prices, as well as to learn more about creative ideas and concepts by electronics sector experts, they noted.

This is part of the centres commitment to reinforce the presence of the exhibiting companies operating in Sharjah and to cater to the needs of the consumers and visitors, they added.-TradeArabia News Service
NAPANEE, ONT.A 20-year-old man is facing charges after allegedly trying to smuggle contraband into an eastern Ontario jail.

Provincial police say it allegedly happened Thursday morning near the Quinte Detention Centre in Napanee, Ont.

OPP say they got involved after receiving reports of a suspicious man on private property near the correctional facility.

Officers arrested the man and allegedly seized a large drone, as well as what they describe as a significant quantity of tobacco and cannabis.

They allege the man planned to use the drone to smuggle the goods into the detention centre.

The man from Loyalist Township, Ont., is charged with possession for the purpose of distributing cannabis as well as a trespassing offence.

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The Ministry continued that the country has recorded 1,066 Covid-19 case including 35 deaths who have been suffering underlying conditions including high blood pressure, ischemic heart disease, heart failure and pneumonia. The disease is now under the control and life in the country is normal as before.



Presently, the government is both preventing the coronavirus pandemic and developing economy. However, people should not practice negligent behavior as the pandemic can break out at any time especially in big cities with high population and medical facilities, factories, companies, industrial parks.

Around 120,000 experts and investors have been entering the Southeast Asian country; accordingly, the Ministry proposed to check carefully and expand voluntary quarantine venues to isolate all with attention to isolation at home.

The Ministry reported that international arrivals who stay at centralized quarantine facilities in Vietnam are now required to pay for their Covid-19 tests and pay a sum per day for their quarantine cost.

Steering board for Covid-19 prevention and control in cities and province must have plan for quarantine people overseas and meet experts and investors requirements during isolation, said Acting Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long.

Vietnamese Prime Minster Nguyen Xuan Phuc said that Vietnam has well controlled the pandemic and the country has gone for 15 days without recording a community-based transmission.

Mr. Phuc hailed all sectors, local administrations and the health sectors determination in fighting the pandemic. He said leaders of all sectors and agencies need think what present goal is to strive for it.

The Prime Minister ordered the Ministry of Transport to consider resuming more international flights including commercial flight to pick up experts, investors and Vietnamese people after months of closure due to the coronavirus pandemic. Flight schedule must be submitted to Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh and Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam for approval.

The Ministry of Information and Communications was asked to work with the Ministry of Health to establish multi-lingual operator so that foreigners can get access to health services as soon as possible to curb community transmission.

By Phan Thao - Translated by Anh Quan
Questioning the Akalis alliance with the NDA, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Saturday asked the SAD to list "one pro-farmer initiative" persuaded by it with the BJP-led Centre in the past six years.

Hitting out at Badals for "perpetuating lies" in the past few days on agriculture bills, he said they had "openly and shamelessly supported" these since the Ordinances were brought in.

The chief minister, in a statement here, said SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal and former Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal had been fabricating lies on farm bills, which have been completely exposed.

Did either of you even once call the ordinances anti-farmer till they were presented in the Lok Sabha? the chief minister asked Badals.

Did Harsimrat even once, till her resignation, tell farmers that she was trying to persuade the Central government to address their concerns something she is now claiming? he further asked.

Questioning the Akalis alliance with the NDA, the chief minister further asked, Why is SAD still part of the NDA given that, by Harsimrat's own admission, the BJP-led government failed to address the farmers' concerns she put before them?"



Amarinder Singh also asked Harsimrat Kaur and Sukhbir Badal if they can cite even one pro-farmer initiative that they might have undertaken in over past six years to persuade the BJP-led government at the Centre to act on it.

The chief minister said the people of Punjab, especially the farmers, will not forgive them.

The ordinances, which you had been shamefacedly supporting all through till you decided to back off under political compulsions of the fear of losing your farmers' vote-bank, were never discussed or even mentioned at the high-powered meetings a fact on which your coalition partners either deliberately kept in you in dark or which you consciously choose to ignore in your own petty interest, he told the Badals.

Unlike the SAD, the Congress had maintained a consistent stand against the ordinances which the Centre introduced on the sly amid the pandemic and then pushed through the Lok Sabha by the sheer brute majority, Amarinder said.

The Badals should stop lying on such a critical issue, and instead, come out in the open fight against the NDA coalition by withdrawing from the alliance, said the chief minister.

He added that their claims of standing shoulder to shoulder with farmers were "hollow and false" as long as they continued to lie on the subject and remained a part of the "anti-farmer" Central Government.

(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.)
Following the dispatch of 3 consecutive Japan Disaster Relief (JDR) teams over last month to Mauritius in assistance to the MV WAKASHIO oil spill off the south-east coast of the island, the final report has been submitted to the Honourable Kavydass Ramano, Minister of the Environment, Solid Waste Management and Climate Change at Port-Louis on the 17th September. This report will be presented to the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Mauritius.

The JDR teams in collaboration with the National Crisis Committee and the National Oil Spill Contingency Plan Coordination Committee and carried out its on-site research in concerted efforts with organisations such as the Albion Fisheries Research Centre, the Mauritius Oceanography Institute, the University of Mauritius, France, India, UN agencies and NGOs.

The three teams arrived in Mauritius on the 11th and 20th of August as well as the 4nd of September with specialists of different fields. After the departure of the first team on the 21st of August 2020, the 2nd and 3rd team leaved Mauritius on this Friday 18th of September 2020.

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Belarusian police have detained hundreds of protesters in Minsk, as several thousand women carrying red-and-white flags and banners, a symbol of the opposition that has been banned by the authorities, marched through the capital demanding the resignation of President Alyaksandr Lukashenka. Mass protests challenging the results of an August 9 presidential election that declared Lukashenka the winner have swept across Belarus since. Vyasna, a human rights organization in Belarus, said riot police forced more than 300 protesters into police vans on September 19.
Guatemala City, Sep 19 : Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the government said in a statement.

The statement issued on Friday said that Giammattei, 64, underwent a Covid-19 test for the sixth time and was declared positive, reports Xinhua news agency.

The Office of the President stated that the head of state was currently undergoing medical monitoring and evaluation.

"The President will continue with his activities and will work for the benefit of the country, and will do so by taking the necessary measures to safeguard his health.

"In addition, he will be isolating himself from all public activity, so all communication will be done remotely," the Office added.

The Guatemalan government also said that the President's case is a further sign of the highly contagious nature of the virus, and that citizens should continue to follow preventive health measures such as mask wearing, hand washing, and social distancing.

The announcement came the same day that the country reopened its borders and international flights.

Guatemala had closed its airports and borders with Mexico, Belize, Honduras and El Salvador in March.

The Health Ministry has said that travellers wanting to come to Guatemala will be required to provide a negative coronavirus test.

According to the Ministry, Guatemala has registered a total of 84,344 cases and 3,076 deaths to date.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Saturday announced 50 per cent concession in water and electricity bills for the people of Jammu and Kashmir for a year. This comes after an earlier announcement of a relief package of Rs 1350 crore for the UT.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Saturday announced concession in water and electricity bills for the people of Jammu and Kashmir and added that the government has decided to extend the maximum limit of Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2 lakh for the people under the credit card scheme involved in handloom and handicraft industry.

 For one year, we will be giving a 50 per cent concession in water and electricity bills. We will be spending Rs 105 crore on this. This will benefit farmers, normal people, businessman and others. The stamp duty has also been exempted up to March 2021 in the case of all borrowers. The focus is also on setting up customised Health-Tourism scheme by Jammu and Kashmir Bank for financial assistance to people in the tourism sector with good pricing and repayment options, he said while addressing a press conference in Raj Bhawan.

Under the credit card scheme, we have decided to extend the maximum limit of Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2 lakh for people working in the handloom and handicraft industry. They will also be given 7 per cent interest subvention. From October 1, Jammu and Kashmir bank will start a special desk for youth and women enterprises, he added.

These announcements came after the Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor announced a relief package of Rs 1350 crore for the UT in a bid to boost the business and the other ailing sectors that have suffered huge losses for several years. I am glad to announce a Rs 1,350 crores economic package for the people in the business community facing economic difficulties. This is additional to the benefits of Atma Nirbhar Bharat and other measures taken by us to comfort the business community, he said.

Also Read: Manoj Sinha announces Rs. 1,350 crore package for J&Ks business community

Also Read: Government, DDU college to review pending salaries of professors: Delhi HC

He said that Rs 1350 Crore economic package is apart from Rs 1400 Crore package announced for Jammu and Kashmir under Aatma Nirbhar Abhiyan of which Rs 6000 is for power sector reforms etc. Giving more information about the package, the Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor said that it will also cover those sectors that have suffered losses in the newly created UT in addition to the ailing business sector.

Notably, this package was announced just days after Kashmir Trade Alliance (KTA), an umbrella of various trade bodies, had earlier stated that due to coronavirus pandemic lockdown businessmen have incurred huge losses. (ANI)

Also Read: Farmers in Punjab protest against Centre over agriculture reform bills
Conservative Party leader Erin OToole has tested positive for COVID-19, according to a statement released by the party Friday evening.

OToole now remains in self-isolation. He reported feeling relieved after his wife, Rebecca, and their children, Mollie and Jack, all tested negative.

The statement says that he is feeling well.

OToole and his family were tested after one of his staff members tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday.

Other staff who were travelling with Mr. OToole are also being tested and will be self-isolating, said the party statement.

Ontario Public Health regulations require one to self-isolate for at least 14 days after symptoms start or since the day of their test if no symptoms are present.

OToole, 47, will be in isolation until at least Oct. 1.

After having dinner with OToole last week, Ontario Labour Minister Monte McNaughton announced Saturday that he is relieved to learn that he and his family tested negative for COVID-19.

McNaughton had previously announced that he wore a mask when visiting OToole, with the exception of during dinner and a photo taken outdoors.

OTooles test result was announced hours after Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet released a statement reporting that he too had tested positive for the virus.

(Blanchet) will remain in isolation at his residence in Shawinigan until September 26 in accordance with instructions from the Quebec Public Health Department, said to the statement. He feels perfectly well.

Neither man will be able to attend the throne speech next week.

Quebecs public health rules say a person who tests positive but doesnt have serious symptoms must stay isolated for 10 days.

Blanchets wife, Nancy Deziel, tested positive for the illness earlier this week after losing her sense of smell and Blanchet said then that he would be tested as a precaution.

The Bloc leader was already in self-isolation, along with many of his caucus and other aides, after a staff member contracted COVID-19.

With files from The Canadian Press and Manuela Vega
Sir Keir Starmer has drawn level with under-fire Boris Johnson on the eve of Labour's first 'virtual' party conference as nearly 40 per cent of Britons say the opposition leader looks like the Conservative's successor as premier.

A YouGov poll has revealed that Labour, which experienced record-low popularity under Jeremy Corbyn's disorderly reign, is now tied with the Tory Party.





The survey for The Times is a major boost for Sir Keir, whose strategy of attacking the Government's handling of the coronavirus crisis appears to be paying off.





Around 35 per cent of people polled believe that the Labour leader would make the better Prime Minister, compared to 30 per cent in favour of Mr Johnson.





The YouGov survey also shows that around 38 per cent think Sir Keir looks like a Prime Minister-in-waiting, while 31 per cent do not.





The results coincide with a YouGov poll earlier in the week finding that public approval of the Government's response to the coronavirus crisis has fallen to its lowest level yet, with a net score of -33.





Sir Keir Starmer has drawn level with under-fire Prime Minister Boris Johnson on the eve of Labour's first 'virtual' party conference as nearly 40 per cent of Britons say the opposition leader looks like the Conservative's successor as premier

A YouGov poll has revealed that Labour, which experienced record-low popularity under Jeremy Corbyn's disorderly reign, is now tied with the Tory Party

Sir Keir Starmer has drawn level with under-fire Prime Minister Boris Johnson on the eve of Labour's first 'virtual' party conference as nearly 40 per cent of Britons say the opposition leader looks like the Conservative's successor as premier

The results coincide with a YouGov poll earlier in the week finding that public approval of the Government's response to coronavirus has fallen to its lowest level yet, with a net score of -33

Sir Keir has deliberately distanced himself from former Labour leader Mr Corbyn, whose term as party chief was plagued by criticisms around Brexit, his handling of anti-Semitism within the party, and his alleged support of terrorists.

The Oxford-educated opposition leader, a former Director of Public Prosecutions, has been very careful not to get drawn into Mr Johnson's threats to renege on his Brexit divorce deal and flout international law this week.

However, nearly half (49 per cent) of those polled by YouGov said they still did not trust Labour to handle the UK's departure from the EU. Just 29 per cent said they were in favour of Labour taking over on the issue.

Over a third (35 per cent) surveyed thought that Sir Keir, who took over as Labour leader in April, had improved the party while four per cent thought that he had not.

Sir Keir Starmer has drawn level with under-fire Prime Minister Boris Johnson on the eve of Labour's first 'virtual' party conference as nearly 40 per cent of Britons say the opposition leader looks like the Conservative's successor as premier

On domestic issues the economy proved to be a problem for Labour. Only 13 per cent felt that it was the issue that the part cared most about - compared to 40 per cent of the public who feel it is the top priority.

Last week YouGov found that just three in 10 (30 per cent) of Britons polled think the Government has handled the coronavirus crisis well - while two-thirds (63 per cent) say Boris Johnson's administration has handled it badly.

This gives a net score of -33, a significant drop from the previous score of -18.

Currently 70 per cent of Britons believe the national coronavirus situation to be getting worse, up from 54 per cent last week. As recently as late August this had been a minority view, with only 31 per cent saying so on the 25th.
WASHINGTON  The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg just over six weeks before the election cast an immediate spotlight on the high court vacancy, with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell quickly vowing to bring to a vote whoever President Donald Trump nominates.

Democratic nominee Joe Biden vigorously disagreed, declaring that voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice to consider.

McConnell, in a statement just over an hour after Ginsburgs death was announced, declared unequivocally that Trumps nominee would receive a vote, even though he had stalled President Barack Obamas choice for months ahead of the 2016 election, eventually preventing a vote.

Trump, in brief remarks to reporters after learning of her death, called Ginsburg an amazing woman, adding that she led an amazing life. He had continued with a campaign speech for more than an hour after the nation learned of her death, and said later he had been unaware.

He had boasted in the speech that the next presidential term could offer him as many as four appointments to the nine-member court, whose members are confirmed for life.

Biden, returning to Delaware from his own campaign stop in Minnesota, praised Ginsburg upon his arrival.

Ginsburg was not only a giant of the legal profession but a beloved figure, he said. She stood for all of us.

The process of replacing her should not begin until after the election, he made clear.

Ginsburgs death could significantly affect the presidential race, further stirring passions in the deeply divided nation as the campaign pushes into its stretch run.

Trump took the stage for a Minnesota rally not long before Ginsburgs death was announced. He spoke for more than 90 minutes, never mentioning it, apparently not alerted to the development. He spoke to reporters about her passing as he boarded Air Force One to return to Washington.

But he did say in his speech that whoever is elected in November will have the ability to potentially fill several Supreme vacancies, declaring, This is going to be the most important election in the history of our country and we have to get it right.

A confirmation vote in the Senate is not guaranteed, even with a Republican majority.

Typically it takes several months to vet and hold hearings on a Supreme Court nominee, and time is short ahead of the election.

Key senators may be reluctant to cast votes so close to the election. With a slim GOP majority, 53 seats in the 100-member chamber, Trumps choice could afford to lose only a few.

McConnell did not specify the timing, but pushing a confirmation off to the post-election lame-duck session would carry other complications, including the political tangle of trying to push it through in the final weeks of the year after voters have decided control of the White House and control of the Senate.

Trump has made appointments to the federal judiciary, including two Supreme Court justices, part of his legacy and said last month that he would absolutely try to fill a vacancy on the high court if one came up before the end of his first term.

Absolutely, Id do it, Trump said in an August 11 interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt. I would move quickly. Why not? I mean, they would. The Democrats would if they were in this position.

Trump last week added 20 names to his list of candidates hes pledged to choose from if he had future vacancies to fill.

Trump tried to cast the list in contrast with judges who could be nominated if Biden wins in November, warning Biden would select radical justices who would fundamentally transform America without a single vote of Congress, even though Biden has never outlined his list of potential picks and the Senate must confirm any nominee.

Naming his possible choices, less than two months before the election, is aimed at repeating the strategy that Trump employed during his 2016 campaign, when he released a similar list of could-be judges in a bid to win over conservative and evangelical voters who had doubts about his conservative bonafides.

The average number of days to confirm a justice, according to the Congressional Research Service, is 69 days, which would be after the election.

Biden has promised to nominate a Black woman to the high court if given the chance. He has said hes also working on a list of potential nominees, but the campaign has given no indication that it will release names before the election.

Democrats believe doing so would unnecessarily distract from Bidens focus on Trumps handling of the pandemic and the economy, while also giving the president and his allies fresh targets to attack.

Trump, however, insisted that presidential candidates owe the American people a list of whom theyd consider because, aside from matters of war and peace, the nomination of a Supreme Court justice is the most important decision an American president can make.

__

Lemire reported from New York.
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

The World Health Organization endorsed Saturday a protocol for testing African herbal medicines as potential treatments for the coronavirus and other epidemics.

COVID-19 has raised the issue of using traditional medicines to battle contemporary diseases, and the endorsement clearly encouraged testing with criteria similar to those used for molecules developed by labs in Asia, Europe or the Americas.

It came months after a bid by the president of Madagascar to promote a drink based on artemisia, a plant with proven efficacy in malaria treatment, was met with widespread scorn.

On Saturday, WHO experts and colleagues from two other organisations "endorsed a protocol for phase III clinical trials of herbal medicine for COVID-19 as well as a charter and terms of reference for the establishment of a data and safety monitoring board for herbal medicine clinical trials," a statement said.

"Phase III clinical trials are pivotal in fully assessing the safety and efficacy of a new medical product," it noted.

"If a traditional medicine product is found to be safe, efficacious and quality-assured, WHO will recommend (it) for a fast-tracked, large-scale local manufacturing," Prosper Tumusiime, a regional WHO director, was quoted as saying.

WHO's partners are the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention and the African Union Commission for Social Affairs.

"The onset of COVID-19, like the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, has highlighted the need for strengthened health systems and accelerated research and development programmes, including on traditional medicines," Tumusiime said.

He did not refer specifically to the Madagascar drink COVID-Organics, also called CVO, that President Andry Rajoelina has pitched as a cure for the virus, however.

It has has been widely distributed in Madagascar and sold to several other countries, mainly in Africa.

In May, WHO Africa Director Matshidiso Moeti told media that African governments had committed in 2000 to taking "traditional therapies" through the same clinical trials as other medication.

"I can understand the need, the drive to find something that can help," Moeti said. "But we would very much like to encourage this scientific process in which the governments themselves made a commitment."

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

 2020 AFP
Algerian winemaker Dahmane Hamamouche used to rise early and rush to work each morning, but he no longer bothers, as his firm chokes on a cocktail of woes.

Algerian winemaker Dahmane Hamamouche used to rise early and rush to work each morning, but he no longer bothers, as his firm chokes on a cocktail of woes.

Long accustomed to nasty surprises including unpredictable weather patterns and periodic mildew outbreaks, Algerian vintners are now facing their worst season in decades.

Soaring temperatures have decimated grape yields and a five-month-long lockdown to combat the Covid-19 pandemic has paralysed the sector.

"We cannot bear this," lamented Hamamouche, who set up a Societe Agricole de Production de la Vigne et du Vin (SAPVI) in 2004.

His wine-making enterprise sources grapes from vineyards in the Sidi Bel Abbes highlands, some 435 kilometres (270 miles) southwest of Algiers, and a clutch of other elevated areas.

Wine-making in the area dates back to Roman antiquity and today Algeria ranks second only to South Africa in wine production on the continent.

But if the unfolding disaster "carries on for more than another month or two, we won't be able to hold out," said Hamamouche, arms crossed over a blue T-shirt.

"We're already finding it difficult to pay salaries."

Algeria's cafes and restaurants only reopened in mid-August, when the country emerged from its strict coronavirus lockdown.

Adding to Hamamouche's frustrations, a ban on alcohol distribution -- part of the lockdown -- has yet to be lifted, and alcohol is only sold in specialised stores.

"The government must allow distribution to revive our economic activity," the vintner urged. "We are at a standstill!"

No official reason has been given for the ban.

The livelihoods of staff ranging from factory technicians, labourers, cleaners, guards, administrative staff and accountants are at stake.

- 'Viniculture disappearing' -

Attou, 20, is one of the few grape pickers still working in the vineyards of Sidi Bel Abbes.

An employee inspects a glass of red wine at a winery in the Sidi Bel Abbes highlands, some 435 kilometres (270 miles) southwest of Algiers /  AFP

"It's not like normal, we will harvest far less than usual due to the scorching summer," he told AFP. "Normally, there are a lot more grapes."

Fellow grape-picker Ezzine, 38, was also downbeat. "Viniculture is disappearing," he said.

But the industry has survived major setbacks in the past.

Nine years after the 1962 independence from France, a political crisis between Algiers and its former colonial master prompted Paris to suspend imports of Algerian wine.

In a bid to offload the surplus, the government turned to alternative markets, notably the former USSR, but without success.

In 1971, president Houari Boumediene reluctantly decided to pare back land devoted to the nation's vineyards by some 40 percent.

He knew it would dramatically downsize Algeria's second largest industry, after oil, but the country needed to ease political pressure from France.

Vineyards were also hit hard by 1992-2002 civil war, which pitted the security forces against Islamists and killed an estimated 200,000 people.

Agricultural labourers stopped growing or even deliberately uprooted vines, out of religious conviction or fear of reprisals by the jihadists.

Corks are pictured at a winery in Algeria's Sidi Bel Abbes highlands /  AFP

Today, the area covered by vineyards in the country is around 75,000 hectares (185,000 acres), compared to 350,000 under French rule.

But the domestic appetite for wine remains healthy: the Algerian Drinks Producers Association says consumption averaged 1.4 litres per resident in 2017.

Producers are now pinning their hopes on state intervention to buy up this year's surplus produce, help them replant vines and develop the sector.

"A national agricultural plan is needed to help small-scale growers repopulate vineyards," said Ghanem Bouha, who manages SAPVI's finances.
Continued water outages in the Clonattin and Ramstown areas have proven so disruptive they led to the reopening of a local school being delayed.

Earlier this month Loreto Primary School was forced to reschedule its return after an issue with water supply, and Gorey Senator Malcolm Byrne said this was just one of a number of problems in the area in recent months.

'I think that was the fourteenth weekend so far this year that some part of Gorey town or the surrounding area was left without water or had very low water pressure. It is not acceptable that supply is so poor that a school cannot open,' said Senator Byrne.

The problem at Bunscoil Loreto was subsequently addressed and the school reopened, but the Senator said it was unacceptable that residents in these areas should be experiencing water issues on regular basis.

'It's affecting mostly areas on higher ground. Irish Water are trying to address the problem by developing a new plant, but I'm not certain the capacity created will be adequate,' he said.

'Some estates in town were left without water or water at very low pressure for entire weekends at different stages over the summer.

'If we knew in advance the water was going to be out we could arrange for water tankers to be sent out. People shouldn't be expected go out and buy bottle water.

'It's not acceptable for people to be without water, especially at a time when were being encouraged to wash our hands regularly. Furthermore, I'm conscious of families with young children and babies and the strain this will put on them.'

Martin Savage lives in Ramsgate Village and says he has been experiencing issues with his water supply for the past 18 months. 'It's just a constant problem, at one stage we were having issues nearly every week; poor water quality, low pressure, discolouration,' Martin says.

'And these would come without any notice, twice it happened overnight. Only last week I got up, had my shower, and then when my wife went in she was left with no water in the tank.'

Martin has repeatedly contacted Irish Water with his concerns, but says he has only received generic replies by way of response.

'The other big problem is the increase in the hardness of the water, in the limescale,' he says. 'We're at the stage where we're buying the cheapest kettles possible because they only last a couple of months before the water ruins them.

'Recently, we had something fixed in our washing machine and the plumber said there had been a huge build-up in limescale on that too, we're here 19 years and that's something we've never encountered before.'

Ken and Louise Reddin run the Hungry Bear Restaurant on McDermott St which recently reopened following the easing of restrictions. And they too have been experiencing issues with their water supply.

'It's been affecting us on and off, the worst occasion would have been when it happened on a Saturday in early August. We were in touch with the Council and they confirmed there's a problem but they didn't do much else,' Ken said.

'It's an ongoing issue, and we have things like dishwashers and coffee machines which require a certain amount of pressure to work, then you have the toilets, it's pretty embarrassing if they're not working. It's not easy to run a business having this hanging over you.'

The new plant is being developed at Ballyminaun in the south of the town, but Senator Byrne said solutions needed to be found now.

'The new plant will not be operational until next year at the very earliest. Gorey remains a rapidly growing town and needs interim solutions to ensure adequate water supply. I've been warning about this for years,' he said.

'I have had discussions with Irish Water management as well as with Council officials but I'm not happy that there is a sufficient realisation of the scale of the problem.'

'The system is under a lot of pressure, and Gorey is growing rapidly, if that growth is going to be sustainable we need the infrastructure to match it.'

In response to Senator Byrne's concerns, Richard O'Headhra of Irish Water said, 'I have been engaging with Senator Byrne on this issue recently and I can assure you as I did him that Irish Water, working in partnership with Wexford County Council take these issues very seriously.

'In relation to the specific issues, things should have settled down quite a bit in Gorey at this stage. The most recent issue at the school was a private side matter, however Irish Water sent crews out to investigate the public network to ensure this was the case.'

Outlining the issues which led to water outages in the area, Mr O'Headhra said a 'huge increase in demand during July and August due to caravan parks operating at max capacity (and beyond)' had seen the main reservoir at Ballyminaun drop down to 0.6m at one point.

Also noting there had been issues with the Ballykale Borehole pump, which has since been replaced, Mr O'Headhra said Irish Water staff have been 'continuously opening and closing valves to balance flows from Creagh Water treatment plant and the Borehole sites during the period of high demand' so as to manage the network and continue to provide a service to customers.

'This may have led to intermittent pressure/no water issues for customers on higher ground but efforts were made at all times to keep these customers updated locally. I appreciate that some may not have received communication on this and I have expressed concern at this and we are examining alternative methods to resolve this.'

Mr O'Headhra said the expectation was that things 'should continue to remain settled' and the Gorey Regional Water Supply will benefit the area in many ways, 'boosting social and economic development'.
by Fady Noun

The central bank governor has suggested the end of subsidies for basic necessities, including medicines. Frightened citizens have emptied shelves in an unprecedented rush on pharmacies. For experts, the cuts to an already impoverished population could have "catastrophic" effects. The "In aid of devastated Beirut" campaign.

Beirut (AsiaNews) - Like everything else, this story too has developed in a brutal, empirical way, without warning and without the slightest source of communication with those concerned. With a few short lines entrusted to the press, the governor of the Bank of Lebanon, Riad Salame, announced that the policy of subsidizing wheat, fuels and medicines cannot continue beyond the next three months. Of course, the fact that he sounded the alarm bell is positive, as is having announced that the strategic reserve threshold of 17.5 billion dollars is about to be reached.

However, could the modalities of this announcement to public opinion not have been better managed perhaps? The announcement by the Central Bank has in fact sown a wave of panic among patients and an unprecedented, frantic rush to pharmacies, some of which were emptied in a short time. About a month has passed since then, but the race to buy continues today. Pharmacies continue to be besieged by customers who fear both a shortage of stocks and a surge in prices if subsidies run out.

And the race happens every day. In a well-known pharmacy in the Metn district, yesterday a man insisted that the expiration date of the medicines he was buying "be far off", so that they will still be usable once stocks are exhausted. "It is not uncommon, in fact, to observe in these moments patients buy drugs for a requirement of at least 10, if not 12 months", reports to L'Orient-Le Jour Karim Gebara, president of the drug importers union, taken by surprise as all from the decision.

Other buyers, mostly women, are rightly worried on this hot September morning about the prolonged disappearance of some medicines and the risk of seeing their prices rise excessively when they return to the shelves and counters. Every day the phrase "we have no trust" resounds, underlines a pharmacist on duty, who tries - in vain - to reassure his customers.

Consultations between importers, pharmacists and doctors

This urgent situation prompted the president of the doctors association Charaf Abou Charaf, his counterpart of the pharmacists Ghassan el-Amine and the president of the importers union to meet. The three parties have reached an agreement to calm the frenetic sale of medicines, so as to ensure patients' needs for at least a month. This rationing in distribution, they agree, operates on two levels: distribution in pharmacies, calculated according to need, and retail sale.

However, having been decided overnight, this rationing caused a panic among customers. Left to fend for themselves and having lost faith in the state, they have developed a habit of bypassing rationing by turning four or five pharmacies to accumulate personal supplies. The drugs targeted are mainly those used for chronic diseases: heart, diabetes, nervous system, says Gebara. These drugs are currently out of stock, knowing that delivery times, after new orders and approval by the Lebanese Central Bank, can take up to a month.

Certainly - he adds - at a microeconomic level the system put into practice cannot be fair and imposes constraints on pharmacists, who cannot predict in advance the quantities of drugs they sell, because they fluctuate. They also don't necessarily need to know their customers. On the macroeconomic level, however, it rationalizes the distribution system and establishes a certain equity between the regions. This gives us time to place new orders. It's just inventory management ".

So the announcement of the decline in the reserves of the Bdl was a mistake? I can't put myself in the governor's shoes, - admits Gebara - but I know it was already too late to react. "The monthly supply of medicines distributed to pharmacies ran out in ten days" after the announcement by Riad Salame. The president of the order of pharmacists, for his part, protested against the incident, saying that "greater coordination between the governor of the Bdl and the government" was needed before this announcement. "Unfortunately - complains Ghassan el-Amine - this coordination was lacking and the population paid the price".

Confusion and phobia of a hole in the stocks

In direct contact with the population, unlike importers, pharmacists are more sensitive to the confusion of their customers, confirms the president of the Order. "The phobia of a lack of supplies in patients suffering from chronic diseases is very common" underlines Charaf Abou Charaf. These are very vulnerable people, for whom continuity in the availability of their medicine is vital. This can give rise to situations of great anxiety. "Whatever we do - Gebara continues - is badly seen, and this is also normal, especially when people live in a state of anxiety". He is also keen to defend his colleagues from those accusing them of responsibility in fuelling black market smuggling or selling subsidized medicines abroad.

The figures are there to prove the contrary. The sale of medicines between January and June 2020 decreased by 10% compared to the same period in 2019, proof of the fact that the medicines are sold only in Lebanon.

Doubts in the long run

While defending the position of the importers, the manager shows concern for the long term. We are gaining time - he admits - but in the long run we have to find a solution. We cannot last from eight months to a year without a new government, a stimulus package and the entry of new capital ".

"The end of the drug subsidy policy - warns the importer - would be fatal for the entire health system". He shows his appreciation for the choice of the Bdl governor and observes that 65% of the total of medicines in a year - equal to one billion dollars - is paid for by third parties (social security, public employee cooperatives, army and security forces) and 35% from private individuals. Given the percentage of the population living below the poverty line today, withdrawing support would be catastrophic.

In order to help the people of Beirut and Lebanon, as well as Caritas Lebanon, AsiaNews is launching a campaign to Help devastated Beirut. Those who want to contribute can make a donation to:

PIME Foundation:

- International Bank Account Number (IBAN): IT78C0306909606100000169898

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- Reason for transfer: AN04  HELP DEVASTATED BEIRUT
A couple who quit their full-time jobs to dedicate themselves to their Parisian-style jewellery business selling hair clips, earrings and fake eyelashes have made a small fortune and now have returning customers worldwide.

Danicka, 24, and Joseph Thomas, 27, from New Zealand, started the business, Sincerely Danicka, on November 4, 2018 but didn't leave their office jobs until September 1, 2019.

The pair initially started selling second hand furniture but soon realised this product type 'wouldn't scale well' and wanted to try something different, so they asked their customers on social media what they were drawn to most.

'A lot of customers mentioned they wanted pearl hair clips, which were on-trend, but weren't available in New Zealand at the time,' Danicka told FEMAIL.

After choosing to sell dainty gorgeous jewellery, Danicka and Joseph started developing their small brand further and sourced a manufacturer in Asia before launching on April 26, 2019.

Within the first five months they made $10,000, followed by an additional $35,000 between September 2019 and March 2020 before being impacted by COVID-19.

Prior to coronavirus, the pair were expecting their sales to double in 2020.

Scroll down for video

Danicka (left) and Joseph Thomas (right) started the business, Sincerely Danicka , on November 4, 2018 but didn't leave their office jobs until September 1, 2019

Danicka (pictured) always had an inner desire to start her own business, even though family members thought it was too risky and would fail

The pair initially started selling second hand furniture but soon realised this product type 'wouldn't scale well' and wanted to try something different. They started selling hair clips and jewellery after asking their customers what they want most

After leaving their jobs, Danicka and Joseph went on a two-month overseas trip to start fresh and seek inspiration before returning back home to their small, start-up business.

While the couple have no previous business experience, they were excited but nervous to put all their time and energy into developing the brand.

Danicka said she has always had an inner desire to start her own business, even though friends and family weren't very supportive.

Sincerely Danicka now offers three different products including affordable hair clips, gorgeous earrings and fake eyelashes that all have a classical and delicate style.

Danicka chooses the products themselves and creates beautiful content to market the jewellery online, while Joseph focuses on the website work and assists with photos and videos.

While the couple don't design the jewellery themselves, it's a goal they are aiming to achieve in the future as the business grows over time.

After leaving their jobs, Danicka and Joseph went on a spontaneous two-month overseas trip to start fresh and seek inspiration before returning back home to their small, start-up business

Sincerely Danicka now offers three collections of hair clips, earrings and fake eyelashes that all have a classical and delicate style at affordable prices

As a business, the couple focus on small touches to make the customers feel special through personal thank you notes and stunning presentation

With their business, the couple focus on small touches to make the customers feel special through personal thank you notes and stunning presentation.

'The brand is quite personal as it has my name in the title - it's as if I'm giving our customers something of mine,' Danicka said.

'I'm drawn to the pieces we sell too and I want to buy our products for myself.

'We really try and offer an experience and try to make each customer feel like they're part of the brand.'

'It's all about giving people that one special piece they're looking for that they can hold on to,' Joseph added.

'It has always been about the customers - even from the start when Danicka asked our customers online what they want most instead of furniture.'

As a business, the couple wanted to focus on small touches to make the customer feel special through thank you notes and presentation as well as ethical manufacturing

Even though family and friends said starting a business would be a 'waste of time', the brand has grown online over the past 12 months and customers from Australia, USA, Canada, UK and across Europe have bought their dainty jewellery

'The brand is quite personal as it has my name in the title - it's as if I'm giving our customers something of mine,' Danicka said

Since launching the brand, the pair agreed the 'most challenging aspect' was understanding how to operate a business and finding a work-life balance.

'The industry is quite secretive due to the competitive nature of businesses and there's not much information on the internet that easily guides you in the right direction,' Danicka said.

The brand now has returning customers from all around the world

'Figuring out how to get our business out there and marketing our products in a cost-effective way was quite a challenge.'

Even though family and friends said starting a business would be a 'waste of time', the brand has grown online over the past 12 months and returning customers from Australia, USA, Canada, UK and across Europe have bought their dainty jewellery.

Danicka said this may correlate to online platform TikTok, as several of their videos have gone viral and have attracted thousands of new customers.

Unfortunately due to COVID-19, the business has been badly impacted by restrictions and a decrease in sales.

'I'm drawn to the pieces we sell and all the products I want to buy for myself, which gives the brand more of a personal touch,' Danicka said

The brand sells stunning gold and silver earrings (pictured) as well as fake eyelashes and pearl hair clips

When asked what advice they would give to others looking at starting their own business, Danicka said to 'stay true to who you are and learn to enjoy the journey'

When asked what advice they would give to others looking at starting their own business, Danicka said to 'stay true to who you are and learn to enjoy the journey'.

'I would say that it is going to be challenging at times, but challenges are great opportunities to learn from.

'Each business has a different journey to others and to not compare your growth with your competitors.

'I read a quote once that said 'Don't look left or right - keep your head down and work towards your dreams', I often find that when small businesses compare themselves to other businesses, they often rob themselves of growth and originality,' she said.

Customers can view and purchase the range of products on the Sincerely Danicka website.
Anti-lockdown protesters in Melbourne are threatening to cause another COVID-19 outbreak as the city teeters on the brink of a third explosion and cases surge in the southeast.

Public health authorities are racing to stop infections growing in the Casey and Dandenong council areas on the Melbourne's southeast rim, which now has 90 active cases.

Five households in Clyde, Cranbourne North, Hallam and Narre Warren South are linked to 34 active cases.

Daniel Andrews urged covidiots on Saturday not to gather at planned protests across the city or 'do anything to undermine' its progress with tackling COVID-19.

It comes as Victoria recorded 21 new cases of COVID-19, the lowest daily increase since June, and a further seven deaths.

Metropolitan Melbourne's 14-day average has plummeted and now sits at 39.3 as the state moves to a COVID normal. In regional Victoria, the 14-day average is at just 1.9.

Daniel Andrews (pictured) urged covidiots on Saturday not to gather at planned protests across the city or 'do anything to undermine' its progress with tackling COVID-19

A heavy Police presence is seen in Dandenong following an anti-lockdown protest on August 28

This is the ninth day in a row Victoria has recorded a daily infections increase below 50.

Metropolitan Melbourne is under strict Stage Four lockdown - limiting Melburnians travelling more than 5km from their homes and enforcing a 9pm to 5am curfew.

The premier did not comment on where Saturday demonstrations would be, with protesters taking caution when sharing information online.

Multiple rallies have taken place in Melbourne the past few weekends.

Victoria Police have responded with a heavy presence - handing out dozens of fines and making arrests.

'Let's not lose sight of the fact that this week we have seen, day after day, not the 725 cases we had five and a half weeks ago - we have made very significant progress,' Mr Andrews said.

'We've got regional Victoria opening up. People should be positive and optimistic this strategy is working, and therefore, let's not any of us do anything to undermine that.'

The premier on Saturday did not comment on where Saturday demonstrations would be, with protesters taking caution when sharing information online. Pictured: Protesters rallying against lockdown regulations on Monday on September 13

Mr Andrews' comments also followed trying to dissuade protesters on Friday by saying their intended actions would be selfish and irresponsible.

His comments also followed information of a new cluster emerging in the southeast of Melbourne.

A surge of cases in the Casey and Dandenong area has been linked back to five households in the Afghan community.

There are currently 101 active coronavirus cases in the Casey and Dandenong area with 34 infections linked to five households

Metropolitan Melbourne is under strict Stage Four lockdown - limiting Melburnians travelling more than 5km from their homes and enforcing a 9pm to 5am curfew. Pictured: A person walking through Melbourne's empty city

As residents in the city are still under strict Stage Four lockdown, it is thought the infected group may have breached the stay-at-home orders.

Health authorities are scrambling to track and trace the new surge in cases, and the Victorian government has begun a recruitment drive which sees retired officers re-enlisted to bolster the state's frontline virus efforts.

'Members of those households visiting other households,' Department of Health and Human Services COVID-19 testing commander Jeroen Weimar said.

'It is that limited amount of contact, relatively infrequent contact between these five households that has now meant that we have 34 people in five houses experiencing or living with a very real threat of the coronavirus.'

The Victorian government has even began a new recruitment drive that will see retired officers re-enlisted to bolster the state's frontline virus efforts

Police conducting checks on motorists at checkpoints - alongside the Australian Defence Force - to ensure Victorians are following state rules

The cluster - impacting five households in Hallam, Clyde, Narre Warren South and Cranbourne North - first emerged on September 4.

Cases in the southeast have now spread to Dandenong Police Station and a number of industrial work sites.

Premier Daniel Andrews on Friday said the actions of the family's involved in the cluster was 'disappointing'.

The cluster which has impacted the five households in Hallam, Clyde, Narre Warren South and Cranbourne North, first emerged on September 4

'Five kilometres is one thing and visiting others is the real issue here,' he said.

'The rules are in place for a reason and anyone who undermines this, undermines the entire strategy and it means the rules will be on for longer.'

The Victorian leader, however, ruled out fines for the group, telling reporters it may discourage others from being completely honest with contact tracers.

'I know many Victorians, when you see examples of people not following the rules, that's disappointing, it makes you angry,' Mr Andrews said.

'You need to look at the bigger picture here.

'We don't want a situation where people don't have a sense of confidence and indeed, you know, the sense they're obliged to tell us the full story as quickly as possible. That's what we need.'

The success of Melbourne's ongoing lockdown could be at risk with a new cluster in the southeast of the city. Pictured: A coronavirus testing centre in Cranbourne on September 17

The Casey and Dandenong cluster is testing the capacity of COVID-detectives. Pictured: Heath workers are seen at a coronavirus testing centre in Cranbourne on September 17

A health worker is pictured approaching a vehicle at a COVID-19 testing centre in Cranbourne on September 17

Despite the new cluster, Victoria's overall case numbers are continuing to decline.

With contact tracers 'painstakingly' working around the clock to slow the spread of the virus and bringing the city out of lockdown, the Victorian government is set to introduce a controversial new policy seeing retired cops re-enlisted in the force.

The Department of Justice and Community Safety and the Department of Health and Human Services is behind the push which will see former cops given paid training before being assigned specific COVID-19 roles.

These roles include industry enforcement, testing support, door-knocking and the airport patrol.

A man with a dog is seen being questioned by two police officers in the Dandenong area

However, not everybody is in favour of the move to bring back veteran police.

'Police veterans have a real contribution to make to the ongoing safety of the community but their use to issue infringements, detain people and conduct checks on private property is entirely inappropriate,' Opposition Police and Community Safety spokesman David Southwick told the Herald Sun.

Ivan Ray, who served in the Victorian Police Force for more than three decades, said it was a recipe for disaster for the veterans.

'It's effectively a health department police force, and we know the Health Department is no good at enforcement, we saw that in the hotel quarantine operation,' Mr Ray said.

'Veterans can play a part and they can support policing, but it has to be by the police department.'

Health authorities are urging anyone in the southeast of Melbourne to diligently monitor their health and immediately get tested if feeling unwell.
Faiz Ahmad, 30, has completed his MBBS and wants to pursue post graduate degree in medicine before he settles down as a practising doctor.

He lost his mother, Rashida Khatoon, 65, to coronavirus on August 9 at AIIMS-Patna, where she was undergoing treatment since July 31.

Forty days after her death, Faizs father Md Firoz Ahmad, 73, a resident of Phulwarisharif, is still to get Rs 4 lakh ex-gratia Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar had announced in May for the next of kin of people dying with Covid-19 in the state.

Deepak Kumar, a first year post graduate student in radiodiagnosis at the Darbhanga medical college hospital in Darbhanga, lost his mother, Manju Devi, 50, to Covid-19 on August 8. A resident of Khusrupur, he, too, has not got the compensation yet.

Amit Kumar runs a small medicine retail store at Patnas Mahendru locality, his father Arvind Kumar Sinha, 63, owned before his death to the pandemic on August 8. His mother, Nirmala Sinha, 61, a patient of arthritis and completely bed-ridden for the last three years, has not got the compensation after applying for it.

Mitali Sengupta, a school teacher in Danapur, recovered from Covid-19 but lost her father Sujeet Krishna Sengupta to the infection at AIIMS-Patna on August 8. Her mother, Shukla Sengupta, 66, is still to get the monetary relief from the government despite applying for it.

Aditya Nath Jha is a banker in the digital banking division of the Punjab National Bank in New Delhi. He lost his father Shashi Nath Lal, 80, to Covid-19 on August 8. He wants to add some money and utilise the ex-gratia for floating an educational scholarship for poor and meritorious students at his native place in Darbhanga. His mother, Saraswati Devi, who was made to write an application at the block office, hasnt received the compensation for her husbands death.

Also Read: Election officials in Bihar told to fact check, call out fake news

Binleshwar Prasad, 61, a resident of Khagaul who superannuated as an accountant in a private firm, lost his wife Sunita Singh, 50, to the pandemic on August 7. District officials initially guided him to the disaster management department, before he was asked to visit the Danapur circle officer and submit an application seeking ex-gratia. Associated with the ruling JD(U) in the state, he claims to have pulled political strings to get the message across to the bosses for early disbursement of compensation amount. The money does not reflect in his bank account 42 days after his spouses death.

These are only a few examples of people who have not received the CMs promised monetary relief in state capital Patna. Many are deprived of it in rural areas where 89% of Bihars population resides.

Officials play spoilsport

Of the 859 Covid-19 deaths reported in the state till Friday, only 346 had received the ex-gratia till early this week, said officials requesting anonymity. Despite persistent requests, the state government did not provide information on the total number of beneficiaries who had received the Covid-19 compensation.

Executive director of the state health society, Bihar, Manoj Kumar, also the additional secretary and spokesperson of the health department, in his text message on September 11, wrote: Total death till date 797; list sent for compensation 597. Compensation approved and amt (read amount) disbursed till date 595. We send the list for CMRF every Monday after verification and documentation.

Also Read: On eve of polls, Bihar parties underline importance of ecological issues

He, however, did not respond to this reporters repeated request to provide the number of beneficiaries to have received the compensation so far and a district-wise breakup of it.

Officials say the chief ministers secretariat has been prompt in sanctioning payment requests forwarded by the health department, and in allotment of funds against them to the respective districts. The delay, however, is happening at the district level, either prior to or after approval.

Senior officers say one does not need to even apply for compensation. The system takes care of it, as in case of deaths in natural disasters.

Once the hospital uploads a death on the Covid dashboard, mentioning the Aadhaar number of the deceased, we verify the next of kin and promptly disburse the compensation, preferably through RTGS/NEFT (real-time gross settlement/national electronic funds transfer). A simple declaration by children stating that they do not have any objection to a particular sibling receiving the compensation, is the only additional requirement in case father and mother are not alive, said a senior officer, requesting anonymity. At ground level, however, the system is not smooth in Bihar.

Beneficiaries harassed

Officials at the block level are making beneficiaries run from pillar to post, raising frivolous demands for alleged pecuniary gains, belying government claims of ease in disbursal of ex-gratia, say applicants.

The staff at block office, where I was guided to for submission of application for compensation, asked me to attach hospital admission papers, receipts of medicines purchased, death certificate, Covid-positive report, death summary issued by the hospital, besides Aadhaar, bank details and a declaration on affidavit, bearing signatures of all family members stating that none of us had any objection to our mother receiving the compensation, said Amit Kumar, who lost his father Arvind Kumar Sinha to Covid-19.

Also Read: Ahead of Bihar polls, PM Narendra Modi dedicates Kosi rail bridge to nation

Dr Faiz Ahmad, who lost his mother to Covid-19, said: Besides Aadhaar, I had to submit my fathers PAN card, property papers for address proof, vanshavali and parivar soochi (family tree and succession certificate) at the Phulwarisharif block office.

Binleshwar Prasad and Dr Deepak Kumar also spoke of harassment by officials. The litany of woes of beneficiaries suffering at the hands of unscrupulous officials, are unending.

Leading Defaulters

Only 65 beneficiaries had received compensation till September 17 in Patna, which reported the maximum 196 deaths to the fast spreading contagion.

We have received sanction for compensation for 100-odd beneficiaries, of which, 65 have been paid. Verification of the remaining beneficiaries is being done and we are in the process of paying them. It is a continuous process, said Kumar Ravi, Patnas district magistrate.

Also Read: Bridge in poll bound Bihar washed away before inauguration

Kin of around 30 of the 56 deceased in Bhagalpur had been paid the compensation, said district magistrate Pranav Kumar.

As many as 20 beneficiaries of the 47 death cases in East Champaran had received the money, said district magistrate Shirsat Kapil Ashok.

Chief minister Nitish Kumars home district Nalanda and Vaishali had disbursed compensation to 13 beneficiaries each out of the 39 and 28 cases of Covid deaths, respectively, in the two districts.

Gaya, however, has adopted a more proactive approach.

We satisfy ourselves about the next of kin to receive the compensation and whether s/he is a domicile of the district. No further inquiry is done after we get the sanction. We pay the compensation through a reserve fund available against disaster management and reimburse it as soon as we get the allotment of fund, said Abhishek Singh, Gayas district magistrate.

Also Read: Rs 2.63 lakh crore spent on asset creation during NDA rule in Bihar: Sushil Modi

We are even paying families whose relatives were brought dead to hospitals and subsequently tested Covid-19 positive. As many as 39 beneficiaries have received the payment against the 44 Covid-19 deaths in Gaya, he added.

Sources said compensations were not paid to beneficiaries before August, even as the state reported the first two Covid-19 deaths in Patna on March 21.

With an eye on upcoming assembly elections, it was only in August that an explicit directive from the CMs secretariat was sent to clear all previous payments by August 14.

Bihar has recorded 1,65,371 Covid cases with 859 fatalities, reported till September 18. Thanks to the red tape, kin of less than half of the total deceased have benefitted from the chief ministers largesse so far.
According to its own description, Buben & Zorweg is a luxury watch winder, case, safe, and multifunctional masterpiece brand. Bugatti seems to have taken a liking of the latter element , because they have just announced a kindred spirit partnership that includes a collection of unique multifunction safes and a watch winder specifically designed for and inspired by the French automaker.And it seems its an important step in the companys strategy, because Stephan Winkelmann (Bugattis president) and Florian vom Bruch (Buben&Zorweg CEO) personally showcased (while keeping the social distance, it seems) the first items in the ensemble  a couple of models of a multifunctional presentation object including safe function and a watch winder.Well, the two companies really got us intrigued at this point. Their first limited edition collection has focused on the Molsheim-based carmakers latest and greatest  the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+ special series. It arrives in two flavors, the Chiron 300+ and French Racing.Both make use of the same motifs as the car inspired by the record-breaking 304.77 mph (490.484 kph) prototype: carbon fiber elements in black and blue, the iconic horseshoe radiator grille, among others. And the crown jewels of the collection are the Grande Illusion Chiron multifunction safe and the Spirit Chiron watch winder.The first one is available in three color and material styles, with the 215 kg (474 lbs.) safe being styled as a column adorned with a B&Z Flying Minute Tourbillon Clock up top. The valuables are safely stored inside until the biometric fingerprint sensor or a special transponder chip are enabled; at which time they are automatically elevated.The second item is a luxurious watch winder for either four or eight watches that can be ordered in its own two color / material mix and will be limited, just like the Grande Illusion, to just 30 examples.
18/09/2020 People wearing face masks on Grafton Street during the COVID-19 Coronavirus Pandemic in Dublin's city centre . Pic Stephen Collins / Collins Photos

Gardai are to target day trip and weekend destinations favoured by Dubliners to discourage an exodus from the capital.

Officers will set up checkpoints around the perimeter of Dublin as well as surrounding counties this morning to ensure the public comply with the Level 3 Covid-19 restrictions imposed by the Government.

Tailbacks

However, they will not repeat the motorway operation that marked the Easter lockdown.

Instead, the garda focus will be on the destinations rather than the roads being used by those seeking to head to the Wicklow mountains and other spots within commuting distance.

"We want to avoid long tailbacks of traffic as a result of motorway checkpoints," a senior officer said.

"These will be replaced by carrying out the checks locally at the areas where crowds are likely to gather for relaxation."

Gardai will also monitor increases in passengers on the Dart, Luas and other routes.

Officers will be on duty at rail stations to establish the motives of those hoping to spend time outside the capital, either as sightseers or to avail of more relaxed restrictions on pubs and restaurants in surrounding counties.

People from outside the county are being advised not to travel into Dublin during the three-week period.

The existing high-visibility patrolling plan for Dublin, where officers will be out in force, will be stepped up over the weekend to encourage compliance with the new Level 3 regulations.

Gardai will also make spot checks in pubs to inspect food bills and establish how much is being spent on the required 9 meals and determine if the premises are observing the rules.

Visits will also be made to selected premises to ensure they are closing on time.

Consent

The officers will encourage the public to co-operate with the guidelines on social distancing and avoid large groups assembling on the streets or pavements.

If gardai encounter potential breaches of the regulations, they will investigate and then prepare a file in each case for the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Deputy garda commissioner in charge of policing and security, John Twomey, reiterated that gardai would continue to adopt a graduated response based on the force's tradition of policing by consent.

He said this had resulted in officers being seen to engage, educate, encourage and, only as a last resort, enforce - and that is the approach that would continue.

Meanwhile, acting chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn warned that 80 people are in hospital with Covid-19 across the country compared with 20 people a month ago.

"If we do not interrupt transmission now, we are concerned that we would have upwards of 1,000 cases a day, at least half of which would be in Dublin, by October," he said.

"I'm asking you to take action now. Prioritise who you need to see. As a rule of thumb, plan to see half the number of people this week that you did last week."

Taoiseach Micheal Martin said: "We are in a very urgent situation. We need to act now and act decisively.

"We need to act now for the common purpose and the common good. We owe it to the memory of all those taken by the virus.

"We did it before, with Laois, Offaly and Kildare, and we can do it again. This too will pass."

Tanaiste Leo Varadkar said the situation is "getting serious again", and if it is "not nipped in the bud, more people will get sick".

"It's not all bad and there is hope. If we compare with our neighbours, we are all doing relatively well," he said.

Those laid-off today or tomorrow are eligible for the Work Subsidy Scheme or Pandemic Unemployment Payment, Mr Varadkar added.

"Today we are releasing an additional 30m business start-up grant," he said.

An additional 5m will be allocated for tourism, culture and sport, administered by Culture Minister Catherine Martin.

Basics

The Tanaiste added that the Government will look at commercial rates and VAT in the Budget.

"The virus doesn't live in restaurants or hotels or office blocks or pubs or restaurants," he said.

"We need to be getting back to basics.

Mr Varadkar added that people should keep their distance and keep washing their hands.

The new rules come in to affect today and will be in place until October 10.

The aim is to reduce the spread of the virus and ease the pressure on the health service.
Representative Image

The internet can be a wonderful place to learn, shop, play games or even to connect with your friends but unfortunately, you will also find predators, identity thieves and other serious threats online. It is time to understand that there are people who are stalking your online activities and are always on the prowl and waiting to attack unsuspecting targets.

Children are extremely internet savvy but also extremely susceptible to an online attack. Not only do they require constant vigilance on their activities by their parents, but they also need to be trained and made aware of the potential threats lurking in the cyber world.

Cybercrimes have become a major challenge in this COVID era, as vulnerabilities have increased due to enhanced personal computing outside of secure networks. And while it will take time for us to go back to our old ways, we still have to consider the online schooling option for our children to continue studying in some limited way.

Due to the rapid adoption of the internet as an educational tool, people are now considering online education as an option extensively. The coronavirus crisis has shown us how online education can also become a viable option for millions of students who are attending school from home.

Having said that, things differ greatly when you are studying from the comforts of your home. Your institutes cybersecurity infrastructure does not protect you or your smartphone when you are logging on remotely.

You remain solely responsible for the safety of all information you share online and also the security of your home computer and digital network (Wi-Fi). If things go wrong, you wont have anyone to blame but yourself and the liability is completely on you and your family.

There are two important points that need to be discussed here. First, how remote learning affects your privacy and second, what are the steps that parents, students and teachers can take to build an online environment that is a safe digital space for children.

To keep children safe, you'll need to know about the different types of cyber threats that exist. Some basic and advanced level of awareness about cyber threats and cyber security will help you and your children make smart decisions online. There are case studies where hacking incidents have left children vulnerable with zero mitigation.

Let us take a recent example of hacking, where a school was conducting online classes on a live chat and the system was hacked. The hacker proceeded to play a pornographic video in the middle of the session. The schools reputation was severely tarnished due to this incident but the mental trauma faced by the young students was quite unimaginable.

Another example was of identity theft and cyberbullying, is that of two classmatestwo friends (male and female) who used to chat frequently on social media.

One day the male students account was hacked and the hacker started chatting with the girl who was also a friend of the female student. He then proceeded to send soiled links, vulgar images and even posted it on the male students social media accounts, leading to an uproar.

The girl and her family took strict action against the male student. But they had to wait until the case was investigated to understand that the male students account was broken into and that he was innocent of the crimes for which he was arrested.

The situation traumatised both the students and caused great stress to their families. This is a great lesson and an alarming incident for all parents to be careful about their childs online activities.

A more serious incident was that of online radicalization, where four boys went missing from the Kalyan area of Maharashtra and were found dead in another country a few weeks later.

A police investigation revealed that the boys were chatting on social media with a girl, who in reality was a bot! The boys then went on to become fighters for ISIS and traveled via multiple countries to reach their destination all because of online radicalisation, with their families unaware of their situation and they are not the only ones.

Most parents do not know that a hacker can fetch all information from social networking sites like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter very easily. At times they can even use gaming apps or the photos app on your phone and entice you to download malicious apps that ask for your permission to access your device. In this period, the hacker team collects the entire data and then proceeds to blackmail the targets and also create leverage for other nefarious activities.

So now the question arises, how should a parent control and monitor their childs online activities? How do we live fearlessly?

There is a simple solution. There are parental control applications that are mostly available on all devices running different operating systems which most parents ignore or do not research.

Once you install this app in your childs personal computer or mobile device, the parent will know which website their child is accessing and for how long. Even if the parents are not home when a child is online, they will have remote access where they would still have the ability to control their childs computer or phone.

Such parental control apps are at the forefront of creating a safe environment for children but remain largely unknown or underutilised. It is time to shed any inhibitions we may have of overtly monitoring our children because COVID has exacerbated cyber threats for our children and the more precautions we take the better it is.

Apart from training ourselves as parents, even children need to be cautious of these attackers and must follow some basic guidelines.

For example, children and adults both should use authentic websites with proper security certificates and not access any unknown sites/links which do not have these certificates.

Most modern browsers will issue warnings for these threats which need to be taken very seriously. At times, children may even receive emails that would be in a format that would look exactly like it has been sent by their school or college. But, when you click on the link, your username or password is compromised which can be misused for a multitude of cybercrimes, which you will only realise after a fair amount of time has passed. But even this basic knowledge is not common among parents or children.

It is prudent that parents exercise a variety of options available to them and access parental control apps to keep a check on their childrens activities.

Schools, too, should be more careful about their students and enable tougher firewalls on their online classes and enable some security measures to protect their students from hackers.

Their IT departments should know about every click the student is making and whether it is safe or not. Simple things like a password manager that secures all our passwords is quite useful to prevent hackers from gaining access to your accounts and misusing it. Also, the phone or computer hard disk should be encrypted, which permits limited access to any successful hacks.

Most importantly, parents should consider robust and complete security solutions (even if it is paid) to protect their personal computing devices if the free apps do not provide adequate security depending on their familys usage.

We must shed our inhibitions to pay for security and stop aligning towards free solutions that can be a gateway to hackers. Our children deserve better and this is the only way to ensure they remain safe from an ever-evolving world of threats, where even children are not spared.

(Nikhil Mahadeshwar is a cybersecurity expert and ethical hacker.)
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Linkedin Charlotte Plantive (Agence France-Presse) Washington, United States  Sat, September 19, 2020 09:24 490 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45dc17e 2 World Ruth-Bader-Ginsburg,united-states,Supreme-Court,Court,politics Free

US Supreme Court Justice and liberal icon Ruth Bader Ginsburg died Friday, opening a crucial vacancy on the high court expected to set off a pitched political battle at the peak of the presidential campaign.

Ginsburg, 87, died after a fight with pancreatic cancer, the court announced, saying she passed away "this evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, DC."

Affectionately known as the Notorious RBG, Ginsburg was the oldest justice of nine on the Supreme Court.

She anchored its liberal faction, whittled to four by two appointments since 2017 from President Donald Trump.

Coming just 46 days before an election in which Trump lags his Democratic rival Joe Biden in the polls, the vacancy offers the Republican president a chance to solidly lock in a conservative majority at the court for decades to come.

That could lead to a court that would potentially abortion rights, strengthen the powers of business, and water down rights provided minorities and the LGBTQ community over the past three decades.

But Democrats are expected to fight tough to force a delay in her replacement until after the election -- an uphill battle given the control Trump's Republicans have on the Senate, which must approve any nominee.

Read also: US Supreme Court's Ginsburg again being treated for cancer

Fought for women's rights

Ginsburg, who was Jewish, was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1933.

A legal scholar and law professor, she had a deep history in jurisprudence of standing up for women's rights.

She became only the second woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice when she was appointed to the court in 1993 by president Bill Clinton.

"Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague," Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement.

"Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her -- a tireless and resolute champion of justice."

Read also: Biden faces US voters at town hall, Trump heads back to Wisconsin

Looming political fight

There was no immediate comment on her death from the White House.

Speaking to a rally in Minnesota and apparently still unaware of the news, Trump reminded the crowd of the likelihood that a new term would allow him to appoint new justices.

"The next one will have anywhere from one to four" justices, he said. "Think of that, that will totally change" the landscape on core legal issues, including abortion, he said.

ABC News later reported, citing well-informed sources, that Trump will move quickly to name a replacement.

In a pitch to conservative voters earlier this month, he unveiled a long list of possible replacements for court vacancies, all of them deeply conservative, that he would tap if reelected.

Asked in August by radio host Hugh Hewitt if he would nominate a justice just before the election, Trump replied: "Absolutely, I'd do it."

"I would move quickly. Why not? I mean they would. The Democrats would if they were in this position."

Democrats were expected to fight hard to prevent a replacement from being named right away.

Ginsburg herself was acutely aware of the stakes of her health on the court balance, and her fans fretted at her increasingly frequent trips to the hospital over the past two years.

According to NPR radio, Ginsburg raised the issue this week with her granddaughter Clara Spera.

"My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed," she said, according to Spera.

But Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said Friday he would move on any nominee from Trump, ignoring the precedent he set in 2016 in freezing Democratic president Barack Obama's nominee to fill a vacancy before the election.

"President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate," McConnell said in a statement.
Risks have been mounting for Parit and other young activists since they decided to expand their movement to take aim at the entirety of Thailands political elite, breaking a taboo in the country against open criticism of the monarchy. Thailand has among the strictest lese-majeste laws in the world, punishing disrespect of the monarchy with up to 15 years in jail. Even in coffee shops and conversations at home, Thais have long used nicknames to refer to the king or use pop culture references to subtly signal dissatisfaction with the system.
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A 46-year-old woman was booked by Bhoiwada police for slapping and abusing a traffic constable after she slipped from her bike at Parel TT Junction on Thursday.

The woman identified as Priti Khot, a resident of Parel village, was riding pillion with her daughter Megha on her motorbike when 42-year-old Harish Urankar stopped them for jumping the signal at Parel TT.

When Urankar attempted to stop them, Khots daughter lost balance and fell. The constable then rushed to help them, but Khot held Urankar responsible for the fall. She slapped him and abused him, said a traffic police officer from Bhoiwada traffic division.

Following the incident, Urankar and other traffic officers took them to Bhoiwada police station for legal action. Urankar then filed a complaint against Priti for violating traffic rules, abusing and slapping an on-duty policeman. Police also fined her for traffic signal violation, added the officer.

We recorded Urankars statement and registered a case under section 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) of the Indian Penal Code against Priti. We allowed her to go after serving her notice under section 41 of the Code Of Criminal Procedure, 1973, said the officer.
Thousands of Australians are calling for an obese paedophile who was deemed too unwell to be jailed to be locked up.

Peter John O'Neill, 61, was employed at three schools across Tasmania from 1980-91 when he sexually abused six young boys.

The 140kg former teacher was given a five-year fully-suspended sentence at Hobart's Supreme Court on September 9.

He pleaded guilty to six counts of indecent assault and one count of penetrative sexual abuse.

But the court heard that even O'Neill 'deserved' prison he was so fat it would be too difficult to extradite him from Canberra, where he currently lives, to Hobart, where he would be jailed.

Other reasons O'Neill wasn't jailed were medical conditions such as difficulty breathing, chronic pain, severe degeneration of the lumbar spine and spinal stenosis.

A petition has been launched to have a convicted paedophile deemed too fat for prison to be thrown behind bars

The cost of transport and COVID-19 restrictions also played a part in the decision.

This has left survivors of O'Neill's abuse and former students of the schools where he worked at furious.

One woman has started a petition in the hopes of getting O'Neill thrown behind bars.

'The Supreme Court judge wanted to send O'Neill to jail but said he couldn't because O'Neill lives in Canberra and getting him to Tasmania was too big a problem,' the petition read.

'But that problem isn't too big. O'Neill could and should be extradited and jailed.'

The petition has 17,500 signatures and aims to get the Supreme Court of Tasmania to reconsider it's decision.

Rachel Grgurevic is the woman who started the petition and a former student at one of the schools where O'Neill worked.

She told Daily Mail Australia the current sentence is an 'injustice'.

'I believe the Department of Public Prosecution should appeal the leniency of the sentence,' she said.

'This man has ruined so many lives [and his actions have] taken many lives as well.'

It has been previously claimed it could cost anywhere between $25,000 to $40,000 to bring O'Neill to Tasmania via Medivac.

His furious victims offered to raise the $40,000 to transport O'Neill, who requires a full time carer, when his sentence was revealed earlier this month,

'The community wants people like O'Neill in jail. The cost of his crimes has been huge. Our suffering, the harm to our mental health, is immeasurable,' a former student, who can't be named for legal reasons, told The Mercury.

Former students of one of the schools where O'Neill worked (pictured) posted to a Facebook group, with one saying, 'Nothing will give back what he took, but he must pay in some way'

'It would cost (up to) $40,000 to transport the obese abuser to Tasmania. We, his victims, are willing to raise that transport cost so this man has to face us and then serve his just punishment.'

Other students took to Facebook calling on their former classmates to insist the state government bring that 'piece of sh*t' back to Tasmania.

They are also requesting the Director of Public Prosecutions appeal against the lenient sentence.

'So he's gotten away with abusing kids and ruining their lives. Piece of s***. Can they appeal?' a woman wrote.

Chief Justice Alan Blow heard that one of O'Neill's victims had attempted suicide while another was admitted to a psychiatric hospital more than 50 times.

The court heard how O'Neill befriended one of the boys, who was ten, while working as his personal art tutor.

While on an overnight trip during a wild storm, the boy told O'Neill he was feeling scared.

O'Neill gave the boy a back massage in bed and then sexually abused him.

In another incident, O'Neill claimed he was sick in bed when he coaxed one 15-year-old boy to hug him. He then abused him.

The court heard that even O'Neill (circled above) 'deserved' prison he was so fat it would be too difficult to extradite him from Canberra, where he currently lives, to Hobart, where he would be jailed

That victim didn't come forward until his 40s because he felt he was to blame.

Justice Blow said O'Neill deserved to be jailed but his only option was to deliver a wholly suspended sentence as there was 'no prospect' of him being brought to Tasmania.

'Although I cannot impose the penalty he deserves, his life now is probably far more miserable than the lives of most prisoners,' Justice Blow told the Supreme Court in Hobart on Wednesday.

O'Neill is unable to travel on normal flights or any significant distance by car, while specialist medical transport by air would cost up to $40,000.

Justice Blow said O'Neill could not be locked up interstate and didn't have the money to pay a fine.

He said a home detention order was useless because O'Neill is unable to leave his house without assistance.

Justice Blow said O'Neill had impacted his victims' education irreversibly and many had experienced problems with anxiety, homelessness, holding down jobs, depression and drugs.
A man has been arrested for attempting to smuggle $2.1 million worth of black tar heroin and crystal meth via the Juarez-Lincoln International Bridge, according to an arrest affidavit filed on Thursday.

Norberto Gomez, 63, arrived on Sept. 16 at the bridge driving a silver 2012 Chevrolet Silverado. Gomez allegedly stated that he had traveled to San Luis Potosi, Mexico, to have his vehicle repaired.

The inspecting U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer observed that the vehicle had what appeared to be new tires and excessive balancing weights on the wheels of the rear two tires, records state. CBP referred the vehicle to secondary inspection.

An X-ray of the vehicle yielded anomalies in the rear tires. A K-9 unit also alerted to possible contraband within the tires, according to court documents.

The rear tires of Gomezs vehicle were removed from the wheels and metal containers were observed to be welded to the wheels. The metal containers were opened and a total of 12 bundles of suspected narcotics were extracted, states the affidavit.

Two bundles tested positive for 19.57 pounds of black tar heroin while the remaining 10 bundles tested positive for 78.66 pounds of crystal meth. The narcotics had a combined estimated street value of $2,106,002, CBP said.

While drug trafficking organizations employ a wide variety of methods to move their illicit product, CBP officers continue to utilize high tech tools coupled with inspection experience to interdict these hard narcotics loads and keep our communities safe, said Acting Port Director Andrew Douglas, Laredo Port of Entry.

Gomez allegedly agreed to provide a post-arrest interview to CBP and Homeland Security Investigations special agents. He claimed he had traveled to San Luis to visit relatives because of a death in the family.

Gomez stated he had the rear brakes and differential of his vehicle repaired by a mechanic in Mexico, and the tires on his vehicle were purchased approximately four months prior, states the affidavit.

Gomez was arrested and charged with importing a controlled substance.
The Deputy Minister of Education in charge of Basic and Secondary Education, Dr. Yaw Adutwum has encouraged Junior High School (JHS) students in public schools to take advantage of the 30 percent quota placement system when selecting Senior High Schools.

The 30 percent quota system gives the opportunity to JHS students from public schools to be able to choose and be placed into grade one Senior High Schools.

Speaking to some parents and BECE candidates, the Deputy Education Minister, who toured some centres to monitor the final day of the Basic Education Certificate Examination on Friday urged parents to allow their wards to choose schools classified as prestigious schools.

I want to appeal to the parents, your child is well-performing, they're good, allow them to select some of the top schools. Of course, we have a second choice, we have a third choice, nothing really to lose. But I don't want them to take themselves out of the opportunities that have been presented to them, he said.

The Deputy Minister added that a lot of top tier schools in Ghana did not provide the opportunity for its indigenes to benefit from it.

He added that the vision of the free SHS by Nana Akufo-Addo is to give the people the chance to benefit from prestigious schools in their towns.

All these prestigious schools happen to be in places where the natives didn't get the chance to attend. How many old students of Wesley girls are from Cape Coast? So now, the vision of Nana Akufo-Addo through free SHS has opened the floodgates of the top-performing schools to those who previously couldn't have gone.

The Deputy Minister added that So if you went to public school, your aggregate may not be as high as someone who went to private school but you have a real opportunity to go to some of these top tier schools.

---citinewsroom
File image of Sushant Singh Rajput performing at the International Indian Film Academy Awards show in 2017. (Reuters)

Sushant Singh Rajputs death may dominate primetime across news channels but in poll-bound Bihar, parties are having second thoughts over whether the issue will find resonance among the electorate.

Following the death of the Bihar-born star on June 14, as calls for justice emerged from his fans and a movement of sorts began to take shape, the Bharatiya Janata Partys state unit was quick off the block. By June 16, posters and stickers had been readied, the state unit was working overtime on social media and its leaders started pressuring ally and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to ensure a thorough probe into Sushants death.

At a virtual rally earlier this month, Kumar said his government had asked the Centre for a proper inquiry.

Yet, with the Bihar elections expected in October-November, the chasm between a social media movement and ground reality appears to have dawned on the BJPs state unit.

A senior BJP leader, who was a former state minister, said that the party was quick to raise the issue to ensure the Opposition does not capture the debate. The issue has fizzled out though, since the Bihar government initiated an inquiry and the matter landed with the CBI and then the Supreme Court, the leader said.

Sushant was from Purnia, and the fact that he was a son of Bihar was not lost on anyone. The Bihar government was involved and did what was expected of it. We released placards, stickers and social media posts calling for an inquiry into his death and the partys youth wing raised the issue enthusiastically. But this was before it went to the Supreme Court, said the leader.

The leader added that in rural Bihar, which accounts for more than 80 percent of the states population, the actors death has not found the resonance the party thought it would. But he maintained, If the Opposition comes up with any Sushaht-related campaign, we will counter it.

Another leader suggested that the focus of the conversation on the news and in the online space appeared to have shifted from the actors death to the factionalism and ideological wars inside the film industry.

Officially, BJPs state leaders downplayed the efforts. Party spokesperson Nikhil Anand said that while Sushants death is part of the states emotional agenda, it has not become a political one.

His death shocked people in Bihar, and it became an emotive issue as his success was despite the fact that he was from outside the industry. As far as the BJP is concerned, our campaign slogan is Jan Jan Ki Pukaar, Atmanirbhar Bihar. We are coming up with a five-year vision document for a corruption-free, developed Bihar. The Sushant issue is a moral and prestige issue, and no political leader has raised it electorally, said Anand.

Even so, the BJPs Kala Sanskriti Manch printed thousands of posters. Anand, however, said that the Kala Sanskriti Manchs campaign is led by the artistes in the unit, and does not entirely reflect the partys view.

The former state minister also said that the partys manifesto drive has begun and leaders are interacting with people in the states nine administrative divisions. The party will focus on developmental projects that were cleared in the three years after the BJP was part of the government. What Bihar gained with BJP at the Centre, and what it stands to gain till 2024, will be played up in the vision document, the leader said.

Former BJP member Shivam Shankar Singh, who helped the party plan electoral campaigns before his exit, however said while the actors death may not have a electoral resonance, it is instrumental in building a narrative. This is something that the BJP has effectively done earlier, like it did in JNU where it worked on the narrative that its students are anti-nationals. Today, Bollywood is the new JNU. The matter gives nothing more than a talking point to the partys supporters. It counters concerns such as the economic distress, unemployment and a failed response to Covid, Singh said.

The Opposition in Biharthe Mahagathbandhan of the Rashtriya Janata Dal, Congress, Left and Rashtriya Lok Samta Partywill meanwhile try and centre the conversation on the migrant labour crisis during the lockdown.

Congress leaders said that while seat-sharing talks continue, unemployment, farmer issues and migrant crisis will dominate the Opposition campaign.

Congress in-charge of Bihar Shaktisihn Gohil alleged that the BJP had sought to reap political gains from the actors death.

The people of Bihar are literate; the Opposition, too, supported a CBI inquiry. We additionally asked for a court-monitored inquiry. But the BJP is looking at political mileage out of the issue. The Nitish-led government has failed the development agendathe Niti Aayog has ranked Bihar as the worst state in developmental parameters. The state is yet to see a penny of the Rs 1.25 lakh crore it was promised. To top that, the farmers bills will affect the lives of the farmers adversely. These are the issues that will dominate the election campaign, he said.

(Amrita Madhukalya is a Delhi-based journalist who writes on politics and policy)
A team of Bihar Special Task Force (STF) on Saturday arrested three members of an arms smuggling gang and recovered eight pistols and 16 magazines from state capital Patna. This is the third arms haul within 10 days ahead of assembly election in the state.

Police said pistols of 7.65 bore were being smuggled to Bhojpur district from Munger. On supply of a consignment, the gang used to earn a profit of Rs 10,000 each as a carrier while a peddler earns between Rs 25,000 to Rs 35, 000 on each pistol.

The arrested accused were identified as Raju Yadav (Munger), Mahendra Singh and Ajit Kumar (both from Bhojpur district). An STF official said acting on a tip-off, a police team intercepted them in Jakkanpur police station area and during checking, the pistols and magazines were seized.

Also read: NCR states prepare to avert severe air pollution ahead of winter

The trio told the police that they used to work as daily wage labourers and were recently called by a gang of arms smugglers to Munger. They were handed over the consignment to deliver in Bhojpur.

Earlier, the STF had arrested a smuggler with 1,100 live cartridges from Khagaria. On September 8, STF units had busted illegal gun factories in Patna and Khagaria districts and arrested 10 people during separate operations. The STF seized over 50 unfinished pistols, huge quantity of tools and manufacturing materials.
Hundreds of people have gathered to celebrate the return of live music in Darwin.

Reset 2020 was held at the Darwin Ski Club on Saturday and featured acts such as Shannon Noll, The Angels and The SuperJesus.

The festival, which allowed all ages into the event, is the first live music festival since the COVID-19 outbreak shut down events across the country.

Jon Stevens, the brain behind Noisworks, is the creator of the festival and was supposed to headline the show.

Scroll down for video

People soaked up the sun and the music at the Darwin Ski Club on Saturday

Reset 2020 was held at the Darwin Ski Club on Saturday and featured acts such as Shannon Noll, The Angels and The SuperJesus. Pictured: Crowd at the festival

The festival, which allowed all ages into the event, is the first live music festival since the COVID-19 outbreak shut down events across the country.

Hundreds took the opportunity to soak up the sun and dance to some of their favourite artists.

A spot of rain didn't dampen anyone's mood - with several jumping into mud puddles.

Footage shared to Instagram showed one man jump belly-first into one mud puddle and pretend to swim.

Another clip showed a woman covered in mud twirling to the music in front of the stage while barefoot.

The performers were even overjoyed to be finally back on stage and showcasing their talents to crowds once again.

Noll shared a video of his soundcheck for the festival to Instagram.

'Yes! First sound check in six months,' he captioned the video.

'Cannot wait to play the show tomorrow here in Darwin! Make sure you come check it out if you're in Darwin! Love NT!'

The performers were even overjoyed to be finally back on stage and showcasing their talents to crowds once again. Noll shared a video of his soundcheck for the festival to Instagram

Angels vocalist Dave Gleeson described the festival as a 'glimmer of hope' for musicians.

Concertgoers Elizabeth Szegedi and Jade Leask were among attendees of the festival.

The pair were keen to see Daryl Braithwaite and Jon Stevens, but the performers were unable to attend due to border restrictions.

However Ms Szegedi and Ms Leask were excited to see Noll play.

'The Territory's the best place to live, isn't it?' Ms Szegedi told the NT News.

Hundreds of people turned up to celebrate the return of live music to Darwin on Saturday

'We're really happy to be here.'

Falls Music and Arts Festival cancelled their Marion Bay, Tasmania, show on July 14 for 2020 but haven't ruled out shows in NSW, Victoria and WA in 2020 and 2021.

Popular festival Splendour In The Grass was also cancelled for 2020.

Dark Mofo and Groovin the Moo were also cancelled earlier this year due to the pandemic.

Tamworth Country Music Festival announced earlier this month that it would not return in 2021.

Darwin Ski Club will also host Jimmy Barnes and Rebound 2020 in the coming weeks.
A home burns during the Bobcat Fire in Juniper Hills, California, September 18, 2020. Kyle Grillot | AFP | Getty Images

Homes were destroyed Friday by an unrelenting wildfire that reached a Mojave Desert community and was still growing on several fronts after burning for nearly two weeks in mountains northeast of Los Angeles. Officials were investigating the death of a firefighter on the lines of another Southern California wildfire that erupted earlier this month from a smoke-generating pyrotechnic device used by a couple to reveal their baby's gender. The death occurred Thursday in San Bernardino National Forest as crews battled the El Dorado Fire about 75 miles (120 kilometers) east of LA, the U.S. Forest Service said in a statement. In northern Los Angeles County, the Bobcat Fire burned semi-rural desert properties when it was pushed by gusts into the community of Juniper Hills after churning all the way across the San Gabriel Mountains.

A destroyed property continues to smoulder during the Bobcat Fire in Juniper Hills, California, September 18, 2020. Kyle Grillot | AFP | Getty Images

Crews protected homes and chased spot fires sparked by embers blown across neighborhoods by erratic winds. Surrounding areas were under evacuation orders and residents of ranches scrambled to get horses and other animals out. "We've got a very active firefight on the north end of this fire and we're bringing in more strike teams. We'll be in this firefight for some time," LA County Fire Captain David Dantic said Friday evening. The blaze was also expanding on the eastern and western edges, officials said. Wyatt Stephenson helped his friend evacuate his home at the top of Juniper Hills. "We were waiting for the fire to come over the ridge. When it finally came over, we got him out of there," Stephenson said. "We found out later that his house burned. The fire just burned everything." It wasn't immediately clear how many homes were burned in the area about 50 miles (80 kilometers) northeast of downtown LA. No injuries were reported. On the south side of the blaze, firefighters continued to protect Mount Wilson, which overlooks greater Los Angeles and has a historic observatory founded more than a century ago and numerous broadcast antennas serving Southern California.

Firefighters walk while defending the Mount Wilson Observatory in the Angeles National Forest during the Bobcat Fire in Los Angeles, California, U.S., September 17, 2020. Ringo Chiu | Reuters
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New Delhi: The Delhi Police on Saturday said it has arrested a Chinese woman and her Nepalese associate, and claimed that they were paying huge amounts of money to freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma for allegedly passing sensitive information to Chinese intelligence". Special Cell has arrested a freelance journalist, Rajeev Sharma, for passing sensitive information to Chinese intelligence. One Chinese lady and her Nepalese associate have also been arrested for paying him large amounts of money routed through shell companies. Chinese intelligence tasked the journalist for conveying sensitive information in lieu of large amounts of money.

Huge number of mobile phones, laptops and other incriminating/sensitive material have been recovered," the police said. Sharma, a resident of Pitampura, has been arrested by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police.

He was found to be in possession of some classified defence-related documents. The investigation is in progress and further details will be shared in due course," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Sanjeev Kumar Yadav had said on Friday.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
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Conakry, Sept 19 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Sep, 2020 ) :Guinea began Saturday to distribute more than five million voter cards ahead of the October 18 presidential election in which incumbent Alpha Conde is running for a controversial third term.

Voters must go to centres where the documents are available, such as in the Koloma district of Conakry where a small group of mostly maskless men waited.

The green cards, which are to be available until the day of the election, are printed with the elector's name and address, also have a photo and a QR code.

More than 5.4 million voters are registered to choose among 12 candidates, notably Conde, 82, who was elected in 200 and 2015.

A movement opposing his bid for a third term said Wednesday that it would stage a new round of protests from late September.

Deadly clashes erupted in the West African state last October, claiming several dozen lives, over Conde's plans.

He is contesting the poll despite accusations of sidestepping limits on presidential terms by pushing through changes to the constitution.

Guinea is one of Africa's most volatile countries, enjoying little stability between coups since independence from France in 1958.

An extended state of emergency currently bans gatherings of more than 100 people, making it likely the fresh demonstrations will be declared illegal.
The final phase of human clinical trial of Oxford-Astrazenecas Covishield will begin at the Sassoon General Hospital in Pune next week, after Drugs Controller General of India gave Serum Institute of India (SII) a go-ahead to continue its trial.

The phase-III trial of Covishield vaccine will begin at Sassoon hospital from next week. It is likely to start on Monday. Some volunteers have already come forward for the trial. Around 150 to 200 volunteers will be administered the vaccine candidate dose, Dr Muralidhar Tambe, dean of Sassoon General Hospital, told PTI.

Also Read | AstraZenecas trial illnesses may not be due to Covid-19 shot, says Oxford University

Here is a timeline of the Covishield trial in India

* On August 3, the Drug Controller General of India permitted SII to conduct the second and third phases of human clinical trials of Covishield.

* On August 25, SII began the second phase of trial

* On September 8, Oxford and Astrazeneca confirmed that one person who was administered the shot reported illness, after which the trials in the UK have been stalled on September 6.

* SII also stopped preparations for any further trial.

* On September 12, Astrazeneca announced that it is resuming the trial as the UK authorities have declared the vaccine shot safe.

* SII said it would wait for DGCI nod to resume the trials in India.

* DGCI has given a go-ahead to SII on September 15

From Saturday, the Pune hospital where the phase 3 trial will begin started enrolling volunteers.
OTTAWA A group of conservative-minded premiers say the federal Liberal government must give provinces tens of billions of dollars more for health care, infrastructure and fiscal aid, but should not tell them how to spend it.

The four provincial leaders of Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and Manitoba personally delivered that message in a news conference on behalf, they said, of all 13 provincial and territorial governments, and addressed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau directly, saying he should focus on health care, not on other issues in next weeks throne speech.

Premiers Doug Ford, Jason Kenney, Francois Legault and Brian Pallister all came to the nations capital, where public health officer Dr. Vera Etches warned a second COVID-19 wave is underway, not to meet with Trudeau  they didnt even ask for a meeting  but to tell him to prioritize health care spending in next weeks throne speech.

The provinces want Trudeau to commit to much higher annual health-care spending beyond the pandemic. Their demand: that Ottawa raise the Canada Health Transfer by $28 billion before April 1, meaning hiking the $42 billion transfer to $70 billion, and to keep it on an escalating path.

Legault said the federal portion of health-care spending should rise from 22 per cent to 35 per cent, and the federal share should remain at that level on an ongoing basis and have no conditions attached.

Were here to ask the federal government, step up to the plate, said Ford, who dismissed questions about a national pharmacare program, saying health care is strictly the provinces domain.

Its a provincial jurisdiction and thats going to be up to each province to decide if we go down that route or we dont, Ford said.

Others too warned Trudeau not to indulge in new programs or spending obligations as the prime minister sets out next week what he previously billed as an ambitious new governing agenda.

Dont come and invent all sorts of new programs and new spending when the priority of Canadians is to properly finance health care. And right now it is not well financed, said Legault.

Manitobas Brian Pallister sounded a note of impatience.

This throne speech needs to focus. I know that is difficult for any government. It is especially difficult for a minority government. But they must focus and keep the main thing the main thing. The main thing is the personal health and well-being of each and every Canadian.

Pallister mocked talk of creating a new national pharmacare program.

If your foundation of your house is beginning to crumble, do you redecorate the second-floor sitting room? We need a federal government to focus on the fundamentals, the foundation, and the foundation of our health-care system surely rests on our ability to get care when we need it in a timely manner.

However health care wasnt the premiers sole focus Friday.

They added to their wish list, saying Ottawa must spend $10 billion a year more on infrastructure for the next 10 years, for a total of $100 billion; and lift a per-capita limit on a federal fiscal stabilization program that is meant to cushion have provinces from economic shocks, like the oil and gas sector downturn that has hit hard in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador.

Albertas Kenney, backed by the others, said his province has been shortchanged by about $6 billion. Later, on CBCs Power and Politics, Kenney said it would be a one-off payment to aid Alberta, not a recurring commitment.

Kenney said all premiers are concerned by talk from Trudeaus cabinet about a green relaunch which he said could be even more damaging to resource sectors. He said Trudeau should not be indulging in ideological fancies when there is a job crisis at hand.

Trudeau has already agreed to a first ministers meeting this fall to discuss health care and the premiers demand that the automatic increase in federal health spending should increase from three per cent each year to 5.2 per cent annually.

On Friday, they said health-care costs across the country are rising anywhere from five to six per cent a year due to an aging population, the need to hire more health workers with the salary costs that entails, and more expensive innovations in medicines and technology. Ford said Ontarios health system also faces a capital spending crunch.

For all their talk and criticism of Trudeau, the premiers praised the level of federal-provincial collaboration during the pandemic, through some 18 first ministers conference calls with Trudeau.

Ford insisted it wasnt about criticizing any one party, that governments of all political stripes going back 20 or 30 years are to blame.

Trudeaus Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic Leblanc said the premiers know Trudeaus immediate priority is dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic crisis.

He took a shot at the provinces who have received $19 billion, including $11 billion for health-care costs, under Safe Re-Start agreements, yet are having trouble ramping up testing in places like Ottawa where COVID-19 is spiking. Leblanc said the premiers know Trudeau shares their concerns for the long-term sustainability of a quality health-care system.

Its not a surprise to the premiers, Leblanc said. What is a surprise to us is that they came to Ottawa today to take yes for an answer. But he declined to say whether Ottawa has the capacity to meet their demands, saying only that questions about Ottawas fiscal capacity are now under consideration.

Leblanc, who was celebrating the one-year anniversary of a successful stem cell transplant for cancer, said he recognizes the critical importance to Canadians of an accessible high-quality health care system.

But he took a dig at Kenney, saying he found the irony pleasant  that Kenney had been a member of the Harper government that never showed any interest in the kinds of meetings the premiers are demanding, including to discuss health care with the provinces.

But we think it is very important and very urgent to continue to focus on the health-care issues linked to the COVID-19 pandemic, Leblanc said repeatedly.

And Leblanc underscored that provinces have still not spent many billions of dollars in infrastructure money. Lets start by properly investing the billions of dollars that remains unallocated.

The federal parliamentary budget office, in its latest report on the federal governments $188 billion infrastructure package, said While federal infrastructure transfers increased by $1 billion in 2018-19, overall provincial infrastructure spending decreased by $800 million.

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Days after scientists found that there may potentially be aliens on Earths closest neighbor Venus, Russia has claimed autonomy on the planet.

Russian space agency chief, Dmitry Rogozin, called Venus a Russian planet at an industry exhibition taking place in Moscow.

Our country was the first and only one to successfully land on Venus, The Moscow Times quoted said Rogozin saying.

Rogozin was referring to the countrys successful explorations of Venus in the 60s, 70s and 80s.

The Russian spacecraft gathered information about the planet  it is like hell over there," he added.

Rogozin also announced plans to launch an independent Russian expedition to Venus without involving wide international cooperation."

The expedition will take place in addition to the previously planned Venera-D mission, which is being carried out in cooperation with the United States.

In a release, the space agency also added that The USSR was the only country to conduct regular explorations of Venus using on-planet stations. The first ever soft landing on another planets surface in the Solar system was performed in 1970 by the Venera-7 descent module. Several orbital missions and landings provided detailed data on the Venerian climate, soil and atmosphere composition. The Soviet Venera-13 spacecraft still holds the record as the longest active spacecraft on Venus remaining operational for 127 minutes."

Discovering chemical substances as possible chemical markers of life existence in Venuss atmosphere via remote astronomical observations cannot be considered objective evidence of life existence on the planet," says Roscosmos Executive Director for Science and Advanced Programs Alexander Bloshenko.

Credible scientific data on that matter can be obtained only via contact explorations of the planets surface and atmosphere," he added.

Scientists Monday revealed that they have detected a gas called phosphine in the harshly acidic clouds of Venus. The presence of phosphine indicates that microbes may inhabit Earths inhospitable neighbor, a tantalizing sign of potential life beyond Earth.

The researchers did not discover actual life forms, but explained that on Earth phosphine is produced by bacteria thriving in oxygen-starved environments. The international scientific team first spotted the phosphine using the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope in Hawaii, and confirmed it using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) radio telescope in Chile.

I was very surprised - stunned, in fact, astronomer Jane Greaves told Reuters of Cardiff University in Wales, lead author of the research published in the journal Nature Astronomy.

The existence of extraterrestrial life long has been one of the paramount questions of science. Scientists have used probes and telescopes to seek biosignatures - indirect signs of life - on other planets and moons in our solar system and beyond.

With what we currently know of Venus, the most plausible explanation for phosphine, as fantastical as it might sound, is life, said Massachusetts Institute of Technology molecular astrophysicist and study co-author Clara Sousa-Silva.

I should emphasize that life, as an explanation for our discovery, should be, as always, the last resort, Sousa-Silva added. This is important because, if it is phosphine, and if it is life, it means that we are not alone. It also means that life itself must be very common, and there must be many other inhabited planets throughout our galaxy.
Washington to declare UN sanctions back in effect on Tehran despite overwhelming objection from international community.

The United States will unilaterally declare this weekend that United Nations sanctions targeting Iran are once again in force, breaking with almost every other UN Security Council (UNSC) member, including longtime allies.

Virtually all UN sanctions on Iran will come back into place this weekend at 8pm Eastern Time (00:00 GMT) on Saturday the 19th, said Elliott Abrams, the Trump administrations special representative for Iran.

The move, however, risks increasing Washingtons diplomatic isolation while also stoking international tensions in the lead-up to the highly anticipated US election in November.

Thirteen of the 15 UNSC members, including Britain, France and Germany, say Washingtons move is void and diplomats believe few countries are likely to reimpose the measures, which were lifted under a 2015 deal between world powers and Iran.

The standoff started in mid-August when US President Donald Trumps administration suffered a resounding defeat at the UN Security Council after it tried to extend an embargo on conventional weapons being sent to Tehran.

Imposed in 2007, the embargo is due to expire on October 18, as agreed under the nuclear deal among Iran, Russia, China, Germany, Britain, France and the US that seeks to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons in return for sanctions relief.

Following the failure last month to extend the arms embargo at the UNSC, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made an unusually strong attack on allies France, Britain and Germany, accusing them of siding with Irans ayatollahs. On August 20, he announced a controversial move known as a snapback, which aims to re-establish all sanctions against Iran a month later.

The sanctions were lifted in 2015 when Iran signed on to the nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

However, Trump said the landmark accord, negotiated by his predecessor Barack Obama, was insufficient. In 2018, the Republican president unilaterally withdrew the US from the JCPOA and went on to renew and even strengthen Washingtons bilateral sanctions.

At the moment, the US is insisting it is still a participant in the agreement that it stormed out of, but only so that it can activate the snapback option.

Washington demands that the arms embargo on Tehran be prolonged indefinitely [File: AFP]

Virtually every other member of the Security Council disputes Washingtons ability to execute this legal pirouette, and the council has not taken the measure any further.

Britain, France and Germany told the UNSC on Friday that UN sanctions relief for Iran would continue beyond September 20.

We have worked tirelessly to preserve the nuclear agreement and remain committed to do so, the UN envoys for the three countries said in a letter to the council, seen by Reuters news agency.

Amid the showdown, the Trump administration is behaving as if the international sanctions were coming back, while the rest of the international community continues to act as if nothing has changed.

So is this a symbolic gesture designed to recall Washingtons hard line against Tehran, or are there more concrete measures in the offing?

The Americans will pretend that they have activated the snapback and that therefore the sanctions are back up and running, one European diplomat told the AFP news agency. But this action will have no legal foundation and therefore cannot have legal consequences.

I dont see anything happening, said another UN diplomat. It would be just a statement. Its like pulling a trigger and no bullet coming out.





Another diplomat deplored the unilateral US act, saying that Russia and China are sitting, happy, eating popcorn, watching the huge destabilising fallout between Washington and its European partners.

The US is, however, demanding that the arms embargo be prolonged indefinitely and that numerous other activities linked to Irans nuclear and ballistic programmes be subject to international sanctions.

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Pompeo said this week the US will do all the things we need to do to make sure that those sanctions are enforced.

We are going to act in a way  and we have acted in a way  that will prevent Iran from being able to purchase Chinese tanks and Russian air defence systems, he said.

We expect every nation to comply with UN Security Council resolutions  period, full stop, he added. That is where the issue risks stoking up international tensions.

Trump plans to issue an executive order allowing him to impose US sanctions on anyone who violates the UN arms embargo on Iran, sources told Reuters, in a bid to reinforce the US assertion that the measure has been extended indefinitely beyond October 18.

The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said on Thursday the order was expected in the coming days and would allow Trump to punish foreign actors  US entities are already barred from trading weapons with Iran  by depriving them of access to the US market.

The Biden factor

Six weeks out from the US election, Trump could also use his address to the General Assembly on Tuesday to try and create a shock by announcing some sort of financial penalty on the UN because of his dissatisfaction over the snapback process, said Richard Gowan, of the International Crisis Group.

200916150929552

Three senior Iranian officials have told Reuters that Irans leadership is determined to remain committed to the nuclear deal, hoping that a victory by Trumps political rival, Joe Biden, in the November 3 polls will salvage the crumbling pact.

Biden, who was vice president when the Obama administration negotiated the accord, said he would rejoin the deal if Iran first resumed compliance.

If Iran returns to strict compliance with the nuclear deal, the United States would rejoin the agreement and build on it, while working with allies to push back on Irans destabilising actions, Biden campaign spokesman Andrew Bates said.
The GEM has thus far received 54,000 objects from different eras and archaeological sites

The Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) received a collection of 2,000 artefacts from the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir and the storage galleries of Tal El-Yahoudeya and Giza Plateau.

The artefacts will be restored and exhibited at the GEM.

Major General Atef Moftah, general supervisor of the GEM project and the surrounding area, said the artefacts were transferred amid tight security measures by the Tourism and Antiquities Police and under the supervision of the museums restorers and curators.

With the new collection, the GEM has thus far received 54,000 objects.

Moftah said among the most important artefacts are two red granite columns of King Ramses II, each weighing 13 tons and measuring 6 metres high. The columns will be on display at the GEM's Grand Staircase.

Al-Tayeb Abbas, director-general of Archaeological Affairs at the GEM, explained that among the transferred objects are a group of 54 artefacts from the treasures of King Tutankhamun, including a set of gold jewellery and necklaces, as well as a gilded wooden statue depicting the young king, with a stick in one hand and a flail in the other, standing on the back of a leopard, wearing the white crown of Upper Egypt, and on his forehead the sacred uraeus and a wide beaded necklace that covers his chest and shoulders.

Abbas added that a distinguished collection from different eras, from the Old to the New Kingdom, was among the transported items. The most important of these is a double statue of the writer of Atun Temple in Tal El-Amarna, the so-called Mery-Re, who later changed his name to Mery-Atun. The statue was found by the Dutch-British archaeological mission several years ago at Saqqara Necropolis. The double statue is characterised by high artistic technique in terms of features, clothes and excellent details of wigs, bras, and pleated clothes.

From Tel El-Yahoudeya the GEM received pottery vessels, silver coins and a group of metal statues.

Issa Zidan, director-general of the Executive Affairs for the Restoration and Transportation of Antiquities at the GEM, affirmed the museum will open in 2021. He added that 47 wooden pieces were transferred from Khufu's second solar boat at the Pyramid, bringing the total number of wooden pieces transferred to the GEM from the boat to 1,053.

He pointed out that before packing and transportation, a report was written about each piece to state its preservation means.

The Boy King's collection is currently being restored at the GEM's lab centre.

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Letters to the editor, Sept. 19, 2020

Why Trump will be re-elected

To the editor,

Hitlers chief propagandist, Joseph Gobbles once said the most effective lie is one that is partly true because its harder to contest. The Journals article (8-19-20) titled: Senate panel details Trump, Russia ties, is a half-truth. It stated in part.the 2016 presidential election posed a grave counterintelligence threat. Heres what the actual report said: Manafort posed a grave counterintelligence threat because of his proximity to then-candidate Trump. The article also forgot to mention this part of the story, that Manafort had increasingly come under fire over his past lobbying work for pro-Russian Ukrainian oligarchs  which was fundamentally at odds with Trumps boasts about being free from moneyed interests. Trump fired Manafort for his ties with the Ukrainian oligarchs stating: Manafort will do anything for money and he should be locked up. By not telling the whole story, it brings back into focus the lie that Trump colluded with the Russians. Never in the history of American politics has a President been so maliciously maligned and attacked by the opposing party, the media and in some cases his own party. American politicians hate him because hes an outsider and they have no control over him. Thats why he will be re-elected.

Don Kopp, Rapid City

It's time to come back

To the Editor:

Governor Noem, you have been following the Trump playbook of playing down the Covid-19 virus and the benefits of masks/face coverings. Now we know from the tapes of Trumps exact words in his interviews with Bob Woodward that he understood by early February how powerful and dangerous Covid isthat it is airborne and is five times more powerful than a strenuous flu and will affect young people too. Yet he egregiously lied about Covid to Americans for seven months.

When are you going to stop trying to curry favor with the president, stop your self-promotion tours (often at tax payer expense), and come back to South Dakota instead of making appearances in other states? Its time for you to lead and educate South Dakotans and follow CDC guidelines about social distancing, wearing masks, and increasing testing.

You appear to be withholding critical information to South Dakotans as you refused the Argus Leaders request to release the recent letter from the White House Coronavirus Task Force that notified you that South Dakotas Covid cases were in the red zone (235 per 100,000 compared to the US national average of 88 per 100,000), that South Dakota had the second highest rates of Covid cases, and that masks should be worn as continued increasing case counts and remarkably high test positivity in the context of insufficient testing levels(increase testing) were deeply concerning. Yet your unsatisfactory response was you did not find it deeply concerning.

The economic and personal cost from Covid and our rising cases require you to stay in South Dakota and do your job as governor. Its time to allocate more of the federal Covid dollars for South Dakota citizens, instead of going on a self-promotion tour to other states. Its time to be the Governor of South Dakota and not the lackey of the president.

Joyce Scott, Brookings

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The phone number will not be published. Letters to the editor are limited to two per month per person. Letters mentioning topics connected to an upcoming election must be received within three weeks of that election.

Letters that endorse a candidate may be used, but multiple letters received for the same candidate with similar language will not be printed. Letters about a campaign, candidate or issue may be run as a paid advertisement within three weeks of an election.

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The Queen owns properties on Londons Regent Street and St Jamess as well as malls and retail parks across the UK. Photo: Chris Jackson/AFP via Getty

The coronavirus pandemic has forced a 552.5m ($717m) write-down of the Queens regional property portfolio across the UK.

In annual results published on Friday, the Crown Estate  which manages property held by the monarch  revealed that it had downgraded the value of its portfolio to 13.4bn, a fall of 1.2%.

The properties generated 345m  up from 343.5m the previous year  of net income for the year to 31 March, an increase of 0.4% on the previous year. It was driven by disposals and lease negotiations in central London, as well as by growth in offshore wind operations on the seabed owned by The Crown Estate around England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

All of the registered companys profits go to the UK Treasury, which passes on 25% of profits  with a two-year time lag  to the Queen through the sovereign grant.

The economic shock from the COVID-19 crisis prompted the company to make staggered payments to the Treasury, paying 87m in July with more payments to follow as trading conditions develop. The company announced it took unprecedented steps to ensure it had enough revenue saved up to combat the drop in rental income. The sovereign grant payment was not impacted by this decision, the Treasury said.

The Crown Estates CEO, Dan Labbad, said: The West End is slowly filling up again. Weve seen most of our retail and food and beverage come back and want to open where they are still trading. There have been a number of CVAs and administrations.

Labbad, hailed the governments Eat Out to Help Out scheme  that ended last month  saying it helped the companys food and beverage tenants.

READ MORE: UK retail sales rebound continues in August with fourth month of growth

So far, the company has collected 52% of rents from its retail tenants in central London, while rental take outside the capital was 53%, it also collected 88% of rents from offices in central London.

In the year to date, profits were reduced by a 12.9m bad debt provision as it expects a rise in the number of retailers falling into administration or adopting a company voluntary arrangement (CVA)  a procedure that allows a company to settle debts by paying only a proportion of the amount that it owes to creditors.

Story continues

Previously, the Centre for Retail Research, which tracks the impact of CVAs, said 313 shops were closed in 2019 using CVAs, costing over 26,000 jobs. It found CVA usage increased by 30% between 2015 and 2019.

READ MORE: Coronavirus: London mayor Sadiq Khan resurrects plans to freeze rents

Coronavirus lockdown measures has caused retailers and office tenants to struggle to make payments, due to working from home guidance, with retailers warning of more store closures and job losses if Brits dont get back to the office.

In early September, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium (BRC), Helen Dickinson OBE, said: Unless businesses and government can successfully persuade office workers back into city and town centres, some high street retailers will be unable to afford their fixed costs.

Government will need to act fast or September will see more shops close and more job losses realised.

In the last few months major companies sold office spaces to accommodate changing work patterns, with BP (BP.L) announcing in late August that it was planning to sell its headquarters.

But despite the devaluation of its property, value of its energy, minerals and infrastructure was up by 8% to almost 2bn as offshore wind-generating capacity increased by 1.6 gigawatts to a total of 9.3GW. With the Crown Estate saying plans for a 20.7GW of potential projects were in the pipeline.

The Queen owns properties on Londons Regent Street and St Jamess as well as malls and retail parks across the UK, as well as rights to seabeds around the British Isles.
President Donald Trump with Dr. Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in the White House's press briefing room on April 22. Alex Brandon/AP

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published a controversial guideline last month saying that people who were exposed to the novel coronavirus but didn't show symptoms should not seek a test.

According to The New York Times, the advice was written by Trump administration officials and published despite scientists' objections.

The memo had been written by Department of Health and Human Services officials and published on the CDC's website, circumventing the CDC's scientific review process, the report said.

The publication of the guidance had prompted concerns of political interference in the CDC, with President Donald Trump having sought to blame high coronavirus infection rates on testing.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

A controversial guideline from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that discouraged people in certain situations from taking coronavirus tests was written by Trump administration officials and published despite objections from scientists, The New York Times reported Thursday.

The guidance, which was published on the CDC's website on August 24, said people who had been exposed to the novel coronavirus but did not show symptoms should not seek a test.

According to The Times, the advice had been written by officials at the Department for Health and Human Services and published despite the objections from doctors and scientists at the CDC. The Times cited several sources close to the matter in addition to documents.

"That was a doc that came from the top down, from the HHS and the task force," a federal official with knowledge of the matter told The Times, referring to the White House coronavirus task force led by Vice President Mike Pence.

"That policy does not reflect what many people at the CDC feel should be the policy," the official added.

An unnamed federal health official had also told CNN around the time the guidance was published that the advice was "coming from the top down." Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top infectious-disease official in the White House coronavirus task force, also said he was in surgery when the task force discussed approving the new guidance.

Story continues

Before the August 24 guidance, the CDC had advocated widespread testing to identify clusters of infections, including for those who were not symptomatic but had come into contact with possible sources of infection.

The reversal prompted accusations of political interference, with President Donald Trump having repeatedly and falsely sought to blame solely increased testing for high numbers of coronavirus cases in the US.

At the time, the agency denied that the advisory was made because of meddling by administration officials.

But Thursday's report said the advisory had in fact been written by officials at the HHS and then published on the CDC's website, circumventing the CDC's scientific review process.

Typically, CDC advisories need to be signed off by 12 to 20 people, including doctors and scientists, before being published, The Times said.

Brett Giroir, the assistant secretary for health at HHS, told a press conference around the same time the CDC guidance was published: "We want appropriate testing, not less testing ... We want more asymptomatic testing in areas where it's needed and hopefully less where it's not needed."

In a Friday statement to Reuters, CDC Director Robert Redfield said the testing advice had been issued after receiving input from experts on the White House coronavirus task force.

"The guidelines, coordinated in conjunction with the White House Coronavirus Task Force, received appropriate attention, consultation and input from task force experts," Redfield said.

Neither the CDC nor HHS immediately responded to Business Insider's requests for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
KEY FACTS 10:44 a.m. Ontario is reporting 407 new cases of COVID-19 today, but no new deaths associated with the coronavirus.

8 a.m. India has maintained its surge in coronavirus cases, adding 93,337 new confirmed infections in the past 24 hours.

4:01 a.m. Health care workers in Canada made up about 20 per cent of COVID-19 infections as of late July, a figure that was higher than the global average.

The latest coronavirus news from Canada and around the world Saturday. This file is no longer updating. Click here to read the latest. Web links to longer stories if available.

8:30 p.m.: Nunavut is reporting its first confirmed cases of COVID-19.

The territory's chief public health officer, Dr. Michael Patterson, says in a news release there are two cases at the Hope Bay gold mine 125 km southwest of Cambridge Bay.

Patterson says both miners are asymptomatic and were exposed to COVID-19 in their home jurisdictions.

He says the samples tested positive on the GeneXpert device in Rankin Inlet late on September 16 and were confirmed by the National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg on Sunday.

A fly-in worker at the Mary River iron mine on the northern tip of Baffin Island was originally diagnosed positive on June 30, but the initial result was on the low end of the spectrum and a further test in early July came back negative.

The territory says at this time, there is no evidence of transmission within the Hope Bay Mine site.

7:25 p.m.: Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott announced Saturday that capacity at COVID-19 testing centres will be increased and several pop-up testing sites in Toronto, Peel and Ottawa will be launched to cut down wait times.

A new drive-thru COVID-19 testing centre was opened at an Canadian Tire Centre in Kanata Saturday morning to alleviate the Ottawa regions already overwhelmed testing sites. The drive-thru centre, opened from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m is expected to take about 1,200 tests a day.

The announcement comes shortly after the province set new restrictions on indoor and outdoor gatherings  down to 10 and 25  and after long waiting times were reported at testing centres across the province. Nearly 39,000 tests were completed yesterday, a new provincial record, according to Elliott.

4:25 p.m.: Toronto Public Health is reporting 141 new infections, as of 2 p.m. Friday.

There are two new patients in hospital for a total of 26.

The number of deaths remain unchanged at 1,178 overall, and 73 more people have recovered for a total of 15,275 recoveries.

There have been a total of 17,400 cases since the pandemic began.

4:20 p.m.: Quebec Premier Francois Legault says he has tested negative for COVID-19.

Legault and his wife were tested after meeting with Conservative Leader Erin OToole on Monday.

In a message posted to his Facebook page, Legault said he would remain in isolation until Sept. 28 in accordance with public health guidelines.

OToole tested positive late Friday, hours after Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves- Francois Blanchet issued a statement saying he had tested positive.

Legault says he will continue to fulfil his duties from home, and will be replaced by deputy premier Genevieve Guilbault at question period and in news conferences.

In his message, Legault encouraged Quebecers to keep following public health guidelines.

We all have our part of the responsibility in fighting the virus, he wrote.

Im counting on all Quebecers to respect the rules and the health measures.

4:20 p.m.: Quebec on Saturday reported its highest total of new cases since late May, as well as five additional deaths.

The 427 new cases bring the provincial total to 67,080.

Officials said two of the deaths occurred in the past 24 hours, while the other three occurred earlier, bringing the provincial death toll to 5,797.

Hospitalizations declined by five to 131, while the number of people in intensive case rose by one to 31.

Health officials carried out 29,079 tests on Sept. 17, the last day for which data is available.

4:20 p.m.: A major COVID-19 testing operation was underway in Quebecs Bas-Saint-Laurent region after several positive cases were detected at a pork factory.

Regional health authorities were testing the 450 employees at Aliments Asta, a slaughterhouse in Saint-Alexandre-de-Kamouraska, 170 kilometres northeast of Quebec City.

They said in a news release that the testing operation is expected to finish later Saturday.

1:15 p.m. Police in London, England, have clashed with protesters at a rally organized by opponents of restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus.

Scuffles broke out Saturday as police moved in to disperse hundreds of demonstrators gathered in Trafalgar Square. Some of the protesters formed blockades to stop officers from making arrests and traffic was brought to a halt in the busy area.

The rally included dozens of people holding banners and placards and chanting freedom.

Britain recently imposed a ban on all social gatherings of more than six people in a bid to tackle a steep rise in coronavirus cases.

Britain has 338,420 confirmed cases and 41,821 deaths, the fifth-highest death toll in the world, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

(Updated) 11:06 a.m. Premier Doug Ford has announced that social gatherings will be limited to 10 people indoors and 25 outdoors, everywhere across the province.

Those limits were previously imposed in just three hot-spot regions, Toronto, Peel and Ottawa.

Over the past several days, we have seen an alarming growth in the number of COVID-19 cases in the province, Ford said at a rare weekend news conference. Clearly, the numbers are heading in the wrong direction. Thats why we are taking decisive action to lower the size of unmonitored private social gatherings in every region of Ontario.

The expanded limits, effective immediately for the next four weeks, include all parties, dinners, barbecues, weddings and other functions head in homes, backyards, parks and other recreational areas. Indoor and outdoor gatherings cannot be merged together.

The new limits do not apply to gatherings in staffed businesses and other facilities, such as bars, restaurants, cinemas, convention centres, banquet hall, gyms, places of worship, sporting or performing arts events, the government says.

Ontario is reporting 407 new cases of COVID-19 today and one new death. The figures mark the second time in as many days that the province has recorded more than 400 cases in a 24-hour period.

(Updated) 10:44 a.m. Ontario is reporting 407 new cases of COVID-19 today, and one new death associated with the coronavirus.

The figures mark the second time in as many days that the province has recorded more than 400 cases in a 24-hour period.

Numbers have been surging over the past few weeks, particularly in Toronto, Peel Region and Ottawa.

Premier Doug Ford rolled back social gathering limits in those areas earlier this week and has indicated hes willing to do the same in other regions.

Hes set to make an announcement later this morning alongside Health Minister Christine Elliott and the provinces associate chief medical officer of health, Dr. Barbara Yaffe.

Correction Sept. 19, 2020: This entry has been updated from a previous version said there had been no new deaths related to the coronavirus.

10:04 a.m. Pope Francis is urging political leaders make sure coronavirus vaccines are available to the poorest nations.

He says in many parts of the world, there is a pharmacological marginalization of those without access to health care.

Francis met Saturday with members of an Italian aid group that collects donated medicines from pharmaceutical companies and distributes them to clinics and centres helping the neediest.

Francis says far too many people die in parts of the world for lack of drugs widely available elsewhere, and political leaders must take their plight into account.

I repeat, it would be sad if in distributing the vaccine, priority was given to the wealthiest, or if a vaccine becomes the property of this or that nation and not for everyone, the pope said.

Francis has previously called for universal access to the vaccine.

9:30 a .m. Ontario Premier Doug Ford is set to make a rare weekend announcement this morning related to COVID-19.

No details have been made immediately available, but Health Minister Christine Elliott and the provinces associate chief medical officer of health, Dr. Barbara Yaffe, will also be on-hand.

Ford suspended weekend pandemic briefings over the summer as case numbers across the province declined.

But theyve spiked again in recent weeks, with Ontario reporting 401 new COVID-19 cases on Friday.

Most of the new cases are concentrated in Toronto, Peel Region and Ottawa, prompting Ford to roll back social gathering limits in those areas earlier this week.

The premier has said he plans to tighten restrictions in other areas as well, often at the request of local officials.

9 a.m. Ontarians are flooding to COVID-19 testing centres as the province sees a sharp spike in positive cases, a trend one Toronto psychologist calls reminiscent of the toilet paper days during the pandemics onset.

Outside Lakeridge Health Centre in Oshawa this week, Stephanie Hammond said she decided to get tested after developing a fever and cold-like symptoms. Her kids, Grades 6 and 4 students, were planning a return to in-class schooling but were staying home for the time being.

I hope its nothing about the coronavirus, said Hammond, 46. These days, even a small glitch in your body terrifies the hell out of you.

The tests completed has skyrocketed over the last two weeks. A record 35,826 tests were completed across the province on Thursday, with some assessment centres reporting waits as long as four hours. Meanwhile, Ontario saw more than 300 new cases almost every day this week  topping out at 400 new cases on Friday, according to the Stars tally of reports from public health units.

Read the full story from the Stars Gilbert Ngabo: Testing is the new toilet paper. How rising COVID-19 cases are stoking a second round of pandemic anxiety

8 a.m. Nursing home doctors contracted to care for residents in Scarboroughs Extendicare Guildwood did not enter the home during the devastating COVID-19 outbreak that killed 48 residents, even though managers repeatedly asked for their help.

At Camilla Care Community in Mississauga, where 68 residents infected with COVID died, physicians under contract with the home offered phone calls but were not coming on site to support residents and staff. It was a similar story in Scarboroughs Altamont Care Community, where 53 people died.

And at Woodbridge Vista Care Community, in Vaughan, where the virus killed 31 residents, the two doctors who remained on-site suffered from overwork and burnout.

There are many reasons why some doctors stayed away, including personal health issues, recommendations for virtual visits from professional organizations or the decision to work safely in one location. But their absence, at least in the most troubled homes, did not go unnoticed.

Read the full story from the Stars Moira Welsh: Nursing home doctors were repeatedly asked to visit residents during the COVID-19 outbreak. They didnt come. As virus resurges, Ontario considers new rules

8 a.m. India has maintained its surge in coronavirus cases, adding 93,337 new confirmed infections in the past 24 hours.

The Health Ministry on Saturday raised the nations caseload to more than 5.3 million out of the nearly 1.4 billion people. It said 1,247 more people died in the past 24 hours for a total of 85,619. The country has over a million active cases with about 80% recovery rate.

India has been reporting the highest single-day rise in the world every day for more than five weeks. Its expected to become the pandemics worst-hit country within weeks, surpassing the United States.

Prime Minister Narendra Modis government has faced scathing criticism from opposition lawmakers in Indias Parliament for its handling of the pandemic amid a contracting economy leaving millions jobless.

More than 10 million migrant workers, out of money and fearing starvation, poured out of cities and headed back to villages when Modi ordered the nationwide lockdown on March 24. The migration was one key reason that the virus spread to the far reaches of the country while the lockdown caused severe economic pain. The economy contracted nearly 24% in the second quarter, the worst among the worlds top economies.

7 a.m. Members of the federal governments COVID-19 vaccine task force are casting worried eyes at the Trump administrations political push to get a vaccine approved before the U.S. presidential election in November.

Dr. Joanne Langley, the task force co-chair, and member Alan Bernstein say they are concerned about vaccine hesitancy in Canada, the phenomenon where people have doubts about taking a readily available vaccine because of concerns about its safety.

Langley says that when a vaccine against COVID-19 is eventually found, governments and health-care professionals will have to mount a vigorous information campaign to counter opposition.

And it wont help that President Donald Trump has said a pandemic-ending vaccine could be rolled out as soon as October, stoking concern that he is rushing the timeline to further his re-election chances on Nov. 3.

6 a.m. Halfway through their 14-day quarantine period, Diala Charab and Yehya Al-Ayoubi are excited to start working as health-care aides after arriving Sunday from Lebanon.

Despite COVID-19 travel restrictions that prevent most people from coming to Canada, the two nurses were exempted, resettled under a pilot project to bring skilled refugees to the country.

Diala got her visa during the (COVID-19) lockdown  I got the visa after the Beirut explosion. Al-Ayoubi said.

Things were hectic, but we just wanted to come here and be beneficial, productive people in this society.

Charab, 25, and Al-Ayoubi, 29, will join the staff of VHA Home HealthCare in Toronto as personal support workers.

Ernesto Sequera, VHAs human-resources manager, said in a statement that the company is happy to bring health care workers to Canada to address the urgent need for more trained home-care professionals during the pandemic.

4:01 a.m. Health care workers in Canada made up about 20 per cent of COVID-19 infections as of late July, a figure that was higher than the global average.

In a report released earlier this month, the Canadian Institute for Health Information said 19.4 per cent of those who tested positive for the virus as of July 23 were health-care workers. Twelve health care workers, nine from Ontario and three from Quebec, died from COVID-19, it said.

The World Health Organization said in July that health-care workers made up 10 per cent of global COVID-19 infections.

A national federation of nurses unions blames the infection rate on a slow response to the pandemic, a shortage of labour and a lack of personal protective equipment.

4:01 a.m. A union representing Ontarios hospital workers says it has concerns about the safety of the provinces plan to expand COVID-19 testing to pharmacies, as Premier Doug Ford pushed Friday to start the program later next week.

Ontario is expected in the coming days to unveil a plan to grant community pharmacies the ability to test for COVID-19 as it grapples with hours-long waits at some of the provinces 148 assessment centres.

Ford said last week he has been in discussions with groups that represents pharmacists and the major retailers that own Shoppers Drug Mart and Rexall.

But the president of the Council of Hospital Unions, a branch of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, said the plan could bring people with the virus in contact with vulnerable seniors or other medically compromised people.

Sending the public to a pharmacy and mingling with people who fear that they have COVID-19, and may be symptomatic ... seems to me to be unwise and potentially not very safe, Michael Hurley said.

12:34 a.m. Public health authorities in Italy are warning that the average age of coronavirus patients is creeping up as young people infect their more fragile parents and grandparents, risking new strain on the hospital system.

The Superior Institute of Health issued its weekly monitoring report Friday as the country where COVID-19 hit first in the West recorded the highest number of new infections  1,907  since May 1. Another 10 people died over the past day, bringing Italys official death toll to 35,668.

While Italy hasnt seen the thousands of daily new infections other European countries have seen recently, its caseload has crept up steadily over the past seven weeks. Initially, most new infections were in young people who returned from vacation hot spots. The health institute said Friday that they are now infecting their older and more fragile loved ones in home settings, with the average age of positive cases last week at 41 versus the low 30s in August.

The institute warned that while the health system isnt overwhelmed, it risks further strain if Italians dont rigorously adhere to mask mandates and social distancing norms.

12:34 a.m. The World Health Organizations emergencies chief says new global cases of the coronavirus appear to have plateaued at about 2 million and 50,000 deaths every week.

Dr. Michael Ryan says while the global COVID-19 caseload was not rising exponentially, the weekly number of deaths was still very unsettling.

Its not where developing countries want to be with their health systems under nine months of pressure, Ryan said.

He says there have been recent surges in Europe, Ecuador and Argentina. He adds a lack of large increases in African countries and other nations might reflect a lack of testing.

10:49 p.m. Friday Sept. 18: Conservative leader Erin OToole has tested positive for COVID-19.

His positive result Friday evening came hours after Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet issued a statement that he too had tested positive.

Both men will now be unable to attend next weeks throne speech, with Blanchet required to isolate until at least Sept. 26 and OToole until at least Oct.1.

Late Friday, Quebec Premier Francois Legault said he will get tested for COVID-19 because he met with OToole earlier this week.

10 p.m. Friday Sept. 18: Four patrons of Noir, inside Rebel Nightclub, on 11 Polson St., have tested positive for COVID-19, according to Toronto Public Health.

The four confirmed cases visited the club on Sept. 11, from 10:30 p.m. to 2 a.m.

Anyone who was at the night club during this time may have been exposed to COVID-19, said Dr. Vinita Dubey, associate medical officer of health with TPH, in an email to the Star.

She asked anyone who visited the club during the above times to monitor themselves for symptoms until Sept. 25.

Read the full story: Toronto waterfront nightclub linked with four COVID-19 cases remains open

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Johnson is speaker at Northern State event Monday

U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson will speak at the grand opening of Northern State University's Center for Public History and Civic Engagement.
Hong Kong: Govt remains committed to rule of law

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government today said nobody should doubt its commitment to the rule of law and judicial independence.

Making the remarks in response to media queries, the Hong Kong SAR Government noted that Basic Law Article 2 clearly states that the Hong Kong SAR enjoys independent judicial power, including that of final adjudication, while Article 8 stipulates that the common law system shall be maintained.

This is Hong Kongs unique strength and advantage and is often cited by international business as a major factor for their continued presence and success in the city.

On the resignation of Mr Justice Spigelman from the Court of Final Appeal (CFA) on September 2, the Chief Executives Office said Mr Spigelman did not give any reason for his resignation.

Following established practice, the Chief Executive as the appointment authority revoked the relevant appointment by exercising the power under section 42 of the Interpretation & General Clauses Ordinance and gazetted the revocation.

The Government stressed that there could be no question of the National Security Law affecting Hong Kongs judicial independence and the smooth operation of the judicial system, including the CFA.

It also said the Basic Law provides for the Hong Kong SARs political structure, which is an executive-led system. At the same time, the Basic Law upholds judicial independence.

Article 82 provides that the power of final adjudication of the Hong Kong SAR shall be vested in the Court of Final Appeal of the region, which may as required invite judges from other common law jurisdictions to sit on the CFA.

Since 1997, eminent jurists from other common law jurisdictions have been appointed to the CFA as overseas non-permanent judges. Currently, there are 13 overseas non-permanent judges.

The fact that these eminent judges sit on the CFA testifies to Hong Kongs judicial independence, helps maintain a high degree of confidence in the city's legal system and allows Hong Kong to maintain strong links with other common law jurisdictions.

The Government emphasised that the Chief Executive has on many occasions appreciated the valuable contribution of these eminent jurists on the CFA to jurisprudence in Hong Kong.

The appointment of judges from other common law jurisdictions has served the city well and will continue, it added.

This story has been published on: 2020-09-19. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 13:21:58|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- No new locally-transmitted COVID-19 cases were reported Friday across the Chinese mainland, the National Health Commission said Saturday.

Meanwhile, 14 confirmed COVID-19 cases arriving from outside the mainland were reported -- six in Guangdong, two each in Shanghai, Sichuan and Shaanxi and one each in Liaoning and Fujian, the commission said in its daily report.

One new suspected COVID-19 case from outside the mainland was reported in Shanghai and no new deaths related to the disease were reported, the commission said.

On Friday, eight COVID-19 patients were discharged from hospitals after recovery, the commission said.

By the end of Friday, a total of 2,720 imported cases had been reported on the mainland. Of them, 2,549 had been discharged from hospitals after recovery, and 171 remained hospitalized, with two in severe condition. No deaths from the imported cases had been reported.

As of Friday, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases on the mainland had reached 85,269, including the 171 patients still being treated.

Altogether 80,464 people had been discharged after recovery, and 4,634 had died of the disease on the mainland, the commission said.

There was one suspected COVID-19 case on the mainland, while 6,514 close contacts were still under medical observation after 796 were discharged Friday, according to the commission. Enditem
Katie Holmes is moving on and heating up her new relationship with chef Emilio Vitolo Jr.

And after spending a few romantic days together, the couple proved to be inseparable as they were spotted packing on the PDA outside his family restaurant Emilio's Ballato in NYC.

The 41-year-old actress wrapped her arms around the 33-year-old's neck as they shared a kiss on the sidewalk on Friday.

Loved up: Katie Holmes looked loved up with her new beau Emilio Vitolo Jr., as they shared a kiss outside his family restaurant in NYC on Friday

The Dawson's Creek actress looked chic in a white knit sweater that she teamed with black jeans.

A large black Sharkchaser bucket bag hung on her shoulder as she embraced her new love.

Meanwhile Emilio opted for a monochrome outfit in a brown sweater and beige slacks as he pulled her in by her waist.

They both donned black face masks amid the coronavirus pandemic, though the pulled the coverings down to their chins as they shared a passionate kiss.

Lovebirds: The Dawson's Creek actress looked chic in a white knit sweater that she teamed with black jeans. A large black Sharkchaser bucket bag hung on her shoulder as she embraced her new love

Sweet: Meanwhile Emilio opted for a monochrome outfit in a brown sweater and beige slacks as he pulled her in by her waist

The actress then headed home by herself, after stopping for takeout and at a grocery store, and she carried bags back home.

Katie is said to be 'smitten' with her new beau as its been revealed she 'keeps texting Emilio all day long and he loves it,' People's source said. 'He can't get enough of her attention.'

Emilio Jr. and Katie have been spotted together outside at his father's popular restaurant Emilio's Ballato in Manhattan several times in the last week, as well as on dates throughout NYC.

They were first spotted together on Tuesday, September 1 on a date at Mediterranean restaurant Antique Garage in Soho; the duo were laughing and smiling at each other.

First: Katie and Emilio were first spotted together on Tuesday, September 1 on a date at Mediterranean restaurant Antique Garage in Soho; the duo were laughing and smiling at each other

The duo confirmed their romance with a hot and heavy make out session at Peasant Restaurant in Manhattan; the actress sat on his lap as they kissed each other passionately, on Sunday, September 6.

This Wednesday, DailyMail.com also revealed that Vitolo broke it off with his live-in fiancee Rachel Emmons, 24, via text when handsy photos of him and Holmes were first published, leaving the handbag designer shocked and forcing her to move back home.

Katie and Emilio's friendship has been growing since October 2019, and she doesn't seem to have been bothered by his engagement.

Katie and Emilio first met when a mutual friend introduced them, and their passions have only intensified since she returned home to New York City following time quarantining with her family in Ohio.

'Smitten': Katie is said to be 'smitten' with her new beau as its been revealed she 'keeps texting Emilio all day long and he loves it,' People 's source said. 'He can't get enough of her attention'

Friends: Katie and Emilio's friendship has been growing since October 2019, and she doesn't seem to have been bothered by his engagement, which DailyMail.com revealed he ended by text message after PDA pictures of him and Katie were released

An insider close to the Logan Lucky star said she's now behaving 'like a teenage girl in love' because Vitolo is 'openly affectionate with her, left his fiancee to be with her and gives her something [her ex-boyfriend] Jamie [Foxx] couldn't,' the source added.

The insider said Holmes had been devastated by her breakup last year with the playboy actor, who never seemed to give up his roving eye and was still too close for comfort with his baby mama.

The acting couple were first linked in 2013 hand-in-hand through Malibu, but they kept their relationship private throughout the years, but split after going public last year at the Met Gala.

Holmes was famously married to Tom Cruise, from 2006 until 2012, and they share daughter Suri, born in 2006.
On the crosshairs of the eloquent TRS head and Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao these days is the Modi government, with which he once shared positive vibes. KCR now is bitterly complaining of Telanganas gross neglect by the Centre. As TRS chief, he has directed his party MPs to vociferously raise certain key issues concerning Telangana and corner the Centre in Parliament.

And as CM, he is building up pressure by faulting the Union government on various counts on the floor of the Assembly. The issues he has flagged include the abnormal delay in the release of Rs 9,000 crore due to the state from GST accounts, denial of GST compensation after Telanganas finances took a hit as a result of Covid-19, and the eagerness to amend the Central Electricity Act, which he believes would enable the Centre to have a vice-like grip over states in the area of generation and distribution of electricity.

Other senior members of his Cabinet like K T Rama Rao and Harish Rao too have been equally harsh in attacking the Centre in the ongoing Assembly session. Also, despite Governor Tamilisai Soundararajans prodding, KCR has refused to allow the rollout of Modis Ayushman Bharat healthcare scheme in its present form, calling it useless as compared to the states Aarogyasri version.

Time was when KCR would profusely praise the Modi-led government as corruption-free and openly support the PMs flagship initiatives like the introduction of GST and demonetisation. His articulation of support was often more effective than that of the then heads of BJP-ruled states. KCR has now swung to the other extreme. One way of looking at it is that he is unpredictable, as in politics, there are no permanent friends or enemies.

Or he perhaps wants to draw attention towards himself by attacking the Centre so as to coax it into at least attending to the genuine issues raised by him. Whatever his strategy, the Centre should fulfil all its commitments to the state regardless of the political sniping. Modi also ought to factor in KCRs known antipathy for the Congress, both at the state and Central levels, and that he is a powerful leader from Telangana.
I frequently log onto Republican web sites and Facebook pages. Its a calculated risk since I have high blood pressure, but its important to keep tabs on the opposition. On Wednesday I came upon a meme that Trump supporters evidently think conveys a profound truth.

The text, which is set against an American flag, reads: We live in a time when if you see an American flag on someones home, car, boat or clothing, you dont even need to guess who theyre voting for. The writer-editor in me mentally changed who theyre voting for to for whom theyre voting, of course. However, I was considerably more offended by the assumption of this memes creator that everyone who displays the Stars and Stripes intends to vote for Donald Trump.

I was born into a Democratic family, although my values quickly became more liberal than those held by other family members. I turned 18 in December of 1971 and cast my first vote in the Illinois primary held in March of 1972. For some reason Ive long forgotten, George McGovern wasnt on the ballot in Illinois. I wound up casting a protest vote for Eugene McCarthy, who got thoroughly trounced in the primary by Edmund Muskie. That November I proudly voted for McGovern, who lost 49 states to Richard Nixon.

My late father became Altons First Precinct Democratic Committeeman in 1976. I helped Dad canvass the precinct during that years presidential election, when a peanut farmer from Georgia named Jimmy Carter defeated Gerald Ford. I also worked for Carter in 1980 and Walter Mondale in 1984, when those two fine Democrats got their butts kicked by Ronald Reagan, whose qualifications for the presidency included opposing all our nations 1960s-era civil rights legislation as well as predicting that Medicare would destroy freedom in America.

I was elected to the position once held my father in the 1988 Democratic primary. The late Ed Voumard, Sr. served as chairman of the Alton Democrats in those days. Big Ed, as we was known, ran an efficient organization and it was an honor to work with him. That was the year Democratic candidate Mike Dukakis lost to George H. W. Bush. Reagans vice-president denounced Dukakis as that liberal governor from Massachusetts who had allowed a black convict to be released from prison on a furlough program. The convict, Willie Horton, then committed armed robbery and rape. Bushs campaign played the race card for all it was worth. Ironically, Bush had called for a kinder, gentler nation in his acceptance speech at the GOP convention.

I campaigned tirelessly for Clinton, Gore and Obama. How my friends and I rejoiced upon the election of our nations first black president in 2008! Obamas re-election in 2012 was nothing less than extraordinary, especially in light of the racist barbs hurled at him by his enemies. In retrospect, I shouldnt have been surprised that Trump garnered 62 million vote in 2016. The hatred directed at President Obama revealed that America has a sordid underbelly where bigotry festers and oozes like a gangrenous wound.

So why have I just recounted my involvement in our nations presidential races? To refute that memes contention that displaying the American flag indicates one is a Trump supporter. Book shop customers as well as anyone driving down East Broadway know that the flag proudly flies outside The Second Reading every business day. Those same people also know that I strongly support Joe Biden for president of the United States.

I strongly advise you not to assume that everyone who displays the American flag is a Trump supporter. However, youre safe to assume that everyone who displays the Confederate flag will vote for Trump on Nov. 3. We Biden supporters want nothing to do with that foul symbol of slavery, white supremacy and treason.

John J. Dunphy is an author, the Godfrey 15th Precinct Democratic Committeeperson and recording secretary for the Godfrey Democrats.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The CPM, which leads the Left government in Kerala, on Friday branded the Opposition agitation against Minister K T Jaleel as anti- Quran, seen as a party strategy to shift focus from gold smuggling controversy to the Islams holy book even as the UDF termed it as a move to appease the minority community by playing the communal card. Does anyone take a stand against Gita distribution here? Does anyone block Bible distribution? Why do they find fault with Quran distribution alone? This is our question.

This is a purposeful campaign against Jaleel, CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said in reply to a question at a news conference here. Kodiyeri said it was common for the embassies to gift religious texts to visitors. The Opposition parties, which have been organising widespread protests and violent clashes with police over the last seven days after central agencies Enforcement Directorate and NIA questioned Jaleel in connection with the case of gold smuggling through diplomat i c channel, have cried foul over bringing up holy Quran into the entire issue.

LDF giving BJP a chance to excel in state: League

Muslim League national general secretary P K Kunhalikutty, MP, and Opposition deputy leader M K Muneer, MLA, maintained that the LDF and Jaleel have been triggering religious sentiments under the guise of the gold smuggling case. Talking to reporters at the Cantonment House, the official residence of opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala here, they said the holy text has been deliberately dragged into the controversy. Initially Jaleel and the LDF had been saying about charity and alms giving (Zakat) during the Ramzan period which gave way to Ramadan kits imported from the UAE and now its all about Quran, said Kunhalikutty.

There is a deliberate attempt from the side of the LDF and Jaleel to distract the actual issue of gold smuggling and instead flare up the communal angle, he said. In an interview to TNIE on Thursday, Jaleel had said whether Panakkad Thangal was ready to swear by the Quran. Does he believe that Im a fraud or someone who supports black money and related activities? If he swears by the Quran about any such thing, I will listen to whatever he says, he had said. BJP state president K Surendran said Jaleel was trying to play the victim card by invoking religion.

This is a tactic adopted by all culprits. Jaleel claims he was called as a witness. However, those who are listed as accused are initially called for questioning in this manner, he said. The Muslim League leaders said the common enemy of the LDF and the UDF should be the BJP, who has just one seat in the state assembly. But the LDF is giving the BJP an opportunity to excel in the state, said Kunhalikutty.

LDF to put up a brave face against protests

TPuram: The LDF state committee, which met here on Friday, decided to put up a brave front against the Oppositions violent protests. It observed that K T Jaleel need not resign.

I can be killed, but not defeated:

Jaleel TPuram: A day after he was questioned for seven hours by the NIA, an embattled K T Jaleel continued to maintain that the opponents could be able to kill him but not defeat him.

JALEEL NEED NOT RESIGN: CPM

TPuram: The CPM state secretariat, which met here on Friday, pledged its full support to embattled Minister K T Jaleel and said the Opposition protests were aimed at sabotaging the government. Jaleel wont resign. The secretariat viewed the agitations as politically motivated, said party state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan. Many people will be interrogated as part of a probe. That does not mean all of them will be arraigned as accused in the case. Let the probe agencies conduct a fair probe and make their conclusion, he said.
scmp.com - Jan 20

Fumio Kishida, Japans new prime minister, may become the nations first leader in the post-Cold-War era to not have visited Washington in the first 10 months of his term, without a specific reason.
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The city may still be in Stage Four lockdown, but plenty of people were still out enjoying the sunshine at beaches in Melbourne on Saturday.

Dozens of residents were seen at Elwood Beach, in Brighton, on Saturday as the mercury jumped to a warm 26C - with most wearing face masks as they soaked up the sun.

Melbourne's first step out of lockdown allows people to visit one friend or family member outside of their home for socialising or exercise.

People are now also allowed to exercise with their entire household.

But while all was calm on the beach, just 10 minutes away police officers were arresting anti-lockdown protesters demonstrating against the city's harsh restrictions.

Dozens were seen pictured Elwood Beach, in Brighton, on Saturday as the weather warmed up to 26C

Melburnians took advantage of the easing of lockdown restrictions on Saturday with many heading to the beach to soak up the sun - while anti-lockdown protesters were arrested just ten minutes away

Up to 150 people gathering at Elsternwick Park in Brighton dispersed to Elwood when faced with a long line of officers at the site, 11km from Melbourne's CBD.

Protests were announced by rally organisers about 10.30am on Saturday - half an hour before kicking off at the State Library, and a second closely following at 12pm.

Law enforcement teams circling Elsternwick Park included officers from Public Order Response, the Mounted Unit and Highway Patrol.

A helicopter also monitored the situation from above.

People were seen wearing a mask, which is mandatory, as they sat on the beach with friends. Others were seen riding their bikes or jogging along the path beside the beach

A woman is pictured putting on sunscreen as she enjoys the beach with someone in Melbourne as part of the easing of restrictions

Protesters marching along Elwood beach about 1pm were dispersed a third time, and several arrests have been made by officers.

Shouting about Premier Daniel Andrews and coronavirus restrictions was heard throughout the disjointed protests.

The protests were described as 'chaotic', with one photographer saying there was 'a lot of running and not much protesting.'

Some protesters continued to scatter through backstreets, even jumping fences into private property.

One arrested by police was filmed by Nine News telling officers: 'Wake up, I know you already know this is wrong.'

Up to 100 people gathering at Elsternwick Park in Brighton dispersed to Elwood when faced with a long line of officers at the site, 11km from Melbourne's CBD. Pictured: Protesters and officers at the Saturday demonstrations

Protests were announced by rally organisers about 10.30am on Saturday - half an hour before kicking off at the State Library, and a second closely following at 12pm. Pictured: Protesters and officers at the Saturday demonstrations

In video captured of the event, protesters can be heard yelling 'disgraceful', 'I've done nothing wrong', 'no violence' and 'peaceful' as officers stand nearby.

A man can be seen being arrested as he questions: 'Officers, why are you doing this. I've never done anything wrong in my life. Please, this is enough. It's only going to get worse. Who is going to fight for you.'

Premier Daniel Andrews said the protest was selfish and irresponsible.

Pictured: A man being held down by police at the anti-lockdown protests at Elwood Beach, Melbourne

He added it was an unlawful act and told protesters: 'Go home and follow the rules. There is no need to protest about anything. It is not safe'.

'It just doesn't make any sense. You are potentially putting the strategy at risk. No-one should be doing anything to contribute to the spread of this virus, 21 cases today, seriously. This is working. We're getting there,' he said, The Age reported.

Saturday's events follow concern anti-lockdown protesters in Melbourne are threatening to cause another COVID-19 outbreak as the city teeters on the brink of a third explosion and cases surge in the southeast.

Police (pictured) are circling the area, including officers from Public Order Response, the Mounted Unit and Highway Patrol

Public health authorities are racing to stop infections growing in the Casey and Dandenong council areas on the Melbourne's southeast rim, which now has 90 active cases.

Five households in Clyde, Cranbourne North, Hallam and Narre Warren South are linked to 34 active cases.

Daniel Andrews urged covidiots on Saturday not to gather at planned protests across the city or 'do anything to undermine' its progress with tackling COVID-19.

It comes as Victoria recorded 21 new cases of COVID-19, the lowest daily increase since June, and a further seven deaths.

Metropolitan Melbourne's 14-day average has plummeted and now sits at 39.3 as the state moves to a COVID normal. In regional Victoria, the 14-day average is at just 1.9.

Later on Saturday, following the protests but not directly related, Melburnians were seen enjoying the sunshine at coffee shops and bars without masks

Daniel Andrews (pictured) urged covidiots on Saturday not to gather at planned protests across the city or 'do anything to undermine' its progress with tackling COVID-19

A heavy Police presence is seen in Dandenong following an anti-lockdown protest on August 28

This is the ninth day in a row Victoria has recorded a daily infections increase below 50.

Metropolitan Melbourne is under strict Stage Four lockdown - limiting Melburnians travelling more than 5km from their homes and enforcing a 9pm to 5am curfew.

The premier did not comment on where Saturday demonstrations would be, with protesters taking caution when sharing information online.

Multiple rallies have taken place in Melbourne the past few weekends.

Victoria Police have responded with a heavy presence - handing out dozens of fines and making arrests.

The premier did not comment on where Saturday demonstrations would be, with protesters taking caution when sharing information online. Pictured: Protesters rallying against lockdown regulations on Monday on September 13

'Let's not lose sight of the fact that this week we have seen, day after day, not the 725 cases we had five and a half weeks ago - we have made very significant progress,' Mr Andrews said.

'We've got regional Victoria opening up. People should be positive and optimistic this strategy is working, and therefore, let's not any of us do anything to undermine that.'

A surge of cases in the Casey and Dandenong area has been linked back to five households in the Afghan community.

As residents in the city are still under strict Stage Four lockdown, it is thought the infected group may have breached the stay-at-home orders.

There are currently 101 active coronavirus cases in the Casey and Dandenong area with 34 infections linked to five households

Metropolitan Melbourne is under strict Stage Four lockdown - limiting Melburnians travelling more than 5km from their homes and enforcing a 9pm to 5am curfew. Pictured: A person walking through Melbourne's empty city

As residents in the city are still under strict Stage Four lockdown, it is thought the infected group may have breached the stay-at-home orders.

Health authorities are scrambling to track and trace the new surge in cases, and the Victorian government has begun a recruitment drive which sees retired officers re-enlisted to bolster the state's frontline virus efforts.

'Members of those households visiting other households,' Department of Health and Human Services COVID-19 testing commander Jeroen Weimar said.

'It is that limited amount of contact, relatively infrequent contact between these five households that has now meant that we have 34 people in five houses experiencing or living with a very real threat of the coronavirus.'

The Victorian government has even began a new recruitment drive that will see retired officers re-enlisted to bolster the state's frontline virus efforts

Police conducting checks on motorists at checkpoints - alongside the Australian Defence Force - to ensure Victorians are following state rules

The cluster - impacting five households in Hallam, Clyde, Narre Warren South and Cranbourne North - first emerged on September 4.

Cases in the southeast have now spread to Dandenong Police Station and a number of industrial work sites.

Premier Daniel Andrews on Friday said the actions of the family's involved in the cluster was 'disappointing'.

The cluster which has impacted the five households in Hallam, Clyde, Narre Warren South and Cranbourne North, first emerged on September 4

'Five kilometres is one thing and visiting others is the real issue here,' he said.

'The rules are in place for a reason and anyone who undermines this, undermines the entire strategy and it means the rules will be on for longer.'

The Victorian leader, however, ruled out fines for the group, telling reporters it may discourage others from being completely honest with contact tracers.

'I know many Victorians, when you see examples of people not following the rules, that's disappointing, it makes you angry,' Mr Andrews said.

'You need to look at the bigger picture here.

'We don't want a situation where people don't have a sense of confidence and indeed, you know, the sense they're obliged to tell us the full story as quickly as possible. That's what we need.'

The success of Melbourne's ongoing lockdown could be at risk with a new cluster in the southeast of the city. Pictured: A coronavirus testing centre in Cranbourne on September 17

The Casey and Dandenong cluster is testing the capacity of COVID-detectives. Pictured: Heath workers are seen at a coronavirus testing centre in Cranbourne on September 17

A health worker is pictured approaching a vehicle at a COVID-19 testing centre in Cranbourne on September 17

Despite the new cluster, Victoria's overall case numbers are continuing to decline.

With contact tracers 'painstakingly' working around the clock to slow the spread of the virus and bringing the city out of lockdown, the Victorian government is set to introduce a controversial new policy seeing retired cops re-enlisted in the force.

The Department of Justice and Community Safety and the Department of Health and Human Services is behind the push which will see former cops given paid training before being assigned specific COVID-19 roles.

These roles include industry enforcement, testing support, door-knocking and the airport patrol.

A man with a dog is seen being questioned by two police officers in the Dandenong area

However, not everybody is in favour of the move to bring back veteran police.

'Police veterans have a real contribution to make to the ongoing safety of the community but their use to issue infringements, detain people and conduct checks on private property is entirely inappropriate,' Opposition Police and Community Safety spokesman David Southwick told the Herald Sun.

Ivan Ray, who served in the Victorian Police Force for more than three decades, said it was a recipe for disaster for the veterans.

'It's effectively a health department police force, and we know the Health Department is no good at enforcement, we saw that in the hotel quarantine operation,' Mr Ray said.

'Veterans can play a part and they can support policing, but it has to be by the police department.'

Health authorities are urging anyone in the southeast of Melbourne to diligently monitor their health and immediately get tested if feeling unwell.
Washington: US President Donald Trump has said that the protesters, who went violent in the aftermath of the death of African-American George Floyd, did not spare even the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Washington DC, describing the demonstrators as a "bunch of thugs".

Floyd died in Minneapolis on May 25 after white police officer Derek Chauvin handcuffed and pinned him to the ground, and knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes while the 46-year-old from Houston gasped for breath.

The footage, which went viral, showed Floyd pleading with the officer, saying he can't breathe. His death sparked nationwide violent protests with some protesters resorting to vandalism, looting and rioting across the country, leaving behind a trail of destruction.

"You know, they started ripping down Abraham Lincoln. When they hit Lincoln, I said wait a minute. This is the man and you can do - then they hit George Washington, Thomas Jefferson. They had everybody,? Trump said at a well-attended election rally in Minnesota, a State that he lost by a little over 44,000 votes in 2016, on Friday.

He also mentioned about the statue of Gandhi in Washington DC that was vandalised by unknown miscreants at the peak of the nationwide protests.

"They even had Gandhi. All Gandhi wanted was one thing, peace. Right? We have peace. Rip down his statue. We don't like him. I don't think they have any idea what they're doing," Trump said.

"I think they're just a bunch of thugs, okay, you want to know the truth. I think they're a bunch of thugs," he said.

The president told his cheering audience that he had signed an executive order that would put such miscreants in jail for 10 years.

Now, nobody even talks about taking statues down, he said.

The vandalised statue was restored later by the Embassy of India here, with the help of National Park Police and the State Department.

"We had a period of time when they were ripping down all of the statues and monuments, and I said to my people four months ago, I said this is crazy. These people--and they don't even know," Trump said.

Now that he has signed an executive order, Trump said that nobody has showed up in four months to take down a statue.

"Because you know why? They look and they say I want to take on that statue. I'm going to take down that statue. That statue's coming down. And then somebody says, you know, it's 10 years in jail. They go that's too much. I'm getting out of here. It's true," he said amidst laughter.

"Ten years is not acceptable. Ten years is a lot to rip down a statue, have a little fun, especially when they have no idea what they're ripping down. But we have an idea what they're ripping down. They're ripping down, in many cases, greatness. They're ripping down our past. They're ripping down our history," he said.

"That's where these guys begin. The take away your history. You look at the Middle East. You look all over. Look what ISIS did. Look what all of them do. They go down and they go to museums and they break everything and they rip everything. They want to take away your past. They are not taking away the past of the United States of America. Not as long as I'm here," Trump said.
A newborn died allegedly due to unavailability of ventilators at a government hospital here after which angry relatives confined a nurse to a room for sometime, hospital sources said.

They said the baby was born premature at the Delhi government-run hospital in Malviya Nagar on Thursday and had to be referred to a central government-run hospital in Lutyens Delhi as the previous facility lacked ventilators.

The baby died at the central government-run hospital hours later, following which angry relatives of the newborn confined the nurse of the state-run facility to a room for sometime. A police officer said a team was sent to the hospital following PCR calls over the alleged confinement of the healthcare worker.

No case has been registered in connection with the incident yet, the officer said.

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MIDDLETOWN  Local officials gathered Friday for a ceremonial opening at a new mental health and substance abuse facility that operates with a health care model that works to encourage patients long-term recovery.

The Root Center for Advanced Recovery, which launched in January at 520 Saybrook Road, predominantly serves individuals with mental health disorders. The grand opening, originally planned for March or April, was postponed due to the pandemic.

President and CEO Steven Zuckerman said the organizations patients are among a largely underserved population. In the first five months of 2020, compared to the same period in 2019, there was a 22 percent increase in overdose deaths, he said, citing statistics from the state Department of Public Health.

Last year was a record year, so were going to blow apart the record this year for [preventing] overdose deaths, the majority of which are caused by opioid dependency, he said.

The agency also has locations in Bristol, Hartford, New Britain, New London, Norwich, Torrington and Willimantic.

The Root Center also is now applying for a special exception through the Planning and Zoning Commission to build a methadone / substance abuse clinic at 392 Washington St. at the Fine Tunes Car Stereo & Complete Auto Repair site on Route 66. A second public hearing on the matter will be held Wednesday on Webex.

Among the Manchester-based Root Center offerings are Suboxone treatment, group psychotherapy and trauma-focused sessions.

With any co-occurring disorder, its vital we do treatment for mental health and substance abuse. Whatever issues they have benefit from a comprehensive holistic health-care model, said Brittney P. Stanley, director of marketing.

The benefit of that is you address all fields of wellness in a persons life, and help them get better on multiple levels, so theyre creating a life worth staying well for, Stanley said.

The walls and artwork are intentionally meant to help clients relax. One thing we really strive for is trauma-induced care, so we have calming colors, such as grays and blues, ambient lighting and aromatherapy, Stanley said. It is geared toward reflection and growth.

One of the main goals of treatment is to explore whats going on in patients lives. Doctors, therapists and clients work together to chart a path forward, Stanley said. We try to make spaces that embody that.

Privacy is important to those seeking treatment for opioid addiction, Zuckerman said. The location, next to ProHealth Physicians, Connecticut Foot Care Centers, as well as the Pediatric & Adolescent Medical Group, is much different than a silo site where everyone absolutely knows why youre walking in there.

The No. 1 reason why people arent getting addiction treatment has nothing to do with access. It has to do with stigma. People are afraid to be known for this addiction issue, the CEO said. They wouldnt be afraid to be known for cancer or diabetes, but addiction  yes.

Adolescent substance abuse and mental health problems have risen as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, he said. The pandemic is creating an environment that is exasperating that. Thats the concern  were seeing it at a younger age.

Mayor Ben Florsheim said the clinic meets a longstanding need in Middletown. We need to be sure we are offering services that are becoming more and more urgently needed everywhere in our state. The unfortunate reality is, in the last few years, more awareness has been coming out about the mental health crisis in this country, nationally and in the city.

If you are looking for help and support, you need someone who will understand, said state Rep. Quentin Phipps, D-Middletown.

He spoke about meeting up with an old friend when he was first running for office, someone he knew through Middletown High Schools student council. When I talked to him, I didnt know he was hurting. I didnt know he was struggling.

The man later died of substance abuse.

This is something that is in our community, something thats in our face that were blatantly aware of. Its also sometimes whispered in secret that many of us dont hear, Phipps said.

For information, visit rootcenter.org.
NEW DELHI: National Conference president Farooq Abdullah attended the Monsoon Session of Parliament on Saturday (September 19), after more than a year since the special status to Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 was abrogated on August 5, 2019.

During his address in Lok Sabha, Farooq advocated talks with Pakistan, saying if India can hold talks with China to resolve border skirmish issues on the Line of Actual Control (LAC), it can also speak to its other neighbour to deal with the situation at Jammu and Kashmir borders.

"Border skirmishes have been rising and people are dying... A way has to be found to deal with this. Except for talks... As you are talking to China to attempt that it withdraws (from Ladakh border), we should also talk to our (other) neighbour to find a way to get out of this situation," Farooq said in Lok Sabha during the Zero Hour amid protests from treasury benches. He was speaking at Parliament for the first time since his release from detention.

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The Srinagar MP also expressed his happiness at the findings of an Army inquiry into the killings of three men in Shopian in an encounter. "I am happy that the Army has admitted that three Shopian men were killed mistakenly. I hope the government gives hefty compensation," he said.

Abdullah said Jammu and Kashmir has not seen any progress and spoke about authorities blocking 4G facilities in the Union Territory which, he added, goes against the interests of students and traders. He also conveyed his gratitude to parliamentarians for speaking for him while he was in detention.

Abdullah and many other leaders were put under detention by authorities last year after the union government abrogated Article 370, which gave special powers to the erstwhile state and split Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories. He was released in March this year.

(With PTI inputs)
Punjab Agricultural Universitys first virtual Kisan Mela concluded on Saturday with an overall participation of over 2 lakh farmers and farm women.

Vice-chancellor Baldev Singh Dhillon thanked the farmers and farm women for their massive participation in the Kisan Mela, which was organised virtually due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

On Day 2, Dhillon again urged farmers not to burn paddy straw and adopt straw management technologies for environmental protection.

Saturday saw three panel discussions, which were showcased via http://www.kisanmela.pau.edu/.

In the panel discussion on Water-Saving Technologies, SS Kukal, dean, College of Agriculture; GS Mangat, head, department of plant breeding and genetics; OP Choudhary, head, department of soil science; KG Singh, head, department of soil and water engineering; Ajmer Brar, senior agronomist; Rajan Aggarwal, principal scientist from PAU; Dr Rajesh Vashisht, joint director, agriculture, and Gurpreet Singh Aulakh, sub-divisional soil conservation officer, were the panel experts.

Rakesh Sharda, principal scientist, extension (soil and water engineering), was the moderator of the discussion. A farmer, Hardeep Singh from Patran in Sangrur, also shared his experience with other farmers.

During the discussion, the experts advised farmers to grow water-saving varieties of paddy recommended by PAU and also adopt water-saving technologies. Expressing concern over the declining groundwater table and its poor quality, they urged farmers to refrain from cultivating PUSA-44 as it required more water and stick to paddy transplanting time as recommended by the Punjab government.

The area under direct seeded rice (DSR), which was a water-saving technology, had increased to 5 lakh hectares in Punjab, they disclosed.

The experts advocated the use of drip irrigation system, which was water as well as labour-saving. Regarding subsidies, they said 80% subsidy was being provided by the state government on drip irrigation, 90% to small farmers and 60% on solar pumps. Underground pipeline system, which saves 30 to 40% of water, was also being promoted in south and central Punjab, they said.

The second panel discussion on Livestock Production and Allied Occupations stressed on the adoption of subsidiary occupations like poultry, dairy and fish farming, etc., along with agriculture.

Scientists from Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University were the panel experts.

In the last panel discussion on Voice of Farmers, AS Dhindsa, a flower and vegetable seed producer known for exporting seed to 100 countries; KBS Sidhu, an innovative farmer known for export of fresh vegetables; and progressive farmers Devinder Singh Mukshabad, Mohinder Singh Dosanjh, Jagtar Singh Brar and Balwinder Singh Tikka shared their experiences with other farmers.

They stressed on making agriculture a precision agriculture linked with marketing, maintaining farm records and urged youth not to avoid farming.

AS Dhatt, additional director of research (horticulture) and Kamal Vatta, head, department of economics and sociology, PAU, were the moderators of the discussion.

TS Riar, additional director communication, said on a whole, the mela was a big success. Old memories of previous Kisan Melas were revived and songs on paddy straw management was another highlight of the mela, he added.

Jaskarn Singh Mahal, director of extension education, PAU, said the virtual Kisan Mela will be made a permanent feature, along with the traditional mela.

The seeds of all varieties will be ready within a week and farmers can contact their nearby Krishi Vigyan Kendras or get information on Farm Inputs App for purchase, he said.
San Antonio and Bexar County continue to have a low trajectory of recent coronavirus infections, reporting a modest number of 162 newly diagnosed cases Friday.

Mayor Ron Nirenberg also announced one new death  that of a man in his 50s who died at home.

Since the pandemic began in March, 50,587 local residents have tested positive for the virus and 1,025 have died. An additional 208 deaths reported by the Texas Department of State Health Services remain under investigation by the citys Metropolitan Health District.

One positive note  95 percent of San Antonio and Bexar County residents who tested positive for the virus in the past six months have recovered. That amounts to 48,044 people.

An incredible effort has been made over the last two to three months because the citizens really began to pay attention, County Judge Nelson Wolff said. Please continue to do what weve preached over and over, which is the social distance, wearing the face masks and sanitation.

On Friday evening, 218 patients diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, were being cared for in San Antonio hospitals  a relatively low number when compared with the staggering peaks seen in July, when more than 1,200 coronavirus patients a day were hospitalized.

Among those now hospitalized, 99 are in intensive care units  the first time that number has dipped below 100 in three months, Nirenberg said. Meanwhile, 43 patients were on ventilators to help them breathe.

Some 13 percent of staffed patient beds remain available at San Antonio hospitals, while 68 percent of ventilators in stock are ready for use.

Local ambulance transports of patients suffering from probable cases of COVID-19 have declined to minimal levels, Metro Health statistics show.

On ExpressNews.com: She already had a high-risk pregnancy  then COVID-19 struck

I do want to take a moment to remind you how important it is to answer your phone if you get a call from one of our contact tracers, Nirenberg said Friday. Otherwise, how would you know if you had been exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID-19? That phone call could be what stops you from unknowingly spreading the disease to people close to you  your friends, your family, co-workers.

Of the Bexar County Jails nearly 4,000 inmates, only nine are currently testing positive for the virus, Sheriff Javier Salazar said.

Because of our very strong, forward-leaning stance on COVID, we got in front of it early, and we started our mass testing, Salazar said, noting that nearly 8,000 inmates have been tested for the virus throughout the pandemic.

We hit our peak in mid-May, he said. Its been coming down. ... Today, we finally hit single digits.

Ten Bexar County sheriffs deputies have the virus, Salazar said, most of them assigned to the jail.

Around 3,000 to 4,000 newly diagnosed cases turn up each day across Texas, according to the state health departments COVID-19 dashboard. Thats a big change from July, when the numbers were topping 10,000 each day.

On Friday, the state reported only 123 fatalities for the previous 24-hour period. Since the pandemic began six months ago, nearly 15,000 Texans who caught the virus have died.

On ExpressNews.com: Gov. Abbott loosens COVID restrictions on restaurants, businesses for most of Texas

Bexar County ranks fourth among Texas counties that have experienced the most cases of the coronavirus, the state dashboard shows. Bexar is outranked only by Harris, Dallas and Tarrant counties, respectively.

Bexar County places third among Texas counties with the most fatalities resulting from the virus, with only Harris and Hidalgo counties seeing larger death tolls, according to state health department statistics.

Officials in Comal County, where New Braunfels is the county seat, reported one new coronavirus-related death and 10 new cases of the virus Friday. The latest victim was a man in his 30s from New Braunfels who died at home, they said.

Since the pandemic began, 3,280 Comal County residents have tested positive for the virus, while 116 have died.

Residents seeking COVID-19 tests can call Comal Countys dedicated hotline at 830-221-1120 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Peggy OHare covers demographics, the census and occasionally crime and general assignment stories in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Peggy, become a subscriber. pohare@express-news.net | Twitter: @Peggy_OHare
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died Friday, sparking an immediate political battle. (Nikki Kahn / Washington Post)

The death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday turned a theoretical debate over the U.S. Supreme Court into a battle of the highest and most significant political order.

Coming just 46 days before the Nov. 3 presidential election, the passing of the 87-year-old jurist and liberal stalwart ensures the court and its sway over the daily lives of Americans will be a front-and-center campaign issue like no other.

The battle lines were clear and immediate.

Democrats, stunned and bereft, cited recent precedent and argued that Republicans who control the Senate must hold off approving a successor until voters have the chance to weigh in less than two months from now.

But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the GOP would press ahead with filling the vacancy and vowed to bring President Trump's nominee to a vote on the Senate floor  though he did not say whether that would come before or after the election.

Trump was campaigning in Minnesota when Ginsburgs death was announced. As he talked about the next president appointing up to four justices, someone in the crowd shouted, Ginsburg is dead! Trump didnt seem to hear and kept on talking.

Afterward, still unaware, he spoke to reporters before boarding Air Force One for a flight home to Washington. She just died. Wow. I didnt know that, Trump said. She led an amazing life.

Later, Trump praised her in a gracious formal statement.

Renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable towards ones colleagues of different points of view, Trump said. May her memory be a great and magnificent blessing to the world.

He said nothing about a possible successor.

Biden, after landing in Delaware following a day of campaigning in Minnesota, joined other Democrats in insisting there be no selection or vote on a successor before election day.

We should focus on the loss of the justice and her enduring legacy, he told reporters in Wilmington. But there is no doubt  let me be clear  that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider.

Story continues

Ginsburg reportedly made her preference known in the days before her passing. As her strength waned, NPR reported, the justice dictated this statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

In seeking a delay, Biden and other Democrats cited the precedent set by McConnell in 2016 after conservative Justice Antonin Scalia died suddenly in February of that election year.

President Obama nominated Merrick Garland, a well-regarded federal appeals court judge, but McConnell said voters should have a say in replacing Scalia, and he declined to schedule a vote or even hold hearings on Garlands nomination. Trump filled the vacancy with conservative appeals court judge Neil M. Gorsuch after taking office.

The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice, Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer of New York said on Twitter. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

The leading candidate to replace Ginsburg is U.S. Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett, a former law clerk for Scalia and a longtime law professor at the University of Notre Dame.

Trump nominated her to a seat on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago and had previously interviewed her when he was in the process of selecting jurists to replace Scalia and, later, Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. White House lawyers said then that they expected Barrett would be nominated if Ginsburg were to die in office.

The Supreme Court consists of five conservative-leaning members and four who are more moderate to liberal. Replacing Ginsburg with another conservative justice could cement a rightward tilt for generations to come, with significant results.

In a year that has produced an onslaught of the unexpected, Ginsburgs death  though not altogether surprising, given her age and ill health  came as a seismic shock. It was the kind of news that stopped people in their tracks and threw jaws wide open.

Shortly after it was announced, Greg Schultz, a senior advisor to Bidens campaign, tweeted, THIS ELECTION IS THE MOST IMPORTANT ELECTION EVER.

Hyperbole aside, few in the heat of the moment were inclined to disagree.

The polarization in this election was already a 12 on a 1-to-10 scale, said Neil Newhouse, a Republican pollster. This pushes it to about 15.

Mindful of those stakes, both sides claimed the fight to fill Ginsburgs seat would work to their partisan benefit.

As a political matter this motivates Democrats far more than Republicans, said Adam Jentleson, an advisor to former Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, the Democratic minority leader during the fight over Garlands nomination. We are newly radicalized on judges.

But Republican strategist Alex Conant insisted Trump and the GOP would benefit from what promises to be a fearsome battle, waged from Capitol Hill to the farthest-flung battleground states.

A day ago this election was a referendum on Trump and his handling of COVID, Conant said. Now its going to be a referendum on the Supreme Court.

Despite recent history, McConnell suggested there was no contradiction in pressing ahead with Ginsburgs replacement.

In the last midterm election before Justice Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term, he said. We kept our promise.

By contrast, Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise, McConnell said.

However, at least two Republicans could break party ranks, complicating McConnells efforts and Trumps hopes of appointing his third justice to the high court, after Gorsuch and Brett M. Kavanaugh.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska told Alaska Public Media on Friday before Ginsburg died that she would not support confirming a justice so close to an election.

I would not vote to confirm a Supreme Court nominee. We are 50-some days away from an election, she said, adding that she was using the same justification McConnell used in 2016.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins, enmeshed in a stiff reelection battle in good part because of her vote to seat Kavanaugh, told the New York Times last month that she would not seat a justice in October, calling it too close to Novembers election. She issued a statement Friday night mourning Ginsburgs death but saying nothing about her potential successor.

Though several Republicans have said this year that they would hypothetically support moving a nomination before an election, it is unclear whether enough of them will actually do so.

McConnell can afford to lose no more than three of his 53 Republicans, which would require Vice President Mike Pence to break a tie.

One lawmaker expected to play a high-profile role in the political fight is Bidens running mate, California Sen. Kamala Harris, who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The senior Democrat on the committee, which will hold hearings on a Supreme Court nominee, is Californias other senator, Dianne Feinstein.

As Collins closely watched actions suggest, Ginsburgs death will also roil the battle for control of the Senate, putting fresh pressure on Republicans in tough reelection races, including contests in Georgia, North Carolina and Montana.

Republican Sen. Joni Ernst, facing a difficult reelection fight in Iowa, sent a fundraising email bluntly stating what is likely to be Republicans argument in the presidential and Senate campaigns this fall.

With the subject line, BREAKING: The future of the Supreme Court is on the line, the email cited guns, abortion and border policy and said, If conservatives fail to protect the White House and the Senate majority in November, we will place the power of the next nominee into the Lefts hands.

Showing the sensitivity of the matter, Ernst soon retracted the fundraising solicitation and apologized.

This email never should have gone out, she said in a statement to Radio Iowa. Though I never saw it, it was sent out under my name and I take responsibility for it. Tonight, my prayers are with the family of Justice Ginsburg.

Barabak reported from San Francisco and Hook from Portland, Maine. Times staff writers David Savage, Jennifer Haberkorn, Chris Megerian and Sarah D. Wire in Washington and Seema Mehta in Grand Rapids, Mich., contributed to this report.





For the record:

8:10 PM, Sep. 18, 2020: A previous version of this story said Harry Reid was Democratic Senate majority leader during the fight over Merrick Garlands nomination. He was Senate minority leader.



This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
By PTI

CHANDIGARH: The Shiromani Akali Dal on Saturday said it is "unfortunate" that even after the party conveyed its concerns to the BJP leadership on the three agricultural reform bills, the issue wasn't addressed, and appealed to all political parties to join its "struggle" against the legislations.

The SAD said it will "not sit quietly" and take this fight to its "logical conclusion".

It also castigated the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for allegedly betraying farmers by not opposing the passage of the bills in Lok Sabha.

One of the oldest allies of the ruling BJP, the SAD has come out strongly against the three bills which are meant to deregulate the sale of farm produce.

Harsimrat Kaur Badal, the lone SAD member in the Modi government, resigned as Union minister on Thursday in protest against the bills.

Addressing a virtual press conference here, senior SAD leader and former MP Prem Singh Chandumajra said, "It is unfortunate that even after we expressed our concerns to the BJP and conveyed the sentiments of the farming community to its central leadership, it did not address the issue."

ALSO READ | 'Very unfortunate' that farmers not taken on board over farm bills: Sukhbir Singh Badal attacks NDA

"We, however, will not fail in our duty towards farmers and will continue to strive to ensure justice for them and Punjab," he said.

Chandumajra appealed to all political parties to form "ek soch aur ek manch" (one thinking and one forum) on the issue, saying Punjab could not afford any division on it.

"All farmer organisations and political parties should support the SAD in its struggle against the bills," he said, adding that in the past, divisions have led to the loss of the state's river waters and its capital.

Chandumajra said the SAD will come out with a party programme against the farm bills and fight to the finish.

"It is very clear that the party will not sit quietly after tendering (Harsimrat Kaur's) resignation. The Akali Dal will take this fight to its logical conclusion," he said.

"We have always raised the voice of farmers and farm labourers, and will continue to do so as per the rich and glorious traditions of our party," he said, adding that the SAD will soon come up with a strategy.

The three bills -- 'The Farmers' Produce Trade And Commerce (Promotion And Facilitation) Bill', 'The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill', and 'The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill'  were introduced in Parliament by the government on Monday.

All these, which were earlier promulgated as ordinances, have been passed in Lok Sabha and will now be tabled in Rajya Sabha.

The SAD voted against these bills.

It has also issued a whip to its members in the Upper House asking them to oppose the bills.

Chandumajra accused the Congress and the AAP of trying to deceive farmers on the issue and playing a double game.

"On the one hand these parties are opposing the agricultural bills in Punjab, but they colluded with each other and did not oppose them in Delhi on the other," he said.

"If the Congress and the AAP had insisted on a division of votes on the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, the BJP might have been forced to postpone tabling of the agricultural bills," he said.

The SAD leader alleged that Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh is also guilty of not only becoming a member of the high-powered committee which approved the agricultural ordinances but also of giving suggestions which were in line with the suggested ordinances.

"This amounts to betraying the trust of the entire farming community," he claimed.

Chandumajra said neither Congress president Sonia Gandhi nor AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal uttered a single word against the agricultural ordinances and both the parties are "only shedding crocodile tears now".

Farmers in Punjab and neighbouring Haryana have repeatedly taken to the streets against the farm bills, which they have dubbed as "anti-farmer".

They have expressed apprehension that the passage of these bills would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price system and leave the farming community at the "mercy" of big corporates.

Harsimrat's resignation over farm sector bills bold, historic stand: Parkash Singh Badal

SAD patriarch Parkash Singh Badal on Saturday described the resignation of Harsimrat Kaur Badal from the Union Cabinet as "bold, historic and a principled stand", and said the Akalis could never be a party to anything which harms the interests of farmers.

Harsimrat Kaur Badal, the sole SAD member in the Narendra Modi government, resigned from the Union Cabinet on Thursday in protest against three farm sector bills.

Hailing his party for keeping "aloft the flag of justice for farmers", Parkash Singh Badal said if farmers and agricultural economy suffer, the whole economy, including trade and industry, of the country will suffer too.

"Lure of office means nothing to an Akali. Countless times, as during the Emergency, we turned down outright offers of power as a price for silence against injustice."

ALSO READ | Saddened my voice in farmers' support was not heard: Harsimrat Kaur Badal after resigning from Modi cabinet

"We always spurned such offers and preferred to stand by the country and principles, and filled jails for that. That tradition will always live on," the five-time former chief minister of Punjab said in a statement here while reacting to SAD's stand against the farm sector bills.

Parkash Singh Badal described the SAD's decision to pull out of the Union cabinet and fight alongside the farmers as "a proud and a landmark moment in the party's long history of standing up for principles and of always being on the side of the people whenever a line is drawn".

"Farmers of Punjab always came to the country's rescue when it needed to be saved from the ignominy of famines and dependence on other nations. They did so by sacrificing their natural resources -- water levels and soil fertility. Today, it is the country's turn to stand by the farmers," he said.

The SAD patriarch congratulated Harsimrat Kaur Badal, who is also his daughter-in-law, for "speaking out boldly for the farmers and for promising to stand by them".

The proposed legislation on marketing of the farmers' produce needed wider consultations, especially with the stakeholders, the farmers, as well as with parties like the SAD, he said.

Parkash Singh Badal said he was satisfied that as a "mature" representative of the people, the SAD tried to convey the sentiments of farmers to the Centre and tried its best to persuade it to refer the proposed legislation to an all-party select committee of MPs for wider consultations with farmers.

"The party tried to act as a bridge to find an amicable way to fully accommodate the farmers' interests. But I am glad that when that did not seem possible, and a line had to be drawn, the SAD stood on the right side of the line and did the only thing that its proud heritage demanded -- quit the government.

"The SAD could never be a party to anything which harms the interests of farmers," he said. Badal appealed to Punjabis and all political parties to stand with farmers, during this "struggle for justice"

Why is SAD still with NDA, asks Amarinder Singh .

Questioning the Akalis alliance with the NDA, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Saturday asked the SAD to list "one pro-farmer initiative" persuaded by it with the BJP-led Centre in the past six years.

Hitting out at Badals for "perpetuating lies" in the past few days on agriculture bills, he said they had "openly and shamelessly supported" these since the Ordinances were brought in.

The chief minister, in a statement here, said SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal and former Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal had been fabricating lies on farm bills, which have been completely exposed.

"Did either of you even once call the ordinances anti-farmer till they were presented in the Lok Sabha?" the chief minister asked Badals.

"Did Harsimrat even once, till her resignation, tell farmers that she was trying to persuade the Central government to address their concerns, something she is now claiming?" he further asked.

Questioning the Akalis alliance with the NDA, the chief minister further asked, "Why is SAD still part of the NDA given that, by Harsimrat's own admission, the BJP-led government failed to address the farmers' concerns she put before them?" Amarinder Singh also asked Harsimrat Kaur and Sukhbir Badal if they can cite even one pro-farmer initiative that they might have undertaken in over past six years to persuade the BJP-led government at the Centre to act on it.

The chief minister said the people of Punjab, especially the farmers, will not forgive them.

"The ordinances, which you had been shamefacedly supporting all through till you decided to back off under political compulsions of the fear of losing your farmers' vote-bank, were never discussed or even mentioned at the high-powered meetings, a fact on which your coalition partners either deliberately kept in you in dark or which you consciously choose to ignore in your own petty interest," he told the Badals.

Unlike the SAD, the Congress had maintained a consistent stand against the ordinances which the Centre introduced on the sly amid the pandemic and then pushed through the Lok Sabha by the sheer brute majority, Amarinder said.

The Badals should stop lying on such a critical issue, and instead, come out in the open fight against the NDA coalition by withdrawing from the alliance, said the chief minister.

He added that their claims of standing shoulder to shoulder with farmers were "hollow and false" as long as they continued to lie on the subject and remained a part of the "anti-farmer" Central Government.
The Middle East region is of an utmost strategic and economic significance for China. The region is critical for its Belt and Road initiative (BRI) as well as an important maritime element due to Chinas dependency on imports by sea route between Asia, Africa and Europe through the BRI.

Unlike the USA, China has tried not to take sides and remain politically neutral. It is trying to position itself in a state of equilibrium in the region by striking a balance between the Islamic countries and Israel. This narrative has worked so far for China. Consequently, Israel is coming closer to China.

China began to pay attention to Israel with the advent of the Xi Jinping regime. After Jinping took over the Chinese government and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), China began to enhance its diplomacy, investments and trade with Israel. There has been a substantial increase in Chinese investments and Chinese trade in the country.

However, the germination of the bilateral relations between both countries began during the 1970s. Israel followed the US and the rest of the world in embracing China. Military ties began to sprout between both the countries after the six-day war when China was much interested in acquiring Soviet military equipment from Israel as it had captured a lot of this equipment during the war.

As per some analysts, to further its expansionist agenda and learning from the past experience of the US in the Middle East, China is making a calculated move in the region. China is slowly and quietly starting to make gains in the region under the excuse of economic relationship and cooperation. By committing an amount of US $20 billion in loans for reconstructing in the Arab world and the US $3 billion loan for the banking sector of the region in 2018, it has displayed its ambitions.

Israel, due to its strategic location, has the potential to become the focal point  a linchpin of the BRI. According to Chinas modus operandi in the BRI project, It has invested in infrastructure in developing countries and in technology in developed ones.

Interestingly, China is making both kinds of investments in Israel. Rather making huge investments in R&D for economic development, China is betting on R&D coming in from developed and technologically advanced countries including Israel. Hence Israel becomes important for Chinas strategic as well as economic needs-promoting it to make both the kinds of investments therein.

China, on the other hand, plans to invest in Israeli tech companies and acquire all such technologies that have commercial as well as military applications- including artificial intelligence, quantum computing, edge computing, autonomous vehicles, biotechnology and other related technologies.

Recent deals of China are worrying the US leaders across lines-Republicans as well as Democrats. The US administration has cautioned Israel about Chinese investments in critical infrastructure and high tech sectors of the country.

The United States believes that Chinese control of or investment in infrastructure and companies abroad presents a serious security threat. U.S. officials have been hard at work convincing allies, including Israel, to create a level of distance from the country. as per a report published in JNS.

If it is seen, at least 90 deals have taken place in the past ten years, involving 42 Chinese companies .Connection of Chinese companies with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Peoples Liberation Army (PLA), and Chinese government are world known. Hence there are hidden strategic interests besides the economic interests of Chinese companies in host nations.

Certain companies operating in Israel are also causing concerns. For example, the company working on the Light Rail project in Tel Aviv is also constructing a rail line from Isfahan from Tehran. Similarly, China Communications construction company (CCCC), which worked on the Ashdod Port project also worked on the military projects for the PLA and built a satellite station for it in Argentina. CCCC Dredging the parent company of CCCC is facing accusations of reclaimed islands in the South China sea.

In other concerning cases, ZTE has invested in an Israeli company Rainbow Medical. ZTE faces accusations by the US government of violating sanctions in Iran. Similarly, Chinese giant Baidu has invested in five Israel companies and venture capitals. Companies like Huawei, Togan networks, HexaTier have also made significant investments in Israeli companies.

Due to its geostatic location and advancement in technology, Israel has placed itself in an important position. It has become an important player in Chinas ambition to acquire advanced technology.

The democratic countries should be concerned about Chinese investments in critical infrastructure and technology in Israel. Though Israel considers the US as an important strategic partner and relies heavily on it for its military and diplomatic needs, it has also flirted with China to gain investments. However, the most interesting thing would be to see how China manages its relations with Israel while actively supporting Irans nuclear and missile programmes.
The farm bills brought by the government undermine the food security system, the Congress claimed on Saturday and urged opposition parties to collectively oppose the bills so that they do not become law in their present form. Congress leader and former Union finance minister P Chidambaram said that the Congress's 2019 poll manifesto was based on foundational principles of minimum support price (MSP), public procurement and public distribution system (PDS) to ensure food security.

But Prime Minister Narendra Modi and spokespersons of the BJP have "deliberately and maliciously distorted" the Congress manifesto, he alleged. On Friday, the BJP had alleged that the Congress in its 2019 manifesto had promised to abolish the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) Act.

Chidambaram said it is clear in the manifesto that the Congress had promised to help farmers. However, this government has "surrendered" to corporates and traders, he claimed in a statement. "Every political party has to take a stand is it with the farmers or is it with the BJP threatening the livelihood of farmers," Chidambaram said.

The Lok Sabha has passed three bills related to the farm sector and these are the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, which seek to promote barrier-free inter-state and intra-state trade in agricultural produce. These will now be tabled in the Rajya Sabha.

Seeking to counter the ruling BJP's charge that it was the Congress which had proposed to do away with the APMC Act, he said successive Congress governments built, brick by brick, a food security system that culminated in the National Food Security Act, 2013. The three pillars of the Congress' food security system are MSP, Public Procurement and PDS, Chidambaram said. The Congress had promised to promote farmers producer companies and organisations to enable them to access inputs, technology and markets,he said.

The party had also assured establishing farmers' markets with adequate infrastructure and support in large villages and small towns to enable a farmer to bring produce and freely market the same, the former finance minister said.

"Farmers need multiple accessible markets and choice. The Congress' proposals would have given them that. Once that is accomplished, the Congress manifesto promise on repealing the APMC Act and making trade in agricultural produce free would be a natural sequel in course of time," he said. "While our promise is clear, the Modi government has surrendered to the corporates and traders," the Congress leader alleged.

Chidambaram said two farm bills do not contain a clause that the price that the farmer will get from the private purchaser shall not be less than the MSP. "Why is such a clause absent," he asked. The bills undermine the only regulated market available to the farmer today, without creating thousands of alternative markets that will be accessible to the farmer. The bills assume perversely that the farmer and the private purchaser have equal bargaining power. They do not," Chidambaram said. "The small farmer will be at the mercy of the private purchaser," he said.

Chidamabaram also said that in case a dispute arises between the farmer and the private purchaser, the machinery under the bills is so bureaucratic and convoluted that no farmer will have the strength or the resources to fight the purchaser. The small and medium farmer will be ruined, he said. "The bills undermine the three pillars of our food security system, the Congress leader said.

"Little knowledge is dangerous and little reading is even more dangerous", Chidambaram said and alleged that the BJP is caught in a web of its own creation He alleged that an economy afflicted by shortage of goods and services was exploited by it. Suspended Congress leader Sanjay Jha on Friday had said the opposition party and the BJP were on the same page on the farm sector bills as the Congress had before the 2019 parliamentary elections proposed abolition of the APMC Act to make agricultural produce free from restrictions.
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Linkedin Sarah Mills (Reuters) London, United Kingdom  Sat, September 19, 2020 21:02 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45f0f39 2 Lifestyle London,London-fashion-week,fashion-week,fashion,Bora-Aksu,pandemic,coronavirus Free

Turkish designer Bora Aksu said the coronavirus pandemic inspired his latest collection, which looks back over one hundred years to the Spanish flu pandemic and the end of World War One.

COVID-19 meant that Aksu's fashion show on Friday was one of only four taking place at London Fashion Week, according to the British Fashion Council, compared with the 46 shows that took place at the event last September.

The designer said that after such an isolating period earlier in the year due to the pandemic, he felt that not having a traditional show would have been "cutting off that human touch, I really couldn't do it".

He said of the pandemic: "It has so kind of affected all our lives and the way we operate and work that I could not take myself out of it."

It made him think of the 1918 flu pandemic and the accompanying time of mourning at the end of the war, and the much more optimistic period that followed.

Read also: Viral event: London Fashion Week opens with online focus

The floaty white dresses with long socks and white boots reflected the minimal dressing of the nurses who treated the war wounded and those suffering from flu, he said.

Parading in London's autumn sunshine, models, wearing sheer face veils, also showed off tiered dresses in pastel shades of pink and blue, and dark purples, with prints and lace.

"The collections and the fashion actually should reflect the times that we be going through," Aksu told Reuters.

He said he wanted to send a message of hope by reminding people that after World War One and the Spanish flu pandemic, good times followed for many in the early 1920s.
Storm Noul, the fifth to enter the East Sea this year, made landfall in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue on September 18 morning, causing heavy downpours, strong winds and lightning.

Storm Noul makes dozens of trees fall off (Source: VNA)

Accordingly, strong winds with speeds of 90-100 km per hour swept through the locality in over 30 minutes from 8:30am, making dozens of ancient trees, electricity poles and gates of several buildings fall off, and blowing off roofs of many houses.

Mountainous Nam Dong district recorded the highest volume of rainfall at 204mm.

Also in the morning, due to impact of the fifth storm, a whirlwind occurred in the central province of Ha Tinh at around 5:00am, blowing off roofs of over 60 local houses.

The whirlwind, together with heavy rains, also affected a large area of crops.

Three airports in central region to suspend operation due to storm Noul

The Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam (CAAV) has issued an urgent document requesting three airports in the central region to suspend operation on September 18, the day storm Noul is slated to land in the region.

Aircraft of Vietjet Air at Da Nang airport (Photo: VNA)

Specifically, Chu Lai airport (Quang Nam province) is required to close from 04:00 to 8:00, Da Nang airport (Da Nang city) from 05:00 to 20:00 and Phu Bai airport (Hue city in Thua Thien-Hue province) from 06:00 to 21:00 (all local time) during the day.

Other airports in the region, namely Dong Hoi, Vinh, Pleiku, Phu Cat and Tuy Hoa, along with airlines, airports authorities and the Vietnam Air Traffic Management Corporation, are instructed to closely follow the weather situation and make prompt reports to the CAAVs command for natural disaster control and search and rescue.

Airlines have also announced they will cancel and postpone flights on routes to/from the three airports.

Vietnam Airlines said it will operate 22 additional flights on the affected routes on September 19 to compensate for the cancelled ones. Passengers are urged to keep updated with the airlines official website and Facebook page, ticket offices or customers hotline.

Noul, the fifth storm to enter the East Sea this year, is gaining strength, heading to the central region of Vietnam and is expected to make landfall on September 18.



The storm is forecast to directly affect central provinces, especially Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue and Da Nang with wind speeds of 90-100 km per hour and sometimes hitting 135 km per hour.



Heavy rain will blanket the central provinces from September 17 afternoon to September 18 night, bringing high risks of flash flood and landslides in the central region.

Central region prepares for Storm Noul

Central provinces to be hit by Storm Noul banned vessels from going out to sea on Thursday as the tropical storm is forecast to make landfall on Friday morning.

Mai Van Khiem, director of the National Centre for Hydrometeorological Forecasting, said the typhoon, the fifth to enter the East Sea this year, is moving very quickly at an estimated speed of 118 to 133km per hour, sometimes hitting up to 160km per hour on the seas and along coastal areas from Quang Binh to Quang Nam Province.

Storm Noul will directly affect Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue and Quang Nam provinces and a Nang City with wind speeds of 90km to 117km per hour, sometimes up to 150km per hour.

Heavy rain is predicted on Thursday afternoon until Friday night with alerts for floods in rivers, flash floods and landslides.

Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue provinces and a Nang City plan to evacuate more than 1.1 million people of more than 295,000 households if necessary.

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong on Thursday morning directed all 12 central provinces from Thanh Hoa to Khanh Hoa to be hit by the typhoon to strictly follow Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phucs urgent notice.

The PM asked ministries, agencies and localities to keep a close eye on the development of the storm and prepare to be hit.

Peoples Committees of cities and provinces need to ensure the safety of activities at sea, work with concerned forces to guide vessels and encourage local residents to take preventive measures to protect crops, houses and other facilities.

Human resources and equipment should be ready for the evacuation of people in dangerous areas, with attention paid to COVID-19 prevention and control, according to the notice.

The PM has warned of flash floods and landslides in mountainous areas after heavy rains, saying measures are needed to ensure the safety of reservoirs.

Minister Cuong ordered the Border Guard Command, Directorate of Fisheries and localities to send notices to fishing vessels in risky areas to move to shelter.

According to the Central Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, provinces from Thanh Hoa to Thua Thien-Hue have 49 dykes that need protection and 16 other coastal and river dykes under construction.

More than 94,000 people in the central province of Quang Tri are expected to be evacuated before 8pm on Thursday. Some 2,300 fishing vessels of the province had docked at shelters by 4pm.

Students in Quang Nam Province will take a day off on Friday due to the typhoon.

Inspecting typhoon preparedness at Thuan An Fish Port in Thua Thien-Hue Province on Thursday, Deputy Prime Minister Trinh inh Dung said the time before the typhoon makes landfall is a golden chance to complete evacuation, reinforce houses and move fishery cages to safety.

Doing that work well will minimise human losses and damage to property, he said.

Rains started in the province at noon on Thursday.

More than 106,000 people in Thua Thien-Hue Province have been evacuated and students will stay off from school on Friday and Saturday.

By 1pm on Thursday, the storms eye was about 220km south-east of the Hoang Sa (Paracel) islands with winds of 75-100 km per hour, sometimes reaching 118-133 km per hour. The storm is moving west-northwest.

Its expected that by 1pm on Friday, the storm will have strengthened with the eye on waters close to provinces from Quang Binh to Quang Nam. Winds at the eye will reach 90-115 km per hour or more.

After making landfall in central provinces from Quang Binh to a Nang on Friday afternoon or evening, the storm is forecast to weaken to become a tropical low pressure.

By about 1am on Saturday, the heart of the tropical low-pressure system will be on the border area of Laos and Thailand with winds of 40-50 km per hour. VNA/VNS
In a New York nursing home, a resident hurled a bingo chip. At a home in Georgia, a 46-year-old woman, paralyzed from the waist down, repeatedly complained that no one had changed her diaper. In a California facility, a patient threw tableware.

In all three cases, the nursing homes cited the incidents as a reason to send the residents to hospitals for psychiatric evaluations  and then to bar them from returning.

Across the United States, nursing homes are looking to get rid of unprofitable patients  primarily those who are poor and require extra care  and pouncing on minor outbursts to justify evicting them to emergency rooms or psychiatric hospitals. After the hospitals discharge the patients, often in a matter of hours, the nursing homes refuse them re-entry, according to court filings, government-funded watchdogs in 16 states, and more than 60 lawyers, nursing home employees and doctors.

The practice at times violates federal laws that restrict nursing homes from abruptly evicting patients.
President Trump got it right last night when he called the late Justice Ginsburg an amazing woman with an amazing life. She is the foremost female the American legal professor has produced to date, and its unlikely that she will be surpassed any time soon.

Ginsburg was a fierce partisan and liberal ideologue. Yet, she is said to have forged and maintained a strong friendship with the late Justice Scalia. This speaks to the grace and character of both jurists.

I dont know how Ginsburgs passing and the ensuing battle to replace her will affect the election. My sense is that it will have little direct impact on the presidential election, where the battle lines are set.

The future of the Supreme Court is a big deal, of course. Indeed, there is no issue in the presidential race that is more important. But both sides are about equally passionate on the matter, it seems to me.

If there is an impact on the presidential election, it might come if/when the Supreme Court decides the outcome. Things were setting up for a 5-4 decision, with Chief Justice Roberts as the swing vote.

Now, the alignment might end up being 4-3-1 (with conservatives in the plurality). If so, Roberts would still be the key vote. He could join the strong conservatives in a 5-3 majority or join the liberals, making the vote 4-4. A tie would mean leaving in place whatever decision was reached below. Would Roberts want a president to take office by virtue of a deadlocked Supreme Court and a lower court ruling?

I should emphasize, however, that facts will matter if the case is before the Supreme Court. Both sides will probably need a decent case for the potential deadlock I have suggested to occur.

If there is a direct electoral effect from Ginsburgs passing, it might occur in tight Senate races involving endangered incumbents like Susan Collins, Thom Tillis, and Cory Gardner. That effect could vary from race to race, and will depend, in part, on what the candidates say and/or promise regarding filling the vacancy.

As for having a vote before Election Day, that seems unlikely to me for logistical and political reasons. The calendar, in the context of an election, seems highly problematic.

Confirmation before the election would be, as well. Sens. Collins, Murkowski, and Romney seem certain not to vote for confirming a Justice pre-election. Embattled incumbents might think they would be giving their job away by voting to confirm a strong, controversial conservative.

As for confirming a nominee if Trump loses, I think thats unlikely too. Again, three no votes seem cast in stone. Good luck herding the remaining 50 GOP Senators, including lame ducks, into the fold.

Confirmation of a Justice by a lame duck Senate would increase the likelihood that Democrats will succeed in packing the Court at the first available opportunity. This, too, might deter a few Republican Senators.

As for whom Trump will nominate, I expect him to pick the person he concludes will maximize his reelection chances  maybe Judge Amy Barrett who might galvanize conservatives and evangelicals. This seems especially true if he believes the likelihood of confirming anyone he nominates is low, in the event Biden wins.

Its likely that Trump sees Ginsburgs death as an electoral opportunity and, my doubts notwithstanding, it might well be.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept. 19

Trend:

As reported earlier, on September 19, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the Absheron field offshore operations at the Heydar Aliyev Baku Deep Water Jackets Plant.

After the ceremony, the head of state gave an interview to Azerbaijan Television, Public Television and Real Television.

Trend is publishing some excerpts from the interview of President Ilham Aliyev:

Azerbaijan is the country where oil was industrially produced for the first time in the middle of the 19th century. In the middle of the 20th century, for the first time in history, oil was produced from an offshore field in Azerbaijan. But if we look at history, we will see that the oil produced in Azerbaijan at that time did not serve the interests of the Azerbaijani people.

If we had been an independent country then, I am sure that Azerbaijan could have become the richest country in the world. But we were not independent. It is true that wealthy oil tycoons spent a part of their income on charity at the time, especially Haji Zeynalabdin Taghiyev, Mukhtarov, Asadullayev.

My grandfather Aziz Aliyev was born into a poor family in the ancient Azerbaijani land of Iravan Khanate and wanted to study. But he did not have the money to do so. At that time, he wrote a letter to Haji Zeynalabdin Taghiyev, asking him to provide him with financial assistance. He wanted to be a doctor. Of course, Taghiyev did not know him but as a patriot and a kind person, he sent him money, and with that money Aziz Aliyev entered St. Petersburg Military Medical Academy where he studied, became a great doctor and a prominent statesman.

At that time, there were many Armenians among Baku's oil magnates. In many cases, they spent the money they had earned in Azerbaijan against the interests of the Azerbaijani people. Thus, during Tsarist Russia, the income of the Azerbaijani people from oil was zero.

If Azerbaijan had not lost its state independence in 1920, I think it would still be one of the richest countries. Because the oil produced in Azerbaijan at that time made up the majority in the world oil market. However, in 1920 the independence was lost and Azerbaijani oil did not help the Azerbaijani people. At that time, especially during the war, people working in the oil fields lived in very difficult conditions and worked day and night. I can cite a figure that during the war, Azerbaijan produced a record level of oil - 23 million tons.

Azerbaijani oil workers have made an exceptional contribution to the victory of the Soviet army in World War II. Because at that time, 80 percent of the Soviet Union's fuel was provided by Azerbaijan. Also, 90 percent of lubricants were provided by Azerbaijan. Military equipment was produced in Azerbaijan, more than 300,000 Azerbaijanis were killed in this war. But look at the situation we were faced with when the Soviet Union collapsed: rundown oil infrastructure. Today's presentation shown to me stated that Oil Rocks will be given a new life because the Absheron field will be linked to the Oil Rocks. But what state were the Oil Rocks in back then? I remember first visiting Oil Rocks as President in 2004. The situation was difficult. All the platforms had eroded and fallen apart. Working there was very difficult and dangerous. Oil production declined and gas production did not meet the needs of our country. Half of Baku was left without gas. As far as the regions are concerned, there was no such thing as gas there at all.
Mumbai: The de-commissioned aircraft carrier INS Viraat, which was in service for 30 years, moves out of the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai on Saturday (September 19, 2020) for a ship-breaking yard in Gujarat.

INS Viraat, the second Centaur-Class aircraft carrier-in-service has spent 30 years in the Indian Navy and 27 years in the Royal Navy. It was decommissioned in August 2017.

INS Viraat holds the world record, as mentioned in the Guinness Book of records, for being the longest-serving warship of the world.

The Indian Navy on microblogging site Twitter paid an emotional tribute to the ship with a minute video.

#Viraat Callsign "Romeo Two Two" - End of an era, a glorious chapter in the history of @indiannavy. She departs #Mumbai today for her final journey. Old ships never die, their spirit lives on https://t.co/fRDe7wIfLK  PRO Defence Mumbai (@DefPROMumbai) September 19, 2020

The ship has clocked more than 22,622 flying hours by various aircraft in the past three decades and has spent nearly 2,252 days at sea sailing across 5,88,287 nautical miles (10,94,215 KM). This implies that Viraat has spent seven years at sea, circumnavigating the globe 27 times.

Viraat played a major role in Operation Jupiter in 1989, during the Sri Lankan Peacekeeping operation, after which she was affiliated with the Garhwal Rifles and Scouts of the Indian Army in 1990.

The ship has participated in various international joint exercises like Exercise Malabar (USA), exercise Varuna (French), Naseem-Al-Bahar (Oman Navy). She has also been an integral element of all annual theatre level exercises (TROPEX).

The last operational deployment of Viraat was for the International Fleet Review (IFR 2016) off Vishakhapatnam in February 2016. `Mother`, as she was fondly referred to in the Navy, had been commanded by 22 Captains since 1987.

The legacy of Viraat will be carried forward by INS Vikramaditya, which is already integrated with the fleet, and INS Vikrant which will be inducted in the next few years.

(With input from agencies)
Augustoberfest to return in 2022, but in a new location

This year marks the 25th anniversary of Augustoberfest, usually held in downtown Hagerstown. But this year's festival is moving out of Hagerstown.
She is the stylist the Duchess of Sussex relied upon to curate her fashion.

So when Meghan, 39, wanted to make an impact on her 'farewell tour' of Britain earlier this year, there was only one woman on her list to call.

And now The Mail on Sunday can reveal her secret weapon  impeccably groomed fashionista Maria Means Cote.

LADY IN RED: Royal Albert Hall, March 7. Safiyaa 'Kalika' red capelet gown 1,295, Simone Rocha crystal earrings 195, Manolo Blahnik 'Capri' clutch 1,260, Stuart Weitzman 'Leigh' pumps 295

BLUE AND ROYAL: Endeavour Fund awards evening, March 5, Victoria Beckham 'Crepe Midi' dress 950, Stella McCartney 'Lucia' clutch 1,310, Manolo Blahnik 'BB' pumps 515, Roxanne First 'The Gold Snake Hoops' earrings 95, Jessica McCormack 'Chi Chi' bracelet 9,500

Maria, 36, is just as well connected as she is polished  she was Prada's PR and celebrity relations manager and counts a number of high-end designers as good friends.

Like Meghan, she's an American married to a Brit and as she lived near Kensington Palace was the perfect appointment to Team Sussex.

A fashion insider said: 'Maria was Meghan's stylist and assistant  she called in all her clothes and planned all her outfits. She really refined her look and the two women got on really well.

'After Meghan and Harry agreed with the Royal Family that they would leave, they planned to return to the UK for one last time before they finished their royal duties.

'Meghan was determined to show everyone what they were losing and wanted to look as good as possible. And she did! Maria pulled together all of her looks and Meghan went out with a bang  just as she had wanted.'

Harry and Meghan had already moved to Canada when they stunned senior Royals by saying they had decided to walk away from royal life.

After thrashing out a deal at the so-called 'Sandringham Summit' in January, where the Queen, William and Charles agreed to let Harry and Meghan earn their own money, the Sussexes agreed to return to the UK for a final time before moving to the US.

Meghan wowed onlookers when she stepped out in a figure-hugging turquoise Victoria Beckham creation at the Endeavour Fund awards on March 5.

The image of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex smiling through the falling rain instantly became iconic.

It was previously thought that Meghan's best friend Jessica Mulroney had been helping to style her. Canadian Mrs Mulroney, married to the son of Canada's former prime minister, had styled the former Suits actress while she was living in Toronto.

GOIN G GREEN: Commonwealth Day service, March 9. Emilia Wickstead cape effect dress 1,210, William Chambers Veil Explosion Teardrop hat 525, Gabriela Hearst Demi bag 1,750, Birks Snowflake Snowstorm diamond earrings 7,140, Aquazzura Purist pumps 450

Maria Means Cote, 36, is just as well connected as she is polished  she was Prada's PR and celebrity relations manager and counts a number of high-end designers as good friends

After Meghan moved to London and married Harry in 2018, Ms Mulroney continued to help out behind the scenes, but mother-of-three Maria was employed by Buckingham Palace to give the Duchess a more formal appointment.

Maria, who began her career as a buyer at New York department store Saks Fifth Avenue, worked with Meghan to incorporate both her personality and style into her outfits.

She also ensured that Meghan's tour wardrobe  such as the ethically fashionable 69 Mayamiko 'Dalitso' dress worn in a Cape Town township  was both appropriate yet regal. The two women even swapped clothes.

Maria's connections ensured Meghan could always call in top-end clothes.

One of the stylist's closest friends is Prince William's former flame Bella Musgrave, now head of communications for Gucci, another is the designer Emilia Wickstead.

When the Sussexes left the UK for the last time in March, Meghan hugged Maria and thanked her for all her hard work.

Now living in her 11 million Santa Barbara home, complete with nine bedrooms and 17 bathrooms, Meghan's American fashion is much more relaxed.

Whether she will ever be seen again in the kind of regal clothes chosen for her by Maria, remains to be seen.
An American flag flies outside the U.S. Capitol dome in Washington, D.C. Reuters



By Emanuel Pastreich





The United States of America is a term that contains in it all the hope and all the contradictions of our country, and of the Americas. That hope dates far back in the past, to the inspiring words of the Declaration of Independence that articulated a form of governance that was, at least in terms of its potential, unprecedented.

The enslavement of Africans and the attacks on the native nations belied those powerful words "all men are created equal." But the power of those words transcended the limitations of the men who wrote them and echoed around the world.



America's contradictions, which we have buried out of shame, continue to hold us back from realizing our potential to be great in word and deed.



If we were at last "united" as "states" we could achieve our destiny and find strength in unity. That would require us to recognize not only the shadows that have accompanied the bright light of hope, but also the tremendous wisdom left to us by the original peoples of the Americas. They were men and women who wove intricate tapestries of life and spirit that were completely invisible to the dull men who drafted maps far away; men who sold off mountains, rivers and forests as a dry and exchangeable thing called "real estate."



The sad legacy of those past sins is that politics and economics in the United States have been reduced to a game of division. People are divided using symbols and motifs that appeal to unconscious associations; nations are divided using misperceptions and false generalizations; land is divided using alien concepts like real estate, national borders and property rights. Security for one's family and for one's home has been distorted into a right to destroy nature and community in the pursuit of profit.



The "United States of America" ends today in a militarized wall, a DMZ of the south that defines in a precise manner, to the inch, where one nation state ends and where another nation-state begins. Yet for all the precision of this division, it has no basis in human experience in the natural world and it certainly means nothing to the sun and the moon that have offered their light to the diverse nations of the Americas for tens of thousands of years.



When the sun and the moon look down from above they see a long stretch of land between the two poles that narrows to a delicate isthmus in the middle, forming an exquisite whole, balancing the mountains that rise up above the ground with those that lie beneath the ocean.



Unbroken bands of culture and natural chains of plants and animals link together the Americas from south to north. From the concentric stone circles that form Moray, the agricultural laboratory developed by the Incas to assure a sustainable future for all, and the soaring temples of Tenochtitlan, erected by the Aztecs to reflect the unity of Heaven and Earth, to the delicate communities of the Karitiana people deep in the pristine jungles, and the Mesa Verde city carved into the face of a cliff by the elders of the Pueblo Nation, the human achievements of the Americas are diverse and exquisite.



From the soaring peaks of the Aconcagua Mountains, and the surface of Lake Titicaca that reflects the skies so perfectly, to the waves of sand constantly reshaped in fantastic patterns by the winds of the Mohave Desert, the surface of the Americas forms an inspiring mosaic.



Those climates and habitats are inhabited by the golden lion tamarin that swings gracefully through the lush Amazon trees, by the magnificent Magellanic penguin standing watch confidently on the shores of Patagonia, by the indefatigable armadillo that has roamed over the grasses between Big Bend Ranch and Canon de Santa Elena -- long before humans gave those formations names.



Moreover, the working people in the cities of the Americas, whether they speak Spanish or English, or other tongues, have so much more in common with each other than they could possibly know. There is a great unity of experience, whether it is the pleasures of being with our children in the mornings, or the frustrations of work, or the sorrows of communities torn apart by hidden forces.



Yet, there are hidden powers and subterranean currents that are not blocked by borders. No, those powers make the borders, enforce the borders, so as to keep the little people, the honest people, north and south, penned up like cattle, so as to deny them the freedom of the eagle or of the taruca.



There is the flow of money and currency, a flow of agricultural goods, finished products and components, a flow of information and data controlled by the powerful, and used for their own selfish ends. That flow is unimpeded by borders.



The powerful drink deeply from that flow of money. They want us to be separated from each other, and they will do anything to encourage us to think that it is the hard-working families from the south, struggling to feed themselves, and not the multinational corporations that are responsible for the pain we feel.



Powerful politicians, Democrat and Republican, promote borders, enforce borders, and militarize borders. They have built a horrific DMZ between the United States and Mexico. They make fortunes for their friends pouring concrete where there were once cactuses and wildflowers.



Who are those borders for?



Those borders pin us up inside and make us prisoners. They are also building walls in our neighborhoods, walls around their mansions and their exclusive communities, and walls around private prisons and camps where they detain us and abuse us.



Sadly, many in the United States think that what is being done to Hispanics has nothing to do with them. They could not be more wrong.



What has been done to immigrants in the camps over the past few years is but a trial run for what will be done to all working Americans. The time has come for all Americans to realize that they have much more in common with the immigrant family locked up in a camp than they do with the billionaires.



The peoples of the south do not travel to the north because they like the cold weather, or because they like the wretched taste of processed foods like hamburgers. They would rather live in their villages, farm their fields -- the fields where their ancestors farmed for decades before they too lay beneath them.



They are forced to move, compelled to leave behind family, friends and familiar landscapes because of the hidden flow of money over borders that powers the takeover of farms by corporations for wasteful and destructive production. Corporations force farmers to use one-use seeds and pesticides and herbicides that poison our sacred land. They drive the butchery of the majestic jungles and encourage the drilling for natural resources underground at any human cost.



That oil and metal should stay underground where it is. Those soaring trees must be left alone.



We are subject to a psychotic pursuit of profit powered by forces far from the jungles and rivers of the Americas. Investment banks in London, in Hong Kong or in Dallas that seek quick profits for their wealthy clients are driving this suicide march. They care nothing about nature or about people



Americans do not know about the horrors unfolding in the south because such truths are kept secret from them by a corrupt and decadent media; a media that is a tool for control, a weapon of deception.



Americans see those forced to immigrate, forced to work for almost nothing to survive and they feel threatened. They would feel solidarity with those people if they could see how much they have in common.



Instead, they are told by the dark powers that these people are the enemy. The newspapers, the public opinion leaders and church ministers repeat those lies.



Those newspapers and those churches have been bought off by the billionaires.



It was those billionaires who manufactured this disaster.



We can certainly understand why some Americans respond emotionally to what seems like an invasion of foreigners. Their emotions are not unlike the emotions felt by those in the Amazon when they see tractors destroy their jungles in search of oil, minerals and timber.



The shooting at the Walmart in El Paso, Texas, on August 3, 2019, represented a terrible evil that is invisible even as it stalks the streets in daylight.



August 3 is not just any day. It was on August 3 of 1492 that Christopher Columbus set off from Spain to "discover" this land and set up, unknowingly, a process that would unleash tremendous evil. It was on August 3 of 1914 that Germany invaded Belgium and started the First World War. It was on August 3 of 1934 when Adolf Hitler declared himself "Fuhrer" (leader) and ended the rule of law in Germany.



The El Paso attack left 23 dead and 23 injured. It was an obvious bid to turn fear and loathing into outright war.



Who knows what happened in El Paso? We know that people died there and that a terrible evil was unleashed that slouches now toward a murky horizon.



The Bible teaches us that evil is colorless, that evil is invisible, and that evil is seductive. This evil is not the obvious evil encountered by superheroes.



No. It is a more pernicious, a more subtle and more enticing evil -- an evil that demands that we be prepared for an epic battle over the soul of humanity.



We do not need a "United States" of finance, of manufacturing and of distribution. We need a "United States" of teachers, of doctors, of social workers, of students, and of farmers. We need a "United States" of mothers and fathers. When we have that, then we will discover how much we have in common. Our universal concerns cross over borders, languages and habits of the mind.



We must go back to the original sin, to the manner in which the Conquistadors took over the Americas, doing such terrible damage, and bringing with them a new culture that remains with us today, a culture that offers us great depths, but also savage cruelty camouflaged as piety. The sins of this day are but the latest variation on that original sin.



Remember that it was Jesus on the cross that gave authority to the Conquistadors. It makes no sense, but it is the truth. Jesus, who lived among the poor, among the homeless, the beggars, and the prostitutes, Jesus who refused to possess anything, Jesus who died on the cross for his spiritual resistance to the decadent power of the Roman Empire. That Jesus was invoked as a cause for the destruction of the cultures of the Mayans, of the Incas, of the Aztecs and of many, many other peoples.



And now, we witness a similar erasure of cultures and of peoples across the Americas.



At the heart of this transformation we find the concept of ownership, specially the ownership of land.



Consider the famous case of the island of Manhattan.



The story we learned as children in school is that Peter Minuit of the Dutch West India Company met Lenape nation representatives in May 1626 and that he purchased for his company the island of Manhattan for 60 guilders.



We assumed that the Lenape people were simply naive, that they did not understand the value of Manhattan. They were too ignorant, or too foolish, to see how these rocks and forests would become a great center for global finance that would rise up in the form of skyscrapers where once there were trees.



Now we know that the truth was the complete opposite. The Lenape people were wise and the Dutch West India Company was foolish.



The Lenape nation did not see the exchange of currency (coins, beads or trinkets) as anything more than an agreement for cooperation. The very idea that the soil, the rivers, the forests and the wildlife that filled that sacred island of Manhattan could belong to any one person, let alone to a soulless corporation, made no sense to them.



The concept of real estate and of assets embraced by the Dutch West India Company was an irrational, and in a sense a psychotic, misperception of the relationship between people and nature. Perhaps a five-year-old child may have such a self-centered concept of the world, but for adults to be so indulgent suggests it was a spiritual sickness.



The conflict that followed was, at its core, not a conflict between peoples, between interests, or between nations, but rather a conflict between means of perception, between basic values.



A terrible blindness seized the souls of those who trampled on the cultures of the Incas, the Mayans, the Aztecs, and those of their brothers and sisters. Many of those involved in this original sin were not aware of what they were doing.



And now, the environmental and cultural crisis is so great that we are forced to recognize that a sustainable society must be integrated with nature and that there will be no future otherwise. That is what the Lenape people and the Mayan people knew all along. The myth of development and growth that we believed in for so long was a falsehood.



The scars created in the violence of the past are like the bluffs along a river. They are aged, but the fractures are still clear.



The harm resulting from the violence of today in the detention camps, and in the prisons, in places where children are locked up alone and families are torn apart, that harm remains a gaping wound.



The scars and the wounds are a part of who we are.



In some cases, the scars make us stronger; in other cases, they hold us back. We can be sure, however, that any progress forward must also involve a return to that painful past.



In some cases, money can help. In some cases compensation can ease the pain of the past.



But if compensation to the native peoples of the Americas and of Africa is only seen in terms of money, the results will be limited. If we assume that everything can be solved by money, that assumption will reinforce the horrid centrality of money in our society, in how we perceive land and water, plants and animals, people and cultures.



Memory and history are critical. They are more critical than money because if people remember what existed before, then they will value the past.



If there is no memory, there will be no political will. No political will means no money.



First, before we talk about anything else, we must tell the painful tale of how native cultures were destroyed, recognizing that we are talking about that potential for evil that rests within all of us. There is no border between North and South America when it comes to those past sins, or to current sins.



One possible first step is to establish two new Holocaust museums in Washington, D.C.



A Holocaust museum stands on the Mall in Washington, D.C., that faithfully records the horrific killing of Jews in Europe in the 1940s. It is a source of information of tremendous value to us as we strive to understand the nature of evil. I recommend that you take your children to the Holocaust museum.



Yet, we must remember that the Holocaust documented at that museum happened in Europe, not in the Americas.



There were, however, two terrible holocausts that took place in North and South America, two holocausts that cry out from the grave for a fit and proper memorial on the Mall. My administration will fight tooth and nail to build both Holocaust museums.



The first Holocaust museum will be dedicated to the memory of the hundreds of millions of native peoples in the Americas who were slaughtered, or left to die of starvation, or of disease, in the brutal process of colonization and development that took place over four long and cruel centuries.



We need a Holocaust museum that documents the history of the peoples of the Americas, and records their cultures and their arts. We need this museum so that all of our children learn about that tragedy, about what humans are capable of doing in their blindness.



We need another Holocaust museum on the Mall. We need a Holocaust museum that documents the sufferings and the losses of the tens of millions captured in Africa and shipped to the Americas for slave labor over 400 years. Many millions of men, women and children died on the slave ships; millions more were worked to death, or grew old and died miserably in slavery. Their cultures, their families and their very souls were trampled into the mud. All schoolchildren should visit this Holocaust museum as well and learn what was lost, what was affirmed, and what hope remains for the United States if we look back on our past with honesty.



Because these two memorials will make no distinction between North and South America, they will draw the attention of Americans to the common sufferings and the common tragedies of the Americas. The term "American" itself will expand to include both North and South and the artificial divisions created will start to fade away.



Part of that healing process must involve the introduction of the best of the cultures, the medicines, the spiritual practices, the clothing and designs, the architecture and the history of indigenous nations into all aspects of contemporary American society. Our fashions should draw on the patterns of the Navahos and the Incas, our hospitals should use the herbs employed by the Hopi and the Cari, and the legends of all the original nations should be integrated into our contemporary dramas, movies and songs.



Only then will their true value be made manifest. Only then will their living spirit, after being buried for centuries, be brought back to life, be rekindled for a new age.



When I imagine the relationship of the United States with our southern neighbors, with our southern partners, with our southern brothers, I keep coming back to the inspiring work of Henry Wallace, the remarkable politician who implemented President Franklin D. Roosevelt's "Good Neighbor Policy" toward Latin America. Vice President Wallace fought for an equal relationship with all nations in the Americas, a balanced dialogue on education, on agriculture, on science and on society that created an inspiring consensus on what was possible. His tour of Latin America in 1943 created excitement about true unity, and ardent opposition to fascism, that has not been matched since.



It did not stop there for Wallace. He was passionate about the spiritualism of the Native Americans and he believed wholeheartedly in the depth to be found in the original cultures. He grasped a potential for growth, not merely in terms of money and products, but in terms of civilization itself.



The policy of my administration toward the Americas will assume the same potential for harmony and unity in the pursuit of a true "new deal." It will be a harmony with all peoples that is respectful, and a harmony with nature that is sustainable.



We will assert that small is beautiful and that the greatest wisdom can be found in the subtle thinking of ancient people, in the cultures of those who left only the slightest traces on the natural environment.



We will shy away from the gaudy rituals of politicians. We will step back and promote a dialogue between people that dissolves away borders just as a swift current cuts a beautiful canyon through the hardest of stone.
COLUMBIA, S.C.  It wont be known until Election Day if a poll showing a tightening contest between Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham and Democrat Jaime Harrison portends an upset  but the gains are real enough in the Democrats campaign account.

On the heels of a Quinnipiac University poll that has him tied with Graham among likely voters in South Carolina, Harrisons campaign has marked two back-to-back fundraising days of $1 million apiece, bringing his total fundraising to over $30 million.

Its a staggering sum, unheard of for a Democrat competing in this conservative state, and matches what Graham has also raised in his pursuit of a fourth term. It also dwarfs the $10 million figure Harrison previously told The Associated Press he thought necessary to win.

The influx of cash for Harrison  a Democratic National Committee associate chair and former state party chair  is providing a rare opportunity to blanket the airwaves in a place where Democrats havent won a statewide contest in 15 years, bolstering the party in their fight to win back the Senate majority.

On Labor Day, the pro-Harrison political action committee Lindsey Must Go flew a banner plane along the South Carolina coast deriding Grahams stance on offshore drilling, a day before President Donald Trump expanded a moratorium on the practice. This week, the PAC announced it would spend $300,000 on a Charleston-area television ad on the same topic.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has also pledged to spend at least $1 million in the races closing weeks, funding polling, field organizing and advertising.

Having that kind of cash available means you can explore many different strategies at one time, which will be difficult for the Republicans to deal with, said Democratic media consultant Martha McKenna, who has previously helmed media buying for the DSCC. I think its a huge advantage for Democrats that we have not enjoyed in previous cycles.

National GOP groups including the National Republican Senatorial Committee havent devoted the same level of resources to Graham, but the group told the AP on Friday it was monitoring the contest and felt Graham was well-positioned to win it. A pro-Graham PAC, Security is Strength, showed about $1.6 million in fundraising. On his own, Graham has run a vigorous advertising campaign, including criticism of Harrisons past work as a Washington lobbyist.

Much of Harrisons money has come from out of state, with national Democrats long ago marking the contest among their top targets. Harrison launched his campaign not in local media but on MSNBC, where he has been a frequent guest and where his campaign regularly advertises.

Harrison and the groups backing him argue that Graham, a Trump critic turned close ally, is too easily influenced by the president. But Graham, who has said elections have consequences to explain his previous support of Obama-era Supreme Court picks, used that same explanation in a 2018 interview with the AP as to why his attitude toward Trump had shifted from animosity to alliance.

Trump carried South Carolina by double digits over Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016, and Republicans control both legislative chambers, all statewide offices and most of the states congressional seats. South Carolina is assumed to be safely in his reelection column, and Trump hasnt announced plans to stump there for himself  or Graham  and is instead spending time in states that are general election battlegrounds.

Trumps popularity in South Carolina is a significant challenge for the groups working against Graham. Steve Schmidt, co-founder of The Lincoln Project  an outside group of Republicans devoted to defeating Trump  said hes trying to convince voters that Trumps relationship with Graham speaks poorly to Grahams character. His group has paid for jarring ads portraying Graham as a parasite.

You voted for Lindsey Graham before, but this is really the first race where you get to vote for Lindsey Graham where you know, really, who he is, Schmidt said during a recent meeting with AP reporters. Lindseys got an affectation as a goofy sidekick, a funny guy. But I think when you strip it all away in 2020, its really not that funny.

Graham, who easily bested several primary challengers, has rarely faced formidable general election competition. In 2014, he defeated a longtime state senator by double digits, with both candidates raising a combined total of less than $8 million.

Terry Sullivan, a GOP consultant who headed up media for Marco Rubios 2016 White House bid, said that, while Grahams national profile has been on the rise since 2016, his home-state status has suffered because of linkages to Trump.

Lindsey Graham, prior to the last two years, always had the ability to seem the most real and authentic politician in South Carolina, and maybe the country, Sullivan said. I cant help but think, as much as I love Lindsey Graham, is that hes lost a lot of that in the age of Trump.

Regardless of Democrats attention, said Matt Moore, who chaired the states Republicans during the 2016 election cycle, South Carolina voters remain conservative and do not want Democratic representation in the Senate.

South Carolina Republicans always show up at game time, Moore said. Despite the claims of Democrats that theyve made up ground in the past, there are still no elections the party can point to where theyve won.

For Harrison, the survey data  and the windfall its created  backs up what hes said throughout the race: A statewide Democratic win is possible in South Carolina.

From day one I felt like I could win this race, Harrison told the AP recently. I just feel like everybody is coming to where Ive been since day one of this campaign.

___

Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP.
Schoolgirls asked not to wear miniskirts as their legs "catch the eye" of male teachers.

A Rome high school has landed itself at the centre of a controversy after it requested female students not to wear miniskirts as it proved too distracting for male teachers who find themselves looking at the girls' legs.

Italy's education ministry, headed by Lucia Azzolina, has ordered an investigation into the controversial "recommendation" issued by the deputy principal of the school, the Socrate in the Garbatella district of the city.

The school justified its stance on the basis that the single-use desks, ordered by the government for covid-19 social distancing measures, have not yet arrived, meaning that the students sit on chairs, with their legs on full view.

When the schoolgirls wear "skimpy clothing" this apparently poses problems for the school's male teachers whose "eyes fall" on the girls' legs.

The case has caused much debate in the Italian press and has been widely criticised on social media, with accusations of "voyeurism."

As for the schoolgirls in question, they defied the school's "recommendation" and turned up en masse in miniskirts yesterday, armed with posters and signs denouncing sexism.

"Our bodies cannot be objectified" - read a message signed by the students' group Ribalta femminista - "we cannot take the blame for the harassing gaze of male teachers."

Photo La Repubblica
Nurse Victoria Woodhall was stabbed to death (Picture: SWNS)

An NHS worker was murdered by her husband who chased her down the street before stabbing her to death with a Gurkha-style machete.

Craig Woodhall, 41, has admitted to stabbing mum-of-three Victoria, 31, multiple times during a sustained attack on 29 March.

He had been due to stand trial on 28 September but changed his plea at Sheffield Crown Court on Friday.

Victoria, an operating department practitioner at the Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust, was found stabbed to death outside a house in Barnsley.

Police were called at 4.55pm after Woodhall chased Victoria from their property in Windsor Crescent into the street, before attacking her with a machete.

Read more: Teen jailed for life for stabbing best friend to death outside his home

Craig Woodhall has admitted to killing his estranged wife (Picture: SWNS)

An air ambulance was landed in a nearby field and paramedics rushed to the property, but Victoria was pronounced dead at the scene.

Woodhall fled the scene but later handed himself in by flashing his headlights at cops as he drove past them.

A post-mortem examination concluded that Victoria died as a result of multiple incised wounds.

Police said she was stabbed with a Gurkha-style machete knife, which officers recovered from the scene.

The violence she suffered was so extreme that she had multiple skull fractures, as well as significant injuries to her head, face, neck, arms, hands, shoulders and back.

Detectives said CCTV footage showed he dragged Victoria to the ground and stabbed her several times before walking away.

He returned a further two times to attack her again.

Read more: Man who blamed imaginary twin for violent rape is jailed for 22 years

Police and forensics outside the house of the couple in Barnsley (Picture: SWNS)

Read more: Former teacher jailed for raping woman after his son was arrested for sex offence

Senior investigating officer Detective Inspector Ben Wood said: Victoria was subjected to a brutal and sustained attack, and there were several people in the immediate vicinity who witnessed this horrifying murder.

Tributes were paid to Victoria by Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust following her death.

Story continues

Angela Wood, chief nurse at the trust, described her as "a cherished and much-loved colleague".

Woodhall, formerly of Windsor Crescent, Barnsley, appeared for a plea hearing at Sheffield Crown Court, ahead of his scheduled trial next month.

He has been remanded in custody and will be sentenced on 2 October.
It is the Verkhovna Rada that will deal with changes to the resolution on local elections across Ukraine

Head of the President's Office Andriy Yermak has said the holding of elections in the temporarily uncontrolled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions in Donbas (eastern Ukraine) is possible only after their complete de-occupation and settlement of all security issues, as well as those related to human rights.

The comment came during a "Freedom of Speech by Savik Shuster" panel show on Ukraine TV channel on September 18, as reported by the President's Office on its website.

Read alsoNo obligations to revise ban on local elections in Donbas  YermakYermak stressed that only the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, will deal with changes to the resolution on local elections across Ukraine, in terms of their holding in Donbas.

"Neither politicians in Ukraine, let alone politicians from the outside, can promise something and say that something will be adopted," he said.

"When we held a meeting in Berlin [on September 11], I informed the representatives of the Normandy Four [Ukraine, Germany, France, and Russia] that the Verkhovna Rada had indeed registered a resolution on amendments to the resolution on holding local elections. It was submitted by MP [Oleksandr] Kachura that day. So, it is the Verkhovna Rada that will make a decision on when it [the document] will be presented in the session hall to decide its fate," he said.

The official believes that the decision "should be made in accordance with the interests of the state, as well as obligations and the norms of international law."

"I think all Ukrainians are already accustomed to the fact that everything that President Zelensky promises, he fulfills. Therefore, I have no doubt that during his tenure, Zelensky will end this war," Yermak added.

Idea of local elections in occupied territories: background
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 16:10 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45ed8e3 1 Entertainment You-and-I,DMZ-International-Documentary-Film-Festival,DMZ,South-Korea,documentary,Fanny-Chotimah Free

Indonesian documentary film You and I will have its world premiere at the 12th DMZ International Documentary Film Festival in Goyang, Gyeonggi province, South Korea.

DMZ is the largest documentary festival in Asia. Taking place on-site as planned, it is being held until Sept. 24 in a scaled-down form.

You and I has also been selected to be considered in the Asian Competition along with eight other films.

The film, the directorial debut of Fanny Chotimah, centers on the friendship of two elderly women, Kaminah and Kusdalini, who met in jail in 1965 as political prisoners. After their release, they lived together in Surakarta, Central Java, and have grown old side by side.

I am intrigued to know what made them survive for so long and how they have lived their lives, said Fanny in a statement. They have shown me the beauty of a simple life. How [the] everyday life of getting old becomes something beautiful, such as how they express their love through small things and simple gestures.

You and I was produced by KawanKawan Media in collaboration with Partisipasi Indonesia and the Super 8mm Studio Foundation.

In October 2019, The Science of Fictions from Kawan Kawan Media premiered at the Busan International Film Festival in South Korea. Directed by Yosep Anggi Noen, the film won a Special Mention Award at the Locarno International Film Festival in Switzerland in August and the Silver Hanoman Award at the 14th Jogja-Netpac Asian Film Festival in November 2019.

KawanKawan Media is currently producing a documentary on Voice of Baceprot, a metal band whose members are teenage girls from Garut, West Java, as well as feature films by Makbul Mubarak (Autobiography), Yosep Anggi Noen (Jilah) and Bayu Prihantoro Filemon (The Songsmith). (wng)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 20:22:51|Editor: huaxia

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MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- One pro-government fighter, a suicide bomber and 15 militants, including a Taliban bomb expert were killed in Afghanistan's northern Balkh province, local sources said Saturday.

In one incident in Dihdadi district, a suicide bomber attacked a convoy of pro-government militiamen, killing a pro-government militiaman and wounding eight others, including an anti-Taliban local leader Hashem Khan on Saturday morning, Adelshah Adel, provincial police spokesman, told Xinhua.

Hashem Khan, known as Hashem-e-Lang, had recently been leading a group of local fighters to support security forces in the fight against Taliban in Dihdadi, said the spokesman.

"Khan and seven other wounded people were shifted to a nearby hospital, and several vehicles were damaged in the explosion," Adel noted.

In a separate incident, a Taliban bomb expert and 14 other militants were killed in neighboring Dawlat Abad district when a home-made improvised explosive device (IED) detonated accidentally Friday night, Hanif Rezai from army's Shaheen Corps 209 told Xinhua.

The expert was training the comrade militants on how to build IED before the explosion occurred, said the spokesman.

The Taliban militants, controlling parts of the province, have been using rugged terrains and mountains as hideouts, frequently launching hit-and-run attacks against the security forces. Enditem
France has arrested and indicted a former guard of deposed Central African Republic president Francois Bozize for "complicity in crimes against humanity", anti-terrorist prosecutors said on Saturday.

Eric Danboy Bagale, 41, was arrested in eastern France on Tuesday and placed under judicial investigation in Paris late on Friday, prosecuting authority PNAT told AFP.

As the former head of the presidential guard and then as head of the anti-Balaka militia in CAR, Bagale was also indicted for "acts of torture" and for "criminal association for the preparation of a war crime" for acts committed between 2007 and 2014, PNAT said in a statement.

Bozize, who returned from exile in Uganda in mid-December, was chosen to be his party's candidate at a congress in Bangui on July 25.

"I solemnly accept the task you have assigned me," he told supporters, announcing he would run in CAR's presidential election in December.

The former president took power after a 2003 coup, before being overthrown himself 10 years later by Michel Djotodia, head of the mainly Muslim Seleka rebellion in the predominantly Christian country.

Since then, the poor landlocked country has spiralled into bloodshed, marked by vicious intercommunal violence.

Bozize is still under sanctions by the United Nations for his role in the 2013 crisis, during which he is accused of supporting the Christian anti-Balaka militias.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept.19

By Nargiz Sadikhova - Trend:

The value of trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Tajikistan amounted to $438.3 million over the first seven months of 2020, compared to $451.03 million during the same period of 2019, Trend reports with reference to Kazakhstans Statistics Committee.

The share of Tajikistan in the total value of Kazakhstans trade turnover stood at 0.9 percent during the reporting period compared to 0.8 percent during the same period of 2019.

Kazakhstans export to Tajikistan amounted to $369.4 million over the period from January through July 2020, compared to $357.3 million during the same period of 2019

Tajikistans share in the total volume of Kazakhstans export amounted to 1.3 percent during the reporting period of 2020 compared to 1.1 percent during the same period of 2019.

In turn, Kazakhstans imports from Tajikistan amounted to nearly $68.9 million over the reporting period, compared to $93.6 million during the same period of 2019.

Tajikistans share in the total volume of Kazakhstans import amounted to 0.3 percent during the reporting period of 2020 compared to 0.4 percent during the same period of 2019.

The total volume of Kazakhstans trade turnover amounted to $48.7 billion over the period from Jan. through July 2020 which indicates a decrease from $54.5 billion during the same period of 2019.

Kazakhstans export amounted to $28.6 billion during the reporting period of 2020 ($33.03 billion in the same period of 2019), whereas imports amounted to $20.1 billion ($21.5 billion in 2019).

During the reporting period, main articles of Kazakhstan and Tajikistan trade turnover were food products, agricultural products, as well as products of the chemical industry.

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Follow the author on twitter: @nargiz_sadikh
Icons for the smartphone apps TikTok and WeChat are seen on a smartphone screen in Beijing. The U.S. government is cracking down on the Chinese apps TikTok and WeChat, starting by barring them from app stores on Sunday, Sept. 20, 2020. Read more

TAIPEI, Taiwan - American companies including Apple and Google could land in Beijings crosshairs after the Chinese government responded to President Trumps WeChat ban by pointedly announcing details about a restrictive new corporate blacklist.

China's Commerce Ministry said Saturday that companies that are added to its "Unreliable Entities List" would be prohibited from investing in China or trading with the Chinese market - including imports or exports. The Chinese government has not yet named which companies would land on the list, but state media has long threatened that Apple and Google could be sanctioned if China's relations with the United States continued to fray.

The Chinese move appeared to signal it was ready to retaliate less than one day after the Trump administration said it would ban TikTok and WeChat from mobile app stores, citing national security concerns. The U.S. ban of popular Chinese software - including WeChat, an app that is central to Chinese communications, business and everyday life - represented a sharp acceleration in the unraveling of trade relations with China and a step by the United States to mirror Beijing's long-standing policy of prohibiting foreign social media services on national security grounds.

The Chinese government first announced the existence of its unreliable entities list in May 2019 as the United States tightened restrictions over Huawei. In the year since, Beijing has not unveiled details about how it would wield the blacklist even as U.S. agencies have progressively choked off access to semiconductors for Huawei and began targeting other Chinese firms.

As part of the Friday announcement, U.S. officials said that WeChat, owned by the Shenzhen technology giant Tencent, and TikTok, which was under buyout talks with Oracle, would be removed from Apple's and Android's U.S. app stores at midnight when Sunday turns to Monday. Money transfers on WeChat, which is widely used for cross-border transactions with businesses in China, could also be cut off, but the ban is not expected to cover ordinary people using the app for communication.

There were 3.3 million active WeChat users in the United States in August, according to App Annie, an analytics company. Although they acknowledge that WeChat is an essential communication tool, U.S. officials, as well as independent researchers like University of Toronto's Citizen Lab, say WeChat has been a platform for Chinese-language disinformation and subject to Chinese government censorship.

On Saturday, the Chinese Commerce Ministry appeared to suggest that Apple and Google could be targeted if they complied with the U.S. government's takedown order.

China would investigate and take "corresponding actions" against any firm that "harmed China's sovereignty, security and development interests, violate market rules, or halt contractual obligations with Chinese companies or individuals, or take discriminatory measures that severely hurt Chinese companies' legitimate interests," the ministry said in its statement.

Individual executives could also be investigated and have their visas canceled, the ministry added. It said it would also establish a new internal division to investigate such cases.

In a statement, the ministry asked Washington to stop its "bullying" of WeChat and TikTok and "abandon its hegemonic behavior."

"Without providing evidence, the United States has repeatedly used its national power to hunt and suppress the above two companies for unwarranted reasons, seriously disrupting the normal business activities of the companies and undermining the confidence of international investors in the U.S. investment environment," it said.

Google has limited market exposure to China, which blocks many popular American Internet services and news websites, but the escalating tensions could be disastrous for Apple. Its chief executive, Tim Cook, has long sought to maintain cordial relations with Chinese leaders and has been invited to visit Beijing's Zhongnanhai compound, the seat of the Communist Party leadership, on several occasions, but the company is seen as a vulnerable target for Beijing to hit corporate America. Consumers in Greater China accounted for $44 billion in sales last year, short of one-fifth of Apple's worldwide revenue.

Most significantly, the Cupertino company relies on China for most of its iPhone manufacturing and sanctions could cripple the sensitive supply chain. But that would also hurt hundreds of thousands of Chinese workers indirectly employed by the company and hasten the diversification by international hardware makers to shift manufacturing to countries like India and Vietnam - a process that is already underway.

Mei Xinyu, a researcher who advises the Commerce Ministry, said the Trump administration's bans were a "bad advertisement" for the American business environment and not something China wanted to copy by spooking foreign companies. But he said he believed it was more probable that Google would be affected by Chinese sanctions than Apple, which manufactures in China and enjoys a high degree of consumer demand in the country.

"We attach great importance to maintaining and promoting normal domestic production and trade, and enhancing the interests of relevant investors, employees, and local governments by meeting consumer needs," Mei said. Beijing may take actions to punish companies named to the new blacklist but not cripple them, he added.

"A disease can be cured by medication, massage, acupuncture, and minimally invasive surgery," he said. "You don't need to tear the guts out."

As trade tensions mounted in May, a report in the Party-run Global Times newspaper said that aside from Apple, the mobile semiconductor company Qualcomm and Cisco, the networking equipment maker, could all land on the Chinese entities list if the technology war worsened.

"There's always a risk of tit-for-tat retaliation, putting high-profile American companies like Apple in its crosshairs," said Bryan Ma, a vice president at industry research firm IDC. "I'm not sure how likely it would be though, especially given the big manufacturing presence that Apple has there."

Matthew Margulies, vice president in Beijing at the U.S.-China Business Council trade group, said the Chinese blacklist left authorities a "fair amount of discretion," and he called for "significant restraint" in how Beijing used it.

"Companies increasingly feel squeezed between the U.S. and Chinese governments, where complying with the rules of one government may cause them to run afoul of rules of the other government," Margulies said. "We've argued for both governments to narrowly apply national security decisions to commercial issues for many years, but that is increasingly a challenging endeavor."

Following the Trump administration's announcements on Friday, WeChat users in the United States scrambled to figure out how the prohibitions would work. Some users on Weibo suggested owning two phones, one with a Chinese Apple account and one registered in the United States. Others joked that they now had to recommend virtual private networking software - which is often used inside China to access banned sites like Twitter - to Americans.

The China Press, a Chinese-language website for diasporic Chinese, assured readers that they could still keep in touch with relatives back home and suggested that they could simply change their Apple account location to another country to continue using WeChat.

On Saturday, the Global Times said the U.S. bans showed this once-open nation is increasingly closed to outsiders.
Shane Lowry shot one of the rounds of the day on Friday at the US Open to get just inside the cut and progress to the weekend.

On a day when only three players broke par, the Offaly man shot a level par round of 70 to make the cut on six over par.

After a six over par round on Thursday which included three birdies, seven bogies and a double bogey, it looked as if Shane had little chance of making the cut.

However on a day when scoring was exceptionally difficult on Friday, the Offaly man dug deep and a shot even par with three birdies, three bogies and 12 pars on his card.

It moved him up from 119th overall to a tie for 49th with a difficult weekend ahead on the notorious Wing Foot course in New York.

Shane is ten shots off the lead held by Patrick Reed but with scoring set to be difficult all weekend, he has a chance to move a long way up the leaderboard.

He is back out on course today at 2.50pm Irish time alongside Abraham Ancer.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 16:39:40|Editor: huaxia

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CHANGSHA, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for integrating the enhancement of top-level design and collection of public advice in compiling the 14th five-year plan.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks during a meeting with grassroots representatives in central China's Hunan Province on Thursday. Enditem
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Lee Seung-hee's "Synchronicity" ceramic bamboo grove installation at Park Ryu Sook Gallery in central Seoul / Courtesy of Park Ryu Sook Gallery



By Kwon Mee-yoo



Ceramist Lee Seung-hee breaks away from the traditional notions of practical porcelain.



"Ceramics immediately relate to practicality as we are familiar with utility products such as dishes and jars. However, I am more interested in the property of its surface. My ceramic painting extracts the color and shape of white porcelain and presents it in relief style," Lee said during a press conference introducing his solo exhibition "Synchronicity" at Park Ryu Sook Gallery in central Seoul



At the exhibit, Lee presents his creation of a black bamboo grove made from ceramics titled "Synchronicity" and his signature ceramic tile painting series "TAO."



Lee's ceramic bamboo grove was inspired by the tale of red bamboo trees by Chinese poet Su Tungpo. Interpreting the tale with contemporary senses, Lee creates a paradox between the flexibility of real bamboo and the rigidity of pottery.



Each joint of the bamboo is a ceramic unit in different colors and glosses of black.



"I tested numerous glazes and used 12 black glazes for these bamboo trees. Though they look the same at first glance, you will find subtle different mixes of gloss and matt in various shades of black when examined closely," Lee said.



Lee dimmed the lights of the space, making the visitors walk through the black bamboo forest with less visibility to arouse other senses.



"I don't want to define what the viewers have to feel or how to understand this installation, but each visitor would find their own experiences while in this bamboo grove," he said.





Lee Seung-hee's "TAO 12076" is on view at his exhibition at the Clayarch Gimhae Museum in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province. Courtesy of Clayarch Gimhae Museum



For the "TAO" series, creation of a ceramic painting takes much time and patience.



"I have to make the water mixed with clay to the right concentration so it is thin enough to brush. I add a layer of clay water a day, after the previous layer is dried. It takes about two to three months to finish a ceramic painting," Lee explained.



"If I get impatient and apply twice a day, it would ruin the whole thing I have spent months working on. So I split my studio into three different places, placing one ceramic painting in progress in each. In this way, I can push each of them out of my mind when I am in another studio."



The Seoul exhibition runs through Oct. 2.



Meanwhile, another major exhibition of Lee is ongoing at the Clayarch Gimhae Museum in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province. The exhibition was extended through Nov. 29, but the museum is currently closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.



The retrospective features a wide range of Lee's works, from his early "Clayzen" series to the latest pieces created for this exhibition.





Lee Seung-hee's "Synchronicity" is installed on the floor of the Dome House in the Clayarch Gimhae Museum. Lee's exhibition "TAO" is on view through Nov. 29. Courtesy of Clayarch Gimhae Museum
After the announcement of the mandatory flu vaccine for students in Massachusetts, some began talking about getting a religious exemption for the vaccine.

And while not all will seek the exemption status, its not uncommon in Massachusetts with other mandatory vaccines.

Most exemptions claimed in Massachusetts are religious exemptions, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health told MassLive, with exemption rates being higher in the western and southeast parts of the state, particularly the Cape and Islands.

Religious exemptions reached an all-time high during the 2018-2019 school year, according to DPH data going back to 1987.

Mass. has seen a 500% increase in the level of religious exemptions being given out since the 1980s, said state Rep. Andy Vargas, a Democrat from Haverhill, who filed House bill 3999 titled, An Act Relative to Vaccinations and Public Health. And I know that sounds exaggerated and crazy but its the truth.

Part of that reason could be because its easy to get.

Anyone can get a religious exemption for a vaccine in Massachusetts. And theres no vaccination exemption form. Instead, the parent or guardian simply has to state in writing that a vaccine conflicts with their religious beliefs.

Meanwhile the only other way to be exempt from a vaccine in Massachusetts is by a medical exemption, which comes from the students doctor and documents the reason why they cant medically receive the vaccine.

There are 45 states, including Massachusetts, plus Washington D.C. that grant religious exemptions for people who have objections to immunizations. Philosophical exemptions are also allowed in 15 states for those who object to immunizations because of personal, moral or other beliefs, the National Conference of State Legislators states.

Massachusetts doesnt have a philosophical exemptions, leading many to use the religious exemption in that way, Vargas said.

Massachusetts does not have personal belief or ideology exemption, he said. And so when you really think about it, the spirit of the law is kind of being violated.

And thats not uncommon. Vermont was the first state to repeal its personal belief exemption. When that happened people used the religious exemption as an alternative, said Paul Offit, pediatrician specializing in infectious diseases and author of Bad Faith: When Religious Belief Undermines Modern Medicine.

Suddenly people in Vermont got religious, Offit said. But I think it was just used as a fallback because its very easy to get a religious exemption, in many states you just have to fill out a form.

Its also a subject many Americans wont debate, he said.

I think in this country, if you say that you are doing something in the name of your faith, people stand back and say, Fine. Im not going to touch that. Because its a matter of faith, he said.

At the same time, in Massachusetts, theres been a decline in religious beliefs.

In 2016, Massachusetts tied for the least religious state, according to Pew Research Center. It also reported that in 2007, 60% of adults in Massachusetts were absolutely certain in their belief in God and only 8% did not believe in God. By 2014, those numbers changed to 40% and 18%, respectfully.

On top of that, Vargas added, no major religion opposes vaccinations.

So, that really perplexed me, Vargas said.

He began looking into the issue when three constituents reached out to him that were immunocompromised or had children that were, and they were concerned about the measles outbreak.

The resurgence of measles concerned them as they sent their kids to schools where it was possible that a student that could be vaccinated to protect their kids, but a parent was choosing not to vaccinate them for religious reasons or really misinformation that theyre reading online about those vaccines, he said.

Requiring vaccinations in schools, Angela Beeler, division chief of general pediatrics at UMass Memorial Health Care, said, is actually about protecting everyone, not just students. So, when a large number of students dont get vaccinated it undermines the public health efforts," she said.

Kids are much more likely to get the flu or other viral illnesses, and then spread that to people that theyre around, Beeler said. The reason we want to vaccinate kids is because it protects the people that are in school, but it also protects family members and elderly community members. So, having a lot of children who are unimmunized puts more people at risk.

Although, even if Vargas' bill became law today, it wouldnt have an impact on the flu vaccine. Its specifically written in regards to the core vaccines like measles, he said.

But he thinks these conversations show how important this bill is right now.

If we get another sort of resurgence of measles as we saw last year, thats going to be concerning and just add to all of the public health issues that were already having, Vargas said. I think the pandemic has shown people how much we really have to rely on one another, whether we like it or not.

As far as the flu vaccine, both Vargas and Beeler mentioned the importance of addressing the fear or confusion around this vaccine.

There are a significant proportion of people who do not get the flu vaccine, she said, adding that shes seen many families who get other vaccines, including optional ones, but skip getting the flu vaccine. For some reason with the flu vaccine we have a much higher rate of people who refuse to get that for their kids.

She also noted that there are immunization requirements for the meningococcal vaccine for school entry this year but backlash to that doesnt seem to be as prominent.

She said she thinks this has to do with the uniqueness of having to get the flu shot yearly as opposed to many other vaccines that you get once or twice. And theres a lot of misinformation about how effective it is, she said.

Beeler said its important to not only talk about the data but also tell stories of what shes seen over the years.

I had a completely healthy patient who got the flu, and eventually died from complications from it, she said. There are totally healthy people every year who die from influenza, and the flu shot can help reduce that risk.

But when it comes down to it, she always advocates for her patients health over simply doing whats required.

When Im talking about vaccines with parents, I dont really talk about, Youre getting the vaccine because school is making you do it,'" she said. "I talk about, Were offering you this [and] we recommend this vaccine because this is important for your health.

Related Content:
Is Lori Loughlin serving time in prison, or will have a short vacation?

Page Six reported that US District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton approved the former "Fuller House" actress' request to serve her jail time at a "Satellite Camp" of the Federal Correctional Institution in Victorville, California.

It is about a hundred miles northeast from her Bel-Air neighborhood in Los Angeles. The institution is medium-sized that houses around 300 women.

According to federal court documents filed on September 9, 2020, her lawyers requested she is "designated to a facility closest to her home in California."

But with the approval of her transfer, Loughlin could be doing a ton of activities and personal growth with her two months in jail.

According to the inmate handbook, her prison has so many different ways to pass the time, including yoga, Pilates, career development classes, music lessons, etc.

Loughlin also has a choice to learn something new, such as operating a forklift or becoming a certified dental assistant.

The handbook reads, "Recreation programs are to provide gainful use of free time and to fulfill specific inmate's needs."

As per Pink Lady Prison Consultants, a group that prepares women for federal prison terms, have noted that the Victorville camp doesn't have cells like the traditional jail.

Instead, they have open dormitories, two and four-person cubicles, and four-person rooms.

Meanwhile, Lori Loughlin's husband, Mossimo Giannulli, has requested to serve his time at the Federal Correctional Institution in Lompoc, California.

Though the amenities at his prison aren't so many to choose from, the fashion designer can keep himself busy with arts and crafts such as leatherwork, ceramics, painting, and crocheting.

Depending on how much time Giannulli will be spending under lockdown, he can also have typing classes or lessons in computer literacy and foreign languages. He could also take parenting classes.

Inmates in this facility can bring watches, radio, MP3 players to make their jail time comfortable.

Lori Loughlin is reportedly "losing sleep" over going to prison.

She and her husband were sentenced to prison in August after paying $500,000 to have their daughters Isabella Rose, 21, and Olivia Jade, 20, to be falsely admitted to the University of Southern California as crew recruits.

Loughlin will be serving to months in prison, while Giannulli is sentenced to five months.

The couple will report to their respective prisons by November 19.

While awaiting the verdict was awful for Loughlin, she is relieved but still terrified about going to prison.

People Magazine's source revealed that Lori Loughlin is afraid of contracting the coronavirus, and these days, she has been trying to stay healthy as much as she can. She has also been taking supplements to boost her immune system.

Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli's daughters are said to be overwhelmed that their parents have agreed to plead guilty for their role in the college admissions scandal.

The kids are said to be afraid for their mom, with an Us Weekly source saying, "Olivia and Bella were devastated when Lori and Mossimo told them they were pleading guilty."

"The girls have been spending a lot of time at their parents' house recently, and they are becoming much more of a tight-knit family."

READ MORE: Nicki Minaj Victory: Judge Rules In Rapper's Favor In Tracy Chapman Copyright Dispute
Tropical Storm Beta formed in the Gulf of Mexico on Friday, and its unusual name comes from the fact there have been so many storms this season that the traditional list of names has run out, forecasters said.

It's the second time that the Greek alphabet has been used to name storms since 2005, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.

"Get out the Greek alphabet for the rest of 2020" the National Hurricane Center said in a statement when Tropical Storm Wilfred formed in the Atlantic on Friday morning.

The names of storms come from an international committee of the World Meteorological Organization, a United Nations agency. Of the traditional names picked each season, only 21 letters are used in part because it's not easy to find easily recognizable names starting with Q, U, X, Y and Z, the WMO says.

Beta is the second storm this season to come from the Greek alphabet, although it is the only one expected to impact the United States.

With the naming of Subtropical Storm #Alpha, we've officially entered the Greek Alphabet for named Atlantic storms this year.

We've made it as far as Zeta one time on record, in 2005.



Visit https://t.co/meemB5uHAR for the latest. pic.twitter.com/B4TO7JL1Kv  National Weather Service (@NWS) September 18, 2020

Subtropical Storm Alpha made landfall Friday in Portugal, the National Hurricane Center said.

Also swirling in the Atlantic is the large and powerful Hurricane Teddy, which is moving north toward Bermuda. The hurricane had maximum sustained winds of 125 mph, which would make it a Category 3, and was 770 miles southeast of Bermuda Friday night, according to the hurricane center.

The center of the hurricane is expected to move east of Bermuda, but its storm surge, winds and heavy rainfall are still a threat over the weekend, forecasters said.

Story continues

Tropical Storm Beta, which formed from a tropical depression Friday afternoon, is expected to strengthen and could become a hurricane during it expected approach to the western coast of the Gulf of Mexico, the hurricane center said.

By Friday night storm surge, hurricane and tropical storm watches were in place along parts of the Texas coast. The center of Beta is forecast to "slowly approach the Texas coast into early next week," the hurricane center said.

A storm surge watch was in place from Port Mansfield, Texas, to High Island; a hurricane watch was in place from Port Aransas to High Island; and a tropical storm watch was in place from south of Port Aransas to the mouth of the Rio Grande River, and from east of High Island to Morgan City, Louisiana.

Here is a summary of coastal wind and storm surge watches in effect for #Beta. A Hurricane Watch is in effect from Port Aransas to High Island, TX and a Storm Surge Watch is in effect from Port Mansfield to High Island, TX. https://t.co/tW4KeGdBFb pic.twitter.com/QkQugIN8zk  National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) September 19, 2020

Hurricane Sally just struck the Florida-Alabama line Wednesday morning, dumping feet of rain over the region and causing flooding. At least two deaths, both in Alabama, have been blamed on the storm.

One person apparently drowned in Orange Beach, and a second person died in storm cleanup, Baldwin County, Alabama, Coroner Dr. Brian Pierce said at a news conference Friday.

In Alabama, Gov. Kay Ivey conducted a flyover of the devastation along the coast after the Category 2 hurricane, which made landfall in Gulf Shores.

"We knew that Hurricane Sally had the potential to be a devastating storm. But y'all, it's really bad," Ivey said at a news conference Friday morning.

She described "utter destruction" in coastal communities.

"This will be a lengthy rebuilding process, but we are going to work on the local, state and federal level to get the resources needed to restore Alabamas beautiful Gulf Coast," Ivey said in a statement.

There were more than 120,000 customers without power In Alabama and more than 115,000 customers without electricity in Florida, according to the website poweroutage.us, which tracks outrages.

Image: BESTPIX - Hurricane Sally Makes Landfall On Gulf Coast (Joe Raedle / Getty Images)

Orange Beach saw nearly 30 inches or rainfall from the hurricane, while other parts of Baldwin County saw near or over a foot of rain, the National Weather Service said in a statement, although the totals were called preliminary.

Pensacola, Florida, saw more than 22 inches of rain in parts from the slow-moving hurricane, which has since moved on and became a post-tropical depression.

Karen Robinson, who lived in a first-floor apartment in Pensacola told The Associated Press that she lost clothes, shoes, furniture and food that were ruined by four feet of water. There are still two months in the hurricane season.

This could happen again. Thats the problem, Robinson said as men tossed soggy items out of an apartment window nearby.

The hurricane season lasts six months and ends on Nov. 30.

There have been no storm-related deaths reported in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday, but there were "hundreds of rescues" due to flooding. During the storm there were 250,000 homes that lost power, but power crews have restored some of those, he said.

Officials in Escambia County, which is where Pensacola is located, were searching Herron Bayou for a missing boater, the county said.

It was just late last month that Hurricane Laura made landfall in in Louisiana near the Texas border as a Category 4 storm.

At least 27 people in Louisiana died in the storm or from its effects, including some people who died of heat-related illness while clearing debris, and some who died from carbon monoxide poisoning from generators, state officials have said.

There were around 41,000 customers without power in Louisiana as of Friday afternoon, with many outages in the southwestern part of the state where the hurricane made landfall, according to the Louisiana Public Service Commission website.
An axeman has been jailed for four years after inflicting the 'worst example of grievous bodily harm' a veteran judge had ever seen following a row with his drinking partner.

Leon Green had been at a pub in Chard, Somerset, with victim Joseph Guppy before going back to the other man's home.

It was then that the 34-year-old lost his temper and launched the vicious axe attack which left the victim with multiple wounds and a small fracture of the skull.

Green denied causing grievous bodily harm but was found guilty at Taunton Crown Court in July.

He has since been jailed for four years and ten months with a one-year extended licence, by Judge Linford, who was sitting at Exeter Crown Court.

The sentence was the maximum allowed.

Leon Green (pictured) has been jailed for four years after inflicting the 'worst example of grievous bodily harm' a veteran judge had ever seen following a row with his drinking partner

Judge Robert Linford declared that Green is a danger to the public and said the attack on Mr Guppy could easily have killed the victim.

He said some of the photographs of the wounds had even been too intense to shown the jury at the original trial at Taunton Crown Court.

Green has a long record of violence and dishonesty, including a burglary at the Yeovil Labour Club last year where he caused thousands of pounds of damage trying to break into the bar.

He carried out the axe attack when he was part way through a 'thinking skills course' which he was sent on for stabbing a man with a screwdriver.

The judge told Green: 'You went back to Mr Guppy's house where he was clowning around and dancing around and at some point his hand went close to your face. It was not an aggressive mood.

'It set off the most extreme reaction. You picked up an axe and struck him repeatedly about the head and body and caused multiple wounds and a small fracture of the skull.

'It is astonishing the injuries were not more serious than they were. You could have killed him. This is the worst example of grievous bodily harm I have ever encountered.

'The probation report came to the conclusion that because of your record of violence and the facts of this case, you are a dangerous offender. I am in no doubt whatsoever about it.'

Green denied causing grievous bodily harm but was found guilty at Taunton Crown Court (pictured) in July

Miss Virginia Cornwall, prosecuting, said the attack on Mr Guppy happened at his home in High Street, Chard, on the night of October 10 last year after he and Green had been drinking in a nearby pub.

The burglary at the Labour Club in Yeovil took place on July 27, 2019 and police were called by a neighbour who heard banging noises from inside in the middle of the night.

Green and another man were arrested and the club had to be closed temporarily to repair doors and shutters which had been smashed.

Mr Patrick Mason, defending, said all Green's offending arose from a disrupted childhood in which he stopped going to school when he was 13 or 14 and fell into the company of criminals.

He said the axe attack had been excessive self defence and the raid on the Labour Club happened at a time when Green was homeless and desperate.

Green, of Perrythorne Park, Yeovil, denied causing grievous bodily harm but was found guilty at Taunton Crown Court in July. He also admitted burglary.

He was jailed for four years and ten months with a one year extended licence, by Judge Linford, who was sitting at Exeter Crown Court. The sentence was the maximum allowed.

Police praised the courage of the victim and welcomed the sentence.

PC Jim Card said: 'This was an extremely unpleasant incident in which Leon Green used an axe to assault another man at a property in High Street, Chard.

'His actions were dangerous and could have easily resulted in far more serious consequences.

'I'd like to thank the victim and the witness for supporting our investigation and I welcome the custodial sentence given to Green in court today.'
By Azernews

By Akbar Mammadov

Head of Nagorno-Karabakhs Azerbaijani Community MP Tural Ganjaliyev has said that Armenia will be held accountable for terror acts against Azerbaijani civilians, including the one in occupied Khankandi in 1988.

Ganjaliyev made the remarks during the anniversary of Khankandi massacre on September 18.

Speaking at a press conference held on September 18, Ganjaliyev said: We have not forgotten the massacres committed by Armenians in Khankendi on September 18, 1988. As residents of Khankendi, we are sending a message to the adversary that with the help of our glorious army, we will rid Khankendi of unnecessary terrorist elements.

He also noted that Armenia's policy of aggression is coming to an end.

We will hold those terrorists accountable. This occupation is temporary. The armies of Armenia and its supporters will not be able to stand against our will. The truth is on our side. We are sending a clear message to the adversary that we will return to our lands soon, he stressed.

Furthermore, the head of the community commented on draft law "on genocide issues" discussed in the Armenian parliament. Ganjaliyev said that the draft law is aimed at deceiving and confusing the world community.

Armenia is taking such deceptive and distracting steps to cover up its military aggression against Azerbaijan. With this draft law, the Armenian parliament often brings up the issue of so-called genocide on the agenda. But as a party that committed the genocide against Azerbaijanis in Khojaly, it is ridiculous that they brought up this draft law on the agenda.

Ganjaliyev stressed that former Armenian presidents Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan were the ones who committed the Khojaly genocide and had their hands covered in blood.

I think that instead of passing a draft law, the Armenian parliament should judge the involvement of Sargsyan and Kocharyan in the [Khojaly] genocide. They may seem sincere in this case. Otherwise, the views of the Armenian side, which speaks about the genocide in this form, seem insincere.

The pogroms against Azerbaijanis by Armenians in Khankendi began on September 18, 1988 when Armenian armed groups launched an attack to the houses of Azerbaijanis living in the city.

On September 18, 1988, Armenian forces burned a total of 5963 houses and by September 20, Armenians looted more than 270 houses, beating their tenants, and tossing them to the streets. Azerbaijanis' home phones were also cut off as the raids were planned in advance, with the help of Armenian nationalist emissaries from the Armenian SSR.

Azerbaijan and Armenia are locked in a conflict over Azerbaijans Nagorno-Karabakh breakaway region, which along with seven adjacent regions was occupied by Armenian forces in a war in the early 1990s. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and around one million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities.

The OSCE Minsk Group co-chaired by the United States, Russia and France has been mediating the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict since the signing of the volatile cease-fire agreement in 1994. The Minsk Groups efforts have resulted in no progress and to this date, Armenia has failed to abide by the UN Security Council resolutions (822, 853, 874 and 884) that demand the withdrawal of Armenian military forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.




US President Donald Trump has said that the protesters, who went violent in the aftermath of the death of African-American George Floyd, did not spare even the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Washington DC, describing the demonstrators as a "bunch of thugs". Floyd died in Minneapolis on May 25 after white police officer Derek Chauvin handcuffed and pinned him to the ground, and knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes while the 46-year-old from Houston gasped for breath.

The footage, which went viral, showed Floyd pleading with the officer, saying he can't breathe. His death sparked nationwide violent protests with some protesters resorting to vandalism, looting and rioting across the country, leaving behind a trail of destruction. "You know, they started ripping down Abraham Lincoln. When they hit Lincoln, I said wait a minute. This is the man and you can do - then they hit George Washington, Thomas Jefferson. They had everybody,? Trump said at a well-attended election rally in Minnesota, a State that he lost by a little over 44,000 votes in 2016, on Friday.

He also mentioned about the statue of Gandhi in Washington DC that was vandalised by unknown miscreants at the peak of the nationwide protests. "They even had Gandhi. All Gandhi wanted was one thing, peace. Right? We have peace. Rip down his statue. We don't like him. I don't think they have any idea what they're doing," Trump said.

"I think they're just a bunch of thugs, okay, you want to know the truth. I think they're a bunch of thugs," he said. The president told his cheering audience that he had signed an executive order that would put such miscreants in jail for 10 years.

Now, nobody even talks about taking statues down, he said. The vandalised statue was restored later by the Embassy of India here, with the help of National Park Police and the State Department. "We had a period of time when they were ripping down all of the statues and monuments, and I said to my people four months ago, I said this is crazy. These people--and they don't even know," Trump said.

Now that he has signed an executive order, Trump said that nobody has showed up in four months to take down a statue. "Because you know why? They look and they say I want to take on that statue. I'm going to take down that statue. That statue's coming down. And then somebody says, you know, it's 10 years in jail. They go that's too much. I'm getting out of here. It's true," he said amidst laughter.

"Ten years is not acceptable. Ten years is a lot to rip down a statue, have a little fun, especially when they have no idea what they're ripping down. But we have an idea what they're ripping down. They're ripping down, in many cases, greatness. They're ripping down our past. They're ripping down our history," he said.

"That's where these guys begin. The take away your history. You look at the Middle East. You look all over. Look what ISIS did. Look what all of them do. They go down and they go to museums and they break everything and they rip everything. They want to take away your past. They are not taking away the past of the United States of America. Not as long as I'm here," Trump said.

Also read: George Floyd protests: Trump to sign executive order penalising vandalisation of monuments

Also read: Vandalisation of Gandhi statue 'disrespectful', 'very disappointing': US lawmakers, Trump campaign
Once upon a time, a British prince and beautiful princess tied the knot in a storybook wedding. But their marriage was far from a fairy tale.

Prince Charles and Princess Diana wowed fans with their lavish royal wedding, but they shocked many when they announced that they were separating. The press, however, speculated years before the public announcement that the Prince and Princess of Wales were having marital problems. Heres what Charles and Diana did on a trip abroad that was one of the first signs that things between them were not good.

Prince Charles and Princess Diana in South Korea on last tour together | Kent Gavin/Mirrorpix/Getty Images

RELATED: The Sad Reason Princess Diana Lost So Much Weight Before Her Wedding

Prince Charles and Princess Diana slept in separate suites in Portugal

In her secretly recorded tapes to biographer Andrew Morton, Princess Diana revealed that her marriage to the heir apparent really started to break down in 1984 after their second son, Prince Harry, was born. Its also been reported that Charles and his former flame Camilla Parker Bowles extramarital affair heated up again in 1986.

During a trip to Portugal in 1987, the prince and his wife did something that gave the press a clear sign of their troubles when they arranged to stay in separate rooms during the tour.

The couple insisting on staying in different suites fueled speculation back in the U.K. that they were unhappy together and may even decide to split.

Things were worse during their trip to South Korea

Prince Charles and Princess Diana in Seoul, South Korea | Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images

Charles and Diana stayed together for the next few years but it was evident to just about everyone on their visit to South Korea in November 1992, that they likely werent going to work things out and a separation was imminent.

In nearly every photo from that trip the pair looked miserable.

James Whitaker, who was The Mirrors correspondent on their visit to Seoul, told the publication: They arrived in Korea with orders to present the image of a loving couple. Instead, stony-faced, they ignored each other, not even exchanging a look. Their eyes never met. There was no physical contact. It was as if they were two strangers.

Speaking to Yahoos The Royal Box, photographer Arthur Edwards said: It was only when we went to Korea, the last tour, when you knew it was all over then because they couldnt bear to be in each others company.

When their separation was finally announced

Prince Charles and Princess Diana | Anwar Hussein/WireImage

RELATED: This Is the Very First Thing Prince Charles Said When He Heard Princess Diana Died

On Dec. 9, 1992, mere weeks after their South Korea trip concluded, the announcement everyone expected was made.

The New York Times noted that the news was announced by then-Prime Minister John Major during a television appearance in which he read a statement from Buckingham Palace.

This decision has been reached amicably and they will both continue to participate fully in the upbringing of their children, Major read from the text. The statement also said that Their royal highnesses [would] continue to carry out full and separate programs of public engagements, and will from time to time attend family occasions and national events together.

In August 1996, the Prince and Princess of Wales divorced, one year before Dianas tragic death.

On April 9, 2005, Charles married his longtime mistress Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.
Sinn Fein President Mary Lou McDonald said she felt "massively unwell" while detailing her chilling Covid-19 experience.

Confined to bed, she was fearful. Everything hurt. Her eyes, her eye sockets and even her eyelashes hurt. She could hardly hold a conversation.

She lost 30pc of her hair.

In an interview with Independent.ie, as severe new restrictions come into play across Dublin, Ms McDonald said she at one stage felt on the point of emergency admission to hospital.

"I really did get afraid," she said.

Read More

Ms McDonald, perhaps the most high-profile person to contract Covid-19 in the Republic, said she was "massively unwell" with aches and pains all over her body, and was confined to bed for 10 to 12 days.

"I couldn't sustain a conversation. I was severely unwell. My eyes hurt, my eye sockets hurt, my eyelashes, my follicles - everything hurt. Every single nerve-ending felt like it had been struck on an anvil. You absolutely wouldn't wish it on your worst enemy."

She also lost her sense of smell first, followed by her sense of taste. She wanted to tell young people in particular that it was no hoax, but far worse than all their worst hangovers put together.

"Your worst hangover is a walk in the park compared to this. And young people can indeed get it. Please don't take chances."

Ms McDonald, who is asthmatic, recovered only to be struck down at once with pleurisy in one of her lungs. And in the meantime she had to deal with one of the most unusual side-effects of coronavirus for some - severe hair loss.

"My experience was that it took a long while just to get my energy levels back after Covid. To me one of the most unexpected things was that I lost a lot of my hair.

"I hadn't realised it was a post-viral phenomenon, and not that unusual. When I went to my local hairdresser here in Cabra, when you could do that again, Jacinta, she spotted it.

"I lost 30pc of my hair. I'm very lucky in that I have a lot of it.

"Now it's growing back and all, but this happened to me and it has been pointed out as a side-effect in the United States, where of course they have had the largest number of cases.

"It happened to me, and it might happen to other people, who might be panicked about it and say, 'What on earth is going on?'"

While it was nothing to worry about, Mary Lou said the external sign caused her to think of the possibility of internal post-Covid effects that could affect her in the long term.

"People don't know. It seems it might be 12 months, 18 months, before we fully understand the consequences of this, and of course the long-term effects will vary from person to person. That is something that I have thought about, but not actively worried about.

"But I certainly wouldn't like to get this virus again."

Ms McDonald said she contracted the virus in March and had no idea how she had done so, although it was not from her daughter, whose school was the first to record a Covid case in Dublin, but who had not picked it up herself.

Subsequently Ms McDonald scaled back all political activity and observed all precautions, but she had still contracted it and she had no idea where or how to this day.

"But this is a virus that spreads very easily, and people need to remember that. I was getting ready to go to the Dail one Tuesday, and I don't know how to describe it, but my voice sounded very muffly.

"I wasn't particularly unwell, but it felt like a head cold coming on. I felt something wasn't right. I had a word with a couple of colleagues and decided to stay home, just to be on the safe side.

"I just put it down to - well, when you talk for a living, your voice gets a bit of hardship. But then I began getting much worse very quickly, and by Thursday I felt absolutely awful. I was on the flat of my back. I felt absolutely terrible, the sickest I have been in my life.

"I was massively unwell, my energy went, I had pains all over, my sense of smell started to go, and at that stage I knew that this was not good. I had contact with my GP and I was lucky - I got the test within two days."

She underwent swabs at a drive-in facility near Dublin airport, but the result - positive for Covid-19 - didn't arrive for 17 days, by which time the worst had passed, although by then she had pleurisy.

She returned home to bed, "and from there on things got really bad".

"For the next 10 to 12 days I was extremely unwell and getting steadily sicker." She spoke of every nerve ending being hammered on an anvil.

"It's the first time I have had a brush with being really sick."

At one point she believed she would have to be rushed to the Mater Hospital nearby, but the crisis passed.

After recovering from the virus, she was hit by pleurisy and felt she had experienced the "overture" and could now be facing the main event. It was frightening.

"I really did get afraid," she says. Her doctor gave her a clear diagnosis and gave her the right medicine quickly.

His advice to her was: "'Stay composed, stay put, and tough this one out.' So I did."

And she emphasised: "I'm not saying 'poor me' - I'm saying: 'lucky, lucky, lucky me.' I am so blessed.

"I certainly wouldn't like to get the virus again. We all have to find a way to live safely.

"My story is told to counter this bravado out there, that there's no virus or that it's a hoax. It's no hoax. I was extremely concerned for my whole family."

Even in the viral aftermath there were periods when she had extreme fatigue and slept all the time, or else suffered from insomnia and "couldn't sleep at all".

Now recovered, she said: "It's a really strange, nasty illness. We all just need to use good common sense to stay healthy. As to house parties, I would say, just don't do it.

"Sit tight instead. No party or get-together would ever compensate you for getting struck with this virus."
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Channel Seven's Sunrise hosts Samantha Armytage and David Koch will end their part-time hosting arrangements as of Monday, September 21.

According to The Daily Telegraph, the presenters were ordered to return to hosting the breakfast show full-time after Nine's rival program Today closed the ratings gap.

'They are back five days a week,' Seven News director Craig McPherson confirmed on Friday.

Back to work: Samantha Armytage (left) and David Koch (right) will return to hosting Sunrise full-time - after rival Today show won on the east coast in the ratings war

The hosts had each been enjoying a four-day working week, with Sunrise newsreader Natalie Barr filling in for Samantha on Mondays and for David on Fridays.

Samantha, 43, chose to take a step back from her on-air responsibilities in favour of a four-day working week in June.

Meanwhile, David confirmed his shorter working week in 2018, explaining 'his work schedule was taking a toll as there were other things he wanted to do'.

Hosting: Sunrise newsreader Natalie Barr has been filling in for Samantha on Mondays and David on Fridays. Pictured L to R: Natalie, Samantha, David and Mark Beretta

Earlier this month, Nine's Today show, fronted by Karl Stefanovic and Allison Langdon, won on the East Coast in the ratings war.

The once-struggling breakfast program beat Sunrise by 14,000 people, across Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.

A week earlier, Today claimed victory in the East Coast capitals, pulling a combined average audience of 191,000 - which was more than Sunrise's 189,000.

Closing the gap: Earlier this month, Network Nine's Today show, fronted by Karl Stefanovic (pictured) and Allison Langdon, won on the east coast in the ratings war

Success: The once-struggling breakfast program beat Sunrise by 195,000 to 181,000 in total people, across Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane

These figures represent a triumphant leap in the ratings for the Today show, which had previously dragged around 70,000 viewers behind Sunrise back in June.

Sunrise is still however the nation's most-watched breakfast TV program across the five capital cities, with a viewership of 259,000 compared to Today's 229,000.

It has also won every week and every day of 2020 so far in terms of ratings.

Meanwhile, Today's co-host Karl is understood to have recently signed a new contract with Nine, and is locked into a multi-year deal along with co-host Allison and the rest of the team.

Karl, 46, was sacked from the Today show in December 2018 after his personal life was blamed for the declining ratings. He was reinstated as co-anchor in January this year, alongside Allison.
Foreign ministry spokesperson Kim In-chul / Yonhap



South Korea voiced "deep concern and regret" after former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo on Saturday visited a war shrine seen as a symbol of Japan's past militarism.



Abe said in a tweet that he visited Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo and reported his resignation to the war dead. Abe ended his nearly eight-year tenure in office earlier this week due to health problems.



"We express deep concern and regret that former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Yasukuni Shrine, a symbolic establishment that beautifies Japan's colonial plunder and war of aggression, right after his resignation," foreign ministry spokesperson Kim In-chul said.



"The government once again sternly points out that the neighboring countries and international community can trust Japan only when Japanese leaders face history squarely and show by action they humbly reflect on and genuinely atone for the past history," he added.






A n envelope sent to the White House has been found to contain a deadly poison, US officials have confirmed.

The letter was intercepted at a facility which screens mail addressed to Donald Trump.

A preliminary investigation indicated that it contained ricin  a poison found naturally in castor beans, the official said.

Federal investigators are now working to determine who posted the potentially lethal missive.

Staff screen mail as it arrives at a government facility in Washington DC / AFP via Getty Images

The FBI, the Secret Service and the US Postal Inspection Service are leading the investigation.

In a statement released on Saturday, the FBI said agents were working to investigate a suspicious letter received at a US government mail facility and that there is no known threat to public safety.

A Navy veteran was arrested in 2018 and confessed to sending envelopes to Mr Trump and members of his administration that contained the substance from which ricin is derived.

Authorities said the man, William Clyde Allen III, sent the envelopes to the president, FBI director Christopher Wray and the then-defence secretary Jim Mattis, among others.

The letters were intercepted and no one was hurt.

In 2014, a Mississippi man was sentenced to 25 years in prison after sending letters dusted with ricin to President Barack Obama and other officials.
Lucknow:

Ruling Samajwadi Party on Sunday released its manifesto for Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections promising a bunch of schemes for all round development of the state at a function which SP patron Mulayam Singh Yadav and his brother Shivpal gave a miss.



With an eye on development, Akhilesh riding on the crest of kaam bolta hai (work speaks) slogan, announced schemes which prioritise development of the state.



The manifesto announced distribution of laptops, Kanya Vidya Dhan, Samajwadi Pension, laying of Purvanchal Expressway, and establishing Janeshwar Mishra model villages besides improving helplines for police and women.



He said the model villages in the name of Janeshwar Mishra would be a tribute to the Samajwadi leader on his death anniversary on Sunday.



The Chief Minister, in his new role as the Samajwadi Party national president, directed all candidates to prepare a road map for development of their respective Assembly constituencies.



A highlight of the manifesto was Samajwadi Kisan Kosh for farmers to purchase seeds and fertilisers, perhaps to match the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Bima Yojana.



As Mulayam and Shivpal, the warring uncle of Akhilesh, were conspicuous by their absence, senior SP leader Azam Khan rushed to the SP patriarchs bungalow to bring him to the event. But even then Mulayam did not grace the occasion where senior party leaders and Dimple Yadav, MP and wife of the chief minister were present.



In an impassioned appeal to the electorate to vote SP back to power, Akhilesh said, We got support on 2012 manifesto, we also fulfilled promises made in it.



The manifesto is a sankalp (promise) to form future government. Its clear that we all want to form Samajwadi Party government. If you work for 5 years, you will get government of five years, he said.



The chief minister asked party workers to go to the masses and make them aware of the schemes implemented by his government during the past five years.



A lot of work has been done in a big way. We have to work more in future. I tried for the past five years not to leave path of socialism and also ensure balanced development to improve rural economics, he said.

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Perhaps the one thing New Mexicans of all political stripes can agree on these days is that their elected leaders in Washington, D.C., have collectively failed them  for months  by not delivering another economic rescue package targeted for those most in need, such as the 124,000 New Mexicans clinging to unemployment benefits to get by as the pandemic enters month seven.

Congress and President Donald Trump have been deadlocked for months on a new coronavirus relief package. An extra $600 in weekly unemployment benefits approved in the CARES Act in March ran out July 31.

Then the Lost Wages Assistance program, funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, provided an additional $300 a week to qualified unemployment claimants, but it expired Sept. 5 as funding dried up.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday that New Mexicos unemployment rate dropped from 12.7% in July to 11.3% in August. Still, unemployment in New Mexico is higher than all but five states. And the states unemployment rate doesnt include those who are not actively seeking work, such as parents pushed out of the states 893,000-person labor market to supervise children performing distance-learning from home. Without a federal enhancement, unemployment benefits in New Mexico are not enough to get by. Weekly benefit checks range from $88 per week to about $460. Department of Workforce Solutions Cabinet Secretary Bill McCamley told the Journals Stephen Hamway last week the states unemployment trust fund, which stood at $465 million in mid-March, officially hit zero Sept. 8 after months of heavy use. So the state is borrowing up to $285 million from the U.S. Labor Department to keep unemployment programs operating through October.

In mid-May, the Democratic-led U.S. House voted to provide nearly $1 trillion of additional aid to states and local governments as part of a broad relief bill. But the legislation has stalled amid disagreements among Trump and Republican Senate leaders and Democrats over the size, scope and necessity of another relief package. In general, Republicans want a smaller, less costly version, and Democrats want hundreds of billions of additional dollars for states and local governments.

Congress and the president need to abandon their all-or-nothing approach and agree on areas where agreement can be reached. It seems like shoring up the unemployment funds of states like New Mexico would be a good start. More federal money for virus testing is essential.

This week House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the chamber would remain in session until theres a deal on a new relief package. The Washington Post reported she told House Democrats on a conference call we have to stay here until we have a bill.

That illusion of dedication to constituents lasted just hours. Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer, D-Maryland, soon clarified lawmakers would not actually stay at work in Washington when the scheduled recess kicks in Oct. 2  instead they will be on call in case a deal someone else is working on magically appears.

Thats what theyve been doing for weeks. And New Mexicans  especially the tens of thousands who are out of work  know exactly how productive thats been.

Pelosi has remained wedded to a broad $2 trillion package covering everything from unemployment to the post office. And while the president has supported a slimmed-down proposal, its still beefier than what the Republican leadership is pitching. White House adviser Jared Kushner said on CNBC a deal may have to be after the election.

Such a delay is inexcusable. Congress  including Assistant Speaker Ben Ray Lujan and each and every other member of New Mexicos delegation  should stay in session and hammer out a deal that may not be the whole package, but that gives struggling Americans at least half a loaf instead of the none they are holding now. And all congressional candidates should forgo any campaigning at home until they get a deal done.

After all, if they cant govern and reach compromises for their constituents, why should they be re-elected?

This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.
AMG

Two minutes and 23 seconds, thats how much Andrea Palma needed from start to finish. Although weather conditions were not the best, we even set the record at the racetrack after two rounds, said the development driver.Horacio Pagani approved the record-breaking lap attempts after Andrea realized that the BC is better than expected. The handling and later grip exceed all expectations, he said, which is high praise for an open-top car.The Italian automaker has formulated new kinds of carbon-fiber and carbon-titanium composites for this application, namely Carbo-Triax HP62 and Carbon-Titanium HP62 G2. These two improve torsional rigidity by 12 percent and flexural rigidity by 20 percent, explaining the sheer speed of the Huayra Roadster BC through the corners of the challenging circuit in Belgium.In addition to setting the new record for globally homologated road cars at Spa, the twin-turbo V12 land missile has also crossed the 300-kph mark for a brief moment during the blistering fast lap. 301 or 302 shows the telemetry at the 3:56 mark of the following video, which is impressive by all accounts.Andrea did cut the track at the top of Raidillon, though, a cheeky little thing thats more than apparent when the video cuts to a different camera. When all is said and done, a record is a record, and McLaren may be taking notes.The Senna lapped Spa in 2:24.82 one year ago, making the British hypercar almost eight seconds faster than the record lap set by the Koenigsegg One:1 in 2015. All told, Pagani Automobili has a lot to be proud of from this feat.Limited to 40 units worldwide, the Huayra Roadster BC launched with a price tag of $3.5 million before options. Its 6.0-liter engine - supplied by Mercedes- is rated at 791 horsepower and 774 pound-feet of torque.
Megan Thee Stallion isn't mincing her words, and in this case individual letters, when she shared a direct message to her 'haters' that came in the form of eye-blasting bling.

On Friday, the Savage star took to Instagram on Friday to flaunt a set of seven diamond rings that spelled out 'F**K YOU', which Page Six Style confirmed to be worth $200,000.

Keeping her message simple, but far from sweet, Megan captioned the short video and two photos with: 'dear haters,' along with two middle finger emojis and a third emoji of a sun face with its eyes closed.

Scroll down to video

Take that haters! Megan Thee Stallion took to Instagram on Friday to showcase a set of seven diamond rings that spelled out 'F**K YOU'

For the quick clip, Megan had a male friend do a close-up camera shot that panned her fingers to showcase her blinged-out message.

'She means what she say and she say what she means,' the man could be heard saying as he slightly moved the camera, which Megan then chimed in by adding: 'Or your b**ch a**'

The friend quickly followed that up by repeating, 'Or your b**ch a**' several more times.

Wanting to add an exclamation point to her post, the Hot Girl Summer rapper ended by flashing her two middle fingers, which also helped showcase her long, personalized finger nails.

Direct hit: The Savage star directed her blinged-out message to the 'haters', along with two middle finger emojis

She means it! A male friend could be heard saying: 'She means what she say and she say what she means,' as he slightly moved the camera across her fingers

Big bucks: Page Six Style confirmed the set of seven rings is worth $200,000

The rings were reportedly designed by jeweler to the stars Elliot Eliantte. Each of them features about 18 carats of VS1 diamonds, that totals 126 carats in all, and are set in 14K white gold.

'Megan had a message she wanted to get out and this was the format she decided to go with,' a representative for the jeweler said.

It's believed Eliantte also designed Megan's massive 'Hot Girl' diamond necklace, worth about $425,000, that she showed off on Instagram in July.

Stallion style: The video also highlighted her long, personalized finger nails

Double whammy: The Hot Girl Summer rapper ended the clip by flashing two middle fingers

Megan has had her share of critics, both professionally and personally, that she may be directing her message towards.

From her meteoric rise to the top of the music charts, trademark twerk and revealing ensembles, to her denial and then accusation that Tory Lanez accidentally shot her in the foot two times in July, the Texas native has been good fodder for both journalists and social media trolls.

In August, Megan (born Megan Pete) accused Lanez of shooting her after they had attended a pool party at Kylie Jenner's mansion on July 12.

She had previously remained silent about identifying the alleged shooter, even after he was charged with carrying a concealed weapon at the time. Megan said she was prompted to come forward with her version because Lanez's publicist had been spreading false information about the incident.

Bling: Along with her set of rings, it's believed Elliot Eliantte also designed Megan's massive 'Hot Girl' diamond necklace, worth about $425,000, that she showed off on Instagram in July
TOKYO - Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said he has visited a shrine viewed by China and both Koreas as a symbol of wartime aggression.

Abes visit Saturday to Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, which he announced in a tweet, comes days after his resignation. It was his first visit in nearly seven years.

Abe said on Twitter that he visited the shrine and reported to the souls of the war dead that hed resigned as prime minister. Abes last visit to the shrine was in late 2013.

The shrine is controversial with victims of Japanese military aggression in the early part of the 20th century, and especially the Koreas and China, because it honours convicted war criminals among the millions of other Japanese who died in World War II.

Later Saturday, the South Korean government expressed deep concern and regret over Abes shrine visit. A Foreign Ministry statement said the shrine beautifies Japans colonial plundering and war of aggression.

Many South Koreans still harbour strong resentment against Japans 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula. Ties between Seoul and Tokyo suffered a huge setback in recent years over history and trade disputes. Earlier this week, South Korean President Moon Jae-in sent a letter to new Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to congratulate him and covey his willingness to open talks to improve ties.

Abe, Japans longest-serving prime minister, resigned because of health issues. Suga started his first full day in office on Thursday.

Suga won the backing of fellow ruling party lawmakers with a pledge to carry on Abes policies.

Abe, considered a foreign policy hawk, had sometimes fraught relations with China and South Korea, in part because of his revisionist stance on Japans wartime crimes.

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On 12 July 2016, the tribunal ruled in favor of the Philippines, declaring Chinas claims to historic rights, or other sovereign rights or jurisdiction related to the nine-dash line as unlawful.

On the occasion of the 4th year of the Permanent Court of Arbitrations (PCA) ruling, VietNamNet would like to introduce an article by Ambassador Nguyen Hong Thao.

In 2013, the Philippines formally initiated arbitration proceedings against China. The Philippines argued that Chinas historical claim on the territories within the "nine-dash line" was unlawful under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The tribunal under the PCA was long and drawn out with China refusing to participate.

On 12 July 2016, the tribunal ruled in favor of the Philippines, declaring Chinas claims to historic rights, or other sovereign rights or jurisdiction related to the nine-dash line as unlawful. So much so that Chinas activities there actually exceed the geographic and substantive limits of Chinas maritime entitlements. The ruling also reaffirmed what territories in the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea) belong to which Southeast Asian countries. Under UNCLOS, coastal nations are entitled to exclusive 200 nautical mile economic zones from their shore baselines.

The ruling is final and binding. The PCA concluded that the rights and obligations of the members of UNCLOS (in this case, the Philippines and China) are governed by the Convention and therefore any maritime claims that are not in accordance with the Convention are rejected.

China introduces so-called cow's tongue line

The ruling narrowed the disputed waters when maritime claims based on the 9-dash line were rejected and land features in Truong Sa (Spratlys Islands) can have a territorial waters of 12 nautical miles.

The ruling allows coastal states to extend the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles; reveals the possibility of the appearance of the high seas and the area - the common heritage of mankind - in the center of the East Sea and turning this area into an international rather than a regional area. In theory, the decision contributes to promoting the settlement of maritime disputes, but in reality is not always easy.

In the first year, countries only expressed the welcome and desire of the parties to the lawsuit to strictly enforce the ruling. The number of countries claiming to support the ruling is limited.

There are many reasons for this. China, with a three-no policy (not accepting, not recognizing and not implementing the PCAs ruling), has taken all measures to minimize the impact of the ruling such as making threats, mobilizing other countries to not issue a statement to support the ruling, launching a legal war to refute the ruling's arguments through diplomatic statements and a 500-page study by the Chinese International Law Association.

Stick and carrot strategy

China's Haiyang Dizhi 8 geological survey vessel encroached upon Vietnam's exclusive economic zone. Photo: Schottel

Beijing used a stick and carrot strategy in its relations with regional countries. One side is the One Belt One Road initiative and economic tools. The other side is the intimidation and coercion, typically the deterrent to Vietnam's oil and gas activities at Lot 136/03 in Tu Chinh area in July 2017 and the siege to cut off supplies for the garrison on Thi Tu island, controlled by the Philippines, in August 2017.

China continued to increase activities on artificially built islands, to impose a fishing ban, and other activities aimed at unilaterally changing the status quo of the East Sea. Chinese diplomats called the ruling - "just a piece of paper" that is thrown into the trash of history.

Beijing's strategy in the first year was quite successful as the two ASEAN Summits, the 30th in Laos in 2016 and the 31st in the Philippines in 2017, both kept silent about the ruling. International experts on the East Sea conflicts such as Carl Thayer (Australia) commented that the ruling is dead in the water, while Ankit Panda and Prashanth Parameswaran questioned whether China won a year after the ruling?

The Philippines, which has benefited from the ruling, has decided to temporarily put aside the enforcement of the ruling in exchange for trade, investment and aid from China. The two countries quickly signed a memorandum of understanding to cooperate in exploration of oil and gas offshore the Philippines during Filipino President Duterte's visit to China in April 2018. The memorandum of understanding is valid for only 1 year in principle. Mr. Duterte also lashed out at US security policies and threatened to withdraw from the security treaties with the United States.

Claims of sovereignty  an old bottle of new wine

However, the ruling has made some impacts. First, it contributes to changing China's view of the Code of Conduct (COC) in the East Sea. China sees the COC negotiation as a way of rejecting the ruling, legitimizing China's maritime claims and preventing outside interference.

In May 2017, a one-page draft COC framework between ASEAN and China appeared. A three-year deadline has been set to complete an unbound COC that benefits China. China does not give up its 9-dash claim but seeks to adapt the terminology in UNCLOS in its favor.

The claim of Four Sha, an old bottle of new wine, was released. The Four-Sha argument was discretely and unofficially introduced by Ma Xinmin, Deputy Director General of Chinese Foreign Ministry's Department of Treaty and Law, in a meeting in Boston in 2017, as a basis for Chinas sovereignty and maritime claims in the East Sea. In fact, Four-Sha is the literal expression of Chinas so-called Nanhai Zhudao (the South China Sea Islands). In a statement delivered right after the verdict of the East Sea Arbitration on 12 July 2016, China claimed that its Nanhai Zhudao consisted of Paracels, Spratlys (Vietnams Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes), Pratas and Macclesfield (Vietnams Truong Sa Archipelago).

This concept is also no clearer than the 9-dash line and still contains the threat of establishing an archipelagic baseline for Truong Sa and an air defense identification zone (ADIZ) for the East Sea.

Conduct of the parties in the East Sea

The Note Verable of the US Permanent Mission to the United Nations opposing China's claims. Photo: USUN

The ruling influences the perception and behavior of the parties directly related to the East Sea as a supplementary source of international law.

The ruling helps explain and clarify specific questions and therefore have considerable legal conviction. Third countries can base on the correct, reasonable, accurate conclusions that are accepted by many countries to adjust their behavior and positions.

The ruling was the catalyst for Malaysia to submit a new submission on an extended continental shelf (ECS) beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines in December 2019 when entities in Truong Sa were thought to have no separate continental shelf to overlap this extended continental shelf. Malaysia's action is an opportunity for countries to clarify their positions on the East Sea after the ruling.

The Philippines diplomatic note sent to China on March 6, 2020, for the first time, confirmed the conclusions of the ruling at the United Nations forum.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr., on the occasion of the 4th anniversary of the historic ruling by the Hague Tribunal, noted that this verdict is non-negotiable and the Tribunal authoritatively ruled that Chinas claim of historic rights to resources within maritime areas falling within the nine-dash line had no basis in law. The Philippines stops canceling the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with the United States.

Vietnams diplomatic note dated 30/3/2020 affirms that UNCLOS is the only legal basis, comprehensive and thorough provisions on the scope of the right to enjoy the waters between Vietnam and China.

Indonesia, a country not involving in the East Sea disputes, with two notes dated May 26, 2020 and June 12, 2020, supports the 2016 East Sea ruling that no feature in Truong Sa has an exclusive economic zone and continental shelf and the 9-dash map clearly lacks the basis of international law and goes contrary to the UNCLOS.

Execution of the ruling to ensure freedom of the sea

Notably, the US also participated in this war with the note verable dated June 1, 2020 and the statement by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo dated July 14, 2020 on the US policy in the East Sea. The US position is consistent, neutral in the issue of sovereignty but it condemns all illegal maritime claims that are inconsistent with international maritime law.

The US also adjusted its policy set out in 1995, which is consistent with the ruling that only land features have maritime claim, features in Truong Sa do not have the right to have economic exclusive zone and continental shelf, and support the peaceful settlement of disputes, including legal measures rather than only emphasis on the diplomatic process.

The US declaration has drawn support from other countries such as Japan, India, Australia, and the EU. The countries outside the East Sea all demand enforcement of the ruling to guarantee freedom of the sea.

Nguyen Hong Thao

US condemns Chinas firing of missiles in East Sea The US Department of Defence has voiced concern about Chinas recent decision to conduct military exercises, including the firing of ballistic missiles around Vietnams Hoang Sa Archipelago in the East Sea.
After the death of Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday night, Sen. Chuck Schumer called for the winner of the November presidential election to nominate a justice to fill Ginsubrgs seat.

The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice, Schumer tweeted. Therefore, the vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

The Senate minority leaders quote is a word-for-word restatement of Sen. Mitch McConnells statement in February of 2016, when then-Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia died. McConnell is the majority leader of the Senate.

In 2016, McConnell, refused to hold any action on Obamas nominee, Merrick Garland, who remained the nominee for nearly 10 months. After Donald Trump was elected president, he nominated Neil Gorsuch, who was nominated and then confirmed.

President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate," McConnell said Friday night.

The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.  Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) September 18, 2020

NPR reported that Ginsberg dictated the following statement to granddaughter Clara Spera: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

Ginsburg died of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, the court said.

In July, Ginsburg said she was undergoing chemotherapy for lesions on her liver. She has battled cancer five times in the last 21 years.

Ginsburg was appointed to the Supreme Court by Bill Clinton in 1993 and was the first appointment by a Democrat in 26 years.

Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact Chris Libonati via the Signal app for encrypted messaging at 585-290-0718, by phone at the same number, by email or on Twitter.
A fiery late-night speech with harsh criticisms of the royal institution set the crowd in Bangkok abuzz, as though the country has a harsh law that mandates a three to 15-year prison term for defaming the monarchy.

The speaker, Arnon Nampha, is a lawyer who broke the taboo on criticism of the monarchy at a small rally in early August with some mild questions about the institution.

He recalled on Saturday night how the crowd went silent on that occasion, and compared its reaction to the much more enthusiastic reception he was received for significantly more strident remarks.

The protesters, whose rally was continuing past midnight, have more activities planned for Sunday.

They have been purposely vague about a planned march, but Mr Arnon revealed in his speech that the protesters would lay down a plaque dedicated to the power of the people.

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The action appears to be an implicit reference to the mysterious disappearance in 2017 of another decades-old bronze plaque that commemorated the 1932 revolution that turned Thailand  then known as Siam  from an absolute monarchy into a constitutional monarchy.

The crowd at Sanam Luang, a large field that has seen many historic events, were a disparate batch.

An LGBTQ contingent waved their iconic rainbow banners, while red flags sprouted across the area, representing Thailands Red Shirt political movement, which battled the countrys military in Bangkoks streets 10 years ago.

Organisers had predicted that as many as 50,000 people would take part in the weekends protest.

Estimates of attendance at mass political events in Thailand are notoriously unreliable, but Saturdays crowd appeared as big as any protest held at that venue in the past three decades.

Associated Press reporters estimated that around 20,000 people were present by early evening, while people were still arriving.

As the night progressed, there were skits, music and speakers on the stage. They touched on issues including the alleged incompetence of the government, corruption in the military and womens rights.

The Grand Palace complex, a famous tourist destination whose golden highlights are dramatically lit at night, shone behind the side of the field opposite from the stage.

The people who came here today came here peacefully and are really calling for democracy, said Panupong Jadnok, one of the protest leaders.

At least 8,000 police officers reportedly were deployed for the event.

The core demands declared by the protesters in July were the dissolution of parliament with fresh elections, a new constitution and an end to intimidation of political activists. They have held a series of rallies since then.

They believe that Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who as then-army commander led a 2014 coup toppling an elected government, was returned to power unfairly in last years general election because the laws had been changed to favour a pro-military party.

A constitution promulgated under military rule is likewise undemocratic, they charge.

The activists raised the stakes dramatically at an August 10 rally by issuing a 10-point manifesto calling for reforming the monarchy.

Their demands seek to limit the kings powers, establish tighter controls on palace finances and allow open discussion of the monarchy. Their boldness was virtually unprecedented, as the monarchy is considered sacrosanct in Thailand.
Did the people really vote for a constitutional one-man show? View(s):

Sometimes it is hard to believe that not even six years ago the late Venerable Sobitha Thera had given fiery voice to the war cry Down with the Executive Presidency, and had stirred, inspired and galvanised the people into battle to bring down President Mahinda Rajapaksa from his presidential throne and drag his draconian 18th Amendment to the dust.

And today, it is even harder to believe that it is these same people who had so overwhelmingly voted this year not only to restore the executive presidency to its own 18th Amendment empowered state but to further arm and fortify it with even more executive powers which will make the occupant of that high office, the sole repository of all power.

But had they? They may have voted last year for a change of President and voted last month for a change of government but had they exercised their precious franchise to rearm the executive presidency they had voted to see wings clipped in 2015?

The people may have had their dissolutions of the way the Yahapalana Government under the 19th Amendment had performed but had there been a movement of note that had called for a return to the 18th Amendment and trumpeted that Lankas future prosperity lay in rolling back the times to an insufferable past the people had been glad to see the last of 5 years ago?

Even if the people had been aware that the SLPP were intent on repealing the 19A and bringing in a new amendment in its stead, had the masses bargained for the abolition of progressive reforms in exchange for articles enhancing presidential powers they would never have approved had they known of it in advance? Had they been asked to sign a blank cheque with only the words 20th Amendment written on it with the SLPP unilaterally filling out the articles and clauses it contains in any manner they deemed fit just days before encashing it?

The Government gazetted the cabinet approved draft of the 20th Amendment on September 3 and presented it for public debate announcing its intention to present it to Parliament on September 22. However, it was reported on Monday, that it was to be withdrawn and a fresh draft would be issued. The Island newspaper reported that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has assured civil society groups, the National Joint Committee and Yuthukama that the proposed 20th Amendment to the Constitution would be rescinded to pave the way for a new draft. The President had given this assurance at a meeting with Manohara de Silva, PC and SLPP Nationalist MP Gevindu Cumaratunga last Friday evening at the Presidential Secretariat

That same Friday, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed a nine-member committee headed by G.L. Peiris to study the 20 Amendment draft in detail and submit their report on September 15th Tuesday. Ostensibly, he had good enough reason to do so, to pick up the first cudgel against the proposed 20A.

His own job security as prime minister, at least technically on paper, stood imperiled under the gazetted 20th Amendment draft which held that the Prime Ministers mandatory consent which had to be obtained, under 19A, before the President could hire or fire any minister would no longer be necessary; and, worse, that the President, unlike in 19A, could sack the Prime Minister at any time, with the Prime Minister reduced to holding his position as PM entirely at the whim and fancy of the President.

Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella gave his weekly cabinet briefing on Thursday and disclosed that the draft Amendment of 20A that has now been gazetted was taken up for a detailed discussion in the cabinet on Wednesday.

However, a report on the draft 20th Amendment Bill prepared by the nine-member committee appointed by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa which was presented to him on the 15th as scheduled and which was also due to be presented to the Cabinet on Wednesday had not been presented. The tabling of the report in Cabinet had not taken place after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa told ministers that he would take the responsibility for the contents of the 20th Amendment draft.

Minister Rambukwella said the architects of the 20th Amendment to the Constitution were President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the Cabinet and as such the government had no intention whatsoever to withdraw it simply because a plethora of divergent comments have been made about it. All proposals, amendments and changes would be considered at the committee stage in Parliament when the 20A is taken up for debate in Parliament.

President Rajapaksa and the Cabinet will take full responsibility of 20A as the people have given a mandate to the SLPP Government and President Rajapaksa at two major elections to replace 19A with 20A, Minister Rambukwella added.

True. The question, however, is did they vote only for the cover and not for its far reaching contents of which they were not aware and are still not aware, having only a sketchy pencil outline of a manuscript masquerading as the peoples manifest will and holy writ to go by? Minister Rambukwella must stand corrected, for the contents of the 20A draft were never revealed before either election. Unless, of course, Rambukwella considers present constitutional drafting jurisprudence holds that voting for the title on the books cover, namely, The 20th Amendment, amply suffices to bequeath to the authors the untrammeled, absolute right to include even things inimical to the peoples interests?

And when it comes to voting for it in Parliament, are the members of Parliament, existing as they do solely due to the present electoral system which places party first and candidates second, duty bound to vote in the best interest of the party which put their name on the ballot paper or in the interest of the people who voted them to the House as a result?

Isnt it the case that MPs, like sheep blindly following their leader even over the hill, are guided by the Party Whips to follow their party diktat and vote accordingly whatever opinion their voters in their grassroot electorate may hold on a particular issue of extreme importance? This is not endemic to Lanka alone but is prevalent in all western democracies too, except in instances where a referendum will decide the true opinion of the sovereign people, in whose name much liberties are casually taken.

Minister Rambukwella said the draft of 20A would be tabled in Parliament this Tuesday as originally planned, enabling any citizen or organisation interested in the draft amendments to file a petition in the Supreme Court for an interpretation within a week. We are ready to accommodate any positive and progressive amendment, suggestions of changes to the proposed amendments at the committee stage in Parliament. Therefore, no one must worry about 20A as it is not something written on a stone.

True again. The 20th Amendment will not be etched in stone. It will be written on a palimpsest, even as JRs constitution in 1978 has been rewritten 19 times on the same palimpsest these last 42 years and even as the 20A will come to be writ on this same palimpsest two months before Christmas.

But, somewhere in the future, should the need arise in a more enlightened age to repeal the 20A if found to have gone out of style, then even before it can be erased and re-written again, a providential time must dawn when the government of the future has another two third majority coupled with a perceived need to change the constitution and amend it again. Some governments may possess the two third majority but not the perceived need. Some governments may have the need to change but not the two third majority to alter one single line on the palimpsest. Then, for all intents and purposes, it might as well have been engraved on stone.

What this nation is witnessing today is an attempt to amend the constitution which, when done and completed, will have consequences far beyond present day strife, consequences far into the unknown future, consequences that will last long after the present tenure of this government and perhaps the next and the next will have long been over. What we are witnessing is the terrifying prospect of the attempt being made to crown and bestow upon the present and unknown future incumbents of the office of Lankas executive presidency, powers of such nature and extent which will render Lankas form of government in the future as constitutional one-man or one-woman shows in perpetuity.

And, even if there will come to be one Sirisena among them in the future who will, in Sri Sanghabo fashion, appear willing to sacrifice his excessive presidential powers and return to a democratic parliamentary form of government, he may find to his regret, he lacks the numbers to rewrite the palimpsest and will be forced to remain a prisoner of the constitutions 20A, though, perhaps, a happy one, enjoying the trappings of undiluted power behind a melancholic mask of hapless regret.

Such unbridled power may well be for the good of the nation under the present leadership of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. But what of the future? In the wrong hands, the concentration of power in the executive presidency may well lead to what a 19th century English Baron, Lord Acton observed and stated in his now famous maxim, Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
Minister of 40-Years Tells Why People Hate Church: Many Are Going Elsewhere to Seek Out God

Sardis, MS - Church attendance is declining around the country, and many people are bitter towards Christians. Christians, especially evangelicals, have become fodder for comedians and a target for the media. And it's no wonder, says Minister Marnell Wicks Love, PhD. People have had it.

Combining over 40 years of personal experience with a well-researched doctoral paper, Love's eye-opening and honest new book Why People Love God But Hate Church dives into the truths about why church attendance is declining.

"A man with Minister Love's breadth of experience merits attention. This is a book that will strike needed controversy in organized religion  a plea for heeding God's Word." Grady Harp, Amazon Hall of Fame Top 50 Reviewer, 5 Stars

"Church isn't a sanctuary anymore," says Love. "People are tired of all of the negativity and soap opera drama of church attendance. A lot of leaders are acting non-Christian-like, having affairs and doing inappropriate things. Members form cliques and don't welcome newcomers. Women are leaving the church because a lot of the churches are male-dominant and misinterpret women's significant value in God's eyes."

What it comes down to is that many of the churches are no longer connected to the spirit of God. "They've become more like social clubs, or community clubs," says Love, "But nothing ever gets done spiritually. Nothing ever gets done in the community."

Which is the second reason that Love says church attendance is dropping

"The church no longer goes out into the community. Instead it expects the community to come to them," says Love. "Churches need to go out and feed the poor, clothe the naked, visit the sick, visit those in prison. Be an advocate for those without. If you're rejecting this, you are rejecting Christ."

When Love was young, the church was the central hub in the community. It was a place where people could come to be fed physically and spiritually. "Churches have lost that connection to the communities. They no longer see themselves as a primary partner of the community. It has become an island in the community, a building where you can be entertained and made to feel goodif you fit in. Christians turn people off because they don't have any involvement in what people need."

Love practices what he preaches. He is a Bible study and Sunday school teacher, he pastors victims of domestic violence shelters, mentally ill persons and substance abuse victims in mental hospital environments, and is active in community relations helping small businesses recover and stay afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic. A portion of book sales will go to work in the ministry and support a safe shelter for women and children escaping abusive households. His book is a gem of personal experiences as well as sermons he has preached.

"This book opens the door back in to our churches, and invites church leaders as well as members to take a long, hard look at what God is really calling us to do, and that is to put Christ first and serve." Pamela Gossiaux, International Bestselling Author

"Church leaders have abandoned the hands-on, search-people-out ministry and traded it for a pulpit ministry," says Love. "Without the Word of God being taken from town to town and door to door, the United States will continue to see a decline in society's moral values. It's time to reverse this trend."

Why People Love God But Hate Church, ISBN 978-1631296581 (Paperback) $9.95, 2020, Publishing, X pages, available at Amazon.

About Marnell Love: Dr. Marnell Wicks Love has been in church administration for more than forty years. Throughout that time, he has been an operational and financial consultant to churches and nonprofit organizations, a longtime Sunday school and Bible study teacher, and a minister. In 2017, Minister Love received his PhD in Ministerial Theology from Newburg Seminary.

Before he accepted the call from God, he held a degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in accounting. Professionally, Minister Love worked for and retired from the Exelon Corporation as an upper level manager, managing more than $200 million in contracted services. He was the district director of information technology and later the associate vice chancellor (vice president) at the City Colleges of Chicago. And Minister Love was an adjunct assistant professor of management and accountancy for graduate and undergraduate divisions in the Brennan School of Business at Dominican University.

Minister Love is the founder of Love-to-Help Accounting and Financial Management, which focuses on helping small businesses and struggling churches in Chicago and surrounding areas, and today is helping small businesses stay afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic. He is a pastor of a group of assisted-living seniors, a hospital and hospice chaplain, and a fire chaplain, treasurer, and emergency medical responder (EMR) for the Sardis Fire Department. He also serves as the financial officer and a board member at the Batesville Safe Shelter, a safe place for women who have been victims of domestic violence. He also ministers to people in his local hospital for mentally ill persons and those who are trying to overcome alcohol and drug addictions.

He and his wife, Alberta live in Sardis, Mississippi. They have two children and six grandchildren. Minister Love's motto is "Never stop learning and serving."

Media Contact: For a review copy of Why People Love God But Hate Church or to arrange an interview with Marnell Love, contact Scott Lorenz of Westwind Communications Book Marketing at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090. Follow Lorenz on twitter @abookpublicist
Tropical Storm Beta continued to churn slowly westward in the western Gulf of Mexico on Saturday, and the National Hurricane Center warned it could get stronger.

And its not going anywhere soon. The latest forecast track shows Beta hugging the Texas and Louisiana coasts practically all week as both a hurricane and a tropical storm.

That is raising concerns about heavy rainfall along parts of the coast, and the hurricane center warned that there is an increasing risk of significant rainfall and flooding in Texas and Louisiana from Sunday through the middle of next week.

As Tropical Storm Beta approaches the TX coast, it brings the threat of heavy rain and flash flooding. On its current forecast track, the greatest threat stretches from the Middle TX Coast into southwest LA. Any change in the track could result in the threat area changing too. pic.twitter.com/S1jEKfQcrM  NWS Weather Prediction Center (@NWSWPC) September 19, 2020

As of Saturday Beta is expected to be more of a problem for Texas and Louisiana and not Alabama, but showers associated with the deep moisture from the storm persisted across parts of south Alabama all day Saturday.

Theres a chance Alabama will see more rain from Beta, but not until late next week, and there is a lot of uncertainty about where the heaviest rain could fall.

Beta, which became a tropical storm on Friday, had top winds of 60 mph as of Saturday night and is forecast to be near hurricane strength when it approaches the Texas coast on Monday or Tuesday, according to the hurricane center.

Hurricane-force winds begin at 74 mph.

As of 7 p.m. CDT Saturday, Beta was located about 330 miles east-southeast of Corpus Christi, Texas, and was not moving at all, according to the hurricane center.

A storm surge warning was issued for parts of Texas on Saturday, and a tropical storm warning and hurricane watch were also in effect for parts of Texas and Louisiana.

The official forecast path takes Beta slowly toward the Texas coast, then turns the storm to the north and shows its center running near -- or over -- the coast into Louisiana.

Hurricane conditions will be possible along the Texas coast by late Monday, forecasters said.

Heres a look at watches and warnings as of Saturday night:

*A Storm Surge Warning is in effect from Port Aransas to High Island, Texas, including Copano Bay, Aransas Bay, San Antonio Bay, Matagorda Bay and Galveston Bay.

* A Storm Surge Watch is in effect from Baffin Bay to Port Aransas, Texas, including Baffin Bay and Corpus Christi Bay as well as High Island, Texas, to Cameron, La., including Sabine Lake and Lake Calcasieu.

* A Hurricane Watch is in effect from Port Aransas to High Island in Texas.

* A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect from Port Aransas, Texas, to Intracoastal City, La.

* A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect from south of Port Aransas, Texas, to the mouth of the Rio Grande as well as from east of Intracoastal City to Morgan City, La.

ELSEWHERE IN THE ATLANTIC

The National Hurricane Center is tracking Tropical Storm Beta, Hurricane Teddy, Tropical Storm Wilfred and the former Hurricane Paulette.

The hurricane center also continued to track powerful Hurricane Teddy in the central Atlantic on Saturday.

The center of Teddy is forecast to pass to the east of Bermuda, but a tropical storm warning is in effect for the island.

Teddy was a Category 3 hurricane with 120 mph winds on Saturday.

Also out there is Tropical Storm Wilfred, or woeful Wilfred, as the hurricane center called it on Saturday.

Wilfred, which formed on Friday (along with Subtropical Storm Alpha and Beta), had winds of 40 mph and is forecast to become a remnant low in a few days.

Forecasters are also watching the remnants of Hurricane Paulette, which were located near the Azores in the northeast Atlantic on Saturday.

Theres a chance Paulette could pull a 2020 and re-strengthen into a tropical or subtropical depression or storm next week while not moving much.

It had a 60 percent chance of becoming a depression or storm in the next five days, up from 50 percent earlier today.
Savers will next week be able to buy shares in The Hut Group, the latest blockbuster company to hit the London Stock Exchange.

There has been a lot of noise around The Hut's float  perhaps unsurprising given that it is one of the biggest firms to list on the London Stock Exchange in years, and has chosen to list during a particularly dry spell.

Several investment platforms have already seen a flood of interest from savers. The shares began so-called conditional trading on Wednesday morning, meaning people could begin to buy and sell them  though not through an ISA or SIPP. Full trading starts on Monday.

The Hut Group listed at a value of 5.4billion, and has made its founder Matthew Moulding (pictured with wife Jodie) a billionaire on paper.

But in the two days after conditional trading started, The Hut became the fourth most-bought stock on AJ Bell's platform during those 36 hours.

On Thursday afternoon it was the seventh most-viewed stock on Hargreaves Lansdown's platform. And Interactive Investor also reported a significant amount of interest from its customers.

By close of trading on Friday afternoon the shares were at 592p  up 18 per cent from the initial offer price of 500p.

The sums involved in the initial public offering immediately grab the attention  The Hut listed at a value of 5.4billion, and has made its founder Matthew Moulding a billionaire on paper.

But just as much attention has been directed towards the company's governance, which is shaky at best.

Savers will be faced with a quandary come Monday  should they steer clear of The Hut due to its laissez-faire approach to governance? Or will they be missing out on the next Ocado-style money spinner?

The Hut has enjoyed a meteoric rise since it was founded in 2004, when Moulding bought a CD over the internet and was inspired to set up his own online empire.

It now spans all areas of ecommerce. It owns a nutrition line called Myprotein, make-up brands such as Eyeko and Illamasqua, online make-up department store Look Fantastic and make-up subscription service Glossybox.

It also owns two boutique hotels in Manchester and the Hale Country Club and Spa in Cheshire.

On top of brands, the company also owns warehouses and production facilities in the UK, the US and Poland.

And the part that investors are perhaps getting most excited about, and which has led to comparisons with Ocado, is The Hut's Ingenuity division. This part of the company develops online ecommerce technology which it licenses to the likes of Asda and Argos to run their websites.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, points out that The Hut is growing its revenues 'very rapidly'.

He says: 'Its websites, warehouses and delivery network bring a big sprinkle of ecommerce magic dust to the company, especially as it licenses its Ingenuity logistics technology to major consumer giants like Nestle, Procter & Gamble and Johnson & Johnson.

A similar strategy has driven Ocado to share price highs and generated substantial capital gains for investors.'

But there are setbacks. The company's free float  or the proportion of shares which are available to trade and are not being held by long-term investors  is limited. This means the shares may not be easy to buy and sell in a hurry. Profitability is weak.

Mould says: 'Cumulative net losses exceeded 100million from the start of 2017 to June 2020, and ongoing investment does not guarantee that revenue growth will turn into profits.'

Perhaps most worrying is the number of red flags which governance experts have raised.

Moulding is both chairman and chief executive  a practice banned by corporate governance codes, which the company has chosen to shun, since it reduces independent oversight in the boardroom.

He is also the The Hut's landlord  he has bought its properties and is leasing them back for at least 19million a year. And Moulding holds a 'golden share' in the company, giving him an inordinate amount of influence over any big decisions.

The Hut insists this structure allows the company to retain its 'entrepreneurial' spirit which has served it so well, while it says hiving off the properties will help to reduce the debt pile.

Cliff Weight, director of private shareholders' group Sharesoc, says: 'I wouldn't invest my money in this. There's just too many alarm bells.'

Many savers will choose to plough their money into The Hut anyway, dazzled by the success of Ocado and other tech stocks. But those who do should be aware of the risks.
Two teenagers were killed and at least 14 others injured following a mass shooting at a backyard party in Rochester, New York, early Saturday, according to the Rochester Police Department.

The shooting took place on Pennsylvania Avenue around 12:25 a.m. ET, according to authorities. At least 40 rounds were fired, police said.

This is "truly a tragedy of epic proportions," Rochester interim Police Chief Mark Simmons said during a press conference early Saturday morning. "Sixteen victims is unheard of."

The two deceased victims were identified by police as Jarvis Alexander and Jaquayla Young, both 19. They were pronounced dead at the scene, Capt. Frank Umbrino said during a press briefing later on Saturday.

The 14 surviving victims ranged in age from 17 to 23 and were taken to two local hospitals, police said. None of the other victims have suffered life-threatening injuries, police said.

MORE: Rochester unanimously approves subpoena power in Daniel Prude death investigation

At least three or four people fired, Umbrino said, with the gunfight lasting for over a minute. The altercation likely started in the front of the house, he said, with shots fired in the front, back and up the street. Casings were found in a two- to three-block span, the captain said.

"Jaquayla and Jarvis were likely not the intended targets," Umbrino said. "We have two innocent victims here who were attending a party with a few friends."

Police have not identified any suspects.

PHOTO: Police officers investigate a crime scene after a shooting at a backyard party on Sept. 19, 2020, in Rochester, N.Y. (Joshua Rashaad Mcfadden/Getty Images)

Officers are still interviewing witnesses to get more information about how the shooting started and learn more about the suspects, as well as going through video evidence, police said.

"It's going to be a very tedious and long process," Umbrino said. "We need people to come forward and give us what we need to hold those responsible."

It is unclear what precipitated the shooting, Umbrino said, though it appears that an argument "quickly escalated."

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The house party had started small, but grew to upward of 200 people when attendees of two different parties in the neighborhood "started to infiltrate the party where this occurred," Umbrino said.

MORE: Rochester mayor fires police chief amid leadership shake-up over Daniel Prude's death

A witness told Rochester ABC affiliate WHAM that the gunfire sounded "like the Vietnam War."

When police arrived at the scene, Simmons said officers saw 100 people running to and from the location. Two people fleeing the scene were also injured. Up until the 911 call came in for the shooting, there were no calls to complain about the large gathering, he said.

"This tragic act of violence has impacted many people's lives and families," Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren said in a statement provided to WHAM Saturday. "I'm begging everyone to remain calm and exercise deep restraint as RPD investigates what happened here and seeks those responsible."

PHOTO: Police tape lines a crime scene after a shooting at a backyard party on Sept. 19, 2020, in Rochester, N.Y. Two young adults -- a man and a woman -- were reportedly killed, and 14 people were injured in the shooting early Saturday morning. (Joshua Rashaad Mcfadden/Getty Images)

The city of Rochester has been on edge recently with nightly protests following the release of footage that showed the death of 41-year-old Daniel Prude in police custody.

In the video, officers are seen pinning Prude to the ground while a spit bag is on his head, and he eventually appears to go unconscious. Prude died a week later. The Monroe County medical examiner listed his death as a homicide caused by "complications of asphyxia in the setting of physical restraint."

Warren fired Police Chief La'Ron Singletary on Monday.

ABC News' Ivan Pereira contributed to this report.

2 dead, 14 wounded in mass shooting in Rochester, New York originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  A 77-year-old Pennsylvania man will spend five years in a New York state prison for sexually abusing an underage girl on Staten Island.

Freddy Gilstein, of Tobyhanna, was indicted in July 2019 based on an investigation which probed his alleged actions dating back more than a decade.

The indictment accused Gilstein of subjecting a girl under age 13 to at least two acts of sexual conduct between December 2006 and November 2013.

The defendant and victim knew each other, said source with knowledge of the case.

Gilstein was charged with felony counts of course of sexual conduct against a child, and child abuse.

He was also accused of misdemeanor counts of forcible touching, child endangerment and sexual abuse.

Gilstein pleaded guilty on Friday in state Supreme Court, St. George, to attempted first-degree course of sexual conduct against a child to resolve the case.

Besides five years behind bars, Gilstein will be sentenced on Nov. 30 to five years' post-release supervision.

He must also register with state authorities as a sexual offender. A final order of protection will be issued for the victim.

Neither Mr. Gilstein or I have any comment at this time, said defense lawyer Michael Harding.
Before voters cast ballots in November on whether Illinois should move from a flat income tax to a progressive income tax, theyll face a barrage of advertising.

The proposed amendment would replace the states current tax structure for a new plan allowing lawmakers to tax different levels of income at different rates. The tax proposal initially was raised in 2014, but was not passed by the Illinois legislature.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker donated more than $50 million of his own money to a committee supporting the constitutional amendment. Advertisements from AARP and from the group Vote Yes for Fairness supporting the change have been a mainstay on TV for weeks.

One ad claims 97 percent of state residents will pay the same or less in taxes, while people making above $250,000 will pay more. The amendment doesnt include tax rates or income brackets, but lawmakers have approved preliminary rates and brackets that could change over time.

Another ad says a yes vote will raise taxes on the top 3% of wage earners, generating almost $3 billion a year.

Mark Grant, director of the Illinois Small Business Association, said the governor can throw all the money at the ad blitz he wants, but it still is a tough sell.

It happens a lot in the marketplace where bad ideas come about and companies or individuals spend a lot of money trying to get people to purchase something but they dont like it and its the same thing with this, Grant said.

Bryce Hill, senior research analyst with the Illinois Policy Institute, said the money thrown into the campaigns might not convince voters.

I think that Illinoisans have been here before, he said. Weve heard these same promises that all Springfield needs is a little bit more money so we can fix the states finances. I feel pretty confident that the voters see that this has nothing to do with fairness.

The Illinois Secretary of State already has started mailing informational leaflets to Illinois households explaining the amendment to the constitution, with arguments for and against its passage.
The 2020 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) may be coming to an end, but Canadian women in film and television are continuing to speak up about the importance of diverse, inclusive and representative filmmaking in Canada and beyond.

I think we all know that when you don't see yourself, and your stories and your community, reflected in the media you consume, then you tend to believe and accept that you're invisible, actor and filmmaker Jennifer Podemski (Cardinal, Degrassi: The Next Generation, The Other Side) told Yahoo Canada. An audience doesn't really think of anything outside of their own perception of what they're viewing or consuming until you tell them to think about something else.

Anyone who scored tickets for either in-person or virtual film experiences at this years TIFF saw women like Podemski, V.T. Nayani and Sasha Leigh Henry share stories of pushing their way into the room in the film industry through RBCs Women in Film series, which plays ahead of each movie at the festival.

The true testament to the greatest accomplishment would be when we don't need these kinds of campaigns anymore, that its just normal, Podemski said. If it's playing before a movie, let's say TIFF, then it's going to shift the audience perspective into a place where they're now a little bit more open to...being an active witness to those portrayals we're talking about.

Jennifer Podemski (Doug Bedard)

Henry, a writer, director, and producer who worked on Black Bodies, which premiered at the Toronto festival, said having the support of major players like RBC and TIFF is important to bolster the actions of women in the film industry.

Unfortunately, often people on the margins shouting outwards [doesnt] always carry the weight that we want it to, she said. [Its] telling the world that it matters, it further legitimizes it.

Director, producer, and writer Nayani said it is programs and opportunities like this that are able to give filmmakers, producers, writer and actors, especially women and racialized women in particular, a platform where people get to know our name.

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People start to pay attention, she said. We're...trying to kind of climb to a place where people recognize us and honour the work, even though we've been doing it just as long as counterparts that are men.

V.T. Nayani (Travis Pereira)

We struggle just like any other place

In terms of Canadas film industry, Nayani explained that there are federal, provincial and municipal government supports that are missing in other countries, through groups like the National Film Board and Telefilm, but working with those establishments is not without their challenges.

We struggle just like any other place, she said. Especially for women and for Black, Indigenous, other people of colour, for...LGBTQ and disability communities.

You hold so much power and...the decision-making really needs to be equitable and the...community of film needs to be involved, and be able to have a say, especially when a lot of it is public dollars.

Henry described the opportunities for women, particularly racialized women, in the film and television industry as evolving quite slowly and that there is a large layer of the industry that is disconnected to the urgency behind the need for better representation, both in front of and behind the camera.

In Canada in particular, she stressed that television series like Kims Convenience, Transplant and Baroness von Sketch are bigger achievements with their approach to more diverse or women-led stories, but Black women are still very much missing from the Canadian media landscape.

What I hope we're starting to see is that Canadian content can stand on its own, it doesn't always need to play the smaller brother to U.S. content or be echoes of that, she said. We really...[should be] trying to explore more of what we can do to be uniquely Canadian and have that stamp mean something that we're all proud of to stand behind.

Podemski said she has seen a surge in access and opportunities for women in the film industry, including characters on screen, but added that women have come out of this diversity box.

Let's have a discussion about diversity and it's really just women being considered diverse, she explained. That's how far behind we were a couple years ago.

I think things have changed but again, so much more change is needed because the fact that we're still talking about it and celebrating it as if it's such a huge accomplishment is an indication that there's a lot more work to be done.

Image Credit: Women in View

Earlier this week, Podemski announced the anticipated 2021 launch of the Shine Network, an online platform that will act as a cinema space and talent incubator for Indigenous women.

I've been doing this for 30 years and I definitely have come to a place where I'm exhausted, she said. I think that there is a huge problem, and we're looking at the statistics that tell us that Indigenous women are the most underrepresented and underfunded segment of the Canadian industry.

I want the Shine Network to be a platform that reminds Indigenous women that they are not invisible, that they matter and at least provide a space where we can come together to offer those stories and perspectives to other Indigenous women and all Canadians.

Sasha Leigh Henry (Nate Anthony)

I don't always want to talk about social justice

Nayanis upcoming film, This Place, supports her commitment to filmmaking that represents Black, Indigenous other people of colour in a coming-of-age story thats focused on community.

I also want to tell stories of celebration, I don't always want to talk about social justice and the issues that we're facing, she said. I want to see a rom com, I want to see something lighter.

I think people are always coming of age and I want to see the stories of BIPOC communities and individuals coming-of-age at every stage in their life... It goes a long way to...have that lens on our lives in multiple ways.

Nayani said that it is the support of her personal crew that has helped her become better at her craft, and feel supported and valued throughout her career.

Henry has been working hard to be a part of the evolution of diverse, inclusive and representative opportunities for people in the film industry.

As a director, the most opportunities you get are the directing opportunities you create for yourself, she said.

The filmmaker identified local community and grassroots organizations assisted her with being able to create these opportunities for herself and others.

The biggest legs up I've ever received have come from the smallest organizations with the least amount of resources, Henry said.

Her very first short film was made with the support of ArtReach, a sub-grant under Toronto Arts Council. Henry said it specifically targeted people of colour that had an art practice and wanted to evolve their work.

My introduction into the industry in that way made it seem all possible to me very early on because it was working with people that had so little resources, but we're doing so much already, she explained. It was like...well, what am I gonna complain about if this is what we're able to do here?

The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) takes place from Sept. 10 to Sept. 19. Information on screenings and tickets at tiff.net.
The YSRCP MPs are all set to up the ante against the TDP, its president N. Chandra Babu Naidu, son Nara Lokesh and various other TDP leaders who are allegedly resorted to illegal ways of making profits via illegal transactions pertaining to land deals in and around the proposed capital of Amaravati by pushing for a full fledged CBI probe into the matter during the Monsoon session of the Parliament.

The YSRCP MPs are all set to up the ante against the TDP, its president N. Chandra Babu Naidu, son Nara Lokesh and various other TDP leaders who are allegedly resorted to illegal ways of making profits via illegal transactions pertaining to land deals in and around the proposed capital of Amaravati by pushing for a full fledged CBI probe into the matter during the Monsoon session of the Parliament.

On the 29th of June, 2019 , upon receiving multiple complaints pertaining to largescale corruption allegedly carried out by the N. Chandrababu Naidu led TDP government , the Government of Andhra Pradesh setup a Cabinet Sub-Committee to probe into the alleged irregularities connected to a massive scam related to numerous illegal transactions linked to the Amaravati capital region. It is important to note that the TDP government decided to designate Amaravati as the capital city of the newly carved out state of Andhra Pradesh, despite the concerns raised by the Expert Committee under the chairmanship of Sri. KC Siva Ramakrishna.

The Cabinet Sub-Committee found the following irregularities

1) Insider Trading, i.e , persons privy to the likely location of capital purchased lands in the region just prior to the formal official declaration.

2) Certain highly placed individuals procured lands through benami transactions

3) Defining the capital boundary of the capital area to benefit certain connected people, holding lands on the fringes.

4) Fraudulent surrender of Lanka, rogue (Poramboke), Government Lands towards the LPs scheme to receive lands in return

5) Irregularities in land allotment

6) Violation of provisions of AP Assigned Lands Act of 1977

7) Violation of provisions of SC/ST ( Prevention of Atrocities ) Act, 1989

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A verification of registration records revealed that (at least) a whopping 4069.94 acres of land was purchased by persons privy to information of the location of the capital and related benamis, between, 1st June 2014 & 31st December, 2014 at nominal prices. Considering the fact that the then CM , Chandra Babu Naidu declared that the capital was going to come up in Amaravati on the 28th of December , 2014, such widespread purchase of lands by people close to him directly points at insider trading and reveals the fact that information pertaining to the location of that capital was leaked out to suit vested interests.

MONTH-WISE DATA OF THE AMOUNT OF LAND PURCHASED 2014

JUNE : 530.69 ACRES

JULY : 685.34 ACRES

AUGUST : 353.03 ACRES

SEPTEMBER : 567.26 ACRES

OCTOBER : 564.91 ACRES

NOVEMBER : 836.81 ACRES

DECEMBER : 531.90 ACRES.

Starting from the then CM , Chandra Babu Naidu and his family, various prominent TDP leaders and their benamis purchased land during this period. Heres a list of the accused leaders, along with the amount of land purchased :

N. Chandra Babu Naidu & family : The then CM and his family purchased a total of 14.22 acres of land exactly adjacent to the proposed inner ring road of the proposed capital.

Vemuru Ravi Kumar Prasad, a close associate of Nara Lokesh : V. Ravi Praad, a known associate of Nara Lokesh and family purchased a total of 25.68 acres.

Paritala Sunitha ( Former Minister ) : Paritala Sunitha, a former TDP minister purchased lands in the name of her son-in-law , his family member and their company P.R Infra Avenues , the directors of which include Paritala Sunithas son and son-in-law.

Lingamaneni Ramesh, an entrepreneur who is known to be close to Nara Chandra Babu Naidu purchased a total of nearly 80 acres of land, in the name of his companys director Y.Subba Rao and their associates.

Apart from the above mentioned people, evidence of various other TDP leaders like P.Keshav, Lanka Dinakar, K.Sridhar, D. Narendra, K. Rammohan Rao, P.Pulla Rao , Nara Lokesh , K. Siva Prasad D. Narendra Chowdhary and others resorting to insider trading to garner profits, exists.

Evidence proving that the boundary of the capital was altered in order to benefit people like MSP Rama Rao, Kodela Siva Prasad, Lingamaneni Ramesh, Y Sivalinga Prasad and other linked to the then Government and CM was obtained by the Cabinet Sub-Committee. The scam goes to the extent of changing the course of the proposed inner ring road in order to benefit close confidantes, says the Cabinet Sub-Committee report. The report further goes onto say that a total of 60 people who are directly linked to TDP leaders tried to buy assigned lands from the assignees in the region while some even went to the extent of threatening or intimidating them in the process. Known associates of Nara Lokesh, Gummadi Suresh and B Srinivasa Rao are a part of this list.

It was based on the above mentioned irregularities and sets of evidence that the Cabinet Sub-Committee recommended the Government to immediately take appropriate steps under the civil and criminal laws to bring the wrong doers to book in the larger interest of the state.

Read Also: PM Modi urges people to maintain Do Gaj Ki Doori as his birthday gift
Ireland's top writers, as well as members of Purple House's writing course, have contributed to the charity's anthology of writing.

'The music of What Happens' also includes an unpublished story by the late Emma Hannigan, whose family contributed the piece.

In 2020, Purple House, one of Ireland's most beloved and important cancer support charities celebrates its 30th anniversary. So valued are the services of the charity and so ubiquitous are the effects of cancer that nearly 50 Irish writers have contributed a story, essay or poem to this anthology.

All proceeds will fund cancer support services for families in Ireland.

Purple House headquarters on Duncairn Terrace received a delivery of the book last week. It is available in bookshops as well as at purplehouse.ie.

Purple House was the first community-based cancer support centre in Ireland and is to the forefront in providing psycho-social support, psychological help and practical support to people living with a cancer diagnosis.

Some of the writers to have contributed to the book include David Butler, Lisa Harding, Susan Knight, Breda Wall Ryan, Ferdia Man Anna, Roisin O'Donnell and more, as well as Brendan and Veronica O'Leary.
With many MPs and Ministers testing positive for COVID-19 in the last week, the monsoon session of the Parliament is likely to be curtailed and may end by the middle of next week, reports suggest.

Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari, Prahlad Patel are among those who contracted COVID-19 earlier this week. Both attended the ongoing session which began on September 14.

At a meeting of the business advisory committee of Lok Sabha, which has floor leaders of all parties besides the government representatives and is chaired by the Speaker, most political parties favoured curtailment of the session, which started on September 14 and was scheduled to conclude on October 1.

A final decision will be taken by the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs.

The Lok Sabha has so far passed three Bills to replace agriculture sector related ordinances. Also, both the Houses have cleared a bill to replace an ordinance for cutting by 30 per cent the salaries of MPs to ramp up funds in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

In pics: Celebrities and politicians who have tested positive for novel coronavirus

Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.

As many as 17 Lok Sabha Members of Parliament (MPs) and eight Rajya Sabha MPs had tested positive for COVID-19 on the first day of the Monsoon Session.

Several MPs had also tested positive for COVID-19 around the time the session began and they were advised not to attend proceedings.

Read: Parliaments Monsoon Session: 25 MPs test positive for COVID-19 on Day 1

As per new protocol put in place by the government to curb the spread of COVID-19, MPs, reporters and parliamentary staff entering the Parliament complex will have to undergo mandatory antigen test on a daily basis. Since the report of the much reliable RT-PCR takes time, antigen test has been made mandatory on a daily basis.

Government officials accompanying their respective ministers during bill discussions also have to show a negative report of-PCR test taken within the last 72 hours of their visit to the complex.

Track this LIVE blog for all the latest updates on coronavirus pandemic

During the current 18-day Monsoon Session which started from September 14 under the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic, many firsts have been witnessed, including sitting of the two Houses in shifts without any off day and entry only to those having a negative COVID-19 report and compulsory wearing of masks.

The first-of-its-kind Monsoon Session is conducted with Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha sitting in two different shifts with special seating arrangements for MPs in adherence to social distancing guidelines.

The Upper and Lower House, together, have more than 780 members at present. Seats of MPs in both chambers have been partitioned using plastic sheets.

For making the entire Parliament complex a safe zone in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Rajya Sabha Chairman Naidu had earlier held a series of extensive discussions with officials of the Home Ministry, Health Ministry, ICMR and the DRDO.

As many as 93,337 new COVID-19 cases and 1,247 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours, according to data from the Union Health Ministry. Total confirmed COVID-19 cases in India have risen to 53,08,014.
As people gear up for the upcoming festive season in the midst of the global pandemic, News18 India has lined up special programming Shri Ram Roop to usher in the festivities and spread cheer. The special series will keep the viewers positively engaged and entertained by narrating untold tales and mystic legends associated with Shri Ram.

Anchored by Kishore Ajwani, Managing Editor, News18 India, the special line-up will take the viewers on an enthralling journey with each episode showcasing numerous sides of Shri Ram and many age old tales for the first time on television. Shot in documentary style, the series will travel the length and breadth of the country to bring to life innumerable stories associated with Shri Ram. Special shows such as Ram Lalla and Ram ka Yodha Roop will capture Shri Rams childhood, his upbringing & education and his valiant encounters with rakhasas, respectively. The latter will also showcase locations in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh where such battles took place. The series will also follow his encounters with his most devout followers such as Hanuman, Sugrivs Vanar Sena and Shabri amongst others in Bhakton ke Ram; and visiting historical sites such as Nasik and Rameshwaram where celebrated temples of Shiva were constructed by Shri Ram, in Shiv Bhakt Ram.

The concluding episode of the series will take viewers to Orchha where it is believed Lord Rams coronation took place 500 years ago by local king. It will further showcase his virtuous rule as a king, while prominently featuring the famous Raja Ram temple in the city. Remembering the stories associated with these places, the show promises to present a gripping narrative which will be both informative and engaging.

With a carefully crafted content strategy and an array of most seasoned anchors, News18 India has always been working towards delivering the best and most diverse content to the viewers. With Ram Roop we will continue to further this approach of providing truly distinct content to our viewers..

Watch Shri Ram Roop, from 19th September onwards, every Saturday & Sunday at 9 PM only on News18 India
A RUGBY fan has been awarded 6,000 damages after a painful bang on the head from a level crossing barrier as he made his way to a Leinster-Munster match at the Aviva stadium.

Iarnrod Eireann failed in its duty of care and was liable for what occurred, Judge Deirdre Gearty held at Dublin District Court yesterday/today (fri).

Dublin Fire Brigade paramedic Rod Hayden sued after he was hit by a descending barrier as he was walked among a crowd of supporters making their way to the derby on Oct. 6, 2018.

Mr Hayden, of Herbert Park, Bray, Co. Wicklow, told the contested hearing he approached the automatic gates of the Dart crossing at Serpentine Avenue, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4, and waited for them to rise.

He told William Fitzgerald BL he then proceeded but before he got across he suffered a bang which knocked him rolling on the ground holding his head.

He recalled he got a bit of a shock and he was dazed. He also noticed other people were still on the tracks between the closed barriers.

There was a man in a high-vis jacket at the level crossing but he did not hear any warning.

Afterwards he had extra neck pain and headache which got so bad he went to his GP. He was told he had whiplash and to take pain killers.

He went to the doctor twice but by January 2019 he no longer suffered symptoms.

CCTV footage was shown to the judge.

Questioned by Iarnrod Eireanns counsel Brendan Savage, Mr Hayden said he crossed when the barriers went up. He did not hear a warning buzzer or see warning lights.

As a fire-fighter paramedic for 17 years, he was trained to pay attention, he said.

He agreed with Mr Savage that sometimes people have to take extra care and said that through his work he conducts dynamic risk assessments and gets alerted by a buzzer.

He told the court he was observant and he tended not to do stupid things like scale through barriers.

Engineer Neil OCarroll examined the scene later. He told the court that once the first barrier went up, pedestrians had six seconds before the second one started to come down. However, a crowd moved slower.

The expert witness said the sound of the signal was also particularly low; it was a buzzer and not like a klaxon. He thought it was fine on a normal day but not very alarming in the context of a match crowd.

He took a recording of the buzzer and found it was not as loud as the sound of passing cars. He told the court the plaintiff would not have been able to see the lights.

One attendant managed the danger zone and it was not sufficient to to control the flow of traffic and pedestrians, the witness said.

Because it was a match day, Iarnrod Eireann hired a security firm to have two attendants manage people and traffic at the crossing.

One of them admitted he had moved out of position and he should have stopped the people.

Legal costs, medical and witness expenses were awarded to the plaintiff.
Anti-government protesters walk over barriers at the Royal Grounds in Bangkok after taking them down, Sept. 19, 2020.

Tens of thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators converged in the heart of Bangkok on Saturday despite rain showers as they began two days of protests to demand the governments dissolution, a new constitution and reforms to the monarchy.

Protest organizers and police estimated Saturdays crowd to be more than 100,000, making it one of the largest anti-government protests to take place here since tumultuous street demonstrations rocked the Thai capital in the lead-up to a military coup six years ago. International news services the Associated Press and Agence France-Press estimated the crowd to be between 20,000 and 30,000, which still puts the turnout among the highest for a protest here since 2014.

The gathering was the latest in a series of youth-led protests, which began in mid-July against the government of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha.

After gathering at the Bangkok campus of Thammasat University  where a crowd of demonstrators forced their way through a locked gate (see video)  the protesters crossed the street to the Royal Grounds near the Grand Palace where a stage was set up for speeches by rally leaders.

The fight doesnt end in one day so all people must participate, Parit Chiwarak, a Thammasat student and protest leader who is nicknamed The Penguin, told journalists. We came to the Royal Grounds with our hands up to show that we are unarmed, so there will not be a clash.

The Bangkok Metropolitan Police deputy commander, meanwhile, said officers were lenient with the protesters following the advice of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha.

So far the protest has gone on without violence even though the protesters pushed away the security railing at the Royal Grounds, police Maj. Gen. Piya Tawichai told reporters, referring to barriers that had blocked entry to a field that takes up most of the grounds.

By Saturday night, the crowds size had diminished but many of the protestors pitched tents in the field where they planned to stay overnight.

The Royal Grounds, known as Sanam Luang in Thai, have been closed to the public since the cremation of King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX) in October 2017. The protesters are calling for reform of the monarchy now led by his heir, King Maha Vajiralongkorn (Rama X).

Anti-government protesters walk past a portrait of King Maha Vajiralongkorn in a Bangkok street, Sept. 19, 2020. [Nontarat Phaicharoen/BenarNews]

I reaffirm here: the monarchy is not an obstacle to democracy. Other countries such as England, Spain, Sweden and Denmark have royals and democracy, but Thailands king has too much power, Parit said.

Activist Sirawit Serithiwat, a former Thammasat student, said he was invited to join the protest because he and student organizers believed in the same ideology.

Since the 2014 coup, the fallout remains  the retention of power, he said from the protest stage, referring to the coup detat that brought Prayuth to power.

Prayuth, a retired general, was the top commander of the Royal Thai Army when he led the overthrow of the democratically elected government of Yingluck Shinawatra.

People are fed up with it. We cant retake the democracy despite holding a new election, so we are exerting our power to oust the government, Sirawit told BenarNews.

Prayuth retained power as prime minister after the 2019 general election and a rewriting of the constitution that allowed 250 hand-picked senators to vote for the top government office.

Organizers of the protest said they were planning to march on Sunday to Government House, where Prayuth and other government officials have offices.

Srinakharinwirot University student Nut Kritanon said he joined the protesters at a rally last month because he worried about what he described as the governments abuse of power. He said he needed to speak up even though he feared government retaliation.

I think the military has too much power and is counter-productive to the nation. When military leaders enter politics, they dont listen to the people, unlike representatives who at least care for their constituents, he told BenarNews. I came out because I want the military to stop undertaking coups and stay out of politics.

The Bangkok Post reported that Thai expatriates on Saturday also participated in coordinated flash mobs across the world including in Tokyo, Sydney, Los Angeles, New York, Paris and Berlin in a show of support for the demonstrators.

Organizers chose this weekend for the rally to mark the 14th anniversary of the overthrow of then-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on Sept. 19, 2006, and to symbolically call for no more military coups. Yingluck Shinawatra is his younger sister.

In a posting on his Facebook page marking the anniversary without specifically mentioning the rally, Thaksin said, It is time for us to adjust our way of thinking, adding, the world is not the same. Both Thaksin and his sister are living in exile.

Thai protest leaders Parit Chiwarak (left), Suwanna Tanlek (center) and Sirawit Serithiwat (right) direct anti-government demonstrators onto the Royal Grounds in Bangkok, Sept. 19, 2020. [Nontarat Phaicharoen/BenarNews]

Protest preparations

In the days leading up to the rally, organizers said they expected crowds of 70,000 to 100,000 while authorities said 10,000 police would be on duty to maintain the peace.

On Thursday, Prayuth warned that a large-scale gathering could lead to a spread of COVID-19  Thailand has seen about 3,500 cases since the outbreak began.

When you gather in mobs you are creating an enormous risk of new infections, the prime minister said on Sept. 17. And with that, you also create enormous risk to the livelihoods of tens of millions of fellow Thais.

Protesters wore facemasks and many had their temperature checked when they arrived at the university.

The demonstrations began on July 18 when thousands gathered at the Democracy Monument in Bangkok while thousands more gathered the next day in northern Chiang Mai province.

Since then, pro-democracy crowds have gathered across the nation in a series of protests. During an Aug. 10 rally, demonstrators released a list of 10 demands including a call to diminish the power of the monarchy through a change to the constitution.

Prior to this weekends events, police arrested 14 activists on a series of charges including sedition, organizing gatherings of 10 or more people to incite unrest, and leading mass gatherings that could spread COVID-19, while 15 others turned themselves in to law enforcers. Arnon Nampa, a human rights lawyer and a leader of the protests, has been arrested three times.
Kannada actresses Ragini Dwivedi and Sanjjanaa Galrani's bail hearing, which was supposed to happen today (September 24), will now be held tomorrow (September 25). According to reports, NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) special court in Bengaluru has adjourned the hearing after being requested by CCB officials.

For the unversed, CCB arrested Ragini Dwivedi and Sanjjanaa Galrani, earlier this month, for having a connection with the ongoing Sandalwood drug racket case. They were hoping to be out on bail on September 24, but nothing happened. The actresses allegedly had contacts with peddlers and suspected to consume drugs earlier in the parties.

On the other hand, Akul Balaji and Aryann Santhosh appeared in front of the CCB officials after they were issued summons yesterday. The former Bigg Boss Kannada 2 contestants had said that they will cooperate with the CCB officials, and are ready to answer all the questions.

Also Read : Sandalwood Drug Racket: Ragini Dwivedi Can't Sleep In Jail Due To Mosquito Menace: Reports

Before entering CCB office, Akul Balaji told media that he will supply all the information that the officials want from him. On the other hand, Aryann Santhosh revealed that he had trusted some of the accused who are currently in custody. He rented out his property to them. Aryann quoted media that he was shocked after learning about their connection with the drug case.

Also Read : Sandalwood Drug Racket: Ragini Dwivedi And Sanjjanaa Galrani To Stay In Custody For 3 More Days
This post has been updated with information from a New York City Department of Education employee.

Its been a rough week for the millions of children, parents, educators, and city officials involved in the reopening of New York City schools.

After grappling with a shortage of teachers and buildings that are not ventilated well enough to deter transmission of coronavirus, the nations largest school district again delayed the start of in-person learning.

The [New York City] Department of Education has put P.S. 125 and many other schools in the city in an impossible situation, Tamara Tucker, president of the parents association at P.S. 125 in Morningside Heights, which serves students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade, told Yahoo Finance. And I don't want to penalize the schools for being hamstrung like that.

The city provided parents with three main options for students starting the fall school year: in-person, fully virtual, or a combination of the two (known as blended). About 42% of public school students opted for fully remote learning, according to the latest Education Department (ED) data, and the other 58% opted for the blended instruction.

Students return for their first day of in-class schooling following the pandemic at New York City's Preschool of the Arts, having their temperatures checked before proceeding into the school, Tuesday, 15 September 2020. (PHOTO: B.A. Van Sise/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Virtual learning started on Wednesday. But in-person and blended schooling, which was originally scheduled to start on September 10 and then delayed until September 21, will now be staggered and begin on October 1 for middle and high school students.

The demands placed on schools to staff these classes are heavy: Principals said they simply didnt have enough teachers or the resources to hire additional teachers for these three models of learning.

It was clear to me from the day they announced this whole system in June that there wouldn't be enough teachers to do what they were asking us to do, a Brooklyn-based principal, who asked not to be named to avoid professional retaliation, told Yahoo Finance. So many of us principals have been saying for months that there are not enough teachers to run it the way that they're talking about running it.  we all knew that they couldn't deliver.

Story continues

On Tuesday night, New York City officials announced that parents who chose the blended option  meaning students would spend part of the week in school and the other part online with virtual classes  would not actually be guaranteed any virtual instruction when theyre not in school given staffing issues.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio in New York City, New York, U.S., June 23, 2020. (PHOTO: REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs)

The most upsetting part is the lack of transparency from the mayor and the chancellor, a Brooklyn-based high school English teacher, who asked not to be named, told Yahoo Finance. Since we initially went remote in March, I have found out about most of these important changes via Twitter, which is ridiculous.  I don't even take these updates seriously anymore because I know they'll likely be a new contradictory one a few days from now, so why bother?

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said that the city would hire 2,500 additional teachers. But in the race to hire, an underlying structural issue surfaced: There just arent enough teachers around.

What other industry would be allowed to operate this way and make decisions this way? Tucker said. It just seems mind boggling.  I don't know how to hold anybody accountable. I don't understand, there's just no repercussions for this like completely backwards decision making.

A New York City ED employee told Yahoo Finance that the city is actually looking to redeploy ED staff who were previously teachers to help with the teacher shortage the city. According to the ED, the redeployment period would be temporary and end on Dec. 31, 2020  unless both the ED and the United Federation of Teachers labor union agree to an extension.

(Source: New York Department of Education)

Lack of leadership led to impossible situation

On Thursday, more chaos ensued as parents across the city learned that they wouldnt be sending their children to school next week.

The entire fiasco is due to the lack of leadership, Daniel Friedrich, an associate professor at Columbia Universitys Teachers College and a parent of children in the New York City school system, told Yahoo Finance. We shouldn't be in this business to begin with  there was a lack of action from the administration in general, to address the epidemic  [and on top of that] the chancellor and the mayor here in many ways failed to act throughout summer.

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Teachers Federation, the second-largest teachers union in the country, stressed that the lack of mandates or federal guidance and lack of funding for school complicated the situation once the fall came around.

I'm sorry that I sound so angry about all of this stuff, but all of this was foreseeable to anyone who is a schools person, Weingarten told Yahoo Finances First Trade (video above). This is part of the reason why we started fighting for how to reopen schools and the resources back in April.

Cases are up significantly in Wyoming, Wisconsin, Connecticut, and Puerto Rico. (Graphic: David Foster/Yahoo Finance)

Weingarten asserted that Education Secretary Betsy DeVos could have created all sorts of other mandates or guidance for planning and for resources, but simply didnt.

Look what is happening in terms of resources in schools, and you tell me that kids are priorities, Weingarten said. They're not priorities to this administration. And I'm sorry I'm angry about it, but how can we rush to help a cruise industry, bars and restaurants, which I think are really important, but not rush to get the resources for kids? Why is it that ventilation and soap, which should have been important forever, are now only important?  they are trying to actually undermine public education.

New York Citys experience is being closely watched since its not only the biggest school district in the country, but also one of the few to resume in-person instruction amid the pandemic. Los Angeles County, the second biggest district, opted for remote learning until November but is making exceptions for small classes for some children with special needs,

Virtual learning is also the primary option for students across Chicago, Miami, Houston, and others, according to a tracker compiled by Education Week. DeVos continues to push for in-person schooling. During a recent press conference on Monday at a school in Grand Rapids, Mich., she called the lack of in-person learning a real tragedy for children.

U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos attends a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic response event about reopening schools hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington, U.S., August 12, 2020. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Theyre heroes and theyre underpaid and overworked

The pressure on teachers, meanwhile, is relentless.

We get a lot of crap from other people saying, Oh, well you guys are lazy. You dont want to go to work, a second grade teacher in Brooklyn, who asked not to be named to avoid retaliation, told Yahoo Finance. We did more  we went above and beyond because we care and love our students and we dont get the support that we should get financially.

The citys leadership is not in tune with whats happening in schools, she added. And theyre not in tune with what the rest of the city looks like.

A teacher conducts a lesson with students during an outdoor learning demonstration for New York City schools in front of the Patrick F. Daly public school (P.S. 15) on September 2, 2020 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

Seventh grade English teacher Kelly Walker, who teaches at a school in Long Island City in Queens, is one of the relatively lucky teachers in the city right now.

Im really in a good position, to be honest, she said in an interview. I work for a really great admin, so theyve been really on top of their game.

She added that I have friends teaching all over this city [and] its been absurd that on a day to day basis It makes it kind of impossible for principals and administrators to be able to plan sufficiently.

A teacher works outside a school building for safety reasons, as preparations begin for the delayed start of the school year, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, U.S., September 14, 2020. (PHOTO: REUTERS/Brendan McDermid)

Lawrence Mishel, a labor market economist at the Economic Policy Institute, noted that 10 years ago, teachers were being vilified  they were put on the cover of magazines as being lazy. Now, as teachers serve on the front lines of the pandemic, there is a better appreciation that teachers. Theyre heroes. And theyre underpaid and overworked, and they face tremendous challenges and none more than during the pandemic.

Friedrich, the Columbia University Teachers College professor and parent, stressed that society has to make sure to not put too much pressure on the people instructing children.

Teachers are not priests, he said. They're not there to save the world and sacrifice themselves, right? This is not a religious colony. Teaching is a job and you shouldn't have to give up your life for, or your job.



Aarthi Swaminathan and Reggie Wade are reporters for Yahoo Finance. Janna Herron contributed to this story.

Aarthi can be reached at aarthi@yahoofinance.com and rwade@verizonmedia.com. Follow them on Twitter at @aarthiswami and @ReggieWade.

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Trump, in brief remarks to reporters after learning of Ginsburgs death, called her an amazing woman who led an amazing life. He had continued with a campaign speech in Minnesota for about an hour and a half after the nation  as well as aides and many in his audience with cell phones  had learned of her death. He seemed surprised when he spoke with reporters afterward, saying he did not know she had died.
OTTAWA  Canadians will continue to suffer because of delays in getting tests and treatment if the federal government doesnt boost health transfer payments to provinces, says Premier Brian Pallister.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 18/9/2020 (490 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA  Canadians will continue to suffer because of delays in getting tests and treatment if the federal government doesnt boost health transfer payments to provinces, says Premier Brian Pallister.

"Right now, millions of Canadians are waiting for an appointment, for a test, for consequential treatment, for surgery. Those delays are painful. A lump that isn't diagnosed is not fun," Pallister told reporters in Ottawa on Friday.

The postponing of medical procedures during the lockdown at the start of the coronavirus pandemic offered a sneak peek of what an underfunded health system looks like, he said.

Canadians will continue to suffer if the federal government doesnt boost health transfer payments to provinces, Premier Brian Pallister says. (Sean Kilpatrick / The Canadian Press)

"Every single day, right now in Canada, there are people who fear directly the consequences of delay."

Pallister joined other premiers to hammer out their demands ahead of Wednesday's federal throne speech. Pallister, Ontario Premier Doug Ford, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney and Quebec Premier Francois Legault met in person in Ottawa, while the other premiers joined the meeting virtually.

They want Ottawa to pay $70 billion for health care annually, or 35 per cent of the cost. It currently pays $42 billion, which is about 22 per cent. The provinces spend $188 billion a year on health care.

The premiers are also calling on Ottawa to expand the fiscal stabilization program, which provides help to provinces facing a year-over-year decline in non-resource revenues.

The program has not changed since 1995 and the money available to eligible provinces is capped at $60 per resident. The premiers are asking for that cap to be lifted.

"Alberta's been there for Canada, now Canada has to be there for Alberta and other provinces that are facing the greatest economic and fiscal challenge since the Great Depression," Kenney said at the news conference.

Premier Brian Pallister (right) met with Quebec Premier Francois Legault (from right), Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Alberta Premier Jason Kenney in Ottawa on Friday. (Sean Kilpatrick / The Canadian Press)

The premiers want Ottawa to pump another $10 billion into infrastructure each year for the next 10 years, with flexibility for the provinces to spend the money according to their own priorities.

The federal government, which is giving provinces and territories $19 billion, including $10 billion for health care to help them cope with the fallout from the pandemic, gave a tepid response to the premiers' demands.

Click to Expand Pallister in Ottawa Premier Brian Pallister is visiting the nation's capital at a time when the region is facing a second wave of COVID-19 infections. Ottawa recorded 61 new cases on Friday. "I have several meetings lined up next week with cabinet ministers, the prime minister, on a number of fronts," he told reporters during a conference call. The premier refused to elaborate on his schedule next week, saying he wanted to focus Friday on the need for an improved health funding arrangement with Ottawa. However, he did say he would prod the federal government to introduce its promised paid sick leave program to encourage people to stay home when they're ill and not be penalized for following public health advice regarding the coronavirus. Pallister said earlier this month that he intended to raise the need for federal funding for upgrades to Winnipeg's North End sewage treatment plant when he visited Ottawa. As for travelling to a COVID-19 hot spot, Pallister remarked: "We have to learn to live with COVID. We have to be able to do our jobs. We have to be able to protect one another. We can't learn to live with COVID if we hide in a clothes closet some place." The premier's staff has not released his itinerary for the trip.

"We've said that we're happy to meet with them and we're happy to discuss that subject... but the priority that premiers attach to an accessible, high-quality health care system is one that we share," said Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominc LeBlanc.

Later Friday, in a phone conference with Manitoba media, Pallister would not specify how he would spend the extra money, which would be $1 billion for Manitoba, if Ottawa fulfils the premiers' request.

"Our focus is going to continue to be on improving frontline services," the premier said.

NDP Leader Wab Kinew said the premier should reveal the precise use of the new funding if he wants Ottawa to get on board.

"I don't think too many people believe that were Ottawa to send more money to this premier that it would actually translate into improved health care," Kinew said.

"For him to shed crocodile tears is not credible because he's the guy who closed emergency rooms and cut CancerCare."

LeBlanc said he was puzzled the premiers got together a week after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had pledged to meet with them this fall to discuss health transfers.

"What was a surprise for us is that they came to Ottawa today. Take yes for an answer," said LeBlanc.

In his first news conference since taking over the portfolio, LeBlanc struck a more combative tone than his predecessor Chrystia Freeland.

He noted Kenney was part of the Harper government that curtailed health transfers in 2007.

There is unused infrastructure money already available to the provinces, says Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs Dominic LeBlanc. (Justin Tang / The Canadian Press)

The Manitoba Liberals also pointed out that Pallister voted for that measure as a former MP.

LeBlanc pushed back on the premiers demands on infrastructure, noting provinces have been slow to take existing cost-shared programs.

"Lets start by properly investing the billions of dollars that remain unallocated," he said, noting an offer by the federal government in August to fast-track shovel-ready projects and more generously fund them.

"Once that envelope has been drawn down, and they have other needs, of course wed be happy to talk about them."

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca
The bosses of some of Britains best-known restaurants and bars last night warned a second national lockdown would devastate the industry and lead to a million more job losses.

They said a two-week circuit-breaker lockdown in October would cripple hospitality firms, which are only just recovering from life support.

Will Beckett, chief executive of Hawksmoor, said further lockdowns will be financially disastrous for most, and terminal for many, adding: It will mean huge losses for the weeks we are closed, and reopens all the difficulties over rents with landlords.

The bosses of some of Britains best-known restaurants and bars last night warned a second national lockdown would devastate the industry and lead to a million more job losses. A waitress is pictured above in a pub in Chessington, Greater London

Restaurateur Des Gunewardena, chief executive of the D&D London group that owns Le Pont de la Tour, 20 Stories and Bluebird, said: If Ministers tell people to eat out to save the economy in August, then stay at home in September, it looks as though they are panicking and dont know what they are doing.

Around 900,000 hospitality employees are still on furlough.

Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UK Hospitality, said: Without any additional Government support in a second lockdown, thats the potential number of jobs that are at risk.

Even the businesses that have done well are only just breaking even.

Martin Wolstencroft, the chief executive of bar chain Arc Inspirations, said a two-week lockdown would cost him 1.5 million in lost sales from his 17 bars in the North and force him to make further job cuts.

He said: We shouldnt be penalised for the shortcomings of others who are tarnishing the industrys reputation and making the Government take away peoples civil liberties.

Entrepreneur Jonathan Downey, who is closing his Soho bar Milk & Honey this month, said: This will just be another million jobs gone. Its like shooting the wounded.
By Express News Service

MUMBAI: Dalit leader Prakash Ambedkar opposed the construction of his grandfather BR Ambedkars memorial at Indu mill in Mumbai. Incidentally, the Maharashtra government on Friday postponed the foundation stone laying ceremony of Ambedkar statue amid reports that several leaders, including Prakash Ambedkar and NCP chief Sharad Pawar, were not invited for the event.

Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray, however, clarified that the ceremony was cancelled due to some confusion and that the function would be held after consulting all stakeholders. There is no bias against any political party or organisation, he said.

But Prakash said he is against installations of statues be it of any individual. Instead of the memorial, some intellectual centre should be developed at the sprawling location. Former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had proposed to use the Indu mill location for an international school of studies, he said. I hope the CM ponders over Atal jis proposal.
Kangana Ranaut, in her latest tweets on Twitter, has claimed that Hindi Film Industry is not the top Film Industry in the country. She also went on to attempt to prove the claim by listing all the reforms needed in the film community. Kangana also requested that all "film industries in India be brought under one roof."

Kangana started the conversation about the need for reforms in the industry by applauding Yogi Adityanath's decision to start the biggest film city in Noida. She wrote, "People's perception that top film industry in India is Hindi film Industry is wrong. Telugu film industry has ascended itself to the top position and now catering films to pan India in multiple languages, many hindi films being shot in Ramoji Hyderabad."

In another tweet, Kangana also claimed Hollywood releases take advantage of the situation in our country. "We need many reforms in the film industry first of all we need one big film industry called Indian film industry we are divided based on many factors, Hollywood films get advantage of this. One industry but many Film Cities Thumbs up."

Best of dubbed regional films dont get pan India relase but dubbed Hollywood films get mainstream relase its alarming. Reason is the atrocious quality of most Hindi films and their monopoly over theatre screens also media created aspirational imagine for Hollywood films.  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) September 19, 2020

The Manikarnika actress reached out to PM Narendra Modi and called for action. She wrote, "Films have an ability to bring the entire nation together but @PMOIndia let's first please bring these many industries together who have individual identities but not a collective identity please join them together like Akhand Bharat and we will make it number one in the world Folded hands."

The actress also said, "regional films don't get pan India release but dubbed Hollywood films get the mainstream release it's alarming."

Kangana listed the various kinds of terrorism that have taken over the industry. She included terms like Nepotism, Drug Mafia, Sexism, religious and regional, Foreign films, Piracy, Labourer's exploitation and Talent exploitation in the list.

We need to save the industry from various terrorists

1) Nepotism terrorism

2) Drug Mafia terrorism

3) Sexism terrorism

4) religious and regional terrorism

5) Foreign films terrorism

6) Piracy terrorism

7) Labourers exploitation terrorism

8) Talent exploitation terrorism  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) September 19, 2020

Kangana Ranaut Deletes Tweets, Blocks Journalist After Being Condemned For Threatening Him

Vikram Bhatt On Kangana Ranaut: She Will Not Be Completely Boycotted
India recorded 93,337 cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) and 1,247 deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the countrys tally past 5.3 million, according to the Union health ministry on Saturday. The health ministrys dashboard showed at 8am that there were 1,013,964 active cases of Covid-19 and the death toll has risen to 85,619.

The health ministry said on Saturday that India has overtaken the United States to become No 1 in terms of global Covid-19 recoveries. According to the ministry, there are now 4,208,431 people who have been cured of the viral disease after 95,880 patients were discharged between Friday and Saturday. The recovery rate is now 79.28%.

India, the second worst-hit country in the world, has been reporting daily recoveries of more than 70,000 since the past 11 days. The government said on Friday that recovered cases are 4.04 times the number of active cases. The top five states with high active caseload are also the ones which are presently reporting a high level of recoveries, it added.

There were 59.8% of active cases being reported from Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh. These states are also contributing to 59.3% of the total recoveries. It said 90% of the new recoveries are reported from 16 states and U territories.

Maharashtra (19,522) contributed 22.31% of the new recoveries while Andhra Pradesh (12.24%), Karnataka (8.3%), Tamil Nadu (6.31%) and Chhattisgarh (6.0%) followed with 32.8% of the new recoveries. These states together contribute 55.1% of total new recoveries, the health ministry said.

The government attributed the continuous streak of a very high level of recoveries to the effective clinical management and treatment protocols issued by the Centre. The Ministry of Health in active collaboration with AIIMS has been conducting the National e-ICU on COVID-19 Management exercise which handholds ICU doctors of State/UT hospitals through the Centers of Excellence. Held twice a week, on Tuesday and Friday, these sessions have played a major role in Indias substantial rate of recovering and declining case fertility rate. So far, 19 such National e-ICUs have been held covering 249 hospitals of 28 States/UTs across the country, it said.

India has also allowed for rational use of Investigational Therapies like Remdesevir, convalescent plasma and Tocilizumab and adopted measures such proning, use of high flow oxygen, non-invasive ventilation, use of steroids and anti-coagulants to aid recovery in COVID patients. Supervised home isolation, improved services of the ambulances for ferrying patients for prompt and timely treatment have enabled seamless and efficient patient management, it added.

The countrys case fatality rate (CFR) was at 1.62%, according to the health ministry on Friday.

According to the Johns Hopkins UNiversitys coronavirus tracker, there are 30,397,759 Covid-19 cases and 950,493 people have died because of the viral disease globally.
India has allowed the export of onions lying on ports in transit to all countries including Bangladesh, government sources said on Friday.In the Kolkata zone, there are 20,089 metric tonnes of onion lying on the port while in Mumbai-II zone, 4,576 metric tonnes of the commodity are kept, sources said. In other places like Trichy and Nagpur, 933 and around 258 metric tonnes of onion are lying on these ports respectively, they added.

The development comes after Bangladesh had expressed deep concern over Indias decision to ban onion exports, according to media reports.

The central government on Monday banned the export of all varieties of onions except those cut, sliced or broken in powder form, with immediate effect, in an apparent move aimed at increasing domestic supply and reducing the prices.Last October, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had jokingly said she asked her cook to not add onion while preparing food and lamented that her country has been inconvenienced by Indias decision to ban exports of onion in September. The ban was subsequently lifted in March this year.

We have been inconvenienced with the ban on onion exports. If you had given a notice to us, we could have got it from somewhere else. I have instructed my cook not to put onion while preparing food. If you want to do such a thing, then do let us know at the earliest, Hasina had said at an event in the national capital while she was on an official visit to India.Indias move to ban exports of onions earlier this week has shot up prices of the kitchen staple in Bangladesh. Apart from this, hundreds of Bangladesh-bound onion trucks were stranded at various ports and land borders in West Bengal.

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Standing outside of El Patron, a restaurant in Worcesters Canal District, U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern took aim at his Republican colleagues in Congress, specifically Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell.

McGovern expressed confidence the U.S. House would be able to pass the RESTAURANTS Act to provide financial help to establishments that are bracing for a winter without outdoor dining. But without senate approval, the bill helps no one.

We have to get it through the United States Senate, McGovern said. And if it were to move there, it would require Mitch McConnell to get off his ass and take up something that is important to the American people.

McGovern is a co-sponsor of the RESTAURANTS Act, which is a $120 billion grant program to provide relief to restaurants through the end of the year.

The program would be administered by the Department of the Treasury and available to food service or drinking establishments, including caterers, that are not publicly traded or part of a chain with 20 or more locations doing business under the same name.

The grant values would cover the difference between a restaurants revenue from 2019 and to the projected revenues of this year.

Recipients of the Paycheck Protection Program or businesses that received Economic Injury Disaster Loan funding would have to subtract the forgivable funding they received from those programs from the potential grant values of the RESTAURANT Act.

The grants from the RESTAURANTS Act do not need to be paid back. The funding can be used for payroll (not including employee compensation exceeding $100,000 per year), benefits, mortgage, rent, utilities, maintenance, supplies (including PPE and cleaning materials), food, debt obligations to suppliers, and any other expenses deemed essential by the Secretary of the Treasury.

The PPP loans were only forgivable when used for payroll expenses.

Any recipients would have to certify that current economic conditions make the grant request necessary.

If a restaurant permanently closes before the end of 2020, unspent funds must be returned. If the funding exceeds the actual end-of-year revenues the grant is converted to a loan with a 10-year term at 1% interest.

The first 14 days of the program will focus on restaurants with annual revenues of $1.5 million or less.

If they dont get the support, were at risk of having many of our restaurants close," McGovern said. "Our restaurants in this city and all around the country, quite frankly, are so much a part of the character of our community. They are who we are. If we dont step up to the plate, when this pandemic is over with they may not be here anymore.

U.S. Rep Jim McGovern spoke at El Patron in Worcester on Friday to push Congress to pass the RESTARUANTS Act. City Manager Edward Augustus Jr. joined him.

McGovern was joined by Worcester City Manager Edward Augustus Jr., District 2 City Councilor Candy Mero-Carlson and Alex Guardiola of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Part of the renaissance we talk about thats happening here in Worcester is fueled by the restaurant scene, the food scene," Augustus said. "A lot of the expression and creativity thats happening in out city is in our restaurants.

The Massachusetts Restaurant Association projected that about 1 in 5 restaurants could close as a result of the pandemic. But its not the only industry affected by the pandemic. Restaurants have continued to remain open - even for takeout - while some businesses like bars, gyms, movie theaters and performance venues were shut down for months or remain closed.

Its the industries that have lobbied the hardest and complained the loudest. Its easy to say movies arent necessary like an amusement park and an arcade, but restaurants are necessary, said Jamie Mattchen, the general manager of the Capitol Theatre in Arlington said. But really you can make food at home. You dont need a restaurant. But more people were directly impacted by restaurants going away.

The RESTAURANTS Act is one of several in Congress that could provide economic relief amid the pandemic along with the HEREOS Act, approved by Democrats in May. Republicans countered with a $1 trillion plan two months later.

The RESTART Act is aimed at provided relief to the live performance venues, which unlike restaurants have been closed throughout the pandemic.

Our goal is to help people who are hurting the most to just get through these next few months," McGovern said. And hopefully well have leadership that will take this pandemic seriously and we can get it under control.

Related Content:
Politicians and economists are calling for major infrastructure projects, some akin to the New Deal, to help get the U.S. economy back on track after the coronavirus recession.

With the Pew Research Center finding that 87% of U.S. adults feel the internet has been either "essential" or "important but not essential" to them during the pandemic, former Labor Secretary Robert Reich is calling for the U.S. government to make sure that everyone is online.

"We're in an intangible economy that has a lot of public goods attached to it that we are still treating as if they are private investments, such as all of the Internet connections we need," he said.

Reich went on to say that the pandemic has amplified the growth of this "intangible economy" but we are leaving many people behind. The lowest income earners who cannot afford laptop computers could be in the same group working outside the home at restaurants and providing essential services.

"I worry frankly about them, their incomes, their health, being outside the mainstream economy," Reich continued.

The Pew study found that 54% of Hispanic U.S. adults were worried about paying the broadband bill for their homes, compared to just 21% of White adults.

Reich thinks the government should make every effort to give children and students the hardware they need by creating room in state and local education budgets. Otherwise, he sees the potential for an educational backslide.

"It really is going to be a backslide for millions of children who can least afford it," he said.

Reich thinks the federal government has a role to play in fighting this educational gap as well as ensuring that all Americans have access to this growing intangible economy. In contrast, the same Pew research survey mentioned above found that over 60% of U.S. adults did not think the government is responsible for ensuring connectivity for all.

Watch the video above to hear the interview with Reich.
2020 has been a crazy year!

No matter what we disagree on, every human is at least agreeing on this statement. The entire world went into a state of panic when we first found out about the outbreak of COVID-19 and in the 7 months since the pandemic took over the Earth, so much more has happened.

Taking inspiration from all the theories floating around about the virus and Chinas alleged role in it, ZEE5s London Confidential is bringing it all together in a neat package.

The first OTT film shot in London post the lockdown, London Confidential is a one of a kind situational spy thriller franchise set in the post lockdown times amidst the pandemic. The story revolves around two RAW agents named Uma (Mouni Roy) and Arjun (Purab Kohli), who are trying to prevent the spread of another virus which is supposed to be much more deadly than the Corona Virus to spread across the border of China into India. But that is not all, as they race against the clock after one of their undercover agents disappear, there is an urgency to search for a mole in their ranks.

The film is based on a concept by conspiracy thriller churner S Hussain Zaidi. Written by Akshay Singh and Prateek Payodhi and directed by Kanwal Sethi, London Confidential isnt an attempt to bash China or focus on how or where the new virus is originating from, but instead, the story sends the two agents on a wild goose chase in search of the truth.

The movie is only 71 minutes which makes it a quick watch and somehow, the director managed to fit in all the suspense and drama of a spy-thriller into the short window of time.

Mouni Roy who is making her digital debut with this film with the lead role manages to showcase the anxiety that comes with being a RAW agent in a post-COVID world as well as the struggles that come with being pregnant and in a rocky marriage during such times. Purab Kohli provides the much needed moments of humour and the duo manage to carry the movie on their shoulders with ease.



ZEE5

The cinematographer has also made sure that the audience is given a glimpse of how the new normal will look for us after the Corona Virus turned everyones life upside down. Stuck in the middle of a deadly virus, failing economies and countries standing against each other, mankind is going through it all and London Confidential is a spy-thriller which ties to showcase all of this.

London Confidential also stars Kulraj Randhawa (Indian Ambassador Nirupama) along with Sagar Arya, Parvessh Rana, Jas Binag, Diljohn Singh and Kiren Jogi.

The movie is now live on ZEE5 and is the perfect choice for anyone who needs a good movie to pick.
TikTok and WeChat users who have the app on their phones, can still use it, even after Sundays ban, but anyone who is planning to download the apps after Sunday will not be able to do so. Photo: Chesnot/Getty Images

In the recent months, Chinese apps TikTok and WeChat have been in a back and forth battle with US president Donald Trump, as the relationship between Washington and Beijing frays.

The latest major development came on Friday, when Trumps administration announced it plans to officially block new downloads of TikTok and WeChat in the US from Sunday, following through on threats to ban the popular apps on national security grounds.

In response, TikTok and parent company ByteDance asked a US judge to block the Trump administration from enacting a ban on the social networking site, citing geopolitics over technology and trade.

With Trumps latest move the fate of the ByteDance and Tencent (TCEHY)-owned apps looks uncertain.

What does this all mean?

The good news is TikTok and WeChat users who already have the app on their phones, might still be able to use it, even after Sundays ban, but they wont be able to download updates. Anyone who is planning to download the apps after Sunday will not be able to do so.

The only real change as of Sunday night will be [TikTok users] wont have access to improved apps, updated apps, upgraded apps or maintenance. In terms of how user access will change, well likely have to wait and see, US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross said.

Since taking office, Trump has challenged Beijing on technology, military and economic fronts.

While there has been much bickering between who owns the popular video-sharing app, the fight is much deeper.

It also reflects the state of relations between the two countries, amid the coronavirus crisis, an ongoing trade war, technology tiffs over security fears and even Hong Kong  tensions between the worlds biggest economies keep ramping up.

While TikTok, which has over 80 million active users in the US, is best known for its anodyne videos of people dancing and going viral, it was accused by the Trump administration of passing data on American users to the Chinese government.

Story continues

TikTok denies handing over US data to the Chinese authorities, with China blasting Trumps ban as political.

Run-up to the ban

In July, the US senate voted unanimously to approve a bill prohibiting federal workers from using TikTok on government-issued devices, amid security fears of data collection.

Trump signed executive orders on 6 August giving US businesses 45 days to stop dealing with ByteDance, unless it divested  due to take effect from midnight on 20 September. The second order requires ByteDance to sell TikTok by 12 November.

As a result, TikToks parent company ByteDance spoke to various American suitors, including Microsoft (MSFT) and Twitter (TWTR). But the social media network and the tech giant are no longer contenders, with Microsoft announcing on 13 September that ByteDance had rejected its bid.

On 14 September, enterprise software Oracle (ORCL) said it had won the race but said it would partner with TikTok, rather than buy it out-right. The deal still requires approval in both the US and China, and it is unclear whether it will satisfy the terms set out by Trump.

The US president gave Oracle  run by Trump supporter Larry Ellison  his blessing to enter the race before it announced it would.

However, the deal between ByteDance and Oracle could conflict Trumps executive orders  based on security fears over America data  as it said it will not sell or transfer the source code behind its popular video app TikTok.

Previously, Trump also said that any American company that buys TikTok, will have to pay the US Treasury as a sign of thanks, but there is doubt over the legality of Trumps request.

READ MORE: Bytedances TikTok proposal isnt just up to Trump

Meanwhile, China has revised its catalogue of technologies that are subject to export bans, which could mean the US has to seek Beijings approval for a sale by ByteDance. A complication which could cause problems for Trumps plans.

One measure that might affect TikTok is the restriction of personalised information recommendation services on data analysis, with TikToks app being built on algorithms that analyse personal behaviour to promote personalised content.

To add fuel to the fire, US treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin said in June that a decoupling could happen between the countries if US companies were not allowed to compete on a level playing field in China.

WeChat, which has over 1.2 billion active monthly users is the Chinese version of WhatsApp, Facebook (FB), Instagram, PayPal (PYPL), Uber (UBER), and Tinder, under one ecosystem.

ByteDance, whose last valuation of $78bn (61bn) makes it the world's most valuable start-up, is behind the app that is dominating the lives of millennials and generation Z. It only launched in September 2016 but, outside China, it has already amassed 300 million active users and 1.4 billion total installs to date.

READ MORE: Trump bans TikTok and WeChat from US app store
British farming and food production are a remarkable success story. In recent years, this sector has been at the forefront of a revolution thats transformed the quality of our food  and acted as a guardian of our countryside.

Through the vision and dedication of our farmers, Britain is increasingly a global leader in animal welfare, environmental protection and high standards of produce. Now all these achievements are at mortal risk. As we prepare to leave the European Union at the end of this year, our impressive agricultural system could soon be wrecked by ruthless competition and a flood of cheap imports.

The most serious threat comes from the U.S., whose vast and unwieldy farming industry is far less regulated than ours.

In the name of efficiency, it has built a highly mechanised, intensive and shockingly cruel approach which keeps animals in conditions so appalling its hard for us in the UK to grasp. Meanwhile, an arsenal of chemicals that are banned here are also deployed on these poor creatures.

It is not the sort of produce that should be allowed to swamp our own. When Brexit supporters spoke of taking back control, they did not envisage the destruction of British farming caused by mass-produced goods soaked in chlorine and cruelty.

In an attempt to prevent this grim eventuality, a last-ditch battle is under way at Westminster aiming to establish essential safeguards in post-Brexit Britain.

Its all part of Britains deep and enduring compassion for animals. We have 25 million free-range hens here, more than any other country  and more free-range pigs than anywhere in Europe

As the Agriculture Bill  which sets out a new domestic, post-Brexit alternative to the EUs Common Agricultural Policy  makes its way through Parliament, MPs in the Commons and peers in the Lords have tried to impose amendments to keep Britains high standards of animal husbandry and environmental care. So far the Government has rejected all such proposals. Desperate to reach a trade deal, ministers seem unwilling to block the hugely influential U.S. food and agriculture lobby from gaining access to our market.

Their argument is that, in the brave new world of deregulation, consumers will enjoy more choice and, crucially, will have access to cheap food. But cheapness will come at a huge cost to our health, our countryside, our rural economy and our animals.

The reality is that choice will be restricted  because British farmers and producers will find it impossible to compete. From the supermarkets to takeaways, this ugly juggernaut of American food will sweep all before it.

The Agriculture Bill is about to go to the final stage of its passage through Parliament. There is one last chance for legislators to stop a free-for-all from which our agriculture would emerge the loser.

As someone who has covered the food industry for 20 years presenting The Food Programme on BBC Radio 4, I am deeply alarmed at the prospect of the advances British food has made in recent decades going into reverse.

Before Covid, British food was flourishing as never before. I think of the surge in high-quality bakeries, of our farmhouse cheeses beating rivals across the world  we produce more than France.

Even McDonalds UK now uses free-range eggs and organic milk and recently won an RSPCA award for its animal welfare standards. I need hardly say its not how McDonalds operates in the U.S.

Its all part of Britains deep and enduring compassion for animals. We have 25 million free-range hens here, more than any other country  and more free-range pigs than anywhere in Europe.

In frequent talks with farmers, I have been struck by how they see themselves, not just as producers, but as custodians of the land, a vital role they fill with imaginativeness in an age of mounting concern about climate change.

The U.S. farming model is completely different. Its aim is not to work with nature but to dominate it. Industrialised and chemicalised, the entire system is a monument to the denial of biology.

I am not in any way anti-American  Ive lived across that wonderful country in Indiana, California, Massachusetts and New York. Im married to an American: my son and his family live in Pennsylvania.

Its precisely because I visit regularly, and have seen at first hand the harshness of U.S. food production, that I feel so strongly.

The chlorinated chicken has rightly become a symbol of U.S. farming at its worst, but few ask why poultry has to be washed in chlorine before it can be sold. It is because the birds are kept in such over-crowded squalor and so pumped with chemicals during their brief, unfortunate lives.

The same applies throughout American industry. Even the British Governments farming Secretary George Eustice has admitted U.S. animal welfare law is woefully deficient. Pigs are reared in grotesquely inhumane battery farms. More than 60 million are treated with the antibiotic Carbadox, which promotes growth and is rightly banned in the UK.

Similarly, U.S. cattle are fed steroid hormones to speed growth by 20 per cent  the use of such chemicals has been illegal in Britain and the EU since 1989. And as the cattle are kept in vast confined feeding pens, they need regular antibiotics.

Incredibly, some staff processing carcasses at huge meatpacking plants wear nappies because they are not allowed time off to go to the lavatory. In arable production, pesticides are used on a scale far beyond anything in Britain. In recent decades, the U.S. has banned or controlled just 11 chemicals in food, cosmetics and cleaning products  the EU has banned 1,300.

Polar opposites: Cows in a British field, and in beef pens in Texas

In U.S. farming theres almost no effort to mitigate climate change yet here the National Farmers Union is committed to achieving zero carbon production by 2040. What will happen to that commitment if cheap U.S. food floods in?

The U.S. genetically modified crops to be resistant to Roundup weedkiller  but after weeds grew resistant to Roundup and flourished, one U.S. farmer told me proudly crops were now engineered to be resistant to the infamous Agent Orange, a defoliant used by the U.S. military to kill vegetation in the Vietnam War.

Environmental devastation and health problems  including disabilities to as many as a million people  were caused in Vietnam by Agent Orange. Is this a road we want to go down in Britain?

The so-called cheapness of American produce is a delusion. These farming methods carry a heavy price in quality and health. A battery chicken is tasteless compared to an organic one, just as factory-farmed salmon has nothing of the flavour of wild.

Cheap, low quality foods have brought with them disturbing health problems including obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

The coronavirus crisis proved the need for resilient supply lines. But that cannot be achieved if we ruin our own domestic agricultural system and become reliant on imported food.

In World War II, when the survival of the nation was imperilled, the Government attached huge importance to domestic food output, reflected in the propaganda campaign Dig for Victory and the Womens Land Army. We need that collective spirit today.

It would be stupidity beyond measure to obliterate our farming industry for a short-term, unbalanced trade deal with the U.S.

A trade deal without agricultural safeguards would be a calamity for British farming and our prosperity. One in eight jobs in Britain is in food supply, while food exports brought in 9.6 billion to the economy. All that will be lost if cut-throat competition prevails.

And a vital part of our heritage will also be lost. From the robust imagery of John Bull as a yeoman squire to William Blakes Jerusalem, with its evocation of our green and pleasant land, the countryside has always held a central place in our national soul. It must not be sacrificed on the altar of illusory cheapness or trans-Atlantic subservience.

n Sheila Dillon presents BBC Radio 4s The Food Programme.
This story was last updated in September 2020.

These stunning photographs capture a man appear to walk on the Moon in a clear nights sky.

Renan Ozturk, 40, spent four months trying to find the perfect cliffy desert terrain for the amazing shots of pal Andy Lewis, a professional climber and slack-liner.

And Andy used his base-jumping and rigging knowledge for the pictures to work in Moab, Utah, last month.

Andy Lewis walks in front of the Moon in Moab, Utah. (Caters News)

The images, taken from a lens some 2 kilometers (1.24 miles) away, show the daredevil climb and slack-line across the terrain right in front of the huge Moon, creating the illusion he is on it. In one spectacular photograph, Andy is seen apparently without any safety ropes at all.

Renan, a professional photographer and artist, said: The climbing, slack-lining, rigging techniques, as well as knowledge of the landscape that went into took us all a lifetime to practice. We were able to pull off the final ropeless free solo image of Andy walking.

Its the ultimate expression of all the arts.

We scouted for four months, trying to line up the shot since it was so difficult to find the right spot for the line and camera to be over 2km away from each other with a big 600mm lens and challenging cliffy desert terrain.

Renan Ozturk shooting using a Sony Alpha 7sIII camera for the photoshoot. (Caters News)

Andy Lewis pictured slack-lining in front of the Moon in Moab, Utah. (Caters News)

The Epoch Times contributed to this report.
The Ministry of Energy has launched an electrification project to connect over 16,000 households in the Northern Region to the national grid within the next 24 months.



Dubbed Tropical Cable and Conductor Electrification, the project is in line with the ministrys agenda to enhance the reliable supply of energy in all its usable forms to all households and businesses, and to bring the access rate of about 70 per cent in the region to the average rate of 85.17 per cent.



It is also aimed at widening the access of energy to all households, productive sectors and social infrastructure in order to facilitate the implementation of the Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy, which was a poverty reduction strategy for Ghana based on one of the then Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).



The project will bring to three the number of electrification projects being executed in the Northern Region.



The others are the Hunan Construction Group Corporation and the Ministry of Energys Self-Help Electrification projects.



More hooked



At the launch of the project in Tamale last Wednesday, a Deputy Minister of Energy in charge of Power, Mr William Owuraku Aidoo, said the government was committed to enhancing access to reliable and affordable energy to accelerate growth and reduce poverty in the country.



He said as a result of the vision, the Ministry of Energy had been implementing the national electrification scheme since 1992 to extend electricity to all parts of the country as part of interventions for poverty reduction in the rural areas.



Mr Aidoo said before the inception of the National Electrification Scheme, only 478 communities in the region were connected to the national electricity grid, but as of now, over 11,000 communities had been connected in the region.



The deputy minister said the contract had been awarded to Tropical Cable and Conductor Limited, which was expected to use locally manufactured electrical materials such as conductors, energy metres, transformers, poles, among other things, for the project as part of the governments effort to support local companies.



Commendation



The Northern Regional Minister, Mr Salifu Saeed, commended the government for extending the project to the region.



He said the beneficiary communities were selected through a scientific approach that involved experts who toured the region in the course of their work.



Mr Saeed said the regional ministry would closely monitor the contractors to make sure that the project was executed on schedule and in accordance with specifications to ensure value for money.









Source: graphiconline.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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STAMFORD  A Stratford woman was charged this week with luring another woman into a fight in June just outside a local establishment in Shippan, where the victim was badly beaten and had her cellphone stolen, police said.

Destiny Colorado, 23, of Pleasantville Avenue, was charged Wednesday with second-degree assault, third-degree robbery, second degree larceny and interfering with an emergency call, police said. She was released after posting $75,000 court appearance bond.

A message left at a phone number listed for her was not immediately returned. It could not be determined whether she has hired an attorney.

According to a four-page arrest affidavit, at 10:10 p.m. June 4, officers responded with lights and sirens to a hangout on Harbor Drive on a report of an assault in progress.

Officers were flagged down by a man who called 911after hearing a woman screaming for help, the affidavit said. As the man approached the scene, he told police he saw one woman running from the scene and a 26-year-old woman lying on the ground crying, the affidavit said.

The victim of the alleged assault told police that she was at the bar to pick up a friend, but after she arrived a woman she knew as Destiny Colorado assaulted her, the affidavit said.

The assault victim sustained scrapes and bruises to her face as well as her arms and legs, the affidavit said. She also complained of pain in her left foot and was rushed by medics to Stamford Hospital for treatment, the arrest affidavit said.

When interviewed by officers, she said she had received a direct message from the Instagram account of destiny.colordo saying that she was with an old family friend, who was asking to be dropped off where she was, but he would not tell her where, the affidavit said.

The woman said she then took an Uber to the establishment to pick up the friend, the affidavit said. Upon arrival, she saw her friend with Colorado, whom she had not met before, the affidavit said.

Colorado then told the victim that she wanted to fill her in on what had transpired earlier in the evening and walked her across the street to the docks, the affidavit said.

But as they made their way across the street, Colorado allegedly grabbed the woman by the waist and struck her in the back of the head with her hand, the affidavit said. After the woman fell to the ground, Colorado allegedly punch her with fists in the head, face and body, the affidavit said.

Colorado then allegedly grabbed the woman by the hair and kicked her in the side, the affidavit said.

When the woman pulled out her cellphone to call 911, Colorado allegedly punched the woman in the eye and grabbed the phone, the affidavit said.

The woman told police that saw her male friend, who watched the incident take place and then fled with Colorado in a black Toyota Camry, the affidavit said.

jnickerson@stamfordadvocate.com
On Saturday, the story of Cayley Mandadi, the beloved cheerleader whose death stunned the Trinity University community, will be highlighted by "48 Hours." "The Final Hours of Cayley Mandadi" will air at 9 p.m. on CBS.

RELATED: Records reveal Cayley Mandadi's boyfriend had history of violence prior to arrest in her death

The network says the episode is the "first in-depth" look into the death of the teen and the case against her boyfriend Mark Howerton.

Mandadi was last seen alive on Oct. 29, 2017, while attending the Mala Luna Music Festival in San Antonio with Howerton. He later told police the couple took party drugs and had consensual sex. When he noticed she wasn't breathing while traveling to Houston after the concert, he rushed her to a nearby hospital in Luling.

Alison Steele, Mandadi's mother, described the extent of Mandadi's injuries in the 48 Hours episode.

Even the most explicit television shows dont show you what I saw that day, Steele said. Did she fall out of an airplane? Was she thrown off a bridge?

Mandadi was eventually declared brain-dead and was taken off life support on Oct. 31. She was 19.

According to the medical examiner, Mandadi died from blunt force trauma to the face and head. Howerton faced charges of murder, sexual assault and later, with kidnapping. By February 2018, he had turned himself in.

Since there were no witnesses, there was debate as to what led to Mandadi's injuries  assault, a fall at the concert or the result of life-saving procedures performed at the hospital?

Bexar County prosecutors accused Howerton of killing Mandadi in a jealous rage after she tried to break up with him at the music festival.

"This is a case where there's more than what meets the eye and things aren't always what they seem," said John Hunter, Howerton's attorney.

While Hunter maintains his client's innocent, Steele says Howerton, who has been described by Mandadi's friends as being volatile, killed her daughter.

He knew that Cayley would be an easy mark, and so he fixated on her, she told the show. And when it didnt go the way he wanted  he snapped.

Last December, a Bexar County judge declared a mistrial in the case against Howerton after the jury could not reach a verdict.

Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales said he was disappointed in the outcome and would retry the case and bring justice to Cayley Mandadi.

On Sept. 13, Steele spoke about the forthcoming episode on a "Justice for Cayley" Facebook page on Sept. 13. She said she understands presentations of her daughter's death will be depicted without the family's consent and decided the "best defense is a strong offense," choosing "48 Hours" to speak to based on its history and ethics.

"If Cayleys story must be told, then its preferable that it be handled by one of the most distinguished news correspondents in America," she told supporters online.

Madalyn Mendoza covers news and puro pop culture for MySA.com | mmendoza@mysa.com | @maddyskye
Cogadh ar Mhna features historians with expertise on the period as well as the first hand testimony of the women themselves as re-enacted by actors

A new documentary explores how sexual violence was also a feature of Ireland's past struggles

In case you were under any illusion that sexual crimes against women, which have been a feature of other conflicts around the world, didn't happen during our own struggles in Ireland, a new documentary which focuses on the War of Independence and the Civil War of 100 ago is about to shatter that myth when it airs on TG4 next week.

As Ciara Hyland, director of Cogadh ar Mhna/War on Women, explained, women were targeted by all sides and in all parts of the country for acts of sexual violence.

The documentary, which features leading historians who have pioneered research into this hitherto hidden aspect of the history of Ireland's revolutionary period, is to air on TG4 next Wednesday, September 26.

"We need to start the conversation about what happened in the War of Independence and the Civil War, because people on all sides were impacted, people on all sides were perpetrators." said Ciara.

The hour-long film focuses on nine stories from throughout Ireland: "There could have been three times as many again," said Ciara.

The director emphasised that attacks such as those described took place in all parts of the country, including north and mid Cork, which were often described as cockpits of both the War of Independence and the Civil War.

Great care was taken by the makers to avoid being too specific about the locations of certain incidents.

"There are houses in which families of those involved, victims and perpetrators, are still living, and they have asked us not to feature what happened in these houses in a way which would identify them for a contemporary TV audience - and we have respected that in the making of this film," Ciara said.

The stories reveal a pattern of attacks on women which are opportunistic rather than pre-meditated.

"These stories are not uncommon - women in their homes were targeted by armed bands of men from all sides of the conflicts, who took their anger and their frustration out on them when they could not find their brothers, husbands and fathers who were on the run or in hiding.

"No side of the conflict is exempt - Crown Forces, Republicans and Free Staters - there are stories of violence against women committed by them all," said Ciara, who emphasised the non-partisan aspect of the documentary.

"Often these women's stories were hidden and buried because of shame, fear of being excluded from their communities and because their chances of getting justice were small.

"These raids were mostly at night - and often included a mix of the following: the women being dragged from their beds in only their nightclothes, beaten around the head and face, doused with cold water so their bodies showed clearly, having their hair cut off.

"Sometimes they were separated from the rest of their families and sexually assaulted and even raped.

"While rape and sexual violence were not a deliberate, sanctioned tactic on any side, the constant raids on houses that presented the opportunity for physical and sexual violence were.

"These raids sent a strong message to the men in hiding up in the hills - you cannot protect your women or your homes," Ciara added.

The film is based to a large extent on the new ground-breaking research from people such as historians Mary McAuliffe and Lindsey Earner-Byrne; sociologists Linda Connolly and Louise Ryan; and writer-historian Ann Mathews.

According to Ciara, the decade of centenaries currently underway has focused attention on an aspect of Irish history which had largely been ignored until around 20 years ago, when mostly female academics began to research the area.

"Taking a fresh look at old sources and new material, they are uncovering many new and previously untold stories of violence against women," said Ciara.

There are stories such as Mary M from Westmeath, who was raped by a band of Republicans and became pregnant as a result.

Her hand-written pleas to the Archbishop of Dublin begging for help have been uncovered.

There is also the story of a Kenmare incident where two girls were assaulted by members of the Free State Army, only to have it covered up at the highest echelons of the newly formed government

Or the six-page letter from Norah Healy from Cork City, who was pregnant when she was raped by the Crown Forces. On reporting it to the RIC, she spotted one of her attackers in the police station and was told "Never mind, don't say anything now" by the Sergeant in Charge.

"Cogadh ar Mhna", according to its makers, takes these new, untold stories and dramatises them in an incredibly evocative way, using the words of these women wherever first-hand accounts were available.

The documentary allows these women's voices in their own words to be heard for the first time in 100 years, and it redresses the balance of the history of the period that has been largely focused on fighters and military tactics.

"It's important that we finally tell these stories - women were half the population during the Irish Revolution," Ciara explained.

"There were many more women civilians than there were women fighting - yet their experiences as victims of the conflict have been completely overlooked and are missing from the historical narrative."

"Cogadh ar Mhna" says the unsaid, and blows the lid off these stories, leaving behind the belief that Ireland's wars were somehow exceptional and different - more honourable - than every other war.

"It's time to say what happened to these women, to let their voices be heard and to let the debate over their treatment begin," Ciara said.

"Let's finally address the wrongs of the past and tell the truth about them.

"This documentary leads that charge," said Ciara.

Cogadh ar Mhna/War on Women received support from the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland Sound and Vision fund.
19.09.2020 LISTEN

The Greater Accra Regional chapter of the Trades Union Congress has called for a total review of the formula for calculating pensions.

This call is for the better enhancement of pensions, according to a statement from the TUC Regional Council of Labour.

The Council feels the National Pension Act, Act 766 has not improved the plight of pensioners but has made them worse off than when they were under the PNDCL 247.

It now wants the PNDCL 247 to be used in calculating retirees lump-sum payments for enhanced pension lump-sum payments.

Act 766 was to provide for pension reform in the country by the introduction of a contributory three-tier pension scheme.

It also allowed for the establishment of a National Pensions Regulatory Authority to oversee the administration and management of registered pension schemes and trustees of registered schemes and the establishment of a Social Security and National Insurance Trust to manage the basic national social security scheme to cater for the first tier of the contributory three-tier scheme.

There was an 11 percent increment in monthly pensions in the year 2020.

This was made up of a 6.6 percent fixed-rate and a flat amount of GHS37.38 added to all pensioners salary which made up the remaining 4.4 percent. Find below a statement from the union:

RESOLUTION FROM THE GREATER ACCRA REGIONAL COUNCIL OF LABOUR ON NATIONAL PENSIONS ACT 766 FORUM

The TUC Regional Council of Labour at its Greater Accra Regional Council of Labour meeting held on 17th September, 2020 in Tema recognized that;

Whereas all workers deserve better pension at retirement;

And

Whereas Pension reforms are necessary for all workers in both public and private sectors;

And

Whereas the National Pension Act, Act 766, was aimed at improving pension benefits to all workers under the unified pension system to create fairness among beneficiaries;

And

Whereas recent decision of government to hive off security services workers from the unified pension because of poor benefits;

We, therefore, resolve that given that, the aim of Act 766 was to improve the welfare of retirees but has made them worse off than when they were under the PNDCL 247, we call on government to do the following:

The PNDCL 247 should be used in calculating retirees lump-sum payments for enhanced pension lump-sum payments. Extended for pension from 60 years to 65 years to allow for more accruals to the individual's pension contribution. Review the formula for calculating pensions for better enhancement of pensions.

---citinewsroom
But other Republicans backed an early vote, including Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman who had previously promised not to support confirmation of a Trump nominee in a presidential election year but flip-flopped on Saturday to support the presidents effort to install his choice in the midst of a campaign.

Some Republicans, like Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, were agitating for quick action, arguing that a potentially messy pandemic election with the president already challenging the legitimacy of mail-in voting could wind up at the Supreme Court much as the 2000 election did.

A short-handed eight-member court could deadlock at 4 to 4 if Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. sided with the three remaining liberals, as he has on a few occasions. We risk a constitutional crisis if we do not have a nine-justice Supreme Court, particularly when there is such a risk of a contested election, Mr. Cruz said Friday night on Fox News.

An all-out Supreme Court confirmation fight in the middle of an election would befit a year of seismic events that have rocked the country. The year started with only the third presidential impeachment trial in history, followed by a once-in-a-century pandemic, the most devastating economic collapse since the Great Depression and an eruption of racial strife that resulted in violent clashes.

Justice Ginsburgs death at 87 produced an outpouring of grief and anxiety among her admirers, with crowds gathered spontaneously late into the night at the Supreme Court building. As a lifelong champion of womens rights and only the second woman to serve on the court, she became an unlikely icon for the left late in life, called the Notorious R.B.G.

No vacancy at the Supreme Court occurring so close to a presidential election in American history has been filled by Senate vote before the election. The closest came in 1916 when Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes resigned 150 days before the election to run as the Republican candidate, and his successor was confirmed before the balloting.

When a retirement opened up a seat before the 1956 election, President Dwight D. Eisenhower filled it with a recess appointment, reaching across the aisle to install a Democrat, William J. Brennan. After winning a second term, Eisenhower formally nominated Justice Brennan for the lifetime position. The recess appointment was not controversial and Justice Brennan was confirmed with almost no opposition.
Only half of Americans are now willing to take a vaccine for Covid-19, a significant drop due to growing concerns the approvals process will be rushed.

A total of 51pc of people would be happy to take a vaccine if it was available today, according to a new poll by the Pew Research Group, which found 77pc were worried it would be distributed before its safety and effectiveness are fully understood.

Intent to get a Covid-19 vaccine has fallen from 72pc in May, a drop of 21 percentage points.

The decline was among people of all political persuasions. However, Democrats and those who lean to the Democratic Party are 14 percentage points more likely than Republicans to say they would probably or definitely get a vaccine: 58pc to 44pc.

The poll surveyed 10,093 adults between September 8 and 13, around the time pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca announced it was temporarily halting trials after a participant suffered a possible neurological side-effect.

Among the half of Americans who say they would not get a vaccine, 76pc said concern about side effects was a major reason why they would definitely or probably not get it.

It also came after the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it could use its emergency-use approval for a Covid-19 vaccine before the final trial phase was complete.

Researchers are still not sure how effective a Covid-19 vaccine will ultimately be.

The FDA has said it would authorise a vaccine if it was safe and at least 50pc effective in preventing the disease or decreasing the severity of infections, although Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has said scientists are hoping for a vaccine that is at least 75pc effective.

US President Donald Trump has publicly contradicted and undermined leading members of the science community, then asked the public to trust him to deliver a "safe and effective vaccine".

Earlier this week, he poured scorn on Dr Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for saying a coronavirus vaccine would not be widely available before the middle of next year. ( Daily Telegraph, London)
Still Hungry: Thousands in Phuket remain in need of food donations as government efforts stall

PHUKET: While the government maintains its focus on efforts to restart any form of tourism to Phuket, thousands of people across the island remain in need of food donations to get by  with no support from any government agencies.

Saturday 19 September 2020, 09:00AM

People queue for food at the Duen Sip Buddhist festival held in Baan Don, Thalang, last week. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

It has been months since local government organisations have handed out food to people in need.

A public relations staffer at Patong Municipality, one of the hardest-hit areas on the island due to the international tourism lockout, told The Phuket News this week, The municipality budget to provide food is already gone. The last food handout was on June 20, which provided food to about 10,000 people in need.

There is no budget to do any food handouts in the near future. We do not know when we will have any budget to help people in this part, the staffer added.

Phuket Town Deputy Mayor Kavee Tansukhatanon also confirmed to The Phuket News this week that Phuket City Municipality has handed out emergency food supplies only twice, in May and June. However, he added that the municipality spent B28 million in doing so.

We do not have any budget [for food-donation campaigns]. We will do another one when we have the budget and the formal order from the Phuket Governor, he said.

Wal Brown, a long-term Phuket expat who earlier this year co-launched the Feeding Friends Patong campaign with fellow expat Tony Love Linay, explained that the people most affected in the Patong area have been the Myanmar migrant workers.

The government is not giving any food support anymore. That free food has come to an end, he said.

Food donations are still obviously much needed, he added, noting that long queues for food donations are regularly still seen lining the streets of Patong. A recent donation event, on Sept 6, saw some 300 to 400 people lining Nanai Rd, Wal explained.

Queues for food are regularly seen elsewhere across the island as charity events are held, including the recent Duen Sip Buddhist festival celebrated in Baan Don, Thalang. A staffer at Cherng Talay Municipality who asked not to be named explained away those present queuing for food as local Urak Lawoi sea gypsies. Queuing for food was a cultural thing, the staffer said. Yet, queue for food they did.

PRIVATE EFFORTS

A host of top Phuket artists are to record a version of the classic global charity song Do They Know Its Christmas in their efforts to help continue providing food to people in Phuket and on nearby islands.

The project will be co-ordinated by Legend Music Recording Studio in Koh Kaew, owned and operated by producer and composer, and long-term Phuket expat, Gary Crause.

Mr Crause was one of the driving forces behind Phuket artists coming together in June to produce their own version of Lean on Me to boost food security relief efforts driven by the Help Phuket Today campaign, also created to help people in Phuket suffering without any form of income during the ongoing crisis.

So far more than 2,000 Lean On Me Food Packs costing a total of B500,000 have been paid for by the Phuket community and distributed directly to the families and communities all over Phuket and the adjacent islands that are hardest hit by unemployment caused by the pandemic, Mr Crause explained on Monday (Sept 14).

Most recently just over 400 food packs were distributed through the Koh Kaew Tambon Administration Organisation (OrBorTor), and 20 packs were sent to Phuket Immigration, he added.

Kath Cumming started Help Phuket Today on April 12, collecting food for the hardest hit communities where families were close to starvation due to losing their jobs and income sources because of the COVID-forced lockdowns. With the help of Yvonne Symons from Villa Market and the Tourist Police, they distribute the food donations directly to the communities that need it to survive.

After learning of their relief efforts, Mr Crause from the Phuket Academy of Performing Arts arranged with Villa Market to have a B250 barcode created for the purchase of the food packs to make it very simple for people to donate to the cause. He also called up many of his musician friends and some students to film and record a version of Lean On Me to help drive the marketing and awareness campaign for the food relief efforts.

All of those involved in the day-to-day running of the Lean On Me Food Donation and Distribution program know firsthand that it is a very real problem that will impact these families for a very long time, Gary said.

With the low season in full swing, and the high season looking like it will be a non-event, the current outlook is that the situation will not improve for at least another 12 to 16 months, and is in fact getting worse, he added.

To contribute to the relief efforts, simply scan and pay for Lean On Me food packs at any Villa Market in Phuket, or order the packs online via Villa Markets online shopping portal.

GRAVE CONCERNS

Wal Brown pointed out his serious concerns for the current situations impact on peoples emotional and mental well-being. His concerns coincide with Thailands Mental Health Department on Sept 10 revealing that 2,551 people had killed themselves in the first half of this year, up 22% for the same period last year.

Personal problems, depression, economic pressure and alcohol were the reasons leading people to take their own lives, said the department.

The rising suicide rate has reminded public health officials of the 1997 financial meltdown, when the rate leaped by between 20% and 30%, it added.

Department Director-General Kiattiphum Wongrajit linked the increase in the suicide cases this year to the outbreak of the deadly virus and described the trend as worrisome. His assessment was in line with various studies in Thailand and abroad, reported the Bangkok Post.

STRONG MESSAGE

The National Reform Committee on Labour was told at a meeting in Phuket on Sept 11 to issue a moratorium on all outstanding debts, boost efforts to bring tourists to Phuket and provide financial support to unemployed people on the island.

Committee Chairman Charin Chakkaphak and his delegation arrived in Phuket to hear directly the key problems island residents are facing during the current economic crisis. Present at the meeting at Phuket Provincial Hall were Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew, Vice Governor Pichet Panapong, other relevant officials and local business owners.

V/Gov Pichet explained that Phuket is badly affected by the current crisis, and delivered three requests already presented to the Senate Standing Committee on Tourism: extend the financial support by the Social Security Office for a further three months; allow workers from other provinces to transfer their house registration to Phuket so the Phuket government can receive more budget funds to provide better care for them; and ask the Ministry of Labour to provide help to at least 1,000 unemployed in Phuket.

Further requests were presented by the private sector, including representatives from the Phuket Tourism Industry Council, Human Resources Club of Patong, the Phuket Chamber of Commerce, among others. The requests presented were: issue a moratorium on all outstanding debts for business owners and employees; relax soft loan conditions so that business owners can actually access the loans; reduce utility bills such as water and electricity; suspend student loan debts for new graduates; and strictly regulate prices of products and services in order to create a good image of Phuket.

Other requests presented included one on behalf of Phuket residents for the government to encourage more Thais to travel to the island, and to support local business owners via social security funds and soft loans.

The central government is paying much attention to Phuket and other places badly affected by the COVID-19 economic crisis, including Koh Samui, Mr Charin said.

All the information received was to be presented to the Cabinet on Tuesday (Sept 15), Mr Charin added.

After the meeting, Mr Charin and his delegation went to meet local hotel operators as well as workers at spa and massage centres in Patong.
Ms Ginsburg, a liberal judge venerated by many on the American left, died of metastatic pancreatic cancer, the court announced on Friday.

Considered by many in the US to be a feminist icon, Ms Ginsburg was the second woman to be nominated to the highest court in the country and spent much of her career calling for gender equality.

A household name in the US, she was an unlikely cult figure among many young people, earning the nickname The Notorious RBG, inspired by the rapper Notorious BIG.

Her early life was adapted into a 2018 film titled On The Basis Of Sex, starring British actress Felicity Jones in the lead role and Armie Hammer as her late husband Martin.

Her death may give Donald Trump the chance to announce a more conservative replacement judge on the Supreme Court bench ahead of Novembers election, a move likely to have a significant impact on US politics.

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Ms Ginsburg was a hero to many in Hollywood and following her death, celebrities were quick to pay tribute while voicing concerns over who could replace her.

RIP RBG. Gutted. Sad.

Grateful for all she did. And very very scared.  Sarah Silverman (@SarahKSilverman) September 18, 2020

Comedian Sarah Silverman said: RIP RBG. Gutted. Sad. Grateful for all she did. And very very scared.

Oscar-winning actress Octavia Spencer wrote: She tried to hang in there for us!! Soar on angels wings.

In her tribute, writer and actress Mindy Kaling said: Ruth Bader Ginsburg was the kind of scholar and patriot you get excited about explaining to your kids. The kind of person who you say who knows, one day you could be HER. I hope you rest well, RBG, you must have been tired from changing the world.

Julie Cohen co-directed the 2018 documentary RBG and shared her brief tribute on Twitter.

Surely the smartest and toughest person I'll ever have the privilege to know. Rest in Peace, Ruth Bader Ginsburg. pic.twitter.com/TV7DpPQCk0  Julie Cohen (@FilmmakerJulie) September 19, 2020

WHAT A LOSS, she said. Cohen later posted a picture of her and her RBG co-director Betsy West with the subject of the film, writing: Surely the smartest and toughest person Ill ever have the privilege to know. Rest in Peace, Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

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Actress January Jones shared an old picture of Ms Ginsburg and said: Rest in sweet peace to this beautiful champion of the people. Please vote.

Ruby Rose, the Australian actress and model, posted: I dont know what to say. My heart is broken.

British model Cara Delevingne posted a picture of Ms Ginsburg holding up her fist in a show of solidarity and said: Trailblazer. Icon. Legend. Role model. Fighter. The true definition of an empowered woman  this is a heartbreaking loss for us all. Please, please, please VOTE in her honour.

Scandal star Kerry Washington commented: Her rest is earned. It is our turn to fight.

Her rest is earned. It is our turn to fight.  kerry washington (@kerrywashington) September 19, 2020

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, best known for her work on satirical comedy Veep, said: If there is a God, may She bless and keep RBG.

Marvel star Robert Downey Jr shared a picture of the late judge alongside a quote said to have been made by her.

Downey Jr said: Fight for the things you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you. RIP, RBG.

Mariah Carey also paid tribute, writing on Instagram: Thank you for a lifetime of service. Thank you for changing history. We will never let it be undone. RIP RBG.

TV presenter Jameela Jamil commented: What an icon we have lost.

And Queer Eye star Jonathan Van Ness said: Thank you for everything you stood for. Vote everyone, Vote.

US TV personality and former Strictly Come Dancing star Michelle Visage said Ms Ginsburgs death left a massive hole in democracy.

She wrote: You, my lady, were a beacon of strength, light, hope and love!!!! You are appreciated more than you will ever know.

The Supreme Court is crucial in the US as its nine members can hold the final say on key issues such as abortion, gun control and healthcare.
Well before the coronavirus outbreak it was apparent Australias under-25s were in danger of becoming the first generation in many decades to have lower living standards than their parents generation.

Years of wage stagnation, high rates of under-employment and high housing costs mean living standards have improved far less for younger people than for older age groups. Now the pandemic has exacerbated the problem.

With unemployment high many young Australians are opting for higher education. Credit:Louise Kennerley

Grattan Institute chief executive Danielle Wood, who co-authored a recent study on generational inequality, says: We were on the cusp of saying weve got a generation thats going to fall behind the one that came before it, but I think were certainly going to be in that world now.

Confronted with the weakest jobs market in memory, more young people than usual are opting for vocational or higher education. Applications for university next year have surged as school leavers respond to the recession by signing up for more study. The University Admissions Centre, which processes applications for admission to tertiary courses mostly in NSW and ACT, has received 21 per cent more applications from year 12 students wanting to attend university in 2021 than at the same time a year ago.
Jason Flemyng has spent the last 30 years working with prisoners (Images: Getty Images)

The inmates in Wandsworth prison are a world away from the usual Hollywood celebs he rubs shoulders with, but over the last 30 years, actor Jason Flemyng has invested a lot of his spare time working with prisoners.

Speaking on White Wine Question Time, the Putney-born star revealed one of the reasons he was so keen to work with them, is that prison couldve been in his future.

I've always been fascinated with prison, he told host Kate Thornton.

One reason being that it was a definite possibility that that was a road I could have taken just from growing up poor in South London. I found acting quite early  and not everyone I was surrounded with did find what they wanted to do early and I think that is the key.

Listen: Jason Flemyng talks about why hes glad hes not Jude Law in the latest episode

In an interview with The Daily Mail earlier this year, Flemyng said as a teen hed had a few brushes with the law.

He said: When I was 15, I was into car theft, petty thieving and criminal damage. My mum picked me up from the police station a good few times.

In fact, he credits his former social worker mum with keeping him on the straight and narrow and encouraging his interest in acting.

Read more: Jason Flemyng is happy to not be the leading man

The key to keeping you focused in on a straight road is to have direction and to have a destiny that you want to try and achieve and I had that from a very early age, he said.

I was brought up by a single parent yet, she encouraged me to do what I wanted to do. It was wanting to act so she made sure that happened. She made sure that I was at the National Youth Theatre. She would drive me. You know, she really encouraged me.

But what is it really like working with prisoners? Well, the Save Me Too star said hes found that they are often compassionate people who have merely taken a wrong turn in their lives

Story continues

It's amazing, he declared. Obviously there's people in prison who are absolute wrong 'uns and should be in prison possibly forever, but I've met people who've done terrible things who are incredibly compassionate and full of love.

Watch: Opera singer serenades south London streets for carers

Read more: Child criminals held in harmful solitary confinement

One of the major projects Flemyng is currently working on is training prisoners to be listeners. Its something hes doing in conjunction with The Samaritans  over the last ten years, the project has helped cut suicides in prisons by half.

Basically The Samaritans train convicts to become listeners and then they self-police the prisons, he explained.

If you're in the nick and you're having a bad time, you bang on the door and the screw has to ask a listener to come and sit with you or be with you.

He continued: It's really good for them because it looks great on their parole and also for a lot of them, it's the first sort of positive certificate they've ever won. Its an amazing thing for their self-esteem.

Jason Flemyng, seen here with mate and fellow actor Jason Statham, credits acting with keeping him on the straight and narrow (Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/WireImage)

While potentially it might be scary mixing with tough inmates, Flemyng has had his fair share of hilarious incidents since he began working with them  including a time he was strangled in Durham prison.

When I started the RSC, which was my first job, we did a tour of Cat A prisons, he told Thornton.

In The Changeling, my character gets strangled and I was doing my best acting I was getting strangled and I'm going [makes choking sound] and I die. Then this voice goes, 'It takes longer than that'.

The 53-year-old has also come face-to-face with former co-stars while visiting prisons,

I've met people in prison that I've acted with  its really funny, he laughed.

This one geezer was like I know you. And I was like, Oh brother, where do I know you from? And he was like We were in Snatch together

He said I'm thinking about changing my agent. I'm like, I think you should think about changing your profession!

Drawing on his experience of working with inmates, Flemyng now also hosts a podcast  More Than My Past  where he talks to those who have managed to overcome addiction or offending, exploring their stories and finding out how their lives have changed.

Hear Jason Flemyng talk about his friendship with Jason Statham and Dexter Fletcher and why he takes pleasure in the simple things in life. Listen now on iTunes and Spotify.
As Ghislaine Maxwell waits for her trial, many are wondering if she will make a deal with the U.S. Department of Justice or not. Although Maxwell pled not guilty to the charges filed against her and maintains her innocence, the trial is still a long way, which is set to start in the summer of 2021.

Ghislaine Maxwell, known by many as Jeffrey Epstein's ex-girlfriend, is currently being charged with multiple counts with regards to Epstein's sex trafficking ring.

The charges against Maxwell include sex trafficking of children, enticement of minors, and perjury. Victims of Epstein claimed Maxwell was a recruiter and an abuser herself. Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide inside his cell while waiting for trial. About a year after, Maxwell was arrested by the authority.

Recently, "discovery", the part of court proceedings where both the prosecution and defense collect evidence for trial and present it to the court, is ongoing. A trove of information has been publicly revealed by Federal judge Alison Nathan this included a deposition from Virginia Roberts-Giuffre involving Duke of York, Prince Andrew.

On July 2, Ghislaine Maxwell was picked up in her place in New Hampshire. According to Reuters, Maxwell tried to hide from federal agents when they arrived in her place and knocked on her door. After being detained, Virginia Roberts-Giuffre posted on Twitter saying she should begin calling out names, Daily Mail reported.

After her Maxwell's detention, she was moved to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York. After a two-hour hiring, Maxwell's request for bail has been denied. Maxwell has been determined by the court as a flight risk for having massive wealth and multiple nationalities.

Read also: Did Anna Duggar Think of Leaving 'Counting On' Star Josh Duggar?

Although it seems like Maxwell would be willing to call out names at this time, the main goal of her legal team is to transfer her to the general population. Since being in the MDC, Maxwell has been on suicide watch and in solitary confinement.

Maxwell's legal team claimed that her treatment is extremely different from those of other inmates in her situation. The legal team asserts that Jeffrey Epstein is the reason behind, which is hindering Maxwell's right to have a fair trial.

According to Film Daily, Maxwell's lawyers said that the treatment she has been receiving is way worse than what other similarly situated pretrial detainees. This greatly affects her ability to compose herself for the defense and ready for the scheduled trial set by the Court.

Ghislaine Maxwell requested to the court to disclose the names of her three accusers, but her request has been denied by the court.

Though Maxwell's request has been turned down by the court, some say that she is receiving special treatment because of her case. In solitary confinement, Maxwell has extended 13 hour per day to do research for her case.

After the Covid-19 restrictions were lifted, Maxwell was one of those who were allowed to meet their legal team. A federal attorney clarified that Maxwell was not the first after a report from The New York Daily said she was the first inmate to see her legal team in-person.



Related article: Kanye West Wants to Change Music Contract, Asks Help from Rivals Drake and Taylor Swift

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Anti-lockdown protesters swarming a suburban park in Melbourne have been chased off by police on horseback.

Up to 150 people gathering at Elsternwick Park in Brighton dispersed to Elwood when faced with a long line of officers at the site, 11km from Melbourne's CBD.

Protests were announced by rally organisers about 10.30am on Saturday - half an hour before kicking off at the State Library, and a second closely following at 12pm.

Law enforcement teams circling Elsternwick Park included officers from Public Order Response, the Mounted Unit and Highway Patrol.

A helicopter also monitored the situation from above.

Up to 100 people gathering at Elsternwick Park in Brighton dispersed to Elwood when faced with a long line of officers at the site, 11km from Melbourne's CBD. Pictured: Protesters and officers at the Saturday demonstrations

Protesters marching along Elwood beach about 1pm were dispersed a third time, and several arrests have been made by officers.

Shouting about Premier Daniel Andrews and coronavirus restrictions was heard throughout the disjointed protests.

The protests were described as 'chaotic', with one photographer saying there was 'a lot of running and not much protesting.'

Some protesters continued to scatter through backstreets, even jumping fences into private property.

One arrested by police was filmed by Nine News telling officers: 'Wake up, I know you already know this is wrong.'

Protests were announced by rally organisers about 10.30am on Saturday - half an hour before kicking off at the State Library, and a second closely following at 12pm. Pictured: Protesters and officers at the Saturday demonstrations

In video captured of the event, protesters can be heard yelling 'disgraceful', 'I've done nothing wrong', 'no violence' and 'peaceful' as officers stand nearby.

A man can be seen being arrested as he questions: 'Officers, why are you doing this. I've never done anything wrong in my life. Please, this is enough. It's only going to get worse. Who is going to fight for you.'

Premier Daniel Andrews said the protest was selfish and irresponsible.

Pictured: A man being held down by police at the anti-lockdown protests at Elwood Beach, Melbourne

He added it was an unlawful act and told protesters: 'Go home and follow the rules. There is no need to protest about anything. It is not safe'.

'It just doesn't make any sense. You are potentially putting the strategy at risk. No-one should be doing anything to contribute to the spread of this virus, 21 cases today, seriously. This is working. We're getting there,' he said, The Age reported.

Saturday's events follow concern anti-lockdown protesters in Melbourne are threatening to cause another COVID-19 outbreak as the city teeters on the brink of a third explosion and cases surge in the southeast.

Police (pictured) are circling the area, including officers from Public Order Response, the Mounted Unit and Highway Patrol

Public health authorities are racing to stop infections growing in the Casey and Dandenong council areas on the Melbourne's southeast rim, which now has 90 active cases.

Five households in Clyde, Cranbourne North, Hallam and Narre Warren South are linked to 34 active cases.

Daniel Andrews urged covidiots on Saturday not to gather at planned protests across the city or 'do anything to undermine' its progress with tackling COVID-19.

It comes as Victoria recorded 21 new cases of COVID-19, the lowest daily increase since June, and a further seven deaths.

Metropolitan Melbourne's 14-day average has plummeted and now sits at 39.3 as the state moves to a COVID normal. In regional Victoria, the 14-day average is at just 1.9.

Later on Saturday, following the protests but not directly related, Melburnians were seen enjoying the sunshine at coffee shops and bars without masks

Daniel Andrews (pictured) urged covidiots on Saturday not to gather at planned protests across the city or 'do anything to undermine' its progress with tackling COVID-19

A heavy Police presence is seen in Dandenong following an anti-lockdown protest on August 28

This is the ninth day in a row Victoria has recorded a daily infections increase below 50.

Metropolitan Melbourne is under strict Stage Four lockdown - limiting Melburnians travelling more than 5km from their homes and enforcing a 9pm to 5am curfew.

The premier did not comment on where Saturday demonstrations would be, with protesters taking caution when sharing information online.

Multiple rallies have taken place in Melbourne the past few weekends.

Victoria Police have responded with a heavy presence - handing out dozens of fines and making arrests.

The premier did not comment on where Saturday demonstrations would be, with protesters taking caution when sharing information online. Pictured: Protesters rallying against lockdown regulations on Monday on September 13

'Let's not lose sight of the fact that this week we have seen, day after day, not the 725 cases we had five and a half weeks ago - we have made very significant progress,' Mr Andrews said.

'We've got regional Victoria opening up. People should be positive and optimistic this strategy is working, and therefore, let's not any of us do anything to undermine that.'

A surge of cases in the Casey and Dandenong area has been linked back to five households in the Afghan community.

As residents in the city are still under strict Stage Four lockdown, it is thought the infected group may have breached the stay-at-home orders.

There are currently 101 active coronavirus cases in the Casey and Dandenong area with 34 infections linked to five households

Metropolitan Melbourne is under strict Stage Four lockdown - limiting Melburnians travelling more than 5km from their homes and enforcing a 9pm to 5am curfew. Pictured: A person walking through Melbourne's empty city

As residents in the city are still under strict Stage Four lockdown, it is thought the infected group may have breached the stay-at-home orders.

Health authorities are scrambling to track and trace the new surge in cases, and the Victorian government has begun a recruitment drive which sees retired officers re-enlisted to bolster the state's frontline virus efforts.

'Members of those households visiting other households,' Department of Health and Human Services COVID-19 testing commander Jeroen Weimar said.

'It is that limited amount of contact, relatively infrequent contact between these five households that has now meant that we have 34 people in five houses experiencing or living with a very real threat of the coronavirus.'

The Victorian government has even began a new recruitment drive that will see retired officers re-enlisted to bolster the state's frontline virus efforts

Police conducting checks on motorists at checkpoints - alongside the Australian Defence Force - to ensure Victorians are following state rules

The cluster - impacting five households in Hallam, Clyde, Narre Warren South and Cranbourne North - first emerged on September 4.

Cases in the southeast have now spread to Dandenong Police Station and a number of industrial work sites.

Premier Daniel Andrews on Friday said the actions of the family's involved in the cluster was 'disappointing'.

The cluster which has impacted the five households in Hallam, Clyde, Narre Warren South and Cranbourne North, first emerged on September 4

'Five kilometres is one thing and visiting others is the real issue here,' he said.

'The rules are in place for a reason and anyone who undermines this, undermines the entire strategy and it means the rules will be on for longer.'

The Victorian leader, however, ruled out fines for the group, telling reporters it may discourage others from being completely honest with contact tracers.

'I know many Victorians, when you see examples of people not following the rules, that's disappointing, it makes you angry,' Mr Andrews said.

'You need to look at the bigger picture here.

'We don't want a situation where people don't have a sense of confidence and indeed, you know, the sense they're obliged to tell us the full story as quickly as possible. That's what we need.'

The success of Melbourne's ongoing lockdown could be at risk with a new cluster in the southeast of the city. Pictured: A coronavirus testing centre in Cranbourne on September 17

The Casey and Dandenong cluster is testing the capacity of COVID-detectives. Pictured: Heath workers are seen at a coronavirus testing centre in Cranbourne on September 17

A health worker is pictured approaching a vehicle at a COVID-19 testing centre in Cranbourne on September 17

Despite the new cluster, Victoria's overall case numbers are continuing to decline.

With contact tracers 'painstakingly' working around the clock to slow the spread of the virus and bringing the city out of lockdown, the Victorian government is set to introduce a controversial new policy seeing retired cops re-enlisted in the force.

The Department of Justice and Community Safety and the Department of Health and Human Services is behind the push which will see former cops given paid training before being assigned specific COVID-19 roles.

These roles include industry enforcement, testing support, door-knocking and the airport patrol.

A man with a dog is seen being questioned by two police officers in the Dandenong area

However, not everybody is in favour of the move to bring back veteran police.

'Police veterans have a real contribution to make to the ongoing safety of the community but their use to issue infringements, detain people and conduct checks on private property is entirely inappropriate,' Opposition Police and Community Safety spokesman David Southwick told the Herald Sun.

Ivan Ray, who served in the Victorian Police Force for more than three decades, said it was a recipe for disaster for the veterans.

'It's effectively a health department police force, and we know the Health Department is no good at enforcement, we saw that in the hotel quarantine operation,' Mr Ray said.

'Veterans can play a part and they can support policing, but it has to be by the police department.'

Health authorities are urging anyone in the southeast of Melbourne to diligently monitor their health and immediately get tested if feeling unwell.
On 2 September, a civil court in Hyderabad had issued an interim stay restraining Netflix from airing Bad Boy Billionaires on a petition filed by Ramalingam Raju, convicted in Satyam Computers scandal.

Netflix is nowhere near relief in the Bad Boy Billionaires case. A two-judge bench of the Telangana High Court said it will watch an episode of the show to determine if it would permit the streaming service to air the show.

The episode in question is the one based on former Satyam Computers Services Limited Chairman B Ramalinga Raju. The next hearing in the case is on 25 September, reports News18.

On 2 September, a civil court in Hyderabad had issued an interim stay restraining Netflix from airing the web series on a petition filed by Raju, who was convicted in the multi-crore accounting scandal of Satyam Computers. He alleged that the docuseries would infringe his rights of fair- trial and privacy besides defaming and tarnishing his image across nations.

Neeraj Kishan Kaul, representing Netflix, argued Bad Boy Billionaires is based on material available in public domain and said that stalling the release by watching the trailer is "an attack on the freedom of expression of the writers & filmmakers." He further said the documentary would not have an impact on Raju's case as he had already been convicted, reports The New Indian Express.

The bench, comprising Chief Justice Raghvendra Singh Chauhan and Justice B Vijaysen, has been given access to watch the episode. When it suggested if Raju's counsel should also be given access to it, Netflix countered saying "pre-release approval" would set a "bad precedent."

Meanwhile, the Patna High Court refused to vacate a stay granted by a local court in Bihar on the release of the docu-style show on Friday.

The court also asked Netflixs side to approach a lower court which has to decide the injunction moved by Sahara India within two weeks of filing, reported Economic Times.

Senior advocate Ranjit Kumar assisted by advocate Amit Shrivastava, appealing for Netflix, had sought a vacation for the stay ordered by Araria court in Bihar last month. But the high court made it clear that Netflix has to approach the local court for final disposal in the matter.

This comes after the court in Araria had restrained Netflix from using the name of businessman Subrata Roy in their upcoming web series Bad Boy Billionaires. Following this order, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi on behalf of Netflix had moved the Supreme Court. However, the apex court had dismissed the plea. Senior advocate Vikas Singh appeared for Sahara India and opposed Netflixs petition. He said as the order was passed by a civil judge, an appeal should be made before a district judge and not before any high court or the apex court.

The SC bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde had granted liberty to Netflix to approach the Patna High Court against the order. Now the High Court has also asked the streaming service to appeal in a local court.

Bad Boy Billionaires was initially scheduled to release on 2 September. According to the promos, the show featured Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Subrata Roy, Mehul Choksi and Byrraju Ramalinga Raju.

Choksi had also filed a plea in the Delhi HC seeking pre-screening of the documentary. The court had later dismissed his plea.

Netflixs description for the show ran as: This investigative docuseries explores the greed, fraud, and corruption that built up  and ultimately brought down  Indias most infamous tycoons.
The political crisis in the Philippines has reached a very advanced stage. Mass anger over catastrophic social conditions, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, is emerging alongside machinations within rival sections of the elite for the removal of President Rodrigo Duterte. The possibility of a constitutional coup against Duterte, through the withdrawal of military support for his presidency and the installation of Vice President Leni Robredo in his place, is being openly discussed.

Duterte took office in 2016, with more support from the wealthiest layers of Philippines society than any other candidate. A substantial majority of the middle, upper middle, and upper class voted for Duterte according to exit polls. These social layers were enthusiastic about Dutertes law-and-order agenda, including his promise to violently suppress the poor through a war on drugs. His right-wing, fascistic rhetoric appealed to them as a means of preventing the emergence of social unrest, which would jeopardize their property interests.

US soldiers training Philippines troops in counter-terror tactics [Credit: US embassy of the Philippines]

While Dutertes own party held very little clout in the legislature after the election, by the time of his inauguration, he was backed by a legislative super-majority of unprecedented size, comprising nearly every elite party in the country.

Duterte also received the enthusiastic backing of the national democratic movement, the wide range of parties and sectoral organizations that follow the political line of the Stalinist Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP). The Makabayan Coalition, the legislative umbrella organization of the national democratic movement, pledged support for Duterte and contributed to his super-majority.

That a substantial portion of the ruling elite is now turning against Duterte is a result of two basic developments.

First, in an attempt to develop the notoriously poor conditions of Philippine infrastructure, which have long stunted the expansion of capital investment, Duterte has turned to China for loans to fund his Build Build Build program. However, Washingtons aggressive moves against Beijing in the South China Sea and throughout the region, have made it impossible to placate US imperialism and improve ties with China. Duterte has thus downplayed the Philippine claim to the disputed waters in the South China Sea, and ended involvement in some of the most aggressive US war games in the region.

The Philippines was a colony of US imperialism for fifty years, and the political and economic power of the elite has been built around the economic interests of its former colonial master. As Duterte reoriented the alignment of Philippine foreign policy away from Washington, layers of the elite most closely tied to Washington became increasingly displeased.

Second, despite his fascistic war on drugs and the imposition of martial law in the southern island of Mindanao, Duterte has proven incapable of stemming the mounting tide of social unrest. Mass anger at inequality, and the callous indifference of the state to the immense suffering of the population, under conditions of the pandemic, have produced a social powder keg. The ruling-class opposition is looking to shore up the power of the state, under a semblance of competent leadership, by removing the increasingly despised Duterte.

These concerns are doubtless shared by sections of the top military brass. The Philippine military was built from the ground up by Washington, and many of its leadership graduated from West Point, or received training in Annapolis. Their loyalty is ultimately to Washington. Sections of the officer corps have demonstrated repeatedly over the past three decades that they will attempt to carry out a coup detat, if they disagree with the policies of the civilian government.

The political crisis centers around Vice President Leni Robredo, a leading member of the opposition Liberal Party. The Philippine constitution mandates the selection of the President and Vice President, not through a party slate, but on the basis of the highest vote-getter for each office. The vice president almost invariably winds up as the political rival of the president and, in times of unrest, the focus of elite opposition turns to the removal of the president and installation of the vice president, via a constitutional coup.

Duterte has gone on the offensive. He has shut down ABS-CBN, the largest media company in the country, which operated television and radio networks, and has refused to renew its franchise. The network, which was associated with the political opposition, was issued with cease-and-desist orders in late May, and compelled to end all broadcasts.

The pro-Robredo faction is seeking to build on the historical precedent established in 2001, when the former president, Joseph Estrada, was removed. Mobilized against the president on the basis of corruption charges, a largely middle-class protest movement demanded Estradas ouster. The most influential sections of the business community had issued statements calling for his removal.

The tide turned against Estrada when his Defense Secretary and the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, along with various heads of the military and police, announced that they were withdrawing support from the president and backing the installation of the vice president, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. A mass resignation of cabinet secretaries followed. Estrada abdicated and Arroyo took up the reins of power.

This was a constitutional coup and its center was the shifting support of the military. There are strong indications that the elite opposition is now angling to repeat this pattern by inducing the military to withdraw its support for Duterte and arrange the installation of Robredo.

At the center of these machinations is the Stalinist Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the range of organizations that follow its political line, in the national democratic movement. The CPP played a critical role in whipping up support for the removal of Estrada and in stabilizing the newly installed Arroyo administration, denouncing attacks on Arroyo during the first year of her presidency.

The CPP is a nationalist organization founded on the program of Stalinism. It insists that the tasks of the revolution in the Philippines are not yet socialist in character, but national and democratic only. A section of the capitalist class will therefore, they argue, play a progressive role. Unsurprisingly, the partys history has consisted in an uninterrupted series of attempted alliances with different factions of the elite. The enthusiastic support that the party extended to Duterte in 2016 was an expression of this program.

The founder and ideological leader of the CPP, Jose Maria Sison, has issued repeated statements over the past half year, ruminating on how to remove Duterte from office. In a talk delivered to the International League of Peoples Struggles (ILPS) on September 11, Sison outlined the scenario: a military coup.

Sison declared that a majority of military officers were either patriotic or pro-US, and that these two factions constituted the basis for the withdrawal of military support from Duterte. The role of a mass movement of workers and youth in this schema would be to encourage the military to withdraw its support.

In a statement written in February, Sison claimed that certain police and military officers, whom he referred to as patriotic elements, and his comrades, had informed him that they believed that a broad united front of mass actions was needed before the military would move. Sison stated that the anti-Duterte groups in the military and police will not act against Duterte unless they see protest mass actions, with hundreds of thousands of participants in the national capital region.

The CPPs long-standing pretext for the concessions and support that it provides to its elite allies is that these are a necessary component of peace negotiations. Julie de Lima, interim chair of the peace panel of the National Democratic Front of the CPP, announced on September 18 that the party would begin engaging in peace talks, not with the president, but with Robredo and the Liberal Party.

She called on all democratic forces to build the broadest united front behind these arrangements with Robredo, and held out the possibility of the ouster of Duterte.

The role of Stalinism is to attempt to bring about an alignment between the emerging struggles of workers, young people and the oppressed masses of the Philippines, on the one hand, and a section of the elite, on the other. This constitutes a fundamental betrayal and subordinates the interests of the working class to its enemy, the bourgeoisie.

There is no section of the elite in the Philippines interested in defending democracy or advancing the interests of the working masses. The Liberal Party opposition, currently being promoted by the CPP, was allied to Duterte in 2013. The CPP itself backed Duterte in 2016.

The only means for workers, young people and the oppressed masses of the Philippines to fight against dictatorship and defend themselves against the attacks on their lives by the fascistic Duterte, is by breaking from the CPP and its Stalinist politics. Workers have their own interests, independent of every section of the capitalist class. The fight to defend these interests requires the struggle for socialism and internationalism.
The Senate on Saturday approved Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court with a 50-48-1 vote, the narrowest margin for a confirmation vote in more than 130 years.

In 1881, Stanley Matthews, President James Garfields pick to replace Justice Noah Swayne, won confirmation by a single vote, 24 to 23 (51.06%).

Since then, the next closest came on Oct. 16, 1991, when Clarence Thomas won confirmation 52 to 48.

Kavanaugh's vote of 50-48-1 was 51.02%. Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) was attending his daughter's wedding Saturday, and with Kavanaugh having enough other votes to win confirmation, Daines did not return to Washington for the vote. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), who had planned to vote against Kavanaugh, instead voted present as a courtesy to Daines.

Close votes that ultimately confirm a Supreme Court nominee are rare. More often, nominees have been confirmed by wide margins.

Two-thirds of successful nominees were confirmed by at least 75% of the Senate, excluding those confirmed by a voice vote.

And 10 nominees have received at least 96% of the vote.

As the country  and the Senate  has become more sharply divided along partisan lines, the divide in Supreme Court confirmations has become more stark.

The tightening began with the 2005 confirmation of Samuel A. Alito Jr., a George W. Bush nominee.

The vote became closer with the confirmation of Neil M. Gorsuch, President Trumps first nominee. The Democrats used a filibuster to oppose the nomination and keep Gorsuch from receiving 60 votes required to advance. The Republican-controlled Senate then removed the filibuster for future Supreme Court nominees.

Of the 18 Supreme Court nominations since 1980, four were made by Democratic presidents while Democrats also held the majority in the Senate. Republican presidents nominated eight people to the Supreme Court while the GOP held the majority in the Senate.

Most of the big battles have come with the nominations in which the president and the Senate majority were of different parties: The defeated nomination of Judge Robert H. Bork in 1987, followed by the nomination and withdrawal of Judge Douglas Ginsburg; the Thomas vote in 1991; the Senates refusal to consider President Obamas nomination of Judge Merrick Garland.

The other two nominations made with the president and Senate in different parties went more smoothly  George H.W. Bushs nomination of David H. Souter and Reagans nomination of Anthony M. Kennedy, the man Kavanaugh has been nominated to replace.

Supreme Court nominees since 1980 The U.S. Senate has considered 18 Supreme Court nominees since 1980. Nominee Presidential party Senate majority party Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation Nominee Brett Kavanaugh Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Republican Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 51.02% Nominee Neil M. Gorsuch Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Republican Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 54.5% Nominee Merrick B. Garland Presidential party Democrat Senate majority party Republican Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation No vote held Nominee Elena Kagan Presidential party Democrat Senate majority party Democrat Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 63.0% Nominee Sonia Sotomayor Presidential party Democrat Senate majority party Democrat Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 68.7% Nominee Samuel A. Alito Jr. Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Republican Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 58.0% Nominee Harriet Miers Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Republican Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation Nomination withdrawn Nominee John G. Roberts Jr.* Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Republican Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 78.0% Nominee Stephen G. Breyer Presidential party Democrat Senate majority party Democrat Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 90.6% Nominee Ruth Bader Ginsburg Presidential party Democrat Senate majority party Democrat Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 97.0% Nominee Clarence Thomas Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Democrat Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 52.0% Nominee David H. Souter Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Democrat Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 90.9% Nominee Anthony M. Kennedy Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Democrat Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 100.0% Nominee Douglas H. Ginsburg Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Democrat Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation Nomination withdrawn Nominee Robert H. Bork** Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Democrat Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 42.0% Nominee Antonin Scalia Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Republican Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 100.0% Nominee William H. Rehnquist*** Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Republican Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 66.3% Nominee Sandra Day O'Connor Presidential party Republican Senate majority party Republican Percent of votes

in favor of confirmation 100.0% * Initially nominated for associate justice, resubmitted for chief justice

** Rejected by U.S. Senate

*** Sitting justice nominated to chief justice Source: U.S. Senate Supreme Court Nominations: present-1789

The Kavanaugh confirmation process was one of the longest of the 189 nominees to the Supreme Court dating back to 1789. Kavanaughs confirmation process lasted 88 days, which is the eighth-longest and the longest since Reagan nominated sitting Justice William H. Rehnquist to replace Warren Burger as chief justice in 1986.

UPDATES:

5:35 p.m.: This article was updated to note that Kavanaugh won 51.02% of yes-or-no votes cast.

2:05 p.m.: This article was updated with details on Kavanaughs confirmation.

1:28 p.m., Oct. 6: A graphic in this article was updated to reflect the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh was the narrowest margin in modern history.

This article was originally published at 6:54 p.m. on Oct. 5.
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Eddie Jordan is still convinced that the Mercedes factory team will get a new owner in Formula 1. Jordan goes on to say that it is also the right time for Toto Wolff to say goodbye to the race team with which he has been so successful over the past six years.

"That's a possibility," Jordan responds when he is asked by Rob Kamphues and Robert Doornbos at Formule 1 cafe if there is a chance that Wolff won't renew his contract with Mercedes and make the switch to Aston Martin F1 Team, the team of his good friend Lawrence. Wolff himself doesn't let go of much about how he sees the future and what role he will play. However, he has indicated that this will be with Mercedes.

Jordan sticks to his statement

Last week the former team boss of Jordan Grand Prix came up with the remarkable rumour that Mercedes will be sold for hundreds of millions to INEOS. Wolff denied that Daimler intends to sell off Mercedes' F1 team, but Jordan has no intention of doing so. "The only thing I was really sure of is that INEOS will buy the team," he says of that statement. A move from Wolff to Aston Martin is just a 'possibility' for Jordan.

According to the 72-year-old Irishman, it's time for Wolff to close the door behind him. "He's been sensational. But it's time for him to quit. He has already won everything. And he's created myth around Lewis Hamilton and the team. You have to remember in life that there are good times to go and very bad times. And for Toto, that very good moment is now. If I were his advisor, I would say: Get out of there, please Toto. Take the money that's on the table. You won't get it that good.'"
The Ranking Member on Parliament's Roads and Transport Committee, Kwame Governs Agbodza says the governing New Patriotic Partys (NPP) promise to give okada riders brand new vehicles on a lease basis is the highest joke of the century.

In response to the debate on the legalisation of okada, Vice President, Dr. Mahammudu Bawumia said the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) will provide a better alternative to such means of transport by offering okada riders with new vehicles which they will work with and pay in instalments.

Bawumia insisted that the NPPs alternative is safer than the NDCs proposal.

According to Dr. Bawumia, the okada business is a risky venture and will not be legalised by the governing party.

You don't want to finish graduate school and then make a life from okada riding. You can have a better option, and we will give you a better option. So yes, we will not legalise the okada business in Ghana. It may be a tough decision but it is in the interest of Ghanaians. We are having discussions, but we will stick to our decision to provide a better alternative for the okada riders. Lets give them an opportunity to buy safer vehicles through lease and pay over time. It is a better option than what the alternative is, he said earlier in the week.

But Mr. Agbodza is sceptical about the NPPs alternative to the okada business.

I heard the Vice President say that they are going to give the vehicles [on lease basis] which we all know is a total joke because VW is not assembling any cars here.

When you see a vehicle manufacturing plant, it can occupy half of Adabraka. VW just has a car that is fully built, and then they take the engine out and the tyres out and come and put it together in a small garage somewhere [in Ghana], and they say they are assembling vehicles. That is deceptive.

---citinewsroom
The Department of Commerce has announced that TikTok and WeChat will be banned from app stores in the U.S. from Sunday, September 20, amid national security concerns.



In a press release on Friday September 18, the department stated: 'In response to President Trump's Executive Orders signed August 6, 2020, the Department of Commerce (Commerce) today announced prohibitions on transactions relating to mobile applications (apps) WeChat and TikTok to safeguard the national security of the United States. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has demonstrated the means and motives to use these apps to threaten the national security, foreign policy, and the economy of the U.S. Today's announced prohibitions, when combined, protect users in the U.S. by eliminating access to these applications and significantly reducing their functionality.



The following transactions will be prohibited:



Any provision of service to distribute or maintain the WeChat or TikTok mobile applications, constituent code, or application updates through an online mobile application store in the U.S.

Any provision of services through the WeChat mobile application for the purpose of transferring funds or processing payments within the U.S.



The statement further says that as of September 20 for WeChat and November 12 for TikTok, the following transactions will be prohibited:



Any provision of internet hosting services enabling the functioning or optimization of the mobile application in the U.S.;

Any provision of content delivery network services enabling the functioning or optimization of the mobile application in the U.S.;

Any provision directly contracted or arranged internet transit or peering services enabling the function or optimization of the mobile application within the U.S.;

Any utilization of the mobile application's constituent code, functions, or services in the functioning of software or services developed and/or accessible within the U.S.





These measures ensure TikTok and WeChat will be removed from iOS and Google Play starting Sunday, preventing users from downloading the apps or updating them in the future.



It was also stated that TikTok has until November 12 to resolve the national security concerns it poses. If this is done, the ban may be lifted.



President Trump has repeatedly said that TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese internet company ByteDance, poses a national security threat because of its Chinese ties. He advised that TikToks US operations be sold to an American company.



The new development comes days after American computer technology giant, Oracle Corporation reportedly won the bidding for TikTok's US operations after the Chinese app rejected Microsoft.

















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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Congress chief



on Saturday said the BJP should give account of its 15-year-long rule in the state before asking about the performance of the previous Congress-led government that was in power for 15 months.

Nath also accused the BJP of coming to power in the state through "notes" (money).

A state BJP leader, however, said the government led by his party was formed through a democratic process.

Talking to reporters in Gwalior, the home turf of Congress-turned-BJP leader Jyotiraditya Scindia, Nath said, "We don't want a certificate from (Chief Minister) Shivraj Singh Chouhan and the BJP. People are the witness (of our 15- month-rule)," Nath said.

"How dare the BJP ask for a 15-month account from me? They are not giving account of the BJP's 15 years of rule. They should first give their account," he said.

"We had formed the government through votes, while the BJP did so through notes," he alleged.

Taking potshots at Scindia without naming him, Nath said, "MP was known by Gwalior and nobody used to talk about Indore, Bhopal and Jabalpur. Why did the Gwalior-Chambal region remain neglected and who was responsible for that?"



Nath claimed that farm loans of 26 lakh farmers were waived by his government and said he was ready to give a list of the beneficiaries to Chouhan.

Accusing the government of conducting less number of coronavirus tests as compared to other states, and also alleged that Chouhan had made false announcements.

Reacting to Nath's statements, state BJP spokesman Rajneesh Agrawal said the Congress must give account of its 15-month rule.

"We repeatedly went to people with the account of our government during various assembly and Lok Sabha elections in the past 15 years. The Congress leaders should also do so about their 15-month-long government while seeking votes during (assembly) bypolls," he said.

He said the bank accounts of farmers are showing that their farm loans were not waived by the previous Congress government.

"Why didn't Nath pay attention towards the development of Gwalior-Chambal region when he was the CM? Previous government stopped the funding for the expansion of hospitals and did not give a nod for Chambal expressway. He was CM for the entire state," Agrawal said.

"The BJP government in the state was formed purely through democratic process and those who resigned from the Congress are going to public again," he said.

(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.)
Over 1,400 low-wage workers at 11 Dominion grocery stores across Newfoundland and Labrador are now in the fourth week of a strike after overwhelmingly rejecting a tentative agreement recommended by their union, Unifor.

Lauded by the management and the corporate media as essential workers, the Dominion workers laboured without a contract through the first five months of the pandemic (Newfoundland recorded its first COVID-19 case on March 14). Their old contract expired 12 months ago.

The workers, represented by Unifor Local 597, have not received a contractual pay increase since early 2018. In 2019, management cut more than 60 full-time positions. Today, 83 percent of Dominions workforce is comprised of low-wage part-time employees with no or at best minimal benefits. Fully three-quarters of the striking workers make less than C$15 per hour with a majority of the part-timers labouring at or just above the current provincial minimum wage of C$11.65, which is among the lowest provincial minimum wage rates in all Canada.

The Loblaw conglomerate, parent company to Dominion, is the largest retail food distributor in Canada, employing 200,000 workers. It is owned by the Westons, the countrys third-wealthiest family.

Last month, workers voted overwhelmingly to reject a miserable contract offer that Unifor had endorsed. The tentative deal only provided for a C$1 per hour raise spread over the next three years. That the rotten contract offer was even brought to the membership, let alone recommended for ratification, underscores Unifors complicity in policing a brutal low-wage regime enforced by the grocery oligarchs in Newfoundland and across the country.

In announcing the tentative agreement at the end of July, Unifor Local 597 President Carolyn Wrice displayed the gaping disconnect between the membership and the union bureaucracy. Taking for granted that the workers would swallow the abysmal contract, she stated, I want to thank the bargaining committee for their hard work and the public for showing their support for the workers. Our members look forward to continuing to play a vital role in their communities.

On September 1, Loblaws Atlantic Canada vice-president, Mike Doucette, sent an inflammatory letter to each striker insisting that because of fierce competition and declining business, the company will not budge from its original offer.

In response, Chris Macdonald, an assistant to Unifor President Jerry Dias, said that the union is usually given bottom-line company records to substantiate any such claims during negotiations, but Dominion has provided union negotiators no such records during the current dispute. Macdonald perhaps said more than he intended. Workers have asked, if no financial records were provided in an attempt to justify such a sub-standard contract, why did the union recommend acceptance?

The reality is that Loblaw is raking in huge profits on the backs of its low-paid workforce. It recently announced C$162 million in second-quarter net profits. Profits, so far this year, total nearly half a billion dollars and are expected to double by years end.

Dominion workers are particularly outraged at the termination of a short-lived C$2 per hour special COVID-19 payment. In a highly provocative and apparently coordinated move, Canadas three main grocery store chains announced in June that they were scrapping their pandemic premiums. Loblaw, Metro, and Empirethe parent company of Sobeys, IGA, Safeways and other chainsintroduced the bonus in late March. They did so to dampen worker anger and anxiety about being exposed to the highly contagious and potentially lethal coronavirus in their workplaces while the country was in near total lockdown.

The bonus was touted by corporate bosses and the mainstream media alike as an example of the ruling elites recognition of supermarket workers as heroes. This was a crucial element in the bogus narrative that everyone was pulling together in the face of the pandemic. In reality, while workers received a few crumbs, the federal Liberal government handed over more than C$650 billion to the financial markets and big banks (see: Canadas grocery chains slash wages as pandemic continues to rage).

Loblaw owner Galen Weston Sr., who possesses a net worth of C$13 billion and splits his time between a spacious downtown Toronto residence, a private island in Georgian Bay and family compounds in Florida and the Bahamas, and his fellow oligarchs who control Metro and Empire, could not bear the thought of tens of thousands of store clerks dragging down their profit margins by collecting a C$2 per hour bonus for a moment longer than was politically necessary.

The strike in Newfoundland is the first grocery contract dispute in Canada since the beginning of the pandemic. But over the coming year, contracts covering workers at 2,400 other Loblaw outlets will expire. Loblaw is determined to smash the strike in Newfoundland and force the acceptance of the miserable contract offer in order to set a nation-wide precedent. Already, the company has gone to the provincial Supreme Court to successfully appeal for a draconian injunction to limit picketing at the 11 strike-bound stores.

Jerry Dias has replied to the recent company provocations by threatening to launch a boycott of Loblaw stores across Canada. Workers who have followed Diass stunts over the years will note that a Unifor call for a boycott of a strike-bound company is in actuality a kiss of death administered by the union. Rather than mobilize the full strength of the 315,000-strong unionor even the tens of thousands of Unifor workers in the grocery and retail sectorDias has coyly hinted that he may send a few union officials to distribute boycott leaflets at a handful of grocery stores across the country or purchase some radio spots denouncing the company.

Thousands of workers at the now shuttered auto assembly plant in Oshawa, Ontario, and at the Unifor-organized FCL refinery in Regina, Saskatchewan, already know the bitter fruits of such a toothless strategy.

The lesson for Dominion workers is that they must take control of their struggle out of Unifors hands by forming an independent rank-and-file strike committee to fight for their demands. These should include a substantial permanent pay increase to ensure all workers receive a decent wage, the reintroduction of pay premiums to compensate workers for the dangerous conditions they confront due to the pandemic, and regular testing paid by the company for all workers to protect them from infection. Striking workers should appeal through their committee for a common fight with grocery store workers across Canada, teachers, industrial workers, and health care workers, all of whom confront stepped-up exploitation and brutal working conditions due to decades of austerity and the ruling elites reckless reopening of the economy amid a still-raging COVID-19 pandemic.
Former Vice President Joe Biden made a campaign swing through Minnesota on Friday, a state Democrats have not lost in a presidential election since 1972 but saw an unexpectedly tight race in 2016 between President Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

The trip to Minnesota, which included a tour of a union facility and remarks in Hermantown, coincides with the first day of in-person early voting in the state, marking a new and more urgent phase of the 2020 race for both candidates.

Biden focused on a working class appeal during his visit to the state, comparing Minnesota to his hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania, and noting his view that the election was a battle between workers and the wealthy.

"I view this campaign as between Scranton and Park Avenue. All Trump sees from Park Avenue is Wall Street. That's why the only metric of the American prosperity for him is the value of the Dow Jones. Like a lot of you, I spent a lot of my life with guys like Donald Trump looking down on me, looking down on the people who make a living with their hands, people who take care of our kids, [who] clean our streets," Biden said Friday afternoon.

MORE: Donald Trump in 'jam' in Minnesota as early in-person voting begins, but 'turnout' key for Joe Biden

The former vice president's remarks condemned Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, and included a stinging rebuke of the incumbent's ability to handle the job they are both vying for.

"Let me tell you something: I know how to do the job of being president. It's pretty clear. No matter how wealthy Donald Trump is, no matter how much he doctors his -- if he does -- his tax returns, he doesn't have a clue how to be president," Biden said after touring a union training facility.

PHOTO: Democratic presidential nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden talks to reporters on the Duluth Airport tarmac before departing after campaign events in Duluth, Minn., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)

Biden's focus on the economy -- an issue the president often touts as his specialty -- comes with 46 days until Election Day, and a number of states beginning to hold in-person early voting.

Story continues

Recent polling in Minnesota shows Biden with a firm edge over Trump in the state. A poll conducted this week by ABC News and The Washington Post shows the former vice president with a healthy 16-point lead over the Republican incumbent.

The visit caps off a week of travel for Biden, with the former vice president making trips to critical battleground states, including Florida and Pennsylvania, along with giving remarks in his home state of Delaware and at a nationally televised town hall Thursday night near Scranton.

In his remarks on Friday just outside Duluth, Biden continued to lean heavily into the "Scranton versus Park Avenue" framework of the election that he has debuted in recent days.

"Trump says, by the way, I'm paraphrasing, [says] 'Everyone's in the stock market.' That's why he cares about the stock market. What the hell's he talking about? People I grew up [with] in Scranton and Claymont, they don't have money in stocks. Every penny we made was to pay the bills and take care of the families, putting clothes on their back and a roof over our head," Biden said.

MORE: Joe Biden town hall: Fact-checking the Democratic nominee's answers

Following his speech, Biden also took time to visit early voters outside of a coffee shop in downtown Duluth, along with Mayor Emily Larson, and a Duluth fire station, bringing cookies to local firemen.

Trump is also set to visit northern Minnesota on Friday, holding an event at an airplane hanger in Bemidji, continuing a string of aggressive campaign events that largely flout local restrictions to help slow the spread of COVID-19.

Despite Minnesota's typically Democratic-leaning electorate, Trump's reelection campaign has expressed optimism that the president will be able to compete there after Clinton's narrow win in 2016, and both campaigns are currently running television advertisements to try to sway voters.

"We're going all-in on Minnesota," Jason Miller, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, said on a call with reporters earlier this month. "We think it's a state we can win."

PHOTO: Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden, joined by Duluth Mayor Emily Larson, left and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, takes a knee to talk with twin brothers as he arrives at Amazing Grace Bakery & Cafe Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. (Carolyn Kaster/AP)

Democrats have expressed similar feelings about their chances.

"I feel quite good about Minnesota. We've invested for some time in Minnesota because we also looked at the data. Hillary Clinton won Minnesota by a point and a half in 2016. Third party candidates Gary Johnson and Jill Stein got about 5.2% of the vote. The majority of that came from Secretary Clinton. And so we've been investing early and everywhere in Minnesota," Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez told reporters this month.

MORE: Close contest in Wisconsin; in Minnesota, not so much: Poll

Trump and Biden's dueling visits to Minnesota come less than two weeks before the two will face off during the first presidential debate on Sept. 29.

"I have gone back and talked about and looked at not only the things he said, but making sure I can concisely say what I'm for and what I'm going to do," Biden said of his debate preparation during the CNN town hall Thursday night.

Biden said he'd been preparing for the debate, with someone posing as the president: "There are a couple of people, they asked me questions if they were like as if they were President Trump, but I'm looking forward to it."

PHOTO: Democratic presidential nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden fist bumps Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., after speaking and touring Jerry Alander Carpenter Training Center on Sept. 18, 2020, in Hermantown, Minn. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Trump is expected to forgo traditional debate prep with no plans to hold private mock debates, multiple sources told ABC News.

Instead, the president has started preparing with top aides, getting briefings on likely topics.

"I've said before that the best debate prep that exists is to be president every day. Part of debate prep is going back and watching Joe Biden's old debates which I and some of us here have done," Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien said on a call with reporters earlier this month.

ABC News' Will Steakin, Justin Gomez, John Santucci and Katherine Faulders contributed to this report.

Biden touts working-class message in Minnesota as early voting kicks off new phase of 2020 race originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Horrifying footage has shown the moment at least ten sharks swarmed a bait ball just 500 metres from a popular swimming beach.

Max Hinton, from Content Lion, caught the scene on his drone at Burleigh Heads, Gold Coast, Queensland on Friday.

The footage showed sharks close to the surface circling one of the fish bait balls.

Many more sharks were seen lurking deep below, all eager to get a taste of the dead animals left there as a way to prevent sharks from getting closer to shore.

'This was about 500 meters off-shore and completely took me by surprise how close it was and the scale of how many sharks there were,' Mr Hinton told Nine News.

Nick Slater (pictured) was fatally mauled at about 5pm on September 8 off popular Greenmount Beach, on the Gold Coast tourist strip, where swimmers are protected by shark netting

Locals have been cautious about stepping into the water after a 46-year-old died just 15km away following a shark attack.

Nick Slater was fatally mauled while surfing near Greenmount Beach, on the Gold Coast tourist strip, at about 5pm on September 8.

Early analysis of the tooth and the imprint of the animal's jaw on Mr Slater's surfboard revealed it was likely a 3.5m white pointer shark.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk revealed a large tiger shark was found tangled in a net off Greenmount Beach just hours after the tragedy.

'Further investigations will be conducted to discover if there is any link between it and the fatal attack,' Palaszczuk told state parliament.

Mr Slater suffered serious leg injuries and was pronounced dead by paramedics at the scene.

Max Hinton (pictured), from Content Lion, caught the scene on his drone at Burleigh Heads, Gold Coast, Queensland on Friday

His death is only the second fatal shark attack at one of Queensland's 85 beaches that have been protected by nets and drum lines since 1962, the state government said.

Before nets were put in place, the last fatal shark attack off a Gold Coast beach - 24 of which are now netted - was in 1958.

Friday's footage prompted Surf Lifesaving Queensland to issue a warning to all swimmers as school holidays is set to begin.

'Six roving jet skis rove from Southport down to the border, our Westpac rescue drones will be in the sky our Westpac rescue helicopter,' Nathan Fife, from the organisation, said.

'If [swimmers] do see any bait balls please stay well away.'
In a week, over 500 intensive care unit (ICU) beds have been added in Delhis private sector hospitals for the treatment of patients with coronavirus disease (Covid-19), health minister Satyendar Jain said on Saturday, even as the Capital added 4,071 cases of the infection. He also said that the case positivity rate in the city would see a further downward trend in the coming days, on the back of the governments efforts to scale up Covid-19 tests in the Capital.

In the next two or three days, the number of beds will go up further. ICU beds are being increased in the government hospitals as well, and we are monitoring the capacity of all the hospitals regularly. Over 8,000 beds earmarked Covid-19 beds are still vacant, and we will increase the count further if necessary, he said.

Not many actually need beds with ventilators. As the number of ICU beds go up, ventilator beds will slowly free up, Jain added.

As on Saturday evening, according to the state governments Delhi Corona website, 15,323 beds in Delhis government and private hospitals are earmarked for the treatment of Covid-19 patients. Of these, 7,025, or 45.8%, beds were occupied. Over 2,900 ICU beds are reserved for Covid-19 patients, and 66.6% currently occupied.

With the government scaling up testing for Covid-19 from the first week of September, Delhi has added over 4,000 new cases of Covid-19 every day except one, since September 9 . However, the cumulative test positivity rate  the number of positive cases of the total number of people tested in the city so far  dipped below 10% on Friday, the health minister said.

The cumulative positivity rate of all cases reported dropped below 10% for the first time on Thursday . So far, the positivity rate is 9.83%, earlier this was between 11 and 12%. The case fatality ratio (fraction of people who die among those tested positive) stands at 0.69% in the last 10 days, and 2.05% for all deaths so far, Jain said.

Delhi has so far seen 4,945 people die of the disease.

Click here for complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

Jain also said the proportion of the gold standard reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests looks skewed because Delhi government has scaled up testing massively.

Over the last week, just over 17.5% of all tests conducted in the city were done using the RT-PCR method.

Show me one case in Delhi where a person wanted to get tested but could not get it. Even if they want RT-PCR test they can get it. But for surveillance in people without symptoms, rapid antigen tests can be done in bulk. The testing guidelines have also been revised to remove the need for doctors prescriptions, the minister said.

We increased the number of tests over the last 10 to 12 days, and have seen a downward trend in positivity rate in the last two days. The impact will be visible in the coming week, he added.

When asked whether there was community transmission in Delhi, he said, Community transmission is a technical term, but with so many cases being reported from Delhi and other parts of the country, community transmission should have been accepted. But, it is only the centre and scientists from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) who can say so, however the infection is spreading in the community.

What we have learnt and what WHO (World Health Organization) defines as community transmission is a case for which authorities are not able to trace the contact from where they got the infection. And we are getting such cases. So the answer is fairly obvious. But, discussing this makes no sense now. The objective has to be to control further spread of the infection and reduce morbidity and mortality because of it, said Dr Puneet Mishra, professor, department of community medicine at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences.
About one in every nine men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime, which is why it is vital to understand what prostate cancer is and what treatment options are available. Read more

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in American men, other than skin cancer. About one in every nine men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime, which is why it is vital to understand what prostate cancer is and what treatment options are available.

Prostate cancer is a result of out-of-control cell growth in the prostate gland, which is located below the bladder and in front of the rectum. More often than not, prostate cancer does not present with any noticeable signs or symptoms, so it is important for men to discuss the risks and benefits of prostate cancer screening with their doctor. Prostate cancer screening includes a digital rectal examination combined with a simple blood test. This test is called a Prostate-Specific Antigen, or PSA.

For most men, prostate cancer screening is recommended to begin at age 50. However, some men are at higher risk for developing prostate cancer. Those at higher risk include African Americans, and men who have a family history of prostate or breast cancer. These men should talk to their doctor and consider starting prostate cancer screening at age 40. There is now conclusive evidence that screening, when performed appropriately, decreases the risk of dying from prostate cancer.

To formally diagnose prostate cancer, your doctor may need to perform a prostate biopsy. The results of the biopsy will determine the grade of the cancer. The higher the grade, the higher the risk of cancer spreading beyond the prostate. Your doctor may recommend additional tests to determine whether the cancer is still confined to the prostate gland.

Treating prostate cancer can look different for each patient because the type of treatment is dependent on your overall health, age, grade of the cancer and whether the cancer has spread. Fortunately, most patients are diagnosed with low-risk prostate cancer, which doesnt require immediate treatment. Instead, the patients are carefully monitored with a clinical protocol called active surveillance.

Active surveillance involves very close PSA monitoring and repeated biopsies with intervention if the grade, PSA or volume of cancer changes during surveillance. Recently, a high-quality trial (ProtecT) assessed comparative efficacy of active monitoring, radical prostatectomy and radiotherapy in 1,643 men who were randomized to the three treatment options. At 10 years, there was no significant difference in the risk of dying from prostate cancer among the three groups. However, higher rates of cancer progression and metastatic disease were seen in patients randomized to active monitoring.

High-grade prostate cancer should be treated. The treatment options include surgical therapy, radiation therapy, cryotherapy, hormonal therapy and, sometimes, chemotherapy. Focal therapies that treat only a portion of the prostate containing the cancer are being developed, as well. It is important to remember that most patients who present with prostate cancer can be cured.

I strongly encourage men to discuss prostate cancer screening with their doctor.

Ilia S. Zeltser is a urologist specializing in the treatment of prostate cancer with MidLantic Urology in Bryn Mawr, Pa.
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 19, ARMENPRESS. The government of Artsakh has announced the relocation of its Seat of Parliament from the capital city of Stepanakert to Shushi, the mountain town liberated by the Armenian forces in 1992.

The relocation will officially take place on May 9, 2022, the 30th anniversary of the Liberation of Shushi.

Meanwhile, the building of the new seat of parliament is under construction.

In a statement issued on Saturday, the President of Artsakh Arayik Harutyunyan said the Free Fatherland and Justice factions of parliament have endorsed his proposal on moving the seat.

I think the other factions of parliament will join their colleagues stance, he said.

The building which is planned to be allocated for the seat of parliament was originally being built as a courthouse but was never finished.

Harutyunyan hailed the move as politically and practically significant, and noted its meaningful importance for revaluing our historic and victorious city.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
The area of Blanchardstown-Mulhuddart in West Dublin has the highest rate of Covid-19 in the country, according to data released by the Department of health this morning.

The data is included in the first national breakdown of the disease here.

Dublin, where the majority of cases confirmed in recent weeks have been located, has an overall incidence rate of 120.9 - the highest of any county in Ireland.

Blanchardstown-Mulhuddart itself has an incidence of 189 per 100,000 people.

Tallaght-Central is the area with the second-highest rate, at 171.

Conversely, the Blackrock area of Dublin registered the county's lowest incidence rate with 35 per 100,000.

On a county-by-county scale, Cork has the second-lowest incidence rate in Ireland with 14.2 per 100,000 people. The highest rate in Co Cork is Fermoy, with 24.7.

Read More Ryanair reiterates threat to close Cork and Shannon bases due to Government 'inaction'

County Limerick has an overall incidence rate of 58.5, though north Limerick city has an incidence of 126.8. Limerick city west has an incidence rate of 17.

County Sligo has the lowest incidence rate of any county, at just 12.2 per 100,000 people.

The release of the new figures comes on a day when capital moved to level three of the governments Living with Covid' plan. The level three restrictions will remain in place for a period of three weeks.

Social gatherings in the county are to be curtailed, and travel into and out of the county has been advised against unless absolutely necessary.

So-called wet pubs will now not be allowed open in Dublin on Monday.

Indoor gatherings in pubs and restaurants are no longer permitted.

The Government is hopeful the restrictions will help bring down the numbers of confirmed cases in the capital.

Meanwhile, Gardai say are recommencing 'Operation Fanacht' in Dublin today.

They say there will be a high level of garda visibility on foot, in cars, and on bikes in the city and county, to monitor social distancing and gatherings in large groups at amenities and public spaces.

Targeted Garda Checkpoints will also be set up across the county.
This is the Northern Ireland-born vicar who is getting his parishioners hot under the collar.

Church of England minister Rev Dr Matt Davis, originally from Co Antrim, will be formally introduced to his new congregation in Liverpool on Tuesday.

But he has already gained a flock of admirers after a local community Facebook page posted news of his arrival this week.

Within hours, online swooning had begun with some comparing him to the 'Hot Priest' character in the popular TV comedy series Fleabag.

Rev Davis, who grew up in Stoneyford outside Lisburn, said he has been "amazed" at the reception following the announcement he would be joining St Luke's Church in Formby.

Hundreds of comments were posted from across the UK, many with emojis of love hearts, and Rev Davis, a former pupil at Friends School in the town, said he has been a little taken aback by the attention.

"I was absolutely amazed by the way that this announcement was received," he said.

"As a happily married family man I am not used to this kind of attention!"

But he has vowed not to let his hot reception get in the way of his calling to the ministry.

"I know that I will be judged by how well I work as a good parish vicar serving the community God has called me to," he said.

Formerly a member of Harmony Hill Presbyterian in Lambeg, Rev Davis has been married to wife Liz, from Northumberland, for 13 years.

The couple have two young boys, and have lived as a family in Liverpool for the past four years.

Before moving to Liverpool, Matt started his training for ministry at Oak Hill Theological College in London. The couple spent 11 years in Cambridge.

At Cambridge University, where he moved to in 2002, Matt spent a few years working in research using earthquakes to study the Earth's structure, and more time working on image recognition and face recognition for a software company before moving to the church.

He starting his training for ministry at Oak Hill Theological College in London and was ordained in Liverpool Cathedral and has been in the Liverpool Diocese ever since.

Rev Davis's induction into St Luke's is on Tuesday with limited numbers present due to Covid guidelines.
In route news, San Francisco International gets quieter; Southwest extends its open middle seat policy through Thanksgiving; Americans website adds a trip planning feature that details COVID-related restrictions on U.S. travelers to countries worldwide; New York now allows California residents to visit without subjecting them to a mandatory 14-day quarantine; Hawaii now expects to lift its mandatory quarantine rule in mid-October; new domestic routes are coming to Los Angeles International and Palm Springs; international carriers including United, Philippines, EVA and KLM trim winter schedules at SFO; Air France-KLM lounge reopens at SFO; and American Express will start reopening Centurion airport lounges next month.

The next time you visit San Francisco International, you might notice something you havent heard there before: silence. Airport officials said this week that an ongoing project at SFO called Quiet Airport has led to a 40% reduction in public announcements via the PA system at departure gates. In the International Terminal alone, SFO Customer Care staff estimate that more than 90 minutes of unnecessary announcements have been eliminated each day. The team will continue to focus on reducing sources of unwanted background noise, including items such as moving walkways and escalators, the airport said. The airport has convinced airlines in recent months to make boarding announcements only in and around the departure gate instead of all through the terminal.

Airlines continue to weigh the importance of empty middle seats to their customers, and the latest to announce a change is Southwest. The airline had previously said it would keep middle seats open through the end of October, but now it is extending that policy through Nov. 30 to accommodate Thanksgiving travelers. Southwest has been operating flights with middle seats open throughout the summer and has added thousands of flights to in-demand destinations to provide extra seats for on-board physical distancing and added comfort," said senior VP Ryan Green. Southwest has no assigned seating but will keep open seats by limiting bookings to two-thirds of an aircrafts capacity. Delta recently announced plans to keep middle seats empty through Jan. 6. American and United no longer enforce such a policy; JetBlues is Oct. 15. UPDATE: On Sept 21, Alaska Airlines announced that it would block middle seats through at least Nov. 30.

A couple of weeks ago, United Airlines came out with an interactive online on-line guide to travel restrictions in the United States to help customers plan their future trips. Now American Airlines has come out with one as well, powered by a company called Sherpa. While Uniteds planning tool focuses on coronavirus-related rules and restrictions in U.S. destinations, Americans currently seems to be limited to international planning. American said customers can access the new feature on aa.coms travel updates page under the Travel Guidelines section. Just select your destination country and the site will pull up the relevant rules and restrictions. Sometimes you might have to dig a little into the details; for instance, if you call up information on the U.K. for a trip to London, youll see a headline that says American travelers are allowed to visit the United Kingdom, but if you scroll down the page and click on details for quarantine, youll see that U.S. travelers have to self-isolate for 14 days after arrival.

Want to visit the Big Apple but youve been putting it off because of New Yorks mandatory 14-day quarantine rule for residents of select states? Its OK to go now, because California this week was removed from the list. Since late June, the states of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut have jointly imposed a 14-day quarantine rule on anyone visiting from a state that has unacceptably high levels of new coronavirus cases  and there were a lot of them. Also removed were Hawaii, Maryland, Ohio, Nevada and Minnesota. Even with those deletions, there are still 30 states and U.S. territories whose residents are subject to the quarantine. You can see the list here.

Speaking of quarantines, Hawaii has decided on a final date (we hope) for lifting its mandatory 14-day quarantine rule for all out-of-state visitors. But its not Oct. 1 as promised a few weeks ago  now its Oct. 15. As we reported earlier this week, the new rules will require visitors to get negative results on a coronavirus test within 72 hours of arrival in the islands, but now the state said it has lined up partnerships with CVS pharmacies and Kaiser Permanente to conduct the testing. Other partners are expected to be added, and tests are likely to cost $120-$140, officials said.

If Hawaii sticks with its new date of Oct. 15, expect to see airlines quickly reviving many of their suspended routes to the islands. Of course, theyve been through this before since Hawaii has now delayed its plan to reopen to tourism three times (it was originally supposed to happen Aug. 1, then Sept. 1, then Oct. 1). This just happened a couple of days ago, and so far the only Hawaii route news weve seen this week is a plan by Hawaiian Airlines to resume Las Vegas-Honolulu flights three days a week starting Oct. 2.

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In California route news, new service is coming for Los Angeles and Palm Springs. On Dec. 19, Delta plans to kick off twice-daily Delta Connection/Skywest service from LAX to Reno with E175s. And Boutique Air, which flies Pilatus PC-12 single-engine turboprops with 1x1 leather seats and soundproofed cabins, plans to start flying out of Palm Springs on Oct. 1 with daily flights to LAX and Phoenix Sky Harbor. (On Dec. 17, Delta will also begin daily 737-800 flights between its newly built Salt Lake City hub and Miami.)

Following the current airline industry trend of focusing on more service in leisure markets, United plans to add flights to Key West, Fla. next month. The airline will revive daily flights from Chicago OHare and from Newark Liberty International on Oct. 1 and will introduce new service from Washington Dulles Nov. 6. The Dulles route will start with five flights a week and increase to daily frequencies Dec. 17.

San Francisco International

On the international side, were seeing more carriers cut back service in their winter schedules, which are in effect from late October through late March. Uniteds latest update indicates that the carrier now plans to offer one daily 787-9 flight instead of two between San Francisco and Shanghai Pudong during the winter. To Australia and New Zealand, United will continue to operate one daily 787-9 roundtrip from SFO to Sydney but will trim Los Angeles-Sydney service from seven flights a week to three. Still suspended this winter are Uniteds routes from SFO to Melbourne and Auckland, LAX to Melbourne and Houston to Sydney.

Philippine Airlines winter schedule calls for a reduction in SFO-Manila service from two flights a day to three a week starting Oct. 25, then back to five a week Nov. 20 and daily service effective Dec. 15. Taiwans EVA Air has plans to slash its SFO-Taipei schedule from 21 flights a week to just three from Oct. 25 through Dec. 14. And KLM has trimmed its SFO-Amsterdam schedule from daily service to four flights a week.

We reported earlier this week on American Airlines plans to open its new Admirals Club in SFOs Harvey Milk Terminal 1 on Oct. 6 (operating at 50% capacity), but thats not the only lounge news at the airport. In International Terminal A, the Air France-KLM lounge has reopened, the airport said in a tweet this week.

In other lounge news, American Express said this week it expects to start reopening some of its Centurion Lounges in early October (although it didnt say which ones), and added that it should have its newest locations (at New York JFK, London Heathrow and Denver International) opened later this year. AmEx also announced plans for some major improvements to its clubs at New York LaGuardia and Las Vegas McCarran. Its LGA Centurion Lounge will be relocated to a post-security location in the rebuilt airports new Terminal B; it will be twice the size of the old lounge and will feature a family room, more workspaces, private telephone rooms and city skyline views. At LAS, the seven-year-old Centurion Lounge will be expanded from 9,000 to 13,400 square feet and will offer more multi-purpose areas, new private telephone rooms and new workspace areas. The work on both should be finished sometime next year.

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He took a moment to thank his fan base as his very public legal war against ex-wife Amber Heard continued last week.

And amid the ongoing drama with his ex, Johnny Depp was seen arriving at the Maria Cristina Hotel during 68th San Sebastian International Film Festival on Saturday.

The actor, 57, opted for a typically quirky look as he arrived wearing a Ramones T-shirt and a baker boy style cap with aviator shades.

Arrivals: Johnny Depp was seen arriving at the Maria Cristina Hotel during 68th San Sebastian International Film Festival on Saturday

The Edward Scissorhands star layered his look with a suede jacket and teamed it with a pair of distressed blue jeans and black boots.

He also accessorised with a selection of scarves for the occasion, one of which he used to cover his face in accordance with coronavirus guidelines.

The film festival will run from 18 to 26 September 2020 under safety measures like obligatory face mask use and red carpets without public due to the pandemic.

Organizers have also reduced the number of film screenings as well as the seating capacity in cinemas.

Here is he: The actor, 57, opted for a typically quirky look as he arrived wearing a Ramones T-shirt and a baker boy style cap with aviator shades

Eclectic: The Edward Scissorhands star layered his look with a suede jacket and teamed it with a pair of distressed blue jeans and black boots

Safety: The film festival will run from 18 to 26 September 2020 under safety measures like obligatory face mask use and red carpets without public due to the pandemic

On Friday Johnny took to his Instagram with a nostalgic-feeling video showing him seated at a desk, penning a letter of gratitude.

The text was copied into the caption of the post, which read: 'Hello All! I just wanted to thank you all once again for your constant and loyal support throughout many long and interesting episodes of my life...

'I am only here because of you  and I'm only here for you!!!' the caption continued.

Covering up: He also accessorised with a selection of scarves for the occasion, one of which he used to cover his face in accordance with coronavirus guidelines

Keeping busy: On Sunday, the thespian attended a photocall to promote Crock Of Gold: A few rounds with Shane Macgowan

Typical style: Johnny looked edgy in a light brown jacket, distressed jeans and dark boots

Working hard: The media personality later removed his outerwear to reveal his black shirt as he made an appearance at a talk for the new film

'All thanks and love to you for all, JD'

The post comes as Depp received word Friday from a Virginia court that there will indeed be a delay in the defamation trial he is bringing against Heard in the American courts... but not for the reason he had intended.

As reported by Deadline, Circuit Court Chief Judge Bruce White has delayed the trial from January 11, 2021 to to May 3, 2021  due to continued concerns over coronavirus.

Moment of gratitude: On Friday Johnny took to his Instagram with a nostalgic-feeling video showing him seated at a desk, penning a letter of gratitude

The text read, in part: 'I just wanted to thank you all once again for your constant and loyal support throughout many long and interesting episodes of my life'

Seen on Instagram in his new film Waiting For The Barbarians: These posts come as Depp received word Friday from a Virginia court that there will indeed be a delay in the new defamation trial he is bringing against ex Amber Heard

Depp had initially filed a motion on August 21 to have the upcoming $50M defamation trial delayed so he could begin filming Fantastic Beasts 3 in London.

The Cry Baby actor filed court documents in a Fairfax County, Virginia court requesting the trial be delayed until anywhere between March and June of 2021, once filming was completed.

His ex Amber, 34, in turn filed a motion opposing the request.

The court had initially set the trial to run from January 11, 2021 to January 28, 2021, though Warner Bros. recently revealed they plan to start filming Fantastic Beasts 3 in October in London, which will run through the end of February.
Whale Theatre presents the Degani Piano Trio with special guest Ruby Asley on Oboe, taking place on Saturday. September 26, at 8pm.

The Degani Piano Trio is an established Irish piano trio of distinguished musicians. They have recorded albums in recent years of repertoire including Haydn, Dvorak, Chopin, Brahms and Piazzolla.

They are renowned for their insightful and joyful interpretations of the classics. They have performed regularly at the NCH Dublin, the Curtis Auditorium CIT, 'Con Brio' Festival (Sligo), Calary Festival, Crescent Contemporary Music Festival, Whale Theatre and other venues around Ireland. Most recently they completed a 'Words and Music' three concert series of Beethoven's Piano Trios in the National Concert Hall's Chamber Music Series 2020, collaborating with Barry McGovern in narration of excerpts of Beethoven's letters. Lyric FM will be broadcasting highlights from these concerts during the summer of 2020.

Alan Smale, violin, is founder and director of the Degani Ensemble and Leader of the Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra for the 2020/21 season.

For 20 years until 2013 he was Leader of the RTE NSO, and for 10 years prior to that Leader of the RTE Concert Orchestra. He is a guest leader of the Ulster Orchestra and is a frequent concerto soloist. He is a great exponent of Irish contemporary music and has recorded concertos by Raymond Deane, Frank Corcoran, James Wilson and Jerome de Bromhead. Alan plays on a superb Venetian violin made by Eugenio Degani in 1896.

Annette Cleary, cello, is a prizewinner of international competitions in Europe and the U.S. and has performed as soloist with many orchestras in Ireland and Germany. She has undertaken five recital tours of Japan and played at major arts festivals in Ireland. Annette is guest principal with orchestras in Ireland and the U.K. and a noted baroque cello specialist.

Rachel Quinn, piano, has performed numerous concertos by Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Prokofiev, Cesar Frank, Liszt, Litoff, Turina, Cesar Franck and Finzi with orchestras such as the National Symphony Orchestra, RTE Concert Orchestra, Irish Chamber Orchestra and the West Bohemian Orchestra in the Czech Republic.

She has appeared in solo recital programmes at arts centres throughout Ireland, and abroad in Japan, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Austria and Great Britain. In addition, she was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to the Peabody Conservatory in the USA and was a Foundation Scholar at the Royal College of Music London. Rachel is a noted teacher, chamber musician and accompanist.

For tickets go to Whaletheatre.ie.
GENEVA (Reuters) - The European Union is requesting an urgent debate on Belarus at the top U.N. rights body next week, describing a "deterioration" in the situation there, a letter written by the German ambassador showed on Friday.

Western countries dispute the outcome of an Aug. 9 election which official results show President Alexander Lukashenko won, and the EU is aiming for economic sanctions.

"The ongoing deterioration of the human rights situation in Belarus in relation to the 2020 presidential election needs the urgent attention of the Human Rights Council," Germany's Ambassador to the United Nations Michael von Ungern-Sternberg wrote to the Geneva-based council.

The ambassador, whose nation holds the EU rotating presidency, added that he would request a resolution after the debate.

He did not elaborate on the human rights issues in Belarus though others have voiced concerns about reported kidnappings and threats to opposition figures since the vote.

A schedule of the rights council showed the item would be discussed on Monday, the opening day of a three-week session held in Geneva.

Lukashenko denies rigging the election and has refused to talk to the opposition, accusing them of trying to wreck the former Soviet republic.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on Friday for authorities in Belarus "to refrain from the use of force against those engaging in peaceful assembly and to ensure that allegations of torture and other mistreatment of people in detention are fully investigated and addressed."

(Reporting by Emma Farge; Additional reporting by Michelle Nichols in New York; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
Boris Johnson has been accused of "wilfully ignoring" the disproportionate impact of coronavirus on disabled people and potentially making the situation worse.

Speaking on the Commons on Wednesday the prime minister said he wasn't aware of criticism of government coronavirus policy from disabled groups, despite an outcry over legislation past by his government.

Labour is urging the government to publish its impact assessments on how emergency pandemic policies are affecting people with disabilities, and to publish a long-term plan for disabled people who might have to shield.

Office for National Statistics data shows that two-thirds of those who have died from Covid-19 have been disabled or had health conditions that limit their daily activities.

Meanwhile, deaths among disabled people have been 2.4 times higher than for non-disabled people. The rate rate rises up to five times higher for people with learning disabilities or autism, who have been hit particularly hard.

Since April the government's Coronavirus Act has also allowed local authorities to reduce their usual duties in caring for people under the Care Act 2014. Labour says this policy needs to be urgently reviewed.

Boris Johnson has been silent on the crisis within a crisis facing disabled people," said Marsha de Cordova, Shadow Women and Equalities Secretary.

These high death rates demand serious and targeted action but disabled people and their families are being wilfully ignored.

The prime minister cannot keep ducking responsibility, he must take a lead to keep disabled people safe.

Writing to the prime minister on Thursday, Ms de Cordova and Vicky Foxcroft, shadow minister for disabled people, said that they they had "received communications from many disabled people, disabled people led organisations and representative charities throughout the pandemic who have told us that disabled people have consistently been left out of policy decisions, their needs havent been considered and repeated efforts to raise this have fallen flat".

In August the Cabinet Office refused to release its equalities impact assessment on its social distancing and coronavirus policies, after a freedom information request by The Independent. Official refused to release the material under Section 35 of the Freedom of Information Act, claiming that it referred to "ongoing development of policy in this area".

In the Commons this week Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said the government may have broken international law, because of the way coronavirus legislation reduced the rights of disabled people.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 18 January 2022 Surfers enter the sea as the sun rises over Tynemouth on the North East coast PA UK news in pictures 17 January 2022 Bonhams Danny McIlwraith holds a Nigerian polycrome carved wood mask during a photocall for the sale of the Jim Lennon Collection at Bonhams in Edinburgh PA UK news in pictures 16 January 2022 The moon rises above the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth, Hampshire PA UK news in pictures 15 January 2022 Demonstrators outside Downing Street during a Kill The Bill protest against The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill in London PA UK news in pictures 14 January 2022 Ecologist Emma Smart (left) and retired GP Dr Diana Warner outside HMP Bronzefield, in Surrey, following their release from the prison where Emma undertook a 26-day hunger strike during her incarceration. Ms Smart was sentenced in November, along with other members of Insulate Britain, to serve four months for breaking a High Court injunction by taking part in a blockade at junction 25 of the M25 motorway during the morning rush hour on 8 October last year PA UK news in pictures 13 January 2022 A TV presenter holds a copy of a newspaper outside 10 Downing Streetafter the Prime Minister apologised for attending a gathering of colleagues in the Number Ten garden in May 2020, while the UK was in strict lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic Getty UK news in pictures 12 January 2022 Fitness guru Derrick Evans after receiving an MBE during an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 11 January 2022 A couple walk underneath an umbrella during wet weather on Westminster Bridge in central London PA UK news in pictures 10 January 2022 A jogger passes the Covid Memorial Wall in London AP UK news in pictures 9 January 2021 The sun rises over horses at Seaton Sluice in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 8 January 2022 Riders compete during the Veterans Men's race at the UK Cyclo-Cross National Championships 2022 in Ardingly, south of London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 7 January 2022 A dog looks out of a car window at the wintry conditions in Killeshin, Co. Laois PA UK news in pictures 6 January 2022 People walk through frost and mist alongside a frozen lake during sunrise in Bushy Park, London REUTERS UK news in pictures 5 January 2022 A skier jumps on the slopes at Allenheads in the Pennines to the north of Weardale in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 4 January 2022 Freshly-fallen snow covers houses in Corbridge, near Hexham in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 3 January 2022 Dean Morrison, 13, receives his Covid-19 vaccine from student nurse Anthony McLaughlin during a vaccination clinic at the Glasgow Central Mosque PA UK news in pictures 2 January 2022 Konastantinos Tsimikas of Liverpool with Chelseas Mason Mount during the Premier League match at Stamfrod Bridge Liverpool FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 January 2022 New Years Eve Lasers, drones and fireworks illuminate the sky in front of the Royal Naval College in Greenwich shortly after midnight in London EPA UK news in pictures 31 December 2021 Competitors in fancy dress run across the Pennine tops near Haworth, West Yorkshire, in the annual Auld Lang Syne Fell race which attracts hundreds of runners every year PA UK news in pictures 30 December 2021 Sunrise at Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 29 December 2021 The Very Revd Dr Robert Willis, Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, looks at Becket, a six month old red-billed chough as he visits Wildwood Wildlife Park in Kent on the anniversary of the murder of Thomas Becket PA UK news in pictures 28 December 2021 Troops of the Household Cavalry are seen reflected in a puddle during the changing of the Queens Life Guard, on Horse Guards Parade, in central London PA UK news in pictures 27 December 2021 A pedestrian walks past a winter sale sign outside a John Lewis store on Oxford street in London Getty UK news in pictures 26 December 2021 Riders take their bikes through the snow near Castleside, County Durham PA UK news in pictures 25 December 2021 Patrick Corkery wears a santa hat and beard as waves crash over him at Forty Foot near Dublin during a Christmas Day dip PA UK news in pictures 24 December 2021 People stand inside Kings Cross Station on Christmas Eve in London Reuters UK news in pictures 23 December 2021 Christmas shoppers fill the car park at Fosse Shopping Park in Leicester PA UK news in pictures 22 December 2021 The sun rises behind the stones as people gather for the winter solstice at Stonehenge. Getty UK news in pictures 21 December 2021 People take part in a winter solstice swim at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh to mark the solstice and to witness the dawn after the longest night of the year PA UK news in pictures 20 December 2021 An auction employee displays poultry to buyers and sellers attending the Christmas Poultry Sale at York Auction Centre in Murton PA UK news in pictures 19 December 2021 Joao Moutinho of Wolverhampton Wanderers looks on during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Chelsea at Molineux Getty Images UK news in pictures 18 December 2021 Freight lorries queuing at the port of Dover in Kent PA UK news in pictures 17 December 2021 Newly elected Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan, bursts 'Boris' bubble' held by colleague Tim Farron, as she celebrates following her victory in the North Shropshire by-election PA UK news in pictures 16 December 2021 Brussels sprouts are harvested by workers as they prepare for the busy Christmas period near Boston in Lincolnshire PA UK news in pictures 15 December 2021 Lewis Hamilton is made a Knight Bachelor by the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 14 December 2021 The Royal Liver Buildings surrounded by early morning fog in Liverpool PA UK news in pictures 13 December 2021 People queue outside a walk-in Covid-19 vaccination centre at St Thomas's Hospital in Westminster Getty Images UK news in pictures 12 December 2021 People take part in the Big Leeds Santa Dash in Roundhay Park, Leeds PA UK news in pictures 11 December 2021 People arrive at a Covid-19 vaccination centre at Elland Road in Leeds, PA UK news in pictures 10 December 2021 Stella Moris speaks to the media after the US Government won its High Court bid to overturn a judges decision not to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange PA UK news in pictures 9 December 2021 Camels are lead around Salisbury Cathedral during a rehearsal for the Christmas Eve Service PA UK news in pictures 8 December 2021 Margaret Keenan and Nurse May Parsons, a year after Margaret was the first person in the UK to receive the Pfizer vaccine PA UK news in pictures 7 December 2021 Snowfall in Leadhills, South Lanarkshire as Storm Barra hits the UK with disruptive winds, heavy rain and snow PA UK news in pictures 6 December 2021 A person tries to avoid sea spray on New Brighton promenade in Wallasey as the UK readies for the arrival of Storm Barra Getty UK news in pictures 5 December 2021 People release balloons during a tribute to six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes outside Emma Tustin's former address in Solihull, West Midlands, where he was murdered by his stepmother PA UK news in pictures 4 December 2021 People walk through a Christmas market in Trafalgar Square Reuters UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 A pedestrian carries a dog as they dodge shoppers on Oxford Street in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 2 December 2021 Duchess of Cambridge inspects a Faberge egg at the Victoria and Albert Museum Getty UK news in pictures 1 December 2021 Meerkats at London Zoo with an advent calendar PA UK news in pictures 30 November 2021 Workers put the finishing touches to the Trafalgar Square Christmas Tree ahead of the lighting ceremony later in the week PA

Boris Johnson replied: "I am not aware of that particular allegation about the legal effect of the Coronavirus Act and I would be only too happy to write to him shortly to clarify the matter."

Polling by the charity Scope shows that a quarter of disabled people fear losing their job as a result of the pandemic, while 30,000 people with disabilities have signed a letter to Mr Johnson urging him to act.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death didn't just leave a vacant seat on the Supreme Court. It left a court evenly divided between four leftist justices and four strict constructionist justices. With his usual acumen and clarity, Ted Cruz explains why an evenly divided court is a recipe for a civil breakdown.

We can all understand the reasonableness of having an uneven number of Supreme Court justices: it substantially diminishes the likelihood of a stalemate. However, Ginsburg's death means that, as we head into the most contentious election process in American history, the Court has eight justices. Worse, the justices are split evenly along ideological lines.

On the one side are the conservative justices. In this context, conservative means that they believe that the Constitution as written, and as its authors intended it to be understood, must be the single most important document in any judicial analysis. Next in order of importance for analysis are acts of Congress, again to be interpreted as Congress intended when it passed the documents.

Regarding that last analytical metric, Justice Gorsuch failed horribly when he imputed transgenderism to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. However, despite his monumental slip-up, Gorsuch has mostly been a reliably "strict constructionist." The other strict constructionists on the Court are Justices Thomas, Alito, and Kavanaugh.

On the other side are the justices who, like Ginsburg herself, believe that their responsibility is to achieve certain political ends that align with "justice" and "equality," as those terms are defined in the leftist rubric. They're the judges who, when the Constitution proves unhelpful, will look to Europe or Africa for "norms" upon which they can rely. There's always a lot of navel-gazing going on. Their decisions are often fraudulent and almost invariably turgidly written. The leftist justices are Kagan, Sotomayor, Breyer, and Roberts.

You may be wondering why Roberts is on the list, given that he was a George W. Bush nominee. It's true that, in matters that are inconsequential to American governance, Roberts is a reasonably conservative justice. However, on any matter of great moment to the left, Roberts will invariably side with the leftist justices. Nobody knows why, although there are a lot of theories ranging from his being a RINO to his being blackmailed.

We already know that the fecal matter will hit the fan after this election because the Democrats have told us it will. Unless Biden wins on Election Day (which he won't), Democrats will take the matter to the streets and the courts. They're already laying the groundwork.

Leftist legislators and judges across the country are ensuring that votes can be cast by mail and counted after the election. The voting and counting will stop only after the late-mailed, late-discovered, and late-counted ballots have pushed Biden over the top. Meanwhile, the left's BLM and Antifa foot soldiers will be escalating the domestic terrorism we've witnessed over the summer.

In that chaos, imagine a stalemated Supreme Court. That's what Sen. Cruz warned against when he spoke to Sean Hannity immediately after the news broke that Ginsburg had died:

I believe that the president should, next week, nominate a successor to the court. And I think it is critical that the Senate takes up and confirms that successor before Election Day. There's going to be enormous pressure from the media. There's going to be enormous pressure from Democrats to delay filling this vacancy. But this election, this nomination is why Donald Trump was elected. This confirmation is why the voters voted for a Republican majority in the Senate. And I'll tell you one reason in particular, Sean, why it is tremendously important that, not only does the nomination happen next week, but that the confirmation happen before election day. Because Democrats and Joe Biden have made clear they intend to challenge this election. They intend to fight the legitimacy of the election. As you know, Hillary Clinton has told Joe Biden, "under no circumstances should you concede, you should challenge this election." and we cannot have election day come and go with a 4-4 court. A 4-4 court that is equally divided cannot decide anything. And I think we risk a constitutional crisis if we do not have a nine-justice Supreme Court, particularly when there is such a risk of a contested litigation and a contested election.

Sen. Cruz is right. It is to be hoped that people like Lisa Murkowski and Lindsey Graham, who seem squeamish about voting before the election, or Mitt Romney, who's petty enough to destroy America to feed his ego, understand that it's up to them to stop what could be a total civil war.

The other reason to confirm a new justice instantly is that it removes the Supreme Court as a hot-button topic in the election. The Supreme Court should be the least political branch of our government because the justices are not elected, and they serve for life. By getting a new justice seated quickly, the Court will (one hopes) recede into the background where it belongs.

(One more thing: Contrary to what Cruz says in the video below, and others are saying, there's nothing historic about being the second female justice on the Supreme Court. The only one who matters historically is Sandra Day O'Connor, a Republican.)

Tonight, we mourn the passing of a historic justice and a legendary advocate.



WATCH: My response on @seanhannity to news of the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg.  pic.twitter.com/yFYbVHVEhk  Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) September 19, 2020

Image: Ted Cruz talks to Sean Hannity, Twitter screen grab.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : Following raids in West Bengal and Kerala, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday arrested nine militants linked with the Al Qaeda terror group, who were planning attacks at several key installations in Delhi-NCR, a spokesperson said.

The NIA spokesperson said that the anti-terror probe agency carried out the simultaneous raids at several locations in Kerala's Ernakulam and West Bengal's Murshidabad after learning about an inter-state module of Al Qaeda operatives at various locations in India.

"The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds," the spokesperson said, adding that it has registered a case on September 11.

The official said that NIA has arrested six terrorists from West-Bengal and three from Kerala in the early morning raids.

During the raids, large quantity of incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession.

"As per preliminary investigation, these individuals were radicalised by the Pakistan-based Al Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the National Capital Region," the official said.

The official said that the module was actively indulging in fund raising and a few members of gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition.

However, these arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country.

Arrested terrorists have been identified as Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas and Mosaraf Hossen, all three residents of Ernakulam.

Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman, all residents of Murshidabad.

The official said that they will be produced before the concerned Courts in Kerala and West Bengal for police custody and further investigation.

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
Grainne had an idyllic rural childhood. There was lots of freedom. We cycled, and played in the forest and the river.

Her parents encouraged her love of reading  everything from Enid Blyton to the classics. After university, Grainne worked as a

research assistant. I wanted to be an academic, but it was an uncertain career, and I had six part-time jobs at the same time.

She then moved to the Musgrave Group on a graduate programme. I stayed there for nine years. My jobs involved writing for research and writing training manuals.

Moving to Belgium in 2011, Grainne started to write fiction. It was easier to write about Ireland from a distance; I could hear Irish voices in my head.

Her first, unpublished novel was shortlisted for the Virginia prize for fiction, and Where the Edge Is was shortlisted for the Luke Bitmead bursary.

I met my publishers at the prizegiving event. Then I rewrote the novel, making it more character-based.

Who is Grainne Murphy?

Date/place of birth: 1978 in Kilmichael, West Cork.

Education: St Marys Macroom. UCC, Applied Psychology, followed by an MPhil in Applied Psychology.

Home: Near Kinsale, Co Cork.

Family: Husband Colum OConnor; Oisin, 11; Cara, nine, and a dog, Scout. (Another child, Ali, died before her first birthday.)

The day job: Freelance proof-reader and copywriter, working mainly for the EU commission, reporting on human and womens rights.

In another life: Id love to work in a library for the books and the sense of community.

Favourite writers: Niall Williams; Donal Ryan; Barbara Kingsolver; Mary Lawson: Carol Shields; Anne Tyler. Anne Enright; Stephen King.

Second novel: The Ghost Lights is due out next year.

Top tip: Always be writing something. If youre at the

submission stage, move on and write something else.

Twitter: @gramurphy.

The Debut

Where the Edge Is; 8.63/ Kindle, 5.87

WOW FEATURE Grainne Murphy

A road subsides, trapping a bus. Two passengers are saved but three are left teetering. The media watches, as people examine their lives and their choices.

This isnt a rescue thriller. The crash is the background for a multi-perspective character driven novel.

The Verdict: A suspenseful, beautifully crafted debut, which is written with feeling and tenderness.
Islamabad: Pakistan has rejected India`s demand that an Indian lawyer or a Queen counsel should be appointed in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case to ensure a free and fair trial.

"Allowing a Queens Counsel for Jadhav is out of the question as only a lawyer with a license to practice in Pakistan can appear before the court," Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudri said at a press briefing here on Friday.

A Queen`s Counsel is a barrister or advocate, appointed as counsel to the United Kingdom`s Crown on the recommendation of the Lord Chancellor, Pakistans leading Geo News reported.

Earlier this month, the Islamabad High Court in Pakistan directed the federal government to give India another chance to appoint a lawyer to represent Jadhav and adjourned hearing for a month.

Ministry of External Affairs` spokesperson Anurag Srivastava on Thursday said that Pakistan has not been able to fulfil its obligations on implementation of ICJ judgment in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case and has not yet addressed core issues including the provision of all documents and unimpeded access.

Live TV

Srivastava said at the regular media briefing that Pakistan has also not addressed the appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queen`s counsel to ensure a free and fair trial for Jadhav.

"The Government of Pakistan has not been able to fulfill its obligations on implementation of the ICJ judgment in letter and spirit. It has not yet addressed the core issues, which include the provision of all documents related to the case, providing unconditional and unimpeded consular access to Kulbhusan Jadhav and appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queen`s counsel to ensure a free and fair trial," he said.

Pakistani media had last week cited Pakistan Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri as saying that there was no other option for India but to "cooperate with Pakistani courts", which only permit the appearance of locally registered lawyers before the bench.

India has said Pakistan should provide for an unimpeded, unhindered and unconditional consular access and that the meeting of Indian officials with Jadhav should take place in an atmosphere free from fear of retribution.

India has also said that any conversation between Jadhav and High Commission officials must necessarily take place in privacy and without the presence of any Pakistani official or recording by Pakistan.

Pakistan claims that Jadhav was arrested from Balochistan in 2016 on charges of espionage. India has rejected Pakistan`s allegations and said he was kidnapped from the Iranian port of Chabahar. In early 2017, a Pakistani military court sentenced him to death.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) had upheld India`s claim that Pakistan has committed an egregious violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations on several counts.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away on Friday at age 87 and she will be remembered not just for her groundbreaking life, work and opinions, but also for her iconic style.

For some fashionistas, the accessories of choice might be scarves or shoes, but for Ginsburg, it was jabots, the fancy collars she wore with her black judicial robes.

In 2009, she explained to The Washington Post why she chose to wear the jabots. "You know, the standard robe is made for a man because it has a place for the shirt to show, and the tie," she said. "So Sandra Day O'Connor and I thought it would be appropriate if we included as part of our robe something typical of a woman. So I have many, many collars."

Watch TODAY All Day! Get the best news, information and inspiration from TODAY, all day long.

The "Dissenting"

Over the years, Ginsburg revealed that her collars each had special meanings. In 2015, Irin Carmon, co-author of the 2015 book, "Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg" tweeted a picture of one of Ginsburg's famous jabots that was featured in a Yahoo News broadcast.

RBG: "This is my dissenting collar It looks fitting for dissents." pic.twitter.com/luNmrN4BCX  Irin Carmon (@irin) July 31, 2014

"RBG: 'This is my dissenting collar It looks fitting for dissents,'" Carmon quoted Ginsburg, alongside an image of the metallic collar the justice wore to communicate her condemnation. The look spurned plenty of fan-made merchandise, including necklaces, brooches and earrings in the same pattern.

The "Majority Opinion"

President Obama Delivers State Of The Union Address (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

Ginsburg told Katie Couric in the Yahoo News interview that this golden jabot is the one she would wear when she wanted to channel her approval. She wore it when she attended former President Barack Obama's State of the Union speech on Feb. 12, 2013.

Story continues

The "Favorite"

Supreme Court Justices Pose For

Ginsburg's favorite jabot was this simple white one from Capetown, South Africa. She wore it during a photo session with photographers at the U.S. Supreme Court on March 3, 2006 in Washington, D.C.

Throughout her tenure, Ginsburg sported many other unique designs along her collarbone.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg poses during group portrait at Supreme Court in Washington (Jim Young / Reuters)

During a group portrait session for the full court on Nov. 30, 2018, Ginsburg wore this spiky and tough-looking Stella & Dot necklace. The special accessory was gifted to her by a fan, lawyer Susan Hyman, according to Town & Country.

Ginsburg participates in taking a new family photo with her fellow justices at the Supreme Court building in Washington (Jonathan Ernst / Reuters)

Ginsburg donned a more eclectic, colorful neckpiece at the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C. back in June 2017.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg shows robes in her chambers at the Supreme Court building in Washington (Jonathan Ernst / Reuters)

Ginsburg showed off the many different collars she wore with her robes, including this white patterned jabot, in her chambers at the Supreme Court building on June 17, 2016.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Passes Away at 87 U.S. Supreme Court Justices Pose For Group Photo (Mark Wilson / Getty Images)

Ginsburg sometimes wore a more traditional jabot, similar to ones that French justices wore. She donned a light lace one on Sept. 29, 2009 for a group photograph, one month after Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor was sworn in as the the third ever female justice of the Supreme Court.

President Obama Delivers State Of The Union Address (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

Jabots weren't the only special items in Ginsburg's wardrobe. Ginsburg also wore black fishnet gloves, an accessory she wore often and one that was also featured when she was named to the TIME 100 list in 2015.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Cliff Owen / AP)

When not wearing her robe, she donned clothing that exuded both femininity and power. Here, she's pictured in her chambers wearing an outfit with an abstract print.

Political Leaders Honor Chile's First Female President (Brendan Smialowski / Getty Images)

Ginsburg wore a classy, cream-colored suit to a dinner honoring Michelle Bachelet, Chile's first female president, on May 8, 2006 in Washington, D.C.

27 years ago, Ginsburg was sworn into her confirmation hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill on July 20, 1993. Ginsburg told the committee that while she rose

Ginsburg took the power suit to a new level in this purple one she wore to be sworn into her confirmation hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee on July 20, 1993.

Biden, then chariman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, escorted Ginsburg, on Capitol Hill on June 15, 1993. (Marcy Nighswander / AP)

Ginsburg, also, knew how to pull off a more casual look. She wore a white skirt and red-and-white striped top with then Sen. Joe Biden back in 1993.
Antifa members prepare to clash with Patriot Prayer protesters during a rally in Portland, Ore., on Aug. 4, 2018. (John Rudoff/AP Photo)

Majority View Antifa as Unfavorable; Plurality Find Black Lives Matter Favorable: Poll

A majority of Rust Belt voters see the far-left Antifa network as unfavorable, while a narrow plurality support Black Lives Matter, according to a new Big Data/Epoch Times poll.

Asked how they view Antifa, an anarcho-communist network of groups that has been involved in rioting across the country in recent months, 51.9 percent of likely voters said unfavorably.

Just 12.6 percent said they view Antifa favorably, a lower percentage than the 16.8 percent who have never heard of the network.

The remaining percentage said they had no opinion.

More than 34 percent of respondents aged 18 to 29 view Antifa as favorable, while a majority of those older than 45 viewed it unfavorable.

A nationwide survey from Big Data/Epoch Times last month found a majority of respondents viewed Antifa unfavorably while just 10 percent had a favorable view.

Approximately 44.5 percent of likely Rust Belt voters in the new survey said they view Black Lives Matter favorably, compared to 40.1 percent who said they view it unfavorably.

A man holds a Black Lives Matter sign as a police car burns in front of him during a protest outside CNN Center in Atlanta on May 29, 2020. (Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images)

Just 2 percent had never heard of the movement, while the rest had no opinion.

A majority of respondents aged 18 to 29 view Black Lives Matter favorably, as do a plurality of voters aged 29 to 45. Pluralities of the two groups 45 or older view it as unfavorable.

Black Lives Matter is a movement seeking to upend the political and cultural systems in the United States and anywhere else activists believe racism is pervasive. The movement has hundreds of groups around the world, including a select core thats part of the official Black Lives Matter Global Network. The network was founded by three people. One described herself and another as trained Marxists. Marxism is a far-left philosophy that advocates for socialism leading to communism.

Hundreds of Black Lives Matter protests have turned violent in America alone since May, and a number of activists have been arrested after participating in riots that inflicted damage on cities and towns.

The national poll found that about 42 percent of likely voters viewed the movement as favorable; 41 percent as unfavorable.

Rust Belt voters overwhelmingly see the Chinese Communist Party as unfavorable, with 69.9 percent holding that view versus just 9.3 percent who answered the opposite.

Another 8 percent said theyd never heard of the party, which rules China, while the rest said they had no opinion.

The Epoch Times Rust Belt Poll was conducted by Big Data Poll from Sept. 11 to Sept. 15, 2020, interviewing 2,191 registered voters and 1,440 likely voters in the Midwest via online panel targeting Iowa (7 percent), Michigan (20 percent), Minnesota (12 percent), Ohio (23 percent), Pennsylvania (26 percent), and Wisconsin (12 percent). The sampling error is  2.1 percent for registered voters and  2.6 percent for likely voters at a 95 percent confidence interval. For more information on the methodology and survey design, please refer to the AAPOR Transparency Initiative Checklist. For an overview of survey results click here.
Like many before her, Erin Darcy came to Ireland because of love, even if her story reads as slightly extraordinary.

"I was 15 and looking for pen pals and I had met Steven in an Irish chatroom online," Erin, an artist/illustrator who grew up in Oklahoma, recalls. "I remember how excited I was to be talking to Irish people in this particular space, and then a lovely man said, 'There's a great person in here that you should talk to', and that was Steven. We talked on the phone for two years, and then I flew to Ireland to meet him when I was 17. We both were each other's first kiss, in Dublin airport."

It was to be a fateful online meeting. Eventually, she and Steven married, and both now live in East Galway with their three young children. Erin had long been enamoured of the wit, romance and spirit of Ireland, though on arrival, it didn't take long for her to realise that Ireland was a deeply traditional and conservative country, too.

"The first time I became aware of how much was when we ran into some neighbours and we got chatting to this woman," Erin explains. "She said something like, 'Oh, thank goodness you're over here they have all those abortions in America'. It really came out of nowhere.

Expand Close Tragedy: A mural commemorating Savita Halappanavar, who died after being denied an abortion at University Hospital Galway / Facebook

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Whatsapp Tragedy: A mural commemorating Savita Halappanavar, who died after being denied an abortion at University Hospital Galway

"It's definitely a culture shock when you come here from another country. I grew up in the Bible belt in America and it would have been pretty Christian, but there's still a separation between church and state there. Here, it's so ingrained and so normal - the Angelus on the TV; priests being in the classroom; crosses in hospital rooms. It's assumed you're Catholic until you say you're not. And people don't question how the church plays into our daily lives or rights or choices."

The longer Erin lived in Ireland, the more she encountered the Catholic church's cultural stranglehold on Irish society. She couldn't have realised it at the time, but she would in time go on to create an online community of some 110,000 people that would address that very issue head-on.

In Her Shoes was created in January 2018, five months before Ireland would vote to repeal the Eighth Amendment, paving the way for the legalisation of abortion in some circumstances. The amendment, which was enacted in 1983, effectively enshrined in the Constitution the equal right to life of the pregnant woman and the unborn. Erin heard time and time again stories of how women were treated in pregnancy.

"I heard about stillbirths in the 1960s and 1970s, and how babies wouldn't have been given a proper burial and wouldn't be named. That really opened it up for me," Erin says.

Yet a fire of sorts was ignited within Erin when she became pregnant with her second child in 2012. Across Galway, a dentist called Savita Halappanavar was at the exact same point in her pregnancy as Erin. University Hospital Galway denied her request for an abortion following an incomplete miscarriage, on the grounds that granting her request would be illegal under the Eighth Amendment, ultimately resulting in Savita's death from sepsis. Shaken, Erin attended the vigil held in Galway after Savita's death.

"Like me, she wasn't from Ireland, and she was at the same gestation as me," Erin reflects. "I realised that when we talked about choice and birth and pregnancy, we never really thought about how the laws might impact our giving birth."

Eventually, Erin found a tribe of like-minded women online, primarily through breastfeeding and mothering groups on Facebook. "People who were a little rebellious, occasionally questioning the authorities; people who were not the status quo," Erin smiles.

Already a keen activist, she began to get involved in pro-repeal groups close to her Galway home. Around this time, Erin lost her mother to cancer, and had recently experienced a miscarriage. In a fog of grief, loneliness, and depression, she sought out like-minded souls online.

"It started to get to the point where I really needed community," she recalls. "These women were respectable, lovely, smiling, gorgeous women. They weren't rebellious or wild - they were just normal people who had suffered under the Eighth Amendment. Their reasons why were really f***ing heartbreaking, and it was like, 'This isn't okay'. If these are just the ones I'm hearing about, how many others are there?"

The more stories Erin heard, the more she realised that Irish women were not just desperate to tell them, but desperate to have the stories heard, too.

"If women had had a miscarriage or an abortion, they wanted to talk about it, but felt they had no place to," Erin explains.

She wasn't wrong; an audience was very much ready and waiting for the In Her Shoes Facebook page. The aim of the page wasn't to argue the toss over polemics and legalities: very simply, it was a place where people could anonymously share their stories of life under the Eighth Amendment - loss, miscarriage, termination, fatal foetal abnormality, stillbirth - within a community that wanted to listen, understand and empathise.

"It was such a quick and completely unexpected trajectory," admits Erin, who notes that the page (which she co-runs with five others, Mary Lalor, Cara Shank, Jac Sinnott, Emer Smith and Cait Ni Charthaigh) had 60,000 likes within weeks. By May 25, the day of the referendum, the page had over 100,000 likes and four million readers on Facebook.

"The Irish are really empathetic and rally around each other, and have a rebel spirit and I absolutely love it," Erin notes. "I loved seeing the fire and passion in women being ignited. And for those who wanted to recall experience, I wanted them to be held in a safe way. There was no place for arguments - it was somewhere you could say, 'This happened'."

The stories ran a wide gamut of experiences, from women who had experienced ectopic pregnancies and multiple miscarriages to young women who were travelling to the UK for the first time for a termination. Among the most talked-about stories on the In Her Shoes page was a simple one-liner: "I wasn't raped it wasn't the right time."

"That one is so basic, and it tells you everything you need to know in that one line," Erin says. "Another women travelled to the North and used a false name to procure abortion pills, and she felt constantly as though the PSNI were going to 'get' her."

Soon, Erin and the page's other admins were being "flooded" with stories from other women. They also received countless emails from women wanting to access information on travelling abroad for abortions.

Given the subject matter and the page's swelling popularity, In Her Shoes soon came to the attention of detractors. Members of the US far-right and anti-choice factions started to comment, often posting graphic pictures of foetuses in the comments section.

"It can be scary, but at the same time it was a bit entertaining," she muses. "Along with my friends who were doing the admin of the page with me, we were like, 'They think they're smart, but we're here and ready for you, bring it on'. Without me saying anything, other Irish people were really protective of the page.

"We were there to immediately remove trolls and block people. They thought they could take advantage by being in different time zones, but I had a toddler, and had a lot on my mind, so I wasn't sleeping anyway. More than anything, I was afraid that any woman who shared her story would see it. I couldn't imagine how horrible that would have been." Canvassing for the referendum on the streets of Galway, Erin writes in the book's introduction about encountering one middle-aged man, whose reaction was not exactly atypical: "'I have daughters!' he says. 'Did you not hear about the woman who died after the abortion in England?' And later: 'I just don't think they should be using it as a form of birth control There should be a cap - there are people that have three, four, five abortions. They need to take responsibility for their actions. They made that mess.'"

At the time, Erin responded from the heart: "Being pregnant shouldn't be a punishment. Children aren't a punishment. All children should be wanted, not raised by someone who didn't want to do this." She gently tells him not to judge someone until you've walked a mile in their shoes. "I'm not sure I agree with abortion, but you've made me think. I need to read some things first." And so it went on Facebook, with people learning, perhaps for the first time, about the lived experiences of normal, everyday women.

Asked if she believes if In Her Shoes was pivotal in securing the vote to repeal the Eighth Amendment in 2018, Erin tells me: "I absolutely believe that. Without those women's stories, I don't know if we'd have made it across the line, and it certainly wouldn't have been the landslide that it was. I think it made a massive impact. So many times, I heard people tell me how much it impacted them to hear these stories. How could it not have?"

On the night of the referendum itself, Erin was too afraid to even listen to early indicators that the Eighth Amendment would be repealed (in the end, 66.4pc of the electorate voted to repeal).

"I couldn't even look at the news," Erin recalls with a smile. "I didn't want to have a false hope that this was real, like, 'What if we're wrong and we're celebrating?' I spent much of the evening folding towels. It wasn't until the next day, when it was called in Galway, that I was like, 'Yessss!'

When the result was announced officially at Dublin Castle, "That was everything. There was that feeling of relief, and the reality of what had just happened, and knowing that when you're in the moment, you don't truly realise the impact of what this means.

"Of course, other activists I knew were on their phones still getting messages that day from people needing to travel that day. They couldn't really go celebrating or feel relieved - crisis pregnancies were still happening."

On 20 December 2018, President Michael D Higgins signed into law the legislation for abortion in Ireland. The Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 provides the framework for the provision of abortion care. Once a three-day waiting period has elapsed, abortion care is lawful on request for up to 12 weeks of pregnancy. Abortion is also lawful for reasons of risk to a woman's life and of serious harm to her health and in cases of fatal foetal anomaly. Abortion remains criminalised in all other cases (however, the criminal provisions do not apply to a woman in respect of her own pregnancy).

The legislation is not perfect, and it is also not protected to remain as is. The legislation in place may be reviewed three years after it has been signed into law.

"Many of those having abortions are already parents. They know what they are capable of, and not capable of, within their lives. We know as women what we can handle. It's not easy for a lot of people right now struggling to get a house, struggling to keep a job, struggling when everything in the news tell us how f***ed we are.

"Instead of suppressing them, we should really recognise that parents are the ones making this decision mostly, and they are to be relied on the most to make their own decisions."

With most people's idea of what a 'typical' woman seeking to access an abortion now revised, Erin would like to see more cultural representations of some of the stories she has heard through In Her Shoes: "Books or stories where a woman is talking simply about being pregnant and saying, 'I'm not going to do this. It's not happening'. She's not careless or heartless - she's just a person with her own needs," she says.

"Before, we had that thing where we idolised the figure of the mother. Now, we have to acknowledge that mothers often need to do all the things inside the home, and then work a full-time job outside of the home," Erin surmises. "We have to grow and shift with where women are at. We need to have honest conversations about how hard and lonely and beautiful it can be to be a mother. We're multi-faceted people - we can be happy and sad at exactly the same time."

'In Her Shoes: Women Of The Eighth' is out now via New Island books. Here's an extract from the book:

Expand Close In Her Shoes: Women Of The Eighth Illustration by Erin Darcy / Facebook

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'Half of the waiting room was Irish women. I knew this as I heard their accents. Each woman like myself... alone'





'I was one of those people who was categorically against Abortion , I was one of those women who couldn't understand why you would have an abortion, I AM one of those women who was left with NO CHOICE but to travel the flight of shame to the UK.

I had 3 very much wanted children and in my plan I wanted 4, I was going to have 1 more... but then I got sick.... so sick I could hardly look after myself and my family. On looking at medication options I spoke with the consultant... with this medication I had to be finished having babies. At this point we had made the decision that we would have no more children..

I nodded at the consultant.. "yes we are having no more children"...

"have you contraceptive arrangements in place"...

"Yes"

"Good it's important you don't conceive on this medication as it will cause severe abnormalities even if you stop the medication and you decide to have more children"

I told him No, it's ok, we are definitely having no more children. We were blessed with the 3 we had which in fact we were told we may never have.

Fast forward I woke up violently sick, I thought it was a bug.

The "bug" continued and I found out I was pregnant. I had never in my life got "caught". Why the hell did I get "caught" now.

I remember myself and my husband crying so hard. Abortion was never in our mind-set - ever.

Out of desperation I paid a lot of money to several online American doctors telling them my story and name of the medication I was on..

All had the same answers; severe abnormalities and termination suggestion. I didn't even know where to start with arranging one. Google became my friend.. reading forums and experiences.

I rang "the UK". As I was just over 5 weeks pregnant I had the option of a day procedure. I booked in for a day my husband was home from work to look after the other children so that no one would question where I was going. I was getting sicker with each day that passed.

I searched for flights and operators that accepted a driver's licence instead of passport. My passport was out of date. Booked a female taxi firm on the advice of forums, I travelled alone. I felt it was written all over my face what I was doing as I sat surrounded by people going to a match. I spotted a local on the plane. I shrunk with fright hoping they wouldn't see me.

The flight is a blur. I remember waiting for my taxi. She was so nice. I felt I had to tell her all and justify myself. "I am a mother you know, I just wouldn't do this only I have no choice" She really put my mind at ease. She told me such sad stories about women she has picked up from Ireland and felt it was barbaric that each Irish person felt such shame and guilt. She said she never met a person who wanted an abortion for an easier life. As we approached the clinic she warned me of pro-life campaigners and told me to keep pushing through past them.

I nearly died. My God I was one of those pro-life people. I felt like screaming you have no idea how little choice I have.

As I walked through the doors the words "Don't do it, come back" echoed from the protesters.

I was met by lovely receptionists who seemed to really take extra care of the Irish. I entered the waiting room. Half of the waiting room was Irish Women. I knew this as I heard their accents. Each woman like myself... ALONE.

The Irish always tend to seek each other out abroad and talk. Not in this case. Each woman looking pastier than the next, hung their heads embarrassed trying to hide their nationality. I was called for a scan and counselling session. It confirmed I was just 6 weeks pregnant and there were 2 babies. Again highlighting a higher risk of abnormalities given the medication I was on. As I was doing my counselling session it became clearer and clearer I was doing the right thing for me and my family. I went out to wait again in the waiting room, waiting to be called for the procedure.

My procedure was delayed by hours as a woman was rushed in with severe complications that had her life in risk. I was sick with anxiety as I waited, afraid I would miss my flight home, wondering was this the universe telling me change my mind? As time pushed on, I spoke to the receptionist and advised her I needed to be at the airport in 2 hours. She totally empathised and got me and another Irish woman in the same situation into the theatre. I opted for the suction procedure as I was so early on. I must have nearly broken the nurses hand. They were so kind. I sat in the post op room. Again staff would hear Irish accents and look at us with such pity and they definitely gave us extra care, dignity and support. I got a taxi back to the airport.

My legs were jelly.

I was on my own.

I prayed to God I wouldn't fall down or get sick. I prayed I would make it home. Again the airport is a blank. As I "attempted" to drive home I ended up taking a wrong turn. I ended up in the dark in a place totally unfamiliar. Again I pleaded with God to get me home.

When I finally got home the relief was immense. It totally came over me and my husband that we had done the right thing but the whole travelling alone was horrendous for both of us. I am lucky and glad to say I have absolutely no regrets or guilt. I have no doubt I did the right thing.

As a previous pro-life anti-abortion person I quickly learned that not all situations are black and white and there are so many justified reasons for abortion. Nobody knows the day or hour they may have no option. I was one of those women Vote yes. Women deserve more than this. Their partners/ husbands deserve more than this. None of us know when we will have No CHOICE"

Extracted from 'In Her Shoes: Women of the Eighth'
7 Ways Ruth Bader Ginsburg Was a Hero for Parents Everywhere

The U.S. Supreme Court justice made it her mission to go to bat and blaze trails for parents, women, and families throughout her storied career.

At 87 years old, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died due to complications of metastatic pancreas cancer, the Court announced. Before being appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1993, Ginsburg made her mark as a revolutionary warrior for gender rights. Whether she was breaking barriers as one of only several women at Harvard Law School or arguing in front of the Supreme Court that the Fourteenth Amendment's guarantee of equal protection applied to gender, Ginsburg dedicated her life to trailblazing and creating progressive change for women and families.

Here, 7 ways Ginsburg, a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and feminist icon was a hero for parents everywhere.

1. She Led the Way for Moms Earning Their Law Degree

In 2016, women made up a majority of law students, holding just over 50 percent of the seats at accredited law schools in the United States. But in 1956, women accounted for less than 3 percent of the legal profession in the U.S., and only one woman had ever served on a federal appellate court, recalled Ginsburg in a 2016 New York Times op-ed.

When Ginsburg started at Harvard Law School, she was one of just nine women in a class of about 500 men. She was the only mother in her class, as well. After attending Cornell University for her Bachelors degree, Ginsburg, her husband Marty, and their baby girl Jane moved to Cambridge.

"Jane was 14 months when I started," Ginsburg told Dahlia Lithwick in a recent interview with Slate.com. "So, my time was used very efficiently, for classes, for studying after class, then come home at 4 p.m. to take care of Jane."

2. She and Her Husband Marty Modeled Equal Parenting

In 2001, speaking to the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, Ginsburg said, "Women will have achieved true equality when men share with them the responsibility of bringing up the next generation." And well before terms like "mental load" and "invisible work" became buzz-worthy, Ginsburg and her husband, Marty, illustrated what an equal partnership and equal parenting, not beholden to gender stereotypes, looked like.

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Ginsburg famously didn't believe that cooking was her "strong suit." "To the eternal appreciation of our food-loving children (we became four in 1965, when our son, James, was born), Marty made the kitchen his domain and became chef supreme in our home," she wrote in the New York Times.

She continued, "Marty coached me through the birth of our son, he was the first reader and critic of articles, speeches and briefs I drafted, and he was at my side constantly, in and out of the hospital, during two long bouts with cancer. And I betray no secret in reporting that, without him, I would not have gained a seat on the Supreme Court."

3. She Argued That the Equal Protection Clause Must Apply to Both Genders

Defending mothers' and women's rights, Ginsburg wrote the plaintiff's brief for Reed v. Reed, a 1971 case in which a minor known as "Skip" died and his mother, who was separated from his father, wanted to be designated as administrator of his estate. The mother had filed her petition before Skip's father filed his, yet his was automatically approved due to an Idaho statute that stated that "males must be preferred to females" when there was more than one qualified person available to administer someone's estate.

Ginsburg argued that this violated the Equal Protection Clause in the Fourteenth Amendment, and the Supreme Court unanimously agreed and struck down the Idaho statute, marking the first time the Court had ever applied the Equal Protection Clause to a law that discriminated on the basis of gender.

4. She Believed Being a Working Mom Fueled Her Success

In her 2016 New York Times op-ed, Ginsburg attributed her academic achievements to being a new mom. "My success in law school, I have no doubt, was in large measure because of baby Jane," she wrote. "I attended classes and studied diligently until 4 in the afternoon; the next hours were Janes time, spent at the park, playing silly games or singing funny songs, reading picture books and A. A. Milne poems, and bathing and feeding her. After Janes bedtime, I returned to the law books with renewed will. Each part of my life provided respite from the other and gave me a sense of proportion that classmates trained only on law studies lacked."

5. She Championed Working Moms

In Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., a working mom of two named Lily Ledbetter sued her employer, Goodyear, over discriminatory employee evaluations. She initially made the same salary as her male coworkers, but by the time she retired from the company, she was making thousands less a year than men at her job. Ledbetter sued on the basis of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which holds that covered employers cant discriminate on the basis of gender, and the Equal Pay Act.

Ledbetter's right to sue years after the alleged discrimination took place was questioned by five justices. Ginsburg was among the four who dissented, and in her dissent, which she read from the bench, she argued that the Civil Rights Act's 180-day time limit shouldnt apply in the case of discriminatory pay since gender-based discrimination can happen gradually. "A worker knows immediately if she is denied a promotion or transfer," said Ginsburg. "Compensation disparities, in contrast, are often hidden from sight."

Women will have achieved true equality when men share with them the responsibility of bringing up the next generation.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

6. She Fiercely Defended Choice

Throughout her time on the Court, Ginsburg stood up for pregnant people's health care. In her 1993 Senate confirmation hearings, she famously said, "The decision whether or not to bear a child is central to a woman's life, to her well-being and dignity. It is a decision she must make for herself. When the government controls that decision for her, she is being treated as less than a full adult human responsible for her own choices."

And in 2016's Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt, the Court ruled that Texas cannot place restrictions on the delivery of abortion services that create an undue burden for women seeking an abortion. In her concurrence, Ginsburg wrote that modern abortions are so safe relative to other medical procedures, including childbirth itself, that any law that made accessing abortions more difficult in the name of safety could not pass judicial review.

7. She Called Out the Countless Economic and Social Disparities Faced by Women and Families

Despite her wins for gender equality over the decades, Ginsburg acknowledged in the Times piece how much work there is left to be done. "Most people in poverty in the United States and the world over are women and children," she wrote. "Womens earnings here and abroad trail the earnings of men with comparable education and experience, our workplaces do not adequately accommodate the demands of childbearing and child rearing, and we have yet to devise effective ways to ward off sexual harassment at work and domestic violence in our homes."

Nonetheless, Ginsburg believed in Dr. Martin Luther King's quote "the arc of the moral universe is long, but bends toward justice," adding but only "if there is a steadfast commitment to see the task through to completion." And she had faith in our country's ability to step up, concluding in her op-ed, "I am optimistic ... that movement toward enlistment of the talent of all who compose 'We, the people,' will continue."
HOUSE

Condemning racism against Asian-Americans: Voting 243-164, the House on Thursday adopted a nonbinding Democratic-sponsored measure (H Res 908) to condemn expressions of racism, discrimination or religious intolerance against Asian-Americans related to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the use of such terms as Chinese Virus, Wuhan Virus and Kung-flu. A yes vote was in support of the resolution.

Filing private lawsuits against school bias: Voting 232-188, the House on Wednesday passed a bill (HR 2574) that would authorize private individuals to file disparate impact lawsuits under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This legal doctrine comes into play when government policies that appear neutral on the surface have the effect of discriminating against protected groups in federally funded programs. A yes vote was to send the bill to the Senate.

Van Drew: NO

Kim: YES
The Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) could be extended for as long as the next year, the Taoiseach has suggested.

Micheal Martin also wants to employ artists and writers in schools as a way of supporting them through the pandemic and has asked education minister Norma Foley to look at this.

The PUP, which supports thousands of people who have been unable to return to work, is due to expire at the end of March, however, Mr Martin has signalled that this will now be extended.

He said the virus has impacted lower-income workers more than higher-income workers and that is clear from the tax returns which are performing better than had been expected when Covid first hit.

But Mr Martin said the Government still has to do more.

"We have to recalibrate and the budget gives us an opportunity to look again at issues like the Pandemic Unemployment Payment, we did change that already now to make it available to new entrants. That was going to be shut off in terms of new entrants, we've changed that.

"We are going to have to revisit some of this ... about looking at a more nine to 12-month time-frame, that's very challenging for Paschal Donohoe and Michael McGrath, both of them are wrestling with this," he told RTE's Brendan O'Connor show.

Up until this week, the top rate of PUP payment for those laid off due to the Covid-19 crisis was 350 a week. However, the rates have now been changed to 300, 250 and 203 depending on how much a person earned previously.

Fellow Fianna Fail TD Barry Cowen called for the full restoration of the PUP to those who have now been let go in the capital which has now been placed on level three restrictions.

"Those who lose jobs temporarily as a result of level three status should have full PUP payment restored. Economic supports need to be aligned to various levels recognising the value of livelihoods in efforts to protect most vulnerable," Mr Cowen wrote in a tweet.

Those who lose jobs temporarily as result of level 3 status should have full PUP payment restored. Economic supports need to be aligned to various levels recognising the value of livelihoods in efforts to protect most vulnerable.  Barry Cowen (@CowenBarry) September 19, 2020

Mr Martin said the Government will be looking at sector specific measures especially around the arts and culture.

"I think we need to be more imaginative around the social protection area, in terms of what I call the gig economy. You take sound engineers who ordinarily would be self-employed who would have plenty of stuff on, but now might have two or three gigs in 10 days. They're afraid to come off PUP because they want the sustainable income, we've got to marry the two," he said.

The Taoiseach also said he would like to create more opportunities for artists and creatives in schools.

"There are already very good schemes of artists in residence in schools, writers and so on, I've said to the minister Norma Foley, 'you look at increasing that scheme of giving artists work in schools'."

He said children would benefit and it would keep artists working, "so I'm interested in looking at kind of alternative employment streams as well."
New Jersey businesses face a looming $919 million increase in unemployment payroll taxes come July, according to a memorandum from the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services.

As of last week, 1.58 million New Jersey workers have applied for unemployment benefits since the state went under virtual lockdown in mid-March to slow the spread of the coronavirus. And over these six months, the states Unemployment Trust Fund has paid out more than $4.8 billion to people out of work.
U.S. President Donald Trump declared the dawn of a new Middle East in Washington Tuesday as the United Arab Emirates and Bahrein signed public agreements with Israel for the first time.

Not peace agreements, as Trump claimed, since neither country has ever been at war with Israel. Just documents involving an exchange of ambassadors, trade deals and the like. And it was significant that while Trump and Israels Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu were there in person, the UAE and Bahreini rulers just sent their foreign ministers.

The only thing that actually happened, however, was that two Gulf ministates went public on ties with Israel, especially in the arms trade, that had previously been not actually secret, but at least discreet. Apart from that, its still the same old Middle East, as corrupt, violent and dysfunctional as ever.

The last time Israel fought an actual war against any of its Arab neighbours was in 1982, a full-scale invasion of Lebanon that ended in a prolonged Israeli military occupation of the southern part of the country. Thats long over now, although Lebanon remains a ghastly mess, but all the regions other wars trundle on uninterrupted.

The second Libyan civil war continues into its sixth year, with a cast of foreign participants and supporters that now includes Russia, Turkey, France, Egypt and the UAE.

The atrocious foreign military intervention in Yemen, led by Saudi Arabia but involving most of the autocratic Arab states and their Western arms suppliers, is only one year younger and still killing around 5,000 a month.

The Syrian civil war is in its ninth year. It has killed at least half a million people and driven almost half the population from their homes. It may be creeping toward an end now, with only one province still in rebel hands, but the rebels have Turkish military support and the Russian air force fights for the Assad regime.

Iraq is enjoying only its second year of relative peace since the U.S. invasion of 2003, but the signs are multiplying that Islamic State is going to launch a major comeback bid there. The collapse of the oil price has left much of the population destitute. Urban youth are in open revolt, with hundreds shot dead by the police this year.

And when something genuinely new does crop up in the endless churn that distinguishes the regions politics, it is often unwelcome.

Saudi Arabia, once the stable, conservative linchpin of inter-Arab politics, has turned into a loose cannon, starting unwinnable wars (like Yemen), funnelling money and arms to jihadi extremists (in Syria), and commissioning the cold-blooded killing of critics of the regime (as in the murder and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi).

Overshadowing all these wars, and actually driving some of them, is the religious and strategic confrontation between revolutionary Shia Iran and the conservative Sunni monarchies and dictatorships of the eastern Arab world. Thats what those huge Arab arms purchases are for, not for fighting Israel.

Indeed, Israel is a silent partner in this regionwide cold war between the Sunni Arab states and Iran; thats what made the little ceremony at the White House possible. There is no Arab-Israeli conflict: the major Arab players are already undeclared Israeli allies, and the Israeli army refers to its sporadic punitive strikes against the Palestinians as mowing the lawn.

Real change in this region happens with glacial slowness, if at all, but that does not mean that it is stable. On the contrary, it could tip suddenly into a radically different state. It almost did so in 2010-12, the years of the aborted Arab spring, and the forces that drove that uprising are even stronger now.

Half the population in Middle Eastern and North African countries is under 25. As populations have soared (Iraqs has doubled to 40 million since the first Gulf War in 1990), economies have not kept pace, and living standards have fallen almost everywhere. A huge, mostly jobless young population living close to despair is now the Arab norm.

The pantomime at the White House on Tuesday was about tidying up a few of the loose ends of an old conflict. It would have a certain relevance if the future was going to be just more of the present, but that is not the case.

The timing is uncertain but the destination is clear: big changes are coming that will sweep away many of the existing regimes and reshape the politics of the region. Happy endings are not inevitable, but different endings are practically guaranteed.

Gwynne Dyer s new book is Growing Pains: The Future of Democracy (and Work).

Read more about:
Each week, Benjamin Law asks public figures to discuss the subjects we're told to keep private by getting them to roll a die. The numbers they land on are the topics they're given. This week, he talks to Fiona Stanley. The professor, 74, is Australias most respected paediatric epidemiologist. Shes been an ABC board member, named an Australian Living Treasure and was Australian of the Year in 2003. She is an ambassador for UNICEF.

"Everyone is taking notice of data and evidence now." Credit:

DEATH

What deaths have most affected you? The death that really affected me  and changed my life  was the death of an Indigenous boy in Western Australia. I was young doctor at the paediatric hospital, and hed come in from a remote community. I was 25, and he was four or five, coming in with severe dehydration and diarrhoea. Later he died in my arms. I thought then, I dont know that I can do clinical work. I want to find out how we can prevent this. It was very eye-opening for a white, privileged young doctor.

Today, are you optimistic that Australias hardline measures to combat COVID-19 will work, or are you despairing that its come to this? Im despairing that its come to this and Im optimistic it will work. This argument that we can either have health or the economy makes me angry. Theyre [inextricable].
on Friday rejected India's demand that an Indian lawyer or a Queen's counsel should be appointed for death-row prisoner to ensure a free and fair trial in this country.

Foreign Office spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri, replying to a question during a media briefing, said has been consistently making the "unrealistic demand" of allowing a lawyer from outside to represent Jadhav, sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court for alleged spying.

We have informed that only those lawyers are allowed to appear in Pakistani courts who have a license to practice law in This is in line with international legal practice. There can be no change in this position, he said.

Queen's Counsel is a barrister or advocate, appointed Counsel to the UK Crown on the recommendation of the Lord Chancellor.

Earlier this month, the Islamabad High Court in Pakistan directed the federal government to give another chance to appoint a lawyer to represent Jadhav and adjourned hearing for a month.

Pakistan's Parliament on Tuesday extended for four months an ordinance that allowed Jadhav to file an appeal against his conviction in a high court as required by the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the government of Pakistan has not been able to fulfil its obligations on implementation of the ICJ judgment in letter and spirit.

"It has not yet addressed the core issues, which include provision of all documents related to the case, providing unconditional and unimpeded consular access to Kulbhusan Jadhav and appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queen's counsel to ensure a free and fair trial," he said at an online media briefing on Thursday.

In 2017, India approached the ICJ against Pakistan for denial of consular access to Jadhav and challenging the death sentence handed to him by a military court.

The Hague-based ICJ ruled in July 2019 that Pakistan must undertake an "effective review and reconsideration" of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav and also to grant consular access to India without further delay.

India has slammed Pakistan for adopting a "farcical" approach in denying available legal remedies to Jadhav against his death sentence in contravention of the ICJ order.

Fifty-year-old retired Indian Navy officer Jadhav was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism in April 2017.

To a question about elevating Gilgit-Baltistan's status to that of a full-fledged province, the Foreign Office spokesperson said that reforms in GB were an ongoing process that include political, administrative and economic reforms.

It (granting status of a province) has been a long-standing demand of the people of Giligit Baltistan.

These reforms will continue in line with the needs of the people of Gilgit Baltistan," he said.

India has clearly conveyed to Pakistan that the entire union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, including the areas of Gilgit and Baltistan, are an integral part of the country by virtue of its fully legal and irrevocable accession.

(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.)
If ingested, ricin causes vomiting, nausea and internal bleeding of the stomach and intestines

On Saturday, a package addressed to President Donald Trump tested positive for the poison ricin.

The package was intercepted by federal authorities before it could reach the president, a law enforcement official said.

Followed by Presidential Personnel Office director John McEntee, U.S. President Donald Trump leaves the Oval Office prior to his departure from the White House September 18, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

All White House mail is sorted and screened at an offsite facility before it reaches the White House, and according to CNN, two tests that confirmed the presence of the highly toxic compound were conducted at that facility.

Read More: Texas woman arrested in ricin letters to Obama, Bloomberg

Ricin, which is extracted from castor beans, has turned up in other terror plots targeting President Trump and other officials. The poison can be used in powder, pellet, mist or acid form.

"These are the lengths the left is willing to go to stop him from filling a Supreme Court seat."



Besides the fact investigators think the ricin was sent from Canada, it's highly unlikely it was mailed after RBG's death and got delivered today. https://t.co/zsUgMbn8wm  Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) September 19, 2020

If ingested, ricin causes vomiting, nausea and internal bleeding of the stomach and intestines. According to the Centers for Disease Control, exposure to ricin through inhalation, ingestion or injection can lead to death after the failure of internal organs and the collapse of the circulatory system.

The FBI and our U.S. Secret Service and U.S. Postal Inspection service partners are investigating a suspicious letter received at a U.S. government mail facility. At this time there is no known threat to public safety, the FBIs Washington field office said in a statement.

Read More: Maxine Waters and staff safe after suspicious package marked anthrax found at her LA office

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In 2018, a Utah man threatened Trump and other administration officials in letters that contained the natural ingredients used to make ricin, and a federal grand jury returned a seven-count indictment against the man.

Have you subscribed to theGrios podcast Dear Culture? Download our newest episodes now!

The post Federal authorities intercept package addressed to Trump containing ricin appeared first on TheGrio.
 Flash

Data from China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism shows that the number of tourists and total income of rural tourism in July and August have recovered to more than 90 percent of that of the same period in previous years.



Traveling to city's suburban areas has become the first choice for people to go out and have fun under the current situation, according to the ministry.

At a meeting on rural tourism held in Lanzhou, capital of Gansu province, Hu Heping, the minister of culture and tourism, said that the rural tourism revenue dropped 77.1 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of this year, but the industry quickly recovered in the second quarter.

From January to August, a total of 1.207 billion trips to rural areas were made across the country, with a total revenue of 592.5 billion yuan (about $86.7 billion), data shows.

About 94.5 percent of the business in rural tourism has returned to operation, hiring 10.61 million employees.

In 2019, the total number of trips to rural areas in China was 3.09 billion, accounting for more than half of the total domestic trips, and the total revenue of rural tourism was 1.81 trillion yuan.




"Chinese culture is marvelous, we like it and we want to have more chances to enjoy it in the future," some Fijian women told Xinhua after having had a special and unforgettable experience of the Chinese culture in a remote Fijian village.



With the support by Fiji's Department of Heritage and Arts and the Nausori Multi-Cultural Center, the staff of China Cultural Center in Fiji went on Thursday to Koroqaqa, a riverside village about 30 km north of Suva, capital of Fiji, entertaining local Fijians with a Bamboo Culture photo exhibition and teaching them how to play Chinese Tai Chi.

It is the first time for the staff of China Cultural Center in Fiji to bring their cultural activities to rural Fijians and also the first time for them to jointly celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival with rural Fijians.

Besides showing a promotional video "Beautiful China", which showcases China's beautiful and unique landscapes as well as the great achievement that China has made over the past decades, the staff of China Cultural Center in Fiji also briefed the Fijians from different parts of the Nausori district on the cultural exchanges they have had with Fijians in recent years.

Some Fijian women also took notes while listening carefully to the introduction about China. A Fijian woman could not help but telling Xinhua that the Chinese culture is very good, and she hopes to have more chances to experience it.

For the Fijians and their Chinese guests, they were also touched by the beautiful traditional dance by a 13-year-old Fijian girl and a moving Chinese song related to the Mid-Autumn Festival by a Fijian college student. She surprised everyone when she sang the song in Chinese, and loud applause came just after she finished her song.

Some Fijians also practised calligraphy enthusiastically.

Needless to say, it is a good chance for the two different cultures to walk into each other's heart and touch both sides by the uniqueness and irresistible charm of the cultures.

Seini Vakaloloma, principal officer of Fiji's Department of Heritage and Arts, told Xinhua that the cultural activities brought here by the China Cultural Center in Fiji is useful and they have learned a lot from the Chinese culture.

"We have learned a lot from your culture and I really appreciate it. I hope the China Cultural Center in Fiji can bring their activities to other communities in the island nation in the future," she said.

For her part, Anjana Maharaj, administration officer of the Nausori Multi-Cultural Center, told Xinhua that "We believe culture exchange is very important. When we know each other's culture, then we know the people, we know we can interpret each other. We belong to the multi-cultural center, we believe learning each other's culture make sense."

Sun Jie, director of the China Cultural Center in Fiji, told Xinhua that such cultural exchange can help promote the mutual understanding between the peoples of the two countries.

"This is the first time for our center to bring our cultural activities to Fijians in the rural area. Our aim is to do cultural exchange and also celebrate our Mid-Autumn Festival with our Fijian friends. We and our Fijian friends do believe that such cultural exchange can help promote the mutual understanding between the peoples of our two countries," he said.
By Express News Service

ROURKELA: THE Sundargarh police nabbed two criminals linked to the Jharkhand-based Peoples Liberation Front of India (PLFI) and recovered arms, ammunition and cash. The arrest and seizures came during a planned operation on Thursday night at the bordering Kadobahal village under Raiboga police limits in Sundargarh district. SP Sagarika Nath on Friday informed that on a tip off, a special team was sent to raid the house of Raju Kindo (38) in the village, while District Voluntary Force (DVF) personnel cordoned off the area.

When Kindo did not open the door, police forced their way inside and tried to capture him. Kindo opened one round of fire and a personnel Sundargarhmani Naik narrowly escaped. Police managed to overpower Kindo and recovered a pistol with two live bullets and `4.81 lakh from him. Kindo also led police to his accomplice Sanamunu Sahoo (45) of the same village and another pistol was recovered from him.

Police further recovered one carbine with two magazines, four single shot country-made small arms and one double shot country-made gun packed in a polythene and kept hidden underground near Kindos house. He informed that the hidden arms were procured from PLFI group leader Jayadhar before he was killed in an encounter by Jharkhand police.

The SP said previously Kindo was associated with Jharkhands criminal outfits, Pahadi Cheetah and Jharkhand Badshaw, and later with dreaded outfit PLFI. Kindo was wanted in seven cases of Raiboga and Birmitrapur police stations in Sundargarh that included four murder cases apart from extortion, attempt to murder, armed loot and possession and use of illegal arms and explosives.
A day before the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government is expected to push three contentious legislations on farm reforms in the Rajya Sabha, the Congress sought to mount pressure on the ruling side, signaling an imminent confrontation when the bills come for passage in the Upper House on Sunday.

Senior Congress leader and former finance minister P Chidambaram compared the farm reforms proposed by his party and the NDAs version. While our promise is clear, the Modi government has surrendered to the corporates and traders, he said in a statement on Saturday.

Every political party has to take a stand  is it with the farmers or is it with the BJP threatening the livelihood of farmers, he said.

His comments came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi took on critics of the farm-liberalisation plan, accusing detractors of spreading misinformation and lies while reassuring farmers the reforms were in their best interests.

Modi called the reforms a protective shield around farmers and took a veiled but sharp attack on the Congress. These people who would make big promises to farmers during election time, would do it in writing, and in their manifestoes, forget these promises after elections, Modi said.

The Congresss 2019 manifesto promised to liberalise agricultural markets.

Chidambaram alleged that the government and the Centres ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) deliberately and maliciously distorted the Congress manifesto.

Little knowledge is dangerous and little reading is even more dangerous, he said, and added that the BJP was caught in a web of its own creation.

The Congress, meanwhile, has issued a three-line whip to its members, asking them to be present in the Rajya Sabha during the debate and voting on the farm bills on Sunday.

The party has also called a meeting of its general secretaries and in-charge of states on Monday to discuss the course of action on the bills and give a final shape to its proposed nationwide agitation. The meeting, to be held at the party headquarters in Delhi, is expected to be attended by six members of a special committee (AK Antony, Ahmed Patel, Ambika Soni, KC Venugopal, Mukul Wasnik and Randeep Singh Surjewala).

Also read: Punjabs farmer leaders to burn copies of farm bills tomorrow

The BJP, which does not have a majority in the Upper House, too, has asked all its members to be present in the House.

The Lok Sabha, where the BJP and its allies enjoy a brute majority, passed two of these bills --- The Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020 and The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020 --- through a voice vote on Thursday. It has earlier passed the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill.

The main opposition Congress and a clutch of smaller parties are opposed to the reforms. A key opposition to the bills came on Thursday from BJP ally Shiromani Akali Dal, whose minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal resigned from the Union Cabinet over efforts to unshackle the farm sector.

Indias agricultural trade still requires licenced traders who must operate out of notified markets allotted to them. The bills aim to sidestep this system, called agricultural produce market committees (APMC), free up market restrictions, enable farmers and agribusinesses to engage more confidently under a new contract farming law and help to create modern supply chains. Critics argue the new system will lack adequate oversight in its current form.

The Bills assume perversely that the farmer and the private purchaser have equal bargaining power. They do not. The small farmer will be at the mercy of the private purchaser, Chidambaram said.
President Trump wants to Make America #Woke Again.

Viewers who watch the Trump campaigns online programming aimed at Black audiences are encouraged to tweet the hashtag #Woke when announcing their support for the president. Viewers are also asked to text the word to a number that will sign them up for updates and allow the campaign to harvest their data.

This subversion of the term, which originated in the Black community as slang for becoming attuned to the injustice and systemic racism prevalent in American society, is part of a larger effort by the Trump campaign to erode Democrats longtime advantage with African-American voters.

Trumps effort to win over Black voters may seem quixotic. Only about one in 10 Black Americans identifies as a Republican, a number thats remained relatively stable for decades. And President Trump, with his history of racist statements, would not seem to be a natural candidate to win some of those voters back.

President Trump at a meeting with Black supporters at the White House on June 10. (Doug Mills/the New York Times/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

At the same time, polls show that Democratic nominee Joe Biden may be struggling with minority voters, at least when compared to his partys previous presidential candidates.

Thats a scary thing for a Joe Biden campaign, Paris Dennard, the Republican National Committees senior communications adviser for Black media affairs, told Yahoo News.

While the presidents team touts its efforts to court a community that Republicans have long ignored, critics describe them as part of a cynical depression strategy designed to minimize Black American turnout.

He doesnt give a s*** about the process. He doesnt give a damn about the electoral requirements, former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele, who is supporting Biden, said of Trump. All he sees is How can I block and tackle my way across the finish line and take out as many people as I can to do that.

The Biden campaign agrees with that characterization. In a statement to Yahoo News, Jamal Brown, Bidens national press secretary, accused Trump of trying to suppress turnout.

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Joe Biden and Kamala Harris got into this race, in part, to advance progress on racial equity, combat systemic injustices, and defeat a racist president who purposely failed to take action against a pandemic thats disproportionately impacted Black Americans, Brown said.

In fact, Donald Trump does not care about the Black vote. While he is actively trying to suppress turnout rather than genuinely engage African American voters, our campaign is working hard to earn their support.

There is no question that Biden will win an overwhelming majority of the Black vote. Democrats have drawn the majority of African-American support in presidential races since the 1960s, when Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson got behind civil rights legislation. According to data compiled by Cornell Universitys Roper Center, no Democratic presidential candidate has earned less than 83 percent of the Black vote since 1976.

But Biden may not be doing as well as previous Democratic nominees. Four surveys conducted this month had him averaging about 79 percent support among African-American voters.

That polling data, however, comes with quite a few caveats.

Kamala Harris and Joe Biden after Harris accepted the Democratic vice presidential nomination in Wilmington, Del., on Aug. 19. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

For one thing, all of the recent polls show that there are enough undecided Black voters to bring Biden back in line with the Democrats more recent performances. For another, Biden won the Democratic primary in large part because of his support from Black voters, and his running mate, California Sen. Kamala Harris, would be the first Black vice president.

Biden also enjoys a robust overall lead in national polls, in large part because of his popularity among white voters, in particular older white voters. And Hillary Clintons Black support was also dramatically underestimated by late summer polls in 2016.

Meanwhile, Trumps support among Black voters remains mired at around 10 percent, which is roughly in keeping with the share of the Black vote he won in 2016.

Still, as Clintons candidacy showed, any dip in Black support could prove consequential, particularly in key swing states. For example, according to a report from the Center for American Progress, if Black voters had turned out for Clinton in Michigan and Wisconsin the way they had for Barack Obama four years earlier, Clinton would have won both states.

The Trump campaign says it has put together an operation thats making a concerted pitch to the Black community. The centerpiece of this effort is Black Voices for Trump, which has held events around the country, including voter training sessions and MAGA meetups in swing states. Members of the groups advisory board are also frequently deployed as surrogates for the campaign on cable television.

Perhaps the most well-known person in Trumps Black outreach operation is Katrina Pierson, who works as a senior adviser to his campaign. Her job includes managing the various coalitions the campaign has formed to target individual communities. But Pierson says she has taken more personal care and concern in Black Voices for Trump. Because, Im Black, No. 1, and, No. 2, the party hasnt ever really had a Black coalition, Pierson said.

Republican political consultant Katrina Pierson at Trump Tower in New York City in 2016. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Trumps allies argue that hes poised to win over more minority voters. Among other things, they point to his work passing bipartisan criminal justice reform legislation, providing funding for historically Black colleges, and presiding over the lowest African-American unemployment rate in history.

But the coronavirus pandemic obliterated the strong economy and near-full employment Trump was hoping to run on. He has also been questioned  including in a memorable, contentious exchange with a Black woman at a town hall earlier this week  over whether his efforts to repeal Obamacare would lead to skyrocketing medical costs and limited health care access, particularly among people of color.

And Trumps crackdown on protests for racial justice following the killing of George Floyd in May has drawn rebukes from Black leaders across the country. So have his critiques of peaceful Black Lives Matter demonstrations and his newfound emphasis on protecting suburban areas, which critics say is a thinly disguised appeal to white racial anxieties.

Pierson dismissed the idea that the president is looking to stoke racial resentment and said that the growing number of Black suburbanites appreciate his message.

President Trump looks at the community and says ... We want to protect suburban areas, Pierson said. I thought, thats great. Im Black. I own a home. I live in suburbia. ... Thank you, Mr. President.

The Trump campaign is also hoping to highlight Bidens record on issues of race and criminal justice. In particular, it wants to remind Black voters that Biden was the author of a strict 1994 crime bill that critics say exacerbated mass incarceration and helped devastate some minority communities.

Thats really one of the messages that we want to make sure Black Americans know. Its like, Hey, you know, Joe Biden wrote the crime bill, Pierson said.

The Trump campaign has also emphasized controversial comments Biden has made over the years, including a 2007 interview where he described Obama, his future running mate, as the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean. It also points to Bidens suggestion, made during a May interview with African-American radio personality Charlamagne Tha God, that anyone who is not sure whether to vote for him or Trump aint Black. Biden later said he regretted that remark.

Joe Biden. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

But progressives argue that Trumps team is more interested in discouraging Black people from voting than winning them over.

I think what were seeing from the Trump campaign is less of an emphasis on a Black voter engagement strategy and more of an emphasis on a Black voter depression strategy, Arisha Hatch, the vice president and chief of campaigns at Color of Change, an African-American political advocacy organization, told Yahoo News.

Hatch believes Biden and the Democratic Party have more work to do to maximize support among Black voters. She also suggested Biden had mishandled his messaging around the protests out of a desire to not scare off white working-class voters or white suburban women.

Trump has tried to tie Biden to leftist rioters and activists who want to defund the police. Biden, a relatively moderate Democrat, has responded by making his own criticisms of violent protesters and emphasizing his desire to increase funding for law enforcement.

Hatch says this strategy is a mistake. Those things dont meet the demands of the current Black civil rights movement and are not in concert with what Black voters want to hear right now, she said.

Hatch also wants to see the Biden campaign invest much more into winning over Black voters.

I believe that Black men specifically and Black people generally should be treated like swing voters. The swing might not necessarily be between voting for the right or voting for the left; the swing is between voting for the left or not voting at all, Hatch said.

The bigger issue for the Biden campaign isnt so much Black voters turning out for Trump, but rather that some wont vote at all. In 2016 Black turnout declined sharply for the first time in 20 years. Hatch sees Trumps attacks on Bidens record and on Democrats in general as part of a deliberate effort by Trumps team to tamp down African-American enthusiasm.

Demonstrators protest President Trumps acceptance of the Republican nomination near the White House on Aug. 27. (Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images)

I think it all goes to the point of saying to Black people, Your vote doesnt matter. Nothings going to change, no ones here for you, she explained.

Hatch fears this could be particularly effective in an election where many voters may be discouraged from casting a ballot due to the pandemic. When youre hearing messages that democracy isnt improving your life, youre less willing to jump through those hoops, she said.

The Biden campaign responded to questions about its investment in the Black vote by pointing to a memo published last month outlining its paid media strategy. In the memo, Biden campaign manager Jen OMalley Dillon noted that the campaign bought ads that target Black voters as part of a massive $280 million spend. The memo said the ads will be shown on major African-American networks and will reach approximately half of all African American households. It did not specify how much of the nine figure sum is specifically dedicated to this effort.

Both Hatch and Steele, the former GOP chair who is now working for a pro-Biden political action committee, also accuse Trump of playing an active role in setting up barriers to voting. Hatch pointed to discriminatory voter ID laws backed by Republicans, Trumps efforts to undermine confidence in mail-in ballots, and recent cuts to the Postal Service budget as obstacles to voting.

Michael Steele, former chairman of the Republican National Committee, in Las Vegas in 2019. (Joe Buglewicz/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The Trump campaign denies that its trying to depress Black turnout.

The only people engaged in Black voter suppression are Joe Biden and his radical Democrat friends in the mainstream media intimidating free-thinking and independent-minded Black Americans from voting for Trump, Dennard said.

Yet in 2016, top Trump campaign officials reportedly bragged about having major voter suppression operations targeting Black voters and other Democratic-leaning groups. And Trump himself has admitted that he benefited from lower Black turnout.

They didnt come out to vote for Hillary, Trump said in December 2016, just weeks after his election.

They didnt come out. And that was a big  so thank you to the African-American community.

_____

Read more from Yahoo News:
Toronto police are searching for the driver of a pickup truck that reportedly hit a pedestrian in Etobicoke on Thursday, Sept. 17 and fled the scene.

The pedestrian was taken to the hospital with serious injuries, said police.

On Thursday at around 4 p.m., police responded to a report that a vehicle had failed to remain at the scene of a collision at the intersection of Belfield Road and Martin Grove Road.

Investigators have since released a photo of the white Toyota Tacoma they are searching for.

The pedestrian was walking eastbound on the south side of Belfield Road, crossing Martin Grove Road, when a white Toyota Tacoma turned from westbound on Belfield Road to southbound Martin Grove Road, said police, striking the woman.

The truck was last seen entering Highway 409.

Police request that anyone with information contact them at 416-808-1900 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477).

Advocates have said there are persistent misconceptions about the causes of fatal pedestrian collisions that distract from implementing effective solutions; including that pedestrians are hit when they are distracted by their phones, they are often illegally jaywalking and accidents occur in less favourable weather conditions.

However, Toronto Police Service statistics between 2007 and 2018 show that only 20 per cent of pedestrians hit were reported as inattentive, whereas 62 per cent were reported as being in a normal condition when struck.

Additionally, Torontos Municipal Code, a collection of city bylaws separate from provincial legislation, dictates that its legal for pedestrians to cross midblock, as long as they yield to oncoming traffic where there is no crosswalk.

The code specifies that no matter what the pedestrian does, drivers are still obligated to take all due care to avoid a collision.

A 2015 study conducted by Toronto Public Health found that in 67 per cent of crashes involving pedestrian injuries and fatalities, pedestrians had the right of way.

In about 19 per cent of cases, pedestrians didnt have the right of way and in 14 per cent the right of way wasnt determined.

With files from Ben Spurr Manuela Vega is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Stars radio room in Toronto. Reach her via email: mvega@thestar.ca
Russian politician Alexei Navalny is back up and walking just days after being taken off a ventilator.

Navalny, the political opponent of Russian president Vladimir Putin, shared a photo of himself walking down stairs at Berlin's Charite Hospital, where he is continuing his recovery from being poisoned in late August.

He has said he intends to return to Russia as western governments demand an explanation from the Kremlin.

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is 'continuing to improve,' doctors say. He shared a photo and an update about his recovery from novichok nerve agent poisoning, writing that doctors at Berlin's Charite Hospital had transformed him from "technically alive" to someone with a chance at a real recovery. He said he still has issues pouring water and using his phone, but is up and walking after being taken off a ventilator earlier in the week.

Laboratory tests confirmed Navalny, who was airlifted to Germany after falling ill in Siberia, was poisoned with a novichok nerve agent that is tightly controlled by the Russian government.

Navalny shared an update of his recovery on Instagram, posting a photo of him walking downstairs in the hospital wearing a navy blue t-shirt, sweatpants, and blue rubber gloves.

He said: 'This is a clear road, albeit a long one.'

Navalny wrote that he has trouble pouring himself some water and using his phone, describing it as 'useless as a stone'.

Russian president Vladimir Putin (right) called accusations about possible Kremlin involvement in Navalny's poisoning 'unsubstantiated' in a call with French president Emmanuel Macron (left). Navalny is Putin's political rival and a vocal critic of the long-standing leader (file photo).

He said 'there are so many problems still to be solved' but that doctors had transformed him from 'technically alive' to someone who had a chance of living a normal life again.

Charite Hospital said on Monday that Navalny's condition 'continues to improve'.

'The patient has been successfully removed from mechanical ventilation. He is currently undergoing mobilization and is able to leave his bed for short periods of time.'
In the pink It was a strange circumstance last week for your humble correspondent to find himself in the space of just a few days scrambling all over, under, through and around Sydneys two most globally recognised and beloved icons, but so it turned out. As a passenger on my daughters freebie ticket, I can report that the iconic BridgeClimb is back, with strict coronavirus protocols observed, and that Sydney from the high strut makes you want to do just that across the arch so fabulous does it look. As to the Opera House  while it was a bit odd to arrive on the edges of its instantly recognisable shells only to gaze back towards the city and see a man in a pink track-suit having his breakfast on his balcony in the Toaster  but enough about Alan Jones, the rest was glorious. It was a pleasure and a privilege to go all over and through the building for the purposes of a book I am writing, and I can report they are using the enforced Plague pause to good effect, with round the clock shifts to keep the whole masterpiece contemporary and revelevant as the genius Jorn Utzon intended. The Opera House is making good use of its enforced COVID closure. Credit:Edwina Pickles Ring the Bell

In honour of the mighty Bell Shakespeare Companys 30th anniversary, it is holding a series of debates, starting this Thursday at 7.30pm, featuring the likes of Jane Caro, Ben Law, Jan Fran, Jess Scully, Miriam Corowa, Jonathan Biggins and Rebecca Huntley. The first topic: That we have seen better days. (My money is on the affirmative team!), And you can watch it online via bellshakespeare.com.au. Joke of the Week Top eight country and western song titles: 8 She Got the Goldmine, I Got the Shaft. 7 If the Phone Dont Ring, Youll Know Its Me. 6 Ive Missed You but My Aims Improvin. 5 Im So Miserable Without You Its Like Youre Still Here. 4 My Wife Ran Off With My Best Friend And I Miss Him. 3 She Took My Ring and Gave Me the Finger. 2 Shes Lookin Better with Every Beer. 1 Its Hard To Kiss the Lips at Night that Chewed My Arse Out All Day Long. Quotes of the Week I am very proud of the fact that when I lit the cauldron all those years ago it was a symbol of hope for all young Australians. It is at times like this that I simply reflect and I wonder at the power of sport and the difference that sport can make in our lives. - Cathy Freeman, remembering the day 20 years later.
In the late morning and early afternoon Thursday, caravans of taxis blocked the Brooklyn Bridge and Queensboro Bridge in New York City, bringing traffic to a halt on two of the major entrances to Manhattan. Taxi drivers staged the protest to demand a lightening of their immense debt burdens.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has deepened the financial catastrophe facing these drivers. As of June, 75 percent of drivers were off the job due to a lack of demand for taxis. Since then, ridership has remained low, with business districts still nearly empty, many Manhattan residents departing for other locales and tourism non-existent.

NY taxi drivers protesting on the Brooklyn Bridge [Credit: Twitter/@NYTWA]

Yellow cab drivers in New York City operate under a system based on medallions, expensive vehicle permits, which had also served as a means for financial speculation. The cost of a medallion had grown to $1.3 million in 2014, before dropping precipitously with the explosion of rideshare services in the city. Medallions now go for under $100,000.

Across the industry, drivers are locked into massive loans, with no way to generate enough income to pay off their debt. Tragically, this has led to a wave of suicides. One case was that of Doug Shifter, a 61-year-old limousine driver who wrote in a Facebook post shortly before his suicide, I worked 100-120 consecutive hours almost every week for the past fourteen-plus years. When the industry started in 1981, I averaged 40-50 hours. I cannot survive any longer with working 120 hours!...This is SLAVERY NOW.  I dont know how else to try to make a difference other than a public display of a most private affair.

The pandemic has worsened an already dire situation, leaving drivers wholly reliant on government support to pay off their loans and meet living expenses. On July 25, the $600 weekly supplement to unemployment benefits from the federal government ended, putting drivers in an impossible situation.

Bill de Blasio, New Yorks Democratic mayor, had early on indicated that his administration would do nothing to help workers unable to pay their bills. Before this pandemic, we were dealing with a really profound problem for yellow-cab drivers, green cab drivers, for-hire vehicles, everyone had gone through so muchEverything got stopped because of the coronavirus and obviously we, the city of New York, do not have resources for any kind of direct bailout, he said in a morning press conference in late June.

The New York Taxi Workers Alliance (NYTWA), which covers over 21,000 taxi and rideshare drivers, including Uber and Lyft drivers in New York City, launched the protest action to continue their Medallion Debt Forgiveness Campaign that started July 5. Facing growing militancy and a determination to fight on the part of rank-and-file drivers, the union is attempting to divert this energy towards pressuring the city and Congress to restructure the drivers debts.

The parasites responsible for the unbearable debt burdens of drivers are the financial oligarchy, who have made a fortune off of restructuring the transportation industry by the super exploitation of rideshare drivers. They are also moving to extract whatever profits they can from the collapsing yellow cab sector.

Marblegate Asset Management became the largest holder of taxi loans in February of this year, purchasing 3,500 medallion loans for $350 million at an auction. Despite a raging pandemic that has killed over 200,000 US residents and crippled the world economy, the finance firm has required at least 2,000 medallions owners to pay $1,500 per month on their debt. The firm, alongside the entire capitalist class, has the full backing of local, state and federal governments, staffed by Democratic Party and Republican Party politicians that are loyal to their interests.

Deeply concerned with the rising fighting spirit of the working class, more than 150 leaders of New York Citys corporate and financial chiefs sent a letter to Mayor de Blasio last Thursday, insisting on ruthless measures to defend the interests of big business.

The protest action by yellow cab drivers is occurring in the context of growing militancy in the working class. Massive opposition has emerged among educators to the reckless reopening of schools, including in New York City, where the mayor has twice delayed the start of in-person classes. Workers at universities have gone on strike in Michigan and Illinois. Rank-and-file safety committees of autoworkers, teachers and other workers have formed over the past few months to organize a fight for safe working conditions.

Instead of pushing to broaden the struggle of yellow cab drivers, the NYTWA has isolated these workers. The union has separate campaigns for Uber, Lyft and yellow cab drivers even though these workers serve in the same industry and perform the same essential task. The sole focus of these campaigns has been to promote the illusion that Democratic Party politicians will fight for workers interests.

This ignores the fact that the Democratic Party is an arm of the corporate and financial elite that is responsible for attacking workers. As tens of millions of unemployed and underpaid workers have been starved of unemployment benefits and left unable to pay their debts and bills, the Federal Reserve has provided over $3 trillion to the financial markets to stave off a collapse. In effect, the government and its appendages have no shortage of funds when it comes to helping companies like Marblegate Asset Management, but meanwhile leave workers like yellow-cab drivers to starve.

The World Socialist Web Site and the Socialist Equality Party urge yellow cab drivers, Uber and Lyft drivers to organize themselves in rank-and-file committees independent of the unions and the two corporate-controlled political parties, following the lead of teachers and autoworkers, to wage a united struggle against their common enemy, the corporations and Wall Street banks. We encourage all workers to contact the WSWS for more information about forming rank-and-file committees.
The large backlog of pending ration card applications and the return of more than 30 lakh migrant workers to Uttar Pradesh during the COVID-19-induced lockdown is a worrying combination, especially when many have lost their means of livelihood

Lakhs of migrant workers who returned to their hometowns in Uttar Pradesh during the lockdown are eagerly waiting for their ration cards in order to avail subsidised food grains allocated under the Public Distribution System in this time of crisis under. An RTI reply has revealed the state has over 18 lakh ration card applications pending with a whopping 91.9 percent of them pending beyond the stipulated 30 days for approval.

Uttar Pradesh has witnessed maximum number of migrant workers in the country with more than 31 lakhs having returned from other states during the lockdown, the state's chief secretary had informed on 4 June, 2020.

On 12 May, 2020, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath had given specific directions that those in need and eligible for subsideised ration should be provided with ration cards, including migrant workers.

Between late March when the lockdown was announced in India and the month of May, the state has reportedly issued more than 5.8 lakh ration cards. Yet, 18,84,537 (or 10.2 percent) of the total applications for new ration cards are pending in the state.

In all, the state received 1,85,57,659 applications under the State e-Governance Service Delivery Gateway (SSDG) system run by the Food and Civil Supplies Department of Uttar Pradesh. This information has been provided by the department in response to an RTI application filed by this author.

While the response from the department does not mention the time period in which these applications were received, the date mentioned for the data compiled by the department is 31 July, 2020.

The author has enquired from the department regarding the time period for the applications received and the details are awaited.

As per the RTI response, out of the total pending applications, only 1,58,251 or 8.1 percent are pending within the stipulated time period of 30 days for application approval, while 17,31,686 (or a whopping 91.9 percent) are those pending beyond 30 days.

Of the total 1.86 crore applications received, the department has accepted 61,29,525 applications (or 33 percent) while 1,05,43,597 (or 56.8 percent) applications have been rejected.

The information released via RTI also gives a district-wise breakdown of the ration card applications as well. Out of total 75 districts in the state, the highest number of applications have been received in Sitapur district in Eastern Uttar Pradesh. The district also has the highest number of rejections.

The least number of applicatios were received in Sonbhadra district in Western Uttar Pradesh. Sonbhadra also ranks lowest in terms of ration card applications approved, rejected as well as pending. Kanpur Nagar in central Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of applications awaiting approval.

Among the four regions in Uttar Pradesh  Western, Eastern, Central and Bundelkhand  the highest average number of applications per district have been received in Central Uttar Pradesh while the least have been received in the Bundelkhand region.

An analysis of the ration card applications processed by the Food and Civil Supplies Department as stated in the RTI response, revealed a strong positive correlation between the average gross domestic product (GDP) per district (as per the 2017-18 official data from Uttar Pradesh Directorate of Economics and Statistics) and the average number of applications received per district in each of the four regions.

Analysis of total applications shows that the more is the average GDP per district of a particular region, the more are the average number of applications received, betraying the logic that people in wealthier regions are less reliant on PDS.

However, an analysis of the total existing ration card holders in the four regions paints the opposite picture.

There is a fairly strong negative correlation between the region-wise average GDP per district and the average existing ration card holders per district, respectively. What this means is that the more is the average GDP per district of the region, the lesser is the average number of ration card holders per district in each region.

Table 1: Region-wise Ration Card Statistics

Regions Number of Applications Received Average Gross Net Product per District (Crores) Average Ration Cards per District Bundelkhand 118317.4 8898.393 473909.9 Central UP 368249.2 22130.62 363557.7 Eastern UP 237428.3 12363.66 504035.3 Western UP 250992.4 22034.79 485337.2 Source: UP Directorate of Economics and Statistics (for economic data); Food and Civil Supplies Department (for ration card data, accessed on 4 September 2020); RTI response (ration card applications)

As of 4 September, the total number of ration cards in the state stood at more than 3.58 crores with more than 3.17 crores priority households, which include both the Below Poverty Line (BPL) and Above Poverty Line (APL) households as per the National Food Security Act 2013 (NFSA). At the same time, there are more than 40.77 Antyodaya ration card holders in the state. On average, the highest number of average ration cards per district is found in the Eastern UP region followed by Western UP, Bundelkhand and Central UP.

Table 2: Bundelkhand Region Ration Card Statistics and Economic Performance

District Total Applications Accepted applications Rejected Applications Pending applications within time limit (30 days) Pending applications outside time limit (30 days) Total Pending Applications Gross Net Product (Crores) Per Capita Net Product Total Ration Card Holders Chitrakoot 145623 35650 98060 684 11229 11913 6477.23 56402 443449 Banda 210741 42474 160492 797 6978 7775 7083.05 36320 199569 Mahoba 50560 22670 17596 1270 9024 10294 8763.35 89035 421760 Hamirpur 92166 56639 27309 1054 7164 8218 6507.16 58109 633554 Jalaun 89609 51992 21778 1938 13901 15839 10293.76 56473 583545 Jhansi 126494 82794 31200 2408 10092 12500 15551.24 72827 798358 Lalitpur 113029 63548 26323 1151 22007 23158 7612.96 55083 237134 Total 828222 355767 382758 9302 80395 89697 62288.75 3317369 Average per district 118317.4 50823.86 54679.71 1328.857 11485 12813.86 8898.393 60607 473909.9 Source: UP Directorate of Economics and Statistics (for economic data); Food and Civil Supplies Department (for ration card data, accessed on 4 September 2020); RTI response (ration card applications)

Table 3: Central UP Ration Card Statistics and Economic Performance

District Total Applications Accepted applications Rejected Applications Pending applications within time limit (30 days) Pending applications outside time limit (30 days) Total Pending Applications Gross Net Product (Crores) Per Capita Net Product Total Ration Card Holders Kanpur Dehat 138099 67995 55169 1418 13517 14935 9992.79 51963 352372 Kanpur Nagar 399043 241537 71924 4329 81253 85582 39243.42 82378 199280 Fatehpur 338881 63955 253922 1743 19261 21004 13064.19 46574 334809 Unnav 250278 111400 105391 4904 28583 33487 17038.46 51135 584509 Khiri 431264 121447 258333 994 50490 51484 21974.19 48188 388536 RaiBareily 98583 41579 38463 1259 17282 18541 12213.68 34227 316428 Lucknow 304911 182753 79672 5211 37275 42486 47943.97 91901 311991 Sitapur 926675 189914 672153 1787 62821 64608 20644.46 40924 564195 Hardoi 426509 166995 230612 2717 26185 28902 17060.45 37745 219899 Total 3314243 1187575 1765639 24362 336667 361029 199175.6 3272019 Average per district 368249.2 131952.8 196182.1 2706.889 37407.44 40114.33 22130.62 53892.78 363557.7 Source: UP Directorate of Economics and Statistics (for economic data); Food and Civil Supplies Department (for ration card data, accessed on 4 September 2020); RTI response (ration card applications)

Table 4: Eastern UP Ration Card Statistics and Economic Performance

District Total Applications Accepted applications Rejected Applications Pending applications within time limit (30 days) Pending applications outside time limit (30 days) Total Pending Applications Gross Net Product (Crores) Per Capita Net Product Total Ration Card Holders Amethi 45239 3201 40265 312 1461 1773 8405.59 47791 714539 Ambedkar Nagar 345454 82294 245951 1507 15702 17209 8667.29 33117 664287 Ayodhya 461237 94886 346208 3745 16398 20143 11674.8 43292 399409 Barabanki 374051 77204 267252 1447 28148 29595 15845.34 43640 356374 Sultanpur 77255 9429 58214 978 8634 9612 11197.4 42920 334067 Azamgarh 550836 199447 303362 2416 45611 48027 16918.81 33823 643064 Baliya 227976 128000 66157 2733 31086 33819 10352.98 29441 795230 Mau 291107 82601 185468 1674 21364 23038 9152.81 37872 436367 Kushinagar 96070 2985 90872 292 1921 2213 13730.77 34363 306180 Gorakhpur 90124 25864 31326 5052 27882 32934 21888.68 45283 296090 Devariya 506337 130495 339976 1953 33913 35866 11180.53 33789 346098 Maharaj Ganj 65309 2317 60309 463 2220 2683 10602.76 35175 498254 Gonda 335538 77496 221410 3139 33493 36632 13616.57 35193 222125 Balrampur 121052 18650 93216 1240 7946 9186 6904.98 27996 781150 Bahraich 238891 32324 197880 1186 7501 8687 12722.93 29038 289100 Shravasti 135060 39778 87468 507 7307 7814 3546.51 33604 291100 Kaushambi 171058 42913 110708 700 16737 17437 6909.95 38434 798639 Pratapgarh 694516 203440 450013 1887 39176 41063 10087.14 28929 381160 Prayagraj 910340 345520 495097 4645 65078 69723 41853.98 63582 315716 Basti 125577 34505 74809 2145 14118 16263 11089.03 41248 715567 Sant Kabir Nagar 86603 10360 69983 1608 4652 6260 5013.67 26421 268593 Siddharth Nagar 144992 23308 104371 2431 14882 17313 8693.35 29943 769219 Mirzapur 34406 5160 16331 955 11960 12915 12313.96 45260 1047308 Sant Ravidas Nagar (Bhadoi) 86166 14919 54471 1474 15302 16776 7687.05 45059 557344 Sonbhadra 12053 490 10918 45 600 645 13385.96 62757 415864 Ghazipur 211868 48773 142142 2131 18822 20953 12529.08 31555 206482 Chandauli 57627 15043 31519 1205 9860 11065 7333.4 34307 460611 Jaunpur 337488 14914 298828 3194 20552 23746 15243.93 31682 903771 Varanasi 51191 3050 40476 1550 6115 7665 19996.85 50153 403315 Total 6885421 1769366 4535000 52614 528441 581055 358546.1 14617023 Average per District 237428.3 61012.62 156379.3 1814.276 18222.1 20036.38 12363.66 38471.28 504035.3 Source: UP Directorate of Economics and Statistics (for economic data); Food and Civil Supplies Department (for ration card data, accessed on 4 September 2020); RTI response (ration card applications)

Table 5: Western UP Ration Card Statistics and Economic Performance

District Total Applications Accepted applications Rejected Applications Pending applications within time limit (30 days) Pending applications outside time limit (30 days) Total Pending Applications Gross Net Product (Crores) Per Capita Net Product Total Ration Card Holders Aligarh 365112 172698 154595 4079 33740 37819 23305.32 56717 259229 Etah 148444 53213 77675 1820 15736 17556 10822.26 83490 431559 Kasganj 142641 45786 77086 1680 18089 19769 11323 72766 788018 Hathras 115316 53492 44547 790 16487 17277 10132.11 59725 204570 Agra 427559 133568 224309 4761 64921 69682 45605.77 92640 698931 Firozabad 305050 107810 165427 1218 30595 31813 14832.87 53401 592407 Mathura 99906 60360 29125 2530 7891 10421 16595.62 58251 335848 Mainpuri 204037 97310 79163 1548 26016 27564 8939.31 44149 364692 Etawah 233539 97894 119388 2677 13580 16257 9772.89 56657 618970 Auraiya 211271 61771 134130 1495 13875 15370 6759.41 45244 511195 Kannauj 263445 98035 145640 1081 18689 19770 12089.62 66506 593468 Farukkhabad 238963 116123 105713 1284 15843 17127 9659.6 46497 568433 Pilibhit 258909 57057 176907 1316 23629 24945 14143.05 62038 757539 Badayun 316384 103747 181072 3179 28386 31565 17590.36 43375 251553 Bareily 723247 166608 478728 3601 74310 77911 37186.71 74683 303296 Shajahanpur 509708 160376 314952 3849 30531 34380 17451.72 53272 847013 Ghaziabad 232295 124949 63293 3765 40288 44053 35386.02 81856 182287 Gautam Buddh Nagar 88869 52949 20630 1771 13519 15290 118055.8 595551 497649 Bulandshahar 117124 51632 43566 2359 19567 21926 28360.9 73520 310278 Baghpat 67678 43232 16832 1231 6383 7614 10429.3 76048 462169 Meerut 375324 221854 108086 5135 40249 45384 41694.88 113091 379781 Hapur 29999 12640 11307 826 5226 6052 11781.82 80574 495408 Amroha 234064 91400 119399 717 22548 23265 17935.57 87153 456104 Bijnaur 372465 130631 201629 2699 37506 40205 26204.39 65451 556702 Moradabad 353322 114219 202332 1212 35559 36771 21849.74 61705 501165 Rampur 86331 28225 31447 604 26055 26659 17952.19 69222 378520 Sambhal 124586 59841 36388 1543 26814 28357 10673.2 43427 584125 Muzzafarnagar 350158 140842 176315 2734 30267 33001 21530.03 69219 440017 Shamli 197124 63109 120719 1865 11431 13296 8864.83 64864 593340 Saharanpur 336903 95446 199800 3204 38453 41657 24115.35 63264 595851 Total 7529773 2816817 3860200 66573 786183 852756 661043.6 14560117 Average per District 250992.4 93893.9 128673.3 2219.1 26206.1 28425.2 22034.79 83811.87 485337.2 Source: UP Directorate of Economics and Statistics (for economic data); Food and Civil Supplies Department (for ration card data, accessed on 4 September 2020); RTI response (ration card applications)

Surprisingly, Bundelkhand, despite having the lowest average per district GDP, has received the lowest number of average applications for new ration cards per district. It should be noted that the region is widely perceived as underdeveloped and suffering from large scale hunger.

In fact, Bundelkhand is the only region with a strong negative correlation between the per capita income of districts and the number of applications, ie, the more is the per capita income the lesser is the number of applications received in the districts of the region.

Incidentally, Bundelkhand has had more per capita availability of food grains than the state average as observed between years 1997 and 2006 in the 2009 study on the region by AK Singh, A Joshi and Nomita P Kumar from the Giri Institute of Development Studies.

Central Uttar Pradesh which includes important administrative and business districts such as Lucknow and Kanpur, though with the lowest average number of ration card holders per district in the state, has received maximum average number of applications per district.

A large backlog of pending applications and the return of more than 30 lakh migrant workers is a worrying combination. Moreover, the pending applications also include those received before the current crisis. The introduction of new ration cards in the state in 2016 replacing the old ones had left many erstwhile ration card holders without one. These ration cards are also a prerequisite for availing benefits for many other schemes such as Ujjwala Gas Yojana (scheme).

While the lockdown has spelled disaster for returning migrant workers, those eligible for ration cards who were already living here and have been hit hard by the suspension of economic activity also urgently need them. With slow resumption of economic activity many of the applicants, especially those belonging to the unorganised sector require immediate relief in form of ration allocated under the NFSA.
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said Ruth Bader Ginsburgs Supreme Court seat should not be filled until after the election.

Biden was among the many Americans who grieved deeply on Friday over the loss of Ginsburg, the iconic Supreme Court justice who died at the age of 87 from complications of cancer.

She practiced the highest American ideals as a justice .... Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for all of us, Biden said, speaking at the airport in New Castle, Delaware. The former vice president said hed learned of Ginsburgs death while flying back to Delaware from a Minnesota campaign trip.

.@JoeBiden: "She practiced the highest American ideals as a Justice. Equality and justice under the law. Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for all of us."



On #SCOTUS process: "The voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider." pic.twitter.com/fg4czmmObE  CSPAN (@cspan) September 19, 2020

Biden  who, as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, presided over Ginsburgs confirmation hearing in 1993  lauded the justice as a fierce and unflinching civil rights advocate and a voice for freedom and opportunity for everyone.

She was not only a giant in the legal profession but a beloved figure, Biden said.

Joe Biden, then the vice president, greets Supreme Justice Bader Ginsburg on May 27, 2010, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. He called her "a beloved figure." (Alex Wong via Getty Images)

Ginsburg, whose death comes less than six weeks before Election Day, reportedly told her granddaughter just before she died that her most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

President Donald Trump is expected to put forth a Supreme Court nominee to fill Ginsburgs seat in the coming days, ABC News reported, citing multiple unnamed sources.

Story continues

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) said Friday that President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the Republican-majority Senate.

To block Trumps nominee, all Democrats in the Senate and at least four Republicans will need to vote in...

Continue reading on HuffPost
A man claims in a federal lawsuit Elizabeth cops entered his home about two years ago and broke his ribs while arresting him shortly after an unrelated police-involved shooting outside his apartment that authorities say is under review.

Jake Bassitt and his wife, Angela Tejada, filed suit this week against Elizabeth and Marquis Terry, the police officer they say initiated the arrest. Bassitt was charged with obstruction, the lawsuit says, but his case was dismissed and sealed.

Shortly after shooting an unarmed black man, Elizabeth cops barged into our clients home without a warrant, where a gang of out-of-control cops held an innocent man on the ground, and with his wife and children watching, brutally assaulted him and broke his ribs, said one of Bassitts attorneys, Joshua McMahon.

Elizabeth spokeswoman Kelly Martins did not respond to a request for comment. The lawsuit is suing under several claims, including excessive force and unlawful entry.

Several Elizabeth cops entered Bassitts apartment on Dec. 22, 2018, the suit said, the same night they responded to a domestic violence call on Court Street, near where Bassitt lived, and then shot Michael Bates. Police claimed Bates had a gun, but body camera footage shows he told police he was only holding a cellphone.

The Essex County Prosecutors Office was originally reviewing the shooting since one of the cops had a professional relationship with the Union County office. An Essex County Prosectors Office spokeswoman said this week it sent its findings to the state Attorney Generals Office and the incident is still under review there.

Bates' shooting occurred at a time when county prosecutors offices investigated police-involved shootings, but a state law now requires the Attorney Generals office to handle them. The state Attorney Generals office did not respond to a request for comment about the status of the investigation.

The Essex County Prosecutors Office told NJ Advance Media a complaint involving Bassitts arrest was never submitted to them.

The suit says Elizabeth police were removing bullet fragments from the frame of the first-floor door of Bassitts building around 3 a.m., shortly after Bates was shot. The building is owned by Bassitt and he lives on the second floor, the suit said.

A one-minute video was provided to NJ Advance Media of police arresting Bassitt.

It shows Bassitt opening the door of his apartment and walking onto the landing after asking the person who was filming if they were recording. The person recording mutters, Hes going to get arrested, before Bassitt folds his arms at the foot of the stairs and asks Terry, the police officer, How you doing, sir?

Terrys footsteps could be heard walking up the stairs as Bassitt moves back into his apartment.

I told you, right?" Terry says. Come outside again and obstruction."

Terry is seen grabbing Bassitts wrist as he pulls away into the apartment and the wife gets between them. Terry shouts for more officers to come here.

Bassitt, his wife and Terry are then seen on the floor inside the home and at least three more officers run upstairs into the apartment.

Bassit is represented by McMahon and the same attorney who originally represented Bates: Abraham Rubert-Schewel. Bates signaled his intent to sue in a tort claim, but he is no longer represented by Rubert-Schewel.

Police had separated two people when they responded to the domestic violence call on Dec. 22, 2018 and were talking to them when Bates walked up to the scene on the corner of Court and Third Streets. Rubert-Schewel said he was unsure if police were responding to a domestic violence call at Bassitts apartment since its a multi-family home with a bodega underneath.

Marquis has been an Elizabeth police officer since 2012. He had 14 uses of force from 2012 to 2016, according to NJ Advance Medias Force Report. That would be below the average amount of force used by other cops in his department during that time period.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Rebecca Panico may be reached at rpanico@njadvancemedia.com.
Designing for social change By Sashini Rodrigo Amilani Pereras collection Unbreakablehighlights not just her creativity but also her drive to empower victimised women View(s): View(s):

Fashion, like any form of art, has the power to influence society in many ways. It can instil or challenge opinions, express any concept or experience, and is bound only by the imagination of its creator. It can also be a vehicle for social change  and it is in this spirit that designer Amilani Perera embarked on her latest bold and empowering collection titled Unbreakable, in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund in Sri Lanka (UNFPA)  the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, and lead agency working on Sexual and Gender Based violence.

Her collection breaks new ground for the brand, as Amilani makes her first political statement through her designs. Recently, the brand has become a voice for women suffering from violence in silence, an issue Im deeply passionate about, Amilani tells us. Working with the UNFPA, her brand is helping to uplift and empower abused women in

Sri Lanka by involving survivors of violence in product development. The partnership goes beyond just the collection, as Amilani plans to engage with the Womens Development Centre in Kandy to provide mentoring programmes.

Women engage in the apparel industry in all aspects, from designing, producing, modelling and beyond, and it is important to ensure these women are treated equally in their chosen field of employment, a representative for the UNFPA tells us. Due to the potential of the fashion world to be a strong voice to those voiceless, the partnership between the UNFPA and Amilani is exactly the kind of direct progressive action that supports the creation of a responsible fashion market by Colombo Fashion Week (CFW).

The storyline behind the collection is how a survivor of violence can rise up and be empowered despite her dark times, since she is a fighter. Women are unbreakable, Amilani says.

Her passion for fashion and her determination to become a designer was always a part of her. She graduated in May 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Fashion & Textile Design from LASALLE College of the Arts in Singapore, which gave her valuable fashion design and cultural knowledge as well as the top spot in 2006 in a Singapore national competition by GAS Jeans and Catalogue Fashion Magazine.

Upon her return to Sri Lanka, Amilani began her career as a designer at MAS Holdings for amante, then as a design consultant for HANES at Arvind Life Style Brands in India. She also obtained her Masters of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales, UK. The industry experience and academic background I received before I launched my brand was a great stepping stone for my career, my confidence and to understand the know-how of the fashion business, she says.

Amilani took this wealth of experience and launched her own ready-to-wear brand Amilani Perera  focusing on delivering exotic luxury fashion. Since its inception in 2013, the label has been consecutively showcasing at CFW while also branching out internationally.

Amilani was the only Sri Lankan brand to be featured at the Asian Designer Week 2016 in New Delhi, India, while also showcasing their Spring Summer 17 Collection at the USA  Sri Lanka Fashion Week in New York. The brand was also selected as the official designer for the Airport & Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka.

At the heart of Amilanis many achievements in the industry is her passion for true sustainability and societal empowerment. Even before this years CFW theme of Responsibility in Fashion, she had incorporated waste materials into her fashion accessory line for the Young Creative Entrepreneur Awards in 2012 (of which she was a finalist) and launched her signature metal clutch bag line which was designed and developed through waste metals at the Fashion and Apparel Awards in 2013.

She has also raised awareness on elephant conservation in Sri Lanka using vegan leather and inspiration from the Gajaga vannama for her collection at the 2016 Asian Designer Week. Its our responsibility as human beings to be sustainable. she explains.

Amilani says that when she was designing this years collection, it was important to her that it was in line with international standards in terms of addressing this sensitive topic. I wanted it to have that credibility and respect, as this is an issue that we must speak about louder, she says, which led to her collaboration with the UNFPA.

Unbreakable is a display of intense emotions brought to life through a meaningful colour palette, with hand paintings by Amilani transformed into prints on lush dyed silk ombres. The deep burgundy represents fear and abuse, contrasted by the mint greens and shades of blush representing the healing process, with the pieces put together by survivors of violence.

The best way for me to express myself is through my designs, Amilani says. It is my outlet, and I know that it can help to make social change for the better, on behalf of the lives of all women who suffer in silence, she says.

She acknowledges that none of this would have been possible if not for the support and inspiration from the powerhouse women at UNFPA and is grateful to the team, to her showstopper on the day of the launch and bold advocate for this issue Mrs. World 2020 Caroline Jurie, and to Colombo Fashion Week for giving her the platform to make it happen.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 15:17 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45eaad1 4 City prison,prison-break,Chinese-nationals,prison-escape,Tangerang,Law-and-Human-Rights-Ministry,Banten,correctional-facility,penitentiary,drug-convict,death-row-inmate,death-row,Drugs-trafficking Free

A Chinese national on death row who was detained at the Tangerang penitentiary in Banten has reportedly escaped from the facility through a self-dug tunnel.

Tangerang prison warden Jumadi confirmed the jailbreak, explaining that the Chinese national, Cai Ji Fan, left the penitentiary on Monday at around 2:30 a.m. through a sewer connected to the tunnel he had dug.

We have conducted a search since the day he escaped. We believe he dug a tunnel [on the prison grounds] that goes through one of the prison walls and escaped, he told tempo.co on Friday.

Read also: COVID-19: Riot breaks out in North Sulawesi prison amid virus fears

The convict, who also goes by the name Cai Changpan, was declared guilty of drug trafficking and sentenced to death in 2017. He had been transferred to the penitentiary from the Pemuda prison in Tangerang.

The warden said the Law and Human Rights Ministrys Corrections Directorate General had taken over the case and opened an investigation.

The Corrections Directorate General, Inspectorate General and the ministrys regional office in Banten are investigating the case, directorate general spokesperson Rika Aprianti said. (mfp)
If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this





Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) backtracked on its coronavirus testing guidelines Friday saying that asymptomatic people who were in contact with someone with the virus should get tested.

Due to the significance of asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic transmission, this guidance further reinforces the need to test asymptomatic persons, including close contacts of a person with documented SARS-CoV-2 infection, a clarification on the CDC website states.

The update comes after the CDC quietly updated its coronavirus guidelines at the end of August saying that anyone within 6-feet of a person with a COVID-19 infection for at least 15 minutes does not necessarily need a test unless that person is a vulnerable individual or a health official, or care provider recommends a test.

The August decision was highly criticized in the health care community, especially after several studies demonstrated that 44% of the coronaviruss spread in China could be traced to people who did not initially exhibit any symptoms and that asymptomatic carriers of the coronavirus held as much of the virus as symptomatic carriers.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, who was undergoing surgery when the CDC updated its guidelines in August, highlighted the importance of testing asymptomatic people during an interview with told Chris Hayes, MSNBC reported.

I can tell you right now that we should be testing more and we should be testing asymptomatic people, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said. Take that to the bank and trust me on it.
A DART rocket carrying a Royal Australian Air Force payload was launched from Koonibba Rocket Range in South Australia on Sept. 19 2020. (Sean Jorgensen-Day, DEWC Systems Engineer)

DART Rocket Launch a Giant Leap for Australias Space Security

The first commercial rocket was launched from Australia to the edge of space on Saturday carrying a payload that will aid in the countrys space and defence efforts.

The DART rocket payload deployed a prototype radio frequency receiver unit designed for the Royal Australian Air Force (Air Force) at 100 kilometres above the Earths surface.

The sensors will provide information from the upper atmosphere to improve Australian defence forces situational awareness in battlefields and in difficult and hard to reach areas of operation.

The rocket was launched from the new commercial Southern Launch Koonibba Rocket Range in South Australia is a collaboration between the Air Force and Australian industry partners Southern Launch and DEWC Systems.

RAAF Group Captain Tobyn Bearman said the Air Force was very interested in seeing the next step of where the new sensors could take Defence.

These are next generation sensors that were exploring, Capt. Bearman said.

Bearman said it was important to build up and support Australias sovereign defence capabilities, such as the work being done by Southern Launch and DEWC Systems. Ive said to the men and women that I work with that theres never been a more exciting time to be in Defence, he said.

Ian Spencer, DEWC Systems chief executive officer, told the ABC in August that the launch will help build the capacity to make Australias defence force self-reliant.

(L-R) CEO DEWC Systems Ian Spencer, Royal Australian Air Force Director Integration and Innovation, Group Captain Tobyn Bearman and Chief Executive Officer Southern Launch Lloyd Damp at the Southern Launch Koonibba Rocket Range near Ceduna, South Australia on Sept 19, 2020. (Sean Jorgensen-Day, DEWC Systems Engineer)

Linda Reynolds, Australias federal defence minister, said space was an increasingly important domain.

The payload, carried on a DART rocket, provides a stepping stone for Air Force to explore how advanced rapidly deployable networked sensors can be employed to provide information across Defence networks, Reynolds said in a media release on Sept. 19.

The prototype deployed by the rocket was developed by South Australian electronic warfare contractor DEWC Systems and sponsored by the Air Forces Plan Jericho.

The payloadwhich is about the size of a whiteboard markerwill reportedly reach the edge of space and fall back down to Earth having deployed a parachute.

Air Force personnel view a video presentation during the Plan Jericho EDGY AF event for Air Force Innovators at RAAF Base Richmond. (Royal Australian Air Force)

The rocket launch forms part of Plan Jerichos advanced sensing program to detect and track challenging targets.

Plan Jericho is an Air Force effort to use augmented intelligenceincluding linking humans with machinesto counter technologically sophisticated and rapidly morphing threats that require fast responses.

Melissa Price, the minister for defence industry, said the DART rocket launch was a partnership between the government and industry.

The rocket is unlike any rocket ever launched in Australia, and is part of what is known as New Space technologiessmall rockets carrying reduced sized satellites using commercially available technologies, she said.

At just 3.4 metres long and weighing 34 kilograms (about 75 pounds) the DART rocket is a fraction of the size of rockets launched by NASA and SpaceX.

The Australian government is investing $7 billion to improve space capabilities over the next 10 years as part of the 2020 Defence Strategic Update and Force Structure Plan.

The DART rocket launch comes days after U.S. Secretary of Defence Mark Esper said China and Russia have introduced weapons to space, including killer satellites.

U.S. President Donald Trump signed a $738 billion defence bill in December last year that authorised the creation of a Space Force as a sixth branch of the U.S. military.

Amid grave threats to our national security, American superiority in space is absolutely vital, Trump said at the time.

In July, Australias Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price said: Space is a truly global endeavour, and Australia is now looking to make a strong contribution to space safety and security using home-grown technologies and systems.

Supporting cutting-edge technology development will allow Defence to participate more actively in space activities and do more to monitor and protect our vital space systems from threats.

Australia plans to triple the size of its space sector to $12 billion and create an extra 20,000 jobs by 2030.
Jacob Rees-Mogg is facing calls to apologise after accused people complaining about the unavailability of coronavirus tests of carping.

The Commons leader was put on the spot on testing amid widespread anger over people being turned down for tests or told to travel hundreds of miles under the NHS Test and Trace system.

But he insisted that people should instead celebrate the UKs success in increasing numbers of tests to almost 250,000 a day.

Labour demanded an immediate apology, accusing the cabinet minister of trying to shift blame for the testing shambles.

Prime minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday that the system was experiencing huge problems because of a colossal spike in people with symptoms seeking tests.

Mr Rees-Mogg himself was forced to self-isolate last week while awaiting the outcome of a test on one of his six children, but was able to return to Parliament after the result was negative.

Speaking in the Commons, Labours shadow leader Valerie Vaz questioned why the head of the test and trace programme, Dido Harding, had not spoken in public since August.

Ms Vaz said: The number of tests returned within 24 hours has fallen from 68 per cent to 8 per cent  it seems to be all talk, talk and no test, test.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 18 January 2022 Surfers enter the sea as the sun rises over Tynemouth on the North East coast PA UK news in pictures 17 January 2022 Bonhams Danny McIlwraith holds a Nigerian polycrome carved wood mask during a photocall for the sale of the Jim Lennon Collection at Bonhams in Edinburgh PA UK news in pictures 16 January 2022 The moon rises above the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth, Hampshire PA UK news in pictures 15 January 2022 Demonstrators outside Downing Street during a Kill The Bill protest against The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill in London PA UK news in pictures 14 January 2022 Ecologist Emma Smart (left) and retired GP Dr Diana Warner outside HMP Bronzefield, in Surrey, following their release from the prison where Emma undertook a 26-day hunger strike during her incarceration. Ms Smart was sentenced in November, along with other members of Insulate Britain, to serve four months for breaking a High Court injunction by taking part in a blockade at junction 25 of the M25 motorway during the morning rush hour on 8 October last year PA UK news in pictures 13 January 2022 A TV presenter holds a copy of a newspaper outside 10 Downing Streetafter the Prime Minister apologised for attending a gathering of colleagues in the Number Ten garden in May 2020, while the UK was in strict lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic Getty UK news in pictures 12 January 2022 Fitness guru Derrick Evans after receiving an MBE during an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 11 January 2022 A couple walk underneath an umbrella during wet weather on Westminster Bridge in central London PA UK news in pictures 10 January 2022 A jogger passes the Covid Memorial Wall in London AP UK news in pictures 9 January 2021 The sun rises over horses at Seaton Sluice in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 8 January 2022 Riders compete during the Veterans Men's race at the UK Cyclo-Cross National Championships 2022 in Ardingly, south of London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 7 January 2022 A dog looks out of a car window at the wintry conditions in Killeshin, Co. Laois PA UK news in pictures 6 January 2022 People walk through frost and mist alongside a frozen lake during sunrise in Bushy Park, London REUTERS UK news in pictures 5 January 2022 A skier jumps on the slopes at Allenheads in the Pennines to the north of Weardale in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 4 January 2022 Freshly-fallen snow covers houses in Corbridge, near Hexham in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 3 January 2022 Dean Morrison, 13, receives his Covid-19 vaccine from student nurse Anthony McLaughlin during a vaccination clinic at the Glasgow Central Mosque PA UK news in pictures 2 January 2022 Konastantinos Tsimikas of Liverpool with Chelseas Mason Mount during the Premier League match at Stamfrod Bridge Liverpool FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 January 2022 New Years Eve Lasers, drones and fireworks illuminate the sky in front of the Royal Naval College in Greenwich shortly after midnight in London EPA UK news in pictures 31 December 2021 Competitors in fancy dress run across the Pennine tops near Haworth, West Yorkshire, in the annual Auld Lang Syne Fell race which attracts hundreds of runners every year PA UK news in pictures 30 December 2021 Sunrise at Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 29 December 2021 The Very Revd Dr Robert Willis, Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, looks at Becket, a six month old red-billed chough as he visits Wildwood Wildlife Park in Kent on the anniversary of the murder of Thomas Becket PA UK news in pictures 28 December 2021 Troops of the Household Cavalry are seen reflected in a puddle during the changing of the Queens Life Guard, on Horse Guards Parade, in central London PA UK news in pictures 27 December 2021 A pedestrian walks past a winter sale sign outside a John Lewis store on Oxford street in London Getty UK news in pictures 26 December 2021 Riders take their bikes through the snow near Castleside, County Durham PA UK news in pictures 25 December 2021 Patrick Corkery wears a santa hat and beard as waves crash over him at Forty Foot near Dublin during a Christmas Day dip PA UK news in pictures 24 December 2021 People stand inside Kings Cross Station on Christmas Eve in London Reuters UK news in pictures 23 December 2021 Christmas shoppers fill the car park at Fosse Shopping Park in Leicester PA UK news in pictures 22 December 2021 The sun rises behind the stones as people gather for the winter solstice at Stonehenge. Getty UK news in pictures 21 December 2021 People take part in a winter solstice swim at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh to mark the solstice and to witness the dawn after the longest night of the year PA UK news in pictures 20 December 2021 An auction employee displays poultry to buyers and sellers attending the Christmas Poultry Sale at York Auction Centre in Murton PA UK news in pictures 19 December 2021 Joao Moutinho of Wolverhampton Wanderers looks on during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Chelsea at Molineux Getty Images UK news in pictures 18 December 2021 Freight lorries queuing at the port of Dover in Kent PA UK news in pictures 17 December 2021 Newly elected Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan, bursts 'Boris' bubble' held by colleague Tim Farron, as she celebrates following her victory in the North Shropshire by-election PA UK news in pictures 16 December 2021 Brussels sprouts are harvested by workers as they prepare for the busy Christmas period near Boston in Lincolnshire PA UK news in pictures 15 December 2021 Lewis Hamilton is made a Knight Bachelor by the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 14 December 2021 The Royal Liver Buildings surrounded by early morning fog in Liverpool PA UK news in pictures 13 December 2021 People queue outside a walk-in Covid-19 vaccination centre at St Thomas's Hospital in Westminster Getty Images UK news in pictures 12 December 2021 People take part in the Big Leeds Santa Dash in Roundhay Park, Leeds PA UK news in pictures 11 December 2021 People arrive at a Covid-19 vaccination centre at Elland Road in Leeds, PA UK news in pictures 10 December 2021 Stella Moris speaks to the media after the US Government won its High Court bid to overturn a judges decision not to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange PA UK news in pictures 9 December 2021 Camels are lead around Salisbury Cathedral during a rehearsal for the Christmas Eve Service PA UK news in pictures 8 December 2021 Margaret Keenan and Nurse May Parsons, a year after Margaret was the first person in the UK to receive the Pfizer vaccine PA UK news in pictures 7 December 2021 Snowfall in Leadhills, South Lanarkshire as Storm Barra hits the UK with disruptive winds, heavy rain and snow PA UK news in pictures 6 December 2021 A person tries to avoid sea spray on New Brighton promenade in Wallasey as the UK readies for the arrival of Storm Barra Getty UK news in pictures 5 December 2021 People release balloons during a tribute to six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes outside Emma Tustin's former address in Solihull, West Midlands, where he was murdered by his stepmother PA UK news in pictures 4 December 2021 People walk through a Christmas market in Trafalgar Square Reuters UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 A pedestrian carries a dog as they dodge shoppers on Oxford Street in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 2 December 2021 Duchess of Cambridge inspects a Faberge egg at the Victoria and Albert Museum Getty UK news in pictures 1 December 2021 Meerkats at London Zoo with an advent calendar PA UK news in pictures 30 November 2021 Workers put the finishing touches to the Trafalgar Square Christmas Tree ahead of the lighting ceremony later in the week PA

Mr Rees-Mogg replied: I think one has to be reasonable about this. I wasnt here last week because I was awaiting a test and thats quite right, that people who have family members who have symptoms must self-isolate.

The leader of the opposition (Sir Keir Starmer) also did the right thing in self-isolating until the test result came back.

We all have an obligation to try and stop the dangerous disease spreading, but the issue of testing is one where we have gone from a disease that nobody knew about a few months ago to one where nearly a quarter of a million people a day can be tested, and the prime minister is expecting that to go up to half a million people a day by the end of October.

Instead of this endless carping, saying it is difficult to get them, we should actually celebrate the phenomenal success of the British nation in getting up to a quarter of a million tests of a disease that nobody knew about until earlier in the year.

Labours shadow public health minister Alex Norris branded Mr Rees-Mogg out of touch.

For weeks, people across the country have been struggling to get coronavirus tests," said Mr Norris. "But rather than fixing problems, the government have instead resorted to a blizzard of blame shifting and excuses.

Now, out-of-touch ministers have got a new message to those who cant get tests: Stop complaining and praise us.

Jacob Rees-Mogg should immediately apologise. Whining about the public not being grateful enough wont sort anything - only his government can fix the testing shambles they are presiding over."
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Halloween, like most events in 2020, will be celebrated differently in this unprecedented year.

In light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, families will need to take extra safety precautions if they plan to go trick-or-treating. A newly released map from the CDC may help prospective trick-or-treaters to gauge the COVID-19 risk level within their counties.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced on Sept. 15 that he would not ban trick-or-treaters from going door-to-door this Halloween and that the state would release guidance on how to do so safely.

"I'll give you my advice and guidance and then you will make a decision about what you do that night," Cuomo said.

While New York's guidance has not yet been released, the interactive map that the CDC has on its website is meant to help families figure out the safest way to celebrate Halloween in their communities.

The CDC lists four color-coded risk levels, ranging from red which is considered the riskiest, to green being the least amount of risk. There are spooky activities, recommended by the CDC, that correspond with each color below.
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was celebrated repeatedly in Pennsylvania in recent years.

With her death Friday at age 87 due to complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer, Ginsburg was hailed for her first-rate intellect, her legacy in law and justice, and undeniably, her role as an inspiration to generations of American women.

On Thursday, the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia awarded Ginsburg the Liberty Medal, honoring her efforts to advance liberty and equality for all. A video honoring the justice premiered Thursday.

U.S. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, a Democrat representing the Philadelphia suburbs, mourned Ginsburgs passing.

My heart is broken," she wrote on Twitter Friday night. "Justice Ginsburg carried the torch for justice and equality, from her law school classrooms to our highest court. Her light shines so long as we continue her work and the relentless pursuit of justice. May we hold her memory with us always.

U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, a Democrat representing parts of Berks and Chester counties, called Ginsburg a remarkable trailblazer not simply for American women but for all of humanity. What a remarkable life. May we all learn and lead from and by her example.

With Ginsburgs death, speculation rose about the possibility President Donald Trump will submit a nominee to fill the vacancy on the court just weeks before the election.

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey Jr., D-Pa., said the Senate should not vote on a nominee until after the election. Earlier Friday night, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the Senate will vote when Trump comes forward with a nominee. Casey called on McConnell to follow the precedent set in 2016, when the Senate refused to vote on President Barack Obamas Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland.

Casey praised Ginsburg for her contributions to the court and her courage in battling cancer.

Justice Ginsburg was a pioneer for gender equality, a champion for human rights and a fierce defender of workers on an increasingly corporate Supreme Court, Casey said. Justice Ginsburg served our Nation honorably and with distinction for four decades. Her heroic battles with cancer inspired countless Americans.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro called her a brave, brilliant lawyer.

She was a pioneer who fought with all her might, every day, Shapiro wrote on Twitter. Tonight, its time for all of us to pause and thank her for her service to our country. May her memory be a blessing.

Earlier this year, Ginsburg heard arguments on a key case involving Pennsylvania and the Affordable Care Act, even while she was in a hospital bed, as the Tribune-Review reported.

In May, the state attorney generals office challenged President Trumps administration before the Supreme Court, arguing a rule allowing employers to opt out of providing birth control coverage violates federal law.

In July, the justices ruled, 7-2, in favor of the Trump administration. Ginsburg wrote a dissenting opinion, arguing that it would make it more difficult for women to obtain contraception.

In accommodating claims of religious freedom, this Court has taken a balanced approach, one that does not allow the religious beliefs of some to overwhelm the rights and interests of others who do not share those beliefs. Today, for the first time, the Court casts totally aside countervailing rights and interests in its zeal to secure religious rights to the nth degree," Ginsburg wrote.

FILE - In this June 14, 1993, file photo, President Bill Clinton poses with his nominee for the Supreme Court Ruth Bader Ginsburg during a news conference in Washington. (AP Photo/Doug Mills)AP

Gov. Tom Wolf and his wife, Frances, reflected on Ginsburgs contributions to the nation.

Justice Ginsburg was a truly remarkable figure in American history, as both a tireless defender of the Constitution, and as a pioneer for gender equality, they said in a statement. "Justice Ginsburgs historic opinions from the bench broke down barriers for women and protected the vulnerable.

Her contributions to our country cannot be overstated. Justice Ginsburgs life and career have made America a more fair and equitable place. She was a tireless pioneer and made monumental and lasting contributions on issues such as gender equality, a womans right to choose, voting rights, immigration, health care and affirmative action. Justice Ginsburg never shied away from standing out by standing up for civil rights and equal protections.

Last December, Ginsburg appeared at the National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia, where she was inducted into the institutions hall of fame.

She received multiple standing ovations, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

In brief remarks, she said the pursuit of justice is an integral component of the Jewish tradition, The Inquirer reported. During her term on the nations highest court, she said, I hope ... I will have the strength and the courage to remain steadfast in the service of that demand.

The museum also hosted the traveling exhibit, Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, based on the book.

Shanna Knizhnik, then a law student, initially honored Ginsburg by starting the Notorious RBG Tumblr. It melded images and words of Ginsburg and rapper The Notorious B.I.G. The blog eventually led to a book Knizhnik co-wrote with Irin Carmon, and subsequently, the exhibition.

We want everyone to be inspired by Justice Ginsburgs work and to be able to feel that they can contribute to making our society a more just and equal place, Knizhnik told PennLive in 2019.

Republican lawmakers joined Democrats in saluting the Supreme Court justice. U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker, a Lancaster County Republican, offered condolences.

Her life of service and deep commitment to our country have left an indelible mark on the Supreme Court and our nation, Smucker wrote on Twitter.

State Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman, R-Centre, praised Ginsburgs legacy as a role model for young women, including his daughter.

She was a pioneer for equal rights, a legal giant and a force to be reckoned with," Corman said. "Her voice will be missed but her influence will live on.

Ginsburg enjoyed a celebrated friendship with fellow U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, even though they held vastly different judicial and political philosophies.

From left to right, U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, on stage during a Women's History Month reception at Statuary Hall on Capitol Hill, hosted by Democratic Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Wednesday, March 18, 2015, in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, file)AP

Allegheny College in western Pennsylvania honored Ginsburg and Scalia with the institutions Prize for Civility in Public Life in 2017. Former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge, the first U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, helped present the award to Ginsburg and members of Scalias family. (Scalia died in 2016.)

At the award ceremony in Washington, Ridge said their deep friendship was never, not for a single moment, ever imperiled because of an intellectual disagreement. They would not allow it.

Justice Ginsburg and Justice Scalia never wavered in their philosophical beliefs, respected each others differences, and built a bridge of personal and professional civility that is as seminal to their powerful judicial legacies as is the strength of their legal opinions," Ridge said.

Read more: Ginsburgs death gives Trump chance to add Justice to Supreme Court
Philadelphia police have identified an East Mount Airy man as a suspect in what they are calling the attempted murder of three undercover police officers Friday night.

An arrest warrant has been issued for Jeffione Thomas, 28, whose last known address was on the 7800 block of Fayette Street, police said Saturday. He is wanted on charges of attempted murder, violation of the Uniform Firearms Act, and related offenses in connection with an ambush of an unmarked police vehicle.

According to the police account, Thomas is believed to be the person who pedaled up beside the officers' vehicle on a bicycle shortly after 8 p.m. on the 1400 block of Sharpnack Street in the citys Cedarbrook section, pulled out a gun and started firing.

Sgt. Eric Gripp, a police spokesperson, said in an email Saturday that the officers had heard gunshots prior to seeing the man on the bicycle.

As they are driving alongside him, hes riding slow, and because of the officers hearing the gunshots shortly before, they roll down the window to ask if hes ok, Gripp said. The male cursed at the officers ... and pulled the gun from his waistband and began firing.

The vehicle was struck several times by gunfire and rolled up on a sidewalk and into a fence just past Fayette Street. The officers got out of the vehicle and two returned fire, police said.

A second male on Sharpnack Street then began shooting toward the officers. Both gunmen then fled in an unknown direction, police said. The suspected identity of the second shooter has not been released.

Police said a bullet pierced the drivers seat of the police vehicle but was stopped by the officers ballistic vest. He was taken to Einstein Medical Center in stable condition.

An officer in the backseat sustained cuts from flying fragments of either bullets or glass to her left leg. She was also in stable condition at Einstein, police said.

The third officer, who was in the front passenger seat, was uninjured.

Late Saturday afternoon, the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5 announced a $5,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest of the shooters. Shortly after, it doubled it to $10,000.

Its outrageous and disgusting when two thugs think its OK to open fire on three undercover narcotics officers, said FOP president John McNesby in a statement. Our officers were ambushed for simply doing their jobs, working to get drugs and guns off our streets.

Staff writer Robert Moran contributed to this article.
Feds Crack Down on Fraud Scheme That Allegedly Bribed Amazon Employees to Gain Better Sales

The Justice Department announced that six people have been indicted by a grand jury with conspiring to pay more than $100,000 in bribes to Amazon employees and contracts in order to gain an unfair competitive advantage on the giant online marketplace.

Federal prosecutors alleged that since at least 2017, the individuals have used bribery and fraud to benefit third-party sellers by serving as consultants to these sellers and sometimes making their own sales through their own third-party accounts, according to a statement on Sept. 18.

The indictment alleges that the individuals worked with Amazon employees and contractors to coordinate a complex scheme in which the individuals paid bribes in exchange for the employees and contractors to, in some cases, reinstate suspended accounts and product listings that were flagged as unsafe or had customer-safety complaints.

In other cases, the employees and contractors facilitated attacks against competitor third-party accounts by sharing competitive intelligence such as information about revenues and customers to the individuals, the indictment alleges. They allegedly would also use their inside access to suspend competitors third-party accounts and provide the individuals with information about Amazons internal algorithms, which would allow the individuals to flood the competitors listings with negative product reviews.

The employees and contractors also allegedly shared Amazons confidential information with the individuals and helped the individuals gain access to benefits that circumvented Amazons own rules, such as increasing the storage limits in Amazons warehouses for third-party accounts owned by the individuals.

As the world moves increasingly to online commerce, we must ensure that the marketplace is not corrupted with unfair advantages obtained by bribes and kickbacks, U.S. Attorney Brian Moran said in a statement. The ultimate victim from this criminal conduct is the buying public who get inferior or even dangerous goods that should have been removed from the marketplace. I commend the investigators and cybersecurity experts who have worked to identify and indict those engaged in these illegal schemes.

The six individuals charged are Ephraim Rosenberg, 45, from Brooklyn, New York; Joseph Nilsen, 31, and Kristen Leccese, 32, both from New York; Hadis Nuhanovic, 30, of Acworth, Georgia; Rohit Kadimisetty, 27, of Northridge, California; and Nishad Kunju, 31, of Hyderabad, India.

Theyve been charged with conspiracy to use a communication facility to commit commercial bribery, conspiracy to access a protected computer without authorization, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and wire fraud.

According to the prosecutors, conspiracy to use a communication facility in furtherance of commercial bribery and to gain unauthorized access to a protected computer is punishable by up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud are punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

They are scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 15.
The fight against trade fraud became even tougher after the US-China trade war broke out in 2018, according to Director of the Post-Customs Clearance Inspection Department Nguyen Tien Loc.

The US imposition of high taxes on imports from China prompted enterprises to counterfeit Vietnamese origin to avoid high taxes.

Vietnam is a big wooden furniture exporter

This put Vietnam in danger: if the country cannot control product origin fraud, it could face punishment by the US. Thus, preventing and stopping fraud is an important task for customs agencies.

Loc said from 2019 to early 2020, his department handled 76 fraud causes.

The agency discovered that many enterprises imported goods which were materials for production, though they did not have production lines in Vietnam, but did only simple assembling operations.

In some cases, enterprises exported products before they set up assembling lines and were found committing fraud related to locally made content which determined the origin products.

The Post-Customs Clearance Inspection Department, which joined forces with the Anti-Smuggling and Investigation Department, discovered an enterprise that did not have the function of issuing Certificate of Origin (C/O) but was still issuing C/Os to 33 businesses, with goods value of up to more than VND600 billion.

The customs office is working with the police to investigate the case.

The US imposition of high taxes on imports from China prompted enterprises to counterfeit Vietnamese origin to avoid high taxes.

The customs agency together with the police are continuing to look for problems in the 33 enterprises.

The verification of the C/Os issued by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) and VCCI was also done carefully by customs agencies.

According to the General Director of the General Department of Customs (GDC), in many cases, customs agencies showed that the products could not meet the requirements to be recognized as having Vietnamese origin.

An enterprise which exported plywood declared that it had only bought some materials from China, while 70 percent of materials were sourced from Vietnam.

The enterprise showed the documents with confirmation by the director of the afforestation yards and the communes chair that the materials were bought from the yard.

However, customs agencies discovered that many kinds of materials were not from Vietnam.

Finally, the communes chair admitted that the local household did not have timber to sell to the enterprise. The director of the yard also admitted his mistake.

So, we proposed revoking 500 C/Os that were mistakenly granted, he said.

Fighting smuggling

According to Nghiem Xuan Tho from the Anti-smuggling and Investigation Department, in late 2017 and early 2018, China stopped importing some types of scrap.

As foreign exporters could not sell scrap to China, they targeted Vietnam as the new destination.

After the Hai Phong Customs Agency discovered a Ben Tre-based enterprise making 20 customs declarations for imports, and some of them violating the regulations, it reported the case to the Anti-smuggling Investigation Department.

The department set to investigate the case. But the director of the enterprise passed away, which caused problems to the investigation.

After checking the documents provided by the Hai Phong Customs Agency, the investigators found a new clue from a subject in Vinh Phuc province.

When they visited Vinh Phuc, the family members of the subject said he had left the home a long time ago and lived in a southern province.

Thanks to the telephone number given by the family members, the officers checked the information related to the subject, including cash flow through his account.

Finally, they discovered that the subject had relations to the company whose director had just passed away.

The case was then transferred to the Investigation Agency under the Ministry of Public Security.

According to Can, in 2015-2019, customs agencies discovered 84,362 smuggling cases. The total amount of money they seized from the violators and collected for the state budget was VND1.561 trillion.

Luong Bang

Origin fraud threatens local exporters After a local silk importer was recently found to be disguising Chinese products as Vietnamese to sell them in India, experts have warned of the risks of losing out on exports and preferential tariffs due to intellectual property (IP) violations.
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg participates in a discussion hosted by the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington on Sept. 12, 2019. (Sarah Silbiger/Reuters)

Republicans and Democrats Battle Over Supreme Court Nomination Following Death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Democrats and Republicans have begun a fierce battle over the U.S. Supreme Court vacancy following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Ginsburg, an iconic liberal justice on Americas highest court, died due to complications from pancreatic cancer on Friday, the Supreme Court said in a statement.

She dictated a statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera while on her deathbed: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed, Ginsburg told Spera, reported NPR.

Following Ginsburgs death, Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden said whichever candidate wins the November election should select her replacement.

The voters should pick a president, and that president should select a successor to Justice Ginsburg, the former vice president said in a statement.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said the vacancy left by Ginsburg should not be filled until we have a new president, a view held by other top Senate Democrats.

Former President Barack Obama shared the same view, pointing to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) blocking his nominee, Merrick Garland, in 2016.

Garland was nominated to replace Justice Antonin Scalia after he died.

Republicans said that they wouldnt consider Obamas nominee because they felt the vacancy should be filled by whomever won the 2016 election.

McConnell said Friday the situation was different then because the Senate and the presidency were held by different parties. Republicans currently control both.

In the last midterm election before Justice Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year, he wrote in a statement right after Ginsburgs death.

President [Donald] Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, he said.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) speaks to reporters after the Senate Republican luncheon on Capitol Hill in Washington on Sept. 9, 2020. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) didnt say when the vacancy should be filled. In a statement, she said Ginsbergs successor should uphold her commitment to equality, opportunity, and justice for all to honor the late justices legacy.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged Senate Democrats to use every possible procedural obstacle to stop the GOPs efforts to replace Ginsburg.

The Democrats who are in the Senate will have to use every single possible maneuver that is available to them to make it clear that they are not going to permit Mitch McConnell to enact the greatest travesty, a monument to hypocrisy that would arise from him attempting to fill this position, she said during an interview with MSNBCs The Rachel Maddow Show.

Some Republicans rallied behind McConnell to push filling the Supreme Court vacancy before the Election Day.

This U.S. Senate should vote on President Trumps next nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, Sen. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) wrote in a statement.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) warned that there will be a constitutional crisis if Republicans fail to do this.

We cannot have Election Day come and go with a four-four court, Cruz said during an interview with Fox Newss Sean Hannity. A four-four court that is equally divided cannot decide anything. And I think we risk a constitutional crisis if we do not have a nine-justice Supreme Court, particularly when there is such a risk of a contested election.

Trump hailed Ruth Bader Ginsburg as a brilliant mind in a statement Friday evening, praising her for demonstrating that one can disagree without being disagreeable toward ones colleagues of different points of view.

The president also ordered flags to be flown at half-staff at the White House and all public buildings and grounds to honor the late justice.

He didnt mention filling the vacancy in his statement.

The views of some key Republican players in this battle are still unclear.

Several top Republicans and some swing votes in the Senate, including Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Mitt Romney (R-Utah), Susan Collins (R-Maine), and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), havent said whether they support replacing Ginsburg before the election.
Over time, the rats also acquire the ability to dig lizards out of their hiding places amid rocks and logs, and eat them. They develop an improved agility at tree climbing, and eat eggs from birds nests up there, too. Now you might as well call the place Rat Island. For the rats, this is a tale of evolutionary success.

If the remote island of habitat is a human being newly colonized by a virus from a nonhuman animal, we call that virus a zoonosis. The resulting infection is a zoonotic disease. More than 60 percent of human infectious diseases, including Covid-19, fall into this category of zoonoses that have succeeded. Some zoonotic diseases are caused by bacteria (such as the bacillus responsible for bubonic plague) or other kinds of pathogen, but most are viral.

Viruses have no malice against us. They have no purposes, no schemes. They follow the same simple Darwinian imperatives as do rats or any other creature driven by a genome: to extend themselves as much as possible in abundance, in geographical space and in time. Their primal instinct is to do just what God commanded to his newly created humans in Genesis 1:28: Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it.

For an obscure virus, abiding within its reservoir host  a bat or a monkey in some remote region of Asia or Africa, or maybe a mouse in the American Southwest  spilling over into humans offers the opportunity to comply. Not every successful virus will subdue the planet, but some go a fair way toward subduing at least humans.

This is how the AIDS pandemic happened. A chimpanzee virus now known as SIVcpz passed from a single chimp into a single human, possibly by blood contact during mortal combat, and took hold in the human. Molecular evidence developed by two teams of scientists, one led by Dr. Beatrice H. Hahn, the other by Michael Worobey, tells us that this most likely happened more than a century ago, in the southeastern corner of Cameroon, in Central Africa, and that the virus took decades to attain proficiency at human-to-human transmission.

By 1960 that virus had traveled downriver to big cities such as Leopoldville (now Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo); then it spread to the Americas and burst into notice in the early 1980s. Now we call it H.I.V.-1 group M: Its the pandemic strain, accounting for most of the 71 million known human infections to date.

Chimpanzees were a species in decline, alas, because of habitat loss and killing by humans; humans were a species in ascendance. The SIVcpz virus reversed its own evolutionary prospects by getting into us and adapting well to the new host. It jumped from a sinking lifeboat onto a luxury cruise ship.
A photo of Wang Qiaoling, wife of Chinese human rights lawyer Li Heping, along with a screenshot of a social media post recounting her recent experience being detained by police. (Screenshot)

Police Detain Wife of Chinese Rights Lawyer Who Was En Route to US Embassy Event in Beijing

The wife of a prominent human rights lawyer was detained by Chinese police while on her way to attend an event at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, according to activists.

The U.S. Embassy was commemorating Constitution Day, the anniversary of the United States adoption of its Constitution, on Sept. 17, with several family members of persecuted human rights lawyers invited to attend.

Among them was Wang Qiaoling, wife of lawyer Li Heping. Li was among hundreds of rights lawyers and activists who were arrested by the Chinese regime in a nationwide crackdown on July 9, 2015, a day thats often referred to as the 709 Incident.

Li was sentenced to prison for inciting subversion of state powera catch-all charge that thBeijing often uses against dissidents. He was released in May 2017, but Wang said at the time that Li looked emaciated and was barely recognizable. He was known for defending political dissidents and vulnerable groups in China, including underground Christians, victims of forced evictions, as well as practitioners of the persecuted Falun Gong spiritual practice.

On the evening of Sept. 17, Li Wenzu (no relation), the wife of fellow human rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang, posted on Twitter that she had lost contact with Wang Qiaoling for three and a half hours. Li Wenzu said that while Wang was on the way to the embassy event, she disappeared after entering the subway, and her friends werent able to contact her.

Li also revealed that she had contacted Wang that morning, who said four plainclothes police were following her husband. The day before, local police warned Li Heping not to go to the U.S. Embassy event, and asked him to tell Wang not to go either.

At about 10:24 p.m. local time on Sept. 17, Li Wenzu finally received a text message from Wang. Wang told her that while she was walking from the Dongfeng Beiqiao subway station at 5:19 p.m. that evening and looking at her cellphone, she was stopped by two plainclothes police. When they tried to take her cellphone, she struggled and tried to call a friend with her phone. But the two men pinned her to the ground and snatched her phone.

Five or six people then came out of three police cars, pushed her into one of the cars, and drove to a community near her home, where they dropped her off. After returning home, she felt pain in her arms and shoulders from being dragged by the police, Wang recounted to Li Wenzu.

Xu Yan, the wife of Yu Wensheng, another human rights lawyer who was arrested in 2018, was invited to attend the Constitution Day event as well. She expressed on social media that she was honored to participate and to take a photo with U.S. Ambassador to China Terry Branstad and his wife. At the event, Xu urged Branstad to help rescue her husband, so he could be free and return home as soon as possible, she revealed on social media.

Yu was sentenced to four years in prison in June for inciting subversion of state power. He has been kept incommunicado with his family and appointed lawyer.

She expressed her gratitude toward the ambassador for listening to us with concern about the case of attorney Yu Wensheng and the cases of other human rights defenders, she wrote in the post.

Xu also revealed that she was stopped by more than a dozen people, including security guards in her residential complex, when she tried to attend a U.S. Embassy event in 2019.

Lis Advocacy

Li Heping garnered prominence for defending political dissidents and vulnerable groups in China.

He also sought to appeal on behalf of blind activist Chen Guangcheng and fellow rights attorney Gao Zhisheng. In 2006, he defended environmental activist Tan Kai, founder of the environmental group Green Watch.

In 2007, Li and five other Beijing-based human rights lawyers represented Wang Bo, a Falun Gong practitioner, in a prominent case in Shijiazhuang City. In their defense of Wang Bos innocence, they jointly published The Constitution is Supreme, Freedom of Religionthe first time Chinese lawyers applied Chinese law to systematically defend Falun Gong practitioners as innocent.

The defense statement would be frequently referenced by rights lawyers when representing other Falun Gong practitioners.

An earlier version of this article misstated the year lawyer Yu Wensheng was arrested. The Epoch Times regrets the error.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 20:24:03|Editor: huaxia

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Actors perform the opening play "Art of War" during the "Destiny Feast" theater festival in Belgrade, Serbia on Sept. 18, 2020. (Photo by Nemanja Cabric/Xinhua)

BELGRADE, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- The "Destiny Feast" (Svetkovina Sudbina), a theater festival, kicked off here Friday, bringing an interesting reflection on some landmarks of Chinese culture.

The second edition of the festival was opened at Kosmodrom, an independent theater in downtown Belgrade under the slogan "10,000 Li," or 5,000 kilometers, which is a reference to the length of China's Great Wall.

The opening play "Art of War," a namesake of Sun Tzu's work, is directed by Filip Gajic, who wants to bring out the ancient Chinese military strategist's wisdom through "exciting" play.

Gajic, who is also the founder of the Kosmodrom and the organizer of the "Destiny Feast" theater festival, explained that "Sun Tzu made a famous suggestion that concubines should be turned into warriors, and on that lead, we made an exciting and dynamic theater play."

The repertoire includes three more plays: "Harmony of Death" based on a work by Lao Tzu, an ancient Chinese philosopher, and directed by Stevan Serbedzija; "Splendor of Love" by Marija Mladenovic, based on a novel attributed to Li Yu, a well-known writer who lived in the 17th Century; and the "Golden Life" by David Alic which deals with a famous story by Zhuangzi, another ancient Chinese philosopher.

Gajic told Xinhua that the first edition of the festival in 2019 was based on Serbian epic poetry, while the second, taking place from Sept. 18 to 27, is dedicated to Chinese culture.

He pointed out that the festival aims to provide audiences with contents outside of cultural patterns of the West, and offer a look into the cultures of the East.

He noted that Serbia-China ties are getting stronger, which opens space for wider cultural exchange.

Gajic reminded that the festival was supposed to be held in June, with a visiting Chinese theater group and traditional music performers, but the situation with the coronavirus pandemic got it postponed and reshaped.

"It's important that we didn't give up, and succeeded to produce four plays in these modest circumstances, by myself and three excellent directors. It will be a truly interesting and unusual contact with the Chinese culture, both for us and the audience," he concluded. Enditem
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has announced that the Republican-controlled body will hold a vote to consider Donald Trumps appointment to the US Supreme Court in the wake of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death.

Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary, he said in a statement. President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."

The Kentucky Republican sought to block former president Barack Obamas appointment to the nations high court in 2016 following the death of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia in February of that year.

Minority Leader Chuck Schumer invoked Senator McConnells own words in the New York Democrats demands that the Senate delay filling the vacancy until after the results of the 2020 election, just six weeks away.

His response: The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

It would require 51 votes to confirm a nominee.

The president recently unveiled his updated list of likely nominees, including sitting Republican senators Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton.

In the last midterm election before Justice Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term, Senator McConnell said. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year.

Three Republican senators have signalled that they may not support confirming a nominee until after the results of the election  Susan Collins, Chuck Grassley and Lisa Murkowski. A fourth Republican could block a vote.

Fair is fair," Senator Murkowski said.

Justice Ginsburg, a mighty figure on the nations high court and one of only four women to have served on it, died on 18 September following a battle with pancreatic cancer. She was 87.

The death of the critical liberal justice on the court leaves three liberal-leaning justices among the eight remaining justices.
By Patpicha Tanakasempipat and Matthew Tostevin

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of people joined Thailand's biggest protest in years on Saturday, cheering calls to curb the powers of King Maha Vajiralongkorn's monarchy and for the removal of former coup leader Prayuth Chan-ocha as prime minister.

Unless the monarchy is under the constitution, we will never achieve true democracy, protest leader and human rights lawyer Arnon Nampa told the crowd gathered within sight of the Grand Palace in central Bangkok.

"More, more," the crowd chanted after Arnon called for cuts to the royal budget and changes to the constitution to bring the king clearly under its control.

The Royal Palace was not available for comment on the protest and the demands for reform.

People can protest but they should do that peacefully and within the law, said government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri when asked to comment.

Arnon said protesters would on Sunday declare "the country belongs to the people, not the monarchy" and place a commemorative brass plaque, echoing the words of the leaders of the 1932 upheaval that ended absolute monarchy.

Protests that have been building in the southeast Asian country of 70 million since mid-July have broken a long-standing taboo by criticising the monarchy as well as seeking a new constitution and elections.

Thai authorities have said criticising the monarchy is unacceptable in a country where the king is constitutionally "enthroned in a position of revered worship". Lese majeste laws mean those insulting the monarchy can be jailed.

"DON'T TALK ABOUT THE KING"

Conservatives are horrified by attacks on the monarchy.

"You can drive out the prime minister, but dont talk about the king," commented one Facebook user as speeches were broadcast live from the protest.

Reuters reporters estimated there were at least 30,000 people in the demonstration. Organisers said there were more than 50,000, while police said there were 18,000, still enough to make it the biggest since Prayuth took power in a 2014 coup.

Story continues

Protesters have said they plan to march to Government House on Sunday morning.

The king was not in Thailand and has spent much of his time in Europe since taking the throne from his late father in 2016.

Speakers at the protest criticised the king for his absence and for his personal behaviour, comments that until recently would not have been made in public.

"The people are humans, not dust under your royal feet," student leader Panusaya Sithijirawattanakul told the protest early on Sunday. "The people want a king who protects democracy, not one who betrays the peoples democracy."

The military, which proclaims itself the defender of the monarchy and national stability, has carried out several bloody crackdowns on protesters since the end of absolute monarchy in 1932 as well as 13 successful coups.

Sept. 19 is the anniversary of the coup against the populist then-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 2006. Among the protesters were many of his red shirt followers, veterans of clashes a decade ago with pro-establishment yellow shirts.

"Im here to fight for the future of my children and grandchildren. I hope that by the time I die, they will become free," said 68-year-old Tasawan Suebthai, a redshirt with amulets round her neck which she hoped would ward off bullets.

The latest protests have been peaceful so far, but more than a dozen protest leaders have been arrested and released on bail. None has been charged under the lese majeste laws which protesters want scrapped.

They also seek to reduce the king's constitutional powers and his control over the palace fortune and units of the army.

(Additional reporting by Jiraporn Kuhakan, Panarat Thepgumpanat and Panu Wongcha-Um in Bangkok, Ben Blanchard in Taipei; Editing by William Mallard, David Holmes and Gareth Jones)
Rajya Sabha gives nod to bill for second amendment of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code

We demand the release of all 230 political leaders who are still in detention in J&K: TMC MP in Lok Sabha

No progress in Jammy and Kashmir, says Farooq Abdullah, National Conference MP in Lok Sabha

Like China, we need to hold talks with other neighbour country as well: Farooq Abdullah in LS

Govt ready to curtail Monsoon Session but wants new bills passed

A view of the Parliament House in New Delhi, India, on Sunday, September 13, 2020. (Photo by Sanjeev Verma/ Hindustan Times)

On day 6 of Monsoon session in the parliament, several key legislations are expected to be discussed and passed today. In the Rajya Sabha, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman will push amendments to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy code and union health minister Dr Harsh Vardhan is expected to raise amendments made to The Epidemic diseases amendment bill 2020 and get them cleared. In the Lok Sabha, bills such as Industrial Relations Code, 2020 and The Occupational Safety, Health And Working Conditions Code, 2020 are expected to be introduced today. The Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2020, The National Forensic Sciences University Bill, 2020 and The Rashtriya Raksha University Bill, 2020 are also awaiting clearance which is expected to be given today.
Hi Nicole,

When enquiring with CommInsure about visiting our holiday house, 185kms away, to check on any damage or maintenance needed, we were informed that if we had not been in attendance at the property for 60 days, our insurance excess would rise from $200 to $2000. We cannot go to check on the property due to lockdown rules. However, it appears this does not change the strict rules of the insurer, even in these unusual circumstances. Are there examples of other insurers using the present situation to boost excess amounts? John.

House-and-contents insurance that covers holiday homes generally requires that the property is not left unoccupied for lengthy periods, typically 60 to 90 days. This is also common for owner-occupied premises.

House-and-contents insurance that covers holiday homes generally requires that the property is not left unoccupied for lengthy periods, typically 60 to 90 days. Credit:

Because of various degrees of lockdown, a lot of homeowners have been unable to visit. However, insurers are generally cutting them some slack.

Campbell Fuller, head of communications at the Insurance Council of Australia, says: "Insurers are offering leniency to customers, where possible, and most of the requirements around occupancy are being negotiated on a case-by-case basis between the insurer and property owner.
A recent notification by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) that bans selling of certain foods to schoolchildren has upset traders and is also likely to deal a blow to FMCG companies and advertisers for whom kids are a big market.

The notification, issued early this month through the official gazette, a copy of which is with Moneycontrol, bans sale and offering of food to children in school premises and also within 50 metres of the school gate. It also prohibits marketing and advertisements of food products high in saturated fat or trans-fat or with added sugar or sodium.

The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), which represents small and medium traders, has expressed asked Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal to withdraw the notification.

Such a regulation dampens the very spirit of ease of doing business. It will impact small-business owners and traders. CAIT national general secretary Praveen Khandelwal said.

A Ministry of Commerce and Industry officer said the move was aimed at curtailing the consumption of unhealthy food.

It has been repeatedly found there is no regulation of any ingredients like sugar, fat and sodium that get into products for children, the official added

Jobs on the line

The ban is distressing news for the advertising industry as well as around seven crore small traders who employ an estimated 46 crore people, far ahead of any other sector in the economy, and account for 45 percent of Indias GDP.

It is this very segment of the Indian market that is keeping the economy alive during the coronavirus pandemic, say industry organisations.

The notifications definition of the school includes pre-primary, primary, elementary, secondary, day-care, creche, boardings run by private entities, local bodies, government bodies or entities aided by the government.

Various state food authorities will conduct surveillance and period inspection of food-business operators to ensure compliance, the notification says.

The ban on advertisement of products with high fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) aimed at children could affect companies making chips, burgers, pizzas and other junk food.

Potato chips, colas, ready-to-eat food and pickle are hugely advertised products that fall in the category of high fat, sugar and salt.

The Food and Beverage Alliance of India, which includes multinational companies such as Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Nestle, Kellogg, Mars Chocolate, Hindustan Unilever and Mondelez, will have to restrict food and beverage advertisements aimed at children.

But the problem lies elsewhere. Since these items are of general consumption, how will the companies ensure children are excluded from viewing these ads?

Advertising to children is a Rs 7,000-crore market in India and includes food products with sugar and fat content. Can it be erased overnight?

It will be a very tough call for the advertising industry which is already reeling under a severe recession. Childrens campaigns are done with utmost responsibility. If the government is saying this should stop, it means nothing less than a death warrant, advertising veteran Sabyasachi Gullu Sen of From Here On communications agency said.

An official of the Advertising Standards Council Of India (ASCI) said it was studying the notification.

Unhealthy for business

Traders, too, are worried.

We have serious objections to the specific clause of 50 metres because it will lead to many challenges, CAITs Khandelwal said.

The move would make small businesses non-viable as small shops and vendors stocked all kind of FMCG items to meet the needs of neighbourhood consumers, Khandelwal wrote to Goyal.

A complete mix of shopping baskets is critical to stay relevant and viable. It is not practically not possible to identify and maintain any such distinction. Not keeping the food and beverage products is bound to impact the sale of other items, he said.

They will lose their customer base. It will reduce footfall if shopkeepers are not able to provide a full range of products, Khandelwal said in a note, a copy of which is with Moneycontrol.

Schoolchildren, if at all, were exposed to vendors or shops while entering or leaving the premises or during recess. For traders, their main customer base were people and not schoolchildren. This restriction will deprive that consumer base which makes purchases for their daily needs, he said.

According to an internal government survey of schools in the Capital, one in every four schoolchildren was overweight, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry officer said. In India, aggressive marketing strategies were adopted by various companies.

Children are potential consumers. This strategy is often targeted at places children visit frequently. The Indian food market is segmented to capture every type of child consumer, the official said on conditions of anonymity.

A decade ago, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the United States largest health-centered charity organisation, conducted a study that showed that fast-food companies did not adhere to the industrys self-regulation guidelines for marketing to kids.

Recently, the World Health Organisation called for tighter monitoring of unhealthy food products, especially those high in salt, sugar and fat.

But traders say the move could be counterproductive at a time when the coronavirus pandemic has dealt a hammer blow to the economy.

They say the new notification will increase harassment and add another layer to the numerous rules and regulations that small business owners have to follow.

There will be operational challenges as in both cities and towns, businesses and educational institutions coexist.

A large part of these cities and towns will be a no-sale region if 50-metre restriction is implemented, said Ashok Tripathi, a grocer whose store is close to a well-known school in South Delhi. Students come to my shop all the time. So what do I do now, shut shop?

Tripathi said the All India Food Processors' Association has also asked the ministry to reconsider the decision. Why not make some changes in town planning so that no school/creche should be opened near a market or a store, he said.

(Shantanu Guha Ray is a senior journalist based in New Delhi.)
A working group formed by the GAA, FAI, and IRFU will present a roadmap to Government within four weeks on getting fans back into stadiums, with options to include moving rugby internationals out of Dublin, including overseas.

The proposals from the three organisations come after they told the Special Oireachtas Committee on Covid-19 response that the absence of supporters, especially at international and big-ticket matches, has ravaged the finances and sparked warnings over the future of clubs and competitions here.

Tom Ryan, the GAA director general, warned of a 50m hole in the association's budget this year and the possibility of a 20m loss next year, with the FAI sounding the alarm over the future of the League of Ireland and the IRFU warning about the very existence of the professional game on this island if fans cannot return soon in larger numbers.

The IRFU said a 1m social distancing requirement would allow 18,000 people into the Aviva Stadium, whereas a 2m requirement would allow only 7,000.

It is understood that as part of the ongoing discussions between the sporting organisations, the IRFU is outlining how due to the large sale of tickets to family groupings, the requirement for a 2m distancing within the ground would be reduced.

It is understood the GAA and the FAI are also open to this suggestion, with the IRFU also open to moving Ireland internationals and other matches ordinarily held in Dublin out of the capital in the hypothetical scenario where Dublin is at a higher level of alert than other parts of the country.

That could open up the possibility of matches being played in Thomond Park, albeit with a reduced capacity, but also at GAA grounds in there was agreement from the Association, or even to grounds overseas, such as in Wales or London.

All three organisation said they would work with NPHET and would comply with any public health guidelines handed down.

Other aspects of matchday plans would be enhanced sanitisation points in and around grounds.

The group has been receiving and sharing information with other federations from around Europe and the world on how they are dealing with the return of larger crowds while maintaining public health requirements.

This coming Thursday a particular focus will be trained on the UEFA Supercup game between Bayern Munich and Seville, at which 20,000 people are expected to attend.

All three organisations stressed the financial impact of closed stadia, with the IRFU saying all four provinces needed assistance, but with Ulster and Munster in more need than Leinster and Connacht.
The head of Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has threatened retaliation against everyone who had a role in the January killing of a top IRGC general by a U.S. drone strike in Iraq.

The IRCG's website on September 19 quoted General Hossein Salami as saying, Mr. Trump! Our revenge for martyrdom of our great general is obvious, serious, and real.

We will hit those who had direct and indirect roles," Hossein said. "You should know that everybody who had role in the event will be hit, and this is a serious message. We do prove everything in practice.

Trump warned earlier this week that Washington would respond harshly to any Iranian attempts to take revenge for the death of General Qasem Soleimani, tweeting that if they hit us in any way, any form, written instructions already done were going to hit them 1000 times harder.

Trump's warning came in response to a report that Iran was plotting to assassinate the U.S. ambassador to South Africa in retaliation for Soleimani's killing near Baghdad International Airport.

We took out the worlds number one terrorist and the mass murderer of American troops and many, many troops and many people all over the world, Trump said. Qasem Soleimani is dead. Hes dead. Bad guy. Bad guy. Very bad guy.

Salami rejected the report of an Iranian plot to assassinate the U.S. ambassador, Lana Marks, but made clear that Iran intends to avenge Soleimani's death.

Do you think we'd hit a female ambassador in return for our martyred brother? Salami said.

In January, Iran launched a ballistic-missile attack targeting U.S. soldiers in Iraq in response to the fatal drone strike against Soleimani.

Trump has stepped up economic pressure on Iran with sanctions since he pulled the United States out of Iran's nuclear deal with world powers in 2018.

Tehran has continued to expand its stockpile of enriched uranium and has pressured other nations to offset the harm of U.S. sanctions. But Tehran continues to insist that its nuclear program is not aimed at developing nuclear weapons.

With reporting by AP and Reuters
China has repeatedly threatened Taiwan with invasion and has adopted an aggressive policy to intimidate the self-governing island.Taiwan foreign minister Joseph Wu recently highlighted that the military threat from China is very real and Taipeis preparation is also very serious. In an interview with Germanys DW, Joseph Wu said, The threat is very real and therefore Taiwans preparation is also very serious, he told DW. We are trying to deal with the military threat, day in and day out.

We have been under threat for decades and therefore we have been watching out for Chinas military actions against Taiwan. Our military also trying to get ourselves prepared for a possible military conflict between the two sides. Military conflicts between the two countries are not what we want. But if this is happening then it is not in the interest of anyone at all, he added.

On Friday, China sent 18 fighter jets and bombers into the Taiwan Strait.Those who play with fire are bound to get burned, Senior Col. Ren Guoqiang, a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of National Defense.

The drill comes as Keith Krach, the US undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment, who arrived in Taiwan on Thursday, is due to meet President Tsai Ing-wen.

The visit of senior-most US official has angered China.For decades, the Chinese government has claimed authority over Taiwan. Though Taiwan is not recognised by the UN, its government maintains a relationship with the US and does not accept the Chinese authority.

ALSO READ: Canada abandons free trade talks with China, says Canadian FM

ALSO READ: Trump administration expects enough Covid-19 vaccines for every American by April 2021
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 17:20:58|Editor: huaxia

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BUENOS AIRES, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- China's efforts to alleviate poverty have generated "unparalleled" results, making the Asian country an example in this field, Argentinean academic Santiago Bustelo said on Friday.

The researcher at the Argentina-China Studies Center of the University of Buenos Aires talked with Xinhua about how China's example of poverty reduction "should be considered as one of the most important in the history of humanity."

Bustelo said that China has achieved this result through strategies combining political leadership with a robust model of economic growth, as well as a strong capacity to adapt to different circumstances.

For this reason, he said that China's goal of eliminating absolute poverty this year is achievable, as over 90 million people in rural areas have already been lifted out of poverty from 2013 to 2019.

The academic said China's successful experience in poverty alleviation has shown the world that economic growth can also be fostered through fighting poverty and improving living conditions, not just the other way around.

"Many times, it is believed that the reduction of poverty is a consequence of economic development, but what China shows us is that the fight against poverty is one of the engines and causes of development," said Bustelo.

"These are two concomitant processes that feed into each other. In a sense, economic development is necessary to reduce poverty, but in turn, poverty reduction is also a necessary factor in achieving economic development," he added.

"The issue of poverty is one of the most important elements of the Chinese government's agenda. In addressing it, one of the main measures has been the allocation of fiscal resources to the most vulnerable sectors," the academic said.

Bustelo regarded China's experience as an example that Latin American countries could learn from, as the region is subject to political and economic instability which has impeded the long fight against poverty.

The researcher said that global poverty alleviation should be a result of global stability, and unilateral and protectionist actions only increase the climate of instability, moving the world far away from poverty eradication.

"A stable and cooperative global context is undoubtedly one of the necessary conditions for development," he said, adding that "the recent unilateralism of the United States affects the stability and orderly function of the international system, particularly in economic, commercial, and financial aspects."

"Instability and unpredictability" both have detrimental effects on developing countries, as these two factors will hamper the expansion of trade and investment, said Bustelo.

He further said the fight against poverty should also be a result of a cooperative environment, which will only be possible within an international system where the voices of the least developed countries are heard. Enditem
Irish designer Sorcha O'Raghallaigh has dressed everyone from Beyonce to Lady Gaga, Madonna to Kate Moss, but when professional burnout came a few years ago, it was brutal. Now, four year later, the 36-year-old Birr woman admits it was probably a blessing in disguise.

Sorcha tells her story with remarkable candour. Her heartfelt peeling back of the stresses and strains of running her fashion business on her own in London, trying to do everything herself, is a cautionary tale. It makes for timely reading this weekend as wannabe designers pore over the virtual catwalks of the international fashion weeks and dream of a slice of celebrity magic.

However, there is good news because after three years of reskilling and gaining valuable insights into the infrastructure of other businesses, Sorcha is back in Ireland. She has re-established her brand with a new verve and "understanding product from a different point of view".

During those hectic days in London, Sorcha recalls "so many amazing moments and amazing validation. I have the best of memories but there was so many hard moments," she says. "There were those weeks and you are 'I just want to give up, I'm insane, this is crazy, I haven't slept in like, a week' and I got dropped by my PR agency that week so you do experience rejection."

Expand Close Crystal and pearl gloves (250), headband and encrusted dress / Facebook

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As fate would have it, that same week Love magazine came out with a picture of Kate Moss wearing her cape.

"I remember crying when I opened it because I was so on the brink of giving up. You were constantly on the brink of 'what the hell am I doing', 'this is so hard' and in the end, I did burn out."

Italy was to be Sorcha's saviour. She moved to Bologna in 2016 and worked with Jato, the embroidery suppliers who work with top couturier houses like Givenchy and Christian Dior. It gave her joy and there were fascinating learning curves.

Sorcha was then approached to be head of embroidery for La Perla, the luxury lingerie brand. She went from being a one-woman show trying to do everything herself back in London to being an employee who had time off to have a life, to savour red wine and fine foods, and to appreciate a good quality of life.

"It was an education in so many ways and I loved it. I wanted to learn from my mistakes. I understood what I really didn't know before. To have this quiet confidence now and this knowledge in depth is wonderful," she says.

The road to re-establishing her own brand started 12 months ago. Working in Dublin during lockdown was busy and highly fruitful. Her sister, Aine, is now her business partner and Sorcha declares happily that "it gives you that yin yang, it gives you the balance".

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"I think the pandemic just showed how kind Irish people are. The quality of life in Dublin is really nice and I'm addicted to going to Dalkey to swim in the sea and it is like another world."

Other-worldly is a phrase that people have used to describe Sorcha's vision and her incredible ethereal bespoke pieces. In her latest collection, Jewelled Moon, she was inspired by her favourite artist, Marc Chagall, and his dreamy skyscapes with flying horses and stars. She hand creates her all her fabrics from scratch and the ombre ostrich feathers are hand sown and tipped with a bead so they sparkle.

Back driving her own brand again, Sorcha is conscious of wanting to give opportunities to those who are into her work to be able to buy a small piece of it. A "proud Taurean", Sorcha says she is obsessed with horoscopes and has introduced a range of Zodiac medallions (65) and illustrations (70) as well as a limited-edition collection of daisy and star brooches and hair clips from 38.

An invitation to be part of CREATE at Brown Thomas which opens next week provided her with the opportunity to introduce some more wearable shapes and silhouettes such as an embellished sweatshirt and duchese skirts (650).

"It's super exciting because we have developed special pieces just for Brown Thomas that are more commercial and can be layered up," said Sorcha. "There are elements that are directly from the collection that we put into production and there are also some special pieces that are ready-to-wear interpretations of the collection so it's been really exciting."

Famous for her iconic ostrich cape which costs 10,000, Sorcha has done mini, hip-length capes (440) for the BT's showcase in pink, white and in black. There are ostrich bandeau tops (420) and mini dresses (680). Just like her standout crystal-encrusted bralet (490) with grosgrain and pearls, I have no doubt they will appeal to lockdown brides and collectors alike.

Sorcha O'Raghallaigh is at CREATE, Brown Thomas from September 22 and will be available for bespoke orders and fittings
Copyright  2020 Albuquerque Journal

A law requiring all New Mexico law enforcement agencies to outfit their officers with body-worn cameras goes into effect this Sunday and a handful of departments dont have the devices ready to go.

When Senate Bill 8 was passed during the special session in June, five of the states 33 Sheriffs Offices didnt have cameras. Now its down to three  McKinley, Bernalillo and San Juan counties. The number is harder to pinpoint among police departments since a survey has not been done. However, AJ Forte, the executive director of the New Mexico Municipal League, said of the states 72 municipal police departments, everyone is working toward being compliant.

The bills sponsor, Sen. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces, said he is expecting that cases brought by officers who dont have cameras will not be admissible in court.

If officers intend to enforce the law, then to do so they will have to have body cameras, he said.

When asked how he will proceed with prosecuting cases by Bernalillo County Sheriffs deputies who dont have cameras yet, 2nd Judicial District Attorney Raul Torrezs office said he strongly supports the bill and urges all agencies to comply.

While the legislation does not direct prosecutors to decline criminal cases based on non-compliance with the law, our office will immediately notify the New Mexico Attorney General and the New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy if we discover that any law enforcement officers are out of compliance with the statute, the DAs spokeswoman, Brandale Mills-Cox, wrote in a statement.

The Law Offices of the Public Defender is also paying attention to this issue, pointing out that the cameras can provide evidence and help hold officers accountable.

Its common sense to use the technology  and now its the law, said Chief Public Defender Bennett Baur in a statement. Defense attorneys will definitely be challenging any case in which an officer doesnt comply with that law.

The bill was passed during a four-day special session in June that focused on budgetary issues, economic relief for those struggling due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and law enforcement measures in the wake of the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and subsequent nationwide protests. It requires departments to store footage for 120 days and craft policies requiring all officers to record when responding to calls or engaging with a member of the public for a law enforcement or investigative purpose.

The bill did not provide funding for agencies to purchase or upgrade their camera and data storage systems.

Funding concerns

In McKinley County, undersheriff James Maiorano III stressed that the sheriffs office wants to comply with the mandate but the 90-day turn-around time between when the bill was passed and when it went into effect made it impossible. He said the department is doing the best it can to incorporate body-worn cameras into the in-car camera system all deputies have had for the past six years.

We either have to choose a different manufacturer and purchase all new equipment or we have to use our current vendor, called WatchGuard, who installed the in-car system, tear out all of the existing equipment and put in new equipment that would allow a body camera to answer to that in-car camera for the purposes of downloading, Maiorano said in an interview.

He said the McKinley County Sheriffs Office is leaning toward the least expensive option  running between $150,000 and $200,000  but doesnt expect to have cameras for all 40 or so personnel until November or December. He said normally they would have taken six months to a year to consider their options before purchasing.

Asking us to make a knee jerk purchase is very irresponsible with taxpayer money, Maiorano said. If I called somebody and said OK theres this new mandate, just send me $150,000 worth of your new product without having ever demo-ed it or tested it, I dont have a way to know if thats going to last us or if thats a good expenditure of taxpayer money.

A different scenario is playing out in Bernalillo County where Sheriff Manuel Gonzales has long resisted calls for body-worn cameras and instead outfitted deputies with belt audio recorders. BCSO has been sending out weekly updates on its search for the best option for its deputies as officials meet with vendors and other agencies across the country.

Jayme Fuller, a BCSO spokeswoman, said the department is striving for 100% participation by sworn personnel.

However, due to unfunded or limited funding constraints, BCSO will not be able to achieve 100% participation immediately, Fuller wrote in an email. At this time, the county procurement team is obtaining pricing information; meanwhile, the Sheriffs office stands ready to receive and implement body-worn camera technology.

She said the department has chosen to go with a smart phone camera that provides digital evidence storage, video redaction, automated activation, integration with other technologies, real-time communication and video streaming and the county is in the process of vetting vendors.

San Juan County Sheriffs Office is also still in the process of getting cameras and spokeswoman Kristi Hughes said the department is considering its options.

As of now we are looking at the option of adding body cameras that will sync up with our current dash cams, which we do have money allocated (for), but we are also still looking at another system that is more superior and will cost roughly $1 million more to get a complete setup, she wrote in an email. We do not have money allocated for that as it has not been approved yet. That total will be between $1.3 million to $1.5 million to get us all set up for the one we want, which will include 90 cameras.

Spokespersons from Dona Ana County Sheriffs Office and Valencia County Sheriffs Office said they have bought the cameras and are currently doling them out to all deputies.

Questions persist

Departments that have cameras in place have still had to adjust their policies in order to comply with the new law.

The New Mexico Association of Counties asked all sheriffs offices to estimate how much they would need to spend to implement the program. Almost all counties estimated they would need to spend additional money and a spreadsheet of the counties shows they would spend an estimated total of $2,272,600 on equipment, $868,300 on data storage. The spreadsheet also estimates that counties could spend upwards of $1.1 million on staff to respond to records requests, although its unclear how counties arrived at that figure.

Even counties that have programs needed to acquire some redundancy in their program It wasnt enough to get cameras for everyone on your staff; you had to get that plus backup, said Grace Philips, general counsel for New Mexico Association of Counties. Even counties that had programs probably didnt have the depth of recording requirements which is going to use a lot of memory and generate a lot of need for storage. Certainly starting from scratch is different than not, but theres still some onerous components to this that have nothing to do with going out and buying equipment.

Police Chief Steve Hebbe of Farmington said his department has had body worn cameras since about six months before he was hired in March of 2014 and they upgraded their system in August 2019. He said the main challenge for his department has been updating the policies to make sure they comply with the law.

Hebbe, the president of the New Mexico Association of Chiefs of Police, said while he is on board with officers wearing cameras and he thinks they are good for departments and communities, he doesnt like the bill itself.

It was way too aggressive in its timeline, he said. The notion that its assumed bad faith on the part of the department to not have something recorded is shocking 

He also said he thinks it would have been better had there been more involvement from departments around the state that could have provided input about the issues they have dealt with. Legislators have since held committee meetings to discuss the bill and in August Hebbe expressed concerns about whether officers should have their cameras recording during National Night Out  a community event  or if they are in the bathroom and talk to a civilian. He also expressed concerns about recording sensitive calls, like those involving suicide, children or domestic or sexual abuse.

At the August committee meeting legislators seemed to agree that an officer shouldnt turn his or her camera off in sensitive situations, but that public records laws should be examined to determine whether that footage should be released.

You dont know when the circumstance might turn to violence or some other circumstance where the camera might be important to have on, so I dont think it should be optional to have the camera on, Sen. Cervantes said in an interview. But we should perhaps put greater safeguards on the availability of the video afterwards where it might compromise an ongoing investigation, or it might be outweighed by a privacy interest to protect a victim of crime.

He recognized that the legislators had passed the bill quickly and it wasnt perfect, but said that it was the right time for it to pass given that most agencies in the state, and across the nation, already used body cameras.

There was a sense that this was a timely and important thing to make law enforcement uniform around the state in terms of this technology, Cervantes said. Ive done criminal prosecutions in my legal career, and as often as not a videotaped encounter leads to a quick conviction or to a guilty plea. So the video is not intended to be a burden on law enforcement but to be a tool on their belt like many other tools.
The US Agriculture Department on Friday released details of a second round of Covid-19 aid for farmers, which will pay up to $14 billion to growers of major crops such as corn, soybeans and wheat, as well as livestock, dairy and tobacco.

President Donald Trump announced the assistance on Thursday night at a campaign rally in Wisconsin, a crucial battleground state.

Farmers widely backed Trump in 2016.

The aid follows a $19 billion relief program announced in April to help U.S. farmers cope with disruptions to the food supply chain and plummeting demand from restaurants during the pandemic. Less than $10 billion has been paid out to date.

We listened to feedback received from farmers, ranchers and agricultural organizations about the impact of the pandemic on our nations farms and ranches, and we developed a program to better meet the needs of those impacted, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said in a statement.

The administration has been criticized for the $28 billion spent over 2018 and 2019 to compensate farmers for lost sales during a tariff war with China.

Once again, the Trump administration is funneling too much money to farmers that do not need it and not enough to those that are facing economic ruin, said Scott Faber, senior vice president of government affairs at the Environmental Working Group. The only plausible explanation is that this is just old-fashioned vote buying.

The new aid package will largely be funded by the Commodity Credit Corp, a Depression-era program created to support farm income. Funds from the corporation do not need to be approved by Congress.

The USDA also said that up to $100 million in aid for tobacco farmers will come from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act.

In North Carolina, the top tobacco-producing state, Republican Senator Thom Tillis, in a statement, thanked Trump and Perdue for helping farmers in his state.

Tillis trails his Democratic challenger, former state Senator Cal Cunningham, who has also steadily outraised him in campaign donations.

Based on the governments latest harvest projections, farmers could receive about 23 cents a bushel for corn, or $3.427 billion, and 31 cents a bushel for soybeans, or $1.337 billion, according to a Reuters analysis of figures from the USDA and the American Farm Bureau Federation. The program also allows farmers to apply for aid at $15 per acre for major row crops such as corn, soybeans and wheat.

The USDA said that major row crops were eligible for the program because the national average price for them fell at least 5% between mid-January and late July.

Prices have rallied sharply since then, with a surge in buying from China pushing the soybean futures market Sv1 to its highest in more than two years. Corn Cv1 was trading at its highest in more than six months and wheat Wv1 recently hit a five-month top.

The new plan adds nearly 100 specialty crops like honey, ginger and macadamia nuts. It also eases restrictions on aid for such crops that farmers said limited the benefits of the previous payment program.

Hog farmers will be paid $23 per pig, after receiving about $1.6 billion in the first round, according to the National Pork Producers Council. The industry group said pig farmers still need more aid.

Some 20 meat plants closed in April due to COVID-19 outbreaks among workers, backing up livestock on farms and prompting some producers to euthanize pigs.

All hog farmers are hurting as a result of the COVID pandemic and additional federal assistance is urgently needed to preserve the livelihoods of thousands of American hog farmers, the National Pork Producers Council said.
Guinea began Saturday to distribute more than five million voter cards ahead of the October 18 presidential election in which incumbent Alpha Conde is running for a controversial third term

Conakry, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Sep, 2020 ) :Guinea began Saturday to distribute more than five million voter cards ahead of the October 18 presidential election in which incumbent Alpha Conde is running for a controversial third term.

Voters must go to centres where the documents are available, such as in the Koloma district of Conakry where a small group of mostly maskless men waited.

The green cards, which are to be available until the day of the election, are printed with the elector's name and address, also have a photo and a QR code.

More than 5.4 million voters are registered to choose among 12 candidates, notably Conde, 82, who was elected in 200 and 2015.

A movement opposing his bid for a third term said Wednesday that it would stage a new round of protests from late September.

Deadly clashes erupted in the West African state last October, claiming several dozen lives, over Conde's plans.

He is contesting the poll despite accusations of sidestepping limits on presidential terms by pushing through changes to the constitution.

Guinea is one of Africa's most volatile countries, enjoying little stability between coups since independence from France in 1958.

An extended state of emergency currently bans gatherings of more than 100 people, making it likely the fresh demonstrations will be declared illegal.
[Follow our live coverage of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death and the Supreme Court vacancy.]

The death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has put enormous new pressure on the two candidates in a presidential race already roiled by a global pandemic and a summer of civil unrest, raising the prospect of a contentious Senate confirmation battle waged side by side with the campaign. The skirmishing over a replacement is certain to thrust a constellation of red-hot issues  from abortion and gay rights to religious liberty and environmental regulation  to the foreground of national politics.

The Supreme Court may quickly become a shared focal point for the candidates in a contest that has unfolded, so far, as though the two parties inhabit different universes. Joseph R. Biden Jr., the Democratic nominee, has built a strong lead over President Trump by focusing on the presidents handling of the pandemic, while Mr. Trump has attempted to make up ground with dark and largely fictitious forecasts of looming insurrection by left-wing radicals.

The president signaled even before Justice Ginsburgs death on Friday that he intended to inject judicial politics into the final stretch of the 2020 campaign. He released a new list of potential nominees earlier this month to motivate conservative voters who have grown demoralized during a year of political tribulations. But it was not clear that his right-wing coalition would be more motivated by a confirmation fight than the alliance of liberals and moderates supportive of Mr. Biden would be.

The former vice president has built a lead over Mr. Trump with lopsided support from women, people of color, moderates and college-educated whites  groups likelier to be alarmed than allured by the possibility of a court that tilts far to the right. Though he is well ahead of Mr. Trump in the polls, Mr. Biden has struggled to excite progressive voters and young people, who draw inspiration of a different kind from a far-reaching struggle over social policy and civil rights.
Halfway through Haruki Murakamis Kafka on the Shore, I began to wonder if it was worth getting to the other side. Its not that the book was a significant departure from his earlier work: there are the same reclusive characters, dream-like happenings, alternating plotlines and pop-culture ephemera. I wearied at the flatness of the effects, as well as their repetition. As John Updike wrote in his New Yorker review, it seems more gripping than it has a right to be and less moving, perhaps, than the author wanted it to be.

This feeling was reinforced with two later novels, IQ84 and Colourless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage. Earlier, I had been charmed  if thats the right word  by A Wild Sheep Chase, Hard-boiled Wonderland and the End of the World and even the sentimental Norwegian Wood. Now, however, I found myself chuckling appreciatively at illustrator Grant Snyders Murakami Bingo, a poster that pointed out the many cliches that recur in his novels. Among them: mysterious women, ear fetishes, talking to cats, old jazz records and parallel worlds.

In a recent conversation, fellow Japanese novelist Mieko Kawakami asked Murakami about his depiction of women, which has also irked some readers. A common reading, she perceptively observed, is that your male characters are fighting their battles unconsciously, on the inside, leaving the women to do the fighting in the real world.

Murakamis reply was that this is coincidental. His writing doesnt follow a clear-cut scheme: I guess its possible for a story to work out that way, on a purely unconscious level. Kawakami does go on to laud the female character in his short story, Sleep, and has elsewhere written about how much Murakamis work has meant to her.

Another aspect of Murakami is the way his work has been translated and packaged for non-Japanese readers. This is what David Karashima sets out to examine in his recent Who We're Reading When We're Reading Murakami.

Karashima, himself a noted author and translator, takes great pains to track down the members of Team Murakami over the years. As he says, it is easy to forget that the works that a great many of his readersdevotees, fans, critics, and detractors alikehave come to know are also creations of his translators, editors, and publishers around the world.

Notable among these are Alfred Birnbaum, who first translated Murakami into English, and Elmer Luke, a former editor with Kodansha International, Murakamis publishing house at the time.

Birnbaum says that he was immediately drawn to Murakamis writing, especially its humour, which he found to be rare in Japanese literature. As soon as he finished reading his stories, he sat down at his typewriter and proceeded to translate several. For Luke, the basis of Murakamis popularity is his narrative theme: sensitive, un-macho, lonely, newly single male on a journey of (re)discovery.

From the start, there was an effort to promote Murakami in America as a writer who was relatable and worthy of attention, in keeping with his own ambitions. Of A Wild Sheep Chase, Birnbaum says that it was very different from anything else in Japan, and definitely more akin to Western novelists, which of course is why he was attacked by critics (in Japan).

American promotions highlighted its gripping plot, calling it comic, fresh, and brave. Early reviews pointed out how it differed from the work of the Big Three: Kobo Abe, Yukio Mishima and Yasunari Kawabata. Some mentioned the influence of the two Raymonds: Carver and Chandler.

Others who would have important roles to play in Murakamis career include Robert Gottlieb and Linda Asher, then editor and fiction editor of the New Yorker, respectively. Many of his stories appeared in the magazine  but not before they underwent several cuts, edits and sanitisations in translation. The intent to make him presentable to an English-speaking audience seemed uppermost.

The New Yorkers tastes apart, the same process occurred with his novels. Birnbaum suggests half-jokingly that it is possible that he and Luke spent more time translating and editing A Wild Sheep Chase and Hard-Boiled Wonderland than Murakami had spent writing them. There are a number of compressions, elisions and even minor character omissions.

Some of this, of course, is to do with the differences between Japanese and English in the first place. As scholar Roland Kelts has said: The Japanese language acquires much of its beauty and strength from indirectnessor what English-speakers call vagueness, obscurity, or implied meaning.

The shaping and clarifying continued with Jay Rubin, who took up the mantle of translating Murakami into English. Of the story The Second Bakery Attack, for example, Karashima notes that the narrators internal monologues are trimmed down so that the English translation seems to move at a slightly faster pace than the original Japanese.

In a New Yorker piece, Rubin commented: When you read Haruki Murakami, youre reading me, at least ninety-five percent of the time. This brings to mind the role of editor Gordon Lish in crafting the stories of Raymond Carver. In an interview, Lish once pompously said: Had I not revised Carver, would he be paid the attention given him? Baloney!

Afterwards, even when Murakami was more established abroad, Rubin submitted two versions of The Wind-up Bird Chronicle to Knopf. The first was a complete translation; the second a version that, in Rubins estimation, was abridged by 25,000 words. The publisher went with the abridged version.

Karashima ends his book in 1998, so there is no mention of whether Murakamis later work -- when he presumably had more say in the matter -- went through the same process. Perhaps not to the extent as in the past, which is why novels such as IQ84 and Killing Commendatore seem a trifle messier.

It is Pico Iyers considered assessment that strikes a chord. He tells Karashima that he understands how Murakami can be seen as a rare contemporary master who captures the sense of lost meaning and identity amidst the pleasures of hearing Coltrane and heating up pasta. But, he adds, this is precisely the Japan that is least compelling and deep, even if its not illusory.

Whats missing, Iyer continues, is Japans stubborn ancientness, its rites and values, all the things that in fact make it sometimes painfully distant and different from everywhere else, and grounded to a fault.

Writers, of course, are under no obligation to live up to anyones expectations but their own. One cant help but wonder, though, whether in trying to make him palatable to the West, Murakamis team of translators, editors and publishers have rendered him a bit too slick.

Sanjay Sipahimalani is a Mumbai-based writer and reviewer.
90 Day Fiance's Larissa Dos Santos Lima was released shortly after being arrested by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Saturday.

The arrest reportedly occurred as the 33-year-old reality star and her beau, Eric Nichols were leaving their Las Vegas home, which they recently sold.

The couple were reportedly to embark on their 'new beginning' in Colorado Springs, before 'ICE agents showed up to their doorstep,' according to TMZ.

Free: 90 Day Fiance's Larissa Dos Santos Lima was released by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, after being taken into custody on Saturday

On Saturday, her best friend, Carmen Nys, revealed that Lima and Nichols were 'about to leave their house and move to Colorado' ahead of the arrest.

'We have no clue why. I want to let her family, fans and friends know that we are going there right now and as soon, as I have more info I will keep you guys posted. Send prayers,' Nys wrote on her Instagram Story.

After her release, Lima updated her 589,000 followers that she was 'out' and the officers were 'very nice' and she was 'good to go.'

Unexpected: The arrest reportedly occurred as the 33-year-old reality star was leaving her Las Vegas home with beau, Eric Nichols, which they recently sold and had packed up

'Thank you everyone for all the prayers,' she captioned her recording, which showed her with a surgical mask under her chin and looking in high spirits.

As she filmed, her boyfriend professed his love for her and looked relieved to be reunited.

'I love you too,' she responded, as he filmed them in a U-Haul trip en route to Colorado.

Making moves: Dos Santos Lima's arrest came a day after Nichols posted that they had 'just closed' and finalized the sale of his Las Vegas property

Nichols captioned his Instagram post, 'NOT EVEN ICE can tame my girl.'

Dos Santos Lima's arrest came a day after Nichols posted that they had 'just closed' and finalized the sale of their Las Vegas property.

Just hours before her arrest, the star shared that she would be creating a YouTube video, which would answer questions about her 'children in Brazil' and other arrests.

Opening up: Just hours before her arrest, the star shared that she would be creating YouTube video, which will tackle talking about her 'children in Brazil' and arrests; seen in August 2019

Lima, whose disastrous seven-month marriage to Colt Johnson was documented on the hit TLC reality show, was arrested twice in 2018 for domestic battery.

Ultimately, the charges were dismissed after her first arrest and she was never charged for the second.

On the same day her ex-husband filed for divorce from her in January 2019, she was arrested and charged with first-degree domestic battery during an alleged altercation with him.

Lima, whose disastrous seven-month marriage to Colt Johnson was documented on the hit TLC reality show, was previously arrested twice in 2018 for domestic battery; seen in October

In May 2019, her lawyer revealed to Us Weekly her charges 'were set to be reduced down to disorderly conduct upon successful completion of her requirements.'

Earlier this week, Lima unveiled her new body after undergoing a dramatic plastic surgery makeover.

In an effort to look like Kylie Jenner, she underwent $72,000 worth cosmetic surgeries earlier this year, including breast implants, fat transfer to her butt, liposuction for her waist, hips and abs area, a nose job, fillers, Botox and laser facials.

Under the knife: In addition to the body enhancements, Larissa has also had laser facials, fillers and botox done at the Center For Aesthetic Medicine

Larissa is currently living with boyfriend Eric Nichols; they reconciled after briefly splitting up in September 2019 after eight months of dating.

She has two children from previous relationships, a son named Arry with ex boyfriend Marcos Hack; their son lives with his sister - Arry's aunt, whom also adopted him.

She has a daughter from another relationship, who is also lives in her native country of Brazil.
The crime branch of the Government Railway Police (GRP) along with the cybercrime officers arrested a 40-year-old bag-snatcher and recovered jewellery worth 2 lakh from his procession.

According to GRP officers, the accused, Bajirao Maruti Khatkar, was wanted from December 2019. However, he evaded arrest and fled to Kolhapur when train services were shut due to the lockdown.

Assistant inspector Hemraj Sathe from unit 2 of GRP crime branch said, Khatkar had, on December 27, 2019, stole a bag kept on the baggage shelf in a Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus-bound train for Thane. The commuter, who alighted the train at Mulund station, reported the incident to GRP. The commuter said she had jewellery worth 2 lakh and a mobile phone in the bag.

We tried to track down the accused with the help of CCTV at Mulund station, but had not been able to identify him, said Sathe.

During lockdown, when the officers got in touch with informers who said most of the petty criminals had fled to their villages as local trains were shut.

With the help of the cybercrime police officers, we were able to get the call data record of the commuters mobile phone and noticed that several calls had been made to people in Kolhapur. We tracked the phones last location to Kolhapur, added Sathe.

On Friday, GRP officers reached Kolhapur and arrested Khatkar.

Khatkar was going to return to Mumbai once local train services resumed. We recovered the victims jewellery and mobile phone from Khatkar and are now verifying whether he was involved in other bag lifting cases as well, said Sathe.
A US-based team of private investigators have identified a suspect who they believe is responsible for the murder of missing American woman Annie McCarrick.

Michael Griffith, a New York-based lawyer who was hired by Ms McCarrick's family in the 1990s to help with the missing persons investigation, told the Irish Independent that information provided by a member of the public has led to a significant breakthrough in the case.

Mr Griffith arrived in Dublin earlier this week and met a detective from An Garda Siochana in relation to the probe.

"We spent almost two hours talking about the case and we have agreed to share information," he said.

"I am confident that the gardai are serious about solving the case and I think we can establish a relationship that will be mutually beneficial.

"There are serious efforts now being made to solve this case and we are hopeful that we can finally get justice for the McCarrick family."

Earlier this month, the Irish Independent revealed that revealed that Mr Griffith and ex-FBI agent Kenneth Strange are planning to travel to Ireland later this year to try to find out what happened to the 26-year-old in 1993.

The team were contacted by a number of people following an appeal for information about the case, culminating in contact from one particular individual with significant information.

"I can't go into specifics, but this is credible, significant information pertaining to the day Annie went missing," said Mr Griffith.

"We had a lot of people come forward, who were very well intentioned, but the information they had, led us nowhere. In the case of this person, the details provided could lead to the breakthrough we need. They gave specifics relating to one individual that warrants careful investigation."

Mr Griffith also said a separate witness account, not formally given to gardai at the time, also fitted with the new lead.

A woman named Margaret Wogan, who has since passed away, and who worked in Poppies Cafe in Enniskerry, Co Wicklow, is believed to have seen Annie come in with a man on the day she disappeared. Wogan told her daughter about the sighting and the information has recently come to the attention of Mr Griffith and his team.

"The pieces of the puzzle are slowly coming together," said Mr Griffith.

"Sometimes it just takes an effort to refocus people's mind on a particular case to get information flowing. We are now focused on one individual and we are asking people to contact us with anything at all that might help. Contact us or contact the gardai."

Ms McCarrick was 26 when she was last seen taking a bus to Enniskerry.

Her father John, who spent years trying to find out what happened to her, died in 2009 with no answers.

Mr Griffith and Mr Strange have joined forces with Annie's uncle, John Covell, to finally solve the mystery. "We are relying on someone who knows something to come forward," said Mr Griffith.

"We have no body, no DNA and no witnesses but it will only take one person to open up, in confidence, about what they know happened to Annie."

The US-based team is being assisted by Brian McCarthy, an Irish private investigator who was initially hired by the McCarricks when their daughter went missing almost 30 years ago.

Mr McCarthy is leading the revived private inquiry in Ireland and has spent the last number of months following up leads in relation to the case, including the sighting in Poppies Cafe.

"From what she told her daughter, she (Margaret Wogan) was adamant that Annie was in there in the afternoon with a man who fits the description of a suspect I have identified," he said. "The female, if it was Annie, was hesitant about buying something and he said to her, 'Do you want a slice of cake?' He paid for whatever snack she got, and they left. The woman has since passed away, but she gave an initial statement to police. She was not asked to help with an e-fit. We think this sighting is more crucial than initially thought."

Mr McCarthy will meet with detectives later this month to share details of his probe in the hope that further investigations can be made by the authorities here.

According to Mr Griffith, legal advice is being given to the private investigation team by Dublin-based Criminal Lawyer Joe Barnes.

At the time, gardai investigating Ms McCarrick's disappearance collected information to say that Annie visited Johnnie Fox's Pub, in the village of Glencullen, high in the Dublin Mountains.

Mr Griffith and the US-based team do not believe that information to be true.

"She didn't go there," he said.

"Our own investigations have established that the sighting of her in the pub was a case of mistaken identity. This new information would tally with our belief that she didn't go to the pub."

Annie disappeared from her home in Sandymount, Dublin on Friday, March 26, 1993.

The last confirmed sighting of the tall, striking young woman was made by a former work colleague on the Number 44 bus to Enniskerry at approximately 3.30pm.

She told a friend she was going to the beauty spot, at the foot of the Wicklow mountains, for a walk but was never seen again.
Around two thousand women took part in the march - REUTERS

Riot police on Saturday detained hundreds of women, dragging many into vans, as opposition protesters marched through the Belarusian capital Minsk demanding an end to President Alexander Lukashenko's rule.

The women were seized by riot police in black uniforms and balaclavas as well as officers in unmarked khaki uniforms and plain-clothed officers in face masks.

Police blocked the women and began pulling them into police vans as they stood with linked hands, swiftly detaining hundreds, an AFP journalist saw. Police lifted some women off their feet in order to remove them.

Around two thousand women took part in the "Sparkly March", wearing shiny accessories and carrying red-and-white flags of the protest movement.

The march was the latest in a series of all-women protests calling for the strongman to leave following his disputed victory in elections last month.

His opposition rival Svetlana Tikhanovskaya also claimed the victory.

Alleged police violence and torture of detainees following the elections have prompted the European Parliament to call for sanctions against Lukashenko and other members of his regime.

Peaceful protesters are encircled by police and arrested on mass during a women's march - Getty Images Europe

In a statement released ahead of the march, Tikhanovskaya, who has taken refuge in Lithuania, praised the "brave women of Belarus".

"They are marching despite being constantly menaced and put under pressure," she said.

The marchers chanted slogans such as "Get out, you and your riot police!" and "We believe we can win!"

One of the placards read: "Our protest has a woman's face," a reference to the title of a popular book by the Belarusian Nobel prize winner Svetlana Alexievich, who has backed the opposition cause.

Among those detained on Saturday was Nina Baginskaya, a 73-year-old activist who has become one of the best-known faces of the protest movement, known for her plucky antics and regularly celebrated with a chant of "Nina! Nina!".

Police took away the flag and flowers she was carrying as they pushed her into a van but released her outside a police station shortly afterwards.

Story continues

Police detained so many protesters that they ran out of room in vans, releasing around 10 women.

Some women managed to run away and took shelter in a nearby nail bar, Tut.by news site reported.

An elderly woman reacts as police officers detain women during an opposition rally - TUT.by

Ambulances were called after several women became unwell during the detentions. The Belarusian Association of Journalists said that a journalist had been detained and had his nose broken.

Viasna rights group released an online list of names of 217 women detained in Minsk, saying the list was being updated.

Police have not yet given a number of detained.

The protest came as the opposition is due to hold mass demonstrations on Sunday and Tikhanovskaya will meet European Union foreign ministers and the bloc's diplomatic chief in Brussels on Monday.

The women's protests began in Belarus after Lukashenko's use of extreme violence against detained demonstrators.

Women began forming human chains and marching through Minsk and other cities wearing white clothes and carrying flowers in peaceful demonstrations that police initially allowed to go ahead.

Last weekend, police violently detained several dozen at a similar women's protest.

Lukashenko last week warned of a possible "war" with some neighbouring countries and has turned to Russia for support after refusing to step down.
Can Maithripala be a party to destroying his own legacy? View(s):

Most politicians love to leave behind something that they will be remembered by after their departure. That explains why they set up foundations with their name, have buildings and roads named after them and sometimes even fight with their local rivals to claim the right to open a facility (euphemistically called vesting it with the people) where their name will be mentioned on the plaque.

National level politicians will probably like to be remembered by what they achieve for the country at a macro level. What they will be remembered for is often described as their legacy. Dismantling the Apartheid regime in South Africa and granting coloured people their dignity, could be described as Nelson Mandelas legacy.

In the context of the debate revolving around the move to repeal the 19th Amendment it is opportune to examine whose legacy the 19th Amendment is. Undoubtedly the legacy must necessarily be attributed to the then Head of State and Head of Government Maithripala Sirisena. It would not be wrong to say that it is also a shared legacy of Ranil Wickremesinghe too, as the 19th Amendment flowed from the joint mandate given to both of them at the Presidential election of January 15, 2015.

Despite the poor performance in the area of governance, the democratic reforms and the process of institutional strengthening set in motion by the Yahapalana Government through the 19th Amendment remains the invaluable legacy of Maithripala Sirisena and Ranil Wickremesinghe.

After the 19th Amendment the democratic space opened up to such an extent that the two leaders were the subject of the most scathing criticism for their acts of omission and commission from all sections of society. None of these criticisms resulted in these critics suffering any repercussions. Thus a culture of democracy and freedom of expression was set in motion.

In fact one of the repeated boasts of President Maithripala Sirisena was that not one bullet had been fired against protestors or dissidents during his period as President.

In such a context it is difficult to comprehend why President Maithripala Sirisena is becoming a party to the destruction of his own legacy by supporting the 20th Amendment. During the early days of the Yahapalana Government before the cracks set into the administration, Sirisena himself advocated the reduction of the presidential term to four years from six years but was persuaded by Ranil Wickremesinghe to make the term five years.

When the 19th Amendment was being debated in the legislature, in the absence of a majority in Parliament, Sirisena himself spent two full days in Parliament to persuade individual members of the then Joint Opposition to support the 19th Amendment. As a further step to win over the Joint Opposition, the Yahapalana Government went to the extent of watering down some of the provisions of the original bill containing the 19th Amendment.

As a result the 19th Amendment was finally passed in Parliament with near unanimity with only one member voting against.

The main argument put forward in support of replacing the 19th Amendment with the 20th Amendment is that it has created two centres of power which has made governance difficult. In support of this argument the proponents of the 20th Amendment cite the latter period of the Yahapalana Government when President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe could not see eye-to-eye on many matters resulting in a degree of paralysis in Government.

A closer examination of this argument will reveal that the rift in the relationship between the two had nothing to do with the 19th Amendment but rather due to the differences of opinion between the two leaders and their supporters. Unfortunately the two leaders were not able to arrive at a workable relationship that would enable them to manage their different points of view.

That situation does not exist now with the President and Prime Minister drawn from the same political camp and seeing eye to eye on most matters. Besides the Government asked and received a two thirds majority at the parliamentary election to strengthen the hands of the President. In effect, the two centres of power created by the 19th Amendment have, for all purposes, now been transformed into one centre of power by the two thirds majority received by the Government.

An examination of the recent political history of the country, shows that even when leaders with differing political views occupied the position of President and Prime Minister it was possible to ensure a smooth functioning of Government. Under President D. B. Wijetunge (UNP), Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge (SLFP) was elected Prime Minster and the two leaders governed for a period of time without any conflict despite Wijetunges position as Head of State and Head of Government. In 2001 Ranil Wickremesinghe (UNP) became Prime Minister under Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunges (SLFP) Presidency where she functioned as Head of State and Head of Government. and carried on the Government without any major mishaps. Despite the fact that the two leaders were holding differing views with regard to the Ceasefire Agreement entered into with the LTTE by Ranil Wickremesinghe, they were able to evolve a working arrangement which enabled them to continue in Government together until parliamentary elections were called in 2004.

The present Government is not faced with any of the above two scenarios. Under the present dispensation President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in terms of the 19th Amendment is both the Head of State and Head of Government and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has a two thirds majority in Parliament. Both leaders are from the SLPP and there is no likelihood of any conflict between the two that can prevent effective governance in the country.

Writing in support of the 20th Amendment, Neville Laduwahetty one of the more erudite commentators who adopts a reasoned style of argument sans political rhetoric in his writings, in an article in the Island of 19/9/2020 sets out the two major tasks facing the Government as follows:

The two most formidable issues that should engage the full attention of the Government and the nation are:

(1) The need to continue with the very effective measures adopted to contain COVID-19 to prevent the possibility of a resurgance.

(2) The absolute urgency to revive the seriously depressed economy, brought about nationally and globally by the pandemic.

He goes on to laud the Government for its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic as follows:

As far as the first issue is concerned, the Government has demonstrated very effectively that it has the capabilities and organising abilities to implement procedures and practices to maintain the health of the nation to such a degree that the President and the Sri Lankan nation have received international acclaim. An equally encouraging aspect is the support extended by the public to the call of the Government to practice the health safeguards recommended by the Government. What the Government and the nation have collectively achieved is a shining example to the world for which we as a nation could be proud of.

Laduwahettys above comments clearly prove that the 19th Amendment did not prevent the Government from achieving its objectives with regard to containing the COVID-19 pandemic. It clearly demonstrates that the argument that the 19th Amendment impedes the smooth functioning of Government is without basis because it was under the 19th Amendment that the Government was able to act effectively in managing the COVID-19 Pandmeic.

With regard to the second task faced by the Government, Laduwahetty goes on to state

as follows:

The elephant in the room is how to revive the depressed economy. While the measures that need to be adopted are bound to test the skills and ingenuities of the entire nation, an equally important factor that would have a direct bearing is the freedom for the Government, in particular the President and the executive branch, to act without being constrained by the fetters introduced by 19A.

Laduwahetty does not however elaborate or identify what the fetters that the 19th Amendment has introduced, that prevent the President from embarking on a reform program that will revive an ailing economy. As stated earlier with the President and Prime Minister empowered with a two third majority acting in unison there is nothing in the 19th Amendment that can prevent the taking of the necessary steps to address the economic challenges facing the country.

In fact, in contrast, the 20th Amendment may be an inhibiting fact with regard to both national and international investors contributing to the growth of the Sri Lankan economy. The provisions contained in the 20th Amendment that provide immunity from audits to the Presidential Secretariat and the Prime Ministers office, the removal of the Audit Commission and the National Procurement Commission and over 120 State owned businesses not being subject to audits, apart from breeding corruption, could also be a dampner to would be investors.

Strangely no Government spokesperson has come forward to defend and justify such provisions.

(javidyusuf@gmail.com)
Chandrajit Banerjee By

In todays world, businesses have only two choices: Innovate or perish. For example, only 54 of the Fortune 500 companies (ranked by total revenues) from 1955 were still on the list in 2018, and hence the balance from those days have either ceased to exist, merged with (or were acquired by) others, or are still lingering on but have been dislodged from the list of top 500 companies. The uncertainty is more pronounced today than ever before, with a pointer that innovation should be the mantra for all businesses.

Innovation has been the sole reason for the sustenance and prosperity of a company, especially for coping with changing times. Innovation always starts with an idea and as it takes shape, it can impact a large population. Hence, the first requirement of a thriving innovation ecosystem is to encourage minds to ideate and nurture them to their fruition.

Many new firms driven by disruptive innovations are emerging in the world, replacing traditional business offerings with entirely different business models coupled with technology. While companies of the future are now positioning themselves as upcoming new businesses, they also signify new ways of doing existing businesses. These are known for anticipating the needs of the market earlier than their counterparts and tend to disrupt the market with their solutions.

Myriad efforts have been undertaken for creating a favourable ecosystem for such businesses in India. A conducive ecosystem does pave the way for entrepreneurial minds to unlock their potential and start new-age ventures, thus eventually creating a competitive environment. To re-imagine business, India needs to boost its ecosystem for future businesses by intertwining efforts among various stakeholders like the government, industry, academia and society to propel the nation towards a knowledge economy.

Such an ecosystem comprises multiple dimensions, starting with inculcating innovation and entrepreneurship among young people through the education system. Finance availability is another key factor for setting up new businesses, and risk appetite through all stages of venture capital is critical to success. The government has taken several initiatives to boost the innovation and entrepreneurship environment, including Startup India, Digital India, strengthening of the intellectual property rights regime and initiating the Atal Innovation Mission. India today can be counted among the top ranks of countries with start-ups and has done well in creative outputs in the recently released Global Innovation Index.

Given the significance of new businesses of the future, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has curated an enabling and conducive ecosystem that plays an encouraging role in the realisation of many new-age firms, and thus accelerates the way for novel businesses to flourish in India. The CII Future Business Group (FBG) comprises brilliant young leaders of Indias most successful new-age businesses.

The FBG would support the emergence of new technology-led businesses, attract global investment in new business in India and foster government-industry cooperation to help the development of new policies to support these innovative businesses.

It would primarily focus on ramping up investments in critical sectors such as digital businesses, healthcare, infrastructure, advanced manufacturing, education, logistics and agriculture. By fast-tracking the entry and growth of new businesses in India, the initiative aims at encouraging growth and creating jobs. The concept has been supported by the government and at its launch, Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal appealed to Indian industry to engage with youth to encourage entrepreneurship, provide skills and offer mentorship.

He also suggested creating a global platform with like-minded countries to work collectively towards the development of potential new businesses. A Joint Working Group of CII with DPIIT is proposed to formulate a national strategy for the businesses of the future. The CIIs Future Business Group is expected to be quite effective in priming the economic scenario of the country. The group would work closely with the government on policy matters to create an environment that is truly conducive to innovation, experimentation, risk-taking and entrepreneurship across all strata of the society.

The Working Group would undertake exercises on Central, state and sectoral level policy interventions to position India as a favourable investment destination for new businesses. Another significant partnership could be the formation of an FBG Forum for G20 nations. This will be an international platform that can play a key role in shaping tomorrows businesses globally. Industry organisations would have to initiate and start building a network of National FBGs across G20 nations aligned to the overall charter.

As a part of its activities to encourage the entrepreneurial spirit and guide them to evolve into winners, the group in partnership with SoftBank India would organise a Global Unicorn series with the participation of unicorns across the globe to share their journey towards the unicorn glory. By strengthening the new-age business ecosystem, we can build a robust economic foundation for the country.

Chandrajit Banerjee

Director General, Confederation of Indian Industry

(cb@cii.in)


Find all of the most important pandemic education news on Educating N.J., a special resource guide created for parents, students and educators. As schools reopen across N.J., we want to know what is and isnt working. Tell us about it here.

With two weeks of classes in the books for many New Jersey schools, a dozen districts have had to halt in-person instruction because of positive cases of coronavirus.
Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston reunited onscreen for the first time in decades on Thursday with a risque table read of the 1982 film Fast Times At Ridgemont High.

While the former power couple, who divorced in 2005, sent most of the internet buzzing over their scripted flirting, Lili Reinhart expressed her distain over the public's response.

'Unpopular opinion: can we just leave Jennifer and Brad alone?' the 24-year-old CW star tweeted on Friday. 'Stop analyzing their every move and facial expression whenever theyre involved in something together.'

Sensitive: While Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston, who divorced in 2005, sent most internet buzzing over their scripted flirting on Thursday, Lili Reinhart had an 'unpopular opinion' the performance

She concluded: 'Let them live their lives in peace.'

The actress' sensitivity most likely stems from having her own relationship with her ex and current co-star, Cole Sprouse, who parted ways in March, heavily dissected.

Earlier this month, the actress admitted to feeling 'like a prisoner' for having to return to filming Riverdale's fourth season, amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Hollywood's former golden couple reunited onscreen for the first time in decades on Thursday with a risque table read of the 1982 film Fast Times At Ridgemont High.

Relatable: The actress' sensitivity most likely stems from having her own relationship with her ex and current Riverdale co-star, Cole Sprouse, extensively dissected; seen in 2019

Unlike Reinhart, who has to fulfill her Riverdale shooting obligations in person, Pitt and Aniston were able to reunite virtually to raise money for a coronavirus charity.

During their performance Brad, 56, took on the role of Brad Hamilton, originally played by Judge Reinhold, 63, while his ex-wife, 51, played high school 'sex queen' Linda Barrett, portrayed by Phoebe Cates, 57, in the coming-of-age teenage dramedy.

The former couple shared a screen together during the film's daydream sequence which takes place after Brad arrives at a pool party hosted by his younger sister Stacy Hamilton, played by Oscar-winning actress Julia Roberts, 52.

Flirty: During their performance Brad, 56, took on the role of Brad Hamilton, originally played by Judge Reinhold, 63, while his ex-wife, 51, played high school 'sex queen' Linda Barrett, portrayed by Phoebe Cates, 57, in the coming-of-age teenage dramedy

Star-studded reunion: The former couple shared a screen together during the film's daydream sequence which takes place after Brad arrives at a pool party hosted by his younger sister Stacy Hamilton, played by Oscar-winning actress Julia Roberts, 52

Jennifer wore a red bikini top over a white tank top for the scene during the live virtual table read and Brad brought a pirate hat for his character's fast-food restaurant employee costume.

The duo had to recreate one of the film's most risque scenes, where Jennifer's character Linda walks in on Brad's character 'daydreaming' about her topless in the bathroom as she looks for Q-tips.

Previously, the Oscar winner famously made a guest appearance on Jennifer's hit TV sitcom Friends in 2001, a year into their marriage.

Memorable: Brad famously made a guest appearance on Jennifer's hit TV sitcom Friends in 2001, a year into their marriage

Jennifer and Brad got married in Malibu, California, in July 2000 and announced their separation fives years later.

He then famously confirmed his romance with now ex-wife Angelina Jolie in 2006 after meeting on the set of film Mr. & Mrs. Smith in 2005.

Since their high-profile split, Jennifer married American actor Justin Theroux in 2015 but the two split in 2017.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 11:43:16|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for carrying out in-depth study of the Yan'an spirit and vigorously promoting and carrying forward the spirit.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in a letter to congratulate the China Yan'an Spirit Research Society on the opening of its sixth congress in Beijing on Saturday and on its 30th founding anniversary. Enditem
China Insider: Twitter Bans Account of Virologist Who Alleged CCP Virus Was Created in Lab

U.S. Issues Sweeping New Travel Warning for China, Hong Kong

On September 15, the United States issued a sweeping new advisory warning against travel to mainland China and Hong Kong, citing the risk of arbitrary detention and arbitrary enforcement of local laws. The advisory is likely to heighten tensions between the sides that have spiked since Beijings imposition on Hong Kong of a strict new national security law in June that has already been met with a series of U.S. punitive actions. The statement warned U.S. citizens that China imposes arbitrary detention and exit bans to compel cooperation with investigations, pressure family members to return to China from abroad, influence civil disputes, and gain bargaining leverage over foreign governments. The advisory said: U.S. citizens traveling or residing in China or Hong Kong, maybe detained without access to U.S. consular services or information about their alleged crime. U.S. citizens may be subjected to prolonged interrogations and extended detention without due process of law.

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Twitter Bans Account of Virologist Who Alleged CCP Virus Was Created in Lab

Twitter has suspended the account of a Chinese virologist who claimed to have evidence showing that the CCP virus was manufactured in a lab. On September 14, Dr. Yan Limeng, who fled Hong Kong to the United States in April, released a study claiming that the virus shows biological characteristics that are inconsistent with a naturally occurring, zoonotic virus and thus should be a laboratory product. The study has not been peer-reviewed. Twitter quickly banned Yans account following her tweet announcing the study. The account, which Yan only opened on September 13, had garnered over 59,000 followers in its short lifespan. Yan said that the scientific community has kept silence and worked together with the Chinese Communist Party to censor studies that came to similar conclusions.

EU Pushes the CCP on Trade and Human Rights at Virtual Summit

European Union leaders held a video summit with Chinese leaders on September 14. EU leaders criticized the CCP for failing to abide by international commitments on issues such as trade, human rights violations in Hong Kong and Xinjiang, and the South China Sea. They asked Xi Jinping to make improvements and said that the EU would not continue to be treated unfairly. Critics believe that the good times between the CCP and the EU are gone forever. German Chancellor Merkel said that the European Union put pressure on Xi Jinping, demanding China make progress on the investment agreement. The PRC is the EUs second-largest trading partner after the United States. The daily bilateral trade volume between China and the EU exceeds 1 billion euros. Chinese Canadian writer Sheng Xue said that out of consideration of its own economic interests, the European Union has not done a good job in the past regarding issues on violations of human rights by the CCP.

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Dubai, Sep 19 : Kings XI Punjab on Saturday confirmed that Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell will be available for selection for their opening game of the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) against Delhi Capitals.

On their official website, Kings XI Punjab informed that Maxwell arrived in the UAE on September 17 following Australia's England tour.

"He would now be required to complete only a three-day quarantine period in the team hotel instead of the normal five, as per regulations, as he arrived into the country from an already bio-secure bubble in England," Kings XI said.

"With his quarantine period scheduled to be complete on Saturday, Maxwell would be eligible for selection for Kings XI Punjab's season opener against Delhi Capitals on September 20," it added.

Maxwell was in great form in the recently concluded T20I and ODI series against England. He was was the Player of the Series in the ODI series which Australia won 2-1.

With Maxwell's arrival in the UAE, Kings XI's 25-member squad for IPL 13 is now complete, with the likes of Mujeeb ur Rahman, Nicholas Pooran and Sheldon Cottrell arriving earlier in the week.

With the full squad having arrived in the UAE and no injuries being reported yet, Anil Kumble and the rest of the Kings XI Punjab management will have a full roster of 25 players to choose from for their season opener on Sunday.

Latest updates on IPL 2020
The blitz of deal-cutting over funding of the Edwards Aquifer protection program finally over, community leaders are realizing the future of the citys popular greenway trail system isnt nearly as secure.

No money has been allocated for the Howard W. Peak Greenway Trail System, a series of liner parks, accessible bike and hike trails along many of San Antonios waterways considered a jewel in the citys outdoor attractions.

Were feeling left out, said Greg Hammer, the chair of the Linear Creekway Parks Advisory Board. It feels like the rugs been pulled right out from under us.

Both the aquifer program and the trails have been funded since 2000 by a 1/8-cent sales tax approved by voters four times.

Yet this November, voters wont see either the aquifer protection or the greenway trails on the ballot. This time, the choice will be whether to use that same sales tax for an economic recovery package and whether to expand VIA, the citys mass transit system.

In place of the tax money, the aquifer protection program was guaranteed $100 million for 10 years from the citys general fund starting in October 2022 in a measure the City Council approved Thursday.

But theres nothing side aside for the greenway trails.

The program appears to be in limbo, Hammer said. Without a sustainable funding source, the future of this valuable program is in jeopardy.

Though the trails are mainly used for recreation, Hammer emphasized that once the trail system is complete, it would provide a viable non-motorized transportation network, creating a ring and spokes around the entire city.

Photos by Lisa Krantz /Staff photographer

Back in March, Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff asked the San Antonio River Authority to compile a list of projects for the county to consider funding. The authority submitted a $240 million plan with 22 projects for its river and creek program, which the Bexar County Commissioners Court approved later that month.

About $83.5 million of that was planned to complete 26.2 miles of Peak greenway trails, said Suzanne Scott, the general manager of the San Antonio River Authority.

On ExpressNews.com: Pharmacy chain opens additional drive-thru testing sites in San Antonio

However, due to the economic devastation wrought by the coronavirus pandemic, the county has temporarily halted its plans to move forward with the funding, Wolff said in a letter to Mayor Ron Nirenberg on Wednesday.

The Commissioners Court is waiting until next spring to identify funding for the project, Wolff said.

Itll be April before we know whether well be able to go to the voters on a bond election and we havent decided yet, Wolff said in a Sept. 10 Commissioners Court meeting. Personally, I support it, but we havent decided anything.

We have to wait to see whether we have the financial capability to do any of these things.

Lisa Krantz / Staff photographer

In 2015, when the sales tax was last approved, the greenway system was slated to receive $80 million. Between 2000 and 2015, the sales tax funneled $110 million into the trails.

Between October 2015 and September 2020, the greenway trails have collected $71 million from the sales tax and are expected to reach the full $80 million in spring 2021, said Chris Espinoza, a spokesman with the citys Parks and Recreation Department.

About 70 miles of the greenway have been completed, with an additional 39 miles in the design, construction or land acquisition phases that are already funded, city staff reported in February. There are still 71 miles to go at an estimated cost of $279 million.

Of those 71 miles, 26 are the ones included in the plan delayed by the county. The other 45 miles are completely up in the air. But Deputy City Manager Maria Villagomez said at a City Council meeting in February that the city would work with Bexar County to fund the remainder or the city would recommend funding from a bond program in 2027.

On ExpressNews.com: COVID-19 delays San Antonio mans execution

While most of the North Side trails are complete, gaps remain on the South and West sides.

We cant be a city that only provides that type of amenity if you live in the far suburbs and not in the oldest parts of San Antonio, said Councilwoman Ana Sandoval of District 7. How we move forward on this issue is going to demonstrate our commitment to equity in San Antonio.

Wolff said he is particularly supportive of the West and South Side greenway projects, saying they have been overlooked for many years.

Councilmen Roberto Trevino and Clayton Perry protested the alternative funding measure for the aquifer protection program Thursday, saying the council should wait to see the outcome of the November election and re-evaluate bringing back the sales tax if voters reject the economic recovery and/or transportation initiatives.

Lisa Krantz /Staff photographer

The future is uncertain, Trevino repeated Friday. Were already in a very depressed economic climate. Its reduced revenues for the city and the county.

He said its going to be difficult to find funds for the greenway.

This is an emergency and an emergency leaves us to think about the things that are impacted today, not to create a plan for the future, Trevino said. Were trying to deal with a fire and talking about building a fire station instead of putting out the fire.

Liz Hardaway is a staff writer covering San Antonio government and politics. To read more from Liz, become a subscriber. liz.hardaway@hearst.com | Twitter: @liz_hardaway
Ghana's Central Region's Gomoa Buduburam's Camp Liberia refugee settlement area, is one of the most dynamic rural communities, in all of our very beautiful country. Fascinating place. Fun-filled. And, it really is worthy of being explored, by adventurous-traveller-types from around the world, who love Africa. Definitely.

And, in a sense, it has the soul of Liberian society, constantly hovering over it, to comfort the remainder, of the Liberian refugees, still living there, because they have opted to be integrated into Ghanaian society.

Despite the desperate lack of economic opportunities for the area's many young people, which is noticeable by the many Camp Liberia youthful-fashionistas killing time creatively, there is still so much infectious humour, which daily fills the charming-atmosphere, in Camp Liberia. That, and the loud music, blasted out from loudspeakers, which are ubiguitous features, across the Camp Liberia landscape, make the place such a marvellous cultural-melting-pot-of-many-nationalities, and fun-loving rural community.

To say that Camp Liberia is full of energy that is incredibly infectious - like all melting-pot-communities worldwide - is an understatement. It simply has be experienced. Unfortunately, it has also has a negative image, which, in one's humble view, really is undeserved. Totally.

Luckily, in the not too distant future, thanks to the generosity of the UK social-impact NGO, Loving Humanity, and the Bushira Makuyi Foundation, a creative social and economic empowerent initiative, for females in Camp Liberia, will eventually bring economic opportunities for many of Camp Liberia's poorest-of-the-poor amongst the area's female population.

That female-empowerment opportunity, is being made possible, by a gifted unit of Amy Peake's (aka the Sanitary-pad-missionary), famed sanitary-pad-factory-in-a-shipping-container export-units. And the freight and insurance costs involved in shipping it to Ghana, when cleared and transported to Camp Liberia, will be borne by the Bushira Makuyi Foundation. Marvellous.

As it happens, the Bushira Makuyi Foundation's founder, the genius-entrepreneur, Mrs. Bushira Makuyi Ansah, also co-owns the leading logistics company, Lavita Ghana Limited, with her dynamic husband, Mr. Samuel Agyin Ansah. They also co-own one of the best equipped, and most modern printing presses, in West Africa, SpeedPrints.

It ought to be pointed out that the Bushira Makuyi Foundation's must important contribution, has been to design a social-impact-business-model, which will enable groups of ten women in Camp Liberia, to buy the sanitary pads, and incontinent pads, on credit, sell them, and then repay the factory. Brilliant.

The lucky Camp Liberia women's cooperative society, which will own the factory, is led by local pillars, the popular and hardworking businesswoman, Hajia Tenneh Kamara, and the equally hardworking, and very wise, Prophetess Felicia Toe, whose All Believers Prayer Ministry Church, in Camp Liberia, was founded in the 90s, when the first wave of Liberian refugees arrived in Ghana.

Like all such diverse melting-pot-communities the world over, there are some very good and interesting people, as well as some not-so-nice individuals (often Nigerian illegal immigrants, who are members of local criminal-syndicates), which one needs to be wary of. The question that needs pondering over is: Does the same situation not also pertain elsewhere, even in parts of great global cities such as: New York City; London; Amsterdam; etc., etc.?

Finally, for those adventurous-types seeking truly authentic, off-the-beaten-track rural communities, in Africa, to explore, Ghana's Central Region's Gomoa Buduburam Camp Liberia refugee settlement area, is a fascinating, fun-filled and interesting place to visit. I live nearby - and recommend it to all adventure-seeking travellers. Definitely. Cool.
Celina Jaitly has penned a heartbreaking note about losing her best friend, within a few years of losing her parents and a son. The actor is mother to three boys and lives with her husband Peter Haag and kids in Austria.

Sharing a lovely picture with her late friend Viraj Rai on Instagram, Celina wrote, Amongst all the terrible things that happened these 2 years, I must find the courage to say goodbye to my best friend too. Its the kind of heartache you can feel in your bones. Dearest Viraj @virajrai17 you have no idea of the amount of happiness, laughter and encouragement you brought into my life.... 25 years of soul connection .... and now you are gone. Life will never be the same without you..... Viraaj ... I will never be the same without you..... Hold a place for me among the stars, one day we shall all be together again. Until then ... Auf Wiedersehen #restinpeace #friendinheaven #celinajaitly #celinajaitley #lossofalovedone #rip #heartbroken.

Celina had lost her father, one of her twin sons in 2017 and her mother in 2018. She went into depression post the tragic loss. She had told Gulf News in an interview, You can never find closure when you lose the most important and valuable things in your life. Daddy had just passed away and suddenly mama too  My parents were so full of life and they were this young, military army couple. The truth is you can never get closure from losing your parents. But this movie helped me a vent a lot of emotions I am not getting treatment in Austria for the past one year.

Also read: Kangana Ranaut hails UP CM Yogi Adityanaths announcement of film city near Noida, urges PMO to unite all film industries into one

Her husband, hotelier Peter Haag, gave up his job in Dubai to move her and family to Austria. She told the portal, Peter left his job because I was suffering from such severe depression that we had no option but to leave Dubai. He said: Lets go back to Austria and let us disconnect from everything till you get better. That really helped me and getting my husbands support in this meant a lot.

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The U.S. has deployed additional troops and armored vehicles into eastern Syria after a number of clashes with Russian forces, including a recent vehicle collision that injured four American service members.

Navy Capt. Bill Urban, spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said the U.S. has also sent in radar systems and increased fighter jet patrols over the region to better protect American and coalition forces.

"The United States does not seek conflict with any other nation in Syria, but will defend Coalition forces if necessary, said Urban.

A senior U.S. official said a half-dozen Bradley fighting vehicles and fewer than 100 additional troops were sent in to eastern Syria. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details of the military move, said the reinforcements are meant to be a clear signal to Russia to avoid any more unsafe and provocative actions against the U.S. and its allies there.

There have been a number of escalating incidents this year between U.S. and Russian forces who patrol in eastern Syria. The most serious was last month, when officials said Russian vehicles sideswiped an light-armored U.S. military vehicle, injuring four Americans. A U.S. official said at the time that two Russian helicopters also flew above the Americans, and one of the aircraft was within about 70 feet (20 meters) of the vehicle.

The deployment of the armored vehicles was first reported by NBC News.

Russia, which backs the Syrian government, has long opposed American presence in the country. The Russian Defense Ministry blamed the U.S. for the vehicle collision. The ministry said Russia had notified the U.S.-led coalition about the Russian military police convoy's route and said the U.S tried to block the Russian patrol.

Gen. Frank McKenzie, head of U.S. Central Command, said, however, that the Russian troops were in an area they were not supposed to be. They were not in an area that they had received permission to go to. And their actions were frankly reckless at the tactical level.

In recent remarks to a small group of reporters, he said that while the U.S. has a pretty effective de-confliction channel with the Russians, they did not do any coordination with us" on that patrol. He added that the U.S. would take whatever measures are necessary to ensure that when were out there patrolling our men and women are going to be safe and theyre going to be able to do the task that they were sent there to do.

The four American service members injured in the crash received concussions. U.S. troops are usually accompanied by members of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces on the patrols, and they have stayed in the region to root out remaining Islamic State insurgents.

The crash last month took place near Dayrick, in northeast Syria, where Russian troops should generally not be present. National Security Council spokesman John Ullyot said the U.S. patrol left the area to deescalate the situation.

While there have been several other recent incidents between the American and Russian troops in eastern Syria, officials have described the August crash as the most concerning.

This is the second time that Bradleys have been sent into Syria. They were used last October in operations with U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in missions to defeat the remnants of the Islamic State group and protect oil fields in that area.

The Bradley units are from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, based at Fort Bliss, Texas.

The mechanized infantry assets will help ensure the force protection of coalition forces in an increasingly complex operating environment in northeast Syria, said Col. Wayne Marotto, spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition. The Coalition forces remain steadfast in our commitment of ensuring the enduring defeat of Daesh.
By Michelle Nichols

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Britain, France and Germany told the U.N. Security Council on Friday that U.N. sanctions relief for Iran - agreed under a 2015 nuclear deal - would continue beyond Sept. 20, when the United States asserts that all the measures should be reimposed.

In a letter to the 15-member body, seen by Reuters, the three European parties to the nuclear deal and long-time U.S. allies said any decision or action taken to reimpose U.N. sanctions "would be incapable of legal effect." The United States quit the nuclear deal in 2018.

"We have worked tirelessly to preserve the nuclear agreement and remain committed to do so," said the U.N. envoys for Britain, France and Germany, adding that they remain committed to "fully implementing" a 2015 Security Council resolution that enshrines the pact, which also included Russia and China.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said last month that he triggered a 30-day process at the Security Council leading to a return of U.N. sanctions on Iran on Saturday (2000 EDT/0000 GMT Sunday) that would also prevent a conventional arms embargo on Tehran from expiring on Oct. 18.

But 13 of the Security Council members say Washington's move is void because it is no longer a party to the nuclear deal. The United States say it can make the move because the 2015 Security Council resolution still names it as a participant.

Diplomats say few countries are likely to reimpose the measures, which were lifted under the deal that aimed to stop Iran developing nuclear weapons.

U.S. President Donald Trump plans to issue an executive order in the coming days allowing him to impose U.S. sanctions on anyone who violates the U.N. arms embargo on Iran, sources have told Reuters, in a bid to reinforce the U.S. assertion that the measure has been extended indefinitely beyond Oct. 18.

(Reporting by Michelle Nichols, Editing by Franklin Paul and Tom Brown)
A retired Alabama businessman was forced to pay a $250,000 ransom after he was kidnapped during a home invasion this month.

Elton B. Stephens Jr. was returned safely to his rental home in Birmingham, Alabama, just hours after he was abducted by two suspects on September 11.

AL.com reports that Stephens awoke around 7am that morning to find two suspects, identified as Matthew Amos Burke and Tabatha Nicole Hodges, inside the home.

Burke was standing over Stephens when he woke up, the report said.

Authorities believe the pair had been inside the home since 2am and had already stolen three firearms, including two pistols and a shotgun.

Elton B. Stephens Jr. (pictured), a retired Alabama businessman, was kidnapped during a home invasion last week by two suspects

They reportedly told Stephens that they would kill him if he called for help and hauled him away to a trailer around an hour away in St. Clair County.

There, they forced the 75-year-old to wire $250,000 into their account, AL.com reports.

Stephens is the son of Elton Bryson Stephens Sr., an American businessman who founded EBSCO Industries in 1944.

According to Forbes, the Stephens family was worth $4billion as of 2014 and ranked No. 66 on the list of America's richest families that year.

The publication reported that EBSCO Industries, which has more than 40 business units, had a revenue of $2.8million and was listed at No. 166 on America's Largest Private Companies in 2019.

AL.com reports that after wiring the ransom, Stephens was returned to his home unharmed and authorities were alerted.

Stephens told authorities that he did not known either suspect, and did not know the two children, aged 11 and 14, who were reportedly with them.

Matthew Amos Burke and Tabatha Nicole Hodges (left to right) were arrested in connection of Stephen's kidnapping, as well as the stolen items from his home

The suspects also stole a digital camera, credit and debit cards, his Toyota truck, a checkbook, a cooler and watches valued around $2,500 from Stephens' rental home that morning, ABC 3340 reports.

Those items and the $250,000 have since been recovered.

Burke, 34, and Hodges, 33, were charged burglary, kidnapping an adult for ransom, theft of property and extortion.

They remained in custody without bail on Friday at the Jefferson County Jail.

Tommy Spina, Stephen's attorney, told AL.com in a statement that his client needed to time to process the traumatic experience.

'Elton Stephens Jr. was kidnapped in a home invasion last Friday. I ask that his privacy be respected by the press and the public to allow him time and space to process and deal with these very traumatizing circumstances,' the statement said.

'We are thankful and grateful for the hard work of the Birmingham Police Department, the Jefferson County District Attorneys Office, the FBI, the Secret Service and the U.S. Attorneys office for their hard work in investigating this horrid life experience for Mr. Stephens.'

Authorities have declined to release any additional information regarding the case.
A unique case of a 32-year-old inmate hiding four mobile phones in his rectum has surfaced from the Jodhpur central jail in Rajasthan.

The inmate-- a native of Barmer who was convicted in a case of unnatural offence-- complained of intolerable pain in his stomach and rectum on Friday after which he was rushed to a hospital, leading to the discovery, said jail officials.

On Friday morning, the inmate identified as Deva Ram, who is lodged in Jodhpur central jail for the last 18-months, started suffering unbearable pain. When asked about the cause, he confessed to have forcefully inserted mobile phones in his rectum. He was immediately rushed to the hospital, said Kailash Trivedi, Jodhpur central jail superintendent.

Also Read: Raj govt to legalise mines supplying stone for building Ram Temple in Ayodhya

When X-ray and Sonography tests of the inmate were done, the doctors found four small mobile headsets wrapped in plastic polythene inside his rectum.

After X-ray and Sonography, it was clear that Deva Ram had hidden four mobile phones in his rectum and they were taken out with the help of a small surgery, the jail official added.

Also Read: Rajasthan govt to provide free coaching to civil services aspirants

As of now, the condition of Deva Ram is stable. Once discharged, the jail officials will quiz him to find out who supplied him mobile phones inside the jail.

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Two men, both 27, both were wounded, one of them in the arm and the other was grazed in the back. The man who was grazed refused medical help and the other man was taken in fair condition to the University of Chicago Medical Center.
President Akufo-Addo on Friday received the letters of credence of five new envoys accredited by their respective countries to begin their duty tour of Ghana.

The envoys are: Tiemoko Moriko of Cote D'Ivoire, Daniela d'Orlandi from Italy, Austrialia's Gregory Andrews, Mohammed Abdelrahman Yasin Mohamed from Sudan and Jan Fury of the Czech Republic.

At separate ceremonies at the Jubilee House, Accra, the new envoys relayed the best wishes of their respective governments to President Akufo-Addo for his election as the Chairman of ECOWAS and expressed confidence in him to provide the right leadership to surmount the region's challenges.

They also commended Ghana for leading the integration agenda on the continent and for hosting the secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

They expressed their commitments to further deepen the ties of friendship between their countries and to seek new opportunities for cooperation for the mutual benefit of thier nations and Ghana.

Sudanese Envoy Mohamed Abdelrahman Yasin Mohamed who first presented his credentials, said he looked forward to further strengthen the cordial and constructive relations that exist between the two countries.

I promise to take this responsibility with all due seriousness and dedication, and to exert possible effort to discharge it

Mr Mohamed said Sudan viewed Ghana as a model of peace, political stability, beacon of democracy and economic issues, saying

we acknowledge and admire the positive and active role that Ghana plays in peace building and peace keeping endeavour in the continent and beyond

He told the President that Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council and government was keen on ending the war, building sustainable peace among others, to advance the socio-economic fortunes of that country.

Ivorian ambassador designate, Moriko, relayed the best wishes of Cote d'Ivoire's leader Alassanne Ouatarra to President Akufo-Addo on his recent election as the chairperson of the ECOWAS.

He noted the cordial relations that has existed between the two countries over the years and the forming of strategic partnerships that had mutually benefited both countries.

Mr Moriko mentioned one such joints efforts between Ghana and Cote d'ivoire, the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA), which to him, would consolidate the foundation of an ambitious cooperation between the two countries.

The agreement which was signed between the two countries in 2017, set up a strategic co-operation framework, that covers the areas of Defence and Security; Cocoa and cashew economy and other strategic crops; Maritime cooperation; Mining, energy and environment; Transport; and Economic policies.

Moriko pledged to further strengthen ties between the two countries at the political and economic fronts.

When he took his turn, the Austrialian envoy, Mr Andrews said he was optimistic that the long-standing relations and history of partnership between his country and Ghana would be strengthened further.

He said both nations shared the same important values of democracy, freedom equal opportunity and optimism for the future.

The envoy was particularly impressed with Ghana's management of the COVID-19 pandemic, saying, Here in Ghana, the government responded quickly and, like in Australia, has consistently put people, safety and science first.

Mr Andrews lauded Ghana's leadership on economics, free trade and the hosting of the Secretariat of African Continental Free Trade Area and for its principle of self-determination through the 'Ghana Beyond Aid' vision.

I particularly admire the President's Ghana Beyond Aid approach. And it is terrific to see Ghana as the host of the African Free Trade Agreement. I know Ghana is setting an example of how we can all work together to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals," he said.

Mr Fury, the Czech ambassador recounted the diplomatic ties between the two countries, which dated back to 1959 during the time of Ghana's first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, adding, We would like to continue in this tradition of support and cooperation. 

He referred to the number of high level political and business exchanges that took place between both nations last year, all in the bid to further strengthen ties, and pledged his country's commitment to ongoing cooperation in the field of development.

Mr Fury said his country welcomed the industrialisation vision of Ghana and the Ghana Beyond Aid agenda, saying that Czech companies could make significant contribution in that direction.

Additionally, he was optimistic that cooperation which were mostly focused in areas of health care, infrastructure agriculture and security would be advanced to include other opportunities in power generation and distribution, Agro -processing and water and sanitation.

The Czech envoy placed emphasis in the fact that the quality of relations between the two countries would be determined to a great extent by the intensity of their economic cooperation.

One of our goals is therefore to negotiate the Agreement on Protection of Investments and sign the Economic Cooperation Agreement with Ghana.

We seek to fully exploit all opportunities of multilateral diplomacy; hence we will not hesitate to access funds from different sources including the European Development Fund to enhance the development cooperation between Ghana and the Czech Republic 

The Italian envoy, Madam Daniela d'Orlandi extolled Ghana's democratic credentials and for her commitment to the implementation of the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals.

She said the relations between Italy and Ghana remained excellent and had grown over the years leading to high level exchanges, with a common commitment to combat terrorism, piracy innthe Gulf of Guinea and for the stabilisation of the Sahealian belt.

Madam d'Orlandi appauded Ghana's role in pushing forward the African integration agenda.

She pledged to do her best to fortify and promote investment, credit opportunities and trade cooperation between Itali and Ghana.

President Akufo-Addo, on his part, congratulated the new envoys on their appointment and welcomed them to Ghana.

He expressed his administration's commitment to deepen the relations between Ghana and their respective countries.

The President said Ghana's commitment to work together within ECOWAS, the AU and within the world body was one of the important basis of the country's foreign policy.

He described the African Continental Free Area (AfCFTA) agreement as one of the most important decisions of the African Union, and said Ghana was committed to the integration agenda of the continent and would pull all stops to ensure its success.

If, indeed, it works, it would be a major platform to the development and empowerment of the continent, he said.

He wished the envoys a successful duty tour of Ghana.

GNA
The Flagbearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has assured the chiefs and people of Yeji that he will treat as a priority and complete an abandoned landing beach project he started , if he wins the 2020 elections.



That, he said would facilitate the movement of goods and services.



The former President is also promising to restructure the premix fuel committees for the various landing beaches across the country to give control to the fishermen and block diversions.



Addressing a mini durbar at Yeji in the Pru East Constituency, on the second day of his tour of the Bono East region, the NDC leader expressed concerns about the current premix distribution system that denied direct beneficiaries access to the subsided product.



The former President said the NDC 2020 Manifesto, which had direct input from ordinary Ghanaians, representd a blue print that would directly address their priority needs.



He made reference to the skills training programmes, free TVET, the pledge to withdraw the law banning the importation of accident vehicles, scrap import duties on commercial vehicles and agricultural equipment, the One million jobs plan, a $10bn Big Push investment, and establishment of Agriculture Mechanisation Centres to boost production, food processing, marketing, among others, as big initiatives intended to improve the lives of all.



Responding to other needs of the people, Mr. Mahama promised them a new market at Yeji, and the completion of a hospital project started by the NDC administration.

Source: GNA









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News of a meeting between borough staff, Mayor Jan Hill and the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) regarding Lutak Dock repair needs is generating interest among local conservation groups.

In a Sept. 14 email, Lynn Canal Co...
The current phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in India is on multiple trajectories across urban and semi-urban areas with Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Delhi being the most affected, the Lok Sabha was informed on Friday. Since the country has a huge population, it is expected that there would be a large number of cases every day," Minister of State (MoS) for Health Ashwini Choubey said in a written reply.

He also underlined that COVID-19 cases and deaths per million population in India is among the lowest if one were to compare between similarly affected countries. The epidemic curve of any pandemic goes through an ascending, peaking and descending phase, the MoS said.

The most affected states and union territories in the country are Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Delhi, he said. Elaborating on the series of actions taken by the government to prevent, control and mitigate the impact of COVID-19, Choubey said India followed a whole of government and whole of society approach". Public health actions were taken in a pre-emptive, pro-active, graded manner based on the evolving scenario," he said.

The MoS said a number of travel advisories were issued restricting the inflow of international travellers, till such a time, commercial flights were suspended on March 23. Till then, a total of 14,154 flights with 15,24,266 passengers were screened at airports. Screening was done at 12 major and also at 65 minor ports and land border crossings, he said. In the initial part of the pandemic, India brought back a large number of stranded passengers from countries like China, Italy, Iran, Japan and Malaysia, and again in the Unlock phase, a total of 13,18,891 passengers were brought back, as on September 14, and followed up, Choubey informed.

India had reported 451 COVID-19 cases and nine deaths till March 23 which increased to 36,91,166 cases and 65,288 fatalities, the minister said. Indias COVID-19 mounted to 52,14,677 with 96,424 people testing positive in a day, while the death toll climbed to 84,372 with the virus claiming 1,174 lives in a span of 24 hours, health ministry data updated at 8 am on Friday showed. The Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) is conducting contact tracing through community surveillance and as on September 14, a total of about 40 lakh persons have been kept under surveillance, he said.

The MoS said that as on September 15, a total of 15,360 COVID treatment facilities with 13,20,881 dedicated isolation beds without oxygen support have been created. He said there are also, a total of 2,32,516 oxygen supported isolation beds and 63,194 ICU beds, including 32,409 ventilator beds. So far 1.41 crore of PPE kits, 3.44 crore N-95 masks, 10.84 crore tablets of hydroxychloroquine and 30,663 ventilators and 1,02,400 oxygen cylinders have been supplied to states, UTs, central government hospitals, as on September 14, the Lok Sabha was informed.

MoS Choubey said that various cadre of personnel and volunteers across sectors and departments for COVID related works and maintenance of other essential medical services have been worked out, trained through resources made available on the website of MoHFW, iGOT (online platform) by the DOPT. He said a dedicated call centre and helpline (1075) has been started to guide citizens.

No specific antivirals have been proven effective so far. Symptomatic treatment for fever and cough, appropriate rehydration, supplemental oxygen therapy remains the mainstay of treatment," the minister said. The drug Hydroxychloroquine has been recommended for treatment of mild (but high-risk cases) and for moderate cases. In addition, provisions for investigational therapies has also been made for using Remdesivir, convalescent plasma and Tocilizumab for managing severe cases under close medical supervision, Choubey said. Guidelines on clinical management of COVID-19 cases were issued and are being regularly updated and widely circulated, he said. Testing and treatment of COVID-19 is free in all government facilities, the MoS said, adding that health is a State subject. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare does not maintain state-wise data on average cost, treatment cost etc," the minister said.


Notification of Upcoming Annual General Meeting

Perth, Sep 18, 2020 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Wiluna Mining Corporation Limited ( ASX:WMX ) advises that, in accordance with ASX Listing Rules 3.13.1 and 14.3, and clause 12.2 of its Constitution, its next Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held on 19 November 2020.In addition, the closing date for the receipt of nominations from persons wishing to be considered for election as a director is 1 October 2020. Any nominations must be received in writing no later than 5.00pm (WST) on 1 October 2020 at the Company's registered office.Shareholders will be advised of further details regarding the AGM in a separate Notice of Meeting, which is anticipated to be provided to shareholders during October 2020. The Notice of Meeting will also be available on the ASX Company Announcements Platform and the Company's website at www.wilunamining.com.auAbout Wiluna Mining Corporation Ltd

Wiluna Mining Corporation (ASX:WMC) (OTCMKTS:WMXCF) is a Perth based, ASX listed gold mining company that controls over 1,600 square kilometres of the Yilgarn Craton in the Northern Goldfields of WA. The Yilgarn Craton has a historic and current gold endowment of over 380 million ounces, making it one of most prolific gold regions in the world. The Company owns 100% of the Wiluna Gold Operation which has a defined resource of 8.04M oz at 1.67 g/t au. In May 2019, a new highly skilled management team took control of the Company with a clear plan to leverage the Wiluna Gold Operation's multi-million-ounce potential.
After months of saying different regions of the province require different approaches to limiting the spread of COVID-19, Premier Doug Ford announced a blanket reduction in permitted social gathering sizes on Saturday  10 indoors and 25 outdoors  that applies across the province, effective immediately.

Only two days ago, Ford had imposed those limits in Toronto, Peel Region and Ottawa, saying it was too soon to apply the restrictions province-wide.

Saturday morning, health authorities announced 407 new daily cases of the coronavirus  the second day in a row above 400  numbers Ford called alarming growth in the number of COVID cases in Ontario.

Three weeks ago, we were around 80 cases. A week ago, we were around 200 cases. Now, were over 400 cases and climbing. Folks, the alarm bells are ringing, Ford said at a news conference. Too much of it is being tied to people who arent following the rules. People who think its OK to hold parties, to carry on as if things are back to normal. They arent.

We need to take decisive action as we did in the earlier stages of COVID, to protect our vulnerable and to protect the progress weve made together, he said.

The new province-wide social gathering limits will be in place for the next 28 days, the premier said, specifying that hosts cannot combine the indoor and outdoor limits at the same gathering to boost the number of legal invitees.

The new indoor limits will not apply to staffed facilities including movie theatres, restaurants, places of worship, banquet halls, gyms and convention centres, he said.

Critics were quick to point out that they dont apply to schools, where the provinces reopening plan does not mandate smaller class sizes.

In addition to a province wide rollback in social gathering limits we need to see a province wide rollback on class sizes, said NDP Deputy Leader Sara Singh in a statement. How could Doug Ford believe its not safe to have more than 10 people in a gathering, but that its safe to have 30 kids in a classroom and 70 kids on a school bus?

The NDP is calling for a cap of 15 students per class and additional funding to increase staff at local public health units and nursing homes.

Singh criticized Fords government for not moving quickly enough, when it has been clear for weeks that COVID cases are rising.

The Ford government was not prepared for this spike in cases and they should have been, Singh said.

The entire province had been operating under gathering limits of 50 people indoors and 100 outdoors since Aug. 12, when the last region, Windsor-Essex, moved into Stage 3 of reopening. Most of the province has been in Stage 3 since mid-July.

Barbara Yaffe, Torontos associate medical officer of health, could not say what proportion of the new cases are coming from social gatherings, but it is an increasing trend and thats why were trying to address it proactively.

At this point in Ontario, our numbers are rapidly going up. It is a wave. Are we saying its a big second wave or are we saying a smaller wave?

While the uptick is concentrated in certain dense urban areas, Yaffe said the province-wide reduction in social gathering size is precautionary so that the small increases still being recorded elsewhere are not exacerbated.

Part of the problem, said Yaffe, is that many people arent clear on what rules are for parties.

The bottom line is: if youre with your social circle  which can be up to 10 people  you can be close with them, you dont have to wear a mask. Anyone else, even in a social gathering, you have to keep your distance  two metres  or wear a mask.

Dont go to the party if youre not feeling well, she added.

After a number of large parties were reported in Brampton over the summer, Mayor Patrick Brown called on the province to lower gathering limits. Parties held by returning students at Western University in London led to an outbreak of COVID-19 in Middlesex-London last week.

Folks, we cant have these wild parties right now. Its just way, way too risky, said Ford Saturday. We have to come down hard on the rule breakers.

The Progressive Conservative government has introduced legislation to boost fines for illegal party hosts to $10,000. Existing emergency orders impose $750 fines on guests of these gatherings.

This is geared to the wild parties out there, said Ford. Im not going to be banging down peoples door if they have 10 people over. Im going to be banging down their door if they have 150 people. Thats what it is, its a deterrent.

Unfortunately, theres a few people out there that dont want to follow the rules and think were out of this; we arent out of this.

Asked about a reluctance to snitch on friends expressed by some younger people on social media, the premier didnt mince words: Its not about snitching on a friend, its about saving the friends grandmother or grandfather or their parents lives.

The province carried out 39,000 tests on Friday, a record number, Ford said. To boost testing capacity, the province will open 10 new pop-up assessment centres and is working to get tests for asymptomatic people available in pharmacies.

Health Minister Christine Elliott said the province is working with universities, hospitals and community labs to expand the governments ability to process those tests.

How we face the next surge, how we hold off the next wave, its critical and its up to all of us, Ford said.

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For years now, British actor Tom Hardy has been considered one of the most likely candidates to take over from Daniel Craig in the role of James Bond.

Hardys name began trending today (19 September) after a new rumour claimed that his joining the hit spy franchise was already a done deal.

Originating with an unsubstantiated report on a website called The Vulcan Reporter, the rumour suggests that Hardy was set to be unveiled as the new 007 in November, but the plan was disrupted by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Daniel Craig returns as 007 in the latest franchise instalment, 'No Time to Die' (Universal Pictures)

Hardy is perhaps best known for his collaborations with filmmaker Christopher Nolan, in films including Inception, Dunkirk and The Dark Knight Rises.

The acclaimed actor has also starred in Bronson, Mad Max: Fury Road and, recently, in the Marvel supervillain blockbuster Venom.

Many Bond fans appeared keen to believe the news, with one writing on Twitter: TOM HARDY AS THE NEW JAMES BOND PLEASE LET IT BE TRUE.

Another wrote: Tom Hardys the new bond? TURN IT UP.

However, many others were sceptical of the reports veracity, especially considering the fact that Craigs final Bond outing, No Time to Die, hasnt even hit screens yet.

One Twitter user wrote: Daniel Craigs 007 swan song isnt even out yet. Id put good money on the James Bond producers not even having begun searching for his replacement yet, let alone having cast Tom Hardy.

Another wrote: Does anyone actually believe Tom Hardy has been cast as Bond? He'll be heading towards 50 by the time his 1st film sees the light of day.

I'll believe it when there's an official announcement but if the news about Tom Hardy being cast as James Bond isn't true, I'll eat my trousers in despair, wrote someone else.
Washington: It seemed hard to imagine the US presidential election becoming any more volatile and intense, but that's what has happened following the death of the iconic progressive Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg applauds after a performance in her honour in 2018. Credit:AP

Ginsburg's death from cancer, at 87, opens up a vacancy on the nation's most powerful court just six weeks out from polling day. It will further heighten the already stratospheric election stakes and turbocharge the vicious partisanship that defines current American politics.

It's the US Supreme Court, rather than the Congress, that has settled many big debates on issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage, healthcare and campaign finance laws.

The most pressing question for President Donald Trump and Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell is whether they try to ram through a replacement for Ginsburg before election day.
I have had my own doubts about the meaning of many aspects of Genesis and so I set out to clarify, at least for myself, some of the questions and answers that could be found in deep study of the book of Genesis

Author David P. Diaz offers answers to many common questions in The Genesis Labyrinth: Investigating Alternatives in the First Eleven Chapters of Genesis ($18.99, paperback, 9781632213587; $9.99, e-book, 9781632213594).

Few topics have been so widely questioned and debated as the origin of the world. Even Christians seeking answers in the book of Genesis differ widely in their interpretation of the events described there. Diaz compiles the research of many respected scholars to provide an in-depth study, approaching each argument from a variety of angles.

I have had my own doubts about the meaning of many aspects of Genesis and so I set out to clarify, at least for myself, some of the questions and answers that could be found in deep study of the book of Genesis, said Diaz.

David P. Diaz, Ed.D., is an author and retired college professor. His writings have spanned the gamut between peer-reviewed technical articles to his personal memoir. Dr. Diaz holds bachelor and master of science degrees from California Polytechnic State University and a doctoral degree in education from Nova Southeastern University. He lives with his wife and youngest daughter on the central coast of California.

###

Xulon Press, a division of Salem Media Group, is the worlds largest Christian self-publisher, with more than 15,000 titles published to date. The Genesis Labyrinth is available online through xulonpress.com/bookstore, amazon.com, and barnesandnoble.com.


Neil Patrick Harris says The Matrix 4 is very "ambitious" (Image by Warner Bros)

Lana Wachowski has made sure that The Matrix 4 has shifted visually from the original sci-fi trilogy.

Thats according to Neil Patrick Harris, who admits that his role in the hugely anticipated sequel is only a small part. But he was clearly still on set enough to notice the adjustment from its predecessors.

Read More: Keanu Reeves: Matrix 4 will be a love story

Harris made this admission during his recent interview on SiriusXMs The Jess Cagle Show earlier this week, via The Hollywood Reporter. During their chat, Harris was asked for an update on The Matrix 4, which recently started shooting again in Berlin after the coronavirus pandemic.

The Matrix 4 will be a love story according to Keanu Reeves

The How I Met Your Mother and Gone Girl actor took this chance to provide a tiny bit of insight into Wachowskis approach, explaining, I think she has a great inclusive energy and her style has shifted visually from what she had done to what she is currently doing.

Harris didnt provide many more details, except to call The Matrix 4 ambitious, while confirming that wirework was used on its stunts, a practice that the original film introduced to mainstream Hollywood.

Read More: Hugo Weaving is befuddled by the alt-right misinterpreting The Matrix

2019 Creative Arts Emmys Awards - Arrivals - Los Angeles, CA, U.S., September 15, 2019 - Neil Patrick Harris. REUTERS/Monica Almeida

Ive always wanted to be a lead in a big giant action movie with wires and stuff. And this is not bad for me, but it's certainly tangential and fun for me to be able to play in the sandbox a little bit, Harris said of his experiences so far on The Matrix 4, which will see Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Jada Pinkett Smith and Lambert Wilson reprise their roles.

Weve still got quite a bit of time until The Matrix 4 is actually with audiences, though, as Warner Bros recently had to push its release date back nearly a full year to April 1, 2022.
Image People gathered outside the Supreme Court building after the announcement of the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday. Credit... Anna Moneymaker for The New York Times

Scores of people filled the steps leading up to the Supreme Court in Washington on Friday night, crowding the plaza outside and spilling across the street in a candlelight tribute to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Many said that it was a solemn celebration of Justice Ginsburgs legacy in shaping American jurisprudence, and that it should not be corrupted by the political fights bound to flare up in the Capitol in the days to come.

We, as citizens, have a responsibility to mourn her, and stand together and show that we care about human life, which is something I think weve lost in the last six months, said David Means, who was quietly discussing the justices legacy in the courts plaza. We need to be here  this is the place to be for anyone who believes in American ideals and progress in this country.

Mourners began arriving at the court after dusk. At first, those gathered were so quiet that splashes from nearby fountains were audible across the plaza. But soon crowds swelled, filling the courthouse stairs, singing Amazing Grace and discussing the effects Justice Ginsburg had on the law.

Nearly all appeared to be wearing masks to protect themselves from the coronavirus, but social distancing was less observed, with many standing nearly shoulder to shoulder.

Becca Ebert of Seattle, who moved to Washington for a dual-degree program at Georgetown University, credited Justice Ginsburg with opening doors for women. I know that I can go to law school because of a lot of the work that she did, she said.

Others celebrated Justice Ginsburgs role in landmark rulings on matters like gay marriage.

As a proud L.G.B.T.Q.I.A. Hispanic male, it transcends so many different levels, in my community, in the community I was raised up in El Paso, Texas  it absolutely means so much, the work that she did, said Richard Cerros of Washington.

The news also led to an outpouring among lawmakers.

Ruthie was my friend and I will miss her terribly, Senator Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts and a former presidential candidate, said on Twitter.

As a young mom heading off to Rutgers law school, I saw so few examples of female lawyers or law professors, she added. But Ruthie blazed the trail. Im forever grateful for her example  to me, and to millions of young women who saw her as a role model.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the loss was devastating.

Every family in America benefited from her brilliant legacy and courage, she added in a statement. Her opinions have unequivocally cemented the precedent that all men and women are created equal.

Hillary Clinton, the first woman to be a major-party candidate for president, said that Justice Ginsburg paved the way for so many women, including me.

There will never be another like her, she added.

Many tributes to Justice Ginsburg looked to the future. Now is not the time for cynicism or hopelessness, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Democrat of New York, said on Twitter. There is and continues to be political possibility to preserve our democracy & move forward.
Seidor, a multinational consulting firm, said it has acquired majority stake in Procons-4IT, an accredited SAP Gold partner in the Mena region.

Seidor offers a wide range of solutions and services, including consulting, infrastructure services, implementation, development, and maintenance of applications, and outsourcing services.

Seidor Procons, part of a multinational Spanish group of companies, is a foremost SAP Master value-added reseller (VAR) with platinum partnership through United VARs, providing a wide portfolio of products and SAP solutions.

Branded as Seidor Procons, the acquisition brings together the global expertise and technology of Seidor with the localised leadership of Procons-4IT to help SMEs optimize their business operations with strong ERP SAP Business One solutions, machine learning, loT, and other technologies that fulfill their digital transformation and make them prepared for unforeseen challenges.

"We are confident that this acquisition will provide an opportunity to serve Middle East SMEs uniquely," remarked Angel Fernandez, co-CEO of Seidor Procons.

"With Seidors global leadership and Procons-4ITs localized comprehensive experience, we can offer our clients in the Middle East a broad range of SAP Business One solutions and technologies," she stated.

According to Fernandez, the Seidor Procons products are at the core of digital transformation.

"It accelerates clients digital transformation process with advanced on-premise and cloud SAP Business One (SAP B1) solutions. It can also go beyond offering SAP B1, introducing innovative and customized solutions that drive efficiency and growth with add-on solutions to cater to specific industries such as Cloud, HR, Payroll, and Analytics," she noted.

Since Seidor and Procons-4IT share similar DNA in their corporate cultures and missions, the acquisition is expected to bring about drastic changes in the SME sector through Procons-4ITs substantial local resources and Seidor's worldwide experience, she added.

The region-specific services at Seidor Procons include Arabic speaking consultants, a Regional support center, In-house development, and Intelligent ERP, to name just a few.

Moreover, Seidor Procons' new positioning in the tech market is crucial and timely since the Covid-19 pandemic has forced companies to be more competent in remote working via cloud solution. It helps clients avoid delays in project delivery, keep customers informed, and effectively manage funds as the situation changes, stated Fernandez.

"This acquisition will move our business to a new level and will definitely place Seidor Procons as the SME Leader in Mena, remarked Wassim Hassanieh, co-CEO of Seidor Procons.

"We are proud of our history, and this venture translates our vision to our future. Through this acquisition of talents, expertise, and knowledge, we plan to accelerate our clients digital transformation journey to growth despite the current economic challenges," stated Hassanieh.

With a total turnover of 414 million in 2018 and a workforce made up of more than 4,700 highly qualified professionals, Seidor has a direct presence on five continents: Europe, Latin America, the United States, the Middle East, and Africa. Seidor is a major service partner of SAP, IBM, Microsoft, and Adobe.
Ever since it's been reduced to ashes during the August 4 explosion, the Lebanese capital Beirut has been trying to preserve its cultural heritage.

Restoration work will soon begin on many of the historic buildings that were destroyed in the deadly blast.

FRANCE 24's Linda Tamim finds out more about the work being done on the ground by ALIPH, the international alliance for the protection of heritage in conflict areas, and its partners in Beirut.

Click on the player above to watch the full report.
Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) speaks during a news briefing at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on April 21, 2020. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

What Senate Republicans Have Said About Filling a Supreme Court Vacancy in Election Year

The death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg has thrust Senate Republicans into the spotlight as they face pressure to fill the vacancy left by the liberal justice.

Republicans control the Senate with 53 members compared to 47 for the Democrats, meaning they effectively have the numbers needed to confirm a nominee as only a majority is required after the Senate eliminated the 60-vote threshold in 2017. Democrats would need to convince four Republicans to join them in blocking a President Donald Trump pickgiven Vice President Mike Pence can break a 5050 tiewhich would likely spark a fierce battle over the future of the nations top court.

Several Senate Republicans, especially moderates, have held different views on whether it would be too late to confirm a President Donald Trump nominee at this stage in the election cycle. Moderate senators such as Susan Collins (R-Maine), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Mitt Romney (R-Utah) are likely to play a crucial role in the confirmation.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) had already indicated that any Trump nominee would receive a vote, although he famously declined to hold hearings for then-President Barack Obamas pick in 2016 to replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia 11 months before the election, saying the seat should be opened for the new president to fill.

Meanwhile, other Senate Republicans have rallied behind McConnell to move forward in filling the vacancy.

Here are where some senators stand on the issue:

McConnell

The Kentucky senator noted in a statement on Friday that Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, making it clear that he would not adhere to the standard he set in 2016. This would likely spark controversy and put pressure on Republicans, who would be accused of being hypocritical.

McConnell has sought to differentiate the two scenarios, saying that during Obamas nomination the Senate and the presidency were held by different parties. Republicans currently hold both.

In the last midterm election before Justice Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year, McConnell said.

By contrast, Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) speaks to reporters after the Senate Republican luncheon on Capitol Hill in Washington on Sept. 9, 2020. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

Sen. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.)

McSally is one of the first senators to announce her support of filling the vacancy with a Trump nominee.

This U.S. Senate should vote on President Trumps next nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, she said in a statement on Twitter on Friday night.

Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.)

Scott, who does not face a re-election battle in 2020, said on Friday night that he supports filling the vacancy.

It would be irresponsible to allow an extended vacancy on the Supreme Court. I believe that President Trumps nominee should get a vote in the U.S. Senate, he said in a statement on Twitter.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas)

Cruz said on Friday that he thinks it is important that the Senate confirms a successor before Election Day, saying that there could be a constitutional crisis if Republicans fail to do this.

We cannot have Election Day come and go with a four-four court, Cruz told Fox News Sean Hannity.

A four-four court that is equally divided cannot decide anything. And I think we risk a constitutional crisis if we do not have a nine-justice Supreme Court, particularly when there is such a risk of a contested election.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) speaks to media in the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 28, 2020. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)

Earlier this year, Graham said that the Senate would work toward confirming a Supreme Court nominee if a vacancy arises, adding that the situation would be different from the circumstances in 2016 with Merrick Garland.

Well, Merrick Garland was a different situation. You had the president of one party nominating, and you had the Senate in the hands of the other party. A situation where youve got them both would be different. I dont want to speculate, but I think appointing judges is a high priority for me in 2020, Graham said in an interview on Full Court Press with Greta Van Susteren.

If you look into the history of the country, there had not been an occasion where somebody was confirmed in a presidential election year after primary started when you had divided government.

On Saturday, Graham responded to a Twitter post by the president where he said, I fully understand where President @realDonaldTrump is coming from.

Trump sent a message to Republicans earlier on Saturday, saying that they have the obligation to confirm pick a successor without delay.

We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!

Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing to examine the Crossfire Hurricane investigation, on Capitol Hill in Washington on Aug. 5, 2020. (Carolyn Kaster/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Murkowski

Murkowski had previously indicated that she would not support filling a vacancy before the November election, pointing to Senate Republicans decision in 2016 to keep Scalias seat vacant.

When Republicans held off Merrick Garland it was because nine months prior to the election was too close, we needed to let people decide. And I agreed to do that. If we now say that months prior to the election is OK when nine months was not, that is a double standard and I dont believe we should do it, Murkowski told The Hill earlier this year. So I would not support it.

Her position has not changed since Ginsburg passing, telling Alaska Public Media that she would not vote to confirm a Supreme Court nominee.

We are 50 some days away from an election, she said, adding that the people should decide.

Collins

Collins, who was the deciding vote during Justice Brett Kavanaughs confirmation, has not yet indicated whether she would support a vote of a potential nominee.

She told The New York Times earlier this month that she thinks voting for a new Justice in October would be too close.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) arrives at the Capitol for President Donald Trumps State of the Union address, in Washington on Feb. 4, 2020. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

Romney

Romney, the only Republican to vote to impeach or convict Trump, had not indicated a position on the issue.

Liz Johnson, a Romney spokeswoman, said on Twitter a claim that the senator has committed to not confirming a nominee until after inauguration day is grossly false.

Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa)

Ernst said in July that she would be supportive of proceeding with any hearings even during a lame-duck session because the presidency and Senate are of the same house.

I would support going ahead with any hearings that we might have, Ernst told PBS in Iowa. And if it comes to an appointment prior to the end of the year, I would be supportive of that.

Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.)

Thune has backed McConnell saying in a statement on Friday he believes it is crucial that a vote on the floor is held.

I believe Americans sent a Republican president and a Republican Senate to Washington to ensure we have an impartial judiciary that upholds the Constitution and the rule of law, Thune said. We will fulfill our obligation to them. As Leader McConnell has said, President Trumps Supreme Court nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the U.S. Senate.

Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.)

Gardner, a potential swing vote, has not indicated his position but defended the decision to deny a hearing for Obamas pick in 2016.

[T]he next president of the United States should have the opportunity to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court. In 1992, even then-Senator Joe Biden stated the Senate should not hold confirmation hearings for a Supreme Court nominee until after that years presidential election. Our next election is too soon and the stakes are too high; the American people deserve a role in this process as the next Supreme Court Justice will influence the direction of this country for years to come, Gardner said in a statement at the time.

Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) talks to reporters in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 9, 2020. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.)

Tillis has signaled his support for a vote on Saturday. In a statement, he said: Four years ago, a Supreme Court vacancy arose under divided government and a lame-duck president as Americans were choosing his successor. Today, however, President Trump is again facing voters at the ballot box and North Carolinians will ultimately render their judgment on his presidency and how he chooses to fill the vacancy.ee-supreme-court

There is a clear choice on the future of the Supreme Court between the well-qualified and conservative jurist President Trump will nominate and I will support, and the liberal activist Joe Biden will nominate and Cal Cunningham will support, who will legislate radical, left-wing policies from the bench, he added.

Democrats

Top Democrats are opposed to holding a vote for a potential nominee. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) were quick to say that the vacancy should not be filled before the election.

The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president, Schumer said.

This is in contrast to his position in 2016 where he said, Attn GOP: Senate has confirmed 17 #SCOTUS justices in presidential election years. #DoYourJob, in a statement on Twitter.

Zachary Stieber contributed to this report.
Waitrose has announced its decision to permanently remove plastic wrapping from its multi-buy grocery tins in an effort to reduce plastic waste.

Previously when customers shopped at the supermarket, they would find tinned items such as baked beans, sweetcorn and tuna wrapped together in sets of three or four.

While this may have helped shoppers pack their trolleys with more ease, the shrink wrap used to secure the cans together is difficult to recycle.

According to Waitrose, eliminating the plastic wrap permanently will save 45 tonnes of plastic waste on an annual basis.

Last year, the firm carried out a trial for the proposed removal of the plastic wrapping from its multi-buy cans.

As the trial was successful, multi-buy grocery tins will now either be displayed as loose cans, or in the case of products such as canned tuna or tomatoes, be presented in cardboard sleeves.

Some of the multi-buy tinned products, including canned kidney beans and sweetcorn, have already had their plastic wrapping removed, with the wrapping being removed from the rest in the coming months.

Claire Mitchell, canned food buyer at Waitrose & Partners, said that the supermarkets canned produce "has been selling in record numbers since March", which is why the firm wanted "to ensure that we can continue to give customers the best quality and value, without passing on the plastic on such popular products".

Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Show all 15 1 /15 Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Plastic waste across the world: in pictures A father and son on a makeshift boat made from styrofoam paddle through a garbage filled river as they collect plastic bottles that they can sell in junkshops in Manila. The father and son team earn some three US dollars a day retrieving recyclables from the river. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures A composite image of items found on the shore of the Thames Estuary in Rainham, Kent. Tons of plastic and other waste lines areas along the Thames Estuary shoreline, an important feeding ground for wading birds and other marine wildlife. Getty Images Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Children collect plastic water bottles among the garbage washed ashore at the Manila Bay. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, at current rates of pollution, there will likely be more plastic in the sea than fish by 2050. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Plastics and other detritus line the shore of the Thames Estuary. In December 2017 Britain joined the other 193 UN countries and signed up to a resolution to help eliminate marine litter and microplastics in the sea. It is estimated that about eight million metric tons of plastic find their way into the world's oceans every year. Once in the Ocean plastic can take hundreds of years to degrade, all the while breaking down into smaller and smaller 'microplastics,' which can be consumed by marine animals, and find their way into the human food chain. Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures A dump site in Manila in 2013. The Philippines financial capital banned disposable plastic shopping bags and styrofoam food containers, as part of escalating efforts across the nation's capital to curb rubbish that exacerbates deadly flooding. AFP/Getty Images Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Children swims in the sea full of garbage in North Jakarta, Indonesia. Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures An Indian woman holds a jar filled with Yamuna river water polluted with froth and toxic foam to be used for rituals at the river bank in New Delhi, India. The Yamuna River, like all other holy rivers in India, has been massively polluted for decades now. The river that originates in a glacier in the pristine and unpolluted Himalayas, and flows through Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh before merging with the Ganges River in Allahabad, once used to be the lifeline of the Indian capital. Currently, it is no more than a large, open sewer that is choking with industrial and domestic discharge that includes plastic, flowers and debris and has virtually no aquatic life. EPA Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Plastic waste is washed up on South Troon beach in Scotland. Recent reports by scientists have confirmed, plastics dumped in the world oceans are reaching a dangerous level with micro plastic particles now being found inside filter feeding animals and amongst sand grains on our beaches. Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Children collect plastic to be sold and recycled, in a polluted river in suburban Manila. The city's trash disposal agency traps solid waste floating down waterways that was thrown into the water by residents of slums along riverbanks upstream. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures View of the Carpayo Beach in La Punta, Callao, some 15 km of Lima. In 2013, the NGO VIDA labeled the Carpayo Beach as the most polluted in the country - 40 tons of trash on each 500m2. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Trash from Kamilo Beach in Hawaii. Gabriella Levine/Flickr Plastic waste across the world: in pictures A scavenger collects plastic cups for recycling in a river covered with rubbish near Pluit dam in Jakarta. Reuters Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Rubbish fills Omoa beach in Honduras. Floating masses of garbage offshore from some of the Caribbean's pristine beaches are testimony to a vast and growing problem of plastic pollution heedlessly dumped in our oceans, locals, activists and experts say. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures A man climbs down to a garbage filled river in Manila. Plastic rubbish will outweigh fish in the oceans by 2050 unless the world takes drastic action to recycle the material, a report warned in 2016. AFP/Getty Plastic waste across the world: in pictures Garbage on East Beach, Henderson Island (Pitcairn Islands), in the south Pacific Ocean. The uninhabited island has been found to have the world's highest density of waste plastic, with more than 3,500 additional pieces of litter washing ashore daily at just one of its beaches. EPA

"Our customers expect us to keep tackling plastic, which includes eliminating single use shrink wrap on our multi-buys," Ms Mitchell said.

"This is a significant step towards our plan to phase out non-recyclable plastic from all our packaging by 2021."

The supermarket also said it has removed plastic wrapping from its multi-buy essential Waitrose tissues.

According to the retailer, this move will reduce its plastic waste by a further 4.49 tonnes a year.

In August, it was reported that the charge for a plastic carrier bag in shops in England will be increased from 5p to 10p from April 2021, to encourage more shops to carry environmentally-friendly carrier bags.
The voracious appetite of Chub makes them popular with anglers. They are ever-ready to feed, and thus to be caught

Chub is a species of freshwater fish found mainly in running water throughout central and southern mainland Europe. It is not native to Ireland, but it has turned up here. How it got here is unknown.

Chub are prized as a sport fish by some anglers so it is suspected that anglers may have introduced the species here for its sporting value.

While the sporting value of the Chub to anglers is not disputed, best practice dictates that a scientific assessment of any negative impact that a proposed introduction may have on our freshwater ecosystems should be carried out before any non-native species of fish is introduced to our waters.

Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) regard the Chub as an undesirable alien and a threat to our local wildlife as they have the potential to compete with our native fishes for food and space and are potentially a carrier of fish diseases and parasites. IFI is a statutory body whose principal function is the protection and conservation of Ireland's inland fisheries resource. IFI's position is backed by law; the introduction of Chub into Irish waters is prohibited, except under licence, by statutory instrument No 477 of 2011.

Chub have a voracious appetite and could do significant damage. Elsewhere, large adult Chub have been recorded eating considerable numbers of small fish as well as frogs, crayfish, voles and young water birds. They have even been observed eating berries such as blackberries and elderberry from trees overhanging the water.

The River Inny in Co Longford is the only Irish river in which Chub have been recorded. The alien fish were first recorded in the Inny, a tributary of the River Shannon, in 2001. IFI spent four years (2006-2010) trying to eradicate the species and prevent its spread into Lough Ree and the wider Shannon catchment.

It was believed that the invasive fish species had been controlled by electro-fishing but recently Chub have been reported again from the River Inny. It is not clear whether this is due to the earlier eradication programme not being as successful as originally believed, or whether the present fish are the result of a second illegal introduction.

IFI is investigating and appealing to anglers to protect our fisheries by not moving fish between watercourses and to submit reports of invasive alien fish to the IFI hotline 1850 34 74 24.
Many expecting parents prepare for months in anticipation of a new baby. For pet parents, this preparation also often involves encouraging appropriate and positive behaviors in their animals during the time leading up to birth.

However, even with adequate preparations, there are still important precautions owners should consider after the arrival of their new addition to ensure the safety of both pets and child.

Dr. Lori Teller, an associate professor in the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, advises new parents to approach the introduction of pets and babies with caution, even if they trust their pet to be gentle.

The most important thing to remember is that a baby and a pet should NEVER be left alone together, even if you think your pet would never hurt anybody, she said. This cannot be overstated.

The initial introduction can be eased by acclimating pets to the babys odor prior to bringing the newborn home.

When the baby is born, have someone bring home some of the clothing or blankets used by the baby while in the hospital for the pets to smell before the baby is discharged, Teller said.

When the baby is brought home, Teller recommends that new parents bring backup to make sure both the baby and pet are consistently monitored.

Where possible, someone else should hold the baby while the parents pay attention to the pets, she said Encourage them to be calm while you greet them. Once everyone is calm, you can introduce your pets to the baby. If necessary, have your pets on a leash. One person can be seated while holding the baby and someone else can control the pets.

If you have multiple pets, Teller recommends introducing them to the baby one at a time.

After the initial introduction, pet owners still need to be vigilant in monitoring animal interactions with their child. Teller says owners should also actively work to maintain a positive pet-baby relationship.

Its important to find a way to pay attention to your pet while your baby is awake and active. You want your pet to know that the baby is a part of the family and everyone can enjoy time together, she said. You can toss a few treats or verbally praise your pet for good behavior around an active baby. Unwittingly, by only paying attention to your pet when your baby is sleeping, you are teaching your pet that the baby is a negative in the pets life.

Pet owners should keep in mind that changes to their home environment can pose a danger to their animals.

Some baby supplies, such as pacifiers, baby bottle nipples, and small toys, can all be swallowed by pets and may require surgery to remove. Many medications, such as diaper rash ointment, can be toxic to pets and should be kept in a secure location.

Teller also recommends that owners are careful to keep their pet away from dirty diapers.

Pet supplies should also be kept away from a baby, Teller said. These include medications, such as heartworm and flea and tick preventives. Pet toys and chew bones are also not appropriate for a baby to put in his or her mouth. When bathing your pet with a medicated shampoo, make sure your pet is dry before interacting with the baby.

Pets also may pose a hazard to a new baby because, by nature, it is sometimes difficult to predict the behaviors of animals. Even if a pet owner fully trusts their furry friend to be gentle, the unfamiliar presence of a baby could put the pet on edge.

An owner needs to be concerned if the pet growls, hisses, or otherwise tries to interact with the baby in a negative manner, she said. Any kind of negative interaction should be stopped immediately. If your pet is acting aggressively, it should be isolated and you need to speak with your veterinarian.

Ensuring the safety of a new baby is the top priority of any new parent, and proper precautions can help build a safe and positive relationship between the new baby and existing pets.

There is tremendous sweetness and beauty in watching a child and a pet develop a mutually caring and loving relationship, Teller said. Make sure your pet is encouraged and rewarded for good behavior. As your baby grows, make sure they understand how to treat a pet kindly as wellno pulling on ears and tails or trying to take a pets food or toys. Reward your childs good behavior as well.

Pet Talk is a service of the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University. Stories can be viewed on the web at vetmed.tamu.edu/news/pet-talk . Suggestions for future topics may be directed to editor@cvm.tamu.edu .
S Kumaresan By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: Out of power for a decade, DMK cadres have no illusion that the 2021 Assembly elections in the State are a do-or-die battle for the Dravidian party.

With the pandemic-induced lockdown having finally eased, party workers have embarked on a ground-up campaign with a focus on neutral or undecided voters. The workers are also collecting village-level data about the welfare schemes the party had created during its stints in power. This data will then be shared with the partys IT wing for wide dissemination.

As part of the effort, the partys powerful district secretaries have started conducting meetings with cadres at the village level and instructing them on micro-level election works.

They are guided by strategies shared by party chief MK Stalin during a recent video-conference. So far, at least six district units of the party have conducted such meetings since September 12.

The workers are being instructed to carry out door-to-door voter verification and get details of committed voters and neutral or undecided voters. The data on welfare schemes they are compiling include lists of how many buildings, bridges, check dams were constructed in the district during the last DMK regime, how many schools were upgraded, and how many new bus routes introduced.

As cadres, we are well aware that it is a do-or-die election for us. If we fail to prove ourselves there is no chance for us to succeed in the near future. Hence, every cadre is ready for the intensive preparation, one union-level party functionary from a northern district said.

We will share the details of the welfare measures we have initiated and highlighted them with the voters during the verification exercise. The voters can then decide based on how they benefited under a DMK-led government, said a union-level youth wing secretary of Kancheepuram district spoke to Express,
We can readily understand why investors are attracted to unprofitable companies. For example, although Amazon.com made losses for many years after listing, if you had bought and held the shares since 1999, you would have made a fortune. Nonetheless, only a fool would ignore the risk that a loss making company burns through its cash too quickly.

Given this risk, we thought we'd take a look at whether Cardiol Therapeutics (TSE:CRDL) shareholders should be worried about its cash burn. For the purpose of this article, we'll define cash burn as the amount of cash the company is spending each year to fund its growth (also called its negative free cash flow). We'll start by comparing its cash burn with its cash reserves in order to calculate its cash runway.

Check out our latest analysis for Cardiol Therapeutics

Does Cardiol Therapeutics Have A Long Cash Runway?

A company's cash runway is calculated by dividing its cash hoard by its cash burn. When Cardiol Therapeutics last reported its balance sheet in June 2020, it had zero debt and cash worth CA$19m. Looking at the last year, the company burnt through CA$9.1m. So it had a cash runway of about 2.1 years from June 2020. Importantly, analysts think that Cardiol Therapeutics will reach cashflow breakeven in 3 years. That means unless the company reduces its cash burn quickly, it may well look to raise more cash. The image below shows how its cash balance has been changing over the last few years.

How Is Cardiol Therapeutics' Cash Burn Changing Over Time?

Because Cardiol Therapeutics isn't currently generating revenue, we consider it an early-stage business. Nonetheless, we can still examine its cash burn trajectory as part of our assessment of its cash burn situation. While it hardly paints a picture of imminent growth, the fact that it has reduced its cash burn by 44% over the last year suggests some degree of prudence. While the past is always worth studying, it is the future that matters most of all. So you might want to take a peek at how much the company is expected to grow in the next few years.

Story continues

How Easily Can Cardiol Therapeutics Raise Cash?

Even though it has reduced its cash burn recently, shareholders should still consider how easy it would be for Cardiol Therapeutics to raise more cash in the future. Issuing new shares, or taking on debt, are the most common ways for a listed company to raise more money for its business. Commonly, a business will sell new shares in itself to raise cash and drive growth. By looking at a company's cash burn relative to its market capitalisation, we gain insight on how much shareholders would be diluted if the company needed to raise enough cash to cover another year's cash burn.

Cardiol Therapeutics has a market capitalisation of CA$98m and burnt through CA$9.1m last year, which is 9.3% of the company's market value. That's a low proportion, so we figure the company would be able to raise more cash to fund growth, with a little dilution, or even to simply borrow some money.

Is Cardiol Therapeutics' Cash Burn A Worry?

It may already be apparent to you that we're relatively comfortable with the way Cardiol Therapeutics is burning through its cash. In particular, we think its cash runway stands out as evidence that the company is well on top of its spending. And even its cash burn reduction was very encouraging. One real positive is that analysts are forecasting that the company will reach breakeven. Considering all the factors discussed in this article, we're not overly concerned about the company's cash burn, although we do think shareholders should keep an eye on how it develops. Readers need to have a sound understanding of business risks before investing in a stock, and we've spotted 4 warning signs for Cardiol Therapeutics that potential shareholders should take into account before putting money into a stock.

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies, and this list of stocks growth stocks (according to analyst forecasts)

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.



Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com.
Beryllium in Peterborough schoolground soil at safe levels: BWXT, Sept. 16

Beryllium is an A1 carcinogen that the World Nuclear Association calls one of the most toxic and dangerous substances on earth.

That BWXT, in its recent press release, nonchalantly downplays beryllium as normal and innocuous is galling and reckless. We in Peterborough hold the unique distinction of being the only city in Canada having a nuclear facility belching out this lethal chemical in our urban heart, right next to an elementary school and residential neighbourhoods.

"All those 600 kids and residents need to do to get chronic beryllium disease (CBD) are exposure levels as low as 0.003 to 0.5 mg/m3 (International Agency for Research on Cancer). The BWXT results indicate 0.50 mg/g, a level that far exceeds the WHOs permissible exposure limit of 0.002 mg/g (2 mg/m3). Ontarios MECP stringent standard of 2.5 would be laughable if not so dangerously negligent. All the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commissions data shows exposure levels trending upwards from 2014 to the present. Their further testing results ordered as a response to Trents Dr. Julian Ahernes findings of abnormally high beryllium levels at Prince of Wales will be coming out later this fall

All the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commissions data shows exposure levels trending upwards from 2014 to the present. Their further testing results ordered as a response to Trents Dr. Julian Ahernes findings of abnormally high beryllium levels at Prince of Wales will be coming out later this fall.

Over the last few months there has been a lot of beryllium buck-passing going on. CNSC has ordered MECP to forgo any testing of nuclear compounds even though the Environmental Protection Act states the contrary. This time BWXT chose a new American and nuclear-connected consulting firm to conduct the recent tests.

BWXT and MECP still have a publication ban on the testing data from January 2020 that is necessary to meet provincial licensing requirements. Talking about beryllium in PTBO is making everyone very nervous, including someone who threw our Beryllium Source banner over the BWXT fence at the picket two weeks ago.

There is every reason to be very nervous about this extremely lethal toxin coming out the Monaghan stack. It is time to stop passing the beryllium buck and to give the citizens truly independent long-term monitoring and transparent testing data of this known carcinogen.

Janice Keil, CARN

Correction: Due to a technical error, the original version of this letter included incorrect measurements of beryllium. The mistake has been corrected.
Kolkata, Sep 19 (UNI) The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday took the

custody of six terrorists associated with Pakistan-sponsored module of Al-Qaeda after

conducting night-long raids at several hideouts in West Bengal's Murshidabad district,

while Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and the Opposition upped the ante against the

Mamata Banerjee Government for the "alarming decline" in law and order.

The NIA brought all the six al Qaeda operatives to the city from Murshidabad and

produced them before Bankshall court, which ordered the investigating agency to take

the arrested into its custody until September 24.

The NIA is expected to take them to Delhi on transit remand and interrogate them

before producing the operatives to Patiala House court there on September 24.

Preempting possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country, including the

National Capital Region (NCR), NIA on Saturday arrested nine terrorists associated

with Pakistan-sponsored module of Al-Qaeda after conducting simultaneous raids at

several locations at Ernakulam (Kerala) and Murshidabad (West Bengal).

NIA had learnt about an inter-state module of Al-Qaeda operatives at various

locations in India including West-Bengal and Kerala.

The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with

an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds.

Accordingly, NIA registered a case No. RC-31/2020/NIA/DLI on September 11 and

initiated investigation.

NIA arrested six terrorists from West-Bengal and three terrorists from Kerala in the

early morning raids.

Large quantity of incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi

literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour,

articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized

from their possession.

As per preliminary investigation, these individuals were radicalised by Pakistan-based

Al-Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple

places including the National Capital Region.

For this purpose, the module was actively indulging in fund raising and a few members

of gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition.

These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country.

The details of the arrested accused are as under:

(i)Murshid Hasan, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala.

(ii)Iyakub Biswas, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala.

(iii)Mosaraf Hossen, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala.

(iv)Najmus Sakib, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal.

(v) Abu Sufiyan, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal.

(vi)Mainul Mondal, a resident of Murshidabad West Bengal.

(Vii)Leu Yean Ahmed, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal .

(Viii) Al Mamun Kamal, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal.

(Ix)Atitur Rehman, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal.

It might be mentioned that a special NIA court in August

2019 convicted 19 accused in the Khagragarh blast, which occurred inWest Bengals Burdwan

district in October 2014, killing two people.

The investigation was handed over to the NIA, which in its first chargesheet in March 2015

described it as a conspiracy of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, Bangladesh to overthrow the existing democratic government in Bangladesh through violent terrorist acts.

Charges were framed against 31 accused in July 2016 under the Unlawful Activities

Prevention Act, Section 125 of the IPC, for waging war against an Asian power.

Meanwhile, targetting the Director General of Police, Mr Dhankhar stated, "How far distanced

is DGP @WBPolice from reality is cause of worry. His Ostrich Stance is very disturbing.

Appreciate (the) role of policemen in general-they r (are) working in difficult situations."

"Problem is with those at helm who r ( are) unmindful of conduct and r ( are) politically

guided," he tweeted.

The Governor said the State's Director General of Police responded to him on the

development by saying, West Bengal police firmly adheres to the path laid down by law.

There is no discrimination for or against anyone in an extra legal sense.

"Police @MamataOfficial busy in carrying out political errands and taking on opposition,"

he said.

"Those at helm @WBPolice cannot escape their accountability for this alarming decline

in law and order," he added.

"State has become home to illegal bomb making that has potential to unsettle democracy,"

the Governor averred.

"Compromised democracy is destructive of civil life, " the Governor said adding,"

Democracy @MamataOfficial stressed as police and bureaucracy politicized."

BJP national secretary Rahul Sinha alleged that West Bengal has become a haven for

militants.

Taking note of the NIA arresting terrorists, Sinha said, " Extremists are coming to the

state from various places and masterminding sabotage considering the state safe. "

He alleged that the State Government couldn't take action against the extremists keeping

in mind the vote bank.

He further complained that Bangladesh has become a new place for border extremists.

" The Centre has repeatedly asked the state for land to provide barbed wire at the

Bangladesh border, but the State Government is yet to provide, " he stated.

Party's state president Dilip Ghosh said, " Militant activity is on the rise in the state with

the help of the State Government. "

" Whenever an incident occurs, the state administration tries to suppress it. Earlier,

explosions have taken place in different districts of the state several times which the

administration has projected as normal incident, " Ghosh remarked.

Congress MP and Leader of Opposition Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury expressed grave

concern over his constituencys links with the terror outfit.

Chowdhury, who represents the Baharampur constituency in Murshidabad of West

Bengal, was worried over the terror links of his district following the arrests.

The Congress leader said NIA must conduct a thorough probe into the links with

Pakistan-based terror outfit Al-Qaeda.

Chowdhury, also state Congress president, said, "It is a matter of great concern that

al-Qaeda militants were captured from Murshidabad. Murshidabad has been named for

militant activity before. But I am deeply concerned about Bengal's links to terrorist

organisations like al-Qaeda."

"Al-Qaeda is actually targeting these poor and innocent people. There is a message

going on in India right now due to communal polarisation, and this is what fundamentalist

organisations are using. Otherwise, we would not have known how weak the intelligence

of the state is," he noted.

"The border districts are getting weaker and weaker. The only job of the police now is

to save the Trinamool. The efficiency of the police is eroding. The danger will only

increase," Chowdhury observed.

Ed's: Pls Pick Up Suitably From Earlier Series.

UNI SJC-PC BM
Three women, two of them from Africa, advanced to the second round of selection to become the next director-general of the World Trade Organization as the field was cut from eight to five, the Geneva-based body said Friday.

The WTO is looking for a new director-general to replace Brazilian Roberto Azevedo, who stepped down a year earlier than expected at the end of August. The 25-year-old trade body has never had a leader who is female or from Africa.

The five to go through to the next round are Kenyan minister Amina Mohamed, former Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee, Saudi Arabia's Mohammad Al-Tuwaijri and British ex-minister Liam Fox.

This confirms Reuters' reporting on Thursday that Mexico's Jesus Seade, Egypt's Hamid Mamdouh and Moldovan Tudor Ulianovschi were eliminated.
After months of silence from Roku about why it refuses to support the Kwese-branded version of the Roku 2 player sold in South Africa, the company has provided feedback.

It has refuted suggestions that South Africa was just a product dump for obsolete Roku 2 streaming devices, and answered questions about why the devices cant continue to work like an unbranded Roku player following the liquidation of Kwese Play.

On the morning of 3 July 2019, concerned Kwese Play subscribers flooded social media with questions for their video streaming provider.

Their streaming services had just been suspended, without warning, and their Kwese-branded Roku 2 devices displayed a worrisome message:

Econet no longer offers Kwese Play. For more information contact Econet.

Econet was the parent company of Kwese Play. It also owns Liquid Telecom.

Subscribers duly complied with the instructions on the screen, and Econets initial response to them was that it had taken note that customers received a notification that their Kwese Play devices were deactivated.

We apologise for this inconvenience and are working on resolving it, Kwese told subscribers at the time.

It later issued a statement admitting that it was in discussions with Roku over the viability of the Kwese Play service.

The closure of the service and the message relayed on the device this morning was unexpected and comes at a time when we are engaged in discussions with Roku about their future plans on Africa, Econet claimed.

However, when Roku was asked for comment it provided a different perspective entirely:

Econet licensed our platform to deliver the Kwese Play streaming service to its customers. Econet is shutting down the Kwese Play service and is no longer working with Roku. For more information contact Kwese/Econet, Roku said.

Obsolete media players

When Kwese Play first launched in South Africa in September 2017, the Roku 2 was already two years old.

While Roku was still selling the device in 2017, it has since been discontinued and the company notified customers last year that it was ending support for the Roku 2 entirely from 15 November 2019.

This raises the question: was Kwese Play just a product dump of obsolete Roku 2 players?

No. Econet was a Roku Powered partner, a spokesperson for Roku told MyBroadband.

That is a programme where we license our streaming platform and streaming player designs to service providers who leverage our platform to deliver streaming services to their customers.

According to Roku, Econet chose the Roku 2 streaming player for the Kwese Play service as it considered it to be the best fit for its proposition and market.

Econet manufactured these devices themselves under the Roku Powered license, the company stated.

Millions of consumers around the world have used the Roku 2 streaming player.

Bricked Kwese Play Roku 2 devices

When asked whether Roku could release a software patch to allow Kwese Plays Roku 2 device to function like an unbranded device, Roku said that it is not possible.

The devices that are in market today are Kwese Play devices, owned by Econet. Roku is not in a position to patch these devices.

Roku said it is sincerely disappointed that Econet closed its Kwese Play business.

When we signed Econet as a Roku Powered partner we did not envision this outcome.

We worked hand-in-hand with Econet to ensure the timely delivery of a high-quality product and continued support after launch.




The Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial is now open to the public following a dedication service Thursday in Washington, D.C.

A combination of structures and statues honors Americas top World War II general and former president.

The newest memorial in the nations capital was more than 20 years in creation, from Congressional approval to dedication. The opening ceremony had been planned for May to mark the 75th anniversary of the defeat of Germany in World War II. But the coronavirus health crisis forced organizers to postpone the event until September 17.

The U.S. Marine Band, also known as The Presidents Own, started the celebration.

Senator Pat Roberts of Kansas heads the commission that led the building project. At the ceremony, he thanked the long list of supporters for the memorial, including the Eisenhower family.

Then he introduced a special guest speaker from very, very far away.

Good evening, Senator Roberts and honored guests. Im NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy, commander of the International Space Station, orbiting 260 miles above Earth. Along with our NASA administrator, I'm honored to join you in celebrating the memorial dedication of our nation's 34th President - Dwight D. Eisenhower 

Allied commander, president from Kansas

To most Americans, Eisenhower was known simply by his nickname Ike.

Eisenhower was born in Texas in 1890 but he grew up in Abilene, Kansas. After high school, he attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and became an officer in the U.S. Army.

In World War II, Eisenhower received increasingly important positions. He led the Allied invasions of North Africa, then Italy, then finally Normandy, France as a five star general and Supreme Allied Commander.

After the war, Eisenhower showed interest in running for president. He chose Richard Nixon as his running mate and the two were elected in 1952.

Gaining the presidency was among the pivotal moments recognized by the memorials commission as central to Eisenhowers life and legacy. He took office while the country was involved in a war on the Korean Peninsula. In addition, the United States increasingly faced competition from the former Soviet Union, which sought to expand its economic and military influence in Europe and Asia.

The general-then-president would face an unusually wide set of issues at home and abroad during his two terms, which continue to define and trouble America.

Making peace

One of Eisenhowers first tasks was to end the conflict in Korea. In that war, North Korea, with ally China and support from the Soviet Union, fought against South Korea and United Nations troops from several countries led by the United States.

On July 27, the United States signed the Korean Armistice Agreement, bringing fighting to an end. The peace deal marked the end of a hot war in what would change into a cold war with the Soviet Union (U.S.S.R.). The Cold War was a period of intense competition between the Communist U.S.S.R. and its allies and the democratic capitalist West, led by the U.S.

Troops sent to Arkansas

Another issue important to Eisenhowers presidency was civil rights. He appointed Earl Warren, who was the Supreme Court chief justice who gave the Brown v. Board of Education ruling that desegregated public schools.

Eisenhower ordered federal troops to enforce U.S. law to integrate the Central High School of Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957. During Eisenhowers term, activist Rosa Parks pushed for integration of busing in Alabama. And Martin Luther King, Jr. began to lead peaceful protests in the American South.

Eisenhowers efforts to push space exploration form a third part of his legacy. The Soviet Union was first to launch a satellite into orbit in 1957. However, Eisenhower created the U.S. space agency NASA and supported science education as an answer to the space race. By 1959, NASA had introduced seven astronauts and the American space program was fully established.

And during his time in office, Ike was and largely remains one of Americas most popular and well-liked presidents.

Dispute over the design

The long road to completion of the memorial was partly caused by disagreements between Eisenhowers family and memorial designer Frank Gehry. The family did not accept Gehrys first design, which had at its center a statue of Eisenhower as a shoeless boy.

The disagreement over the design grew severe, involved Congress and legal action, and delayed progress on the project for many years. The cost of the project rose to about $150 million.

The final design places importance on Eisenhowers two main roles in history: his leadership of the D-Day invasion of Normandy and his time as president. A statue of a young Ike remains. Behind is a wide metal structure, which memorializes the beaches of Normandy  where D-Day took place.

At the ceremony, Gehry spoke in video message. He praised the debate over the memorial design.

There were sensitivities, for sure, expressed by many - including the Eisenhower family. We listened to all and the result is better.

Susan Eisenhower is one of the presidents granddaughters. She told the New York Times that the whole family was happy with the result after the trials of the earlier disagreement. She said, For me, personally, this memorial is also going to be a symbol of how open and honest dialogue finally produced a better result.

She also offered an observation. She said the memorial to her grandfather spoke to current events in the country. What a timely figure right now, she said.

Eisenhower noted that the calming steadiness that he represented is something that is also worth reflecting on and reminding ourselves of.

Just because the 1950s look like a quiet time, it just didnt just happen that way. That was his underlying commitment, to keep this country united, she said.

The memorial rests on land next to the Department of Education, across Independence Avenue from the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum and beside the Voice of America.

Im Mario Ritter, Jr.

And Im Caty Weaver.

Mario Ritter Jr. adapted this story for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.

_________________________________________________

Words in This Story

tribute n. something done to honor or show respect for a person

legacy n. something that is left behind by someone who dies, something left for people in the future

integrate v. to bring together races or different people

symbol n. a sign, action or object that stands for an idea or quality

dialogue n. a discussion or talks aimed at ending a disagreement

figure n. a person who is well-known and who is considered to have certain qualities

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There will be time. Time to weigh the enormous social and political implications of a remarkable womans passing. Time to plot strategy. Time to calculate the political advantage, and disadvantage, that her death opens up. There will be time.

But surely, surely, Ruth Bader Ginsburg deserves a moment  at least a moment  when an anxious nation facing a momentous election turns aside from scheming politics, partisan maneuvering and cold-blooded calculation to salute a profoundly notable human being, a trailblazer and role model, a pioneer who changed this great nation for the better.

Chief Justice John Roberts Jr., in a statement, called her a tireless and resolute champion of justice. She was, indeed.

Aside from Thurgood Marshall, no single American has so wholly advanced the cause of equality under the law, historian Jill Lepore wrote in The New Yorker.

Its telling, perhaps, that the woman who played RBG in a recent movie about Ginsburgs life was known for her role as a Star Wars heroine. RBG was a hero in the real world.

Well into her 80s, she became a feminist icon, but she began blazing a trail in the wilderness long before she was the subject of childrens storybooks and Saturday Night Live parodies.

The movie, On the Basis of Sex, opens with a scene of resolute young men attired in a uniform of dark suits, white shirts and dark ties, walking up the steps of Harvard Law School. Among them is a young woman, her brilliant blue dress shimmering amid the somber sea around her. Ginsburg is one of nine women in a class of more than 500, six years after the law school began admitting women. In the movie, the dean asks each of the nine why she is taking a space that could have gone to a man. Ginsburg explains that her husband is a second-year law student; studying the law would help her be a more patient and understanding wife.

The year was 1956. The young Ginsburg may have been strong and resolute, but she was not yet the Notorious RBG immortalized in T-shirts and on Tumblr. (Her clerks had to explain the pop-culture reference to their opera-buff boss.)

She and her husband were still in law school, parents of a toddler, when Martin Ginsburg was diagnosed with cancer. His wife attended both her classes and his and helped him with his assignments. She asked Harvard to allow her to finish law school in New York and still get her Harvard degree; the school said no. Ruth Ginsburg transferred, finishing in a tie for first in her class at Columbia Law School.

And couldnt find a job. She was a woman, a mother, a Jew. No law firm would hire her, so she took a job teaching the law. (She would eventually become the first woman to hold a full professorship at Columbia Law.)

It was her husband who found a tax case that set her on a path that would lead to the U.S. Supreme Court. A Colorado man was not allowed a deduction for expenses he incurred as a caregiver to his elderly mother. He was discriminated against on the basis of sex, since only women were allowed to take the deduction. Ironically, a law discriminating against men gave Ginsburg the opening she needed to chip away at the vast body of law that discriminated against women.

As the first director of the Womens Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union, she began bringing cases that would dismantle laws and regulations designed explicitly to deny women full citizenship under the Constitution. Arguably the most notable was Reed v. Reed, a case involving an Idaho statute that gave preference to men in executing estates. She won, disrupting a century of legal precedent that sanctioned womens exclusion as a show of reverence rather than prejudice.

In her New Yorker article, Lepore points out that Chief Justice Warren Burger, writing for the majority, used language that Ginsburg had introduced. To give a mandatory preference to members of either sex over members of the other  is to make the very kind of arbitrary legislative choice forbidden by the equal protection of the Fourteenth Amendment 

President Jimmy Carter appointed Ginsburg to the D.C. Circuit Court in 1980. President Bill Clinton appointed her to the high court 13 years later. The diminutive woman with the big glasses and hair smoothed back with a trademark scrunchie served for 27 years.

Her most significant opinions on the Supreme Court included one she wrote for the majority in a 1996 case in which the court ruled that Virginia Military Institute violated the equal-protection clause by refusing to enroll female students.

Through a century plus three decades and more, she wrote, women did not count among voters composing We the People. Not until 1920 did women gain a constitutional right to the franchise. And for a half century thereafter, it remained the prevailing doctrine that government, both federal and state, could withhold from women the opportunities accorded men so long as any basis in reason could be conceived for the discrimination.

As the high court became more conservative during her tenure, Ginsburg found herself writing frequently in dissent. Her vital role as the voice of the minority may have gone against her consensus-building grain but she seemed to embrace its value, even punctuating the dissenting occasions with striking neckpieces that foiled her solemn robe.

Even when she strongly disagreed, Ginsburgs dissents were expertly crafted in respectful and measured tones. Fight for the things you care about, she told young women in a 2015 speech at Harvard. But do it in a way that will lead others to join you.

Her dissents became law, as when her 2007 opinion inspired the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. Her dissents became clear-eyed prophecies, as when she lamented the majoritys decision in Shelby County v. Holder to gut a vital section of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, thereby allowing voter suppression to go unchecked.

Dissents speak to a future age, she told National Public Radios Nina Totenberg in a 2002 interview. Its not simply to say, My colleagues are wrong and I would do it this way. But the greatest dissents do become court opinions and gradually over time their views become the dominant view. So thats the dissenters hope: that they are writing not for today, but for tomorrow.

Today, though, in the words of one Houston woman, Tears flow in a river of gratitude. With mourners gathering on a Friday evening on the steps of the Supreme Court building, she spoke for countless others across this troubled nation.
United States President Donald Trump has said that the protesters, who went violent in the aftermath of the death of African-American George Floyd, did not spare even the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Washington DC, describing the demonstrators as a "bunch of thugs".

Floyd died in Minneapolis on May 25 after white police officer Derek Chauvin handcuffed and pinned him to the ground, and knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes while the 46-year-old from Houston gasped for breath.

The footage, which went viral, showed Floyd pleading with the officer, saying he can't breathe. His death sparked nationwide violent protests with some protesters resorting to vandalism, looting and rioting across the country, leaving behind a trail of destruction.

"You know, they started ripping down Abraham Lincoln. When they hit Lincoln, I said wait a minute. This is the man and you can do - then they hit George Washington, Thomas Jefferson. They had everybody, Trump said at a well-attended election rally in Minnesota, a State that he lost by a little over 44,000 votes in 2016, on September 18.

He also mentioned about the statue of Gandhi in Washington DC that was vandalised by unknown miscreants at the peak of the nationwide protests.

"They even had Gandhi. All Gandhi wanted was one thing, peace. Right? We have peace. Rip down his statue. We don't like him. I don't think they have any idea what they're doing," Trump said.

"I think they're just a bunch of thugs, okay, you want to know the truth. I think they're a bunch of thugs," he said.

The president told his cheering audience that he had signed an executive order that would put such miscreants in jail for 10 years. Now, nobody even talks about taking statues down, he said.

The vandalised statue was restored later by the Embassy of India here, with the help of National Park Police and the State Department. "We had a period of time when they were ripping down all of the statues and monuments, and I said to my people four months ago, I said this is crazy. These people--and they don't even know," Trump said.

Now that he has signed an executive order, Trump said that nobody has showed up in four months to take down a statue. "Because you know why? They look and they say I want to take on that statue. I'm going to take down that statue. That statue's coming down. And then somebody says, you know, it's 10 years in jail. They go that's too much. I'm getting out of here. It's true," he said amid laughter.

"Ten years is not acceptable. Ten years is a lot to rip down a statue, have a little fun, especially when they have no idea what they're ripping down. But we have an idea what they're ripping down. They're ripping down, in many cases, greatness. They're ripping down our past. They're ripping down our history," he said.

"That's where these guys begin. The take away your history. You look at the Middle East. You look all over. Look what ISIS did. Look what all of them do. They go down and they go to museums and they break everything and they rip everything. They want to take away your past. They are not taking away the past of the United States of America. Not as long as I'm here," Trump said.
SPRINGFIELD  Illinois plans to continue withholding federal payroll taxes on behalf of its 62,000 employees despite a program President Trump launched in August that allows workers to defer paying those taxes through the end of the year.

Im not supporting a deferral that would double workers taxes after January and put Social Security further at risk. I mean, thats essentially what this would do, Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza said during an interview Thursday.

Trump announced the program in a memorandum Aug. 8. It applies to the 6.2 percent tax that employers withhold for their employees Social Security benefits. It often appears on pay stubs as FICA  the Federal Insurance Contributions Act. The program is available for employees who earn less than $104,000 per year.

The intent is to temporarily boost workers income during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the taxes that would be deferred would have to be repaid after Jan. 1. Then, the employees withholding would double to 12.4 percent until the amount of taxes that were deferred is repaid.

So far, the only major employers taking part in the program is the federal government, Mendoza said. Most states and many large private-sector employers have publicly stated that they will not take part.

Mendoza said Gov. JB Pritzker has already announced that the agencies under his purview will not take part in the program, nor will any of the other state constitutional officers  attorney general, secretary of state, state treasurer and attorney general.

Just on its face, as a policy, to me it seemed really bad policy to essentially tell people that they can have a little bit of money on the front end and then pay twice as much on the back end and be prepared to do so, Mendoza said.

I reached out to the governor early on to let them know my position, that we would not be doing it for any of our employees, and of course recommended that no one do it because I think its terrible policy, she said. And its really kind of a cruel hoax. I mean, the Presidents essentially dangling this carrot in front of people. And I would say, this is that perfect scenario where all that glitters is not gold.

According to an analysis by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a worker earning $50,000 a year would see a temporary increase of $119.23 in each two-week pay period. But at the end of the year, that person would owe $1,073.08 in deferred taxes.

Mendoza said she believes the program was devised to boost Trumps re-election campaign.

I mean, it couldnt be any clearer, she said. And the fact that the President (this) week turned around and said that  if he gets reelected, he will forgive the payroll deferral and people wouldnt have to pay it back. I mean, to me, thats just a clear attempt to buy votes, he does not have the legal authority to forgive the debt. And he doesnt tell people that even if he could  which thankfully he does not  if he did, hed be doing it at the expense of bankrupting Social Security, which millions of Americans rely on.

Meanwhile, Mendoza said, the bigger threat to the economy is the possibility that Congress will not approve an aid package to help state and local governments that have seen precipitous declines in revenue due to the recession brought on by the pandemic, something Pritzker also warned about earlier this week.

Preparing for what he called a nightmare scenario if Congress fails to pass an aid package, Pritzker said he has asked state agency heads to make plans for a 5-percent budget cut in the current fiscal, which ends June 30, 2021, and a 10-percent cut for the following fiscal year.

The Democratic-controlled U.S. House passed such a bill in May, but it has languished in the Republican-controlled Senate where GOP leaders have argued that the federal government shouldnt be asked to bail out states that were already in financial trouble before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Were not asking for the government to come in and bail us out for the self-inflicted wounds of the past, Mendoza said. We were on our way to fixing that and to getting back on stable fiscal footing. But without a doubt, the federal government has an obligation to step up for all states in the nation, and to help us supplement for the lost income directly related to COVID-19.
Come Labor Day and the rollout of pumpkin spice lattes at Starbucks, you'd think, maybe, that you'd finally have your hands on your federal income tax refund.

For most people, after all, tax refund cash has come and gone. They spent that money months ago. Others are waiting and waiting, much like Carol Wilke who filed a tax return the day after the Super Bowl and still had not seen her tax refund of $1,406 seven months later.

The 2020 tax season isn't running short of frustrating scenarios even as the calendar inches closer to 2021. COVID-19 shutdowns threw a monkey wrench into the tax system.

And some, such as those who filed paper tax returns, faced way more headaches and confusion than others as piles and piles of paperwork sit untouched.

At one point, the IRS needed to move a lot of unopened mail into trailers as processing centers were shut down during the pandemic.

Households facing job losses and financial stress in 2020 only feel more aggravation when they can't depend on a four-figure income tax refund arriving on time.

No retirement savings?: 3 things to do immediately

Robot grocers: H-E-B will deploy robots to handle online orders for curbside pickup, delivery

What should you do if you're missing a tax refund?

Mixed messages fill the air, much like autumn leaves, when it comes to what to do about getting your tax refund.

More: You may receive a check for $5 or less from US Treasury  and here's why

More: Some people are still waiting for a stimulus check to arrive. What's the holdup?

The Internal Revenue Service has acknowledged delays involving the filing of paper returns as a result of what it calls "COVID-19 mail processing delays."

As of an Aug. 31 update, the IRS states online: "Were experiencing delays in processing paper tax returns due to limited staffing. If you already filed a paper return, we will process it in the order we received it. Do not file a second tax return or contact the IRS about the status of your return."

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The IRS noted: "To protect the public and employees, and in compliance with orders of local health authorities around the country, certain IRS services such as live assistance on telephones, processing paper tax returns and responding to correspondence continue to be extremely limited."

So many people feel like all they can do is just sit there and wait.

One reader shares her frustration

Wilke emailed me the day after Labor Day after reading my column in her local paper, the Idaho Press.

The IRS has acknowledged delays involving the filing of paper returns as a result of what it calls "COVID-19 mail processing delays."

I responded immediately by suggesting that she contact the IRS National Taxpayer Advocate Service at 877-777-4778.

Wilke told me that she called the number and waited 30 minutes or so on hold. But then she was transferred to a customer service line at the IRS and waited another 30 minutes.

"Make sure your phone is charged," Wilke told me.

Overall, though, she was fairly happy and hopeful that she and her husband Martin could be on a better track to seeing their $1,406 federal income tax refund one day.

"A very helpful woman there researched our account and found our return was never received," said Wilke, 73, who is retired after 23 years of working for Boise State University.

Wilke said the IRS representative told her that the couple's tax return probably got misplaced at either the post office or at the IRS when it finally got delivered.

Wilke said the woman advised her to refile and that the IRS is recommending that some others do the same if they've not heard a word about their return or cannot track a refund via the IRS "Where's My Refund?" tool.

Wilke tried to file electronically. But she wanted to file the new 1040-SR form for seniors and couldn't do it electronically. So she's going to mail in a new form.

"We're going to mail it certified mail  and you cross your fingers because the post office is under attack from the federal government," she said.

Warning here: We have no idea if this will work. And there's a chance that something that applies to the Wilke's return doesn't apply to other returns. The IRS did not give a comment on Wilke's phone call or situation.

The IRS officially continues to stress that tax filers who filed paper returns should not file a second 2019 return. Individuals who receive late refunds will receive interest.

Wilke doesn't blame the IRS or the post office, as she feels both agencies have been underfunded for quite some time and COVID-19 made many things far more complicated.

"It should have been very simple," Wilke said. "But it didn't turn out to be."

Lots of paper returns remain in limbo

The paper return situation is clearly a mess, as one set of instructions  do not call the IRS or refile a return  remains online and, apparently, some taxpayers who do call are told to do just the opposite.

It may be best to make a call or two before just throwing up your hands, though, and sending in a second return.

Martin and Carol Wilke have been waiting for months for their income tax refund after COVID-19 related delays left millions of paper tax returns on the sidelines.

But, really, would we expect anything less out of this jumbled tax season?

In a report to Congress in late June, the National Taxpayer Advocate Service disclosed that "taxpayers who filed a 2019 paper return and are entitled to refunds may be in for a long wait."

The reason? IRS processing centers were closed at the end of March to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, and overall staffing was limited.

As of May 16, the National Taxpayer Advocate Service report noted, the IRS estimated that it had a backlog of 4.7 million paper returns.

"Although the IRS is reopening some of its core operations, it is not clear when it can open and log all the returns sitting in mail facilities," the report stated.

To be sure, most people aren't filing paper returns anymore. So there's a bit of good news there.

But millions of people still do opt for paper, instead of e-filing. Some people use computer software but use the limited e-filing options for other family members instead and file paper returns for themselves. Others just like to file a paper return because that's how they've always done it.

The IRS had expected to process 10.2 million paper returns by late May, compared with 130.6 million e-filed returns.

As of May 22, the IRS had processed 2.7 million paper returns, down 73% from projections, and 117 million e-filed returns, down 10% from projections.

The extension of the tax deadline to July 15 from April 15 may have contributed to some confusion and delays.

On top of that, the IRS has been addressing the rollout of stimulus checks. The National Taxpayer Advocate Service began working in August with the IRS to address a variety of cases where there have been delays receiving Economic Impact Payments.

So perhaps, it shouldn't be too surprising that we're still hearing about tax refund delays.

A reader told me she mailed the couple's tax returns in March, received a state refund but was still waiting in September for a five-figure tax refund from the federal government. The refund was to be used for some estimated tax payments ahead.

"We tried to search the "Where's My Refund?" for the government but nothing," said Catherine Lynch.

As of Sept. 10, she eventually discovered the words "in process" at the IRS site when she did another refund search. Still, no money but she's hopeful the refund has a shot at showing up soon.

"We just don't know what's going on," Lynch said. "It's frustrating that you can't get any answers. We don't know if they got it or they didn't."

And a few days later, a letter arrived in the mail from the IRS confirming that a tax return was filed by the couple. But then, the same correspondence raised questions about the possibility of ID theft and demanded a response before any income tax refund could be issued.

And so the 2020 tax season drags on where nothing is really straight forward or easy for a long list of taxpayers.

Contact Susan Tompor via stompor@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @tompor. To subscribe, please go to freep.com/specialoffer. Read more on business and sign up for our business newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Wait, you still haven't received your tax refund in September?
The ruling YSR Congress party in Andhra Pradesh has entered into a virtual confrontation with the state judiciary following a series of judgments against the Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy government in the recent past.

For the last three days, the YSR Congress party parliamentarians have been openly raising objections inside and outside Parliament over the recent orders of the state high court stalling the investigation into the alleged land scam in Amaravati, the capital region of Andhra Pradesh during the Telugu Desam Party regime.

The YSRC leaders have been severely critical of the alleged gag order issued by the high court on Tuesday night restraining the media from publishing the contents of the First Information Report (FIR) filed by the Anti-Corruption Bureau into the alleged Amravati land scam involving a former advocate general of the state and daughters of a serving Supreme Court judge.

YSRC general secretary and parliamentary party leader V Vijay Sai Reddy questioned the legitimacy of the high court order stalling the probe into the alleged land scam in Amaravati and gagging the media from reporting the contents of the FIR registered by the ACB.

The judiciary in Andhra Pradesh is not impartial and is biased against the state government. The high court has taken some quite unusual and legally questionable decisions. There appears to be no material to justify such censorship other than the allegation by the petitioner that it has foisted the case. This is political vendetta being practiced by someone who has served during the previous regime, Sai Reddy said.

YSRC floor leader in Lok Sabha P Mithun Reddy said one cannot expect impartial judgments from some judges who had earlier served as legal advisors to the Telugu Desam Party. He demanded that the whole process of appointing judges through collegiums should be re-examined.

The MPs also expressed concern that the courts were obstructing the development work of the people. He said it was strange that the courts were obstructing investigations into the scandals instead of uncovering the scams. The MPs urged the Centre to intervene over the orders of the state high court.

While declaring that the Jagan government would move the Supreme Court challenging the state high court orders, the YSRC leaders also demanded that the Centre order a comprehensive probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation into the alleged purchase of over 4,000 acres of lands by several TDP leaders in and around Amaravati between June and December 2013 in anticipation of the declaration of the capital region.

At the same time, the YSRC party has also brought out a government order issued during the Chandrababu Naidu government a few months before the 2019 general elections, allotting housing plots to as many as 14 judges in the prime area of Amaravati.

Naidu had given prime lands to judges free of cost. Some judicial officers and their family members had bought lands in the capital region. How is it justified? The same TDP is opposing the allotment of house sites for the landless poor in Amaravati, state deputy chief minister K Narayana Swamy criticised.

TDP strongly rebutted the criticism of the YSRC on allotment of lands to judges in Amaravati. There is nothing new in this. During the Y S Rajasekhar Reddy regime, too, house sites were allotted to judges as a matter of policy. The TDP government had allotted lands not just to judges, but also to All India Service officers and journalists, TDP official spokesman Bonda Uma Maheshwar Rao said.

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The Chinese military sent 18 planes, including fighter jets, over the Taiwan Strait in an unusually large show of force on Friday as a senior US envoy held a day of closed-door meetings on the self-governing island claimed by China.

Chinese fighter jets appeared in Taiwanese airspace from four directions, media reports from Taipei said, as Beijing launched maritime and airspace drills near the island on Friday, leading Taiwan to scramble its own warplanes. Taiwans defence ministry said two bombers and 16 fighter jets from China crossed into Taiwans air defence identification zone.

The real combat drills come as Keith Krach, US undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and environment, arrived in Taiwan on Thursday, and will attend the memorial service for former Taiwan President Lee Teng-hui on Saturday. Lee, who died in July, is known on the mainland as the godfather of Taiwan secessionism.

We sent the delegation to a funeral and the Chinese have apparently responded by military blustering. Ill leave it at that, US secretary of state Mike Pompeo told reporters during a visit to Guyana.

Krachs visit comes within a month of US secretary of health and human services Alex Azars trip to Taiwan as Washington and Taipei warm up ties, much to the anger of Beijing.

In Beijing, defence ministry spokesperson Ren Guoqiang said those who play with fire will get burnt, as he announced the drills. He said the exercises were a necessary move aimed at the current situation in the Taiwan Strait to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity. He accused the US and Taiwan of stepping up collusion, frequently causing disturbances without directly referring to Krachs visit.

Reiterating that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China, Ren said the Taiwan question is purely Chinas internal affair. Commenting on Krachs visit, foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Friday that China has the firm will to thwart external interference and secessionist acts in Taiwan.

The US official held talks with Taiwans minister of economic affairs and the cabinets vice premier. He is scheduled to meet Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen for dinner at her official residence.

Beijing has ramped up military activity near Taiwan in recent months and have conducted several exercises in the region.

In June, Taipei scrambled jets in response to warn off the aircraft from the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force, which had deployed fighter aircraft across the Taiwan Strait hours after a US transport plane flew over the island.

In August, Beijing conducted exercises near the island, which coincided with health secretary Azars visit.

The US is also preparing to sell seven tranches of weapons systems to Taiwan, the CNN reported on Thursday, quoting a US official. The US, like India and the majority of other countries, does not have formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, though the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979 allows Washington to sell arms to the island.
By Express News Service

KOCHI: In A covert operation, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested three West Bengal natives, who were associated with a module of Al-Qaeda that planned terror strikes in New Delhi, from different parts of Ernakulam district early Saturday morning.

Mosaraf Hossen, Iyakub Biswas and Murshid Hasan were arrested during an hour-long operation which started at 2am.

In a simultaneous operation in Murshidabad, West Bengal, six other members of the Al-Qaeda-affiliated group were arrested. They are Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman, all residents of Murshidabad.

In Kerala, the NIA, with the support of the state police, raided three houses  two at Mudikal near Perumbavoor and one at Pathalam near Kalamassery. Mosaraf and Iyakub, who stayed at different rented facilities, were arrested from Mudikal. Murshid was arrested from a rented house near Pathalam. NIA also seized mobile phones, laptops and documents from the trio.

The entire operation had started a month ago after the agencys New Delhi-based intelligence wing, which is monitoring cyber activities, found that an Al-Qaeda-affiliated group in Pakistan was in touch with some persons in India.

After monitoring and tracking down their identity and locations, the NIA registered an FIR on September 11 in New Delhi. However, no details were released about the registration of such a case.

NIA sleuths monitored suspects daily activities for a week before their arrest

Following a directive from NIA New Delhi, officers at the agencys Kochi unit visited the places where the suspects stayed and monitored their daily activities over the past one week.

The time and date for the raids were fixed by NIA Delhi after sharing inputs with its units in Guwahati and Kochi. The NIA sought the assistance of the Kerala Police, but no information about its nature was provided.

At 1.30 am, around six NIA officials in two SUVs reached near Pathalam Junction and parked the vehicle a few distance away from the house where Murshid stayed. Police officials from the local police station also reached the place. Around 2.05 am, the NIA started the raid.

They took Murshid into custody and left the place by 2.20 am. At 2.40 am, four NIA officials in a vehicle returned and checked the house for nearly 15 minutes.

While one team was conducting the raid at Pathalam, the other two teams in four SUVs comprising 14 people carried out a simultaneous search at the rented houses in Mudikal. Police officers were also present during the search.

After the raid at two houses was completed by 2.45 am, arrested persons --- Mosaraf and Iyakub --- were brought to the NIA office in Kochi within an hour.

They were questioned there for nearly 10 hours. According to an NIA press release, the preliminary investigation revealed that these individuals were radicalised by Pakistan-based Al-Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the national capital region.

For this purpose, the module was actively indulging in fundraising and a few members of the gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country, the release said. Murshid arrived at Pathalam nearly two months ago after travel restrictions were partially lifted. He worked as a dailywage labourer and also worked at hotels.

During the lockdown, a majority of migrant workers who stayed at the house which I gave on rent left for their native places. It was in June or July that Murshid came here. He did not speak much and was a reserved person. He had submitted a copy of Aadhaar as identity proof when he arrived here. He worked at various places, Nazar, the owner of the house said. Mosaraf was working, including at Perumbavoor, as a dailywage labourer for several years.

He recently joined a textile shop there. Police officials who conducted an inquiry about him claimed his family also stayed with him in Perumbavoor.

Iyakub first stayed and worked at Adimali in Idukki. He reached Perumbavoor only two months ago and stayed at a rented facility in Mudikal.

He also worked in a hotel there. NIA also questioned the arrested persons friends and relatives, who have been working and staying with them at its office in Kochi. After the interrogation, the three were produced before a magistrate and a transit warrant was issued. The arrested were taken to New Delhi on a flight from here in the evening and are likely to be produced at a court before Tuesday.

State a safe haven for terror groups

Kochi: The arrest of members of an Al-Qaeda-affiliated group is not the first incident in which members of international terror groups were traced from the state. The state is turning out to be a safe haven for terrorist groups, especially JMB which has roots in West Bengal and Assam, reports Toby Antony.

Kanakamala case: one more arrested

Kochi: The NIA on Saturday held one more person in connection with the case registered against Ansar-ul-Khilafah Kerala, which was busted by security agencies at Kanakamala in Kannur in 2016. The arrested is Mohammad Polakkani, of Kannur.
The Upper House on Saturday passed the Epidemic Diseases Amendment Bill, 2020 to bring a law that punishes those who attack health workers or doctors who are fighting the coronavirus outbreak or during any situation similar to the current Covid-19 pandemic. The legislation provides for up to five years in jail for those who attack doctors and health care personnel.

The Centre implemented the Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Ordinance 2020 to amend the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 in order to provide protection to health care service personnel, their living premises as well as their workplaces against any violence during the course of a pandemic.

Health Minister Harsh Vardhan while introducing the Bill in the Upper House said that the ordinance introduced in April led to a fall in cases of violence against healthcare workers. He said, We have all noticed that there has been a dramatic decline in the incidents of violence against health workers all over the country.

Addressing the issue of the stigma attached to Covid-19, Harsh Vardhan said, Many healthcare workers, including doctors, paramedics, were insulted in some form or the other, due to the stigma attached to Covid-19. The Central government acted on this situation and found that there was a need for a law, a prohibitory mechanism against such incidents.

The legislation intends to make sure that there is an attitude of zero tolerance towards violence against people working in the healthcare sector. The service personnel who will be protected under the new legislation include public and clinical healthcare service providers such as doctors, nurses, paramedical workers and community health workers; any other persons empowered under the act to take measures to prevent the outbreak of the disease or spread thereof; and any persons declared as such by the state government, by notification in the official gazette.

Trinamool Congress leader and MP Derek OBrien said the Bill allows Centre to cross constitutional bars and interferes with how the chief ministers run their states. He said, Remember states of West Bengal, Punjab, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan rejected you. Chief Ministers there have been elected to run the states. You cannot cross constitutional bars. There are sinister provisions in the Bill. The states must be authorised to take decisions.

The MP from West Bengal called it an imposition of Centres will on states. The Centre cannot impose its will on states. It is unconstitutional, he added.

If any damage is done to clinical establishments, quarantine and isolation facilities of patients, mobile medical units or any other property associated with healthcare personnel during a pandemic, penal provisions can be provoked.

Penalty ranging from Rs 50,000 to Rs 2,00,000 can be slapped on any individual who is involved in commission or abetment of such acts of violence. It can also be punishable in the form of an imprisonment for a term of three months to five years.
19.09.2020 LISTEN

A news item in The Ghanaian Times of 17 September 2020, read:

QUOTE: Ghana cocoa risks EU market ban over forest reserves destruction, galamsey

The European Union has threatened to stop buying cocoa from Ghana if the continuous destruction of the countrys forest reserves, through illegal mining [galamsey] and prospecting for minerals, are not stopped.

[These practices are] destroying the environment and forest cover and those involved must take a serious look at the matter, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of COCOBOD, Mr Joseph Boahen Aidoo, disclosed ... during a courtesy call on the Western Regional House of Chiefs in Sekondi.

He said the EU was worried that the destruction of the forest reserves due to these illegal activities was contributing to climate change....Forest reserves promoted more rainfall, so illegal mining [galamsey] in forests would affect Ghana in the near future, if measures were not taken against prospecting and mining of minerals in the forest reserves. He... appealed to [the] chiefs to stand up and fight the menace.

He said the cocoa industry was facing many challenges, in terms of the swollen shoot disease, the price, and climate change through human behaviour. [Frantic efforts were therefore being made] to improve the yield.... Mr Aidoo [also described] the use of the cutlass on cocoa farms as too tedious. So, new slashing machines had been procured for farmers [in order that they would] use lesser time and energy to gain more yield...

The COCOBOD CEO [further revealed that] due to climate change, the rainfall pattern had reduced drastically...The President of the House [of Chiefs] Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi II, said the Government must give power to the traditional authorities to operate in their areas. Sometimes a chief would send for someone and that person would refuse to attend to the chiefs call. [This] was insubordination, he said.

He blamed the Forestry Commission for issuing permits to people to operate in the [forest] reserves and urged the government to stop the Commission from issuing the permits. The President, who is the Paramount Chief of Ahwiahso, [disclosed that] the destruction of the forest was being done with the connivance of some politicians and people in authority, [with the result that] the culprits could not be reprimanded.

FROM PETER GBAMBILA, SEKONDI

UNQUOTE

In an editorial on the issue, The Ghanaian Times pointed out that cocoa is the backbone of Ghanas economy, generating about $2 billion in foreign exchange annually and contributing a huge part of Ghana's Gross Domestic Product....

The country is the second-largest producer of cocoa [in the world] and the only supplier of premium beans, the paper said. It noted that about 850,000 farmer families in the Eastern, Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Volta, Central and Western North and South regions, are estimated to be involved in cocoa farming and its related activities.

It is thus shocking to learn that the European Union (EU) has threatened to stop buying cocoa from Ghana if the incessant destruction of the countrys forest reserves, as a result of illegal mining,[galamsey] was not halted. ..The EU [is] worried over the destruction of the forest reserves, due to these illegal activities  one of the factors causing climate change.

The Ghanaian Times is concerned about the threat by the EU, because the Union does not issue empty threats and one like this would result in huge losses that should be avoided...Between 2014 and 2017, when the EU banned vegetable exports from Ghana for non-compliance with the EU standards for the export of vegetables, the country lost about US$30 million in revenue...

It would be a costly mistake to allow an illegal activity like galamsey to do more harm than it is already doing...The Ghanaian Times has observed that the energy with which the fight against illegal mining was intensified about three years ago has waned... It is almost as though the fight has been lost. The media continues to report seizures of equipment amongst other sanctions. But the activity seems to have intensified....River bodies are getting more polluted. [This is evident] from their golden-yellow colour.

We... cannot give up and throw our hands in despair. The solution lies in the enforcement of the various laws....We must not disappoint the future generation....All efforts [to save cocoa production] would come to naught if we allow an illegal practice to derail these efforts. Culprits must be seen to be punished. We must endeavour to win the fight. And by all means we must win, The Ghanaian Times added.

I hope The Ghanaian Times, through this editorial, will rekindle the interest of the other members of the Media Coalition Against Galamsey, in keeping up the struggle against those who want to destroy the sacred water-bodies bequeathed to us by our ancestors. They selected habitats for us that contained adequate supplies of water, realising (as they did) that life is not possible without good drinking water.

Yet some people, in their stupid greed, think that obtaining gold is more important than leaving their children and the children of their children, a habitat that can sustain life through the availability of water. All sane Ghanaians must therefore fight to save our water bodies for these unborn generations. Our ancestors left us water, and we have no right to destroy it. It is our duty to that we do not bequeath to our progeny, a desiccated land in which you can survive only if  you can buy bottled water, not only to drink, but to wash things, or cook food with. No-one has the right to reduce us to such a wretched state of human existence.
A delay to the rise is not without precedent. The Howard government delayed a planned rise to 15 per cent in the 1990s and a plan to get the rate to 12 per cent by 2019 was delayed by the Abbott government. The guarantee has been 9.5 per cent since 2014. Regular changes to superannuation policy were criticised in the Financial System Inquiry's interim report in 2014 as adding to costs and undermining confidence in the system. The fight has now become so intense, Keating - who introduced compulsory super in 1992 - has publicly savaged critics of the guarantee rise. This includes saying RBA governor Philip Lowe has "no regard for the key income facts of the last eight years" and describing government MPs opposing it as "little bitchy Liberals". Keating, who was treasurer during the 1990s "recession we had to have", likened abandoning the increase while allowing people to pull up to $20,000 out of their superannuation accounts through the emergency early access scheme to taking the plug out of a bath and turning off the tap. He said when he was treasurer, he had to open up all Australia's financial markets, undertake privatisations, remove tariffs and centralised wage fixing, and fight off "everyone known to man". "What are we asking Treasurer [Josh Frydenberg] to do? To knock over half a dozen Liberals ... not massive structural changes, knock over a few Liberals who want them to break an election promise," he said. Keating declined to be interviewed for this article.

But there were signs a new battle was brewing between the federal government and the superannuation sector even before the coronavirus outbreak was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation. Loading Signs of trouble A spate of advertisements from Industry Super Australia on prime-time television earlier this year told viewers the already-legislated rise in the guarantee would provide tens of thousands of dollars more for workers in retirement. On the surface, the multi-million dollar campaign appeared innocuous enough but it sent a ripple through Canberra.

At that point the federal government had repeatedly said there were "no plans" to change the legislated rise but Liberals were furious. They described the marketing as a "threat" and a reminder of the amount of money the lobby group can afford to drop into major advertising campaigns should the government do something the sector doesn't like. The advertising activity of super funds has been criticised by Liberal backbenchers who do not think they should be allowed to use members' money on campaigns and sponsorships. Regulators have typically not been concerned by these activities. For its part, Industry Super said it was simply informing the public and its members about upcoming changes in super rules that affect them. But three days before the campaign hit national TV screens a joint media statement from Labor's treasury spokesman Jim Chalmers and financial services spokesman Stephen Jones laid bare bubbling suspicions about a wide-ranging Treasury review into the retirement system underway at the time. The battle now is more significant and what's in play is the future existence of super Industry Super chief executive Bernie Dean "[The government's] Retirement Income Review should not be a stalking horse for more cuts to the pension and further delays to the legislated increase," the release said. The review was handed to the federal government in July but has not yet been made public. A freedom of information request for the report was denied this month on the grounds its disclosure would reveal a cabinet decision or deliberation.

Loading By mid-August Senator Hume said the legislation was controversial and she made her "ambivalent" comment about the rise. Days later, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he would "carefully consider" the rise in light of the economic situation at the time. The first rise is due in July 2021. The Mediscare approach Concerns now exist about how the Treasury report could be used by policymakers to justify changes to the super system. This has opened the door to the possibility of a campaign from Labor, backed by the industry super funds, ahead of the next federal election in 2022. "The battle now is more significant and what's in play is the future existence of super," says Industry Super chief executive Bernie Dean. "This is a war largely conducted in Canberra."

He is suspicious members of the Coalition want to get rid of superannuation altogether but says any moves to hurt the fundamentals of the system would be opposed by voters. In fact, he thinks the ramifications would be as significant as Labor's 2016 campaign against the Liberal government over Medicare. The "Mediscare" campaign tapped into pre-existing public fears about health care cuts by warning the Turnbull government might privatise the taxpayer-funded health scheme, despite there being no plans to do so. Dean claims any attempts to tinker with the super system, such as delaying rises to the super guarantee or expanding emergency measures allowing people to access their super funds early, could be seen as the start of plans to chip away at super altogether. Keating also warned in late-August the government was looking to use the coronavirus pandemic to "destroy the superannuation system". Industry Super Australia chief executive Bernie Dean. Credit:Peter Braig "We've seen in a political context when there is a scare around the fundamentals of Medicare what happens," Dean says. "People see it as exactly the same for super. I don't think that's lost on many people in Canberra." While he acknowledges the recession is a tricky landscape for policymakers, he thinks super should be at the "bottom of the list" for changes and there's little merit in the argument delaying the super guarantee will affect wage growth.

"The public knows they won't get a pay rise [if the rise is delayed]. They're being asked to make yet another sacrifice in return for a suggestion they "might" get a few extra dollars a week post-tax. Working Australians can see a con coming a mile away," he says. "We are 30 years in to superannuation and [the merits of the scheme] may be contested in Parliament in Canberra but not in living rooms across the country." Labor spokesman for financial services Stephen Jones agrees with the Medicare analogy, saying the opposition is prepared to have the debate out in public to "remind politicians what people really value". "It will be a central campaign and a central point of difference between Labor and the Coalition if they seek to pull super apart, it will undermine their economic credibility," he says.

In particular he is concerned about moves to affect the "preservation" aspect of superannuation, which means it is maintained for retirement. Any extension to the early access scheme introduced by the government at the height of the pandemic to allow workers to access up to $20,000 from their retirement savings would be particularly concerning, he says, along with any use of the funds to help first-home buyers, as proposed by MP John Alexander and Senator Andrew Bragg. Loading "If super is seen to be the magic pudding you use to fix everything, it will fix nothing ... It's an existential challenge to superannuation," he says. One of the ways this concern could be abated is by enshrining the objective of super in legislation, as the government committed to doing in 2015. This would mean policy changes affecting super would need to be looked at in this framework. This has so far not happened.
The Rajya Sabha Saturday passed a legislation that provides for up to seven years in jail for those attacking doctors and healthcare workers fighting the COVID-19 outbreak or during any situation akin to the current pandemic.

The Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Bill, 2020, was introduced by Health Minister Harsh Vardhan in the Upper House on Saturday.

The Bill was supported by the members across party lines, however, some suggested to add in its purview hospital sanitary staff, ASHA (accredited social health activist) workers and 'Corona warriors' in emergency services such as police and personnel from other departments.

Besides, members also pointed out overcharging by some private hospitals in the name of COVID-19 treatment, turning this crisis into an 'opportunity' for them.

The Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Bill, 2020, will replace an ordinance issued in April by the government.

The government had brought the ordinance on April 22 to amend the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, to make incidents of violence on health workers treating COVID-19 patients a non-bailable offence with provisions of a penalty and a jail term of up to seven years.

The Bill intends to ensure that during any situation akin to the current pandemic, there is zero-tolerance to any form of violence against healthcare personnel and damage to property.

Under the proposed Act, the commission or abetment of such violence will be punishable with imprisonment for a term of three months to five years, and with a fine of Rs 50,000 to Rs 2,00,000.

In case of causing grievous hurt, the imprisonment shall be for a term of six months to seven years and with a fine of Rs 1,00,000 to Rs 5,00,000.

While, moving the Bill for passage in the Upper House, the Health Minister said such incidents have declined since the ordinance was issued in April.

"We have all noticed that there has been a dramatic decline in the incidents of violence against health workers all over the country," he said.

Vardhan explained that the ordinance had to be brought as incidents of harassment and violence against health workers were rising amid a lack of awareness about coronavirus.

"Everyone was feeling sad and bad. That was the time the government thought of taking a proactive step. When the government reviewed, it found there were minimal laws and powers in some states.

"There was a need to have a central law to put in place a prohibitory mechanism to stop such activities," Vardhan said.

Binoy Viswam of the Communist Party of India, who moved a statutory resolution on the Bill, said there are serious lapses in it as it does not address the issue of violence on health professionals within the hospitals.

Many hospitals are not paying the salaries to doctors and nurses, PPE kits are not being given and safety concerns are being ignored -- these issues have not been addressed by the Bill, he added.

Participating in the debate, Congress' Anand Sharma said there is a need to expand the protection to include the police and personnel of various other services, engaged in providing relief.

"There are personnel from various other services, who are engaged in providing relief, managing the quarantine shelters. They should also be for the future included into the expanded list of people, who need support and protection," he said.

He also suggested to immediately set up a national task force for stakeholders consultation, with the states and institutions, including the scientific community and medical fraternity, for a comprehensive review and amendment to make the proposed Act contemporary and add lessons learnt during the crisis.

Derek O'Brien of the TMC charged the Centre with interfering in the functioning of states through the Bill. "There are sinister provisions in the Bill. The States must be authorised to take decisions.

Ram Gopal Yadav (Samajwadi Party) stressed the need for special provisions to penalise people and private hospitals thriving on COVID-19 crisis and taking it as a business.

He said there must be a provision to take action against those who sold PPE kits, masks, thermal scanners, ventilators, oxymeters and sanitisers at inflated prices.

Pilli Subhash Chandra Bose of Yuvajana Shramika Rythu Congress Party has asked the government to add other health workers into the bill along with doctors, while Vandana Chavan of the NCP suggested adding ASHA workers also.

R C P Singh of the Janata Dal-United suggested that the Bill include provision of compensation against damages of property.

K Ravindra Kumar of the Telugu Desam Party suggested that doctors and health professional be protected from arbitrary decisions of the state.

Sasmit Patra of Biju Janata Dal has asked the government to put the definition of pandemic into the Bill.

Replying to the discussion, Vardhan said various issues related to biological emergencies are covered under the National Disaster Management Act.

"I would like to inform the House that our government from the last 3-4 years is working on National Public Health Act to comprehensively deal with issues related to biological emergencies," Vardhan said.

On overcharging by private hospitals, Vardhan said the Central government has issued guidelines to states regarding charging by private hospitals, laboratories etc. "We have tried to rationalise these prices.

Manoj Kumar Jha (Rashtriya Janata Dal), K Keshava Rao (Telangana Rashtra Samiti), A Vijay Kumar (All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam), Saroj Pandey (Bharatiya Janata Party), M Shanmugam (Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam), Priyanka Chaturvedi (Shiv Sena), Veer Singh (Bahujan Samaj Party), P L Punia (Indian National Congress) also participated in the debate.
Bangkok, Sep 19 : Thousands gathered in Bangkok on Saturday to participate in a massive student-led protest against the Thai government, which according to organisers will be demonstration so far.

In recent weeks, the capital city has witnessed rallies calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who took power in a 2014 coup and won disputed elections last year, the BBC reported.

Some are also urging reforms to the monarchy, despite the risk from the country's strict royal defamation laws.

A previous protest in August drew around 10,000 protesters, according to Thai police.

Since July there have been regular student-led street protests amid the pandemic and the enforcement of the State of Emergency.

Ahead of Saturday's rally, the Prime Minister on September 10 had reiterated that he will not use force against the student protesters, Xinhua news agency reported.

Prayut added that he had already instructed police to be cautious and lenient in dealing with the young protesters.

Thai universities and government leaders have said repeatedly that student protests are allowed to be organized, as long as they are held within the framework of the law.
President Donald Trump is expected to put forth a nominee to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburg's seat on the Supreme Court in the coming days, multiple sources close to the president and with direct knowledge of the situation told ABC News.

The sources describe the list of potential nominees as very short and including at least one woman. U.S. Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett is seen as a leading contender, two sources tell ABC News.

Trump was asked about Ginsburg's death after leaving his Friday night campaign rally in Minnesota and said he was not aware of her passing. The 87-year-old justice died Friday after a battle with pancreatic cancer, the court announced.

"Wow. I didnt know that. I just -- youre telling me now for the first time," he told reporters. "She led an amazing life. What else can you say? She was an amazing woman. Whether you agree or not, she was an amazing woman who led an amazing life. Im actually sad to hear that. I am sad to hear that."

MORE: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A life in pictures

Sources added that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has already been in touch with members of the Republican caucus after news of Ginsburgs passing was announced. The Senate needs just a simple majority to confirm a nominee, with Republicans currently holding 53 seats.

McConnell refused to bring then-President Barack Obama's nominee to replace Antonin Scalia in 2016 -- Merrick Garland -- to the floor for a vote, but said he will not do the same this time.

PHOTO: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., talks to reporters following the weekly Republican policy luncheon in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill, Sept. 15, 2020 in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

"In the last midterm election before Justice Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year," McConnell said in a statement following Ginsburg's death.

"By contrast, Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise," he continued. "President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."

Story continues

MORE: Ruth Bader Ginsburg, powerhouse Supreme Court Justice, dies at 87

Trump told CNN in March 2016 that he believed the next president -- presumably him -- should pick the nominee, not Obama.

"I think the next president should make the pick, and I think they shouldn't go forward," he told "New Day" on March 16, 2016. "And I believe I'm pretty much in line with what the Republicans are saying. I think that the next president should make the pick. We don't have a very long distance to wait."

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., went as far as to say Republicans had officially changed procedures in a speech from the floor in 2016 and to play back the video if a Supreme Court spot came up in 2020.

"If theres a Republican president in 2016 and a vacancy occurs in the last year of the first term, you can say Lindsey Graham said lets let the next president, whoever it might be, make that nomination, and you can use my words against me and youd be absolutely right," he said. "We are setting a precedent here today."

Obama released a statement both extolling the virtues of Ginsburg, while simultaneously reminding Republicans of their decision in 2016.

"Four and a half years ago, when Republicans refused to hold a hearing or an up-or-down vote on Merrick Garland, they invented the principle that the Senate shouldnt fill an open seat on the Supreme Court before a new president was sworn in," he said in a statement. "A basic principle of the law -- and of everyday fairness -- is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment."

"The rule of law, the legitimacy of our courts, the fundamental workings of our democracy all depend on that basic principle," he continued. "As votes are already being cast in this election, Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard.

Current Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden was vice president at the time of Garland's nomination and told reporters in Delaware late Friday on his return from campaigning in Minnesota that Republicans should stick to what they said in 2016.

"In the coming days, we should focus on the loss of justice, and her enduring legacy. But there is no doubt -- let me be clear that the voters should pick the president, and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider," Biden said. "This was the position the Republican Senate took in 2016 when there were almost 10 months to go before the election. That's the position the United States Senate must take today."

PHOTO: Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland, chief judge of the D.C. Circuit Court, during a meeting with U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI), May 10, 2016, on Capitol Hill. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Even if a nominee is put forth, the timeframe would seem tight for confirming a justice before Election Day. The average number of days from SCOTUS nomination to final vote in the Senate is 69.6 days -- about 2.3 months -- according to the Congressional Research Service.

There is ample precedent for nominations and confirmations to the Supreme Court in presidential election years. It's happened six times since 1900. The most recent nomination and confirmation in an election year was 1940, after Justice Pierce Butler died in office and Franklin D. Roosevelt nominated Frank Murphy in January 1940; he was confirmed 12 days later.

The latest election year confirmation came in 1916 when Charles Evans Hughes resigned in June and President Woodrow Wilson nominated John Clarke on July 14. Ten days later he was unanimously confirmed. There has never been one filled later than that ahead of an election.

Given all of this, the 2016 GOP blockade of Garland was truly an anomaly, one which McConnell now seems keen to keep that way if given the chance.

PHOTO: President Donald Trump holds a press conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Sept. 18, 2020, in Washington. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

Swing Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, have each recently told media they do not believe a vote should be taken. Murkowski told Alaska Public Radio on Friday, prior to Ginsburg's death, that no votes should be taken, while Collins told The New York Times' Jonathon Martin earlier this month that it was "too close" to seat a justice in October.

Trump allies have already lined up behind the idea of quickly confirming a replacement. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz told Fox News' Sean Hannity, "I believe the president should next week nominate a successor to the court. I think it's critical the Senate takes up and confirms the successor before Election Day."

Barrett, a former Notre Dame law professor who previously clerked for Scalia, was confirmed to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago in October 2017.

Here's a list of other potential nominees based on ABC News reporting:

Judge Joan Larsen

Larsen was confirmed to the 6th Circuit in Cincinnati in October 2017 and previously served on the Michigan Supreme Court. She is a University of Michigan law professor, and, like Barrett, she also clerked for Scalia.

Judge Amul Thapar

Thapar was confirmed to the 6th Circuit in May 2017 and was previously federal judge in Kentucky before Trump nominated him to the 6th Circuit.

Judge Raymond Kethledge

Kethledge was confirmed to the Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit in 2008 after being nominated by President George W. Bush. He is a former clerk for Justice Anthony M. Kennedy and a former in-house lawyer at Ford Motor.

Judge Britt Grant

Grant was confirmed last July to the 11th Circuit at Atlanta. She previously was a Georgia Supreme Court justice, a Georgia solicitor general and a partner at Kirkland & Ellis.

Judge Thomas Hardiman

Hardiman, of the 3rd Circuit at Philadelphia, was the first person in his family to attend college, and he helped pay for his Georgetown University law degree by driving a taxi.

He was also a top contender for the first two vacancies under President Trump.

Judge Neomi Rao

Rao, a former clerk to Justice Clarence Thomas, is a Trump appointee who holds the seat previously occupied by Brett M. Kavanaugh on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. She recently wrote the opinion ordering the dismissal of the case prosecuting Michael Flynn.

ABC News' Karma Allen, Mark Osborne, Devin Dwyer, Molly Nagle, Will Steakin, Trish Turner and Chris Donovan contributed to this report.

Donald Trump to put forth nominee to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in coming days: Sources originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
LONDON: Human rights lawyer Amal Clooney has quit her role as Britain`s special envoy on media freedom in protest at the country`s intention to breach international law over Brexit-related legislation.

The British government has drafted a bill which it acknowledges would violate its international legal obligations and undercut parts of the divorce deal it signed before Britain formally left the European Union in January.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said the bill was essential to counter "absurd" threats from Brussels but it has prompted resignations and the threat of a rebellion by lawmakers, which appears to have been averted after a compromise was reached.

"It is lamentable for the UK to be speaking of its intention to violate an international treaty signed by the Prime Minister less than a year ago," said Clooney, who is married to actor George Clooney, in a letter to foreign minister Dominic Raab.

"It threatens to embolden autocratic regimes that violate international law with devastating consequences all over the world," she wrote.
NASA has shared fresh images of Jupiter taken from the Hubble space telescope. The pictures have captured the solar system's biggest planet at mid-northern latitudes as a bright, white, stretched-out storm travelling around the planet at 350 miles per hour (560 kilometres per hour).

Trailing behind the plume (a long cloud of smoke) are small, rounded features with complex red, white, and blue colours in the near-infrared light image. NASA said that the plume erupted on August 18, 2020, and ground-based observers have discovered two more that appeared later at the same latitude.

The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and ESA (European Space Agency). NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the telescope.

The picture also shows the Great Red Spot rolling counterclockwise in the planets southern hemisphere. The Great Red Spot is currently an exceptionally rich red colour, with its core and outermost band appearing deeper red.

An image of Jupiter taken by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope in ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared light on Aug. 25, 2020.

The image also provides a good look at the Oval BA, which has been nicknamed Red Spot Jr. It's the storm sitting just below the Great Red Spot.

"For the past few years, Red Spot Jr. has been fading in colour to its original shade of white after appearing red in 2006. However, now the core of this storm appears to be darkening slightly," NASA said in a statement.

The icy moon Europa is also visible to the left of Jupiter.

This Hubble image is part of yearly maps of the entire planet taken as part of the Outer Planets Atmospheres Legacy program (OPAL). The program provides annual Hubble global views of the outer planets to look for changes in their storms, winds, and clouds.
A suspected meth smuggler recently arrested by state police is now facing federal charges, according to court documents.

An arrest affidavit filed on Monday charged Luis Ronaldo Flores, 22, of Laredo, with possess with intent to distribute meth and conspire to possess with intent to distribute the meth.

The case unfolded at about 6:18 p.m. Sept. 11, when a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper pulled over a 2013 Cadillac ATS in front of Expeditors on 8510 W. Bob Bullock Loop. The traffic stop was conducted for a brake light that was not working properly, according to court documents.

DPS identified the driver as Flores. He stopped suddenly, exited the Cadillac and began to flee on foot, states the affidavit. Flores ran into the south parking lot of Expeditors. He was eventually apprehended in the area.

A search of the Cadillac yielded 15.43 pounds of meth that were concealed in a suitcase inside the passenger compartment of the vehicle. The contraband had an estimated street value of $308,600.

Drug Enforcement Administration Special agents took over the investigation. Flores allegedly agreed to answer questions without an attorney present. Flores stated that he thought he had picked up cocaine to deliver it to another man.

Flores admitted he fled because of the drugs located inside of his vehicle, states the affidavit.
Gigi Hadid is set to welcome her first child, with Zayn Malik, in the coming weeks.

And her mom, Yolanda Hadid, is clearly excited about becoming a grandma, as she rested on her head on her 25-year-old daughter's belly in photos shared to Instagram on Friday.

Alongside the sweet black and white photos, the 56-year-old Dutch model said she was 'waiting patiently for her angel to be born.'

Waiting: Yolanda Hadid, is clearly excited about becoming a grandma, as she rested on her head on daughter Gigi's belly in photos shared to Instagram on Friday

The mother-to-be sat in an outdoor wicker chair as her mom kneeled on the ground in front of her leaning her face onto Gigi's belly.

Gigi looked comfortable as she approaches her due date, in a dark colored cardigan sweater, white tee pulled up exposing her bump and darks sweats with bright slippers.

Meanwhile, Yolanda, opted for a multicolored sweater, white jeans and sneakers.

In a second photo, four hands, belonging to three people, rested on Gigi's belly.

Based on a photo Gigi shared on August 31, captioned '33 weeks,' the mother-to-be is nearing the end of her pregnancy.

Angel: Alongside the sweet black and white photos, the 56-year-old Dutch model said she was 'waiting patiently' for her angel to be born.' A second photo showed four hands, belonging to three people resting on Gigi's belly

Coming soon: Based on a photo Gigi shared on August 31, captioned '33 weeks,' the mother-to-be is nearing the end of her pregnancy. It's unclear if she was 33-weeks when she shared the photos, which would make her 35-weeks now, or if she was marking when the photos were taken in late July, putting her 40-weeks currently, putting her days away from giving birth

It's unclear if she was 33-weeks when she shared the photos, which would make her 35-weeks now, or if she was marking when the photos were taken in late July, putting her 40-weeks currently, putting her days away from giving birth.

Yolanda's post comes just a day after her father Mohamed Hadid posted a handwritten note to his soon-to-arrive grandchild.

His post sent fans spiraling, assuming the model gave birth, though when asked if the baby had arrived he said 'no not yet.'

Earlier this week, Gigi shared a series of photos from 'about 27 weeks,' of her pregnancy.

The model showed her 58m Instagram followers her bare growing bump, in a post on Thursday, as she wrote 'time flew.'

Overjoyed: Yolanda's post comes just a day after her father Mohamed Hadid posted a handwritten note to his soon-to-arrive grandchild. His post sent fans spiraling, assuming the model gave birth, though when asked if the baby had arrived he said 'no not yet'

Time flies: Earlier this week, Gigi shared a series of photos from 'about 27 weeks,' of her pregnancy

Gigi has spent much of her pregnancy at her mother Yolanda Hadid's farm in Pennsylvania, where her family isolated during the pandemic.

The model confirmed her pregnancy in April, after 'family sources' first revealed the news she and her on/off boyfriend of boyfriend of five years were starting a family.

She said at the time: 'Obviously, we wished we could have announced it on our own terms but we're very excited and happy and grateful for everyone's well wishes and support.

'Especially during this time, it's a nice silver lining to be able to be home and be together and really experience it day by day.'

An insider told Us Weekly magazine last month that the couple had been getting along great ahead of the birth of their baby.

Together: Gigi has spent much of her pregnancy at her mother Yolanda Hadid's farm in Pennsylvania, where her family isolated during the pandemic

'[They are] closer than ever. Gigi has been living at her moms farm with Zayn,' the source revealed. 'She came back to NYC recently but she plans to spend most of her pregnancy there at the farm.'

And it seems their incoming bundle of joy will be just the start for the young family.

Back in May People said the celebrity couple 'plan to have a large family. 'They've been through their ups and downs, but neither stopped caring about the other.'

Of expanding their brood, they went on: 'They've jumped on the timing of having a baby and are preparing for their new lives.

Partners: An insider told Us Weekly magazine last month that Gigi and her baby's father Zayn Malik were 'closer than ever' during the pregnancy

'Gigi is young but always said she wants several kids. She's sensitive and nurturing and will be a great mom.'

Hadid and Malik's relationship has not always been perfect. The duo began dating in in November 2015, three months after the musician called off his engagement to Little Mix star Perrie Edwards.

But after just over two years together, the couple confirmed their break-up on Twitter in March 2018.

The pair reconciled in December of 2019 after a year long split, during which time Gigi briefly dated former Bachelorette contestant Tyler Cameron.
The Rajya Sabha on Saturday passed the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill, 2020, whereby fresh insolvency proceedings will not be initiated for at least six months starting from March 25 amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Replying to a debate on the Bill in the House, union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the intention of the IBC is to keep companies a "going concern" and not liquidate them.

The Bill mandates that a default on repayments from March 25, the day when a nationwide lockdown began to curb the spread of coronavirus, would not be considered for initiating insolvency proceedings for at least six months.

The bill seeks to replace an ordinance promulgated in this regard in June.

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Federal prosecutors in the District of Columbia this week unsealed charges against a Kosovo-born US citizen who admittedly joined the Islamic State in Syria and was captured in the waning days of the multinational war against the jihadi group.

Lirim Sylejmani, previously a resident of Chicago, was held in a prison run by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in the city of Hasakah for more than a year before being transferred to the United States by the FBI.

Prosecutors have charged Sylejmani with providing material support to the Islamic State, and receiving training from the terrorist group.

The defendant is a US citizen who abandoned the country that welcomed him to join ISIS in Syria, Acting US Attorney Michael Sherwin said, according to a Department of Justice press release. He will now be held accountable for his actions in an American courtroom. The Islamic State is often abbreviated as IS or ISIS.

In November, Sylejmani told this journalist (when the journalist wrote for The Defense Post) that he had smuggled his wife and two small children into war-torn Syria because he wanted to live in an Islamic country.

Asked why Saudi Arabia or Pakistan might not be suitable alternatives, he said the so-called Islamic State had offered free housing and electricity. It just sounded very nice, he said, despite being aware of the groups beheadings and sexual slavery, in which he claimed he took no part.

Prior to his departure, Sylejmani absorbed jihadi propaganda and communicated with IS members via his home computer. People told me how happy they were under IS. They loved it, he said.

Sylejmani, who has a background in engineering from the University of Illinois, Chicago, said he imagined rebuilding homes in the increasingly bombed-out IS caliphate.

Instead, he said, he was robbed by Turkish soldiers on his way into Syria. Upon arrival he was thrown in the back of a truck bound for Iraq, where he was given a Kalashnikov and put through jihadi basic training.

Sylejmani denied he had been a fighter, claiming he was somehow exempt due to marriage. Paradoxically, he admitted he carried his weapon and was shipped from one key battlefront city to another amid the caliphates bloody disintegration.

He finally surrendered during the one of several humanitarian cease-fires during the battle of Baghouz, where the remnants of IS made their final stand on the Euphrates near the Iraqi border.

In detention, he was interviewed by a number of Western journalists. Few of his claims could be verified.

Sylejmani, who also said he has lived in Canada, is believed to be among the last US citizens suspected of IS membership still held in Syria. Last year, he said he hoped to be extradited to Kosovo. Its a small country, he told this journalist.

Sylejmani has already appeared before a federal judge in Washington.
Britain, France and Germany have told the UN Security Council that the sanctions relief provided by the world body for Iran  agreed under a 2015 nuclear deal  will continue beyond September 20, Trend reports citing Mehr.

On Friday, the permanent representatives of the UK, Germany and France said in a joint letter to the 15-member UNSC that any decision or action taken to restore the UN sanctions would be incapable of legal effect, Reuters reported.

In this letter, we expressed our shared view that the purported notification under paragraph 11 of UNSCR 2231 (2015) received from the United States of America and circulated to the UN Security Council Members is incapable of having legal effect and so cannot bring into effect the procedure foreseen under OP 11. It flows from this that any decision and actions which would be taken based on this procedure or on its possible outcome would also be incapable of having any effect, read part of the joint letter by the UN envoys of the three European countries, known as E3.

The announcement comes in outright rejection of the assertions by the United States that the bans will snap back then.

In 2015, Iran clinched a landmark nuclear deal with a group of countries then known as the P5+1  US, Britain, France, Russia, China, and Germany.

However, US President Donald Trump in 2018 unilaterally pulled his country out of the deal  officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) - and re-imposed the sanctions that had been lifted under the deal.

On August 20, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Washington formally triggered a 30-day process at the UNSC leading to a return of virtually all the UN sanctions on Iran on September 20.

He cited what he claimed to be Iranian violations of the JCPOA, to which the US is no longer a party.

The E3 further said that they had worked tirelessly to preserve the nuclear agreement and remain committed to do so. They also stressed they would remain committed to fully implementing a 2015 Security Council resolution that endorses the JCPOA.
The Goa bench of Bombay high court on Saturday upheld the order of a special court acquitting all the accused charge-sheeted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in connection with a bomb blast that took place in Margao in 2009.

As per the NIA, those charge-sheeted allegedly had links with right-wing group Sanatan Sanstha.

The bomb, which was placed in a scooter, went off on October 16, on the eve of Diwali, killing two persons who police identified as Malgonda Patil and Yogesh Naik.

The duo was ferrying the bomb when it exploded, the police had said at the time.

NIA counsel Advocate Pravin Faldesai told reporters in Panaji on Saturday that Vinay Talekar, Dhananjay Ashtekar, Prashant Ashtekar, Vinayak Patil, Prashant Juvekar and Dilip Mazgaonkar were acquitted by the High Court bench of Justices MS Sonak and MS Jawalkar, which gave them the benefit of doubt.

The High Court considered the appeal in larger detail and held that the accused be given the benefit of doubt. The HC expunged a statement in the special court order which had said the NIA investigation was with malafide intention, Faldesai said.

The special court had acquitted the accused in 2013 after which the NIA approached HC.

A total of eleven persons, including the two deceased, were named as accused in the case.

There was one major circumstance which we had to prove that this particular Sanstha had the motive to conduct this blast..., but the court said that we could not submit a strong proof,  Faldessai added.

(With agency inputs)
Kandy lawmakers daughter called to court on Hantane land clearance By L.B.Senaratne View(s): View(s):

The Kandy Additional Magistrate issued notice on Chamindrani Kiriella to appear in court on October 11, following a case that has been filed by the Central Environmental Authority in regard to the violation of the 2010 Gazette Notification No: 1641/28.

Kandy Police noticed seven organisations on a complaint by the Hantane Surakeema Sanvidanya that the protected area is being destroyed.

The Hantane Management Committee, the Divisional Secretary, Central Environmental Authority and others involved in the Hantane Reservation had been summoned to court. The CEA told court that the complaint was investigated and a case filed. The police told court that since the CEA had taken action, they would withdraw.

But the lawyer for the Hantane Surakeema Sanvidanaya told the court that the police should be involved, or else the alleged offenders could interfere with the land.

The 2010 Gazette notification by the then environmental minister Patali Champika Ranawaka outlines the boundaries of the Hantane Reservation. It also specifies that land above 3,000 feet can only be used by pepper and tea plantations.

The notice also says at paragraph (7) that all plantations at 3,000 feet and above which is pepper and tea, could be maintained with the permission of the Tea Research Institute, the Department of Agriculture, according to their advice on the composition of soil and water. At paragraph 14, it prohibits the use of any abandoned land in this area for any other purpose. There are 20 paragraphs in this notice that prohibits the annihilation of the Hantane range.

In the meantime, on a Parliament letterhead, as the Sri Lanka Parliaments Opposition Chief Whip and Kandy District Member of Parliament, Lakshman Kriella said in a press release, Certain interested parties using various media forums for narrow political gain are attacking me and my family members through the media. During the past few days through the media there had been accusations regarding the land which belongs to my family. The land in connection of 08 acres has been the property for over 30 years and was bought by me on November 30, 1990 from a proprietary planter Andiris Jayasinghe. This land has been a private property since 1947. According to the records of the Land Registry. Our rights have been registered in the Pradeshiya Sabha. According to the news that was published, Hantane land in question does not belong to the state.

According to the terms of conservation of Hantane, the owners have a right to develop the plantations using organic fertiliser and towards this end an application has been made.

After the formation of the new government and the enthusiasm towards this end, the already cultivated land had no proper access and therefore with responsibility, the grown weeds and grass were cleared so that an entrance could be made to enter the land over the overgrown grass. As the owner of the land I have a right to do so. As a person who loves the environment and in his private property of mine, I say with responsibility that there is not a single tree that has been felled or any other environmental hazard has taken place on this land of mine. I have given a copy of he Gazette notification to Kandy Police.
Manama

The Information and e-Government Authority (iGA) issued its foreign trade report of August 2020, encompassing data on the balance of trade, imports, exports (national origin), and re-exports.

The value of imports increased by 9%, reaching BD 428 million during August 2020 Compared to toBD391 million for the same month of the previous year. The top 10 countries accounted for 74% of the value of imports, with the remaining countries accounting for 26%.

According to the report, Switzerland ranked first when it came to imports to Bahrain, with a total ofBD84million, China was second with BD42 million; and Australia was third with BD36 million.

Central heating boilers emerged as the top product imported into Bahrain with a total value ofBD39million, while air conditioners without refrigeration unit were second withBD37million and aluminum oxide thirdwithBD35million.

The value of exports of national origin increased by 2% to BD190 million during August 2020, compared toBD187million for the same month of the previous year. The top 10 countries in terms of the value of exports of national origin purchased from Bahrain Accounted for 72% of the total value, with the remaining countries accounting for 28%.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ranked first among countries receivingBahraini exports of national origin, importing BD58 million from Bahrain. Meanwhile, the United States of America was second with BD18 million and the sultanate of Oman Third with BD11 million.

Unwrought aluminum alloys emerged as the top products exported duringAugust2020 with BD40 million, Unwrought aluminum (not alloyed) was second with a value of BD26 million and Semi-finished iron and steel third with BD15 million.

The total value of-exports decreased by20%to reach BD44 million during August 2020, compared toBD55million for the same month of the previous year.

The top 10 countries accounted for 94% of the re-exported value, while the remaining countries accounted for 6%.the kingdom of Saudi Arabia ranked first with BD14 million, United Arab Emirates Second with BD9 million, and the United States of America third with BD6 million.

Four-wheel drive cars the top product re-exported from Bahrain with BD5.3 million, gold ingots came in second place with BD5 million, and cigarettes containing tobacco came third with BD4.2 million.

The trade balance, the difference between exports and imports, the value of the deficit of the trade balance reached BD 193 million during August Of 2020 versus BD149 million for the same month of the previous year with an increase of 30%.

Note: For more details, please visit the foreign trade page on the Bahrain Open Data Portal www.data.gov.bh.
A man is suing a hospital after his penis was amputated when he developed flesh-eating bacteria.

The 70-year-old from Shepparton, in Victoria, alleges that Goulburn Valley Health failed to treat him 'adequately' when he complained to the hospital of his illness, according to The Goulburn Valley News.

In a Supreme Court writ filed on Monday, the man claims he caught the bacterial infection and 'necrotising fasciitis' during a week-long stay at the facility in April and May 2018.

The 70-year-old from Shepparton alleges that Goulburn Valley Health failed to treat him 'adequately' when he complained to the hospital of his illness (stock image)

He alleges that staff at the hospital 'failed to adequately or properly assess the penis adequately or at all' and did not administer antibiotics for the first one-and-a-half days of treatment.

Among the other claims is that he was not transferred to Royal Melbourne Hospital for specialist treatment when the infection was diagnosed.

The writ claims he suffers 'psychological upset together with depression and anxiety' and 'will continue to suffer loss and damage'.

He claims he has also developed post-traumatic stress disorder after the alleged botched treatment.

Carmelo Barbante from Barbarte Personal Injury Lawyers told the publication that these types of cases were rare but the allegations of negligence were serious.

His client is seeking medical costs, damages, and interest.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Goulburn Valley Health for comment.
Pret's CEO has said plans to introduce dinners are in motion. Photo: Reuters/Hannah McKay

Pret a Manger chief executive Pano Christou says the chain has plans to launch a dinner menu, as he puts coronavirus recovery wheels in motion.

The high street sandwich shop has braced under the pressure of coronavirus lockdowns, but sees the pandemic as an opportunity, according to an interview with Christou published in The Guardian.

News broke at the end of August that 30 of its outlets would close, resulting in 2,800 job cuts.

At the time, the company, which cited the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and a huge drop-off in sales when it launched a two-month consultation process with employees in early July, said it had been forced to take the difficult decision to axe thousands of jobs.

Even as the easing of coronavirus restrictions has allowed Pret to reopen many of its stores, it has been dented by the thousands of firms who have instructed their employees to continue working from home.

The reduction in roles, Pret said, was a reflection of its shorter opening hours, lower transaction levels, and the losses the company has faced so far this year.

In August, the company said that some 339 of its stores have now reopened. A further 41 will reopen, while 30 will not.

Part of its new strategy has seen the introduction of a coffee loyalty card, entitling those who pay 20 a month to five coffees per day.

Pret said the YourPret Barista offering is part of its strategic transformation programme.

Christou told The Guardian the chain has opened a dark kitchen  one only open for delivery  in London.

He also said the dinner proposals would be an online-only option.

READ MORE: Analysts say Pret coffee subscription commendable but nervous of industry shift
The plan causing the most strife among Metro board members includes the use of turnbacks on the Red and Yellow lines. Turnbacks cut trips short for half the trains on a line. Metro is proposing that half of trains in service would turn around at the Silver Spring and Grosvenor-Strathmore stations rather than continuing farther into the suburbs, where waits would be twice as long. Metro said the decision on where to truncate trips was based on stations with the least riders.
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About two years ago, Samuel L. Jackson, the Hollywood titan, was presented with an idea to take part in a documentary about the trans-Atlantic slave trade.

Slavery, of course, was not a new topic of scholarship, and Hollywood had already done a lot on the subject. But he discussed it with his wife, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, and something in particular stood out to them. This was a project attempting to tell the story of slavery in part through the lens of sunken slave ships that never reached their destination  ships that became mass graves of kidnapped Africans. It was a perspective, they felt, that could add to societys understanding of the horrors of slavery.

That is a worthwhile story to tell, Mr. Jackson said in an interview this week.

That story is now a six-part docuseries, Enslaved, that premiered last Monday on Epix, which will air a new episode each week over the next five weeks. The documentary is also slated to begin in the United Kingdom on BBC Two next month.

The series traces Mr. Jacksons journey across the globe as he uncovers elements of the history of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. He is joined on parts of the journey by Afua Hirsch, a British journalist, and Simcha Jacobovici, a documentary filmmaker and journalist who directs the series. The story also follows Diving With a Purpose, an offshoot of the National Association of Black Scuba Divers, as they search for wreckage of slave ships along the ocean bottom.
By ANI

NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday filed a supplementary chargesheet against British national Christian Michel James, businessman Rajeev Saxena and 13 others accused in the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam case.

The chargesheet was filed before Special Judge Arvind Kumar in Delhi's Rouse Avenue court, who listed the matter for consideration on September 21.

According to sources, former defence secretary Shashi Kant Sharma, who later became Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), has not been named as an accused in the chargesheet as CBI has not received sanction to prosecute Sharma till date.

Sources said that Sharma will be named in another chargesheet, which will be filed after the CBI receives the santction to prosecute him.

Michel, the alleged middleman and accused in the Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland VVIP choppers deal case, was extradited from the UAE in December 2018.

He is currently lodged in Tihar Jail in connection with alleged irregularities in the multi-crore chopper deal. While the CBI is probing his alleged role as a 'middleman' in the deal, the ED is investigating money laundering charges against him.

Rajeev Saxena, a Dubai-based businessman, was also extradited from the UAE in January last year.

The AgustaWestland VVIP helicopter deal was finalised during the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) regime under the leadership of then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh but got mired in the allegations of kickbacks. (ANI)
The DMK on Saturday announced a meeting of its allies in Chennai on September 21 to deliberate on the next course of action over farm bills that were adopted by the Lok Sabha alleging these would lead to hoarding of agricultural produce by corporates. The bills would "lead to hoarding of farm produce by the corporates and adversely affect the support price," DMK chief M K Stalin alleged adding, farmers were protesting across the country since the move by the Centre was "against"them.

Singling out the AIADMK, he hit out at the archrival for supporting the Centre on the issue and mocked Chief Minister K Palaniswami for claiming to be a farmer and yet backing the bills. The AIADMK regime's support "proved" that it was "subservient" to the Centre, the DMK top leader alleged in a letter to party cadres.

Shiromani Akali Dal leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal went to the extent of resigning from the union council of ministers over the issue, he pointed out. The meeting of allies, scheduled to be held at "Anna Arivalayam" the DMK headquarters on Monday would be chaired by party president Stalin, the main opposition in Tamil Nadu said in a statement dubbing the farm bills as anti-farmer.

The Congress, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, the Indian Union Muslim League and the Left parties are among the allies of the DMK. Lok Sabha has passed the Essential Commodities(Amendment) Bill, the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce(Promotion and Facilitation) Bill and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, which seek to promote barrier-free inter-state and intra-state trade in agricultural produce.

Stalin, accusing the AIADMK of "talking lies in a high pitch", said the ruling party's "drama" would end in about six months with the Assembly elections scheduled for next year(April-May), and exuded confidence of his party capturing power. Stalin had on Friday said the new bills would sound a "death knell" to farmers.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died of metastatic pancreatic cancer at age 87, the Supreme Court announced Friday evening.

The big picture: Ginsburg had suffered from serious health issues over the past few years. As an attorney and then as a justice Ginsburg cemented a legacy as one of the foremost champions of women's rights, raising gender equality to a constitutional issue. Her death sets up a fight over filling a Supreme Court seat with less than 50 days until the election.

Just days before her death, Ginsburg dictated this statement to her granddaughter: "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed," according to NPR.

The big picture: Ginsburg was a progressive icon and the second woman to ever be confirmed to the Supreme Court. She'd served on the court since 1993.

Looking back on Ginsburg's life

Early years: Ginsburg was born in Brooklyn, New York, on March 15, 1933. While she later became non-observant, she was born into a Jewish household. Her parents were of Ukrainian and Austrian decent.

Ginsburg's mother in particular valued education, and would often take her daughter to the library and hoped she'd attend college one day. Ginsburg's mother died before her high school graduation.

The future justice attended Cornell University, where she met her husband, Martin Ginsburg. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in government and as the highest ranking female student in her class.

Upon graduation, she married Martin, and joined him in moving to Oklahoma. She took a job at the Social Security Administration, where she was demoted after becoming pregnant with her first child.

Ginsburg ultimately enrolled in Harvard Law School, where she was one of nine women in a class of roughly 500. She later transferred to Columbia Law School, earning her degree in 1959 and tying for first in her class. She became the first woman to be featured in two major law reviews: both Harvard and Columbia's.

Career: Ginsburg struggled to find employment at the start of her career, being rejected on grounds of her gender, despite glowing recommendations from her professors. She eventually landed a clerkship role, followed by time conducting research in Sweden. She got her first teaching position at Rutgers University, where she was paid less than her male counterparts because her husband already had a well-paying job.

Ginsburg went on to a number of other roles in academia, and worked to develop programs meant to strengthen legal protections for women. She's credited with making significant advancements for women under the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution.

Former President Carter nominated Ginsburg to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 1980, where she served until former President Clinton nominated her to the Supreme Court in 1993.

Ginsburg was confirmed by Senate by a 96-3 vote.

Ginsburg's husband passed in 2010. She leaves behind two children: James and Jane.

What we're hearing: Judge Amy Coney Barrett, who has long been viewed as next in line to fill a vacancy on the bench, is still at the top of the list after her inclusion on Trump's original list, along with Judge Amul Thapar and Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), Axios Alayna Treene reports.

Many within the conservative movement have been lobbying the Trump administration to give more consideration to Lee, especially after his performance fiercely defending the Constitution during Trump's impeachment proceedings, one source familiar with the discussions tells Axios.

Trump signaled as far back as as during Brett Kavanaughs selection and as recently as this year that he had his eye on Barrett to replace Ginsburg when the time came, sources told Axios' Jonathan Swan.

Go deeper:
Germany has joined France in deciding against buying potential Covid-19 vaccines through a World Health Organization (WHO) programme, although it supports the scheme, government sources told Reuters on Friday.

The sources said Berlin was not buying supplies through the WHO's COVAX programme because it was already sourcing potential vaccines through a European Union scheme.

The WHO has set Friday as a deadline for its members to join COVAX, which aims to buy Covid-19 vaccines and ensure they are fairly and efficiently distributed around the world.

But while 92 lower-income nations are seeking assistance via COVAX, many wealthier countries have yet to sign up as they scramble to secure supplies separately.

The sources said Germany supported COVAX and noted the European Commission was contributing 400 million euros ($474 million) from the EU's development budget to the scheme.

However, it was not clear whether Germany would contribute additional national funds to the programme, as France plans to.

Health Minister Jens Spahn said earlier that Germany had already secured more potential vaccine doses than the country has inhabitants - a common strategy among wealthier countries as it is not yet clear which vaccines might work.

"I will be happy to give other countries in the world some of the vaccines that have been contractually agreed with us if it turns out that we have more than we need," said Spahn. "But I'll play it safe for now."
The Nawabi-era architectural design of the centrally protected Chhota Imambadas gate has been changed by the local police while carrying out restoration work of the police outpost located within the gate itself, according to officials of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Hussainabad and Allied Trust (HAT) and heritage enthusiasts.

For his part, IP Singh, assistant commissioner of police, Chowk area, under which the police outpost comes, said, The matter is in their knowledge. We have ordered a probe into it.

Nevertheless, officials of ASI, HAT, which owns the structure, and heritage enthusiasts call it a case of extreme illegality and brazen violation of the Ancient Monument and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment and Validation) (AMASR) Act, 2010. The Act strictly prohibits construction or renovation within a 100- metre area of a protected monument.

Its a purely illegal act. We have served notice on the police station to stop the work immediately, said Manoj Saxena, deputy superintending archaeologist, Lucknow Circle, ASI.

Also, the restoration of the police outpost, locally known as Satkhanda police chowki, is in violation of the high courts order, directing HAT to fund and ASI to ensure restoration of the same gate. Officials with HAT said the illegality first came to light early this week when a group of masons was found busy demolishing the shade of the gate to pave the way for a new one to suit their own requirement and design.

By the time, we got the information and rushed to the spot, the entire shade, all made up of red lakhauri bricks, was demolished by masons. On enquiring, they simply responded that Chowki prabhari sahib ka adesh hai (It is the police outpost in-charges order), an official of HAT told HT.

The team discovered that it was not the only illegality. We also found that the interior of the chowki had all changed. In place of old lakhauri walls, there were new cement walls, the official added.

When the officials objected to the illegality, police personnel assured them that they would stop the work immediately and apply for permission for the same, according to officials. But overnight, they re-started construction work and completed the structure. They got it painted so that it gels with the remaining structure, the official further said.

Chowki in-charge of Satkhanda chowki that is located in the gate itself is carrying out the restoration of the police outpost, illegally. Also, they are changing the design of the gate to which I strongly objected and got the work stopped, stated the letter of the property supervisor, HAT, to the city magistrate, who is the secretary of the trust that was formed by King Mohammed Ali Shah in 1839 to meet the religious and charitable needs of the community and to maintain the Nawabi-era structures owned by the trust.

Sushil Pratap Singh, city magistrate and secretary of HAT, said, I am unaware of this illegality. If this is so, we would serve notice and will initiate maximum action against the erring person.

Officials with the trust said that the police outpost was established in the 1990s to maintain law and order in the area, which was very sensitive due to sectarian disputes. Since then, the police outpost had become a permanent feature of the gate. Officials also called it a contempt of the high court order as the matter of restoration of the same gate was pending with the court.

Restoration work of the gate was started in 2014 following an order of the Allahabad high court. In compliance with the high court order passed on May 12, 2014, a meeting of officials of the district administration, ASI and directorate of archaeology, UP, was held under the chairmanship of the then principal secretary, department of culture, UP, on May 17, 2014 and it was directed that the restoration work of the eastern gate of Chhota Imambada would be done by ASI and would be funded by HAT. The HC order was an outcome of a public interest litigation (PIL) petition filed by S Mohammed Haider, a corporate lawyer and heritage activist, who had approached the court in 2013. In the PIL, Haider had sought the courts intervention for ensuring repair, maintenance and removal of encroachment within the premises of the monuments.

The gates restoration, however, is still pending.

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China saw the first positive growth of total retail sales of consumer goods since this year in August, and the total value added of the industrial enterprises above the designated size shifted from negative to positive in the first 8 months of this year, said the countrys National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) at a press conference on Sept. 15.

NBS spokesperson Fu Linghui said despite pressures from both the COVID-19 fallout and floods, the countrys economy has sustained a steady recovery.

A worker welds auto parts at the Shandong branch of Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group Corp., Ltd. on Sept. 15. Photo by Wang Jilin/Peoples Daily Online

Many positive changes happened to Chinas economy in August. In the first eight months, industrial output expanded 0.4 percent from one year earlier, compared with a decline of 0.4 percent in the January-July period.

The improved demand drove the growth of industries, said Fu, adding that the countrys value-added industrial output, an important economic indicator, went up 5.6 percent year on year in August, accelerating from a rise of 4.8 percent registered in July.

Most productions and industries achieved growth, according to the NBS. In terms of different products, in August, 394 of 612 products increased year on year. In other words, 64.4 percent of these products achieved growth, more than those from a month ago. In terms of different industries, in August, the value added of 29, or 70.7 percent of the 41 major industries maintained a year-on-year growth, 4 more than those in July.

Apart from industrial growth, China has also seen accelerated steps of upgrading. The high-tech manufacturing enterprises above designated size achieved a growth of 7.6 percent in August, a figure obviously larger than the general growth of the industries above designated size.

New products such as service robots, segways and smart watches all witnessed a production growth above 70 percent, while that of industrial robots stood at 32.5 percent.

A woman shops at a supermarket in Guiyang, Southwest Chinas Guizhou Province on Sept. 16. Photo by Zhao Song/Peoples Daily Online

Retail sales of consumer goods, a main gauge of Chinas consumption, returned to growth for the first time this year, rising by 0.5 percent year on year in August.

August saw a larger pickup of sales from a month ago, which indicated the accelerated recovery of the consumer market, said Zhang Min, a statistician with the NBS.

According to Zhang, Chinas rural and urban markets recovered simultaneously. In August, the retail sales of urban and rural consumer goods increased 0.5 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively, while they decreased 1.1 percent and 1.3 percent in July.

Besides, the consumption went through faster upgrading. The sales of automobiles above the designated limit went up by 11.8 percent in August, and the sales of communication equipment, cosmetics, gold, silver and jewelry grew by 25.1 percent, 19.0 percent, and 15.3 percent respectively, up 13.8, 9.8 and 7.8 percentage points from those in July.

New consumption maintained rapid growth. From January to August, the online retail sales of physical goods grew by 15.8 percent, 0.1 percentage point higher than that in the first seven months. Driven by the growth of online shopping, China handled 7.24 billion express parcels throughout August, up 36.5 percent year on year.

A Han costume show is staged at Oriental Heritage theme park in Jingzhou, Central Chinas Hubei Province on Aug. 22. Photo by Huang Zhigang/Peoples Daily Online

Grouped by consumption patterns, the revenue of catering was down by 7 percent year on year in August, narrowing by 4 percentage points from July. The revenue contraction of the hotel industry above the designated limit also narrowed by 9 percentage points. As cinemas, tourist sites, and exhibitions gradually resumed operation, 250 million Chinese took train trips last month, up 42.5 million from July.

In the first eight months, the newly increased employed people in urban areas numbered 7.81 million, which equaled to 86.8 percent of the countrys annual target. In August, the urban surveyed unemployment rate was 5.6 percent, 0.1 percentage point lower than that in July.

In the first seven months, the total profits made by industrial enterprises above the designated size were down by 8.1 percent year on year, narrower than that in the first six months. The Manufacturing PMI stood at 51.0 percent and the Non-Manufacturing Business Activity Index reached 55.2 percent, both above the threshold for six months in a row.
Digital Signage Market Growth Statics, Top Performing Players Profiles and Sales Data

The global Digital Signage Market research report provides complete insights on industry scope, global trends, regional estimates, key application, competitive landscape and financial performance of prominent players. It also offers ready, data-driven answers to several industry-level questions. This study enables numerous opportunities for the market players to invest in research and development.

Market Overview:

The global Digital Signage Market is anticipated to reach USD 31.71 billion by 2025, expanding at a significant CAGR of 7.9% during the forecast period. Digital signage is also termed as dynamic signage, is an advanced form of silver casting in which multimedia or video content is presented in public places for advertising or informational purposes.

Key Players:

Adflow Networks, Inc. (Daktronics)

BrightSign LLC

Cisco Systems, Inc.

Intel Corporation

KeyWest Technology, Inc.

LG Electronics (LG Corporation)

Request free sample to get a complete analysis of top-performing companies @ https://www.millioninsights.com/industry-reports/digital-signage-market/request-sample

Growth Drivers:

The factors that are playing a major role in the growth of digital signage market are the developing infrastructure in the emerging countries, acceptance of digital signage in the commercial sector, the rising use of enhanced technology in display sector, and the increasing demand for customized software and solutions. However, the growing trend of broadcast or online advertisement may restrain the overall market in the years to come.

Type Outlook:

Video walls

Video screens

Transparent LED screens

Digital posters

Kiosks

Application Outlook:

Retail

Corporate

Banking

Healthcare

Education

Transportation

Regional Insights:

Globally, North America and Europe accounted for the majority market share of digital signage and are estimated to lead the overall market in the years to come. The reason behind overall market growth could be the presence of key manufacturers in the region and increasing demand for digitized display in the retail industry. The United States, Germany and England are well equipped with the infrastructure for digital signage.

The Asia Pacific is also estimated to have a positive influence on future growth. It is estimated to grow at the highest CAGR in the forecast period. Aspects that may be ascribed to the growth comprise the rising awareness among populace regarding the use of digital signage and the rising disposable income.

Browse Related Category Research Reports @ https://blog.naver.com/tomclark
New Delhi: In the third week of the Delhi governments anti-dengue campaign, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal asked the residents to call their friends and family to follow the 10 hafte, 10 baje 10 minute (10 weeks, 10 o clock, 10 minutes) campaign in order to prevent vector-borne diseases such as dengue, malaria and chikungunya, according to a government statement on Saturday.

Under the campaign, citizens must inspect their homes for any possible sources of stagnant clean water, which can lead to the breeding of Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes that spread vector-borne diseases.

In the third week, the 10 Hafte 10 Baje 10 Minute campaign seeks to engage residents to pick up the phone and call 10 of their friends/relatives and advise them on the good practices of preventing dengue. Last week, the Delhi government had also launched a telephonic helpline - 01123300012 and WhatsApp helpline - 8595920530 to assist the general public for dengue, the Delhi government said in the statement.

Last week, Kejriwal had tweeted, Today on the second Sunday of the campaign against dengue, I inspected my house again and replaced the accumulated water. It only took me 10 minutes, you must also check your house. Dengue will lose and Delhi will win once again.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 18:37:32|Editor: huaxia

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HONG KONG, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong's Center for Health Protection (CHP) reported 13 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Saturday, taking the total confirmed cases to 5,009.

The newly-reported cases include nine imported cases and four local infections, Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the CHP's Communicable Disease Branch, told a media briefing on Saturday afternoon, adding that there were more than 10 preliminary positive cases, with most of them imported ones.

Among the local cases, one was related to previously confirmed cases, and the infection sources of the other three remained unknown. One of the cases of unknown origin involved a female working for the University of Hong Kong as a laboratory research assistant, who had to deal with samples of inactivated and non-infectious COVID-19 virus to do genetic sequencing.

Chuang said it was still unknown where the research assistant contracted the disease and the university has carried out environmental sampling in areas related for further investigation.

According to Hong Kong's Hospital Authority, 158 patients are still hospitalized, including 13 in critical condition.

The number of deaths related to COVID-19 stands at 103. Enditem
Drivers licences change hands to save costs View(s):

Drivers licences will be printed by the military from next year to help rein in the high costs of a private contractor.

The monthly requirement of 75,000-90,000 digital drivers licences will be printed by the army from next year, the Motor Traffic Commissioner General, Sumith Alahakoon, said.

Licences will be printed at Werahera.

At present, a leading private company involved in importing computers and printers, is handling the printing at Rs 1,000 per licence.

Discussions are underway to purchase printing equipment. Printing will begin from January 1, 2021, Mr. Alahakoon added.

Army media spokesman, Brigadier Chandana Wickremasinghe, said the decision resulted from the high cost incurred by the Motor Traffic Department to a private company, and the governments desire to keep the expenditure within the state.

He said the possibility of using printing equipment at the RMV in Werahera is being looked into.

The former minister of passenger transport, Mahinda Amaraweera, told the Sunday Times that he had presented the proposal to the cabinet.

We were paying about Rs 1,000 per licence to print. The army agreed to about Rs 500. We were assured by the Army Commander Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva, that facilities are available. It is the best way to ensure income for the government. The Cabinet approved the proposal, he said.

A Sri Lankan pays Rs 1,700 for a new drivers licence for one class of vehicle.

Also this week, the Cabinet approved to hand over the printing of passports and confidential state documents to the Department of Government Printing, instead of international agencies.

The Cabinet also instructed the department to submit the costs of passport printing equipment.
Chinese fighter jets and bombers approached Taiwan for the second day on Saturday as a senior US official wrapped up his trip to the island and paid tribute to its former president Lee Teng-hui.

Chinese military observers described the move as a political declaration and warning that no place on the island was safe.

Taiwan said 19 Chinese aircraft, including two H-6 strategic bombers, crossed the midline of the Taiwan Strait and entered its southwest air defence identification zone.

Get the latest insights and analysis from our Global Impact newsletter on the big stories originating in China.

Taiwans air force scrambled fighters and deployed air defence missile systems to monitor their activities, the islands defence ministry said.

On Friday, it said 18 Chinese aircraft had approached from four directions and entered its air space.

Hong Yuan, a military analyst with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said Chinas military exercise was not just a drill but also a warning.

Purely from the military angle, Chinas warplanes can attack the whole island from the southeastern province of Fujian or Jiangxi. They do not need to go across the Taiwan Strait, he said.

Its a political declaration that Taiwan is a part of China and no place in Taiwan is safe.

The drills follow the arrival on Thursday of Keith Krach, the US undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment, who attended the funeral of the late president Lee Teng-hui, who passed away on July 30 at the age of 97.

The service was held at the Aletheia University in Taipei on Saturday morning, where President Tsai Ing-wen honoured Lee for bringing about a peaceful political transition to democracy.

We have a responsibility to continue his endeavours, allowing the will of the people to reshape Taiwan, further defining Taiwans identity and deepening and bolstering democracy and freedom, Tsai said.

Story continues

US undersecretary for economic growth, energy and the environment Keith Krach (left) at the former presidents funeral in Taipei. Photo: EPA-EFE

Two members of Krachs delegation  Robert Destro, the assistant secretary for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labour, and Kelley Currie, US ambassador-at-large for global women's issues, met Lam Wing-kee  one of five Hong Kong booksellers who disappeared in 2015 and later emerged in detention in mainland China, according to the Central News Agency.

Krachs visit has been criticised by Beijing, while some nationalist commentators warned that China would step up its military activities if the US and Taiwan continued their provocations.

In Beijing, defence ministry spokesperson Ren Guoqiang said the military exercises were a necessary move aimed at the current situation in the Taiwan Strait to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Those who play with fire will get burnt, he warned at a press conference on Friday.

In a separate statement, the PLA Eastern Theatre Command, which oversees the Taiwan Strait, described the drill as real combat-oriented, joint aerial and maritime.

Chinese military analyst Song Zhongping told the hawkish state-owned tabloid Global Times: The real combat-oriented, joint aerial and maritime drills mean that the Peoples Liberation Army is practising in key areas of a real battle, while the combat-readiness patrols are operations aimed at preparing for combat anytime if anomalies occur on the island.

Global Times warned in an editorial that the PLA drills were a rehearsal for invading Taiwan.

The PLA has lifted the curtain on real-combat military exercises targeted at Taiwan, and the scale of such exercises is bound to expand in the future and meet the requirements for substantive strikes against Taiwan, said the editorial.

Should they [the US and Taiwan] continue to make provocations, a war will inevitably break out, it added.

Additional reporting by Associated Press

This article Chinese warplanes continue Taiwan operations as island says farewell to former president Lee Teng-hui first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2020.
Amid the ongoing internal crisis within the AIADMK party, a vital meeting was held among the top functionaries of the party at party headquarters in Chennai. The meeting, however, didn't solve anything, EPS and OPS have now agreed on an executive committee meeting on September 28 for confronting the problems.

Ahead of Tamil Nadu polls, a highly intense and extensive meeting concerning the restructuring of AIADMK (All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) was held on Friday at the party headquarters in Chennai. Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami, Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam and several senior functionaries were present during the meeting.

Among many other points of discussion including AIADMKs chief ministerial candidate for the 2021 Assembly election, O Panneerselvam argued for the formation of an eleven-member body to take party decisions. This demand, though considered quite significant, has not yet been met. It is also believed (not confirmed) that OPS demanded to be appointed as the General Secretary of the party. Although, his office had been removed as the EPS and OPS factions combined together.

Many other ministers, such as C Ve Shanmugam mentioned that two castes the Gounders and Thevars were dominant in the cabinet and asked for equality to be brought in this matter.

Also read: NIA arrests 9 terrorists with links to Al-Qaeda in multiple raids from Kerala, West Bengal

Also read: With Akalis set to oppose the farm bills, Govt reaches out to friendly parties as RS numbers look uncertain

The EPS faction noted that the formation of an eleven-member body would result in more issues since each of the members would have varying opinions and this stalemate could damage the party.

As this meeting was mostly fruitless, EPS and OPS decided on an executive committee meeting on September 28 for confronting the problems.

After the meeting ended, some ministers also met with EPS at his residence to talk about the recent developments and events that have been happening around the party.

Also read: Army finds that three killed in Shopian encounter were labourers, promises to take action
The American software giant buying Britain's biggest technology company is willing to make legally-binding commitments to keep its tax revenues in the UK, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

Nvidia, which is buying Cambridge-based chip designer Arm in a controversial 31billion deal, makes vast profits outside the US but only pays a tiny fraction in taxes.

Analysis by the think-tank Tax Watch found that Nvidia paid taxes worth just 3 per cent of the $6.15billion (4.76billion) in profits it has made overseas since 2015.

Almighty row: Nvidia's Jensen Huang (right) and Arm co-founder Hermann Hauser

High-profile critics of the Arm deal this weekend raised serious concerns that Nvidia could try to shift hundreds of millions of pounds of tax out of Britain by using its international structure.

Arm paid 268million in tax last year, mostly in the UK.

Its co-founder Hermann Hauser told The Mail on Sunday that if Nvidia moved Arm's tax base out of the UK, the Treasury could miss out on even larger receipts in future because Arm has the potential to become Britain's first $1trillion company.

Hauser  who has written an open letter to the Prime Minister urging him to intervene in the deal  said: 'If Arm becomes a division of Nvidia the accounts will be consolidated and they'll play the usual tricks of all the tax transfer and the tax loopholes that all the big American companies are playing.

'I'm not accusing them of doing anything illegal  I'm just accusing them of being unethical and immoral.'

Former business secretary Sir Vince Cable  another critic of the takeover  said it would 'add insult to injury' if Nvidia shifted Arm's taxes abroad.

Last night Nvidia hit back at the criticisms and strongly insisted it would not move Arm's taxes out of the UK to limit its bill.

In a statement, an Nvidia spokesman said: 'This deal won't change how Arm pays taxes in the UK.

'Nvidia will keep Arm's headquarters, IP [intellectual property] and R&D [research and development] activity in the UK, and will gladly guarantee that with legally binding commitments.

'That means Arm's UK profits after the acquisition will continue to be taxable in the UK as they are today.'

Arm designs chips that are used in most smartphones, computers and tablets.

Critics fear for jobs across the UK and are concerned that the US government could in future limit the sale of Arm's chips to other customers. There are also fears Nvidia will try to limit the sale of Arm's technology to customers that compete with it.

The UK Government has yet to comment on whether it will block the deal or impose strict conditions. Ministers are likely to be concerned about Nvidia's tax affairs after criticising the low UK taxes paid by other US tech giants, including Google and Amazon.

Last year, countries outside the US accounted for more than three-quarters of Nvidia's total profits at $2.35billion. But the firm paid just $103million in taxes on that profit  effectively a tax rate of 4.4 per cent.

The effective tax rate for its US business last year was far higher at nearly 11 per cent.

Nvidia said in its annual report that its overall tax rate is low because of profits banked in low-tax jurisdictions such as the British Virgin Islands, a renowned tax haven, and Hong Kong. This is the type of tax regime Hauser fears Arm would be brought under if the deal goes through, potentially depriving the UK taxpayer of valuable revenue.

Arm, a former FTSE 100 company, was bought in 2016 by Japanese investment giant SoftBank, which has been selling off assets it owns amid financial troubles.

That 2016 deal came shortly after the UK voted for Brexit and tested Theresa May's resolve on foreign takeovers.

The deal was waved through on the condition SoftBank signed undertakings to double the number of UK employees and keep the headquarters in Cambridge.

But while SoftBank has kept to its promises and treated Arm as an investment, critics of the new deal fear Nvidia's ownership will be different.

They argue that when Arm becomes a subsidiary of Nvidia, the US company will limit Arm's global capability to hurt its rivals.

Hauser  who is sending his letter directly to Boris Johnson this week  urged Nvidia boss Jensen Huang to give legally binding commitments that it will not stop Arm from licensing its technology to competitors, but he is not hopeful.

Hauser wants SoftBank to float Arm on the London Stock Exchange instead, with the Government investing up to 2 billion to take a stake.

He said that if this happens Arm can be the foundation for Britain's first trillion-dollar company, referring to the plan by the Prime Minister's chief adviser Dominic Cummings to create a trillion-dollar tech giant to match the likes of Apple and Google.

'If ever there was an industrial strategy to create the first trilliondollar company in the UK, it must start with Arm, which has a dominant position in the IoT [internet of things] and the smartphone space,' said Hauser, adding that it could combine with other British semiconductor companies such as Graphcore.

He added: 'For once, we've got a full house of cards here to make an industrial strategy out of. This is the time to act to build Britain's first trillion-dollar company.'
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By Trend

The Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan continues to hold meetings with the representatives of diplomatic missions of various countries operating in Azerbaijan, in connection with the situation in the region, aggravated due to Armenia's aggressive policy towards Azerbaijan, Trend reports citing the Community.

The meetings have been recently held with Ambassador of Croatia Branko Zebich, Ambassador of the Czech Republic - Milan Ekert, Ambassador of Hungary - Viktor Szederkenyi and Ambassador of Latvia Dainis Garancs.

During the meeting, the representatives of the Community emphasized such issues as the occupation policy of Armenia, illegal activity in the occupied territories, the use of natural resources, the policy of settlement, the use of water resources as a means of environmental terror against the Azerbaijani population living near the contact line.

The Azerbaijani community stressed the importance of putting pressure on Armenia by international organizations for it to put an end to the occupation of Azerbaijani lands, and refugees and internally displaced people to return to their native lands.

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, 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 the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Protest: A woman at the Washington home of postmaster Louis DeJoy last month. Photo: REUTERS/Cheriss May

A US federal judge blocked controversial changes to the United States postal service, saying they were "a politically motivated attack" that had slowed the nation's mail and likely would slow the delivery of ballots in the upcoming presidential election.

US District Judge Stanley Bastian in Washington state said on Thursday he would issue a nationwide injunction sought by 14 states in a case against President Donald Trump, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, and the US Postal Service over a decision in July to change to the service.

The 14 states, led by Washington, had filed a motion for a preliminary injunction asking the court to immediately halt a "leave mail behind" policy that required postal trucks to leave at certain times, regardless of whether mail was loaded.

The states also asked for all election mail be treated as first-class mail, for the replacement of necessary sorting machines that had been removed, and for the postal service to abide by Mr DeJoy's commitment to suspend the changes until after the November 3 election.

Mr DeJoy, a Trump supporter, said last month that he would halt many of the cost-cutting changes he put in place until after the presidential election. Democrats had accused him of trying to put his thumb on the scales to help Mr Trump, which he has denied. A surge in mail-in ballots is expected because of the coronavirus pandemic.

"The states have demonstrated that the defendants are involved in a politically motivated attack on the efficiency of the postal service," the judge said after more than two hours of argument.

"They have also demonstrated that this attack on the postal service is likely to irreparably harm the states' ability to administer the 2020 general election."

The judge said the preliminary injunction would essentially be issued as the states requested and he would file a written order with details, likely later on Thursday.

US Postal Service spokesman Dave Partenheimer said the agency was exploring its legal options. He added: "Our number one priority is to deliver election mail on time."

Lee Moak, election mail committee chair of the postal service's board of governors, called any suggestion of a politically motivated attack on efficiency "completely and utterly without merit".

At the hearing, Kristin Beneski, a lawyer for the Washington Attorney General, told the judge critical mail already had been delayed for weeks at a time, including ballots.

Other states joining the lawsuit include Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 20:45:11|Editor: huaxia

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RAMALLAH, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- A senior Palestinian official announced on Saturday that the Palestinian leadership is acting to "prevent more Arab countries from normalizing relations with Israel."

"The normalization agreements that both the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain signed with Israel are based on the principle of peace for protection," said Saeb Erekat, secretary-general of Palestine Liberation Organization Executive Committee, during his interview with official Voice of Palestine radio.

It is responsibility of the Arab states and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to preserve their decisions on committing to the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, he noted.

According to the Arab Peace Initiative, the Arab states can only normalize relations with Israel after Israel ends its military occupation of the Arab territories.

Erekat revealed that the Palestinian leadership will present 19 resolutions to the UN General Assembly at its upcoming session, including "the confirmation of the two-state solution and the previous resolutions of the international legitimacy related to the Palestinian cause."

The Palestinian leadership "is expecting large international support for the Palestinian resolutions," he noted. Enditem
Drew Angerer

On Feb. 13, 2016, then-Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was found dead in a ranch bedroom in Texas. It was 268 days before the November election and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) was quick to quip that there would not be a replacement until the next president was chosen.

On Friday evening, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died of complications from cancer 46 days before the presidential election. But McConnell has already made it clear that he sees no reason to wait for voters to weigh in on who should pick her replacement. The Kentucky Republican declared just hours after the death was announced: President Donald Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.

McConnells monomaniacal focus on filling the courts with young conservatives will be tested in the next few months by a variety of factors. But the main one will be whether four Senate Republicans will prove unwilling to go along with confirming a replacement for Ginsburg after their party spent 237 days denying Judge Merrick GarlandPresident Barack Obamas nominee for the Scalia seata hearing, let alone a vote.

Already, one of those Republicans, Sen. Lisa Murkowksi (R-AK), has said she would not support filing a Supreme Court vacancy in 2020, citing the Garland precedent, a position she reiterated on Friday night. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) had made a similar declaration. And even close Trump alliesalbeit ideologically heterodoxical oneswere making arguments to let the election conclude before filling the post.

Of course they should [wait] but they wont, Alan Dershowitz, a celebrity attorney who also served on Trumps legal defense during the impeachment trial, said on Friday night, reacting to the news. Im deeply distressed. She was a great woman, a great justice, and a great American I think the Republicans are going to try to push it through If its a close election, they will want to have their justices on the bench.

Story continues

Asked if he had the chance, what he would say to President Trump now, Dershowitz added, I would say Republicans ought to stick to their position that they took when Scalia died Let the American people decide who they want to see nominate the next Supreme Court justice.

But elsewhere, there were not many overt calls for patience from Trump world figures. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who chairs the Judiciary Committee through which any nomination must go, had previously said he would also oppose any confirmation during an election year. But the senator also finds himself in a dogged re-election fight, with a particular need to ramp up support from conservative voters in his state. The statement he released after Ginsburgs death conveyed no position onand, therefore, no hesitation withfilling the seat.

It was with great sadness that I learned of the passing of Justice Ginsburg, Graham said. Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer who possessed tremendous passion for her causes. She served with honor and distinction as a member of the Supreme Court. While I had many differences with her on legal philosophy, I appreciate her service to our nation. My thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends. May she Rest In Peace.

For Democrats, there are few if any tools they possess to stop a nomination from going through, save mustering up an overwhelming amount of public pressure to persuade those four Republicans to not only oppose a nominee through the election, but through the period after the election until the next president is inaugurated.

Its a gargantuan task. Among Democrats and liberal activists, there was widespread mourning, but also an immediate, historic sense of urgency and calls to action and strategizing. Around 9:30 p.m. on Friday, various progressive groups, including Demand Justice, convened an emergency conference call to discuss the way forward following Ginsburgs death, according to a source familiar with the matter. Demand Justice announced on the call that it is pledging a $10 million ad campaign around the vacancy fight.

Publicly, Democratic leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) tweeted that this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new presidentadopting, verbatim, the language McConnell had used after Scalias death.

But to many Democrats, the question was not whether McConnell would push for a nominee, but when.

I think the only question is whether he tries to jam it through now or the lame duck. Either would be a clear abuse of the process but that wont stop McConnell, said Jim Manley, a former top aide to then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV). Under no scenario, Manley added, would McConnell wait until the next president.

Manley said that it was his suspicion that the process would happen after the election due to the sheer logistics of getting a nominee confirmed. There was, he noted, the need for a background investigation, a review by the Judiciary Committee itself, a hearing on the nominee, and procedural hurdles that could drag out two or more weeks. The average number of days to confirm a Supreme Court justice is 70, according to the Congressional Research Service. But there is also nothing that prevents McConnell from scrapping those norms and rules altogether, should he want to expedite matters.

Rules are rules, but theyve long become accustomed to them breaking the norms, said Manley.

People gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court. Tasos Katopodis/Getty

Within the GOP conference, theres less of a clear sense as to what McConnell will do. The Kentucky senator, focused on retaining the GOP majority at all costs this fall, faces a situation where the politics of an election-eve Supreme Court fight could have varying effects for his most vulnerable members. A key swing vote for Justice Brett Kavanaughs confirmation, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), faces the re-election battle of her career this fall, and could burnish the independent image she touts by opposing any confirmation. Other moderates in tough races could make similar calculations. So too could Sen. Mitt Romneythe presidents sharpest GOP critic in the Senateas well as several retiring Republicans.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the Outsiders Champion, Has Died at 87

Here Are the Ways to Stop Mitch and Trump From Replacing RBG

To placate those members, McConnell could hold off until after the election. But hes not the only actor in this play. Trump has long credited his 2016 win to the conservative voter enthusiasm over the possibility of filling a Supreme Court vacancy. And a potential vacancy at the high court has never been far from the minds of top White House officials. Earlier this month during a formal press conference in the Diplomatic Reception Room, Trump announced he had expanded his list of possible judicial picks by 20 individuals including Sens. Ted Cruz (TX), Tom Cotton (AR), and Josh Hawley (MO), as well as a rising Republican rising star, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron.

Should there be another vacancy on the Supreme Court during my presidency, my nominee will come from the names I have shared with the American public, including the original list and these 20 additions, Trump said during a press conference on Sept. 9.

Trump then challenged former Vice President Joe Biden to release a list of potential nomineesa dare the Democratic nominee has, so far, ignored.

But while Trump recently produced a fresh list of potential nominees, speculation about whom he would pick has centered largely around Judge Amy Coney Barrett, who serves on the Seventh Court of Appeals. In picking Barrett, Trump would please his conservative base but also create a potentially thorny confirmation process at a time when tensions are already at a fever pitch.

A former clerk for Justice Antonin Scalia, Barrett has the reputation as a conservative, but in many ways is still untested on major issues that could come up before the Supreme Court.

At 48, Barrett would be the youngest of the potential justices Trump has considered for the court and she has the least experience of anyone on the Supreme Court bench.

News of Ginsburgs death broke as Trump was at a Minnesota campaign rally, giddily running through a standard roster of applause lines. As he spoke, he did not appear to know about the political and legal grenade that had just been tossed into official Washington. Two Trump aides told The Daily Beast mid-speech that the president didnt know, though various other senior administration officials were well aware and preparing to discuss the matter with him, as soon as later in the evening.

Amy Coney Barrett, the Trump Supreme Court Pick Wholl Troll Liberals the Hardest

Though apparently not yet informed of Ginsburgs death, Trump did mention the importance of the courtpart of a familiar rally riff that took on new weight in light of the new political reality.

And that's why the Supreme Court is so important, because the next president will get one, two, three or four Supreme Court justices, Trump said. I had two. Many presidents have had none, they've had none, because they're there for a long time."

At the White House in Washington, D.C., the American flag was quickly lowered on Friday to half-staff in memory of Justice Ginsburg, according to White House spokesman Ben Williamson.

As Trump boarded Air Force One, he told reporters he had just learned of Ginsburgs death.

"Just now?" he responded when asked about her death, according to CNNs Kaitlan Collins. She led an amazing life. What else can you say? She was an amazing womanwhether you agree or notshe was an amazing woman who led an amazing life.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump on Saturday promised to put forth a female nominee in the coming week to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, pushing the Republican-controlled Senate to consider the pick without delay.

Taking the stage at a North Carolina rally to chants of Fill that seat, the president said he would nominate his selection despite Democrats objections. And, after conducting what he joked was a very scientific poll of the Fayetteville crowd as to whether supporters wanted a man or a woman, he declared the choice would be a very talented, very brilliant woman.

He added that he did not yet know whom he would choose.

We win an election and those are the consequences, said the president, who then seemed to signal that hed be willing to accept a vote on his nominee during the lame duck period after the election. We have a lot of time. We have plenty of time. Were talking about January 20th.

But one Republican senator already broke ranks. Maines Susan Collins, who is in a tough reelection battle, said Saturday that she believed replacing Ginsburg should be the decision of the president who is elected Nov. 3. Three more defections from the GOP ranks would be needed to stop Trumps nominee from joining the court.

At stake is a seat held by a justice who was a champion of womens rights and spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the courts liberal wing. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. vowed to call a vote for Trumps nominee, but Democrats countered that Republicans should follow the precedent that GOP legislators set in 2016 by refusing to consider a Supreme Court choice in the run-up to an election.

The impending clash over the vacant seat  when to fill it and with whom  scrambles the stretch run of a presidential race for a nation already reeling from the pandemic that has killed nearly 200,000 people, left millions unemployed and heightened partisan tensions and anger.

McConnell pledged to Trump in a phone call Friday night to bring the choice to a vote though he has not said if it would be before the election. Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said any selection should come after Nov. 3. Voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice to consider, he said.

The president this month added 20 more names to his roster of potential court nominees, and aides in recent days have focused on a short list heavy on female candidates, according to four White House aides and officials close to the process. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss private conversations.

Those under close consideration for the high court include three women who are federal appeals court judges: Amy Coney Barrett, beloved among conservatives and an early favourite; Barbara Lagoa, who is Hispanic and comes from the battleground state of Florida; and Allison Jones Rushing, who clerked for Justice Clarence Thomas and for Neil Gorsuch, when the current Trump-appointed justice was an appeals court judge.

At least one man, appeals court Judge Amul Thapar, has also been under consideration. A McConnell ally from Kentucky, he has been screened by Trumps team for past openings and he would be the first Asian-American on the high court.

McConnell, who sets the calendar in the Senate and has made judicial appointments his priority, declared unequivocally in a statement that Trumps nominee would receive a confirmation vote. In 2016, McConnell refused to consider President Barack Obamas nominee months before the election, eventually preventing a vote on Judge Merrick Garland.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York convened a conference call with Democratic senators at midday Saturday, according to a person on the private call who was not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. He told senators the number one goal must be to communicate the stakes of the confirmation vote.

Schumer also warned that if Republicans push through the nominee, nothing is off the table for Senate rules changes to come, the person said.

Ginsburgs death seemed certain to stoke enthusiasm in both political parties as the election could now be viewed as referendum on the high courts decisions, including the future of abortion rights. Democrats raised more than $71 million in the hours after Ginsburgs death, indicating her passing has already galvanized the partys base.

Hundreds of mourners gathered for a second night outside the Supreme Court building, holding candles in honour of Ginsburg and listening to a succession of testimonies and rallying speeches. Among the speakers was Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who eulogized Ginsberg as an icon, a trailblazer and a friend and accused McConnell of seeking to cynically hijack the confirmation process.

Today Mitch McConnell and his henchmen think they can ram through a Supreme Court justice only 45 days before the election, Warren said. What Mitch McConnell doesnt understand is that the fight has just begun.

A confirmation vote in the Senate is not guaranteed, even with a Republican majority.

McConnell has launched a risky, unprecedented strategy. It could motivate conservative voters to rally behind Trump and GOP senators or it could push away moderates who prefer to see the Senate stick to norms or are fearful of a right-leaning court stripping away womens right to choose an abortion.

Typically, it takes several months to vet and hold hearings on a Supreme Court nominee, and time is short before November. Key senators may be reluctant to cast votes so close to the election. With a slim GOP majority, 53 seats in the 100-member chamber, Trumps choice could afford to lose only a few.

McConnell did not specify the timing. But trying for confirmation in a lame-duck session after the Nov. 3 election, if Trump had lost to Biden or Republicans had lost the Senate, would carry further political complications.

Democrats immediately denounced McConnells move as hypocritical, pointing out that he refused to call hearings for Garland 237 days before the 2016 election. The 2020 election is 46 days away.

The average number of days to confirm a justice, according to the Congressional Research Service, is 69, which would be after the election. But some Republicans quickly noted that Ginsburg was confirmed in just 42 days. Obama waited more than a month to nominate Garland after Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016.

John Fischetti, who waited in line more than two hours to enter Trumps Fayetteville rally, said replacing Ginsburg would inflame tensions but was within the presidents rights.

I would assume it would make everyone more energized, Fischetti said of the political repercussions. Trumps people want him to always press forward.

Four GOP defections could defeat a nomination, while a tie vote could be broken by Vice-President Mike Pence. After Collins decision, focus grew on Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitt Romney of Utah, who have been critical of Trump and protective of the institution of the Senate.

And because the Arizona Senate race is a special election, that seat could be filled as early as Nov. 30  which would narrow the window for McConnell if the Democratic candidate, Mark Kelly, wins.

The next pick could shape important decisions beyond abortion rights, including any legal challenges that may stem from the 2020 election. In the interim, if the court were to take cases with eight justices, 4-4 ties would revert the decision to a lower court; for instance, the Affordable Care Act could then be struck down by a lower Texas court.

Biden has promised to nominate a Black woman to the high court if given the chance. His campaign reiterated Saturday that it would not release names before the election.

___

Lemire reported from New York. Peoples reported from Montclair, New Jersey. Additional reporting by Darlene Superville, Alexandra Jaffe and Ashraf Khalil in Washington and Kevin Freking and Bryan Anderson in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

___

This story has been corrected to show that Bidens campaign says Biden would not release names of potential Supreme Court nominees before the election, not that he would.
In an alarming escalation of state retaliation against opponents of unending police violence and murder, at least six protesters, four of whom are members of the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), were arrested by police and SWAT officers with the Aurora, Colorado police department on Thursday.

As part of an attempted frame-up, the protesters were arrested and jailed in a series of coordinated militarized raids while they were out in public or at home. Those arrested face a plethora of charges, which, if they are convicted, could mean decades in prison for their alleged roles in four protests and vigils against police violence that took place over the summer.

All those arrested have either organized or taken part in demonstrations in Denvers largest suburb. The protests in Aurora are part of the global wave of multiracial and multiethnic protests by youth, students and workers following the release of video depicting the Memorial Day murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers. Nine months prior to Floyds murder, Aurora police were facing widespread anger for their role in the killing of black 23-year-old Elijah McClain last year.

Everyone who was arrested in Thursdays raidsJoel Northam, Terrance Roberts, Lillian House, Whitney Lucero, John Ruch and Trey Quinnfaces felony charges connected to four separate demonstrations held in Aurora on June 27, July 3, July 12 and July 25. A statement from the PSL confirms that Ruch, Northam, Lucero and House are members of the party, while Roberts, according to the Denver Post, is the co-founder of the Front Line Party for Revolutionary Action.

A statement released by the PSL claims that Ruch, the first to be detained, was sitting in the parking lot of Home Depot when he was arrested. Later that same morning, five police cars surrounded and arrested Lillian House while she was driving. In the afternoon, Northam reports his home was invaded by SWAT teams and a Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) military vehicle, designed to withstand improvised explosive device (IED) attacks. In a PSL Facebook event discussing the arrest, members claimed that Northam was never shown a warrant. Lucero was also arrested Thursday afternoon.

As of this writing, only one person has been released. The PSL is organizing a rally and march outside the Colorado state capitol in Denver today demanding that all charges be dropped and their remaining comrades be released.

The PSL has been among the groups organizing protests in the Denver metropolitan area throughout the summer, demanding justice for McClain. While the official sequence of events that led to McClains death might never be knownpolice purposefully shielded and removed their body cameras during the interactionit is undisputed that McClain, who never committed a crime, was rendered unconscious after police applied a carotid hold to his neck.

Once paramedics arrived, the police lied about the sequence and character of events. McClain, who at this time was already handcuffed and had vomited after being choked, was injected with 500 milligrams of ketamine, a powerful sedative, by a paramedic with Aurora Fire Rescue. The dosage, nearly double the recommended amount for someone of his diminutive stature, caused McClains pulse and breathing to stop before he went into cardiac arrest. Three days later, after being declared brain-dead, McClain died.

Afterwards, a cover-up ensued, with an independent investigation finding no fault on the part of the officers or paramedics. An inconclusive autopsy report, which failed to determine the exact cause of death, conveniently left the state blameless.

Protests ignited in June after it was discovered that the independent city investigation into McClains murder was being led by attorney Eric Daigle, a former police officer in Connecticut who advertised himself on his website as someone experienced in defending municipalities, police chiefs and individual officers from law enforcement liability claims.

After over two million people signed a petition demanding a reopening of the investigation, Democratic Governor Jared Polis announced that his administration would reexamine the case. There are currently five separate investigations into McClains murder by various state and federal agencies. Millions of dollars and thousands of hours are being spent to give the appearance of justice, while the Aurora police continue to assault, intimidate maim and jail protesters, and McClains murderers have yet to spend a single hour behind bars.

In contrast to the police who killed McClain, the protesters who were arrested remain in jail after district attorneys stacked up to a dozen charges per person, a clear act of intimidation by the ruling class against all those determined to put an end to police violence and racism.

The charges are being spearheaded jointly by the 17th judicial district attorney, Dave Young (Democrat), and the 18th judicial district attorney, George Brauchler (Republican). The most serious and ludicrous were levied by Young against Northam, Lucero, and House for their alleged role in kidnapping police officers outside the Aurora District One police station on July 3.

That day, hundreds of protesters had gathered outside the police station demanding the arrest of officers Nathan Woodyard, Jason Rosenblatt and Randy Roedema. The protests began after a photo was publicly released that showed three Aurora cops--Erica Maerrero, Jaron Jones and Kyle Dittrich--grinning and laughing as they reenacted choking McClain. The photo was sent to Rosenblatt, who responded to the disgusting image with a text that read, ha ha.

The demonstration outside the police station contined into the evening before riot police cleared the roughly 600 protesters with impact and chemical munitions. Attorney Young in his statement alleges that because protesters had surrounded the building, preventing police from leaving for seven hours, Northam, Lucero and House are responsible for attempting to commit first-degree kidnapping, a class three felony that carries a minimum one-to-three-year prison sentence.

While neither attorney has yet to file an affidavit, in a short statement Young alleges that the three unlawfully and feloniously attempted to imprison or forcibly secrete 18 officers with the intent to force them or another person to make a concession to insecure their release.

District Attorney Brauchler has also charged House with inciting a riot, conspiracy to commit inciting a riot, theft from a person, conspiracy to commit theft from a person, engaging in a riot, conspiracy to commit engaging in a riot, obstructing a highway or other passageway and conspiracy to commit obstructing a highway or other passageway.

Northam has been charged with inciting a riot, conspiracy to incite a riot, theft, conspiracy to commit theft, engaging in a riot, conspiracy to engage in a riot, obstructing a highway or passageway, conspiracy to obstruct highway or passageway, attempted first-degree kidnapping, and obstructing government operations.

Lucero was charged with attempted first-degree kidnapping, inciting a riot, engaging in a riot and obstructing government operations. Quinn is facing charges for rioting, false imprisonment and obstructing government operations, while Ruch is charged with theft and conspiracy to commit theft.

Finally, Roberts is facing charges for rioting, obstructing and conspiracy to obstruct a highway, as well as obstructing government operations. All told, the six protesters face 33 felony counts and 34 misdemeanor charges.

In addition to the stacking of charges against the protesters, the manner in which they were arrested represents an escalation of the police-state tactics carried out by federal paramilitaries in cities such as Portland, Oregon; Spokane, Washington; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; New York and Kenosha, Wisconsin. These fascistic maneuvers, directed by President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr, are being dutifully carried out by police departments and federal agencies throughout the country, demonstrating the bipartisan attitude of the ruling class towards those who stand up to police terror.

However, those who think that a Democratic presidency under a Joe Biden administration would be any less vicious in its persecution of the working class would be sorely mistaken. Throughout the summer, Biden has condemned anarchists, violent protesters and rioters, while remaining silent on the state assassination of Portland protester Michael Reinoehl. Biden, like Bernie Sanders, advocates increasing funding to murderous police departments, while state budgets are being slashed across the country.

While a disproportionate number of minorities, particularly Native Americans and African-Americans, are victims of police violence, the main factor that determines who is targeted by the police is economic status. Overwhelmingly, the victims of police violence and murder are working class and poor. The police are armed enforcers for the capitalist system. They defend the property and wealth of the ruling class against the working class and oppressed.

In the end, appeals to the capitalist state for reform or "justice" are doomed to failure. Youth, students and all who oppose unending police murder must orient themselves to the social force that creates all of societys wealththe working classin an international struggle for the abolition of the capitalist system and its replacement with a socialist society.
The Special Adviser to the Edo State Governor on media, Crusoe Osagie, has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of manipulating the ongoing election.

Edo residents are currently trooping out to elect a new governor that will lead them for the next four years.

The battle is principally between the incumbent governor, Godwin Obaseki, of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Osagie Ize-Iyamu of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Twelve other political parties have presented candidates for the election.

In a statemet sent to PREMIUM TIMES, the governors aide lamented an alleged election manipulation in areas where he said his boss had relative advantage.

Suddenly card readers are not working in areas where Governor Godwin Obaseki is very popular, Mr Osagie said.

He said voters are being disenfranchised and we are constrained to say that this is sabotage.

Specifically, in Oredo Ward 1, Unit 20 and other places where the governor is clearly popular, the card readers are not working.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should prove to Edo voters that it can conduct a credible election in Edo State, he said.

PREMIUM TIMES reporters currently in the state are working to independently authenticate the claims.
Adkins' campaign says Davids' ad takes her words out of context Amanda Adkins' congressional campaign says Democrat Sharice Davids' new commercial takes Adkins' words out of context.The Davids' commercial is about Adkins' links to former Gov. Sam Brownback."'Our children deserve better.' Adkins is right -- better than her and Brownback," the ad says.That clip, however, is from a summer primary commercial, expressing the Republican's concern about the future."It is a clip misappropriated from our campaign.

The Kansas congressional campaign hasnt really moved the dial for most voters . . . There havent been any big revelations that might convince entrenched supporters to switch sides as this Blue District is mostly caught up in typically petty personality contest slap fighting with little discussion of policy.Checkit:
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said in a statement Saturday she believes whoever is elected in the 2020 presidential race should pick the nominee to fill Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Supreme Court seat.

Why it matters: Collins will be key in how the nomination process plays out. As one of the most centrist Senate Republicans, whether or not the Senate confirms Trump's SCOTUS nominee could hinge on her vote.

Collins, who is up for reelection in one of the most competitive Senate races in the country, was also a deciding vote in confirming Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2018, after which she faced a slew of criticisms from Maine Democrats.

What she's saying: In order for the American people to have faith in their elected officials, we must act fairly and consistentlyno matter which political part is in power."
Champaign, IL (61820)

Today

Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. Low 13F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy this evening, then becoming cloudy after midnight. Low 13F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph.
Yahoo, Google, Twitter, and Facebook, as well as other social media sites, are extremely biased against conservatives, Republicans, and President Trump. A Pew Research Center survey conducted in June finds that about three-quarters of U.S. adults say it is very (37%) or somewhat (36%) likely that social media sites intentionally censor political viewpoints that they find objectionable. Just 25% believe this is not likely the case. Americans are divided over whether social media companies should label posts on their sites as inaccurate or misleading, with most being skeptical that these sites can accurately determine what content should be flagged.

Take Twitter, for example. A tweet included a picture of the viral Moscow Mitch meme, which took the internet by storm in mid-2019 when Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) rejected an election security bill. Yet, these social media sites censor President Trump. Another example, after President Trump met with the residents of Kenosha, Wisconsin, there were no favorable articles on Yahoo news for hours, and then only one. Compare that to when VP Joe Biden went there, many media articles touted what a great move that was.

One person who is trying to remove the political bias is Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX). American Thinker had the privilege of interviewing him. More and more, big tech is trying to abuse their power and censor speech they disagree with. They are actually silencing the voices of conservatives, especially this year as the election approaches. They are getting more and more brazen as they exercise a monopoly power. By doing this they are silently having dissent disappear. In my view, big tech censorship is the greatest threat to freedom of speech and to democracy in America.

These social media companies censor conservatives through invisible means. For example, Yahoo constantly publishes anti-Trump articles that are very misleading. His supporters were pointing out the errors of the article in the comments section. But Yahoo would have no part of that, so they eliminated the comments. But to allow the leftists to have their say, they referenced tweets by individuals. There was a recent article about the California fires that criticized President Trump that included tweets by Governor Gavin Newsome (D-CA) and former VP Joe Biden. Another articles headline on Yahoo says it all: Yes, Sarah Sanders has a book, and if you believe in common decency you won't read it.

Senator Cruz explained, If Google, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, or Yahoo decides a particular political view is unacceptable they can simply shadow bag it. Putting out a post or tweet strays into the ether and nobody knows. Likewise, they can do what you just referenced. Someones feed is collated so that the only voices being heard are the voices of the left, the views Silicon Valley favors.

What can be done? Senator Cruz says there a number of remedies. First, Section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act provides tech companies with liability protections against illegal content posted by third-party users. At the time Congress passed this provision they believed big tech would be neutral. Since big tech has actively and aggressively abandoned this commitment, there is no reason to keep it. Why should they get special immunity that no other industry gets?

He has also urged the DoJ to use anti-trust laws as a basis of investigation because these companies are abusing their monopoly power. He seems to be getting through, because recently the DoJ published a 25-page proposal on its website in which they suggested restraining protections that most of the social media platforms have enjoyed since 1996. This proposal will put an end to the social media administrators who control politics over their platforms, which basically takes away freedom of thought and expression.

To demonstrate the power of Big Tech, the senator points to the Senate hearings that he chaired. At one of them there was testimony by Dr. [Robert] Epstein, who is not a conservative, Republican, and even voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016, openly supporting her. Dr. Epstein, a psychologist, said 2.6 million votes could have been shifted in favor of Clinton because of a bias in Google's search results. What Google has done: when someone types Trump the auto feed goes to anything negative and for Democrats like Hillary Clinton it goes to anything positive. Whatever article is listed first has enormous influence on what consumers believe. In the wake of 2016, it is getting much worse.

Try it. American Thinker googled Donald Trump is gaining in the polls. What came up are two articles that were even boxed. In order, Election update. Polls are pretty much good for Biden except Florida; and Biden Takes Lead in Six Swing States. Senator Cruz feels There is power on shining a light and exposing the problem. During a hearing I asked how many posts from Democratic candidates have been blocked compared to Republican candidates? Every one of the big tech companies refused to answer this simple question. They argue there is no evidence of political bias or discrimination. Mind you, they are the only people who possess the evidence and they refuse to give it up.

Senator Mike Lee is also involved. He told American Thinker, Apple, Facebook, Google, and Yahoo have all demonstrated a clear anti-conservative bias. That is why I recently sent a letter to the CEOs of the nations largest tech companies demanding answers to 11 questions including, How do you ensure that a content-moderation decision is not influenced by the personal beliefs or political views of the moderator? As I said in the letter, I am specifically concerned about corporations using their power unilaterally to silence opinions they dislike and thus warp the public debates their platforms present to the American people. The technology sector is completely dependent on the government-created patent and copyright monopolies given to them by Congress. Considering the power these monopoly rights have given to the tech sector, Congress has every right to make sure that they are being used to promote the progress of science and useful arts.

What Americans need to do is hold the big tech companies accountable and take away their monopoly powers so they no longer have the opportunity to abuse them. The 2020 election is very important. More Republicans of the same mind as Senator Cruz need to be elected along with President Trump. As the President wrote, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube wield immense, if not unprecedented, power to shape the interpretation of public events; to censor, delete, or disappear information; and to control what people see or do not see. We must seek transparency and accountability from online platforms and encourage standards and tools to protect and preserve the integrity and openness of American discourse and freedom of expression.

The author writes for American Thinker. She has done book reviews and author interviews and has written a number of national security, political, and foreign policy articles.

Image: Ted Cruz
From Dr Reddy's partnering up with RDIF to distribute 100 million doses of Russia's Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccine in India, to Moderna saying it would seek limited emergency use of COVID-19 vaccine based on early data, here are the latest updates on the much-awaited COVID-19 vaccine.

2 | Moderna to seek limited emergency use of COVID-19 vaccine based on early data: If Moderna Inc's COVID-19 vaccine proves to be at least 70 percent effective, the company will seek emergency authorisation for its use in high-risk groups, the company's chief executive told news agency Reuters. Moderna's vaccine candidate - mRNA-1273 - is nearing the finish line in its push to enroll 30,000 individuals in a late-stage trial of a novel coronavirus vaccine. But the company may be able to declare victory early if it is able to show that people who got the vaccine fared much better in its trial than people who didn't.
Harish Murali By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: Dismissing the bail plea of an accused belonging to the Tamil Nadu Liberation Army in the pipe bomb planting case that took place in 2014, Madras High Court judge N Kirubakaran observed that the Central government should not create an impression among the public that a particular language is being discriminated against and only a few chosen languages are given prominence to safeguard the integrity of the nation.

Judge Kirubakaran in his judgement observed the government to "Not create any apprehension in the minds of the people that only a few chosen languages are given prominence and recognition especially when there are about 22 languages recognized and listed in the VIII Schedule of the Constitution of India which are entitled to equal treatment and protection so that all Indian languages are well-developed and preserved."

There should not be any room for linguistic chauvinists to create any unrest in the name of languages in any part of our country, he added.

"Our country is a multiracial, multicultural, multilingual and multi-religious. Peace and Harmony have to be maintained.

For that, Governments should make every citizen feel that their language, culture, religion, race are preserved and protected and not interfered with or suppressed by any action of the Governments.

Even an apprehension should not be created in the minds of the people which would be certainly counterproductive," he emphasized.

Dismissing the bail plea of the accused who was booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the Explosives Act, the Court also reiterated that unity of the nation and safety of the people is paramount.

The Governments, especially the Central Government, has to keep a serious vigilance on religious fundamentalists groups, communal elements and anti-national forces and their supporters, the flow of funds particularly in North-East, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Telangana, West Bengal, Punjab, Orissa, Bihar, Chattisgarh where these elements are active and radicalising the youth by creating fear psychosis.

Referring to the recent Galwan valley standoff between India and China, he mentioned that it "exposed people who are lovers of the neighbouring nation, as they openly support the neighbouring enemy country."

However, judge R Hemalatha who was part of the same division bench expressed that she does not subscribe to the larger views expressed by Justice Kirubakaran, which she said were irrelevant to the instant case.

"They are not relevant to the present petition", Justice Hemalatha said, while concluding on the following note, "Learning languages is a matter of one's personal choice."
The stream here is divided by an island into two channels. The southern (South Platte) is 450 feet wide, having 18 or 20 inches (of) water in the deepest places.

With the exception of a few dry bars, the bed of the river is generally quicksands, in which the carts begin to sink rapidly so soon as the mules halted, so that it was necessary to keep them constantly in motion. ...

The northern channel (North Platte), 2,250 feet wide, was somewhat deeper, having frequently 3 feet (of) water in the numerous small channels, with a bed of coarse gravel. ...

We encamped at the point of land immediately at the junction of the North and South forks.

Between the streams is a low rich prairie, extending from their confluence 18 miles westwardly to the bordering hills, where it is 5 miles wide. It is covered with a luxuriant growth of grass, and along the banks is a slight and scattered fringe of cottonwood and willow.

 U.S. Army Lt. John C. Fremont, on the forks of the Platte River, July 2, 1842
The Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Ita Enang has said that plans were on the way to sell petrol less than N100 per litre.

Senator Enang said as soon as local refineries begin operation, the price of petroleum products would be forced to crash.

He disclosed this during a meeting with the Domestic Refinery Owners Association of Nigeria who paid him a visit in Abuja.

He explained that the reason why petroleum products prices are high is because the process of extracting, exporting, refining and bringing it back to Nigeria is very cumbersome and expensive.

As we succeed with you, which I believe that we will succeed, we will eliminate and be able to crash the price of refined petroleum product because what makes refined petroleum products costly is one, the cost of freight, sending it abroad to be refined, you pay Port Authority, you pay NIMASA, you pay for chatter of the vessels that take it there, you pay the duties in the in Nigeria, you pay the duties in the country that it is landing, you pay the duty of those countries, you pay the labour of those countries where they refined and then you bring them back, you pay the freight, you pay the vessel if it is not landing early and it is hanging somewhere in the sea, and all that is transferred to the price of the refined products.

And finally you'll now see that NNPC will put their price, Petroleum Price Agency will put their price.

So what Nigerians are actually paying for is not the real cost of the product, it is the services, and by the time we engage with you and we are able to have the domestic Nigerian Refinery, all those other charges will be eliminated and like you have been telling me, the price of refined petroleum products will come under N100 per litre, he further explained.

He further said that subsidy payment wasn't benefiting ordinary Nigeria, but just a few corrupt individuals, hence the need to remove it became necessary.

As we were locked down, the price of crude oil collapsed, I think it led consequently to the lowering of the price of refined product and I think we relaxed and we thought we've ended it now suddenly the price went up, we said look, we no more can sustain subsidy in this country because subsidy only benefits a corrupt set of people and it doesn't really touch the ordinary man.

And having withdrawn subsidy it becomes that refiners are petroleum product must sell it at a market-driven price, and the price went up, therefore, it becomes necessary for us to accelerate our engagement with you as our Nigerian resources to solve Nigeria's economic problem, he said.

Addressing the Association members, Senator Enang said for the purpose of integrating them and their efforts into the planning for the economy of Nigeria, the government had also engaged with the team that constructed the locally fabricated refinery in an Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, and they attended a briefing with the Minister of Science and Technology.

We've also engaged with the team in federal University of petroleum, Efurum, they have a department that is fabricating locally, Nigeria Refinery, which will produce and refine petrol diesel, kerosene and make other byproducts available for other institutions.

So since after the last meeting, these are the things that we've done to take the ministry forward, so it became necessary to have to invite you one, to brief you on what we've done, that although we were on National lockdown, we were not locked up in terms of thinking and planning for the economy, he added.

On his part, the National Chairman of Domestic Refinery Owners Association of Nigeria, Godwin Sunday requested that a Presidential Committee be set up to look into the activities and the demands of Artisanal Oil refiners in the Niger Delta.

He also requested that approval be given for the establishment of Modular refineries of 10 units of one thousand Barrels daily per Niger Delta state.

Sunday also asked that the Federal Government provide a guarantee for the refiners to the tune of $15 million per refinery. (Nigerian Tribune)
A pilot project that could improve food security in Canada's North got the green light Monday.

Jackie Milne, president of the Northern Farm Training Institute in Hay River, received $50,000 in funding from the government of the Northwest Territories to work with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada scientists to identify the best seeds to produce potatoes in the North.

If the project is successful, it could dramatically reduce shipping costs and increase accessibility to the staple food across the North, said Helen Tai, a research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada who specializes in potato genetics.

Tai contacted Milne after reading the story about an Alberta farmer who donated 25,000 tonnes of potatoes to the N.W.T., to see if she could help.

Milne received the donation in June and, along with a group of volunteers, has been delivering the potatoes across the N.W.T.

"It struck me that that was a lot of work, to try to transport 50,000 pounds to Hay River and elsewhere," said Tai.

The overwhelming majority of potatoes are grown by planting tubers  small chunks of the vegetable  into the ground. But distributing potatoes across the North is expensive and they have to be kept from freezing or rotting until the next growing season, which increases costs.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Tai said if people used seeds, that could dramatically reduce shipping costs and increase the accessibility to the staple food.

"The true potato seed is 1/50,000th the weight of a tuber. So that 50,000 pounds of potatoes that were delivered to Hay River would only be one pound," she said.

However, for a potato seed to be found viable in the North, Tai said they would have to find seeds that are resistant to cold, could grow in a short period of time and adapt to the North's long summer daylight hours.

"That will require a little bit of work," she said.

Now that they've received funding, Milne is preparing plots on a five-acre piece of land so that she can plant different potato seeds, provided by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, next spring.

Story continues

In the meantime, she'll plant the potato seed varieties in pots inside a greenhouse in March or April and transplant them into the ground, likely in late May.

"And then we'll see which ones adapt and do better in our climate," said Milne.

Submitted by Helen Tai

Tai said that if they find the right seed or seeds, it would make potato cultivation more accessible, less expensive and more disease-free.

"And just to be able to distribute the seeds more easily would give people more access to the crop," said Tai.

"This is the beginning of something very, very positive," said Milne. "This could bring food security in isolated, remote places."
BEIJING, Sept. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of internet content & marketing services, and transaction services for China's automotive industry, today announced it has called an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders (the "EGM"), to be held on October 23, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. (China Standard Time), at JingAn Kerry Centre, Tower II, 46th Floor, 1539 Nanjing West Road, Shanghai 200040, China, to consider and vote on, among other things, the proposal to authorize and approve the previously announced agreement and plan of merger (the "Merger Agreement") , dated June 12, 2020, among the Company, Yiche Holding Limited ("Parent"), and Yiche Mergersub Limited, a wholly owned Subsidiary of Parent ("Merger Sub"), the plan of merger required to be filed with the Registrar of Companies of the Cayman Islands (the "Plan of Merger") and the transactions contemplated thereby, including the merger.

According to the Merger Agreement and the Plan of Merger, at the effective time of the merger, Merger Sub will merge with and into the Company and cease to exist, with the Company being the surviving company and becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of Parent. If consummated, the merger would result in the Company becoming a privately held company, and its American depositary shares (each representing one Class A ordinary share, par value US$0.00004 per share) (the "ADSs") would no longer be listed or traded on the New York Stock Exchange or any other stock exchange, and the Company's ADS program would be terminated. In addition, the Company's ADSs and Class A ordinary shares represented by the ADSs would cease to be registered under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 following the consummation of the merger.

The Company's board of directors (the "Board"), acting upon the unanimous recommendation of a committee of independent directors established by the Board, authorized and approved the execution, delivery and performance of the Merger Agreement, the Plan of Merger and the consummation of the transactions contemplated thereby, including the merger, and recommends that the Company's shareholders and ADS holders vote FOR, among other things, the proposal to authorize and approve the execution, delivery and performance of the Merger Agreement, the Plan of Merger and the consummation of the transactions contemplated thereby, including the merger.

Shareholders of record at the close of business in the Cayman Islands on October 9, 2020 will be entitled to attend and vote at the EGM and any adjournment thereof. ADS holders as of the close of business in New York City on September 21, 2020 will be entitled to instruct Citibank, N.A., the ADS depositary, to vote the Class A ordinary shares represented by the ADSs at the EGM.

Additional information regarding the EGM and the Merger Agreement can be found in the transaction statement on Schedule 13E-3 and the definitive proxy statement attached as Exhibit (a)-(1) thereto, as amended, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), which can be obtained, along with other filings containing information about the Company, the proposed merger and related matters, without charge, from the SEC's website www.sec.gov. Requests for additional copies of the definitive proxy statement should be directed to Innisfree M&A Incorporated, the Company's proxy solicitor, at +1-888-750-5834 (toll free in the United States) or +1-412-232-3651 (outside the United States).

SHAREHOLDERS AND ADS HOLDERS ARE URGED TO READ CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY THESE MATERIALS AND OTHER MATERIALS FILED WITH OR FURNISHED TO THE SEC WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE, AS THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE COMPANY, THE PROPOSED MERGER AND RELATED MATTERS.

The Company and certain of its directors and executive officers may, under SEC rules, be deemed to be "participants" in the solicitation of proxies from the shareholders with respect to the proposed Merger. Information regarding the persons who may be considered "participants" in the solicitation of proxies is set forth in the Schedule 13E-3 transaction statement relating to the proposed Merger and the definitive proxy statement attached thereto. Further information regarding persons who may be deemed participants, including any direct or indirect interests they may have, is also set forth in the definitive proxy statement.

This announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute an offer to purchase or the solicitation of an offer to sell any securities or a solicitation of any proxy, vote or approval with respect to the proposed transaction or otherwise, nor shall it be a substitute for any proxy statement or other filings that have been or will be made with the SEC.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains statements that express the Company's current opinions, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or projections regarding future events or future results and therefore are, or may be deemed to be, "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the "Act"). These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "if," "will," "expected" and similar statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Risks, uncertainties and assumptions include: uncertainties as to how the Company's shareholders will vote at the meeting of shareholders; the possibility that competing offers will be made; the possibility that financing may not be available; the possibility that various closing conditions for the transaction may not be satisfied or waived; and other risks and uncertainties discussed in documents filed with the SEC by the Company, as well as the Schedule 13E-3 transaction statement and the proxy statement filed by the Company. These forward-looking statements reflect the Company's expectations as of the date of this press release. You should not rely upon these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law.

About Bitauto Holdings Limited

Bitauto Holdings Limited (NYSE: BITA) is a leading provider of internet content & marketing services, and transaction services for China's automotive industry. Bitauto's business consists of three segments: advertising and subscription business, transaction services business and digital marketing solutions business.

Bitauto's advertising and subscription business provides a variety of advertising services to automakers through the bitauto.com website and corresponding mobile apps which provide consumers with up-to-date automobile pricing and promotional information, specifications, reviews and consumer feedback. Bitauto also provides transaction-focused online advertisements and services for promotional activities to its business partners, including automakers, automobile dealers, auto finance partners and insurance companies. Bitauto offers subscription services via its SaaS platform, which provides web-based and mobile-based integrated digital marketing solutions to new car automobile dealers in China. The SaaS platform enables automobile dealer subscribers to create their own online showrooms, list pricing and promotional information, provide automobile dealer contact information, place advertisements and manage customer relationships to help them reach a broad set of purchase-minded customers and effectively market their automobiles to consumers online.

Bitauto's transaction services business is primarily conducted by its controlled subsidiary, Yixin Group Limited (SEHK: 2858), a leading online automobile finance transaction platform in China, which provides transaction platform services as well as self-operated financing services.

Bitauto's digital marketing solutions business provides automakers with one-stop digital marketing solutions, including website creation and maintenance, online public relations, online marketing campaigns, advertising agent services, big data applications and digital image creation.

For more information, please visit ir.bitauto.com.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

Suki Li

Bitauto Holdings Limited

Phone: +86-10-6849-2145

[email protected]

Philip Lisio

Foote Group

Phone: +86-10-8429-9544

[email protected]

SOURCE Bitauto Holdings Limited

Related Links

http://ir.bitauto.com


Three persons are in a critical condition after vehicles they were travelling in got involved in a road crash at Konongo-Odumase in the Ashanti Region on the Accra-Kumasi highway.

Four vehicles were involved in the incident.

According to police report, the incident occurred after a Metro Mass Transit hit two vehicles in its lane after one of the drivers stopped abruptly in the middle of the road.

The injured persons were rushed to the Konongo-Odumase Government Hospital.

About seven of them who sustained minor injuries have been treated and discharged while three are still on admission at the hospital.

---citinewsroom
Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, withdrew a subpoena and contempt threat against Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday, after the State Department gave the committee more than 16,000 pages of records related to a probe into Hunter Biden's work for Ukrainian energy company Burisma.

Why it matters: House Democrats sought the documents to understand the direction of the Senate Homeland Security Committee's investigation into Hunter Biden led by Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), who plans to release a report on the investigation before the election.

Some Democrats have accused Johnson of leading an overtly political investigation.

Sen. Mitt Romney (Utah) criticized his Republican colleagues on the Homeland Security Committee this week for the probe into Hunter Biden, saying it has the "earmarks of a political exercise."

Context: Immediately after Trump's acquittal in the Senate impeachment trial this February, Sens. Chuck Grassley and Johnson announced a review of "potential conflicts of interest posed by the business activities of Hunter Biden and his associates during the Obama administration."

Engel claimed Pompeo blocked his committee from obtaining documents as part of the review that had previously been given to Senate Republicans investigating Joe and Hunter Biden and ignored oversight requests from his House committee.

Engel also accused Pompeo of misusing agency resources to aid an investigation "obviously designed to boost the President's campaign and tear down his opponent," Joe Biden.

What they're saying: "It shouldn't have taken a subpoena, let alone the threat of contempt, for Secretary Pompeo to comply with the Committee's oversight request," Engel wrote.

"Nevertheless, I'm gratified that we've received these materials and can review them before Senate Republicans issue their report. This 'investigation' is obviously designed to boost the President's campaign and tear down his opponent, while our own Intelligence Community warns it is likely to amplify Russian disinformation."

"We're going to make sure the American people see the whole picture, not just cherrypicked information aimed at breathing new life into debunked conspiracy theories."

The big picture: The State Department said in 2014 there was no conflict in Hunter Biden's position on Burisma's board of directors, noting he was a "private citizen."
Its fun to spend money while in office.

Thats what former Liberal finance minister John Manley says, but in the same breath he sends a warning about the path ahead for Ottawa and the looming economic recovery process.

Its way more fun to announce a program than it is to announce that youre shutting something down, he told the Star.

So, is there a bit of euphoria setting in that, Weve spent $350 billion and the roof hasnt fallen in, so maybe we can keep doing that and fund everything in sight?

I think that will result in a very unhappy outcome over time.

Manley is one of the Liberal old guard that Chrystia Freeland, Canadas new finance minister, has reached out to for advice on how to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing economic fallout.

Former veteran Liberal MP Ralph Goodale, who spent several years in the early 2000s as a finance minister who oversaw balanced budgets, has also been in touch with Freeland, although he wouldnt share the details of the conversation.

She is very consultative, he said. Weve had some opportunities to have some really good conversations.

The hotly anticipated throne speech next week will be the first official peak at the steps Ottawa will take to kick-start the economic recovery as the pandemic continues.

Goodale, who is serving as a special adviser to the government on the Tehran plane crash which killed 57 Canadians earlier this year, provided some insight into how he would assess a spending program as a finance minister in the time of COVID-19.

Theres four questions he would ask: Is it necessary? Will it be effective? Is it fair? Will it contribute more to growth than it will to debt?

Childcare spending, for example, would be a great economic contributor as much as it is a social contributor, he said. Goodale said coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, its proven to be necessary as many families have juggled working from home and caring for kids.

Especially in the case of women, child-care initiatives have clearly been effective, he said, and that its fair in terms of gender equality and gender fairness. And finally, Goodale said it adds to economic growth, not debt.

Women joining the workforce has been the single biggest contributor to productivity in Canada since the Second World War, he said.

Because of COVID, weve lost a chunk of that, and women have been put at a disadvantageous position.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus throne speech will include a child care plan, the Stars Tonda MacCharles reported this week. Its a policy the NDP has been advocating for and party leader Jagmeet Singh said this week hed be watching the throne speech closely, signalling he hasnt ruled out voting it down. That could trigger an election.

Freeland has also been talking to former finance minister Paul Martin.

Martin served as finance minister in the 1990s under prime minister Jean Chretien, leaving a legacy as a fiscal hawk who cut government spending and oversaw the first balanced budget in years during the late 1990s. He wasnt available for an interview this week.

Manley followed in Martins footsteps when he was appointed to the finance portfolio in 2002.

Manley wouldnt say exactly what advice he gave Freeland, but generally, he said that the role of government in a situation like this is to try to give Canadians confidence and show that you wont be sloppy about how you support people.

If they try to micromanage, like bringing in long-lasting new programs beyond emergency relief and which could benefit from pilot-testing or debate, he said, I think that might end in tears.

While little is known about what will be in the throne speech, plenty of ideas have been put forward, including calls for investments in a green energy economy, a universal basic income and a plan for reigning in spending.

Manley is one of those recommending a spending plan, specifically a fiscal anchor, or something that ensures Canadas federal debt doesnt get out of hand. The Liberals had one when they promised to keep debt as it relates to GDP on a downward trend, he said. In essence, if you can hold the debt level steady and grow the economy, over time the debt becomes smaller and smaller relative to a rising GDP.

What, exactly, a government uses as a fiscal anchor is up for debate, Manley noted, but having one shouldnt be. Without one, its going to be very hard to maintain the confidence of investors, he said.

With so much spending and debt being piled on while dealing with the pandemic emergency, the country could be left in dire straits when it deals with the next unforeseen event, like a global pandemic, he said.

The rule is, when we come out of this, lets start to make sure that we pay things down, get things back in order, be ready for the next time, he said.

You never know what the next crisis is going to be about.

Read more about:
One of the last wishes that the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg made before her death was that a new justice not be appointed to replace her until after a new president takes office.

Ginsburg died Friday at the age of 87 from complications stemming from metastatic pancreatic cancer.

According to NPR, Ginsburg dictated the following statement to her granddaughter, Clara Spera, shortly before she died: "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

FILE PHOTO: The late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Reuters

Related: Election Day is almost here  here's how to register to vote

One of the final wishes that the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg made in the days before her death was that she not be replaced until a new president takes office.

Ginsburg died on Friday at age 87 from complications stemming from metastatic pancreatic cancer, according to NPR, which first reported the news.

NPR said that just days before her death, Ginsburg dictated a statement to her granddaughter, Clara Spera, which said, "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

Ginsburg's death came after a long battle with cancer and several hospitalizations. In July, she announced that she was undergoing chemotherapy for a "reoccurrence of cancer" but could still perform her Supreme Court duties.

The announcement came two days after she was released from the hospital following treatment for an infection from an operation on a pancreatic tumor.

In May, Ginsburg was hospitalized for a gallbladder condition. She still conducted oral arguments and court business from the hospital. She was treated for colorectal cancer in 1999 and pancreatic cancer in 2009. She also had a lung operation to remove cancerous growths in December 2018.

Democratic President Bill Clinton nominated Ginsburg for the Supreme Court during his first term in office and she was confirmed in 1993.

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She subscribed to the philosophical theory that the Constitution is a "living document" whose meaning should be interpreted and adapted to changing values and societal circumstances. Ginsburg was the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court and made history as a feminist icon and lifelong champion of abortion rights and LGBTQ rights.

"Our nation has lost a justice of historic stature," Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement Friday. "We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her, a tired and resolute champion of justice."

Multiple US lawmakers also paid tribute to the late justice.

"The passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a tremendous loss to our country. She was an extraordinary champion of justice and equal rights, and will be remembered as one of the great justices in modern American history," tweeted Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said in a statement, "Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer who possessed tremendous passion for her causes. She served with honor and distinction as a member of the Supreme Court. While I had many differences with her on legal philosophy, I appreciate her service to our nation. My thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends. May she Rest in Peace."

This story is developing. Check back for updates.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Sir Peter Tapsell, the venerable Tory MP, opened Prime Ministers Questions by suggesting that the Commons commence the procedures of impeachment against Tony Blair for allegedly misleading the House over the Iraq war, 11 years ago.

His extraordinary intervention left some people thinking that the Father of the House had lost his marbles: Has 84 year old Peter Tapsell forgotten he voted for Iraq war? the Political Scrapbook website inquired. Others wondered why he invoked a procedure that went out of use in his country centuries ago. This is not the USA, where a president can be impeached.

I managed to track down Sir Peter in a back corridor in Parliament to put it to him that the Hansard record for the night of 18 March 2003 shows him going through the same voting lobby as Tony Blair, David Cameron and the other supporters of the war.

He claimed: There were two votes that evening. The first was over whether to go to war, the second was over equipping the troops. I voted against the war, but there is a complete difference between that and wanting the troops to be properly equipped once the decision was taken.

His memory is imperfect, because Hansard shows that he abstained on the first of the evenings two votes, having voted against the war on a previous occasion, in February. The resolution he supported promised wholehearted support for the troops on the ground, but also contained the contentious words that the United Kingdom should use all means necessary to ensure the disarmament of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. As we now know, Iraqs WMD were already disarmed.

As for impeachment, not used in the UK since the Secretary for War Henry Dundas was found to have misused public funds, in 1806, Sir Peter says: A lot of people say it no longer applies, and Parliament has twice recommended that it be abolished, but that would require legislation, and it has never happened.

Oh well, if T. Blair finds this prospect alarming, he can always find sanctuary in Kazakhstan or somewhere else where rulers are treated with more respect than in the UK.

Beleaguered May beats her retreat

Meanwhile, the doyen of Labour MPs, 83-year-old Sir Gerald Kaufman, was not pleased to see the retreating back of the Home Secretary, Theresa May, as he rose to address the Commons on the logjam in the passport office.

The Home Secretary is shuffling out, as she always does when anything sensible is being said  the worst Home Secretary of my 44 years in the House of Commons, as we have seen today. There she goes, useless and arrogant, he said.

Ukip makes some funny friends

Congratulations to Ukip on finding enough friends across Europe to form a new parliamentary group in the Brussels parliament of 48 members from seven nations. They include two Swedish MEPs, members of the Sweden Democrats, founded in 1988 as a white supremacist party.

One Sweden Democrat in the early days was a former member of the Waffen SS. In 1996, their leader banned the wearing of uniforms at party meetings to stop neo-Nazis from turning up in Nazi uniform.

Last December, a leading Sweden Democrat, Marie Stensby, resigned from all her position in the party after it was revealed that she had posted a comment expressing the hope that teenage asylum-seekers who were on hunger strike would starve to death.

Nigel Farage said: I am very proud to have formed this group with other MEPs and we undertake to be the peoples voice.
Front: Sergeant Eoin Parker (Oylegate); Private Kenneth Kavanagh (Wexford Town); Fr Pat Mernagh (Davidstown); Back: Corporal Nicholas Roche (Wexford Town) and Private Conor Fitzhenry (Ballindaggin). Unavailable for the photo were Trooper Joseph ONeill (Enniscorthy) and Private Sean Cloherty (Enniscorthy)

A group of Wexford soldiers currently serving on peace-keeping duties in Lebanon are undertaking a 5k a day challenge that will see them run, walk or row 150km throughout the month of September.

The seven soldiers are all members of the 116 Irish Polish Battalion and are part of a multinational peacekeeping force serving as part of UNIFIL in UN position, 2-45 under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Sean O Fatharta.

The Battalion is composed of personnel of Oglaigh na hEireann (Irish Defence Forces), the Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland, the Armed Forces of Malta and Hungarian defence Forces.

The soldiers and army personnel decided to organise the fundraising challenge in the wake of the terrible explosion in the port of Beirut just over a month ago, which killed over 180 People, injured over 600 people, and left a further 300,000 residents homeless.

The troops hope to raise funds for the Lebanese Red Cross by competing their 150k challenge by the end of this month.

Ali Saad, who grew up very close to the Irish Troops in Tibnin, is the present day coordinator of the Red Cross in South Lebanon, and is well respected by Irish Soldiers.

He welcomed the initiative to help the Lebanese Red Cross financially at this very difficult time.

One of those involved in the fundraiser is Fr Pat Mernagh, from Davidstown, who said: 'Recently the Lebanese Red Cross came to our position in 2-45 to set up a blood donation clinic in the camp, and the response was overwhelming.'

'They hope to return in a few weeks to seek more blood donations,' he added.

'This action mirrored our response in the 1970's, when many Irish Defence Force members donated blood on a regular basis to the local hospital in Tibnin, based in South Lebanon.'

Company Quartermaster, Ollie Mahon, with the support of many colleagues set up a GoFundMe page to help.

The Wexford soldiers are encouraging people in the Model County to support their efforts and anyone wishing to donate to the challenge can do so through the GoFundMe page, 116 IRISHPOLBATT 5k A DAY SEPTEMBER CHALLENGE.

In addition to Fr Mernagh, the other soldiers from County Wexford involved in the fundraiser include: Sergeant Eoin Parker, from Oylegate; Private Kenneth Kavanagh, from Wexford town; Corporal Nicholas Roche, from Wexford town; Private Conor Fitzhenry, from Ballindaggin; Trooper Joseph O' Neill, from Enniscorthy, and Private Sean Cloherty, also from Enniscorthy.
David Oyelowo was spitting chips angry before he took on the role of director, as well as actor, in the Oprah Winfrey-backed film The Water Man, part of this years Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) lineup.

There was a director on the project initially who ended up leaving, while the production already had a start date and lead actor at the ready.

When you have those things you go, Oyelowo said at a press conference last weekend.

It was screenwriter and executive producer Emma Needell who said Oyelowo should direct the film himself, the first time taking on this role on a feature film.

The Water Man is a fantasy-adventure film that tells the story of Gunner Boone (Lonnie Chavis) who goes on a journey to search for the Water Man, a mythical creature who holds the secret to immortality, with the help of an energetic girl Jo Riley (Amiah Miller). Gunners mother, played by Rosario Dawson, is ill, which sparks Gunners quest. While the two children are on their journey in a mysterious forest, Gunners father Amos (Oyelowo) tries to find his son.

It didnt get into fantasy to the point where it just seemed out of reach

Needell was an assistant when she wrote the initial script and got a call that Oyelowo and Winfreys company wanted to talk about it while she was running an errand for her boss, a shock that made her think she was going to crash her car at the time. The screenwriter was touched that Oyelowo kept her involved the whole time, something that she said is quite rare for a first-time screenwriter.

The Water Man is a mystical story but has a strong heart. Oyelowo said the story harkens back to the films he loved watching as a kid and now enjoys with his children, like Goonies, Stand by Me and E.T.

Its the kind of story that we need to see more of, Dawson said. As I was watching the movie, I was just feeling the child in me and all the movies that Id watch when I was a kid that didnt patronize me, that didnt segment me to childishness.

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It didnt get into fantasy to the point where it just seemed out of reach.

The intersection of magic and reality is really exemplified through the exquisite cinematography led by Matthew J. Lloyd, born in Alberta, and whose A-list movie credits include Captain Marvel and Thor: Ragnarok.

I knew that I wanted something that was vibrant, I wanted to see African colours in there because I want to see myself represented, Oyelowo explained. I wanted to make a film for my 12-year-old self...I wanted to see a young Black boy transcendent as he moves through nature.

Actors David Oyelowo, Jessica Oyelowo and family pose for photographers upon arrival at the premiere of the film 'Queen of Katwe', during the London Film Festival in London, Sunday, Oct. 9, 2016. (Photo by Joel Ryan/Invision/AP)

I made it for them

Its that connection to his family that made the films director/actor so nervous to show it to his family, but they were ultimately very proud of him

I made it for them, Oyelowo revealed. I have three sons and I know what it is to have a loving relationship with your children but also have these periods where youre trying to navigate as they are growing.

The director/actor revealed the character of Jo Riley was changed from a boy to a girl because he wanted his daughter represented in the film as well.

She doesnt have to be an addendum or an appendage, he said, adding that he wanted his daughter to see that she can lead a boy.

There is also a song that Dawson sings in the first act that was a lullaby that Oyelowos wife wrote for their second son when he was having nightmares and the song playing in the end credits was written by his wife and eldest son.

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 10: (EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE) Lonnie Chavis visits BuzzFeed's "AM To DM" on March 10, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Jason Mendez/Getty Images)

I think that everybody can really relate to Gunner...

Chavis captivating performance is well showcased the film. The actor revealed that hes speechless when it comes to talking about Mr. David because of the way he led the films production so eloquently and made Chavis feel incredibly comfortable on set. The actor said he had to face many fears in The Water Man, including fears of the dark and heights.

I think that everybody can really relate to Gunner because I feel like if you...knew somebody that was ill, you would just do anything for them, Chavis said.

At last weekends press conference, the actor spoke about the letter he wrote about racism back in June.

I wrote that after watching the sad tragedy of George Floyd, my mom wanted to discuss it with me but I really didnt know how I felt he explained. I felt like I was numb at the time...I wrote that just to discuss my feelings to my mom because I didnt really know how to express them through talking.

I feel like this film helped me in a way because I can relate to Gunner...This is what I want Black kids to see, when they look at this movie I want them to see a representation of them in Gunner.

The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) takes place from Sept. 10 to Sept. 19. Information on screenings and tickets at tiff.net.
TDT | Manama

Bahrain Defence Force (BDF) chief-of-staff LtGen Dhiab bin Saqr Al Nuaimi attended yesterday the opening ceremony of the 13th Joint Command and Staff session, held at the Royal Command, Staff and National Defence College.

The college commandant thanked the chief-of-staff for attending the opening ceremony and stressed the importance of the session in grooming officers to work in various military posts and boosting their readiness and combat capabilities.

The chief-of-staff also gave a speech in which he expressed happiness about attending the ceremony. He conveyed the greetings of BDF commander-in-chief Field Marshal Shaikh Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa and welcomed participants from the armed forces of brotherly countries, and wished them every success. The ceremony was also attended by BDF senior officers.
Sheriff Alex Villanueva holds a news conference outside the emergency room of St. Francis Medical Center, where two L.A. County sheriff's deputies were treated after being shot Sept. 12. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

The turn of Thursdays Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission meeting was unexpected: after various agenda items, Commissioner Robert Bonner called for the resignation of L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva.

There was stunned silence, and then several fellow commissioners echoed support. One requested drafting a resolution of no confidence in Villanueva.

While Bonner acknowledged that he'd just severed his bond with the sheriff, he pressed his colleagues to deliberate carefully, reminding them that the commission needs to maintain a relationship with the sheriff.

Bonner's words marked the uncharted waters that officials will now need to navigate as tensions between Villanueva and those charged with overseeing the department reach a new high.

While Villanueva, an elected official, has refused to step down, experts emphasized how a new level of public animosity among the sheriff, the oversight commission and the Board of Supervisors may prove difficult to diffuse.

In the background is rising friction between the Sheriff's Department and some communities that accuse the department of police brutality and unwarranted shootings, which have spawned ongoing protests.

Supervisors have long complained that Villanueva's department lacks transparency and clashed over policing reform measures. Since taking office in 2018, Villanueva has fought repeatedly with the civilian oversight panel and board members, who have accused him of rehiring officials with tainted backgrounds and unraveling policing reforms instituted after a massive corruption scandal that brought criminal convictions against former Sheriff Lee Baca and other commanders.

Both sides are doubling down and the political rhetoric is taking over, said Frank Zerunyan, a professor on the practice of governance at USC. The sheriff feels very strongly about his mandate and what hes doing, and the Board of Supervisors and those who have called for his resignation feel strongly about his lack of leadership.

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In an interview, Villanueva told The Times that he is obviously not concerned about the expression of no confidence in his leadership, holding that the Board of Supervisors wants a sheriff on the leash.

"Its a very coordinated cabal of supervisors who have been trying to get me out of office even before I took office, he said. Its a proxy war, thats all it is, and their surrogates are on the Oversight Commission.

On Thursday, several commissioners and two supervisors supported calls for Villanuevas resignation, with some expressing concerns about the sheriffs lack of compliance with subpoenas and holding he has refused to share information with inspector general Max Huntsman, who has accused Villanueva of not cooperating with his investigations of possible violations of freedom of the press by the department.

Villanueva said that oversight does not mean that Max Huntsman runs the Sheriffs Department.

Thats their agenda, to try to paint me as someone unwilling to accept being transparent or oversight, and nothing could be further from the truth, he said.

He said that oversight is provided by the state's attorney general and that the inspector generals role is limited.

We can give them all the information in the world, and at the end of the day, all they can do is tell me please, he said of the Oversight Commission and Huntsman.

In a written statement, Ron Hernandez, president of the Assn. for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs, said that the community is looking for positive leadership, not elected officials squabbling.

Reform comes with communication and actual dialogue, not demands such as the call for the resignation of the sheriff, who was elected by a majority of the citizens of Los Angeles County, he said. We do not give up based on personality conflicts, although it appears some may.

Debate has recently been revived about the authority of counties to monitor elected sheriffs. Some sheriffs argue that only voters can hold them accountable and that local government oversight is largely voluntary and restricted.

But the recent passage of Assembly Bill 1185 clarifies how counties can create oversight commissions for sheriffs and give those panels subpoena power.

Ed Obayashi, a Plumas County deputy sheriff and law enforcement policy advisor, emphasized how Villanueva is not a lone ranger in tensions between sheriffs and their overseers.

In Sacramento, for example, Sheriff Scott Jones in 2018 locked an inspector general out of department facilities after a report critical of a police shooting.

Obayashi said that sheriffs have discretion to act and speak more freely than police chiefs, who are appointed by and follow direction from city officials.

There is a much higher degree of accountability between a police chief and city officials, as opposed to a sheriff like Villanueva who is an elected official who ultimately answers only to the electorate, he said.

Andres Kwon, an ACLU attorney who specializes in police practices, said Villanueva's defiance underscores a crisis of checks and balances due to the inability of elected officials to remove the sheriff.

He said the ACLU proposed a charter amendment to the Board of Supervisors last year that would give it the power to remove the sheriff on specific grounds.

Theres been a community groundswell for Villanuevas resignation  the Board of Supervisors is responding to that, he said. We are not holding our breath that Villanueva will resign, but this is further pressure on the board to take action.

Zev Yaroslavsky, a former L.A. County supervisor, said he believed the calls for the sheriff's resignation have power because they elevate the seriousness of the claims against him.

This is not a spat between contesting politicians, he said. Its about constitutional policing, its about his oath of office.

The statements made by commissioners and supervisors, he said, may draw attention from the state attorney general, who could investigate the Sheriff's Department. They also help to inform voters and may hamper Villanueva if he seeks reelection, he said.

Hes not going to resign and hes not going to be recalled between now and 2022, he said. "[But] the narrative is becoming that we have a sheriff who does not believe he is accountable to the people he is legally accountable to.

Times staff writer Alene Tchekmedyian contributed to this report.




Thanks to the efforts of one of Kansas City's most prolific activists against crime, grieving family and friends are closer to to finding answers about a tragic death of Daisy Martinez.





Saturday update . . .





THE SUSPECT IN THE TRAGIC SHOOTING DEATH OF DAISY MARTINEZ HAS HAS BEEN CHARGED!!!





Alonzo Washington recently reported the latest development to his legion of social media followers after doing a livestream from the shooting scene and inspiring TENS OF THOUSANDS OF VIEWS and followers to share tips and info with police.





Mr. Washington noted: "The local MSM didn't cover this homicide with as much intensity as they should have, it was really social media pressure that likely inspired MORE PUBLIC AWARENESS."





Accordingly, Mr. Washington was a big part of KEEPING THAT PRESSURE UP and encouraging witnesses to cooperate with police.





At a time when violence is reaching historic levels, Mr. Washington's work has been a rare success story in leading the community fight against rising crime.



Developing . . .
Central province proposes international airport project

Authorities in the central province of Ha Tinh proposed the construction of an international airport that could serve flights to South Korea and Taiwan.



Chairman of the provincial peoples committee Tran Tien Hung on Thursday signed in the recommendation document sent to the Ministry of Transport and the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam.

Under the proposal, the airport would be located on a site of 300 to 450 hectares in Thach Ha and Cam Xuyen districts. It would own two runways stretching more than 1,800 metres and is expected to conduct flights to popular tourist destinations such as Hanoi, HCM City and Phu Quoc Island, as well as Pleiku and Buon Ma Thuot in the Central Highlands.



The airport would also provide flights to South Korea and Taiwan. Its total passenger capacity is hoped to reach 500,000 yearly by 2030 and the figure would rise to 2 million people by 2050.



According to Ha Tinhs authorities, the project is feasible thanks to the abundant available land and suitable location which is some 10 kilometres from Ha Tinh City.
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Princess Eugenie sported a casual look as she joined a friend for a spot of shopping in Notting Hill today.

The royal, 30, donned a patterned face mask and round sunglasses as she wondered around the west London streets.

Sporting a black floral dress and white Stan Smith trainers, the daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson looked relaxed as she indulged in retail therapy close to her Kensington Palace home, where she lives with husband Jack Brooksbank.

Princess Eugenie sported a casual look as she joined a friend for a spot of shopping in Notting Hill today. The royal, 30, donned a patterned face mask and round sunglasses as she wondered around the west London streets

With her two 1.5 carat pear-shaped diamond wedding ring gleaming in the sunshine, the Princess looked a little distracted on her phone as she walked through town with her earphones on.

Keeping the look low-key, Eugenie wore a natural make-up look, and kept her auburn hair down and loose.

Adding a designer edge to the relaxed look, Eugenie sported a black leather Louis Vuitton bag as well as stacks of bracelets and a subtle drop earring.

Euegnie and her husband Jack returned to their Kensington Palace home Ivy Cottage in June after spending lockdown with Eugenie's parents Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew at the Royal Lodge in Windsor.

Strutting her stuff: The relaxed royal donned pink and white Stan Smith trainers and a black and blue floral dress in London today

With her two 1.5 carat pear-shaped diamond wedding ring gleaming in the sunshine, the Princess looked a little distracted on her phone as she walked through town with her earphones on

Sporting a black floral dress and white Stan Smith trainers, the daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson looked relaxed as she indulged in retail therapy close to her Kensington Palace home, where she lives with husband Jack Brooksbank

The royal, who has taken an active role in praising frontline staff who have been working tirelessly amid the coronavirus pandemic, seemed to enjoy one of the last days of sun as she strolled the streets of London today.

The outing comes after Princess Eugenie joined her sister Princess Beatrice for an emotional video call with an award-winning fundraiser, who admitted her charitable efforts make her 'feel closer' to her grandson after he died from cancer.

The royal sisters called Teenage Cancer Trust Award winners in July - which included both fundraisers and frontline workers - to thank them for their contributions to the charity.

Adding a designer edge to the relaxed look, Eugenie sported a black leather Louis Vuitton bag as well as stacks of bracelets and a subtle drop earring as she was joined by a friend

The royal, who has taken an active role in praising frontline staff who have been working tirelessly amid the coronavirus pandemic, seemed to enjoy one of the last days of sun as she strolled the streets of London today

The outing comes after Princess Eugenie (pictured left and right today) joined her sister Princess Beatrice for an emotional video call with an award-winning fundraiser, who admitted her charitable efforts make her 'feel closer' to her grandson after he died from cancer.

Eugenie married brand ambassador Jack Brooksbank in 2018 at St George's Chapel in Windsor. She is pictured in west London today

During the chat, they spoke with Enid Waterfall, 85, from Wrexham in Wales, who is said to be an 'unstoppable fundraiser' because she wants to show appreciation for the care her grandson Richard received when suffering with rare bone cancer Ewings Sarcoma, aged 21.

Eugenie married brand ambassador Jack Brooksbank in 2018 at St George's Chapel in Windsor.

Two years later, she watched her big sister Beatrice marry in a intimate ceremony at the Royal Lodge in Windsor, which was just immediate family in attendance due to coronavirus restrictions.

The Queen's granddaughter called it a 'complete joy and privilege' to watch her 'beautiful big sister' Beatrice, 32, affectionately known as 'Bea', marry Italian property developer Edo, 36, in a surprise service. She is pictured in London today

Princess Eugenie's outing comes after she joined her sister Princess Beatrice (pictured left and right) for an emotional video call with an award-winning fundraiser, who admitted her charitable efforts make her 'feel closer' to her grandson after he died from cancer

The Queen's granddaughter called it a 'complete joy and privilege' to watch her 'beautiful big sister' Beatrice, 32, affectionately known as 'Bea', marry Italian property developer Edo, 36, in a surprise service.

Posting on Instagram, Eugenie wrote: 'Couldn't Bea happier (get it)...What a complete joy and privilege to watch you, my beautiful big sister, walk down the aisle to dear Edo.'

Princess Beatrice and Edo tied the knot in a private, intimate service at the Royal Chapel of All Saints, near her parents' Windsor home.

Princess Beatrice is pictured in London today as she indulged in shopping with a friend near her Kensington Palace home

Making the most of the last days of sunshine, Beatrice sported a summer dress and oversized shades as she wondered the streets

While the Princess opted for a floral look, her friend donned and all black number with a green trench coat

Listen up! The Princess put in a pair of earphones as she wondered the Notting Hill streets with a pal
Here are todays top news, analysis and opinion. Know all about the latest news and other news updates from Hindustan Times.

9 senior RSS members contract Covid-19 at Nagpur headquarters, hospitalised

At least nine senior RSS functionaries, housed at the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh headquarters at Mahal in central Nagpur, have tested positive for coronavirus. All the infected full-time senior swayamsevaks-- most of whom are aged 60 years and above-- have been shifted to a private nursing home in the city for treatment. Read more.

Almost 60% of students in India travel to school on foot: Survey

As many as 59.7 per cent of students in India walk to school with the number being much higher in rural areas, according to the National Statistical Organisations (NSO) latest report on education. The percentage of girls travelling to school on foot is higher than the average at 62 per cent, while it is 57.9 per cent for boys. Read more.

Why farmers are opposing pro-farmer reforms

In May this year, the government announced important reforms in agricultural markets. These included deregulation of farm foods from the Essential Commodities Act (ECA). Farmers were also allowed to sell their produce outside government-regulated markets, or Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs). Read more.

Priyanka Chopra wishes sister-in-law Danielle Jonas on her birthday: Wish you love and happiness always

Actor Priyanka Chopra is every bit a family person and never misses a chance to wish her family members. On sister-in-law Danielle Jonas birthday, Priyanka shared love and good wishes for her. Read more.

BMW R 18 cruiser to launch in India today: Price expectation

BMW Motorrad India is all set to introduce the new R 18 cruiser in the country on Saturday (September 19). The BMWs latest cruiser will be a direct rival against the competitors such as Harley-Davidson Fat Boy and the recently launched Triumph Rocket 3 GT. Read more.

MI vs CSK: A battle royale to start the proceedings

Its the last ball of the 2019 final. Chennai Super Kings need two to defend their title while Mumbai Indians are in search of a dot ball. Lasith Malinga bowls a perfect slower one which Shardul Thakur fails to connect and is trapped leg before. The Rohit Sharma-led MI become champions for a record fourth time. Read more.
SKETCH

Im watching my old home town of Melbourne from across the Bass Strait, from down in Tasmania, where the borders are closed until December at least. The Liberal Premier, Peter Gutwein, is keeping us calm and COVID-free. Our last confirmed case of the virus was back in July and that was a young woman returning from Victoria, so you can understand his position.

Gabriella Coslovich. Credit:Selina Ou

Life down here is pretty normal. We can go to the gym, get our hair cut, shop for hardware, pay for sex, all without wearing a mask (unless one insists). About the only thing not allowed is dancing in nightclubs, which may come as a relief to some. So I sympathise with the plight of Melburnians, with their curfews and lockdowns, and Im proud to see many of them protesting against the indefinite detention imposed by the wicked Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, whos a Labor man. Its heartening to find that the coronavirus is spreading not only deadly contagion but compassion too. All these quiet Australians bunkering down in Melbourne, no longer tolerating human rights abuses, speaking up and campaigning for people to be set free, for their imprisonment to have a clear end, because its beyond barbaric that people can venture only within a 5-kilometre radius of their home. There is only so much binge-streaming that one can stomach. It may not be solitary confinement inside a razor-wired detention centre, on a remote island offshore, somewhere, but isolation is isolation, and its cruel, in any language, and in any suburb, and in any size home, be it an inner-city high-rise shoe box or a beach-front mansion.
President Donald Trump speaks to the press pool as he reacts to the news of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death on the tarmac of Bemidji Regional Airport after addressing supporters during a "Great American Comeback" rally at in Bemidji, Minnesota, on September 18, 2020. BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images

President Donald Trump at first missed the news of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death on Friday on account of a campaign rally in Minnesota.

"She just died? Wow. I didn't know that," Trump told reporters who informed him of her passing afterwards.

He continued: "She was an amazing woman who led an amazing life. I'm actually sad to hear that."

Bipartisan tributes are pouring in for the judicial icon whose death opens up a seat on the Supreme Court less than two months before a presidential election.

In a statement later on Friday night, Trump honored Ginsburg as a "titan of the law" who "demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable towards one's colleagues."

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

President Donald Trump said on Friday night that he was "sad" to hear that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died.

Trump was speaking to a crowd of supporters at a "Great American Comeback" rally at Bemidji Regional Airport in Bemidji, Minnesota, when it came to light that Ginsburg, 87, had died due to complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer.

Still in the dark, he told the crowd that the Supreme Court "is so important," adding, "The next president will get one, two, three or four Supreme Court justices ... Many presidents have had none."

An attendee shouted "Ginsburg is dead," apparently trying to inform Trump of what had just occurred. The president, however, didn't hear the person, according to reporters at the scene.

Trump finished his address and headed to Air Force One. That's when the press pool informed him of Ginsburg's passing.

"She just died?" he asked. "Wow. I didn't know that. You're just telling me now for the first time."

The president continued: "She led an amazing life. What else can you say? She was an amazing woman, whether you agree or not. She was an amazing woman who led an amazing life. I'm actually sad to hear that."

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Bipartisan tributes poured in for Ginsburg, a judicial icon. Her death opens up a seat on the Supreme Court in an election year.

In a statement later on Friday night, Trump called Ginsburg a "titan of the law" who "demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable towards one's colleagues."

Recognizing Ginsburg for serving the Supreme Court for 27 years, Trump praised her "powerful dissents," saying, "Her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds."

The president also described Ginsburg as a "fighter to the end," before concluding, "May her memory be a great and magnificent blessing to the world."

Read the original article on Business Insider
ActBlue does not show where donations go in real time but much of the grassroots energy appeared focused on the Senate, which would have the power to confirm or block any nominee picked by President Trump.

Hours after Justice Ginsburgs death, Senator Mitch McConnell, the majority leader, pledged that whomever Mr. Trump picked to replace her would receive a confirmation vote. President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, he said in a statement.

Democratic donors flooded into at least one page dedicated to key Senate races, called Get Mitch or Die Trying. The page, created by the progressive group Crooked Media, had raised about $9 million in new donations since Justice Ginsburgs death was announced, as of noon on Saturday, and will divide the proceeds between 13 different Democrats running for Senate this year.

The conventional wisdom is that the Supreme Court only motivates Republicans, but these fund-raising totals demonstrate that that has changed, said Tommy Vietor, a founder of Crooked Media and a veteran of the Obama administration.

Supreme Court confirmation fights have led to big swells of donations before. The Senate hearings and votes on Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh in 2018 drove record donations into the campaign coffers of then-Senator Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, a centrist Democrat who raised $12.4 million in the first half of October after she announced she would oppose his nomination. She was defeated in her re-election bid the next month.
The six people arrested from West Bengal's Murshidabad by the National Investigation Agency for alleged links with terror group Al-Qaeda have been remanded for six days in NIA custody by a Kolkata court and are booked under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), the agency's lawyer said on Saturday.

"The six accused persons were arrested from Murshidabad on a case by NIA Delhi. They were produced before this (Kolkata) court and we will take him to Patiala court in Delhi by tomorrow. They have to be produced there by the 24th of this month. They are members of the banned organisation al-Qaeda," advocate Shyamal Ghosh told reporters outside of the special NIA court in Kolkata.

He informed that the agency has booked the accused under sections 17 (raising funds for terrorist act), 18 (conspiracy), and 25 (funds intended for terror activities) of the UAPA. The investigations are to be carried out to decide their role, he further said.

West Bengal: Six Al-Qaeda terrorists, who were arrested National Investigation Agency (NIA), produced before a special NIA court in Kolkata. pic.twitter.com/59E9GezJuJ  ANI (@ANI) September 19, 2020

READ | NIA Busts Al-Qaeda Terror Module Plotting To Attack Delhi, Arrests Made In Kerala & Bengal

READ | NIA Attaches Property Belonging To Father Of The Accused In Lethpura Attack

Al-Qaeda module busted

In a major win, the NIA busted an Al-Qaeda terror module in Kerala and West Bengal on Saturday, arresting nine operatives from Kerala and West Bengal. Three operatives were arrested from Ernakulam in Kerala while six were picked up from Murshidabad by the NIA, foiling their plot to carry out a terror attack.

The module was actively indulging in fundraising and a few members of gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country, the NIA said.

A large quantity of incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession.

As per the preliminary investigation, these individuals were radicalised by Pakistan-based Al-Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the National Capital Region. For this purpose, the module was actively indulging in fundraising and a few members of the gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country, the NIA said.

The arrested individuals have been identified as Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas, Mosaraf Hossen (all from Ernakulam), and Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal, and Atitur Rehman (from Murshidabad).

READ | J-K L-G Lauds Exemplary Courage And Bravery Of CRPF Officer Injured In Encounter With Terrorists

READ | 17 Cases Related To IS Presence In Southern States, Most Active In Kerala, K'taka: Centre
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-20 00:25:18|Editor: huaxia

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GARISSA, Kenya, Sept. 19 (Xinhua)--Kenyan police on Saturday arrested 12 people from neighboring Somalia without valid identification documents along the common border.

Garissa divisional police commander Joseph Muriuki said the suspects were being ferried in a Garissa county government vehicle but had the government of Kenya number plates.

Muriuki said the suspects were arrested at the Garissa-Tana Bridge by police officers who demanded to see valid work permits.

"The aliens on board aged between 15 and 35 were all men and we were also seeking to know who else could have aided their movement to Garissa and beyond," Muriuki told journalists in Garissa.

He said preliminary investigations by the police have since established that the aliens who were coming from Mogadishu in Somalia were on their way to Nairobi but their mission was not immediately established.

The police commander said the driver and the aliens will be arraigned in court on Monday.

Muriuki said investigations have been launched to establish information on who was behind the immigration racket.

The Kenyan authorities have intensified the ongoing crackdown on undocumented migrant workers that had seen homes raided and hundreds of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers arrested around the country. Enditem
Real estate investing is a good way to diversify and add another asset class to your portfolio, which will reduce overall risk. Real estate investment trusts (REITs) are an option for income and growth investors. REITs require significantly lower capital compared to traditional real estate investments.

REITs allow investors to pool their money and invest in a portfolio of properties and can be great long-term investments. While they are technically stocks, these companies primarily provide investors with exposure to real estate assets.

You can generate a steady stream of dividend income by investing in diversified REITs, as these trusts have a high payout ratio due to stable and predictable cash flows. One such Canada-based company is RioCan REIT (TSX:REI.UN), which is one of the largest REITs in the country.

RioCan has a market cap of $4.8 billion and an enterprise value of $11.2 billion. It owns, manages, and develops retail-focused mixed-use properties located in prime, high-density transit-oriented areas.

It ended 2019 with 220 properties with an aggregate net leasable area of 38.4 million square feet, which includes office, residential rental, and 14 development properties.

RioCan stock has lost significant momentum in 2020

The REITs exposure to the retail and commercial office sector has driven its stock significantly lower in 2019. As country-wide lockdowns were announced due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the retail sector was hit hard. RioCan stock fell from $28 a share to $12.4 a share before it recovered partially to currently trade at $15.25 per share.

As retail and office REITs are feeling the brunt of the pandemic investors are right to be wary of investing in RioCan, as the length of recovery remains uncertain. If there is a second wave of the dreaded virus, retail-focused REITs will experience another sell-off and trade lower.

In the first six months of 2020, RioCan reported a net loss of $247.9 million compared with a net income of $447.5 million in the prior-year period. Its tenants that operated non-essential businesses were closed for over three months amid the pandemic.

Story continues

In Q2, the company managed to collect 73% of its rent due. Further, it also counts Bed Bath & Beyond, Costco, Canadian Tire, and Best Buy as its tenants. These are huge retail companies that will provide RioCan with a semblance of certainty.

The Foolish takeaway

While Q2 was one of the worst quarters for most companies across sectors, RioCans funds from operations per unit stood at a positive $0.35, though lower compared to prior-year figures of $0.48.

RioCan stock is trading 45% below its 52-week high, which indicates its dividend yield is 6.3%. This means you can generate close to $630 on a $10,000 investment in RioCan. The company cut its dividends by 33% to $0.96 per unit from $1.44 in 2019 to offset falling rental revenue.

There is a good chance that RioCan will lower its dividends further if the macroeconomic weakness persists and Canada has to reinforce lockdown restrictions.

The post Should You Buy RioCan REIT for its 6.3% Dividend Yield? appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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The Motley Fool recommends Costco Wholesale. Fool contributor Aditya Raghunath has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.

The Motley Fools purpose is to help the world invest, better. Click here now for your free subscription to Take Stock, The Motley Fool Canadas free investing newsletter. Packed with stock ideas and investing advice, it is essential reading for anyone looking to build and grow their wealth in the years ahead. Motley Fool Canada 2020
The special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court on Saturday permitted Deepak Kochhar, husband of former managing director of ICICI Bank Chanda Kochhar, to be treated either at Apollo Hospital or Medanta Hospital in Delhi after he tested positive for Covid-19.

Kochhar tested positive for the virus while in Enforcement Directorate (ED) custody in connection with the ICICI Bank scam, following which he was taken to AIIMS Hospital. While his custody ended on Saturday, he could not be produced before the court.

His lawyer moved an application before the special court to shift him either to Apollo Hospital or Medanta Hospital in Delhi. The lawyers claimed that EDs decision to shift him from AIIMS Hospital to NCI Jhajjar was illegal and that the decision was taken without informing the court.

ED denied the allegations and said while ED admitted Kochchar to AIIMS, the decision to shift him was taken by AIIMS authorities. The probing agency also asked the court to decide on Kochchars plea.

The court, after hearing both sides, allowed the plea and directed Kochchar to submit his medical reports to ED office every day. Further, ED has been asked to place a guard for Kochhar, the cost of which would be borne by Kochhar.

Kochchar was arrested by ED on September 7 in connection with money laundering allegations linked to ICICI Bank scam and was subsequently remanded in ED custody by PMLA court the next day.

ED took up the probe into money laundering after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered a case of corruption against the Kochhars in 2017 following allegations that ICIC Bank had sanctioned credit facility of around 3,250 crores to various entities in violation of the rules. It was alleged that the couple received kickbacks for sanctioning the credits.

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Have you ever experienced a situation where a random act from a stranger, even a seemingly unassuming one, has filled your heart with warmth and left you with a huge smile on your face? If so, then these wholesome stories of interactions with strangers, shared on a Twitter thread, may remind you of those sweet memories.. Even if you havent, let these tales be your first.

Whats the nicest thing an absolute stranger has done for or to you?, asked journalist Peter Griffin on Twitter. People responded to the question and how! They filled the thread with stories that are heartening and some or all of them may leave you emotional. After reading some, you may even shed happy tears. However, before reading the tales, take a look at the main tweet.

What's the nicest thing an absolute stranger has done for or to you?  Peter Griffin (@zigzackly) September 16, 2020

Since being shared, the post has received nearly 550 likes and more than 140 retweets. It also received several comments from people.

The first few tweets in the thread are by the original poster. In the post, he recalled various stories, from strangers helping him in a train to returning his lost bag filled with expensive books.

Another. Travelling unreserved in Andhra. Had suitcase. Was at door, almost falling out, with nothing to hold on to. Someone also took in my suitcase. (Several people then stood on it, but never mind, whose gonna hold a bag up.) Several hands held in me until the next station.  Peter Griffin (@zigzackly) September 16, 2020

.. He said: It's my duty to make sure you go back to your home with good memories of Jaipur. Finally accepted the cost of what would have been his fare back to the hotel.  Peter Griffin (@zigzackly) September 16, 2020

(After much persuasion, agreed to take the equivalent of fare to a nearby garage and back.)  Peter Griffin (@zigzackly) September 17, 2020

Here are some of the stories shared by twitter users:

So many...

Scooty broke down on DND Noida on a rainy night. Dragged it for a km or so. Man came - used his lunchbox to siphon some petrol into my tank - gave me some water to drink - drove away after making sure that my scooty started working.  Aparna Mudi (@AparnaMudi) September 17, 2020

Bombay: it had just poured. I had an interview, so was dressed in white. There was a puddle as wide as the road.. couldnt have jumped over it or walked around it. I stood staring at the puddle. An auto pulled over and he drove me across the puddle.  Arundhati Ramanathan (@tam_arund) September 17, 2020

They took me along to their relatives place. From there the mother and son dropped me to my relatives place (where my family had been taken after being rescued), on the other end of town by walking, rowing a boat through inundated areas and then taking a bus 2/2  Tabeer Riyaz (@Tabeer) September 17, 2020

He refused any reward, accepted only the fare for the return distance, I was getting married in 3 weeks time and we invited him. He came with his family and even got me a gift. His honesty and kindness I will remember for life. (2/2)  Minal (@Granger_Gab) September 17, 2020

Many showcased their emotions while reacting to the tales shared by the original poster and other users of the micro-blogging site. Heres what they wrote.

That is so lovely. Im trying hard to believe that there are far more good people in the world than bad.  Christine Parker (@Chrisbirdlady) September 18, 2020

Which story touched your heart the most? Or did you enjoy each of them equally?

Also Read | People share wholesome experiences theyve had with strangers. This thread is a must-read

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WASHINGTON  Letters sent in recent days to the White House and to local law enforcement agencies in Texas contained the lethal substance ricin, and investigators are trying to determine whether other envelopes with the toxin were sent through the postal system, a law enforcement official briefed on the matter said Saturday.

Investigators believe that the letters were sent from Canada and have identified a woman as a suspect, the official said.

The letter to the White House, which was addressed to President Donald Trump, was intercepted, as were the letters to a detention facility and a sheriffs office in Texas.

The envelope to the White House was caught at the final off-site processing facility where mail is screened before being sent to the White House mailroom, according to a second law enforcement official. The Postal Service irradiates mail that is addressed to the White House and other federal agencies in the Washington area, and the mail is sorted in a facility that samples the air for suspicious substances.

The Joint Terrorism Task Force in Washington is leading the investigation, with assistance from New York, according to multiple law enforcement officials.

Canadian law enforcement has been called in to assist the FBI.

Initial information from the investigation suggests that the letter originated in Canada, RCMP spokesman Dan Brien confirmed in an email on Saturday.

So far, investigators have found no links between the ricin letters and any international terrorist groups, but the investigation is in its early stages, and nothing has yet been ruled out, one senior official said.

Ricin, which is part of the waste produced when castor oil is made, has no known antidote.

The FBI and our U.S. Secret Service and U.S. Postal Inspection Service partners are investigating a suspicious letter received at a U.S. government mail facility, the FBI said in a statement. At this time, there is no known threat to public safety.

Officials declined to discuss what evidence they had that pointed them to the suspect. Gathering evidence will be a painstaking process. As part of the investigation, for example, agents may need to identify the sorting facility that handled the letters, identify public mailboxes assigned to that sorting facility and see if there is video of the suspect posting the letters in the hours before they were collected by postal workers.

This is not the first time that U.S. officials have been targeted in ricin attacks.

In 2018, William Clyde Allen, a Navy veteran, was charged in a seven-count federal indictment for trying to send envelopes with ricin to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis; the chief of naval operations, Adm. John M. Richardson; the FBI director, Christopher A. Wray; the CIA director, Gina Haspel; and secretary of the Air Force, Heather Wilson.

Officials determined that Allen had sent castor beans rather than ricin. His case is still pending.

In 2013, a Mississippi man sent letters containing ricin to President Barack Obama and a Republican senator in an attempt to frame a rival. The letters were intercepted at sorting facilities.

A year later, Shannon Richardson, an actress, was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison for mailing letters laced with ricin in May 2013 to multiple people, including Obama and Michael Bloomberg, the mayor of New York at the time.

-with files from The Canadian Press

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Bill Barr

US Attorney General William Barr gestures as he speaks during a daily briefing at the White House in Washington D.C. on March 23, 2020. Credit - Brendan SmialowskiAFP via Getty Images

John Durham has said almost nothing about his 15-month probe into the FBIs investigation of the Trump 2016 campaign. Not so Durhams boss, Attorney General William Barr, who has called Crossfire Hurricane one of the greatest travesties in American history. Now, as America heads into the final weeks of a contentious presidential campaign, experts say it is Barr who will control how, and possibly when, Durhams findings are presented to the country.

That has Democrats feeling deja vu. In 2016, former FBI Director James Comey infamously revealed that the bureau had reopened an investigation into Hillary Clintons private email server just days before the election. With Trumps intense interest in Durhams work, Barrs controversial comments and a fast-approaching presidential election, the timing and manner of the end of this probe could affect voters as they go to the polls.

In the spring of 2019, Durham was tasked with exploring the extent to which a number of countries, including Ukraine, played a role in the counterintelligence investigation directed at the Trump campaign during the 2016 election, Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said. His mandate, the Justice Department also said, is to determine whether intelligence collection activities by the U.S. government related to the Trump 2016 Presidential Campaign were lawful and appropriate.

Since then, Durham has largely been quiet, and it remains unknown what exactly he is looking at. His investigation has garnered one guilty plea so far, from former FBI attorney Kevin Clinesmith, who admitted to making a false statement when he altered an email used in a request for a warrant against former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. Its not known whether Durham is pursuing other criminal matters. Barr himself has traveled internationally to enlist the support of foreign officials in Durhams investigation, including to the U.K. and Italy.

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In the most recent development, one of the top prosecutors working for Durham resigned from his team last week. Durhams office confirmed to TIME that Nora Dannehys resignation was effective on September 11, but declined to comment further. The Hartford Courant, which first reported the news, quoted anonymous colleagues saying that Dannehy resigned at least partly out of concern that the investigative team is being pressed for political reasons to produce a report before its work is done. The Courant said that this perceived pressure is coming from Barr.

In theory, some norms control whether and how Durhams findings would become public. If Durham does not have any other criminal indictments resulting from his work, typically the Justice Department would refrain from making much information public. The Department tends not to release information about what it has found about someone if that person isnt going to be criminally charged. (This was the norm Comey broke in his public statements about Clintons email investigation in 2016.) On the other hand, if people are charged as a result of Durhams work, the Justice Department has an unwritten 60-day rule that urges caution on taking major action in any politically significant cases within a window of time before an election if it could affect the results.

But in practice, its up to Barr how much deference to give to these traditions. Other than those soft norms, he basically can do what he wants, says Jack Goldsmith, professor at Harvard Law School who served in the Justice Departments Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) under President George W. Bush. Unlike Robert Mueller, whose investigation was governed by the special counsel regulations, Durham has no formal roadmap to follow for how he needs to present his findings. Barr has enormous discretion, says Goldsmith. There are no express Justice Department rules governing this.

The findings are set to drop at a moment of particular concern about politics influencing the course of justice in America. Democrats allege Barr has turned DOJ into a political arm of the White House. They point to Barrs handling of the rollout of the Mueller report, his interventions in politically-charged prosecutions of Trump allies and even his appointment of Durham, among numerous other actions. Barr himself gave a speech recently extolling the virtue of political appointees holding influence over DOJ career prosecutors as a mechanism for accountability.

Former Justice Department officials and former federal prosecutors say Barr will almost certainly be briefed on the findings once Durham finishes his work, and then Barr will decide whether to make any of those findings public, when to do so, and in what form. It would be very surprising if on a high-profile matter like this, that the Attorney General wasnt at least briefed before the investigation was closed, says John Bies, who worked in OLC under President Barack Obama and is now chief counsel at American Oversight. Barr has said he expects there will be some form of public disclosure of Durhams work, and said in congressional testimony this summer he would not necessarily wait until after the election to make some of Durhams findings public.

There are clues about how both Barr and Durham may handle the coming weeks. In the spring of 2019, shortly after he was confirmed as Attorney General, Barr oversaw the release of the Mueller report on whether members of the Trump campaign had conspired with Russia, and whether Donald Trump obstructed justice. Before releasing the report, Barr held a press conference and put out his own summary of the findings, framing Muellers work in the most favorable way for the president. The Attorney General drew significant criticism for how he handled the matter. Even Mueller himself was frustrated by the way Barr managed the rollout, writing him a letter arguing that Barrs summary did not fully capture the context, nature and substance of Muellers full report.

Durham has already shown that he might be willing to take a similar stand if he disagrees with any aspect of how Barr characterizes his findings. In December 2019, Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz released a report based on his own offices probe of Crossfire Hurricane. Horowitz found that the FBI had adequate justification to open the investigation and did not find evidence of political bias in the decision. But both Durham and Barr publicly disagreed. Durhams statement said, Based on the evidence collected to date, and while our investigation is ongoing, last month we advised the Inspector General that we do not agree with some of the reports conclusions as to predication and how the FBI case was opened.

In hindsight, that may have been a particularly revealing moment. While Barr and Durham were aligned in their views on Horowitzs findings, Durhams willingness to publicly contradict Horowitz suggests that he might do the same for Barr, if he thinks Barr distorts his findings the way Mueller felt about his own report. His default position will start with, Im not saying a word to anybody, says a former federal prosecutor who knows Durham. But there are scenarios that could obviously arise where John would feel that he had an obligation to say something publicly.

That may be, but as the Mueller probe showed, its the first impression, as much as the last word, that may count most in the current atmosphere of politicized justice in America. And when it comes to the Durham probe, Trumps loyal Attorney General, Bill Barr, controls them both.
The Deputy governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Gani Audu, expressed confidence, after voting on Saturday, t...

The Deputy governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr. Gani Audu, expressed confidence, after voting on Saturday, that his party will win the election.

He said there is no doubt in his mind that the APC will win the election because the state is an APC state.

You can see, Edo is an APC state. I dont have any doubts at all that we will win this election, APC will win this election at the end of the day. No doubt at all, he said.

He voted at his polling unit in ward 7, unit 13, Ughioli Primary School Aviele, Etsako West local government area





You will see the result after 5pm today.

The process is okay, I just came, used the Card Reader, accreditation was done and I voted, very simple.

The turn out is massive. In fact, I am seeing the turn out in this for the first time in the history of elections in this village. The turn out is massive and it is fine, he said.

He commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), over the conduct of the election.

He described the turnout of voters as massive and the first of its kind in the history of elections in Aviele.
RTHK: Trump to move quickly on Ginsburg replacement

A fierce political battle shaped up over the future of the US Supreme Court on Saturday, with President Donald Trump saying he would quickly name a successor to liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a move that would tip the court further to the right.

"We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices," Trump said on Twitter. "We have this obligation, without delay!"

Ginsburg, the senior liberal justice, died on Friday night at age 87 of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer after 27 years on the court. Her death gives Trump, who is seeking re-election on November 3, a chance to expand the court's conservative majority to 6-3 at a time of a gaping political divide in America.

Democrats are still seething over the Republican Senate's refusal to act on Democratic President Barack Obama's Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, in 2016 after conservative Justice Antonin Scalia died 10 months before that election. McConnell in 2016 said the Senate should not act on a court nominee during an election year, a stance he has since reversed.

Despite that anger, Democrats have little chance of blocking Trump's pick. His fellow Republicans control 53 of the Senate's 100 seats and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has made confirmation of Trump's federal judicial nominees a top priority, said the chamber would vote on any Trump nominee.

Obama himself on Saturday called on Senate Republicans to honour what he called that "invented" 2016 principle.

"A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment," Obama said in a statement posted online. "The rule of law, the legitimacy of our courts, the fundamental workings of our democracy all depend on that basic principle."

Even before Ginsburg's death, Trump had made public a list of potential nominees.

Conservative activists for years have sought to get enough votes on the Supreme Court to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that legalised abortion nationwide. During the 2016 campaign, Trump promised to appoint justices who would overturn that decision. But the court in July, even with its conservative majority, struck down a restrictive Louisiana abortion law on a 5-4 vote.

The two justices already appointed by Trump were Neil Gorsuch in 2017 and Brett Kavanaugh in 2018. Kavanaugh's confirmation process was particularly heated, as he faced accusations by a California university professor, Christine Blasey Ford, that he had sexually assaulted her in 1982 when the two were high school students in Maryland. Kavanaugh angrily denied those accusations and was narrowly confirmed.

Republicans risk the possibility of liberals embracing more radical proposals should Trump replace Ginsburg but Democrats win November's election, with some activists on the left suggesting even before Ginsburg's death that the number of justices on the court should be expanded to counter Trump's appointees.

Confirmation votes could also put more pressure on incumbent Republican senators in highly competitive election races, including Maine's Susan Collins and Arizona's Martha McSally, at a time when Democrats are eyeing a chance to win control of that chamber. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska also could play a pivotal role.

Many court-watchers expect Trump to attempt to replace Ginsburg with a woman. One possible contender on Trump's list is Amy Coney Barrett, a conservative judge on the Chicago-based 7th US Circuit Court of Appeals who was under consideration in 2018 before Trump picked Kavanaugh. (Reuters)

This story has been published on: 2020-09-19. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
(CNN)  Nearly 1 in 1,500 people in Japan is now aged 100 or older, new data from the Japanese government shows.

Figures from Japan's Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry show the number of centenarians went above 80,000 for the first time this year -- the 50th consecutive annual increase and the biggest rise to date.

There were 80,450 people aged 100 and over as of Tuesday -- 9,176 more than last year -- which equates to one in every 1,565 people.

The numbers show that women in Japan are far more likely than men to live for a century or more, making up 88% of all centenarians.

Japan has a rapidly aging population and average life expectancy across the country is also at a record high.

On average, women are expected to live to 87.45 years and men are expected to live to 81.41, government figures released in July showed.

Japan began documenting the number of centenarians in 1963.

At the time there were only 153 people aged 100 or over in the country. But 1988, that had ballooned to 10,000.

Secret to longevity

Japan's oldest person, 117-year-old Kane Tanaka from Fukuoka, was confirmed as the world's oldest person by Guinness World Records last year.

She was born in 1903 -- the year aviation pioneers Orville and Wilbur Wright made history by successfully completing the world's first powered flight.

She now lives in a nursing home, where she usually wakes at 6 a.m, and enjoys playing the strategic board game Othello.

Tanaka has said that eating good food and practicing math are her secrets for a long life.

This story was first published on CNN.com A record one person in every 1,500 in Japan is aged at least 100 -- and they're probably a woman
Election 2020 Biden Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden departs after attending campaign meetings at the Hotel du Pont, Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020, in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is presenting a distorted account of President Donald Trump's words on the coronavirus, wrongly suggesting Trump branded the virus a hoax.

In fact, Trump pronounced Democratic criticism of his pandemic response a hoax.

Biden tweeted a video mashup of Trump's rhetoric on the crisis, sampling the many times the president has underplayed the severity of the pandemic.

A look:

BIDEN VIDEO: Trump in public: Hoax. Trump in private: Killer.

BIDEN VIDEO, showing Trump saying at a Feb. 28 campaign rally in South Carolina: The coronavirus  and this is their new hoax."

THE FACTS: The accusation and the selective video editing are misleading. At the rally featured in the video, Trump actually said the phrases the coronavirus and this is their new hoax at separate points. Although his meaning is difficult to discern, the broader context of his words shows he was railing against Democrats for their denunciations of his administrations coronavirus response.

Now the Democrats are politicizing the coronavirus, he said. You know that, right? Coronavirus. Theyre politicizing it. He meandered briefly to the subject of the messy Democratic primary in Iowa, then the Russia investigation before returning to the pandemic. They tried the impeachment hoax. ... And this is their new hoax.

Asked at a news conference the next day to clarify his remarks, Trump made clear he was not referring to the coronavirus itself as a hoax.

No, no, no." he said. "Hoax referring to the action that they take to try and pin this on somebody, because weve done such a good job. The hoax is on them, not -- Im not talking about whats happening here. Im talking what theyre doing. Thats the hoax.

He continued: Certainly not referring to this. How could anybody refer to this? This is very serious stuff."

The video's reference to Trump in private calling the virus a killer comes from the president's interview in April with author and journalist Bob Woodward, whose new book Rage contains Trump's acknowledgment that he was playing down the virus threat in public, so as to avoid panic.

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But it is incorrect for Biden to suggest, as the video does, that Trump insisted the virus was a hoax before ultimately acknowledging to the author in April that it was deadly and serious.

Trump on several occasions before that did refer publicly to the virus as a plague and a killer," while also falsely dismissing it as something that would go away on its own, in hot weather or otherwise.

___

EDITOR'S NOTE  A look at the veracity of claims by political figures.

___

Find AP Fact Checks at http://apnews.com/APFactCheck

Follow @APFactCheck on Twitter: https://twitter.com/APFactCheck
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on Friday at the age of 87. Ginsburg spent her life promoting a vision of the Constitution that guarantees equal justice to women, racial minorities, and LGBTQ people, while defending government programs that protect the less fortunate from poverty, exploitation, and discrimination. She was a hero to millions. Ginsburg served on the federal bench for 40 years, working tirelessly through seven presidencies and five bouts of cancer to help create a more just nation. Her death triggers one of the most consequential swings in the courts balance of power less than two months before the election.

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Ginsburg was born in Brooklyn in 1933. She attended Harvard Law School, where she was one of just nine women, then transferred to Columbia Law School when her husband, Marty Ginsburg, got a job in New York City. In 1972, Ginsburg co-founded the ACLUs Womens Rights Project, which brought multiple cases to the Supreme Court. Arguing before the justices, Ginsburg persuaded an all-male court to invalidate laws discriminating on the basis of sex under the equal protection clause. In 1980, President Jimmy Carter appointed her to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Thirteen years later, President Bill Clinton elevated her to the Supreme Court. During her Senate confirmation hearing, Ginsburg did not conceal her support for womens rights, including abortion access. She was confirmed 963.

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During her 27-year tenure on the Supreme Court, Ginsburg authored several watershed opinions expanding, as she put it, our understanding of who counts as We the People striving toward a more perfect union. Perhaps most notably, she wrote the majority opinion in United States v. Virginia invalidating the Virginia Military Institutes policy against female enrollment, heightening judicial scrutiny against laws that discriminate because of sex. Ginsburg also joined the majority in countless liberal victories, including Whole Womans Health v. Hellerstedt, striking down targeted regulation of abortion providers, and Obergefell v. Hodges, extending same-sex marriage to every state. She penned dissents in Shelby County v. Holder, which gutted the Voting Rights Act, and Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, which allowed corporations to deny female employees contraceptive coverage. For these dissents, Ginsburg was celebrated as the Notorious R.B.G., an image that never quite fit the quiet, intellectual justice but amused her nonetheless. After the pop culture legend fades, she will likely be remembered as a giant of the judiciary who entrenched her progressive constitutional theories in the supreme law of the land.

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Ginsburg died of metastatic pancreatic cancer at her home in the Watergate surrounded by loved ones. Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature, Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew hera tireless and resolute champion of justice.

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What happens to her seat may now be the most important question in the presidential election. After Justice Antonin Scalias death in 2016, Senate Republicans refused to consider President Barack Obamas nominee, Merrick Garland, insisting the seat remain vacant until the American people decide who should appoint Scalias replacement. By doing so, Republicans established a new rule: no Supreme Court confirmations during a presidential election year.

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In the days before her death, the justice dictated a statement to her granddaughter, Clara Spera: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

Democrats should now have no compunction about holding Republicans to their rule, especially when the stakes are so high, even though they have no power to prevent a confirmation vote. If Trump replaces Ginsburg, he will pull the Supreme Court farther right than it has been since the 1930s. The court will pose a clear and present danger to reproductive rights, LGBTQ equality, labor and environmental regulations, lifesaving social programs like the Affordable Care Act, and so much more. If Donald Trump fills Ginsburgs seat, he will remake the court for generations to come.

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Trump is all but certain to nominate Amy Coney Barrett, an extremely conservative judge he put on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, as her replacement. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnellwho held Scalias seat open for more than a yearhas already said he would fill a vacant seat this year. Barretts confirmation would create a 63 conservative supermajority. Ideologically, Justice Brett Kavanaugh would sit at the center of the court. Chief Justice John Roberts might occasionally join the remaining liberals, as he did last term, but his defections would not change the outcome of any case.

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This new court would drag the judiciary far outside the mainstream legal establishment. Next term, the new majority could accept red states invitation to eradicate the entire Affordable Care Act, stripping health insurance from more than 20 million people. In the near future, Barrett could cast the fifth vote to eviscerate Roe v. Wade and allow states to ban abortion, or at least regulate abortion clinics out of existence. She could expand states power to disenfranchise voters and hobble the remnants of the Voting Rights Act. The courts current conservatives are already eager to strike down federal regulations on pollution, employment, banking, and more, while abolishing the independence of agencies tasked with enforcing those regulations. Barretts presence would give them a solid fifth vote for these goals in case Roberts defects. She would also shore up a five-justice majority to strike down broad swaths of gun control legislation.

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It is difficult to see how the Supreme Courts institutional prestige could survive this conservative assault on the laws and precedents that form the bedrock of American governance today. McConnell already altered the size of the court to stop Obama from filling one seat. Now he is poised to fill another in the waning days of Trumps first term, a total (and predictable) reversal of his putative principle that the American people should decide who gets to fill a vacancy in a presidential election year. But it is not clear if Democrats have any real power to shield the court from the wolf at the door.

No matter what happens over the next few months or years, Ginsburg should not be remembered primarily for setting off the political equivalent of an atomic bomb less than two months before an election. She deserves to be exalted as the visionary that she was. Its nearly impossible for young people today to understand the extent to which sex discrimination was ubiquitous and ingrained in American life and law before Ginsburg launched her Womens Rights Project. She saw the possibility of a different world and made her vision a reality through ceaseless toil. Ginsburgs clerks often tell stories about the justices renowned work ethic, her habit of staying up all night to finish an opinion with superhuman speed. During her many cancer treatments, she rarely complained or slackened her pace, voting and participating in oral arguments from her hospital bed. As a court reporter, I often felt like Ginsburg was racing toward a better future that she could help create while the rest of us tried, breathlessly, to catch up.

Above all else, Ginsburg was an optimist. She had an unceasing faith in humankinds ability to better itself, to shed irrational bigotries, to come together in the pursuit of the greater good. Less than a year ago, the justice said she believed our current period of history will be remembered as an aberration. It is now up to us to prove her right.
As the CCP virus pandemic continues to disrupt the normal way of life, its the vulnerable seniors who are facing the brunt of isolation and uncertainty.

However, a 74-year-old Chinese woman from Montgomery County, Maryland, was recently recognized and honored by the county government for her selfless service to her fellow elderly neighbors amid such trying times.

Be it assisting them with their shopping, offering a ride to the bank, or giving free haircuts, the list of her random acts of kindness goes on

Wang Chunrong (York/The Epoch Times)

Wang Chunrong, a former director of an accounting firm in China, lives in an apartment building in Gaithersburg that is also home to over 100 other elderly people of various ethnic groups, reported Minghui.org.

Having escaped China to avoid religious persecution, Wang arrived in the United States a few years ago. She was acutely aware of how elderly immigrants feel to be in a new environment as they try to learn a new language and navigate around.

I was persecuted in China for practicing Falun Gong , but America has offered me protection.  Wang Chunrong

However, Wangs belief in Falun Gong spiritual practices universal values of being truthful, kind, and tolerant encouraged her to take good care of those in need in her new community.

Falun Gong, or Falun Dafa, is a persecuted spiritual group in China, and the propaganda against the practice put up by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) can be found all over the Chinese media.

This ancient mind-body cultivation system was made public in China in 1992. By the late 1990s, over 70 million people were practicing its slow-moving meditative exercises in China. However, within seven years after its introduction, in July 1999, the peaceful practice was banned by the CCP, fearing the spiritual practices moral base as a threat to its communist ideology of class struggle and hate. The CCP launched the persecution of Falun Gongs tens of millions of adherents, and since then, numerous practitioners have been arrested and tortured, and Wang was one of them.

Deceived by the fabrications and misleading media coverage against Falun Gong, some Chinese people in Montgomery County used to avoid Wang in the beginning. However, with the passage of time, the elderly Wangs kind deeds earned the respect of her neighbors and the management staff at the apartment building.

On Aug. 11, 2020, the Montgomery County Council awarded Wang with a certificate of recognition for her eight years of selfless contributions to the local community.

The certificate of recognition awarded by Montgomery County Council to Wang Chunrong for her contribution to the community. (The Epoch Times)

Ms. Wang is one who continues to inspire others, said the management staff of the apartment where Wang resides, according to Minghui.org.

Because she has such a kind heart, God will always protect her. We are extremely glad for her to live heresuch a good person, in our community. We are very grateful for the things she has done for our residents, especially during such troubled times, the employee added.

Imprisoned for Her Faith

Before fleeing China, Wang was the chair of Dalian Xincheng certified public accountants in Liaoning Province and a senior accountant with 40 years of experience.

Wang maintained that the company conducted its business honestly, keeping in line with Falun Gongs core principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.

She refused to accept bribes or falsify accounts. As the key person in the firm, she was widely respected and was held in high regard by her clients.

Wang Chunrong with her certificate of recognition. (Courtesy of Wang Chunrong)

In August 2007, the police ransacked Wangs office and arrested her and some of her employees. The police alleged that Wang had provided financial assistance to other Falun Gong practitioners. The authorities went ahead to audit her company for about three months and found no evidence of any wrongdoing, Minghui reported.

However, Wang was sentenced to three years and four months in prison. The arrest led to the closing of her business, and over 50 employees became jobless.

Wang was not the only one who was arrested and sentenced. Her two younger sisters who were also successful in their careersone is a nurse supervisor and another is an entrepreneur of an export-import businesswere arrested and sentenced for practicing Falun Gong. The youngest sisters husband was harassed by the police for his faith in Falun Gong and died in 2002; he was found unconscious at home with a head wound and with the gas turned on.

Wang Chunrong (C) with her two younger sisters, Wang Chunyan (L), and Wang Chunying (R) at a rally held in Washington in July 2020. (Lin Yueyu/The Epoch Times)

After her release, Wang continued to be monitored by the police. Realizing that she could be arrested again, she had no choice but to escape. Wang and her two sisters fled China and now live in America.

Valuing their freedom and respecting the opportunity to be able to live in an open society, Wang and her sisters continue to speak out for the thousands of Falun Gong practitioners who are still detained and persecuted in China for their faith.

With Wang having lived through the brutalities of the communist regime, her faith in the universal principles of to be true, good, and endure remains unshakable. Her caring demeanor and unwavering persistence earned the admiration of her community members.

Wang Chunrong (R) telling a group of tourists about Falun Gong and its persecution at the National Mall in Washington on July 4, 2020. (Minghui)

Though Wang was overjoyed to receive the recognition from the county government, she was also glad to contribute to the country that has given her the opportunity to live in a free society.

I was persecuted in China for practicing Falun Gong, but America has offered me protection, she said.
Top BJP leaders, including the President and the Union Minister, are discussing the strategy on how to pass Agriculture Bills 2020 in Rajya Sabha. The Agriculture Bills 2020 was passed in the Lok Sabha on Thursday by a majority but it is facing massive opposition and protests.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is facing tough hurdles from its own ally, Akali Dal, on passing Agriculture Bills 2020 in Lok Sabha, following which Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal resigned from the NDA on Thursday. As per the NCP sources, BJP has even reached out to Shiv Sena. After resigning from NDA, the top BJP leaders, including the President and the Union Minister, have discussed the strategy on how to pass Agriculture Bills 2020 in Rajya Sabha.

On Thursday, the Agriculture Bills 2020 were passed in the Lok Sabha by a majority, and now the Bills will come to the Rajya Sabha for the passage. But, the Opposition parties have already come out with a strong statement that almost all Opposition parties in the house will oppose the Agriculture Bills in the Upper House.

Today, Parliament BJP President JP Nadda, Union Ministers Dharmendra Pradhan, Bhupendra Yadav, and Jyotiraditya Scindia, in a picture, were seen holding a discussion over the strategy to pass the Agriculture Bills 2020 in Rajya Sabha. Currently, the farmers are protesting in Punjab and Haryana and other parts of the country in connection with Agriculture Bills 2020.

Also Read: Kejriwal asks non-BJP parties to oppose 3 agriculture bills in RS

Also Read: Harsimrat Kaurs resignation from cabinet came too late: Farmers

Meanwhile, Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Friday said that the three agriculture-related bills are anti-farmer and they should be opposed.

Speaking to ANI, Singh said, Congress government had made APMC Act (Agricultural Produce Market Committee) in favour of farmers. But now, any big trader can open a Mandi and under these new anti-farmer Bills, any dispute at mandi will be handled by officials.

On the other hand, former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav attacked BJP led Central government saying, These bills are anti-farmer and hatching a conspiracy against farmers. In these difficult times, farmers saved our economy but now big industrialists are eying on farming which will render farmers like labourers. (ANI)

Also Read: Monsoon session: RS passes bill to reduce salaries of ministers by 30 per cent
The South Korean president points out that There has since been not a single armed clash between South and North. However, denuclearisation and demilitarisation are stalled because talks between the US and North Korea have failed.

Seoul (AsiaNews/Agencies)  Two years after the historic meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Pyongyang, President Moon Jae-in said that the resulting agreement must be implemented, despite "internal and external restraints.

In a message posted on Facebook today, President Moon cited his speech in front of 150,000 people at Pyongyangs May Day stadium and the resulting decisions on denuclearisation and peace on the Korean peninsula.

In the statement issued in Pyongyang, the two leaders decided on some steps such as the demolition of the Yongbyon nuclear power plant in North Korea and the demilitarisation of some areas, including Panmunjom.

Since then "There has since been not a single armed clash between South and North," Moon noted. However, the clock of peace has stopped and none of the agreements provisions have been implemented.

"Our commitment to peace is firm, said the South Korean president. Greater inter-Korean cooperation is stalled by the lack of progress in US-North Korean talks since 2019.

For their part, North Korean media did not mention the summit anniversary, but focused instead on anti-COVID-19 measures and on the work to repair the damages caused by a recent typhoon.
Mogbonjubola and Iyiola, both in their old age, have not given up on the search for a police officer, Olutope Falode, their son, whose whereabouts remain unknown two years after he set out on an official assignment to Gabon.

Three senior police officers of the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL); Olutope Falode, Yohanna Gamidan and Usman Mohammed, and one mechanic, Usman Momoh, were sent to the Central African country from Abuja, Nigerias capital city, to track a stolen vehicle on September 3, 2018.

The last signal the police saw of these four was when they were in Cameroon, some 900 kilometres away from the destination.

All efforts to locate these four have however been unsuccessful but the old couple still hopes Olutope would one day walk through their gate.

The vehicle they went to recover belongs to one Felicia Ogunjana, who claimed it was stolen at a gunpoint in Nigeria.

The INTERPOL sent them, you can confirm from them. He (mechanic) was the one who volunteered to go with them. Momoh was to drive the vehicle back with the police because he is a mechanic in case the vehicle develops a fault on the way. But we couldnt hear from them since then. It was later we heard that they have not gotten to Gabon.

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We have always been at the INTERPOL to know how far they have gone, which they have been doing their best. But up till now, no information about them. We are still waiting for INTERPOL to tell us if they were able to get any info from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs because they are on it, Mrs Ogunjana told PREMIUM TIMES last year.

Shocked, but lethagic police

According to an officer of INTERPOL who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES in 2019, the disappearance of the four men was shocking to the security organisation.

And the thing is whenever officers go on such a journey, once they arrive there, they get a new sim and call us over here with the new number. On the first day that we did not hear from them, we thought it was network issues. By the way, that is not the first time operatives embark on such a journey. In fact, one of them (Mr Falode), that would have been his fourth or fifth in that year on such assignment.

Whenever he gets to wherever he is going to, he would call. The thing is that he speaks French, so the team likes to have someone like him who can speak French. And again, it opens a lot of doors for officers. You cannot just go there and start speaking English. If you speak French, they would be receptive.

The officer, who did not want to be named because he is not authorised to comment, said when they could not reach them, the Nigerian police messaged the National Central Bureau (NCB) in Cameroon.

Eventually, Cameroon confirmed that they sighted the officers at the border and to a point, but accidentally there is this issue going on in Cameroon between the separatists and the government. So, we now thought that may be either of the two (Separatists or Government forces) captured them.

They were in a police vehicle, which is the only vehicle we have here and now we do not have any other vehicle. So, we described the vehicle, we gave the picture.

He said the issue had been escalated to the Cameroonian ambassador and the National Security Adviser (NSA) in Nigeria then.

Traumatised

When PREMIUM TIMES visited the Falodes residence in Ibadan, Oyo state, Mogbonjubola, Olutopes mum, said she wept for two years till the point of developing an eye defect.

She now visits ophthalmologists for eye care, she added.

I have been to several prayer mountains all to no avail. I am fed up and I no longer have enough strength to visit anywhere again, she said with tears welling up in her eyes.

Mogbonjubola eventually broke into tears.

Olutopes dad, Iyiola Falode, told this newspaper that he had visited the police headquarters in Abuja more than three times since the saga began.

They keep on telling us that they are not dead. They said they cannot get to Cameroon because of the unrest in the country. I was surprised because, why will they say they cant get there? I want them to help me find my son because he was on an official assignment. If he has a day off work, he would ensure he visits me and my wife, Mr Falode said.

For Elizabeth, his wife of over ten years, the absence of the younger Mr Falode for the two years has been a traumatic experience particularly with the fact that she is shouldering the care of their four children alone.

Although the police gave her access to 60 per cent of her hubbys salary on a monthly basis, she lamented the insufficiency coupled with the emotional stress of not having the love of her life beside her.

He was always updating me on his itinerary. In fact, he called me when they had a stop-by in Portharcourt, Rivers state capital, Mrs Falode told our reporter

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The Falodes appealed to the Inspector-General of Police, President Muhammadu Buhari and lawmakers to ensure their son and the three others are found.

Help me beg President Muhammadu Buhari, the Inspector-General of Police and the members of the National Assembly, he said.

Sorrowful

Speaking with PREMIUM TIMES, wives of the other two police officers complained that life has not been easy for them since September 3, 2018.

We are suffering. We are suffering o, Mrs Mohammed, who resides in Bida local government area of Niger State, reiterated in a telephone interview with our reporter.

In her own case, the 60 per cent of her husbands salary, (about N50, 000 to N55, 000) is being used to cater for six children, two wives, his aged mother and other siblings.

We are just managing o because we have a large family, said the wife who is currently unemployed.

Every time, the kids ask after their dads particularly when we do not have any food to eat. They will start crying that if their father is around, they wont be hungry.

Also, Abigail Magidan, a mother of two lamented several visits and telephone calls to the police headquarters which have only been met with a gridlock.

She said the unfortunate incident happened when her second child of four years old was barely 2.

They should look for my husband for me wherever they are in Cameroon. It is my husband that I want, they should ask her to bring my husband out of wherever he is. It is two year now that my husband went on this journey that is supposed to last for only four days.

Keep praying

Lubabetu Momoh, a trader, the wife of the mechanic, Usman Momoh, said the police have told her to keep praying for her husbands return anytime she visits the headquarters.

I have not heard anything and even though I go to the Force Headquarters or the state CID, they dont have any other thing to tell me aside I should go and keep on praying.

Crying for help, Mrs Momoh noted that unlike the police officers wives, she is not entitled to any salary. She told this newspaper that catering for her three children has been a burden to her.

Even if they are not the ones that sent him, they know that he went with those officers and he has wives and children before he left and since he left, I have not seen anything that the police has done to help the situation, she cried.

Meanwhile, all efforts to get the police spokesperson, Frank Mba, to comment on this proved aborted. He neither picked his calls or responded to texts.

Also, when the commissioner of INTERPOL, Garba Umar, was contacted for an update, he refused to comment as he claimed to be overwhelmed with the preparations of the Edo governorship election scheduled for September 19.
Two suspects charged in connection with the killing of 25-year-old Quentin Jacobs-Hylton in Worcester have returned to Massachusetts after being arrested in other states, police records reviewed by MassLive show.

Robert Dupuis Jr. and Malek Matos are facing gun and assault charges in connection with the shooting that killed Jacobs-Hylton on Aug. 16. Arrest records on file with the Worcester Police Department show them as booked with the department.

Matos, 34, was caught last in Goshen, New York, while Dupuis, 30, was picked up in Pinellas County, Florida, court records indicated.

The Worcester arrest log indicates Dupuis is facing charges including aggravated assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury, carrying a loaded firearm without a license and armed assault to rob.

Matos is facing charges including assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury, armed assault to rob and carrying a loaded firearm without a license.

It is not yet clear when the two suspects will be arraigned. The Worcester District Attorneys office did not immediately respond to a request for information.

On Aug. 16, police received a call around 11:30 p.m. from a man who said he was shot in the hand. The man hung up and dispatchers could not reach him back, officials said.

Officers went to Cambridge Street, where the call originated, and found Dupuis with a gunshot wound to the hand, according to court records. He went to the hospital.

Dupuis claimed he met up with Red," which is a nickname for Jacobs-Hylton, and planned to smoke marijuana at his house, court records indicate.

Then, Dupuis claimed another vehicle pulled up. Two men got out of the vehicle and tried to steal Dupuis' fanny pack. Thats when Dupuis was shot in the hand.

Within minutes of the call from Dupuis, police received another call from Saint Vincent Hospital. A man had been brought there with a gunshot wound to the head. The victim, identified as Jacobs-Hylton, was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Authorities have accused Dupuis and Matos of being the suspects who were involved in the fatal shooting of Jacobs-Hylton, however, court records do not indicate who police believe was the shooter.

A witness told police that Jacobs-Hylton was called the night of the shooting by another man who wanted to buy cocaine from him. Jacobs-Hylton met up with two men on Stoneland Road, investigators wrote in court records.

1 Stoneland Road is listed as the address in the arrest log entries for Matos and Dupuis.

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Rabid jackal alert following girls agonising death By Kasun Warakapitiya View(s): View(s):

Any sightings of jackals exhibiting violent behavior should be reported immediately, the wildlife department said, following the death of a child believed to have been attacked by a rabid jackal.

The Director of Wildlife Health, Dr. Tharaka Prasad, advised the public not to approach aggressive jackals.

Normal jackals flee from people but rabid jackals are violent and are known to attack people, he said.

Dr. Prasad said some jackals in Horana had contracted rabies.

He asked the public to call the Department of Wildlife hotline 1992 if they saw an aggressive jackal, and said wildlife officers would euthanase the animal.

The department issued the alert following the deaths of two people from jackal attacks in the Horana area, where there have also been other jackal attacks resulting in cattle deaths.

An eight-year-old girl died last week after reportedly being clawed by a jackal at the Muwapattiya, Horahena area in Horana. She and a man had been attacked by the animal on July 28.

The child, Kavini Nethsara Wijayakumar, was admitted to Horana Hospital after complaining of back pain and difficulty with breathing and swallowing, but died last Wednesday, 42 days after the jackal attack.

Police suspect the girl was bitten by a rabid jackal. Coroner Sumedha Gunawardena gave an open verdict on the death and instructed regional health officials to see to the safety of people in the area.

The man who was attacked at the same time as the girl, 58-year-old Nammuni Ariyaratna Silva, died on August 17, some three weeks after the attack.

Death from rabies is agonising. The publication, Scientific American, states: Rabies kills by compromising the brains ability to regulate breathing, salivation and heartbeat; ultimately, victims drown in their own spit or blood, or cannot breathe because of muscle spasms in their diaphragms. One-fifth dies from fatal heart arrhythmia.

Dr. Prasad said health authorities were carrying out a rabies vaccination programme in Horana as dogs in the area as well as some cattle were found with symptoms of rabies.

The wildlife department is considering the feasibility of delivering rabies vaccine to jackals through an ingestion method but are fearful the risky procure might kill jackals.

The Divisional Secretary of Millaniya, 10km from Horana town, Samanthika Liyanage, said most local residents are living in fear of jackals.

Now people in the Millaniya, Punsiripura area and other areas are carrying sticks and machetes in their hands due to fear of getting bitten by jackals, she said.

Local residents had observed that jackals were showing aggression and venturing towards villages. Ms. Liyanage advised people bitten or scratched by jackals to immediately seek medical treatment.

The head of the wildlife department, Chandana Sooriyabandara said his officers are working together with local police and health department officials to prevent more attacks. If the animals have become a threat to the peoples safety we will remove them, he said.
Inside Hook

The Supreme Court announced this evening that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died at the age of 87. The cause of death, NPR reports, was complications as a result of metastatic cancer of the pancreas. Justice Ginsburgs life story and long tenure on the Supreme Court was an inspiration to many.



Justice Ginsburg was appointed to the Supreme Court by Bill Clinton in 1993 and was confirmed by the Senate by a vote of 96-3. In a statement, Chief Justice John Roberts called Ginsburg a tired and resolute champion of justice.



Prior to her time on the Supreme Court, Ginsburg was known for arguing a number of high-profile gender discrimination cases, which helped to transform American society. Ginsburg was also the founder of the ACLUs Womens Rights Project.

In 1980 Jimmy Carter appointed Ginsburg to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, where she served for 13 years until her appointment to the Supreme Court.



Justice Ginsburgs public persona  as the subject of a number of books and films  made her a feminist icon, particularly in the last decade. Her long-running friendship with fellow Justice Antonin Scalia, which transcended ideological lines, was also an inspiration to many.



Besides her intellectual rigor, Ginsburg also possessed an admirable physical strength: she was treated for cancer five times over the course of her life.



In an interview last year, Ginsburg expressed hope that she might remain on the Supreme Court for as long as her former colleague Justice John Paul Stevens, who served on the court until he was 90.



NPRs report on Ginsburgs death notes that she died at home, with her family by her side. Earlier this week, she dictated a statement to her granddaughter, outlining one final request: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.



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A strike over conditions during the coronavirus pandemic at the University of Michigan ended this week after two proposals and legal action from the institution. But students and staff are continuing to demand change.

GEO, the union representing over 2,000 graduate student instructors and graduate staff assistants at the school's three campuses, went on strike Sept. 8, with a list of demands including the right to work remotely and increasing COVID-19 testing. On Wednesday, after extending the four-day strike, it announced it had accepted a second offer from the university.

PHOTO: Members of the Graduate Employees' Organization Local 3550 protest outside of Angell Hall on the University of Michigan campus in Ann Arbor, Mich., Sept. 11, 2020. (Kimberly P. Mitchell/Detroit Free Press via USA Today Network)

The move came two days after the University of Michigan authorized seeking a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction against the union strike. In Michigan, it is illegal for public employees to strike, the university noted in a statement. The university has since withdrawn its unfair labor practice charge and has agreed to dismiss its request for an injunction, spokesman Rick Fitzgerald said in a statement.

The university's revised GEO proposal "created a stronger process to address health and safety concerns for GEO members working on campus," and enabled graduate student instructors and graduate staff assistants "to appeal any decision requiring them to work on campus," Fitzgerald said.

MORE: Infection rates soar in college towns as students return

The union's concerns about police on campus "fall outside the parameters of the GEO contract," the university said. Though in a statement released Wednesday, the union noted it won "incremental but real movement on our policing demands," including committing to a new policing task force.

PHOTO: A member of the Graduate Employees' Organization Local 3550 stakes a sign into the ground in protest on the University of Michigan campus in Ann Arbor, Mich., Sept. 11, 2020. (Kimberly P. Mitchell/Detroit Free Press via USA Today Network)

While union members are no longer on picket lines at the Ann Arbor campus, they have continued their demand for a "safe and just campus," including supporting an ongoing strike by the university's undergraduate resident advisers. On Sept. 9, over 100 residential advisers voted to strike, calling for increased COVID-19 protections and hazard pay for student Michigan Housing employees, who are not formally unionized.

Story continues

"Tonight is a beginning," the GEO union said in its statement on Wednesday. "GEO will keep fighting, including to protect undergraduate resident assistants and dining staff from retaliation for their courageous organizing for safe working conditions; to hold the Universitys new policing task force accountable for enacting substantive, ongoing change in campus policing; to support our members in grieving individual health and safety violations; and more."

MORE: As Big Ten decides to return, 42 Wisconsin players and staff have tested positive for COVID, officials say

On Thursday, University of Michigan staff published an open letter stating they "believe many of the issues GEO and other student activists are fighting for remain unresolved," and voiced alarm at the university's response toward the campus strikes.

"We encourage the University to continue to meet in substantive negotiations with the campus community to create informed and equitable solutions to meet the needs of all U-M staff, faculty, and students," the letter stated. "Staff stand in solidarity with the RAs demands for increased testing, PPE, and safe and transparent enforcement strategies of COVID guidelines that do not involve armed police."

As of Friday evening, 116 university staff members had signed the letter, which demanded that the university cease "retaliation against all student workers" and "ensure a safe, equitable, and just work environment for the entire University of Michigan community," among other actions.

The University of Michigan started classes Aug. 31, with a mix of in-person and remote instruction. Since Aug, 23, there have been 128 cases of COVID-19 reported, based on data posted to the university's website. This week, the university identified a cluster of 19 confirmed COVID-19 cases at one of its residence halls.

In response to concerns from GEO and the community, the university said earlier this week it would increase the scale of its surveillance testing and pledge "greater data transparency." On Friday, the university debuted new dashboard features, including case numbers listed by residence hall and a new section with data on surveillance testing. Next month, the Ann Arbor campus will start saliva-based COVID-19 diagnostic surveillance testing services, which will allow the university to ramp up its testing capacity to 6,000, officials said.

University of Michigan staff continue demanding change after grad students end strike originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on Friday. Her passing leaves a vacancy on the court in late September of a presidential election yearseven months closer to Election Day than the vacancy that was left following the 2016 death of Justice Antonin Scalia.

Shortly after the news of that previous Supreme Court justices death broke, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced that his chamber would not consider a nominee to replace Scalia until after the 2016 election. The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice, he said. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new President.

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This time around, McConnell announced Friday night, the American people have said enough. President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, the bottom line read. It was preceded by some lawyerly language interpreting the previous six years worth of electoral politics as proof positive that he had made the proper, fair decisions each step of the way. Its ignorable. There was a Supreme Court seat open in 2016 that he didnt want a Democrat to fill, so he kept it open. There is a Supreme Court seat open in 2020 that he wants a Republican to fill, so hell try to fill it.

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In order to do so, he needs 50 Republican votes plus Vice President Mike Pences as a tiebreaker. This means he can only afford to lose three of his senators. He wouldnt commit to a floor vote if he didnt think he could get them. But hes putting his vulnerable Republican senators in an excruciating position.

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Maine Sen. Susan Collins, whos in a difficult reelection race in major part due to her deciding vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the court, told the New York Times earlier this month that she, in the Times words, would not seat a Supreme Court justice in October, and also that she would oppose seating a justice during the lame-duck session in the event of a transfer of power.

Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who is not up for reelection this cycle, told Alaska Public Media in an interview Fridaybefore she knew about Ginsburgs deaththat I would not vote to confirm a Supreme Court nominee. We are 50 some days away from an election.

Thats two on the record already.

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South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, whos also up for reelection, is the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. He told the Atlantic in 2018 that if an opening comes in the last year of President Trumps term, and the primary process has started, well wait to the next electionand then added, hold the tape. Heres the tape.

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Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner is up for reelection in Colorado, which is now a lean-blue state. His career may be over already. It will certainly be over if he votes to confirm a new justice before the election. Sen. Martha McSally is trailing in her race in Arizona. North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis is narrowly trailing in his. Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst is an a tight race, while Texas Sen. John Cornyn, Montana Sen. Steve Daines, Georgia Sen. David Perdue, and, well, Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell all have races they cant sleep on. For some of them, it might be useful to enthusiastically activate their states Republicans despite the ferocious backlash from Democrats and Democratic-leaning voters. For others it wont. Theyll all have to figure that out immediately.

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Then theres Utah Sen. Mitt Romney. Would he go along with a straightforward power grab that would tear the country apart? Would retiring Tennessee Sen. Lamar Alexander?

What McConnells statement does not say is when President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate. He left himself room, in other words, to hold the confirmation in the lame-duck session. If Trump wins reelection, thats the ballgame anyway. If Biden wins? Lame-duck senators wont be accountable anymore.

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Democrats will be applying extraordinary pressure in the coming weeks on Republicans up for reelection in competitive races (and Mitt Romney!) to commit that they wont vote to confirm a nominee either before the election or in the lame-duck period. Those lame-duck Republicans could always change their word after the election. Some Democrats have already begun signaling that there would be consequences to that, too: an abolition of the filibuster and an expansion of the Supreme Court if Joe Biden becomes president and Democrats take the Senate majority.

Weve been in a slow-moving political crisis for some time. Its about to get fast. And the only certain thing is that Mitch McConnell will say it wasnt his fault.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 19)  One marine was killed and four others were injured in an explosion in Maguindanao province Friday night, according to a military statement.

Members of the Marine Battalion Landing Team-5 were on a military truck when an anti-personnel mine exploded, the military said, adding that identities of the victims have yet be disclosed pending notification to their next of kin.

The military said it believes the blast was a terrorist attack.

"This horrendous act perpetrated by the terrorists is simply unacceptable," Lt. Gen. Corleto Vinluan, Jr., Western Mindanao Command chief, said in a statement.

"We will exhaust every available resource to bring the perpetrators to justice," he added.

Philippine National Police Chief Police General Camilo Cascolan has ordered Regional Director Police Brigadier General Samuel Rodriguez to mobilize units to join the pursuit operations of the alleged suspects.

According to field reports, the Philippine Marines personnel were coming from a military operation against Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters troops in Barangay Salman when the incident took place.
3-kg bomb at Delhi flower market: Police yet to zero in on any suspect

Doklam, Dalai Lama, troop posting: What info the Chinese demanded from arrested Delhi journalist

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 19: Delhi journalist Rajeev Sharma who was arrested by the Delhi Police was allegedly passing on sensitive information to the Chinese intelligence.

The Special Cell has also arrested one Chinese lady and her Nepalese associate for paying large amounts of money.The money was routed through shell companies, the police have also learnt.

The police said that they have arrested one Chinese lady, Qing Shi and her Nepalese partner, Sher Singh alias Raj Bohra.

Sharma is said to have been in possession of classified national documents. He has been sent to six days police custody. It is also alleged that he was tasked with conveying sensitive information in exchange for large amounts of money. The police have recovered sensitive material and also taken into their possession, his laptop, mobile and other incriminating material.

The journalist, Rajeev Sharma had earlier worked with United News of India, The Tribune, Sakaal Times. He had recently written a piece fo the Chinese newspaper Global Times.

"He is a resident of Pitampura, and was arrested by the southwestern range of Special Cell of the Delhi Police. He was produced before the magistrate the next day, following which he was taken into police custody for six days. He was found to be in possession of some defence-related classified documents. Investigation of the case is in progress," DCP(Special Cell) Sanjeev Kumar Yadav said.

His piece in the Global Times titled, 'A rapprochement road map for Beijing and New Delhi benefits both countries,' he had said that the steady deterioration of bilateral relations since the night of May 5, when the latest standoff began, has practically evaporated all the diplomatic gains of the past years in one stroke.

Delhi scribe allegedly passed information to Chinese intel: Chinese lady, Nepalese associated arrest

The current crisis is the biggest threat to normal ties between the two sides since 1962. It's a lose-lose situation for both. Their common objective must be to build a better and peaceful future for their peoples and not a military buildup against one another.

Sharma runs a YouTube channel, Rajeev Kishkindha. On the day of his arrest,he had uploaded two videos. One of them was titled, 'China may still do mischief #IndiaChinaFaceOff.'

In this he had said that despite an agreement, reached between the two foreign ministers of India and China, the road to peace is still heavily mined. There is no guarantee that everything will play out as per the script reached between the two countries.

OSA: Delhi journalist arrested for holding classified defence papers

The other video in Hindi speaks about the state of the Indian media. It was meant to be a watchdog, but has become a lapdog of the government, he also said in the video. On Friday night, Sharma's Twitter account which has 5,300 followers showed the message, 'caution account is temporarily restricted. You're seeing this warning because there has been some unusual activity from this account.'

Background:

A secrete input was received that Sharma has links with the Foreign Intelligence Officer and he had been receiving funds through his handler through illegal means and Western Union money transfer platform. Following this the police arrested Sharma.

On interrogation, he disclosed his involved in the procurement of secret/sensitive information. He said that he conveyed the same to his Chinese handlers Michael and George based in Kunming, China. He also disclosed that he was about to convey these recovered secret documents to his handlers. In the past he had sent several documents in the form of reports to his handlers and got a good renumeration for the same.

Between 2010 and 2014, he wrote a weekly column for Global Times, the mouthpiece of the Chinese government. After observing these columns, his handlers contacted him on Linedin and invited him to Kunming, China for an interview in a Chinese Media Company.

The entire trip was funded by his handlers. During his visit, he was asked to provide inputs on the various aspects of Indo-China relations. Between 2016 and 2018, Sharma was in contact with Michael and was tasked to provide inputs on the employment of Indian troops on the Bhutan-Sikkim-China try-junction, including Doklam. He was also asked for information on the pattern of the India-Myanmar military cooperation, India China border issue etc.

He held meetings with Micheal at Maldives and gave them briefings about the above mentioned topics. He also kept in touch with his handlers thorough emails and the social media.

In January 2019, he came in contact with another Kunmimg based Chinese entity Geoge. He was introduced as a Chinese media company's general manager. He was asked to write and inform about issues related to the Dalai Lama and was offered 500 USD per article/information.

He was told that the money would be sent through the company's sister concern, based in Mahipal Pur in Delhi, which was operated by Qing. Sharma has received more than Rs 30 lakh in 10 instalments between January 2019 and September 2020, the Delhi Police said.

Further investigation also revealed that shell companies were being operated to transfer funds to Sharma. Chinese nationals, Jhang Chang and his wife Chang-li-lia were running companies MZ Pharmacy and MZ Malls under the fake names Suraj and Usha.

Deputy Commissioner of Police, Special Cell Delhi, Sanjeev Kumar who gave out these details said that the forensic analysis of the seized mobile phones and laptops is being conducted to unearth the entire network and conspiracy in this case.

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Story first published: Saturday, September 19, 2020, 19:24 [IST]
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 19)  Authorities arrested 34 Filipinos and foreign nationals in the middle of an evening "drinking session" in a bar in Barangay Poblacion, Makati City, police said on Saturday.

Makati police rounded up the partygoers late Friday night at the Kartel Rooftop Bar in Algier Street after receiving a tip from a concerned citizen who caught the violators on video.

The police listed eight foreign nationals  one German, one American, one Kazakh, two Dutch citizens and three Koreans  among the violators who went against the city's 10 p.m.-to-5 a.m. curfew and its social distancing rules.

They were brought to a police station and later released after being issued violation receipts.

Police had arrested several quarantine violators in Makati bars before, including over 100 in a single raid in June.
Perhaps if Barnaby Joyce and John Barilaro had not been so hell-bent on allowing 60,800 hectares of native vegetation in 2018 being cleared in NSW there may have been no need for the SEPP to save koalas (''Fur and fury: why must we pay?'', September 13). Contrary to what Joyce suggests, the Premier has distanced herself from her deputy. Joyce cannot see the white-hot fury in the majority of the population who wish to save koalas not extinguish them. Lindsay Somerville, Lindfield

Joyce must think we city-dwelling Australians are mugs. We know where our fresh food comes from, and we know our long-term future depends on scientific and sustainable farming. His claim to represent country people in a war with city people is, of course, humbug. Just as Barilaro represents big land-holders and developers, Joyce speaks for big agribusiness, not the small land holders who form the basis of Australian horticulture. This deception has worked well for Joyce and the Nationals in the past. It is time that it ended. Norman Carter, Roseville Chase

Illustration: Matt Golding Credit:

As a Sydneysider I love Joyce's idea of returning Sydney Harbour to its ''pre-white settlement of pristine beauty''. Bays back to sand and rocks, not turned into carparks for yachts or motor boats. I don't agree with much Joyce says but this is a beauty. Peggy Fisher, Killara

Thanks Barnaby Joyce for the koala analogy where the implied threat is that if NSW legislation triggers an environmental review of rural land proposed for alternate use, Sydney Harbour foreshores risk returning to pre-white settlement days. Another view is that Barilaro has a tin ear. He chose the wrong issue at the wrong time. His delivery was nothing more than crude blackmail. Taxpayers have a right to be affronted, whether politically engaged or not. Little wonder Barnabys on the backbench. Russell Murphy, Bayview
Nearly a month after being poisoned with a nerve agent, Aleksei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader, said he has recovered his ability to speak and walk down stairs. He has also regained what is perhaps his most potent skill  making acerbic posts on social media.

In his second message on Instagram since emerging from a coma two weeks ago, Mr. Navalny on Saturday thanked his doctors at the prestigious Charite hospital in Berlin, and flashed some of the wit that has endeared him to millions of Russians, if not to their leader in the Kremlin.

They transformed me from a person who was technically alive, he wrote, into someone who has every chance of again becoming that Highest Form of Existence in Modern Society: a person who is able to quickly scroll through Instagram and knows, without thinking too hard, where to put likes.

Much as he has throughout his political career, Mr. Navalny seems intent on documenting every step of his recovery on social media, giving his nearly 2 million followers on Instagram and millions on Twitter and YouTube, a close-up look at the effects of one of the worlds most mysterious and highly classified chemical weapons.
Rolls-Royce is on the cusp of launching an emergency fundraising to tap shareholders for between 2billion and 2.5billion.

City sources said the FTSE100-listed jet engine maker is close to securing the funds from investors, possibly through a rights issue and placing.

Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are believed to be among the investment banks working on the fundraising deal for Rolls-Royce.

Emergency: City sources said the FTSE100-listed jet engine maker is close to securing the funds from investors

It had been thought Rolls-Royce may look to raise 1.5billion from investors. But sources claimed the blue chip firm is now seeking an extra 500million to 1billion, possibly from sovereign wealth funds.

The move to launch such a large rescue fundraising comes as Rolls-Royce shares  which closed last week at 1.80  flirt with a 16-year low amid concerns about the company's financial position.

Investment bankers last month told The Mail on Sunday that they had heard rumours the Government was 'starting to get worried', raising the possibility of state intervention.

Rolls-Royce  in which the Government has a 'golden share' that gives it the right to block a takeover  has been hit hard by the pandemic. In part that has been because the company operates a power-by-the hour model, where it sells engines at a loss and later receives payments according to how much they fly. This arrangement has left the company bleeding cash.

The firm is also particularly exposed to the collapse in long-haul travel because it makes engines for bigger planes such as Boeing's 787 Dreamliner and Airbus's A350.

Rolls-Royce's debt has been downgraded to junk status and major long-term shareholders, such as American activist ValueAct Capital, have been selling out of the company.

In a note to clients several weeks ago, David Perry, an analyst at JP Morgan, said: 'An 8billion hole will need much more than a 1.5billion rights issue. We believe RollsRoyce needs to raise at least 6billion [through equity raise sales and disposals] to put itself on a sound financial footing.'

Perry added that the company's debt pile will be almost 19billion by the end of the year. He believes that 1.5billion may not be enough to save the firm.

The analyst suggested that Rolls-Royce needs to issue 6billion of equity and this might not be possible by just relying on institutional investors. 'We think there is a high chance of Government intervention,' he added.

Aside from tapping stock market investors for fresh cash, Rolls-Royce is also seeking to generate about 2billion from selling divisions  including ITP Aero  over the next 18 months.

ITP Aero is Rolls-Royce's Spanish engineering division that makes turbine blades for engines.

A spokesman for Rolls-Royce said: 'We continue to review a range of funding options to further strengthen our balance sheet.

'These could include debt and equity, but no final decisions have been taken. We have already taken swift action to strengthen our liquidity with 6.1billion at the end of the first half of the year and a further 2billion term loan agreed in the second half.

'We have also announced 1billion of cost mitigation activity in 2020 and launched a re-organisation of our Civil Aerospace business to save 1.3billion annually.'

Last month, the firm's woes were compounded by the announcement that finance chief Stephen Daintith was leaving the business for online delivery firm Ocado.

Daintith has said he will stay for a transition period.
Marie D. De Jesus/Staff photographer

The father of Sierra Rhodd, a 20-year-old Houston girl who was shot to death in bed at her Cypress home on Sunday has been killed, according to officials with the Harris County Sheriff's Office.

Michael Rhodd, 46, was allegedly shot and killed by his 74-year-old father-in-law late Friday at a home in the 10300 block of Thornleaf Lane in Cypress, the sheriff's office said in a Twitter post. The father-in-law claimed the shooting was in self defense, police said.
RABAT, Morocco - Despite a government ban on large gatherings to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, scores of demonstrators protested outside the Moroccan Parliament to denounce Arab countries agreeing o normalize ties with Israel.

Israel on Tuesday signed historic diplomatic pacts with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in a U.S.-brokered deal. Morocco was reported to be among other Arab countries considering a similar move, though the prime minister rejected the idea last month.

Protesters in Moroccos capital of Rabat Friday waved Palestinian flags, decrying the deals as treason and chanting Palestine is not for sale.

The Palestinians view the pacts as a stab in the back from their fellow Arabs in the Gulf and a betrayal of their cause for a Palestinian state. Israel and Bahrains agreements have been condemned by many across the Arab world.

The protesters in Rabat also burned a mock Israeli flag. Dozens of police officers watched the scene from a distance.

Organizers interrupted the chanting occasionally to urge participants to wear masks and to respect social distancing rules.

The normalization deals are an attack on the Palestinian people and their cause, human rights activist Abdelhamid Amine told The Associated Press.

We are calling on the Moroccan government not to follow suit and we urge it not to surrender to the Zionist and imperialist pressure like other Arab countries, said Amine, former president of the Moroccan Association of Human Rights and one of the rally organizers.

Last month, Moroccan Prime Minister Saad Eddine El Othmani said the kingdom rejects any form of normalization with Israel.

The Moroccan monarch, government and people will always defend the rights of the Palestinian people and Al-Aqsa Mosque, he said in a meeting with his Islamist party Justice and Development Party (PJD).
Adam Welsh, DJI's Asia-Pacific policy director, said the company builds data security into its drones. "DJI customers can fly their drones without any internet connection, and they always have control of how their photos, videos and flight information is collected, stored and transmitted," he said. "This information is never automatically transmitted to DJI or anywhere else. Even if we are presented with a lawful request for data from a government agency, DJI cannot provide information that we dont have." In July, the company signed a strategic partnership with the University of NSW to collaborate on research projects in a move backed by Austrade and the NSW Trade and Investment Office. The Australian government has conducted a cyber vulnerability review on the usage DJI drones for defence and concluded that it was comfortable with the resumption of using them in non-classified situations. Defence now has more than 400 DJI drones in operation.

Defence is satisfied that the use of the DJI Multi-Rotor UAS is safe, secure and does not compromise operational security for the purposes for which they are used, a Defence spokesperson said this week. However, Colonel John Venable, a retired US Air Force Fighter pilot now a senior research fellow for defence policy at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank in Washington DC, says the defence assessments missed the wider implications of one company dominating the drone market in aerial photography, infrared imaging and terrain mapping. Loading This is a gargantuan amount of data that were talking about, he says. The average drone operator going out and flying a drone over an area in Melbourne or Sydney. They're basically allowing this drone to capture detail with very precise geolocation capabilities and map the cities. Most people really don't understand why that shows value, but the Chinese government does. Tibor Fekete, a former Australian Army veteran, now head of the drones business unit with Xtek, a Canberra based technology defence materiel company, says Australias skies to be swarmed by DJIs technology.

If you start including the $50 drones, right up to the $5000 DJI drones then we are talking about a possibility of millions of drones in the country and most of them are coming out of China, he says. According to the Civil Aviation Authority, there are almost 33,000 commercial drone operators and license holders. But the regulator has no data on recreational drone numbers. It cites estimates of several hundred thousand to a million. Allan Liska, a Senior Security Architect at Recorded Future, a global security intelligence provider, says there is no visibility of what happens to the data stored by DJI. What they will tell you is, they keep it secure on their servers which happen to be in China . But as weve seen with other Chinese companies, just because they say that, its not always the case. So, if the Chinese government asks for it, they have to give over the data and DJI does not have to tell you theyve done so. Those concerns were fuelled this week by the release of a significant policy outline from the Chinese Communist Partys Central Committee. The directions, titled: Strengthening the United Front Work of Private Economy in the New Era," lay out the future of the partys interactions with private enterprise and its ambitions to unite private economic figures around the majestic force of building the Chinese dream together.

The notice requests all regions and departments to implement the new policies and encourage private enterprises to participate in the reform of mixed ownership. Companies are also being urged to bolster their own internal Communist Party committees, which can influence commercial decisions. Party committees at all levels must strengthen their leadership over the united front work of the private economy, fully implement the party's guidelines and policies, and do a good job in implementing the various decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee, the notice said. Guide private enterprises to improve their corporate governance structure and explore the establishment of a modern corporate system with Chinese characteristics. Welsh said it was not DJI's position to comment on governments strategies or economic policies. "While it is easy to get caught up in the geopolitical issues of the day, we are a technology company and we need to continue to focus on what we do best," he said.

Liska says that Australia is particularly exposed to any orders to hand over data given by the Chinese government or state sponsored hacking on Australian DJI users after months of tension over the coronavirus, trade strikes, Hong Kong, Xinjiang and the South China Sea. According to Liska, theres been an increase of almost 140 per cent of publicly reported cyber-attacks on Australia this year. The nation's cyber security centre has received a report every 10 minutes of malicious cyber attacks against Australian businesses and government agencies from a state-based actor over the past two months. Defence Minister Linda Reynolds has not named the nation involved but warned cyber attacks by a national government had risen since June when there was a series of cyber raids on all levels of government, hospitals, local councils and state-owned utilities. Australian security agencies believe China was probably behind the cyber attacks. Fekete, the former Australian army veteran, says there is no point complaining about DJIs success. He said Australia needed to innovate its way out of dependency.
Doctor Nguyen Hoang Son, director of the Centre for Information and Libraries at the Hanoi National University of Education, and Vice President of the Vietnam Libraries Association, talks about the development of a digital centre

for an intelligent university in Vietnam.

Students of the National University of Hanoi work in a group at the university's library.  Photo qdnd.vn

What contributions has the Centre for Information and Libraries made to the national education sector?

After 20 years of operation and development, the centre has become a leading library in the country with almost 45,000 textbooks and reference materials which are all in digital format, plus some 33,000 theses and scientific research papers kept available in an open digital format and some 4,100 online electronic magazines. The centre has published 114,000 books and 400 magazines. And whats more important is the library is now automated and open 24 hours a day. Worthy of note, in May 2020 the library was ranked the 75th leading university library in the world.

Can you tell us about the knowledge that Vietnamese students have acquired from the centre?

In late 2019, the centre conducted a survey of 4,000 school pupils and university students about what they had gained through reading books from the library. They said that they had gained 49 per cent of their knowledge from reading books from the library, 40 per cent from teachers/lecturers, and 11 per cent from other sources. It is reported that in 2019 some 6.6 million people had used library services  an increase of 74 per cent against 2018 and an increase of 717 per cent compared with 2015.

A questionnaire conducted among library users found that more than 90 per cent were satisfied with library services.

What about the digital application of library services?

To meet the demand of over 40,000 students and university staff, there is no other way better for the library than to use digital technology. The centre has set a road map to digitalise all the library data to give users better access to the information they are searching for. In addition, advanced technology has been introduced to help users access most of the books/materials they want through the use of Webometrics or electronic books ScienceDirect, Springer Nature and others. Furthermore, the centre has created an Open Access database free of charge for anyone who wants to retrieve data or information from the Hanoi National University.

Will you please tell us a bit more about the Hanoi National Universitys plan to build an intelligent information centre in the Lang Hoa Lac hi-tech zone?

From 2020-2025, the Library Centre will be developed into a centre for digital knowledge, or VNU-LIC. Once the VNU-LIC is in operation, digital knowledge will be available for all readers. If things go smoothly, by 2024 the VNU-LIC in the Lang Hoa Lac hi-tech zone will be put into operation and everything in there will be totally digitalised with Blockchain technology applied in the library. VNS

HUMG, Hitachi Systems Vietnam ink deal for a smart laboratory A smart laboratory using new digital technology will be developed at Hanoi University of Mining and Geology (HUMG) in order to help its students learn advanced industrial technologies needed for global economic integration.
Nollywood star actresses, Kehinde Bankole, Munachi Abii, Ade Laoye, and Omowunmi Dada, have been unveiled as the lead actors in the screen adaptation of Tunde Leyes viral blog series, Finding Hubby.

Mr Leyes blog series was published for six months between April and September 2012 and at that time, it went viral and became a fan favourite.

It told the story of a 35-year-old single lady and her friends journey of self-discovery against the landscape of the hustle of Lagos, Nigeria.

The cast reveal was made on Friday and it shows Laoye as the queen of the pack playing Oyin Clegg, while Bankole and Abii play her friends, Toke and Gloria respectively.

The rest of the stellar cast will be revealed over the next few days.

The film tells the story of Oyin Clegg and her two other friends, Toke and Gloria, as they take you through the adventure of kissing the many frogs in the quest to find their prince.

The movie explores themes of friendship, love and finding happiness in oneself.

Speaking on the movies cast, the executive producer of the movie, Zainab Baruwa-Abiola, said, We took special care to cast actors who embody the characters and personalities of the ladies featured in the story. With this cast, we believe movie-goers and fans will connect with the story even more.

Her thoughts were echoed by the producer and director, Femi Ogunsanwo, who added, Ade Laoye is Oyin Clegg in flesh and she totally embodied the character every day we were on set. Im sure the fans of the series will agree with us when they watch the film that Ade is the Oyin Clegg they signed up for.

Finding Hubby is distributed by Genesis Distribution and will be released in cinemas in November 2020.

See the cast reveal video below.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo began a three-day tour of Latin America Thursday, visiting all of the countries bordering VenezuelaColombia, Brazil and Guyanaalong with neighboring Suriname. The trip has been organized to coincide with joint US-Colombian war games on the Colombias northern Caribbean coast. These actions are clearly directed at escalating aggression against Venezuela in the run-up to the November elections in the US.

The thuggish US secretary of state is also using his tour to further a global crusade against China as military tensions between Washington and Beijing in the South China Sea and over Taiwan continue to escalate.

Pompeos trip began with stops in Suriname and Guyana, where he met not only with the newly elected presidents of the two countries, Chan Santokhi and Irfaan Ali, respectively, but also the local representatives of US energy conglomerates and mining companies.

US and Colombian paratroopers [Credit: Sgt. Andrea Salgado-Rivera]

Both countries economies have grown as the result of the discovery of large off-shore oil reserves. ExxonMobil, which found the reserves off the coast of Guyana in 2015, began production in December of last year under an arrangement that grants the country only 50 percent of the proceeds, an exploitative arrangement that has been widely criticized by Guyanese.

Speaking in Surinames capital of Paramaribo, Pompeo declared it an exciting time for the economy, referring to the oil reserves, while arguing that the country should align its interests with the US rather than China.

Weve watched the Chinese Communist Party invest in countries, and it all seems great at the front end and then it all comes falling down when the political costs connected to that becomes [sic] clear, he said.

Both Suriname and Guyana have been invited by Beijing to join its global Belt and Road trade and infrastructure initiative, and both have significant amounts of Chinese investment. The presidents of both countries were circumspect in addressing Pompeos anti-China campaign. It was not a topic of discussion, so it is not a question of making choices, Santokhi said.

Asked whether Surinames government would allow the US to use its territory to mount military operations against Venezuela, Santokhi again stated that the question was not discussed, and that Suriname is of the view that the political leaders in Venezuela have to principally resolve their internal matters.

Pompeo then flew on to a lightning three-and-a-half-hour stopover in Brazils Amazonian state of Roraima, participating in a photo-op at an intake center for Venezuelan refugees in the state capital of Boa Vista and then holding a meeting with his Brazilian counterpart, Foreign Minister Ernesto Araujo.

The US secretary of state used the visit to feign concern for the millions of Venezuelans who have left their country. The overwhelming majority have done so because of the catastrophic decline of the Venezuelan economy under the impact of plummeting oil prices, a US sanctions regime tantamount to a state of war and the capitalist policies pursued by the so-called Bolivarian Socialist government of President Nicolas Maduro, which defends the interests of a parasitic financial oligarchy.

For Pompeo to posture as the savior of refugees goes beyond hypocrisy. Thousands of Venezuelans who have attempted to enter the US claiming asylum have been sent back across the border into the squalid tent camps and dangerous border cities of Mexico to wait indefinitely for their cases to be heard. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is attempting to deport some 400,000 refugees from countries like El Salvador and Haiti, admitted under the temporary protected status (TPS) program, many of whom have been living in the US for decades, with US born children. And a recent whistleblower complaint has revealed conditions resembling an experimental concentration camp at an immigrant detention center where women were subjected to forced sterilization through hysterectomies.

Appearing with Araujo at a press conference held at an airbase outside Boa Vista, Pompeo said were going to throw him out of there, referring to Maduro, and declared that it was Washingtons mission to assure that Venezuela has a democracy.

Araujo, who has described climate change an invention of cultural Marxists to undermine Western economies and boost China, is ideologically aligned with the Trump administration and the extreme right in the US. Both governments have pursued criminally negligent and homicidal policies in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, with equally disastrous results. Brazil has recorded the second highest death tollover 135,000in the world, trailing only the US, and the third highest number of cases, after the US and India, some 4.5 million.

The ravages of the worldwide pandemic far from diminishing, have only intensified US imperialisms drive toward military aggression in pursuit of global hegemony.

In Venezuela, the Trump administration continues to maintain the fiction that the self-proclaimed interim president Juan Guaido represents the legitimate government, despite his lack of any significant popular support and his repeated failures in bringing about the regime change demanded by his controllers in Washington.

Most of the countrys right-wing opposition has abandoned Guaido and his corrupt clique, some of it announcing participation in parliamentary elections set for December, despite Washington having declared them illegitimate before the fact. This has only led the Maduro government to turn further to the right, pardoning last month over 100 rightists who engaged in attempted coups and terror plots, in hopes of forging some kind of national unity accord with the aid of the European Union and Turkey. Even while granting impunity to the rightists, the Maduro government has continued to ruthlessly repress strikes and social protest from below.

Washington has no interest in any such compromise, however. It continues to insist on regime change and maintain that military intervention is an option that remains on the table.

This crucial component of US policy was made clear in the last leg of Pompeos trip, with his arrival in Bogota, Colombia late Friday for talks with the countrys right-wing President Ivan Duque. The visit coincided with US-Colombian joint military exercises dubbed Operation Poseidon, involving joint air operations along with naval exercises simulating the interdiction, interception and neutralization of illicit maritime targets.

These exercises, like the US deployment of warships and other assets in the Caribbean ordered by the Trump administration last April, are being carried out under the pretense of combatting drug trafficking. Washington has ludicrously tried to paint Venezuela as the main source of the drug flow to the US, when its own agencies have long acknowledged that Colombia accounts for the bulk of the drug traffic, which flows not through the Caribbean, but up the Pacific coast and through Central American countries, also ruled by right-wing governments aligned with Washington.

The exercises have drawn widespread denunciations in Colombia, whose courts had ruled that Duque overstepped his constitutional authority in inviting US troops back into the country in June without the approval of the countrys Senate.

Colombia has been rocked by mass protests against a brutal police murder, resulting in the massacre of 15 civilians. As Pompeo arrived in Bogota, police were carrying out raids and arrests against oppositionists in a bid to intimidate the population in advance of nationwide protests and strikes planned for Monday.

The threat of a war against Venezuela is intimately bound up with Washingtons simultaneous threats of military aggression against Iran, which like the South American country is suffering under the weight of a US maximum pressure sanctions campaign. This connection has been made explicit with the Trump administrations naming of Elliott Abrams as the Special Representative for Iran and Venezuela, after the former US envoy on Iran, Brian Hook, quit his post last month.

In a press briefing Wednesday, Abrams said that Washington will unveil punishing new sanctions against both countries in the coming days. This includes the US pretense that it has the power to invoke the snapback provision of the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, reinstating UN sanctions that were lifted when Tehran struck its deal with the major powers. The UN Security Council has rejected the US position, insisting that Washington, having unilaterally abrogated the accord, has no standing to reinstate UN sanctions, which include the indefinite reimposition of a ban on conventional weapons sales to Iran, which is set to expire next month.

The media has failed to note the irony of Abrams serving as the champion of such sanctions, having been charged with felonies in the 1980s for his role in the Iran-contra affair, which involved illegal US arms sales to Iran to fund the illicit CIA-backed contra war against Nicaragua.

In his press conference, Abrams denounced Venezuela for having turned to another international pariah, Iran, shipping it gold to buy gasoline. Iran has shipped both gasoline and condensate, a natural gas needed to turn Venezuelas crude oil into gasoline. Last month, Washington claimed to have intercepted four ships carrying Iranian gasoline to Venezuela. The UAE, Oman and UK-based owners of the cargo shipped on Greek-owned tankers are suing the US government, insisting that the fuel was bound for Trinidad, destined for sale to Colombia and Peru.

Abrams told reporters Wednesday that the US is watching what Iran is doing in relation to fuel shipments to Venezuela. Washingtons stepped-up sanctions against both countries and the threat of a US military hijacking of Iranian vessels on the high seas poses the danger of a new and catastrophic war.
Chennai/Madurai:

Jallikattu was conducted in various parts of Tamil Nadu on Sunday even as protests continued at Alanganallur in Madurai where people refused to hold the famous sport seeking a permanent solution, forcing chief Minister O Panneerselvam to leave for Chennai without inaugurating it.



Panneerselvam had on Saturday said he would inaugurate the bull taming sport at Alanganallur, famous for holding jallikattu events, at 10 AM.



Groups of protesters continued to stay put at several locations in the state, including the Marina Beach at Chennai, epicentre of the stir for the last six days. The protesters are seeking a permanent solution for holding the sport, besides a ban on animal rights group PETA.



As protesters demanded a permanent solution for holding the sport and raised slogans that ordinance was only a temporary measure, Panneerselvam said: the States jallikattu ordinance route is permanent, robust and sustainable, will be made into a law in the coming Assembly session.

(Live | Chennai: Eight trains cancelled on Sunday, two trains cancelled on Monday due to protest across the state over Jallikattu issue)



He reiterated that there was no ban following the promulgation of the ordinance.The Chief Minister said the ordinance will be replaced by a law after bringing in a bill in the Assembly session, beginning at Chennai on Monday.



Speaking to reporters at Madurai before leaving for Chennai, Panneerselvam said,The ban on jallikattu has been removed completely, the sport will be held at Alanganallur, on a date decided by local people.



He said jallikattu was held in all parts of Tamil Nadu with the local adminstration and police taking all stipulated measures to hold the sport.Continuing blockades and agitations here at Alanganallur and Tamukkam grounds, besides neighbouring Natham Kovilpatti in Dindigul, put a question mark over Panneerselvam inaugurating jallikattu.



Panneerselvam, who had announced that he would inaugurate jallikattu at Alanganallur, had to stay back in a hotel in Madurai following the stir there by protesters who demanded a permanent measure to be in place.



Following that, Panneerselvam was expected to inaugurate jallikattu at Natham Kovilpatti in Dindigul. However, protests erupted there too placing the same demand for a permanent solution.

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Linkedin Editorial board (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19 2020

The national census is underway amid the COVID-19 pandemic, with more than 190,000 field workers from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) collecting the data of every citizen through face-to-face interviews or other mechanisms. The counting can only take place at night for the homeless or other citizens, like seafarers, who spend most of their time away from home.

Challenges, even opposition, also confront the field workers, as has happened in the Papua regency of Nduga. On Tuesday, a number of people seized documents from BPS workers in a show of protest against the government, who they said had failed them. The Papua highland regency has seen a series of violent incidents in the past two years, which has displaced hundreds of local people.

As part of the 10-yearly census, the door-to-door visits kicked off on Sept. 1 and will last until Sept. 30. The conventional method had been delayed for two months due to the raging pandemic. As in other countries, the census began with the online data collection of every household from mid-February to the end of May. Over 51 million have filed their personal data with the BPS, which means an estimated 80 percent of Indonesian citizens have not yet been counted.

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Jacksonville native and Air Force Reserve Maj. Darrin Seymours job involves flying government officials, political figures, troops and military equipment around the world  sometimes with night goggles on and at low altitudes.

On Sept. 11, Seymour got to experience a once-in-a-lifetime flight of his own  flying with the U.S. Navy Blue Angels.

I was completely impressed with everyones professionalism and how tight of a shift they run, Seymour said of the experience. From briefing, to the maintainers (mechanics) to the personnel.

Flying for about 45 minutes with his longtime friend and Blue Angels pilot Lt. Cmdr James Haley, Seymour experienced tactical maneuvers that showed him how impressive Blue Angels pilots truly are.

These guys are the best of the best, Seymour said. Theyre flying in formation, sometimes within 18 inches of each other, all while experiencing 4 to 5 Gs, he said, referring to g-force.

During part of the flight, they spent several seconds at speeds that placed several Gs of force on their bodies, Seymour said.

For about six and a half to seven seconds, we experienced 7 Gs, he said, adding that 1 G is a persons body weight, so trying to lift something while at 7 Gs is like trying to lift your own body weight times seven.

The Blue Angels normally keep a busy schedule traveling around the nation to perform at air shows. With the COVID-19 pandemic canceling many public events, the squadron had been grounded until recently.

Theyre currently not performing air shows, but they are now allowed to train, Seymour said. Theyre flying about five times a week.

In the four-diamond formation during the flight, Haley and Seymour were to the right of the lead plane, The Boss.

He is No. 2, so hes the right-wing pilot, Seymour said of Haley.

Seymour who is stationed at Scott Air Force Base near Belleville with the 932nd Air Wing Reserve. His primary job is to fly a C-40C Boeing 737, transporting government officials.

Our primary mission is to air-lift VIPs, people like the first family  as in the presidents family, Seymour said. We also fly State Department heads to where they need to be but, because of the pandemic, we have been air-lifting a lot of COVID teams, he said.

After 17 years in the Air Force Reserve, Seymour is used to being in the air. He befriended Haley while both were in flight training school, and they have kept in touch.

We would do tactical maneuvers like they do in the Blue Angels, he said of flight school. I love that stuff.

Seymour previously was stationed in Peoria and flew a C-130 Hercules for about nine years. He transferred to his current post in 2018.

We fly officials all over the world, he said.

The Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron was formed in 1946 by the U.S. Navy and the unit is the oldest formal aerobatic team in the world after the French Patrouille de France, which was formed in 1931.

When asked if he would fly with the Blue Angels again, Seymour didnt hesitate.

Absolutely.
The state of the Canadas broadcasting industry has reached crisis levels and hundreds of radio stations and dozens of TV stations face imminent shutdown without immediate financial and regulatory relief, according to new economic analysis.

The report, commissioned by the Canadian Association of Broadcasters and released last month by Communications Management Inc., concludes Canadas local radio and TV industry faces a revenue shortfall of more than $1 billion between 2020 and 2022.

This steep financial drop-off threatens the very existence of Canadian independent radio and television broadcasting. According to the report, about 50 radio stations are projected to close down in the next four to six months, followed by another possible 150 stations over the following 18 months. In addition, 40 of Canadas 94 independent local TV stations could be forced to shut down over the next three years.

These closures could lead to an estimated 2,000 job losses for journalists and news gatherers across the country, the report notes.

Carmela Laurignano, vice-president and radio group manager at Evanov Radio Group  which is part of CAB and has 18 radio stations across the country  said various economic downturns and the proliferation of internet-based platforms as well as social media have contributed to the big decline in revenues for traditional broadcasting. While print and broadcast have tried to adapt to the new realities by adding an online component to their businesses, advertising has sharply declined in recent years.

The advent of COVID-19 was pretty disastrous, said Laurignano, noting the current pandemic has made an already bad situation much worse.

In the broadcast media especially, we rely on retailers and advertisers to try and get customers and revenues, but now theyre all shut down. There is a lot of fear and insecurity. Even people who might have disposable income are not able to go out and make purchases or spend money. Everything has been pretty much brought to a halt.

Losing these stations and all the jobs associated with them would deal a devastating blow to the local news industry at a time when the communities depend on it for true and credible information, said Laurignano.

According to the findings in the 2020 Digital News Report from Reuters Institute, four of the top five news sources for Canadians are private broadcasters. This is a testament that Canadians have high levels of trust for well-run local news and reporting, and the lack of resources to maintain that production would have devastating effect on the news sector, the CAB report notes.

CAB members have reached out to government and the Canadian Radio and Television Commission demanding some emergency relief to help avert the crisis the industry is facing. Laurignano said the government can help by providing emergency funding so that broadcasters are not forced to close down, and it would be a big boost for some government advertising money to be spent with private broadcasters.

She added that regulatory relief from the CRTC could also go a long way in helping. Licensed radio and TV stations are expected to meet certain commitments that are financial, unlike other electronic media streams that are not regulated, she said.

For example, radio stations pay royalties on music, there are licensing fees and other stuff, while on the internet they have the freedom to do whatever, because theres no regulations, she said.

This Thursday the CRTC put out a notice of consultation with regards to the CAB application, calling interested parties to submit interventions on the matter by Oct. 19.

Given the potential implications of the CABs application on the various elements of the broadcasting system, the Commission is of the view that it would be more appropriate to consider the application in the context of a notice of consultation, the commission wrote in the notice.

In a statement to the Star, a spokesperson with Canadian Heritage said the government recognizes that broadcasters have been hit hard by the pandemic. In the early months of COVID-19, the government waived more than $30 million in regulatory fees, and theres a $25-million fund available to support smaller independent broadcasters.

The government also recognizes the structural challenges facing the broadcasting sector, which is why it plans to modernize the Broadcasting Act. Among other things, the goal is to create a fairer playing field between Canadian companies and foreign-based digital platforms and to support a strong, competitive broadcasting sector, wrote spokesperson Amelie Desmarais.

We value the input of stakeholders like the Canadian Association of Broadcasters and look forward to working with them as the government continues to consider what additional steps should be taken to foster a healthy broadcasting sector moving forward.

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Houston touts itself as one of the most diverse cities in America. It is also one of the worst for minorities when it comes to racial segregation and education and poverty gaps, according to an analysis by the Urban Institute.

Of the 274 cities measured by the institute for how well they include low-income and minority residents in the citys economic prosperity, Houston ranked second to last.

Though Houston boasts a diverse population and low unemployment rate, it is behind its peers in providing opportunities for economic advancement  6 percent of Houston households with a member working full time are living in poverty, compared with 3 percent in Austin and 4 percent in San Antonio. (Dallas numbers are in line with Houstons, according to the institute). Houston is also behind other major cities in closing the gap between the poverty or education rates of its minority and white non-Hispanic residents.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Poverty fell in Houston and Texas, but the gains will likely be wiped out by COVID-driven recession

And despite the fact that Houston is made up mostly of minorities, that diversity all but disappears among the highest ranks of Houston corporations.

We have seen the diversity part well, said Laura Murillo, head of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, which has published research on the disproportionate absence of Hispanic Houstonians from the citys corporate boards or executives. We want to see inclusion.

The Urban Institutes report on inclusivity, which is published periodicially, was created to provide cities a useful measure, according to Christina Stacy, senior research associate at the organization. It began in 2016, when Detroit was beginning to recovery from bankruptcy.

The rankings looked at income and racial segregation; the percentage of rent-burdened residents, working-poor families, high school dropouts and people of color; and the gap between homeownership, poverty and education rates of minority and white non-Hispanic residents. Fremont, Calif., topped the list, while Shreveport, La., was last.

Folks in the city wanted to know, How can we do this in a way that benefits all residents and doesnt just benefit one or two neighborhoods? Stacy recalled. We said the first thing we need to do for that is to measure it. Because the data on these dont always correspond with our preconceived notions.

Since then, the report has been used by community leaders, such as the the Rev. Michael Waters in Dallas, to argue for changes in policy.

While there were bright spots in Houstons results  the city has a lower percentage of rent-burdened residents when compared with other large cities  overall, the data suggest inclusivity has fallen behind that of other cities in the past half-century.

The pandemic and its accompanying recession, Murillo believes, has only worsened the situation. It is fair to say that minorities and people of color are experiencing, especially now, a disproportionate access to capital, access to any federal moneys to support small business, she said. We are still facing tremendous educational gaps, technology gaps.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Sunnyside fights against being dumped on  again

Bob Sanborn, chief executive of the education nonprofit Children at Risk, said Houstons elevated high school dropout rate  which the Urban Institute pegged at 6 percent, compared with a 4 percent average for the cities included in the study  hurts students and Houstons ability to attract talent. Were going to have to do a little more in education to be the level of city we aspire to be, he said.

Kyle Shelton, deputy director of Rice Universitys Kinder Institute for Urban Research, pointed out that some of the factors measured in the Urban Institutes analysis have historic roots. For example, racial segregation among the citys neighborhoods was once policy  the federal government refused to insure mortgages in or near Black neighborhoods, many Houston subdivisions put in place deed restrictions banning non-whites and schools were segregated.

The problem, he argues, is when neighborhoods are also segregated by access to resources.

But far from overcoming those historic inequities, Houstons racial segregation has become more pronounced over time, according to the Urban Institute. The percentage point gap between homeownership for minority and non-Hispanic white residents has increased since the 1980s.

One through line Shelton saw in Houstons performance on the various indicators measured by the Urban Institute was that wages have remained low while housing costs have risen. The things that jump out at me is just the incredible amount of poverty and both lack of income and lack of ability to secure and work in higher-wage positions.

While affordable housing is one tool that could be used to alleviate the situation, he said, another is increasing the minimum wage.

If we dont have enough income, everything gets pinched. If your housing costs are high (compared to your income), that means you dont have money for food, that means you dont have money for education, he explained. The idea that everyone can come to Houston and succeed is clearly not true for everyone.

rebecca.schuetz@chron.com;

twitter.com/raschuetz
President Donald Trump is trying to max out on his maximum pressure campaign against Iran weeks before the election, setting up a messy diplomatic fight  and potential volatility in the Middle East  just as the president pitches himself as the regions chief peacemaker.

The Trump administration on Saturday is expected to declare that international sanctions on Iran, including a conventional arms embargo, have been reimposed  an attempt to strike a final blow to the 2015 agreement limiting Tehrans nuclear program, which Trump withdrew from two years ago after calling it horrible and one-sided.

The so-called snapback of the sanctions will put Trumps deal-making skills, which his allies say deserve a Nobel Peace Prize, on the campaign stage: The president claims he can force Iran to the table for a better deal for the United States  and Iran, he says  after the election. But neither Iran nor the other countries that participated in the Iran nuclear deal agree that the U.S. has the right to snap back the sanctions, meaning its not clear whether the world will respect Trumps declaration.

Trump in recent days has slapped fresh sanctions on Iranian intelligence and security entities over cyberattacks. He also has threatened to retaliate 1,000 times greater against Iran after POLITICO reported on a plot to kill the U.S. ambassador to South Africa.

His latest anti-Iran moves are all part of an election-year strategy to sound like a peacemaker who is still talking tough. Despite trumpeting a series of peace agreements, including the Abraham Accords between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain this week, many of Trumps biggest foreign policy promises  a nuclear deal with North Korea, the toppling of the Maduro regime in Venezuela and a better deal with Iran  have gone largely unfulfilled just weeks from Election Day.

Saturday nights intended implementation of the snapback sanctions is designed to further dismantle the Obama administrations Iran agreement so Trump can start from scratch after the election. Its also seen as an attempt to prevent a potential Biden administration from resuscitating the 2015 deal.

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The U.S. goal is to completely obliterate the nuclear agreement and leave it in shambles, said Henry Rome, Iran analyst at the Eurasia Group. What will the Iranians do? Do they look at this and say, 'snapback has happened, we are out of the deal and were ramping up further our nuclear developments'? Or do they say, 'lets wait until the election and just see what happens'?

Although the United States left the Iran deal formally the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action  in May 2018, the Trump administration claims it still has the right to reimpose the arms embargo and other restrictions, including sanctions related to Irans nuclear program, because it was an original participant in the agreement. But some of Americas closest allies question the legality of the move, including Germany, France and the United Kingdom, and wrote a letter in August disapproving of Trumps decision. Its expected many countries will ignore the U.S. sanctions.

Its a kind of an Alice in Wonderland situation where it depends on your definition of the term participant, and you can take away whatever youd like on that, said Naysan Rafati, an Iran researcher for the International Crisis Group. If you think the U.S. process is null and void because the U.S. lacks standing, then technically nothing happens on Saturday because there is no snapback that comes into place.

The administration is trying to put down a marker before the election, said Jon Alterman, senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank. But with just weeks before the election, its unlikely many countries will comply, he said.

People dont want to concede preemptively to the administration, Alterman said. So theyll try to drag it out, and diplomats in general are good at that.

Nonetheless, the U.S. says it expects U.N. member states to implement and uphold the original sanctions.

Five years of JCPOA meetings have not moderated Irans tactics or choices at all, U.S. Special Envoy for Iran Elliott Abrams said this week. Its time for peace-loving nations to recognize this reality and join us in imposing sanctions on Iran.

Wendy Sherman, who led the U.S. negotiating team for the Iran deal in 2015, said the U.S. does not have the legal ability to move forward with the sanctions, because Trump himself said he backed out of the agreement.

They will assert they have snap-backed the sanctions, but most countries will ignore the actions, she said.

Trumps former national security adviser, John Bolton, called the snapback decision diplomatic CPR for the Iran deal and a gift for Democratic nominee Joe Biden ahead of the 2020 election.

By asserting that the U.S. has any rights in even one aspect of the deal, Trump opens the possibility for creative diplomats to find other rights, Bolton wrote in a Bloomberg op-ed. This would give legitimacy to any Biden administration effort to fully re-enter the JCPOA.

In a Sunday op-ed responding to Trumps call for the snapback sanctions, Biden wrote that is exactly what he intends to do.

I will offer Tehran a credible path back to diplomacy, Biden said. If Iran returns to strict compliance with the nuclear deal, the United States would rejoin the agreement as a starting point for follow-on negotiations.

Rich Goldberg, a former White House Iran analyst, slammed Bidens op-ed as a lot of bumper sticker language about Iran without really addressing their vision of whether the arms embargo should expire.

I think its because they know theyre in a box, said Goldberg, now senior adviser at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, a national security think tank.

The political maneuverings come as Trump is eager to claim foreign policy victories ahead of the election. Many of his 2016 pledges remain unfulfilled. Among them: The wall along the border with Mexico remains incomplete. Trumps senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner presented a plan but did not make peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. And troops remain in Afghanistan.

Critics say the administrations maximum pressure campaign has turned up the temperature with Iran, but with little to show for it, as the regime wont budge and has continued to increase its stockpile of enriched uranium, according to the latest report from the U.N.s atomic watchdog.

In this picture released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a video conference in Tehran, Iran, Sept. 1, 2020.

The main result of the Trump administrations maximum pressure campaign has been the fraying of U.S. alliances and the steady expansion of Irans enriched uranium stockpile, wrote Kelsey Davenport, the director for nonproliferation policy at the Arms Control Association.

Trump is expected to discuss Iran on Tuesday in his virtual speech before the United Nations General Assembly. But the sanctions hell defend will be seen as more of his go-it-alone, America First strategy. Of the 15 U.N. Security Council members, only the Dominican Republic gave support for the U.S. decision to indefinitely extend an arms embargo on Iran.

Theres no question that the actions taken by the Trump administration continue to isolate America, not isolate Iran, Sherman said. The U.S. is more isolated at the U.N. and more isolated in the world.

The decision to ramp up pressure on Iran comes at an especially fraught moment in relations between Washington and Tehran. In January, Trump ordered the killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the leader of the elite Quds force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, which the U.S. has designated a terrorist organization. Since then, the two countries have exchanged repeated threats, including a warning by Trump to shoot down and destroy any and all Iranian gunboats if they harass our ships at sea.

POLITICO reported this week that Iran was weighing a plot to kill Lana Marks, the U.S. ambassador to South Africa, as part of its efforts to avenge Soleimanis death. The U.S. learned of the general threat months ago, two officials said, but the information had become more specific in recent weeks.

In the days since, Trump, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Adviser Robert OBrien have, without confirming the plot, nonetheless warned Iran against any move that would hurt U.S. interests. Any attack by Iran, in any form, against the United States will be met with an attack on Iran that will be 1,000 times greater in magnitude! Trump tweeted.

On Friday, South Africas State Security Agency issued a statement saying that it was talking to the relevant stakeholders.

At present, the information provided is not sufficient to sustain the allegation that there is credible threat against the United States ambassador to South Africa, it said. The South African officials have requested additional information from the United States government. Once the information is forthcoming, the facts will be reviewed and re-assessed.

The United States and South Africas law enforcement and intelligence services have what former diplomats and former spies describe as a cordial relationship  language that usually indicates a level of coolness and distrust. Its not at all clear that the United States would share details about what it knows with South Africa, given the desire to protect U.S. intelligence sources and methods.

South Africa and Iran, meanwhile, have a relatively warm relationship and have for years, another reason the U.S. might be wary of sharing information with South Africa. At the same time, Iran may not want to risk that warm relationship by ultimately going through with a plot against Marks.

Nahal Toosi contributed to this report.
Hilary Duff has been spending plenty of quality family time with her husband and kids during quarantine.

But the former Disney star is ready to get back to her routine, as Hollywood bounces back from the COVID-19 pandemic.

She added some punk to her mom-on-the-go look, as she grabbed lunch at an Italian deli in the Encino neighborhood of Los Angeles, during a busy day of errands.

Punk mom: Hilary Duff added some punk to her mom-on-the-go look, as she grabbed lunch at an Italian deli in the Encino neighborhood of Los Angeles, during a busy day of errands

The 32-year-old donned a plain white v-neck t-shirt, tied at the waist, with a mid-length satin grey cheetah print skirt.

She accessorized with diamond hoop earrings, a silver watch, silver and gold rings and a black face mask.

Hilary carried a quilted black leather handbag on a gold chain, strapped across her chest, as she grabbed her takeout.

She finished the ensemble with a pair of maroon leather Gucci boots, featuring large gold-encrusted jewels on the strap, paired with shimmering black and gold socks.

Fierce display: The 32-year-old donned a plain white v-neck t-shirt, tied at the waist, with a mid-length satin grey cheetah print skirt

Accessorizing: She accessorized with diamond hoop earrings, a silver watch, silver and gold rings and a black face mask

Kinky boots: Hilary carried a quilted black leather handbag on a gold chain, strapped across her chest, as she grabbed her takeout. She finished the ensemble with a pair of maroon leather Gucci boots, featuring large gold-encrusted jewels on the strap, paired with shimmering black and gold socks

Fall vibes: The Cinderella Story actress posted a snap of the boots to her Instagram Story, writing: 'Willing the fall weather ....'

The Cinderella Story actress posted a snap of the boots to her Instagram Story, writing: 'Willing the fall weather ....'

She's preparing to return to the set of Younger in a few weeks, after COVID-19 forced production to shutdown on the seventh (and likely last) season back in March.

Creator Darren Starr told TVLine earlier this week: 'We are unofficially planning [Season 7] as a final season.'

But a spinoff based on Hilary's book publisher character Kelsey Peters was announced in development back in May.

Back to work: She's preparing to return to the set of Younger in a few weeks, after COVID-19 forced production to shutdown on the seventh (and likely last) season back in March

Bittersweet farewell: Creator Darren Starr told TVLine earlier this week: 'We are unofficially planning [Season 7] as a final season'

Leading lady: But a spinoff based on Hilary's book publisher character Kelsey Peters was announced in development back in May

Meanwhile, the fate of Hilary's Lizzie McGuire reboot, which hit a snag in production back in January, is still up in the air.

After filming two episodes, original show creator Terri Minsky exited the project as showrunner, over apparent disagreements with Disney+ over the mature nature of some of the content.

Hilary updated E! News back in July: 'We are very much still in conversation with them a couple of times a week, which is really nice.

Up in the air: Meanwhile, the fate of Hilary's Lizzie McGuire reboot, which hit a snag in production back in January, is still up in the air

High hopes: Hilary updated E! News back in July: 'We are very much still in conversation with them a couple of times a week, which is really nice... I have high hopes that we are going to make it work'

'We started shooting, and then obviously that got on hold for a couple of different reasons not involving the pandemic, but you know what, I have high hopes that we are going to make it work.'

The So Yesterday artist has also suggest moving the show to Hulu, so that the show can grown with its fanbase for a more authentic adult experience.

She added: 'It's like a responsibility to [Lizzie], honoring her and the fanbase that grew up with her. We kind of put her on pause, and had to go back to the drawing board, but I feel optimistic that it will happen.'

Hilary starred as the titular preteen girl on the Disney Channel show, which originally ran for two seasons, from 2001 to 2004, also sparking a 2003 movie, which got a wide theatrical release.
A gap year was never on the cards for Barker College student Sam Kyprianou. But upon the recommendation of his year 12 teacher, he put university plans on hold earlier this year and packed his bags for south-west Queensland to work on an outback cattle station.

Within weeks he had adventured on quad bikes and helicopters, travelled across the Northern Territory border, and camped off-grid with a group of four workers in their 20s who have since become close friends. Despite suffering a broken foot along the way, he has no regrets. "It was probably the best thing ever," he said.

Sam Kyprianou's view of the cattle station from atop a horse, as he worked during his Queensland gap year. Credit:Sam Kyprianou

Three-quarters of year 12 students who planned on taking gap years next year have said they no longer will due to international travel restrictions. But the tourism industry is urging students to reconsider an Australian gap year, where opportunities range from road trips to adventure packages and working holidays.

A parliamentary inquiry last week suggested that school leavers spend a gap year fruit-picking in the regions, while executive director of the Australian Tourism Industry Council, Simon Westaway, said all aspects of the country's tourism industry were "forever requiring additional workers".
The Minister of Foreign Affairs was a guest at RTL Radio on Saturday morning.

The LSAP politician expects the 2023 national elections to focus on the issue of tax equality, a subject which has recently become a point of controversy in the Chamber.

Refugee policies

Asselborn underlined his and the country's position on humanitarian aids for refugees, stating that he would never back down from this position for as long as he remained in office. Since 2015, the Grand Duchy has treated around 11,600 applications and granted about 4,500 of them, which reflects 0.7% of the country's population. 15 refugees from the Moria Camp in Greece will be taken in by Luxembourg.

When asked about the recent call for his resignation from ADR, Asselborn explained that he would not see any basis for their argument. He noted that similar problems could easily be avoided if every European state were to due their part in the refugee crisis.

Covid-19 and borders



The minister conveyed that Germany might retighten their border security, meaning that a negative test result would no longer suffice to enter the country. The government might implement a mandatory quarantine period of 5 days instead. With Luxembourg's current infection numbers, we might soon be classified as an at-risk country again.

2023 elections

When asked about his own role in the next national elections, Asselborn explained that after 16 years in service, he would be more motivated than ever before to put his name back on the ballot.
Pumanque:

Authorities declared a state of catastrophe in central Chile as crews fought vast forest fires described as the worst in decades.

More than 450 square kilometers (175 square miles) were ablaze in the OHiggins regionan area roughly the size of Vienna or Tel Aviv.

As fire and emergency crews were brought in, officials evacuated 200 people from the mostly rural area south of the capital Santiago. Some 30 homes were affected in Cardenal Caro and Colchagua provinces, the National Emergency Office (ONEMI) said on Saturday.

A local ONEMI official, Josefina Lopez, told AFP that no one was hurt but there was economic damage.

Agriculture Minister Carlos Furche told national radio the disaster was a sort of earthquake for the region.

President Michelle Bachelet took time out of hosting a visit by French counterpart Francois Hollande to monitor the situation and declare the state of catastrophe, which allows soldiers to be used to help battle the fire. A farming emergency was also decreed.

Bachelet said France was offering help and she was also reaching out to other countries.

Chiles National Forestry Corporation said on Saturday that outside assistance was needed. Interior Minister Mario Fernandez said helicopters and planes in particular were required.

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Secretary-General of the Episcopal Conference of Mali, Fr. Alexandre Denou has said the answer to Malis political crisis is to be found in dialogue.

Vatican News English Africa Service - Vatican City

Malis military Coup leaders appeared Thursday to be pushing ahead with plans to install what they said would be a transitional president from either civil society or the military.

In the meantime, West Africas regional bloc, ECOWAS, said that it would immediately send a delegation to Mali to persuade the military to reinstate President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, as president. Keita was forced out of office by a group of soldiers on Tuesday.

Coup d'etats do not usually advance democracy

In general, seizing power by force does not advance democracy. And Mali has been facing a security crisis for several years now. It is not certain that this situation will necessarily move the country forward. The military who have taken power are the same ones we are relying upon to improve the country security, Fr. Denou told Vatican News French Africa Service.

The international community, regional bodies, and the African Union (AU) have all condemned Malis Coup.

Asked what he made of the jubilant crowds seen in Mali, the Secretary-General said the Coup d'etat surprised everyone.

Yes, we saw that some demonstrators were happy and supported the soldiers. We will have to wait a little longer. Only time will tell how things will unfold, said Fr. Denou.

Dialogue is what we need the most

Responding to criticism about the Catholic Church silence in the face of the unfolding political crisis, Fr. Denou said the Catholic Church has been working with other denominations to have a united position.

From the start, the Church has worked hard. We united with other religious denominations to have a common voice. The Church has not issued statements, but we have been active during the last few weeks of crisis. The Church has always advocated dialogue, asking that the different parties agree to come to some form of compromise and sit at the same table to chart the way forward. Our mission is spiritual, and where possible, we play a mediating role. However, it is the politicians, the political actors themselves, who must come to an understanding and find consensus among themselves. Once this is done, the Church can accompany them through counselling and prayers. Even as things stand now, we are praying for the country. We are urging prayers, novenas and fasting so that Mali can find peace as well as reconciliation, explained Fr. Denou.

Mali at the crossroads

Political observers fear that if the state and public institutions collapse, the consequences for Mali and its regional neighbours would be terrible. The fight against Jihadists would have been dealt a severe blow.
David Cameron must think the two kitchens story is doing Ed Miliband serious damage, because he managed to work no fewer than five jokes about it into Prime Ministers Questions.

Cameron and George Osborne are very sensitive about their image as two posh men who do not know what everyday life is like. They evidently want as much as possible of the same to be directed at Miliband.

Meanwhile, Cameron had himself photographed in The Sun, making a sardine and mayonnaise sandwich in a well-stocked kitchen, and he has proudly told Sarah Sands of the London Evening Standard: The kitchen is where you spend all your time. It needs a sofa you can slump on, a table you can sit at, a kitchen you can cook in, a place children can do their homework there has always been a kitchen at the heart of everything.

If he is prepared to let the world into his kitchen, what is his problem with Milibands? The answer is that Ed and Justine Miliband stand accused of trying to make their home appear more Spartan than it actually is by being photographed in a small, austere kitchenette when they have a larger kitchen on a lower floor.

You shouldnt pretend to be something you are not, Cameron told the Standard. It is an interesting pitch by Cameron that he is truly upper-class and rich, where Miliband is something he pretends not to be. I can see why it might hurt Miliband, but it is not going to do much for Cameron.

A bookie-bashing Budget

It was rash of Ladbrokes to offer odds of 10-1 that George Osbornes Budget speech would include a two kitchens joke. They admit it has cost them. The rumour is that, combined with odds of 4-1 that he would say were all in it together, it has set them back 20,000.

Archer turns up for once

There is a section of the gallery overlooking the Commons reserved for MPs and members of the House of Lords. It was, of course, full today. Sitting between Lord Mandelson and Lord Feldman was Lord Archer of Weston-Super-Mare, better known as Jeffrey Archer. He has not spoken or voted in the Lords for more than 14 years, since he was expelled from the Conservative Party, arrested and jailed for perjury. But he was never expelled from the Lords because, until this month, that could not be done.

The only reason Lord Archer never clocks in is that he chooses not to. This month, the law was changed, and a peer who behaves as Lord Archer once did can be expelled from the House of Lords. But he need not worry: it is not retrospective.

Mandy is Strictly desirable

Claudia Winkelman, co-host of Strictly Come Dancing, has named Lord Mandelson as the politician she would next like to see on the show. Not a bad choice. The journalist Anne McElvoy danced with Peter Mandelson when he was a new MP and found the experience glorious.

The MP for Hartlepools taut thigh muscles were locked behind mine as we flung this way and that, she wrote. Emboldened by our unexpected compatibility, we dabbled in the twist, the waltz, the hoe-down and a fetching hip-bumping number of our own invention. When they played one of those songs of the early 1980s, to which everyone does the same preposterous routine with their arms in the air, we abandoned all dignity and did that too.

I shall try to get that image out of my mind.
WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump on Friday announced a package of billions in federal aid for Puerto Rico to help it recover from a powerful hurricane that hit the island three years ago - a move that comes as his reelection campaign increasingly relies on winning Florida with support from its Latino communities.

The announcement marks a sharp reversal from the president's past approach toward disaster aid for the U.S. territory, assistance that Trump and his administration had held up even as the island struggled to recover from hurricane Maria, which ravaged it in September 2017. Since that storm ripped across the island, Trump has repeatedly said he didn't want more aid sent to Puerto Rico, publicly questioned the hurricane death toll and called the territory's leaders corrupt while trading insults with some of them as they pushed Washington for more assistance.

But on Friday, Trump ignored that history and brazenly declared that his only interest has been in helping the island.

"I'm the best thing that ever happened to Puerto Rico," Trump said at a news conference at the White House. "Nobody even close."

The announcement Friday underscores the importance of winning Florida - which Trump designated as his official residence this year - and its 29 electoral votes to his reelection chances.

He won the state by 1.2 percentage points in 2016, but recent polling shows him effectively tied with Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. Though Biden has several potential paths to winning the 270 electoral votes needed to secure the presidency, Trump has fewer routes, making Florida a more critical battleground for him. Both campaigns consider the state's Puerto Rican population a key to securing victory.

Earlier this week, Biden traveled to central Florida - an area rich with voters of Puerto Rican descent - and detailed his plans for the island amid signs that his own presidential bid was struggling to gain traction with Latinos in the state.

The FEMA package announced for Puerto Rico on Friday includes $9.6 billion for repairing the island's electrical grid and a separate $2 billion grant for the island's education department to rebuild schools and other facilities. The White House characterized it as the largest tranche of federal aid designated for a disaster aside from Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy.

The federal largesse unveiled Friday runs counter not only to Trump's long-running rhetorical feud with Puerto Rico and its current and former leaders, but also conflicts with his administration's years-long efforts to stall or even eliminate disaster aid to the island after Maria. Trump has falsely claimed that Puerto Rico has been awarded more than $90 billion in federal assistance and has complained that the island was getting too much disaster aid.

The image most associated with Trump's visit to the island in 2017 is of him tossing paper towels to residents who had gathered to receive emergency supplies.

Even now, there is still funding designated by lawmakers for Puerto Rico relief that the administration has yet to release, including $2 billion set aside for electrical projects - the precise target of Friday's aid package - that has not been made available, according to a congressional aide. The Department of Housing and Urban Development would be responsible for releasing that money.

Among the instances where Trump stirred controversy regarding Puerto Rico is when he falsely claimed that the death toll was lower than official estimates, called Puerto Rico "one of the most corrupt places on earth" and implied that Puerto Rico was not part of the United States, saying in a tweet last year that its politicians "only take from USA."

Trump also pressed the Office of Management and Budget to find ways to limit how much money went to the island, according to former administration officials who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations. In recent years, Trump was presse by a number of aides, including former homeland security adviser Tom Bossert, to let Puerto Rico have the money approved by Congress after the storm when the president repeatedly wanted to block it from being sent.

Miles Taylor, a former top official at the Department of Homeland Security, recently alleged that Trump wanted to swap Puerto Rico for Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory that the president has sought to acquire for the United States.

"Every time Puerto Rico would come up, his position would be that he didn't want a dollar to go to the island," one former senior administration official said. "Different people would explain to him why the island needed at least some of the money, but he wasn't having any of it."

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla. -- whose outreach to Puerto Ricans in Florida has been credited, in part, for his win against former Sen. Bill Nelson, D, in 2018 - speaks to Trump regularly about Puerto Rico and tries to ensure that the president is in regular communication with the island's leaders.

"Since he ran in 2016, I have been clear that he needs to be very supportive of the island ... and got even more clear after Maria hit that he needs to be very supportive of relief efforts, very supportive of the rebuild of the economy," Scott said Friday. "I have been a pain in the rear to him on this issue."

Trump remains deeply unpopular among many Puerto Ricans, who blame him for the federal government's poorly managed disaster relief efforts after Maria. Nonetheless, Scott argued that these voters would look beyond Trump's past rhetoric and instead focus on the economy, education and public safety.

Tens of thousands of the island's residents permanently moved to Florida in the aftermath of Maria, according to studies, and the state is home to more than 1.2 million people of Puerto Rican descent. Many of them live in Kissimmee, where Biden on Tuesday detailed a plan to develop a federal working group on Puerto Rico that would focus on storm recovery and economic advancement efforts. He also stressed his support of statehood for Puerto Rico, whose voters have a referendum on the issue in November.

On Friday, the Biden campaign and other Democrats called the aid announcement a craven election-year ploy aimed at winning over Puerto Rican voters, who tend to favor Democrats. Tatiana Matta, the Biden campaign's Latino adviser, said Trump was trying to "paper over his disgusting treatment of Puerto Ricans" - a move she called "utterly disrespectful and offensive."

"For the thousands of families who had to leave the island, for all those we've lost, for those who still struggle every day to keep a roof over their heads and food on the table, it is three years too little and too late," Matta said.

One Trump campaign adviser said the president could have easily done this years ago instead of waiting this late, and the person said the lack of support among Puerto Ricans is "one of the reasons we are behind." Campaign officials have noted to Trump that the Orlando area is particularly rich with Puerto Rican voters that the president needs to win over in November.

But Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon, R, Puerto Rico's sole representative to Congress, defended the timing of the announcement, which came 46 days before the election.

She said that she, along with other government officials in the U.S. territory, have been working for months with Rear Adm. Peter Brown, the White House's point person for Puerto Rico disaster recovery, to develop the aid package, which Gonzalez-Colon said was "ready when it was ready."

The grant money not only provides funding that Puerto Rico can immediately access, but the reconstruction of the electrical grid will provide the infrastructure to revive the island's pharmaceutical and medical device sector and further spur its economy, Gonzalez-Colon said.

"Many people may disagree with [Trump] in the things he has said, but he is delivering for the island with the resources we need," she said, adding: "We've never received this amount of money, ever."

Florida state Sen. Annette Taddeo, a Democrat who represents a Miami-Dade County district, said she thinks the administration's disaster relief announcement is too little and too late to make a difference, and could even backfire in its brazenness.

"Talk about despacito," she said. The word, which means "slowly" in Spanish, has been popularized by a song by Luis Fonsi that Biden played during his Florida appearance Tuesday. "It's really actually quite insulting that a few weeks before an election, they now get religion? Give me a break."

Jorge Duany, the director of the Cuban Research Institute at Florida International University, said an estimated 400,000 Puerto Ricans live in the greater Orlando metropolitan area, and he said new arrivals to the mainland are often swing voters who are more conservative in their political and religious views.

Sustained outreach by Republicans has given them relative strength with Latinos in Florida compared with other states - especially among Cubans, who have a history of supporting Republicans, but increasingly also Puerto Ricans and perhaps also religious Latino voters of various ethnic backgrounds. Playing the margins could be effective in a race that is tight overall, Duany said.

"This could be a battle between Cuban Americans in South Florida and Puerto Rican voters in Central Florida," he said. "A few thousand people can make a difference."

- - -

The Washington Post's Annie Linskey contributed to this report.
A three-day online international conference on Sustainable Development through Engineering Innovation was started at Guru Nanak Dev Engineering College (GNDEC) here on Saturday.

The conference, which was inaugurated by IIT Ropar director SK Dass, aims at highlighting innovative solutions to various engineering problems.

In his welcome address, GNDEC principal Sehijpal Singh stressed the need for innovation to build a sustainable society. He said the college is promoting a culture of innovation with support from industry.

Giving details, co-chairperson H S Rai said the three-day multi-track conference will comprise four parallel sessions each day. He stressed upon connecting within the nature which is necessary for sustainable development.

The organising secretaries informed that over 250 papers were received from researchers from around the globe, out of which 115 papers have been accepted for publication. The papers have featured in the lecture notes series of a well-know publisher Springer.

Professor R S Bhatti from Mount Royal University, Calgary, Canada, one of the keynote speakers said the world is facing drastic climatic change and there was an urgent need to adopt new business to survive. He gave examples from real life of water saving by Scotland using sensors in pipes leading to conservation of 2 trillion gallons of water.

Mukhinder Singh, one of the distinguished industrialists of Punjab and managing director of SECO, said that innovation was the tool with technology as raw material. CII Punjab vice-chairman and GNDEC alumnus Rahul Ahuja expressed fear that our current developments will not make us survive in the next century. He said now is the exciting phase and is challenging for people who seek sustainable development through innovation. He cited 3Ps  planet, people and profit  as necessary pillars of sustainable development and urged the students to develop innovative ideas from their daily experiences.

Chief guest Sarit K Das said it was only in the last 30 years that sustainable development was being talked about. He stressed upon making an institution with innovative culture and research orientation.
Dear Heloise: There are certain reasons rescues need fosters. One is so we have somewhere safe and normal to house the dogs, and so they can learn to be treated like family members, and to prep them for their next step  a forever family. We need someone to show care, love and compassion that the dogs may not have had before.
The next Miss New Zealand winner could be a beautiful 26-year-old woman who was born a boy named Andrew.

Arielle Keil will make history next month in Auckland as the first post-operative transgender contestant in the pageant, but the glamorous trailblazer is hoping to go one step further and be crowned the winner.

But while the concept of beauty pageants may seem a little outdated in 2020, Arielle says they're 'actually badass'.

Arielle Keil (pictured) is a 26-year-old transgender model aiming to be crowned Miss New Zealand

Arielle Keil (pictured) will make history next month as the first transgender contestant in the Miss New Zealand pageant, but the glamorous trailblazer is hoping to go one step further and be crowned the winner.

'People think it's world peace and fake smiles but the women who compete are beautiful on the inside. They're out doing stuff in their communities. They're educated. For me, they're like badass and I always wanted to be like that,' she told the NZ Herald.

Born in the Philippines and emigrating as a toddler, Arielle said Filipinos see beauty pageants the same way Kiwis view rugby.

But being raised in a traditional southeast Asian family meant it wasn't always easy for the young model.

Her family were not supportive of her transition and she has not spoken to her mother in over three years.

When her parents found out she was undergoing hormone treatment, they gave Arielle two choices - stop or leave home.

That night she packed everything she owned into a black rubbish bag and walked out, not knowing what would become of her.

The next Miss New Zealand winner could be a beautiful 26-year-old woman that was born as a boy named Andrew (pictured)

Born in the Philippines and emigrating as a toddler, Arielle (pictured) said Filipinos see beauty pageants the same way Kiwis view rugby

'My life turned upside down when I transitioned ... but I would rather go through hell as a woman than have an easy life as a man. Whatever the universe wants to throw at me - do it.'

She has battled severe bouts of depression and contemplated taking her own life.

Arielle was raised by the church to believe she would rot in hell for wanting to be a woman.

But despite the hardship, she chose to live life unapologetically and now she says she's happy, not scared, and here to stay as a woman.

Although New Zealand's health system does allow for publicly funded gender-affirming surgery in some cases, the process to gain approval is arduous and the waiting list is long.

So Arielle elected to go to Thailand and pay paid $15,000 for the 'top to bottom' procedure that involved breast implants and a vaginoplasty.

Arielle (pictured) elected to go to Thailand and pay paid $15,000 for the 'top to bottom' procedure that involved breast implants and a vaginoplasty

'My life turned upside down when I transitioned ... but I would rather go through hell as a woman than have an easy life as a man' Arielle said

If Arielle were to be crowned Miss New Zealand, it would not be unprecedented when it comes to pageants around the globe

Angela Maria Ponce Camacho became the first transgender woman to compete in the Miss Universe contest after claiming the title of Miss Spain in 2018.

Before that, one of Arielle's hero's Jenna Talackova, won a lengthy legal battle in 2012 which allowed her to compete in the Miss Canada pageant.

Recently New Zealand has introduced a number of controversial new curriculum guidelines which enables school children to choose their own gender and pronounces.

Although the initiative has copped some backlash, Arielle says it's not something anyone should worry about.

'They're not asking you to transition with them, it won't change your daily life. You won't lose anything by being kind, loving and supportive,' she said.

Arielle (pictured with a shirtless man) was raised by the church to believe she would rot in hell for wanting to be a woman
T his is the first picture of a man who died after being found on fire in Mitcham, as murder detectives named the victim.

Emergency crews scrambled to Commonside East just after 6am on Thursday to reports of a man on fire. Officers attended and the body of a man was found.

Murder detectives have identified the man as Loeike Guei, who was aged 23 and lived in Thornton Heath.

Mr Guei's death is being treated as suspicious by police. His family are aware and are being supported by specially trained officers.

A post-mortem examination on Friday gave his preliminary cause of death as a head injury.

Metropolitan Police said no arrests have been made and a crime scene remains in place as the Specialist Crime Command investigates.

Detective Chief Inspector Wayne Jolley, who is leading the investigation, said: Loeikes family have been intensely shocked by the loss of their loved one and are at the very beginning of coming to terms with their grief.

"Foremost in our thoughts are their welfare  they are being supported by specially trained officers and we ask that their privacy is respected at this terribly sad time.

We are in the initial stages of our investigation and are keeping an open mind with regards any motive. We are making good progress, following a number of leads and have spoken to a number of people already."

He added: "What I need now is for anyone who has not spoken to us yet but has seen any suspicious activity or vehicles in the vicinity to make contact with us immediately.

You may have information that may seem insignificant but could prove crucial to our investigation.

"I urge you to contact us immediately, or tell us what you know via Crimestoppers if you wish. What matters most is that you make the call.

"Loeikes family are traumatised and we need the support of the public in bringing them justice.

Any witnesses or anyone with information is asked to call police via 101 quoting CAD 1135/17Sep. To remain anonymous, please contact Crimestoppers.
Australian Judge Quits Hong Kong Court, Citing National Security Law

HONG KONG/SYDNEYOne of the 14 foreign judges on Hong Kongs highest court has resigned due to concerns over a sweeping new national security law imposed by Beijing on the city, Australias national broadcaster reported on Friday.

The office of the citys leader Carrie Lam confirmed the resignation of Australian judge James Spigelman but did not give a reason.

Spigelman, the former chief justice of New South Wales, is the first senior judge to resign and publicly cite the law, passed by the Chinese regimes rubber-stamp legislature on June 30 without any Hong Kong legislative process or consultation.

The Polish-born jurist told the ABC that he had resigned for reasons related to the content of the national security legislation but did not elaborate further.

Spigelman did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters for comment.

Local and international legal circles have been alarmed at Beijings imposition of the security law, fearing it erodes the former British colonys autonomy and freedoms.

Under the security legislation, Lam has the right to select judges for a panel of jurists to handle national security cases. In the most serious cases, suspects can also be taken to mainland China for trial in its courts, which are ultimately controlled by the Communist Party.

It also grants extensive powers to personnel from mainland Chinas security apparatus, who are now based in the city for the first time under the law.

Mr Justice Spigelman tendered to the Chief Executive on 2 September his resignation as a Non-Permanent Judge of the Court of Final Appeal, therefore the Chief Executive revoked his appointment in accordance with the relevant legislation, Lams office responded in an email to queries about his departure.

Spigelman had been re-appointed to another three-year term last year.

Foreign judges have long been a symbol of the citys rule of law, helping to replace the role of the Privy Council in London after Britain handed the city back to Chinese rule in 1997.

Hong Kongs mini-constitution, known as the Basic Law, enshrines the independence of the judiciary and states that judges may come from other common law jurisdictions.

But Lam and her officials have in recent weeks stressed that the city had no separation of powers, and that the powers of its executive, legislature and judiciary all derived from Beijing.

Even before new laws were enacted, senior judges had told Reuters the independence of Hong Kongs judicial system was under assault from the Communist Party leadership in Beijing.

Simon Young, a professor at the University of Hong Kong law school and a barrister, on Friday urged the government to name the judges cleared for national security work to stop possible speculation that foreign jurists were not welcome.

The ball is clearly now in the governments court to assure the public it still supports the system of foreign judges on Hong Kongs apex court, he said.

Senior barristers said they believed other senior judges were now considering their futures.

In July, the president of the UK Supreme Court said it was in discussions with the British government to assess the future of UK judges on Hong Kongs top court. Robert Reed, who also serves on the Hong Kong court, said the new law contains a number of provisions which give rise to concerns.

By Greg Torode and Swati Pandey
The number of policies violated at the Albuquerque Police Department skyrocketed 275% and suspensions jumped more than 350%.

KOAT-TV reports documents on police misconduct showed the number of policy violations increased from 190 to 716 over a year. The number of violations requiring a suspension spiked from 52 to 237.

The station compared data from July 2018 to June 2019 with information from July 2019 to June 2020.

Albuquerque police are required under their own policies to report on police misconduct every four months, but nothing had been published since last year until the station asked for the reports. The department says the lack of reports was an oversight.

KOAT-TV also found that five times more police employees were fired compared with the previous reporting year.

Newly named interim police chief Harold Medina says the Albuquerque Police Department is now holding officers accountable when they need to be held accountable.

But Albuquerque Police Officers Association president Shaun Willoughby says officers are being punished for things such as not putting away lapel cameras properly or wearing sunglasses while speaking to the public.

Albuquerque police are under court-ordered reforms following a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into excessive force.
Nara Lokesh demanded the YSRCP Government to explain why it had arrested 'innocent' Atchannaidu in the ESI scam but was not initiating any action against its Labour Minister Gummanuru Jayaram.

Telugu Desam Party General Secretary and MLC Nara Lokesh demanded the YSRCP Government to explain why it had arrested innocent Atchannaidu in the ESI scam but was not initiating any action against its Labour Minister Gummanuru Jayaram despite having clear proof of his involvement in corruption.

Mr. Lokesh demanded immediate arrest of Minister Jayaram because of the availability of evidence regarding the costly Benz car gift received through his son from an accused person in the ESI scam. In a statement here, Mr. Lokesh asked why the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) officials were not arresting the Minister despite having proof of his involvement. A Benz car bought with looted money was offered as a gift to the YSRCP Minister. It was brazen plunder of money meant for the betterment of the poor people in the State.

Condemning the lack of action till now, Mr. Lokesh called it a loot and scoot regime in Andhra Pradesh which was creating an all round socio-economic and political crisis affecting all sections of people in the State now. Money meant for the poor families was being looted and plundered openly without any fear of the laws of the land and the judicial institutions.

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The former Minister asked the Chief Minister why he was protecting the tainted Minister regardless of his bold promise to provide corruption-free governance and administration. Minister Jayaram was not able to give convincing replies as to why his family members had accepted the Rs. 1 Cr costly car. This gift would not have been given without taking a huge benefit in return from the Minister. Ultimately, the YSRCP leaders were betraying and looting the same poor people with whose votes they came to power with a massive mandate in 2019.

Mr. Lokesh asserted that they have got some more evidence to prove the undoubted involvement of Minister Jayaram in the ESI scam. The YSRCP should pay a heavy price for arresting, harassing and persecuting Atchannaidu despite not having any evidence against the TDP former Ministers. It is because of these atrocities against all sections that the Jagan Reddy party has lost its support among the backward classes and weaker sections in just 16 months.

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Alexey Navalny's team was at breakfast in the Siberian city of Tomsk when they received word that the opposition leader had fallen violently ill on his flight home to Moscow.

The activists raced to the room in the Xander hotel he'd left hours before and scrambled to collect evidence. "It was obvious to us that Navalny hadn't just gotten a bit sick," they recalled in an Instagram post Thursday. "We decided to take everything that might be of use."

A plastic Svyatoi Istochnik ('Holy Source') water bottle they picked up would weeks later be found by a German military lab to have traces of Novichok, the weapons-grade nerve agent first developed by the Soviets. The use of a banned chemical weapon in the Aug. 20 attack has left German authorities with little doubt that the operation was ordered from the highest levels of the Russian government, according to three officials in Berlin familiar with the findings.

Quick action by the pilot of his flight to make an emergency landing and the medical personnel that first treated him likely saved the 44-year-old's life, German officials and his colleagues said. The sloppiness of his would-be assassins left a trail of evidence pointing to the Kremlin that Berlin could not ignore.

What Western officials call a botched attempt to kill a leading opposition figure has triggered a new downward spiral in Russia's ties with Europe, and above all with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose patience had already been tested by President Vladimir Putin. Her government was grappling with how to respond to a 2015 cyberattack on the Bundestag and a 2019 killing in Berlin, both of which were ordered by Russian state actors, German prosecutors say.

Even against the Kremlin's track record of malfeasance, the brazen targeting of a chief critic would be devastating to Putin's already low standing in the West, a European diplomat said.

The Kremlin says it found no proof Navalny was poisoned and has rejected Merkel's calls to open a criminal investigation. Russian officials have presented a variety of conflicting accounts of what may have happened, ranging from claims Navalny was merely sick to suggestions he was poisoned after he was taken to Germany in a medically induced coma for treatment days after the attack.

Western officials dismiss those claims. Calling on Moscow to answer for the attack, the European Union and others are weighing a response that could range from expelling Russian diplomats to more painful economic sanctions. Merkel has suggested she could even take action against the 9.5-billion-euro ($11 billion) Nord Stream 2 pipeline to carry Russian gas to Germany.

From his Berlin hospital room, Navalny has begun posting Instagram shots.

Known for his YouTube videos exposing official corruption and targeting the ruling party, Navalny has long been a target for Kremlin ire. Putin and other top officials go to elaborate linguistic lengths to avoid saying his name in public. Putin's spokesman calls him "the Berlin patient."

But while over his years of activism, he's been repeatedly jailed for weeks at a time and attacked on the streets by opponents - at one point nearly losing sight in one eye - the poisoning attack marks the first clear attempt on his life.

The Kremlin has a long and deadly history of using such weapons to go after those who fell out of favor, with mixed success. The 2018 attack on former spy Sergei Skripal in Salisbury, U.K., didn't kill him, but sickened several others and killed one bystander who came into contact with the Novichok.

The attack on Navalny took place in the heart of Siberia, where he would seemingly have been an easier target for assassins from the Federal Security Service, or FSB, whose agents had been following his every move for years, according to his allies.

Navalny and his team were in Tomsk filming a video about local corruption ahead of regional elections, hoping to mobilize supporters to defeat the ruling party. A few of the team had stayed with the camera crew to finish shooting while Navalny with several others went back to Moscow.

Shortly after the aircraft took off, however, Navalny was stricken, screaming in pain and losing consciousness, according to witnesses and video from the flight. The crew asked if any doctors were aboard and made plans for an emergency landing in Omsk, the nearest city.

As they descended, the airport tower warned them that a bomb threat had been phoned in to the terminal. But the pilots weren't fazed, asking for the ambulance to be dispatched directly to the runway.

Had the plane continued its 4.5-hour flight to Moscow, Navalny could have died, according to allies.

On the ground in Omsk, medical personnel quickly read his symptoms as poisoning and rushed him to the toxicology ward. He was administered atropine, the only drug effective against agents like Novichok.

Back in Tomsk, police still hadn't secured his hotel room even as news of his illness spread around the world. Navalny's colleagues took the water bottle and other evidence and headed for the airport to make their way to Germany, where they hoped he'd be taken for treatment.

"The FBK brilliantly outplayed the FSB," opposition politician Vladimir Milov wrote on Twitter, referring to the Russian initials of Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation. "They took evidence from under their noses (a bottle with Novichok from the Tomsk hotel) and got it out of the country."

Vladimir Uglev, an expert from the team that developed the poison decades ago, said he suspects the Novichok was put on the water bottle in an effort to kill Navalny during the flight or shortly after. "The people who did this calculated everything down to the smallest detail, but they failed to take into account one crucial thing: the human factor," he said.

Officials initially refused to allow Navalny to be flown to Germany, delaying the private jet that had come to fetch him long enough that its crew had to spend hours longer resting under aviation-safety rules. But by Saturday morning, less than 48 hours after falling ill, he was flown to Berlin by a private group backed by Merkel's government.

Medical tests at the Charite hospital in the heart of the German capital quickly showed that Navalny had been poisoned with a cholinesterase inhibitor, a category of chemicals that includes pesticides, medications and nerve agents.

Days later, the German military's Institute for Pharmacology and Toxicology, one of the few laboratories in the world with first-hand knowledge of the toxin, made the Novichok conclusion. That Wednesday morning, Merkel gathered six top cabinet members to inform them - and agreed that a swift response was necessary. Police tightened security around the hospital, fearing another attempt on his life.

For Merkel, a self-described Russophile who grew up in East Germany, a deep well of patience had been emptied. Her message to the Kremlin was blunt by her standards.

"It's clear that Alexey Navalny is the victim of a crime," Merkel told reporters gathered hours later. "The intent was to silence him."
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SSR case: Showik`s WhatsApp chats with drug peddler accessed, more arrests



The Mumbai unit of the Narcotics Control Bureau, probing drugs angle in the actor Sushant Singh Rajput death case, has taken five people into custody and seized 928 gm charas and cash after raiding the residence of one of them, the anti-drug agency said.



"On revelation of Ankush Arenja in his statement under section 67 that Rahil Rafat Vishra, alias Sam, had supplied Charas to Ankush Arenja, a total of 928gms of Charas and Rs. 4,36,000 in cash has been seized from the house search of said Rahil Rafat Vishra. Further investigation is under progress," the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) said in a statement.



Actress Rhea Chakraborty's brother Showik Chakraborty's WhatsApp chats with drug dealer Anuj Keshwani have been accessed and it makes some startling revelations. As per the chat, Anuj first sent Showik a picture of Ganja, to which the latter replied saying, ok get me this but he quality should be good, stuff should be good. Last time, the stuff was not good." Read More...


Hundreds of masked mourners gathered Friday night in San Franciscos Castro district to honor Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer.

They gathered outside of the San Francisco Human Rights Campaign Store on Castro Street, clutching candles and taking turns sharing a megaphone. Castro Street was filled with people from 19th to 18th streets.

Alex U. Inn, who helped organize the last-minute gathering, said People came out because they wanted community. Inn told The Chronicle that Ginsburg saved our transgender community with her last vote.

Its a chance to identify with people and support one another, Inn said. Nobody comes out during a pandemic unless they are doing it because of a conviction.

Inn pointed to Ginsburgs statement to her family before her death that she hoped a new Justice would not be confirmed until a new president is elected.

Three hours after shes gone, Messed-Up Mitch is talking about her replacement, Inn said, referring to U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Did he even allow enough time for her spirit to rise?

Zachary and Amanda Warno told The Chronicle they brought their 3-year-old daughter Zadie Quinn to the vigil to pay their respects to Ginsburg.

Zadie learned about Ginsburg from a book called, Baby Feminists, which she brought to the vigil.

We were feeling sad and thought being around other people would make us feel better, said Zachary Warno.

In a tweet Friday night, State Sen. Scott Wiener shared two photos of the gathering, which showed hundreds of people filling the rainbow-flagged street and holding candles. In another photo, three people held a white sign that said, simply, We wont let you down RBG.

San Francisco Supervisor Rafael Mandelman announced on Twitter that the vigil was planned for 7 p.m. Friday at Harvey Milk Plaza in San Francisco. The gathering was scheduled just hours after news broke about her death.

Bring a candle, and wear a mask, Mandelman had said.

At the vigil, there was a small march from Harvey Milk Plaza Plaza to 19th and Castro. Mandelman, Weiner and civil rights leader Cleve Jones marched.

It was spontaneous, Mandelman said of the gathering. People really wanted to come together and grieve.

J.K. Dineen is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jdineen@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @sfjkdineen
Trying to navigate through a maze blind without legs  this is how Molly McNamara describes the feelings of pain and hopelessness accompanying the trauma of suicide.

McNamara is the founder and executive director of the Cypress-based nonprofit His Whole House, a ministry that uses a faith-based approach to help trauma survivors. The organization works to break the cycle of trauma and shame through training, mentoring and counseling. Among its clients are people whose loved ones have attempted or carried out suicide, as well as individuals who may themselves struggle with suicidal thoughts.

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We are not a crisis intervention ministryhowever, what Ive come to understand is there is a long-term recovery period for all of us  including myself, said McNamara, who had herself overcome attempts of suicide as a teenager.

As a suicide survivor, McNamara will be sharing her story of loss and resilience during a live online talk Sept. 30 in observance of National Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month.

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On March 31, 1998, McNamara said she received the most horrendous news of her life  her son, Adam Thomas, had died of suicide.

It was in that moment that I became the most reluctant survivor of suicide and truly felt a very, very dark cloud come over, she said. It had been one of several traumas that had occurred within a short period of time. Id lost both my parents just months beforeand this was my only living child. It was something that took me to the bottom of my ability to function and I felt as if I was in a maze, blind without legs.

She lived in the oppressive shadow of that dark cloud for 11 years. She finally came to recognize that what shed experienced was trauma  the trauma of loss. She founded His Whole House in 2010.

When I came out of the silence of my own pain and trauma and started the 501(c)3, my intention was to begin to share and give a place for people to share their pain, their story, she said. To be able to find a place to connect to life-giving principles to bring them back into a place of healing and wholeness and a place where they can be welcome and connected and comfortable.

Recognizing the signs

Suicide was the tenth leading cause of death in 2018 in the United States, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. Despite its prevalence, McNamara said that people may be reluctant to discuss suicide because of perceived stigmas surrounding the topic.

Suicide is a silent epidemic and one of the components is the sense of helplessness and hopelessness that comes forward when a person is considering it, McNamara said. Theres also a component of stigma and because of that, it feels like the person has a sense of feeling like what they have to bring is a rotten basket of fruit. We need to learn how to connect with peoples pain. We need to learn how to unpack the story that has brought them to that place and the silence can be broken so that we can see people begin to build some resilience.

If a loved one exhibits warning signs of suicide, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline recommends having an open and non-judgmental conversation with them about suicide. According to the website, some signs that an individual may be at risk of suicide include: expressing hopelessness, feeling trapped or in pain; feeling theyre a burden to other people; increased alcohol or drug use; anxious or agitated behavior; and becoming withdrawn or isolated from others.

Help for people at risk

McNamara said it may be difficult but initiating that conversation with at-risk loved ones is key to getting them the help they need.

Its about being willing to be that friend and to learn how to move past that barrier  it definitely feels like a barrier  and be able ask the question, are you considering suicide, McNamara said. Even those words in western culture have been very, very difficult because mostly people dont know what to do with it except to take someone to the hospital. And as we know, the hospitals are overrun. It may be a matter of taking them to the hospital, and sometimes its a matter of listening first to see what direction to take with that person. Learning how to get down into the hole with the person and say, hey, this is hard, this is painful, I hear what youre saying, tell me more. Being able to ask them if theyre willing to let you walk with them as you walk them out of the pit.

Suicide rates in the United States have climbed steadily over the past decade according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, and recently, there has been a dramatic spike in the number of people seeking help for mental health distress, McNamara said.

That is related to COVID. This is not a small condition and the awareness and prevention thats necessary is critical at this moment especially as people have been tucked away and isolated even more so with the COVID, she said.

A few local resources for mental health and crisis intervention include: Crisis Intervention of Houston, www.crisishotline.org; NAMI Greater Houston, www.namigreaterhouston.org; Mental Health America of Greater Houston, www.mhahouston.org; and UTHealth Harris County Psychiatric Center, www.hcpc.uth.edu.

More about His Whole House

His Whole House offers an online option for people requesting prayer counseling. McNamara said that those who provide counseling through the organization are trained under the Elijah House international model.

The model is a faith-based perspective of Christian counseling in relation to people that are licensed in ministry or perhaps theyre counselors already or health care workers. It requires about 6,000 hours of practicum, she said. The people that come for counseling, we see individuals and couples  and you dont have to be Christian of course to receive counseling.

The organization houses its administrative office at The Work Well near U.S. 290 and FM 1960, and has locations in Katy and the San Antonio area.

In addition to faith-based counseling and prayer ministry, resources available through His Whole House include a 12- to 16-week mentor partnership program geared toward leaders of organizations and businesses; and staff and group training on trauma resilience.

His Whole House is developing an awareness training program called Fully in Touch, or FIT, which will train participants to help others by asking authentic questions and engaging in empathetic conversations. McNamara said the organization is scheduled to roll out the new training in 2021.

Among its community partners is an organization called The Get Together, which is a group of business professionals who pool their resources to help support faith-based nonprofits like His Whole House.

We look for ministries that are meeting a unique need in our city and can utilize the resources of our business network, said Ginger Harris, executive director of The Get Together. When we met Molly McNamara and her team at His Whole House we knew that we wanted to participate in their work. Weve now partnered with them for over a year and will continue this partnership. They serve the community by walking alongside people who are experiencing trauma and need to experience freedom. They host community events to educate, encourage and restore attendees. They are a lifeline for our community.

McNamaras live online talk in observance of National Suicide Prevention Month is scheduled from 2:30-3:30 p.m. on Sept. 30. Anyone can register by Sept. 25 to attend Grasping in the Dark: Journeying Through the Trauma of Suicide by visiting www.hiswholehouse.org/events.

mfeuk@hcnonline.com
Lounge Heroes: A roadside library by Ngurang Meena hopes to fuel the urge to learn This government school teacher and social activist has started a streetside library and an adult education centre to empower women and youth in Nirjuli town

Its a cheery day in Nirjuli, a townof nearly 5,000 in Arunachal Pradeshs Papum Pare district. Children are standing in a small group near a wooden shelf set up on the street, reading books. Sudha Murtys Three Thousand Stitches shares space with I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai (co-written with Christina Lamb) and Barack Obamas Dreams From My Father. Its a roadside library, started by Ngurang Meena for both children and adults two weeksago.

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Meena, 30, works at the governments Rajiv Gandhi University Secondary School, teaching social science and English to classes IX and X. Six years ago, she founded the Ngurang Learning Institute, an adult literacy centre. In 2016, she was joined by her sister, Reena, and her fiance. It is targeted at tribal womenthose who are oppressed, widowed, or simply have not had the chance to continue their education.

She sounds excited when we speak. She has just received a message on Facebook from Delhi-based Bee Rowlatt, the author of Talking About Jane Austen In Baghdad, who wants to send some books for the library. She has spent over 20,000 of her own money to set it up, buying some books and using some from her collection, but offers of help with funds and books are now coming in.

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She was inspired by an article about a similar, 2017 initiative in Aizawls New Market area and MZU Park by a librarian, Lallaisangzuali Sailo. I was scrolling through Facebook when I came across a mention and I wondered why this has never been done in Arunachal, says Meena. The library is meant for all age groups and contains around 80-100 books across genres, including textbooks.

As a teacher, the falling graph of education in the state saddens her. We have the second lowest literacy rate after Bihar. And this has become worse after the advent of the mobile phone as the youth simply doesnt want to read. During the pandemic, I find them hooked on to games and videos. My heart aches on seeing this.

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She recalls being fascinated by adventure novels, such as Treasure Island, and comic books as a child, even though the family didnt have ready access to libraries and bookshops. Books ignited her mind. Motivated by her late fatherNgurang Pinch, a politician and former chairman of the Arunachal Pradesh Agriculture Marketing Board, who died in 2017she was the first girl in the family to complete her education. Meena hopes to nudge other children on to this path as well. So the library, which she sets up daily unless its raining, has quite a few motivational books and biographies.

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Since its such a new concept for the state, the elders are somewhat hesitant to pick up books. But children under 10 are fascinated. Meena, or someone from the family, greets them with sweets and insists they read for at least 15 minutes. Hand sanitizers are available. The streetside library is already planning to start lending too. A lot of people warned me against it, saying that the books might not come back. But I am not worried. My late father and I had collected a rich stock of books and I can keep replenishing the library with that, she says.

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Meena and her family are also busy finalizing content for the three-month course scheduled to begin at the adult education centre in October. The aim of the centre is to create employable skills for tribal women and help them empower themselves through education. The plight of her mother, who is from the remote village of Nyapin in Kurung Kumey district and finds even basic documentation challenging, inspired them to set up the centre.

Both initiatives have been funded by the family. Next year, hopefully, the centre will get registered as a not-for-profit organization, says Meena. When it started in 2014, it barely got 10-20 students; now that number has gone up to 100. Forced and early marriages, and polygamy, are still prevalent in the state and women are not supported in their quest for an education, says Meena. Until recently, husbands would threaten her for teaching bad things to their wives. We were telling the women how to take care of their documentation and grooming them. The husbands felt very insecure on seeing their wives feel empowered, says Meena. Last year, however, men started taking up the courses too.

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The centre has also organized two editions of a special series called Catalysts of Courage, the second in November last year. The topics of discussion ranged from the need to educate women about laws to the way forward for youth in tribal societies.

Students attend the centre in batches. Some come in for a couple of hours, others stay longer, learning essay writing, spoken English, letter writingthere is no charge. One such student is 24-year-old Jaya Ampi, who has been studying at the centre for over a year. She has seen a steady improvement in her reading abilities. Married early, Ampi had to drop out of school to help finance her husbands education.

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Women study only till class VIII or IX and then get married. Soon they become so involved in the daily chores and problems that their own aspirations become invisible, says Ampi, who has also been encouraging friends and acquaintances to study further. Earlier, she would shy away from seemingly simple chores like going to a bank or reading out simple instructions. Women should not be shy. They should study and become independent. Trust yourself first, and the rest will follow, she says. Change is on its way.
MBABANE  Principal Secretary Bertram Stewart could have shot himself in the foot when he exposed the Teaching Service Commission (TSC) when he appeared before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).

The accusations that the PS made against the Commission, which include irregular hiring and promotion of teachers, irregular demotion and reinstatement of head teachers and negligence that resulted in government losing substantial amounts of money, have boomeranged.TSC Chairman Simanga Mamba, who is a lawyer by profession, has since written to PAC Chairman Phila Buthelezi  the Deputy Speaker - in response to the accusations that were levelled against the Commission by PS Stewart and his officials from the Ministry of Education and Training.

Responsibility

Mamba, in his response, sought to clarify the presentation by the PS, which he said was viewed by the Commission as shifting blame and responsibility to it. He drew a distinction between the Commission (commissioners), which is appointed in terms of Section 172 of the Constitution, and the Secretariat; stating that reference to the Commission refers to the five members appointed as such.

Section 172 states that the Public Service of Swaziland shall be administered through service commissions or similar bodies established under this Constitution or any other law.

He outlined that the functions of the Commission shall include appointments (including promotions and transfers) and selection of candidates for appointment, confirmation of appointments, termination of appointments, disciplinary control and removal from office of officers within the public service or any sector of the public service.

All operations are dealt with by the Secretariat who are supervised by the Principal Secretary. The Secretariat prepares the agenda and it is presented to the Commission for discussions and approval, Mamba wrote.

He told the PAC that the entire Secretariat, which comprises the executive secretary, deputy executive secretary, legal advisor, legal officer, human resource officers, accountants and registry clerical officers are employed by the Ministry of Education and Training, not the Commission.

Attribution

These officers are under the supervision of the Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Education and Training, and not the Commission. Therefore, the constant attribution of inefficiency to the commission is misdirected and unfortunate, Mamba said. He said it was the ministry, through the PS, that has the authority to supervise, employ and recommend for promotion and to also discipline the Secretariat. Therefore, any inefficiency by the Secretariat to perform their duties and or acts of misconduct should not be shifted to the Commission, as it is an administrative issue that should be dealt with by the ministry, the TSC boss stated.

He said the issue of failure to stop salaries of certain teachers, as raised by the auditor general in his report, did not fall within the mandate of the Commission nor was it one of its functions.

The Commission is not involved in the operations with regard to remuneration of teachers, these are operational matters which are within the domain of the Ministry of Education, Mamba said.

The veracity of the TSC boss letter is yet to be tested by the parliamentary committee.

He said furthermore, the accounts section that is tasked with remuneration of teachers did not fall under the supervision of the Commission but under the Ministry of Education and Training; and that the remuneration f teachers was a function budgeted by the ministry.

Functions

He therefore implored the PAC to differentiate between the Commission and the functions of the officers of the ministry who are stationed in the Commission.

Any inefficiency or any misdemeanours by the officers should not be attributed to the Commission, but to the ministry where they are employed and supervised, which is the principal secretarys office and the Under Secretary Administration, Mamba said.

The chairman went on to address the other issues that arose during the PS appearance before the PAC, which include the transfer of teachers, where concern was expressed on the manner in which such transfers are determined.

In response, Mamba said: The Ministry of Education has a committee which includes Regional Education Officers (REOs), Human Resource Officers, and chaired by Schools Manager Under Secretary, who make recommendations to the Commission for teachers to be considered for transfer. He moved on to address the issue of promotion of teachers, which the PAC took a substantial amount of time discussing with the PS. Stewart told the PAC that he had already asked the TSC to prepare a procedure manual to guide the hiring and promotion of teachers.

In tackling thus issue, the TSC chairman said: Candidates apply for promotion and are shortlisted by a shortlisting committee which comprises of officers from the Ministry of Education (Director Education, Schools Manager Under Secretary, and Chief Inspector). Shortlisted candidates are then presented to the Commission for interviews.

Mamba also addressed the issue of disciplinary action against teachers, for which the TSC was taken to task for, among other things, the non-involvement of the executive secretary whenever disciplinary hearings were heard.

Disciplinary

Responding to this, the chairman said: The schools manager is responsible for the disciplinary of teachers in terms of Regulation 15, initiates disciplinary process, once the matter has been fully investigated it is then forwarded to the Commission for a hearing.

Another issue that came up before the PAC was the reinstatement of demoted teachers, where PS Stewart told the Committee that head teachers, who misappropriated funds were demoted then reinstated after being rehabilitated. Mamba, in his response to the PAC, said it was not true that head teachers who mismanaged funds were demoted and then reinstated.

We wish to state that there is only one head teacher, who was demoted from the position of head teacher to be deputy head teacher for five years, after having been suspended for one year without pay. The matter was presented before the Commission and it was not for mismanagement of school funds. She was punished for using the school name to buy personal items. The reinstatement of this letter was also to comply with Section 96 of the Employment Act, he said.

Promotion

He said it was worth noting that this head teacher was recommended by the REO for the Shiselweni Region that she was fit to be considered for promotion and that this happened during a session of the Commission. Also to be raised before the parliamentary committee was the issue of the alleged sale of posts in public schools.

To this, Mamba said it was vital to state that the Commission does not create or request posts, but that this is the responsibility and duty of the Ministry of Education and Training that sanctions and approves the opening of all public new schools in the country. He said after this approval, the ministry then applies to the Ministry of Public Service for the creation of posts for; new schools, upgrading streams, upgrading from secondary to high school, and new curriculum. The Commission only employs in the posts that have been allocated by the Ministry of Education. All public schools and educational institutions belong to the Ministry of Education and Training; the Commission is only a recruitment agency for the ministry, the chairman said.

Mamba then made two recommendations, one of which is that in order for the Commission to be effective, the Secretariat should be employed, promoted and disciplined by the Commission. For instance, there s a matter at hand that has been reported by the Commission to the Principal Secretary where a ministrys investigator is alleged to have taken bribes from teachers, but as a Commission we are unable to deal with this officer, as such processes lies with the Ministry of Education, he said. The other recommendation is that the ministry should capacitate the secretariat.

Further, all teachers should be electronical, and lastly the organisational structure of the Secretariat should be reviewed and all vacant positions be filled for efficient service delivery, the chairman said.

Adding, he said the Commission would have a meeting with the PS to discuss these matters in a bid to assist improve their operations. The SNAT, in one other issue raised, alleged that there was a sale of posts for promotion and reinstatement of suspended teachers, an allegation that Mamba, in his response, said was not known by his office.






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Calaveras County Public Health COVID-19 numbers 9-18-20 View Photo

San Andreas, CA  Another person has died in Calaveras County due to the coronavirus bringing its official total to 14.

The deceased is a male over the age of 65 who tested positive for COVID-19 and resided in District 1. State privacy laws prohibit any further information regarding the mans death from being released.

Six of the seven additional cases are among residents of the Avalon Health Care San Andreas where there has been an outbreak of coronavirus cases. As reported here on Tuesday, three residents died and in the two previous weeks, another 13 fatalities were counted. Not all are being counted in the counties tally as Health officials are awaiting officials causes of death. However, in their written COVID update they inform, Testing at the nursing home now includes rapid antigen testing for residents and staff. Rapid testing can provide results in about 15 minutes, allowing for faster isolation of potentially infected people to help prevent further transmission of the virus to others.

The seven new cases include a male between 50 to 64 years of age and six females over 65 years of age. Six cases are being reported in District 1. One case is being reported in District 4.One jurisdictional transfer of a previous case to another county has been recorded, removing it from Calaveras COVID-19 case counts. Currently, there have been a total of 311 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the county made up of 174 females and 137 males. Of those cases, 280 cases have since recovered while 17 cases remain active.

Health officials also extend this caution with the flu season approaching, Its likely that flu viruses and coronavirus (COVID-19) will both spread this fall and winter. Our local healthcare system could become overwhelmed treating both patients with flu and patients with COVID-19. Getting a flu vaccine this year is more important than ever. While the flu vaccine will not protect against coronavirus, they list these benefits to getting it:

Flu vaccines have been shown to reduce the risk of flu illness, hospitalization, and death.

Getting a flu vaccine can also save healthcare resources for the care of patients with COVID-19.

Prevent flu this fall and winter.

The department is offering a free drive-thru flu clinic on October 15th from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Calaveras High School for those 10 years of age and older.
Copa Holdings, S.A. (NYSE:CPA) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 22% in the last month. But that is small recompense for the exasperating returns over three years. In that time, the share price dropped 55%. So it is really good to see an improvement. While many would remain nervous, there could be further gains if the business can put its best foot forward.

See our latest analysis for Copa Holdings

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. One way to examine how market sentiment has changed over time is to look at the interaction between a company's share price and its earnings per share (EPS).

Copa Holdings saw its share price decline over the three years in which its EPS also dropped, falling to a loss. Due to the loss, it's not easy to use EPS as a reliable guide to the business. But it's safe to say we'd generally expect the share price to be lower as a result!

The graphic below depicts how EPS has changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image).

It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on Copa Holdings' earnings, revenue and cash flow.

What about the Total Shareholder Return (TSR)?

We'd be remiss not to mention the difference between Copa Holdings' total shareholder return (TSR) and its share price return. The TSR attempts to capture the value of dividends (as if they were reinvested) as well as any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings offered to shareholders. Dividends have been really beneficial for Copa Holdings shareholders, and that cash payout explains why its total shareholder loss of 51%, over the last 3 years, isn't as bad as the share price return.

A Different Perspective

Investors in Copa Holdings had a tough year, with a total loss of 37%, against a market gain of about 16%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. On the bright side, long term shareholders have made money, with a gain of 11% per year over half a decade. If the fundamental data continues to indicate long term sustainable growth, the current sell-off could be an opportunity worth considering. While it is well worth considering the different impacts that market conditions can have on the share price, there are other factors that are even more important. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 2 warning signs with Copa Holdings , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

Story continues

We will like Copa Holdings better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on US exchanges.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.



Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com.
M ayor of London Sadiq Khan has said there has not been a Cobra meeting since May 10 and he has not spoken to Boris Johnson in four months.

The Cobra, shorthand for the Civil Contingencies Committee, meeting involves a cross-departmental committee that comes together to respond to national emergencies.

The Prime Minister previously came in for criticism for having reportedly failed to attend any Cobra meetings in January and February related to Covid-19, before deciding to take over chairing the sessions on March 2.

Instead of holding Cobra meetings since May 10, Mr Khan said the Government has been speaking with devolved leaders such as Nicola Sturgeon and Mark Drakeford "bilaterally".

On Friday morning, Mr Khan was asked on LBC radio when the last Cobra meeting was.

People queue up outside a coronavirus testing centre offering walk-in appointments in north London / PA

He replied: "As far as I understand it, Cobra has not met since the 10th of May.

"Let's just pause and reflect on that, Cobra has not met since the 10th of May and we are facing the biggest health, economic and social crisis since the Second World War."

Asked when was the last time he had spoken to the Prime Minister, Mr Khan replied: "On the 10th of May."

Presenter James O'Brien added: "And you have not had any personal contact with Boris Johnson since the 10th of May." The London Mayor: replied: "No, No."

There have been meetings with other Government departments in that period, Mr Khan said.

The London Mayor insisted Cobra meetings "work" and that party politics are "left at the door" when people attend them.

Mr Khan warned that London was two weeks behind the rest of the UK / Getty Images

Mr Khan told LBC: "The reason why Cobra is important, by the way Cobra works, we know it works because when there's a terror incident Cobra meets, and it's successful at dealing with terror incidents.

"We know that in the past during previous incidents, Cobra's have met and have led to resolutions.

"By the way, I speak as somebody who has been to many Cobra's with many Prime Ministers, you do leave at the door the party politics, honestly it is a grown-up conversation, and people are tested and challenged.

"And the only thing we can conclude from this is that the Government does not like being challenged."

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan later said the city is two weeks behind parts of the UK which have seen tighter coronavirus restrictions enforced.

The North East has seen a curfew for bars and restaurants / AFP via Getty Images

Speaking in central London on Friday, the mayor said he is really worried about the rising number of cases in boroughs across the capital.

Mr Khan said: What weve seen in other parts of the country and in the North East in particular is an instruction for bars and restaurants to close at 10pm.

The reason for that is to minimise the amount of hours people spend socialising which can increase the risk of the virus spreading.

Were looking into all possibilities in London and were looking to see which policies across the country are successful.

He added: According to the latest evidence Ive seen were about two weeks behind some parts of the country.

Speaking to ITV, Downing Street said there are daily coronavirus meetings and the Covid operation and strategy committees meet regularly.

The Standard has approached Downing Street for further comment.
A man admitted killing his estranged wife yesterday after stabbing her earlier this year.

Craig Woodhall, 41, plead guilty to stabbing his estranged wife Victoria Woodhall in Barnsley on March 29 2020.

At Sheffield Crown Court on September 18 he admitted stabbing the 31-year-old multiple times during a sustained attack with a machete.

Craig Woodhall, 41, (pictured) plead guilty at Sheffield Crown Court to stabbing his estranged wife Victoria in Barnsley on March 29 2020

Members of the public began calling 999 after Woodhall chased Victoria from their property in Windsor Crescent into the street.

The mother-of-three was dragged to the floor outside of her home and stabbed repeatedly with a Gurkha-style machete knife, according to Yorkshire Live.

The NHS worker suffered violence so extreme she was left with multiple skull fractures as well injuries to her head, face, neck, arms, hands, shoulders and back.

Woodhall will be sentenced at the court on 2 October.

Mum-of-three Victoria died at the scene of the attack after being chased from their property into the street and stabbed with a machete

Senior investigating officer Detective Inspector Ben Wood said: 'Victoria was subjected to a brutal and sustained attack, and there were several people in the immediate vicinity who witnessed this horrifying murder.

'Our officers began to arrive shortly after the emergency calls, along with paramedics and an air ambulance.

'Despite the best efforts of both our officers and medical staff, Victoria's injuries were so severe she was sadly pronounced dead at the scene.'
US President Donald Trump has said that the protesters, who went violent in the aftermath of the death of African-American George Floyd, did not spare even the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Washington DC, describing the demonstrators as a "bunch of thugs".

Floyd died in Minneapolis on May 25 after white police officer Derek Chauvin handcuffed and pinned him to the ground, and knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes while the 46-year-old from Houston gasped for breath.

The footage, which went viral, showed Floyd pleading with the officer, saying he can't breathe. His death sparked nationwide violent protests with some protesters resorting to vandalism, looting and rioting across the country, leaving behind a trail of destruction.

"You know, they started ripping down Abraham Lincoln. When they hit Lincoln, I said wait a minute. This is the man and you can do - then they hit George Washington, Thomas Jefferson. They had everybody, Trump said at a well-attended election rally in Minnesota, a State that he lost by a little over 44,000 votes in 2016, on Friday.

He also mentioned about the statue of Gandhi in Washington DC that was vandalised by unknown miscreants at the peak of the nationwide protests. "They even had Gandhi. All Gandhi wanted was one thing, peace. Right? We have peace. Rip down his statue. We don't like him. I don't think they have any idea what they're doing," Trump said.

"I think they're just a bunch of thugs, okay, you want to know the truth. I think they're a bunch of thugs," he said. The president told his cheering audience that he had signed an executive order that would put such miscreants in jail for 10 years.

Now, nobody even talks about taking statues down, he said. The vandalised statue was restored later by the Embassy of India here, with the help of National Park Police and the State Department.

"We had a period of time when they were ripping down all of the statues and monuments, and I said to my people four months ago, I said this is crazy. These people-and they don't even know," Trump said. Now that he has signed an executive order, Trump said that nobody has showed up in four months to take down a statue.

"Because you know why? They look and they say I want to take on that statue. I'm going to take down that statue. That statue's coming down. And then somebody says, you know, it's 10 years in jail. They go that's too much. I'm getting out of here. It's true," he said amidst laughter.

"Ten years is not acceptable. Ten years is a lot to rip down a statue, have a little fun, especially when they have no idea what they're ripping down. But we have an idea what they're ripping down. They're ripping down, in many cases, greatness. They're ripping down our past. They're ripping down our history," he said.

"That's where these guys begin. The take away your history. You look at the Middle East. You look all over. Look what ISIS did. Look what all of them do. They go down and they go to museums and they break everything and they rip everything. They want to take away your past. They are not taking away the past of the United States of America. Not as long as I'm here," Trump said.
Republicans vows to quickly fill the vacancy left by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death will dramatically accelerate the push to restrict abortion access, no matter what happens to Roe v. Wade.

Theres no guarantee that even an expanded conservative majority at the Supreme Court would target the landmark decision that legalized abortion nationwide nearly 50 years ago, given some justices anxiety about overturning precedent. But even without touching Roe, the Court could greenlight many narrower restrictions that would effectively eliminate access to the procedure for much of the country.

Several cases in the courts pipeline could allow the justices to effectively cut back access to the procedure without having to confront Roe head on. In a case already before the court, the Trump administration has asked the justices to overturn a federal judges decision that lifted restrictions on telemedicine abortions during the pandemic. The court could also soon consider bans on a common second-trimester abortion procedure, known as dilation and evacuation, that at least 10 states have sought to outlaw.

Many other cases are already moving along in federal courts that could give the justices an opportunity to uphold other abortion restrictions. And some of the courts conservatives, most notably Justice Clarence Thomas, have long been pushing for the court to more aggressively reconsider longstanding precedent on abortion.

"Theres a tremendous amount they could do far short of overturning Roe," said Jennifer Dalven, the director of the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project. "But its no exaggeration to say that who gets to fill Ginsburg's seat will determine whether or not Roe gets overturned entirely."

To be sure, the court in its next term could decide to hear cases that more directly challenge Roe, which guarantees the right to an abortion up to the point of fetal viability, usually about 24 weeks into pregnancy. This includes recent state bans on abortion after a certain point early in pregnancy  which have so far been rejected by lower courts  and others that would outlaw termination of a pregnancy based on a fetus race, sex or disability.

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A Missouri law that would ban abortions after 8 weeks of pregnancy, for example, is already before the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, while an Ohio law that would ban abortions when the reason is a fetal diagnosis of Down syndrome is before the 6th Circuit.

Another issue both sides are closely watching is the push by some states to ban Medicaid patients from going to Planned Parenthood for non-abortion care. The Supreme Court will consider a petition on that out of South Carolina at the justices next conference in a few weeks.

Thats an issue SCOTUS will not be able to duck, predicted Steve Aden, the Chief Legal Officer at Americans United for Life, citing conflicting rulings at the circuit court level.

Chief Justice John Roberts outraged conservatives this summer when he voted with the courts liberal wing to overturn Louisiana restrictions requiring abortion providers to have admitting privileges at local hospitals. But legal experts say Roberts opinion in the case, June Medical Services v. Russo, could actually lay the groundwork for courts to allow more state restrictions on abortion going forward.

While Roberts sided with the courts liberals, he wrote a separate opinion saying he was bound by recent precedent, citing a similar 2016 case concerning Texas restrictions that he believes was wrongly decided. He said the majority in the Texas case, Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt, inappropriately ruled that courts must weigh the costs of abortion restrictions against their health benefits.

Roberts said thats wrong, that you should just look at whether the burdens are severe enough regardless of whether there is any benefit, said the ACLUs Dalven. That would allow states to pass any number of restrictions, even when there is no medical evidence backing it up.

Already, in the wake of this summer's Louisiana ruling, the Supreme Court in July asked a lower federal court to reconsider its earlier block on two Indiana laws  one that required an ultrasound and an 18-hour waiting period before an abortion and another that requires minors to obtain parental consent before the procedure.

And in August, citing Roberts opinion, the 8th Circuit lifted a lower court block on four abortion restrictions passed by Arkansas.

Around the country, youre seeing what we on the pro-life side call favorable developments, Aden said. He said federal courts, which President Donald Trump has filled with conservative appointees, are showing signs of more deference to state judgement when evaluating abortion restrictions  a trend he expects will accelerate if the Senate confirms Trump's eventual nominee to replace Ginsburg.

Thats a development that alarms abortion rights groups.

What weve been dealing with for decades are cases that put in place barrier after barrier to push abortion out of reach even when Roe remains the law, said Julie Rikelman of the Center for Reproductive Rights, who argued the Louisiana case before the Supreme Court. If that continues, even if abortion is legal on paper, it wont be a real, meaningful right for so many in the country.

Legal experts noted that the justices could ultimately use any abortion-related case to revisit Roe, though the most likely vehicle would be state bans on the procedure early in pregnancy. They point to Planned Parenthood v. Casey nearly 30 years ago, when the justices took a case dealing with waiting periods and requirements on parental and spousal notification, and they ended up reevaluating the broader right to an abortion.

So they really could use any case, and Roe is now on the line like never before, Dalven said.
JTC PLC (LON:JTC) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next four days. Investors can purchase shares before the 24th of September in order to be eligible for this dividend, which will be paid on the 23rd of October.

JTC's next dividend payment will be UK0.024 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of UK0.053 to shareholders. Calculating the last year's worth of payments shows that JTC has a trailing yield of 1.1% on the current share price of 4.7. Dividends are a major contributor to investment returns for long term holders, but only if the dividend continues to be paid. So we need to investigate whether JTC can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.

View our latest analysis for JTC

Dividends are typically paid out of company income, so if a company pays out more than it earned, its dividend is usually at a higher risk of being cut. JTC paid out a comfortable 35% of its profit last year. That said, even highly profitable companies sometimes might not generate enough cash to pay the dividend, which is why we should always check if the dividend is covered by cash flow. Fortunately, it paid out only 31% of its free cash flow in the past year.

It's encouraging to see that the dividend is covered by both profit and cash flow. This generally suggests the dividend is sustainable, as long as earnings don't drop precipitously.

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Stocks in companies that generate sustainable earnings growth often make the best dividend prospects, as it is easier to lift the dividend when earnings are rising. If earnings decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. That's why it's comforting to see JTC's earnings have been skyrocketing, up 151% per annum for the past five years. JTC is paying out less than half its earnings and cash flow, while simultaneously growing earnings per share at a rapid clip. This is a very favourable combination that can often lead to the dividend multiplying over the long term, if earnings grow and the company pays out a higher percentage of its earnings.

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Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. JTC has delivered 63% dividend growth per year on average over the past two years. It's great to see earnings per share growing rapidly over several years, and dividends per share growing right along with it.

The Bottom Line

Has JTC got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? We love that JTC is growing earnings per share while simultaneously paying out a low percentage of both its earnings and cash flow. These characteristics suggest the company is reinvesting in growing its business, while the conservative payout ratio also implies a reduced risk of the dividend being cut in the future. JTC looks solid on this analysis overall, and we'd definitely consider investigating it more closely.

So while JTC looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for JTC you should know about.

If you're in the market for dividend stocks, we recommend checking our list of top dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.



Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com.
Wildfires may have burned more than 1 million acres across Oregon, but so far state parks have avoided major damage, officials say.

Roughly 900 acres of park land burned during the recent wildfires, the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department announced Friday, limited to only five park sites across the state. Several other parks saw additional damage from the windstorm that fueled many of the fires.

Oregon parks director Lisa Sumption said in a news release that the relatively small amount of damage was a testament to both luck and the efforts of first responders.

Collier Memorial State Park in southern Oregon was the hardest hit, park officials said. The Two Four Two fire, which is still burning between Klamath Falls and Crater Lake, burned 400 acres, damaged Colliers historic logging museum and destroyed a historic cabin, as well as a wood shed and host trailer.

Although 400 acres is a lot by any estimation, the careful fuel reduction and stand improvement slowed the fire spread enough to be contained before major damage occurred, Craig Leech, forester for the parks department, said in a news release.

A tree burns at Collier Memorial State Park in southern Oregon, as the Two Four Two fire sweeps through the area. Oregon Parks and Recreation Depa

A historic cabin is destroyed at Collier Memorial State Park in southern Oregon, as the Two Four Two fire sweeps through the area. Oregon Parks and Recreation Department

Parks along the Santiam River east of Salem were also burned, as the Beachie Creek and Lionshead fires merged at Detroit Lake, burning more than 384,000 acres between them, as of Friday evening. But the state park sites fared remarkably well considering the wide path of devastation to nearby forests.

About 120 acres burned at North Santiam State Recreation Area, a riverfront park with fishing spots and picnic tables, which also lost a few structures as the fire burned straight through the small campground, the parks department said.

Just upriver, the Detroit Lake State Recreation Area and Mongold day-use area saw 40 acres burn, with minor damage to part of the campground and the loss of one water storage tank. Crews are currently working to retrieve boats that people had to abandon on the lake as they evacuated.

Nearby, the damage was also relatively light at Silver Falls State Park, which experienced an early morning evacuation Sept. 8 as the Beachie Creek fire roared to life. So far, 125 acres have burned on the far southeastern boundary of the park, far from the popular campground, conference center and day-use areas.

Other parks to experience damage were Bonnie Lure State Recreation Area north of Estacada, which had 40 acres burn; Wallowa Lake State Park in northeast Oregon, where a dock was damaged by high winds; and a half-dozen park sites on the Oregon coast where wind storms resulted in downed trees.

A downed tree at Devils Lake State Park was the result of a windstorm that fueled several wildfires in Oregon.Oregon Parks and Recreation Department

In all, 24 state park sites remain closed since Sept. 7, due to either wildfire or wind damage. A list of closed parks can be found online at stateparks.oregon.gov.

The parks department said it is still working to assess damages and schedule repairs. And since fires are still burning near parks, there could be more damage to report soon. For now, park officials are asking people to stay out of closed parks and away from damaged areas.

We are still very much in the emergency response mode, Jason Resch, communications director for the parks department, said. We will have more information to share about restoring and reopening damaged parks once it is safe for our staff to do so.

--Jamie Hale; jhale@oregonian.com; 503-294-4077; @HaleJamesB
Opposition parties Saturday attacked the government in the Rajya Sabha, accusing it of crossing constitutional bars, interfering in the affairs of states, failing to control private hospitals during the coronavirus crisis, and being unable to protect the migrant labourers and the poor.

Participating in a debate on The Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Bill, 2020, they also charged the government with entering into the league of three democracies in the world that promote what they called 'ordinance raj'. Derek O'Brien (Trinamool Congress) accused the Centre of interfering in the functioning of states through the Bill.

The Bill provides for jail terms upto five years and hefty fines for attack on healthcare workers fighting the coronavirus outbreak or during any situation akin to the current pandemic. "Remember states of West Bengal, Punjab, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan rejected you. Chief Ministers there have been elected to run the states. You cannot cross constitutional bars.

There are sinister provisions in the Bill. The States must be authorised to take decisions." "The Centre cannot impose its will on states. It is unconstitutional." The BJP, instead of preaching others to abstain from politics, should not indulge in politics, he said, adding the ruling party wants to take all the credit for schemes despite states contributing to them.

Terming the Centre's Ayushman Bharat' Yojana an imitation scheme, he claimed West Bengal was way ahead in health schemes and it implemented insurance cover for even allied workers and included mental wellness of healthcare workers in it. "The Centre is paying 60 per cent for the scheme and the state 40 per cent. But when it comes to credit, the Centre wants to take all credit," he charged.

He also attacked the government using the term ordinance raj. "There are only three parliamentary democracies in the world in which this ordinance raj is still possible - India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The emergency ordinance route is dangerous. Root of all ordinances is a 1935 Act.

The Viceroy era is gone but the attitude of arrogance still remains with the BJP government, he said. Participating in the debate, K Keshava Rao (TRS) asserted the Centre should consult states before interfering into their affairs. On private health facilities, he said a hospital in Hyderabad overcharged a patient who had died. "We need protection from such hospitals. Dead bodies were piling up when I went to a hospital. We need a mechanism for that," he said.

He also said migrant labourers faced much ordeal because when they were leaving for their home states, the Centre suspended train services and asked state governments to stop interstate buses. Ram Gopal Yadav of the Samajwadi Party stressed the need for a special provisions in the proposed Act to penalise people and private hospitals thriving on the COVID-19 crisis and taking it as a business.

He said there must be a provision to take action against those who sold PPE kits, masks, thermal scanners, ventilators, oxymeters and sanitisers at inflated prices. He also demanded to know what action the government was taking against those who claimed cures for coronavirus and fooled people selling drugs.

"Moreover, if the sole bread winner of a family has died due to COVID-19, he should be compensated and protected by the government," he said. M Shanmugam (DMK) asked the Centre: "What action are you going to take against contractors who brought migrant labourers to cities and left them to die?" He said labourers cannot be treated as a commodity and such people (the erring contractors) should be dealt with strictly. He also accused the government of announcing a lockdown without preparations.

Those who spoke included A Vijaykumar (AIADMK), Subhas Chandra Bose Pilli (YSRCP) and Saroj Pandey (BJP).
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death presents Donald Trump with an opportunity to transform the United States far beyond most Americans comprehension. Replacing the justice with a conservative would mark the single most consequential act of his presidency. It would doom policies and precedents that have come to form a cornerstone of American law. Its not hard to foresee what the court could accomplish if Justice Brett Kavanaugh becomes the swing vote.

The consensus among legal and political analysts is that Judge Amy Coney Barrett, whom Trump placed on a federal appeals court in 2017, is the leading candidate to fill Ginsburgs seat. Barrett gained fame during her confirmation hearing after Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein made inappropriate comments about the judges devout Catholic faith. She is a hardcore conservative, but that description doesnt quite capture how radically her jurisprudence differs from Ginsburgs. The justice viewed the Bill of Rights and civil rights acts as generous guarantees of human dignity that must be read expansively to achieve their purpose. By contrast, Barretts view of the law is fundamentally cruel. During her three years on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, Barrett has either written or joined a remarkable number of opinions that harm unpopular and powerless individuals who rely on the judiciary to safeguard their rights.

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Faced with two plausible readings of a law, fact, or precedent, Barrett always seems to choose the harsher, stingier interpretation. Can job applicants sue employers whose policies have a disproportionately deleterious impact on older people? Barrett said no. Should courts halt the deportation of an immigrant who faced torture at home? Barrett said no. Should they protect refugees denied asylum on the basis of xenophobic prejudice? Barrett said no. Should they shield prisoners from unjustified violence by correctional officers? Barrett said no. Should minors be allowed to terminate a pregnancy without telling their parents if a judge has found that theyre mature enough to make the decision? Barrett said no. Should women be permitted to obtain an abortion upon discovering a severe fetal abnormality? Barrett said no.

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There is no question that, if confirmed, Barrett would cast the fifth vote to either hollow out Roe v. Wade or overturn it altogether. Similarly, there is no doubt that Barrett would dramatically expand the Second Amendment, invalidating gun control measures around the country. Its quite possible, perhaps even likely, that within a year of her confirmation, Americans will be forbidden from terminating a pregnancy in 21 statesbut permitted to purchase assault weapons and carry firearms in public in every state.

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Abortion and guns, however, are just the beginning. Barretts confirmation would heighten the odds that the Supreme Court will eradicate the entire Affordable Care Act in 2021, stripping health insurance from more than 20 million people. Red states challenged the law after Congress zeroed out the penalty for those who forgo health insurance in 2017, a frivolous challenge that nonetheless found support among conservative judges in the lower courts. Chief Justice John Roberts, who twice saved the ACA, seems unlikely to kill it now. Barrett has criticized Roberts 2012 opinion saving the law, suggesting she would join the other four conservatives to destroy it root and branch. That decision would reverse Medicaid expansion, abolish the exchanges and federal subsidies for insurance, end protections for preexisting conditions, erase whats left of the contraceptive mandate, allow insurers to kick young adults off their parents plans, and much more. All available data indicates that people will die as a result of such a ruling.

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Barrett and her conservative colleagues would also take a machete to the thicket of laws that protect the health and safety of millions of Americans. The current conservative justices have already telegraphed their desire to invalidate federal statutes that direct executive agencies to limit pollution, guard against labor exploitation, monitor Wall Street, and protect consumers from predatory practices. Barretts confirmation would be a catastrophe for the climate: She may well overrule the landmark 54 decision, long despised by conservatives, that compels the federal government to regulate carbon emissions. Even if Congress passes new legislation to curb greenhouse gas emissions, the courts conservative supermajority may strike it down, much as the Republican-appointed justices blocked the Clean Power Plan in 2016.

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Many more precedents that have become ingrained in the fabric of American life would be thrown into peril upon Barretts confirmation. Affirmative action. Miranda rights. Marriage equality. DACA. Independent agencies. What remains of the Voting Rights Act. Ginsburg understood thishence her deathbed plea to be replaced by a new president. McConnell understands this, toohence his near-instant statement that he intended to help Trump install a new justice. In 2016, he justified blockading the nomination of Merrick Garland by insisting that the American people should decide. But McConnell knows that this opportunity is far too important to leave in the hands of the American people this time around.

Whether or not they admit it, every judge on Trumps current Supreme Court short list must realize that accepting a nomination to fill Ginsburgs seat before Jan. 20, 2021, would mean spitting on the late justices grave. In the late stages of metastatic pancreatic cancer, surely in severe pain, Ginsburg had one last wish: not just to spare her legacy, but to save the court from the politicization and delegitimization it will suffer if Trump replaces her. Should Barrett accept the nomination anyway, it will tell us everything we need to know about her character. And should the Senate confirm her, Democrats must honor Ginsburgs entreaty by committing themselves to reversing the damage by any means necessary.

For more of Slates coverage of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs passing, subscribe to What Next on Apple Podcasts or listen below.
VANCOUVERThe first half of a $100-million federal fund directed at cleaning up dormant oil and gas wells in British Columbia has been disbursed.

Energy Minister Bruce Ralston says work is underway to reclaim wells that have been inactive for at least five years and arent likely to come back into service.

He says applications to receive a share of the second $50-million instalment will open on Nov. 1, allowing B.C.-based companies to hire local workers to clean up about 2,000 dormant wells.

The program provides up to $100,000 or 50 per cent of the cost of site cleanup, whichever is less, while Indigenous communities, local governments and landowners may also identify priority sites until the end of this month.

Ottawa pledged $1.7 billion in April to help Alberta, Saskatchewan and B.C. clean up inactive and so-called orphan oil and gas wells, with B.C. receiving $120 million.

There are about 7,000 dormant wells in B.C. and 770 orphan wells, meaning the sites were operated by companies that are insolvent, cannot be located or no longer exist.

The $15-million orphan sites program administered by the B.C. Oil and Gas Commission was flooded with more than 1,100 applications when it launched earlier this year.

Another $5 million is going to the legacy sites reclamation program to address the impacts of historical oil and gas activities on communities and wildlife.

Read more about:
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose 27-year tenure as the second female justice on the US Supreme Court culminated a legal career dedicated to advancing the rights of women, has died.

She was 87, and her death comes less than two months before the election gives President Donald Trump a chance to try to shift the already conservative court further to the right.

She died due to complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer and was surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, the court said in a statement Friday. Ginsburg battled with five bouts of cancer.

Trump will now have a chance to fill a third Supreme Court seat. Senate confirmation of his nominee would increase the chances of a decision overturning or severely curtailing the Roe v. Wade abortion-rights ruling.

Only days before her death, National Public Radio reported that Ginsburg dictated this statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has previously said the Senate would move to confirm any nominee this year, even though McConnell blocked President Barack Obama from having a hearing on his nomination of Merrick Garland in 2016. That set the stage for Trump to nominate Neil Gorsuch instead.

Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague, Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her -- a tireless and resolute champion of justice.

Long before President Bill Clinton appointed her to the Supreme Court in 1993, Ginsburg argued cases before the court as a scholar and advocate of the womens rights movement. She was a high-profile proponent of the unsuccessful effort to adopt an Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S Constitution.

On the court, she built a record as one of the courts most liberal members, supporting gay and abortion rights, President Barack Obamas health-care law and restrictions on the death penalty.

Her strong dissents from rulings that cut back on voting rights and affirmative action won her the admiring nickname Notorious R.B.G. Two films about her were released in 2018: The documentary RBG and a Hollywood biography, On the Basis of Sex.

She drew criticism during the 2016 presidential campaign when she denounced Trump, who had clinched the Republican nomination, as a faker in a media interview. Ginsburg later said she regretted the comments. Trump called on her to resign, saying on Twitter that her mind is shot.

Ginsburg said she experienced gender discrimination personally when she tried, without success, to join New York Citys major law firms after being a star law student at Harvard and Columbia universities in the late 1950s.

Her experience was similar to that of the first female justice, Sandra Day OConnor, a Ronald Reagan appointee who joined the court in 1981 and retired in 2006.

Battling Sexism

Ginsburg made her clearest mark on the Supreme Court when she was fighting what she saw as gender discrimination, often challenging her male colleagues on views she considered sexist.

When the court voted 5-4 in 2007 to uphold a federal ban on a late-term abortion procedure, Ginsburg took issue with the all-male majoritys professed concern that women might regret having an abortion and thus suffer a loss of self-esteem. Such thinking reflects ancient notions about womens place in the family and under the Constitution, she wrote.

I was a law school teacher, she said during a 2015 interview at the court. And thats how I regard my role here with my colleagues, who havent had the experience of growing up female and dont fully appreciate the arbitrary barriers that have been put in womens way.

Ginsburg wrote the courts 7-1 decision in 1996 that ended the men-only admission policy at the state-funded Virginia Military Institute. In 2003, she joined the majority in upholding an affirmative action plan at the University of Michigan Law School, while dissenting from a second decision that overturned a race-conscious undergraduate admissions policy at the University of Michigan.

Same-Sex Marriage

In 2013, she was the first justice to officiate at a same-sex marriage, and two years later was part of the 5-4 majority that legalized gay marriage nationwide. She voted in two cases to uphold key provisions of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, and dissented from the 5-4 Citizens United ruling in 2010 that struck down decades-old restrictions on corporate campaign spending.

Since 2010, Ginsburg was the senior member of the courts liberal wing, with the prerogative to write the main dissenting opinion.

She did just that in 2013, when a 5-4 court threw out a core part of the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965, citing reduced incidents of discrimination as a reason. Ginsburg said the majoritys approach was like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet.

That dissent, and another one in an affirmative action case, inspired New York University law student Shana Knizhnik to create a Tumblr site dedicated to Ginsburg. She titled it Notorious R.B.G. -- a play on the late rapper Notorious B.I.G. -- offering T-shirts and an admiring book about Ginsburg.

Ginsburg became a devotee of the site. I think its amusing, she said in 2015. Its quite well done. There are some serious things on it. There are some funny things.

Voting Record

In 2015 Ginsburg joined Justice Stephen Breyer in calling for the court to consider whether the death penalty is constitutional.

In the bitterly fought case that decided the 2000 presidential election for Republican George W. Bush, Ginsburg said in dissent that thousands of votes had not been counted.

In a 2009 interview with USA Today, Ginsburg said the Supreme Court needed more female justices. Women belong in all places where decisions are being made, said Ginsburg, who was the only woman on the high court from 2006, when OConnor retired, to August 2009, when Sonia Sotomayor joined her. Elena Kagan raised the number of women on the court to three in 2010.

Ginsburg was one of the most durable justices in history. Before the liver tumor, she had contracted colon, lung and on two occasions pancreatic cancer, and she was hospitalized on multiple occasions for less serious ailments. Until 2019, when she was recovering from surgery to remove masses from one of her lungs, Ginsburg never missed an argument because of illness.

Ruth Joan Bader was born on March 15, 1933, in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn, New York. Her father, Nathan Bader, owned clothing stores. Her mother, the former Celia Amster, died of cervical cancer when Ruth was 17.

Unsettling Discrimination

In an interview for the PBS series The Jewish Americans, Ginsburg recalled her first experience with anti-Semitism, during a car trip with her parents: There was a bed-and-breakfast and there was a sign outside and it read, No dogs or Jews allowed. I had never seen that before. And that was obviously unsettling.

At Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, she had a blind date with a classmate, Martin Ginsburg, and found him to be, as she later said, the only young man I dated who cared that I had a brain. They married after she graduated, first in her class, in 1954.

Ginsburg joined her husband as a student at Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where women were not looked upon as people who should be there, she later told the New York Times.

She finished legal studies at the top of her class at Columbia Law School after her husband got a job in New York City. At both Harvard and Columbia, she won election to the law review. Unable to land a job with a major law firm, she clerked for a federal district judge.

Breaking Tradition

The traditional law firms were just beginning to turn around on hiring Jews, she later wrote. But to be a woman, a Jew and a mother to boot -- that combination was a bit too much.

In 1963, she joined the faculty at Rutgers University School of Law in New Jersey. In 1972, Columbia Law School made her the first female tenured professor in its 114-year history, and she became the first director of the American Civil Liberties Unions Womens Rights Project.

At the ACLU, Ginsburg became a leading practitioner before the Supreme Court, planning and arguing sex-discrimination cases that cumulatively established for the first time that discrimination against women was banned by the Constitutions equal-protection clause.

Step by gradual step, sometimes using men as the lead client, Ginsburg challenged unequal treatment of men and women in six cases, winning five. Her steady, incremental assault brought comparisons to how Thurgood Marshall challenged racial discrimination in the years before he joined the Supreme Court.

Survivor Benefits

In one early win, Ginsburg helped argue the case of a female Air Force lieutenant whose husband was denied the housing allowances and medical benefits automatically given to military wives. In another case, she successfully represented a man seeking survivor benefits from Social Security after his wife died in childbirth, leaving him to raise his infant son. A subsequent case also won by Ginsburg extended the survivor benefits to all widowers, regardless of whether they had children.

President Jimmy Carter appointed her to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in 1980. In 13 years on that court, Ginsburg staked out the center as a swing vote who sided not infrequently with her Republican colleagues.

Justice Byron Whites announcement in March 1993 that he would retire gave Democrats their first Supreme Court pick in more than 25 years.

The Senate confirmed Ginsburg 96-3. She offered a straightforward response when asked at her Senate hearing about abortion, saying the Constitutions equal-protection guarantee assured women that she be the decision maker, that her choice be controlling on such matters.

Friendship With Scalia

On the court she was known for working long hours, often working from home until well past midnight, and for her collegiality, continuing a close friendship with her ideological opposite on the court, Justice Antonin Scalia. Opera lovers, they appeared together as extras in Washington National Opera productions, and they were photographed riding an elephant together in India. Scalia died in 2016.

Ginsburg and her husband, who died in 2010, had two children, Jane, a professor at Columbia Law School, and James, a producer of classical music recordings.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : Undeterred by Covid-19's economic impact, QSR major Pizza Hut India will continue to focus on expanding its presence, especially in the Tier-I cities.

In a conversation with IANS, Pizza Hut India MD Merrill Pereyra elaborated that despite the Covid-19 pandemic's impact, the brand will move forward with its expansion plans.

"Covid-19 has disrupted the best laid plans for everyone," he told IANS.

"We are currently calibrating our plans for next year, but our focus will be on delivery segment and expansion in tier I cities." According to Pereyra, the company has witnessed a consistent build-up in off -take that counters the theory of pent-up demand driving sales.

"Other than the few initial days of lockdown when majority of stores were shut, we have not seen any dip in demand from tier I cities, which is w here most of our presence is," he said.

At present, Pizza Hut has 431 stores in India, with a ratio of 58:42 in tier I versus tier II cities.

Besides, he cited that significant uptake in sales has been witnessed across channels.

"In fact, on the delivery front, we have already reached pre-Covid levels and more than 63 per cent of our business is coming from the delivery channel currently," Pereyra revealed.

"We have also seen a substantial increase in cheque sizes on delivery orders, especially on orders meant for groups of people living together." The company's delivery business contributed around 35 per cent of re venue in 2019, which has risen to 63 per cent currently.

Image Source: IANS News

Similarly, the company's 'takeaway' segment has also witnessed growth.

The segment is currently clocking "even higher numbers than last year, leave alone pre-Covid".

"This is due to our focus on ensuring that our takeaway process is very fast, efficient & safe, making it a preferred choice for customers while transiting," he explained.

"This success in takeaway has prompted us to enhance our service off ering and introduce on-the-go takeaway, wherein the store staff delivers the food straight to the customer's vehicle parked outside the store, so that they don't need to enter the store."

Image Source: IANS News

However, Covid's impact was witnessed in the 'Dine-in' segment. Nevertheless, the company has reported a pick-up in business.

Recently, the company upgraded all its digital assets including the website, m-site and mobile app.

It plans to continue investing in digital assets.

"Sales via our App has grown at 50-60 per cent versus the pre-Covid period. M-Site sales have also grown significantly at 30 per cent while Desktop remains stable. This growth has been achieved despite only 85-90 per cent delivery stores being operational, so the growth would be far higher once 100 per cent stores are operational," he said.

Image Source: IANS News

"Digital transactions are playing a key role in this new normal and h ence we are ensuring our digital capabilities and platforms are geared to handle the increased scope. We are also using several location data and geofencing tools to enable us to increase our delivery efficiencies." The company, a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. was founded in 1958.

It entered India over two decades ago with a restaurant in Bangalore.

The QSR major operates more than 18,000 restaurants in more than 100 countries.

(Rohit Vaid can be contacted at rohit.v@ians.in)

-- Syndicated from IANS
'I could see ... demons': One womans shocking possession, exorcism story

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An Arkansas woman with no history of mental illness said she suddenly found herself in deep emotional turmoil in 2006, with doctors unable to diagnose her rapidly deteriorating condition.

Within months, overtaken by suicidal thoughts, Amy plunged from a second-story window, was paralyzed and nearly died.

Now, shes speaking out, explaining that she believes she experienced a dramatic demonic possession  and healing. Her experience is told in detail in the new book, Playing with Fire: A Modern Investigation into Demons, Exorcism, and Ghosts.

Ive never had any kind of mental problems, never been on medication for anything like that, Amy said in a recent interview, noting that, within days of her affliction, she went from a successful nurse to a person who couldnt think clearly.

Listen to Amy share her story on The Edifi Podcast With Billy Hallowell (download the Edifi app here for powerful Christian podcasts) at the 42-minute mark:

Amys personal drama unfolded one day while she was working at a hospital and dealing with a burn patient who had survived an explosion.

While I was in the ER giving [a] report, something wasnt right with me, she recalled. I went upstairs to do my chart and its like my mind went out the window.

Amy wondered what was unfolding; the mental duress continued to afflict her when she later went for a run and was unable to jog in a straight line.

GRAB A COPY: READ PLAYING WITH FIRE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THESE ISSUES

I told my husband, I think Im having a nervous breakdown. My mind is not right, she said.

As Playing With Fireexplains, doctors put Amy on antidepresents, but she said the drugs did nothing to curb her problems  and the situation further devolved.

They ended up putting me in a psychiatric hospital, she said, And the psychiatrist said, We dont know what were dealing with. Weve never seen anything like this.

As time went on, Amy was in and out of hospitals, with suicidal thoughts suddenly overtaking her mind and heart.

Nobody knew what was going on. And this happened in April and through the summer, she said. I was so messed up. I wanted to kill myself and I just could not think how to do it.

One day Amy found herself sitting in a second-floor window sill at her home, as thoughts of death once again flooded her mind.

I was sitting in the window and I thought to myself, If I fall out of this window, I bet Ill die, because its so far down and its a brick patio, she said. So I fell out of the window.

Amy said she doesnt remember much of what unfolded next, as she landed on her head on the hard patio two stories below.

Any person in their right mind  if youre falling youre going to brace yourself  thats a normal reflex, she said. My legs and arms were not broken. I did not brace myself.

The impact of the fall was sweeping, with Amy breaking the majority of her ribs, puncturing her lungs and breaking her back in three places; 14 years later, she is still paralyzed.

They didnt think I was going to survive, she said.

But while Amy lay in her hospital bed recovering, a stranger named Cindy felt compelled to visit. While there, Cindy performed what some Christians call a deliverance (similar to an exorcism).

She felt really led to come see me, Amy said. [She] said when they got there I looked at her and I had a male voice come out of my mouth saying, What are you doing here?

Amy believes Cindy cast a demon out, and that her life was transformed as a result. For her part, Cindy has also openly spoken about the experience.

I could see the demons, she told KATV-TV last year, noting that she uttered a simple command in that hospital room: Lord, in the name of Jesus, I command that these demons release her and come out of her and that she comes to her right mind, in Jesus' name.

In the end, Amy believes she was healed.

My family saw a difference and they were thinking, Somethings better, she said, noting, though, that there are still mysteries surrounding her story.

Amy, who was a churchgoer before the incident, isnt sure why she was afflicted. Regardless, she is now much closer to God, and is encouraging others to cling to their faith.

Its brought me so much closer to God and to know that his love for me. It wasnt Him that did that  of course, it was the enemy, she said. Gods love is amazing. Seek the Lord with all of your heart.

For more stories like Amys be sure to read Playing with Fire: A Modern Investigation into Demons, Exorcism, and Ghosts, a book that dives deep  through a journalistic and Christian lens  into the cultural discussion about spiritual warfare, demons, exorcism in the Bible and other related topics.

Billy Hallowell, author of "The Armageddon Code," has contributed to TheBlaze, the Washington Post, Human Events, the Daily Caller, Mediaite, and the Huffington Post, among other news sites. Through journalism, media, public speaking appearances, and the blogosphere, Hallowell has worked as a journalist and commentator for more than a decade.
When Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg began her legal career in 1959, the United States was a nation of gender apartheid. Women were formally regarded as second-class citizens whose duties consisted of finding a husband, raising children, and maintaining a home. They were barred from countless professions, frequently denied access to an education, and paid substantially less than menopenly and legallywho did the same work. And they had no right to control their reproductive lives. Both state and federal law viewed women as vulnerable creatures in need of protection from their own ambitions. Even Chief Justice Earl Warrens famously liberal Supreme Court unanimously upheld Floridas exclusion of women from mandatory jury service in 1961, reasoning that woman is still regarded as the center of home and family life.

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Ginsburg, who died on Friday at the age of 87, saw this paternalistic head-patting for what it was: rank discrimination based on stereotypes that degraded everyone involved. She devoted her life to dismantling this caste. Later in life, the justice would say that she did not fight for womens rights, but for the constitutional principle of the equal citizenship stature of men and women. At the start of her career, this principle seemed to be a distant dream. Today, it is the law of the landand under constant attack from reactionaries who will see, in Ginsburgs death, the opportunity to erase her legacy. The impact of that legacy on the nation she served is almost impossible to overstate.

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When Ginsburg began litigating sex discrimination cases in the early 1970s, the timing appeared to be inauspicious: The court veered rightward under President Richard Nixon, seeming to bring the liberal revolution of the 1960s to a close. Yet that revolution had done little for womens equality. The Warren Court never applied the 14th Amendments equal protection clause to strike down a law that discriminated on the basis of sex. Feminists, fearing the Supreme Court would never recognize constitutional protections against sex discrimination, persuaded Congress to approve an Equal Rights Amendment in 1972 to make gender equality an undeniable constitutional right.

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Ginsburg supported the ERA, but she also believed that right already existed; she simply had to help the Supreme Courts nine male justices see it. To do so, she found cases involving laws that discriminated against men, a brilliant strategy that scored her a string of SCOTUS victories beginning in 1971. Ginsburg recognized that the justices judgment might be too clouded by their own biases to see how laws that ostensibly helped womenby, for instance, protecting them from working or owning propertyactually harmed them. So she attacked laws that injured men to illustrate how sex discrimination in either direction is fundamentally irrational. One case challenged a Social Security rule that granted survivors benefits to widows caring for minor children but denied benefits to widowers in the same situation. She described the case as the perfect example of how gender-based discrimination hurts everyonea fact recognized by the court, which pointed out that Congress sexist assumptions about parenting harmed fathers and children as much as women.

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With remarkable speed, Ginsburg and her colleagues at the ACLUs Womens Rights Projectwhich she co-founded in 1972persuaded the court to apply heightened scrutiny to laws that discriminate because of sex. This rule ended lawmakers ability to justify these measures with resort to sexist stereotypes. The court acknowledged in 1973 that such romantic paternalism had the practical effect of putting women not on a pedestal, but in a cage. Once on the court, Ginsburg would further heighten the amount of scrutiny applied to sex discrimination. In 1996s U.S. v. Virginia, she invalidated the Virginia Military Institutes male-only policy, holding that the government must put forth an exceedingly persuasive justification for sex discrimination. Later, in 2017, she again invoked this standard in Sessions v. Morales-Santana, clarifying that this justification must remain persuasive today, because new insights and societal understandings can reveal unjustified inequality  that once passed unnoticed and unchallenged.

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Over the decades, Ginsburg was constantly broadening her understanding of unjustified inequality beyond her own experience. The justices explanation of unjustified inequality in Sessions drew from the Supreme Courts 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, which recognized same-sex couples fundamental right to marry. Her connection between sex discrimination and anti-gay discrimination was prescient. A few months after Obergefell came down, Ginsburg noted that feminism and marriage equality are deeply intertwined. Its a facet of the gay rights movement that people dont think about enough, the justice said. Why suddenly marriage equality? Because it wasnt until 1981 that the court struck down Louisianas head and master rule,  which gave husbands total control over marital property. Marriage was a relationship between the dominant, breadwinning husband and the subordinate, child-rearing wife, Ginsburg continued. States locked both partners into gender roles based on a stereotyped vision of what marriage means. What lesbian or gay man, the justice asked, would want that?

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Five years later, in Bostock v. Clayton County, the Supreme Court affirmed 63 that anti-LGBTQ discrimination is a form of sex discrimination. Ginsburg, vindicated, did not write the majority opinion. Nor did she write Obergefell. The justice was happy to let her (male) colleagues author watershed opinions safeguarding equal rights. She did not hog the spotlight and eagerly compromised to reach the proper result. The result, after all, was what mattered to her and to the country. After all, as she put it, she was not a queen, and she would not let purity get in the way of progress.

In her last term on the bench, Ginsburg saw more setbacks.

Victories like Bostock should not obscure the fact that Ginsburgs tenure was marked by substantial setbacks for the causes she championed. After Justice Samuel Alito replaced Justice Sandra Day OConnor in 2006, the court began retreating from reproductive rights. In 2007s Gonzales v. Carhart, the court relied on overtly sexist logic to uphold a ban on a common second-trimester abortion procedure.* The five men in the majority reasoned that the government may need to protect women from obtaining a procedure they may later regret, declaring that respect for human life finds an ultimate expression in a mothers love for her child. (In dissent, Ginsburg castigated her colleagues for relying upon ancient notions about womens place in the family and under the Constitution that have long since been discredited.)

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In her last term on the bench, Ginsburg saw more setbacks. Chief Justice John Roberts diminished the constitutional right to abortion accessa right that is now in even graver peril. The court built upon its disastrous 2014 decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, which exempted religious corporations from the duty to provide contraceptive coverage, by upholding the Trump administrations dramatic expansion of that exemption. It also expanded the ministerial exception to civil rights laws, allowing religious employers to discriminate against workers on the basis of sex.

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Despite these disappointments, Ginsburg remained a relentless optimistperhaps because she understood how far the nation has come in a relatively short period. In 2019, speaking at a sold-out arena in Little Rock, Arkansas, Ginsburg reminded spectators of the Constitutions opening line: We the people of the United States in order to form a more perfect union. She then challenged her audience to consider how empty those words were at the time.

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Think about how things were in 1787, the justice said. Who were We the people? Certainly not people who were held in human bondage, because the original Constitution preserves slavery. Certainly not women, whatever their color, and not even men who own no property. It was a rather elite group. But over time, Ginsburg continued, the concept of We the people has become ever more inclusive, growing to encompass slaves, women, men without property, Native Americans. Today, all these groups have won their right to participate in American democracy. And, the justice concluded, we are certainly a more perfect union as a result of that.

The justice understood constitutional equality was an ongoing project, and she spent her life expanding equal citizenship to all Americans. That project remains unfinished, and her death will make it harder, but not impossible, to complete.
COVID-19 has turned Tinseltown upside-down, bringing productions to a halt even as lockdown orders around the world send binge-watching through the roof.  Frederic J. BROWN/AFP

No red carpet, no star-studded audience and no Game of Thrones  this year's Emmys honouring the best in television promise to be radically different as producers scramble to create Hollywood's first major pandemic-era awards show.

The coronavirus has turned Tinseltown upside down, bringing productions to a halt even as stay-at-home orders around the world send binge-watching through the roof.

Now late night funnyman Jimmy Kimmel will host the 72nd Emmys live on Sunday from an empty theatre in Los Angeles  which remains under strict lockdown  with winners beaming in from the safety of their homes due to COVID-19.

Adding to the unpredictability on a night of firsts, 130-odd nominees who were sent cameras to hook up in their own living rooms have been encouraged to get creative with their speeches (and comfortable  A-listers are invited to trade gowns and tuxedos for pyjamas).

"Ratings have been flagging for award shows for years... This is, if nothing else, an opportunity to mix things up, to do an award ceremony in a way unlike any other that's been done. Even if Sunday night is a complete disaster, it's at least going to be an interesting disaster. And that's really all you ask for in 2020," said IndieWire TV awards editor Libby Hill.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

Capturing this year's somewhat anarchic zeitgeist, Watchmen leads the charge with a whopping 26 nominations, primarily in the limited series categories. The eerily prescient comic book adaptation that debuted last October confronts historic United States racism, police violence and even mask-wearing. It also wowed critics and audiences alike.

"Watchmen speaks so specifically in so many unprecedented ways to the moment in which we're living right now. I think people will probably get pretty tired of hearing Watchmen's name getting called... it's as much of a lock as we have right now," said Hill.

'Last chance'

With HBO's record-breaking Emmys juggernaut Game of Thrones having finally mounted a dragon and soared off to Westeros, the awards in the drama series categories promise to be more fiercely contested this year.

"It's a relief for HBO that they have Succession hitting at the right time," said Deadline awards columnist Pete Hammond.

The critically adored show about a powerful family's back-stabbing battle for control of a dynastic media empire won a writing Emmy in its first season, and has amassed 18 nominations this time.

But it is tied with Ozark, a dark money-laundering tale set in the American heartland from Netflix, which despite landing a record 160 nominations this year is still desperate to win its first major series Emmy.

Lurking in the background are British royals saga The Crown and Star Wars tale The Mandalorian, which boasts lavish Thrones-esque production values and has already scooped five Emmys in technical categories this week for newcomer Disney+.

Comedy this year appears to be a toss-up between previous serial winner The Marvelous Mrs Maisel  Amazon's quirky tale of a 1950s housewife who becomes a stand-up comic  and Schitt's Creek.

The latter, a Canadian comedy about a privileged family forced to live in a rundown motel, failed to earn a single nomination in its first four years, but became a sleeper hit after airing on Netflix and signed off with a heart-warming final season.

Emmy voters "know it's the show's last chance... that's the one that's got big momentum," said Hammond.

'Crapshoot'

Of the more than 100 acting nominations in the drama, comedy, limited series and television movie categories this year, more than a third of them went to black actors  a new record.

Aside from the awards themselves, the night will honour the career achievement of Tyler Perry. The African-American entertainment mogul has championed greater diversity in Hollywood, and this year paid funeral costs for black victims of police violence including George Floyd.

The theme of tackling racism is expected to feature prominently throughout the night, while many stars in famously liberal Hollywood are likely to have a wary eye on President Donald Trump's re-election bid.

And then of course there's the pandemic itself to address.

With nominees given "unprecedented freedom" as they broadcast from locations of their choosing, winners' speeches on a night billed by Kimmel as "the Emmys meet Big Brother" are likely to have surprises in store.

"It's a crapshoot," said Hammond. "That's the one thing you can't predict."
WASHINGTON  The House voted Thursday to condemn racism against Asian Americans tied to the coronavirus outbreak, approving a Democratic resolution on a mostly party-line vote. Republicans called the legislation an election-year effort to criticize President Donald Trump and woke culture on steroids.

The resolution, approved 243-164, calls on all public officials to condemn anti-Asian sentiment and to investigate hate crimes after a rise in aggression and violence from those blaming people of Asian descent for the pandemic. The measure does not name Trump but notes inflammatory terms used by him and other Republicans  including Chinese Virus," Wuhan Virus," and Kung flu  and says they have perpetuated an anti-Asian stigma.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that at the same time that the coronavirus pandemic is broken out, so too has a disturbing epidemic of hate and discrimination against Asian Americans and Asian immigrants, including physical and verbal attacks and vandalized businesses. She blamed Trump for trying to divert attention from Russias meddling in elections to demonize China.

Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif., called Republican opposition to the resolution disgraceful.
Imperial Valley News Center

President Donald J. Trump Is Supporting The People of Puerto Rico as They Continue to Rebuild Following Natural Disasters

Washington, DC - "We're also praying for the people of Puerto Rico. We love Puerto Rico." ~ President Donald J. Trump

REBUILDING PUERTO RICOS INFRASTRUCTURE: President Donald J. Trump and the Trump Administration are awarding major new infrastructure grants to aid Puerto Ricos recovery.

Today, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced plans to award nearly $13 billion  including $11.6 billion in Federal funding  for new infrastructure grants to Puerto Rico.

These grants are two of the largest grants ever awarded by FEMA, together exceeding the total disaster Public Assistance program funding for any other single disaster declared by a President outside of Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy.

$9.6 billion of this funding will be granted to the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority to repair and rebuild the territorys electrical grid system, which is important for economic growth and for Puerto Rico families.

$2 billion is slated for the Puerto Rico Department of Education to help restore school buildings and other educational facilities across the island.

These latest grants illustrate President Trumps unwavering commitment to rebuilding Puerto Rico and aiding Puerto Ricans as they continue to recover from multiple natural disasters.

PROVIDING DISASTER RELIEF: President Trump has provided billions in aid and strong support to help Puerto Rico recover from devastating natural disasters.

With the grant awards announced today, the Federal Government will have obligated approximately $26 billion for Puerto Ricos recovery from Hurricane Maria. These funds vastly exceed Puerto Ricos annual governmental budget of approximately $9 billion.

The Trump Administrations swift and historic response to Hurricane Maria reached unprecedented levels, including the deployment of thousands of Federal employees and the coordination of dozens of Federal agencies. The response included FEMAs longest sustained air mission of food and water delivery, largest disaster commodity distribution mission, and largest sea-bridge operation.

President Trump authorized funding for 100 percent of Puerto Ricos emergency work cost-share for nearly a year following the stormthe third longest such funding has ever been granted by a President.

President Trump and the Trump Administration worked hand-in-hand with Puerto Rico officials and assets on the ground to lead a truly historic response to rebuilding the island.

UNPRECEDENTED RECOVERY SUPPORT: Thanks to President Trumps actions, Puerto Ricans are successfully rebuilding and getting back to normal.
The Youth Initiative for Advocacy, Growth, and Advancement (YIAGA), a non-governmental organisation, has released its preliminary report, which painted troublesome details of how the exercise erupted into violence in some parts of the state.

The organisation said it deployed about 500 observers to monitor Saturdays governorship elections in Edo State.

Although there were 14 political parties on the ballot when polls opened Saturday morning, the election was a straight and open race between two major parties whose candidates are Osagie Ize-Iyamu of the All Progressives APC, and the incumbent governor Godwin Obaseki of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

YIAGAs observations, which were processed and analysed at its election analysis centre, showed several verified incident reports to include ballot box snatching, sporadic shootings and interference, and disruption of the election process, intimidation, and harassment of observers/journalists and vote-buying.

The report builds on the Pre-Election observation earlier published by YIAGA which revealed that the election will be defined by strong-arm tactics if concerted efforts are not made to deescalate the tension.

PREMIUM TIMES reported earlier how two journalists covering the polls were molested by thugs.

The incident took place at the polling unit of the immediate past national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, at Ward 10 (Uzairue North East), Polling Unit 1 of Etsako West local government in Iyamho area of Uzairue.

A PREMIUM TIMES journalist, Samson Adenekan, was slapped, manhandled and then briefly detained by the thugs for allegedly taking pictures and videos.

INEC, the election umpire also said it was aware of a shooting incident in Orhionmwon local government of Edo State, vowing to bring all electoral offenders to justice.

YIAGA, in its Mid-Day Situational Statement for Edo Governorship Elections, said thirteen out of 18 LGAs were classified as hotspots due to the spate of violence.

As predicted by Yiaga Africa in the pre-election, there were more critical incident reports from Oredo, Orhionwon, Igueben, Egor, Ikpoba-Okha and Esan North-East at the commencement of todays poll, the report noted.

Read the initial findings of YIAGA in full as follows:

On Saturday 19, September 2020, Yiaga Africa WTV deployed 500 carefully trained stationary observers and 25 mobile observers in all the 18 local government areas (LGAs) in Edo state to observe the voting process and share reports on the conduct of the election at the polling units level.

As noted in our pre-election statement, this is the first state-wide election to be conducted amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and governed by new guidelines introduced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

In addition, the Pre-Election observation indicated that the stakes are high as our findings revealed that the election will be defined by strong-arm tactics if concerted efforts are not made to deescalate the tension. Thirteen out of 18 LGAs were classified as hotspots due to the spate of Violence.

As predicted by Yiaga Africa in the pre-election, there were more critical incident reports from Oredo, Orhionwon, Igueben, Egor, Ikpoba-Okha and Esan North-East at the commencement of todays poll. Some of the verified incident reports include ballot box snatching, sporadic shootings and interference and disruption of the election process, intimidation and harassment of observers/journalists and vote-buying.

This Mid-day situational Analysis provides information on the commencement of polls, availability of election materials and critical incidents that may impact on the quality of the election. Yiaga Africa WTV is leveraging the parallel vote tabulation (PVT) methodology to observe this election and will be providing accurate and timely information on the election process.

On election day, some police officers prevented observers and media from accessing Yiaga Africas data centre in Benin city for about three hours. Upon escalating the incident, the leadership of the Nigerian police responded and resolved the issue.

However, police officers were deployed to closely monitor Yiaga Africas data centre and press conference. Yiaga Africa commends the leadership of the police, in particular, the Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Olaleye Oyebade for promptly responding to this issue.

Yiaga Africa notes that although this issue has been resolved, we are concerned with the deployment of police officers to closely monitor the Yiaga Africas press conference. Yiaga Africa would like to thank sister election observer groups and the international community for their solidarity and support.

Preliminary Findings

Yiaga Africas WTV observation for the Edo governorship election is fully operational. These are preliminary findings as at 2:00 pm election day. At this time, Yiaga Africa has received reports from 236 of 250 sampled polling units across the 18 LGAs.

This report highlights the late commencement of accreditation and voting and notes the disregard of the COVID-19 protocol requiring physical distancing and mandatory use of face mask/face covering across polling units.

As noted in our pre-election statement, Yiaga Africa is concerned that Edo state may experience a spike in the number of COVID-19 cases in the aftermath of the election given the non-compliance with health guidelines and the absence of health officials or task force to support INEC in enforcing during the election.

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The following data will be updated as additional reports are received from WTV observers at sampled polling units.

 As of 7:30 am, Yiaga Africa WTV observers reported that INEC officials had arrived at 38% of polling units.

 By 8:30 am, 3% of polling units had commenced accreditation and voting with Edo South Senatorial district recording only 2% commencement, Edo North 3% and Edo Central 8%. This however increased by 9:30 am, with 67% of polling units commencing accreditation and voting. By 10:30 am, 89% of the polling units had commenced accreditation and voting. A few polling units like PU001 (Obayan Pri. Sch.), Ward 02, Ikpoba/Okha LGA opened at 12:00 pm.

 81% of polling units had two queues created in adherence to COVID-19 public health protocol.

 In those polling units where INEC officials and materials arrived, 95% of polling units had four polling officials present, 63% of polling units had at least two female polling officials present.

 In addition, 97% of polling units had security agents present.

 Card readers were observed in 100% of the polling units. Electronic tablets were observed in 91% of polling units. Disinfectants/hand sanitizers were observed in 100% of polling units.

 APC polling or party agents were seen at 100% of polling units, LP at 43% of polling units, NNPP polling agents were seen at 56% and PDP at 99% of polling units.

Critical Incident

Yiaga Africa has received a total of 18 verified incident reports. They include the following;

 Intimidation and Harassment of Election Observers: Yiaga Africa WTV observers were harassed and their observation materials were confiscated by party agents in Edogun Primary School Hall I, Polling Unit in Orhionmwon LGA and Ozolua Grammar School, Polling Unit 009 of Ward 10 in Ikpoba/Okha LGA.

 Violent Disruption of the Accreditation and Voting Process: Yiaga Africa observers reported sporadic shooting leading to the suspension of voting in Idumwongo Polling Unit 5, Ward 7 in Orhionmwon LGA. The voting process was also disrupted in Obodeko Primary School, PU 003 in Ward 8 of Igueben LGA where a political party supporter mobilized thugs to the PU to disrupt the process.

 Ballot Box Snatching: Observers reported incidents of ballot box snatching by party supporters in Ozolua Grammar School, Polling Unit 009 of Ward 10 in Ikpoba/Okha LGA and Obodeko Amahor Pri/Sch Unit 003 of Ward 8 in Igueben LGA.

 Compromising the secrecy of the ballot: Yiaga Africa received series of reports of voters displaying how they marked their ballots thereby compromising the secrecy of the ballot. These cases were recorded in Orhionmion II, Edogun Pri/Sch Hall; Obodeko Primary School, PU 003 Amaharo, Ward 08 in Igueben LGA; Uelen-Ujugb Uromi Open Space VI PU 013 and Ward 4 in Esan North-East LGA.

 Interference by Party Agents: Party agents interfered in the accreditation and voting process in PU 001 at Ugbo Wardin Orhionmwon LGA; Ukpato Ward, Evbuosa Pri/Sch Iguemokhua PU, Orhionmwon II. In Ihogbe Secondary School, Unit 006. Ward 5 of Oredo LGA, a political party agent gave a voter a PVC that does not belong to him to vote, the culprit was apprehended by the security.

 Incidence of Vote Buying: Yiaga Africa observers stationed at Asoro Grammar School, PU 002 in Ward 1 of Egor LGA, reported that party agents distributed cash to influence voters. Similar incidents were also reported in Omo Nursery/Primary School, PU 005, Ward 1 in Egor LGA, where party agents were seen giving cash to voters. Similar incident was reported in Adams Int. Sch. Evbareke 1 Polling Unit in Egor, voters openly showed how they marked their ballots. Vote buying was reported in Uromi-Open Space VI, 013, Uelen/Okugbe/ Uromi, party agents were seen distributing cash to voters.

Preliminary Recommendations

INEC

Yiaga Africa calls on INEC to:

1. Given the late commencement of polls, INEC should extend the voting time to allow voters who are on the queue to exercise their franchise

2. As the voting process comes to end, ensure that the ballots are counted openly and that all polling units have the Forms EC60E posted at the polling unit for the public

3. Ensure that the polling unit result sheet; form EC8A for each polling is uploaded on the INEC Result Viewing Portal

4. Ensure strict compliance with the application of the election guidelines in the result collation process

Security Agencies

5. Should caution security officers deployed in the field to refrain from intimidating observers and journalist as the results collation commences

6. Should ensure security personnel remain professional and non-partisan throughout the election,

In conclusion, Yiaga Africa commends the good people of Edo state for their peaceful conduct during the voting process and plead they remain patient and peaceful through the voting and counting process. Yiaga Africa will provide updates as the process comes to an end collation commences. Yiaga Africa restates her commitment to share accurate data and information on the conduct of the election and results based on its deployment of the Parallel Vote Tabulation methodology.

If INECs official results fall within Yiaga Africas estimated rate, then the public, political parties and candidates should have confidence that the official results reflect the ballots cast at the polling units; however, if the announced results have been manipulated and do not match the polling units results, Yiaga Africa will expose it.

Driven by Data  For All Nigerians  Beholden to None!

Dr. Aisha Abdullahi

Chair, Yiaga Africa Watching the Vote  2020 Edo Election Observation Mission

Samson Itodo

Executive Director Yiaga Africa Watching the Vote

About Yiaga Africa and Watching The Vote

Yiaga Africa is a non-profit civic hub of change makers building democratic societies in Africa anchored on the principles of inclusion, justice, rule of law and accountability. Yiaga Africa achieves its goal through research, capacity development and policy advocacy. Yiaga Africa has been involved in election observation since 2007 and it is one of the leading organizations working on elections in Nigeria.

Yiaga Africa Watching The Vote is a citizen-led election observation initiative aimed at enhancing the integrity of elections in Nigeria using technological tools like SMS and evidence-based research methodologies to further election observation. The initiative is designed to promote credible elections and boost citizens confidence in the electoral process through a citizens observation of electoral activities in the electoral cycle. Yiaga Africa is enhancing the quality of democracy in Nigeria using the WTV as a platform for promoting cutting-edge electoral policies, credible elections, civic participation and democratic consolidation.

Yiaga Africas WTV will observe the process until the end. Our observers will remain at polling units until accreditation, voting, and counting are completed and the official results have been announced and posted by the polling officials. Yiaga Africa will issue additional updates as appropriate and intends to issue a preliminary statement on the conduct of accreditation and voting, and counting on Saturday, September 19 at the HomeVille Plus hotel at 7:00 pm.
Donald Trump delivered a dark and gloomy speech at the National Archives on Thursday. (AFP via Getty Images)

Donald Trump, speaking slowly and in dark tones, warned a "radical movement" on the political left is intent on pushing propaganda to undermine what he called Americans heritage and bring about an undefined form of segregation that he claimed would "destroy the country.

Using the National Archives Museum that houses the countrys founding documents as a venue, the president delivered what amounted to a campaign speech on Constitution Day that railed against critical race theory and declared in a message to his conservative base: We will never submit to tyranny. He openly ignored the United States complex history of slavery and appeared to appeal to parts of his base that deal in widely dismissed conspiracy theories.

This radical movement is attempting to demolish these treasures he said of Americas history and what he described as Americans precious inheritance.

Speaking with grim-but-vague proclamations and warnings, the president said: We cant let that happen.

Left-wing mobs have torn down statues of our founders [in a] campaign of violence and anarchy, he said, referring to protests across the country stemming from the deaths of black people while interacting with white police officers.

In the ornate hall in Washington, the president bemoaned far-left demonstrators and warned the left has launched a vicious and violent assault on law enforcement.

Describing the news media and many large US corporations as allies of these so-called radicals, the president issued a warning to what appeared to be his white, conservative base: The goal is the same: to silence dissent and to scare you out of speaking the truth.

The president said he made the short drive down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington to declare we will never submit to tyranny.

The radicals burning American flags want to burn down the principles enshrined in our founding documents, Mr Trump said, echoing what his Democratic  and some moderate Republicans  say about his presidency.

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Whats more, he contended the mob wants to redefine equal justice under the law in order to radically transform America." To do so, he said they must first cause Americans to lose confidence in  where we came from and what we believe.

That and other parts of the speech sounded like Mr Trump was both echoing and sending a message of support to some far-right fringe elements that support him and push easily debunked conspiracy theories about Democrats and others in positions of power.

Only that pro-black activists are calling for black people to be treated the same as, not superior to, whites.

He also called for Americas schools to install a patriotic education, saying the radicals want to push what he called curricula that teaches the country was founded on oppression rather than freedom.

Only that between 1525 and 1866, nearly 400,000 African slaves were transported directly to the United States, forced to work in hostile conditions and given no rights.

According to Mr Trump and other conservatives, both things cannot be true: That the country was founded on a principle of white freedom and bolstered, at first at least, by black slavery.

The president signed an order setting up a new commission to push this so-far undefined patriotic education.

Despite his ratcheted-up rhetoric on race and other matters in recent weeks, Mr Trump is gaining ground on Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, slicing his leads in battleground states in half since late-July. That coincides with his turn to a re-election message largely based on a description of himself as fighting black protesters as the law-and-order president.

Read more

Trump has Biden right where he wants him  and Bill Barr is his secret weapon

Trump aims to boost rural turnout in critical Wisconsin

Bill Barr responds to Democrats' fear that Trump won't leave office: 'Ive never heard of that crap'
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko should face sanctions for the violent repression in the country after Augusts disputed election result, European lawmakers said Thursday.

Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) voted to reject the official result of Belarus' so-called presidential elections in a resolution which said the vote was conducted in a flagrant violation of all internationally recognized standards.

MEPs also staunchly condemn the mass arrests and ongoing violent crackdown on peaceful protesters, strike leaders and journalists in the country, with many reports of ill-treatment, rape and torture emerging from Belarusian detention centers and jails, the resolution said.

It was adopted by 574 votes in favor, 37 against with 82 abstentions.

Download the NBC News app for breaking news and politics

Once Lukashenkos current term expires Nov. 5, the resolution said that the parliament will no longer recognize him as the president of the country, adding that all 27 member states should implement sanctions "without delay."

It also noted the important contribution made by prominent female opposition members including Lukashenkos main election challenger Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, a former English teacher who emerged from obscurity several months ago after her husband was prevented from running and thrown in jail. She has since fled to Lithuania for security reasons.

Tsikhanouskaya, who protesters claim defeated Lukashenko at the polls, will address the U.N. Human Rights Council by video on Friday.

The lawmakers also praised Maria Kolesnikov, who is facing up to five years imprisonment after she was charged with incitement to undermine national security Wednesday.

Often referred to as Europes last dictator, Lukashenko has maintained his grasp on power in the former Soviet nation for the last 26 years.

He has accused the United States and its allies of fomenting massive demonstrations in the country, a claim backed by Russia's intelligence chief, Sergei Naryshkin on Wednesday. Without providing any evidence, Naryshkin said the U.S. was providing millions of dollars to opposition groups in the country.

Story continues

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a new $1.5 billion loan to Belarus when he hosted Lukashenko on Monday.

The financial lifeline was condemned by the Belarusian opposition, which warned Moscow that it would tarnish future ties between the countries.

Earlier this week, Russian paratroopers also deployed to Belarus for drills that will run through Sept. 25 near Brest, on the border with Poland.
Tran Thanh Tri, 29, is arrested near Laos border on March 27, 2020 for transporting drugs. Photo by VnExpress/Duc Hung.

A court in the north-central province of Ha Tinh sentenced a drug mule to death on Friday.

Tran Thanh Tri, 29, was found guilty of "illegally transporting narcotics."

Tri had been caught red-handed on March 27 this year with more than five kilograms of methamphetamine and thousands of ecstasy pills in the provinces Huong Son District.

Tri told the court he had been hired by a Laotian man -- whom the police have yet to identify -- to deliver the drugs, and got paid VND5 million ($215) for it.

Tri had gone to a location near the Cau Treo border with Laos in Huong Son to pick up the drugs.

He was to get the VND5 million after carrying the drugs to a bridge 17 km (10.5 miles) away and handing them over to a person.

Vietnam is a major transit hub for drugs trafficked from the Golden Triangle.

From Vietnam, the drugs are taken to Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia, and even Europe, Australia and Latin America.

On July 19 the HCMC police for the first time busted an operation to traffic drugs to South Korea.

Vietnam has some of the worlds toughest drug laws. Those convicted of possessing or smuggling more than 600 grams of heroin or over 2.5 kilograms of meth face death.
A former counselor at the Glen Mills Schools pleaded guilty Friday to assaulting a teenage boy who was under his supervision at the school in 2018, the Delaware County District Attorneys Office announced.

Christopher Medina, 33, who was sentenced to two years probation, will cooperate with the ongoing criminal investigation of the reform institution and with the state Department of Human Services' licensing proceedings, said District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer.

 READ MORE: Beaten, then silenced

The District Attorneys Office said the 17-year-old boy was participating in a guided group meeting with 30 to 40 other students on July 19, 2018, when there was a verbal altercation between him and another student.

Medina approached the victim and slapped him multiple times on the head. He then pulled the juvenile from his chair by grabbing him under his armpits and slamming him into the floor. Medina then grabbed the victim by the collar and forced him up the stairs to the second floor of the building, the District Attorneys Office said in a news release.

Stollsteimer said in a statement that the events that occurred at the Glen Mills School shocked our community. The school failed in its most basic duty  to protect the children in its care. While todays sentencing cannot undo the trauma experienced by the victim, the defendants guilty plea is a significant accomplishment in that the defendant has acknowledged responsibility for the harm that he caused.

"It also ensures that the defendant will not work with children in the future. This conviction should serve as a warning to anyone who is entrusted with the care of our children that such conduct will not be tolerated, Stollsteimer said.

Medina pleaded guilty before Judge Margaret Amoroso to simple assault, reckless endangerment, and endangering the welfare of a child.

Deputy District Attorney Doug Rhoads said in his sentencing argument in court, Glen Mills is an institution that accepts students from different backgrounds, including those placed by virtue of the criminal justice system. In such circumstances, the goal is to reform and restore juveniles. Glen Mills, by and through the actions of Chris Medina, failed in this instance thereby violating the publics trust and the trust that those of us in the criminal system place in the Glen Mills School as an institution.  Todays conviction makes it clear that such conduct will not be tolerated.

Several investigations were launched into Glen Mills following an Inquirer report documenting decades of violent abuse and cover-ups at the school for court-ordered boys.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 08:02:36|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday convened the first SDG Moment, a high-level event to galvanize global efforts toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In his keynote speech, Guterres called for political will and bold action.

Public appetite for transformative change is growing. But one critical ingredient is still missing: political will, without which neither public appetite nor stakeholder action will be sufficient, he said.

"The science is clear. The people are clear. This is no time to procrastinate. The decisions taken over the next few months and years will have enormous impact on where we will be by 2030."

He called for action in three crucial areas: finance, COVID-19 recovery, and ambition.

Right now, developing countries face the dual challenges of funding the pandemic response and avoiding a major debt crisis, he said. "For the SDGs to stand a chance, we must address the immediate, medium- and longer-term financing challenges that developing countries face."

Inclusive and green COVID-19 recovery plans, done right, can help countries to transition to a more inclusive, equitable and sustainable economy, he said. "As we spend huge amounts of money to recover from the coronavirus, we must deliver new jobs and businesses through a clean, green transition."

"That means ensuring that taxpayers' money is used for a resilient, inclusive and sustainable recovery. It means ending fossil fuel subsidies, making polluters pay for their pollution and ensuring that no new coal-fired power plants are built. And it means reducing inequalities and placing women, who have been among the worst affected by job losses and increased care burdens, at the center of recovery plans," said Guterres.

He called for ambition and solidarity to provide the 35 billion extra U.S. dollars needed so that COVID-19 vaccines and treatments are available to everyone, fast; ambition to cut carbon emissions by half in the next decade, paving the way to carbon neutrality by 2050; and ambition to protect biodiversity, achieve gender equality, end poverty and hunger and fulfill the promise of the SDGs.

"This annual SDG Moment is an opportunity to demonstrate that, as one united family of nations, we have what it takes to eradicate poverty and hunger, tackle climate change, deliver gender equality and achieve all 17 global goals."

The world can make tremendous progress over the coming decade, especially for the most vulnerable and the poorest of the poor, he said. "When the public appetite for change is matched with political will and smart policy choices, rapid progress is unstoppable."

Even before the virus, inequalities were growing. The benefits of globalization and growth had failed to reach millions upon millions of destitute people, deepening their already profound despair. Biodiversity was also disappearing. Greenhouse gases were at record levels, he noted. "We need a path that brings health to all, revives economies, brings people in from the margins of society and builds long-term resilience, sustainability, opportunity and peace."

That path exists, he said. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is designed to address the very fragilities and shortcomings that the pandemic has exposed. At its heart is a simple promise: to end poverty and leave no one behind.

"In the midst of the greatest international crisis of their time, the founders of the United Nations raised their eyes above the horizon and planned a better, safer future. The COVID-19 pandemic, the greatest challenge faced by us since the founding of the United Nations has brought us low," he said.

"But we will not be beaten. We, too, must look beyond the current crisis and set our sights high, as we strike out for a world of dignity and opportunity for all on a healthy planet," Guterres said. "Together, let us make this a decade of action, a decade of ambition, a decade of transformation, a decade of hope and peace."

Guterres was joined, virtually, by some 20 heads of state and government, activists, UN leaders, business executives, and representatives of civil society organizations.

Volkan Bozkir, president of the 75th session of the UN General Assembly, asked member states to use the SDGs as the blueprint for recovery from COVID-19.

"Halting the spread of COVID-19 and regaining progress against the SDGs must be our collective priority," said Bozkir. "It will not be easy, but the SDGs themselves provide us the very blueprint needed to recover -- better."

"We must look to 2020 with renewed vigor. The pandemic may have set us back. But it can also be the board from which we bounce back further and faster," he said.

Bozkir noted that progress on the SDGs was inconsistent and off-course well before COVID-19 shook the world.

"The pandemic has unveiled the dangers inherent in delay. It has reminded us, starkly, of the need to act," he said. "Not since the United Nations was founded has the world required such levels of collaboration, cooperation and dialogue. These are the moments for which we were built."

Deputy UN Secretary-General Amina Mohammed echoed that COVID-19 may provide an opportunity for countries to change the course of action and strive to achieve the SDGs.

The COVID-19 crisis is testing every country in the world, threatening decades of development progress and undermining plans to deliver the SDGs, she said. "But it is also an opportunity -- to do things differently; to make great leaps forward; to imagine a better future and to collaborate to make it a reality, to defeat COVID."

"We have a clear way ahead. But we have a great deal of work to do," she said. "Now really is the time to demonstrate the value of multilateralism and deliver hope, opportunities and sustainable development for all."

Achim Steiner, the administrator of the UN Development Programme joined in the call to leverage the COVID-19 crisis to spring forward on the 2030 Agenda.

"The pandemic is a clear warning. Recovery from crisis cannot be driven by a zero-sum game of economy versus environment, or health versus economy," he said. "Rather, this is a once-in-a-generation chance to set things straight and I am hopeful that this ambition will be met."

Phasing in programs like temporary basic income for the most vulnerable populations and phasing out expenses that do not serve humanity, like fossil fuel subsidies, can have a transformative impact on both people and planet, he said.

Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg also called for efforts to build a fairer global system in order to recover better from COVID-19.

"The pandemic has exposed fundamental weaknesses in our global system. There can no longer be any doubt about the need for urgent global action to build a fairer and more resilient world," she said. "This is exactly what the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is all about."

She called for solidarity and multilateralism.

"The pandemic strikes indiscriminately. There is no time and place to talk about 'they' and 'us.' Unless the pandemic is addressed as a global challenge, it will bounce back and effectively stop our chances of realizing the SDGs."

"To build back better and greener, we need a renewed commitment to an inclusive, innovative, and resilient multilateralism," she said.

UN Women's executive director, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, called for bold policies to prevent the reversal of women's cause as a result of COVID-19.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Platform for Action, a blueprint for advancing women's rights. But COVID-19 threatens to undo the gains made on gender equality in the past 25 years, said Mlambo-Ngcuka.

In 2021, it is expected that there will be 118 women in poverty for every 100 poor men globally, and this could rise by 2030. This would be a stunning reversal for the SDGs, she warned.

"But this kind of backsliding is not a foregone conclusion. With bold policies to boost women's economic empowerment, we can shift course and accelerate progress instead."

Societies benefit when women can rise to opportunities. A profound transformation of economies is required for a just, sustainable future where women are at the center. Countries need to invest in care services, education and skills that will be the backbone of the economies of the future, she said.

The SDG Moment will be convened annually till 2030 -- presumably on the sidelines of the General Assembly high-level week -- to match the Decade of Action for the SDGs. Enditem
Seventeen bills carry that label, with proposals addressing tough questions such as: Can the Virginia attorney general file a civil suit or inquiry into alleged unlawful patterns or practices by law enforcement? Would new systems such as local civilian review boards or a statewide telephone hotline help the public hold police accountable?

Then, there are ideas that call for a more significant overhaul of law enforcement and its funding. The policing alternatives and collaboration category details legislation authorizing and funding alternative responses for law enforcement including relationships with behavioral health, medical and social services professionals. Five proposals pop up under that NCSL filter, each of which focuses on the appropriation, criteria, training and dispatch of crisis response teams in support of policing.

Whats most notable is that of the 61 total bills in Virginia tracked by the NCSL, several carry two or even three of the category filters. And the takeaway is clear. We should have a basket of reforms with adaptable language that bring healing, not rigid bills that claim to bandage every tension without addressing unforeseen circumstances.
New York, Sep 20 : Two former Amazon employee in Hyderabad and four others have been charged in a US federal court in an alleged bribery scheme that gave some third-party merchants on the platform competitive benefits worth $100 million, according to the Department of Justice.

Nishad Kunju and Rohit Kadimisetty, former seller-support associates with Amazon in Hyderabad, and four others are charged in a Seattle federal court with conspiracy to "commit commercial bribery" and to hack computer systems, the department announced on Friday.

In court documents, Kunju is accused of accepting bribes from the others before leaving the company to become an outside consultant who recruited and allegedly paid bribes to his former colleagues.

At least nine other Amazon employees besides Kunju, allegedly received the bribes, but they were not named in the court papers.

Kunju, Kadimisetty and the four others, who provide consultancy services to third-party sellers on the Amazon platform, directed over $100,000 in bribes to get directly help their clients or to harm rival sellers, the court documents said.

One of the alleged activities by ring involved in the case was to "adulterate" or illegally modify the postings of rival sellers by introducing "lewd and offensive content and images designed to drive away consumers and intimidate the victims," according to court documents.

They also allegedly reinstated third-party sellers' accounts and product listings that had been suspended by Amazon because of safety concerns or allegations of counterfeiting enabling those merchants to generate $100 million in revenue on the Amazon Marketplace, court papers said.

The federal prosecutor in Seattle where Amazon is headquartered, Brian T. Moran said, "The ultimate victim from this criminal conduct is the buying public who get inferior or even dangerous goods that should have been removed from the marketplace." Amazon said it worked with the prosecutors, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other investigators in the case.

It said: "Bad actors like those in this case detract from the flourishing community of honest entrepreneurs that make up the vast majority of our sellers. Amazon has systems in place to detect suspicious behaviour by sellers or employees, and teams in place to investigate and stop prohibited activity." (Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in and followed on Twitter at @arulouis)
Camper fire claims the life of two people in Marshall County
Paul Eschenfelder has become somewhat of a pied piper, another voice trumpeting the Cypress Creek flooding debacle, the number one issue with many residents who live near the waterway in one of the largest watersheds in the county. But the native Houstonian feels like a lone voice in the wilderness and no one is listening.

Eschenfelder, who attended the University of Texas, with his organization and website is among a chorus of voices crying out to county and state leadership to pay attention before another flood ruins their homes.

Cypress Creek Flooding Series: Five HOAs join fight for Cypress Creek flood remediation

We have been living in the same house off Cypress Creek for the last 29 years, he said.

He admits the area has changed dramatically over those three decades.

We used to go to Strack Farms and watch the cows while enjoying a barbecue burger and the rest of that stuff, but its gone now, he said.

His beloved Houston, where he was born, has changed as well.

It went from a cow town to too much boom town, he lamented.

Tax Day, Memorial Day, Tropical Storm Allison, and Hurricane Harvey have all become calendar memorials and, on some homes, the historical watermarks where each did their damage.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Hurricane watches go up as Tropical Storm Beta threatens Texas coast

I remember going to rescue my wife from her work during that storm (Allison), and we didnt get the worst of it, he said. We got just the shoulder of it. That should have been a wakeup call for us.

Also imprinted in his memory is the visual of semi-trucks floating down Interstate 10.

We flooded so naturally we became interested in making sure that didnt happen again, he said. Despite living in the 500-year plain, they never expected to see water in their home.

A lot of things are changing but public policy in Harris County is static, he said. People who dont take flood insurance are just crazy.

He points to the flatness of Harris County and the overdevelopment of what used to be acres of land that would absorb large rains.

Its like were stuck in the 1960s and nothing is progressing except for the water.

Eschenfelder is skeptical even if the county was to get the recommended detention basins its asking for, the flooding will still be there because of what he calls poor public policy that continues to allow permitting for building along the creek.

With more and more development, theres no place for the water to go, he said.

Eschenfelder said it was following a public meeting days after Harvey had devastated the area that he and George Peckham didnt hear a thing from county officials about Cypress Creek flooding that they realized something needed to be done.

We realized if we were going to wait on government, we were going to be waiting a long time, he said.

They believed citizens needed to ban together and motivate the government to work for them.

Eschenfelder said he thought the Greater Houston Flood Control Consortium got it right in one of their papers where they wrote, An informed citizenry is vital for the long-term work of flood mitigation.

We cant cross our fingers and hope for the best, Eschenfelder said. Luck is not a good flood mitigation strategy, he said.

We absolutely will flood again. The storms are not going to go away. Nothing has happened to the creek and we expect to be swimming again, the activist said.

To that end, he and Peckham organized and published a website, www.cycreekstoptheflooding.com, to help educate the public on the sometimes complicated issue of flooding.

Were not a 501(c)3 organization trying to collect money or fund an organization thats going to be here forever. We want to solve the problem and go home, he said.

Peckham is also leading the charge to rally the troops and see some action.

Eschenfelder is a frequent speaker at Lone Star College on the Cypress Creek flooding issue. His classes fill up quickly and he feeds the hunger for knowledge from constituents who want to know about flood mitigation and how to intelligently ask questions of politicians and engineers who are working on their behalf.

Recently, he and some of his colleagues visited a home buy out focus site in Saracen Park on Cypress Creek. The area was dotted with vacant lots where the homes were bought out by FEMA to escape repeated flooding.

In the floodway, not flood plain, was a new home being erected by a builder. Eschenfelder said they verified through the county that the builder had the proper permits to build in the floodway.

Harris County allows building in the stream channel, he said, one of the few places in the country that allows it.

One of our state representatives told us its difficult to obtain state funding for flood mitigation for Harris County when their colleagues dont agree with the permitting policy in the flood plain, he said.

Eschenfelder asks two things.

If we can get these two, we will be so happy, he said.

We need detention, he said, and not one built every five years. They should be out there digging right now, he said.

Cypress Creek is helpless. We have no place for the water to go. We can only take a five to seven-inch rain. With these tropical deluges, flooding is imminent for us, he urged for help.

He also pointed out that Harris County Flood Control has said no to channelization because theres no room to dig out the creek. The only option is massive detention amounting to 26,000-acre feet or four-square miles of detention spread out along the creek.

We need it tomorrow, he said. The countys plan drags this along another five or so years which guarantees us we will have another flood based upon historical record.

Eschenfelder said Cypress Creek dwellers are just as helpless today as they were three years ago when Harvey hit.

His second bullet point is a change in public policy to address development along the creek.

Theyre only making it worse, he said. Theres no grand plan to take a comprehensive look at Precinct 4 in how this integrates together.

Hes calling for 21st century leaders in Harris county.

We have the old paradigmbuild more roads, build more subdivisions, and increase the economic prosperity, but that doesnt work when you have hundreds of millions of dollars in damage when it floods, he pointed out.

He admits it will take political will to pull up on the reins of development until theres a plan in place.

We need politicians with some courage, he said.

He said he wouldnt ask for more than those two.

We would be happy campers with those, he smiled.

For more information, visit their website at www.cycreekstoptheflooding.com

dtaylor@hcnonline.com
Earlier this week we learned that Samsung is planning to launch a camera-focused Galaxy F series in India, and today, the Korean tech giant confirmed the existence of the new series by posting a teaser image on Twitter with the caption "The new #GalaxyF will definitely leave a mark on you. Stay tuned to go #FullOn."

The new #GalaxyF will definitely leave a mark on you. Stay tuned to go #FullOn.#Samsung pic.twitter.com/5ahjw6mqTm  Samsung India (@SamsungIndia) September 19, 2020

Samsung didn't reveal any other details about the Galaxy F series, but rumors have it that the Galaxy F41 will be the first device in the lineup to come to the market.

The support page for the Galaxy F41, sporting model code SM-F415F, went live on Samsung's Indian site and its user manual revealed the smartphone will pack a display with a waterdrop notch up top.

Around the back, it will have a fingerprint reader keeping company to the triple camera setup, which includes a wide and ultrawide camera. The purpose of the third unit is unknown.



Samsung Galaxy F41 schematics

The Galaxy F41 was also spotted on Geekbench with an Exynos 9611 SoC and 6GB RAM, and it's said to be a rebranded Galaxy M31 having two storage variants and three color options. But it's worth mentioning that the M31 features four cameras on the back while the F41 only has three.

We'll hopefully know more about the Galaxy F41 in the coming days.
In 2018, only 24.1% of people aged 65 and over in Hungary were vaccinated against influenza, according to data by statistical agency Eurostat.

The EU average rate for vaccination stood at approximately 41.4% for the above-mentioned age group.



Eurostat notes that there were considerable differences among member states in the shares of people being vaccinated against influenza



The highest vaccination rate was registered in Ireland, where 68.5% of elderly people were vaccinated. The second-highest share was registered in the Netherlands (62.7%), followed by Portugal (60.8%).



At the other end of the spectrum, only 7.7% of elderly people were vaccinated in Latvia. The rate stood at 10.2% in Estonia and 12.5% in Slovakia.





MTI Photo: Peter Komka
By AFP

LONDON: Britain is seeing a second wave of the coronavirus outbreak, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday, as millions more people faced new restrictions and the government warned that another national lockdown could be imminent.

"There's no question, as I've said for several weeks now, that we could expect and are now seeing a second wave coming in," said Johnson as he toured the site of a new vaccines centre in Didcot, near Oxford.

"We are seeing it in France, in Spain, across Europe -- it has been absolutely, I'm afraid, inevitable we were going to see it in this country."

His gloomy announcement came as government scientific advisors said the R number, representing the number of people an infected person will pass the virus to, has risen to between 1.1 and 1.4, up from 1.0 to 1.2 last week.

"This is undoubtedly concerning," said Kevin McConway, emeritus professor of applied statistics at the Open University.

"Even at growth rates within the estimated range, the number of new cases could grow to high levels quickly if the interventions are not sufficiently effective."

- National lockdown? -

Tighter rules preventing people from socialising with anyone from outside their household come into force from Tuesday across parts of northwest, northern and central England.

Food and drink venues will only be allowed to serve at tables, while pubs and bars will be shut early at 10:00 pm (2100 GMT).

Similar rules were imposed in northeast England on Friday, with more than two million people placed under some of the most stringent restrictions since a nationwide lockdown was eased.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the move followed a request from local authorities because of a surge in positive cases.

He also warned the government could re-impose the nationwide lockdown which was partially lifted in June, as the rates of hospital admissions were now doubling every eight days.

Johnson said he wanted to avoid a second national lockdown, which he has said would be "financially disastrous", calling it "the last thing anybody wants".

He urged adherence to social distancing guidelines limiting contacts to groups of six or fewer.

- 'Worse things to come' -

The rise in cases heaps fresh pressure on the government, which has been criticised for its response to the outbreak that has claimed nearly 42,000 lives -- the highest toll in Europe.

Numbers of new cases are reaching levels not seen since April, reflecting a similar picture across Europe, where the World Health Organization said there were "alarming rates of transmission".

Britain's Office for National Statistics (ONS) confirmed Friday in its weekly infection survey that "the incidence rate for England has increased in recent weeks".

It estimated there were around 6,000 new daily cases nationwide over the week to September 10 -- roughly double the number typically recorded in statistics released every day by the health ministry.

Public Health England medical director Yvonne Doyle said there were "clear signs" of a spread of the virus across all age groups, and a rise in hospital admissions of older people.

"This could be a warning of far worse things to come," she added.

- Capital concern -

The ONS noted there was evidence of higher infection rates in northwest England and London, prompting the capital's mayor Sadiq Khan to say he was "extremely concerned" and urge swift action.

"We should not wait, as happened six months ago, for this virus to again spiral out of control before taking action," he said.

But Johnson's spokesman said "no restrictions are currently planned" in the capital.

He also rejected reports that government scientists proposed a blanket lockdown to come into force across England over two weeks in October, to coincide with English schools' holiday.

The government has faced sustained criticism for its failure to achieve the "world-beating" testing and tracing system it promised would be in place over the summer months.

Hancock defended the testing programme, and said the government was "doing everything we possibly can for the cavalry that's on the horizon of the vaccine and mass testing".
To the editor:

From Sept. 24, 2019 until Feb. 5, 2020 the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives primary interest was the unsuccessful attempt to impeach President Trump for his conversations with Ukrainian President Zelensky for which he was eventually acquitted. It is really ironic that the Democrat candidate for president is now Joe Biden, who actually did what they were accusing President Trump of and then even publicly bragged about doing so.

It is also ironic that candidate Joe Biden has picked Senator Kamala Harris, who never garnered more that 2% of the vote in the early Democrat primaries, to be his running mate. She even accused him of being a racist in the debates. It is obvious to most everyone that she was picked on the basis of her gender and skin color rather than anything notable that she has accomplished. Isnt this the definition of racism?

It is sad that these are the best two people in their party that the Democrats could chose to control the future of our great nation and ultimately our way of life. Will we remain a free country based on capitalism and freedom or one based on socialism as Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders, AOC, and the rest of the Squad have proposed? That is the decision we as voters must make this year. Think about the future of your children in a socialistic country. It only took Venezuela 10 years of socialism to get where they are today.

JOHN LYNN

Midland
Democracys living on a prayer. Photo: Steve Dykes/Getty Images

In Donald Trumps America, democracy dies in broad daylight.

Previous presidents have flouted the rule of law and sought to restrict access to the ballot, but none of Trumps modern predecessors have treated these endeavors like photo ops. Trump has not subverted the independence of federal law enforcement through the quiet appointments of hacks but by openly declaring that he expects the U.S. attorney general to protect him from legal accountability and by warning his allies not to cooperate with FBI investigations. He has not subtly exploited official powers for partisan gain but, rather, has formally strong-armed a foreign government into investigating his chief domestic rival and hosted a Republican National Convention on the White House lawn. He has not evinced a desire to disenfranchise his opposition merely through the orchestration of probes into (nonexistent) voter fraud but by explaining on cable television that he is blocking federal aid to the Postal Service because, if it does not receive such aid, that means you cant have universal mail-in voting.

Trumps refusal to keep his assaults on democracy constrained within limits (and/or shrouded in pretense) has scandalized a significant minority of Republican elites. But his high crimes and misdemeanors have made little impression on the party faithful. None of the presidents affronts to liberal democracy  not his praise for very fine white vigilantes or his proposed postponement of Novembers election  have shaken his grip on a little over 40 percent of the electorate.

One explanation for Republican indifference to such deeds is that Republicans arent aware of them: Fox Newss programming and Facebooks algorithm have simply kept red America blissfully ignorant of the commander-in-chiefs most tyrannical moods. (If a president executes a political prisoner in the middle of Fifth Avenue and no right-wing pundit is inclined to report it, does his shot make a sound?)

But a new paper from Vanderbilt University political scientist Larry Bartels suggests an alternative hypothesis: Many Republican voters value keeping America great more than they value democracy  and, by keeping America great, such voters typically mean keeping Americas power structure white.

In a January 2020 survey fielded by YouGov, a slim majority of GOP voters agreed with the statement The traditional American way of life is disappearing so fast that we may have to use force to save it. Nearly three-fourths agreed with It is hard to trust the results of elections when so many people will vote for anyone who offers a handout. More than 40 percent agreed that a time will come when patriotic Americans have to take the law into their own hands. More than 47 percent concurred with the premise that strong leaders sometimes have to bend the rules in order to get things done. And on all of these questions, most of those who did not agree were merely unsure.

In our age of polarization, anti-democratic sentiment isnt confined to the right. One 2017 survey that asked whether violence would be justified if the opposing party won the 2020 election found a slightly higher percentage of Democrats agreeing with that sentiment than Republicans (18 to 13 percent, respectively). Still, there is nowhere near as much open advocacy for illiberalism among Democratic elites as there is among Republican ones. And whether for high-minded or self-interested reasons, there is only one party that routinely seeks to restrict the franchise. For these reasons, anti-democratic opinion among GOP voters is of greater consequence than that among Democrats in the present moment.

Bartelss study therefore aimed to discern the nature of popular indifference to liberal democracy on the American right. Which is to say: What ideological or cultural forces lead Republican voters to subordinate democracy to their desired political outcomes?

The study entertains a range of possibilities. By examining the answers that YouGovs respondents gave to other survey questions, Bartels explored the degree of correlation between six voter dispositions and anti-democratic sentiment: partisan affect (i.e., a voters level of avowed love for Republicans and hostility for Democrats), enthusiasm for President Trump, cynicism about actually existing democracy, ideological commitment to economic conservatism, ideological commitment to cultural conservatism, and white ethnic antagonism. That last category refers to a voters level of concern about the political and cultural power of nonwhites in the United States. For example, if respondents agreed that things have changed so much that I often feel like a stranger in my own country, that discrimination against whites is as big a problem today as discrimination against blacks and other minorities, and that speaking English is essential for being a true American, they would post a high score on the ethnic-antagonism scale.

Of course, many of these dispositions are heavily correlated. To gauge the independent influence of each factor, Bartels controlled for five of the dispositions (freezing them at the average value among Republican voters) and then looked at how closely a high score on the remaining one correlated with anti-democratic sentiment. Applying this method to all six variables, he found that ethnic antagonism is a better predictor of a Republicans indifference to democratic niceties than anything else.

Graphic: PNAS

Graphic: PNAS

Notably, what Bartels calls cultural conservatism (essentially, attitudes on all culture war issues except those concerning race, such as patriotism, traditional morality  and disdain for big cities, rich people, journalists, and college professors) is actually negatively correlated with anti-democratic attitudes. In other words: A GOP voter who espouses average levels of ethnic antagonism, partisan affect, and support for Trump  but exceptionally high levels of cultural conservatism  is less likely to agree that defending Americas traditional way of life justifies the use of force than the average Republican is. This suggests that popular support for authoritarianism within the GOP is not animated primarily by concerns with conservative Christianitys declining influence over public life but rather with that of the white race.

Which makes sense.

When democracy came to America, it was wrapped in white skin and carrying a burning cross. In the early 19th century, the same state constitutional conventions that gave the vote to propertyless white men disenfranchised free Blacks. For the bulk of our republics history, racial hierarchy took precedence over democracy. Across the past half century, the U.S. has shed its official caste system, and almost all white Americans have made peace with sharing this polity with people of other phenotypes. But forfeiting de jure supremacy is one thing; handing over de facto ownership of Americas mainstream politics, culture, and history is quite another. And as legal immigration diversifies Americas electorate while the nations unpaid debts to its Black population accrue interest and spur unrest, democracy has begun to seek more radical concessions from those who retain an attachment to white identity. A majority of light-skinned Americans may value their republic more than their (tacit) racial dominance. But sometimes, minorities rule.
This is the chilling moment a convicted paedophile killer confessed to the murder of the two underage daughters of a nurse he had met on a dating app.

The couple had been living together only one month when he raped both girls Elena and Nana Saprunova, eight and 13, and 'shredded' them with a knife, say Russian law enforcement.

Distraught divorcee Valentina Saprunova, 40, had no idea of his previous convictions for child rape and murder, say reports.

Footage shows suspect Vitaly Molchanov, 41, detained by heavily-armed special forces in Rybinsk over this week's double killings.

Convicted paedophile Vitaly Molchanov, 41, killer confessed to the murder of the two underage daughters of a nurse he had met on a dating app

He is asked by a state investigator: 'What were you detained for?'

The detainee replied: 'For murder.'

Investigator: 'Do you admit your guilt?'

Molchanov: 'I admit. I am sorry, I do not understand why I did it.'

The girls' mother found her daughters when she came home after a 24-hour shift at the hospital where she got a job after moving her family 1,600 miles to move in with Molchanov who she met on a lonely hearts dating app.

The distraught mother is now admitted to the hospital where she worked.

Molchanov is detained by heavily-armed special forces in Rybinsk over this week's double killings

'She sits and looks at one spot,' a source told 76.ru news outlet.

'She doesn't speak, just groans or hums.'

Her ex-husband, a former policeman, father of the dead girls, was due to arrive at Rybinsk.

Malchanov was found yesterday hiding in bushes outside the city where he had been sleeping rough.

After being handcuffed in the long grass, he told police: 'At about 8pm I opened another bottle, and finished it at about 10pm. And... so to say... killed them.'

Vitaly Molchanov, 41, was arrested today over the rape and murder of two girls after a massive manhunt in Rybinsk

Divorcee nurse Valentina Saprunova, 40, had been living with Molchanov for only a month when she came home from her hospital job to find the bloodbath.

Sisters Elena and Yana Saprunova, eight and 13, were 'shredded' by a knife and the younger girl's body was dismembered, say law enforcement in a case that has shocked Russians.

Both girls had been raped, according to forensic evidence.

Molchanov was today being interrogated in the criminal investigation into the murder and rape of the two children.

Earlier police had released a chilling video showing the suspect walking out of his home in a red and black track suit as he 'went on the run'.

Saprunova has told police she had no idea of the seriousness of her lover's criminal record when they began a relationship.

Valentina Saprunova with her daughter Elena when she was a baby

Saprunova's daughter Yana is pictured at a younger age. Saprunova, 40, came home from work and found her daughters 'literally shredded' by a knife

Valentina had uprooted 1,600 miles across the country to move in with Molchanov one month ago after they met on a dating app.

But reports say she was unaware of his past as a child murderer and sex attacker for which he had been jailed for almost a decade.

He had told her he was wrongly convicted but not admitted the seriousness of the offences.

She is now in the care of a police psychologist too distraught even to talk to her family.

Neighbours said that the couple had appeared 'madly in love'.

They were often seen holding hands and jogging together or riding bicycles.

After walking out of his block of flats, he was reported to have made away on a white bike.

Molchanov (pictured with the mother of his victims), 41, had prior convictions for child rape and murder and was released from a long prison sentence in 2010, according to reports

A chilling video shows the suspected paedophile killer fleeing his home after raping and knifing to death girls aged eight and 13

His previous 2010 conviction included murder, rape and desecration of the dead. He was also described as a 'convicted paedophile'.

The governor of Yaroslavl region, Dmitry Mironov had offered a 5,000 reward for information leading to Molchanov's detention.

Russia's children ombudsman Anna Kuznetsova called the killings 'inhuman'.

'No words to describe,' she said. 'A terrible crime.

'It is known that he was previously convicted of the rape and murder of a child. 'Now two more girls have become victims.'

She demanded more action from the Kremlin to tackle paedophiles including a register and 'supervision' for child sex attackers.

She has previously pleaded for paedophiles to be tagged for life and banned from using the internet.

'Children are dying, let's take these or other measures to protect children,' she said.
Its now been well established that the Catholic Church here in Western New York is facing unprecedented challenges that strike at the heart of its credibility, its ability to serve so many critical needs and, yes, its viability as a force for good.

Those in church leadership must admit that many of these challenges are a result of woeful failings over many years that have caused devoted Catholics to question the fundamentals of their faith and identity.

Other challenges are a result of broader trends not unique to this diocese  shifting cultural sensibilities and accepted societal norms, and the dominance of secularism that permeates all aspects of life, both within and outside the community of faith.

All the more reason that the church  and this Catholic diocese, now 173 years old  is not excused from the requirement to make clear why we exist, what it is we offer and who it is we serve, and why it is we are still deserving of the trust and confidence of our members and the broader public in the present age.

Buffalo bishop appoints task force to study church and school consolidation The first of those decisions could come within months, if not weeks after diocese officials reach out to Catholics throughout the diocese, the bishop said.
Corporation (TNSDC) has partnered with the online learning platform to train 50,000 unemployed youth.

The partnership is part of Coursera's global roll-out of the workforce recovery initiative, where any state and country can provide unemployed workers with free access to online learning, said in a statement on Saturday.

TNSDC is making 4,000 courses on available to 50,000 unemployed youths across the state through this partnership. The programme aims to develop high-demand skills like data science, cloud computing, blockchain, AI, and the Internet of Things.

It will also include access to highly sought after professional certificates like the Google IT Support Professional Certificate, designed to train people with no tech background for IT jobs.

"We have been taking various initiatives to build a skilled workforce that companies around the world find attractive to employ. The present pandemic induced slowdown is an opportunity for students and graduates seeking jobs as well as professionals who are aspiring for a career growth, to equip themselves in future skills, TNSDC Managing Director V Vishnu stated.

Coursera CEO Jeff Maggioncalda said that employability and skilling is a major challenge around the world, and Covid-19 has made it worse.

(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 44-year-old woman, known as Patient 1,015 is given all-clear on Friday afternoon, meaning all COVID-19 patients at a Nang Lung Hospital have recovered from the disease. VNA/VNS Photo

HA NOI  The National Steering Committee on COVID-19 Prevention and Control on Friday evening confirmed two more imported COVID-19 cases in Viet Nam, bringing the countrys total number of confirmed cases to 1,068.

The two male patients, both 36 years old and from the southernmost province of Ca Mau, returned to Viet Nam from Pakistan on flight QH461 on September 13-15, transiting in Qatar and South Korea.

They arrived at Cam Ranh airport in the central province of Khanh Hoa. They were quarantined upon arrival.

Earlier, on September 11, they reportedly had contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case in Pakistan.

They were tested for SARS-CoV-2 on September 16 and their results released on Thursday came back positive.

They are now being treated at Cam Lam District Health Centre in Khanh Hoa Province.

Meanwhile, the last COVID-19 patient treated at a Nang Lung Hospital was given the all-clear on Friday afternoon.

In a Nang City, there are only four COVID-19 patients under treatment, all at Hoa Vang Field Hospital.

Viet Nam has so recorded 941 recoveries and 35 fatalities related to the coronavirus.

Of the active cases, 14 patients have tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 once, three patients tested negative twice and 22 patients tested negative three times.

As many as 31,319 people are under quarantine including 423 quarantined at hospitals, 15,860 at other quarantine areas and 15,036 self-quarantined at home.  VNS
On Friday, the Commerce Department announced that the China-based social media apps TikTok and WeChat will be banned from U.S. app stores beginning Sunday. In the U.S., TikTok is far more popularwith 100 million monthly active usersthan WeChat, which averages 19 million daily U.S. users, according to analytics firm Apptopia. But in China, WeChat operates as the countrys primary messaging, payment, and social media platform, and it is used by more than 1 billion people worldwide. The ban could have an outsized impact on Chinese Americans who use WeChat to communicate with friends and family living in China.

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Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross instituted the ban after Trump had ordered the department to review the apps last month. In a statement, the department cited national security and data privacy concerns, noting that the Chinese Communist Party has the means and motives to use the apps to harm U.S. interests. The Commerce Department also announced it was banning all U.S. financial transactions through WeChat. Along with other social media sites in China, WeChat actively censors its platform, primarily political topics. Although accounts with phone numbers outside of mainland China are not subject to censorship, research by Citizen Lab revealed that communications between WeChat users registered outside of China are under political surveillance.

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The ban has U.S.-based users worried and outraged, as many have few alternatives to connect with family and friends in China. Other major social media platforms, including WhatsApp and Facebook, are banned in China. WeChat also serves as a news source for the Chinese diaspora, allowing users to coordinate and share information. A notable example: In 2016, major nationwide protests in support of Peter Lianga Chinese American NYPD officer who fatally shot Akai Gurley, an unarmed Black man, in 2014were primarily organized through the service. In addition to messaging, many U.S. users also use the app for monetary transactions, such as sending gifts for Lunar New Year or paying business associates in China. Some expressed their dismay on Twitter:

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I wish the news would stop focusing so much on TikTok when the banning of WeChat is by far more damaging!! The headlines should read "US Bans Chief Communication App Between Chinese People, Severing Only Link Between Chinese Diaspora and Their Families in China"  XIRAN, Chinese History Educational Memer (@XiranJayZhao) September 18, 2020

If the ISP ban is true this is extremely serious. My family uses wechat transactions to send my grandma overseas funds and buy her food she likes to eat. Without wechat we dont have a secure way to take care/check in with her. I'm sure this is the same for many chinese families. https://t.co/FfAWcch1Ud  sab is THEY THEM (@sasponella) September 18, 2020

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Not being able to talk to people because we dont share a common interconnected app is a direct outgrowth of an internet economy that values profit-minded data and communications silos over boring but open, interoperable protocols. https://t.co/geg12adckE  Brian Fung (@b_fung) September 18, 2020

Although the Trump administration wont pursue a full ban of TikTok until November, in anticipation of a deal that could transfer U.S. operations to Oracle and Walmart, WeChat users will start experiencing slower app service and outages later this month. Tencent, WeChats owner, says it is working to rebrand its app. But in the meantime, many Chinese Americans will be left to figure out how to stay in touch with loved ones in the middle of a pandemic.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
Professor Maskell arrived in Melbourne at the end of 2018 from the University of Cambridge to take over the running of Australia's top-ranked university. He spoke to The Sunday Age as part of a series of stories in which prominent Melburnians offer constructive ideas about Victoria's way forward. Loading Each day throughout the pandemic, Premier Daniel Andrews has detailed COVID deaths recorded in the previous 24 hours, routinely describing as tragic the deaths of people in their 80s and 90s, including some who were in palliative care before they were infected. The Victorian governments response to our second wave epidemic  broad suspension of commercial, educational and social activity to reduce the spread of the virus  stands in contrast to the approach being taken by European nations such as France, the UK, the Netherlands and Austria, where governments are resisting a return to lockdown despite facing substantially higher COVID case loads, and deaths, than we are. As French President Emmanuel Macron said last week: We must adapt to the evolution of the virus, slow down its circulation as much as possible. But we must do it by allowing us to continue living: educating our children, taking care of other patients, treating other health matters, and having an economic and social life.

Why has Victoria taken such a different approach? Professor Maskell wonders whether we are a victim of our early success. Australia dealt with it so efficiently at the start of the pandemic it became possible in peoples minds to eliminate the virus or keep it down at very low levels. If you look at Western Australia and South Australia and the Northern Territory, people would argue why cant Victoria and NSW do that? In other countries, either because they decided to do this, as in Sweden, or they were a shambles, as in the UK, they have got used to this virus being around and people dying from it. There is an experiential thing there, not just a national characteristic. What people need to keep front and centre is the only certainty in life is death. The only event in our life with a probability of one is you are going to die. You cant protect all lives all the time without consequences. That is the very tricky and difficult discussion that needs to be had. Personally, I think it is an absolute tragedy that young peoples lives are being disrupted. But it is a tragedy for everyone around the world that this virus has come along.

What the pandemic means for the University of Melbourne remains unclear. Professor Maskell is presently dealing with two thorny issues: preparing for a likely, abrupt downturn in international students next year and working through what this means for revenue, research and staff levels. He laments what the absence of international students will mean, beyond the bottom line, for the university's culture. Universities have always been international organisations, right back to medieval times. It is a great strength of universities that you have international students and workers in the organisation who bring their perspective and a different view on the world. Professor Maskell came to Melbourne after a career that included senior positions in teaching, research, administration and advising government on health policy. He was only in the job for a year when the first COVID-19 case was confirmed. In 2019, international students comprised 44 per cent of the University of Melbourne's student body and contributed 59 percent of student revenue. Professor Maskell says the pandemic will force significant, lasting change to how the university operates. We will do more of our knowledge delivery online but I think that will free up space and time for doing more important things, he says. Universities arent there just to plough knowledge into peoples heads; they are there to light the fire, to start people thinking anew about things and become people who are interested in investigating subjects deeper.
The organization that regulates the nursing profession in Ontario was hit by a ransomware cyber-attack in which personal information might have been compromised, a spokeswoman said on Friday.

The College of Nurses of Ontario, which oversees about 188,000 members, offered few details about what it had previously referred to only as a cybersecurity incident it discovered Sept. 8.

(The college) was affected by ransomware, spokeswoman Angela Smith said. To date, we have not received a ransom demand amount, nor have we been in contact with the hackers.

Ransomware attacks typically involve a hack in which an intruder, often located abroad, gains access to an organizations computer system and encrypts the stored information. The result is that the data cannot be accessed without a key the hackers promise to provide in exchange for money.

Companies big and small, municipalities and other government agencies around the world have been targets, often paying large sums to regain access to their own systems.

Just last month, the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen in southern B.C. was hit by a similar attack, causing elected officials and staff to lose access to their emails and complicating efforts to deal with a wildfire that forced hundreds from their homes.

The nurses college said it was implementing a range of options to resume operations safely and securely. Those options include restoring the inaccessible data from backups.

It remained unclear to what extent private and other sensitive information was compromised, but the college said it had embarked on a comprehensive forensic investigation with the help of an unnamed leading cybersecurity firm. Such information could include confidential corporate information, along with personnel, financial and disciplinary records.

CNO is also seeking to determine whether personal information was compromised as a result of the incident that may require notification to individuals, Smith said.

The college has not explained why it didnt inform its members about the incident for more than a week after discovering the attack. It did say it has a third-party contact-management system unaffected by the hack to communicate with its members.

Doris Grinspun, who heads an association that advocates for nurses, expressed grave concern both about the hack, and the colleges reluctance to provide information about it promptly.

That happened on the 8th (of September) and members and ourselves didnt know, said Grinspun, CEO of the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario. My concern is, what else are they not disclosing?

In the midst of its scramble to resolve the situation, the college this week approved a regulation change to expand the scope of practice for registered practical nurses. The decision taken amid the ongoing security incident has alarmed many nurses, with about 5,000 signing a letter to Premier Doug Ford and Health Minister Christine Elliott expressing their dismay.

The college did say it was in the process of resuming normal operations, but a number of its regular services remained shut down on Friday including access to membership renewal.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 14:28:42|Editor: huaxia

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HANOI, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Vietnamese capital city of Hanoi on Saturday morning saw the departure of the country's first regular international passenger flight after months-long shutdown to curb the COVID-19 outbreak.

The flight, heading to Japan's capital Tokyo, was operated by the Vietnamese flag carrier Vietnam Airlines with some 60 passengers on board, Vietnam News Agency reported.

Most of them are Vietnamese students and workers going back to Japan to continue studying and working. The flight also carried a number of Japanese nationals, according to the news agency.

Passengers exiting Vietnam must have a certificate of negative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) COVID-19 test result issued within 72 hours before departure.

In September, Vietnam Airlines is expected to carry out three more flights to Japan, while the reverse route from Japan to Vietnam will be arranged later upon the official notice of relevant authorities, said the report.

Vietnam suspended all international flights in late March. The country has recorded 1,068 COVID-19 cases so far, with 35 having succumbed to the disease as of Saturday morning. No local transmission has been recorded nationwide in more than two weeks, according to the country's Ministry of Health. Enditem
The Expedition 63 crew started the workweek checking out hardware supporting life science, combustion research and ongoing Earth observations.

A Russian cargo craft docked to the International Space Station is also being packed with old gear for disposal toward the end of the year.

The multitude of microgravity research that takes place every day on the orbiting lab, requires regular maintenance and monitoring by the crew or scientists on the ground. The ongoing research supports innovative applications and insights benefitting Earth and space industries.

Today, Commander Chris Cassidy serviced an advanced space microscope and swapped components supporting safe combustion investigations. Cassidy first configured the Light Microscopy Module, part of the Fluids Integrated Rack, which supports basic physics and biology research. Next, the veteran NASA astronaut replaced a burner and igniter tip inside the Combustion Integrated Rack that supports fuel and flame research.

On the Russian side of the space station, two cosmonauts focused on their slate of space research and lab maintenance.

Veteran Roscosmos Flight Engineer Anatoly Ivanishin tested battery temperatures and connections then took a 90-minute fitness test on the Zvezda service module's treadmill. During the afternoon, Ivanishin changed out dust filters before activating hardware that measures the Earth's nighttime atmosphere in near-ultraviolet wavelengths.

Cosmonaut Ivan Vagner, five weeks away from ending his first long-term space mission, joined Ivanishin for the morning battery inspections. Afterward, the first-time space flyer packed Russia's Progress 75 cargo craft, docked to Zvezda's rear port, with old and discarded station gear for disposal at the beginning of December.

On-Orbit Status Report

Payloads

Burning Rate Emulator (BRE): The crew reconfigured the ACME hardware in preparation for BRE experiment runs. This includes swapping in Igniter Arm #2. The Burning Rate Emulator (BRE) investigation is conducted in the Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR) on the International Space Station (ISS), as part of the Advanced Combustion via Microgravity Experiments (ACME) project. In this fire safety study, the flammability of solid and liquid materials is simulated by burning gaseous fuels under key conditions corresponding to the solid and liquid materials. This technique has been demonstrated for a wide variety of materials in normal-gravity and could provide an efficient way to screen and select fire-resistant materials for use in spacecraft, if the technique is similarly effective in microgravity.

Light Microscopy Module (LMM): The crew removed the ACE-T4 module and configured the LMM for Confocal Target test operations. The Light Microscopy Module (LMM) is a modified commercial, highly flexible, state-of-the-art light imaging microscope facility that provides researchers with powerful diagnostic hardware and software onboard the International Space Station (ISS). The LMM enables novel research of microscopic phenomena in microgravity, with the capability of remotely acquiring and downloading digital images and videos across many levels of magnification. The way that matter is organized and moves on the microscopic level profoundly affects the macroscopic world and an understanding of such processes helps scientists and engineers build more efficient materials and machines both for both the earth and space environments.

Systems

Robotics External Leak Locator (RELL) Checkouts: Today, robotic ground controllers (ROBO) activated the Mobile Servicing System (MSS) Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) and are currently in the process of performing checkouts of the two RELL units that are stowed in the Robotic Tool Stowage (RiTS). RELL survey operations are planned for the Radiator Beam Valve Modules (RBVM) of the S1 truss Heat Rejection System (HRS). The RELLs are mass spectrometer "sniffers" that will be used to assist in the investigation of possible External Active Thermal Control System (EATCS) anhydrous ammonia (NH3) leaks. The EATCS coolant loops cool external electrical systems as well as transport heat away from internal water cooling systems that are required keep critical ISS avionics from overheating.

Environmental Health System (EHS) Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA) Water Recovery System (WRS) Sample Analysis & Data Record: Crew performed an analysis of the water processing assembly (WPA) using the TOCA. The TOCA unit oxidizes organic carbon species present in the water to carbon dioxide gas and measures the concentration using nondispersive infrared spectroscopy. Analysis of the potable water using the TOCA occurs on a weekly basis. The crew replaced the TOCA Waste-Water Bag (WWB) just prior to the sample collection to preclude overfill.

Completed Task List Activities:

Rodent Habitat Locker Relocate

JEM Stowage Consolidation for NG-14

EHS Water Kit Consolidation

JEM Stowage Consolidation

Build and R&R of the WHC -

WHC KTO Replace

Today's Ground Activities:

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

Robotic External Leak Locator (RELL) checkouts in preparation for the S1 Radiator Beam Valve Module (RBVM) scans.

Look Ahead Plan

Tuesday, 9/15 (GMT 259)

Payloads:

ELF S/W cable connect and update (JAXA)

MSG-LLC update (NASA)

Systems:

WHC Manual Fill

Recycle Tank Drain

Wednesday, 9/16 (GMT 260)

Payloads:

Confocal Microscope checkout (JAXA)

MUSES Server vent clean (NASA)

Systems:

Crew Quarters 9V Battery R&R

EHS Acoustic Monitor Setup

CMS T2 SD Card Operations

Thursday, 9/17 (GMT 261)

Payloads:

FIR-ACE-Ellipsoid reconfig (NASA)

Systems:

Recycle Tank Drain

JPM Cabin Smoke Detector Cleaning

UTS Offload & EDV Swap

Recycle Tank Fill

EHS Acoustic Monitor Setup for Static Measurements

Today's Planned Activities:

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

Setup for temperature measurements of battery #5 -2 (A305) unit case and connectors.

Temperature measurements of case and connectors of battery #5 -2 unit (A305).

TBU (Universal Bioengineering Thermostat) (). Check for -[B] No.07 temperature and un-obstructed area available in front of -[B] inlet and outlet ports.

EDV-SV or EDV (KOV) fill (separation) for ELEKTRON-VM

Temperature measurements of case and connectors of battery #5 of -2 (A305) unit (in case of 3 tripping).

Combustion Integrated Rack hardware gather.

ACME MWA preparations.

"Plazma-03" consumables audit.

LMM target configuration.

Environmental Health System (EHS) Total Organic Carbon Analyzer (TOCA) Water Recovery System (WRS) Sample Analysis and data record.

Combustion Integrated rack chamber open.

ACME chamber insert configuration.

Inspection and photography of "Tranzit-Korona"  antenna in MRM1

Changeout of Dust Filters 1, 2 (1_4_424_1, bag 435-20 (00071061R)) or 1__208, bag 442-11 (00076766R). Discard the removed items. Update IMS and cleaning [1], [2] fan screens in DC1.

UF-ATMOSPHERE. Hardware installation and electrical circuit setup.

Combustion Integrated Rack front end cap close.

UF-ATMOSPHERE. Scientific hardware activation and monitoring.

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In Amritsar, farmers held a protest demonstration against the Centre over the recent agricultural bills. The protesting farmers burned an effigy of the government and the demonstration also led to a traffic jam.

Farmers held a protest demonstration against the Centre on Saturday over the recent bills in the agriculture sector.As per the visuals of the protest, the farmers burned an effigy. The demonstration also led to a traffic jam.

Speaking to ANI, a leader of the farmers, Gurbachan Singh Chabba said, We are protesting and have burned the effigy of the government. If these bills, which are against the farmers of Punjab, are passed in the Parliament then the farmers will be destroyed and the Mandi system as well.

These bills are anti-farmer and should not be passed in the Rajya Sabha. The bills are for enabling loot by big corporates and companies. We are protesting against this, he further said. Gurlal Singh, a farmer, said, The decisions of the government have been against the people be it note ban, GST and now farm ordinances.

Also Read:With Akalis set to oppose the farm bills, Govt reaches out to friendly parties as RS numbers look uncertain

Also read: Army finds that three killed in Shopian encounter were labourers, promises to take action

The Lower House passed the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill 2020 and Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020. It has already passed the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill.

Lauding the passage of three agriculture reform Bills in the Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said it will help farmers and the farm sector to get rid of middlemen and other bottlenecks.

The Prime Minister also slammed the Opposition for allegedly misleading the farmers and assured the farming community that minimum support price (MSP) and government procurement of their produce will continue along with several other options for them. These bills will now be tabled in the Rajya Sabha.

Also Read: Harsimrat Kaurs resignation from cabinet came too late: Farmers
The Bombay high court at Goa has upheld the acquittal of the six persons charged with procuring, assembling and transporting a bomb to Margao in South Goa, where it prematurely exploded killing two persons who were allegedly ferrying it on the eve of Diwali in 2009.

The two deceased -- Malgonda Patil and Yogesh Naik -- were allegedly carrying the bomb in their scooter with the intent to place it at a site where a Diwali eve competition was being held on October 16, 2009. Besides Patil and Naik, who died while ferrying the bomb, no one else was injured in the blast that took place behind Grace Church in Margao.

Besides Patil and Naik, six others were charged by the NIA including Vinay Talekar, Dhananjay Ashtekar, Prashant Ashtekar, Vinayak Patil, Prashant Juvekar and Dilip Mazgaonkar, all hailing from Maharashtra and with connections to the Sanatan Sanstha. They were charged by the Goa Police crime branch. The case was later handed over to the National Investigation Agency.

Today the HC has passed a judgement [in the] appeal filed by the NIA challenging the judgement passed by a special judge acquitting the accused in the blast case. The High Court has considered [the case] in larger detail [and has] now held that the benefit of doubt is given, Advocate for the NIA Pravin Faldessai, said.

The special judge had said that there were malafides (bad faith) by the investigating agency... those remarks are now expunged, he added.

Also Read: Goa: German woman found dead by daughter in her flat

A total eleven persons were named as accused in the case including the two who died when the bomb exploded prematurely. Besides Naik, who died, all the others hailed from Maharashtra and were associated with the Sanatan Sanstha, a far-right organisation accused of organising the bomb blast with the motive to disrupt the Narakasur celebrations that are held on the eve of Diwali. Three accused are absconding. Only six accused faced trial.

On the day prior to Diwali, giant effigies of the demon king Narakasur, are erected with pomp and loud music before they are consigned to flames in the wee hours to signify the victory of good over evil.

Also Read: AAPs Goa convener steps down, calls it strategic decision

We had to prove that this particular Sanstha had the motive to conduct this blast so that there is an (environment of) terror formed in the state of Goa and in the Union of India, but the court said that there (was) no proof and there is no strong proof that we could submit before the court, Faldessai added.

What we had produced before the special judge was that their intention was to stop this competition not because they didnt want competition at all, but that their intention was that Lord Krishna should be given more importance and not Narakasur, Faldessai said.

Their thing was that Hindu Sanskriti has to be protected and Diwali has to be celebrated in a better manner and not in Narakasur competitions etc, he said.

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A man has appeared in court accused of raping a woman he met on a dating app.

The 31-year-old from north Belfast, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was brought before the city's Magistrates Court on Saturday.

A police officer told the court the pair had met online four weeks ago and he had been drinking in her house on Friday when the alleged offence occurred.

The officer said the woman had made it clear they would not have sex that night and they went to sleep in the same bed.

But the woman woke during the night to find the man having intercourse with her and there was an exchange of words in which he said he wasnt sure what he had done wrong.

District Judge George Conner released the man on his own bail of 400 with a cash surety of 900 and a ban on using dating websites.

Judge Conner also put in place a curfew, ordered that the accused be fitted with an electronic tag and barred him from entering the area where the alleged offence happened.

The case was adjourned until October 16.
Mount Wilson Observatory, where astronomers a century ago first described the expansion of the universe, appears to have survived a close call with the Bobcat fire, which has been ravaging the San Gabriel Mountains in Southern California.

It looks very good, Dan Kohne, a trustee of the Mount Wilson Institute, which runs the observatory, said in an email Friday morning. The Observatory has been declared safe.

The observatory sits on a knife-edge ridge overlooking Pasadena. For the past week, after being evacuated from the observatory, astronomers have watched in horror as webcams posted on the mountain relayed images of flames racing up the steep ravines to within a few hundred feet of the familiar telescope domes, in which modern cosmology was born. The scientists were reduced to commenting on Twitter about huge water drops, speculating about which of the fires in view were backfires, and offering praise for the firefighters.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 11:31:20|Editor: huaxia

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PHNOM PENH, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- More than 1.11 million domestic and foreign tourists traveled in Cambodia during the three-day Pchum Ben festival, or Ancestor's Day, after the COVID-19 situation has been brought under control, according to a Tourism Ministry's report on Saturday.

The kingdom celebrated the holiday from Wednesday to Friday.

"Although there was rainfall in many provinces, most of the tourist destinations still attracted crowds of tourists," the report said. "Security and public order had been well secured during the festival."

The kingdom's main tourist spots are the famed Angkor Archeological Park in northwestern Siem Reap province, the 440-km coastline stretching over four southwestern provinces, and the eco-tourism sites in northeastern provinces.

The report said the Ministry of Tourism had advised all tourist destinations to properly follow anti-pandemic measures such as body's temperature scanning, handwashing with alcohol, mask wearing, and social distancing.

The Southeast Asian country has so far recorded a total of 275 confirmed COVID-19 cases, said a Ministry of Health's statement on Saturday, adding that none have died and 274 have recovered. Enditem
Madhya Pradeshs Covid-19 tally of positive Covid cases crossed 100,000 on Friday (1,00,458) with 2,552 new cases reported in the past 24 hours across the state, as per the health departments bulletin released on Friday evening.

For over a week now, the state has been reporting 2,300-2,500 new cases daily and has become the 17th state in the country to report over 100,000 cases. The state also occupies the 9th position in Covid-related deaths with Maharashtra being on the top, as per the data of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Also read: No conclusive evidence of foodborne transmission of Covid-19

The alarming figure of over 100,000-odd Covid cases was reached in six months since the first case was reported in the state from Jabalpur on March 20. More alarming is the fact that while the first 50,000 cases were reported by August 21, it took less than a month to add another 50,000+ cases to the tally.

Thus, the unlock period has seen a massive spread of the disease and more deaths across the state. On August 21, the cases tally stood at 50,640 and the number of deaths was at 1,185. On September 18, the tally was 100,458 and the number of deaths at 1,901. So, in less than a month, 716 deaths were reported. Statistically, in the first five months, there were more than seven deaths per day on an average whereas since August 21, the state has been recording over 25 deaths per day on an average.

Indore continues to remain the worst affected district in the state with 18,717 cases and 485 casualties. Bhopal follows with 14,339 cases and 349 deaths followed by Gwalior with 8,720 cases and 100 deaths and Jabalpur with 7,151 cases and 120 deaths.

Out of the total 52 districts in the state, as many as 29 districts have registered over 1,000 cases each so far. Out of the total 100,458 cases, 76,952 have recovered and been discharged from hospitals across the state while 21,605 are active cases. The number of Covid tests across the state also reached 1,782,505 on Friday.

Public health expert Amulya Nidhi said, The situation is more alarming than what is reflected in the governments bulletins. There is still no community participation to control the disease despite the governments appeal to people to take preventive measures. That the positivity rate on Friday stood at 12.4% speaks volumes of the situation. This is despite the fact that the government is yet to enhance Covid tests to a desired level. There are numerous complaints of people not getting beds in hospitals due to shortage of the same.

Health minister Dr Prabhuram Chaudhary said, The state government is working round the clock to strengthen and expand the health facilities so that people dont have to travel long distances to get the treatment. We will definitely win the battle against Corona under the leadership of chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Now, more than 35,000 Covid tests are being conducted in the state and for speedy treatment, fever clinics are working across the state.

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Iranian hackers, most likely employees or affiliates of the government, have been running a vast cyberespionage operation equipped with surveillance tools that can outsmart encrypted messaging systems  a capability Iran was not previously known to possess, according to two digital security reports released Friday.

The operation not only targets domestic dissidents, religious and ethnic minorities and anti-government activists abroad but can also be used to spy on the general public inside Iran, said the reports by Check Point Software Technologies, a cybersecurity technology firm, and the Miaan Group, a human rights organization that focuses on digital security in the Middle East.

The reports, which were reviewed by The New York Times in advance of their release, say that the hackers have successfully infiltrated what were thought to be secure mobile phones and computers belonging to the targets, overcoming obstacles created by encrypted applications such as Telegram and, according to Miaan, even gaining access to information on WhatsApp. Both are popular messaging tools in Iran. The hackers also have created malware disguised as Android applications, the reports said.

A spokesperson for Telegram said that the company was unaware of the Iranian hacker operation but that no service can prevent being imitated in phishing attacks when someone convinces users to enter their credentials on a malicious website. WhatsApp declined to comment.

The reports suggest significant advances in the competency of Iranian intelligence hackers. And they come amid warnings from Washington that Iran is using cybersabotage to try to influence U.S. elections. Federal prosecutors on Wednesday identified two Iranian individuals they said had hacked into U.S. computers and stolen data on behalf of Irans government and for financial gain.

Irans behavior on the internet, from censorship to hacking, has become more aggressive than ever, said Amir Rashidi, director of digital rights and security at Miaan and the researcher for its report.

According to the report by Check Points intelligence unit, the cyberespionage operation was set up in 2014, and its full range of capabilities went undetected for six years.

Miaan traced the first operation to February 2018 from a malicious email targeting a Sufi religious group in Iran after a violent confrontation between its members and Iranian security forces.

It traced the malware used in that attack and further attacks in June 2020 to a private technology firm in Irans northeast city of Mashhad named Andromedaa. Miaan researchers determined that Andromedaa had a pattern of attacking activists, ethnic minority groups and separatist opposition groups but also had developed phishing and malware tools that could target the general public.

The hackers appeared to have a clear goal: stealing information about Iranian opposition groups in Europe and the United States and spying on Iranians who often use mobile applications to plan protests, according to the Miaan report.

Among the most prominent victims of the attacks, the reports said, are the Mujahedeen Khalq, or MEK, an insurgent group that Iranian authorities regard as a terrorist organization; a group known as the Association of Families of Camp Ashraf and Liberty Residents; the Azerbaijan National Resistance organization; citizens of Irans restive Sistan and Balochistan province; and HRANA, an Iranian human rights news agency. Human rights lawyers and journalists working for Voice of America have also been targeted, Miaan said.

According to Check Point, the hackers use a variety of infiltration techniques, including phishing, but the most widespread method is sending what appear to be tempting documents and applications to carefully selected targets.

One of these is a Persian-language document titled The Regime Fears the Spread of the Revolutionary Cannons.docx, referring to the struggle between the government and the MEK, sent to members of that movement. Another document was disguised as a report widely awaited by human rights activists on a cybersecurity researcher.

These documents contained malware code that activated a number of spyware commands from an external server when the recipients opened them on their desktops or phones. According to the Check Point report, almost all of the targets have been organizations and opponents of the government who have left Iran and are now based in Europe. Miaan documented targets in the United States, Canada and Turkey as well as the European Union.

The spyware enabled the attackers to gain access to almost any file, log clipboard data, take screenshots and steal information. According to Miaan, one application empowered hackers to download data stored on WhatsApp.

In addition, the attackers discovered a weakness in the installation protocols of several encrypted applications including Telegram, which had always been deemed relatively secure, enabling them to steal the apps installation files.

These files, in turn, allow the attackers to make full use of the victims Telegram accounts. Although the attackers cannot decipher the encrypted communications of Telegram, their strategy makes it unnecessary. Rather, they use the stolen installation files to create Telegram logins to activate the app in the victims names on another device. This enables the attackers to secretly monitor all Telegram activity of the victims.

This cutting-edge surveillance operation succeeded in going under the radar for at least six years, said Lotem Finkelstein, head of threat intelligence at Check Point. The group maintained a multiplatform, targeted attack, with both mobile, desktop and web attack vectors, that left no evasion path for victims on the target list.

The attackers, Finkelstein said, designed their cyberweapons to technically target instant messaging apps, even ones considered secured.

Finkelstein said it was highly possible that the hackers were freelancers employed by Iranian intelligence, as has been true in previous Iranian hacking episodes. He also said the infrastructure of the operation led Check Point to conclude that the attacks are administered by Iranian entities against regime dissidents.

c.2020 The New York Times Company
An Bord Pleanala has given the green light for a telecommunications mast at Dundalk Young Irelands pitch, off Hoey's Lane

An Bord Pleanala has overturned a decision of Louth county council and given the green light for a telecommunications mast at Dundalk Young Irelands pitch, off Hoey's Lane.

The local authority had refused permission to Shared Access Limited, Iconic Offices, The Greenway, Ardilaun Court, 112-114 St Stephen's Green, Dublin 2, for the removal of an existing 19.3m tall floodlight to be replaced by the erection of a 27m monopole to support telecommunications antennae for use by eir and other operators, which with the installation of dishes, remote radio units and ground based equipment cabinets will provide 2G, 3G and 4G mobile electronic communication services.

The existing floodlight lamps would be reattached to the replacement structure at 19.3m.

The council rejected the application on the basis it was in lands in Rockfield Court zoned 'Recreation, Amenity and Open Space' within the Dundalk & Environs Development Plan 2009-2015.

That decision was appealed to An Bord Pleanala by the applicant.

In reaching their outcome An Bord Pleanala said: 'Having regard to the provisions of the National Planning Framework, the Dundalk and Environs Development Plan 2009-2015 (as varied and extended), the Telecommunications Antennae and Support Structures - Guidelines for Planning Authorities (1996) and associated Circular Letter PL07/12, the existing pattern of development in the area, and the nature and scale of the proposed development, it is considered that, subject to compliance with the conditions set out, the proposed development would not seriously injure the amenities of the area or of property in the vicinity.

'The proposed development would, therefore, be in accordance with the proper planning and sustainable development of the area.

'The Board considered that a grant of permission that could materially contravene the policy provisions of the Dundalk and Environs Development Plan 2009-2015 (as varied and extended) would be justified in accordance with sections 37(2)(b)(i), (ii) and (iii) of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, having regard to: the deficiency in mobile telecommunications coverage in the area, the provisions of section 9.2 of the development plan objective 49 of the National Planning Framework 2018-2040, and section 1.2 of the Telecommunications Antennae and Support Structures Guidelines (1996).'
I am an American Airlines flight attendant based in Philadelphia, a homeowner in North Middleton Township, and have been flying for twenty-three years.

The COVID-19 pandemic is the worst crisis to hit the industry in the history of commercial aviation. In fact, the fallout in just a few months of the pandemic already surpassed the effects we saw in the industry in the years after the 9/11 attacks.

Congress passed the Payroll Support Program (PSP) to save jobs and stabilize our industry. It has been our lifeline However, thousands of jobs will disappear on October 1 if Congress does not extend the PSP soon.

Aviation is essential to a strong economy, including our local economy here in the Harrisburg Area. American now has more daily flights out of HIA than any other carrier, or at least we do now. This is why congress overwhelmingly supports an extension of the PSP to support workers and businesses alike. But it can only happen if congress and the White House negotiate and pass a stimulus bill. Washington, do your job so I can do mine. Americans will be ready to travel again, but for this to happen, aviation workers must be ready, too.

The longer airline crews and other personnel are off the job the longer it will take to get our planes back in the air and current with our federally-required recurrent training and certifications. The time to act to extend the PSP and pass a stimulus bill is now.

Terry Drew Karanen, Carlisle Pa.
The Holiday Guru is always on hand to answer your questions.

This week his advice includes issues around flight refunds and European Health Insurance Cards.

Q. My partner and I were due to go on our honeymoon in November in Jamaica, which currently has a quarantine on return. Sandals, with whom we booked our hotel, have been great and given us a refund already as Jamaica is under curfew. However, BA says we cant get a refund or voucher. What can we do?

Ashley Willmott, via email.

Missing out: Holidays to Jamaican resorts such as Ocho Rios, pictured, may be difficult this year

A. If you booked the flights between March 9 and now, you are eligible for a voucher or to change the flight to another date (paying any increase in fare) under BAs Book With Confidence scheme: see ba.com/confidence. Bookings made before March 9 are under usual terms and conditions: if you do not choose to use a flight, you lose it. For Jamaican travel advice, see visitjamaica.com.

Q. My European Health Insurance Card expires next month and I do not plan to go abroad again until next year. However, given that Brexit discussions seem to have been overwhelmed by problems, would it be worth renewing the card just in case withdrawal of entitlements is delayed?

Linda Graves, via email.

A. My crystal ball is not infallible. However, applications are free of charge for this state-provided health care in the EU and Switzerland (www.ehic.org.uk), and you never know, you may squeeze in another trip after all. There is also a chance a deal will allow EHIC cards to work into 2021.

Q. We are due to go to Malta for a month in November and I understand Covid is increasing there. My wife and I are worried as we are in our 80s.

John White, via email.

A. Contact the airline and hotel to rearrange your trip. This week, there were 79 cases of Covid-19 per 100,000 people in Malta. If you visit, you must quarantine on return. See gov.uk and maltairport.com/covid19.

Cancelling a package trip on the grounds that you fear the quarantine policy may change would be regarded as a disinclination to travel by tour operators and insurers

Q. My husband and I booked a package holiday to Portugal last November for travel earlier this month. But we have not been able to go as my husband is a self-employed construction worker and could not afford to risk self-isolating for 14 days on return. Anything we can do?

Christine Spruce, Ainsdale, Merseyside.

A. You were right to be cautious as a quarantine-on-return for Portugal was subsequently brought in on September 12. However, cancelling a package trip on the grounds that you fear the quarantine policy may change would be regarded as a disinclination to travel by tour operators and insurers.

This is one of the frustrations of the yo-yoing with quarantines. It is also why a test-on-arrival system for Britons returning from abroad would be much better.

One reader cancelled a trip to Portugal, pictured, over fears the air bridge would vanish

Q. I have a holiday booked for Cyprus in November and know that a negative test for Covid-19 is required. Could you advise me of reputable firms offering this test in the North-West?

Anthony Hock, via email.

A. Yes, you do need a negative test result taken within 72 hours of arrival. You could try Bupa, which has regional medical centres and tests from 65 (bupa.co.uk/health/payg/covid-testing).

WERE HERE TO HELP

If you need advice, the Holiday Guru is here to answer your questions. Email them to holidayplanner@dailymail.co.uk.
P Thiruselvam By

Express News Service

PERAMBALUR: Two weeks after a teacher from Elambalur government school named Bairavi distributed smartphones to her students, another group of teachers from the same school has come up with a similar initiative.

The teachers -- Suresh, Selvaraj and Kayalvizhi -- pooled in the money and some volunteers also contributed. They purchased 28 smartphones and SIM cards and distributed it to the students. Another interesting fact is Perambalur MLA R Tamilselvan also donated money for it.

This is the second such novel initiative in the same school. Earlier, Bairavi had distributed 16 smartphones and SIM card worth Rs 1 lakh at her own expense. The teachers and the volunteers pooled in money and bought 18 smartphones and SIM cards for the students. Later as the news reached the MLA, Tamilselvan donated 10 more smartphones and SIM cards.

Furthermore, District Education Officer Marimeenal, Headmistress (in charge) Ragamanchari and several other teachers also contributed for this novel initiative.

Talking about the initiative, Bairavi said, "I received appreciation for distributing smartphones to students from various quarters, but what made me happy is that it is not one such incident. I am glad that MLA Tamilselvan also contributed. We will arrange more smartphones if there is a surge in enrolment of students."

Science teacher R Selvaraj who offered eight phones on Friday said, "We know about poor students studying in the government school. My family particularly my son encouraged me to buy phones, so I purchased eight smartphones for my students."
The 'Sante Services', a daughter company of the Robert Schuman Hospital Foundation, has decided to produce its own masks.

Everyday life without a mask has become unthinkable. Most surgical masks are flown in from Asia, but now the first official mask production site in Luxembourg has been opened.

Masks are fairly simple to produce, as they only consist of five components: an inner and outer layer, the filter in between them, the metal strip, and the straps. Hence the decision to produce them here.

Georges Heirendt, representative of the Robert Schuman foundation, explains that the peak of coronavirus infections caused struggles to obtain masks. Not only limited supplies were the issue, but transport methods were lacking, which inspired the company to produce their own.

Over 200,000 masks have already been produced in the past three weeks. The team of eight workers and one machine now produces 20,000 masks a day. Video report in Luxembourgish:

If all goes to plan, Luxembourg will no longer have to import masks from abroad. Heirendt believes that a maximum of 40 million masks can be produced yearly, which is more than enough to supply residents and cross-border workers.

Production capacities enable a renunciation of foreign production (24/7 production could be implemented) which may improve the quality, but they also have a positive environmental impact.

It is also previewed that FFP2 masks will be produced in the same factory, but these are still pending approval.

The masks will mainly be sent to hospitals, doctors, and retirement homes. Residents will be able to buy them in supermarkets and gas stations.

The project is financed by the Ministry of Middle Classes.
China on Saturday accused the United States of "bullying" and suggested it may take unspecified countermeasures after Washington banned downloads of popular video app TikTok and effectively blocked the use of the Chinese super-app WeChat.

"China urges the US to abandon bullying, cease (its) wrongful actions and earnestly maintain fair and transparent international rules and order," a statement by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said.

"If the US insists on going its own way, China will take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies."

The United States made the moves against the two Chinese apps on Friday, citing national security grounds and escalating a fight with Beijing over digital technology.

Under the order, the Tencent-owned WeChat app would lose functionality in the United States from Sunday. TikTok users will be banned from installing updates but could keep accessing the service through November 12.

That timeframe potentially allows for a tie-up between TikTok, owned by China's ByteDance, and a US company to safeguard data to allay Washington's security concerns.

US officials described Friday's measures as essential to national security as President Donald Trump confronts Beijing during a tough re-election campaign.

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The US has deployed armored vehicles to Syria and an aircraft carrier has moved into position in the Gulf to protect American troops after soldiers were injured by a Russian military patrol last month and fears grow of a resurgence of ISIS.

The Army sent in Bradley Fighting Vehicles to North East Syria to give troops more protection in the ongoing mission to defeat Islamic State, according to a coalition spokesman.

The USS Nimitz aircraft carrier also entered the Persian Gulf Friday together with two guided-missile cruisers, allowing Navy aircraft to fly missions over Syria and Iraq and protect troops stationed in the region.

America's ramping up of its military presence in Syria comes after ISIS claimed around 100 attacks in Iraq in August alone, sparking concerns the terrorist group is reemerging.

This comes despite Donald Trump claiming in October he had 'defeated 100% of the ISIS Caliphate' and insisting this week that American troops are 'out' of Syria.

The US has deployed armored vehicles to Syria and an aircraft carrier has moved into position in the Gulf to protect American troops after soldiers were injured by a Russian military patrol last month and fears grow of a resurgence of ISIS. Pictured Bradleys arriving in Syria Friday

Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) spokesman Col Wayne Marotto tweeted Friday that Bradleys - armored personnel carriers - had been drafted in to northeast Syria as part of the fight against Daesh.

'The @coalition continues to support our partners bringing the fight to Daesh,' Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) spokesman Col Wayne Marotto wrote on Twitter.

'Positioning M2A2 Bradley's in North East Syria provides force protection support to the continuing mission to #DefeatDaesh.'

Six Bradley vehicles, around 100 troops and some Sentinel radar systems arrived in Syria Friday, while there will also be an increase in combat air patrols with American fighter jets and drones.

The last time Bradleys were sent to Syria was in October when they were deployed to help Syrian Democratic Forces defeat ISIS.

Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) spokesman Col Wayne Marotto tweeted Friday that Bradleys had been drafted in to northeast Syria as part of the fight against Daesh

Hours before they were drafted in Friday, the USS Nimitz entered the Persian Gulf to fly missions over Syria and Iraq in order to provide extra protection for US troops

The arrival of the military powers comes as fears are growing that ISIS is building a stronghold in the region again, following the spate of attacks last month

Hours before they were drafted in Friday, the USS Nimitz entered the Persian Gulf to fly missions over Syria and Iraq in order to provide extra protection for US troops.

This comes as fears are growing that ISIS is building a stronghold in the region again and is posing a mounting threat on both domestic and foreign soil, following the spate of attacks last month.

Around 100 Islamic State attacks took place in Iraq in August, a 25 percent increase from July, according to the Terrorism Research and Analysis Consortium.

In October, Donald Trump claimed his administration had 'defeated' ISIS.

'After defeating 100% of the ISIS Caliphate, I largely moved our troops out of Syria. Let Syria and Assad protect the Kurds and fight Turkey for their own land,' he tweeted.

'I said to my Generals, why should we be fighting for Syria.'

On Friday, Trump also told reporters at the White House that troops were 'out' of Syria.

'We are out of Syria other than we kept the oil. I kept the oil. We have troops guarding the oil. Other than that we are out of Syria,' he said.

Around 60,000 US troops are still deployed to the Middle East, even after 2,000 return from Iraq at the end of the month and as another 100 were sent to Syria Friday.

In August, a Russian military vehicle deliberately rammed the vehicle the US troops were driving in following a tense high-speed confrontation near Dayrick, in northeast Syria

As well as a growing threat from Islamic State, tensions have also been escalating between US troops and Russian forces in eastern Syria this year, including a recent vehicle collision that injured four American service members.

In August, a Russian military vehicle deliberately rammed the vehicle the US troops were driving in following a tense high-speed confrontation near Dayrick, in northeast Syria.

The US service members were diagnosed with mild concussion-like symptoms following the incident.

While there have been several other recent incidents between the American and Russian troops who all patrol in eastern Syria, officials described this one as the most serious.
Miami resident Willie Mae Daniels, with granddaughter, Karyah Davis, 6, was laid off from her job as a food service cashier at the University of Miami on March 17.

In just the past six months, more than 22 million American jobs have been lost, and fewer than half have so far returned. Even when they were working, many people weren't earning enough to get by.

Trying to survive on low-paying jobs prompted journalist David Shipler in 2004 to write, The Working Poor: Invisible in America. Over five years, he interviewed families across the country who were in the job market but unable to lift themselves out of poverty.

With so many people out of work during the pandemic, Shipler fears the problems he wrote more than a decade ago will only get much worse. He is the author of seven books, the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for general non-fiction and a former correspondent of The New York Times.

CNBC spoke with Shipler about how the recession will impact workers. The interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

CNBC: You hear a lot these days about how many Americans are living paycheck to paycheck. But how did you come up with the term "the working poor" and how do you define it?

David Shipler: The term seemed to crystallize the problem in just three words. That is, people who were working but were still poor. How can that be? That seems to be an oxymoron. Why should people be in poverty or near poverty when they're actually engaging in work and, often, very difficult work, with difficult hours?

CNBC: How will the pandemic make the problem worse?

DS: People are going to be very desperate for work of any kind. I think the pandemic and the accompanying economic damage will make people much less able to negotiate for higher wages, and less willing even to try to negotiate for better working conditions. And many low-wage workers can't work from home. They have to go and expose themselves to Covid-19.
Pakistan on Friday rejected India's demand that an Indian lawyer or a Queen counsel should be appointed in Kulbhushan Jadhav case to ensure a free and fair trial.

"Allowing a Queen's Counsel for Jadhav is out of the question as only a lawyer with a license to practice in Pakistan can appear before the court," Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudri said at a press briefing here.

A Queen's Counsel is a barrister or advocate, appointed as counsel to the United Kingdom's Crown on the recommendation of the Lord Chancellor, Geo News reported.

Earlier this month, the Islamabad High Court in Pakistan directed the federal government to give India another chance to appoint a lawyer to represent Jadhav and adjourned hearing for a month.

Ministry of External Affairs' spokesperson Anurag Srivastava on Thursday said that Pakistan has not been able to fulfil its obligations on implementation of ICJ judgment in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case and has not yet addressed core issues including provision of all documents and unimpeded access.

Srivastava said at the regular media briefing that Pakistan has also not addressed the appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queen's counsel to ensure a free and fair trial for Jadhav.

"The Government of Pakistan has not been able to fulfil its obligations on implementation of the ICJ judgment in letter and spirit. It has not yet addressed the core issues, which includes the provision of all documents related to the case, providing unconditional and unimpeded consular access to Kulbhusan Jadhav and appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queen's counsel to ensure a free and fair trial," he said.

Geo News had last week cited Pakistan Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri as saying that there was no other option for India but to "cooperate with Pakistani courts", which only permit the appearance of locally registered lawyers before the bench.

India has said Pakistan should provide for an unimpeded, unhindered and unconditional consular access and that the meeting of Indian officials with Jadhav should take place in an atmosphere free from fear of retribution.

India has also said that any conversation between Jadhav and High Commission officials must necessarily take place in privacy and without the presence of any Pakistani official or recording by Pakistan.

Pakistan claims that Jadhav was arrested from Balochistan in 2016 on charges of espionage. India has rejected Pakistan's allegations and said he was kidnapped from the Iranian port of Chabahar. In early 2017, a Pakistani military court sentenced him to death.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) had upheld India's claim that Pakistan has committed an egregious violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations on several counts.

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Cured COVID patient tests positive again View(s):

A recovered COVID-19 patient admitted to the Chilaw Base Hospital for a sudden illness was transferred to the Iranawila COVID-19 Treatment Centre yesterday (19) after he tested positive again, the hospital director said. The patient is a 23-year-old resident of Anamaduwa.

He arrived in Sri Lanka on August 16 from Dubai. He was identified as a COVID-19 patient following a PCR test conducted at the time and admitted to the Welikanda Hospital. He was subjected to three more PCR tests at the hospital. After the third test, which cleared him of the disease, he was discharged on September 10 with instructions to self-quarantine at home till September 24.

Chilaw Base Hospital Director Dr Kapila Mallawaarachchi said the patient was admitted to the Chilaw Base Hospital on September 17 following a sudden illness. After a PCR test confirmed him to be a COVID-19 patient, he was transferred to the Iranawila COVID-19 Treatment Centre.

The director said the patients mother who had stayed with him in the same house was to be brought to the hospital for a PCR test.
The Latest on wildfires in the U.S. West (all times local):

8 p.m.

WRIGHTWOOD, Calif.  A stubborn, growing wildfire in mountains northeast of Los Angeles is moving toward homes.

Evacuation warnings were issued Thursday evening for the small forest town of Wrightwood on the fires northeast side. Earlier in the day residents were ordered to leave the community of Juniper Hills in foothills on the north flank of the San Gabriel Mountains.

The blaze started Sept. 6 on the south flank of the San Gabriels and has slowly churned across much of the range, through timber and brush that hadnt burned in decades.

Officials say the fire has flared up in other areas and is again threatening Mount Wilson, site of a historic observatory and an array of broadcast antennas.

___

3:20 p.m.

SALEM, Ore.  Oregon officials are temporarily suspending recovery work in the area of one of the states biggest fires east of Eugene due to expected heavy rain and possible thunderstorms Thursday night into Friday.

The Oregon Department of Forestry says the forecast calls for possible lightning strikes and hail as well as rain and fire-damaged trees and rocks could fall into the road.

Officials are urging residents who have not already evacuated to do so now or remain inside their homes during the storm.

The National Weather Service already issued a flash flood warning for large parts of Oregon for the next 24 hours.

___

3 p.m.

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif.  Yosemite National Park is closing to all visitors due to significant smoke impacts from Californias wildfires.

The park issued a notice that all entrances and roads will close at 5 p.m. Thursday and will reopen when conditions are safe.

The park says there is hazardous air quality throughout Yosemite.

Sequoia National Park closed earlier this week due to a growing wildfire in the adjacent Sequoia National Forest. Kings Canyon National Park remains open but air quality is also described as poor.

___

2:55 p.m.

Story continues

JUNIPER HILLS, Calif.  New evacuations have been ordered on one side of a wildfire in the San Gabriel Mountains northeast of Los Angeles.

Angeles National Forest officials say the Bobcat Fire is 1 mile (1.61 kilometers) from the community of Juniper Hills in foothills on the north flank of the mountain range.

Nearby Devils Punchbowl county park has also been ordered evacuated.

The fire started Sept. 6 on the south flank of the San Gabriel Mountains and has burned across much of the range. Officials say the fire is active in other areas including around Mount Wilson, site of a historic observatory and numerous broadcast antennas.

___

2:50 p.m.

PORTLAND, Ore.  The National Weather Service issued a flash flood watch Thursday for areas in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains in Oregon, including parts of counties that were just devastated by major wildfires.

Clackamas County, south of Portland, and Jackson County in the southern part of the state, were among those listed as at-risk for floods from heavy rain and thunderstorms headed to the state. Both counties have significant burned areas from the fires.

Areas that have recently burned are at a higher-than-usual risk for flash flooding and mudslides because the trees and vegetation that normally absorb the water and hold the soil in place are gone.

Heavy rain can trigger landslides, rock fall, and debris flows in steep terrain.

___

2:45 p.m.

SEQUOIA NATIONAL PARK, Calif.  Californias Sequoia National Park has been fully closed due to a nearby wildfire in the Sierra Nevada wilderness.

A statement on the park website says the action implemented earlier this week came after the park headquarters and the community of Three Rivers at the parks southern entrance were put on evacuation notice.

Sequoia National Park is threatened by the Castle Fire, part of the SQF Complex of fires ignited by lightning in the Sierra National Forest.

Burning since Aug. 19, the complex has scorched nearly 192 square miles and is just 12% contained Thursday.

Kings Canyon National Park, immediately to the north of Sequoia, remains open.
Scott Sauls on embodying Christ's gentleness in culture; why Christians should feel politically 'homeless'

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In an us vs. them culture, Christians are called to embody the gentleness of Christ, which is the secret weapon to diffusing anger, easing tension, and defeating evil and injustice.

Thats according to Scott Sauls, senior pastor of Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee, who in an interview with The Christian Post, said hes concerned by the number of professing Christians caught up in partisan bickering.

Its easy to conflate our Christianity with our politics as if the two were one and the same, he said. The reality is, neither the political left nor the right is clean in terms of their representation of the Kingdom of God.

Sauls, who previously served as the lead and preaching pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City alongside Pastor Tim Keller, encouraged Christians to become more nuanced in our political engagement, become willing to critique the party that we align with, and also affirm the party that we don't align with.

In some respects, we ought to feel politically homeless, he said. And that doesn't mean we all need to become moderates. But we all need to transcend the American political system just as Jesus transcended the political system that He was part of. When we give our whole selves to Jesus, it will become utterly impossible for us to give ourselves wholesale to a political party.

Sauls stressed that there is a more Christian way than the partisan way, adding: We need become people of a gentle answer.

According to the pastor, before Christians are able to truly practice gentleness both within the church and to the outside world, they must be in a position first to receive what Christ has for us as the one who calls Himself the one who has meek and gentle and heart who gives rest to the weary into the burdened.

Throughout his earthly ministry, Jesus exemplified what it means to be gentle, Sauls said.

He befriends the sinner in all of us instead of rejecting us; He goes toward us in forgiveness and grace; He reforms the pharisee in us and leads us to a place of humility, and disarms the cynic in all of us, the pastor explained.

Once you have an understanding of where you stand with the one who calls Himself meek and gentle, then we can get into the harder conversations of what real gentleness looks like, he continued. When we practice gentleness, we grow thicker skin. We do not anger easily. We receive criticism graciously. We forgive all the way. We bless our own betrayers.

We need to understand the posture of Jesus before we can presume to become like Him, he stressed. We become like Him by being with Him.

Sauls latest book, A Gentle Answer, offers a vision for how Christians can practice gentleness in a culture largely defined by outrage and cynicism.

The idea for the book, Sauls told CP, was conceived two years ago, a time he described as the midway point between the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections.

2016 did not go very well in terms of being a unifying season, even among Christians, he recalled. So I thought 2020 would be a good time to present a better way of engaging with one another.

But when 2020 hit, we didnt even start talking about the election until a few weeks ago because so much has happened between COVID-19 and racial pain and Jeffrey Epstein, etc., Sauls said.

I'm actually simultaneously grieved that the world is in the condition that it is right now, but also thankful to be able to be part of the conversation with what seems like a timely release for anything that has to do with gentleness, he added.

Though sometimes used interchangeably, niceness and gentleness are wildly different  and sometimes opposing  practices, the pastor contended.

Jesus doesnt fit the description of being nice. He was gentle, he argued. Niceness is dysfunctional. It sweeps hard things under the rug. It says peace, peace when there is no peace. It treats wounds lightly and superficially. It tends to run away from pain and difficult emotions rather than dealing with them head-on.

In contrast, gentleness enters in when there's pain, injustice, injury, unfair treatment, or bullying, he said.

Niceness doesn't confront anything, he said. Gentleness does confront, because in order to love what is good you've also got to hate what is evil. To hate what is evil means to fight it. Christianity, when it sees what's wrong with the world, especially when human beings are being hurt and injured, stands up to the bully and it comes to the defense of the vulnerable and of the weak.

True Christianity, according to Sauls, is kind, humble, politically balanced and not on the partisan edges, quick to listen, and demonstrates unparalleled generosity toward the needs of the world.

And I think thats the majority of Christians, but thats not the narrative that is presented about evangelicals, he said. The statistic that 80% of evangelicals put Donald Trump in office turns into, 80% of evangelicals are enthusiasts about a man who has been predatorial toward women, tells lies, is a racist and all the other accusations about him. Theres this label that is assigned to the worst kind of caricature.

But in reality, Christians are on the frontlines nationwide working toward racial reconciliation and justice, Sauls said.

Christians are leading on the ground. Were not perfect, but wherever you see real repair starting to happen, you will see Christian churches and communities and individuals in the center of the conversation.

The real story is very different than the public narrative, he added. Even though we do have our issues that we do not repent of, and reform is certainly necessary, the story that's told in public is often different than the story on the ground.

When it comes to pastors addressing political issues from the pulpit, Sauls said congregants should leave confused as to where we stand politicly.

As long as we're being comprehensive and preaching the Kingdom of God on the issues and not slanting toward a partisan direction in our preaching or using the pulpit to push an imperfect human agenda, then absolutely we should address the issues, he said.

But, he added, if were preaching the whole Christ and the whole message of the Kingdom of God and the whole counsel of God, we're going to be too conservative for our liberal friends and too liberal for our conservative friends.

Sauls said hes optimistic about the future of Christianity in America. He predicted that the country is in for a sifting further accelerated by the COVID-19 lockdowns.

We're probably going to see a good bit of drop off from those who aren't deeply committed to Christ but maybe went to church for other reasons, while were probably going to see an even deeper commitment on the part of those who seek to follow Christ faithfully. Well also see a doubling down on faithfulness and service and loving your neighbor.

What we do have is the promise that Jesus gave that He will build His church and the gates of Hell will not prevail against it, he reminded. This may be a season of pruning and refining, but the Church will not go away. It will not disappear or die. We have the promise of the resurrection.
A senior United Nations official is calling on Algerian authorities to release journalist Khaled Drareni who was jailed on Tuesday for two years over his coverage of the country's pro-democracy movement.

Clement Nyaletsossi Voule, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Rights to Peaceful Assembly and Association said he "cannot see a legal basis" for Drareni's arrest.

"He has been arrested while doing this coverage. And for us it is condemnable and not acceptable," he added.

40-year old Drareni, an editor at the Casbah Tribune news site and correspondent for French-language channel TV5 Monde, was arrested on March 29th on charges of "inciting an unarmed gathering" and "endangering national unity" after covering demonstrations by the "Hirak" protest movement.
The Bachelor's Laura Byrne and Matthew 'Matty J' Johnson managed to keep news that they were expecting a second child secret for 20 weeks, or five months.

And on Saturday, Laura, 31, revealed just how she managed to keep her pregnancy under wraps for so long.

On Nova's Matt, Sarah and Matty J show, host Sarah McGilvray asked Laura: 'You are one of the most papped people in Sydney! How did you keep it under wraps?'

'It was pretty easy really!' The Bachelor's Laura Byrne revealed this week how she kept her pregnancy secret for 20 weeks. Pictured: Matthew 'Matty J' Johnson, Laura and their daughter Marlie-Mae

'It was winter, it was lockdown, it was pretty easy really, I mean baggy T-shirts and stuff,' Laura replied.

'A soon as it was getting warmer, I was like we might have to announce this as I don't want to be going for walks wearing jumpers in the middle of summer.'

'You've effectively been shackled to the bedroom for the last 20 weeks,' Laura's fiance Matty said.

'Alrighty! You don't need to tell them everything that's going on!' Laura joked.

Thank you lockdown! Laura said the COVID-19 pandemic and wearing 'baggy' clothes helped her conceal her baby bump for months. She is pictured with fellow Bachelor contestant and podcast co-host Brittany Hockley during her recent holiday in Byron Bay

On Thursday, Laura and Matty announced that they're expecting their second child together.

'I reckon we've kept this little beach ball under wraps for long enough..... Half way to number two,' Laura wrote in an Instagram post at the time.

'A big shout out to @matthewdavidjohnson for his contribution,' she joked.

'We've kept this little beach ball under wraps for long enough': On Thursday, Laura and Matty announced that they're expecting their second child together

Earlier this month, the pair celebrated their three-year anniversary after meeting and falling in love on The Bachelor exactly three years ago.

Matty and Laura became engaged in April 2019.

They welcomed their daughter Marlie-May in June last year.
A cardboard cutout of Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is held up after her death, in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, U.S., September 20, 2020.

Outside organizations are gearing up for a battle in the Senate over the Supreme Court seat once held by Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Many of those leading the effort say the various campaigns will spend millions to sway lawmakers after President Donald Trump chooses Ginsburg's replacement, who died on Friday after serving on the court for over 20 years.

The tactics of these groups from both sides of the political spectrum range from TV and digital ads, to producing opposition research on Trump's shortlist of potential candidates. The moves come as Democrats and Republicans, from Trump to Democratic nominee Joe Biden to congressional lawmakers on Capitol Hill, are already at odds over whether a Supreme Court nominee should be brought up for a vote with just under 50 days until Election Day.

Beyond the political issue based groups that will be involved with this bitter battle, super PACs backing both Biden and Trump are preparing for the upcoming Supreme Court debate in Congress to filter over to the presidential campaign.

Max Steele, a spokesman for the pro-Biden super PAC American Bridge, says they already have been distributing opposition research on potential Supreme Court nominees. "We're focused less on jurisprudence and more on traditional oppo (ethics, finances, controversial statements, etc,)" Steele said on Saturday.

Josh Schwerin, the spokesman for Priorities USA Action, another pro-Biden super PAC, told CNBC that they're bracing for the Supreme Court fight to seep into the presidential campaign.

"Our goal is and always has been to win the presidential election and that's where our focus will remain. We fully expect this fight over the Supreme Court to be part of that debate alongside the raging pandemic that has killed more than 200,000 Americans while Trump fails to deal with it," Schwerin said. NBC News reported Saturday that deaths had passed 200,000, though the fatality count from Johns Hopkins University had not yet crossed the somber milestone.



Priorities, Schwerin says, did their recent own polling of "low propensity Democratic voters" in battleground states. About 65% of those surveyed said a reason to be enthusiastic about Biden's candidacy is because, they say, he could appoint Supreme Court judges who "protect a woman's right to choose, keep environmental protections, and protect civil rights and voting rights," Schwerin says.

Pro-Trump America First Action say they are gearing up to get involved with the upcoming fight in the Senate.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky, blocked President Barack Obama's Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland in 2016, at the end of his second term as commander in chief. McConnell said at the time that he believed the next president should be the one to decide who gets to fill the late Antonin Scalia's seat. McConnell now says that he intends to call for a vote on Trump's next nominee to the Supreme Court. The president tweeted on Saturday that he wants Republicans to move ahead "without delay" to replace Ginsburg.

Judge Amy Coney Barrett of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has emerged as a front-runner to fill the seat, according to NBC News.

The Judicial Crisis Network, a dark money conservative group which committed to spend $10 million in support of now Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, is prepared to invest that amount, if not more, on this next campaign, with some funds expected to go toward TV and digital spots, along with print and mailer advertisements.

Carrie Severino, the president of the group, told CNBC on Saturday that they are set to "match" and "surpass" the spending of their progressive rivals, Demand Justice, who announced they would invest $10 million into the fight over Ginsburg's seat. Demand Justice is a liberal dark money group that has fought Trump and Republican efforts to confirm judicial nominees. They announced on Friday they would spend the massive total "to fight to ensure no justice is confirmed before the January inauguration."

The Judicial Crisis Network plans to message, at least in part, that McConnell, Republican senators and Trump have the historical and political precedent on their side when it comes to confirming Supreme Court judges. When one party has control over the Senate and White House they can then push ahead with a Supreme Court nomination, regardless of the timing of the seat becoming vacant, Severino said after being asked about their messaging campaign.

"We are going to have a state of the art campaign using whatever we need to win this fight," she noted.

An outside group known as Fix Our Senate already published their first ad in the wake of Ginsburg's death. After highlighting McConnell saying he won't confirm Garland when Obama was president, the group then calls on viewers to reach out to their Senators to take a similar stance when it comes to Ginsburg's seat.

The Article III Project, a 501(c)(4) organization founded by Mike Davis, a former advisor to Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa., when he led the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee, told CNBC they are gearing up for a battle over the eventual nominee.

"This news just broke, but the Article III Project will be fully engaged to support and defend President Trump's nominee and ensure they receive a Senate floor vote," Davis said in a statement. He added they haven't decided the budget for the nomination process but they "will certainly be directing significant resources to this critical fight."

The political advocacy arm of Planned Parenthood, who are staunch advocates of reproductive rights, are also plotting their latest Supreme Court campaign. They're planning to activate their own volunteer network and team up with their partners in an effort to remind senators how some have previously said a nominee should not be confirmed this close to an election, and how the next justice could decide the future of health care, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. There will be a new ad component to the larger campaign, this person added.

This person declined to be named because their campaign is still in the planning stages. The Republican lawmakers they're looking to target, this person explained, include Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Cory Gardner, R-Colo., Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska. Collins proved to be a pivotal vote in confirming Kavanaugh and is currently up for reelection in a race deemed a toss-up by the Cook Political Report. Gardner and Tillis are also in toss-up races.

"Senators who stand with Trump now and allow him to fill this seat with an extreme nominee in the waning days of his term will be held accountable in November and they are going to be out of a job come January," Jenny Lawson, executive director of Planned Parenthood Votes, said in a statement. "Planned Parenthood Votes is mobilizing supporters in every state across the country to ensure our rights, freedoms, and health care are protected."

The Supreme Court will consider the future of the Affordable Care Act just a week after the presidential election.

A political advocacy organization backed by billionaire Charles Koch is preparing to get involved, provided the nominee is in line with their priorities, Tim Phillips, the president of Americans for Prosperity (AFP), told CNBC. They advocated for Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch when they were nominated. AFP announced at the time of Kavanaugh's confirmation they were committing seven figures to support his nomination. That campaign included paid advertising.

Phillips is convinced Trump will select a Supreme Court nominee that will match the network's priorities, with particular focus on less government overreach. With that in mind, he said their organization will likely be engaged this time around.

"A Supreme Court confirmation is an absolute priority for us. It was for Kavanaugh. It was on Gorsuch. It will be and is a priority."
Gov. Phil Murphy said in a television interview that New Jersey hasnt seen a surge in coronavirus cases from gyms, movie theaters and indoor dining reopening.

But the state has seen its fourth straight day of more than 400 new cases and its second consecutive day of more than 500 new cases.

Officials on Friday reported 519 new positive coronavirus tests and five more deaths. Those deaths occurred within the past five days, Murphy said.

The rate of transmission increased slightly for the second straight day to 1.08, from 1.07 on Thursday. That was also a day in which it increased after holding steady for four days. It has been above the benchmark of 1 since Sept. 4.

State Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli attributed the rise to gatherings.

This increase in cases reminds us this virus is unrelenting, Persichilli said. It treats everyone the same. We are fighting an invisible enemy, and we must be cognizant of that fact.

About 33% of the new cases in recent days have been among 18 to 29 year olds. The increase in cases among this population has not led to a rise in deaths and hospitalizations, but officials warned this age group can pass the virus to more vulnerable people.

New Jersey has had 198,848 coronavirus cases, 14,270 confirmed deaths and 1,791 probable deaths since the outbreak began March 4.

Heres a round up of coronavirus news:

N.J. college dorm under quarantine after COVID-19 found in sewage. The students can leave campus, but the university will suspend their swipe access to facilities until they test negative, Golden said.

The digital divide. From the instant New Jersey schools closed their doors last spring, state officials knew thousands of students would have no way to log on for virtual school, especially in the states poorest districts.

Parents of special needs students at A. Harry Moore School face new roles during remote learning. The pandemic has meant parents, like Kamilas mother Ruth Vera, now double as physical and occupational therapists, guiding their children through specialized exercises with the help of actual therapists using video conferencing and recorded videos.

Dee Snider blasts unmasked protesters for using Were Not Gonna Take It. Snider, the outspoken frontman for the hair-metal icons that formed in Ho-Ho-Kus, took to Twitter on Wednesday to condemn the protesters that walked through a Target in Fort Lauderdale while blasting 1984 hit Were Not Gonna Take It and not wearing masks.

One of N.J.'s largest school districts tells all teachers to stay home after 3 positive COVID-19 cases. Teachers in Elizabeth public schools will work from home for the next two weeks after at least three staffers tested positive for COVID-19 after reporting for work in school buildings, district officials said Friday.

More than 200K in N.J. to get letters about how they can still get a stimulus payment, IRS says. The letters, which will be sent to people who dont typically file tax returns, are meant to encourage people who havent yet received a stimulus payment to take steps to see if they qualify.

NJ Advance Media Staff Writers Brent Johnson, Chris Sheldon, Adam Clark, Joshua Rosario, Kelly Heyboer, Jeremy Schneider and Karin Price Mueller contributed to this report.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Allison Pries may be reached at apries@njadvancemedia.com.
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KAMPALA  The team from Britam Uganda led by the CEO Mr. Allan Mafabi handed over the winning cake from the recently launched #BritamBakeOff Challenge to the Uganda Airlines CEO Mr. Cornwell Muleya and his management team yesterday at an event that was held at the Uganda Airlines offices in Entebbe.

The #BritamBakeOff Challenge was launched last month after Britam Uganda was chided for presenting an unflattering cake to celebrate Uganda Airlines first anniversary celebrations.

Mr. Mafabi congratulated Uganda Airlines upon their first year of operations, stating their importance as the Uganda national carrier.

We have seen Uganda Airlines revive our countrys airline industry; all your efforts and endeavors have surely not gone in vain. The success you have achieved under a year is highly commendable and we are proud to be witnesses and partners of your success. This is only the beginning of the many accomplishments you will achieve and we are confident that Uganda Airlines will achieve he said.

Mafabi also thanked all the 132 bakers who took part in the #BritamBakeOff Challenge for stepping out and showing up with eagerness to give Uganda Airlines the cake they truly deserve and represent how outstanding it is that they are celebrating their first anniversary.

The time and effort you all put in to share your ideas and make these cakes is highly appreciated and we thank you. It is a true example of how, when we come together, we can do amazing things to show our appreciation for our country. And for that, we are eternally grateful he said.

While receiving the cake, Mr. Cornwell Muleya the C.E.O Uganda Airlines appreciated the efforts made by Britam Uganda in correcting the earlier mistake and turning around a situation that didnt depict their brand.

The #BritamBakeOff Challenge has been very successful, on our part we have been amazed by the various cake designs exhibited by not only the winners but all the 132 bakers who shared their cake designs. In fact, we want to make this challenge an annual event! he said.

Muleya added that they have seen that Ugandans are proud of their national airline and this gives them more motivation even as they look forward to the passenger operations being opened up soon for local and international travelers to witness more of the Pearl of Africa.

Cake Album UG the eventual winners of the competition that had them bake the cake which was delivered to Uganda Airlines were excited about the opportunity and thanked the Britam management for the support rendered.

The top five winners of the #BritamBakeOff Challenge were DCake Fairy, Seasons of Joy Creations, Nalwadda Mariam, Cillas Oven and the eventual winners Cake Album UG.

Related
London:

Thousands of protesters on Saturday joined a Womens March in London in the UK as part of an international campaign in order to raise awareness of womens rights and other civil rights, they fear, could be under threat under Donald Trumps presidency.

The rally is among a number of events planned in the UK, on the first full day of Trumps presidency, in solidarity with a similar march in US capital Washington DC, expected to attract tens of thousands of people.

There are as many as 600 sister marches planned around the US, with some of the biggest expected in Boston, New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.

Organisers aim to highlight womens and civil rights, which they perceive to be under threat from the new US administration.

Demonstrators marched from the US embassy at Grosvenor Square in central London, to Trafalgar Square, where Mayor of London Sadiq Khan was among those attending a rally.

Protesters chanted slogans of build bridges not walls and dump Trump and attacked the new US President for his previous derogatory remarks on women.

For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
An officer unloading bags of rice which contained heroin at the port of Felixstowe (Picture: PA)

Police have seized 120m worth of heroin that was hidden inside bags of rice.

The drugs were found in a container ship at the port of Felixstowe, in Suffolk, on Sunday.

Authorities then returned the Sembawang ship under surveillance as part of an international operation.

It sailed to Antwerp in Belgium where it docked on Tuesday and the container was driven by lorry to a warehouse south of The Hague in the Netherlands.

Upon arrival, officers moved in and arrested three people  the driver and two men involved in the unloading.

Read more: Teen jailed for life for stabbing best friend to death outside his home

As they were arrested, a 45-year-old man who is suspected to be a UK facilitator in the organised crime group was detained on the M40 by Thames Valley Police assisting the National Crime Agency (NCA).

He has been released on bail.

The 1,196kg of heroin and morphine derivatives would be worth around 21 million to organised criminals at wholesale and in excess of 120 million at street level, the NCA said.

Heroin is typically supplied via county lines dealing, which relies on the exploitation of children and vulnerable people to transport the drugs.

The NCA said the seizure is one of the largest ever of heroin in the UK.

Read more: Man who blamed imaginary twin for violent rape is jailed for 22 years

The 1,196kg of heroin and morphine derivatives had a street value of 210m (Picture: PA)

Read more: Former teacher jailed for raping woman after his son was arrested for sex offence

Nikki Holland, NCA director of investigations, said: This is a huge seizure which has denied organised criminals tens of millions of pounds in profits, and is the result of a targeted, intelligence-led investigation carried out by the NCA with international and UK partners.

Minister for immigration compliance and courts Chris Philp added: Even though the container ship was destined for the Netherlands, it is highly likely its illicit cargo could have ended up on UK streets as well as mainland Europe.

Class A drugs like heroin and diamorphine wreak havoc on individuals and communities, and there is no place for them in any civilised society.
New Delhi: The mysterious death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput is being probed by the CBI and the AIIMS forensics team will reportedly submit its findings to the investigating agency on September 20, 2020. Therefore, in 24 hours span, many doubts related to the late actor's demise will be answered but before that Zee News has found another unseen video which shows he was full of life amid the pandemic.

Zee News has accessed a video of Sushant Singh Rajput sitting in the balcony of his residence in Mumbai, making paper planes. He can be seen enjoying the moment just like little children do while making paper planes. While you can hear the voice of the person making this video, there's a pack of cigarettes, two mugs, water bottles and a few other items on the table.

It has been learnt that the video is from April 2020 which means two months before his demise - was the actor really battling bouts of behaviour changes during a lockdown or is it that he genuinely enjoyed these little moments in life?

Also, his most prized possession - the telescope is placed in the balcony. It is known to all that Sushant loved skywatching, especially the planetary movements, stars and had a keen interest in astronomy. So, someone who is so passionate about such things in life - can he really take such an extreme step?

These are a few questions which this video raises and also raise serious doubts on claims made by Rhea Chakraborty that he suffered from depression and was into taking drugs.

Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead at his Bandra residence on June 14, 2020.
Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Friday tasked the Ministry of Transport with proposing to increase the frequency of international commercial flights to bring in foreign experts, investors and Vietnamese, the official VGP News reported.

The proposal must be reported to Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh and Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, who is head of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, for consideration and decision.

The government had decided to resume air routes to Guangzhou (mainland China), Taipei (Taiwan), Seoul (South Korea), and Tokyo (Japan) from September 15, and to Phnom Penh (Cambodia) and Vientiane (Laos) from September 22.

The first commercial international flight following the resumption took off from Hanoi at 6:30 am on Saturday and landed at Narita International Airport in Tokyo, Japan after five hours and 15 minutes.

The flight, operated by national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines, carried nearly 60 passengers who were mostly students and workers coming to Japan for study and work, as well as Japanese citizens returning to their home country.

On Friday, PM Phuc asked for measures to quickly clear passengers at airports in order to prevent transmission of COVID-19 while relevant ministries, including the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Public Security, to further simplify entry procedures for foreign experts and investors.

The entry procedures must be specific and clear, the government leader emphasized, adding that the Ministry of Health must issue concrete instructions for COVID-19 testing and quarantine.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (center) presides over a meeting on COVID-19 response in Hanoi, September 18, 2020. Photo: Vietnam Government Portal

He also demanded regular inspection and supervision of centralized quarantine facilities and designated quarantine accommodations.

Phuc ordered strict border control to prevent and strictly punish illegal entrants and those who bring foreigners into Vietnam illegally.

Vietnam began barring entry to foreign nationals on March 22 and suspended commercial international flights from March 25 in a bid to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Since then, charter flights to the country have only been arranged to bring in experts, skilled workers, and diplomats, and to repatriate Vietnamese citizens stranded in other nations and territories due to the pandemic.

Vietnam has documented 1,068 COVID-19 cases, with 941 having recovered and 35 deaths as of Saturday morning, according to Ministry of Health statistics.

The country has gone for 16 days without recording a community-based transmission.

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The issue also is a touchy topic in Guyana, where Granger as president had publicly complained about U.S. pressure to allow the Voice of America to set up a radio station on its territory and beam propaganda messages into Venezuela. Ahead of the visit, the Human Rights Association of Guyana expressed concern that the nation of 740,000 people could get caught in the middle of the dispute between Venezuela and the U.S.
New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has urged Americans to grow in courage, strength and strategy  from the streets to the Senate  in the wake of Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death, weeks before a crucial November election that could determine the fate of the US Supreme Court for generations.

We have lost a giant in the history of our nation with the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, she said on Twitter. It is heartbreaking that in her final moments she was, as are many others, preoccupied with what would happen after her passing. I want to make one thing clear: we can, and must, fight.

The Democratic congressman said now is not the time for cynicism or hopelessness.

There is and continues to be political possibility to preserve our democracy [and] move forward, she said. It will require each [and] every one of us, from the streets to the Senate, to grow in courage, strength and strategy. But it is possible.

The death of the longtime liberal justice on the nations high court, and Donald Trump and his allies commitment to filling her vacancy before Election Day, has signalled the fight of and for our lives, the congresswoman said.

That has always been true, [and] it becomes more true each day, she said. Opponents of democracy need your resignation to succeed. Dont give it to them.  You do not need to, nor should you, ignore your fears  there is plenty to be afraid of  but we have possibilities before us.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said that the Republican-controlled body will hold a vote to consider the presidents appointment to the Supreme Court, rejecting his own guidance in 2016, when he sought to block then-president Barack Obamas appointment several months before that years election.

Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary, the GOP leader said in a statement. President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."

The Kentucky Republican successfully blocked hearings for Merrick Garland following the death of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia in February of that year.

Minority Leader Chuck Schumer invoked Senator McConnell's own words in the New York Democrat's demands that the Senate delay filling the vacancy until after the results of the 2020 election, just six weeks away.

His response: "The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president."

Justice Ginsburg, a mighty figure on the nation's high court and one of only four women to have served on it, died on 18 September following a battle with pancreatic cancer. She was 87.

The death of the critical liberal justice on the court leaves three liberal-leaning justices among the eight remaining justices.
Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) says she won't vote on a Supreme Court nomination until after the election. Or at least that's what she said in an interview with Alaska Public Media only hours before the news of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's passing was reported late Friday.

"I would not vote to confirm a Supreme Court nominee. We are 50 some days away from an election," she reportedly said, referencing the 2016 case of Merrick Garland, when Republicans in the Senate, led by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.), blocked President Obama's nomination to replace Justice Antonin Scalia after he died that February. "That was too close to an election, and the people needed to decide."

McConnell, for his part, has already said he has no problem moving forward right away. "President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate," he said in a statement Friday night. With that stance, tremendous pressure will fall on Murkowski and other moderate Republican senators like Susan Collins (Maine) and Mitt Romney (Utah) to stick to Murkowski's stated position.

Republicans could attempt to have it both ways and wait for the lame duck session after the election. Of course, confirming a Trump nominee at that point could be even more fraught if Joe Biden wins the presidency or if Democrats win the Senate.

More stories from theweek.com

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Myanmar villagers, who fled from conflict between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army, arrive at a temporary refugee camp at a monastery in Sittwe, western Myanmar's Rakhine state, June 29, 2020.

Artillery fire from Myanmar military patrol boats and fresh burnings of villages along a river in Rakhine state this month have added at least 17,000 refugees to the ranks of internally displaced civilians, aid workers in the western state said.

Armed conflict that erupted in late 2018 between Myanmar forces and the Arakan Army (AA) in parts of Rakhine and neighboring Chin state has now displaced more than 220,000 civilians, according to an estimate by the Rakhine Ethnics Congress (REC), a local NGO.

The conflict, exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic that has resurged in Rakhine, has killed nearly 300 civilians, and injured more than 640 injured in northern Rakhine state and in Paletwa township of Chin state, according to an RFA tally.

This months surge of internally displaced persons (IDPs) who abandoned their homes to escape fighting came from a half-dozen villages along the Kaladan River in Rakhines Kyauktaw township, which endured shelling and clearance operations from Myanmar navy patrol boats, volunteers and villagers said.

They arrested and beat the villagers. They burned our houses. We dont have reasons to return to our villages, said Maung Mae Sein, a villager who had fled his home and taken shelter with more than 2,000 people at the Maha Muni pagoda compound and other makeshift relief stations.

Whenever they are in the area, they ravage our village. They robbed our house. They gathered the villagers for interrogations. If they are not satisfied, they beat us. People are too scared to live there, he added.

Volunteers said the villagers came from Alae Kyun, Kyauk Gu Su, Myauk Taung, Thar Si, Shwe Pyi Old village, and Shwe Pyi New village.

There are more than 900 people at the Maha Muni pagoda alone. There are more people who had to stay in Sapar Sekik village north of the pagoda, Buddhist Abbot Pyinnya Thiri from the Maha Muni pagoda IDP camp told RFA.

Tallying some 800 other recent refugee arrivals, he added: We are preparing to build temporary tents for the refugees tomorrow, depending on the donations we receive.

The abbot said over 900 people taking shelter in rest houses in the pagoda compound are relying on government aid of rice rations for two weeks as well as other private donations.

In a repeat of a military tactic seen in Rakhine in recent months, two villages in Kyauktaw township were burned on Sept. 3, sending more than 1,000 people fleeing for shelter.

In Kyauktaw, civilians from two villages, Phaya Paung and Taungpauk, have fled their homes as the military burned down the houses, said Zaw Zaw Tun of the REC relief group.

Villages located along the Kaladan River are now constantly attacked by the navy vessels patrolling the river. The attacks have killed and injured several local civilians, so the people from these villages are fleeing their homes, he said.

The same thing is happening in Rathedaung. All in all, I estimate there are between 17,000 and 20,000 new IDPs from these townships this month alone, added Zaw Zaw Tun.

Military rejects witness accounts

Myanmar military spokesman Major General Zaw Min Tun denied that the military was responsible for the burning of Taung Pauk and Phaya Paung villages in Kyauktaw township.

He also rejected the witness accounts that military vessels on the Kaladan River had fired artillery at the villages.

Rakhine state government spokesman Win Myint said the state administration in Sittwe was negotiating the provision of assistance to the IDPs.

It is true these people have fled their homes. We need to make accommodations for their stay. We also need to provide food for their well-being, he added.

On Monday, as the U.N.s human rights chief issued a report in Geneva saying that the armys actions against civilians  airstrikes by fighter jets, helicopter and heavy artillery attacks, and ground battles in more densely populated areas  could constitute war crimes.

Tatmadaw tactics have shifted, with periodic reliance on airpower against the Arakan Army, but in some instances it appears that civilians may have been directly targeted, the report said, using the Burmese name for the military, Myanmars most powerful institution.

Reported by RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Ye Kaung Myint Maung. Written in English by Paul Eckert.
HDFC Bank Ltd retained its top position as the countrys most valuable brand for the seventh straight year in 2020 despite an 11% decline from the previous year, benefiting from innovation and expansion, according to a report by WPP Plc and Kantar.

HDFC Bank, which is now valued at $20.2 billion, was followed by Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and Tata Consultancy Services in the list of the 75 most valuable companies.

The 2020 edition of the ranking was worth $216 billion in brand value, a 6% decline from 2019, driven largely by a fall in the brand value of banks and automotive companies. Despite the overall decline in value, 26 brands increased their value, and there were five new entrants.

View Full Image Banking on trust

Most notable among these 26 was Reliance Retail Ltd, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries Ltd, which doubled its brand value to become the fastest riser this year at No. 25 ($2.3 billion), up 30 places.

The challenging economic and social conditions created by the pandemic and a pre-covid-19 slowdown in the Indian economy led to an erosion of the brand value of Indian companies.

More than half the brands on the BrandZ Top 75 Most Valuable Indian brands list declined in value. Only 11 managed to grow consistently in the past five years.

Preeti Reddy, chief executive officer - South Asia, insights division, Kantar, said that the performance of retail, telecom and fast-moving consumer goods brands has shown that being agile in times of crisis is critical for growth.

The post-covid world will also offer brands opportunities around sustainable consumption because it is at the top of mind of consumers. A sense of purpose, trust and responsibility have become crucial. The data shows that brands that deliver on these parameters have gained brand value and will continue to do so," she added.

Retail (33%), personal care (32%) and telcos (25%) emerged as the fastest-growing categories as their brand value increased due to value creation and a pivot to digital, which helped customers during the lockdown.

E-commerce firm Flipkart (No. 8, $6.5 billion) made its debut in the top 10 with a 40% jump in brand value.

D-Mart (No. 16, $3.3 billion), with a 38% jump, also saw its brand value increase significantly, while instant food brand Maggi had one of the highest brand value growth figures at 46%.

Despite the paints industry struggling, Asian Paints grew its brand value by 14% by focusing on meaningful difference, communications and innovation.

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Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap said in a recent interview that actor and Member of Parliament, Ravi Kishan used to smoke weed. Now, Ravi has said that he didnt expect such a statement from Anurag.

Ravi told ANI on Saturday, I didnt expect such words from Anurag Kashyap. Its no secret I am a devotee of Shiva so I chant his name. Im saddened he would not support me on this issue of the war on drugs & say that I smoked up & am now clean just because Im a minister, which Im not: Ravi Kishan.

I didn't expect such words from Anurag Kashyap. It's no secret I am a devotee of Shiva so I chant his name. I'm saddened he would not support me on this issue of the war on drugs & say that I smoked up & am now clean just because I'm a minister, which I'm not: Ravi Kishan, BJP MP pic.twitter.com/6v9vxj9Fdc  ANI (@ANI) September 19, 2020

Anurag had said in an interview to journalist Faye DSouza that he is doesnt agree with Ravis self--righteous stand in the Parliament against Bollywood and Indian youths drug problem. He said, Ravi Kishan acted in my last film Mukkabaaz. Ravi Kishan starts his day by saying Jai Shiv Shankar, Jai Bam Bhole. Jai Shiv Shambhu. For the longest period of his time, he has been somebody who has used weed. It is life. Everybody knows it. The whole world knows. Theres not a single person who doesnt know that Ravi Kishan does not smoke up. He might have quit now, that he has become a minister, he might have cleaned up.

Appreciating him as a person, he had further added, But do you include that in drugs? No. I am not judging Ravi, because I have never seen weed as a drug. Abuse is not the word. He used to smoke up. He has always been functional, he has always done his job well, it did not make him dysfunctional, did not make him a monster. It did not do anything that people associate with drugs. So when he talks about it, when he takes a self righteous stand, I have a problem with that.

Also read: Kareena Kapoors son Taimur breaks into an impromptu dance as they visit grandma Babita. Watch

Ravi Kishan had said in his Parliament speech during the monsoon session that there was indeed a problem of drug addiction in the film industry. He said, Drug addiction is in the film industry too. Several people have been apprehended. The NCB has been doing very good work. I urge the central government to take strict action against the culprits soon. Give them a befitting punishment and bring an end to this conspiracy by neighbouring countries.

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The Trump administration is continuing its efforts to shred important parts of the 1973 Endangered Species Act (ESA), including inventing new interpretations of the legislation that are driving several species toward extinction.

The proposed changes to the ESA regulations were announced in July 2018 as part of President Donald Trumps Executive Order 13777, directing federal agencies to lower regulatory burdens. This will include looser requirements on the consultation process used to prevent harm to endangered species from federal activities, a repeal on automatic blanket protections for species listed as threatened and expanded exemptions for critical habitat designations.

In the proposal, the federal agencies suggested that protections for critical habitats under the ESA be limited strictly to areas needed to prevent the ultimate extinction of a species. In response, environmental groups as well as 18 state attorneys general argued that such a definition would only support protecting habitats to encourage the survival of the species rather than other areas that could be made suitable through restoration. It would exclude areas that are degraded and in need of restoration which might be currently uninhabited by an endangered species but where a species could be moved after restoration was complete.

Moreover, while the ESA requires that federal agencies base their decisions to list a species as threatened or endangered, solely on the basis of the best scientific and commercial data available, the new rules now allow the government to bypass such considerations in favor of economic ones.

As a result, several specific species could easily go extinct soon or have recovery efforts severely set back if these rules are implemented.

Gray wolves

The gray wolf is an umbrella species, meaning it is a species that plays a critical role in maintaining the structure of an ecological community, and upon which many other species depend. The gray wolf population in Washington state is already experiencing setbacks given the lethal management the state wildlife agency is using and given the federal attack on removing wolves from the Endangered Species List nationwide.

Two gray wolves

On August 31, 2020, Director Aurelia Skipwith of the US Fish & Wildlife Service reported that the Trump administration plans to lift endangered species protections for gray wolves across most of the country by the end of the year. Skipwith told the Associated Press, Were working hard to have this done by the end of the year and Id say its very imminent.

This is a continuation of the 2019 proposal by the agency to drop the gray wolf from the endangered species list in the entire lower 48 states, exempting a small population of Mexican wolves in the Southwest. It was the latest of repeated attempts to return management authority to the statesmoves that courts have repeatedly rejected after opponents filed lawsuits.

The ESA was signed into law in 1973 by President Richard Nixon. In 1974, the gray wolf became legally protected under the ESA in the lower 48 states. Individual subspecies received endangered status: eastern timber wolf, Canis lupus lycaon (present in the Western Great Lakes), and Rocky Mountain wolf, Canis lupus irremotus (present in the northern Rocky Mountains). The Mexican gray wolf, Canis lupus baileyi, was listed under the ESA in 1976. Wolves were classified as endangered under Washington state law in 1980.

Shot, trapped and poisoned to near extinction in the last century to clear the land for livestock and agribusiness, wolves in recent decades made a comeback in the western Great Lakes region and portions of the Mountain West, the total population exceeding 6,000. They have been removed from the endangered list in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and portions of Oregon, Utah and Washington state. Should the previous causes of near extinction come back into play, wolves would quickly become severely endangered once again.

In December 2011, the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife (WDFW) issued its Wolf Conservation and Management Plan to allegedly guide recovery of gray wolves as they naturally disperse. But the plan does just the opposite of fostering recovery and natural dispersal. The plan allows lethal and non-lethal methods of controlling the naturally dispersing wolf population in Washington in the event of wolf-livestock encounters.

A revised wolf-livestock interaction protocol was issued by WDFW in June 2017, which reinforced lethal methods of removing wolves from their territory where livestock are grazing, regardless of whether it is on private land or federal and state public land. This protocol states that the objective of lethal removal is to change pack behavior to reduce the potential for recurrent depredations while continuing to promote wolf recovery.

However, killing wolves to prevent them from preying on livestock is a tactic that has been scientifically discredited numerous times by a variety of researchers. In 2014, Washington State University (WSU) researchers found that it is counter-productive to kill wolves to keep them from preying on livestock. Shooting and trapping lead to more dead sheep and cattle the following year, not fewer.

Writing in the journal PLOS ONE, WSU wildlife biologist Rob Wielgus and data analyst Kaylie Peebles say, For each wolf killed, the odds of more livestock depredations increase significantly.

The trend continues until 25 percent of the wolves in an area are killed. Ranchers and wildlife managers then see a standing wave of livestock depredations, they wrote.

Their study is the largest of its kind, analyzing 25 years of lethal control data from US Fish and Wildlife Services Interagency Annual Wolf Reports in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho. The researchers found that killing one wolf increases the odds of depredations 4 percent for sheep and 5 to 6 percent for cattle. If 20 wolves are killed, livestock deaths double.

Wielgus and Peebles conclude that rate of wolf mortality is unsustainable and cannot be carried out indefinitely if federal relisting of wolves is to be avoided.

Despite this research, in August 2020, Kelly Susewind, the director of WDFW, authorized lethal action to kill wolves in the Wedge pack and the Leadpoint pack. On August 17, the agency shot the last two remaining members of the Wedge pack, which lived near the Canadian border in the remote Colville National Forest and was finally exterminated after ranchers claimed the wolves killed cattle grazing on both private and public land.

State officials said they had killed the last two known members of the Wedge wolf pack, after investigations showed the wolves had taken part in 16 livestock attacks on animals belonging to three different ranchers. Officials said the wolves killed four animals since May and injured 19.

The assault on the wolves was instigated by Len McIrvin, owner of the Diamond M Ranch, who leases federal land to graze his cattle. The Diamond M Ranch is a massive cattle production corporation that benefits from the eradication of an endangered species by gaining access to land previously protected. Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife has killed more wolves based on complaints from Diamond M Ranch than from any other livestock producer, including the entire Old Profanity pack last summer.

These actions have been abetted by Washingtons Democratic Governor Jay Inslee, who on September 4 directed the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission to draft new rules encouraging the departments lethal removal of wolves involved in conflicts with livestock.

In his letter to Larry Carpenter, the chair of the Fish and Wildlife Commission, Inslee said, The potential for future depredations and lethal control actions, under our existing framework, remains unacceptably high.

We must move more quickly and decisively to institute practices that will avoid the repeated loss of wolves and livestock in our state.

Given the significant work that has been done to date on this topic, I strongly believe new rules and policies could, and should, be adopted and in place prior to the grazing season next year, he said.

The state has lethally removed 34 wolves since 2012. Of that, 29 were killed for the same livestock owner, Diamond M, in prime wolf habitat in the Colville National Forest. This amounts to wholesale slaughter of a precarious species on behalf of agribusiness.

Governor Inslees decision requires the commission to start a formal rulemaking process, which includes giving notice to the public and creating an opportunity to comment on proposed rules.

Mexico borderlands migratory species

To add fuel to the fire, Trumps border wall will most likely wipe out several severely endangered and threatened species, which are already in a precarious position. In May 2017, the Center for Biological Diversity reported that President Trumps border wall will threaten 93 endangered and threatened species, including jaguars, ocelots, Mexican gray wolves and cactus ferruginous pygmy owls. The 1,200-mile wall will cut off migration corridors, destroy genetic diversity, decimate habitat, and add vehicles, noise and light pollution to great expanses of wild lands along the US-Mexico border.

Several sections of border wall have already been built. These areas where the wall has been constructed have had a variety of harmful effects on wildlife, including direct destruction of thousands of acres of habitat, and segregating cross-border wildlife populations like bighorn sheep and jaguars. The border wall would dissect the Cabeza Prieta, Buenos Aires and several other national wildlife refuges, along with Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Big Bend National Park and numerous other natural areas that are corridors for wildlife.

The San Bernardino National Wildlife Refuge is an example of a fragile and unique habitat, which will be destroyed by the border wall. It was established in 1982 to protect the rare wetlands in the middle of the Sonoran Desert that are home to a variety of wildlife, including several species of fish that are protected by the ESA. Its spans 2,300 acres over the US-Mexico border in southeastern Arizona, close to New Mexico, and is prime habitat for hummingbirds, 75 species of butterflies, bats and, most importantly, to fish native to Rio Yaqui, which the refuge was set up to protect, as reported by the Center for Biological Diversity.

The jaguar and the Mexican wolf, the most endangered mammal on the planet, both travel across the border for hunting, denning, and seeking new territory as their populations attempt to expand. Building the border wall will very likely cause the extinction of these species, which are already hanging by a thread.

Nassau grouper

Four years ago, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) listed the Nassau grouper as threatened under the ESA, but the government has since failed to follow through with the safeguards that come with such status, including the designation of a critical habitat.

On September 1, the Center for Biological Diversity and two other conservation groups sued the Trump administration for failing to protect the Nassau grouper, one of the largest coral reef fish, four years after it was designated a threatened species. The large predator fish is found in warm waters off the southern coast of Florida, in the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.

The complaint alleges, Species with critical habitat designations are twice as likely to recover as species without designated critical habitat. Even as the species is fighting for survival, the complaint avers that human activities, coupled with sea-level rise and ocean acidification, are destroying the coastal reefs, estuaries and seagrass beds where it dwells.

Designated habitat would identify the most important areas for Nassau grouper and prevent federal activities that would destroy them, the complaint states. The Nassau grouper remains at risk until the Service fulfills its statutory duties to designate the critical habitat necessary to support the groupers survival and recovery.

The Nassau grouper profile on the NOAA Fisheries website states the species population is currently at just a fraction of its historical size.

The Migratory Bird Treaty Act

In 2017 the Trump administration began pursuing a reinterpretation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, aimed at saving from indiscriminate slaughter migratory birds in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada.

Ratified by Congress over a century ago, the treaty banning hunting, taking or killing migratory birds was given a little-publicized reinterpretation by the Interior Departments Solicitor Daniel Jorjani in late 2017.

Jorjani wrote a decision permitting incidental killings, an interpretation that suddenly removed punishment for bird deaths and devastated certain nesting areas.

The Natural Resources Defense Council and a coalition of environmental groups sued, and on August 12, 2020, US District Court Judge Valerie Caproni blocked the Trump administrations revision of the treaty as a violation of the Administrative Procedure Act.

Since the change in late 2017, environmental groups have reported that the treatys enforcement has come to a standstill nationwide.

That has meant a lack of liability to the people and entities that allowed snowy owls to be electrocuted by uninsulated power lines in Delaware, Maryland, Tennessee and North Dakota; the avian life drowned by oil spills in Massachusetts, Idaho and Washington; and dove chicks thrown into a tree shredder by landscapers in San Diego.
Carlo Ancelotti has joked that Thiago Alcantara has 'broken his heart' by signing for Everton's fierce rivals Liverpool.

Thiago and now Everton boss Ancelotti worked together at Bayern Munich during the 2016-17 season before both moved to Merseyside.

'Breaks my heart, breaks my heart,' Ancelotti told the Echo after the Spaniard was confirmed as a Liverpool player.

Thiago and now Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti worked together at Bayern Munich in 2016

'Thiago is a friend. He is a fantastic player, a fantastic midfielder. I had the luck in my career to train top, top players and Thiago is one of them.

'The only good thing about this signing is that he is a neighbour and that's it. I think he chose the wrong team.

'He could choose the blue team, not the red team. I am joking. He is a fantastic player and my friend, Jurgen, will be happy.'

Liverpool have made an emphatic statement of intent to retain the Premier League title by spending 65million to land Thiago and Diogo Jota from Wolves.

Liverpool have confirmed the signing of Thiago Alcantara from Bayern Munich for 25million

Thiago was unveiled on Friday as he completed his 25m switch from Bayern Munich, passing a medical after arriving on an early private flight into Manchester.

Jurgen Klopp is thrilled to have signed one of the worlds best midfielders and could hand him a debut at Chelsea on Sunday.

The double signings show Liverpool mean business and Klopp is in no doubt that Thiago, in particular, will make a significant difference.

Officials at Bayern are distraught to have lost the 29-year-old Spain midfielder and the Liverpool manager could understand why.

Thiago is  and nobody would see it in a different way  an absolutely exceptional player, said Klopp.

The 29 year-old has signed a four year contract at Anfield after joining on Friday

'It is difficult, and we said it last year and this year again, to improve a team like ours at the moment in a normal way.

That is (no criticism) about other teams but if we could spend 300-400m then maybe we could find some players but even then it is not easy to bring them in.

But in this case he is a player who brings a different dimension to our game.

He has some skills which in general are pretty rare but they suit us. That doesnt mean anything about the other players  it is only different. And that is what I was interested in.

He was excited about the opportunity. So there was not a lot of convincing needed and that helps. All the things came together  a win-win.
By any conventional or historical measure, the recent breakthrough between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain is a good thing, and the Trump administration deserves its share of praise for it. The refusal of much of the media to take this moment seriously only lends credibility to President Trump's complaints that the media is out to get him. Who does that serve?

Just give Trump his due. This happened on his watch. He helped it happen. And if he were any other president, the media would have acknowledged, perhaps still grudgingly, that this is -- or at least could be -- a very big deal.

More importantly, whatever your view of Trump (readers know I'm not a fan), reducing what's happening in the Middle East to a pro-Trump or anti-Trump narrative is myopic. Much like his 2016 presidential run, Trump's 2020 Middle East success is a product of timing. Trump couldn't have won the nomination in 2012 or any of the other years he flirted with running. Similarly, the Abraham Accords couldn't have been achieved four or eight years ago because conditions weren't ripe for it.

Historically speaking, a lot of credit goes to Barack Obama. In much the same way that Neville Chamberlain and his policy of appeasement were partly responsible for WWII, Obama's disastrous Iran deal led the Arab world to reevaluate its priorities. Shia Iran wants to dominate the Sunni-majority Middle East. Saudi Arabia fears that the Iranians want to be the caretaker of the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, both of which are located in Saudi Arabia.

Obama's gift to Iran of piles of money and a path to a nuclear weapon was perceived as a betrayal of existential proportions not only by the Saudis and Israelis, but by the smaller Arab states such as the UAE and Bahrain as well. When the U.S. essentially greenlights Iranian hegemony in the region, Israel -- Iran's mortal enemy -- looks more like a potential ally to Iran's regional rivals.

But Obama did something positive, too. He didn't stop the U.S. oil industry's technological revolution, which led to America becoming the world's largest oil producer. Note: I didn't say Obama is responsible for the oil boom, merely that he didn't stop it. Both Obama and Trump have tried to take credit for something that mostly just happened on their watch.

It took a long time for the Middle East to lose its stranglehold on the global oil supply -- and its ability to set prices at will. But once it happened, the politics and economics of the region were bound to change.

The clearest sign of that was the rise to power of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. He saw the writing on the wall that the Saudis needed to diversify their economy and join the global economy as something more than a fuel depot -- not just for the survival of Saudi prosperity, but for the survival of the ruling family.

In this context, the plight of the Palestinians was bound to become less of a priority. For generations, Arab governments used the Palestinians as propaganda tools for their own cynical ends. By focusing popular anger at Israel's treatment of the Palestinians, they took attention away from their own failures. That the Palestinians have always been plagued by terrible leaders -- many of whom have served as pawns of the Iranians -- made it easy for Arab governments to abandon them the moment they ceased being useful.

There are plenty of other factors. For instance, whatever you think of the Iraq War, it achieved its primary aim: the removal of Saddam Hussein from power. Iraq is no huge success story today, but Saddam's removal cleared an important roadblock to normalization of Israel in the region.

And of course there's Israel itself. The tiny nation has shaken off the socialist doldrums to become a technological powerhouse and an innovation hub in the global economy. If you want a post-petrodollar economy, Israel is more useful as a trading partner than as a symbolic foe.

All of these currents led to the signing ceremony this week. Reading the actual agreements, which are light on detail, one might be tempted to say the accords are more symbolic than substantive. But in the Middle East, symbolism is important.

Trump, as is his wont, would have the world believe this rapprochement is the singular product of his deal-making genius. It's not. But it's an example of a president seizing on a propitious moment to chalk up an important win. And that's good enough.

Jonah Goldberg writes for the Los Angeles Times.

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FILE PHOTO: A pedestrian walks past the logo of Australia's biggest investment bank Macquarie Group Ltd which adorns a wall on the outside of their Sydney office headquarters in central Sydney, Australia

By Paulina Duran

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia's Macquarie Group is preparing to list its majority-owned software provider Nuix in a deal that would value the data-analysis program seller at close to $1.5 billion, two sources with knowledge of the plans told Reuters on Friday.

Macquarie, which owns about 65% of the company that has been used to analyse thousands of documents as part of high-profile investigations such as Volkswagen's emissions scandal and the "Panama Papers" cases, is handling the process alongside Morgan Stanley, the sources said.

The people, who asked to be anonymous because they were not allowed to speak to the media, said the company was likely to list before Christmas, but plans depended on market conditions and had not been finalised, they said.

Media representatives for Macquarie and Morgan Stanley declined to comment. Nuix representatives were not immediately available for comment outside business hours.

A selected group of fund managers have been briefed on the plans, the two people and a third source said.

If achieved at the targeted valuation range of between A$1.5 billion ($1.1 billion) and A$2 billion, the listing will be the biggest since fintech firm Tyro Payments braved negative market sentiment late last year following six initial public offering (IPO) cancellations.

This year, the coronavirus pandemic has all but frozen large IPOs in the country, as the halt in economic activity led to plummeting revenues and valuations of Australian companies, hurting sentiment and leading many to shore up their balance sheets with secondary capital raisings.

Nuix sells software for cybersecurity risk, compliance and "case discovery", that helps companies, enforcement authorities and investigators, review digital data and detect fraud and corruption.

Customers include American Express Co, Barclays Plc, Amazon.com Inc, WPP Plc, and Unilever Plc, according to its website.

The company's revenue has grown at over 15% per year in the last two years, to about A$175 million in fiscal 2020, one of the sources said.

(Reporting by Paulina Duran in Sydney; Editing by David Evans)
As Hurricane Sally crawled onto shore during the early hours of Wednesday morning, coastal residents from Mississippi to Florida braced for impact.

The storm had given areas along the Gulf Coast a preview of its power ahead of landfall, a barge crashing into Pensacola's Three Mile Bridge on Tuesday amid deteriorating conditions.

As the storm approached landfall on Wednesday, people staying at Playa Del Rio RV Park in Perdido Key, an unincorporated community between Pensacola and Orange Beach in Escambia County, Florida, took cover. Some headed for the public restroom building on site, which sat on slightly higher ground.

"They had a big party in the lady's room. Most of the people went into the bathroom," Camp host John Russ told AccuWeather Reporter Bill Wadell. "I stayed in the RV."

Camp host John Russ took shelter in his RV during Hurricane Sally. (AccuWeather/Bill Wadell)

Hurricane Sally struck Gulf Shores, Alabama, on Sept. 16, the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Ivan making landfall in the same city, as a Category 2 hurricane. The storm's flooding rainfall and lashing winds, however, extended into nearby areas such as Pensacola, Florida, where a section of the Three Mile Bridge across Pensacola Bay went missing after the hurricane.

Hurricane Sally made landfall at its peak intensity with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph, dumping over two feet of rain over Pensacola as it crawled northward around 3 mph.

But while storm surge and powerful winds pushed around -- and even flipped over -- RVs closer to the marina, his stayed upright, though the one of the tires had started lifting off the ground.

John Russ's RV, which he took shelter in during the storm, remained upright throughout Hurricane Sally's onslaught. (AccuWeather/Bill Wadell)

Billy Pardue from Birmingham, Alabama, who was parked just behind Russ, wasn't as lucky with his RV.

"We secured everything and did the best we could," Pardue told Wadell. "By then, the water was already so high there wasn't much we could do."

Story continues

Billy Pardue stands in front of his camper, which he had to righten after Hurricane Sally flipped it onto its side. (AccuWeather/Bill Wadell)

Pardue had visited the park before the hurricane to prepare the vehicle for the storm, but hadn't stuck around. When he returned after Sally, he found the RV flipped onto its side. He had to righten it to retrieve his personal belongings.

"There were several of [the campers] that were flipped over," Pardue said. "Everyone of them around has been displaced and moved around."

Vehicles at the park were flipped or displaced after Hurricane Sally. (AccuWeather/Bill Wadell)

Despite the chaos Sally had brought to this corner of Escambia County, everyone at the park had made it through the storm safely. As for the campers and RVs, Pardue expressed that they could always be replaced.

"It's just things," Pardue said. "Things can be replaced. Good thing is nobody got hurt and everybody's accounted for."

Reporting by Bill Wadell.
SLMC tainted by trade unionism, alleges specialists association View(s):

Expressing grave concern about the recent developments at the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC), the Association of Medical Specialists has said the current crisis is strongly linked to trade unionisation of the premier body.

There is an imminent threat of a trade union taking reins of the SLMC which would mark the beginning of the end of ethical medical practice of Sri Lanka. The Minister of Health has basically been held at ransom with a trade union action notice to get the assistant registrar of the SLMC suspended. To our knowledge, this is the first time in the history of the SLMC, where the Minister of Health has used his/her power to suspend an SLMC official, a statement issued by the Association said.

The Association said it believed the suspension should be preceded by a proper and impartial inquiry and not by the pressure of a trade union.

The failure to elect four medical specialists to the council from the SLMCs specialists registry due to the postponement of the election and the failure of successive governments to obtain the parliamentary approval for minimum standards of medical education have weakened the SLMCs ability to maintain standards of medical education in Sri Lanka and contributed to the current crisis at the SLMC, the Association said.

It said it was pleased to hear that a committee had been appointed to look into the matters pertaining to the SLMC.

Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi decided to withdraw powers of the Acting Assistant Registrar (AAR) pending investigations.

The crisis began following the SLMCs move to remove the three Russian universities. The Russian Cultural Section expressed concern over the SLMCs decision to remove the Peoples Friendship University of Russia (formerly known as Patrice Lumumba University), Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University and Tver State Medical University from the Approved List.

The SLMC later said the decision was a mistake.
The on Saturday announced a



meeting of its allies here on September 21 to deliberate on the next course of action over farm bills that were adopted by the Lok Sabha alleging these would lead to hoarding of agricultural produce by corporates.

The bills would "lead to hoarding of farm produce by the corporates and adversely affect the support price," chief M K Stalin alleged adding, were protesting across the country since the move by the Centre was "against" them.

Singling out the AIADMK, he hit out at the archrival for supporting the Centre on the issue and mocked Chief Minister K Palaniswami for claiming to be a farmer and yet backing the bills.

The AIADMK regime's support "proved" that it was "subservient" to the Centre,the top leader alleged in a letter to party cadres.

Shiromani Akali Dal leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal went to the extent of resigning from the union council of ministers over the issue, he pointed out.

The meeting of allies, scheduled to be held at "Anna Arivalayam" the DMK headquarters on Monday would be chaired by party president Stalin, the main opposition in Tamil Nadu said in a statement dubbing the farm bills as anti-farmer.

The Congress, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, the Indian Union Muslim League and the Left parties are among the allies of the DMK.

Lok Sabha has passed the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill and the (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, which seek to promote barrier-free inter-state and intra-state trade in agricultural produce.

Stalin, accusing the AIADMK of "talking lies in a high pitch", said the ruling party's "drama" would end in about six months with the Assembly elections scheduled for next year (April-May), and exuded confidence of his party capturing power.

Stalin had on Friday said the new bills would sound a "death knell" to

(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.)
Artifacts rechieved from a shipwreck dating back to the Tang Dynastry sailing between Chna and the Arab world are on display at Shanghai Museum. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The Tang Shipwreck Collection, the largest collection of Tang Dynasty artifacts found outside of China, is on show for the first time in the nation.

Called The Baoli Era: Treasures from the Tang Shipwreck Collection, the showcase is taking place at Shanghai Museum from Sept 15 to Jan 10, 2021.

Jointly presented by the Shanghai Museum and the Asian Civilisations Museum of Singapore, the exhibition also commemorates 30 years of diplomatic ties between the Peoples Republic of China and Singapore.

The Tang Shipwreck is from a merchant dhow that used to sail between China and the Arab world states located the maritime Silk Road during the 9th century. The ship, which was carrying Tang exports composed of ceramics, gold, silver and bronze mirrors, sank off the coast of Indonesias Belitung Island.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  Less than two months after taking the bench, Cleveland Housing Court Judge W. Mona Scott found herself in March grappling with how to adapt her docket to the social distancing requirements of the coronavirus pandemic and bracing for an avalanche of eviction filings propelled by a suddenly failing economy.

Since then, Scott has held hearings online, with an eye toward making sure defendants can access their cases despite the digital divide. Meanwhile, on the heels of a 90-day moratorium on eviction filings in Cleveland, the city launched its long-anticipated right to counsel program in July, providing free legal representation for families in poverty who are facing eviction.

For Scott, drawing all of that together has been the challenge of a lifetime, as the housing court sits at the fulcrum of one of the worst consequences of the pandemics recession  housing insecurity.

After the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced earlier this month yet another eviction moratorium, this time nationwide, I had a chance to catch up with Scott about the challenges of implementing the new federal order, the early successes and setbacks of the citys Right to Counsel program, and the impact of government rental assistance on the housing court caseload, mid-pandemic.

Heres what Scott had to say:

Compassion and rental assistance

Coming out of the citywide eviction moratorium, the court had capped eviction filings to 125 a day to hold back the surge and let the court catch up on the backlog of cases that had been in the queue for months. Surprisingly, however, Scott says the court never saw the record-breaking number of filings everyone predicted. She attributes that to a combination of factors  compassionate landlords willing to reach out-of-court agreements with tenants during tough times and the availability of rental assistance from the federal government.

The city and Cuyahoga County received $18.1 million in federal rental assistance to be disbursed to those facing financial hardship on account of the pandemic. About $3 million of that has been paid out or is being processed, according to CHN Housing Partners, which is administering the funds and handling the application process. That means a considerable sum remains on the table.

Its hard to believe, Scott said, but many tenants still arent aware of the available assistance or they view the application process as too cumbersome during an already stressful time.

In my years of working in housing issues, rarely have I seen government money available to pay rent. But I want to tell people, if its there, take advantage of it. If youre unemployed and cant make ends meet and theres money available to keep a roof over your head, get it. Because if you let it pass you by, its not if this eviction happens, its when.

Federal eviction moratorium

Scott said the federal eviction moratorium provides a cushion for many tenants who are waiting for rental assistance to come through or getting started at a new job and need a little more time to catch up on rent. Eligibility, however, hinges on several criteria that leave much gray area for the courts discretion. And arriving at policy that governs the implementation of the federal order has been a challenge because magistrates must determine to what degree each defendant has met the qualifications.

For example, to qualify, tenants must file a declaration with their landlord affirming that they have used best efforts to obtain government assistance for rent or housing and are unable to pay rent due to a COVID-19-related hardship. They also must attest to having used best efforts to make as close to full rent payments as possible, and that eviction would likely render them homeless or leave them no option but to share close quarters with others.

All of those factors leave room for dispute, and Scott said the court already is hearing arguments from the attorneys of landlords trying to disqualify tenants.

In exercising discretion, Scott said, the court finds itself in the difficult position of balancing the public health concerns of widespread eviction during the pandemic against the need to make landlords whole and protect them from losing their livelihood. She also worries that many tenants dont understand that the temporary halt to the eviction process is not the same as rent forgiveness. All back rent will come due when the moratorium ends on Dec. 31 -- which also happens to be during the coldest, most brutal season to end up evicted or homeless.

The Right to Counsel

Scott applauded the efforts of attorneys from the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland for their work on the citys Right to Counsel program, which offers legal representation to tenants who are facing eviction while at or below the poverty line with at least one child living in the household.

To my surprise, however, Scott said she has not noticed a significant uptick in tenants participating in their cases. And still too many who should qualify for an attorney free of charge are falling through the cracks, unaware of the programs existence.

In part, Scott blames the pandemic. If these were normal times, she noted, a Legal Aid attorney would be physically stationed at the courthouse, talking with tenants and screening those who might qualify for free representation. Making those connections is much more difficult in virtual hearings.

To help bridge that divide, Scott said she has suggested that Legal Aid attorneys sit in on every virtual docket, where they can request private discussions with potential clients. She also said she has encouraged Legal Aid to meet people where they are -- to promote the Right to Counsel program in places such as free food distribution sites and COVID-19 testing locations, rather than relying on traditional outreach methods and mailers.

If Im African-American, and Im poor, and Im stressed and depressed and dealing with a pandemic, and now Im facing an eviction, do you really think Im reading the summons thats coming in the mail, telling me my court date? Scott said. Do you really think Ill open the door when I see a white person knocking to give me information about my right to counsel? You must get to the point of meeting people where they are. Because traditional ways do not touch people in poverty.

A spokeswoman for Legal Aid said the agency promotes the Right to Counsel program at grocery stores and libraries, in radio ads and with flyers in all Cleveland Food Bank boxes distributed since the pandemic began. She added that Legal Aid embraces the notion of stationing attorneys on every magistrates docket and is thrilled to hear that the judge will accommodate that in the future.

You can reach columnist Leila Atassi at latassi@cleveland.com.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- New York state will honor the life and legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg -- who died Friday after succumbing to complications related to pancreatic cancer -- with a statue in Brooklyn, her birthplace, announced Governor Andrew Cuomo on Saturday.

The Governor will appoint a commission to select an artist and undergo a location selection process.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg selflessly pursued truth and justice in a world of division, giving voice to the voiceless and uplifting those who were pushed aside by forces of hate and indifference. As a lawyer, jurist, and professor, she redefined gender equity and civil rights and ensured America lived up to her founding ideals  she was a monumental figure of equality, and we can all agree that she deserves a monument in her honor, Cuomo said.

She persevered despite several bouts of cancer and was present every single day to participate in the strengthening and safeguarding of our democracy. Her 27 years on the court reshaped our understanding of the basic tenets of equality and justice. While the family of New York mourns Justice Ginsburgs death, we remember proudly that she started her incredible journey right here in Brooklyn. Her legacy will live on in the progress she created for our society, and this statue will serve as a physical reminder of her many contributions to the America we know today and as an inspiration for those who will continue to build on her immense body of work for generations to come, he added.

The commission will be appointed in the coming days and, when formed, will provide recommendations to the Governor pertaining to the design, location and installation of the new memorial. The commission will initiate broad outreach to the art community, including contacting art institutions and organizations as well as direct artist outreach.

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Just before news broke that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died, new polls were released that showed a majority of Americans in battleground states trusted Joe Biden over Donald Trump to choose the next nominee to the nation's highest court.

National polls have consistently shown Americans trusting the former vice president over the Republican incumbent to choose the next Supreme Court justice, an issue that stands to greatly reshape the entire 2020 presidential election in its final six weeks following the death of the 87-year-old judge.

The New York Times / Siena polls released on Friday surveyed key states including Arizona, Maine and North Carolina about which candidate voters trusted more to nominate the next Supreme Court justice.

Mr Biden led Mr Trump on the issue in Maine by 22 per cent. In Arizona, 47 per cent of voters said they trusted the former vice president over Mr Trump to choose the next nominee. Mr Biden also led the president by three per cent in Arizona.

Meanwhile, as the nation fell into a state of mourning over the loss of one of the most consequential Supreme Court justices in history, Republican leaders were calling on the president to select a nominee so they could fill the seat ahead of the November election  defying Ms Ginsburgs reported dying wish.

In a statement dictated to her granddaughter just days before her death, NPR reported, Ms Ginsburg said: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

Mr Biden mourned the death of Ms Ginsburg, saying we should focus on the loss of the justice, and her enduring legacy while noting: But there is no doubt, let me be clear, that the voters should pick the president, and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider."

The president also released a statement mourning the loss of Mr Ginsburg, who he said was renewed for her brilliant mind and was a fighter to the end.

The issue of an open seat on the Supreme Court caused a surge in voter turnout within the Republican Party in 2016, according to polls from the time. With Ms Ginsburgs passing, it remains unclear whether the same will happen in 2020, or if Democrats and independents who trust Mr Biden over Mr Trump to select the nominee will be more inclined to cast a ballot.

The New York Times / Siena poll found that Mr Biden led Mr Trump by 18 per cent on the issue of selecting the next Supreme Court nominee among voters who had not yet decided on which candidate to support and others who said they were not supporting a major-party candidate.
Colorado Springs police form a wall outside the the Police Operation Center Sunday, May 31, 2020, on the second night of protesting in Colorado Springs, Colo., over the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on May 25. Colorado Springs police say they having trouble recruiting officers, particularly officers of color, in the current climate, but advocates say recruiting a diverse force is a deeper problem. (The Gazette, Christian Murdock)
BEIJING, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- China's female peacekeepers play a crucial and unique role in promoting gender equality and women's rights, a Chinese military official said Friday.

They are very important in preventing and resolving conflicts as well as promoting peace and development, Luo Wei, director general of the peacekeeping affairs center under the Ministry of National Defense, told a press conference.

Over the past 30 years, the Chinese armed forces have sent more than 1,000 female officers to participate in UN peacekeeping operations, he said.

At present, China has 85 female military personnel serving in peacekeeping missions at the UN headquarters, as well as working in various other missions such as medical care, liaison and coordination, mine clearance and explosive removal, patrol, and observation, among others. They also play an active role in the promotion of gender equality and protection of women and children, according to Luo.
Manoj marks milestone with Thablawa View(s):

Popular musician and well known Thabla Player Visharada Manoj Peiris celebrates his thirty five year tuneful career with his maiden musical literature Thablawa

Manoj launched his maiden a musical guide book titled Thablawa recently responding to numerous requests from many quarters. His guru Sangeeth Nipun Visharada Sanath Nandasiri and Dr. Rohana Weerasinghe wrote the forewords in the book. Manoj will preset Thablawa to President Gotabaya Rajapksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa this week.

I am glad that I was able to write this book to share my knowledge with students. Those who wish to learn the tabla as a profession or hobby can make use of this book. It can also be used as a guidebook for those who wish to pursue professional exams even up to Visharada stage said Manoj.

Explaining the learning process of thabla, Manoj said there are four schools (Gharana) in tabla. I learnt the Delhi Gharana. I have included chapters about all four Gharanas in this. It is written in simple form so that anyone can grasp it. I later studied the art under D. R. Peiris, P. V. Nandasiri and also my other brother in law Wijeratne Ranatunga who are not amongst us today. I have dedicated this book to my parents, family and all my teachers said Manoj who received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Raigam Tele Awardson Saturday for his contributions to music.

What excites me most was that I received this landmark award with other colossal figures Sumitra Peries and Leoni Kothelawela. I have done a lot of music events for Dr. Lester James Peries and also been in theatre orchestras where Leoni Kothelawela acted. Receiving this award on the same platform with these two legendary figures is indeed going to be a memorable one Manoj added.

Further he stated that there are hundreds of students who have learnt the table from him. These students and even people living overseas have requested him to write a guidebook for those passionate about learning to play the tabla.

Some even ask me if I can conduct classes, but my schedules are so busy that I dont have such a luxury. I am thankful to MD Gunasena Managing Director Rajiv Gunasena, Publishing Manager Jayampathi Rajakaruna and Editor Thanuja Nirmalee who motivated me to make this dream a reality Manoj concluded.
As US President Donald Trump seeks to ban Chinese-owned apps TikTok and WeChat on national security grounds, lawsuits claim any move would violate constitutional free speech guarantees

The US ban on Chinese-owned apps WeChat and TikTok sets up a pivotal legal challenge on digital free expression with important ramifications for the global internet ecosystem.

President Donald Trump's administration cited national security concerns, claiming the popular applications could be "subject to mandatory cooperation with the intelligence services" of Beijing.

Critics said that while the security risks were unclear, the sweeping ban of popular online platforms raises concerns about the government's ability to regulate free expression under the US constitution's First Amendment.

"It's a mistake to think of this as (only) a sanction on TikTok and WeChat. It's a serious restriction on the First Amendment rights of US citizens and residents," said Jameel Jaffer, director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University.

Hina Shamsi of the American Civil Liberties Union agreed that the order poses constitutional questions and called it an "abuse of emergency powers" by Trump that creates more security issues than it solves by blocking app fixes and updates.

Limited functionality

The ban set to take effect Sunday prohibits downloads of TikTok, a popular video-sharing app with some 100 million US users, and WeChat, a Chinese super-app used for messaging, shopping, payments and other services, with some 19 million users in the United States.

Officials said WeChat's functionality would be affected immediately after the ban takes effect, even though some services might still work.

TikTok is expected to function through November 12, the deadline set under an executive order by Trump, but users would not be able to download updates to the video app.

The move ratchets up the pressure on TikTok parent firm ByteDance to strike a deal with a US partner that would allay Washington's data security concerns, with Silicon Valley tech giant Oracle in talks to be part of a group that would put TikTok in American control.

WeChat users have filed suit in the United States to stave off a ban ordered by President Donald Trump, who claims the Chinese super-app is a security threat

Internet fragmentation

The latest ban, critics say, could create more cracks in a fragmenting global internet system by allowing governments freer rein in blocking services.

"Trump's decision is likely further to splinter the internet," said Darrell West, director of the center for technology innovation at the Brookings Institution.

"It will encourage other countries to retaliate against American companies and raise their own security concerns against foreign firms. The result could be several different internets based on the country of origin."

Facebook-owned Instagram chief Adam Mosseri voiced similar concerns, tweeting that "a US TikTok ban would be quite bad for Instagram, Facebook, and the internet more broadly."

Mosseri added that "most of the people who use Instagram are outside the US, as is most of our potential growth. The long term costs of... countries making aggressive demands and banning us over the next decade outweigh slowing down one competitor today."

Legal challenges have been filed by TikTok and WeChat users in the United States seeking to block the expected shutdowns.

Vanessa Pappas, the interim head of TikTok, said the challenge "is certainly bigger than TikTok alone."

"I truly believe this moment will have a profound impact on our industry and shaping the internet for years to come," Pappas said in a tweet.

Robert Chesney, a University of Texas professor of constitutional law, said the lawsuits face an uphill battle and that courts have generally allowed presidents to exercise emergency powers to impose embargoes.

Chesney said there is a "First Amendment element" to the lawsuits, but that the bans related to business transactions of the tech firms are still subject to national security review.

"They have a right to free speech, but that doesn't give them the right to set up a business using US infrastructure," he told AFP.

Explore further US to ban TikTok downloads, block WeChat use

 2020 AFP
MICHIGAN  The Michigan Department of Treasury is warning residents of a scam taking advantage of people with past-due tax debts.

In this scheme, taxpayers receive a letter about an overdue tax bill, asking them to contact a toll-free number to resolve an outstanding state tax debt. The letter threatens to seize the taxpayers assets, including property and social security benefits, if the debt is not settled.

The letters appear credible to taxpayers because it uses personal facts pulled directly from publicly available information.

Ron Leix, a representative of the treasury department, said he was not aware of any such cases occurring in the Upper Thumb, though there have been cases reported all over the state.

Typically, the scammers will go on a register of deeds or county clerk website to see where there is outstanding debt on a property, Leix said. It is publicly available information.

Leix noted that this is a reoccurring scam the treasury department has seen over the past year and a half.

When the treasury department corresponds with taxpayers through the U.S. Postal Service, several options are provided to resolve any debts and taxpayers rights are outlined.

We arent aggressive, we are customer service-focused, Leix said.

This is a tricky scam that has been reported throughout the state, said Deputy State Treasurer Ann Good in a statement. Taxpayers have rights. If you have questions about an outstanding state tax debt, please contact us through a verified number so we can talk about options.

Anyone who receives such a letter from a scammer or have questions about their state debts should call the Treasurys Collections Service Center at 517-636-5265. There, a customer service representative can log the scam, verify outstanding debts, and provide flexible payment options.
India's COVID-19 tally surges past 5.3 million while recoveries stand at 4.2 million

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

New Delhi, Sep 19: Union health ministry on Saturday said that India recorded 93,337 cases of the coronavirus cases and 1,247 deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the country's tally past 5.3 million. According to the health ministry at 8 am, there were 1,013,964 active cases of COVID-19 and the death toll has risen to 85,619.

On Saturday, the health ministry said that India has overtaken the United States to become No 1 in terms of global COVID-19 recoveries. According to the ministry, there are now 4,208,431 people who have been cured of the viral disease after 95,880 patients were discharged between Friday and Saturday. The recovery rate is now 79.28 per cent.

Karnataka's COVID-19 tally crosses 5 lakh mark as state reports 8,626 cases in last 24 hours

It can be seen that India is the second worst-hit country in the world. The country has been reporting daily recoveries of more than 70,000 since the past 11 days. On Friday, the government said that recovered cases are 4.04 times the number of active cases.

There were 59.8 per cent of active cases being reported from Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh. These states are also contributing to 59.3 per cent of the total recoveries. It said 90 per cent of the new recoveries are reported from 16 states and Union territories.

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Maharashtra (19,522) contributed 22.31 per cent of the new recoveries while Andhra Pradesh (12.24 per cent), Karnataka (8.3 per cent), Tamil Nadu (6.31 per cent) and Chhattisgarh (6.0 per cent) followed with 32.8 per cent of the new recoveries.

According to the health ministry on Friday, the country's case fatality rate (CFR) was at 1.62 per cent.
- Stacy Amoateng has reacted to a video making rounds about her alleged involvement in a divorce

- According to the Restorations show host, everyone is entitled to their opinion

- A lady on social media has caused the former Music Music host of being behind the alleged divorce of Dr Oteng and Akua GMB

Our manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

Popular TV host Stacy Amoateng, has somewhat reacted to claims being made by a lady that she (Stacy) is behind the alleged divorce between Akua GMB and millionaire Dr Oteng.

In a new post made by the TV star and sighted by YEN.com.gh, Stacy shared a photo of herself in a beautiful black dress looking straight into the camera with a serious gaze.

She went on to subtly jab those making allegations against her and indicated that she was not moved by their actions or words.

Stacy Amoateng. Source: Instagram/Stacy Amoateng

Source: Instagram

READ ALSO: Wagyimi anaa? - Mum descends on daughter who was Snapping instead of working (video)

After posting the beautiful 'lady in black' photo, Stacy Amoateng captioned it:

"Opinions are not facts. Stop worrying about what people think about you. We are what we believe we are. Don't stress over anything that you can't change. Be a wonder to yourself. You get through each day by the continuous grace and covering of Elohim. Do not be attracted to noise. Stay focused. Restoration is Here"

She admonished her teeming fans and followers through the post to stop worrying their heads over what people thought about them because they were just opinions and not facts.

Stacy added that there was no need for one to stress over unchangeable things but rather focus on being a wonder to one's self.

READ ALSO: Tracey Boakye's daughter Nhyira laughs and speaks for the 1st time; fans amazed

Her comments come on the back of a viral video in which a certain fair lady is heard making unfounded claims about Stacy Amoateng.

According to the lady, Stacy was not a good person and was going around destroying people's relationships and reputations.

The lady went on to allege that the Restorations show host was behind the alleged impending divorce between former Ghana's Most Beautiful winner, Akua GMB and her husband, Dr. Oteng.

Manwhile, actress and movie producer, Tracey Boakye, has been spotted in a new rare photo with the brother of former president John Dramani Mahama, Ibrahim Mahama.

The photo of the duo which was sighted by YEN.com.gh on Instagram was posted on the page of Tracey Boakye as she celebrated the accomplished businessman.

READ ALSO: 60-year-old JHS graduate Elizabeth Yamoah pops champagne after writing last paper up (photo)

Mr Ibrahim Mahama and GTracey Boakye were both seen beaming with smiles as they posed by the photo which appeared to have been taken by the actress.

Have national and human interest issues to discuss? Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome.

Get interactive via our Facebook page.

Source: YEN.com.gh
Government support hailed

Leading businessmen talk to The Daily Tribune about Bahrains instrumental supportinitiated by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and executed by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander, and First Deputy Prime Ministerto citizens, residents and businesses to help alleviate the economic repercussions of the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis.

"We thank Bahrains wise leadership, led by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, for the support and generous gestures shown to help citizens and residents during this current coronavirus crisis. We all appreciate the direction of HM the King as well as HRH the Crown Princes initiative directing banks to help citizens and businesses by deferring loan payments. At the moment, many businesses are struggling with no returns, especially hotel, travel and retail companies, which are all connected. Banks are our partners in business, and I am sure they will have some consideration to help, which will play a big role in the economys revival. Once the situation improves, businesses can regularise their operations and this will help achieve that. Foreign businesses are also keen to come to Bahrain, seeing the long-term future goals of the Kingdom and the initiatives taken by HM King Hamad. I am sure that we will see a recovery to the national economy, and we look forward to that soon. DADABHAI GROUP CHAIRMAN MOHAMMED DADABHAI

"I would like to take this opportunity to express my thanks to our government, in particular HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, for his prompt support to the business community, by way of deferment of loan installments to our bankers, waiver of electricity and water charges, and some wage support to some of our employees, all of which helps us survive this COVID-19 pandemic. We are a 100 percent Bahraini establishment, owners of Hasan Mansouri Properties, Mansouri Mansions Hotel, The Country Club, Maguires Irish Restaurant, and Spacemaker portable buildings. Government support has been a blessing; we are all Team Bahrain! I hope there will be a consideration and future support for the hotel, restaurant, and tourism sector, as further support is needed. I would suggest a further waiver of electricity, municipal, and taxes generally, for up to another year, which may help us survive until society and businesses start returning to somewhat normal conditions. Also, interest-free loansor better, grantscould be provided to those businesses that require it to see more sustainable times; certainly, it will help provide sufficient working capital. There is still a lot of work to be done to return our Bahraini society and businesses back to normal. Inshaallah, with the continued discussions and relations with the business community and government, we will reach a comfortable solution for Bahrain. Peace and health to all. HASAN MANSOURI MANAGING DIRECTOR KARIM MANSOURI

"The Kingdom has seen extensive support during this pandemic, with loan repayment extension and interest waiver extension in line with CBB directives, GOSI reimbursement, 100 per cent of salary paid for Bahrainis for a period of April to June and further 50 per cent from July to September, EWA bill payments for April to June, and land rental waived for April to September, which has helped the industry survive during this critical market situation. We extend our great gratitude for this support. Meanwhile, some companies could not benefit from certain facilities provided, such as the loan installment and interest charge support, which was provided only for BD denominations, for which companies could not benefit for longterm loans in USD and other non-BD currency. The liquidity fund support was also not benefitting since it did not cover companies with government shareholding. I believe this is not a fair decision especially for industrial companies like Balexco and other similar companies, who have maintained a high rate of Bahrainisation and have made a good amount of contributions in the Kingdoms export activity. It would be great support if another session of liquidity fund support is considered for industrial companies with very minor government shareholding, as its business depends largely on exports and it will have a direct contribution on the Kingdoms economic growth. The market is still suffering and companies are in need for liquidity fund support and for all denomination loan installment extension with interest waiver for at least another six months. BALEXCO CHAIRMAN JASSIM MOHAMED SEYADI

"The Kingdom of Bahrain has earned glowing international praise and recognition, including from the World Health Organisation, for its handling of the global COVID-19 pandemic. This was due, largely, to the quick and decisive leadership of the government, as well as the full and prompt support of all aspects of society. With the focus now gradually shifting to finding a vaccine and to addressing the economic impact of this outbreak, we must continue in this same spirit of decisive leadership and close collaboration. We must aspire to maintain this internationally celebrated approach and continue to set a standard for others to follow. These are challenging times for all of us. However, if we all do our part, we can collectively overcome even the greatest of challenges, under the wise leadership of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, His Royal Highness the Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, and His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister. ITHMAAR BANK CEO AHMED ABDUL RAHIM
- Four of the claims made by the chief justice were true while one was underrated and another unproven

- Claims that the judiciary did not even get 1% of the national budget and that there was an average of 400,000 cases being filed every year were proven true

- The other two were, the judiciary only disposes of about 300K cases and that there was only one judge serving over 300K people

- Maraga's claim that there was one magistrate serving over 77,000 people was marked underrated

- Him claiming there was a global average for the number of judges and magistrates to the number of people was marked unproven

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To celebrate the tenth anniversary of Kenyas constitution, a number of the current and former politicians and leaders were interviewed on how the law had been applied.

Among those who were interviewed was Supreme Court Chief Justice David Maraga who made a number of claims about the judiciary and how it had benefited from the constitution.

READ ALSO: Lawyer Donald Kipkorir sees off daughter as she goes back to school in London

Supreme Court Chief Justice David Maraga. Photo: NTV.

Source: UGC

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In an interview with NTV that was published in August 2020, the chief justice said while the constitution had sought to strengthen the judiciarys independence, funding was a headache.

[Budget cuts] hit the judiciary sometimes to a point that its operations grind to a halt, Maraga, has been vocal on how cuts have hampered the delivery of judicial services said.

A fact check done by Africa Check revealed four of the claims made by the chief justice were true while one was underrated and another unproven.

Claims that were proven true included, the judiciary did not even get 1% of the national budget and that there was an average of 400,000 cases being filed every year.

READ ALSO: William Ruto, Uhuru join hands to help family that lost 5 relatives on accident

The other two were, the judiciary only disposes of about 300K cases and that there was only one judge serving over 300K people.

Maraga's claim that there was one magistrate serving over 77,000 people was marked underrated while him claiming there was a global average for the number of judges and magistrates to the number of people was marked unproven.

Maraga, who assumed office in 2016, had asked for more funding during the interview noting the judiciary did not even get 1% of the national budget.

We have said, over and over again, that for the judiciary to operate properly we should get at least 2.5% of the national budget, he said.

READ ALSO: Cyrus Oguna owes recovery from COVID-19 to God, dedicated prayer warriors

David Maraga said the judiciary did not even get 1% of the national budget. Photo: Citizen TV.

Source: UGC

Records shared by Africa Check showed only once in the last seven financial years, in 2014/15, did the judiciary receive more than 1% of the national budget - the rest were less than 1%.

The records further showed the most recent state of the judiciary report covering the 2018/19 financial year showed more than two million cases were lodged in all courts between 2014 - 2019.

The average number of cases filed in the period covered by the report worked out to 405,283 a year proving Maraga's claims correct

Discussing the countrys case backlog, Maraga said the judiciary settles about 300,000 cases every year. This number was determined by the number of judges and magistrates and would only continue to pile up.

READ ALSO: Tom Mboya: Politicians dislike for father's mistreatment in sisal farm made him fierce trade unionist

Unless the judiciary is given enough resources to have enough manpower, Kenyans will continue crying about delayed cases, he said.

His claims were proven true after records covering 2014/15 to 2018/19 showed an average of 321,652 cases settled across the five financial years.

On the number of cases attended to by one judge, the most recent data from the judiciary showed there were 153 judges as of June 2019 while Kenya's population was at 47.6 million.

This worked out to one judge for every 311,000 people proving Maraga was correct.

READ ALSO: 16-year-old invents alerting device to help protect women against kidnappers

The data from the judiciary also showed there were 546 magistrates in Kenya as of June 2019 and using a population of 47.6 million, this works out to one magistrate for every 87,114 people.

The chief justices figure was off by over 10,000 but it was still over 77,000 people per magistrate which saw his claimed ranked as understated.

On the unproven claim, a calculation by a Africa Check noted: global average can be achieved by directly comparing the number of judges and magistrates to the world population.

But to account for population differences, rates (per 100,000 people) are widely used.

The chief justice has in the past, however, spoken of a recommended global percentage of funding for the judiciary but there was no record to prove that.

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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharman on Friday said that the majority of the additional resources in the first batch of the Supplementary Demands for Grants would be spent on people-centric schemes amid the coronavirus pandemic.

In her reply to the debate on the Supplementary Demands for Grants for 2020-21 and the Demands for Excess Grants for 2016-17 in the Lok Sabha, she said it is probably for the first time that the government has sought such a huge amount in the first batch of the Supplementary Demands for Grants.

Late on Friday evening, the Lok Sabha approved the supplementary demands for additional spending of Rs 2.35 lakh crore, including a cash outgo of Rs 1.66 lakh crore.

The Centre has sought Rs 40,000 crore for providing grants for the creation of capital assets under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and for the transfer of funds to the National Employment Guarantee Fund.

It has sought an additional expenditure of Rs 30,956.98 crore for providing Grants-in-Aid General for Direct Benefit Transfer to Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana's women bank account holders.

Further, to meet the expenditure towards recapitalisation of the Public Sector Banks through the issue of government securities, it has sought an approval for the expenditure of Rs 20,000 crore.

Approval for expenditure of Rs 4,000 crore has been sought for meeting an additional expenditure towards Grants-in-Aid General to National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Ltd (NCGTC) for the Guarantee Emergency Credit Line (GECL) facility to eligible MSME borrowers.

The first batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants for financial year 2020-21, among other things, included a sum of Rs 46,602.43 crore required for providing additional allocations under the Post-Devolution Revenue Deficit Grant (Rs 44,340 crore) and Grants-in-Aid General for States Disaster Response Fund (Rs 2,262.43 crore) as per the accepted recommendations for the 15th Finance Commission.

The government expenses have increased of late and are likely to increase further due to the coronavirus pandemic and the eventual economic slowdown.

--IANS

rrb/sn/vd

(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.)
Chief Minister on Friday slammed his predecessor for saying that has become a 'bikaau pradesh' (sold state) and demanded his apology over the remarks.

"I am very shocked and pained that a person who had been the Chief Minister of the state for over a year, the man who is a Member of Parliament from the state since 1980 and became a Union Minister, has called a sold state. This is an insult to the eight crore people of the state. should apologise," Chouhan told ANI.

Earlier on Friday, Nath had accused the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of tarnishing the image of the state.

The Congress leader asserted that he felt ashamed of going to Delhi as people there say that everyone is ready to be "sold" in Madhya Pradesh, according to media reports.

(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.)
The US Justice Department on Wednesday announced charges against five Chinese nationals and two Malaysians who ran global hacking operations for at least six years to steal identities and video game technology, plant ransomware, and spy on Hong Kong activists. Government computer systems in India and Vietnam were also targeted in the hack.

Three of the Chinese suspects operated out of Chengdu 404, a Sichuan-based company that purported to offer network security services for other businesses.

They hacked the computers of hundreds of companies and organizers around the world to collect identities, hijack systems for ransom, and remotely use thousands of computers to mine for cryptocurrency like bitcoin.

Two other Chinese nationals who formerly worked for Chengdu 404, and the two Malaysians, were indicted for hacking into major gaming companies to steal their secrets and gaming artifacts," likely tradable in-game chits and credits, and resell them.

Together the seven were long recognized by cybersecurity experts as the APT41" hacking organization, identified by their shared tools and techniques.

While some had thought that the group could be run by the Chinese government, the indictments did not identify a strong official connection.

But according to court filings, Jiang Lizhi, one of the Chengdu 404 hackers, boasted to a colleague in 2012 that he was protected by Chinas Ministry of State Security, and indicated they were protected if they did not hack domestically.

Some of these criminal actors believed their association with the PRC provided them free license to hack and steal across the globe," federal prosecutor Michael Sherwin said in a statement.

The charges did not indicate any direct political motivations behind the hackers activities, though they did gain access to government computer systems in India and Vietnam.

But they said that in 2018, Chengdu 404 deployed a program to collect information on people involved in Hong Kongs democracy movement, on a US media group reporting on the treatment of minority Uighurs in Chinas Xinjiang region, and on a Tibetan Buddhist monk.

The filings do not indicate how the information was used.

The seven face a range of charges including computer and wire fraud, identity theft, money laundering, and racketeering.

The five Chinese remain at large but the two Malaysians were arrested in Malaysia on Monday and the United States is seeking their extradition.
By Trend

The Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan continues to hold meetings with the representatives of diplomatic missions of various countries operating in Azerbaijan, in connection with the situation in the region, aggravated due to Armenia's aggressive policy towards Azerbaijan, Trend reports citing the Community.

The meetings have been recently held with Ambassador of Croatia Branko Zebich, Ambassador of the Czech Republic - Milan Ekert, Ambassador of Hungary - Viktor Szederkenyi and Ambassador of Latvia Dainis Garancs.

During the meeting, the representatives of the Community emphasized such issues as the occupation policy of Armenia, illegal activity in the occupied territories, the use of natural resources, the policy of settlement, the use of water resources as a means of environmental terror against the Azerbaijani population living near the contact line.

The Azerbaijani community stressed the importance of putting pressure on Armenia by international organizations for it to put an end to the occupation of Azerbaijani lands, and refugees and internally displaced people to return to their native lands.

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, 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 the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
The Executive Director of the Danquah Institute, Richard Ahiagbah says former President John Dramani Mahama is being selfish with his promise to legalise okada that he banned during his administration.

Mr Ahiagbah on The Big Issue on Citi FM/Citi TV insisted that the former President does not care about the lives of okada riders and their passengers hence the promise.

It's not politics. This is about Mahama who is seeking to rebrand himself but rebranding is not done on humans but on products. The kind of rebranding he wants to do is for us to forget his past and who he has been and suddenly push all of us into a space of chaos just to advance his singular interest of wanting to become a president again. That for me is selfishness of the highest order. It is repugnant, to say the least. Okada is illegal because he banned it but because now it suits his agenda he wants to legalise it again, the Danquah Institute Executive Director argued.

Mr. Ahiagbah also said Mahamas promise to legalise okada is also a means the NDC flagbearer is using to rebrand himself.

According to him, Mr. Mahama is seeking to use the promise to lure Ghanaians into forgetting his abysmal performance when he served as Ghana's President.

This okada discussion is not about the okada riders, it is about former president John Dramani Mahama. It is not about the passengers who sit on it, it is about the former president John Mahama. It is about his integrity and credibility. Because all these arguments were made in 2012 and yet, he went ahead to ban it. Today what has changed is that he is looking for power and because he is looking for power now it makes sense to him regularise it.

---citinewsroom
Pashmina weavers. Courtesy: Kashmir Looms.

Kashmirs famous Pashmina, a fine variant of spun cashmere  introduced to the valley by an Irani Sufi saint, Shah-e-Hamdan, and refined to a fine art form in the 16th century by the Mughals  has been under siege from several quarters.

The latest in its decades-long struggle to keep the craft heritage alive threatens to be the most serious: The fractious India and China standoff in Ladakh has made the traditional grazing lands of the Changthangi goats or Pashms, reared by the Changpa nomads, difficult to access.

Changpa with their herds.

This is the newest of the several crises that Kashmirs cashmere industry is struggling with. Today, the global cashmere trade is divided thus: 60 percent from Mongolia, another 30 percent from China and Russia, 9 percent from Afghanistan, Nepal and Central Asia, and barely about 1 percent from Kashmir.

While China and Russia each produce 750 tonnes of pashmina wool every year, and Mongolia dominates the world market with 1,000 tonnes, India produces a measly 45 tonnes.

And yet, in the global markets, handmade and hand-embroidered Kashmiri pashmina spun from feather-like wool and conferred with a GI stamp, is much sought after. Unlike other wool, the Changpa nomads do not shear their goats. Instead, in spring, the pashmina is brushed out with wooden combs, stored in the form of a loaf resembling candyfloss, and then spun into exquisite yarn.

Kashmir Weavers.

Eric Hansen, a London-based exporter of cashmere (he sells under the brand name, Cashmere Tales), says, The thread produced by Kashmirs spinners, who are largely women, is 12 to 16 microns in diameter, whereas the thread from the rest of the world is 17 to 20 microns. The Kashmiri cashmere scarves and shawls can sell for as much as $600 and $1000 in the world fashion capitals.

The India-China standoff

Changpa nomads live in the cold Changthang region (or the northern meadows) of Ladakh, which straddles Tibet at over 5,000 metres above sea level. They rear the shaggy Changthangi goats, from whose lush undercoat or the pashm comes the pashmina wool. In spring, the pashm is harvested by the nomads and sold to the artisans in Kashmir, who spin it into yarn and then weave shawls from it, which are hand-embroidered with different kinds of embroideries such a Sozni and Tilla.

The Changthang region becomes inhospitable from November to February; temperatures can fall to - 50 degree Celsius. Before the onset of winters, the nomads begin descending to warmer grazing lands near the disputed border with China, along the Tibetan plateau, and across the frozen Indus River with their herds.

Andraab.

Mubashir Andraabi, the man behind the exquisite luxury cashmere brand, Andraab, says that the gossamer Pashmina wool they produce is the result of the unique topography that the nomads and their herds traverse. To maintain the quality of the under fleece, the nomadic lifestyle they live between extreme conditions and warmer grasslands is important.

A way of life and a centuries-old process are now being threatened by the military stand-off.

Andraab.

Artisan Tariq Mir, who through his familys weaving business, Special Hands of Kashmir, works with 500 artisans and employs 40, frets, Shor sharable se goats dar jaati hain. Weavers ke paas is waqt raw material nahi aa raha hai kyunki transport band hai (The noise of military movement hassles the goats. Also, the weavers have not been receiving raw materials because of the restriction on movement.

Mubashir Andrabi.

The nomads, who own an estimated 300,000 goats, as well as associations such as All Changtang Pashmina Growers Cooperative Marketing Society, are in talks with the local authorities and the Indian army to find a solution.

Over the last few years, the Ladakhis, with support from their local government, have worked hard to bring down the mortality of the young in the goatherds, from 40% a decade ago to as low as 10%, says veterinarian Dr Mohammed Deen, who heads the government goat farms project near Upshi in Changthang.

Sonam Changpa, a member of the Ladakh Pashm Association contends, A lot of the routes have been barred by the Indian authorities, which is understandable. But without access to the warmer grazing grounds, a higher percentage of the young of the herds may not survive, which could lead to economic ruin for the nomads and hardships for the Kashmiri weavers. We may not see the drop in production right now; but in three years, when the young goats would have grown up to produce the Pashm, we will see a huge crunch.

Tariq Mir.

According to Andraabi, we will have to wait till the onset of winter in November-end to figure how bad the situation really is. Maybe the authorities will come up with some plan to save the nomads and their herds. We hope they are allowed to bring their herds down for grazing, he adds.

The stand-off may be recent, but the problems along the Tibetan plateau are age-old. Once, the nomads roamed the grasslands around the undemarcated borders of Tibet rather freely. However, in recent years, our nomads have faced difficulty in accessing pastures in Tibet. Chinese soldiers have blocked them, while they bring herders from Tibet into our lands, says Sonam Tsering, General Secretary of All Changtang Pashmina Growers Cooperative Marketing Society.

The local elders have been complaining to the Indian government about Chinese incursions for years. No one took us seriously. Now, we are caught between the crossfire, says Tsering.

Climate change hits the grasslands

The military stand-off apart, climate change  which have made winters a tad harsher and summer somewhat warmer  has been slowly decimating the traditional grasslands.

Asaf Ali, the co-founder of the contemporary brand, Kashmir Loom, says, there has been a steady rise in temperatures over the last few years and some of the greenery has been affected. If the temperature rises by even 5 degree Celsius in the years to come, it will have serious consequences on the herds and the quality of the Pashmina wool. Already, Ladakh and Kashmir are dealing with landslides and extreme monsoon patterns.

Asaf Ali and Jenny Housego, Kashmir Loom.

Over a relatively short period of five years, dozens of nomad families from the Changthang plateau have migrated away from their village, Kharnak, to the outskirts of Leh, 180 kilometres away, where they have set up their neighbourhood.

Targais Tashi, the village chieftain of Kharnak says over a barely audible phone call from Srinagar, where he is meeting artisans, "If weather patterns continue to change, it could have an irreversible impact on Pashmina goat-rearing on the Changthang. The younger generation would rather work in the city than continue this physically and emotionally exhausting work.

Changpa camp. Courtesy: Kashmir Loom.

The Union Ministry of Textiles is attempting to reverse the trend by funding the Changpas to return to rearing goats on the plateau. The trade's decline will not just affect Indias best-known exports, but also end the unique culture of the Changpas.

About power looms and apathy of the young from the weaving communities

Kashmirs fabled pashmina has, for years, been dealing with a worrying crisis on the weavers end, too.

The entire process of making a pashmina shawl from dehairing, sorting, spinning and weaving to dying and embroideryhas been done manually for centuries. Unfortunately, machines and power looms, which can produce eight to 10 shawls a day, are fast replacing traditional weaving looms, rendering a lot of artisans jobless, says Jasir Ahmed, an artisan who runs a weaving and embroidery studio in Wakura, close to Srinagar.

He claims that till two years ago, power looms from Amritsar were harming their businesses. Now, they have begun making their way into the Valley. This, despite the ban on mechanisation to save the trade that was enforced under the 1985 Handloom Protection Act, claims Showkat Ahmad Mir, the former general secretary of the Union of Kashmir Pashmina Artisans (KPKU and the third generation pashmina weaver. The government has failed to enforce the ban.

Add to that the young in Kashmiri weavers families, who do not want to pursue their ancestors craft, given the frequent lockdowns and disturbances in the Valley, and the difficulty involved in weaving the pashmina.

The needlework, the most exquisite of which can take years, has in the past cost the vision of many artisans. Nasir Ali (who works with 10 embroiders) talks about a 65-year-old pashmina shawl embroider who reportedly went blind. He was working on a shawl with very dense work. It took him one-and-a-half years to complete it, but he lost his eyesight soon after.

Jasir Ahmed claims that artisans, who put in a week or two spinning the pashmina yarn or even embroidering a shawl, may not earn more than Rs 300 to 400 a day. The young find it far more lucrative to do some other work. The hold of middlemen is too strong. I had to fight my own family of embroiders to continue this tradition.

Yet, artisans such as Mir and Ahmed are working towards contemporizing the pashmina tradition for a younger generation. We have been blending pashmina and khadi for markets in the south of India. We make silk cushion covers and silk sarees embroidered with the pashmina yarn, which are popular. We have also transformed the traditional shawl patterns and now use a lot of geometric designs or animals motifs, says Mir. Ahmed produces beautiful Pashmina sarees and dupattas with the rare Tilla embroidery.

The COVID effect

The fall in export orders and the slowing domestic demand have hit home hard. Ali says, The weavers in the valley have very little work. Many weavers depend on exhibitions and shows, which are not possible at the moment. We are surviving because of some export orders and social media, which are pushing sales. Andraabi adds that pashmina sales are often driven by the tourists arrival in the valley. The abrogation of Article 370, intermittent curfews, and now

COVID has destroyed the tourism market in Kashmir, affecting the business of Pashmina.

Dorukha Cashmere Shawl from Kashmir Loom.

Yet, there is hope. Pashmina is recognised as one of Indias tangible heritage, he muses Andraabi. For 600 years, the pashmina made in Kashmir has been coveted by the royalty and the elite down centuries. The sway of beautiful handmade Kashmiri pashmina will persist.
A change in weather in Oregon on Friday morning has provided some relief to one of the states most affected by wildfires.

Oregon experienced heavy rainfall and thunderstorms, which helped put down fires and improved the state's air quality. Around eight people have already died due to the wildfires scorching the state. Several small towns have been destroyed.

However, with this temporary relief that the rain provided, there have been new risks. State officials and the National Weather Service warned of flash flooding and landslides, especially in areas where fires have burned hillsides.

"A storm event coming in today will bring welcome moisture. Winds and lightning strikes are still a concern, but the rain is a welcome sight," Oregon Gov. Kate Brown said in a report.

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality said that smoke is slowly clearing out around Interstate 5, the main highway along the West Coast.

According to the U.S. Forest Service, a firefighter in California was killed on Thursday while fighting the El Dorado fire. The El Dorado fire started around two weeks ago. It was caused by a smoke-generating device used in a gender reveal party.

As of Friday morning, the El Dorado fire had burned over 21,000 acres in 12 days and was 66 percent contained.

The latest data from the National Interagency Fire Center showed that there are currently 79 large active fires ravaging the U.S. The largest numbers of wildfires are in California, Idaho, and Oregon.

Milder weather in California on Friday morning helped the firefighters control the wildfires there, California's Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said. But weather conditions in southern California were warm and dry on Friday.

Los Angeles is forecasted to experience cooling and humidity recovery this weekend. Cal Fire noted that more dangerous dry conditions would return to the north.

Meanwhile, wildfire smoke is seen to spread across the country, moving north into Canada and across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe. People are being exposed to some of the wildfires' effects, which include carbon monoxide and smog.

The number of wildfires happening across the country has decreased over the years. However, climate change has triggered larger and more intense fires that burned more lands, especially in dry conditions.

Another factor that worsens the fire spread is the growing number of people who move to fire-prone wildland areas. Population growth in those places has more flammable material. This makes it harder for responders to prioritize saving lives and land to contain the spreading wildfires.

California, in recent years, has seen property loss, mainly focused in the rural areas. NIFC spokeswoman Carrie Bilbao said humans play a big role.

"Not [by] just causing fires, but where they live and moving into areas where fires are," Bilbao said in a report.

More than 17,000 firefighters are fighting 25 major wildfires across California, Cal Fire said. The state's fire agency further noted that more than 3.3 million acres had been burned this year, an all-time record in California's wildfire history.

In Oregon, wildfires have destroyed more than 586,000 acres. At least 764,000 acres in Washington were affected.

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Oregon Wildfires Burned 1,400 Square Miles, Forced 500,000 People to Flee
The city of Kochi, a strategically



located South Indian port housing various vital installations including the Southern Naval Command, is prepared to deal with any form of terror threat, top security officials said here on Saturday, hours after the arrested nine cadres during raids here and in West Bengal.

After revealed that the arrested terrorists intended to launch terror attacks on vital installations in the country with an aim to kill innocent people, Defence sources said here that the Kochi-based Southern Naval Command (SNC) has been in heightened security for quite some time.

"The SNC will continue to take all precautions against all possible threats," a Defence source told PTI.

Highly placed sources in the Kochi city police said the city police has been effectively carrying out its job to identify the terror elements, monitoring the activities of the people visiting and camping in the city.

"We are very well prepared to deal with any form of such terror threats," a senior officer said, reacting to the arrest of three West Bengal natives from Ernakulam district.

Acting on a tip provided by central intelligence agencies, the NIA, with the help of the state police forces, carried out raids in the intervening night of September 18 and 19 at Ernakulam in Kerala and Murshidabad in West Bengal and arrested the nine men -- Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas, Mosaraf Hossen from Ernakulam and Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman from Murshidabad.

Hasan is the leader of the gang and those arrested from Kerala are also originally residents of West Bengal, the said.

A senior police officer said the state police is doing a lot of work for identifying the cadres of terror groups landing in Kerala and the terrorists were arrested in a joint operation by the NIA and the state police.

"The people suspected to have terror links are put on surveillance.

We are always on the lookout for such elements.This is an ongoing activity," the officer said when asked about the steps taken by the state police to identify the terror suspects in Kerala, which is home to a large population of migrant workers especially from West Bengal.

The police do not publicise the type of works being done on the ground to tackle terrorists, he said.

The three terrorists who were arrested from three different locations in the district were working as migrant workers, police said.

They lived in rented houses in Perumbavoor in Ernakulam rural and Pathalam in Kochi city, they added.

Meanwhile, the Congress and the BJP attacked the state government over the issue, alleging the state has become a hub of terrorists under CPI(M)-led LDF rule.

KPCC President Mullappally Ramachandran alleged the state police failed to trace the presence of al-Qaeda terrorists in the soil of Kerala.

"With the arrest of three al-Qaeda terrorists from the state, it is evident that that law and order machinery in the state has collapsed and the state has become a fertile soil for terror groups," Ramachandran told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram.

BJP state president K Surendran claimed Kerala has become a "hideout" for terrorists under the rule of both CPI(M)-led LDF and Congress-led UDF.

He also claimed the state government ignored a recent UN report on terrorism that warned that there are "significant numbers" of ISIS terrorists in Kerala and about al-Qaeda terrorists planning attacks in the country.

(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.)
Condemning Sharma's arrest, the Press Club of India also said that the police should provide pertinent details 'so that a defence may be possible to construct'

New Delhi: The Press Club of India (PCI) on Saturday called the arrest of freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma by Delhi Police "high-handed" and alleged that it "may be inspired by obscure or questionable considerations".

The Delhi Police on Saturday said Sharma was allegedly passing sensitive information about India's border strategy and Army deployment and procurement to Chinese intelligence agencies.

Sharma was arrested September 14.

In a statement, the PCI demanded that in all cases of arrests of journalists anywhere in the country, "the police must be required to inform the Press Council of India as well as the self-regulatory body of the broadcast media on an immediate basis".

It also said that the police should provide pertinent details "so that a defence may be possible to construct".

The PCI said it is "astounded to hear of the arrest of Rajeev Sharma, a well-known independent journalist of long standing and a member of the club".

"This is on account of the dubious track record of the Special Cell. More generally also, the record of Delhi Police is hardly a shining one," it said.

"On the basis of the statement of the police released to the media, we have no hesitation in saying that the police action is high-handed, and may be inspired by obscure or questionable considerations," the PCI alleged.

The PCI also cited the instance of Iftikhar Gilani, a senior journalist with Kashmir Times, who was arrested in 2002 "on the trumped up charge of tracking the Army's movements in Kashmir and keeping his so-called pay masters informed".

Subsequently, a Delhi journalist, who wrote for Iran's official news agency, was also arrested for playing in the hands of the Iranian secret service, the PCI said.

"His family also was made to run from pillar to post  all to no avail. Eventually it became clear that the whole case was bogus and the journalist was freed," it said.

The PCI statement also said that the arrests of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Jamia Millia Islamia scholars such as Kanhaiya Kumar, Umar Khalid and others were done "acting on a political bias".

"Of late, Delhi Police, including its Special Cell, have made preposterous arrests under the lawless law called UAPA (Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act) in which the word of the government is enough to keep an innocent person behind bars for long periods. These have happened in matters relating to anti-CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) protests and the carefully designed communal killings in the so-called February 2020 riots in northeast Delhi," the PCI said.

The statement said Sharma wrote on strategic affairs and "may well have accessed routinely over-classified information on the Internet that is in the public domain".
As the shock of Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death gave way to incredulity and alarm about the political situation shed left behind, Democratsespecially Democrats in the Senategrabbed the first solid-looking thing they could grab: the principle that it was too close to the election for President Donald Trump and the Republican Senate majority to fill her seat. The people should decide.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who had promoted exactly that message in 2016, promptly rejected it. This was outrageous, but it was easy in the heat of the moment to lose track of exactly what was outrageous about it. Barack Obama, in a Medium post, tried and failed to explain what was wrong:

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Four and a half years ago, when Republicans refused to hold a hearing or an up-or-down vote on Merrick Garland, they invented the principle that the Senate shouldnt fill an open seat on the Supreme Court before a new president was sworn in. A basic principle of the lawand of everyday fairnessis that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment. The rule of law, the legitimacy of our courts, the fundamental workings of our democracy all depend on that basic principle. As votes are already being cast in this election, Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard.

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Obama is a trained law professor and an eloquent rhetorician, but he could not make a coherent case. Four and a half years ago, Republicans invented a principle. The rule of law requires consistency. Therefore, he is calling on Republicans to apply this principle, which did not exist five years ago.

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McConnell, meanwhileas the inventor of the principlesimply invented a new principle: that it was fine to fill a vacant seat in an election year if the presidency and the Senate were both controlled by the same party. In this new formulation, the question for voters in an election year is simply and only how to resolve the parties disagreement when the president and the Senate majority are in opposition. On anything else, the voters have no say.

It was nonsense, but so was the original rule. Yet somehow the Democrats found themselves speaking up in defense of the 2016 Mitch McConnell Rule, against the 2020 Mitch McConnell Ruleclaiming that the earlier rule was implicated in the fundamental workings of our democracy!even though both rules were made up strictly and exclusively to serve the interests of Mitch McConnell.

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There is no rule that says a president cant appoint a Supreme Court justice in an election year. There should not be such a rule. Presidents are elected for four years, and they have the power to name new judges for the duration of their terms. That is the rule, and it is the rule that Mitch McConnell broke more than four years ago, in the course of making up his new fake rules.

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What Obama is really objecting to, and what he should have objected to directly and strenuously at the time, is that McConnell stole the final year of Obamas presidency. The voters chose in 2012 to give Obama the authority and duties of the president until January 2017. Antonin Scalia died in February 2016. But Mitch McConnell saw the chance to overrule the voters and arrogate the presidents nominating powernot just to use his majority as leverage to force the president to name a moderate judicial candidate (which Obama, being Obama, tried to do anyway), or to review and reject a nominee, but to refuse the act of nomination altogether.

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At that moment, the rules and principles about how members of the Supreme Court are chosen ceased to apply. McConnell had changed them unilaterally. And the Republican Party liked the changes; the much-mourned noble statesman John McCain went so far as to propose an even more expansive power grab, in which he would blockade a potential President Hillary Clintons nominees for the entire length of her term, holding the court to a maximum of eight members indefinitely.

These have been the actual workings of what Obama rather wishfully called our democracy. Whats wrong with Donald Trump plotting to name his third Supreme Court justice is not that he is doing it in an election year, nor that it violates the consistency with which our rules ought to be applied. Its that thanks to McConnells ruthlessness and shamelessness, Trump got to pick justices in a five-year window for his four-year term.

The legitimacy of our courts that Obama invoked was gone the moment Neil Gorsuch presented himself to the Senate for confirmation. The challenge for the Democrats isnt to fight to preserve and extend a temporary and fictitious procedural norm from four years ago. Its to seize back that stolen year, and that stolen seat, and control of the entire court. That, not any principle, is what Mitch McConnell was fighting for in 2016, and its the only thing worth copying from him now.
Hundreds of British paratroopers jumped into eastern Ukraine, alongside soldiers from the army's elite Pathfinder unit, for an exercise close to the border with Crimea.

The soldiers, from the UK global response force 16 Air Assault Brigade, were exercising with Ukrainian airborne forces on Friday at a time of increased tension in the region.

British broadcaster Sky News was given rare access to the Pathfinders as they practised covert insertion techniques.

Pathfinders are trained to parachute behind enemy lines, often jumping from high altitude to glide across borders or opening their chutes below radar.

Operating in small teams, they insert themselves into hostile zones days ahead of the main force to secure territory.

The UK operates a separate training mission for Ukrainian forces near Kyiv. Operation Orbital has trained thousands of Ukrainian soldiers since the Russia annexation of Crimea in 2014.

The joint exercise is being seen as a deliberate show of solidarity with Ukraine.

Senior Ukrainian general, Yevhan Moysiuk, said the threat from Russia was growing.

Ukraine and Russia are still fighting in the east of the country and unrest continues in neighbouring Belarus after last month's disputed election.

Belarus's President Alexander Lukashenko claims NATO is massing troops on his country's border.

Although NATO has forcefully denied this, the image of hundreds of British troops parachuting into eastern Ukraine and close to the Crimea border won't go unnoticed in Minsk or Moscow.
For the past four months, United Airlines and Boeing have been flying around jetliners loaded with mannequins, aerosol sprays, sensors and scientists in an effort to understand how contaminated air moves through passenger planes.

The research is just one small part of a sweeping global campaign to figure out the threats posed by the coronavirus. But for the airline industry, the results could help determine how quickly carriers bounce back from the edge of disaster after the pandemic made people afraid to get on a plane. U.S. demand for flights remains at less than a third of 2019 levels, based on airport security screening data.

PRO TIPS: How do you fly safely during a pandemic?

The U.S. military initiated the $1 million study when the spread of covid-19 raised concerns about infection risks for troops transported on passenger jets. Companies including United, Boeing and Zeteo Tech LLC, a Maryland-based biodefense and medical device maker, are contributing equipment and expertise.If the findings can show how likely it is for a passenger to be infected by breathing the air on a plane, "it'll probably drive some policy decisions," said Mike McLoughlin, Zeteo's vice president of research.

Airlines have sought to reassure the public that flying is safe by implementing an array of onboard cleaning and disinfecting procedures, requiring face masks in the cabin and improving ventilation and filtration systems. But they haven't been able to show what, precisely, are the chances of infection if that person sitting next to you or across the aisle breaks out into a virus-laden cough.

To collect the data, researchers placed mannequins with human-like heads in various seats throughout seven models of Boeing and Airbus jets, then made them cough. Or rather, they simulated a human cough, and how aerosolized particles are expelled and disseminated through the air on the plane, McLoughlin said.

Aerosol particles will behave differently under different cabin scenarios, said Byron Jones, an engineering professor at Kansas State University who studies airline cabin air and was not involved in the project. Gas and particles in a cabin become "a witches' cauldron," he said, based on air flows, particulate sizes and other factors. "It just swirls and churns and twists. It's very chaotic," he said. But that churning isn't necessarily a bad thing: "That's what you want to see in a general ventilation (system)."

METRICS NOT MET: Harris County keeps its 'stay home' threat level, even as state of Texas, schools reopen

Researchers evaluated how factors such as circulation, the exchange rate of cabin air, filtration and forward-facing seats affected the flow of aerosolized particles through the cabin, and who would be most exposed in their proximity to a cougher. Particle sizes and various locations throughout the cabin were considered. Tests were repeated with the dummies wearing disposable surgical masks.

The tests were conducted during 30 hours in flight and 24 hours on the ground from May 5 through August. Analysis of the data and peer reviews are expected to be completed this month with a final report issued in October.

Boeing declined to comment on the results they've seen so far. In a statement, the company said it's approaching the question of virus spread "from an engineering perspective by conducting data-driven analysis studies, simulations, modeling and live testing, which will help us all better understand the transmission and risks of COVID-19."

The project is funded and led in part by the U.S. Transportation Command, based at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois, which buys airline seats and charter flights to transport U.S. troops and their families around the world. The Command sees the study as critical to safely mobilizing troops, said Lt. Col. Ellis Gales Jr., a spokesman. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency helped connect the Transportation Command with United and Boeing.

If the analysis shows infection risks through the air can be controlled on a plane, the industry might be able to use those results to help persuade the public to start flying again even before a vaccination for covid-19 might be widely available."Throughout the pandemic, our top priority has been the health and safety of our customers and crew," Toby Enqvist, United's chief customer officer, said in an email. Enqvist said he's encouraged by the early results he's seen, but did not provide specifics.

"Everybody is keen to get the results out as quickly as possible but we want to make sure that when we release those results we're painting an accurate picture," McLoughlin said.
According to Stratistics MRC, the Global 3D Machine Vision Market is accounted for $1.26 billion in 2017 and is expected to reach $3.98 billion by 2026 growing at a CAGR of 13.5% during the forecast period. Integration of 3D vision frameworks with robot controllers, increasing interest for 3D object investigations in manufacturing applications, and high prerequisite of non-industrial 3D machine vision frameworks are some of the factors fuelling the market growth. However, changing requirements of customers and lack of awareness & technical knowledge is restraining the market growth. Moreover, high demand of application-specific machine vision systems is providing ample growth opportunities.

Request For Report Sample@ https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/sample/12045

3D Machine Vision includes the development of computerized 3D models of articles inside a machine, for example, a PC, and the ensuing control of the model for any of various purposes. The 3D model involve a lot of discrete information focuses that ordinarily find some portion of an item in space and may contain extra data about the article, for example, shading, reflectivity, and surface. The subsequent model can be controlled and altered utilizing any number of 3D drawing projects.

Based on the offering, hardware segment is expected to acquire considerable growth during the forecast period owing to technological advancements in the field of 3D cameras and image detection techniques. By Geography, Asia Pacific is going to have a lucrative growth during the forecast period owing to the rising adoption of automation across all industry verticals, especially in automotive and consumer electronics.

Some of the key players profiled in the 3D Machine Vision market include Tordivel As, Stemmer Imaging, Sick AG, Point Grey Research, Inc., Omron Corporation, National Instruments Corporation, Mvtec Software GmbH, LMI Technologies, Keyence Corporation, Isra Vision AG, Hermary Opto Electronics Inc., Coherent, Inc., Cognex Corporation, Canon Inc. and Basler AG.

Offerings Covered:

 Software

 Services

 Hardware

Products Covered:

 Smart Camera-Based Systems

 Personal computer-Based Systems

Get Complete TOC with Tables and Figures@ https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/discount/12045

Applications Covered:

 Robotic Guidance and Automation

 Quality Assurance & Inspection

 Positioning & Guidance

 Measurement

 Mapping

 Identification

End Users Covered:

 Industrial

 Non-Industrial

Regions Covered:

 North America

o US

o Canada

o Mexico

 Europe

o Germany

o UK

o Italy

o France

o Spain

o Rest of Europe

 Asia Pacific

o Japan

o China

o India

o Australia

o New Zealand

o South Korea

o Rest of Asia Pacific

 South America

o Argentina

o Brazil

o Chile

o Rest of South America

 Middle East & Africa

o Saudi Arabia

o UAE

o Qatar

o South Africa

o Rest of Middle East & Africa

What our report offers:

- Market share assessments for the regional and country level segments

- Strategic recommendations for the new entrants

- Market forecasts for a minimum of 9 years of all the mentioned segments, sub segments and the regional markets

- Market Trends (Drivers, Constraints, Opportunities, Threats, Challenges, Investment Opportunities, and recommendations)

- Strategic analysis: Drivers and Constraints, Product/Technology Analysis, Porters five forces analysis, SWOT analysis etc.

- Strategic recommendations in key business segments based on the market estimations

- Competitive landscaping mapping the key common trends

- Company profiling with detailed strategies, financials, and recent developments

- Supply chain trends mapping the latest technological advancements

<<<Get COVID-19 Report Analysis >>> https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/covid-19-analysis/12045

Free Customization Offerings:

All the customers of this report will be entitled to receive one of the following free customization options:

 Company Profiling

o Comprehensive profiling of additional market players (up to 3)

o SWOT Analysis of key players (up to 3)

 Regional Segmentation

o Market estimations, Forecasts and CAGR of any prominent country as per the clients interest (Note: Depends of feasibility check)

 Competitive Benchmarking

o Benchmarking of key players based on product portfolio, geographical presence, and strategic alliances

1 Executive Summary

2 Preface

2.1 Abstract

2.2 Stake Holders

2.3 Research Scope

2.4 Research Methodology

2.4.1 Data Mining

2.4.2 Data Analysis

2.4.3 Data Validation

2.4.4 Research Approach

2.5 Research Sources

2.5.1 Primary Research Sources

2.5.2 Secondary Research Sources

2.5.3 Assumptions

3 Market Trend Analysis

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Drivers

3.3 Restraints

3.4 Opportunities

3.5 Threats

3.6 Product Analysis

3.7 Application Analysis

3.8 End User Analysis

3.9 Emerging Markets

3.10 Futuristic Market Scenario

4 Porters Five Force Analysis

4.1 Bargaining power of suppliers

4.2 Bargaining power of buyers

4.3 Threat of substitutes

4.4 Threat of new entrants

4.5 Competitive rivalry

5 Global 3D Machine Vision Market, By Offering

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Software

5.2.1 Traditional

5.2.2 Deep Learning

5.3 Services

5.4 Hardware

5.4.1 Optics

5.4.2 Lighting

5.4.3 Frame GrABBers

5.4.4 Cameras

5.4.4.1 Image Detection Technique

5.4.4.1.1 Time-Of-Flight (TOF) Technique

5.4.4.1.2 Structured Light Systems

5.4.4.1.3 Stereoscopic Vision Systems

5.4.4.2 Camera Type

5.4.4.2.1 Line Scan Cameras

5.4.4.2.2 Area Scan Cameras
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 07:19:11|Editor: huaxia

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SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Boeing on Friday announced 700,000 U.S. dollars in grants from the Boeing Charitable Trust to help local communities with the ongoing humanitarian and environmental crisis caused by wildfires burning along the West Coast of the United States.

Boeing is providing 500,000 dollars to the American Red Cross to support its fire relief efforts in Washington, Oregon and California, the announcement said.

Additionally, the company is donating 200,000 dollars to provide food assistance in these states where significant numbers of the company's employees live and work.

"Thousands of our families, friends and neighbors have been displaced around the west," said Stan Deal, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes and the company's senior executive in the region. "We are committed to helping them through this exceptionally challenging time."

Don Herring, chief development officer at the American Red Cross, expressed his gratitude for Boeing's support, adding that they have taken extra safety precautions due to the pandemic to ensure people impacted by the wildfires feel safe. Enditem
Eritrean evangelical, Pentecostal Christians jailed for their faith temporarily freed on bail

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The Eritrean government has released on bail more than 20 prisoners whod been in detention for years because of their faith, the BBC reports.

It says sources have said that the prisoners are from Christian evangelical and Pentecostal denominations, some held in a prison outside the capital Asmara.

In 2002 Eritrea introduced a new law that forbids all Churches except for the Orthodox, Catholic and Evangelical Lutheran ones. Sunni Islam is also officially recognized.

According to a religious freedom campaigner from Asmara, but now based in North America, Hannibal Daniel, people whod been in prison for about 16 years have been freed on bail.

A regional spokesperson for charity Open Doors International said that, for some time, it had heard discussion that prisoners might be freed on bail due to the coronavirus pandemic (as has happened in several other countries) but could not independently confirm the reports: If true, this could be quite significant.

The Eritrean government has not responded to BBC requests for confirmation or denial. Previously, its dismissed accusations of intolerance to religious freedom.

In May 2019, a monitoring group for the UN said thousands of Christians are facing detention as religious freedom continue[s] to be denied in Eritrea and questioned why the UN was not monitoring the situation more closely.

In June 2019, Thomson Reuters reported that more than 500,000 refugees worldwide have left Eritrea, up from 486,200 a year earlier.

Many flee compulsory military service, but others flee political or religious persecution.

That same month, the government seized all Catholic-run health clinics in the country, and arrested five Orthodox priests. These moves prompted the UN Special Rapporteur for human rights in Eritrea, Daniela Kravetz, to call on the government to uphold religious freedom for its citizens and release those who have been imprisoned for their religious beliefs.

In August 2019, Eritreas Orthodox patriarch, Abune Antonios, was expelled by pro-government bishops of his Church, accused of heresy; he remained in detention throughout 2019.

Abune Antonios, Patriarch, Eritrean Orthodox Church, detained since 2007. Antonios had been under house arrest since 2007, when he refused to comply with the regimes attempts to interfere with church affairs.

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom says Eritrea is a Country of Particular Concern, saying In 2019, religious freedom conditions in Eritrea worsened, with increasing interference in and restrictions on religious groups. In spite of the significant regional political changes and the 2018 peace agreement between Eritrea and Ethiopia, Eritrea continues to have one of the worst religious freedom records in the world, and has shown little interest in concretely improving the situation. The State Department estimates there are between 1200 and 3000 prisoners held for their faith. USCIRF included some of those cases in its new Victims List.

Some prisoners, such as the leader of the Full Gospel Church, have been in prison for more than 15 years.

70 Christians detained included 35 women and 10 children

At least 150 Eritrean Christians were arrested by government officials during summer 2019, with some held in an underground prison made up of tunnels.

For instance on 18 August, 2019, Eritrean security officials detained 80 Christians from Godayef, an area near Asmara airport.

Four days later, on 22 August, the United Nations observed its first annual commemoration of victims of religiously motivated violence. On this day, we reaffirm our unwavering support for the victims of violence based on religion and belief. And we demonstrate that support by doing all in our power to prevent such attacks and demanding that those responsible are held accountable, said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

The governments 2019 clampdown on evangelical Christians had begun in June 2019 when security officials arrested 70 members (among them 35 women and 10 children) of the Faith Mission Church of Christ, in Eritreas second city, Keren. These were taken to Ashufera prison, 25kms from the city.

The prison is a vast underground tunnel system and conditions in which detainees are held are very harsh, a local source said. Its far from a main road, the source said, which means that anyone who wants to visit has to walk a minimum of 30 minutes to reach the entrance.

Inmates are forced to dig additional tunnels when officers need extra space for more prisoners.

After the 2019 arrests, government officials also closed the church-run school, said the local source, whose identity World Watch Monitor withheld for security reasons.

The Faith Mission Church of Christ was the last church still open in the majority-Muslim city, 90kms northwest of Asmara. Started over 60 years ago, the Church once had schools and orphanages all over the country, according to religious freedom advocacy group CSW.

It had been waiting for registration since it submitted an application in 2002 when the government introduced the new law. This clampdown sent other Christians in Keren into hiding, the source said.

Eritrea is 6th on the Open Doors 2020 World Watch List of the 50 countries in which it is most difficult to live as a Christian.

Originally published at World Watch Monitor
Latino households suffer disproportionate financial strain amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a new report released this week, more than 70 percent of Latinos are experiencing money problems during the pandemic compared to white families.

The report also showed that Latino, Black, and Native American households across the country are already feeling the brunt of the outbreak's economic fallout. It comes as the U.S. nears a grim milestone of 200,000 deaths from COVID-19.

Based on the series of reports called "The Impact of Coronavirus," almost half of the country's households in the four largest cities reported facing serious financial problems amid the pandemic.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and the NPR conducted a five-part polling series of more than 3,400 adults in Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, and New York between July and August.

Researchers asked residents about their finances, employment, housing, health care, transportation, caregiving, and well-being amid the pandemic.

The survey showed that approximately 17 percent of households reported missing or having a delay in paying major bills to ensure everyone had enough to eat. Sixteen percent reported serious problems affording food, while seven percent reported serious problems of not having food to eat every day.

The poll also revealed that while a minority of white households reported serious financial problems, the majority of Latino, Black, and Native American households reported the same issues, as per USA Today.

Around 37 percent of Asian and 36 percent of white families report facing severe financial problems, compared to 72 percent of Latino households, 60 percent of Black households, and 55 percent of Native American households.

"The economic and health ramifications of COVID-19 are continuing to hit Latino, Native American, and Black families the hardest," Dr. Richard Besser, President and CEO of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, said in a statement.

"This poll is the latest evidence that the ability to protect your family or yourself during the pandemic is too significant. And unconscionable degree determined by the color of skin and how much money you have," he added.

Based on the survey, more than six in ten Latino families reported having an adult household member lost their job, been furloughed, or had wages or hours reduced since the outbreak started. More than four in ten Black and Native American households also said they experience the same.

There are also considerable numbers of Latino, Black, and Native American households unable to get medical care for serious problems when they need it that often results in negative health consequences.

In terms of internet connectivity issues, more than four in ten Latino and Black households and almost half of Native American families reported having severe problems. This internet connection problem burdens them from doing their job or schoolwork or does not have a high-speed internet connection at home.

The trends are generally consistent across the four cities, but in Los Angeles and New York, Latino households have the highest rates of severe financial issues. In Houston and Chicago, Black households have the highest rates of serious financial difficulties.

In Los Angeles, 45 percent of Latino households reported severe problems with affording food. More than a third of Latino households in New York reported serious problems affording food and missing or delaying paying major bills.

In Chicago, nearly a third of Black households had serious problems affording food than about a fifth of Latino households and just one in 20 white households.

Houston has the highest rate of Black households reporting serious financial problems. In that city, 81 percent of Black households had serious financial problems, compared to 77 percent of Latino households and 34 percent of white households.

Robert J. Blendon, a professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and co-director of the survey, said: "Before federal coronavirus support programs even expired, we find millions of people with very serious problems with their finances, healthcare, and with caring for children."

"Though we want to believe we are all in this together, findings show problems heavily concentrated in Latino, Black, and Native American communities," he added.

Check these out:

Latino Families Now Struggle with Remote Learning

Next COVID-19 Relief Package: Immigrants Must Be Included

J&J Recruits 20,000 People in Latin America for the COVID-19 Vaccine Trials
Google Search widget on iOS 14 comes in two options where one has additional tools like Lens and incognito mode.

Apple launched iOS 14 for iPhones earlier this week. The new iOS version comes with more customisation for widgets along with support for home screen widgets. Google has announced two new features for its widget on iOS 14.

iOS 14 lets users add widgets to the iPhones home screen. You can also move widgets from the Today screen on your iPhone. To use Googles new widgets for iOS 14 you must have the Google app downloaded on your iPhone. Once you have the app, long press on your iPhones home screen and tap on the + icon that appears on the top left corner of the screen. Here, you can search for the Google widget or scroll through to find it.

The first widget is Quick Search which Google says offers lightning-fast access to Search. This one has only the Google Search bar in the widget. The other one is the Shortcuts Widgets and it features additional search modes including Lens, Voice Search and Incognito mode. Both widgets are clubbed under one, and you just have to swipe right/left to pick the one you want.

Google Chrome default browser on iOS 14. (Google)

Another Google feature on iOS 14 is that you can set Chrome as your iPhones default browser. Enabling this will open any link from another app on Chrome. You can set Google Chrome as the default browser on your iPhone by following these steps -

Open the Settings app on your iPhone/iPad.

Scroll down and select Chrome.

Tap on Default Browser App.

Then select Chrome.

Google is also working on making Gmail the default mail app on your iPhone. This feature will be rolled out on iOS 14 in the coming days.
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Having failed to complete a huge wall along the U.S. southern border, President Donald Trumps administration now seems desperate to build one in cyberspace for similar spurious reasons.

Whereas the bogeyman four years ago was a supposed influx of drugs and criminals from Mexico, the U.S. announced early Friday that Tencent Holdings Ltd.s instant-messaging app WeChat will essentially be shut down in America from Sept. 20 because of some vague notion that it poses an immediate threat.

In announcing the move, which also includes a ban on ByteDance Ltd.s TikTok to go in effect Nov. 12 unless it resolves its pending issues, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross made it sound as if there was incontrovertible evidence of their nefarious nature.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has demonstrated the means and motives to use these apps to threaten the national security, foreign policy, and the economy of the U.S.

Thats not quite true.

Theres no doubt that Beijing, its governing Communist Party and the nations military and intelligence services have waged sustained cyberoffensives against the U.S. and dozens of other countries. This year alone, two Chinese hackers were accused of attempting to pilfer coronavirus research across 11 countries, while more than 100 targets are thought to be among victims in a sophisticated infiltration scheme outlined by the U.S. this week.

But the evidence against WeChat is lacking. The app offers services that are roughly akin to an amalgam of Facebook, Venmo, Instagram, Twitter and Postmates. Its core feature is messaging, similar to Whatsapp. And yes, it collects data. Reams of it. As does Facebook Inc., Alphabet Inc.s Google, Microsoft Corp. and even Oracle Corp.

In the U.S., WeChat is largely used by the Chinese diaspora. And its quite probable that a small segment of those users oppose the U.S., its democratic system of government and maybe even communicate their plans over chat. In truth, an even bigger risk to the freedoms for which the U.S. stands is that Chinese dissidents in America might use the app and Beijing most likely tracks them. A third concern is that the Communist Partys increasingly heightened censorship regime is being deployed on WeChat at the expense of American citizens (largely of Chinese ethnicity) entirely within U.S. borders.

Story continues

And yet, any such manipulation or data infiltration pales in significance to that already perpetrated against entirely American institutions like Facebook and Twitter.

Instead of stamping out any threats posed by the Chinese government, which do exist, the U.S. administration has simply handed Beijing another item to add to its folio of propaganda that paints the U.S. as a belligerent and hypocritical regime.

Just as Chinese officials can use examples of U.S. police officers killing unarmed black men as a counter to Washingtons allegations of human rights abuses in Hong Kong and against Uighurs, they now have this unnecessary WeChat ban as proof that the U.S. isnt an open freedom-loving nation after all.

The predictable reaction from Beijing will also be hypocritical. Its true that thousands of Chinese in the U.S. will struggle to communicate directly with friends and family back home once WeChat access is shut off. But thats only because more ubiquitous options in the U.S.  Whatsapp, Facebook Messenger and Twitter  have already been banned by China.

A U.S. move to shut WeChat, and possibly TikTok, still pales in comparison to the Great Firewall that Beijing has had in place for more than a decade.

And thats why this move will prove to be so desperate and ineffective. It wont stop teams of state-sponsored hackers from infiltrating corporate and government networks, nor prevent manipulation of Americas open internet and independent media. But it will provide fodder for the growing belief that the U.S. truly is no better than any authoritarian state seeking to clamp down on the free flow of information in the name of national security.

Like that barrier along the Mexican border, this virtual wall against China will have untold costs and little benefit.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Tim Culpan is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering technology. He previously covered technology for Bloomberg News.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion

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Shopian encounter: Here is why Army is initiating action against its men

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 19: The Army has found "prima facie" evidence its troops "exceeded" powers under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act during an encounter in Kashmir's Shopian district in which three men were killed in July this year and has initiated disciplinary proceedings, officials said on Friday.

On July 18, the Army claimed three militants were killed in Amshipura village in the higher reaches of south Kashmir's Shopian district.

Committed to ethical conduct during anti-militancy operations, the Army initiated an inquiry after social media reports indicated the three men were from Rajouri district in Jammu and had gone missing at Amshipura, said Col Rajesh Kalia, the defence spokesperson in Srinagar.

Shopian encounter: Army finds 'prima facie evidence against troops for misusing powers under AFSPA

The probe was completed in a record four weeks.

The families of the three men from Rajouri who worked as labourers in Shopian had also filed a police complaint.

In a brief statement, the Army said the Shopian operation contravened the dos and don'ts of the Chief of Army Staff approved by the Supreme Court.

"The inquiry has brought out certain prima facie evidence indicating that during the operation, powers vested under the AFSPA 1990 were exceeded and the Do's and Don'ts of Chief of Army Staff as approved by the Supreme Court have been contravened.

"Consequently, the competent disciplinary authority has directed to initiate disciplinary proceedings under the Army Act against those found prima-facie answerable," the statement said.

It is not immediately clear how many Army men are being proceeded against.

The evidence collected indicates the three unidentified terrorists killed in Amshipura were Imtiyaz Ahmed, Abrar Ahmed and Mohammed Ibrar who hailed from Rajouri. Their DNA report is awaited.

"Their involvement with terrorism or related activities is under investigation by the police," the statement said.

General Officer Commanding Lt Gen B S Raju had taken note of social media reports and initiated a probe into the incident. A general advertisement was published in local newspapers, asking people with any "credible information" about the case to step forward and share it with the court of inquiry instituted by the Army.

Relatives of the three youths, belonging to Dhar Sakri village in Kotranka of Rajouri area in Poonch, had lodged a written missing persons report in the local police station after they lost contact with them on July 17. The three were working as labourers in apple and walnut orchards in Amshipura.

The relatives said in their complaint that they had last spoken to the three on July 16 when they informed their families they had got a room in Amshipura.

The room was the site of the encounter two days later, the complaint stated.

Police is also probing the three youths' call details and why they jumped out of a window when an operation was launched at their rented accommodation, a police official said.

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

He added that their presence in around strategic places in Shopian since their arrival was also being investigated.

J&K: One militant killed in encounter with security forces in Shopian

According to the rules, a Summary of Evidence will now be initiated against the erring Army personnel after which Court Martial proceedings will begin. The Army has been maintaining high standards of transparency and punishing officials whenever rules are violated, officials said.
Schools in Jharkhand would remain closed for students of classes nine to 12, as the secondary education wing of state education and literacy department has not yet sent its proposal for reopening of schools to the state disaster management department for approval.

The education department was earlier planning to reopen the schools from September 21 for students of classes nine to 12, who want to consult teachers at school to clear educational doubts.

Joint secretary of state disaster management department, Manish Tiwary, said, We have not received any such proposal from the education department till date.

The Unlock 4.0 guidelines, issued on August 30 by the Union ministry of home affairs, said schools will continue to remain closed till September 30. At the same time, it stated, Students of classes nine to 12 may be permitted to visit their schools, in areas outside containment zones only, on a voluntary basis, for taking guidance from their teachers.

On this line, the Jharkhand Education Project Council (JEPC) prepared a draft proposal for the secondary education wing for students of these classes.

In its proposal, the council has suggested that only 20 students are to be allowed in a class on a given day, so that one student occupies a bench in a bid to maintain social distancing. As far as teachers are concerned, 50% of them could be allowed as per the roster.

However, the secondary education wing has not forwarded the proposal to the disaster management department yet.

Secondary education director Jatashankar Choudhary said, We have not taken any such decision regarding reopening of the schools and we have not sent any proposal to the disaster management department in this regard.

An official of the education department said schools would remain closed till September 30. Any decision in this regard would be taken after assessing all necessary points, he said.

It is to be noted that state education and literacy department had sought feedback from parents regarding reopening of schools and syllabus for students of classes nine to 12 between August 24 and 31. As many as 25.76% of the parents wanted schools to be reopened only in September, while 31.74% expressed willingness that classes be resumed after introduction of Covid-19 vaccine.

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India has the most number of patients to have recovered from Covid-19: its 4.2 million cases putting it ahead of the US, according to health ministry data. India recorded 95,880 recoveries on Friday: the highest ever in a single day in the last 24 hours.

The country comprises nearly 19 per cent of the total recovered cases in the world. The national recovery rate has increased to nearly 80 per cent even though the countrys total cases exceeded 5.3 million and it added over 93,000 cases in the last 24 hours. About 60 per cent of the recovered cases were in five states: ...
Belarusian police detained hundreds of protesters in central Minsk on Saturday, a witness said, as around 2,000 people marched through the city demanding that President Alexander Lukashenko step down.

Belarus, a former Soviet republic closely allied with Russia, has been rocked by mass street protests since Lukashenko claimed a landslide victory in an Aug. 9 presidential election that his opponents say was rigged. He denies their accusation.

Saturdays protesters, most of them women, briefly scuffled with police who then blocked their path and started picking people one by one out of the crowd, the witness said.

In one location, dozens of female protesters could be seen encircled by men in green uniforms and black balaclavas outside a shopping mall as they shouted Only cowards beat women!"

Among the detained was 73-year-old opposition activist Nina Baginskaya who has become an icon of the protest movement after scuffling with armed policemen last month.

One female protester was taken away in an ambulance after lying on the ground, apparently unconscious.

Lukashenkos crackdown on the protests has prompted the European Union to weigh fresh sanctions against his government.

The president, who has ruled Belarus for 26 years, says the protesters are being backed by foreign powers. Earlier this month he secured a $1.5 billion lifeline from Moscow.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
This week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit heard argument in the case against Harvard University brought by Students for Fair Admissions. The plaintiffs allege that Harvards use of racial preferences results in discrimination against Asian-American applicants. The liberal district court judge who tried the case disagreed. She found for Harvard.

You can listen to the oral argument here.

The plaintiff-appellants were represented by William Consovoy. Assistant U.S. Attorney General Eric Dreiband, representing the United States, joined Consovoy in arguing for reversal of the district courts decision in favor of Harvard.

Both argued very well. You can get a good flavor for Consovoys arguments by listening to his opening lines, beginning at about 0:45 and ending at about 2:00, plus the end of his initial presentation, beginning at about 16:20, when he hit a question from a liberal judge out of the park (she ended up cutting him off). Consovoys rebuttal is also well worth listening to. It begins at around the 1:13:30 mark.

Erics argument commences at around 18:00. He did a fine job distinguishing Harvards case from cases in which the Supreme Court upheld racial preferences by the University of Michigan (Grutter) and the University of Texas (Fisher).

Eric also pointed out that Harvard racially balances its classes through the use of subjective personal characteristics criteria, which somehow find, year after year, that Asian-American applicants have less courage and less integrity than other racial groups of applicants. This highlights why, as Eric reminded the court at the conclusion of his argument, the Supreme Court has admonished that the use of race in decisionmaking processes is odious to a free people.

Harvard was represented by Seth Waxman, the former Solicitor General of the United States. Waxman argued ably, relying mostly on technical points. He was uninterrupted except by softball questions until the end of his argument. At that point (around 52:50), Chief Judge Howard asked him about Harvards efforts to achieve a particular racial balance, or yield.

For what its worth, I think Waxmans response was weak. Consovoy must have thought so too, because he led off his rebuttal by driving the point home.

The panel consisted of Chief Judge Jeffrey Howard (appointed by Bush 43), Judge Juan Torruella (appointed by Reagan), and Judge Sandra Lynch (appointed by Clinton). Lynch is a liberal who advocated for Harvard throughout the proceeding. Torruella, age 87, asked no questions of substance. Hes a left of center judge and a probable vote for Harvard.

Chief Judge Howard is right of center. He did not tip his hand during oral argument. However, his question about racial yield offers some hope that he will dissent from what I expect to be a decision affirming the district courts ruling in favor of Harvard.

A well-reasoned dissent might be helpful in the quest to have this case heard by the Supreme Court, where it belongs.
The Indian film industry has often been associated with the Mumbai-based studios or film cities. However, numerous other studios outside the Maximum City have become popular in recent years, and another such venture could be set up in Noida. As Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced plans for the biggest film city in the city, Kangana Ranaut gave her thumbs up to the initiative.

READ: BMC Terms Kangana Ranaut's Plea For Rs 2 Crore Damages Over Property Demolition As 'bogus'

Yogi Adityanaths biggest film city plan backed by Kangana

Kangana Ranaut took to Twitter to express her support to UP CMs latest initiative. The actor applauded the move and highlighted the need for many reforms.

She wrote that one of them was that the industry needed to be one big film industry as right now it was being divided on many factors. The Queen star also stated that Hindi film industry being synonymous to Indian film industry was wrong. She gave the example of the rise of Telugu cinema and how even Hindi films were now being shot at the Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad. Kangana also shared that Indian film industry becoming one industry, many film cities was one of the aspects that had made it different from Hollywood, in terms of their success.

Peoples perception that top film industry in India is Hindi film Industry is wrong. Telugu film industry has ascended itself to the top position and now catering films to pan India in multiple languages, many hindi films being shot in Ramoji Hydrabad 1/2 https://t.co/zB6wkJg1zX  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) September 19, 2020

I applaud this announcement by @myogiadityanath ji.We need many reforms in the film industry first of all we need one big film industry called Indian film industry we are divided based on many factors, Hollywood films get advantage of this. One industry but many Film Cities 2/2  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) September 19, 2020

READ:Kangana Ranaut Poses For 'sun-kissed' Selfie Amid Mountains, Netizens Hail 'real Queen'

Yogi Adityanath announces plans for biggest film city

As per a report in PTI, the UP government is planning the initiative in the states Gautam Buddh Nagar.

"The CM, while addressing a review meeting, announced to set up the biggest and most beautiful film city of the country in Gautam Buddh Nagar. He instructed officials to search for a suitable land in or around Noida, Greater Noida or Yamuna Expressway and prepare an action plan," an official statement said.

READ:Kangana Ranaut 'not Ladaku; I Never Start A Fight, Will Quit Twitter If Proved Otherwise'

READ:Kangana Slams MVA Govt Over Privilege Motion Against Arnab Goswami, Seeks President's Rule
More than half of teachers feel ill-equipped to teach keyboarding skills and many students do not get a chance to practise typing regularly, prompting concerns about the fairness of moving NAPLAN writing tests online.

A survey of 4000 teachers as part of a NSW Education Standards Authority review of how writing is taught in NSW found 63 per cent of high school teachers and 44 per cent of primary teachers were not prepared to teach keyboarding.

Keyboarding skills will become increasingly important as the national standardised tests, NAPLAN, move online, yet teachers do not feel equipped to teach those skills.

Only one in 10 teachers explicitly taught keyboarding skills regularly or during most lessons, while a review of 13 teaching degrees found seven of them did not deal with teaching keyboard and word processing skills.

"There is minimal engagement of teachers in years 7 to 10 and 11-12 in explicitly teaching keyboarding," the report said. "Teachers need greater support and access to professional development to ensure greater confidence to teach these skills."
Parents hand off their young children at the gate of Copper View Elementary, the students playful cloth masks snugly in place.

A tub of hand sanitizer and a box of disposable masks mark the threshold beyond where only students and school workers can cross, limiting the number of people on campus to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

Were excited to have real live kids, says Copper View Principal Desi Raulston, from behind her Star Wars mask.

The first district in Pima County to start hybrid learning, with the elementary grades, the Sahuarita School District welcomed half of kindergarten through fifth grade, who opted to come in person, on Thursday, Sept. 17.

Hybrid learning is a method that splits classes into staggered days on campus to allow for smaller cohorts of students and social distancing to mitigate spread of the coronavirus.

The 165 kindergarten through fifth graders attended in-person classes at Copper View on Thursday and Friday. On Monday and Tuesday, another 165 kids will experience their first day back to school since March, when schools closed because of the pandemic, which has since ravaged the state, killing nearly 5,500 Arizonans, 10 of whom were under 20 years old, according to state data.

About 110 Copper View students opted to continue remote-learning completely from home.

Throughout the district, 72% of K-5 students will attend hybrid school  more than 1,600 children. Sahuarita middle and high schoolers are expected to return in the coming weeks.
Here are todays top news, analysis and opinion. Know all about the latest news and other news updates from Hindustan Times.

Home to illegal bomb-making: Dhankhar lashes out at Bengal govt after Murshidabad NIA arrests

West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday said that the state has become a home of illegal bomb-making and lashed out at the law enforcement agencies for the decline in law and order in the state. Read more

China wants 50 PLA soldiers to stay back at Pangong Tso bank. India says no: 10 Points

The proposed change of status of Gilgit-Baltistan by Pakistan and the aggression by the Peoples Liberation Army in Ladakh are part of Beijings grand plan to secure and expand the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Read more

Journalist spying case: Delhi Police makes 2 more arrests, including Chinese woman

Police have registered a case under the Official Secrets Act against Rajeev Sharma and the Chinese and Nepalese nationals have been arrested under the same charges. Read more

IPL 2020: Are there any doubts?: Sachin Tendulkar names his favourite to win the Indian Premier League

IPL 2020: It may be a difficult choice for may but Sachin Tendulkar had no hesitation in naming his favourites for 13th edition of Indian Premier League. Read more

Apple iPhone 12 may cost you more than what was rumoured before, heres why

The increased price of the 5G supporting iPhone is said to happen due to an increased Bill of Material (BOM) cost. Read more

Kissing Booth 2 star Taylor Zakhar Perez latest fitness post is all about forest bathing, flaunting chiseled body

Kissing Booth 2 star Taylor Zakhar Perezs forest bathing sends the Internet into a meltdown. His cold plunges in the stream and invigorating nature therapy are all the motivation you need to get back on track. Read more

Ranveer Singh was Anurag Kashyaps choice for Bombay Velvet: Studio wouldnt give me money if I made the film with him

Anurag Kashyap has revealed that he rejected Ranveer Singh twice in the early days of his career. Ranveer had auditioned for Shaitaan and was even considered for Bombay Velvet. However, he claims that the studios said theyd pull out of the latter project if Ranveer was the lead. Read more

Watch | Does Delhi have Covid community spread? State health minister comments

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SHOTLIST CALAIS, PAS-DE-CALAIS, FRANKREICH26. AUGUST 2020QUELLE: AFPTV 1. Halbnahe Johnny Lapotre, captain of the boat Le Battant II in his cabin at the exit of the port2. Halbnahe fishermen on boat3. Totale fisherman lighting three cigarettes at the same time4. Halbnahe Johnny in radio communication with CROSS:Cross: Do you have a description to give us, color of the ship? If people have life jackets?Jonny: It's a black zodiac with a small engine, there are 6, 7 on board. No they don't look like they have life jackets. Cross : They are on their way with the engine?Jonny : Yes, that's right, on the engine.Cross: Do you see any distress on board?Jonny: No, no they are idling.Cross: Okay very well, the boat seems to be holding up.Johnny: Yes, yes, it's moving.5. Nah boat in the open sea seen from captain's cabin6. Totale boat in the open sea 7. O-TON 1 - Johnny Lapotre, Captain of Battant II fishing boat (Mann, French, 10 Sek.): "We get as close to them as possible, we count how many people there are on board, if they have a vest, if they are not sinking, everything for their safety." "On sapproche deux au maximum, on compte combien de personnes il y a a bord, si ils ont un gilet, si ils sont pas en train de couler, tout ce qui est pour leur securite." 8. Totale boat in the open sea9. Halbnahe boat in the open sea10. Totale boat in the open sea 11. O-TON 2 - Johnny Lapotre, Captain of Battant II fishing boat (Mann, French, 13 Sek.): "There's a bit of everything in the water, everything that floats basically. They try to cross with anything, with small inflatable pools, with jerry cans, inflatable unicorns ... Everything ... They do anything and everything to get through. " "Il y a un peu de tout qui traine dans leau, tout ce qui flotte quoi. Ils essaient de traverser avec nimporte quoi, avec des petites piscines gonflables, avec des bidons, des licornes  Tout Ils font tout et nimporte quoi pour passer. " 12. Zwischenschnitt: Halbnahe boat in open sea 13. Halbnahe fishermen's captain looking for a migrant boat that has been spotted by CROSS14. Totale boat in the open sea15. Halbnahe sunris from captain's cabin
In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency's correspondent in Jakarta, Mann said New Zealand adheres commitment to the international rules-based order and multilateral institutions to deal with transbourndary challenges, said Mann, who leads the Asia Pacific Regional Integration Division under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of New Zealand.



Vietnams priority of advancing a Cohesive and Responsive ASEAN is most appropriate given the current challenges posed by COVID-19 in particular, she stressed, adding that New Zealand looks forward to continuing its close cooperation with ASEAN to advance the regions recovery from the pandemic, and to support long-term peace, prosperity and stability.



Alison Mann, New Zealand's Senior Official for APEC, East Asia Summit, ASEAN Regional Forum and SEAN.(Photo: New Zealand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade)



The central challenge ASEAN and New Zealand are all facing at this time is how to navigate through the COVID-19 crisis and build a more resilient region, one that is better able to withstand future shocks, she noted.



The official went on to say that New Zealand has been active in the region on restoring supply chains and keeping markets open to trade, and the country has encouraged its partners to resist calls for protectionism, which may seem sensible in the face of the economic challenge in many regional countries, but which history has demonstrated undermines growth and prosperity.



According to Mann, New Zealand views the East Asia Summit (EAS) as the preeminent regional political-security dialogue in the Indo-Pacific, and the country welcomes the opportunity it provides to discuss the most pressing strategic issues facing our region, from political and security matters, to economic and trade ones, through to issues of climate change and environmental security.



At the ASEAN-New Zealand Ministerial Meeting within the framework of the 53rd ASEAN Ministerial Meeting (AMM 53) and related meetings, New Zealand emphasised the need for fair and equitable access to vaccines, to maintaining supply chains and restoring connectivity, and working together to advance regional economic recovery, she said.

New Zealand finds the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) provides it with opportunities for practical cooperation on security challenges across the Indo-Pacific, especially those that require transboundary action if they are to find solutions.



For New Zealand, priorities include counter-terrorism and fighting trans-national crime, cyber security, preventive diplomacy, maritime security and a host of other issues that threaten to undermine peace and stiblity across the Indo-Pacific, she stated.



The official said New Zealands long-standing support for ASEAN centrality stems from its belief that these ASEAN-centric meetings and forums play an important role in building confidence and trust, promoting understanding, and fostering practical cooperation, contributing to building and maintaining the conditions for peace and prosperity across the Indo-Pacific.



As always, for New Zealand, the countrys engagement with ASEAN is built on a foundation of reliability and honesty as a close friend, respect for ASEANs sovereignty and independence, and a desire to deepen two-way cooperation, she said.



New Zealand and ASEANs strong relationship is reflected by many linkages, she added.



The most recent data shows that more than 10 percent of New Zealand residents born overseas came from ASEAN member states. Last year, 7,555 international tertiary students in New Zealand came from across ASEAN, the latest in a long line of students going back many decades.

The trade and economic relationship between the two sides has been flourishing as well. In 2019, two-way trade between New Zealand and ASEAN was just under 20 billion NZD. New Zealand is providing 225 million NZD to ASEAN through its Overseas Development Assistance programmes in 2020-2023.

Later this year, when the two sides celebrate their 45th anniversary of partnership, New Zealand expects to announce new programmes that build on our traditional areas of focus but also expand into newer areas such as climate change and sustainabilility, she added./.
Universities overseas are chartering flights for thousands of Chinese international students to return to their studies, leaving Australia racing to keep up with its top competitors, Britain, the US and Canada, in its third biggest export industry.

As Australian universities endured a horror-week of staff layoffs as border closures continued to cripple their budgets, China's Ministry of Education has also begun plans to recognise degrees partially completed at overseas universities in its own institutions, eliminating the need for some international students to return to Australia.

More than 20 universities in the UK have joined together to charter flights for Chinese students to Britain. Credit:AP

The Ministry on Thursday told Chinese state media it would allow universities to accept students studying abroad to study in domestic universities "on the premise of ensuring education equity" while recognising foreign qualifications for partially completed degrees at local institutions.

More than 20 universities in the United Kingdom have joined together to charter flights for Chinese students to Britain. The UK had earlier declared it would treat Chinese students the same as those from the European Union for visa purposes. The flights through Hainan Airlines will ferry students from Chongqing to Manchester in time for the start of semester at the end of September.
A former Myer model has been charged with trafficking drugs after Indonesian police allegedly found cannabis in the bathroom of his Bali villa.

Jed Texas, who has also graced the cover of Men's Health Magazine and partied with Kate Moss, was represented by Sydney agents Chic Management until Friday.

Texas, who is British but relocated to Australia, is accused of having 85.15g of the drug hidden in plastic bags in his ensuite toilet, according to Newscorp.

London born Jed Texas (pictured), who has also graced the cover of Men's Health Magazine and partied with Kate Moss, was represented by Sydney agents Chic Management until Friday

Texas, who changed his name from Higgins, first appeared as a teenager in gay magazine 'Attitude' which led to him being signed by Elite Management.

He completed a number of international assignments in the fashion capitals of Paris, Milan and New York.

He also worked for Tom Ford and Burberry in their campaigns and appeared in Vogue and GQ magazines.

The 30-year-old relocated to Australia in 2015 after working for top fashion label Vivienne Westwood in London.

He tried his hand at social media blogging with a page called Models Taste in which he reviewed restaurants.

Bali police raided the model's beachside villa in April where they allegedly found the drugs, though a subsequent body search and urine test both turned up nothing.

He has been in the island's notorious Kerobokan jail charged with possession and trafficking narcotics since his arrest.

Indonesia's strict drug laws carry a maximum sentence of 12 years for possession and 20 years for trafficking while $1.6million in fines could also be imposed if Texas is found guilty.
Cracks in Victoria' healthcare system were exposed again last week after a 32-year-old man in the grips of a mental health episode presented at Northern Hospital's emergency department in Epping and waited more than 19 hours to be admitted. Footage shows a Victoria Police officer allegedly stomping on the man's head. Credit:Jake Edwards At 4pm last Sunday, while he was still waiting for treatment, the glass doors at the hospital were smashed by the man and police were called. Disturbing video footage shows the man being allegedly hit by a police car before his head was stomped on by an officer. The family of the man, who was put in an induced coma, later revealed he had bipolar disorder. Victoria's anti-corruption watchdog is probing the conduct of two police officers. One senior police officer has been stood down over the incident. Two days later a man also suffering mental health issues was shot by police in Lilydale after he was found roaming a shopping centre carpark with a large knife.

The man is recovering in hospital and there is no suggestion police acted inappropriately. When youve got acute mania or acute psychosis you just cant wait 24 hours for treatment," Psychiatrist and former Australian of the Year Patrick McGorry said. If that was happening with chest pain, cancer or even coronavirus, there would be an absolute outcry. You get a better response these days with a runny nose than an acute medical episode." Professor McGorry said emergency departments were "the worst place for people to be seeking help because they were not set-up for mental health care," but it was one the only places people could get help at the moment. Loading

Describing the incident in Epping as "deeply distressing and completely unacceptable," Professor McGorry called for the fast-tracking of findings of the Royal Commission into Victoria's Mental Health System. "We just cant wait for another six months for real action because it means we are more likely to have preventable suicides," he said. "We already know that people have been turned away from services and then they die." Dr Senz believes the incident in Epping could have occurred at any hospital. "It is the system's problem, it is not an individual hospitals problem, Dr Senz said. We provide the best care we can. But [we] feel powerless to be able to fix it, because we cant create a bed and we can't create more staff.

She suspects people were not only delaying medical care due to the pandemic, but they had also lost critical social and community support due to harsh isolation measures aimed at curbing spread of the coronavirus. "Sunshine Hospital had several multi-day stays recently and thats just awful," she said. "It is very distressing for the patient and for the staff caring for them. It makes us feel like we are not doing a good job for these patients." Health and Community Services Union state secretary Paul Healey said healthcare workers were working overtime to treat the rising wave of patients with complex mental health issues. "There is just not the beds or the staff to support people," said Mr Healey, who was worked in mental health services for 26 years. "All these cracks in the systems were there before the pandemic, but COVID has just made everything worse. It has stretched the elastic band even further."

Mr Healey said police should not be the first responders to incidents involving mental illness over trained health professionals, but he noted there were currently about 450 mental health nurse job vacancies in Victoria. Police are attending mental health incidents every 10 minutes in Victoria. In the first surge of COVID-19 infections in March and April, patient numbers in hospital emergency departments plummeted to a record low as people delayed treatment amid fears they would burden the healthcare system or be exposed to the virus. While overall emergency presentations have remained low, mental health cases have soared in the second surge of infections as Victorians weather stage-four restrictions. Victorian faculty chair of the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine, Dr Mya Cubitt, said the state's mental health system was already at crisis point before the pandemic.

"In Victoria, there are clear signs that these numbers are increasing," Dr Cubitt said. "The pandemic has further reduced the systems capacity to manage these issues. We need some urgent solutions, to provide help to those who need care now. " A state government spokeswoman said almost $200 million had been invested in mental health support in response to the pandemic. Reforms recommended by the mental health royal commission, including the roll-out of 144 new acute mental health beds, had also being fast-tracked. "We are continually increasing the number of clinical staff we have available to help support additional demand in our hospitals as a result of the coronavirus pandemic," she said. The government has also invested more than $14 million in outreach programs for high-risk patients and more than $4 million in suicide prevention, including a statewide Hospital Outreach Post-Suicide Engagement program, established at seven sites across the state. If you are troubled by this report or experiencing a personal crisis, you can call Lifeline 131 114 or Beyond Blue 1300 224 636 or visit lifeline.org.au or beyondblue.com.au
Hundreds Gather at Supreme Court to Mourn Ginsburgs Death

Trump orders flags to be flown at half-staff

Several hundred people gathered on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court late Friday to mark the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, packing the steps of the high court as well as the street across from the U.S. Capitol in a nighttime memorial as they sang and held a candlelight vigil.

People left bouquets of flowers, small U.S. flags, prayer candles, and handwritten messages for Ginsburg on the Supreme Courts steps. The justice, 87, died late Friday due to complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, the court said. She served 27 years on the court.

RBG inspired so many young women to follow their dreams and set their sights on things that so many people deemed impossible. And she made them possible, Claire Shelby, 19, told Reuters. I think that everyone out here tonight is here tonight to honor her memory and make sure she is not tarnished in history.

People gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

People gather at the Supreme Court in Washington on Sept. 18, 2020. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo)

Several times, dozens in the crowd broke out into song, singing Amazing Grace and This Land is Your Land. At one point, the crowd broke into applauselasting for about a minutefor Ginsburg.

Thank you RBG, one sign read. On the sidewalk, RBG was drawn inside a pink chalk heart.

Jennifer Berger, 37, told The Associated Press, I think it is important for us to recognize such a trailblazer, adding, It is amazing to see how many people are feeling this loss tonight and saying goodbye.

The national flag flies at half staff as people gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

The national flag flies at half staff as people gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

In New York, an image of Ginsburg and the alternating messages thank you and rest in power were projected on the front of the New York State Civil Supreme Court building in Manhattan.

An image of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Ruth Bader Ginsburg is projected onto the New York State Civil Supreme Court building in Manhattan, New York City, after she passed away Sept. 18, 2020. (Andrew Kelly/Reuters)

Flags at Half-Staff

President Donald Trump in the early hours of Saturday issued a proclamation directing that all flags at the White House and public buildings and grounds, and military facilities, be flown at half-staff until Ginsburg is interred. Trump also directed that the flags be flown at half-staff at all U.S. embassies and other facilities abroad.

The American flag blows in the wind after it was lowered to half-staff in Washington after the Supreme Court announced that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died, on Sept. 18, 2020. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Today, our nation mourns the loss of a trailblazer, not only in the field of law, but in the history of our country, Trump said in the proclamation, adding that she was an inspiration to all Americans.

Renowned for her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg epitomized powerful yet respectful argument; that you can disagree with someone without being disagreeable to them, the proclamation read.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg takes the court oath from Chief Justice William Rehnquist (R), as Ginsburgs husband Martin holds the Bible and President Bill Clinton watches (L), during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington on Aug. 10, 1993. (Marcy Nighswander, File/AP Photo)

Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in her chambers at the Supreme Court in Washington on July 31, 2014. (Cliff Owen/AP Photo)

Justice Ginsburgs work helped bring about greater equality for women, secure rights for the disabled, and will continue to influence our nation for generations to come, the proclamation continued. In addition to her quick mind, she brought flair to the bench with her stylish jabots and her warm friendships among colleagues, even those with whom she often disagreed, most notably with the late Justice Antonin Scalia.

Her commitment to the law and her fearlessness in the face of death inspired countless RBG fans, and she continues to serve as a role model to countless women lawyers. Her legacy and contribution to American history will never be forgotten, read the proclamation.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Friday said the Senate would be allowed to vote on a replacement nominated by Trump. The court now has five justices nominated by Republican presidents, and three nominated by Democratic presidents.

Trump in early September announced a list of additional potential Supreme Court nominees in case a vacancy opened up.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Around 200 irreplaceable books worth more than 2.5 million have been found buried under a house in Romania, more than three years after they were stolen from a warehouse in London.

The books, which include works by Galileo and Sir Isaac Newton, were taken during the burglary in Feltham, west London, in January 2017, according to the Metropolitan Police.

Thieves broke in by cutting holes in the roof and avoided sensors by abseiling down into the warehouse, where the books were being stored ahead of being sent to Las Vegas for a specialist book auction.

Priceless historical antiques included first editions of Galileo Galilei and Isaac Newton from the XVI and XVII century .  The books were reported stolen from a warehouse in the UK in 2017 and were uncovered buried underground in Romania: https://t.co/yXMHtIkDQV  pic.twitter.com/AMQDo6My97  Europol (@Europol) September 18, 2020

Officers recovered the items on Wednesday following the underground search of a house in Neamt, in north-east Romania.

An investigation identified the suspects as part of a Romanian organised crime group, responsible for high-value warehouse burglaries across the UK.

The group has been linked to another 11 offences in London where a further 2 million worth of goods have been stolen, using the same method of entering the property through a roof.

As part of an international operation, officers from Scotland Yard have been working alongside officers from the Romanian National Police and Italian Carabinieri, supported by Europol and Eurojust.

Some 45 addresses have been raided across the UK, Romania and Italy.

The Metropolitan Police said 13 individuals were charged in the UK with conspiring to commit burglaries between December 2016 and April 2019, and to acquire criminal property.

Expand Close Criminal Investigations Chief Commissioner Emil Tudor of the Romanian Police (Vadim Ghirda/AP) AP / Facebook

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Some 12 of those have pleaded guilty and will be sentenced later this month, while the 13th defendant will be tried in March, the force added.

Detective inspector Andy Durham, from Specialist Crime South, said: This recovery is a perfect end to this operation and is a demonstration of successful joint working between the Met and our European law enforcement partners in Romania and Italy  and at Europol and Eurojust.

These books are extremely valuable, but more importantly they are irreplaceable and are of great importance to international cultural heritage.

If it wasnt for the hard work of detective constable David Ward and others in this Joint Investigation Team these books would have been sadly lost to the world forever.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death at 87 sets in motion a monumental political fight in the final weeks before the elections  amid her dying wish that President Donald Trump not nominate her successor.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell left no doubt Friday night that Trump would act  but did not say when. 'President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate,' McConnell said.

News of Ginsburg's death broke Friday night while Trump, who she has sparred with publicly and ruled against repeatedly, was in the midst of a typical campaign rally where he blasted immigration from Somalia, attacked Joe Biden, and heralded the National Guard imposing order on Minneapolis.

As tributes for Ginsburg, a stalwart member of the court's left wing, rolled in, it soon became evident she had not held back views of what the future might hold for her seat, dictatating a message to her granddaughter Clara Spera in her dying days.

'My most fervent wish is that I I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.,' she said.

'My most fervent wish is that I I will not be replaced until a new president is installed,' said Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in a statement dictated days before her death

Democrats are still steaming over how McConnell killed the Merrick Garland nomination

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer quoted Mitch McConnell word-for-word from 2016

It is a wish that Ginsburg and other liberals can't control. The key decision maker is McConnell, who held up President Barack Obama's high court nominee for nearly a year before the 2016 election.

Obama's nominee, Judge Merrick Garland, never got a hearing after Obama nominated him following the death of Judge Antonin Scalia. It is Trump who filled the seat.

Republicans have changed the rules on filibusters for Supreme Court Justices, and McConnell has changed his line with his own party in control of the White House. 'Oh, we'd fill it,' he said when asked about the hypothetical.

McConnell's Friday statement referenced the GOP keeping its majority, which was 52-48 heading into 2018, a number they increased by one, with a slate of Democrats running in tough territory.

Democrats are still steaming over how McConnell killed the Merrick Garland nomination

President Trump has already put two justices on the Supreme Court

'In the last midterm election before Justice Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year,' he said.

'By contrast, Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise. President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate,' he said.

Republicans, who hold a 53-vote majority in the Senate can try to schedule a hearing on a nominee and push through a vote before the elections, or during a 'lame duck' session immediately afterward. The vacancy is certain to put the squeeze on some Senate Republicans in tight races, including Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine.

Other Senate Republicans in tight races include Thom Tillis in North Carolina, Martha McSally in Arizona, and Cory Gardner in Colorado. All have been down in the polls.

The president has already appointed two members of the Supreme Court, Justices Neil M. Gorsuch and Brett M. Kavanaugh, in moves that pushes the court increasingly to the right and maintained its 5-4 conservative majority.

After suffering a handful of high-profile defeats this summer, Trump has complained about Chief Justice John Roberts. He has spoken about the importance of court in the upcoming elections, and recently released a list of conservative nominees he says he will draw from.

White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows issued a statement mourning the loss of Ginsburg, without delving into the high-stakes tactics ahead.

'Joining the whole nation tonight in mourning the loss of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburga trailblazer, a dedicated public servant, and an inspiration to so many. My prayers are with her family and friends,' he said.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87, was a reliable vote for the left wing of the court

President Donald Trump has already installed two justices on the high court

Trump talked up Texas Sen. Ted Cruz as a potential nominee presumably before he knew of Ginsburg's death

He sometimes says the next president could appoint one, two, three or even four justices to the court.

The vacancy is certain to add even more urgency to the already hard-fought election.

Republicans credit the political heat over the Scalia seat with helping drive turnout and enthusiasm among base supporters who gave Donald Trump an edge.

President Trump spoke about his court nominees minutes after the news of Ginsburg's death.

'We have about 45 unbelievable people.,' he said. The

Conservative they believe in the Constitution, okay,' he said.

'I have to have somebody that we can make sure we get approved,' Trump said. Then he spoke about Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who was on the list Trump released.

'The only one I can think of is Ted, because he's going to get 50 Republican votes and 50 Democrat votes, they'll do anything to get him out of the Senate,' he said.

'The next president will get one, two, three or four Supreme Court justices. I had two,' Trump said in a 90-minute monologue while the political world went into overdrive with news of Ginsburg's death.

A member of the crowd  with the information buzzing around the internet  shouted out 'Ginsburg is dead!'

The president continued without mention. 'The next one will have anywhere from one to four,' he said.

It wasn't until moments before he boarded Air Force One that the president commented on the bombshell, with a statement that included the hard-to-believe notion that no one had broken the news to him after concluding his remarks.

'She just died? Wow. I didn't know that,' said Trump.'You're telling me now for the first time. She led an amazing life, what else can you say?"

'Whether you agree or not who was an amazing woman who led an amazing life,' said Trump. 'I'm actually said to hear that. I am saddened to hear that,' he said.

Many Democrats have never forgiven McConnell, who has a reputation as an institutionalist, for killing the Garland nomination.

'The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president,' McConnell said explaining the hold-up, in a comment former Obama communications director Dan Pfieffer tweeted Friday night.

Senate Minority Leader Sen. Charles Schumer tweeted his own statement Friday night that quoted McConnell word-for-word but did not mention his name. 'The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president,' said Schumer.

A range of senators may be faced with having to explain past comments from related situations. Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Trump loyalist who nevertheless has previously backed some Democratic Supreme Court picks, was direct defending the delay of the Garland nomination. He said in 2018 he would apply the same principle under Trump.

'If an opening comes in the last year of President Trump's term, and the primary process has started, we'll wait to the next election,' Graham said.

Graham, the Senate Judiciary chairman, is up for reelection in a Republican-leaning state, but a recent poll had him tied against Democrat Jamie Harrison. McConnell is also up for reelection in conservative Kentucky.

Former Watergate figure John Dean, a strong Trump critic, called for Democrats to immediately turn to pressure tactics to avoid getting steamrolled. Under parliamentary changes Republicans pushed through, the minority can't filibuster a Supreme Court nominee. (Democrats pushed through a similar change for lower court nominations).

'.@JoeBiden must announce that if the GOP rushes to pack the Court, the Dems will expand the SCOTUS to 11 justices, and expand the lower federal courts by 70 to 100 new judgeships, which have long been needed. In short, he will depoliticize the federal judiciary!' Dean wrote.

GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska told Alaska Public Media hours before Ginsburg's death that she wouldn't vote to confirm a Supreme Court Justice until after Election Day.

Cruz told Fox News Friday night: 'I believe that the president should next week nominate a successor to the court, and I think it is critical that the Senate takes up and confirms that successor before Election Day.'
Ruth Bader Ginsburg's dedication to the law was perhaps best illustrated by the fact that she always kept a "pocket Constitution" in her handbag.

Notable Supreme Court rulings by Ginsburg, who died Friday night at age 87, included:

The 1996 landmark United States v. Virginia, in which she wrote the majority opinion striking down Virginia Military Institute's traditional male-only admission policy. The 7-1 ruling said VMI violated the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause. "Women seeking and fit for a VMI quality education cannot be offered anything less, under the State's obligation to afford them genuinely equal protection," Ginsburg wrote.

The 1997 ruling in United States v. O'Hagan, in which she wrote that "a person who trades in securities for personal profit, using confidential information misappropriated in breach of a fiduciary duty to the source of the information" can be found guilty of violating Securities and Exchange Commission rules.

The 1999 Olmstead v. L.C. decision, in which she said states under the Americans for Disabilities Act "are required to place persons with mental disabilities in community settings rather than in institutions when the State's treatment professionals have determined that community placement is appropriate, the transfer from institutional care to a less restrictive setting is not opposed by the affected individual, and the placement can be reasonably accommodated, taking into account the resources available to the State and the needs of others with mental disabilities."

In the 2000 Friends of the Earth v. Laidlaw Environmental Services ruling, Ginsburg's majority opinion said residents in the area of the North Tyger River in South Carolina had standing to sue Laidlaw based on the argument that its pollution prevented them from using the waterway for recreation.

During her convalescence from lung surgery, she wrote the 2019 ruling in Timbs v. Indiana that the Eighth Amendment's ban on excessive fines applies to states and local governments, not just federal government. At issue was the confiscation of a $42,000 Land Rover from an Indiana man who pleaded guilty to selling $225 of heroin to undercover police officers. "For good reason, the protection against excessive fines has been a constant shield throughout Anglo-American history: Exorbitant tolls undermine other constitutional liberties," Ginsburg wrote in the 9-0 ruling. "Excessive fines can be used, for example, to retaliate against or chill the speech of political enemies."

Some of her most memorable opinions were dissents. Among them:

Gonzales v. Carhart, in which the court in 2007 upheld Congress' Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003. Opponents of the ban contended that the procedure, also known as "intact dilation and extraction," was the safest way to avoid damaging a woman's uterus when ending a late-term pregnancy. It was the first time the court had banned a specific abortion method and the first time it did not include an exception for the woman's health, according to The Washington Post.

Writing for the majority in the 5-4 decision, Justice Anthony Kennedy said Congress may regulate an area where doctors have not reached a consensus about the necessity of the procedure in protecting the woman's health. "Respondents have not demonstrated that the Act, as a facial matter, is void for vagueness, or that it imposes an undue burden on a woman's right to abortion based on its overbreadth or lack of a health exception," he wrote.

In her dissent, Ginsburg wrote that the majority ruling "tolerates, indeed applauds, federal intervention to ban nationwide a procedure found necessary and proper in certain cases by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists."

"In candor, the Act, and the Court's defense of it, cannot be understood as anything other than an effort to chip away at a right declared again and again by this Court  and with increasing comprehension of its centrality to women's lives."

She added: "The court deprives women of the right to make an autonomous choice, even at the expense of their safety. This way of thinking reflects ancient notions about women's place in the family and under the Constitution  ideas that have long since been discredited."

She also was among the four-justice minority in the 2007 Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., and she took the rare step of reading her dissent from the bench. The majority ruled against Lilly Ledbetter in her claim of unequal pay because of her sex. As an area manager, Ledbetter was paid $3,727 per month compared with $4,286 for the lowest paid male counterpart.

The majority on the court did not rule on the merits of Ledbetter's claim made under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The five justices rejected it on grounds that it was filed too long from the time the original decision was made about her pay.

Citing the often secret nature of salary levels, Ginsburg said: "In our view, the court does not comprehend, or is indifferent to, the insidious way in which women can be victims of pay discrimination."

"The ball is in Congress' court ... to correct this Court's parsimonious reading of Title VII," she wrote.

Two years later, Congress took such action, passing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which said each discriminatory paycheck resets the 180-day limit to file a claim. It was the first law signed by President Barack Obama. Ginsburg kept a framed copy of the 2009 law on a wall in her chambers.

In the 2014 Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores case, the court for the first time recognized a for-profit corporation's claim of religious belief. The store chain, owned by the Evangelical Green family, challenged an Affordable Care Act mandate that employers cover the cost of certain contraceptives for their female employees. In a 5-4 ruling, the high court ruled that the mandate violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

In her dissent, Ginsburg said: "Until this litigation, no decision of this Court recognized a for-profit corporation's qualification for a religious exemption from a generally applicable law, whether under the Free Exercise Clause or RFRA. The absence of such precedent is just what one would expect, for the exercise of religion is characteristic of natural persons, not artificial legal entities. ... Approving some religious claims while deeming others unworthy of accommodation could be 'perceived as favoring one religion over another,' the very 'risk the Establishment Clause was designed to preclude.' The Court, I fear, has ventured into a minefield."

In another minefield, the outcome of the 2000 presidential election between Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Al Gore was thrust into the court's domain following the chaotic results in Florida. By one vote, 5-4, the Supreme Court abruptly stopped a vote recount ordered by the Florida Supreme Court.

In her dissent, Ginsburg criticized the majority's willingness to interpret Florida law.

''The extraordinary setting of this case has obscured the ordinary principle that dictates its proper resolution: federal courts defer to state high courts' interpretations of their state's own law. This principle reflects the core of federalism, on which all agree," she wrote. ''Were the other members of this court as mindful as they generally are of our system of dual sovereignty, they would affirm the judgment of the Florida Supreme Court.''

The other dissenters, Justices John Paul Stevens, David Souter and Stephen Breyer, said they had voted against the majority ''respectfully,'' but Ginsburg singed off by saying only: ''I dissent.''

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The decline in demand and supplies has badly affected many traditional crafts. Woodcarving in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh is one of them. Artisans and traders in Saharanpur tussle to make ends meet. TwoCircles.net correspondent Musheera Ashraf documents their struggle.

By Musheera Ashraf, TwoCircles.net

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Saharanpur: Saharanpur is internationally famous for its woodwork and carving factories. These large and small units support the livelihood of more than two lakh workers, including craftsmen, labourers and suppliers. The two-month COVID-19 lockdown that entailed all establishments selling or producing non-essential items be shut, has greatly impacted its 400-year-old wood carving industry. Although the restrictions are being lifted over the past month, things are not the same. Craftsmen, labour class and suppliers are in debt and are struggling to earn their livelihood.

Woodcraft work in Saharanpur is spread all over the city. Khata Kheri being the main hub of manufacturers is known as a wooden city. Apart from Khata Kheri, the woodwork traders and artisans have their units at Habibagarh and Pul Kambohan.

With the dust from wood cutting surrounding him, Irshad sits in his small shop at Pul Kambohan turning rectangular wood planks into round table supports.

It has been 6 days since Irshad returned to work. Before the lockdown, he had gone to visit his sister in New Delhi and while he was there a nation-wide COVID-19 lockdown was enforced to prevent its spread. With all transport shut, this forced him to stay in New Delhi for 4 months.

I knew there is no work back at home, so I preferred to stay in Delhi with my sisters family, he says, and added, Lockdown has just reflected the intentions of this government.

Irshad has no expectations from the government. Why will they help us, it is our responsibility to survive harsh times, he said.

In Delhi, I came to know how this government has taken advantage of pandemic and targeted a particular community and also small scale workers like us, he goes on.

Facing a shortage of both demand and customers, Irshad shares how his friends who were working as woodcraft workers have decided to change their profession and many of them are selling vegetables.

In the vegetable market they can make money consistently, he says. Previously, he used to get 5-6 orders every week but now he has received only 2 orders since he returned to work. Irshad believes that it will take years to come back to normal.

For Bilal, a 35-year-old carpenter the current lockdown has been extra harsh. He lost his labourer. Amid the Corona crisis, some of them chose to take up other work where they might get regular payments.

I had 6-7 workers working under me, but now I have to work myself with my labour, says Bilal. Bilal has started working by himself to meet up the shortage of labour and also because he will not have to pay for workers if he hires them.

They have to fill their stomach and fulfil their needs. They have their priorities, he said.

The work was shut down for two and a half months and many people have suffered due to the lockdown. No one was ready to face these harsh times, so the effect has been more intense. The woodcarving industry in Saharanpur has grown rapidly since the countrys Independence and is not confined to national borders.

The number of orders the woodcarvers get every month have declined. Bilal gets orders from all over the country including Delhi, Mysore, Karnataka, Nagaland and Hyderabad. Recalling the difference in work before the coronavirus pandemic, he says, whatever we are earning is minimum of whatever we can get, adding, This is one of the worst times that small businesses are facing in India.

From daily wage labourers of the industry to those exporting these wooden products, all stakeholders are facing the common issue of decreasing demand and lowering profits. They hardly get any orders.

Mohd Shakir, 40, has been working as a trader in wooden handicrafts for 20 years. My father and grandfather were manufacturers of the unique craft of Saharanpur, he says with pride.

According to Shakir, the wooden handicraft industry has witnessed its worst time under the Modi regime. First GST, followed by demonetisation and now this coronavirus lockdown have been the worst days for the woodcraft industry, he said.

The work has reduced to just 10% of what it was before. Shakir and many other traders like him used to transport their goods in different parts of India but the situation is not the same now.

After the lockdown, the financial situation of the people is not stable so they prefer to spend their money on things that are more important to them, said Shakir.

He adds, people will spend on food and other essentials. This is the least preferred area.

Now that the unlock phase has started whatever little bit of work we have is through online orders, says Shakir while he packs a wall hanging that he has to get delivered through Amazon.

The lockdown that was imposed to curb the spread of the deadly disease has affected the economy in extreme ways. The wood industry has been one of the worst-hit. Whatever money Shakir earns these days is spent in fulfilling daily needs. He is left with no option for savings.

Handicrafts were said to have big potential. They hold the key for sustaining lakhs of artisans, but also for an increasing number of large entrants in the crafts activity.

I dont know till when I will be able to pay the money that I took as a debt under lockdown, says Rizwan, a 60-year-old wood carving artisan who has been in this profession since 40 years.

Whatever little saving he had was finished in the first month of lockdown, he says. Rizwan had to borrow an amount of Rs 50,000 to meet his family needs. Rizwan looks after his wife, two daughters and two sons. He started working as a wood carving artist in a small rented shop where he has a small collection of hand-carved mirror frames and dressing tables.

Rizwan says that while he was at home and the market was closed he took his tools and some wood to home, where he carved out some wooden roses in a hope that when the market opens he will assemble them to make a frame out of them.

Rizwans younger son is learning wood carving but Rizwan is fearful about the fate of this industry. He wants his son to learn wood carving but simultaneously he wants him to study and secure a job. This art will not go in vain. It is the skill of our ancestors that I want my son to learn, he adds.

Rizwan says, We will survive anyhow but this crisis has affected our children more severely, their studies have stopped. Rizwan has a simple Nokia phone which he says is of no help to his children to continue their studies.

Migrant labourers have witnessed stressful times in the last few months. Altaf, a 38-year-old artisan was stuck in Kerala. He used to work at a local wood handicraft workshop. But soon after the lockdown was announced he was left with no work. We were left to starve, he says.

He returned to Saharanpur with the help of one of his relatives. It has been a month since he returned. He has been working at a workshop in Habibgarh area of Saharanpur.

The coronavirus pandemic has changed his opinion. He says he will never return to Kerala and will work in Saharanpur. This work is the legacy of Saharanpur. I will reside here, work here and die here, he adds.

Though he is getting less work because of the decreased demands of the products he is determined to do this work because he finds it close to his heart. I will never give up on this, he adds.
Hundreds descended on Trafalgar Square on Saturday afternoon for a Resist And Act For Freedom rally, including some bearing 5G conspiracy placards and signs declaring Covid-19 a hoax, with police repelled by human blockades as they tried to clear the area.

One speaker at the rally, Prof Dolores Cahill of University College Dublin (UCD), expressed the view that the coronavirus vaccine will make people sick, going against mainstream scientific opinion.

UCD has previously disassociated itself from views on Covid-19 aired by Prof Cahill, who also chairs the Eurosceptic Irish Freedom Party, the Irish Times reported.





Dozens of officers, including some on horseback and in riot gear, were pushed back by crowds who chanted and cheered, with some throwing missiles.

At least one protester was seen with a bloodied head while another was seen receiving medical attention on the ground, but the London Ambulance Service did not immediately have information on any injuries.

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Officers have made 32 arrests while policing a protest in Trafalgar Square. The area has now been cleared  Metropolitan Police Events (@MetPoliceEvents) September 19, 2020

The London landmark was cleared of protesters after 5pm, and Scotland Yard said 32 people were arrested.

The force said the large crowds were putting themselves and others at risk just a day after Mayor of London Sadiq Khan warned it is increasingly likely restrictions will be needed to slow the spread of coronavirus in the capital, adding he was extremely concerned about the rate of transmission in London.

The number of cases per 100,000 people over seven days is reported to have increased in London from 18.8 to around 25.

Police said they had to take enforcement action to disperse the crowds after officers who had attempted to explain, engage and encourage them to leave were met with hostility and violence from some demonstrators.

Traffic around Trafalgar Square came to a halt during the demonstration, with one protester seen apparently spitting through the open window of a taxi whose driver had beeped the horn in frustration.

The protest was advertised with an image showing a vaccine bottle and urging people to Come together, resist and act.

Protests are exempt from new legal restrictions introduced in England on Monday limiting groups to six, but only if it is organised in compliance with Covid-19 Secure guidance, the UK government said.

Vaccines are the most effective way to prevent infectious disease and have virtually eradicated smallpox, polio and tetanus in Europe, the British health service says.

But if people stop getting vaccinated then diseases can quickly spread again, it said, pointing to a spike in measles and mumps between 2016 and 2018.

There is no evidence that vaccines cause autism, allergies or other conditions, weaken the immune system in any way, or contain harmful ingredients, it adds.

The World Health Organisation says immunisation prevents two to three million deaths per year.
FILE PHOTO: Gebran Bassil, a Lebanese politician and head of the Free Patriotic movement, talks during an interview with Reuters in Sin-el-fil

By Edmund Blair

BEIRUT (Reuters) - A party founded by Lebanon's Christian president made a proposal to end a dispute that has blocked the formation of a new cabinet and threatened a French drive to lift the country out of its worst crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.

The proposal, put forward on Saturday, involved handing major ministries to smaller sectarian groups in a country where power is shared between Muslims and Christians.

There was no immediate comment from Shi'ite Muslim groups, which have insisted they choose who fills several posts. But a political source familiar with the thinking of dominant Shi'ite groups said the idea was unlikely to work.

Lebanon's efforts to swiftly form a new government have run into the sand over how to pick ministers in a country where political loyalties mostly follow sectarian religious lines.

A Sept. 15 deadline agreed with France to name a cabinet has passed. Paris, which is leading an international push to haul Lebanon back from economic collapse, has voiced exasperation and told Beirut to act "without delay".

The leader of the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM), the party founded by President Michel Aoun and allied to Hezbollah, proposed "undertaking an experiment to distribute the so-called sovereign ministries to smaller sects, specifically to the Druze, Alawites, Armenians and Christian minorities".

The statement was issued after Gebran Bassil, FPM head and son-in-law of the president, chaired a meeting of the party's political leadership. Bassil is a Maronite, Lebanon's largest Christian community.

Prime Minister-designate Mustapha Adib, a Sunni Muslim under Lebanon's sectarian system of power sharing, wants to shake up the leadership of ministries, some of which have been controlled by the same factions for years.

Lebanon's main Shi'ite groups - the Amal Movement and the heavily armed, Iranian-backed Hezbollah - want to select the figures to fill a number of positions, including the finance minister, a top position often called a "sovereign" ministry.

Story continues

An FPM official said the party had not discussed the idea about distributing ministries with Hezbollah or Amal. "We are proposing an exit strategy for those who are stuck up a tree without a ladder," the official told Reuters.

With the nation buried under a mountain of debt and with its banks paralysed, the finance minister will play a crucial role as Lebanon seeks to restart stalled talks with the International Monetary Fund, one of the first steps on France's roadmap.

(Additional reporting by Tom Perry and Laila Bassam; Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing by Pravin Char)
TDT | Manama

Hashtag #Commit4Bahrain was the talk of the day on twitter yesterday with netizens coming out in large numbers to express solidarity. Launched by His Royal Highness Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander, and First Deputy Prime Minister, the campaign calls on all to adhere strictly to Coronavirus (COVID-19) precautionary measures for two weeks until 1 October 2020.

The move follows a decision to postpone the reopening of indoor dining services at restaurants and cafes for one month and the return of administrative, technical, and teaching staff at public schools by two weeks.

The Government executive committee, chaired by HRH Crown Prince, has called on all to show a firm commitment to wearing masks in public settings and observing social distancing measures to curb the spread of the deadly virus. The government has called on all to limit gathering to members of the same households.

The campaign, on the occasion of Bahrain celebrating the World Patient Safety Day, also highlights the huge challenges health workers are facing globally. On this occasion, Bahrain Financial Harbour lit both its towers in bright orange light, at six in the evening.

Observed annually on 17 September, the World Patient Safety Day recognizes patient safety as a global health priority and underlines the need to ensure the safety of patients while receiving care. Health top priority Commenting, Saleh Swar, a specialist nursing specialist in the Infection Control Department, confirmed that the safety of patients and health workers is a top priority for the Infection Control Department at the Salmaniya Medical Complex.

Saleh Swar explained that the department works to promote the culture of handwashing, optimal use of personal protective equipment, and continuous sterilization of hospital departments while ensuring that workers and patients are protected.

Adhere to precautionary measures Jamila Al-Salman, a consultant of infectious diseases at the Salmaniya Medical Complex and a member of the National Medical Team for Coronavirus (Covid-19), said COVID-19 is very less among health personnel due to adherence to safety measures.

In the same context; Tahira Anwar Saeed, Head of the Infection Control Department at Salmaniya Medical Complex, urged all to follow the precautionary measures to preserve the health and safety of everyone. To achieve this, he said people should adhere strictly to social distancing measures, avoid gatherings, and wear masks while in public settings.

Saeed also called on all to quarantine themselves in the event of detecting any symptoms or suspecting infection. They should then immediately call 444 and follow the instructions given to them. Taha Abbas Abdulaziz, Infection Control Coordinator for Primary Care at the Ministry of Health, said that ensuring the safety of the work environment is very important.

It is important to have proper ventilation, temperature monitoring, proper lighting, and maintain food hygiene to preserve the safety of everyone. He also stressed the importance of washing hands with soap and water, sterilizing with hand sanitizer, wearing masks, and adhering strictly to social distancing measures.
VANCOUVER, TRADITIONAL TERRITORY OF THE MUSQUEAM, SQUAMISH, AND TSLEIL-WAUTUTH, BC, Sept. 18, 2020 /CNW/ - Since the beginning of the pandemic, action has been taken at all levels to protect the most vulnerable and support those who need it most. Collective measures have been taken by women's groups, homeless shelters, and mental health organizations, and assistance with food delivery has been organized by community-based organizations across this country. This work and their leadership has been making a fundamental difference.

Today, on behalf of the Honourable Marc Miller, Minister of Indigenous Services, Patrick Weiler, Member of Parliament for West VancouverSunshine CoastSea to Sky Country, announced that 62 Indigenous organizations in British Columbia have received $6.4 million in funding through the Indigenous Community Support Fund's off-reserve and urban stream to respond to the current COVID-19 pandemic.

The Government of Canada is providing funding to Indigenous organizations in British Columbia to address the critical needs of urban Indigenous Peoples during this crisis. The funding will aid with food security, mental health support services, homelessness and emergency supplies required to ensure the health and safety of Indigenous Peoples.

The First Nations Summit Society received $75,000 in funding to support the efforts of the First Nations Public Service Secretariat (FNPSS) and its mission to strengthen and enhance capacity in First Nations communities and organizations across British Columbia, on an individual, organizational, and Nation level. FNPSS will work with Indigenous specialists to provide training within a virtual environment that will assist First Nations communities and organizations across the province in their response and recovery from COVID-19 pandemic. This will include modules on communications, community engagement, emergency planning, and other pressing areas of need.

The Hulitan Family and Community Services, received $237,095 in funding to support families and Elders navigate and apply for government support programs; access mental health supports; provide housing supports, such as moving expenses or maintenance; access healthy food deliveries; transport individuals to essential appointments or shopping needs; activity and story books, and curriculum for children ages 2-5.

As part of the Indigenous Community Support Fund, the Government of Canada is distributing a total of $90 million to Indigenous organizations and communities providing services to First Nations people off-reserve, and Indigenous Peoples living in urban areas. This funding supports essential services to the most vulnerable and help organizations and communities prevent and respond to potential COVID-19 outbreaks.

On August 12, the Government of Canada announced an additional $305 million for the Indigenous Community Support Fund. This most recent announcement brings the Indigenous Community Support Fund to $685 million in total funding. It will be distributed through a combination of allocations directly to First Nations, Inuit and Metis leadership and on a needs-based funding, which will be application driven and extend to Indigenous communities and organizations serving First Nations living off-reserve, as well as Indigenous Peoples living in urban centres. More details will follow soon.

The organizations above are amongst approximately 260 Indigenous organizations supported to date by the urban and off-reserve stream of the Indigenous Community Support Fund, to help address the critical needs of Indigenous Peoples across the country in the face of this pandemic.

Quotes

"Today's announcement is another step forward in ensuring the health and safety of Indigenous Peoples. The 62 Indigenous organizations in British Columbia who received much needed financial support will provide the necessary services and programs and address the critical needs of some of the most vulnerable during the pandemic. Their hard work and dedication is saving lives and preventing the spread of COVID-19"

The Honourable Marc Miller

Minister of Indigenous Services

"Since the beginning of the pandemic, we've seen incredible action taken by leadership at all levels to protect the most vulnerable and to take collective action to support those who need it most. Community-based organizations here in British Columbia and across the country have organized on-the-ground responses that have made a real difference. From providing food supports, to Elder and youth programs, or critical training and information sharing in a virtual environment - they've been there. We are humbled by all their work and thankful for all that they do."

Patrick Weiler

Member of Parliament for West VancouverSunshine CoastSea to Sky Country

"The First Nations Public Service Secretariat has been able to leverage its networks and strong relationships to facilitate immediate and effective communication with First Nations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their virtual and web-based training, tools, and information have been meeting the needs of First Nations individuals and administrations. They continue to actively listen to what First Nations need, and are working diligently to address these needs."

Robert Phillips, First Nations Summit Political Executive

First Nations Summit

"Our communities don't end at our reserve boundaries. FNPSS is grateful for the support of its partners and for being able to help coordinate the sharing of important information to First Nations in new and timely ways during these unprecedented times. Even seemingly small things, like making it simpler for First Nation individuals to find the information they need, or to learn best practices on communicating with our most vulnerable, including Elders, and youth, can make a huge impact on the health of our entire communities  both on and off reserve."

Jehan Casey, Director

First Nations Public Service Secretariat

"We are so very grateful for the funding provided by Indigenous Services Canada, because of their contributions Hulitan has been able to respond during a very trying and difficult time with generosity and timely support. So far, we have provided 1500 individuals a month with access to healthy food/gift cards, curriculum packages for 25 preschool aged children, traditional food and emotional support to 35 Elders, and regular transportation to 20 individuals. Hulitan will continue to provide these services until March 31, 2021. We raise our hands to all involved in ensuring these funds were made available to the community we serve. All my relations."

Kendra Gage, Executive Director

Hulitan Family and Community Services Society

Quick facts

This support is part of over $2.2 billion that has been committed in specific support to Indigenous and northern communities and organizations in response to the COVID19 pandemic.

that has been committed in specific support to Indigenous and northern communities and organizations in response to the COVID19 pandemic. Project funding for the Indigenous Community Support Fund  urban and off-reserve stream was selected through a national Call for Proposals process.

First Nations, Inuit and Metis also have access to other support measures available to Canadian individuals, businesses and industries, through the Government of Canada's COVID-19 Economic Response Plan.

Associated links

Indigenous Community Support Fund: Urban and off-reserve Indigenous organizations and communities

Indigenous Community Support Fund

Canada's COVID-19 Economic Response Plan

Stay connected

Join the conversation about Indigenous Peoples in Canada:

Twitter: @GCIndigenous

Facebook: @GCIndigenous

Instagram: @gcindigenous

Facebook: @GCIndigenousHealth



Twitter: @Min_IndServ

You can subscribe to receive our news releases and speeches via RSS feeds. For more information or to subscribe, visit www.isc.gc.ca/RSS.

SOURCE Indigenous Services Canada

For further information: Adrienne Vaupshas, Press Secretary, Office of the Honourable Marc Miller, Minister of Indigenous Services, [email protected]; Media Relations, Indigenous Services Canada, 819-953-1160, [email protected]

Related Links

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This World Tourism Day (September 27), Hindustan Times will shine a light on new-age travel experiences in India through a special virtual platform that showcases the countrys leading efforts in reviving its most beloved sector. After a successful first season in 2019, HT Tourism Conclave is raring to go live this year between September 24 and 25, centered on the theme: Indian Tourism  Road to Recovery Refocus, Reboot, Revive.

Taking the model of discussions and conversations with top industrialists, politicos and film personalities online due to the pandemic, the e-conclave will have a total of eight sessions spread over two days. With the Indian tourism industry taking a serious blow since the pandemic, there is a need to redefine and revisit the way we think tourism, and this has been taken as the focal point for Hindustan Times E-Tourism Conclave.

Read: We stayed at post offices and collectors offices during Gangs of Wasseypur shoot, says Richa Chadha at HT Tourism Conclave

Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism Prahlad Singh Patel and CEO NITI Aayog Amitabh Kant would be the keynote speakers this year. With the series of web sessions, the conclave promises to engage and enlighten the audience on the consistent efforts of Central and State tourism boards to support the affected sector. It will also highlight the current situation of the tourism industry and the immediate future with the new normal.

The event is in partnership with Bihar Tourism, Chhattisgarh Tourism, Delhi Tourism, Gujarat Tourism, IRCTC, Tamil Nadu Tourism. Airline partner: Spicejet. Experiential holidays partner: Club Mahindra.

Read: HT Tourism Conclave 2019: Increase in demand for women-only trips, says Deep Kalra 

Catch all the action live on September 24 and 25, 11am onwards on Hindustan Times Facebook Page.

Follow @htTweets for more
US President Donald Trump's son Eric has questioned Democratic vice-presidential nominee Kamala Harris's ties to Indian Americans claiming that "she has totally run away from the community."

The attack comes as the election battle intensifies ahead of the November 3 election and the two parties are courting the Indian community with an eye on the swing states where a small margin of votes can determine the national outcome.

Speaking at the launch of Indian Voices for Trump in Atlanta on Tuesday, he attacked the Democratic Party as a "radical left" organisation that he said is against the values of Indian Americans and tried to link Harris to it, but the context of his assertion was muddled.

He said, "Much of this radical left is intolerant towards other people. In fact, sometimes I say that they are the least tolerant people in the entire world. You just look at is of Indian descent and she has totally run away from the community ... The Indian community knows that. She is not going around saying that she is of Indian descent, in fact she is going around saying the exact opposite."

Harris is multi-ethnic of African descent on her father's side and Indian on her mother's.

She is variously described as African American, Indian American and Asian American and is the first non-White person to run for vice president on a major party ticket.

The dominant public ethnic identity of Harris has been African American, a powerful segment in the Democratic Party, but she has acknowledged her Indian identity.

In her speech at the Democratic Party Convention last month accepting the vice-presidential nomination, she spoke of her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, who she said came to the US from India and "raised us to know and be proud of our Indian heritage."

She also used the Tamil word for younger maternal aunts, "chithi", to refer to her mother's sisters.

Eric Trump tailored his speech to the hot-button issues for Indian Americans.

He said that the Democratic Party had become the party of Ilhan Omar, the member of the House of Representatives and a leader of the party's leftist flank who is a vehement critic of India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Speaking about what he characterised his father's affinity for India, Eric Trump said, "One of the moments he talks most about is that moment down in Houston, Texas, with Modi at last year's "Howdy, Modi" event.

Bringing up Pakistan and China, he said, "I can tell you, my father will never, never ever let you down."

He said, "I think that is different from past presidents to tell you the truth. When you see how past presidents were involved with China, and you can see the problems India is having with China and will likely have with China, and, in fact, world will probably have with China at some point."

"You know the problems with Pakistan better than I ever will and my father has always been there for your great country and I promise he will always be there," he added.

He heaped praise on India, calling it "incredible" and "spectacular" and said, "Some of the nicest, greatest hard-working people in the world that reside in India. They are loyal to the core, they are peaceful, they have wonderful families, they have a work ethic that just about everybody else should admire."

On domestic issues, appealing to an audience of several businesspeople, he said a Biden-Harris administration will raise taxes by $4 trillion.

Law and order were breaking down across the country because the Democratic Party embraced chaos and was anti-police, he said.

Indian-owned businesses have been burnt down by rioters during the current protests against police brutality towards African Americans.

Eric Trump talked up family values, religious devotion and the commitment to education, hard work and entrepreneurship that he said his family shared with the Indian American community.

Ritesh Desai, an organiser of the Indian Voices for Trump meeting, thanked the "president for recognising our contribution to this country."

He echoed Eric Trump, asserting that the differences between the Democrats and Republicans made this election a choice between "socialism or democracy, law and order or chaos, shutdown or economic progress."

Eric Trump had visited a Hindu temple before the 2016 elections to campaign.

A poll of Indian American voters released this week found that Trump's support had increased by 12 per cent since the 2016 election to 28 per cent now, but is still dwarfed by the 66 per cent backing for Democratic Party candidate

US presidential elections are not determined by the popular votes, but by the electors elected from each state. Because of this Hillary Clinton lost the 2016 election even though she polled more than 2.8 millions over Trump, who won with a 77 vote lead in the electoral college.

Indian Americans in some of the swing states can help contribute to the slim lead margins making them important to both parties.

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in and followed on Twitter at @arulouis)

--IANS

al/pgh

(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.)
Victoria has recorded 21 new cases of COVID-19 in the lowest daily increase since June, and a further seven deaths.

Metropolitan Melbourne's 14-day average has plummeted and now sits at 39.3 as the state moves to a COVID normal. In regional Victoria, the 14-day average is at just 1.9.

This is the ninth day in a row Victoria has recorded a daily infections increase below 50.

Victoria recorded 21 new cases of COVID-19 and seven deaths on Saturday. Pictured: A resident walks along South Wharf in Melbourne as part of their permitted exercise on Wednesday

Angry Melburnians are set to take to the streets in protest of the city's strict Stage Four lockdown restrictions

The daily update comes as disgruntled Melburnians revealed they are planning to take to the streets again in protest of the city's Stage Four lockdown restrictions.

Over the last two weekends protesters have clashed with police at the Shrine Of Remembrance, The Tan track and Queen Victoria Market.

Police arrested 74 people and issued at least 176 infringement notices during last Sunday's protest at the market.

It will be the third weekend protesters have gathered at inner-city landmarks to rally against the state government's Stage Four restrictions in Melbourne.

Deputy Commissioner Rick Nugent told 3AW's Neil Mitchell police received a warning email from a protester.

'The organiser of the protest sent an email to us  advising us that if we refuse to allow them we will be jeopardising the safety of others and Victoria Police would be putting all Victorians at risk,' he said.

'Unfortunately, we're just going to have to continue to drag police off other functions and other roles to police these people in the city.'

Protesters have warned there will be further anti-lockdown rallies in Melbourne this weekend. Pictured: Police scuffle with protesters during an anti-lockdown protest in Melbourne on Sunday September 13

Over the last two weekends protesters have clashed with police at the Shrine Of Remembrance, The Tan track and Queen Victoria Market. Police arrested 74 people and issued at least 176 infringement notices during last Sunday's protest at the market. Pictured: Police move protesters on through the Queen Victoria Market

There are also fears the success of Melbourne's decrease in cases could be at risk with a new cluster emerging in the southeast of the city, testing the capacity of COVID-detectives.

There are currently 101 active coronavirus cases in the Casey and Dandenong area with 34 infections linked to five households in the Afghan community.

As residents in the city are still under strict Stage Four lockdown which restricts families travelling more than 5km from their homes to visit other households, it's thought the infected group may have breached the stay-at-home orders.

Health authorities are now scrambling to track and trace the new surge in cases and the Victorian government has even began a new recruitment drive that will see retired officers re-enlisted to bolster the state's frontline virus efforts.

There are currently 101 active coronavirus cases in the Casey and Dandenong area with 34 infections linked to five households

The Victorian government has even began a new recruitment drive that will see retired officers re-enlisted to bolster the state's frontline virus efforts

'Members of those households visiting other households,' Department of Health and Human Services COVID-19 testing commander Jeroen Weimar said.

'It is that limited amount of contact, relatively infrequent contact between these five households that has now meant that we have 34 people in five houses experiencing or living with a very real threat of the coronavirus.'

The cluster, which has impacted the five households in Hallam, Clyde, Narre Warren South and Cranbourne North, first emerged on September 4.

Cases in the southeast have now spread to Dandenong Police Station and a number of industrial work sites.

Premier Daniel Andrews on Friday said the actions of the family's involved in the cluster is 'disappointing'.

The cluster which has impacted the five households in Hallam, Clyde, Narre Warren South and Cranbourne North, first emerged on September 4

'Five kilometres is one thing and visiting others is the real issue here.' he said.

'The rules are in place for a reason and anyone who undermines this, undermines the entire strategy and it means the rules will be on for longer.'

But the Victorian leader ruled out fines for the group, telling reporters it may discourage others from being completely honest with contact tracers.

'I know many Victorians, when you see examples of people not following the rules, that's disappointing, it makes you angry,' Mr Andrews said.

'You need to look at the bigger picture here.

'We don't want a situation where people don't have a sense of confidence and indeed, you know, the sense they're obliged to tell us the full story as quickly as possible. That's what we need.'

Stage Three lockdown in regional Victoria was eased from 11.59pm on Wednesday. Pictured: Diners are seen at Central Nutrition on Thursday in Geelong

Residents in regional Victoria are now enjoying eased coronavirus restrictions after they moved away from Stage Three lockdown at 11.59pm on Wednesday.

Pubs, cafes and restaurants are able to serve people outside with strict density quotas, while outdoor gathering limits will be upped to 10.

Regional Victorians are also able to leave their homes without restriction and all shops can reopen.

They will still be able to travel via Melbourne to reach other parts of the state, but can only stop for three reasons including food, care and permitted work and study.

Caravan parks and camping grounds in regional areas were also allowed to reopen from Thursday, but with group booking restrictions.

Melbourne residents who leave the city without a lawful excuse will be fined $4,957.

The new offence is designed to deter Melburnians from entering regional Victoria.

It will be bolstered by beefed-up roadblocks, creating lengthy traffic delays as vehicles pass through.

Melbourne's new case average must stay between 30 to 50 for some of the city's restrictions to be eased as planned on September 28.
In a significant toughening up of the regulations, UK ministers will impose a new legal duty on people to self-isolate if they test positive for the disease or are told to do so by NHS Test and Trace after coming into contact with someone with the virus.

Those on lower incomes who face a loss of earnings as a result of going into quarantine will be eligible for a one-off support payment of 500 to help them cope financially.





With new cases of the infection doubling every week, Boris Johnson said the measures were necessary to control the spread of the virus and to protect the most vulnerable from becoming infected.

However they are likely to alarm some Conservative MPs already concerned at the wide-ranging powers being taken by ministers to curb the disease with little or no debate in Parliament.

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The new regulations will come into force in England on September 28, although ministers are in discussion with the devolved administrations for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland about extending them UK-wide.

Following an increase in #COVID19 cases, further restrictions will be introduced in parts of the North West, the Midlands & west Yorkshire.



These changes have been made in collaboration with local leaders & will come into effect on Tuesday.



See if the restrictions affects you  Department of Health and Social Care (@DHSCgovuk) September 18, 2020

It follows a warning by Professor Neil Ferguson, of Imperial College London  whose modelling led to the original nationwide lockdown, that the authorities needed to act sooner rather than later if they were to avoid a return to the infection rates of last March.

On Friday, the Prime Minister acknowledged the long-feared second wave of the pandemic affecting countries such as France and Spain had reached Britain and that more cases of the disease were inevitable.

Announcing the new rules, Mr Johnson said: The best way we can fight this virus is by everyone following the rules and self-isolating if theyre at risk of passing on coronavirus.

And so nobody underestimates just how important this is, new regulations will mean you are legally obliged to do so if you have the virus or have been asked to do so by NHS Test and Trace.

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People who choose to ignore the rules will face significant fines. We need to do all we can to control the spread of this virus, to prevent the most vulnerable people from becoming infected, and to protect the NHS and save lives.

Fines will initially start at 1,000 rising to 10,000 for repeat offenders and for the most egregious breaches including those who stop other people from self-isolating, such an employer who requires a staff member to come into work in violation of an order.

The penalties are in line with those for people who fail to quarantine for 14 days after returning to the UK from a country not on the list of low risk nations.

Officials said NHS Test and Trace would be in regular contact with individuals told to self-isolate and would report any suspicions that people were not complying to the police and local authorities.



If we leave it another two to four weeks we will be back at levels we were seeing more like mid-March

Police will also check compliance in Covid-19 hotspots and among groups considered to be high-risk as well as following up reports from members of the public of people who have tested positive but are not self-isolating.

Prosecutions could follow in high-profile and egregious cases of non-compliance.

As with other coronavirus rules, there will be specific exemptions for those who need to escape from illness or harm during their isolation, and for those who require care.

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Officials said just under four million people on benefits in England would be eligible for the support payments if they lose income as a result of being unable to go into work.

The latest announcement comes just days after the rule of six  banning social gatherings of more than six people  came into force and will been seen as further evidence of the concern in Whitehall at the rate of spread of the disease.

You MUST NOT meet socially in groups of more than 6 people if you live in England.



Please continue to maintain social distancing with anyone you do not live with to reduce the spread of #COVID19



Latest guidance https://t.co/1KzJqcyOtI pic.twitter.com/fSUFMToqOb  Department of Health and Social Care (@DHSCgovuk) September 18, 2020

On Friday, the Government announced tough new restrictions were being imposed in large parts of Englands North West, West Yorkshire and the Midlands.

It means by Tuesday, when the measures come into force, around 13.5 million people in the UK will be living under some form of additional coronavirus controls.

Prof Ferguson said the country was caught in a perfect storm following the easing of lockdown restrictions over the summer, and that swift action was needed to stop the virus spreading out of control.

Right now we are at about the levels of infection we were seeing in this country in late February, he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.

If we leave it another two to four weeks we will be back at levels we were seeing more like mid-March. Thats clearly going to cause deaths because people will be hospitalised.

I think some additional measures are likely to be needed sooner rather than later.
Military charity Help for Heroes has placed 142 staff roles at risk of redundancy, as it suffers a sharp drop in income since the start of the pandemic.

The organisation, supporting wounded veterans and their families, has warned that there may be up to 90 job losses as a result of the recession.

Help for Heroes relies on public donations for almost all its funding but has been forced to cancel or postpone face-to-face fundraising since March.

The charitys chief executive, Melanie Walters, said: These tough decisions have been made to protect the future of the charity and have been taken with our beneficiaries in mind.

Whilst demand for Help for Heroes services rose by a third, as the initial coronavirus lockdown took its toll on the health of some ex-servicemen and servicewomen, its annual revenue is forecast to fall by a third.

The charity, which furloughed 130 staff in the spring, said it does not expect its funding to return to its former levels over the coming years.

Three Help for Heroes centres, in Yorkshire, Devon and Essex, will stay closed for the foreseeable future, as its focus shifts to providing remote support.

Mrs Walters said the restructuring was necessary for the charitys survival.

In 2007, we made a promise on behalf of the nation to provide lifetime support to wounded veterans, and their families, and we are striving to keep that promise, she said in a statement on its website.

The crisis has had a devastating impact on the whole UK charity sector, with lasting consequences, and it has hit us hard.

The Wiltshire-based charity was set up by former Army Captain Bryn Parry and his wife Emma in 2007.
Los Angeles City Mayor Provides Updated Efforts to Distinguish Bob Cat Fire, Over 70,000 Acres Burned

Los Angeles City Mayor Eric Garcetti provided new information surrounding the coronavirus outbreak. The recent reports reflect a level of stabilization in all the state ordered measurements; this will create more opportunities for reopening the city. The mayor emphasized the progress can be derailed if the community slacks on social distancing efforts. Garcetti encourage the city to remain in a space of unity as we waiver through multiple fires and hardship brought on by the impact of COVID-19.

Mayor Garcetti opened his statement acknowledging the severity in the air quality surrounding Los Angeles. Garcetti stated, Our air is choked with smoke, we see an orange sky, an obscure sun on too many days. Reflecting on the safety of the environment, Garcetti highlighted the cereal images ofo multiple homes on fire. Residents stemming across the country had to leave their homes and seek refuge from the enflamed landscape.

Garcetti shared that there has been countless acts of kindness and a progressive growth in community spirit. There is an overall sense of accountability among the collective environment; to protect everything that is dear to the city and those who inhibit it. The mayor stated, But even in the midst of the latest challenge, we do what we do here in Los Angeles. We continue to help one another to find a way to dig deep, to find that extra gear to keep going and to make sure that we protect everything that we love, here in Los Angeles.

The Mayor recapped this past weekend, L.A. City activated four smoke relief centers, at multiple recreational halls. A critical flame has erupted in The Angeles National Forest in Azusa, Ca has been engulfed in flames since September 6. Its Labeled the Bob Cat Fire, located close the Cogswell Dan and West Fork Use Area. Its been reported to be burning heavy fuels and its rapidly spreading; over 72,000 acres incinerated. Fire crews are on the front lines right now, meeting every challenge with a sense of victory and hope in mind.

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Other fire fighters are up north, where there are ten different fires. The fire team is spread out, protecting communities that help support previous fires that Los Angeles was faced with last year. The amount of damage in the state collectively, has reached record breaking numbers. There has been more destruction seen this year than either year recorded in history. Garcetti stated,  We are feeling the immediate impacts of climate change and facing challenges that demand our commitment to the long term solutions its too late to reverse the warming, but to mitigate the impact in our communities and throughout the world.

With the numbers reflecting a decrease, the mayor shares his concern in the change of pace in the collective community. Garcetti stated, Our top public health goal has been keeping infections low enough to make sure our hospitals have the capacity to serve any patients. He went on to explain the significance in each essential role that holds the fragile infrastructure alive.

The Mayor regenerated the role of civic duty, it is to be mindful and support of everyone in the community. Chairwoman Kathryn Barger collaborated with Garcetti to meet the U.S. Sergeant General. They shared actions taken place in Los Angeles in response to the multiple areas of concern. Garcetti stressed that motion to put politics aside and help cities that have been deeply wounded in multiple areas.

Garcetti acknowledge the critical role each Angeleno plays as waiver through strenuous terrains. He stated, When we come together, and we figure out ways that we can protect one another. Whether its our loved ones or strangers in our city. We are one Los Angeles, and we are proving that each day.
The Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts is defending its plan to have Carnival 2022 events on a limited basis.

This as the decision has been met with mixed reviews from stakeholders and members of the public.

In a release yesterday, the ministry said: To reiterate, the ministry has proposed a Taste of Carnival which would include specific types of Carnival activities for vaccinated persons only in safe-zone arrangements deemed to pose the least risk from a public health standpoint in the context of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
Final report on nationwide power outage delayed due to CEB withholding data By Namini Wijedasa View(s): View(s):

The final report of a committee appointed to investigate the countrywide power failure on August 17 has been delayed because the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) withheld crucial data, which it only handed over on Friday.

The outcome of the inquiry is now expected to be handed over to the Power Ministry on September 25 or 27, an authoritative source said. The 9-member committee, which produced an interim report within three days of the blackout, carried out fresh visits and extensive data analysis in an effort o reach a more detailed conclusion.

It had earlier slammed the CEB, saying its failure to avoid the mishap points to significant lapses in implementing critical recommendations made by experts in the past. It said the utility has no operations and maintenance-related risk management mechanisms and must introduce standard, compliant, systematic, foolproof, safe procedures and maintenance protocols during operation and maintenance.

But the committee had based its conclusions on initial data and said much more was required before its final determination. At the time, a more detailed report was expected in about two weeks. The process was delayed, however, by the CEBs apparent reluctance to share important data, including from the Kerawalapitiya fault recorder.

The CEB has laid the blame for the blackout on an Electrical Superintendent (ES) who caused an earth fault at the Kerawalapitiya substation which triggered a system collapse. But the committee previously also highlighted the absence of basic best practices that contributed towards the incident.

It also took, at a minimum, six-and-a-half hours for power to be restored. This is one of the aspects being further studied.
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Linkedin Shim Woo-hyun (The Korea Herald/Asia News Network)  Sat, September 19, 2020 12:07 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45e30f0 2 Science & Tech Samsung,Galaxy-Z,Galaxy-Z-Fold-2,Samsung-Galaxy-Z-Fold2,smartphone Free

Samsung Electronics announced Friday that the company has officially launched the Galaxy Z Fold 2 in overseas markets.

The companys new foldable smartphone will be available in around 40 nations, including the US, Singapore, Thailand, England and France.

The official launch date in the South Korean market has been delayed to Sept. 23 due to a large number of preorders, which currently stands at 80,000, the company said.

Read also: Galaxy Note 20, Z Fold 2 unveiled at first-ever online Galaxy Unpacked show

Samsung Electronics said it plans to launch the new booklike folding smartphone in 80 nations by October. In contrast, predecessor model Galaxy Fold was available in only about half as many nations in 2019.

The Galaxy Z Fold 2 is Samsungs third foldable smartphone, featuring a 7.6-inch main screen when unfolded and a 6.2-inch cover display. The latest model was officially introduced Sept. 1 at an online event.

The Galaxy Z Fold 2 comes with a price tag of almost 2.4 million won ($2,040) in Korea.

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This article appeared on The Korea Herald newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post
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Linkedin Galih Gumelar (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020

The National Police recently moved to regulate the civil security apparatus by issuing National Police Chief Regulation No. 4/2020 on private security (Pam Swakarsa), which critics decry for creating the potential for abuse of power and repression.

National Police chief Gen. Idham Azis signed the regulation last month, stipulating that civilian security actors such as private security guards (Satpam) and members of the community watch (Satkamling) can be called upon to help the police maintain security and public order.

They are not to be confused with the homonymous paramilitary groups that operated in the last years of the New Order.

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European investors expressed their interest in a US$1 billion seaport logistics project in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau during their meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in Hanoi on Wednesday.

The Vietnamese government leader hosted the reception for Dutch and Belgian Ambassadors, Elsbeth Akkerman and Paul Jansen, along with EU investors.

The European investors told the PM that once the Cai Mep Ha Logistics Center is put into operation, it would accommodate large container vessels and, as a result, boost domestic sea freight services and the delivery of goods and produce from Mekong Delta provinces to Cai Mep Ha and overseas.

Therefore, the investors expected the project to be given the green light as soon as possible, and pledged to carry out the project on schedule and ensure its quality.

They were committed to adopting environmentally friendly transport methods for the sake of sustainable development.

Authorities in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province said they have approved the 1/2000 master plan for the project, pinpointed its location, and been ready to hand over cleared sites to the concerned investors.

In response, PM Phuc reaffirmed the Vietnamese governments stance to support foreign investors, especially those from the European Union that show their potential and possess advanced technological capacity to set up shop in the Southeast Asian nation.

He asked the government of Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province and the Ministry of Planning and Investment to consider the investors proposal soon, stressing that I will criticize whoever is slow [in considering the proposal].

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (seventh right) hosts a reception for Dutch and Belgian Ambassadors, Elsbeth Akkerman (seventh left) and Paul Jansen (sixth right), along with EU investors in Hanoi, September 16, 2020 Photo: Vietnam Government Portal

Phuc also highlighted all-round developments of the relations between Vietnam and Belgium and the Netherlands, saying the two European countries are Vietnams key trading partners.

However, he pointed out cooperation outcomes have yet to match the potential and strength of the two sides. Therefore, strengthening cooperation ties plays a vital role as the free trade agreement between Vietnam and the European Union, or EVFTA, recently took effect.

The leader believed that the trade pact will bring about ample opportunity for Vietnamese and European businesses in their operation and market expansion efforts.

He suggested the Netherlands and Belgium support Vietnam in improving its capacity for the enforcement of the deal.

He also spoke highly of the effective cooperation between Vietnam and the two countries at multilateral and international forums, such as the United Nations, the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-European Union relations.

He called on the two governments, together with the block of 27 member states, to raise a stronger voice in protecting the rule of law at seas and oceans, as well as the East Vietnam Sea stance of Vietnam and ASEAN.

The Dutch ambassador expressed her good impression of Vietnams efforts in its fight against the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and its economic development.

The Dutch government backs the Cai Mep Ha Logistics Center project in Ba Ria-Vung Tau, she said, adding that the Dutch Development Bank has committed ten percent of the project investment.

Ambassador Paul Jansen shared a similar view, saying that the Belgian Corporation for International Investment will also play a part in the seaport logistics investment.

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The courts directions mean that Lodha immediately ceases to hold all positions in the M P Birla group, including as director in the firms and other positions in the trusts and societies of the M P Birla group, a statement from the Birlas read.

Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff.com.

The Calcutta high court on Friday restrained Harsh Vardhan Lodha from holding any office in M P Birla group entities, marking a crucial victory for the Birlas in the 16-year-old battle over Priyamvada Birlas will.

The order said Harsh Vardhan Lodha was restrained from holding any office in any of the entities of M P Birla group during pendency of the suit (testamentary). The court also directed implementation of the decision of the committee of administrators.

These directions mean that Harsh Vardhan Lodha immediately ceases to hold all positions in the M P Birla group, including as director in the firms and other positions in the trusts and societies of the M P Birla group, a statement from the Birlas read.

Lodha is the chairman of M P Birla group companies.

The court has also restrained Lodha from interfering with any decision of the APL Committee (committee of administrators Pendente Lite of the estate of Priyamvada Birla), which is taken by majority, the Birla statement added.

However, the court has held that since the companies were not parties to the testamentary proceedings, directions cannot be passed against them but decisions of the APL Committee shall be implemented by Lodhas, who are plaintiffs in the testamentary proceedings.

Debanjan Mandal, partner, Fox & Mandal, advocate for Lodha, said, The verdict by Justice Sahidullah Munshi over reappointment of Harsh Vardhan Lodha as director of Vindhya Telelinks, Birla Cable and Birla Corporation does not appear to be lawful. Our clients confidence in the system remains completely unshaken and our client will challenge the judgment for immediate and long-term relief.

Lodhas will move the appeals court. Lodhas reappointment as director in the two said companies (Vindhya Telelinks and Birla Cable) was reviewed by two higher courts, including the Supreme Court, and the initial order restraining the companies from publishing the results of polls taken at their AGMs last year was set aside. The orders passed on Friday were not even asked for and will be challenged on this ground, said the advocate for Lodha.

In addition, the jurisdiction of the probate court and the impermissibility of such orders affecting shareholders decision of reappointment of a director/chairman will be raised before the appeal court, the Lodha side said. The court passed directions against Lodha in terms of Section 247 of the Indian Succession Act.

In a separate statement, a spokesperson for Birla Corporation, said, the company will examine the judgement and take necessary steps including filing of appeal because the verdict seems to have ignored shareholders democracy and their right to elect by majority of their votes a person as a director of a company.

"Shareholders elected Harsh Varshan Lodha as a director of Birla Corporation with an overwhelming majority of 98 per cent. Mr Lodha being otherwise not disqualified from holding the office of director, there is no reason why the verdict of shareholders will not be respected," the spokesperson added.

The APL Committee -- which had been appointed by the high court in 2012 to administer and manage the estate of Priyamvada Birla -- has been in focus for the past one year for opposing Lodhas reappointment in M P Birla group companies.

In July 2019, it had directed removal of Lodha by a majority decision from the boards of Vindhya Telelinks and Birla Cables. It had also refused to support the resolution for the payment of profit-based remuneration to Lodha.

In the same vein, it refused to support resolutions for reappointment of Lodha and profit-based remuneration in Birla Corporation and Universal Cables this year.

The resolutions in all these firms, however, were passed by more than 97 per cent votes of shareholders.

For implementation of the APL Committee decisions Birlas had filed an application before the high court last year, that set off a fresh round of legal battle moving all the way up to the Supreme Court. The apex court said the decision taken by the companies would be subject to the final outcome of the high court decision.

The Birla statement on Friday said, His stranglehold on the M P Birla group has been brought to an end by the Calcutta high court.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Aug. 23, 2013, in her chambers at the Supreme Court in Washington. (Todd Heisler / The New York Times)

How are we to mourn the loss of Ruth Bader Ginsburg when there has never been another like her?

That tiny trailblazer with the quiet hair and the steady eyes, magnified behind glasses that seemed so unnecessary, really, because who could see things more clearly than she did?

RBG, a woman who lived her life outside of time and context: a lawyer when few women were; a fierce advocate of women's rights in a smart, tailored suit; a passionate defender of social justice who left the theatrics and high rhetoric to others; a liberal with many conservative friends, including her late fellow Justice Antonin Scalia, who seemed in every way her polar opposite.

The world changed, politics roared, America's mood shifted this way and that, and Ginsburg worked, steadily as she had always done, dismantling injustice wherever she could. Year after year, she painstakingly unraveled tangled patterns of the law to find where the truth was hidden, then stitched it up again so everyone could see what she saw.

As a lawyer with the ACLU in the 1970s, she laid the groundwork for current gender discrimination law. On the Supreme Court, whether in the majority or the minority, she was a master of the judicial mic drop, a poet of the dissenting opinion (for which she had a special black beaded collar).

"Throwing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes," she wrote of the court's 2013 decision to undo key portions of the Voting Rights Act, "is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet."

And of the court's 2000 decision to halt the presidential recount ordered by the Florida Supreme Court, she wrote: "The courts conclusion that a constitutionally adequate recount is impractical is a prophecy the courts own judgment will not allow to be tested. Such an untested prophecy should not decide the presidency of the United States."

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Disagree with her position, yes; deny its legitimacy, never.

RBG, with her love of opera and her lace collars, falling like a cavaliers over her black robes. What's wrong with a little style? Nothing, shouted fans half a century younger than her, drawn by her straight-talking defense of gay marriage, abortion rights, women's rights and civil rights; they called her Notorious RBG and tattooed her face on their bodies.

Not the first woman Supreme Court Justice, but for three long years the only one, and certainly among the most famous and best loved of all who have sat on that high court. The proper Jewish grandmother, with a mastery of both nuance and precision and no patience for meanness, idiocy or party politics. A woman who smiled kindly and made you automatically check your posture, clear up your diction.

A role model at 60, a rock star at 80, she never seemed to change. Five-foot-nothing and 100 pounds dripping wet, she beat colon cancer, early-stage pancreatic cancer, lung cancer. In 2014, she received a coronary stent.

She did not think well of President Trump, who has already appointed two conservative Supreme Court Justices, one amid scandal and controversy. RBG made it clear she would do her level best to outlive his presidency, and many people, including me, prayed she would; without her presence on the court, the fate of so many of the civil rights she defended for so long seemed even more at risk. We held our breath with every hospital visit, waiting anxiously for her to send a message of reassurance.

And then we would sigh in relief. RBG. She seemed unbreakable, unflappable, possibly immortal.

But she wasnt.

And more important, she didnt have to be.

When she knew that even she could not beat the metastatic pancreatic cancer that would kill her, she dictated a statement to her granddaughter: My most fervent wish is that I not be replaced until the new president is installed. And indeed, as reports of her death broke, newscasters almost immediately turned to the question of what would happen next, while others wondered how much worse this terrible year could get.

I dont blame those television anchors. When you work for a news organization, you learn to put shock and grief on hold, especially if youre on television. Something terrible happens, someone important dies, and it's news, which is your job. You dont cry; you report. You go to work: Whos doing what, where is it going, how much time do we have.

I have written often about the dead; I had to give myself several minutes to sob only three times: for Robin Williams, for Kobe and Gianna Bryant and now, for Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

This time I wept not just because of the loss but because I couldnt bear the thought of this woman, this brilliant, formidable and kindhearted, once-in-a-century woman summoning what strength she had to make one more demand for justice.

As if she hadnt done enough.

As if even she thought what mattered most about her death was what happens next.

Maybe in the long run. But not right now. Not in this moment. This country has lost a lot during 2020  lives, jobs, confidence  but the loss of Ruth Bader Ginsburg transcends this year, and the years that follow. Her death will leave behind the tiniest robes in Supreme Court history, and one of the largest holes ever torn in that history's fabric.

Few members of the United States government have ever been loved, admired and, yes, memed more than Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She was astonishing. So astonishing that her death, even at 87 and after multiple health issues, was honestly and universally shocking. As if a face had fallen off Mount Rushmore.

What happens next is not her responsibility, because, by God, if anyone could die content with what she had given the world  hope, change, insight, clarity, joy, love, hard damn work and killer style  it was Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

So RBG, if you can hear me: Don't worry. Rest easy. We miss you like hell already, but we'll take it from here. You have done more than enough.

For all of us.
SPRINGFIELD  The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation announced Tuesday that it continues to review questions and has still not set a date for a lottery to distribute 75 marijuana dispensary licenses.

After IDFPR announced earlier this month that just 21 applicants qualified for the first 75 social equity licenses, lawmakers and stakeholders immediately raised concerns with Gov. JB Pritzker, asking his administration to temporarily stop the process.

The licenses were originally scheduled to be distributed in May, but the process was delayed amid the COVID-19 pandemic. On Sept. 3, an IDFPR spokesperson said the lottery would be scheduled in late September. But IDFPR said Tuesday there is still no scheduled lottery date.

The final date for the lottery for adult-use cannabis licenses had not been set as of today, an IDFPR spokesperson wrote in an email. As we continue to review questions that have been raised, our goal is to provide time to ensure that the process is fair and equitable. A date for the lottery will be announced by IDFPR.

In a letter sent to Pritzker on Sept. 4, the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus listed five requests they wanted resolved before the licenses are awarded. The members of that caucus want to see a detailed rubric of how applicants were graded, the publication of some application information on the IDFPR website, and information on how KPMG  a firm that provides professional services such as auditing  received a $4.2 million no-bid contract from the state to score dispensary applicants. The ILBC also asked for the ethnic and racial makeup of KPMGs board and the team behind scoring applicants.

Two rejected applicants are also suing the state to stop the licenses from being awarded, alleging the 21 winners received perfect scores due to political connections, and that at least one had hired a manager tied to KPMG.

KPMG stands by our work to objectively score applications based on criteria set by the state. We brought a diverse and experienced team together to do this work quickly and accurately, and are proud of our teams performance, A KPMG spokesperson said in an email.

The firm said it built a diverse, national team, comprised of employees from many offices.

The team scoring the applications would have no knowledge of the names or affiliations of applicants. A separate team scored certain aspects of the application, such as social equity, the spokesperson added.
A federal judge says Berkeley cannot require cell phone retailers to warn customers about possible radiation dangers from holding phones close to their bodies, a ruling based on the Federal Communications Commissions assessment that the warnings are unneeded and would hurt business.

Courts had previously rejected arguments that the Berkeley ordinance, which took effect in 2016, violated cell phone companies freedom of speech by requiring them to post a message with which they disagreed. But the outcome changed after the FCC, whose members were appointed by President Trump, filed arguments supporting the industrys challenge to the ordinance.

In a ruling Thursday, U.S. District Judge Edward Chen of San Francisco deferred to the commissions conclusion that Berkeleys law would harm the public by promoting unwarranted fears about cell phone radiation.

The FCC is tasked with balancing the competing objectives of ensuring public health and safety and promoting the development and growth of the telecommunications network and related services, Chen said. He said the commission could properly conclude that the ordinance over warns consumers, and that Berkeley was interfering with federal oversight of the industry.

The citys ordinance requires dealers to notify their customers that the FCC sets radiation standards for cell phones and that exposure may exceed the federal guidelines if users carry their phone in a pants or shirt pocket or tucked into a bra while they are connected to a wireless network.

Retailers must display the warning on a poster or in a handout flyer, attributed to the city of Berkeley.

In rejecting an industry groups claim that the requirement violated freedom of speech, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals noted last year that the notices required by the city were the same warning that the FCC requires retailers to include in the manual of every cell phone they sell. The Supreme Court denied review of the groups appeal.

But in a filing with Chens court this June, the FCC, which had not previously opposed the ordinance, said the information in its manuals was enough to inform consumers about potential radiation risks from cell phones. Further warnings required at the time of sale may create an erroneous perception that (radio-frequency) emissions from FCC-certified phones are unsafe, the commission said..

Chen said Berkeley officials have acknowledged that cell phones certified by the FCC are safe. He said it was the commissions task to balance potential health risks from radiation emissions against the need for a robust and efficient, nationwide, wireless communication system.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

In response to the ruling, Tom Power, attorney for the industry group CTIA  the Wireless Association, said, The consensus of the experts  and the FCC agrees  is that there are no known health risks from the use of FCC-regulated mobile phones. We appreciate the courts conclusion that the City of Berkeley cannot force our members to repeat its erroneous opinion about the safety of wireless devices.

Assistant City Attorney Christopher Jensen said Berkeley officials are reviewing the ruling, which they could appeal.

Devra Davis, president of the nonprofit Environmental Health Trust, said, With this ruling denying the right to know about cell phone radiation, the court has tipped the scales in favor of expanding telecommunications over public health.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @BobEgelko
US President Donald Trumps son Eric has questioned Democratic vice-presidential nominee Kamala Harriss ties to Indian Americans claiming that she has totally run away from the community."

The attack comes as the election battle intensifies ahead of the November 3 election and the two parties are courting the Indian community with an eye on the swing states where a small margin of votes can determine the national outcome.

Speaking at the launch of Indian Voices for Trump in Atlanta on Tuesday, he attacked the Democratic Party as a radical left" organisation that he said is against the values of Indian Americans and tried to link Harris to it, but the context of his assertion was muddled.

He said, Much of this radical left is intolerant towards other people. In fact, sometimes I say that they are the least tolerant people in the entire world. You just look at Kamala Harris. Kamala Harris is of Indian descent and she has totally run away from the community  The Indian community knows that. She is not going around saying that she is of Indian descent, in fact she is going around saying the exact opposite."

Harris is multi-ethnic of African descent on her fathers side and Indian on her mothers.

She is variously described as African American, Indian American and Asian American and is the first non-White person to run for vice president on a major party ticket.

The dominant public ethnic identity of Harris has been African American, a powerful segment in the Democratic Party, but she has acknowledged her Indian identity.

In her speech at the Democratic Party Convention last month accepting the vice-presidential nomination, she spoke of her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, who she said came to the US from India and raised us to know and be proud of our Indian heritage."

She also used the Tamil word for younger maternal aunts, chithi", to refer to her mothers sisters.

Eric Trump tailored his speech to the hot-button issues for Indian Americans.

He said that the Democratic Party had become the party of Ilhan Omar, the member of the House of Representatives and a leader of the partys leftist flank who is a vehement critic of India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Speaking about what he characterised his fathers affinity for India, Eric Trump said, One of the moments he talks most about is that moment down in Houston, Texas, with Modi at last years Howdy, Modi" event.

Bringing up Pakistan and China, he said, I can tell you, my father will never, never ever let you down."

He said, I think that is different from past presidents to tell you the truth. When you see how past presidents were involved with China, and you can see the problems India is having with China and will likely have with China, and, in fact, world will probably have with China at some point."

You know the problems with Pakistan better than I ever will and my father has always been there for your great country and I promise he will always be there," he added.

He heaped praise on India, calling it incredible" and spectacular" and said, Some of the nicest, greatest hard-working people in the world that reside in India. They are loyal to the core, they are peaceful, they have wonderful families, they have a work ethic that just about everybody else should admire."

On domestic issues, appealing to an audience of several businesspeople, he said a Biden-Harris administration will raise taxes by $4 trillion.

Law and order were breaking down across the country because the Democratic Party embraced chaos and was anti-police, he said.

Indian-owned businesses have been burnt down by rioters during the current protests against police brutality towards African Americans.

Eric Trump talked up family values, religious devotion and the commitment to education, hard work and entrepreneurship that he said his family shared with the Indian American community.

Ritesh Desai, an organiser of the Indian Voices for Trump meeting, thanked the president for recognising our contribution to this country."

He echoed Eric Trump, asserting that the differences between the Democrats and Republicans made this election a choice between socialism or democracy, law and order or chaos, shutdown or economic progress."

Eric Trump had visited a Hindu temple before the 2016 elections to campaign.

A poll of Indian American voters released this week found that Trumps support had increased by 12 per cent since the 2016 election to 28 per cent now, but is still dwarfed by the 66 per cent backing for Democratic Party candidate Joe Biden.

US presidential elections are not determined by the popular votes, but by the electors elected from each state. Because of this Hillary Clinton lost the 2016 election even though she polled more than 2.8 millions over Trump, who won with a 77 vote lead in the electoral college.

Indian Americans in some of the swing states can help contribute to the slim lead margins making them important to both parties.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president JP Nadda on Saturday said that three agriculture-related bills passed in the Lok Sabha will only boost production and help farmers get better prices for their produce.

Speaking at a function in Sonepat, Nadda said the opposition parties are provoking farmers for agitation in the name of minimum support price (MSP).

I want to make it clear that MSP will stay and these three bills will give another option to farmers to sell their produce outside the mandis. We are not going to scrap the mandi system. If farmers get good price outside, why will they go to mandis. And if the prices are low outside, they will sell their produce on MSP in mandis. We have just given two options to farmers by introducing these bills, he added.

Slamming the Congress, the BJP national president said his party has done what the opposition party had promised in its manifesto.

Modi had brought good days for farmers in Gujarat and now he is implementing the same formula for all farmers across the country, Nadda added.

He also took part in a blood donation camp at Sonepat and distributed spectacles to people.
A man passes a screen prior to a dedication ceremony for The Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial on Thursday in Washington, D.C. The memorial, commissioned by Congress in 1999, honors the legacy of the former president and World War II supreme allied commander.
NEWS PROVIDED BY

Family Research Council

Sept. 18, 2020

WASHINGTON, Sept. 18, 2020 /Standard Newswire/ -- Family Research Council President Tony Perkins released the following statement on the passing of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg:

"I join the American people in offering my condolences and prayers to Justice Ginsburg's family who are mourning the loss of their mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. I pray that God will comfort them during this time of grief. Throughout her 27 years on the U.S. Supreme Court, we were frequently at odds with her opinions. However, her perseverance in facing cancer while continuing to serve as a justice was admirable."
Longford Gardai and Womens Link are working together to enable victims of domestic violence access support services and have launched an information leaflet, which has been translated into eight languages.

These leaflets provide victims with information about how they can access Womens Link services and will be distributed to all Gardai in Co Longford. Having them translated provides greater access to information for all.

Superintendent Jim Delaney of Longford Garda Station said, "Funding for this initiative was accessed by the Longford Gardai and Women's Link as part of their participation with CYPCIC  Children and Young Persons Services and the Parenting Partnership for and family support group.

"The leaflets are disseminated to all operational Gardai in Longford to provide to persons/victims of domestic violence that they meet in the course of their duty, thereby generating a greater awareness of the services that are available to manage domestic violence.

"An Garda Siochana is here to help and I would encourage victims of domestic abuse to make contact with us. They can contact us in Longford on 043-3350570, the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station," he said.

The leaflet is being made available in eight languages: Arabic, Slovak, Czech, Lithuanian, Latvian, Russian, Portuguese, Polish and English, with a further seven languages to be added in time.

Pictured at the launch of the newly translated leaflets are:

Heather Mc Kenna and Natalie O Reilly of Womens Link Longford, Superintendent Jim Delaney, Inspector Yvonne Martin, Sergeant Declan Mc Glynn, D/Gda Orla Geraghty, Gda Denise Dockery, Gda Aishling Brady and Gda Peter Doherty all of Longford Garda Station.
Business Insider Weekly spoke with more than 80 "long-haulers" who say their COVID-19 symptoms have lasted months after their diagnoses. Business Insider Weekly

Thousands of COVID-19 survivors can't seem to shake the symptoms months after they were diagnosed.

Business Insider spoke to 80 of these "long-haulers" to see how they've been coping with prolonged illness.

Their symptoms include fevers, brain fog, memory loss, nosebleeds, shortness of breath, and blurry vision.

View more episodes of Business Insider Weekly on Facebook.

COVID-19 isn't over when it's over.

Thousands of people who survived the coronavirus just can't seem to shake the symptoms  even months after their diagnoses.

We spoke with more than 80 people who have lingering symptoms.

They call themselves "long-haulers," and as the virus continues it spread across the country, it's a population that's only growing.

"Some people are lucky. They only take a few weeks to recover after they've been sick," one long-hauler, Elisa McCafferty, told Business Insider Weekly. "But then there are the rest of us that it will take us a long time."

Before COVID-19, 33-year-old Hector Martinez of San Antonio didn't have any mental health issues. Now, he has anxiety and depression. Four months after his first symptom, he still feels sick, he's always tired, and he has brain fog.

"It's like a dream that is getting longer for me to wake up," Martinez said. "There are some days when I'm happy and there are some other days when I don't have feelings."

Hector Martinez, 33, said he's still suffering from brain fog and always feel tired and anxious four months after his first COVID-19 symptom. Business Insider Weekly

Martinez is an electrician. But when he went back to work in July, he couldn't remember how to install a light switch.

"It was like it was the first time I was doing it," he said. "I cried on my way back home because  how can this be happening to me?"

Now, he can only manage to work a few days at a time, and says he feels insecure about his future.

Lingering symptoms don't get nearly as much attention as the race to find a vaccine. But some doctors, like neurologist Svetlana Blitshteyn, have been treating patients like Martinez.

Story continues

"What I see in my clinic are patients presenting with new onset of fatigue, dizziness, difficulty, standing, palpitations, shortness of breath, and inability to exercise as they previously did," Blitshteyn said. "Or they may also have headaches, numbness, sleep disturbance, cognitive problems, as well as mood issues."

Cardiologist Sadiya Khan says fatigue is one of the most common post-COVID symptoms she's seeing in her practice.

"With coronavirus, what we're seeing is that feeling of being wiped out or extraordinarily tired weeks later, or even months later," Khan said.

"It is now 115 days later and I am still feeling the exact same symptoms," 27-year-old Elissa Miolene said. Business Insider Weekly

A study on lingering coronavirus symptoms found that 87% of patients who recovered had at least one. Elissa Miolene, a 27-year-old from New York City, can relate.

"It is now 115 days later and I am still feeling the exact same symptoms," Miolene said. "Life for me now is waking up in the middle of the night and crying because I'm in so much pain and not knowing why."

She used to think of herself as an active and healthy 20-something. But now, she relies on virtual physical therapy to deal with her constant back and chest pain.

"I can be walking down the street and be perfectly fine. And then I'm heaving and cannot walk another step," she said.

"I have no idea when I'm going to get better. I have no idea when I'm going to feel like myself again, or when I'm going to get back to the things that I like to do."

Early on in the pandemic, public health officials said that recovering from COVID-19 generally takes about two weeks and that older people were more at risk. But by July, it was clear that 20% of young adults with no preexisting conditions were still suffering three weeks after testing positive.

The CDC now recognizes that COVID-19 can result in prolonged illness.

Elisa McCafferty of Reading, UK, has been short of breath and energy since she got COVID-19 five months ago on a cruise ship. Business Insider Weekly

Stephen Smith has one of the most unusual suspected lingering symptoms of the accounts Business Insider Weekly heard. The 64-year-old from Boise, Idaho, fell ill with the virus in February after a work trip in Asia. He had a fever, a kidney infection, hair loss, swollen toes, and headaches.

Seven months later, he's still sick.

"You need to believe that this is serious and it potentially can make you very sick, and in some cases kill you," Smith said.

More than five months after getting sick on a cruise ship, 48-year-old McCafferty is still breathless and so tired that it's debilitating.

"I can't even walk up a flight of stairs to go to the loo without losing my breath," she said. "I have days where I just cry for no reason. It'll just set me off."

She continued: "A really bad day for me is I have no energy. I'll have had nine to 10 hours sleep the night before, but I'll still be bone exhausted. I will keel over. My brain will just fog. I'll be in the middle of a sentence to a client or a friend and I'll totally lose track of what I was saying."

This uncertainty now haunts thousands of people who are left to wonder if they now have a chronic condition.

"Some days I feel my mind is sharp. Other days I don't even know where I'm going or what I'm going to do in life," Martinez said. "So every time that I go to sleep, I'm always praying to God to be better the next day."

Read the original article on Business Insider
'Wonder no more what a hero looks like'

Respect, honor and peace flooded the sanctuary as family, friends and fellow first responders remembered Ryan Phillip Hendrix, the Henderson County sheriffs deputy who was killed in the line of duty last week.

Hendrix, 34, was shot and mortally wounded by a vehicle break-in suspect who had earlier exchanged gunfire with a homeowner in a Mountain Home neighborhood. The funeral, a procession hundreds of cars long and a graveside service honored the Henderson County native and Marine Corps veteran of the Iraq War who leaves behind two children, his fiancee, his parents, six brothers and a sister.

Family and friends described him as an unforgettable servant who jumped at the chance to help others.

In my whole life I have never met anyone more talented, his sister Abigail said. But despite his talents, nothing compares to his servants heart. Ryan, you have won at life's competition. You have accomplished more in your 30 years than we will in our whole life.

She shared stories of childhood competition she had with her older brother. Nothing compared, however, to the admirable attitudes held by his whole family.

Thomas Hendrix, his younger brother, said Ryan has a way of seeing beyond his own circumstance.

He showed compassion to the criminals because he realized that without the family structure he had, he could have gone down that exact same path, he said. His fellow officers remarked on his love for catching bad guys.

Sheriff Lowell Griffin said Deputy Hendrix had a natural aptitude for the job because he was doing what he loved.

There are times in this life when you find where youre supposed to be, he said. You know without a doubt that the people who surround you have your back. You love those you work with because theyre family. That is who Ryan Hendrix was. He had your back, he was your family.

Griffin talked about the instincts Hendrix had that made him a great deputy.

He would be the first one to fight you. But when it was done, he would be the first one to pray with you.  He was not about meeting or exceeding a standard. He was always about setting the standard.

His minister, Chas Morris, the pastor of Grace Blue Ridge Church, recounted a recovered essay Ryan wrote when he was 17. This essay was regarding 9/11 and the question of general question, Why? One quote from his essay, God has a purpose for everything. Whether we see it or not, its still there." Ryan is alive now more than ever before. This faith brought peace to the entire congregation.

Peace was what Emily Wilkins, Ryans fiancee, hoped to convey. Instead of the typical black attire one would wear for a funeral, Emily opted to wear white. Their wedding was supposed to be four weeks from Saturday. Emily wanted to remain positive and thankful for the relationship she had with Hendrix, and she showed that by wearing a white dress.

Wilkins recalled the night Hendrix responded to the Mountain Home break-in and shots fired.

When Ryan got that call we all knew he was so happy," she said. "Cranking up the music, rushing into battle to serve and protect his community. When he knew he was going to handle business with (deputies) Carlos and Omar, he probably started dancing. When he got there and was with his brothers for one second, the next second he was with Jesus. That brings me peace.

Griffin said the entire force grieves for one of their own.

He has left a huge hole in our agency and a gaping hole in our hearts, he said. If youve ever wondered what a hero looks like, wonder no more. Just look at these pictures. Godspeed Deputy Ryan Hendrix. Your work here is done and with the help of everyone here today, we will hold the line until we meet again.
Representative Image

The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Bihar has gone ahead with the poll campaign and seat-sharing talks for the assembly elections but the Opposition camp is still undecided on tie-ups.

According to a report by The Indian Express, while the Left parties in Bihar want the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) to move ahead with alliance talks and have handed the party a list of seats they want to contest, the RJD is yet to respond.

According to senior leaders of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), RJD's approach to the alliance has not gone down well with the party leadership.

"The people want to see a broad and united Opposition to take on the NDA in Bihar. But it is unfortunate that there has been no progress towards forging the alliance" CPI(ML) general secretary Dipanker Bhattacharya said.

The Lok Sabha election had showed that opposition unity was not be possible without the three Left parties, he said.

"We have submitted our list of probable seats. We had three rounds of meetings. But there is no response from the RJD," partys state secretary Kunal was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

Other than CPI (ML), Communist Party of India and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) are the other two left parties in the state.

"We told the RJD how we supported the Lalu Prasad government in 1990. We also reminded them about the CPI winning 26 seats in 1995 assembly polls. We have given our list to the RJD and our talks are satisfactory so far," CPI state secretary Ramnaresh Pandey said.

Sources told the newspaper that while the CPI, CPM and CPI (ML) have given RJD a list of 17, 16 and 53 seats, respectively, Lalu Prasads party may not conceded more than 15-17 seats to the Left.
Hundreds of students and teachers of Xam Khoe Secondary have received an education over the last decade, thanks to Ha Minh Thiet's donation of nearly 8,000 sq.m of his familys cemetery land in 2010

to build the school in Mai Chau Districts Xam Khoe Commune, the northern province of Hoa Binh.

The new school locates in the land donated by Ha Minh Thiet in in Mai Chau Districts Xam Khoe Commune, the northern province of Hoa Binh.  Photo nongnghiep.vn

Ha Van Thuan, principal of the school, said the students of the secondary school always had to study in the afternoon because the school had to share a location with Xam Khoe High School between 1999 and 2009.

The secondary schools management had been unable to find a large enough location in the communes downtown for students to use as a school, he said.

Classes often started from 1pm after the teacher just finished lunch and rushed to class and the students were studying while dozing off, he said.

Pham Van Phong, chairman of the commune Peoples Committee, said local officials had a headache because they could not find a suitable place to build the school for 10 years. Some places were too small; others were too far.

In 2010, Thiet was chairman of the communes Fatherland Front and said he would persuade his family members and relatives to donate all 8,000 sq.m of his familys cemetery land, worth billions of dong, to build the school.

Thiet, 66, a Thai ethnic man, said he was in the army between 1968 and 1977. He just finished the 7th grade when he started his service and could not finish his studies due to the wars.

Therefore, he always wanted his children and the next generation in the commune to enjoy their education, he said, so he decided to donate the land.

However, doing so meant his family had to move 11 graves in the cemetery to other places, Nong Nghiep Viet Nam (Vietnam Agriculture) online newspaper reported.

That was a big problem, he added.

At first, when Thiet spoke to his family members and relatives, they were strongly opposed, especially his mother.

Thai people have a long-held belief that when a person has died, they must be buried deeply and their grave must never be removed at any cost, lest their living relatives face misfortune.

Thiet felt discouraged but did not give up.

He tried to talk with his mother about the importance of studying and his hope that the next generations could enjoy their school time so that they could become good citizens and contribute to the town.

I tried many times to persuade my mother, he added.

Eventually, his 94-year-old mother agreed and helped him persuade other relatives to donate the land, he said.

Finally, the graves were removed to the family's farming land, he said.

The building of the new school was finished in 2011 with eight classrooms and several specialised rooms, including a health care room and computer room, encouraging both the teachers and students of the school.

Principal Thuan said when students studied in the new school, teaching and learning activities showed significant improvements.

In the past, the school only had 3-4 students that won the excellent student award at the district level, but the number was 20 students each year since 2011 to now, he said.

It is partly because the students study in a new and comfortable school, he said.

The school has also been recognised as a national-standard school since 2017, he said.

Phong, chairman of the commune Peoples Committee, said Thiet was a good example for local people.

After he donated the land, many local residents also donated their land for public purposes such as building the communes police station and tax office, he said. VNS

Phu Yen residents donate land to build schools Two households in Phu Yen Province have donated over 22,000 square metres of land for building public schools.
By Trend

A video conference entitled "Heritage of Caucasian Albania" was held within the expert platform of the Baku Network.

The conference was held on the occasion of organizing of the first expedition exactly ten years ago to restore the pearl of the historical Caucasian Albania - a church in Kish village, Sheki district.

First, moderator of the event, director of the Baku Networks Expert Council, Ph.D. Elkhan Alasgarov delivered the speech at the conference.

Then, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor Mahabbat Pashayeva, Chairman of the Udi Community of the Volgograd Region of the Russian Federation, Doctor of Philosophy Richard Danakar, Executive Director of the Baku International Multiculturalism Center Ravan Hasanov, Chairman of the Albanian-Udi Christian Community Robert Mobili, renowned Azerbaijani historian and expert Rizvan Huseynov, as well as Deputy Director-General of Trend News Agency, Gulnara Mammadzade delivered speeches.

A big expedition of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences arrived in Kish village in Sheki district ten years ago upon the instructions of the Azerbaijani government, Alasgarov added. The work on the restoration of the ancient Christian church was launched.

It was a period when Azerbaijan was healing its wounds associated with the war and the country did not have huge funds, director of the Baku Networks Expert Council said. But, despite this, Azerbaijan took a big step, which also has historical significance.

Azerbaijan, a country predominantly inhabited by the Muslim population, restored and opened a church, of one of the most ancient people of the Caucasus, the Udi who inhabited the historical Caucasian Albania of the Christian faith, Alasgarov said.

I think that this is an unprecedented case in the world history when a country that is busy with the issues of occupation of 20 percent of the territory, a country that healing its wounds, a country that should have to ensure and ensured the viability of a million of refugees, at the same time helped small but native for Azerbaijan - Udi-Albanian community," director of the Baku Networks Expert Council said.

Alasgarov stressed that Azerbaijan has very strong traditions of Albanian studies.

"The issue is the heritage of all those people who inhabited Azerbaijan during the Christian period, rather than one nation, director of the Baku Networks Expert Council said. Azerbaijan has preserved this heritage in the person of the small Udi community.

I think that this is an example for so many countries that have tried in every way to assimilate this community, Alasgarov added. Here we must say that Armenia, which occupied our territories, presents the Albanian church as the Armenian church.

Azerbaijan makes an invaluable contribution to the preservation of the historical heritage of world civilization, restoring ancient Christian churches, while Armenia, which claims the title of an ancient Christian country, shamelessly presents the Albanian churches as for its own, Alasgarov said. Azerbaijan and the peoples inhabiting it are the descendants of Caucasian Albania.

--

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Cade, Brazil's anti-monopoly regulator, has recommended that some of the nation's largest fuel distributors be found guilty of anticompetitive practices in the aviation gasoline market, BR Distribuidora said on Friday night.

In a securities filing, Petrobras Distribuidora SA <BRDT3.SA>, as the country's top fuel distributor is formally known, said that it was found at fault alongside competitors Raizen and Air BP, for anticompetitive practices at Sao Paulo's Guarulhos airport, Brazil's busiest.

Cade's opinion has no immediate legal effect, but the body will present its findings in court, which could lead to significant fines. The nature of the allegations was not immediately clear, but Cade has previously said it was investigating whether those companies were acting to bar competitors' entry into the aviation gasoline market at Guarulhos.

In the Friday filing, BR Distribuidora said its business model was "based on the best commercial and competitive practices," adding that it would "adopt all means necessary for its defense."

Raizen, a joint venture between Royal Dutch Shell PLC <RDSa.L> and Brazil's Cosan SA <CSAN3.SA>, did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did BP PLC <BP.L>, the parent of Air BP.

(Reporting by Gram Slattery; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
UPDATED: 20/9/20 8.30am

The main trade union for secondary school teachers has said it will ballot for industrial action over concerns about staff safety.

The central executive committee of the Association of Secondary Teachers in Ireland (ASTI) said it met on Saturday and decided to ballot its members in relation to a number of key issues which had emerged since schools reopened.

The issues include physical distancing in schools, provision of personal protective equipment, the definition of close contacts, testing and testing turnaround times, provisions for high-risk teachers, and information technology resources for students and teachers to facilitate remote teaching and learning.

The fact that high risk teachers have been asked to work in crowded classroom is unacceptable to us as a trade union, ASTI president Ann Piggott said in a statement.

The safety of students and their teachers must be the priority.

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The union has yet to decide whether it will ballot members for strike action. A spokeswoman told The Irish Times that nothing had been ruled in or out at this stage.

Second level schools reopened at the start of September after being closed since mid-March as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

General secretary of the union Ciaran Christie said more resources are needed.

"The ultimate concern is for the safety and wellbeing of [staff] and their students. Teachers want to work in a Covid-secure workplace and the arrangements that have been put in place are being operated on a variable basis in some schools and we need more effort and more resourcing."
(TNS)  The Houston Police Department plans to join Harris Countys cite-and-release program, fulfilling advocates long-running request to implement a policy they say keeps low-level offenders out of jail and saves law enforcement resources for more serious threats.In a presentation to the city councils Public Safety Committee, Assistant Chief Wendy Baimbridge on Thursday laid out the program HPD will use for a set of six misdemeanors offenses. The strategy mirrors that already used by the Harris County Sheriffs Office and other local departments, using a program set up by Harris County court-at-law judges.In those cases, officers now would be required to give people a citation with the time and date they must appear in court, instead of hauling them to jail, unless certain exceptions apply. Like the sheriffs office, HPD officers who use their discretion to disqualify an accused offender from the program would have to get supervisor approval and list the reason in their report.Chief Art Acevedo said HPD will implement the program imminently, once he receives the final policy from the Turner administration.Some advocates who have lobbied for the measure for months  and in some cases years  lauded the plan as a victory for the recent movement protesting over-policing and brutality. State law first allowed such programs in 2007, and Turners transition team endorsed the idea in a March 2016 report.The policy isnt perfect, but at the end of the day, its the first real step weve seen toward changing policing in Houston, said Sarah Labowitz of ACLU Texas. The group is part of the Right2Justice Coalition, which released a July report recommending a slew of reforms, including cite and release.Darrell Jordan, a Harris County court-at-law judge who helped design the cite-and-release program, said the city could have opted into the program months ago. The countys cite-and-release court has processed 113 cases since the programs launch in February.I dont believe in applauding people for waiting six months to fix a problem, he said. Thats six months Houstonians had less officers on the streets. How many victims have suffered waiting for police officers to respond? How many alleged criminals have gotten away?Judge Franklin Bynum, who helped craft the program, said HPD, along with the county District Attorneys office, was the most obstructionist during the process. The District Attorneys office did not respond to a request for comment.They were not interested in doing it, he said of HPD.Alex Bunin, the Harris County public defender, was also in the meetings and said of HPD: I dont think that there was a lot of push to get it done.Acevedo denied that, citing his adoption of the policy in Austin before his tenure here. He said cite and release was one of the first things he advocated for when Houston hired him in 2016. He blamed the delay on unspecified technological problems trying to get the city and the county on the same system.Im just grateful that finally the county is putting in the technological systems we needed to get it done, Acevedo said to council members. He told thelater, I have been very, very vocal in my desire to have cite-and-release.  For them to say that, theyre misinformed.The offenses available for cite and release are: criminal mischief of up to $750 in damage; graffiti resulting in up to $2,500 damage; theft of up to $750; theft of service worth up to $750; bringing contraband into a correctional facility; and driving with an invalid license. Minor marijuana arrests will continue to be directed to Harris Countys marijuana diversion program.The Right2Justice report estimated those offenses accounted for 9 percent of HPD arrests from March 2014 to March 2020. That includes 29,000 arrests, nearly half of which involved Black people.Internal numbers show between 2,600 to 3,000 arrests last year would have been eligible for the program, HPD said.The HPD plan does allow for exceptions: eligible people must be 18 or older and a resident of Harris County; they cannot have outstanding warrants or face additional charges that do not qualify for the program. Police can disqualify a person if they refuse to sign the citation or demand an immediate appearance before a judge.There are additional carve-outs for accused offenders that are combative, cannot be positively identified, or if there is reason to believe they will not appear in court. The latter requires supervisor approval, and the basis for this determination shall be specifically stated in the offense report, according to HPDs presentation.Councilmember Mike Knox, the vice chair of the committee and a retired HPD officer, said it is important to give officers discretion in the matter.One of things we dont want to do is get in the way of on-site decisions of patrol officers or supervisors on scene, said Knox.The program has wide buy-in, including the Houston Police Officers Union.If theres a way for us to not take someone to jail, were going to do that, said Ray Hunt, the unions past president. I really would like for you to consider not just cite and release, but warn and release Give us some discretion on Class Bs and As. We have none now.Jay Jenkins, with the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition, questioned how meaningful the change would be in wake of Harris Countys bail reform, which allows certain misdemeanor offenders to quickly get out of jail on a personal recognizance bond, or a promise they will appear in court.Acevedo and other officials said the change still is noteworthy in that could prevent the physical interaction in which an officer handcuffs the offender, which can escalate. It also prevents a persons car from getting impounded if they were driving at the time of the arrest.It is a huge deal when you limit the physical custody, the chief said.Still, some reform advocates said they were concerned giving police wide discretion to make arrests would result with Black and Latino residents facing higher rates of arrests than others.Will entrance into the cite and release program be applied equally and fairly to all that are eligible to participate in the program? asked Joy Davis, with the Texas Organizing Project. Will Black people continue to account for a majority of those arrested when a ticket could have been issued? Progress is being made, but we have a very long way to go.
India on Saturday added 93,337 fresh cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), pushing the cumulative tally past 5.3 million mark as the nation continued its standing as the second worst-hit by the pandemic globally. The countrys death toll reached 85,619 after 1,247 fresh casualties were recorded on Saturday.

The country has recorded an upward trend in cases as it continues to report the highest single-day rise every day for more than five weeks and is expected to take the worst-hit United States in the coming few weeks.

As of Saturday, India has 1,013,964 active cases. According to the health ministry, five Indian states  Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu  account for 60 per cent of the cases in the country but these states also continue to record significant recoveries.

Maharashtra has alone contributed more than 22,000 -- accounting for 23 per cent of the total recoveries and Andhra Pradesh has contributed more than 11,000 -- accounting for 12.3 per cent -- to the single-day recoveries.

Here are the 10 Indian states with the maximum number of active Covid-19 cases:

Maharashtra

Indias worst affected state has been reporting the highest number of active cases. As of Saturday, Maharashtra has 3,01,273 active cases. The total positive cases of Covid-19 reported in the state stands at 1,167,496.

Karnataka

The southern state has been reporting a significant surge in cases and continues to grow as Indias second hotspot of coronavirus infections. The cumulative tally of the state stands past five lakh mark and there are 101,148 active cases in the state as of Saturday. Karnataka also accounts for 9.4 per cent of the recoveries from the infection in the country.

Andhra Pradesh

With 84,423 active cases, Andhra Pradesh is statistically Indias third-biggest hotspot of coronavirus cases. The state has seen more than 8,000 fresh infections and 67 casualties due to the spread of viral disease. The state has also registered an increase in recoveries with 11,803 patients being cured.

Uttar Pradesh

Uttar Pradesh, as of Saturday, reported 67,825 active cases of Covid-19. It reported 6,584 fresh positive cases of Covid-19 in the last 24 hours, pushing the infection tally to 3,42,788.

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu, one of the five states accounting for 60 per cent of the total cases reported in the country, has 46,506 active cases, the health ministry stated. The Covid-19 positivity rate in Tamil Nadu declined below 10 per cent from 30 per cent for the first time, officials said. However, the active cases in Tamil Nadu have reportedly been on a decline.

Chhattisgarh

Indias sixth-biggest Covid-19 hotspot, Chhattisgarh, has 36,580 active cases. The state has 81,617 total confirmed cases, out of which 64,700 Covid-19 cases were recorded in the last one month.

Kerala

Kerala, Indias first state to report Covid-19 cases in January this year, has 35,795 active cases. For the second successive day, Kerala reported over 4,000 Covid-19 cases on Friday, taking the total infection count to 1,26,381. The state has seen a rise in Covid-19 cases as it recorded its highest single-day spike of 4,351 cases within a span of 24 hours on Thursday.

Odisha

As of Saturday, Odisha has 33,092 active cases of Covid-19, according to the health ministry data. The state has reported a total of 1,71,341 positive cases of Covid-19.

Delhi

With an increased focus on testing, the national capital is witnessing a surge in cases of Covid-19. Delhi, as of Saturday, has 32,250 active cases of Covid-19.

Telangana

At present, Telangana has 30,636 active cases. In the last 24 hours, Telangana added 2,123 new Covid-19 cases, pushing the total infection count to 1,69,169, while the death toll rose to 1,025 with nine more fatalities.
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday at 87. (Kiichiro Sato / Associated Press)

To the editor: The Notorious RBG, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, has passed away.

She would have been a legal icon even if she were not a Supreme Court justice. Her advocacy as the preeminent civil rights attorney of her time in establishing women's equal rights confirms her as one of the legal giants of the last 100 years, along with Justice Thurgood Marshall. Both were great advocates and justices.

Now, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell needs to honor her final wishes  that Donald Trump not appoint her replacement. She fought like hell to survive Trump's presidency. Democrats need to understand that the Supreme Court is an election issue and force moderate Senate Republicans up for re-election like Cory Gardner, Susan Collins, Martha McSally and Thom Tillis to commit that they will not confirm a Trump nominee now, or in a lame duck session. Trump can't be allowed to confirm a third Supreme Court justice in the last gasps of his terminal presidency.

We need a Supreme Court justice who will continue RBG's legacy of equal rights for all.

David McLane, Pasadena

..

To the editor: Courageous, determined, small in stature but an intellectual giant would surely describe Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Women have lost an advocate. I doubt that we will ever see the likes of another feminist icon like Ginsburg. Never has there been someone as resolved to stay well so that she could carry on with her beloved job. If it was up to Ginsburg, she probably would have kept her seat for another 27 years.

At a diminutive 51 yet standing heads above everyone else, Ginsburg leaves enormous shoes to fill.

JoAnn Lee Frank, Clearwater, FL

..

To the editor: Ruth Bader Ginsburg: groundbreaking civil rights lawyer; visionary liberal justice of the United States Supreme Court; survivor of multiple bouts of cancer.

A great soul has left us. There will not be another like her.

Marcia Goodman, Long Beach

..

To the editor: The passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a tragedy for our nation. She was a pioneer, a fighter and an inspiration. Her name and legacy will be celebrated for as long as America endures. May she rest in peace, and may our thoughts be with her family and many friends.

Paul Bacon, Hallandale Beach, FL




With government funds to peoples representatives -- Members of Parliament, Members of Legislative Assembly and Municipal Councillors -- remaining suspended in view of austerity measures due to the coronavirus pandemic, residents have complained that several local development works such as repair of roads and parks, construction of drains, community centres and public toilets have taken a hit.

Rajiv Kakria, member of Greater Kailash-I Residents Welfare Association (RWA), said, Already, MLAs in the city had informed us that they have not got their funds since March this year, so no new projects can be taken up. Now, MPLADs have also been suspended for as long as two years. What was the logic of unlocking the city when the elected representatives are not able to even help the taxpayers? These funds are allotted through the taxes we diligently pay.

The Union Cabinet had decided in April to suspend the MP Local Area Development (MPLAD) fund for two years so that the money could be utilised for governments efforts to fight the pandemic. Each MP can suggest taking up of works to the tune of Rs 5 crore in his/her constituency.

The Delhi government had suspended local area development funds to the MLAs in March. MLALAD funds have been suspended because of Covid-19 related expenses. There is no proposal to resume payment of funds as of now, Delhi urban development minister Satyendar Jain had informed the Delhi Assembly during a special one-day session held on Monday.

Each Delhi MLA gets Rs 10 crore for taking up projects in his/her constituency.

There are 272 municipal councillors in Delhi, who get Rs 1 crore per year for development works in their wards. The councillors, except those from the South Delhi Municipal Corporation who have been given 25 lakh each so far, have not been paid the funds since the start of the financial year.

South Delhi MP Ramesh Bidhuri said, Two years is a long time. We will have to figure out a way to address the demands of the people of my constituency. For now, I have cancelled plans of building community centres in my area.

Residents, however, say though the government has gradually de-escalated restrictions imposed to curb the spread of Covid-19 under its Unlock plans, the continued suspension of funds meant for local area development was affecting creation and maintenance of public infrastructure, health and community services.

Saurabh Gandhi, general secretary United Residents of Delhi (URD)  a joint forum of RWAs  said there were many areas such as Model Town, Janakpuri, Azadpur, walled city, Sultanpuri, Mangolpuri, Kirari, among others where pock-marked internal roads, poorly maintained parks, dysfunctional street lights have emerged as a big issue. These are small scale projects, which are taken up through funds of the area councillor or the MLA. But they have told us that they cant even get a broken grill repaired. The authorities should come up with a system in which local development works do not suffer due to fund crunch, Gandhi said.

Somnath Bharti, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA from Malviya Nagar, said he had to turn away a few requests from RWAs to install open gym and swings in parks and to repair a few roads.

People in my constituency largely understand that these are unprecedented times. There is no dearth of money as such for me because I already have unspent money from last year allotted for different projects. Thankfully, in the last term, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal increased MLALAD funds from Rs 4 crore per annum to Rs 10 crore in 2018, Bharti said.

Vijender Gupta, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from Rohini, said he had sent a combined proposal with an estimated cost of Rs 2 crore for different works to the state urban development department.

The department, however, kept the proposal in abeyance saying no fresh proposals from MLAs will be accepted until further orders. Works such as installation of CCTV cameras to fixing new LED bulbs in street lights have come to a standstill. Worst part is that the government has given no clarity on till when MLALAD funds shall remain suspended, Gupta said.

Also read: Nod to bill On 30% Pay cut for MPs; Oppn seeks restoration of MPLADS FUNDS

The Delhi government did not respond when asked for a comment on the matter.

Jai Prakash, mayor North Delhi Municipal Corporation, said so far this year, no fund has been disbursed to councillors as the civic body was going through an acute financial crisis which has only worsened due to pandemic.

We understand that councillors need funds to carry out development works in their areas, but at present our priority is to give salaries to our employees. Coronavirus outbreak have drastically curtailed our revenue generation. The situation can improve if the Delhi government gives us our due funds worth Rs 1084 crore, Prakash said.

Click here for complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

The Delhi government has maintained that it has paid funds to the corporations and owes no dues.

KS Mehra, former municipal commissioner of the unified MCD, said the situation calls for all agencies to ramp up their revenue generation. The focus should not only be on revenue generation, but ensuring close to 100% revenue collection is even more important. Yet, the coronavirus pandemic is an extraordinary situation. It would be best if the government looks at it from a larger perspective and covers most of these works under state-run projects for now, if, say, disbursing Rs 700 crore for MLALAD funds is not possible at the moment, he said.
London: Amal Clooney has quit as a special United Kingdom envoy for media freedom over the British government's threat to renege on the Brexit deal signed with the European Union.

Clooney wrote to Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab on Friday saying she was "dismayed" by the government's own admission that a bill it, currently before the Commons, to override the agreement would be breaking international law.

Human rights lawyer Amal Clooney said she was "dismayed" by the government's actions. Credit:AP

"It is lamentable for the UK to be speaking of its intention to violate an international treaty signed by the Prime Minister less than a year ago," Clooney said.

The human rights lawyer with London's Doughty Street Chambers  which represents Julian Assange  said she had waited to discuss the matter with Raab directly before quitting, but had to resign having received "no assurance that any change of position is imminent".
Five African-Americans in Hamilton County were hung and/or shot during the lynch law era in the South during the post-Civil War days. One exception to this deplorable situation was during the administration of Hamilton County Sheriff John Skillern in 1892.

In May 1892, Frank Weims, a black, attempted to sexually assault a white woman in a wooded area in Hill City (North Chattanooga). Weims was caught immediately and brought to the Hamilton County Jail. Indignation was high, reflecting the bitter social feelings through the South during this time. Sheriff Skillern, recognizing the potential danger of a mob to attempt to kill the prisoner, immediately sent the prisoner out of town. As anticipated that night, a riotous crowd stormed the jail only to learn that the prisoner was not there. Two deputies, jailer Holt and deputy Frank Selcer, acting pursuant to Sheriff Skillerns orders, began a memorable journey transporting Weims from one jail to another through the state.

Their job was made difficult by the practice of telegraph operators, contrary to company rules, wiring ahead to Chattanooga rioters and those along the route being informed as to their movements. At many train stations troublemakers demanded that the officers turn the prisoner over to them for lynching accompanied by threats against the law officers. Since the officers could not take the prisoner out of Tennessee they found many jails in the state closed to them.

A local newspaper in Middle Tennessee reported that the jails had standing room only cards on the front of the jail and that the City of Memphis shook at even at the suggestion that Weims be brought to the Bluff City. The prisoner was incarcerated in Nashville for a while and several officers were wounded in a confrontation with a mob. It took a subterfuge of giving Weims a market basket with instructions to walk up the street smoking a cigarette in a casual manner surrounded by three officers guarding him to escape the crowd.

Getting back to Chattanooga the two lawmen left for East Tennessee but were met by a howling and well organized mob at every turn. Being forewarned that an angry crowd awaited them at the Wauhatchie station, they threw Weims off the train and then jumped after him. After reaching Chattanooga they hurriedly left on a train bound for Knoxville but, after finding no room in the jail there, they went on to Morristown.

In the meantime the conditions had gotten worse in Chattanooga. An armed mob had demanded that they be allowed to check the jail to see if the prisoner was there. Sheriff Skillern requested that a committee of citizens perform such task and then persuaded the crowd to disperse. This, however, did not totally appease the angry group. A public meeting was called for at the courthouse on May 26 to reverse the apparent order of the day by putting the law above the wild and wooly mob.

The meeting was presided over by the Reverend T.H. McCallie who addressed those assembled on the harm that lawlessness could bring the community. After much debate a list of resolutions endorsing law and order were approved and adopted by those assembled. The citizens also applauded Sheriff Skillern and his staff for the way they had handled the case so far.

The most explosive potential still remained. Weims had to be brought for trial. Sheriff Skillern met the train in broad daylight at the depot with 75 trusted, determined, well-armed citizens. They marched up the middle of the street with the prisoner who would later enter a plea to a charge of assault with intent to commit rape and received a sentence of 25 years.

They once again called on the community for help and they responded in assisting the Sheriff to get Weims to the state penitentiary as armed guards to prevent any violence or unlawful demonstration. Skillern and his deputies as well as Judge John A. Moon, who presided over Weims trial, were congratulated for the manner in which the unsavory incident was handled. Hamilton County received accolades all across Tennessee for its fervent desire and strenuous effort to follow the law.

Unfortunately, within a year (1893) the community failed to maintain this standard of conduct and returned to the use of the lynch law and the first hanging of a young black (Alfred Blount) was held on the Walnut Street Bridge for the assault of an elderly woman in her home in downtown Chattanooga.

After his second term of office expired in 1894, Sheriff Skillern moved to Idaho where he raised sheep and became the biggest wool producer in the state.

* * *

Jerry Summers



(If you have additional information about one of Mr. Summers' articles or have suggestions or ideas about a future Chattanooga area historical piece, please contact Mr. Summers at jsummers@summersfirm.com
Cuba's "Electronic Government" Subjected to Surveillance by a Virtual "Accountability Assembly" For the first time citizens have a forum for critical commentary, rectification and condemnation.

"With regards to the rumors circulating on social media about the alleged commencement of monetary unification as of October 1, 2020, the Central Bank of Cuba hereby clarifies that this information is not true." Thus began the official memorandum issued by the banking institution, which last week moved to deny the umpteenth rumor about a government measure that Cubans dread.

These kinds of denials and clarifications are increasingly common, given the habitual opacity and sluggishness with which matters of great public sensitivity are disclosed through the "official channels" on the island. The spread of the Internet into Cubans' homes and mobile phones constitutes an unresolved challenge for this mechanism, as citizens publicize events and initiate discussions at speeds that were formerly unthinkable.

The new scenario took on its most stark manifestation in 2018 when Miguel Diaz-Canel began to insist that high-ranking officials in his government appear on social media as this, he said, was in the interest of a "more efficient public administration" in Cuba.

But, with regards to the administration of public information, this "electronic government" has turned the top-down formula Cuba inherited from the Soviet Union on its head. With it also came a kind of "accountability assembly" conducting surveillance that is proving to a be an increasingly painful thorn in officials sides.

Today, the social networks are forums where, for the first time in Cuban history, citizens have an instrument for condemnation, critical commentary, rectification and condemnation.

The Cuban authorities' level of exposure to this has given rise to events such as the correction that Diaz-Canel himself had to issue in August, after erroneously announcing on his Twitter page that: "The US has suspended all charter flights: a measure to further isolate Cuban families" in the wake of a new sanction levied by Washington on Havana.

The error did not go unnoticed by Cubans on the networks. "Enough of the lies and misinformation. The US suspended only private charters, which do not affect families at all. They are used by politicians, officials, businessmen and artists who can afford to avoid normal flights. It only affects people like you," Pedro Perez snapped on the pages forum.

Taoro added: "You criticize the US's measures against your regime, but you are retaining the humanitarian aid sent by Cubans from Miami in the Port of Mariel, and keeping this aid from reaching the Cubans who need it. You are a hypocrite and a cynic."

"In the face of hostile rhetoric from the US, you continue to sell food and basic necessities to the people in dollars, at a 300% profit margin," he added.

Mariela Castro, a "victim" of social media

Although most officials and their network administrators tend to ignore these and other comments, and prefer to just post rather than engage in conversations, in some cases the criticisms have had on an impact on their audiences.

Mariela Castro, Director of the National Center for Sex Education (CENESEX), perhaps one of the most criticized Cuban officials, went so far as to call "trained hyenas", "worms" and "traitors" the many people who criticized her for a set of controversial tweets she emitted regarding the celebration of the Day of the Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre, Patron Saint of Cuba.

Following the criticisms she received, regime official Iroel Sanchez described the attacks against Raul Castro's daughter as "hateful bullying paid for out of Miami," while followers of Mariela and official spokesmen went so far as to launch the hashtag #YoApoyoAMariela (#ISupportMariela) to show their support for the Cuban deputy.

This brief clash revealed how exposed Havana officials are to the virtual assembly. Accustomed to impunity, and the criminalization of critical voices, scrutiny now finds them fragile and devoid of arguments.

But this scrutiny goes beyond isolated criticisms and even extends to the creation of collective initiatives whose aim is to denounce the regime. At the end of August one of them seized upon complaints voiced in Havana about Google's temporary blockage of the YouTube accounts of various official media, to launch the hashtag #CubaMeBloquea (#CubaBlocksMe) which was promoted on Twitter to condemn regime officials censorship of network users, accompanying it with screenshots of the blockage alerts.

This kind of initiative dates back to 2019, when the Inventory Project, with the hashtag #InventariarBloqueo (#InventoryBlockage), began documenting complaints against officials who censor citizens. In this first stage it posted dozens of cases of this nature on its Twitter page.

A recent trend that is picking up steam is the use of "parody accounts," which employ humor to ridicule Cuban officials and their solemnity.

DIARIO DE CUBA searched Twitter and found at least 14 parody accounts of this nature, whose main targets are ministers and senior officials: Manuel Marrero, Alejandro Gil Fernandez, Fernando Rojas and Abel Prieto, among others, have parody avatars.

But the G2 also has a parody profile: "The objective of this account is to show the world how repulsive this repressive Castro political apparatus is; you can insult it, and I will respond as they would," says the tweet posted on the account @esbirrosdecastr, one of the many going after the Government.
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Malibu, CA, Sep 19, 2020 AEST (ABN Newswire) - In this segment of The Ellis Martin Report, we speak with David Suda, President and CEO of Gold Terra Corp ( CVE:YGT ) ( OTCMKTS:YGTFF ). The company just signed an agreement to earn up to a 60% Interest on adjacent mining Claims to the former Con Mine owned by Newmont Mining.To listen to the interview, please visit:About Gold Terra Resource Corp.

Gold Terra Resource Corp. (CVE:YGT) (OTCMKTS:YGTFF) owns a 100% interest in the Yellowknife City Gold ("YCG") Project, encompassing 790 sq km of contiguous land within 12 kilometers of the city of Yellowknife. The Project is located in the prolific Yellowknife greenstone belt, covering 70 kilometers of strike length along the main mineralized break in proximity to the former high-grade Con and Giant gold mines which have produced over 14 million ounces of gold. The YCG Project is close to vital infrastructure, including all-season roads, air transportation, service providers, hydro-electric power and skilled tradespeople. On November 4, 2019, Gold Terra announced an Inferred mineral resource of 735,000 ounces of gold for the YCG Project, consisting of a pit constrained Inferred mineral resource of 11.6 million tonnes averaging 1.4 g/t for 523,000 ounces of contained gold and an underground Inferred mineral resource of 1.2 million tonnes averaging 5.7 g/t for 212,000 ounces of contained gold.

About The Ellis Martin Report

The Ellis Martin Report (TEMR) is an internet based radio program showcasing potentially undervalued companies to an audience of potential retail investors and fund managers that comprise our listening audience. TEMR is broadcasted on the VoiceAmerica Business Channel and The Opportunity Radio Network. CEO and company interviews are paid for by those represented on the program.
On Friday, the State University of New York (SUNY) Oswego announced that it is moving to full online instruction for the next two weeks due to the rapid spread of coronavirus on campus. Oswego is now the second SUNY school that has been forced to switch to remote learning after an outbreak of COVID-19. The first school to enter this phase was SUNY Oneonta, which was forced to close for the rest of the semester after more than 500 students became infected in less than two weeksthe number of confirmed infections has since risen to 723.

New York state regulations dictate that any SUNY school that reports more than 100 cases in a 14-day period must close down for a two-week period to control the spread of the virus. Oswego has not yet reached the 100-case threshold, but with 90 new on campus cases in just eight days and 199 in total, the writing was on the wall for the upstate New York school.

This is neither a blameless tragedy nor an accident as SUNYs administrators were perfectly aware of the risk that reopening and bringing students back to campus in the middle of a pandemic posed. The outbreak at Oswego and thousands of campuses across the United States is direct consequence of the policy of malign neglect, deployed indiscriminately upon the population by both Democrats and Republicans.

Taking a page from the playbook of school officials elsewhere, SUNY Chancellor James Malatras sought to place the blame for the outcome of Oswegos reckless policies on students themselves. Speaking at a press conference, Malatras remarked: It only takes a handful of irresponsible actions by a few to spread this vicious virus across an entire campus. Additionally, Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo told the press before schools reopened that 'we should anticipate clusters... When you have large congregations of people, anticipate a cluster. Be prepared for it. Get ahead of it.'

Why are schools open then? The state and SUNY administrations know that they are forcing students, professors and campus workers into unsafe conditions, yet pretend they are doing nothing wrong while passing all blame onto students. Cuomo and Malatras would set a house on fire then blame it for being made out of wood.

The vast majority of students have done everything they can to prevent the transmission of the virus. The fact that a handful of irresponsible people could undo all the efforts of SUNY to contain COVID-19of which few were madeshows that the true irresponsibility was in the decision to send students back on campus despite the obvious risks.

SUNY administrators have put the barest amount of effort into protecting students. Only three of the 64 SUNY schools required testing before or during student move-in. Oswego was prematurely praised for being the third highest testing school, with 6,917 tests issued on campus. However, only 606 tests were conducted between 12 September and 18 September: Just three tests for every infected person since then!

Just last week Malatras hailed SUNY Oswego for its quality planning and testing. Malatras declared that Oswegos strategy, which has resulted in a cascade of illnesses, was a good plan well executed.

The true explanation for this disaster in schools across New York stateand for that matter across the countryis that the drive to reopen schools is a front-line battle in the campaign to reopen the economy. Both the Democratic and Republican parties have agreed on a central policy to let schools and workplaces reopen regardless the cost to the health and lives of workers and students.

The SUNY system is an accessory to this campaign. SUNY chancellor James Malatras has close ties to the New York Democratic Party and Governor Cuomo. Malatras worked as an advisor to Cuomo when he served as Attorney General and as Cuomos director of state operations from 2014 to 2017.

Malatras is just the second person in 71 years to be appointed SUNY chancellor from the inner circle of a sitting governor. His appointment is clearly political, shown by his limited experience as a school administrator and the lack of a national search for potential candidates. His predecessor also had close connections to the Democratic Party. The previous chancellor, Kristina M. Johnson, who resigned to become president of Ohio State University, was the undersecretary of energy in the Obama administration from 2009-2010.

The political motives of the administrators within SUNY are apparent, and they are creating disastrous conditions by rejecting all scientific understanding on how to fight the spread of COVID-19. The 100 cases in two weeks threshold is fairly arbitrary, and was only dropped from 9 percent of the school population after mass outbreaks ripped through schools in other states.

The 14-day testing period is also designed without clear definition for when those two-week periods take place. Basic logic would dictate that it would be a rolling 14-day period, in other words, total cases in any continuous set of 14 days regardless of when those cases began.

However, the state of New York has given schools free rein to interpret this policy however they like. The facts show this is ridiculous. By Monday, September 14, Oswego had reported over 140 cases within a 14-day period. Instead of closing, however, as the state guidelines should have required, Oswego was allowed by the state and SUNY to remain open on the claim that a new 14-day period had begun on September 12, and therefore the new cases that had brought the total over 100 did not apply towards that threshold.

By September 19 the total number of cases was 199. Fourteen days earlier, on September 5, the total was 8. With 191 cases in a two-week period, Oswego could have almost shut down two colleges on its own but was still refusing to switch to online classes. Essentially, the tally of COVID-19 resets every 14 days at SUNY.

Highlighting the antiscientific and murderous character of this policy, epidemiologist Colleen McLaughlin, who chairs the Population Health Sciences Department at the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, referred to Oswegos policy as an arbitrary cut-off point, according to the Albany Times Union.

Such are the demands of the policy of herd immunity. It does not matter how many people are infected as long as workers can be forced back on the job to make profits for the capitalists. Towards that end students and educators must be the first casualties in this offensive on the working class.

The drive to reopen schools and workplaces must be stopped. Only workers and students, armed with a socialist perspective, can organize to oppose this deadly campaign. The International Youth and Students for Social Equality calls on youth, students and faculty members looking for a serious strategy to fight against the homicidal school reopening policy to join the IYSSE and take up the fight for socialism.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 18:45:29|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- As the raging COVID-19 pandemic is dragging an increasing number of people into poverty across the world, China's poverty alleviation efforts are offering hope.

China's achievements and efforts in fighting poverty have not only contributed to the global cause of poverty reduction, but also set a pioneering example of practical significance to the international community.

In the past seven decades, China has managed to lift 850 million people out of poverty, which accounts for more than 70 percent of global poverty alleviation, setting a record in human history. At the end of 2019, the number of impoverished people in China's rural areas fell to 5.51 million from 98.99 million in 2012.

Furthermore, China is on course to eradicate extreme poverty across the country by 2020, which will make the country the first in the world to end absolute poverty.

Given China's large population, such achievements contributed not only to the global cause of poverty alleviation, but also improved the human rights of the Chinese people.

Ending poverty tops the 17 United Nations (UN) 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. However, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the global response to realizing poverty and environmental goals agreed by world leaders in 2015 has not been "ambitious enough," and it would be very difficult to bring the rate of extreme poverty below 3 percent by 2030. Even worse, the UN has predicted that the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic would cause an increasing number of people to fall into poverty.

Will China's path help the world lessen global worries over poverty? The answer is yes. If eradicating poverty can be achieved in such a big and formerly impoverished country like China, other countries are hopeful they can do it as well.

Poverty alleviation is a "microcosm" of China's development, as it demonstrates how the country's system actually works on the ground, said Robert Lawrence Kuhn, a leading U.S. expert on China and chairman of the Kuhn Foundation.

China's experience has also shown that the poverty alleviation cause must be based on one country's own national conditions and entails practical actions and the involvement of the whole society.

To maximize poverty alleviation results, Beijing has arranged different funds and customized support according to different situations in villages and families.

International engagement has also played a key role in China's poverty alleviation cause.

International organizations including the United Nations Development Programme and the World Food Programme have supported China, and China also played an active role in global cooperation, offering much help to other countries' poverty-reduction efforts via providing material, financial aid or personnel support.

Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has praised China's national development and success in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals, saying it was integral to global gains in the field.

As always, unilateralism and protectionism pose a stumbling block in the global cause of poverty reduction. The world should remain sober and realize that only through open cooperation can we embrace common development, which is the fundamental way to wipe out poverty.

Meanwhile, extreme poverty is not about a lack of income alone, or faults of individuals or families, said Olivier De Schutter, UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights. "It's about political choices that exclude, discriminate and marginalize people," he said.

China's poverty reduction efforts will never end as alleviating poverty in all forms still remains a long-term cause for the whole world. Thus it is indispensable for countries to tackle this common challenge facing humanity with strong political wills, targeted policies and close international cooperation. Enditem
Bike Blockers

Clearing the streets ahead of the march

In early June, Justina Heckard, who works as a music manager, took her bike to demonstrations as a social distancing measure. She said she was soon asked to help divert traffic along with other bike protesters.

At a march on June 6 in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, Ms. Heckard, 32, and a dozen other cyclists pedaled ahead to clear a route. It was there, she said, that they crossed paths with a motorist who refused to take another street and threatened to drive through the incoming marchers.

With their fellow protesters approaching, the cyclists didnt know how to respond. One stood in front of the car, as shown in a video of the incident, and another tried to jump on the cars roof.

A few seconds later, Ms. Heckard said, the driver accelerated, injuring one protester. That night, demonstrators realized bicyclists needed to be better prepared if they were going to be the first line of defense against motorists.

Now, bike blockers work to de-escalate tensions when they meet uncooperative motorists and form tight lines to block traffic.

This tactic, however, is technically not allowed without a permit, which most protests lack. For the safety of all New Yorkers, we cannot support any blocking of traffic that is not authorized by a government agency, said a spokeswoman for the Police Department.
On September 16, President Donald Trump announced a new slate of 20 potential nominees to the Supreme Court in the event of a vacancy in his second term in office or the remainder of his first term.

President Trump is slowly building key issues that will encourage conservative voters to support him this November 2020. The names that the president listed are additions to an original list that has been updated in the past four years.

Supreme Court pick

During one of his White House press briefings, President Trump called appointing justices to the Supreme Court the most important decision that an American president can make. The president said that if he wins a second term, he could be called upon to name four new justices.

President Trump said that since the task is very important, it is right to tell the American people of the list of individuals he is considering for the United States Supreme Court, according to CNN.

The latest addition to President Trump's list includes three sitting U.S senators; they are Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, and Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri. The president also included his current lawyers that are working for his administration.

Also Read: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi Could Be Ousted If Donald Trump Wins Re-Election

Former Solicitor General Noel Francisco, who argued on behalf of the Trump administration before the Supreme Court, is also included in the list of the new contenders, as well as former Solicitor General Paul Clement, who worked under President George W. Bush.

President Trump also raised familiar names such as Judge Amy Coney Barrett of the 7th U.S Circuit Court of Appeals and Judge Thomas Hardiman of the 3rd U.S Circuit Court of Appeals, both of whom were considered to fill Justice Anthony Kennedy's seat after his retirement in 2018.

After the death of U.S Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, both Republicans and Democrats are now waiting on who will take her place.

There are two Supreme Court justices that are of old age, Justice Stephen Breyer is now 82 years old, and the longest-serving member of the Supreme Court, Justice Clarence Thomas, is now 72 years old.

Attacking Biden

At the White House, the president derided former Vice President and candidate Joe Biden for not releasing his own list of Supreme Court nominees, claiming that Biden has not done so because his candidates would be "so far left that they could never withstand public scrutiny."

President Trump mentioned in June 2020 that he would roll out his list of potential justices after his administration's efforts to roll back the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program were blocked by the high court in a close 5-4 decision.

The president then vowed to select a nominee that is exclusively from the list, and now the people are waiting who he will pick to fill the spot of Ginsburg.

The appointment of a new Supreme Court justice is anticipated by the American people. According to a poll conducted by CBS News, 70% of Americans said that appointments to the Supreme Court is an important factor in deciding their vote for president.

Related Article: Who is Supreme Court Justice Ruth Baden Ginsburg? The Woman Known as the 'Notorious RBG' Dies Age 87

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Democrats on Wednesday asked the North Dakota Supreme Court to put their replacement candidate for insurance commissioner on the ballot, a week after justices removed their previous nominee.

The Democratic-NPL Party's Executive Committee on Friday endorsed Mutual of Omaha insurance agent Jason Anderson, of Fargo, for state insurance commissioner. He would replace Travisia Martin, a critical care respiratory specialist in Bismarck. Republican incumbent Jon Godfread is seeking a second term, running unopposed.

The five justices last week unanimously found Martin "not eligible to hold the office of insurance commissioner," as her North Dakota residency falls short of a five-year requirement for executive branch officials. North Dakota's Republican Party had challenged her residency, citing her November 2016 vote in Nevada, which Martin did not dispute.

The Democratic-NPL Party on Monday sued Secretary of State Al Jaeger, who has until Sept. 9 to certify the November ballot for county auditors. In emails filed in court documents, Jaeger and Party Chairwoman Kylie Oversen disagree as to whether a vacancy exists for the party to fill following the court's ruling on Martin's ineligibility.

The Democratic-NPL Party argues that state law allows it to substitute a candidate after the Supreme Court found Martin ineligible.

Party attorney David Thompson cited Jaeger as having previously "qualified" Martin as a candidate for the June primary ballot, which he argues created a spot for the party on the November general election ballot. He argued that "'qualified' and 'eligible' are not interchangeable here."

"Specifically, our position is that Secretary of State Jaeger erroneously engaged in ... (an) exercise of circular logic by rejecting these filings," Thompson said.

North Dakota Solicitor General Matt Sagsveen, who represents Jaeger, said in court briefs that Martin's ineligibility wasn't a new event, but "a continuous state of being."

"Her status of her qualified residence could not stop because it never started," he told the court.

Justices will rule later.

Republicans hold all of North Dakota's statewide offices and congressional seats, and control its Legislature.

A Democrat last ran the Insurance Department in 2000. The annual salary is $110,582.

Reach Jack Dura at 701-250-8225 or jack.dura@bismarcktribune.com.

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In the ongoing process of gradually resuming international flights, the civil aviation ministry has added more destinations to the list of countries where Indians can fly. Civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri had earlier announced that talks were on with 13 countries to set up air bubbles, which has now been finalised, the minister tweeted.

Air Bubbles are in place with 13 countries.



Others are being finalised.



In addition to existing countries, people can also fly between India & Afghanistan, Bahrain, Canada, France, Germany, Iraq, Maldives, Nigeria & Qatar.



Carriers of India & these countries will operate.  Hardeep Singh Puri (@HardeepSPuri) September 18, 2020

List of countries:

1. US

2. UK

3. Canada

4. Qatar

5. France

6. Germany

7. Afghanistan

8. UAE

9. Maldives

10. Iraq

11. Nigeria

12. Bahrain

13. Japan

Also Read | Suspension on Air India Express flights to Dubai withdrawn

Air bubbles are bilateral agreements through which a specific number of airlines, from both the countries, can fly. However, the agreement doesnt permit an airline to fly passengers from somewhere else before or after the journey between the two countries, which have signed the agreement.

After all countries put an embargo on international flights for months to stop importing Covid-19 cases, air bubbles are the only through which international travel has resumed since August. Countries were only allowing repatriating flights during lockdowns.

India entered into air bubbles with the US, the UK, Germany and France earlier. The rest of the countries have been added recently. More destinations will be added soon, the minister has said.

While repatriating flights are one way and the passengers have to register themselves with the embassy to board such flights, air bubble flights are both ways. Passengers can book tickets directly from the airlines.
It's a bit light on the fiction front, but what did you expect?

Bill Gates says that Donald Trumps travel bans may actually have worsened the coronavirus pandemic not helped it.

The billionaire Microsoft founder insists in a new interview that the speed with which the bans were introduced at the beginning of the crisis did not allow for proper testing or quarantines.

Gates makes the claims in the interview with Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday set to air this weekend.

The president issued a travel ban for China on 31 January when the virus was raging in Wuhan, and issued bans from European countries and others with outbreaks in February and March.

"We created this rush, and we didnt have the ability to test or quarantine those people, said Mr Gates.

"And so that seeded the disease here. You know, the ban probably accelerated that, the way it was executed.

Mr Wallace then pushed Mr Gates on if he thought the bans had made the situation worse, not better?

"March saw this incredible explosion, the west coast coming from China and then the east coast coming out of Europe, and so, even though wed seen China and wed seen Europe, that testing capacity and clear message of how to behave wasnt there, replied Mr Gates.

Earlier this week Mr Gates told Bloomberg that the Food and Drug Administration had lost a lot of credibility in its handling of the crisis.

Mr Gates has been a vocal critic of the way the US has prepared for pandemics and responded to Covid-19.

You know, this has been a mismanaged situation every step of the way, Mr Gates told medical news website Stat.

Its shocking. Its unbelievable, the fact that we would be among the worst in the world.

The philanthropist said that in the early days of the crisis experts from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation were in touch with the Trump administration, urging officials to come up with a comprehensive testing plan, and to get surveillance data up on the website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Theres no question the United States missed the opportunity to get ahead of the novel coronavirus, Mr Gates wrote in an op-ed for the Washington Post on 31 March.

Story continues

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HALIFAXSome people who were near a Nova Scotia cement plant last weekend say theyre concerned about a shower of sticky, white dust from the factory that landed on properties and vehicles.

Jason Sorflaten, a Halifax resident who was visiting his parents home in Brookfield, N.S., says he witnessed a hazy cloud coming from the Lafarge cement plant Saturday night.

Sorflaten, who is an auto detailer, says a film formed on his Volvo through the night, and hes been unable to wash it off.

There was weird whitish dust all over the car, he said in an interview on Friday.

Ive tried washing the car. I work at a detailing shop, and its not coming off. Ill have to start scrubbing, and to get it off, its going to scratch the paint.

His mother, Lydia Sorflaten, said a number of people in her Brookfield neighbourhood complained to the Environment Department because a heavy, gritty, granular film was deposited over the weekend, and it pebbled and stuck to the cars.

Robert Cumming, a spokesman for the company, said in an email Friday that there was an incident last Saturday evening in the main plant control system, which resulted in a sudden shutdown of the entire plant.

He says the suddenness of the outage meant that there was a short, unpreventable discharge of dust which, when combined with local wind conditions, resulted in some visible dust on some of our neighbours homes.

Cumming says the incident was reported, and the company is working directly with the Nova Scotia Environment Department and residents to address concerns.

The spokesman said the emission wasnt related to the factorys burning of scrap tires.

Barbara MacLean, an Environment Department spokeswoman, confirmed there was an incident which may have resulted in the release of cement kiln dust on some neighbouring properties.

She said the company reported it to the department, and complied with the requirements of their approval in dealing with the issue. She said Lafarge has offered to clean the affected properties.

The company received approval from the province in 2018 to burn tires as fuel, despite opposition from some local residents.

Under the terms of its approval, it is required to monitor air quality at regular intervals when the kiln is operating and monitor groundwater and surface water in the area.

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like the Congress, DMK and the TMC on Saturday opposed in Lok Sabha the setting up of the PM CARES Fund, saying it lacked transparency, a charge rejected by the government, with Union Minister hitting back at Congress over alleged donations from government departments to trusts run by the Gandhi family members when the party was in power.

They were participating in the debate on a bill to give effect to various compliance relief measures for taxpayers, including extending time limits for filing returns, in the wake of the coronavirus crisis and tax benefits for donations to

The opposition members targeted the government on the issue of Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PMCARES) Fund, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March so that people can contribute and help in the government's fight against the coronavirus.

"I can't understand the logic to have a separate fund. What is the difference between the Prime Minister's Relief Fund and the PM CARES Fund," said N K Premachandran (RSP), who initiated the debate on The Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020.

He alleged the "lacks transparency as it is not audited by Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG). Further RTI is also not applicable".

"The question of transparency and accountability is the main issue I want to highlight," he said.

Intervening in the debate Minister of State for Finance Thakur asserted that the has been brought with full transparency.

The members of PM CARES fund are the prime minister, the home minster, the finance minister and the defence minster. But in the case of Prime Minister's Relief Fund (PMNRF), the Congress president was also a member.

"Why was the Indian Congress (INC) president a member of PMNRF," he asked the Congress members, alleging that the PMNRF was controlled by "a family".

Mahua Moitra (TMC) opposed the Bill. She said the PM CARES Fund is against public interest as it is not answerable to even though it collects funds from the public.

She said that 38 public sector companies contributed Rs 2,100 crore to the Fund.

This is 70 per cent of the total corpus, she said, adding it should therefore be answerable to

She also alleged that the Fund got money from Chinese firms like Tik Tok banned by India and wondered why the government did not return the donations from such companies.

"Prime Ministers will come and go, but the existence of a fund is not up for discussion? What is this need to name everything after one individual.

"First, you are raising a fund on the basis of a public office. By saying it is not open to RTI, you are running away from transparency," Moitra said.

The Bill amends the provisions of the Income Tax Act to provide the same tax treatment to PM-CARES Fund as available to the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund.

"The donation made to the PM CARES Fund shall be eligible for 100 per cent deduction under section 80G of the IT Act. Further, the limit on deduction of 10 per cent of gross income shall also not be applicable for donation made to PM CARES Fund," an official statement had said.

Backing the fund, Bhartuhari Mahtab (BJD) said he hoped the PM CARES Fund is not only created to tackle COVID-19 but also for different calamities.

Amid protests by Congress members, Thakur persisted with his attack on the party. He said PMNRF was formed in 1948 but was not registered under relevant sections of prevailing laws. He referred to section 12 (A) apparently of the Companies Act. He alleged that it was audited by a private auditor.

Thakur alleged that "they" used to take money from one and pass on the money to the family from other hand.

He also claimed that funds used to be transferred from PMNRF to Rajiv Gandhi Foundation.

He pointed out that Congress had maintained that PMNRF as a public charitable trust, so that there is no need for an audit by CAG.

"The money contributed in PM CARES fund so far is five times the money contributed in PMNRF during the UPA period. Does not it show the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he asked.

Referring to demands to bring PM CARES under the ambit of the RTI, Thakur said, "You had gone to the Delhi High Court against the order of CIC in the case of PMNRF...this is your double standard".

"They have looted all government institutions. They have taken money from all industrial houses and hardly spared any industrial house," he said.

He alleged that one family considers India as its fiefdom.

He also alleged that they took money from Islamist preacher Zakir Naik in 2011 and returned it in 2014. He wondered why it took so long to return the donation. "Did you return money with interest or without interest," he quipped.

The junior minister in the Finance Ministry also used the opportunity to hit out at the leader of Congress party in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Choudhury who had used an objectionable term for Thakur.

Choudhury said he meant that Thakur was a young man.

Union ministers Nirmala Sitharaman and Ravi Shankar Prasad urged the Speaker to remove the term from the records.

Speaker Om Birla said he is removing the term from records and replacing it with "mananiya" (respected).

Earlier, opposing the Bill, Manickam Tagore (Congress) also raised the issue of transparency in the PM CARES Fund.

He wondered if a chief minister of any state can say that he will not disclose the spending under the Chief Minister's Relief Fund.

He alleged that just like demonetisation, the Modi government is providing another opportunity "to convert blackmoney into white".

Without naming anyone, he said "AA battery" is running the Modi government which is why "most of the government contracts are going to some particular companies".

Arvind Sawant (Shiv Sena) said the way tax relief has been given to those who donate money to the PM CARES Fund, similar relief should be extended to the fund created by the Maharashtra government.

(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.)
Internship - Public Information and Outreach, The Hague

Organization: International Criminal Court (ICC)

Country: Netherlands

City: The Hague, Netherlands

Office: ICC The Hague

Closing date: Thursday, 31 December 2020

19160 | Registry

Organisational Unit:

Public Affairs Unit, Registry

Duty Station:

The Hague - NL

Contract Duration:

3 to 6 months

Deadline for Applications:

31/12/2020

Required Documents for This Application

Please note that you will need to have the following information ready in order to complete your application:

A completed Duties and Responsibilities Form (refer to step 1 on your eRecruitment Profile page).

Motivation letter (maximum of 400 words).

Two reference letters (one academic).

Scanned copies of university degrees and/or diplomas.

Scanned copies of official academic transcripts that state your courses, subjects results and completion date.

One short essay on a subject relevant to the work of the Court (maximum of 750 words, single spaced, type written).

Contract Duration

Interns are required to work full time for a period between three and six months (to be agreed to prior to commencement). Internship placements shall not be extended beyond six months.

Organisational Context

Within the Registry and under the direct supervision of the Director of the Division of External Relations and Field Coordination, the Press Information and Outreach Section (PIOS) ensures that the proceedings are accessible to the public, raises awareness, and promotes an understanding about the Courts mandate and activities with the ultimate goal of getting support. It does so in relation to a number of target audiences, including global audiences, mainly encompassing international press and media, victims and communities affected by crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court; and key stakeholders such as legal communities, academics and non-governmental organisations. PIOS achieves its objectives through the use of a variety of communication means including granting interviews to media, production of press releases and other publications and audio visual materials as well as through the website and new social media platforms. PIOS also organises campaigns and is responsible for the organisation of events and visits ranging from general groups to high profile visitors.

Duties and Responsibilities

Media monitoring

Monitoring media and formatting the ICC Daily Press Review, featuring news articles relevant to developments in the ICCs situation countries, as well as media coverage of the Courts activities and proceedings (in English and French)

Website and social media

Monitoring social media

Tags burkina faso central africa hag human resources icc icc_hag internship media monitoring netherlands press releases public information tajik

Support new website/social media projects, assisting in designing infographics and visuals

Assist with photography projects including inserting metadata, compiling selected photos for specific themes and projects, assist in securing permission to use external photographs

Assist with uploading archive of videos onto our server and insert metadata into photographs

General assistance

Help maintain the PAU mailing list

Assisting journalists at the Courts Information Desk during key public hearings, providing them with badges to access the media centre and other practical information

Escorting visitors and arranging meetings when necessary

Take notes at specific meetings

Required Qualifications

Education:

All Candidates must have a degree from or be in the final stages of their studies at a recognized university. Candidates are expected to have a very good record of academic performance.

Experience:

Internship placements focus on candidates in the early stages of their professional careers. Practical experience is not an essential prerequisite for selection. Should there be a practical experience that is relevant to the work of the Court, it may be considered an asset. However, such working experience should not exceed 3 (three) years.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

Adaptability to a multicultural and multilingual working environment encompassing the principal legal traditions of the world.

Ability to work effectively in a team as well as independently.

A good standard of computer literacy (especially Microsoft Office applications)

Other important qualities are discretion, reliability, intellectual rigor, precision, perseverance, honesty, creativity, co-operative spirit and integrity.

Knowledge of Languages:

Proficiency in one of the working languages of the Court, French or English, is required. Working knowledge of the other is considered an asset. Knowledge of another official language of the Court (Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Spanish) is an asset.

Other criteria:

In line with the ICCs efforts to improve geographical representation among staff, nationals of the countries listed below are strongly encouraged to apply.

Non-represented or under-represented countries at the ICC as of 30 November 2019: Afghanistan, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cabo Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, Comoros, Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Estonia, Fiji, Gabon, Germany, Grenada, Guyana, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Japan, Jordan, Latvia, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Montenegro, Namibia, Nauru, North Macedonia, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Republic of Korea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Seychelles, Slovakia, Suriname, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Tunisia, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Zambia.

Remuneration

Please note that the ICC is not able to provide all participants in the Internship and Visiting Professional Programme with remuneration, nor is it possible to provide reimbursement for expenses incurred during the internship or visiting professional placement.

Applicants should therefore be able to support themselves for the duration of their internship or placement.

Limited funding may, however, be available through the ICCs Trust Fund for the Development of Interns and Visiting Professionals, which receives donations from States Parties and other donors to fund nationals of States Parties from developing regions. These donations are equally divided between the four Organs of the Court.

If funding is available, the Human Resources Section shall assess a candidates eligibility in accordance with the terms of reference of the Trust Fund as agreed by the donors.

In order to be eligible, the applicant must, among other criteria, be a national from a country that is a State Party to the Rome Statue and appears on the United Nations Statistics Divisions list of developing regions.

Candidates eligible for funding shall receive detailed information and further instructions after the selection process is finalized. Stipends will always be agreed at the time of offering the internship. No funding will be provided at a later stage.
A Russian tycoon who is presumed to have paid 28,000 for a portrait of Margaret Thatcher in a fund-raising auction will get his money back  not because there is anything wrong with the portrait, or because he does not want it, but because the Conservative Party should not have let him buy it.

Money raised for a political party in an auction counts as a political donation under electoral law. The law does not allow parties to accept donations from foreign nationals, and puts the onus on them to check the source of any money they receive.

The painting was bought during the Tories summer party in July last year. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism spotted that the registered purchaser was an IT firm based on the Park Place estate, near Henley on Thames. That estate was bought by a former president of the Bank of Moscow, Andrei Borodin, for 140m  making it, reputedly, the most expensive home in Britain.

The firm was registered as being run by Mr Borodins personal assistant. The banker was granted asylum in Britain after falling out with the Putin regime, but is not a UK citizen. Nor is his former PA. The bureau challenged the donation, and the Electoral Commission has ordered the Tories to hand the money back.

The Labour MP Sheila Gilmore is now demanding full closure of all contacts between the Tories and the fugitive tycoon. This raises serious questions over the Tory Partys funding, she said. The Tories re-election campaign is bankrolled by a dwindling group of elite donors. We need more transparency over Tory funding.

Brand finds his Nietzche

Russell Brand has explained the long and deep thought process that led him to support independence in last months Scottish referendum campaign. He has told Time Out: If I see David Cameron on my TV telling me to do something, I listen to what he says, and go: F***ing hell! The opposite! What a philosopher!

Ukips Alan Partridge

Mike Read has worked for the BBC for several decades. Hes one of the corporations great stars, Nigel Farage exclaimed on the corporations World at One programme, as he defended the atrocious Ukip calypso with which Read hopes to pollute the music charts. Mike Read has an afternoon show on BBC Radio Berkshire. He is Ukips Alan Partridge.

A salutary warning

A nice email arrived today from Stephan Shakespeare, who runs the polling company YouGov, apologising for any inconvenience caused by a previous YouGov message, which addressed me as Alec. A computer glitch caused a load of people to get Dear Alec emails. That did not inconvenience me at all, but I was slightly put out that the follow-up email addressed me as Dear Salutation. Honestly, I would rather be an Alec than a Salutation.

Peer pressure

I can scarcely wait for this mornings by-election result. Not Rochester and Strood  thats next month. This was an election for a seat in the House of Lords.

Yes, some peers are elected. They are the ones who fill the 92 places still allocated to hereditary peers after the rest were evicted in 1999. Lord Methuen, one of the original 92, died in July. Fifteen men competed for his empty seat, each the holder of an aristocratic title. (No women, of course: titles generally pass down the male line.)

Who will the winner be? Will it be the third Earl of Oxford and Asquith, the 14th Viscount, or the 15th Lord Napier and Ettrick? If not, who? It is like the frisson of excitement you get when you open a new tin of emulsion.
Correction: The Ranchester storefront will be open from 8 am unitl noon on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. An earlier version of this article had stated incorrectly that it would be open from 9 a.m. until 3 p..m.

The Houston Police Department has reopened its storefront in the Chinatown area of west Houston to respond to non-emergency neighborhood safety issues.

This is especially important because, right now, given our political climate, given whats happening in our society, the Asian American community feels more under attack than we have in a very very long time, and this is not just an attack in a metaphorical sense but a real genuine fear of physical danger, state Rep. Gene Wu said at a reopening celebration this week.

Coming together: Asian-American groups band together for COVID relief

The Ranchester Storefront, located at 9160 Bellaire, Ste. F, will be open from 8 a.m. until noon on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, but HPD Midwest Division Commander Jennifer Read emphasized that it is only intended for non-emergency issues. For emergency issues, call 9-1-1.

Congressman Al Green said the police presence will help local businesses not only survive, but thrive.

The reopening event also included the donation of 2,000 masks to the Houston Police Department from Houstons Taipei Economic and Cultural Office along with a donation of 1,000 masks to HPD from Golden Bank, plus a $2,000 check from the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office to the Southwest Management District to help with public safety measures in the area.

In addition to Green, State Representative Gene Wu, Southwest Management District Chairman Kenneth Li, and Robert Lo, the Director-General of Houstons Taipei Economic and Cultural Office, were among the community leaders present.

From May 2020: Chinatown sees signs of life though uncertainty lingers

They helped the community celebrate the reopening of the HPD storefront, which had closed early in the pandemic in an area that Southwest Management District Executive Director Alice Lee called the heart of Chinatown. The Southwest Management District helps oversee the part of Houston that includes Chinatown.

It is really really appreciated that HPD is continuing to keep this storefront open, and we have to give a special thank you to Mayor (Sylvester) Turner and (HPD) Chief (Art) Acevedo for making sure that this storefront stays open to help provide a sense of security and safety for the Asian American community and for the businesses and neighborhoods around here, Wu said.

elliott.lapin@hearst.com
Australia's cyber spy agency has abruptly cancelled a contract with the Australian National University to write its official history despite a military historian working for more than a year on the project.

The Australian Signals Directorate's shock decision to sever ties with professor John Blaxland has raised concern among senior figures in the Morrison government who have been pushing for the agency to be more transparent.

Professor John Blaxland was halfway through the first volume of the ASD's official history.

Professor Blaxland was commissioned last year to write an exhaustive two-volume history of the ASD, an agency that has been growing in stature amid the increasing threat of cyber attacks.

ASD director-general Rachel Noble's decision to cancel the contract, which university sources estimated was worth about $2.2 million, comes weeks after she spoke of the need for the agency to be more transparent.
Inside Story

Martin Amis

Jonathan Cape 20

Rating:

When is a novel not a novel? If you need an answer to this question, dont, whatever you do, ask Martin Amis or youll never hear an end to it.

Martin Amis with his father Kingsley in 1975. Inside Story is basically a disordered rag-bag of autobiographical leftovers

He describes Inside Story as a novel on the cover and again on the title page, but then he wont let the matter rest. On page 30 he says: This novel, the present novel, is not loosely but fairly strictly autobiographical. On page 83 he calls it a novelised autobiography. On page 328 he declares: The book in your hands calls itself a novel  and it is a novel, I maintain.

Irritatingly, he changes some names, but not others. Swanky literary names  Philip Larkin, Salman Rushdie, Saul Bellow etc, etc  are left intact, though he gives fake names to his children and his siblings. Myfanwy, my little sister, would drink herself to death, he writes at one point, even though his sisters name was really Sally. His father and mother are allowed to keep their real names, and so are one or two of his better-known girlfriends, yet he calls his wife by her second name, and many other women by faintly comical names like Phoebe Phelps.

IT'S A FACT The young Martin Amis reportedly read nothing but comics until his stepmother introduced him to the works of Jane Austen. Advertisement

Inside Story is basically a disordered rag-bag of autobiographical leftovers, but, like an angler on a bad day, Amis has chucked in some tall stories in a bid to make it more interesting. In a showbiz or political memoir, this would be called fraudulent, but Martin Amis is a literary grandee, so his publishers are pleased to call it exuberant.

In a chapter called Phoebe: The Business, Amis describes a crazy girlfriend from his youth, seven years his senior. As a writer, he seldom picks just one adjective when he has eight to hand. But the more of them he piles on, the less authentic it all seems. In bed she was both busy and businesslike, energetic, unsqueamish, shockingly inventive and at the same time curiously detached, conscientious, even painstaking He maintains that he went out with Phoebe for five years, that she had been molested in her childhood by a Catholic priest and that she had worked as an escort. After some years, Phoebe claimed  or he claims she claimed  that Martins novelist father Kingsley once made a verbal pass at her for half an hour. Though she was quite tempted, she said no, at which point Kingsley replied: Dyou think Id be talking to you like this if I were Martins father?

Martin then claims that Phoebe claimed that Kingsley claimed  bear with me  that Martins real father was Kingsleys best friend Philip Larkin, and that Kingsley had subsequently sworn Phoebe to secrecy. Just fancy that! Of course, the story is clearly cock and bull. For a start, Martin looked just like Kingsley, and nothing like Larkin. Nevertheless, for the next 300 pages or so Martin pretends that the possibility tormented him. The charade eventually comes to an end in a footnote on page 339, when he declares that there was not a word of truth in it, and that the possibility is hereby dismissed.

Martin Amiss wife, Isabel Fonseca. As a writer, Amis seldom picks just one adjective when he has eight to hand. But the more of them he piles on, the less authentic it all seems

Well, as mysteries go, it is hardly on a level with Sherlock Holmes, or even Miss Marple. But, along the way, Martin is happy to fill the pages with lascivious descriptions of his other sexual partners, or chicks as he prefers to call them, among them Germaine Greer (unwaveringly kind and gentle) and his present wife Isabel, renamed Elena (Behold the moist brown flesh, the graceful power of the legs, the thick black hair wet and gleaming. Her figure, by the way, had been variously described in print as hourglass and pneumatic.). In a footnote on page 311 he boasts of how wonderfully cosmopolitan his choice of women was. I was an internationalist, too, courting a Ceylonese, an Iranian, a Pakistani, three West Indians and a mixed-race South African. The last time I read this sort of thing was in the autobiography of Max Clifford.

On the first page, Inside Story is subtitled How To Write, and, every now and then, he drops in a how-to lecture, with tips on everything from when to use the word whom, to the need to avoid descriptions of dreams.

Are these How To Write passages a spoof? With comical long-windedness, he calls for precision. He begins chapters with tweedy commands to Let us stand back for a moment and reminders to pause, take stock, and get our bearings. Sitting down with the esteemed novelist Saul Bellow, he informs us that Whereas Sauls tea was enliveningly laced with a slice of lemon, mine was qualified with milk  with the milk of concord. Are his publishers paying him by the word?

In another lesson he declares war on cliche. Never use a form of words which is in any sense ready made. A form of words like stifling heat or biting cold or healthy scepticism or yawning gap. But two pages on, there he is, using the cliche unsung heroism. Elsewhere we read of a learning experience, and bare outlines and of the late, lamented historian Tony Judt. In one and the same sentence he also describes both the sea and Saul Bellow as a force of nature.

More frequently, he gets himself into ridiculous contortions in order to avoid cliche. In Amisland, cars in Manhattan are not just cars but the metal beasts of the road: barbarously impatient, subhumanly short-fused, squirming and jostling to find their place in the Gold Rush. Similarly, traffic lights dont just show red, amber and green but the lime, the gold, the rose.

His compulsion to pick the clever word over the right word reaches its apogee in a chapter on the horrors of 9/11. You wanted to avert your eyes from the helpless nudity of the air, he writes, and, even worse: An act of terrorism fills the mind as thoroughly as a triggered airbag smothers a driver. This image is triply inappropriate, as, unlike an act of terrorism, an airbag is i) temporary, and ii) life-saving, and iii) doesnt smother drivers.

In one of his How To Write interludes Amis brags about keeping The Concise Oxford Dictionary on his desk alongside a thesaurus, and I often spend 20 minutes going from one to the other, making sure that the word Im tracking down still passes the test of precision. How, then, did he end up picking the verb smother, with its principal definition in my Concise Oxford Dictionary as to suffocate by covering the nose and mouth?

Again, he claims to spend a large fraction of my working day saying whole sentences again and again in my head, just to ensure they sound right. If this is the case, how did he manage to compose so many ungainly sentences? As you compose and then revise a sentence, he suggests, repeat it in your head (or out loud) until your ear ceases to be dissatisfied  until your tuning fork is still.

Many pages are given over to his close friendship with the journalist Christopher The Hitch Hitchens. The two of them seem to have spent an awful lot of time in blokeish discussions about chicks.

Oh. Im supposed to know a thing or two about mad chicks am I?

 Yeah, I said. Yeah, mad chicks flock to The Hitch. 

Whereas The Hitch thought Martin a right little slag if youll forgive me for saying so, Martin notes, in his archly Victorian manner: In general, Christopher chose not to avail himself of the new carnal freedoms of his era.

Oh, dear. Elsewhere in the book he delights in writing off the accomplishments of much greater writers, such as Graham Greene. It became quite clear to me that Greene could hardly hold a pen, he writes on page nine. If this is the best he can do, how will he himself be remembered 50 years from now?
I said, Well, I cant meet those terms, and Ill be out on Sept. 30, your place will be broom swept, she said, adding that she was planning to file for bankruptcy.

The landlord, Greg Fournier with Greenbrook Partners, did not respond to requests for comment.

Its just another really sad story, of many more dozen people losing their livelihoods, myself included, Ms. Stromberg said.

Other negotiations have produced happier outcomes. Blaire Papagni has owned Anella, a restaurant in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, since 2009. Anella shut down in March, opened for takeout in the middle of May and for outdoor customers in late June.

She laid off 22 employees, but was able to bring back eight. She has been kept afloat in part, she said, by her landlords willingness to cut her a break. Ms. Papagni declined to provide specific numbers, but said she has been paying roughly half her normal rent.

Its something that were trying to work out with our landlord on a monthly basis, she said.

At the Brooklyn Navy Yard, a vast city-owned complex that houses hundreds of artisans, artists and small manufacturers, David Ehrenberg, the president and chief executive of the nonprofit corporation that manages the Yard, is trying to help struggling tenants. A typical adjustment includes forgiving one-third of the rent, deferring another third and requiring tenants to pay the remainder.

Demanding that small businesses pay 100 percent of their rent in the worst pandemic in 100 years and the worst recession since the Great Depression hardly seems like a winning business proposition, Mr. Ehrenberg said.
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Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Bucharest, Romania  Sat, September 19, 2020 13:37 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45e6b28 2 Books books,Romania,stolen,Britain,Italy,crime,Literature,Galileo-Galilei,Isaac-Newton,Dante-Alighieri Free

Romanian prosecutors said Friday they had recovered around 200 centuries-old stolen books which disappeared from storage in Britain in 2017, including works by Galileo Galilei, Isaac Newton and Dante Alighieri.

First editions of Galileo and Newton, a text by Italian scholar Petrarch, rare versions of Dante and 80 sketches by Spanish painter Francisco de Goya were burgled in January 2017 from a depot in Feltham, near London.

A handout picture released by the Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime (DIICOT) on September 18, 2020 shows books and other historical artifacts in the courtyard of a home at an undisclosed location in Neamt county in Romania, after the police recovered them. (STR/Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime (DIICOT)/AFP)

The thieves rappelled 12 meters to the ground after entering via the roof, dodging movement sensors to spend hours rummaging through thousands of works destined for an auction in the US.

They left by the same route with a haul whose total value was estimated at around two million euros ($2.4 million).

Police arrested four Romanian suspects in June 2019 when they raided around 30 properties in the country's northeast, while around 10 others -- whose nationalities were not revealed -- were arrested in Britain.

But EU agency Eurojust said the January arrest in Turin of the suspected ringleader -- also Romanian -- who cooperated with authorities was "decisive" for recovering the works.

Read also: No laughing matter as Dutch masterwork stolen for third time

The thieves' loot was discovered in a house in Romania's northeastern Neamt county, the prosecutors said.

London's Metropolitan police said in a statement that the "irreplaceable" works had been "buried underground", posting a picture on its website of a hidden compartment under a house.

They had been stolen by an organized crime group that "flies members into the UK to commit specific offences and then fly them out of the country shortly afterwards," the Met said.

It is "linked to a number of prominent Romanian crime families who form part of the Clamparu crime group" with "a history of complex and large-scale high value thefts", the statement added.

"This operation is a double success for law enforcement who tracked the suspects down and recovered the stolen treasures before they went for sale," Eurojust said.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) said on Saturday that it has busted an al Qaeda module and arrested nine people who were allegedly planning to carry out major terror strikes in India at the direction of their Pakistan-based handler.

The nine suspects were picked up from West Bengal and Kerala on Saturday, people familiar with the developments said, requesting anonymity.

The suspects, under the scanner for some time, were arrested after the agency learnt that they acquired large quantities of weapons, country-made firearms, locally fabricated body armour, jihadi literature, and literature used for making explosives, according to the officials cited above.

Also read: Kin of alleged al Qaeda operatives arrested from Bengal still puzzled about offence

The suspects were planning attacks at several locations, including Delhi-NCR, Kochi and Mumbai, and they were about to leave for Kashmir to receive a consignment of weapons, which was likely to arrive from Pakistan, the officials added.

NIA learnt about an inter-state module of al Qaeda operatives at various locations in India, including West Bengal and Kerala. The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds, NIA spokesperson Sonia Narang said in a statement.

Also read: 9 Al-Qaeda operatives arrested by NIA in raids conducted in West Bengal, Kerala. Full list

These individuals were radicalised by Pakistan-based al Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places, including the National Capital Region (NCR). For this purpose, the module was actively indulging in fund-raising and a few members of gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country, the statement said.

The handler of the module has been identified as Abu Hamza, who is in Pakistan. He is said to be directly linked to the main al Qaeda outfit headed by Ayman al-Zawahiri, according to the officials familiar with the investigation. The suspected Indian operatives were found to have been in touch with the leadership of the al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), and not the general high command of the terror group.

All nine suspects are residents of West Bengal. While three of them (Murshid Hasan, a labourer; Iyakub Biswas, a salesman; and Mosaraf Hossen, a cook at a small eatery) were held in Keralas Ernakulam, the remaining six (Abu Sufiyan, a tailor; Mainul Mondal, a cook; Leu Yean Ahmed, an electrician; Ali Mamun Kamal, a driver; and Najmus Sakib and Atitur Rahman, both pursuing graduation) were taken into custody from West Bengals Murshidabad.

Murshid Hasan is believed to be heading the nine-member module and was receiving directions from Pakistan through social media.

A senior official who did not want to be named said that the agency recovered YouTube videos of Murshid Hasan --- who is believed to have been in touch with the Pakistan-based handler for a year --- in which he purportedly threatened to kill non-Muslims. Also, the agency detected a YouTube channel of Leu Yean Ahmed on which he allegedly propagated jihadi ideology.
P eople visiting care homes in areas with high numbers of coronavirus cases will continue to be constantly supervised as part of the Government's adult social care winter action plan.

It says visits should be limited and in facilities listed by Public Health England's (PHE) surveillance report as being an area of intervention, visits should be halted altogether except in "exceptional circumstances".

The plan sets out the national support available to the sector to help fight the spread of Covid-19 over winter.

Care homes will receive free personal protective equipment (PPE) and providers must stop movement of staff between homes unless absolutely necessary, says the plan.

It adds that limitations on staff movement between care homes would be enforced through regulations focused on care home providers.

The number of people affected by the virus is expected to increase as ministers consider tough new coronavirus restrictions after Boris Johnson said the long-feared second wave of the pandemic had arrived in the UK.

The plan was published on Friday evening along with a letter from care minister Helen Whately in which she expressed hope the virus would be eradicated from care homes by September 2021.

Care homes prepare to welcome visitors again

This time next year, it would be wonderful to achieve our objective of Covid-free care homes, resilient communities and a health and care workforce still able to give their very best," said Ms Whately.

The care minister said with the prevalence of coronavirus rising in the general population and in social care, now is the time to act.

She added: This year, we have all shared or recognised the pain of losing family members, friends and colleagues to coronavirus and its complications.

I am determined to do all that I can to protect everyone receiving and providing care this winter.

The winter plan says care homes will have access to free PPE / PA

Nationally, locally and at the front line, we must intensify our efforts to support, protect and equip everyone in the system.

With the prevalence of coronavirus rising in the population and in social care, now is the time to act.

The Infection Control Fund, set up in May, has been extended until March and will offer the sector an extra 546 million to help providers through the winter months.

A new dashboard will monitor care home infections, while a chief nurse for adult social care will be appointed to the Department of Health and Social Care.

Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures 1 /81 Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures A deserted Westminster Bridge PA A man wearing a face mask or covering due to the COVID-19 pandemic, walks past customers sat outside a restaurant AFP via Getty Images Boris Johnson addresses the nation on the Coronavirus lockdown Andrew Parsons Runners pass cardboard cutouts of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and Prince William during the London Marathon in London AP An empty escalator at Charing Coss London Underground tube station Jeremy Selwyn Electronic bilboards displays a message warning people to stay home in Sheffield PA A sign is displayed in the window of a student accommodation building following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Mancheste Reuters People take part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions, in Londo AP People sing and dance in Leicester Square on the eve on the 10PM curfew Reuters Hearts painted by a team of artists from Upfest are seen in the grass at Queen Square, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Bristol Reuters Graffiti reads 'good luck and stay safe', as the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases grow around the world, under a bridge in London Reuters A sign is pictured in Soho, amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London Reuters Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures, during a coronavirus briefing in Downing Street, London AP A person runs past posters with a message of hope, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Manchester REUTERS Riot police face protesters who took part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions in London AP An image of The Queen eith quotes from her broadcast to the UK and the Commonwealth in relation to the Coronavirus epidemic are displayed on lights in London's Piccadilly Circus PA Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas' hospital Getty Images Durdle Door in Dorset Reuters Captain Tom Moore via Reuters Mia, aged 8, and Jack, aged 5, take part in "PE with Joe" a daily live workout with Joe Wicks on Youtube to help kids stay fit who have to stay indoors due to the Coronavirus outbreak PA An NHS worker reacts at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital during the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS Reuters Goats which have taken over the deserted streets of Llandudno @AndrewStuart via PA Tobias Weller PA Novikov restaurant in London with its shutters pulled down while the restaurant is closed London Landscapes: Hyde Park and the Serpentine, central London. Matt Writtle A newspaper vendor in Manchester city centre giving away free toilet rolls with every paper bought as shops run low on supplies due to fears over the spread of the coronavirus PA Theo Clay looks out of his window next to his hand-drawn picture of a rainbow in Liverpool, as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continue Reuters A young man cuts another man's hair on top of a closed hairdresser in Oxford Reuters General view of the new NHS Nightingale Hospital, built to fight against the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London via Reuters Jason Baird is seen dressed as Spiderman during his daily exercise to cheer up local children in Stockport, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters A woman wearing a face mask walks past Buckingham Palace Getty Images A man holds mobile phone displaying a text message alert sent by the government warning that new rules are in force across the UK and people must stay at home PA Medical staff on the Covid-19 ward at the Neath Port Talbot Hospital, in Wales, as the health services continue their response to the coronavirus outbreak. PA Prime Minister Boris Johnson taking part in a virtual Cabinet meeting with his top team of ministers PA A shopper walks past empty shelves in a Lidl store on in Wallington. After spates of "panic buying" cleared supermarket shelves of items like toilet paper and cleaning products, stores across the UK have introduced limits on purchases during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some have also created special time slots for the elderly and other shoppers vulnerable to the new coronavirus. Getty Images People on a busy tube train in London at rush hour PA Mia, aged 8 and her brother Jack, aged 5 from Essex, continue their school work at home, after being sent home due to the coronavirus PA Children are painting 'Chase the rainbows' artwork and springing up in windows across the country Reuters Social distancing in Primrose Hill Jeremy Selwyn A general view of a locked gate at Anfield, Liverpool as The Premier League has been suspended PA Homeless people in London AFP via Getty Images A piece of art by the artist, known as the Rebel Bear has appeared on a wall on Bank Street in Glasgow. The new addition to Glasgow's street art is capturing the global Coronavirus crisis. The piece features a woman and a man pulling back to give each other a kiss PA The Queen leaves Buckingham Palace, London, for Windsor Castle to socially distance herself amid the coronavirus pandemic PA A general view on Grey street, Newcastle as coronavirus cases grow around the world Reuters Matt Raw, a British national who returned from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China, leaves quaratine at Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside PA Britain's Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty (L) and Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance look on as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures as he speaks during a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) news conference inside 10 Downing Street Reuters The ticket-validation terminals at the tram stop on Edinburgh's Princes Street are cleaned following the coronavirus outbreak. PA Locked school gates at Rockcliffe First School in Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear PA A sign at a Sainsbury's supermarket informs customers that limits have been set on a small number of products as the number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases grow around the world Reuters Jawad Javed delivers coronavirus protection kits that he and his wife have put together to the vulnerable people of their community of Stenhousemuir, between Glasgow and Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images A sign advertising a book titled "How Will We Survive On Earth?" Getty Images A man who appears to be homeless sleeping wearing a mask today in Victoria Jeremy Selwyn A pedestrian walks past graffiti that reads "Diseases are in the City" in Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images Staff from The Lyric Theatre, London inform patrons, as it shuts its doors PA A quiet looking George IV Bridge in Edinburgh PA A quieter than usual British Museum Getty Images A racegoer attends Cheltenham in a fashionable face mask SplashNews.com A commuter wears a face mask at London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn A empty restaurant in the Bull Ring Shopping Centre Getty Images A deserted Trafalgar Square in London PA Passengers determined to avoid the coronavirus before leaving the UK arrive at Gatwick Airport Getty Images

The plan also says the Government is drawing up a designation scheme with the Care Quality Commission for premises that are safe for people leaving hospital who have tested positive for Covid-19 or are awaiting a test result.

Patients will continue to be tested prior to discharge and no provider should be forced to accept an existing or new patient if they cannot deal with their coronavirus safely, it added.

The plan says 1.8 billion has been provided via the NHS to support the safe and timely discharge of patients from hospital, including through testing them for coronavirus.

The charity Mencap and the National Care Forum (NCF) welcomed the plan, but both raised concerns about the proposals to restrict visits to care homes.

Vic Rayner, executive director at NCF, said the plan ticks all the right boxes but there was a lot of detail still to come.

She added: There is cold comfort for the social care workforce. Much feted over recent months, the Government has not taken the opportunity within this plan to celebrate and reward their efforts.

The workforce is our most valuable asset  and the plan ignores or minimises that fact at all of our peril.

Finally, it is of huge concern that the plan seeks to further restrict visits to care homes, and NCF calls on Government to think again about blanket bans in areas of intervention.

Additional reporting by PA Media.
(Natural News) California is going after a very dangerous agricultural pesticide that has been linked to brain damage in children.

At the end of this year, farmers will no longer be allowed to use chlorpyrifos in a move that Governor Gavin Newsom characterized as a big win for children, workers and public health in California.

Chlorpyrifos is widely used on popular crops such as walnuts, almonds, citrus fruits, cotton and alfalfa. Its inexpensive, which has made it incredibly popular, with millions of pounds of it applied to crops across America each year. According to the Los Angeles Times, California is the biggest user of the chemical, with 900,000 pounds of it spread across crops in the state in 2017 alone.

It is an organophosphate insecticide, which means it kills insects by blocking an enzyme they contain, causing them to have convulsions and die. As you might imagine, these insecticides are also toxic to humans. Its estimated that more than 75 percent of Americans have traces of the chemical in their bodies, and this is mostly due to food residues. Not surprisingly, people who work or live near farms or agricultural fields have significantly higher levels.

Studies have linked chlorpyrifos to smaller infant birth weight and size. It has also been shown to cause developmental delays, lower scores on standard development tests, and brain changes that are noticeable on MRIs.

However, some of the most convincing studies are those that showed chlorpyrifos led to anxiety, hyperactivity and decreased learning in rats, even at very low doses. The results were so similar to those seen in human epidemiological studies that it has left little question about the chemicals safety.

Chlorpyrifos is already banned in many places

Environmental regulators in California have long been trying to ban chlorpyrifos. The pesticide was already designated a toxic air contaminant that causes harm to the respiratory tract when inhaled as well as damage to skin. This designation enabled the new agreement to include a ban on spraying the chemical aerially.

California took matters into its own hands after efforts to get the pesticide banned at the federal level failed. Hawaii has already banned it, and New York is phasing in bans of its own. Oregon also recently passed a bill  over the objections of farmers groups  phasing out the insecticide completely by the year 2022.

The European Union has also banned the use of chlorpyrifos. The ban went into effect earlier this year after the European Food Safety Authority found that there was no safe exposure level for the chemical, which was used on corn, fruit and other crops on the continent.

As part of the agreement in California, the state is providing $5.6 million to help manufacturers of pesticides develop a safer alternative.

Not long after the ban, the primary manufacturer of chlorpyrifos, Corteva (formerly Dow Agrosciences), announced that it will end production of the chemical by the end of this year. A statement from the company read: Due to this reduced demand, Corteva has made the strategic business decision to phase out our production of chlorpyrifos in 2020. However, other companies are still producing it.

The ban is certainly a huge victory for Californians, and it is hoped that other states will follow suit with bans of their own to protect their residents from this dangerous chemical. Unfortunately, there are still many highly dangerous pesticides in use throughout the world that also need to be banned. A study last year found that the U.S. allows the use of 85 pesticides that have been banned in the European Union, Brazil or China, including paraquat, 2,4-DB, and dichlobenil, proving that the battle is far from over.

Sources for this article include:

?EcoWatch.com

TheConversation.com

LATimes.com

BloombergLaw.com

BiologicalDiversity.org
WASHINGTON  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Friday night that he intends to allow for a floor vote in the Senate to confirm a new nominee made by President Donald Trump to replace the Supreme Court vacancy left by Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

"In the last midterm election before Justice Scalia's death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck president's second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party president's Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year," he said.

He continued, "By contrast, Americans re-elected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise. President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."

McConnell also sent a letter to Republican senators Friday night urging them to be cautious" about digging in on a position on how to move forward.

"Over the coming days, we are all going to come under tremendous pressure from the press to announce how we will handle the coming nomination, " the letter obtained by NBC News said. "For those of you who are unsure how to answer, or for those inclined to oppose giving a nominee a vote, I urge you all to keep your powder dry.

"This is not the time to prematurely lock yourselves into a position you may later regret, McConnell wrote.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Friday night that the Senate should not fill the vacancy left by Ginsburg's death "until we have a new president."

"The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president," Schumer tweeted, quoting McConnell, who made the same statement during Barack Obama's presidency after Justice Antonin Scalia died in 2016.

Story continues

Obama on Friday night urged the Senate to hold off on filling Ginsburg's seat.

"A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment," he wrote in a statement.

If Trump nominates someone to fill her seat, Republicans could attempt to move the nomination through the Senate. The GOP changed the rules under Trump so a Supreme Court justice would only need to be confirmed with 51 votes, rather than a supermajority, which they needed to confirm Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.

There are a number of vulnerable Senate Republicans, however, facing tough re-election races, which could affect how some of them would vote if it occurs prior to the election.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, who has one of the toughest re-election fights this November, released a statement that said nothing about a possible confirmation hearing for a new nominee. He only said, "Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer who possessed tremendous passion for her causes. She served with honor and distinction as a member of the Supreme Court."

In a 2018 interview at the Atlantic Festival, Graham, however, said, "I will tell you this. If an opening comes in the last year of President Trumps term and the primary process has started, we'll wait to the next election. Hold the date."

Image: US-JUSTICE-RBG (Alex Edelman / AFP - Getty Images)

Sen. Martha McSally, R-Ariz., who is also vulnerable, tweeted that the Senate should vote on Trump's nominee.

Other Senate Republicans in difficult re-election races such as Cory Gardner of Colorado and Joni Ernst of Iowa did not say anything about whether there should be a confirmation vote and only praised Ginsburg's leadership.

Attorney General William Barr said: "Justice Ginsburg led one of the great lives in the history of American law. She was a brilliant and successful litigator, an admired court of appeals judge, and a profoundly influential Supreme Court Justice."

Several Senate Democrats echoed Schumer's position, arguing the Senate should not confirm a Ginsburg replacement until after the November election.

Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., said on Twitter that if McConnell does, in fact, hold a confirmation vote, then if Democrats win control of the Senate in November, they should abolish the filibuster and add seats to the Supreme Court so it would have more than nine justices. They would only do this, however, if former Vice President Joe Biden defeats Trump.

"With voting already underway for the 2020 elections, Ruthies 'most fervent wish' was for her replacement not to be named 'until a new president is installed.' We must honor her wish," tweeted Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., who served as a law clerk to former Supreme Court Justice Harry A. Blackmun and argued a case in the high court, tweeted, "The American people must have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president. ... This close to the election, there is no way that the United States Senate can or should act before the voters decide."

Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, tweeted, "The best and only way to honor the lifes work of Justice Ginsburg, a giant of a jurist, is to honor her fervent final wish that she not be replaced until a new president is installed."

Reaction to Ginsburg's death from both parties was overwhelming.

"Tonight we mourn, we honor, and we pray for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her family. Tomorrow we fight for her legacy," Sen. Kamala Harris, Biden's running mate, said in a statement. "For all who believe in the power of the law as a force for change, Justice Ginsburg was and will always be a titan."

Former President George W. Bush said in a statement that the late justice "dedicated many of her 87 remarkable years to the pursuit of justice and equality, and she inspired more than one generation of women and girls" and added that he and his wife, Laura, "are fortunate to have known this smart and humorous trailblazer."

Former President Jimmy Carter said she was a "staunch advocate for gender equality" and noted that he appointed Ginsburg to the U.S. Court of Appeals in 1980.

Hillary Clinton, the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee, tweeted that Ginsburg "paved the way for so many women, including me. There will never be another like her. Thank you RBG."

"Stunned, devastated, and crushed. Thank you, RBG, for a lifetime of service to building a better America. Its impossible to express how much we will miss you," tweeted Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore.

Republicans also expressed their condolences to Ginsburg and her family.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who is on Trumps list of potential Supreme Court nominees, tweeted, "Justice Ginsburg devoted her entire life to reading, interpreting, and understanding the law. To describe her as a gifted lawyer and jurist who had a profound influence on our country is an understatement. My thoughts and prayers are with her and her family."

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said in a statement, "We must honor Justice Ginsburgs trailblazing career and safeguard her powerful legacy by ensuring that the next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court upholds her commitment to equality, opportunity and justice for all."

Pelosi ordered the flags at the Capitol to be flown at half-staff due to Ginsburg's death, Drew Hammill, one of Pelosi's top aides, tweeted.
A firefighter has died battling a fire that was inadvertently sparked by pyrotechnics for a gender-reveal celebration in Southern California, authorities said Friday.

The U.S. Forest Service said the firefighter died Thursday while working in the San Bernardino National Forest on the El Dorado Fire, which has burned through 19,000 acres since it was sparked Sept. 5.

The name of the firefighter was being withheld until family members were notified, and the cause of the death was being investigated.

Our deepest sympathies are with the family, friends and fellow firefighters during this time, Zach Behrens, a Forest Service spokesman, said in a statement.

The fire began when a smoke-generating pyrotechnic device used in the gender reveal ignited 4-foot-tall grass at El Dorado Ranch Park.

The familys efforts to douse the flames with water bottles proved fruitless, Capt. Bennet Milloy of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire, said at the time. The family called 911 to report the fire and shared photos with investigators.

Criminal charges were being considered, Milloy had said, but would not be filed before the fire is extinguished. Cal Fire could also ask those responsible to reimburse the cost of fighting the fire, he added.

I cant speak on their behalf, Milloy said of the family, but personally, I can only imagine how terrible they have to feel for a lot of reasons.

Gender-reveal celebrations became popular about a decade ago as a way for new parents to discover the sex of their child, often in the presence of family and friends. Simple versions of these celebrations often involve couples cutting open pink or blue cakes, or popping balloons filled with pink or blue confetti.

But they have also proved dangerous. In April 2017 near Green Valley, Arizona, about 26 miles south of Tucson, an off-duty Border Patrol agent fired a rifle at a target filled with colored powder and Tannerite, a highly explosive substance, expecting to learn the gender of his child.

When placed with colorful packets of powder and shot at, Tannerite can fill the air with colorful residue for gender-reveal parties: blue for boys or pink for girls.

The resulting explosion sparked a fire that spread to the Coronado National Forest. It consumed more than 45,000 acres, resulted in $8 million in damages and required nearly 800 firefighters to battle it. The border agent immediately reported the fire and admitted that he started it, the U.S. attorney for the District of Arizona said in September 2018.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : Delhi Police Special Cell has arrested a Chinese woman and her Nepalese associate for paying freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma for the sensitive information passed on to the Chinese intelligence, police said on Saturday.

"The Chinese intelligence had tasked the journalist to convey sensitive information in lieu of large sums of money routed through shell companies. A number of mobile phones, laptops, and other incriminating and sensitive material has also been seized," said Sajeev Yadav, DCP, Special Cell.

The development comes after the Special Cell arrested journalist Rajeev Sharma, a resident of Pitampura in New Delhi under the Official Secrets Act.

"He was found to be in possession of some defence-related classified documents," said the DCP.

Rajeev Sharma, who had worked for various newspapers and news agencies, was arrested on Monday and presented in a Delhi court the next day. Sharma was sent in police custody for six days.

After his arrest, his Twitter account has also been restricted. The Twitter flashed a message that his account showed suspicious activity and hence was restricted.

In 2019, columnist Rajeev Sharma was supposed to be one of the many victims of the alleged Pegasus snooping.

After his arrest, the Delhi Police seized his laptop and mobile phone, and scanned his CDR to know with whom he was in contact with.

Sources said that the Delhi Police had got secret information about his alleged involvement in procurement of classified documents.

The Special Cell is interrogating Sharma to know how he procured the defence-related classified documents and for how long he had been passing sensitive information to the Chinese intelligence.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Author and broadcaster Charles Spencer checks in to our travel Q&A

This week author and broadcaster Charles Spencer checks in to our travel Q&A.

He talks about the most memorable place he's visited, his favourite British historical site, his dream destination - and more.

MOST MEMORABLE PLACE YOUVE BEEN?

Madagascar. The island is indescribably beautiful, with an abundance of nature, but it also has a residue of French colonial rule  with croissants and baguettes sold at street corners.

FAVOURITE BRITISH HISTORICAL SITE?

Magdalen College Chapel, Oxford, which was the backdrop to my student days. I return quite often because of the beauty of the building and the attraction of the wonderful choral evensong.

YOUR EARLIEST HOLIDAY MEMORY?

When Charles visited Ibiza, pictured, when he was seven, he almost had the place to himself

Going to Ibiza when I was seven, long before it became the fashionable tourist destination that it is today. There were just a handful of people on the beach, and a bar in a hut run by a beautiful Austrian lady.

ANY OTHER UK SPOTS YOUD RECOMMEND?

I was blown away by Lincoln, which is off the radar for many people. Its an exquisite cathedral city with layers and layers of history, and it has a similar feel to Oxford and Cambridge.

FAVOURITE BRITISH WALK?

Strolling along Holkham Beach in North Norfolk. Its very different to the usual bucket and spade stretch of sand and has the lovely big sky feel you find in that part of England.

HAS COVID SCUPPERED ANY TRAVEL PLANS?

Yes. My wife is Canadian and every summer for the past few years weve gone to the Muskoka Lakes, north of Toronto. Its Swallows And Amazons but with a better climate, and gives you a wonderful chance to get away from it all in a beautiful, unspoilt setting.

A SILVER LINING TO NOT TRAVELLING?

Not going to airports, because most years I take 20-odd flights to the USA. Ive also had the chance to reacquaint myself with the Norfolk of my youth.

Charles said Madagascar is the most memorable place he's visited as the island is 'indescribably beautiful, with an abundance of nature'

TOP TRAVEL TIP?

My way to deal with jetlag is to just take it on the chin and go through the agony of the first couple of days in a new country.

WHERE NEXT?

Id love to visit British Columbia and Vancouver Island, Canada, where I have relatives on my wifes side. I hope to make it out there this Christmas.

DREAM DESTINATION?

I don't know South America at all  Ive only been to Argentina once on a business trip  so thats my next wish-list destination.
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Linkedin Sausan Atika (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 08:20 490 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45d736c 1 City medical-workers,occupational-hazard,referral-hospitals,death-rate,COVID-19,Jakarta-administration Free

The rising number of coronavirus cases in Jakarta has forced the capitals administration to add 13 city-owned hospitals to the roster of COVID-19 referral hospitals that specifically treat patients with the disease. But as the hospitals prepare for their transformation, many challenges remain.

Medical specialists have been working tirelessly on the frontlines as their colleagues support other essential services for patients who require care.

However, as more hospitals get enlisted to treat COVID-19, all their medical workers face similar exposure to the deadly disease.

Sawah Besar Hospital president director Budi Wibowo said the hospital's management had attempted to motivate its medical workers upon learning that they had been appointed to help treat coronavirus patients.

Its human to be worried, right? Especially when we first find out about it. But Jakarta needs to add more beds, so we tried to persuade and motivate our team to take on this responsibility, Budi told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

He was quick to add, however, that guarantees over their occupational safety must follow. We shouldnt motivate them to do something if we cannot guarantee their safety. What we can do is repair existing facilities, such as [adjusting] the flow of patients and air circulation, Budi said.

The latter is no less important than providing protective equipment.

Tanah Abang Hospital president director Savitri Handayana shared that sentiment, saying that safety for both visitors and workers was of utmost importance.

When we change the [hospitals] status to serve only COVID-19 patients, everything inside the building is automatically put at a higher risk. We must therefore prepare the infrastructure and services to increase our safety standards, she said, noting that initially there was anxiety among the staff.

If health workers are dying, who will treat the patients?

Both Budi and Savitri said that health workers aged 50 and above and those with comorbidity factors would be assigned tasks with a lower chance of interacting with COVID-19 patients, whether at the pharmaceutical or nutrition divisions or in administration.

But Savitri said the workers remained committed to serving the public.

Medical workers have to be ready for any circumstances. We have taken the [Hippocratic] Oath, she said.

Concerns over the occupational hazard of medical workers have emerged following what the Indonesian Medical Association (IDI) describes as a speeding up of the COVID-19 death rate among Indonesian doctors.

The association reported on Friday that two more doctors had died from the disease in the past three days, bringing the nationwide death tally to 117 doctors.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has demanded minimum standards for occupational safety to be implemented in healthcare facilities in the wake of the rising number of health workers infected by the disease.

Health workers represent less than 3 percent of the population in most countries but account for around 14 percent of all COVID-19 cases globally, with even a higher proportion of 35 percent reported in some countries, according to the agency.

Indonesia has among the highest COVID-19 death rates for medical workers anywhere in the world.

Siti Ainun Dwiyanti, president director of Jati Padang Hospital in South Jakarta, said that the most challenging transformation for hospitals was to deploy more health workers. The five-story hospital in South Jakarta will have a total of 63 beds, an increase from 12, within the next three weeks.

So far, the hospital management has accepted 13 volunteer doctors and nurses and is still requesting more to the citys health agency.

Siti said the criteria for patient discharge would also be stricter. We cant [afford to] haphazardly transfer patients under hospitalization, she said.

Officials have said the city has recently recruited some 1,800 medical workers to support the dwindling number of healthy practitioners, while more hospitals are being enlisted for help.

The city health agency issued a circular on Sept. 4 appointing 13 city-owned hospitals to treat only COVID-19 patients, in an attempt to increase bed capacity. As of Sunday, the occupied rates for isolation beds and ICU beds in Jakarta have reached 75 and 83 percent, respectively.

Aside from the 13 hospitals, Jakarta has another 54 referral hospitals, which, aside from serving non-COVID-19 patients, also treat patients with moderate to critical COVID-19 symptoms.

There is also an emergency hospital at the Wisma Atlet compound in Central Jakarta that is used for self-isolation purposes and the treatment of patients with mild and moderate symptoms, while state-owned oil and gas giant Pertamina has also built an emergency COVID-19 hospital.

Indonesian Public Health Experts Association (IAKMI) chairman Ede Surya Darmawan said that increasing safety standards was urgently needed to prevent more health workers from getting infected, which, if not addressed properly, would lead to a total collapse of the healthcare system.

The principles are similar to before, as hospitals anywhere must employ risk prevention and reduction of infectious disease measures. But with the change in status, all aspects must be upgraded, including the frequency of disinfection, regular testing for workers, and the [capacity] of laboratories to perform more tests, Ede said.

"Paying special attention to health workers should be a priority.
Ministers are leaning towards tougher measures despite concerns for economy

There are fears that Chris Whitty could resign if his tough lockdown is ignored

Ministers were last night accused of being 'in the grip' of Chief Medical Officer

Ministers were accused of being 'in the grip' of the Chief Medical Officer on Saturday night amid concerns he could resign or speak out if his push for tough lockdown measures was ignored.

The Government is locked in a fierce debate over which steps to take in the face of a second wave of Covid with increasing concerns about the impact tougher measures will have on the economy.

One source said of Professor Chris Whitty: 'He only has a medical brief so he doesn't really consider economic factors. He is very well regarded and there is a fear that if the Government defied his instructions or advice, he would make that known.'

On Saturday night, a source close to Prof Whitty denied he had explicitly, or implicitly, given the impression he would resign.

Ministers were accused of being 'in the grip' of Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty amid concerns he could resign if his push for tough lockdown measures was ignored

Despite Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Business Secretary Alok Sharma fighting to protect the economy, Ministers are leaning towards introducing tougher restrictions.

One senior Conservative said: 'If you speak to the Treasury, people are tearing their hair out.

'The main problem is we are being driven by an enormous amount of panic by scientists and doctors. Why aren't we reporting the extra deaths from stroke and heart disease caused by people being afraid of going to hospital?

'Scientists never concern themselves about the economy. The Government has to stand up to them. But the whole Health department is in their grip.'

A Minister warned last night: 'The more severe the lockdown, the more severe the economic crisis.'

A source close to a senior Cabinet Minister added: 'The financial damage that would be caused would affect people's health too.'

Prof Whitty 'has to be' listened to, another source said, 'because if he resigns, it's a massive credibility loss for the Government'.

Previous reports that Prof Whitty has threatened to quit were strongly denied by the Government.

Despite this rumours continue to swirl about his hold on Ministers.

'What he has let them know is  he could go,' the source said. 'If he goes, can you imagine what he could say in an interview?'

The advocates of tougher lockdown measures are led by Prof Whitty, Chief Scientific Adviser Sir Patrick Vallance and Health Secretary Matt Hancock.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Business Secretary Alok Sharma have expressed concern about the impact that tougher coronavirus measures will have on the economy

Steve Baker, the Tory MP who sits on the Treasury select committee, said: 'We have been asking the impossible of experts. Too many fundamental questions about our liberty have been put on the shoulders of scientists.'

No 10, including the Prime Minister, are 'absolutely adamant against the national approach' to lockdown, a Government source said last night.

However, several Ministers said they thought Mr Johnson's own brush with death from Covid has made him more cautious.

All care home visits are to be monitored Visitors seeing loved ones in care homes will be supervised at all times to ensure social distancing, according to new coronavirus guidelines. The Government's winter plan, announced on Friday, advises homes to limit residents to a single constant visitor wherever possible, with an absolute maximum of two when needed. Official advice is that meetings should be socially distanced and take place outside or in a well-ventilated room. It means local directors of public health will have the discretion of allowing visitors  although they will have to stop if an area is deemed 'at risk.' Free personal protective equipment (PPE) will also be provided in care homes until at least next March. Advertisement

'You are likely to end up with the rule of six plus 'stay at home' again,' a source familiar with the discussions said.

'The view shared by the majority of the Health people is, you're not going to get people to go shopping if they think they're going to catch Covid.

'Keeping stuff open won't save the business. Keeping stuff open when people are confident enough to go is what saves the business.'

Meanwhile, those in the anti-lockdown group favour an approach that focuses on isolating the vulnerable while keeping the economy going.

One said: 'The fundamental strategy has to be to keep the vulnerable away. You would make that guidance to stay home, you don't force people. Families are not dumb. Families care about their grandad who's got kidney disease. Either they are all careful, or they don't go and see grandad.'

But the 'health hawks' said this is not a viable option because it affects too big a group. There are also concerns that NHS letters to the vulnerable were 'not that accurate' in selecting them.

The source said: 'You'd basically have to lock up anyone receiving a pension. Then you would get people saying, I'm not doing that. You end up p***ing them off, and then they're not going to do it anyway.'

Meanwhile, Conservative backbenchers unhappy with lockdown measures are increasingly focusing on a vote on September 30 on extending legislation that gives the Government power to bring in measures.

MPs including Sir Desmond Swayne are expected to call for Parliament to be given more say over imposing measures.

One Tory MP said last night: 'Matt Hancock is part of the problem. He is completely gripped by this, there is a messianic feel about it now.'

Last night, a Department of Health spokesman said: 'The claim that the Chief Medical Officer has threatened to resign at any point is categorically not true.'
Dad was a sergeant in the Marine Corps in World War II, which totally affected his mental health. He witnessed a lot of battles and it led to his alcoholism. He died at 62. Back then there was no name for post-traumatic stress disorder, but thats what he suffered from. He was a loving man and the best dad I could have asked for.

My dad, also Don Currie, was a great singer; he even had Bing Crosbys brother Bob try to convince him to make a record, but Dad turned him down. He had a voice like Dean Martin and when I had the opportunity to join the Runaways in 1975, he was supportive because he knew he missed out on an opportunity to sing.

My paternal grandfather , Don Currie, had a stroke when my twin sister, Marie, and I were four years old. He was a Golden Gloves boxer and taught my brother Don how to box when he was two

My mom, [actor] Marie Harmon, was hard to get along with; Dad was the passive one in the relationship. It was hard for Dad to cope with, especially after what hed seen in the war. It led to the end of their marriage. I was 13 when they divorced.

After my parents split, Dad moved to Texas. We stayed in touch by phone, but it wasnt easy to visit. It was only when Mom remarried a man called Wolfgang [Kaupisch] and moved to Indonesia with him and my brother, Don, that Dad came back into our lives and lived with my sister Marie and me.

Wolfgang was a tough German guy who died 10 years ago, in his 90s. He became a lovely man later in life, but was not supportive of me being in the Runaways. He told me I was going to fail. I know he felt he was doing the right thing by saying that, but it wasnt a kind thing to do. Mom is still alive; shes 96 and has dementia and hasnt said my name in seven years.

My brother Don is like my father. After Dad left, he really filled that gap. I remember sitting in a hut in Indonesia with him when I was 17 and a guy brought in a poster of me wearing a corset in the Runaways and asked him if I was his sister. Don told the guy to bring the poster closer because he couldnt see, then punched him in the face. It was a case of Don standing up to another creepy guy: You screw with my sister, Ill take care of things.

My first kiss was with a bad boy called Winnie the Wolf when I was 12. My dad happened to be driving by as I was kissing him and caught me. He made me stay home and gave me the paddle when the family went to church.
Just weeks after his Range Rover was stolen, Im saddened to report that Mamma Mia! star Dominic Cooper has fallen foul of car thieves once again.

The actor, 42, posted an online appeal for witnesses after claiming a man pilfered something from his 54,000 open-top Jaguar F-Type coupe in Primrose Hill, North London.

Dominic captured images of the alleged offender on CCTV and wrote on the website Nextdoor: This bloke just broke into my car. Keep your eye out.

Dominic Cooper (pictured), 42, posted an online appeal for witnesses after claiming a man pilfered something from his 54,000 open-top Jaguar F-Type coupe in North London

Dominic captured images of the alleged offender on CCTV and wrote on the website Nextdoor: This bloke just broke into my car. Keep your eye out

He has played countless aristocrats on screen but velvet-voiced Charles Dance insists he is as common as muck.

The actor, 73, says: My mother was born in Londons East End. She was one of three or four kids and did not have two half pennies to rub together.

'She went into service when she was 13.

Charles, who has an OBE, added: Because of the way my face is put together, I am often cast aristocratically. There is nothing aristocratic about me whatsoever. I am as common as muck, you know.
By Akbar Mammadov

President Ilham Aliyev has said that the Azerbaijani oil fully serves the interests of the Azerbaijani people, saying that the country has benefited largely from is hydrocarbon resources since gaining independence.

President Ilham Aliyev made the remarks following a groundbreaking ceremony of the offshore operations of the Absheron field at the Heydar Aliyev Baku Deep Water Jackets Plant on September 19.

The president said that unlike the mid-19th and 20th centuries, when Azerbaijan did not benefit from its energy resources, today, the government is using the oil and gas revenues to develop the countrys infrastructure.

Today, we are in leading places globally in terms of infrastructure projects. The Davos Forum ranks Azerbaijan 11th and 12th in terms of air and rail transport. We are ranked 27th in the world for the quality of the road infrastructure. Look at other infrastructure and social infrastructure projects  3,700 schools have been built and renovated in the years of independence, the president added.

He underlined that more than 700 hospitals have been built and provided with the latest equipment.

We have become a spacefaring nation, we are implementing huge oil and gas projects. Not only in the economic and industrial spheres but also in sports  we finished 14th for the number of medals at the Olympic Games. Was this possible to imagine in the Soviet era? If someone had said at the time that one of these was possible, people would probably laugh at them, Aliyev said.

Aliyev said that during the Soviet Union, Azerbaijani gas was transported to other republics, but there was no gas in some parts of the republic. He noted that now gasification has reached 96 per cent.

We live in a free and independent country, we have our own destiny. Our natural resources serve the interests of our people. We have invested oil revenues very efficiently. We are protecting them and strengthening our army. Therefore, the advantages of independence are obvious.

Absheron field

Speaking about the Absheron field that has gas reserves of 350-360 billion cubic meters, Aliyev said that Azerbaijan will continue to be a reliable supplier of gas.

The gas produced from Absheron at the first stage will be supplied to domestic needs because there is a need for that. The growing population and the growing industry require that. The gas to be extracted at the second stage will be exported to world markets, the president said.

Gas produced in the second phase of the Absheron field development will also be supplied to Turkey via the TANAP pipeline. It may also be supplied to other markets, he added.

The president noted that the full-field development of this field will be solved in stages.

Furthermore, the president highlighted the energy sectors role in the countrys economy, saying that the key part of the country's economy is associated with the oil and gas sector, and this will continue to be the case for many years to come.

I am not saying that other sectors are not developing, but no matter how much they may develop, they will not be able to catch up with oil and gas revenues in the near future.

The president added that at the same time, the countrys new projects such as Absheron today, Karabakh a month ago and the implementation of other projects will further reinforce the important role of the oil and gas factor.

He emphasized that therefore, the successful future of the country will largely depend on the profession of oil workers, on their achievements.

Today, oil workers are seeing that their work serves the interests of the Azerbaijani people, which is very important for them. They know that both today and in the future, political and economic achievements of our country will continue to be underpinned by the oil and gas factor.

President Aliyev also spoke about the projects carried out in the countrys oil and gas sector.

Our main source of income is Azeri, Chirag and Gunashli fields. Work there is going according to plan. A new project, called Azeri Central East, is being implemented there now. The cost of this project is about $7 billion. As a result of the implementation of this project, production from new sources will increase, which will compensate for the decline, of course.

He pointed out that there are currently more than 120 wells operating at the Azeri, Chirag and Gunashli fields.

Aliyev noted that at the same time, work to develop the Karabakh oil field is progressing on schedule.

The jacket we see here now will be sailed away offshore. I hope that first oil will be produced at the Karabakh field in a year or two. The peculiarity of this field is that there are more oil reserves there, and this is of great importance for maintaining production at a stable level.

The president emphasized that another promising project is called Shallow Water Absheron for which drilling operations will begin in a few months.

I do hope that we will discover large oil reserves there as well. Work is going according to plan in the Umid and Babak projects, in which SOCAR is the sole operator.

Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

The president also touched upon the current state of the negotiations in the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, saying that negotiations are virtually non-existent.

I have said that we will not participate in negotiations for the sake of their imitation. This does not mean that we are refusing to negotiate. It means that we do not want to join Armenia's cunning policy. Our participation in imitation of negotiations would correspond to the essence of this imitation.

Aliyev emphasized that in fact, the Armenian leader has disrupted the process of negotiations.

Because their nonsensical statements and provocative steps make the talks meaningless, the president said with reference to recent provocation statements voiced in Yerevan that undermine the peace negotiations.

They also fail to properly analyze the consequences of their actions. However, there are rationally thinking people and politicians in Armenia, and these politicians are already raising this issue and telling the Armenian public that the incumbent Armenian leadership is leading Armenia into the abyss.

Touching upon Armenias military provocation on the state border in July, Aliyev stressed that Armenia is preparing for another large-scale war.

We have operational intelligence. We know what is happening around us Our intelligence bodies work very efficiently, Aliyev said.

The president stressed that Armenia has sought to involve the Russian-led military block Collective Security Treaty Organization in the war with Azerbaijan.

Probing is carried out in order to involve the Collective Security Treaty Organization and its allies in this matter. But that didn't work out either. The Collective Security Treaty Organization did not make any statement, only made a comment. Seeing that their attempts had failed, they retreated. Today they are re-inventing the myths that they allegedly won a big victory.

The president emphasized that this shows again that Armenia is an aggressive state whose policies reflect their hatred for Azerbaijan and Azerbaijanis.

The president said that Armenia will face serious consequences if it starts the war.

"They are preparing for a new war. They are concentrating their forces near the line of contact. We see everything and we watch everything. We follow all of their actions. Of course, we will defend ourselves. Just as we defended ourselves in Tovuz, we will defend ourselves in all other directions. The events in Tovuz were yet another lesson for them. If they want to learn a new lesson, we are ready for it.

Speaking about the supply of weapons from Russia and Serbia to Armenia, the president said that Armenia is a constant source of threat for the country.

The president also reminded Russias and Serbias recent weapons delivery to Armenia, saying that he learned about this from reliable sources.

Aliyev said that Azerbaijan is worried about arms delivery to Armenia because this country has unleashed an armed aggression against Azerbaijan.

Armenia is a country sponsoring terrorism. The intensive nature of the supply of weapons, of course, seriously worries us because they are being used against us. These weapons are used to kill our children and other citizens. Therefore, this issue, like any other, is in the spotlight. We will continue to monitor the situation, Aliyev stressed.

Furthermore, Aliyev thanked the Georgian government for not allowing the transportation of weapons to Armenia through its territory.

That is why transport planes deliver weapons to Armenia through the territories of the Caspian countries and by air. Georgia acted like a very reliable partner, Aliyev said.

Today, the relations and developing cooperation between Georgia and Azerbaijan serve the interests of both countries. I want to reiterate that the governments of Georgia and Azerbaijan are in close contact with each other, and this will continue to be the case, the president said.










Mikel Arteta admitted on Friday night that he was worried about Arsenals chances of keeping Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and the striker had doubts about staying.

But the Gunners boss revealed some pivotal conversations with Aubameyang and his representatives during lockdown proved decisive in securing his future at the club.

Captain Aubameyang gave Arsenal a huge boost by signing a new three-year deal this week that, with bonuses, could be worth in excess of 350,000 per week.

Mikel Arteta claims Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang signed on due to Arsenal's 'incredible' team

Aubameyang ended speculation about his Arsenal future by signing a new three-year deal

Arteta, who was appointed manager in December, said: When I joined I wasnt as positive as I was the last few weeks.

Financially we were in a position where it was difficult to get to where we wanted to get.

I think Auba had his doubts but things evolved in a natural way. I had a feeling the club wanted to move forward and a feeling Auba wanted to stay and we just had to glide those things together.

It was a conversation I had with Auba first, privately, and with his father and his agent.

Reports in Spain suggested Ronald Koeman's Barcelona had made a late bid to sign him

But Arteta claimed Aubameyang turned them down because Arsenal are 'as big' a name

It is incredible how necessary these conversations are to understand each others position and what happened in the past  things that have annoyed people and things that have made people feel important and part of the process.

I think after those two conversations, I felt we had a good chance because I felt a really good connection and a strong feeling they wanted to continue with us.

Artetas impressive introduction to management has not been lost on the man in the opposing dugout tonight  West Hams David Moyes.

Hes had such a good start, Moyes said.

But hell find as he goes on it becomes more difficult. The expectations rise  when youre at big clubs, youre expected to win every week.
ALTON  A free mobile phone pass celebrating the craft breweries, wineries and distilleries in southwest Illinois has been released by the Great Rivers & Routes Tourism Bureau.

The Rivers, Routes & Refreshment Trail mobile pass focuses on the craft experience in the bureaus six county region and highlights eight participating businesses. The mobile pass is free and available for download at www.explore.riversandroutes.com

Those who download the pass receive access to discounts on food and drinks and can register to receive a free prize for visiting four of the eight businesses.

We know people enjoy exploring our great craft breweries, wineries and distilleries says Barbara Strack, interim CEO of Great Rivers & Routes Tourism Bureau. And now we have the perfect way to showcase those businesses to visitors and locals who want to enjoy the craft experience in our region and get a discount on food and drinks during their visit.

Participating businesses include Bella Vista Winery, Maryville; BTO Distillers  Bluestem Vodka, Bethalto; Grafton Winery & Brewhaus, Grafton; Mastermind Vodka, Pontoon Beach; Old Herald Brewery & Distillery, Collinsville; Recess Brewery, Edwardsville; Old Bakery Beer Company, Alton; The Winery at Shale Lake, Staunton.

Each craft experience includes discounts on tours, drinks or food. The pass also allows those who check in at four of the eight locations to register for a free prize. A Rivers, Routes & Refreshments facemask will be mailed to those who sign up for the prize.

The passport is available via a dedicated landing page where people can sign-up for the Rivers, Routes & refreshment pass by providing their name, e-mail address, and mobile phone number. A link is then sent to their mobile phone, which opens the passport and directs the user to add the button icon to their home screen, where they can access it any time. There is never anything to download and no bulky apps take up space on a users phone.

The mobile pass really gives people the chance to explore the region at their leisure and enjoy a relaxing visit to the participating businesses, Strack notes. And right now its especially important that we support our local craft breweries, wineries and distilleries.

The Great Rivers & Routes Tourism teamed up with Bandwango, a travel technology platform, to develop the mobile friendly pass. A Walk With Lincoln mobile pass has also been created which provides a historical tour of Alton highlighting Abraham Lincolns impact on the riverfront community. The Walk With Lincoln pass is also free to download.

Additional mobile passports are expected to be launched throughout 2020 and into 2021 highlighting eagle watching experiences, Route 66, and haunted sites throughout the region.

For more information on the passes, visit: Explore.RiversandRoutes.com.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday at the age of 87, will forever have two legacies.

The one Americans could be focusing on right now is the one of legal trailblazer: Justice Ginsburg, the second woman ever to be appointed to the Supreme Court, paved the way for womens equality before the law, and for womens rights to be taken seriously by the courts and by society.

As an attorney she argued, and won, multiple cases at the Supreme Court in the 1970s, eventually persuading an all-male bench to apply the 14th Amendments equal protection clause to sex-based discrimination. On the court, she continued to point the way toward greater equality in opinions like United States v. Virginia, which held unconstitutional the Virginia Military Institutes policy of refusing to admit women. Inherent differences between men and women, we have come to appreciate, remain cause for celebration, Justice Ginsburg wrote for a 7-to-1 majority, but not for denigration of the members of either sex or for artificial constraints on an individuals opportunity. It was sweet revenge for someone who had once been rejected for jobs at top New York law firms, and denied a clerkship on the Supreme Court, because she was a woman.

The other legacy of Justice Ginsburgs that the country is now urgently forced to confront is the cold political reality that she died in the final weeks of a presidential campaign, at a moment when President Trump and Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader, appear to be dead-set on replacing her with someone who would obliterate much of the progress she helped the country make.

The court now faces a serious crisis of legitimacy. Senate Republicans, who represent a minority of the nation, and a president elected by a minority of the nation, are now in a position to solidify their control of the third branch of government. The Supreme Court, with another Trump appointee, could stand as a conservative firewall against the expressed will of a majority of Americans on a range of crucial issues.
Netizens have been calling for an investigation of Disha Salian's death case. According to recent claims, Disha had dialled the emergency number 100 on her phone before her death, however, Mumbai police cleared the air and said that Disha had called a friend on June 8 - the same day that she passed away.

Since the revelation, netizens have been claiming there is enough evidence to reopen the case and summon the people close to her for questioning. Many have voiced their opinion on the hashtag #EvidenceScreamMuder which is now trending on Twitter. People who have claimed Disha's death is connected to Sushant Singh Rajputs who died a few days later on June 14, have also called for attention to her death case.

#EvidencesScreamMurder



Disha ws forced to come to the party

Disha noticed something horrible and left

She dialled 100

She called SSR

She came back to her home

Some goons followed her,sent by influential ppl frm party

She ws killed infront of her bf Rohan and thrown pic.twitter.com/phUL4W37Ud  Rounak (@ron__45) September 19, 2020

They tried to put forth the theory of depression - IT FAILED!

Theory of Suicide - FAILED!

Theory of Anxiety - AGAIN FAILED!!



  



#EvidencesScreamMurder !!  Anikaa (@AnikaaS17) September 19, 2020

Homicide angle in Sushant case cannot ruled out. There are many evidences which says it's murder.



Phone of Disha Salian was not seized & was action till 17 June. Eyewitness revealed that she was Gangraped before murder & Baby Penguin was present in Party.#EvidencesScreamMurder  Prashant Patel Umrao (@ippatel) September 19, 2020

According to a report in the Republic World, Disha Salian's friend Shibani Mutreja confirmed with the portal that she spoke to Disha on June 8 but refused to divulge into the subject of their conversation. She claimed, 'she was not allowed to talk too much' and that 'she was under treatment'.

Many have questioned the Mumbai police's initial investigation in the case. According to reports, Disha Salian passed away after she returned from a party in Juhu which was attended by two actors, an actor's relative, a builder, and a politician. The details are yet to be confirmed an official, but the absence of Disha's fiance Rohan Rai has raised netizens suspicion.

The fact that Rohan Rai has been missing from that day makes it evident that there is a threat !!! Where is Rohan Rai??



#EvidencesScreamMurder  Pradeep Bhandari( ) (@Pradipoffical7) September 19, 2020

2 major injuries were found in Disha's body. One caused due to falling from height & another injury caused before she fall down.



She have gone through with extreme pain before she died.



Disha's culprit should be behind bar.#EvidencesScreamMurder



pic.twitter.com/652a3w1MzE  Gaurav Mishra (@Imkgauravmishra) September 19, 2020

Reportedly CBI had summoned two people close to Disha Salian while probing Sushant Singh Rajput's death case. Bunty Sajdeh, CEO of Cornerstone where Disha used to work as a celebrity manager and Uday Singh Gauri, who is a talent manager and a friend of Disha. Uday had reportedly called Sushant a day before his death.

Rashami Desai On Disha Salian Case: We Had Planned For A Trip; I've No Idea About June 8 Party

Siddharth Pithani Tells CBI That Sushant Became Unwell After Hearing About Disha Salian's Death
Dawn Pittman retired from teaching in 2013 after more than three decades. But Pittman has no plans to give up her passion  even in a pandemic. When Camden resumes in-person learning, possibly in January, she hopes to answer the call as a substitute.

I absolutely love teaching, said Pittman, 58, of Merchantville.

Retired Philadelphia teacher Janice Richardson has already been getting those calls. She says she has turned down lucrative offers from parents and districts  as much as $2,000 a week to substitute-teach, something she hasnt done since 2016.

I get calls every day to come back, said Richardson, 65, of North Wales, who spends her days caring for her grandson, Amari, 3. Its not always about money.

Across the region, substitute teachers are in high demand that could increase as school districts scramble to find replacements to fill in for regular teachers who are reluctant to return to the classroom because of COVID-19 health concerns.

Some districts, including Camden and Cherry Hill, cited a substitute-teacher shortage in their decision to reopen schools this year with virtual learning only. There were fears districts wouldnt have enough teachers to staff classrooms.

The shortage concerns are national and worsening. Before the pandemic, schools across the country were able to fill just 54% of the 250,000 substitute jobs open daily during the school year, according to a survey commissioned by Kelly Education, a nationwide staffing agency.

More substitutes will be needed to fill in for teachers who become ill, need to quarantine, take leaves of absence, or choose to work remotely because of the coronavirus.

There is much uncertainty around the future education landscape but what is certain is the fact that substitute educators, either in-person or remote-base, will be in demand, the Kelly report stated.

But not all substitute teachers are committed to returning.

Glynnis Gradwell, who became a substitute after retiring from the Philadelphia School District several years ago, said she cant see herself returning when students go back to school in November.

Im leery, to be honest, Gradwell said. I probably will go back and do online teaching, but me and everyone else  when we see a vacancy, we will wonder, why is that teacher out? Do they have COVID symptoms? I cant imagine how theyre going to get subs.

Districts typically hire their own substitutes or use an agency such as Kelly and ESS  which has a pool of 60,000 substitutes in 28 states  to fill daily and long-term vacancies for substitute teachers, paraprofessionals, and support staff.

The Lower Merion School District, which began with virtual learning and plans to start bringing some of its 8,700 students back to classrooms Sept. 29, has two substitutes assigned full time to each of its 10 schools.

These `building subs' are our first people we go to when teachers call out, spokesperson Amy Buckman said. Naturally, we think there is going to be an increased need.

In anticipation of a shortage, the Washington Township school system, in Gloucester County, has hired 19 permanent substitutes, spokesperson Jan Giel said. They will report to an assigned school every day and provide class coverage or other services as needed, she said.

The pandemic is just making it worse, said Laurie Haines, assistant director of the office of clinical experiences in the College of Education at Rowan University.

Substitutes' pay can vary, depending on the need and the teachers qualifications and certifications, from about $65 a day to about $150 a day. In South Jersey, Hammonton Schools this year upped its pay to $225 a day for substitutes. A Morris County district has offered $195 a day.

Retired math teacher Geri Andrews-Savage, of Berlin Township, has no plans to enter the substitute pool. She retired from Overbrook High School in Winslow Township after nearly 40 years.

I dont care how much they offer. Im not risking my life, said Andrews-Savage, 68. My life is more important than money.

Substitutes must have at least 60 college credits and some form of certification. Most are usually retired teachers or recent graduates looking for their first jobs.

The solution isnt we need more substitutes, said Steve Baker, a spokesperson for the New Jersey Education Association, which represents the states roughly 120,000 teachers. Substitutes were never intended as full-time replacements for teachers. We have to make sure all schools are safe enough.

Some districts like West Deptford, which plans to transition from remote learning to in-person in November, are seeking substitutes now, said Superintendent Gregory Cappello. The district cannot compete with higher-paying districts to recruit substitutes, he said.

We are concerned, but we are closely guarding our budget right now, so we are in a wait-and-see pattern, Cappello said.

State regulations limit the number of days a substitute can serve without certain subject certifications before a district must fill the vacancy with a teacher who has the required certification. Retirees must also follow guidelines to avoid affecting their pension.

Of all the challenges that school districts are facing this year, one of them has been trying to keep an adequate supply of substitute teachers, said Michael Yaple, a spokesperson for the New Jersey Department of Education.

Once he works out some technical issues, Stuart London hopes to jump into substituting virtually again in Philadelphia schools. He completed the districts training for new teachers and feels ready to handle online learning platforms.

And when students return to buildings, London will be going back, too. A spokesperson said the district is nearly 97% staffed and had record-low teacher absences the first seven days of the school year, averaging about 100 daily. During this same time last year, the number was three times that amount.

I feel that the school districts are going to make things as safe as possible, said London, whos been substituting in district schools for four years. If you can go to the local department store and sit at the local restaurant [and] if you can go to the beach and walk on the boardwalk, you can go to school, said London.

Pittman, too, is looking forward to getting back into the classroom in Camden. She worries that the citys mostly minority children will fall further behind their counterparts in other districts that have in-person learning. Besides, she said, it doesnt seem like work to her.

I love those kids, she said.
Justice Ginsburgs work on the Supreme Court did not have the same impact as her work as a litigator. During her tenure, on courts led by Chief Justices William H. Rehnquist and John G. Roberts Jr., the courts more conservative members were in the majority. She and her liberal colleagues needed a fifth vote to achieve a majority, and that vote typically belonged to Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, who for years served as the courts ideological fulcrum until his retirement in 2018.

In that coalition, Justice Ginsburg was on the winning side in cases on abortion, affirmative action, gay rights and the death penalty. In a 2016 interview in her chambers, she took pains to praise Justice Kennedy, who had voted with the courts liberals in cases on abortion and affirmative action. I think he comes out as the great hero of this term, she said.

Her own most striking work was when she failed to persuade the majority of her views. In 2013, in Shelby County v. Holder, which effectively struck down the heart of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, she wrote that the majority had been shortsighted in saying the law was no longer needed. It is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm, she wrote, because you are not getting wet.

She never retreated from her view that the court had moved too fast in Roe v. Wade, and that the court could have struck down only the extremely restrictive Texas law before it.

I think its inescapable that the court gave the anti-abortion forces a single target to aim at, she said in 2013. The unelected judges decided this question for the country, and never mind that the issue was in flux in the state legislatures.

Justice Ginsburg held out hope that the dissents she had written or joined would someday command majorities.

Speaking in her chambers in 2016, she singled out the courts 2010 decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which amplified the role of money in politics.
Set in rolling countryside with a charming pub, an annual fete and a history dating back to the 11th Century Domesday Book, the people of Barston have every reason to feel proud.

At the heart of the Warwickshire village sits a Memorial Hall commemorating the 74 men who fought in the Great War, and its here that the parish council and the Womens Institute hold regular meetings.

There is plenty to discuss. For today there is a new enemy at the gates  an army of flytippers filling fields and hedgerows with rusting fridges, builders rubble, filthy mattresses and even abandoned equipment from an illegal cannabis farm.

Jeremy Emmett and children, centre, with Barston villagers whose system foiled a gang that dumped cannabis waste

Dumping has risen by a depressing 76 per cent in England and Wales since the start of lockdown, when council tips closed and households spent their days decluttering.

But in Barston the villagers are fighting back, with round-the-clock vigils and a 40,000 network of motion-activated CCTV surveillance cameras.

It is a huge investment for residents, many of them pensioners, but its certainly driving away the dumpers, with incidents dropping from one a day to roughly one a week.

The flytipping epidemic has affected every part of Britain, from inner cities to the remotest of beauty spots. Many videos of angry confrontations between residents and criminals caught in the act have been posted on social media. Some tippers have been shamed into taking their rubbish home, while others have been arrested and fined.

One popular YouTube clip shows a group of Essex farmers tackling dumpers and wrestling one to the ground. It has been viewed more than a million times. Another, with over 250,000 views, shows a man piling black bin bags full of waste on to a railway track from the boot of his car and appeals to viewers: Can you name this man?

Cannabis growing waste is seen dumped above

Wigan farmer Stuart Baldwin was filmed returning more than 400 tyres to the doorstep of a man he blamed for tipping them on his land near Haydock Park Racecourse.

Revenge is a dish best served cold, isnt it? he said.

I got sick of it. People in the community have called me a legend and a hero. Hopefully people will think twice now about dumping on our land.

Criminals are certainly thinking twice about flytipping in Barston, although some persist despite the security measures. Broken vacuum cleaners, gas tanks and a discarded childrens scooter are among recent items to be dumped.

We knew we had to do something, says sheep farmer and businessman Jeremy Emmett, who is co-ordinating the fightback.

It was his idea that Barston should install high-tech cameras with number-plate recognition software. And with the police seemingly powerless against flytippers, the villagers agreed. This was despite the huge cost and the ugly yellow signs warning visitors about the cameras that theyve had to erect in their picturesque village to comply with the Data Protection Act.

Obviously its a huge amount of money, but quite a few of us chipped in and Im in the fortunate position that I could help with the bulk of it, he says. In the long run, its going to be worth it for all of us.

The impact was immediate, with footage of all suspicious incidents broadcast on the village Facebook site. So successful were the cameras that within six months, local criminals had located and destroyed several of them, but the villagers put their hands in their pockets once again. The replacement cameras are now well hidden and mounted out of reach.

But just as important is Barstons 163-strong WhatsApp group, which shares messages, pictures and videos of anything suspicious within minutes of an alert being raised. Its all a bit Big Brother, admits Mr Emmett, opening his laptop in his kitchen  effectively campaign HQ  to reveal a multi-screen view from the eight digital eyes located around the village.

But we can only look at it for the reasons intended  if theres tipping, burglary or suspicious behaviour. I cant watch it to see what time Mrs Smith from down the road goes to get her nails done.

Its effective, all the same. This was how the villagers caught a van dumping heat-lamps, plants and compost from an illegal cannabis factory on two separate occasions.

Spotted: Waste from a cannabis farm being flytipped

Thanks to the footage, police were able to track down the driver. Two people have since been arrested. On another occasion, three employees of a construction firm were given fixed-penalty notices, 400 fines and lost their jobs after they were caught on the Barston CCTV dumping a truck-full of asbestos in a country lane.

Some flytippers assume we have just put up the warning signs and nothing else, says Mr Emmett, so they get quite a surprise when the police show up.

Robert Cooke, a 72-year-old farmer whose family has been in Barston since 1947, adds: The police are duty-bound to respond when we give them so much information. They cant duck out and say they havent got time or couldnt find it.

And as well as checking the footage for suspicious vehicles, we can search specific number plates and blacklist them, meaning well be alerted any time they enter the village. Then we can respond immediately.

The cameras have helped prevent other crimes, too. Just a few weeks ago, the WhatsApp group was alerted to a gang of men in hoods spotted snooping around a house. A large crowd of villagers rushed to the scene to stop the burglars in their tracks and see them arrested.

It was an army, says Mr Cooke. All of a sudden they were surrounded by 50 angry villagers  men and women of all ages. I think it was a big surprise to them.

On another occasion, Mr Emmett received a 3am alert that a suspicious van had just entered the village.

Spotting it on the cameras parked outside the home of an elderly resident, he and a friend rushed over and blocked the van with their cars, let down its tyres and called the police. The driver was arrested on suspicion of planning a burglary.

Caught in the act: In one case, the Barston CCTV system records a tipper van entering the village laden with asbestos and other rubbish, which was dumped. The camera captured the empty vans number plate and the driver was arrested

There have been a few mishaps, including the time when residents targeted a slow-moving vehicle whose driver was peering into houses. It turned out he was simply trying to find the right address to deliver a takeaway curry.

However, the plague of flytipping is particularly serious for farmers, who usually have to foot the bill for clearing up the mess on their land. Often, to prevent intruders, they surround their fields with dykes, earthworks or old farm machinery.

The frequency and severity of flytipping incidents has dramatically increased in the past year, says Chris Walsh, a farm insurance specialist at the National Farmers Union. It is happening on a larger, organised scale  as much as 40 tons being dumped in a single visit. Some people are seeing it as a way to make money, by charging to remove rubbish.

It costs the farmers a fortune to remove and poses a real threat to livestock and the environment.

However, rural communities are now fighting back. We have seen successful prosecutions against flytippers where villagers have installed security cameras or farmers have gone through waste to gather evidence so police can track down the perpetrators.

Such measures are hard work and, where technology is involved, can be hugely expensive. But they seem to be effective.

The word is getting round now, says Mr Cooke.

Criminals know not to mess with Barston.
Dear Savvy Senior,

I never thought about becoming an organ donor until my brother died of kidney failure last year. But at age 78, I would like to know if Im too old to be a donor, or if they would even use my organs if I were to die from COVID-19. What can you tell me?

Potential Donor

Dear Potential,

Theres no cutoff age for being an organ donor. Anyone, regardless of age or medical history, can sign up. In fact, there are many people well up into their 80s that donate. The decision to use your organs is based on health of the organ, not age. So, dont disqualify yourself prematurely. Let the doctors decide at your time of death whether your organs and tissues are suitable for transplantation.

Regarding the COVID-19 part of your question, as of right now, the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) does not recommend transplantation of organs from donors known to have the virus. So, if you were to contract the coronavirus and die, your organs would probably not be used, however, this may change as treatments are developed.

Heres what else you should know about becoming a donor.

Donating Facts

In the United States alone, more than 112,000 people are on the waiting list for organ transplants. But because the demand is so much greater than the supply, those on the list routinely wait three to seven years for an organ, and more than 7,000 of them die each year.

Organs that can be donated include the kidneys, liver, lungs, heart, pancreas and intestines. Tissue is also needed to replace bone, tendons and ligaments. Corneas are needed to restore sight. Skin grafts help burn patients heal and often mean the difference between life and death. And heart valves repair cardiac defects and damage.

By donating your organs after you die, you can save or improve as many as 50 lives. The United Network for Organ Sharing maintains the OPTN, a national computer registry that matches donors to waiting recipients.

Some other things you should know about being an organ donor are that it does not in any way compromise the medical care you would receive in a hospital if you are sick or injured, nor does it interfere with having an open-casket funeral if you want that option. And, most major religions in the United States support organ donation and consider it as the final act of love and generosity toward others.

How to Donate

If you would like to become a donor, there are several steps you should take to ensure your wishes are carried out, including:

Registering: Add your name to your state or regional organ and tissue donor registry. You can do this online at either OrganDonor.gov or DonateLife.net. If you dont have Internet access, call Donate Life America at 804-377-3580 and they can sign you up over the phone.

Identify yourself: Designate your decision to become an organ donor on your drivers license, which you can do when you go in to renew it. If, however, you dont drive anymore or if your renewal isnt due for a while, consider getting a state ID card  this also lets you indicate you want to be a donor. You can get an ID card for a few dollars at your nearby drivers license office.

Tell your family: Even if you are a registered donor, in many states, family members have the ultimate say whether your organs may be donated after you die. So, clarify your wishes to family. Also tell your doctors and indicate your wishes in your advance directives. These are legal documents that spell out your wishes regarding your end-of-life medical treatment when you can no longer make decisions for yourself. If you dont have an advance directive, go to MyDirectives.com where you can create one for free.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of The Savvy Senior book.
Hyderabad: The Centre has informed the TS planning department that there was no provision to release funds pertaining to the previous financial years in 2020-21. The Centre was responding to a letter from Planning Board vice-chairman B. Vinod Kumar, seeking release of pending bills for works under MPLADS when he was Karimnagar Lok Sabha member.

The deputy director of MPLADS stated that funds for the scheme for 2020-21 had been placed at the disposal of the Union finance ministry for managing the impact of Covid-19. The Union Cabinet had decided not to operate the MPLADS for 2020-21 and 2021-22 and there was no budget head available to release outstanding installments, including those from the previous years.

Responding to the Centres reply, Vinod Kumar said that after delaying the release of MPLADS amounting to Rs 150 crore under 16th Lok Sabha for the 2014-19 term, the Centre was refusing to release the amount.

He said he had written to Union minister of state Rao Inderjit Singh pointing out that the Cabinet had decided not to operate the MPLADS for two years but had not taken a decision on the expenditure incurred by the 16th Lok Sabha members.

Small contractors who executed these works are suffering a lot due. I requested the Union minister to release the pending amount at the earliest, Kumar said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 13:38:29|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- The scale of China's public offering funds reached 17.8 trillion yuan (about 2.63 trillion U.S. dollars) by the end of August this year, data from the Asset Management Association of China showed.

The latest figures marked an increase of 0.62 percent from the scale reported at the end of July.

According to the association, the public offering funds were operated by 129 fund management companies, of which 85 were domestic firms and the rest were joint ventures.

China's asset management business expanded slower in recent years as authorities tightened regulations to contain risks arising from wealth management products.

In 2017, draft guidelines unified rules covering asset management products issued by all types of financial institutions, requiring them to set leverage ceilings. Enditem
In a major win, the National Investigative Agency (NIA) busted an Al-Qaeda terror module in Kerala and West Bengal on Saturday, September 19, arresting 9 operatives from Kerala and West Bengal.

As per sources, three operatives were arrested from Ernakulam in Kerala while six operatives were picked up from Murshidabad district in West Bengal by the NIA, foiling their plot to carry out a terror attack.

The Al-Qaeda operatives were said to target government installations in the Delhi-NCR region, sources informed. 

The arrested terrorists will be produced before the concerned Courts in Kerala and West Bengal for police

custody and further investigation.

READ | Daniel Pearl's Murder: Pakistan's Apex Court Adjourns Hearing Against Acquittals Of 4 Al-Qaeda Terrorists

Large quantity of incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession. As per preliminary investigation, these individuals were radicalised by Pakistan-based Al-Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the National Capital Region. For this purpose, the module was actively indulging in fund raising and a few members of gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country.

READ | Al-Qaeda Threatens Charlie Hebdo With Another Massacre For Reprinting Mohammed Cartoons

NIA busts Al-Qaeda terror module

9 Al-Qaeda operatives arrested by NIA, in raids conducted at multiple locations in Murshidabad, West Bengal and Ernakulam, Kerala https://t.co/iSjTGukEbw  ANI (@ANI) September 19, 2020

READ | J&K: 176 Terrorists Eliminated In 72 Operations This Year, Informs Police

The details of the arrested accused are as follows:

Murshid Hasan, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala. Iyakub Biswas, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala. Mosaraf Hossen, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala. Najmus Sakib, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal. Abu Sufiyan, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal . Mainul Mondal, a resident of Murshidabad West Bengal. Leu Yean Ahmed, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal . Al Mamun Kamal, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal. Atitur Rehman, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal.

READ | CRPF 'special Soldiers' Embark On 900-km Rally From Gujarat To Delhi
Without the liberated territories, it is impossible to keep the security of Armenia and Artsakh at a proper level on your own. The second President of Armenia and First President of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), Robert Kocharyan, said this at a meeting with analysts, on the settlement of the Karabakh conflictand posted on the ex-President's official YouTube channel

"We are facing a dilemma, which has always been in the negotiation process. If you announce an end in the negotiation process, this is part of Karabakh, and we do not discuss this topic at all, you say, What else to negotiate, there is no topic to negotiate. Negotiations must stop, and the parties must prepare for war. That, too, is a solution, but it has a great risk for the parties, and it is difficult for the representatives of the state to make such a decision. Now I am not in office, I cannot say, now others can say. Different parties can say, and they are right to say because it is a really sensitive topic, and it must be kept in the teeth in order to get the best possible solution. But look, it is a pity that there is no map here. What are those territories? They are simply an integral part of our security.

When that line was being drawn at that time, it was being drawn first of all to ensure our security. At that time, it was not being drawn about ancestral lands, at that time security was important. Now look, it was 28 kilometers from Hadrut region, from Hadrut point to Araks point. Now imagine those southern regions are returned to Azerbaijan. How many kilometers will 28 km turn into? Just imagine on the map. It will come like this, turn around, under Lachin until to Meghri. How many times does it grow? Imagine Kelbajar. Now there is an Omar. A piece of mountain range. Now imagine that Kelbajar suddenly returned, that one piece is replaced How long is the contact line? I made such an approximate calculation for myself. You have about 6-8 times more contact line with much more complicated geographical relief. And to ensure the same security on that new line of contact, you have to increase your army 3-4 times. At least the minimum density for soldiers and artillery and other large weapons, at least to ensure the minimum quantity, in times.

This is not complicated or difficult; this is impossible. We do not have that many people. Armenia cannot keep an army of 200,000 with a population of 3 million or less. And I can say unequivocally that without those territories it is impossible to keep the security of Armenia and Karabakh at a proper level by our own forces; and the dilemma is here. So this should be the starting point for us.

Now the question arises: And what if someone guarantees? Now in this changing world of today, for how many years should that guarantee be? One year, 5 years, 50 years? For example, I think it takes at least 50 years, 100 years. The Hong Kong issue was a 100-year contract. You cannot make such decisions on the horizon of 1-5 years.

Now, then, what kind of guarantees should be here for us to believe that all this will not explode in 2 years or 5 years, especially, I repeat, in today's world? We saw what the Americans did to the Kurds. We saw Afghanistan when it came out at the time, Afghanistan came out in political events, the Afghan government could not stand it for a week.

Now, for example, I have clear approaches to what can be done, what needs to be done, clear solutions. I do not event want to talk about it because today the people dealing with those issues have something special: they have a talent to spoil everything. Do you know what Armenia's approach is today? Did you understand that? Just take a map and look. There is a special tool on the map, it is a very primitive tool, it measures the kilometer. This is really one of the most difficult parts of resolving this conflict. The dog's head, they say, where it is kept, is here," Kocharyan said.

And to the remark that there seems to be information from time to time that the mediators partially accept the 5 + 2 logic, he responded: "How should we accept it? If we were a country of 10-15 million and thought that we can... They should show us and say, how we should ensure the density of our current army on the whole territory. They will say, peacekeeping forces and so on and so forth. In this case, the question immediately comes: With what mandate? How many years should that mandate be, what countries, the political changes of those countries? So many questions arise to negotiate endlessly.

There is a problem here, which is very important in terms of guarantees. Whatever is signed in that negotiation package, Azerbaijan should be deprived of the opportunity to consider attacking Karabakh legal in any way, and the only way to do that is the issue of Karabakh's status.

Or there are 3-4 options, which can also be discussed; but today I will not talk about that topic either, I have that plan, I know what can be done, what should be done. In general, do you know what Armenia's position is on the Karabakh issue? I have a question, I do not know what it is."
Niagara Falls city council has extended its interim control bylaw for a year prohibiting cannabis cultivation, production and processing in certain zones.

The extension will allow for a study into the issue to be completed.

In June 2019, council passed an interim control bylaw to allow for a review. The effective period was one year from June 25, 2019.

SGL Planning and Design Inc. was hired to do the review and study. A background study was produced in early 2020, however the consultants ability to present options to the public was interrupted by the passing of provincial legislation suspending the gathering of large groups of people due to COVID-19.

The province also suspended legislative timelines in the Planning Act and Regulations. The suspension ran for approximately 14 weeks. The expiry of the interim control bylaw was extended by the same period (late September).

The Planning Act allows council to extend the interim control bylaw by an additional year.

During Tuesdays meeting, council approved extending the bylaw until Sept. 25, 2021.

With the legalization of recreational cannabis in Canada, Niagara Falls has experienced greater demand for producing and processing cannabis and its byproducts, including both indoor and outdoor cultivation, said a staff report.

Current zoning bylaws dont contain any specific provisions for cannabis facilities, so council determined a study should be done.

So last year, council passed an interim control bylaw to prohibit the cultivation, production and processing of cannabis - except for plants as allowed by legislation for personal use.

The interim control bylaw affects the agricultural, rural, open space, hazard land, and development holding or environmental protection zones of one bylaw, the rural or conservation open space zones of a bylaw for Willoughby; and the rural agricultural zone of a bylaw for Crowland.

The Planning Act permits the city to pass an interim control bylaw for up to one year to review or study land use in the municipality. The legislation allows the bylaw to be amended to extend the period of time the study will be in effect. That period is not to exceed two years.

SGL Planning and Design Inc. was ready to present its background report of the study with options before the public in March, but the pandemic hit.

Alex Herlovitch, the citys director of planning, building and development, said although groups of up to 50 people can now meet, the planning department has the names of more than 85 people interested in the topic, and its anticipated a public open house would generate an even larger attendance.

Coun. Lori Lococo said she wants to see the city get moving on this issue, whether council decides to approve certain zones for cannabis or not.

I think people need to figure out what theyre going to do with their lives, she said. There are residents that may want to sell, would not like to sell - there are entrepreneurs that might like to do something. I really think that we need to just move forward and get the report done.

Based on comments from council Tuesday, Herlovitch said hes going to look into possibly having a public meeting through Zoom.

Coun. Victor Pietrangelo said there are municipalities allowing cannabis production facilities in industrial and economic-development zones.

I know thats initially what the rural community was asking for - they were asking for it to be taken out of the agricultural zone, he said. I entirely agree with it  and I guess now is not the time, but in the future, I will go over all of the pros that I see by pulling it into the industrial zone.
Openly challenging the monarchy of Thai King Maha Vajiralongkorn, thousands of protesters marched in Bangkok on Sunday to present demands that include a call for reforms to curb his powers.

Protesters have grown ever bolder during two months of demonstrations against Thailand's palace and military-dominated establishment, breaking a longstanding taboo on criticising the monarchy - which is illegal under lese majeste laws.

The Royal Palace was not immediately available for comment. The king, who spends much of his time in Europe, is not in Thailand now.

The marchers were blocked by hundreds of unarmed police manning crowd control barriers.

Protest leaders declared victory after handing police a letter detailing their demands. Phakphong Phongphetra, head of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, said on a video broadcast from the scene that the letter would be handed to police headquarters to decide how to proceed.

"Our greatest victory in the two days is showing that ordinary people like us can send a letter to royals," Parit "Penguin" Chiwarak, told the crowd before it dispersed.

At the biggest demonstration in years, tens of thousands of protesters on Saturday cheered calls for reform of the monarchy as well as for the removal of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, a former junta leader, and a new constitution and elections.

Symbolic plaque

Shortly after sunrise on Sunday, protesters cemented a plaque near the Grand Palace in Bangkok in the area known as Sanam Luang, or Royal Field.

It reads, "At this place the people have expressed their will: that this country belongs to the people and is not the property of the monarch as they have deceived us."

Government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri said police would not use violence against protesters and it was up to the police to determine and prosecute any illegal speech.

Bangkok authorities would need to determine whether the plaque is illegal and if it is it would need to be removed, Bangkok's deputy police chief Piya Tawichai told reporters.

Story continues

Far from all Thais support the new plaque, which resembles one that had commemorated the end of absolute monarchy in 1932 and which was removed from outside a royal palace in 2017, after Vajiralongkorn took the throne.

"Who voted or elected them to deface public property like this?" wrote Somchai Chaihat on Twitter of the new plaque. "Trash it."

Thai authorities have said criticising the monarchy is unacceptable in a country where the king is constitutionally "enthroned in a position of revered worship".

Protests that began on university campuses have drawn increasing numbers of older people. That includes red shirt followers of ousted populist prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra who had clashed for years with pro-establishment yellow shirts before Prayuth seized power in 2014.

"The new generation is achieving what their parents and grandparents didn't dare. I'm very proud of that," said Somporn Outsa, 50, a red shirt veteran. "We still respect the monarchy, but it should be under the constitution."

Protesters say the constitution gives the king too much power and that it was engineered to allow Prayuth to keep power after elections last year. He says that vote was fair.

The next protest is scheduled for Thursday. Protest leaders called on Thais to take Oct. 14 off work to show their support for change.

Radical change is hard in Thailand, but the movement has at least kept the momentum going," said Titipol Phakdeewanich, dean of political science at Ubon Ratchathani University.

(REUTERS)
But, Salman Khan had to come a long way before he could demand for such a massive fee for his work. During an interview with a leading news portal, Salman Khan revealed that his first salary was just Rs. 75. He said that he received the money when he performed in a show as a background dancer just for fun. He further added, Then it went up to Rs 750 for Campa Cola (a soft drink brand) and then it was Rs 1,500 for the longest time. Then I got paid Rs 31,000 for Maine Pyar Kiya (Salman's breakthrough film), which was then increased to Rs 75,000 later.

Things are way different now as during the launch of Big Boss season 11 Colors CEO Raj Nayak was asked to comment on Salmans fee for the show, and all he said was, Salman doesnt come cheap.

Salman Khan currently is one of the highest paid actors in the film industry. Not just that hes the highest paid star in the television industry as well for his role as a host in the popular reality show Bigg Boss.
Multi awarded filmmaker Thivanka focuses on the wild By Susitha Fernando View(s): View(s):

Lankagama, an isolated village bordering the Sinharaja Forest Reserve recently became a controversy with the construction of a road connecting the town of Neluwa. Environmentalist, wildlife activists and nature lovers alleged that the construction of the road would affect the Sinharaja forest, one of UNCESCOs world heritage sites.

The village of Lankagama is also home to one of the latest discoveries of Sri Lankas wonderful wildlife species, endemic white monkeys. With the road construction, wildlife activists are worried what would be the future of these rarest apes, Purple faced Leaf Monkeys. Featuring the beauty and innocence of this troupe of shy creatures, Aegle Creations, one of the pioneering wildlife documentary team released a documentary in its youtube channel recently. This is the first time that the rare white monkeys in Sri Lanka had been featured in the audio-visual medium.

In 2011 Galles Wild Life Conservation Society researchers, following an information from the villagers, found a troupe of white monkeys in the forest reserve, says Thivanka Rukshan Perera, CEO of Aegle Creations who joined Wild Life Conservation Society Galle President Madura de Silva and his team to do the video.

Initially the group found Purple Faced Leaf Monkeys but later it was discovered that there were snowy white monkeys as well. It was not due to albino condition but due to leucism, Thivanka said quoting the expert Madura de Silva. The documentary team of Thivanka and Maduras environmental team last month went to Sinharaja to film the white monkeys.

According to Mr. Silva first recorded report of white monkeys in Sri Lanka goes back to the year 682 where Robert Knox had written about a milk white Waduros or monkeys.

At present deforestation and lack of forest cover are major threats for these endemic animals. They need forest cover as they are shy compared to other monkeys, says Madura de Siva.

Thivanka a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) graduate from Academy of Art in San Francisco (2011 to 2016), where he majored in writing for film and television, started script writing and making documentaries as soon as he returned to Sri Lanka in 2016.

From his younger days Thivankas heart was with literature and writing and he has already published two poetry books.

I was interested in screenplay writing but there was no film school to learn it, says Thivanka. However determined to study what he liked most Thivanka after education at St Josephs College in Colombo, enrolled in a foundation in Malaysia in 2010. From there he went to the US.

Having returned to Sri Lanka Thivanka wrote and directed several short natural history documentaries including  Brown Wood Owl  Juveniles Journey, Serendip Scops Owl or Panduwan Bassa discovered by Deepal Warakagoda in 2001, The Devil Bird or Ulama of Sri Lanka in 2014 and Voice of the Night in 2017. His first wildlife sort documentary short, Brown Wood Owl  Juveniles Journey, was screened at 20 international film festivals, including the Wildlife Conservation Film Festival in New York in 2014.

His documentary on leopards tittled Realm of the Leopards was featured at Discovery channel. We had done two documentaries and one was picked by the Discovery through the British distributor- Earth Touch and it was featured at National Geography also, Thivanka said.

His cameramen and other crew include Dhnushka Bandara, Saman Hewage and Manjula P Gajanayake.

Most of the wildlife documentaries of Aegle Creations, uploaded to youtube have been going on viral creating much interest and enthusiasm among Sri Lankans and foreigners world over.

Thivanka whose heart was to write, did a screenplay for the short film Silent Letter and it won the Best Short Film (debut) award at the Whatashort Independent International Film Festival held in New Delhi, India. This was out of more than 400 entries from 34 countries. The story narrating around a low caste young lad who tries to escape into the city life and meets devastating consequences was directed by award winning actor Kamal Addararachchi. The screenplay was also won certificate of excellence at the Fifth Mumbai Shorts International Film Festival at Mumbai in India.

Some of his other screenplays had been nominated for internationally renowned competitions like the Michael Collyer Memorial Fellowship in Screenwriting, where his spec Bird of Prey reached the finals making it to the top three in 2016. Black Leopard was included in the Hot 100 list of screenplays compiled by the Capital Fund Screenplay Competition in 2017. His screenplays have also been recognized by competitions such as Francis Ford Coppolas Zoetrope Screenwriting Contest, Script Pipeline and The World Series of Screenwriting.

Thivankas next plan is to realise his dream, to write and direct a feature film.
Find all of the most important pandemic education news on Educating N.J., a special resource guide created for parents, students and educators. As schools reopen across N.J., we want to know what is and isnt working. Tell us about it here.

Three hundred students were quarantining at New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark after traces of COVID-19 genetic material were found in the sewage of one of the dorms, officials said.

Every student at Cypress Hall was quarantined Wednesday night after the test results were released that evening, NJIT Chief Strategy Officer Matthew Golden told NJ Advance Media.

The students can leave campus, but the university will suspend their swipe access to facilities until they test negative, Golden said.

They are all doing virtual learning while under quarantine and were all tested for COVID-19 Thursday morning with the results expected by Monday at the latest, he said.

None of the students have reported any symptoms of the virus.

Following an individual test of everyone returning to campus at the beginning of the fall 2020 semester, the school conducts 400 additional random tests for COVID-19 each week. Before the positive sample in the sewage, only three people had tested positive, Golden said. All were isolated and had their contacts traced.

He added that the waste water testing will be one of the universitys best tools for catching the virus early before it spreads.

He said it can be used as an early warning system for asymptomatic people as the virus can show up in their urine or feces, which ends up in waste water.

The university has experts in water testing on campus including Professor Lucia Rodriguez-Freire.

She told NJ Spotlight News that she suggested the sewage test for COVID-19 and said that is happening at several other universities in other states as well as the Netherlands, Finland and Spain.

The good thing about it is, we dont have to test individuals," Rodriguez-Freire told the news outlet. We can test the whole community, and see if something is going on.

Golden said he believed that NJIT was the only university in New Jersey doing waste water testing.

Keep up with the latest in N.J. schools coverage. Sign up your email here:



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Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com.
Qassem Soleimani, widely believed to be the second most powerful man in Iran, was killed in a US drone strike in Iraq.

The commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Saturday doubled down on a threat to avenge the US killing of Irans top general Qassem Soleimani in early January.

Our revenge for the martyrdom of our great general is certain. It is serious. It is real, Major-General Hossein Salami said in a speech, directly addressing US President Donald Trump.

We will hit those who were directly or indirectly involved in the martyrdom of this great man.

Soleimani, widely believed to be the second most powerful man in Iran, was assassinated in a US drone strike in Baghdad, Iraq. He was accompanied by a senior Iraqi commander and several other IRGC members who were killed.





After the attack, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei promised harsh revenge for the perpetrators, a promise that Iranian officials have reiterated since.

Days later, Iran retaliated by firing more than a dozen rockets at two military bases in Iraq hosting American troops.

As Salami pointed out during his Saturday remarks, no US soldiers were killed during the attack.

However, as disclosed by US military, more than 100 soldiers were diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries stemming from the missile attack, something Trump dismissed as headaches.

But rest assured, anyone who was involved in this will be hit, Salami said in his speech.

1,000 times harder

Salamis remarks come after US media outlet Politico published a story that claimed, citing unnamed sources, Iran is weighing a plot to assassinate US Ambassador to South Africa Lana Marks to avenge Soleimani.

Trump warned this week that Washington would harshly respond to any Iranian attempts to take revenge for the death of the general, tweeting if they hit us in any way  were going to hit them 1,000 times harder.

Iranian officials this week warned Trump against making a new strategic mistake by believing such reports.

The IRGC chief also implied on Saturday that 66-year-old Marks, a former luxury fashion and handbag designer, would not be a proportionate target.

Do you think we hit a female ambassador in return for our martyred brother? the general said.

Iran-US relations have been deteriorating steadily since Trump unilaterally withdrew from an international nuclear accord signed between Iran and world powers.

The US has imposed harsh economic sanctions on Iran and wishes to unilaterally reinstate United Nations sanctions that would also effectively renew a conventional arms embargo.
Parents of LGBT children have been told by Pope Francis that God loves them, in a further sign of modernity for the Catholic church.

The religious leader spoke to the mothers and fathers of 40 LGBT youngsters from the Italian association, Tenda di Gionata, which means Jonathans Tent.

Members of the group welcome LGBT Christians, their families and pastoral workers and it provides them with support and information.

It was founded in 2018 by a group of people inspired by a Catholic priest, the late Reverend David Esposito, of the Diocese of Fermo, in the Marches region of Italy.

Mara Grassi, vice president of the association, along with her husband Agostino Usai presented the Pope with a booklet entitled Genitori Fortunati (Fortunate Parents).

Pope Francis has reassured the parents of LGBT children that God loved them

The booklet documented the experiences of the parents of LGBT children with the church.

It stated that many of the experiences were difficult and that, despite seeking to be accepted by the church, they were too often seen as undesirables.

Mara told Pope Francis: 'We wish to create a bridge to the church so that the church too can change its way of looking at our children, no longer excluding them but fully welcoming them.'

The Pope met the parents' group following the public audience in the Renaissance courtyard of San Damaso in the Vatican.

Speaking to Avvenire, the daily paper of the Italian Bishops' Conference, she said: 'our association aims to foster dialogue between the church and the families of LGBT (people).

'We consider ourselves fortunate because we had to change the way that we had always looked at our children.

'We found a new way of looking that enabled us to see in them the beauty and love of God.'

Members of the Jonathan's Tent group met the Pope to discuss religion and LGBT people

Mara revealed that she is the mother of four children, the oldest who is gay, and that she did not feel that the church accepted him.

She said: 'After I came to know that my son was homosexual, I suffered a lot because the rules of the church made me think that he was excluded from the love of God.'

The group gave the Pope a rainbow coloured T-shirt with the words 'In Love There Is No Fear' on it.

He told them: 'The church does not exclude them because she loves them deeply.

'God loves our children because they are all children of God. The church loves our children as they are.'
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By Leonard Pitts Jr.

LOS ANGELES  We gave a damn too late.

Sometimes, I think that will be the legacy of this generation. Or maybe Im just tired of seeing people walking around without masks as if a pandemic had not taken almost 200,000 American lives. Then again, it could just be the smoke.

On a normal morning, the sky here is a metallic gray. Today, it is a queasy yellow. The sun is blurry and the air smells faintly like a backyard barbecue.

The Golden State is burning, dozens of wildfires charring its forests, darkening its skies. One fire, burning north of San Francisco, is being called the largest in California history. The previous record holder was just two years ago.

We have come here, my wife and I, for a family funeral. We drove because we didnt want to end up wedged in an airline seat next to some MAGA hat-wearing COVID denier who thinks being required to wear a mask infringes her civil rights. But we could have saved ourselves the trouble, because from a restaurant in Missouri to a gas station in Arizona, maskless faces are unavoidable all across America. Indeed, some shoot dirty looks when you walk by with your face covered.

I cant help thinking of all the times Ive seen people like this on the news, sickened, chastened, weakened and warning their fellow deniers that, as one put it, COVID is no joke. And I always wonder: why was it necessary for them to learn that the hard way? Why did they give a damn too late?

Many observers, myself included, have invoked the stoic sacrifices of the World War II generation as sharp contrast to the whiny petulance so prominent in COVID-era America. Our grandparents went without sugar, gasoline and meat for four years, we say, whereas these crybabies are blubbering because they are asked to mask.

The comparison is meant to point up our modern selfishness, our inability to pull together. But it occurs to me that that misses an important nuance. After all, there was selfishness in the 1940s, too, as attested by a thriving black market that allowed some people to evade rationing. The more telling difference is that nobody in that era had to be convinced the war was real. So the issue is not simply degrees of selfishness, but of ignorance, the willingness to deny  to actively reject  empirical fact.

Which brings us back to the fire. Experts trace this siege to hotter, drier conditions caused by climate change. Yet, after ignoring the crisis for weeks, there was climate denier-in-chief Donald Trump visiting the state Monday and blaming the disaster on improper forest management. Which is a reprise of 2018, when he mused on the need to rake our forests.

Climate change activists have been warning for years about bigger natural disasters and more extreme weather. Now we are there. A freak summer snowstorm blankets Denver, a huge chunk of the arctic ice shelf breaks off Greenland, a record-setting hurricane season has storms pummeling the Americas like a boxer working a speed bag, Cali is burning and yet, where is any sense of urgency? Of national mission?

We give a damn too late.

Thats because Americans live strung between reality and its alternative, where magical thinking is common and facts-denial the law. Now the bill comes due, payable in currency of ashes and fevers, blackened homes, congested lungs, and death. And the payments have only just begun. You wait and hope for those whove moved to realitys alternative to return home. But even if they do, so much damage is already done.

Sometimes, when you give a damn too late, its the same as not giving a damn at all.

Pitts is a columnist for the Tribune Content Agency.
Vijay Inder Singla

Chandigarh: School education and public works minister Punjab Vijay Inder Singla, on Saturday, lashed out at the Modi government for deceiving people by passing three bills stating agriculture reforms as these bills will break the backbone of Punjab which is the food basket of India.

The cabinet minister termed the bills anti-farmer and said that these bills would pose a major threat to the people connected agriculture, directly or indirectly. Singla said that to justify their move, BJP leaders were continuously distorting facts as per their political convenience.

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Vijay Inder Singla

Singla said that with the provisions of these black bills, the decades-long relationship between farmers, arhtiyas and laborers will be demolished. He added that the collective efforts of these sections of the society in the field of agriculture had made Punjab the food bowl of India.

He said that with the liberty of the free market, throw the local traders out of the foodgrain businesses and later they will start black-marketing of cereals and other food items.

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The cabinet minister said that the Congress led Punjab Government strongly opposed these bills and the Congress party leaders and workers will also stage Dharnas across Punjab on Monday.

He also appealed the all sections of society including farmers, arhtiyas (commission agents), laborers and elected representatives to stand against BJP governments anti-people policies.

Punjab governmentVijay Inder Singla said that Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh led Punjab government has ensured sound infrastructure in more than 1,800 mandis and also protected rights of 28,000 arhtiyas.

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Singla added that these bills are direct encroachment upon the functions of the states and against the spirit of cooperative federalism enshrined in the Constitution.

He said that as these bills were opening up agricultural sale and marketing outside the notified Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC), it would also prohibit the state government from collecting market fee, cess or levy and commission from Arhtiyas for trade outside the APMCs.

He added that primarily the income of Mandi Board is being used for the construction of link roads and other rural infrastructure but with the anti-people provisions of these bills, the revenue collection of the state controlled boards will decline drastically. He added that the decline in the income of Mandi Boards would ultimately hit the development of rural areas.

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Vijay Inder Singla

Singla said that the union agriculture minister has given verbal assurance that their government will not withdraw MSP but if they really intended to protect the safeguards of the farmers, then they should have included this provision in the bills in written form.

He added that by easing regulation of food items, it would lead to exporters, processors and traders hoarding farm produce during the harvest season, when prices are generally lower, and releasing it later when prices increase.
Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister said the premier is watching for symptoms of COVID-19 after meeting with Quebec's premier, who is now self-isolating after coming into contact with a confirmed case of the illness.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 19/9/2020 (489 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister leaves a press conference in Ottawa on Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister said the premier is watching for symptoms of COVID-19 after meeting with Quebec's premier, who is now self-isolating after coming into contact with a confirmed case of the illness.

Pallister had a "working lunch" with Quebec Premier Francois Legault and other Conservative premiers in Ottawa on Friday, a spokesperson for Pallister's office said in an emailed statement to CBC News.

Legault announced later on Friday that he is voluntarily self-isolating after meeting one-on-one with federal Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole on Monday.

To read more of this story first reported by CBC News, click here.

This content is made available to Free Press readers as part of an agreement with CBC that sees our two trusted news brands collaborate to better cover Manitoba.
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The activities of our oil workers serve the interests of the Azerbaijani people, and this is very important for them because they know that both the political and economic achievements of our country are largely based on the oil and gas factor, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said in an interview with Azerbaijani television channels after the groundbreaking ceremony for the Absheron field offshore operations at the Heydar Aliyev Baku Deep Water Jackets Plant on 19 September.

Highly appreciating the activities of oil workers, the head of state recalled his years of work at the State Oil Company and said that the experience gained at that time was very valuable for him.

Saying that he had worked alongside prominent oil workers, including the legendary oil worker Gurban Abbasov, President Ilham Aliyev described him as a very knowledgeable, professional and courageous specialist with a very principled position. He stressed that this huge derrick barge was named after him.

Recognizing the merits of Academician Khoshbakht Yusifzade, the head of state said that while he was working at the State Oil Company, he met with Khoshbakht Yusifzade every day and was meeting him today as well.

-

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
A private graveside service will be held in Montreal on Monday for Standardbred owner and deal-maker Gerry Bloch, who died in his sleep on Friday, Sept. 18 at age 78.

"Gerry lived for harness racing. He knew everybody," said Rick Karper, longtime director of the Quebec horsemen's association.

Active for many years in the retail clothing business, Bloch owned racehorses for more than four decades, most notably pacer Mark Johnathan, who almost pulled off a major upset in the $1-million North America Cup at Greenwood in 1990, losing by a nose to Apaches Fame.

He later became an agent and scout, orchestrating private horse sales for clients throughout North America.

One of the biggest deals he initiated involved pacer Lis Mara, who changed hands for $245,000 as a four-year-old and went on to win the Canadian Pacing Derby, Breeders Crown, and more than $2 million.

"I'll tell you, it's more stressful spending other people's money than your own. You don't want to be wrong," he told the Montreal Gazette in a 2007 interview.

Gerry Bloch is survived by his wife of 51 years, Doreen, and children Mark and Bonnie.

Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the family and friends of Gerry Bloch.

(A Trot Insider Exclusive by Paul Delean)
Ajman Free Zone signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with noon.com, the regions leading digital marketplace, as part of its move to further enhance the local e-commerce sector and attract new investors to Ajman.

The MoU will strengthen the cooperation and coordination between both parties as they work towards boosting the sectors performance and supporting its steady expansion, a statement said.

Under the MoU, existing Ajman Free Zone investors who hold e-commerce licenses can join Noon to utilise the homegrown platforms extensive library of tools including a fully optimised platform, secure payment gateway, and established logistics and fulfillment network. Companies wanting to use noon as their digital selling platform but are not yet registered in the free zone can still obtain an e-commerce license to enjoy this privilege and other benefits.

Apart from building enhanced cooperation and coordination, the MoU will also help fast-track the digital transformation not only of Ajman but also of the entire UAE, whose e-commerce market is considered the most developed in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region at 4.2 per cent penetration rate.

Eng. Ali Abdulla Bin Towaih Al Suwaidi, Director General, Ajman Free Zone, noted that the MoU between Ajman Free Zone and Noon reflects their shared commitment to forming strategic partnerships with leading players across industries, including the steadily rising UAE e-commerce market.

Eng. Al Suwaidi said: Our strategic partnership with Noon, one of the countrys leading e-commerce platforms, will benefit both our investors and customers by opening up new opportunities for business expansion and development. The range of available services, for instance, will grow and become diverse as a result of this new collaboration, thus providing our investors and customers with more options and advantages. We are confident that this quality partnership will bring enormous benefits - particularly with regard to bolstering the growth of the e-commerce market - supported by the governments unwavering assistance as well as the countrys continuous modernisation of its digital infrastructure for more advanced services such as the offering of secure and convenient electronic payment methods.

Yousef Almehrzi, Government Partnerships at Noon, said: As the regions leading homegrown digital marketplace, noon is proud to support businesses, offering them immediate access to our huge and highly engaged customer database along with our trusted services. Through our partnership with Ajman Free Zone we will be able to provide countless new businesses with the tools they need to expand their offering online, driving reach to new audiences, multiplying sales, enabling them to compete better in a digitally progressive retail market. Were looking forward to welcoming SMEs and supporting their growth across the region.

The MoU is aligned with Ajman Free Zones constant efforts to explore new partnerships with leading institutions and companies from various sectors, contribute to the growth of the national economy, diversify its offerings, and increase the global attractiveness and competitiveness of Ajman and the UAE.TradeArabia News Service
The planned execution of a San Antonio man on Texas death row for the gang rape and fatal stabbing of a teenaged girl in 1996, has been postponed because of COVID-19.

Carlos Trevino was scheduled to be put to death by injection Sept. 30, based on an execution warrant issued April 16 by Judge Jennifer Pena, who presides over the 290th state District Court.

Gov. Greg Abbott declared a disaster in Texas on March 13, because of the threat posed by COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

On ExpressNews.com: Get the latest update on coronavirus and a tracking map of U.S. cases

That same day, the Texas Supreme Court, to avoid health risks, issued its first emergency order for all courts in Texas, civil or criminal, that suspended any and all deadlines and procedures, whether prescribed by statute, rule, or order, for a stated period ending no later than 30 days after the Governors state of disaster has been lifted.

Since then, the state high courts order has been renewed 26 times because of the pandemic numbers, most recently Friday, which extended the courts powers until Dec. 1.

Because of the foregoing, and the current COVID-19 conditions in Texas, this Court orders that the previous warrant of execution, setting the Defendants execution date for September 30, 2020, be withdrawn and the death warrant be recalled. Penas order states.

Trevino, 21, was a member of the Pistoleros street gang and had been out of prison a month after serving time for an auto theft conviction when he and three others came upon Linda Salinas, a Harlandale High School student, on June 9, 1996.

According to court documents, Linda was seen getting into a car with a group of young men on June 9, 1996. The next day, her partially clothed body was found in a creek in Espada Park on the South Side.

On ExpressNews.com: Victim's family reacts to SCOTUS decision

Reports indicated Linda knew at least two of the men, and had trusted them to take her to a friends house, as promised. They took her to the park, raped her and stabbed her twice in the neck, court documents indicate.

Trevinos co-defendants, Santos Cervantes, Sienido Sam Rey and Bryan Apolinar, 43, were convicted in the rape and slaying, and are serving their sentences, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice website.

Cervantes, 42, was convicted of capital murder and is serving a life sentence. He is housed in the Bill Clements Unit in Amarillo and will be eligible for parole in 2037.

Rey, 45, was convicted of the lesser offense of murder and was sentenced to 50 years. He will be eligible for parole in 2021. He is housed in the Wynne Unit in Huntsville.

Apolinar, 43, was convicted of aggravated sexual assault and was sentenced to 25 years. He has been eligible for parole since 2009 and is in the B. Moore Unit in Overton. His projected release date is 2022.

Top hits: Get San Antonio Express-News stories sent directly to your inbox

Trevino was the only one to receive the death penalty. He has appealed his case through the court system, alleging his trial attorneys were deficient for not showing the jury that he had fetal alcohol disorder because his mother drank while she was pregnant.

His attorneys argued that the disorder could have contributed to his violent behavior, which could have persuaded the jury to sentence him to life in prison instead of death. His appeals have been denied.

A hearing before Pena on March 5 will determine the next execution date for Trevino.

Elizabeth Zavala covers county and state courts in San Antonio. To read more from Elizabeth, become a subscriber. ezavala@express-news.net | Twitter: @elizabeth2863
L'efficacia degli articoli dell'ordinanza sui test obbligatori e sospesa, ma la Regione non rinuncia alle sue prerogative nella gestione dell'emergenza Covid-19. La sentenza di merito del Tar sul ricorso del Governo e attesa per il 7 ottobre. Nel frattempo, annuncia l'assessore alla Sanita, Mario Nieddu, potenzieremo di sicuro i controlli nei porti e negli aeroporti.

Valutazioni

Sulla possibilita, da qui al pronunciamento del Tar, di mettere in campo un'altra ordinanza, o di integrare o modificare quella impugnata, sono in corso una serie di valutazioni. Con il presidente stiamo ragionando per capire se e il caso di assumere nuove misure, spiega: Dipende da cio che accade, la situazione va tenuta sotto controllo perche le cose possono evolvere in un senso o nell'altro in modo repentino: ci son giorni in cui abbiamo contagi nuovi e ricoveri in piu, altri in cui calano considerevolmente. Intanto, pero, nulla vieta di incrementare i controlli. D'altronde abbiamo gia potenziato nel momento in cui abbiamo aperto ai test sierologici, che possono essere somministrati in quaranta laboratori accreditati, ricorda Nieddu, e adesso stiamo aprendo ai tamponi nei laboratori privati: aspettiamo solo le manifestazioni di interesse di chi e disposto e ha le attrezzature adatte.

I tamponi

Quindi, non e ancora possibile sottoporsi al tampone da un privato. Lo sara molto probabilmente a partire da lunedi prossimo, dopo che la direzione generale dell'assessorato avra firmato una determina che consentira al Policlinico sassarese e al Mater Olbia di somministrare i tamponi anche agli esterni. Le due strutture vantano un percorso gia avviato, quindi non hanno necessita di validazione e molto presto potrebbero essere accreditati: di certo, prima dei laboratori che devono affrontare tutto il percorso.

Porti e aeroporti

Per i controlli in porti e aeroporti con il metodo drive-in, fa notare che sono gia operativi: abbiamo i punti di prelievo per chi arriva dalle zone ad alto rischio come Croazia, Malta e Spagna. Si tratta solo di integrarli con ulteriore personale e mettendo a disposizione altri test.

Decreto schiaffo

L'esponente della Giunta Solinas torna anche sulla sospensiva del Tar. Il decreto costituisce uno schiaffo per il Governo, sostiene, perche ha smentito la campagna diffamatoria nei confronti della Sardegna e dei sardi rappresentati come problema, come untori e causa del nuovo aumento del contagio in Italia. Infatti, secondo il Tar non c'era alcuna emergenza sanitaria in Sardegna, e questo e l'unico motivo per il quale ha sospeso i tre articoli. Insomma, secondo Nieddu il Governo ha preso un granchio enorme perche in questo periodo ha lasciato intendere che la Sardegna rappresentasse un'emergenza in Italia. Ma se nell'Isola non era in corso alcuna emergenza, perche allora la Regione ha adottato l'ordinanza? Proprio perche, visto che il Governo ci accusava di essere il problema, allora abbiamo pensato di risolverlo.

Roberto Murgia

 Riproduzione riservata
Madison and Greene counties remain on the warning list for COVID-19, according to information from the Illinois Department of Public Health released Friday.

Being on the list means they meet two or more risk indicators measuring the amount of COVID-19 increase, including cases per 100,000 residents, hospital bed usage, test positivity rate and number of deaths among others. Fridays list included 22 other counties.

On Friday afternoon, Madison County was reporting 5,231 cases in the county, up 84 from Thursday. The daily positivity rate for Friday was 10.47%, according to the department. The three-day moving average of positivity rate was 11.78%, the seven-day was 12.14% and the 10-day was 12.75%.

No new virus-releated deaths were reported Friday in Madison County.

While Madison County remains under pandemic rules issued Sept. 2, Will and Kankakee counties on Friday were again allowed to offer indoor dining and drinking at bars and restaurants as the region saw its COVID-19 test positivity rate decrease.

Per the latest figures released Friday by the Illinois Department of Public Health, the positivity rate for the two counties decreased to 5.6 percent, which marked the third day below 6.5 percent.

In Region 4  which includes Madison County and the Metro East  the rate dipped another half point to 8 percent. It first topped 8 percent on Aug. 11, and after the regions positivity rate failed to decrease, added mitigations  including closure of indoor dining and drinking  took effect at the beginning of the month.

The region will still need to decrease to 6.5 percent for three days before added mitigations can be lifted and it can reenter Phase 4 of the reopening plan like the rest of the state.

More Information COVID-19 by the numbers Madison County - 5,231 (130 deaths) Jersey County - 373 (13 deaths) Calhoun County - 34 Greene County - 205 (3 deaths) Macoupin County -470 (6 deaths) Montgomery County - 309 (12 deaths) St. Clair County -6,184 (182 deaths) Clinton County - 1,022 (20 deaths) Bond County - 276 (4 deaths) Monroe County - 605 (15 deaths) Washington County - 179 (1 death) Cases by zip code 62002 (Alton) - 806 62010 (Bethalto) - 242 62067 (Moro) - 54 62035 (Godfrey) - 418 62037 (Grafton) - 32 62036 (Golden Eagle) - 6 62022 (Dow) - 21 62028 (Elsah) - 8 62031 (Fieldon) - 10 62047 (Hardin) -8 62012 (Brighton) - 106 62014 (Bunker Hill) - 40 62021 (Dorsey) - 13 62052 (Jerseyville) - 241 62095 (Wood River) - 172 62084 (Roxana) - 24 62048 (Hartford) - 16 62087 (South Roxana) - 28 62018 (Cottage Hills) - 57 62024 (East Alton) -133 62025 (Edwardsville) - 650 62034 (Glen Carbon) - 274 62062 (Maryville) -107 62294 (Troy) -225 62040 (Granite City/Pontoon Beach) - 776 62234 (Collinsville) - 687 62060 (Madison) - 115 62090 (Venice) - 30 62249 (Highland) - 308 62001 (Alhambra) - 22 62281 (St. Jacob) - 54 62061 (Marine) - 31 62097 (Worden) - 45 62046 (Hamel) - 12 62088 (Staunton) - 86 62069 (Mt. Olive) - 31 62033 (Gillespie) - 84 62626 (Carlinville) - 60 62630 (Chesterfield) - 9 62685 (Shipman) - 15 62063 (Medora) - 8 62016 (Carrollton) - 12 62054 (Kane) - 10 62044 (Greenfield) - 11 62009 (Benld) - 9 62092 (White Hall) - 108 62082 (Roodhouse) -51 Sources: Illinois Department of Public Health and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. See More Collapse

The positivity rates in the other regions ranged from 2.7 percent in east central Illinois to 6.9 percent in southern Illinois. Region 1 in northwest Illinois was the only other above 6 percent, sitting at 6.4 percent.

Statewide, the positivity rate was 3.6 again Friday for the second straight day.

IDPH also announced another 20 deaths among COVID-positive persons, bringing total casualties to 8,411 since the pandemic began. It also reported 2,120 new cases among 61,918 test results reported over the previous 24 hours. There are now 270,327 confirmed cases and more than 4.9 million tested, with a recovery rate of 96 percent for those 42 days removed from a positive diagnosis, according to IDPH.

At the end of Thursday, there were 1,481 people in Illinois hospitalized with COVID-19, including 329 in intensive care units and 149 on ventilators.

No new COVID-related deaths were reported Friday in Madison, Macoupin, Greene, Jersey and Calhoun counties. Two deaths were reported in St. Clair County.

For the latest information on COVID-19 or coronavirus resources, visit the Madison County Health Department online at www.madisonchd.org or on Facebook @MadisonCHD. Also visit www.co.madison.il.us for more news and a daily update or on Facebook @MadisonCountyIL.

Local and statewide information is also available on the IDPH website www.dph.illinois.gov. Click on the coronavirus banner.

For health-related questions about COVID-19, people can also call the IDPH hotline at 1-800-889-3931 or email dph.sick@illinois.gov.
Dilbag Singh, DGP, Jammu & Kashmir speaking in Rajouri on Saturday. Photo/ANI

Rajouri (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], September 19 (ANI): Pakistan promotes terrorism in every possible way in Jammu and Kashmir by providing support to terror groups and uses narco-terrorism for terror funding, Director General of Police (DGP) Dilbag Singh said on Saturday.

The J-K DGP said that the police got major success yesterday by nabbing three Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists in Rajouri district.

"Yesterday a group which had reached from Kashmir was nabbed. Three persons were found roaming around and the police got information of their suspicious movement. Upon seeing the police party they brought out a grenade from their bag and hurled it. Fortunately, the grenade did not explode, the police team nabbed them and recovered two AK-56 rifles, two pistols, four grenades and Rs one lakh from them," Singh said at a press conference here.

"All three are LeT terrorists. The money they had would have come from Pakistan to promote terrorism. The weapons were sent from across the border using drones and were recovered by these terrorists on our side of the border," he added.

He said Pakistan is trying to disturb peace in J-K by using drones to drop weapons and was also trying to infiltrate terrorists.

Singh said they had taken steps to prevent Pakistan from using drones for dropping weapons.

"They try to promote terrorism in every possible way in Jammu and Kashmir by providing support to terror groups. Pakistan is using narco-terrorism for terror funding. We will deal with drug smugglers strictly," he said.

Inspector General (IG), Mukesh Singh said operations have been carried out by the security forces in the past few days to recover weapons and drugs.

"Weapons are being smuggled from across the border. In one such incident on September 11, security forces arrested two persons and recovered a huge cache of arms and ammunitions from them," Mukesh Singh said.

The officer also said that Rajouri Police on September 14 recovered a big consignment of drugs, including seven kilograms heroin, whose value in the market would be approximately Rs 7 crores.

He said one individual was arrested in connection with the case from Kulgam and it led to the place from where drugs were delivered from across the border.

"Upon reaching the place we recovered four more kilograms of heroin and three individuals from Poonch were arrested for transporting, storing and supplying the drugs," he said.

The IG said that money from the smuggled drugs would have been used to fund terrorist activities. (ANI)


Maharashtras environment minister, Aaditya Thackeray, has directed collectors of districts along the Konkan coast to identify and transfer mangrove areas under their jurisdiction within two months to the state forest department for their declaration as reserved forests.

Some mangrove land is currently not officially declared as reserved. It is anyway not developable and neither must it have human interference. Hence, we met today [Friday] to decide on the further course of action to officially tag them as reserved forests, and accord the necessary protection under the Indian Forest Act, said Thackeray after a meeting with revenue, forest, environment departments officials.

Mangrove forests are spread over 30,200-hectare land across Maharashtra, according to the Forest Survey of India. The Maharashtra government has notified 15,312 hectares of the land as reserved forest under the Indian Forest Act. The remaining is private land. Of the 15,312-hectare, 1,592.8 hectares is yet to be transferred from the revenue to the forest department for better protection as per the Bombay high courts September 2018 directive.

Principal secretary (forests) Milind Mhaiskar called the move important and timely decision considering the impact of increasing frequency of cyclones, extreme weather events, sea-level rise, and associated storm surge for coastal zones. Mangroves act as the first line of defense against this while acting as a breeding ground for large marine biodiversity.  He added the reserved forest status for mangroves around Mumbais Mahim Nature Park could prevent annual flooding during the monsoon.

According to a 2017 National Aeronautics and Space Administration satellite study of Mumbais mangroves, the deposition of sediments narrowed creek channels and allowed mangroves to spread along its edges and expanded green cover overtime.

This is the foreshore land which is increasing and our intention is to protect these areas, especially in Mumbai suburbs and Thane even if they have sparse mangrove trees. These areas need to be mapped jointly by the forest and revenue department and protected after final notification, said Konkan commissioner Annasaheb Misal.

Misal said all inquiries, land identification, handing over, and final notification needs to be completed within two months. Overall protection of these zones will be enhanced when their control would be completely with the forest department. Additionally, the district collectors have been told to undertake a ground survey to calculate the areas falling under the jurisdiction of various state agencies and ensure such lands are handed over to the forest department within two months as well.

Misal has proposed a declaration of newly-developed mangrove and mudflat patches due to excess sedimentation (foreshore areas) along creeks and estuaries as reserved forests.

In September 2018, the Bombay high court said the destruction of mangroves offended the fundamental rights of the citizens and hence it was a mandatory duty of the state and its agencies to protect and preserve them. All mangroves in the state are to be declared as protected or reserved forests, including land belonging to government agencies, it added.

The Mangrove Cell estimates that approximately 2,000-hectare mangrove areas fall under the control of agencies like the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority. This needs to be handed over and notified as reserved forest, said Virendra Tiwari, additional principal chief conservator of forest (Mangrove Cell).

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Places of worship in San Francisco might be able to hold indoor services for up to 25 people, and 50 people outdoors, starting Oct. 1 if coronavirus cases arent surging.

That goal was announced Monday, two days before the head of Archdiocese of San Francisco wrote an opinion piece criticizing the city for unfairly treating religious institutions by not allowing indoor services  a move that he argued lacked compassion. He also said the new rules to allow indoor gathering will not accommodate enough people.

He has organized a march on Sunday in San Francisco to Free the Mass.

San Francisco is currently in the red tier, based on the states new color-coded blueprint for allowing certain businesses and activities to resume. That tier allows indoor services with modifications, including a maximum 25% capacity or 100 people. But despite that guidance from the state, the city had chosen a more restrictive path and barred all indoor religious gatherings. Outdoor gatherings are allowed for up to 12 people.

Regardless of whether San Francisco moves to a less restrictive phase  the orange tier  places of worship can reopen to 25 people indoors and 50 people outdoors starting Oct. 1.

The mayor is sensitive to the needs of the faith community and peoples desires and needs to worship, both personally and as mayor, said Jeff Cretan, a spokesman for Mayor London Breed. We are working with public health to do what we can, knowing we have to be cognizant of the risks with every step we take with reopening, whether that is schools or houses of worship.

On Wednesday, Salvatore Cordileone, the archbishop of San Francisco, called San Franciscos restrictions on church services profoundly harmful and unequal treatment in a Washington Post opinion article. He said the citys announcement that it would allow indoor service for up to 25 people doesnt go far enough.

Our fundamental rights do not come from the state. As the authors of our Declaration of Independence put it, they are self-evident, that is, they come from God, Cordileone wrote. Even this injustice, though, is not as hurtful as the simple lack of compassion. I sometimes wonder whether the increasingly secular elites imposing these restrictions understand the pain they are unnecessarily inflicting.

Cordileone added that sacraments as we Catholics understand them cannot be live-streamed.

In response to the archbishops statement, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco said Friday that while she misses attending church regularly, she supports following expert recommendations on reopenings.

With all due respect to my archbishop, I think we should follow science on this, Pelosi said. We have some areas of agreement and some areas of disagreement. So I dont know if he was speaking as our pastor or as a lobbyist  advocate  but whatever it is, Im sure that he must have meant if it is scientifically safe, rather than jeopardizing peoples health if they want to go to church.

She also said she is sometimes asked about faith and science being contradictory.

I believe that science is an answer to our prayers, Pelosi said. It is a creation of God and one that is an answer to our prayers.

Other Catholic leaders echoed Cordileone and said they have proper safety protocols in place and should be allowed to reopen. Ken Del Ponte, the parish manager at St. Anne of the Sunset, said city officials simply dont understand how essential religious services are.

We can probably hold indoor Masses if we put a Walgreens sign on the church because people can go in there, Del Ponte said. Its a little frustrating. San Francisco is a very secular city and it does seem like everything is essential except religion. Im not saying (political leaders are) mean spirited or are targeting us, but I dont think they get it.

Cordileone said Catholic churches have developed rigorous protocols to protect public health and questioned why the public can go to parks, dine outdoors and visit malls at a reduced capacity.

Infectious disease experts say the comparison between retail and indoor services is flawed because the transmission of the virus relies on human behavior.

It turns out that the behaviors that people have in stores and the behaviors that people have in places of worship are very different, said Robert Siegel, an infectious disease specialist at Stanford University. They shouldnt necessarily be compared. People in places of worship tend to be vocalizing more and vocalizing louder by singing. They tend to be in contact with each other for longer periods of time.

Siegel added that the spread of the virus tracks behavior and not intention or beliefs.

John Swartzberg, an infectious disease expert at UC Berkeley, said social distancing and masks can mitigate risks, but singing or speaking loudly can increase the risk.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

That is the danger of bringing people together in terms of any kind of religious gathering right now, he said.

The city and the archdiocese have clashed during the pandemic.

In early July, the city sent the archdiocese a letter telling it to stop holding multiple indoor large gatherings at its facilities, in violation of the citys health order prohibiting such assemblies.

Just days later, SS Peter and Pauls Church in North Beach hosted a wedding, after which at least 10 people tested positive for the coronavirus, including the newlywed couple, two guests said. A city official crashed the wedding and ordered it to stop.

In August, city officials again reprimanded the archdiocese for violating coronavirus health orders.

That letter is the last formal correspondence between the archdiocese and the City Attorneys Office.

Leaders of other religious places of worship said they arent as hard-pressed to return to in-person activities.

Dan Ain, the senior rabbi at Congregation Beth Sholom in San Francisco, said its been challenging to transfer all services online  especially with the start of Rosh Hashanah on Friday. But Ain said his priority is to keep the community safe because preservation of life is a key teaching in Judaism.

We appreciate being led by the public authority and the administration, Ain said. Im a rabbi, I couldnt tell you much about the science, so I appreciate the experts.

Sarah Ravani, Nora Mishanec and Tal Kopan are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com, nora.mishanec@sfchronicle.com, tal.kopan@sfchronicle.com
US Coast Guard commandant Admiral Karl Schultz (R) reviews an honor guard with Philippine Capt. Nelbert Aniversario (L), head of the coastguard support group, during a visit to the Philippine coastguard headquarters in Manila, Oct. 21, 2019.

The United States Coast Guard has called out Chinas massive distant-water fishing fleet for its extractive practices in the waters of its Southeast Asian neighbors and off the coasts of Central America and West Africa.

The criticism came on Thursday as the Coast Guard unveiled an ambitious new strategy for tackling illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing (IUU), and as Vietnam detained a Chinese fishing boat for intruding into waters off its coast in the Gulf of Tonkin.

U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Karl Schultz said that illegal fishing had overtaken counter-narcotics and anti-piracy as the most important priority for maritime security around the globe, noting that it threatens a host nations ability to protect their stable resources.

Its bigger than catching a few boats with illegal tuna, Schultz said at the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank.

This is really about systemic violations of sovereign nation rights. Its about threatening sovereignty, economic security, a weakening of the global rules-based order, and thats why I think the coastguard has an opportunity at this time to put some lines of effort together here to really get after a threat.

The strategy report unveiled at Thursdays event listed three priorities: better intelligence and detection of the actors behind illegal fishing for more effective anti-IUU enforcement, countering state-sponsored predatory fishing, and multilateral cooperation.

Sally Yozell, director of the Environmental Security program at the Stimson Center think tank, said that combating IUU fishing was one issue where both the Obama and Trump administrations sought to take action.

Illegal, unreported, unregulated fishing really hurts honest fishermen, she said in an interview with Radio Free Asia, but noted that it was now also being viewed more explicitly as a security concern.

The U.S. Coast Guards new strategy singles out for attention Chinas state-sponsored fishing fleets. Adm. Craig S. Faller, commander of the U.S. militarys Southern Command  whose area of responsibility covers the Caribbean, Central America and Latin America -- said Thursday that the Coast Guards combating of IUU fishing would be part of the U.S. great power competition with China.

China has the largest distant-water fishing fleet in the world and is also the number one source of IUU fishing, according to the IUU Fishing Index, which ranks countries on their enforcement practices.

On the one hand, China is trying to do better on paper. Theres new fishing rules and regulations and all the rest. However, they dont seem to be enforcing their fleets, which is a really big deal whether its in West Africa, the Pacific, or North Korea, Yozell said.

Yozell believes Chinas distant-water fishing fleet is likely larger than official numbers show, too, as China classifies fishing boats operating in waters it claims as part of its domestic fishing fleet. China maintains it has historic rights to nearly the entirety of the South China Sea, including portions of its Southeast Asian neighbors exclusive economic zones. China has asserted its claim to the disputed waters with fishing fleets in the past, backed up by its powerful China Coast Guard (CCG).

On Thursday, Vietnams coastguard took action in the Gulf of Tonkin where an agreement between Vietnam and China on fishing cooperation expired at the end of June.

Vietnamese state media reported that the coastguard caught two Chinese fishing vessels intruding into Vietnamese waters off the northern city of Mong Cai. One vessel fled and the other was detained along with its nine crew. The vessel and crew were subsequently released.

Vessel tracking data seen by Radio Free Asia shows two more Chinese fishing vessels were operating Friday within 200 nautical miles off of Ho Chi Minh City, in southern Vietnam, near the submerged Vanguard Bank area. Another fishing boat sailed within 50 nautical miles of Tuy Hoa, further north up Vietnams coast, on Tuesday. Frequently, Chinese fishing vessels pass through or start to operate in the South China Sea, and turn off their Automatic Identification Signal (AIS) to avoid detection.

China has also been accused of exploiting the waters off the coast of West Africa in the past. The Ghana National Canoe Fishermen Council published an open letter in May accusing Chinese fishing trawlers of masquerading themselves as Ghanaian companies to circumvent local regulations against foreign fishing.

Hundreds of Chinese commercial fishing vessels hovered outside the exclusive economic zone of Ecuador from June through August, logging more than 73,000 hours while fishing for squid in the biodiverse waters off the Galapagos Islands, according to a recent report by the environmental non-profit Oceana. Chinas rapacious squid-hunting fleets have depleted the livelihood of North Korean coastal communities and driven North Korean fishermen to a deadly level of desperation, a landmark report by NBC News found in July.

Its pretty much a big issue wherever China fishes, Yozell pointed out. Theres just a lot of unreported [fishing]. Id say thats the biggest problem in the IUU. A small island state or a less developed state  where they have less capacity to enforce and monitor, may provide a legal license for a foreign vessel to fish for a certain amount. And then that vessel may take two or three or five times as much as theyre supposed to. And thats the unreported. Thats just taking advantage of countries who are not able to enforce management and quota and licenses.

The U.S. Coast Guard is apparently honing international partnerships and stepping up its presence in the Pacific to counter this. The commandant promised a greater presence of its ships, more capacity-building, and more coastguard-to-coastguard cooperation among the Pacific Islands and Oceania, where the U.S. holds overseas territories like Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas, and maintains Compacts of Free Association with the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau.

However, Yozell expressed lingering questions over whether the U.S. Coast Guard was capable of carrying out everything promised in its new strategy.

They havent received additional resources in their budget to handle IUU, she said. The Coast Guard is one of the most stretched agencies. Thatll be the big key. They can talk the talk, but will they walk the walk with additional resources to implement it?
Atrial fibrillation is a heart symptom where the person has an irregular or fast heart rhythm. It raises complications and dangers of chest pain, heart strokes, congestive heart failure, or cardiac discomfort. Some of the typical indications of AF are dizziness, confusion, fainting, or tiredness. There has been promising development in the technological advancement of procedures to treat such condition and are being adopted by the hospitals and clinics.

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Demand Scenario

The global atrial fibrillation market was USD 5.16 billion in 2018 and is estimated to reach USD 12.47 billion by 2025 at a CAGR of 13.43% during the forecast period

Growth by Region

Europe dominates the global market for atrial fibrillation and is likely to continue during the forecast period owing to factors such as rise in the adoption of technologically advanced technologies and advanced healthcare facilities and infrastructure in the region. The devices are often approved in Europe before entering the US market and the increasing number of catheter ablation procedures contributes towards the growth of the market in this region. Asia Pacific is expected to have the highest growth rate during the forecast period which can be attributable to factors like its huge patient base and population, its increasing need for atrial fibrillation devices owing to better medical infrastructure and high Chinese & Indian healthcare costs.

Get Complete TOC with Tables and Figures@ https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/discount/3933

Drivers vs Constraints

The factors that drive the market are AF cases within the elderly population, preference for catheter ablation, and escalating technological developments. Also various lifestyle illnesses, poor eating habits, and sedentary occupations may also cause a surge in cardiac issues eventually propelling the industry. High cost of treatment, lack of skilled professionals and inclination towards pharmaceutical drugs over AF therapeutics are factors that can hampers the growth of the market.

Industry Trends and Updates

In July 2018, Boston Scientific Corporation acquired Cryterion Medical. It is a privately held company which is developing a single-shot cryoablation platform for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF). This addition positions the company as the first to have both cryothermal and radiofrequency (RF) single-shot, balloon-based ablation therapies in its portfolio.

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In October, 2017 Boston Scientific Corporation announced to acquire Apama Medical Inc. It is developing the Apama Radiofrequency (RF) Balloon Catheter System for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF)
Dhaka, Sep 19 : Shah Ahmad Shafi, Amir of Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, who was on life support and was flown to Dhaka, has died at the age of 104 while undergoing treatment at Asgar Ali Hospital here.

Bangladesh President M. Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday expressed deep shock and sorrow over Shafi's death.

In a separate condolence message, they prayed for eternal peace of the departed soul and conveyed profound sympathy to the bereaved family.

Ahmad Shafi will be buried at a graveyard in the madrasa after the janaza. An ambulance carrying his body left the hospital around 10.20 p.m. on Friday on its way to Chattogram.

In 2010, Shafi came to the fore when he established Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh.

During his long stint as the Hefazat-e-Islami chief and Hathazari madrasa director general, Shafi first made headlines following the rally of Hefazat-e Islam activists on May 5, 2013, that turned increasingly violent and kept Motijheel occupied for nearly 12 hours until the law enforcers swung into action after midnight and drove them away.

The capital's Paltan and Motijheel areas transformed into a scene of mayhem as the Hefazat men burned down and vandalised properties and clashed with law enforcers. At least 39 people were killed in the violence.

He also went on to make news now and then with his instigating comments during sermons, for which he often drew flak from different quarters, especially for his conservative remarks that belittled women.

He was known for his stance against women's education and employment. In 2013, during a sermon he made suggestive remarks, comparing women with tamarind.

"You women should stay within the four walls of your houses. Sitting inside your husband's home you should take care of your husband's furniture and raise your children, your male kids. These are your jobs. Why do you have to go outside?" he used to say.

In 2019, during a sermon delivered to the parents of the students of Hathazari madrasa, Shafi asked the parents not to send their daughters to school beyond grade four or five.

At a "Shokrana Mahfil" in 2019, Shafi, who also headed the Qawmi Madrasa Education Board, accorded Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina the title "Mother of the Qawmi" for recognising the highest Qawmi degree as equivalent to a post-graduate degree.

Shafi's demise on Friday came a day after he resigned from the post of director general of Al Jameyatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam Madrasa, popularly known as Hathazari madrasa, following student unrest over the last two days.Namaz-e-Janaza to be held at Hathazari madrasa on Saturday.

Born in 1916 in Rangunia of Chattogram, Shah Ahmad Shafi studied at Al-Jamiatul Arabiatul Islamiah.

He went to India for higher education at the Islamic university Darul Uloom Deoband. Then he joined Hathazari madrasa in 1926. Shafi started his career as a teacher at Al-Jamiatul Ahlia Darul Ulum Moinul Islam in Hathazari.
In February 2017, Scott Morrison walked into Parliament to perform a piece of coal-centred theatre that became one of the defining moments of his political career. Mr Speaker, this is coal, he pronounced, brandishing a black lump. Dont be afraid, dont be scared. It won't hurt you!

Then treasurer Scott Morrison with a lump of coal in Parliament in February 2017. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

As was pointed out at the time, the coal must have been lacquered  touching raw coal covers you in black dust. Morrison didnt want to get his hands dirty. He just wanted to score a political point.

His speech was not about the benefits of coal so much as it was a gleeful attempt to wedge Labor over the electability problem it had, and still has  the insoluble tension between its heavy industry-reliant, blue-collar voter base, and its urban voters, who want meaningful climate action.

No one feels this tension more than Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese, who is old-Labor in his sensibilities, but whose inner-Sydney electorate is under siege from the Greens.
The Congress Rajya Sabha MP Ahmed Patel on Saturday demanded that a task force be constituted to frame guidelines for holding online classes for school children and the government helps students from weaker sections of the society who do not have access to computers or smartphones.

Raising the demand in Rajya Sabha during the Zero Hour, Patel said the Centre must increase spending to provide digital support to poor students.

We demand from the government to constitute a task force to study how online classes are putting severe mental stress on students as well as their families. The central government should come out with national guidelines after consulting states as to what should be the rules under which online classes be held.

Rather than changing education syllabus, the central government must increase spending to provide digital support for poor students, he said in his Zero Hour submission.

The Congress MP said schools have been closed for the last six months, and many public and private schools are conducting online classes. At times, this is being done to justify the collection of fees, he said.

This is creating an immense mental and financial burden on economically backward families. In poor homes, either they dont have a laptop or computer and if they do have a smartphone, it is usually shared by many family members. Digital India should not become an instrument for digital divide between the rich and poor, he said.

Patel said in some states like Gujarat, Delhi, Kerala and Bengal, some students have taken their lives due to the stress and stigma of online classes.

He cited the findings of a survey whereby 24 per cent of houses have Internet access and nine per cent of students have access to the Internet. He said according to a Gujarat education department survey, only three per cent students had a laptop or PC and fur per cent students had access to smartphones with unlimited data plans.

Similarly, a Delhi government survey revealed that 80 per cent houses do not have any laptop or computers, while a Telangana Teachers Federation survey says 70 per cent students attending online classes didnt follow anything taught, Patel said.

He alleged that access to the Internet in states like Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Odisha is worse than Goa, Delhi and Himachal Pradesh.

Patel said that in 2014, the Narendra Modi government promised to provide broadband connectivity 2.5 lakh village panchayats by 2017, but so far only 23,000 have been connected.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 20:10:36|Editor: huaxia

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Robert Lawrence Kuhn, chairman of the Kuhn Foundation, speaks during an interview with Xinhua in Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the United States, Oct. 15, 2018. (Xinhua)

"Poverty alleviation is a microcosm of China's development, as it showcases how China's system actually works on the ground," says Kuhn.



WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- China's approach to poverty alleviation as well as to containing the COVID-19 pandemic is a window for foreigners to understand how the country's system actually works on the ground, said Robert Lawrence Kuhn, chairman of the Kuhn Foundation.

MICROCOSM OF CHINA'S DEVELOPMENT

"What I recognized in the process of focusing on poverty alleviation was how significant this is to understand China, to understand all of China's development over 40 years of reform and opening-up," said Kuhn in a recent interview with Xinhua, while sharing his experiences on filming a documentary on China's fight against poverty.

"Poverty alleviation is a microcosm of China's development, as it showcases how China's system actually works on the ground," he said.

Hosted and written by Kuhn of the Kuhn Foundation, directed by award-winning director Peter Getzels, and executive-produced by Adam Zhu, "Voices From the Frontline: China's War on Poverty" has been aired on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) stations since its premiere on PBS SoCal.

Kuhn and his team followed how six Chinese families struggled to find a way out of poverty with help from local government officials. Director Getzels took a more observational approach, instead of a journalistic one.

"China has brought over 850 million people out of poverty, the greatest developmental success story in human history. It is the China story that must be told," Kuhn said. "When historians of the future write the chronicles of our times, a feature story may well be China's targeted poverty alleviation."

Kuhn noted a striking correlation between China's approach to fighting the coronavirus outbreak and to fighting poverty.

"Although all political systems have trade-offs, the system that effectively contained the coronavirus in China is the same system that has been able to eliminate almost all extreme poverty in a little over a decade. They both take national commitment and massive mobilization of resources," he said.

"This is an extraordinary accomplishment of social-engineering," he said.

A screenshot of the opening part of the documentary "Voices from the Frontline: China's War on Poverty." (Xinhua)

MASSIVE, HIGHLY TARGETED

The documentary, which took Kuhn and his team three years to complete, revealed a rare, behind-the-curtain glimpse of the poverty alleviation plan in China, the huge government program that has pledged to lift China's most indigent citizens out of extreme poverty by the end of 2020.

Kuhn, who has been closely following China's dramatic transformation for over three decades, said he was fascinated that China's solution was to create a massive, highly targeted, individualized poverty alleviation program.

"To truly understand China, one has to recognize their genuine commitment to eradicate poverty," he said, adding he was impressed by the sheer scope and determination of China's poverty alleviation program, energized by the commitment and intensity of President Xi Jinping.

Like no other on Earth, China's program was based on crafting an individualized plan for every single family below the poverty line, then having them be visited regularly by a young local official who helps them implement new strategies to increase their income, he said, adding that progress is monitored and reports are filed monthly.

"I visited with these young local officials working on the frontlines of poverty alleviation, on some occasions intensely for several days: seeing stark, concrete rooms in which they live and watching them cook their food over simple kerosene burners or even candles. And they are dedicating their lives, often spending two full years in a remote village with no modern conveniences, not even flush toilets," he said.

Robert Lawrence Kuhn, a U.S. expert on China, also chairman of the Kuhn Foundation, speaks in an interview with Xinhua in Los Angeles, the United States, Oct. 15, 2019. (Xinhua/Gao Shan)

A GOOD EXAMPLE

Since China's targeted poverty initiative began, 3 million cadre officials have been mobilized and, today, 775,000 are still hard at work, Kuhn said. As of the beginning of 2019, through their efforts, China's absolute poverty level had dropped to less than 20 million, and as of the beginning of 2020 to about 5.5 million.

Kuhn said China's poverty alleviation could serve as a good example for the world's other developing countries.

"All countries are different, all cultures and histories are different, such that one cannot transplant wholesale a particular system from one country into another. So, while to understand the Chinese experience is exceedingly important, it must also be recognized that it cannot be just transplanted simply; rather, poverty alleviation principles and practices need to be learned and adapted," he said.

"There is nothing more important in the world in terms of global equality, equity and sustainability than poverty alleviation, and in this regard, China's poverty alleviation program makes a vital contribution. It shows how the Chinese experience can benefit developing countries," he said. 
getty images (2) President Donald Trump and late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

President Donald Trump called the late, liberal Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg "an amazing woman" who lived "an amazing life," after hearing news of her death Friday night.

Trump was speaking at a campaign rally in Bemidji, Minnesota when news of Bader Ginsburg's death broke.

"She just died? Wow. I didn't know that," Trump, 74, said after a reporter asked for his reaction as he prepared to board Air Force One.

"She led an amazing life," the president continued. "What else can you say? She was an amazing woman, whether you agree or not. She was an amazing woman who led an amazing life. I'm actually sad to hear that."

President Trump on death of Justice Ginsburg: "She just died? Wow. I didn't know that...She led an amazing life. What else can you say? She was an amazing woman, whether you agree or not. She was an amazing woman who led an amazing life. I'm actually sad to hear that." pic.twitter.com/6oKuL671qO  CSPAN (@cspan) September 19, 2020

Pool reporters at the campaign event say the news that Justice Ginsburg, 87, died at her Washington D.C. home, surrounded by family, broke about 10 minutes into Trump's 95-minute speech.

Trump did not mention the justice's death during his speech but did address the make up Supreme Court bench.

We will nominate judges and justices who interpret the Constitution as written, Trump did say during his speech, according to The Washington Post.

Trump said he didn't hear about the news until briefly speaking with reporters before boarding Air Force One.

The White House did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.

RELATED: Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Supreme Court Justice and Liberal Icon, Dies at 87

Story continues

Getty Images Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden told reporters later that Ginsburg was "a giant of legal doctrine" who was "a relentless voice in the pursuit of that highest American ideal: Equal Justice Under Law."

"Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for all of us," Biden, 77, said. "She fought for all of us."

NPR reported that Ginsburg's final "fervent wish" before her death was that she not be replaced on the high court until a new president is elected.

"My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed," Ginsburg dictated to her granddaughter Clara Spera, according to the outlet.

ABC News reported that "multiple sources close to the president" say he will put forth a nominee to fill Ginsburg's vacant seat in the coming days.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell vowed in a statement Friday night that the Senate would vote on Trump's nominee before the November 3 election, between Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

"President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate," McConnell's statement read.

Biden said "voters should pick a president, and that president should select a successor to Justice Ginsburg."

Nikki Kahn/The Washington Post/Getty Ruth Bader Ginsburg

McConnell, 78, infamously refused to bring a vote to the Senate floor on President Barack Obama's Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, ahead of the 2016 election.

Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader in the Senate, made an opposing statement Friday night.

"The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice," Schumer said. "Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president."

In 2016, McConnell had a similar response when he blocked a vote on Garland's nomination:

"The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice," McConnell said then, according to Politico. "Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president."

Meanwhile, Ginsburg's colleagues on the Supreme Court mourned her death in a separate statement.

Ginsburg was the second woman ever appointed to the Supreme Court and her unwavering fight for womens rights and social justice made her an icon to many admirers of the courts liberal wing.

"Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague," Chief Justice John G. Roberts said. "Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her -- a tireless and resolute champion of justice."

In addition to her two children, Jane Carol Ginsburg and James Steven Ginsburg, the late justice is survived by four grandchildren, two step-grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Ginsburg's husband, Martin David Ginsburg, died in 2010 from complications of metastatic cancer.

The Supreme Court added in its press release that a private interment service will be held at Arlington National Cemetery.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 02:22:13|Editor: huaxia

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by Xinhua writer Liu Yanan

NEW YORK, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Developing countries need external support to ease inflated debt burden caused by the COVID-19 pandemic so as to maintain social services and secure global economic recovery, according to experts and relevant institutions.

RECOVERY TAKES TIME

Economic output picked up swiftly following the easing of confinement measures and the initial re-opening of businesses, but the pace of the global recovery has lost some momentum over the summer months, said an interim economic assessment report issued by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on Wednesday.

Global GDP would decline by 4.5 percent this year, before picking up by 5 percent in 2021, according to the report.

Global real GDP growth would pick up to 5.8 percent next year from a decline of 3.9 percent in 2020, according to the central forecast scenario by UBS Global Wealth Management.

The drop in global output in 2020 is smaller than expected, though still unprecedented in recent history, but this masks considerable differences across countries, with upward revisions in China, the United States and Europe, but weaker-than-expected outcomes in India, Mexico and South Africa, the OECD report said.

Still, global GDP may not return to the pre-pandemic level before 2022.

In most economies, the level of output at the end of 2021 would remain below that at the end of 2019, and considerably weaker than projected prior to the pandemic, highlighting the risk of long-lasting costs from the pandemic, according to OECD's assessment.

Moderate restrictions on activity should be sufficient to keep outbreaks manageable, with a vaccine widely available from the second quarter of 2021, Lucy Qiu, strategist at UBS Global Wealth Management, told Xinhua on Wednesday.

Qiu told Xinhua that a manageable pandemic combined with expansionary monetary policy and a moderate increase in fiscal stimulus, should allow for a rebound of economic activity to pre-pandemic levels by 2022.

After so sharp a contraction in 2020, the reopening measures already underway in major economies make a strong growth rebound nearly certain in 2021, said Mehran Nakhjavani, partner and emerging market strategist with MRB Partners, on Tuesday.

Nakhjavani added, "This does not imply regaining the pre-pandemic level of GDP, but global economic momentum will be stronger than was the case in 2019."

PRESSING DEBT CHALLENGES

Many emerging-market economies and developing countries face particularly acute macroeconomic policy challenges, with substantial declines in export revenues, particularly from international tourism, compounding the domestic impact of the COVID-19 shock, said the OECD report.

In addition, many of these economies have become vulnerable to changes in market sentiment due to the build-up of high private and public debt in recent years, leaving them with daunting debt challenges, the report said.

The coronavirus pandemic-induced deterioration in growth and fiscal dynamics will leave most large emerging market sovereigns (EM19) with higher debt burdens over the next few years, said a report by Moody's Investors Service in early September.

"We expect government debt in the EM19 to rise by almost 10 percentage points of GDP on average by the end of 2021 from 2019 levels, driven primarily by wider primary deficits" in addition of higher interest payments, said Moody's.

One of the characteristics of the global crisis is the sharp drop in public revenues at all government levels. The situation for developing countries will become increasingly dire as many countries find themselves facing rising social needs without the means to finance social services, according to a recent statement by Jeffrey Sachs, chair of the commissioners with the Lancet COVID-19 Commission and an economics professor at Columbia University.

The Lancet COVID-19 Commission was launched on July 9 to assist governments, civil society, and UN institutions in responding effectively to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The global economic shock that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused requires concerted response by the world's leading economies not only to reinvigorate aggregate demand but most importantly to ensure that developing countries are not overburdened with national debt," said Vasilis Trigkas, postdoctoral teaching fellow with Schwarzman College of Tsinghua University.

In that sense, what will be pressing in the months ahead is a grand deal among the world's major creditors about debt restructuring in Africa, Southeast Asia and Latin America, Trigkas told Xinhua.

Some developing countries will require considerable international concessional financing like grants and low-interest, long-term loans from the international financing institutions as well as the orderly restructuring of their sovereign debts to both public and private creditors, said Sachs.

"Now, more than ever, is the time for countries to meet their commitments to providing 0.7 percent of gross domestic product as official development aid," Sachs said.

There is danger that great power politics will enter this equation and nations will try to politicize negations thus wasting time and prolonging the economic agony of highly indebted economies, said Trigkas.

"This however must be avoided for it could be self-defeating undermining not only the welfare of the highly indebted nations but also the recovery of advanced economies," Trigkas added.

The G20 has taken action to freeze bilateral government loan-interest payments for many low-income countries this year, offering a temporary respite for some vulnerable countries, said the OECD report.

However, further actions may be required, given persistent declines in the main sources of income and the ongoing spread of the pandemic, according to the report. Enditem
Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex seem to make headlines all the time. Whether it be for Meghans parenting skills, or Prince Harry using an American accent in a recent Zoom call, someone always has something to say.

When the Duke and Duchess of Sussex made the decision in early 2020 to become independent of the royal family in a move dubbed Megxit, suddenly they started receiving even more attention than they did as working royals. All eyes were on Meghan and Prince Harry as fans waited to see what their next move would be.

Now that they have finally settled in Meghans hometown of LA, California, the couple is beginning to embark on the next stages of their journey, and as fans know they recently signed an extremely lucrative deal. The new partnership is all anyone can talk about, but as it turns out, Prince Harry and Meghans Netflix deal makes royal haters even angrier.

What are the details of the Netflix partnership?

RELATED: Prince Harry and Meghan Markles Summer Plan Change Hints At Bigger Problems Within Royal Family

For those who dont know, lets discuss the details of Meghan and Prince Harrys new partnership with Netflix. According to Town & Country, the deal will really put the couple in the spotlight, and it sounds like it is right up their alley.

The multi-year partnership will allow them to produce documentaries, movies, scripted shows, and much more  and it is being said that it will be some of the most viewed content on Netflix. Some shows may even debut as early as the Spring of 2021, and we can only imagine that fans cant wait.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry | Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

It sounds like there will really be something for everyone, and Meghan and Prince Harry looked at several companies before signing on the dotted line. They said in a statement that [their] focus will be on creating content that informs but also gives hope, and they made sure to say just how important inspirational family programming is to them.

The duke and duchess sound pretty excited about their new venture, and we couldnt be happier for them.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markles Netflix deal makes royal haters even angrier

It seems, however, that not everyone is jumping for joy over what Meghan and Prince Harry have planned. So, why is it that their new deal makes royal haters even angrier?

According to Celebitchy, a source says that they are exploiting the royal family, and there are many people who arent keeping quiet about it. Another commentator even goes so far as to say that she thinks that this was plotted from the very beginning, and that Meghan has used Prince Harry and the royal family to go from a C-lister to one of the most famous women in the world.

How sad that every time Meghan and Prince Harry make even the slightest move, it is met with so much criticism and negativity.

Critics will always have something to say

We really have to remember, though, that there will always be critics who have something to say, no matter how horrible it sounds to others. Prince Harry and Meghan have made their feelings clear, and they have been open and forthcoming about what their journey entails outside the royal family.

They have been extremely successful so far, and they are continuing to do the work each and every day that is important to them. According to Daily Mail, there is yet another source that feels that the Sussexes only got the deal with Netflix because of their association with the British royal family.

We can only hope that Meghan and Prince Harry continue to live the life that they want and deserve, and not let the harsh words of royal haters destroy the joy that they have found for themselves.
A community activist who campaigned for racial justice has outed herself as a race faker after posing as a black person for years despite being white.

Satchuel Cole, born Jennifer Lynn Benton, admitted in a Facebook post to having 'taken up space as a Black person while knowing I am white'.

The activist, from Indianapolis, was a member of the Indy10 Black Lives Matter group and in 2017 acted as a spokesperson for the family of Aaron Bailey, who was shot and killed by police following a traffic stop in June 2017.

Cole - who uses the pronouns they and them - is just the latest in a string of people who have admitted to lying about being black.

'Friends, I need to take accountability for my actions and the harm that I have done,' Cole wrote on a Facebook page with the name Satch Paige.

'My deception and lies have hurt those I care most about. I have taken up space as a Black person while knowing I am white. I have used Blackness when it was not mine to use.

'I have asked for support and energy as a Black person. I have caused harm to the city, friends and the work that I held so dear. I will do the work to take responsibility for my actions and try to reduce the harm that I have already caused.'

Satchuel Cole, born Jennifer Lynn Benton, admitted in a Facebook post to having 'taken up space as a Black person while knowing I am white'

Aaron Bailey, pictured, who was shot and killed by police following a traffic stop in June 2017

The activist, from Indianapolis, was a member of the Indy10 Black Lives Matter group

Cole promised to work to repair the harm caused if possible.

'If there are ways to repair the harm, I will do the work that is required to do so. I will continue to seek the help necessary to heal myself,' the activist wrote.

'I am sorry for the harm I have caused. I am sorry for the hurt and betrayal. I will do what I can to show that I want to be a better person.'

Followers were split in their reaction, with some venting their anger while others rushed to defend Cole in their comments.

'What's also sad is you could have done all the same work and never had to lie to get it done. You just chose to,' wrote Kirei LynNenise.

'You asked to meet with me last Thursday and despite already knowing I decided to because I genuinely cared about you. You played on my kindness and were nothing but manipulative while you attempted to maintain your lie,' added Amber Chante.

'I don't believe s*** you have to say about doing the work to repair harm. '

Cole's admission comes amid a string of people admitting they have lied about being black

However another friend Jennifer Lannclos added that she still supported Cole for the work they achieved.

'Satch love white black whatever I love you to the moon and back and you are a beautiful soul don't ever forget that! You fought harder than many and you damn sure looked out for me so know U will always be my friend and I got you!' she wrote.

Cole was a highly visible community leader in Indianapolis who advocated for racial and social justice across Indiana, as well as being active in the LGBTQ community.

As well as being involved with DON'T SLEEP, a group that advocates for equity and justice in Indianapolis, Cole was the founder of No Questions Asked Food Pantry, which has operated in partnership with Indy10 Black Lives Matter, Indy Pride, Queering Indy and Indy Feminists.

IndyStar reports that this year, Cole was also one of Indy Pride Parade 2020 Grand Marshals.

Cole is no longer listed on the DON'T SLEEP website.

Indy10 Black Lives Matter, Indy Pride and Indy SURJ have not yet commented on the revelation.

The No Questions Asked Food Pantry run by Cole received $35,000 to continue feeding families in need during the coronavirus earlier this year.

However, the grant application did not ask about race or identity, Pamela Ross, vice president of opportunity, equity and inclusion at Central Indiana Community Foundation confirmed.

Ross added that Cole's actions still remained unacceptable.

'We were funding the work of No Questions Asked Food Pantry and this particular fund was not only vetted through CICF staff but it was also vetted through residents who said the organization added value to the community,' Ross said.

'We granted support to the work being done, which was validated by the community,' she added.

'But we are disappointed that we have another instance of a white woman claiming to be a Black woman and it continues to perpetuate issues that we see in the community and it creates divisiveness.'

The admission and apology only came after the website BlackIndyLIVE.com published an expose on the community organizer's family and race which debunked Cole's claim to having a black father.

Cole's racial identity had long been questioned by other activist's in the community, according to the IndyStar.

Cole's name was legally changed from Jennifer Lynn Benton in Hamilton County Court in 2010.

Followers were split in their reaction, with some venting their anger while others rushed to defend Cole in their comments

Crystal Turner said that when she first met Cole at Black Lives Matter meeting, she questioned 'Why is this Black Lives Matter meeting being ran by a white woman?'.

'But she explained her lie of a story and she had enough other people betrayed that they vouched for her. And she would constantly acknowledge she was able to pass for white ... and how she had to use that to help others,' Turner said.

'So I'm sure a lot of people, like I did, just thought she was really aware of her privilege as a biracial Black woman, not that she was a white woman just pretending for years.'

Turner also comments on Cole's Facebook post to say that the same work could have been done as a white woman, telling the IndyStar that harm caused by the deception was massive 'especially knowing the personal struggles of the Black women she got close to, still using us for her benefit.

'She always wanted someone doing something for her,' Turner added.

Cole is the latest of a string of white people who have been exposed for pretending to be black.

University of Wisconsin-Madison graduate student CV Vitolo-Haddad this week resigned from a teaching role after admitting to lying about being black.

Vitolo-Haddad pretended on multiple occasions to be black or Latino although the teacher is actually Southern Italian and Sicilian.

They failed to correct peoples' assumptions about racial identity, 'entered Black organizing spaces' and on three occasions didn't say no when others asked about being black.

CV Vitolo-Haddad (pictured), a University of Wisconsin-Madison graduate student, has resigned from a teaching role after admitting to lying about being black

Vitolo-Haddad confessed to the deception in two Medium blog posts and apologized for 'every ounce of heartbreak and betrayal' caused by the false claims.

'In trying to sort through parts of who I am, I've taken some very wrong turns. I never really owned up to them as they became apparent, nor recognized the trail of damage behind me,' Vitolo-Haddad wrote.

Jessica Krug, 38, a white professor of African American studies confessed in a Medium post earlier this month that she had been faking being black for years.

The professor at George Washington University admitted she had deceived colleagues and students for years.

Krug grew up as a white Jewish child in Kansas City but assumed a series of different black identities throughout her career, she confessed in a Medium blog post on September 3.

Krug resigned from her role at the university last week following a backlash over the deception.

Dr Jessica Krug resigned from George Washington University, it was confirmed Wednesday

One of the most notorious examples of race faking was Rachel Dolezal, a former NAACP leader from Washington state who was exposed as a white woman pretending to be black in 2015.

Experts on race claim that people may lie about their racial identity for a number of reasons including a need for attention or to run away from their past but that the effects are extremely detrimental to the communities they are pretending to be a part of.

'The negative consequences and harm to the community are tremendous  a racial justice advocate who has portrayed herself as Black has taken up space, opportunity, voice, and attention from Black advocates and activists,' Dina Okamoto, director of the Center for Research on Race and Ethnicity in Society at Indiana University, told IndyStar.

'Her fraudulent racial identity was used to build her career in activism for the Black community. Every person who has come into contact with this advocate did so with the understanding that she had lived and experienced her life as a Black woman, and she has broken that trust with the community.'

Okamoto added to friends suggestions that there was no need to lie to become a good activist.

'Race and racial identity are complex issues, but they need not be fraught; the situation here and situations like it are fraught and harmful because of the ways in which people construct false identities and pasts to make inroads and gains within and at the expense of Black communities,' she said.

Michelle Moyd, the Ruth N. Halls Associate Professor in the Department of History at IU, said that the recent spike in the exposure of race fakers will have extremely negative effects on the black community.

'Each time one of these frauds is exposed, the people around them are left to pick up the pieces,' she said.

'Those who understood (Cole) as a trustworthy member of the Indianapolis activist community now must repair the damage she has done, even as they also must continue their crucial social justice work. Nobody has extra time to do that kind of damage assessment, especially now.

'And yet because they are committed to the work, they will do so, and they will continue. Because they must.'
Lucknow: With 5,827 fresh COVID-19 cases, the total number of those infected by the virus in Uttar Pradesh went up to 3,48,517 on Saturday. A total 4,953 fatalities have been reported in the state so far while the number of active cases stood at 66,874, Additional Chief Secretary Health, Amit Mohan Prasad. As many as 2,76,690 patients have fully recovered and discharged from hospitals, he said, adding that the recovery rate in the state at present is 79.39 per cent. The number of patients who were discharged in the last 24 hours is 6,596, which is more than those the number of people who caught infection during this period, he said. The overall case fatality rate in the state was 1.42 per cent since March, he said, adding that it was 1.3 per cent in September which is lower than the national average. Over 1.54 lakh tests were done on Friday taking the total number of tests conducted in the state to over 83 lakhs, he said. The central government has also praised the state for the large number of COVID tests being done here, he added.

In an important decision, the state government has decided to make reports of those getting their COVID tests conducted available on website which will save time, Prasad said. The facility will be launched by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday, he said.

According to Prasad, the lab results of corona tests can be accessed on the link of the health department website with the help of phone numbers given at the time of going for tests as soon as they are uploaded . Lauding the state governments COVID portal, he said that it allots case IDs to the patients through which all the work including test result, hospitalisation,medicines and discharge is done.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
A group of pupils reportedly set a bus on fire after allegedly turning their hair spray cans into 'flamethrowers.'

The single-decker vehicle was pictured with huge flames and smoke pouring from the roof at around 3:45pm in Shepherdswell, near Dover, Kent, yesterday.

It was reported the blaze was started by schoolchildren who set hair spray or hand sanitiser on fire.

The single-deck vehicle is pictured with huge flames smoke pouring from the roof at around 3:45pm in Shepherdswell, near Dover, Kent, today

Firefighters could be seen attending to the blaze and putting the fire out

The driver was understood to be alert to the incident and managed to evacuated everyone from the bus before it went up in flames.

Pictures from the scene show the bus at a standstill while flames douse the turquoise vehicle along a quiet residential street.

Firefighters could be seen attending to the blaze and putting the fire out.

The images show the bus has been completely burnt out with only the steering wheel and driver's chair still visible.

Despite the severity of the fire there were not thought to be any injuries from the incident.

Social media users reacted with dismay at the blaze, but praised the driver for his quick-thinking to get the schoolchildren off the bus.

One person described the bus driver as a 'legend', while another described him as the 'hero of the day.'

It is not clear which school the pupils are from, or if police are investigating the incident.

Kent Police has been contacted for comment.
About 300,000 Jersey drivers who renewed their registrations online got a surprise when the state Motor Vehicle Commission told them they owed $7 more because a senior discount was accidentally applied to the fee.

The issue affected vehicle registrations due in October, said William Connolly, an MVC spokesman.

@NJ_MVC : Dear MCV Team, you made a mistake on my vehicle registration renewal fee and sent me a letter about $7. The letter has no details on what to do, phone has been ringing for last 30 minutes, website has no info. What to do. + you already chased the check.  Anupam Kansal (@kansal_anupam) September 18, 2020
The United Nations will mark its 75th anniversary Monday, celebrating the mantra that "multilateralism is not an option but a necessity," even as the coronavirus underscores the fragility of international cooperation.

The anniversary will kick off the global body's annual General Assembly, when normally the leaders and representatives of nearly 200 countries gather en masse to sound off about the world's problems and offer myriad solutions.

But this year, a part of Manhattan will not be sealed off for the "UNGA"; there will be no endless limousine convoys, and no busy beehive of diplomats, journalists and translators in the halls of the UN.

Instead, with Covid-19 still limiting global movement, just one representative from each of the 193 UN members will be allowed, and only someone already in the United States.

Everyone else will have to appear by videoconference, including some 160-170 heads of state and government planning addresses.

Appearing by video on Tuesday will be Russia's Vladimir Putin and China's Xi Jinping, who in the past have let their top diplomats speak for them; and US leader Donald Trump.

On Wednesday, Venezuela's president Nicolas Maduro, who much of the world sees as illegitimate, will address the assembly by video. Missing as speakers are the leaders of Syria and North Korea.

"Diplomacy, to be effective, requires personal contacts, and I am very sorry that we are not going to have the opportunity to bring together leaders of countries," said UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

Even so, he said, there would be "many virtual meetings" on the sidelines of the assembly, convening by teleconference on subjects such as climate change, biodiversity and the conflicts in Libya and Lebanon.

- Missed opportunity -

The event kicks off with a joint declaration full of good intentions and a call to combat unilateralism.

But that belies the reality of what has happened since Covid-19 erupted early this year, with borders closed, cooperation limited and countries forced to go it alone.

Story continues

Bertrand Badie, professor at the Paris Institute of Political Studies, said the great powers missed a chance with the coronavirus to strengthen global cooperation.

Instead, cooperation broke apart amid allegations that China and the World Health Organization moved slowly on the initial outbreak, and the US declared it would act alone and pulled out of the WHO.

The superpowers' behavior has "caused the failure, even the collapse, of the UN Security Council," which was set up to lead on such world-shaking challenges as a pandemic, Badie said.

The powers have clung to a "very conservative vision of security, that humanity is only threatened by rivalries between countries," Badie told AFP, calling it "a very bad sign for the future."

- 'Moments of disappointment' -

The declaration admits that, over seven and a half decades, the UN "has had its moments of disappointment."

"Our world is not yet the world our founders envisaged 75 years ago," it says, citing growing inequality and the persistence of poverty, hunger, armed conflicts, terrorism and climate change.

However, the declaration also notes the United Nations has helped bring about decolonization, promote freedom, set standards for development and eradicate disease.

"The United Nations has helped mitigate dozens of conflicts, saved hundreds of thousands of lives through humanitarian action and provided millions of children with the education that every child deserves," the declaration says.

In the wake of coronavirus, it says, "we have a historic opportunity to build back better and greener."

- Paralysis -

Yet the coronavirus has placed a spotlight on the paralyzing rivalry of the superpowers, especially between the United States and China, rapidly eroding Washington's global leadership.

"Everyone has been too focused on the domestic impact of the pandemic to really look at the global picture," said Richard Gowan of the International Crisis Group.

"I am frankly deeply pessimistic about the chances for real UN reform or innovations in global governance. I cannot see China and the US agreeing on big reforms now," Gowan said.

Badie said the organization was immobilized by a power rivalry that dates back to the UN's creation.

To embark on reforms, he said, it is necessary for the five permanent members of the UN Security Council -- the United States, Britain, Russia, France and China -- to change their Cold War mentality.

The five, though, "will always refuse, because that would lead to an overhaul of the 'international community' and the loss of the privileges of the nuclear oligarchy," Badie said.

prh/pmh/to
Better data about the number of Manitobans who are dying of drug overdoses could help save lives, a local harm-reduction advocate says.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 18/9/2020 (490 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Better data about the number of Manitobans who are dying of drug overdoses could help save lives, a local harm-reduction advocate says.

Amid a presumed spike in opioid use this year, the number of Manitobans who have recently died of overdoses is still unknown. That's a problem for agencies that work with people who use drugs and want to keep harm-reduction programs running, said Tammy Reimer, director of prevention, testing and wellness at Nine Circles Community Health Centre.

"If we don't have good, real-time data on overdose deaths, more individuals could be lost," Reimer said.

Nine Circles and other agencies use that type of statistic when they apply for program funding from federal and provincial governments. The information helps them plan front-line services and give up-to-date alerts to clients who use opioids. The clinic works primarily with people who live downtown and in Point Douglas.

"We can anecdotally say we know that overdoses are up, but how are we talking to the folks that are coming in and being able to let them know about what's happening?" Reimer says.

Other provinces and local health agencies have released data that offer a glimpse into how the COVID-19 pandemic may be affecting opioid use and overdoses. In B.C., which has been hard hit by fentanyl deaths, data is regularly published by the B.C. Coroners Service, which collects the information in real-time and later updates it with confirmed numbers.

Naloxone kits and harm-reduction supplies are used by front-line workers on the street. (Mikaela MacKenzie / Winnipeg Free Press)

The most recent opioid-death data available from Manitoba dates back to September 2019 and was published by the Public Health Agency of Canada in June 2020 based on information supplied by the provincial medical examiner's office. It shows 26 Manitobans died of opioid-related causes from January to September 2019.

Mark O'Rourke, spokesman for the chief medical examiner, said Friday the office is working to release the information by the end of September. He said the data is released upon request, not on any set schedule or by way of reports to government departments.

When it comes to understanding the harm opioids cause to Canadians, "the data landscape has improved," said Matthew Young, an Ottawa-based senior research policy analyst at the Canadian Centre of Substance Use and Addiction. Data collection has become faster and more useful in the past five years, he said, but figuring out whether someone has died of an opioid overdose is not an easy task.

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"A simple toxicology in detecting opioids in autopsy results does not do it. There has to be also an investigation," he said. In its opioid reports, the Public Health Agency of Canada says an investigation can take from three months to two years.

"Timely data is always better, but the more timely the data, sometimes the more uncertainty is associated with it."

Young is one of the researchers looking into the increasing danger of contaminated street drugs, which he said appear to be on the rise in Canada since the pandemic began. That, coupled with pandemic-related reduced services from harm-reduction agencies or treatment programs, may be driving "a terrible, tragic situation among some of our most vulnerable Canadians," he said.

katie.may@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @thatkatiemay
President Donald Trump returns to the White House on September 18, 2020 in Washington, DC. Trump traveled to Minnesota for a campaign event earlier in the day, before learning of the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Win McNamee/Getty Images

President Donald Trump said in a tweet on Saturday he had the "obligation" to nominate a replacement for the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg "without delay."

Before she died, Ginsburg told her granddaughter in a statement that her "most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

Ginsburg died on Friday at the age of 87 following complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell confirmed Friday the Senate will vote on a nominee put forward by the president.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

President Donald Trump is planning to nominate a replacement for the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg within the "coming days," ABC News reported. A similar report, also citing sources close to the president, from CNN likewise suggested that Trump was "eager" to nominate a replacement.

The White House declined Business Insider's request for comment on the reports, but Trump said in a tweet on Saturday he had the "obligation" to fill the seat "without delay."

"We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices," he wrote in addition to tagging the Republican National Committee Twitter account. "We have this obligation, without delay!"

Ginsburg, who spent 27 years as an associate justice on the nation's highest court, died Friday at the age of 87 following complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, the Supreme Court announced. According to an NPR report, days before her death, Ginsburg dictated a statement to her granddaughter that said her "most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

Story continues

The president was told about Ginsburg's death during a campaign event in Minnesota, ABC News noted.

"Wow. I didn't know that. I just  you're telling me now for the first time," he told reporters about learning of her death. "She led an amazing life. What else can you say? She was an amazing woman. Whether you agree or not, she was an amazing woman who led an amazing life. I'm actually sad to hear that. I am sad to hear that."

According to ABC News, sources "close to the president and with direct knowledge of the situation" said Trump's list of potential nominees was "very short," and said included at least one woman. US Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett is a leading contender, two sources told ABC News. Earlier this month, Trump released a list of 20 potential Supreme Court nominees, which included Barrett.

The list also included Texas Sen. Ted Cruz who on Saturday said in a tweet, "we risk a constitutional crisis if we do not have a 9-Justice Supreme Court, particularly when there is such a risk of a contested election."

Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) September 19, 2020

When Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016, the Republican-controlled Senate refused to vote to confirm President Barack Obama's nominee, Merrick Garland, as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell argued "the American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice."

"Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president," McConnell said at the time.

But McConnell said Friday that the Senate would vote on a person nominated by the president to replace Ginsburg, although he did not say whether that vote would take place before the November 3 election.

A simple majority is needed to confirm a Supreme Court Justice to the bench, and Republicans hold a majority with 53 seats. As Business Insider reported late Friday, Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine said they wouldn't vote to confirm a replacement until after the election.

Other GOP senators, like outgoing Sens. Lamar Alexander and Pat Roberts, and Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, have been considered additional potential swing votes, Business Insider previously reported. During his first term, Trump has successfully nominated two justices to the court: Neil Gorsuch in 2017 and Brett Kavanaugh in 2018.

Read the original article on Business Insider
This article will reflect on the compensation paid to Ryan Lance who has served as CEO of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) since 2012. This analysis will also assess whether ConocoPhillips pays its CEO appropriately, considering recent earnings growth and total shareholder returns.

Check out our latest analysis for ConocoPhillips

Comparing ConocoPhillips' CEO Compensation With the industry

According to our data, ConocoPhillips has a market capitalization of US$38b, and paid its CEO total annual compensation worth US$30m over the year to December 2019. That's a notable increase of 30% on last year. While this analysis focuses on total compensation, it's worth acknowledging that the salary portion is lower, valued at US$1.7m.

For comparison, other companies in the industry with market capitalizations above US$8.0b, reported a median total CEO compensation of US$13m. This suggests that Ryan Lance is paid more than the median for the industry. What's more, Ryan Lance holds US$3.9m worth of shares in the company in their own name.

Component 2019 2018 Proportion (2019) Salary US$1.7m US$1.7m 6% Other US$29m US$22m 94% Total Compensation US$30m US$23m 100%

On an industry level, roughly 15% of total compensation represents salary and 85% is other remuneration. ConocoPhillips sets aside a smaller share of compensation for salary, in comparison to the overall industry. If non-salary compensation dominates total pay, it's an indicator that the executive's salary is tied to company performance.

A Look at ConocoPhillips' Growth Numbers

Over the past three years, ConocoPhillips has seen its earnings per share (EPS) grow by 63% per year. Its revenue is down 32% over the previous year.

Overall this is a positive result for shareholders, showing that the company has improved in recent years. The lack of revenue growth isn't ideal, but it is the bottom line that counts most in business. Historical performance can sometimes be a good indicator on what's coming up next but if you want to peer into the company's future you might be interested in this free visualization of analyst forecasts.

Story continues

Has ConocoPhillips Been A Good Investment?

Given the total shareholder loss of 21% over three years, many shareholders in ConocoPhillips are probably rather dissatisfied, to say the least. So shareholders would probably want the company to be lessto generous with CEO compensation.

To Conclude...

As previously discussed, Ryan is compensated more than what is normal for CEOs of companies of similar size, and which belong to the same industry. But the company has impressed with its EPS growth, but we cannot say the same about the uninspiring shareholder returns (over the last three years). Although we'd stop short of calling it inappropriate, we think Ryan is earning a very handsome sum.

CEO compensation is a crucial aspect to keep your eyes on but investors also need to keep their eyes open for other issues related to business performance. We did our research and spotted 4 warning signs for ConocoPhillips that investors should look into moving forward.

Important note: ConocoPhillips is an exciting stock, but we understand investors may be looking for an unencumbered balance sheet and blockbuster returns. You might find something better in this list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.



Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com.
Jailed Iranian human rights advocate Nasrin Sotoudeh has been hospitalized with heart problems, her husband, Reza Khandan, said.

Sotoudeh has been on a hunger strike in Tehrans Evin prison since August 11 to protest the risks that political prisoners in Iran face amid the coronavirus pandemic

Sotoudeh was suffering from heart problems, shortness of breath, very low blood pressure, and severe general weakness, Khandan wrote on Twitter on September 19.

Khandan said she was transferred to a coronary-care unit due to her serious condition.

Sotoudeh has said she will refuse to eat in order to secure the release of political prisoners who have not been included in the temporary prison leaves granted to tens of thousands of detainees to prevent the spread of the virus in the countrys overcrowded prisons, according to Iranian authorities.

The pandemic has killed more than 24,000 Iranians and infected over 400,000, according to official figures. Real numbers are believed to be significantly higher.

PEN America, an open expression advocacy group, called for the immediate release of Sotoudeh and other political prisoners whose health is at risk due to the spread of COVID-19 inside Irans jails.



Nasrins condition is critical and her life hangs in the balance, but her spirit remains unbroken and her calls for justice are reverberating around the world, Karin Deutsch Karlekar, PEN Americas director of free expression at risk programs, said in a statement on September 18.



We call on President [Hassan] Rohani to free Nasrin from Evin prison and reunite her with her family, as well as release other unjustly incarcerated political prisoners during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sotoudeh, co-winner of the European Parliament's 2012 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, has been surviving on water, tea, sugar, and salt, amid concerns over her health, her husband has said.

Sotoudeh was arrested at her home in Tehran in June 2018.

She was sentenced to a total of 38 1/2 years in prison and 148 lashes over her defense of political prisoners, including women protesting the compulsory hijab law.
In the last few years working as a beauty writer for Weekend, one major trend I've seen emerging in the skincare and beauty industries is an increased awareness of the effect all our skincare products are having on the environment. Sustainability has become more prevalent in every facet of our lives, and the personal-care sector is no different. A big producer of waste in our skincare regimes is single-use cotton pads and wipes.

If you've opted out of using wipes, perhaps you are more conscious of seeing the mountain of cotton pads filling up your waste basket? We can each use hundreds of these cotton pads per month, and unfortunately single-use, disposable cotton pads, which are biodegradable, are clogging up our landfill.

So what are more sustainable, less wasteful, alternative options to cotton pads for face cleansing?

In the last few months alone, there has been a slew of new reusable cleansing pads launched on the market. I like them because they are good alternatives to cotton pads, but also because they are long-lasting (some will last years and years) cost-effective, gentle on our faces and on our environment. No more disposable single-use cotton pads means less waste at home, fewer cotton pads going straight to landfill, and less plastic packaging in the world in general. Win, win!

Moxi girl

Expand Close Moxi Loves Bare Faced 3.95 from Boots, Supervalu, Penneys, Dunnes and pharmacies nationwide. / Facebook

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Irish beauty maven Pamela Laird has been a staple of the beauty industry for years - and became a very familiar TV face to many after appearing on the BBC's The Apprentice. Her brand Moxi Loves has launched pads that are pre-soaked with cleanser, so all you need to do is add water and they're ready to go. These are also hypoallergenic, have zero alcohol, parabens, sulphates, solvents and are biodegradable. Moxi Loves Bare Faced 3.95, from Boots, SuperValu, Penneys, Dunnes and pharmacies nationwide.

Budget-friendly

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Cera Ve is a bestselling American brand that I've covered before in this column. It uses brilliant ingredients - minus all the chemical nasties - at a super price point. It's also family-friendly, recommended by dermatologists and comes in generous sizes. If you're looking for a makeup remover that's actually super gentle to use with your new eco cleansing pads, try this. Cera Ve Hydrating Cream-to-Foam Cleanser, 13.50, from pharmacies nationwide.

Go organic

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To really amp up your eco-credentials, try this gorgeous option from Irish organic skincare brand Nunaia. Creator Nicola Connolly, based in Tipperary, holds the highest certified organic level for all her products, and has won major international organic skincare awards. Essentially, sustainability is written into the DNA of her skincare ethos. Nicola's cleansing ovals are no different - they are made with 100pc unbleached, certified organic cotton. Use them with water or your usual cleansing products and rinse after use, then leave to dry. These gems will last for years and years. Nunaia Cleansing Ovals (set of 4), 20, from Kilkenny Stores and nunaia.com

Reuse and reduce

Expand Close Baebrow Reusable Makeup Removal Pads Pack of 2 10.50 from Brown Thomas (brownthomas.com) and Arnotts (arnotts.ie) / Facebook

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Whatsapp Baebrow Reusable Makeup Removal Pads Pack of 2 10.50 from Brown Thomas (brownthomas.com) and Arnotts (arnotts.ie)

Baebrow is well known for its beauty gadgets, and is now stocked in Brown Thomas and Arnotts. These reusable makeup removal pads could save the use of a whopping 200 cotton pads a month. Just dip the pads in water or use your usual cleansing products. After use, clean with soap and water or chuck them in the washing machined. Baebrow Reusable Makeup Removal Pads (pack of 2), 10.50, Brown Thomas (brownthomas.com) and Arnotts (arnotts.ie)

Essential eco

Expand Close Holos Reusable Cleansing Pads 18.00 (for pack of ten) from holosskincare.com, health stores and pharmacioes nationwdie / Facebook

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Whatsapp Holos Reusable Cleansing Pads 18.00 (for pack of ten) from holosskincare.com, health stores and pharmacioes nationwdie

Wexford skincare brand Holos is well known for its plant-based natural products (in fact it just won a major European Skincare Awards in the Free-From Skincare Awards). It has just launched an eco-friendly skincare accessories line made with renewable materials called Eco Essentials. The first product in the new line is a pack of reusable cleansing pads made with 80pc bamboo and 20pc cotton. Each pack contains a generous 10 pads and will last aeons.

Holos Reusable Cleansing Pads, 18, from holosskincare.com, health stores and pharmacies nationwide.

Water-only cleanse

Expand Close Seoulista Beauty Magic Cleanse 16.50 (set of 3) from pharmacies nationwide and seoulistabeauty.com- Irish / Facebook

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Whatsapp Seoulista Beauty Magic Cleanse 16.50 (set of 3) from pharmacies nationwide and seoulistabeauty.com- Irish

Created by Northern Ireland beauty buff Una McGurk, this reusable cleansing tool (each pad lasts around 200 washes) is designed to cleanse our faces, using only water. How? The exfoliating action of the textured side helps to loosen makeup, oil and daily grime from the surface of the skin. Flip over to the fluffy side, and the natural, superfine and antibacterial fibres grip and lift oil, makeup and impurities from deep within pores. This beaut comes in a pack of three, keeping our skin cleansed for nearly a whole year! After use, just rinse and hang up to dry and machine-wash once a week.

Seoulista Beauty Magic Cleanse, 16.50, from pharmacies nationwide and seoulistabeauty.com
The Kailash Mansarovar Bhawan, the Uttar Pradesh chief ministers pet project, is complete and waiting for directions from the state government to start operations, officials of the UP Rajkiya Nirman Nigam, the construction agency, said on Saturday.

The pilgrim centre is meant for stay of pilgrims taking the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, Kanwar Yatra and Sindhu Yatra. The new building -- which houses a basement, ground floor and four other storeys -- has come up at Indirapuram and can accommodate 280 people in 94 rooms. The project, spread over an area of about 9,000 square metres, is completed at a total cost of about 70 crore.

The construction of the building is complete and all the furniture, fixtures and other amenities have also been provided. We have now written to UPs Dharmarth Karya Vibhag (department of religious affairs) to take over the project and decide accordingly about its operations. The construction cost of the building is about 57.99 crore while the rest expenditure is on furniture, fixture, etc, said SK Tyagi, project manager of the UP Rajkiya Nirman Nigam, a UP government undertaking.

The building has beautiful architecture and we have also made use of sandstone in the construction, he added.

The project was scheduled to get complete in March this year, but got delayed due to the lockdown and last years ban on construction activities due to rise in air pollution. CM Yogi Adityanath had laid its foundation stone in August 2017.

The project was initially proposed at Arthala near the Ala Hazrat Haj House. However, some environmentalists had filed complaints with the district administration maintaining that one of the major land chunks was registered as Jheel  a water body  whose nature cannot be changed as per norms. The municipal corporation, on the other hand, claimed that the land was banjar (barren) in their property records.

HT had published several reports on the controversy. Later, the then district magistrate, Ministhy S, took cognizance and acted swiftly in the matter, and the land at Indirapuram was finalised by the UP government.

In June this year, Anil Agrawal, Rajya Sabha MP from UP and also a resident of Ghaziabad, had written to the chief minister to dedicate some of the floors of Kailash Mansarovar Bhawan for healthcare facility.

However, officials of the Ghaziabad district administration said that there is no such proposal by the government. As per last known development, the Dharmarth Vibhag has sought suggestions from the tourism department and the Ghaziabad development authority about the operation of the Kailash Mansarowar Bhawan. The finalisation is to be done, said Ajay Shankar Pandey, district magistrate.

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MBABANE  At the eleventh hour, members of the Swaziland National Liquor Association (SNLA) were yesterday refused permission to march to the prime minister top deliver a petition.

The members had planned to deliver petitions to the Prime Minister, Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini, the South Africa High Commission and the European Union Commission.

The march had been scheduled to commence at around 10am.

However, at around 8am, SNLA Secretary General Thami Hlatshwako was summoned to the Municipal Council of Mbabane to engage with police and the Council.

It was during this meeting that Hlatshwako was informed that the organisation would not be allowed to march through the city centre.

Shock

In an interview after the meeting, Hlatshwako alleged that he was informed that the organisation did not apply on time.

This is not true because we submitted the application on Monday, he alleged.

Substantiating his claim, Hlatshwako showed this reporter a document indicating that the application was received by the Council on Monday around 5:35pm.

He expressed shock that the Council was using this as an excusing for not permitting them to proceed with the March.

He wondered why the Council had to wait until the last meet to inform them about its decision.

During the meeting, Councils representative said they received the application on Tuesday. He then explained that they were permitted by law to sanction the meeting.

Mandated

He then gave the floor to state our reasons to stage the march. We duly informed them that we had been mandated by our membership to seek permission to deliver petitions to government and the two embassies, he narrated.

Hlatshwako added that they informed the stakeholders that procedures were followed in applying for permission.

Also, he said they served letters to the PMs Office, the SA High Commission and the EU Commission notifying them that the association would be delivering petitions.

These letters, Hlatshwako said, were delivered on Wednesday.

Besides citing the late application, Hlatshwako said the Council described the march as a high risk.

They said the issues we wanted to discuss were of public interest, hence it will attract a lot of attention. They said allowing us would cause a spike in COVID-19 cases, he said.

Forced

Hlatshwako said he was told to inform his members not to attend the march and this forced him to make quick phone calls.

Councils Information and Public Relations Officer Lucky Tsabedze explained that a number of key factors were looked at before the decision to deny the applicants was taken.

One of the factors is that the point they wanted to use as an assembly point, the Coronation Park, is still closed. The facility was closed by the municipality in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This point was explained to the applicants by myself and the chief planner and we were supported by representatives of the Royal Eswatini Police Service, he said.

Further, Tsabedze said COVID-19 was still a serious threat, and Council would do anything to prevent situations that could spread the virus.

Upon engaging the applicants, Tsabedze said Council got the sense that there were no guarantees and no clear control that had been put in place by the applicant as a mechanism with which to control the number of participants.

Risks

Alive to the above facts and the risks associated with it, the municipality decided not to allow the march to go ahead. We just could not guarantee that governments COVID-19 Regulations would be fully observed during the march, he said.

Members of the SNLA then resolved to deliver the petitions to the South Africa High Commission and EU Commission at a later date.

Eventually, the association assigned two of its members to deliver the petition to the PMs Office, which they did successfully.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 07:33 490 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45d4721 1 National djoko-tjandra,bank-bali-case,AGO,Supreme-Court,pinangki-malasari,bribery Free

Djoko Soegiharto Tjandra, a graft convict and former fugitive in the high-profile Bank Bali corruption case, allegedly planned to bribe officials at the Supreme Court and the Attorney Generals Office (AGO) to help him secure an acquittal in the case.

AGO spokesperson Hari Setiyono said the figure was estimated to be around US$10 million.

Djoko, along with prosecutor Pinangki Sirna Malasari and NasDem politician Andi Irfan Jaya, agreed to provide $10 million to be handed to some officials at the Supreme Court and the AGO for securing the acquittal, Hari said on Thursday as quoted by kompas.com.

The AGO had previously accused Pinangki of receiving a $500,000 bribe from Djoko to lobby the Supreme Court to overturn a 2009 verdict that found him guilty of involvement in the 1998 Bank Bali corruption case.

In a proposal named action plan, Pinangki reportedly asked for $1 million from Djoko in exchange for the prosecutors help with the case. Djoko reportedly accepted the offer and paid half of the sum as a down payment. Djoko later canceled the remaining payment after seeing that things had not gone as planned, according to the AGO.

Read also: AGO arrests prosecutor Pinangki for alleged corruption in connection with Djoko Tjandra

Pinangki has been named a bribery and money laundering suspect by the AGO for allegedly using the $500,000 bribe to buy a luxury car and pay rent for two apartments in Jakarta, among other purchases.

Andi, the NasDem politician, was named a suspect for allegedly serving as a middleman between Pinangki and Djoko.

AGO prosecutors reportedly handed Pinangkis case file over to the Jakarta Corruption Court on Thursday.

The AGO previously declared Pinangki guilty of an ethics violation for going on nine international trips to Singapore and Malaysia in 2019, reportedly to meet with Djoko while he was at large.

Djoko fled the country in June 2009, a day before the Supreme Court sentenced him to two years in prison and ordered him to pay Rp 546 billion ($37 million) in restitution for his role in the corruption case. He spent more than a decade on the run before being arrested in Malaysia and deported to Indonesia in late July of this year. (vny)
A report into the drowning of a 55 year old man on Lough Gill last year has recommended that people using canoes and kayaks should undertake training beforehand.

The recommendations, which included the carrying of a mobile phone in a watertight case, were highlighted by County Sligo Coroner Eamon McGowan at the inquest into the death of Christopher Banburry of Corratimore, Dromahair.

The report into the drowning of Mr Banburry, who moved to Dromahair, from the UK in 2015, was undertaken by the Marine Casualty Investigation Board.

The inquest heard the keen adventurer and experienced swimmer set out on a two-day solo camping trip on January 26th, 2019 but did not return.

The inquest into his death returned a verdict of accidental death due to freshwater drowning.

His partner, Pearl Nepgen, had dropped him to a location near the River Bonet on the Saturday afternoon and was to collect him again on the Monday morning.

In her deposition, Ms Nepgen said her partner would turn his phone off when on these trips and would turn it on to text her to let her know everything was okay.

She said he was armed with camping equipment, wet gear, a fishing tackle box of food and a canoe he had purchased within the previous 12 months.

Although she said her partner was inexperienced in using this type of canoe, she told the inquest Mr Banburry had a certain amount of experience having borrowed canoes from friends over the past two years.

Her partner set out in his canoe on the River Bonet and text on Saturday evening after 6pm to let her know he had set up camp and all was "good".

Ms Nepgen tried to call him on Monday morning but his phone was off and instead she text him to say she was about to leave their house to collect him.

There was no sign of her partner at the point she has due to collect him at so she walked down by the river for a time to see could she meet him.

In her statement Ms Nepgen said when there was still no sign of him at 3pm she left to collect her two daughters from school, but before leaving she left a note for him instructing him to wait for her to return.

Returning with her daughters a time later Ms Nepgen again waited for her partner's return and after awhile decided to drive to the Lake Isle of Innisfree car park and set off on the board walk to Slish Woods to an area where she and Mr Banburry had camped previously

She and her daughters found Mr Banburry's camp.

"Everything was laid out like he had just gone for a little paddle. His carving tools were laid out. His saw was laid out. I just thought he had gone for a little paddle," Ms Nepgen explained in her statement.

As everything was laid out and looked normal she left the camp as it was getting dark. She checked his food supply and noted she would have enough supplies to see him through 'til the following day.

She also climbed a hillock overlooking the lake to see if she could spot the red canoe her partner had set out on but she couldn't see it.

The inquest heard Mr Banburry's partner was not concerned as everything was laid out, but her daughter Cherry was, and suggested leaving her hoodie at the camp so he would know they had visited.

Ms Nepgen began to panic after visiting the camp the following day and noting it was still the same as the previous day apart from the food box which looked liked it had been got at by an animal.

She rang her neighbour Eddlie Gallagher and explained the situation and asked him if she was being unreasonable to contact the gardai, which he denied, and advised her to do so.

While on the phone to gardai expressing her concerns,

Ms Nepgen once again climbed the hill overlooking the lake and this time she spotted her partner's canoe approximately one and a half kilometres away.

Familiar with the area, and advised by gardai to go to the canoe, she accessed the area by driving and walking, where she subsequently found the canoe capsized with the paddles inside it on the shoreline, near Cullentra Woods.

At this point she rang emergency services and was put through to the Coast Guard who advised her to put the GPS on her phone.

In a statement from Gavin Playle, a winchman with the Coastguard detailed that while responding to the call on Lough Gill he spotted a blue object close to the shoreline.

On further inspection it was found to be the body of a man wearing a buoyancy aid.

The body was winched on to the aircraft and brought back to Sligo Airport.

Ms Nepgen was informed a body was found and she later identified it as her partner, Mr Banburry. Garda Fergus O'Brien scenes of crime investigator later took photographs of the campsite which had been preserved by Garda John Kelleher.

The Marine Casualty Investigation Report detailed Mr Banburry was wearing denim jeans, a waterproof jacket and a buoyancy aid, along with open top wellington boots.

The report detailed that Ms Nepgen had advised that Mr Banburry was not experienced in the use of this type of canoe but was a competent swimmer, having gained several certificates for achievements for swimming.

Mr Banburry had purchased the canoe privately within the past 12 months.

The report noted there was no witnesses of the actual incident and that the exact circumstances of the incident were not known.

Mr Banburry's buoyancy aid had numerous scrapes and rips when found, indicating that he may have been in the position near the shoreline for some time.

Going on evidence from Ms Nepgen regarding contact with her partner, the MCBI report detailed that the incident occurred some time between 6.27pm on Saturday, January 26th and 10.39am on Tuesday, January 29th when the canoe was sighted.

The report detailed that though Mr Banburry had given his partner details of his departure, locations and return details, but, other than his mobile phone he had no other means of communication.

In analysis of the incident, the report outlined that though the passage inshore of the island of Innisfree near Slish Woods is relatively sheltered, when canoeing to, our from Cullentra Woods, the first 100 metres of Mr Banburry's route from Slish would have been exposed to wind.

The report added that the wind would make the use of the type of canoe Mr Banburry had, difficult to control and would have rendered it "unstable".

Weather conditions between Saturday and Sunday were described as "very poor" with strong winds and intermittent rain, and winds ranged from 90km per hour to 20km per hour.

Detailing conditions including air temperatures ranging from 4 to 6 degrees, the report suggests the lake would have been cold to the human body.

"This would lead to potential of cold shock for a person being suddenly immersed in the cold lake water," the report outlined.

Given the location of the body when found and the location of the canoe, the report said it is probable the canoe may have been travelling from Slish to Cullentra or somewhere in that area when the incident occurred.

It detailed that Mr Banburry's wellingtons would have weighed him down on immersion into the water.

They would have filled with water when he left the canoe and would also be held tight on the leg as pressure acted on the boots.

This could act as a weight pulling the person downwards in the water, acting against the inherent flotation characteristics of the buoyancy aid.

It was also noted that his buoyancy aid would not have kept him afloat as an inflatable life jacket would.

Once Mr Banburry entered the water he would probably have immediately felt the shock of the cold water, according to the MCBI report and the boat may have drifted away.

He may not have been able to stay on or with it to achieve adequate buoyancy, despite being an accomplished swimmer.

Mr Banburry did not carry any other means of signalling for help, such as flares or Marine VHF handheld transceivers.

Outlining its safety recommendations, the MCBI report said particular attention should be paid to training, namely that people undertake a recognised training course in the correct use of the specific type of canoe they wish to use.

It also suggested that prior to entering water, people should ensure they carry a mobile phone of Marine VHF radio in a suitable watertight cover for use to summon assistance in an emergency situation.

Other recommendations within the report included that canoeists check the hull is fitted with grab loops/towing lines, to ensure a person is a competent swimmer and that canoeists/kayakers should ensure they wear clothing and footwear that will not affect their chance of survival in the water.

Arriving at a verdict of accidental death, Coroner, Mr Eamon McGowan noted that Mr Banburry was a fit man with an obvious passion for adventure.

The inquest heard there were no drugs or alcohol in Mr Banburry's system and the cause of death was due to freshwater drowning.

"He was living the life and experiences he enjoyed.

"It should be encouraged but the safety recommendations should be highlighted," said the coroner.

He added that maybe training in the operating of the canoe would have "concentrated his ideas" and appropriate clothing, along with grab loops were recommended.

The coroner offered his sympathies to Ms Nepgen who was present at the inquest on Monday and also extended sympathy to Mr Banburry's family in the UK.

"I hope they can get over this tragic loss."

Sgt Derek Butler also offered sympathies to Mr Banburry's family on behalf of gardai.
Thakur accused Gandhis of corruption after Opposition criticised Centre for PM-Cares Fund

Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur speaks in Lok Sabha during the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament, amid the coronavirus pandemic, in New Delhi, Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. (LSTV/PTI)

New Delhi: There was high drama in the Lok Sabha as minister of state for finance Anurag Thakur made disparaging remarks about the Nehru-Gandhi family, which led to several adjournments, as Congress Lok Sabha leader Adhir Ranjan Choudhury called him a chhokra from Himachal Pradesh.

Later, the proceedings resumed only at 6 pm after four adjournments, when Thakur apologised to the House, saying he was pained if his words had hurt anyone, on the insistence of Speaker Om Birla.

Earlier, the trouble began when during the introduction of the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provision) Bill by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Opposition members criticised the PM-Cares funds validity.

Thakur counter-attacked immediately and accused the Gandhi family of cheating people by pooling public money through creation of various funds under different names.

While Opposition leaders  Shashi Tharoor, Manish Tewari and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury  were critical of the PM-Cares fund during the discussion on the legislation, Thakur said: From the High Court to the Supreme Court, all courts have validated the PM-Cares fund. Even children have contributed to it from their piggy banks. Nehru had set up a fund that has not been registered to date. You (Congress) only made a trust for the benefit of the Gandhi family. You made Sonia Gandhi its chairman. It should be probed.

Nehruji ordered the creation of Prime Ministers National Relief Fund in 1948 like a royal order, but its registration has not been done even till today. How did it get FCRA clearance? Mr Thakur sought to know.

This irked the Opposition and Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury lashed out at Mr Thakur, calling him a chhokra, demanding an apology for maligning the Nehru-Gandhi family.
Dr. Li-Meng Yan has been making headlines after headlines as the whistleblower that revealed that the coronavirus was actually manufactured in a lab in Wuhan. It was previously stated that the coronavirus has been modified and that evidence of this can be found in its genome which is modified to be more harmful to humans.

According to Li-Meng Yan, there was an attempt to cover up this virus during the early days of the coronavirus before it turned into an actual pandemic. She found out about this virus' harmful potential quite early but was told to keep silent and not to spread the word.

She then made her way to the United States where she decided to reveal to the world exactly what happened and where did the coronavirus come from. COVID-19 has been a huge problem with the world today and aside from the economic turmoil that the world is experiencing, many people have lost their lives to COVID-19.

The global fight against the coronavirus

Some countries are still heavily struggling due to this virus and so far, there are only a number of countries that have successfully conquered the virus. Although the final vaccine has not yet been revealed as a number of vaccine candidates are still going through testing, there are already a lot of companies that are working on finding the vaccine to this virus.

The deadly nature of the coronavirus has slowly been recognized around the world as the virus hits parts of Asia like the Philippines, Indonesia, and other countries. Although some countries like Vietnam have been able to deal with the virus, the risk is still very much there.

Dr. Li-Meng Yan's first report

The first report Li-Meng Yan published detailed how there is in fact scientific evidence that COVID-19 indeed came from a laboratory in China along with how it was manufactured. The report explains "how to do it" or basically how it was manufactured inside a Chinese laboratory..

The first report also details who are the experts that have been involved in making this virus including a few of Li-Meng Yan's seniors. There is an apparent 'reference list" in the first report detailing what previously went down.

Dr. Yan mentioned that she first attempted to publish the report at bioRxiv.org on September 14 but claimed it was hacked a few hours later so she had to withdraw it and move to zenodo.

"This report you can download from Zenodo that is open access database because this is a pre-print website. So i choose it to get all the people can easily get it within a short time as we know peer review journals already be0 manipulated or influenced by the big power. So it will take months or years for them to review my report and changing and reject it. But i think this is urgent time everyone deserves to read this report to make their judgment," she said in her latest interview with Sean Spicer.

Read Also: Chinese Whistleblower Li-Meng Yan Interview Alleges COVID-19 was 'Released Intentionally' After 'Modifications' Made it More 'Harmful'

The second report regarding the coronavirus

The second report, however, is supposedly going to come out with more evidence moving Li-Meng Yan's allegations maybe closer to the truth. The second report is said to be even more scientific and will break down into facts how the coronavirus was manufactured within a laboratory in Wuhan where the supposed outbreak started.

When asked in an interview with Sean Spicer as to the possibility that the virus could have evolved as it transmitted inter-species therefore disproving Li-Meng Yan's claim that it was manufactured in a lab, Li-Meng Yan gave a very solid answer. According to her, yes the genome can be modified and changes as it goes on but due to the fact that it is highly contagious and harmful to human beings, this is the evidence that it was manufactured within a lab.

Read Also: COVID-19 Whistleblower Dr. Li-Meng Yan Credibility Check: Background, Other Coronavirus Papers She Co-Authored, and MORE!

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Urian Buenconsejo

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 19 : Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayans antipathy for probing questions from journalists is known to everybody and blowing his top during press conferences is also well-known.

But on Saturday, Vijayan flexed his muscles and told a lady journalist he won't answer if the same journalist asked too many questions.

Incidentally, the lady journalist in question represents the Congress-backed Jaihind TV channel.

What irked Vijayan was that the lady journalist, in her first opportunity of asking a question, clubbed two questions into one.

She asked why Vijayan wasn't giving the copy of the MoU inked with UAE-based charity organisation Red Crescent to build homes for the homeless under his the pet project Life Mission, despite numerous requests from the Congress veteran and Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala.

After a while, the journalist asked a question and Vijayan answered, but after a few questions by others, she asked again and it was then he said, that he won't answer if the same person asks many questions.

Soon came another question from a male journalist and to that he remarked: "You, too, have asked a few questions." Soon the CM ended the press conference.

Incidentally, before treating this lady journalist with disdain, CM Vijayan had, in reply to another question, said that his government and party accord all the respect to every woman.
After several attempts to salvage their marriage, Ashley Martson and Jay Smith revealed they have split for good in a lengthy Instagram statement.

The couple, who starred on the sixth season of 90 Day Fiance, previously filed for divorce eight months after tying the knot and, most recently, in April 25.

'Before the stories get all misconstrued I will just address it myself,' the 34-year-old TLC star wrote. 'Jay and I have made the decision to separate for good. I thought I was stronger and more forgiving but Im not.'

Hard to say goodbye: After several attempts to salvage their marriage, Ashley Martson and Jay Smith revealed have split for good in a lengthy statement on Instagram; seen in April 2019

She continued: 'Sometimes when trust is broken, it just cannot be repaired. I wish Jay the best and we are both on the same page with this.

Martson clarified that 'no one cheated,' but she couldnt get over the past' and feels 'heartbroken,' after giving her 'all to this marriage.'

'This isnt how I envisioned my future. We want to thank everyone who has supported us and were rooting for us,' she added.

Additionally, the reality star apologized to her 'close friends and family' learning the news on social media, since she didn't have the 'strength to talk about it' yet.

'Please forgive me,' she wrote to her 380,000 followers, while sharing a quote, which read: 'Sometimes things just don't work out, and it's not anyone's fault. It's just the way things are.'

The couple met in Smith's home country of Jamaica, where Martson was staying at a resort for a friend's wedding.

Comlicated: The on-again, off-again, then parted ways in October 2019, before rekindling in March 2020 (pictured in February 2019)

Though she didnt expect to hear from him again, he tracked her down on social media and proposed six months later, upon her next visit.

There were rumors that he had reportedly cheated on her just one day after they tied the knot in Las Vegas.

US Weekly previously shared a fan account's repost of a comment Jay wrote about the cheating rumors.

'Please forgive me,' she wrote to her 380,000 followers, while sharing a quote, which read: Sometimes things just don't work out, and it's not anyone's fault. It's just the way things are'

He had written in a now-expired Instagram story: 'Fyi: for everyone coming at me i wasn't the only one who was "talking" aka "cheating" with other people during our relationship/marriage.'

Upon her first divorce filing in January 2019, she 'withdrew her filing less than two weeks after submitting the paperwork,' according to US Weekly.

Then in April 2019, she filed for a second time and took out a restraining order against him. By July, she withdrew her divorce filing and the protective order.

Complicated: The on-again, off-again, then parted ways in October 2019, before rekindling in March 2020

The on-again, off-again, then parted ways in October 2019, before rekindling in March 2020.

'I feel, like, if you have trouble in your marriage or your relationship and you choose to try it again, you have to tell yourself before you get back in that relationship that the past is the past,' Martson explained on YouTube in March.

At the time, she noted: 'You chose to forgive for what they did in the past.'
Nirupama Viswanathan By

Express News Service

With the Community Intervention Programme, that focused on COVID 19 containment in the slum areas, coming to an end, households in city corporation limits that were surveyed for Covid 19 symptoms every day, will now be surveyed once in two days.

The Greater Chennai Corporation had roped in 92 NGOs to help control the COVID 19 cases specifically in slums. The Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two parties (Corporation and each NGO) in May for a period of 124 days, ended on Friday.

A senior corporation official told Express, "The CIP programme has given good results and the cases detected in slums have become very meagre, as analysed spatially and temporally."

Now, with the NGOs and their staff wrapping up their assignment, the city Corporation is set to reorganise its manpower in order to continue fever surveillance.

Initially, each survey worker was assigned to cover 100-150 houses every day. Now, each worker will be assigned 250 odd households, which they will survey over a period of two days.

Fever surveillance along with checking in fever camps has been one of the city Corporation strategies that has been credited with helping early detection and isolation of COVID 19 cases.

Survey workers identify persons with symptoms in each household and get them tested for the virus at their nearest fever camps,

"We are reorganising manpower to expand the geographical area for these fever survey workers. They will be allotted 250 plus households and checking will happen as usual. If it's not possible to cover in a single day, a minimum 48 hours cycle will be maintained," said a senior Corporation official.

Speaking to Express, a survey worker recruited temporarily by the city Corporation in Royapuram zone said. "We have been asked to alternate between slum and non-slum areas.

If we cover 100 odd houses in a slum today, tomorrow we will cover 100 odd houses in a non-slum area within the zone that is designated to each of us."

Although the fever surveillance may not happen in each house every day, it will still continue to remain a key strategy for the Corporation in the coming days, said a senior Corporation official.

"We know that door-to-door surveillance is one of the strong pillars of GCC's COVID 19 strategies. We are not letting the guard down anytime soon," said the official.
CNN Philippines (September 19)  A number of broadcast journalists will be tapped to train teachers who will deliver lessons through television under the blended learning program, the Education department said.

Trainers include Jessica Soho, Korina Sanchez, Arnold Clavio, and Karen Davila, Education Undersecretary Alain Pascua said Friday in a statement posted on Facebook.

Veteran broadcaster Luchi Cruz-Valdez will serve as senior trainer and adviser and anchor-host Paolo Bediones will be lead trainer, Pascua said.

Also joining the lineup of trainers are Kara David, Sandra Aguinaldo, Abner Mercado, Atom Araullo, Jacque Manabat, and MJ Marfori.

DepEds teacher-broadcaster training program will help equip and empower its select teacher-broadcaster candidates to be effective presenters on television, and also allow them to deeply understand the elements of video production by allowing them to discover the roles of associate producer, videographer, editor, graphic artist, and production coordinator throughout the program, Pascua said.

The educational broadcasts will supplement remote learning in place of traditional face-to-face classes.

The DepEd is expected to have a final test broadcast on September 21 to 25 via IBC-13 and other partner networks evaluating contents and designs, Pascua said.

Earlier, the agency has come under fire after the DepEd TV debuted with a glitch as regards content. Education Secretary Leonor Briones said the grammatically incorrect materials which aired over IBC-13 were due to a typographical error, and she vowed it will not happen again.

The academic year for kindergarten to senior high school students in public schools is set to begin on October 5.
PORTLAND, Ore. - Protesters returned to the streets of Portland, Oregon, following a dayslong pause largely due to poor air quality from wildfires on the West Coast.

Police declared an unlawful assembly Friday night in a neighbourhood near a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building where protesters had marched, according to a police statement.

Demonstrators participated in criminal activity and threw items at officers, police said, leading to 11 arrests.

Photos show that smoke was used to clear the crowd, and it appeared that tear gas was deployed. Police initially tweeted that tear gas was on the list of crowd control agents if people did not disperse, but the tweet was later deleted, KOIN-TV reported. Another tweet was issued that didnt mention tear gas.

No, we are required by law to make that warning, Portland Sgt. Kevin Allen told the television station when asked about the initial tweet. PPB is still prevented from using tear gas.

Less than two weeks ago the mayor of Portland ordered police to stop using tear gas for crowd control during the frequently violent protests that racked the city for more than three months after the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Mayor Ted Wheeler, a Democrat, was tear gassed when he went to a demonstration against the presence of federal authorities dispatched to the city to protect federal property.

He said he still wants police to respond aggressively to prevent violence and vandalism. Hundreds of people have been arrested since the protests started in May.

Demonstrators had not gathered in the city since at least Sept. 9, when police and protesters clashed near City Hall. Wildfires have spewed dangerously dirty air across Oregon, California and Washington state, and sent haze across the country.

The protesters in Portland want city officials to slash the police budget and reallocate that money to Black residents and businesses. Some demonstrators are also demanding the resignation of Wheeler, a white man and the scion of a timber company fortune.

In clashes with police, some protesters have broken windows, set small fires, punctured police car tires, shined lasers in officers eyes and pelted them with rocks and frozen water bottles.

Police criticized Wheelers move, saying in a statement that it could force them to employ potentially more dangerous crowd control measures to quell violent demonstrations.
Jobs across the central business districts of Sydney and Melbourne could be lost for up to a decade due to the coronavirus recession, slowing the nation's economic recovery.

Analysis of the long-term impacts of recessions on the job market, compiled by the economics department of the Reserve Bank, shows dislocations like the current pandemic could also hit the job prospects of young and older people more than those in their prime working years.

The inner suburbs and CBDs of Melbourne and Sydney, plus several tourism-focused regional areas, have suffered the biggest job losses due to the coronavirus recession.

While payrolls measured by the Australian Bureau of Statistics are down by 4.4 per cent in NSW since March, they are 8.5 per cent lower in Sydney's CBD and inner south.
A 70-year-old farmer has died after consuming some poisonous substance during a protest against the new farm Bills in Muktsar district of Punjab, police said on Saturday.

IMAGE: Farmers raise slogans during an ongoing protest outside the residence of former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal against three agriculture-related bills, at Badal village in Sri Muktsar Sahib, on Friday. Photograph: PTI Photo

Pritam Singh, a resident of Akkanwali village of Mansa district, consumed the poisonous substance Friday morning and died at a hospital later in the day, they said.

Singh had been participating in the protest since September 15 which is being organised by the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) at Badal village, the native of former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal.

The reason behind the farmer taking the extreme step is still not known, said the police.

The farmers' body, however, claimed that he was under debt.

BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) general secretary Sukhdev Singh demanded the administration give a compensation to the family of the deceased.
Wave Motors and Tide Machines at the Cliff House: 1886 to present

Copyright  2003 by Christine Miller

Page One -- Page Two

Go out to the Cliff House restaurant in San Francisco and walk down the winding path into the Sutro Baths cove. Midway down, another path will lead you to the observation platform above the Sutro Baths ruins. To the north you will see a large rock that was once the foundation of a San Francisco landmark - The Wave Motor at Land's End.

Today, you may still hear the local legend about that wave motor and the inventor who left it there.

The legend of "Ralph Starr and his Amazing Wave Machine" usually goes like this: A local inventor named Ralph Starr constructed a small model of a motor that he claimed would generate electricity from the constant motion of the waves. He convinced several prominent investors that his machine was a breakthrough in technology and he was then able to finance the construction of a large motor out by the Cliff House. Day after day, Starr worked tirelessly on his wave motor. Crowds would gather along the bluff to watch him work. Everyone was interested in the strange contraption and looked forward to its completion. Starr was secretive about the details of his motor, but his odd behavior was attributed to his unique genius.

At last, a day was set for the official unveiling of the wave motor. Crowds gathered and eagerly waited for the ceremony. The investors waited nervously for the inventor to come and start up his machine. They waited and waited and waited. They finally went over to the inventor's home to check on him. There, they found the remnants of a household that had been packed up quickly. Starr and his family had skipped town, along with the investors' money! The wave motor was abandoned. Nobody but Starr knew if it worked!

The real stories of the wave motors at the Cliff House are slightly different from the legend of Ralph Starr, but there is truth intertwined with the fiction. The legend itself must come from the turn of the 20th century when wave motor inventors and swindling promoters were in abundance in California. The name of Starr comes from a well publicized wave motor project by Frederick Starr in Southern California in 1909.

The Sutro Baths cove has been the primary place in San Francisco for experimentation with utilizing the power of the ocean. Two projects were not intended to generate electricity but to provide large amounts of ocean water. These two projects, the Aquarium and the Sutro Baths, are examples of tidal power because the water was moved by the force of the tides down a canal and into a settling pond where it was needed. Tidal mills dating back hundreds of years employed similar engineering to fill storage pools where the water would then be run through a water wheel to produce power for grain milling.

Five other projects along this shoreline were all experiments with wave motors. Their intended purpose was to generate electricity. These projects were designed to utilize the bobbing motion of the waves to move the motor's machinery. These were smaller experiments and although the costs in constructing them are mostly unknown, they were undoubtedly much less expensive than the two tidal power projects.

The First Wave Motor in California?

The first full scale wave motor built near the Cliff House was probably also the first in California. It was the invention of a man named E. Stern, of whom little is known. He went to engineer/businessman/ philanthropist Adolph Sutro in 1886 and asked to lease some land on Sutro's beachfront property in order to build a wave motor. He built his wave motor a few hundred yards north of the Cliff House just along the shore of the southern entrance into the Golden Gate. For Mr. Stern's purposes, the location was ideal. It was, however, in a major shipping channel.

On the evening of January 16, 1887 the schooner Parallel drifted past Stern's wave motor and became lodged on the rocks of the big bluff nearby. Adolph Sutro and other locals went down to the beach to aid the ship. Finding no one aboard, they adjourned until morning.

The Parallel, loaded with 40 tons of dynamite and other highly flammable materials, had been on her way to Oregon when she ran into the rocks near the entrance of the Golden Gate. Her crew had wasted no time in abandoning her.

At 12:34 a.m., the Parallel's cargo exploded with such force that it was felt as far away as Sacramento and San Jose.

Stern's wave motor was only a short distance away. It was badly damaged by the blast and its plight was mentioned in the local papers.

The explosion also damaged the Cliff House but it was quickly remodeled. Two years passed, and Mr. Stern still seemed to be tinkering with his machine.

In 1889, he contacted Adolph Sutro about plans for a new wave motor, but Mr. Stern seemed indefinite. Sutro wanted Mr. Stern to succeed and offered him new leasing terms, but Stern had never paid his rent in the previous three years. By October of 1889, Sutro seems to have become rather exasperated with Mr. Stern and his exaggerated ideas about his wave motor. Mr.Stern claimed that his wave motor had the potential of 10,000 horsepower but Sutro flatly doubted it could come up with 100 horsepower at best.

In the end, Mr. Stern must have given up on his wave motor. What exactly happened to it is unknown. It was completely gone by August 1891 when a new wave motor was erected in the same area.

How was Mr. Stern's wave motor supposed to work? The few descriptions of this machine that are known at this time don't give a very good idea of the mechanics. Years later The Examiner described it thus, "That (machine) operated in a wiggle-waggle sort of way depending on the pushing power of the waves against a broad surface, something like the centerboard of a flat-bottomed vessel." 1

The action of the ocean waves against the machinery caused a pumping action that drew water into a large pipe that went up side of the cliff. The intention was probably to pump the water up into reservoirs on the cliff where it could then be run down through a system of water wheels that generated electricity.

First Tidal Energy Project in California: Sutro's Aquarium

While Mr. Stern worked on his machine on one side of the rocky bluff they were now calling "Parallel Point", Mr. Sutro set to work in earnest on the other side on a three year old project he called "The Aquarium". Its purpose was educational. He wanted to create a large tide pool that would be filled and emptied with ocean water. It would also be filled with any accompanying ocean life that became caught up in the rush of water into it. By doing so he could bring the wonders of ocean life into a confined area where people could safely observe it up close.

The Aquarium was an enormous project although its function was as an educational novelty. It gives insight into the mind of Adolph Sutro. He seemed to be at his best when he was involved with a project that moved water from one place to another. Between 1865 and 1879 Sutro had been responsible for an enormous three mile tunnel project through the Nevada mountains to drain and ventilate the silver mines of the Comstock Lode. The Aquarium reflects the combination of mechanical ability, creativity and audacity that was unique to Sutro.

The Aquarium required carving a catch-basin into the side of Parallel Point where a natural shelf existed 17 feet above mean tide level. Sutro had noticed the waves breaking over that shelf and decided to make use of it. The catch-basin he built there, 72 ft long by 20 ft wide and 3 ft deep, was designed to catch water from three directions. The next step required boring a canal through Parallel Point. The canal was 8 feet high and 153 feet long with a slope downwards of 3 feet in a hundred. The canal connected the catch-basin to a settling basin on the shore, built 14 feet above mean tide level, with a capacity of 250,000 gallons. The settling basin, built of rock and cement, was 80 ft long, 40 ft wide and ten ft deep.

On September 3, 1887 the first part of Sutro's Aquarium plan was unveiled. At 12:30 in the afternoon, the canal gates were opened and the ocean water rushed in. In twenty minutes the Aquarium's settling basin was filled up. It was emptied in six minutes. The experiment was conducted several times in order to show off the success of the venture. The event was covered by several local newspapers including The Examiner which quoted Sutro as saying, "...Some people said I was an old fool when I commenced this work, but they will change their minds in a short time. The possibilities of utilizing the force of the sea's waves will soon be made manifest." 2

The Second Wave Motor at the Cliff House

A second wave motor was constructed in 1891 on a large rock near the site of the first. This wave motor was the invention of a man named Henry P. Holland. It is Holland's wave motor that became a familiar local landmark due to its longevity. It survives to this day only in photographs and stereoviews. The legend of Ralph Starr probably arose from the need to explain the presence of the old machine out on the rock.

Mr. Holland was backed financially by mining man J.A. Fischer. In August of 1891 they announced that they would soon be erecting their wave motor but did not say much else. They wanted to keep the details quiet until their machine was proven a success and kept a guard on site to prevent anyone from inspecting the machine.

This wave motor operated from the movement of a large 3,000 pound iron buoy that was moved up and down by motion of the waves. The pump was activated by the rise and fall of the buoy. The pump was estimated to work at eight strokes per minute, which would raise water up through a pipe on the side of one of the nearby cliffs. From there it would be run back down through a series of water wheel motors that would generate electricity which they hoped to sell to manufacturers.

This may be the first wave motor built in California for a commercial purpose, but it is difficult to determine if it was ever finished and it seems to have been a small-scale venture. Not much else is known about it at this time. None of the photographs of this wave motor include its 3,000 pound iron buoy and that may give quick insight into this project's lack of success.

The first large scale wave motor for the commercial production of electricity was built in Capitola, near Santa Cruz, in 1896 by an inventor named Gerlach. It was an enormous machine but it was not a success.

Holland must not have waited long to abandon his wave motor. If not successful, it was well built. The wave motor remained attached to its rock for 59 years!

In 1947 Chronicle columnist Robert O'Brien wrote about the wave motors at the Cliff House and the legend of Ralph Starr in his column titled, "Man's Dream of Harnessing the Sea". In doing so he also gave an eyewitness account of the condition of the two remaining wave motors at that time.

Three years later, when Holland's wave motor was finally blown away in a storm, O'Brien noted its passing in his column. "I couldn't resist entering a record of the passing of this bleak landmark, if you can call it that. ....the disappearance of the framework in a storm ends one phase of this curious San Francisco story... " 3

Page One -- Page Two

Images: 1) "Life-Saving Station, near Cliff House, San Francisco, California, U.S.A.", Underwood & Underwood, Stereocard. Courtesy of Christine Miller. 2) Adolph Sutro at work at "Parallel Point" in the Sutro Baths cove. The exact date of this photograph is unknown but it would have been taken between 1887 and 1891. It shows the period of construction between the Aquarium and the Sutro Baths. Courtesy of the San Francisco History Center, San Francisco Public Library.

Contribute your own stories about the Cliff House and Baths!
Its hard to believe, and Im going to choose not to believe that she said that, because I dont think that people on their deathbeds are thinking about whos president. You hope not  thats a pretty limited way to think as you die. But certainly this will be used as a cudgel by the left.
Patna, Sep 19 : The Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) has apprehend a wanted Maoist in East Champaran district of Bihar in a joint operation conducted with state police, the paramilitary force said on Saturday.

Kedar Raut was caught on Friday evening from Harnatha area following inputs regarding his presence. The operation was conducted by the 32nd Battalion of SSB and Bihar Police.

Raut is a member of North Bihar West Zonal Committee (NBWZC). After initial questioning the Maoist was handed over to thre police for further legal action, the SSB said The SSB, with strength of about 99,000 personnel, has been guarding the 1,751-km India-Nepal border since 2001 and the 699-km India-Bhutan border since 2004. The force is also deployed for internal security in Maoist affected states.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
People can arrive here from abroad and visit other counties but people living in Dublin have been told they can't travel

People in Dublin are being told not to leave the county for either domestic or overseas travel for the next three weeks under Level 3 restrictions.

This means people living in Dublin should not fly out of Dublin Airport to destinations on the revised Green List unless it's for essential reasons.

However, people can not be legally punished under the new rules and gardai can only urge them to follow the restrictions.

The restrictions on leaving the county will apply for all travel, domestic and foreign, the Cabinet decided.

However, tourists arriving in Dublin Airport will be free to travel to other counties while the capital is in lockdown.

The same restrictions will be applied to Dublin as were introduced in Kildare, Laois and Offaly, where people were allowed travel through the county but asked only to stop if it was for an essential reason.

Similarly, air travellers arriving in Dublin for holidays will still be able to travel by train, bus and car to another county if that is where they are staying.

People will only be allowed to travel in and out of Dublin for essential work, education and/or care needs, the Government will advise.

However, a Government spokesperson confirmed the international travel restrictions will only be enforced by gardai through "policing by consent".

Enforce

"In supporting the Covid-19 public health guidelines and regulations, An Garda Siochana has and will continue to adopt, a graduated policing response based on its tradition of policing by consent," the said.

"This has seen Garda members engage, educate, encourage and, as a last resort, enforce.

"In respect of travel regulations, which are not declared to be Penal Regulations under the Health Act 1947 as amended, under Operation Fanacht, An Garda Siochana will continue to use the approach of the three Es which will see gardai engage, educate and encourage, only, compliance with travel regulations," he added.

On Thursday, the Department of Foreign Affairs updated the Green List to include countries with a 14-day disease incidence rate of 25 or less per 100,000, based on data provided by the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC).

The move means from Monday, people arriving in Dublin from Cyprus, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland can fly into Ireland without being asked to restrict their movements for two weeks.

People can also fly from Ireland to these countries without being asked to restrict their movements on their return.

Meanwhile, Estonia, Greece, Greenland, Hungary, Italy, Norway and Slovakia are to be removed from the Green List as of Monday.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney said the Government agreed to "broadly support" the European Commission's air travel plan.
With Indias China Study Group (CSG) meeting on Friday, the stage has been set for a meeting of military commanders of the two countries in the coming week, to discuss disengagement and subsequent withdrawal of PLA troops from Ladakh.

The outcome of the military commanders meeting will largely depend on PLAs posture along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh and its deployment in occupied Aksai China.

Consider the following :

1. The PLA continues to build-up troops in occupied Aksai Chin and has started rotating troops on the LAC, indicating that it is preparing for a long haul on the border.

ALSO WATCH | Ladakh: How Army, IAF are boosting troops, supplies amid China tension

2. A disengagement and de-escalation have been discussed and agreed to at the levels of Special Representatives (July 5) and Foreign Ministers (September 10), but the PLA has made the restoration of status quo ante on LAC conditional, thus putting the entire exercise at jeopardy. Rather than withdraw in toto to base camps, the PLA wants to have a toehold on the territory on the north bank of Pangong Tso to show its stamp of authority. During discussions, the PLA has talked about withdrawing to the pre-April position of Finger 8 spur on the lake but wants to leave 50 troops at the present position, eight-kilometre up at finger 4. At certain places, it wants to place cameras to monitor Indian movements. Basically, it wants to earmark the territory for future negotiations. This has been rejected by the Indian side.

3. Just as the PLA has reached its perceived LAC on the north bank of the lake, the Indian side has reached its perceived LAC on the south bank, thanks to courageous pre-emptive action by the Indian Army on August 29-30. The only option to restore peace and tranquillity is for both sides to return to their base camps and stop contesting on friction points all over the 1597 km LAC in Ladakh. While the Indian side is willing to do this, the PLA sees this as a loss of face for a rising global power and would rather create a new normal on the LAC.

4. There is a serious element of distrust about Chinas intent. The Indian army is convinced the PLA wants to stay-put on the encroached territory  a sort of reward for initiating aggression against India on the LAC in May. This is unacceptable to the Narendra Modi government.

5. With the weather taking turn for the worse, both armies will go into survival mode this winter rather than initiating operations against each other. The wind chill is a killer in these areas with temperatures touching 25 below zero routinely at Pangong Tso and Chushul. High altitude pulmonary oedema (HAPO) and acute mountain sickness will turn killers this winter  not bullets.

6. The Pakistan move to create a fifth province in disputed Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) in the occupied northern areas is being pushed by the Chinese through the Pakistan Army as Beijing wants security for the CPEC corridor, which it also wants to expand. This means that the Line of Control (LOC) between India and Pakistan will become the border, with GB being assimilated into the Islamic state. The main reason behind the GB move is to expand the CPEC corridor as China wants to create an alternative to the Malacca Straits sea-route by pushing hydrocarbon and mineral supplies from West Asia, Africa and Afghanistan through the new route. With India blocking all Pakistani proposals at the World Bank for infrastructure development in Occupied Kashmir and Northern Areas on the ground of the areas being disputed, usurping the Shia dominated GB by Sunni Pakistan will help in the expansion of CPEC, and also protect the already sunk Chinese investment in CPEC.

7. The expansion of CPEC will also help China in controlling the restive populations of Buddhist Tibet and Muslim Xinjiang as the economic growth will feed into the militarization of both the autonomous regions. Already, China has started an expansion of its airbases in Tibet and Xinjiang by building underground pens for fighter aircraft as well as the deployment of top of the line missiles.

8. The PLA aggression from Daulet Beg Oldi to Chumar in Ladakh is part of a two-pronged strategy designed to ensure the depth to highway number 219 from Lhasa to Kashgar as well as to push India to yield to the construction of a parallel highway through Karakoram Pass to rival the one running through the Khunjerab pass north of Siachen Glacier.

9. It is because China has grand plans for CPEC, that it has no incentive in settling the boundary issue with India as this will permanently block Beijings ambitions in South Asia.

10. With Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Myanmar now close allies, Chinas next move could be to settle the border ostensibly in favour of Bhutan like it did with Yangon. Once the border is settled, it will open diplomatic ties with Thimphu and then, the kingdom may go the Nepal way. If this happens, Indias ring-fencing is complete.

This may sound like a complete plan for China except for the fact that the Modi government will contest Beijing on each and every point.

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Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has spoken to the United Nations Human Rights Council despite the Belarussian envoy's efforts to prevent her and other critics from giving speeches. During a turbulent session of the Geneva-based U.N. body, she demanded that the country's authorities end violence against protestors and organize a free and fair presidential election.

By Stefan J. Bos



The urgent debate of the Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council on alleged rights violations in Belarus didn't go smoothly.



Till the last moment, a representative of Belarus, backed by Russia, China, and Venezuela, tried to limit speeches.



That also happened when opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya tried to talk about her supporters' reported suffering under longtime leader Alexander Lukashenko.



But the president of the Human Rights Council, Elisabeth Tichy-Fisslberger, put an end to the repeated interruptions. "If anybody doesn't agree with this, we would have to take a vote. But I would at this stage ask the secretariat to show us the rest of the video," she said.



In it, opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya appealed for a change in Belarus. "We demand to cease violence against peaceful citizens immediately. We demand the immediate release of all political prisoners," she said.

Free elections



Tsikhanouskaya added: "We demand to allow entry and free movement to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus. Finally, we demand free and fair elections. So the citizens of Belarus can freely choose their government according to the laws of the country".



She and others believe that President Lukashenko rigged the August 9 presidential election. Among those protesting against Lukashenko are women who have reported torture and assault by security forces.



With riot police given carte blanche by president Lukashenko, they have responded by grabbing their masks and balaclavas. That forced officers to hide their faces and retreat for fear of being identified.



Back at the United Nations Security Council, U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet said observers witness thousands of arrests. Hundreds of reports of torture and other ill-treatment, including sexual violence and the reported torture of children.



Bachelet said it was vital for the future of Belarus and "break these cycles of increasing repression and violence."
Chandigarh, Sep 19 : Akali patriarch and five-time Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Saturday expressed "immense satisfaction and pride" over the strong and principled stand taken by the Shiromani Akali Dal "to save the beleaguered peasantry and the country".

"I am pleased and proud that when the hour of reckoning arrived, my party as always has held aloft the flag of justice for farmers and other exploited sections of society. This flag symbolises the identity of the Akali culture and movements and it is a great feeling to watch it flying high," said Badal in a statement here.

Badal said the farmers' issue relates to the overall national interest.

"Agriculture is the backbone of our economy. If farmers and agricultural economy suffers, the whole economy, including trade and industry will suffer too." He said the Akalis have a long history of rejecting lure of office and standing up for principles.

"Lure of office means nothing to an Akali. Countless times, as during the Emergency, we turned down outright offers of power as a price for silence against injustice. But we always spurned such offers and preferred to stand by the country and principles, and filled jails for that. That tradition will always live on." Ninety-four-year-old Badal described the party's decision to pull out of the Union government to fight alongside the farmers as "a proud and landmark moment in the party's long history of standing up for principles and of always being on the side of the people whenever a line is drawn." The Akali leader said the farmers' plight is already extremely pathetic.

"The Punjab farmers always came to the country's rescue when it needed to be saved from the ignominy of famines and dependence on other nations. And they did so by sacrificing their only natural resources -- water levels and soil fertility. Today, it is the country's turn to stand by the farmers." Badal said he was confident that the outstanding and proud legacy of the Shiromani Akali Dal will be carried forward with aplomb.

"With SAD's present leadership 'firmly and decisively' standing shoulder to shoulder with the farmers, I am totally confident that the party's proud and age-old legacy of fighting for the downtrodden, the needy and the exploited classes is in safe hands.

"The SAD has always upheld the Panthic traditions of raising its voice in defence of the righteous causes, and after the decision of our minister to quit the Union government to fight for the farmers' interests, I have no doubt that this tradition will be carried forward strongly and unflinchingly," said Badal.

The former Chief Minister said that with the resignation of its sole representative in the Union Cabinet, Harsimrat Badal, the SAD has demonstrated yet again that nothing is dearer to it than its principles as well as the interests of the people, especially of the farmers, the farm labour and other poor classes who are toiling for their rights.

"I have run out of words to express how happy and proud I feel of my party for this decision," said Badal.

Badal also felicitated Harsimrat Badal for "speaking out boldly for the farmers and for promising to stand by them as their "sister and daughter".

"This is what people expect from the Akali leadership and I feel deeply satisfied and quietly proud that the present leadership of the party has fully lived up to people's, especially the farmers', expectations in their hour of need," said Badal.
In July, she denied rumors that she had split from her millionaire boyfriend, Adam Rigby, 50.

And on Friday, Home and Away star Ada Nicodemou enjoyed a date night with her man.

The 43-year-old shared a sweet picture of the pair to Instagram, showing them cosying up together on their night out.

Loved up! On Friday, Home and Away star Ada Nicodemou cosied up to her millionaire boyfriend Adam Rigby as they enjoyed a date night - after shutting down split rumours

'Off on a date night,' Ada captioned the post, showing that she and her beau were still going strong.

The actress went on another date with Adam in July at Mimi's restaurant in Sydney, posting an Instagram photo the mark the occasion.

'Had a lovely feast yesterday,' Ada captioned the photo.

Still going strong! The actress went on another date with Adam in July at Mimi's restaurant in Sydney (pictured), posting an Instagram photo the mark the occasion

Fans expressed their relief that the couple were still together, with one writing: 'Aww this photo makes me so happy. I thought you weren't together.'

In March, Woman's Day reported the pair had 'quietly split'.

It came after Adam was slapped with an AVO in January, following an alleged incident with Ada's ex-husband, Chrys Xipolitas, on Christmas Day.

At the time, a source claimed the stress of the AVO matter had taken its toll on the couple, resulting in their supposed break-up.

'Of course it's been stressful for Ada and Adam, she can't help but feel guilty Adam has been dragged into her messy personal life,' the insider said.

Back in January, Woman's Day reported that Adam and Chrys had been involved in an alleged dispute on the doorstep of Ada's home on Christmas Day.

Making headlines: In March, Woman's Day reported the pair had 'quietly split'

The exact reason for their argument is unknown.

Adam attended an AVO hearing at Sutherland Local Court that same month, after NSW Police took out a temporary AVO on behalf of Chrys.

A NSW Police spokesperson said: 'On Wednesday 8 January 2020 at Sutherland Local Court, a 50-year-old man [Adam] was served with a provisional Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) following an application by NSW Police.'

The AVO reportedly forbids Adam to destroy or damage property that belongs to Chrys. Breaking the AVO terms could result in imprisonment for up to two years and a maximum fine of $5,500.

Alleged dispute: Back in January, Woman's Day reported that Adam and Chrys had been involved in an alleged dispute on the doorstep of Ada's home on Christmas Day

Ada and Chrys split in 2016 after nine years of marriage. They share custody of a seven-year-old son, Johnas Xipolitas.

The couple also experienced the heartache of a stillborn child in 2014.

Ada began dating Adam, whom she met at a work function, several months after her separation.

Adam is the CEO and founder of Upside Realty, a fixed-fee real estate agency.
Jammu and Kashmir DGP (director general of police) Dilbag Singh on Saturday accused Pakistan of trying to infiltrate terrorists in J&K. The DGP also said that Pakistan is trying to promote terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir by providing support to terror outfits.

Pakistan is trying to promote terrorism in every possible way in Jammu & Kashmir by providing all support to terror groups. We will deal with drug smugglers strictly, Jammu and Kashmir DGP Dilbag Singh said, as quoted by ANI.

While addressing the media on Saturday, DGP Dilbag Singh also claimed Pakistans involvement in terror funding. Pakistan is using narco-terrorism for terror funding, he further said.

Singh slammed Pakistan for trying to disturb peace in Jammu and Kashmir and dropping weapons through drones. Pakistan is trying to disturb peace in J&K by using drones to drop weapons. They are also trying to infiltrate terrorists, he said.

The DGP of Jammu and Kashmir assured that forces have been able to take swift actions against Pakistans attempts to sneak in arms.

Dropping of weapons by drone is challenging but we have been able to restrict such acts & have got some success, ANI quoted Singh as saying.
First, when the majority enacts legislation that disadvantages those whom the majority sees as the other  those whose interests will unfairly be disregarded by the majority because it is either hostile or indifferent to the rights of those individuals. Second, when the majority enacts legislation that is designed to manipulate the electoral and political process in order to ensure that they remain in power. These are the two situations  involving threats to equality and democracy  in which it is essential for the judiciary to guard against majoritarian actions that violate the central norms and aspirations of our Constitution. It is especially in these situations, in Madisons words, that courts, the guardians of our Constitution, must serve as an impenetrable bulwark against majoritarian abuse.
The U.K.'s long-delayed coronavirus contact-tracing app finally has a release date: The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) announced today that the app will launch in England and Wales on September 24.

The other regions of the country, Scotland and Northern Ireland, already have their own COVID-19 contacts-tracing apps -- the latter launching an app this summer. The Protect Scotland app was released yesterday, where it went on to clock up more than 600,000 downloads in a matter of hours.

England and Wales have had a far lengthier-than-expected wait for an app after a false start back in May, when government ministers had suggested in daily coronavirus briefings that an app would be landing shortly.

Instead, the launch was delayed, and DHSC took over development of the NHS COVID-19 app from the National Health Service's digital division, NHSX, after it ran into problems related to the choice of a centralized app architecture -- which triggered privacy concerns and saw the test app plagued by technical issues around iPhones' device detection.

The government pivoted the app to a decentralized architecture, which means it's able to make use of exposure notification APIs offered by Apple and Google for official COVID-19 contacts-tracing apps, avoiding the technical issues associated with iOS background Bluetooth detection.

Another element that's been added to the NHS COVID-19 app is a check-in feature for venues via scannable QR codes. The government is encouraging businesses and locations where people may congregate, such as pubs, restaurants, hairdressers, libraries and so on, to print out and display a QR code that app users can scan to check into the venue.

This check-in data will be held locally on the device, taking the same privacy-preserving approach as for contacts data generated when devices come into proximity and swap ephemeral IDs.

Venue check-in data will be retained on device for 21 days, per the DHSC. If an outbreak is identified at a location, its venue ID will be broadcast to all devices running the app -- and those that contain recent check-ins will generate an on-device match.

Story continues

The DHSC says such a match may generate an alert and advice to the app user on what to do (e.g. whether to quarantine) -- "based on the level of risk."

The government says trials of the reformulated app on the Isle of Wight and with NHS Volunteer Responders have shown it to be "highly effective" when used in conjunction with traditional contact tracing to identify contacts of those who have tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

It had previously suggested there were issues related to limitations in Apple's and Google's APIs which made it difficult to effectively estimate the distance between devices which it said was needed to generate exposure notifications.

Talking up the impending launch of the app, health and social care secretary Matt Hancock suggested that the scannable venue codes will provide "an easy and simple way to collect contact details to support the NHS Test and Trace system." Although, businesses will need a fall-back system to collect data from patrons who do not have the app.

"We need to use every tool at our disposal to control the spread of the virus including cutting-edge technology. The launch of the app later this month across England and Wales is a defining moment and will aid our ability to contain the virus at a critical time," Hancock added.

U.K. businesses are being invited to download a QR code to display at their premise via gov.uk/create-coronavirus-qr-poster.

Reports last month in U.K. national press that suggested the app would abandon automatic contact tracing altogether appear to have been wide of the mark.
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen pledged deeper ties with the US as 18 Chinese fighter jets crossed the midline of Taiwan Strait

In this photo released by the Taiwan Ministry of National Defense, a Chinese People's Liberation Army H-6 bomber is seen flying near the Taiwan air defense identification zone, ADIZ, near Taiwan on Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. The second high-level U.S. envoy to visit Taiwan in two months began a day of closed-door meetings Friday as China conducted military drills near the Taiwan Strait after threatening retaliation. (Taiwan Ministry of National Defense via AP)

Taipei: Taiwan said on Saturday it scrambled jets in response to the approach of Chinese jets for the second day in a row, escalating tensions further as a senior U.S. official was on the island for talks.

Twelve J-16 fighters, two J-10 fighters, two J-11 fighters, two H-6 bombers and one Y-8 ASW crossed the midline of the #TaiwanStrait and entered #Taiwans southwest ADIZ, Taiwans defence ministry said in a statement, referring to its air defence identification zone.

It said Taiwans air force scrambled fighters, and deployed air defense missile system to monitor the activities.

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen pledged deeper ties with the United States at a dinner for a visiting senior State Department official, on the same day China sent 18 fighter jets to harry the island to express its anger at the trip.

China had earlier on Friday announced combat drills and denounced what it called collusion between the island, which it claims as part of its territory, and the United States. Taiwan scrambled its air force in response.

U.S. Undersecretary for Economic Affairs Keith Krach arrived in Taipei on Thursday for a three-day visit, the most senior State Department official to come to Taiwan in four decades.

Hosting a dinner for Krach and his team at her official residence, Tsai thanked him for coming to attend Saturdays memorial service for late President Lee Teng-hui, the father of Taiwans democracy, the presidential office said in a statement late Friday.

I hope that Taiwan and the United States continue to work together to promote peace, stability, prosperity, and development in the Indo-Pacific, positively impacting the region, it cited Tsai as saying.

Taiwan-U.S. relations have made substantive progress in recent years, with increasingly close interaction, she added.

I hope that we are able to engage on even more issues and expand our bilateral cooperation, enhancing our relationship as trusted partners and building a solid foundation for the future.

Taiwan is committed to deepening economic cooperation with the United States, Tsai said.

The statement made no mention of the Chinese drills.

Taiwan has been angling to sign a free trade deal with the United States, and has been keen to show Washington the economic benefits Taiwan can bring it.

In May, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd, the world's biggest contract chipmaker, said it plans to build a $12 billion factory in Arizona in an apparent win for the Trump administration's efforts to wrestle global tech supply chains back from China.

TSMCs retired founder Morris Chang attended Tsais dinner with Krach, and appeared prominently in pictures of the event put out by the presidential office.
Frank Lloyd Wrights influence on the architectural world is far-reaching, to put it mildly, and this year a considerable number of his iconic homes have either come to market or found new owners. Though Wright is perhaps best known for his public works, like the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in Manhattan, Wright has about 400 remaining buildings left, and about two-thirds of them are private, single-family homes, Barbara Gordon, executive director of the Frank Lloyd Wright Conservancy, previously told Architectural Digest.

This year, homes like Wrights iconic spiral-shaped David and Gladys Wright House, in Phoenix, and his lesser-known but equally stunning Foster House, in Chicago, join the likes of the hexagonal Stuart Richardson House, in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, the Thaxton House, in Houston, and more, which all came to market in 2019 and are still up for grabs. Below, weve rounded up seven Wright-designed residences that are currently seeking or have recently found new owners to care for and preserve Wrights legacy for the next generation of architecture enthusiasts.

Foster House and Stable, Chicago

Sold in August for an unknown amount

In February, one of Wrights earliest designs hit the market for a surprisingly affordable $175,000. The five-bedroom, three-bathroom house was originally built in 1900 for the Foster family as a summer retreat on the South Side of Chicago and was declared a landmark in 1996. The yellow wood-paneled dwelling has a forest green trim, and was designed to mimic a traditional Japanese style, with a distinctive dramatic, outward flare of the ridges on the roof and dormers, according to the Frank Lloyd Wright Trust in Chicago. The home measures 2,408 square feet and includes a spacious front porch, a horse stable, and a chicken coop out back. It sold in August after a price cut that lowered the asking price down to $135,000.

Goetsch-Winckler Home, Okemos, Michigan

Sold in August for an unknown amount

Story continues

Photo: Audrey Seidman

Many of Wrights single-family home designs were situated in small towns scattered across the U.S. His Goetsch-Winckler Home is just one of four houses he designed in the Lansing area of Michigan, and according to sellers Audrey and Dan Seidman, it was the architects favorite small house. Completed in 1940, the one-story house features red brick walls and concrete floors, with plenty of telltale Wright features, like a cantilevering roof, horizontal planes, and plenty of strategically placed windows throughout to allow inhabitants to feel one with nature. The 1,400-square-foot Goetsch-Winckler Home is considered Wrights second Usonian design, and is as practical as it is aesthetically pleasing: A brick fireplace that juts into the middle of the large, open common space has a dining table attached to it, and an alcove on the other side of the fireplace features built-ins that align perfectly with the houses wood paneling. It was listed for $479,000 in May and sold for an undisclosed amount in August.

Charles F. Glore House, Lake Forest, Illinois

Listed at $2.275 million

Photo: Palo Dobrik

When Wright designed the Charles F. Glore House for the investment banker in 1954, it was the architects only commission in Lake Forest, a wealthy suburb situated about 45 minutes north of downtown Chicago. Earlier this year, it was listed for $2.275 million. The four-bedroom, four-bathroom home is perhaps most notable for its living room, which features dramatic double-height cathedral windows that take in stunning views of the leafy backyard. Many of the other rooms are also lined with floor-to-ceiling windows, including the dining room, which, like much of the rest of the house, has concrete floors and brick walls. Clerestory windows in the galley kitchen add light to the space. The 4,300-square-foot house also features four fireplaces, three of which are cantilevered.

Charles and Dorothy Manson House, Wausau, Wisconsin

Listed at $224,200 before being taken off the market

Wrights Usonians are notoriously plentiful in the Midwest, and one in particular came to market in June for $425,000. Located in the small town of Wausau, Wisconsin, the one-story Charles and Dorothy Manson House is perched on a sloped 0.58-acre lot, and features a number of 30- and 60-degree angles built into its exterior walls and in the ceiling to accommodate for the unusual topography. As a result, many of the common living spaces are uniquely shaped. The four-bedroom, three-bathroom house carries many of Wrights trademark designs, like a broad, horizontal roof; clerestory lighting; and long hallways. Red tidewater cypress from the area was used on the ceilings and walls in a board-and-batten pattern, giving an almost uniformly red glow to the 2,462-square-foot house. According to Curbed.com, the property, which was completed in 1941, has been lightly updated in recent years, with a remodeled kitchen, a rubber-roofing system, and two restored fireplaces. Its asking price dropped to $224,200 in September before it was taken off the market.

Alice and George Madison Millard House in Highland Park, Illinois

Sold in August for $950,000

George Madison Millard House, 1689 Lake Avenue, Highland Park, Illinois, 1906. Exterior. Architect: Frank Lloyd Wright Photo: Arcaid Images / Alamy Stock Photo

Fans of Wrights work are willing to go to great lengths to preserve his legacy, and the sale of the Alice and George Madison Millard House in August is a perfect example of this. The 114-year-old home was bought by a local couple, Gale and Rickey Rothner, in December 2015, after plans were already in place to demolish the property, which had been on the market for more than four years. They were at the point of tearing it down  and thats the point at which I got involved, Gale told JUF News in 2019. The couple made extensive updates to the 3,061-square-foot, four-bedroom, four-and-a-half-bathroom dwelling, including a new garage, a finished cellar, a converted main suite, and additional storage. The renovations took three years, and in the end, the Rothners donated the house to the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago. It was listed in July for $950,000 and sold in August for the full asking price

David and Gladys Wright House, Phoenix

Sold in August for $7.25 million

Photo: Bob Hassett / Russ Lyon Sotheby's International Realty

One of Wrights most iconic designs, the spiral David and Gladys Wright House sold for $7.25 million in August, a huge relief to preservationists who had watched as previous buyers pitched plans to tear down the unique structure to build something in its place. Built in the 1950s for Wrights son David and his daughter-in-law Gladys, the uniquely configured property includes a round main house and a separate 360-square-foot guest house situated on the far end of the six-acre lot. The David and Gladys Wright House features three bedrooms and four bathrooms, and uses almost no straight lines; the pathway to the main entrance, for instance, is a curved ramp as opposed to a set of stairs. Inside, the living room is circular, and the stone fireplace is rounded as well. The kitchen features a large circular window and curved countertops.

Isidore H. Heller House, Chicago

Listed at $2.2 million

Though its been on the market before, the Isidore H. Heller House was listed once again in August, this time for $2.2 million. The house, which was completed in 1897, is notable in that it reflects a transitionary period in Wrights design career, from his more traditional Prairie style to the Arts and Crafts style that began to take hold in the late part of the 1800s and the early part of the 1900s. The Heller House stands four stories tall, with an elevator connecting all four floors, and features a total of seven bedrooms. According to the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, the exterior is a mixture of yellow Roman brick and Indiana limestone. Leaded glass windows, a Wright trademark, feature prominently throughout the home, and the glasswork was designed by Marion Mahony, the first licensed female architect in the United States.

Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
The Alliance for Social Equity and Accountability (ASEPA) has been slapped with a High Court restraining order, barring the pressure group from going ahead with its scheduled demonstration against the controversial Agyapa deal.



The order was secured by the Ghana Police Service after it had earlier communicated its decision not to sanction the demonstration.



The court says it granted the ex-parte motion after examining the affidavit presented by the Ghana Police Service and the response submitted by the counsel of the plaintiff.



It is hereby ordered that, the respondents herein namely ASEPA and Mensah Thompson or any other group of persons affiliated to the respondents are prohibited and restrained from demonstrating against an agreement passed by the Parliament of Ghana popularly known as Agyapa agreement which demonstration is intended for 21st September 2020, the restraining order according to Citi Fm reads.



ASEPA in a communique to the Ghana Police served notice of its intent to demonstrate against the Agyapa Gold royalties management deal undertaken by the government of Ghana.



The police in its response to ASEPA said it was unable to sanction the demonstration due to the COVI-19 pandemic and its existing protocols.



There is the tendency that COVID-19 protocols would be breached. If permitted to demonstrate in this manner, public health and security could be endangered. Your notification to demonstrate in this COVID-19 pandemic era cannot be sanctioned please, the police statement signed by Assistant Commissioner of Police, Deputy Regional Commander for the Accra Region, E. A Sakyi stated.



However, in a subsequent reaction to the police, the Executive Secretary of ASEPA, Ernest Thompson who has been enjoined in the restraining order said the pressure group was still going to go ahead with the demonstration scheduled for Monday, September 21, 2020.





The Government of Ghana through the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) set up Agyapa Royalties Limited to oversee the countrys gold revenue and royalties for higher returns to benefit the nation.



The Company in exchange for the gold resources plans to make between $500 million and $750 million by listing on the Ghana Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange to be invested in national developmental projects.



The Agyapa deal over the period has generated controversy between government and the ruling party on one hand and the opposition as well as numerous Civil Society Organisations on the other hand arguing for and against the deal.

Source: ghanaweb.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Kolkata: In a major crackdown on inter-state terror module, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday (September 19, 2020) arrested nine Al Qaeda operatives from West Bengal and Kerala.

Raids were conducted at West Bengals Murshidabad district and Keralas Ernakulam district in connection with the Pakistan-sponsored terror module. While six Al Qaeda operatives were arrested from West Bengal, three were apprehended from Kerala.

The six arrested persons suspected to be Al-Qaeda terrorists were produced before the NIA Special Court in Kolkata and transit remand was granted.

This case pertains to a Delhi case. NIA prayed for transit remand. The court allowed the prayer and has granted transit remand till September 24. The arrested persons have to be produced before the Patiala House Court on or before September 24, said NIA lawyer, Shyamal Ghosh.

The statement released by NIA revealed that the operatives were planning to attack vital installations in India and aiming to kill innocent people.

The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds. Accordingly, NIA registered a case on September 11, 2020, and initiated the investigation.

A large number of incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession according to the officials of NIA.

According to the preliminary investigation conducted by NIA, these individuals were radicalised by Pakistan-based Al-Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the National Capital Region.

For this purpose, the module was actively indulging in fundraising and a few members of the gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country, read the release.

The arrested have been identified as - Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas and Mosaraf Hossen, all residents of Ernakulam (Kerala) and Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal, Atitur Rehman of Murshidabad (West Bengal).
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on Saturday that a statue of the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday at the age of 87 due to complications of metastatic cancer, will be constructed in Brooklyn to honor the justice's "life and legacy."

In a statement shared on Twitter, Cuomo, 62, said the statue of Ginsburg will be placed in her birthplace, as "a physical reminder of Justice Ginsburg's monumental contributions to the America we know today and as an inspiration for all."

"Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg selflessly pursued truth and justice in a world of division, giving voice to the voiceless and uplifting those who were pushed aside by forces of hate and indifference. As a lawyer, jurist, and professor, she redefined gender equity and civil rights and ensured that America lived up to her founding ideals  she was a monumental figure of equality, and we can all agree that she deserves a monument in her honor," Cuomo said.

"She preserved despite several bouts of cancer and was present every single day to participate in the strengthening and safeguarding of our democracy," the governor continued. "Her 27 years on the court reshaped our understanding of the basic tenants of equality and justice. While the family of New York mourns Justice Ginsburg's death, we remember proudly that she started her incredible journey right here in Brooklyn."

Cuomo added, "Her legacy will love on in the progress she created for our society, and this statue will serve as a physical reminder of her many contributions to the America we know today and as an inspiration for those who will continue to build on her immense body of work for generations to come."

Cuomo will appoint a commission to select an artist and oversee the location selection process of the statue's creation, the statement said.

Ginsburg was born in Brooklyn in 1933 and lived there until she left to attend Cornell University as an undergraduate. She eventually returned to New York to attend Columbia Law School, finishing her final year tied for first in her class.

Story continues

#BREAKING: New York will honor the life and legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg with a statue in Brooklyn, her birthplace.



This statue will serve as a physical reminder of Justice Ginsburg's monumental contributions to the America we know today and as an inspiration for all. pic.twitter.com/iwvo7c3JOw  Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) September 19, 2020

RELATED: Barack Obama Pays Tribute to Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Urges Senate to Delay Vote on Her Replacement

Following news of Ginsburg's death on Friday, politicians from both sides of the aisle mourned the beloved justice's death.

Former President Bill Clinton, who appointed Ginsburg to the Supreme Court in 1993, said in a statement: "We have lost one of the most extraordinary Justices ever to serve on the Supreme Court. Ruth Bader Ginsburgs life and landmark opinions moved us closer to a more perfect union. And her powerful dissents reminded us that we walk away from our Constitutions promise at our peril."

President Donald Trump was speaking at a campaign rally in Bemidji, Minnesota when news of Ginsburg's death broke. He told reporters she was "an amazing woman" who lived "an amazing life.

Ginsburg, who served on the court for more than 27 years, was an icon of the courts liberal wing for her unwavering fight for womens rights and social justice.

A private interment service for Ginsburg will be held at Arlington National Cemetery, the Supreme Court said.
A person holds a visual representation of the cryptocurrency Bitcoin, at the "Bitcoin Change" shop in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv Feb. 6. (Jack Guez/AFP/Getty Images)

Sydney Man Sentenced for Mining Cryptocurrency With CSIRO Supercomputers

A 34-year-old man will serve 300 hours of community service for illegally using the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisations (CSIRO) supercomputers and servers to mine cryptocurrency.

The man worked as an IT contractor for the Australian government when he modified the CSIROs computer systems to use its processing power to mine $9,400 in cryptocurrency.

Chris Goldsmid, the Australian Federal Polices commander of cybercrime operations, said the mans actions diverted the supercomputers away from performing significant research for Australia, including the Pulsar Data Array Analysis, medical research and more.

The AFP commends the prompt actions of CSIRO in identifying this criminal conduct and swiftly reporting it for investigation, Cmdr. Goldsmid said in a statement on Sept. 19. The consequences are clearthis was a misuse of Australian taxpayers trust by a Commonwealth employee, motivated by personal gain and greed.

AFP officers first searched the mans Killara home in New South Wales on March 5, 2018, and seized a personal laptop, phone, employee ID cards, and data files.

He was interviewed and charged with offenses relating to impairment of Commonwealth servers and systems and pleaded guilty on Feb. 28 in a Sydney court. He was sentenced on Sept. 18 to 15 months imprisonment that will be served by way of an Intensive Community Order which includes 300 hours of community service.

The Australian Signals Directorate, a government agency that oversees foreign signals intelligence and information security, explains that cryptomining is a legitimate process to verify transactions, such as auditing. Miners receive a small financial reward for keeping cryptocurrency honest. It only becomes illegal when miners hack into other computers to use its processing power to mine cryptocurrency.

The IT contractor was hired in January 2018 to perform his role in data archiving and software support when, without authorisation, he accessed the CSIROs supercomputers and servers to mine cryptocurrencycausing at least $76,000 of impairment to the supercomputers.

The CSIRO is a government research agency, perhaps most famously known for inventing WiFi.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said recently that he felt a TikTok ban would set a bad long-term precedent for the tech industry.

TikTok is asking social-media competitor Facebook Inc. for support in its legal challenge against President Donald Trumps plan to ban the Chinese-owned video app in the U.S.

Adam Mosseri, who runs Facebooks Instagram photo-sharing app, tweeted Friday that a TikTok ban, which the Commerce Department announced earlier, would be quite bad for Instagram, Facebook, and the internet more broadly. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said Friday that TikTok and Tencents WeChat will be banned from U.S. app stores starting Sunday.

TikToks interim Chief Executive Officer Vanessa Pappas replied to Mosseris tweet, asking the company to join its legal fight against the White House. We invite Facebook and Instagram to publicly join our challenge and support our litigation, she wrote. This is a moment to put aside our competition and focus on core principles like freedom of expression and due process of law.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said recently that he felt a TikTok ban would set a bad long-term precedent for the tech industry. Facebook is banned in China, and Zuckerberg has said he fears a TikTok ban by the U.S. could open the door for other countries to prohibit Facebooks apps or services as well.

But Zuckerberg has also called on the U.S. government to take a stronger stance against China, warning that breaking up U.S. tech companies like Facebook might pave the way for Chinese rivals to take their place. At a speech at Georgetown University last fall, Zuckerberg alluded to TikTok, which is owned by China-based ByteDance Ltd., and criticized the app over accusations that it censored content from the Hong Kong protests.

Until recently, the internet in almost every country outside China has been defined by American platforms with strong free expression values, Zuckerberg said at the time. Theres no guarantee these values will win out.

Written by Kurt Wagner.
NEW YORK, Sept. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- WeissLaw LLP is investigating possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of law by the board of directors of GAINSCO, Inc. ("GANS" or the "Company") (OTCMKTS: GANS) in connection with the proposed merger of the Company with State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company ("State Farm"). Under the terms of the acquisition agreement, the Company's shareholders will receive $107.38 in cash for each share of GANS common stock that they own.

If you own GANS shares and wish to discuss this investigation or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, visit our website:

http://www.weisslawllp.com/gainsco-inc/

Or please contact:

Joshua Rubin, Esq.

WeissLaw LLP

1500 Broadway, 16th Floor

New York, NY 10036

(212) 682-3025

(888) 593-4771

[email protected]

WeissLaw is investigating whether GANS' board acted in the best interest of the Company's public shareholders in agreeing to the proposed transaction, whether the board was fully informed as to the valuation of State Farm, and whether all information regarding the valuation of the transaction will be fully and fairly disclosed to GANS' public shareholders.

WeissLaw LLP has litigated hundreds of stockholder class and derivative actions for violations of corporate and fiduciary duties. We have recovered over a billion dollars for defrauded clients and obtained important corporate governance relief in many of these cases. If you have information or would like legal advice concerning possible corporate wrongdoing (including insider trading, waste of corporate assets, accounting fraud, or materially misleading information), consumer fraud (including false advertising, defective products, or other deceptive business practices), or anti-trust violations, please email us at [email protected]

SOURCE WeissLaw LLP

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Pearson has been rocked by an embarrassing shareholder revolt over a lavish pay packet handed to its new boss.

The education publisher came under fire for agreeing to give Andy Bird, 56, a 'golden hello' worth 7million and another 185,000 to go towards the rent of an apartment in New York. He will also earn up to 5.9million a year.

Ahead of a meeting to approve his appointment yesterday, shareholders had complained of being 'held to ransom' by Pearson and complained that the package was far too generous.

Pearson has come under fire for agreeing to give Andy Bird, 56, a 'golden hello' worth 7million and another 185,000 to go towards the rent of an apartment in New York

Eyebrows were also raised after it emerged Bird - who was previously a non-executive director  had interviewed other potential chief executive candidates before deciding to put himself forward.

He is a media industry veteran who previously ran Walt Disney's international arm, and will be tasked with beefing up Pearson's digital business.

But advisory services ISS and Glass Lewis had both urged shareholders to oppose Bird's appointment, saying his golden hello had not been properly justified.

It prompted a rebellion at the meeting, with 33 per cent of votes cast against his pay, although Pearson's plan was still approved overall.

And the significant level of opposition was noted by the company in a statement afterwards.

Throughout the row, Pearson has insisted Bird is the best man for the job  even going so far as to call him a 'rare' talent  and worth the hefty pay packet.

Yesterday it added that it had 'engaged extensively with shareholders during this process' and would 'continue to engage' with them.

Pearson has endured a tumultuous four years as it adapts from selling textbooks via book shops to online courseware.

Outgoing boss John Fallon, who Bird will replace next month, cut thousands of jobs, sold assets and issued a string of profit warnings during his tenure.

Bird will continue living in California, splitting his time between there and New York.

With Pearson's biggest slice of sales coming from the US, analysts have suggested this could help him arrest the difficulties it has been having in North America.
National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Saturday addressed Armys Shopian encounter where three men were killed in July this year during his speech at the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament.

Requesting government to compensate the victims, the former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir said, I am happy that the Army has admitted that three Shopian men were killed mistakenly. I hope the government gives a hefty compensation, as quoted by PTI.

This was Farooq Abdullahs first address in the Parliament since the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 was abrogated on August 5, 2019. The local leaders were put into detention after the special status in Jammu and Kashmir was lifted.

We are not against any operation carried out by security forces in Jammu and Kashmir, but we are against the killing of innocent lives during the operations, Farooq Abdullahhad told news agency ANI on Amshipora case before his Parliament address.

We are not against any operation carried out by security forces in Jammu and Kashmir, but we are against the killing of innocent lives during the operations: Farooq Abdullah, National Conference MP and former J&K CM, on Amshipora case. pic.twitter.com/NHK77pd0L8  ANI (@ANI) September 19, 2020

During an investigations into the Amshipora case, the army found evidence that its men (Jammu and Kashmir) violated powers under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act during an encounter in Shopian district of Kashmir in which three Rajouri locals were killed.

The families of the three men have demanded severe punishment for the guilty.

Army chief general Manoj Mukund Naravane on Friday said that the investigation into the Amshipora case will be held with utmost fairness.

Amshipora case investigations will be conducted with utmost fairness and will be taken to their logical conclusion. Indian Army is committed to the professional conduct of operations, Army chief Naravane told ANI.

Indian Army has zero-tolerance for violation of established guidelines while operating in disturbed areas, he added.
The widespread uncertainty due to the fear of a possible global economic downturn, however, pushed gold prices to an all-time high in August 2020, and they remain around $2,000 per oz. supporting profit growth for a number of gold miners, despite the falling output, Vinneth Bajaj, a senior mining analyst at GlobalData, stated in a press release.

OTHER FACTORS THAT HAVE IMPACTED THE LEADING COMPANIES OUTPUT DURING 2020 HAVE BEEN LOWER ORE GRADES AND SALE OF ASSETS, Vinneth Bajaj, senior mining analyst at GlobalData

The coronavirus pandemic led to the two largest gold miners, Newmont and Barrick Gold, reducing their production guidance from a collective 11.6 million oz. to around 11 million oz., says GlobalData.

Production from these companies, says GlobalData, more than halved in the second quarter to 1.4 million oz., down from 2.9 million oz. in the second quarter of 2019.

The reduction in output followed the temporary suspensions of operations at Barricks Veladero and Porgera mines and Newmonts Cerro Negro, Yanacocha, Eleonore, Penasquito, and Musselwhite mines for most of April and May this year due to restrictions imposed by the outbreak, GlobalData says.

While AngloGold Ashanti and Kinross Gold (TSX: K; NYSE: KGC) have suspended their production guidance for the year, Polyus Gold (LSE: PLZL), Russias largest gold producer, has stuck with its guidance.

Restrictions due to covid-19 imposed on AngloGold Ashantis South African operations have led to a drop in output of 63,000 oz. in the first half of 2020 compared with the same period last year, GlobalData says, while the companys overall reduction in global production for the first half of 2020 was 85,000 ounces.

Other factors that have impacted the leading companies output during 2020 have been lower ore grades and sale of assets, says Bajaj. In Newcrests case, output was lower due to the sale of the Gosowong mine to Indotan Halmahera in March, whilst Newmont sold its Red Lake project in April and Kalgoorlie projects in the beginning of 2020.

By Mining.com

More Top Reads From Safehaven.com
Flight reactivations continue for Cancun, Cozumel, Riviera Maya travelers

Cancun, Riviera Maya, Q.R.  After the reopening of tourist destinations in the Mexican Caribbean on June 8, the Quintana Roo Tourism Promotion Council (CPTQ), led by Dario Flota Ocampo, continues to carry out actions aimed at the recovery of tourism to achieve a greater economic reactivation as soon as possible.

In a press conference, Flota Ocampo highlighted the recent announcements by some airlines in the United States, Canada and Europe to either increase and / or resume flights to Cancun and Cozumel.

The increase in the number of scheduled flights from December to April, which is our winter season, to the airports of Cancun and Cozumel is the result of joint efforts during the months of June, July and August, he explained.

Accompanied by the General Coordinator of Communication and State Government Spokesperson Carlos Orvananos Rea, Dario Flota added, we have focused on sharing with the airlines the health and safety protocols and guidelines that have been implemented in the state which earned us the Safe Travels Seal of the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC).

We have informed them about our state epidemiological light and the measures that are implemented from the arrival at airports and hotels in order to give them as much information as possible about what travelers can expect at our destinations, explained Flota Ocampo.

Carlos Orvananos Rea and Dario Flota Ocampo announce airline reactivation for Cancun, Cozumel, Riviera Maya

At the press conference, he announced that in August, Sun Country will began a flight from Minneapolis with a Saturday frequency that will increase to one daily during the winter season.

American Airlines also announced an increase in its air connectivity to the Mexican Caribbean starting the winter season with Saturday routes from Kansas City and San Luis, Missouri and Columbus, Ohio and daily flights from Raleigh-Durham.

Other routes will include a debut from Indianapolis, Indiana with a weekly frequency, while flights from Charlotte, North Carolina will increase to four daily and from Dallas to eight daily flights.

Frontier Airlines has also recently begun a St. Louis, Missouri to Cancun route three times a week.

Southwest Airlines, which currently flies from Baltimore, Denver and Houston to Cancun, announced that starting in November, they will include the Chicago Midway route and in December, the routes of Austin, Texas and Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Alaska Airlines will launch two new routes starting in November from San Diego, California and Portland, Oregon. Spirit Airlines says that this month, a new route from Detroit will arrive on a weekly basis and in October, they will debut flights from Cleveland and Philadelphia.

JetBlue announced that by mid-November, routes from Los Angeles, Newark and San Francisco will arrive in Cancun with two daily frequencies, while the routes from Raleigh-Durham and Tampa will have one daily flight.

As for air connectivity from Canada, the low-cost airline Swoop will resume its flights to Cancun from October 25, with four weekly frequencies from Toronto, increasing to five in February. WestJet also announced the return of Calgary flights starting in October, in addition to the Toronto route that has been operating since July.

Air connectivity from Europe returns to the Mexican Caribbean via Lufthansa with the flight departing from Frankfurt, Germany to Cancun on October 1. In addition, the airlines Air France and Edelweiss announced flights from Paris-Cancun and Zurich-Cancun, respectively, starting October 3.

The Cancun International Airport maintains an average of 200 daily operations of which 100 are arrival flights.

An increase in activity is also expected at the Cozumel International Airport. American Airlines confirmed the return of the Miami-Cozumel route as of October 8, flying Monday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

On the 10th of the same month, a Satruday direct flight from Charlotte will restart on a weekly basis. Toward the last quarter of the year, the route from Dallas will increase to two frequencies and in November, the Chicago-Cozumel flight will restart.

Canada will connect the island via WestJet with a route from Toronto. Air Canada will reconnect Cozumel with a route also from Toronto beginning on December 25, while Air Transat will connect from Montreal.

Regarding domestic flights, Volaris announced that they will restart operations from Mexico City to Cozumel on October 2 with two weekly frequencies.
Taiwan air force scrambles jets again as multiple Chinese military aircraft approach island for second consecutive day.

Multiple Chinese military aircraft approached Taiwan for a second consecutive day on Saturday as the islands leader, government officials and a senior United States envoy bid farewell to the late Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui, dubbed Mr Democracy for ending autocratic rule in Taipei in favour of free elections.

The Taiwanese defence ministry said 19 Chinese aircraft were involved in Saturdays exercises, one more than the previous day, with some crossing the sensitive Taiwan Strait midline and others flying into Taiwans air defence identification zone off its southwest coast.

It said China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, sent 12 J-16 fighters, two J-10 fighters, two J-11 fighters, two H-6 bombers and one Y-8 anti-submarine aircraft.

According to a map the ministry provided, none got close to mainland Taiwan itself or flew over it.

ROCAF scrambled fighters, and deployed air defence missile system to monitor the activities, the ministry said in a tweet, referring to the Republic of China Air Force, the formal name of Taiwans air force.

Taiwans defence ministry, in a separate statement, said China was carrying out provocative activities, seriously damaging peace and stability.

The Defence Ministry sternly condemns this, and calls on the mainland authorities to control themselves and pull back from the edge.

In this photo released by the Taiwan Ministry of National Defense, a Chinese Peoples Liberation Army H-6 bomber is seen flying near the Taiwan air defence identification zone near Taiwan on Friday, September 18, 2020 [Taiwan Ministry of National Defense via AP]

China had on Friday announced combat drills near the Taiwan Strait and denounced what it called collusion between the island and the US.

The US under secretary for economic affairs, Keith Krach, arrived in Taipei on Thursday for a three-day visit, the most senior State Department official to visit Taiwan in four decades.

One step closer

China has condemned Krachs visit multiple times.

Every time a high-ranking US official visits Taiwan, the fighter jets of the PLA should be one step closer to the island, said an editorial in the Chinese Communist Party newspaper Global Times on Friday.

The US and Taiwan must not misjudge the situation, or believe the exercise is a bluff. Should they continue to make provocations, a war will inevitably break out.

Krach is the second high-level official to visit Taiwan in two months, following the US health secretary, Alex Azar, in August. Washingtons increased outreach to Taiwan under US President Donald Trump has become yet another flashpoint with China as the countries clash over a range of trade and security issues, as well as the coronavirus pandemic.

Unlike Azar, Krach held most of his meetings behind closed doors and kept a low profile at the service for Lee, who died in July at the age of 97. Former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori also attended.

Taiwans President Tsai Ing-wen (C) poses for photographs with US Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Keith Krach (L), and Morris Chang, founder of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), at the presidents home in Taipei [Taiwan presidential office/ AFP]

Speaking at the memorial service in a chapel at a Taipei university, President Tsai Ing-wen said he had shaped the Taiwan of today.

Confronted with daunting international challenges, he skilfully led the people of Taiwan by promoting pragmatic diplomacy. Taiwan became synonymous with democracy and was catapulted onto the world stage. Because of this, President Lee came to be lauded as Mr Democracy, Tsai said.

Thanks to his efforts, Taiwan now shines as a beacon of democracy.

We have a responsibility to continue his endeavours, allowing the will of the people to reshape Taiwan, further defining Taiwans identity and deepening and bolstering democracy and freedom, she added.

Lee became Taiwans first democratically elected president in March 1996 after eight months of intimidating war games and missile tests by China in waters around the island. Those events brought China and Taiwan to the verge of conflict, prompting the US to send an aircraft carrier task force to the area in a warning to Beijings government.

Tibets exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, whom Beijing also reviles as a separatist, sent a recorded video message for his close friend Lee.

Now he is no longer here, but we Buddhists believe in life after life, so most probably he will be reborn in Taiwan, he said.

Lees remains will be interred at a military cemetery next month.
By Associated Press

WASHINGTON: Democrats raised more than USD 31 million in the hours after Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death, demonstrating how the liberal icon's passing and the contentious nomination fight that lies ahead have already galvanized the party's base.

The jaw-dropping sum was raised by noon Saturday after news of her death broke late Friday, according to a donation ticker on the website of ActBlue, the party's online fundraising platform.

The 2020 campaign, which will decide control of the White House and the Senate, had already delivered record-shattering fundraising totals for the Democrats, a sign of the motivation within the party to rebuke President Donald Trump on Election Day.

But Ginsburg's death brought new impetus to the campaign, particularly after Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., both pledged to move forward with finding a new justice.

That would further tilt the court in a conservative direction, carrying wide-ranging implications for the fate of abortion access, environmental regulations and health care.

Democratic challengers to Republican senators were a major recipient of the influx of cash.

A group of Democratic strategists raising money through an effort called "Get Mitch or Die Trying," which shares donations among Democratic Senate contenders, reported that within hours of Ginsburg's death they nearly doubled what they had previously raised.

"In tribute to the extraordinary life of Justice Ginsberg, I'm matching donations to this fund up to $10,000 tonight," tweeted Grey's Anatomy showrunner Krista Vernoff.

A separate Senate-focused Democratic fundraising push specifically mentions Ginsburg's legacy.

"In this moment it is vital to give to Senate candidates," reads an ActBlue fundraising page called "Protect RBG's Legacy" "Time to apply maximum pressure so that they do the right thing & refuse to vote to confirm before the 2020 election"

A representative for ActBlue did not respond to a request for comment on Saturday.

A spokesman for WinRed, Republican's ActBlue counterpart, also did not respond to a request for comment.

Democrats were not the only ones who raised the specter of the coming Senate nomination fight while raising money.

In Iowa, vulnerable Republican Sen. Joni Ernst sent out fundraising pleas shortly after Ginsburg's death was announced, drawing a swift online backlash.
The father of AJ Freund has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for the five-year-old's horrific killing, after the little boy's parents forced him into a cold shower and beat him to death before burying his body in a shallow grave and reporting him missing.

Andrew Freund Sr., 61, of Crystal Lake, Illinois, pleaded guilty Friday to three felony charges of involuntary manslaughter, aggravated battery to a child, and concealment of a homicide over AJ's slaying, as part of a plea deal with prosecutors.

He spoke only to say 'Yes, your honor' when McHenry County Judge Robert Wilbrandt asked him if he was pleading guilty to the reduced charges and declined to make a statement.

AJ died in April 2019 after suffering a campaign of abuse at the hands of father Freund Sr. and mother JoAnn Cunningham, 37, for years.

Cunningham pleaded guilty last year to murder and in July was sentenced to 35 years in prison.

Two former Illinois social workers have been also been charged with child endangerment, accused of failing to protect the little boy despite visible signs of abuse and police complaints in the months leading up to his death.

The father of AJ Freund has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for the five-year-old's horrific murder, after the little boy's parents forced him into a cold shower and beat him to death before burying his body in a shallow grave and reporting him missing. Pictured Andrew Freund Sr., 61 in court last month

Attorneys for Freund Sr. reached the deal with prosecutors this week, where the boy's father pleaded to the three felony charges in exchange for prosecutors dropping the first-degree murder charges against him.

He was sentenced to 14 years for involuntary manslaughter, 11 years for aggravated battery, and 5 years for concealment of a homicide, with the sentences to be served consecutively.

Freund Sr. will be given credit for time served, having been held in custody since April last year.

He could walk free after serving just 19 years because of sentencing rules, Judge Wilbrandt said during Friday's sentencing.

Under the terms of the deal, Freund Sr. must cooperate with investigators in the case against the two social workers.

He will also have to register as a violent offender and take part in behavioral interviews for the FBI's behavioral analysis unit.

A deal had been in the pipeline for some time with Freund Sr.'s defense attorney Henry Sugden in talks with prosecutors for almost a year.

It suggests prosecutors believe the felon's repeated claims that it was Cunningham who killed their son.

During the hearing, prosecutor Patrick Kenneally read out details about Freund's abuse of AJ, what he saw Cunningham do to the little boy and his statements to police during their investigation into his disappearance and death.

AJ (pictured) died in April 2019 after suffering a campaign of abuse at the hands of Freund Sr. and his mom JoAnn Cunningham, 37, for years

Andrew Freund Sr.(left), 61, of Crystal Lake, Illinois, pleaded guilty Friday to three felony charges, as part of a plea deal with prosecutors. JoAnn Cunningham (right) pleaded guilty last year to murder and in July was sentenced to 35 years in prison

Kenneally told how Freund lied to police about not knowing where the little boy was, after he and Cunningham reported him missing three days after his brutal murder.

The father made a chilling 911 call where he feigned concern for his missing son while knowing he was already dead.

'We've checked closets, the basement, the garage, everywhere,' Freund told the dispatcher.

He said he scoured the park, a nearby school and a 'local gas station down here where we sometimes take him to buy treats.'

The elaborate cover-up continued with Freund sending Cunningham texts reading 'give the boys a kiss and hug for me' in the hope that law enforcement would discover them and believe the boy was alive in the days after his killing.

After AJ's body was found, Freund later tried to distance himself from the abuse and his son's death, blaming Cunningham.

He told cops Cunningham killed AJ and that he was not present at the home at the time.

AJ's body was found buried in a shallow grave in woodlands near the family home

Tributes to murdered 5-year-old boy AJ Freund outside his family home in Crystal Lake, Illinois

He then said Cunningham woke him at 3 a.m. on April 15 to tell him AJ wasn't breathing and that he tried to revive the boy before realizing he was dead.

Freund wrapped his son's body in plastic and left it in the basement of the family home for two days before burying his remains in a shallow grave in Woodstock two days later.

Freund later led investigators to the spot where the boy was buried.

When confronted about a video on Cunningham's cellphone showing AJ battered and bruised and lying naked on a mattress while a woman thought to be Cunningham shouting at him for wetting the bed, Freund told investigators Cunningham had beaten him.

He said he had suggested punishing the boy with cold showers instead of beatings.

AJ died on April 14 after Cunningham hit the child and placed him in a cold shower until he would admit the truth about hiding his soiled underwear.

Cunningham then locked AJ in his room, where with his brain swelling, he choked on his own blood and died.

After discovering the boy was not breathing at around 3 a.m. on April 15, police said the couple searched for information on child CPR on Freund's phone.

Carlos Acosta (left), a 54-year-old McHenry County board member, was charged with two felony counts of endangering the life of a child and one felony count of reckless conduct. Andrew Polovin, 48, (right) was Acosta's former supervisor, and was arrested on the same charges

Photos of the Freund's home showed a state of disarray, with garbage and dog feces on floor

Freund then told Cunningham he would 'handle it,' placing AJ's body in a plastic tote in the basement and burying him days later.

Freund then called 911 early April 18, 2019, to report AJ missing.

Cunningham pleaded for help finding the boy the day after he was reported missing.

After a frantic six-day search, his battered remains were unearthed from a shallow grave about seven miles from his home in Woodstock.

A forensic pathologist who conducted the child's autopsy described fatal head injuries and cuts and bruises across his entire body and limbs.

AJ inhaled his own blood before his painful death and had small, circular marks on his forehead consistent with the pattern of a detachable shower head.

'It's a pretty bad case,' testified Dr Mark Witeck, who estimated he has conducted some 7,000 autopsies throughout his career.

'Not the worse one I've seen but very bad.'

Earlier this month, two Crystal Lake social workers were arrested on child endangerment charges, after a grand jury returned an indictment.

Carlos Acosta, a 54-year-old McHenry County board member, was charged with two felony counts of endangering the life of a child and one felony count of reckless conduct.

Cunningham hit AJ (pictured) and placed him in a cold shower after he soiled his underwear. The boy was then locked in a room, where he choked on his own blood and died

Cunningham, with her attorney George Killis, pictured pleading on April 19 2019 for help finding the missing boy after she beat him to death days earlier

Andrew Polovin, 48, was Acosta's former supervisor, and was arrested on the same charges.

Both men had their bail set at $20,000 and were expected to be arraigned on Friday morning at the McHenry County Jail in Woodstock, Illinois.

The pair were placed on desk duties after the little boy's death and in December they were fired by the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS).

DCFS employees are granted some immunity from civil and criminal charges under the Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act.

Illinois law clarifies that anyone making a report of child abuse or neglect is presumed to have done so in good faith.

Both Acosta and Polovin were involved in an investigation into a large bruise spotted on the child's hip, four months before he was killed.

Acosta and Polovin's 2018 investigation involving AJ's family also is the subject of a federal lawsuit in which both men are named as defendants.

Both former employees are accused in court documents of conducting a 'sham investigation' and falsifying records.
Basing his work on Naguib Mahfouz's 1981 polyphonic novel Afrah Al-Qobba's (Wedding Song) the director Mohamed Youssef El-Mansour adds his touch with an unexpected ending

Afrah Al-Qobba (Wedding Song), a 1981 novel by Egyptian Nobel Prize winning Naguib Mahfouz continues to attract the theatre and film directors.

This polyphonic novel has been succesfully adapted for the small screen in 2016, through television series screened during Ramadan, directed by Mohamed Yassine with script by Nashwa Zayed.

This time the theatre director Youssef El-Mansour offers his take of the novel with performances that took place at Cairo's Al-Ayem theater. Presented by the Youth Theatre troupe, the play has premiered in January 2020 and has returned to the stages in August.

The story of Wedding Song is about the life of a troupe in a theater in the Al-Qobba neighborhood (hence Arabic of the book Afrah Al Qobba which literary means Weddings of the Qobba) neighborhood.

Sarhan, the producer and owner of the fictitious theater, offers the actors a new text written by Abbas, son of the prompter, Karam Younes. The actors discover that the play they are about to perform traces their own lives on stage as it reveal their secrets, their intimate relationships and their scandals.

In the play Abbas questions the deeds and morals of all members of the troup including his own parents (Halima and Younes). He even suggests that he killed his wife Taheya, the former lover of a comedian from the Tarek Ramadan troupe.

In his novel Naguib Mahfouz underlines the degradation of moral values in Egyptian society between 1948 and 1970. He especially denounces the policy of economic openness and nepotism under Sadat.

Mahfouz's work did not recieve much success at the time of its publishing. Not only the topic was challenging for the political environment but also the work introduced a new style for the Egyptian readers whereas the same story is told, from four different points of view: the actor Tarek Ramadan, the playwright Abbas Karam Younes, the prompter Karam Younes and his wife Halima.

From television to theatre

In the TV series that aired during Ramadan four years ago, Mahfouz's story was extended, many characters have been added, offering great richness to the work, so as to allow the events to fil the 30 episodes aired throughout one month.

The TV series gave new impetus to Mahfouz's text. It was a big challenge for me to do a theatrical adaptation of this novel, especially after the success of the series. The comparison is inevitable. But I believe that this novel carries elements that are suitable for the theatrical form. The story itself takes place in a theater, so it's a privilege to present it on stage. The suspense of Taheya's death and the secrets that unfold require theatrical focus. To better satisfy the audience, it is better to present them with answers and solve the intrigue and suspense in one evening," comments Youssef El-Mansour.

In fact, in the TV series several characters were developed. For example, Taheya, Tareks former lover and Abbass wife, wanted to break away from the surrounding of the reality by playing different roles on the stage. Through performing, she defies her fate, having been born in a destitute environment where debauchery reigns.

In the original work, description of Taheya does not exceed a few sentences, while in the theatre she takes the lion's share of the script. She is described as a young girl who left her hometown during the war and lost her younger sister to the bombings. The director portrays her as a loving woman who gives herself entirely to her beloved, Tarek, yet due to a series of misunderstandings between the two, the couple splits up.

Unlike the television series, the theatrical version opted for a compact dramatic performance based on the novel's four main characters. El-Mansour even deleted a few characters and added two others capable of adding a light comic spirit.

"I wanted to keep the polyphony of the novel and I wanted to respect the main characters and their points of view," the director explains.

The scenographer Amr Al-Ashraf created a rather sober entourage, yet rich in symbols. With lights stressing on chiaroscuro, the theater without curtains easily becomes the home of Karam Younes. Add to that the elaborate choreography by Monadel Antar.

Instead of the narrative stories, known to the novel and the television opera, the director has developed new speeches and monologues, and through them introduced the characters' transformations, moving from one state of mind to another.

The actors excel at embodying these changes. Aging Karam Younes recounts his debut in the theater and his love at first sight for Halima. In one scene, he takes off his coat and moves on to another phase of his life, standing face to face with his mother, a low-level prostitute. Then he changes to the role of the deceived husband, then to that of a game leader in his house, then to that of the demanding father.

Same regarding Tarek Ramadan who moves from being the lover to the jealous man, to the confused man, etc.

However, this rule of adopting the many changes is not that obvious in case of the Halima and Abbas. The latter appears as a child, then as a teenager and then as a young man, each time played by a different actor. Halima is also played by two actresses: one in her youth and the other in her middle age.

The play of the theater in the theater adds unique rhythm to the play. In addition, it allows the director to avoid a classic narrative approach. Halima and Karam, seated among the audience, intervene directly on stage and present their views on their son's story.

An unexpected ending

After presenting the different points of view, in order to solve the mystery of the death of Taheya, the director chooses a heartbreaking ending.

By juxtaposing the points of view of the characters, Naguib Mahfouz left us hungry with an open ending. He didn't want to decide: either Taheya's death was caused by typhoid, or she was killed by her husband. In the television series, everything is revealed at the end. I also wanted to answer the audience's questions and come up with a satisfying ending," the director explains.

With that, the final scene in the play unveils the confession of the manipulations of all the comedians, including Sarhan, the owner of the theater, who has orchestrated many events of the troupe of Al-Qobba theatre.

Through his actions, Sarhan wants to get rid of all the people who know his weaknesses, as he talks about his plot and being the only triumphant person in theatre and one who can create a new troupe.

The ending is definitely disturbing and mischievous.

The play is staged every Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7pm, in the small hall of Al-Ayem theater, Abdel-Aziz Al Seoud street, Manial, Cairo.

*This article was originally published in Al Ahram Hebdo, in French, 2 September edition

For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture

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A rare Mediterranean cyclone has flood streets and homes in different parts of Greece.

Three people have died after a rare storm known as a medicane battered parts of Greece, flooding streets and homes and causing electricity outages.

The Ionian Sea islands of Zakynthos, Kefalonia and Ithaca were all badly hit by Cyclone Ianos on Friday, as winds reaching 100 kilometres per hour (62 miles per hour) damaged buildings, uprooted trees, sank sailboats and left thousands along Greeces western coast without power.

The medicane  a combination of Mediterranean and hurricane  then swept through central Greece, hitting mainly areas around the cities of Karditsa and Farsala, before it moved south to the island of Crete.

The body of a man was found under the collapsed roof of his house in a village near Karditsa on Sunday, the Athens News Agency said. On Saturday, a 63-year-old man was found dead in the same area and the body of an elderly woman was found in nearby Farsala, according to fire brigade officials.

Authorities were still searching for a woman reported missing in Karditsa.

The heavy rainfall on Saturday turned Karditsa, in one of Greeces biggest plains, into a lake. Video footage showed flooded highways, collapsed bridges and agricultural land turned into mud lakes with farmers carrying their sheep to rescue.

A river flooded its banks and damaged roads and a medical centre in the town of Mouzaki.

Experts estimate that about 5,000 houses were flooded in the area of Karditsa. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who is expected to visit the region in the coming days, said the government will provide economic relief to the affected areas.

By Saturday night, Ianos had reached Crete, where heavy rainfall flooded streets and shops.

The fire brigade said it had received more than 2,450 calls in the affected regions for assistance to rescue

Medicanes have similar features to hurricanes and typhoons. They can form over cooler waters and usually move from west to east, whereas hurricanes move from east to west.

Warmer sea surface temperatures in the Mediterranean Sea can allow the storms to take on more tropical appearances and characteristics, increasing the wind speeds and making the storms more intense.

Storm Ianos could end up being one of the strongest medicanes on record.
Three years after it was decommissioned in 2017, INS Viraat set off on its final journey on Saturday, when it was towed out of Mumbai to be taken to the ship-breaking yard at Alang in Gujarat. Over the past three years, there have been numerous attempts to convert the historic naval vessel into a museum, but none of these came to fruition. INS Viraat was the longest-serving aircraft carrier in the world, having served both the British Royal Navy and the Indian Navy in its tenure. Some of its commanding officers, including admirals Madhvendra Singh, Arun Prakash, NK Verma and DK Joshi, have gone on to become chiefs of naval staff in the Indian Navy.

Last month, during an auction conducted by the Metal Scrap Trade Corporation Limited, INS Viraat was bought by Shree Ram Group for Rs 38.54 crore. Chairman of Shree Ram Group, Mukesh Patel said INS Viraat was expected to reach Alang around September 22. We expect to generate around 15,000 tonnes of scrap from INS Viraat and the scrap will be sold to several steel rolling mills across the country, said Patel. I will be personally saluting the ship once it arrives at our yard before it is dismantled, he added, saying the ship holds a special place because of its rich history.

Previously, the state governments of both Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh had expressed interest in turning the ship into a museum. However, no formal proposal was submitted. In July 2019, in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, minister of state for defence Shripad Naik had said, INS Viraat could not be handed over to any state government because of non-receipt of a self-sustaining financially complete proposal. Thus, in view of considerations of safety, security etc, a decision to scrap INS Viraat has been taken in due consultation with Indian Navy.

INS Viraat was decommissioned on March 6, 2017. When the commissioning pendant of the longest-serving aircraft carrier was lowered, it was an emotional moment for many veterans in India and the United Kingdom who had served on the carrier. On Saturday, as INS Viraat set off on its last journey, Bharatiya Janata Partys Rajeev Chandrasekhar wrote on Twitter, I want to try one last attempt to save #INSViraat Flag of India. Wud Reliance, TATA, Adani, Wipro, HCL, Mahindra, Uday Kotak, Poonawalla, Tech companies like Infosys consider contributing to a trust to preserve our history? I rqst my media friends to amplify this appeal.

Among those who have campaigned to save INS Viraat in the past are veterans of the UKs Royal Navy, who served on the carrier when it was HMS Hermes (1959-1984). Last year, former member of the European parliament David Campbell Bannerman had written to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to request an intervention to postpone the auction. Our plan would be to turn the ship back into INS Viraat form for key weeks in the United Kingdom so that the large Indian diaspora can attend events on board, Bannerman had told HT, saying he was prepared to pay 5 million pounds but had received no response from Indian authorities.

Commissioned into the UKs Royal Navy in November, 1959 as HMS Hermes, the aircraft carrier had served for 27 years, including in the Falklands War against Argentina in 1982, before being decommissioned in 1984. India bought the vessel and rechristened it INS Viraat. It was commissioned into the Indian Navy on May 12, 1987 and became the flagship of the Navy. Four Naval air squadrons in operated out of the aircraft carrier to undertake anti-submarine, search-and-rescue, and other necessary operations.

Soon after it was commissioned, INS Viraat saw active operations as part of Operation Jupiter in July 1989, as part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in Sri Lanka after the Indo-Sri Lankan accord broke down. INS Viraat was last deployed in February 2016, in the International Fleet Review in Viskhakapatnam. The aircraft carrier sailed under her own power for the last time from Mumbai to Kochi in July 2016. In October 2016, she was towed out of Kochi and returned to Mumbai.
The interior of Chojijin on Ganghwa Island, May 2020. Robert Neff Collection



By Robert Neff





The Japanese warship Un'yo, commanded by Captain Inoue Yoshika, in 1875. Wikipedia image

On the cloudy morning of September 19, 1875, a strange vessel appeared in the sea near Ganghwa Island.



"Flying a yellow flag," it had two masts  covered with sails  and a tall chimney in the center that belched out thick black smoke as it sailed to the southern tip of the island and anchored at the mouth of the narrow channel that separates the island from the mainland.



Soldiers in the nearby fortress (Chojijin) watched the ship lower two boats into the water  their crews dressed in Western-style uniforms. These small boats then began taking soundings of the channel. The Korean soldiers within the fort were, understandably, alarmed as the island was one of the chief defenses for the Joseon capital and the sanctuary for the monarchy if the capital should be seized by the enemy.





Damage from earlier conflicts with the West can still be found in the walls of the fortress. The small white circle indicates the damage done by an artillery shell, May 2020. Robert Neff Collection



This area had also experienced two foreign incursions  one by the French in 1866 and the other by the Americans in 1871  and many of the island's fortresses during these battles had been recently rebuilt, so the sudden appearance of a strange vessel was viewed (rightly so) as a threat.



This ship, however, was not French or American, it was the Scottish-built Japanese warship Un'yo (Rising Cloud) and was one of three Japanese warships sent out to survey the Korean Peninsula's coastal waters.



According to Kawamura Kwanshu, an officer aboard the Un'yo, the ship did not have a very large supply of fuel and water so, after completing the soundings, the small boats "turned towards land to enquire whether coal could be had, to make arrangements for getting water, and to buy fowls or fish."



As the boats approached shore, a Korean soldier fired his musket at the Japanese boats. The Japanese sailors returned fire and the subsequent "firing [by both sides] continued for some time, but none of the balls took effect."





The large gnarled tree on the right was damaged during one of the battles with the West, May 2020. Robert Neff Collection



Suddenly, it began to pour rain and the Japanese boats no longer had to contend with just Korean musketry but also with Mother Nature. As they struggled to get back to the Un'yo, Chojijin's cannons began to fire on them. Fortunately, they were able to reach the safety of their ship.



"On the following day," according to Kawamura Kwanshu, "the ship attempted to approach the shore but found it too shallow, so that they were obliged to open fire upon the fort from a long distance out at sea. Two shells went right into the middle of [it], and some of the Koreans must have been killed." Yet, because of the distance, no "decisive victory" could be obtained, and the Un'yo sailed for nearby Yongjeong Island (where Incheon International Airport is located) and the military district's headquarters.



In the morning, Captain Inoue Yoshika, the 29-year-old commander of the Un'yo, was determined to exact revenge for the perceived outrage heaped on his crew and the Japanese flag.





Looking north from Chojijin's ramparts, May 2020. Robert Neff Collection





The rocky expanse in front of Chojijin, May 2020. Robert Neff Collection





From Chojijin's ramparts looking south, where the Un'yo was likely anchored, May 2020. Robert Neff Collection





The entrance to Chojijin, May 2020. Robert Neff Collection





A cannon replica at Chojijin, May 2020. Robert Neff Collection
The concept of the has incorporated into the larger solution and the Trump administration is developing new arrangements to coordinate with like-minded partners like the Quad countries, a top American diplomat has told lawmakers.

In November 2017, India, the US, Australia and Japan gave shape to the long-pending "Quad" Coalition to develop a new strategy with an aim to contain China's growing influence and develop a new strategy for keeping the critical sea routes in the free of any influence.

The is a biogeographic region, comprising the Indian Ocean and the western and central Pacific Ocean, including the South China Sea. China claims nearly all of the South China Sea, though Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam claim parts of it.

"You've seen has come on very strong in this regard. The concept of the Indo-Pacific has incorporated into the larger solution," David Stilwell, the Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, told members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee during a hearing on 'Engagement With China in the Indo-Pacific', on Thursday.

He said the US was reinforcing its security commitments.

Security assistance helps partners protect their sovereignty and maritime resources, Stillwell said.

"We have doubled development assistance to Pacific Island partners through the Pacific pledge. We are developing new arrangements to coordinate with like-minded partners. In September 2013, the first quad ministerial-level meeting of the United States, Australia, India, and Japan marked a new milestone in Indo-Pacific diplomatic engagement," he said.

Stillwell said that the resilience of the strength of America's global alliances and partnerships was paramount to addressing strategic competition with China, and in no region is this more true than the Indo-Pacific.

"Our Indo-Pacific vision is about supporting the sovereignty, autonomy, and pluralism of Indo-Pacific states facing Beijing's attempts to dominate the region. We support a region that is open to trade and investment, free from coercion and security," he said.

"The United States, in a diverse cohort of allies and partners, now speaks clearly in terms of the Indo-Pacific. Similar concepts have been put forward by Japan, India, Australia, Taiwan, and South Korea, as well as by ASEAN in the ASEAN outlook for the Indo-Pacific, showing remarkable alignment across our partners," Stillwell said.

The US has advanced its economic initiatives in lockstep with allies and partners in areas like high standard infrastructure, energy security, investment screening, among

"We are strengthening commercial diplomacy to boost alternatives to PRC (People's Republic of China) predatory economics that leaves countries saddled with unsustainable debt and vulnerable to political and economic pressures," he said.

To promote good governance, the US launched the Indo-Pacific Transparency Initiative two years ago, which has programmes focused on particular vectors of Chinese influence, including corruption, disinformation, and information control and coercive financing, he said.

Senator James Risch, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said that China's primary foreign policy objective was to achieve regional supremacy in the Indo-Pacific and then to use that dominant position to propel itself into becoming a leading world power.

Ranking Member Bob Menendez said that China was now displaying global ambitions.

"I think many on this committee have concerns that the administration's strategies and policies to deal with this new China still fall well short of answering the enormity of the challenge, he said.

"China today, led by the Communist Party and propelled by Xi Jinping's hyper-nationalism, is unlike any challenge we have faced as a nation before. As we will have an opportunity to discuss today, China is more active and more assertive around the globe than ever before," Menendez said.

He said that 5G is perhaps the best example where the United States did not adequately emphasise European alternatives to Huawei while simply pressuring its allies.

Senator Mitt Romney said that geopolitically Chinese are rising, and not the United States. They are lining up people to support them. People who in the past have not supported them are now coming to their side. That's in part because they see where the power goes. Friends often go where they believe their interest is going to be best protected. As China becomes stronger, we may find that they are able to collect something which they've never had before, which is France, he said.

I think President Trump was right to confront China and to push back against their trade practices. I think he made a mistake by not doing so in collaboration with our allies and being able to have much more clout pushing against them, Romney said and praised Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to have spoken so forcefully to awaken allies to the threat posed by China and to encourage collaboration with them.

Romney asked if US allies and other nations that follow the rule of law, whether, you know, India, Japan, South Korea, the EU, are poised to combine at some point and to develop a collaborative trade policy which will exert such pressure on China that they will be diverted from the course and move towards comporting with the order.

(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.)
British billionaire Lord Alan Sugar has joined a growing list of the rich and famous who have been granted permission to skip Australia's government-run hotel quarantine and wait out the 14 days of isolation privately.

Lord Sugar is the new host of Celebrity Apprentice Australia, a reality show being produced by Warner Bros for Nine, owner of this masthead. He flew into Sydney last week and a Nine spokesman said filming would start soon after quarantine finished.

A NSW Police spokeswoman said the British lord and his partner were quarantining privately and would be required to abide by the same regulations as other returned travellers.

Lord Alan Sugar poses for portrait before addressing The Cambridge Union Society in 2016. Credit:Getty Images

"The couple submitted a proposal to acquire appropriate, independent locations to be nominated as 'Quarantine Facilities' as allowed under the Public Health Order," she said.
19.09.2020 LISTEN

The National House Chiefs has been petitioned over non-existing Chief names as well illegalities and anomalies contained in the list of Chiefs presented to the House and its President from the New Juaben Traditional Council.

The Krontihene of New Juaben Traditional Area, Baffuor Nyantakyi Tutu Boateng in the petition complained about the exclusion of eight (8) existing and legitimate Divisional Chiefs and members of the New Juaben Traditional Council -Gyasehene, Kontihene, Kyidomhene, Manwerehene Ntotoyehene, Akyempemhene, Ayokohene and Nkosohene from the list of Divisional Chiefs presented to the House of Chiefs is a slap on the face of the Chieftaincy Act.

He stated that the existing number of Divisional Chiefs within the New Juaben Traditional Area, is twelve (12), therefore the list as it appears in the L. I. 2409, is not a true reflection of what is on the ground, as at the date of the gazette, 1st July 2020.

The petition also pointed out another illegality being the inclusion of four (4) Sub-divisional Chiefs viz, Nyamekromhene, Suhyenhene, Adahene, and Akwadumhene, in Regulation 7 (1) (h) of the L. I. 2409 as at the date of the gazette, 1st July 2020, and thus elevating them to Divisional status, without due regard to customary law and usage in the process of making a Divisional Chief in the New Juaben Traditional Area.

At first some of the RODs were given Ghc200 others too were not given anything so some RODs found out from other Constituencies and they got Information that it was Ghc1000 given them as T&T allowance so we called our Returning officer so the Retuning officer tried to fight for us so we were able to get ghc200 after a meeting with the Director. She gave us Ghc200 on that day but the guys said no at least give us ghc300 so at least we get total of Ghc500 each out of Ghc1000 due us because she said she had made some expenses 

We wish that she was going to include us in the registration exercise so at least we get something to replace the short-changed. So we were there when they were calling people for the exhibition exercise but we were not called because we complained over our monies one of the officers told Starr News on condition of anonymity" the statement added.

Full statement by the Krontihene below:

The President

National House of Chiefs

P. O. Box 4148

Kumasi

Dear President,

PETITION ON ANOMALIES IN THE CHIEFTAINCY (MEMBERSHIP OF REGIONAL HOUSES OF CHIEFS) INSTRUMENT 2020 (L. I. 2409)

RE: REGULATION 7 (1) (h)  NEW JUABEN TRADITIONAL AREA

INTRODUCTION

May I humbly take this opportunity, with due respect, to introduce myself as a prelude to this Petition.

I am the Kontihene (or Krontihene  a spelling variant), a Divisional Chief, and Head of the Kontire Ne Akwamu Division (a.k.a. Asafo Division), of the New Juaben Traditional Area, with the spiritual seat in Koforidua in the Eastern Region of the Republic of Ghana. I swore the customary Oath of Allegiance to my overlord, the Omanhene of New Juaben Traditional Area, on 15th August 2013 under the stool name; Baffour Nyantakyi Tutu Boateng.

I swore the Official Oath, the Oath of Secrecy, and the Oath of Allegiance, all on 17th October 2014 before the High Court Judge in Koforidua. My stool name was entered into the Chieftaincy Bulletin Vol. 2 No.1 of November 2015 with serial number 2164. Since my enstoolment and having been admitted as a bona fide member of the New Juaben Traditional Council, I have duly been performing my customary and judicial functions as a Divisional Chief and for over four (4) years acted as Ag. President on of behalf of the Omanhene in his absence outside the jurisdiction of the New Juaben Traditional Area.

I write this Petition on my own behalf and on behalf of my family: The Asafo Boateng Royal Family (occupants of the Kontire Stool of New Juaben Traditional Area).

PETITION

The Main Point of my Petition:

This petition avers that there are certain incontrovertible anomalies inherent in Regulation

Confusion at Abuakwa South EC over allowance

There is confusion at Abuakwa South Office of the Electoral Commission between Registration Officers with Special Duties (RODs) and the Municipal Electoral Officer over allowances.

The RODs numbering about twenty-three who were part of temporal staff hired and trained by the Electoral Commission for the voter's registration exercise are up in arms with the Municipal Electoral Officer Christable Yeboah Asante for slashing by half the transportation allowance of Ghc1000 due to each officer for the voter's registration exercise.

The last straw that has broken the camels back is the alleged deliberate sideline of the majority of RODs from the voter's exhibition exercise which started September 10 and ends September 20, 2020.

The Abuakwa South Municipal Electoral Officer is reported to have vowed not to work with the RODs again in any exercise of the Electoral Commission because of misconduct over the allowance .

At first some of the RODs were given Ghc200 others too were not given anything so some RODs found out from other Constituencies and they got Information that it was Ghc1000 given them as T&T allowance so we called our Returning officer so the Retuning officer tried to fight for us so we were able to get ghc200 after a meeting with the Director. She gave us Ghc200 on that day but the guys said no at least give us ghc300 so at least we get total of Ghc500 each out of Ghc1000 due us because she said she had made some expenses 

We wish that she was going to include us in the registration exercise so at least we get something to replace the short-changed. So we were there when they were calling people for the exhibition exercise but we were not called because we complained over our monies one of the officers told Starr News on condition of anonymity.

However, when contacted the Abuakwa South Municipal Electoral Officer Christable Yeboah Asante denies squandering the allowance of the RODs. she explained that she hired some office staff to do the work of the RODs during the voter's registration exercise because their allowances delayed therefore shared their allowances with the people she hired.

The actual thing was the money didnt come early. We went about three weeks into the exercise before the money came. We also dont have office an at Kyebi so we have to come to Tafo and then as at that time because I didn't have money to give to them I didnt want to burden them with T&T. We also have to do the things in the evening close at 6:00pm before we come back to Tafo to do the transfers .

She continued  So I had some people at the office who were collecting even before we realized they were going to pay them. That time, we had done for three weeks so later on, when the money came I decided that those who started should continue doing it so the RODs will continue to stay at the centers because they had other duties to perform. So later on I have to give part of the money to those who started and those RODs who didnt go to any place were also given some. We divided it. Not that we have chopped their money.
Floridas Department of Health on Saturday confirmed 3,573 additional cases of COVID-19, bringing the states known total to 681,233. That figure represents the most new cases since Sept. 11, when the state reported 3,650 cases. There were 62 Florida resident deaths announced, bringing the resident death toll to 13,287. The number of deaths has fallen to less than 100 in a day for the first time since Sept. 14.

One new non-resident death was announced, bringing the non-resident toll to 163.

Confirmed COVID-19 cases in South Florida

 Miami-Dade County reported 536 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19, a rise from Fridays 385, and 28 new deaths, a decline from Fridays 50, according to Floridas Department of Health. The county now has 166,516 confirmed cases and 3,055 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 4.02%.

COVID-19 positivity rate for Sept. 18, 2020, reported on Sept. 19 by Miami-Dade Countys New Normal report.

 Broward County reported 233 additional confirmed cases of the disease, up from Fridays 218, and two new deaths, four fewer than on Friday. The county has a known total of 75,499 cases and 1,319 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 3.06%.

 Palm Beach County saw 250 additional confirmed cases, up from 223 on Friday, and five new deaths, compared to 18 on Friday. The county now has 45,156 confirmed cases and 1,277 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 4.07%.

 Monroe County confirmed three additional cases, one more than on Friday, and no new deaths. The countys known total is at 1,804 cases and 22 deaths. Percent positivity for new cases: 2.02%.

COVID-19 could be the leading cause of death in Miami-Dade County by the years end

COVID-19 hospitalizations in Florida

One of the tools that officials rely on to determine whether the coronavirus situation is improving in the state is hospitalization data. Unlike testing, which might be limited or take days to report results, hospitalizations can help give officials a real-time snapshot of how many people are severely ill with COVID-19.

The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration reports the number of patients hospitalized statewide with a primary diagnosis of COVID. The data, which is updated at least every hour, does not distinguish between the number of COVID-19 patients in hospital intensive care units and those in acute-care beds, which require less attention from nurses.

Story continues

Previously, the state was providing only the total number of hospitalizations in its statewide and county-level data. Miami-Dade was an exception, with hospitals self-reporting a number of key metrics, including hospitalizations, to the county, which has made this data public for several months.

As of 10:30 a.m. Saturday, there were 2,276 COVID-19 patients admitted into hospitals throughout the state, according to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration dashboard. This is a significant decrease from early August, when more than 5,000 COVID-19 patients were admitted into hospitals throughout the state.

Of Saturdays hospitalizations, 318 were in Miami-Dade, 230 in Broward, 134 in Palm Beach and two in Monroe counties, according to the agency. The numbers declined in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach and held steady in the Keys compared to Friday afternoons patient figures.

COVID admitted patients reported by Miami-Dade County on its New Normal report on Sept. 19, 2020.

Floridas current hospitalization data does not always match the hospitalization data reported in Miami-Dades New Normal dashboard. Officials say this could be for a number of reasons, including the frequency of daily updates.

On Saturday, Miami-Dade hospitalizations for COVID-19 complications decreased from 422 to 399, according to Miami-Dade Countys New Normal dashboard. According to Fridays data, 62 people were discharged and 46 people were admitted.

The state has had a total of 42,374 Florida residents hospitalized for COVID-19-related complications, according to Floridas COVID-19 Data and Surveillance Dashboard.

COVID-19 Testing in Florida

Testing in Florida has seen steady growth since the COVID-19 crisis began.

Testing, like hospitalizations, helps officials determine the virus progress and plays a role in deciding whether it is safe to lift stay-at-home orders and loosen restrictions.

Epidemiologists then use the testing data to create a positivity rate. The rate helps them determine if a rise in cases is because of an increase in testing or if it means theres increased transmission of the virus in the community.

On Saturday, Floridas Department of Health reported the results of 79,780 people tested on Friday. The positivity rate of new cases (people who tested positive for the first time) was 4.52%.

How hard will COVID-19 hit Miami-Dade this fall? We explored the potential scenarios
She revealed on Thursday that she had her twelfth nose job.

And Jessica Alves put on a stylish display as she arrived at Heathrow Airport on Friday night after her procedure in Istanbul, Turkey.

The Brazilian reality star, 37, stepped out in a wrap-front maxi dress that had a clashing and colourful print.

Chic: Jessica Alves put on a stylish display in a clashing-print maxi dress as she landed at Heathrow Airport on Friday after having her twelfth nose job

Jessica added a glittering touch to her look by accessorising with an array of rings, a diamond bracelet and stud earrings.

Her golden locks were brushed into a sleek, straight style, and she used a glamorous palette of make-up for the occasion.

Flashing a bright smile, Jessica appeared to be in great spirits despite sporting bandages on her sore nose.

Despite the coronavirus crisis, Jessica opted not to wear a mask as she headed out of the airport following her flight.

All that glitters: Jessica added a glittering touch to her look by accessorising with an array of rings, a diamond bracelet and stud earrings

Jessica revealed on Thursday that she had her twelfth nose job, which she told MailOnline she didn't know she was set to have.

The reality personality shared a glimpse of her new nose via Instagram following the cosmetic procedure after visiting the Prof. Dr. Ali Gurlek in Istanbul, Turkey, on Wednesday, before she was seen leaving the city's W hotel the following day.

Jessica explained to MailOnline: 'Throughout the years I have had a lot of problems, I have had a lot of nose jobs done in Brazil, Colombia, Iran, America and here in Istanbul with great success.

'On the downside I've had infections with cartilage, but what caused problems was when they use cartilage from a donor and that's when my drama started a few years ago.

Procedure: Jessica revealed on Thursday that she'd had her twelfth nose job and had 'great success' with the procedure in Istanbul (previous nose job pictured right)

'My latest nose job was in January last year in Iran, the doctor cleared all my nose, removed all the cartilage and left it without any cartilage at all. That's why it was so shrunk.

'Now Dr. Ali Gurlek in Istanbul used cartilage from my ear and I can breathe much better now.'

Jessica added that she was refused the procedure five times, as she went on: 'I saw five different surgeons and everybody declined the surgery, they said they didn't know how to do it and they were overly negative.'

Before and after: She explained, 'In January last year in Iran, the doctor cleared all my nose, removed all the cartilage and left it without any cartilage at all. That's why it was so shrunk'

Frustrating: Jessica added she was refused the procedure five times, as she went on: 'They said they didn't know how to do it and they were overly negative'

She was having her legs syringed to remove nine litres of silicone oil from her legs and feet, and had a lip lift and liposuction on her jawline as she wanted her face to be 'more feminine'.

The TV personality appeared to be in recovery as she posted videos in her hotel room via Instagram, and she also gushed about the 'great job' her doctor had done with her nose.

Jessica's nose appeared to have been rounded off while the bridge seemed to be more defined after being constructed from her ear cartilage.

She looked sensational in her social media posts, as she slipped into a flowing red gown that had a plunging neckline to show off her surgically enhanced assets.
Minister of Science and Technology Chu Ngoc Anh speaks upon accepting his new assignment in Hanoi, September 18, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh.

Minister of Science and Technology Chu Ngoc Anh has been appointed deputy secretary of the Hanoi City Party Committee for the 2015-20 term.

His appointment was decided by the Party Politburo and announced on Friday by the Party's Central Organizing Commission.

City Party secretary Vuong Dinh Hue congratulated Anh on his new appointment and expressed confidence that with his experience as a scientist and manager at both ministry and local levels, he would quickly start working to fulfill the city's socio-economic goals, especially the short-term goal of defeating the Covid-19 pandemic.

In his acceptance speech, Anh called his new position both a great honor and major responsibility.

"I have to put myself in the collective, the organization, always striving to improve, learn, unite with the collective of the city Party Committee to focus our minds on building a clean and strong municipal Party unit and ignite the creative, enthusiastic and efficient working spirit of all cadres, civil servants and the people."

He emphasized that he would strive to mobilize all resources, promote the will of the Party unit and the people for comprehensive and sustainable socio-economic development of the capital.

Pham Minh Chinh, head of the Central Organizing Commission, said in every position he had held before, Anh had made great efforts to overcome difficulties and accomplish his missions.

Anh is expected to be relieved of his position as minister at the upcoming National Assembly session in late October.

Anh, 55, hails from Hanoi's rural district of Ba Vi. He has a doctorate, was an alternate member of the Party's 11th Central Committee and is a member of the 12th Central Committee.

He used to work at the Hanoi University of Science and Technology, the Posts and Telecommunications Institute of Technology and the State Agency for Technology Innovation.

He served as chairman of the northern province of Phu Tho and deputy minister of science and technology before becoming a minister in April 2016.

Commercial promotion of research outcomes was a focus during his stint as minister.

In the last five years technology has contributed greatly to Vietnam's socio-economic development, demonstrated by improvements in the quality of growth and exports of technology products accounting for nearly half of Vietnam's exports.

In the 2020 Global Innovation Index, Vietnam climbed from 59th to 42nd out of 131 economies, and was ranked first in the group of 29 lower-middle income economies.

The government now considers innovation as a new pillar in socio-economic development, and for the first time the innovation index has become an indicator to measure the efficiency of the business environment and national competitiveness annually.

"Innovation must become a new way of thinking in managing, operating the economy, society and businesses," Anh said at a recent congress of the ministry's Party Committee.

The leadership of the city Party Committee currently includes Vuong Dinh Hue and deputy secretaries Ngo Thi Thanh Hang, Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc (also chairwoman of the city People's Council), Dao Duc Toan, and now Anh.

The position of chairman is still vacant after Nguyen Duc Chung was suspended from all leadership positions and arrested for his involvement in several criminal cases last month.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : BSP's Rajaram on Saturday raised the issue of reservation for Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Classes in the Jammu region in the upper House. He claimed in spite of having OBC population of around 35 per cent and SC population of around 17 per cent both groups get 2 and 8 per cent quota, respectively.

He said that Bahujan Samaj Party supported the abrogation of Article 370 on condition of extending the reservation in the region like rest of the country but it has not happened even after one year.

Rajya Sabha Chairperson M. Venkaiah Naidu asked MoS, Home G. Kishan Reddy to look into it.

Congress leader Ahmed Patel raised the issue of digital divide amid online schools during the pandemic. He also demanded financial assistance to poor families for this purpose.

BJD's Sasmit Patra urged the government to engage international media to put forth its point as far as International terrorists are concerned. He claimed while Pakistan's point of view is covered by international media, much rarely does it cover India's point of view.

He also urged the government to use MPs to spread its message.

BJP's Neeraj Shekhar demanded that Bhojpuri be included in the 8th schedule of the constitution. This demand is significant ahead of the Bihar election which is round the corner and where the language is widely spoken.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Students in New York City public schools will start the new academic year on Monday amid the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic -- but not all will be going back to their classroom.

For the 2020-2021 school year, students are returning to public schools during the pandemic on a staggered schedule -- blending in-person and remote learning. Some students have chosen to learn remotely full time.

While all students who chose blended learning were expecting to begin returning to their school building on Monday, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced this past week that the city would phase-in the start of the students returning to campus.

Heres how the staggered schedule will work: Pre-K, pre-K3, and students with disabilities in District 75 will begin heading back to in-person classes on Monday. Students in K-5 schools and K-8 schools will begin re-entry on Sept. 29, with middle schools, high schools, and adult education students going back on Oct. 1.

*** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK ***

Those students who are enrolled in citys blended learning model will only be allowed to return for in-person learning two or three days of the week -- working remotely the rest of the week. This will cut down the number of students on campus at one time, providing additional space for social distancing.

When students return to the classroom, it will be the first time theyll be learning in-person since school buildings were shuttered and classes were moved online in mid-March amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Weve compiled a list of key dates families need to know from the city Department of Educations 2020-2021 school calendar for public school students on Staten Island.

The first day of school is Monday, Sept. 21, and the last day is scheduled for Friday, June 25, 2021.

The 2020-2021 calendar gives time off for the following holidays: the Muslim holy day of Eid al-Fitr, the Jewish holy days, including Yom Kippur; and week-long breaks for winter recess, mid-winter recess, and spring recess, which include Christmas, Passover, Good Friday and Easter.

The school calendar also allows time off for Columbus Day, Election Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and Memorial Day.

Here are key dates you need to know:

September 2020

Sept. 16-18 -- Fully remote partial school days for students as part of orientation program

Sept. 21 -- School begins for all students, whether its in-person or remote. Students in pre-K, pre-K3, and District 75 will begin in-person learning

Sept. 28 -- Schools closed for Yom Kippur

Sept. 29 -- Students in K-5 and K-8 schools will begin in-person learning

October 2020

Oct. 1 -- Students in middle schools, high schools, and adult education schools begin in-person learning

Oct. 12 -- Schools closed for Columbus Day

November 2020

Nov. 3 -- School buildings closed for Election Day; fully remote instructional day for all students

Nov. 11 -- Schools closed in observance of Veterans Day

Nov. 26-27 -- Schools closed for Thanksgiving

December 2020

Dec. 24 -- Winter recess begins

January 2021

Jan. 2 -- Classes resume after winter recess

Jan. 18 -- Schools closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day

February 2021

Feb. 12 -- Schools closed for Lunar New Year

Feb. 15-19 -- Schools closed for mid-winter recess (which includes Presidents Day)

March 2021

March 29-April 2 -- Schools closed for spring recess (which includes Good Friday, Passover and Easter)

April 2021

April 5 -- Classes resume after spring recess

May 2021

May 13 -- Schools closed for Eid Al-Fitr

May 31 -- Schools closed for Memorial Day

June 2021

June 3 -- Schools closed for Anniversary Day, students only

June 25 -- Last day of classes

FOLLOW ANNALISE KNUDSON ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER.
Federal officers disperse a crowd at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Portland, Ore., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images)

Federal Officers Deploy Tear Gas in Portland to Disperse Demonstration

Federal officers used crowd-control munitions, including tear gas, to disperse an unlawful gathering in Portland, Oregon, on Sept. 18 from an immigration facility.

Breaking a lull that had prevailed for about two weeks, demonstrators marched to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement building.

Federal officers quickly moved to disperse the gathering, making arrests, and pushing the crowd into a nearby neighborhood. Portland police officers then declared an unlawful assembly and ordered the crowd to continue dispersing, the citys police bureau said in a statement.

Eleven people who engaged in criminal activity, including hurling objects at officers, were arrested, the bureau stated.

Federal officers face off with a crowd in Portland, Ore., Sept. 18, 2020. (Paula Bronstein/AP Photo)

Protesters use umbrellas to block less-lethal rounds fired by federal officers during a dispersal at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Portland, Ore., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images)

People use umbrellas to block less-lethal rounds fired by federal officers during an unlawful assembly at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Portland, Ore., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images)

Video footage showed several hundred people trespassing on federal property, shouting and spraying graffiti, prompting federal officers to order them to leave. Among their chants was: How do you spell NAZI? DHS!

When the crowd refused to disperse, officers made arrests and later used crowd-control munitions.

The Department of Homeland Security didnt immediately respond to a request for details on the response.

Many people in the crowd appeared to be connected to Antifa, the far-left, anarcho-communist network that has contributed to the violence seen in Oregons largest city since May 28.

Near-nightly riots abruptly came to a halt on Sept. 7 as wildfires loomed, before the Sept. 18 gathering.

City, county, and state officials have struggled to quell the unrest.

Tear gas fills the air during the dispersal of an unlawful assembly at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Portland, Ore., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Paula Bronstein/AP Photo)

Police arrest a person during the dispersal of an unlawful assembly at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Portland, Ore., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Paula Bronstein/AP Photo)

Police arrest a person during the dispersal of an unlawful assembly at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Portland, Ore., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images)

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, a Democrat, dispatched state troopers to the city in late August after a man was shot dead, allegedly by a self-described Antifa member who was later killed by law enforcement officers. But Brown has refused to send National Guard members, saying they arent trained for the job.

Guardsmen in other states have quickly put an end to rioting, including in Wisconsin this month.

In an attempt to deescalate the situation, Mayor and Police Commissioner Ted Wheeler announced on Sept. 10 that he was barring police officers from using tear gas while responding to protests and riots.

Its time for everyone to reduce the violence in our community. We all want change. We all have the opportunity and obligation to create change. We all want to focus on the fundamental issue at handjustice for black people and all people of color, Wheeler, a Democrat, said in a video statement.

Portland police were already limited to only using tear gas in situations where a life is at risk, but those situations were occurring regularly during rioting, according to police officials.

Wheelers move was roundly opposed by the bureau and the Portland Police Association, a police union.

This ban will blow up in the mayors face, the union stated. What he does not seem to understand is that the CS ban will force officers to use more impact munitions and use more physical force to disperse crowds. His decision hurts community safety and impacts officer safety.
This file photo taken on August 4, 2020 shows Prince, a member of the hacking group Red Hacker Alliance, who refused to give his real name, using a website that monitors global cyberattacks on his computer at their office in Dongguan, China's southern Guangdong province. Beijing on September 11, 2020 denied trying to meddle in US presidential election after American tech giant Microsoft said it had parried cyberattacks from overseas groups  including from China  against both the Republican and Democratic campaigns. (Photo | AFP)

Washington: Adam Schiff was in the audience at the 2018 Aspen Security Forum when a Microsoft executive mentioned an attempted hacking of three politicians up for reelection. It was the first that Schiff, then the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, had ever heard of it.

Schiff said he thought it was odd that Congress hadnt been briefed. He got in touch with high-ranking officials in the intelligence agencies, and they didnt know about it, either. It turned out that Russian hackers had unsuccessfully tried to infiltrate the Senate computer network of then-Sen. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., and other unidentified candidates.

Two years later, Schiff says that breakdown is still emblematic of the disjointed effort among government agencies, Congress and private companies as they try to identify and address foreign election interference. But this year, with President Donald Trump adamant that Russia is not interfering and his administration often trying to block what Congress learns about election threats, its those private companies that often are being called upon to fill the breach.

Lawmakers welcome the help from the private sector and say the companies have become increasingly forthcoming, but its a haphazard way to get information. It allows the companies to control much of what the public knows, and some are more cooperative than others.

If a company wants to publicize it, thats great, says Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee. But what happens when they dont want to bring it to the attention of the government?

Thats what happened in 2016, when Russia spread disinformation through social media, including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Those companies were slow to recognise the problem and they initially balked at government requests for more information. But after Congress pushed them publicly, they gradually became more cooperative.

Now, Facebook and Twitter give Congress regular briefings to the intelligence committees, issue frequent reports about malicious activity and are part of a group that regularly meets with law enforcement and intelligence officials in the administration.

Microsoft, which is part of that group, announced last week that Russian hackers had tried to breach computers at more than 200 organisations, including political campaigns and their consultants. Most of the hacking attempts by Russian, Chinese and Iranian agents were halted by Microsoft security software and the targets notified. But the company would not say which candidates or entities may have been breached.

Lawmakers say the private sector can only do so much.

Its certainly important that the social media companies participate and cooperate, which they have not always done in the past, but that does not in any way replace the analysis that is done by the intelligence community, and I believe that analysis should be shared with Congress, says Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

That relationship between intelligence agencies and Congress has grown strained since Trump took office. He has doubted the agencies conclusions about Russian interference in 2016 and he fired, demoted and criticized officials who shared information he didnt like.

The current director of national intelligence, John Ratcliffe, a close Trump ally, tried to end most in-person election security briefings _ a decision he later reversed after criticism from lawmakers from both parties. But Ratcliffe maintains that his office will not provide all member briefings for all lawmakers, citing what he says were leaks from some of those meetings this year.

Lawmakers say that in restricting whats given to Congress, the administration is effectively restricting what it tells the public about election security and misinformation. That threatens to sow confusion, just as foreign adversaries such as Russia are hoping for.

Schiff, now chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, has pressured the companies to act more quickly, including taking down misinformation before it goes viral, not after. He has particular concerns about Google, which owns YouTube, and says it has been less transparent than others. Schiff and other lawmakers have stepped up concerns about doctored videos and foreign-owned news outlets spreading fake news on the video platform.

At a hearing with tech companies in June, Schiff pressed Google, saying that it has essentially adopted a strategy of keeping its head down and avoiding attention to its platform while others draw heat.

Richard Salgado, Googles director for law enforcement and information security, told Schiff: I certainly hope that is not the perception. If it is, it is a misperception, Mr. Chairman.

Google has made some disclosures, including recently revealing a Chinese effort to target Trump campaign staffers and an Iranian groups attempt to target the Biden campaign. But the company gave little detail on the attacks, including when they took place or how many were targeted.

Still, the companies have stepped up in many cases.

Facebook and Microsoft have been making disclosures to the public while also working behind the scenes with the federal government and the intelligence committees. Facebook issues a monthly release on foreign and domestic election activity, and Microsoft has publicly disclosed more than a dozen instances of threat activity since Schiff was caught unaware at the Aspen event in 2018.

The executive who revealed the Russian activity at that event, Microsofts Tom Burt, says the company has learned to be more proactive with the federal government. He says the attempted hackings were not something he had planned to announce at the security forum, but he answered honestly when asked a question by the moderator. Today, Burt says the company gives federal and congressional authorities a heads-up when they have announcements about election interference.

Foreign attackers are persistent, they are skilled, they are super well-resourced, and they are going to continue to try and interfere with the electoral process and try to sow distrust with the American people, Burt said.

As lawmakers pursue other channels of information, there are still places where the public sector cannot help. Florida Rep. Stephanie Murphy, a Democrat, has been fighting for more than a year to have the administration publicly identify the two Florida counties where Russian hackers gained access to voter databases before the 2016 election.

The only way you can fight that disinformation is with transparency, and the US government has to be transparent about the attacks on our democracy by providing the information, Murphy said. I think maybe companies are accustomed to disclosing when they have had breaches, and that is why you are seeing corporate America leading.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
Family Research Council Statement on the Passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg NEWS PROVIDED BY

Family Research Council

Sept. 18, 2020 WASHINGTON, Sept. 18, 2020 /Christian Newswire/ -- Family Research Council President Tony Perkins released the following statement on the passing of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: "I join the American people in offering my condolences and prayers to Justice Ginsburg's family who are mourning the loss of their mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. I pray that God will comfort them during this time of grief. Throughout her 27 years on the U.S. Supreme Court, we were frequently at odds with her opinions. However, her perseverance in facing cancer while continuing to serve as a justice was admirable." SOURCE Family Research Council CONTACT: J.P. Duffy, 866-372-6397 Related Links frc.org

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To kick off this edition of The Saturday Funnies, we open with a riddle. The facts: Martha can run 1 turn in 1 minute. Charlie can run 4 turns in 1 minute, and Lauren can run 3 turns in 1 minute.

The question: If these three people start running at the same time, how long will it take for all three to reach the starting line again? Please, it is obvious! If you deduced One minute you ought to be playing bingo! because youve got the touch.

Every week we present The Saturday Funnies that we gather from the daily emails that come our way. No, we do not write them  we are not that clever so please understand they are shared and in almost every case, we have no idea of their origin.

We believe every weekend needs some giggles, but before we get started this week, try to solve this riddle.

What is something new we must break to enjoy its delight with the full understanding we can never enjoy it again? This one stumped me, so I surrendered and went to the answers page: An egg.

Lets go to this weeks Funnies:

* * *

SPEAKING GERMAN IN TEXAS



In Texas there is a town called New Braunfels, where there is a large German-speaking population.

One day, a local rancher driving down a country road noticed a man using his hand to drink water from the rancher's stock pond.

The rancher rolled down the window and shouted: "Sehr angenehm! Trink das Wasser nicht. Die kuehe haben darein geschissen."

This means: Glad to meet you! Don't drink the water. The cows have contaminated it."

The man shouted back: "I'm from New York and just down here campaigning for Biden's Presidential run. I can't understand you. Please speak in English."

The rancher shouted back: "Use both hands!"

* * *

A 15-YEAR-OLDS SCHOOL PRAYER

(Written by a 15-year-old school kid who got an A+ for this entry!

The Lord's Prayer is not allowed in most U.S. Public schools any more. A kid in Minnesota wrote the following new School Prayer:

Now I sit me down in school

Where praying is against the rule.

For this great nation under God,

Finds mention of Him very odd.

If scripture now the class recites,

It violates the Bill of Rights.

And anytime my head I bow

Becomes a Federal matter now.

Our hair can be purple, orange, or green,

That's no offense; it's a freedom scene.

The law is specific, the law is precise.

Prayers spoken aloud are a serious vice.

For praying in a public hall

Might offend someone with no faith at all.

In silence alone we must meditate,

God's name is prohibited by the State.

We're allowed to cuss and dress like freaks,

And pierce our noses, tongues, and cheeks.

They've outlawed guns, but FIRST the Bible.

To quote the Good Book makes me liable.

We can elect a pregnant Senior Queen,

And the 'unwed daddy,' our Senior King.

It's 'inappropriate' to teach right from wrong.

We're taught that such 'judgments' do not belong.

We can get our condoms and birth controls,

Study witchcraft, vampires, and totem poles.

But the Ten Commandments are not allowed,

No word of God must reach this crowd.

It's scary here I must confess,

When chaos reigns the school's a mess.

So, Lord, this silent plea I make:

Should I be shot; My soul please take!

Amen

If you aren't ashamed to do this, Please pass this on. Jesus said, 'If you are ashamed of me,

I will be ashamed of you before my Father! I am not ashamed. Passing it on!

* * *

TWO SISTERS BUY A BULL

Two Sisters...

One blonde and one brunette, inherit the family ranch. Unfortunately, after just a few years, they are in financial trouble. In order to keep the bank from repossessing the ranch, they need to purchase a bull from the stockyard in a far town so that they can breed their own stock.

They only have $600 left. Upon leaving, the brunette tells her sister, "When I get there, if I decide to buy the bull, I'll contact you to drive out after me and haul it home."

The brunette arrives at the stockyard, inspects the bull, and decides she wants to buy it. The man tells her that he will sell it for $599, no less. After paying him, she drives to the nearest town to send her sister a telegram to tell her the news. She walks into the telegraph office and says, "I want to send a telegram to my sister telling her that I've bought a bull for our ranch. I need her to hitch the trailer to our pickup truck and drive out here so we can haul it home."

The telegraph operator explains that he'll be glad to help her, then adds, "It's just 99 cents a word." Well, after paying for the bull, the brunette only has $1 left. She realizes that she'll only be able to send her sister one word.

After a few minutes of thinking, she nods and says, "I want you to send her one word: comfortable."

The operator shakes his head. 'How is she ever going to know that you want her to hitch the trailer to your pickup truck and drive out here to haul that bull back to your ranch if you send her just the word "comfortable?"

The brunette explains, "My sister's blonde. The word's big. She'll read it very slowly ... com-for-da-bull."

* * *

A 15-YEAR OLD BOY CAME HOME WITH A PORSCHE

His parents began to yell and scream. Where did you get that car?

He calmly told them, I bought it today.

With what money? Demanded his parents. We know how much a Porsche costs!

Well, said the boy, this one cost me fifteen dollars.

The parents began to yell even louder. Who would sell a car like this for fifteen dollars!? they asked.

It was the lady up the street, said the boy, dont know her name they just moved in. She saw me ride past on my bike and asked me if I wanted to buy a Porsche for fifteen dollars.

Oh my goodness! gasped the mother, she must be a child abuser! Who knows what she will do next? John, you go right up there and see whats going on.

So the boys father walked up the street to the house where the lady lived and found her out in her yard, calmly planting flowers. He introduced himself as the father of the boy she sold the Porsche to for fifteen dollars and demanded to know why.

Well, she said, this morning I got a phone call from my husband. I thought he was on a business trip, but I learned from a friend he has run off to Hawaii with his secretary and really doesnt intend to come back. He claimed he was really stranded and asked me to sell his new Porsche and send him the money. So I did.

* * *

WHEN I SAW my ex-wife yesterday with her new boyfriend, I couldnt believe just how much he looked like me when we were still together

Absolutely miserable.

* * *

THIS WEEKS BEST VIDEOS

* -- Maybe the best Italian commercial ever, by Pfizer. Yes, 7.2 million views and counting. CLICK HERE.

* -- Try this one, from our pals at Nike. Discover your greatness! Yes ... 6.4 million views and counting. CLICK HERE.

* -- The ending scene in the movie, The Pursuit Of Happyness. Yes  7.7 million views and counting. CLICK HERE.

* -- I love flash mobs. Watch what happens when a little girl drops some coins in a street performers hat in Sabadell, Spain one afternoon eight years ago. The music is Ravels Bolero and, yes, over 21 million have watched this. CLICK HERE.

royexum@aol.com
A 65-year-old man died Friday morning in Huntington Township when another driver crossed into opposing traffic and hit his vehicle, Pennsylvania State Police said.

East Berlin resident Douglas Davis was killed around 11:27 a.m. while driving west on the 400 block of East Berlin Road, according to state police.

A 78-year-old Middleburg man headed in the opposite direction crossed the double yellow lines and hit Daviss car, state police said.

Davis was pronounced dead at the scene. The 78-year-old was flown to York Hospital in unknown condition.

READ MORE:

Man sleeping behind wheel of self-driving Tesla was going 93 in a 68 Canadian police say

Under investigation for child porn, ex-Harrisburg councilman showed detectives what we were looking for

Who was Notorious RBG? Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg mightve looked frail, but her work was strong
Were excited to be a leader in this growth area and recognize that the cannabis/CBD industry and ancillary businesses have unique aspects and evolving trends and regulations that require carefully crafted marketing and comms strategies, notes Roberta Tsang, co-founder of Raize.

Raize Communications, announces the launch of its full-service, integrated marketing and PR agency to support the needs of businesses in the cannabis and CBD space. A female-founded business with years of experience and earned successes across a range of industries, including technology, business and fintech, lifestyle, health and fitness, Raize is comprised of a trusted network of senior-level communications experts that have come together to formalize their services for this rapidly evolving industry.

Were excited to be a leader in this growth area and recognize that the cannabis/CBD industry and ancillary businesses have unique aspects and evolving trends and regulations that require carefully crafted marketing and comms strategies, notes Roberta Tsang, co-founder of Raize. We dont believe in a one-size-fits-all approach, especially in this space, and feel fortunate to apply our experience working with industry leaders and thinkers globally, and help our clients succeed in this emerging market.

Headquartered in Denver, and with a trusted network of experts across the U.S., the team currently works with a range of companies covering financial, consumer advocacy and lifestyle in the cannabis and CBD space, including Suite 420 Solutions, CBD Validator, Two Cranes Botanicals and more. Raize works with businesses of all sizes including startups, SMEs and corporations, and provides core services including branding, marketing, publicity and media strategy, writing and content development, website and digital design, social media support, media training and crisis communications.

We often get requests from clients about one or two elements that they think they need based on what they see or hear about, notes Jennifer Rahn, co-founder of Raize. However, its important to recognize that communications support must be strategic, authentic and flexible  and our holistic approach, which has served us well over the years, allows us to create tailored plans that attain maximum ROI."

About Raize

Raize Communications is the culmination of many hours, days and years of hard work and spirit in the agency and corporate environments. A full-service agency rooted in years of B2B + B2C +D2C marketing and public relations expertise, we help businesses of all sizes to navigate and succeed within the rapidly evolving cannabis and CBD industries.

Creating, defining and building brands that will actually make an impact everywhere is our mission. A blend of strategic, creative and senior level counsel, weve seen what works and what doesnt and arent afraid to share this knowledge. In other words, we wont tell you only what you want to hear. Our approach is 360-degrees of strategy and execution, along with thoughtful and pragmatic transparency for our clients.

For more information, visit here and follow us on LinkedIn.
Hyderabad, Sep 19 : The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) on Saturday announced that it will oppose the Farm Bills in the Rajya Sabha, saying they would be an injustice to the farm sector in the country.

Telangana Chief Minister and TRS President K. Chandrasekhar Rao has directed TRS Parliamentary Party leader Dr. K Keshava Rao to oppose the bills, as they would benefit the corporates and adversely impact the farmers.

KCR, as the Chief Minister is popularly known, said since the Bills will cause heavy losses to the agriculture sector and were against the interests of farmers, the TRS will oppose and vote against these Bills in the Rajya Sabha.

"For public consumption, it was mentioned in the Bills that farmers could sell their produce anywhere in the country. But in reality, the Bills would enable the traders to go anywhere in the country to buy the produce. The Bills would also help the corporate lobby to spread across all corners of the country and pave the way for private traders," the Chief Minister added.

"They are saying that farmers can sell their produce anywhere in the country with these new Bills. But is it possible for farmers to take their small produce to long distance areas bearing the heavy transportation charges and sell it at a fair price? These Bills are nothing but a sugar-coated pill. This should be opposed at all costs," he said.

"As on date, there is 50 per cent import duty on corn. The Central government has decided to reduce it by 15 per cent and wanted to import one crore tonnes of corn. Already 70 to 75 lakh tonnes of corn was purchased. For whose benefit 35 per cent of import duty was reduced? When the country is going through an economic crisis, how did they take such a decision? Corn is cultivated in a big way in the country. If we reduce the import duty on corn, what will happen to our own corn producers?" KCR asked.

The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill 2020, The Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill 2020 already passed by the Lok Sabha will be taken up for discussion and passage in the Rajya Sabha on Sunday.

BJP's key ally Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader and Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal has quit the Narendra Modi government over the passage of the Farm Bills.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Kroger faces lawsuit after it fires employees for refusing to wear pro-LGBT aprons

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A major supermarket chain is facing a lawsuit after firing two employees over their refusal to wear a rainbow emblem that violates their religious beliefs as part of their work uniform.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit against the Kroger Company Monday in response to action taken by Kroger Store No. 625 in Conway, Arkansas, against two employees. The employees were terminated after they refused to abide by the new dress code, which required them to wear an apron depicting a rainbow-colored heart emblem.

The women contended that wearing the apron would amount to an endorsement of the LGBTQ movement, which contradicts their religious beliefs. According to the EEOC, one woman offered to wear the apron with the emblem covered and the other offered to wear a different apron without the emblem, but the company made no attempt to accommodate their requests.

The EEOC alleged that when the women continued to refuse to wear the apron with the emblem visible, Kroger retaliated against them by disciplining and ultimately discharging them.

Krogers actions violated Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, argued the EEOC, which is working to secure monetary relief in the form of back pay and compensatory damages for the two women as well as an injunction against future discrimination.

Companies have an obligation under Title VII to consider requests for religious accommodations, and it is illegal to terminate employees for requesting an accommodation for their religious beliefs, said Delner-Franklin Thomas, district director of the EEOCs Memphis office, which has jurisdiction over the case. The EEOC protects the rights of the LGBTQ community, but it also protects the rights of religious people.

The EEOC complaint comes more than a year after both women were fired from the supermarket chain. According to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, one of the women, Brenda Lawson, worked in the deli department at the store from 2011 until her termination on June 1, 2019. The other woman, Trudy Rickerd, worked as a cashier and file maintenance clerk from 2006 until her termination on May 29, 2019.

The complaint cited a letter written by Rickerd explaining her objection to wearing the apron. I have a sincerely held religious belief that I cannot wear a symbol that promotes or endorses something that is in violation of my religious faith  I am happy to buy another apron to ensure there is no financial hardship on Kroger, she said.

This is not the first time that Kroger has found itself subject to a lawsuit from the EEOC. Last year, Kroger had to pay $40,000 to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit that was filed after it fired a visually impaired new employee who requested an accommodation for a portion of the new employee orientation.

The Christian Post reached out to Kroger for comment. A representative from the supermarket chain said, We cannot comment on pending litigation.

Kroger is not the only supermarket chain to face scrutiny about its dress code policy. Two weeks ago, former Food Lion employee and Air Force veteran Gary Dean detailed how he left the company because he was told that he could not wear a face mask emblazoned with the American flag on the job.

After thousands of Americans had viewed Deans Facebook post, Food Lion contacted Dean and told him that it was changing its mask policy to permit employees to wear American flag masks.
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Protesters have returned to the streets of Portland following a ten-day pause caused by poor air quality from nearby wildfires.

Demonstrators marched to an ICE facility in the south of the city late Friday night, where police declared an unlawful assembly.

Activists threw items at officers, leading to the arrests of 11 people, including at least two from out of state.

Photos show that smoke was used to clear the crowd, and it appeared that tear gas was deployed.

Police initially tweeted that tear gas was on the list of crowd control agents if people did not disperse, despite Democrat mayor Ted Wheeler last week ordering officers not to deploy the chemical agent for crowd control.

Protesters have returned to the streets of Portland following a ten-day pause caused by poor air quality from nearby wildfires

Photos show that smoke was used to clear the crowd, and it appeared that tear gas was deployed. Dozen of police with riot shields are seen standing guard outside an ICE facility

Demonstrators marched to an ICE facility in the south of the city, where police declared an unlawful assembly

A protester moves through smoke fired by officers late Friday after they declared an unlawful assembly

Police were seen back on the streets of Portland Friday following a ten-day break in unruly protests. Demonstrations in the city have been ongoing since late May

A Portland police officer is seen making his way through a street filled with smoke following a clash with demonstrators

Hundreds of people have been arrested since the protests started in May. Police have been out in force each night trying to keep order in the streets

A protester taunts officers during a dispersal at the ICE detention center in Portland

Wheeler himself was tear gassed when he went to a demonstration against the presence of federal authorities dispatched to the city to protect federal property.

He said he still wants police to respond aggressively to prevent violence and vandalism. Hundreds of people have been arrested since the protests started in May.

Protesters in Portland want city officials to slash the police budget and reallocate that money to black residents and businesses.

Some demonstrators are also demanding the resignation of Wheeler, a white man and the scion of a timber company fortune.

In clashes with police, some protesters have broken windows, set small fires, punctured police car tires, shined lasers in officers' eyes and pelted them with rocks and frozen water bottles.

Police criticized Wheeler's orders to ban tear gas, saying in a statement that it could force them to employ potentially more dangerous crowd control measures to quell violent demonstrations.

Officers guard the front gate of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center on Friday night

Police arrest a protester as they try to take control of the streets during protests on Friday night

Dozens of officers stood guard outside the ICE facility during a standoff with protesters who refused to leave the area

It appeared that police deployed tear gas to break up the crowds, who assembled for a demonstrations following a ten-day break

The new protest comes after reports the Justice Department explored whether it could pursue either criminal or civil rights charges against city officials in Portland.

Federal officials are said to have researched whether they could levy criminal or civil charges against the officials, exploring whether their rhetoric and actions may have helped spur the violence in the city.

It underscores the larger Trump administration's effort to spotlight and crack down on protest-related violence.

President Donald Trump has blamed Democrats, and specifically pointed to Portland's mayor Ted Wheeler, who he says have not done enough to stop nights of looting and unrest in cities across the U.S. Trump has called Wheeler a 'wacky Radical Left Do Nothing Democrat Mayor' and has said the city 'will never recover with a fool for a Mayor....'

Trump has heaped blame for the unrest on Democrats who are leading the cities where violence has occurred and tried to keep focus squarely on pockets of protest-related violence, instead of on the point of police reform and the larger movement of racial injustice.

Portland police arrest a protester during a dispersal at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center

The protests, which began over the killing of George Floyd, often result frequent clashes between protesters and law enforcement

Protesters shielded themselves from smoke behind umbrellas in Portland late Friday night

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler ordered officers not to use tear gas to break up demonstrations. However, it appeared the chemical agent was deployed during a clash on Friday night
In a major escalation of the anti-China campaign ahead of the election, the Trump administration announced on Friday that it was following through on its executive orders of August 6 and banning the social media apps TikTok and WeChat from being downloaded from US app stores on Sunday.

The move is a frontal assault on the freedom of expression and an effort to consolidate control of the internet by a handful of massive corporations working in partnership with the American government. TikTok is used by millions of people every day to connect with friends and family, share ideas and communicate, and has been used to organize social protests. WeChat is a major link of communication between the United States and China.

An official statement released by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said downloads and new versions of the two mobile apps would be prohibited on Apple and Android app stores as of September 20.

With regard to WeChat, the Commerce Department statement prohibits all electronic payments and funds transfers as well as the hosting or transfer of internet traffic and utilization of the mobile applications constituent code within the US. WeChat for all practical purposes will be shut down in the US, but only in the US, as of midnight Monday, Ross said.

TikTok faces a similar US ban on November 12 unless the Trump administration approves the proposal made last weekend by the American software giant Oracle Corporation to become a trusted tech partner with ByteDance, the Chinese company that currently owns TikTok.

The transfer of TikTok to US ownership would be aimed at creating conditions in which it could be subject to the same type of government-backed censorship that has already been implemented by Google, Facebook, Twitter and other US-based social media companies.

TikTok is the tenth most popular social media platform in the world, with 500 million users, 100 million of whom are in the US.

WeChat is the fifth largest social media platform in the world, with 1.06 billion users, of whom 3.3 million are in the US. Described as Chinas app for everything, WeChat is a multipurpose instant messaging, social media and mobile payment app owned by Tencent Holdings.

The impact of this shutdown was explained by the WeChat Users Alliance, a non-profit group founded by five Chinese-American lawyers after Trumps executive order was announced: WeChat is a messaging app most commonly used by several million Chinese Americans in the US. Many other non-Chinese Americans also use it to communicate with their friends, clients, or business partners whose first language is Chinese. The complete ban of WeChat will severely affect the lives and the work of millions of people in the US. They will have a difficult time talking to family, relatives and friends back in China.

Michael Bien, a San Francisco attorney representing the organization, said that WeChat is the primary way for many of its US users to communicate, organize social groups, run businesses and engage in political activities. Bien said, It is our contention that [the ban] violates the Constitution, as you cannot censor such a fundamental part of communication, especially when it affects an insular group that has historically been a minority thats been subject to discrimination in the US, by law or by practice.

The Trump administrations actions against TikTok and WeChat are an attack on the ability of the working class both to express itself politically and to freely communicate in daily life.

Every worker and young person in the US must reject the Trump administrations attempt to whip up reactionary anti-Chinese sentiments on the basis of unsubstantiated claims of national security threats.

Not one shred of evidence has been presented to back up US government claims that TikTok or WeChat have been engaged in a malicious collection of American citizens personal data, and are active participants in Chinas civil-military fusion in mandatory cooperation with the intelligence services of the Chinese Communist Party, as claimed by Ross.

Any objective assessment of the two apps thoroughly contradicts the Trump administrations attacks on TikTok and WeChat and shows that the emergence of the China-based social media platforms is part of the globalization and integration of the world economy that has been accelerating over the last four decades.

Social media platformssuch as Facebook, Twitter and YouTubeemerged as a consequence of the convergence of smartphones and tablets with wireless broadband internet services internationally in the first decade of the twenty-first century. The initial years of this global developmentFacebook was launched in 2004, fourth generation wireless internet access (4G) was first available in 2006, and the first model of the Apple iPhone was released in 2007were dominated by US companies.

The adoption of these technologies spread rapidly throughout the world over the next decade. For example, in 2007 only one percent of the population of the developing world had mobile broadband subscriptions. Today this number is approaching 85 percent.

During this period, the integration of the US and China in the development and production of these technologies expanded dramatically. The relationship of Apple to the Taiwanese firms Foxconn and Pegatronboth of which have facilities in Shenzhen, China, where hundreds of millions of iPhones have been assembled by highly exploited Chinese factory workersis but one example of this process.

Globalization has integrated the US and China on many levels, economically, scientifically, academically and culturally. The number of Chinese immigrants in the US has grown seven-fold since 1980, reaching 2.5 million people in 2018. The effort by the Trump administration to demonize China by attacking the immensely popular social media apps expresses a level of reckless desperation within the administration.

Amidst growing social and political opposition within the US, accelerated by the disaster sparked by the coronavirus pandemic, the ruling class is seeking to divert tensions outward by provoking an international conflict with China.

The central target of the economic attacks on China is just as much the working class at home as it is the external enemy. As demonstrated by the ban on TikTok and WeChat, the US-China conflict has already become the occasion for major inroads on the freedom of speech, and the escalation of the conflict would create a pretext for further attacks on democratic rights.

No one should have illusions that the Democrats are opposed to Trumps anti-Chinese aggression. They have fully embraced the framework spelled out by the White House and claimed that Trump is soft on China.

As Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations, told the Wall Street Journal on September 10, Regardless of who wins, US policy toward China is going to be tougher over the next five years than the last five years. China has changed, and the US thinking on China has changed.

Writing in the New York Times on Tuesday, economic historian Chris Miller published an op-ed column titled America Is Going to Decapitate Huawei, in which he warned that the US global lead in technology was waning. He wrote: Huaweis digital decapitation is a shocking display of American power. At the whim of the American president, any other Chinese tech company could suffer such a fate. Imagine if a foreign power could do the same to Google or Amazon.

The attacks on Huawei, TikTok and WeChat are all demonstrations of the criminality of American imperialism, but also ultimately an expression of the weakness and decline of the world hegemon that emerged after World War II. The US is using its geopolitical leverage to destroy the competitors to US-based social media companies.

Only the international working class has the ability to stop the descent into nationalist antagonisms that are leading from economic wars to military conflict and a new Third World War. The objective unity of the working class across national borders is the foundation of the struggle for socialism that must be taken up in the US, China and every country throughout the globe.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 05:51:54|Editor: huaxia

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GUATEMALA CITY, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- The Guatemalan government reported on Friday that President Alejandro Giammattei has tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

According to a statement issued by the government, Giammattei underwent a COVID-19 test for the sixth time, and the test returned positive.

The Office of the President stated that the head of state is currently undergoing medical monitoring and evaluation.

"The president will continue with his activities and will work for the benefit of the country, and will do so by taking the necessary measures to safeguard his health. In addition, he will be isolating himself from all public activity, so all communication will be done remotely," added the Office of the President.

The Guatemalan government also said that the president's case is a further sign of the highly contagious nature of the virus, and that citizens should continue to follow preventive health measures such as mask wearing, hand washing, and social distancing.

According to the Ministry of Health, Guatemala has registered 84,344 cases and 3,076 deaths from the virus to date. Enditem
Tulsa community leaders unveiled a historical marker outside Vernon AME Church on Saturday, marking the first tangible beginnings of a memorial that will recognize victims of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.

The large, blue plaque with gold lettering stands on the corner of North Greenwood Avenue and East Cameron Street in the Greenwood District, summarizing the events of the massacre and providing the historical context of racial terror lynchings in America.

Dr. Tiffany Crutcher, founder and co-chair of the Tulsa Community Remembrance Coalition thats heading the Community Remembrance Project and creation of the Black Wall Street Memorial, said the unveiling represented a major milestone in Tulsa.

The historical marker represents the first destination point on Greenwood that speaks to the true unspeakable tragedy that occurred almost 100 years ago, Crutcher said in a message to the Tulsa World. I feel like now people from all over the world will be able to walk down Greenwood and learn about the significance of the sacred land that they have embarked upon.

Several residents and tourists had already stopped by to see the sign Saturday afternoon.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 19:27:42|Editor: huaxia

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ISLAMABAD, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Pakistan army said on Saturday that the security forces have killed four terrorists in southwestern Balochistan province during an operation.

An army statement said the security forces conducted an intelligence-based operation on confirmation of presence of terrorists in Awaran district of Balochistan, and killed four terrorists in exchange of fire.

The statement from the army's media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations, said the terrorists' hideout and a logistic base were destroyed while a large cache of arms, ammunition and communication equipment recovered.

The army statement did not provide information about the affiliation of the terrorists.

Earlier on Sunday, the Pakistani military said security forces had killed a terrorist commander along with three other terrorists in the Waziristan area of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Enditem
The weather bureau on Sunday issued a yellow alert - heavy rain warning across isolated areas - for Mumbai and Thane for Monday and Tuesday. The city and suburbs could expect rain with thundershowers on Sunday, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

Enhanced rain activity is expected between September 19-22 for various areas in Maharashtra due to the likely formation of a low-pressure area over northeast Bay of Bengal by Sunday. Under its impact, lower level westerly winds are likely to strengthen and its associated convergence is expected over the west coast, said KS Hosalikar, deputy director-general, western region, IMD.

Active monsoon conditions were expected over Konkan and Goa, he added. This could allow very heavy to extremely heavy rain across isolated areas of south Konkan in the coming days while moderate to heavy rain in isolated areas is expected across interior Maharashtra and parts of north Konkan, said Hosalikar.

Also read: Stop selling fake Khadi products: Centre to Flipkart, Amazon, Snapdeal

On Saturday, more rain was recorded towards the suburbs than south Mumbai and heavy rain over some areas in northern suburbs.

The Santacruz weather observatory recorded 12.4 mm rain while Colaba recorded 2 mm rain between 8.30 am and 5.30 pm. Maximum rain was recorded at Bhayander at 89 mm during the same time, followed by Mira Road at 46 mm. Malad recorded 29.4 mm while Bandra 13.4 mm.

Cloud cover with the possibility of light to moderate rain or thundershowers has been predicted for Sunday.
(Newser)  President Trump said Saturday that his pick to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg would probably come in the next week and would "most likely" be a woman, the AP reports. He also disagreed with a Republican who broke ranks, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who said Ginsburg's replacement should be chosen by the president who is elected Nov. 3. "We won and we have an obligation as the winners to pick who we want. That's not the next president," Trump told reporters as he left the White House. "Hopefully I'll be the next president. But, we're here now, right now, we're here, and we have an obligation to the voters, all of the people, the millions of people that put us here in the form of a victory, we have an obligation to them, to all of those voters."

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The New York Times reports that Collins, who is facing a tough reelection battle, said Trump "has the constitutional authority to make a nomination," and she has "no objection" to senators "reviewing his nominees credentials." But she added that "in fairness to the American people, who will either be re-electing the president or selecting a new one, the decision on a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court should be made by the President who is elected on November 3rd." Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has vowed to call a vote for Trump's upcoming nomineebut the Times notes that McConnell can only afford to lose three Republican colleagues. With Collins, it's one down. (Meet the judge that Trump has reportedly been "saving.")
When Carlo Valmorbida took over Carlton's beloved King & Godfree building in 1955 and turned it into a smallgoods shop selling Italian staples, few could have predicted it would begin the migrant family's rise to the rich list.

But by the early 2000s, the Valmorbidas had amassed a reported $500 million empire through importing goods including Lavazza coffee, tuna, wine and Parmesan cheese.

Despite their wealth, and a penchant for red Ferraris, most family members have kept a low profile, but a multimillion-dollar will battle between patriarch Mariano Valmorbida and his son's widow threatens to thrust their private affairs into the spotlight.

Mariano Valmorbida in a 2006 ad for Sirena Tuna. Credit:YouTube

Mariano's son, flamboyant property developer Adrian Valmorbida, died in 2016 after a long battle with cancer, leaving his widow Kairu 'Erica' Chan and their two daughters, Xuan, 14, and Ruowei, 8, as beneficiaries of various trusts, one of which has had an income of more than $17 million since 2014.
A 16-year-old boy has been charged as an adult with killing a New Orleans man during a Bridge City drug deal.

A Jefferson Parish grand jury on Thursday indicted Shane Kerner of Bridge City with second-degree murder and three counts of attempted second-degree murder in the May 28 shooting death of Timothy Cushing, 38, according to court records.

After drug deal turns deadly, 16-year-old booked with murder in Bridge City double shooting A drug deal devolved into violence Thursday night in when authorities say a 16-year-old boy shot and killed one man and wounded another in Bri

Cushing was fatally wounded after he and three other people drove to the 100 block of Ninth Street to buy drugs from Kerner, the Sheriff's Office says. The transaction turned violent, though investigators haven't said why. Kerner is accused of brandishing a gun and shooting at car.

Investigators said Cushing was sitting behind the drivers seat and was shot several times. The 22-year-old driver suffered gunshot wounds to his arm and side. The other two passengers were not injured.

As the the driver sped off, the Sheriff's Office began receiving 911 calls reporting gunfire in the area. But deputies found nothing but spent shell casings on the ground.

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In Little Caesars machete attack, Jefferson Parish DA charges man with attempted murder The Jefferson Parish District Attorney's Office on Wednesday formally filed a charge of attempted second-degree murder against a man accused o

Within about 10 minutes, however, the Sheriff's Office received word that two gunshot victims had just arrived at West Jefferson Medical Center in Marrero. Cushing succumbed to his injuries, but the car's driver survived.

Investigators took Kerner into custody back at his home a short time later. They have not publicly described any evidence against him.

He's been held at L. Robert Rivarde detention center in Harvey since his arrest. After he was indicted, the court ordered him transferred to the parish jail in Gretna, according to court records. Bond was set at $1.8 million.

Kerner is scheduled to be arraigned on Sept. 21.
The University of Toronto Mississaugas student union (UTMSU) announced on Friday that two people diagnosed with COVID-19 had entered the student centre.

The student centre, as well as several other facilities, will be closed for the next two weeks, wrote the student union in a release.

They did not specify whether the cases were in students, faculty or staff of the university.

Jane Stirling, executive director of communications with UTM, told the Star that they are aware of these reports.

Direction is being taken from Peel Public Health to support contact tracing and those affected, she said. In accordance with public health guidelines, cleaning and disinfection of the UTMSU Student Centre will be undertaken and the centre will be closed until this is completed.

Currently, the UTMSU Offices, the InfoBooth, the Blind Duck Pub, and the Duck Stop have been closed, according to the UTMSU. They are also suspending the U-Pass, which offers students unlimited fare-free transit rides in Mississauga.

The UTMSU is exploring alternative options in order to safely and promptly distribute U-Passes and will inform members once service resumes, they said.

Close contacts of the COVID-19 cases have been asked to self-isolate and get tested.

All members of our community are asked to monitor their health for COVID-19 symptoms daily and use U of Ts new UCheck self-assessment web portal before coming to campus or leaving their residence room, said Stirling.

Meanwhile, the UTMSU said theyre working with Peel Public Health to reopen in light of the recent changes to in-person gatherings.

In the meantime, we invite all students to access our virtual services, events, and campaigns, they wrote.

The UTMSU did not respond to requests for comment by time of publication.

Kevin Jiang is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Reach him via email: kjiang@thestar.ca

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Indias Border Security Force (BSF) and Bangladeshs Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) have decided to work together to ensure that incidents of deaths on the Indo-Bangladesh border can be decreased as the four-day long biannual meet between the border security forces of both the nations ended on Saturday.

In a press release after the conference, BSF said that both the parties agreed to reduce instances of death at the border. The BGB officials ahead of the meeting had highlighted the rise in the number of deaths on the border, but BSF maintained that it only fires with non-lethal weapons only in self-defence when they are surrounded by a large number of armed miscreants.

BSF also stated that the death or apprehension of criminals on the border are irrespective of nationalities.

BGB Director General (DG) major general Md Shafeenul Islam also assured BSF DG Rakesh Asthana that both the forces will work together to check the rise and activities of insurgent groups of India and share realtime information on drug trafficking, human trafficking, smuggling of fake Indian currency notes and damaging of the Indo-Bangladesh border.

BGB Director General Islam also took up the issue of mentally challenged persons crossing into Bangladesh. Asthana assured him that a detailed SOP will be released to deal with this issue.

This was the 50th border coordination conference between both nations. During the conference, both sides lauded each other for their efforts to improve mutual relations through Confidence Building Measures (CBMs). These Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) will resume once the situation around the coronavirus pandemic becomes normal.

The next conference between the BSF and the BGB will be held in India, according to the press release.
John Turner, Canadas 17th prime minister who held the office for just 79 days in 1984, died on Saturday aged 91.

Former Canadian Prime Minister John Turner, who was in office for only 11 weeks in the 1980s, has died at age 91, Canadian media outlets reported on Saturday.

Turner served as the countrys 17th prime minister and, despite his short tenure at the helm of a Liberal Party government in 1984, he spent decades in Canadian federal politics.

Turner took over from Pierre Elliott Trudeau  current Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus father  in late June 1984 at a time of increasing voter fatigue with the Liberals, who had been in power for 20 of the previous 21 years.

At that point, he had already held the posts of finance and justice minister.

But his 79-day tenure as prime minister was the second shortest in Canadian history. He resigned as Liberal leader in 1990 and was replaced by Jean Chretien, who led the party to victory in 1993.

Turners time in federal politics was perhaps best remembered for his battles with former Conservative Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, especially over free trade with the United States, CBC News reported.

Distinguished service

On Saturday, legislators from across the Canadian political spectrum shared their memories of Turner, whom many described as being deeply devoted to the public service, and sent their condolences to his family.

Former Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who held the post from 2006 to 2015, said Turner served his family and country with great dignity.

His legacy and commitment to public service will be remembered for generations, Harper tweeted.

Liberal parliament member Yvan Baker said Turner was one of his early political role models.

Canada meant everything to him, and he will be remembered for his life-long & distinguished service to this country, Baker wrote on Twitter, alongside an image of himself with the late former prime minister.

Deeply saddened to learn former PM John Turner has passed away. He was one of my first political role models. Canada meant everything to him, and he will be remembered for his life-long & distinguished service to this country. My sympathies to his family at this difficult time. pic.twitter.com/U1Mq6pX1ZE  Yvan Baker, MP (@Yvan_Baker) September 19, 2020

Bob Rae, a longtime politician and now Canadas ambassador to the United Nations, said Turner was many things  a lawyer, Rhodes scholar, athlete  but a believer above all in the public service.

Canadas Minister of Indigenous-Crown Affairs, Carolyn Bennett, said she would miss Turners wise counsel.

He cared deeply about this country and our democratic institutions. We must now all carry his torch as we build an even better Canada, she tweeted.
And as we have witnessed over time, there is no tact or courtesy in politics that either side must practice. Parties have argued this issue both ways when it suits them. President Barack Obama nominated Merrick Garland in the last year of his second term  we urged an up-or-down vote  but the Senate sat on it. Years earlier, one Democratic senator took an opposite approach. He said: Once the political season is underway, and it is, action on a Supreme Court nomination must be put off until after the election campaign is over. That was Joe Biden.
Four Corners screens a BBC Panorama special, which exposes a predatory network of human traffickers.

People need to know that in the 21st-century people can be used for money and treated like animals. That story needs to be told. Witness for the prosecution

In a small police interview room, victim after victim came forward to give alarming accounts of being exploited by a predatory family crime gang that turned them into modern day slaves.

We realised from the intelligence information we were gaining from the victims that behind all this was an organised crime group. A very organised crime group. Undercover slavery investigator

Police and anti-slavery investigators were on the trail of a large family group who were trafficking hundreds of desperate and vulnerable people.

Its quite vindictive really, to do that to people from your own country. But she was making money. So I think its just a greed issue. Investigating officer

Over three years, police tracked the family crime group who kept their victims in squalid conditions and stole wages to fund their own lifestyle. The trial that followed unmasked the family as the operators of Britains largest modern slavery ring.

Its the largest human trafficking, labour exploitation case in Britain ever and it is taking down a very large organised crime group and gouging out its heart. Anti-slavery barrister

With exclusive access to both the police investigation and the court case, the BBCs Panorama program captured the dramatic events as they unfolded.

Im never confident what the verdict will be, I have no clue. Because who knows what goes on in the room? Barrister for the prosecution

The case provides an insight into the staggering scale of modern slavery across the world.

It is everywhere. We probably touch, receive, buy, something that has gone through the victim of human trafficking every day. Lead investigator

Investigators and lawyers say this case stands as a powerful warning of how exploitative behaviour can take place in plain sight, and how much more needs to be done to stamp it out.

We cant stop this, not immediately, but we can try. And we can educate and we can make a change and we can send a message and the message is we will not tolerate this behaviour here. Anti-slavery barrister

Monday 21st September at 8.30pm on ABC.
Politicians from all persuasions paid tribute to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg after her death on Friday evening. Hillary Clinton said she paved the way for so many women, including me, and Rudy Giuliani called her a credit to the Court. The acknowledgment from both sides of the aisle speak to Ginsburgs enormous influence on the law in the 27 years she served on the Supreme Courtand underscore just how brutal the partisan fight over her replacement is poised to be. But RBG was a historical cultural figure, in addition to a political one. Remembrances have also poured in from Hollywood stars, prominent athletes, business titans, and more, all celebrating the towering legacy of a deceptively diminutive woman.

Justice Ginsburg paved the way for so many women, including me. There will never be another like her. Thank you RBG.  Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 19, 2020

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The passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a tremendous loss to our country. She was an extraordinary champion of justice and equal rights, and will be remembered as one of the great justices in modern American history.  Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) September 19, 2020

Tonight, the flags are flying at half staff over the Capitol to honor the patriotism of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Every woman and girl, and therefore every family, in America has benefitted from her brilliance.  Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) September 19, 2020

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Ruth Bader Ginsburg embodied justice, brilliance and goodness. Her passing is an incalculable loss for our democracy and for all who sacrifice and strive to build a better future for our children. pic.twitter.com/BufY4jXPR8  Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) September 19, 2020

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Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a credit to the Court.



I disagreed with many of her decisions but they were all well reasoned and well argued.



She was a close friend of her ideological opposite, Justice Scalia.



They both loved opera, law and the U.S.A.



May She Rest In Peace  Rudy W. Giuliani (@RudyGiuliani) September 18, 2020

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A statement from former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, courtesy of the @CarterCenter. pic.twitter.com/vCpC2CQwUf  Jimmy Carter Library (@CarterLibrary) September 19, 2020

Rest in peace Ruth Bader Ginsburg - a true legend, an iconoclast, a glass ceiling breaker, and a feminist icon. She changed the world in so many incredible ways. Prayers, love and strength to her family during this dark time. I hope you have fun with Antonin Scalia in heaven...  Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) September 18, 2020

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A shock. A sadness. A great loss. The passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg leaves a hole in a nation already reeling. She is an American hero, in every sense. We can honor her by joining to carry forth her legacy of equality, empathy, and justice. May she Rest in Peace.  Dan Rather (@DanRather) September 18, 2020

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg led a remarkable life of consequence. She worked with passion & conviction, inspired many women, offered hope to other cancer survivors.



Prayers to her loved ones.



May She Rest In Peace.  Kellyanne Conway (@KellyannePolls) September 19, 2020

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RIP Ruth Bader Ginsburg - accomplished so much yet gone too soon. Your example will live on.  https://t.co/KzhHAS6vDM pic.twitter.com/RkH1FjsGBx  Andrew Yang (@AndrewYang) September 18, 2020

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This is devastating, an incalculable loss. We owe so much to RBG. Rest in Power Ruth Bader Ginsburg. #RIPRBG  Megan Rapinoe (@mPinoe) September 19, 2020

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Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was one of the strongest forces this country has known.



She gave everything she had to the cause of justice for all.



Grateful to the family and friends who shared her with us for a lifetime. Keeping them  and this country  in our prayers tonight.  Rep. Joe Kennedy III (@RepJoeKennedy) September 18, 2020

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was the kind of scholar and patriot you get excited about explaining to your kids. The kind of person who you say who knows, one day you could be HER. I hope you rest well, RBG, you must have been tired from changing the world.  Mindy Kaling (@mindykaling) September 19, 2020

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I'm very sad to hear about the passing of my parents' good friend, and my father's wonderful colleague, Justice Ginsburg. May her memory be a blessing. I'd like to share a couple of passages that convey what she meant to my dad.../3  Christopher J. Scalia (@cjscalia) September 18, 2020

An icon. A hero. A woman way ahead of her time.



Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Dies At 87 https://t.co/owly4HAkTm  Amy Klobuchar (@amyklobuchar) September 18, 2020

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Ruth Bader Ginsburg spent her life in pursuit of an equal world. She fought for the unheard, and through her decisions, she changed the course of American history. We can never repay what she has given us, but we all can honor her legacy by working toward true equality, together. pic.twitter.com/lh6bioRuED  Tim Cook (@tim_cook) September 19, 2020

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So sorry for Ruth Bader Ginsburgs family and for our country. She was a fighter and she was firmly on the side of justice. I hope her example and her legacy can inspire us all in the fight of our lives. RIP RBG.  Beto O'Rourke (@BetoORourke) September 18, 2020

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Women belong in all places where decisions are being made.



Thank you, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Well keep pushing our way into all the places weve yet to be invited.  Brie Larson (@brielarson) September 19, 2020

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a titan of justice. Her jurisprudence expanded the rights of all Americans, shaping our lives for the better. And her example now shines within the history of our country, there to inspire generations. pic.twitter.com/GffcMQivDx  Pete Buttigieg (@PeteButtigieg) September 18, 2020

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The world has lost a pioneer in the fight for gender equality in Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Her brilliant legal mind underpinned her resolute and tireless commitment to equal justice for all Americans under the law. Thank you, RBG, for helping to build a more just & democratic America.  Al Gore (@algore) September 19, 2020

We have lost a giant in the history of our nation with the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg.



It is heartbreaking that in her final moments she was, as are many others, preoccupied with what would happen after her passing.



I want to make one thing clear: we can, and must, fight. https://t.co/QEDDFtSwmK  Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) September 19, 2020

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We lost a hero today. We must carry her memory and purpose. Justice for all. https://t.co/j0DajK4FMg#VoteforScience  Bill Nye (@BillNye) September 19, 2020

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A profound and fearless advocate for women, equality, and justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburgs impact will undoubtedly be felt for generations. My thoughts are with her family, colleagues, and all who were inspired by her lifetime of service.  Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) September 19, 2020

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MYIS BROKEN.RUTH BADER GINSBURG,2ND FEMALE SUPREME COURT JUSTICE HAS DIED.SHE WAS 1 OF GREATEST WOMEN INHISTORY.SHE WAS THE ONLY THING BETWEEN US & THE DEATH OF JUSTICE & FREEDOM 4 POOR, WOMEN,VOTING,RACIAL EQUALITY,HEALTHCARE, EVERYTHING IVE BELIEVED IN MY ENTIRE LIFEOH  Cher (@cher) September 19, 2020

Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer who devoted her entire career to fighting for equal justice for women, because she knew it would improve life for everyone. America is a better place because of her service. I am inspired by her life and legacy. https://t.co/hFksGoIXXZ  Bill Gates (@BillGates) September 19, 2020

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At the core of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs extraordinary life was a simple conviction: Women belong, she said, in all places where decisions are being made.  Melinda Gates (@melindagates) September 19, 2020

She was a brilliant jurist, an inimitable Supreme Court justice, a force for equality and integrityand she was one of my heroes. There will never be another RBG, but we are a much better, fairer country for all that she gave us.  Melinda Gates (@melindagates) September 19, 2020

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Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a giant of the Supreme Court. She was an inspiration to legal scholars and women. As for her replacement, Mitch McConnell set the precedent: no nominees even get a hearing this close to an election. pic.twitter.com/ptvzSgUG6c  Barbra Streisand (@BarbraStreisand) September 19, 2020

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"She dedicated many of her 87 remarkable years to the pursuit of justice and equality, and she inspired more than one generation of women and girls," President George W. Bush says in statement on the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. pic.twitter.com/8ocrYawxUU  NBC News (@NBCNews) September 19, 2020

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A Champion and a Fighter not only for Womens rights but all Americans. The World is a poorer place with the loss of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The battle for democracy just became more challenging... now is the time to stand up and be counted. RIP RBG pic.twitter.com/14gIZL7l8E  tori amos (@toriamos) September 19, 2020

What a great and grand woman. May God bless the memory of the Notorious RBG, Ruth Bader Ginsburg.  https://t.co/B8s2uXAt3C  Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) September 19, 2020

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My statement on the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg: pic.twitter.com/fFtoOypOrj  Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) September 19, 2020

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a true champion and trailblazer for justice & equality  and a great New Yorker.



She fought for progress in our country and our country is better for it.



Its up to all of us to continue that fight.  Mike Bloomberg (@MikeBloomberg) September 19, 2020

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A man charged with carrying drugs into a music festival had no previous convictions, the local district court was told last week.

On August 8, 2019, Jonathan Martin Hoban, Ballywatten, Tynagh, Loughrea, Co. Galway, attended a music festival at Charleville Castle in Tullamore.

He was caught with cocaine, ecstasy and ketamine. The value of the drugs was 330.

Mr Hoban had no previous convictions and wasn't selling them for profit. His solicitor said he had naively opted to carry the drugs into the concert.

The mechanical engineering student was also working part-time in Greenisle Foods. He was very concerned and had informed the college and his place of work in relation to the charges against him, the court heard. He was described as hard-working and his father was in court with him.

Judge Staines asked him if he was still taking cocaine. He said no.

She told him cocaine comes from places like Columbia and Brazil and the people who are involved in the drugs trade in these places create devastation in their countries through murder and rape so they can provide cocaine "to young privileged people like you."

You are part of that and are supporting that chain," said Judge Staines.

She asked him if he realised that the offence carried a 12-month prison sentence. She told him he had shown total disrespect for his father.

However, she noted he had no previous convictions and was trying to study.

Judge Staines said she would give him an opportunity to make a contribution to charity and directed him to pay 500 to Offaly Domestic Violence Support Services who she said did great work.

"You will only get this chance once," added Judge Staines.

Striking out the case she told him he would get this chance only once. "Go to festivals and enjoy yourself. You don't need drugs to enjoy yourself," she advised.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 16:03:11|Editor: huaxia

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Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa calls for the construction of a multi-billion-USD Port City project to be accelerated, saying it is a landmark in the island country and will be the main income generator for the future. Rajapaksa has inspected the Colombo Port City construction site in the heart of capital Colombo to mark the sixth anniversary since the project. Launched in 2014, it was jointly developed by the Sri Lankan government and China's CHEC Port City Colombo (Pvt) Ltd. The prime minister says he hopes that the project would be completed soon, so that it would be a major economic boost for the island country.
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Linkedin Adrian Wail Akhlas (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19 2020

The government has proposed providing Rp 37.38 trillion (US$2.5 billion) in capital injections for state-owned enterprises (SOEs) next year, some of which will be used to resolve the investment mismanagement scandal involving state insurer PT Asuransi Jiwasraya.

During a meeting with House Commission XI overseeing financial affairs on Tuesday, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said the capital injections were part of the governments investment plan for next year.

[The capital injections] will be used to finance the development of the Sumatra toll road, tourism development and [to fund] the opening of Batang industrial area, among other projects, she told lawmakers, referring to the Trans Sumatra toll road mega project and the development of the new industrial zone in Central Java.

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The triple amputee Iraq veteran accused of stealing from the We Build The Wall campaign along with Steve Bannon and two others, has claimed the charges leveled against him are part of a 'politically motivated' scheme targeting Trump associates.

Brian Kolfage, 38, is charged with stealing $350,000 from the multimillion-dollar GoFundMe account he set up in support of President Trump's wall initiative in 2018.

Federal prosecutors last month alleged the Purple Heart had siphoned some of the money to fund his and his wife's lavish lifestyle and had spent it on boats, an SUV, plastic surgery, jewelry, home renovations and credit card debt.

Kolfage on Saturday spoke out against the indictment in his first interview since his arrest, accusing federal prosecutors in Manhattan of fabricating the allegations as part of a political witch hunt.

Brian Kolfage, 38, and his wife Ashley, 33, are accused of being the main beneficiaries of the fraudulent scheme, according to prosecutors. The pair live in Miramar Beach on Florida's panhandle. They are pictured on their boat

The triple amputee Iraq veteran (pictured in New Mexico last year) has been charged with stealing $350,000 from the multimillion-dollar GoFundMe account he set up in support of President Trump's wall initiative in 2018

Kolfage launched the private wall effort in December 2018. He took it off GoFundMe recently because, he claimed, the company was not allowing him to fundraise for victims of assaults by BLM protesters

'They made it up. It's so blatantly false. If they can do this to us they can do it to anybody,' he told the New York Post by phone.

'Everyone knows that the Southern District is really the sovereign district. They do their own things. They went after Rudy Giuliani. They do what they want to do and it's politically motivated.'

Kolfage's comments appeared to echo those of alleged accomplice Steve Bannon, who last month blasted his prosecution as a 'political hit job'.

The former Trump advisor claimed the allegations were an attempt 'to stop and intimidate people that want to talk about the wall.'

The GoFundMe initiative had raised $27million after it was backed by Republican donors in support of the border wall.

Prosecutors however, say Kolfage, Bannon, Timothy Shea and Andrew Badolato allegedly used shell companies and a not-for-profit formed by Bannon to launder the money back to Kolfage and keep some for themselves.

Bannon and Kolfage are pictured in a video on the We Build The Wall website

Former Trump advisor Steve Bannon leaves U.S. District Court - Southern District of New York located at 500 Pearl Street in New York City after he was arraigned for alleged scheme to defraud the non-profit on August 20, 2020. Three other men, Brian Kolfage, Andrew Badolato and Timothy Shea, were also arrested in this alleged scheme to defraud the non-profit, which authorities said raised more than $25 million

Bannon was arrested and later released after putting up $5million bail, secured by $1.75million in assets.

In his interview with the Post, Kolfage also denied that his wife Ashley had received money from the scheme and claimed he is able to support his 'good middle class family' from the payouts he receives from the Department of Veteran Affairs.

'I'm not living a lavish life by any freaking means,' he said. 'Thank God I have a house that was given to me by the Gary Sinise Foundation.'

Kolfage with former President George Bush. He lost an arm and both his legs in 2004 in Iraq. After returning from the war, Kolfage married Ashley - a former Chilli's waitress. They lived quietly until Trump's political victory, when they then became vocal supporters. The pair are shown with Eric Trump (right) last February

Prior to the scandal, Kolfage had been hailed as a decorated war hero after he was nearly killed and lost an arm and both his legs in a rocket attack in Iraq on September 11, 2004.

Initially, Kolfage was celebrated by members of both parties.

In March, he told Reuters he had begun accepting $10,000 a month in salary from the wall organization, saying the amount was modest compared to salaries paid by other nonprofits of that size.

Actually, according to the indictment, he had received a one-time payment of $100,000 as early as February 2019, plus $20,000 a month routed through a Bannon nonprofit and corporations that were supposedly working on the wall project.
DEAL OF THE WEEK

Mays Debut Draws Seven Figures In a seven-figure deal, Custom Houses Katherine Nintzel bought North American rights to Wahala by Nikki May in a two-book agreement. The publisher said the debut novel was acquired by Doubleday Books in the U.K. It was pitched as Sex and the City meets My Sister the Serial Killer and follows three 30-something Anglo-Nigerian women in London whose lives are blown apart when a glamorous friend from their past reappears. The author, who was born in England and raised in Nigeria, was represented by Catherine Cho at Londons Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency. May ran an ad agency in the U.K. before becoming a full-time writer.

FROM THE U.S.

Mainess Memoir Goes to Dial

Transgender activist and actress Nicole Maines sold a currently untitled memoir to Dial Press. Caitlin McKenna took world rights to the book from Lauren MacLeod and Wendy Strothman at the Strothman Agency. Mainess book, Dial said, aims to correct some of the most insidious messaging absorbed by queer kids and all young womenfrom the idea that any one thing can (or should) ever really fix you to wondering whats wrong with you when things dont always feel betterby providing an intimate look at her life and all the lessons shes learned along the way.

Morrow Buys Wedges Slam

Journalist and true crime author Dave Wedge sold a book about longtime ATF agent Ken Crokes infiltration of an outlaw motorcycle gang to William Morrow. Matt Harper took North American rights to Slam: Taking Down the Notorious Pagan Motorcycle Club for six figures. Peter Steinberg at Foundry Literary + Media, who sold the book, said Croke spent two years infiltrating the Pagan Motorcycle Club (which was a rival of the Hells Angels), and that during this period he led a heart-pounding, dangerous double life faking drug use, living with killers, even going to jail while remaining undercover. Wedge, a former investigative reporter at the Boston Herald, is the author of Boston Strong: A Citys Triumph over Tragedy (which was adapted into the film Patriots Day).

Cervantes Closes Double at Auction

After a seven-house auction, Razorbills Julie Rosenberg bought world English rights to J.C. Cervantess YA novel Flirting with Fate in a two-book deal. Holly Root at Root Literary represented Cervantes. The second book is a currently untitled novel. Root said Flirting with Fate is an L.A.-set contemporary romance that introduces three hilarious, tight-knit sisters; the ghost of their dearly departed grandmother; and a fifth-century saint charged with aiding them in setting their fate right. The novel is set for 2021.

Newman Lands at Scribner

Former Oprah.com editor Leigh Newman sold two books to Kathy Belden at Scribner. The first, Nobody Gets Out Alive, is her debut short story collection and, Belden said, is set in Alaska. It features tales of women living the kind of frontier life we associate with men. The second book, The Survivalists, is Newmans debut novel and follows a family who discover that a survivalist squatter has taken up residence near their remote cabin in Alaska. Nicole Aragi at Aragi Inc. represented Newman in the North American rights agreement.

Chopra Hits Peak at Crown

Deepak Chopra sold Peak Living: The Hidden Path to Abundance to Diana Baroni at Crown for a rumored seven figures. The world rights agreement was brokered by Robert Gottlieb at Trident Media Group. Gottlieb said the book offers a step-by-step solution to stripping away unnatural feelings of self-doubt and fear, so we can instead embrace our natural state of abundance and tap into real happiness and wealth.
YBO - Chairman of the Yen Bai provincial Peoples Committee Do Duc Duy recently had a working session with a delegation of the Foreign Ministry led by Ambassador Nguyen Hoang Long, Director of the ministrys Department for Foreign Affairs of Provinces.

Chairman of the Yen Bai provincial Peoples Committee Do Duc Duy presents flowers to Ambassador Nguyen Hoang Long, Director of the Foreign Ministrys Department for Foreign Affairs of Provinces, to congratulate him on his appointment as Vietnamese Ambassador to the UK.

The meeting looked into issues relevant to Yen Bais plan to attract investment from the UK and the provinces demand for international cooperation so that the Foreign Ministry can help it connect with British partners and investors in the time ahead.





Chairman Duy informed the Foreign Ministrys delegation about the provinces external relations and cooperation activities with countries in the recent past, along with the local socio-economic development, especially the attraction of investment to the spheres Yen Bai has strength in.





Accordingly, the UK is a new market to Yen Bai. Sharing the same trend of the whole country, the provinces exports to the UK grew substantially in 2019 with such outstanding products as white marble, colouring admixtures and apparel.













The Foreign Ministrys unit and individuals with excellent performance in coordinating with and assisting Yen Bai in diplomatic activities between 2015 and 2019 receive merit certificates from the provincial Peoples Committee.





The chairman expressed his hope that the Department for Foreign Affairs of Provinces will continue supporting Yen Bai in external affairs, international economic integration and foreign investment attraction.





Director Long talked about measures to assist the province to effectively carry out external affairs and expand international cooperation.





He noted that the Foreign Ministry will always stand side by side with Yen Bai to help it connect with foreign partners, embassies, business associations and non-governmental organisations in Vietnam.





On this occasion, Chairman Duy congratulated Ambassador Long on his appointment as Vietnamese Ambassador to the UK. He also presented the provincial Peoples Committees certificates of merit to one unit and three individuals of the Foreign Ministry in recognition of their excellent performance in coordinating with and assisting Yen Bai in external affairs between 2015 and 2019.




Defence ministry says air raids killed Taliban fighters, has launched investigation into reports of civilian casualties.

At least 11 civilians were killed and more than 10 others wounded on Saturday in twin air strikes on a Taliban base in the northeastern Afghan province of Kunduz, a provincial official said.

The Taliban issued a statement accusing Afghan forces of killing at least 40 civilians in the air raids. The armed group did not comment on casualties among its fighters.

Defence ministry officials in Kabul, who said more than 40 Taliban fighters had been killed in the strikes, did not confirm any civilian casualties. They said an investigation was under way into the incident, which comes as the warring sides hold peace talks.

The first strike hit the Taliban base but the second one caused civilian casualties as they had gathered at the bombed site, said Fatima Aziz, a member of parliament who represents Kunduz.

This morning, Taliban fighters attacked [Afghan army] positions in  Khan Abad district in Kunduz province, the defence ministry said in a statement on Twitter.

The military intercepted the attack in accordance with active defence procedures, the statement added, noting the dead included two commanders.

Aziz said 11 civilians were killed and five people were missing in the Khan Abad district of Kunduz province.

According to another witness, the air raids killed 12 civilians, including children, and wounded 18 others and Taliban fighters were also among the dead.

The attack came shortly before President Ashraf Ghani again called for a humanitarian ceasefire to protect our people, prevent violence and terrorist incidents and to achieve a dignified and lasting peace.

The Taliban has so far ignored such requests, though it has unilaterally called two short, separate truces this year in the run-up to peace talks.

Fighting between Afghan forces and the Taliban has continued even as representatives of the government and the armed group gathered in Qatar last week for historic peace talks aimed at ending about 20 years of war.

The negotiations are a result of a deal between the Taliban and the US signed in February, which also paved the way for the withdrawal of all foreign forces by May 2021.








A 19th-century walnut bedroom suite that was once possibly at Castle Freke comes up at the online Lynes & Lynes sale in Carrigtwohill next Saturday (September 26) at 11am. Extending viewing for this sale gets underway today.

The nucleus of this 368-lot auction is two long-undisturbed house contents, one at Monkstown, other at Rossa Street, Clonakilty.

No fewer than six watercolours by Lady Kate Dobbin emerged from the house in Monkstown. Notes on the back indicate that Lady Kate, who died in 1955, was a friend of the family. This house has yielded silver, period furniture, old swords, jewellery, glass, porcelain and antique paintings.

Ship Unloading at Cork Quays by Lady Kate Dobbin at Lynes & Lynes.

Auctioneer Denis Lynes describes lot 120, the walnut bedroom suite, as "amazing". In an era of built-in units and what sometimes seems to be a downright lack of respect for the skill and crafts of old this is estimated at just 800-1,200.

It is known that it emerged from one of the great west Cork house auctions of times long past and Mr Lynes speculates that this could well have been the three-day contents auction of Castle Freke conducted by the venerable Cork firm of Marshs in October 1919.

The selection of lots includes an Irish hunt table (1,500-2,000), an antique glass hall light fitting (200-300), a pair of buttoned leather armchairs (600-1,000), an English blue and white tureen (100-200), a 19th-century Cantonese vase (400-600.), four Georgian silver salts (100-200), a 19th-century Admiral Fitzroy cased oak storm barometer (300-500), a cast-iron famine pot (300-500) and a pair of old entrance gates and side gates (300-500).

A 21-carat gold and enamel necklace is estimated at 1,000-1,500. Among the artworks on offer is Ship Unloading on the Cork Quays by Lady Kate Dobbin (600-1,000), Creamery Bound by Jeanne Rynhart (60-100) and a Chinese silk panel (150-250).

Books on offer include Elephant and Seladang Hunting in the Federated Malay States, London, 1905, by Theodore R. Hubback (1,000-1,500).
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the powerhouse Supreme Court justice and champion for women's rights, has died at the age of 87.

"Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died this evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, D.C., due to complications of metastatic pancreas cancer," Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg said.

Her death while still serving on the Court, a scenario long-dreaded by liberals, creates a rare election-year opportunity for President Donald Trump to nominate a conservative replacement, triggering a pitched political battle.

"Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague," Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement. "Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her -- a tireless and resolute champion of justice."

Related: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg announces her cancer has returned

Ginsburg had become the standard bearer for the court's liberal wing, writing landmark opinions that advanced gender equality and rights for disabled Americans and immigrants in her more than quarter century on the bench.

She was equally known for impassioned dissents on major social issues -- from affirmative action to equal pay -- which earned her a sort of rock-star status among progressives and inspired lawmakers on how to legislate social change.

MORE: Former President Bill Clinton reveals abortion conversation with Ruth Bader Ginsburg before nomination

"In the last 26 years, she has far exceeded even my expectations," former President Bill Clinton, who appointed Ginsburg to the court, at a 2019 event honoring the justice at his presidential library. "We like her because she seems so totally on the level in a world hungry for people who are not trying to con you, who are on the level."

Ginsburg was the second woman to sit on the high court, joining Sandra Day O'Connor in 1993, and went on to become its longest-serving woman in history. She was the first female Jewish justice.

Story continues

PHOTO: Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, center, poses with her family at the Court in Washington, Oct. 1, 1993. (Doug Mills/AP Photo)

"Ruth Ginsburg is an inspiration," said Justice Brett Kavanaugh, the court's newest member, in his first public speech as a justice in 2019. He called her a "dedicated, hardworking and generous soul."

Chief Justice John Roberts has called Ginsburg a "rock star."

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the third woman and first Latina appointed to the Supreme Court, has likened her colleague to a "steel magnolia." "She's delicate on the outside," Sotomayor said of Ginsburg in 2018, "but she has an iron rod behind it."

Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg shares #MeToo experience

Throughout her career, Ginsburg defied gender norms and skeptics of her mettle.

She was one of just nine women in a class of 500 students at Harvard Law School in 1956 and became the first female member of the prestigious Harvard Law Review. She later transferred to Columbia University Law School, following her beloved husband Marty who landed a job in Manhattan.

When she graduated top of her class in 1959 without a single job offer from a New York law firm, she accepted a clerkship with a federal judge in Manhattan.

Undeterred, Ginsburg pursued the law through academia, first as a researcher at Columbia and later joining the faculty of Rutgers University in New Jersey, where she became one of the first women to teach at any American law school.

In the 1970s, Ginsburg began taking up sex discrimination cases with the ACLU and co-founded the organization's Women's Rights Project. She argued six cases before the Supreme Court and won five of them.

She argued on behalf of men as well as women, part of a strategy to fight gender inequality in a way that appealed to a predominantly male judiciary. In the 1975 case Weinberger v. Wiesenfeld, Ginsburg represented a widower seeking to recover his wife's Social Security survivor benefits, which at the time were only granted to widows. She won.

"I was doing what my mother taught me to do  be a good teacher," Ginsburg told a crowd at Meredith College in North Carolina last year. "It was getting the court to understand that these were no favors to women and opening their eyes to that reality was the challenge."

MORE: Ruth Bader Ginsburg: In a minute

President Jimmy Carter appointed Ginsburg to the U.S. Court of Appeals in 1980 where she spent 13 years and wrote hundreds of opinions. "What Jimmy Carter began was to change the complexion of the judiciary," she said of her nomination and that of 40 other women, a record.

In 1993, Justice Byron White announced his retirement from the Supreme Court, giving a young President Bill Clinton his first chance to make an appointment, just seven months after taking office. Clinton considered several candidates before settling on Ginsburg after a face-to-face Oval Office meeting.

"She was brilliant and had a good head on her shoulders. She was rigorous but warm hearted. She had a good sense of humor and sensible, attainable judicial philosophy," Clinton said recently, reflecting on his pick.

"I thought she had the ability to find common ground in a country increasingly polarized," he said. "She had already proved herself to be a healer. In short, I liked her and I believed in her."

The U.S. Senate confirmed Ginsburg on Aug. 3, 1993, by a vote of 96-3.

PHOTO: Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court William Rehnquist administers the oath of office to newly-appointed U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg as President Bill Clinton looks on, Aug. 10, 1993. (Kort Duce/AFP/Getty Images, FILE)

Judicial legacy

Her judicial philosophy advocated narrowly tailored, thoughtful decisions that did not get out too far ahead of public opinion or the responsibility of legislators to make policy.

Ginsburg famously lamented the Supreme Court's reasoning in its 1973 Roe v. Wade opinion, which grounded abortion rights in a constitutional right to privacy rather the principle of equal protection.

While she staunchly defended reproductive rights, Ginsburg believed the Court had gone too far, too fast, putting forward a "grand philosophy" at a time when many states were taking steps to "liberalize" abortion laws on their own.

"No measured motion, the Roe decision left virtually no state with laws fully conforming to the Court's delineation of abortion regulation still permissible," Ginsburg wrote in a 1993 Washington Post op-ed. "Around that extraordinary decision, a well-organized and vocal right-to-life movement rallied and succeeded, for a considerable time, in turning the legislative tide in the opposite direction."

She authored dozens of majority opinions in her career, earning a reputation among her colleagues for speed and accuracy.

"As a litigator and then as a judge, she changed the face of American anti-discrimination law," Justice Elena Kagan said of her colleague in 2014.

Ginsburg considered one of her most important opinions the 1996 case United States v. Virginia that found the Virginia Military Institute's male-only admission policy violated the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection clause.

"Neither the goal of producing citizen soldiers nor VMI's implementing methodology is inherently unsuitable to women," she wrote in an opinion joined by five of her colleagues. "And the school's impressive record in producing leaders has made admission desirable to some women."

Watch: Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Rare Interview

In her memoir, My Own Words, Ginsburg writes that she regards the case as "the culmination of the 1970s endeavor to open doors so that women could aspire and achieve without artificial constraints."

In 1999, Ginsburg delivered the majority opinion in Olmstead v. L.C. which affirmed the right of Americans with disabilities to receive state-funded support and services in their communities, instead of only designated institutions.

"We confront the question whether the proscription of discrimination may require placement of persons with mental disabilities in community settings rather than in institutions," she wrote. "The answer, we hold, is a qualified yes."

As the court moved to the right, Ginsburg often challenged her colleagues with polite but impassioned dissents.

"If there was one decision I would overrule, it would be Citizens United," she told law professor Jeffrey Rosen in 2019. "I think the notion that we have all the democracy that money can buy strays so far from what our democracy is supposed to be. So that's number one on my list."

One of her most famous dissents came in Bush v. Gore, which brought an end to the contested 2000 election and cleared the way for George W. Bush to claim the presidency. "I dissent," Ginsburg wrote sharply, breaking with the customary "I respectfully dissent" in a subtle protest.

"There's never been a case like Bush v. Gore before or since. From the day of that decision, continuing to this day, the Court has never cited it as precedent in any other case, and I think it will remain that way," she said in a lecture in 2014.

Defending abortion rights was a hallmark of her tenure. In 2007, Ginsburg blasted a narrow 5-4 decision in Gonzales v. Carhart upholding a ban on intact dilation and extraction abortions as "quite simply irrational."

"The notion that the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act furthers any legitimate governmental interest is, quite simply, irrational," she wrote in her dissent. "The Court's defense of it cannot be understood as anything other than an effort to chip away at a right declared again and again by this Court -- and with increasing comprehension of its centrality to women's lives."

Occasionally lawmakers used Ginsburg's dissents as inspiration for new legislation.

When the Court in 2007 upheld a statute of limitations for pay discrimination claims against Goodyear Tire, Ginsburg read her dissent from the bench and proposed a legislative fix.

"In our view, the court does not comprehend, or is indifferent to, the insidious way in which women can be victims of pay discrimination," she said.

PHOTO: In this July 31, 2014, file photo, Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in her chambers in at the Supreme Court in Washington. The Supreme Court says Ginsburg has died of metastatic pancreatic cancer at age 87. (Cliff Owen/AP)

Two years later, after action by Congress, President Barack Obama signed the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, named after the woman who had sued Goodyear and lost at the Supreme Court, extending the statute of limitations for future unequal pay claims. A framed copy of the law hung in Ginsburg's chambers.

"The idea that the dissent put forward was the soul of simplicity," Ginsburg later said. "It said, 'Every paycheck that this woman receives is renewing the discrimination, so she can sue within 180 days of her latest paycheck, and she will be on time.' That's what Congress said: 'Yes, that's what we meant.'"

"If there was one decision I would overrule, it would be Citizens United," she told law professor Jeffrey Rosen of the landmark 2010 decision lifting corporate spending limits in campaigns. "I think the notion that we have all the democracy that money can buy strays so far from what our democracy is supposed to be. So that's No. 1 on my list."

In 2013, Ginsburg strongly opposed the Court's controversial Shelby County v. Holder decision that struck down a key portion of the 1965 Voting Rights Act requiring state and local governments with a history of discrimination to get preclearance from the Justice Department before changing voting laws.

"Throwing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet," Ginsburg wrote in her dissent.

The opinion gave rise to a new nickname for Ginsburg -- "Notorious R.B.G." -- coined by an NYU law school student as a play on the late rapper Notorious B.I.G.

"She was angry, and then it came to her that anger is a useless emotion," Ginsburg said of the student. "And the positive thing she did was to put on her blog my dissenting opinion in the case and then it took off from there."

In 2012, Ginsburg wrote what longtime court reporter Jeffrey Toobin called "probably the most powerful opinion of her career" endorsing the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act.

"Unlike the market for almost any other product or service, the market for medical care is one in which all individuals inevitably participate," she wrote, defending Congress' sweeping power under the Constitution's commerce clause. "Virtually every person residing in the U.S., sooner or later, will visit a doctor or other health care professional."

"Dissents speak to a future age," Ginsburg told NPR's Nina Totenberg in 2002. "The greatest dissents do become court opinions and gradually over time their views become a dominant view. So that's the dissenter's hope: that they are writing not for today but for tomorrow."

PHOTO: Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg sits with her colleagues on the United States Supreme Court during a group portrait after Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh joined the court on Nov. 30, 2018, in Washington. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images, FILE)

While she would clash with her colleagues ideologically, Ginsburg extended a hand of friendship to even her most conservative peers, including, famously, the late Justice Antonin Scalia.

MORE:Brett Kavanaugh calls Ruth Bader Ginsburg an 'inspiration,' heaps gratitude on allies

"When he was nominated, although his views were very well known, he was confirmed unanimously. And I came pretty close to that -- the vote on me was 96 to 3," Ginsburg said of her friend in a recent conversation with the law professor Rosen. "It would not be that way today, but don't you think that's the direction in which we should seek to return?"

Ginsburg and Scalia shared a love of opera, occasionally attending performances together at the Kennedy Center. The duo was also the subject of an opera -- "Scalia/Ginsburg" -- written by a University of Maryland law school student. Ginsburg's favorite duet in the work is titled "We Are Different, We Are One."

"The idea is that there are two people who interpret the Constitution differently yet retain their fondness for each other and, much more than that," she said, "their reverence for the institution that employs them."

Brooklyn-born and activist roots

Born Joan Ruth Bader in Brooklyn, New York, in 1933, she was the second daughter of Jewish immigrants.

"I am  a first generation American on my father's side, barely second generation on my mother's," Ginsburg told the Senate Judiciary Committee in her confirmation hearing. "Neither of my parents had the means to attend college, but both taught me to love learning, to care about people, and to work hard for whatever I wanted or believed in."

She credited her mother -- a garment factory worker -- as being one of the greatest influences on her life. "My mother told me two things constantly," Ginsburg said in a recent interview with the ACLU. "One was to be a lady, and the other was to be independent."

MORE: Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Bill Clinton recall 'very easy' first conversation

Ginsburg also deeply loved and valued her husband, Marty, whom she met as an Cornell University undergraduate and married in 1954. Together they were lawyers and co-partners both in advocacy for women and in parenthood.

"I have had more than a little bit of luck in life, but nothing equals in magnitude my marriage to Martin D. Ginsburg," she wrote in her memoir. "I do not have words adequate to describe my super smart, exuberant, ever-loving spouse."

The couple had two children together -- Jane and James -- forging a strong family bond for 56 years up to his death from cancer in 2010.

"I certainly wouldn't be here today were it not for Marty because he made me feel that I was better than I thought I was," she said at an event in January 2018. "He had a great sense of humor and another very important strength -- he was a wonderful cook."

Late-in-life pop culture icon

Ginsburg showed remarkable resilience late into life.

She survived four battles with cancer over her Supreme Court career, never having to recuse herself from casework because of illness. In December 2018, she was absent from oral arguments for the first time in 26 years after undergoing lung cancer surgery, but she participated in the cases remotely. During the coronavirus pandemic, she joined oral arguments by phone from a Maryland hospital where she was being treated for a gallbladder infection.

Even as the court's oldest member, she maintained one of the most aggressive public schedules of any of her peers, regularly traveling the country in her final years.

"I think my work is what saved me because instead of dwelling on my physical discomforts if I have an opinion to write or brief to read I know I've just got to get it done and have to get over it," she said last year.

Her workout regimen became the stuff of legends, performing push-ups, holding abdominal planks and pumping weights late into her 80s. When the Court employee gym shutdown during COVID-19, Ginsburg continued to do her workouts in a special isolated fitness space set up at her request. Her personal trainer, Bryant Johnson, memorialized her routine in the 2017 book, "The RBG Workout: How She Stays Strong And You Can Too!"

MORE: How to work out like Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Even after receiving radiation treatment for a pancreatic tumor in 2019, Ginsburg told a crowd at the University of California Berkley that she "never left" the gym.

"Even in my lowest periods I couldn't do very much, but I did what I can," she said.

PHOTO: Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg attends a ceremony where she received a SUNY Honorary Degree from the University at Buffalo, Aug. 26, 2019, in Buffalo, N.Y. (Jeffrey T. Barnes/AP)

Her persistence electrified her fans and solidified her status as a pop culture icon.

"Regularly she's portrayed on [Saturday Night Live] delivering her 'Ginsburns,'" joked Bill Clinton before a packed Arkansas arena of thousands of RBG fans in 2019. "And now you can see her image on T-shirts, totes and coffee mugs the world over. You can become resentful of such a person, but you're not."

Her life was the subject of a 2018 Oscar-nominated documentary -- "RBG" -- and a Hollywood biopic -- "On the Basis of Sex" -- starring Felicity Jones and Armie Hammer.

Ginsburg was the recipient of numerous honorary degrees and awards, including the prestigious Berggruen Prize, a $1 million honorarium to recognize a figure whose ideas have "profoundly shaped human self-understanding and advancement in a rapidly changing world."

"You can earn a living but you can also do something outside yourself that will make things a little better for people less fortunate than you," Ginsburg told a group of Duke University law school students in 2019.

MORE: Chief Justice John Roberts, who's clashed with Trump, would oversee impeachment trial

Her tenure was not entirely without controversy. In 2016, Ginsburg waded into the presidential campaign with public criticism for the presumptive presidential nominee, Donald J. Trump, whom she called a "faker."

"Justice Ginsburg of the U.S. Supreme Court has embarrassed all by making very dumb political statements about me. Her mind is shot -- resign!" then-candidate Trump tweeted at the time.

Ginsburg later apologized for the remarks, calling them "ill-advised" and promising to be "more circumspect" in the future. Earlier this year, Trump demanded that Ginsburg recuse from "all Trump, or Trump related, matters!" She declined.

Her death during the Trump presidency was something she had hoped to avoid.

Well before Trump's election, Ginsburg rebuffed calls from some liberals to retire and allow Democratic President Barack Obama to name her successor.

"I think it's going to be another Democratic president," Ginsburg told The Washington Post in 2013. "The Democrats do fine in presidential elections; their problem is they can't get out the vote in the midterm elections."

After Trump's surprise defeat of Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election, Ginsburg publicly vowed to hold her seat on the court "as long as I'm healthy and mentally agile." With the balance of power at stake, Ginsburg wanted a Democratic president to name her replacement.

That hope ultimately went unfulfilled.

"What is the difference between a bookkeeper in the New York garment district and a Supreme Court justice? My answer is one generation," Ginsburg told young women law students in North Carolina in 2019.

"That's why I'm such an optimist. As bleak as things may seem, I have seen so many changes in my lifetime."

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, powerhouse Supreme Court Justice, dies at 87 originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
On March 15, 2019, legions of Ruth Bader Ginsburgs admirers celebrated her 86th birthday by dropping to the ground and grinding out the Super Divas signature push-ups on the steps of courthouses around the country.

This unusual tribute to a Supreme Court justice was one of the many ways a new generation has shown the love to the five-foot tall legal giant who made the lives they live possible. But by Sept. 18, her iron will and gritty determination were no longer enough to propel her to court. Ginsburg died on Friday at the age of 87 of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, according to a statement released by the Supreme Court.

In the early 70swhen Gloria Steinem was working underground as a Playboy Bunny to expose sexism, and Betty Friedan was writing a feminist manifesto about the problem with no nameGinsburg named the problem, briefed it, and argued it before the Supreme Court of the United States.

Photograph by Sebastian KimAUGUST for TIME

She was 37 then, on the receiving end of so much of the discrimination she would work to end, and she was just undertaking her first job as a litigatoras co-director of the Womens Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union. In her very precise way, as Justice Harry Blackmun put it, she studied title, chapter, clause, and footnote of the legal canon that kept women down and overturned those that discriminated on the basis of sex in five landmark cases that extended the 14th Amendments equal rights clause to women. In that long, hard slog, she employed some novel devices, using gender (so as not to distract male jurists with the word sex) and representing harmed male plaintiffs when she could find one (to show that discrimination hurts everyone). And she never raised her voice.

When she was done, a widower could get the same Social Security benefits as a woman and a woman could claim the same military housing allowance as a man. A woman could cut a mans hair, buy a drink at the same age, administer an estate, and serve on a jury.

Story continues

By the time she left the ACLU, and before she donned her first black robe, Ginsburg had brought about a small revolution in how women were treated, wiping close to 200 laws that discriminated off the books. Over the next decades, first as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, appointed by President Jimmy Carter in 1980, and then as the second woman on the Supreme Court, appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1993, she would become to women what Thurgood Marshall was to African Americans. She employed the same clause in the 14th Amendment he used to free former slaves to extend protection to the mentally ill who wanted to live outside institutions, gays who wanted to marry, immigrants who lived in fear, and, of course, females: those who wanted to be cadets at the Virginia Military Institute, have access to abortion, and, when pregnant, not be fired if they couldnt perform duties their condition made, temporarily, impossible.

Her fans courthouse celebration was also a plea for the bionic Ginsburg to carry on, at least until the 2020 election. There was high anxiety when she fell asleep at the State of the Union in 2015 (a case of enjoying a fine California wine brought by Justice Anthony Kennedy to the justices pre-speech dinner) and even more when she missed the courts 2019 opening session in January, her first such absence in 26 years. She hadnt fully recovered from surgery to remove three cancerous nodules from her lungs. But she took her seat as the senior justice next to Chief Justice John Roberts in mid-February, picking up her full caseload. That following summer, she went through radiation to treat a cancerous tumor on her pancreas, her fourth brush with cancer. In July 2020, she announced that cancer had returned yet again. Despite receiving chemotherapy for lesions on her liver, the 87-year-old reasserted that she was still fully able to continue serving on the Supreme Court.

August 2, 1935 Childhood photograph of Ruth Bader taken when she was two years old. Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States

Baton-twirling bookworm

Joan Ruth Bader was born in 1933 in Brooklyn and came of age during the Holocaust, a first-generation American on my fathers side, barely second-generation on my mothers  What has become of me could happen only in America, she said at her confirmation hearing.

True enough, but what would become of her was a long time coming. In an enthralling biography, Jane Sherron De Hart describes schoolgirl Ruth, who twirled a baton but was such a bookworm she tripped and broke her nose reading while walking. Her mother, who convinced her she could do anything, died just before Ruth, the class valedictorian, graduated and headed off to Cornell. There she met the tall, handsome Martin Ginsburg, and married him the minute she graduated Phi Beta Kappathe first person, she said, who loved me for my brain. Shed been accepted to Harvard Law, where Marty was already enrolled. She calls meeting Marty by far the most fortunate thing that ever happened to me.

What happened next is proof of her maxim that a woman can have it all, just not all at once. Marty was called up to active duty, so instead of studying torts in Cambridge, Ginsburg found herself working as a claims examiner at the Social Security Administration in Fort Sill, Oklahomathat is, until she was demoted with a pay cut for working while pregnant.

Summer 1958 Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Martin Ginsburg play with their three-year old daughter, Jane, in her bedroom at Martin's parents' home in Rockville Centre, N.Y Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States

Life threw another wrench into the works when both were back at Harvard with a baby girl, and Marty was stricken with a rare testicular cancer. Ruth went to class for both of them, typing up his notes and papers as well as her own, getting along on even less sleep than your usual new mother, all while being scolded for taking up a mans seat by Dean Erwin Grisold. When her husband graduated and was offered a prestigious job at a white shoe law firm in New York, she gave up her last year at Harvard to finish at Columbia.

Once again, she felt the sting of the discrimination. Despite being the first student ever to serve on both the Harvard and Columbia Law Reviews and graduating at the top of her class, she couldnt get a job at a premier law firm or one of the Supreme Court clerkships that went so easily to male classmates who ranked below her. According to DeHart, Judge Felix Frankfurter fretted a woman clerk might wear pants to chambers. Without bitterness, she calls anger a useless emotion; she noted that in the 50s, to be a woman, a Jew and a mother to bootthat combination was a bit too much.

1972 Ruth Bader Ginsburg in New York, when she was named a professor at Columbia Law School. Librado RomeroThe New York Times/Redux

Battling discrimination

She didnt get outwardly angry and only, after many years, got even. She took a lower court clerkship, researched civil procedure (and equality of the sexes in practice) in Sweden and wrote a book on the subjectin Swedish! She returned home to teach at the Newark campus of Rutgers Law, where she co-founded the Womens Rights Law Reporter. Despite being a progressive school, discrimination struck again. She learned she didnt earn the same as a male colleague because, the dean explained, he has a wife and two children to support. You have a husband with a good paying job in New York. No wonder then, when she found herself surprisingly (given her husbands medical history) but happily pregnant again, she took no chances and hid it.

After the birth of her son, James, she became a tenured professor at Columbia, co-authored the first case book on discrimination law, a work in progress as she changed much of it while litigating for the ACLU, until in 1980 she joined the Court of Appeals.

Then, in 1993, President Bill Clinton was elected and he wanted a Cabinet, and by extension a Supreme Court, that looked like America. Ginsburg was on the list, but so were a dozen others and she wasnt at the top.

Even Clintons deliberations werent without a peculiar form of discrimination as he worried, the women are against her. He was right. To the feminists of the 90swho might be ignored by the White House if it werent for Ginsburgs decades of opening doorsshe was yesterday. The judge methodically chipping away at bias, without burning a bra or tossing a high heel, looked plodding and uninspiring; her friendship with her colleague on the district court, Scalia, looked suspect.

Enter Marty. I wasnt very good at promotion, but Marty was, she told the late Gwen Ifill, a PBS anchor. He was tirelessand beloved among lawyers, professors, and politicians. Women came around, reminded that she was a pioneer in their fight to overcome the patriarchy and a steadfast supporter of abortion rights, despite acknowledging in an interview that the country might be politically better off if the states had continued to legalize abortion rather than have Roe v. Wade as a singular target of its foes. Ginsburg was confirmed 96 to 3.

August 10, 1993 Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is sworn in as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. From left to right stand President Bill Clinton, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Martin Ginsburg, and Chief Justice William Rehnquist. Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States

March 2001 The only two female Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, pose for a portrait in Statuary Hall, surrounded by statues of men at the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. The two Justices were preparing to address a meeting of the Congressional Women's Caucus. David Hume KennerlyGetty Images

The Great Dissenter

She didnt disappoint. In one case after another, she asked the right questions (and usually the first one), cobbled together majorities and wrote elegantly reasoned opinions: striking down stricter requirements for abortion clinics designed to make the procedure extinct (Whole Womans Health v. Hellerstedt), and approving gay marriage (Obergefell v. Hodges), making the point during oral argument that if you cant refuse a 70-year-old couple marriage because they cant procreate, how could you use that excuse to deprive a gay one.

But it was her minority  not her majority  opinions that made her beloved to a new generation of women. As the court tilted right in 2006 after the retirement of Sandra Day OConnor, Ginsburg started to read, not just file, her dissents to explain to the majority why they were wrong in hopes that if the court has a blind spot today, its eyes will be open tomorrow.

Here was a shy, understated incrementalist suddenly becoming the Great Dissenter. In Shelby County v. Holder, she said that relieving errant states of the close scrutiny of the Voting Rights Act was like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet. In Hobby Lobby, she was aghast that the court would deny costly contraception coverage to working women because of someone elses religious beliefs. In the Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber equal pay case, she asked how her brethren could penalize the plaintiff, who only got evidence of the disparity from an anonymous note, for missing a 180-day filing deadline given that salaries are kept secret. One person whose eyes were opened was Barack Obama. His first piece of legislation in 2009 was the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.

A woman attending the New York City Women's March wears a t-shirt featuring Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Jan. 20, 2018. Karsten MoranRedux

Becoming the Notorious RBG

Ginsburgs womansplaining caught the attention of New York University law student Shana Knizhnik, who uploaded Ginsburgs dissents to Tumblr. Overnight, a younger generation of women, and their mothers and grandmothers, were reminded of what Ginsburg had done for them. Knizhnik joined with reporter Irin Carmon to write Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The justice was soon a recurring character on Saturday Night Live, with a hyperkinetic Kate McKinnon issuing blistering Ginsburns. The justices 2016 memoir, My Own Words, was a New York Times bestseller. There were more books  adult, childrens and coloring. In 2018, Hollywood released a major motion picture, On the Basis of Sex, and the documentary RBG, which won an Emmy. Store shelves groan with merch: mugs (you Bader believe it), onesies (The Ruth will set you free), tote bags, bobblehead dolls, and action figures, one of the latest from her cameo in Lego Movie 2, produced by none other than Trump Administration Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin.

All this late-arriving fame rested uneasily on the shoulders of Ginsburg, who accepted it with dignity and took some pleasure at grandchildrens shock that so many people want to take my picture. She kept a large supply of Notorious RBG T-shirts as a party favor for visitors.

At the heart of Hollywoods treatment of Ginsburg wasnt only the case Marty and his wife worked on togetheran appeal of an IRS rulingbut a marriage of extraordinary compatibility and mutual support. After he recovered from cancer and had become a sought-after lawyer, he eagerly took on his share of domestic duties, which included feeding the children since, according to former Solicitor General Ted Olson, Ruth wanted nothing whatsoever to do with the kitchen. Marty was the fun parent (Ginsburg joked at her confirmation hearing that the children kept a log called Mommy Laughed) and a big-hearted host who happily roasted Bambi, Ruths name for whatever Scalia, her opera buddy, bagged on his last hunting trip. The pair were the subject of an actual comic opera, Scalia/Ginsburg, in which one scene depicts the over-emoting Scalia, locked in a dark room for excessive dissenting, and Ginsburg descending through a glass ceiling to rescue him.

A fellow justice said that neither Ginsburg would be who they were without the other. Marty once joked about being second banana: As a general rule, my wife does not give me any advice about cooking and I do not give her any advice about the law. This seems to work quite well on both sides. De Hart reprints the letter Marty put in a drawer in the bedside table as he was dying from a recurrence of his cancer. He was the most fortunate part of her life.

Marty lived to see his wife recognized beyond what the two imagined when they agreed to marry and be lawyers together, but died just before a slight she suffered for following him to New York was righted. In 2011, she was awarded an honorary degree from Harvard Law that Dean Griswold had denied her for taking her last credits at Columbia.

The longer she lived, the wider her reach and the deeper the appreciation for her years on the bench. At the opening concert of the National Symphony Orchestra in Sept. 2019, Kennedy Center chair David Rubinstein introduced the dignitaries in the audience. When he got to the justice, women rose to applaud her. Then, the men quickly joined in until everyone in the hall was standing, looking up at the balcony, cheering and whistling, as if theyd come to tell her that they knew what she had done for them, not to hear Shostakovichs Piano Concerto #2.

This wasnt an audience of liberals, but a cross-section of the capital touched by a once-young lawyer who saw unfairness and quietly tried to end it during her 60 years of public service.

Throughout the decades, Ginsburg quietly persistedthrough discrimination she would seek to end, through the death of Marty, through more illness and debilitating treatments than any one person should have to endurewithout complaint, holding on and out, until sheer will was no longer enough.
The recent arrest of Umar Khalid is being seen as one of the most outrageous steps in a series of sustained attacks on the flag bearers of a certain cause.

From the two Portuguese students who may have been imprisoned for raising wine glasses in a toast to freedom in 1960, to the treatment meted out to dissenters in India  we have recognised the fragility of citizenship as a construct, be it in a dictatorship or a democracy.

The recent arrest of Umar Khalid is being seen as one of the most outrageous steps in a series of sustained attacks on the flag bearers of a certain cause. It might trigger a mobilisation of Muslim intelligentsia to guard against perceived state atrocities, which in turn could lead to a further ghettoisation even at the cognitive level, apart from the already existing social ghettos.

A possible downside of this is the gradual diminishing of the canvas of their cause, leading to a conscious narrowisation of the political and social umbrella. This carries the risk of perpetuating the agenda of the state.

Given the nature of the accusations and arrests, a centralisation of agenda is suspected and it seems that different agencies, existing for different purposes, are following the same agenda  turning means into a facade, with the end remaining the same. For the NIA (National Investigation Agency), NATGRID (National Intelligence Grid), local police, and other agencies it seems all roads lead to Rome.

The unbridled police action is germane to the idea of a totalitarian state, which is being feared by the Muslim minority the most (apart from the outspoken liberals who are aware of the nature and reactions of such an authoritarian state). The arrest of young Muslim scholars like Umar Khalid is a strong message against Muslim agitators and a step towards nipping in the bud the leadership emerging in the Muslim community. Restricting the Muslim communitys eloquent scholars might also serve the purpose of breaking the back of the dialogic thought process of the community. It might shrink their space of negotiation with the state and diminish their capacity to articulate their experiences, leading to a loss of vocabulary that demands accountability from the state.

The illegitimate opinion making with assistance from media-created experts endorsing the state narrative provides a pretext for withdrawing the rights of the target group of people. The mass audience in general starts to see itself as the instrument of fate destined to perform action against a particular community with support from the discourse that justifies its action. This shifts the balance of citizenship, by increasing the imagined personal importance of the majority community and encouraging self-censorship among the minority community. It deters the target community from demanding anything more than the bare minimum and creates conflicting desires among them, planting the seeds of intra-community mistrust, which is a commonplace in conflict-torn regions like Kashmir, where the magnified effect of such occurrences are widely evident.

Peoples vulnerabilities emanate from a conflicted duality that exists beneath a forced delivery of national identity, besides socio-political and economic mandates coming from a highly centralised state. At the social level, the angst of the Muslim community is growing phenomenally. These police actions with effective intelligence gathering, backed by the larger security discourse and its insidious encroachment of democratic spaces, are more telling as signs of shrinking democratic spaces in general, but more evident in matters related to the minority community and the advocates of justice for marginalised groups. The contempt for the Muslim community imbued by the blatancy and lack of accountability on part of the state and its affiliate institutions layers its vulnerabilities on several counts.

Institutions like JNU (Jawaharlal Nehru University), which have been posing a counter narrative to the governments as well as to social orthodoxy for a long time were the eyesores of certain political and cultural groups. A certain political narrative supported by the conservative right has given a vent to hostility and antagonism targeting not only the scholars from these institutions but also the institutions themselves. What has happened in the last 2-3 years in JNU apropos a range of issues  such as administrative high-handedness, circumvention of recruitment procedures, multifold hike of fees, enhanced monitoring and regulation compared to the past  is not just telling of the antagonism against a set of institutions and the scholars they produce but a larger inimical meta-narrative that is being weaved at the political level with adverse social consequences.

The transvaluation of the conception and imposition of criminality has widened to an unprecedented degree. This has led to a siege-mentality among Muslims of India, which is clearly explained by the pre-recorded video put out by Umar Khalid even before his arrest, now circulating in the public domain. The predictability of the pointedness of the state response has affected the Muslim communitys political participation, education, social wellbeing, decision-making; collectively inducing an existential crisis. As such, Umar Khalids arrest is being seen as the cognitive incarceration of Muslim youth.

Tarushikha Sarvesh is assistant professor (Sociology) at the Advanced Centre for Womens Studies, Aligarh Muslim University
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Ravi Kishan, actor and Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha from Gorakhpur, is all praise for Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath after the CM announced the building of "India's biggest film city" in Noida, UP.

Last year, Kishan had revealed that he had started work on a film city in Gorakhpur. In a video shared with the media today, Ravi Kishan said that he was grateful to CM Yogi Adityanath for accepting the letter in which he had appealed for building a film city.

Kishan said, "I am happy that our Bollywood will be able to shoot here and that this will bring opportunities to the youth of the state.''

The actor during his election campaign had spoken about building a film city in Uttar Pradesh and how it would help in generating employment for the youth of not only UP but adjoining states like Bihar and Jharkhand.

Before the pandemic hit the country, at any given point at least four to five films were being shot in UP. Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor shot in Varanasi for Brahmastra and Amitabh Bachchan's last film Gulabo Sitabo was also shot in Lucknow and is also one of Anubhav Sinha's favourite shooting locations.

Uttar Pradesh gives about about 25 percent or even more subsidy to filmmakers on the production cost, depending upon how much of the film is shot in the state. There are additional perks given if the film casts more actors hailing from UP.

ALSO READ: Anurag Kashyap Claims Ravi Kishan Used To Smoke Weed; Has A Problem With Ravi's Self Righteous Stand

ALSO READ: Kangana Ranaut Says Hindi Film Industry Is Not The Top Film Industry In India: We Need Many Reforms


New Delhi: Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned four times on Friday following Opposition protests over certain remarks by BJP members, including against the Gandhi family.

The ruckus began during the procedure for the introduction of the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020.

The Congress and the Trinamool Congress strongly protested certain remarks by BJP members, including by Union minister Anurag Singh Thakur and BJP's Locket Chatterjee.

After speaking for sometime during the procedure for introduction of the bill, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that her deputy Thakur will talk about PM-CARES Fund.

Opposition members raised concerns about the fund and while speaking, Thakur attacked the Congress and the Gandhis. He also alleged that the Congress had misused the PM Relief Fund.

Thakur said the Opposition sees everything, even good things, in a bad light. "Your intention and thought are not good," he said.

Attacking the Congress, Thakur said the PM national relief fund has not been registered till now and also stressed that alleged misuse of funds needs to be looked into.

When Congress members protested, Thakur said that names of Nehru and Gandhi family should be taken and alleged that the Gandhi family ruined the country.

About Opposition's concerns, he mentioned that during elections, it was said the EVMs are not working properly, and then it was about demonetisation, triple talaq and GST.

Regarding PM-CARES Fund, the minister said that people went to courts against the fund and courts have given rulings in favour of the fund.

The fund was set up in March and it was opposed in April itself. When Prime Minister Narendra Modi was preparing to fight the coronavirus pandemic, at that time also, the Opposition was doing politics, Thakur charged.

He also said that poor and aged people as well as children have contributed to the fund.

Later in the day, Thakur said he had no intent to hurt the sentiments of members.

"I had no intent to hurt the sentiments of anybody. If anyone has been hurt (by my remarks) then I also pained," Thakur said after the House met at 6 pm following four adjournments.

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said that Chinese companies have donated to PM-CARES Fund and that should also be looked into.

In protest against the minister's remarks about the Gandhis, Congress members walked out of the House.

When Speaker Om Birla asked the minister to stop, Thakur said that he needs more time to bring out the real face of the Opposition.

"The PM Cares Fund is a constitutionally set up public charitable trust. PM National Relief Fund was set up only for the benefits of one family -- Nehru-Gandhi family," he said.

Amid the din, BJP member from West Bengal Chatterjee made some remarks that were opposed by Trinamool Congress members.

As the ruckus continued, Birla warned members that they should not stand up to speak and that protection of members is important.

"If anyone gets up to talk... I will take action... I will name them and remove them from the House," Birla said, adding that it would be applicable for all members and ministers.

Keeping in mind social distancing norms in place due to the coronavirus pandemic, members have been asked not to stand while speaking.

Apparently referring to certain remarks by ruling party members, Trinamool Congress member Kalyan Banerjee said such things cannot continue and alleged that the Speaker was trying to protect BJP members. Banerjee even said that he is also ready to face suspension.

Amid the din, the Speaker first adjourned the proceedings for 30 minutes till 4.20 pm.

After the House reconvened, Sitharaman introduced the bill and then the House took up discussion on supplementary demands.

Congress members led by Gaurav Gogoi demanded an apology from Thakur for his remarks against the Gandhis.

When Rama Devi, who was presiding the proceedings, asked Chowdhury speak on supplementary demands for excess grants, he said first the House has to be brought in order and then he attacked Thakur for his remarks.

Then, Rama Devi asked BJP member Jayant Sinha to speak on supplementary demands.

As he was speaking, Congress members raised slogans such as 'Anurag Thakur maafi maango' and 'Speaker saheb sadan main aaiye'. They were raising slogans while standing.

Some Congress members entered the Well of the House raising slogans and the Treasury benches did not react to the sloganeering.

Amid din, Rama Devi adjourned the House for 30 minutes till 5 pm.

Later, the proceedings were adjourned twice for 30 minutes each till 6 pm.

As soon as the House assembled at 5.30 pm, Rajendra Agrawal, who was in the chair, requested the protesting members to sit in their places for their own safety as well as for the safety of others in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Agrawal also sought cooperation from them and made a plea to them to allow the House to function.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.

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The Home Office appears to be formulating its immigration policies on anecdote, assumption and prejudice rather than evidence, MPs have warned.

In a damning report that calls for a transformation of the departments approach to immigration enforcement, the Public Accounts Committee said the Home Office was relying on a disturbingly weak evidence base to assess the impact of the 400m it spends on the policy.

It also found that a significant lack of diversity at senior levels in the department, had created organisational blind spots, with the Windrush scandal a damning indictment of the damage such a culture creates".

Although the Home Office has said it accepts the wrongs that led to the Windrush fiasco  which saw people with a right to live in the UK wrongfully detained or deported to the Caribbean  the MPs said the evidence they had seen inspired no confidence that the next such scandal wasnt right around the corner.

The report supports the findings of an investigation by the National Audit Office (NAO) in June. It found that the Home Office was still unable to measure whether its hostile environment policies had the desired effect of encouraging people to leave voluntarily, and that it had no specific evidence base to support the effectiveness of the policies when they were introduced.

The Public Accounts Committee said it was not convinced that the Home Office was sufficiently prepared to properly safeguard the existing, legal immigrant population in the UK, while also implementing a new immigration system after Brexit and managing its response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

It found that the department had not estimated the illegal population in the UK since 2005, and that it could not respond to concerns that potentially exaggerated figures calculated by unofficial sources could inflame hostility towards immigrants.

Meg Hillier MP, chair of the committee, said it was time for transformation of the Home Offices immigration enforcement into a data-led organisation.

The Home Office has frighteningly little grasp of the impact of its activities in managing immigration. It shows no inclination to learn from its numerous mistakes across a swathe of immigration activities  even when it fully accepts that it has made serious errors, she said.

Within six months of this report we expect a detailed plan, with set priorities and deadlines, for how the Home Office is going to make this transformation.

The findings come after a report by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) earlier this month found that the governments hostile environment policies were fostering racist practices across British society and pushing people, including those with legal status, into poverty.

In March, the Windrush Lessons Learned review concluded that the Home Office had demonstrated institutional ignorance and thoughtlessness towards the issue of race, and accused successive governments of trying to demonstrate they were being tough on immigration with a complete disregard for the Windrush generation.

Responding to the findings, immigration barrister Colin Yeo told The Independent: It has become clear that the whole hostile environment policy was ideological, not evidence-based and never really about encouraging people to leave.

This whole policy of leaving immigration enforcement to ordinary citizens, employers, universities and local authorities needs to be fundamentally re-thought.

Minnie Rahman, public affairs and campaigns officer at the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants, said the report painted a very accurate picture of a clueless, careless and cold-hearted Home Office and echoed the committees call for urgent change.

Priti Patel claims she is determined to right the wrongs caused to the Windrush generation, but the Home Offices recent actions believe her words, she said.

 Home Office to carry out review of hostile environment following Windrush says Priti Patel

Immigration policy and practice must be based on robust evidence, proper staff training and a new culture of respect and care for individuals. Peoples lives are in the Home Offices hands and in the context of Covid-19 and Brexit, there can be no more excuses.

A Home Office spokesperson said: The Home Offices ultimate priority is to keep people safe and that includes having a strong border. We have developed a balanced and evidence-based approach to maintaining a fair immigration system.

Since 2010, we have removed more than 53,000 foreign national offenders and more than 133,000 people as enforced removals. On a daily basis we continue to tackle those who fail to comply with our immigration laws and abuse our hospitality by committing serious, violent and persistent crimes, with immigration enforcement continually becoming more efficient.
Beverley Callard, who is rumoured to be starring in I'm A Celebrity, has reportedly vowed to appear on the show - despite being in terrible pain from botched surgery.

The Coronation Street icon, 63, is said to have been telling friends she is still keen to take part and will not let the agonising pain from her recent hip operation get in the way.

Such is her level of commitment to recover in time, that some friends are now predicting she is set to win.

Committed: Corrie's Beverley Callard, who is rumoured to be starring in I'm A Celebrity, has reportedly vowed to appear on the show - despite being in terrible pain from botched surgery

A source close to the actress told the The Mirror: 'There is still a long way to go before the show starts and Bev is determined to use this time to keep getting better. She is nothing if not a fighter.

'I'm a Celebrity may have switched from New South Wales to cold north Wales but she still hopes to be there.

'It's been a great target for her as she continues with physio, working hard to get fit for the show in a couple of months is really helping to spur her on. She's so focused, some of her friends are convinced that she will go all the way and win.'

Relocation: The actress, 63, is said to have been telling friends she is still keen to take part when the show returns, this time in Wales (pictured)

Presenters: 'I'm a Celebrity may have switched from New South Wales to cold north Wales but she still hopes to be there', a source said (pictured hosts Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly)

If Beverley were to form part of the line-up or even go on to win, it would represent an incredible achievement after a very difficult year.

Beverley's nightmare began when she visited her GP in March to seek advice on a 'niggle in my hip, in my groin on the right side'.

Her doctor said it could easily be fixed with a small operation, however, the star faced a series of complications following the surgery.

Role model: The Corrie actress, who plays Liz McDonald, is reprotedly one of the first celebs to sign up for the reality TV programme (pictured 2020)

Beverley explained following what she thought was a 'minor operation' at the hospital, which she is not naming for legal reasons, she was told the surgery didn't go as planned.

She explained to the publication that her hip had 'crumbled' during surgery and she needed 'further operations'.

Appearing on Loose Women earlier in September, Beverley said: 'It's been a pretty difficult time. I'm trying to walk now. I'm on crutches as opposed to being hoisted around and pushed around, but I'm getting there slowly but surely.'

'It's been one of the worst times I've gone through. But I'm battling, I'm fighting. I've got physio every day, hydrotherapy twice a week  I'm trying my best.'

Beverley is mum to Rebecca, 45, and Joshua, 31, while her husband of 10 years Jon McEwan has Ben, 34, Jon, 31, and Danielle, 29.

Corrie fans were initially left baffled as Liz suddenly left Weatherfield off-screen, with it revealed that she had moved to Spain. But Beverley revealed on the same Loose Women appearance that she will be heading back for a full exit scene.

She said: 'I will go back maybe the beginning of next year. So they will see a bit more of Liz and it's going to be very dramatic I believe!

'I wasn't going to talk about the operation at all, but I know there was a bit of an uproar, because after 35 years they're just sending her off to Spain and we're not going to see her.

'So it wasn't Coronation Street's fault, it was no one's fault, it was just one of those things. What I'm hoping for the exit is Liz and Jim get back together and just go off into the sunset, but I have a feeling that might not happen.'
State Rep. John Rogers, D-Mentor-on-the-Lake, this week announced the release of $636,379 in state funding through the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act to aid local schools.

The funds, earmarked for several districts throughout Lake County, will assist with the purchasing of technologies such as Wi-Fi hotspots and internet-enabled devices in efforts to support remote learning for students this fall semester.

The BroadbandOhio Connectivity Grant, a collaboration between the Ohio Department of Education, BroadbandOhio and Education Service Centers, provided Ohio schools the opportunity to apply for the funds.

According to a news release, $50 million was set aside statewide for eligible purchases of information technologies made between July 1 and Dec. 30.

Our educators, school administrators, staff, students and families have done much in these last few weeks to adapt to precautionary measures put in place as the school year begins to make attendance both safe and successful, Rogers said. These grants allow schools to purchase necessary technologies to help make learning in online classrooms possible whether fully remote or with hybrid in-person education models.

The states investment in these resources will help to ensure that our schools and communities are able to execute the Reset and Restart (Education) plans developed to start the new school year, as well as prepare any public health scenarios that may demand quick and responsive transitions to distance learning because of the ongoing global pandemic.

Rogers added that the acquisition and maintenance of connectivity resources, together with other computer technologies, will continue to be a high-priority for the upcoming school year to ensure that districts using distance learning options as part of their Reset and Restart K-12 education plan can provide students with the ability to connect to their online classrooms.

In addition to the grants, the Ohio Department of Education will make available IT support staff to help schools remove barriers to internet connectivity issues while helping to coordinate access to additional state-level resources, the release stated.
HB is calling on the nation to grab one of their classic ice cream treats, with 0.10 from every multipack purchase going to DSI's See and Learn programme.

Ice-cream Sunday will take place on September 20 as the event will take the place of one of DSI's flagship fundraising campaigns, HB Ice Cream Fundays, which was postponed earlier this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Olive Buckeridge from Limerick is an Early Years Specialist with Down Syndrome Ireland and has been leading the See and Learn programme.

See and Learn is a visually focused programme which works extremely well to help children with Down syndrome to develop their communication skills. It has already had such a positive impact on the children and their families.

The programme works so well with teachers and parents collectively, and really is a shared venture. Consistency and repetition for children with Down syndrome is key and the See and Learn programme facilitates this, Olive said.

Elaine Prendergast, the Brand Manager of Unilever Ireland added:

With everyone participating in social distancing and playing their part we really hope that people will enjoy ice creams with close family members or housemates on September 20 while staying at home.

By doing so, youll be supporting Down Syndrome Irelands See and Learn programme which is already proving invaluable for children with Down syndrome.

Ellen Tuffy is the Chairperson of Down Syndrome Limerick based in Castletroy and her three year old son Charlie is involved in the See and Learn programme.

Charlie started the See and Learn programme with Down Syndrome Limerick shortly after he was one.

The Covid-19 pandemic has been very difficult for Charlie.

It's been very difficult because all of the services stopped. Any services that he would have got with early intervention all stopped and the charity closed its doors as well. They didn't have the capibilties to work from home either.

Despite him not having access to the therapies, Charlie has been doing alright at home. We have the See and Learn kit here and there's an app version as well. He was ready to move on halfway through Covid so we downloaded the app and used the tablet. He's been communicating a lot better now than he did at the beginning of Covid, Ellen said.

To join in on DSIs HB Ice Cream Sunday on September 20, simply purchase your favourite HB multipack from your local participating supermarket or shop, and 0.10 will go directly to funding the See and Learn programme.

People are encouraged to share photos of them enjoying their ice creams on social media using #HBIceCreamSunday.
The governments plan to break international law in a specific and limited way around the Brexit agreement has caused an outcry in the UK, but what about across the Channel?

As it happens, Brussels isnt really sure what to make of the whole thing. Michel Barnier is said to have laid out two scenarios to diplomats this week: either there are domestic reasons behind Boris Johnsons plan, or hes doing it as part of a feint in trade negotiations.

If domestic, Mr Barniers argument goes, the UK government is worried about coming under fire for its handling of Covid-19 and wants to put a bonfire under Brexit again. With one eye on the polls, Downing Street realises its about to be blamed for a second wave and wants to get people talking about something else.
" " Low birth weight can be an indicator of future heart disease. Vincent Oliver/ Getty Images

Recent research into heart disease has shown that something called C-reactive protein (CRP) plays a big part in developing cardiac issues as an adult. CRP is a protein found in the blood that rears its head whenever inflammation occurs. If you're injured or have an infection or a fever, your CRP levels will spike. But if your CRP levels are consistently high, it could mean your blood vessels are inflamed. Some doctors are beginning to think that high levels of CRP in the blood may have as much of a negative effect on your heart as high cholesterol. A 2002 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine shows that patients with the highest levels of CRP are more than twice as likely to have a heart attack as those with lower levels.

Here's where it gets interesting. Doctors are wondering whether high CRP levels in children could be a sign that heart disease is in their future. It's kind of a chicken or egg scenario because there hasn't been a lot of research conducted concerning children and CRP. One study of children in Taipei, Taiwan published in the International Journal of Obesity did find that there was a correlation between high CRP levels and the body mass index in both boys and girls.

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Body mass index (BMI) is another key indicator in children that heart disease may be down the road. BMI is your body weight divided by the square of your height and multiplied by 732. In children, the earlier that kids have their lowest BMI followed by a normal increase in their body mass, the more likely they are to have heart trouble later in life. This is called BMI rebound, and it occurs between the ages of four and seven. So children that reach their lowest BMI at four years of age followed by their normal weight gain or "growth spurt" are more likely to have heart trouble than those who have their BMI low point at seven.

Another recently discovered indicator is low birth weight. Research indicates that birth weights below 6.6 pounds (2.9 kilograms) coupled with BMIs lower than 16 at two years old and above 17.5 (7.9 kilograms) at 11 years old made children three times as likely to have heart trouble later in life. The key here may be the relationship between muscle and fat. Low birth weights typically mean less muscle, so when these children gain weight it's more likely to be fat. Mothers can help to avoid low birth weights by making sure they're healthy and fit while pregnant.

The last thing that can indicate future heart trouble is something you can't do anything about -- your genes. Doctors have said that heredity can affect your chances at having heart trouble for years, and now a specific gene has been targeted as a likely culprit. The bad gene is called LTC4S and if you're born with it, you're four times as likely to develop heart trouble later in life [source: The Washington Post].

Researchers have come a long way in helping to pinpoint some of the indicators of future heart disease. Doctors recommend having your child's BMI calculated beginning at the tender age of three. Keep your children's weight in check no matter what, but especially if you have a history of heart disease in your family. It's never too early to start looking at the future of your child's health.
WASHINGTON  With a political maelstrom growing over replacing the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court, Californias two senators will not only be major figures in the immediate confirmation fight  their approach to it will also signal Democrats long-term strategy against Republicans.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein is the top-ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, which handles judicial nominations. And Sen. Kamala Harris is the Democratic nominee for vice president as well as a member of that committee.

They hold divergent views of how Democrats should fight political battles, tactics that will be tested in coming weeks now that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said the Senate will vote on the nominee President Trump picks to fill Ginsburgs seat. McConnell, R-Ky., appears determined to confirm a Trump pick even if Joe Biden wins the White House in November and Democrats flip enough seats to gain control of the Senate starting next year.

Feinstein, 87, has served in the Senate since 1992, earning the top Democratic spot on the Judiciary Committee by seniority. She tends to seek bipartisan cooperation and is a proponent of upholding Senate traditions. Her demeanor is always polite, even when Republicans use tactics that her Democratic colleagues believe deserve something besides respectful disagreement.

Harris, 55, was elected to the Senate in 2016, and quickly made a reputation as one of its most progressive members. She has voted against Trumps judicial and Cabinet nominees at one of the highest rates among her peers, and is of a Democratic generation that often sees Republicans as bad-faith actors who should not be given the benefit of the doubt.

Feinstein will be the captain of Democrats strategy in the Senate to delay, stop or punish Republicans push to confirm a Trump pick. And Harris will be both an essential part of her partys questioning of a nominee and second to Biden in arguing that the future of the court is a main reason to vote for the Democratic ticket.

In reality, theres little either senator can do to stop Republicans from confirming Trumps nominee, as long as McConnell can minimize defections from his partys 53-47 majority.

But progressives were already fearful of the possibility of a Supreme Court confirmation fight led by Feinstein earlier this year, arguing that she lacks the strong-arm skills that Democrats will need.

The lack of fire, the lack of urgency, is a tell that shes not going to be the person to take a bare-knuckle approach in the trenches, Brian Fallon, a former senior Senate aide who founded the group Demand Justice to push the party left on the judiciary, told The Chronicle in June.

Steve Haro, who was previously Feinsteins chief of staff and is now a lobbyist, called it naive for progressives to expect Democrats to stop a nominee, saying the Senate ultimately is a numbers game, and Republicans hold the cards.

He called criticism of Feinsteins handling of past nominations unfair, saying Democrats pulled all the levers they had at their disposal.

Whats left is pressure, whats left is holding these (Republican) folks accountable, trying to make them understand that past actions should set the precedent for how they should act now, Haro said of Democrats options.

Now Playing: Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden has named California Sen. Kamala Harris as his running mate. The Oakland native is the first Black woman and first person of South Asian American descent to be nominated for national office by a major party. See highlights from her barrier-breaking career. Video: San Francisco Chronicle

In a statement Friday night, Feinstein said she would oppose confirming a new justice before inauguration day, noting that McConnell refused to consider then-President Barack Obamas nominee to fill the late Justice Antonin Scalias seat in 2016 because it was an election year.

Were just 46 days away from an election, Feinstein said. To jam through a lifetime appointment to the countrys highest court  particularly to replace an icon like Justice Ginsburg  would be the height of hypocrisy.

Harris echoed the sentiment in a late-night statement Friday.

Tonight we mourn, we honor, and we pray for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her family. Tomorrow we fight for her legacy, Harris said. In some of her final moments with her family, she shared her fervent wish to not be replaced until a new president is installed. We will honor that wish.

But Democrats will be looking for more than statements of disagreement from Harris, Feinstein and other senators, this fall and looking ahead to next year.

Dems will have to counter with more than a this-isnt-fair argument, David Corn, a political journalist, wrote for the left-leaning outlet Mother Jones on Friday night. Bring a gun to a knife fight? They will need a bazooka. Sorry if that sounds violent. But, as one sage person likes to say, we are in a fight for the nations soul.

Feinstein faced criticism for her handling of the Democratic opposition to the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2018, and there is still lingering resentment over it among progressives. While Feinstein opposed his nomination, she honored Christine Blasey Fords original request to keep secret allegations that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were in high school. The Palo Alto University professors charges became public only when they were leaked well into the confirmation process.

Feinsteins critics also note times when she seemed confused during the process, including an instance in which an aide stepped in to remind her during a Judiciary Committee hearing that she had questioned staffers about whether they leaked the letter, moments after she said she had not. Her spokesman and Senate colleagues, however, have maintained that she is a strong leader for the committee.

Harris, meanwhile, saw her star rise after that confirmation hearing, with a memorable confrontation that included her asking Kavanaugh whether he could think of any law regulating a mans body, a reference to abortion rights.

But Harris will also be pulled between the fight in Washington, where she has been largely absent since joining the Democratic ticket, and backing up Biden, who tends to view the Senate much like Feinstein. He and Feinstein served together on the Judiciary Committee, which Biden chaired in the 1990s.

Pressure is already on Democrats not just about this fall, but what they will do next year if Biden is elected and Democrats win control of the Senate. Friday night, progressives began calling for increasing the number of seats on the Supreme Court to counter what they view as the GOPs theft of, first, Scalias seat and, now, perhaps Ginsburgs.

There is also considerable progressive support for doing away with the filibuster rule that requires a 60-vote supermajority to pass virtually any legislation in the 100-member Senate, a move that Obama himself has endorsed. Harris said during her presidential run that she was prepared to end the filibuster.

Fallon, of Demand Justice, tweeted that Democrats must oppose any nominee before the election, beat Trump in November and forestall any confirmation until Biden takes office. But, he said, if GOP rams Trump pick thru anyway, add seats to the Court This is the play. There is no other play.

Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Ed Markey tweeted that if the Republicans confirm a justice before January, we must abolish the filibuster and expand the Supreme Court.

During the Democratic primaries, when the question was merely hypothetical, Biden was less inclined to take bold action on changing the Supreme Court. He told Iowa Starting Line in July 2019 that Democrats would rue that day if they packed the court. In an October debate, he said that if Democrats add justices, next time around, we lose control, they add three justices. We begin to lose any credibility the court has at all.

Haro, Feinsteins former staffer, said he expects both Harris and Feinstein will bring everything they can to the confirmation fight in the short run.

I have absolutely no doubt that they will make a good argument as to why patience should win out the day, Haro said. And then it will be on Republicans to make the right decision.

Tal Kopan is The San Francisco Chronicles Washington correspondent. Email: tal.kopan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @talkopan
Approximately 2,000 women took part in the latest protests to demand an end to President Alexander Lukashenkos rule.

Riot police detained hundreds of women as opposition protesters marched through the Belarusian capital Minsk demanding an end to President Alexander Lukashenkos rule.

Approximately 2,000 women took part in the Sparkly March on Saturday, wearing shiny accessories and carrying red-and-white flags of the protest movement.

Police blocked the women and began dragging them into police vans as they stood with linked hands, swiftly detaining several hundred, an AFP journalist saw.

The human rights group Viasna published the names of 314 people detained during the protests on its website.

The number was about three times as high as at the protests a week ago, when masked uniformed men used brutal violence against the peaceful demonstrators for the first time.

The march was the latest in a series of all-women protests calling for the strongman president to leave following his disputed victory in elections last month.

His opposition rival Svetlana Tikhanovskaya also claimed the victory.

In a statement released in advance of the march, Tikhanovskaya, who has taken refuge in Lithuania, praised the brave women of Belarus.

They are marching despite being constantly menaced and put under pressure, she said.

Among those detained on Saturday was Nina Baginskaya, a 73-year-old activist who has become one of the best-known faces of the protest movement. Police released her outside a police station shortly afterwards.

Police detained so many protesters that they ran out of room in vans, releasing approximately 10 women.

Ambulances were called after several women became unwell during their detention. One female protester was taken away in an ambulance after lying on the ground, apparently unconscious.

Al Jazeeras Step Vaessen, reporting from Minsk, said Lukashenko had stepped up the repression against women this week.

So the strategy now that seems to be coming from Lukashenkos regime is basically to treat everyone as violently as possible, making sure that people are so scared and intimidated that they will stop these protests, she said.

But the opposite is happening, and the more they are being detained, the more determined they seem to be to actually go back to the street.

The opposition is due to hold mass demonstrations on Sunday.

Lukashenkos crackdown on the protests has prompted the European Union to weigh fresh sanctions against his government.

The president, who has ruled Belarus for 26 years, says the protesters are being backed by foreign powers. Earlier this month he secured a $1.5bn lifeline from Moscow.








The Fan Edition of the Samsung Galaxy S20 5G is expected to come with a 6.5-inch Full HD+flat display.

Live images and key specs of the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G have been spotted online giving people a comprehensive idea about what to expect from the upcoming smartphone. The fact that rumours have been doing the rounds indicate that the launch can be expected soon.

Samsung, on its part, has not officially announced anything regarding the launch of the Galaxy S20 FE yet though. However, according to reports, this smartphone was spotted on the Samsung Germany website briefly and also on the US telecom operator Verizons website recently indicating that the launch is imminent.

Also Read: Samsung Galaxy S20 FE spotted again ahead of launch

Samsung is scheduled to host a virtual Galaxy Unpacked for Every Fan event on September 23 and it is like that they will announce the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE there.

The Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G should be announced at this event. (Samsung)

One of the tipsters on Twitter, Jimmy is Promo, has dropped in live images of the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G and these images point to the fact that the smartphone is coming with a flat display and narrow bezels on all sides. The shared photos point towards a triple camera setup at the back and all physical buttons consolidated on the right side of the phone.

#GalaxyS20FE

She's Flat

6.5" FHD+ 120hz

Nice price

IP68

3x optical + 10x digital = 30x rear

32mp Selfie Shooter

One UI 2.5

* Right between that S20 & S20+ * pic.twitter.com/DF3ABnmjUi  Jimmy Is Promo (@jimmyispromo) September 17, 2020

The tipster also shared some of the key specifications of the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE which include a 6.5-inch screen with a 120Hz refresh rate and One UI 2.5 software on the device.

According to Jimmy the Promo, the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE may come with a IP68 rating which makes it both waterproof and dustproof. The smartphone might have a 32MP selfie camera on the front housed in a punch-hile display. The selfie camera is positioned right in the top centre of the screen. In addition to this, older reports had suggested that the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE may come with an in-display fingerprint scanner.

Other live photos of the smartphone indicate that it is going to be called Samsung Galaxy S20 FE and not Samsung Galaxy S20 Lite.

The 5G variant of the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE should be powered by the Snapdragon 865 SoC and the 4G model should have the Exynos 990 SoC. The smartphone is being tipped to come with a 6GB RAM and three cameras on the back - two 12MP and one 8MP camera along with a 4,500mAh battery
The US Senate has been left in political uproar following the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg  which marks the first time a vacancy on the high court has become available so close to a presidential election.

After Ginsburgs death was announced on Friday by the Supreme Court, many began to voice their fears that Donald Trump would use the opportunity to swing the 2020 election in his favour.

Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell vowed in a statement on Friday night that President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate". But Mr McConnell failed to divulge when or how that would happen, and there's significant uncertainty about what comes next.

Here is an overview of the confirmation process, and everything we currently know and dont know about whats to come in the race to replace Ginsburg:

Can Ginsburg be replaced before the US 2020 election?

In short, yes, but it would require an extremely quick turnaround from both Mr Trump and the high court. Supreme Court nominations have taken around 70 days to move through the Senate in the past  the last, for Brett Kavanaugh, took even longer. The election, taking place on 3 November, is 46 days away.

Currently, there are no set rules for how long the process should take once Mr Trump announces his pick and some past nominations have moved more quickly than others. Ultimately, it will come down to politics and votes.

How many votes are needed to confirm an appointment?

A majority. Republicans control the Senate by a 53-47 margin, meaning they could lose up to three votes and still confirm a justice  if Mike Pence were to break a 50-50 tie.

Supreme Court nominations used to need 60 votes for confirmation if any senator objected, but Mr McConnell changed Senate rules in 2017 to allow the confirmation of justices with 51 votes. He did so as Democrats threatened to filibuster Mr Trumps first nominee, Justice Neil Gorsuch.

How does it affect the US 2020 election campaign?

Republicans are defending 25 of the 38 seats that are on the ballot this year and many of their vulnerable members have been eager to end the fall session and return home to the campaign trail. The Senate is scheduled to recess in mid-October, though that schedule could change.

Still, many of the most vulnerable senators may be hesitant to vote on a nominee before facing voters in November, and their views could ultimately determine the timeline for action. Others may want to campaign on their eventual vote. Mr McConnell himself is among those up for reelection this year.

Can Ginsburg be replaced after the US 2020 election?

Yes. Republicans could well vote on Mr Trump's nominee in the lame duck session that takes place after the November election and before the next Congress takes office on 3 January. No matter what happens in this year's election, Republicans are expected to be in charge of the Senate during that period.

The Senate would have until 20 January, the date of the presidential inauguration, to act on Mr Trumps nominee. If Mr Trump were reelected and his pick had not been confirmed by the inauguration, he could renominate his pick as soon as his second term began.

How is a new Supreme Chief Justice appointed?

When a vacancy occurs on the Supreme Court, the president is given authority under the Constitution to nominate someone to fill it. It is up to the Senate Judiciary Committee to vet the nominee and hold confirmation hearings. Once the committee approves the nomination it goes to the Senate floor for a final confirmation vote. This process passes through several time-consuming steps. Traditionally senators want to meet and assess the nominee themselves, which requires weeks of meetings around the Capitol.

And thats assuming the process runs smoothly. In 2018, Mr Kavanaughs confirmation fight took weeks longer than expected after Christine Blasey Ford accused him of sexually assaulting her when they were teenagers. Mr Kavanaugh denied the accusation and was confirmed by the Senate in a 51-49 vote.

Who are the senators to watch?

With the slim 53-seat majority in the Senate, the Republicans have few votes to spare. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah and others will be among those senators to watch. Ms Collins on Saturday said that the nominee should be chosen by whomever is elected president on 3 November.

Its not just the qualifications of Mr Trumps nominee but the political calculation of a vote linked so closely to an election that could shape their position. Ms Collins is in a tight race for her own reelection in Maine  she and Ms Murkowski have long been watched for their support of a womans right to an abortion under Roe vs Wade.

Ms Murkowski and Mr Romney have been critical of Mr Trump and protective of the institution of the Senate.

Others facing close reelection contests in their states, including senator Cory Gardner of Colorado, could face pressure not to vote ahead of the election or in its immediate aftermath, especially if they were to lose their seats.

Additional reporting by agencies
The father of notorious Scientology leader David Miscavige claimed that John Travolta failed to acknowledge the 'abusive tactics' happening in the church.

Ron Miscavige made the shocking remarks about Travolta, a longtime member of the Church of Scientology, in an exclusive interview with The Sun this week.

While speaking with The Sun, Ron alleged that Travolta reportedly refused to believe claims that the church retaliated against him after he formally walked away.

'Staff members can come and go, but as long as I can get my auditing, I can be happy,' Travolta, 66, said, according to Ron.

Ron Miscavige (left) alleged in an interview with The Sun that actor John Travolta (right) 'didnt bat an eyelid' over allegations made against the Church of Scientology

Ron said his, David Miscavige (pictured), allegedly barred him from seeing his daughters and granddaughters after leaving the Church of Scientology in 2012

Ron also called his son Miscavige a 'corrupt ruler', and allegedly that he barred him from seeing his two daughters and grandchildren after he left the church.

Ron also alleged that the Church of Scientology hired private investigators to follow him after he left, but the PIs did not intervene when he appeared to have a heart attack - and claims they were even told to let Ron die.

According to The Sun, Ron left the Church of Scientology in 2012 and was quickly ostracized.

Ron, 84, tried to stay in contact with his two daughters, Lori and Miscavige's twin sister Denise, but said Miscavige banned the reunion.

'All I wanted to do when I left was to get on my life, but I had private investigators following me, being paid $10,000 a week to report on all of my doings between eight in the morning and eight at night,' Ron told the publication.

Ron claimed that the private investigators tailed him to a grocery store on one instance, and allegedly stayed in their vehicle when he appeared to have a medical emergency.

Ron Miscavige (pictured): 'I wanted to do when I left was to get on my life, but I had private investigators following me, being paid $10,000 a week to report on all of my doings between eight in the morning and eight at night'

'When I was being followed, I was shopping at a grocery store near my house, it was a summer's day and I had a pocket t-shirt on,' Ron told The Sun.

'I opened the door to put the groceries in, bent over, my cellphone was in the left-chest pocket and I thought it was going to fall out, so I grabbed my cell with my right arm, unbeknownst to me were two private investigators watching in a blacked out van, and one said: "It looks like the target is having a heart attack, Im going to call in."

David Miscavige's Statement to The Sun Regarding the report, a lawyer for David Miscavige released a statement to The Sun denying allegation made by Ron Miscavige. It read: 'Rons assertion that he was 'harassed by private investigators hired by his son' is fallacious. 'Mr. Miscavige never hired, had anything to do with the hiring, or communicated with, any private investigator in general, or regarding Ron in particular. 'Ron's assertion that the woman whose name he drops wanted a 'showdown' with Mr. Miscavige, and Mr. Miscavige then arranged a confrontation between his sisters and that woman, while secretly videoing the whole episode, is also concocted. 'The woman requested no "showdown" with Mr. Miscavige; Mr. Miscavige never arranged a confrontation between his sisters and anyone, much less the woman named; and there was no videotape, secret or otherwise' Source: The Sun Advertisement

'He called Greg, the name of his handler, he said hell get someone on the phone, a few minutes later a person came on the phone, and said, "Listen, if its his time to die, dont intervene, dont do anything, let him die."'

A lawyer for Miscavige wrote in a statement to The Sun that his client denied that claims made regarding private investigators.

'Rons assertion that he was "harassed by private investigators hired by his son" is fallacious. Mr. Miscavige never hired, had anything to do with the hiring, or communicated with, any private investigator in general, or regarding Ron in particular,' the statement read.

But in 2015, the Los Angeles Times revealed that a report filed with the police claimed that the church hired the PIs to ensure Ron would not disclose information after he exit.

Although a police report was filed, authorities have not

The report received a large media reaction, and The Sun now reports that the story was leaked to the press by former Scientology member, Lisa Marie Presley.

After the release of his book 'Ruthless: Scientology, My Son David Miscavige, and Me,' Ron told The Sun that Travolta 'didnt bat an eyelid.'

Seemingly because Travolta could not believe it, the report said.

'I was told that John found out about the story of my daughters being disconnected, the meeting with Denise and Lori, the episode of the PIs thinking I was having a heart attack, the whole story,' Ron told the publication.

'And at the end of it, John said: 'Staff members can come and go, but as long as I can get my auditing, I can be happy.'

During the interview, Ron also alleged that Presley demanded to meet with Miscavige after she discovered he was ostracized.

Presley, 52, the daughter of Elvis Presley, and Ron were longtime friends after they met in 1989.

Ron Miscavige told The Sun that Lisa Marie Presley (pictured), a former member of the Church of Scientology, attempted to help him after he was reportedly ostracized

Ron told The Sun that when Presley asked to meet with Miscavige, he sent his sisters out to mitigate the situation.

'So she was at Flag Base doing a Purification Rundown, she wanted to confront David, but instead he sent my two daughters and they were just ranting at her, telling her what a terrible person I was. Theyre brainwashed,' Ron told The Sun.

Denise Miscavige (pictured in mugshot) allegedly got into a disagreement with Lisa Marie Presley

'Denise and Lori pounded the desk, Lisa couldnt believe that she couldnt speak to David. Michael [Lockwood, her ex-husband] said: "Its almost like David put on a wig and put on that performance."

'I guess Lisa was blinded to it until then.

'When David wouldnt speak to her, she drove away, I felt at that time she was done with it, she couldnt believe the abusive tactics of the Church. She wouldnt make anyone do that, shed never make someone disconnect from their family, David did that. They say theyre all family orientated, thats all horse s***'

'Unfortunately, Im the one who got everyone in, now Im paying the price.'

Becky Bigelow, Ron's wife of 30 years, told The Sun that the alleged incident happened on 'family day.'

'The irony of that day was that Flag Base was promoting 'family day', so that moms and dads can see their children in the Sea Org, so Lisa thought that Denise and Lori should be allowed to see their dad, and this whole thing blows up on that day, which is unreal,' she told the publication.

Becky added that Denise resembled a 'mini-David' and Presley responded to the woman, saying: '"Bravo, now that should be an Academy Award'," because David was having the whole thing filmed.'

David Miscavige (pictured) and the Church of Scientology had denied the allegations made by Ron Miscavige

'She was in the Religious Technology office and she said there were cameras set up in the room to film her reaction,' Ron told The Sun.

'David wouldnt come into the room and see her, hed sent his two sisters, they put on this show, it was mostly Denise, his twin sister. Thats what p***** Lisa off.'

In a second statement to The Sun, the Church of Scientology called Ron's allegations 'pure fiction.'

'The allegation that David Miscavige orchestrated a confrontation between his sisters and the individual you name, while 'secretly videoing the whole episode' is false and absurd,' the statement read.

'The incident never occurred. Further, the insinuation that two grown women, mothers and grandmothers, are incapable of making their own decisions about their families, their lives and the lives of their children is demeaning.'
Its a sweltering August morning in Berlin, and Priya Basil is sitting outside a cafe in Mitte sipping an apple-carrot-ginger juice when a young woman stops to greet her effusively.

The young woman, Carolina Assad, is the managing director of Wir Schaffen Das, the nonprofit organization that Basil helped found in 2015. It was named after Angela Merkels exhortation, We can do it, which was widely seen as an encouragement to Germans that they would be able to handle the large influx of refugees from Syria and other countries in the summer of 2015.

The two havent seen each other in months due to the pandemic. Just before the virus reached Europe, Basil, the author of two novels and a novella, published her first work of nonfiction, Be My Guest, there. The book, which Knopf will release in the U.S. in November, is a philosophical meditation on the meaning of hospitality in forms large and small. It was directly inspired by Basils experiences with that nonprofit, founded to help refugees who arrived in Berlin at the climax of the refugee crisis.

Basils backgroundshe was raised in Kenya in an Indian family and educated in Englandbubbles up in her fiction. She deals with themes of love and family dynamics, often following characters in the Indian diaspora in Africa and the United Kingdom. Her first novel, 2008s Ishq and Mushq, which was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers Prize, among other accolades, follows a young Indian couple from Kenya who move to London. Her second novel, 2011s The Obscure Logic of the Heart, is a retelling of Romeo and Juliet featuring a devout Muslim girl and a Sikh boy, and set in Kenya and London.

She first moved to Berlin in 2002 and for the past few years has divided her life between London and the German capital. Married to a German journalist, she got her German residency status seven years ago. Then, in the wake of Brexit, she decided to apply for German citizenship. I was shocked to find attachment to this country, Basil says, laughing. Also [the process of getting citizenship] was so welcoming; it was powerful to feel wanted. Further cementing her sense of belonging, Basil and her husband, together with a group of acquaintances, built an apartment house, where they live in a kind of loose community with their neighbors.

Basil was raised in the insular Indian community in Kenya, where both her maternal and paternal sets of grandparents had moved to work on the Uganda Railway, which stretched from Mombasa to Lake Victoria. Her childhood experience of living in this bubble of Indian culture within Kenya was, in a sense, good preparation for her life as an Anglophone expat in Germany. In Be My Guest, Basil muses on her parents attitudes as Indians in Kenya who had lived through British colonization in India as well as in Africa. We saw ourselves as victims and therefore somehow absolved [ourselves] from any duty to others, however much worse their plight, she says. On our tables there was plenty, but our minds were impoverished, our imaginations limited.

When Syrian refugees first started arriving in Germany in 2015, Basil writes in the book, she was chagrined to find within herself a disconcerting resistance and fear to their presence in her adopted country. What if the presence of all these new foreigners somehow chipped away at her own hard-won status as a foreign intellectual, even replacing her?

Be My Guest, a slim yet powerful collection of theories on hospitality both given and received, grapples with these questions. In it, Basil works through her own memories and experiences as a child, then a young woman hungering for the comfort of her mothers cooking, and, finally, a grown-up learning to extend generosity to those in need.

Basil ultimately quieted her anxieties about displacement by helping to found Wir Schaffen Das. She then went to work aiding refugees in their adjustment to their new lives in Berlin, doing things like organizing communal meals and pairing refugees with Germans to help them with bureaucratic appointments. The act of hospitality itself made Basil realize that the scarcity mindset wasnt serving her or anyone else. Helping others allowed her to see the link between hospitality, abundance, and generosity. Now its clear to her that the big difference between her life in Berlin and her parents in Kenya is that shes determined to reach out and bridge the gulf that can exist between longtime residents of a country and newcomers, especially those who arrive in desperation, having lost everything.

The Covid-19 pandemic has, of course, radically changed the global understanding of hospitality. Gone are the days of intimate dinner parties at home. Birthdays are now celebrated as drive-by parades. And perhaps the kindest thing people can do at the moment is keep their distance. Basil, however, has spotted a glimmer of light in all of this.

The pandemic has given us the opportunity to think of different ways to be hospitable, she explains. She sees doctors, nurses, and other essential workers, who continue to do their jobs despite the risks, as embodying a type of uplifting hospitality. She sees this behavior as something that has made people look at each other differently. Weve been given an opportunity to find other ways of taking care and helping each other.

As soon as Basil realized that you have to start thinking of your body in relation to other peoples safety and bodies, she says, it became easier for her to inhabit this unsettling new reality. At the beginning, there was this terrible feeling of everyone being a potential risk. I hated that feeling of being in the world, and Im so glad that phase has passed. Now I want to only think of what I can do to help other people feel safe. I want to be healthy so that I can be a better citizen, a better friend, and a better daughter.

The pandemic has magnified the stark disparities between those who get taken care of, those who get to feel safe, and those who really dont, Basil says. She was surprised to find deep consolation in the fact that she now, in more ways than one, belongs to Germany, which has ably demonstrated the beneficial power of the hospitality of the state while shielding its citizens from the worst of the pandemics effects. It was really striking to feel suddenly grateful to a government that youre used to looking at really critically and complaining about all the time.

Despite the fact that she writes exclusively in English, Basil was surprised to discover that she has, over time, become more of a German writer than an English one. It is her life in Berlin, and her exposure to its history, that has given her the ability to reflect more critically on all of her past experiences. Her writing life, her inspiration, and the various work opportunities that have emerged from living in Berlin are emblematic of the beauty of hospitality itself, as they illustrate the ways in which hospitality enriches the lives of both host and guest.

Be My Guest came out in German before it was published in English, so Basil found herself doing press events in German, which was both exhilarating and anxiety-inducing. Finally coming to grips with the mechanics of German was quite a challenge, she says. It was really interesting, but agonizing as well. Basil sees herself as still learning the language, but feels like shes finally at a point where she can comfortably converse about most things. Its a really magical moment when a foreign language becomes accessible. Thats very motivating. I just never thought Id be able to speak in German. I thought Id understand more and maybe be able to read a bit.

The hardest thing for her was getting over the anxiety about making mistakes. Once I was able to do that and just not carethat was a really important psychological barrier to overcome, Basil says. This new place of being opened up for me, and it also gave me new eyes on English. Thinking about sentences and thinking about structure made me much more alert about writing in English. And that has changed the way I write. Theres a certain freedom in English, a bit of looseness and ambiguity. The attention to every single word was something that I didnt have before. There is no better proof that the act of hospitality is a gift that goes both ways.

Luisa Weiss is a Berlin-based writer and translator; her most recent book is Classic German Baking (Ten Speed).
A Thai MP was left red-faced after being caught in parliament looking at porn on his phone.

Ronnathep Anuwat was supposed to be paying attention to a budget reading in Bangkok, Thailand, on September 17.

However, the politician opened a series of explicit images on his smartphone  viewing them for more than ten minutes.

Shocked reporters in the press gallery snapped pictures of the politician  who had even removed his face mask to look closely at the images.

One showed a young woman with her top off, another was lying naked on a bed and a third showed another pornographic image.

Ronnathep Anuwat said he was concerned the girl was in trouble. Source: Viral Press/Australscope

The embarrassed MP, who represents Chonburi province for ruling military Palang Pracharath Party, was confronted over the images and admitted looking at them.

However, he made a bizarre excuse claiming to have received the unsolicited messages on the app Line from a girl who was asking for help.

Ronnathep told local media that he viewed the images in detail as he was checking the background to decide if the girl was in danger.

He said he wanted to observe the environment surrounding the girl in the picture as he feared she was being harassed by gangsters who had forced her to take the pictures.

Ronnathep said he eventually realised the girl was asking for money so he deleted all of the content.

Ronnathep Anuwat was caught looking at porn during parliament. Source: Viral Press/Australscope

Government officials summoned Ronnathep for an explanation but they ruled that no further action would be taken against him.

House speaker Chuan Leekpai said the images were a personal matter and said there were currently no rules about what MPs could look at on their phones in the meeting room. He said no MPs had complained about the matter so no action would be taken.

Chuan warned the public to separate personal matters from MPs duties.

In June 2012, Bangkok MP Nat Bantadtan was also caught flicking through porn on his phone during a constitutional amendment.

Australscope

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

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The United States will unilaterally declare this weekend that UN sanctions against Iran are once again in force, a move that risks increasing Washingtons diplomatic isolation while also stoking international tensions.

Virtually all UN sanctions on Iran will come back into place this weekend at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time (midnight GMT) on Saturday the 19th," said Elliott Abrams, the Trump administrations special representative for Iran.

But on this point, Washington is almost alone in the world: all the other great powers  China, Russia and also the US own European allies  have challenged the claim.

How did the UN arrive at this spectacular stand-off between the leading superpower and the rest of the planet? To answer that, one has to go back at least one month.

In mid-August, President Donald Trumps administration suffered a resounding defeat at the UN Security Council when it tried to extend the embargo on conventional weapons being sent to Tehran, which was due to expire in October.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made an unusually vehement attack on allies France, Britain and Germany, accusing them of siding with Irans Ayatollahs," and on August 20 announced a controversial move known as the snapback," which aims to re-establish all sanctions against Tehran a month later.

The sanctions were lifted in 2015 when Iran signed on to an international agreement not to seek to build nuclear weapons.

A legal pirouette

But Trump said that the landmark accord, negotiated by his predecessor Barack Obama, was insufficient and withdrew the US from the agreement in 2018, then renewed and even strengthened Washingtons bilateral sanctions.

At the moment, the United States is insisting it is still a participant in the agreement that it stormed out of, but only so that it can activate the snapback" option.

Virtually every other member of the Security Council disputes Washingtons ability to execute this legal pirouette, and the council has not taken the measure any further.

But this dialogue of the deaf has gone on unabated: the Trump administration acts as if the international sanctions were coming back, while the rest of the international community continues to act as if nothing has changed.

So is this a symbolic gesture designed to recall Washingtons hard line against Tehran, or are there more concrete measures in the offing?

The Americans will pretend that they have activated the snapback and that therefore the sanctions are back up and running," said one European diplomat. But this action will have no legal foundation" and therefore cannot have legal consequences."

I dont see anything happening," said another UN diplomat. It would be just a statement. Its like pulling a trigger and no bullet coming out."

Trump shock?

Another diplomat deplored the unilateral" US act, saying that Russia and China are sitting, happy, eating popcorn, watching" the huge destabilizing fallout" between Washington and its European partners.

The US is, however, demanding that the arms embargo be prolonged indefinitely," and that numerous other activities linked to Irans nuclear and ballistic programs be subject to international sanctions.

Pompeo said this week the US will do all the things we need to do to make sure that those sanctions are enforced.

We are going to act in a way  and we have acted in a way  that will prevent Iran from being able to purchase Chinese tanks and Russian air defense systems," he said

We expect every nation to comply with UN Security Council resolutions  period, full stop," he added.

That is where the issue risks stoking up international tensions.

Trump could announce secondary sanctions to punish any country or entity that violates UN sanctions, blocking their access to US markets and financial systems, even though the US is one of the only countries to believe that the sanctions are actually in force.

Six weeks away from possibly winning a second term, the US president could also use his Tuesday address to the General Assembly to try and create a shock by announcing some sort of financial penalty on the UN because of his dissatisfaction over the snapback process," said Richard Gowan of the International Crisis Group.
A ruling in favor of the Green Party would have required reprinting hundreds of thousands of ballots, and some ballots already sent to voters would have been invalid, escalating the confusion for voters planning to cast their ballot by mail. The risk to Democrats if the states voting by mail is thrown into chaos is stark: According to a Marquette University poll, 18 percent of Wisconsin Republicans say they will vote absentee; among Democrats, roughly 47 percent say they plan to vote by mail.

The Michigan case was fought by lawyers for a Seattle firm, Perkins Coie, whose Washington, D.C., office frequently represents Democratic Party causes. Marc Elias, who heads the firms political law section, has coordinated dozens of voting-related cases this election season.

Republicans have not been without victories. Most recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit sided with Floridas Republican governor and Legislature last week in effectively barring hundreds of thousands of former felons from voting in November. That would have been a historic expansion of Floridas voting rolls.

The Republican National Committee and the Trump presidential campaign have frequently opposed Mr. Elias and voting rights advocacy groups in court, and say they will spend $20 million or more contesting those groups election lawsuits this year.

The Republican organizations argue that Democrats are trying to relax voting rules to make it easier to cast bogus Democratic votes. So far, that argument has not been persuasive, said Richard L. Hasen, an election law scholar and law professor at the University of California, Irvine.

Republicans have offered two arguments against making voting easier, he said  that relaxing rules violates state law, and that it violates the Constitution by promoting fraud, which dilutes the value of legitimate votes.

The fraud argument has fallen flat in the courts so far, he said, because the Trump campaign has not been able to produce evidence to support that claim. Republican lawyers were unable to document systemic fraud risks in hundreds of pages of documents submitted to a federal judge in a Pennsylvania lawsuit. A federal judge in Chicago ruled last month that Republican arguments that expanded absentee voting would abet fraud were conjecture.
The European Union (EU) will release a new set of rules by 2024  with the aim to streamline cross-border payments  by leveraging blockchain and crypto-assets such as stablecoins.

This approach by the EU is part of a broader effort to encourage a shift towards digital finance, especially at a time when the pandemic has driven more people to go cashless as a preferred way to carry out transactions, according to a report by Reuters.



By 2024, the EU should put in place a comprehensive framework enabling the uptake of distributed ledger technology (DLT) and crypto-assets in the financial sector, the documents said, according to the report. It should also address the risks associated with these technologies."

The document also said that the European Commission  the EU's executive branch  would release a draft law to explain how the existing regulatory framework will be put into action and how new regulations will be introduced as needed. Moreover, once anti-money laundering and identity checks are in shape, the bloc, too, will set up official regulations and allow new customers to use financial services, per the report.

The news comes a week after a senior official at the EUs executive branch addressed the topic of EU finance ministers  from Germany and France  asking for tighter controls on stablecoin issuers as The Block previously reported.





 2020 The Block Crypto, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
RTHK: Ex-PM Abe returns to controversial shrine

Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited the controversial Yasukuni Shrine for war dead on Saturday, his first visit since December 2013, after refraining from doing so for most of his term to avoid angering China and South Korea.

Abe announced the visit on his official Twitter account along with a photo of himself at the shrine, just days after Yoshihide Suga succeeded him as Japan's leader. Japan's longest-serving leader stepped down, citing health problems.

The shrine is seen by Beijing and Seoul as a symbol of Japan's past military aggression because it honours 14 Japanese wartime leaders convicted as war criminals by an Allied tribunal as well as war dead. (Reuters)

This story has been published on: 2020-09-19. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
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The congress was held in online form in the presence of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc who is also Chairman of the Central Emulation and Rewards Council.

Speaking at the opening of the congress, VFF President Tran Thanh Man affirmed that the congress was considered an important milestone marking a new development step, on the basis of inheriting and promoting the glorious tradition and important results achieved during the 90 years of the VFF.

This is also an opportunity to encourage all the people to overcome their difficulties and challenges, bring into play the strengths of the great national unity bloc, spread the spirit of mutual care in the community; and strive to successfully implement all Resolutions of the Party, National Assembly, and Government for national construction and defence, he noted.

At the congress, on behalf of the Party and State leaders, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc presented the second-class Labour Order to VFF Vice President Nguyen Huu Dung.

On the occasion, 40 individuals were honoured with certificates of merit from the Prime Minister and 136 others received certificates of merit from the VFF Central Committee.

In his speech, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc emphasised that, with the great achievements of recent years, the VFF continued to deserve its role of political alliance, voluntary union and political base of the peoples government; representing and protecting the legitimate rights and interests of the people, serving as the core organisation in the countrys political system; contributing to consolidating and promoting the great national unity bloc, as well as creating a solid foundation and great strength for national stability and development.

The Government leader expressed his belief that after the VFFs Patriotic Emulation Congress, the spirit of the great national unity bloc will be further promoted; and patriotic emulation movements will continue to be strongin society and become an important driving force to help the entire Party and people to successfully carry out the task of national construction and development.
P eople in England who refuse orders to self-isolate will face fines of up to 10,000, Boris Johnson has announced.

Under the new measures, anyone who tests positive for Covid-19 and does not self-quarantine is breaking the law and faces strict penalties.

It will also be illegal for anyone to ignore Test and Trace instructions to self-isolate after coming into contact with someone who is infected with the disease.

Those on lower incomes who face a loss of earnings as a result of going into quarantine will be eligible for a one-off support payment of 500 to help them cope financially.

With new cases of the infection doubling every week, Mr Johnson said the measures were necessary to control the spread of the virus and to protect the most vulnerable from becoming infected.

Announcing the new rules on Saturday night, the Prime Minister said: The best way we can fight this virus is by everyone following the rules and self-isolating if theyre at risk of passing on coronavirus.

And so nobody underestimates just how important this is, new regulations will mean you are legally obliged to do so if you have the virus or have been asked to do so by NHS Test and Trace.

People who choose to ignore the rules will face significant fines.

"We need to do all we can to control the spread of this virus, to prevent the most vulnerable people from becoming infected, and to protect the NHS and save lives.

Coronavirus in numbers: UK records 4,422 new confirmed cases

The new regulations will come into force in England on September 28.

However, ministers are in discussion with the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland about extending them UK-wide.

It follows a warning by Professor Neil Ferguson  whose modelling led to the original nationwide lockdown  that the authorities needed to act sooner rather than later if they were to avoid a return to the infection rates of last March.

On Friday, the Prime Minister admitted that the long-feared second wave of the pandemic had reached Britain, and that more cases of the disease were inevitable.

Fines will initially start at 1,000 rising to 10,000 for repeat offenders and for the most egregious breaches.

These will include anyone who prevents others from self-isolating, such an employer who requires a staff member to come into work in violation of an order.

The penalties are in line with those for people who fail to quarantine for 14 days after returning to the UK from a country not on the list of low risk nations.

Officials said NHS Test and Trace would be in regular contact with individuals told to self-isolate and would report any suspicions that people were not complying to the police and local authorities.

Police will also check compliance in Covid-19 hotspots and among groups considered to be high-risk as well as following up reports from members of the public of people who have tested positive but are not self-isolating.

Prosecutions could follow in high-profile and egregious cases of non-compliance.

As with other coronavirus rules, there will be specific exemptions for those who need to escape from illness or harm during their isolation, and for those who require care.

Officials said just under four million people on benefits in England would be eligible for the support payments if they lose income as a result of being unable to go into work.

The latest announcement comes just days after the rule of six  banning social gatherings of more than six people  came into force.

It will be viewed as further evidence of the concern in Whitehall at the rate of spread of the disease.

On Friday, the Government announced tough new restrictions were being imposed in large parts of Englands North West, West Yorkshire and the Midlands.

It means by Tuesday, when the measures come into force, around 13.5 million people in the UK will be living under some form of additional coronavirus controls.

UK facing 'perfect storm' after coronavirus rules eased over summer

Prof Ferguson said the country was caught in a perfect storm following the easing of lockdown restrictions over the summer, and that swift action was needed to stop the virus spreading out of control.

Right now we are at about the levels of infection we were seeing in this country in late February, he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

If we leave it another two to four weeks we will be back at levels we were seeing more like mid-March. Thats clearly going to cause deaths because people will be hospitalised.

I think some additional measures are likely to be needed sooner rather than later.
Midweek restaurant sales increased by 400% in Northern Ireland following lockdown, a hotelier has said.

More eating out during non-peak times could be a positive legacy for the hospitality industry following the crisis, according to Conall Wolsey.

Mr Wolsey is director of the Beannchor Group, which opened the 4m Haslem Hotel in Lisburn yesterday in a vote of confidence in the future of the market.

He said: "It would be a fantastic thing if as a culture in Belfast people got used to going out midweek as well as at the weekend.

"We have been seeing 4-5-600% up.

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"If that culture could exist once this ends that will be a real positive for the industry."

The Government's Eat Out to Help Out scheme offering 50% off food up to the value of 10 from Monday to Wednesday helped boost numbers dining during August.

Mr Wolsey said people were attempting to find tables in restaurants with less capacity due to social distancing but just as much demand.

Opening of the 45-bedroom Haslem Hotel at Lisburn Square was delayed by several months due to disruption caused by the pandemic.

Mr Wolsey acknowledged it would only be once a vaccine is found for coronavirus that trade would fully return to normal.

He said: "The desire for people to travel will always be there.

"It is being curtailed by this pandemic but domestically and internationally travel has never been so free and accessible.

"That is only going to get more so once this pandemic is over.

"The hotel industry will get better and there have been a few chinks of light for the future."

The Haslem Hotel will create 50 new jobs and target business travellers from the Republic of Ireland and UK, as well as Lisburn locals.

It features an 80-seater open plan lobby and bar area, a 68-seater restaurant, residents' gym and conference room.

Mr Wolsey said the property had been finished for two months and was originally scheduled to open in the first week of July but the stumbling block was the timing of recruitment.

"We did not want to recruit and there be a lockdown and then make those people redundant," he said.

He said room occupancy had been cut significantly due to the pandemic and lack of international tourism.
So, what are your travel plans for the winter? Still up in the air, so to speak?

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 19/9/2020 (489 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

So, what are your travel plans for the winter? Still up in the air, so to speak?

Many Canadians are used to getting away for two or three weeks each winter, and many snowbirds spend extended periods of time in warmer climates. This year may be a little different, with bookings instead up significantly on Vancouver Island, the B.C. coast, western ski hills, and other slightly milder locations.

However, Ive also noticed a lot of people who talked about staying home this winter are starting to change that plan, after the first few chilly September nights. This article will try to bring you up to date on some travel insurance options available to you during the pandemic and, spread awareness of some other current issues and concerns.

As always, I suggest you consult an expert, like an insurance broker specializing in travel, a professional travel agent, and government websites. Every time I talk to one of the experts, Im reminded of the many things I dont know, but I will try to share some of those here.

After months of uncertainty, most travel insurance companies are now covering COVID-19 infections and treatment. In fact, Air Canada and WestJet have both recently added COVID-19 insurance coverage with their vacation packages, at no extra cost, on trips up to 21 days.

These packages, like some offered by other insurance companies, have special coverage for additional expenses like quarantine accommodation, hospitalization, ambulance, air evacuation home and return airfare for the travelling companion, if air evac is required.

As always, carefully read the policy contract itself, not just a brochure or website description. I was reminded of this by Lori Yorke, owner of Medi-Quote Insurance Brokers, which specializes in various types of travel insurance. The policy wording is what determines your actual coverage and she has found instances where the marketing descriptions differ from the actual contract.

Snowbird Medipac from the Canadian Snowbird Association recently addressed this head-on with the change to its website, which now says about COVID 19 coverage, " its in our policy."

This advice also applies to your group insurance plans or to any coverage you get by booking with a premium credit card.

Yorke also said companies have recently introduced new features, including reimbursement for rides to testing facilities, grocery delivery costs and even extension of coverage till you can travel again at no cost, for people infected with COVID-19 while travelling.

Clearly, its a very different situation than last spring, when the initial travel bans were instituted, and insurance companies told their customers to get home or risk loss of coverage.

Things are not quite back to normal, Im told, as some companies are restricting insurance purchases to 45 or 60 days prior to travel, for example, instead of six months or more, to make sure they can respond to changing conditions in different countries.

As well, your destination will be more important than ever. I presume you cannot get coverage right now to go to Brazil, for example, but the U.S. is available.

Another thing to be clear about are the airline requirements to allow you to fly, and other countries rules to deplane at your destination. Some countries are apparently requiring a negative COVID-19 test or a health certificate, to avoid self-isolation or even to enter the country at all.

Yorke told me a company called Travel Health Now can issue such certificates, after you upload your local COVID-19 test to them and then do an online consultation.

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Another tip she provided as an app called Sitata Travel Safe (www.sitata.com), which helps with trip planning and then keeps you up-to-date on the latest health information, required vaccinations, flight disruptions and safety and security issues for your destination. This seems more necessary than ever in 2020.

My best advice is to be careful, both about your insurance coverage and about your health. The best way to avoid any problems is to avoid getting sick, so take all the precautions of which you have been made aware.

Safe travels!

Dollars and Sense is meant as an introduction to this topic and should not in any way be construed as a replacement for personalized professional advice.

David Christianson, BA, CFP, R.F.P., TEP, CIM is recipient of the FP Canada Fellow (FCFP) Distinction, and repeatedly named a Top 50 Financial Advisor in Canada. He is a Portfolio Manager and Senior Vice President with Christianson Wealth Advisors at National Bank Financial Wealth Management, and author of the book Managing the Bull, A No-Nonsense Guide to Personal Finance.
For nearly 50 years, the Soto family has been riding on the success of its tasty carne asada known as Kennedys Karne. On Saturday, they celebrated both a new location and a new addition to the ownership family.

On Saturday, Cardiff resident Mark M. Soto, 34, and his new business partner John Mayberry, 32, of Carlsbad celebrated the grand opening of their new Kennedys Meat Company on East Valley Parkway in Escondido.

The partners 5,000-square-foot market, meat counter and restaurant at 1766 East Valley Parkway replaces the Soto familys much-smaller shop in the same shopping center.

Business partners Mark M. Soto, 34, and John Mayberry, 32, in their newly opened Kennedys Meat Co. market in Escondido. (Katherine Grace/Katherine by the Sea)

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The new Kennedys Meat Company features a large meat counter, where meat manager Dave Burr sells and cuts a variety of fresh and marinated raw meats and chicken. Theres also a refrigerator section where at least 10 of the familys 50 varieties of fresh salsa are sold.

Theres a Mexican food market selling, among other items, the Sotos name-brand chips and signature hybrid corn/flour tortillas. And theres a restaurant section, run by chef Alfred Medina, where diners can eat fresh-grilled carne asada and pollo asada in tacos, burritos and more.

Soto has run the old Escondido location since 2009, but when his family decided it wanted to consolidate its business in Imperial Valley a few years ago, he reached out to his friend, Mayberry, to launch a new extension of the business.

The company and its famed carne asada has its roots in Mexico, where Sotos grandfather, Jesus Soto, drove a water truck. In 1960, he emigrated to the U.S. with his wife, Rosa, and they settled in the small Imperial Valley town of Heber, where he first managed and then co-owned a market.

In 1972, Jesus Soto opened his own store with the help of a U.S. Small Business Administration loan. He named the store Kennedys in honor of President John F. Kennedy, who welcomed immigrants like himself to the U.S. in the early 1960s to pursue their American dreams.

From the very beginning, the store became known for its award-winning carne asada, skirt steak marinated in a secret family recipe made with fresh-squeezed lemon juice and garlic.

Carne asada on the grill at newly opened Kennedys Meat Company, which hosted its grand opening on Saturday in Escondido. The company is famous for its carne asada. (Katherine Grace/Katherine by the Sea)

Today, there are a half-dozen varieties of carne asada that range in price from $9.99 a pound for the original recipe skirt steak to $16 a pound for premium cuts of corn-fed Brandt Beef. There are now chipotle, habanero, burgundy pepper and other varieties, but the original recipe remains the top-seller. Marinated chicken breast and thigh meat sells for $3.99 to $5.99 a pound.

Soto passed away in 1993 at the age of 59, but his family has carried on the business. All five of the Sotos children worked in the Kennedys stores, which would grow to include a second location in Imperial Valley and stores in El Centro, Imperial Beach and Escondido.

Eldest daughter Sylvia ran the Heber store with her daughter Marla. And in 2009, Sylvias son Mark moved to North County to manage the Escondido store.

At the time, the 2-year-old Escondido store was struggling because the Kennedys Karne name was not well known in this area. To spread the word, Soto bought a taco cart and took it to churches, street fairs and other community events every weekend to get people to taste the product. The strategy worked and the store began to thrive.

About two years ago, Soto told his friend Mayberry that he wanted to take over and expand the Escondido business, and Mayberry agreed to come on board as a partner.

Mayberry, a real estate agent and property manager, has a long history with Kennedys. Before Mayberry was born, his father worked on a geothermal energy plant near Heber and hed take his lunch break every day at Kennedys.

Mayberry said he remembers stopping at the Heber store on a road trip with his dad when he was 7 years old to buy a large amount of marinated raw meat. He also remembers how much he enjoyed eating it as a kid.

Rather than keep the old 2,000-square-foot store, the partners built a new, much larger operation in a former quick-service loan store.

The retail operation takes up about half the space. The rest in back is reserved for future growth for the fast-rising catering operation that now makes up about 30 percent of sales.

We want to grow and want to be successful, Soto said. The skys the limit.

Kennedys Meat Company

Hours: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays. 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sundays.

Where: 1766 E. Valley Parkway, Escondido

Phone: (760) 746-4622

Online: kennedysmeatcompany.com

pam.kragen@sduniontribune.com
A U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress bomber, assigned to the 96th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Barksdale Air Force Base, La., lands during exercise Lightning Focus at Royal Australian Air Force Base (RAAF) in Darwin, Australia, on Dec. 6, 2018. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Christopher Quail via AP)

Russian Military Says US Flights Near Crimea Fuel Tensions

MOSCOWThe Russian military on Friday accused the United States and its allies of provoking tensions in the Black Sea region with a sharp increase in the number of bomber patrols and intelligence flights.

Col. Gen. Sergei Rudskoi, head of the Russian General Staffs main operational department, said that the United States and other members of NATO have significantly increased the scope of their military activities in the region.

The U.S. and its NATO allies will carry the full responsibility for a possible escalation of the situation in the region, he said at a briefing.

Rudskoi pointed at a series of flights by the U.S. B-52 strategic bombers in August and September over the Black and the Azov Seas, alleging the missions were intended to simulate missile strikes at facilities in southern Russia. He said the bombers flew as close as approximately 7 miles to the Russian border.

A B-1B Lancer assigned to the 37th Bomb Squadron taxis on the flightline at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., on July 16, 2020. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Quentin K. Marx via AP)

After flying three B-1 heavy bombers over the East Siberian Sea last week, the U.S. military said the ongoing exercises were meant to show the Air Forces ability to continually execute flying missions and sustain readiness in support of our Allies and partners.

The Russian general noted that the United States and its NATO allies also have intensified their intelligence flights near Crimea, which he said increased by 40 percent compared to the last year. He added that on one occasion on Sept. 4 five NATO reconnaissance aircraft were buzzing the area near Crimea at the same time.

Russia scrambled its fighter jets to intercept and escort the United States and NATO bombers and reconnaissance planes on 27 occasions this month alone, Rudskoi said.

He added that NATO warships were also spending longer stints in the Black Sea this year.

Russia-West ties have sunk to their post-Cold War lows after Russias 2014 annexation of Ukraines Crimean Peninsula.

Russia has bristled at the deployment of NATO forces in the Baltics and charged that the alliance maneuvers near its borders posed a security threat. The alliance and Moscow also have increasingly often traded accusations over military flights.

Rudskoi charged that Russia has proposed to NATO to reduce military activities alongside the border and discuss additional measures to help prevent military incidents, but the alliance has stonewalled the proposals.

By Vladimir Isachenkov
Hawaii Gov. David Ige said Wednesday that starting Oct. 15, travelers arriving from out of state may bypass a 14-day quarantine requirement if they test negative for COVID-19.

Travelers will have to take the test within 72 hours of arrival in the islands. Ige said that initially drug store operator CVS and healthcare provider Kaiser Permanente will conduct the tests as part of an agreement with the state. The state will announce new testing partners in coming weeks.

While airlines will help inform travelers of the testing requirement, the state will not provide testing at its airports, and the governor provided few details on exactly how tests will be administered, and how it will verify the validity of the tests.

Lt. Governor Josh Green said that travelers will be responsible for the cost of their tests, which can range between $120 and $140, according to Honolulu Civil Beat. "Qualifying tests must be nucleic acid amplification tests, also known as NAAT  a molecular test that requires a minimally invasive nasal swab sample or saliva," it reported. The test must be performed by a CLIA-certified laboratory.

The state's tourism website, GoHawaii.com emphasizes that travelers must be tested before boarding flights to the islands: "Travelers are not able to test upon arrival in Hawaii because this is a pre-travel testing program," it says.

If you are ready to fly to the islands this fall, fares are in your favor. A quick scan of roundtrip fares on Google Flights from Bay Area Airports to the islands in late October shows the least expensive running at $200 to $250. That's quite a good deal. And with an expected surge in demand due to the lifting of the quarantine, I expect these bargains to disappear soon. Keep in mind that in addition to your airfare and hotel costs, you'll have to factor in the cost of you COVID-19 test when budgeting for your trip.

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Earlier this year Hawaii planned to start its pre-travel testing program on Aug. 1 only to have to postpone it as COVID-19 cases spiked on the U.S. mainland and in Hawaii. A shortage of testing supplies also forced delays. Another start date for Sept. 1 was pushed until Oct. 1.

Hawaii leaders are hopeful that pre-travel testing will encourage people to return to Hawaii in a way that keeps residents safe. Tourism traffic to the state has plunged more than 90% since the pandemic began, forcing hundreds of hotels to close and pushing many people out of work.

I want to emphasize that this pre-travel testing will allow us to add a greater element of safety for travel into our state, Ige said at a news conference.

Lt. Gov. Josh Green, who joined the news conference via Zoom because he tested positive for the disease and is isolating at home, said the program will provide economic opportunity at a time when so many people are suffering. Upheaval from the pandemic pushed nearly one-quarter of Hawaiis workforce into joblessness. In April, Hawaii had the third-worst unemployment rate in the nation after Nevada and Michigan.

"I worry about the long term impacts of economic distress and that impact this has on our people, when they cant afford their homes as easily or groceries or health care, Green said.

On Wednesday, the state Department of Health reported Hawaii had an average of 118 cases per day for the past seven days. That's down from a seven-day daily average of 255 on Aug. 28.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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Brie Bella / Instagram

Brie Bella has revealed what she would have named her second child if she and husband Daniel Bryan had a girl.

The couple, who chose not to find out the sex of their baby before the due date, welcomed son Buddy Dessert on Aug. 1, less than a day after her twin sister Nikki Bella became a mother for the first time.

If Buddy had been a girl, Brie said Branch and Blossom were their top name contenders. We didnt know if we were having a boy or a girl and we actually couldnt really figure out what names we wanted, the retired WWE Hall of Famer explained in a YouTube video released on Saturday.

So for a girl, Bryan and I were really torn, said the Total Bellas star, who is also mom to 3-year-old daughter Birdie Joe. I wanted Branch for a name, I know when we had Birdie, Branch was in my top 5 and people thought I was crazy but I thought Birdie and Branch would just be like the sweetest cutest little girls.

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RELATED: Nikki and Brie Bella Reveal the Special Meanings Behind Each of Their Son's Names

While discussing the backup monikers, the mom of two showed fans the nameplates she had engraved with all of their potential ideas.

Brian was really drawn to Blossom, she shared. Obviously you know us always with the B, but we wanted anything thats like nature-inspired.

We were torn so we were like Okay if it's a girl, when we see her well both feel it, the reality star added, noting that regardless of the first name they had chosen Dawn as the middle name. It would either be Branch Dawn or Blossom Dawn.

RELATED: Buddy's First Game! Brie Bella Dresses 6-Week-Old Son as a Football to Celebrate Start of NFL Season

Story continues

Bella also went on to reveal that they considered Montana for Buddys middle name before settling on Dessert, which is in honor of her grandmothers last name.

Montana was the first place Brian and I had our vacation together and it was actually funny because we hadnt told anyone we were together, she said. Montana is just a really special place to us.

Though she thought Buddy Montana sounds awesome, Bella said she really wanted to do something with my grandmother. Brie had previously opened up about Buddys name, telling PEOPLE in August that his first name is after Bryans grandfather.

"We named our son Buddy because he's named after his late grandfather," she said. "Bryan's dad (who died in 2014) really wanted a grandson, and unfortunately, he's not alive to see that. But Bryan also really wanted a son to carry on the Danielson name. So we thought, 'How special to be named after his late grandfather?' "

"For his middle name, I really wanted to incorporate my family," Bella added. "Birdie's middle name is Joe after my grandfather, who just meant the world to me. So I wanted Buddy to have something of my grandmother. Her last name, her maiden name, is Dessert. When you look at it, people are going to say Dessert, because it's French. But it's pronounced 'desert.' "
Flags of Canada and China are placed for the first China-Canada economic and financial strategy dialogue in Beijing

(Reuters) - A trade agreement between Canada and China is no longer worth pursuing, Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said in an interview https://tgam.ca/3iHOoig to The Globe and Mail, abandoning free trade talks that were initiated four years ago.

"I don't see the conditions being present now for these discussions to continue at this time," Champagne added.

Champagne's comment shelved the idea of a free trade deal with world's second-largest economy for which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was under pressure from domestic critics who charged he was too willing to make concessions in return for more trade with China. https://bit.ly/32GgBAs

The Trudeau government has little appetite to get back to the convivial atmosphere it helped create four years ago, the report said adding that Champagne repeatedly criticized China for "assertive, coercive diplomacy."

Champagne also added that their first priority is to bring Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, who were charged in China in June with espionage, back home.

Champagne's office did not immediately respond to Reuters request for a comment.

(Reporting by Maria Ponnezhath in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
Did you know that Ukip has something called a front bench? Well, it has  and over the past two days, Nigel Farage has been conducting what his people grandly call a reshuffle to overcome the idea he runs the whole show single-handedly, and to give the party a more modern finish.

Amjad Bashir, the former Ukip business spokesman who was fined for employing illegal immigrants, has been moved: he is now Communitiies spokesman. Godfrey Bloom, who thought that it is a womans job to clean behind the fridge, is even further out: a party member still, but no longer an MEP.

Steven Woolfe, who lasted just five months as Ukips economic spokesman, during which his best known policy idea was to abolish the state pension, has moved sideways, to be spokesman on immigration and financial affairs. His place in the key job has been taken by the former Daily Express columnist Patrick OFlynn. Diane James, who performed well as Ukips candidate in the Eastleigh by-election, takes over home affairs and justice.

So just when you were thinking that Ukip was led by Nigel Farage and no one else, he is part of a team of 12 men and five women. This is New Ukip.

But what does the term front bench mean? Conservative and Labour ministers and shadow ministers are called the front bench because that is where they sit when they are in Parliament. But as yet Ukip has no MPs. Its front-benchMEPs are not going to get front-row seats in the EU Parliament. It might just as well be called a park bench.

Calm down, dear!

Joan Johnson, who chairs Ukips Bolton branch, wanted their Bolton councillor, Paul Richardson, to apologise for posting the following message on Facebook after last weeks Government reshuffle: Cameron promotes more women to the Cabinet. Well, they can take it in turns to make the tea. Only joking! That is evidently not going to happen. Ukips deputy leader, Paul Nuttall, told The Bolton News: Im not going to say Joan has overreacted  I just think people need to take a joke.

Better the devil you know

A 70-year-old Conservative councillor from Stroud, Elizabeth Peters, has agreed to go on a racial awareness course that will cost her 150 after repeating a turn of phrase that was in common use when she was young. She does, however, feel a bit hard done by, because there are things people say these days that she does not like, such as the expression the devils in the detail. No one who says that is made to go on a 150 eternal damnation awareness course. Times have changed.

Finally facing our Waterloo?

The job of restoring some old murals in the Royal Gallery in the House of Lords is proceeding so slowly that it is not certain whether the depiction of the Battle of Waterloo will have been restored by the time the 200th anniversary of that victory comes around next year. But now that these faded art works are coming back into view, Lord West of Spithead, a former First Sea Lord, has spotted that all the battle scenes depict the British fighting the French. This, he suggested, seems a little mean because we have fought most nations in the world. He wants Parliament to commission a new mural representing a more recent conflict. Nothing too modern  this is the House of Lords we are talking about here: he suggested the Battle of Jutland, or Amiens, both of which were almost a century ago.

Order of Business

The House of Commons has begun the long summer break, and so this Diary will take a break, too. Back in the autumn.
The largest protest to date calls for a change of government, new elections and monarchy reform.

For two months, students have been peacefully protesting in Thailand as they call for a change of government, new elections, and  a sensitive topic  monarchy reform.

And on Saturday, they held their largest protest to date, thanks to a new ally of a well-established pro-democracy movement.

Al Jazeeras Scott Heidler reports from Bangkok, Thailand.
John Wasson amassed a trove of meteorites that would eventually fill a large room on the third floor of UCLA's Geology Building. (UCLA Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences)

While others looked to the skies for clues as they sought to unravel the mysteries of the solar system, John Wasson found his answers in the chunks and fragments of space debris that crashed to Earth, often tens of thousands of years ago.

A cosmochemist and passionate promoter of California science, Wasson chased after meteorites around the world and studied their crystalline interiors, hoping for fresh revelations on how the planets were formed. When a meteorite streaked across the New Mexico skyline in 1996 before slamming to Earth near Kernville, Calif., creating a quick and eerie green flash, Wasson so wanted to study it that he persuaded UCLA to put up a $5,000 reward for its retrieval. The reward was never claimed.

"You learn neat things about how the solar system works," he explained simply enough in a 2013 oral history when asked about his fascination with the fiery objects torn from the surface of the moon, Mars and beyond.

A longtime UCLA professor who continued to bike to the Westwood campus until suffering a stroke in January, Wasson died at his home in Los Angeles on Sept. 8. He was 86.

Wasson collected meteorites at a furious pace, slowly amassing a trove that would eventually fill a large room on the third floor of UCLA's Geology Building. With the help of others it became the UCLA Meteorite Collection, the largest such display in the West.

The centerpiece of the display is the Canyon Diablo Meteorite, a mammoth 357-pound chunk of iron and nickel that slammed to Earth roughly 50,000 years ago, carving out a 560-foot-deep crater outside what's now Flagstaff, Ariz. It is among 1,500 pieces of space debris in the collection, ranging from meteorites the size of a boulder to others no bigger than a grain of rice.

Wasson's favorite was the La'gad, a 185-gram meteorite that fell in the Western Sahara Desert. He marveled at the angular fragments it contained from the light-colored lunar highlands. He judged it "the most spectacular" meteorite in the world.

Story continues

The Canyon Diablo meteorite is the centerpiece of UCLA's Meteorite Collection. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

Studying and collecting meteorites was not only an academic pursuit for Wasson. There was a cloak and dagger side to the meteorite trade as well.

When a group of amateur prospectors came across a 3-ton meteorite in the Old Woman Mountains in the Mojave Desert in 1975, Wesson and other scientists were stunned when Smithsonian officials laid claim to the mammoth orb under the Antiquities Act. Wesson had grown weary of seeing such finds being hauled away by East Coast institutions and protested that the museum's claim to the Old Woman Meteorite was both arrogant and petty.

Though the Smithsonian displayed the impressive meteorite for several years, it eventually settled for a healthy 942-pound slice of the meteorite and the rest returned west. UCLA took another 177-pound cut, and the remaining and largest portion is now displayed at the Desert Discovery Center in Barstow.

Wasson was born July 4, 1934, in Springtown, Ark, a town of only 100 residents. His father was a farmer; his mother a teacher. He had to travel to a neighboring town to attend high school. He fell in love with chemistry while studying at the University of Arkansas and later earned his doctorate at MIT. After a brief stay in Munich, Germany, where he met his future wife, Wasson headed to UCLA to pursue a career in nuclear chemistry.

"He arrived at UCLA at the right time, during the NASA Apollo missions to the moon when scientists for the first time were able to study lunar samples brought back from the surface," said Alan Rubin, cocurator of the meteorite collection.

During his career, Wasson wrote two books and more than 300 papers on the chemical and petrologic properties of meteorites and lunar rocks. He even had a chemical named in his honor  "wassonite," a form of titanium sulfide.

Wasson is survived by his wife, Gudrun, and two daughters, Christina and Kerstin.




Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 18:13:58|Editor: huaxia

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LAGOS, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- A group of unidentified gunmen attacked a town in the northern state of Kaduna, abducting seven people, a local security source told Xinhua on Saturday.

The gunmen invaded Barkallahu community in Igabi area of the state at about 1:30 a.m. local time on Friday, the source said, adding that the gunmen shot sporadically into the air and went from house to house to pick their victims.

Five victims are members of the same family, the source said.

The northern part of Nigeria has witnessed a series of attacks by armed groups in recent months. Enditem
Airborne tribute: the Spitfire flies past crowds of people at Scrabo Tower in Newtownards

A wartime Spitfire fighter roared across the skies yesterday performing a fly-past in honour of Northern Ireland's NHS staff.

Emblazoned with the words 'Thank U NHS', the fighter - which is touring the nations and regions of the UK as part of Operation Spitfire - soared over hospitals in Antrim, Armagh, Down and Belfast in recognition of the selfless work carried out by Northern Ireland's NHS staff in the ongoing fight against Covid-19.

Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey Councillor Jim Montgomery said: "It was both exhilarating and humbling to see the Spitfire in the sky today.

"The Spitfire was one of the most iconic WWII aircraft and became the symbol of national defiance in adversity.

"Earlier this week we marked the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

"Today's tribute was fitting as the NHS remains in the frontline in the battle against Covid-19 and the bravery and courage of its staff will be part of our own history," he said.

Operation Spitfire also hopes to raise funds for NHS Charities Together.
In August, Nadzri Harif, a D.J. at Kristal FM radio station in Brunei, set foot in an airport for the first time in six months. The experience, he said, was exhilarating. Sure, moving through Brunei International Airport was different, with masks, glass dividers and social-distancing protocols in place, but nothing could beat the anticipation of getting on a plane again.

His destination: nowhere.

Mr. Harif is one of thousands of people in Brunei, Taiwan, Japan and Australia who have started booking flights that start and end in the same place. Some airlines call these scenic flights; others are more direct, calling them flights to nowhere.

Image I didnt realize how much Id missed traveling  missed flying  until the moment the captains voice came on the speaker with the welcome and safety announcement, said Nadzri Harif, a passenger on Royal Bruneis flight to nowhere. Credit... Nadzri Harif

I didnt realize how much Id missed traveling  missed flying  until the moment the captains voice came on the speaker with the welcome and safety announcement, said Mr. Harif of his 85-minute experience on Royal Brunei Airlines. On its flight to nowhere, which the airline calls the dine and fly program, Royal Brunei serves local cuisine to passengers while flying over the country.
The desire for a house with many bedrooms to shelter more relatives was made clear during the coronavirus pandemic.

Many young adults who lost their jobs when businesses closed and college students were sent away from campuses returned to their family homes.

A majority of young adults  52% of 18- to 29-year-olds  now live with one or both of their parents, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of Julys Census Bureau data. That percentage passes the previous peak, which occurred during the Great Depression.

Potential sellers, who dont want to move during a pandemic, are staying put, exacerbating an already low number of residential properties for sale in Oregon.

A months-long run on larger homes adds to buyers difficulty in finding a home for sale with four or more bedrooms.

Fires that destroyed thousands of homes across the state this month have also contributed to the housing shortage.

Terry Rasmussen in John L. Scott Real Estates Medford office says everyone, especially those in the process of buying or selling a home, has been impacted by Oregons fires.

The market was already starved for inventory even before the fire, says Rasmussen.

Click here to see residential properties for sale in Oregon with four or more bedrooms

His clients include a couple nearing retirement who downsized and now have nine family members living with them because their adult children lost their home.

Still, there are homes for sale with four or more bedrooms. In this weeks real estate gallery, we look at a sampling of Portland homes for sale under $400,000:

13115 S.E. Foster Rd #17 is for sale by Marjorie Baker of McKenzie-Baker PropertiesMcKenzie-Baker Properties

13115 S.E. Foster Road #17 in Portlands Pleasant Valley/Powellhurst-Gilbert neighborhood is listed at $133,900.

The manufactured home, built in 1986, has four bedrooms, two bathrooms and 1,848 square feet of living space.

The kitchen has new cabinets, granite counters and stainless-steel appliances.

Can you say private? This is a rare setting. Tucked away in the corner with a feeling of seclusion in the heart of the city, says listing agent Marjorie Baker of McKenzie-Baker Properties.

683 S.E. 148th Ave. in Portlands Centennial neighborhood is for sale by Peter Nguyen of MORE Realty.MORE Realty

683 S.E. 148th Ave. in Portlands Centennial neighborhood is listed at $299,900.

The two-story, traditional-style house, built in 2007, has four bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms and 1,502 square feet of living space.

The dining room has a sliding door to the covered patio. The house has a gas fireplace, gas and central air system, laminate and tile floors, stainless-steel appliances and a vaulted ceiling in the master bedroom.

Outside are a large porch, fenced, covered patio and a finished, attached garage.

Homeowners association fees are $172 a month.

Please follow COVID-19 protocols, says listing agent Peter Nguyen of MORE Realty.

See other homes for sale

9015 S.E. Cora St. in Portland's Lents neighborhood is for sale by Maggie Moran-Castillo of John L. Scott Salem.John L. Scott Salem

9015 S.E. Cora St. in Portlands Lents neighborhood is listed at $323,000.

The single-story house, built in 1954 on a 5,662-square-foot lot, has four bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms and 1,024 square feet of living space.

Recent work includes new siding, fresh paint, new flooring and newer roof. The backyard has persimmon, plum, apple, cherrie, pear and other mature fruit trees.

Rare find. Must see. Large lot provides endless opportunities, says listing agent Maggie Moran-Castillo of John L. Scott Salem. List price was lowered by $5K.

See more homes for sale

11926 S.E. Market St #14 in Portlands Mill Park neighborhood by Thanh Quach-Hua of MORE Realty.MORE Realty

11926 S.E. Market St. #14 in Portlands Mill Park neighborhood is listed at $328,000.

The two-story, detached condo, built in 2005, has four bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms and 1,548 square feet of living space.

Spacious living room with a gas fireplace. Master bedroom with full bathroom and vaulted ceiling, says listing agent Thanh Quach-Hua of MORE Realty.

The original list price was lowered by $7,000. Homeowners association fees are $242 a month, which includes water, sewer and private road maintenance.

See more homes for sale

15622 E Burnside St. in Portland's Glenfair neighborhood is listed by Shawn McCready of Crystal Springs Realty.Crystal Springs Realty

15622 E. Burnside St. in Portlands Glenfair neighborhood is listed at $355,000.

The duplex, built in 1970, has four bedrooms, two bathrooms and 1,480 square feet of living space.

There are vinyl windows, tile floors, new heaters in both units, and fenced yards with mature trees.

Great tenant history, says listing agent Shawn McCready of Crystal Springs Realty.

See more homes for sale

8002 SE Flavel St. in Brentwood-Darlington is listed by Tyler Koski with Steven Whitson of Proud Ground.Proud Ground

8002 S.E. Flavel St. in Brentwood-Darlington is listed at $360,000.

The house, built in 1939 on a 3,484-square-foot lot, has four bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms and 2,306 square feet of living space.

Large renovated kitchen, says listing agent Tyler Koski with Steven Whitson of Proud Ground.

The basement has a private entrance, kitchenette and bathroom for guests, roommate or Airbnb, say the listing agents. The finished attic can be used as a playroom, craft room or home office.

The low-maintenance yard has a covered patio, shed for storage and native plants as well as fruits, berries and vegetable beds.

See more homes for sale

 Janet Eastman | 503-294-4072

jeastman@oregonian.com | @janeteastman

Want to search Oregon real estate listings and use local resources? Click here.
Published on 2020/09/19 | Source

Korean documentary "The Confessions of May in the Wilderness" added to HanCinema database

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"The Confessions of May in the Wilderness" (2020)

Directed by Kim Tae-yeong-II

With by Jo Sun-mook, Seo Kab-sook,...

Synopsis

The movie is a compilation of the movie "Wilderness" in which a member of the airborne unit who killed a girl during the Gwangju Democratization Movement burned himself to death with remorse and "Mr. Kant's Presentation", the story of a man who wanders around as a result of torture after participating as a civilian army.

"Mr. Kant's Presentation"

In May 1980, he joins the civilian army in Gwangju and loses his sister to the martial law army.

Kant, a young man who becomes a wanderer due to aftereffect, gets dragged away by the police on the day the Justice Priests' Foundation announces the truth about the Park Jong-chul Torture Manipulation Case, being forced to reveal his identity...

"Wasteland"

In May 1980, with memories of Gwangju deeply engraved, Kim Eui-ki (Jo Sun-mook), a soldier who defected from the military, has been running away for six months, agonizing over his weakness in which he cannot perform any act of will. While wandering around, he works at a bar called "25 Hours", in Gunsan's base town of 'Silver Town', where there are countless human armies living against the U.S. military every day.

Release date in Korea : 2020/10/28
Emmys host Jimmy Kimmel relaxes for a minute during rehearsals for the 72nd Emmy Awards prior to the Sunday telecast. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Because of COVID-19, 2020 marks the first virtual Emmy Awards in its 72-year history. We take you inside Staples Center for an exclusive look at preparations underway for the unprecedented show on Sunday night.

Steadicam operator Tore Livia, left, and camera utility Danny Lorenze work with stage managers at center stage during rehearsals for the Emmys. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

The floor of Staples Center is converted to an elevated stage in the round to maintain enough space for social distancing. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Stand-in actor Dana Kenerson maneuvers Isabella the alpaca as she is brought in during rehearsals. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Host Jimmy Kimmel, center, works with his writers backstage during rehearsals at Staples Center. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)

An onstage Emmy hand sanitizer dispenser is at the ready. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Monitors surround steadicam operator Tore Livia and stage manager Gary Natoli on center stage. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

D-Nice, known as Derrick Jones, a DJ, rapper and producer, left, sets up onstage during rehearsals. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Jimmy Kimmel takes instruction from Emmys show director Hamish Hamilton. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)

Special Emmy winner envelopes used for rehearsal only. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)

Steadicam operator Tore Livia and camera utility Danny Lorenze, right, work with stage manager Gary Natoli at center stage. Actress-writer-producer Issa Rae is seen on the screen at right. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Emmys host Jimmy Kimmel waits backstage during rehearsals. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)

Giant monitors are at the nerve center of production on the floor of Staples Center. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Steadicam operator Tori Livia prepares his camera. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
Regular readers will know that we love our dividends at Simply Wall St, which is why it's exciting to see Lindsay Australia Limited (ASX:LAU) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next four days. You can purchase shares before the 24th of September in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 9th of October.

Lindsay Australia's next dividend payment will be AU$0.005 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed AU$0.015 to shareholders. Last year's total dividend payments show that Lindsay Australia has a trailing yield of 4.3% on the current share price of A$0.35. We love seeing companies pay a dividend, but it's also important to be sure that laying the golden eggs isn't going to kill our golden goose! We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.

View our latest analysis for Lindsay Australia

Dividends are typically paid from company earnings. If a company pays more in dividends than it earned in profit, then the dividend could be unsustainable. It paid out 84% of its earnings as dividends last year, which is not unreasonable, but limits reinvestment in the business and leaves the dividend vulnerable to a business downturn. We'd be worried about the risk of a drop in earnings. Yet cash flow is typically more important than profit for assessing dividend sustainability, so we should always check if the company generated enough cash to afford its dividend. What's good is that dividends were well covered by free cash flow, with the company paying out 23% of its cash flow last year.

It's positive to see that Lindsay Australia's dividend is covered by both profits and cash flow, since this is generally a sign that the dividend is sustainable, and a lower payout ratio usually suggests a greater margin of safety before the dividend gets cut.

Click here to see how much of its profit Lindsay Australia paid out over the last 12 months.

Story continues

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Businesses with shrinking earnings are tricky from a dividend perspective. If earnings decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. With that in mind, we're discomforted by Lindsay Australia's 5.8% per annum decline in earnings in the past five years. Ultimately, when earnings per share decline, the size of the pie from which dividends can be paid, shrinks.

The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. Lindsay Australia has seen its dividend decline 1.5% per annum on average over the past 10 years, which is not great to see.

Final Takeaway

Should investors buy Lindsay Australia for the upcoming dividend? The payout ratios are within a reasonable range, implying the dividend may be sustainable. Declining earnings are a serious concern, however, and could pose a threat to the dividend in future. While it does have some good things going for it, we're a bit ambivalent and it would take more to convince us of Lindsay Australia's dividend merits.

With that being said, if dividends aren't your biggest concern with Lindsay Australia, you should know about the other risks facing this business. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 4 warning signs with Lindsay Australia and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

We wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see, though. Here's a list of interesting dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.



Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com.
B een missing live gigs? Us too. But now, it seems like London is finally coming alive with the sound of music.

Since the middle of August, indoor performances have once again been permitted and, although it took a little while for venues to adapt, a handful of our favourite spots are beginning to reopen.

Here, we've rounded up some of the best gigs and DJ sets taking place in the capital this weekend, ranging from Afrobeat and old-school jazz to underground electronic music.

Each venue is subject to strict social distancing rules, so check ahead to make sure you're up to speed with the latest guidelines.

The best albums of 2020 so far 1 /14 The best albums of 2020 so far Getty Images Dua Lipa - Future Nostalgia Future Nostalgia arrived at the end of March, a ray of light to pierce the lockdown gloom. It was a shot at writing something timeless, taking strands of classic disco and Eighties synth-pop and putting them through a slick, modern filter. On standout tracks such as Dont Start Now and Cool, Dua Lipa hit her target. More than anything though, this was something defiantly fun, a heartening reminder that there are brighter times ahead. Getty Images Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher It would be easy to label Punisher as a sad album, because it is, with heartache and despondency always within an arms reach. But to simply call it that would be to grossly undersell it  the album, also out today, is cathartic, nostalgic, surreal, grounded, darkly comic and, more often than not, weepingly beautiful. The disarming vocals are morbidly quotable (The doctor put her hands over my liver /She told me my resentments getting smaller) and confirm the 25-year-old Bridgers as one of her generations deftest writers. Getty Images for Tibet House Tame Impala - The Slow Rush It took some time to fall in love with Kevin Parkers latest album as Tame Impala. Its layers were dense and meticulously produced, a product of the Australians dogged perfectionism, but when they did eventually unravel, the albums brilliance was revealed in vivid colour. There was squelchy hip-hop and tap-dancing piano on Borderline, alluring sophisto-funk on Breathe Deeper, and dizzying disco on One More Year. Parkers lyrics were typically conflicted, stuck between past and future, but musically, hed never sounded so assured. AFP via Getty Images Fiona Apple - Fetch the Bolt Cutters Fiona Apples fifth album was eight years in the making, and sounded as if it had been simmering for all that time. It was inescapably personal, rattling with homemade percussion, grinding against Apples visceral vocals as she retold traumas of sexual abuse and toxic relationships. But it all coalesced to give momentum to a magnificent release of tension, the sound of a furiously convinced artist. Kick me under the table all you want, she asserted, I wont shut up. Getty Images Run The Jewels - RTJ4 When Killer Mike, one half of Run The Jewels, wrote Walking In The Snow (You so numb, you watch the cops choke out a man like me) he was remembering the tragic death of Eric Garner in 2014. It should have been retrospective; instead, it was hideously prophetic, arriving on RTJ4 amid the George Floyd protests. But these were wide-lens raps  joined by partner El-P, they fired lyrical missiles at the racist police and ruling elite, interspersing it with cutting quips and dark humour. Painful, prescient, and hugely powerful. Getty Images for DIRECTV J Hus - Big Conspiracy Big Conspiracy was the sound of an artist taking his time. The eclectic beats, largely provided by chameleonic producer Jae5, avoided the usual bombast for something understated. The lyrical gaze was sharp, ranging from the legacy of slavery to the grind of everyday life, all of it recounted with clever wordplay. It wouldnt be a Hus album without tales of at least one sexual conquest  the song Cucumber provides it  but all in all, never has the east Londoner been so searingly composed. Getty Images for Nike Bob Dylan - Rough and Rowdy Ways Bob Dylans 39th studio album, released today, might just be one of his greatest. Before this, eight years had passed without any new original music. Had the old master lulled himself into retirement? The surprise release of a 17-minute song about the JFK assassination did away with any doubts. Its a densely lyrical album, a poetic and historical tapestry, proving that, at 79, the Nobel Prize-winner is still at the peak of his songwriting powers. AFP via Getty Images Georgia - Seeking Thrills Georgias exhilarating second album landed back in January (oh, those halcyon days) and was the sound of an artist brimming with new-found conviction. Arriving five years after her debut, she had finally found her voice  quite literally, shunning the over-produced vocals of before  and a winning musical formula: retro-tinted dance pop, pairing the throbbing echoes of Chicago house with sharp modern melodies. Hollie Fernando Orlando Weeks - A Quickening Former Maccabees frontman Orlando Weeks took a mature step away from his indie-rock past on his debut solo album, supplanting it with soft, cloudy atmospheres. A Quickening covered his impending fatherhood, and all of the unknowingness that comes with it. It was minutely intimate  Ill be your blood sugar, he pledged to the unborn child  with his vocals at their most tender and innocent. Jackson Bowley Laura Marling - Song For Our Daughter Another album to ease the pandemic blues, Laura Marling had initially planned an August release, but brought it forward to April. It had an effortlessly classic sound to it  the folky tones of Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen and Nick Drake chimed throughout  but this album was undoubtedly Marlings own. Her vocals were soaring, sardonic and soothing, singing with all the wisdom of an artist who, still only 30, now has seven albums worth of experience behind her. Getty Images

The Ronnie Scotts All Stars at Ronnie Scotts

This weekend is the grand reopening for Soho jazz haunt Ronnie Scotts, with a full programme of music to celebrate. There are still tickets left for the Sunday evening show, as the Ronnie Scotts All Stars  thats James Pearson, Sam Burgess, Chris Higginbottom, Freddie Gavita, Alex Garnett and Natalie Williams  play through hits from all the greats that have graced the venue in the past.

Sunday, 47 Frith Street, W1D 4HT, ronniescotts.co.uk

Dele Sosimi and Friends at The Jazz Cafe

Another venue set to reopen this weekend after all these months is the Jazz Cafe in Camden. Things kick off on Friday with the Sierra Band delivering a night of southern soul music, but thats entirely sold out. On Saturday, Afrobeat icon Dele Sosimi will play two sets on Saturday, and both still have tickets remaining for the restaurant seats  a tasty offer indeed.

Saturday, 5 Parkway, NW1 7PG, thejazzcafelondon.com

James Davison and Callum Au at 606 Club

606 Club, a fixture of the London jazz scene since the mid 70s, was one of the first venues in the capital to open post-lockdown, and it carries on this weekend with a full programme of gigs. Head down to see James Davison and Callum Au for a vibrant take on 50s and 60s jazz. Dan Torres and Georgina Jackson are also on the bill for Friday and Sunday respectively.

Saturday, 90 Lots Road, SW10 0QD, 606club.co.uk

Joe Goddard at The Brixton Courtyard

An outdoor space dedicated to electronic music set up by the people who usually run Brixton Jamm, this new venue has been drawing in some big DJ names in its first few weeks. This weekend looks to be another smash, with Hot Chips Joe Goddard among the highlights. Deekline, Jody Wisternoof and Clair Gill also feature.

Saturday, 261 Brixton Road, SW9 6LH, thebrixtoncourtyard.co.uk

Ejeca, Barely Legal and Frankel & Harper at Costa Del Tottenham

Another club that has taken things into the great outdoors is The Cause in north London, which has launched the multi-area venue Costa Del Tottenham. Theyve got a few different DJ sets happening around the site this weekend, but our pick of the lot is found up on the terrace, as Northern Irelands Ejeca leads the way.

Saturday, Ashley Road, N17 9LZ, costa-del-tottenham.eventcube.io
When Mary English thinks of his gruesome death, she feels sadness, not rancour. On the night of September 20, 1920, her paternal grandfather, James Lawless, was murdered by the Black and Tans in one of the most notorious episodes of the War of Independence.

The 40-year-old IRA lieutenant, who was a barber in the north Co Dublin town of Balbriggan, was hauled from his home late at night and subjected to the most horrific death. It was a fate that also fell on another local man, John Gibbons, who had been suspected of being a Republican rebel.

It is thought that they were beaten and stabbed with rifle bayonets before their bodies were dumped on the street. Their killings had been in reprisal for the killing of an RIC head constable, Peter Burke, earlier in the day. Burke, a Catholic policeman from Galway, had been shot dead after an altercation in Smyth's pub in the town. His brother William, also an RIC officer, was seriously wounded, but would escape with his life.

"I look back on what happened with great sadness," Mary English says today. "My grandfather was 40 years old and he had eight children ranging in age from 18 months to 19 years old. In the course of one night, all of those children lost a father."

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One of them was her own father, Stephen. "He was just three years old when James died," she says. "The only memory he used to say he had of him was walking with him alongside the sea. But when you're that young, it's really hard to remember anything."

Tomorrow marks the 100th anniversary of what became known as the Sack of Balbriggan and an event that helped instil fear and hatred of the Black and Tans - the reserve force recruited mainly from unemployed soldiers who had fought in World War I. With guerilla warfare becoming a key tactic among rebel insurgents, the Black and Tans - named after the uniforms they initially wore - were charged with helping the RIC to bring Ireland under control. Recruitment had begun in January 1920, and there was a notable take-up in July when increased wages were offered.

Not only were two men savagely murdered in Balbriggan, but the Black and Tans laid waste to much of the town. They arrived in lorries from the nearby Gormanston Army Base at around 11pm that autumn night and looted shops, set fire to local businesses and torched the homes of civilians. Hundreds of townspeople were forced to sleep in fields for days afterwards, so fearful were they that there would be a return of the mayhem.

The incident was widely reported both in Ireland and overseas. The Irish Independent report captured much of the horror. "The lorries pulled up close to the police barracks," it read, "and their occupants dismounted and proceeded through the streets, firing shots, shouting, smashing windows and setting fire to houses.

"A regular reign of terror, lasting for some hours, followed and numbers of unfortunate people had to fly for safety from their homes in their night attire. Many terrified women and children sought refuge in the fields."

The newspaper's account of the injuries sustained by the victims of the Black and Tans is gruesome: "Both Gibbons and Lawless were killed at dawn and the bodies, lying within a few yards of each other, were discovered at 8am and removed to an outhouse nearby where they lay unguarded during the day.

Expand Close Burning rubble: Derham's Public House following the Sack of Balbriggan in 1920 / Facebook

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"They presented a shocking appearance... they were covered with blood and appeared to have been bayoneted in several places. Their heads were also severely cut. In Mr Gibbons there was a large hole which may have been caused by a bayonet being twisted round in it."

For local amateur historian, the retired librarian Jim Walsh, the Sack of Balbriggan is a harrowing aspect of Ireland's past, but one that should not be forgotten, especially in the coastal town where it happened.

Plaque and memorial

"To be perfectly honest, a lot of people in the town today wouldn't know much about it," he says. "There is a plaque on Bridge Street, that was erected in 1941, and there's a memorial in Balscadden cemetery [a few kilometres from Balbriggan] where the men are buried, but other than that, it's something that newcomers to the town just wouldn't be aware of."

Walsh became interested in the events of 1920 several decades ago, and over the years he interviewed several people who had been eyewitnesses on that fateful September night. All, of course, are now long dead. "We put together a video of them speaking about it and that gave us a real sense of what happened," he recalls. "We are fortunate, too, that there were so many media reports on it. It was a story that was big news outside of Ireland."

Diarmaid Ferriter, Professor of Modern History at University College Dublin, says the international coverage was significant. "One way I would look at it is, 'What did it reveal about the failure of the British strategy towards Ireland at that time?' They disputed the idea that there was a war in Ireland at the time. Their argument was that it was a policeman's job. The difficulty for Britain is that when you have an event like Balbriggan, the images that are projected internationally make a mockery of the idea that Britain is containing its Irish problem because it's a picture of deplorable brutality.

Expand Close Events: Brian Howley with a Commemorative Medal for The Sack of Balbriggan Centenary. Photo by Steve Humphreys / Facebook

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"The Republicans won the propaganda war - they were very effective in getting their message out. They would have said, 'This is a Britain that fought a war to protect the rights of small nations. This is a small nation. Look at what they're doing to Balbriggan - it's been razed to the ground."

Balbriggan was one of several towns and villages to experience the savagery of the Black and Tans as the weeks wore on. Kilkee in Co Clare, Tubbercurry in Co Sligo and Trim, Co Meath, also suffered at their hands. And the remainder of the year would see large-scale aggressions that would turn many firmly against the British.

"You had Bloody Sunday [November 21, in Dublin, when more than 30 people were killed in a day of unrest] and the Burning of Cork [December 11] which demonstrated clearly how grave the British discipline and policing problems were. And the question that you keep coming back to is, 'Who is in charge? Do they have any unified command when it comes to controlling what the Crown Forces are doing in Ireland?'"

Ultimately, Ferriter says the Sack of Balbriggan offers a reminder about the suffering that civilians experienced during the tumultuous early years of the 1920s. "Civilians bore the brunt of so many of those atrocities, not least in Balbriggan."

Retired Garda Jim Herlihy is an authority in the history of both the RIC and the Dublin Metropolitan Police (DMP) and has spent years researching the War of Independence. "The story of the Sack of Balbriggan is not complete without looking at the RIC man who was killed, Peter Burke," he says.

"Sometimes, in the past, it has been all too easy not to see all aspects of history and one of those aspects are the Irish men who served in the RIC. And, not just that, but you had hundreds of Irish who were recruited to the Black and Tans and the Auxiliaries [another reserve force that became indistinguishable from the Black and Tans in the eyes of many].

"Peter Burke was born in Tuam, Co Galway in 1884, and had served in Antrim, Kerry, Tipperary and Clare. He had been promoted to head constable the year before. He is buried in Graiguenamanagh [on the Kilkenny-Carlow border].

"His brother William had served with the Irish Guards in World War I and had been wounded. He had been stationed in Balbriggan a matter of weeks. He was lucky enough to survive the attack."

Jim Herlihy's view that commemorations should seek to look at all sides is not shared by some. At the beginning of the year, there was widespread controversy when it was announced that there would be an event to remember Irish men who had served in the RIC and DMP. Objecting to the RIC's "intolerable record of barbarism", Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald called it "crass Fine Gael revisionism gone too far". The event, which was to be hosted by then justice minister Charlie Flanagan was called off. "The lesson is learned," then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said at the time, although he added that the commemoration was "never about the Black and Tans".

Brian Howley, chairman of the Balbriggan and District Historical Society, is determined that all those who died and suffered loss on September 20, 2020 should be remembered. The society had organised several events for both today and tomorrow, but the pandemic has ensured they can't go ahead as originally planned.

"All the talks that we had organised will be broadcast online on our Facebook page," he says. "It is important that Balbriggan remembers what happened 100 years ago."

A commemorative Mass is due to be held tomorrow, but by Thursday of this week there was uncertainty over who would be allowed to attend as restrictions tighten. The event will be broadcast online.

Among those speaking at the webinar will be Diarmaid Ferriter and Jim Herlihy. "There's nothing political about this commemoration," Howley says. "We want to look at what happened in Balbriggan from all sides."

Newspaper coverage

Howley became interested in his town's most notorious event while still at school. "I remember going into the offices of the Irish Independent in the mid-1970s to look at microfiche files of the newspaper coverage from the time. I still have them and they are precious to me."

Mary English has also spent considerable time researching her family tree. "It just wasn't something that was talked about. My grandmother - James's widow - lived until 1965, but she never mentioned it, especially to us children. I think that was the way then. People just had to get on with it. Here was a woman with eight children trying to fend for herself and her family. It must have been a tough time."

Unusually for early 20th century Ireland, her grandparents were of mixed religion. James Lawless was Catholic; his wife, Maryanne Woodhead, was Church of Ireland. "She was baptised Catholic before they married," she says. "She had been from Ringsend in Dublin. I don't know why they ended up in Balbriggan, maybe because there was a lot of employment in the town back then."

Before the infamous rampage of the Black and Tans, Balbriggan was most famous for its clothing factories, especially in hosiery. So renowned were the town's craftspeople, that a type of ladies' 19th century stocking was widely known as a 'Balbriggan'.

Smiths, the chief hosiery factory in the area, would not escape the attack of September 1920. It was badly damaged by the looters, although it and other businesses in the town tended to fare better than civilians when it came to reparation payments once the conflict had ended.

"It's hard to think of the sort of suffering that my grandmother and other people in the town must have experienced," Mary English says, "especially when you look at it from today. And yet, while 100 years seems like a long time ago, it's only a few generations back. We should not forget."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 00:31:11|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- India's federal health ministry Friday said about 30 COVID-19 vaccines were under various stages of development in the country.

According to the ministry, of the 30 vaccines, three were in the advanced stage.

"Nationally, nearly 30 COVID-19 vaccine candidates are under development, by both industry and academia. These vaccines are in different stages of pre-clinical and clinical development of which three candidates are in advanced stage of Phase I/II/III trials and four are in advanced pre-clinical development stage," Federal Health Minister Harsh Vardhan told the Indian parliament.

One COVID-19 vaccine is likely to be available by the beginning of the next year, said the minister.

According to the minister, a high-level expert group was looking into matters related to vaccine distribution and immunization.

"The distribution and immunization of the coronavirus vaccine are subject to availability. Once available, the coronavirus vaccine distribution follows the same route as for the current practice of vaccines distribution under Universal Immunization Program (UIP)," Vardhan said.

India is in the grip of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the cases are increasing with each passing day.

India Friday said the number of COVID-19 cases in the country has reached 5,214,677 including 84,372 deaths.

Globally India is the second worst-hit country by the COVID-19 pandemic. Enditem
Storm Noul causes falling trees and utility poles in Hue city of Thua Thien-Hue province (Photo: VNA)

Thua Thien-Hue - Storm Noul, the fifth in the East Sea this year and which made landfall in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue on the morning of September 18, has so far killed one person and injured 23 others.



The death was caused by a falling tree, in Phong Dien districts Phong Thu commune.



Phong Dien is among the localities that have borne the brunt of the storm, with others being Quang Dien, Phu Vang, and Phu Loc districts, Huong Tra and Huong Thuy towns, and the city of Hue.



Strong winds have blown the roofs off 1,664 houses.



Two women were injured while another woman went missing on August 18 in storm-related circumstances in the neighbouring provinces of Quang Binh and Quang Tri, respectively.



Noul hit Vietnams central localities, especially Da Nang, Thua Thien-Hue, Quang Binh, and Quang Tri, with wind speeds reaching 90-100 km/h and hitting 135 km/h at times. The storm weakened upon landfall and became a tropical low pressure system.



It is forecast that central localities will continue to experience heavy rains on the afternoon and evening of August 18.



In response to the storm, the Ministry of Transport has issued an urgent dispatch guiding the monitoring and prompt updating of the storms developments, search and rescue efforts, and traffic management.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 20:16:17|Editor: huaxia

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MOGADISHU, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Two people were injured when a Kenyan cargo plane crashed at Somalia's main airport in Mogadishu on Saturday, the police have confirmed.

The aircraft operated by Silverstone Air was on its way to deliver supplies to the African Union Mission (AMISOM) forces in Beledweyne, some 335 km north of Mogadishu in Central Somalia when it skidded off the runway and hit the perimeter wall which separates the ocean and the Aden Adde International Airport.

Dhame Sadik Adan, a police spokesman said both the pilot and his co-pilot were injured in the leg and have been airlifted to AMISOM medical center for treatment. Adan said the plane had four occupants.

He said Aden Adde International Airport was shut down briefly as emergency personnel attended to the crew who were aboard the Silverstone Airplane.

"Local flights are being diverted to Baidoa while international flights have been directed to Wajir in Kenya until the wreckage is removed from the runway," Adan told Xinhua by phone.

Witnesses said the aircraft had circled around the airport at low altitude before attempting an emergency landing.

Photos shared on social media showed the plane had rammed a wall on the edge of the airport.

The aircraft registered in Kenya as 5Y-MHT routinely operates cargo flights to and within Somalia, delivering supplies to both UN and AMISOM centers.

Ahmed Moalim Hassan, Director-General of the Somalia Civil Aviation Authority reported the accident, saying there had been two injuries.

According to Hassan, the aircraft suffered a runway excursion at the airport before crashing. He said during an attempted landing on runway 05, the aircraft veered off and impacted the perimeter wall.

The heavily guarded airport hosts diplomatic missions and serves as a hub for humanitarian flights in the Horn of Africa nation. Enditem
Top men's seed Novak Djokovic dropped a set before fighting off German qualifier Dominik Koepfer to reach the semi-finals of the Italian Open on Saturday.

The world number one needed more than two hours to see of the 97th-ranked German 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 in the final warm-up tournament on clay before the French Open.

Two weeks after his US Open default for accidently hitting a line judge with ball, the Serb again showed signs of frustration, throwing his racket after a lost service game, with shouts of anger resounding in the silence of the empty Central Court of Foro Italico.

Djokovic was broken four times before advancing to his 11th semi-final in Rome, where he reached the final nine times and won four titles.

"Credit to (Dominik) for fighting back, but I have myself to blame for putting myself in a position to play a third set," said Djokovic.

"I was a set and a break up and everything was looking great. I just wasn't managing to make that final shot, that final step to win in straights.

The 33-year-old next plays Norway's Casper Ruud who earlier battled past Italian fourth seed Matteo Berrettini 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7/5).

"Clay is definitely Casper's preferred surface," said Djokovic.

"This is where he feels most comfortable. It's semi-finals and it is anybodys game. I'll do some homework and be ready for that one."

Djokovic is bidding for a record 36th Masters crown in the Italian Open, being currently tied on 35 with Spain's Rafael Nadal, the number two seed in Rome.

alu-ea/pb/iwd
Deputy First Minister Michelle ONeill during the funeral of Bobby Storey at Milltown Cemetery in west Belfast (PA)

Northern Irelands Deputy First Minister Michelle ONeill will be among a number of people interviewed by police over alleged breaches of coronavirus regulations at the funeral of a senior republican.

Ms ONeill and other senior Sinn Fein members were among crowds who attended the funeral of Bobby Storey in west Belfast in June despite restrictions on public gatherings.

The scenes at the height of the pandemic sparked outrage and calls for the Deputy First Minister to resign.

Expand Close The coffin of former leading IRA figure Bobby Storey arrives at Milltown Cemetery in west Belfast (Liam McBurney/PA) PA / Facebook

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Whatsapp The coffin of former leading IRA figure Bobby Storey arrives at Milltown Cemetery in west Belfast (Liam McBurney/PA)

A row with the DUP over the matter prompted the suspension of joint briefings with Sinn Fein during the health emergency.

It emerged on Friday that 14 people have been sent letters asking them to attend voluntary interviews at a local PSNI station.

A Sinn Fein spokesman confirmed on Saturday: Michelle ONeill and a number of the partys elected representatives received letters from the police yesterday asking them to present for voluntary interview.

They will contact the police and co-operate with the investigation.

The police probe is being led by Cumbria Constabulary Deputy Chief Constable Mark Webster.

Expand Close A crowd listens to former Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams speak during the funeral of Bobby Storey at Milltown Cemetery in west Belfast (Liam McBurney/PA) PA / Facebook

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Whatsapp A crowd listens to former Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams speak during the funeral of Bobby Storey at Milltown Cemetery in west Belfast (Liam McBurney/PA)

Earlier this month, Ms ONeill acknowledged that Stormonts public health messaging capacity had been undermined by the row over the funeral.

It wasnt my intention this would happen, but it did, I accept this and I regret this is the case, she told RTE.

I accept that we have not been able to deliver clear messaging in the format that was the practice before this controversy.

Meanwhile a separate independent probe over access to the Roselawn Cemetery on the day of the funeral when eight other families were denied access due to pandemic measures is ongoing.
In light of the recent signing of the Declaration of Peace between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the State of Israel, the Minister of Transportation and Telecommunications, Kamal bin Ahmed, and the Israeli minister of transportation, Miri Regev, held a phone call in which they exchanged congratulations on the signing of the declaration.

Both parties discussed cooperation in the various sectors of transportation, in addition to methods of development and their future consequences on the economies of the region. The minister expects the Declaration of Peace to open new horizons of development and prosperity, and is looking forward to more stability and cooperation between the two countries in all aspects.
RS chairman Venkaiah Naidu breaks down over oppn ruckus, equates it to 'sacrilege'

Om Birla says it pained him that Lok Sabha did not run smoothly during Monsoon session

Parliament's monsoon session likely to be cut short as ministers, MPs test coronavirus positive

India

oi-Deepika S

New Delhi Sep 19: The ongoing monsoon session of Parliament is likely to be curtailed and may end by the middle of next week in view of the threat of the COVID-19 spread among parliamentarians.

At a meeting of the business advisory committee of Lok Sabha, which has floor leaders of all parties besides the government representatives and is chaired by the Speaker, most political parties favoured curtailment of the session, which started on September 14 and was scheduled to conclude on October 1.

A final decision will be taken by the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs. However, the government wants to take all parties on board and also get 11 ordinances passed as laws by Parliament, they said.

The Lok Sabha has so far passed three Bills to replace agriculture sector related ordinances. Also, both the Houses have cleared an ordinance into law to cut by 30 per cent the salaries of members of Parliament to ramp up funds in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sources said that amid some Members of Parliament testing positive for COVID-19 during the session, Opposition parties conveyed to the government that conducting the full 18-day session could be a risky affair.

The government then started thinking in that direction, the sources said.

Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Prahlad Patel have tested positive for COVID-19. Both had attended the ongoing session which began on September 14.

Monsoon session: PM Modi govt to introduce key reforms bills in Parliament today

Several MPs had tested positive for COVID-19 around the time the session began and they were advised not to attend proceedings.

In order to prevent the spread of coronavirus within the parliament complex, reporters and parliamentary staff entering the premises now have to undergo the rapid antigen test mandatory on a daily basis, according to a new protocol put in place.

Members of both Houses are undergoing RT-PCR test on regular intervals on a voluntary basis, said a senior Parliament official.

A member of Parliament can undergo RT-PCR test as many times he or she likes.

Journalists covering the Monsoon session from the press galleries of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha also have the option to undergo the RT-PCR test which is valid for 72 hours.

Since the report of the much reliable RT-PCR takes time, antigen test has been made mandatory on a daily basis.

Government officials accompanying their respective ministers during bill discussions also have to show a negative report of RT-PCR test taken within the last 72 hours of their visit to the complex.

The session began on September 14 and is slated to end on October 1. Both the House are meeting in shifts of four hours each without a customary Saturday-Sunday weekend break.

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

The Budget Session was short-terminated in March after the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
The submissions and schedule for World Sailing's 2020 Annual Conference, which comprises the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and General Assembly, has been published on sailing.org.

The 2020 Annual Conference will be held electronically from 15 October to 1 November 2020 and will include 11 Committee, 11 Sub-committee and three Commission meetings. World Sailing's Council, the main decision-making body of the world governing body, will meet across four sessions on 30 and 31 October.The General Assembly will be held on 1 November and will include the announcement of the ballot results for the election of President and Vice-Presidents. Further information on candidates and the voting process is available here Click here for the submissions and meeting schedule. All times on the website are UTC / GMT.All meetings will be held using BlueJeans video conferencing technology.Meetings hosted by BlueJeans Events, including the Council meeting and General Assembly, will be live streamed on World Sailing's YouTube Channel. Those held via BlueJeans Meetings will be available to view on YouTube 24-hours after the meeting has concluded. As such, there will be no separate observer registration for the meetings as all open meetings are either streamed live or available online to view.The move to an electronic Annual Conference comes following the global challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Abu Dhabi, UAE was scheduled to host the event this October and will now host the 2021 Annual Conference and AGM from 20-31 October.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: A demand for the government escalating its engagements with the international media to build a global opinion against Pakistan for sponsoring cross-border terrorism and harbouring fugitives such as Dawood Ibrahim was made in the Rajya Sabha on Saturday.

Through a Zero Hour mention, Sasmit Patra of the BJD said the government should also engage with the G-8 nations to increase international pressure on Pakistan just like its engagement with the US that reflected in the recent Indo-US joint asking Pakistan to ensure that no territory under its control is used for terrorist activities.

With international pressure building and also in an attempt to come out from the Financial Action Task Force's grey list, Pakistan recently banned 88 terrorists including Hafiz Saeed, Masood Azhar and Dawood Ibrahim.

Patra said while the Indian media has reported on the address and the assets of Dawood Ibrahim in Pakistan, the international media hasn't done that.

The government should "escalate matter through engagement with international media", he said, adding it should also use Parliamentarian just as the US administration associates with senators.

BSP Rajya Sabha member Rajaram raised the issue of only two per cent reservation being provided to the OBCs and eight per cent to the SCs in Jammu.

This despite the OBCs constituting 35 per cent of the population in the region and the SCs 17 per cent, he said.

BSP supremo Mayawati had supported the government on the scrapping of Article 370 in August last year in hope that central policies such as that on reservation will get fully implemented in Jammu and Kashmir, he said.

But even after more than a year, the reservation for OBCs is stuck at two per cent and that for SCs at eight per cent, well below the national average, he said.

Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu asked Minister of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy to find out if the reason for the delay was administrative or due to pending census.

Priyanka Chaturvedi of the Shiv Sena sought that relaxation in the age limit for candidates from reserved categories in educational institutions and jobs be also extended to those from the economically weaker sections (EWS).

The EWS is provided 10 per cent reservation but no relaxation in the age limit is given to them, she said.

Derek O'Brien (TMC) wanted the Central government to replicate the West Bengal model of paying cash to artists and artisans to support the informal sector ahead of the festive season.

Neeraj Shekhar (BJP) demanded inclusion of the Bhojpuri language in the 8th Schedule as it is spoken by 20 crore people in India and 7-8 crore in countries such as Mauritius, the Maldives, Uganda, Surinam and Nepal.

Ahmed Patel of the Congress sought the constitution of a task force to frame rules for conducting online classes for schoolchildren and provide help to those from the weaker sections of society who cannot afford digital education mediums such as computers or smartphones.

K J Alphons (BJP) wanted the government to not slow down the fight against TB because of the coronavirus pandemic, and instead intensify tracking for Tuberculosis cases.

YS Chowdary (BJP) sought measures for water conservation and management to avoid future catastrophe.
Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 19 : Successive governments in Kerala have failed in anti-terror activities said State BJP president K.Surendran on Saturday.

He was referring to the way the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday busted an inter-state module of Al Qaeda operatives as it conducted raids in West Bengal and Kerala on Saturday morning.

Three of the nine Qaeda men in Kerala were arrested from Ernakulam district.

The three were picked from two places in Kochi. Those arrested are Murshid Hassan, Yakoob Bishwas and Morshraf Hussien.

Kerala Police has found out that Hussien was in Kerala for the past one decade and was working in a textile shop at Perumbavoor, near Aluva.

"The Anti-Terror squad in Kerala is in deep slumber and the successive governments have also failed to tackle this terror menace. We have seen a few cases where terrorists was arrested in the past from our state. What happened in Ernakulam is the latest incident," said Surendran.

"It's now come to light that there was a WhatsApp group in the police helping those engaged in terror activities. Also a police official who was suspended for leaking e-mails from the police and this government was reinstated. This can happen only in Kerala," said the president.

Surendran alleged that Kerala is today facing a scenario in which the State cabinet also has a 'terror' presence in State Minister K.T.Jaleel, a former member of the banned outfit SIMI and he is now facing the heat and has already been questioned by two national agencies.

"If one looks into some of the appointments that Jaleel has made in his department, there are undesirable people who have creeped in. We will continue our protests till Jaleel is ousted," added Surendran.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
The scene of the crash on the N16 near Dunally Cross in August 2019

An overtaking driver which met an oncoming car on the N16 and swerved to avoid a collision subsequently veered into a ditch, landed on the approaching car with both vehicles going on fire.

It was an accident scene that was like something from a James Bond film, Judge Kevin Kilrane said when hearing the case at Thursday's sitting of Sligo District Court.

The driver of the overtaking car, 36-year-old Grzegorz Galecki was late for work, the court heard on the date in question, August 8th 2019.

He pleaded guilty to dangerous driving.

A father and his two children were in the Mini Cooper and it was the quick thinking of the man to get his children and himself out of the car and then Galecki from the other car that ultimately saved their lives, Judge Kilrane said.

Sergeant Derek Butler told the court the accident happened on the Manorhamilton Road near Dunally Cross.

When gardai were called to the scene of the accident both cars were in the ditch and the Volvo, which was being driven by the defendant was on top of the Mini Cooper, which was the approaching car.

Both cars were travelling in the opposite direction, the Volvo was going in the direction of Sligo while the Mini was going to Manorhamilton.

The collision occurred on a slight brow, Sergeant Butler said. The Volvo had attempted to overtake another vehicle and then met the Mini Cooper coming in the opposite direction.

The driver swerved to the right to avoid colliding with the Mini and went up on the ditch, the approaching car also swerved to its left and the Volvo subsequently landed on top of it. Both cars burst into flames.

Sergeant Butler said it was very lucky that there were no serious injuries or fatalities.

Defending solicitor Mr Colm McGuire said his client was living in Manorhamilton at the time of the accident and was travelling to his workplace in Sligo.

He proceeded to overtake a car and the car sped up and he couldn't get back in on time before the accident occurred.

He said his client was slightly late for work and hasn't driven since and has moved closer to Sligo.

He is a Polish national who has been living here for 13 years and had a partner and young child, Mr McGuire said.

The judge enquired how did it come about that his car ended up on top of the Mini burned out, adding that it was like something you would see in a James Bond film.

The defendant told Judge Kilrane that he tried to avoid a collision, he turned onto the ditch and his car was on the hedge and the other car landed underneath.

There was a steep incline the court heard and the judge said the ditch acted like a ramp.

He asked how did the fire start and the defendant replied that he had just had his car serviced and there was oil underneath.

The judge then asked how did the people get out of the Mini and he replied that he didn't know as he was unconscious and it was the other driver who helped get him out of his car which was already in flames when he woke.

Judge Kilrane asked the Sergeant if the victims of the other car should be in court and Sergeant Butler replied they may want to be.

The judge said it was a horrific accident, a situation where the defendant went to the incorrect side of the road, mounted the embankment and the other car drove under the car.

"It's like something you'd see in a James Bond film, an impossible manoeuvre," he said.

Not alone that, but a fire to take place after this. He said he would like to hear from the victim and the affect it had on them.

"I'm sure it was a horrific scene, I don't even know how they got out of the Mini," Judge Kilrane admitted.

Sergeant Butler indicated the other driver had a Lancashire address.

He read from what the driver said at the time: "I got me and my kids out to safety and I went back to help the other driver to get out."

Judge Kilrane: "The driver did very good work."

Mr McGuire said his client expressed that he was very thankful to be here and doesn't intend to drive again.

Judge Kilrane: "It's very fortunate there were no fatalities, the defendant himself or the passengers."

He said that what happened was the defendant was driving to work and overtaking on a broken white line.

The Judge said the N16 roadway is very treacherous and a difficult road.

"The defendant was overtaking a car, he either didn't have the power or it was lack of judgement to overtake that he was unable to complete the manoeuvre on the brow of the hill he saw the Mini and was faced with an impossible situation."

He said the driver could have hit the vehicle he was overtaking, hit the oncoming car or go right and ditch the car. The high bank acted as a ramp, propelling the car into the air.

The judge said the Mini also swerved to its left and it was almost freak that both ended up with the defendant's car on top crushing it.

"The driver of the Mini car exercised great, immediate action to get himself, his children and the defendant out."

The judge described it as an inferno which took place with both cars burned. He fined the defendant and disqualified him from driving for two years.
Following the news of her death, tributes have poured in for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the US supreme courts second female justice and trailblazing feminist lawyer.

The oldest justice in the court, Ginsburg served for 27 years. She died on Friday, aged 87, from of metastatic pancreatic cancer.

As the battle for her successor intensifies, social media has been flooded with tributes for the liberal stalwart of the American justice system.

Barack Obama tweeted a statement honouring her memory, saying: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg fought to the end, through her cancer, with unwavering faith in our democracy and its ideals. Thats how we remember her. But she also left instructions for how she wanted her legacy to be honored.

The former president underlined Democrats concerns about Ginsburgs replacement, stressing the need for applying rules with "consistency and waiting until after the presidential election to fill the justices seat.

Four and a half years ago, when Republicans refused to hold a hearing or an up-or-down vote on Merrick Garland, they invented the principle that the Senate shouldnt fill an open seat on the Supreme Court before a new president was sworn in, Mr Obama wrote.

A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment.

In her final days, Ginsburg dictated a powerful message to her granddaughter  that her "most fervent wish is that [she] will not be replaced until a new president is installed", according to NPR.

Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee echoed Mr Obamas words. The former vice president lauded Ms Ginsburg as an American hero with a forthright message about her successor, tweeting: Let me be clear: The voters should pick a President, and that President should select a successor to Justice Ginsburg.

Ms Ginsburgs significance in the fight for gender equality was marked by several senior Democrats, including Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic Speaker of the US House of Representatives.

Tonight, the flags are flying at half staff over the Capitol to honor the patriotism of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Every woman and girl, and therefore every family, in America has benefitted from her brilliance," Ms Pelosi wrote on Twitter, referring to the justices legal advocacy for gender equality.

Meanwhile, Democrat congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a leading voice on the partys left, praised Ms Ginsburg while stressing the importance in avoiding apathy and fighting to choose her successor.

In a series of tweets, Ms Ocasio-Cortez underlined that it is "not the time for cynicism or hopelessness, saying: We have lost a giant in the history of our nation with the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. It is heartbreaking that in her final moments she was, as are many others, preoccupied with what would happen after her passing. I want to make one thing clear: we can, and must, fight.
Beijing/New Delhi, Sep 19 : Smartphone brand OnePlus is reportedly planning to unveil OnePlus 8T on October 14 with OxygenOS 11 based on Android 11 and 120Hz refresh rate.

OnePlus generally launches its aT series in the month of September but there is a slight change in the launch timeline due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, reports MySmartPrice.

The OnePlus 8T will succeed the OnePlus 7T that launched in India in September 2019. Rumours suggest that the OnePlus 8T will be much more powerful when compared to the OnePlus 8.

The device is codenamed 'Kebab' and will feature a 6.55-inch AMOLED display just like the regular OnePlus 8 but with a 120Hz refresh rate.

The smartphone is expected to come with four cameras at the back, with a 48MP primary lens joined by a 16MP wide-angle module, 5MP macro, and 2MP portrait lens, according to the report.

In terms of processor, the smartphone is likely to feature a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 Plus chip with 8GB RAM, 128GB internal storage.

In addition, OnePlus is also planning to unveil another device with Snapdragon 662 or 665 chip for a price tag between Rs 16,000-Rs 18,000.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
A senior member of SAGE has hit back at Dido Harding, saying the body gave 'clear advice,' to the Government, after she blamed the group for not predicting a second wave.

Baroness Harding faced a grilling from MPs on Thursday, telling them nobody was 'expecting' to see the 'really sizeable increase in demand,' for testing, that has caused chaos at test centres across the country in recent weeks.

The Government's testing tsar said the current daily capacity of 240,000 had been put in place 'based on SAGE modelling for what we should be preparing for for the autumn'.

SAGE member Sir Jeremy Farrar hit back at claims that SAGE was to blame for recent chaos at testing centres

Sir Jeremy Farrar, who sits on the SAGE panel, has hit back following Thursday's comments.

Responding to a MailOnline article, he tweeted: 'Interesting to be blaming SAGE. Has been clear, and in the advice, that the UK faced an inevitable increase in community transmission and cases after the summer and needed a fully functional & trusted test, trace, isolate in place.'

The director of the Wellcome Trust pointed out that he had previously warned that a growing testing crisis was looming.

Queues of people stood waiting for a Covid-19 test outside a centre in Edmonton, North London, earlier today, as the Government fails to keep up with demand

Speaking on BBC Radio 4 today, Professor Neil Ferguson said a surge in testing demand was 'completely unanticipated,' defended the advisory panel.

He said: 'SAGE was never responsible for predicting the demand for testing, what we've been involved in predicting is the likely infection levels in the population. Then the test and trace system has tended to plan for the demand.

'What happened when the schools reopened was not necessarily a surge in Covid infections, but parents and teachers getting concerned about students coughing and spluttering, most of which was not Covid.

'So we saw a huge surge in testing of children, most of whom, 97% of whom, tested negative. That surge in demand was not anticipated.'

According to the National Association of Headteachers, pupils at 87 per cent of schools are staying at home while they wait for test results to come back.

Baroness Dido Harding has come under fire from scientists after she told MPs the current daily capacity of 240,000 had been put in place 'based on SAGE modelling'

General Secretary Paul Whiteman told The Telegraph the system was 'in chaos,' adding: 'It is in no way unpredictable or surprising that the demand for Covid-19 tests would spike when schools reopened more widely this term, and yet the system is in chaos.'

A Government spokesman said: 'The latest official statistics show that 99.9 per cent of schools are open, with the vast majority of pupils attending. Where staff or children have symptoms of Covid-19, testing capacity is the highest it has ever been, and we are working to provide further priority access for teachers.'
As forestry policy assumes new and vital relevance amid Oregons massive wildfires, Gov. Kate Brown is struggling to get Senate confirmation for three nominees to the state Board of Forestry amid what her office says is insistence from timber companies that she nominate a more industry-friendly slate.

In an interview Friday, Brown said she was concerned that the nomination and confirmation process for filling positions on the highly time-consuming and contentious board is broken.

The challenge is finding a slate that can be confirmed, she said. Im concerned that we are at an impasse at this point. Unfortunately, there are too many special interests invested in the outcomes and thats made it difficult when we bring forward qualified nominees.

The seven-member board supervises state and private forestry policy in Oregon, appoints the state forester, adopts new rules regulating forestry practices and supervises the state foresters administration of the forestry department.

For a number of years, the board and the department have been characterized by dysfunction and chaos. The board has been riven by conflict between conservation and industry voices, and unable to move decisively on critical policy questions or rein in agency managers who have ignored board members' direction and information requests.

The agency, meanwhile, is beset by structural financial and operational problems, including inadequate funding for its state forest program, outdated financial systems and delays in collecting outstanding firefighting costs  a critical issue given potentially hundreds of millions of dollars that will be added to its receivables from this fire season.

Last year the board placed State Forester Peter Daugherty  whose appointment and continued employment is a responsibility of the board - on a performance improvement plan because of his poor communication about the agencys deep financial problems and a lack of responsiveness to board members.

Not long after, the forestry department and the state lost a lawsuit filed by 13 rural counties and 151 local taxing districts that claimed the agency had failed to maximize timber harvests on state forests and resulting payments to those counties for the last two decades. The $1 billion jury verdict is still under appeal, collecting interest at 9%, or $90 million a year.

In the background sit two related policy debates that may be the most contentious in the boards history: the adoption of a new management plan governing harvest and conservation levels on state forests; and the possibility of adopting a federally-supervised program for state forests, the so-call Habitat Conservation Plan that would establish hard conservation commitments in exchange for more legal flexibility to log in other areas regardless of endangered species impacts.

The sitting board is slated to vote whether to move a preliminary version of the latter plan forward this week, but the new board would be charged with its adoption and implementation. Its a plan that environmentalists support after watching the agencys previous conservation commitments whittled down to generate more revenue; and industry groups oppose because they believe it will lead to lower timber harvests and lost sawmill jobs.

The governors office says industry players have pushed back on the governors slate. Kristina McNitt, president of the Oregon Forest Industries Council, the industrys lobbying arm, did not agree Friday with that characterization of the groups position on the nominees. A spokeswoman said that was incorrect information. But they did not elaborate.

But in the meantime, three Senate Democrats who represent timber dependent districts - Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose; Arnie Roblan, D-Coos Bay, and Lee Beyer, D-Springfield  say they oppose the nominations.

Assuming all 12 Senate Republicans vote against the nominees and are joined by the three Democrats, that leaves the governor short of the 16 votes needed in the Senate to approve them. The nominees may not even make it out of a scheduled vote by the Senate Rules Committee on Monday, as Senate President Peter Courtney may not want to bring them to a floor vote only to see it fail. Likewise, its unclear if the governors office will pull the nominees or wants to force Senate Democrats into an uncomfortable vote.

Charles Boyle, a spokesman for the governor, said on Friday evening that her office had not pulled back the nominations. They are still on the committee agenda for Monday.

Brown says shes looking for board members who think independently, have financial, management and climate expertise. She also said wants board members who will bring new ideas and hopefully create an approach where we can meet in the middle and create better outcomes for all OregoniansWe really need to focus on what this board needs at this point.

She nominated Karla Chambers, the co-owner of Stahlbush Family Farms, and a member of the wildfire preparedness council the Brown appointed in Jan. 2019; Chandra Ferrari, an environmental lawyer, most recently with Trout Unlimited; and Sidney Cooper, a financial services executive from Ashland and recent transplant from California.

State statute limits the number of board members who have a financial interest in forest products, and those nominees would ostensibly preserve the boards current balance. Chambers, who is a member of the board of directors at Hampton Lumber, would replace one of the outgoing members in an industry seat. Ferrari would replace Cindy Williams, a fish biologist and conservation voice. Cooper, who governor selected after looking for people of color to diversify the board, is something of a cipher, as he has no public policy or forestry background. He would take the seat being vacated by outgoing board chair Tom Imeson, a Portland businessman seen as a centrist.

Beyer and Roblan said Friday that theyre not opposed to any of the nominees individually, but believe the board needs the perspective of a small woodland owner, which make up a significant part of the states forestry industry. One name that has circulated is Clinton Bentz, an accountant and second generation family forest owner from Scio in Lane county. Hes also the cousin of former Sen. Cliff Bentz, R-Ontario, who is the current Republican nominee to replace outgoing U.S. Rep. Greg Walden.

Beyer also said he believes the current board is unbalanced. He says hes spoken to the governor four times about it, but she hasnt gotten there yet.

He added that the governor has made the case that board member Jim Kelly, a former Portland businessman who has since moved to Eastern Oregon, brings the perspective of a small woodland owner. But Beyer said from a social perspective, hes an environmentalist.

That may be another concern for industry groups, as Kelly could take over as board chair with Imesons departure. And they may not feel that Chambers fully represents their perspective.

The governor could replace Chambers with Bentz. She said Friday shed discussed that option, but that Chambers brought key leadership skills, a knowledge of state government, service on the wildfire council and valuable perspective from her experience on the boards of Hampton Lumber and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.

Boyle, the governors spokesman, said that early in the appointment process, her office had a series of conversations with industry leaders in a good faith effort to determine the type of nominee they would want to see for one of the vacancies.

Balance is critical on the Board of Forestry, to ensure that all voices are represented at the table, Boyle said. It seems clear now that their objections to the Governors slate of nominees are not about Karla Chambers' qualifications, but about the fact that they want to pick up two seats on the Board instead of one. That doesnt match the Governors vision of a balanced board that works towards achieving the best outcomes for all Oregonians, not special interests.

Environmentalists, meanwhile, are adamantly opposed to the appointment of both Chambers and Bentz. Industry can count as well as I can, said Bob Van Dyk, policy director for Oregon and Washington at the Wild Salmon Center. Bottom line, they want four votes.

Steve Zika, chief executive of Hampton Lumber, said he wasnt spending any time on the Board of Forestry nominations.

Most of our time is being spent on the (Habitat Conservation Plan) process the ODF is engaged in and trying to get them to work with the counties to negotiate a more balanced agreement with the federal government that doesnt lock up 50% of the land, he said. You would think with the recent evidence of what locking up federal land has accomplished (no increase in spotted owls and excess fuel loads that add to the risk of catastrophic fires) that the ODF would be smarter.

Sen. Betsy Johnson said Friday that she wholeheartedly supports the brave men and women on the front lines of Oregons fires and that they deserve an agency that can perform well on an administrative level.

I would support a slate of nominees that has the capacity to turn around this troubled agency, she said. I am less interested in nominees that represent particular interests and more interested in a board capable of managing the agency. I dont know if these new nominees and the remaining members of the board represent those agents of change.

-- Ted Sickinger; tsickinger@oregonian.com; 503-2218505; @tedsickinger

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Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has vowed to rapidly move on any Trump nomination to replace Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press)

Wouldnt it be nice if Democrats and Republicans could just agree that the fair and right course would be to not replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg until after the presidential inauguration in January? We could simply stick, for now, with the precedent established by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell when he refused to hold a vote on the nomination of Merrick Garland to replace Justice Antonin Scalia.

At the time, nearly nine months before the 2016 presidential election, he declared, The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

But just hours after the announcement of Ginsburgs death on Friday, McConnell declared, President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.

There is little Democrats can do to stop Trump from nominating someone and the Republicans from confirming that person quickly, if thats what they choose to do. Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate, and they have eliminated the use of the filibuster in Supreme Court nominations. So the hope must be that four Republican senators  perhaps those facing tight reelection races  will have the courage to stand up to their party and refuse to allow a confirmation to be rushed through.

That is probably a distant hope. So far, Senate Republicans have shown little inclination to stand up to Trump and McConnell, as was evident in their confirming Brett Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court, despite compelling testimony about an alleged sexual assault and perjury  and despite clear evidence that he lacked judicial temperament. Nor did Republicans demonstrate any independence or courage during the impeachment of Trump.

That leaves Democrats with few cards to play at a crucial moment for our democracy. The stakes are enormous. Last term, with Ginsburg on the bench, the court handed down surprising 5-4 decisions to protect individual rights, including a decision to strike down Louisianas restrictive abortion law and to invalidate Trumps rescission of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. If Ginsburg is replaced by a hard-line conservative who puts politics and feelings ahead of the law, the chance of such rulings will evaporate.

Story continues

On the current court, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. is ideologically in the middle. To be sure, he is to the right of Americas current political center, but at times he joins with the liberals, including in a vote to uphold the Affordable Care Act. If Ginsburg is replaced with someone from the far right, like Judge Amy Coney Barrett, who is frequently mentioned as a likely nominee, there will be five justices substantially more conservative than Roberts. There would be virtually no hope that abortion rights could survive such a court, and little chance of checking Trump.

One way for Democrats to make clear they will not tolerate Republicans trying to fill this seat in advance of the election would be for them to pledge that, if they take the White House and Senate in November, they will increase the size of the Supreme Court to 13 justices.

The number of justices on the court is set by federal law, not the Constitution. Since its beginnings, it has ranged from having between five and 10 members. Since the 1860s, it has remained at nine.

When President Franklin Roosevelt suggested expanding the Supreme Court in the 1930s to overcome court hostility to the New Deal, he was repudiated for trying to pack the court. But the current situation is different. This would be a response to chicanery by Republicans.

What happened with Garlands nomination was unprecedented, and Democrats rightly believe it was a stolen seat. After Scalias death in February 2016, President Obama moved quickly, nominating Garland the next month.

Prior to that time, there had been 24 Supreme Court vacancies in presidential election years. In 21 instances, the Senate confirmed the nominee and in three instances it did not. But never before had the Senate refused to hold hearings and vote. If Republicans now rapidly confirm a replacement for Ginsburg, an antidote from the Democrats will be necessary.

The threat of increasing the size of the court to 13 might be enough to discourage Republicans from their dirty tricks. But if they do it anyway, and the November election produces a Democratic win in the White House and a Democratic majority in the Senate, Congress would be totally justified in increasing the size of the court.

It shouldnt have to come to this. Republicans should be trying to bridge differences rather than inflaming the situation. It is sad that just hours after Ginsburgs death the focus is on the political machinations rather than her legacy.

No other justice in history has become a popular icon in the way she did. She modeled for all of us in how to spend a life working to make society and individual lives better. We only can hope for a new justice in her mold.

Erwin Chemerinsky is dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law and a contributing writer to Opinion.





For the record:

8:14 AM, Sep. 19, 2020: In a previous version of this article, Judge Amy Coney Barretts last name was misspelled as Barret.


The issues of climate change and its implications on lives and agriculture are high up on the political parties agenda for the upcoming Bihar assembly polls with both the ruling coalition and the Opposition parties backing the idea of releasing a separate manifesto on the issue.

Worried over an unpredictable weather making Bihar suffer from either floods or droughts regularly, chief minister Nitish Kumar had last year launched Jal-Jivan-Hariyali mission, which saw over 5 crore people forming a human chain across the state for conservation of environment and natural resources.

The state government has launched many initiatives to protect the environment. However, these efforts needed to be carried out and extended further in view of huge population density and burgeoning demand of the people for comfort, said information and public relations department minister Neeraj Kumar at the consultation organized by centre for environment and energy development (CEED) one the need to prepare a climate manifesto for 2020 assembly polls here on Friday.

Also Read: Election officials in Bihar told to fact check, call out fake news

Kumar, who represents the JD(U), also welcomed the commitment made by other political parties including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Congress and Janadhikar Party for ecological conservation in their election manifestos.

Citing the widespread impact of flooding, which hit more than 82 lakh population in the state this season, the leaders said that Bihar has been caught in a peculiar situation where some parts faced drought while some other areas grappled with deluge.

It is a matter of worry that a historic city like Patna has been rated among the worst in terms of ambient air quality, due to the governments inability to keep it clean, said Congress leader Harkhu Jha.

BJP spokesman Nikhil Anand said that the NDA government had done a lot for minimising the human loan on the earth, but still a lot was required to be done for the management of municipal wastes, extension of forest cover and reduction of natural calamity through smart ways.

Also Read: Ahead of Bihar polls, PM Narendra Modi dedicates Kosi rail bridge to nation

Deputy chief minister Sushil Modi had presented a separate green budget for the purpose. The party may consider presenting a separate manifesto on the environment for the coming assembly polls, said Anand.

RJD spokesman Mrityunjay Tiwari said that Jal Jivan Hariyali mission was launched with good intentions. But complexities in its realization and general reluctance of the bureaucracy towards the issue had pushed the state on the verge of disasters like unseasonal rains, floods, water logging and changes in the cropping patterns, Tiwari added.

Congress leader Jha said the onus for conservation of natural resources and checking ambient pollution lied equally on the society. The government cannot alone do everything to protect the environment. The issue is high on the Congress priority list and it may plan presenting a separate manifesto for conservation of environment and wildlife, added Jha.

JAP spokesman Awadhesh Lalu also supported the idea for a separate manifesto on conservation of natural resources.

Chief executive officer of CEED Ramapati Kumar urged the leaders of political parties to help Bihar tide over the prevailing crisis engendered by climate change that has badly impacted health of the people and prosperity of the state.

Rajkumari Devi of Muzaffarpur, popularly known as Kisan Chachi, underlined the role of women in sensitizing the masses for conservation of environment for a better future. President of Bihar industries association, Ram Lal Khetan, Vivek Kumar of Asian development research institute (ADRI), and a host of prominent personalities from civil society, entrepreneurs, commercial and cultural organisations participated in the event and suggested ways to deal with ecological challenges.
Jacinda Ardern's partner has revealed their daughter's favourite toy which has a pretty odd feature.

The New Zealand Prime Minister and her now fiance Clarke Gayford, welcomed baby daughter Neve Te Aroha Ardern Gayford in June 2018.

Mr Gayford took to Twitter on Friday to share his daughter's favourite handmade gift she's received - also saying that he enjoys the toy too.

The New Zealand Prime Minister and her now fiance Clarke Gayford welcomed baby daughter Neve Te Aroha Ardern Gayford in June 2018 (pictured joining a Waka crew for a paddle prior to Waitangi Day in Waitangi, New Zealand on Wednesday, February 5 2020)

Mr Gayford took to Twitter on Friday to share his daughter's favourite handmade gift (pictured)

The cat with nipples (pictured) was revealed as Neve's favourite toy after receiving it as a gift

The favourite toy in question, is a cat with nipples.

'We both enjoy is this, at first glance, a bung legged, crazy eyes cat....but on closer inspection...it's a cat with nipples,' he wrote in a thread with photos of the toy.

However, there is even more than what meets the eye and Mr Gayford shared another photo of kittens hidden inside the toy.

The kittens were tucked away in the cat's stomach which can then all 'connect to the milk bar'.

'...and that is my story, thank you,' Mr Gayford wrote along with a cute photo of the cat with the kittens attached to the nipples.

Mr Gayford continued his story on Twitter revealing that the cat actually has kittens inside

The kittens can then 'connect to the milk bar', just like in real life

Mr Gayford concluded his story with a photo of the toy with the kittens attached to the nipples

Mr Gayford said he 'feels bad' that he hasn't started an Instagram account to showcase the many toys Neve receives.

His thread however, has since received more than 1,600 likes with social media users saying they didn't realise it was a cat at first.

'This is amazing and is absolutely a dog,' one person wrote.

'I thought it was a sheep at first, but then, I dont live on a farm,' another commented.

'It's a Cog..cat body, doggy face,' another wrote.

Ms Ardern confirmed her engagement to her Mr Gayford in May 2019 after she was spotted wearing a ring on her left hand.

Their engagement came almost a year after the birth of their first child Neve Te Aroha Ardern Gayford in June 2018.

Ms Ardern confirmed her engagement to her Mr Gayford in May 2019 after she was spotted wearing a ring on her left hand (pictured on her 40th birthday)

The couple's engagement came almost a year after the birth of their first child Neve Te Aroha Ardern Gayford in June 2018

Mr Gayford, a well known broadcaster who hosted a fishing show called Fish of the Day, took a step back from his career to care for the couple's daughter.

Ms Ardern and Mr Gayford first met at an awards event in 2012 but did not start dating until 2013 when a constituency issue brought them together, Stuff reported.

Mr Gayford was upset about the potential loss of privacy proposed by the Government Communications Security Bureau Amendment Bill.

He first went to local MP, Nikki Kaye, but got no response.

He then wrote to Ms Ardern and the two met for coffee and bonded over a shared interest in music.

Ms Ardern has previously spoken out about their wedding plans, saying neither her or Mr Gayford had a particular stance on marriage.

'I predict we will one day. We happen to have done things in reverse a little bit, but that happens in life sometimes too,' she told RNZ.

Ms Ardern with her fiance Clarke Gayford and their daughter Neve
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept. 19

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

The value of steel export from Turkey to Turkmenistan spiked by 54 percent in the past eight months of 2020, compared to the same period of 2019, having exceeded $80.8 million, the Turkish Trade Ministry told Trend.

In August 2020, Turkey exported steel worth over $9 million to Turkmenistan, which is 5.5 percent less than in the same month of last year.

Steel exports from Turkey to world markets decreased by 16.1 percent from January through August 2020, compared to the same period of 2019, amounting to $7.8 billion.

The ministry said that Turkeys steel exports made up 7.7 percent of the country's total exports over the specifying period.

In August 2020, Turkey exported the steel to international markets in the amount of $878.4 million, which is 13.5 percent less compared to August 2019, the ministry noted.

At the same time, Turkeys steel exports in August 2020 accounted for 7 percent of the country's overall exports.

Over the past 12 months (from August 2019 through August 2020), Turkey exported the steel worth over $12.3 billion to foreign markets.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
In separate cases, police arrest five drug peddlers from various parts of the city and seized drugs worth several lakhs.

Central Crime Branch (CCB) police arrested two foreign nationals and seized ecstasy pills and 25 LSD strips worth Rs 10 lakh.

Nonso Joachin alias John (36), a resident of OMBR Layout who hails from Nigeria, and Traori Ben (25), a resident of Mother Teresa Layout hailing from Abidjan in Ivory Coast, came out of jail just a month ago and had continued with selling drugs.

Police said the duo were caught selling drugs on 1st Main Road in OMBR Layout on Friday. They carried the drugs in their scooters. Police seized weighing machines and Ziplock pouches from their residences.

Police said the two men arrived in Bengaluru on a medical attendant visa and business visa and have been selling drugs since 2017. They did not return when their visas expired. The CCB police had earlier arrested them and two cases had been registered against them in Ramamurthynagar and KR Puram police stations. The duo had been lodged at Parappana Agrahara central prison.

Used marriage as an excuse to stay back

The duo used the case against them to extend their stay in India since police who arrested them the first time seized their passports and visas as the NDPS cases against them were under trial.

John fell in love with a northeastern woman living in Bengaluru and got married to her to extend his stay in India.
The COVID-19 crisis has been a blessing for tourism in regional NSW, leading to a dramatic increase in short-term rental bookings, but popular destinations such as Byron Bay may struggle to cope with the influx of visitors.

Just 11 of 564 properties - or 2 per cent - in Byron Bay listed on short term rental site Stayz remain available for the first week of the school holidays, which begins September 28.

Louise Lally, with husband Ben, said her Byron Bay property was at 90 per cent occupancy this month - compared to 54 per cent for the same time last year. Credit:Danielle Smith

David Jones, the president of industry association Destination Byron, said tourists were flocking to regional towns thanks to the border closures imposed by state premiers such as Queensland's Annastacia Palaszczuk.

"The border closures to Victoria and Queensland are proving a boon for regional NSW destinations," he said.
A federal judge on Friday dismissed a lawsuit in which Uber and Postmates challenged the constitutionality of AB5, Californias gig-work law.

U.S. District Court Judge Dolly Gee in Los Angeles did leave the door open for Uber and Postmates to file a more limited lawsuit by Oct. 9 if they had new evidence that their rights were violated. Uber, which is in the process of buying Postmates, implied that it would do so.

The courts order granted us permission to amend our complaint, the company said. The enactment of even newer bills granting several additional exemptions to AB5 makes it crystal clear  now more than ever  that this law is irrational and unconstitutional, and we look forward to presenting those arguments to the court.

Uber and Postmates, along with an Uber driver and a Postmates courier, sued California in late December, saying that AB5 unfairly targeted modern app-based companies while granting dozens of exemptions to professions that heavily lobbied the Legislature. The case is Olson vs. California.

Both companies rely on independent contractor workforces, and say that reclassifying them as employees would undercut their business models. In February, Gee rejected the two companies request to temporarily halt enforcement of AB5 against them.

AB5, which took effect Jan. 1, makes it much harder for companies to claim that workers are not employees. It codifies a 2018 California Supreme Court decision known as Dynamex that says workers are employees unless all parts of an ABC test are met: (A) they work free from a companys control; (B) they do work outside the companys usual course of business; and (C) they have independent enterprises doing that type of work.

Uber, Postmates, and other gig companies have tried every possible strategy to evade California law, but court after court has rejected their flimsy legal arguments, said Jill Habig, president of the Public Rights Project, an Oakland nonprofit. that believes gig workers should be employees. Its time for them to stop exploiting their workers and start following the law.

Attorney General Xavier Becerras office said it was pleased with the ruling.

Separately, Becerra and the city attorneys of San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego are suing Uber and Postmates, alleging they are violating AB5 and hurting drivers by improper classification. The companies say they think they meet AB5s requirements. Meanwhile, they and other gig-economy companies are seeking an exemption to AB5 by spending $181 million on Proposition 22, a November ballot measure that would permanently keep their drivers and couriers, as well as those of DoorDash, Postmates and Instacart, as independent contractors.

Uber had sought to have Becerras case against it and Lyft postponed until it received a ruling in its federal case with Postmates challenging AB5s constitutionality.

In the federal case, Uber and Postmates contended that AB5 violates their due process rights because it would prevent drivers and couriers from pursuing their chosen occupation as business owners in the sharing economy and transform (Uber and Postmates) from technology companies into taxi and delivery companies.

Gee rejected that contention, as well as most of the companies other arguments, in her 16-page decision.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

Even if Individual Plaintiffs employment classification does change under AB5, they still have the option of working as part-time drivers and couriers, provided that their employers abide by California labor and unemployment insurance laws pertaining to employees, she wrote.

Another argument by Uber and Postmates was that AB5 violates the U.S. and California contract clauses because the drivers and couriers sign contracts to work as contractors. Plaintiffs should have foreseen that the labels the parties placed on their relationship were not dispositive and that Individual Plaintiffs could be reclassified as employees, Gee wrote.

Gee said lawmakers were entitled to grant exemptions from AB5 for professions with licenses that require extensive education and training, like doctors and lawyers, while denying exemptions to companies with transportation licenses. She also said the Legislature could use its judgment to draw some arbitrary distinctions.

The judge said that Uber and Postmates could file an amended lawsuit limited to their arguments about equal protection, due process and the contracts clause. They have until Oct. 9 to file the lawsuit or indicate that they wont do so.

Chronicle staff writer Bob Egelko contributed to this report.

Carolyn Said is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: csaid@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @csaid
LONDON, Sept. 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- (Air Purification Equipment Manufacturing Companies Included: Sharp Corporation, Panasonic Corporation, Daikin Industries, Honeywell International, Philips Electronics NV)



The market in Asia-Pacific is supported by the rapid industrial development in developing countries such as Bangladesh, China, India, Japan, and other Southeast Asian countries. The region is characterized by rapid urbanization and a continuous decline in the air quality across numerous countries in the region, including India and China. High levels of air pollution resulting from these increase the prevalence of respiratory diseases, thus explaining the large share in the global air purification systems market for prevention of risk of these diseases.

The Business Research Company s report titled Commercial Fan And Air Purification Equipment Global Market Report 2020-30: COVID-19 Impact and Recovery covers major commercial fan and air purification equipment companies, commercial fan and air purification equipment market share by company, commercial fan and air purification equipment manufacturers, commercial fan and air purification equipment infrastructure market size, and commercial fan and air purification equipment market forecasts. The report also covers the global commercial fan and air purification equipment market and its segments. The commercial fan and air purification equipment market is segmented by type into air purification equipment, attic and exhaust fans, others - commercial fan and air purification equipment, by technology type into high efficiency particulate absorption/absorber (HEPA, activated carbon, electrostatic precipitator, ultra violet (UV) light air purifier, ionic air purifier, others, and by capacity into small, medium, large.

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The coronavirus outbreak has been impacting various industries and global economies. The commercial fan and air purification market size has been affected by the pandemic in both positive and negative ways. For instance, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for fans & blowers from restaurants and new commercial buildings is expected to decrease due to less consumer spending and reduced new construction activities caused by the economic slowdown. The commercial fans market is primarily driven by infrastructure & industrial activities, which came to a halt as countries around the globe went into stringent lockdowns.

However, when it comes to the global air purification systems market, the US Environmental Protection Agency reported that when used properly, air purifiers can help reduce airborne contaminants, including viruses, in a home or confined space. By itself, a portable air cleaner is not enough to protect people from COVID-19, but when used along with other practices recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, operating an air cleaner can be part of a plan to protect from the virus. Some air purifier systems can effectively remove viruses  but only from the air that is actually drawn through the unit.

High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters are highly effective and certified to capture 99.97% of particles that are precisely 0.3 micron in diameter. Particles of that size are perfectly suited to maneuver through the filters fibers, while larger and smaller particles, because of the various ways they move in the air, crash into the structure. The novel coronavirus itself is 0.125 microns, but the droplets that travel  when people cough, sneeze, talk, or breathe  initially are larger, around 1 micron. That is a size easily captured by HEPA filters. An air purifier has to be capable of consistently drawing in enough air to reduce the number of virus particles in the air  the faster an air purifier can cycle air through the filter, the better its chances of catching virus particles.



In this way, the growing awareness among consumers regarding air purification in the wake of COVID-19 is an opportunity for air purifier retailers to scale up their sales. Some companies are increasing the production of air quality systems with the addition of different technologies such as HEPA filters, photocatalytic purifiers, activated carbon purifiers, and ionic filters.

Despite supply chain disruptions, after lockdown restrictions were eased, global air purifier and fan manufacturing companies have been using up existing inventory to cope with the hampered production and global trade. Recovery in the residential sector is anticipated to be slow due to discretionary consumer spending and low pollution levels. Air purifiers are still considered a luxury or lifestyle commodity rather than a necessity by the masses. Yet, a temporary shift in focus towards commercial and institutional end-users, particularly hospitals, offices, and government buildings, is anticipated to help recover the air purifier and commercial fan industry.

Commercial Fan And Air Purification Equipment Global Market Report 2020-30: COVID-19 Impact and Recovery is one of a series of new reports from The Business Research Company that provide market overviews, analyze and forecast market size and growth for the whole market, segments and geographies, trends, drivers, restraints, leading competitors revenues, profiles and market shares in over 1,000 industry reports, covering over 2,500 market segments and 60 geographies. The report also gives in-depth analysis of the impact of COVID-19 on the market. The reports draw on 150,000 datasets, extensive secondary research, and exclusive insights from interviews with industry leaders. A highly experienced and expert team of analysts and modelers provides market analysis and forecasts. The reports identify top countries and segments for opportunities and strategies based on market trends and leading competitors approaches.

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Air Purifiers Market Global Report 2020-30: COVID-19 Growth and Change

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It's the second day in a row of daily new cases under 30, with just 21 cases recorded on Saturday - and marks the lowest new daily case number since June 19 where there were 13 new cases reported. All five deaths recorded today were linked to aged care and included two men and two women in their 80s, and a woman in her 90s. There are now 94 Victorians in hospital with coronavirus, eight in intensive care and five of those in ICU on a ventilator. There were 12,461 test results processed yesterday. "Can I thank each and every one of those almost 12,500 Victorians," Mr Andrews said. "Again, if I can urge and ask all Victorians - don't put it off until tomorrow. Don't wait at all. If you've got symptoms, however mild, please come forward and get tested." A sizeable cluster in Melbourne's south-east has grown again today to 40 cases, up from 34 yesterday.

Mr Andrews defended not fining people involved in the cluster who may have broken Chief Health Officer directives, saying the "real riches, the real treasure here" is accurate information and he didn't want to deter any positive cases telling contact tracers the truth about who they had seen or where they had been. "I'm not expecting everyone to be happy with that," he said. "The real riches are not in fining people for telling the truth to a contact tracer. It's getting the place open and if we don't get accurate information, enforcement information you won't trace those people, you simply won't." Mr Andrews this morning has said the outbreak, based around Narre Warren and Hallam, was an example of how quickly outbreaks could take off again. "So it just gives you a sense of one person, just a single person, can infect many, many other people. And the contact tracing work that has gone on there has seen us pull that up," he said. "There is still, I'm sure, close contacts and others will be very much monitored to make sure that if they exhibit symptoms, that we can further isolate them. But they're all isolated there. "We believe that we can pull it up at that number, but again, it's always subject to events as they unfold."

Minister for Creative Industries Martin Foley has announced cash injections for venues and $13 million worth of grants for individuals affected by the ongoing lockdown measures in the state. Well-known venues across Melbourne and regional Victoria will be among the first to receive grants under the program. Mr Foley said there would also be changes to planning laws to protect music venues. "We want to make sure that in this COVID shutdown period, that venues are not at risk and councils are given the tools to make sure that live music venues can keep pumping out rock and roll and keep pumping out music for many years to come." Health Minister Jenny Mikakos made a celebratory tweet moments before the numbers were released. "Before I go to sleep I get the tentative 'number'. You are awesome Melbourne," she wrote.

In a follow-up message, she paid tribute to the five lives lost over the past day but encouraged Melburnians to keep adhering to restrictions to snuff the virus out. "The huge sacrifices made by Victorians are saving many lives. The new cases keep trending down with your efforts. Thank you to all Victorians. You are amazing. We can do this," Ms Mikakos wrote. Melbourne's 14-day rolling average is now 36.2, meaning in all likelihood Melburnians can look forward to gatherings of up to five people from two different households in public spaces and the re-opening of childcare centres. But significant changes such as the lifting of the 9pm to 5am curfew and the five-kilometre radius rule will not be lifted for another month, and only if the rolling 14-day average for new cases drops to less than five cases.

The number of 'mystery' cases over with an unknown source over the past two weeks (measured between September 4 and September 17) has now dropped to 52. That number also needs to be less than five by October 26 for the city to move to the third step of easing. Half of Victoria's active cases are still being driven by aged care infections. As of Saturday, 433 of the state's 834 active cases were either residents in aged care, staff members in aged care or family members of staff. The health department announced a new aged care outbreak at BlueCross Riverlea aged care facility in Avondale Heights on Saturday. Meanwhile Sutton Park McKenzie Aged Care in Melton South, Estia Health Aged Care Facility in Keilor and Doutta Galla Aged Services in Woornack are currently topping the list of 75 facilities with active cases, with 114 active cases between them.

Healthcare worker infections, which include aged care workers, continue to make up around 15 per cent of overall active cases. A cluster in the City of Casey, thought to be spread by people visiting each other at home, grew to 34 cases on Saturday, with 26 cases active. Chief Health Officer Professor Brett Sutton said on Saturday that the outbreak was now under control, and apologised after he linked that spread to some members of the Afghan community.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister C N Ashwath Narayan on Saturday said he has tested positive for COVID-19.

"In anticipation of the upcoming Assembly sessions, I underwent a #COVID19 test on Saturday and my results have returned positive. I am asymptomatic and will be under home isolation," Narayan tweeted.

He has requested all those who have come in contact with him to take the necessary precautions.

In the wake of the pandemic, Assembly Speaker Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri has made it mandatory for all those attending it to undergo RT-PCR test for COVID-19 infection, 72 hours prior to the start of the monsoon session from September 21.

Narayan is the latest in the list of Ministers in Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa's cabinet who have tested positive for coronavirus.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

Earlier this week, Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai and Food and Civil Supplies Minister K Gopalaiah had tested positive for COVID.

Prior to that, Yediyurappa and his Ministers including B Sriramulu, C T Ravi, B C Patil, Anand Singh, Byrathi Basavaraj, Prabhu Chavan, A Shivaram Hebbar, K S Eshwarappa and Shashikala Jolle had tested positive and have now recovered.
Judge Hardiman, who sits on the Federal Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, in Philadelphia, was the first member of his family to graduate from college, and he helped pay for his education by driving a taxi. His compelling life story, coupled with a winning personality, has appealed to Mr. Trump, as has his solid record of conservative rulings. Judge Hardiman served with Judge Maryanne Trump Barry, the presidents sister, on the appeals court, and Judge Barry recommended Judge Hardiman to her brother as a good choice for the vacancy created by the death of Justice Scalia.

William H. Pryor Jr.
State-job rejects appeals to be evaluated, as unemployed grads plan more protests By Tharushi Weerasinghe View(s): View(s):

The Government will evaluate the appeals of thousands of graduates whose appointment letters were withdrawn on the basis that they once held jobs with EPF and ETF benefits, a top official said.

This week, about 7000 graduates staged silent protests outside District Secretariats and presented petitions urging the authorities that the injustice done to them be reversed, said their spokesperson Amila Iroshani.

A demonstration is also planned outside the Presidential Secretariat on Wednesday with some unemployed graduates vowing to stay put there until they are given jobs. They first received appointment letters for a state job under the Governments job scheme for unemployed graduates but later told they had been rejected.

But Public Administration Ministry Secretary J.J. Ratnasiri said the Government would not work according to their agendas. Due process will be followed. The deadline for appeals ended on Tuesday. A special committee will do the evaluations.

The Ministry expects around 6,000 appeals to come in from applicants who were rejected for having held jobs with EPF and ETF benefits after leaving university. Applicants rejected on the basis of other factors may also appeal but only the first category has a mandated process.

Appeals were accepted with documentation such as the last pay slip and proof of unemployment in the form of a termination letter. The District and Divisional Secretariats were tasked with collecting information.

Those who were rejected for holding a foreign degree will be given the chance to appeal through interviews. Officials will individually investigate and validate the graduates accordingly, the Ministry said.
Supervisor Donald Wagner attends a meeting of the Orange County Board of Supervisors in Santa Ana, Calif., on Aug. 25, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

OC Supervisor Requests Local Control of COVID Funds in Letter to Trump

Orange County Supervisor Don Wagner sent a letter to President Donald Trump on Sept. 17 asking the federal government to send COVID-19 funding directly to Californias counties and bypass state authorities.

Governor Newsom has specifically threatened to withhold Federal funds to disobedient counties that develop their own safe reopening plans in response to local needs and local conditions, Wagner wrote.

Wagner said Gov. Gavin Newsom had changed his COVID-19 response plans three times and is now requiring vague social justice metrics rather than the achievement of scientific milestones.

A request for comment from Newsoms office wasnt returned by deadline.

Newsoms office released a Blueprint for a Safer Economy plan in late August and announced that the state would eventually start factoring in the health equity of counties when deciding whether they could advance to the next color-coded tier in the reopening process.

The details of the health equity measurements are still pending, but they will be designed to reflect a countys ability to address the most impacted communities within the population, according to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH).

The California Department of Public Health is committed to health equity and collecting more detailed racial and ethnic data that will provide additional understanding for determining future action, the CDPH stated in a Sept. 18 release.

Health outcomes are affected by forces including structural racism, poverty and the disproportionate prevalence of underlying conditions such as asthma and heart disease among Latinos and African American Californians.

Wagner said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had already provided the needed guidelines for counties to deal effectively with the pandemic. He argued that the evidence shows that children should be returning to school and adults should be returning to work, while those who are most at risk should be the ones who stay isolated.

The best available scientific and epidemiological research tells us we can safely reopen, Wagner said in a Sept. 18 statement.

Wagner said that according to the CDC, more than 95 percent of the nations deaths have been accompanied with one or more comorbidities, while less than 0.2 percent of the countrys confirmed COVID cases have resulted in the death of a person under the age of 50.

While each death truly is a tragedy, science has identified the overwhelming number of people who are at risk. We should protect those older and at-risk citizens while opening up the rest of society, Wagner said.

Our families, businesses, churches, and schools want to reopen.

Orange County has had a number of other public disagreements with the state government this year.

In April, Newsom made the decision to order a temporary hard close of the beaches within Orange County, while allowing beaches in other counties to remain open.

Orange County GOP Chairman Fred Whitaker was greatly angered by the closure, he said.

It is a complete slap in the face to local control, and has nothing to do with health, Whitaker said at the time.

In closing the beaches, Newsom said, We want to work very closely with local elected officials, and were committed to doing that. And if we can get some framework and guidelines to get this right, we can reopen very, very quickly. But weve got to make sure we can get this right.

Wagner mentioned the incident in his letter to Trump, arguing that the county was being unfairly targeted.

Since mid-March, our residents have dutifully complied with the ever-changing directives from Governor Newsom, he wrote.

Our hospitals never reached capacity. We flattened the curve. We developed a safe reopening plan to which the governor promptly and punitively closed our beaches based on only a few misleading newspaper photos.

Orange County was upgraded from the purple to the red tier in the states color-coded COVID-19 monitoring system on Sept. 8, allowing churches, movie theaters, and other businesses to resume limited indoor operations.

The Orange County Health Care Agency reported Sept. 18 that the countys daily case count per 100,000 people fell from 5.2 last week to 4.7, and the seven-day rate of residents testing positive for COVID-19 dropped from 4.2 percent last week to 3.9 percent.

To take the next step and move up to the orange tier, the county must have a daily new case rate of 1 to 3.9 per 100,000, and a positivity rate of 2 percent to 4.9 percent.
Gurugram, Sep 19 : The Gurugram District Magistrate has directed for the mandatory presence of gazetted officer/duty magistrate during raids in NDPS cases or arrest of criminals, regarding which a list of 17 such officers has been issued.

DM Brahm Prakash recently chaired a meeting with officials of departments concerned in regard to Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) cases in Gurugram and issued necessary directions.

During the meeting, the names of 17 gazetted officers/duty magistrate were listed in the district who will extend support to police during NDPS raids.

The District Magistrate said that the officers should take raids under the NDPS Act seriously and be available on time whenever required.

"In most NDPS cases, the culprits are acquitted by the court due to lack of evidence. Now, the presence of the Duty Magistrate will make the raid process transparent. In their presence, the suspects will be searched or arrested. Also, a list of selected officers has been given to the DCP (Headquarters) Nitika Gahlaut of Gurugram Police," the officer said.

He said that the participation of all officers was essential to make the district free of intoxicants.

"Drugs addiction affects mental health, society and family. Driving on roads under the influence of drugs and intoxicants can cause accidents. Drug addiction at an early age can also lead to difficulties in life and cause unrest in family," said Preet Pal Sangwan, ACP (Crime).
Protesters spent Saturday afternoon gathered outside of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's Kentucky home.

There appeared to be around 100 demonstrators at his residence equipped with megaphones and signs.

The demonstration comes after McConnell pledged to quickly bring to a vote to whomever Trump nominates for Supreme Court Justice in a statement regarding Ruth Bader Ginsburg's passing.

"Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise. President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate," McConnell said.

Louisville Metro Police Department was on seen on the scene asking protesters to clear roadways as some have blocked the street in front of McConnell's home.








For more than six months, public health officials have been testing Manitobans for the novel coronavirus  161,473 tests, to be exact.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 18/9/2020 (490 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

For more than six months, public health officials have been testing Manitobans for the novel coronavirus  161,473 tests, to be exact.

In nearly every confirmed case, the province has released basic information, including a patient's gender, age-range and health district.

Beyond that, keeping Manitobans informed during the novel coronavirus pandemic has been a patchwork approach, with inconsistencies, backtracking, and lack of detailed disclosures, as the public right to know and individual right to privacy collide.

Balancing privacy and transparency will continue to be a challenge as the pandemic response progresses, says Dr. Joss Reimer, a public health physician at the University of Manitoba.

PHIL HOSSACK / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Dr. Joss Reimer, a public health physician at the University of Manitoba, thinks balancing privacy and transparency will be a challenge as the pandemic progresses.

"I can certainly understand why people want more information, but that's just not fair to those who are experiencing infections and stigma," Reimer said.

The Personal Health Information Act protects each residents right to obtain their health information, and sets out rules about the collection, use, disclosure, retention and destruction of such data. "Health information is personal and sensitive and its confidentiality must be protected so that individuals are not afraid to seek health care or to disclose sensitive information to health professionals," it states.

Chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin has repeatedly echoed this sentiment in defence of the few details that have been released about COVID-19 outbreaks.

I can certainly understand why people want more information, but that's just not fair to those who are experiencing infections and stigma.  Dr. Joss Reimer, public health physician.

It is, in part, why it took so long for Manitobans to find out how many cases are active in a given area and why Roussin reneged on a promise to provide specifics about cases in schools this week.

The province issued a notice Sept. 9  one day after the opening of the new school year  to alert the public of a positive case involving a Grade 7 student in Room 20 at Churchill High School in Winnipeg. The following cases connected to schools have only been identified by building name.

During a subsequent briefing, Roussin cited "a tremendous amount of stigmatizing behaviour," surrounding the first case; he said he must balance the need for privacy, so people dont fear stigma and do seek testing, if advised to.

THE CANADIAN PRESS/DAVID LIPNOWSKI Manitoba chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin.

"Despite its name, there isnt that direct obligation of public health to give all its information to the public We have structured our legislation to respect individuals (privacy)," said Marika Warren, assistant professor of bioethics at Dalhousie University in Halifax.

Warren called Manitobas decision to release detailed information about the Churchill case an "oh-no moment." Many public health decisions since March have been reactive rather than proactive, she said, adding these decisions are extremely difficult.

She said there needs to be special consideration about limiting stigma  which has been experienced by Hutterite colonies on the Prairies, African Nova Scotians, and populations between  because it can cause distrust amongst a targeted population. People will not seek testing or be honest with health providers if they do not trust them, Warren said.

Despite its name, there isnt that direct obligation of public health to give all its information to the public We have structured our legislation to respect individuals (privacy).  Marika Warren, assistant professor of bioethics at Dalhousie University

When asked about the balance between privacy and public interests during a news conference this week, the countrys top doctor said personal safety could be compromised if communicators are not careful.

"When you're talking about security or stigma or discrimination, you also have to be really careful about how you communicate that data, because people could be inadvertently, you know, their safety could be compromised," Dr. Theresa Tam said.

THE CANADIAN PRESS/ADRIAN WYLD Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam.

U of M ethicist RJ Leland echoed those comments, but he said he doesnt see how withholding details about whether a school case involves a student or staff member would breach privacy or cause stigma.

"People can have a good argument for being nosy when the nosiness is relevant to one of those two things: evaluating the (government) response or making sure that they and other people that they know are making good health-related choices," said Leland, an associate director at the Centre for Professional and Applied Ethics.

He added the public should be putting pressure on officials to be consistent with what is released and why.

THOMAS FRICKE PHOTO Dr. James Blanchard, an epidemiologist at the U of M.

From an epidemiological perspective, local public health specialist Dr. James Blanchard said there needs to be a "compelling reason" to release specifics to the general public, such as reason to believe they will actually alter the decisions they make about their safety.

"Its natural for parents who are concerned to want to have that information, but I think it becomes more and more difficult to have that level of specificity, from an epidemiological perspective, and it might give a false sense of security," said Blanchard, an epidemiologist at the U of M.

Manitoba ombudsman weighs in Click to Expand As far as Manitobas ombudsman is concerned, privacy legislation is not an obstacle to the public health crisis. Instead, Jill Perron calls it a framework that guides decisions about sharing information in a manner that is the least privacy-intrusive. It is possible to protect privacy rights while simultaneously protecting public health, Perron said in an emailed statement to the Free Press.

He prefers general communication about both the levels and type of circulation of a virus in a community. However, he said the province should want to provide enough information so people are confident in its response.

"That balance, in general, has been pretty good in Manitoba. People know when theres more cases and more transmission. People are able to adapt and change their behaviours on that basis," Blanchard said, noting the recent spike has resulted in more people wearing non-medical face masks.

Manitoba Education Minister Kelvin Goertzen  who, before the school year started, said he wanted to see detailed information provided about COVID-19 in schools  declined an interview request Friday.

In a statement, the minister applauded public health for disclosing "the appropriate level of information" to keep families informed while respecting privacy. "As we saw once classes resumed, we will adjust as needed as we gain experience," Goertzen said.

The morning after details were released about the student at Churchill High, a parent in the school parking lot said she felt badly for the family, because the students peers would likely be able to identify them. At the same time, she said one of the reasons she felt comfortable during drop-off that day was because she knew her daughters classroom was far from Room 20.

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @macintoshmaggie

 with files from Dylan Robertson



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Violent crime has soared to its highest level in a decade after a surge in drug feuds, domestic abuse and hate crime, statistics show.

Drug rivalries became increasingly violent in the first phase of the coronavirus pandemic in order to retain their turf.

Violence outside of venues also soared as lockdown restrictions loosened due to 'pent up rage', according to police.

It comes after it was revealed violent crime had returned to pre-Covid levels last month, amid fears that numbers could rise even further as lockdown measures are lifted.

Violent offences were at their highest level in nearly ten years across two thirds of forces in England and Wales in July

Analysis of police data by The Times shows violent offences were at their highest level in nearly ten years across two thirds of forces in England and Wales in July.

Violent crime was higher last month than in July 2019 in 31 of 39 police forces who published their statistics.

Gloucestershire saw violent crime rise by 39 per cent while Durham had and increase of 35 per cent, the two highest rises in the country.

Rachel Almeida, assistant director of Victim Support, said domestic violence had been 'more intense, of high severity, and more frequent' during lockdown.

She said: 'During lockdown perpetrators have increased their control and violence, and victims were unable to get away.'

Last month saw 17 killings in London - two more than July 2019. January this year saw 11 homicides in the capital, and February just seven. Violent crime rates (pictured) are also soaring

Violent crime monthly figures for June across the West Midlands - which includes Britain's second-most populated city, Birmingham - was the highest seen in the last year

West Midlands police and crime commissioner David Jamieson said crime had 'bounced back' since restricting lockdown measures were relaxed.

Violent crime rose by 27 per cent across the West Midlands this July since the same time last year, with 10,849 offences reported.

Mr Jamieson fears young people - who are not working - could get involved in criminal activity due to an abundance of time or missed schooling.

He said the surge in violent resulted from the 'unlocking of a lot of pent-up frustrations' built during lockdown.

Mr Jamieson added Covid-19 had disrupted the drugs market, resulting in a 'sudden explosion of violence as the drugs gangs fight for territory'.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said there is a 'real risk of violent crime spiking as lockdown is eased' in the capital

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said there is a 'real risk of violent crime spiking as lockdown is eased' in the capital after the pandemic sent crime rates plummeting by a quarter in England and Wales.

July saw 17 killings in the city - two more than July 2019. January this year saw 11 homicides in the capital, and February just seven.

There were 19,104 violent crimes in June - compared to 17,264 in February and 18,569 in January.

Mr Khan told The Guardian that he is concerned that 'the last decade of government austerity, where ministers decimated police and youth services  causing violent crime to rise in London and across the UK' could be repeated all over again.

On Tuesday, a 20-year-old was knifed to death in broad daylight in Stockwell Road in south London at around 2.51pm.

The victim was found with a number of stab wounds and died at the scene despite paramedics' best efforts.

Pastor Lorraine Jones, who lost her own son Dwayne Simpson to gun crime when he was also 20 in 2014, witnessed the distressing scenes.

She said in a video shared on Twitter: 'I've just been holding a mother who just lost her son.

'Why was this young boy stabbed? Why? What is the reason? There is so much that must be tied to it.'

Forensic teams and officers search the crime scene in north London on Monday night

Met Police were called at 8pm to North Road, Islington, and found a young man suffering with stab injuries

Earlier on Monday, an 18-year-old was stabbed to death in north London after being chased and attacked.

Met Police were called at 8pm to North Road, Islington, and found Kamal Nuur suffering with stab injuries.

He was treated at the scene by paramedics, but was later pronounced dead.

Police said Mr Nuur was chased and attacked in Goodinge Close, just off North Road, by two male suspects who then fled in the direction of York Way.

A witness told the Evening Standard she tried to save his life after a chase and fight lasting less than a minute.

She said: 'I heard a ruckus then a cry of "help me help me". There was a young man laying on the ground. I went out with other neighbours, he was still breathing.

'We tried to comfort him. His friend was with him shouting raise your hand if you can hear me. He was not conscious.

'I cant get the image of the boy laying there. The neighbours did their best. Its heartbreaking, our thoughts are with his family.'

His death was the fifth murder in London in as many days.
He was the first government official to speak out and formally apologize for the so-called 228 incident, named after Feb. 28, 1947, when soldiers under the Kuomingtang, or the sole ruling Nationalist Party, shot and killed thousands of civilians in an anti-government uprising. The bloodshed marked the beginning of a decades-long period known as the White Terror in which the island was ruled by martial law.
DANBURY  After years of discussing consolidation, the plan has come to fruition for three of the citys volunteer fire companies.

The Wooster Hose, Citizens Hose and Phoenix Hose companies decided to move forward with consolidation efforts and established the Danbury Volunteer Fire Battalion 19 in February.

The battalion is a group of firehouses basically working together to better serve the city of Danbury, Battalion 19 Chief Chris DiMauro said.

The battalions business address is the Citizens Hose Company No. 6 firehouse on Jefferson Avenue, but all three volunteer companies are still in business, DiMauro said.

Were just collaborating and working together at this point, he said.

Danbury has a combination fire department with career/paid firefighters stationed at five locations and volunteers at 12 stations across the city.

The volunteer companies have been looking to consolidate due to a dwindling number of volunteers.

Talks about consolidation had been going on for about 30 years, but it wasnt until about two years ago that it started actively moving forward, DiMauro said last year.

Strengthening of resources has been the driving force.

The three companies that make up Battalion 19 share resources and manpower, making it able for the volunteer firefighters to get apparatuses out the door, DiMauro said.

Since the formation of Battalion 19, DiMauro said theres been improved response to fire calls.

One of the biggest examples is the Aug. 3 storm that we had come through. We were able to man all of our apparatuses, including a utility vehicle, and we ran from approximately 1 p.m. to 11 p.m. non stop with fire calls.

Theres definitely been a huge improvement, and thats our biggest goal, DiMauro said. Theres still a lot of logistics to work out in the long run, but training, documentation and responding to fire calls are, as of right now, our No. 1 goal.

Although DiMauro could not say whether any of the citys other nine volunteer fire companies plan to consolidate, he did say others are welcome to join Battalion 19.

Our doors are always open, he said.
Still, the justice has amply earned the legacy she wished for: I would just like people to think of me as a judge who did the best she could with whatever limited talent I had, Justice Ginsburg said at the University of California Hastings College of Law in 2011, to keep our country true to what makes it a great nation and to make things a little better than they might have been if I hadnt been there. To consider Justice Ginsburgs steadfast belief in social progress through persuasion, and to recall that President Bill Clinton, upon nominating her for the court in 1993, praised her as a force for consensus-building, is to understand another way in which the United States has changed during Justice Ginsburgs lifetime  not for the better. The White Houses current occupant values not persuasion or consensus but force and bombast, and he finds enablers in his fellow Republicans Senate majority.
Gettyimagesbank



For safety reasons, some important information about the author, including her name, was altered.  ED.



By Su-jin



Escaped from North Korea in 2006, arrived in South Korea in 2007 (repatriated from China in 2002 and 2004).



I attempted my first escape from North Korea after I began to learn about the outside world when I was in high school. I had some friends in North Korea who would share movies from South Korea and America. My mind was moved by what I had seen. I couldn't wait to get out of North Korea. I dreamed of escaping, but I was also terrified. It seemed it would be easier to fly to the moon.



The first time I tried to escape, I was captured quickly. The second time, I was in China for a few weeks, but I was captured again when someone informed the Chinese police about me.



Looking back, I am not surprised that I was captured so easily both times. I was young, naive and just ready to escape, hoping for a miracle. By the third attempt, I was much more mature and carefully planned things; I was paranoid rather than hopeful.



My early years in South Korea were fantastic, but then I got married and my life changed for the worst. He had been so nice before we got married  everyone thought he was so fantastic. But after I became his wife, he seemed to think I was his property. Publicly, he would talk about me being the queen of our home, pretending that he was running home to be with me. But at home, he would bully and dominate me. Finally, he beat me up so badly that I couldn't leave the house for weeks.



His beatings didn't break me. He had done everything he could to isolate me and that harsh beating was probably meant to show me what he could really do to me if I continued to disobey him. However, I didn't give up. I wanted to be a good wife, but I hadn't escaped from North Korea to live as an abused wife. When I told him that I wanted to learn English, he tried to block me. He was clearly frustrated that I was so determined. I started studying on my own; then I found TNKR (Teach North Korean Refugees). He can't speak English so I guess that is a reason he saw my desire to learn English as a challenge to his authority.



He finally agreed I could study one-on-one, but only with female tutors and I had to return home after studying. He refused to let me study at a traditional university, so I found a cyber university. He finally relented, as long as I didn't study on the university campus or interact directly with other students. He was so determined not to let me associate and mingle with others. I suspect that he even put a tracking device on my phone because he would know the places I had been.



In North Korea, my life had changed because of foreign movies. In South Korea, everything changed because of studying at TNKR and a cyber university. My self-esteem had been broken, but English and learning as a student gave me something new, gave me confidence in myself, and reminded me that I shouldn't throw away my life as an abused wife.



Finally, I could take on the challenge to leave him even though I knew my life would be difficult as a divorced woman in South Korean society. My tutors had no idea about my situation, but their messages asking me if I wanted to study always delighted me. And of course, the TNKR leaders who knew about my situation would check on me, giving me more confidence that I could succeed and letting me know that I was not alone.



The divorce was difficult. I had to go into hiding for a while, moving from place to place. At last, I am free. I am going through a healing time now.



Coronavirus has made everything more difficult, but thankfully I escaped from my terrible situations  in both North Korea and South Korea  so I can live even through this difficult time, but as a free woman. I am now re-establishing my identity and gaining confidence in myself as a human being. I am free because of movies and English.



Casey Lartigue Jr., co-founder of the Teach North Korean Refugees Global Education Center, was the 2017 winner of the "Social Contribution" Prize from the Hansarang Rural Cultural Foundation and the 2019 winner of the "Challenge Maker" Award from Challenge Korea. TNKR co-founder Eunkoo Lee translated the refugee's remarks from Korean to English.


Confusion has been the buzzword of the week after the Government's living with Covid plan left the public with more questions than answers.

People have been relying on the media to relay and break down the information to make it easier to understand. But the reality is it's becoming increasingly difficult to do that - and here's an insight into why.

Concerned parents have been emailing in, and posting on social media asking for more clarity about the situation in schools.

On Tuesday evening, the Irish Independent put a query to the HSE asking how many positive cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in schools since they reopened. A game of pass the parcel ensued.

I was told to redirect the query to the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) via the Department of Health.

The department said the query would be referred to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) and the response would be issued back to us through the Department of Health. Confused already? Keep up. Any hope of getting a timely response was soon quashed after the spokeswoman said it could take at least a week to get this data.

We're being told by health officials that the positivity rate of Covid in schools is low, which it is, yet when it comes to requesting up to date figures, they seem extremely reluctant to part with this information.

And when they do, it's about as clear as the River Liffey.

On Thursday evening, Dr Colm Henry, clinical director of the HSE, said up to 2,100 schoolchildren and teachers had been tested for Covid-19 and 35 were found to be positive.

This led to confusion (there's that word again) as some thought it meant there had been only 35 cases overall.

At last week's briefing, Dr Henry said there had been 54 cases. The maths didn't add up.

Then a headline on RTE News on Thursday evening read that there has in fact been 131 cases overall.

In seeking clarity about the overall figure later, I was told to contact the HSE, who originally told me to contact Nphet about this same question at the start of the week. The response was as follows: "96 schools have had/ are having some testing completed as a consequence of a public health risk assessment.

"Thirty-five detected cases have been identified over and above original cases, those detected were detected in 10 schools." It would be nearly 24 hours, five emails and six cups of coffee later before it was confirmed that the overall number of Covid cases in schools, as of Friday evening, is 142.

Now, don't get me wrong, I fully appreciate the HSE is under significant pressure, as it rightly points out in its email responses when you complain about a missed deadline.

We're not looking to get this information to identify people, it is simply about transparency and letting people know how the situation is unfolding in our schools. Parents and the public have a right to know.

The transmission rate has been extremely low given the fact nearly one million students across 4,000 schools have returned to the classroom. Yet when officials aren't being forthcoming with this information, it breathes life into the conspiracy theorists.

"Why aren't the media covering this," they'll also cry while waving their tinfoil hats.

Fianna Fail TD Cathal Crowe recently named a primary school in Clare in the Dail that had to shut due to a suspected positive case at the end of August.

"There should be no stigma attached to this, we're all working our way through it," he said.

It's this kind of attitude that should be prevailing.

Instead, parents are taking matters into their own hands in their search for more information.

A Facebook group has been posting an updated spreadsheet every day with confirmed cases.

Parents have been sharing letters and texts received from their kids' schools alerting them about positive cases.

Not to shame anyone or name anyone, but simply to give parents the chance to make informed decisions when it comes to the safety of their children.

This situation is extremely fluid, but if communication continues to break down it can only have serious consequences.

We laughed at the memes and Twitter jibes about the chaos which unfolded this week, but as Dublin heads into lockdown, a school has had to close and cases soar elsewhere, we're certainly not laughing any more.
Mumbai, Sep 19 : Filmmaker Reema Kagti believes anti marital rape laws are need of the hour in Pakistan. Kagti tweeted her opinion on her verified Twitter account on Saturday.

Kagti's tweet came as a reaction to a post by a Karachi-based sociologist on Twitter that said: "I'm convinced that one of the main reasons for rampant sexism in this country is a lack of interaction between the genders; most boys grow up with little or no sense of how to engage with girls. This makes it much easier to treat women as objects rather than humans later in life." Reacting to the tweet, Kagti wrote: "Most boys have mothers don't they? So they do interact with the other gender. Maybe what we need are anti marital rape laws? Perhaps if you grew up seeing your mother has a choice, her consent matters, you might value that for other women too?" Recently, the filmmaker tweeted protesting the incident of demolition of Kangana Ranaut's office by the BMC and also vilification of Sushant Singh Rajput's girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty.

"I condemn the demolition of Kangana's office and I condemn the hounding and harassment of Rhea. Yes I can be against both these things," she tweeted a week ago.

Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery
Dr Vivek Kashyap, medical superintendent of the Jharkhands biggest hospital Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), Ranchi, suffered a cardiac arrest on Saturday, two days after he tested positive for Covid-19.

Dr Kashyap was rushed to the hospitals cardiology department where an angioplasty was performed on him.

A blockage was found in his left artery. Angioplasty and stent placement was done on Saturday morning. He is stable now,  said RIMS public relation officer Dr Nishit Ekka.

He added, The medical superintendent was found infected with SARS-CoV-2 virus, that causes Covid-19, two days ago. The team of doctors, who performed the angioplasty, took all precautions as per Covid-19 protocol.

Since the Covid-19 outbreak, nearly 200 doctors, nurses and paramedics of this lone tertiary hospital of the state have tested positive for the virus.

Also read: Stop selling fake Khadi products - Centre to Flipkart, Amazon, Snapdeal

During the pandemic, the state health department has designated RIMS as the nodal agency for the centre of excellence to support the district for hospital management and treatment protocols.

It is a challenge for the hospital to maintain smooth treatment of Covid-19 patients thronging from across the state, especially when its frontline workers are getting infected.

Its true that a large number of doctors and other frontline workers have been infected by Covid-19. But, we never allowed this to impact the hospitals smooth functioning. In fact, we have done emergency surgeries of many Covid-19 patients including in neuro and gynaecology departments, said Dr Ekka.

RIMS is currently facing a dearth of doctors and paramedics as nearly half of the sanctioned posts are lying vacant. Out of 322, 846 and 183 sanctioned posts of doctors, nurses and paramedics respectively at RIMS, 85, 469 and 75 posts are lying vacant respectively.

The Jharkhand high court had earlier praised the doctors and other staff for working tirelessly to serve patients during the ongoing pandemic. It, however, blamed administrative inaction for the hospitals mismanagement.
Myers, 34, grew up in Freeport, Long Island with her mother, and still lives near there. When she was 8, Myerss mother had told her her fathers name  a common one  but little else about him, and Myers never pursued it further. She married, had three kids, opened a spa and believed she had done what she wanted in life, except for finding out who my father was. But as covid-19 began to rampage through the country and hit her, she was seized with a new urgency to find him.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg fought tirelessly for gender equality throughout a legal and political career spanning six decades.

At an early age, the Supreme Court Justice's mother instilled a strong work ethic in her daughter, encouraging her to strive for independence in a patriarchal society.

"My mother told me two things constantly. One was to be a lady, and the other was to be independent," Ginsburg once said.

In 1993, Ginsburg became the second woman to be appointed an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, swearing the oath of office during Bill Clinton's presidency.

She passed away on 18 September aged 87. Here are 13 of her most inspirational quotes:

13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes Show all 13 1 /13 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On feminism 'Feminism  I think the simplest explanation, and one that captures the idea, is a song that Marlo Thomas sang, 'Free to be You and Me.' Free to be, if you were a girldoctor, lawyer, Indian chief. Anything you want to be. And if youre a boy, and you like teaching, you like nursing, you would like to have a doll, thats OK too. That notion that we should each be free to develop our own talents, whatever they may be, and not be held back by artificial barriers - manmade barriers, certainly not heaven sent.' (Interview with Makers, 2012) Getty Images 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On how she wants to be remembered 'Someone who used whatever talent she had to do her work to the very best of her ability. And to help repair tears in her society, to make things a little better through the use of whatever ability she has. To do something, as my colleague David Souter would say, outside myself. Cause Ive gotten much more satisfaction for the things that Ive done for which I was not paid.' (Interview with MSNBC, 2015) Getty Images 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On the advice she'd give women today 'Fight for the things that you care about. But do it in a way that will lead others to join you.' (Speech at Harvard University's 364th Commencement, 2015) AFP/Getty Images 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On women being included in the conversation 'Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. I don't say [the split] should be 50-50. It could be 60 per cent men, 40 per cent women, or the other way around. It shouldn't be that women are the exception.' (Interview with USA Today, 2009) Getty Images 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On how she copes with criticism 'Well, Im dejected, but only momentarily, when I cant get the fifth vote for something I think is very important. But then you go on to the next challenge and you give it your all. You know that these important issues are not going to go away. They are going to come back again and again. Therell be another time, another day.' (Interview with ABC News Correspondent Lynn Sherr, 2000) Getty Images 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On women's rights 'Women's rights are an essential part of the overall human rights agenda, trained on the equal dignity and ability to live in freedom all people should enjoy.' (ACLU) Getty Images 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On rejection 'You think about what would have happened ... Suppose I had gotten a job as a permanent associate. Probably I would have climbed up the ladder and today I would be a retired partner. So often in life, things that you regard as an impediment turn out to be great good fortune.' (Interview with Makers, 2012) AFP/Getty 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On the biggest issue women face 'In some ways its the most familiar issue and the largest one. Its, Who will take the responsibility for bringing up the next generation? That, I think, is the hardest problem. There can be incentives and encouragement, but women will have achieved true equality when men share with them the responsibility of bringing up the next generation.' (Interview with ABC News Correspondent Lynn Sherr, 2000) AFP/Getty Images 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On sexist, unconscious bias 'I think unconscious bias is one of the hardest things to get at. My favorite example is the symphony orchestra. When I was growing up, there were no women in orchestras. Auditioners thought they could tell the difference between a woman playing and a man. Some intelligent person devised a simple solution: Drop a curtain between the auditioners and the people trying out. And, lo and behold, women began to get jobs in symphony orchestras.' (Interview with Elle magazine, 2014) Getty Images 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On having a supportive partner 'If you have a caring life partner, you help the other person when that person needs it. I had a life partner who thought my work was as important as his, and I think that made all the difference for me.' (Interview with Yahoo, 2014) Getty Images 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On how many women should be on the Supreme Court 'People ask me sometimes, when  when do you think it will it be enough? When will there be enough women on the court? And my answer is when there are nine.' (Talk at Georgetown University, Washington, 2015) (There are nine judges on the US Supreme Court) AFP/Getty Images 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On the impact of discrimination 'We should not be held back from pursuing our full talents, from contributing what we could contribute to the society, because we fit into a certain mold  because we belong to a group that historically has been the object of discrimination.' (Interview with ABC News Correspondent Lynn Sherr, 2000) Getty Images 13 of Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most inspirational quotes On her most treasured talent 'If I had any talent in the world, any talent that God could give me, I would be a great diva.' (Talk at Georgetown University, Washington, 2015) AFP/Getty Images

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A biopic documenting the early stages of Ginsburg's career, titled On the Basis of Sex, was released in 2018.

Starring Felicity Jones as Ginsburg and Armie Hammer as her husband, the late Martin David Ginsburg, the film depicts the then-attorney taking on a tax case that altered the way courts in the US consider gender discrimination.

A documentary about Ginsburg's life and career, called RBG, was premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival.

The film went on to win Best Political Documentary at the Critics' Choice Documentary Awards, in addition to receiving several other award wins and nominations.
Representative image

At least 12 people are believed to have been shot in Rochester, New York state, according to a report by local BNO News. The mass shooting incident began at 12.30 am local time and was being responded to by emergency services.

The news reported cited local officials and witnesses as saying that there were multiple fatalities. Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.

The police confirmed in a tweet that "Major Crimes (unit) is on the scene of a mass shooting on Pennsylvania Ave", adding that there were fatalities.

Police were called to a shooting scene near Goodman Street and Pennsylvania Avenue in a residential area in the northeast of the city, the report adds.

There was no official statement on the status of the shooter or shooters. WHAM, a local news outlet, reported that several streets had been blocked off.

(This story would be updated when more details are available)


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U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has announced that the United States will be giving $348 million aid to Venezuelan refugees.

During his visit to Brazil on Friday, Pompeo said the aid includes $30 million for the 250,000 Venezuelan refugees who are now in Brazil.

Pompeo's trip to Brazil included a visit to a Venezuelan refugee processing center with Brazilian Foreign Minister Ernesto Araujo. Pompeo called for democracy and urged Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to step down.

Before the border was closed due to the COVID-19, about 600 refugees from Venezuela arrives daily in Brazil.

According to a VOA News report, Pompeo, who joined Araujo in a press conference, said that what Venezuelan refugees want is the same as what all the other human beings want.

He said they want dignity, and they want a sovereign Venezuela. A Venezuela that is peaceful and democratic, a home where they and their children can get jobs and live with that dignity.

Pompeo noted that the U.S. and Brazil support what they want. The state secretary added that no one can exactly tell when Maduro will step down but that the day will eventually come.

Araujo said that Brazil is coordinating with the U.S. to be able to give the Venezuelan refugees better lives.

Brazil is Pompeo's third stop in his Latin American Tour to show the U.S. support for South American nations democracies, promote regional security and highlight their response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Many Latin American countries have high COVID-19 positive cases, with Brazil at third next to the U.S. and India.

Aside from Brazil, Pompeo's tour included visits to Paramaribo, Suriname; Georgetown, Guyana; Boa Vista, Brazil; and Bogota, Colombia, according to the Wall Street Journal. Mike Pompeo's last stop will be in Plano, Texas.

Pompeo is making history as the first U.S. secretary of state to visit Suriname and Guyana and highlighted the oil boom in these countries, as stated in a France 24 news.

Council of Americas Vice President Eric Farnsworth said that getting a U.S. secretary of state to travel anywhere in Latin America and the Caribbean is extraordinary and shows that something big is about to happen.

Farnsworth used to work at the state department. And Pompeo's visit also coincides with Guyana reviewing its arrangement with ExxonMobil.

In 2015, ExxonMobil revealed that they found one of the world's largest oil reserves in Guyana. At that time, the American multinational oil and gas corporation worked with Suriname, where they also found a large oil reserve.

With the discovery, Guyana has been forecasted to have an 85 percent growth this year, the highest in any country worldwide.

However, an official of the U.S. State Department said Mike Pompeo is not visiting Guyana to bolster ExxonMobil's lobby but rather encourage Guyana and Suriname to be responsible for their financial windfall.

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Virgin Coconut Oil: Not Only Makes You Healthy on the Inside but Also on the Outside
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As part of the Friday announcement, U.S. officials said WeChat, owned by the Shenzhen technology giant Tencent, and TikTok, which was discussing a partnership deal with Oracle, would be removed from the Apple and Android U.S. app stores at midnight Monday. Money transfers on WeChat, which is widely used for cross-border transactions with businesses in China, could also be cut off, but the ban is not expected to cover ordinary people using the app for communication.
Critical workers to be celebrated in new category in the 2021 St David Awards

This article is old - Published: Saturday, Sep 19th, 2020

The First Minister is calling on the people of Wales to help find the countrys most extraordinary people, by nominating them for a St David Awards.

Now in their eighth year, the national St David Awards celebrate Wales true heroes.

In this unusual and challenging year, a new award recognising critical workers will be introduced to reflect the work of so many people during the coronavirus pandemic.

The judging panel will also consider the nominations for people who have made an outstanding contribution during the pandemic  whether thats a kind and selfless acts to support an individual or community or a businesses, which has helped the national effort  in all the categories.

The award categories are: Critical Worker, Bravery, Community Spirit, Culture and Sport, Business, Innovation, Science and Technology, Humanitarian and the First Ministers Special Award.

First Minister Mark Drakeford said: We could not have responded to the pandemic without the dedication and hard work of our critical workers throughout Wales.

To recognise this, I have added a new category to the list of the St David Awards.

Im calling on everyone to help find our everyday heroes  whether family member, friend, colleague or neighbour  and make a nomination for an award.

With your help we can celebrate the pillars of our community who inspire and lead positive change, our sporting mavericks and scientists who push the boundaries of what we think can be achieved, our innovators and culture makers who help us understand our world in new ways, and the super-humans who remind us that heroes dont need capes.

Nominations are now open and can be made via the St David Awards website until 15 October.
Managua (Nicaragua) September 19, 2020 (SPS) - The new ambassador of the Sahrawi Republic to Nicaragua, Mr. Wali Amer Ali-Salem, presented Friday his credentials to Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Nicaragua, Mr. Denis Moncada, at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.



On this occasion, the head of the Nicaraguan diplomacy affirmed that Nicaragua and the Sahrawi Republic have very strong fraternal historical ties, stressing the right of the Sahrawi people for self-determination and independence.



For his part, the Sahrawi ambassador commended the accompaniment of Nicaragua to the struggle of the Sahrawi people, expressing the appreciation and gratitude of the Sahrawi government and people.



The Sahrawi Republic and Nicaragua have strong diplomatic relations, usually reflected in positions on issues of common concern. (SPS)



062/SPS/T
New Delhi: Hindu Sena activists pay homage to Delhi police inspector Mohan Chand Sharma, on the occasion of the 11th anniversary of the Batla House encounter, in New Delhi on Sep . On September 19, 2008, the Delhi Police's Special Cell had carried ou Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi: Hindu Sena activists pay homage to Delhi police inspector Mohan Chand Sharma, on the occasion of the 11th anniversary of the Batla House encounter, in New Delhi on Sep . On September 19, 2008, the Delhi Police's Special Cell had carried ou Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi, Sep 19 : Twelve years have passed since the Batla House encounter in which Special Cell of Delhi Police claimed to have neutralised a key terror module of the Indian Mujahideen responsible for blasts in the national capital and other parts of the country.

The Jamia Nagar flat where the terrorist lived wears a haunted look and no one has since occupied the flat, where a few of the IM men were gunned down.

Residents of L-18 do not want to speak about that day or that encounter even twelve years after. Nobody wants to recall the incident.

Roads leading up to the lane shows no sign of any recollection of the day as its business as usual. People carry on with their routine work. They look at people suspiciously if they bring up the 2008 encounter. Even shopkeepers whisper about the incident but do not want to be named.

A middle aged woman living near the Batla House said: "It was Ramzan when the incident took place everyone was inside their homes but when the crowd started swelling people got to know about the incident, since that day there has been no activity and the area continues to be calm." Parvez Alam Khan, a former video journalist now working with the Delhi Congress Media Cell says, "Residents of the area still don't know what had transpired that day as judicial inquiry was not done, even Arvind Kejriwal had said that they will press for the inquiry but it never happened." Recalling the incident he said that he was waiting to shoot an interview with then Chief Minister of Gujarat at Chanakyapuri when he got a call from office to rush to Batla House as firing was reported -- it was around 10 a.m.

"When we reached the spot along with a reporter who is now editor in a channel there was crowd and lot of police presence in the area, and already at that time Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma had been shot and was in the Holy Family hospital.

The Special Cell which conducted the anti-terror operation was headed by then Joint Commissioner of Police Karnail Singh, who has written a book on the incident "Batla House: An Encounter That Shook The Nation." He says in the book about the detailed encounter and answers some frequently asked questions in the book. The former IPS officer narrates that the Special Cell team had managed to gather information and zeroed in on Atif Ameen by September 18, 2008.

The phone number used by slain terrorist Mohammad Atif Ameen was key to solving the conspiracy of blasts in Jaipur on May 13, and Ahmedabad on July 26, and the serial blasts on September 13, in Delhi's Karol Bagh, Connaught Place and Greater Kailash in 2008.

In the book he tells that the police never expected to be fired at by the occupants inside the flat. The officers were in plain clothes and not wearing bullet proof vests as the initial plan was to nab them alive.

He also tells in the book about his meeting with then Union Minister Kapil Sibal at the LG office to brief him about the encounter and he was convinced about the police version and later then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh patted him and said that the police has done a good job, and when he was introduced by LG to the Prime Minister in an official function he was commended again.

When the police faced flak from political parties and pressure from the government and they were called by the home secretary for judicial enquiry, then Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium argued against it.

Karnail Singh a former IPS officer said that they also met Mushirul Hasan then Jamia VC who had announced legal aid for the IM suspects but when shown evidences he was taken aback.

Singh in the book praised Jamia Community radios effort to calm down the charged atmosphere in the area.

The encounter at Batla House took place on September 19, 2008, a week after serial blasts in Delhi.

Two alleged Indian Mujahideen terrorists, Atif Ameen and his accomplice, were killed while two others, Mohammad Saif and Zeeshan, were arrested and Mohammad Sajid managed to escape.

Encounter specialist and Delhi Police Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma was killed during the incident.

Residents in the area though still can't find a way to tie the loose ends. They still have suspicion even after years of that encounter about its genuineness. They still can't accept the police theory.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
National Conference provincial president Devender Singh Rana on Saturday sought declaration of medical emergency in Jammu in view of the ever-rising cases of Covid-19 and inadequate infrastructural facilities to tackle the crisis-like situation.

The overall scenario is quite grim and there is no room for complacency. It can prove catastrophic unless an emergent and proactive response is taken to save precious lives, Rana said in a statement.

Rana referred to reports where patients either not find beds for treatment or were in need of oxygen and ventilators. He said the government should have anticipated such a situation and taken necessary measures to ramp-up bed strength by earmarking the maximum number of available beds in each hospital. Private hospitals and nursing homes should have been roped in, besides setting up a hospital with at least a thousand beds, Rana said giving the example of such a facility created by the Punjab government.

Also read: L-G announces Rs 1,350 cr economic package for Jammu and Kashmir

While lauding the frontline warriors for risking their lives by putting in best efforts to treat Covid-19 cases, he slammed the poor infrastructural backup in Jammu. Rana again drew the attention of the administration towards the paucity of beds, questioning how will just 608 beds of the total capacity of 2,637 beds in Government Medical College and associated hospitals in the Jammu city meet the requirements of Covid-19 patients.

The situation is even worse in semi-urban, urban and rural areas, he pointed out, adding that availability of oxygen is very poor and dysfunctional ventilators are adding more top the worry, he added.

Rana called for the immediate installation of liquid oxygen plant, oxygen generation plant and other plants in various hospitals besides similar facilities at various district-level hospitals to cater to the needs of peripheral health institutions.

Rana reiterated the need to deploy senior officers for monitoring the situation which seems to be going out of control. This is to be taken note of to instil confidence among the people who are becoming restive on seeing the pitiable situation of health facilities, he added.
Education is a hot topic this Legislative session. Here's what bills we're watching.

Here are some of the hot-button education bills were tracking at the Argus Leader. Check back each day to see where they stand as we update.
MOSINEE, Wis. (AP)  President Donald Trump stepped up his rhetoric on cultural issues, aiming to boost enthusiasm among rural Wisconsin voters as he tries to repeat his path to victory four years ago.

Making his fifth visit to the pivotal battleground state this year, Trump views success in the states less-populated counties as critical to another term. He held a rally Thursday evening in Mosinee, in central Wisconsin, an area of the state that shifted dramatically toward Republicans in 2016, enabling Trump to overcome even greater deficits in urban and suburban parts of the state.

Trump has increasingly used his public appearances to elevate cultural issues important to his generally whiter and older base, as he hinges his campaign on turning out his core supporters rather than focusing on winning over a narrow slice of undecided voters. In Mosinee, he called for a statute to ban burning the American flag in protest  a freedom protected by the Supreme Court  and criticized sports players and leagues for allowing demonstrations against racial inequality.

We have enough politics, right," he said, joking that sometimes, I cant watch me. He added of protests in sports, People dont want to see it and the ratings are down.

Earlier Thursday, in a speech at the National Archives to commemorate Constitution Day, he derided The New York Times 1619 Project, which aimed to recognize the often overlooked consequences of slavery and the contributions of Black Americans.

For many years now, the radicals have mistaken Americans silence for weakness. But they are wrong, Trump said. There is no more powerful force than a parents love for their children  and patriotic moms and dads are going to demand that their children are no longer fed hateful lies about this country.

Trump told supporters in Wisconsin: Were launching a new pro-American lesson plan for students called 1776 Commission. Were going to teach our children the truth about America.

Story continues

Trump's last visit to Wisconsin came on Sept. 1, when he met with law enforcement and toured damage from protests in Kenosha that turned violent after the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man hit seven times in the back during an attempted arrest. Trump has sought to use the unrest after the August shooting of Blake and the May police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis to tout a law and order" message and paint an apocalyptic vision of violence if Democrat Joe Biden wins on Nov. 3.

I saved the suburbs," Trump said Thursday of his call for federal law enforcement and national guard troops to confront protesters. He added that police "did a great job in Kenosha."

Trump also previewed aid to the region's farmers, saying $13 billion would begin flowing starting next week to help farmers. He provided no details.

Trump took another victory lap two days after he presided over Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates recognizing Israel in a White House ceremony.

I got nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize. Thats a big deal," Trump said, adding, I should've gotten nominated seven times. His supporters chanted Nobel Peace Prize in response.

Trump won Marathon County, which includes Mosinee, by more than 12,000 votes in 2016  over three times more than the margin by which 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney won the area. Trumps team is wagering the 2020 contest on a similar performance in the county and the dozens of others like it across battleground states.

Trump's path to 270 Electoral College votes may well hinge on Wisconsin, and his campaign is investing tens of millions of dollars on advertising and get-out-the-vote efforts in the state.

Trump's event took place largely outside an aircraft hangar at the Mosinee airport, his campaign's preferred format for mass rallies during the coronavirus pandemic, though Trump has been willing to host large events indoors as well, sometimes in violation of state and federal distancing guidelines.

Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin was set to join Trump on Air Force One but ended up under quarantine Thursday after learning he was exposed to someone earlier in the week who subsequently tested positive for the virus. Johnson tested negative on Wednesday night, his office said.

___

Associated Press writers Darlene Superville and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report from Washington.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 15:19:48|Editor: huaxia

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People gather in front of the U.S. Supreme Court mourning the passing of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in Washington, D.C., the United States, Sept. 18, 2020. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died, the Supreme Court said Friday. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua)

WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- The death of 87-year-old liberal Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday, 46 days away from the Nov. 3 U.S. presidential election, has sparked a partisan debate over how soon a replacement should be filled.

Ginsburg died of complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer at her home in Washington, D.C., the Supreme Court said in a press release.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said it is the new president elected by voters later this year who should nominate a replacement for Ginsburg.

"Let me be clear, that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider," Biden said.

The former vice president mentioned the effort by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and then Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, both Republicans, to block Merrick Garland, whom was then President Barrack Obama's nominee to replace late Justice Antonin Scalia, from getting a Senate hearing before the 2016 election. Scalia died in mid-February 2016.

"This was the position the Republican Senate took in 2016 when there were almost 10 months to go before the election," Biden said. "That's the position the U.S. Senate must take today. The (2020) election is only 46 days off. I think the fastest Justice ever confirmed was 47 days and the average is closer to 70 days ... that is my hope and expectation of what should happen."

Trump did not mention the selection of a nominee in his statement regarding the passing away of Ginsburg. He said Ginsburg, the second female Supreme Court justice in U.S. history, was "renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissent at the Supreme Court," adding that "her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds."

Axios news website cited a top Republican as saying that Trump will move within days to nominate a new Supreme Court justice. He unveiled a list of 20 candidates on Sept. 9, among them Republican senators Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Ted Cruz of Texas.

Cruz said Friday evening that Trump should nominate a new justice "next week."

"We have a responsibility to do our job," Cruz told Fox News's Sean Hannity. "We cannot let Election Day come and go and with a 4-4 court ... we risk a constitutional crisis. I believe that the president next week should nominate a successor to the court ... and I think that it is critical that the Senate takes up and confirms that successor."

Cruz said there would be "enormous pressure from the media" as Democrats try to delay filling the vacancy.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, said shortly after the announcement of Ginsburg's death that the Senate should wait until the next president assumes office to fill the seat vacated by the late justice.

"The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president," Schumer said in a tweet.

Schumer's words echoed what Ginsberg said before she died. "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed," she said in a statement dictated to her granddaughter, Clara Spera, according to a report by National Public Radio on Friday.

Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic senator from Massachusetts, noted Ginsburg's final wish in her tweet, saying, "With voting already underway for the 2020 elections, Ruthie's 'most fervent wish' was for her replacement not to be named 'until a new president is installed.' We must honor her wish."

While offering his condolences over Ginsburg's passing by highlighting "her extraordinary American life," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell vowed that Trump's nominee to replace Ginsburg "will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."

"In the last midterm election before Justice Scalia's death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck president's second term. We kept our promise," McConnell said.

"Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party president's Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year," McConnell said.

"By contrast, Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise," the Kentucky Republican said.

McConnell's decision will set up a fierce election-year battle in the Senate just 46 days away from Election Day. Although Republicans in the Senate, where they hold the majority, changed the rules so that the confirmation of a Supreme Court justice now needs 51 votes rather than a supermajority, there are some vulnerable GOP members facing tough re-election fights who might not unite with the caucus.

Those Senate Republicans, such as Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Cory Gardner of Colorado and Joni Ernst of Iowa, did not say anything about whether there should be a confirmation vote and only eulogized Ginsburg in their reactions to her death.

The New York Times' reporter Jonathan Martin tweeted Friday that Republican senator Susan Collins of Maine said "earlier this month" that she would not seat a Supreme Court justice in October, adding that she also opposed confirming a nominee in the lame-duck period if there is a change in presidents in the upcoming election.

Ed Markey, Democratic senator from Massachusetts, slammed McConnell for his decision to quickly call a confirmation vote. "Mitch McConnell set the precedent. No Supreme Court vacancies filled in an election year. If he violates it, when Democrats control the Senate in the next Congress, we must abolish the filibuster and expand the Supreme Court," he tweeted.

Markey and other progressives have called for ending the 60-vote legislative filibuster when and if Democrats win back the majority in the Senate, arguing that it has led to constant stalemates on important agendas, such as ethics and election reform, immigration, healthcare and climate change legislation. Enditem
A cave sealed for 5 million years, containing creatures that are not like the usual found in other above-ground habitats was discovered. What the cave and its denizen prove is that there might be more exotic environments undiscovered on earth.

According to Dr. Christian Lascu, who unsealed the Movile cave found in Romania. Where they found 33 exotic creatures that defied explanation, he estimated the cave at 5 million years ago (MYA). These creatures were trapped and adapted to their unique living conditions, reported The Earth Site.

One of the starkest characteristics is there is no oxygen for the creatures to survive. But they amazingly evolved to live in a toxic and humid atmosphere. The evolution they developed is so unusual it redefines how oxygen is thought to be needed. Inside the Movile cave, oxygen is not needed to live, even mechanisms of how life is evolved are defied.

Scientist identify 33 new species inside the cave

So far, there have been 48 species identified that are living in this prehistoric environment. These are scorpions, spiders, centipedes, and other species too. Mind-blowing is finding 33 specific animals living in this specific cave not seen in any other habitat. Most of these species have existed longer than homo-sapiens and their forbears kept in a cave till now.

Kinds of creatures found so far

Most of them are completely blind, with no eyes because it is not needed in Movile cave, even pigment because of perpetual darkness. They developed other means to go about with no eyes. One example is any body protrusion or extension to sense where they are in utter darkness for millions of years.

Also read: Mountain Lion Viciously Attacks 6-Year Old Girl in Park, Saved by Man With Hard Punch in Ribs

How these creatures look is the stuff eccentric evolution, which took root when all the cave denizens gave up eyes. Another is how light becomes a non-factor in an alien-like environment, which is the Movile cave.

This environment is 5 million years old

It is essentially an archaic ecosystem that contains the elements of the atmosphere when it got sealed off. No human can breathe in the toxic gas, but the creatures in it can and they live. The organisms inside are the only ones who can breathe in the toxic atmosphere. Another is the bacteria that eats using chemosynthesis.

The process of Chemosynthesis is just like how plants make food, instead of toxic gas is converted for nourishment. This translates to creating potential food sources for other organisms larger than them.

A food chain that supports other animals that allows life to thrive and evolve until the cave was opened. This is similar to most habitats, but it has toxic gas as its base, unlike other above-ground environments.

Movile may be the oddball ecosystem on land, down in the depths there is a similar phenomenon near hydrothermal vents, which is the same. The cave system will give insight into alternative evolution that will add more knowledge.

Speculations on how bacteria and creatures got trapped

Most of the theories of how the cave trapped the creatures and bacteria are unclear. According to scientists, it was the bacteria that got there first. Creatures may have gotten trapped by accident and survived on instinct, said J. Colin Murrell, a microbiologist from the University of East Anglia.

The Movile cave sealed off about 5 million years ago has more secrets, and it will benefit science.

Related article: Oddities of Nature: Ice Volcanoes Erupting on Lake Michigan

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
New Delhi: The Delhi police on Saturday (September 19) arrested two more people in connection with sharing sensitive information to the Chinese intelligence agency. The accused includes a Chinese women and her Nepali associate.

The arrest was made after the Delhi Police Special Cell interrogated a freelance journalist, Rajeev Sharma who is accused of sharing secret defence papers with Chinese spy agencies. News agency ANI shared the photos of alleged Chinese spies.



Freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma (pic 1) arrested under Official Secrets Act for passing sensitive information to Chinese intelligence. A Chinese woman & her Nepalese associate also arrested for paying him large amounts of money routed through shell companies: Delhi Police pic.twitter.com/8cDHbwcFtB  ANI (@ANI) September 19, 2020

Rajeev Sharmaa a resident of New Delhi's Pitampura was arrested by Special Cell in an Official Secrets Act case.

Live TV

According to police, the Chinese woman and her Nepalese associate were paying Rajeev Sharma large amounts of money routed through shell companies.

The Delhi Police will share more information on the arrest of these individuals via press conference on Saturday.
By Online Desk

Actor Payal Ghosh has accused Bollywood director Anurag Kashyap of sexual assault and has pleaded Prime Minister Modi to take action against the "creative guy".

Ghosh took to Twitter to share that the 'Gangs of Wasseypur' actor "forced himself" on her "extremely badly".

The actor, referring to Kashyap, added that she wanted the country to see "the demon behind this creative guy."

The chairperson of the National Commission for Women, India took notice of the tweet and asked Ghosh to send a "detailed complaint" and assured the actor that the commission would "look into it."

You may send me the detailed complaint at chairperson-ncw@nic.in and @NCWIndia will look into it. @iampayalghosh https://t.co/KZzPwkmuwZ  Rekha Sharma (@sharmarekha) September 19, 2020

Just a day ago, the actor had shared that the "domestic violence cases during the lockdown" had witnessed a sharp rise and appealed her social media fans to "come together to express support, create awareness, and help abuse victims."
Anyone who thinks the abuse of women isnt baked into our culture need only sit back and listen closely to a few of our greatest hits.

Take the jaunty Working my Way Back to You Babe, by the Spinners (yes, after the Four Seasons). The lyrics reveal a classic case of a lying, cheating emotional abuser trying to claw his way back into his partners affections: I used to love to make you cry. It made me feel like a man inside.

Illustration: Simon Letch Credit:

Then theres Pink Floyds Dont Leave Me Now: I need you, babe, to put through the shredder in front of my friends ... To beat to a pulp on Saturday night.

And what about the menacing song written by John Lennon  whose record of beating his wife Cynthia seems to have been virtually erased from history. In Run for Your Life a jealous man threatens a woman: Id rather see you dead, little girl / than to be with another man.
Parliaments monsoon session may end as early as on September 23, eight days ahead of its schedule, after many political parties agreed to cut it short amid a rising number of Covid-19 cases linked to the Parliament House complex.

So far, two Union ministers, 30 MPs and several House officials have tested positive for Covid, posing a serious challenge on the ongoing session schedule despite the health safety makeovers. Both ministers attended some days of the session that started Monday.

At Saturdays meeting of the Business Advisory Committee (BAC), a panel that decides the weekly agenda of the House, the governments floor managers said they had no objections to cut short the session but wanted 20 laws  including the ratification of 11 ordinances  to be cleared. It had previously shortlisted 14 bills for the week amid talks of shortening the session at the BAC meeting, and furnished a list of another 6 bills.

So far, 11 out of 20 bills have been cleared by the Lok Sabha and 5 have been approved by both Houses. Now, amidst the push to cut short the session, more bills might be cleared without long debates, two Opposition leaders said.

Click here for complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

As India faced the first wave of Covid-19 cases, the budget session of Parliament was cut short on March 23. Two days later, a sweeping federal lockdown that eventually lasted 68 days kicked in. As Covid cases kept increasing, particularly in Delhi, the monsoon session was deferred by two months from its usual mid-July start. It finally started from September 14; the Indian Constitution makes it mandatory to start a session within six months of the previous one.

At Saturdays meeting, parliamentary affairs minister Prahlad Joshi listed the three labour codes  on social security, industrial relations and occupation safety  FCRA amendments, J&K official languages bill and The National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Bill for passage.

Congress chief whip K Suresh argued that its not feasible that only government agenda would be cleared and issues raised by the opposition parties not find any mention. The Congress insisted in the meeting that the environment impact assessment draft that has become controversial, the new national education policy, and issues related to the economy and delays in GST compensation payments to the states be discussed.

A non-Congress Opposition leader said that both sides may come to an adjustment to take up one or two Opposition-sponsored debates. And a few bills may be quickly passed to save time, this person added. While all 20 legislations might not get cleared, all bills replacing ordinances and the labour reform bills are likely to be cleared.

Also read: Stricter punishments for attacking medics workers during an epidemic

Only two parties, Trinamool Congress and Bahujan Samaj Party have not agreed to the curtailment plan so far. Trinamools floor leader Derek OBrien tweeted, First, this Govt calls an 18-day Parliament Session. After 6 days have they realised its a hare-brained idea? Now want Opposition to find them a solution.

The monsoon session set an ambitious 18-day schedule with no weekend breaks. Aiming to keep MPs in Delhi for as less time as possible, it was decided to hold the two Houses in shifts, with lawmakers spread across both chambers and galleries to ensure social distancing, and with added protection such as plexiglass partitions in the lower house and a complete ban on visitors. All MPs were also required to take a RT-PCR test ahead of the session. With two ministers and some officials testing positive, they have been recommended to take these tests as many times as they want. Other officials and journalists attending Parliament have to take a rapid antigen test everyday.

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The Federal Government has included Emirates Airlines in the list of airlines not allowed to operate in Nigeria.

This is part of measures to curb the spread of Covid-19 in the country.

The Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, confirmed this via his Twitter handle on Friday.

According to Sirika, the decision was taken following a meeting between the Presidential Task Force (PTF) and European Unions (EU).

The ban would take effect from Monday, September 21, 2020.

The PTF sub-committee met today with EU Ambassadors to discuss Lufthansa, Air France/KLM ban.

The meeting progressed well. Emirates Airliness situation was reviewed and they are consequently included in the list of those not approved, with effect from Monday the 21st September 2020, Sirika tweeted.

Follow Us on Facebook  @LadunLiadi; Instagram  @LadunLiadi; Twitter  @LadunLiadi; Youtube  @LadunLiadiTV for updates
Hours after the announcement that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died Friday evening, Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell declared that if President Trump made a nomination, as he is expected to, McConnell would bring it up in the Senate, where Republicans have a 53-47 majority.

Who that nominee might be is anyones guess, and McConnell did not say whether Trumps pick would be considered before the November election, which might make the president a lame duck. But Trump has released two lists of people he would consider for the next vacancy. The first list, which included future Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, was made public before the 2016 election. A supplemental list of names was released just this month.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the University of California at Berkeley last year. (Jeff Chiu/AP)

PHOTOS: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg  A look back >>>

Ginsburg, the second woman to sit on the court, was a stalwart liberal and hero to many on the left, and in recent years she became an unlikely pop culture icon. With just weeks to go until the election, Trump will be under some pressure to nominate a woman to replace Ginsburg, although his lists also include several prominent male senators, including his former GOP primary rival Ted Cruz, a Texas senator.

Here are some possible candidates to replace Ginsburg on the Supreme Court:

Amy Coney Barrett

A judge on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals since 2017, Barrett is well known and widely admired by conservatives. Frequently mentioned as a possible contender for the high court, Barrett is a law professor at Notre Dame, her alma mater.

Barrett is a devout Catholic, and particularly popular among religious conservatives. Her religious beliefs led to a memorable confrontation during her 2017 confirmation hearings with California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who told Barrett the dogma lives loudly within you, and that is a concern. But what gave Feinstein pause is the same thing many conservatives like about Barrett: That she is sincere and serious about her beliefs, and unlikely to shy away from them should she make it to the Supreme Court.

Story continues

Born in 1972, Barrett would become the youngest member of the court and could potentially rule on cases for decades  another selling point in the eyes of conservatives.

Ted Cruz

Sen. Ted Cruz is on the list of potential Supreme Court nominees released by President Trump on Sept. 9. A Harvard Law graduate, Cruz rode the tea party wave to the U.S. Senate in 2013 and sought the Republican presidential nomination in 2016. Before he became a lawmaker, he served as Texas solicitor general from 2003 to 2008, during which he argued eight cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Cruz, though, said this week that he has no interest in joining the bench. When asked by Fox News Maria Bartiromo if he wants the job, Cruz said that serving on the bench is not the desire of my heart.

I want to be in the political fight, he said. I want to be fighting to nominate and confirm three, four, five principled constitutionalist justices, but thats not where I want to serve. I want to stay fighting right where I am in the U.S. Senate.

Neomi Rao

Neomi Rao has served in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit since March 2019, in a seat previously held by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. She is a graduate of Yale College and the University of Chicago Law School and has served as White House counsel to President George W. Bush, and is considered a favorite of the Federalist Society, the conservative judicial organization that has been influential in Trumps judicial picks.

Raos nomination to the Court of Appeals sparked controversy last year when her college opinion pieces surfaced in a BuzzFeed News report. BuzzFeed reported that Rao described affirmative action as the anointed dragon of liberal excess and, regarding date rape, said that if a woman drinks to the point where she can no longer choose, well, getting to that point was part of her choice.

The writings prompted a heated line of questioning from Sen. Kamala Harris in February 2019. At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Harris grilled Rao about her comments. Rao said avoiding excessive drinking is just a way to make it less likely. It is not to blame the victim.

Joan Larsen

Joan Larsen has served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit since November 2017. Previously she was a justice on the Michigan Supreme Court, to which she was appointed by then-Gov. Rick Snyder in 2015.

The Waterloo, Iowa, native graduated from the University of Northern Iowa and the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. In the 1990s, she clerked for the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and spent several years teaching at the University of Michigan School of Law.

Like other Trump picks, Larsens appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals was met with opposition. In September 2017, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights published an open letter opposing her confirmation. The letter took issue with some of Larsens past opinions on cases involving LGBT plaintiffs. It also suggested she has suspect views on executive power, and would possibly be a rubber stamp for President Trumps executive actions.

Thomas Hardiman

A judge on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, Hardiman was shortlisted for the Supreme Court nomination that went to Neil Gorsuch in 2017. He was reportedly brought to Trumps attention by his sister, Judge Maryanne Trump Barry, who worked alongside Hardiman on the Third Circuit.

Hardiman, an appointee of President George W. Bush, was the first member of his family to go to college and worked as a taxi driver to pay for law school. He is viewed as a relative moderate among the leading candidates, which might help his chances of confirmation in a closely divided Senate.

Josh Hawley

Elected to the Senate in 2018, Missouri Republican Josh Hawley quickly made a name for himself as a conservative firebrand and Trump ally. A former Missouri attorney general, his name appeared on Trumps second list of potential Supreme Court picks.

Hawley is also one of the most outspoken Republican critics of big tech companies, and at age 40 is one of the youngest members of the Senate. He is a graduate of Stanford University and Yale Law School and a member of the Federalist Society.

But Hawley is also a rising star in the Senate and is thought to have his eyes on the presidency. Like the other senators on Trumps list, he is a long shot, in part because McConnell may need every Republican vote to confirm a pick  including Hawleys.

Tom Cotton

Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, who is running for reelection this year, is another young conservative stalwart who made Trumps list of possible nominees. An Army veteran who served in the infantry in Iraq and Afghanistan, hes also a graduate of Harvard and Harvard Law. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 2012 and the Senate two years later.

Cotton is a frequent guest on cable news shows and has earned a reputation as a strong Trump backer. Like Cruz and Hawley, however, Cotton is thought to have his own White House aspirations, and even did a swing through New Hampshire over the summer.

Additional contributions by Will Rahn

Cover thumbnail photo: Jeff Chiu/AP

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First lady Melania Trump speaks during an event in at the White House in Washington on Sept. 3, 2020. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Melania Trump Says Ginsburgs Spirit Will Live On in All She Has Inspired

First Lady Melania Trump has offered her prayers for the family of late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, saying that the spirit of the jurist, who earned the name of Notorious RGB, will live on in people she had inspired.

Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburgs passing is a[n] immense loss, Trump wrote in a statement on Saturday. Her tenacity & strength were matched by her intellect & compassion, & her spirit will live on in all she has inspired. My prayers are with her family & all who loved her.

Ginsburg passed away on Friday night surrounded by her family in her home in Washington. She died of complications from cancer at 87 years old. She had served 27 years on the court.

Hundreds of people gathered in front of the Supreme Court to mourn her death and honor her life, leaving flowers, small U.S. flags, prayer candles, and handwritten messages on the courts steps. She has been described as a trailblazer and an inspiration for women, and has been recognized for her legal prowess.

President Donald Trump had issued a proclamation in the early hours of Saturday directing that all flags at the White House and public buildings and grounds, and military facilities, be flown at half-staff until Ginsburg is interred. Trump also directed that the flags be flown at half-staff at all U.S. embassies and other facilities abroad.

In a written statement, the president said that our nation mourns the loss of a titan of the law.

Renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable toward ones colleagues or different points of view, he said. Her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in Long Beach, Calif., on Oct. 26, 2010. (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters/File Photo)

Trumps family members have also offered their condolences.

Justice Ginsburg was a remarkable woman with an astonishing work ethic. She was a warrior with true conviction and she has my absolute respect! Eric Trump wrote in a statement on Twitter.

RIP Justice Ginsburg. Agree with her or not, she was a true trailblazer and fighter until the end, Donald Trump Jr. also wrote.

Meanwhile, Tiffany Trump, who graduated from Georgetown Law School, expressed her appreciation for Ginsburg, saying Thank you, Justice Ginsburg for being a trailblazer for women in the legal field, a pioneer for women and gender equality, and for showing that patriotism hinges not on agreement, but on the unwavering commitment to persevere, to listen, to learn, and to develop together.

She also reflected on Ginsburg and Justice Antonin Scalias friendship and work relationship, saying that the two icons of different ideologies sought to defend the Constitution on how they believe it was intended by the founders while they also shared a unique bond of dedicating their life to advancing this country.

May we learn from your devout commitment to justice so that we, too, may find extraordinary (and perhaps surprising) friendships among our fellow Americans, and continue your work to build a better and more just nation, she wrote.

Supreme Court Justices Pay Tribute

Ginsburgs eight colleagues on the bench as well as two retired justices, Justices David H. Souter and Anthony M. Kennedy issued statements on Saturday to pay tribute to the jurist.

Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew hera tireless and resolute champion of justice, Chief Justice John Roberts said.

Justice Clarence Thomas said he was heartbroken to learn of the passing of his friend.

Through the many challenges both professionally and personally, she was the essence of grace, civility, and dignity. She was a superb judge who gave her best and exacted the best from each of us, whether in agreement or disagreement. And, as outstanding as she was as a judge, she was an even better colleagueunfailingly gracious, thoughtful, and civil, he said.

Justice Stephen Breyer said he learnt of her death while reciting the Mourners Kaddish at the Rosh Hashanah service. At the time he thought, a great Justice;

a woman of valor; a rock of righteousness; and my good, good friend.

He continued, The world is a better place for her having lived in it. And so is her family; her friends; the legal community; and the nation.

Justice Samuel A. Alito said he was saddened by the news, adding that he will certainly miss her.

Justice Ginsburg will go down as a leading figure in the history of the Court. She will be remembered for her intelligence, learning, and remarkable fortitude. She has been and will continue to be an inspiration for many, Alito said.

Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court pose for their official photo at the Supreme Court in Washington, on Nov. 30, 2018. Standing from left: Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch, Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Associate Justice Elena Kagan, and Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Seated from left to right, bottom row: Associate Justice Stephen Breyer, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John Roberts, Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Associate Justice Samuel Alito. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan both called Ginsburg a hero in their statements.

She spent her life fighting for the equality of all people, and she was a pathbreaking champion of womens rights. She served our Court and country with consummate dedication, tirelessness, and passion for justice. She has left a legacy few could rival, Sotomayor said.

As a judge, she did justice every dayworking to ensure that this countrys legal system lives up to its ideals and extends its rights and protections to those once excluded. And in both roles, she held toindeed, exceededthe highest standards of legal craft. Her work was as careful as it was creative, as disciplined as it was visionary. It will endure for as long as Americans retain their commitment to law, Kagan said.

Justice Neil Gorsuch said Ginsburg served the American people as one of our most distinguished judges for forty years.

Her sacrifices for the country were many, but always performed with honor. We are blessed by the happy memories that will remain, like traveling with Ruth to London where (to her delight) an uninformed guide kept calling her Ruthie, or all the opera she tried so valiantly to teach me, or her sweet tooth at lunch, or the touching stories of her remarkable life with Marty, Gorsuch said.

Meanwhile, Justice Brett Kavanaugh remembered Ginsburg as a justice with an unparalleled work ethic and devotion to the law.

No American has ever done more than Justice Ginsburg to ensure equal justice under law for women. She was a cherished colleague, and she inspired me, and all of us, with her unparalleled work ethic and devotion to the law. A meticulous and pathmarking judge, she held herself to the highest standards of precision and accuracy in her beautifully crafted opinions. And she inspired all of us to try to meet those same exacting standards. I learned from her principled voice and marveled at her wonderful wit at our weekly conferences and daily lunches, Kavanaugh said.

Mimi Nguyen Ly contributed to this report.
Beijing: China says it will take "necessary measures" to protect the legal interests of Chinese firms, reiterating it strongly opposes moves by the Trump administration to ban downloads and transactions on WeChat and Tiktok.

The US Commerce Department issued a ban on the apps on Friday, citing national security concerns. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said the US would bar WeChat, a tool for messaging and money transactions, and its parent Tencent Holdings from letting users send funds to friends, family or companies. It also blocked business relationships with certain third-party technology providers starting on Sunday.

The ban affects only new downloads and updates and are less sweeping than expected, particularly for TikTok, giving its parent group ByteDance some breathing space to clinch a sale agreement of its US operations and prompting some analysts to say it was a move by the Trump administration to secure a better deal for an American purchaser.

A visitor to an Apple store in Beijing wears a T-shirt promoting TikTok. Credit:AP

"The US has, with no evidence, employed national powers to 'hunt' and suppress the two businesses on groundless bases," the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said in a statement on Saturday. "This has severely interfered with normal business activities and harmed the confidence of global investors in the US investment environment, and damaged a normal international trade order."
Air. Microclimate

MicroClimate created a visor with air filters that looks like a helmet, called Air.

Air is just one of many unusual designs for face coverings since the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

People have critiqued the design on social media, with a common theme being it looks too futuristic.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

In the dystopia of 2020, being able to afford a personal microclimate helmet to wear around might be the next status symbol.

The coronavirus is still spreading, researchers don't know the longterm health impacts of the virus, Dr. Anthony Fauci says most pre-Pandemic activities can return to normal by summer 2022, and a record setting year of wildfires across the western US turned San Francisco's sky orange. Wearing a helmet out and about wouldn't be the strangest thing to happen this year.

MicroClimate's Air is an acrylic visor that "enables an unobstructed view of the face." It's not the only unorthodox take on masks and face shields that has emerged since COVID-19 spread around the world.

Related: Gas masks and hazmat suits are flying off the shelves

Toronto-based Vyzr Technologies created the BioVyzr, a shield with what the company calls a "space-age aesthetic," and the venture has raised over $750,000 on Indiegogo. BioVyzr's current preorder price of $379, and regular at $498, make Air look like a relative steal at only $199.

Take a look at the design here.

The helmet filters air with fans and HEPA filters, with four hours of battery life.

AIR_2

Air.

Microclimate

Cushion liners are included to make it comfortable, while the helmet is made of a washable fabric for cleaning.

AIR_2

Air.

Microclimate

MicroClimate seems to be marketing itself to young, tech-savvy professionals, with copy reading "from Uber to airline, AIR by MicroClimate will keep you comfortable the whole trip," and promotional photos of wearers in suits.

AIR_1

Air.

Microclimate

The company also notes that Air "works well with AirPods." Founder Michael Hall told Forbes that testing with airline passengers has gone well so far.

Story continues

Like the BioVyzr, part of the appeal is that the wearer can easily see and be seen without the obstruction of a mask. "MicroClimate has some unique technology that makes it feel like there is nothing in front of you while you are wearing it. This makes the experience of wearing it very comfortable" the company said in an email.

AIR_3

Of course, it quickly became the subject of tweets.

Gene Park (as cited in Brobible) (@GenePark) September 17, 2020

Many commented on the emphasis on the word "air," in MIcroClimate's marketing.

Gene Park (as cited in Brobible) (@GenePark) September 17, 2020

There were comparisons to sci-fi movies like Interstellar and Prometheus

At this point, it would be strange but certainly not unthinkable if helmets became the next coronavirus era accessory.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 16:50:21|Editor: huaxia

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KAMPALA, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Ugandan military announced on Saturday that it has killed five prisoners and recaptured two others in an ongoing manhunt of 219 inmates who had escaped in a massive jailbreak in the northeastern district of Moroto.

Brig. Flavia Byekwaso, Uganda's military spokeswoman, told Xinhua that the Uganda People's Defense Forces on Friday afternoon exchanged fire with a group of inmates who had escaped from the Singila prison on Wednesday afternoon.

"Our troops had some contact with these escapees. There was a fire exchange. In this exchange, five escapees were put out of action and two recaptured," said Byekwaso.

"There is one who was injured but managed to run away with a heavy injury. The pursuit is on to rearrest these escapees and recover the weapons," she said.

The death of the five prisoners, mainly traditional Karimojong warriors and cattle rustlers, brings the total number of those killed to eight. So far, nine others have been detained as the manhunt continues, according to security forces.

A senior military officer was also killed in an exchange of fire at the prison on the foothills of Mount Moroto.

The military said Friday that it had deployed additional troops to beef up the manhunt for the prisoners, a majority of which were sentenced over illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.

The inmates broke into a prison armory, taking a total of 15 guns and several rounds of ammunition before overpowering a prison warden on duty.

In March, at least three prisoners were killed and six others injured when the inmates attempted to escape in the northwestern district of Arua. Enditem
There are three ways to hug a tree, in case you've ever wondered.

First you must stand with your legs wide open, instructs self-declared 'forest fairy' Margherita De Carli. Wrapping her arms around a larch tree in the Coler area of Trentino's Val di Rabbi, she closes her eyes and breathes deeply as if in a yogic trance, pressing her solar plexus against the scaly bark.

The other two options?

Reversing the pose, strap yourself to the evergreen - reminiscent of an Eighties environmental protester, or simply lean against its towering trunk, arms neatly folded into the small of your back.

The choice, explains Margherita, is completely personal. Making love to nature has frequently been proposed as a tonic for troubled times. At the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, the Icelandic Forest Service urged people to go out and hug trees as a curative for social distancing blues. Tree crushers worldwide were invited to unite with the hashtag #knusumtre, posting their clinches with conifers on social media.

Margherita's tree hugging tuition is the culmination of a new forest trail, where hikers are encouraged to walk barefoot over a bed of bouncy pinecones to improve posture and wade through streams to boost circulation.

Historically, these forests have always been a valuable commodity. A network of medieval castles and fortresses is testimony to fierce battles fought over the region, when armies from the Republic of Venice would come to steal timber for building ships.



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Lying at the heart of the Italian Alps, sandwiched between the Dolomites and Lake Garda, Trentino is one of Italy's five semi-autonomous states; a 2.5-hour drive from the closest airport in Verona, it feels pleasingly remote.

Wooden chalets wind around frescoed stone churches in the Val di Sole, where I base myself in the village of Cogolo, at the entrance to Stelvio National Park. Cow bells peal from valleys bristling with conifers and sunbeams strike sawtooth peaks like roving spotlights. But even more dramatic is the air - so fresh and pure, it's a shock to breathe.

Although charming in warm weather, the region is best known for its ski resorts. Yet a question mark still hangs over what the future might hold. Europe's coronavirus outbreak supposedly started in neighbouring Lombardy, decimating Italy and resulting in a lockdown so fiercely policed, residents were unable to leave their homes for several weeks.

Fears for the winter season have, however, been softened by a successful summer. Mountain guide Giacomo tells me many Italians have discovered the mountains for the first time this year - hiking along trails scented with wild thyme, waking up in 3,500m-high cabins as the sun paints ranges pink, or searching for ibex between forests and clouds.

Food is also one of the area's main attractions. Apple orchards and vineyards line the valleys, and rifugi (mountain huts) serve local creations such as canederli (bread dumplings), grilled Casolet cheese and grappa infused with sweet spruce needles.

At Lo Scoiattolo refugio in the Val di Pejo, I eat fat, meaty porcini and delicate, buttery chanterelle mushrooms foraged from slopes in the early autumn months. Part of the Pejo 3000 ski resort, the mountain restaurant is participating in a scheme to become the first plastic-free ski area in the world. Straws and packaging have been replaced with environmentally-friendly alternatives, and solar panels have been fitted to the roof.

Trentino boasts an array of elegant sparkling wines which make Prosecco taste like lemonade, but the region's real liquid gold flows from its Alpine springs.

Since the 19th century, people have come here to drink healing waters, and 16th century documents refer to the restorative powers of the Pej baths.

Inside the clinical spa, where doctors can prescribe a programme of treatments and water consumption, I'm wrapped in a thick cocoon of warm mud infused with muscle-easing minerals, and I lie in a bath so highly concentrated with skin-tickling natural gases, it takes my breath away.

Walking through woodlands later that evening, I'm struck by the enormity and enchantment of it all. A world away from big bad wolves and grumpy bears, there's a reason fairy-tales are set in forests; in the rustling of leaves and the swaying of boughs, this is where the magic happens.

It's a notion too big, bold and overwhelming to grasp. So instead, I sit back and allow the forest to embrace me.
This deal is going to serve as an important development in the chip war being waged between the US and China.

Listening to Pivot podcast earlier this week, I came across this quote from Professor Scott Galloway, Nvidia is the most impressive company you have never heard of. Up until last week, I would have argued that you could make a stronger case for this statement to be applied to ARM Holdings. But considering that Nvidia bought ARM Holdings from Softbank this week, Prof Galloway is right.

In case you do not track the semiconductor space, there is a chance that you are yet to hear about this deal. Or in case you have heard about this, you do not understand why it is important. I discussed in a previous column that while we have been looking elsewhere in the past few months, the US and China have been involved in a high tech geopolitical rivalry around the semiconductor space. The US has been placing sanctions on Chinese companies. The most high profile of which resulted in cutting off Huaweis access to the worlds leading foundry, making it harder for the Chinese giant to procure chips.

China, on the other hand, has been actively trying to build domestic capacity to produce chips so that they do not have to rely on foreign inputs. The Peoples Republic has also set up two multi-billion dollar funds that are being used as a war chest to make self-reliance a reality.

Semiconductors are the building blocks of modern technology and are going to continue to be crucial going forward as 5G and the internet of things (IoT) get more pervasive. However, manufacturing semiconductors is a complex process, and it involves a few stages, namely, procuring raw materials, designing the chip, producing the chip in foundries, packaging, and testing.

When it comes to the design stage, one of the most crucial parts is developing and licensing designs for chip architecture and processes. Licences can be liberal or stringent regarding the degree to which they can be modified and who they are sold to. For instance, Intel sells its designs to a few select vendors, such as AMD.

ARM Holdings falls on the liberal end of who they sell to and what they allow their customers to modify in their designs. ARMs designs are also known to be more power-efficient compared to say, Intel, which makes them an excellent fit for devices such as smartphones and tablets. As a result, ARM designs are used by most device manufacturing brands, including Apple and Huawei.

According to an analysis by The Economist, ARM has a significant market share in network infrastructure, mobile computing processors, vehicles, and energy-efficient servers. In other words, ARM is omnipresent. There have been some problems on the ARM China front. This is a fascinating story I urge you to read up on in case you are looking for an exciting read this weekend. That tangent aside, this deal is going to serve as an important development in the chip war being waged between the US and China.

Currently, the US has been attacking China by exploiting pinch points. There are a few areas in the semiconductor manufacturing process that are dominated by monopolies/oligopolies. For instance, in the foundry (where chips are manufactured) landscape, the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is the market leader by a significant margin. The competition is thinning at the cutting edge. TSMC accounted for nearly half of the worlds contract chip-making market in 2019, with Samsung coming in second. Through recent sanctions, the US has cut off Huaweis supply to the foundry, making it extremely hard to procure chips in the future.

Similarly, ASML Holdings, a company based in Veldhoven, Netherlands, is another monopoly. ASML specialises in machines that harness extreme ultraviolet light (EUV) to make etching possible. Machines produced at the cutting edge by ASML cost well over $100 million, making it a costly business to be in. Despite that, according to the Economist, ASML currently holds 62% of the market share and counts the worlds biggest chipmakers, TSMC, Samsung, and Intel as its customers.

Earlier this year, Reuters reported that the US has been pressurising ASML to not sell to Chinese customers. As of January 2020, the strategy seemed to have worked, but that can be subject to change depending on how the Dutch Government reacts.

Finally, ARM is one of the few remaining instances of market power in the semiconductor space. Nvidias acquisition of it is not just good for business, but also American strategy.

While the world has mostly been uninterested in the semiconductor space, Nvidias acquisition has given Washington another tool to tackle China with. In the weeks or months going forward, it should not come as a surprise if ARM is subject to similar sanctions that the US has been levying on TSMC and ASML. Nvidia buying ARM has kicked the chip wars up a notch.
DALLASPersonal lubricant manufacturer Sliquid has added digital, print and illustration artist Kyleah Orwig to its marketing team.

Orwig, or Ky as she is more fondly referred to, is new to the world of pleasure products. She majored in Illustration and minored in Digital Media at Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids, Michigan and went on to take on several pivotal positions that helped to cultivate her natural abilities as a multi-faceted artist. Working for both a local news station and newspaper publisher, Orwig created custom images, animations and maps to fit her producers requests at the television station while also executing the layout design of the daily newspaper.

She later earned the title of Producer and was tasked with creating the morning headlines, tag promos and all show promos for the stations morning shows.

We searched high and low to ensure that we filled this position with someone we believe has the chops to elevate our imagery and storytelling, said Dean Elliott, founder and CEO of Sliquid. If theres one thing I know how to do well its finding talented people and drawing the best out of them. From the first time I chatted with Ky, she was guiding me through all her previous work in her amazing portfolio and it quickly became clear that we were onto something good!

He added: And being a tight-knit group that works so well together, her sweet and quirky demeanor is a great fit with our entire team. We are happy to have her joining the Sliquid family."

In her position as the companys new Digital + Print Artist, Orwig will use her design and illustration skills to craft interesting and effective print and digital advertisements, campaigns and other marketing pieces. Her duties include assisting the marketing team in the creation of still photography and video content on both the production and editing side of projects.

I am thrilled to welcome Ky to my team, said Erik Vasquez, Marketing Director for Sliquid. In the short time we have been working together, she has proven herself to be super smart and creative, as well as a very dedicated worker with a drive for perfection in everything she produces. I am very impressed with her attention to the small details that can take a piece of work from good to great."

Vasquez added: With her wide-ranging skillset in everything from illustration to video editing to graphic design, I know that her contributions will play an essential part in shaping the future of our brand story.

Orwig said she was looking forward to contributing to Sliquid's marketing efforts:

"Its exciting to be joining one of the most highly-respected brands in the lubricant and sexual wellness space. Having the chance to work alongside such a fun-loving, progressive-thinking group of creative people is a dream come true. I am so honored that Sliquid has chosen me for this opportunity and I am looking forward to carving out this new path in my career and growing with the brand.

For more information, visit sliquid.com or follow the company on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Activists in Bosnia-Herzegovina are asking Google to stop promoting a secluded resort that was used for the wartime torture, rape, and killing of Bosniaks in the 1990s.

Authorities in the mostly ethnic Serb region of Republika Srpska recently included the Vilina Vlas -- a spa hotel that Bosnian Serb paramilitaries occupied early in the Bosnian War -- among sites where citizens could redeem state vouchers to boost the tourism sector, which has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.

The not-so-distant history of this hotel is trying to be systematically erased in the most inhumane methods possible..."

That move sparked an online petition signed by more than 25,000 supporters urging Google to "remove Vilina Vlas (as a tourist site)" from its popular search engine and its map tool.

"If somebody decided to turn Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camps into a wellness retreat perfect for a 'relaxing weekend getaway,' would you let them promote this on Google?" the author of the change.org appeal, Amela Trokic, a guest lecturer at the University of Sarajevo, asked. "Would you allow it to appear on Google Maps as a tourist facility?"

Survivors from the hotel have repeatedly asked that the site become a memorial to victims of the 1990s atrocities carried out there.

A UN Special Committee concluded in 1994 that some 200 women were raped within the walls of Vilina Vlas in 1992. Some of those who survived were killed, while others committed suicide.

Many more people were reported to have been killed or driven to suicide at the site, some of them later weighted down and dumped in the nearby river.

"Sadly, the not-so-distant history of this hotel is trying to be systematically erased in the most inhumane methods possible with backing from the Republika Srpska government trying to promote it as a wellness spa and resort," Trokic's petition says. "Though we cannot stop mentally deranged people from knowingly visiting and staying at this disgusting building, we can stop the active promotion of it."

It says "the furniture remains the same" and "not much has changed" at the hotel since its use as a center for torture.

"A quick Google search will yield great reviews and first-hand accounts of those saying its a 'very nice and peaceful place in nature,'" Trokic wrote.

Google did not respond to RFE/RL inquiries as to whether it had seen the petition or planned to remove Vilina Vlas as a tourist locale.

The company also declined to explain its policies on advertising or glorifying places where war crimes took place.

One of the petition's early signatories, Malik Husika, called the hotel "a grim reminder of why we need to push our truths instead of promote these places as wellness areas as they hold such deep and horrific reminders of the past."

SPECIAL REPORT: The Faces Of The Genocide

In her book Genocide On The Drina River, genocide scholar Edina Becirevic cites the ethnic violence in the area around Vilina Vlas to argue that what took place there was a genocide against Bosniaks.

Vilina Vlas survivor Ramza Nisic was 22 when she was abducted in nearby Visegrad by Bosnian Serb forces occupying the area in 1992, early in the three-year conflict.

She was taken the 5 kilometers or so to Vilina Vlas, where she says she was raped daily by her captors.

"Many women ended up there. Many were killed, thrown into the water, and everything happened to them. Men were also brought there," Nisic told RFE/RL's Balkan Service. "When I was taken away, a group of men I didn't know were also taken away [and disappeared] without a trace or a voice."

Our job is to cast [our marketing] as far as possible, and getting on the Google search engine is a very important thing."

A wartime commander of the Serb paramilitary group known as the White Eagles, Milan Lukic, was sentenced in The Hague to life in prison for his role in turning the Vilina Vlas into a site for torture, rape, and killings targeting local Muslims.

Republika Srpska's Trade and Tourism Ministry has included Vilina Vlas on a list of catering facilities where citizens may spend $50 tourist vouchers intended to boost trade ravaged by the COVID-19 outbreak.

The vouchers are good through November 15.

Republika Srpska's official tourism organization, Turizam RS, advertises the Vilina Vlas as home to waters for the "prevention and treatment" of a handful of rheumatic, respiratory, and other ailments. Its local-language page is limited to contact details, while the English-language page touts it as an alpine-style spa facility whose radon-infused waters -- a byproduct of uranium -- are suitable for all ages.

It makes no mention of its wartime history.

INTERACTIVE: Timeline To Genocide

"It is definitely an unavoidable destination in terms of health [tourism]," Turizam Director Nada Jovanovic told RFE/RL's Balkan Service. "Now we have vouchers, and I really understand how many people go to Vilina Vlas precisely because of the nature in which it is located."

The Vilina Vlas has been at the center of an ongoing effort by survivors and victims' families to see the hotel shut down and the site instead dedicated to remembering those who suffered inside its walls.

"Our job is to cast [our marketing] as far as possible, and getting on the Google search engine is a very important thing," Jovanovic said.

She added that she had no knowledge of the prominent Bosnian court verdict against Visegrad police officer Zeljko Lelek, who was sentenced to 16 years in prison for crimes, including rape, at the hotel in one of the first convictions punishing ethnic cleansing in the 1992-95 Bosnian War.

A witness in that trial described a 24-year-old woman leaping to her death from a window of the Vilina Vlas as Lelek approached her.

Australian actress Kym Vercoe spent years researching the wartime atrocities in Bosnia and wrote a one-woman play on "the (im)possibility of being an innocent tourist in a postwar context" after what she described as a bout of insomnia while staying at the Vilina Vlas in 2008, not knowing it was the scene of such horrific crimes.

Visegrad and its environs are part of the easternmost region of Republika Srpska, which along with the Muslim and Croat federation make up Bosnia-Herzegovina since the Dayton accords that ended nationally and ethnically fueled fighting in 1995.

Visegrad was home to around 21,000 inhabitants, according to a 1991 census, nearly two-thirds of them Bosniak and most of the rest ethnic Serbs.

The latest census, from 2013, showed around 10,000 residents, nearly 90 percent of them Serb and some 10 percent Bosniak.

Nobel Prize-winning Yugoslav writer Ivo Andric's historical novel, The Bridge On The Drina, explored four centuries of Visegrad-area history and tragedy through the story of a young Serb boy stolen away by Ottoman occupiers and forcibly converted to Islam.

Written by Andy Heil based on reporting by Dzenana Halimovic of RFE/RL's Balkan Service
President Trump has signed off on a deal that will put TikToks U.S. operations under control of Oracle, Walmart, and other U.S. investors, apparently in exchange for a $5 billion fund that Oracle and Walmart would set up to fund the education of young Americans.

The Wall Street Journal reported that both Walmart and Oracle would share approximately a 20 percent stake in the new company, which would be headquartered in the United States. In total, U.S. investors would own 53 percent, Chinese investors would own a 36 percent stake, with European investors taking up about 11 percent, the paper said.

Trump had ordered TikTok, the popular short-form consumer video site, shut down within the United States allegedly because U.S. officials were concerned that the site was sharing data captured by the TikTok app with the U.S. government. Microsoft had expressed interest in buying the company, but later said that it would not be acquiring TikTok. Instead, Oracle said it would be a technology provider. Walmarts participation had not been reported until then.

Trump had originally asked for a sort of finders fee for facilitating the dealwhich, of course, came about because he ordered TikToks U.S. operations shut down. According to the Journal, he may have received it: Oracle and Walmart will spend $5 billion to fund education for young Americans. Its not clear whether the fund will be used for patriotic education, a demand Trump had made on Thursday to counter decades of left-wing indoctrination in our schools, according to The New York Times.

The U.S. Commerce Department also ordered that WeChat be banned from U.S. apps stores on Sunday night, along with the TikTok app, owned by Chinas ByteDance. If the deal is approved, its not known when a replacement TikTok app would be published by its new U.S. owners.
Connecticuts education partnership with hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio has been over for months, but state officials will apparently remain entangled in a legal mess for some time to come.

The former CEO of the disbanded Partnership for Connecticut recently notified Gov. Ned Lamont and four top legislative leaders, that she intends to sue for breach of contract and character defamation that was based on a flotilla of lies.

Mary Anne Schmitt Carey, of Greenwich, also sent written notice to Dalios wife, Barbara, other partnership members, and also to her former employer, Say Yes to Education. She charged that employees and benefactors of the nonprofit, which focuses on improving inner city education, conspired with the partnership to smear her reputation.

The concerted effort to run her out of The Partnership based on a flotilla of lies has damaged Ms. Carey-Schmitts reputation, her counsel, Manhattan attorney Aaron M. Zeisler, wrote in a Sept. 4 letter obtained by the CT Mirror. Put simply, the ramifications of your wrongdoing along with that of Say Yes and The Partnership will hang over Ms. Schmitt-Carey like a cloud for the many years left in her career.

The partnership, which was slated to invest a minimum of $200 million over five years in Connecticuts low-performing school districts  half provided by the Dalios and half by the state  dissolved on June 5, about one year after its creation.

Schmitt-Carey, a former CEO of Say Yes to Education with three decades of experience in education and nonprofit work, was hired to lead the partnership on March 23.

But just six weeks later, on May 4, she was confronted by Barbara Dalio, partnership oversight board chairman Erik Clemons, and a Dalio Foundation staffer, during a phone call and asked to resign. This occurred days before state officials involved with the partnership had been informed of any problems.

Schmitt-Carey has alleged she was ambushed during that May 4 call with a series of false and defamatory allegations.

And in the Sept. 4 letter, Zeisler adds that his firms investigation found clear and unmistakable evidence that the partnership based its decision on false, disparaging and defamatory statements made by employees, directors and benefactors of Say Yes to Education.

Say Yes and certain of its personnel, directors, and benefactors engaged in a concerted scheme to harm Ms. Schmitt-Careys reputation and undermine her employment with The Partnership, Zeisler wrote.

He did not specify what those statements were, and neither Schmitt-Carey nor partnership officials have offered specifics about the May 4 phone call.

An official with Say Yes to Education could not be reached for comment Friday.

Zeisler also charged in his letter that the partnership was in violation of contract and state employment law when it placed Schmitt-Carey on administrative leave on May 7 and when partnership officials subsequently discussed this in public.

Schmitt-Careys notice also asserts that despite her vehement denials of unfounded allegations, The Partnership made no independent investigation of these claims, in flagrant disregard of the boards duties and governance protocols.

Shortly after news broke about Schmitt-Carey being placed on administrative leave, the Dalios withdrew from the partnership, though they said they still intend to invest $100 million in Connecticuts public schools.

Lamont announced the Dalios decision on May 19, saying he was disappointed the news media reported on a sensitive personnel matter.

Max Reiss, the governors communications director, declined to comment, citing the potential for pending litigation. A representative for the Dalio Foundation did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.

Before its dissolution, the partnerships brief tenure had been marked by concerns about transparency and whether the state had relinquished too much control over its public school system to a wealthy, privileged few.

State officials had exempted the partnership, at the Dalios insistence, from state disclosure and ethics rules, which meant significant portions of the oversight boards meetings were held behind closed doors.

Once the Dalios announced their intentions to dissolve, some legislators expressed concerns that the Schmitt-Carey matter had left the state in a legally actionable position. Also named as potential targets of a lawsuit in Zeislers letter were the four legislators who served on the partnership board: House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz, D-Berlin, House Minority Leader Themis Klarides, R-Derby, Senate President Pro Tem Martin M. Looney, D-New Haven, and Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano, R-North Haven.

When the partnership board voted to dissolve on June 5, it voted to legally indemnify state officials, their appointees and other members of the board.
CHALLENGER - THE FINAL FLIGHT

The Challenger 7 flight crew: Ellison S. Onizuka, Mike Smith, Christa McAuliffe, Dick Scobee, Gregory Jarvis, Judith Resnik, and Ronald McNair Netflix/NASA

"Challenger: The Final Flight," a new four-part docuseries currently streaming on Netflix, examines a tragedy that defined a generation and had a lasting impact on the future of science and space travel. In 1986, the Challenger space shuttle tragically broke apart 73 seconds after launch as millions of Americans  many of them schoolchildren  watched live on television.

This series, which is executive produced by J.J. Abrams and Glen Zipper, offers an in-depth look at one of the most diverse crews NASA assembled, including high school teacher Christa McAuliffe, who was selected to be the first private citizen in space.

"Astronauts, I always saw them walking with their helmets on and I didn't necessarily know what was behind the visor," director Steven Leckart told Salon. "So when we started, we asked ourselves, 'Who were all seven of these people?'"

To find out, Leckart and his co-director Daniel Junge spoke with the crew's surviving family members to help create a poignant and relatable portrait of the astronauts. They also examine the "fatally flawed decision process" and mechanical failures that led to the disaster, interviewing former NASA officials and engineers who worked on the failed booster engine and had repeated concerns about its safety.

Zipper and Leckart spoke with Salon about what inspired them to create this series, what the Challenger represented, and the ways in which the decisions that led to the tragedy are reminiscent of the "systemic dysfunction" that has underscored the pandemic.

Do you remember where you were the day of the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster? If so, how did that impact you?

Steven Leckart: The genesis of the project was in 2016 when Glen and I were both talking about what we wanted to work on next together, because we've been working together pretty much since 2012. I remember us agreeing that it should be something very personal to both of us. You know, documentary filmmakers  sometimes you find subjects that you then become curious and excited about rather than starting with a place of genuine curiosity on a subject and then getting into it.

Story continues

So Glen was the one who first said the Challenger and instantly I said yes, because I do have a memory. I'm just old enough to remember watching it in elementary school, but the teacher ran in and turned the television off and told us to go outside. When I got home, I don't remember talking about it with my family or watching it on the news. I just remember being confused and sad. I just didn't understand what had happened; it was really my first experience with death. I had not lost a loved one or even a pet at that point.

Glen Zipper: I'm a bit older than Steven. I think I was in seventh or eighth grade, and we weren't watching it live. I was in algebra class, and another teacher came running into the room and whispered in my teacher's ear. Then my teacher turned to the class and said, 'Something terrible happened. We're all going to go into the cafeteria and it's going to be hard to watch, but we're going to bring in the TV and you need to watch it because it's history unfolding and you need to participate in that.'

And similar to the opening scene of episode one of "Final Flight," a big old TV got wheeled in on a cart and the entire school watched it. It was perhaps the most dramatic thing I had experienced in my life up to that point in time. Exactly like Steven said. And it left an indelible mark on me for the rest of my life. It was a 30-year journey from there to tell this story.

In preparing for this interview, I came across another interview that you had done, Steven, and there's this quote that really stood out to me. You said, "From the beginning, we said that we only wanted to interview people who lived the history personally and had a first-hand experience." How did that guide the filming of the series?

Leckart: I started my career as a journalist in magazines  and I still consider myself a journalist  and, as you know, first-hand accounts and first-hand information, versus second- or third-hand, you can count on that, right? I think from a storytelling sense, we felt it would just make the series more personal and that every person we put in the chair, their opinion and emotional response would feel like it belonged, versus interviewing people who had nothing to do with the story, per se.

I think most documentaries, oftentimes, you see a talking head, as they're called, or an expert. That person has a lot of great information and they may be great storytellers, but they lack that personal connection to the material. In the case of the Challenger, a lot of the 'experts' who know the science weren't really anywhere around the story on a deep level, and we wanted to explore the people and the humans and the crew. The best way to do that would be to talk to the people that knew them, not just the people who have studied them.

Zipper: And it gave the series a reason for being. There's been plenty of Challenger documentaries in the past and some narrative attempts in storytelling. We've seen the revelations at the heart of how the tragedy happened. But one thing that occurred to both Steven and I, and also [co-director] Daniel Junge was that, despite the image of the Challenger disintegrating in the sky being so iconic, and having lived with it for so long, we've become desensitized to it. We'd ask people if that was all they remembered, and they'd say, "No, of course we remember more than that." Then we'd ask if they remembered the astronauts [and they'd say] "Of course we do."

And we'd politely ask them to tell us who the astronauts were, and they would say "No problem, there is Christa McAuliffe" and they would trail off. They didn't know the names of any of the other astronauts, and if they don't know their names, they certainly don't know their stories. That really gave us a reason telling this story. It's not so much that we were going to uncover some new revelations as to how it happened, but what we were going to do was provide audiences with the revelation as to who these people were, and the next time they look at that horrible image  that horrible iconic image of the Challenger disintegrating  they're going to be able to associate it with seven human beings who had lives and families and dreams and people who love them.

I really appreciate the incredibly personal nature of the series. But I was also drawn to how, on a macro-level, you laid out how NASA had selected this group of astronauts from a wide variety of cultural and ethnic backgrounds, and how this was going to be a defining moment for diversity in science and space travel. Could you talk a little bit about that?

Leckart: From the beginning, I don't think we knew that was a part of the story. I was too young at the time to know about the Class of '78 being a big deal. By the time I became aware enough of the shuttle, I was just captivated by the thing itself. Astronauts, I always saw them walking with their helmets on and I didn't necessarily know what was behind the visor. So when we started, we asked ourselves, who were all seven of these people?

Judith Resnik, one of the first women and the first Jewish person to go to space. Then Ronald McNair, who was one of the first African Americans to go to space. Ellison Onizuka, the first Asian American to go to space.

I don't know if it was intentional that they wound up on the crew of the Challenger with Christa; NASA is not known for really putting out much information about why astronauts are selected and assigned to different missions. But it enabled us to make the Challenger about something bigger, and the shuttle program about something bigger.

And to Glen's point about our decision not to show the explosion until you knew who the people were, that also tracks to what they represented and what the crew represented. So when that shuttle explodes and we see that horrible moment, it's not just the death of seven Americans, it's not just the death of seven astronauts, it's the death, in a way, of hope and optimism for the future.

We also saw the relevance today. You know, we finished the series before the summer unfolded the way it did, but as we were developing the series there was plenty of unrest in the country, as well as a movement towards multiculturalism. So we knew we were not making the series in a vacuum, even though we don't specifically draw a clear line. In our interviews, we wanted to keep you in the past, but also look at it through the lens of today.

You also speak with some folks who were actually in the control room the day of the disaster. I was curious  from a documentary filmmaking perspective  if there was any difficulty in getting them to open up in front of the camera?

Not once people were in the room and in the chair. By the time you see that person in the chair, we've spent hours with them. So the more difficult process, at first, was getting a hold of these people and getting them on the phone. They were all over the country, so just getting some people on the phone took weeks. Then once they would get on the phone, it would take hours and multiple calls, in some cases, to get them to participate.

But effectively, once we got a person on the phone, we got them to agree to sit down. And I think part of the reason they agreed was that we had expressed the very, very clear sincerity of our vision  to not just explore the tragedy and the mistakes that were made, but we wanted to endeavor to show how NASA picked itself back up, and show that those astronauts didn't die in vain.

We also talked at length with everyone about what our hope for the first episode would be, that we would spend a lot of time building up what the shuttle was and just how amazing it was. I think that allowed people to buy into the idea that it would be different. We were going to approach this story from a very sincere and very real place, as opposed to finger-pointing.

I was not surprised by how intimate our interviews wound up being, but I think in totality, it is overwhelming to see just how intimate they feel.

Glen, anything you'd like to add to that?

Zipper: Nothing other than to compliment Steven and Daniel. They're incredibly disarming filmmakers and I wasn't surprised that they were able to get that level of intimacy, honesty and connection. It really does play through in the interviews and some of the choices they made for their interviews was quite interesting.

One specific one was Peter Billingsley, who we noticed in going through some of the archival material. I think we first noticed in a photo, looking at the observation stands, 'That kid really looks like the kid from 'A Christmas Story.''

Peter Billingsley, it turns out, was the child ambassador for NASA. Steven and Daniel reached out to him and can speak to this better than I can. I think he was initially hesitant, but once he came in and agreed to the interview, it was one of the most powerful conversations I've ever been witness to. In addition to his personal connection and being an eyewitness to it, he's sort of a proxy for Generation X, because he was us and he was there. To see the story from an outsider from someone that wasn't an engineer or an astronaut or a family member, but was someone we all know and identify with, was really a remarkable choice.

Leckart: Yeah, that conversation was a good example of [a source] being skeptical at first, but willing to listen. He asked a couple of questions and ultimately landed on, 'OK, listen. I've never talked about this publicly.' It's not something he had been eager to do because, you know, going back into the sort of halls of your memory to something so tragic and painful is not exactly a great thing to do.

But he said that he trusted our vision and us. Then the next thing he asked was how much time we needed. You know, he's a director and a producer and very busy, and we initially suggested a half hour. And he said, "Oh, we're going to need at least two hours because I've never talked about this and I suspect that when we get into it, a lot of things will come out of me that I'm not expecting and I just want to know that if we do this, we'll have enough time to really properly get through it."

It was a very emotional interview.

It's worth noting all the interviews were incredibly emotional, especially the family members of the crew who we've maintained relationships with. You know, to sit with them and get to know them and sort of feel their pain  but also to feel the love they still feel for their family members. It weighed on us. There were a lot of tears on the crew as well.

I just remember traveling through 2019  going motel to hotel and crying in my room alone. Crying on the airplane, crying in the car. Not necessarily bad cries, but just the emotion of what we were trying to achieve and how close we were getting to the story.

Related to the emotional heft of the story  I feel like this would have been deeply poignant even pre-pandemic, but watching it in the middle of everything happening right now, I feel like it takes on additional resonance. Has it made you think about it differently, or do you think people are responding to it differently, given the current reality?

Leckart: Absolutely, I mean, I look back to a kind of funny moment in the edit, which is we were making a scene about Mike Smith sneaking out of quarantine and we had a very long discussion about whether people would know what quarantine was. Do we need a character to explain what quarantine is?

I've seen people remarking about it on Twitter. One commenter also spotted a scene with Christa where she's riding her bicycle in Florida next to Greg Jarvis and she says, "Stay away from me, I'm in quarantine." And she specifically states six feet. So that is taking on new meaning now that we are all doing social distancing. Beyond those specifics  and Glen can speak to this as well I think we're living through a moment in time where systemic dysfunctions and the difficulties of being in a big bureaucratic system are apparent.

With what happened with the Challenger, this big organization had a big, big, difficult challenge ahead of them, and they unfortunately mismanaged how to communicate all these issues and run the risk. So, we're seeing that play out today as well.

Zipper: I could add a slightly optimistic view to that, which is to overstate the obvious. In addition to this systemic dysfunction we're suffering through, we're also at an incredibly divisive moment in our history. When you look back to the Challenger launch, before the tragedy, and you look back to the moon landing and our collective fascination and imagination for space, it's something that has brought us together like nothing else. It's in our DNA, the desire to explore, to go further and deeper. And if there's some part of this documentary that can remind people of that, remind people of what we share, what we have in common, what inspires us collectively as a nation  that would be a remarkably pleasing result, because we're at a time right now when we need to be reminded of the things that we share and hold in common.

"Challenger: Final Flight" is now streaming on Netflix.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 17:20:58|Editor: huaxia

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Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, presides over a meeting with grassroots representatives in Changsha, capital of central China's Hunan Province, Sept. 17, 2020. Xi has called for efforts to integrate enhancing top-level design and soliciting public opinion in formulating the 14th Five-Year plan. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

CHANGSHA, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for efforts to integrate enhancing top-level design and soliciting public opinion in formulating the 14th Five-Year plan.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks during a meeting with grassroots representatives in central China's Hunan Province on Thursday.

Stressing the goal of realizing people's aspirations to live a better life, Xi encouraged the public to offer advice and suggestions for compiling the plan through various channels.

During the meeting, 10 primary-level representatives offered their suggestions on rural education, poverty alleviation through industrial support, and the development of micro and small businesses, among other aspects.

Noting that their ideas better reflect primary-level realities, Xi urged relevant departments to carefully study and fully absorb the suggestions.

When making plans for the 14th Five-Year period, more efforts should be made to improve weak links concerning people's livelihood while striving for high-quality development, according to Xi.

He also called for more targeted measures to perform relevant tasks.

Xi emphasized consolidating governance at the primary level, and uniting and guiding the people to give full play to their enthusiasm, initiative and creativity in building a better life. Enditem
Croatian operator Hrvatski Telecom kicked off plans in upgrading its HRK19 million ($3 million) fibre-optic network, pledging to connect thousands of premises to 100Mbps connectivity speed.

In a statement, Hrvatski Telecom said the fibre optic connection will be made available to 8,000 premises in the area of Slavonski Brod in the communities of Slavonija 1, Slavonija 2, Kolonija, Mikrorajon, and Osjecka Street.

Completion of the work is expected end of October and customer connections to be seen in early November. In future customers, will be able to upgrade up to 1G/bit download speeds

Continuous improvement of network quality is our strategic priority. Investments in fibre-optic infrastructure are the basis of technological, economic, and social development because they provide higher speeds, better signals, and many tangible benefits for residential and business customers, said Boris Drilo, CTIO of Hrvatski Telekom.

"As mayor, I welcome this valuable investment that will ensure the fastest and highest quality telecommunications network for the citizens of Slavonski Brod. Innovative solutions that raise the level of quality of life and work nowadays are mostly related to high communication standards and the digitalization of society. In that regard, we are delighted to have the opportunity to be part of this vital project of Hrvatski Telekom ", said Mirko Duspara, Mayor of Slavonski Brod.
Appreciations View(s):

He was a visionary multitasker

Prof. Ananda Samarasekera

The only child born to Ariyasena Samarasekera, a senior clerical servant and Priya Punchihetti, a schoolteacher and head mistress of Pimbura, Agalawatta in 1953, he was named Ananda by his father after his school  Ananda College.

Little Ananda obtained his primary education in Kalutara and secondary education at Dharmapala Vidyalaya, Pannipitiya and then at Nalanda College, Colombo.

He entered the Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya in 1976 and graduated in 1981, completing his internship at De Soysa Hospital for women and General Hospital Colombo in 1981-82 respectively under the supervision of Dr. E.L. Joseph (VOG) and Dr. W.D. Wijekoon (VP).

Dr. Samarasekera joined the public service in 1982 as a medical officer at General Hospital, Ratnapura and then served at General Hospital, Kalutara as a Medical Officer during which time he worked as Acting Assistant J.M.O.

He was among the first batch of trainees under supervision of Dr B.A.W. Balasooriya, obtaining the Diploma in Legal Medicine in 1985. Thereafter he followed a training programme leading to MD in Forensic Medicine at the J.M.O.s office, Colombo & Colombo South under Prof. M.S.L. Salgado and at the Department of Forensic Medicine, University of Colombo under Prof. Nandadasa Kodagoda, obtaining his MD in 1987.

He obtained a Diploma in Medical Jurisprudence (London) and Diploma in Forensic Medicine from the University of Glasgow in 1990.

He was Board certified as a specialist in Forensic Medicine from 1989 by the Postgraduate Institute of Medicine. After returning to Sri Lanka, he was appointed as the first consultant Judicial Medical Officer of Colombo North Teaching Hospital Ragama in 1991 where he served till 2007. He was the Visiting Consultant and Academic head of Department of Forensic Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Ragama from 1993-2003.

He worked as a Fellow and later as a Locum Forensic Pathologist in Path center, Western Australia in 1995. Dr. Samarasekera served as a Forensic Pathologist for ICTY, in Bosnia between 1999 and 2002 conducting war crime investigations and was the first from South Asia to hold this position.

He served as the Head of the Forensic Medical Examiners office, Department of Justice, United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) from 2004 to 2009 and functioned as a Forensic Pathologist for ICTY. During this period, he was the chief international forensic medical practitioner for United Nations in Kosovo. He served as a member of the International Advisory Board on forensic services of ICRC from 2007-2013.

He was the Chief JMO Colombo, Institute of Legal Medicine and Toxicology, Colombo from 2007 till 2013.

After retirement from public service, he joined the South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM) as the head of the Department of Forensic Medicine and held the chair in Forensic Medicine. In April 2015, he was appointed as the Vice Chancellor of SAITM.

He authored several publications in national and international journals and presented papers at national and international conferences

He served as the Vice President of the Sri Lanka Medical Council from 1998 to 2009 and was Chairman of the Preliminary Proceedings Committee (PPC) of SLMC since 1996 to 2007. In 2000, he pioneered the establishment of the College of Forensic Pathologists of Sri Lanka with three PG trainees and served as its President in 2008. He was also President of the GMOA and President of the Medical Specialists Association for several years, a Vice President of the OPA and President of the Medico Legal Society of Sri Lanka from 2009-2011.

Prof. Samarasekera had vast experience in the establishment and development of medico legal systems and centres nationally and internationally. He was enthusiastically involved in curriculum development of undergraduate and post graduate Forensic Medicine courses and in-service training courses for medical officers throughout his career.

His untimely death in June this year left a huge vacuum in many sectors related to medico-legal field

His wife is a senior Consultant Histopathologist and their only daughter is a Medical Officer at SJTH, Thalawathugoda and son-in-law a Medical Officer at BH, Karawanella. Prof. Samarasekera was the grandfather of twins.

May he attain the supreme bliss of nirvana!

President and Council, College of Forensic Pathologists of Sri Lanka

There will always be this vacuum in our lives Its not easy to write this heartfelt tribute for a close relative without tears welling up in our eyes.The sad news reached us on June 20 and we were shattered. We wanted to be with Ananthie and Lucky to share their grief but the situation did not permit us.When we sat down to contemplate on Anandas life and how he gave importance to his relatives, especially to his in-laws, it was something admirable and extraordinary. We fondly remember his warm welcome, his broad smile, when we visited them at his home at Pepiliyana. He took a genuine interest to make us feel comfortable with his great hospitality. He never failed to participate in all our family functions. He treated us like his own family members and shared his dreams and achievements. He was a man of integrity and worked diligently to rise to the position of Chief Judicial Medical Officer and later Professor, but he was always the same Ananda to us. He had a large heart to help people in need and took pleasure in doing so. We were very privileged to have him in our lives. He was very honest, impartial and sympathetic but on the flip side a fun-loving person. When we went to his daughters wedding in 2014 we spent a few weeks with them. The bond between us grew stronger and he insisted that we should visit more frequently from Canada, for the benefit of our children. Since we all have only daughters, he felt that the relationship between the children should be strong. In the midst of a busy schedule during the wedding he found time to take our daughter for special treats. He was a loving and dedicated husband and father and spent his time with the family whenever he could. We regret that we never had the opportunity to see him after that. We miss you a lot Ananda! Words cannot describe the grief in our hearts. We always talk about the good times we had together and how Ananthie and Lucky would be missing you. Son-in-law Anju would do his best to keep them going but the vacuum can never be filled. He fought a brave and strong battle for two years and took each day in his stride without complaints, hoping that the treatments would restore his health and he could enjoy his days with his grandkids. His beautiful spirit will live on through his precious daughter Lucky and grandchildren, and they will feel his presence with them always and know how dearly he loved them. Now our hope is that he rest in peace with the assurance that he had taken care of the wellbeing of his family members even in his last stages. You enriched our lives While you were here. Now we must learn to live Without you so near. Time may soften the blow, But your memory wont fade Not a day will go by. We wish you could have stayed. Sadly missed and fondly remembered by: Mohan, Thaya and Nibitto( Tirzah)

To an unforgettable lady

Joy Ferdinando

Born in 1935 to the silent generation,

Made a rare distinction as a lady from Moratuwa who established an organisation on Duplication,

with the vision of passing it down to her generation.

With a passion for the future generation,

Introduced a new platform of education

Which immensely benefited Lankan future generation.Worried was she about the continuation of the organisation

After her expiration..

This desperate sensation,

made her delegate authority to her children to ensure continuation.

To be admired was her determination

Which caused the success of the organisation.

She encouraged me to gain qualifications,

that would help the progression of the organisation

After her expiration.

The family making efforts towards the organisation

Gives solace to her soul in her new destination.

There is no doubt that she was nothing but an inspiration to the present and future generation.

The great work she has done to society is beyond ones imagination.

She was no doubt an exception in the silent generation.

Recalling the adventurous 85 year journey of her life brings a heart melting sensation.

Rehana Ferdinando Perera (grand-daughter)

Though small in stature he had a big heart

Hettige Sureweera

Sure, as we fondly referred to him, was born in1948 in a remote village in the vicinity of Sinharaja forest known as Mawanana, Neluwa. He is no more but his legacy lives forever. There is much to learn from his love towards everyone which we want to remember.

Starting from the village school he finished his schooling at Richmond College, Galle and later entered the University of Peradeniya qualifying as a mechanical engineer. After his training at the River Valleys Development Board (RVDB), he served the institution until he joined as an UNIDO volunteer to take an assignment with the government of Lebanon. Thereafter, he joined the BOI and for nearly 15 years, was a director at Biyagama, Seethawaka / Horana export zones. After his retirement, we together formed a company with the main objective of serving SMEs, by sharing our knowledge and experiences.

Though an engineer, he showed skills in many fields and sectors, from occupational health and safety, agriculture, livestock, health, GHG assertions and would boldly undertake even unknown territories and challenges. Delivering quality work was in his blood.

Though small in stature, he had a big heart which sensed the needs of anyone irrespective of race, language, caste, creed, religion, rich or poor, powerful or weak. He tirelessly helped his friend from Jaffna living in England to get his ID to apply for dual citizenship. In Lebanon he was an unofficial Ambas-sador to many Sri Lankans by helping in all official matters and correspondence.

He remembered his schools and teachers with love and praise.We remember him talking about the services rendered by Rev. W. J. Small of Richmond College. In the 50th anniversary souvenir of the University of Peradeniya, Engineering Faculty 67/68 batch which he helped to compile he wrote: Other than becoming engineers, we were moulded to be committed and disciplined in all our dealings, yet with compassion by our great teachers. We realized their real value while at work.

He had a good command of both Sinhala and English. In his early struggles with the English language when entering university he wrote,Heavily handicapped with the language barrier as if suddenly landed in an alien planet, Good Samaritan  Emmanuel appeared as my great saviour from heaven to help me out. Emmanuel is one of our batchmates presently living in Sweden.

Sures love for his family was immense and he cared for them even if work pressure was high. After his dear wife passed away, he looked after his only child Sevwandi like the pupil in his eye and later his granddaughter.

Sure was always Sure. He was an extraordinarily humble person. We miss him very much and will never forget his sweet smile and friendship.

Sena, Kirthi, Nihal and Joas

Amma, you made us what we are

Soma Wimalasundera

On a day like today three

years ago

You left us, to an unknown abode

It pains to feel the absence

of losing

A mother as strong and

steady as you were

Amma stood firm

alongside Thattha

Encouraging and advising in his numerous ventures

She being the driving force

Behind that enterprising man

As the seventh

Among her brood of ten

Growing up was tough

None dared step beyond the boundaries she set

We grumbled and protested and showed our anger

Not realizing, the countless

sacrifices she made

With no privacy or time

for herself

Which we now cherish

and hold dear

Turning back now I see

How she planned and

moulded us

To give us, her children the strength and courage

To be responsible adults

Mano
Egypt has had strained relations with Turkey since the 2013 ouster of Morsi, who was a close ally of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogans government

Egypt denounced on Saturday statements by Turkey regarding the countrys political developments in connection with the 30 June revolution, describing the Turkish comments as preposterous claims.

In an official statement, Egypts foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Hafez slammed a TV interview that aired on Wednesday on CNN Turk with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, who addressed in a negative manner the developments in Cairo following the ouster of late Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in 2013.

Hafez said the statements by Cavusoglu showed a continued adherence to preposterous claims to serve ideological purposes.

The Egyptian ministry spokesman affirmed Egypts full rejection of Turkeys approach, noting that discussions about Egypt in such a negative tone, and at the same time with such contradiction, casts doubt on claims that there is a willingness to create an atmosphere for good relations based on respect and commitment to the rule of international legitimacy.

Egypt has had strained relations with Turkey since the 2013 ouster of Morsi, who was a close ally of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogans government.

Tensions between the two countries escalated in the past months over Ankara's military intervention in war-torn Libya, its violation of Iraq's sovereignty, as well as Ankara's hunt for gas in the Eastern Mediterranean in violation of the territorial waters of Greece and Cyprus, two close allies of Egypt.

Conflict further heightened after Egypt and Greece signed a maritime demarcation deal in August establishing an exclusive economic zone between the two countries, sparking an angry response from Turkey.

Ankara said at the time that Turkey considers the agreement to be null and void, and that the area falls within the borders of Turkey's continental shelf.

The Egyptian ministrys statement comes days after the Turkish foreign minister criticised during the interview with the Turkish broadcaster the situation in Egypt following the ousting of Morsi and the dispersal of the pro-Islamist protests camps of Rabaa and Nahda in 2013.

Cavusoglu hinted that his country offered to sign a maritime jurisdiction agreement with Egypt, similar to a controversial agreement it made with Libya.

Despite earlier statements slamming the Egypt-Greece agreement, the Turkish foreign minister said that Egypt did not violate Turkeys continental shelf through the agreement.

Let's not be unfair, because our political relations are not good. We need to be realistic in order to make a deal with Egyptwe must have good political relations with Egypt, he said.

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Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden (L) speaks to reporters in Wilmington, Del., on Aug. 13, 2020. (R) President Donald Trump before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on June 27, 2018. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images; Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

Trump and Biden Campaign in Minnesota, Lay Out Differing Visions for Job Creation

President Donald Trump and Democrat nominee Joe Biden on Friday brought their campaigns to the battleground state of Minnesota, laying out differing visions for job creation.

The Trump campaign organized a large airport rally in Bemidji, while Biden met with a handful of labor leaders at the Jerry Alander Carpenter Training Center in Hermantown.

Trump, who narrowly lost the state in 2016, stressed his signature policies of deregulation and reduced government intervention in the free market.

Were going to win Minnesota because they did nothing for Minnesota except close up that beautiful iron ore territory. They closed it with a pen. Do you remember that? I came along and I opened it up, Trump said, referring to the Iron Range, the main iron ore mining district in the United States. The president was likely referring to the Obama administrations 2016 decision to block two copper-mining leases in Minnesota, which Trump later reversed. In May 2019, the U.S. Department of the Interiors Bureau of Land Management (BLM) renewed the leases.

Under President Trumps leadership and direction from the secretary, this action may reduce the vulnerability to disruption of critical mineral supplies if it leads to the development and production of critical minerals in an environmentally responsible, regulatory-consistent, and economically feasible manner, Interiors Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management, Joe Balash, said at the time. Mining strategic metals in the United States is beneficial to national security, national and local economies, and job creation.

Biden, who in a Labor Day speech vowed to be the strongest labor president weve ever had, toured a union training center, where he highlighted his plan to promote American-made goods by the sweeping use of the federal governments regulatory and spending power.

This is the stuff thats going to put a lot of people to work, Biden said as he talked to carpenters and witnessed a welding demonstration.

It has to be made in the United States of America, he said, and discussed his proposal to mandate that federal procurement include a higher proportion of goods that are made in America. Bidens plan proposes new uses of the federal governments regulatory and spending power to bolster U.S. manufacturing and technology firms, calling for a $400 billion, 4-year increase in government buying of U.S.-based goods and services, plus $300 billion in new research and development in U.S. technology concerns.

When the government spends taxpayers money, we should spend that money to buy American products made by American workers and American supply chains to generate American growth, Biden said.

Before Biden arrived in Minnesota, the Trump campaign released a letter from three Iron Range mayors hailing the presidents support for mining: As a result of the Trump administrations policies, our communities were given a much needed shot in the arm so that our towns can roar back to lifeand there is no one we Rangers trust to bring about the great American comeback more than President Donald Trump. The letter was signed by Mayors Chris Vreeland of Hoyt Lakes, Kathy Brandau of Winton and Tony Nygaard of McKinley.

A recent Epoch Times poll found that most respondents in Rust Belt states, which includes Minnesota, said they are better off now than 4 years ago: 31.9 percent said they are better off than four years ago, 23.9 percent said the same, 26.4 percent said they were not better off, and 17.7 percent said they were better off before the pandemic.

After Bidens speech, his motorcade rolled into downtown Duluth, where he stepped out onto a brick plaza and began to elbow bump and chat with passersby.

Within minutes, a crowd of around 200 gathered, virtually all of them in masks except for two men in Trump hats. It was the largest in-person crowd Biden has had since the pandemic exploded in March.

One man yelled from a deck above the plaza, Go home, Joe!

Two women closer to Biden responded, You are home, Joe.

The Epoch Times Rust Belt Poll was conducted by Big Data Poll from Sept. 11 to Sept. 15, 2020, interviewing 2,191 registered voters and 1,440 likely voters in the Midwest via online panel targeting Iowa (7 percent), Michigan (20 percent), Minnesota (12 percent), Ohio (23 percent), Pennsylvania (26 percent), and Wisconsin (12 percent). The sampling error is  2.1 percent for registered voters and  2.6 percent for likely voters at a 95 percent confidence interval. For more information on the methodology and survey design, please refer to the AAPOR Transparency Initiative Checklist. For an overview of survey results click here.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
President Trumps effort to court suburban women by promising to protect their neighborhoods is encountering one sizable hitch: Most suburban women say their neighborhoods arent particularly under threat.

Their communities feel safe to them, and theyre not too concerned about poorer neighbors moving in, according to polls in key battleground states by The New York Times and Siena College. They say in a national Monmouth University poll that racial integration is important to them, and unlikely to harm property values or safety. Many have never heard of the federal fair-housing rule encouraging integration that the president has often cited by name in arguing that Joseph R. Biden Jr. would abolish the suburbs.

Theyre not even all that worked up about the idea of new apartments nearby, sullying suburbs dominated by single-family homes.

Nope, not at all. I have no concern whatsoever about it, said Diane Wonchoba, an independent in the Minneapolis suburb of Blaine. She pointed to an apartment recently built half a mile from her house. Its beautiful. Way to go. We built our home, so we were the new people on the block 20 years ago.
Negotiations to end the over-six-year-long civil war in eastern Ukraine have stalled as the longest ceasefire in the civil wars history has begun to fall apart after the killing of a Ukrainian soldier last week.

Meeting in Berlin last Friday, political advisors from the Normandy Format discussions involving Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine failed to achieve any significant steps forward in the ongoing negotiations.

The last meeting between all four heads of stateUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Emmanuel Macron, and German Chancellor Angela Merkeltook place in December 2019 amid much public fanfare but failed to make any significant agreements other than to meet again at some time in the future.

Over nine months later, the four heads of state have failed to schedule a follow-up meeting after a planned summit in March of this year was cancelled due to the COVID-19 epidemic.

The Ukrainian government had stated prior to Fridays meeting that it expected another summit of the countries leaders would subsequently be scheduled, but according to Russias envoy Dmitriy Kozak the prospect for another major Normandy Four event was not even discussed. The four sides failed to even schedule another meeting between their countries present advisors.

Last Fridays meeting had already been postponed several times due to the supposed unavailability of the French advisor to attend. Speaking to the New York Times in weeks prior to the meeting, a German advisor said its status was up in the air suggesting that the major European imperialist powers Germany and France have little interest in the Ukrainian crisis as they ratchet up an anti-Russia campaign in their own countries over the Navalny case and Belarus.

Independently of France and Germany, Ukraine and Russia agreed to continue a negotiated ceasefire that first began on July 27 despite back-and-forth accusations of violations in early September.

According to the Ukrainian military, Russian-backed separatists opened fire on government forces in several incidents last week, killing one Ukrainian solider and wounding another.

Representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk Peoples Republic (DPR) in turn claimed that Ukrainian forces had opened fire on the republic six times between September 2 and 15 and accused the Ukrainian side of carrying out offensive operations which are prohibited under the cease-fires terms.

Negotiations between representatives from Russia, Ukraine and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)known as the Trilateral Contact Groupwere held throughout August but likewise failed to achieve any major agreements. The main sticking points have been the offering of special autonomous status and local elections independent of Kiev. Both points are vociferously and violently opposed by Ukraines far-right.

Within the Ukrainian ruling class there has been significant disagreement over these issues. In August, Ukraines deputy representative in the Trilateral Contact Group negotiations, Vitold Fokin, stated that he believed the war would end once Ukraine offered special status to Donetsk and Lugansk and offered amnesty to separatists.

Speaking with news website Strana, Fokin stated, Another important question is about pardon. On both sides, many crimes have been committed that should ultimately be investigated, and let the perpetrators be prosecuted. But today, in order to end the war and save the lives of soldiers and commanders, my position is to declare general pardon, hold elections, resolve the issue of the special status of certain regions, and best of all, the entire Donbass.

Fokins comments were quickly denounced as treason by the countrys far-right and Kiev officials. Notably Ukraines Interior Minister Arsen Avakov, who is known for his ties to the far-right Azov Battalion, stated None of our soldiers should die because of awkward political gambling. Therefore, the statement by Ukraines representative to the TCG Vitold Fokin about a general amnesty and a special status for the entire territory of Donbas is provocative and does not correspond to national interests. We should remember that thousands of our soldiers died for every piece of Ukrainian land in Donbass.

The Ukrainian government later released an official statement calling Fokins words not the official position of the Ukrainian government.

The failure to achieve any significant gains in peace negotiations takes place as support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky continues to erode. Zelensky, who was elected largely on misplaced hopes that he offered an alternative to the rabid war-mongering nationalism of his predecessor Petro Poroshenko, has so far made little progress in achieving peace in eastern Ukraine.

Subsequently, recent polls conducted within Ukraine suggest that Zelenskys support has fallen precipitously after winning the presidency in April 2019 with 73 percent of the vote. According to polls conducted in June by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology, just 38 percent of Ukrainians now support Zelenskys presidency. Another poll conducted by Ukraines Razumkov Center in July found that if presidential elections were held, Zelensky would be supported by just 34.6 percent of voters in an initial election. Furthermore, second place would go to the leader of the Opposition Platform  For Life party led by Yuri Boyko which favors reviving relations with Russia and ending the war by negotiating directly with the break-away regions of Luhansk and Donetsk.

The newly founded party of popular video blogger Anatolity Shariy has also gained noticeable support, receiving 3.7 percent of a potential vote in recent polls. There are fears that Shariy, who has over 2.3 million subscribers on Youtube, could tear away support from Zelensky particularly among younger voters with whom he is popular. Shariy is critical of the right-wing orientation of the Ukrainian government and like the Opposition PlatformFor Life party supports an end to the war in eastern Ukraine.

The rise in support for parties that favor a negotiated settlement with Russia has not gone unnoticed by Ukraines far-right groups. They have carried out a number of attacks on both members of Shariys party and members of the Opposition PlatformFor Life party.

In August, members of the Azov Battalion and affiliated National Corps carried out their most brazen attacks shooting a bus carrying 22 members of the Opposition PlatformFor Life party in Kharkiv in broad daylight. After they critically injured several and kidnapped two more members of the Opposition PlatformFor Life party, video of the attack spread widely on Ukrainian social media but went unreported in the Western mainstream press.

Following the incident, the Opposition PlatformFor Life assigned blame for the attack on Zelensky stating, This crime of the National Corps and Azov is a consequence of the impunity of the far-right radicals acting under the direct patronage and incitement of the authorities, including President Zelensky, who openly declares his support for their position.

Conversely, the infamous Azov leader Andriy Biletsky responded to questioning by stating that the Ukrainian government should award medals to the 14 men who were detained by police in the attack.

The over-six-year-long war that began in 2014 following the installation of far-right nationalist NATO-aligned government in Kiev has claimed the lives of over 13,000 and left 30,000 injured. In addition, the war has created 1.5 million internally displaced persons and a 2019 UNICEF report found that nearly half a million children in eastern Ukraine face grave risks to their physical health and psychological well-being as they attend bullet-ridden schools and walk through fields of land mines.

Despite the nationalist and far-right orientation of Ukraines mainstream media, a recent poll found that 53 percent of Ukrainians believe that all connections with people living in non-government-controlled areas in the east of the country, including transport connections, should be restored.
Bangkok, Thailand  Pro-democracy protesters are gathering in Thailands capital, in what is expected to be the largest rally in weeks of anti-government demonstrations and the biggest since a military coup in 2014 that brought Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha to power.

Thousands of protesters on Saturday forced their way onto the campus of Bangkoks Thammasat University, an institution that has long symbolised democracy in the countrys shaky political history. Later, they made their way into the adjacent Sanam Luang field near the royal palace.

The rally is expected to draw tens of thousands of people, with protesters planning to stay out until Sunday. Police said they would deploy thousands of officers.

Today, we will continue to push for our demands, said Parit Penguin Chiwarak. As citizens, we should be able to fight for our rights. You cannot stop us. We have now broken through these first gates and we will continue to break through until we have democracy, added the student activist as he mobilised a large group of protesters on the outer limits of the university.

Moments earlier, tensions had risen as a scuffle broke out between an anti-government protester and a security guard.

Democratic reforms

The student-led, anti-government movement has been calling for three significant changes to Thailands power structure: the dissolution of parliament, the rewriting of the military-drafted constitution and an end to the intimidation of dissidents.

Protesters believe that their votes in last years long-delayed general election have been disregarded after Prayuth, a former army general, stayed on as prime minister with the backing of an unelected Senate and smaller parties, despite the pro-military Palang Pracharat party finishing second.





Following the 2014 coup, Prayuth scrapped the countrys constitution and had the military write a new charter that increased the kings powers and allowed the military to appoint the 250-member Senate that was to have a say in selecting the new prime minister.

Protesters have also been openly discussing Thailands powerful monarchy in public, with some calling for it to be reformed and have its political power reduced. This level of public criticism and debate is unprecedented in modern times, as the kingdoms royal institution is protected by strict lese majeste laws that can carry prison sentences of up to 15 years.

The anti-government movement has been brewing since mid-July, but its origins began when Thailands top court in February moved to dissolve the popular Future Forward Party (FFP). Led by charismatic billionaire Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, the FFP won the third-highest number of parliamentary seats in the March 2019 election and was seen as a threat to the political establishment.

The coronavirus pandemic momentarily halted the movement in March but protests resumed as cases started to fall. And in June, the disappearance of Wanchalerm Satsakit, a well-known activist who was abducted in plain sight outside of his apartment in Cambodias capital, Phnom Penh, was the spark that pushed people to take to the streets.

Pro-democracy activists shout slogans during a protest at Thammasat University in Bangkok [Sakchai Lalit/AP Photo]

The initially youth-led demonstrations have since grown consistently larger, drawing citizens from all age groups and walks of life amid rising discontent over Thailands widening economic inequality.

Mook, 21, a recent university graduate, said she was participating in the protest to fight for a better future.

Were unhappy with the government, its very simple, she told Al Jazeera. Last year, when I was in university, it became obvious to us [other students] how difficult our future will be if we dont ask for this [three demands], she said.

Peeja Plahn: Thailand needs to move on [Caleb Quinley/Al Jazeera]

So today, Im joining this activity because I think Thailand desperately needs democracy.

Police estimate up to 50,000 people could show up at Saturdays protest, but student leaders believe there could be up to 100,000. Some are worried of an impending crackdown as Prayuth recently warned protesters to not violate the palace.

Im coming here to help the young people, said Peeja Plahn, 53. Many of them have not seen political rallies like this and they wont know what to do if things get bad. Were here to support their cause, but were also here because this government doesnt work, he added.

Thailand needs to move on.

At least 28 activists have been arrested on various charges, including sedition, since the protests began months ago.
Facebook Inc. will remain blacklisted by Lego A/S, after the maker of the worlds best known toy blocks conducted a review of social media platforms to determine where to send its advertising dollars.

The Danish company said it was resuming ads with other social media companies, according to an emailed comment to Bloomberg News. But Facebook still hasnt done enough to persuade Lego lift its ban, it said.

The maker of the iconic coloured building blocks suspended its advertising on social media in July, joining a protest by some of the worlds biggest corporations against the failure of many platforms to block hateful and misleading content. On Friday, Lego said it has since resumed ad payments to YouTube, Snapchat, Instagram and Twitter, among others, following its review.

We have decided not to advertise on Facebook, where we are less confident progress is being made, a spokesman at Lego said in an emailed reply to questions.

Legos ban covers Facebook in the U.S. and Europe. The Danish company is now in the process of revising marketing plans and expects its ad ban on Facebook to extend to more regions over the coming months.

Facebook said earlier this week that many advertisers that had previously walked away over concerns it wasnt doing enough to combat hate speech have since started returning.

This is a very dynamic environment and we will continue to review our approach to advertising and engagement across global social media platforms, Lego said in the email.

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By Trend

On September 19, the Azerbaijani Minister of Defense, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov held an official meeting with the command staff of the Azerbaijan Army, Trend reports referring to the ministrys press service.

First, the memory of the national leader of the Azerbaijani people Heydar Aliyev, and the Shahids (martyrs) who died for the territorial integrity of the country was honored with observing a minute of silence.

The Minister of Defense stressed that the latest information received and messages spread in the mass-media, as well as the military rhetoric in the speeches of the military-political leadership of Armenia, the conduct of mobilization activity and the involvement of external forces in the region indicates that the enemy intends to commit large-scale provocations and aggravate the situation.

"Considering this, the forces and means available in our use must be fully ready not only to suppress any provocations but also to take strict preventive measures. For this, special attention should be paid to reconnaissance activities and combat support, as well as to take organized actions in all areas," he said.

"It is necessary to strengthen control over the quality of exercises and training aimed at constantly increasing the combat capability and professionalism of the Azerbaijan Army, in particular its foremost units, as well as increasing the level of combat readiness of military personnel and the liberation of the occupied territories."

The Minister of Defense instructed the officials to pay special attention to the transfer of weapons, military and specialized equipment of the Azerbaijan Army into the winter operation mode, the effectiveness and timely completion of the preparation process for the winter period, the full logistic support of units, the health of military personnel, as well as measures to fight the COVID-19 pandemic

In the end, Colonel General Hasanov gave instructions in regards to clarification of combat analysis and mobilization resources with the relevant structures, following the action plan, as well as preparations to conduct training sessions in various specialties, field activities, and combat training classes with reservists.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
I guess Rep. Max Rose didnt realize the role that jet fighters played when they provided air cover to New York City on 9/11/01 while the airspace was locked down to prevent further attacks. After all, he was only 14 years old at the time.

I cant believe that on one day, Max calls our mayor the worst mayor ever, and the next day he sides with the mayor in condemning an F-18 flyover on 9/11. On 9/11, the innocent people of New York smelled the smells of war, and saw the horrible sights of war. They have paid the price in illnesses, just like the Vietnam vets did with Agent Orange.

There have been several low flyovers over the past few weeks, and Max didnt object to any of them. But when it came to 9/11, he was infuriated. Permit me to be the first to call Max Rose the worst congressman ever.

And, by the way, please dont mount any more Hummers on Memorial Day, as my stomach can only take so much.

On Election Day, I wont be marching in Pelosis army like her loyal soldier Max Rose.

(Lee Covino is a New Brighton resident.)
Gardai are to target destinations favoured by Dubliners to discourage a weekend exodus from the capital.

This will include Dart and rail stations and popular getaway destinations. Officers will set up checkpoints around the perimeter of Dublin as well as surrounding counties this morning to ensure the public comply with the Level 3 Covid-19 restrictions imposed by the Government.

But they will not repeat the huge motorway operation that marked the Easter lockdown.

Instead, the Garda focus this time will be on the destinations rather than the roads being used by those seeking to head out to the Wicklow mountains and other beauty and leisure spots within easy distance from the capital.

"We want to avoid long tailbacks of traffic as a result of motorway checkpoints. These will be replaced by carrying out the checks locally at the areas where crowds are likely to gather for relaxation," one senior officer said last night.

Read More

Gardai will also monitor increases in passengers on the Dart, the Luas and other routes and officers will be on duty at rail stations. They will aim to establish the motives of those hoping to spend time outside the capital, either as sightseers or to avail of more relaxed restrictions on pubs and restaurants in surrounding counties such as Wicklow, Kildare, Meath and Louth.

People from outside the county are also being advised not to travel into Dublin during the three-week restriction.

The existing high-visibility patrolling plan for Dublin, where officers will be out in force, either on foot, by bicycle or in cars, will be stepped up over the weekend to encourage compliance with the Covid-19 regulations.

Gardai will also make spot checks in pubs to inspect food bills and establish how much is being spent on the required 9 meals overall and determine whether the licensed premises is observing Covid-19 rules. Visits will also be made to selected premises to ensure they are closing on time.

The high-visibility patrol officers will encourage the public to co-operate with the guidelines on social distancing and avoiding large groups assembling on the streets or public walkways.

If gardai establish potential breaches of the regulations, they will investigate them and then prepare a file in each case for the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions. Deputy Garda Commissioner in charge of policing and security, John Twomey reiterated that gardai would continue to adopt a graduated response, based on the force's tradition of policing by consent.

He said this had resulted in officers being seen to engage, educate, encourage and, only as a last resort, enforce, and that approach would continue.

Meanwhile, people in Dublin are being told not to leave the county for either domestic or overseas travel for the next three weeks under Level 3 Covid-19 restrictions for the capital. This means people living in Dublin should not fly out of Dublin Airport to destinations on the revised Green List unless for essential reasons.

However, people cannot be legally punished under the new rules and gardai can only urge them to follow the restrictions. The restrictions on leaving the county will apply for all travel, domestic and foreign, the Cabinet decided.

Meanwhile, tourists arriving in Dublin Airport will be free to travel to destinations in other counties while the capital is in lockdown. The same restrictions will be applied to Dublin as were introduced in Kildare, Laois and Offaly, where people were allowed to travel through the county, but asked only to stop if it was for an essential reason.

Similarly, air travellers arriving in Dublin for holidays will still be able to travel by train, bus and car to another county if that is where they are staying. People will be allowed to travel in and out of Dublin only for essential work, education and/or care needs, the Government will advise.

However, a Government spokesperson confirmed the international travel restrictions will be enforced by gardai only through "policing by consent".

"In supporting the Covid-19 public health guidelines and regulations, An Garda Siochana has and will continue to adopt, a graduated policing response based on its tradition of policing by consent," he said.

"This has seen Garda members engage, educate, encourage and, as a last resort, enforce.

"In respect of travel regulations, which are not declared to be Penal Regulations under the Health Act 1947 as amended, under Operation Fanacht, An Garda Siochana will continue to use the approach of the three Es which will see gardai engage, educate and encourage, only, in compliance with travel regulations," he added.

The spokesperson said: "In respect of the airport, there are no specific Garda operations being implemented for travel out of the jurisdiction.

"The current advice and regulations for persons entering Ireland stand."

On Thursday, the Department of Foreign Affairs updated the Green List to include countries with a 14-day cumulative disease incidence rate of 25 or less per 100,000, based on data provided by the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC).

The move means, from Monday, people arriving in Dublin from Cyprus, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland can fly into Ireland without being asked to restrict their movements for two weeks.

People can fly from Ireland to these countries without restrictions on their return.
By PTI

AHMEDABAD: Five out of 506 people who were tested for novel coronavirus ahead of the five-day session of the Gujarat Assembly starting on Monday have been detected with the infection, officials said on Saturday.

COVID-19 tests were conducted on Speaker Rajendra Trivedi and 505 staff members of the Assembly over the past two days, and five had been found to be infected, a release said.

It added that Trivedi had tested negative, while those whose reports returned positive comprised two staff members and three security personnel.

"As per direction of Assembly Speaker Rajendra Trivedi, on September 18 and 19, all Vidhan Sabha officers, employees, security branch personnel, Class III employees, sweepers, police, totaling 506 people, were tested for COVID- 19 through rapid antigen test," it said.

COVID-19 tests will also be conducted on all 172 legislators on Sunday before they are allowed entry into the Assembly building to attend the session, Health Minister Nitin Patel said.

Media personnel covering Assembly proceedings will also have to get COVID-19 negative certificates to gain access to the building, Patel said on Saturday.

The state saw its highest single-day spike of 1,432 coronavirus cases on Saturday, raising the total number of cases to 1,21,930, the state health department said.

With 16 patients succumbing, the COVID-19 death toll in the state rose to 3,305, it said.

The number of recoveries exceeded the number of new cases, with 1,470 patients getting discharged on Saturday.

This raised the total number of recovered cases in the state to 1,02,571, the department said in its release.

With this, the state's recovery rate is now 84.12 percent,the department said in its release.

Surat reported 281 new cases, the highest in the state.

Ahmemdabad followed with 178 new cases.

Rajkot with 151 new cases, Vadodara 138 and Jamnagar with 126 were the three other districts that reported over 100 new cases.

Among other districts, Mehsana reported 69 new cases, Banaskantha and Gandhinagar 44 each, Bhavnagar 42, Junagadh 35, Panchmahal 30, Amreli 29, Morbi 28, Kutch 26, Bharuch 24, Patan 23, Mahisagar 16, Dahod and Gir Somnath 15 each, Devbhumi Dwarka 14, Sabarkantha 13, Kheda, Narmada and Surendranagar 12 each, Anand and Tapi ten each.

Surat also accounted for the highest five of the 16 deaths reported in the state.

Ahmedabad reported three fatalities, Bhavnagar and Vadodara two each, and Amreli, Gandhinagar, Kutch and Rajkot one each,the department said.

The number of active cases in Gujarat now stands at 16,054, out of which the condition of 97 patients is critical, the department said.

As many as 61,432 tests were conducted for COVID-19 in the state over the last 24 hours, at the rate of 945.11 tests per day per million population.

Gujarat COVID-19 figures are as follows: Positive cases 1,21,930, new cases 1,432, deaths 3,305, discharged 1,02,571, active cases 16,054, and people tested so far 37,39,782.
SEELEY LAKE, Mont.  When researchers arrived in this town tucked in the Northern Rockies three years ago, they could still smell the smoke a day after it cleared from devastating wildfires. Their plan was to chart how long it took for people to recover from living for seven weeks surrounded by relentless smoke.

They still dont know, because most residents havent recovered. In fact, theyve gotten worse.

Forest fires had funneled hazardous air into Seeley Lake, a town of fewer than 2,000 people, for 49 days. The air quality was so bad that on some days the monitoring stations couldnt measure the extent of the pollution. The intensity of the smoke and the length of time residents had been trapped in it were unprecedented, prompting county officials to issue their first evacuation orders due to smoke, not fire risk.

Many people stayed. That made Seeley Lake an ideal place to track the long-term health of people inundated by wildfire pollution.

So far, researchers have found that peoples lung capacity declined in the first two years after the smoke cleared. Chris Migliaccio, an immunologist with the University of Montana, and his team found the percentage of residents whose lung function sank below normal thresholds more than doubled in the first year after the fire and remained low a year after that.

Theres something wrong there, Migliaccio said.

While its long been known that smoke can be dangerous when in the thick of it  triggering asthma attacks, cardiac arrests, hospitalizations and more  the Seeley Lake research confirmed what public health experts feared: Wildfire haze can have consequences long after its gone.

That doesnt bode well for the 78 million people in the western United States now confronting historic wildfires.

Kari Greer / U.S. Forest Service 2017

Toxic air from fires has blanketed California and the Pacific Northwest for weeks now, causing some of the worlds worst air quality. California fires have burned roughly 2.3 million acres so far this year, and the wildfire season isnt over yet. Oregon estimates 500,000 people in the state have been under a notice to either prepare to evacuate or leave. Smoke from the West Coast blazes has drifted as far away as Europe.

Extreme wildfires are predicted to become a regular occurrence due to climate change. And, as more people increasingly settle in fire-prone places, the risks increase. Thats shifted wildfires from being a perennial reality for rural mountain towns to becoming an annual threat for areas across the West.

Dr. Perry Hystad, an associate professor in the College of Health and Human Sciences at Oregon State University, said the Seeley Lake research offers unique insights into wildfire smokes impact, which until recently had largely been unexplored. He said similar studies are likely to follow because of this fire season.

This is the question that everybody is asking, Hystad said. Ive been sitting in smoke for two weeks, how concerned should I be?

Migliaccio wants to know whether the lung damage he saw in Seeley Lake is reversible  or even treatable. (Think of an inhaler for asthma or other medication that prevents swollen airways.)

But those discoveries will have to wait. The team hasnt been able to return to Seeley Lake this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Migliaccio said more research is needed on whether wildfire smoke damages organs besides the lungs, and whether routine exposure makes people more susceptible to diseases.

The combination of the fire season and the pandemic has spurred other questions as well, like whether heavy smoke exposure could lead to more COVID-19 deaths. A recent study showed a spike in influenza cases following major fire seasons.

Now you have the combination of flu season and COVID and the wildfires, Migliaccio said. How are all these things going to interact come late fall or winter?

One of the known dangers of smoke is particulate matter. Smaller than the width of a human hair, it can bypass a bodys defenses, lodging deep into lungs. Lu Hu, an atmospheric chemist with the University of Montana, said air quality reports are based on how much of that pollution is in the air.

Its like lead; theres no safe level, but still we have a safety measure for whats allowable, Hu said. Some things kill you fast and some things kill you slowly.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

While air quality measurements can gauge the overall amount of pollution, they cant assess which specific toxins people are inhaling. Hu is collaborating with other scientists to better predict how smoke travels and what pollutants people actually breathe.

He said smokes chemistry changes based on how far it travels and whats burning, among other factors.

Over the past few years, teams of researchers drove trucks along fire lines to collect smoke samples. Other scientists boarded cargo planes and flew into smoke plumes to take samples right from a fires source.

Still others stationed at a mountain lookout captured smoke drifting in from nearby fires. And ground-level machines at a Missoula site logged data over two summers.

Bob Yokelson, a longtime smoke researcher with the University of Montana, said scientists are getting closer to understanding its contents. And, he said, its not all bad news.

Temperature and sunlight can change some pollutants over time. Some dangerous particles seem to disappear. But others, such as ozone, can increase as smoke ages.

Yokelson said scientists are still a long way from determining a safe level of exposure to the 100-odd pollutants in smoke.

We can complete the circle by measuring not only whats in smoke, but measuring whats happening to the people who breathe it, Yokelson said. Thats where the future of health research on smoke is going to go.

Katheryn Houghton writes for Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent program of the Kaiser Family Foundation. Email: katherynhoughton@gmail.com Twitter: @K_Hought
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a stalwart liberal on the U.S. Supreme Court since 1993, died on Friday aged 87, giving President Donald Trump a chance to expand its conservative majority with a presidential election looming.

Ginsburg, a champion of women's rights who became an icon for American liberals, died at her home in Washington of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer.

Donald Trump has vowed to fill the vacancy created by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg without delay.

Who could fill the seat

Amy Coney Barrett

Judge Barrett is a member of the Federal Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and is the likely front-runner for the job as Republicans see advantages in replacing Justice Ginsburg with a woman. A former law professor at Notre Dame, Judge Barrett has a strong reputation in conservative circles.

Amul Thapar

A member of the Federal Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and the first federal judge of South Asian descent, Judge Thapar was also the first appeals court candidate nominated by Mr. Trump after he picked Justice Neil M. Gorsuch for the Supreme Court. Judge Thapar is a personal favorite of Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and the majority leader who carries a lot of sway in this process.

Raymond Kethledge

Judge Kethledge is a member of the Federal Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit since 2008, and is considered a strong adherent of a strict interpretation of the Constitution, but not considered the sort of choice Donald Trump likes to see in high-profile judicial nominations.

James Ho

Judge Ho sits on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and is a former clerk to Justice Clarence Thomas. Born in Taiwan, he is a new addition to Mr. Trumps list of candidates for the Supreme Court. He also formerly served as a counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee, and worked in the Justice Department on civil rights.

Thomas M. Hardiman

Judge Hardiman sits on the Federal Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, in Philadelphia, and was the first member of his family to graduate from college. His compelling life story, coupled with a winning personality, has appealed to president Trump, as has his solid record of conservative rulings.

William H. Pryor Jr.

Judge Pryor, who sits on the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, in Atlanta, is a committed conservative who this month wrote a majority opinion ruling that people with felony criminal records in Florida were ineligible to vote unless they paid back all of their outstanding court fines and fees.

Voters prefer Biden to choose

Voters preferred Joe Biden over President Trump to pick the next Supreme Court justice, according to recent polls by The New York Times and Siena College.

Hundreds of admirers of Justice Ginsburg made their way to the Supreme Court on Friday night, holding candles, singing Amazing Grace and chanting her initials: R.B.G., R.B.G., R.B.G. .

She stood up for me, and she stood up for you, said Molly Gilligan of Arlington, Va. This is a devastating moment, but she gave us a lot to celebrate, as well.
Prince Andrews role in the royal family has completely changed since the Jeffrey Epstein scandal broke last year. Andrews connection to the convicted sex offender was bad enough. But, his disastrous interview on the BBC  where he seemingly had no regrets about his relationship with Epstein  sealed his fate as a senior royal. The Duke of York stepped down from his royal duties in November. And now, a new report claims its only a matter of time before Andrew loses his HRH title.

Prince Andrew | Christopher Furlong  WPA Pool/Getty Images

An MPs wife tell-all diary reveals how excruciating Prince Andrew can be

Sasha Swire, the wife of Tory MP Sir Hugo Swire, is a British journalist who recently released a tell-all diary about the UKs elite ruling class. In Diary of an MPs Wife: Inside and Outside Power, Swire recalls an official dinner in 2011.

According to The Daily Mail, the book details Swires encounter with Prince Andrew at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland. She describes Andrew giving an excruciating diatribe about how brilliant he was during the dinner.

Swire also remembers Andrew talking about how desperate he was for his daughters  Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie  to have significant roles in the royal family. She says it was clear there was a power struggle between Andrew and Prince Charles.

I have to say, Prince Andrew chairing the round the table discussion is excruciatingly painful to watch, Swire writes. I sat there trying to listen to how brilliant he was when all I am seeing is him in swimming shorts, attending topless pool parties at Jeffrey Epsteins mansion.

Prince Andrew will have a limited role in Prince Philips 100th birthday celebration

Prince Philip will turn 100 in June 2021, and the palace is already preparing a celebration to commemorate the milestone. However, Express reports that the Duke of Edinburgh has made the painful decision to play down Prince Andrews role in the royal family.

Even though Prince Philip is extremely fond and proud of his second-oldest son, he knows Andrews name is currently poison. Nigel Cawthorne, author of Prince Andrew, Epstein, and the Palace, says that the decision to cut Andrew from the birthday celebration was all about the survival of the monarchy.

RELATED: Prince Andrew Urged to Take the Oath and Just Tell the Truth By the Lawyer for Jeffrey Epsteins Victims

After it was reported that Andrew would be included as little as possible in the celebration, Cawthorne called the decision one of the toughest Prince Philip has ever had to make. If Andrew is not by his dads side during the celebration, he says it will be an enormous blow.

It is a poignant moment and the loss of Prince Andrews HRH title is highly likely merely a matter of time now, Cawthorne said.

The monarchy will be on its last legs within a decade, claim royal experts

Between Prince Andrews connection to Jeffrey Epsten and Prince Harrys decision to step down as a senior royal with his wife, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, experts warn that the royal family could be in trouble.

As explained by Express, Queen Elizabeth, 94, has been the central figure of the British royal family for almost 70 years. But, when she retires or passes away, the monarchy could be facing extinction.

Currently, the majority of UK citizens support the queen and the monarchy. According to a recent YouGov poll of 3,000 Brits, 62 percent believed the monarchy should remain. But, Dr. Anna Whitelock, a royal history expert, says the support is linked to Queen Elizabeth, not the monarchy itself.

She warns that by 2030, the institution could be on its last legs. Dr. Whitelock explained that as the older generations who generally approve of the monarchy die out, the future of the monarchy will be in question.

I would definitely say that the monarchy  its purpose, what its about, will be questioned and challenged in a way that it hasnt been before, Dr. Whitelock said.
San Francisco, Sep 19 : San Francisco Mayor London Breed has announced the US city's plan for restarting indoor dining amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

San Francisco will move forward with indoor dining at 25 per cent capacity, up to 100 people, once classified as "orange" on California's tiered system, which will occur no sooner than the end of the month, Xinhua news agency quoted the announcement as saying on Friday.

San Francisco is currently assigned to the state's "red" tier, which provides the city the discretion to move forward with reopening some activities and services, including indoor salons and gyms.

Based on the state's tiered system, the earliest time that San Francisco will move to the less restrictive "orange" tier is at the end of September.

The San Francisco Department of Public Health is developing health and safety guidelines in coordination with the local restaurant industry in order to prepare restaurants for the safest reopening possible.

"Restaurants have been hit hard by Covid-19. Many have adapted with takeout and outdoor dining, but they've still been barely hanging on and, sadly, some have closed for good," said Breed.

"We are laying out the next steps to make sure restaurants are ready to reopen as safely as possible... Helping our restaurant industry survive this pandemic is a key part of our longer-term economic recovery." The city is working with the Golden Gate Restaurant Association to develop a self-certification process for reopening indoor dining in San Francisco.

This process will provide restaurants the information and tools they need to prepare to safely reopen indoor dining with limited capacity and other modifications in place.

Before restaurants can reopen, they will need to complete a self-certification documenting their ability to comply with minimum standards for operating indoor dining in San Francisco.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
McConnell stunned Washington by announcing the Senate would wait for the next president, after the November 2016 election, to choose Antonin Scalias replacement, blocking then-President Barack Obamas choice of Judge Merrick Garland

Its legacy time for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Fulfilling the Supreme Court seat left vacant by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg before the fall election is as much about McConnells goal of securing conservative majority on the court for decades to come as it is about confirming President Donald Trumps upcoming nominee.

Theres no guarantee the Kentucky Republican will succeed. He is about to move ahead with a jarring and politically risky strategy to try to bend his majority in the Senate to accomplish the remarkable. If it works, he will have ushered three justices to the court in four years, a historic feat.

For better or worse, this will be how McConnells tenure as a Senate leader will be measured.

Sen. McConnell already has played a huge role in shaping the Supreme Court for decades to come, said Edwin Chemerinsky, dean of the University of California, Berkley School of Law. A third confirmation, especially under these circumstances, would truly make this the McConnell Court for a long time to come.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) talks to reporters following the weekly Republican policy luncheon in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill September 15, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The path for how, exactly, McConnell will make this happen is being set swiftly in Washington. Many expect Trump to name his nominee in a matter of days and the Senate to start the confirmation process  condensing a typically monthslong endeavor into a matter of weeks.

Voting in the Senate could happen before the election or it could spill into the lame-duck period after the Nov. 3 vote. Either strategy is a political calculation for McConnell more than a substantive one.

For the longest serving Republican Senate leader in history, the course ahead depends on what is best for the handful of GOP senators who face difficult reelections in November and could make or break McConnells slim majority. Sens. Susan Collins in Maine, Cory Gardner in Colorado and others will set the pace.

Story continues

Conservative voters are expected to be energized by the prospect of a right-leaning court, and McConnell must weigh whether the endangered senators risk alienating them if they shy from a confirmation vote. Or, in their swing states, would the senators up for reelection fare worse if they rushed into a vote, upsetting centrist and independent voters who prefer to stick to Senate norms?

Read More: GOP senators fail to advance COVID-19 relief bill

For now, McConnell is eager to push ahead, willing to leave behind those senators whose votes he can afford to lose. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, signaled hours before Ginsburgs death that its too close to the election to vote on a confirmation. She and Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, have been critical of Trump and could be votes against the nominee.

With a narrow 53-seat majority in the 100-member Senate, McConnell can lose three senators and still rely on Vice President Mike Pence to break a tie vote. Republicans think the risks of pushing ahead are worth it.

McConnells got to thread the needle here, and I have no doubt he will, said Mike Davis, a former chief counsel for the Senate Judiciary Committee. He now runs an outside advocacy group for conservative judges and advises Republican senators.

McConnell never set out to remake the Supreme Court as he has done during the Trump era.

But the death of Justice Antonin Scalia hours before one of the early-state presidential debates in February 2016 put McConnell on a course that will define his decades-long career.

McConnell stunned Washington by announcing the Senate would wait for the next president, after the November 2016 election, to choose Scalias replacement, blocking then-President Barack Obamas choice of Judge Merrick Garland.

McConnell had no rule or precedent to fall back on, but he had a majority so he barreled ahead.

Hillary Clinton called on Senate Democrats to use every possible procedural obstacle to stop Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) from replacing Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. https://t.co/IlmXIDugvt  Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) September 19, 2020

Once Trump became president, McConnell shocked Washington again by changing Senate rules to allow for simple confirmation, by 51 votes, rather than the 60 traditionally needed to advance a nominee. First the Senate confirmed Judge Neil Gorsuch in 2017. Then, with the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy, senators confirmed Judge Brett Kavanaugh in 2018 after dramatic hearings and allegations that the nominee had sexually assaulted women.

Now McConnell, again through an exercise in majority power, is saying that the standard he set in 2016 no longer applies because his party also controls the White House.

Hypocrisy, say Democrats. But McConnell is not likely be wounded as he rushes toward another confirmation.

Former Democratic Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, the onetime majority leader who tangled fiercely with McConnell, was the first to change the Senates voting threshold on lower-level nominees out of Obama-era frustration with GOP blockades. Reid warned Republican senators not to follow their leader down this path.

If Republicans attempt to force yet another nominee onto the Supreme Court against the will of the American people, then they risk delegitimizing themselves and their party even more, Reid said. He warned it would further tear our country apart.

But McConnell left no doubt where this was headed.

Read More: Trump to Senate: Vote without delay on his pick to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Absent a robust legislative agenda aligned with Trump, McConnell set out on the Senates other main role  confirmations. Along with the two Supreme Court justices, he has installed more than 200 federal appellate and trial court judges in the Trump era.

Well, you dont get to write your own legacy, he said during an AP Newsmakers interview in 2018. But I will say that what were doing in the area of the court, I think, is the most important thing were doing.

Asked in February by Fox News how he would approach a high court vacancy, now that it was again an election year, he showed no hesitancy.

Yeah, we would fill it, McConnell said.

Have you subscribed to theGrios podcast Dear Culture? Download our newest episodes now!

The post McConnells legacy: Wielding majority power to reshape court appeared first on TheGrio.
(Natural News) Though most U.S. social media platforms are based in our country, there is nothing American about them. In fact, they are about as anti-American as they can get.

Take Twitter, for instance. The platforms speech Nazis just censored a Chinese scientist who published a paper alleging that the COVID-19 virus was actually created in a laboratory in Wuhan city, where the current pandemic is known to have originated.

Dr. Li-Meng Yan, a Chinese virologist (MD, PhD) who has fled her home country and her job at a notable Hong Kong university, appeared on British TV last week to claim that the novel coronavirus was created by Chinese scientists.

On Sunday, she proceeded to join Twitter, where, the following day, she tweeted a link to a paper that she co-authored with three other Chinese colleagues titled, Unusual Features of the SARS-CoV-2 Genome Suggesting Sophisticated Laboratory Modification Rather Than Natural Evolution and Delineation of Its Probable Synthetic Route.

Now, this woman is an educated virologist and, unlike many in the American scientific community, is not in the habit of fabricating or downplaying evidence in order to advance a political agenda (the climate change nonsense in our country comes immediately to mind).

So, with that in mind, you have to ask yourself how she could possibly benefit by coming forward with this evidence, since she has had to flee her job and her country.

From an executive summary of the report:

The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has led to over 910,000 deaths worldwide and unprecedented decimation of the global economy. Despite its tremendous impact, the origin of SARS-CoV-2 has remained mysterious and controversial. The natural origin theory, although widely accepted, lacks substantial support. The alternative theory that the virus may have come from a research laboratory is, however, strictly censored on peer-reviewed scientific journals. Nonetheless, SARS-CoV-2 shows biological characteristics that are inconsistent with a naturally occurring, zoonotic virus.

In this report, we describe the genomic, structural, medical, and literature evidence, which, when considered together, strongly contradicts the natural origin theory. The evidence shows that SARS-CoV-2 should be a laboratory product created by using bat coronaviruses ZC45 and/or ZXC21 as a template and/or backbone, the summary continues.

Naturally, if true, this would be devastating to the Communist Chinese government. And you would think that an American social media platform built on the constitutional premise of free speech and free expression would never stand in the way of a major whistleblower event like this involving a country that has emerged in the 21st century as Americas biggest rival. (Related: Chinese authorities hid the fact that medical staff in coronavirus-hit city were infected.)

You might think that; but obviously, youd be wrong.

And just what rules might this Chinese scientist have violated? Why, the rule that says you cant veer away from the accepted (left-wing) news narratives  in this case, that President Donald Trumps incompetence is what really led to the pandemic in the U.S.  not poor, persecuted little China.

Granted, no doubt Twitter got some big-time pushback from Beijing. But thats par for the course; Beijings commies dont like transparency. But Li-Mengs link to a scientific paper really didnt violate any of the platforms established rules, as far as we can tell, which means the suspension of her account is political/geopolitical.

Then again, by suspending Li-Mengs account, that became newsworthy  and now, her story is being told across a number of outlets, which actually services to undermine Chinas (and Twitters) attempts to silence her and deep-six her research.

Lets face it: Americas largest corporations, and especially the tech giants, are no longer American companies. They are in bed with some of the worst regimes around the world because they hate the country that spawned them, which makes no sense at all.

Sources include:

NaturalNews.com

Zenodo.org
A mass shooting at a backyard party has claimed two lives and left 14 people hospitalized in Rochester, New York.

Police responded to the shooting on the 200 block of Pennsylvania Avenue at around 12.25am, with about 100 people running wildly around a 'very chaotic scene,' said Acting Police Chief Mark Simmons.

Investigators are still trying to piece together who opened fire and why. Simmons said it was too early to say whether more than one person was shooting or who the intended targets may have been.

It comes just five days after Simmons took over as top cop, after his predecessor was ousted following weeks of Black Lives Matter protests and unrest over the death of Daniel Prude, who was fatally injured while being arrested in March.

Rochester Acting Police Chief Mark Simmons briefs the press on a shooting that killed two and wounded 14 at a house party early Saturday. He was appointed just five days ago

'We have 16 confirmed victims of shooting. And I'm sad to announce that two of those 16 received a fatal wound,' Simmons said at a news conference.

A man and woman, estimated to be in their late teens or early 20s, were killed, Simmons said. None of the wounded people were believed to have life-threatening injuries. They were being treated at two area hospitals.

'This is truly a tragedy of epic proportions,' Simmons said in a news conference held near the home. 'I mean 16 victims is unheard of, and for our community, whos right now going through so much, to have to be dealt with this tragedy, needlessly, for people who decide to act in a violent manner is unfortunate and shameful, and we're going to do everything that we can as a department to bring those people involved to justice.'

Simmons said it was unclear if the shooting was a targeted or random act of violence. The wounded were being treated in hospital and their injuries were not thought to be life threatening.

Police said that several dozen shots were fired in the shooting. One witness told WHAM-TV that the gunfire sounded like 'an all-out warzone.'

'So many people going in so many directions, so many different ways, driving on the grass, trying to get out of here,' said Billy, who did not want to give his last name.

Police responded to the shooting at around 12.25am, with about 100 people running wildly around a 'very chaotic scene,' said Acting Police Chief Mark Simmons

The shooting comes as the city's police department has been rocked by days of protests over Prude's death, caused when officers put a hood over his head to stop him from spitting, then pushed his face into the pavement until they noticed he had stopped breathing.

On Monday the city's mayor fired Police Chief LaRon Singletary, who she said initially misled her about the circumstances of the death. Other senior police officials announced they would retire or leave top command positions.

Simmons expressed frustration early Saturday that someone had held a large, late-night party amid that tumult, apparently in defiance of a state ban on large gatherings because of the coronavirus pandemic.

'This is yet another tragedy where individuals are having these illegal, unsanctioned house parties taking place in these properties, which - number one - is not safe because of COVID, because of the conditions. And then you add in alcohol and violence and it just becomes a recipe for disaster,' Simmons said.

Investigators are still trying to piece together who opened fire and why. Simmons said it was too early to say whether more than one person was shooting

Officers responded to calls of shots fired and found 'approximately 100 people' running from the scene, Simmons said. Before the call, police were not aware of the party and had received no complaints about noise, he said.

The acting chief said no suspects were in custody, but there was no reason to believe the neighborhood was unsafe.

The names of the two people killed were not immediately released.

Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren issued a statement asking for 'prayers and support for all involved,' according to WHEC-TV.

'I'm begging everyone to remain calm and exercise deep restraint as RPD investigates what happened here and seeks those responsible,' she said.
Regrets, I've had a few.

If I could go back in time, I'd tell younger Chris to stick with those guitar lessons. I'd return to one misbegotten night to slap that seventh tequila shot out of his hands. And I'd tell him to be much more careful with student loans.

More than two decades after I last sat for a college class, those loans are still a burden deducted each month from my bank account. I've come to think of them, rightly or wrongly, as a monthly punishment for growing up poor and wanting to go to college.

So my ears perked up when Chuck Schumer joined with his fellow U.S. senator Elizabeth Warren a few days ago to declare that federally backed student loans can and should be canceled by presidential executive order  up to $50,000 per borrower. The plan carries a trillion dollar price tag, and would wipe out debt for about 75 percent of borrowers.

"It will be a shot in the arm for the economy," New York's senior senator told me Friday. "It was a good idea before (the coronavirus), but now even more so."

The appeal of canceling debt as a response to the economic collapse brought on by pandemic lockdowns is obvious. Millions and millions of Americans write big monthly checks to the likes of Nelnet and Sallie Mae and there would be a tremendous economic boost to having the money spent on things like groceries, home repairs and toys for the family cat.

But this is about more than the economy because the $1.7 trillion in debt held by 45 million student borrowers is not just a financial burden for borrowers. It's a societal burden that makes the country worse. It's dragging us all down in ways you might not realize.

"It has changed young people's view of the world," Schumer said. "They are worried about the future. They delay getting married. They delay having a family. They delay buying a home. They delay buying a car. They take a job they really don't want, but need to pay back their loans."

Families and children are good. We can agree on that, right?

If so, we should be concerned that suffocating debt is playing a part in keeping a generation of younger adults from getting married and having kids. It should be clear a system is failing when it so dramatically impacts human happiness and flourishing. The reality is that little about how we finance higher education makes sense.

For decades, colleges and universities have been able to raise tuition to absurd levels because Congress, acting with good intentions but without implementing cost controls, devoted billions to student loans. The money was a boon to the college-industrial complex, allowing for fancy dorms, handsomely paid college administrators and massively profitable loan-servicing companies.

But students took it in the ear.

The average student loan burden has ballooned to about $30,000  which might not seem so high, until you remember the average is pulled down by wealthier students who borrow very little. For many, the burden is much higher. It's like starting a race with a concrete tire around your waist.

Late payments destroy credit ratings, and nine million borrowers were in default even before the pandemic. In many states, people who default on student loans can have occupational or drivers licenses revoked. Seniors with student loan debt can get their social security checks garnished. Filing for bankruptcy, meanwhile, often has no effect on student debt. And loan-service companies often deceive to make borrowers pay as much as possible.

It's all downright sinister, a kind of indentured servitude. A better political class would have fixed this long ago.

Some of you will say that borrowers willingly took out the loans and should dutifully pay back their obligation. There's truth to that, but the argument ignores a fact: Teenagers are naive and impressionable. If society tells them four years of college and massive debt are the path they must walk to a better future, they'll take it.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

When I was 18, no sane banker would have given me a loan or a mortgage. I had no income, no equity, no credit history, no nothing. But the federal government and my university were more than happy to let me scribble the old Johnny Hancock on loan after loan after loan after loan.

Was I aware of the down-the-road consequences? Of course not. Not many student borrowers are. Nobody warns them. The system works for everyone except the student who leaves school with $100,000 of debt and a degree that no longer guarantees a job.

A stronger argument against loan cancelation points out that people who went to college will eventually be better off financially than people who didn't. If we're going to devote a trillion dollars to something, shouldn't it help Americans trapped in poverty instead? One study even found that eliminating all student debt could worsen income inequality.

But Schumer noted that under his and Warren's plan, the amount of loan forgiveness would be scaled depending on income and unavailable to wealthier families. Tailoring a plan that way could reduce racial income gaps, studies have found, while allowing many of the formerly indebted to start families, launch businesses and do other good things that contribute to a meaningful and fulfilling life.

Schumer also said federal law is clear about a president's ability to modify student debt by executive order, which raises a thought: Which president do he and Warren have in mind? The current one or someone else?

"We would like Biden to do it," Schumer said, referring, of course, to the Democratic presidential nominee.

Well, if I were Donald Trump, I would take a look at the polls, remember I was elected on a populist wave and sign the executive order as soon as I could find my pen. Then, I'd watch Schumer and Warren sweat as their great idea boosted my bid for reelection.

cchurchill@timesunion.com  518-454-5442  @chris_churchill
The Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals has upheld the conviction of Randall Reed in a retrial for the murder of an East Ridge woman.

A jury in July 2018 convicted Reed of first-degree murder in the 2011 death of 70-year-old Jane Stokes.

An earlier conviction by a prior jury had been thrown out by an appeals court.

Reed testified in his own behalf.

The victim was murdered in her home during a robbery in 2011.

Her hands were zip-tied behind her back and her head was wrapped in cellophane. An autopsy revealed that she died from suffocation.

Evidence in the case showed Reed using the victims debit card at an ATM on Brainerd Road hours after the murder. Reed also testified to previously doing construction work at the victims house prior to the incident.



In 2013, Reed was tried before a Hamilton County Jury and sentenced to life in prison for the murder, to be served concurrently with sentences for especially aggravated robbery, theft of property, and four counts of fraudulent use of a debit card.



The defendant later appealed the ruling, referencing a court error where witness Milo Geiger testified that he had agreed to take a lie detector test and Reed had not. The defendant also argued that the court improperly admitted photos of the victim, failed to instruct the jury on one of the lesser offenses, and that the evidence was simply insufficient to support his conviction.



After a review of the record, Reeds appeal for a new trial was granted.

In connection with the second trial, the appeals court said, "This appeal arises from the second jury trial of the Defendant-Appellant, Randall Kenneth Reed, for which he was convicted of first degree premeditated murder, first degree felony murder, aggravated robbery, and theft of property, and received an effective sentence of life imprisonment. See Tenn. Code Ann.  39-13-202(a)(1), (a)(2), 39-13-402, 39-14-103. In this appeal, Reed argues: (1) the trial court erred in denying his right to self-representation; (2) the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress, which it construed as a motion for reconsideration; (3) the evidence is insufficient to establish his identity as the perpetrator of the offenses; (4) the guilty pleas he made in front of the jury should have been assessed and a new jury empaneled to ensure that he had a fair and unbiased trial; and (5) the trial court erred in admitting life and death photographs of the victim at trial. After carefully reviewing the record and the applicable law, we remand the case for entry of corrected judgment forms in Counts 1 and 2 as specified in this opinion. In all other respects, the judgments of the trial court are affirmed."

Judge Tom Greenholtz handled the case.
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Marriott Brings Its Courtyard Brand to Malaysia

Marriott expands in Malaysia by bringing its Courtyard by Marriott brand to this Asian country. This will be a new hotel in Penang. It will particularly appeal to leisure tourists as the new hotel enjoys a fantastic location in George Town, a UNESCO-listed site.



Comfortably nestled along the Jalan Macalister, the new Penang hotel will feature 199 rooms. The management team promises to deliver the best hotel experience to guests of the new Courtyard by Marriott. This is going to be the 17th brand by Marriott in Malaysia. The choice of the city for the first Courtyard hotel was not random. Located on Peninsular Malaysia, Penang is recognized as The Pearl of the Orient. This is a great destination for both beach recreation and sightseeing. Penang has a rich history, and George Town, the heart of the city and a UNESCO World Heritage zone, is another proof of this. In Penang, old Chinese and Indian temples and monasteries peacefully coexist with mosques and modern skyscrapers.



The Courtyard by Marriott hotel in Penang offers panoramic 360 views of the Straits of Malacca and Georgetown. Each of the spacious rooms and suites comes with modern amenities and up-to-date equipment. An ergonomic work area makes the rooms suitable for both business and leisure guests. A business center in the lobby helps guests to stay efficient and meet their colleagues or partners.



The hotels dining venues include Penang Kitchen, a chic all-day dining restaurant that offers a menu based on Malay, Chinese, Indian, and Nyonya cuisine dishes, and Gin Library the first distillery-themed bar on the island. Made in the Anglo-Indian design, the new bar will offer a selection of gin, whiskey, and other spirits, as well as alcoholic cocktails. The bar opens closer to the end of this year.



Guests who like to stay fit wherever they go will be pleased to visit the 24-hour fitness center. An outdoor infinity pool with the amazing view of Penang Hill is likely to become a magnet for all guests. Courtyard by Marriott will be suitable for various events and celebrations as it features a ballroom for up to 150 guests. Moreover, there are eight meeting rooms of different sizes and one VIP room. Each of the rooms comes with the up-to-date audio and visual equipment to cater needs of modern business travelers.

19.09.2020Stay in touch with the latest news of a worldwide hotel industry. All up-to-date analytics, reports , and news about hotel business trends on OrangeSmile.com.
Chinese telecom gear maker Huawei on Friday launched an advertising campaign showing its commitment for India.

The company launched the campaign on the eve of completing 20 years of presence in the country.

"Huawei launched advertisements reiterating to be 'As Committed As Ever' to India's digital journey. The commitment, supported by its three business groups, focuses on its vision of building a strong Digital India," according to a statement.

It added that the images in the creative pay homage to key cultural icons of India, celebrating the diverse culture of this ancient nation. "Along with the advertisements, Huawei India will also release a video narrating its two-decade dynamic journey in the country."

Huawei started a direct presence in India 20 years ago with the launch of its research and development centre in Bengaluru.

"As an ICT (information and communication technology) global leader, we have brought our expertise to help the Indian ecosystem grow and integrate it into the global value chain for a self-reliant India," Huawei Chief Executive Officer David Li said in a statement.

He added that the 20 years are testimony to Huawei's commitment to deliver secure networks, creating jobs and contributing to India's economic growth.

"Huawei is with India, for India," Li said.

The company commemorated the occasion with a new 20-year anniversary logo.

"Its colours are inspired by India's national bird, the peacock, while the flowing lines and swirl of myriad hues of the 'Zero-0' symbolise India's essence  unity in diversity of cultures, ethnicity and people, a dynamic nation perpetually evolving and growing," the statement said.
Two years ago at The Atlantic Festival, Senator Lindsey Graham defended the Republican decision to block President Barack Obamas nominee to the Supreme Court, Merrick Garland. If an opening comes in the last year of President Trumps term, and the primary process is started, well wait to the next election, Graham said.

Now that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died, only a month and a half before the 2020 election, the chance that the senator keeps his word seems infinitesimal. (He has already said that after Brett Kavanaugh, the rules have changed.)

Mitch McConnell certainly has no intention of abiding by the so-called McConnell rule, an invention to justify the Senates refusal to consider Garland in March 2016. The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court justice, McConnell said then. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

But only hours after Ginsburgs death was announced, McConnell said in a statement, President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate. His tortuous excuse is that his made-up rule is meant to apply only when the Senate and the presidency are controlled by different parties.
New Delhi: Seemingly irked over his son B.Y. Vijayendra being often branded as 'Super CM' by the Opposition and from within his own party, Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Friday sought to clarify that he sees a "systematic conspiracy" behind levelling such allegations against his son.

Speaking to reporters after laying the foundation for the reconstruction of Karnataka Bhavan-1 Cauvery at an estimated cost of Rs 120 crore in New Delhi, he said that his son's name was being unnecessarily dragged to malign him and create confusion.

"It is natural that people will have disliking for someone who is growing as a leader. I can vouch for the fact that he (Vijayendra) has not interfered in my administration at any given point of time," the Chief Minister said.

Yediyurappa claimed that as the state (BJP) unit Vice President, Vijayendra was doing his duty by travelling across the state to strengthen the party. "Meeting people cannot be construed as interfering in the administration," he shot back.

The Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, Siddaramaiah, has been consistently saying that Vijayendra is the de facto Chief Minister who is interfering with the administration. "Vijayendra is the de facto CM, whereas Yediyurappa is the de jure CM," he said.

Following Siddaramaiah's charges, the Karnataka Congress has taken to Twitter to take potshots at Vijayendra for allegedly holding a meeting with medical officials and sought to know who gave him the power for such an interaction when he did not hold any constitutional position.

Murmurs are also growing within the ruling BJP over alleged administrative interference of Vijayendra ever since the BJP came to power last year, a charge often rejected by Yediyurappa.
Her fierce advocacy for the protection of rights for all people under the law  women, workers, LGBTQ people alike  and her guardianship of the Constitution must not be taken for granted. As a lawyer, she challenged and defined equal justice under the law in a way that changed our country to make it fairer and better," Underwood said. "As a Supreme Court justice, she upheld those sacred principles. Her life and work paved a way for women like me to challenge norms and fight for people and causes that make our country stronger.
Cardboard tombstones and nearly 40 motionless "bodies" filled Northern Arizona Universitys North Quad Friday afternoon as graduate student workers took part in a die-in demonstration to demand changes to the universitys COVID-19 policies.

Their dominant message: If you dont pay us enough to live, you dont pay us enough to die.

Graduate students were joined by other masked members of the campus community who together chanted and held signs before lying still on the soggy grass for half an hour to represent the NAU student and employee lives that demonstrators said could be lost as a result of maintaining in-person instruction during COVID-19.

The group had four specific demands for university administrators, the same ones they said theyve been asking for since July: adequate and accessible personal protective equipment (PPE), the choice of teaching modality, transparent data on campus COVID-19 cases and graduate employee representation in NAUs decision-making process.

Our status as students is the reason were not allowed to have input or representation in meaningful administrative levels, but our status as faculty is the reason were being told we dont have the choice of course modality, said Sarah-Grace Crocco, a graduate teaching assistant in the School of Communication. For students like myself, I should be able to stay at home just like undergraduate students are being offered the option and the opportunity.

Crocco, who helped organize the demonstration hosted by the University Union of Northern Arizona, said she has not been offered accommodations from the university to continue her job and studies in a way that would make her feel safe.

The more that we talk to each other, the more we hear stories like this, stories like mine, of chronically ill and disabled graduate student workers who are being asked to make an impossible choice: my job and my health insurance or my life, she said.

Crocco said the turnout for the demonstration was less than what she had hoped for and was likely due to what she described as routinely threatening and intimidating messages from NAU administration to faculty and staff.

Folks are scared. The people who are here today arent here because theyre not scared. Theyre here because we dont feel like we have any other choice moving forward but to do direct action to elicit a response, she said.

Graduate teaching assistant Stacy Clark, another organizer of the demonstration, said she was fortunate enough she was able to receive an accommodation for her working conditions, but such behavior has not been the standard on campus.

Some of us have supportive supervisors and we go through a certain lucky series of hoops and we are able to be granted an accommodation, whereas others of us are not able to achieve that and we are forced to come on campus, as my friend Sarah-Grace has been, Clark said.

Clark led demonstrators in chants of Give us safety, give us choice. Let grad workers have a voice, and Locate your morality. Give choice of course modality, which the group shouted as they walked in a large, socially distant circle before the die-in began.

As they then passed the time silently in the warm sunlight, some participants had their hands folded neatly on their chests, while others had their arms and legs sprawled. Many covered their faces with cardboard displaying frowning caricatures with crossed-out eyes.

Ten minutes into the demonstration, they took a quick break to sit up and take a deep breath in honor of those who have died because of COVID-19. As of Friday, Coconino County has reported 135 total COVID-19 deaths. Statewide, the death count is more than 5,000, with most occurring in Maricopa County.

Also on Friday, NAU updated its dashboard to say the university is managing 273 cases of on- and off-campus students, up from 96 the week before. The dashboard does not have numbers for total stats such as cases or recoveries; according to Coconino County's dashboard, the NAU ZIP code (86011) has had 71 positive cases since the pandemic started.

NAU sophomore Madison Kier said she decided to participate in the demonstration in the hopes NAU administrators and the Arizona Board of Regents would put students lives over university profit by canceling in-person classes. She said the demonstrations theme seemed appropriate, given the reality of current conditions.

I think it definitely legitimizes the cause because it points out that were really dealing with student lives. So it seems dramatic, but its because those are the stakes that are at risk, Kier said. I think, yes, sit-ins can be impactful, but a die-in really shows the stark contrast of [NAUs] priorities and our lives.

Kaitlin Olson can be reached at the office at kolson@azdailysun.com or by phone at (928) 556-2253.

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The new Rector of Isa Mustapha Agwai l Polytechnic,Lafia Dr,Justina Anjide Kotso has said she would not rushed to sign the hand over note handed over to her by her predecessor,Ruth Jiriko,the outgoing Acting Rector.

She disclosed this during the official handing over of the baton of leadership at the chamber of the Governing Council.

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Dr Kotso said studying the hand over note became necessary in case of some grey areas that has to do with finance.

The new Rector applauded her predecessor for her good initiative to move the Polytechnic to another level,saying she would exclude any ambiguity in the hand over note as well on the solid fortress of her predecessor.

The outgoing Rector,Ruth Jiriko appreciate staff of the institution for their unflinching support,dedicating her success to the Polytechnic community.

She pleaded with all the staff of the institution to forgive her maybe in the cause of her assignment wrongly step on their toes.

Jiriko called on staff of the Polytechnic to extend their unflinching support to her successor for her to achieve.

Nurudden Muazu Maifata who represent the national President,Library Association of Nigeria lauded the new Rector of the Isa Mustapha Agwai l Polytechnic, Lafia.

The national President,Professor Innocent Ekoja described Dr.Justina Anjide Kotso as a dedicated and best brain in the Association.

It could be recalled that Ruth Jiriko was appointed by the state Governor,Engr.Abdullahi Sule on February 13,2020 as an Acting Rector for six month and later on extended her assignment to another one month which elapse on 13th September,2020.
ST. LOUIS  Barry Goldwater, tenacious underdog for president, stood before a cheering capacity crowd in Kiel Opera House. The big curtain behind him opened to reveal more loud Republicans in the adjoining auditorium.

Welcome to the crowd, folks, said the Republican presidential nominee as he turned to the happy supporters in the overflow seats.

The two wings of the Kiel convention hall downtown were built to share one stage as needed. It was warranted on Sept. 19, 1964, during Goldwaters only swing through Missouri as the candidate. He returned to the area for a quick speech in Belleville one week before election day.

Goldwater spoke in Springfield, Mo., on Sept. 17 after a warmly received series of rallies across the deep South, where he plugged a careful salute to states rights  calling for local control of federal grants while avoiding race. But he had voted against the Civil Rights Act two months before. Many in his crowds cheered with rebel yells and battle flags.

Then he headed to the border state of Missouri. He needed conservative Democrats to change their yellow-dog habits.

Goldwater, a senator from Arizona, was running far behind Texas-born President Lyndon B. Johnson. Goldwater inspired fierce devotion from the GOPs conservative wing, but flip comments such as his joke about lobbing a nuke into the Kremlin mens room gave the Democrats plenty of powder.

Goldwater billed his stop at Kiel as a major foreign-policy speech to calm the electorates jitters. He said there was no greater political lie than the drumbeat that he was too dangerous for the presidency.

I have never suggested, nor would I as president, move recklessly with our great power, he said. But I would take every step to make sure that the communists did not move recklessly with theirs.

Goldwater also covered the domestic essentials, accusing Johnson of lavishly wasting money on politically motivated handouts through the Great Society. Goldwater called for lower taxes, fewer regulations and smaller government.

After the speech, a few police officers escorted Goldwater to a waiting Cadillac. Even after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy 11 months before, campaign security was evolving.

That was obvious on Oct. 21, when Johnson spoke from a car outside Orr Weathers Homes, a public-housing complex in East St. Louis, and to an audience outside the Old Post Office, at Eighth and Locust streets downtown. There, he called the nuclear age no time for bluster, bluff and belligerence. Secret Service agents stood nearby, but the events were open to any pedestrian.

One week later, Goldwater spoke outside the St. Clair County Courthouse in Belleville, where he called local education the responsibility of parents, not the federal government.

He lost in a landslide on Nov. 3 to Johnson, who took 61 percent of the popular vote and all but six states. Missouri and Illinois were strong for Johnson. Goldwater won his own Arizona and five Deep Dixie states, foreshadowing his partys future Southern strategy.

Read more stories from Tim O'Neil's Look Back series.
With news of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death upending the 2020 presidential race, the two contenders for the White House largely focused their reactions on the Supreme Court jurist's legacy, with acknowledgement of the fierce political battles to come.

Both President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden piled on the superlatives in somber tones, with Trump repeatedly describing Ginsburg as "amazing" and Biden lamenting the loss of a woman who was "not only a giant in her own profession but a beloved figure."

News broke of Ginsburg's passing of complications from pancreatic cancer while Trump was onstage at a Minnesota rally, where he gave a lengthy speech without mentioning her. He appeared to be informed by reporters of the news after his speech.

"She just died?" Trump said, raring his head back in reaction. "Wow. I didn't know that, you're telling me now for the first time."

With the sound of Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" blaring in the background, Trump went on to praise the 87-year-old's life.

"What else can you say? She was an amazing woman  whether you agreed or not, she was an amazing woman who led an amazing life," Trump said. "I'm actually sad to hear that."

While Trump made no indication of his intent to name a successor to her seat, he had just minutes before at his rally alluded to the high stakes of the election regarding the courts.

"The Supreme Court is so important," he told his supporters in Bemidji, Minn. "The next president will get one, two, three or four Supreme Court justices. I had two."

Later, the White House put out a more expansive statement on Ginsburg's passing, which praised her as "a titan of the law."

"Renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable toward one's colleagues or different points of view," the statement said.

Story continues

The statement conveyed thoughts and prayers to her loved ones and made no mention of whether or when the president intended to nominate a successor.

Biden, the Democratic nominee, was more specific about how the newest Supreme Court vacancy should be handled.

"There is no doubt  let me be clear  that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider," Biden said in New Castle, Del., after a day of campaigning in Minnesota. "This was the position of the Republican Senate took in 2016 when there were almost 10 months to go before the election. Thats the position the United States Senate must take today."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) refused to hold hearings on President Obama's nominee, Merrick Garland, after conservative Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016.

Biden noted that the election was 46 days away and said he thought the fastest confirmation to the highest court took 47 days, while most proceedings averaged 70 days. (In fact, there have been several confirmations completed faster than Biden stated. Justice John Paul Stevens was confirmed 19 days after he was nominated in 1975, for example, and Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's confirmation took 33 days in 1981.)

Biden focused most of his remarks on Ginsburg's legal legacy, from her days as a pioneering young attorney to her jurisprudence in support for women's equality. And he reflected on how their paths crossed at a pivotal moment in her career, when he as Senate Judiciary Committee chairman presided over her confirmation in 1993 as she became the second woman ever to ascend to the Supreme Court.

"She has been absolutely consistent and reliable, and a voice for freedom and opportunity for everyone," Biden said. "She never failed  she was fierce and unflinching in her pursuit of the  civil rights of everyone. Her opinions and dissents will continue to shape the basis for our law for generations."
This year's meeting of the Moldova-Russia intergovernmental commission on trade and economic cooperation will take place online because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Moldovan President Igor Dodon said on Friday

CHISINAU (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th September, 2020) This year's meeting of the Moldova-Russia intergovernmental commission on trade and economic cooperation will take place online because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Moldovan President Igor Dodon said on Friday.

In July, the Moldovan president announced that the commission would meet in October.

"The session will take place online, we have accumulated many social and economic decisions, I hope they will be approved," Dodon said in a broadcast posted on Facebook.

According to the president, the Moldovan side is interested in four issues: the credit of about $236 million, the social protection agreement, diesel fuel for Moldova's farmers, as well as the vaccine against COVID-19.

On May 7, Moldova's constitutional court declared unconstitutional the Russia-Moldova agreement on the credit.

The Moldovan president promised to raise the issue with the Russian side again.

Relations between Moscow and Chisinau became strained after the ratification of the EU Association Agreement in 2016. However, since Dodon's election in 2016, relations between the two countries have been gradually improving.

The social protection agreement between the two countries mandates that those who have worked in Russia and Moldova for over 15 years in total and made social security payments can receive a pension in both countries.

In July, Dodon expressed interest in purchasing a Russian vaccine against COVID-19 to vaccinate his country's citizens.
When the Dundas Valley School of Arts annual art auction, its 50th, had to be postponed because of COVID-19, the school came up with modified online auctions.

We raised $103,000 and 50 per cent goes back the to art community, says Heather Vaugeois, one of the auction organizers.

The school is now preparing for its biggest online auction, which will run from Sept. 21 to 26. Hoping that the 50th auction will take place in the traditional live format next year, theyre calling this one No. 49-1/2.

During the week, the school will open to bidders who want to look at the art in person, but viewing times must be reserved. The art can also be seen online now and all bidding will be online. More than 1,000 paintings, sculptures, photographs, prints and ceramics are on offer. Heres a look at some of the treasures in the Featured Artworks section.

Richard Zazulak, a painter, photographer and graphic artist, painted Honoured to Have Served after a trip to Iceland.

We encountered endless examples of drydocked ships carrying a wealth of history of their marine service to the country, he says. These ships evoke in me a deep curiosity of their past existence and the stories that lie within their hulls.

Part of a vessel takes over the foreground. In depicting only part of it, Zazulak hints at its largeness. Bits of distant landscape and a bright blue sky balance the human-built boat. Hes painted geometric compositions, but he adopts a more lifelike style here, using fine lines to enclose varied shapes.

The physical structures lend themselves to a technique that I have developed based on my graphic art and photography background. Like the deteriorating shell of these ships, my approach is a form of fragmentation of the surfaces of the vessel and surrounding landscape.

Elizabeth McQueen, a Dundas painter and printmaker, found inspiration at her studio up north. Safe Harbour captures the moment the sun sinks below the horizon at Pilgers Launch.

Its the boat launch a farmer created decades ago for his family that has been adopted by the local community on Commanda Lake, she says.

McQueens style is bold and simplified. She reduces the land to a series of soft-edged, uneven horizontals. She paints the lowest layer in dark blue with pale highlights, then alternates light and dark horizontals that move upward to the sky.

Sandee Ewasiuk lets the human figure, set against a high horizon line, dominate in Paddling with the Monarchs on Georgian Bay. Ewasiuk excels at strong colour and eye-appealing details such as the checkered pattern of the headband, the stripes on the scarf and the tiny compartments on the butterflies wings.

By comparison, Susan Outlaws still life, Broken, features only one object  a pomegranate.

I see the pomegranate representing love  in colour and in the shape of our heart, she says. The flesh is broken and shared.

Outlaw, a painter well known for her lifelike style, creates a striking composition in two ways.

First, she zooms in on her subject. Half of a pomegranate lies on the left, creating a visual heaviness on that side.

Second, the painting is dominated by red, a colour whose emotive impact is intensified by the contrast with the pale cloth.

Regina Haggo is giving an illustrated talk, Bringing Still Life to Life, at the Carnegie Gallery, 10 King St. W., Dundas, on Sept. 23 at 7 p.m. This introduction to 2,000 years of still life painting examines how meanings and styles change through time and explores the significant part played by women artists. Tickets are limited and will not be sold at the door. Phone 905-627-4265.

RH Regina Haggo , art historian, public speaker, curator, YouTube video maker and former professor at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, teaches at the Dundas Valley School of Art.

Annual Art Auction

Who: Dundas Valley School of Art, 21 Ogilvie St.

When: Bidding begins Monday, Sept. 21, ends Saturday, Sept. 26.

How: All bidding is online. Free in-person previews with timed ticket. Go to dvsa.ca.

Phone: 905-628-6357
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 19)  Senators are drafting a bill seeking to grant President Rodrigo Duterte authority to expedite government transactions amid the pandemic.

Duterte met with Congress leaders early this week requesting for amendments to the Ease of Doing Business Act to further reduce or eliminate bureaucratic red tape.

In a statement on Saturday, Senator Panfilo Ping Lacson said lawmakers have agreed it would be more practical and expeditious to pass another law to shorten government process while the country is under a state of health emergency.

Lacson, one of the authors of the anti-red tape law, said this consensus was reached Friday night in a meeting led by Senate President Vicente Tito Sotto III.

When the final draft is approved by at least the majority of the senators in a caucus, SP Sotto will present the same to the chief executive as well as the leaders of the (House of Representatives) so we can pass the corresponding legislation, Lacson said.

In a separate statement, Senator Miguel Migz Zubiri said the planned measure would be like giving Duterte anti-red tape emergency powers to cut short the processing time for permits and licenses and waive some requirements.

Under Republic Act No. 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of 2018, applications or requests should be processed within three workings days for "simple transactions" and up to seven days for complex ones. A longer period is allowed when the processes involve more government offices or highly technical processes.

Duterte recently signed the Bayanihan to Recover As One Act, which allows him to exercise additional powers necessary for pandemic response and recovery. It also sets aside 165.5 billion for additional health spending as well as assistance to sectors hard hit by the global COVID-19 crisis.

The President has also issued a proclamation extending the national state of calamity for one more year, or until September 2021, citing the continued rise in coronavirus infections.
Organizers decided to include a timeline of different monuments placed in the dell to acknowledge the history of the space. When there were conversations about the monument being removed, some people said, A monument is history. It needs to stay in the park,  McGough said. Something that we wanted to share was the fact that monuments have come and gone from the park.
A package addressed to president Donald Trump containing the poison ricin has been intercepted by law enforcement, according to report.

Two law enforcement officials told CNN that tests confirmed the presence of the poison.

Mail addressed to the White House is sorted and screened offsite. The FBI and Secret Service are investigating the matter and are trying to determine if other packages were sent through the postal system.

An official has said that investigators believe the package may have come from Canada, The New York Times reports.

A statement from the FBI said: "The FBI and our US Secret Service and US Postal Inspection Service partners are investigating a suspicious letter received at a US government mail facility. At this time, there is no known threat to public safety."

The Independent has reached out to the White House for comment.

Ricin is found naturally in castor beans and can be made from the waste material left over when they are processed.

Ingesting or inhaling the poison can cause a range of painful symptoms from nausea through to organ failure and death through a collapse in the circulatory system.

In October 2018, envelopes containing suspicious substances were received by the Pentagon, White House, and campaign offices for Texas Senator Tex Cruz.

The packages mailed to the Pentagon were addressed to then-secretary of defence James Mattis and to the chief of naval operations John Richardson.

William Clyde Allen III, a navy veteran from Utah, was charged with five counts including threatening to use a biological toxin. The castor powder he sent was not in its dangerous form.

In May 2013, letters laced with ricin were sent to president Barack Obama and New York mayor Michael Bloomberg. Actress Shannon Guess Richardson was jailed for 18 years for sending the letters.
Much of Europe braced for new curbs against Covid-19 after the World Health Organization warned of alarming rates of transmission in the continent, even as global infections topped 30 million.

Britain is limiting gatherings and France is set to roll out new curbs for major cities as governments across the region are battling fresh spikes of the disease. The Madrid region of Spain, witnessing an explosion of cases, said on Friday it was placing a partial lockdown on roughly 13% of the population.

More than 947,000 people have now died from Covid-19, with Europe accounting for more than 200,000. WHOs Europe director Hans Kluge said a surge seen this month should serve as a wake-up call after the continent recorded 54,000 infections in a single day last week.

Click here for complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

French authorities are preparing tighter restrictions in several cities to curtail a resurgence that has seen nearly 10,000 new cases per day in the past week.

UK health secretary Matt Hancock said another national lockdown was not being ruled out, as the number of new cases accelerated in recent days. New curbs, called circuit break are likely next week targeting restaurants, pubs and hospitality areas, which could be shut or asked to close early for some weeks. Parts of north England have already been placed under new curbs.

This is a big moment for the country. We are seeing an acceleration in the number of cases, Hancock told BBC radio.

Asked if he was considering a new national lockdown, he said, I have learned over the last nine months not ever to rule anything out. However, it is not the proposal thats on the table.

Europe is still hoping not to follow the example of Israel, which entered a second nationwide lockdown on Friday at the onset of the Jewish high-holiday season, following a jump in new coronavirus cases.

Iranian officials, meanwhile, said the country may be entering a third wave of infections, after 144 deaths and 3,049 new cases were recorded in past 24 hours.

One-hour Covid test is accurate, finds study

A Covid-19 test known as DnaNudge that gives results in just over an hour and requires no lab was accurate in almost all cases, according to an academic review in The Lancet. The test, based on the design of a DNA test developed by a professor at Imperial College London, received approval for use by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency in April after successful trials.

In a study in The Lancet Microbe, the test was found to have an average sensitivity - ability to correctly identify those with Covid-19 - of 94.4% and a specificity - correctly identifying those without the disease - of 100%.

Moderna targets 20mn vaccine doses by year end

US drug firm Moderna said on Friday it was on track to produce 20 million doses of its experimental coronavirus vaccine by the end of the year, while maintaining its goal of readying 500mn to 1 billion doses in 2021.

Moderna had enrolled 25,296 participants out of a planned 30,000 in its late-stage study as of Wednesday.
Reuters

The US Commerce Department said on Friday that it would prohibit downloads of TikTok and WeChat beginning September 20.

The move comes after Oracle and TikTok announced a proposal for the enterprise tech giant to become TikTok's "trusted technology provider" in the US.

But experts say the move to ban TikTok suggests that the involved parties are not happy with the deal.

That could send the deal back to the drawing board, some experts say.

Trump is said to have been pushing for US ownership, and the Oracle deal would have left ByteDance as the majority stakeholder.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

After weeks of uncertainty, the Trump administration is upholding its decision to take action against TikTok and WeChat, two of the world's most widely-used social networks that are both owned by Chinese tech companies.

The US Commerce Department announced on Friday that it would prohibit TikTok and WeChat from being offered in US app stores beginning Sunday, September 20. The move comes after Oracle emerged as the "trusted technology provider" for TikTok's US presence, a proposal that TikTok said it believed "would resolve the administration's security concerns."

But the decision to prohibit the app from being downloaded in the United States is a sign that at least some of the parties involved aren't satisfied with the terms of the Oracle deal  whether it be the US government, TikTok's parent company ByteDance, or the Chinese government, experts say.

"I think what it means is they may have to bring their pencils back to the deal table and offer some potential concessions," Theresa Payton, former White House chief information officer and CEO of cybersecurity consultancy firm Fortalice Solutions, said to Business Insider.

Experts also say it could be indicative of broader tensions that have been building between the United States and China, particularly over how technology companies are allowed to operate in their respective countries.

Story continues

Uncertainties about the Oracle partnership

The US Commerce Department set two deadlines for TikTok. As of September 20, companies in the US are barred from distributing or maintaining the TikTok app. TikTok rose to the top of Apple's App Store on Friday, two days before the ban goes into effect.

TikTok has until November 12 to address the Trump administration's security concerns or else the app will stop working within the US.

Oracle recently emerged as the unexpected winner in the race to work with TikTok on its US operations in an attempt to assuage the national security concerns surrounding the app. Both Oracle and TikTok said on September 14 that they've submitted a proposal that would name Oracle as its "trusted technology provider" in the United States.

But little is known about what such a partnership would entail, other than that ByteDance has committed to establishing TikTok as a US-headquartered global company and would create 20,000 jobs under the proposed deal. As part of the partnership, Oracle would also be able to review TikTok's code to ensure there are no potential backdoors, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Still, ByteDance would remain the majority shareholder, leaving Oracle as a minority stakeholder, reports the Journal. Trump is said to have been pushing for majority ownership from a US company, the Journal also reported.

"My concern about the Oracle deal was that even under the best of circumstances  a code review, looking for backdoors that could be the potential place where information could be accessed  in the best of times is very hard to do," Payton said. "Every time you make a change to that code and recompile, you have to evaluate the code all over again."

The ban could suggest that TikTok and Oracle may need to "go back to the drawing board" and reevaluate the terms to satisfy Trump's security concerns, according to Daniel Elman, an analyst at Nucleus Research.

"Clearly there have been some stumbles in getting the Oracle deal approved," Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives also said. "This puts further pressure on ByteDance and TikTok to agree to the issues proposed otherwise this plug gets pulled."

The 'tug-of-war' between the US and China

By enforcing the ban, Trump could be sending a message to the Chinese government urging it to allow for a deal that would adequately satisfy concerns by allowing for more US control. It could also be somewhat of a retaliation against China's own policies, which prohibit American tech giants like Google and Facebook from operating within the country.

"It's more about sending a signal," Ray Wang, principal analyst and founder of Constellation Research, said to Business Insider. "We told you there was a deadline, now we're shutting it down until you figure it out . . . It's a tacit acknowledgment that the US can't just make this decision."

China also updated its list of technologies that are barred from being exported in late August to include tech that's believed to be critical to TikTok's recommendation engine. The change occurred just weeks before the Oracle deal was announced, throwing a wrench in negotiations and possibly giving Beijing a stronger say in TikTok's fate.

"I think China and the US are going back and forth over it," Elman said. "It seems like a little bit of tug-of-war with TikTok in the middle."

Regardless, the ban suggests that concerns around TikTok are far from being solved, according to Rebecca Wettemann, an analyst with research firm Valoir.

"China's making the US out to be the bully on this, and while the ban is surely intended to push China toward a deal, it's equally likely China will dig in," Wettemann said to Business Insider via email. "The security concerns are legitimate, but unless the US does a better job of communicating the risk and why it's important, it's just throwing its weight around."

Read the original article on Business Insider
By Express News Service

MANGALURU: Kishore Shetty of 'Dance India Dance' reality show fame and another man from Mangaluru were arrested by the Central Crime Branch (CCB) on Saturday while they were attempting to sell the banned drug MDMA (methylene dioxy methamphetamine), also known as Ecstasy, near Kadri in the city.

Kishore, 30, a resident of Kulai in Mangaluru, had won the 'Dance Ke Superstar' prize on popular dance reality show 'Dance India Dance' telecast on Zee TV.

"Kishore who is a trained dancer and choreographer had also acted in a Bollywood film and is active in Mumbai. Hence we are investigating his connection with the drug racket in Mumbai too. We have received information that he was organizing parties in Mangaluru and we will investigate all angles," said Mangaluru city police commissioner Vikash Kumar during a press conference on Saturday.

Another accused Akeel Naushil, 28, a resident of Surathkal, was working abroad as a safety officer and had returned to Mangaluru a year ago. "As he was unemployed, he sourced banned drugs from Mumbai, Bengaluru and other states and sold them in Mangaluru.

Following a tip-off, the duo was arrested near Kadri Padavu area while they were trying to sell MDMA. "The accused used to source the drugs from Mumbai and sell it to the public and students here in Mangaluru," the commissioner said.

A bike, 2 mobile phones and MDMA worth one lakh were seized during the operation which was conducted by a team consisting of CCB inspector Shivaprakash R Naik, Economic and Narcotic Wing inspector Ramakrishna and CCB PSI Kabbalraj.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 12:53:46|Editor: huaxia

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People gather around an ambulance carring the coffin of Deputy to Paktia Provincial Council Ayoub Gharwal in Gardez city, capital of eastern Paktia province, Afghanistan, on Sept. 19, 2020. Gunmen shot and killed the deputy provincial council in Gardez city on Saturday morning, the latest in a string of targeted attacks in the country, provincial governor confirmed. (Photo by Ahmadi/Xinhua)

GARDEZ, Afghanistan, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Gunmen shot and killed a deputy provincial council in Gardez city, capital of eastern Paktia province on Saturday morning, the latest in a string of targeted attacks in the country, provincial governor confirmed.

"Deputy to Paktia Provincial Council Ayoub Gharwal was martyred following after gunmen fired on his car near council office in Bland Manzel Ha locality in Gardez this morning," Governor Halim Fidahi told Xinhua.

The attackers fled the scene, and an investigation has been launched into the case by the Paktia police, the governor added.

No group has claimed responsibility for the shooting so far.

The Taliban militant group, however, has conducted scores of targeted attacks against civilians and military officials in recent years. The armed outfit considers anyone working for government and NATO and U.S.-led troops as target.

At least 35 people lost their lives in targeted attacks in Afghanistan last month. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 10:51:22|Editor: huaxia

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WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died, the Supreme Court said Friday.

The second female justice on the U.S. highest court, Ginsburg, 87, was a legal pioneer advocating gender equality. She was appointed in 1993 by then President Bill Clinton and has over the years become the most senior member of the court's liberal wing.

"Our nation has lost a jurist of historic stature," said Chief Justice John Roberts. "We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her -- a tireless and resolute champion of justice."

The vacancy Ginsburg left enables President Donald Trump to tap a replacement -- the third Supreme Court justice nominee during his presidency -- that may swing the bench further to the conservative side.

However, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, said shortly after the announcement of Ginsburg's death that the Senate should wait until the next president assumes office to fill the seat left by the late justice. The presidential election will be held on Nov. 3.

"The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president," Schumer said in a tweet.

Ginsburg has a long history of health problems, having been battling various cancers since 1999, when she was diagnosed with colon cancer.

The late justice underwent a surgery for pancreatic cancer in 2009, had two cancerous nodules removed from her left lung in December 2018, and received additional treatment for the pancreatic tumor in August 2019.

Ginsburg told U.S. media in early January that she was "cancer free," but in July she was treated for liver cancer. Enditem
Sunny on took to Instagram to share a picture with the caption, Lunch date! Catching up on world drama!" The second photo in her post seems like a clearer assertion. It reads: "It's funny how the people that know the least about you have the most to say." The post was liked by many of her fans and followers, with one person writing: "Accurate!"
Voters stood in line for several hours at polling places in Fairfax, Virginia, on September 18, the first day early voting for the November election was allowed in the state.

Early voting also opened in South Dakota, Wyoming, and Minnesota, according to reports.

Footage taken by the team of Justin Fairfax, Virginias Lieutenant Governor from the Fairfax County Government Center, shows hundreds of people socially distancing, as the line spanned for blocks.

According to news reports, election workers had to open an additional voting room at the government center. Several voters were prepared with lawn chairs, the report said. Credit: Justin Fairfax via Storyful
How India-Japan plan to thwart China's influence in the Indo-Pacific

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 19: At a time China is attempting to expand its influence in the region, India and Japan are looking at working together in third countries like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Myanmar, reflecting growing congruence of their strategic interests.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said both India and Japan have actually started to look at working practically in third countries, adding "we have done a little bit of that in Sri Lanka."

He said the signing of a military logistics pact by India and Japan recently would act as a "big plus" for the evolution of Indo-Pacific vision of both countries and add to the security and stability of Asia.

India-Japan sign mutual logistics pact amidst Chinas expansionist behaviour

He was speaking on India-Japan ties at a conference organised by industry chamber FICCI.

The External Affairs Minister also said that large and important nations of Asia should get along together as spending their energies in countering each other would not advance the interests of the continent.

The comments, which came at a time Asian giants India and China are locked in a bitter border standoff, are seen as an indirect reference to China.

"If we are to make Asia a more prominent place in world politics, then it is important for all nations, especially the large and important ones to get along together. Because if they spend their energies not in a positive manner, but kind of countering each other, they are not going to advance the interests of Asia," he said.

Talking about evolution of India-Japan ties, Jaishankar said both countries are now looking at working together in third countries, adding it is still in the "early stages".

"The fact that we first began to have discussions about third countries. Now we have actually started to look at working practically in third countries. We have done a little bit of that in Sri Lanka," he said.

"I think today we are trying to see whether we can cooperate and coordinate more closely in Bangladesh and Myanmar that I regard as something which would take our relationship to a very different level," he added.

The external affairs minister also suggested that there was scope for India and Japan to work in Russia's Far Eastern Region as well as in Pacific Island countries.

"If I were to look a little beyond the horizon, I would flag today two issues for people to think about. We need to see those areas where we can work together. One, of course, is the possibility of economic cooperation in Russia's far east because India has shown a much greater willingness to be involved in economic projects there," he said.

The other option, he said is the Pacific island countries where India has been ramping up its development partnership and political footprint. On signing of the military logistics pact between India and Japan, he said it was a very practical manifestation of the ability and intent of the two countries to work together.

"I am very confident that it would be both a big plus for the evolution of the Indo Pacific vision of both countries as well as adding to the stability and security of Asia," he said.

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

The landmark pact, signed on September 9, provides for the two armies to access each other's bases for logistics support.

Jaishankar said both India and Japan have their vision for the Indo-Pacific region and the two countries have, in many ways, tried to shape the narrative over the issue.

"India has a vision for Indo-Pacific as does Japan. Both of us, in many ways, have tried to shape the Indo-Pacific narrative. Today, the seamlessness of what happens in the Pacific and Indian Ocean regions underlines the importance and relevance of Indo-Pacific," he said.

Boxer Rebellion in China and the role Indian soldiers played in crushing it

The external affairs minister said the ties between India and Japan have grown manifold in its substance and depth over the last few years as two sides have greater convergence in strategic regional and global issues.

He also mentioned the cooperation between the two countries in 'Quad', ASEAN and East Asia Summit.
White working-class children are being left behind by the school system, face a lifetime of economic disadvantage and will be hit hardest by the coronavirus crisis, new research reveals.

However, help to raise educational standards is often targeted at ethnically diverse areas and pupils from minority backgrounds  further stacking the cards against poor white boys and girls, academics said.

One Oxford University don said the plight of working-class white children was seen as unfashionable and not worthy. And he suggested that even raising the issue was taboo, particularly in academic circles, as it was associated with hard-Right political thinking.

White working-class children are being left behind by the school system, face a lifetime of economic disadvantage and will be hit hardest by the coronavirus crisis, new research reveals (stock image)

The research, submitted to the Commons Education Select Committee, reveals that white pupils eligible for free school meals are half as likely as their peers from poor ethnic minority backgrounds to achieve strong passes in the eight GCSEs used in school league tables. They are also more likely to attend a failing school and live in struggling communities in the North and Midlands.

Lee Elliot Major, professor of social mobility at Exeter University, warned MPs that these pupils will suffer most from the effects of the pandemic and face permanent educational and economic scarring.

Despite the weight of evidence highlighting this group as the underdogs of the school system, schemes to raise standards often overlook them.

Researchers at Plymouth University cited a Government-backed tuition pilot targeted at large cities with diverse populations, and charity rules which demand a percentage of participants from ethnic minorities.

They say such schemes effectively exclude predominantly white areas, such as deprived coastal towns. Dr Alex Gibson, senior research fellow at Plymouth, told The Mail on Sunday the lack of help for white working-class children might be explained, in part, by a wish to be colour-blind .

Professor Peter Edwards, head of inorganic chemistry at Oxford, said the research left no question whatsoever that white working-class children, and boys in particular, were being failed.

The plight of white young disadvantaged children is being largely ignored, he said. It is still a taboo subject in many areas where it must be addressed.

The economic shock of the Covid crisis  and potentially the emerging Brexit situation  brings an urgent need for new thinking and new actions.

He added that the progressive mantra that being white confers inherent advantage or privilege had contributed to poor white British boys being at the bottom of the educational heap.

The Commons committee set up its inquiry into left-behind groups earlier this year (stock image)

Prof Edwards warned of grave socio-economic and socio-political consequences if this large cohort of young people in the UK see that they are not afforded the sort of positive actions and obvious advantages that other groups have in the name of inclusion, diversity and equality.

This will lead to a disturbing narrative and a vicious spiral downwards, he said. I believe this is an utterly critical point; not only to utilise the huge untapped potential there surely must be, but also the real threat of the destabilisation of the very fabric of the country.

Prof Elliot Major said policymakers should concentrate on vocational alternatives to the middle-class, academic-oriented route of university degrees.

Academics from Bristol said the 1,300 schools receive for each child on free school meals could be adjusted to direct more funding to poorer white pupils.

The Commons committee set up its inquiry into left-behind groups earlier this year when its chairman, Robert Halfon, said there was a worrying trend of white pupils from poorer backgrounds underperforming compared with their peers, adding: More must be done to tackle this very real social injustice.

In last years GCSEs, the so-called progress score for white pupils slumped while that for most other ethnicities improved.

The government's national tutoring programme, worth 350 million, will pay for tuition for the most disadvantaged pupil.
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Donald Trump apparently learned of the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg from reporters, after leaving a rally in Minnesota.

The president told reporters that he didn't know Ginsburg had died when a reporter asked him for comment before he boarded a plane after the rally Friday evening.

'She just died? Wow. I didn't know that, you're telling me now for the first time,' he said.

'She led an amazing life. She was an amazing woman.'

Ginsburg, only the second woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice, died Friday evening aged 87 after a battle with metastatic pancreas cancer, the Supreme Court announced.

The judge, who served for 27 years on the highest court of the land, passed away surrounded by her family at her home in Washington D.C. following complications after she has battled the disease on and off since 2009.

Tributes have poured in from across the political spectrum for the veteran judged, with Joe Biden saying she 'stood for all of us'.

Former presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, George Bush and Jimmy Carter all voiced their tributes, along with politicians including Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo voiced their tributes.

The White House lowered its flags to half staff and social media users pointed out that in Jewish tradition, a person who dies on Rosh Hashanah - which started tonight - is regarded as a person of great righteousness.

The president claimed he was unaware of her death after the rally finished, despite a supporter shouting out that Ginsburg had died during his rally

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (pictured 2009) died aged 87 after a battle with metastatic pancreas cancer, the Supreme Court has announced

Trump was on stage when the Justice's death was announced and carried on with his campaign rally apparently unaware of the news.

However while on stage - and moments after the Supreme Court announced her death - he reeled off his list of potential Supreme Court nominees for if and when a seat became available.

A supporter in the crowd shouted out that Ginsburg had died during his rally.

Meanwhile the White House flag was lowered to half staff and his Chief of Staff Mark Meadows tweeted a tribute to the 'trailblazer' and 'dedicated public servant'.

When asked about her death by reporters, Trump said: 'She just died? Wow. I didn't know that, you're telling me now for the first time.'

He then paused and held his hands in the air before paying tribute to Ginsburg - who he had a fraught relationship with since he moved in to the White House.

'She led an amazing life. What else can you say? She was an amazing woman whether you agreed [with her] or not. She was an amazing who led an amazing life.

'I'm actually sad to hear that. I'm sad to hear that,' he said, before he turned and walked toward his jet.

Trump later tweeted a longer statement, describing Ginsburg as a 'titan of the law' whose legal expertise and historic decisions inspired generations of Americans.

While Trump seemed oblivious to the news, his Democrat rival Joe Biden paid his respects to the legal pioneer and champion of equal rights. Biden called 'not only a giant in the legal profession but a beloved figure' who 'stood for all of us' in an interview on CNN

'Today, our nation mourns the loss of a titan of the law' who was 'renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court,' Trump said in a statement, after the rally in Minnesota.

'Her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds,' he added.

'May her memory be a great and magnificent blessing to the world.'

There was no mention of the next steps in appointing a successor.

Trump's Democrat rival Joe Biden paid his respects to the legal pioneer and champion of equal rights.

Biden tweeted: 'Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for all of us. She was an American hero, a giant of legal doctrine, and a relentless voice in the pursuit of that highest American ideal: Equal Justice Under Law. May her memory be a blessing to all people who cherish our Constitution and its promise.'

The presidential candidate insisted a new justice should not be chosen until after the election in November and said this was the process followed in 2016.

'There is no doubt - let me be clear - that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider,' he said in an interview to CNN.

'This was the position that the Republican Senate took in 2016 when there were almost 10 months to go.'

Tributes poured in from Democrats including Hillary Clinton, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and Washington Governor Jay Inslee

Chief Justice John Roberts also paid tributes to his colleague Friday describing her as a 'champion of justice'.

'Our nation has lost a justice of historic stature,' Roberts said in a statement.

'We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her  a tireless and resolute champion of justice.'

Hillary Clinton tweeted that Ginsburg, a staunch advocate for women's rights, paved the way for other women.

'Justice Ginsburg paved the way for so many women, including me. There will never be another like her. Thank you RBG,' Clinton wrote.

Bernie Sanders called her passing a 'tremendous loss' to America.

'Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was one of the great justices in modern American history and her passing is a tremendous loss to our country,' he tweeted.

'She will be remembered as an extraordinary champion of justice and equal rights.'

Barack Obama penned a Medium blog commemorating the strides Ginsburg made for gender equality and saying he 'admired her greatly'.

'Sixty years ago, Ruth Bader Ginsburg applied to be a Supreme Court clerk. She'd studied at two of our finest law schools and had ringing recommendations,' he wrote.

'But because she was a woman, she was rejected. Ten years later, she sent her first brief to the Supreme Court  which led it to strike down a state law based on gender discrimination for the first time.

'And then, for nearly three decades, as the second woman ever to sit on the highest court in the land, she was a warrior for gender equality  someone who believed that equal justice under law only had meaning if it applied to every single American.'

Obama went on to write that Trump must not appoint a new justice until after the election because the Republicans refused to allow Obama to do the same thing back in 2016.

First Lady Melania Trump marked Ginsburg's death as an 'immense loss'

'Four and a half years ago, when Republicans refused to hold a hearing or an up-or-down vote on Merrick Garland, they invented the principle that the Senate shouldn't fill an open seat on the Supreme Court before a new president was sworn in,' he wrote.

'A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on what's convenient or advantageous in the moment... As votes are already being cast in this election, Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard.'

Obama planned to appoint Merrick Garland to the court after Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016.

Republicans refused to hold hearings or vote on a replacement until after a new president took office with Mitch McConnell saying: 'the American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.'

The seat was not filled and two weeks after taking office Trump appointed his own choice Neil Gorsuch to the court instead.

Former president George Bush also paid tribute to Ginsburg in a statement Friday.

'Laura and I join our fellow Americans in mourning the loss of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She dedicated many of her 87 remarkable years to the pursuit of justice and equality, and she inspired more than one generation of women and girls,' he said.

'Justice Ginsburg loved our country and the law. Laura and I are fortunate to have known this smart and humorous trailblazer, and we send our condolences to the Ginsburg family'.

Former presidents Barack Obama, George Bush, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter also paid tribute to the legal pioneer Friday

Former president Jimmy Carter also paid tribute to the 'powerful legal mind and a staunch advocate for gender equality'.

'Rosalynn and I are saddened by the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. A powerful legal mind and a staunch advocate for gender equality, she has been a beacon of justice during her long and remarkable career,' he said in a statement.

'I was proud to have appointed her to the U.S. Court of Appeals in 1980. We join countless Americans in mourning the loss of a truly great woman.

'We will keep her family in our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.'

Bill Clinton, who appointed Ginsburg to the Supreme Court during his White house tenure, also tweeted calling her 'one of the most extraordinary Justices'.

'We have lost one of the most extraordinary Justices ever to serve on the Supreme Court,' he wrote.

'Ruth Bader Ginsburg's life and landmark opinions moved us closer to a more perfect union. And her powerful dissents reminded us that we walk away from our Constitution's promise at our peril.'

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo spoke of the state's heartbreak over the loss over one of its own.

'NY's heart breaks with the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg,' the Democrat tweeted.

'During her extraordinary career, this Brooklyn native broke barriers & the letters RBG took on new meaningas battle cry & inspiration. Her legal mind & dedication to justice leave an indelible mark on America.'

Washington Governor Jay Inslee, also a Democrat, described her as an 'American hero' and demanded that her 'dying wish' to not be replaced on the bench until after the election be respected.

He tweeted: 'We have lost an American hero and a giant of justice.

'May we honor Justice Ginsburg's legacy by fighting for the civil rights of all Americans and respect her dying wish that she 'will not be replaced until a new president is installed.''

His words were echoed by Senator Cory Booker who urged the nation to carry on 'her legacy of fairness and equality'.

'Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a true giant, an American hero and a warrior for justice,' Booker tweeted.

'Our country mourns her loss deeplywe must honor her by carrying on her legacy of fairness and equality.'

Flags over the Capitol were flown at half staff in Ginsburg's honor after she died aged 87 following a cancer battle

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said flags over the Capitol would be flown at half staff in Ginsburg's honor.

'Tonight, the flags are flying at half staff over the Capitol to honor the patriotism of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg,' she tweeted.

'Every woman and girl, and therefore every family, in America has benefitted from her brilliance.'

Elizabeth Warren remembered her 'friend' for her 'wit, her tenaciousness, and her skill as a jurist'.

Meanwhile Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called her a 'giant in the history of our nation' and called on Americans to 'fight'.

Tributes also poured in from those on the other side of the political spectrum.

Senator Lindsey Graham tweeted that he was filled with 'great sadness' at the news and that despite their 'many differences' he 'appreciate[d] her service to our nation'.

'It was with great sadness that I learned of the passing of Justice Ginsburg. Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer who possessed tremendous passion for her causes. She served with honor and distinction as a member of the Supreme Court,' he wrote.

Tributes also poured in from those on the other side of the political spectrum

'While I had many differences with her on legal philosophy, I appreciate her service to our nation. My thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends. May she Rest In Peace.'

President Trump is yet to tweet about her passing however estranged niece Mary Trump urged Americans to continue her 'fight for our country'.

'Take a moment. Breathe. And then we fight for our country the way she always did for us. Or we will lose everything,' she wrote on Twitter.

Ginsburg's death gives Trump the opportunity to name her successor at a critical time just six weeks before the nation heads to the polls.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg in her engagement photo taken in December 1953

The president has already appointed two members of the Supreme Court, Justices Neil M. Gorsuch and Brett M. Kavanaugh, in a move that pushes the court increasingly right wing.

The replacement of Ginsburg, a Democrat and women's rights champion, by another Republican will leave the court Democrats outnumbered, with six Republicans to their three.

A debate is expected to ensue over whether Trump should nominate her successor or leave the seat vacant until after the outcome of the election.

Senator Chuck Schumer tweeted Friday after the news broke of Ginsburg's death that the position should not be filled until the White House race was over.

'The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice,' he tweeted.

'Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.'

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell issued a statement saying the Senate and nation mourns for Ginsburg alongside a statement where he said Trump's nominee would be voted for by the Senate.

'The Senate and the nation mourn the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the conclusion of her extraordinary American life,' he tweeted.

Ginsburg was appointed to the Supreme Court by President Clinton in 1993 and has served more than 27 years.

She leaves behind her two children Jane Carol Ginsburg and James Steven Ginsburg, four grandchildren Paul Spera, Clara Spera, Miranda Ginsburg and Abigail Ginsburg, two step-grandchildren Harjinder Bedi and Satinder Bedi, and one great-grandchild Lucrezia Spera.

Her husband Martin David Ginsburg died in 2010.

Ginsburg was born in Brooklyn, New York, on March 15 1933.
When the coronavirus forced the closure of the nail salon where Tracy Tran works in Los Gatos, she was immediately robbed of two things she held dear: work and sleep.

Ever since arriving in the United States from Vietnam 13 years ago, Tran, 39, has been doing nails. But she and her husband were forced to temporarily close their family business, La Orquidea Salon and Spa, in March because of coronavirus restrictions  leading her to depression and insomnia.

This month, as Santa Clara County moved to a less restrictive tier in the states coronavirus reopening system, La Orquidea reopened indoors at a reduced capacity. But Tran still wakes up in the middle of the night with her mind racing.

Im scared, she says. If it stays like (this), we may have to close the shop.

The coronavirus pandemic is devastating the multibillion-dollar nail industry in California, affecting the livelihoods of tens of thousands of mostly minority women. Tran is from an especially hard-hit group: According to the UCLA Labor Center, nearly 3 out of 4 nail salon workers in California are of Vietnamese descent.

Tran says she feels a proverbial whiplash, with the states reopening requirements for counties dependent on the latest numbers of coronavirus cases. La Orquidea first closed in mid-March under Californias shelter-in-place order. Salons in some counties were allowed to reopen in June, but in Santa Clara, salons didnt get the green light until July. But even this brought little relief: Two days after the salon reopened, it shut again after a new state order halted indoor operations in counties on Californias coronavirus monitoring list.

In September, under the states tiered reopening plan, nail salons in approximately half of Bay Area counties, including Santa Clara, are allowed to reopen indoors at reduced capacity. In the other counties, salons are only permitted to operate outdoors  if salon workers and customers want to brave wildfire smoke. San Francisco just permitted salons to open indoors starting last Monday.

Nails are big business in California. The industry is worth about $3 billion in the state, according to the Pro Nails Association, and is fueled by cheap labor. Manicurists earn a median annual salary of $17,000, according to the Insight Center for Community Economic Development, a research and advocacy organization. California has 100,000 licensed manicurists, more than any other state.

This has always been a low-wage, economically insecure workforce, says Assemblyman David Chiu, D-San Francisco, chair of the Asian and Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus.

In addition to the concentration of Vietnamese, nearly 90% of the states nail salon workers are women, according to an analysis of U.S. census data by the Insight Center for Community Economic Development.

COVID and the recession have only accelerated the downward spiral (for) these folks. It has been incredibly difficult for them, Chiu says. One salon worker attempted suicide after a month of unemployment, said Tam Nguyen, president of Advance Beauty College in Orange County and co-founder of the philanthropic advocacy group Nailing It for America.

Nguyen estimates that 30% to 40% of nail salons across California could permanently close. In May, relatively early in the pandemic, the industry faced an extra challenge when Gov. Gavin Newsom said the first community spread of the coronavirus occurred in a nail salon  a claim that seemed questionable and that he never elaborated on.

Some of the salons unable to reopen indoors have gone rogue, says Dung Nguyen, program and outreach coordinator for the California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative, a statewide advocacy group. They are keeping things running by pulling the blinds down or stealthily providing manicures and pedicures in clients homes.

They tell me, I know what Im doing is not right, but what do you expect me to do? I need to do what I can to support my family, she says.

Hundreds of manicurists polled this spring as the pandemic shuttered their businesses said they were unsure they would be able to afford food and other basic necessities in the next month, according to a survey by the UCLA Labor Center and the California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative. One-third of nail salon owners said they were unable to afford rent.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

Lan Anh Truong, a nail salon owner in Alameda, is anxiously watching the bills pile up. A veteran manicurist who has worked at her salon for 25 years, she has been without a job since mid-March. Salons in Alameda County are not allowed to open indoors, and Truong is still responsible for her salons rent and utilities, which reach $3,000 each month. She doesnt know whether she will be able to make her next payment. Her loan from the federal governments Paycheck Protection Program doesnt go far enough to cover all of her expenses (she declined to disclose the loan amount). Although her salon has been closed for months, she still stops by to water her plants and collect mail.

Im suffering, she says. Right now I dont have a job, and I dont have enough money to pay for the rent. I miss customers, I miss working, I need money. Im so scared.

In Los Gatos, Trans customers celebrated the salons reopening with fresh flowers and a flood of congratulatory calls and text messages (along with the requisite masks, temperature checks and sanitization). She felt her spirits lift after a few days of work, recalling an elderly client with a foot condition who gushed that her long-awaited pedicure felt like paradise.

We wanted to give each other a hug but could not, only a virtual one, Tran says, laughing.

Still, Tran cant help but feel uncertain about the salons  and her familys  fate. Business is slow  about 25% of capacity, with all appointments scheduled ahead of time  as customers appear cautious to return indoors, she says. Also, the cost of supplies like rubbing alcohol and gloves has significantly increased in recent months, she says. If the county is unable to move into a more lenient tier soon that will allow them to serve more clients indoors, she worries the salon will not be able to hang on.

At least everybody can be back to work and we can pick up little by little, she says. I do hope that we can move into a better situation in a couple weeks.

Erica Hellerstein is a journalist with the Fuller Project, a global nonprofit journalism newsroom reporting on issues that affect women.
Mr Kennedy Agyapong, Member of Parliament for Assin Central, has filed a judicial review application at the Supreme Court to halt the contempt case against him by an Accra Circuit Court.



Counsel for Mr Agyapong, Mr Kwame Gyan, told the Court on Friday that the application was to invoke the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court on Article 132 of the 1992 Constitution.



He said it was also to seek for a further order for certiorari to quash the order issued by the High Court on September 9.



Counsel said they filed the application on Thursday and service had been affected, with a return date of October 13.



He, therefore, prayed the Court for an adjournment to enable them to pursue the matter, which is now before the highest appellate court of the land.



"We believe that by the time the Supreme Court delivers its ruling, we may not even have to return to this Court."



The High Court, presided over by Justice Amos Awunta Wuni, said it had sighted the application filed at the Supreme Court by the respondent in the contempt case but said his Court was fortified in continuing proceedings.



He cited the Supreme Court Ghana Report, where Professor Kludze JSC of blessed memory stated that a motion for an order of prohibition does not come within the ambit of 130 (2) and the Fast Track High Court is perfectly within the law to continue with its proceedings until and unless there is an order from a higher court.



"That being the case, this Court will continue until ordered by a higher court to suspend proceedings," Justice Wuni said.



Later, Mr Gyan drew the attention of the Court that they had not invoked the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court under Article 130 (2) rather under Article 132.



"If you look at the language of 132, the Supreme Court has the power to issue orders and directions for the purposes of securing the enforcement of its supervisory jurisdiction, he said.



The Supreme Court has a plethora of tools that it could employ for the purposes of achieving the intentions of the framers of the Constitution. The matter of 130(2) does not come in. Under 132 the Supreme Court has a free hand and is not feted.



The Court later held that the case could continue until the decision of the Supreme Court, saying it was not a commercial case where someone could lose money if the case was not continued.



Justice Wuni said the respondent was not in Court to be punished but to answer questions that scandalised the court but if found to have scandalised the court then it would have the courage to punish him.



"We are protecting our Democracy. If the law is not protected it will not be good for all of us. Let us protect this country, particularly around this time."



It later adjourned the matter to September 25 for the Court and lawyers to deliberate on the issues of jurisdiction and procedure.

Mr Agyapong is alleged to have made statements deemed contemptuous in the case in which one Susan Bandoh and Christopher Akuetteh Kotei had sued him (Agyapong), one Ibrahim Jaja, Nana Yaw Duodu aka Sledge and the Inspector General of Police in a land dispute.



Whiles the case was still pending, the Courts attention was drawn to a television (NET2 TV) and radio (Oman FM) programme allegedly aired on September 2, this year, where the MP was said to have scandalized and threatened the court.



A court order, signed on September 9, by Justice Wuni, said: I hereby summon the said Kennedy Ohene Agyapong per a warrant issued under my hand and seal to appear before the High Court (Land Court 12) on Monday, September 14, 2020 at 1000 hours to show cause why he should not be severely punished for contempt, if the matters are proven against him to the satisfaction of the court.

Source: GNA









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Sammy's Swimmers took to the sea in north Wexford at the weekend and did themselves proud in support Ataxia Foundation Ireland (AFI).

Not only did they create a lasting memory for all spectators and those involved, organiser Mark Colclough achieved a personal goal of swimming ten kilometres in open water in just under three hours.

Mr Colclough said that although the Covid-19 restrictions presented a challenge at first, things really went off swimmingly.

'It really was a dream for the first time doing it. The weather and the sea was like something off a postcard. We had to be careful with Covid in not breaking rules, so it was a really fine balance but we knew there was going to be people on the beach as it was, but thankfully they all stayed away and kept their distance so it really did work well,' he said.

Donations are still coming in but it looks set up to be up there in the thousands thanks to the local community.

Albert Young, founder of AFI, expressed his gratitude to all involved.

'Sammy's Swimmers and all your support crew, all who attended, all who generously sponsored the swimmers, our most heart-felt thanks to you and Mark "Cokes" Colclough without whom this event would not have taken place. Mark also achieved a massive personal milestone today, hitting his 10k goal, well done,' he said.
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Linkedin Laurie Goering (Reuters) London, United Kingdom  Sat, September 19, 2020 16:06 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45ed74f 2 Environment Greta-Thunberg,climate,climate-strike,protest,environment Free

Leaders of a youth climate strike movement launched by teen activist Greta Thunberg said on Friday they will return to mass protests - including street actions where possible - next week, as wildfires and other climate threats surge around the planet.

"We are going to send a signal we must treat this crisis like a crisis. This is a global emergency," Thunberg told journalists in an online briefing.

The protests will be carried out both on the streets and digitally, "whichever way is safe", she said from Sweden.

More than 2,300 protest actions have been registered for the Sept. 25 event on the Fridays for Future website.

Coronavirus restrictions on public meetings will limit the size of many and push others online. But Argentinian youth activist Eyal Weintraub said there would also be "mass physical gatherings in some places where the health situation allows".

As nations try to restart their economies after virus-driven slowdowns, they should ensure stimulus spending boosts climate action and reduces social inequalities, the young campaigners said.

"We need to put people over profit and any politician that cannot prioritize this needs to step down now," urged Mitzi Jonelle Tan, an activist from the Philippines.

Thunberg said politicians failed to recognize how serious the threats are already from floods, heatwaves, hurricanes and wildfires that are affecting millions.

"What we keep forgetting over and over again is that people are dying today from the climate crisis," she said. "This is destroying people's lives."

Read also: 'We need to stand united', climate activist Thunberg tells US protesters

Given the scale of the crisis, "we are facing the need to make unprecedented changes in all aspects of society and this will require everyone", she added.

As they look for ways to push their agenda despite the pandemic, Fridays for Future activists also said they would hold a "Mock COP26" online meeting in November to replace the UN climate summit in Glasgow, now delayed for a year.

The event, with representatives of countries from around the world, aims to "fill the void" of the postponed talks and replicate elements of it, from keynote speeches to panel discussions and a summary statement.

On Friday, many of the activists said efforts pushing for faster climate action in their countries had been met with repression or indifference.

In the Philippines, more than 200 "environmental defenders" were killed over the last four years, Tan said, with activists including herself facing intimidation even on social media.

"Do I look like a terrorist to you?" Tan asked. "To the Philippine government I do."

Thunberg said she felt "privileged" to be able to speak out freely on climate threats and would continue to demand a more ambitious response as the window to avoid the worst impacts of global warming closes.

"Doing our best is no longer good enough. Now we need to do the seemingly impossible," she said.

"We will continue this fight because we have no other choice. This is a matter of life and death for way too many people," she added.
Lok Sabha on Saturday passed a bill to further amend the Companies Act and decriminalise various non-compoundable offences and promote ease of doing business. The Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2020  which seeks to decriminalise various penal provisions and introduce a new chapter related to producer organisations in the legislation  was passed by the Lower House.

Speaking on the bill, Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said decriminalisation of various provisions under the companies law will also help small companies by reducing litigation burden on them. Around 48 sections of the Companies Act, 2013 will be amended to decriminalise various offences.

Sitharaman said there are currently around 124 penal provisions compared to 134 in 2013 under the Companies Act. Stressing that there will be no relaxation for serious offences, including fraud and those that cause "injury to public interest or deceit", the minister said the number of "non-compoundable" offences under the Act remains the same at 35.

Generally, compoundable offences are those which can be settled by paying certain amount of money. There will also be a new chapter on producer organisation, the minister said, adding that it will be particularly helpful for farmer producer organisations.

For promoting "ease of doing business," the minister said that 17 provisions will be amended.
Christina Anstead has announced she and husband Ant Anstead are separating.

The Flip Or Flop star took to social media on Friday afternoon to reveal the 'difficult decision' she's made with her husband to call it quits, after less than two years of being hitched.

The 37-year-old posted a contemplative shot of the soon-to-be ex-couple for her 1.4 million followers, showing them silhouetted against the sunset, walking on a beach.

Farewell: Christina Anstead took to social media on Friday to reveal the 'difficult decision' she's made with husband Ant Anstead to call it quits, after less than two years of being hitched

She captioned the photo with:

'Ant and I have made the difficult decision to separate. We are grateful for each other and as always, our children will remain our priority.

'We appreciate your support and ask for privacy for us and our family as we navigate the future,' Christina concluded.

She and the For The Love Of Cars presenter, 41, wed on December 22nd, 2018, and share son Hudson London, whose first birthday they celebrated earlier this month.

Over: Christina and the For The Love Of Cars presenter wed in December 2018, and share son Hudson London, whose first birthday they celebrated earlier this month; seen in 2019

Christina recently unveiled the ninth season of her HGTV real estate show Flip Or Flop with ex Tarek El Moussa, to whom she was married from 2009 until 2018.

She and Tarek share daughter Taylor, nine, and son Brayden, five.

Ant, for his part, also has children from a previous marriage, to Louise Anstead - daughter Amelie, 19, and son Archie, 14.

'We appreciate your support and ask for privacy for us and our family as we navigate the future,' Christina said in Friday's post; seen earlier in their relationship on Instagram

The news of Ant and Christina's split comes after the British born Ant was recently able to fly home to be with his older children after a months-long delay due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier in lockdown, Ant had explained that due to flight cancellations he was unable to be with his two older children.

The doting dad was grateful for 'modern communications' and relied on daily FaceTime calls to bridge the gap between himself and his kids.

Across the pond: Ant recently reunited with his older children from a previous marriage, in England  daughter Amelie, 19, and son Archie, 14

Better times: Ant had lamented being separated from part of his family due to the pandemic and said the separation wasn't easy; seen on Instagram with their blended family

However, the separation wasn't easy and he lamented not being able to get his blended family all together.

'I am so over 2020 now!!!! This last week has been particularly TOUGH,' he wrote in June.

Clearly, the stresses of this year also took their toll on his relationship with his second wife, in spite of a cheery post in August celebrating their dating anniversary.

It remains to be seen whether Ant will stay across the pond, or return to co-parent his young son in Orange County, California with Christina.

Clearly: The stresses of this year also took their toll on his relationship with his second wife; Ant and Christina seen here in May of 2019
Video-sharing platforms like TikTok have been gaining negative attention in Egypt in recent years, with content creators being condemned for making videos deemed too daring or audacious

An Egyptian economic appeals court upheld on Saturday a three-year jail term against TikTok influencer Manar Samy for "inciting immorality and debauchery.

The verdict comes a few months after an economic court sentenced Samy to three years in prison and an EGP 300,000 fine, as well as setting bail at EGP 20,000 to have the sentence suspended pending appeal.

Samy still has the option of filing a second appeal in front of the same court.

In July, Samy and another person were arrested with a weapon and drugs in their possession, according to authorities.

The arrest warrant against Manar was issued after a lawyer filed a case against her where he described her lip-syncing and dancing videos as "indecent" and aiming to attract attention and earn money.

Samy, who has around 200,000 followers on the social media app, used to post videos dancing and singing in a manner many in the conservative country describe as a suggestive or inappropriate.

Video-sharing platforms like TikTok have been gaining negative attention in Egypt in recent years, with content creators being condemned for making videos deemed too daring or audacious.

Several TikTok influencers have been tried over their content this year, as the country attempts to control content on the popular platform.

In July, a Cairo economic court sentenced TikTok influencers Haneen Hossam and Mawada Eladham, who are well-known for their content on the video-sharing platform, and three others to two years in prison for violating family values and principles.

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(Natural News) If you assume your tap water must be safe to drink because you havent heard otherwise, you could be gambling with your health.

Seven years ago, the American Society for Civil Engineers issued a warning that most of the countrys drinking water infrastructure was nearing the end of its useful life. Not much has been done since then to resolve the problem, and now it is emerging that many toxic water incidents are hidden from the public.

The Office of Inspector General criticized the EPA and various U.S. water utilities in a 2019 report for failing to consistently and accurately report drinking water risks. According to the OIGs investigation, there are a series of problems that could be putting public health at risk from contaminated drinking water supplies.

For example, they found that some of the agencies responsible for enforcing water regulations have not been consistent in enforcing public notice requirements. Many have not been reporting and tracking violations, nor have they been consistently issuing public notices. Because the EPAs oversight protocols dont cover all of the public notice requirements, some agencies cant be sure whether the public water systems in their purview are notifying consumers of safety violations.

They also say the public water systems do not have accurate guidance related to the tools currently available for issuing public notices and could be missing out on chances to inform people effectively of problems with their drinking water. On top of that, the public notice guidance that the EPA gives to public water systems and primary agencies is outdated and does not reflect the current regulations.

Lead contamination is rampant

One of the big problems that people need to know about is lead contamination. Most people are aware of the lead controversy in Flint, Michigan, but several other American cities have also had drinking water that exceeds EPA action limits for lead. These include Providence, Rhode Island; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Portland, Oregon; Tualatin Valley, Oregon; and Passaic, New Jersey.

In 2018, blood levels exceeded federal limits in Newark, New Jersey, three times in a row. The city gave some residents water filters and advised others to drink bottled water. Twenty-two percent of samples of drinking water there were found to contain lead levels that exceed the federal standard, and the attention that was brought to the matter prompted the city to replace lead service lines.

However, other areas are not being as proactive. A report issued by the National Resources Defense Council in 2018 found that nearly 30,000,000 Americans were drinking water that exceeded EPA thresholds for lead and copper from January 2015 to March 2018. This group included 5.5 million people who were drinking water with an unacceptable level of lead.

Glyphosate and fluoride make lead problems in water worse

Making matters worse is the fact that widespread glyphosate use can make water more effective when it comes to stripping lead from pipes. Indeed, the first patent for the chemical was issued for an application using it as a descaling agent for cleaning mineral deposits from pipes and hot water systems. The Flint River and its tributaries are used for draining agricultural regions where glyphosate is heavily used, which may explain why the water from the river was 19 times more corrosive to lead then Detroit water. Fluoride can have a similar effect.

With outbreaks of the deadly form of pneumonia known as Legionnaires disease covered up in Flint, Loma Linda and other places, it has never been more important to be proactive about ensuring the safety of the water you drink. Its clear that the authorities cannot be a depended upon to inform the public about problems with our water, so consider using a water filtration system, ideally with reverse osmosis or ion exchange.

Sources for this article include:

?WakingTimes.com

NRDC.org
Dax Shepard has shaved the side of his head so that he can match his daughters hairstyle.

Sharing a clip to Instagram TV on Friday, the 45-year-old actor shaved his head while Sara Bareilles song, Armour, played in the background.

Shepard hummed along with the song while he shaved the right side of his hair off.

Its not entirely clear why Shepards daughter currently has half of her hair shaved off, nor did the actor specify which of his two daughters he wanted to match with.

His caption simply read: "Thank you @sarabareilles forgiving my daughters an anthem.

Recommended Dax Shepard says he needs surgery after breaking multiple bones in motorcycle crash

"She requested a specific haircut a few days ago, and now I want to match her :)"

Shepard has two daughters with his wife, the actor Kristen Bell: Delta, five, and Lincoln, seven.

"I love this man so much," commented Bell, 40 as she shared Shepard's video on her own Instagram account. "He wanted to twin with our daughter," she added.

Bareilles also commented on the video, writing "This is the best best best.

Thank you for being a kick ass dad for strong young women! #handmemyhaircut.

Shepards video comes just a few weeks after. he revealed he had to undergo surgery after suffering multiple broken bones in a motorcycle accident.

In August, the 45-year-old discussed the crash and his resulting injuries, which included broken ribs and a broken clavicle.

According to the actor, the crash occurred while he was driving his motorcycle in Sonoma, California.

I was passing six guys at Sonoma Raceway on a motorcycle and I was braking very, very hard  hard enough that the back wheel was off the ground for a good hundred yards and then someone turned in, as they have the right to, he said on his podcast Armchair Expert, adding that he was totally at blame.
For the first time in six months, Vietnam Airlines' first routine international commercial flight took off from Hanoi on September 19 morning, heading to Japan.

Flight VN310 marked the beginning of the resumption of regular flights to a number of selected countries in Asia since planes were grounded back in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Onboard were Vietnamese trainees, workers, and experts heading back to Tokyo to continue their studies and work after months of disruption.

It also carried a number of Japanese citizens heading home.

All 60 passengers boarding the Vietnam Airlines flight had to present a mandatory proof of a negative coronavirus tests (PCR diagnostics) issued three days before the flight, declare their travel history in the 14 days prior and download contract tracing apps as per health protocols set by the host country.

The flight crew will all undergo health examinations and be quarantined when they returned to Vietnam.

Vietnam Airlines is set to organise two more flights from Hanoi to Tokyo on September 25 and 30, and one from HCM City to Tokyo on September 30.

Budget carrier Vietjet has also announced resumption of flights to Japan, the Republic of Korea, and Taiwan (China) starting September 29.

International flights to and from Vietnam were grounded late March after the Government imposed border closures against all foreign entries.

Since then, Vietnamese airlines only carried out a number of irregular flights to repatriate Vietnamese citizens overseas or bring in a limited number of foreign investors, highly skilled workers, experts, business managers, diplomats.

Recently, the Vietnamese Government decided to reopen international flights to six Asian destinations  Japan, the RoK, mainland China, Taiwan (China), Cambodia, and Laos  all important partners and deemed to be epidemiologically safe, as the country aims to balance COVID-19 prevention with economic development. VOV/VNA

The Vietnam Airlines flight, coded VN310, departs from Hanoi at 6.30hrs for Narita International Airport in Tokyo. Vietnam Airlines uses Boeing 787 aircraft, one of the most modern planes in its fleet, to fly on the Japan route.

Passengers on board the flight are mostly made up of Vietnamese citizens traveling to work, study, and live in the Far East country. There were also a number of Japanese citizens on board the flight who want to return home. In addition to passengers, Vietnam Airlines also transports commodities to Japan.

Throughout the flight, passengers are required to wear protective suits whilst maintaining a safe distance from each other. Throughout the flight, passengers are required to wear protective suits whilst maintaining a safe distance from each other.

They must also undergo RT-PCT tests and fill out a health declaration form ahead of departure. Following the success of the flight, Vietnam Airlines will launch two further flights from Hanoi to Japan on September 25 and September 29, in addition to another flight from Ho Chi Minh to Tokyo on September 30.

Customers are able to purchase flight tickets to Japan on the national carriers website, through its mobile app, or at ticket agents located nationwide. In addition to Japan, Vietnam Airlines is devising plans aimed at restoring routes to the Republic of Korea, China, Taiwan (China), Laos, and Cambodia.

The flight schedule of the Vietnam-Japan route will be updated in the near future. Upon their return to Vietnam, all crew members must undergo medical check-ups and spend time in quarantine in line with COVID-19 regulations.

The aircraft is disinfected according to international standards, with special focus given to the entirety of the passenger cabin and the cockpit. The launch of the flights to carry passengers from Japan to Vietnam will take place following an official decision from the Vietnamese Government.

As a result of the complicated development of COVID-19, Vietnam Airlines originally suspended commercial flights to and from Japan on March 23, with international flights coming to a halt on March 25. The recovery of regular international flights looks to be a positive signal for Vietnam Airlines, along with the nations aviation industry, with COVID-19 being brought under control in many countries and regions.
Boris Johnson's government is all over the place on industrial policy. The capacity for indecision, obfuscation and zig-zags seen in the pandemic is just as pronounced when it comes to energy and technology.

The retreat of Hitachi from a new nuclear plant at Wylfa in Anglesey, and continuing prevarication over EDF's plans for a super-reactor at Sizewell in Suffolk, is a nightmare for the supply chain and Britain's energy security.

Not for the first time the Government has also been caught unprepared over the future of the country's most valuable tech enterprise  Cambridge-based Arm Holdings.

Not for the first time the Government has also been caught unprepared over the future of the country's most valuable tech enterprise  Cambridge-based Arm Holdings

Having sold the pass five years ago when it embraced a takeover by Masayoshi Son's Softbank, the smart-chip firm is in play again with a bid from US gaming chip supplier Nvidia.

Instead of a robust response, Downing Street says it wants Arm to continue to make 'an important contribution to the UK economy.'

The idea that such pusillanimous language would in any way have an impact on tech billionaires such as Son or Jensen Huang of Nvidia is cloud-cuckoo land.

It is worth reflecting that when Softbank bought Arm for $32billion (25billion), predicting it would become a global champion for the 'internet of things', the company was larger than Nvidia.

Five years on, Arm's stalker Nvidia is worth $309billion (237billion) and Arm just $40billion (31billion).

There can be no surprise that Huang wants to get his hands on Arm, which licenses its smart chip to Apple, Qualcomm and Samsung among others.

With more ambitious and focused ownership and management, it could be several times larger.

But the idea that the Santa Clara company has any real interest in a Cambridge headquarters and jobs in Britain, whatever guarantees it may offer to sign up to, is a fantasy.

Silicon Valley ownership will act like a Dyson vacuum cleaner, sucking key personnel, intellectual property, R&D and patents off to California.

A bold government determined to make the UK a tech hub would block the deal, invoking powers under the Enterprise Act 2002.

Alternatively, it could impose severe stipulations on Nvidia, setting targets for employment, R&D spending and limits on a brain drain that gaming whizz Huang would baulk at.

If the UK doesn't block the deal, it could well fall foul of the scrap between Washington and Beijing. Softbank would then have no alternative but to float Arm, preferably in London.

The UK has a terrible recent history of nurturing good UK tech, allowing companies such as graphic chip-maker Imagination, aerospace firm Cobham and satellite pioneer Inmarsat to slip into overseas hands.

As part of the pandemic response, the Government needs to claim the high ground. New nuclear investment and saving Arm would show determination.

It also needs a step lift in R&D funding and tax reliefs so, at the very least, the UK's paltry spend of 1.7 per cent of output matches America's 2.7 per cent.

Britain's post-Brexit commercial future depends upon it.

Bird feeder

Disneyland is alive and well at online education leaders Pearson.

Chairman Sidney Taurel and the board seem to live in a parallel universe in which they believe that a 32.78 per cent vote against the 7.4million pay package for new chief executive Andy Bird is an endorsement of an 'outstanding candidate'.

Doubtless the former Hollywood executive will bring pizzazz to Pearson after its disgraceful record of six profit warnings in seven years.

Bird may be just the person to steer Pearson's digital future as the company rides the boom in online university and school teaching speeded up by the pandemic.

The new boss sets out with the anvil of shareholder anger and an unresolved bonus dispute hanging around his neck.

Holiday wishes

The 'rule of six' and the prospect of further lockdowns is generating conniptions across Britain about family gatherings forgone at Christmas, and struggling retailers stuck with unsold stock.

There is a more immediate worry for the UK's modest but economically significant and creative Jewish community, which is paring back family and social gatherings for the start of the two-day Rosh Hashanah  New Year  festival that began at dusk last night.

May all our readers enjoy a healthy, safe and fulfilled year ahead.
Pakistan drops weapons, cash in J&K via drone; 3 terrorists arrested: Police

India

oi-Deepika S

Jammu, Sep 19: Pakistan dropped weapons and some cash in Indian currency using a drone in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district, state police chief Dilbag Singh on Saturday said, announcing the arrest of three LeT terrorists who had picked up the consignment near the Line of Control.

Singh said the major success was achieved on Friday evening, following a well-coordinated joint operation by police and 38 Rashtriya Rifles in Rajouri sector of Jammu region, frustrating Pakistan's design to step up violence and disturb the prevailing peace in the Union Territory.

"All the three Lashker-e-Taiba terrorists were residents of Kashmir and had come to pick up the consignment, which was dropped by Pakistan on this side using a drone," Singh, who was joined by senior police official Mukesh Singh, told reporters in Rajouri district.

Three residents of Poonch were also arrested and their questioning led to the recovery of 4 kg of heroin from the same spot from where the earlier consignment of 7 kg was dumped after smuggling from across the border, he said.

Mukesh Singh informed this was the third successful operation in the twin districts of Rajouri and Poonch since September 11.

Earlier, a huge consignment of arms and ammunition was recovered from two people in Balakote sector of Poonch, three days later 11 kg of heroin worth  11 crore, meant to fund terrorism activities, was seized in Rajouri district.

"Pakistan and its agencies always remain active and are making every effort to disturb peace and law and order in J-K. It is using drones to drop weapons and narcotics and also push terrorists from both Rajouri and Poonch districts, which had witnessed a spurt in ceasefire violations - almost on a daily basis," the DGP said.

Hindi, Kashmiri and Dogri to become official languages of Jammu and Kashmir

However, he said the police, Army and other forces are working together to scuttle Pakistan's design and to maintain peace and law and order in the Union Territory.

"We are enjoying good operational synergy and the latest arrest of three LeT terrorists and seizure of a huge cache of arms and ammunition was its result. We received information about movement of some suspicious people and accordingly launched the cordon and search operation," he said.

He said three people were seen moving with a bag and were challenged but they hurled a grenade, which luckily did not explode and the trio was overpowered.

The search of the bag led to the recovery of two AK-56 rifles, two pistols, four grenades and Rs 1 lakh in Indian currency, which had smuggled from Pakistan to escalate violence, Dilbag Singh said it came to light that the consignment was dropped on this side of the LoC by Pakistan using the drone and the trio, who hail from Kashmir, had come to pick up the consignment.

"Their interrogation is underway and further details will be shared later," he said.

In response to questions, he said Pakistan is doing its best to revive terrorism in the twin districts of Poonch and Rajouri, which falls in Jammu division and were cleared of militancy over a decade back.

"The people of Rajouri and Poonch are peace loving and they will not allow Pakistan to succeed in its design. There are some elements with whom we will deal sternly," he said.

He termed the dropping of weapons through drones as a "big challenge" and said this is the first such aerial drop in the district though a similar attempt was foiled by the Border Security Force (BSF) along the International Border in Kathua district sometime back.

"This is a hilly terrain and drones just bypass the deployment on the LoC," he said, adding that "we are vigilant to the threat and have taken necessary measures".

On the recovery of a large number of US-made rifles in the recent past, Singh said "we have recovered such types of rifles like M-4 and M-16 in large numbers in the past as well. These rifles are duplicate weapons manufactured in Pakistan and are being smuggled by LeT and Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists".

Mukesh Singh said on September 11, police and Army arrested two people and recovered a cache of arms and ammunition, including three pistols, 11 grenades, improvised explosive device (IED) material and a pen drive, frustrating terrorists plan to carry out target killings and blasts in Poonch district.

"The arrest and recovery was made from Balakote sector of Poonch. The pen drive contains details of assembling and planting the IED," he said.

In another operation on September 14, one person was arrested with 7 kg heroin in Rajouri and later at his disclosure one more arrest was made from Kulgam district of south Kashmir.

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Story first published: Saturday, September 19, 2020, 21:35 [IST]
The British government had a poor opinion of Rajiv Gandhis performance as the prime minister (1984-89) and on the eve of the 1989 general election, concluded that the atmosphere in his cabinet was that of an oriental court, where he was king among courtiers.

The confidential assessment of Gandhis tenure in office was penned by the then British high commissioner in New Delhi, David Goodall, and received in the Foreign Office in London as an astute and perceptive analysis. It has now been declassified and released by National Archives.

The Gandhi-led Congress lost the 1989 election. Gandhi was the focus of two detailed confidential notes by the diplomat, who wrote he had a difficult time explaining to an incredulous then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in September 1989 that Gandhi would not return as the prime minister.

The notes are particularly critical of Gandhis ways of functioning, and his alleged dependence on a coterie. They quote former foreign secretary M K Rasgotra and former diplomat Ronen Sen to substantiate the assessment of Gandhis appalling working methods.

Goodall wrote: The small coterie of privileged bureaucrats and political associates on whom he relies for advice are liable to go in and out of favour with disconcerting suddenness; and the question who currently has the Prime Ministers ear is the perennial topic of speculation among both Indian and foreign political observers in Delhi.

After over four years in office, inexperience is no longer a sufficient excuse. It has become clear that Gandhi also has problems of indecisiveness and a tendency to lose interest in the implementation of policies.

Attached image of one of the declassified files on Rajiv Gandhi. (HT Photo)

It would be unfair to apply to him Lord Beaverbooks dictum about Lord Derby that, like a cushion, he bears the imprint of the last person to have sat on him; but it is a frequent observation that he is too influenced by the last person who has spoken to him, and that he signally lacks judgment in his choice of close advisers.

According to Goodall, Gandhi had failed to revivify the Congress party, had become aloof and inaccessible to party workers, lacked any profoundly thought-out political philosophy of his own, and was ineffectual in foreign affairs.

I believe that at the root of Gandhis monarchical proclivities there lies a sense of personal insecurityPerhaps the only confidante he trusts completely is his wife, Sonia(There) is little doubt that in private she is a tower of strength, and exercises a powerful influence on his choice (and rejection) of friends, the diplomat, who passed away in 2016, wrote.

He added: Indeed with Ministers his status is more that of king among courtiers than first among equals. We are told that in cabinet no-one, with the possible exception of K C Pant, the Defence Minister, dares to contradict him. With 24 re-shuffles in four years, no Minister has been allowed to remain in one job long enough to establish an independent political reputation.

In other respects too, the atmosphere is that of an oriental court; indeed comparisons, not altogether far-fetched, are sometimes drawn with the late Shah of PersiaAlongside the urbanity and the gentleness appear flashes of unpredictable petulance.

On the credit side, the declassified notes mention Gandhis pro-western outlook, lineage and the Nehru-Gandhi familys long-standing links with Britain, particularly its leading lights attending schools and universities in the country over the decades.

The note says: Rajiv was strikingly handsome. He was a most attractive person to be with. He had charm, modesty and human warmth. He was full of decent instincts and devoted to his family. Undoubtedly, he wanted to do the right thing for India; and in the end he spent himself in the attempt.

But the truth is that his character, admirable in many ways, was not big enough for the job. He tried, but he never seemed to try hard enough(He) never succeeded, either by force of character or example, in making even the smallest dent on the moral decay and galloping corruption of Indian political life and Indian political institutions, Goodall wrote.

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Entire classes of children being sent home is going to be a normal part of public education until the COVID-19 pandemic comes to an end, says Niagaras top public health official.

Dr. Mustafa Hirji, Niagaras acting medical officer of health, said aggressively dealing with cases as they emerge in schools is necessary to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus from getting out of hand and ultimately keep children in class.

It is absolutely going to be a common part of this interim normal, said Hirji, the day after a COVID-19 case was reported in Mary Ward Catholic School in Niagara Falls.

Neither the Niagara Catholic District School Board, nor Hirji, will say if the infected person is a student or school staff member. However, all the students in an exposed class and any staff who were in contact with that person have been sent home and will remain in isolation for 14 days.

Hirji said he is not recommending anyone get tested for COVID-19 unless they begin to show symptoms.

Hirji said transmission of the virus from children to other people is less common than transmission from one adult to another.

Late Friday, the District School Board of Niagara reported its first school-based COVID-19. A single person at Eastdale Secondary School in Welland has tested positive for the virus. According to the limited information on the boards website, no classes have been closed and no further information was released.

The Ontario government posts a daily list of COVID-19 cases in Ontario schools, although the Niagara case was not on that list as of Friday. The database shows there are 72 cases in Ontario schools 25 of them students, 22 staff and 25 people who have not been identified.

The Catholic boards director of education, Camillo Cipriano said the board was informed by the infected person of their status, and that the school and the board are working with the public health department to identify anyone who might have been exposed to the virus.

There is a confidence in the policies and procedures that are in place as well as our school administration, and our communication process, said Cipriano. Our schools are safe.

Mary Ward and Eastdale are the second and third educational facilities to report a positive COVID-19 cases this week.

On Wednesday, Brock University reported an off-campus student has tested positive for the virus. The university said this student had not yet been on campus. Since testing positive, the student is in isolation.

-With files from Sean Vanderklis
TikTok and WeChat Banned in the US; Whats Really Behind Chinas Airport Construction Binge

President Donald Trumps administration will block Americans from downloading China-based applications WeChat and TikTok, citing national security concerns. This ban will go in effect on Sunday. U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement Todays actions prove once again that President Trump will do everything in his power to guarantee our national security and protect Americans from the threats of the Chinese Communist Party.

Meanwhile, China is making a new push for logistic systems to stabilize its supply chains, and planned projects include the construction of hundreds of new airports. Yet behind this move is something deeper, and it may give us another hint at the true state of the Chinese economy. Well be explaining this in-depth.

And the new Quad alliance formed between the United States, Japan, India, and Australia is working to stand up against the Chinese Communist Party. According to Bruce Klingner, Senior Research Fellow on Northeast Asia at The Heritage Foundation, Japan in particular may need a bit more of a push to reach its full capabilities  and when it comes to standing up against the Chinese government, this may be necessary. He argues that the issue Japan faces isnt its defense capabilities, but instead its hesitancy to employ them. To get a better sense of this, weve invited Bruce Klingner to speak with us.

These stories and more in this episode of Crossroads.

Crossroads is an Epoch Times show available on Facebook and YouTube.

Join Patreon to Support Crossroads: https://www.patreon.com/Crossroads_Josh
Republican leaders came forcefully following the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to urge their senate colleagues to toe the party line and demand the vacancy is filled before the November election.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell sent a letter to Republicans on Friday telling them to keep your powder dry and avoid falling under pressure to announce their stance on whether the open seat on the nations highest court should be filled just six weeks ahead of election day.

Over the coming days, we are all going to come under tremendous pressure from the press to announce how we will handle the coming nomination, the senate majority leader wrote to his colleagues. For those of you who are unsure how to answer, or for those inclined to oppose giving a nominee a vote, I urge you all to keep your powder dry. This is not the time to prematurely lock yourselves into a position you may later regret.

The senate leader appears to be keen to get ahead of any potential rebel Republicans who might opt to vote against confirming a justice before November. The Republican-led senate would require just 51 votes in order to successfully confirm the next Supreme Court justice after its voting procedures were changed to allow for a simple majority in 2017.

Numerous Republicans on Capitol Hill have spoken out against filling a vacant seat on the Supreme Court during an election year prior to Ms Ginsburgs death.

Many of those senators spoke on-record about their opposition to filling such an important role ahead of a national election after Republicans refused to hold confirmation hearings for Barack Obamas Supreme Court nominee, judge Merrick Garland, in 2016.

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As recently as September, Senator Lisa Murkowski said she would not vote for Ms Ginsburgs replacement ahead of an election, saying: Fair is Fair.

Senator Susan Collins reportedly said just this month that she would not vote for a Supreme Court nominee in October, telling the New York Times: I think thats too close, I really do.

Several other senators may oppose filling the seat under such extraordinary circumstances, including Mitt Romney, though it remains unclear whether he plans to participate in a vote. His communications director referred to claims on Friday night that he would not confirm a nominee until after Inauguration Day as grossly false.

If the confirmation process were to drag on through the election, there is also a chance senators could be replaced with Democrats unlikely to vote for the presidents nominee. Martha McSally, an Arizona senator trailing behind her Democratic opponent Mark Kelly, has called for the confirmation process to take place before election day.

Some Republicans have alleged there were discrepancies between 2016 and now that would allow them to vote on a nominee put forth by Donald Trump this close to an election.

They said the tradition not to hold confirmation hearings for a Supreme Court justice stemmed from a 1992 speech by then-senator Joe Biden, in which he said the president should wait until after the election to nominate a justice since he was a Republican incumbent with a Democratic-led senate.

However, Mr Biden also suggested in that speech that the president should nominate a moderate justice if he chose to move forward with the confirmation process that would be acceptable to the Democratic senate.

Senator Chuck Grassley suggested he would not vote for a nominee ahead of an election, saying in July: I'm just following what was established by the Biden Rule in 1986 and then emphasized by him in 1992... They set the pattern. I didn't set the pattern. But it was very legitimate that you can't have one rule for Democratic presidents and another rule for Republican presidents."

The senate majority leader also referenced the Biden rule in his letter on Friday, writing: We followed the Biden Rule in 2016, which provided that the Senate will not fill Supreme Court vacancies that arise in presidential election years when the presidency and the Senate majority are held by opposing parties.
Mangaluru, Sep 19 : Dancer-actor Kishore Aman Shetty and another person were arrested on the charges of peddling and consumption of drugs, the Mangaluru city police said on Saturday.

Shetty, a well-known celeb in the coastal region, rose to fame by participating in TV reality shows like 'Dance India Dance' and featuring in the Bollywood superhit flick 'ABCD: Anybody Can Dance', directed by Tamil dancing sensation Prabhudeva.

Apart from Shetty, 30, police also arrested Aqeel Nausheel, 28, for allegedly possessing synthetic drug MDMA or Meth or Molly.

"The CCB police arrested the accused (Shetty and Aqeel) this morning. They purchased drugs from Mumbai and sold the contraband in Mangaluru," City Police Commissioner Vikash Kumar Vikash told reporters.

The police claimed that both procured drugs from Maharashtra and Bengaluru to sell them in Mangaluru to students and others.

The police seized MDMA, a motorcycle, and two mobile phones from their possession.

Aqeel earlier worked as a safety officer in a Gulf country but returned to India around a year ago. Shetty also got involved in selling MDMA for easy money.

A case under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act was registered against the duo.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's last public appearance before she died aged 87 of metastatic pancreatic cancer was officiating an outdoor wedding for family friends last month.

The judge, only the second woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice, passed away Friday evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington D.C. following complications with her illness.

Ginsburg, who served for 27 years on the highest court of the land, had battled several bouts of cancer after first being diagnosed in 2009.

But in August, a tweet from a new bride brought the first sighting of an ailing Ginsburg in months.

The photo of the Ginsburg, who announced in July she was being treated for cancer, shows her during the wedding ceremony of Barb Solish and Danny Kazin, according to Solish's Twitter feed.

'2020 has been rough, but yesterday was Supreme,' Solish tweeted.

Ginsburg served for 27 years on the highest court of the land, and had battled several bouts of cancer

In the photo, Ginsburg was wearing her judicial robe with a decorative black-and-white embroidered collar.

The justice was a close friend of one of the families and the festivities took place outdoors at a private residence, court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg said.

Solish noted on Twitter that both she and her husband 'tested negative' before the ceremony, presumably for COVID-19.

Solish works as the Director for External Communications at National Alliance on Mental Illness, while in 2019 Kazin led as the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's independent expenditure director, per Politico.

Ginsburg and the rest of the court essentially disappeared from view when the court in March was closed to the public because of the virus outbreak.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg (pictured) was considered by many to be a legal pioneer who broke down barriers for women pursuing law practices. Pictured: U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg poses during a group portrait session for the new full court at the Supreme Court in Washington in 2018

The justices began meeting by telephone and held arguments by phone in May, their voices but not their images available to the public.

The court handed down opinions into the middle of July, but the justices did not take the bench to announce their decisions as they customarily do. Rather, opinions were posted online.

Shortly after the court finished its work for the summer, Ginsburg announced she was undergoing chemotherapy to treat lesions on her liver.

It was the fifth time she's dealt with cancer in the past 20 years. At the same time, she said she would continue to serve on the court.

Her death paves the way for Donald Trump to expand his conservative majority on the Supreme Court ahead of November's election.

Ginsburg, the leader of the courts four-member liberal wing, voiced concerns about the political impact of her passing in the days leading up to her death.

The US Supreme Court (front left to right) Associate Justice Stephen Breyer, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John Roberts, Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice Samuel Alito, Jr., (back left to right) Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch, Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Associate Justice Elena Kagan and Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh pose for their official portrait at the Supreme Court building November 2018

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (center) hugs tenor Placido Domingo after Domingo sang a portion of Ginsburg's citation for her honorary Doctor of Laws degree, during the 360th Commencement Exercises at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 2011

'My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed,' the legal pioneer said in a statement dictated to her granddaughter Clara Spera days before her death.

President Trump led tributes, describing Ginsburg as a 'titan of the law' whose legal expertise and historic decisions inspired generations of Americans.

'Today, our nation mourns the loss of a titan of the law' who was 'renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court,' Trump said in a statement, after a rally in Minnesota.

'Her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds,' he added.

'May her memory be a great and magnificent blessing to the world.'

There was no mention of the next steps in appointing a successor.

Trump's Democrat rival Joe Biden paid his respects to the legal pioneer and champion of equal rights.

Biden tweeted: 'Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for all of us. She was an American hero, a giant of legal doctrine, and a relentless voice in the pursuit of that highest American ideal: Equal Justice Under Law. May her memory be a blessing to all people who cherish our Constitution and its promise.'

The presidential candidate insisted a new justice should not be chosen until after the election in November and said this was the process followed in 2016.

'There is no doubt - let me be clear - that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider,' he said in an interview to CNN.

'This was the position that the Republican Senate took in 2016 when there were almost 10 months to go.'

Chief Justice John Roberts also paid tribute to his colleague Friday describing her as a 'champion of justice'.

'Our nation has lost a justice of historic stature,' Roberts said in a statement.

'We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her, a tired and resolute champion of justice.'

Former President Bill Clinton (left) poses with then-nominee for the Supreme Court Ruth Bader Ginsburg (right) during a news conference in Washington in 1993

Tributes poured in from political leaders including former president George Bush, Hillary Clinton, and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

Hillary Clinton tweeted that Ginsburg, a staunch advocate for women's rights, paved the way for other women.

'Justice Ginsburg paved the way for so many women, including me. There will never be another like her. Thank you RBG,' Clinton wrote.

Former president George Bush also paid tribute to Ginsburg in a statement Friday.

'Laura and I join our fellow Americans in mourning the loss of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She dedicated many of her 87 remarkable years to the pursuit of justice and equality, and she inspired more than one generation of women and girls,' he said.

The judge, only the second woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice, passed away Friday evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington D.C. following complications with her illness, the court said in a statement

'Justice Ginsburg loved our country and the law. Laura and I are fortunate to have known this smart and humorous trailblazr, and we send our condolences to the Ginsburg family'.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo spoke of the state's heartbreak over the loss over one of its own.

'NYs heart breaks with the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg,' the Democrat tweeted.

'During her extraordinary career, this Brooklyn native broke barriers & the letters RBG took on new meaningas battle cry & inspiration. Her legal mind & dedication to justice leave an indelible mark on America.'

Washington Governor Jay Inslee, also a Democrat, described her as an 'American hero' and demanded that her 'dying wish' to not be replaced on the bench until after the election be respected.

He tweeted: 'We have lost an American hero and a giant of justice.

'May we honor Justice Ginsburgs legacy by fighting for the civil rights of all Americans and respect her dying wish that she will not be replaced until a new president is installed.'

Tributes poured in from political leaders including former president George Bush, Hillary Clinton, and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo

His words were echoed by Senator Cory Booker who urged the nation to carry on 'her legacy of fairness and equality'.

'Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a true giant, an American hero and a warrior for justice,' Booker tweeted.

'Our country mourns her loss deeplywe must honor her by carrying on her legacy of fairness and equality.'

Tributes also poured in from those on the other side of the political spectrum.

Senator Lindsey Graham tweeted that he was filled with 'great sadness' at the news and that despite their 'many differences' he 'appreciate[d] her service to our nation'.

'It was with great sadness that I learned of the passing of Justice Ginsburg. Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer who possessed tremendous passion for her causes. She served with honor and distinction as a member of the Supreme Court,' he wrote.

Tributes also poured in from those on the other side of the political spectrum

'While I had many differences with her on legal philosophy, I appreciate her service to our nation. My thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends. May she Rest In Peace.'

President Trump is yet to tweet about her passing however estranged niece Mary Trump urged Americans to continue her 'fight for our country'.

'Take a moment. Breathe. And then we fight for our country the way she always did for us. Or we will lose everything,' she wrote on Twitter.

Ginsburg's death gives Trump the opportunity to name her successor at a critical time just six weeks before the nation heads to the polls.

The president has already appointed two members of the Supreme Court, Justices Neil M. Gorsuch and Brett M. Kavanaugh, in a move that pushes the court increasingly right wing.

The replacement of Ginsburg, a Democrat and women's rights champion, by another Republican will leave the court Democrats outnumbered, with six Republicans to their three.

A debate is expected to ensue over whether Trump should nominate her successor or leave the seat vacant until after the outcome of the election.

Senator Chuck Schumer tweeted Friday after the news broke of Ginsburg's death that the position should not be filled until the White House race was over.

'The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice,' he tweeted.

'Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.'

Ginsburg was appointed to the Supreme Court by President Clinton in 1993 and has served more than 27 years.

She leaves behind her two children Jane Carol Ginsburg and James Steven Ginsburg, four grandchildren Paul Spera, Clara Spera, Miranda Ginsburg and Abigail Ginsburg, two step-grandchildren Harjinder Bedi and Satinder Bedi, and one great-grandchild Lucrezia Spera.

Her husband Martin David Ginsburg died in 2010.

Ginsburg was born in Brooklyn, New York, on March 15 1933.
President Donald Trump on Saturday announced that his Supreme Court nominee to fill the vacancy caused by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death will be a 'very talented, very brilliant woman' because 'I like women more than I like men'.

During a campaign rally in North Carolina on Saturday night that Trump branded a 'protest', he declared 'I will be putting forth a nominee this week, it will be a woman'.

Before he left the White House for the rally, Trump had named two conservative women who he has elevated to federal appeals courts as contenders, a move that would tip the court further to the right.

Trump, who now has a chance to nominate a third justice to a lifetime appointment on the court, named Amy Coney Barrett, 48, of the Chicago-based 7th Circuit and Barbara Lagoa, 52, of the Atlanta-based 11th Circuit as possible nominees.

He praised Lagoa, in particular, as an 'extraordinary person'.

According to CNN, a source said that the announcement of the nomination could depend on when Ginsburg's burial takes place.

President Trump said Saturday his Supreme Court nominee is most likely to be a woman

'I have a shortlist, I've had a shortlist for a while. We added a number of people onto the list, the previous list, we have about 45 altogether. I do indeed have a short list,' Trump answered to a reporter's question before he left the White House by plane

'I've gotten to know many of them. I think it's probably, from a legal standpoint, from a sophisticated understanding of the law, from a constitutional standpoint, I think it's probably the greatest list ever assembled and I think that the other side should show their radical left list and you'd be surprised,' Trump added.

During his rally, as the crowd chanted 'Fill the Seat', Trump promised 'that's what we're going to do, we're going to fill the seat'.

He added that the constitution states: 'The president shall nominate Justices of the Supreme Court, I don't think it can be any more clear, can it?'

Trump claimed that despite the tight deadline before voters cast their ballots on November 3, there was still enough time for the Senate review process on a nomination to take place.

'Twenty-nine times a vacancy opened during an election year and every single time the sitting president made a nomination. That included George Washington, Thomas Jefferson or perhaps you've heard of him, the great Abraham Lincoln.

'Twenty-nine times, every single time, nobody said 'let's not fill the seat'.

'We have plenty of time,' he added.

Earlier in the day, when pushed about whether the nominee would be a woman, the president answered: 'I could see most likely it would be a woman I think I can say that. If somebody were to ask me now I would say that a woman would be in first place. The choice of a woman would be appropriate.'

Even before Ginsburg's death, Trump had made public a list of potential nominees.

Barrett has generated perhaps the most interest in conservative circles. A devout Roman Catholic, she was a legal scholar at Notre Dame Law School in Indiana before Trump appointed her to the 7th Circuit in 2017.

A Barrett nomination would likely ignite controversy, as her strong conservative religious views have prompted abortion-rights groups to say that if confirmed by the U.S. Senate, she would likely vote to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion nationwide.

When questioned about her Saturday evening, Trump said: 'She's very highly respected, I can say that.'

Amy Coney Barrett is among the frontrunners. She has generated perhaps the most interest in conservative circles. A devout Roman Catholic, she was a legal scholar at Notre Dame Law School in Indiana before Trump appointed her to the 7th Circuit in 2017

Trump praised Hispanic judge Barbara Lagoa as an 'extraordinary person'

Lagoa has served on the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for less than a year after being appointed by Trump and confirmed by the Senate on an 80-15 vote. Prior to that she also spent less than a year in her previous position as the first Latina to serve on the Florida Supreme Court.

She previously spent more than a decade as a judge on an intermediate appeals court in Florida.

'She's an extraordinary person, I've heard incredible things about her. She's Hispanic and highly respected,' Trump said of Lagoa.

Another candidate Trump has considered previously is Amul Thapar. He was a district court judge in Kentucky - the first federal judge of South Asian descent - before Trump appointed him to the Cincinnati-based 6th Circuit in 2017.

Ginsburg's death on Friday from cancer after 27 years on the court handed Trump, who is seeking re-election on November 3, the opportunity to expand its conservative majority to 6-3 at a time of a gaping political divide in America.

Conservative activists for years have sought to get enough votes on the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade. During the 2016 campaign, Trump promised to appoint justices who would overturn that decision.

But the court in July, even with its conservative majority, struck down a restrictive Louisiana abortion law on a 5-4 vote.

Who is Amy Coney Barrett? On Saturday afternoon, Trump named Amy Coney Barrett, 48, of the Chicago-based 7th Circuit and Barbara Lagoa, 52, of the Atlanta-based 11th Circuit as possible nominees. Emerging as the favorite is Barrett, 48, a mother of seven children, including two adopted from Haiti and one with special needs. Her involvement in a cult-like Catholic group where members are assigned a 'handmaiden' has caused concern in Barret's nomination to other courts and is set to come under fierce review again if she is Trump's pick. The group was the one which helped inspire 'The Handmaids Tale', book's author Margaret Atwood has said. Barrett emerges now as a front runner after she was already shortlisted for the nomination in 2018 which eventually went to Brett Kavanaugh. Trump called the federal appellate court judge 'very highly respected' when questioned about her Saturday. Born in New Orleans in 1972, she was the first and only woman to occupy an Indiana seat on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Married to Jesse M. Barrett, a partner at SouthBank Legal in South Bend and former Assistant United States Attorney for the Northern District of Indiana, the couple have five biological and two adopted children. Their youngest biological child has Down Syndrome. Friends say she is a devoted mother - and say with just an hour to go until she was voted into the 7th District Court of Appeals by the U.S. Senate in 2017, Barrett was outside trick-or-treating with her kids. Barrett's strong Christian ideology makes her a favorite of the right but her involvement in a religious group sometimes branded as a 'cult' is set to be harshly criticized. In 2017, her affiliation to the small, tightly knit Christian group called People of Praise caused concern while she was a nominee for a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. The New York Times reported that the practices of the group would surprise even other Catholics with members of the group swearing a lifelong oath of loyalty, called a covenant, to one another. They are also assigned and held accountable to a personal adviser, known until recently as a 'head' for men and a 'handmaid' for women and believe in prophecy, speaking in tongues and divine healings. Members are also encouraged to confess personal sins, financial information and other sensitive disclosures to these advisors. Advisors are allowed to report these admissions to group leadership if necessary, according to an account of one former member. The organization itself says that the term 'handmaid' was a reference to Jesus's mother Mary's description of herself as a 'handmaid of the Lord.' They said they recently stopped using the term due to cultural shifts and now use the name 'women leaders.' The group deems that husbands are the heads of their wives and should take authority over the family while 'the heads and handmaids give direction on important decisions, including whom to date or marry, where to live, whether to take a job or buy a home, and how to raise children,' the Times reported. Unmarried members are placed living with married couples members often look to buy or rent homes near other members. Founded in 1971, People of Praise was part of the era's 'great emergence of lay ministries and lay movements in the Catholic Church,' founder Bishop Peter Smith told the Catholic News Agency. Beginning with just 29 members, it now has an estimated 2,000. According to CNA, some former members of the People of Praise allege that leaders exerted undue influence over family decision-making, or pressured the children of members to commit to the group. At least 10 members of Barrett's family, not including their children, also belong to the group. Barrett's father, Mike Coney, serves on the People of Praise's powerful 11-member board of governors, described as the group's 'highest authority.' Her mother Linda served as a handmaiden. The group's ultra-conservative religious tenets helped spur author Margaret Atwood to publish The Handmaid's Tale, a story about a religious takeover of the U.S. government, according to a 1986 interview with the writer. The book has since been made into a hit TV series. According to legal experts, loyalty oaths such at the one Barrett would have taken to People of Praise could raise legitimate questions about a judicial nominee's independence and impartiality. 'These groups can become so absorbing that it's difficult for a person to retain individual judgment,' said Sarah Barringer Gordon, a professor of constitutional law and history at the University of Pennsylvania. 'I don't think it's discriminatory or hostile to religion to want to learn more' about her relationship with the group. 'We don't try to control people,' said Craig S. Lent. 'And there's never any guarantee that the leader is always right. You have to discern and act in the Lord. 'If and when members hold political offices, or judicial offices, or administrative offices, we would certainly not tell them how to discharge their responsibilities.' During her professional career, Barrett spent two decades as a law professor at the University of Notre Dame, from which she holds her bachelor's and law degrees. She was named 'Distinguished Professor of the Year' three separate years, a title decided by students. A former clerk for late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, she was nominated by Trump to serve on the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2017 and confirmed in a 55-43 vote by the Senate later that year. At the time, three Democratic senators supported her nomination: Joe Donnelly (Ind.), who subsequently lost his 2018 reelection bid, Tim Kaine (Va.) and Joe Manchin (W.Va.), according to the Hill. She was backed by every GOP senator at the time, but she did not disclose her relationship with People of Praise which led to later criticism of her appointment. Barret is well-regarded by the religious right because of this devout faith. Yet these beliefs are certain to cause problems with her conformation and stand in opposition to the beliefs of Ginsburg, who she would be replacing. Axios reported in 2019 that Trump told aides he was 'saving' Barrett to replace Ginsburg. Her deep Catholic faith was cited by Democrats as a large disadvantage during her 2017 confirmation hearing for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit. 'If you're asking whether I take my faith seriously and I'm a faithful Catholic, I am,' Barrett responded during that hearing, 'although I would stress that my personal church affiliation or my religious belief would not bear in the discharge of my duties as a judge.' Republicans now believe that she performed well in her defense during this hearing, leaving her potentially capable of doing the same if facing the Senate Judiciary Committee. She is a former member of the Notre Dame's 'Faculty for Life' and in 2015 signed a letter to the Catholic Church affirming the 'teachings of the Church as truth.' Among those teachings were the 'value of human life from conception to natural death' and marriage-family values 'founded on the indissoluble commitment of a man and a woman'. She has previously written that Supreme Court precedents are not sacrosanct. Liberals have taken these comments as a threat to the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide. Barrett wrote that she agrees 'with those who say that a justice's duty is to the Constitution and that it is thus more legitimate for her to enforce her best understanding of the Constitution rather than a precedent she thinks clearly in conflict with it'. Among the other statements that have cause concern for liberal are her declaration that ObamaCare's birth control mandate is 'grave violation of religious freedom.' LGBTQ organizations also voiced their concern about her when she was first named on the shortlist. She has also sided with Trump on immigration. In a case from June 2020, IndyStar reports that she was the sole voice on a three-judge panel that supported allowing federal enforcement of Trump's public charge immigration law in Illinois, The law would have prevented immigrants from getting legal residency in the United States if they rely on public benefits like food stamps or housing vouchers. Advertisement

The two justices already appointed by Trump were Neil Gorsuch in 2017 and Brett Kavanaugh in 2018.

Kavanaugh's confirmation process was particularly heated, as he faced accusations by a California university professor, Christine Blasey Ford, that he had sexually assaulted her in 1982 when the two were high school students in Maryland.

Kavanaugh angrily denied those accusations and was narrowly confirmed.

Any nomination would require approval in the Senate, where Trump's Republicans hold a 53-47 majority.

Trump hopes to rush through the nomination process within the next 45 days before the election so he can secure a heavily conservative sway on the court whether or not he wins a second term.

'We're working with all the Republican senators, working with Mitch McConnell and will be making a decision,' he said Saturday evening.

'I think before would be very good, we'll be making a decision I think the process can go very very fast, I'll be making by choice soon and when the choice is made I'll be sending it over to Mitch and the Senate and they'll do what they have to do. We'll have a very popular choice whoever that may be but we'll be sending it to the Senate

Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death has left a crucial vacancy on the Supreme Court

'I think the choice will be next week I do,' he added.

Earlier in the day, he had hit back at backlash as Democrats and several Republicans claimed the nomination process could wait.

'We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices,' Trump said on Twitter Saturday.

'We have this obligation, without delay!'

Not all Republican senators supported the move: Maine's Susan Collins on Saturday said Trump should hold off on nominating.

'In fairness to the American people, who will either be re-electing the President or selecting a new one, the decision on a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court should be made by the President who is elected on November 3rd,' Collins, facing a tough re-election race herself, said on Twitter.

Democrats are still seething over the Republican Senate's refusal to act on Democratic President Barack Obama's Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, in 2016 after conservative Justice Antonin Scalia died 10 months before that election. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said then that the Senate should not act on a court nominee during an election year, a stance he has since reversed.

Even if Democrats win the White House and a Senate majority in the November election, Trump and McConnell have time as the full new Congress would not be sworn in until Jan. 3

Who is Barbara Lagoa? Barbara Lagoa , 52, was named by Trump as one of his potential nominees to the Supreme Court. A Cuban American who parents fled to the U.S., Lagoa was born in Miami in 1967. She grew up in the largely Cuban American city of Hialeah. According to the Tampa Bay Times, her parents fled Cuba over five decades ago when Fidel Castro's Communist dictatorship took over. During the 2019 news conference in Miami announcing her appointment to the Supreme Court, she told the crowd that her father had to give up his 'dream of becoming a lawyer' because of Castro. If nominated to the nation's high court by Trump and confirmed by the Senate, the mother of three daughters would be the second Latino justice to ever serve. She served on the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for less than a year after being appointed by Trump and confirmed by the Senate on an 80-15 vote Prior to that she also spent less than a year in her previous position as the first Latina and Cuban American to serve on the Florida Supreme Court. Lagoa is considered a protege of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a close Trump ally. Her position in crucial swing state Florida could help Trump politically. Last week, she voted in the majority in a ruling that barred hundreds of thousands of Florida felons who have served their time from voting unless they pay fees and fines owed to the state. This decision could have a major impact on the presidential race as Florida is often won by a candidate by only razor-thin margins. 'Florida's felon re-enfranchisement scheme is constitutional,' Lagoa wrote in a 20-page concurrence, according to USA Today. 'It falls to the citizens of the state of Florida and their elected state legislators, not to federal judges, to make any additional changes to it.' In 2000 Lagoa was one of a dozen mostly pro bono lawyers who represented the Miami family of Elian Gonzalez, a Cuban citizen who became embroiled in a heated international custody and immigration controversy. In 2016 while in the Florida Third District Court of Appeal, she wrote an opinion reversing the conviction of Adonis Losada, a former Univision comic actor sentenced to 153 years in prison for collecting child porn. She ruled that a Miami-Dade judge erred in not allowing Losada to defend himself at trial. That same month she became unpopular with free press advocates when she was one of three judges who allowed a Miami judge to close a courtroom to the public for a key hearing in a high-profile murder case. They ruled that publicity surrounding the machete murder of a student in Homestead might unfairly sway jurors at a future trial. Lagoa is a graduate of Florida International University and Columbia University Law. She is is a member of the conservative Federalist Society, which stresses that judges should 'say what the law is, not what it should be.' She is married to lawyer Paul C. Huck Jr., and her father-in-law is United States District Judge Paul Huck. Advertisement

Senior congressional Democrats raised the prospect of adding additional justices next year to counterbalance Trump's nominees if they win control of the White House and Senate in the November election.

McConnell, who has made confirmation of Trump's federal judicial nominees a top priority, said the chamber would vote on any Trump nominee.

Given that they have few tools to block the eventual nomination from passing, Democrats plan to try to rally public opposition to the move.

'The focus needs to be showing the public what's at stake in this fight. And what's at stake is really people's access to affordable healthcare, workers' rights and women's rights,' said Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen in a telephone interview.

Obama himself on Saturday called on Senate Republicans to honor what he called that 'invented' 2016 principle.

'A basic principle of the law - and of everyday fairness - is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment,' Obama said in a statement posted online.

Republicans risk the possibility of liberals embracing more radical proposals should Trump replace Ginsburg but Democrats win November's election, with some activists on the left suggesting even before Ginsburg's death that the number of justices on the court should be expanded to counter Trump's appointees.

'Let me be clear: if Leader McConnell and Senate Republicans move forward with this, then nothing is off the table for next year,' Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told fellow Democrats on a Saturday conference call, according to a source who listened to the call.

House of Representatives Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler on Saturday said that rushing a court pick through the Senate if Democrats win in November would be 'undemocratic.'

He said in a Twitter post that doing so would mean 'Congress would have to act and expanding the court would be the right place to start.'

Confirmation votes could also put more pressure on incumbent Republican senators in competitive election races, including Collins and Arizona's Martha McSally, at a time when Democrats are eying a chance to win control of that chamber. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, who is not up for re-election this cycle, also could play a pivotal role.

She told local media on Friday, prior to Ginsburg's death, that she would not vote for a Supreme Court nominee so close to the election.
CHISINAU (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 17th September, 2020) Moldovan President Igor Dodon said that in early January 2021, the Moldovan parliament could be dissolved, but for this the government would have to resign.

Earlier, Dodon said the Moldovan parliament should be dissolved, since the current makeup of the legislative body did not match the people's will, expressed in the elections in February 2019. Some of the lawmakers gave up mandates for other positions, some changed parliamentary factions.

"The parliament may be dissolved either through government resignation, or if lawmakers do not adopt legislative initiatives for 90 days, but now the latter option is hardly possible. After the presidential campaign, there may be different scenarios, if after November 15-16 the government leaves, then before January 1-2, an attempt is made twice to approve a new cabinet and on January 3-4 a decree on parliament dissolution will be signed," Dodon said on the Prime tv channel.

The opposition has forwarded the idea of jointly holding presidential and early parliamentary elections, but the Constitutional Court has ruled the option to be illegal. At least six months must pass between the two electoral processes.

The coalition in the Moldovan parliament was formed in March by Democrats and Socialists. Today, the Socialist Party is represented in parliament by 37 lawmakers, the Democrats have 12 mandates, that is, the coalition consists of 49 lawmakers, and there are also two independent lawmakers in parliament who support the coalition. In total, there are 101 lawmakers in the parliament; for a stable parliamentary majority, at least 51 votes are needed.
A ctor Danny Masterson has made his first appearance in court after he was charged with raping three women in the early 2000s.

Masterson, best known for playing Steven Hyde in the hit series That '70s Show, has been free on bail since his arrest in June.

The 44-year-old actor did not enter a plea, but his lawyer Tom Mesereau declared his innocence in the Los Angeles courtroom on Friday.

If convicted as charged, the actor faces a maximum sentence of 45 years to life in state prison.

He stood in court wearing a blue suit and face mask next to his attorneys Mr Mesereau and Sharon Appelbaum, as his three accusers sat in the gallery.

Danny Masterson's lawyer denied his charges of rape / Jason Merritt/Getty Images

There have been repeated attempts to politicise this case, said Mr Mesereau, who also represented Bill Cosby and Michael Jackson in their sexual misconduct cases.

He is absolutely not guilty and were going to prove it.

Masterson has previously argued he was being persecuted for his high-profile membership of the Church of Scientology.

Deputy District Attorney Reinhold Mueller called the statements pure speculation, with no basis in fact.

A group of the actor's supporters stood outside the courtroom as they are unable to enter due to coronavirus regulations.

Actor Danny Masterson, left, stands with his lawyers Thomas Mesereau, right, and Sharon Appelbaum during his arraignment in Los Angeles Superior Court / AP

Mr Mesereau added: We want to do anything we can to tone down the cameras and the circus-like atmosphere that have pervaded this case. Were just trying to protect his rights.

Superior Court Judge Miguel T. Espinoza denied a request from the defence for a protective order sealing case files and preventing police, prosecutors and potential witnesses from revealing case information to the media, but said he would reconsider similar requests later.

Masterson spoke only to answer yes to the judges questions.

The defence has filed documents asking the criminal complaint against Masterson be thrown out as insufficient. A hearing on the issue will be held before Masterson is asked to enter a plea.

The 44-year-old is alleged to have raped a 23-year-old woman in 2001, according to prosecutors.

He is also accused of attacking a 28-year-old woman in April 2003 as well as raping a 23-year-old he had invited to his Hollywood Hills home between October and December that year.

All of the alleged attacks took place at Masterson's home, prosecutors said.

Masterson was written out of Netflix comedy The Ranch in 2017 when he was accused of sexual assault.

His dismissal from the show came in the wake of mass allegations against the now-jailed Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, who was accused of sexual misconduct following a New York Times investigation in October 2017.

Additional reporting by Associated Press.
Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare

Cast: Konkona Sen Sharma, Bhumi Pednekar, Amol Parashar, Aamir Bashir, Vikrant Massey

Direction: Alankrita Shrivastava

Ration: * * * (three stars)

BY VINAYAK CHAKRAVORTY

Dolly and Kitty could be any smalltown cousins. In the world of Alankrita Shrivastava, they become fictional case studies of real desires that the Indian woman of today might harbour, even as she grapples with an innate conservative mindset and a society that is still too inflexible while accepting her sexual mores.

In a way, Shrivastava was setting up a desi Fleabag of sorts, narrating the story of Radha, or Dolly (Konkona Sensharma), and her cousin sister Kajal (Bhumi Pednekar), or Kitty from Darbhanga, Bihar. Dolly (Sen Sharma) is married and a mother of two. Along with her husband Amit (Aamir Bashir), she is trying to close instalments for their dream home in an under-construction Greater Noida highrise. Kajal arrives from Bihar and puts up with Dolly and family, in search of a job and life in the big city.

The fact that Dolly's world is far from idyllic is made clear in the opening minutes, as she, along with Amit, the kids and Kajal visit an amusement park. As they pose for a family photo-op, Amit inappropriately brushes a hand across Kitty when Dolly isn't noticing. For Kitty, the more disturbing fact is Dolly won't believe her when she mentions the incident.

The entire amusement park sequence is perhaps meant to be represent their worlds. To begin with, we find the sisters in the House of Mirrors, lost and confused and yet happy. Minutes after the incident with Amit, as Kitty tries telling Dolly about it, they are on a boat ride in the House of Horrors.

Dolly's marriage is a sham of sorts, sexless and bereft of passion. She finds an 'escape' in the young home delivery boy Osmaan (Amol Parashar). Kitty, who eventually moves out from Dolly's house, lands a job as a 'voice operator' at a call center that is basically all about phone sex. She draws the interest of a hospital worker, Pradeep (Vikrant Massey).

Shrivastava could (and perhaps should) have kept her focus on this linear plot while exploring themes around female sexuality. Instead, she tries fitting in too many extra subtexts.

Perhaps the director is not at fault. A story that sets out to understand female sexuality in the Indian context would invariably involves too many aspect. Dolly's blind faith in her husband would seem an inevitable point to make, in order to understand the movement of her character arch. The initially coy and confused Kitty will take a while to understand men, and the narrative will dwell upon her encounters.

Those instances, perhaps, were still in sync with what the film sets out to be. What really hinders the flow are the several other issues that Shrivastava tries highlighting, which distract the core narrative. Parallel focus is trained on saffron-clad goons who go after lovers and shady child control clinics. Focus is allotted to rampant urbanisation in the NCR. For no apparent benefit to this particular storyline, one of Dolly's sons plays with dolls and likes dressing up as girls do.

As Shrivastava earnestly tries doing justice to her various subtexts, you realise she has erred in selecting the right storytelling format. Her urge to narrate so many varied ideas and themes in one project perhaps demanded a fullfledged web series of multiple episodes, rather than a two-hour film.

As a storyteller, Shrivastava seemed more in command of her craft with her last feature, the 2017-released Lipstick Under My Burkha, a film that has come to be her calling card. Somehow, the effortlessness of that film is lacking here, as is the engaging storytelling.

Shrivastava's latest basically has two areas that deserve wholehearted applaud. First, the intent. Few films tackle the subject of female sexuality and try understand it in India. Although not very assuredly, the film does open up scope for conversation on the issue.

The second thing that endears the film is its cast. When an aptly-cast set of talented artistes gets going with unusual characters, cracks in narrative and cinematic execution usually get covered up.

(Vinayak Chakravorty can be reached at vinayak.c@ians.in)

-- Syndicated from IANS
INDEPENDENCE, OhioThe city council recently approved the purchase of property at 6571-6595 on Brecksville Rd. with the goal of using the area as a part of the future development of downtown Independence.

Kin Properties, Inc. currently owns the land and the buildings used as storefronts. At the City Council meeting on Sept. 8, an ordinance was approved to enter into a purchase agreement with Kin Properties in an amount not to exceed $1,175,000 with up to $20,000 in additional closing costs.

Economic Development Director, Jessica Hyser said, We are excited to acquire this property and see the potential for downtown development.

During a Public Lands and Buildings Committee meeting on Sept. 1, Hyser said this particular parcel is the key core to the citys downtown district. It is located on the corner of Brecksville Rd. and Stone Rd. Hyser said that according to the appraisal of the property by Smith and Nejedlik, the property has decreased in value over the years due to the lease strength of the tenants.

The city attempted to purchase this property in 2014, but Hyser said after a standard environmental review, issues needed to be addressed and the city was not comfortable proceeding. At that time, the cost of the property was $1.4 million. Hyser said that the current appraisal of the property is now $950,000. She said that it is rare for cost to go down on a land acquisition and that it would be important to move quickly on a purchase.

During the Public Lands and Buildings meeting, some city council members voiced their concerns over purchasing the property. Councilman Dale Veverka said, We dont have a good history of moving forward with good things after we make land purchases.

Councilman Kenn Synek echoed concerns over purchasing and instigating movement toward a downtown development plan. He said he would rather see the city pay a premium later than buy the property now at a lower cost for something that may never happen.

Councilman and Chairman for the Public Lands and Buildings Committee, Chris Walchanowicz said that once the city acquires the property, and sells it to a developer as part of the downtown vision, the city will recoup the finances. In the meantime, he said the current tenants in the storefronts would be paying rent.

Hyser said the rent received from the tenants is approximately $9,200 per month and the property taxes for a piece of land valued the same as the Kin Property would be $27,000 per year. She continued saying that additional benefits to owning this property were controlling a total of 250 ft. of frontage on Brecksville Rd. and having control over the development behind the buildings as well.

Mayor Greg Kurtz explained that in addition to the frontage on Brecksville Rd., the city would have control of 194 ft. to Stone Rd. The entire property itself is one acre in size.

As we begin to look for development partners, its essential to minimize a partners risk, and property assembly is one of those big risks. Purchasing the property later also delays our ability to develop a plan that includes the site and may later mean we miss out on owning this key piece of property, said Kurtz.

The city is paying for this land purchase with cash on hand. Kurtz said, The finance department had to internally transfer some funds to facilitate the purchase after Council approved it as it was not originally appropriated for in the 2020 Appropriations Ordinance.

Hyser said that once there is a plan to develop the property into part of the downtown area, the current tenants would be allowed to finish their leases and would be relocated to a new area. Kurtz said that the purchase of this property shows the residents that the city is committed to making the downtown development a reality.

At the Public Lands and Buildings meeting, Councilman Jim Trakas said that there needs to be a timeline for the development of the property, so the city is not just holding onto it. At the city council meeting, a resolution was passed that affirmed the citys commitment to improve city owned land located within the downtown area for public park, commercial, retail, and residential purpose by December 31, 2022.
Stephanie Browitt suffered burns to 70 per cent of her body

A White Island volcano survivor has shared images of the horrific burns to her back that she suffered in the eruption that killed her father and sister.

Stephanie Browitt suffered burns to 70 per cent of her body in the volcano eruption near Whakatane, New Zealand, on December 9 last year.

The 24-year-old from Melbourne had her fingers amputated and wears a full face mask to protect her healing skin.

In an Instagram post on Saturday, Ms Browitt put her insecurities to the side in a brave attempt to share her experience with disfiguring injuries.

'For me personally, my back is one of the areas I struggle to feel comfortable with as the healing process continues,' she wrote.

Three photographs, taken in March, April and August, show red and raw scar tissue covering her back.

In the post, Ms Browitt highlighted the improvements in her skin in the months following the disaster.

'Comparing these photos and how much my back has changed over time absolutely amazes me.'

'How the skin heals is astounding and seeing the changes first hand is just so interesting to me.'

Ms Browitt put her insecurities to the side in a brave attempt to share her experience with disfiguring injuries (pictured: her healing back in March 2020)

'For me personally, my back is one of the areas I struggle to feel comfortable with as the healing process continues,' she wrote. Pictured: Her back in August

Though her skin is slowly recovering, she explained that bending down can be difficult because the scars on her back are tight.

'But I'm constantly stretching and setting new goals for myself. I just have to keep pushing to be my very best self.'

The 24-year-old has been detailing her rehabilitation on social media to share an insight into the daily life of a burns survivor.

Videos on TikTok and Youtube reveal her daily routine, which includes moisturising, stretching out her new skin and doing exercise.

Earlier in September, she uploaded three pictures of her legs dating back to April 27, highlighting the incredible transformation her body has gone through in her healing.

'My skin colour is improving amazingly and it's so exciting to see,' Ms Browitt posted.

Ms Browitt is among 26 survivors of the blast and now wears a face mask to protect her skin

The 24-year-old has been detailing her rehabilitation on social media to share an insight into the daily life of a burns survivor (pictured: Ms Browitt before the accident, and after)

'I'm also starting to find areas of my legs that have returned back to being soft and supple like skin should feel.

'Any sight of improvement is always a great boost of motivation for me to keep going and to stay strong and hopeful.

'I know that this journey has definitely made feel so grateful towards my body and what it can do.'

Her 21-year-old sister Krystal and father Paul were among 16 Australians who died in the blast.

When first responders arrived on the scene after the explosion, Mr Browitt urged them to save his girls before coming back for him.

Krystal was tragically killed in the initial blast, while Mr Browitt died later in hospital.

Ms Browitt took to Instagram to show a recovery sequence of her legs from the burns. Photo from 27 April

Ms Browitt's skin colour on her legs is shown returning to form in a picture dated 15 July

Ms Browitt spent nine months painstakingly rebuilding her life and recovering in hospital.

She previously said she keeps wishing she could turn back time and at least have looked for her sister and father and sat with them during the aftermath.

'We're just picking up the pieces of our new lives and doing the best that we can do,' she said.

'I just want to thank everyone for your kindness, compassion and constant support. You guys manage to put a smile on my face, even if just for a second.'

Before the tragedy, more than 18,000 tourists would visit the White Island volcano each year.

Stephanie (left with sister Krystal right) tragically lost her sister in the disaster and her father Paul
Walmart, Amazon and other corporate giants donated money to the reelection campaign of a Tennessee state lawmaker who had used social media to amplify and promote the QAnon conspiracy theory, according to an Associated Press review of campaign finance records and the candidates posts.

The corporate support for a QAnon-promoting politician is another example of how the conspiracy theory has penetrated mainstream politics, spreading beyond its origins on internet message boards popular with right-wing extremists.

Dozens of QAnon-promoting candidates have run for federal or state offices during this election cycle. Collectively, they have raised millions of dollars from thousands of donors. Individually, however, most of them have run poorly financed campaigns with little or no corporate or party backing. Unlike state Rep. Susan Lynn, who chairs the Tennessee House finance committee, few are incumbents who can attract corporate PAC money.

Though she repeatedly posted a well-known QAnon slogan on her Twitter and Facebook accounts, Lynn told the AP in an interview Friday that she does not support the conspiracy theory.

Amazon said in a statement that it made a donation to Rep. Lynn nearly a year ago  we do not plan on making another one.

Walmart did not respond to repeated requests for comment made by email and through its website. A spokeswoman for another donor to Lynns campaign, Kentucky-based distillery company Brown-Forman, which has a facility in Tennessee, said the company didnt know about Lynns QAnon posts and wouldnt have donated to her campaign through its Jack Daniels PAC if it had.

Now that our awareness is raised, we will reevaluate our criteria for giving to help identify affiliations like this in the future, Elizabeth Conway said in a statement.

Corporate PAC managers typically decide which candidates to support on the basis of narrow, pragmatic policy issues rather than broader political concerns, said Anthony Corrado, a Colby College government professor and campaign finance expert.

In many instances, you dont have any kind of corporate board oversight or any kind of accountability in terms of review of contributions before theyre made, Corrado said. Some corporations now have adopted policies about the supervision of PAC contributions because of the reputational risks involved in this.

At least 81 current or former congressional candidates have supported the conspiracy theory or promoted QAnon content, with at least 24 qualifying for Novembers general election ballot, according to the liberal watchdog Media Matters for America.

As of Friday, the candidates collectively had raised nearly $5 million in contributions for this election cycle, but only eight had raised over $100,000 individually, according to the APs review of Federal Election Commission data. The FECs online database doesnt have any fundraising reports for 30 of the candidates, the vast majority of whom are running as Republicans.

Congress is virtually certain to have at least one QAnon-supporting member next year. Marjorie Taylor Greene, whose campaign has raised over $1 million, appeared to be coasting to victory in a deep-red congressional district in Georgia even before her Democratic opponent dropped out of the race.

At the state level, the AP and Media Matters have identified more than two dozen legislative candidates who have expressed some support or interest in QAnon.

QAnon centres on the baseless belief that President Donald Trump is waging a secret campaign against enemies in the deep state and a child sex trafficking ring run by satanic pedophiles and cannibals. Trump has praised QAnon supporters and often retweets accounts that promote the conspiracy theory.

QAnon has been linked to killings, attempted kidnappings and other crimes. In May 2019, an FBI bulletin mentioning QAnon warned that conspiracy theory-driven extremists have become a domestic terrorism threat.

Lynn said her social media posts do not indicate any support for the conspiracy theory.

This is the United States of America, and I am absolutely free to tweet or retweet anything I want, she said. I dont understand why this is even an issue. Believe me, I am not in the inside of some QAnon movement.

But in October 2019, Lynn retweeted posts by QAnon-promoting accounts with tens of thousands of followers. One of the posts she retweeted praised Trump and included the hashtag #TheGreatAwakening, a phrase commonly invoked by QAnon followers.

Between Oct. 31, 2019, and Jan. 9, 2020, her campaign received $4,750 in donations from Amazon.com Services LLC, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessees PAC, health insurer Humana, the Southwest Airlines Co. Freedom Fund and Walmart Inc.

Like many other companies, our PAC periodically contributes to elected officials in Tennessee, including those serving in leadership like Rep. Lynn, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee spokeswoman Dalya Qualls said in a statement.

In April, Lynn updated her Facebook page with a cover photo that included a flag with stars forming a Q above the abbreviation WWG1WGA, which stands for the QAnon slogan Where we go one, we go all. In May and June, Lynn punctuated several tweets with the same abbreviation.

And when a leading QAnon supporter nicknamed Praying Medic tweeted the message, Is it time to Q the Trump rallies? Lynn responded, It is time! in a May 31 tweet of her own.

Lynn said she viewed Where we go one, we go all as a very unifying slogan and didnt know it was a QAnon motto. However, a handful of Facebook users who replied to her updated cover photo in April commented on the QAnon connection. The flag is no longer her cover photo but could still be seen in the feed on her page on Friday.

In July, AT&T Tennessee PAC, Cigna Corporation PAC and Jack Daniels PAC contributed a total of $4,000 to Lynns campaign.

The PACs linked to BlueCross BlueShield, AT&T Tennessee, Cigna, Southwest Airlines and Jack Daniels had also previously donated to Lynns campaign before she amplified QAnon-promoting Twitter accounts last year.

AP contacted all of the companies mentioned in this story. Some did not respond to requests for comment and others declined to comment.

___

Associated Press data journalist Andrew Milligan in New Haven, Connecticut; and Adrian Sainz in Memphis, Tennessee, contributed to this report.
Since July, at least 115 people have been killed after days of torrential rains brought record-breaking floods.

Thousands of people continue to live under the threat of incoming heavy rain and further flooding in parts of Sudan, months after floods ravaged nearly all of the countrys states.

Since July, at least 115 people have been killed in the aftermath of days of torrential rains that brought record-breaking flash floods.

The African nation through which the Nile river flows is in the middle of its rainy season, which lasts from June to October.

The United Nations is scaling up emergency food assistance, and hundreds of thousands of people are living in desperate conditions in makeshift camps.

Hanan Shariff, a flood victim, has been living in a makeshift camp for the past 13 days in Sinjah, a town in the southwestern state of Sennar, after the floods submerged her village.

We tried to build fences to protect our home but the winds were too strong, so we decided to salvage what we could and fled, Shariff told Al Jazeera.





The rain and flooding exceeded records set in 1946 and 1988, forcing the government to declare a three-month state of emergency.

In recent days, the government has issued new warnings to communities living on the banks of the Nile that rains in the highlands of Ethiopia could lead to more flooding along the river, said Al Jazeeras Mohammed Adow, reporting from Sinjah.

A total of 18 villages in Sennar state are marooned by the floodwaters and cut off from the rest of the state, Adow said.

Rowda Tayyib said people have lost all hope.

The floods destroyed our homes and swept away our livestock and everything we owned. We have nothing left, she told Al Jazeera.

A committee tasked with dealing with the ramifications of the floods warned two weeks ago that the country may face more rains, adding that the water level in the Blue Nile rose to a record 17.58 metres.

The floods have so far affected more than half a million people and caused the total and partial collapse of more than 100,000 homes in at least 16 Sudanese states.

Camps for the displaced are growing in number and size in the outskirts of Sinjah, according to Adow.

Mutwali Adam of the UN childrens fund (UNICEF) said people at the camp require basic humanitarian needs like food, shelters and medicine.

Local communities provided some food, and also we complement each other as humanitarian actors here in the field, Adam told Al Jazeera.

The dire humanitarian situation has been exacerbated by the countrys economic downfall and political deadlock. The government declared an economic state of emergency after its currency fell sharply in recent weeks.

The cost of food and transport have continued to soar across the country.

According to Adow, prices of some staple foods like bread and sugar have increased by 50 percent over the past few weeks, with many fearing the crisis will worsen.
Charlevoix man denies wrongdoing despite signing illegitimate election document

Charlevoix resident John Haggard is among a group of Republicans who signed an Electoral College certificate attempting to award the states 16 votes to Donald Trump following the 2020 election  a document now under federal investigation.
A total of 14 bodies have been recovered from the Akaeze-Ukwu River in Ebonyi State, site of the fatal accident which occurred on Friday night.

This followed the location and recovery of the bus by divers brought into the state from neighbouring states to aid in the search and rescue of the victims.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how a bus carrying over 30 passengers plunged into the river along the Akaeze-Ishiagu expressway, Ivo local government of the state.

Five of the passengers, who were returning from a burial, were rescued and taken to hospital on Friday.

However, one of them died at the hospital while the others are reportedly still unconscious.

The chairman of the local government, Onyebuchi Ogbadu, confirmed the recovery of the extra 14 dead bodies on Saturday.

According to him, the state government had to bring in divers from Rivers and Cross River states to help in the search of the bus.

The divers were able to locate the bus and pushed it up to enable the crane to pull it out, he said.

The chairman said they are still searching for the remaining passengers aboard the bus.

The driver said he was carrying 32 persons on the bus so we are still looking for about 13 or more persons.

Mr Ogbadu said the driver was able to dive out of the bus as it was plunging into the river and was one of those rescued on Friday.

The police spokesperson, Loveth Odah, said seven of the bodies recovered are male while seven are female

She said among the five victims rescued is the driver of the coaster bus with Reg no. UKP 78 XA, identified as Nwaonu Chinedu, a native of Ikwo local government of the state.

She said the victim who died Friday is a female who is yet to be identified.

The female victim was confirmed dead by a medical doctor on arrival at Dennis Hospital Akaeke in the Area.

The driver narrated that he conveyed 32 members of the Christ Peculiar Church of Nigeria Enugu State branch to attend a burial ceremony at Nguzu Edda in Afikpo South LGA of the State.

14 corpses have been recovered (7 female and 7 male) together with the 608 vehicle.

The corpses have deposited at Martha Memorial hospital mortuary AFIKPO preservation, she said.

Ms Odah said among those in the vehicle who are still being searched for is a retired superintendent of police, Livinus Mbah.

The Executive Governor of Ebonyi State visited the scene of the incident together with the Commissioner of Police Ebonyi State who described the incident as a very unfortunate one.

He urges road users to avoid speed/reckless driving especially in this ember months, she added.
- Tom Mboya's brother said his deceased brothers passion for workers rights was inspired by the struggle he saw his father undergo at the sisal farm

- This situation pushed Mboya to get involved in the formation of trade unions and actively took part in union movements

- At the age of 22, Mboya was appointed board member of an international body known as International Confederation of Trade Unions

- This gave him opportunities to travel across the world advocating for workers rights

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Thomas Joseph Odhiambo Mboya was and still is a household name in Kenya and across the borders about 51 years after his assassination.

Tom Mboya as he was widely known, was an astute trade unionist and respectable politician who despite being born in Kilimambogo near Thika had his roots in Rusinga Islands and was a Suba.

READ ALSO: Uproar as Pumwani Maternity workers lockout woman giving birth from facility Read

Paul Ndienge, brother to the late Tom Mboya and a curator at the sepulchre. Photo: Naomi Akoth.

Source: Original

READ ALSO: 16-year-old invents alerting device to help protect women against kidnappers

Speaking exclusively to TUKO.co.ke at a mausoleum built for Mboyas remembrance in Kasawanga village, Rusinga Islands, Paul Ndienge, a curator at the sepulchre said Mboyas father Leonard Ndiege worked as a casual labourer in a sisal farm.

Tom attended Rabah Mission School then went to St. Mary's Yala, later enrolled to Holy Ghost, the current Mangu High School in form one. He dropped out of school in form two due to lack of school fees following his dads retirement, he said .

Ndienge, also a brother to the late Mboya said his sibling was adopted by a Catholic protest who helped him complete his education.

"He helped him enrol to Holy Sanitary Institute in Lower Kabete where he trained as a public health officer and was employed at Nairobi city council as a health inspector, Paul narrated.

READ ALSO: Uhuru visits KDF troops in Samburu training areas, praises their excellent work

Defending Human Right

He said his deceased brothers passion to defend humans and workers rights was inspired by the struggle he saw his father undergo at the sisal farm owned by a white settler.

"He faced a lot of challenges at his place of work because he was African. They wore uniforms and were not allowed to inspect a white man's premises," Mboyas brother said.

"They were paid a fifth of what the white men were paid for the same job position," he added.

This situation pushed Mboya to get involved in the formation of trade unions and actively took part in union movements in a bid to defend their rights.

READ ALSO: William Ruto, Uhuru join hands to help family that lost 5 relatives on accident

The iconic mausoleum was designed specially and takes the shape of a bullet. Photo: Naomi Akoth.

Source: Original

According to Ndienge, at the age of 22, Mboya was appointed board member of an international body known as International Confederation of Trade Unions and got opportunities to travel across the world advocating for workers rights.

Good things followed Mboya in 1955 as he earned a scholarship to Oxford University where he studied Political Science and Economic Industrial Relations.

That same year, greatness flowed nonstop and he became the first African to be elected to the legislative council which was a launching pad to his political career.

He used the opportunity to initiate projects and programmes like African-American Students Foundation that enabled brilliant students from less fortunate families to get scholarships to study in the United States (US).

READ ALSO: Lawyer Donald Kipkorir sees off daughter as she goes back to school in London

The programmes beneficiaries included the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, Wangari Maathai, former vice president George Saitoti (deceased) and popular KANU Minister Joseph Kamotho, also deceased.

Ministerial appointment after independence

After Kenya got independence in 1963 under Mzee Jomo Kenyattas leadership, Mboya was appointed Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs and he actively participated in drafting the Constitution.

Mboya was a genius. He wrote numerous academic papers and blueprints some of which were adopted by other countries to develop their economies. He designed the national flag, Tom Owuor, another curator at the mausoleum said.

Owuor, also a nephew of Mboya said, in 1969, the country was set for an election and Kenyatta not being in perfect health, told his Cabinet he doubted he would contest in the forthcoming polls.

READ ALSO: Stunning woman celebrates 40th birthday: "Black don't crack"

The museum's main door is designed as a coffin with a cross symbolizing that he was a devoted Catholic. Photo: Naomi Akoth.

Source: Original

"He wanted a situation where his cabinet and the ruling party (KANU), were to come up with the name of a successor. It had been rumoured that this could have been Mboya," Owour claimed.

Owuor attributed the succession and tribal politics that ensued to the subsequent assassination of his uncle.

According to Owuor, after Mboyas opponents failed to outwit him politically they chose to eliminate him from the face of the earth.

"Mboya was still young and thus a hindrance to his way to the office of the president but his achievements justified he was man enough for the seat," Owour said.

READ ALSO: Billionaire Bill Gates says COVID-19 in Africa could be worse

"They tried constitutional amendment to hinder him because of his age but it failed. They weakened his trade unions and made sure that they had weakened him politically, he added.

Tom Mboya's assassination

Owuor said numerous other attempts like using his gateman who shot at his car thrice but missed him could not stop the young politicians dream.

However, on Saturday, July 5, 1969, Mboya was shot and killed along Moi Avenue.

He parked his car and walked to Channis Pharmacy to buy medicine. He later chatted with the pharmacy owner who was a relative and on leaving, an assassin named Nahashon Isaac Njenga shot him thrice and killed him, Owuor narrated.

READ ALSO: Joy as lawmaker's 5 children are set to wed on the same day

In the museum, there are personal items used by Mboya including his signature black and white flywhisk. Photo: Naomi Akoth.

Source: Original

Ndienge and Owuor unanimously said they felt the family had never received justice for the ruthless murder of their kin.

According to Ndienge, Njenga amazed the court by saying he was sent by a big man to kill Mboya.

"The big man who should be accountable his death is not known to date. There are many theories to his death and the matter is still in court so we can not say much, Ndienge said.

Mausoleum built in Tom Mboya's honour

In 1971, two years after his death, Mboyas friends from across the world agreed to build the mausoleum in his honour.

READ ALSO: Suba community comes out clear, say they are not Luos but Bantus from Buganda kingdom

The iconic mausoleum was designed specially and takes the shape of a bullet, which was what killed Mboya.

Its main door is designed as a coffin with a cross symbolizing that he was a devoted Catholic, according to the curators.

"For a long time the mausoleum was managed by the family but in 2001 it was gazette as a national museum. Scholars who want to write more about Tom Mboya are among regular visitors here, Ndienge said.

In the museum, there are personal items used by Mboya including his signature black and white flywhisk and the briefcase which he was carrying when he was shot.

READ ALSO: Mara Ngeche: NEMA shuts camp after its workers were filmed blocking wildebeests

The briefcase which Tom Mboya was carrying when he was shot is also in the museum. Photo: Naomi Akoth.

Source: Original

Blood-stained clothes that he had worn on the day of his assassination are also in the museum alongside awards, motivation books, powerful speeches he delivered in various forums and a collection of newspaper cuttings featuring him.

The duo urged the government to help them construct the road to the mausoleum saying they were in bad condition to an extent of making the place inaccessible during the rainy season.

"We have had visitors who have come up to Mbita town and were forced to go back because of the poor state of the road," Ndienge said.

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NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's National Investigation Agency (NIA) said on Saturday it has arrested nine al Qaeda militants who were planning attacks in several locations including the capital New Delhi.

"The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds," the country's main counter-terrorism arm said in a statement.

Those arrested "were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places" including the capital region.

Six of the militants were arrested in the eastern state of West Bengal and while three in the southern state of Kerala, the NIA said, adding the individuals were "associated with Pakistan sponsored module of al Qaeda".

A spokesman for Pakistan's foreign office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Pakistan has often denied giving material support to militants.

India has stepped up an offensive against militants in the Muslim-majority region of Kashmir and elsewhere.

Last year, Indian forces killed the leader of an al Qaeda-affiliated militant group in Kashmir, triggering protests in parts of the disputed region.

In the latest raids, the NIA seized sharp weapons, domestically made firearms and locally fabricated body armour. The nine militants will be produced in court for police custody and further investigation, the agency said.

(Reporting by Aftab Ahmed; Additional reporting by Gibran Peshimam in Islamabad; Editing by Aditya Kalra and William Mallard)
Union Finance Minister (FM) Nirmala Sitharaman has cleared the air around the controversy related to the shortfall in GST (Goods and Services Tax) compensation, saying the Centre will try to reach a common ground with states, and the GST Council will take the final decision.

The FM, during her speech in the Lok Sabha, said all promises made by the government with regard to GST payout, including by former late finance minister Arun Jaitley, will be fulfilled by the government.

"Even if we are in an act of God situation, but we will discuss in the Council how to give compensation to the states... The Council will take a call on how to borrow to meet the (revenue) gap," she said.

She said the GST compensation will have to be paid from compensation cess kitty only. Notably, the states are staring at GST revenue shortfall of around Rs 2.35 lakh crore, of which Rs 97,000 crore is on account of GST compensation, while the rest due to the economic losses due to coronavirus, the government calculation suggests.

Both the states and the Centre are trying to reach a consensus over GST compensation payout, though the opposition ruled states have not accepted the government's proposals.

Also read: GST compensation: Chidambaram urges states to reject Centre's proposals

Last month, the Centre suggested two measures to meet the revenue shortfall: a special window worth Rs 97,000 crore by the RBI, which states can use to borrow funds, or borrowing of funds worth Rs 2.35 lakh crore from the market.

Besides, the government assured that it was ready to enhance the compensation cess deadline on luxury, demerit and sin goods beyond 2020.

Six non-BJP ruled states -- West Bengal, Kerala, Delhi, Telangana, Chhattisgarh and Tamil Nadu -- later rejected the options given by the Centre to meet the GST shortfall.

Opposition parties and states said the Centre is backtracking from its constitutional commitment. On this, Sitharaman said in the lower house that these were "irresponsible" remarks.

"We are ready to discuss. We are taking everyone together and the Council will find a view. This is my optimistic expectation. The Centre is not reneging (from its commitment)," she assured.

The opposition also criticised the FM for her "act of god" remark, to which she said they would have accepted it had she said "force majeure". Without naming any country, she said even though many nations that earlier gave big fiscal stimulus amid coronavirus-induced lockdowns were now raising taxes, the Indian government was not planning any such move.

Also read: 'Committed to compensate entire GST shortfall to states': FinMin sources

Also read: GST compensation shortfall: Govt can't pass the buck to states, says Jairam Ramesh

Also read: Decriminalising GST: Govt talks to industry bodies; rules to be overhauled
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After all, his mask skepticism isnt just at odds with what almost every outside expert has said, its in direct conflict with what his own health officials  people like Robert Redfield, the Trump-appointed head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  are saying. Just hours passed between Redfields declaration, in congressional testimony, that masks are the most important, powerful public health tool we have in fighting the pandemic and Trump saying that theres a lot of problems with masks.
New Delhi: The Rajya Sabha on Saturday (September 19) passed the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill, 2020. The Bill was tabled by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman amends the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2016 which provides a time-bound process for resolving insolvency in companies and among individuals.

During the discussion, Congress MP Vivek Tankha questioned several provisions of the Bill urging that these must be relooked for the interest of the public. He said that the new amendments will only benefit the big companies and prove to be detrimental for the small companies including MSMEs.

Joing the discussion, Dinesh Trivedi of TMC said that legislation must not be brought in hurry without larger consultation. Samajwadi Party MP Ravi Prakash Verma said that NPA is continuously rising in the country and the number of willful defaulters has also increased.

Live TV

Supporting the bill, Arun Singh of BJP said that the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Bill as a remarkable and bold step and lauded his government saying that Indias ranking in Ease of Doing Business has improved under the present regime.

Replying to a debate on the Bill in the Upper House, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the intention of the IBC is to keep companies a "going concern" and not liquidate them.

The Bill mandates that a default on repayments from March 25, the day when a nationwide lockdown began to curb the spread of coronavirus, would not be considered for initiating insolvency proceedings for at least six months. The central government may extend this period to one year through notification.

The Bill seeks to temporarily suspend initiation of the corporate insolvency resolution process, CIRP under the Code. It replaces the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020 promulgated in June this year.
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Linkedin Editorial Board (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 08:22 490 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45d755c 1 Editorial census,2020-census,population-survey,population,database,#Editorial Free

The national census is underway amid the COVID-19 pandemic, with more than 190,000 field workers from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) collecting the data of every citizen through face-to-face interviews or other mechanisms. The counting can only take place at night for the homeless or other citizens, like seafarers, who spend most of their time away from home.

Challenges, even opposition, also confront the field workers, as has happened in the Papua regency of Nduga. On Tuesday, a number of people seized documents from BPS workers in a show of protest against the government, who they said had failed them. The Papua highland regency has seen a series of violent incidents in the past two years, which has displaced hundreds of local people.

As part of the 10-yearly census, the door-to-door visits kicked off on Sept. 1 and will last until Sept. 30. The conventional method had been delayed for two months due to the raging pandemic. As in other countries, the census began with the online data collection of every household from mid-February to the end of May. Over 51 million have filed their personal data with the BPS, which means an estimated 80 percent of Indonesian citizens have not yet been counted.

The countrys population is projected to reach 270 million this year, with 185 million, nearly 70 percent, of the population in the productive age of between 15 and 65 years old. This population structure is deemed ideal for Indonesia to kickstart its transformation into a high-income country.

Still, the census is important as it will determine government policies and programs, including the post-pandemic recovery, with minimum distortions. What matters the most in every census, therefore, is accuracy of data.

This years census is different from the previous nine, in several ways. Apart from the online data filing, the census is actually verification of data collected by the Home Ministrys Population and Civil Registration Directorate General (Dukcapil).

The governments population data have been used in a number of elections, at both national and regional levels, and have often sparked controversy, especially because the official data are allegedly used to give incumbent candidates an edge.

But even if political motives are absent, the governments population data are imperfect. The National Commission on Violence against Women has found that only 1.25 million people with disabilities were registered as eligible voters in the 2019 elections, less than 5.5 percent of the estimated number of people with disabilities.

The census is therefore expected to remove all the discrepancies and provide credible data, which all state institutions, including the General Elections Commission (KPU), need the most. The controversy over voter lists can be avoided in the future if the country, through the census, can build one set of population data.

Beyond the political nuance, the census will help the country realize its long-overdue single identity number that will ensure every citizen gets what they deserve from the state. If India, with a population of 1.3 billion, can compile a database for all its citizens, Indonesia can do so too.
Voters in Novembers presidential election will choose how the United States deals with Iran and its nuclear capabilities, according to multiple government officials and experts across the Middle East.

And as President Donald Trumps administration is set to reimpose a snapback of sanctions on Iran on Saturday night, despite opposition from Europe, there are fresh concerns over regional stability.

President Barack Obama and the leaders of several other major powers signed the 2015 Iran nuclear deal  officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)  which stated that Iran's nuclear program will be exclusively peaceful.

Trump, a long-standing critic of the deal, unilaterally pulled the United States out of the deal in 2018. Joe Biden, meanwhile, has been a vocal supporter of the deal he originally tried to sell to Congress, before Obama bypassed the legislature  and has called the current U.S. policy toward Iran reckless in a recent op-ed.

The former vice president and Democratic nominees broadside capped a recent round of criticism from former Obama administration officials  some of whom publicly support Bidens presidential bid  and highlighted just how different U.S. relations with Iran could potentially be under a Biden presidency.

Image: Iran's top nuclear negotiator Abbas Araqchi and Secretary General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Helga Schmid attend a meeting of the JCPOA Joint Commission in Vienna, Austria (European Commission EbS - EEAS / Reuters)

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other administration officials have defended the current administrations aggressive stance and have long argued that the 2015 nuclear agreement  signed by Iran, the U.S., Russia, China, the United Kingdom, France and Germany  did little to constrain Irans other activities in the region that threatened American security interests and those of its allies.

The previous administration chose appeasement as the model to respond, Pompeo said in a recent interview with Fox News, answering a question about Bidens recent criticism.

That was in contrast, he said, to Trumps completely different direction that sought to stem funding for Iranian activities elsewhere, including support for armed groups such as Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Houthi rebels in Yemen.

Story continues

State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus told NBC News in an emailed statement that the Trump campaign of maximum pressure on Iran had curtailed the countrys provocative maritime behavior in the Persian Gulf, constrained the capabilities of its state broadcasting networks and deprived Tehran of billions of dollars in revenue.

All this meant Irans proxies in Syria and elsewhere are going unpaid, and the services they once relied upon are drying up, she said.

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But politicians and analysts around the Middle East are not convinced.

The line that Trump is following is a line of escalation, and that includes the issue of Iran, said Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, the leader of the Palestinian National Initiative political party, who served as a minister in one of the Palestinian unity governments.

He said current U.S. policies will only make the region more volatile, and have been heavily influenced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu  including Trumps 2018 decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal.

While the so-called Abraham Accords signed this week provide little obvious progress in ending the decades-long conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, the U.S. maximum pressure campaign to isolate Iran is also under question and has drawn growing skepticism across the region.

We dont think it was quite successful, Mona Makram Ebeid, a former senator and parliamentarian in Egypt, said in reference to the American campaign to economically weaken Tehran.

Ebeid who is now a professor of political science at the American University in Cairo said Egyptians share the view that Iran is a big threat in the region, particularly given Tehrans support for Hamas in neighboring Gaza, but question why Obamas approach was needlessly discarded.

She said that renewed American sanctions against Iran would not resolve the problem posed by the countrys nuclear program, but that the November presidential election in the U.S. could significantly change the situation.

Biden will not want to be entangled in conflict or in solving conflict in the Middle East, Ebeid said. He will be more flexible towards Iran.

The objective of the maximum pressure campaign was to induce a change in Irans behavior, Lt. Gen Jim Clapper, the former director of National Intelligence from 2010 to 2017, said, and it hasnt done that.

The Iranians didnt suddenly become the shining city on the hill because of the JCPOA, Clapper recalled. By abrogating, dropping out of the JCPOA, weve isolated ourselves, and in my mind, lost leverage with the Iranians, he said.

The problem is that what elicited Iranian willingness to negotiate was that there was international pressure on them, but we dont have that any more.

In recent weeks, the U.S. has failed to win U.N. Security Council approval for measures designed to maintain pressure on Tehran, including an indefinite arms embargo and the reimposition of global sanctions that were lifted back in 2015 with the signing of the Iran nuclear deal.

The administrations lead official on Iran, Brian Hook, resigned ahead of the failed arms embargo vote in August, and just days ago the International Atomic Energy Agency released a report showing that Tehran now had 10 times the amount of low-enriched uranium than was permitted under the terms of the deal.

While Pompeo said this proved the 2015 deal failed to constrain Iran, other experts are quick to point out that Irans expanded stockpile and other moves to break restrictions introduced by the nuclear deal are all reversible.

Two weeks ago, Iran granted IAEA inspectors access to one of two sites where undeclared nuclear activity took place in the 2000s. Inspection of the second is due in September.

According to Ernest Moniz, the former secretary of energy who helped negotiate the agreement and then sell it to Congress, the fact that verification and inspection measures are still working as intended under the deal is crucially important.

I would be very surprised if Iran were to reconstitute a weapons program, using facilities that are inspected 24/7 by the IAEA, he said.

And for some Iranians, a reconstituted agreement might offer the most attractive long-term solution.

If they're actually serious about completing their commitments under the agreement, Foad Izadi, a professor of North American studies at Tehran University, said, then Iran has always said that they're open to discuss other issues that have resulted in difficulties.

Image: A staff member removes the Iranian flag from the stage after a group picture with foreign ministers and representatives of the U.S., Iran, China, Russia, Britain, Germany, France and the European Union during the Iran nuclear talks (Carlos Barria / Reuters file)

For some neighboring nations, that discussion cannot happen fast enough. U.A.E ambassador to the United Nations, Lana Nusseibeh, said she hoped any future negotiations would better address other Gulf countries serious concerns about Irans behavior.

We would hope that the regional voice is represented next time around  and that would be our advice for whichever administration wins in November.

But across the region there is anxiety, particularly in Israel and Saudi Arabia, according to Ilan Goldenberg, a senior fellow focused on Middle East security at the Center for a New American Security, who worked on Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations at the Department of State and Irans nuclear and military capabiliites at the Department of Defense.

Countries supportive of the current approach are concerned about a change in policy if Biden wins the election, Goldenberg said. And at some point, fresh talks with Tehran would have to address not just nuclear capabilities but also other regional concerns centered on Irans behavior beyond its own borders, he predicted.

You cant make an arms control deal contingent on solving all the problems in the Middle East. But you also cant ignore all the problems in the Middle East to try and reach an arms control deal, he said.

I think its possible well end up in some kind of diplomacy early next year regardless of what happens.

Ali Arouzi reported from Tehran, Charlene Gubash from Cairo and Abigail Williams from Washington D.C.
"There is always the possibility of a fresh outbreak or new infections; that is why a gradual decision has been made (...) discouraging social and family gatherings ," he said referring to the fact that private transportation means will not be allowed to circulate on Sundays.
Its not exactly hold the front page when a politician is caught lying, but what about when its an entire political party and the lying isnt Trump-style seat-of-the pants lying, but is part of a planned communications strategy?

Having had experience as a journalist, spin doctor and now an academic, the thought first occurred to me when watching the doctored video put out by the Conservatives at the start of the last election campaign showing Keir Starmer  then Labours Brexit spokesperson  apparently unable to answer a question about his partys EU policy.

Hardly surprisingly rebuttals, showing the original interview in which Starmer had no trouble in answering the question, were uploaded almost immediately. So what was the point of posting the original fake video?

Discussing it with Dr Caroline Fisher (an Australian colleague with a similar background to my own), we came up with the notion of the strategic lie. This is a lie that can be easily rebutted but where that easy rebuttal is part of the plan. The strategic lie is designed with just one thought in mind  to make an impact and this is achieved not just by the lie itself but also, paradoxically, by its rebuttal.

Following Oscar Wildes famous dictum, There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about and that is not being talked about, the strategic lies aim is to get its subject matter onto the news agenda, front and centre - in this case Labours supposed muddle over Brexit. And the role that social media now plays in the political communications process makes this a highly effective ruse.

Thinking further about Brexit we could see how well this strategy worked with the, We send the EU 350m slogan. It was easily, and frequently, rebutted but that was anticipated. Dominic Cummings, who led the Leave campaign, wrote in his blog that the slogan was designed to provoke people into argument ... This worked much better than I thought it would. He modestly describes the claim as, a brilliant communications ploy. In a study of Cummings methods, Phillip Ball (a former editor of the prestigious science journal Nature) observed that Cummings approach to campaigning appeared to be  just spread lies or manipulate videos, say, and then ride out the repercussions.

One could see this in action at the start of the Brexit campaign when ITV News Tom Bradby led the News at Ten with a lengthy interview with Boris Johnson in which Bradby comprehensively demonstrated the false nature of the claim. But for Cummings this would have been seen as a triumph, with the first five minutes of a flagship national news bulletin devoted to discussing the 350m a week claim.

The effectiveness of the strategic lie is greatly enhanced by the fact that all the political psychology research indicates that once an idea is planted in the public mind in an impactful way, it is difficult to shift it. Being forced to accept facts that run against our prejudices induces cognitive dissonance, something we all seek to avoid. Indeed, among partisans the more rebuttals they encounter, the more they are reinforced in their belief in the original claim  the so-called Backfire Effect.

 Protesters descend on Dominic Cummings' home

The strategic lie can also be used to take an unwelcome item off the news agenda, the dead cat strategy (attributed to Australian political strategist Lynton Crosby). Who remembers what you were talking about when a dead cat suddenly drops on the table, apparently from nowhere?

One such example occurred during the 2015 general election when the polls suggested that Labour might be ahead; a leading Conservative suddenly accused the Labour leader of planning to scrap Britains nuclear deterrent. No such plan existed but the intervention took the campaign news agenda onto defence, one of the Conservatives key campaigning themes, and away from Labours polling lead.

So next time you hear a politician saying something that is manifestly untrue dont just think, Pants on fire  look behind the lie and ask yourself, as did Talleyrand when told about the death of Metternich: I wonder what he meant by that.

Ivor Gaber is professor of political journalism at the University of Sussex. Previously, when not working as a journalist at the BBC, ITV, Channel Four and Sky News, he was an unpaid political adviser.
By PTI

KOLKATA: Of hundreds of onion-laden trucks stranded at different land ports in West Bengal due to the Centre's ban on the export of the vegetable, a few crossed the India-Bangladesh border on Saturday after the government allowed those with requisite customs clearance till September 14 to move to the neighbouring country, officials said.

Only eight trucks at Mahadipur land port in Malda district crossed the international border, while 25 at Gojadanga in North 24 Parganas were in the process to go to Bangladesh, they said.

No trucks loaded with onion were allowed to move to the neighbouring country at the Petrapole integrated check post, the largest facility along the India-Bangladesh border, as they have no Let Export Order (LEO), an official of the customs department said.

LEO is the last step in the list of compliance requirements to export goods from India.

According to the latest communication of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, only those onion-laden trucks that received the Let Export Order till September 14 can be allowed to cross the border, he said.

"There are no trucks with the LEO at the Petrapole ICP. So no onion cargo moved to Bangladesh today," the customs official told PTI.

The Centre on Monday banned the export of all varieties of onions with immediate effect, a move aimed at increasing the availability of the commodity and curbing its prices in the domestic market.

Mahadipur Exporters' Association secretary Prasenjit Ghosh said only eight trucks with LEO crossed the border.

"There were 36 trucks which had LEO. But 11 of them either went to Kolkata wholesale markets or dumped onions at nearby godowns. The remaining 25 trucks will cross the border," Gojadanga Clearing and Forwarding (C&F) Agents Welfare Association secretary Joydev Sarkar said.

Around 230 vehicles loaded with onion still remain stranded at the land port, he said.

Sarkar said unless the export permission is granted, all onion cargo will rot and heavy loss will have to be borne.

Exporters have requested the government to allow those onion-laden trucks, which had entered the border area till September 15, to go to Bangladesh.

The partial relaxation would help in the export of some 400-odd containers loaded with nearly 11,500 tonne of onion stuck at Nava Shiva Port, a Mumbai-based exporter said, adding that this cargo, meant for overseas markets like the Middle East, Singapore, Colombo and Malaysia, had received LEO.
Shinzo Abe gestures as he arrives at the Prime Minister's official residence in Tokyo

TOKYO (Reuters) - Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited the controversial Yasukuni Shrine for war dead on Saturday, his first visit since December 2013, after refraining from doing so for most of his term to avoid angering China and South Korea.

Abe announced the visit on his official Twitter account along with a photo of himself at the shrine, just days after Yoshihide Suga succeeded him as Japan's leader. Japan's longest-serving leader announced his resignation in late August, citing health problems.

The shrine is seen by Beijing and Seoul as a symbol of Japan's past military aggression because it honours 14 Japanese wartime leaders convicted as war criminals by an Allied tribunal as well as war dead.

Abe had visited the shrine in person once during his last tenure as prime minister but regularly sent offerings via an aide on the anniversary of Japan's surrender in World War Two and during the shrine's spring and autumn festivals.

His pilgrimage to the shrine in 2013 sparked outrage in South Korea and China and an expression of "disappointment" from the United States.

On Saturday, South Korea's foreign ministry released a statement expressing "deep concern and regret" that Abe paid respect at the shrine "immediately" after his resignation as prime minister.

Suga, who was the chief government spokesman under Abe, was not among the Abe cabinet ministers who visited the shrine on the 75th anniversary of the end of World War Two on Aug. 15.

Suga made a visit to the shrine in August 2011, according to a post on his official blog, well before becoming the Abe government's chief cabinet secretary in December 2012.

Washington and Tokyo have become close security allies in the decades since the war's end but its legacy has left scars in East Asia.

Ties between Tokyo and Seoul have remained strained due to bitter memories of Japan's 1910-1945 colonisation of the Korean peninsula, including a dispute over compensation for Koreans forced to work on Japan's sites during wartime. Tokyo says the matter was settled by a 1965 treaty normalising bilateral relations.

(Reporting by Chris Gallagher and Daniel Leussink in TOKYO, Joyce Lee in SEOUL; Editing by William Mallard and Michael Perry)
Coronavirus Update: According to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Saturday, India's Covid-19 case tally crossed 53-lakh mark with a spike of 93,337 new cases and 1,247 deaths in the last 24 hours.

New Delhi [India], September 19 (ANI): Indias COVID-19 case tally crossed 53-lakh mark with a spike of 93,337 new cases and 1,247 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Saturday.

The total case tally stands at 53,08,015 including 10,13,964 active cases, 42,08,432 cured/discharged/migrated and 85,619 deaths, as per the Ministry. According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the cumulative total samples tested up to September 18 are 6,24,54,254. The number of samples tested on September 18 is 8,81,911.

As far as the active cases are concerned in the states, as per the Health Ministry, Maharashtra has 301273 active cases, Karnataka 101148, Andhra Pradesh 84423, Uttar Pradesh 67825 and Tamil Nadu 46506.

Also read: Monsoon Session: BJP holds discussion over passage of Agriculture Bills

Also read: PM Modi to attend two debates in this years historic UNGA session: TS Tirumurti

As many as 5,488 new COVID-19 cases, 5,525 discharges, and 67 deaths reported in Tamil Nadu on Friday. The total number of positive cases now at 5,30,908 including 46,506 active cases, 4,75,717 discharged cases, and 8,685 deaths, said State Health Department.Kerala reported 4,167 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the total number of active cases till date to 35,724. The number of recovered cases so far is 90,089, Kerala Government said on Friday

A total of 6,584 new COVID-19 cases, 6,806 recovered cases, and 98 deaths reported in the last 24 hours in Uttar Pradesh. The total number of positive cases in the state stands at 3,42,788 till date, including 2,70,094 recoveries, 67,825 active cases, and 4,869 deaths so far, Uttar Pradesh government said on Friday.

West Bengal on Friday reported 3,192 new COVID-19 cases and 59 deaths, taking total cases to 2,18,772 including 1,90,021 discharges, 24,509 active cases, and 4,242 deaths, said State Health Department.

Punjab on Friday reported 2,817 new COVID-19 cases, 2,645 recoveries, and 62 deaths. The total number of cases in the state stands at 92,833 till date, including 21,662 active cases, 68,463 discharged cases, and 2,708 deaths, said State Health Department.

Jammu and Kashmir reported 1,330 new COVID-19 cases, 784 recoveries, and 15 deaths on Friday, taking total cases to 61,041 including 39,305 recoveries and 966 deaths, stated Jammu and Kashmir administration.

As many as 596 new COVID-19 cases, 470 recoveries, and 8 deaths reported in Goa in the last 24 hours. Goas positive cases tally rises to 27,379 so far, including 5,730 active cases, 21,314 recovered cases, and 335 deaths till date, said State Health Department on Friday.

There is a possibility of a situation created by COVID-19 returning to normal by the middle of next year even if a vaccine is not developed by then, Dr Sanjay Rai, Professor in Community Medicine Department at AIIMS here, has said.

By mid-next year, theres a possibility of normalcy even if vaccine comes or not. There is always the natural end of any pandemic so it (COVID-19) will end too. It can happen in three ways  if we find a vaccine, if we give effective treatment or natural infection covers it. Only these three ways can end the infection. Today we do not have a vaccine or any effective treatment. If a vaccine does not come it will naturally end. When people will develop natural immunity, the virus will naturally end and it depends on our strategy, Dr Rai told ANI.

Dr Rai said phase 2 clinical trial for the COVID-19 vaccine is underway in India with a good sample size of more than 600 motivated volunteers. Any vaccine will come by mid-next year, anywhere in the world, if everything goes as planned, he added.

Also read: NIA arrests 9 terrorists from Kerala, West Bengal after multiple raids
I am a 61-year-old woman, have no debts, own my own home, and am planning to retire in the next year or two. I work full-time for the Federal government and plan to take a maximum Commonwealth Superannuation Corp. (CSS) pension, plus a lump sum of more than $200,000, when I retire. I salary sacrifice to the Public Sector Superannuation Scheme accumulation plan (PSSap) and have $85,000 in it. I also have $115,000 in a CBA term deposit earning interest at 0.95 per cent over eight months. As this is not performing well, I am thinking of putting that cash into the PSSap, where I can put $100,000 a year and bring forward the previous three years. While I wont need the money in PSSap, I am conscious that super may be volatile now and, if so, should I look at a balance of cash or leave it in the term deposit? D.B.

The bring forward and catch-up terminology can be a little confusing.

We are entering a recession at a time of highly overvalued companies. Sharemarkets are expected to be volatile. Credit:Simon Letch

Bring forward refers to your ability, while aged under 65, to bring forward this years and the next two years maximum non-concessional super contributions (i.e. no tax deduction) of $100,000 each and thus make a $300,000 contribution this financial year, but no more for the next two.

The law is expected to change to allow you to do this up to age 67 without meeting the work test of 40 hours in 30 days. It already has with regard to making tax-deductible concessional contributions of up to $25,000, which can now be made up to age 67 without a work test.
Three ministries work out plan to revive tourism By Damith Wickremasekara Cabinet approval sought for opening of airports in November; COVID-fee and insurance scheme for tourists, but Aviation chief cautious about move View(s): View(s):

Three ministries will jointly seek approval for a plan to revive the tourism industry by opening up the airports for visitors from November after a six-month closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a senior official said.

Tourism Ministry Secretary S. Hettiaarachchi told the Sunday Times that his ministry along with the Health and Aviation Ministries would seek approval for a tourism industry revival plan after a severe revenue drop this year.

Under the proposed plan, the ministry would seek approval to permit tourists to visit the country in small batches varying from a minimum 10 to about 50 people or even up to 100 depending on whether the group could be managed, he said.

The secretary said the Government would give priority to long-term visitors hoping to stay between one and three months and elderly tourists who planned to visit the country to escape the severe winter in their countries.

For the first 14 days, tourist will be required to stay in designated hotels with movements only with their own group to limited destinations.

During the two weeks they will be required to undergo three PCR tests to determine if they are infected with COVID-19 and, if cleared, they will be allowed to visit any of the destinations even in an individual capacity, according to the plan now being finalised.

Mr. Hettiarachchi said a separate cabinet paper was being submitted to impose a COVID-fee enabling the Government to cover its expenses for PCR tests and other expenses while an insurance scheme would be introduced to cover medical expenses in the event the visitor was found to be infected with COVID-19 and required treatment.

The tourist would be required to carry a PCR-test report obtained 72 hours prior to embarkation.

Mr Hettiaarachchi said in terms of the plan, cabinet approval would be sought to use the Mattala International airport exclusively for tourist arrivals and departures.

We need to start the process of attracting tourists to revive the industry, he said.

The moves come as tourism revenue figures are expected to drop by 25 percent from the estimated US$ 4,000 million. The tourism sector which suffered a setback due to the Easter Sunday bombings last year was expected to pick up, before the outbreak of the COVID-19.

The tourism industrys crash also has deprived direct and indirect employment to more than half a million people.

Health Ministry Secretary Major General Sanjeewa Munasinghe told the Sunday Times that talks on health precautions were being held before finalising the plans.

Sky high concessions for flights to Mattala The Government is offering a host of concessions to attract international flights to the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA). The concessions include a complete waiver of the flight disembarkation and embarkation levy, further discounts in ground handling charges and free-of-charge landing and takeoff, Tourism Ministry Secretary S. Hettiaarachchi said. The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) has been requested to offer aviation fuel at discounted rates. The concessions are to be discussed with the Finance Ministry and finalised this week. The charges for the use of airspace will remain unchanged for the next two years. Meanwhile, the Foreign Employment Bureau has been requested to provide a discount on air tickets for migrant workers if they make use of the Mattala airport. The objective is to attract more flights to the MRIA as it would be an airport which offers the lowest rates, the secretary said. The Government is also granting concessions for the use of the Ratmalana airport.
One violent encounter with police was recorded on the cellphone of a bystander who witnessed it from a distance, KSLA News 12 reported when it aired the recording in June. Officers can be seen wrestling with a man on the ground, one of them punching him repeatedly and another appearing to strike him with a baton.
19 Sep 2020, 10:56 AM

PMC Bank scam: ED attaches 3 hotels in Delhi worth Rs 100 crore

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday attached three hotels in Delhi valued at around Rs 100 crore under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002 in connection with the PMC Bank fraud case. The three hotels that have been attached by the agency belong to the Fab Hotels group and are located in Kailash Colony, East of Kailash and Kalkaji areas of the national capital.

Parliament passes bill to cut salary of MPs by 30% for one year

The Rajya Sabha on Friday passed a bill to reduce salaries of MPs and ministers by 30 per cent for one year in order to "meet the exigencies arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic". The Salaries and Allowances of Ministers (Amendment) Bill, 2020, which will reduce salaries of ministers, including Prime Minister, was also moved in the Upper House.

India orders states to ensure unimpeded oxygen supplies as coronavirus cases hit 5.2 million

India ordered its states not to hoard oxygen supplies and allow free movement amidst reports of shortages, as novel coronavirus infections hit 5.2 million on Friday, edging the country's tally closer to the United States, which is the worst-hit globally.

Bill Gates says climate change will be as deadly as coronavirus by 2060

Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates in an interview with Bloomberg has reiterated his concern for climate change. Gates said that the government did not look out despite the warnings and that climate fits the same paradigm as coronavirus. "Sadly, the problem gets worse and worse, and there isn't a solution like a vaccine where you can spend tens of billions of dollars and bring it to a close. No, climate change is much harder. The damage that will be done every year will be greater than what we've seen during this pandemic," he said.

Public cloud market to hit Rs 63,000 crore by 2025; small businesses to drive growth: NASSCOM

Even as several reports point out the accelerated adoption of cloud, the latest report by IT Industry body NASSCOM expects India's Public Cloud market to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 30 per cent over the next five years led by small and medium businesses (SMBs). India's Public Cloud market which currently stands at Rs 17,000 crore is expected to reach around Rs 63,000 crore by 2025.

TikTok banned from app stores in US from Sunday

In what may come as the most surprising turn of events, the US has said it will ban TikTok and WeChat from the app stores this Sunday. If the Trump administration finally has its way, ByteDance's controversial app TikTok will be removed from the Google Play Store and Apple's App Store in the US. WeChat will also meet the same fate as its other unlucky counterpart that has been mired in various controversies.
The Rivers State Government has alleged that the life of Governor Nyesom Wike is in danger in Edo State as over 300 policemen lay siege to his hotel.

A statement issued by Paulinus Nsirim, Commissioner for Information and Communications, said the attention of the Rivers State Government had been drawn to a worrisome report that the Hotel Wike is staying in Benin City was presently under siege by over 300 policemen.

What is more disturbing is that the policemen led by DIG Leye Oyebanji have also been very audible with threats that he should leave Edo State.

We want to place on record that the Rivers State Governor was appointed the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP National Campaign Council Chairman for the September 19th 2020 Edo State Governorship election.

This is a legitimate, constitutionally recognized appointment in the electoral rules, guidelines and processes of our country.

It confers on him, the democratic authority to be in Edo State to spearhead the campaign and lend support to the Governorship candidate of his political party, the statement said.

The government said Wike had not committed any crime to warrant this intimidation and stated categorically that the siege on his hotel was totally unlawful, illegitimate and provocative.

This is even more so when placed against the backdrop of the fact that Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State, who equally occupies this same position in the All Progressives Congress, APC and indeed his counterpart, Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State, are all in Benin, Edo State, carrying out the same assignment for the APC.

They are moving about freely, without any siege on their locations or molestation, threats, harassments and intimidation.

We hereby put the Nigerian Government and International Community on notice that the life of Governor Wike is in danger and under serious threat.

Rivers People will hold the Inspector General of Police, IGP Mohammed Adamu, personally responsible if anything happens to the life of our Governor.

We also appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari, to uphold the tenets of democracy by making good his pledge of ensuring a free, fair, credible and transparent election, devoid of intimidation in Edo State, the statement said.

In a further twist, Gov. Wike on Friday said that the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Adamu, had called him to leave Edo ahead of the States governorship election today.

Wike, who is the Chairman of the PDP National Campaign Council for Edo Governorship Election said the IGP said he should leave Benin because his presence may result in crisis ahead of the gubernatorial poll because of his utterances.

Wike, however, said he told the IGP that he would not leave Edo because some governors of APC and other chieftains of the party are also in the city.

He said, I am not the only Governor here, the Governor of Imo State is here, Ganduje is here, the deputy Senate President is here. So, why should you tell me to leave? I said I will not leave.

As the chairman of Campaign Council, we have to monitor what is going on and tomorrow, we go out and monitor what is going on. He cannot tell me that I must leave Edo State. It has not happened in this country. I dont know where we are heading to. For IG to call a governor, to tell a Governor you must leave Edo State. It is the highest level of impunity.

I am not going to vote, but we hold it as a duty as a party tell us monitor what is going on. I am here to do my assignment, Im not here on campaign, the people must have made their minds on who they are going to vote for and who they will not vote for.

But at the end of the day as the chairman of the Campaign Council, I should be able to write a report, say what I witnessed, and say what happened. Not for the IG to call me, a governor, that you must leave the state. I have not seen that kind of thing in my life.
A 39-year-old man has been charged in a vandalism incident at Unionville Montessori School in Markham that York Region police allege was hate-motivated.

On Monday, police were called to the school, at 4486 16th Ave., for a report of vandalism.

According to police, a mural featuring the quote Be the Change, along with imagery of Black Lives Matter, an Indigenous leader and the LGBTQ Pride rainbow, had been vandalized numerous times over the summer with white spray paint.

The vandalism appeared to have been targeted and motivated by hate, police said.

Yuan Ma, 39, of Markham, is charged with mischief.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 1-866-876-5423, ext. 7541. Tips can also be left anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS, or online at www.1800222tips.com.

AZ Aileen Zangouei is a breaking news reporter for YorkRegion.com and its sister papers. Reach her via email: azangouei@yrmg.com
WASHINGTON>> The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg just over six weeks before the election cast an immediate spotlight on the high court vacancy, with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell quickly vowing to bring to a vote whoever President Donald Trump nominates.

Democratic nominee Joe Biden vigorously disagreed, declaring that voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice to consider.

McConnell, in a statement just over an hour after Ginsburgs death was announced, declared unequivocally that Trumps nominee would receive a vote, even though he had stalled President Barack Obamas choice for months ahead of the 2016 election, eventually preventing a vote.

Trump, in brief remarks to reporters after learning of her death, called Ginsburg an amazing woman, adding that she led an amazing life. He had continued with a campaign speech for more than an hour after the nation learned of her death, and said later he had been unaware.

He had boasted in the speech that the next presidential term could offer him as many as four appointments to the nine-member court, whose members are confirmed for life.

Biden, returning to Delaware from his own campaign stop in Minnesota, praised Ginsburg upon his arrival.

Ginsburg was not only a giant of the legal profession but a beloved figure, he said. She stood for all of us.

The process of replacing her should not begin until after the election, he made clear.

Ginsburgs death could significantly affect the presidential race, further stirring passions in the deeply divided nation as the campaign pushes into its stretch run.

Trump took the stage for a Minnesota rally not long before Ginsburgs death was announced. He spoke for more than 90 minutes, never mentioning it, apparently not alerted to the development. He spoke to reporters about her passing as he boarded Air Force One to return to Washington.

But he did say in his speech that whoever is elected in November will have the ability to potentially fill several Supreme vacancies, declaring, This is going to be the most important election in the history of our country and we have to get it right.

A confirmation vote in the Senate is not guaranteed, even with a Republican majority.

Typically it takes several months to vet and hold hearings on a Supreme Court nominee, and time is short ahead of the election.

Key senators may be reluctant to cast votes so close to the election. With a slim GOP majority, 53 seats in the 100-member chamber, Trumps choice could afford to lose only a few.

McConnell did not specify the timing, but pushing a confirmation off to the post-election lame-duck session would carry other complications, including the political tangle of trying to push it through in the final weeks of the year after voters have decided control of the White House and control of the Senate.

Trump has made appointments to the federal judiciary, including two Supreme Court justices, part of his legacy and said last month that he would absolutely try to fill a vacancy on the high court if one came up before the end of his first term.

Absolutely, Id do it, Trump said in an August 11 interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt. I would move quickly. Why not? I mean, they would. The Democrats would if they were in this position.

Trump last week added 20 names to his list of candidates hes pledged to choose from if he had future vacancies to fill.

Trump tried to cast the list in contrast with judges who could be nominated if Biden wins in November, warning Biden would select radical justices who would fundamentally transform America without a single vote of Congress, even though Biden has never outlined his list of potential picks and the Senate must confirm any nominee.

Naming his possible choices, less than two months before the election, is aimed at repeating the strategy that Trump employed during his 2016 campaign, when he released a similar list of could-be judges in a bid to win over conservative and evangelical voters who had doubts about his conservative bonafides.

The average number of days to confirm a justice, according to the Congressional Research Service, is 69 days, which would be after the election.

Biden has promised to nominate a Black woman to the high court if given the chance. He has said hes also working on a list of potential nominees, but the campaign has given no indication that it will release names before the election.

Democrats believe doing so would unnecessarily distract from Bidens focus on Trumps handling of the pandemic and the economy, while also giving the president and his allies fresh targets to attack.

Trump, however, insisted that presidential candidates owe the American people a list of whom theyd consider because, aside from matters of war and peace, the nomination of a Supreme Court justice is the most important decision an American president can make.
Lindsey Graham, the Republican chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is under pressure to reject any Supreme Court nominee put forward by Donald Trump to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg  as he himself has repeatedly promised to do.

The South Carolina senator, who is currently fighting his most competitive Democratic challenger since he was elected to the chamber in 2002, has previously voted for nominees put forward by presidents of both parties.

However, in 2016, he joined the Republican boycott of Merrick Garland, the man Barack Obama nominated to replace Antonin Scalia. The Republican senate leadership justified their refusal to take up the nomination on the basis that in an election year, it should be for the next president to decide who to pick.

Many of them referred to this as the Biden rule, invoking a 1992 floor speech by then-senator Joe Biden in which he said that because of the intense acrimony that had erupted around several of Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bushs nominees, the Senate should wait until after that years election to take up any nominations.

There was no Supreme Court vacancy to be filled when Mr Biden spoke; the so-called Biden rule has no basis in written law or codified Senate procedure, and until 2016, the circumstances Mr Biden described did not arise until 2016.

At that point, facing the possibility of a relatively liberal justice filling the seat left by the hardline conservative Scalia, Republicans cited Mr Bidens informal precedent to hold out until after the election, and Mr Garlands nomination was scotched.

At a meeting of the Republican-controlled judiciary committee, Mr Graham spoke at length about the Republicans pretext for obstructing the president.

Why do I feel comfortable doing this? The history of the Senate is pretty clear here. [Mr Biden] in 1992 argued for what were doing. [Mr Obama] filibustered two Republican Supreme Court justices ...This is the last year of a lame duck president. And if Ted Cruz or Donald Trump get to be president, theyve all asked us not to confirm or take up a selection by president Obama.

So if a vacancy occurs in their last year of their first term, guess what? You will use their words against them. I want you to use my words against me. If theres a Republican senator in 2016 and a vacancy occurs in the last year of the first term, you can say, Lindsey Graham said lets let the next president, whoever it might be, make that nomination, and you can use my words against me and youd be absolutely right.

Were setting a precedent here today, Republicans are, that in the last year  at least of a lame duck eight-year term, I would say its gonna be a four-year term  that youre not gonna fill a vacant seat of the Supreme Court based on what were doing here today. Thats gonna be the new rule.

He also recorded a video for Twitter in which he described telling Mr Garland personally that the next president should be allowed to fill the seat.

Even since Mr Trump was elected and Mr Graham metamorphosed from one of the presidents harshest critics into one of his most caustic and dogged allies, the senator has reiterated that the last year of a presidents term is no time to take up a Supreme Court nomination.

During a public discussion with the Atlantics Jeffrey Goldberg in 2018, he described why he had voted for Mr Obamas nominees Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan but not Mr Garland, explaining that he was doing what he thought was the traditional thing to do

Justice Scalia dies in 2016. The primary process is ongoing. And if you look back at 100 years, no one has been replaced under that circumstance. If you listen to what Joe Biden said in Bush 41, you should hold it over to the next election. Joe is right a lot. So I felt like I was doing the traditional thing when it came to Sotomayor and Kagan, I thought I did the traditional thing.

Now Ill tell you this. This may make you feel better but I really dont care. If an opening comes in the last year of president Trump's term and the primary process is started, we will wait to the next election. And Ive got a pretty good chance of being the judiciary 

And youre on the record? asked Mr Goldberg.

Hold the tape, Mr Graham replied.

That exchange has already been turned into an ad by LindseyMustGo, a campaign group working to unseat Mr Graham in his race against Democrat Jaime Harrison. The groups videos have often focused on Mr Grahams changing positions, particularly on Mr Trump, whom he once called a race-baiting, xenophobic religious bigot.

While South Carolina Senate races are usually not close, some polls have shown the race to be far tighter than usual  and possibly even a toss-up.
On Monday, September 14, President Trump met with Gov. Gavin Newsom and California officials on the current wildfires ravaging that state. Right now, California is experiencing, at the same time, its 2nd, 3rd, and 4th worst wildfires in its history. This is already the worst fire season ever in California history and were just at the beginning.

The meeting with Trump started out friendly enough with President Trump and Gov. Newsom offering perfunctory and conciliatory remarks. Gov. Newsom thanked the president for the support they were getting from the Feds. He also listed two major reasons for the wildfires. One was not doing proper forest management. The second was climate change. Other state officials gave some explanatory narrative about the wildfire and the logistics and strategy of fighting the fire. There was also special praise given by the president and California officials for the heroic firefighters on the frontline of this catastrophe.

Then there was this exchange between California Sec. of Natural Resources, Wade Crowfeet, and the president.

Crowfeet: There was record heat here in California this year. Death Valley hit 130 degrees F and in greater LA it hit 120 degrees F. The summers and winters are getting warmer. We want to work with you in our science. Science is going to be key. If we ignore that science and put our heads in the sand and its all about vegetation management, were not going to succeed in protecting California residents.

Trump: Itll start getting cooler.

Crowfeet: I wish science would agree with you.

Trump: "I dont think science knows, actually.

The meeting then continued with other officials discussing how to move forward fighting the fires.

That brief exchange between President Trump and Secretary Crowfeet once again solidifies Trumps position as a climate change denier. These wildfires are happening at the same time another major hurricane is threatening the Gulf Coast. And for the second time in two years, a block of ice, 2X the size of Manhattan, has broken off from Greenland. There is a continual amount of data and evidence from scientists and climatologists, clearly demonstrating the effects global warming is having on our weather and the environment. Global warming will also exacerbate the severity of global pandemics.

Despite the mounting evidence, Trump and his acolytes continue to dig in on their position, dismissing global warming. Ive never been a member of Save the Whales or any other environmental group. But my wife and I are in our 70s and I am concerned about what our remaining time on this planet will be like. More concerning, is what the remaining time will look like for my kids, their spouses and my grandkids.

I believe this upcoming election is the most important in my life, maybe in the life of our young Republic. There are so many important issues confronting us. But I believe, possibly one of the most important ones, is the issue of climate change.

Will we continue to put in office, climate change deniers, or will we elect to office folks that will take this seriously and make a real concerted effort to get ahead of this problem?

Robert K. Bomberger, Lower Paxton Twp.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's post-royal future is still dependent on a clause agreement during the Sandringham Summit. Apparently, Queen Elizabeth II still has the final say on the Megxit deal.

The Sussexes' Fate Not Set in Stone

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have begun their new lives in California and are transcending into the world of show business as television producers for Netflix. However, according to a royal expert, the freedom they were provided over the past few months is not set in stone.

Their 12-month tenure is reportedly not yet reached.

The former royals have recently purchased a new mansion and are living with their son Archie Harrison, reported Wat-not.

The duke and duchess made the announcement of their renouncing of royal duties and to step down as senior members of the royal Family early this 2020. Their final royal engagements were held in March. The British royal family was reportedly angry, bemused, and upset with the couple's renouncement.

Prince Harry and Markle could reportedly face future challenges from the royal family. Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams spoke about the Sussexes' newfound freedom.

According to the royal expert, "It is important to bear in mind that Harry and Meghan are a unique case. They are non-working royals, provided the arrangement which the Queen brokered at Sandringham is renewed before the end of next March," reported BOL News.

The couple made the declaration of stepping down as senior working members of the royal family in early January. They posted the statement on Instagram and a newly-launched website. The pair entered talks with senior aides, Prince William, and Prince Charles. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle also negotiated with Queen Elizabeth II to draft their Megxit deal's terms, reported Express.

Also Read: Is It Possible for Multihyphenate Meghan Markle to Become President?

On Prince Harry, Meghan Markle's Independence

The couple has set a benchmark to living an independent lifestyle in contrast to past royals. But according to Fitzwilliams, Prince Harry and Markle were in agreement with the deal made in a Norfolk summit that they would carry upon their royal engagements for 12 months.

One condition imposed by Queen Elizabeth II caused a devastating blow to Prince Harry. They were ordered not to use the word royal in future branding for business projects. This meant that they had to remove their SussexRoyal account and website.

Despite the Sussexes' willingness to further represent the royals and the Queen across the globe, they agreed to leave their rights to perform royal engagements. They possess the right to establish profitable businesses.

However, the Megxit deal's terms are subjected to a year of review.

According to a source, "The Royal Family and Sussexes have agreed to an initial 12-month review to ensure the arrangement works for all parties."

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle confirmed that a one-year transition period was established. Queen Elizabeth II has the power to change the Megxit deal.

Related Article: Meghan Markle's $75M Threat Royal Family With Princess Diana Documentary?

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Haryana BKU chief Gurnam Singh said the Centre didn't withdraw the three agriculture-related ordinances despite the organisation's 'warning' to not go ahead with the 'anti-farmer' legislation

Chandigarh: The Bharatiya Kisan Union's Haryana unit will hold a statewide protest against the Centre's farm bills on Sunday during which they will block roads for three hours, even as Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar appealed for deferring the stir and invited them for talks.

Haryana BKU chief Gurnam Singh said the Centre did not withdraw the three agriculture-related ordinances and instead presented them as bills during the ongoing session of Parliament. The bills have been passed in the Lok Sabha.

"We had warned the government not to go ahead with these 'anti-farmer' legislations. Tomorrow, we will be holding a protest across the state during which we will block roads for three hours. However, the GT road (national highway) will not be blocked," he said on Saturday, adding that they have support from other farmer outfits.

He also said that farmers from Haryana and Punjab will start a movement against the anti-farmer measures which will later intensify into pan-India protests.

On 10 September, the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) along with some other farmer outfits had held a protest in Kurukshetra's Pipli against the farm ordinances. The BKU leader also demanded that all cases registered against the protesting farmers on 10 September be withdrawn.

In an official statement, Khattar urged the farmers to defer the agitation and invited them for discussion.

Reiterating his government's commitment towards protection of farmers' interests, the chief minister said on one hand, everyone in a democracy has the right to express their views, on the other hand, maintaining peace in the state is also the utmost duty of any government.

He asserted that the farm reforms are in the interest of farmers.

"It is unfortunate to see that the Opposition parties have blatantly politicised the issue to achieve their vested interests by misleading the farmers.

"Being the son of a farmer, I urge the farmers to remember the appeal made by Deenbandhu Chaudhary Chhotu Ram wherein he said that they should recognise their enemies," the statement quoted Khattar as saying.

Khattar said those who are spreading confusion about the farm bills in such times are the ones who are the "real enemies" of farmers and are just trying to serve their own political interests rather than having any concern about peasants.

"If the farmers' interest had been at all affected by these farm reforms, I would have been the first person to oppose them," he said.

He also reiterated that the 'mandi' system and minimum support price (MSP) mechanism were here to stay.

Meanwhile, the state government issued directions to ensure law and order and minimise inconvenience to the people of the state during the protest from 12 noon to 3 pm on Sunday.

An official spokesperson said deputy commissioners of police, inspector generals (IGs) and superintendents of police (SPs) have been directed to reach out to farmer leaders and ensure a peaceful protest.

He said all executive magistrates and police officers have been asked to remain present in the districts and not to proceed on leave.

"Executive magistrates have been directed to remain stationed along with their police counterparts at all such places where congregation of protestors is anticipated. Besides this, joint patrolling of the national and state highways or important roads should be conducted by the executive magistrates along with police officials from September 19 itself so as to instill a sense of confidence amongst citizens," the spokesperson said in a statement.

The chief minister said if the farmer associations still go ahead with the agitation, they should ensure that least inconvenience is caused to common citizens.

He urged that special care should be taken to ensure no obstruction in the way for any patient going to hospital, pregnant women and vehicles supplying essential commodities.

Khattar also asked the protestors of being vigilant against "anti-social elements" who try to spread violence during such protests.

Reacting to the protest call, Haryana home minister Anil Vij said all arrangements have been made to ensure that vehicular movement on highways is not disrupted during the agitation.

He also appealed to farmers not to block any highway.
The Child Protection Network (CPN), Ogun State Chapter, has appealed to the police on the need for detailed investigation over the alleged rape and murder of a 14-year-old secondary school girl by suspects now on the run.

The girl, Fathia Ojewoye, was declared missing by her parents on Wednesday, September 15, at Agbeloba-Oniyonrin area of Abeokuta. Her corpse was found three days later, with some of her personal effects at the scene of the crime.

The network, in a statement by the Coordinator, Alfred Soleye, on Saturday, said the coalition of the Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) expressed sadness and shock over the brutal murder of the girl.

The Ogun Child Protection Network (CPN), a coalition of Non-Governmental Organizations and Civil Society Organizations condemned the brutal defilement and murder of a 14-year-old Senior Secondary schoolgirl, who was reported missing at the Agbeloba Oriyanrin axis of Abeokuta on Wednesday 15th September 2020, and whose body was found three days later.

The network urged the police to carry out detailed investigation including accurate forensics on exhibits recovered from the crime scene to ensure perpetrators are brought to book and justice is served, the statement said.

The group commiserated with the family over the loss of their daughter and pledged its commitment to support the family in ensuring that perpetrators are apprehended and promptly charged to court for justice to prevail.

Child Protection Network prays that God will give the family the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss and seize this opportunity to urge parents to always monitor their wards and children, the statement said.

The Ogun State Police Command Public Relations Officer, Abimbola Oyeyemi, when contacted confirmed the incident, adding that investigation has commenced with the assurance that the perpetrators would be apprehended in due course.

The police spokesperson, as of the time of filing this report, said the corpse of the girl has been deposited at the morgue of the State Hospital, Sokenu, Abeokuta, adding that arrangement was ongoing to conduct an autopsy on the corpse.
National Council of Canadian Muslims says fatal stabbing of man outside a Toronto mosque has shaken the community.

A Canadian Muslim advocacy group is calling for a recent fatal stabbing outside a mosque in Toronto to be investigated as potentially hate-motivated, after the citys police service announced that it had made an arrest in the case.

In a statement on Friday, the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) thanked Toronto police for making an arrest in relation to the killing of 58-year-old Mohamed-Aslim Zafis.

Zafis was fatally stabbed on September 12 outside the International Muslim Organization mosque in Etobicoke, Torontos west-end, where he volunteered as a caretaker to ensure that congregants followed COVID-19 safety protocols.

MA: IMO Mosque Thankful for the Arrest Made of Suspect in Rexdale Mosque Murder, and Hosting Vigil on Saturday Evening The IMO thanks the Toronto Police Service, and calls for the murder to be treated as a potentially hate-motivated crimehttps://t.co/CqlpXXtzYV pic.twitter.com/nQRbgdXCB6  NCCM (@nccm) September 18, 2020

Given the fact that our brother  was brutally murdered in the parking lot of the mosque and given other incidents that have happened in and around Toronto, we are calling for the Toronto Police Service to investigate this as a potentially hate-motivated murder, NCCMs CEO, Mustafa Farooq, told Al Jazeera in a phone interview.

Toronto police said in a statement earlier on Friday that they had arrested a 34-year-old man, Guilherme William Von Neutegem, and charged him with first-degree murder.

The suspect allegedly approached Zafis while he was sitting in a chair outside the front doors of the mosque and stabbed him once, according to the police statement. Zafis was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

But a Toronto police spokesman said during a news conference Friday that the investigation into what happened is continuing and there does not appear to be any motive, local news channel CP24 reported.

Recent attacks

The killing comes after Muslim community members in Toronto, the countrys largest city, raised concerns that local mosques were repeatedly attacked during the past few months.





In August, representatives of the downtown Masjid Toronto said the mosques windows were broken three times in a three-week span.

Muslim community leaders had called then for the incidents to be investigated as motivated by hate.

According to Farooq at NCCM, Zafiss killing has not only shaken members of the local Muslim community, but it has affected the entire neighbourhood and people across Canada.

This has just been a devastating moment, he said. This is a safe place, a place of love and light, and this attack has really been  an attack on all of our innocence.

NCCM said it planned to hold a vigil for Zafis on Saturday evening outside the mosque where he was killed and reiterate its demand for police to probe the incident as hate-motivated.

A funeral for Zafis was held earlier this week and drew hundreds of mourners.
The one that got away  Jonathan and Ryan Wijayaratne A.S.H. Smyth interviews the fourth-generation Colombo photographers on the greatest shot they never got... and one they did View(s): View(s):

Born and raised between Sri Lanka, Australia, and the UK, the Wijayaratne brothers grew up surrounded by photography, thanks to their fathers ownership of Jonathans Studio (est. 1924) on Havelock Rd.

Ryan started shooting at the age of 13, began a Fine Arts course in Sydney, and then swapped it for an acting scholarship in New York. Jonathan did a degree in Accounting, then got into cooking. In 2014 they both found themselves back in Colombo by chance, and decided they should put down some professional roots.

They now co-run the family business, as well as individual work and their joint venture Youre My Favourite. Here they have a sort of director/producer division of labour, but with both of them  and sometimes other collaborators  taking the actual photographs. For this to work, says Jonathan, it cant be about ego.

Their first gig was shooting the Miss Sri Lanka segment of Miss Universe. Here they met Danu Innasithamby (judging), who promptly hired them to create his weekly videos (which they did using iMovie). Six years on, they are working on a documentary pilot re. which theyre in first-round talks with Netflix.

Discoveries include finding that sand-banks move, that lenses fog up when you leave the ballroom, that you may have to burgle your assistants house to get your lights, and

The one that got away

RYAN: A friend of mine was managing this kitschy hotel in up-state New York. Shes from a family of artists, and she has these amazing tattoos all over her body, mostly from her grandmothers artworks  so we were going to do this shoot, on colour film, where she was going to be mainly nude, and all her tattoos would be set off against this bright-green and purple decor, and all these weird, retro ornaments. I was a bit into this girl, so between that and getting to stay at this bizarre place for a couple of days, it was going to be awesome.

The shoot was at night, so I bought this old, crappy flash, thinking that a crappy flash effect might be sort of ironically artsy. I shot the whole thing  a whole nights work, four rolls of film  and when I got them developed everything was just completely flat and muted. It was weird. I couldnt understand what had happened.

Luckily, there was just enough of an exposure that I could scan the negatives, and massively over-expose it digitally, and turn it into this kind of super-grainy black and white. In colour it looks like trash, but in black and white its kind of cool. So I just never told the client what had really happened. Its the first time Jonathan has heard this story, actually!

A couple of years later, back in Sri Lanka, I dug that same flash out to see if I could make it work. I put it on my digital camera, and took a photo, and the same thing happened. So I asked my father if he knew what was wrong with it, and he said What speed were you shooting? and when I told him it was at 100th [of a second]  a basic, default frame-rate for the flash to automatically sync with the camera  he said You probably needed to shoot at 60. I said What?? Why!? and he explained that these old flashes (stuff from before about the year 2000) just didnt go that fast. So we set it up for 60 and it worked perfectly!

The shot that they got

JONATHAN: This was for a swimwear fashion editorial, at Mount Lavinia beach. They had flown down this beautiful model, and Gautam Kalra, a really famous Indian stylist whos worked with Sharukh Khan and people like that, and Gautam said it would be great if, for the shot, we could also find somebody local. And we thought, Well, were at the beach: we can just find a fisherman. And then there wasnt a single fisherman in sight.

We found a guy, and he said Yeah, talk to my uncle. So we sent off two assistants to try and find this guy, and they were gone for hours  he lived in some little shanty, way inland, and wanted them to sit with him and have a smoke  and now the light was fading, and its about to rain; but then they come back with this dude who looks like fire. Really old and weathered, but insane body, a crazy strong look  just from a life of natural working out.

Fashion photography can be really weird sometimes. So now youve got this hot girl in swimwear, and then this fisherman just doing his own thing, with some fish that hes strung together with palm leaves, hanging off his waist. He couldnt speak English, and she didnt speak Sinhala  so theyre just there trying to chat about these fish. But there was a real human connection.

You can see strength, the hardship hes been through  but also how proud he is. We were there thinking Is this kind of an exploitation? And I guess it kind of is; but we paid him a full days pay for about 30 minutes work, he had a great time, and he absolutely owned the situation!
The probe report filed on Friday details the alleged role played by Michel, Saxena and others in bringing bribes for politicians, bureaucrats and Indian Air Force (IAF) officials in India in the scam, reports said

New Delhi: The CBI has filed a supplementary charge sheet against British National Christian Michel James and businessman Rajeev Saxena in the AgustaWestland chopper scam.

In its final report filed before Special Judge Arvind Kumar, the CBI has named both alleged middlemen Michel and Saxena, and 13 others.

The court is likely to take up the matter for consideration on 21 September.

According to the sources, the probe report filed on Friday details the alleged role played by Michel, Saxena and others in bringing bribes for politicians, bureaucrats and Indian Air Force (IAF) officials in India in the scam.

The sources said that the agency, which had earlier this year sought sanction from the authorities concerned to prosecute former defence secretary Shashi Kant Sharma, has not named him as an accused since the request is not granted yet.

The agency told the court that it may file another supplementary charge sheet in the matter later.

The first charge sheet in the case was filed in September 2017 naming former IAF chief SP Tyagi and others.

The agency had earlier told the court that "during the course of investigation, copies of classified/ secret official documents of Indian Air Force (IAF)/ Ministry of Defence (MoD) such as Operational Requirements for VVIP helicopters before issuance of Request of Proposal and other incriminating documents running into more than one lakh pages received from Italy and Switzerland.

It had also said that a "payment sheet" recovered from Michel, prepared on his dictation, shows that an amount of Euro 30 million was paid/ proposed to be paid to the officers of IAF, MoD, bureaucrats, politicians and family in India for showing favour in the VVIP helicopter deal."

The applicant had entered into as many as five contracts through two of his firms to legitimise the illicit commission/ kickbacks on the procurement of VVIP helicopters by MoD, India, the CBI said.

"An amount of Euro 42.27 million was paid by the Westland Group Companies to the firms of the applicant as kickbacks/ bribes without undertaking any work against the receipt of such amount," it said.

It said that out of the kickbacks received from AgustaWestland, Michel further made payments to various persons in India.

Michel was taken into custody by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on December 5 last year after his extradition from Dubai, while the ED took him into custody on December 22 last year. He is currently in judicial custody in both cases.

Dubai-based businessman Saxena was extradited to India on January 31, 2019 in connection with the scam relating to the purchase of 12 VVIP helicopters from AgustaWestland.

While Michel is currently in judicial custody, Saxena is out on bail in the money laundering case filed by ED.

ED had earlier arrested Saxena but he was later granted bail after the agency supported his plea to turn approver in the case.

The agencies had told the court that Michel made 24.25 million euros and 1,60,96,245 pounds from the now-scrapped AgustaWestland deal.

The CBI has alleged that the deal signed in February 2010 to supply VVIP choppers worth 556.262 million euros caused an estimated loss of 398.21 million euros (about Rs 2,666 crore) to the state exchequer.
Putrajaya to decide on cyberbullying law soon

The Communications and Multimedia Ministry is expected to decide if there is a need for specific legislation to address cyberbullying once a study on the matter is concluded soon.

This follows a series of incidents where cyberbullying on social media led to suicides.

Speaking at the online launch of Unicefs Our Lives Online - Use of Social Media by Children and Adolescents in East Asia report this morning, the ministrys deputy secretary-general Tan Chuan Ou shared that a decision on the new law is expected by the end of 2020.

At the moment, we realise the importance of problems faced by cyberbullying (victims), thats why the ministry is currently conducting a study and maybe by the end of this year, we will see the outcome of this study.

We are trying to find out, is there a need for the government to formulate a dedicated cyberbullying act.

By the end of this year, maybe we can announce it (whether) yes we need it or not, he said.

Last year, then minister-in-charge Gobind Singh Deo also reportedly considered the need to amend the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (CMA) to address cyberbullying.

This is after a 16-year-old teenager from Padawan, Sarawak reportedly killed herself after posting a poll on her Instagram account where a majority of followers voted for her to die.

Need evidence when reporting

During the launch, Tan referenced Singapore and the Philippines which respectively have the Protection from Harassment Act 2014 and the Republic Act 10627 to penalise cyberbullying.

He admitted that there was no clear protocol for reporting cyberbullying in Malaysia but opined that the Malaysian Penal Code and CMA were enough to deal with such incidents.

For the time being, based on the current and existing laws and the provisions of the law, the most important thing is you need to capture the evidence so that that can be used to take action against those who bully you.

If you can capture the screenshot, voice recording and so on; that will be good enough evidence for you, the government and the enforcement agencies to take action, he explained.

Aside from filing a police report, cyberbullying complaints can also be directed to the ministry via the Cybersafe website, email (cyber999@cybersecurity.my ), hotline (1-300-88-2999) or through SMS (15888).
Connecting to the Internet has never been easy in Turkmenistan, but authorities in the isolationist Central Asian country are waging a new campaign aimed at preventing unsavory information from entering or exiting the country.

Authorities are hunting for people who have virtual private networks -- popularly known as VPNs -- and have also taken measures to block them.

As part of the crackdown, students are also being made to sign statements that they will not use the Internet to access banned sites.

And even outside the country, Turkmen officials were able to have the YouTube site of a Turkmen opposition group taken down after a semiofficial Turkmen news site that also posts on YouTube filed a complaint.

Why the Turkmen government has engaged in these new measures at this time is not difficult to understand.

The situation in Turkmenistan is really bad and the patience of the people with their government is wearing thin.

Turkmenistan has been in a steep economic decline for some five years.

The price for natural gas -- Turkmenistans main export that accounts for between 70 to 80 percent of the countrys revenue -- has fallen by more than 70 percent since 2015, and its biggest customer, China (it and Russia are actually the only customers), announced in March it was cutting back on the amount of gas it would buy from Turkmenistan.

Mother nature has also pounded Turkmenistan in the last few years.

Floods and drought have hit different areas of the country, and a freak salt storm blew over northern and eastern areas of the country in May 2018, destroying crops and leaving alkaline deposits on farmers' fields.

In both of these cases, authorities were unable to provide the necessary assistance to those who were affected.

Meanwhile, the government continues to claim there are no cases of the coronavirus in the country, despite testimony from people in the country that the situation with the virus is out of control, with hospitals filled and widespread shortages of medicine and personal protective equipment.

It is exactly these types of reports that Turkmen authorities hope to stop from reaching the world outside by further clamping down on access to the Internet.

But in a new development, growing opposition to the Turkmen government abroad has received greater publicity, and anti-government messages, including calls for protests and even the ouster of President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, have made their way into Turkmenistan.

That has forced the already paranoid Turkmen authorities to visibly increase security measures across the country.

RFE/RLs Turkmen Service, known locally as Azatlyk, reported in mid-August that the only Internet provider in the country, Turkmentelekom, has started using new technology reportedly obtained from Germany and installed by Chinese specialists that can block websites and many VPN services more thoroughly.

People inside Turkmenistan can only access many sites outside of the country by using VPNs, so authorities started questioning and, in some cases, arresting telephone salesmen or repairmen who were downloading VPN apps onto people's phones.

First-time offenders face 15 days in detention or a fine, while third-time offenders can have their businesses shut down.

In any case, many of the shops that once engaged in such work are now closed.

The official reason is to prevent the possible spread of the coronavirus, which, again, the government says is not present in Turkmenistan, as well as the aforementioned requirement for students to sign declarations pledging not to access prohibited websites and to only use the Internet for educational purposes.

The YouTube channel Erkin (Free) Turkmenistan is one of the sites blocked in Turkmenistan, and now the channel has been forced to remove material due to a complaint by another YouTube channel called Watan Habarlary (Homeland News).

Erkin Turkmenistan broadcasts content that is critical of the Turkmen government. Watan Habarlary broadcasts what could definitely be considered to be pro-government reports.

According to Erkin Turkmenistan, Watan Habarlary filed three complaints with YouTube between August 29 and September 3, alleging Erkin Turkmenistan was using its footage without permission.

After the third warning on September -- when Erkin Turkmenistan aired a report called It Is Not Worth Torturing People -- YouTube informed the station it would be blocked for three months.

Erkin Turkmenistan countered that although it is the same footage Watan Habarlary used, it comes from Turkmen state television, which is where Erkin Turkmenistan gets it, as do others such as Watan Habarlary.

Erkin Turkmenistan also notes that its programming also includes original material and reporting, whereas Watan Habarlary simply takes state TV footage and reposts it as is.

A letter sent to RFE/RL from the founder of Erkin Turkmenistan said: "We have never knowingly violated or are violating YouTube's internal policies[and had] not previously received a warning from YouTube regarding our shows [until Watan Habarlary made its complaint]."

Turkmen authorities are currently confronting problems they have never seen before.

The incompetent management of the country in recent years by Berdymukhammedov's government has spawned local resentment and emboldened Turkmen outside the country to stage public demonstrations.

Turkmen citizens have staged protests in Cyprus, Turkey, and in the United States, including in Washington, D.C., and outside the UN building in New York.

Some of these Turkmen are calling for the ouster of the Turkmen government and that message has reached Ashgabat.

On September 25, the Halk Maslahaty (Peoples Council) is expected to approve a package of amendments to the constitution, none of which is expected to improve life for the people of Turkmenistan.

The big amendment to be passed is the establishment of a 56-member Senate. As the country's parliament and the Halk Maslahaty have always been rubber-stamping bodies, it is difficult to see what benefit there is in creating a bicameral parliament in Turkmenistan.

The bigger issue would be the appointment of the chairman of the Senate, who would be the No. 2 official in Turkmenistan. There have been suggestions that Berdymukhammedov would guide his son Serdar into that role.

Two days after the Halk Maslahaty session, Turkmenistan will mark its Independence Day.

In a sign of how concerned the authorities are about the situation and the unhappiness among the people playing out, security has been noticeably increased across Turkmenistan.

In Mary Province, where small-denomination banknotes with messages calling for a revolt have been distributed in at least two districts, there are reportedly many police on the streets. Vehicles are often stopped, the trunks of vehicles thoroughly inspected, and drivers and passengers photographed.

In the meantime, officials are doing their best to ensure that no one in the country transmits or receives any information that would help fuel the growing discontent in the country.

RFE/RL's Turkmen Service contributed to this report
Select Spanish-language titles compiled by Leylha Ahuile, with descriptions provided by the publishers.

NONFICTION

El poder de los introvertidos

(Quiet)

Susan Cain

Vintage Espanol

ISBN 978-0-593-08282-9

Cain argues that the world dramatically undervalues introverts, and explains how much it loses in doing so.

El precio del racismo

(American Poison)

Eduardo Porter

Vintage Espanol

ISBN 978-0-593-31107-3

Porters book aims to provide a sweeping examination of how American racism has broken the countrys social compact and damaged the lives of every American, and offers potential solutions for how to begin healing these wounds.

Siempre demasiado y nunca suficiente

(Too Much and Never Enough)

Mary L. Trump

Urano

ISBN 978-84-15732-48-8

Clinical psychologist Trump, whose uncle is Donald Trump, shines a light on their familys history and explains how her uncle became the man who she says now threatens global health and economic security.

Zero frequency

(Zero Frequency)

Mabel Katz

Sirio

ISBN 978-84-18000-70-6

Katz aims to teach readers how to find peace, happiness, and abundance by living in the moment.

CHILDRENS

10 maravillas del mundo para ninos

(The 10 Wonders of the World for Children)

Sophie Crepon

Ediciones Larousse

ISBN 978-607-21-2288-8

A childrens book full of fun facts and striking images of 10 of the worlds wonders. It illustrates the features that have made these architectural marvels a part of history.

Algo pasa en mi ciudad

(Something Happened in Our Town)

Marianne Celano & Marietta Collins

Editorial Fineo

ISBN 978-8-41647-003-7

This book follows two families as they discuss a police shooting of a Black man in their community. The story aims to answer childrens questions about such traumatic events.

Los carteros del espacio

(The Space Mailmen)

Jaume Copons & Liliana Fortuny

Combel Editorial

ISBN 978-84-9101-540-6

The graphic novel series of Agus and the monsters continuesin space! Agus works with three space mailmen to help intercept dangerous letters sent by Dr. Brot.

Crema de Cacahuete y Medu

(Peanut Butter and Jelly)

Ben Clanton

Juventud

ISBN 978-84-261-4677-9

After Jelly gets Narval to try peanut butter, things are never the same. At least it gets his mind off of waffles... temporarily.

Dirigentes del mundo futuro

(Leaders of the Future World)

Carlos Cuauhtemoc Sanchez

Diamante

ISBN 978-607-98307-8-6

This educational novel, geared toward parents and teachers who want to teach children to be leaders, asks what would happen if criminals seized a formula that could change the minds of children.

Mi Lazarilla, Mi Capitan

(My Lazarilla, My Captain)

Gonzalo Moure

Kalandranka

ISBN 978-84-1343-031-7

A visually impaired girl walks with her blind father to school daily and marvels at how perceptive her father is about people. They turn a mundane stroll into an imaginative adventure.

Las princesas pueden ser astronautas?

(Can Princesses Become Astronauts?)

Carmela LaVigna Coyle

Obelisco

ISBN 978-84-9145-376-5

Can princesses go to Mars? Can they grow up to be librarians? Yes! Teachers, builders, and even veterinarians, too! This book tells girls that they can achieve anything.

Stranger Things: Archivo secreto de Will Byers

(Will Byers: Secret Files [Stranger Things])

Matthew J. Gilbert

Editorial Oceano de Mexico

ISBN 978-607-557-022-8

This book is from the perspective of Will Byers, who visited the Upside Down and survived in the Netflix series Stranger Things.

El unico e incomparable Bob

(The One and Only Bob)

Katherine Applegate

Editorial Oceano de Mexico

ISBN 978-607-557-228-4

In this sequel to Newbery Medal winner The One and Only Ivan, Bob is a bighearted dog who undertakes a dangerous journey to recover his lost sister.

YOUNG ADULT

Gabi, fragmentos de una adolescente

(Gabi, A Girl in Pieces)

Isabel Quintero

Vintage Espanol

ISBN 978-0-593-08226-3

A heartwarming YA novel in the form of diary entries written by Gabi Hernandez as she chronicles her last year of high school.

El Gris

(The Devouring Gray)

Christine Lynn Herman

Libros de Seda

ISBN 978-84-17626-05-1

The founding families of Four Paths are trapped and spend their lives keeping a mysterious beast at bay. Will Violet and her friends be able to save the town?

La prometida

(The Betrothed)

Kiera Cass

Roca

ISBN 978-84-17968-15-1

Cass, author of the bestselling Selection series, returns with a royal romance full of courtly intrigue.
Ginsburgs vision of gender equality was decades ahead of her time. It went beyond just empowering women to compete for mens roles. While stereotypes distorted womens view of what was possible, they also impeded men, no less trapped in gender-based assumptions. Equality meant that both sexes should be free to assume all of societys roles without preconceptions. My son can be a caregiver; my daughter can be an executive. When the school administrators wanted Ginsburg to come to school to discuss her sons misconduct, she famously said, This child has two parents.
FILE - In this Monday, Sept. 7, 2020 file photo released by Russian Foreign Ministry Press Service, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad gestures while speaking to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during their talks in Damascus, Syria. U.N.-backed investigators in the 21st report from the Commission of Inquiry on Syria, pointed Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020, to signs that Syrias government continues to perpetrate rape, torture and murder as the countrys nine-year conflict grinds on, while citing possible war crimes by a Turkey-backed coalition of rebel groups and calling on Ankara to do more to help prevent them. (Russian Foreign Ministry Press Service via AP, File)

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP)  The Dutch government announced Friday it is holding Syria responsible under international law for gross human rights violations, in a process that could ultimately trigger a case at the United Nations highest court.

The Dutch initiative, invoking the U.N. Convention against Torture, is the latest attempt to hold President Bashar Assad's government accountable amid widespread reports it is mistreating its own citizens against the backdrop of the countrys grinding civil war.

The Assad regime has not hesitated to crack down hard on its own population, using torture and chemical weapons, and bombing hospitals, Foreign Minister Stef Blok said in a statement.

"The victims of these serious crimes must obtain justice, and we are pursuing that end by calling the perpetrators to account," Blok said.

According to the Syrian Network for Human Rights, Syrian authorities detained around 1.2 million people since the countrys conflict began in March 2011. As of the beginning of June, 12,325 were documented as having died under torture in Syrian government prisons, the SNHR said in a report released earlier this year.

At least 12,989 are still detained or missing, their fates unknown, according to the report. Another 16,000 are missing in detention by other factions in Syrias war.

A U.N. Security Council resolution backed by more than 60 countries to refer the Syrian conflict to the International Criminal Court was vetoed by both Russia and China in May 2014.

The Dutch initiative was triggered Friday with a diplomatic note handed to Syrian diplomats in Geneva in which the Netherlands reminded Syria of its international obligations to halt violations of the torture convention and to compensate victims, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

The note asked Syria to enter negotiations on the issue. If the two countries can't resolve the dispute, the Dutch government can propose arbitration and if that fails, the Netherlands will submit the case to an international court, the ministry said.

Story continues

Human Rights Watch welcomed the Dutch move.

For years, thousands have been systematically starved, beaten, and tortured to their deaths in Syrias prisons. By using the Torture Convention to demand justice for their plight, the Netherlands is standing for countless victims in an action that could ultimately trigger a case at the worlds highest court," said Balkees Jarrah, the rights group's associate international justice director.

While international efforts to bring Syrian officials to justice have floundered, a German court has attempted to break down the wall of impunity with a case against a man accused of running a government detention center where thousands were tortured during the early months of the uprising against Assad.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Environment Ministry on Saturday rejected the findings of a study which claimed that India is the world's largest emitter of anthropogenic sulphur dioxide (SO2) and informed the Rajya Sabha that 18 units for flue-gas desulphurization were installed in the country.

Congress MP Ripun Bora had sought to know whether the government is aware that India is the largest emitter of anthropogenic sulphur dioxide from coal burning which causes air pollution.

In his reply, Union Minister of State for Environment Babul Supriyo said, "No sir, it has been reported in one of the study of environmental NGO Greenpeace that India is the world's largest emitter of anthropogenic sulphur dioxide (SO2) and coal-based thermal power plants are the major contributors.

Government facts do not agree to this.

" He said the ministry, through its December 2015 notification, stipulated norms for emission of sulphur dioxide from thermal power plants apart from other pollutants. There was no SO2 emission norms for coal-based thermal power pants prior to this notification and regulated through stipulating the height of discharge/emittance through fixing height of chimney," Supriyo said in a written response.

Asked whether India has flue-gas desulphurization technology installed in coal plants that will help in reduction of air pollution, the minister said two of the commonly acceptable technology for flue-gas desulphurization of coal-based thermal power plants -- wet scrubbing in alkaline media and dry sorbent injection (DSI) -- are installed in India.

"As on August 31, 2020, 16 units on wet scrubbing and two units on DSI technology are installed for de-sulphurisation of flue gas from coal-based thermal power plants," Supriyo said.

According to the data, of the 16 wet-scrubbing units, eight are in Maharashtra, three in Gujarat, two each in Haryana and Tamil Nadu and one in Madhya Pradesh.

The two DSI units are in Uttar Pradesh.

In August last year, a study by environment NGO Greenpeace India had claimed that India is the world's largest emitter of anthropogenic sulphur dioxide, which is produced from coal burning, and greatly contributes to air pollution.

The Greenpeace India has released an analysis of a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) data saying India has more than 15 per cent of all anthropogenic sulphur dioxide (SO2) hotspots in the world detected by the OMI (Ozone Monitoring Instrument) satellite.

"The major SO2 emission hotspots in India are Singrauli in Madhya Pradesh, Neyveli and Chennai in Tamil Nadu, Talcher and Jharsuguda in Odisha, Korba in Chhattisgarh, Kutch in Gujarat, Ramagundam in Telangana and Chandrapur and Koradi in Maharashtra.

"The vast majority of plants in India lack flue-gas desulfurization technology to reduce their air pollution," it had said.
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Hilton Colombo draws plans for 2 1/2 acre bare land By Duruthu Edirimuni Chandrasekera View(s): View(s):

The Colombo Hilton, after 33 years has got the wings to expand its 2 1/2 acre bare waterfront land.

We are drawing up plans to develop the 2 1/2 acre waterfront land which we own in the pool side of the property, Manesh Fernando, Area General Manager, Hilton Sri Lanka told the Business Times in an interview on Monday. Amidst the billions of dollar properties coming up in Colombo, he was confident that Hilton will get some good returns from this land.

The hotel is also aggressively upgrading and refurbishing on a US$10 million budget. He was happy that the new regime is revitalising the asset as fast as possible. He said planned refurbishments were halted five years ago but they resumed this year.

The Chinese restaurant has resumed construction since August. From November for the first time in its history, Hilton will undergo a room refurbishment, Mr. Fernando noted saying that rooms underwent soft renovations 23 years ago (but theyre not enough).

He also said Hiltons air-conditioning plants, chillers, cooling towers, building management systems were renovated and generators upgraded in a bid to reduce energy consumption. Basically, the hotels will start new restaurants and do many upgrades to revitalise the asset, he said.

Having been exposed to the 20022004 SARS outbreak which was an epidemic involving severe acute respiratory syndrome when he was in Vietnam and came out on top, Mr. Fernando was positive that the economy will get back on track after the vaccines for COVID-19 come into the market. The occupancy was at 8 per cent and at the time the world economy wasnt that interconnected. Then I remember Vietnam received its highest occupancy after the vaccine was discovered.

He reiterated the urgency for destination organisations and the hospitality industry to apply a new perspective on destination, development and community engagement.

He believes that people are affected by being stuck in 5 km radiuses all over the world. They will travel after the vaccines are discovered. We need to be ready for it. We need to be strategic and look for new ways of increasing the length of tourists stay.

In the last quarter of this year, Double Tree Weerawila by Hilton will be opened, Mr. Fernando said adding that next year Hilton Yala will come into effect. Hilton Negombo is under construction and it will be a beach property which will benefit the Sri Lankan round-trip circuit for tourists, he added.

Hilton owns a land in Kandy and Mr. Fernando said it will be developed in due course. His long-term plans are to have Hiltons all around the country.

Yes, I am very optimistic and confident about the future. Hilton has seen the worst times in the country and we have persisted. Now I am so happy that competition has come (in the way of other hotel brands) which will improve the destination and human capital.
Police: 2 Dead, 14 Wounded at Party in Rochester, New York

ROCHESTER, N.Y.Gunfire at a backyard party killed two people and wounded 14 others early Saturday in Rochester, New York, a city that has been roiled in recent weeks by outrage over the suffocation death of Daniel Prude.

As many as 100 people were at the gathering when the shooting started just before 12:30 a.m., Acting Police Chief Mark Simmons told reporters.

Police were still trying to piece together who opened fire and why. Simmons said it was too early to say whether more than one person was shooting or who the intended targets may have been.

A man and woman, estimated to be in their late teens or early 20s, were killed, Simmons said. None of the wounded people were believed to have life-threatening injuries. They were being treated at two area hospitals.

This is truly a tragedy of epic proportions, Simmons said in a news conference held near the home. I mean 16 victims is unheard of, and for our community, whos right now going through so much, to have to be dealt with this tragedy, needlessly, for people who decide to act in a violent manner is unfortunate and shameful, and were going to do everything that we can as a department to bring those people involved to justice.

The shooting comes as the citys police department has been rocked by days of protests over Prudes death.

On Monday the citys mayor fired Police Chief LaRon Singletary, who she said initially misled her about the circumstances of the death. Other senior police officials announced they would retire or leave top command positions.

Simmons expressed frustration early Saturday that someone had held a large, late-night party amid that tumult, apparently in defiance of a state ban on large gatherings because of the coronavirus pandemic.

This is yet another tragedy where individuals are having these illegal, unsanctioned house parties taking place in these properties, whichnumber oneis not safe because of COVID, because of the conditions. And then you add in alcohol and violence and it just becomes a recipe for disaster, Simmons said.

Officers responded to calls of shots fired and found approximately 100 people running from the scene, Simmons said. Before the call, police were not aware of the party and had received no complaints about noise, he said.

The acting chief said no suspects were in custody, but there was no reason to believe the neighborhood was unsafe.

The names of the two people killed were not immediately released.

Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren issued a statement asking for prayers and support for all involved.

Im begging everyone to remain calm and exercise deep restraint as RPD investigates what happened here and seeks those responsible, she said.

Epoch Times staff contributed to this report.
Small businesses in the country have been hit the hardest by the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak and the subsequent lockdown. Business interruption due to the lockdown has cost Rs 15.5 lakh crore loss to the retail sector alone. Along with other industries, the estimated loss surpasses Rs 30 lakh crore. However, what is even more disturbing is that the insurance cover is limited.

Business interruption insurance covers financial protection for disruption in business/production activity in a building or commercial establishment due to fire, floods, earthquake or other natural disasters.

But small and medium businesses either totally skipped taking this cover or had agreed to specific exclusions for pandemic-like situations. The result: No insurance claims were paid for lockdown-related business impact.

Taking a cue, in July 2020, the insurance regulator had constituted a nine-member working group to look into the possibility of setting up an Indian Pandemic Risk Pool.

This working group has now proposed that a Rs 75,000 crore pool should be set up to deal with the 40 million medium, small and micro enterprises. The group has also recommended that the premium collected could be invested in government securities or specifically designed bonds by the Indian government.

The premiums accumulated over the years and the investment surplus would help in gradually reducing the government contribution.

But the real question is whether there is adequate financial capacity in India to pay for the pool. In a general pool structure, the premiums collected from the customers gets collected and large claims are paid out of the pool. But to set up a large pool, insurers typically contribute between Rs 1,000-2,000 crore as an initial investment.

When it comes to the pandemic risk pool, if insurers contribute Rs 2,000 crore, it means the rest Rs 73,000 crore will have to come from the government. It has to be seen if the central government agrees to set aside this huge sum for this insurance pool.

State governments will also have to be involved in the way of financial contribution to the pool. If a 60:40 contribution between centre and states is agreed upon similar to other insurance schemes, will state governments have the financial strength to pay?

Take West Bengal and Odisha for instance. These two states were ravaged by the Amphan cyclone in May and the losses from this one event alone have been pegged at Rs 1.02 lakh crore. The centre announced Rs 1,500 crore as a rehabilitation package for this natural catastrophe. The West Bengal government alone is spending close to Rs 6,300 crore for relief work.

At this juncture, will these state governments be in a position to further contribute to the pandemic pool? And on what basis will the state contributions be decided?

Scientists have predicted that the world must prepare for future pandemics even as the impact of COVID-19 is far from over. With this, for the most vulnerable small enterprises, it is essential to have insurance to ensure that there are adequate funds available for maintaining capacity and to pay worker salaries.

Solely depending on insurance companies capacities will not work for large-scale outbreaks like COVID-19. So, it is high time for the central and state governments to start working on funding mechanisms for future virus outbreaks. Pandemic pools could help save costs and would immediately aid the lowest strata of the economy to survive during possible lockdown-like scenarios of the future.

The much-touted natural catastrophe insurance pool never took off due to the lack of consensus on who would fund this model. The pandemic risk pool must not be allowed to face a similar fate.
WASHINGTON  Amy Coney Barrett, a federal appellate court judge, has emerged as one of the front-runners to fill the Supreme Court seat left vacant by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, three sources tell NBC News

Barrett, 48, was on the shortlist in 2018 to replace retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy when President Donald Trump ultimately selected Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

Amy Coney Barrett (Robert Franklin / AP)

The sources note that Barrett has been vetted and is a known quantity given her 2017 confirmation to sit on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit based in Chicago.

Republicans thought she performed well in that venue and defended herself against allegations that her religious beliefs would color her legal judgment.

At the time, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., told her, The dogma lives loudly within you, and that's a concern.

Barrett responded, "It's never appropriate for a judge to impose that judge's personal convictions, whether they arise from faith or anywhere else, on the law."

Among Barretts perceived pluses from a GOP perspective is that shes well-regarded by the religious right given her ardent opposition to abortion and her devout Catholic faith, shes a former clerk to the late Justice Antonin Scalia, Shes a woman  viewed as a prerequisite in replacing the feminist icon Ginsburg  and is also a mother to seven children.

Ginsburg, a lifelong champion of women's rights and a fierce advocate for gender equality, died Friday "surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, D.C., due to complications of metastatic pancreas cancer," according to a statement from the court.

Amy Coney Barrett (Matt Cashore/Notre Dame University / Reuters)

The potential obstacles for Barrett are her views on abortion that could complicate her confirmation, given that she espouses views that are the polar opposite to Ginsburgs legacy on abortion rights. Separately, a number of LGBTQ and civil rights organizations were quick to share their concerns about her when she first emerged on the presidents court shortlist.

Story continues

Attention is also being focused on 38-year-old North Carolina native Allison Rushing  who currently serves as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit based in Virginia. But as NBC News reported at the time of her confirmation: While Rushing made headlines for becoming one of the youngest and least experienced members of the federal judiciary, she also garnered attention because of her decade long association with one of the most well-known anti-gay groups.

In addition, NBC News can confirm two other judges are under serious consideration to fill the Supreme Court vacancy, according to multiple sources familiar with the vetting process.

Barbara Lagoa, a 52-year-old from Florida, who is a judge on U.S Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit based in Georgia, and Amul Thapar, 51, who sits on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit based in Cincinnati and is a favorite of Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

While the White House will drive the nomination process in concert with Senate Republicans, expect the Trump campaign to help fuel the GOP push to fill the Supreme Court vacancy. A campaign official, for instance, says the re-elect effort will continue to pressure Joe Biden to release a list of potential Supreme Court nominees.

As for the time frame, Trump tweeted early Saturday that Republicans have an obligation to move forward without delay! Biden on Friday night said that Ginsburg's replacement should not come until after the election.

While the timing is fluid, a White House official and a separate source familiar with the discussions say a nominee could be announced in the coming days.

This article originally appeared on NBCNews.com.
Bob Woodward has been challenging U.S. presidents  and assorted wannabes  for almost 50 years, most recently in his book Rage. But on a Saturday afternoon in April 1996, he sat down with Bob Dole.

Dole was the Senate majority leader, but they met in the quiet refuge of Doles Kansas office at the Hart Building. Woodward was wrapping up The Choice, his analysis of the dilemma facing voters in that Novembers showdown between Dole and Bill Clinton, the Democratic incumbent.

Clinton was glad Dole had nailed down the Republican nomination, Woodward noted as the interview began: Clinton respected Dole far more than Steve Forbes or Pat Buchanan, and he knew the White House would be in good hands no matter who won in November.

But the president was still bitter about an episode from their past, said Woodward, the most celebrated journalist of his generation.

Dole was curious, but not surprised. He and Clinton disagreed on all manner of things. Which one, he asked?

Your aggressive call for a Whitewater independent counsel in early 1994, Woodward said.

On the day his mother died.

Dole leaned back in his chair, visibly shaken. He recalled speaking to Clinton about his mother. He remembered losing his own mother, Bina, 20 years earlier. He couldnt fathom attacking a man on such a day.

Thats not something Bob Dole would do, he said aloud, as much to himself as to Woodward. Dole thought he had a good sense of the character that had been shaped by the rough grain of Kansas, by his service with the 10th Mountain Division during World War II, by his pride and his parents' expectations.

I just wouldnt do that.

Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward in The Washington Post newsroom, 1973. (Associated Press)

Dole turned to Kerry Tymchuk, his long-time speechwriter. Tymchuk thought he remembered the exchange on the morning news shows, 27 months earlier. Dole wanted transcripts of those interviews on his desk Monday morning: Maybe I owe him an apology, he said.

An apology? A concession? A moment of contrition, with Bob Woodward and his tape recorder on full alert? Who does that anymore?

Lets not forget the politics of that moment. The push for an independent counsel to investigate Whitewater  a 1978 Arkansas real-estate deal gone bad for the Clintons  and the 1993 suicide of White House deputy counsel Vince Foster were prelude to the Republicans' ferocious comeback in the 94 midterm election.

Led by Newt Gingrich and his Contract with America, the GOP took control of both the House and the Senate. The Republicans unapologetically passed the Defense of Marriage Act, which gave states permission to reject same-sex marriages performed in other states, and twice shut down the government during budget quarrels with the president.

In that resurgent conservativism, apologies were for losers and suckers.

But come that Monday, Dole read the transcripts of his January 1994 interview with Harry Smith at CBS. Hed paid tribute to Virginia Kelley, Clintons mother, who had died from breast cancer several hours earlier. But he didnt stand down when Smith swung into Whitewater and the call for an independent counsel.

He was crestfallen hed done this, and that the president was hurt by it, Tymchuk says. He wanted to make amends. It made him think of his own mother. His mother would have been upset with him. His mother raised him better than that.

Dole and Tymchuk  now the executive director of the Oregon Historical Society  sent the letter off that afternoon. It opens:

Dear Mr. President:

This letter is written not as a Senator or as a Presidential candidate, but as an individual whose parents instilled him a sense of common courtesy.

Dole admitted answering Smiths questions about Whitewater and similar inquiries in later appearances on the Today Show and Fox Morning News:

In hindsight, I can see that, after learning of your mothers passing, it might have been the better part of valor to have cancelled the interview or refused to answer certain questions.

He recalled speaking to Kelley at the 1993 Gridiron Dinner, and praising her perseverance. Then Dole closed with this:

I look forward to the campaign ahead, and only wish that Bina Dole and Virginia Kelley were here to experience it with us.

Late in the day, Tymchuk told Woodward the letter had been hand-delivered to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.: He (Woodward) called me back 10 minutes later and said, The President loves it. Hes already read it twice. Which shows you the access he had.

Clinton would win re-election, of course. Three days before his second inauguration, he invited Dole to the White House to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

I had a dream that I would be here this historic week receiving something from the President, Dole said at the lectern. But I thought it would be the front-door key.

Dole spent the next five minutes talking about the honor hed found in five decades of public service. He introduced the soldier who helped save his life when he was wounded near Castel DAiano, Italy in 1945. He made everyone laugh once or twice, and spoke of the moral imperative to unite this troubled land.

I know, I know. Who does that anymore?

-- Steve Duin

stephen.b.duin@gmail.com
A Chinese national and a Nepal citizen have been arrested here in connection with a spy ring allegedly involving a journalist who passed on classified documents to them, police said on Saturday.

Freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma was arrested on September 14 by the Special Cell and followed by the arrests of the Chinese national, a woman, and a Nepal citizen.

Read: Pegasus can spy on multiple phones simultaneously

Sources said the Chinese and Nepali nationals allegedly paid large amounts of money through shell companies to the journalist. A number of mobile phones, laptops and other sensitive material were recovered from them.

Sharma, who was earlier "snooped" using the controversial Israeli spyware 'Pegasus', was arrested under the Official Secrets Act. He had earlier worked with United News of India, The Tribune, Free Press Journal, Saakaal among others.

Also Read: Delhi Police arrests freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma under Official Secrets Act

Sharma, a resident of Pitampura New Delhi and has been covering defence and foreign affairs for around two decades, was found to be in possession of "some defence-related classified documents" and the investigation in the case is in progress, a Delhi Police spokesperson said on Friday night.

He was among 121 activists, academicians and journalists who were alerted by Canada-based internet research agency Citizens Lab that their phones were compromised through their WhatsApp using 'Pegasus', which was developed by Israeli cyber intelligence firm NSO.

Also Read: WhatsApp fixes six security vulnerabilities in messenger app

The Citizens Lab had informed Sharma that his phone was under surveillance for about two weeks in May last year.

Facebook was accused of using its messaging platform to dispatch 'Pegasus', which is a hacking tool.

While NSO had claimed that it sold the software only to official agencies, the Narendra Modi government had said that it had nothing to do with the spyware attack.
Two journalists covering the ongoing governorship poll in Edo State have been molested by thugs.

The incident took place at the polling unit of the immediate past national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, at Ward 10 (Uzairue North East), Polling Unit 1 of Etsako West local government in Iyamho area of Uzairue.

A PREMIUM TIMES journalist, Samson Adenekan, was slapped, manhandled and then briefly detained by the thugs for allegedly taking pictures and videos.

Mr Adenekan said he was trying to capture an ongoing voter inducement at the centre before him and one other reporter was accosted by the thugs about an hour after Mr Oshiomhole cast his vote.

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported how agents of the two major political parties- the APC and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)  were found buying votes in the ongoing governorship election in Edo State.

A Premium Times Centre For Investigative Journalism (PTCIJ) observer who witnessed the situation explained that while vote-buying was going on in some polling units, party agents in other polling units were coercing the aged to vote their preferred candidates.

They surrounded me and asked I should give them my phone. One big black guy landed two heavy slaps on my cheeks and up till now, I cannot feel my cheeks. They seized my phone insisting that I must delete the pictures, Mr Adenekan explained. They said I would not leave the place alive if I did not delete the shots.

The journalist said police officers stationed at the centre watched without raising as much as a finger as the attack ensued. I eventually deleted the pictures and was allowed to leave after someone I know from the APC secretariat in Abuja intervened.

Mr Adenekan reports on the APC for PREMIUM TIMES.

Mr Adenkan said he believes the thugs were working for the APC as he heard them saying, do you know where you are? This is not a PDP stronghold.

The other journalist, Nathaniel Offel, covering the election for GeeTV, suffered a starker ordeal as he initially refused to delete the pictures in his phone.

He was beaten mercilessly. One of the thugs hit him with a big chair on the back twice, said Mr Adenekan, who also witnessed the incident. His phone was smashed; his clothes torn and he sustained a lot of injuries from the attack.

The incident occurred inside Iyamho Primary School where the polling unit is located.

There have been reports of pockets of violence in the elections.

INEC, the election umpire, earlier today, said it was aware of a shooting incident in Orhionmwon local government of Edo State, vowing to bring all electoral offenders to justice.

According to the Guardian Newspaper, the Chairman of the Commission, Mahmood Yakubu, stated this in his preliminary address at the Edo Governorship Election Virtual Situation Control Room which was held through Zoom.

Mr Yakubu noted that the commission had also received images showing the alleged hijack of electoral materials in Ward 9, Unit 15 of Egor local government in the state.

He said INEC might be forced to take decisive action against results generated from the affected unit.

Meanwhile, the Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has won the election in his polling unit 19 Emokpae model primary school, Oredo Local Government Area.

The result announced Saturday afternoon by the INEC presiding officer showed that Mr Obaseki of the PDP polled 184 votes, while Osagie Ize-Iyamu of the APC scored 62 votes.

Mr Ize-Iyamu also won his polling unit 26, Ward 5, Iguododo, Orhionmwon Local Government Area.

The result showed that Mr Ize-Iyamu of the APC scored 292 votes while Mr Obaseki of the PDP scored 21 votes.

Although 14 parties are taking part in the Edo governorship election, it is believed to be a two-horse race between Mr Obaseki and Mr Ize-Iyamu.

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Justice that cannot be observed cannot really be considered justice. The public wont believe what they cant see, media ethics expert Jane Kirtley says

MINNEAPOLIS (AP)  The trial of four former Minneapolis police officers charged in George Floyds death will generate massive public interest when it begins in March, but as it stands, most people who want to watch the proceedings will be out of luck.

The judge overseeing the case has yet to decide whether cameras will be allowed. Supporters of audio and visual coverage say the high-profile nature of Floyds death, the outrage that led to worldwide protests, and courtroom restrictions caused by the coronavirus pandemic make this the right time and case to allow cameras in court. But the state attorney generals office, which is prosecuting the case, opposes them, saying cameras would only create more problems.

I just cant think of a situation where its more important than a case like this for the public to see whats actually transpiring in the courtroom, said Jane Kirtley, director of the Silha Center for the Study of Media Ethics and Law.

Justice that cannot be observed cannot really be considered justice. The public wont believe what they cant see, she added.

In June, Judge Peter Cahill decided against allowing audio and visual coverage of pretrial proceedings because he said it would risk tainting the possible jury pool and the state opposed it. But Cahill, who is still weighing requests to try the defendants separately, said he would rule on trial audio and video coverage at a later date. Its unclear when that ruling will come.

READ MORE: Editor of Kenosha newspaper quits over tone-deaf coverage: Today is about Jacob Blake

Floyd, a Black man who was handcuffed, died May 25 after Derek Chauvin, a white officer, pressed his knee against Floyds neck even as Floyd said he couldnt breathe. Floyds death was captured in widely seen bystander video that set off protests around the world.

Story continues

Chauvin is charged with second-degree murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter. Thomas Lane, J. Kueng and Tou Thao are charged with aiding and abetting both second-degree murder and manslaughter. All four officers were fired.

This combination of photos provided by the Hennepin County Sheriffs Office in Minnesota on Wednesday, June 3, 2020, shows from left, former Minneapolis police officers Derek Chauvin, J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao. (Hennepin County Sheriffs Office via AP)

Unlike many other states, Minnesota does not allow cameras at criminal trials before sentencing unless the judge, prosecutors and defense attorneys agree to them. The former officers have consented to cameras, but prosecutors have resisted, saying they may revisit the issue as the trial nears.

Defense attorneys say cameras would help ensure the trial is fair and open during the pandemic, when courtroom attendance has been limited to allow for social distancing. They have asked Cahill to grant camera access regardless of whether prosecutors agree.

Prosecutor Matthew Frank wrote in July that the state was concerned that live audio and visual coverage may create more problems than they will solve. Among them, Frank wrote, broadcast coverage of the trial could alter the way lawyers present evidence, force participants to endure even more media scrutiny or intimidate witnesses.

Earl Gray, Lanes attorney, said in a written response that it was obvious Frank and Attorney General Keith Ellison have never tried a televised high-profile case. I have tried a handful in Wisconsin and there is absolutely no issue. You do not even know the cameras are there.

A coalition of media organizations, including The Associated Press, has requested camera access, arguing that cameras would increase transparency, especially during the pandemic.

George Floyd (Credit: Floyd family)

Kirtley, who is part of the coalition, said any concerns that cameras would be disruptive can be managed by the judge. Although overflow courtrooms can increase access, they are often small, their closed-circuit monitors may not provide the best quality and the experience is usually diminished. She said meaningful access is key, and there should be a presumption that the public has a right to see everything that happens in the courtroom.

READ MORE: Ex-Minneapolis cops charged in George Floyds death turn on each other

Livestreaming proceedings to the courts YouTube channel could be an option as well, she said. Other states have chosen to do that during the pandemic.

Its frankly time for us to move into the 21st century, Kirtley said.

Raleigh Hannah Levine, a professor at Mitchell Hamline School of Law, said many states have used cameras in the courtroom for years and concerns raised by Ellisons team have been largely non-issues.

Most of the concerns, she said, stemmed from the 1995 O.J. Simpson trial, where attorneys, the judge and witnesses were criticized for apparently performing for the camera. She said the world has come a long way since then and that the widespread use of social media, not to mention the increase in videoconferencing during the pandemic, has changed many peoples views about being captured on video.

Protesters gather at a memorial for George Floyd, June 1, 2020, in front of Cup Foods in Minneapolis. Floyd was killed May 25 while in police custody outside the store. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

Levine also said the Supreme Court  which made history in May by hearing arguments by phone and allowing the world to listen in for the first time  has long recognized that open proceedings can serve as a check on possible abuses and can prevent vigilantism.

If people see how the trial is proceeding, they have less reason to take the matter into their own hands, she said. If people can see how the judge handles a trial, how evidence is presented and hear witnesses for themselves, it can increase their confidence in the judicial system.

Whichever way it comes out, people wont be as outraged by a verdict that they dislike because they might understand how it was reached, she said.

Have you subscribed to theGrios podcast Dear Culture? Download our newest episodes now!

The post Court weighs allowing courtroom cameras in George Floyd case appeared first on TheGrio.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary, Dr. Kazim Niaz here Friday inaugurated anti-polio campaign by administering vaccine to children below five years of age

PESHAWAR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Sep, 2020 ) :Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary, Dr. Kazim Niaz here Friday inaugurated anti-polio campaign by administering vaccine to children below five years of age.

The Chief Secretary after vaccinating children said it was first time in six months that a full-fledged vaccination campaign has been launched across the province.

He admitted that carrying out the polio vaccination at a time when coronavirus has not been fully defeated would a big challenge.

The Chief Secretary said the provincial task force has completed all arrangements to make the campaign successful.

Dr Kazim said security arrangements for the vaccination teams have been finalized. The Chief Secretary said he will personally supervise the vaccination campaign to make it successful, adding wild polio cases have been significantly reduced.

Coordinator, Emergency Operation Center (EOC) for Polio Eradication, Abdul Basit said about 6.5 million children below the age of five years would be vaccinated till September 25 in the province.

As many as 28,528 teams have been constituted for the campaign, which include 25,410 mobile, 1,091 transit, 1,864 fixed and 163 roaming teams.

The performance of these teams would be monitored at union councils, tehsils and districts level by the special monitoring committees.

He said all resources has been provided to vaccination teams and negligence in duties would not be tolerated. Dr Abdul Basit urged parents to fully cooperate with the vaccination teams to make the campaign successful.

The Chief Secretary said continuation of academic activities in educational institutions under standard operating procedures (SOPs) of coronavirus was a big challenge. He said schools with two or more coronavirus cases would be closed. Dr Kazim said several schools have been closed over violation of SOPs and made it clear that violation of SOPs would not be tolerated.

The Chief Secretary highly lauded cooperation of traders, media and ulema in overcoming the challenge of coronavirus.
GODFREY  Heritage Farm and Fruit Trees delighted visitors with its inaugural Pick-Your-Own Pumpkin Patch this weekend.

We have over forty varieties of apples available for picking, said Heritage Farms co-owner Patrick Gibson. We wanted people to see the orchard, as well, for the you-pick next year.

Co-owner Lindsey Gibson said they considered putting masks on the pumpkins, but eventually decided people might have had enough of masks.

We worked diligently to stay COVID-safe, she said. We have hand sanitizer stations, we spread everything out, we added extra checkouts, weve done everything and worked with every department to make sure we were as safe as we could be. It looks like the kids are having a great time and running around, its exactly what we wanted.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Illinois harvests the largest share of pumpkin acreage of any state and an even larger share of processing acres. Almost 80% of pumpkin acres in Illinois are devoted to pie filling or other processing uses. After Illinois, the other top pumpkin producing states are Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and California. But Illinois produces more than the other five leading states combined, and about one-half of the national total.

Because of this, pumpkins are grown in mainly northern states.

According to the University of Illinois Cooperative Extension Service, the top 10 pumpkin producing counties in Illinois are Tazewell, Kankakee, Mason, Logan, Will, Marshall, Kane, Pike, Carroll and Woodford. A small percentage of pumpkins are grown for ornamental sales through you-pick farms, farmers market and retail sales, like, Heritage Farm and Fruit Trees.

Were glad there is a place like this, because, with the pandemic, its outside, so you can distance yourself without mask wearing, said Amanda Beiser, of Godfrey, who brought four youngsters with her Saturday to the Godfrey farm. Its really cute. The kids are having a lot of fun and there are lots of pumpkins.

Beiser planned to purchase some pumpkins and mums, and she appreciated the lengths the Heritage Farm owners went to in order to be COVID-safe.

Everything is a little different because of the pandemic, she said. Maybe well put some masks on the pumpkins.

Nikki Hanner brought three children to the pumpkin patch.

I hope the pumpkins wont need to wear masks this year, Hanner said. We are so over the mask wearing and COVID stuff.

They are having a lot of fun, she said. We got here first thing this morning so we got to be by ourselves for a while. I think its great for the kids to get out. We are going pumpkin picking after this. The oldest one will probably decorate his in a Transformers theme because its Transformer everything for him.

Godfrey resident Jessica Winn said her son will undoubtedly decorate his pumpkin with a dinosaur theme.

He wants to find the biggest pumpkin, Winn said. Hell want to carve it and get another one every weekend.

Deidra Hillis 2-year-old daughter had a blast playing with the bouncy balls and pumpkin bowling. The Granite City mom brought both of her children to Heritage Farm Saturday.

Its cute and creative, Hillis said. They did a really good job of setting it up for different ages, and its safe here for the younger ones especially. Its nice to be able to be out here and enjoy it with my kids. Its a little bit more free and, kind of normal.

Hillis planned to bake the seeds they remove from the pumpkins they purchased on Saturday.

The design will probably be something pink for my daughter, probably with sparkles, maybe some sort of princess or something, Hillis said.

The Pick-Your-Own Pumpkin Patch also featured warm apple cider and apple cider donuts, numerous activities in the Kids Fun Zone, and the opportunity to browse the other produce offerings at Heritage Farm and Fruit Trees.
Within hours of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death Friday, Michigan political leaders began offering condolences and tributes.

Ginsburg, 87, was the second female Supreme Court justice and a champion of womens rights.

She died Friday, Sept. 18 at her Washington home of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer.

Heres what Michigan political leaders and organizations are saying about her:

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer

I am truly heartbroken at the news of Justice Ginsburgs passing. Her intellect, her razor sharp wit, and her lifetime of service to our nation made her an inspiration to millions of Americans. I know there are a lot of women who are feeling worried right now about what this means for the future of our country. One thing I learned watching Justice Ginsburgs fearless battles with cancer and injustice is that you never give up, and you never stop fighting for the values we hold dear as Americans.

U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow

"Tonight we have lost an incredible voice for justice. As a lawyer and professor, Justice Ginsburg broke barriers for women. As a Justice of the Supreme Court, she helped build a better nation for all Americans. Justice Ginsburg spent her lifetime working to protect our people and our democracy. We must honor her legacy by continuing her fight.

My heart goes out to Justice Ginsburgs family and friends. She truly was a national treasure.

U.S. Senator Gary Peters

Absolutely heartbreaking news. Justice Ginsburg was a tireless trailblazer for women and for all without a voice. She will forever be remembered for her devotion to justice and equality & speaking truth to power. Colleen and I send our condolences to Justice Ginsburgs family.

U.S. Rep. Fred Upton

Justice Ginsburg helped break the glass ceiling for so many that otherwise would not have achieved their true worth in their chosen field. She was a thoughtful, gentle woman who, with real precision, could disarm any argument with respect from all sides. Rest in peace.

Michigan Republican Party Chair Laura Cox

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg was a trailblazer and a fighter for womens rights. While I did not always agree with her politics, I appreciate all that she accomplished during her distinguished career and the service she rendered to our nation. Her family and friends will be in my prayers during the days ahead.

Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lavora Barnes

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a warrior for justice, a champion for womens rights, and a fighter for peace. As a Justice of the Supreme Court, she was wise and patient. Her decisions changed the course of history and we are all better having had her serve on the highest court. Our thoughts are with her family and friends today. Rest well, Justice Ginsburg.

Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield

RBG will be remembered as a trailblazer and tenacious fighter. She earned respect from people on all sides of the political spectrum. Her work ethic and true grit made her one notorious Supreme Court Justice. Now is a time to remember her and honor her."

U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell

Mourning the loss of not only a fair and strong jurist, but a woman who opened doors wider for everyone. Ruth Bader Ginsberg fought for justice and equality - deeply American values. RBG not only blazed her own trail in the legal field, but she inspired generations.

Late Friday evening, hundreds were gathering outside the Supreme Court to honor Ginsburg.

Gov. Whitmer, also late Friday, ordered U.S. and Michigan flags to be lowered to half-staff at the state capitol and at all public buildings and grounds across the state.

The flags should be lowered until Ginsburgs interment.

More from MLive

Absentee ballots delayed in mail must be counted, judge rules

State confirms first human case of mosquito-borne EEE

Michigan reports 695 new coronavirus cases for Friday, Sept. 18
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP)  President Donald Trumps homestretch push to repeat his razor thin victory in Pennsylvania four years ago wont happen without white evangelicals, and there are signs that critical component of his coalition hasnt lost the faith.

Its a group that has often made the difference for Republicans on the Pennsylvania ballot. And while some born-again voters had misgivings about Trump in 2016, they helped him eke out a 44,000-vote margin of victory in the pivotal swing state. This time around, they sound eager to repay him for supporting their agenda.

Trumps policies have helped keep in the fold evangelicals who otherwise might have been discomforted by his style. Their opinions on a range of political issues make them among the least likely voters to jump to former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democrat.

A recent NBC News/Marist poll in Pennsylvania found 79% of white evangelicals saying they will vote for Trump in this years presidential election.

But Bidens campaign hopes to make some inroads, with plans to launch an evangelicals for Biden effort next week, according to Josh Dickson, the campaigns national faith engagement director.

In this moment, there is a stark moral contrast between the common good values of the Biden-Harris agenda, which deeply aligns with the values of people of faith, and the agenda of the current administration, which is based in divisiveness and fear, Dickson said in a statement.

Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden meets with members of the community at Grace Lutheran Church in Kenosha, Wis., Thursday, Sept. 3, 2020.AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster

The Biden campaign frames the real religious issue at stake as systemic racism, while evangelical Trump voters point to his support for anti-abortion efforts, including like-minded judicial appointees, along with school choice, religious freedom and the movement of the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.

Many of us who support the president wish sometimes he didnt say the things he did, wish he had a character more in line with scriptural teachings, said Laszlo Pasztor, a retired military officer from Carlisle who organizes evangelicals politically. Many of us say hes a work in progress. However, his policies, nevertheless, have probably been more Christian than the policies of any president in my lifetime.

Evangelicals, Christians who generally have had a born again personal religious conversion or awakening, form a significant slice of the electorate. They believe in the Bible as Gods literal word and embrace an activist aspect to their faith. Trump was raised as a Presbyterian, a mainline Protestant denomination, and Biden is a practicing Catholic.

White evangelical voters made up 17% of the 2018 midterm electorate in Pennsylvania, according to an AP VoteCast survey. And a Pew Research Center analysis found 20% of voters nationwide in the 2016 election were white evangelicals; 77% of them backed Trump. Black Protestant voters often share religious views with white evangelicals, but they largely vote Democratic.

While evangelical voters are scattered across Pennsylvania, they are most concentrated in the vast T-shaped swath of farm and forest land outside the greater Philadelphia and Pittsburgh regions.

Its a strong, quiet undercurrent that will sweep the T again in huge numbers, said state Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati, a Republican who represents a sparsely populated district along the New York border.

Larry Denver, who helped found the Faith and Freedom Coalition state chapter, said his enthusiasm for Trump has grown since 2016. Like many other evangelicals, Trump was not his first choice four years ago  he favored U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas in the Republican primary.

Throughout the scriptures, God has done most of his work through the most unlikely people, said Denver, a retired veteran from the Philadelphia suburbs. The people he picks are not normally the ones youd think would be involved.

President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable discussion about "Transition to Greatness: Restoring, Rebuilding, and Renewing," at Gateway Church Dallas, Thursday, June 11, 2020, in Dallas.(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)AP

Trump is using white evangelicals, hes playing on their anti-intellectualism, said John Fea, an American history professor at Messiah University outside Harrisburg and an evangelical churchgoer who has written extensively about evangelicals in politics and public life.

I feel that most white evangelicals who support Trump are often sacrificing the integrity of the office of the president, Fea said. Theyre supporting a person  the list goes on  a liar, someone who has constantly played with racist language.

Fea said Biden may be able to reach enough evangelicals to make a difference in a close race, particularly around Philadelphia, but he sees in evangelicals devotion to a political effort that has been entrenched for decades.

Is the political playbook going to hold up even with a corrupt guy who doesnt hold our values? The answer is yes, the political playbook is the most important thing, Fea said.

Evangelicals often cite Trumps vice presidential selection of Mike Pence, who championed evangelical issues while an Indiana congressman and governor, as a turning point in getting behind Trump. Theyve noticed when Trump and Pence have brought up faith and made other religious references in public remarks.

We have a vice president that not only speaks our language but has shown day in and day out that he is a man of God, said Justin Behrens, an evangelical Christian who chairs the Republican Party in Luzerne County, which Trump flipped in 2016 with a 25-point swing from President Barack Obamas reelection.

Vice President Mike Pence speaks to supporters outside of the Trump Victory Center campaign office in Murrysville, , Pa. a Pittsburgh suburb, Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2020. (Alexandra Wimley/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette via AP)AP

Trump needs his appeal to evangelicals to pay off ahead of the Nov. 3 election with campaign help, donations and the type of energy that makes someone persuade fence-sitting friends and neighbors.

Pasztor has been volunteering with the Trump Victory Faith Coalitions local organization and organizing voter registration drives, poll workers and neighborhood networks within the evangelical community, to reach those who did not turn out for Trump in 2016.

What remains to be seen is how the evangelical vote will play out at a time when the coronavirus pandemic is limiting the informal Sunday political talk at churches. Trump needs to energize that evangelical, churchgoing part of his base to claim Pennsylvanias 20 electoral votes.

Evangelical voters tend to be competitive, they tend to be out front, they tend to be more involved, they go to rallies, said veteran Pennsylvania pollster Terry Madonna, a political science professor at Franklin & Marshall College. They are critical.

More:

Kamala Harris makes her Pa. campaign debut with a message to Black and Latino voters in Philly

President Trump coming to Harrisburg International Airport next week

The fight over Pennsylvanias voting law isnt over despite recent court decisions
Chandigarh, Sep 19 : Fearing a backlash from its alliance partner Jannayak Janata Party (JJP), the Manohar Lal Khattar-led BJP government in Haryana on Saturday advised authorities to exercise restraint while dealing with farmers protesting against the central farm Bills passed by the Lok Sabha.

In a communication to Deputy Commissioners and Superintendents of Police, Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Vjai Vardhan said the protesters should be dealt with "tact and patience".

On the call of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU), the farmers have been planning statewide road blockades to lodge their protests against the farm Bills.

JJP leader Digvijay Chautala, the younger brother of Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala and the first leader from the BJP-JJP alliance to condemn the police action, has apologised to the farmers for facing batons in a clash with the police over a rally against the farm ordinances that preceded the Bills.

"The Jannayak Janata Party was always with the farmers and the interests of the farmers are always supreme for them. After watching the video of 'lathicharge' on farmers, the first thing we did was to condemn the incident as it was wrong," he said on September 17.

He added the lathicharge on farmers on September 10 was equivalent to lathicharge on the family of the late Chaudhary Devi Lal.

In a post-electoral alliance, the JJP with 10 seats in the 90-member Haryana Assembly has extended support to the BJP, which won 40 seats, six short of the majority mark.

The Additional Chief Secretary's letter to the officials concerned asked them to ensure the protesters are not allowed to take the law into their hands and prompt action be taken against those found indulging in loot, arson or damage to life, property or vehicles.

"All DCs, SSPs may reach out to the organisers and ensure a peaceful protest. Organisers should be advised and prevailed upon to register their protest in a peaceful and lawful manner and desist from blocking highways and roads," said the letter.

The district officers have been told to divert traffic immediately in case any road or highway is blocked so that people don't face inconvenience.

A day after the protest by the farmers at Pipli in Kurukshetra and their leader Gurnam Singh Chaduni was booked in several cases, state Home Minister Anil Vij said no lathicharge took place anywhere on the protesting farmers.

"There is no MLR (medico-legal report) and nobody received injuries. No orders were passed to use force on farmers," he had said.

The farmers have been protesting against the farm Bills that were passed by the Lok Sabha and became a bone of contention between the government and the opposition.

Apart from the Congress, long-time NDA ally Shiromani Akali Dal too objected to the Bills, calling these "anti-farmer", with SAD leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal resigning from the Union Cabinet.

However, the government pushed them aggressively, calling them pro-farmer and labelling those opposing them as batting for the middlemen.

Now, the three farm Bills are set to face opposition in the Rajya Sabha and the government wants full attendance on the treasury benches.

The three Bills are the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020, the Farmers Produce and Trade (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020 and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020.

BJP National President J.P. Nadda said the Bills give farmers the freedom to choose whether they wish to sell farm produce in the 'mandi' or any other corner of the country.
(Natural News) A report from the New York Times is alleging that Attorney General William Barr had asked federal prosecutors to consider the possibility of placing criminal charges against Seattles mayor, Jenny Durkan, a Democrat, for allowing the Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP), a self-declared police-free autonomous zone, to exist for so long under her watch. The continued existence of CHOP, they argue, allowed crime to fester in the area, leading to a lot of rapes, robberies, shootings and even murders.

According to the NY Times, Barr considered filing sedition charges against many of the people caught by federal law enforcement officers participating in violent riots not just in Seattle but all over the country. Furthermore, the mainstream news outlet states that Barr asked prosecutors in the Department of Justices (DOJ) Civil Rights Division if some kind of criminal charges can be brought against Durkan for not intervening quickly enough against the police-free zone, which allowed its main organizers to terrorize local residents for so long.

While not responding directly to the accusation that he plans to charge Durkan, Barr has stated that the Supreme Courts recent rulings are on his side.

The power to execute and enforce the law is an executive function altogether, said Barr. That means discretion is invested in the executive to determine when to exercise prosecutorial power.

The report comes just as Barr has been warning American society about the upcoming election. He has made claims that the United States is on the brink of destruction, and the only way to save it is to reelect President Donald Trump.

I think were getting into position where we were going to find ourselves irrevocably committed to the socialist path. I think if Trump loses this election that that will be the case.

President Donald Trump is almost guaranteed to win his bid for reelection in November, but the Democrats are going to try every dirty trick in the book to stop that from happening. Listen to this episode of the Health Ranger Report, a podcast by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, as he talks about how the treasonous Democratic Party will try to steal and rig the election from the American people by installing Nancy Pelosi as the next president.

US attorney denies Barr ever considered charges against Durkan

Brian Moran, the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington state has denied the NY Times report, stating that if there was any kind of probe looking into whether or not Durkan can be charged for a crime, he would have known about it.

Moran stated that, since the beginning of the civil unrest in Seattle, he has regularly conversed with the DOJ regarding the violence perpetrated by the rioters, about the progress the city has had with dismantling CHOP and preventing the civil unrest from escalating as well as about the federal charges the district has filed against agitators.

During all of this, Moran states that not once has anyone in the DOJ ever come up to him or to anyone working in his district regarding the possibility of filing charges or starting a criminal investigation against Durkan regarding her involvement or lack of action against CHOP.

Nobody else from the DOJ has responded to the NY Times or any other mainstream media outlet to comment on the accusations against Barr.

For his part, Barr has been vocal about his concern over the refusal from Democratic Party officials to condemn the crimes perpetrated by violent Black Lives Matter and Antifa mobs. In a statement he made several months ago, Barr said that this was the first time in his memory that one of the countrys two main political parties was not willing to stand with the other in order to condemn violence and civil unrest.

Why cant we just say Violence against federal courts has to stop? Could we hear something like that?

Barrs suggestion to charge Durkan is chilling

On Wednesday, after the report came out, Durkan responded by claiming that Barrs attempt to investigate corruption was another sign of abuse of power from the Trump administration.

In a series of tweets, Durkan lashed out by alleging that the DOJ is being turned into a political weapon operated by Trump to target the Democrats who have become his most vocal critics. She vowed to continue fighting for what I believe is right and said that the threats she faces will not distract her from her work as mayor of Seattle.

This report is chilling and the latest abuse of power from the Trump administration. This is not a story about me. Its about the how this President and his Attorney General are willing to subvert the law and use the DOJ for political purposes.https://t.co/vPJJwuB5az  Mayor Jenny Durkan (@MayorJenny) September 17, 2020

It should be noted that Durkan allowed the self-proclaimed autonomous zone to remain standing in her city for nearly one whole month as crime festered in and around the area, which included the deaths of several people who were gunned down by armed enforcers of the illegal occupation zone.

At one point, the former police chief of Seattle, Carmen Best, who was sacked over her support for maintaining the funding of the police, talked openly about how two African American men died because of the criminality inside CHOP. She also mentioned all of the robbery, assaults, shootings and rapes that were occurring in the area that the city was unwilling to solve. (Related: Where are the police? Anti-police Minneapolis City Council begs department to stop surging crime rate three months after voting to defund and abolish the police.)

In the executive order that Durkan signed to get the Seattle police to finally dismantle the self-proclaimed zone, she even mentioned the fact that there was a 525 percent increase in violent crimes such as gang activity, robberies, aggravated assaults and homicides, occurring inside CHOP and within its vicinity.

The federal government is fighting back. Learn about how officials like Barr are trying to put the criminals who allowed the violence and civil unrest to fester in jail by subscribing to and reading the articles in Rioting.news.

Sources include:

Breitbart.com

NYTimes.com 1

NYTimes.com 2

NYPost.com

Edition.CNN.com

Twitter.com
The Shiromani Akali Dal on Saturday said it is 'unfortunate' that even after the party conveyed its concerns to the Bharatiya Janata Party leadership on the three agricultural reform bills, the issue wasn't addressed, and appealed to all political parties to join its 'struggle' against the legislations.

IMAGE: Farmers from Punjab detained by police during their protest against the central government, in New Delhi. Photograph: Manvender Vashist/PTI Photo

The SAD also castigated the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party for allegedly betraying farmers by not opposing the passage of the bills in Lok Sabha.

One of the oldest allies of the ruling BJP, the SAD has come out strongly against the three bills which are meant to deregulate the sale of farm produce.

Harsimrat Kaur Badal, the lone SAD member in the Modi government, resigned as Union minister on Thursday in protest against the bills.

Addressing a virtual press conference in Chandigarh, senior SAD leader and former MP Prem Singh Chandumajra said, "It is unfortunate that even though we expressed our concerns to the BJP and conveyed the sentiments of the farming community to its central leadership, it did not address the issue."

"We, however, will not fail in our duty towards farmers and will continue to strive to ensure justice for them and Punjab," he said.

Chandumajra appealed to all political parties to form 'ek soch aur ek manch' (one thinking and one forum) on the issue, saying Punjab could not afford any division on it.

"All farmer organisations and political parties should support the SAD in its struggle against the bills," he said, adding that in the past, divisions have led to the loss of the state's river waters and its capital.

Chandumajra said the SAD will come out with a party programme against the farm bills.

"We will not sit quietly. We have always raised the voice of the farmers and farm labourers and will continue to do so as per the rich and glorious traditions of the party," he said.

The three bills -- 'The Farmers' Produce Trade And Commerce (Promotion And Facilitation) Bill', 'The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill', and 'The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill' -- were introduced in Parliament by the government on Monday.

All these, which were earlier promulgated as ordinances, have been passed in Lok Sabha and will now be tabled in Rajya Sabha.

The SAD has issued a whip to its members in the Upper House asking them to oppose the bills.

Chandumajra accused the Congress and the AAP of trying to deceive farmers on the issue and playing a double game.

"On the one hand these parties are opposing the agricultural bills in Punjab, but they colluded with each other and did not oppose them in Delhi," he said.

"If the Congress and the AAP had insisted on a division of votes on the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, the BJP might have been forced to postpone tabling of the agricultural bills," he said.

The SAD leader alleged that Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh is also guilty of not only becoming a member of the high-powered committee which approved the agricultural ordinances but also of giving suggestions which were in line with the suggested ordinances.

"This amounts to betraying the trust of the entire farming community," he claimed.

Chandumajra said neither Congress president Sonia Gandhi nor AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal uttered a single word against the agricultural ordinances and both the parties are 'only shedding crocodile tears now'.

Farmers in Punjab and neighbouring Haryana have repeatedly taken to the streets against the farm bills, which they have dubbed as 'anti-farmer'.

They have expressed apprehension that the passage of these bills would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price system and leave the farming community at the 'mercy' of big corporates.
The Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has expressed disappointment over the conduct of the ongoing governorship election in the state. ...

The Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has expressed disappointment over the conduct of the ongoing governorship election in the state.

Obaseki lamented that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, was not prepared for the elections.

The governor spoke after waiting for over one hour on the queue before casting his vote at Polling Unit 19, Ward 4, Oredo Local Government Area, on Saturday.

He lamented the slow process, saying card readers were equally very slow.

Obaseki said INEC should have planned better for the ongoing election.

He said: I expected that INEC would have prepared better for this election. I waited for one and half hour on the queue before exercising my franchise, its a bit disappointing.

Giving that this is a sole day election, I expected better planning for this election.

Card readers were very slow and thats the situation everywhere.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : Amid a surge in Covid-19 cases in the country, all political parties in a Business Advisory Committee (BAC) of Parliament on Saturday agreed to curtail the ongoing Monsoon Session as early as September 24.

It is learnt that all the parties agreed to end the session by Wednesday or Thursday in next week (September 23 or September 24), curtailing about 7-8 sittings.

As the final decision will be taken by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, all the members of the BAC in the meeting on Saturday evening agreed to curtail the sittings of the session which was to be concluded on October 1, said sources.

Sources said amid some Members of Parliament testing positive for Covid-19 during the session, Opposition parties conveyed to the government that conducting the full 18-day session could be a risky affair.

The parties agreed in the BAC, chaired by Birla, to pass six major Bills brought by the government before concluding the Monsoon Session which started on September 14.

The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020; Code on Social Security and Welfare, 2020; Industrial Relations Code Bill, 2020 are among the Bills which the government wants passed as part of labour reform initiatives.

Besides, Jammu and Kashmir Official Language Bill, 2020; National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions Bill, 2020; and Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2020 and any other item with the permission of the chair will be passed by the House before curtailing the sittings of the House.

Almost all the 15 BAC members, besides Trinamool MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay, attended the meeting. Others who attended the meeting include Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader P.P. Chaudhary, Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, BJP MP from Bihar's Pashchim Champaran Sanjay Jaiswal, BJP MP from Gujarat's Surat Darshana Vikram Jardosh, Biju Janata Dal MP Pinaki Misra, BJP member Jagdambika Pal and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MP S.S. Palanimanickam.

Other members include Shiv Sena leader Vinayak Bhaurao Raut, YSR Congress leader Midhun Reddy, Janata Dal (United) leader Rajiv Ranjan Singh (Lalan), and BJP leaders Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Rakesh Singh and Sunil Kumar Singh.

The Lok Sabha has so far passed three Bills to replace agriculture sector related ordinances. Also, both the Houses have cleared an ordinance into law to cut by 30 per cent the salaries of members of Parliament to ramp up funds in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

Earlier it was decided that 18 sittings each for the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha will be held and both the houses will conduct their session for four hours separately everyday without any off. As per the shift decided in this Monsoon Session, the Rajya Sabha is being run from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and the Lok Sabha functions from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Timings of the Lok Sabha on many occasions was enhanced on permission of members.

Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Prahlad Patel have also tested positive for COVID-19. Both had attended the ongoing session.

Almost 25 MPs have also been tested positive so far along with various Parliament employees.

In order to prevent the spread of coronavirus within the parliament complex, reporters and parliamentary staff entering the premises now have to undergo the rapid antigen test mandatory on a daily basis, according to a new protocol put in place.

Members of both Houses are undergoing RT-PCR test on regular intervals on a voluntary basis. A member of Parliament can undergo the RT-PCR test as many times as he or she likes.

Journalists covering the Monsoon session from the press galleries of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha also have the option to undergo the RT-PCR test which is valid for 72 hours.

Since the report of the much reliable RT-PCR takes time, an antigen test has been made mandatory on a daily basis.

The Budget Session of Parliament was also cut-short in March this year due to the coronavirus or Covid-19 outbreak which so far has infected 53,08,014 people across the country.
On Friday morning, before Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death sucked all the oxygen out of other news, a trending concept on Twitter was that Tucker Carlson is "basically on board" with democratic socialism. This claim was based upon a 45-second snippet of a conversation between Carlson and Cornel West, Harvard's best known democratic socialist. The tweets making this claim had tens of thousands of retweets and hundreds of thousands of likes. But as with so much else that the left touts, this claim was a complete lie. What actually happened was that, during a July 2018 segment with Cornel West, Carlson politely agreed that, to the extent democratic socialists claim to want human dignity, he can support that idea.

Here are some of the tweets making it sound as if Carlson, on the eve of an election that will determine forever the direction in which America travels, suddenly announced that he's a democratic socialist:

Tucker Carlson finally met Jesus, turns out it was Cornel West the entire time. pic.twitter.com/grNTEKr8os  New York Socialist (@berniebromanny) September 18, 2020

Holey moley!



Cornel West persuades Fox News' Tucker Carlson to support democratic socialism in just 45 seconds.#EndTheNightmare@lbc #bbcaq #bbcpm

pic.twitter.com/wEqip94AXa  I Am Incorrigible FCA (@ImIncorrigible) September 18, 2020

And here's what really happened: on June 26, 2018, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, an open democratic socialist, won her primary battle against the ten-term incumbent, Democrat Joe Crowley. Suddenly, she was the newest darling of the Democrat party. She and her fellow hard leftists were going to be the new standard-bearers of the party that once looked up to anti-communist, pro-gun, anti-abortion, anti-tax John F. Kennedy.

Two weeks later, on July 6, 2018, Tucker Carlson decided to use his show to examine democratic socialism. He invited Cornel West, an openly democratic socialist former professor at Harvard and Princeton, to be his guest. West may not be the brightest bulb on the block (he's a testament to Harvard's and Princeton's fall from academic grace), but he'll reliably unleash a torrent of words about the wonders of democratic socialism.

Carlson opened by asking for "some sense of what democratic socialism is" and concluded his question by asking, as well, for an example of a place in which socialism has worked. He noted that Venezuela is an example of socialism that does not seem to have worked.

West acknowledged that socialism has different forms, ranging from bad to medium to better. And then he launched into his rap about aspirational democratic socialism:

But the fundamental commitment is to the dignity of ordinary people and to make sure they can live lives of decency. So it's not an -ism. No, brother, it's about decency, it's about fairness, it's about the accountability of the powerful vis-a-vis those who have less power at the workplace, women dealing with the household, gays, lesbians, trans, black people, indigenous peoples, immigrants  how do we ensure that they are treated decently and that the powerful don't in any way manipulate, subjugate, and exploit them?

It was in response to these idealized abstracts describing that people will be uplifted and receive decent treatment that Carlson politely said:

Well, I mean, if that's what democratic socialism is then I'm basically on board. I do think that ordinary people, middle-class people ought to have dignity, and I think that our current systems make it hard for them to have dignity, so I agree with all of that.

However, Carlson then added the killer caveat, "but the details matter."

When West tried to overwhelm Carlson by listing the names of famous starry-eyed socialists in principle (Einstein, Helen Keller, Martin Luther King), Carlson cut him off:

I understand, but has it struck you as interesting that it's never actually worked anywhere. So the question is not what are our goals. Our goals are the same. The question is, how do we get there, is the question. So what happened in Venezuela? They call that democratic socialism, but they don't have toilet paper, and it's less equal than ever.

In other words, no, Tucker Carlson did not and does not support socialism. He understands, as any intelligent person does, that socialism never has worked and never will work because it cannot work.

The pattern is always the same: because statism deprives people of a profit incentive to work, the economy shrinks, and the government must use coercion to force people to produce. When the people get restive, the government becomes more coercive, while building a military cadre that will support it. It also creates specific scapegoats (historically, Jews) to keep people from recognizing that it is their own government that is abusing them.

The remainder of the interview is enjoyable only if you want to see that West (did I mention he's a former Harvard and Princeton professor?) is an uneducated, ill informed lunatic who blames everybody but his special interest groups for socialism's inevitable failure. He throws in loving words about brotherhood, but if the Cornel Wests in America ever get power (which will happen with a Biden puppet presidency), we're all doomed.

Image: Tucker Carlson talks to Cornel West; YouTube screen grab.

Correction: Cornel West is now an emeritus professor.
Om Birla says it pained him that Lok Sabha did not run smoothly during Monsoon session

Monsoon Session Day 6: Lok Sabha passes taxation bill

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

New Delhi, Sep 19: Lok Sabha on Saturday passed a taxation bill that seeks to provide various reliefs in terms of compliance requirements for taxpayers amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The reliefs include extending deadlines for filing returns and for linking PAN and Aadhaar.

The Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020, will replace the Taxation and other Laws (Relaxation of Certain Provisions) Ordinance, 2020, promulgated in March.

Among others, the bill seeks to give tax exemption for contributions made to PM-CARES Fund, which was set up in March in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

Parliament's monsoon session likely to be cut short, may end by mid-next week

Replying to the debate on the bill, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the ordinance was necessary to defer various compliance deadlines under GST and Income Tax (I-T) Act during the COVID-19 times. Further, the bill seeks to make faceless assessment applicable to at least eight processes under the I-T Act, including for collection and recovery of tax and gathering of information.

"To ensure there is transparency in tax administration, that is why we are putting it (faceless scheme) in law," Sitharaman said.

with PTI inputs
Regional elections held last weekend in Russia have returned broad majorities to the ruling United Russia (UR) party and its political affiliates. Kremlin-backed candidates held onto governorships and control of local parliamentary bodies in the 83 regions of the country where voting occurred.

Despite widespread discontent with the government over the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, anger over the economic crisis hitting the country, and emerging signs of political opposition in areas of Russia, opposition candidates failed to make headway except in a handful of municipal races in Siberia.

In Arkhangelsk, the far northern region that has been the site of protests over the stationing of a large landfill in the ecologically sensitive area, the Kremlin-backed gubernatorial candidate garnered 69 percent of the vote.

In Komi Republic, the neighboring province that shares the borderland where the dumping ground is to be built, the Stalinist Communist Party (KPRF)considered the main challengerwon just 14.9 percent of the vote for the regional assembly. While United Russia saw its support cut in half compared to five years ago, it will continue to be the dominant force in the Komi state council because of the election of allied candidates and the role played by so-called spoiler parties, new political outfits set up with the Kremlins support that drew votes away from the KPRF.

In the Siberian city of Irkutsk, where another Communist Party candidate was vying for the governorship against an incumbent who had been installed by Moscow after the forced-voluntary removal of the previous KPRF leader, the Kremlin-backed Igor Kobzev won 70 percent of the vote.

In the Republic of Tatarstan, sitting President Rustem Minnikhanov will continue to hold office. To little electoral effect, just prior to last weekends vote Alexei Navalnys anticorruption organization published details from its investigation into the Minnikhanov familys real estate operations.

The electoral efforts made by Navalnythe Kremlin oppositionist currently hospitalized in Germany due to an alleged poisoning that Western government and media outlets are pinning on the Putin governmentsaw modest success in just two regions. In the southwestern Siberian cities of Novosibirsk and Tomsk, a handful of Navalny-backed candidates won seats on local councils.

Across Russia, turnout was generally low, an expression of the populations fears over coronavirus and disenchantment with the entire political system, those in power and their supposed opponents. In Novosibirsk, just 28 percent of eligible voters cast a ballot. In Tomsk, that number stood at 19 percent. In Arkhangelsk, Irkutsk, the Komi Republic turnout hovered around 28 to 30 percent.

The official and unofficial opponents of the Putin governmentan admixture of Stalinists, far-right nationalists, Kremlin insiders, and pro-Western free marketeershave thus far failed to win mass, active political support. Whatever the disgust felt towards the current Russian president and his political adjuncts in the regions, millions instinctively sense that the KPRF, the far-right LDPR, the opposition Just Russia party, and all the various other political permutations have very little different to offer.

The so-called liberal opposition grouped around Navalny and other outfits like the Yabloko party continue to be correctly viewed as allies of Western imperialism and proponents of right-wing socio-economic policies whose main aim is not to secure prosperity for Russias working masses but profit for sections of the capitalist class. The recent, near-fatal illness of Navalny, which Germany in particular has seized upon as a cudgel to wield against President Putin, did not bring sympathetic voters to the polls. Navalnys smart voting programby which voters were encouraged to vote for anyone but Putin and given a list of candidates for whom to cast their ballotsappears to have had little impact on the current election cycle.

An investigative commission set up by the federal Duma, Russias parliament, declared Wednesday that it had uncovered foreign interference in the regional elections, ranging from ballot stuffing to disinformation on social media to round-the-clock hacker attacks on the Central Election Commission. Commission Chairman Vasily Piskarev said that NGOs from Germany, France, and Poland conducted a series of online seminars and educational courses with the involvement of American and Lithuanian political strategists, including on the organization of provocations in the course of observing the elections.

The electoral victory of United Russia at last weekends polls does not resolve the political crisis confronting Putin. Coronavirus cases are once again climbing, with there now being more than one million recorded infections and nearly 6,000 deaths in just the last 24 hours. The murderous herd immunity policy being implemented everywhere in the world is also in place in Russia, and it is reaping its predictable harvest. Earlier this week, news broke that Russian opera star Anna Netrebko has been hospitalized with COVID-19, after a series of early September performances at Moscows Bolshoi Theater. Schools have been reopened across the country with no virtually precautions in place and no plans for a potential move back to online classes.

At the same time, Russia is confronting intensifying geopolitical pressures over Navalnys alleged poisoning and the eruption of antigovernment protests in the allied state of Belarus. This week, the European Union announced that it will no longer recognize Alexander Lukashenko as the legitimate president of Belarus after his term expires in November.
Mayank Singh By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Tension remains palpable along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) as not much has changed since the Chinese troops withdrew from Patrolling Point 14 in Galwan Valley. Despite the agreements on de-escalation, the Chinese have made only partial withdrawal of their forces from Gogra-Hotspring and Finger 4, but nothing has changed in Depsang.

The Chinese continue to be in Depsang at the Y-Junction and have obstructed our patrolling of the Points 10, 11, 11A, 12 and 13, said a source. There is a span of around 15-20 km of territory between each post. Our soldiers are not able to reach into an area of approximately 80-100 sq km, added the source.

Clarifying about the Finger 4, the source said, On the northern Bank of Pangong Tso, we have been patrolling till Finger 8 and the PLA troops have been coming to Finger 4, but nobody tried to occupy the areas there. We had been patrolling to all the five posts, which Chinese have now obstructed. Depsang is the most important point and India must dig in to force the Chinese troops to move back, said the source.

ALSO READ | Army creates habitat for more than 20,000 troops in Ladakh closer to LAC

Defence analyst Maj Gen (retd) S B Asthana said the situation is likely to remain tense due to Chinese duplicity. The Chinese have resolved their borders with Myanmar based on the McMahon Line, which they reject in case of India. They quote the treaty of 1890 in case of Dokalam towards Sikkim as it suits them but overlook the same concerning the treaty between Tibet and British India, he said.

China has breached all the Confidence Building Measures since 1993 and came and sat down in areas, including at Finger 4, in the first week of May, said Maj Gen Asthana. Every time, with its aggressive actions, China has tried to change the alignment of the LAC, he said. The Chinese may not withdraw; we have to ensure we occupy important strategic heights and do not allow them to do so.

Deeply concerned about India-China border issue

Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi said he is deeply concerned with the situation at the India-China border and urged Beijing to end military provocations and engage in a diplomatic dialogue with India. The Indian-American Congressman said he would continue to monitor the situation until it is resolved.
Himani Shivpuri was receiving treatment for coronavirus at Mumbai's Holy Spirit hospital after getting admitted on 12 September.

Veteran Bollywood and television actor Himani Shivpuri, who was tested positive for coronavirus, on Saturday said she has been discharged from a city hospital in Mumbai.

The 59-year-old actor was receiving treatment for the novel disease at Holy Spirit hospital after getting admitted on 12 September.

Shivpuri said the doctors have advised her to quarantine at home as there was an improvement in her health.

"There is improvement in my health and doctors suggested I should be in home quarantine for 15 days and then I will get myself tested again," Shivpuri told Press Trust of India.

On Friday, the actor thanked healthcare workers in a post on her official Instagram page.

Check out the post below

The actor had recently shot for a comedy show Happu Ki Ultan Paltan. She had said that even though adequate safety measures were followed on the sets, she still doesn't know how she contracted the disease.

In her over three-decade-long career, Shivpuri has featured in many critically-acclaimed and blockbuster movies such as Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!, Raja, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Khamoshi, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Biwi No 1, Hum Saath-Saath Hain and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham...

On the small screen, she has been part of shows such as Yatra, Sasural Simar Ka, Ek Vivah Aisa Bhi and Astitva...Ek Prem Kahani.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) is surrounded by reporters as she heads to vote at the Capitol in Washington on Nov. 6, 2019. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)

Susan Collins Opposes Voting on Ginsburgs Vacancy Before November Election

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said Saturday that the Senate should not vote on a nominee to replace late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg before the November election.

She also said Trump can nominate a replacement with his constitutional authority and has no objection to the Senate Judiciary Committee starting the reviewing process.

However, the vote should be scheduled after the election to be fair, consistent, and to ensure Americans faith in elected officials.

Given the proximity of the presidential election, however, I do not believe that the Senate should vote on the nominee prior to the election, she said in a statement. The decision on a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court should be made by the President who is elected on November 3rd.

Collins is the first Republican Senator to publicly object to voting on U.S. Supreme Court nominee to fill Ginsburgs vacancy before the election. Her stance on the issue is mostly in alignment with the Democrats.

Republicans and Democrats fell into a fierce battle over Ginsburgs vacancy following her death.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) announced right after the death of Ginsburg that Trumps nominee will get a Senate vote. A day later, President Donald Trump urged Republicans to confirm Ginsbergs replacement without delay.

Meanwhile, Democrats, including presidential candidate Joe Biden and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), insisted the process should be postponed to some time after the November election and the nomination should be left to the one who wins the presidency.

Democrats tried to convince Republicans to follow the principle set during the nomination of Merrick Garland in 2016.

Garland was nominated by former President Barack Obama to replace Justice Antonin Scalia after he died. The nomination was blocked by McConnell, who said that the Republicans wouldnt consider Obamas nominee because they felt the vacancy should be filled by whoever won the 2016 election.

However, McConnell said Friday the situation was different then because the Senate and the presidency were held by different parties. Republicans currently control both.

In the last midterm election before Justice Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year, he wrote in a statement right after Ginsburgs death.

President [Donald] Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, he said.

Some Republicans publicly rallied behind McConnells push to fill the Supreme Court vacancy before Election Day.

This U.S. Senate should vote on President Trumps next nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, Sen. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) wrote in a statement.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) warned that there will be a constitutional crisis if Republicans fail to do this.

We cannot have Election Day come and go with a four-four court, Cruz said during an interview with Fox Newss Sean Hannity. A four-four court that is equally divided cannot decide anything. And I think we risk a constitutional crisis if we do not have a nine-justice Supreme Court, particularly when there is such a risk of a contested election.

The Republicans currently hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate.

The views of some other key Republican players in this battle are still unclear.

Several top Republicans and some other potential swing votes in the Senate, including Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Mitt Romney (R-Utah), and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), havent yet said whether they support replacing Ginsburg before the election.
A former Bauchi senator, Isa Misau, has announced his exit from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to rejoin the All Progressives Congress (APC).

His decision to leave, he said, is based on bad governance in the state and the failure of the state governor, Bala Mohammed, to carry everyone along.

He disclosed this to PREMIUM TIMES on Friday and faulted some policies of the governor including the ban of motorcycles, popularly known as okada.

Yes, I joined APC today. I made the announcement a few months ago that we have been consulting with our people concerning the affairs of PDP and the way the governor is treating all of us that brought him into power.

That was the major consultation and it is the wish of our people that we should leave him. Everybody knows how we came together. All of us  Dogara, senator Nazif, myself, honourable Ahmed Yerima All of us abandoned APC before and fought the former governor and unfortunately, now the present governor is even worse than what the former governor was doing.

Right from when this governor won the election, even before his inauguration, he hasnt taken any decisions with us, we dont know anything happening in the state and people are crying. The level of poverty is growing. Everything happening is one-sided, he said.

Mr Misau who represented Bauchi Central in the eight Senate, lamented that Governor Mohammed has since his election brought bigger problems upon the state than the former governor, Muhammed Abubakar.

We cannot just sit down, after fighting a former governor, based on small issues, and now somebody is bringing bigger issues. So our people called on us to leave and return to APC so we can work together and return the state back to APC.

No bad blood

The former lawmaker further said there is no bad blood between his team and the PDP and that his decision was purely in the interest of residents of the state.

Youve seen that the other time Dogara left, two other commissioners left after him. Even the governors chief of staff and his political adviser left. So, its not a new thing in Bauchi. Because everybody knows how we brought him to power, it was a collective effort including some APC members.

And all of a sudden he just hijacked everything to himself and his family. We cant sit and watch him when our people have hope that things will change. If we stay in PDP, our people will think most of the things happening are with our consent  banning okada, suspending traditional rulers, he doesnt have respect for anybody. This is not democracy. We have to follow the wishes of our people.

In the next one or two weeks, a lot of people will still leave because we are currently discussing with prominent members who are about leaving. Its not about Senator Misau alone, its about everybody, he added.

Mr Misau left the APC for PDP in 2018 alongside 14 other senators, on grounds of injustice and lack of internal democracy.

His defection comes about two months after the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, rejoined the APC too.

Just like Mr Misau, Mr Dogara said his decision to leave was due to a breakdown of governance in Bauchi State under the administration of Governor Mohammed whom he said he helped install as a governor in 2019.

PREMIUM TIMES has also reported how the states commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Alhassan Sadiq, resigned in August.

Governor Mohammed has dismissed the defections, saying he is committed to providing good governance in Bauchi.
By Trend

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov held a meeting with the Head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Delegation in Azerbaijan Elena Aymone Sessera on September 18, 2020, the ministry told Trend.

During the meeting, it has been noted that Sessera completed her tenure in Azerbaijan and the new Head of Delegation Ariane Bauer was introduced to Bayramov.

The minister expressed appreciation for the activities of Elena Aymone and noted with satisfaction the humanitarian projects implemented in cooperation with the ICRC. He also wished the new Head of the ICRC Delegation in Azerbaijan success in her future endeavors.

The minister touched upon the grave consequences of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, including the violation of the fundamental rights of hundreds of thousands of people, systematic violation of the basic norms and principles of international humanitarian law, and the targeting of the civilians and infrastructure by the aggressor state Armenia.

Speaking about the consequences, Bayramov paid special attention to the condition of Dilgam Asgarov and Shahbaz Guliyev, which is under the direct mandate of the ICRC.

He stressed that Armenia did not accept the position of Azerbaijan on the exchange of captives and hostages on the basis of the principle of "all for all" based on the norms of humanitarian law. The importance of increasing the efforts of ICRC to solve this issue has been noted.

In their turn, the ICRC representatives noted that they are constantly interested in the condition of Dilgam Asgarov and Shahbaz Guliyev within their mandates and inform their families accordingly.

During the meeting, the minister also informed the ICRC representatives about the latest tensions in the region and the purposeful provocative activities of the Armenian leadership, and the serious damage caused to the settlement of the conflict through negotiations.

--

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) remains determined to meet its revenue target of GHC42.7 billion, the acting Commissioner-General, Rev. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah has said.

Rev. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah has the Authority is even fired up to meet the 'challenged' target of GHC55million at the end of the year 2020.

As an Authority, we cannot continue to do business as usual, thus, we have put in place a number of measures to ensure that we attain our 2020 revenue target of GHC 42.7 billion. We are determined as an organization to collectively put our shoulders to the wheel as we roll out some of the policies we will be discussing this evening to achieve our challenge target of GHC 55 million in these not normal times.

He said this at a media engagement at the Coconut Groove Hotel in Accra On September 11.

Mr Owusu-Amoah noted that the authority is working together with all stakeholders as partners such as the media with a common objective of ensuring the needed revenue is collected for the development of the country.

Revenue performance

At the end of the first half of the year, he noted that a total revenue of GHS19, 955.31M was collected as against a target of GHS21, 423.14M resulting in a negative deviation of 6.9%.

For the period, Mr Owusu-Amoah added that domestic tax collected stood at GHS15, 397.05M out of a budgeted target of GHC 14,773.76, while Customs collected GHC4, 558.26M out of the GHC 6,649.38 target.

To ensure an improved revenue mobilization in the last half of 2020, he said the sector has put in place technology backed measures which focuses on People.

Technology

Rev. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah added that a number of initiatives have been rolled out whiles others at various stages of development.

He mentioned the introduction of the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS) at the ports with the objective of ensuring more efficient management and collection of customs duties and taxes.

He added that the modules in the second phase of the Integrated Tax Application and Processing System (ITaPS), have been deployed on the Ghana.gov platform making it possible for taxpayers to file some returns and make payments online. "Now, over fifteen banks have been signed on to receive payment of taxes via the Ghana.gov platform and we are confident that by the end of the year more banks will join us. We will therefore be on our way to making payment of taxes more convenient for our taxpayers."

In addition to making payment of Vehicle Income Tax more convenient, Mr Owusu-Amoah indicated that the Authority is piloting the payment of tax via a USSD code *222#.

Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN)

The Acting Commissioner - General announced that 1,630,900 persons have acquired the Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TINs).

He said the figure which increased significantly between May and June 2020 is as a result of the requirement of a TIN to register to access Governments COVID19 stimulus package from the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI).

Mr Owusu-Amoah added that the Authority together with the Ministry of Finance in June 2020 inaugurated the Tax Audit and Quality Assurance Department which was set up to ensure improved quality of audits and revenue assurance.

According to him, the Department will manage the centralized audit planning process, serve as the audit centre of excellence, monitor and ensure quality audit across the operational Divisions and investigate significant tax gaps including cases of suspected tax evasion, avoidance and fraud. "In this regard, we encourage you to report cases of tax fraud and tax evasion to us for investigation and rewards."

Transformation

On the transformation agenda, Mr Owusu-Amoah stressed that the Domestic Tax Revenue Division (DTRD) commenced the first phase of a nationwide restructuring exercise in Accra and Kumasi in August.

He indicated that the aim of this exercise was to implement some of the feedback they have received from taxpayers on improving service delivery to them.

"Now taxpayers will be able to file returns at the nearest Taxpayer Service Centre (TSCs) irrespective of turnover. This will create convenience for taxpayers and free them to use their time for other productive ventures. The aim is to establish offices not on the basis of turnovers as it was previously but rather with respect to jurisdiction," he intimated.
Several experts on Indo-Pakistan relations on Thursday hinted that Hizbul Mujahideen will split vertically and the withdrawal of ceasefire by HM was only a brief halt to ongoing process of bringing back peace in Jammu and Kashmir.

Deputy Director of Institute of Defence and Strategic

analysis (IDSA) Kapil Kak said the first and foremost thing

for withdrawal of the ceasefire was an extensive pressure on Hizbul Mujahideen from other militant groups including Lashker-e-Toiba and radical elements within the Pakistani Army.

The withdrawal of the ceasefire offer is not a full stop

to the peace process but only a comma, Says kak.

He said that indications were enough that outfit working in

Kashmir might breakaway from their masters in Islamabad as they had understood that people in Kashmir were only for

peace.

Another expert, K Sreedhar of IDSA, said that the

announcement of unilateral ceasefire was a Pakistani plan As Islamabad is desperate to hold talks with India.

Pakistan had apparently thought that either India would

turn the offer down or accept involving Islamabad in talks,

He said.

Sreedhar also said there would be a cleavage between

commanders operating in the valley and those in Islamabad.

Referring to ceasefire withdrawal, Sreedhar blamed the

Talibanisation of Pakistani Army and said if Pervez

Musharraf has to rule that country, he has to keep such

elements happy.

Report: Zeenext Bureau
London, Sep 19 : The Afghan interpreters who risked their lives for British troops in Afghanistan will now be able to relocate to the United Kingdom, following the government's decision to expand the relocation scheme.

Dozens of servicemen and former interpreters have welcomed the move which will pave the way for about 100 translators and their families to settle in the UK.

Under the original scheme launched in 1993, more than 400 translators have already moved to the UK with their families, as per the Ministry of Defence.

Defence secretary, Ben Wallace, said, "Our efforts in Afghanistan simply could not have been possible without the help of brave interpreters who risked their lives to work alongside our personnel throughout the conflict. They did not leave us behind then, and we will not leave them behind now." The changes which were announced on Saturday are going to be introduced next month through secondary legislation.

The Interpreters' Lives Matter campaign group said it was "delighted" by the news, but warned the scheme still "doesn't include everyone".

"You are leaving a large number of them behind at risk and at the mercy of terrorist Taliban," the campaign handle tweeted.

The Ministry of Defence said that Afghan civilians in Helmand Province had often been "the eyes and ears of British forces" between 2006 and 2014.

Their linguistic and cultural expertise "enabled the UK to work hand-in-hand with our Afghan partners and local communities while protecting British troops" in dangerous situations", the Ministry added.

According to a 2018 Common Defence Select Committee report, British forces employed more than 6,500 Afghan civilians, out of whom, about half were translators.

The report also found that the UK has "dismally failed" to protect Afghans translators who risked their lives for the British army and are now at risk from Islamic State and native Taliban.

British Home Secretary, Priti Patel said, "Courageous Afghans worked side by side with our armed forces to defeat terrorism, risking their own lives in the pursuit of peace."
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 19, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijani armed forces violated the ceasefire at the Artsakh line of contact around 295 times in the past week.

The Defense Army of Artsakh said in a statement that the Azerbaijani military fired more than 2300 shots from various caliber firearms at their positions from September 13 to 19.

The Defense Army vanguard units mostly refrained from responding to the adversarys provocative actions and continued confidently carrying out their combat objectives.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
Sembawang GRC MPs (with garlands, from right) Ong Ye Kung and Lim Wee Kiak at the Sembawang God of Wealth Temple. (PHOTO: Ong Ye Kung/Facebook)

SINGAPORE  Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung said that no one was hurt by the huge fire at the Sembawang God of Wealth Temple along Admiralty Street on Friday night (18 September).

The Sembawang GRC Member of Parliament (MP) added in a Facebook post on Saturday that the fire did not spread to the residential block next to it.

He also revealed that, after speaking to the temple chairman on Saturday morning, he was told all the deities were miraculously unharmed. The temple management is arranging for assessment of the structural integrity of the building.

We will be in touch with the temple management to better understand the extent of the damage and if there is anything we can do to restore the temple, he wrote in his post.

Ong said that he and fellow Sembawang GRC MP Lim Wee Kiak used to visit the temple every Chinese New Year eve, and that it was very popular among the residents.

It is very sad and heartbreaking to see it being destroyed, he said in his Facebook post.

Three canine carcasses found

While no humans were hurt, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said that they found three canine carcasses during last nights firefighting operation, despite saving one dog.

The Chained Dogs Awareness in Singapore wrote in a Facebook post on Saturday that it was aware of three dogs being confined to decent-sized enclosures at the temple.

It expressed devastation at the dogs death, and called for authorities to stop temples, workshops and factories from confining the dogs to cages and tethered to stationary objects.

We left things as it is because we genuinely saw love and concern when we spoke to the people at the temple, it wrote in its Facebook post.

But right now, its precisely a safety issue that caused these dogs to lose their life.

We are not blaming anyone in this post. What happened is tragic and we are sure no one wanted things to turn out this way. But are we going to allow things to carry on this way?

According to the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), the fire had engulfed the first floor of the temple and was spreading to the second floor when it arrived after being alerted at around 9.15pm.

Story continues

As a safety precautionary measure, residents from a nearby elderly home were evacuated by the police. SCDF said that an elderly man from the home experienced breathlessness and was subsequently conveyed to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital by an SCDF ambulance.

A total of 11 emergency vehicles and about 60 firefighters were deployed for the incident. The cause of fire is under investigation.

Stay in the know on-the-go: Join Yahoo Singapore's Telegram channel at http://t.me/YahooSingapore

Related story:

Huge fire breaks out at Sembawang God of Wealth Temple, residents at elderly home evacuated
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police on Saturday said arrested freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma was allegedly passing sensitive information about India's border strategy, Army's deployment and procurement, and foreign policy to Chinese intelligence agencies.

At a press conference, Special Cell DCP Sanjeev Kumar Yadav said that police are investigating what information Sharma had allegedly passed on to Chinese intelligence officers through his social media accounts and email ID.

Based on Sharma's statement during interrogation, a Chinese woman Qing Shi and her Nepalese associate Sher Singh alias Taj Bohra were arrested on Saturday morning, police said.

"Both the Chinese woman and her associate were directors of shell companies in Delhi's Mahipalpur area and they would export medicines to China and in return, would get huge money which they gave to their agents here," Yadav said.

Police said that the 61-year-old journalist, who has been booked under Official Secrets Act, had also been asked by Chinese intelligence officers to provide information related to Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.

"A secret input was recently received from an intelligence agency that Rajeev Sharma is having links with foreign intelligence officer and he has been receiving funds from his handler through illegal means. for conveying sensitive information which concerns national security and foreign relations," police said.

ALSO READ | Police action against freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma 'high-handed': Press Club of India

Sharma was allegedly contacted by Chinese intelligence officer Michael in 2016 and the scribe shared sensitive information with him till 2018, the DCP said.

He came in contact with Michael through a social media platform and later, also visited China where lucrative offers were made, the police officer said, adding Sharma allegedly started giving sensitive defence information to Chinese intelligence.

Michael had also borne all expenses on Sharma's visit to China, police claimed.

"During the period from 2010 to 2014, Sharma wrote a weekly column for Global Times, widely known as a mouthpiece of the Chinese government.

"Observing those columns, Michael from Kunming city of China contacted Sharma and invited him to Kunming city for an interview in a media company," police said in a statement.

Police said that Sharma had also visited Thailand and Nepal to meet Chinese intelligence officers.

"In 2019, Sharma came in contact with another Chinese intelligence officer George and he was continuing to share Indian defence-related information," Yadav claimed.

According to the police officer, Sharma has been in journalism for 40 years and since 2010, he was working freelance.

He received Rs 40-45 lakh in around one-and-a-half years and was getting USD 1,000 for each information, police claimed.

Sharma was writing for China's Global Times newspaper and some Indian media organisations, Yadav said, adding that he had previously worked with the United News of India, The Tribune, Hindustan Times and The Times of India.

The journalist had sent several documents in the form of reports to Chinese intelligence officers and got a handsome remuneration in return, police alleged.

They said that Sharma was also running a YouTube channel -- 'Rajeev Kishkindha'.

During the press conference, police said that as Sharma had an accreditation card of Press Information Bureau (PIB), he had easy access to ministries.

"Sharma was continuously giving information to Chinese intelligence about India-China border dispute, current border problem with China, Army's deployment and procurement, and Indian government's border strategy," Yadav said.

ALSO READ | Arrested scribe Rajeev Sharma's YouTube channel has 327 videos on several issues, including India-China ties

Sharma was also asked to provide inputs on issues like Indian deployment on Bhutan-Sikkim-China tri-junction including Doklam standoff, the pattern of India-Myanmar military cooperation, police also said.

Asked what secret information Sharma shared, the DCP said, "We are accessing his social media accounts and email ID through other agencies to find what information he has shared with Chinese intelligence." On being asked whether any officer of any ministry is involved, Yadav said that after accessing his social media accounts and email ID, it can be ascertained from where secrets documents have been leaked.

"When Sharma was arrested on September 14 by the Special Cell based on Indian intelligence inputs, police seized some defence classified documents from house," he said.

The Chinese woman, who was arrested along with her Nepalese associate, had got a admission in a nursing course in 2013 and since then, she has been staying in India.

Forensic analysis of seized mobile phones and laptops is being conducted to unearth the entire network and conspiracy in this case, the DCP added.

Identities and roles of other foreign nationals involved in the conspiracy are also being ascertained, he further added.
Panaji, Sep 19 : The Goa bench of the Bombay High Court on Saturday upheld the acquittal of six persons accused of links with Goa-headquartered Sanatan Sanstha and who were charged by the NIA for a failed bomb blast plot in South Goa's Margao town in 2009.

Speaking to reporters here, National Investigation Agency (NIA) counsel Pravin Faldessai said that Vinay Talekar, Dhananjay Ashtekar, Prashant Ashtekar, Vinayak Patil, Prashant Juvekar and Dilip Mazgaonkar were acquitted getting "the benefit of the doubt".

"Today, the HC passed a judgment on an NIA appeal against the acquittal order passed by a Special Judge in the blast case. The High Court considered (the appeal) in larger detail and held that the accused be given the benefit of the doubt," Faldessai said.

In a statement, the Sanatan Sanstha welcomed the High Court order: "We welcome this decision of the High Court... the innocence of the Sanatan Sanstha has been proved once again. For those who propagate the myth of saffron terrorism, this is a hard slap in their face." On October 16, 2009, accused Malgonda Patil and Yogesh Naik carrying an IED to a Diwali pandal in Margao, 30 km from here, were killed when the improvised explosive device exploded accidentally.

Barring Naik, all the other accused hail from Maharashtra, and were regular visitors to the Sanatan Sanstha ashram in the temple town of Ponda, 30 km from Panaji.

The case was initially investigated by the Goa Police Crime Branch but later handed over to the NIA.

In all, 11 persons were accused of participating in the conspiracy, including the two deceased, even as three persons are still absconding.

On December 31, 2013, a special trial court in Goa acquitted Talekar, Dhananjay and Prashant Ashtekar, Patil, Juvekar, and Mazgaonkar, while accusing the NIA of "manipulating" facts to implicate Sanatan Sanstha in the case.

In their order on Saturday, High Court Justices MS Sonak and MS Jawalkar expunged the remarks of the special court regarding the alleged mala-fide intentions of the central agency, the NIA counsel said.

"The Special Judge had said that there were mala fides on the part of the investigating agency... those remarks are now expunged," Faldessai said.

"There was one major circumstance which we had to prove -- this particular Sanstha had the motive to conduct this blast to spread terror in Goa and across India. But the court said there was no proof...," the counsel said.
Community colleges enroll roughly one-third of American college students. With four-year institutions cutting back, this proportion is increasing dramatically. Just as their importance increases, however, their resources are declining.

The states are collectively spending $6 billion less on higher education than in 2008, with two-year colleges particularly hit. As the recession continues, moreover, declines in government revenues will produce still deeper cuts. Yearly tuition rates, which average roughly $7,000, will increase.

While it is difficult to predict how the economy will change, major restructuring has already occurred. If the economy is to grow, it will need a far more nimble, better trained workforce. Affordable community colleges are central to this transition. Their traditional roles of providing launching platforms into four-year institutions and as credential programs for many jobs will need to be expanded to provide non-certificate programs that facilitate occupational transitions. To do that, we need to change the ways we measure academic "success," thinking less in terms of degrees than outcomes.

By today's degree-focused metrics, those who take a few courses enabling them to change fields are counted as drop-outs. If carpenters take the remedial courses needed to read the building codes but take no degrees, is that failure? If a teacher takes a course in computer studies better to reach online students, has the college failed because no new degree was earned?

Yet that is the way almost every state measures success. Federal scholarships strongly favor full-time students, and most states give little or no financial assistance to part-timers. Nor is there coverage for day care, books or transportation. Neither current policies nor progressive calls for "free tuition" deal with these issues. On both left and right, an obsolete view of degree-focused college experiences prevails.

What we need to do  particularly for community colleges  is to change our focus from credentials to education. Yet as we move through the pandemic, instead of making community colleges more accessible, we are moving in the opposite direction. In New York state, where I chair the trustees of a small rural college, state aid is expected to drop to just more than 10 percent of our total funding. Our county government sponsors, caught in a squeeze between higher health care costs and lower sales tax receipts, are simply unable to help. And this is in one of the states most supportive of higher education. Even if we can limp through this year with relatively minor cuts and tuition increases, next year looms as a disaster.

Federal help, enabling state and local governments to maintain their efforts, would help, as would thinking more in terms of student needs than graduation rates.

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter.

Those of us in the system need to be creative as well, particularly in working with the private sector to build endowments and subsidize workers who need retraining. And we need to upgrade our thinking about what those skills are. Employers can teach their workers how to build widgets, but what they say they need is "common sense." What that means, all too often, is that their workers, like our entering students, are often quasi-literate at best. Community colleges understand that: 60 percent of our entering students need remedial work in reading, writing or math  some in all three, and the success rates of our remediation efforts are good.

A strong case can be made, moreover, that traditional courses in the sciences, arts and humanities  by emphasizing critical thinking and research methods  effectively teach "common sense." Yet these programs receive little support.

In recent Washington discussions of future stimulus spending, programs that would help our community colleges were missing. Even with substantial increases, program cuts and substantial increases in tuition are a certainty. Without support for part-time students in particular, the recovery will be slowed by a paucity of skilled workers. It is an investment too costly not to make.

Edward Schneier is professor emeritus of political science at the City of New York and president of the board of Columbia-Greene Community College.
STRATFORD  Police have charged a 31-year-old Bridgeport man with shooting a woman on Birch Drive this month.

Calvin Williams faces charges of first-degree assault, first-degree robbery, home invasion, first-degree threatening, carrying a pistol without a permit, possession of narcotics with intent to sell, reckless endangerment and risk of injury to a minor.

Most of the charges related to the shooting, which was reported about 8:30 p.m. Sept. 3, Stratford Police Capt. Frank Eannotti said in a prepared statement released Friday.

Upon arrival one female gun shot victim was located, he said. She was transported to the hospital for treatment and is in stable condition.

Stratford detectives obtained a warrant charging Williams and arrested him in Bridgeport Friday with the help of Bridgeport police.

Recovered at the time of arrest was ammunition, a large amount of cash and narcotics (Ecstasy), Eannotti said.

Williams was being held on $750,000 bond Friday, Eannotti said.
The student who made headlines after he married the woman convicted of raping him as a child has spoken for the first time since her death.

Vili Fualaau was 22-years-old when he married his former teacher, Mary Kay Letourneau, however their relationship began years earlier when the then 34-year-old married mother of four began to abuse 12-year-old Fualaau.

Despite serving jail time, Letourneau would have two children with Fualaau, the first when he was 13, and the pair were married for 10 years before announcing their divorce in 2017.

Mary Kay Letourneau (right) and Vili Fualaau (left)were married after she was released from prison in 2005 for raping him. Source: ABC News

Reflecting on their controversial relationship, Fualaau revealed on US talk show Dr Oz if he were in his former wifes position he would have sought help.

When informed by host Dr Mehmet Oz that Fualaau was now around the same age Letourneau was when she began abusing him, he responded bluntly.

Well, Id probably go and seek some help, Fualaau said with a laugh.

I couldnt look at a 13-year-old and be attracted to that because its just not in my brain, its nothing that I am attracted to.

Mary Kay Letourneau (right) was 34 when she began abusing a 12-year-old, Vili Fualaau (right). Source: Getty

I mean, we all have our preferences and thats just not something that I would go towards.

Fualaau helped take care of his ex-wife as she battled cancer.

Fualaau said he was by his ex-wifes side as she took her final breath and said the pair were discussing their two daughters, Audrey and Georgia.

We were just talking about when they were kids and we were laughing, and I turned over and  I didnt see her chest moving, he said.

Vili Fualaau spoke on the US talk show Dr Oz about his relationship with Mary Kay Letourneau, Source: Youtube

Letourneaus solicitor David Gehrke told the Today show that although she and Fualaau were no longer married, they still loved each other.

They were divorced and they had their spats, but they were always in love with each other, Mr Gehrke said.

Vili moved back from California, gave up his life there, and for the last two months of Marys life he stood by her 24/7 taking care of her, he explained.

Letourneau left her estate to Fualaau and their two daughters.

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 13:01:57|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken on Sept. 15, 2020 shows the new bridge built with aid from China in Ban Xor village in Vientiane, Laos. (Photo by Kaikeo Saiyasane/Xinhua)

by Zhang Jianhua, Li Sha, Chanthaphaphone Mixayboua

VIENTIANE, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- "Learning from to China's poverty reduction experience, we did not simply bring money and project here like blood transfusion, but have been carrying out more effective and sustainable 'hematopoietic poverty alleviation' in the project villages," Fan Xining, a Chinese director told Xinhua in northern Laos' hilly Ban Xor village.

"Hard methods" like building the visible roads, bridges, greenhouses and schools as well as "soft methods" to support the project like training, visits and exchanges were also included, Fan said.

He is leading a team of Chinese experts engaged in a China-Laos joint poverty alleviation project.

Under the pilot project to reduce poverty in East Asia, namely the China-aided Laos Poverty Reduction Demonstration Cooperation Technical Assistance Project, the Chinese team selected Ban Xor village, some two hours' drive on the bumpy roads to the north from Laos' capital Vientiane, and another one in Luang Prabang, to apply China's experience in shaking off poverty since September 2017.

Among the 407 households, or 2,007 residents in the Ban Xor village, half live in poverty with an annual per capita net income less than 700 U.S. dollars. However, in the past three years, the demonstration projects have brought remarkable results in the infrastructure construction, public service improvement, livelihood development and capacity building, to the village.

A modern bridge built with Chinese aid is about to be completed in Ban Xor. The 49-year-old Deputy Village Chief Khamchan Boudvinai told reporters by the bridge that the old wooden bridge in the village was decayed, and people could only bypass the upper reaches to cross the river in rainy seasons.

"However, the cattle-raising and corn-growing projects supported by China are across the river. After the new bridge is built, we need not go around the mountains and cross the waterway," Khamchan said.

The official visited China twice to exchange poverty-alleviation experiences in China. "We have applied China's experiences to our village. Now we have set up production teams, organized to raise cattle, grow corn and weave traditional dresses. We are gradually accumulating experience and then will expand the scale of the production teams," Khamchan told Xinhua.

"I have never heard of the techniques taught before. With this project, the number of cattle raised by the villagers has increased," said Vanpheng Phanouvong, a 51-year-old villager, whose husband joined the cattle-raising group.

After visiting some poverty alleviation demonstration villages in China, Khamchan is especially interested in the comprehensive development of terraces in China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, modern agricultural planting and breeding, and the deriving tourism projects for poverty alleviation.

"I saw Chinese villages planting rice in the well-managed terraces, and developing tourist attractions. I really want to do it here," Khamchan said.

The China-Laos poverty alleviation project has been introducing the concepts of self-organization, self-supervision, self-management and self-development to Lao villages, establishing a village-level project implementation management, and forming the prototype of villagers' cooperative and collective economy, thus to help realize sustainable development.

"We pay particular attention to improving the ability of villagers, and to improve the overall capabilities of the village officials to achieve the sustainable development," said Luo Fengkuan, assisting director of the project's management office.

The Lao director of the joint office, Nalinthone Vorlasarn, also said that the two countries have jointly established the central and county-level project management committees for joint guidance, joint management and joint implementation of the project.

This innovation is beneficial to the management capacity building among central and local administrative personnel. She believes that the project's implementation can be "compiled into a guide to share the poverty alleviation experiences of the two countries to otherwhere in the world."

"The Chinese experts and the Lao executive team have been learning from each other in the joint management and implementation of the project. The Chinese experts can learn more about the actual situation of the Lao side and help better guide the project implementation. The Lao colleagues can learn experiences and management methods to better coordinate and promote project implementation through work together and exchanges," Fan told Xinhua on Saturday.

Lao Minister for Industry and Commerce and Chairperson of Laos-China Cooperation Commission Khemmani Pholsena visited Ban Xor village in mid-September, saying that the village is a good example.

"We must continue to explore and strengthen the comprehensive and systematic building of the 'hardware and software' in the poverty-stricken villages to achieve poverty alleviation, prosperity and sustainable development", the Lao minister said. "Especially in terms of capacity building, Laos and China can deeply and vastly discuss and cooperate." Enditem
The CBI has filed a supplementary charge sheet against British National Christian Michel James and businessman Rajeev Saxena in the AgustaWestland chopper scam. In its final report filed before Special Judge Arvind Kumar, the CBI has named both alleged middlemen Michel and Saxena, and 13 others.

The court is likely to take up the matter for consideration on September 21. According to the sources, the probe report filed on Friday details the alleged role played by Michel, Saxena and others in bringing bribes for politicians, bureaucrats and Indian Air Force (IAF) officials in India in the scam.

The sources said that the agency, which had earlier this year sought sanction from the authorities concerned to prosecute former defence secretary Shashi Kant Sharma, has not named him as an accused since the request is not granted yet. The agency told the court that it may file another supplementary charge sheet in the matter later.

The first charge sheet in the case was filed in September 2017 naming former IAF chief SP Tyagi and others. The agency had earlier told the court that "during the course of investigation, copies of classified/ secret official documents of Indian Air Force (IAF)/ Ministry of Defence (MoD) such as Operational Requirements for VVIP helicopters before issuance of Request of Proposal and other incriminating documents running into more than one lakh pages received from Italy and Switzerland.

It had also said that a ''payment sheet'' recovered from Michel, prepared on his dictation, shows that an amount of Euro 30 million was paid/ proposed to be paid to the officers of IAF, MoD, bureaucrats, politicians and family in India for showing favour in the VVIP helicopter deal." The applicant had entered into as many as five contracts through two of his firms to legitimise the illicit commission/ kickbacks on the procurement of VVIP helicopters by MoD, India, the CBI said. "An amount of Euro 42.27 million was paid by the Westland Group Companies to the firms of the applicant as kickbacks/ bribes without undertaking any work against the receipt of such amount," it said.

It said that out of the kickbacks received from AgustaWestland, Michel further made payments to various persons in India. Michel was taken into custody by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on December 5 last year after his extradition from Dubai, while the ED took him into custody on December 22 last year. He is currently in judicial custody in both cases.

Dubai-based businessman Saxena was extradited to India on January 31, 2019 in connection with the scam relating to the purchase of 12 VVIP helicopters from AgustaWestland. While Michel is currently in judicial custody, Saxena is out on bail in the money laundering case filed by ED.

ED had earlier arrested Saxena but he was later granted bail after the agency supported his plea to turn approver in the case. The agencies had told the court that Michel made 24.25 million euros and 1,60,96,245 pounds from the now-scrapped AgustaWestland deal.

The CBI has alleged that the deal signed in February 2010 to supply VVIP choppers worth 556.262 million euros caused an estimated loss of 398.21 million euros (about Rs 2,666 crore) to the state exchequer.

.
By Online Desk

India's COVID-19 case tally crossed 53-lakh mark with a spike of 93,337 new cases and 1,247 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Saturday.

The total case tally stands at 53,08,015 including 10,13,964 active cases, 42,08,432 cured/discharged/migrated and 85,619 deaths, as per the Ministry.

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the cumulative total samples tested up to September 18 are 6,24,54,254. The number of samples tested on September 18 is 8,81,911.

As far as the active cases are concerned in the states, as per the Health Ministry, Maharashtra has 301273 active cases, Karnataka 101148, Andhra Pradesh 84423, Uttar Pradesh 67825 and Tamil Nadu 46506.
Actor Deepika Padukone on Friday shared a picture on Instagram Stories about things to come. Her message meant that her fans should expect a surprise in the following days.

Sharing a picture of rich blue skies with a lone coconut tree in the wind, Deepika wrote: 3 days to go. Now, it is not clear what it is about but going by the tags with the picture, it appears to be something related to her new film with director Shakun Batra. Deepika has tagged Dharma Productions, Shakun, co-stars Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday and Uri actor Dhairya Karwa.

Just last week, the actor was spotted at the Mumbai airport, reportedly on her way to Goa to shoot for Shakuns film. This will be her first shooting schedule after months of staying home owing to the coronavirus pandemic.

Little is known of the films plot, but by her own admission, the film will see her in as much of emotional turmoil as her last film, Chhapaak. Speaking about it, she had told Hindustan Times, To be honest, you cant call Shakuns film light either... Although the overall tonality of the film is slightly lighter than my last film, in terms of inner, emotional turmoil my character goes through, its quite challenging. The overall genre of the film is something we havent seen much in Indian cinema, its called domestic noir. I dont think thats a genre we are very familiar with, but at the same time the audience is completely ready for it, as we have been exposed to that genre in different ways, whether through Hollywood films or OTT platforms. What I enjoy and look forward to, as far as this film is concerned, Shakun has this strong point with people and relationships. As an audience/ actor I have enjoyed watching and performing these sort of films, whether Piku (2015), Tamasha (2015), Love Aaj Kal, films that deal with intricate human relationships.

Also read: Sunny Leone shares cryptic post after Kangana Ranaut drags her into spat with Urmila Matondkar: People who dont know you have the most to say

Shakun, known for his film Kapoor & Sons, was to shoot his film in Sri Lanka but the schedule had to be called off owing to the coronavirus pandemic. Given the similarity in landscape, it was later decided to shoot it in Goa. An unnamed source, speaking to Mumbai Mirror, had said: The delay gave Shakun time to work on the script. Since shooting in Sri Lanka is not feasible, they changed the setting to Goa which has a similar landscape of beaches and vintage churches.

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Paul Alexander This McMaster professor helped Donald Trump downplay the risks of coronavirus

In 2008, the University of Oxford brought back a widely revered postgraduate program in evidence-based medicine renowned for its commitment that health care be guided by science and research.

The first two cohorts of classes each saw 15 to 20 successful applicants, likened by its then-director to the the creme de la creme of young academics.

I was scared teaching them, said Amanda Burls, a now-retired public health expert with four decades of experience in the United Kingdom. They knew more than I did.

One of them was Paul Alexander, a McMaster University professor who now finds himself at the centre of a White House firestorm over concerns he allegedly muzzled government scientists and interfered with public health reports.

Alexander left his role as a senior adviser to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on Wednesday and is due to appear before a congressional subcommittee on Sept 24.

He is alleged to have demanded the authority to edit COVID-19 reports by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and accused the agencys staff of trying to hurt President Donald Trump with its pandemic response.

Its no surprise to Burls that Alexander spent seven months advising a country that is experiencing its worst public health crisis in more than a century.

The assistant professor in health-research methods at McMaster is a decorated academic with over 60 peer-reviewed published works, at least six of which pertain to novel coronavirus research.

At Oxford, Alexander was driven, a natural collaborator who Burls said had great ability and enthusiasm.

He was a constant in the programs small, interactive seminars, always available and often doing work that wasnt required of the course out of sheer excitement for evidence-based practice.

I worried he was almost too enthusiastic, like spreading himself too thin, Burls recalled.

He was also very loyal, she said. At times, to a fault.

Paul was very deferential. I would tell students, Get on your computers. Challenge me. Tell me that Im wrong. And that was not his modus operandi, Burls said.

He loved us (professors) so much that he was uncritical. He really respected me, which is fine, but not to such an extent that anything I said must be true.

Alexander has been unabated in his support of a Trump administrations response to a virus that has infected nearly seven million Americans and killed more than 200,000.

The Canadian moved from Hamilton to Washington, D.C., in late March to advise top HHS spokesperson Michael Caputo, a former Trump campaign staffer with no background in health care.

Caputo  who told The Spectator in July he didnt know if I could do my job without Alexander  also left the department Wednesday.

The pairs unlikely relationship began in 2015, when Alexander would frequently appear as a guest on Caputos radio talk show in Buffalo, N.Y., to chime in on scientific topics.

Both have been widely accused of contradicting scientific consensus and downplaying the pandemics severity since their appointment at HHS in April.

Emails originally obtained by Politco show Alexander demanded the CDCs weekly scientific newsletter, known as the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), be halted unless I read and agree and edit the documents.

He also blasted CDC director Robert Redfield and accused the federal health agencys scientists of trying to hurt the president with a report he claimed wrongly inflated the risks of COVID-19 to children.

CDC to me appears to be writing hit pieces on the administration, Alexander wrote. Very misleading by CDC and shame on them.

Alexander told the Globe and Mail on Wednesday that he was more qualified to analyze COVID-19 data than the 1,700 scientists at the agency. I make the judgment whether this is crap, he said.

McMaster said in a statement that Alexander is not currently on the schools payroll and as a consultant does not speak on behalf of the university.

The MMWR is an apolitical report whose publication process dates back to the 1960s.

Alexanders objection to the newsletter threatens the confidence of the public which the CDC is intended to protect, said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University who sits on the external editorial board of the MMWR.

We are very dismayed that there would even be an attempt to introduce political influence into this public health communication, he said. If that content has to be viewed through a skeptical, political lens, its really injurious. Its destructive.

Alexander declined to comment on the allegations Friday. He pointed to a statement made by Redfield and featured in a Breitbart article that dismissed claims of his political interference in the MMWR.

Caputo, who was also unavailable for an interview, previously told The Spectator that the pandemic is a battle of ideas and Alexanders specialty is criticizing other peoples work.

On Friday, at least five respected public health experts agreed when asked whether science is predicated on the flow of differing ideas. All, however, said modifying public health reports is not a matter of academic freedom  its academic malfeasance.

The fact youre a professor doesnt give you licence to do political editing of a scientific publication, said Joshua Sharfstein, an expert in public health communication at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Thats not academic freedom. Its political interference.

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Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Vienna  Sat, September 19, 2020 07:00 490 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45d3981 2 Environment arnold-schwarzenegger,climate-change Free

Former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday said the coronavirus crisis was a "tremendous opportunity" to rebuild devastated economies with clean energy.

Speaking virtually at a climate summit that his non-profit organization holds annually in Austria, the Hollywood star said the pandemic, which has killed almost a million people and caused massive economic downturns worldwide, was "a window of opportunity to act right now".

"Forward-looking decisions are needed right now, right now as trillions of dollars and trillions of euros are being poured into rebuilding economies and infrastructure in the wake of the coronavirus," he said on screen, speaking from a podium surrounded by plants.

"These funds are so massive they are capable of remaking societies. We have a tremendous opportunity here."

Schwarzenegger said money should be invested into building "a clean energy economy", providing "sustainable jobs" and upgrading buildings to make them more energy efficient.

Schwarzenegger had intended to travel to his birth country Austria for the summit but cancelled his trip following the advice of doctors -- cheering on participants instead from an office with a poster of himself in younger days as a body-builder in the background.

Among other speakers at the Austrian World Summit, which was launched four years ago, were Austrian, Slovakian and Croatian leaders, as well as European Commission vice president Frans Timmermans and other international public figures.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen vowed Wednesday in her first annual State of the European Union address that Europe would lead the global search for a coronavirus vaccine while rebuilding its shattered economy with a green recovery plan.
Hardware. Paints. Electrical. Glassware. Gifts. Fancy goods.

It's been two years since the Flood brothers - Kieran, Fehan and Barry - closed the doors of their shop for the last time, but there are probably still people who beat a path to Braemor Road in the hope of tracking down an obscure screw or sorting out a niggling house problem they are only now getting around to tackling.

Since 1987, the brothers, who formerly had a similar shop in London, made a living from being a mine of information in relation to all things DIY-related and dispensing advice on how to repair small appliances that others might have counselled be thrown in the bin. They were known to carry a particularly extensive range of fire grates.

Early last year, a small neon sign went up in the shop window.

Bar.

And just like, that Churchtown Stores morphed from hardware shop to smart pub.

A couple of months back the owners (members of the Coman family) drafted in chef Ian Marconi to look after the food side of things.

Ian ran the Parlour Games supper clubs in Portobello when he first returned to Dublin from London, having worked at Sam and Samantha Clark's Moro in Exmouth Market. He went on to establish the Paella Guys street food business, familiar from lunchtime markets around the city, and then Jack Rabbit, an event-catering business with a lunchtime presence at the Morton's outpost on Hatch Street.

Along the way, he launched a range of Jack Rabbit sauces, part of the new generation of Irish condiments and a cult hit. Word goes out on the aficianados' bush telegraph when a new batch drops.

Given events are thin on the ground these days, Jack Rabbit is now geared towards offering food solutions for pubs, a fine idea considering pubs tend to be good at the drink side of things, but often less so when it comes to food.

We've booked a table in the outdoor covered seating area to the front, which in pre-pandemic times was the smoking area; people who emerge from inside and light up are whooshed along by the staff.

The menu is very different to what you'd expect from typical pub grub, with a choice of eight main dishes cheerfully plundering ideas from all over the world. Start with nachos made with proper, freshly-fried tortilla chips from Blanco Nino in Clonmel, either with or without slow-cooked Mexican pork with green chilli salsa (for the extra 3.50 it's a no-brainer.) Rather than the usual greasy smothering of synthetic-tasting cheesy gloop, Marconi serves his with a lime Parmesan crema, fresh guacamole, a cherry tomato salsa, jalapenos and slivers of pickled red onion. Nachos are never going to qualify as health food, but these are not far off.

There are wild red-tailed shrimp in spiced butter and chunks of new potato in a tomato and cashew-based makhani sauce, with crunchy cabbage and lemon salad on the side, and buttermilk fried chicken that's too sweet for our palates (it comes in a pomegranate and honey 'dunk'), though we love the other elements of the dish: black garlic aioli, roasted peanuts, herby yoghurt, pickled carrots, toasted seeds and crunchy fried shallots.

A beef curry made with Jack Rabbit's best-selling Tsumami sauce (confit garlic, chilli and black garlic, it helps if you like garlic) is melting and tender with real depth of flavour, while the bbq mushroom burger - three huge field mushrooms marinated in tamari and black rice vinegar in a brioche bun layered with scallions, whipped avocado and a burger sauce made from silken tofu - is an umami-packed whopper of a dish. We are charged 18 for a small taste of several dishes (definitely a mates' rate, Ian spotted us) so with a couple of G&Ts, a few sparkling waters and a not-great glass of red wine the bill totals 49.20.

The rating

9/10 food

8/10 ambience

9/10 value

26/30

ON A BUDGET

House nachos are priced at - guess what? - 9.

ON A BLOWOUT

Two people sharing nachos to start, followed by the wild shrimp dish and the mushroom burger, with fries and salad on the side, will run up a bill of 42.50 before drinks or service.

THE HIGH POINT

Pub food just went up by more than a few notches.

THE LOW POINT

The wine offering is poor. There's no excuse for this.
As the release date of Bigg Boss 14 is approaching near, the news of special promo being shot with ex-contestants Sidharth Shukla, Hina Khan and Gauahar Khan is doing rounds on the internet. A page titled Bigg Boss Khabri on Instagram shared a BTS video of the chess-themed set and wrote, Makers shoot a special promo of #BiggBoss14 with ex-contestants at Filmcity Sidharth Shukla, Hina Khan, Gauahar Khan & Monalisa were part of that shoot. As reported, the Shoot was done till 4 am.

Also, a picture of Bigg Boss 13 winner Sidharth Shukla from the sets has also gone viral. In the pictures, the actor can be seen donning in an all-black look. The pictures shared on microblogging site are reportedly from yesterday evening shoot in the Film City. Sidharth can be seen having a conversation with the crew on the sets while entering his vanity van.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Biggbosskhabri  (@biggbosskhabri) on Sep 16, 2020 at 11:15pm PDT

More pictures of Sidharth from shooting yesterday evening in Film City #SidharthShukla #SidsEndeavoursLink: https://t.co/N1TfoDWn6B pic.twitter.com/RYvidsGlff  Team Sidharth Shukla (@SidsEndeavours) September 17, 2020

Rumours are rife that Sidharth Shukla, Hina Khan, Gauahar Khan and Monalisa will not be contestants, but they will have special powers in Bigg Boss 14. Also, they are expected to join Salman Khan on the premiere episode and will give challenges at contestants of BB14.

Meanwhile, the show is already hitting the headlines and fans are quite excited to know about the contestants to be seen on the reality show. The names of the possible contestants to be locked inside the Bigg Boss house are Pavitra Punia, Jasmin Bhasin, Eijaz Khan, Neha Sharma, Nishant Singh Malkani, Shagun Pandey and Sara Gurpal. However, the official confirmation is yet to announced.

The reports also suggest that the show will introduce new changes as the makers have planned to set up a mall, mini-theatre, spa and a styled restaurant corner in the house.
TOKYO (AP)  Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Friday that Japan should make a major change to its defense policy by developing a first-strike capability on enemy bases to defend against imminent attacks amid rising missile and nuclear threats in the region.

Abe, who is stepping down next week for health reasons, said the ability to intercept missiles after they are launched may not be enough and Japan should seek greater deterrence. He said the new government will compile a revised defense policy by the end of the year.

The ability to carry out preemptive strikes would be a significant shift in the defense policy Japan has followed since the end of World War II. Japans postwar constitution limits the use of force to self defense.

Abe, a defense hawk, said Japan is seeking to build up its missile deterrence capability within constitutional limitations, though he did not say how that can be possible.

Can we protect the peoples lives and their peaceful livelihoods just by stepping up our missile intercepting capability? Abe said in a statement. Japan must show its unshakable commitment and capability with an ability to defend its territory and peace as a sovereign nation, he said.

Abe made the comments after members of the National Security Council, including Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, who is seen as Abe's most likely successor, agreed to pursue the proposal.

Defense experts in his governing Liberal Democratic Party earlier compiled a report urging Japan to develop a preemptive strike ability because of North Korea's missile and nuclear development and China's increasingly assertive activity in the East and South China Seas.

Abe's push for the capability intensified after Defense Minister Taro Kono scrapped a plan to deploy two Aegis Ashore land-based interceptors due to technical reasons.

Japan has been increasingly purchasing costly missile defense systems and fighter jets from the United States.

Story continues

Since taking power in 2012, Abe has expanded Japans defense budget and capabilities and has sought to expand its role in international peacekeeping and in the Japan-U.S. security alliance. In 2015, he adopted a new interpretation of the constitution's war-renouncing Article 9 to include the United States in its self defense in a concept of so-called collective self defense.

Allowing strikes on enemy territory would require Japan to have long-range weapons including cruise missiles such as U.S.-developed Tomahawks and other highly advanced military equipment.

A revision of the defense policy allowing such weapons, however, could be a challenge. Even some hawkish defense experts say allowing a preemptive strike capability within Japan's constitutional limitations would be difficult.

Such capabilities would also be costly, and Japan would have to rely on the U.S. for surveillance, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba said.

I dont think Japan by itself can decide whether to (launch) missiles against enemies or their territories under the Japan-U.S. alliance," Ishiba told reporters Friday.

The change could also face resistance from the governing partys junior coalition partner, Komeito, a Buddhist-backed dovish group.

___

Follow Mari Yamaguchi on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/mariyamaguchi
Speaking in front of a crowd in Wisconsin Friday, President Donald Trump zeroed in on Joe Bidens VP choice in Kamala Harris

With the November election just weeks away, President Donald Trump is out on the campaign trail to condemn his Democratic opponent Joe Biden and running mate Sen. Kamala Harris.

At a campaign appearance in the battleground state of Wisconsin, where he won by a slim margin in 2016, Trump tried to cast an ominous message about Harris, saying if a woman is going to become the first president of the United States, it cant be her, Business Insider reports.

That would rip our country apart, Trump said in front of a crowd. This is not what people want. And she comes in through the back door  this would not be what people want, especially because its her.

President Donald Trump speaks to supporters at a rally in Freeland, Michigan. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

READ MORE: Kamala Harris slams Trump, Barr for denying systemic racism in justice system

The president continued by commenting on Bidens poor choice of selecting Harris as his running mate, given that the California senator was very critical of the former vice president when she ran against him in the primaries.

I said brilliantly, Hell never pick her, because she was too terrible to him,' Trump stated. But she picked him, and hopefully thats going to be history, its not going to matter. And that is no way for a woman to become the first president, thats for sure.

READ MORE: Kamala Harris reacts to Trumps racist birther attacks: Theyre going to engage in lies

Trump has taken several chances to publicly condemn Harris since she became Bidens running mate. Last week, during a campaign rally in North Carolina, Trump, who purposely and mockingly, mispronounced her first name, said she could never be the first woman president because people dont like her.

He also said at that North Carolina rally that a Harris presidency would be an insult to our country.

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The post Trump says Kamala Harris cannot become first woman president: That would rip our country apart appeared first on TheGrio.
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West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday said that the state has become a home of illegal bomb-making and lashed out at the law enforcement agencies for the decline in law and order in the state.

Dhankhar tweeted, State has become home to illegal bomb making that has potential to unsettle democracy. Police @MamataOfficial busy in carrying out political errands and taking on opposition. Those at helm @WBPolice cannot escape their accountability for this alarming decline in law and order.

State has become home to illegal bomb making that has potential to unsettle democracy.



Police @MamataOfficial busy in carrying out political errands and taking on opposition.



Those at helm @WBPolice cannot escape their accountability for this alarming decline in law and order.  Governor West Bengal Jagdeep Dhankhar (@jdhankhar1) September 19, 2020

He appealed to the law enforcement agencies to not escape accountability. Dhankhars comments came after the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested 9 individuals from West Bengals Murshidabad and Keralas Ernakulam for their association with a Pakistan-sponsored module of the al-Qaeda on Saturday.

How far distanced is DGP @WBPolice from reality is cause of worry. His Ostrich Stance is very disturbing.



Appreciate role of policemen in general-they r working in difficult situations. Problem is with those at helm who r unmindful of conduct and r politically guided.  Governor West Bengal Jagdeep Dhankhar (@jdhankhar1) September 19, 2020

The governor also wrote on Twitter that the West Bengals director general of police is holding an ostrich stance and is unaware of the ground reality. Dhankhar said he understands the constraints of the policemen who are working under the shadow of the pandemic but highlighted that people at the helm are unmindful of conduct and are politically guided.

Two people died in west Midnapore district in south Bengal on Thursday as crude bombs were hurled when two groups of miscreants clashed with each other. In August, a Trinamool Congress worker died while making crude bombs in Shamsergunj area of Bengals Murshidabad district. Murshidabads Suti also reported two deaths and five injuries in July associated with crude bomb making.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Saturday predicted moderate thunderstorm with lightning over isolated locations across India over next 12 hours.

According to IMD predictions, thunderstorms with lightning are expected to occur over West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka andTelangana among other places.

Moderate thunderstorm with lightning very likely at isolated places over Odisha, Gangetic West Bengal, East Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Marathawada, north interior Karnataka, Telangana, Rayalaseema, and coastal Andhra Pradesh and Yanam during next 12 hours, IMD said.

The MeT department on Saturday also issued a red alert for extremely heavy rainfall for three districts in Kerala. Meanwhile, Delhi will witness dry weather conditions for the eleventh consecutive day, the weather department said.

Whereas Andaman and Nicobar Islands will likely receive isolated heavy to very heavy downpour and fairly widespread to widespread downpour on September 19 and 20.

Fairly widespread to widespread rainfall with isolated heavy to very heavy rain likely over Andaman and Nicobar Islands on September 19 and 20; over Odisha, Coastal Andhra and Telangana from September 19 to 21, and over Sub-Himalayan West Bengal and Northeastern state during September 21 to 23, IMD said.

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Weve all seen James Bond and other similar spy movies that either have some nifty gadget or a tool that has been disguised as a real-world object to listen on their targets. Well, many of these gadgets in movies are fictional however that does not mean plenty of them werent invented and used by spies during the cold war era. Espionage is risky work and in order to protect yourself from getting caught; you need device gadgets that can help you on spying or at times even kill your target. Here are some of the spy gadgets that actually exist in real life and were used by spies a long time ago:

1. Shoe With Heel Transmitter

 Flickr_Mike Fitzpatrick

Western diplomats in the 1960s and 70s would operate in eastern Europe and be cautious of what they would buy from the local market. In fact, diplomats would avoid buying shoes and clothes from the local store to avoid having something planted in them. They would instead get their clothes vial mail order which some secret service in Romania used to their advantage. They would secretly install a transmitter inside the heel of shows by intercepting mail at the post office. A recording device in the heel of a show was once discovered during a routine room sweep that revealed a signal. However, the signal disappeared when all the diplomats left the room.



2. A Pen That Could Kill

 aaron-burden--unsplash

Alexander Dmitrievich Ogorodnik was stationed in Moscow when he was spying for the Americans at the Soviet Foreign Ministry. However, he requested a lethal pill that he could in the event he was ever caught by the KBG. He then received a pen by the CIA that had a secret compartment containing the lethal pill. Ogorodnik was arrested by the KGB after someone betrayed him and he offered to write a full confession during his interrogation. However, when he was handed the pen containing the pill, Ogorodnik bit on it and died soon after.



3. An Umbrella That Could Kill

 Reddit_u_NinetiethPercentile

A Bulgarian secret service agent used an umbrella to kill dissident Georgi Markov in 1978. The umbrella was modified to inject poison into a larger with a press of the trigger. This particular umbrella contained a ricin pellet, KBGs preferred position for assassinations. The poison cannot be traced and a room full of deadly umbrellas like this one was discovered in Bulgaria in 1999.



4. Tree Stump Bug

 Spy Museum.org

Sometimes you need to spy on your targets without them even noticing and this Tree Stump Bug was used by American to spy on a Soviet airbase. The stump was solar-powered which meant it did not require any risky battery changes. The bug intercepted communication signals from the airbase, beamed them to a satellite which was then sent to a site in the United States. The bug was discovered by the KBG eventually and a replica of it sits in the spy museum in Washington.



5. Dog Doo Transmitter

 Wikipedia Commons

Yes, that does look like dog shit but it is actually hollowed out to store important messages. It would be used as a dead-drop so that case officers and sources could communicate with each other without actually being seen together. People often like to stay away from Dog doo however there was always the risk of it being thrown off or discovered accidentally. A similar version of this also had sensors that could detect enemies from up to 1,000 feet away. The antenna would transmit a warning to the CIA via radio signals in case it sensed a vibration.



6. Robot Fish

 CIA

A robot fish was developed by the CIA to collect underwater signals from Russian crafts. The fish was given the name Charlie and could be controlled by a radio remote. The fish resembles a catfish and contains a microphone in the body. Whats impressive is that the robot fish has its own propulsion system in the tail to navigate around enemy vessels.


Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 22:27:48|Editor: huaxia

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WARSAW, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- The Polish health ministry reported on Saturday 1,002 new cases of COVID-19 over a 24-hour period, the largest single-day surge since the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

The government expects numbers to rise steadily over the coming weeks as people return to their normal lives, a health ministry spokesperson told local media after a press conference.

"People are returning to work," the spokesperson said. "We have a large number of contacts on the streets. This is simply the effect of returning to normality."

He added that the ministry currently does not identify any particular hotspots.

Experts note that the reopening of schools at the start of this month very likely contributed to the steady rise in numbers. "Every country that opened its schools is seeing a rise in sickness numbers," pediatrician Lukasz Durajski told news website Onet.

Up to 78,330 people in the country have been infected by COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic, with the death toll reaching 2,282, according to the health ministry. Enditem
Back in the darkest days of lockdown, scoring an Ocado delivery slot was almost as exciting as winning the lottery.

Six months on, even if most of us have moved on from wanting to kiss Pete the van driver when he turns up with the goods, we're still embracing online shopping at an unprecedented rate.

It's unsurprising; when a physical supermarket shop involves a mask and a one-way system that means you can't go back if you want an extra pint of milk, it's tempting to have food delivered to your door instead.

Secret weapon: Ocado has put Percy Pigs on its vans to underline its tie-up with Marks & Spencer

And Ocado Group, which is by rights a technology company rather than an online supermarket, has the systems to make that happen.

The company also has a new secret weapon in Percy Pig. The gurning gummy sweet is the face of Marks & Spencer food, and Ocado is so excited by the new tie-up with the retailer that it's even rebranded some of its vans with pictures of Percy and friends to celebrate.

Fears that shoppers might not warm to Ocado's new partner, which has replaced Waitrose, were allayed last week when the company announced third-quarter figures. They were impressive.

What company manages a 52 per cent increase in revenue during a global pandemic, and increases its basket size per customer to boot?

At present, shoppers are spending an average of 141 per shop with Ocado  a fall from the panic-buying heights of total lockdown but nonetheless significantly higher than pre-pandemic.

In a sign that the M&S goods now available are attractive to existing customers, they're making up more of the average basket than Waitrose goods were before the change.

That might be down to the novelty factor (there are only so many Percy Pigs anyone can buy, right?) but for analysts it's a relief that the M&S partnership has gone so well.

Ian Forrest, who covers the stock for The Share Centre, says the 'encouraging early signs are very positive for investors' although he warns that it's too early to make a definitive judgment.

Forrest also points out that for all the focus on Ocado's retail arm, it has a services side too. Ocado Solutions partners with existing supermarket chains around the world to help them to deliver online shopping.

It recently raised 1billion in equity and debt to finance these, and its clients include Kroger in the US and Casino in France.

Revenue from these can only be booked once the distribution warehouses it builds for clients are open, but it's a good place to be as everyone races into ecommerce before the next lockdown.

Ocado is loss-making and expensive. That's why it is important to see it as a tech stock rather than a supermarket chain.

The shares hit record highs on this week's update and closed at 28.17, compared with about 13 a year ago.

Midas Verdict: Ocado didn't get it all right during lockdown. Unable to scale up fast enough, it was forced to restrict slots and disappoint customers.

Many were worried that M&S wouldn't please loyal customers who were accustomed to their Waitrose products, which created uncertainty.

But at the moment, Ocado's formula is a winning one. Internet grocery shopping is growing, and it is well-placed to take market share from rivals now it has capacity. The stock is expensive and, as analysts point out, hard to value as it is loss-making and there's little similar to compare-with.

But with a stay-at-home winter on the cards and the prospect of cold and wet queues outside shops unappealing, the appearance of Pete in the Percy Pig Van will be a welcome one to many households. Buy.

Listed on: Main market Ticker: OCDO Contact: ocado.com or 0345 656 1234
DOJ Urged to Investigate US Environmental NGOs for Foreign Influence

Rep. Liz Cheney asks for review of groups whose 'views align with those of our adversaries'

Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) has urged the Department of Justice to investigate potential Chinese and Russian efforts to influence the environmental and energy policies of the United States.

Cheney said that such efforts include attempts to gain influence with American environmental nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), such as the Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).

In a letter to the DOJ, Cheney expressed her conviction that both the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Russian government are engaged in extensive influence operations to further their strategic goals, and are targeting NGOs and other influential organizations within the United States.

Environmental groups are major contributors to U.S. political campaigns and have filed hundreds of lawsuits against the Trump administration in an effort to advance their agendas, Cheneys letter reads. This robust political and judicial activismcombined with the fact that these groups often espouse views that align with those of our adversariesmakes it all the more critical that the Department is aware of any potential foreign influence within or targeting these groups.

Im calling on @TheJusticeDept to investigate potential Chinese and Russian efforts to influence U.S. environmental and energy policy. We need to know if foreign adversaries are working to infiltrate these groups. https://t.co/CDe3YYumx7  Rep. Liz Cheney (@RepLizCheney) September 16, 2020

The letter suggests that some environmental NGOs may be influenced by the CCP, and quotes a 2018 report from the Hoover Institution: China seeks to promote views sympathetic to the Chinese government, policies, society, and culture; suppress alternative views; and co-opt key American players to support Chinas foreign policy goals and economic interests.

In an email to The Epoch Times, however, Josh Mogerman, national media director at the NRDC, said Cheneys letter was incorrect and that it portrayed a false narrative. The Sierra Club didnt immediately respond to The Epoch Times request for comment.

NRDC Rejects Influence Claims

A 2018 letter to the NRDC from the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources asked whether the organization had been manipulated by Chinas communist regime. Signed by Rep. Rob Bishop (R-Utah) and Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-Ariz.), the letter stated that when engaging on environmental issues concerning China, the NRDC appears to practice self-censorship, issue selection bias, and generally refrains from criticizing Chinese officials.

Bishop and Westerman wrote of their concern regarding the NRDCs role in aiding Chinas perception management efforts with respect to pollution control and its international standing on environmental issues in ways that may be detrimental to the United States.

The letter reported that the NRDC claimed to have sued the [U.S. government] about once every 10 days since President Donald Trumps inauguration and had sought to shape the American publics perception of China as a global environmental leader following the United States withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement.

According to Bishop and Westerman, the NRDC has never condemned, or even mentioned, Chinas illegal and environmentally destructive island reclamation campaign that has covered over 3,200 acres of coral reefs with runways, ports, and other military facilities in the South China Sea.

One of Chinas man-made islands in the South China Sea on May 21, 2015. (U.S. Navy/Handout via Reuters)

Bob Deans, director of strategic engagement at the NRDC, said in a statement: NRDC seeks environmental solutions that are grounded in sound science, U.S. law and the public interest. We work on behalf of every American to protect our people against dangerous pollution and leave our children a livable world. Those are American values, American goals, and advancing them is manifestly in our national interest, as we have consistently demonstrated for nearly 50 years.

As the most populous country on earth, China has much to do with the kind of world the next generation will inherit, in our country and around the world, Deans said. Were proud of our work, in China and elsewhere, helping to create a more sustainable future for everyone, and we look forward to discussing that work with Chairman Bishop and the committee.

The NRDC operates six offices across the United States and one in Beijing.
A Michigan judge on Friday extended a Nov. 3 deadline for receipt of mail ballots, the latest in a flurry of election-related court rulings around the country that benefited the Democrats.

Judge Cynthia Diane Stephens of the Michigan Court of Claims cited mail delays and, in one case, a ballot that was detoured to Illinois, in her ruling that Michigan ballots postmarked by Nov. 2 and received in elections offices before Nov. 17 will be counted. (An earlier version of this article misstated the date by which postmarked ballots had to be received. It is Nov. 17 not Nov. 23.)

In another development Friday, a Texas court approved a plan to mail absentee ballot applications to all 2.4 million voters in Harris County, the states most populous. The mailing had been opposed by Ken Paxton, the states Republican attorney general, who might yet appeal the courts decision.

The Democrats and liberal organizations are locked in dozens of last-minute court disputes over voting with Republicans and other conservative groups. Fridays rulings followed a string of decisions set to expand voting rights and access to the polls that were handed down Thursday.
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Linkedin Bernard Osser (Agence France-Presse) Warsaw, Poland  Sat, September 19, 2020 15:36 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45ed5c8 2 Art & Culture Poland,auction,Germany,history,Jews,music,The-Pianist,Wladyslaw-Szpilman Free

A fountain pen, silver pocket watch and other prized possessions of the late Jewish-Polish composer Wladyslaw Szpilman, the real-life hero of the Oscar-winning film The Pianist, go under the hammer in Warsaw next week.

"This watch and pen that he bought on a trip to Paris in 1937 survived his whole stay in the Jewish ghetto, then kept him company in the ruins of Warsaw," said Szpilman's son Andrzej, who is organizing the auction with his brother Krzysztof.

The renowned musician, who died in 2000, came to the world's attention in Roman Polanski's film based on Szpilman's autobiography -- available in some 40 languages.

The black Montblanc Meisterstuck pen, the pocket watch and a tie that is now part of the collection at the Polin Museum of the History of Polish Jews are the only Szpilman possessions to have survived the war.

Read also: Chinese pianist Lang Lang says Bach the remedy for troubled times

Sole survivor

Like every Jewish resident of the Polish capital, the pianist and his family were forced into the Warsaw Ghetto established by the Nazis in 1940. He made ends meet by playing the piano at whatever cafes remained open.

In 1942, his relatives were sent to their deaths at the Treblinka extermination camp, but Szpilman was spared after a Jewish police officer recognized him from a concert and pulled him from the transport line at the last minute.

Szpilman managed to escape the ghetto the following year, just before the Germans liquidated and abolished the Jewish district.

He survived the rest of the war, thanks to the help of friends, by going from hideout to hideout, until he ended up at an empty apartment, totally cut off from the outside world.

"The watch, an Omega, held special significance for my father," Andrzej Szpilman told AFP.

"My father wrote that he would wind it up to know what time it was, because he lived in total solitude and had lost all sense of time.

"The watch helped him put up with the passing time," the son said, before winding the watch and holding it up to his ear to hear it tick.

The German officer

The item shows up in a touching passage of the autobiography.

A German officer, Wilm Hosenfeld, comes across Szpilman at his hideout but instead of killing him, he asks him to play the piano -- and gets Chopin. Later he helps Szpilman survive by bringing him food.

"To thank him, near the end, my father wanted to offer him the watch as a token of his gratitude. The German took offence and refused," Andrzej Szpilman said.

For having saved Wladyslaw Szpilman, among others, Hosenfeld was posthumously recognized as Righteous Among Nations, the Israeli title bestowed on those who helped Jews escape the Holocaust.

Read also: Most Germans knew Holocaust was happening, new film claims

'Story of a whole people'

For Polin's chief curator Renata Piatkowska, the items up for auction not only tell "the story of his life, survival, miraculous rescue from the Holocaust" but also "the story of a whole people".

"The items are also important because Szpilman selected them -- these little things of value -- because they could guarantee his survival," she told AFP.

"He could sell them, pay off informers... These items had the potential to save his life."

Another highlight of the collection to be put on sale Tuesday by the Desa Unicum auction house is the Steinway grand piano owned by Szpilman after the war.

"As a museologist, I regret that this collection may end up scattered" around the world, Piatkowska said.

"I really hope the pen and watch will be reunited with the tie in our collection and we'll be able to display the whole story."
Cleveland State Community College and Tennessee Promise are set for a Nov. 2 deadline to help high school seniors graduating in 2021 to qualify for a tuition-free college education. The Tennessee Promise program is a scholarship and mentoring program that helps pay for tuition and fees that other financial aid options may not cover.

Students who qualify for Tennessee Promise can earn two years of tuition-free attendance at Cleveland State. To apply for the Tennessee Promise program, visit the colleges website at MyCS.CC/TNPromise. Or, visit the application site directly at TNPromise.gov.

The only college in the Tennessee Board of Regents System with its own Honors College, Cleveland State has educational options here in Southeast Tennessee that can lead to a career anywhere in the world. And, in 2021, Cleveland State will open its newest facilities; a Health and Science Center on the colleges main campus and the McMinn Higher Education Center in Athens, Tn.

For information about Tennessee Promise at Cleveland State Community College, call 473-2310. For more information on Cleveland State Community College, call 472-7141 or visit the college at ClevelandStateCC.edu. Students are currently enrolled online and on-campus through the CSCC main campus in Cleveland, as well as CSCCs Athens Center in Athens and Monroe County Center in Vonore, Tn.


A pair of court rulings this week in Michigan and Pennsylvania will give voters more time to cast their mail-in ballots in the two critical swing states.

However, that means if the election is close and comes down to those two states, the presidential winner might not be known for several days.

In Michigan, State Court of Claims Judge Cynthia Diane Stephens ruled Friday that if a mail-in ballot is postmarked by Nov. 2, the day before the election, election officials must count it if it arrives by the end of the day on Nov. 16. Thats a two-week window in which ballots can still be counted after the election.

A vote-by-mail drop box in Boston. (Scott Eisen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The judge also ruled that starting at 5:01 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 30, voters can receive assistance in delivering their mail ballot to a drop box or to the county clerk from any individual the voter chooses.

And in Pennsylvania, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday that any ballot postmarked by 8 p.m. on Nov. 3  Election Day  must be counted if its received by the end of the day on Friday, Nov. 6.

The court also said that any mail ballot without a postmark, or whose postmark is illegible, must be counted if its received by that same date, Nov. 6.

The Pennsylvania judges said they based their rulings on concerns about delays in mail delivery by the U.S. Postal Service.

We conclude that the timeline built into the Election Code cannot be met by the USPSs current delivery standards, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court wrote.

The court also noted that the Republican-controlled state legislature had enacted an extremely condensed timeline, providing only seven days between the last date to request a mail-in ballot and the last day to return a completed ballot.

A Michigan judge also cited Postal Service delays.

In light of delays attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic, mail delivery has become significantly compromised, and the risk for disenfranchisement when a voter returns an absent voter ballot by mail is very real, wrote Stephens, the Michigan judge.

Story continues

On another issue that will directly affect how long it takes to count votes, both Michigan and Pennsylvania are still waiting on the legislature to take action.

The Mecklenburg County Board of Elections office in Charlotte, N.C. (Logan Cyrus/AFP via Getty Images)

Election officials across the country are nearly unanimous that they need to be able to open mail ballots before Election Day in order to report the results in a timely manner. Otherwise, clerks will only be able to start verifying the validity of ballots on Election Day, which will likely lead to delays in tabulating votes.

In Michigan, the state Senate has passed a bill that would allow clerks to start opening mail ballots one day before the election. The House has yet to take up the legislation. Both chambers have Republican majorities.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat, said the bill is a step in the right direction but does not go nearly far enough to provide the relief that clerks have been seeking for more than a year.

I support the small step forward because I know at this point clerks will take any legislative assistance. But the bill comes up far short of what our clerks and voters deserve. The Bipartisan Policy Center recommends clerks have at least seven days to process absentee ballots before Election Day, Benson said.

In Pennsylvania, House Republicans have passed a bill that would give clerks three days before Election Day to pre-canvass ballots, which includes opening and counting ballots, without publicly publishing the results.

But Pennsylvania Democrats want the Republican-controlled state legislature to give clerks at least 14 to 21 days to pre-canvass. Pennsylvania Republicans told Yahoo News this week that if they allow more than three days of pre-canvassing, then mail ballots would be opened without the opportunity for election monitors to challenge ballots they think were cast fraudulently.

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. (Kimberly White/Getty Images for SiriusXM)

Incidents of voter impersonation, by mail or in person, are rare and isolated. So while fraud does occur on occasion, there is no record of voter impersonation on a grand scale in the modern era.

The Pennsylvania secretary of state also shot down the Republican contention that anything longer than a three-day window for pre-canvassing would eliminate the ability to challenge ballots.

In our proposal, the rights of authorized representatives currently permitted in the pre-canvass and canvass processes would still be valid in a longer pre-canvassing period, Wanda Murren, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania secretary of state, told Yahoo News.

The bill passed by the House Republicans in Pennsylvania had proposed several other measures that would have made it harder to vote, but the state Supreme Court decision quashed those attempts to restrict voting.

Pennsylvania Republicans have wanted to eliminate most drop boxes, which are secure receptacles in which voters can hand-deliver their mail ballots well before Election Day without having to send them through the mail. President Trumps reelection campaign sued in federal court to get rid of these secure drop boxes as well, claiming  without evidence  that they were susceptible to fraud.

A federal judge in August had stayed the Trump lawsuit and deferred to state courts. And Pennsylvanias highest court said that counties could erect drop boxes and satellite voting locations apart from the county clerks offices, which will allow any county to erect as many of these alternative early voting locations as they want. In big cities like Philadelphia, where long lines have made voting in person a time-consuming enterprise, these drop boxes and extra voting locations might help alleviate the crush of voters on Election Day.

Pennsylvania Republicans also wanted poll watchers to be able to show up anywhere in the state to possibly challenge voters at the polls. Poll watchers are distinct from poll workers, and are appointed by the party. They work as election observers, and in theory are on hand to make sure the voting is legitimate. Only one from each party is allowed in a polling place.

Pennsylvania Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman. (Matt Rourke/AP)

Pennsylvania law says poll watchers can serve only in the district in which they live. Republicans sought to expand that to allow them to serve anywhere in the state. A spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman told Yahoo News this week that the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP) had requested the change be made to supply more poll watchers.

But a spokesman for the CCAP said this was not true, and the Corman spokesperson admitted they were mistaken when presented with the CCAP comment.

Democrats said that allowing poll watchers to come from conservative parts of the state into Democratic strongholds could be disruptive and lead to longer lines in major urban areas like Philadelphia. The state Supreme Court did not wade into this debate but upheld state law and prevented Republicans from obtaining the expansion of poll watcher eligibility.

But the state Supreme Court ruled against Democrats on two counts. It said that if a mail ballot is sent in without an outer secrecy envelope  a piece of paper that helps protect the identity of the voter  it cannot be counted. And the court ruled against requiring clerks to follow up with voters if they did not fill out, date, and sign the declaration printed on the outer envelope or if they used the incorrect ink color on their ballot as specified by the county.

Nonetheless, the rulings in the Pennsylvania decision were called the best news of the [election] cycle by Marc Elias, the Democratic lawyer spearheading his partys legal campaign on voting issues.

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Firebreathing, whirling art View(s):

Growing up, its not all that common to have a shared interest with your siblings. But Pulinda, Rusini and Janinda Gunawardena are three siblings who have always been passionate about Kandyan Dancing. So much so, that despite branching off into their adult lives and careers, they come together to form Thiwarna, a dance outfit that seeks to take forward this art form.

I have been training in Kandyan Dancing for over 20 years, starting from school, explains Pulinda, the oldest. He studied under Kulasiri and Nemali Budawatta, and travelled internationally with the famed troupe. He has taught dancing as well as choreography, and plays Sri Lankan drums, mainly the Geta Beraya. He says it took him 9-10 years to gain full proficiency in Kandyan Dancing and earn the right to celebrate the prestigious Wes Mangalya.

He feels that many contemporaries and younger dancers dont respect the art form enough. Nowadays most people are attracted to instant things, they want to be Wes dancers in a few months. But this is a long-term commitment, there are so many acts to learn and master, he says in earnest.

His sister Rusini agrees, Some dancers have forgotten the sacred element of Kandyan Dance. Some also have no regard for the proper etiquette and even sport facial hair when in full costume. Rusini is an undergrad at the Kelaniya University, who has completed the Pahinpath Mangalya.

The youngest sibling, Janinda,is a student at St Johns College Nugegoda studying for his A/Levels. Like his brother, in addition to dancing, he plays the drums. It was during the initial strict lockdown due to the pandemic that the three siblings set out on a new venture: showcasing their passion for, and talent in, Kandyan Dancing via YouTube videos. With work, university and school shutdown, they spent time at their home in Piliyandala indulging in their passion and perfecting their skills. Friends and family keen to watch them perform suggested they go online. They started streaming in August, and subscribers for their channel and viewers of their videos are picking up. We are looking at doing more interesting videos soon, says Pulinda.

The three siblings are keen to share their passion through teaching and choreography. We enjoy doing choreography for weddings  the couple as well as the entourage, says Rusini. Also parties and school events. And we want to start giving dancing lessons, she adds.

The three siblings are grateful for all the support and encouragement they have received in pursuing their passion. We wont be where we are today without all those who encouraged us: our parents, grandparents, teachers, family, friends and colleagues, the three chime in. Pix courtesy David Blacker

(NA)

Three siblings take their passion for Kandyan Dancing online

You can check them out on

YouTube - https://bit.ly/33A6e0w

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/thiwarna.dance

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thiwarna.dance
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- New York City public school students will begin the 2020-2021 school year Monday, and while the majority of students will be remote, those who are included on the first phase of the new reopening schedule will return to school buildings. And there will be an abundance of safety protocols and procedures in place to curb the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) while kids are learning in-person.

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Thursday that the city would phase-in the start of the school year, with pre-K, pre-K3, and students with disabilities in District 75 heading back to in-person classes first on Monday. Students in K-5 schools and K-8 schools will begin in-person classes Sept. 29, with middle schools, high schools, and adult education students beginning their return on Oct. 1.
Did anything strike you as you photographed Latin America, and then the States, where many of those migrants are heading?

When I was in Guatemala, a lot of the farmers in Alta Verapaz were growing maize, and they were showing me their harvests. The stalk would grow, the corncob would grow, but there would be hardly any kernels, so they couldnt really eat it or sell it. When I went to Ramona Farms, an organic farm in the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona, they went out to harvest organic blue corn. They opened up the corn husks and it looked exactly the same. Its heartbreaking to see everything the migrants in Latin America are sacrificing and risking to make the trip north. Theyre putting all of their hope in thinking things will be better here, but its pretty bleak here too.

Looking through your photos, theres a kind of sweetness to some of them. What did you want your approach to be?

The story is data-driven, and Abrahm Lustgarten had already finished writing it before I started working on the photographs. Statistics and charts and scientific models can sometimes be hard for people to relate to. My job was to humanize the data  to go out and tell the stories of the people living with what the data shows. My approach was to try to document the emotional toll it takes on people who lose their homes, the seniors who spend their days just trying to survive the heat, and hopefully do it in a way that touches our readers hearts and inspire them to take action to help reduce carbon emissions and mitigate climate change.
At least nine senior RSS functionaries, housed at the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh headquarters at Mahal in central Nagpur, have tested positive for coronavirus. All the infected full-time senior swayamsevaks-- most of whom are aged 60 years and above-- have been shifted to a private nursing home in the city for treatment.

According to the people privy to the developments, as many as nine senior functionaries were infected and almost all of them suffer from hypertension and diabetes.

They are stable and responding to the medicines, a senior swayamsevak preferring anonymity, said.

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and general secretary Bhaiyyaji Joshi, who also reside in the same building, are out of station. They were informed about the development, the senior functionary quoted above said, and added that almost all the infected members were found asymptomatic.

In view of the growing cases at the RSS headquarters, entire premises including all rooms inside the building have been sanitized.

Meanwhile, the guardian minister for Nagpur district, Nitin Raut, too, has tested positive for Covid-19. Raut, who is also the minister for energy, took to Twitter to inform his followers.

Also Read: Maharashtra ministers Nitin Raut, Hasan Mushrif test positive for Covid-19

I have been tested positive for Covid-19 today. I would like to request all those who have come in contact with me in the past few days to get themselves tested as a precautionary measure. Stay Safe everyone and take care, the minister tweeted. His wife, Sumedha also tested positive for the disease and was admitted to a private nursing home.

Also Read: Rajya Sabha MPs meet NHRC officials over human rights violations in Maharashtra

Earlier, union minister for transport and Lok Sabha member from Nagpur, Nitin Gadkari, had tested positive.

Due to the rising cases of Covid-19 in Nagpur, a Janata curfew would be observed in the city on Saturdays and Sundays in the remaining two weeks of this month and a decision on extending it will be taken after September 30, said city mayor Sandip Joshi.
Brian Moynihan, Bank of America (BofA) CEO, said more stimulus is needed to help the economy recover from the coronavirus recession.

On Friday, Moynihan said that more economic stimulus checks are crucial prior to the economy recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. The reaction came as the Federal Reserve released a survey that indicates previous rounds of stimulus spending to help American families get through the early stages of the downturn, as per Business Insider.

Since August 7, negotiations on the next round of the COVID-19 relief package, including the stimulus spending, have been stalled with a little prospect of getting anything done before the November presidential election.

Moynihan told Bloomberg: "You're back up to where 95 percent of the economy is back. We've got to help everybody else get across."

The BofA CEO pointed to the 0.6 percent increase in retail sales last month, along with the 0.9 percent increase in the previous month, despite the $600 supplemental unemployment benefit's expiration.

In late March and early April, when the economy shut down due to the pandemic, only half the lost jobs have come back. Therefore, there are almost 30 million Americans who are currently collecting jobless benefits.

Moynihan is urging lawmakers to approve the second round of paycheck protection financing. "What we need, I think, is pretty straightforward: You need more stimulus for the people," he said.

Moynihan noted that "a second bite at the apple" for PPP would help the economy fully recover.

"The idea of it recovering that last five percentage points tomorrow morning -- it's going to take a while to grind through that," he added.

Moynihan also said that more government support is needed to assist industries that are still struggling.

"What we need, I think, is pretty straightforward: You need more stimulus for the people," he noted. Local governments are among those that need help, as per Moynihan.

BofA's strategists said on Friday that the expectation for the coming of the next stimulus package by the November election is "fading." BofA's strategists had predicted earlier that the federal government would extend to at least $400 billion of aid to cities and states by the end of September.

Meanwhile, the Fed Survey indicated that families received lots of forms of assistance at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. These benefits came from the federal government and charitable organizations.

The survey showed that 77 percent of households said they were living comfortably or doing OK - two percent more than those who said they were doing well last October prior to the nation's pandemic's hit.

Pandemic had affected Americans unevenly, as per the indications of the survey. This can be seen with the low-income workers who suffer from most damage and more minority workers saying their employers are not taking enough precautions against the effect of the COVID-19.

From the $3.4 trillion Democrats sought in May, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi pushes it down to $2.2 trillion COVID-19 stimulus spending. But the White House and Senate Republicans are balking at the price tag though President Donald Trump has said that he is open to increasing the GOP's bid.

In a Bloomberg Television interview on Friday, Pelosi said she is willing to negotiate on the Democratic priorities for the new stimulus package to include aid for industries like restaurants and airlines.

Pelosi further noted that she is not backing away from the $2.2 trillion package proposal that she and the Democratic Senator leader Chuck Schumer proposed before negotiations with the White House last month.

Check these out:

Republicans' "Skinny" Relief Bill Failed: What are the Alternative Possibilities to Happen Next?

Covid-19 Relief Package: Families Could Get as Much as $6,000 If Deal Can Finally Be Struck

Next Stimulus Payments: Who Could be Eligible Dependents and their Importance
The Calcutta high court on Friday ordered the removal of Harsh Vardhan Lodha from directorships and other positions in the trusts and societies of the MP Birla group of companies.

With this Lodha, who has fought for almost a decade to retain control of cement maker Birla Corp. and the MP Birla group companies, will be removed with immediate effect from all company positions. The courts ruling is a significant victory for the extended Birla family, which is contesting the legal validity of Priyamvada Birlas Will.

The two sides have been locked in a battle for 18 years over the Will in which Priyamvada Birla bequeathed her estate and control of the now 25,000 crore MP Birla empire to her chartered accountant RS Lodha and his second son Harsh Vardhan Lodha.

Lodha will also be removed as chairman of the groups flagship company Birla Corp. and as a director on the boards of other MP Birla companies, including listed firms Vindhya Telelinks Ltd, Birla Cables Ltd and Universal Cables Ltd.

In May, a two-judge division bench of the Calcutta high court had allowed Lodhas reappointment as director by rotation in some of these firms.

Lodha was also specifically entitled to a profit-related commission in these firms, which was approved at the companies annual general meetings. The Birla family challenged this appointment in the Supreme Court, but it redirected the case to the high court.

On Friday, the court said all majority decisions taken by the court-appointed Administrator Pendente Lite committee (a panel of administrators appointed in 2012) will be binding on Lodha and that he will be obliged to implement them. In 2019 and 2020, the committee had directed Lodhas removal from the boards and had refused to support the payment of any profit-linked remuneration to him, but these decisions were not implemented.

These directions mean that Harsh Vardhan Lodha immediately ceases to hold all positions in the MP Birla Group, including as director in the companies and other positions in the trusts and societies of the MP Birla Group, a Birla family statement said. The court held that since the companies are not parties to the testamentary proceedings, directions cannot be passed against them, but the decisions of the committee of administrators shall be implemented by Lodhas, who are plaintiffs in the testamentary proceedings. His stranglehold on the MP Birla group has been brought to an end by the Calcutta high court.

A lawyer for Lodha said the order will be challenged.

The verdict by Justice Sahidullah Munshi over the reappointment of Harsh Vardhan Lodha as a director of Vindhya Telelinks Ltd and Birla Cable Ltd does not appear to be lawful, said Debanjan Mandal, partner, Fox & Mandal, lawyers for Harsh Vardhan Lodha. Our clients confidence in the system remains completely unshaken, and our clients will challenge the judgement for immediate and long-term relief.

A Lodha statement said: It has all along been the case of the Lodhas that the probate court examining the validity of a Will has no jurisdiction over any company in which the Late Priyamvada Birla held shares.

The company will examine the judgement and take necessary steps, including filing of appeal because the verdict seems to have ignored shareholders democracy and their right to elect by majority of their votes a person as a director of a company. Shareholders have elected Harsh Varshan Lodha as a director of Birla Corp. with an overwhelming majority of 98%. Mr Lodha, being otherwise not disqualified from holding the office of director, there is no reason why the verdict of shareholders will not be respected, a Birla Corp. spokesperson said.

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A 17-year-old girl faked a brain tumour to found a charity she used to con pop stars out of hundreds of thousands of pounds and fund her luxury trips to Disneyland.

Megan Bhari founded Believe in Magic to help 'other' terminally ill children in 2012 before she died in 2018 at age 23.

When she first appealed for money to travel to the US for treatment on her 'tumour', doctors were concerned about her frequent visits to hospital, which did not find anything seriously wrong, and her use of powerful opiates.

Believe in Magic, backed by One Direction as well as Taylor Swift, Michael Buble and Ed Sheeran, was dissolved last week after a Charity Commission investigation found sums of nearly 400,000 missing in its books.

And an inquest recorded Miss Bhari's death as caused by heart failure related to her fatty liver, with no mention of a brain tumour on her medical records.

Megan Bhari, 17, who founded shamed charity Believe in Magic backed by One Direction star Louis Tomlinson, faked a brain tumour to fund lavish trips to Disneyland, it has emerged

Parents of other children with cancer became concerned about her Ms Bhari's accounts of her illness and started to investigate her before her death.

Joanne Ashcroft, from Wigan, who met her at a charity event for sick children with her son Corey, noticed fundraising appeals for her treatment lacked detail.

She told The Times: 'I spoke to other oncology parents close to me who felt the same.

'Our own children had been through the most horrific disease and treatments imaginable, there was just something in the words that didn't ring true.'

They hired a private investigator, who found out Ms Bhari had been staying at Walt Disney World in Florida after traveling to the US on cruise liners on planned trips for treatment.

The investigator also took photos of Ms Bhari in November 2017 returning to Southampton from the US after a post on social media said she had travelled there for treatment.

Concerned parents found out Ms Bhari had been staying at Walt Disney World in Florida after traveling to the US on cruise liners on planned trips for treatment

She was pictured smiling and pushing a trolley with suitcases despite the charity saying her body had 'been through more than any should ever have to and is so weak' at the time.

In the same year, the Charity Commission launched an investigation into Believe in Magic, freezing its accounts following 'multiple complaints'.

Investigators found cash withdrawals of 133,000 had been made in the year to November 2015 and 156,000 was taken out the following year.

Between December 2015 and May 2016, 108,786 was transferred to a trustee.

The Charity Commission found trustees had collectively failed to file the charity's accounts, amounting to 'misconduct and/or mismanagement'.

It added: 'It is also a criminal offence.'

Charity Commission launched an investigation into Believe in Magic, freezing its accounts following 'multiple complaints' in 2017

The charity was shut down last week with remaining funds being given to to the Round Table Children's Wish.

Ms Bhari's mother Jean O'Brien, 66, one of the charity's trustees, also took a voluntary guarantee not to be a trustee or hold a senior management position at a charity for five years.

Its other trustees are close relatives Nick and Louise OBrien, who the Charity Commission said it has never been able to contact.

Police investigated but said that there was insufficient evidence to take the matter further.

The charity's ambassadors were One Direction and Louis Tomlinson reportedly personally donated 2million to the fund.

In 2012, Harry Styles's mother Anne Twist climbed Mount Kilimanjaro to help the charity.

Investigators found 133,000 had been withdrawn from the charity in the year to November 2015 and 156,000 was taken out the following year

One Direction raise 120,000 for Ms Bhari's radon therapy in January 2015 after she claimed she had a second tumour.

He social media posts said the tumour had 'grown tentacles' which wrapped around her brain's blood supply, making surgery too dangerous.

David Cameron also tweeted his backing to the charity in 2015 and rewarded Ms Bhari a special Downing Street Point of Light award.

Last week, Ms O'Brien addressed the Charity's Commission's decision to close it and allegations her daughter had faked her illness. She claimed Ms Bhari's funeral had been halted due to a police homicide investigation.

She wrote on Facebook: 'No one on this earth could have loved Meg more than me. I did everything I could to make her life as wonderful, as happy and as comfortable as it could be.

'The charity grew so quickly and although Meg and I worked tirelessly I take full responsibility for the less than perfect admin and record keeping.

'I am not ashamed to say I have been driven to the brink by these completely untrue and devastating allegations.'
You say tomato - but do your kids say "to-may-do?" If they've been glued to YouTube during lockdown, it's possible their pronunciation is drifting towards the mid-Atlantic. A new study has revealed an emerging "YouTube accent" among preteens, by which they adopt US intonations or slang as a result of watching online influencers holding forth in American twangs.

That's in the UK, but talk to any parent and they will tell you that the same is happening here. The survey of 3,000 childcare providers and teachers for Childare.co.uk reported that one in four primary school teachers are familiar with the aforementioned "YouTube accent". This underscores the degree to which video sharing platform has become part of the fabric of life for many kids.

Young people are picking up American pronunciations - stressing the "a" in mall for instance or saying "tooona" for tuna.

"For children, it could simply be because everyone is watching a particular trending YouTube influencer or group of influencers, or playing particular online interactive games, through word of mouth and a desire to fit in with their friends, that these people speak in a particular way," Jane Setter, author of Your Voice Speaks Volumes: It's Not What You Say, But How You Say It, told the Guardian newspaper this week.

"The kids are using the features of those speakers with other kids to show they 'belong' to that group."

This will carry a ring of deja vu in Ireland, where it has been for decades fashionable to grumble about faux-American accents. The biggest criticism of Jedward on X Factor, for instance, was that their Dublin tones were front-loaded with Americanisms. As early as 2013, Jeffrey Kallen, the head of Linguistics and Phonetics at Trinity College Dublin, suggested that US English "is now the chosen accent of teenagers from all over the country".

"In many ways, this new accent is more American than the Americans themselves," he explained. "They have taken some features of US English and exaggerated them. They have adopted many parts of American influence, but it doesn't sound altogether American, not like in America."

Seven years on, American influencers like nine-year-old Ryan Kaji, who has his own YouTube channel, Ryan's World and make-up artist James Charles (21) have become hugely popular. And while those Americanised teenagers Kallen was talking about are now all in their 20s, a younger generation has emerged arguably even more hooked on YouTube and Instagram. Should we be worried?

"Language is always changing," says Stephen Lucek, a UCD academic investigating teen language in Dublin. "We don't know that we're seeing it until it's happened and up until the 20th century, we would talk about changes as occurring generationally or longer."

He points out that technological advancement has long driven language - as far back as the printing press. "Technology made it necessary to print books and spread ideas, but first the printers had to agree upon spellings, vocabulary and sentence structures," he says.

Video of the Day

"Simply put, the printers were in the south of England and so southern England English became the language of printing. This, of course led to the elevation of this variety of English to a higher standard, one that lots of people still use as a metric today So technology of some type has been a driving force in language change for over 500 years."

He agrees that there has been a perception for many years that American TV has had an impact on English as spoken in Ireland. What's different now is the sheer ubiquity of social media and YouTube.

"I don't think that the influence of American TV was an evenly distributed phenomenon through the 90s and 00s. Newer technologies are coming out incredibly fast, and with the democratisation of video through YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and the likes, young people in Ireland are becoming aware of so many more varieties of English that their parents or grandparents ever heard."

Some of what is happening, he suggests, is simply kids being kids. "Part of this is also the phenomenon that young people - particularly 13-18 - are constantly crafting their identity and a huge part of that identity comes through their language. Teenagers are more likely to try something new, to hear new voices, to try and incorporate new words and phrases into their own language."

It's also worth remembering that not all Americanisms are created equal. Some aren't even Americanisms at all. "A lot of the time, what people think are Americanisms aren't Americanisms. In one BBC article complaining about Americanisms in British English, only 20pc of the usages listed were originally American," says Galway-based Stan Carey, who blogs about language.

"Americanisms are often useful and widely popular - quotative 'like' being a good example, though it has its haters, too. But in general discussion about Americanisms, and about language change more broadly, people tend to focus on pet hates and peeves.

"Some people's accents are fairly stable over their lifetime, but mixed accents are more common now than they used to be - mostly because people move around much more, and most of that moving is from rural to urban areas. Because language is such an important part of our identity, personal and collective, there's a tendency to be bothered by what are seen as outside influences. And that resistance is often tied up with social and political feelings."

Exactly where this trend is headed is difficult to say. Perhaps kids will grow out of their Americanisms. One thing is for sure: the more adults gripe about the phenomenon, the more likely young people will embrace YouTube speak as part of their identity.

"I don't think there's any point in trying to get teenagers to do what you want them to do behaviourally," says Stephen Lucek.

"I'll say this, though, I talk to teenagers a lot for my work and very few of them try to sound like the social influencers who I had to look up because I have never heard of any of them.

"Social Media is just another input and young people will ultimately decide for themselves how they would like to speak. Their parents don't have to like it, but what else is new?"


The United States will ban downloads of the Chinese-owned messaging app WeChat and video-sharing app TikTok starting this Sunday.

The U.S. order affects users of WeChat immediately. However, current TikTok users will see little change on September 20. President Trump and his administration will let some technical transactions for TikTok continue until November 12.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement that the U.S. move was taken to combat Chinas malicious collection of American citizens personal data. He added, The President has provided until November 12 for the national security concerns posed by TikTok to be resolved. If they are, the prohibitions in this order may be lifted.

Trump has been pushing for a sale of TikTok to a U.S.-based company. The later date appears to give the apps Chinese owner, ByteDance, more time to reach a deal for its U.S. operations.

ByteDance has been in contact with Oracle Corporation and other American companies about TikTok.

Like most social networks, TikTok collects data of its users and where they are in the United States to target advertisements. Similar concerns have also been raised about the U.S.-based networks Facebook and Twitter.

TikTok says it does not store U.S. user data in China and that it would not give user data to the Chinese government. But experts say the government can get any information it wants from companies there, creating a security risk.

The ban is the Trump administrations latest attempt to limit Chinese influence.

Since taking office in 2017, Trump has started a trade war with China and banned products from Huawei, a Chinese maker of communications equipment. The Chinese government limits what American technology businesses can do in China. China-based agents have been blamed for stealing information from U.S. government computer databases and the credit agency Equifax.

Effects of the ban

The Commerce Department order will remove WeChat and TikTok from U.S. app stores, such as Apples app store and Alphabets Google Play. But it does not affect the use of these apps in other countries.

TikTok has 100 million users in the United States and is popular among younger Americans.

WeChat has more than 1 billion users and about 19 million daily active users in the U.S. It is especially popular among Chinese students and Americans who have personal or business relationships in China.

The Commerce Department will not force people in the U.S. to remove the apps or stop using them. But users cannot update the two apps and, after some time, the apps will not work as expected.

Speaking about WeChat, a Commerce official told Reuters news agency, It may still be usable, but it is not going to be as functional as it was. The official added that TikToks U.S. users would not see a major difference in the apps performance until November 12.

I'm Jonathan Evans.

Hai Do adapted this story for Learning English with information from Reuters and the Associated Press. George Grow was the editor.

_______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

download - v. to move or copy a file or program from a computer system to another or device

app - n. a computer program that performs a special function (short for application)

transaction - n. the act or process of passing money or information... from one to another

prohibition - n. a law or order that stops something from being used or done

update - v. to change something by including the latest information or function

functional - adj. working properly
Brexit now threatens every business in the area and as a result the business and wider community faces a significant threat over the next year.

That was the fresh warning this week from Dundalk Chamber of Commerce, after the British government admitted it may renege on elements of the Brexit agreement signed with the EU earlier this year.

'The Chamber has worked closely with Louth Leo, Enterprise Ireland and InterTrade and with our own Skillnet Training to prepare Louth Businesses for the upheaval we all fear. The Chamber continues to emphasise the need for all to prepare by identifying problems and addressing them. We have over the last four years run a Brexit Conference with Newry Chamber bringing all the advisors together to meet business,' said spokesman, Paddy Malone.

He added: 'As with all crises there will be some opportunities as well but the challenge is to recognise and implement a strategy that will allow the opportunity to be maximised.'

Meanwhile north Louth Senator Erin McGreehan said there were 'increased levels of fear and anger along the border region.

The Senator said there were now real concerns of 'the unspeakable; possible border checks. As a European country we will have to protect the Single Market and an open border with the North, and it not signed up to the Single Market rules may have serious implications for this Island.'

She expressed her absolute 'shock' at Northern Ireland secretary, Brandon Lewis MP, respond to questions in the House of Commons admitting that the Internal Market Bill does 'break international law in a very specific and limited way.' 'When you think of the magnitude of this statement it really is spectacular.' said Senator McGreehan.

She also met with representatives of the Border Communities Against Brexit (BCAB) who have lobbied extensively to highlight the concerns of people living and working in the border region.
Rajesh Kumar Thakur By

PATNA: Days after the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen(AIMIM) blew the bugle for the Bihar Assembly elections by announcing to field its candidates in 50 out of total 243 seats, party president Asaduddin Owaisi forged an alliance with Devendra Prasad Yadavs Samajwadi Janata Dal (SJD) on Saturday.

Announcing the launch of the United Democratic Secular Alliance (UDSA), Owaisi vowed to rescue the state from the political dominance of the NDA and the grand alliance.

Bihar needs a viable alternative government, and the UDSA will certainly provide it with the electoral blessings of lakhs of marginalised people, who have been exploited for political gains over the years, Owaisi said.

Lashing out at the NDA and the GA, the AIMIM MP said there was no room for politics centered around a particular community in Bihar or other places.

India cant be a superpower without Bihar being developed on all fronts, as the state has always played a major role both in politics with the principal and national integration.

And the UDSA will explore the way to take Bihar again on the path of secular democratic developments, he said.

Owaisi added that the UDSA is open to all like-minded parties, including the RJD, if they owe genuine concern for the state.

Initially, other parties may mock or laugh at us, but we will prove how the people of the state are given a viable alternative in governance.

Nitish Kumar, in a political alliance with the BJP, promotes only hatred and works against the minority. He has betrayed the people who had voted against the BJP, he said.

He said that the minority people are not electoral slaves of the NDA or the GA, which makes pseudo claims of being the champion of minorities.

The AIMIM has one MLA from the Kishanganj assembly constituency from the Seemanchal area of Bihar. A day before the release of Assembly seats in Bihar, Owaisi had tweeted appealing to the people from the minority community to strengthen the majlis in Bihar.
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs dying wish reportedly was that she not be replaced until theres a new president.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made it clear Friday night that he has no intention of honoring that wish. That means the battle over Ginsburgs replacement will inject a highly unpredictable ingredient into the last 45 days of the presidential campaign and several Senate races that will decide which party controls Congress next year.

This is going to completely transform the election, said former U.S. District Judge Michael McConnell, director of the constitutional law center at Stanford University, who was appointed to the bench by President George W. Bush and is not related to the Senate leader. This is what its all going to be about.

The consequences of replacing the liberal Ginsburg with a conservative nominated by President Trump would be generational: If confirmed, the new justice could lock in a 6-3 conservative court majority for years, throwing into question the future of the Affordable Care Act, abortion rights and gun control laws.

And theres not much Democrats can do by themselves to derail the confirmation in the Senate, where Republicans hold a 53-47 majority. They couldnt do much even if Trump were to lose in November and the Democrats were to win control of the Senate  Republicans would still be in power during a lame-duck session between the election and January.

Democrats can kick and scream and yell, but they dont have the power to do much else, said Jessica Levinson, a professor of law at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles. I fully expect President Trump to fill this seat.

Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

The president didnt say Friday what he would do after he learned of Ginsburgs death, but he has made it clear in the past. In August, he told an interviewer that if a court vacancy arose this year, I would move quickly. Why not? I mean they would. The Democrats would if they were in this position.

In fact, the Democrats were in that position in 2016 after Justice Antonin Scalia died, and McConnell blocked then-President Barack Obamas nominee, Merrick Garland, from even receiving a Senate hearing for 10 months.

McConnell issued a contorted explanation Friday night of how these circumstances are different in promising that President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.

Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year, the Kentucky Republican said in justifying his actions four years ago. By contrast, Americans re-elected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary, Once again, we will keep our promise.

McConnell recognizes that as loudly as Democrats will protest his tactics, Trumps base will be just as enthusiastic about them  and be even more motivated to vote Republican than they already are.

The fight over this seat will be a boon for base turnout on both sides, said Democratic strategist Katie Merrill. The question is how independents will view Trump and McConnell trying to rush to fill a Supreme Court seat in the next six weeks.

Many Republican voters  even those skeptical of Trump  praise his conservative judicial picks. In turn, the president frequently mentions his court nominees on the campaign trail. Earlier this month, Trump released a list of 20 people he would consider nominating to the high court, including Republican Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Tom Cotton of Arkansas.

A Pew Research survey of registered voters in August found that Supreme Court appointments was third on the list of issues they considered to be very important when they cast their ballots  right after the economy and health care, and ahead of the coronavirus pandemic.

Democrats are indeed outraged at McConnell. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York issued a statement that was word-for-word identical to the one McConnell put out in 2016, in which he said, The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said that to jam through a lifetime appointment to the countrys highest court  particularly to replace an icon like Justice Ginsburg  would be the height of hypocrisy.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider.

Even Ginsburg herself tried to exert her influence posthumously, through a statement that her granddaughter related to National Public Radio: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

But there is little that Schumer, Feinstein or any other Senate Democrat can do by themselves. Their only hope would be for at least four Republicans to break ranks with McConnell and promise not to vote to confirm a new justice until after inauguration day.

Its not out of the question that could happen. GOP Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, facing a tough re-election battle, told a New York Times reporter earlier this year that she would not vote for a new justice before January. Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a Republican who is not up for re-election, told Alaska Public Radio on Friday before Ginsburg died that she would not vote to confirm a new justice this year.

In July, Iowa GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley said about the possibility of a new justice this year, You can't have one rule for Democratic presidents and another rule for Republican presidents.

Another Republican senator not facing re-election, Utahs Mitt Romney, already showed a willingness to break with Trump and the party when he voted to convict the president of one of the two articles of impeachment against him.

Left-leaning groups are eager to make the court an issue as Democrats try to gain the net four seats they need to assure themselves of Senate control. Demand Justice, a group that wants to see more liberal judges named to the bench, said it would spend $10 million on ads to try to help Democrats in key states. Besides Collins, the list of vulnerable Republicans includes Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis, Arizona Sen. Martha McSally and Iowa Sen Joni Ernst.

Also in a surprisingly close race is South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, chairman of the Judiciary Committee. Hes gone from someone who mocked Trump before the 2016 election as a race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot to one of the presidents most ardent defenders. Hell have to make a similar transformation to justify backing a Trump court nominee.

Two years ago, Graham said, If an opening comes in the last year of President Trumps term, and the primary process has started, we'll wait to the next election.

Joe Garofoli is The San Francisco Chronicles senior political writer. Email: jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @joegarofoli
Sustained greenhouse gas emissions could see global sea levels rise nearly 40 centimetres this century as ice sheets in Antarctica and Greenland continue to melt, a major international study concluded Thursday.

Sustained greenhouse gas emissions could see global sea levels rise nearly 40 centimetres this century as ice sheets in Antarctica and Greenland continue to melt, a major international study concluded Thursday.

The gigantic ice caps contain enough frozen water to lift oceans 65 metres, and researchers are increasingly concerned that their melt rates are tracking the UNs worst case scenarios for sea level rise.

Experts from more than three dozen research institutions used temperature and ocean salinity data to conduct multiple computer models simulating the potential ice loss in Greenland and Antarctic glaciers.

They tracked two climate scenarios  one where mankind continues to pollute at current levels and another where carbon emissions are drastically reduced by 2100.

They found that under the high emissions scenario ice loss in Antarctica would see sea levels rise 30 cm by centurys end, with Greenland contributing an additional 9 cm.

Such an increase would have a devastating impact worldwide, increasing the destructive power of storm surges and exposing coastal regions home to hundreds of millions of people to repeated and severe flooding.

Even in the lower emissions scenario, the Greenland sheet would raise oceans by around 3 cm by 2100  beyond what is already destined to melt due to the additional 1C of warming humans have caused in the industrial age.

Its not so surprising that if we warm the planet more, more ice will be lost," said Anders Levermann, an expert on climate and ice sheets at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.

If we emit more carbon into the atmosphere we will have more ice loss in Greenland and Antarctic," he told AFP.

We have in our hands how fast we let sea levels rise and how much we let sea levels rise eventually."

- Outpacing predictions -

Until the turn of the 21st century, the West Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets generally accumulated as much mass as they shed. Runoff, in other words, was compensated by fresh snowfall.

But over the last two decades, the gathering pace of global warming has upended this balance.

Last year, Greenland lost a record 532 billion tonnes of ice  the equivalent of six Olympic pools of cold, fresh water flowing into the Atlantic every second. This run-off accounted for 40 percent of sea level rise in 2019.

The UNs Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in a special report on Earths frozen spaces predicted last year that Greenland ice melt could contribute 8-27 cm to ocean levels by 2100.

It estimated Antarctica could add 3-28 cm on top of that.

A study published earlier this month in Nature Climate Change said the mass already lost by melt-water and crumbling ice between 2007-2017 aligned with the most extreme IPCC forecasts for the two sheets.

They also predicted a maximum of 40 cm sea level rise by 2100.

Authors of Thursdays research, published in a special edition of The Cryosphere Journal, said it highlighted the role emissions will play this century on the worlds seas.

One of the biggest uncertainties when it comes to how much sea level will rise is how much ice sheets will contribute," said project leader Sophie Nowicki from the University of Buffalo.

And how much the ice sheets contribute is really dependent on what the climate will do."

Levermann said uncertainty in the projections cannot be a reason to wait-and-see" in terms of emissions cuts.

We already know that something will happen. We just dont know how bad it is going to get."
Millions of people are now working from home, a number that skyrocketed in March as the current global crisis spread across the United States. Many businesses are realizing that remote work can still be efficient, sometimes even more efficient, than working in a physical office.

These benefits have led many companies to keep their employees working from home longer than originally anticipated. With so many people spending the majority of their time at home and avoiding physical interaction, service businesses need to adapt to how they reach current and new customers by getting their digital affairs in order.

Related: Survey Reveals 4 Transformational Remote Work Trends

Customers want to interact from home

The new normal for many people is less physical contact. People just arent entertaining neighbors, throwing a few beers back at the BBQ and talking about who does their lawn.

So, how do you reach customers under this new paradigm?

George Kocher, CEO of Brand North, a digital growth consulting company, says With customers at home, word-of-mouth referrals will start to decrease for the service sector as a result of unusual interaction. For this reason, its more important than ever for service businesses to reach customers through new channels and streamline their purchase experience. The more friction, the less their service will be consumed by a work-from-home and millennial and younger generations that hate picking up the phone.

Its been documented that millennials are less likely to pick up the phone or request a call, for several reasons. If they cant find the answer from their own research, they believe its easier to move on to the next issue rather than waiting for a call.

Traditional businesses have moved to remote operations

Traditional businesses that always had physical interactions with customers have seen their operations move to remote situations. This includes law firms and many other consultative service providers. Prior to the global crisis, it would have seemed a bit odd to hold a meeting with your attorney to draft a will using Zoom or another video conferencing tool. But, ever since March, attorneys have moved their operations completely remote. This includes onboarding new clients, holding appointments, drafting wills, revising legal documents and much more.

There are hundreds of examples where businesses are going online and closing down brick-and-mortar locations. More than 6,300 stores are closing in 2020 as traditional businesses are seeing less walk-in customers. Service businesses are doing well, but its time to get ahead of the changes in consumer behavior and create a purchasing process that limits friction.

Related: 5 Ways Brands Can Reinvent Their Digital Marketing Strategy

How to adapt to the times

No matter what type of company you operate, its important to adapt quickly. This involves getting online and finding your audience there, in a few different ways.

Update your company website

The first thing you should do is conduct an audit of your website and make the necessary changes to speed, loading times and user experience. Make sure your website allows visitors to purchase your products or services without having to interact with you, and make sure that your site has visibility online with SEO.

The future brings with it a lot of unknowns, but be prepared to make a lot of sales without interacting with your customers  and make that process easier for them.

Engage current customers online

You should engage with your current customer base online often. Whether you do so via email marketing, newsletters or social media accounts, engaging with your current customers online is quite easy and can build a lasting relationship.

Encourage customers to comment, share and bookmark the content you distribute online. Share customer testimonials. Include frequently asked questions on your website so the customer doesnt have to pick up the phone. Include video tutorials, how-to guides, listicles and any other type of content that positions your company is an expert in its field.

Get social with new landing pages

Creating and engaging social strategy thats backed up by paid engagement to a landing page with purchase options can be huge. People are still buying. The world hasnt stopped, but it is happening more remotely than it was before. Having an easy online conversion is a huge step above the competition.

The bottom line

Theres no way around it; we are going to continue to move further into a remote-based, online society. Make a solid effort to streamline how your company communicates with and sells to customers as soon as possible so you can capitalize on the new normal and grow with the times.

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Politicians past and present offered their condolences after news broke of the death of former prime minister John Turner on Friday night at his home in Toronto. He was 91.

Turner served as the 17th prime minister of Canada from June 30 to Sept. 17, 1984.

Politicians across the country paid tribute on social media to the man they say devoted his life to serve Canadians.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he will never forget all that Turner contributed to Canada and called him one of a kind.

An honourable gentleman and an upstanding Canadian, John cared deeply about democracy, equality, and those he served, Trudeau said in a tweet.

His optimistic outlook, energetic approach, and tireless service inspired many  and our country is a better place for it.

Former prime minister Stephen Harper said Turner served his family and country with great dignity.

His legacy and commitment to public service will be remembered for generations, Harper said in a tweet.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford offered condolences to Turners family and friends.

He was a dedicated public servant who devoted decades of his life to making Canada a better place, Ford wrote.

Former Ontario premier Bob Rae said he was very sorry to hear the news of Turners death.

John Turners vitality and determination, his loyalty to friends, his belief in public service and in Parliament itself  he served his country with great distinction and honour, Rae tweeted.

RELATED STORIES Obituary Former PM John Turner dead at 91

Former PM Jean Chretien released a statement honouring his long-time colleague and friend.

John and I served together for many years as Members of Parliament and cabinet colleagues in the governments of Lester B. Pearson and Pierre E. Trudeau, Chretien said. During his tenure as Prime Minister, I was honoured to serve as his Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister. More than anything, John was a House of Commons man and an outstanding public servant. He revered our democratic institutions like no other and served his constituents and Canada with great distinction. He will be greatly missed.

In addition to his career in politics, Turner was also an accomplished athlete with Olympic potential when he was studying at the University of British Columbia.

I am saddened to learn that John Turner, Canadas 17th prime minister and 1949 graduate of the University of British Columbia died yesterday. He ran track for the UBC Thunderbirds and would return to receive an Honorary degree from UBC in 1994. My condolences to his family, tweeted UBC president and vice-chancellor Santa J. Ono.
file photo: The logo of Wirecard is seen in this illustration. (Photo by Alexander Pohl/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

By Siegfrid Alegado and Claire Jiao

The Philippines anti-money laundering authority has identified 57 persons of interest, including foreigners and local bank officers and government officials, whose links to Wirecard AG are being scrutinized.

Authorities are analyzing the transactions of these people who are not necessarily the accused or respondents in a criminal case, Mel Georgie Racela, executive director of the Anti-Money Laundering Council, said in a virtual briefing in Manila.

Other Comments

Agencys probe wont extend to the banks where officers worked as possible lapses in internal controls will be tackled by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

Authorities are building cases against domestic violators of the Anti-Money Laundering Act and are waiting for evidence from German authorities so it can pursue charges against key people including former Wirecard COO Jan Marsalek.

Authorities are also looking at companies possibly related to former Wirecard executive Christopher Bauer, who died in July in a Philippine hospital.

Unit Wirecard e-Money Philippines Inc. appears to have no connection to the alleged fraudulent activities, said Racela, adding that theres no need to press the panic button as the company is willing to cooperate with the investigation.

 2020 Bloomberg L.P.
Chennai, Sep 19 : Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami on Saturday supported the three Bills on agriculture, saying he knew about farming and farmers' welfare "unlike DMK President MK Stalin".

Strongly supporting the three farm Bills brought by the Centre even while different opposition parties are opposing these, Palaniswami said: "Unlike the Leader of the Opposition (Stalin), I know about farming and farmers' welfare." Palaniswami asserted that Tamil Nadu farmers will not be impacted by the three proposed laws that had many beneficial provisions for them.

Palaniswami said that The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill 2020, The Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill 2020, and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill 2020 passed in the Lok Sabha are "beneficial" for the Tamil Nadu farmers.

"The provisions of the proposed law will not affect the farmers of Tamil Nadu. Hence, the state government did not oppose them. The situation in Punjab is different and is not comparable," he said.

He said that procurement under the public distribution system would continue even after these Bills become law.

Palaniswami also said the proposed laws did not mandate farmers to have Permanent Account Numbers (PAN).

Explaining the provisions of the Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020, Palaniswami said already contract farming in coco, sugarcane and poultry is present in the state.

He said that the proposed law will enable proper implementation of contract farming.

"The law that encourages contract farming does not have any provision to compel or affect farmers." The Chief Minister said that farmers will get contracted price for their produce and if the market price was higher than the contracted price, there was a provision in the law for the farmers' benefit.

The central government's law will only reinforce a similar law brought by the state government in 2019, Palaniswami said.

Stalin, who is opposing the Bills due to political reasons, did not oppose the state law, he claimed.

Contract farming will also ensure that food processing industries get assured quality raw material, which will lead to increased employment opportunities in rural areas.

On the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, Palaniswami said that the proposed law provides for freedom to the farmers to sell their produce anywhere and with competition they can only profit.

That apart, there is the possibility of the existing infrastructure getting upgraded.

"Under the proposed law, other than the market fee levied at the trade area no other charges are permitted in Tamil Nadu whereas it is not the case in Punjab. Hence, the proposed law may impact the revenues of states like Punjab." The Chief Minister claimed that the proposed law will not impact the Minimum Support Price (MSP) regime.

Palaniswami said that the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020 enabled the streamlining of the stockholding limit when prices of horticultural or agricultural produce increased by 100 and 50 per cent respectively.

"As a result, consumers and the farmers will benefit. There is no truth in the contention that corporates will resort to hoarding," he said.
A member of exchange staff uses a fixed-line telephone while looking at financial data on computer screens on the trading floor of Bats Europe, the European arm of Bats Global Markets Inc., in London, U.K..

Trading floors in banks have been immortalized in countless Hollywood movies. Chaotic scenes of financial professionals, often on the phone, and often screaming; rows of desks and endless monitors all convey highly stressful situations in an industry where time is literally money.

While there's some fiction to this stereotype, the images of densely populated, cavernous spaces are grounded in the truth. And in the era of Covid-19, of course, all that frenetic activity and tightly-packed bodies pose a big challenge  even more so than in the typical group office. As banks begin to think about bringing employees back to work, trading floors could soon get a dramatic makeover.

"We do believeand we think we will seea little relaxing of the rigidity of the planning and the shape of trading floors," Rocco Giannetti, managing director at architecture firm Gensler, told CNBC. "Maybe trading floors don't need to be as large. Maybe they don't need to be as dense. Maybe the configurations don't have to be so linear, so we're starting to study what that could look like," he added.

Gensler is an expert in designing office spaces for the financial services industry. The firm has worked with a number of banks, including designing the Bank of America tower in New York City's Bryant Park, which was completed in 2009. Gensler's other clients include JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank, Citigroup, Nomura and Societe Generale.

Ease of communication has always been pivotal when thinking about the design and layout of trading floors. But in more recent years, banks have also focused on providing enhancements around the trading floor, such as greenery and coffee bars, as a way to counteract the day-to-day stresses for traders. This trend is likely to accelerate in the wake of Covid-19, especially as banks look to recruit and retain talent in the hyper-competitive industry.




Haiti - Justice : The IGPHN is investigating the police members of the Phantom 509 Group





Herve Julien, the Inspector General of the National Police of Haiti (IGPNH) announced that an investigation was underway aimed at identifying the police members of the "Phantom 509" Group who sow chaos in their path and frightens the population. population with their weapons, to convey their demands.



Herve Julien indicated that the IGPNH that already around 100 police officers had already been identified and around 60 have already been hearded, specifying that all the police officers appearing on this list are not necessarily involved in acts of violence.



For those who will be accused, they will be able to defend themselves, specifies the Inspector General, adding that the IGPNH will then determine the degree of responsibility and make recommendations to whom it may concern, recalling that the IGPNH "[...] is a structure of investigation [...] We do not seek to do injustice."



For his part Rameau Normil, the Director General ai and Commander-in-Chief of the PNH condemns those who claim to be from the PNH and who claim on social networks their acts of violence by associating with bandits, to set fire to public property and spread terror... and urge these police officers to stand out from these bandits.



See also :

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-31832-icihaiti-phantom-509-the-faes-condemns-the-attack-on-its-premises.html

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-31827-icihaiti-phantom-509-a-dinepa-vehicle-set-on-fire.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-31820-haiti-flash-new-violent-actions-of-the-phatom-509-group-in-the-capital.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-31803-haiti-flash-outburst-of-violence-of-the-police-offciers-of-the-phantom-509-group.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-31787-haiti-justice-the-phantom-509-group-issues-an-ultimatum-and-threatens.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30777-haiti-justice-a-police-officer-incarcerated-in-the-penitentiary-the-phantom-group-issues-an-ultimatum.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30755-haiti-security-the-group-phantom-509-soon-reported-as-an-terrorist-group-to-international.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30644-haiti-politic-the-group-phantom-509-target-of-the-justice.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30641-haiti-flash-violent-demonstration-of-police-officers-of-the-group-phantom-509.html



SL/ HaitiLibre


















Galveston, Chambers and Brazoria county officials issued voluntary evacuation orders Saturday as Tropical Storm Beta crept toward the Texas coast, likely bringing coastal flooding and prolonged rainfall, officials said.

Forecasters expect the storm to strengthen into a hurricane by Sunday night or Monday as it tracks toward the lower- to mid-Texas coast, according to the National Hurricane Center. Beta will likely dump heavy rain and flood coastal regions as it drifts slowly up the shoreline through the middle of next week. The exact path and intensity remain uncertain.

Both Galveston County Judge Mark Henry and Chambers County Judge Jimmy Sylvia signed disaster declarations on Saturday as they urged residents to prepare for potential hurricane conditions.

As of Saturday afternoon, voluntary evacuations had been issued for the Bolivar Peninsula, the city of Galveston's low-lying areas and West End, the city of Seabrook in southeast Harris County, low-lying and flood-prone areas in Chambers County and low-lying coastal areas outside the protection levee in Brazoria County, according to officials in those jurisdictions.

Seniors, people with medical needs and those who cannot survive in their home for three or four days should seek safety inland, officials said. High water could cut off coastal areas from roadways, blocking emergency service providers. Henry said he did not anticipate the need for mandatory evacuations in Galveston County.

The Texas Department of Transportation announced that Galveston-Bolivar ferry service may be disrupted as early as Saturday afternoon due to rising tides and high winds. Water is expected to flood Texas 87 on Bolivar Peninsula.

City officials urged people who do not live or work in Galveston to leave. The city is running its storm management drainage plan. Residents were advised to dispose of tree limbs, brush or other items in their yard that could float or blow into drains.

A hurricane watch remains in effect for Port Aransas to High Island, according to the National Hurricane Center, with hurricane conditions possible in those areas late Monday. A storm surge warning is in effect from Port Aransas to High Island, including Galveston Bay, and a storm surge watch is in place from Baffin Bay to Port Aransas and from High Island to Cameron. The hurricane center also issued a tropical storm warning from Port Aransas to Intracoastal City, La.

BUSY HURRICANE SEASON: Running out of storm names, Atlantic season goes Greek

As of 4 p.m Saturday, the storm was located 245 miles south and southeast of Lake Charles, La., with winds of 60 mph. It was stationary, according to the hurricane center.

Storm surge could reach up to 4 feet in Galveston Bay and the other coastal areas inside the storm surge watch, the hurricane center said. Large and destructive waves are expected in those areas as well.

There is an increasing risk of significant rainfall along the Texas and Louisiana coasts from Sunday into the middle of next week, according to the hurricane center.

"The expected slow motion of Beta has the potential to produce a long duration rainfall event along the western Gulf Coast," the hurricane center wrote in an update. "The potentially prolonged period of rainfall could cause flash, urban, and river flooding, especially where tide levels are above normal."

Coastal areas may be inundated with 10 to 15 inches of rain, but exact rainfall amounts depend on the storm's path, which remains uncertain, said Dan Reilly, National Weather Service meteorologist.

If the storm heads east or stays offshore, the Houston/Galveston region will get less rain. If it tracks west or more inland, heavy rainfall can be expected farther inland. Rainfall will likely be a concern starting early next week.

The storm has a broad swath of tropical storm-force winds, Reilly said, which could push water ashore and create moderate coastal flooding as early as Saturday night. Winds may reach hurricane-force speeds in some areas.

"We have relatively high confidence that we are going to see this moderate coastal flooding," Reilly said.

Houston officials said Saturday they are monitoring the storm and urged residents to stay aware, stock their emergency kits and refill prescriptions.

Tropical Storm Beta is a reminder that hurricane season is still in full swing," Mayor Sylvester Turner said in a statement. "We will be monitoring this storms development closely over the next few days as it continues to strengthen in the Gulf."
Carole Baskin, the animal rights activist who gained national attention while sparring with exotic tiger keepers on the popular Netflix documentary "Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness," is getting her own show.

The new show will star Baskin and her husband, Howard Baskin, of Big Cat Rescue in Tampa, Fla., according to a statement Thursday from ITV America's Thinkfactory Media, the production company that is developing the show.

The new show, unscripted and as yet unnamed, will follow the couple "as they work to expose, like never before, those who abuse and take advantage of various animals," and spotlight history, lawsuits and animal rights violations, Thinkfactory Media said in a statement.

"This is a chance for us to use our new platform to battle the everyday evils facing big cats and so many other animals," the Baskins said in the statement.

The production company will soon meet with networks and streaming services to pitch it, Thinkfactory Media said.

The company has previously worked to bring other shows to networks, including, "Mama June: From Not to Hot," "Gene Simmons Family Jewels" and "Dog and Beth: Fight of Their Lives."

Baskin and her husband gained attention in March, as much of the country was homebound during the coronavirus pandemic and millions of viewers were drawn to "Tiger King." The documentary followed Baskin and Joseph Maldonado-Passage (known as Joe Exotic), the flamboyant owner of a lion and tiger zoo in Wynnewood, Oklahoma, through their long-lasting feud.

In 2019, Maldonado-Passage was convicted of trying to have Baskin killed. In June, a federal court judge in Oklahoma ruled that Baskin's organization, Big Cat Rescue Corp., could take over the site of Maldonado-Passage's former zoo.

Baskin has denied any role in the disappearance of Don Lewis, her former husband, who was mentioned several times in the show. Lewis disappeared in 1997, and the case was never officially closed.

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Baskin also drew attention this week when she made her debut on "Dancing With the Stars" on Monday, performing to "Eye of the Tiger." She wore her signature flower crown and danced in a pink tiger print dress. (The dance even started with her partner, Pasha Pashkov, and tiger props in a cage.)

During the show, the family of Lewis and their lawyer, John M. Phillips, ran a commercial seeking justice for Lewis and asking for tips. As of Thursday, it had more than 800,000 views on YouTube.

Carole Baskin said Wednesday that it would be wonderful if the commercial could help solve Lewis' disappearance, according to TMZ.

Since the commercial was broadcast, Phillips said Thursday, a tip line and his law office had received more than 100 tips. Some of them are "very specific," but he declined to elaborate.
President Trump and Vice President Mike Pence pushed officials at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in a phone call on Thursday for answers about why they have endorsed roughly two dozen freshman House Democrats, two people familiar with the discussion said.

Mr. Trump and Mr. Pence jointly called the chambers chief executive officer, Tom Donohue, to press him on the endorsements, which have been a source of turmoil since they were announced.

The two asked if the endorsements were a done deal, according to one of the people briefed on the call, which was first reported by the website Axios.

In a break with past practice, the chamber  the influential and heavily Republican-leaning pro-business lobby  chose to endorse 23 first-term House Democrats, giving a boost to vulnerable Democratic incumbents and rankling conservatives. As arguably the countrys most powerful business organization, the chamber has disproportionately supported Republican candidates, pumping tens of millions of dollars into their campaigns.
It wasnt that long ago that startups positioned their companies as the Uber of X, pitching that they had the same massive growth potential as the ride-hailing company.

Now even some companies competing with Uber on its transportation-on-demand turf are stressing their philosophical distance from the San Francisco company. Theyre pointing to the different tactics they adopt in the fraught area of how drivers and couriers relate to the companies that bring them business.

Uber and hometown rival Lyft both classify drivers as independent contractors. California is suing them, saying the drivers should be employees under AB5, the states new gig work law. Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, Instacart and Postmates are seeking their own permanent exemption to AB5 with Proposition 22, a November ballot initiative that would keep California drivers and couriers as independent contractors.

The gig companies say that an employment model would devastate their businesses. Uber and Lyft have threatened to leave California, or curtail service, if forced into an employment model.

At least three startups, Alto, Dumpling and Arcade City, plus one established ride-hailing company, Wingz, say they comply with AB5, using either an employment model or a true independent contractor approach. They are revving up to pounce if a ride-hailing void opens up. Their approaches shed some light on the employee versus contractor debate  and on how Uber and Lyft might need to adapt.

Alto: Texas ride-hailing startup Alto hires drivers as employees and maintains its own fleet of Buick Enclave sport utility vehicles, rather than having drivers use their personal cars. It said those approaches promote safety, consistency and quality.

Backed by $20 million in venture capital, it started operating in Dallas a year ago and now is expanding to Houston.

Arcade City

The Uber and Lyft brouhaha accelerated Altos plans to enter the California market, which it hopes to do this fall, starting in Los Angeles and then San Diego. Service in San Francisco will probably begin in 2021. However, state regulators said it has not applied to operate here, a process that can take 90 days.

We never expected or needed Uber (and) Lyft to exit a market for our business model to work, said Alto CEO Will Coleman, a partner at consulting firm McKinsey & Co. before founding the startup in 2018. Nonetheless, should they exit the market, that does create a pretty significant void that we hope we could at least partially fill.

Having drivers be employees allows for more training and oversight, he said.

But there are drawbacks. Rides cost more and take longer to arrive  both issues that Lyft and Uber have identified as impediments. Coleman said riders are willing to accept those trade-offs in exchange for higher-quality service.

Alto costs about 40% to 50% more than the cheapest Uber or Lyft rides and about half as much as the rivals premium services, Lyft Lux and Uber Black, Coleman said.

Rather than matching its rivals promises of almost-immediate rides, Alto says it will fulfill ride requests within 10 to 15 minutes. Ultraquick pickups require a glut of drivers on the street, which promotes congestion and isnt economically feasible if theyre employees being paid to circle, Coleman said.

Altos employee drivers cant have maximum flexibility  another big sticking point Uber and Lyft often raise  but they still have some.

Alto drivers who choose to work full time are guaranteed 40 hours a week in exchange for letting the company pick their schedules, Coleman said.

Its part-time drivers get to pick when they work, but their desired time shifts may not be available. The company publishes a schedule 10 days ahead and part-timers can select open shifts, often up to the same day.

Dallas drivers earn about $15 an hour plus benefits. They have no car expenses, since the company covers gas, maintenance and insurance for its fleet.

Alto had 200 Dallas drivers before the pandemic. When business plunged during shelter-in-place orders, it added deliveries to keep its full-timers employed.

Weve got to get to California, because we want to be part of this broader debate around employment, treating drivers fairly, consumer impact, Coleman said.

Arcade City: Austins Arcade City provides tools and support for drivers to create and run their own ride cooperatives, which it calls guilds. Each guild can determine its own pricing and structure.

We want to help driver-entrepreneurs bootstrap new networks in every city, said founder, CEO and sole employee Christopher David, a former Uber driver. Its tools include payment processing and an app for ride booking and peer-to-peer connections among drivers.

An Arcade City guild, now with 150 drivers, has operated in Austin since mid-2016 when Uber and Lyft pulled out for a year. Those drivers charge a $10 minimum and $2 a mile, more than the ride-hail giants. David said it has handled about 500,000 rides in three years.

If there was an abrupt withdrawal (from California), we could meaningfully organize some percentage of drivers, like we did in Austin, he said.

Rides would have to happen under individual or corporate entities that comply with state regulations for ride-hailing. Working with existing taxi companies might be one route, he said.

The California Public Utilities Commission regulates what it calls transportation network companies. David hopes to get a license for such a company, but obtaining the required $1 million insurance coverage depends on fundraising. The company has raised a bit over $1 million.

AB5 is not a roadblock, he said: Weve solved labor considerations by going in the opposite direction, actually empowering drivers to be entrepreneurs.

In Austin, the transportation department sought to cite him for illegally running a transportation network company, but he said it was settled amicably.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

Brian Hill, an Oakland ride-hail driver, said hes working to organize a guild here. He knows it cant yet be official, but thinks drivers could give rides to friends in exchange for donations. People want something new, he said.

Dumpling: Located in Berkeley and Seattle, Dumpling provides tools to help people run their own business doing grocery shopping  and its now adding tools for offering scheduled rides.

Dumplings drivers and shoppers are independent business owners who set their own rates and find their own clients, it said.

The company grew out of a project to advocate for the working class, said co-founder and co-CEO Joel Shapiro. After eliciting thousands of stories from gig workers about their gripes, it decided to create a way for them to have their own companies, starting with those who did grocery shopping and delivery through Instacart.

Dumpling created a financial system to allow shoppers to pay for the groceries and bill customers, for customers to enter their grocery lists, and for shoppers to promote their businesses. Food is personal, Shapiro said. Clients are looking for a relationship, a person who gets to know them and their preference, so it isnt a roll of the dice every time.

Its 2,000-plus shoppers set their own prices, manage their own schedules and work with their own customers. Shoppers pay $20 to sign up, plus credit card processing fees. Clients pay 5% of their order, which is how Dumpling makes money.

Dumpling is developing similar technology for drivers who want to start ride businesses. We want to support drivers who are scared, who dont know what to do if Uber (and) Lyft pull out, Shapiro said.

Its offering test versions of its tools for ride scheduling and payments free for 60 days. Drivers must validate that theyve handled their own commercial licensing and insurance. In California, they need a transportation charter permit, plus significant insurance coverage.

Dumpling drivers and shoppers are in complete control, Shapiro said. They decide what they want to do; there are no carrots or sticks to reward/punish them.

Wingz: One of the earliest ride-hailing companies, Wingz offers scheduled rides, mainly to airports, from regular people in their own cars. Wingz has classified them as independent contractors  but now is switching to employment in California to comply with AB5.

The service is small. Wingz operates in the Bay Area, Los Angeles and San Diego and a handful of other cities nationwide. Its Bay Area drivers numbered in just the dozens before the pandemic.

A driver-employee model is actually something we want to embrace, said Christof Baumbach, CEO and co-founder. We think it allows us to have control over the drivers, to tell them what needs to be done.

Carolyn Said is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: csaid@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @csaid
LANSING  The first meeting of Michigans recently seated Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission was held on Sept. 17 and involved two full days of virtual orientation and information gathering.

More than 9,000 Michiganders submitted applications for one of the 13 seats on the commission.

Michigans citizens made their desire to put democracy back in the hands of the people loud and clear when they overwhelmingly passed Proposal 2, said Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson. This historic meeting is the culmination of years of citizen engagement, and months of work preparing to give our commissioners the tools they need to do this incredible work.

The Commission, composed of four members who identify with the Republican party, four members who affiliate with the Democratic party and five members who do not affiliate with either party, will spend two days receiving orientation materials, focusing on the duties and expectations of the commission members, as well as expert panel presentations on the mapmaking process. While the Secretary of State is involved in the public record keeping of the process and serves as the secretary without a vote, the Commission is independent and autonomous.

During this first meeting, commissioners will be expected to select an acting chair, as well as make logistical decisions about staffing and the schedule of the process over the next year. The Commission will use data from the 2020 census, as well as citizen input over the next 14 months, to draw new federal and state legislative maps that are due by Nov. 1, 2021 and will take effect prior to the 2022 elections.

As part of the commitment to transparency during the process, public comment opportunities will be available multiple times throughout the two-day introductory session. A complete copy of the two day agenda, as well as information for participating during the public comment periods, can be found at RedistrictingMichigan.org.
In August 2020 the U.S. Air Force opened a 5,500 square meter (60,000 square feet) VTTC (Virtual Test and Training Center) at Nellis Air Force base in Nevada. Nellis is the home of the Red Flag operation, where American pilots operate F-16s as enemy pilots would in various foreign fighters. The F-16s are repainted for this and carry electronic equipment that provides the kind of electronic signals enemy aircraft use. Red Flag training has been going on since the 1970s, following the example of the earlier navy Top Gun program, and has proved its worth in preparing pilots for a foe that flies and fights differently. Israel has a similar Blue Flag program and China has also developed a similar program.

As useful as Red Flag and Top Gun are, this sort of thing is expensive. It costs over $10,000 an hour to fly a jet fighter in training. As China and Russia put more airborne EW (Electronic Warfare) gear into service and develop more capable ground-based air defense systems it become much more expensive to provide affordable and realistic opfor (opposing force) training for pilots. Thats where the VTTC comes in. While the $38 million VTTC is ready to go, it isnt going far until it is full of a dozen or more flight simulators that, together, cost far more than the VTTC building.

What made the VTTC possible is cheaper and more capable fighting simulators. Since 2000 computers have become a lot cheaper and the graphics capability of these machines has skyrocketed. That's important in bringing the cost of realistic flight simulators down to a level that any country can afford and that larger nations can afford a lot of.

Until the late 1990s, a realistic combat flight simulator cost about as much as the aircraft it was simulating. While that did reduce the cost (per "flying" hour) of pilots practicing, it was not enough of a savings to make it practical for less wealthy countries to get these simulators and use them heavily. There was a continuation of the situation where countries could scrape together enough money to buy high performance aircraft but not have enough to pay for all that flight time needed to make their pilots good enough to face the well trained pilots. That would include Israelis, Americans and most Western air forces, a category that includes Asians nations like Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore. The new generation of simulators cost 10-20 percent what the aircraft they simulate go for. Suddenly, countries like China are developing and buying many of these simulators and giving their pilots enough realistic training to make them a threat in the air, especially to Western pilots.

The VTTC was created to take advantage of the cheaper flight simulators to make possible large-scale combat operations using F-15E, F-22 and F-35 fighters along with airborne support aircraft against equally large Chinese forces. Not only can the VTTC train a lot of pilots at once but allows examination of variations in known Chinese aerial tactics. VTTC exercises can also include pilots using simulators at other bases. Current Internet speeds and low-latency (delay) are the result of gamers and some commercial users demanding. Such network conditions mean wide area (international) networked simulators allow for simulating major air battles at an affordable price.

Each of these simulators can be run about 6,000 hours a year. While a hundred hours a year in a simulator isn't a complete replacement for actual air time, it's close enough if the training scenarios are well thought out. And another 40-50 hours of actual air time gives you a competent pilot. Add another few hundred hours using commercial (game store bought) flight simulators (especially when played in groups via a LAN) and you have some deadly pilots. The Chinese have, since the 1990s, stressed the use of PCs as a foundation for cheaper and more powerful simulators. In the last decade they been working their way towards the same goals the VTTC has.

Using American aircraft for "aggressor (or dissimilar) training" began in the 1960s. The original "Top Gun" fighter pilot school was established in 1969, by the U.S. Navy, in response to the poor performance of its pilots against North Vietnamese pilots flying Russian fighters. What made the Top Gun operation different was that the training emphasized how the enemy aircraft and pilots operated. This was called "dissimilar training". In the past, American pilots practiced against American pilots, with everyone flying American aircraft and using American tactics. It worked in World War II because the enemy pilots were not getting a lot of practice and were using similar aircraft and tactics anyway. Most importantly, there was a lot of aerial combat going on, providing ample opportunity for on-the-job training. Not so in Vietnam, where the quite different Russian-trained North Vietnamese were giving U.S. aviators an awful time. The four-week Top Gun program solved the problem. The air force followed shortly with its Red Flag school.

Since the 1970s the two training programs have developed differently, and the entire concept of "dissimilar training" has changed. The navy kept Top Gun as a program to hone a fighter pilot's combat skills. The air force made their Red Flag program more elaborate, bringing in the many different types of aircraft involved in combat missions (especially electronic warfare).

After the Cold War ended in 1991 it became increasingly obvious that none of America's potential enemies was providing their fighter pilots with much training at all. In other words, the dissimilar training for U.S. fighter pilots was not as crucial as it had been during the Cold War. Actually, it had been noted that flying skills of Soviet pilots was declining in the 1980s, as economic problems in the USSR caused cuts in flying time. During that period American pilots were actually increasing their flying time. Moreover, U.S. flight simulators were getting better. American pilots were finding that even the commercial game-oriented combat flight simulators had some training value.

In the late 1990s, Top Gun and Red Flag were faced with large budgets cuts as part of post-Cold War peace dividend. In the last decade some of those cuts have been revoked and the programs remain, as does the memory of why they were set up in the first place. If we find that, say, China is continuing to improve its combat aviation, and gives its fighter pilots more flying time and their politicians maintain a bellicose attitude towards the U.S., there will be a need to increase American dissimilar training efforts like Top Gun and Red Flag. The ground and naval forces were also doing more dissimilar training, often using computerized foes but also with other ground units or ships accurately representing potential enemies. Other nations adopted these American practices. After 2010 China and Russia also developed "dissimilar training" programs. All this meant the U.S. Top Gun and Red Flag schools were being restored to their former prominence.

Because Israel has been at war or under imminent threat of attack since the late 1940s Israel has developed one of the best Red Flag operations outside the United States. The Chinese effort to create a Red Flag operation is based largely on the success the United States and Israel have had with it, and shows that they are serious about preparing their pilots to fight and defeat Taiwanese and American pilots. Dissimilar training is how that is done and for many nations Israel is the nearest place to get it.
Young Winnipeggers dont need to look to video games to find a fictional hero who embodies grit-and-guts courage.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 19/9/2020 (489 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

Young Winnipeggers dont need to look to video games to find a fictional hero who embodies grit-and-guts courage.

The history of Winnipeg includes a real-life superhero: Terry Fox, the kid from Transcona.

Its the 40th anniversary of Foxs inspirational attempt to run across Canada, essentially on one leg  the other, lost to cancer, had been replaced by a prosthesis. Given the traditional tendency to mark full-decade anniversaries, this year would have been a big deal if the pandemic hadnt intervened. Instead, the Terry Fox Run in Winnipeg on Sunday will be virtual only, with participants encouraged to walk, and fundraise, on their own.

Winnipeg is an admirably strong supporter of the Terry Fox Run, which in the past four decades has raised $800 million internationally for cancer research. But when it comes to celebrating Foxs personal connection to this city, many Winnipeggers are understated to the point of being aw-shucks reticent.

Other areas of Canada with little or no personal claim to Fox offer more extravagant honours than his birthplace of Winnipeg. Valemount, B.C. named a mountain after him. His name or image adorns 14 schools across Canada, 15 roads and highways, 12 parks and trails, as well as stamps and coins.

To celebrate the 40th anniversary, limited-edition sneakers, like the three-stripe runners worn by Fox, were released in May and sold out quickly at $130 a pair, with 100 per cent of the proceeds going to cancer research.

In Winnipeg, there is a modest bust of Fox in Assiniboine Park, but its scant recognition compared to other memorials across the country. Outside of Thunder Bay, Ont., for example, a striking three-metre-high bronze statue, set on a 45-ton granite base, overlooks Lake Superior near the area where Fox stopped running on Aug. 31, 1980. Its the centrepiece of a park and a worthwhile stop when driving along the Trans-Canada Highway.

It seems there is a reluctance in some quarters of Winnipeg to celebrate Fox as one of our own, even though his parents, Betty and Rolland Fox, were solid-stock Winnipeggers. Terry was born here and raised in Transcona, in a home at 520 Gertrude Ave. (later demolished for the construction of Gladstone School), and Terry attended Wayoata School in Transcona for three years before the family moved to Port Coquitlam, B.C., when he was eight years old.

Manitoba adjusted its calendar in 2015, when it changed the name of the August statutory holiday from the nondescript "civic holiday" to Terry Fox Day. But when it comes to visible edifices commemorating our citys link with this remarkable man, Winnipeg has been surprisingly remiss.

Assiniboine Park has a nice statue of Winnie the Pooh, despite the fact that, unlike Fox, the famous black bear was never in Winnipeg. The inspiration for the titular character of Winnie the Pooh is based on a bear cub purchased in White River, Ont., by a soldier, and named Winnie because the soldier was from Winnipeg.

If we can erect a statue of a bear that inspired a fictional favourite just because its name is derived from Winnipeg, perhaps we could consider a prominent statue honouring a real-life champion with a genuine Winnipeg background.

A fitting tribute would be to change the name of Wayoata Elementary School, which Fox attended. The school was new when he attended grades 1 through 3 in the 1960s and the building remains in use, allowing the 270 children currently at Wayoata to feel the connection with greatness that comes with realizing Terry Fox himself walked those very halls.

There was an attempt in 2005 to change the Wayoata name to Terry Fox School, but some trustees on the River East Transcona School Division board said they didnt want to show disrespect by removing the name Wayoata, which they assumed was an Indigenous word with importance to local Indigenous people. But is it?

The website of Wayoata School offers the vague claim that "the name Wayoata comes from an Indigenous language and roughly translated means place of beauty and abundance."

But the Free Press has checked with local Indigenous communities to determine the meaning of the name Wayoata, interviewing Cree and Ojibwa speakers and academics. None of them knows about the word.

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Internet listings of the word are all confined to Winnipeg, and none is linked to Indigenous languages. In the end, the 2005 attempt to rename the school was thwarted by trustees well-meaning but misinformed attempt to protect a name that, it seems, doesnt mean much to anyone.

Terry Foxs name, by contrast, means a great deal to many people. At a time when many historic figures are being publicly condemned, sometimes to the point of toppling their statues, no one has ever had cause to disparage Fox.

While so many people are suffering hardships related to COVID-19, it helps to remember the pluck shown by the young man who overcame extreme physical hardships to hobble-hop 5,373 kilometres in 143 days.

Hes a true Canadian icon, and the roots of his story are in this city. Perhaps its a connection in which Winnipeg could show a bit more hometown pride.

carl.degurse@freepress.mb.ca

Carl DeGurse is a member of the Free Press editorial board.
Children do exercise at a kindergarten in HCMC, June 10, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran.

An above average score has enabled Vietnam to reach 38th position among 174 economies in the 2020 Human Capital Index.

Released Wednesday by the World Bank, the index used data up to March this year to provide a benchmark of human capital, including education and health, that a child born today can expect to attain by age 18 in the pre-pandemic era.

Vietnam's score increased from 0.66 in 2010 to 0.69, meaning that a Vietnamese child will be 69 percent as productive when growing up with good health and receiving a complete education.

The score is well above the world's average of 0.56.

The analysis found that 98 percent Vietnamese children survive to the age of 5; a Vietnamese boy or girl attending school at the age of 4 can complete 12.9 years of school, or high school, by the age of 18; and 76 percent of children are not stunted.

Vietnamese students received 519 points in Harmonized Test Scores (HTS), a level similar to countries like Sweden, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. HTS measures how much children learn in school based on countries' relative performance on international student achievement tests, where 625 represents advanced attainment and 300 represents minimum attainment.

Furthermore, 87 percent of 15-year-olds will likely live until the age of 60 in Vietnam.

The report pointed out that Vietnam and other countries like Estonia, Kyrgyz Republic and Uzbekistan have higher human capital than the countries with higher gross domestic product (GDP) per capita.

In fact, Vietnam's human capital score is above many of the world power-house economies like Russia with 0.68 (41st place), China 0.65 (45th) and India with 0.49 (116th).

Singapore came in first place this year index with 0.88 points, followed by Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Canada to complete the top 5.

The bottom five countries are Mali, Niger, South Sudan, Chad and the Central African Republic.

In Southeast Asia, Vietnam ranked above Brunei (56th), Malaysia (62nd), Thailand (63rd), Indonesia (96th), the Philippines (103rd), Cambodia (118th), Myanmar (120th), Laos (126th) and Timor-Leste (128th).
Prime Minister is likely to chair a meeting of the chief ministers of seven states next week to review the situation.

Sources said the meeting is likely to be held on September 23.

Chief ministers of Maharashtra, Delhi, UttarPradesh among others are expected to attend the meeting, they said.

The prime minister has been regularly holding meetings to review the pandemic situation across the country with a focus on states/UTs where the situation is more serious.

His last COVID-19 review meeting was on August 11 with chief ministers and representatives of 10 most-affected states, namely, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Punjab, Bihar, Gujarat, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh.

(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.)
Long Way Up

Cast: Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman

Creators: Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman, Russ Malkin, David Alexanian

It is not everyday that a series takes you by surprise. Especially when it is a show about bikes and you have never before taken an interest in them. But once you let go of your preconceived notions and watch Long Way Up for what it is, you realise it is a wonderful story about friendship.

Actor Ewan McGregor and TV Presenter Charley Boorman had previously gone on similar journeys in Long Way Down and Long Way Round, but the friends eventually drifted apart when Ewan moved to Los Angeles to resume his film career. Until one day, he got a message that Charley was in a near-fatal bike accident. This brings the two closer and they decide to bring back the good ol days" with Long Way Up, a journey of 13,000 miles across 13 countries.

They travel from a small town of Ushuaia in the Southern tip or Argentina, through South America, Central America and Mexico, all the way to Los Angeles in California.

However, during the early preparation of this trip, Charley goes through a second accident, more dangerous than the first, with multiple injuries that could have even taken his life. This part, though shown in the passing, is very emotional. Ewan talks about realising whats important in life, but also about Charleys determination to get back on a bike as soon as possible.

The main challenge of their trip is not only the terrain, or Charleys health, but the fact that they are on this journey on fully electric bikes and vehicles. This proves to be extremely difficult as the journey progresses, with the team getting stuck in less than fortunate conditions with zero charge in their vehicles. They go through a lot of problems that would make great climax to action films, but since its not the case, they have to freeze in minus degree temperatures, constantly miss their deadlines and be real people in a really difficult adventure.

It is heartening to see how many locals come to their rescue, from letting them take up all their power to charge their bikes to especially opening their hotels to accommodate the team. Its a bit difficult to say if that is the case because there is a movie star in their midst, or human beings are good in general. However, it is certain that there is an overwhelming sense of dependence with local people because of their electric vehicles.

The adverse conditions also make for great comedy, from Ewan talking about his father scolding him for not checking the climate of South America before going on a dangerous adventure to Charley thinking they will die in a haunted hotel on their first day of the journey. You cannot help but laugh. Their interaction can sometimes feel like bits from a sitcom, but its just their easy camaraderie of years.

Long Way Up will not make you feel like an outsider at all. It is not technical. It is also not only about the two best friends. The entire team, including the director, producers, camera-persons get to truly be a part of the adventure.

The gorgeous landscapes should be enough to hook you in for the entire series. From glacier forests to arid deserts and grasslands, you feel like you are right there with them. You will also learn about different cultures from people they meet on their journey and it feels like an antidote, while we are all stuck inside our homes due to Covid-19.

Long Way Up is an ode to old friendships. It doesnt matter if you dont understand why people say may the force be with you to Ewan McGregor when they meet him, or never watched anything Charley Boorman has been in. It doesnt matter if you dont know how to ride a bicycle. The show is a real delight to watch.

Long Way Up is an Apple TV original spanning 10 episodes, out of which the first four are available to stream.

Rating: 3/5
As drug companies race to come up with a vaccine for COVID-19 which is still on the rise, medical institutions have become the new hot target for hackers. A shocking example of this has come to light recently, with allegations on Chinese hackers to have stolen information from Spanish laboratories working on the vaccine.

An AFP report cites El Pais, a Spanish newspaper, making the claims. As per the report, details of the attack, including the stolen information and the time of attack, are still not known. It is, thus, yet unclear as to how important the stolen information was.

(Image for representation/Reuters)

The report does mention the nature of the attack. It quotes Spain's secret service chief Paz Esteban, saying that hackers had mounted "a particularly virulent campaign targeting laboratories working on the search for a vaccine." Ezteban cleared that the attacks have not just been on Spanish laboratories but in other countries too.



Speaking to journalists, Esteban mentioned a "qualitative and quantitative" increase in attacks during lockdown. During this time, the hackers targeted "sensitive sectors such as healthcare and pharmaceuticals" as per Esteban.



She points out that there have been numerous such attacks in several countries that have been involved in developing a vaccine for COVID-19. This prompted an exchange of information between the spy services of these nations.

Security sources mention that most of these attacks around the globe were carried out by hackers from China and Russia. Though the majority of the attacks are being blamed on state organisations, some have been carried out by criminal organisations and universities which trade in hacked data.

The attack on the Spanish laboratories citing a theft of data was launched by Chinese hackers, confirmed the sources. The CNI, Spains official intelligence agency, did not immediately comment on the report.

Hackers target COVID-19 research data

(Representative Image: Reuters)

Chinese hackers have been accused of such attacks on medical facilities in the past as well. Back in may, U.S officials warned organisations and public healthcare professionals to be vigilant for cyber theft. The warning was issued in a statement by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Homeland Security.



A week before that, an Iran-linked cyber attack was reported, targeting staff at U.S Drugmaker Gilead Sciences - the maker of remdesivir - one of the few drugs that enjoyed the highlight in the fight against COVID-19.

Similar reports mentioned advanced hacking attempts to breach into WHO (World Health Organisation) while the pandemic was on the rise.
The US has deployed additional troops and armored vehicles into eastern Syria after a number of clashes with Russian forces, including a recent vehicle collision that injured four American service members.

Navy Capt. Bill Urban, spokesman for US Central Command, said the US has also sent in radar systems and increased fighter jet patrols over the region to better protect American and coalition forces.

The United States does not seek conflict with any other nation in Syria, but will defend Coalition forces if necessary, said Urban.

Also read: Russia, US should help each other during pandemic: Kremlin

A senior US official said a half-dozen Bradley fighting vehicles and fewer than 100 additional troops were sent in to eastern Syria.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details of the military move, said the reinforcements are meant to be a clear signal to Russia to avoid any more unsafe and provocative actions against the US and its allies there.

There have been a number of escalating incidents this year between US and Russian forces who patrol in eastern Syria.

The most serious was last month, when officials said Russian vehicles sideswiped an light-armoured US military vehicle, injuring four Americans.

A US official said at the time that two Russian helicopters also flew above the Americans, and one of the aircraft was within about 70 feet (20 meters) of the vehicle.

The deployment of the armoured vehicles was first reported by NBC News.

Russia, which backs the Syrian government, has long opposed American presence in the country. The Russian Defense Ministry blamed the US for the vehicle collision.

Also read: US officials say Russia is spreading virus disinformation

The ministry said Russia had notified the US-led coalition about the Russian military police convoys route and said the U.S tried to block the Russian patrol.

The four American service members injured in the crash received concussions. US troops are usually accompanied by members of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces on the patrols, and they have stayed in the region to root out remaining Islamic State insurgents.

The crash last month took place near Dayrick, in northeast Syria, where Russian troops should generally not be present. National Security Council spokesman John Ullyot said the US patrol left the area to deescalate the situation. While there have been several other recent incidents between the American and Russian troops in eastern Syria, officials have described the August crash as the most concerning.

This is the second time that Bradleys have been sent into Syria. They were used last October in operations with US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in missions to defeat the remnants of the Islamic State group and protect oil fields in that area.

The Bradley units are from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armoured Division, based at Fort Bliss, Texas.

The mechanised infantry assets will help ensure the force protection of coalition forces in an increasingly complex operating environment in northeast Syria, said Col. Wayne Marotto, spokesman for the US-led coalition.

The Coalition forces remain steadfast in our commitment of ensuring the enduring defeat of Daesh.
The late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday night at 87, was remembered fondly by her eight surviving colleagues on the bench, all of whom released statements on her passing.

Any ideological divide between Ginsburg and the other justices was absent from their recollections, most of which consisted of praise for her intellectual brilliance and positive memories of working alongside her, with multiple justices noting how Ginsburg welcomed them graciously when they took their place on the court. Justice Sonia Sotomayor called Ginsburg a personal "hero" and said she assisted her throughout her career, "long before I came to the Supreme Court."

Former Justice Anthony Kennedy, who retired from the court in 2018, also shared his thoughts, having served alongside Ginsburg for 25 years. "By her learning she taught devotion to the law," he said. "By her dignity she taught respect for others and her love for America. By her reverence for the Constitution, she taught us to preserve it to secure our freedom."

STATEMENTS FROM THE SUPREME COURT REGARDING THE DEATH OF ASSOCIATE JUSTICE RUTH BADER GINSBURG pic.twitter.com/nHLlPDAjGB  Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) September 19, 2020

Elena Kagan: "As an attorney, she led the fight to grant women equal rights under the law. As a judge, she did justice every day--working to ensure that this country's legal system lives up to its ideals and extends its rights and protections to those once excluded."  Ryan Struyk (@ryanstruyk) September 19, 2020

More stories from theweek.com

How a productivity phenomenon explains the unraveling of America

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China drew up its own list after the Trump administration imposed extra tariffs and curbs on Chinese goods and Huawei. Photo: Getty

Chinas commerce ministry released details of its unreliable entities blacklist on Saturday, which was first announced in May last year.

While Beijing announced the new regulations it hasnt published the list yet, but it ups the ante in the trade war with the Trump administration.

It comes after US president Donald Trump, imposed curbs on Huawei and additional tariffs on Chinese goods. In retaliation, China said it would draw up its own list.

It targets foreign firms and individuals violating normal market transactions in the country  interrupting deals with Chinese firms  or taking discriminatory measures against Chinese companies.

The list will help safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests, maintain a fair and free international economic and trade order, and protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises, other organisations or individuals, the ministry said.

READ MORE: TikTok and WeChat: Heres all you need to know about what is happening

Firms that end up on the blacklist could be banned from investing in China or importing or exporting in China.

Other actions, include entry restrictions on workers entering the country, revoking work or residence permits and imposing fines.

The ministry said that there is scope for companies to be taken off the list, providing they correct the behaviour and take steps to eliminate the consequences of their actions. It will also set up a system and office to execute work related to the list.

In May, state-owned media outlet Global Times said that China could put companies like Apple (AAPL), Qualcomm (QCOM) and Cisco (CSCO) on the list in retaliation for US restrictions on Huawei.

On Friday, the Trump administration moved to ban downloads of Chinese apps TikTok and WeChat from US app stores on national security grounds. In retaliation, TikTok and parent company ByteDance filed a suit on Friday night in Washington against the Trump administration to block the ban.

Chinas commerce ministry condemned the ban and has urged the US to stop bullying behaviour and wrongdoing.
The Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company (Adnec), part of ADQ, has acquired the International Exhibition for National Security and Resilience (ISNR Abu Dhabi).

A leading conference in Middle East and North Africa that covers the security equipment sector, including device manufacturing and security technology development, ISNR Abu Dhabi will join the portfolio of leading international exhibitions organised by Adnec.

The acquisition comes as part of a strategic partnership signed between Adnec and Reed Exhibitions, enabling Adnec to further consolidate its leading position in the business tourism sector, and further strengthening Abu Dhabis leading regional and international position in a range of strategic sectors.

In addition, Adnecs decision to acquire the exhibition was further driven by its commitment to holding world-leading exhibitions and conferences in a diverse range of sectors, as part of Abu Dhabis economic growth and diversification.

The addition of ISNR Abu Dhabi burgeons the portfolio of exhibitions and conferences organised by Adnec.

These include the International Defence Exhibition and Conference (Idex) and the Naval Defence Exhibition (Navdex), the Unmanned Systems Exhibition (Umex) and Simulation and Training Exhibition (SimTEX) and the accompanying conference, SIAL Middle East, and the Abu Dhabi International Boat Show.

ISNR Abu Dhabi is a leading platform that showcases the latest innovations in the security solutions sector. The exhibition strengthens business relationships for companies protecting critical infrastructure facilities and working in border-control and counterterrorism operations.

In addition, the conference enables sectors including crime management; forensic sciences; disaster, crisis, and emergency management; digital security; and safety and security at major events and crowded areas.

Commenting on the acquisition, Managing Director and Group CEO Humaid Matar Al Dhaheri, said: Adnec continues to consolidate its leading position in the business tourism sector. We are enhancing our contribution to the economy of Abu Dhabi, in line with the goals of Abu Dhabi Economic Vision 2030, through our diversified portfolio of activities."

"This high-level event is a strategic addition, demonstrating our commitment to developing the exhibition sector in Abu Dhabi and the region as a whole. This event supports our local and international stakeholders, our exhibitors, and event participants, who can benefit from our considerable industry knowledge and extensive global business network," remarked Al Dhaheri.

In acquiring this strategic event, the first revamped edition under ownership of ADNEC will take place in early February 2022, capitalizing on its success during previous years through developing and strengthening its presence, befitting the stature and the reputation of the UAE in the international exhibitions industry, he added.

Due to the ongoing impact of the global Covid-19 pandemic, Reed Exhibitions has made the decision to cancel the 2020 edition of the exhibition. Accordingly, the next edition will be held in 2022 by Adnec, which is expected to be the largest in the history of the exhibition since its launch in 2008.

Adnec is an industry leader in the management of conference centres and development of leading exhibitions.

Founded with a vision to become a leading destination for popular, high-profile international conferences in Mena, Adnec is a key player in promoting business tourism in Abu Dhabi. The company owns a network of regional and international centres and hotels, and organises a wide range of leading international exhibitions and events.-TradeArabia News Service
The bank manager was reasonably friendly but just a little aloof. First names were not used. He was Mr Jones. I was Mr Humphrys.

We sat either side of his highly polished mahogany desk on which there were two very small glasses of dry sherry  one for him and one for me. I was there to open an account. He asked me a few questions about my financial situation and then delivered a short lecture on the potential perils of debt and the wisdom of financial probity.

As you may have guessed by now, this happened a very long time ago. I had just turned 18 and it was my first bank account.

It all came back to me yesterday when an old friend forwarded me an email from his own bank that illustrated dramatically how much has changed in the world of banking. The essence of it was that his bank is no longer a bank. It is a Store. Thats their capital letter, not mine.

My friend was outraged: I joined the Yorkshire and Clydesdale Bank in 1976. They had bags with a big blue Y that I used to carry my books at university. First the bags went. Then the direct phone line went, so I couldnt contact my local branch directly but was hoovered away to a call centre. Then the branch went. Then the bank became Virgin Money. And now? The horror . . . the horror!

I read the email and understood his anguish. Martin! they told him in garish bright red and blue, Weve got some exciting news for you! But first he had to Get ready for a life more Virgin.

Lets remind ourselves that this is a bank we are talking about. Not a website flogging trendy trainers to gullible youngsters. A bank. Society can survive without trainers. It cannot survive without banks. And banks are not and never will be about smiles

There followed the usual vacuous, teeth-grindingly patronising guff that passes for communication in the digital age and at the heart of it was this promise: Service that is about smiles not sales!

Thats more than vacuous. It is disingenuous to the point of dishonesty.

Lets remind ourselves that this is a bank we are talking about. Not a website flogging trendy trainers to gullible youngsters. A bank. Society can survive without trainers. It cannot survive without banks. And banks are not and never will be about smiles. They are about providing us with a service and making a profit from us, their customers. To suggest otherwise is a lie.

Banks have been regarded with deep suspicion throughout history. Thomas Jefferson, the greatest of American presidents and seldom prone to understatement, got it about right when he said: I sincerely believe that banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies.

Not that I regarded Mr Jones across his mahogany desk in the early 1960s as dangerous. On the contrary. I trusted him. But in the decades that have passed since our meeting, the banks have changed almost beyond recognition and squandered that trust.

Its not that in the 1960s they did their customers any great favours. If you went into the red by splurging money you did not have, then you paid for it. But if you had savings you got a decent return, and if you had a problem you could talk to a human being. They played fair.

Pretty much all of that has gone.

Of course the digital revolution has changed the way we do business. Cheques are dying if not dead  replaced by a few clicks of a mouse. It has saved customers some hassle and saved the banks a fortune. But the endless queues outside every branch in the early days of lockdown showed how many people still need their local bank and how few have survived.

In the past five years a third of all bank branches have been closed, often leaving their customers with nowhere else to go.

Its a similar story with cashpoints. Hundreds of thousands of the poorest people find themselves in cash deserts.

Returns on savings are derisory: a virtually worthless 0.06 per cent was the average last month. But the interest you pay on an overdraft is stratospheric.

A few months ago the Financial Conduct Authority ordered the banks to simplify their immensely complicated overdraft structure. They did. And then promptly hiked the cost of an overdraft to eye-watering levels. Anything from 35 to 39 per cent for the big boys. Nice work if you can get it.

That may be morally dubious, but at least its legal. Unlike the massive PPI scandal that continues to rumble on. Like so many other great banking scams, it appeared to offer a service many of us could benefit from.

If you bought payment protection insurance when you took out a loan, and then fell ill or lost your job, your repayments would be covered.

No fewer than 64 million policies were sold. But millions were mis-sold to people who did not want or need them, and who would not have been covered by them anyway.

At first the banks protested their innocence, but the evidence of dodgy dealing was overwhelming. An astonishing total of 36 billion has been paid out in compensation. The cost to the banks reputation has been even greater.

Now another scandal may be about to surface  this one unearthed by the impressive Thames Valley police and crime commissioner Anthony Stansfeld.

He has accused some of the UKs major High Street banks of perpetrating serious organised crime against their customers, potentially causing billions of pounds of losses over at least a decade by forging signatures to win court cases and repossess homes.

When I spoke to Mr Stansfeld this week he told me: Lives have been destroyed, families evicted, people have been bankrupted.

Mr Stansfeld said he had reviewed evidence of signature forgeries which was provided to Lynne Owens, the director general of the National Crime Agency (NCA) in September last year.

He has given evidence to the Treasury Select Committee in which he said that the evidence of criminal activity was clear and compelling. The committee wants the NCA, which investigates organised crime, to conduct an investigation.

The Conservative MP Steve Baker, a member of the committee, told me he is deeply alarmed that the NCA has not yet done so and added: Ive seen evidence which could prove people have been put out of their homes on a false premise.

So I called the NCA to try to find out what they are doing.

They told me they are making a thorough assessment to determine whether there are grounds for a criminal or regulatory investigation.

You might wonder how long it takes to make an assessment.

There are many who share Mr Bakers view that the banks are tempted into activities that are dubious, if not downright illegal, because they can no longer make enough profit from doing the sort of thing Mr Jones was doing all those years ago.

There are also many who will share the view of the Nobel Prize-winning economist Professor Joseph Stiglitz: Rather than justice for all, we are evolving into a system of justice for those who can afford it. We have banks that are not only too big to fail, but too big to be held accountable.
Ivan Cholakov/iStockBy LUIS MARTINEZ, ABC News



(WASHINGTON) -- In a show of force, the U.S. military has sent armored fighting vehicles to eastern Syria to help protect the hundreds of American troops stationed there following a tense encounter with Russian forces last month that left seven American troops injured, said U.S. Central Command.



A military spokesman said the deployment of Bradley Fighting Vehicles, advanced radars and increased flight patrols was a "clear demonstration of U.S. resolve to defend Coalition forces" in eastern Syria.



"U.S. Central Command has directed a number of actions in northeast Syria to help ensure the safety and security of Coalition forces," Capt. Bill Urban, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said in a statement.



"The United States has deployed Sentinel radar, increased the frequency of U.S. fighter patrols over U.S. forces, and deployed Bradley Fighting Vehicles to augment U.S. forces in the Eastern Syria Security Area (ESSA)," he added.



"These actions are a clear demonstration of U.S. resolve to defend Coalition forces in the ESSA, and to ensure that they are able to continue their Defeat-ISIS mission without interference," said Urban.



"The United States does not seek conflict with any other nation in Syria, but will defend Coalition forces if necessary," said Urban.



A U.S. official said that six Bradley Fighting Vehicles arrived in Syria early Friday from Kuwait and that their deployment along with the forces manning the radar equipment will add an additional 100 personnel to the 500 American forces operating in eastern Syria. An additional 100 to 200 U.S. military personnel are stationed at a remote outpost along a major southern highway near the border with Jordan that is a transit point for Iranian weapons to Hezabollah and Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime.



The deployment of the Bradleys is a direct result of the Aug. 26 incident where a Russian armored vehicle rammed an American military patrol vehicle injuring seven service members.



"These actions and reinforcements are a clear signal to adhere to mutual de-confliction processes and for Russia and other parties to avoid unprofessional and unsafe and provocative action in eastern Syria," said the U.S. official.



That incident was deemed serious enough that Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, phoned his Russian counterpart to express concerns about Russian actions that some officials described as "reckless."



The deployment is intended as a show of force to Russian troops that have been encroaching on the U.S. military's areas of operations east of the Euphrates River. Russian troops are supposed to operate west of that river, and American military officials have said that despite Russian claims their troops were not cleared to operate in the U.S. zone on the day of the incident.



There are about 500 American troops in eastern Syria operating in eastern Syria as part of a mission to protect Kurdish oil fields from ISIS.



Bradley Fighting Vehicles were first deployed to Syria last October as the first visible sign of the new American mission to protect the Kurdish oil fields. That mission followed President Donald Trump's initial decision to pull all 2,000 U.S. troops out of Syria following Turkey's invasion targeting Kurdish forces.



But the deployment was brief as they were removed three weeks after they had arrived and were replaced by additional forces.



The deployment came on the same day Trump said during a briefing that U.S. was "out of Syria," before adding the caveat of just protecting "the oil."



"We are out of Syria, other than we kept the oil. I kept the oil, and we have troops guarding the oil. Other than that, we are out of Syria," Trump said.



"We're out of Syria, except we kept the oil and we will make a determination, well probably be dealing with the Kurds on the oil, and see what it all ends up, but well be out," he added.



The U.S.-led anti-ISIS coalition said in a statement that the new deployment of Bradley Fighting Vehicles were all from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division currently deployed to Kuwait.



Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
After 20 years of negotiations, planning and construction, the water has gone up behind Manitoba Hydros $8.7-billion Keeyask dam northeast of Thompson. The troubled project on the Nelson River now floods 45 square kilometres.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 19/9/2020 (489 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

After 20 years of negotiations, planning and construction, the water has gone up behind Manitoba Hydros $8.7-billion Keeyask dam northeast of Thompson. The troubled project on the Nelson River now floods 45 square kilometres.

Hydro says that is a small area for a 695-megawatt dam, but there is nothing small about it when that is where you grew up and where your family and culture are rooted.

That is why a family gathered on an island within sight of the Keeyask dam on the last weekend of August, just days before the flooding.

The immediate family of the late Allison and Rachel Kitchekeesik of Tataskweyak Cree Nation, along with supportive community members, were there to honour their familys past. To say goodbye to a place that embodied home. To add their humble footnote to the tangled annals of progress.

A weathered white cross, reclaimed from Hydro that week, stood at the centre of their island encampment.

I first visited the island in 2016 as part of a small film crew. We made the hour-long boat trip from Split Lake, the main Tataskweyak community, down the Nelson River with three family members. We wanted to share their story.

But last month I was there simply to mark the occasion with the seven Kitchekeesik sisters  Mary, Janet, Joan, Ila, Joyce, Marilyn, Gloria  and two brothers  Jonathon and George. Due to health issues, George could not come, other than a brief fly-by in a chopper. The siblings range in age from early 40s to mid-60s. Two died previously.

MARILYN MAZURAT PHOTO The remains of Lillians Island after the water went up behind the Keeyask dam.

I travelled downriver to the island with Jonathon Kitchekeesik, for whom each bend in the river seemed to call to mind a lively story, usually about moose hunting. He spoke as someone in the place he belongs, truly at home.

Most of the siblings and their families have visited the area several times a year. Two have cabins there. Family photos show cousins on beaches, extended families around campfires, kids playing with baby owls.

A weathered white cross, reclaimed from Hydro that week, stood at the centre of their island encampment.

Passing through the area on the way to the island with Jonathon that day were three university researchers with ties to the community, a First Nation employee tasked with documenting the impoundment and my 13-year-old son, who I thought should experience what most Manitobans, including Hydro and government officials, never do.

I first heard the story of the island during my initial visit to Split Lake when I worked for the Interchurch Council on Hydropower. Over supper at a community event in 2012, Marilyn Mazurat (formerly Kitchekeesik) took me back to April 27, 1980.

She was nine, her brother Leon, seven. Their family was camped on the island, which was small enough to walk around in 45 minutes. Their grannys camp was a short distance away along the shore. As Mazurat and Leon left to play in the snow with their cousins near their grannys camp, their mom charged Mazurat with care of her brother. "Look after your baby brother," she said in Cree.

Due to a problem with the physiology of his mouth, Leon could not speak. But he could smile. "He was always smiling," Mazurat says when talking about him. "He was special," she adds, brimming with emotion.

Special or not, Mazurat eventually got tired of babysitting her brother that day and sent him home. "Go straight home," she said. Later, when their dad showed up he asked about Leon. He was not back at the camp. They called. They scoured the island.

Eventually they found small footsteps leading to a hole in the ice.

The youngest Kitchekeesik, Gloria stood gazing up. When asked what she was looking at, the three-year-old pointed to the sky and said, "Leon."

SADIE-PHOENIX LAVOIE PHOTO Members of the Kitchekeesik family gather for a final visit to Leons Island in late August.

Jonathon and an uncle went back to the community to get help. Divers came the next day. They found nothing.

For the rest of his life, their dad scanned the shorelines in the area for remains.

A weathered cross erected on the island was the familys monument to their special little brother. Though no map will show it, the island is Leons Island.

Not far away is, or rather, was Lillians Island  known for its beaches  where the late Kitchekeesik sister and her family would camp.

"Hydro is a corporation that looks after their own needs rather than ours. They call the shots."  Tataskweyak Chief Doreen Spence

Also nearby is the site of their dads former cabin. We visited the spot in 2016, shortly after Hydro crews had started clearing trees from areas to be flooded. As our boat pulled up, I saw a Hydro hard hat nailed to a prominent tree, as if a modern mini-Columbus had announced a conquest.

Ironically, Tataskweyak Cree Nation is a partner in the Keeyask project. At least on paper. In 2009, less than 40 per cent of eligible Tataskweyak members showed up to vote on a partnership deal; 61 per cent of them voted in favour.

Hydro had given the First Nation $60 million for studies and consultation. Some community members say money was distributed in ways that made people more likely to vote "yes."

The centrepiece of the partnership was an option for Tataskweyak and three smaller First Nations  York Factory, Fox Lake Cree and War Lake  to jointly purchase a share of up to 25 per cent in the project, supposedly putting them in line for a quarter of the revenues of a lucrative multibillion-dollar megaproject.

But the financial foundation of the dam crumbled even as the literal foundation was being poured. Since Tataskweyak locked into the partnership in 2009, the cost of the dam has gone from $5 billion to $8.7 billion. Projections for energy demand in Manitoba have dimmed and the Energy East pipeline, which would have included pumping stations that Hydro predicted would use roughly a quarter of Keeyasks output, was cancelled.

SUPPLIED Leon Kitchekeesik

In addition, exports to the U.S. were to be a financial cornerstone of the project, but as the prices of wind and solar power and natural gas have dropped well below the cost of producing power at Keeyask, Hydro is left on the wrong side of a seismic shift in the American energy market.

The partners will buy a far smaller stake in the dam  likely in the range of two per cent  acquiring shares of a sort that guarantee a minimum return even if the dam loses money.

Doreen Spence, who was elected Tataskweyak chief in 2016, says the partnership has been badly lopsided. "Hydro is a corporation that looks after their own needs rather than ours," she says. "They call the shots."

The Kitchekeesiks know that well. After bitter talks, the family reluctantly signed a compensation agreement with Hydro in 2015. The terms are confidential.

Then last month, with the stress of imminent impoundment building, the family again faced the blunt force of partnership.

Hydro announced that the water would go up starting at midnight on Aug. 26. Aware of that eventuality, the family had placed a stone memorial for Leon at a higher point upriver, but they wanted to gather to remove the cross from Leons Island and hold a ceremony. They had tried to do so on the weekend prior to impoundment, but the funeral of a respected elder on Saturday and bad weather on Sunday prevented it. They asked Hydro to delay the flooding for a few days.

"I have a hard time accepting the fact that the next time I go down it wont be there. All that Ive known and loved will all be under water."  Marilyn Mazurat (formerly Kitchekeesik)

Hydro refused.

A Hydro spokesman defended the company, telling CBC the family had known for years that the cross would need to be moved.

Evidently, Hydro would extend no grace, despite the circumstances.

BRAD LEITCH PHOTO Marilyn Mazurat, in 2016, reflects beside the cross in honour of her little brother, Leon. His namesake island is now nearly submerged as a result of the Keeyask dam project.

Then, on Aug. 24, two days before the impoundment, Mazurat phoned to tell me Hydro had removed the cross and put it in storage.

For the family, this brazen and easily preventable move was callous and disrespectful. A desecration.

On Tuesday evening, after a wrenching call with Hydro, Ila Disbrowe (formerly Kitchekeesik) and her husband got in their boat. They arrived at Leons Island after dark, a few hours before the start of impoundment. They set up camp several feet above the water line. Ila livestreamed her stand.

The water started rising, about an inch per hour. The next day Hydro relented, delaying further impoundment until the family could gather on the island, which they did the following weekend.

A small victory.

Reflecting on leaving the island after one last weekend there, Disbrowe said: "I felt I totally failed my parents and our brother for not fighting hard enough."

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Mazurat added: "I have a hard time accepting the fact that the next time I go down it wont be there. All that Ive known and loved will all be under water."

There is no happy ending. No solution. Money cannot replace what is lost.

Leons Island is largely underwater.

"The flooding has caused a lot of grief, sadness and anger," says Chief Spence.

In my mind, I keep hearing a question Disbrowe asked during our 2016 visit to the area: "I just dont understand why theres so many sacrifices we have to make?"

 Will Braun has worked with hydro-impacted communities in different capacities over the past 20 years
Dental care, hospital care and agriculture all got infusions of provincial government money on Friday as Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith made three announcements at a single virtual press conference.

Heres more detail on those announcements:

Dental clinic expansion:

The Community Dental Health Clinic in the offices will get $355,400 from the Ontario government to expand clinic space in 2021.

The clinic  which is located in the Peterborough Public Health building on King Street  will be expanded from three to five operatories, Smith announced.

Furthermore the clinic will get a larger reprocessing area for sterilizing dental equipment, states a release from PPH, as well as new doors for the clinic entrance and an accessible washroom.

The clinic houses the Ontario Seniors Dental Health Program, which provides free dental care to low-income senior citizens.

Hospital upgrades

Peterborough Regional Health Centre is to receive a total of $186,450 for 2020 and 2021 through a fund to help boost accessibility at the entrance of the hospital.

In December Smith had announced $104,000 to replace the revolving front door of the hospital with a more-accessible automatic sliding door in 2020, plus about $45,000 for emergency department upgrades.

On Friday Smith said PRHC can now expect a total of $186,450 in 2020 and 2021 (which is an increase of $37,666 over the money announced in December).

Its going to allow PRHC to resurface the concrete at the front doors to make the entrance smoother and safer in 2021, Smith said.

The money is coming through the provincial governments Health Infrastructure Renewal Fund, which allows hospitals across Ontario to do repairs such as installing new roofs, windows, heating and air-conditioning systems.

The fund will offer $175 million this year to do repairs and maintenance in hospitals across the province, states a government press release, including $50 million for projects related to COVID-19.

Agriculture

Five farms in Peterborough County are sharing $44,490 to improve their business operations, Smith said.

He didnt name the farms on Friday, saying hed yet to contact them to tell them they were about to receive funding.

One of the local farms applied for money to plant over-wintering cover-crops, Smith said, which helps prevent soil erosion.

The funding is part of a $7.9 million program that will help 670 farm projects across Ontario, he said.

The Canadian Agricultural Partnership is the program behind it, according to a press release from the Ontario government, and the $7.9 million is coming from both the federal and provincial governments.
France's Minister for European Affairs Clement Beaune, foreground, and Cyprus' Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides take part in a news conference at the Foreign Ministry building in the capital Nicosia, Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. (Petros Karadjias/AP Photo)

France: EU Sanctions on Turkey an Option Over Gas Standoff

NICOSIA, CyprusFrance on Friday backed Cyprus calls for the European Union to consider imposing tougher sanctions on Turkey if the Turkish government wont suspend its search for energy reserves in eastern Mediterranean waters where Cyprus and Greece claim exclusive economic rights.

French Minister for European Affairs Clement Beaune said sanctions should be among the options the 27-member bloc considers employing if Turkey continues to endanger the security and sovereignty of a member state.

But we consider that the Union should also be ready to use all the instruments at its disposal, among them the one of sanctions, if the situation didnt not evolve positively, Beaune said after talks with Cypriot Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides in Nicosia.

Frances Minister for European Affairs Clement Beaune (L), and Cyprus Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides take part in a news conference at the Foreign Ministry building in the capital Nicosia, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Petros Karadjias/AP Photo)

EU leaders are set to hold a summit in a few days to discuss how to respond to Turkey prospecting in areas of the sea that Greece and Cyprus insist are only theirs to explore. Turkey triggered a naval standoff with NATO ally Greece after dispatching a warship-escorted research vessel in a part of the eastern Mediterranean that Greece says is over its continental shelf. Greece deployed its own warship and naval patrols in response.

Greek and Turkish military officers are also holding talks at NATO headquarters to work out ways of ensuring that any standoff at sea doesnt descend into open conflict.

The tensions appeared to ease in the last week, with Greek and Turkish officials having contact after Turkey temporarily pulled back the research vessel. But Ankara extended until mid-October the stay of another drill ship, Yavuz, in an area southeast of Cyprus that lies inside the island nations exclusive economic zone.

Ship tracking website Marine Traffic showed a second Turkish research vessel, Barbaros, currently operating south of Cyprus.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey withdrew the surveying vessel, Oruc Reis, from Greece-claimed waters for maintenance to give diplomacy a chance. But he warned that the ship wasnt done working and would be back.

As soon as the repairs and maintenance process is over, Oruc Reis will again return to its duties, Erdogan said.

Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan talks to the media following Friday prayers at a mosque in Istanbul, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Turkish Presidency via AP/Pool)

The Turkish president also said hes ready to meet with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to end the military buildup and standoff at sea, but he warned Greece against actions that could poison the negotiating climate.

We have no problem on the issue of meeting Mitsotakis. But what will we discuss, under which framework will the discussion take place, that is important, Erdogan said.

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias said Turkeys withdrawal of its survey ship and warship escorts was a positive step, but that Greece needs to make sure Ankara is sincere.

He said a list of sanctions will be put before EU leaders at next weeks summit and whether theyll be implemented will depend on Turkeys actions.

Im hoping that it wont become necessary to reach that point, Dendias said.

Turkey doesnt recognize ethnically divided Cyprus as a state and insists it has every right to search for oil and gas in the eastern Mediterranean. It has vowed to defend its rightful claims to the regions energy reserves, as well as those of breakaway Turkish Cypriots.

Cypriot officials insist the EU shouldnt set a double standard by imposing sanctions against Belarus for alleged voter fraud and police brutality while avoiding doing so when Turkey carries on its exploration at the expense of EU members.

Beaune said the EU cannot accept Turkish actions and that France has committed to resolving the issue while making its military presence felt in the eastern Mediterranean in support of its EU partners.

By Menelaos Hadjicostis
New Delhi: India has overtaken USA and become the top country in terms of global Covid-19 recoveries, the government said on Saturday even as the overall tally of Covid-19 cases reached 53,14,197.

According to union health ministry, India has reported the highest number of total recoveries with more than 42 lakh (42,08,431) Covid-19 patients recovered and discharged.

India now accounts for close to 19% of the total global recoveries pushing the national recovery rate to nearly 80% (79.28%), the union health ministry said in a statement. India however remains at the second position in the country in terms of Covid-19 cases after surpassing Brazil last week.

A total of 95,880 recoveries have been recorded in last 24 hours. Around 90% of the new recovered cases are being reported from 16 states/UTs.

Of the recovered cases in the last 24 hours, about 60% are being reported from five states, viz. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh.

Maharashtra has alone contributed more than 22,000 (23%) and Andhra Pradesh has contributed more than 11,000 (12.3%) to the single-day recoveries, the health ministry said.

90% of the total recovered cases are being reported from 15 states/UTs.

The top five states with the maximum caseload viz Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh are also nodal for highest number of total recoveries, the ministry added.

A total of 85,652 people have succumbed to the highly infectious disease.

Meanwhile, a high level review meeting was chaired by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba on Saturday wherein along with several central government officials, Chief Secretaries of the 12 State/UTs participated. These states are- Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Chandigarh, Telangana, Kerala, Delhi, Punjab and West Bengal.

About 80% of the Covid-19 caseload in the country is concentrated in these States/UTs, the government said in a statement.

Minister of Commerce & Industry Piyush Goyal also addressed the states and reviewed the oxygen availability in these states.

The minister specifically requested them to focus on analysing district level and health facility level status and effectively plan and manage logistical issues related with Oxygen availability.

He also urged them to share their best practices which in turn can be emulated by other states/UTs in the country.

The Cabinet Secretary expressed concern that the case fatality rates of several states are still higher than that of the national average.

He urged the states to analyse mortalities district- and hospital-wise for identification of critical areas of intervention. He also exhorted the states to ensure optimal utilization of RT-PCR capacity.

Gabau underlined the need for ensuring that no symptomatic negative case (tested by Rapid Antigen Tests) is missed and all such cases are mandatorily administered RT-PCR test.

Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan presented a detailed status note of Covid-19 of all these states with particular focus on the number of tests being conducted in each state/UT, their positivity rate and their average daily case fatality rate, availability of health infrastructure and their district-wise oxygen availability.

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A block development and panchayat officer (BPDO) was shifted on Saturday for issuing a letter claiming that a farmers protest would be organised by the Punjab government over the issue of farm ordinances on September 21.

Taking serious cognisance of the matter, Punjab chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh ordered the shifting of the Sardulgarh BDPO to the headquarters, and immediate withdrawal of the letter issued by him regarding farm protests that he incorrectly claimed to have been organised by the Punjab government, a government statement said here.

The directions came a day after Shiromani Akali Dal leader Daljit Singh Cheema had uploaded the BDPO letter on his Twitter handle, accusing the ruling Congress of outsourcing its programmes to the panchayati raj department.

The Punjab government has not organised any such protest, as claimed by the BDPO, according to the statement issued on Saturday.

Far from organising any protests, the government has been appealing to political organisations to refrain from organising public gatherings in the light of the Covid-19 pandemic, it said.

The overzealous BDPO had, on his own, announced a protest dharna on September 21 and had issued a letter asking all panchayat secretaries under his block to intimate sarpanches about the same, the statement said.

He had also wrongly claimed that ministers and MLAs would join these protests, it said.

The Punjab government had neither planned such protests against the farm ordinances nor asked the BDPO to issue the letter in question, the statement said.

The chief minister has asked officials concerned to inquire into the incident and pin the responsibility for this incorrect communication, it said.
Itanagar, Sep 19 : The Indian Army has set up a free-of-cost mobile-based telephone booth for the villagers of remote Mago-Chuna village in East Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh bordering China, defence sources said on Saturday.

The GSM-based (Global System for Mobile Communication) public call office (PCO) was set up so that the people can communicate with others for any necessity.

Defence spokesman Lt Col P. Khongsai said that the remote areas of Mago-Chuna have no communication facility, with nearest telephone connectivity 28 kms away.

The inaccessibility severely hampered the social life and overall progress of the area. Availability of this facility has brought joy and also opened new avenues of prosperity and opportunity.

With a population of around 80,000, mostly tribals, East Kameng district of western Arunachal Pradesh shares borders with China and Assam.
Assistant Minister for Superannuation Jane Hume has lashed out at industry super funds, saying their role is not to create jobs, rebuild the economy or get involved in the climate debate but to bolster retirement incomes for workers.

In a sign of mounting frustration between industry super funds and the federal government, Senator Hume accused Industry Super Australia of being "noisy" and "belligerent" and said it did not represent the views of some of its own member funds' bosses.

Assistant Minister for Superannuation Jane Hume has criticised the industry superannuation lobby group. Credit:Andrew Meares

Industry Super represents 15 industry funds, including AustralianSuper, CBus, HESTA and HostPlus, that collectively hold the retirement savings of 5 million members. Since June, HESTA, CBus and UniSuper have all revealed plans to cut carbon emissions to zero by 2050.

"Some of these funds have got very big and very influential and they seem to forget their job isn't to rebuild the economy or create jobs or reframe the climate debate or require industrial relations changes at companies they invest in," Senator Hume said, adding the industry super sector accounted for about 40 per cent of accounts in the $3 trillion superannuation system.
The board of directors at government-owned has approved buy-back of 96.98 lakh equity shares with a face value of Rs 10 each at Rs 265 per share, translating into the total buyback amount not exceeding Rs 257 crore.

The company was listed in July 2018. At present 72.02 per cent of its shares are held by the government and the balance are with public and financial institutions.

Chairman and Managing Director Rajeev Mehrotra said the company has strong financial fundamentals with a debt-free balance sheet.

"This share repurchase programme reflects management's confidence in the company and growth prospects in sectors and geographies where we operate," he said in a statement.

The board of directors has fixed September 30 as record date for ascertaining eligibility of shareholders for the buyback.

RITES is a mini-ratna category one schedule A public sector enterprise and a leading player in the transport consultancy and engineering sector in India, having diversified services and geographical reach.

The company has experience spanning 46 years with projects in over 55 countries including Asia, Africa, Latin America, South America and Middle East regions.

RITES is the only export arm of Indian Railways for providing rolling stock overseas (other than Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia).

(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.)
Natalie Portman, 39, arrived in Sydney, Australia earlier this month to begin filming the Marvel movie Thor: Love and Thunder.

The film was slated to shoot at Moore Park's Fox Studios, however the filming location is believed to be under review as NSW continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to The Daily Telegraph, the superhero flick is tipped to move to Queensland.

Back to work: Natalie Portman (left) arrived in Sydney, Australia earlier this month to begin filming the Marvel movie Thor: Love and Thunder. Pictured with Chris Hemsworth

The publication claims that the film's cast including Natalie and her co-star Chris Hemsworth, 37, are currently awaiting news of whether a relocation will happen.

Filming is scheduled to begin next month.

A number of large productions are set to shoot in the Sunshine state including Baz Luhrmann's Elvis and Channel Seven's new game show Holey Moley.

Down Under: The film was slated to shoot at Moore Park's Fox Studios, however the filming location is believed to be under review as NSW continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic. Pictured: Natalie and Chris

Natalie will wield the mythical hammer in the next film Thor film, set for release in 2022.

But that doesn't mean Chris will be stepping away from the action hero role which made him a global megastar.

Speaking to Poland's Elle Man this month, Chris confirmed he won't be retiring his famous character after Thor: Love and Thunder.

Is this his last Thor film? Hollywood actor Chris, has set the record straight on rumours he is leaving the Marvel superhero role

'Are you crazy?! I'm not going into any retirement period,' he said.

'Thor is far too young for that. He's only 1,500 years old. It's definitely not a film that I say goodbye to. At least I hope so.'

The movie, the fourth in the action franchise, reunites Chris with Tessa Thompson and Natalie, and also features Christian Bale.
"A bolt out of the blue. We never could have imagined this could happen."

-- Ed Renner, 99, of Milwaukee, on the Navy identifying the remains of his brother, Fireman 2nd Class Albert Renner, 24, who grew up in Mandan and died on the battleship USS West Virginia in the attack on Pearl Harbor nearly 80 years ago.

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"This COVID stuff is no joke."

-- North Dakota Supreme Court Justice Gerald VandeWalle, 87, who was first hospitalized with COVID-19 on Aug. 3 and continues to recover.

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"I would just say that I'm going to stand by both of those decisions, and maybe there's some theoretical conflict in holding those two views."

-- Gov. Doug Burgum, who supports a seat belt law to help mitigate traffic deaths but won't issue a mask mandate amid North Dakota's growing coronavirus cases.

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"We are exhausted of the sacrifices we've had to make over the last six months, and we can't take any more."

-- Mandan resident Andra Marquardt, advocating against a mask mandate.

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"We're going in with the idea we're going to all meet face-to-face, but we know that it's probably going to be a hybrid and we're good with that."

-- Senate Majority Leader Rich Wardner, R-Dickinson, on the upcoming legislative session.

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"I'm required to wear a tie because that's part of our dress code, so mandating a mask shouldn't be a problem."

-- House Minority Leader Josh Boschee, D-Fargo, advocating for a mask mandate during the 2021 Legislature.

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I was teaching at a similar institution, and it was nice to see other hometown folks really trying to better their corner of the world."

-- Chad Harrison, a former English faculty member at Sitting Bull College, talking about former longtime United Tribes Technical College President David Gipp, a national leader in American Indian higher education, who died at age 74 after an extended illness.

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"The response must not be political. Our response must be driven by data from reliable, neutral sources, and must evolve as new information emerges."

-- Democratic-NPL gubernatorial candidate Shelley Lenz, unveiling her proposed coronavirus response plan.

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He looks at his distance learning plan that he gets on Mondays, and hes so overwhelmed when he gets home Tuesday that he doesnt even know what the teacher said.

-- Lisa Klein, one of many Bismarck parents who spoke out against coronavirus measures in public schools.

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I didnt even know this existed, but they said 'Were going to give you masks for your instruments,' and I was like, What the heck?

-- Bismarck High School senior Sean Korsmo, who was given a coronavirus mask for his trumpet.

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We know leaks will be found. The key is how many leaks, and how long it takes for industry to repair those leaks. And thirdly, are they repeating leaks, at the same point?

-- Jim Semerad, director of air quality for the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality, on the state's fledgling program for reviewing leaks of air emissions from oil field infrastructure.

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"I work out every other day, lift, jog, run, play softball, avid hunter. Just have bad genes."

-- North Dakota Indian Affairs Commissioner Scott Davis, who recently underwent a heart bypass.

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"We feel this is a very responsible budget in very difficult times where we've seen a decrease in our state revenue collections because of the overall economy."

-- Mandan Finance Director Greg Welch, on a 2021 city budget that does not include any new mill levies.

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Boston Consulting Group (BCG), a global management consulting firm, has collaborated with Google to assess the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the global travel and tourism business and its impact on Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs).

The new report, titled Actions for Destination Marketers to Navigate in a Covid-19 World

looks at how peoples attitude towards travel changed and how "Destination Marketing Organizations" can prepare for the eventual resumption of travel or more unexpected future changes.

The impact of Covid-19 has been far and wide, and one industry, in particular, has been hit the hardest.

According to the report, the global travel and tourism business has recorded sustained and successful growth for the past 20 years, with a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 5 percent, amounting to $4.7 trillion in 2019.

With the effects of Covid-19, a decline in international and commercial passengers around the globe could lead to a loss of up to 58% of jobs (190 million) in the travel and tourism industry and cut the industrys contribution to global GDP by up to $5.5 trillion (62%), it stated.

BCG Managing Director and Senior Partner Pablo Martinez said: "The continued success of the global travel and tourism industry in the last two decades can be attributed directly to DMOs, as they generate the required demand for tourism by building destinations brands and raising traveler awareness about their respective destination offerings."

"The unpredictable nature of the pandemic has made it quite challenging for DMOs to plan and develop their tourism strategies. Our new research with Google is intended to provide DMOs with a perspective on how consumers attitudes toward travel have changed in response to the pandemic and imperatives to navigate the coming future," he noted.
The U.S. Treasury Department has imposed economic sanctions on a Chinese company that operates in Cambodia, citing its land seizure and displacement of families to make way for a $3.8 billion luxury gambling and lifestyle project.

The Dara Sakor Seashore Resort, developed by the Chinese company Union Development Group (UDG) in unspoiled Koh Kong province, includes an international airport and a port for cruise ships that credible reports suggested could be used by the Chinese military.

The company describes the undertaking as part of Beijings global Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, and on Thursday, its parent company, Tianjin Union Development Group, told Cambodias government-affiliated Fresh News, the allegations against UDG by the U.S. Treasury Department have ignored the facts on the ground and made up a story.

The company denied that the facility would be used for military purposes, citing numerous statements by Cambodian officials and the countrys constitutional prohibition on foreign troops on its territory.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said there were credible reports that Dara Sakor could be used to host (Chinese) military assets.

If so, (this) would go against Cambodias constitution and could threaten Indo-Pacific stability, possibly impacting Cambodias sovereignty and the security of our allies, he added in a statement on Tuesday, the same day the Treasury Department announced the sanction.

The U.S. has raised concerns in the past that the site could be used as a military asset housing Chinese naval forces, but Cambodian authorities have repeatedly denied it.

The U.S. sanctioning of the Chinese state-owned entity is pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13818, which builds upon and implements the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act to target perpetrators of serious human rights abuse and corruption and their supporters.

UDG-funded activities have forced Cambodians from their land and devastated the environment, hurting the livelihoods of local communities, all under the guise of converting Cambodia into a regional logistics hub and tourist destination, the Treasury Department said Tuesday. The Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated UDG as a Chinese state-owned entity.

The U.S. has alleged that UDG operated as a Cambodian entity under the aegis of Gen. Kun Kim, a close ally of Cambodias Prime Minister Hun Sen. He allegedly used the militarys right to seize land for its needs to move local people off the area UDG wanted for its resort project.

In its statement to Fresh News, the company defended Kun Kim, saying During the relocation, UDG respected and followed Cambodian law and lease terms by working with inter-ministerial commission without committing any wrongdoings through General Kun Kim.

The U.S. sanctioned the senior general, his wife and two children on December 9, 2019, for his involvement in corruption, according to the Treasury. Kim was allegedly using his influence and network to benefit Chinese companies in Cambodia.

After falsely registering as a Cambodian-owned entity in order to receive land for the Dara Sakor development project, UDG reverted to its true ownership and continued to operate without repercussions, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Tuesday.

We will not tolerate these actions against innocent people and will always stand with the Cambodian people, Pompeo tweeted soon after the sanction announcement.

On Wednesday, the Chinese Embassy in Phnom Penh posted a statement on Facebook saying, The US sanction citing domestic law is a blatant hegemonic act. It completely ignores the facts and is based on unwarranted charges. The US suppression on the legitimate investment of a Chinese enterprise in Cambodia will not only harm the lawful rights and interests of the enterprise [UDG], but also trample on the sovereignty of Cambodia.

The embassy continued to express its strong opposition and condemnation towards the US sanction. The Embassy further urges the US side to correct its wrongdoing and withdraw the so-called sanction.

Simmering controversy

UDCs plans have drawn attention since 2008, when the company received a 99-year land concession from the Cambodian government for 36,000 hectares, land that included 20% of the nations coast. Plans for development included the Dara Sakor International Airport, with the longest runway in Cambodia and features favored by fighter-jet pilots, and a yacht basin deep enough for naval ships.

The planned construction encroached on the dense evergreen rainforest of Botum Sakor National Park, Cambodias largest. Renowned for its biodiversity, it hosts rare animals such as the clouded leopard, the Asiatic black bear, the dog-related dhole, pileated gibbon, and the fishing cat. The park serves as a link in one of Asias remaining elephant corridors, thin strips of land that allow elephants to move from one habitat to another while largely avoiding people.

And, as alluded to in the sanction, the UDG project has demolished more than 1,500 households in Koh Kong province, according to the Cambodian rights group Community Legal Education Center.

The Cambodian government rejected evidence shown by the U.S. to back their sanctions against UDG, calling it political rhetoric in the middle of a trade war between the U.S. and China.

This one does not have anything to do with the government because its a private company, government spokesperson Phay Siphan told VOA Khmer on Wednesday.

Hun Sens ruling party contends that any land disputes related to UDGs Dara Sakor project are not human rights violations.

If using only this petty case as a basis for human rights violation, Id say there is no human rights in Cambodia, said Sok Eysan, spokesperson of the Cambodian Peoples Party. This happens everywhere because once there is development, the land prices rise, and people come to claim the land.

Objections voiced

Cambodian human rights activists told VOA that the settlements handed out by the government to the families displaced by the UDG project were unacceptable, in part because the families were relocated far from the Gulf of Thailand, their source of livelihood.

They are fishermen and have been relocated to a hillside area, said Hour In, the Koh Kong province coordinator for Licadho, a national Cambodian human rights organization. They cannot fish anymore because the infrastructure doesnt meet the conditions as promised. Most people are not satisfied with the solution provided by Union Development Group.

Cambodias opposition party in exile welcomed the sanctions.

This is a partial justice, said Mu Sochua, vice president of the Cambodia National Rescue Party. The real justice is to give our farmers and fishermen their land, but at least theyve received partial justice now. At the same time, this demonstrated that the U.S. joins us in demanding an end to impunity, which means taking those perpetrators to face justice, if not in our court system, but under the U.S. system.

The U.S. alleges that Cambodia uses development projects such as UDG to expand its sphere of influence in the world, especially through its Belt and Road Initiative. The U.S. raised the alarm last year after media reports quoted the Cambodian government spokesperson, Phay Siphan, as saying that Dara Sakor could be converted to host military assets.

A permanent PRC military presence in Cambodia could threaten regional stability and undermine the prospects for the peaceful settlement of disputes, the promotion of maritime safety and security, and the freedom of navigation and overflight, the statement from the Treasury Department said.

Phay Siphan said he never acknowledged that the UDG project could be retooled as a Chinese military base.

I reject the report that implicated my name in it, Phay Siphan told VOA Khmer. Its shameful because Ive never said that. In July 2019, he told Bloomberg, Dara Sakor is civilian  there is no base at all. It could be converted, yes, but you could convert anything.

Expanding influence

CPP spokesperson Sok Eysan also asserted that the government wanted to create an economic zone in the Dara Sakor area, and had no intention of the facilities becoming a military base for any superpower.

Cambodia does not seek to be a military power, Sok Eysan said. We only want to ensure a sustainable economy to feed 16 million people. ... Therefore, were trying our best to develop the country. We do not want war to come to Cambodia.

Cambodia has allied with China as Beijing is expanding its sphere of influence in the region without many challenges from competing powers other than the U.S.

Under President Xi Jinping, China has sought to expand its political, military, cultural, and economic dominance through bilateral aid and mega development projects like the Belt and Road Initiative that includes the Dara Sakor Seashore Resort.

Ro Vannak, a geopolitical expert and the co-founder of the Cambodia Institute of Democracy, believes that a U.S. sanction on a Chinese company in Cambodia is part of Washingtons strategy to curb Chinas emergence as a regional power.

The sanction on a Chinese company in Cambodia is a sign that makes Cambodia uneasy, said Ro Vannak. This means that once superpowers start to compete, push, and splash water at each other, smaller countries that rely on them economically, especially on China, would find their reputation and economic growth is affected.

This report originated with VOAs Khmer Service. Men Kimseng reported from Washington, D.C., Hul Reaksmey and Aun Chhengpor reported from Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
When Donald Trump was in California he made a brief stop to talk to heads of the state. The fact that he was smirkingly joking about how its going to get cooler, take my word for it that he doesnt believe in the science. I would just love to see him go up to one of the towns that has been burned out completely, people with no where to go who have lost everything, and put that smirk on his face and tell them the same thing.
By Online Desk

NEW DELHI: Speaking in Parliament for the first time since his release from detention, the National Conference president and MP Farooq Abdullah on Saturday advocated talks with Pakistan, saying if India can talk to China to defuse their border row, it can also speak to its other neighbour to deal with the situation at Jammu and Kashmir borders.

Noting that he was speaking in Lok Sabha after more than a year, Abdullah said Jammu and Kashmir has not seen any progress and spoke about authorities blocking 4G facilities in the Union Territory which, he added, goes against the interest of students and traders.

People are unemployed, engineers who formed an association to work have been "stopped" from working, he said about the union territory.

If India is developing, does not Jammu and Kashmir have the right to develop with the country as well, he asked.

Pitching for talks with Pakistan, he said, "Border skirmishes have been rising and people are dying. A way has to be found to deal with this. Except for talks. As you are talking to China to attempt that it withdraws (from Ladakh border), we should also talk to our (other) neighbour to find a way to get out of this situation."

His advocacy for talks with Pakistan during the Zero Hour drew protests from treasury benches.

The Srinagar MP also expressed his happiness at the findings of an Army inquiry into the killings of three men in Shopian in an encounter.

"I am happy that the Army has admitted that three Shopian men were killed mistakenly. I hope the government gives a hefty compensation," he said.

Officials had said on Friday the Army has found "prima facie" evidence that its troops "exceeded" powers under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act during the encounter in July and has initiated disciplinary proceedings.

He also conveyed his gratitude to parliamentarians for speaking for him when he was under detention.

Abdullah and many other leaders were put under detention by authorities last year after the Union government abrogated Article 370, which had given special powers to the erstwhile state, and split Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories.

He was released in March this year.

(With PTI Inputs)
ROCHESTER, N.Y. - Already roiled by this months revelation of Daniel Prudes police suffocation death, the city of Rochester, New York, was further traumatized Saturday when gunfire at a backyard party killed two teenagers and wounded 14 others.

Our community has been hurting enough already, Rochester City Council Vice-President Willie Lightfoot said. This is just another thing on top of all the things that weve been going through.

The shooting that started just before 12:30 a.m. has not been linked to Prudes death in March, the details of which first emerged nearly six months later.

But the citys acting police chief, Mark Simmons, placed the violence that claimed the lives of a man and woman  both 19 years old who police believe were not the intended targets  in context.

This is truly a tragedy of epic proportions, Simmons said in a news conference. I mean 16 victims is unheard of, and for our community, whos right now going through so much, to have to be dealt with this tragedy, needlessly, for people who decide to act in a violent manner is unfortunate and shameful.

Police on Saturday night identified the two victims as Jaquayla Young, a graduate of East High School, and Jarvis Alexander, a graduate of University Preparatory Charter School for Young Men, or UPrep. No arrests were announced.

We have two innocent victims here that were attending a party with a few friends and unfortunately they lost their lives as a result because three or four individuals decided to carry handguns and pull them out and shoot at a crowd of 100 to 200 people, police Capt. Frank Umbrino said at a news conference.

The party was supposed to be a small gathering, but people from two other nearby parties went there in the early morning and an argument broke out, Umbrino said. Three or four people opened fire, and police found more than 40 bullet casings at the scene, he said.

The 14 wounded by gunfire were not believed to have life-threatening injuries and were all between the ages of 17 and 23, Umbrino said. Two more people were hurt when they were trampled while fleeing, but are expected to recover, he said.

Young, who was attending Monroe Community College, was captain of her high schools cheerleading team and a member of the track team, while Alexander, a sophomore at Alfred University, was on his high schools football and track teams and won a state championship in the 4x100-meter relay, the Democrat & Chronicle reported.

In recent weeks, Rochester has been rocked by daily protests, allegations of a coverup and calls for the mayors resignation and the arrests of the officers involved in Prudes death. Body camera video released by Prudes family showed Rochester police officers putting a hood over the naked 41-year-old mans head to stop him from spitting, then pushing his face into the pavement and holding him down until he stopped breathing. He was taken off life support around a week later.

Simmons has now found himself at the helm of a police department in disarray after Mayor Lovely Warren fired Police Chief LaRon Singletary on Monday, saying Singletary had initially misled her about the circumstances of the death. Other senior police officials have announced their retirements or departures from top command positions.

Simmons expressed frustration about the large, late-night party amid both the citys ongoing tumult and the coronavirus pandemic.

This is yet another tragedy where individuals are having these illegal, unsanctioned house parties taking place in these properties, which  number one  is not safe because of COVID, because of the conditions, Simmons said. And then you add in alcohol and violence and it just becomes a recipe for disaster.

Pastor Marlowe Washington of the Seneca United Methodist Church called Saturdays shooting senseless and pleaded for an end to such violence.

I went out there in the early morning to pray quietly at the scene of the incident and to ask God Why this? and What did we do to our children? Why all this! Washington told WHAM-TV. There will be no further interest in our demand for moral justice until we command the same justice from within our own community!

Police were still trying to piece together who opened fire and why. They asked witnesses to come forward with statements and any photos or video.

It sounded like somebody was trying to go to war, neighbourhood resident Asa Adams told Spectrum News.

Some of the people who went to the party uninvited were believed to have attended a nearby vigil for a 20-year-old man who was shot to death near a local park, Umbrino said. It wasnt clear if the shooting was related to the killing.

The Rev. Lewis Stewart, president of the United Christian Leadership Ministry, painted a parallel between Saturdays shooting and Prudes death and called for clergy to perform proactive community outreach.

We should be just as outraged by gun violence caused by residents just as much so as it is caused by police who shoot innocent Black men and women, Stewart said at a news conference.

Hours after the shooting, the Roc Freedom Riders began their previously planned ride through the citys streets on the block where Prude was restrained. Around 3 miles (5 kilometres) away, captured on video, a group gathered for prayer near the shooting site.

Oh, tell me, voices sang in unison, who can save me?
Man arrested for causing car accident that killed United Methodist bishop

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A man suspected of having killed an African United Methodist Church bishop in a car accident has been arrested by Sierra Leone police and charged with multiple counts.

Last month, Sierra Leone Area Bishop John K. Yambasu was on his way to preach at a funeral for a former district superintendent when the driver of an SUV struck him.

Mohamed Allie Saw was arrested after fleeing the scene and was charged with seven counts earlier this month, including speeding and driving without due care and attention.

Saw was driving a vehicle owned by another individual to a garage when he lost control of the vehicle and fatally injured Yambasu, according to UM News.

By the time we cleared the traffic and safely packed the vehicles from off the road, the driver had disappeared, said Mbalu Kabbah, traffic commander for the Calaba Town Police, as quoted by UM News.

We first detained the owner of the vehicle when the driver could not be located. We released him after his blood pressure shot up.

From there, family members of the owner of the SUV searched for and located Saw, who had been uninjured in the crash, and was handed over to police.

A native of Sierra Leone, Yambasu was elected as a bishop of the UMC in 2008. He was killed in the accident days before he was to turn 64, and was survived by his wife and their five children.

UMC Bishop Samuel Quire of the Liberia Episcopal Area said in a statement last month that Yambasus death was a great blow to the people called United Methodists.

It is our hope and prayers that God will comfort the family in particular and The United Methodist family at large. May his soul rest in perfect peace, said Bishop Quire.

During the debate within the UMC over LGBT issues, Yambasu was a theological conservative who called on the denomination to retain its official biblical position that homosexuality is sinful.

More recently, Yambasu was integral to bringing together a theologically diverse group of United Methodists to craft an amicable separation plan for the denomination.

Known as the Protocol of Reconciliation and Grace through Separation, the proposal would provide $25 million to conservative Methodists to create their own denomination.

The United Methodist Church and its members aspire to multiply the Methodist mission in the world by restructuring the Church through respectful and dignified separation, read the protocol, which Yambasu signed with several other UMC leaders.

The undersigned agree to use their best efforts to persuade any groups or organizations with which they are affiliated to support the legislation necessary to implement the Protocol."
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Photo: David Hume Kennerly/Getty Images

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died of complications from metastatic pancreas cancer on Friday. The longtime justice, liberal stalwart, and feminist icon was 87 years old. She reportedly died surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, D.C., and will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery.

You can read Irin Carmons personal, stirring tribute to Ginsburg and her legacy here, and view our photo editors look back at RBGs life in images here. Below, you can find the latest updates, reactions, and curated analysis and commentary on the ongoing political aftermath of Ginsburgs death, the resulting Supreme Court vacancy fight which is already underway, and the possible consequences for the 2020 election. (The updates will appear in reverse chronological order.)

A complete rundown on where Senate Republicans stand on the vacancy (and who hasnt taken one yet)

So far, only two Republican senators have come out in opposition to confirming a new justice before Election Day, Senators Collins and Murkowski. Many others have released statements saying the opposite, while some have held off making their views known. Intelligencers Matt Stieb has rounded up what every GOP senator has said about the SCOTUS vacancy following RBGs death. Among those whove yet to take a stand over the weekend are Chuck Grassley, Mitt Romney, and Joni Ernst, who is facing a tough reelection fight in Iowa:

Though Ernst sent out fundraising emails based on maintaining Republican control of the Supreme Court minutes after Ginsburgs death was announced, she has not commented on the prospect of a pre-election vote. In July, however, she said that it is a lame-duck session, I would support going ahead with any hearings that we might have. And if it comes to an appointment prior to the end of the year, I would be supportive of that.

Read through the rest of GOP senators known and unknown views here.

Pelosi wont leverage shutdown  or rule out lame-duck stalling options

During an appearance on ABCs This Week, Pelosi said she would not consider leveraging a possible government shutdown to slow down Trumps SCOTUS nomination process, but would consider options for blocking it if Trump and the Senate GOP tried to seat a new justice after Trump lost the election  if that happens. Asked if she would use impeachment to do that, Pelosi indicated that no options have been ruled out:

[W]e have our options. We have arrows in our quiver that Im not about to discuss right now, but the fact is we have a big challenge in our country. This president has threatened to not even accept the results of the election with statements that he and his henchmen have made.  We have a responsibility. Weve taken an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. We have a responsibility to meet the needs of the American people.That is when we weigh the equities of protecting our democracy requires us to use every arrow in our quiver.

Some cold water on the impeachment idea:

And talk about impeachment to delay SCOTUS vote is just that: Talk. Its not being seriously considered by Dems and it wouldnt even be a successful tactic https://t.co/KooWckQ24W  Manu Raju (@mkraju) September 21, 2020

Scenes of grief from the RBG vigil in D.C.

At the Cut, Hanna Rosin passes along what she observed and thought while visiting the impromptu memorial and vigil to Ginsburg outside the Supreme Court on Saturday night:

The ground was covered with hundreds of bouquets and handwritten pictures and notes. (Thank you for holding on as long as you could! AVENGE HER.) The night before the impromptu memorial covered the stairs but overnight it had been contained on the sidewalk. Here and there among the flowers was Notorious RBG imagery, on T-shirts and hand-drawn pictures. But the meme was transformed.

In some cases, literally, with the crown replaced by something that looked more like a halo. But when five women stand in front of a shrine of RBG candles and weep, the scene no longer seems kitschy. It seems terrifying.

You can read the rest of Rosins account here.

Lamar Alexander: No one should be surprised GOP will take advantage of its power

NEW: Lamar Alexander, who is retiring this year, sides with McConnell on filling the SCOTUS vacancy left by RBG.



"Senator McConnell is only doing what Democrat leaders have said they would do if the shoe were on the other foot. pic.twitter.com/mrQR8EOq1d  Julie Tsirkin (@JulieNBCNews) September 20, 2020

Meanwhile Senator David Purdue  the Georgia Republican who in 2016 said that the confirmation of a lifetime appointee to our nations highest court is far too important to become entangled in the partisan wrangling during a presidential election year and no Supreme Court nominee should be considered by the Senate before the next president is sworn into office or taken up in lame duck  said on Sunday that, I am confident that President Trump will nominate another highly-qualified candidate who will strictly uphold the Constitution. Once the President announces a nomination, the United States Senate should begin the process that moves this to a full Senate vote.

In speech addressing SCOTUS vacancy, Biden asks senators to follow your conscience

To jam this nomination through the Senate is just an exercise in raw political power, says Biden on filling Ginsburgs Supreme Court seat before the election. I don't believe the people of this nation will stand for it https://t.co/D3BKuQ03Qa pic.twitter.com/eLkEgSmHOD  CBS News (@CBSNews) September 20, 2020

Politicos recap:

In his first extended remarks following the death Friday of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Biden accused Republicans who would jam this nomination through of hypocrisy, while seeking to reason with other GOP senators to heed her final wishes  not as a personal service to her, but as a service to the country at a crossroads.

Please follow your conscience, Biden said from the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. Dont vote to confirm anyone nominated under the circumstances President Trump and Senator McConnell have created. Dont go there. Uphold your constitutional duty, your conscience, let the people speak. Cool the flames that have been engulfing our country. We cant ignore the cherished system of checks and balances.

Bidens speech, measured in tone and scope, encapsulated the foundation for his campaign. He did not hint at any plans to break from his traditionalist mold to back progressive-favored proposals like packing the high court. He also resisted calls from Republicans and some Democrats to release a list of potential Supreme Court nominees, arguing it could influence their decision-making and needlessly subject them to months of unfair scrutiny. 

If Donald Trump wins the election, then the Senate should move on his selection and weigh the nominee he chooses fairly, Biden said. But if I win this election, President Trumps nominee should be withdrawn and I should be the one who nominates Justice Ginsburgs successor.

A majority of Americans want the election winner to fill the vacancy:

Thats according to the results of a new Reuters poll released on Sunday:

The national opinion poll, conducted Sept. 19-20 after Ginsburgs death was announced, suggests that many Americans object to President Donald Trumps plan, backed by many Senate Republicans, to push through another lifetime appointee and cement a 6-3 conservative majority on the court.

The poll found that 62% of American adults agreed the vacancy should be filled by the winner of the Nov. 3 matchup between Trump and Democratic former Vice President Joe Biden, while 23% disagreed and the rest said they were not sure. Eight out of 10 Democrats - and five in 10 Republicans - agreed that the appointment should wait until after the election. 

The poll found that 30% of American adults said that Ginsburgs death will make them more likely to vote for Biden while 25% said they were now more likely to support Trump. Another 38% said that it had no impact on their interest in voting, and the rest said they were not sure.

Biden team wants to frame vacancy around healthcare and COVID-19, at least for now

Per the New York Times, Campaign aides said Saturday they would seek to link the court vacancy to the health emergency gripping the country and the future of health care in America  i.e. the likelihood that a Supreme Court that tilts even farther to the left could doom Obamacare. The Times also reports that campaign officials said on Saturday that they did not see even a Supreme Court vacancy and the passions it will inevitably inflame as reason to fundamentally reorient the campaigns approach[.]

Biden campaign officials said on Saturday that they did not see even a Supreme Court vacancy and the passions it will inevitably inflame as reason to fundamentally reorient the campaigns approach. Mr. Biden has consistently led the president nationally and in polls of battleground states throughout the summer.

Its tough to have space to mourn.

The Cuts Anna Silman spoke with mourners at a candlelight vigil for RBG in Manhattan last night. Here is what 44-year-old investor and entrepreneur Nathalie Molina Nino had to say:

The chances of us getting out of this without seeing RBGs legacy reversed and decades of basic rights being eroded  theres a slight, slim path to win, but man its just getting narrower and narrower. Its tough to have space to mourn. I havent cried yet. Im sure Ill be in the shower someday and just break down and have my moment, but I think we all have to be strong for each other and we all have to be strong for the next generations, some of whom have never seen anything but politics like this. We all have to model a different reality.

Read what four other women told Silman here.

The blue wave of money continues

Small-dollar donors have now given $100 million on ActBlue since 8 p.m. ET Friday, investing in candidates up and down the ballot and orgs on the front lines of the impending judicial confirmation fight. The grassroots is ready to fight to honor Justice Ginsburgs legacy.  ActBlue (@actblue) September 20, 2020

What is McConnells real endgame?

At the New Yorker, Jane Mayer wonders if confirming a new justice before the election is what Mitch McConnell really thinks is best  for Mitch McConnell:

McConnell will do anything that serves his interests. We know that, [political scientist] Norman Ornstein told me, shortly after learning of Ginsburgs death. 

McConnell is also what Ornstein calls a ruthless pragmatist, whose No. 1 goal has always been to remain Majority Leader of the Senate. Hes made the conservative makeover of the federal court system his pet project, but if he faces a choice between another right-wing Justice or keeping his control of the Senate, no one who knows him well thinks hed hesitate for a moment to do whatever is necessary to stay in power. In fact, back in the summer of 2016, when it looked like Trump would lose to Hillary Clinton, far from being distressed at his partys dim prospects, McConnell was savoring the probability of being the single most powerful Republican in the country, according to a confidant who spoke with him then.

The problem for McConnell now is that it may be impossible for him to both confirm a new Justice and hold onto his personal power as Majority Leader. A power grab for the Court that is too brutish may provoke so much outrage among Democrats and independents that it could undermine Republican Senate candidates in November. As he knows better than anyone, polls show that Republican hopes of holding the Senate are very much in doubt. If Joe Biden is elected, enabling a Democratic Vice-President to cast the deciding vote in the Senate, Democrats need only to pick up three seats to win a majority. And, at the moment, according to recent polls, Democratic challengers stand good chances against Republican incumbents in Maine, Arizona, and Colorado. Democrats also have shots at capturing seats in South Carolina and Iowa. 

Given those complications, Ornstein predicts, McConnell may use some elements of delay. McConnell conspicuously laid out no timetable when promising a Senate vote for Trumps nominee. Ornstein speculates that he may hold off on a vote until after the election to provide cover for his members but, meanwhile, obtain private pledges of support from them. It would mean hed have the votes to ram a confirmation through the Senate during the lame-duck period after the election, regardless of who has won the White House.

The case for optimism, made by RBG

Intelligencer contributor and former U.S. attorney Barbara McQuade writes that Ginsburgs life story should inspire hope about addressing Americas ailing democracy:

If Mitch McConnell is successful in confirming a justice nominated by Trump, the makeup of the Court swings farther right, jeopardizing precedents like Roe v. Wade. But even more significantly, McConnells political opportunism threatens the legitimacy of the Court itself. If courts come to be seen as just one more instrument of a political machine, the law will lose its moral authority. When respect for the rule of law is eroded, it is difficult to expect compliance.

But just as Ginsburg patiently played the long game, optimistic that her words would one day resonate, those who are determined to defend American values have reason to believe that their work will be rewarded one day as well. What words can be found to persuade just four Senate Republicans that the hypocrisy of confirming a Supreme Court justice just weeks before a presidential election is not worth the result McConnell seeks? Let us channel Ginsburg to find them. For those senators who follow McConnells lead, what arguments can persuade the electorate that their gamesmanship must be defeated at the ballot box in November? Lets replicate Ginsburgs tireless energy to find them. And what words can we muster to persuade our fellow Americans that President Trump is not an ordinary Republican advancing conservative policies, but a threat to the continued existence of our democratic values? Ginsburg would keep working, arguing with collegiality and respect, even when others do not.

You can read the rest of McQuades tribute and call for optimism here.

Not a good sign

Saturday night at his campaign rally in North Carolina, President Trump indicated that he expected federal courts to help him claim victory on Election Day, per Politico:

President Donald Trump signaled Saturday night that he expects federal judges to play a key role in achieving a definitive result within hours of the polls closing on Election Day.

Were going to have a victory on November 3rd the likes of which youve never seen, Trump told a rally in Fayetteville, N.C. Now, were counting on the federal court system to make it so that we can actually have an evening where we know who wins. Not where the votes are going to be counted a week later or two weeks later.

It wasnt entirely clear whether Trump was urging or anticipating a more prominent role for the courts in election issues in the wake of Ginsburgs death. He has been immersed in discussions about the judiciary recently as he released a list of possible Supreme Court nominees last week and after the liberal icon passed away Friday evening.

The comment maps on with the predominant spin from some Republicans that the reason they need to fill RBGs seat now is to make sure the Supreme Court is fully staffed come Election Day to supposedly stave off a constitutional crisis.

The base case now is Trump loses popular vote, falsely challenges legitimacy of key votes and wins reelection via partisan Supreme Court. That is the most likely scenario now. Not a stretch. Probable, barring some extreme actions. https://t.co/nDeDMURlOk  Hamilton Nolan (@hamiltonnolan) September 19, 2020

Murkoswki reiterates that she does not support pre-election confirmation

New - Lisa Murkowksi opposes taking up a SCOTUS nomination before Election Day, reiterating the same stance as before RBG death. That means there are two Republicans who have voiced this position - her and Susan Collins. Two more and thats enough to punt to lame-duck session.  Manu Raju (@mkraju) September 20, 2020

Her full statement:

For weeks, I have stated that I would not support taking up a potential Supreme Court vacancy this close to the election. Sadly, what was then a hypothetical is now our reality, but my position has not changed. I did not support taking up a nomination eight months before the 2016 election to fill the vacancy created by the passing of Justice Scalia. We are now even closer to the 2020 election  less than two months out  and I believe the same standard must apply.

However:

Murkowskis office is not commenting on whether she will oppose a Trump nominee in a lame-duck session if Biden wins.  Manu Raju (@mkraju) September 20, 2020

Biden isnt floating his own potential SCOTUS nominees

But the Biden Team is reiterating his pledge to follow a few key principles in how he chooses them:

The Biden camp said today they have no plans to release a list of his potential Supreme Court picks. But a Biden official reiterated his pledge to appoint the first Black woman to the Supreme court, and judges who would protect Obamacare, civil rights, and civil liberties.  Ruby Cramer (@rubycramer) September 19, 2020

Bidens running mate, Kamala Harris, said the same on Friday night:

.@KamalaHarris spoke about the SCOTUS just a couple of hours ago on IG Live with @lizzo: Joe Biden and I have a commitment that we will name to the United States Supreme Court a black woman. We've never had a black woman on the United States Supreme Court. You hear me?"  Averi Harper (@AveriHarper) September 19, 2020

Meanwhile in Colorado

Republican Senator Cory Gardner  who is currently behind in the polls to his Democratic challenger, Governor John Hickenlooper  has been deflecting his chances to explain how he will approach the SCOTUS vacancy after having supported the GOPs election-year block of Merrick Garland in 2016, notes the Colorado Sun:

Gardner on Friday released a statement on Ginsburgs death, calling her a trailblazing leader. But he didnt address how he thinks Senate Republicans should handle replacing her. His spokespeople, both in his Senate office and for his reelection campaign, did not return multiple messages from The Colorado Sun seeking comment.

Then on Saturday afternoon, while speaking at Club 20 in Grand Junction, he declined to say whether he could vote to confirm a new justice before the November election. Now is a time to mourn, he said. There is time for debate. There is time for politics, he said. But the time, for now, is to pray for the (Ginsburg) family and to make sure that we keep their family in our hearts and prayers as we mourn as a nation.

Trump says he will nominate a woman to replace RBG next week

Trump made the announcement at his Saturday night campaign rally in North Carolina:

"I will be putting forth a nominee next week. It will be a woman," Trump in North Carolina says of filling the US Supreme Court seat left vacant by the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. pic.twitter.com/4MJk0hw81T  Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) September 19, 2020

Trump suggested the same while speaking with reporters earlier in the day:

Is this to pick Lagoa, or to impress FL Hispanics by considering her? https://t.co/LjjNFq4NHD  Bill Scher (@billscher) September 19, 2020

And he also had this to say:

It goes without saying that Obama never lost a presidential election https://t.co/8eaMelhmkH  Noah Frank (@NoahAFrank) September 19, 2020

Trump deployed the same I-get-to-pick-because-I-won logic when dismissing Senator Susan Collinss opposition to confirming a SCOTUS nominee before the election:

Trump, commenting on Collins' statement as he leaves the White House:



I totally disagree with her. We won. https://t.co/n7vRbVqS8Q  Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim) September 19, 2020

Base-minded Senator Thom Tillis vows to vote for whomever Trump nominates

When there was an election-year SCOTUS vacancy in 2016, North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis joined with his GOP colleagues and said, Weve advised [President Obama] that were not going to consent to one of his nominees  were going to let the American people speak.

This year hes facing tough reelection battle, but that hasnt stopped him from doing an 180  it has apparently encouraged him to. On Saturday morning, Tillis released a statement vowing that he would support Trumps SCOTUS nominee because he couldnt possibly support Bidens  attempting to leverage the vacancy by making it central to his reelection campaign:

Tillis, in a tough re-election in North Carolina where he has angered some conservatives and fended off primary challenges, makes his race a referendum on the Supreme Court: pic.twitter.com/LmgklX9sV3  Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim) September 19, 2020

He later made the same vow at a Trump rally:

Tillis tells Trump rally crowd in N.C.: Hes gonna nominate one of those justices and Im gonna vote for their confirmation.  Will Steakin (@wsteaks) September 19, 2020

The reinvented Republican rationale

This spin from Senator Ted Cruz could fast become GOP dogma:

This man was prepared to hold open a Supreme Court seat for the entirety of Hillary Clinton's presidency. This take should not be taken seriously from him. https://t.co/y8dq7STCMU  Sam Stein (@samstein) September 19, 2020

The Washington Posts Margaret Sullivan adds:

In coming days, you can be sure to hear and read about such things as the Thurmond rule, the McConnell Rule, the Biden rule  none of which exist in law, and sometimes not even in writing. At most, they are conventions, not rules.

(According to the Brookings Institution, Strom Thurmond, the longtime senator from South Carolina who chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee, is credited with an unwritten admonition that in presidential election years, the Senate should stop processing judicial nominations around the time of its summer recess, perhaps with limited exceptions for clearly non-controversial nominees.)

Theres no reason to think that the pro-Trump media and right-wing politicians will have a monopoly on self-serving justification in coming days. Its likely to be a dysfunctional circus.

Lindsey Graham is once again spiting his own supposed principles to get behind Trump

Its safe to say that no one honestly believed that Senator Lindsey Graham was going to hold himself to his previous statements insisting that election-year SCOTUS vacancies only be addressed following the election. The born-again Trump ally nonetheless cited some tortured logic for his about-face on Saturday. Commenting on Twitter, Graham effectively blamed Democrats for forcing him to abandon his principles, yet again, in service of the president he once openly detested:

The two biggest changes regarding the Senate and judicial confirmations that have occurred in the last decade have come from Democrats.

 Harry Reid changed the rules to allow a simple majority vote for Circuit Court nominees dealing out the minority.  Chuck Schumer and his friends in the liberal media conspired to destroy the life of Brett Kavanaugh and hold that Supreme Court seat open.

In light of these two events, I will support President [Trump] in any effort to move forward regarding the recent vacancy created by the passing of Justice Ginsburg.

Many liberals are mourning and worrying with their wallets  at a record pace

Bloomberg reports that ActBlue has raised about $67 million since RBGs death was announced. (For some of Friday night, Democratic fundraising came in a pace of more than $100,000 a minute, according to the New York Times.) Also, per Bloomberg:

While the Biden campaign refrained from including a fundraising link in an email sent to supporters on Friday night, one was included in a Saturday morning message signed by vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris. 

Get Mitch or Die Trying, a web page that raises money for Democrats running against incumbent Republican senators, raised almost $11.6 million through ActBlue in less than 24 hours. Tommy Vietor, a co-founder of the progressive group Crooked Media, tweeted that the goal was now to raise $20 million.

An abortion activists reaction and analysis

At the Cut, Bridget Read talks with Handbook for a Post-Roe America author Robin Marty about what comes next, including what would happen if a conservative justice replaces RBG:

[Chief Justice] John Roberts wants to overturn Roe, but he wants it to be legitimate. And we already have a bunch of cases on our way. We have the D&E bans [which would outlaw the most safe and common method of second-trimester abortion]. Alabama has a total abortion ban that could make its way up to the Supreme Court if they wanted to actually allow it and say that they want to hear it. And, most pressing, I think, is if the FDA fights over medication abortion right now going to the Supreme Court. If the GOP can get another conservative onto the bench, then they dont even need Roberts anymore. They can overturn Roe over anything. They dont have to wait for the right case.

Read the rest of the interview, and what Marty recommends in response, here.

Senator Susan Collins: Supreme Court nominee should be selected by whomever wins the election

This seems to confirm that Collins is a hard no on voting to confirm a Trump nominee before the voters have their say:

My statement on the Supreme Court vacancy: pic.twitter.com/jvYyDN5gG4  Sen. Susan Collins (@SenatorCollins) September 19, 2020

However:

Susan Collins chooses her words carefully.



She says winner of the presidential race should be the one to pick RBGs replacement.



Should is a suggestion word, not an ultimatum.  Steven Dennis (@StevenTDennis) September 19, 2020

The electoral effect

This is going to turn out the GOP base in huge numbers. Trump is the clear favorite at this point.



Biden has no ground game. Dems thought they could coast to victory. Not looking great. https://t.co/m50rfXFz11  Eoin Higgins (@EoinHiggins_) September 19, 2020

The Cook Political Reports Dave Wasserman weighs in with a Twitter thread on what the Supreme Court vacancy does and doesnt mean for the election, including how Roe v. Wade could influence voters:

Ive heard some analysts argue a SCOTUS fight will help Trump by shifting what 2020 will be about from his mismanagement of COVID to a more straightforward partisan cage match. That could happen, but Ive always seen some big risks for Trump in a pre-election SCOTUS fight. Namely, the potential for the Roe v. Wade/abortion issue to tear Trumps coalition apart. Much of his 2016 support came from voters who disliked Hillary Clinton, liked his rhetoric on immigration/trade, but are *pro-choice*  especially secular, blue-collar women.

This morning, I dove into 2016 CCES data (50,000+ person national survey). Only 15% of Clintons voters at least leaned pro-life and 11% held mixed views (74% at least leaned pro-choice). But 22% of Trumps voters at least leaned pro-choice and another 13% held mixed views. Although Trump downplayed abortion in 2016, voters w/ mostly pro-choice attitudes made up more than a fifth of his support in plenty of battleground states:

25% in Iowa 24% in Florida 24% in Pennsylvania 24% in Michigan 21% in Arizona 20% in Wisconsin 20% in Ohio

For decades, many of these blue-collar, pro-choice Trump voters had voted for Democrats because they saw Republicans as the party of Bible thumpers who moralized against abortion & gay marriage. Then Trump came along, and they didnt mind him as much. Now, there may actually be an opportunity for Dems to win back many of these voters by tying Trump to the DC swamp: Mitch McConnell and Republicans who want to end Roe v. Wade, cut more taxes for billionaires etc. In fact, Biden is *already* winning many of these blue-collar voters.

The under-utilized Dem message Republicans should be most scared of probably goes something like this: In 2016, Trump promised to drain the swamp. Instead, he became the swamp: he let Mitch McConnell and stock-dumping, ultra-far right GOP senators write his entire domestic agenda.

After all, the Obama-Trump voters Biden needs to win back may have been yearning for a political outsider in 16 but are still: 1) extremely against tax cuts for wealthy Americans; 2) decidedly against repealing the ACA; and 3) substantially pro-choice

Meanwhile, CNN pollster Harry Enten points out that polling initially shows that former Vice President Joe Bidens voters have been more likely to be fired up about Supreme Court selections and that voters overall trust Biden more on a Supreme Court selection:

A new Marquette University Law School poll paints the landscape well. Nationally, it finds that 59% of Biden voters say that appointing the next Supreme Court justice is very important to their vote. Compare that with only 51% of Trump voters.

This finding matches what we saw in a CNN/SSRS poll last month. In that poll, 78% of Biden backers told pollsters that nominating the next justice was extremely or very important to their vote. That compared with 64% of Trump supporters. (It was 47% Biden supporters and 32% Trump supporters who said it was extremely important.)

Compare these numbers to what we saw heading into the 2016 election. The final CNN/ORC poll in that cycle showed that 58% of Trump supporters said that nominating the next Supreme Court justice was extremely important to their vote, while only 46% of Hillary Clinton voters said the same. In the 2016 exit poll, Trump beat Clinton by a 15 point margin among those who put Supreme Court appointments as the most important factor to their vote.

Americas dysfunctional democracy at work

Noted the Atlantics Ronald Brownstein last night on Twitter:

If confirmed in 2020, a RBG successor would be third Trump nominee selected by a president who lost the popular vote and confirmed by a GOP Senate majority that represents less than half of the public. George W. Bush initially lost the popular vote and named two justices. The senators who confirmed Clarence Thomas had less than half of the popular vote too. Majority rule frays.

An RBG statue in Brooklyn

Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on Sunday that New York State would erect a statue to honor RBG in her hometown of Brooklyn, with a commission determining the artist and location.

If a statue doesnt sound significantonly 5 of NYCs 150 statues honor women. https://t.co/DnHrFpzcly  Lindsay Crouse (@lindsaycrouse) September 19, 2020

It should never have come down to her

Obama couldnt have gone nuclear in 2016. GOP controlled the Senate then. https://t.co/P8JavSyvly  joe (@JoePerticone) September 19, 2020

The Cuts Rebecca Traister argues that anyone blaming RBG for not stepping down while Obama was president is missing the point:

I understand why people will be furious at Ruth Bader Ginsburg and why they will say so loudly, in raised tones that convey their own assurance that they would have made the right choice, had they been her. Though those who are mad will not want to hear it, their reaction is made of precisely the same stuff that led people to lionize her as an outsize savior: because in the absence of structural security it is far easier to home in on individuals  as both our heroes and our villains  than it is to reckon with the enormity of whats wrong and what needs to be righted. 

[O]ne of the reasons her death will be as explosive and consequential as it is sure to be is that so many of our institutions are failing us, and have been purposefully perverted or used to serve regressive purpose: a senate that broke the nations rules by refusing to confirm the Supreme Court pick of a sitting Democratic president; an electoral college that served its original purpose of overturning the will of an American majority to deliver the White House to a leader committed to white supremacy; a political system that doesnt inspire its populace to vote in critical midterm elections; a Republican Party willing to spend decades doing whatever it took to reverse legal and legislative victories that redistributed a little bit of power out of the hands of white patriarchal capitalist-fueled corporations; and a Democratic Party that did not have the will or foresight to fight as fiercely or as cannily on behalf of rights, protections, and dignity as their obstructionist opposition fought against.

Read the rest of Traisters piece here.

As expected, Trump aims to replace Ginsburg right away

President Trump will rush to nominate someone to take RBGs seat, and expects Republicans to get in line:

.@GOP We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 19, 2020

The question of timing

FiveThirtyEights Perry Bacon Jr. considers the timing of the vacancy, from both a historical and process angle:

Supreme Court vacancies in presidential election years, by how many days before the election they occurred and whether a replacement was confirmed before the election:

And the confirmation will take some set amount of time:

It would be unusually fast to finish the entire confirmation process in less than 46 days, the time left before the Nov. 3 election. (The average confirmation process since the Harry Truman administration has lasted 50 days.) That doesnt mean there isnt enough time for Trump to confirm a new justice, but it would be on the fast side.

Nevertheless, its possible that sometime in October, a judge has been nominated and perhaps confirmation hearings are taking place, right on the eve of the election. This creates the possibility that Trump loses the election and perhaps Republicans lose control of the Senate, but the lame duck president and some senators who have lost reelection put a justice on the Supreme Court  a move that will enrage Democrats. Alternatively, Trump could win the election and see a new justice appointed before he even begins his second term.

But Politicos Kyle Cheney says that McConnell has enough time to replace RBG before the election  if he has the votes:

Since 1975, the Congressional Research Service estimates that its taken an average of 40 days for a Supreme Court nominee simply to get a hearing, let alone win the support of the Judiciary Committee and full Senate. But that timetable isnt etched in marble; its up to GOP leadership.

The nominee has to be approved by the Judiciary Committee before reaching the floor, and Judiciary Committee Chair Lindsey Graham, working closely with McConnell, can tailor a schedule to their liking. Theres also nothing to stop Republicans from voting on a Supreme Court nomination after the election in a lame duck session. The real deadline may be when the next Senate convenes on Jan. 3, 2021.

Yes, Trump was probably lying last night when he said he hadnt heard about RBGs death

Its a near certainty that arguably the biggest news story of the campaign would have come up during this conversation:

While Trump gave the impression this reactionimmediate praise for RBGwas his 1st one, some of his closest aides, including Hope Hicks, Dan Scavino and John McEntee, had a brief opportunity to talk to him privately between when he left the stage and when he spoke to press pool. https://t.co/uJxdzROw8Z  Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) September 19, 2020

Is Obamacare now doomed?

At HuffPost, Jonathan Cohn examines the possible ramifications for the Affordable Care Act now that Ginsburg wont be there to defend it at the Supreme Court  highlighting the lawsuit against the act due to be heard by the Court on November 10:

Figuring out how Ginsburgs death will affect its prospects is not easy, and legal experts that HuffPost contacted Friday night cautioned that it may take a day or two to think through the scenarios.

One is that the Affordable Care Act survives without much fuss, the program goes on as it is, and nobody loses coverage. This lawsuit is so weak that even conservative legal experts who supported previous challenges think it has no basis. Several or all conservative justices might join liberals in rejecting it. But the lawsuit has already prevailed in two lower court cases, both times because Republican-appointed judges agreed with its rationale. And without Ginsburg, who was sure to uphold the law, the odds of the Affordable Care Act surviving go down.

That is true even if Republicans dont manage to fill her seat before the hearing. One possibility now in play is a four-four tie. If that happens, two legal experts told HuffPost, then the Affordable Care Act could become something like a zombie statute  one that is unconstitutional but that continues to operate while litigation continues before lower court judges. This should make people think again before (once again) saying that an absolutely ludicrous argument had no chance of destroying the ACA in SCOTUS, Leah Litman, a University of Michigan law professor and former Supreme Court clerk, told HuffPost.

Another thought:

Only chance Elie is wrong here, I think, is if Roberts can convince Gorsuch or Kavanaugh that this case just isnt worth the political capital for conservatives in the middle of a pandemic. https://t.co/ZcUjFwCApO  Jordan Weissmann (@JHWeissmann) September 19, 2020

Why Mitch will push ahead

Intelligencers Jonathan Chait chatted with our own Ben Hart last night about the political aftermath of RBGs death and explained why he believes its likely McConnell will be successful in his efforts to confirm whoever Trump nominates to replace Ginsburg:

I think the odds clearly favor McConnell filling this seat. The reasons are obvious: they control 53 seats, they only need 50, and previous statements of principle will obviously not bind them. However, there are several factors pushing in the other direction.

Its not in the interest of Republicans facing election in 2020 to resolve this. Vulnerable Republicans are much better off having the court seat hinge on the outcome of the election. Trump himself might also be better off this way, though I doubt he will be cunning enough to see this. (Social conservatives will push him to fill the seat and he will go along, picking the course of maximal partisan aggression, as he always does.) Roberts himself also stands to lose power. He would no longer be the decisive vote. His only power would be to say something against filling the seat, and I doubt he says anything like that, but it is conceivable.

Read the rest of their chat here.

Getting to it

Slates Dahlia Lithwick pays tribute to RBG by channeling her:

[W]hile the loss of Justice Ginsburg is gutting and lacerating and brutally sad, her entire life and work has been in service to the idea that the rest of us are in fact capable of being allies and helpers and boosters and supporters, and also that the generations that are disconsolate tonight, for the lack of a hero, are themselves capable of stepping into her teeny-tiny, mighty, 3-inch-heeled, terrifyingly fabulous shoes and taking up the work she didnt begin but merely inherited from those who came before.

America has lost a warrior, and its OK to be crushed. I am flattened. And I will mourn, because she deserves to be mourned. But we are also facing an almighty battle that will rage in the coming weeks, with attempts to fill her seat in an unseemly and grotesque manner. It will be hard and painful, but if you find yourself feeling hopeless and powerless, then you are emphatically doing it wrong. Because if anyone had a right to say nah, it was the woman who couldnt get a job or a clerkship after graduating at the top of her class. But she pushed on, and then she pushed forward. She stepped into the fight of the phenomenal women who paved the path before, and now, well, its time to step into her fight and get it finished. I think the Notorious RBG would have peered owlishly out at all of us tonight and asked what the heck we are waiting for. And I think we can probably honor her best by getting to it.

The steps of the Supreme Court have become a memorial

At midnight, hundreds are still paying their respects to feminist judicial icon #RBG pic.twitter.com/MKcj1fho1w  Jimmy Hoover (@JimmyHooverDC) September 19, 2020

Impromptu vigil at the Supreme Court building, where the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg served for 27 years. pic.twitter.com/RBCwdATVU3  Gabe Fleisher (@WakeUp2Politics) September 19, 2020

President Obama celebrates Ginsburg  and weighs in on what needs to come next

President Obama offered his thoughts on RBGs legacy in a late-night post on Medium:

Justice Ginsburg inspired the generations who followed her, from the tiniest trick-or-treaters to law students burning the midnight oil to the most powerful leaders in the land. Michelle and I admired her greatly, were profoundly thankful for the legacy she left this country, and we offer our gratitude and our condolences to her children and grandchildren tonight.

He also didnt mince words when it came to the process of filling her seat on the Court:

Four and a half years ago, when Republicans refused to hold a hearing or an up-or-down vote on Merrick Garland, they invented the principle that the Senate shouldnt fill an open seat on the Supreme Court before a new president was sworn in.

A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment. The rule of law, the legitimacy of our courts, the fundamental workings of our democracy all depend on that basic principle. As votes are already being cast in this election, Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard. The questions before the Court now and in the coming years  with decisions that will determine whether or not our economy is fair, our society is just, women are treated equally, our planet survives, and our democracy endures  are too consequential to future generations for courts to be filled through anything less than an unimpeachable process.

In her own words: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed

Yes, of course Ginsburg had something to say before she died about the process to replace her, per Politico:

Ginsburg foresaw the political battle her death would produce. She reportedly weighed in strongly on behalf of holding her seat open and a Democratic victory in November.

My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed, Ginsburg said before her death, according to a statement released by one of her granddaughters, Clara Spera.

McConnell to Senate GOP colleagues: Dont lock yourselves into a position you may later regret

Heres what Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has already announced that Trumps nominee will get a vote on the floor of the Senate, said in a message to his colleagues on Friday night:

Over the coming days, we are all going to come under tremendous pressure from the press to announce how we will handle the coming nomination  For those of you who are unsure how to answer, or for those inclined to oppose giving a nominee a vote, I urge you all to keep your powder dry. This is not the time to prematurely lock yourselves into a position you may later regret.

2020 just got even crazier

Some of the responses the Washington Post captured in its report on the political aftermath:

The polarization in the country was already a 12 on a one-to-10 scale. It was already off the charts. This is going to push it up to 15, said Neil Newhouse, a longtime Republican pollster. This energizes both liberals and conservatives, it ratchets up the intensity, and it puts a focus on whats at stake in this election.

David Axelrod, who served as the top political strategist to Obama, concurred. This is another log in an already roaring fire, Axelrod said. This is going to further intensify feelings on both sides. For Trump, there has been some softening among evangelicals in some of the polling. He may see this as a way to fire them up again 

One former White House official, reflecting an emerging consensus in Trump world, said, This is certainly a catalyzing event that needed to happen in this moment. This official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to candidly discuss the politics of the moment so soon after Ginsburgs passing, added, This is an animating issue for the entire right. It unifies everybody from Mitt Romney to the most hardcore MAGA Trump person out there at a time when Trump needed that. It will give something to fight for over the next 45 days or so that could potentially remind people, Okay, this is why I voted for Trump, and this is why even if he makes me crazy sometimes Ive got to stick with him.

The impact on voters

Intelligencers Ed Kilgore thinks through the potential political consequences of Trump pushing hard and fast to replace Ginsburg:

Will [Trump] gamble his presidential prospects on his bases determination to flip the Supreme Court right away? Its unclear. RBGs death could help make Democrats care about the Supreme Court, too. But there is no question Trump and congressional Republicans will be under intense pressure to confirm lifetime appointments of jurists who want to reverse federal judicial president favoring rights for women and other progressive constitutional tenets. And as it happens, Trump has very recently released a new and more radically conservative list of Supreme Court prospects.

Its obvious that Republicans will view RBGs sad demise as a windfall. But the odds remain high that her replacement on the Court will be made by the next president and the next Congress. And if Trump tries to push a replacement through, it could become a rare and powerful litmus test for voters.

Read the rest of Kilgores take here.

Who might Trump nominate?

Its a matter of when, not if, President Trump will nominate someone to replace Ginsburg, and here is Intelligencers Sarah Joness look at five of the people the president has had on his shortlist over the years, including the most likely candidate, federal appeals judge Amy Coney Barrett:

Barrett may be Trumps likeliest pick to replace Ginsburg. A federal appeals court judge, Barrett has appeared on Trumps short list in the past. She is a conservative Catholic who has said that she believes that life begins at conception and has suggested that Roe v. Wade was wrongly decided. Barrett, the Washington Post reported, said the framework of Roe had essentially permitted abortion on demand and recognizes no state interest in the life of a fetus, according to news accounts including an article in Notre Dame Magazine in 2013. Though shes Catholic, her nomination would appeal to Trumps Evangelical base: giving her Ginsburgs seat would be the ultimate thumb-in-the-eye to the womens movement championed by the late justice.

Jones also considers possible picks Paul Clement, Tom Cotton, Noel Francisco, and Sarah Pitlyk  read about those potential nominees here.

How the vacancy could provoke a constitutional crisis

Intelligencers Ben Jacobs explores the very real possibility:

With Vice-President Pence casting a tie-breaking vote in the Senate, McConnell can afford to lose three members of his caucus. Already Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska have indicated that they would not vote to confirm a nominee before the election, and there also is Mitt Romney of Utah, the lone Republican to vote to convict Trump during impeachment, who has yet to weigh in. (The calculus does change in the lame duck Senate if Arizona Republican Martha McSally loses in November  she was appointed to her seat, and the race is a special election. If he wins, Democrat Mark Kelly would promptly replace her and not wait until January to take his seat.)

Assuming McConnell holds the remainder of his caucus together to jam through a nominee under those circumstances, it would cause a constitutional crisis. The appointment of a Supreme Court justice under these circumstances would transform ending the filibuster and expanding the size of the Supreme Court from a niche issue on the left to a fundamental litmus test.

Read the rest of Jacobss response here.

One way the GOP may try to spin the need to fill the vacancy ahead of the election

From my notebook/calls over the past hour: there are discussions within the Senate GOP about voting *before* the election, making the argument that 9 justices are needed in case of an election crisis. But Rs who want that aren't sure if Collins/Murkowski would fight it.  Robert Costa (@costareports) September 19, 2020

The political ramifications

The ramifications of Ginsburgs death in the middle of the 2020 campaign are obviously enormous. The vacancy is sure to become a critical issue for the remainder of the campaign, not just in the presidential race but for all the Senate candidates in tight races as well. Furthermore, the empty seat creates an even larger ideological imbalance on the Supreme Court  which could become a major issue should the presidential-election result be contested in a way that necessitates the Courts intervention, as well as in any other cases that head the Courts way between now and whenever the vacancy is filled.

Biden: Let the voters decide on vacancy

Here is how Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden responded to Ginsburgs death:

Biden: "In the coming days, we should focus on the loss of [RBG] & her enduring legacy. But there is no doubt - let me be clear - that the voters should pick the POTUS & the POTUS should pick the Justice for the Senate to consider. This was the position the GOP Senate took in 16" pic.twitter.com/QwxsmrmolA  Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 19, 2020

President Trumps response

There are already reports that President Trump will be naming a replacement soon:

Multiple sources close to President Trump with direct knowledge tell ABC News he is expected put forth a nominee to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburgs seat in the coming days via me & @KFaulders  John Santucci (@Santucci) September 19, 2020

Trump himself claimed he only found out about Ginsburgs death from reporters after his Friday-night campaign rally, remarking that he was sad to hear the news and that she had led an amazing life:

This is 100 percent not Trump hearing about RBGs death for the first time https://t.co/MzTTaoBLz3  David Freedlander (@freedlander) September 19, 2020

The president also referenced the Supreme Court during his rally:

Trump just spoke at length about SCOTUS:



We will defend the dignity of work and the sanctity of life. Thats why the Supreme Court is so important. The next President will get 1,2,3, or 4 Supreme Court Justices...If you dont get it right we will not have a country anymore.  Weijia Jiang (@weijia) September 19, 2020

The responses from Senators McConnell and Schumer

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has already seemed to abandon the cynical stance he took on President Obamas Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, in 2016. He announced on Friday that Trumps nominee will receive a full vote in the Senate:

McConnell statement in: "President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."  Tal Kopan (@TalKopan) September 19, 2020

However, its not yet clear when that vote will occur  so it could be that McConnell is once again playing games:

Two very smart former Senate GOP staffers both read McConnell's concluding sentence the same way - that he's not committing to a vote before the election because he knows he may only have votes in a lame duck (if then).  Jonathan Martin (@jmartNYT) September 19, 2020

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, meanwhile, has already made it clear that the vacancy should not be filled until next year:

The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.  Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) September 18, 2020

The overall dynamics in the Senate

The Atlantics Edward-Isaac Dovere offered some context on the Senate complexities in a Twitter thread:

The question of whether President Trump will get to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court before the election essentially comes down to four GOP votes in the Senate, deciding whether they want to give that to him, and to break the principle McConnell invented in 2016 [for Merrick Garland].

Among the senators who will be under intense pressure on this question will be Susan Collins, up for election herself and has struggled with how much to attach herself to Trump, and who said after impeachment she thought Trump had learned his lesson about changing behavior. Murkowski has said she is against an appointment before the inauguration. But that was theoretical. Now its real. Shes not up for election this year. Neither is Romney  But its not just senators with races this year. There are more GOP senators than say so publicly who have major problems with Trump and worry about what he means for the future of the party and the country. So: do they back him here when he needs it and could help his victory?

If there are Judiciary Committee hearings on a nominee (if McConnell doesnt take Trumps inevitable nominee right to the floor), it will also give a major platform for committee member Kamala Harris right at the height of the campaign.

How key GOP senators have responded, or commented about a potential vacancy in the past

A near-complete list of the key GOP senators now under pressure:

KEY GOP Senators, some of whom will be under immense pressure on this:



- Collins

- Romney

- Gardner

- Alexander

- Tillis

- McSally

- Grassley

- Alexander

- Sasse

- Daines

- Graham (2018 quote)  Lisa Desjardins (@LisaDNews) September 19, 2020

Senator Lisa Murkowski reportedly said in an interview before the news of Ginsburgs death broke that she will not vote to fill a SCOTUS vacancy until after Election Day, per Alaska Public Media:

Shortly before the announcement that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died Friday, Sen. Lisa Murkowski said in an interview that if she was presented with a vacancy on the court, she would not vote to confirm a nominee before the election 

I would not vote to confirm a Supreme Court nominee. We are 50 some days away from an election, she said. Murkowski said her reasoning is based on the same reasoning that held up the confirmation of former President Barack Obamas final nominee to the Supreme Court.

Senator Mitt Romney, another key Republican moderate, released a statement on Friday night in which he simply celebrated Ginsburgs legacy:

My statement on the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg: pic.twitter.com/fFtoOypOrj  Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) September 19, 2020

With regards to Senator Susan Collins:

News: @SenatorCollins told me earlier this month in Maine that she would not seat a Supreme Court justice in October.



I think thats too close, I really do, she said.



She said shed also oppose seating a justice in the lame duck if theres a change in presidents.  Jonathan Martin (@jmartNYT) September 19, 2020

Shes already in a tight spot on SCOTUS picks:

How squeezed is Susan Collins?



From NYT/Siena College, likely Maine voters:



"[Do you] approve or disapprove of the vote by Susan Collins ... to confirm Brett Kavanaugh as a U.S. Supreme Court justice?"



Approve 38%

Disapprove 55%https://t.co/Oz2DkY0I2w  Bill Scher (@billscher) September 19, 2020

Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Trump ally, had said in 2018 that the Senate should wait for the election to fill the vacancy:

Sen. Lindsey Graham justifies his treatment of Merrick Garland: "If an opening comes in the last year of President Trump's term, and the primary process has started, we'll wait to the next election" pic.twitter.com/E8N7a8IlIG  Yahoo News (@YahooNews) October 3, 2018

But hes said a lot of things, including this in May:

May 28, 2020



HUGH HEWITT: [If a vacancy occurred] would successors be confirmed before the election?



LINDSEY GRAHAM: I think that would be the goal.  So if a vacancy did occur  you would see an effort by Republicans, Im sure, to fill the vacancy. pic.twitter.com/VlfU1jnexo  JM Rieger (@RiegerReport) September 19, 2020

Another take:

Ill just give my view and leave. I dont think theyll fill it. My guess is Romney will play a crucial role in spiking anything.  Michael Brendan Dougherty (@michaelbd) September 19, 2020

But longtime Intelligencer contributor David Freelander adds that the vacancy may also be a glass-more-than-half-full situation for many GOP candidates looking to get out the base:

Genuinely perplexed at the take that this is bad news for GOP senators in red states facing tough-ish re-elects (Graham, Daines, McConnell, etc.) Don't know if this helps or hurts Trump, but those guys only need GOP-leaning voters to come home  David Freedlander (@freedlander) September 19, 2020

The possible ramifications in the event of a contested election

The Atlantics Edward-Isaac Dovere also noted the electoral ramifications, should Novembers election result be contested:

[If the election] gets kicked to the Supreme Court somehow, there would be only eight justices, no tiebreaker if needed  though this leaves a 5-3 conservative majority. Could potentially put Roberts, the institutionalist, under intense pressure.

Others have been commenting on the same issue:

Plus an Attorney General who won't hesitate to weigh in on a close election with legal actions. https://t.co/c9RM4ojxGQ  Shanlon Wu (@shanlonwu) September 19, 2020

The tributes

President Bill Clinton, who nominated Ginsburg to the Court in 1993, called her one of the most extraordinary justices ever to serve on the Supreme Court as well as a magnificent person with boundless courage in the face of her own adversity:

JUST IN: A statement from President Clinton who nominated Justice Ginsburg to the Supreme Court. pic.twitter.com/xiOMlItifu  Yashar Ali  (@yashar) September 19, 2020

Senator Elizabeth Warrens response:

Ruthie was my friend and I will miss her terribly. The t-shirts simply labeled RBG made her notorious. But it was her wit, her tenaciousness, and her skill as a jurist that made her an icon.  Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) September 19, 2020

Read the Supreme Courts announcement of Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death in full

This is what the Court said in its statement regarding Ginsburgs death on Friday night:

Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died this evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, D.C., due to complications of metastatic pancreas cancer. She was 87 years old. Justice Ginsburg was appointed to the Supreme Court by President Clinton in 1993. She was the second woman appointed to the Court and served more than 27 years. She is survived by her two children: Jane Carol Ginsburg (George Spera) and James Steven Ginsburg (Patrice Michaels), four grandchildren: Paul Spera (Francesca Toich), Clara Spera (Rory Boyd), Miranda Ginsburg, Abigail Ginsburg, two step-grandchildren: Harjinder Bedi, Satinder Bedi, and one great- grandchild: Lucrezia Spera. Her husband, Martin David Ginsburg, died in 2010.

Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. said of Justice Ginsburg: Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her  a tireless and resolute champion of justice.

Justice Ginsburg was born in Brooklyn, New York, March 15, 1933. She married Martin D. Ginsburg in 1954. She received her B.A. from Cornell University, attended Harvard Law School, and received her LL.B. from Columbia Law School. She served as a law clerk to the Honorable Edmund L. Palmieri, Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, from 19591961. From 19611963, she was a research associate and then associate director of the Columbia Law School Project on International Procedure. She was a Professor of Law at Rutgers University School of Law from 19631972, and Columbia Law School from 19721980, and a fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences in Stanford, California from 19771978. In 1971, she was instrumental in launching the Womens Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union, and served as the ACLUs General Counsel from 19731980, and on the National Board of Directors from 19741980. She was appointed a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 1980. During her more than 40 years as a Judge and a Justice, she was served by 159 law clerks.

While on the Court, the Justice authored My Own Words (2016), a compilation of her speeches and writings.

A private interment service will be held at Arlington National Cemetery.

This is a developing story, and this post will be updated throughout with additional reporting, analysis, and commentary.
Sugar beet growers are being urged to respond to a government consultation on imports and email their MP to safeguard the UK sugar industry.

The Department for International Trade (DIT) has opened a consultation on the new raw sugar Autonomous Tariff Quota (ATQ).

The government has plans to introduce a new zero tariff, 260,000 tonnes ATQ for raw sugar coming into the UK from 1 January 2021.

A tariff free quota open to all countries will provide additional access to the UK market for raw sugar grown anywhere in the world.

NFU Sugar, which has urged growers to respond to the consultation, warned that international production standards were often produced with practices that would be considered illegal in the UK.

The industry body believes the opening of a zero tariff ATQ for raw sugar will distort competition in the sugar market.

It added that this would undermine the preferential access granted to developing countries.

NFU Sugar board chairman Michael Sly said the governments plan was 'highly concerning, unjustified and unnecessary'.

"Allowing tariff free access to sugar from any country, produced in ways that would be illegal in the UK, will simply undercut UK growers and the standards they produce to.

"This quota system will also undermine the existing preferential access granted to developing countries.

We believe the government should urgently review this tariff and ensure that any imports under this tariff-free quota are produced to the same standards required of our growers.

The DIT consultation is open until 11.45pm on Monday 5 October 2020.
By William Schwartz | Published on 2020/09/18

Yun Jong-seok will mark his first appearance as a second lead in the upcoming drama "My Dangerous Wife" which will start airing on October 5th on the MBN cable network. There he will play Min-gyoo, the much younger husband of Eun-hye, who is played by Shim Hye-jin. Given his obvious attractiveness and the drama's premise, it's expected that he will be entangled in some way with the title character played by Kim Jung-eun.

Advertisement

The backstory of Min-gyoo and Eun-hye is fairly unique in the context of South Korean dramas. They met as Eun-hye is the CEO of a medium-sized company which was selling product on a home shopping network. Min-gyoo was at the time doing freelance work for the network. The two characters are described as very publicly affectionate in public. Purportedly, Yun Jong-seok and Shim Hye-jin also have excellent chemistry.

Yun Jong-seok has been humble in describing his role, saying that it's an honor to be working alongside his older more experienced co-stars. He also expressed hopes that Min-gyoo would show a new side of his acting. Yun Jong-seok. Since his 2017 debut in "Save Me" has gradually improved the quality of his roles, appearing as major supporting cast in "The Lies Within" from 2019. Yun Jong-seok expressed hope that viewers would be satisfied with his performance.

Written by William Schwartz
Ginsburg Death: Video Clips from Anti Abortion Leader Randall Terry for Media Use

NEWS PROVIDED BY

Randall Terry

Sept. 18, 2020

WASHINGTON, Sept. 18, 2020 /Christian Newswire/ -- Permission granted for media outlets to use any portion of the following video clips.

#1 Clip for media

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-WtJaBNIrg

Randall Terry urges President Trump to appoint Supreme Court Justice NOW.

"Ginsburg was a die hard accomplice in the killing of the unborn."

"She will now face God with the blood of the innocent on her hands. God have mercy on her soul."

"The election is no longer about Covid. It is about abortion."

"President Trump: Please appoint a Justice now. Mitch McConnel...Repulican Senate...confirm the Justice NOW."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-WtJaBNIrg

#2 Clip for media: Randall Terry urging Christians to vote for Trump

"This is our moment in history to get rid of this blight."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HY8ZQgxgTg

SOURCE Randall Terry

CONTACT: 904-826-9989, RandallTerry2020@gmail.com

Related Links

www.RandallTerry.com
TOKYO  Train stations and airports in Japan were filled with people over this Silver Week holiday weekend running through Tuesday, in a sign of recovering local travel amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The surge of domestic travel is a contrast to previous holidays, such as the summer Obon. Pressures were high for people living in urban congested areas not to visit families or play tourist in areas, where cases have been far fewer, with some regions having zero or a handful. The daily new cases of coronavirus infections in Tokyo have recently fluctuated at around 200 people. Japan does not have widespread testing and so many cases are likely going undetected. Baseball games, stores and theatres are back open in recent weeks with social distancing, mask-wearing, hand sanitizers and temperature checks.

A government-backed GoTo discount campaign at hotels and restaurants to encourage travel within Japan began in July, but Tokyo was left out. Its still unclear whether that gets lifted from next month, as proposed. Travel agencies and tourist spots have started taking reservations, with cancellation guaranteed at no extra cost if Tokyo fails to quality.

A study by mobile carrier NTT DoCoMo showed crowd size at a terminal for domestic flights at Tokyos main Haneda airport, as well as train stations and shopping districts nationwide, on Saturday was basically at pre-pandemic levels, just a tad lower, according to Kyodo News service. It had fallen by about a third, as of earlier this month.

Japan, which has about 1,500 deaths related to COVID-19 so far, has banned visitors from almost all countries, and requires quarantine and virus checks for returning Japanese.

Silver Week includes this weekend and two national holidays, Respect for the Aged Day and the Autumn Equinox. Japanese have a reputation as workaholics because of a rigid work culture and fears about job loss, but younger and more individualistic Japanese are starting to take extended time off.

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HERES WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE VIRUS OUTBREAK

 Police clash with anti-lockdown protesters in London

 India adds 93,337 new confirmed infections in past 24 hours

 2 more college football games postponed because of coronavirus

 Director of the University of Colorados football operations cited for violating coronavirus-related public health orders after a team practice involved 108 people on a mountain hike.

 Some Romanian families protest mandatory use of masks in school. Like other countries in Europe, the number of virus cases has spiked in recent days in Romania.

 The official Oktoberfest is cancelled in Munich, so 50 of the German citys beer halls are hosting their own, smaller parties conforming to coronavirus guidelines.

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Follow APs pandemic coverage at http://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak

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HERES WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

PARIS  Coronavirus infections tipped the scales again in France on Saturday with nearly 13,500 new infections in 24 hours. Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire is among them.

He announced Friday in a tweet that he had tested positive with no symptoms and was working during self-isolation. The high-profile Le Maire is the fourth French minister to test positive since March.

It was the second day in a row that new COVID-19 cases in France were above 13,000. The French health agency said Fridays big jump was the result of one hospital in the Essonne region south of Paris belatedly reporting numerous cases. It wasnt clear whether that kind of add-on effect was at play on Saturday.

For health authorities, it is clear that France needs to worry about the spread of the coronavirus, with over 1,000 clusters detected. There have been 31,274 deaths since the start of the pandemic  among the highest death tolls in Europe  and 26 deaths in the last 24 hours.

In Paris, the Prefecture de Police warned in a tweet that there will be no more tolerance for bars and restaurants where rules to counter the virus arent respected, like standing at counters or failing to respect social distancing. Police are intensifying checks that can lead to closing establishments, it said. In one Paris district, 13 establishments were formally notified that they risk being shut down and 16 others were fined, the prefecture tweeted.

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WATERBURY, Conn.  Connecticut U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes says she and all of her staff will be quarantining after one of her aides tested positive for the coronavirus.

The first-term Democratic congresswoman, who represents much of western Connecticut, said in a Twitter post Saturday that she did not have any symptoms and was awaiting an appointment to get tested.

I have been in close contact with the staffer (who tested positive) and I have worked in both my CT and D.C. offices over the last week, Hayes said. All of my staff has been notified and directed to quarantine and get tested. I will quarantine until I have the test and receive the results.

Hayes says all of her staff in Connecticut and Washington will be working remotely until further notice.

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PHOENIX  Arizona health officials on Saturday reported 610 additional coronavirus cases and 16 deaths, increasing the statewide totals to 213,551 confirmed cases and 5,467 deaths.

According to Johns Hopkins University data analyzed by The Associated Press, the seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Arizona rose over the past two weeks, from 575 new cases on Sept. 4 to 774 on Friday.

The increase followed the state Department of Health Services recent changing of its case-counting methodology to adopt an updated national standard that includes probable results from less-accurate antigen testing.

The counting change resulted in big bulges of additional cases Thursday and Friday as the department updated its records to include more than 1,300 probable cases from September and previous months.

Meanwhile, the seven-day rolling average of daily deaths dropped during the past two weeks, going from 32 deaths on Sept. 4 to 23 deaths on Friday.

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TEL AVIV, Israel  Dozens of Israelis held a beach demonstration against a new lockdown prompted by a surge in coronavirus cases.

The protesters Saturday relied on a loophole in the national closures guidelines that allows people to travel beyond the one square kilometre limit if they are to participate in a demonstration. The three-week nationwide lockdown began Friday as Israel celebrates Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year.

The demonstrators gathered on the beach of the central city of Tel Aviv, wearing swimsuits, raising black and pink flags connoting various protest movements.

Some protesters carried pictures of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been the target of weekly protests during the summer for his corruption charges and failure to handle the pandemic.

Israel has largely contained the virus in the spring, but the abrupt reopening of the economy in May worsened the outbreak. The protests against Netanyahu also were fueled by business owners who say the government failed to offer proper compensation in the first lockdown.

The government decided to impose a second lockdown because health authorities are recording thousands of cases a day, with a confirmed death toll of about 1,200.

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ATHENS, Greece  Greek authorities announced 240 coronavirus cases Saturday and four deaths.

The total number of confirmed cases is 14,978 and 331 deaths.

Authorities say a second monk from the same Mt. Athos monastery, St. Pauls, has tested positive. Both monks were tested outside the Mt. Athos monastic community. Doctors say the second became ill inside the community.

The monastery, which has about 30 monks, is not allowing visitors.

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ROME  The Italian health ministry reported another 1,638 new cases of coronavirus and 24 deaths.

The deaths brought Italys official coronavirus toll to 35,692, second highest in Europe after Britain.

The health ministry says the new cases were based on a record 103,223 tests. While countries such as Germany have been processing more than double that number in recent days, Italy has been limited at around 100,000 tests.

Public health officials said in their weekly monitoring report that Italys seven-week uptick in cases represented a slow and progressive worsening of the outbreak. However, its not as bad as in other European countries where new daily cases have exceeded 10,000.

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LONDON  Police in London have clashed with protesters at a rally organized by opponents of restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus.

Scuffles broke out Saturday as police moved in to disperse hundreds of demonstrators who gathered in central Londons Trafalgar Square. Some of the protesters formed blockades to stop officers from making arrests, and traffic was brought to a halt in the busy area.

The rally included dozens of people holding banners and placards and chanting freedom.

Britain recently imposed a ban on all social gatherings of more than six people this week in a bid to tackle a steep rise in coronavirus cases.

Britain has 338,420 confirmed cases and 41,821 deaths, the fifth-highest death toll in the world, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

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ROME  Pope Francis is urging political leaders make sure coronavirus vaccines are available to the poorest nations.

He says in many parts of the world, there is a pharmacological marginalization of those without access to health care.

Francis met Saturday with members of an Italian aid group that collects donated medicines from pharmaceutical companies and distributes them to clinics and centres helping the neediest.

Francis says far too many people die in parts of the world for lack of drugs widely available elsewhere, and political leaders must take their plight into account.

I repeat, it would be sad if in distributing the vaccine, priority was given to the wealthiest, or if a vaccine becomes the property of this or that nation and not for everyone, the pope said.

Francis has previously called for universal access to the vaccine.

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NEW YORK  New York Citys mayor says he is confident the city will meet a revised timeline to bring public school students back to classrooms within the next two weeks.

De Blasio recently delayed the reopening plan for the nations largest school district for the second time since it was announced in July, citing a shortage of staff and supplies.

Unions representing the citys teachers said it wouldnt have been safe to open all the school sites next week.

Under the revised timeline, most elementary school students will return to in-person learning starting Sept. 29, while middle and high school students will do the same Oct. 1.

The unions had pressed for more staff and additional protective equipment to protect against the virus. De Blasio promised to hire 2,500 more teachers in addition to the 2,000 additional teachers he had previously announced.

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BOULDER, Colo.  The director of the University of Colorados football operations was cited for violating coronavirus-related public health orders after a team practice involved 108 people on a mountain hike.

Bryan McGinnis could face a maximum $1,000 fine, city spokeswoman Sarah Huntley says. Many were not wearing masks or social distancing.

The group also violated a city requirement that groups of 25 or more people get a permit to use open space and mountain park land owned by the city, Huntley says. Public health orders limit groups to 10 people to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

CU Athletic Director Rick George says all student-athletes are frequently tested for coronavirus and all players who took part in the hike had recently tested negative. The school has reported at least 670 coronavirus cases since classes began about a month ago.

University officials have expressed regret and say theyre taking steps to avoid similar occurrences.

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NEW YORK  Two more college football games on Saturday have been postponed because of the coronavirus.

Baylors season opener against Houston and Florida Atlantics opener against Georgia Southern have been affected by positive tests. Baylor says its unable to meet the Big 12 roster threshold of a minimum of 53 players available to play.

Theres now been 16 Bowl Subdivision games postponed or cancelled because of virus issues since Aug. 26.

The pandemic has impacted college basketball, with the start date delayed until Nov. 25. The marquee basketball tournament on Maui has been moved to North Carolina. Meanwhile, the Pac-12 is considering getting back into fall football.

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BERLIN  German Chancellor Angela Merkel says the coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the need for massive upgrades of school technology around the country.

Merkel said Saturday during her weekly video podcast that teachers were left scrambling to teach courses virtually when schools closed at the start of the countrys outbreak. She says that underscored how important digital media and other tools are but also exposed widespread infrastructure failings.

The German leader said: That is why we have to push ahead with the digitization of schools at full speed. We need this as an indispensable addition to face-to-face teaching.

Merkel says the government is committing 6 billion euros ($7.1 billion) to support the development of digital learning and infrastructure in schools. She says all schools need high-speed internet access as soon as possible and teachers need computers suitable for providing digital lessons.

Germanys schools have reopened and students have returned to in-class learning, but officials have cautioned that the country needs to be better prepared in case virus case numbers spike again.

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NEW DELHI India has maintained its surge in coronavirus cases, adding 93,337 new confirmed infections in the past 24 hours.

The Health Ministry on Saturday raised the nations caseload to more than 5.3 million out of the nearly 1.4 billion people. It said 1,247 more people died in the past 24 hours for a total of 85,619. The country has over a million active cases with about 80% recovery rate.

India has been reporting the highest single-day rise in the world every day for more than five weeks. Its expected to become the pandemics worst-hit country within weeks, surpassing the United States.

Prime Minister Narendra Modis government has faced scathing criticism from opposition lawmakers in Indias Parliament for its handling of the pandemic amid a contracting economy leaving millions jobless.

More than 10 million migrant workers, out of money and fearing starvation, poured out of cities and headed back to villages when Modi ordered the nationwide lockdown on March 24. The migration was one key reason that the virus spread to the far reaches of the country while the lockdown caused severe economic pain. The economy contracted nearly 24% in the second quarter, the worst among the worlds top economies.

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The University of Connecticut placed the residents of the Willard C. Eddy residence hall into quarantine Saturday, as it reported 12 new on-campus cases, including three within the dormitory.

In the schools daily update on the pandemic, UConn spokeswoman Stephanie Reitz said that the school had 51 positive or suspected cases on campus, including 12 that were reported since Friday.

She said three of the new cases are in the Eddy residence hall, a standalone building in the Alumni Residence Hall Complex where 96 people reside.

In total, four cases have appeared there in the past week, Ellyssa Eror, medical director at UConn, said in a letter to students there.

This rate is disproportionate to the positive cases we have seen among other residential locations and cause for concern, Eror said in the letter. We ask for your support in this important medical decision that is essential for us to effectively control spread of this virus. The university is committed to doing all that we can as we adjust to this status for Eddy Hall.

Students in the hall will be tested twice each week until the university gets a handle on the trend, Eror said. The quarantine will continue until a clear decrease in transmission can be documented through this testing effort, she said.

In the meantime, students are barred from attending classes or having guests, she said.

In a separate email, Associate Dean of Students Maureen Armstrong Maureen said that staffers were available to help students adjust to remote classes.

I am reaching out today to offer you support as you make the adjustments to begin the quarantine as a resident of Eddy Hall. I recognize that the quarantine status may create a certain amount of stress, particularly related to your classes. Please remember that the staff in the Dean of Students Office are here to help, said Armstrong. I am confident we can work together to help you navigate this challenging time.

Reitz said 147 confirmed cases had occurred on campus this semester. A total of 57 cases had been found among off-campus students, including eight Friday. Three of the eight were reported in The Oaks on the Square apartments, which were previously placed into quarantine earlier this month.

The current on-campus positive rate among students is 1.02 percent, Reitz said. As of Sept. 11, that figure was at 0.72 percent.

UConn continues to test hundreds of students on a regular day as part of ongoing surveillance efforts. This surveillance includes testing for randomly selected students, as well as asymptomatic on- or off-campus Storrs students who request a test as a precaution, Reitz said.

The university has made statistics related to the COVID-19 pandemic publicly available on an online dashboard.

A total of 16 students, faculty and staff have tested positive for the coronavirus at Yale University since Aug. 1, according to that institution. That includes two cases among students in the week ending Sept. 16.

There are 69 active cases at Sacred Heart University  nine on campus and 60 off-campus. That includes 48 positive results in the last seven days, six of which occurred among on-campus students.

At Trinity College in Hartford, there were 15 active cases as of Sept. 16.

There are three cases at the University of New Haven; one at the University of Bridgeport and one at Quinnipiac University, according to those institutions.

william.lambert@hearstmediact.com
In Florida, Joe Biden said Harris-Biden administration when earlier his running mate made the same verbal gaff. Both might be endorsing a new line up before the big November elections, which the liberals need badly.

No one is perfect, but many thought the slip up would be limited to Harris. Joe Biden himself has repeated the mistake, and next question is, are there more coming?

But, the duo is going beyond these verbal errors, instead they talk of a platform that will interest the military. One of these statements by Biden is there will be a program to help those married to servicemen. Another is for the Biden administration to provide support for U.S. veterans on par with what President Trump has done, in a Tampa, Florida sortie, reported Daily Mail.

Last Saturday, the documented gaff by Harris as the Harris administration with Joe Biden is ammo for the Republican stalwarts. The mistake last Saturday is more ammunition to what President Trump called a Trojan Horse for Socialism.

Fortunately, despite the slip-ups, the Democrat presidentiable got a five-point lead in Florida.

Democrats are now putting their narrative as the voters from Latino and veterans were given a piece of his platform. He needs to score with the Hispanics and ready to draw more support after the anti-Trump piece in The Atlantic. Accusing the incumbent of insulting servicemen and calling them dead losers and suckers.

In his spiel the ex- VP criticized the President harshly for insulting all servicemen who have fought for America. Explaining that president Trump has an idea what it means to serve, although the Trump administration has been pulling for recall of troops from hotspots.

Also read: Ex- White House Stenographer Said Joe Biden Cannot Keep Up, Relies on Scripts

One of the comments about Biden is that he does not take questions. This time he does answer all questions, though one observation is the answers are tedious or in long monotonous answers. It last for an hour and a half at Tampa, cited Angle News.

Biden made jokes with six people whom he got questions, but he will not answer all questions given. There will be a follow up to it, before they get answered he stressed to his guests.

Things were interesting for this democratic sortie at Hillsborough Community College, wherein observation of scripted remarks was given. But the question and answer was the most interesting part, noted World Newj.

He mistook Iraq for Iran when he went headlong into slamming Trump's cavalier attitude to dead American soldiers.

Saying that he carries a card for the last 14-years and always has it on him. He described his schedule and even mentions when it ends. Giving special mention to a black box that has daily troop updates.

Continuing and stating that U.S. troops that died in Iran and Afghanistan is 6,923, as of today.

Next, he moves on to another point and mentions dead soldiers leaving their families and communities bereft. At one point, he got Iraq correct the second time.

During this time, he discussed things to the six-people as his audience shot off numbers about Iraq or Afghanistan to them in the Q and A.

To make things short, Biden talked about many things that are relevant to his presidential campaign. He ended the event by saying he will be all Americans' president.

The twin slip-ups about the Harris-Biden administration might be summed up, so who's the boss?

Related article: Kamala Harris Mistakenly Said 'Harris Administration' Instead of Biden Administration in a Slip Up

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
An internal survey of 1300 workers of the DISK Genel-Is union reveals 23.8% have a salary that is enough for the next three months. Approximately 68% receive the minimum wage (around $ 300) or a little more. More and more people are struggling to pay instalments and mortgages. The tendency to buy cheaper or unhealthier foods.

Istanbul (AsiaNews / Agencies) - About 70% of associated workers receive a salary that is not even enough to meet the needs and expenses of a month and have no other source of income to survive.

23.8% can count on a salary sufficient for the next three months, not beyond.

This is what emerges from a survey carried out by the Turkish trade union DISK Genel-Is among its members, which wanted to analyze the impact of the new coronavirus pandemic on the labour market and the purchasing power of wages. A critical situation, which has already emerged in recent weeks in which there was talk of a situation of "risk" for 82% of the employed.

Over 1300 workers from various sectors participated in the investigation and distributed in different parts of the country. 69.8% of respondents say that the salary is enough for just under a month, while 23.8% for a maximum of three months.

In terms of wages, 60.1% earn between 2,300 Turkish lira (just over 300 dollars) per month, the minimum required by law, and 3,500 lire; 15.9% between 3,501 lire and 4 thousand lire; 14% between 4001 lire and 5 thousand lire, 10% over 5 thousand and the remaining 6.7% the guaranteed minimum (and in some cases even less).

In spite of the promises made by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who used the charter of nationalism and Islam (see Hagia Sophia) to mask economic difficulties, 88.8% of workers do not receive any subsidies or assistance from the employment agency (ISKUR). 9.3% speak of a minimum contribution, inadequate to meet expenses and needs.

With reference to the impact of the pandemic on the economic situation of individual workers, 57.1% said they had encountered "various difficulties", while 39.6% did not register changes in wages. 21.3% did not know how to pay off debts and mortgage maturities, but only the expenses of daily life; 14.3% saw their debts grow and 9.4% also had difficulties with everyday purchases.

In recent months, 42% have bought cheaper foods. 32.9% did not see any changes and 21.7% opted for unhealthier ingredients and meals.

Finally, in terms of Covid-19 infections, 73.6% did not come into contact with infected people in the workplace, while 25.5% of respondents had at least one colleague who caught the virus. Only 0.4% say they have contracted the infection. 63.2% of the workplaces surveyed did not register any cases of new coronavirus.
By Ben Blanchard and Ann Wang

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan bid farewell on Saturday to former president Lee Teng-hui, dubbed "Mr. Democracy" for ending autocratic rule in favour of free elections and championing Taiwan's separate identity from China, as Beijing again sent jets close to the island.

Lee's memorial service took place in the shadow of renewed Chinese war games, as did his election as Taiwan's first democratic leader in 1996. China claims the island as its own territory.

Lee, who died in July, was president from 1988 to 2000.

His greatest act of defiance was becoming Taiwan's first democratically elected president in March 1996, achieved in a landslide following eight months of intimidating war games and missile tests by China in waters around the island.

Those events brought China and Taiwan to the verge of conflict, prompting the United States to send an aircraft carrier task force to the area in a warning to the Beijing government.

On Friday and again on Saturday, China carried out drills in the Taiwan Strait, sending 19 aircraft near the island on Saturday alone, as Beijing expressed anger at the visit of a senior U.S. official to Taipei, there for Lee's memorial.[nL4N2GG046]

Speaking at the memorial service in a chapel at a Taipei university, President Tsai Ing-wen said he had shaped the Taiwan of today.

"Confronted with daunting international challenges, he skilfully led the people of Taiwan by promoting pragmatic diplomacy. Taiwan became synonymous with democracy and was catapulted onto the world stage. Because of this, President Lee came to be lauded as Mr. Democracy," Tsai said. "Thanks to his efforts, Taiwan now shines as a beacon of democracy."

Lee, a devout Christian, was 97.

U.S. Undersecretary for Economic Affairs Keith Krach and former Japanese prime minister Yoshiro Mori also attended his memorial, and Japan's de facto ambassador in Taiwan read a statement from recently resigned Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Story continues

Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, whom Beijing also reviles as a separatist, sent a recorded video message for his "close friend" Lee.

"Now he is no longer here, but we Buddhists believe in life after life, so most probably he will be reborn in Taiwan," he said.

Lee's remains will be interred at a military cemetery next month.

(Reporting by Ann Wang and Ben Blanchard; Editing by Michael Perry, Gerry Doyle and William Mallard)
Godwin Obaseki, governor of Edo, and Osagie Ize-Iyamu, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), have voted at their polling units...

Godwin Obaseki, governor of Edo, and Osagie Ize-Iyamu, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), have voted at their polling units in the state.

Edo governorship election kicked off on Saturday under a relatively calm atmosphere.

Obaseki, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who is seeking reelection, voted at polling unit 19, ward 04, Oredo local government area while Ize-Iyamu voted at polling unit 26 ward 05 at Orihomwon local government area.

Adams Oshiomhole, former national chairman of the APC, cast his vote at polling unit 001, Uzarue north-east ward 10 at Estako west local government area.
Indirapuram: The Ghaziabad police on Saturday (September 19) raided the property of UP-based dreaded gangster Subhash Yadav. The offender has his name involved in several heinous crimes including charges of murder and rapes.

During the process, the Ghaziabad police seized assets worth 1.5 to 2 crores rupees belonging to the land mafia Subhash Yadav.

The assets attached by the inspector in-charge Indirapuram are under the criminal acts. The seized assets include several movable and immovable property including his cars.

The police has registered criminal cases against Subhash Yadav and his son Monil Yadav. Subhash Yadav has more than 15 FIR registered against him in several police stations of Delhi-NCR region.
Republican President Donald Trump takes his re-election campaign to the political swing state of North Carolina on Saturday in an effort to boost his poll numbers against Democratic rival Joe Biden and shore up support among military members there.

Trump has boasted about revitalising the US armed forces with increased defense budgets but has seen his political support slip among troops.

A poll in the Military Times last month found a "slight but significant" preference among active duty military members for Biden, the former vice president, and a decline in favourability for Trump.

North Carolina has a number of military bases, and the president's rally in Fayetteville is near Fort Bragg, a large base with tens of thousands of personnel.

An average of polls by RealClearPolitics shows a tight race between Trump and Biden in North Carolina, with Biden holding a slight lead.

The president has had a mixed relationship with military leaders. He described John McCain, a senator and Vietnam War veteran who is now deceased, in derogatory terms and has had to deny reporting in the Atlantic magazine that he referred to US war dead as "losers" and "suckers."

Biden has sought to capitalise on that vulnerability. His campaign said on Friday it was releasing an ad directed at military families to be aired in swing states including Arizona, Florida, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Wisconsin.

"President Trump has been a consistent champion of America's service members and veterans and has succeeded at rebuilding our military, reforming the Department of Veterans Affairs, and launching initiatives to help veterans adjust to civilian life," the campaign said in a statement on Friday after Vice President Mike Pence touted Trump's record with the military in Arizona.

Trump has traveled repeatedly to North Carolina in recent weeks, making a stop there during the Republican National Convention and a later trip to declare the city of Wilmington a World War Two Heritage City.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, catching a flight wasn't a big deal, but things have changed drastically as coronavirus wreaks havoc across the globe.

Amid strict travel restrictions, people have been deprived of travel and to make their lives a little more joyful, an Australian airline has started a one-of-a-kind, 'flight to nowhere' project.

Twitter

To make things a little interesting, Australian airline Qantas recently announced its plan for a seven-hour scenic flight to nowhere.

According to CNN, Flight to nowhere serves the purpose of taking passengers on a journey, without really reaching any destination. In a social media post, Qantas announced that it would fly by Uluru, Kata Tjuta, the Whitsundays, Gold Coast, Byron Bay and Sydney Harbour.

Also Read: Airline Allows Free Transport Of Mother's Milk From Leh, For Baby Undergoing Treatment In Delhi

Miss taking to the skies together? Us too! Weve designed a special scenic joy flight onboard our 787 Dreamliner for those who just want to spread their wings  no passport or quarantine required. Departing Sydney on 10 October, the Great Southern Land scenic flight will feature low-level flybys of some of Australias most iconic landmarks including Uluru, Kata Tjuta, the Whitsundays, Gold Coast, Byron Bay and Sydney Harbour. Be quick! Fares go on sale at 12pm AEST today, (sic) the airline wrote on Instagram.

With over 150 passengers onboard, the plane will take off from Sydney Airport on October 10, with low-level fly-bys of landmarks across Queensland border to the Gold Coast, Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, before continuing north to the Whitsundays and Great Barrier Reef, the local Australian broadcaster Traveller reported. Qantass plane will also fly over Uluru and Kata Tjuta landmarks and over the Sydney Harbour before returning to the Sydney airport for landing.

Also Read: After Media Chaos On Flight With Kangana Onboard, DGCA Warns Airlines Of Flight Suspension

The ticket costs up to RS 57,878 for an economy seat, Rs 1,31,421 for Premium and a few business class seats for Rs 2,78,368. A Qantas spokesperson reportedly said that Emily Boeing 787 Dreamliner was the probably the fastest selling flight in Qantas history.



Qantas CEO, Alan Joyce, was quoted by Australias local media outlet Traveller as saying that the frequent flyers missed the experience of flying amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. However, they might not have missed the destination as much as the whole experience of boarding the flight.



Would you take a flight to nowhere?
Given McConnells decision to refuse so much as a hearing for Merrick Garland, Obamas pick upon the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in 2016, a handful of Republicans have signaled a desire to wait until after Election Day to approve a nomination. It is unclear, however, what objections remain to approving a nomination in the lame-duck session between November and the start of a new Congress in January.
Cozumel begins crocodile monitoring program to determine ecosystem health

Cozumel, Q.R.  The Cozumel Parks and Museums Foundation began monitoring crocodiles that inhabit the lagoon bodies of the Punta Sur Ecotourism Park since its presence is an indicator of good ecosystem health.

The State Ecological Reserve Laguna Colombia is located within Punta Sur and has three lagoon bodies, Xtacun, Chunchakaab and Colombia, where crocodiles live. In a first visual monitoring tour in the Xtacun lagoon, staff were able to identify 12 specimens, reported Rafael Chacon Diaz, director of Conservation and Environmental Education.

He explained that it is very important to have current data on the number of crocodiles that exist in the lagoons. He says visual monitoring has begun by georeferencing the reptiles without affecting or influencing their behavior. Chacon Diaz added that while monitoring the crocodile population, staff are also able to see the number of birds and get a broad overview of the ecosystem.

Crocodile counts determine the lagoons health

It is a way of understanding how the population is in the entire reserve, he explained adding that the presence of crocodiles in the lagoon system is an indicator that the ecosystem is healthy.

He mentioned that it is precisely for this reason that stray crocodiles are relocated to that area of Laguna Colombia.
President Muhammadu Buhari and the governor of Ebonyi State, David Umahi, have mourned the death of over 30 persons in the accident which happened at the Akaeze-Ukwu River.

A bus, conveying several people on Friday, travelling along the Akaeze-Ishaiagu Road, in Ivo council area of the state, plunged into a river, leaving more than 30 persons dead.

Four persons were rescued alive while the bodies of 15 dead persons have been recovered between Friday and Saturday.

In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, President Buhari described the incident as a colossal loss of human lives.

We are saddened and aggrieved at this colossal loss of human lives, the president said, adding that the thoughts and prayers of the government and people of Nigeria are with the families of the victims of this accident.

He commended the Ebonyi State government for spearheading the rescue and recovery efforts as well as the support it has received from the neighbouring state governments in that regard.

Mr Umahi, on Saturday, visited the Akaeze bridge, the scene of the tragic accident that reportedly claimed 30 lives.

The governor who was visibly saddened by the ugly incident with misty eyes ordered a full investigation, warning drivers to always exercise caution while plying routes.

At the scene of the incident, were personnel of the Nigerian Police, Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, and Ebonyi State Emergency Management Agency.

Mr Umahi sympathised with the families of the deceased, saying, I am saddened over this ugly incident. It is indeed devastating but we cannot question God.

I sympathise with the families of those that are involved in this ugly incident and urge them to look unto God in this trying time as only Him can close the vacuum.

I equally call on all the security agencies to as a matter of urgency, expedite action in unveiling the reason behind the ugly occurrence as I urge drivers to always exercise caution while plying routes.

Meanwhile, a search is still ongoing for the remaining 13 persons.
GLASGLOW : Recently Pakistan's opposition parties thwarted an attempt by Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan government to hold a consultative meeting to discuss a constitutional package for Gilgit Baltistan (GB) by boycotting the session called by the Parliamentary Standing Committee for National Security.

This defeat of the Imran Khan-led government comes at a time when a general election in GB is expected by the end on November 2020.

In a desperate attempt to guarantee a victory in the forthcoming elections, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government is leaving no stone unturned.

From hypocritical and rhetorical claims that GB is set to become the fifth province of Pakistan, to demagogic references to Islamic bondage between the Occupier (Sunni-dominated Pakistan) and the oppressed (Shia-dominated GB), and from naming post-election development packages to a sudden rush to the occupied region of Karakorum by top federal ministers to garner support for the ruling party in Pakistan, the whole election campaign has become a farce.

Imran Khan cannot even get respectable candidates for his party in GB. Many who were once thought to become PTI candidates have now decided to contest elections as independents.

Full-scale manipulation of voters list, postponing the date of the election to November to let winter set in and snowfall block the roads that lead to far-flung polling stations causing low voter turn out, are only a few of the tricks up the sleeve of the Pakistani establishment to influence the results of the elections.

Not only that poor performance in the election in GB will harm the popularity of PTI during the general election in Pakistani-occupied Kashmir due next year but it will also undermine the Pakistan Army's control of the region.

Gilgit-Baltistan has been part of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir since 1877. During the Pakistan invasion of the state of Jammu Kashmir in October 1947, Maharaja Hari Singh acceded to India, therefore, allowing Indian troops to land at Srinagar airport on October 27, 1947.

It did not take long for the Indian forces to push the Pakistani army and tribal invaders back. As Pakistan's defeat became imminent, a British mercenary by the name of Major William Brown was stationed in the Gilgit agency. He was ordered by the British to stage a coup against the Governor of Gilgit Agency Brigadier Ghansara Singh.

At the time the officers of the Gilgit Scouts, a paramilitary force to scout the region, was under the command of British officers. They staged a coup and held individual meetings with the chieftains of the vassal states of the Gilgit Agency and gave them a choice of supporting the change in the political status of the Gilgit Agency or face retribution.

On October 30, 1947, just three days after the Indian troops landed in Srinagar, Major William Brown made his move and took over the Agency. On November 2 that year, he pulled down the flag of the state of Jammu Kashmir and raised the flag of Pakistan at the Gilgit Residency.

Had former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru not been to the United Nations and negotiated a cease-fire, Gilgit Baltistan would have been freed along with parts of west Jammu that were occupied by Pakistan army. The Indian troops were well on their way to liberate Skardu when they were stopped in their tracks. Indian troops retreated to Kargil and Leh.

Pakistan has since tried to swallow GB but in vain. In May 2007, a report submitted to the EU parliamentary Committee on Kashmir, known as the Emma Nicholson Report, described the human rights situation in GB and PoJK and proved that there were widespread abuse of human rights in both occupied regions.

In her report, she mentioned that it was the Pakistan Ministry of Kashmir Affairs that dealt with political, economic and financial issues of the occupied territories.

The Minister of Kashmir Affairs, she noted, was a Pakistani, so were the Inspector General of Police, the Accountant General and the Finance Secretary.

She also highlighted the fact the according to the interim constitution of Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir (also known as Act 74), no political party was allowed to operate unless they pledged their loyalty to the idea of accession to Pakistan.

Today, there are several dozen political prisoners in GB serving sentences up to 90 years. The colonial Schedule Four law bars any form of freedom of speech. The GB is crucial to the Belt and Road initiative of China.

The route that would take supplies from China to the Mediterranean and the continent of Europe has to pass through the occupied territory of GB before it reaches the Port of Gwadar in Baluchistan.

Hence, it is under the immense pressure of expansionist China that Pakistan is attempting to nip GB. Pakistan owes billions of dollars to China that she has borrowed to help keep its dwindling economy afloat.

China is investing over USD 60 billion just on the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The irony is that all projects of CPEC that are being constructed in Pakistan are done by Chinese loans.

Hence it's a double-edged trap for Pakistan. It's a debt-trap. This debt-trap is going to prove like a death trap for Pakistan in years to come since Pakistan is unable to generate a surplus economy.

In this scenario occupied territories have become the first to bear the brunt of the economic causality Pakistan is suffering.

River Indus in GB and Rivers Jhelum and Neelum in PoJK has been diverted for the construction of Hydropower projects in Diamer, Kohala and other places.

This is causing severe ecological disaster in the region. Water shortages in GB and PoJK have forced hundreds of settled people to migrate. Green pastures for animal grazing have dried up and wildlife species are seriously been endangered.

It is a wakeup call for India that its people and lands that were occupied in 1947 are now being systematically sent to the death camp of history by a rouge fascist state of Pakistan.

The need to act to save our people and recapture our lands has never been so pressing.

Disclaimer: The author of this opinion piece is Dr Amjad Ayub Mirza, who is a human rights activist from Mirpur in PoK. He currently lives in exile in the UK.

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Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews wanted returning travellers infected with COVID-19 in April to stay at a quarantine hotel near Melbourne airport, not in the CBD.

But 80 infected travellers from a cruise ship were nonetheless sent to the ill-fated Rydges on Swanston hotel on the edge of the CBD after a Victorian health department executive deemed it too "risky" to try to fulfil the Premier's request at short notice.

Internal emails reveal Premier Daniel Andrews did not want infected travellers at a CBD hotel such as the Rydges on Swanston in April. Credit:Eddie Jim

The Rydges on Swanston consequently became Melbourne's main "hot" hotel that hosted positive cases from other quarantine hotels. Six weeks later, infections among staff and security guards sparked the large majority of Victoria's second wave of coronavirus.

Internal emails between Victoria's most senior health officials including Chief Health Officer Professor Brett Sutton reveal that Mr Andrews asked for travellers from the Greg Mortimer cruise ship flying to Melbourne from Uruguay on April 12 to stay near the airport.
United Wa State Army soldiers march during a rehearsal for a military parade to commemorate 30 years of a bilateral cease-fire signed with the Myanmar military, in the town of Pangsang in Myanmar's Wa self-administered region, April 17, 2019.

Myanmars most powerful ethnic armed groups, which remain outside national leader Aung San Suu Kyis slow-moving peace talks, have set up full-blown military service academies in their territories, with some training cadets from other rebel militias to face a common foe, the government military.

The ethnic armies describe the academies as a way to professionalize their ranks and boost their bargaining positions in any future peace talks with the government.

But the Myanmar military says the academies run by rebel armies infringe on national sovereignty.

In a country thats been at war since its independence in 1948, the ranks of ethnic armies in Myanmar total more than one-fifth of the 400,000-strong national military.

On Sept. 11, the United Wa State Army (UWSA), Myanmar most powerful ethnic army with 30,000 regular fighters, opened a four-year military service academy in far eastern Shan state on the border with Chinas Yunnan province.

The new military school in Roung Tain village of Pangsang (Pangkham) town opened with an initial cohort of 100 cadets, a UWSA spokesman told RFA on Thursday.

This is the first military academy school in our Wa state, said Nyi Rang, the communications officer at the UWSAs liaison office in Lashio. The school was set up to teach skills to future military leaders, he said.

The goal for opening this school is to advance the technologies and skills of our troops to keep abreast of the changing trends, the spokesman said, adding that the specific curriculum is classified.

Shan, Myanmars largest state and home to the countrys second-largest ethnic group, has been under armed conflict between government forces and numerous ethnic-based armies fighting for autonomy since 1958, 10 years after the former Burma gained independence from Britain in 1948.

Formed from members of the former Communist Party of Burma following the groups disbandment in 1989, the UWSA has 10,000 auxiliary members in addition to its regular force and maintains close relations with China.

Myanmars constitutions grants the roughly 500,000 Wa the right to administer what is known as Special Region 2, comprising the six townships of Hopang, Mongmao, Pangwaun, Matman, Namphan, and Pangsang in northern and eastern Shan state.

Although the UWSA has not fought against government forces for decades, its military strength, boosted by Chinese arms, makes it the most powerful force behind a cluster of ethnic armies that have resisted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyis peace negations aimed at ending the countrys multiple wars and building a democratic federal union of the multiethnic nation of 54 million.

United Wa State Army soldiers march during a military parade commemorating 30 years of a bilateral cease-fire signed with the Myanmar military, in the town of Pangsang in Myanmar's Wa self-administered region, April 17, 2019. Credit: RFA Four rounds of talks

Aung San Suu Kyis government has held four rounds of talks with about half of the countrys ethnic armies, mostly the smaller groups, without major breakthroughs.

The last round before Nov. 8 national elections was held in August and produced acceptance in principle by Myanmars powerful military of the concept of federalism after decades of resistance to the idea.

But the agreement was thin on concrete achievements and remained stuck on a key military demand  that the UWSA and its allies who have so far refused to sign Myanmars nationwide cease-fire agreement (NCA) must lay down their arms and enter the cease-fire pact. The NCA has been signed by 10 ethnic armed organizations since October 2015.

The UWSA is one of seven non-signatory groups that comprise the Federal Political Negotiation and Consultative Committee (FPNCC), an alliance of some of the largest of rebel armies that have been at war with the central government for decades and have resisted signing the NCA because they want to keep their armies.

The FPNCC has proposed a confederate system in Myanmar that allows ethnic organizations to maintain their own armed forces  a move that the Myanmar military strongly opposes.

When asked about the UWSAs academy, a Myanmar military spokesman Major General Zaw Min Tun said that a sovereign nation can have only one military institution, repeating the armed forces long-held stance in peace negotiations that there should only be a single national military to defend and protect the state.

With regards to that issue, there is one and only one military force in every sovereign country that was created for safeguarding and defending the state, he said.

Zaw Min Tun also called on stakeholders involved in Myanmars peace process to work towards securing a lasting cessation of hostilities through the NCA.

The Myanmar military has said that it is trying to tolerate the UWSA after the ethnic army showed off its forces in an April 2019 ceremony marking the 30th anniversary of its founding.

At that time, Zhao Guo-ann, the UWSAs vice chairman and external affairs officer, spoke of an expanded ethnic force at a news conference in Pangsang.

We understand having one military institution under a sovereign nation, but with the current situation we are building up the UWSAs military power in order to secure the political guarantee for the Wa people, he said.

Building up military power is just for the defense of the Wa people and not to rebel against the government, he added, but cautioned that everyone becomes a soldier if there is a military provocation or invasion.

Ta'ang National Liberation Army soldiers march during a military parade commemorating the ethnic army's Revolution Day in Kyaukme township, Myanmar's northern Shan state, Jan. 14, 2016. Credit: RFA Allied training efforts

Political activist and writer Than Soe Naing said the UWSAs new military academy was not intended to expand its forces, but rather to restructure them.

Was troops had been transformed from former Burmese Communist Party forces, so they didnt have rankings like lieutenant or major, he told RFA. They have had only commanding officers for squadrons, [but] now they have established new rankings.

Meanwhile the Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA), another NCA non-signatory, held a graduation ceremony on July 23 for the first group of students from its military training school in northern Shan state.

More than 50 of the 70 cadets attending the academy graduated, said TNLA spokesman Mei Eik Kyaw.

We sometimes request legal, military and political experts from our allied groups, he said about the training facility. We have our own coursework as well as lectures by outside groups.

The TNLA also sometimes sends students to study at the military service academy run by the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), he added.

The TNLA along with the KIA, Arakan Army (AA), and Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), also known as the Kokang Army, form the Northern Alliance, a sub-grouping of ethnic militaries that have not signed the NCA.

Earlier this year, the AA, which is fighting for greater autonomy for ethnic Rakhine people in their western coastal state, was declared an illegal association and terrorist organization by the Myanmar government.

Mei Eik Kyaw pointed out that the AA started out with only 26 privates in 2009, but now has more than 7,000 soldiers, some of whom initially trained at the KIAs facility.

In 2010, the AA began instructing soldiers at its own training school in Laiza, and have turned out 50 co-ed cohorts with approximately 500 cadets in each unit, he said.

AA spokesperson Khine Thukha declined to provide information about the training program when contacted by RFA, saying it was classified.

United Wa State Army soldiers march during a military parade commemorating 30 years of a bilateral cease-fire signed with the Myanmar military, in the town of Pangsang in Myanmar's Wa self-administered region, April 17, 2019. Credit: RFA Raising their game

The Mon National Liberation Army (MNLA), whose political wing, the New Mon State Party (NMSP), is an NCA signatory, also operates a cadet training center.

NMSP spokesman Naing Aung Ma Ngay said having a military academy gives ethnic armies a leg up when negotiating with Myanmar forces for a peace deal.

Ethnic armies plant the seeds of military discipline in training schools, though they need to be careful not to overemphasize their military strength, he told RFA.

The KIA, which was formed in 1961, has operated a military academy at its headquarters in Lashio, northern Shan state, since 2000 and has provided training to soldiers from other ethnic armies.

In late 2014, the academy was attacked with heavy artillery, killing 23 students from various ethnic groups who were undergoing military training.

KIA spokesman Colonel Naw Bu said the facility accepts college graduates and young people who have completed high school as a minimum qualification.

We also accept girls as students. We accept young people with a revolutionary spirit, he said.

Cohorts of 50-60 students take three years to complete the KIAs basic military training program, which consists in part of physical exercises, military-related procedures, and light weaponry training, he said.

We previously trained the privates from other ethnic armed groups, but now there are almost no students from other groups, Naw Bu said.

The All Burma Students' Democratic Front (ABSDF), founded in 1988 by former student exiles, also has military training facilities and other instructional programs. The ethnic army is a signatory of the NCA.

We have joint training programs with allied groups, said ABSDF spokesman Private Myo Win said. We also have separate trainings.

The selection criteria for students are based on their education level and experience similar to that of other ethnic armies, he said without elaborating.

The Restoration Council of Shan State/Shan State Army-South (RCSS-SSA), an NCA signatory group in northern Shan state that has engaged in sporadic clashes with Myanmar forces this year despite the cease-fire, does not have its own military service academy, but offers basic military skills training, said spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Ohm Khay.

We dont have any requirements for students who want to complete the training, he said. We provide training to [those] who have never had basic military training.

Former Burmese Communist Party member Maung Maung Soe, who is now an analyst of ethnic and military affairs, said it is necessary for the ethnic armies to have training academies.

If you are operating an armed group, you need to have basic military training usually up to the officer level, he said.

As long as the government cannot resolve the ethnic armed groups issue, these forces will continue their recruitment and training, he added.

Reported by Aung Theinkha and Nay Myo Htun for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Ye Kaung Myint Maung. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.
SEATTLE (dpa-AFX) - Six people were indicted by a grand Jury in the Western District of Washington with conspiring to pay over $100,000 in commercial bribes to Amazon employees and contractors, in exchange for an unfair competitive advantage on the Amazon Marketplace, the U.S. Department of Justice said. According to the indictment, all the six accused used bribery and fraud since 2017 to benefit merchant accounts on the Amazon Marketplace, resulting in more than $100 million of competitive benefits to those accounts, harm to competitors, and harm to consumers. The indictment said that Amazon employees who accepted bribes reinstated sellers whose accounts had been suspended for offering dangerous products. Ephraim Rosenberg, 45, of Brooklyn, New York; Joseph Nilsen, 31, and Kristen Leccese, 32, of New York, New York; Hadis Nuhanovic, 30, of Acworth, Georgia; Rohit Kadimisetty, 27, of Northridge, California; and Nishad Kunju, 31, of Hyderabad, India, were charged with conspiracy to use a communication facility to commit commercial bribery, conspiracy to access a protected computer without authorization, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and wire fraud. The defendants paid bribes to at least ten different Amazon employees and contractors, including Kunju, who accepted bribes as a seller-support associate in Hyderabad, India, before becoming an outside consultant who recruited and paid bribes to his former colleagues, the U.S. Justice Department said. Meanwhile, Amazon said it has supported the lengthy investigation. It looks forward to working with law enforcement agencies to hold those bad actors accountable for their illegal activities. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
A scathing report into Priti Patels Home Office has found the department has no idea of the impact of its immigration policies, which appear to be formulated on the basis of anecdote, assumption and prejudice.

The cross-party House of Commons Home Affairs Committee found that the Home Office showed far too little concern over the damage caused by its failures to both the illegal and legal migrant populations in the UK.

And chair Meg Hillier said it had shown little intent to change after the Windrush scandal, when long-standing UK residents were returned to the Caribbean despite being in Britain legally, and said the department had inspired no confidence that there was not another such debacle right around the corner.

Failure to gather reliable information means that the Home Office does not know the number of illegal migrants in the UK and cannot say whether its own hostile environment policies deter illegal migration or not, said the report. Its last attempt to estimate the illegal population was as long ago as 2005.

And it said the department did not know what was achieved by the 400 million spent each year by its Immigration Enforcement Directorate.

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Ms Smart was sentenced in November, along with other members of Insulate Britain, to serve four months for breaking a High Court injunction by taking part in a blockade at junction 25 of the M25 motorway during the morning rush hour on 8 October last year PA UK news in pictures 13 January 2022 A TV presenter holds a copy of a newspaper outside 10 Downing Streetafter the Prime Minister apologised for attending a gathering of colleagues in the Number Ten garden in May 2020, while the UK was in strict lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic Getty UK news in pictures 12 January 2022 Fitness guru Derrick Evans after receiving an MBE during an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 11 January 2022 A couple walk underneath an umbrella during wet weather on Westminster Bridge in central London PA UK news in pictures 10 January 2022 A jogger passes the Covid Memorial Wall in London AP UK news in pictures 9 January 2021 The sun rises over horses at Seaton Sluice in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 8 January 2022 Riders compete during the Veterans Men's race at the UK Cyclo-Cross National Championships 2022 in Ardingly, south of London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 7 January 2022 A dog looks out of a car window at the wintry conditions in Killeshin, Co. Laois PA UK news in pictures 6 January 2022 People walk through frost and mist alongside a frozen lake during sunrise in Bushy Park, London REUTERS UK news in pictures 5 January 2022 A skier jumps on the slopes at Allenheads in the Pennines to the north of Weardale in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 4 January 2022 Freshly-fallen snow covers houses in Corbridge, near Hexham in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 3 January 2022 Dean Morrison, 13, receives his Covid-19 vaccine from student nurse Anthony McLaughlin during a vaccination clinic at the Glasgow Central Mosque PA UK news in pictures 2 January 2022 Konastantinos Tsimikas of Liverpool with Chelseas Mason Mount during the Premier League match at Stamfrod Bridge Liverpool FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 January 2022 New Years Eve Lasers, drones and fireworks illuminate the sky in front of the Royal Naval College in Greenwich shortly after midnight in London EPA UK news in pictures 31 December 2021 Competitors in fancy dress run across the Pennine tops near Haworth, West Yorkshire, in the annual Auld Lang Syne Fell race which attracts hundreds of runners every year PA UK news in pictures 30 December 2021 Sunrise at Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 29 December 2021 The Very Revd Dr Robert Willis, Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, looks at Becket, a six month old red-billed chough as he visits Wildwood Wildlife Park in Kent on the anniversary of the murder of Thomas Becket PA UK news in pictures 28 December 2021 Troops of the Household Cavalry are seen reflected in a puddle during the changing of the Queens Life Guard, on Horse Guards Parade, in central London PA UK news in pictures 27 December 2021 A pedestrian walks past a winter sale sign outside a John Lewis store on Oxford street in London Getty UK news in pictures 26 December 2021 Riders take their bikes through the snow near Castleside, County Durham PA UK news in pictures 25 December 2021 Patrick Corkery wears a santa hat and beard as waves crash over him at Forty Foot near Dublin during a Christmas Day dip PA UK news in pictures 24 December 2021 People stand inside Kings Cross Station on Christmas Eve in London Reuters UK news in pictures 23 December 2021 Christmas shoppers fill the car park at Fosse Shopping Park in Leicester PA UK news in pictures 22 December 2021 The sun rises behind the stones as people gather for the winter solstice at Stonehenge. Getty UK news in pictures 21 December 2021 People take part in a winter solstice swim at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh to mark the solstice and to witness the dawn after the longest night of the year PA UK news in pictures 20 December 2021 An auction employee displays poultry to buyers and sellers attending the Christmas Poultry Sale at York Auction Centre in Murton PA UK news in pictures 19 December 2021 Joao Moutinho of Wolverhampton Wanderers looks on during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Chelsea at Molineux Getty Images UK news in pictures 18 December 2021 Freight lorries queuing at the port of Dover in Kent PA UK news in pictures 17 December 2021 Newly elected Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan, bursts 'Boris' bubble' held by colleague Tim Farron, as she celebrates following her victory in the North Shropshire by-election PA UK news in pictures 16 December 2021 Brussels sprouts are harvested by workers as they prepare for the busy Christmas period near Boston in Lincolnshire PA UK news in pictures 15 December 2021 Lewis Hamilton is made a Knight Bachelor by the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 14 December 2021 The Royal Liver Buildings surrounded by early morning fog in Liverpool PA UK news in pictures 13 December 2021 People queue outside a walk-in Covid-19 vaccination centre at St Thomas's Hospital in Westminster Getty Images UK news in pictures 12 December 2021 People take part in the Big Leeds Santa Dash in Roundhay Park, Leeds PA UK news in pictures 11 December 2021 People arrive at a Covid-19 vaccination centre at Elland Road in Leeds, PA UK news in pictures 10 December 2021 Stella Moris speaks to the media after the US Government won its High Court bid to overturn a judges decision not to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange PA UK news in pictures 9 December 2021 Camels are lead around Salisbury Cathedral during a rehearsal for the Christmas Eve Service PA UK news in pictures 8 December 2021 Margaret Keenan and Nurse May Parsons, a year after Margaret was the first person in the UK to receive the Pfizer vaccine PA UK news in pictures 7 December 2021 Snowfall in Leadhills, South Lanarkshire as Storm Barra hits the UK with disruptive winds, heavy rain and snow PA UK news in pictures 6 December 2021 A person tries to avoid sea spray on New Brighton promenade in Wallasey as the UK readies for the arrival of Storm Barra Getty UK news in pictures 5 December 2021 People release balloons during a tribute to six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes outside Emma Tustin's former address in Solihull, West Midlands, where he was murdered by his stepmother PA UK news in pictures 4 December 2021 People walk through a Christmas market in Trafalgar Square Reuters UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 A pedestrian carries a dog as they dodge shoppers on Oxford Street in central London AFP/Getty

A source close to Ms Patel said she agreed with the criticisms, but insisted they related to historical issues in the department.

The Home Office source said: The Home Secretary agrees with the assessment made by the public accounts committee of historical issues at the Home Office.

"She has spoken at great length how the department puts process before people and is why she has committed to implementing the findings of the Wendy Williams Review into Windrush.

The report said that almost two-thirds (62 per cent) of immigration detainees were released without being returned as planned to their country of origin in 2019 - up from 58 per cent the year before. But it found that the Home Office did not know why the figure was so high.

A failure to put post-Brexit arrangements in place means that at the end of the transition period on 31 December, there is a real risk that EU exit will actually make it more difficult to remove foreign national offenders and those who try to enter the country illegally, the committee found.

The committee said that lack of an evidence base for its policies and a significant lack of diversity at senior levels had created organisational blind spots within the Home Office, and identified the Windrush scandal as a damning indictment of the damage such a culture creates.

Just one member of the Home Offices executive committee comes from a black, Asian or minority ethnic (BAME) background, and the department has done little to dispel accusations that its decisions are based on a lack of curiosity, preconceptions and even prejudice, said the committee.

The department acknowledges how close it came to being declared institutionally racist in the Windrush lessons learned review and that it has to change its culture, said the report.

It recognises the value of greater diversity for enabling better decision-making, leadership and governance, though only one member of the Departments current executive committee comes from a BAME background.

Ms Hillier said: The Home Office has frighteningly little grasp of the impact of its activities in managing immigration. It shows no inclination to learn from its numerous mistakes across a swathe of immigration activities  even when it fully accepts that it has made serious errors.

It accepts the wreckage that its ignorance and the culture it has fostered caused in the Windrush scandal - but the evidence we saw shows too little intent to change, and inspires no confidence that the next such scandal isnt right around the corner.

Fifteen years after the then Home Secretary declared the UKs immigration system not fit for purpose it is time for transformation of the Immigration Enforcement into a data-led organisation. Within six months of this report we expect a detailed plan, with set priorities and deadlines, for how the Home Office is going to make this transformation.

A Home Office spokesperson said: The Home Offices ultimate priority is to keep people safe and that includes having a stronger border. We have developed a balanced and evidence-based approach to maintaining a fair immigration system.

Since 2010, we have removed more than 53,000 foreign national offenders and more than 133,000 people as enforced removals.

On a daily basis we continue to tackle those who fail to comply with our immigration laws and abuse our hospitality by committing serious, violent and persistent crimes, with immigration enforcement continually becoming more efficient.
Getty

An ex-officer of Arlington Police Department in Texas was charged by a local grand jury on Wednesday for a shooting incident that happened last year, according to NBC News.

Ravinder Singh, who shot Margarita Brooks on August 1, 2019, was charged with criminally negligent homicide.

Singh had been responding to a welfare check of "a woman passed out in a grassy area," authorities said, when he shot at an "unrestrained dog" but hit Brooks in the process.

Brooks died from her injuries at a local hospital following the shooting, according to police.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

A former police officer in Texas who shot a woman to death last year while trying to fire at her dog that was running toward him has been charged by a local grand jury on Wednesday, according to NBC News.

Ravinder Singh, a former officer of Arlington Police Department, was charged with criminally negligent homicide by Tarrant county grand jury, the outlet reported.

Singh shot Margarita Brooks during a welfare check following reports that a woman was passed out in a grassy area on August 1, 2019, NBC News reported.

As Singh attempted to check up on Brooks, bodycam footage shows he released multiple shots from his firearm at Brooks' dog, which bolted quickly towards the officer. Some bullets hit Brooks, who later died in a local hospital, KTVT reported.

"We are pleased that the Tarrant County Grand Jury has returned an indictment for the officer who killed Maggie. Officers responding to welfare checks should not be so quick to use their deadly weapons in situations that do not call for use of force," Brooks family said in a statement, according to KTVT.

According to the outlet, Singh could face up to 2 years behind bars.

Brook's father, Troy Brooks, argued that Singh could have de-escalated the situation differently, NBC News reported.

"He had a baton, he had mace, he had Taser. There's a de-escalation of force," he said to the outlet. "This was a panicked 25-year-old man who was scared of a 6-month-old puppy."

Story continues

The family's lawyer, Lee Merritt, told CNN that they are "disappointed with the charges themselves."

While Brooks' father told NBC a manslaughter charge would have been "more appropriate," the family said they were "both surprised and relieved to see charges going forward at all."

"It's been well past the normal time, well over a year since the incident happened. It caught us off guard, but it was a welcome relief," Merritt told CNN.

Read the original article on Insider
Talks: The UKs David Frost with Michel Barnier of the EU

Ireland South MEP Deirdre Clune has expressed concern at the precarious nature of the EU-UK talks over Brexit due to the British Government's declaration it would breach the withdrawal agreement in 'a specific and limited way'.

Talks between the EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier and UK point man David Frost were in the middle of their eighth round when a British minister, Brandon Lewis, made the declaration that the UK was prepared to breach international law during a debate in Westminster.

According to the Ireland South MEP, Deirdre Clune the UK's 'controversial legislation would undermine what was agreed in the Withdrawal Agreement.

"The Ireland/Northern Ireland Protocol must be protected and peace on the island of Ireland not threatened.

"The EU has come to the table many times in good faith and with a view to securing a future partnership that respects standards in the EU and also the hard earned peace in Northern Ireland."

The MEP pointed to the huge trade Ireland does with the UK, approximately 12 billion annually which amounts to 10% of our total trade.

"We know that the land bridge and the connectivity to the EU are vital to our economy.

"And drivers passing through the UK back and forth to the EU must be allowed to make that journey.

"Many Irish hauliers business models depend on being able to do multiple operations on a trip through the UK, without which it puts a lot of businesses at risk."

She said the threat of a no deal on top of the pandemic would have very damaging consequences for Ireland.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept. 19

By Tamilla Mammadova  Trend:

Bank of Georgia raised $50 million in financial resources from Citibank to finance trade, Trend reports via Georgian media.

The transaction took place under the Continuing Agreement for Reimbursement of Trade Advances ("CARTA") signed between Bank of Georgia and Citi in 2011 and is the sixth successful transaction between the parties.

The financial resource will allow the Bank of Georgia to offer the best trade finance products for businesses, small and medium-sized businesses.

I am glad that the Bank of Georgia, together with its loyal partner Citibank, continues to actively cooperate in the field of trade finance. This enables us to further strengthen our position in trade finance and offer our clients tailor-made financial resources. Such financing is especially important in this difficult period for both corporate and small and medium-sized businesses actively participating in export-import operations. Our goal is to remain a reliable financial partner for them, said Archil Gachechiladze, General Director of the Bank of Georgia.

We are very proud of our long-term relationship with our partner, Bank of Georgia. For the sixth consecutive year, we reach an agreement with one of the country's leading financial institutions to provide trade finance. This deal is a very good example of our common and ongoing efforts to support the growth of the Georgian banking sector and, more broadly, to stimulate key emerging markets, said Shafik Haddad, Citi Bank, Head of Financial Institutions and Correspondent Banking, Treasury and Trade Decisions at European, Middle East and Africa (EMEA).

Citibank is a leading global bank with about 200 million customers and operates in more than 160 countries. Citibank offers a wide range of financial products and services to customers, organizations, governments, and agencies, including banking and credit services for individuals, corporate and investment banking services, brokerage operations with securities, transaction services, and property management.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @Mila61979356
WASHINGTON  The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg sets the stage for a monumental political fight in the Senate over whether President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell can confirm a conservative jurist to replace her even as voters in some states are already casting ballots.

Heres a look at what to expect in the coming months.

Q: Can Trump and Senate Republicans nominate and confirm another Supreme Court justice so close before the election?

A: Legally they can, and McConnell, R-Ky., has already said he intends to have a vote although he did not say when it would be held. There isnt much time to do so before Election Day, but it wouldnt be the shortest confirmation process in recent history. Only 19 days elapsed between the announcement of Justice John Paul Stevens' nomination and a Senate vote in 1975. Ginsburgs confirmation took 42 days and Sandra Day OConnors 33. On average, a confirmation takes nearly 70 days.

But Democrats say rushing the process for such an important position would be unfair. In the end, all McConnell will need is 50 votes in the Senate, and there are 53 Republicans.

More: Casey: Senate should wait until after election before vote to replace Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Q: Wait, didnt McConnell refuse to hold a hearing for President Barack Obamas Supreme Court nominee because it was an election year?

A: Yes, as Senate leader, he had the power to deny a confirmation hearing for Judge Merrick Garland. After conservative Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016, McConnell said the American people should have a voice in deciding on the new justice. That seat was ultimately filled by Trump, who selected Neil M. Gorsuch.

More recently, McConnell has said he would move to fill a Supreme Court vacancy prior to the 2020 election because, he argues, it is a different situation today because the president and the Senate majority party are in agreement, which was not the case in 2016.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) walks from his office to the Senate Floor at the United States Capitol on June 29, 2020, in Washington D.C. (Stefani Reynolds/CNP/Abaca Press/TNS)TNS

Q: What if they cant do it by Nov. 3? Can they do it during the lame-duck session?

A: Yes, though that would be exceedingly rare in modern times.

But McConnell could have reason to hold off on the vote until after Election Day. A contentious Supreme Court vote could significantly hurt Sen. Susan Collins' reelection battle in Maine. Democrats are frustrated that she supported Trumps last nominee, Brett M. Kavanaugh. Although there are risks: If Democrats win the White House or control of the Senate, McConnell would face even more pressure to not confirm a nominee.

Q: So is it settled? Theyll fill the seat?

A: Not necessarily. First of all, time is short and Democrats are likely to delay as much as possible. Also it remains unclear whether McConnell will have the support of all 53 GOP senators.

Assuming all Democrats vote against confirmation, McConnell would need at least 50 Republicans since Vice President Mike Pence, as president of the Senate, could break any tie.

But already Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, has said she would not vote to confirm a hypothetical nominee. I would not vote to confirm a Supreme Court nominee. We are 50-some days away from an election, she told Alaska Public Radio Friday  before Ginsburgs death was announced.

Collins may also have concerns. Even Sen. Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., chairman of the Judiciary Committee  who is also facing a tight reelection  said flatly in 2018 that if a vacancy occurred during the 2020 election year, he would not hold a confirmation hearing, though its possible he will change that position now.

Q: How important is this seat?

A: Critical. The bench comprised five conservative-leaning jurists and four liberal-leaning jurists.

Replacing Ginsburg, an icon of the liberal left, with a conservative would mean the court is more likely to overturn Roe vs. Wade, which guarantees the right to abortion, and the Affordable Care Act, the Obama-era health care law Republicans have vowed to kill. It could cement the benchs rightward tilt for generations.

And there are potential consequences in the very short term as the country barrels toward an expected contested election. The Supreme Court is the final arbiter in an undecided presidential election.

Amy Coney Barrett has been a federal judge on the bench of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals for less than a year. She had been a professor at Notre Dame Law School. (University of Notre Dame/Zuma Press/TNSTNS

Q: Whom is Trump considering?

A: The leading candidate to replace Ginsburg is Judge Amy Coney Barrett, a former law clerk for Scalia and a longtime law professor at Notre Dame University. Trump nominated her to a seat on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago and interviewed her when he was in the process of selecting jurists to replace Scalia and Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. White House lawyers said then they expected Barrett would be nominated if Ginsburg died in office.

By Sarah D. Wire and Jennifer Haberkorn, Los Angeles Times (TNS)

More: President Trump coming to Harrisburg International Airport next week
New Delhi:

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Paneerselvam was set to inaugurate Jallikattu at Alanganallur, famous for conducting the rural sport, on Sunday. However, protesters did not allow any official to enter the village and staged a sit-in dharna to demand a permanent solution for Jallikattu issue as compared to an ordinance with validity of six months.



The festival, earlier banned by the Supreme Court, is taking place after a massive protest by people and state administration against the ban.

In a rare show of unity and determination, people and government of Tamil Nadu presented a joint front to demand lift from the ban from the sport which involved bull fighting and taming, in order to preserve culture of the Tamil traditions.

While, common man and celebrities staged a continuous protest at the Chennais Marine beach, Tamil Nadu CM and ministers met everyone from PM Narendra Modi to Home Minister Rajnath and even President Pranab Mukherjee to introduce and clear an ordinance to make way for Jallikattu.



Jallikattu will be held tomorrow. The bulls will dash (into the arena ), Tamil Nadu CM said after final promulgation of the ordinance on Saturday.

Here are the live updates:

Ordinance will be taken up in TN Assembly&draft will be prepared for permanent law in this regard tomorrow: TN CM O Paneerselvam #jallikattu pic.twitter.com/xp06m62KFE  ANI (@ANI_news) January 22, 2017

# Ordinance will be taken up in TN Assembly&draft will be prepared for permanent law in this regard tomorrow: TN CM O Paneerselvam on jallikattu

# Sri Lankan refugees of Rameswaram refugee camp too protested in support of Jallikattu.

Rameswaram (Tamil Nadu): Sri Lankan refugees stage protest in support of #jallikattu in Rameswaram refugee camp pic.twitter.com/uxu8eJfJEd  ANI (@ANI_news) January 22, 2017

#Eight trains cancelled on Sunday, two trains cancelled on Monday in Chenna due to protest across the state over Jallikattu issue

# Protesters demand permanent solution on jallikattu and ban on PETA

Alanganallur (Madurai): Villagers stage a sit-in protest demanding a permanent solution for #Jallikattu issue. pic.twitter.com/DpSQ7XWbl9

# All NGOs meet Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, CM assures permanent lift on Jallikattu Ban

# Monumental failure of state govt, Centre.They aren't assuaging feelings of ppl, protesters have to be reached out: Saravanan, DMK ON jallikattu

# Protesters are demanding a permanent solution for organising Jallikattu event in the state, thus didn't allow TN CM to inaugurate

# Panneerselvam faces protests, will return to Chennai from Madurai without inaugurating Jallikattu in Alanganallur

# We will bring draft of a permanent law on Jallikattu in the Tamil Nadu assembly soon: Tamil Nadu CM O Panneerselvam

# Enough security arrangements made for Jallikattu, its being organised well across the state: Tamil Nadu CM O Panneerselvam

# Students block the way for Rekla (ox-cart) race inaugurated by Tamil Nadu Minister Velumani in Coimbatore

# Jallikattu organised in Manaparai's village, 100 bulls and and more than 500 bull tamers participate



Tamil Nadu: Rekla (ox-cart) race organized in Coimbatore, state Minister SP Velumani flags off the event. pic.twitter.com/L99NYvpN4v  ANI (@ANI_news) January 22, 2017

#Lawyer,R Raman,intervener in Jallikattu case says if any aggrieved party comes to SC, then court should hear state Govt before passing any order

Alanganallur (Madurai): Barricading at the entry point of the village outside the venue of #jallikattu event pic.twitter.com/WIEyyTbXAV  ANI (@ANI_news) January 22, 2017

#TamilNadu govt files caveat in SC following promulgation of ordinance allowing Jallikattu in the state. (PTI)

Read | PETA likely to take legal route if Central govt brings ordinance on Jallikattu

#Jallikattu in limbo at Alanganallur, Madurai; Protests on. (PTI)

#Jallikattu begins in parts of Tamil Nadu. (PTI)

The speed of amendment in Animal Cruelty Act could be a record in India history. Though the ordinance was valid for 6 months, the Chief Minister said a bill will be introduced in the state assembly and it will be adopted replacing the ordinance.



Jallikattu is traditionally held during the harvest festival Pongal.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
And users who rely on Google Assistant for doing things hands-free behind the wheel know this very well, theres no doubt about it.Especially because the assistant has suddenly started suffering from Alzheimers disease, as users complain that the names of their wives are no longer remembered.In other words, if you turn to Google Assistant to send a message to your significant other using a command like Hey Google, text my wife, theres a good chance youll end up being asked Who is your wife?. And even if you tell Google Assistant her name, one minute later when you try to do it again, youll notice that youre stuck with the same question, simply because the assistant just forgets who is your wife.According to users who turned to Googles forums to report the bug, it all started happening earlier this month, so theres a chance that a Google Assistant update is the one that caused the whole thing.Same here. I started by telling it to remember so and so is my wife. It gave all the right responses. Next, I said, Call my wife. Who is your wife? Well, there was some cursing, one user explains on Googles forums Is there anything you can do about this bug? Thats hard to say.If the culprit is indeed a recent Google Assistant update, then a possible workaround could be just downgrading the Google app to a previous version. The Google app is the one powering the Google Assistant experience both on your Android phone and on Android Auto, so if you install an older build, theres a chance that the bug would no longer be there.Google is yet to acknowledge this issue, so we still dont know if a fix is coming.
Breya Hodge walks her dog Sophie as smoke from the Bobcat fire and other blazes casts a pall over downtown Los Angeles recently. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

For weeks, millions of Californians were smothered by smoke from a record explosion of wildfires burning through grass, shrubs, conifer forests, houses and mobile home parks. Eyes watered. Lungs burned. Skies glowed orange.

People suffered sore throats, headaches and chest pains. Many cloistered themselves indoors as pollution spiked to "hazardous" levels, or worse, on the Air Quality Index.

While most people were not threatened directly by fires burning up and down the West Coast, smoke transported health dangers to nearly every corner of the state. State air quality officials are aware of no precedent for so many people breathing such high levels of wildfire smoke for so long.

Even as air quality begins to improve, many remain worried about long-term health impacts.

(Swetha Kannan / Los Angeles Times)

Frankly, we dont really know about the long-term effects of wildfire smoke because community exposures havent been long-term before, said Dr. John Balmes, a professor of medicine at UC San Francisco and a member of the California Air Resources Board.

Health experts are fairly certain that such levels of wildfire smoke did significant harm in the immediate term by aggravating chronic lung and heart conditions, triggering asthma attacks, strokes and heart attacks. Scientists also suspect that heavy smoke has lowered peoples defenses against the coronavirus, and put them at greater risk of severe symptoms.

But the question of lasting health damage remains hazier. Though the link between chronic exposure to the fine-particle pollution in urban smog and long-term health problems is well-established thanks to thousands of studies and decades of research, there has been relatively little research when it comes to wildfire smoke.

Understanding the long-term consequences is critical, scientists said, because wildfire smoke is a growing health hazard, responsible for an increasing share of the fine-particle pollution across the Western U.S. And with climate change warming and drying out landscapes, helping to fuel bigger, more intense fires, you can expect more smoky days in the future.





Story continues

Unprecedented pollution

In just the last month, fires have generated both the highest readings and most widespread unhealthy levels of fine-particle pollution since continuous monitoring began in the late 1990s, California air quality officials said.

In the first few weeks of the firestorm, about half of Californias population  an estimated 19.6 million people  experienced levels of wildfire smoke exceeding health standards, mostly north of the Grapevine, according to the state Air Resources Board. By last weekend, the smoke had spread across Southern California and to nearly every corner of the state, with almost 95 percent of Californians exposed to unhealthy pollution levels, the air quality agency estimated.

Monitoring data released this week by the Air Resources Board showed that 15 of the top 20 fine-particle pollution readings on record in California have occurred during the fires over the last month. The highest concentration yet came on Tuesday in Mammoth Lakes, where concentrations of tiny soot particles known as PM2.5 reached 660 micrograms per cubic meter  more than 18 times the federal health standard of 35 and beyond the range of the Air Quality Index.

These are unprecedented levels of air pollution, said Bonnie Holmes-Gen, chief of the Air Resources Boards health and exposure assessment branch.

Large areas of California have been hit with heavy smoke in the past. The most widespread episode prior to this year, according to air quality officials, was during the 2018 Camp fire, when unhealthy pollution spread across the entire northern portion of the state. The smoke lasted about 13 days, impacting about 60% of California's population. Fires in the summer of 2008 also brought weeks of widespread unhealthy smoke to northern and central California.





Like tobacco, without the nicotine

Wildfire smoke is distinct from typical urban smog, and consists of thousands of compounds. Its composition varies widely depending on what type of fuel was burned and when.

A big, hot fire burns material more completely, breaking fuels down to their more essential elements. A cooler fire, one that leaves smoldering black and brown wood behind, can release more toxic particulates, experts say. And a fire that burns homes can release a stew of potentially more toxic chemicals from plastics, furniture and building materials.

As a product of the combustion of wood, leaves and other material, wildfire smoke is closer to tobacco smoke than diesel exhaust, and consists of carbon-based particles with nasty, complex hydrocarbons on their surface and irritant gases that are known carcinogens, said Balmes.

The dose is usually less than inhaling directly from a burning cigarette," Balmes said. "But the dose makes the poison  and the community is getting a bigger dose than weve ever had before because of these multiple days in a row of bad air quality.

Some of the worlds most intense fires produce smoke that lofts into the atmosphere and wraps thousands of miles around the globe, said Barry Lefero, manager of NASAs Tropospheric Composition Program, which uses a DC-8 jetliner that circles the globe studying wildfire smoke. With big fires "the smoke goes higher in the air, its more buoyant, it can travel farther, but at night the fires lay down, the smoke is trapped and it fumigates the valleys that fill up with smoke."





Short-term effects

Of all the ingredients in wildfire smoke, the most concerning to scientists are microscopic particles known as PM2.5 because they are less than 2.5 microns in diameter. They can be inhaled deep into the lungs and pass into the bloodstream.

In the short term, those tiny specks of pollution can irritate the eyes, nose and throat and cause coughing, tightness in the chest and difficulty breathing, and even flu-like symptoms in otherwise healthy people. But they pose more serious risks to young children, pregnant women, outdoor workers, the elderly and especially people with chronic health conditions such as asthma, lung disease and heart disease.

Balmes said that such high levels of wildfire smoke along the West Coast have likely increased the number of patients seeking medical care for asthma attacks, heart attacks, strokes and other health problems aggravated by air pollution.

And the longer we have bad air, he said, the greater the cumulative exposure, and that increases the risk of these adverse outcomes."

Stanford University researchers Marshall Burke and Sam Heft-Neal did a "back-of-envelope" calculation estimating that smoke exposure has likely caused 1,000 to 3,000 excess deaths and an additional 5,000 emergency room visits in California in the last month.

Francesca Dominici, a professor of biostatistics at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said their estimate is credible and the general approach makes sense.

"There is a large epidemiological literature that shows strong evidence of short-term changes in PM2.5 and increased mortality risk," she said.

What are the health consequences of the terrible air quality experienced recently in CA due to wildfires? In a back-of-envelope, we calculate that smoke exposure has likely caused 1000-3000 excess deaths in CA in the last month. Blog+thread https://t.co/5FmhaxGewB  Marshall Burke (@MarshallBBurke) September 11, 2020

The concerns about increased risk of COVID-19 come from past research showing dirty air makes people more susceptible to contracting similar respiratory infections, such as pneumonia, and of developing more severe symptoms. Scientists suspect that is also happening with the coronavirus.

Even if the number of new cases remains the same, there could be more serious health complications because of the way air pollution inflames the lungs and "just doesn't allow the immune system to respond correctly to this kind of infection," said Tarik Benmarhnia, a professor of epidemiology at UC San Diegos Scripps Institution of Oceanography and School of Medicine. I really hope Im wrong, but what we may expect to see in the next few weeks is an increase in the fatality rate from COVID-19."





Long-term risks

Scientists have good reasons to expect that chronic exposure to wildfire smoke may inflict some of the same long-term health damage as typical urban fine-particle pollution, or soot. That type of pollution, which in California is generated mainly by motor vehicles, is linked to an array of health problems, including thousands of early deaths each year.

Wildfire smoke could even be more harmful, said Benmarhnia, who cited studies showing that the same concentrations of fine particles, when coming from wildfires, "seem to be way more toxic for the respiratory system compared to PM2.5 from other sources."

Scientists dont know for sure because of a dearth of long-term health research. For all the years of study weve devoted to vehicle exhaust and cigarettes, our understanding of this fundamental element in our planets existence is in its relative infancy.

The few studies that have been completed have usually involved groups like wildland firefighters. There is research suggesting they have increased risk of heart disease and lung cancer, but that is mostly extrapolated from what is already known about exposure to PM2.5 from other sources of pollution, such as traffic.

One of the most relevant studies followed not humans, but baby rhesus macaque monkeys at a primate research center on the UC Davis campus who were exposed to high levels of PM2.5 pollution over a 10-day period during the wildfires in the summer of 2008. The study found that the monkeys had reduced function in their lungs and immune systems years later, compared to monkeys that were not exposed to high pollution levels as infants.

But even those findings were after shorter exposures, and lower pollution levels than Californians have lived with since August, the Air Resources Boards Holmes-Gen noted.





Lingering questions

A flurry of new research into the health effects of the smoke is now underway.

Rebecca Schmidt, a professor in the Department of Public Health Sciences at UC Davis, is conducting a long-term study into effects of smoke on pregnant women that began in response to the 2017 fires in Napa and Sonoma. She heard from expecting mothers who were affected by the smoke, dealing with coughs, watery eyes and other symptoms and wanted to know what the science said about the impacts on their developing babies.

"There really wasn't much out there," Schmidt said. "There were just a couple studies."

Schmidt's project now includes about 400 women who were pregnant during or shortly after wildfires in Northern California over the past three years. She plans to recruit additional participants this year who may have faced even higher, cumulative smoke exposure due to the recent fires.

"What we really are interested in is to see what's happening long term and whether those early biological responses are going to have long-term impacts, and that we just don't know yet," she said. "There's just very little known about wildfire, specifically smoke exposure, and long-term health impacts."

Meanwhile, another ongoing study in Montana has reported troubling new findings that suggest wildfire smoke impairs people's lungs long after the smoke clears.

Researchers assessed the health of people in the small community of Seeley Lake, outside Missoula, which was blanketed with heavy wildfire smoke for 49 days during devastating wildfires in 2017. Follow-up tests showed they had decreased lung function for two years after the fires, with the percentage of residents who fell below normal levels more than doubling in 2018 and remaining low a year later.

As University of Montana immunologist Christopher Migliaccio and colleagues wrote in a study published last month,"these findings suggest that wildfire smoke can have long-lasting effects on human health."





Smoke waves, climate impacts

Though at least some portion of California's PM2.5 pollution has always come from fires, in years past most of it has been generated by motor vehicles and industrial sources. But as vehicle emissions decline and the climate warms, scientists expect the bulk of that pollution to come from wildfire smoke within the next few decades.

Weve always been exposed to smoke, but its getting worse these days, said Carsten Warneke, a research scientist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "And we notice it much more as were getting all our other air pollution better.

Another team of researchers coined the term smoke wave" to describe episodes of high air pollution from wildfire that last two or more days. In a 2016 study, they projected a big increase in the frequency and intensity of smoke wave events that will affect tens of millions of people across the western U.S. if greenhouse gases continue to rise moderately. Northern California and Western Oregon are among the areas "likely to suffer the highest exposure to wildfire smoke in the future."

California regulators, who have for decades fought a slow but successful war on smog, are also being forced to confront wildfires as an increasing threat to their work to reduce emissions and slow global warming.

Were concerned about smoke pollution undercutting all the efforts were making to reduce particle pollution and clean up the air," said Holmes-Gen of the state Air Resources Board.

Scientists also worry about what the future holds because of the role wildfire emissions play in what's called a "climate feedback loop," in which the global warming begets more warming.

Increased global emissions lead to higher temperatures, which then create drier, more fire-prone conditions," researchers at the World Resources Institute think tank wrote in a blog post this week. "With more fires comes more emissions, perpetuating the entire cycle."

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
The chief of Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard threatened on Saturday to go after everyone who had a role in a top general's January killing during a US drone strike in Iraq.

The guard's website quoted Gen. Hossein Salami as saying, "Mr. Trump! Our revenge for martyrdom of our great general is obvious, serious and real."

US President Donald Trump warned this week that Washington would harshly respond to any Iranian attempts to take revenge for the death of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, tweeting that if they hit us in any way, any form, written instructions already done we're going to hit them 1000 times harder.

The president's warning came in response to a report that Iran was plotting to assassinate the US ambassador to South Africa in retaliation for Soleimani's killing at Baghdad's airport at the beginning of the year.

"We took out the world's number one terrorist and the mass murderer of American troops and many, many troops and many people all over the world, Trump said. Qasem Soleimani is dead. He's dead. Bad guy. Bad guy. Very bad guy.

Salami rejected the report of an Iranian plot to assassinate Ambassador Lana Marks, but made clear that Iran intends to avenge the general's death.

"Do you think we hit a female ambassador in return to our martyred brother?' the general said. We will hit those who had direct and indirect roles. You should know that everybody who had role in the event will be hit, and this is a serious message. We do prove everything in practice.

In January, Iran launched a ballistic missile attack targeting US soldiers in Iraq in response to the fatal drone strike.

Trump has stepped up economic pressure on Iran with sanctions since he pulled the United States out of Iran's nuclear deal with world powers in 2018.

Tehran has continued to expand its stockpile of enriched uranium and pressured other nations to offset the harm of US sanctions while insisting it does not want to develop a nuclear weapon.
TRENTON  Someone forced a woman into a Chambersburg alleyway earlier this summer and sexually assaulted her as she was heading to work.

The perpetrator, described as a heavyset Black male with dark hair, still remains at large and uncharged, according to police, who urge the public to come forward with information.

This July 23 incident occurred near South Broad Street and Chestnut Avenue when the 29-year-old victim was walking to her job, authorities said Friday in a press release.

The Special Victims units of the Mercer County Prosecutors Office and the Trenton Police Department have been working for weeks to solve the case, prosecutors said. They have surveillance photos of the suspect and have identified a person of interest, and they are certain there are individuals out there that have information, but no one is coming forward to assist the police.

Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo Onofri is requesting public assistance, saying tipsters could help bring the Chambersburg rapist to justice.

Law enforcement can perform its job so much more effectively when the public and media help, Onofri said. Just recently, following the publication of an article and photo on the arrest of Eridson Rodriguez for sexually assaulting women at two separate gatherings at his apartment, more victims came forward. He now faces charges for assaulting three more victims, and we have information that there are many more out there. This is what can happen when we all work together for justice.

Rodriguez, 26, of Liberty Street in Hamilton, is the notorious defendant accused of raping at least two women who were drunk and incapacitated at his township house on separate occasions last year.

Police arrested Rodriguez earlier this month. Onofri announced additional charges against Rodriguez on Friday without revealing many details.

The suspect responsible for the July 23 Chambersburg attack is known to the community, police say, but TPD lacks probable cause to make any arrests.

The suspect is possibly in his 30s, and the incident occurred during the early morning hours before sunrise, authorities say.

We are getting calls to the tip line telling us there are people who know who did it, Mercer County Prosecutors SVU Sgt. Joe Paglione said Friday in a press statement. They are giving us drips and drabs and word on the street, but we need more. We just need that last piece of information to take a dangerous man off of the street and stop this from happening to the next victim.

Police have released surveillance images of the man they say committed the sexual assault in Trentons Chambersburg neighborhood. Anyone with information regarding the identity of the suspect in the photographs or the case is asked to contact Sgt. Paglione of the Mercer County Prosecutors Office Special Victims Unit at (609) 273-0065 or Sgt. Lisette Rios of the Trenton Police Department SVU at (609) 989-4155.
Chile's environmental court confirmed Thursday a final order to close Canadian company Barrick Gold's huge Pascua Lama mining project, on hold since 2013 over environmental concerns.

The court dismissed a legal challenge from the company and confirmed a 2018 environmental authority ruling, ordering the "total and definitive closure" of the mine project.

It also imposed a $9 million fine on the Canadian miner.

"The magnitude of the danger to people's health makes it necessary to close the Pascua Lama mining project, as other alternatives for safe operation for the environment and population health do not appear to be viable," the court said.

The multi-billion dollar Pascua Lama project, which straddles Chile's border with Argentina at an altitude of 4,000 meters (13,100 feet), was launched in 2009.

But local groups began a legal battle to halt its construction, citing concerns over the threat of damage to waterways from the massive open pit mining project, one of the largest in the world.

Barrick Gold, the world's second-largest gold producer, planned to spend up to $8.5 billion on the mine, and initially planned to start production there in 2014.

However, construction was suspended in April 2013 when a Chilean court accepted a complaint filed by indigenous groups.

Greenpeace said the ruling was "a very important victory for the local communities that for years have denounced and taken legal action against the serious effects that mining has had on their lands."

The environmental group added that the project was an example of mining's impact on Chile's glaciers, and said it was important the government move forward with legislation that protects glaciers from similar projects.

Chilean authorities said Pascau Lama had violated 33 environmental regulations and damaged native flora and fauna. Of particular concern was the discharge of acidic water into the Estrecho river that supplied the local indigenous Diaguita community.
The Calcutta High Court on Friday issued a verdict asking for the removal of Harsh Vardhan Lodha from the boards of all MP Birla Group companies, a first in 16 years of legal battle over the estate of the late Priyamvada Devi Birla.

While the judgment comes as a major shot in the arm for the Birlas who are engaged in an acrimonious court battle against the Lodhas over the estate, the Lodhas maintain that the verdict seems to have ignored shareholders democracy and their right to elect a director of a company.

The Lodhas said they will challenge Fridays verdict in an appeals court next week.

Priyamvada Birla, who died in 2004, bequeathed her estate to the late Rajendra Singh Lodha, a chartered accountant who was an advisor to her for many years. Harsh Lodha is RS Lodhas son, who currently heads the MP Birla Group.

RS Lodha, who succeeded Priyamvada Birla as chairman of the MP Birla Group, died in 2008.

The extended Birla family opposed the will, and since 2004, have been fighting court cases against the Lodhas. Though in 2008, the Supreme Court ruled that most members of the Birla clan did not have legitimate interest in Priyamvada Birlas estate, they continue to fight Harsh Lodha in courts through relations.

Fridays verdict comes amid the dispute over Harsh Lodhas reappointment to the boards of three companies: Vindhya Telelinks and Birla Cable last year and Birla Corporation this year.

A court-appointed committee of joint administrators had resolved by 2:1 majority to seek Harsh Lodhas removal from the boards of these three companies. But in the polls taken at the AGMs, Harsh Lodha was reappointed as director of all three companies with at least 98% votes polled in his favour.

Fridays verdict ordering the removal of Harsh Lodha from all MP Birla Group companies was described by the Birlas as monumental". They also pointed out that he was restrained by the same judgement from taking any remuneration from the group in his capacity as an independent director.

His stranglehold over the MP Birla Group has been brought to an end," said a statement issued by the Birlas.

The verdict by Justice Sahidullah Munshi over reappointment of Harsh Vardhan Lodha as a director of Vindhya Telelinks Ltd and Birla Cable Ltd does not appear to be lawful. Our clients confidence in the system remains completely unshaken and our clients will challenge the judgement for immediate and long-term relief," said Debanjan Mandal, partner, Fox & Mandal and lawyers for Harsh Lodha.

It has been observed in the verdict that the court does not have jurisdiction over the MP Birla Group, yet orders were issued asking for removal of a director for its companies, he added.
Huge queues formed yesterday outside polling stations in the US state of Virginia as residents took advantage of the first day of in-person voting, defying fears that the coronavirus pandemic would keep people away.

In Fairfax County some voters had to wait more than four hours to cast their ballot in this year's US election, with the process appearing to take longer in part due to the social distancing rules put in place to ensure safety.

Similar reports of queues emerged from elsewhere in the state including in Richmond, Henrico County and Arlington. Half a dozen of America's 50 states have now started in person-voting for the election on November 3.

The long queues led to speculation that voters were especially enthusiastic to back the candidates in this election cycle, or that Donald Trump's repeated attacks on mail-in voting had bred suspicion of that process, though the significance was unclear.

Election officials, academics and even leading figures in the Democratic and Republican campaigns have said this year's voting could be unlike any other on account of Covid-19, with vast increases in postal voting expected.

It also means more people are expected to vote early.

Election day itself is still more than six weeks away and Mr Trump and Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, are yet to hold the first of their three head-to-head debates.

In Fairfax, which saw some of the longest queues, the lines outside the government centre were unprecedented and made headlines.

Jeff Milstein (65) said: "I just turned up and they said it's going to be four and a half hours. A guy who was here at 8am, it took over four hours for him to vote. We're all passionate. It's better than doing a mail-in ballot, you can get your ballot scanned." He added: "There's not a lot of social distancing. You can't police it with the line so long."

Hillary Clinton won Fairfax County, which has a population of more than one million, by 35 percentage points in 2016. That suggested the queues could indicate high levels of enthusiasm among Democrats.

Before polls opened at 8am around 300 people were already lined up to wait.

A Republican precinct captain, manning a stand of Trump merchandise, said: "We've given away so many bumper stickers and sample ballots. This I've never seen, it's crazier than usual. I sent postcards to everyone telling them to vote early because anything can happen, you can break a leg."

Ken Lee (48), a locksmith wearing a Make America Great Again hat and Trump T-shirt, said: "I've been here an hour and I'm staying. Whatever it takes. One more vote for Trump. He's done great things for this country."

The queues came the morning after Mr Biden held a rare "town hall" event, where a string of voters asked unscripted questions.

At one point he called on Mr Trump to "step down" over his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Mr Biden said: "This is all about one thing, the stock market. He [Mr Trump] doesn't want to see anything happen. It's all about his re-election.

"You've got to level with the American people, shoot from the shoulder. There's not been a time they've not been able to step up. The president should step down."

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021]
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  A West Brighton man wasnt sending signals when cops pulled over his smoking car in Tompkinsville earlier this year.

But he might as well have.

Their suspicions aroused, officers found a variety of weapons, along with pot inside the auto, police said.

Rivera was busted, and now faces some time behind bars after pleading guilty to a gun charge.

The incident occurred around 9:15 p.m. on March 6, said officials.

Rivera, 29, was driving alone in a 2005 Toyota.

He was traveling on Victory Boulevard toward Bay Street, when cops stopped him near the intersection of Westervelt Avenue, according to police and a criminal complaint.

Officers grew wary when they noticed smoke emanating from the roof of the vehicle, police said.

Inside the car, cops recovered a .380-caliber semi-automatic pistol with two rounds in the magazine, as well as over a pound of marijuana, said the complaint.

Police also found a switchblade, metal knuckles and an imitation pistol in Riveras possession, the complaint said.

Afterward, cops in the 120th Precinct gained citywide recognition when NYPD Chief of Patrol Fausto Pichardo lauded them on social media for the bust and posted a photo of the alleged contraband.

Rivera was indicted on charges of criminal weapon possession, criminal firearm possession and criminal marijuana possession.

He pleaded guilty Tuesday in state Supreme Court, St. George, to attempted second-degree criminal weapon possession to resolve the case.

In exchange, hell be sentenced on Dec. 8 to six months in jail and five years' probation.

He accepted responsibility and is looking to move on with his life and be a good father to his two children, said defense lawyer Steven Gaitman.
'SEE TOGETHER CHALLENGE' is recruiting participants to live stream UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Participants' videos will be broadcast live over a 5G network all around the world including Korea, Poland, the United States, etc. The 5G network and broadcasting system will be provided by SKT- ICT Technology will play a central role in the project. Starting September 7, participants can apply by emailing a video containing the participants' self-introduction. More information is available on www.5g24live.com.

SEOUL, South Korea, Sept. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Magenta Company, SK Telecom, and the Korean National Committee for UNESCO are hosting the 'SEE TOGETHER CHALLENGE', which will have participants from all over the world record and share UNESCO World Heritage Sites through a 5G-powered live broadcast. Applications will begin on September 7 until the 28th.

The 'SEE TOGETHER CHALLENGE' was arranged to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Korean National Committee for UNESCO and to lift spirits around the world during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Participants selected for the 'SEE TOGETHER CHALLENGE' will be sharing UNESCO World Heritage Site(s) for one hour in the form of a live video broadcast with a global audience.

The videos will be streamed 24 hours a day for one week, starting on October 21, and will be accessible for viewers all over the world including Korea, Europe, the United States, and South America.

The videos of 'SEE TOGETHER CHALLENGE' will be available for viewing on 'WAVVE', the Korean National Committee for UNESCO's Youtube channel, Magenta Company's Youtube channel 'Dwin', etc.

SK Telecom will be providing a 5G-based mobile live broadcasting system jointly developed with Magenta Company for this event. SK Telecom expressed hopes that its ICT Technology will deliver vivid, high-resolution videos to make the live streaming of UNESCO World Heritage Sites feel more life-like and enjoyable for viewers.

Those who wish to participate can apply by sending a video including the participants' self-introduction, reason for application, filming location and reason, personal message, etc. The video should be sent to [email protected].

Kwang Hyun Song, SK Telecom's PR2 Manager said:

"We hope that this event, powered by SKT's 5G technology, will become a source of comfort to people all over the world suffering from COVID-19." He added: "We will continue to do our best to bring happiness to society with our advanced ICT technologies including 5G, AI, and more."

The National Korean Committee for UNESCO said:

"We hope this event will become an opportunity for the world to share peace, solidarity and connection once again."

Magenta Company said:

"With nations worldwide at a standstill due to COVID-19, we hope that this event will become an opportunity for people to support and comfort each other while watching and sharing UNESCO World Heritage sites in their individual locations."

Media Contact:

See Together Challenge PR Department

Email: [email protected]

Related Images

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Related Links

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SOURCE Magenta Company
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Bone marrow aspiration and trephine biopsy are usually performed on the back of the hipbone, or posterior iliac crest. An aspirate can also be obtained from the sternum (breastbone). For the sternal aspirate, the patient lies on their back, with a pillow under the shoulder to raise the chest. A trephine biopsy should never be performed on the sternum, due to the risk of injury to blood vessels, lungs or the heart.

Request For Report Sample@ https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/sample/3374

The need to selectively isolate and concentrate selective cells, such as mononuclear cells, allogeneic cancer cells, T cells and others, is driving the market. Over 30,000 bone marrow transplants occur every year. The explosive growth of stem cells therapies represents the largest growth opportunity for bone marrow processing systems.

Europe and North America spearheaded the market as of 2018, by contributing over 74.0% to the overall revenue. Majority of stem cell transplants are conducted in Europe, and it is one of the major factors contributing to the lucrative share in the cell harvesting system market.

In 2018, North America dominated the research landscape as more than 54.0% of stem cell clinical trials were conducted in this region. The region also accounts for the second largest number of stem cell transplantation, which is further driving the demand for harvesting in the region.

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Asia Pacific is anticipated to witness lucrative growth over the forecast period, owing to rising incidence of chronic diseases and increasing demand for stem cell transplantation along with stem cell-based therapy. Japan and China are the biggest markets for harvesting systems in Asia Pacific. Emerging countries such as Mexico, South Korea, and South Africa are also expected to report lucrative growth over the forecast period. Growing investment by government bodies on stem cell-based research and increase in aging population can be attributed to the increasing demand for these therapies in these countries.

Major players operating in the global bone marrow processing systems market are ThermoGenesis (Cesca Therapeutics inc.), RegenMed Systems Inc., MK Alliance Inc., Fresenius Kabi AG, Harvest Technologies (Terumo BCT), Arthrex, Inc. and others.

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A third level student from Enniscorthy has spoken to this newspaper of her anger and disappointment at missing out on a college course place because of what she claims is inaction by the CAO (Central Applications Office).

Sarah O'Connor-Cole (19), did her Leaving Certificate in 2018, when she was 16-yars-of-age.

Speaking to this newspaper she said that being so young at the time she wasn't sure what her ultimate career choice would be.

She then completed a Level 6 Higher Certificate (HETAC) in Culinary Arts at Waterford Institute of Technology.

She received an overall distinction in the course and her results were posted to her on June 8.

Having already applied to the CAO in February for primary teaching, home economics, and Irish and Arts, she thought her Level 6 results would be uploaded to her CAO application in the same way as her Leaving Cert results were in 2018.

She said she checked her application to see if the results were posted up and after about a month contacted the CAO to see why the results were included.

'I contacted the CAO and said I had my results and was told they would go on my application,' said Sarah.

'They said they would be up in time for the Round 0 offers,' she added.

Round 0 offers are for applicants presenting QQI, FETAC or HETAC qualifications for consideration for entry to courses. There is a quota for QQI, FETAC/HETAC applicants.

However, the Round 0 offers came and went and Sarah's results still weren't included in her application.

'I missed out on that first offer and then the CAO guaranteed me they would be uploaded in time for Round 1 offers,' said Sarah.

She said she sent a hard copy of her results to the CAO by next-day delivery on Tuesday, September 8, in time for the Round 1 offers, which were last Friday.

However, by then her results were still not included in her application.

Sarah also emailed the Minister for Higher Education Simon Harris about her ordeal but received no response.

She said that when she last spoke to the CAO she was told that her Level 6 results would be included as part of her overall application in time for Round 2.

However, she is not confident of this happening and feels that she has missed out on potentially getting the college place of her choice through no fault of her own.

While her ambition is to study to become a teacher, she is afraid that she will now have to wait another year before getting her college place.

Highlighting the fact that she is angry over the issue and that she is 'just trying to further her studies' she said: 'I am forced to work for minimum wage for the year and maybe, just maybe they might have my results up by next year for me to apply.'

In response to contact by this newspaper in relation to the matter, a spokesperson for the CAO said: 'CAO does not comment on individual applicants. However, in general terms, when an applicant notifies CAO of an error after Round One offers issue, every effort is made by CAO and the HEIs to facilitate such applicants in Round Two.'
In his opening remarks, Ruslan Nekhai, Director of the Central Naval Museum where the exhibition is held, said the exhibition is taking place on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the diplomatic ties between the former Soviet Union/Russia and Vietnam (1950-2020), 40 years of the establishment of the former Soviet Unions technological logistics centre in Vietnams Cam Ranh city (1980-2020), and within the framework of the Vietnam-Russia and Russia-Vietnam Year (2019-2020).

The exhibition is expected to contribute to boosting the intensive and extensive cooperation between Vietnam and Russia, he added.

Counsellor Minister at the Vietnamese Embassy in Russia Nguyen Quynh Mai said the exhibition helps young generations of Vietnam and Russia understand more about the fine relations between Vietnam and the former Soviet Union in the past, as well as the two countries at present.

An official in charge of foreign affairs of Saint Petersburg said the city attaches importance to the comprehensive strategic partnership with Vietnam, considering this one of the priorities in its foreign policy.

The exhibition will run until the end of this year.
New Delhi: A huge consignment of narcotics was recently confiscated by the South African elite crime investigation unit - Hawks from a truck in Hluhluwe town on September 9. The consignment of 342.5 kg of Heroin has been valued at 87.5 million Rands and was enroute to KwaZulu-Natal.

As many as 250 packets of heroin were found hidden in the truck.

During a briefing on the incident, Hawks spokesperson Simphiwe Mhlongo said, Hawks officers in Richards Bay, in collaboration with the Mpumalanga Crime Intelligence discovered 342.5 kg of the drug inside what is believed to be a purpose built hide in a truck which was coming Mozambique via Swaziland to KwaZulu-Natal.

The police nabbed three individuals, two drug peddlers and a truck driver. They were taken to Hluhluwe court for trial. The law enforcement agencies are not ruling out the possibility of more arrests.

African countries, especially South Africa, has reported several incidents of drug seizures in the recent past. In a 2019 report by Enhancing Africas ability to Counter Transnational Crime (ENACT), it was highlighted that heroin consumption is rising rapidly in South Africa.

Africas east coast was for decades a secondary route for the international heroin trade, with its long coastline providing safe landing sites for Afghan heroin destined for markets in Europe and North America. The African route became more important as Middle East conflict and better enforcement shut down traditional access to Europe. ENACT report stated.

Observers argue that the drug consignment might have originated from Pakistan as Mozambique is being predominantly used as a junction to route narcotics coming in from Pakistan.

Pakistani boats/Dhows bring narcotics to the Mozambique coast and then they are transported to the southern part of the African continent till South Africa. Mozambique, Tanzania, and Kenya form the focal points of this route, called the southern route of Pakistani drug trade.

It is believed that drug dealers from these three countries have developed connections with Pakistani drug peddlers who distribute it all over the world. It is also believed that Pakistani ISI has developed a deep drug supply chain.

The areas of opium cultivation in Afghanistan are mostly under Talibans control, the ISI procures the opium poppy, processes it and then distributes it all across the world, generating massive revenue for the spy agency.

Besides, a number of Pakistani drug peddlers are settled in countries like Mozambique,Tanzania, and Kenya who procure and distribute drugs from their fellow countrymen and ISI handlers.

In a similar confiscation, a Pakistani boat was caught at Central Mozambique's Biera port on April 30, 2020. Twelve Pakistanis were arrested and put behind bars in Mozambique for smuggling heroin from Pakistan.

According to Mozambique's law enforcement agencies, there were no signs of fishing, as claimed by the boat crew, and traces of heroin were discovered in the boat.

Prior to this, 13 Pakistanis were detained at the Cabo Delgado province coast for transporting heroin and amphetamines in December 2019. Further, 12 Iranian nationals were also detained for carrying heroin that originated in Pakistan.

Similarly, around 26 Pakistanis travelling in two Dhows were arrested by Tanzanian law enforcement agencies for drug trafficking. Later, 12 of them were released after Pakistani ISI intervened in the matter. These are just a handful of examples that highlight the efforts of the ISI to form the new drug cartel with outlaws based in African nations.

Multiple drug seizures along the LoC and in the deep waters of the Indian Ocean Region have broken the back of ISI, which is now looking towards other parts of the world to sell its narcotics products in order to generate revenue. The Southern African countries should brace themselves for several similar seizures of narcotics originating from Pakistan.
It would be the BBC's worst nightmare made real  a fox-hunting, Old Etonian Brexiteer being appointed its chairman on a platform of abolishing the licence fee.

The Mail on Sunday understands that Charles Moore, the former editor of The Daily Telegraph and The Spectator, is Downing Street's favoured choice to take over at the Corporation when Sir David Clementi's three-year term expires in February.

It would be a provocative option even by the standards of Boris Johnson's No 10: Lord Moore, 63, is a vehement critic of the Corporation's Left-wing 'woke' values  and objects to its guaranteed 4 billion-a-year income from the fee.

In 2010, he was fined 262 for not possessing a licence, having donated the equivalent sum to charity in protest at the BBC's refusal to sack Jonathan Ross for making prank calls with comedian Russell Brand to the actor Andrew Sachs.

BBC staffers will be hoping that No 10 plumps for one of the names lower down the Government's shortlist: both former Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan and former Chancellor George Osborne are pro-Remain liberals who would represent the business-as-usual option.

The Mail on Sunday understands that Charles Moore, the former editor of The Daily Telegraph and The Spectator, is Downing Street's favoured choice to take over as BBC chairman

The other serious candidate, combative current affairs presenter Andrew Neil, is more likely to secure a new on-screen role.

Relations between the BBC and No 10 have been fraught since last year's Election, with Downing Street saying the Corporation spoke only to a pro-Remain metropolitan bubble.

It prompted a temporary boycott of flagship news programmes such as Radio 4's Today, and led to the acceleration of its plans to 'whack' the 157.50-a-year fee by decriminalising its non-payment.

Tim Davie took up the poisoned chalice of being the BBC's new director-general this month.

Earlier this year, Lord Moore, who was Mr Johnson's boss when the Prime Minister worked for the Telegraph, wrote that the BBC could 'not carry on as before', saying: 'It is essential to understand that technological and generational change has already destroyed the BBC's century-old 'wider still and wider' doctrine.

'It is simply not possible for it to dominate all fields any longer. The BBC must start to decolonise. It needs Government help to do this in a dignified manner  more like British imperial decline than like the fall of the Soviet Union.'

He described the BBC's bias as 'not chiefly party political (though it is certainly anti-Tory). It is politico/cultural  woke, pro-Remain, credulously green, anti-market, obsessed with issues connected with 'diversity', yet itself not truly diverse at all if you had watched only the BBC in 2016, it would have come as an almost total shock to you when 17.4 million people voted Leave'.

Most chillingly for BBC staff, he added: 'The greatest single wrong on which the BBC rests is the licence fee. It is an offence to freedom and a poll tax for anyone with a television (and, nowadays, a computer or mobile phone). Non-payers, almost always poor, clog the magistrates' courts.'

Nor will Lord Moore have endeared himself to most BBC staff by suggesting last year that actress Olivia Colman was a poor choice to play the role of the Queen in the Netflix drama The Crown because she had a 'distinctly Left-wing face'.

Despite being described as 'the incarnation of intellectual Conservatism', Moore, who wrote an acclaimed biography of Margaret Thatcher, comes from a family of Liberal Party members, only switching to the Tories after graduating from Cambridge.

Sir David Clementi's three-year term at the head of the Corporation expires in February

But he displayed flashes of his liberal roots in 2001 with a signed editorial in the Telegraph which argued in favour of hunting, pornography and the legalisation of cannabis.

He converted to Roman Catholicism following the Church of England's decision to allow the ordination of women as priests in 1992.

Lord Moore  an expert on parsonages who was nicknamed Lord Snooty by Private Eye  was critical of David Cameron's efforts to modernise the Tory Party and failure to address the inefficiencies of the National Health Service, which he described as 'a terrible organisation'.

Father-of-two Moore, whose wife Caroline is a former English don at Cambridge, attracted criticism five years ago when he questioned whether Labour leadership contenders Yvette Cooper and Liz Kendall had 'got the looks for a leadership contest', adding: 'There is an understanding that no leader  especially, despite the age of equality, a woman  can look grotesque on television and win a General Election.'

He has described being Mr Johnson's boss at the Telegraph as 'a nightmare', because he was always 'so late  and I mean terribly late  with his copy'.

Lord Moore has also marvelled at Mr Johnson's ability to bounce back from repeated scandal and setbacks. A Government source said: 'Charles would shake things up, which is exactly what the BBC needs.'
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 00:15:09|Editor: huaxia

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NAIROBI, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Kenya said on Friday that China's support has been instrumental in the development of robust bamboo value chain in the eastern African region.

Keriako Tobiko, cabinet secretary in the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, said that support from Beijing has revitalized the commercialization of bamboo products in Kenya, Ethiopia and Uganda.

"The effort is credited for creating knowledge in bamboo value chain, product design, marketing and standardization to further unlock the vast potential of bamboo resources for green economic growth, trade and wealth creation," Tobiko said at an event to mark the international bamboo day.

He said that through the International Bamboo and Rattan Organization (INBAR), the Chinese and Dutch expertise in bamboo value chain has enabled the East Africa nations to unlock the potential of the indigenous tree species.

"The Dutch-Sino-East Africa Bamboo Development Program effort is already contributing to green economic growth, international trade and investment between Europe, China and East Africa," said Tobiko.

He said that the Kenyan cabinet has sanctioned the classification and designation of bamboo as a scheduled crop.

Tobiko said this classification aims to foster the commercialization of bamboo plants and generate new jobs for the youth through the restoration of degraded landscapes.

He said that the development of a national bamboo policy will be completed in October to help increase bamboo forest cover to 140,000 hectares in government land and forest reserves.

Tobiko said the government has prioritized a policy shift to ensure that exotic forest plantations on water catchments are being replaced with indigenous tree species, including bamboo.

He said that Kenya has over 10,000 documented bamboo products cutting across timber substitutes, fiber and textile, plastic composites, food and beverage, energy, health and cosmetic industry.

"This makes it a versatile resource which can efficiently and effectively contribute to the national strategy for 10 percent tree cover and the achievement of the President's big four Agenda for Kenya's economic development," said Tobiko.

He said that with the furniture market estimated at 50 billion shillings (about 463 million U.S. dollars) and an annual growth rate of 10 percent per annum, the sector has the potential to support a vibrant bamboo industry.

Kenya has a total Bamboo growing area of 133,273 hectares, concentrated in mountain ranges and forest areas managed by the national government.

The combined planting by communities is now estimated to cover over 2,000 hectares while the private sector has established about 4,000 hectares of commercial bamboo plantations countrywide. Enditem
Democratic presidential nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden fist bumps Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) after speaking and touring Jerry Alander Carpenter Training Center in Hermantown, Minn., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Biden Not Appearing in Public Saturday; Trump Going to North Carolina Rally

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is not appearing in public on Saturday, according to his campaign, while President Donald Trump has a rally scheduled in North Carolina.

Bidens campaign called a lid at 8:34 a.m.

A lid is a term used by staffers for elected officials. It means that an official is not expected to appear in public.

Biden, 77, traveled on Friday to Minnesota, where he visited the Jerry Alander Carpenter Training Center in Hermantown, a suburb of Duluth.

Biden learned about how workers manufacture at the center before delivering remarks to approximately 50 people regarding his plan to reshore manufacturing from other countries.

Biden has outlined a plan similar to Trumps that involves actions to incentivize companies to return to the United States.

My plan is going to create millions of good-paying jobs building the products and technologies that we need now and in the future. And it starts with a pretty basic idea. When the government spends taxpayers money, we should spend that money to buy American products made by American workers in American supply chains to generate American growth and opportunity, he said.

Biden flew back to Delaware in the evening after visiting a Duluth Fire Department engine house and a bakery. He lives in Wilmington.

President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at Bemidji Regional Airport in Bemidji, Minn., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Evan Vucci/AP Photo)

Trump on Friday hosted a Kuwaiti official at the White House before holding a press conference where he announced the United States plans to manufacture enough doses of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus vaccine for every American by April 2021.

Trump also traveled to Minnesota. He delivered remarks at the airport in Bemidji. He later returned to the White House.

Trump told those assembled that they were at a protest, not a rally.

Remember this, its a friendly protest. Please remember, this is not a rally. Youre not allowed to have political rallies of any kind, youre not allowed to go to church, youre not allowed to do anything, he said, referring to harsh measures imposed by governors across the country to try to curb transmission of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus.

The only thing youre allowed to do is run wild through the streets, burn down storefronts, blow up stores and kill people, because thats considered a protest, and that they allow you to have, he added.

Riots have taken place in various cities since George Floyd died in police custody in Minneapolis on Memorial Day.

According to a schedule from the White House, Trump will leave Washington at 5 p.m. on Saturday and travel to Fayetteville Regional Airport to hold an event.

Trump is slated to fly back to Washington after speaking to the crowd.
Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg spearheaded gender equality and became the second woman to serve the nation's highest court.

Ginsburg died of complications from cancer at her home in Washington, D.C., surrounded by family, on Friday. She was 87 years old.

Her death follows her announcement in July that she had suffered from a recurrence of cancer and that lesions had been found on her liver.

She was diagnosed and treated for the early stages of pancreatic cancer in 2009 and completed radiation treatment for the disease in 2019. She also was diagnosed with lung cancer and colon cancer in 2018.

Associate Justice Elena Kagan said back in 2014 that as a litigator and then as a judge, Ginsburg changed the face of American anti-discrimination law. Kagan noted that Ginsburg could take credit for making the law of this country work for women.

Ginsburg became known for her opinion as a justice that came just three years after she joined the court. It was also when she authored the 7-1 ruling that opened the Virginia Military Institute doors to women.

"There is no reason to believe that the admission of women capable of all the activities required of VMI cadets would destroy the institute rather than enhance its capacity to serve the 'more perfect union,'" she noted.

Who Will Succeed Her?

President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said they would move soon to start the process of filling the Supreme Court vacancy left by Ginsburg's death.

McConnell said he intended to bring a Trump nominee to the Senate floor for a vote.

A senior administration official, who declined to be named, said that Trump is eyeing to choose a nominee soon. However, the official declined to discuss a specific timeline.

McConnell said that Trump's nominee would receive a vote on the floor of the Senate. He noted that Americans reelected their majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because they vowed to work with Trump and his agenda, particularly his outstanding federal judiciary appointments. He added that they would keep their promise.

The choosing likely starts with these federal appeals court judges' nomination, namely, Amy Coney Barrett, Joan Larsen, Allison Eid, Britt Grant, and Amul Thapar.

Barrett ranked at the top of Trump's list of potential nominees after her 2-17 confirmation hearing for a seat on the Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit.

In 2017, Barrett wrote that Chief Justice John Roberts pushed the Affordable Care Act beyond its plausible meaning in order to save it.

Meanwhile, Larsen spent much of her career as a professor at the Univesity of Michigan Law School. She was appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court in 2015 and was nominated by Trump to the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in 2017.

Eid is a formal law clerk for Justice Clarence Thomas and graduated from Stanford University and the University of Chicago Law School. She made to Trump's original list of potential high court nominees in 2016.

Grant, on the other hand, is a former Georgia Supreme Court justice and solicitor general. He was also nominated to the Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in April 2018.

Thapar is a Kentucky protege of McConnell. He would be the first Indian American to reach the nation's highest court. He was a former Kentucky judge and U.S. attorney with a trial court experience.

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Britain has recorded 27 more deaths from coronavirus in the last 24 hours - triple last week's figure - bringing the total number of deaths in the country since the pandemic began to 41,759.

Last Saturday just nine deaths were recorded and 3,497 new cases were announced. But this week 4,422 people tested positive for coronavirus and the total number of confirmed cases now stands at 390,358.

It comes as Government scientists spooked Boris Johnson with warnings of hundreds of daily coronavirus deaths 'within weeks' as they told the terrified Prime Minister: 'There is no alternative to a second national lockdown'.

And Britain's testing system came under intense scrutiny in the past week amid reports that doctors, nurses and people living in the country's worst-hit towns were unable to get tested for the virus.

A further 16 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died in hospital in England, bringing the total number of confirmed reported deaths in hospitals to 29,735, NHS England said on Saturday.

Patients were aged between 69 and 97 and all had known underlying health conditions. The dates of the deaths were between August 19 and September 18, with the majority on or after September 17.

Five other deaths were reported with no positive Covid-19 test result.

In Northern Ireland there have been a further 222 new confirmed cases in the last 24-hour reporting period, according to the Department of Health.

This brings the total number of cases in the region to 9,165, including 913 in the last seven days.

Some 1,081 patients are now in hospital with coronavirus and 138 are on ventilators in intensive care wards. In the last 24 hours 134 were admitted.

Mr Johnson is now threatening to 'intensify' coronavirus restrictions as he blames the British public for the rise in cases - despite his repeated pleas for people to return to their desks and eat out at pubs and restaurants in a bid to resuscitate Britain's economy.

He is looking to ditch his Rule of Six and introduce fortnight-long 'circuit breakers' nationwide for six months, following claims that it was 'inevitable' that a second wave would hit the country last night.

The new approach to get the UK through winter would see it alternate periods of stricter measures, including bans on all social contact between households and shutting down hospitality and leisure venues like bars and restaurants, with intervals of relaxation. Schools will be shut as a 'last resort', a Whitehall source claimed.

In other coronavirus developments in Britain today:

Britain braces for 'hundreds' of daily Covid deaths 'within weeks' as scientists warn Boris Johnson there is 'no alternative' to second national lockdown - and PM considers drastic action within days;

A third of UK Covid victims in July and August 'died from OTHER causes' - including cancer or being hit by a car, according to scientists at Oxford University;

Covid cases are rising in children with infection rates among two to 11-year-olds now seven times higher than in July, ONS data has shown;

Online UK supermarkets pasted notices on their 'pick a slot' page warning customers the sites were experiencing high demand - as customers fear a second wave of lockdown;

Covid hospitalisations could reach levels seen in the first wave by October, experts have warned as ONS estimates England's outbreak has doubled in a week;

Tory peer Lord McColl blames FAT PEOPLE for the UK's high coronavirus death toll saying it is 'despicable' to blame politicians for the more than 41,000 dead.

Meanwhile, scuffles have broken out between demonstrators and police at a rally in Trafalgar Square organised by opponents of coronavirus lockdown measures.

Metropolitan Police officers moved in on the protesters as they congregated near Nelson's column on Saturday.

The protesters formed human blockades opposite the officers to stop them from making arrests.

Scuffles broke out between the two sides next to the National Gallery, before officers were pushed back by the loud crowd, who began cheering and chanting.

The 'Resist And Act For Freedom' rally saw scores of people gather holding banners and chanting 'freedom'.

Organisers sold t-shirts bearing 5G conspiracy theories and advocating the legalisation of cannabis as a range of speeches were made to the crowd.

One protester held a banner calling for the Government's Sage scientific advisers to be sacked, while another's declared Covid-19 a 'hoax'.

Addressing the crowd to huge cheers, organiser Kate Shemirani said: 'We are the resistance.'

Some 3,395 Covid-19 infections were recorded yesterday, meaning the rolling seven-day average number of cases has risen 2 per cent in a day and 33 per cent in a week to 3,354. Nearly 4,000 new positive tests were confirmed on Thursday, in what was the biggest daily rise since May 8.

Hospital admissions  another way of measuring the severity of the crisis  have jumped once again in England, with 194 newly-infected patients requiring NHS care on Tuesday. It means 154 new admissions are being recorded each day, on average  triple the figure of 52 a fortnight ago on September 1.

Britain posted 21 more Covid-19 deaths yesterday, with 18 in England and three in Wales. None were registered in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Analysis shows 14 patients are now succumbing to the life-threatening illness each day, on average  double the figure of seven a fortnight ago.

Boris Johnson yesterday pleaded with Britons to 'save Christmas' by obeying the 'Rule of Six' or face tougher measures if the country fails to 'flatten the hump of the camel'. Downing Street has been forced to fend off claims that chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty is pushing for a two-week national lockdown.

Scuffles have broken out between demonstrators and police at a rally in Trafalgar Square organised by opponents of coronavirus lockdown measures

Police supervise protestors at an anti-vax rally in central London on September 19, 2020, as the number of cases in the UK continue to rise dramatically

Protestors take part in an anti-vax rally in central London today. It comes after Professor Carl Heneghan, of Oxford University, dismissed the idea that the disease was 'out of control' again

And yesterday Matt Hancock confirmed pubs in the North East will be under a 10pm curfew from today and that residents living in Newcastle and six other authorities are banned from socialising with people outside their own households because of a spike in cases. Around 9million people are now living under tougher lockdown rules.

Top experts yesterday dismissed fears the outbreak is surging out of control again. Professor Carl Heneghan, an expert in evidence-based medicine at Oxford University, warned the government was losing the nation's trust and called on ministers to 'slow down' and think carefully about whether more action is actually necessary.

Daily cases are still nowhere near the levels actually being seen in the darkest days of Britain's coronavirus crisis in March and April, when it was estimated 100,000 people were falling ill daily. Only a fraction of the infections were being recorded at the time because of the government's lacklustre testing policy.

Other scientists admit the trend in data is 'troubling' and separate data has already revealed it is not just the young who are getting infected, with infections up across the board. And some argue deaths have yet to surge because it can take patients weeks to die of the disease, meaning the growing spread of the virus may not have triggered a surge in deaths.

The daily cases being recorded now can't be compared to what occurred in the UK in the first wave, say experts, because of a lack of testing. Around 6,000 infections were announced on the worst days in April but only 15,000 Britons were being swabbed each day and tests were restricted to the most severely-ill.

Since then health chiefs have drastically ramped up test capacity to carry out 200,000 swabs a day, theoretically allowing anyone with symptoms  not just society's most vulnerable  to get tested.

There are now dozens of negative cases for every positive one, showing that large proportions of people who think they have Covid-19 actually don't  the opposite was true in the first wave when most people who were tested did have it. Data shows around 340 cases were found for every 1,000 tests at the start of April, a figure which is now around 14.

Hospital admissions  another way of measuring the severity of the pandemic  have doubled in England over the past ten days. More than 150 newly-infected patients required NHS treatment on Sunday, up from a rolling seven-day average of 52 on the last day of August

Professor Carl Heneghan, of Oxford University, dismissed the idea that the disease was 'out of control' again.

'Most of the problems here occurred if you look at the data, after the Bank Holiday Monday, from about the 2nd of September onwards,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

'You can argue here that one of the issues here that happened was significant people met over that weekend, and then we've had a bit of a surge.

'But the language of 'out of control, we need more testing, this is terrible' needs to be dialled back. Look, we have problems, significant problems, but we also have shifting policy every day now.

'I think what we've got a huge problem here, we are losing the trust of the population This is a huge moment right now, and what we have to do is slow down our thinking, pause and start to be more analytical about the steps we take.

HOW DOES TESTING AFFECT CASE NUMBERS? If more people are being tested for Covid-19, this will show up in cases data, experts say. On the surface, it may look like a spike in infections, but is not necessarily something to worry about because it just means more people are being diagnosed than before, when testing was limited to those in hospital. Professor Kevin McConway, an emeritus professor of applied statistics, The Open University, said: 'In the early stages of the pandemic, there was far less availability of testing in most countries than there now is. So one reason there are more cases is just that people have got better at looking for and finding them.' And Dr Andrew Preston, a reader in microbial pathogenesis at University of Bath, said: Test more people, you will find more positives. 'Initially, testing was restricted to those reporting symptoms, but this has eased and it's now possible for a wider range of people to request tests.' Testing capacity has rapidly increased over the course of the pandemic in order to reach more people. And this has caused a slight increase in the number of people getting a positive result - but not to levels that suggest prevalence of the virus is soaring. A significantly higher number of people are being tested since July - when diagnosed cases were at their lowest, NHS Test and Trace data shows. Some 442,392 people were tested between 13 August and 19 August - an almost 20 per cent increase on the 355,597 tested between July 9 and 15. However, the positive result rate only slightly went up, from 1.12 per cent to 1.4 per cent in the same period. This shows there were not that many more people testing positive compared to negative in August than in July. Other data from Public Health England reveals a similar trend over the course of the pandemic. Testing has increased vastly from no more than 13,000 tests per day at the start of April to around 150,000 in July. During the same period, positive test results in Pillar 2 - which are those outside of hospitals and care homes - went drastically down from a peak of 5.2 per cent in May to 1.4 per cent in mid-July, showing that less people were testing positive for the coronavirus despite testing reaching thousands more people. This figure has risen slightly over this month from 1.6 per cent to 2.1 per cent in the week ending August 23. But it's a small increase when comparing with the 5 per cent seen in May. Testing has shot up to almost 200,000 per day this month. Commenting on these figures, Dr Duncan Young, a professor of intensive care medicine at University of Oxford, told MailOnline: 'It is therefore very possible that the increase in cases is mostly related to increased testing, but will a small additional effect from the increased prevalence.' Despite this, it doesn't necessarily rule out that transmission of the disease is, indeed, climbing. Scientists admit that the evident rise in cases will be driven by more transmission in the community as a result of easing lockdown restrictions. 'But the position isn't like it was back in March and April,' Professor McConway said. 'The level of cases [in the UK] remains a very long way below what it was at the peak of the pandemic here in March and April.' Advertisement

'We rush in, like with the test and trace programme, it is falling over.'

The rate of positive tests per thousand has been as low as 5.1, at the end of July, after dropping below 100 at the start of May, when public testing became allowed. It fell to below 10 at the start of July and reached a low of 5.1 towards the end of the month.

But the rate has suddenly started to increase again, rising from 7.9 on September 1 to 14 on September 14, which is the most recent daily data available.

This is despite the government claiming the number of tests being carried out in the UK has barely changed and still stands at more than 200,000, despite an ongoing testing fiasco which has seen thousands of people, including doctors and nurses, miss out on swabs.

World Health Organization (WHO) chiefs claimed in May that a test positivity rate of below five per cent was a good indicator that an outbreak is under control.

Test positivity is considered one of the most accurate ways of tracking whether an increase in cases is really down to more swabbing, or because of an actual flare-up in transmission.

Professor Ronald Fricker, a statistician at Virginia Tech University, said: 'If you catch a fish almost every time you send the net down (high positivity), that tells you there are probably a lot of fish around that you haven't caught.'

In an article published on The Conversation, he wrote: 'On the other hand, if you use a huge net  more testing  and only catch a fish every once in a while you can be pretty sure that you've caught most of the fish in the area.'

Professor Fricker claimed the only two ways to lower the test positivity rate is by decreasing the number of cases, or by ramping up swabbing capacity. He said: 'A comprehensive testing program does both.'

Dr Andrew Preston, an infectious disease expert based at the University of Bath, told MailOnline: 'There is a lot of troubling data, but we are not near the stage of the peak.

'I don't think we will end up back in the situation we had in March and April as people are more wary now. We know who is at risk of the disease and those people's behaviour has changed dramatically since March.'

He added: 'We probably did go through a spell we were testing most of symptomatic cases in May and June. But we are currently stalling, so we still don't really have a firm idea of where the pinch points are.

'If we just go testing cases where it's clear there is probably infection  where people are asymptomatic  I don't think it will do enough to stamp out the infection.'

Professor Lawrence Young, a virologist at the University of Warwick, added: 'Making comparisons with what was previously detected and tested is difficult because we are testing a different part of the population.

'As it stands, it's not appropriate or accurate to make any comparisons with levels of infectious now and what was happening during the peak. Because we were not doing as much widespread testing to use as a benchmark.

'France is a good comparison because it looks like we are a couple of weeks behind them. We've got to try and contain the infection and the only way to do that is to test, trace and isolate in the absence of a vaccine.'

Separate figures show hospital admissions in England  another way of measuring the severity of the pandemic  are starting to rise again.

Another 172 newly-infected patients needed NHS treatment on Monday, with the figure being above 100 for almost a week. For comparison, the average number of admissions dropped to just 45 at the end of August.

Rising numbers of people being admitted to hospital generally follow a rise in cases by three or more weeks, meaning the number could continue to rise in coming days, weeks and months.

One of the biggest fears, and the one that led the country into lockdown the first time, was that so many people would be hospitalised that the NHS would crumble.

But this level of severe infection appears a long way off this time around.

Professor Carl Heneghan, an expert in evidence-based medicine at the University of Oxford, told MailOnline: '[Lockdown] was about flattening the curve to protect the NHS, which was we were accepting the virus was circulating and the major issue was to protect hospitals.

'But they are not overwhelmed and they haven't been for some time.

'Some people consider we can eliminate the virus [but it] is in every corner of the UK  at some point you have to accept its endemic like many other seasonal illnesses.

'It's highly predictable that if we go back about our daily lives, there is an increase in the circulation of daily pathogens  right now you've got rhinovirus [common cold virus]  we accept they are circulating in the community.

'Once you accept that, you start to have a strategy to see who is most at risk, and focus on containment of that.

'In Germany, the [Covid-19] case fatality rate in over-70s is the same as across Europe. But what they have managed to do is protect the most vulnerable, because they accept the virus is out there.'

Public Health England (PHE) data reveals 23.4 cases are now diagnosed for every 100,000 people aged between 40 and 49  up from 12.4 at the end of August. And coronavirus infection rates have nearly doubled in just a week for people in their fifties, jumping from 10.9 to 20

Experts say that rising numbers of tests being done will also translate to more people getting diagnosed, although this cannot explain away an increase in the number of people going into hospital.

On the surface, rising cases may look like a spike in infections, but is not necessarily something to worry about because it just means more people are being diagnosed than before, when testing was limited to those in hospital.

Professor Kevin McConway, an emeritus professor of applied statistics at The Open University, said: 'In the early stages of the pandemic, there was far less availability of testing in most countries than there now is. So one reason there are more cases is just that people have got better at looking for and finding them.'

And Dr Andrew Preston, a reader in microbial pathogenesis at University of Bath, said: 'Test more people, you will find more positives.

How hospital admissions have changed over time: Data shows how they peaked at more than 3,000 admission a day at the start of April. Circled in red is the most recent four weeks worth of data

'Initially, testing was restricted to those reporting symptoms, but this has eased and it's now possible for a wider range of people to request tests.'

Testing capacity has rapidly increased over the course of the pandemic in order to reach more people. And this has caused a slight increase in the number of people getting a positive result.

Tests are also being rationed and directed at areas where there are known, or feared, to be local outbreaks of the disease. Targeted testing, therefore, successfully finds people who may have been missed by a broader approach.

Scientists admit, however, that cases are undoubtedly rising at some level and this will be driven by more transmission in the community as a result of easing lockdown restrictions.

In the past two weeks, the number of people being diagnosed with the disease each day has risen from an average 1,404 on Wednesday, September 2, to 3,286 Wednesday, September 16.

Another national lockdown is the option of last resort for most.
ANN ARBOR, MI  Washtenaw Countys four state House seats are all held by Democrats, three of whom are seeking re-election Nov. 3.

Another seat is opening up.

All four Democrats running are heavily favored to win against Republican opponents in the Democratic-leaning districts.

The three incumbents, if re-elected, will be term-limited out of office at the end of 2022.

Heres a quick look at the races, with links at the end to find out more information about the candidates.

Lasinski vs. Marquis

In the 52nd District covering the western area of the county, Rep. Donna Lasinski, D-Scio Township, faces Lima Township Republican Greg Marquis, a hazardous materials specialist for the University of Michigan.

Lasinski, a former Ann Arbor school board member, is seeking a third and final term.

Once considered a swing district, the seat has been held by Democrats the last eight years. Lasinski, first elected in 2016, was re-elected with over 60% of the vote against Republican Teri Aiuto in 2018.

Rabhi vs. Holland

In the 53rd District covering the majority of Ann Arbor, Rep. Yousef Rabhi is seeking a third and final term.

The Ann Arbor Democrat and former county commissioner was first elected to the state House in 2016 and re-elected in 2018 with 87% of the vote against Republican Jean Holland.

Holland, president of Blue Chip Consulting Inc., is now challenging Rabhi again.

Peterson vs. Church

In the 54th District, Rep. Ronnie Peterson, D-Ypsilanti Township, is seeking a third and final term. He faces Ypsilanti Republican Martin Church, an information technology specialist and owner of Fathers Educational Support Services.

The district includes the city of Ypsilanti, plus Superior and Ypsilanti townships.

Peterson, a former county commissioner, was first elected to the state House in 2016 and re-elected in 2018 with over 78% of the vote against Republican Colton Campbell.

Brabec vs. Baird

In the 55th District, County Commissioner Felicia Brabec, D-Pittsfield Township, is competing against Ann Arbor Township Republican Bob Baird, a small-government proponent with an accounting background.

The district includes the northern part of Ann Arbor, as well as Ann Arbor, Augusta, Pittsfield and York townships.

The seat is held by Rep. Rebekah Warren, D-Ann Arbor, who won with 74% of the vote against Baird in 2018. Warren is now term-limited.

Baird is competing for a third time. In his first run in 2016, he lost to Rep. Adam Zemke, D-Ann Arbor, netting 30% of the vote.

Find out more:

MLive has partnered with the nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Michigan to provide information to voters.

Check out the leagues voter guide at Vote411.org/ballot to find information about candidates and issues on the ballot.

The leagues Ann Arbor chapter also is holding virtual candidate forums that will be posted on YouTube.

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Around 2 a.m., the trooper tried to stop a 2008 GMC SUV, which was stolen from Greensboro, for speeding on Interstate 40 in Orange County, the highway patrol said at the time.

During the pursuit, Grantz, the SUV's driver, allegedly fired several shots from a stolen Glock .40-caliber handgun at the trooper's vehicle, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

The pursuit ended at I-40 and New Hope Church Road after the vehicle went off the highway and down an embankment. Following the crash, Grantz ran from the scene, authorities said.

Troopers and local police officers arrested Grantz about nine hours later in a wooded area near Blackwood Mountain Road in Orange County.

During the manhunt for Grantz, the Orange County Sheriff's Office stationed extra officers at four nearby schools as a precautionary measure.

In reviewing Grantz's social media accounts, officers saw an image of a person who appears to be Grantz holding a handgun similar to the stolen Glock recovered from the car, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. The image was posted shortly after the gun was reported stolen.
New Delhi, Sep 19 (UNI) Indian Navy's decommissioned aircraft carrier Viraat sailed for the last time at Mumbai to Alang in Gujarat.

The aircraft carrier would be dismantled at Alang and sold as scrap.

The aircraft carrier was commissioned in 1987 and had served in the Indian Navy for 30 years, before it was decommissioned in 2017.

It covered a distance of 5,90,113.65 NM and spent 2258 days at sea.

It could carry 25 aircraft, including Sea Harrier fighters and Sea King 42 B/C, Chetak, Kamov 31 and ALH helicopters.

While operational, Viraat weighed about 27,800 tonnes. Its boilers had run for over 80,000 hours and it was probably the only warship, constructed during the World War II, to have served any country for so long, an Indian Navy official said.

Nicknamed the Grand Old Lady, Viraat could carry a contingent of over 1,500 crew and officers.

Mumbai-based Defence PRO tweeted, #Mumbai bids adieu to #Viraat as she leaves harbour one final time on her way to Alang, Gujarat. The flagship of @indiannavy served with distinction for three decades after her service in @RoyalNavy as #HMSHermes for over two decades.

As Viraat began its final journey from the Naval dockyard, a Navy helicopter circling overhead provided a majestic backdrop to the vessel's last voyage.

Before commissioning into the Indian Navy, Viraat had also served in the UK's Royal Navy as HMS Hermes for 27 years.

As per the reports, there were attempts to convert 'Viraat' into a museum or a restaurant, but none of the plans fructified.

Under the Indian flag, Viraat played a crucial role in military operations such as Operation Jupiter, Operation Parakram and Operation Vijay.

For the Indian Navy, Operation Jupiter in July 1989 was Viraat's first major operation, as part of the Indian Peace Keeping operations in Sri Lanka, in the wake of the breakdown of the Indo-Sri Lankan accord of 1986.

Viraat also saw action during Operation Parakram in 2001-2002, post the terror attack on Parliament.

The last operational deployment of the ship was the participation in International Fleet Review at Vishakhapatanam in February, 2016.

The ship also participated in various international joint exercises like Malabar (with US Navy), Varuna (with French Navy), Naseem-Al-Bahr (with Oman Navy) and was an integral element of annual Theater Level Operational Exercise (TROPEX).

After Vikrant, Viraat is the second aircraft carrier to be broken down in India. Vikrant was dismantled in Mumbai in 2014.

UNI ASH RJ 2238
The Winnipeg Police Services forecast year-end revenue is down and expenses are up, according to a new report set to be presented at city hall next week.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 18/9/2020 (490 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Police Services forecast year-end revenue is down and expenses are up, according to a new report set to be presented at city hall next week.

The 2020 second-quarter fiscal report will be submitted to the Winnipeg Police Board on Thursday.

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES The city's traffic photo enforcement revenue is forecast to come in $5 million lower than initially projected due to a lack of travel amid novel coronavirus pandemic restrictions, according to recent report.

Traffic photo enforcement revenue is forecast to come in $5 million lower than initially projected for 2020. The drop-off in revenue is largely driven by lack of travel/commuting amid novel coronavirus pandemic restrictions, according to the report.

The WPS is projecting a total year-end revenue shortfall of $3.5 million  sparked not only by the decrease in photo enforcement but also fewer traditional fines being issued by its officers.

Meanwhile, forecast year-end expenses are on the rise: the WPS is projecting it will come in $4.4 million over budget. That appears to largely be driven by a $4-million increase in staff salaries and benefits.

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Coun. Marcus Chambers (St. Norbert-Seine River), chairman of the Winnipeg Police Board, did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

At the Sept. 24 meeting of the police board, the WPS will also submit its 2020 business plan quarterly report.

The WPS has increased its foot patrol presence in the downtown core in recent months, according to the report.

During the first quarter of 2020, officers spent a collective 1,736 hours on foot patrol downtown. In the second quarter, that number jumped to 3,505.

Officers have also been spending more time on Winnipeg Transit and in transit corridors, jumping from 163 hours to 781 hours, respectively.

However, the number of arrests in the "downtown foot patrol zone" has dropped significantly from 264 in the first quarter to 166 in the second.
President Trump announced the Abraham Accords earlier this week, marking the beginning of an historic and lasting peace to the Middle East. This was a result of years of effort on his part, planning a comprehensive strategy and carefully putting it into effect. To that end, he was able to use three tactics to bring about his desired result.

Play the Energy Card

In the Middle East, he who controls the energy makes the rules. Not so long ago, it was Arabic countries of the Middle East, mainly in the Persian Gulf (including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain) that controlled the worlds crude oil. Then came an American, one George P. Mitchell, who back in the 1980s spent 10 years and $6 million of his own money to improve the technology of hydraulic fracturing -- known today as fracking -- to unlock the vast oil reserves beneath the U.S. President Trump has been a proponent of increased energy production, including fracking, from day one of his administration. Today, the U.S. is the number one producer of crude oil in the world, with 19% of the worlds total production, and thanks to fracking it is growing by 9% every year. So even though the U.S. is the number one consumer of oil, we are virtually energy independent. It was telling that President Trump has mentioned that he is aiming for Saudi Arabia -- the number two producer of crude in the world -- to be next in signing on to the Abraham Accords. Rule #1 in negotiation: if you want to strengthen your hand in negotiations with someone, make sure that you dont depend on them for anything. Apparently, Trump knows this rule well.

Neutralize Foggy Bottom

After his inauguration, President Trump saw the largest obstacle to implementing his foreign policy to be resistance at the State Department. So, he devised the following strategy: Hire Rex Tillerson to head State Department (Feb 2017). Watch him cut the departmental budget by 31% in 2017 and follow up with a 29% cut in 2018 (Tillerson was previously CEO for Exxon Mobil; he knows how to streamline an operation). Watch the resultant mass exodus of senior staff (nearly all of them holdovers from previous, and unsuccessful, administrations). Monitor him for any major policy disagreement (Tillerson wanted the U.S. to abide by Obamas Iran Nuclear Deal. Trump did not) and if such a policy disagreement was serious enough, act accordingly -- Tillerson was dismissed in Mar 2019 and replaced by Mike Pompeo. Some might say that Tillerson was among President Trumps most regrettable cabinet hires, but if a large obstacle to what would turn out to be the Abraham Accords -- resistance from the State Department  was in the way, then hiring Tillerson makes sense. And after his job (neutralizing the State Department) was done, remove him and give this task to someone from outside Foggy Bottom whose views align more closely with those of President Trump -- Special Advisor to the President Jared Kushner. And Pompeo? He met with a Taliban delegation in Qatar just last weekend for the Afghanistan peace negotiations to ultimately enable U.S. troops to safely leave the country -- Pompeo, top of his class at West Point, ex-Army officer, former director of the CIA is well suited for this task. Notice how Rex Tillerson, John Kerry, and Hillary Clinton (the three most recent predecessors to Sec. Pompeo) were nowhere to be seen or heard last week?

Focus on the Most Important Player in the Room

Another important rule in negotiations: Know the most important player in the room -- the one on whom you want to focus. Trumps six predecessors felt that the most important player in the room for peace in the Middle East was the Palestinians. They looked upon the Palestinians as absolutely essential to any peace agreement. Trump felt such importance being bestowed upon them was not warranted. He saw the Palestinians as an obstacle. Some presidents ( President Clinton) tried to negotiate with the Palestinians directly, to no avail. Other presidents tried to negotiate with their patron (Iran), also to no avail. Once Trump moved the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, he let these other countries in the Middle East know that he was shifting his focus from the Palestinians to them. Also, Trump recognized that the Palestinians benefactor, Iran, was increasingly seen as a threat by many countries -- UAE, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia among them -- in the Middle East. This undoubtably helped in negotiations. Trump felt the most important player in the room was this group on the Persian Gulf -- UAE, Bahrain, and possibly Saudi Arabia to follow. Would it really be a surprise to see others like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, and perhaps Iraq, sign on to the Abraham Accords in the near future?

Trump is a gifted showman. Tuesdays ceremony at the White House showed that. But we should realize there was a lot of work that made that moment possible. Strategy, tactics, execution -- they are all important. President Trump showed he can bring those together to achieve extraordinary results.

Image: US State Dept. {{PD-USGov}}
Donald Trump has vowed to fill the Supreme Court vacancy left by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death without delay, setting the stage for a constitutional crisis just weeks away from what was already one of the most important presidential elections in recent history.

In the first indication of his plans since the passing of 87-year-old justice, Mr Trump said on Saturday it was his obligation to nominate a replacement justice to the nations highest court.

We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices, he said.

If Mr Trump succeeds in placing a new justice on the bench, he could tip the balance of the court even further in favour of conservative justices, creating a supermajority that would shape the countrys laws on key issues such as healthcare, abortion rights and immigration for a generation.

But the path ahead is not simple. Democrats have rallied to oppose the move, insisting that the appointment be made after Novembers presidential election. The Democratic nominee, former president Joe Biden, led calls for a delay.

There is no doubt, let me be clear, that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider, Mr Biden said on Friday evening.

Democrats have argued that Republicans must follow a precedent they set during Barack Obamas tenure in 2016, when GOP senators blocked the nomination of Merrick Garland to the court because it was too close to an election.

Mr Obama himself has stepped into the fray, warning that democracy itself was at risk if Republicans pushed ahead to fill the seat before the election, and urged them to abide by the principle that they invented in 2016.

A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment. The rule of law, the legitimacy of our courts, the fundamental workings of our democracy all depend on that basic principle, the former president wrote.

At stake in the coming political firestorm is an extremely rare opportunity for conservatives to dominate a branch of government co-equal to the presidency for decades to come. Supreme Court justices are lifetime appointments whose decisions shape policy by delivering the final ruling on laws.

Some Republicans have long hoped that a conservative dominated Supreme Court could one day overturn Roe V Wade, the landmark decision that affirmed a womans right to an abortion.

In the coming years, the court will also likely rule healthcare and immigration reform.

The battle over the potential confirmation hearings on Capitol Hill was foreshadowed just hours after Justice Ginsburgs death, as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell sent a letter to his colleagues warning them of the tremendous pressure they would soon face to refuse a vote on any potential nominee to the nations highest court.

For those of you who are unsure how to answer, or for those inclined to oppose giving a nominee a vote, I urge you all to keep your powder dry, the senate leader wrote. This is not the time to prematurely lock yourselves into a position you may later regret.

He laid blame on Mr Biden, claiming the former vice president set a decades-old precedent as senator when he urged former president George Bush not to move forward with the Supreme Court nomination process until after the election. McConnell referred to the 1992 speech as the Biden Rule.

If Mr Trump does move forward with the confirmation process, as he is expected to, the president will only need 51 votes in the senate to confirm his nominee. The rules were changed to allow for a simple majority in 2017.

However, it would only take four Republican senators sided with Democrats to effectively strike down his nomination. Indeed, some have gone on the record to say they would not fill a Supreme Court vacancy in the midst of a national election cycle.

Reacting to the news of Justice Ginsburgs death, Senator Susan Collins, who is facing a tough reelection battle in Maine, said Saturday that the senate should not vote until after the election.

In order for the American people to have faith in their elected officials, we must act fairly and consistently  no matter which political party is in power, she said in a statement.

While she said she would not object to Mr Trump nominating a candidate, she added that given the proximity of the presidential election. However, I do not believe that the Senate should vote on the nominee prior to the election.

In fairness to the American people, who will either be re-electing the president or selecting a new one, the decision on a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court should be made by the President who is elected on 3 November," she added.

Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska also said this month she would not vote for Justice Ginsburgs replacement ahead of the election, saying: Fair is Fair.

There is also speculation that Mitt Romney might join the pair, as he did during a vote on impeachment earlier this year, when they gained the nickname the Three Amigos.

Another senator who could play a deciding role in a potential confirmation vote is the winner of an upcoming special election in Arizona.

If Democrat Mark Kelly manages to unseat Republican Senator Martha McSally in Arizona, he could be sworn into office as early as 30 November  perhaps in time to vote on a Supreme Court nominee. Current polls currently have Mr Kelly leading by more than six points.

Other Republicans who had previously committed to not confirming a Supreme Court justice during an election year have quickly changed their tune.

Senator Lindsey Graham rejected the idea of voting for a Supreme Court nominee during an election cycle in 2018, saying at the time: If an opening comes in the last year of president Trump's term, and the primary process has started, we'll wait until the next election. And I've got a pretty good chance of being the Judiciary [Chairman]. Hold the tape."

The South Carolina conservative changed his tone by Saturday, however, saying in a statement that he would support Mr Trump in any effort to move forward regarding the recent vacancy created by the passing of Justice Ginsburg.

Mr Trump has already released an updated list of his possible Supreme Court nominees earlier this month, a group of more than 40 mostly conservative judges and attorneys general. Multiple women are among the list, including Amy Coney Barrett, a judge on the US Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, and Bridget Bade, who sits on the 9th Circuit. He has also included several prominent lawmakers, including Senators Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton.

As for Mr Biden, the former vice president has vowed to nominate a black woman to the Supreme Court should a vacancy open under his tenure in the Oval Office. His campaign has reportedly been working to develop a list of women who could fill the seat, though it has not released any specific names as of yet.

The White House sharpened its attacks against Mr Biden on Saturday, with press secretary Kayleigh McEnany calling on Mr Biden to release his own list of potential nominees in an interview with Fox News.

The former vice president, in all due respect, instead of telling the current president what to do, he needs to tell voters where he stands," she said. We don't know who is on his Supreme Court list. We don't know what kind of justices he would nominate.

Justice Ginsburg, a liberal stalwart and trailblazing civil rights advocate, paved the way for women to serve in law offices and as legal scholars in institutions across the country. During her more than 27 years on the Supreme Court, she authored groundbreaking decisions including the 1996 ruling on the United States vs Virginia, which said that the states military institute could not deny women from enrollment.

The second woman to serve on the nations highest court, the 87-year-old was the recipient of the 1999 American Bar Associations Thurgood Marshall Award for her defence of civil rights and gender equality.
Germany's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Adebahr informed on Friday, September 18 that the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is still investigating Russian critic Alexei Navalny's case.

Navalny, a staunch critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, fell sick under mysterious circumstances on a flight back to Moscow from Siberia on Aug 20. He was rushed to a hospital in the Siberian city of Omsk after the plane made an emergency landing.

Read: Kremlin Accuses Alexie Navalnys Aides Of Taking Potential Evidence Out Of Country

Investigation on Navalny case continues

At a briefing, Adebahr said, As far as we know, the OPCW investigation continues. We have not had the results yet. Earlier this week, Navalny's official Instagram account said that there were traces of Novichok on bottles from his room in the Xander Hotel.

Spokesman for the German government, Steffen Seibert said that Berlin has taken note of the message. According to reports, Seibert said, I would like to refer you to Navalny's team for all questions on this video. We have said all we want to say in press releases and statements, including those of the chancellor.

Alexei Navalny was put into an artificial coma and was moved to Germany after much debate over his transfer. He had remained in an induced coma until September 7 when doctors treating him informed that his condition has improved. While Russin doctors had denied finding any poisonous substance in Navalny's blood, Germany doctors later confirmed the Putin critic had been poisoned with a Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok.

Russian authorities had then dismissed allegations of a state-sponsored attack on Navalny and demanded more evidence in order to start a criminal investigation into the case.

Read: Navalny Was Poisoned In Hotel Room And Not At Airport, Claims His Team

In a recent development, Russia accused opposition leader Alexie Navalnys aides of taking potential evidence out of the country and said that Kremlins ability to probe the suspected poisoning was limited. While speaking to international media reporters, Russian President Vladimir Putins spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said that Moscows hands were tied because Germany has not yet shared its findings with the Russian authorities.

While four German laboratories that tested Navalny's samples confirmed that he was poisoned, Peskov said that the bottle, if it existed, has been taken somewhere. He added that what has become a piece of evidence proving poisoning has unfortunately been taken out. Peskov even went on to cast a doubt on Germanys findings, saying that it would not be possible to take a bottle with traces of a nerve agent out of the country because that person would simply have no time to do that due to the toxicity of the substance.

Read: UK Says Russian Spies Certainly Behind Navalny Poisoning, Welcomes Recovery

Also Read: Novichok-tinged Bottle Found In Navalnys Room: Colleagues

(Image Credits: AP)
The opening of schools for examination classes after a hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has been dealt a blow after teachers declared incapacitation, NewsDay Weekender has learnt.

Government announced Grade Seven, Ordinary and Advanced Level exam classes will resume lessons on September 28, with examinations starting on December 1.

But two teacher unions, the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union in Zimbabwe (Artuz) and the Progressive Teachers Union in Zimbabwe (PTUZ) said their members cannot make it back to work as they do not have transport money and are facing food shortages.

In a letter to chairperson of the Public Service Commission Vincent Hungwe, Artuz secretary-general Robson Chere requested an urgent review of teachers salaries to their August 2018 benchmark of US$520 or the equivalent at the prevailing interbank rate.

This letter serves to inform you that as Artuz members we are incapacitated to report back for duty and survive this harsh economic environment heightened by COVID-19, Chere wrote.

We can no longer afford transport to duty stations, to pay basic food stuffs, rentals, water, electricity bills and other essential services now priced in US dollars.

Chere added: Our paltry salaries in RTGS cannot sustain us for a whole month or even a week. We request an urgent review of our salaries in US dollar or RTGS at the prevailing interbank rate, with monthly reviews from the government. We urge the employer to come up with an urgent solution to avert our situation, the letter read in part.

Teachers started receiving their salaries this week, with some crying foul after funeral insurance fees of $1 000 were added to their cost.

Most teachers who earned about $3 800 walked away with about $2 600, about US$31 using the auction rate, after deductions of the insurance fees.

The teachers are also yet to receive their US$75 COVID-19 allowance.

PTUZ president Takavafira Zhou reiterated that the government has overstretched the patience of teachers who have waited for long to have their working conditions improved.

Admittedly, the government has overstretched teachers patience and elasticity that has now reached a breaking point. Only a few days before public schools open, there is no clarity over improvement of salaries and conditions of service, he said.

What is inherently clear is that teachers have all tested positive to poverty and unless there is a concerted effort to address this long standing issue, teachers would be incapacitated to report for work on 28 July 2020.

Yet sound as this appears, the government has been prevaricating since its flirtation with moribund, obsolete and archaic Apex Council in Victoria Falls in February 2020.

He added that the Apex Council has blatantly failed to lobby for better salaries of teachers and entirety of public service workers.

Worse still Apex Councils unprocedural extension of mandate has even expired, but government is still closeted to romance with it for firefighting escapades instead of addressing the plight of teachers. Government is, therefore, taking teachers as if they are of no account.

Government has also been arrogant to the extent of introducing discrepancies among its employees with effect from June 2020 under what presidential spokesperson, George Charamba, called presidential prerogative.

That presidential prerogative is at best a fantasy and at worst a dangerous threat to security of the country and teaching profession. Teachers salaries have remained pegged at $3 800 to $4 500 at a time when sectors that hitherto earned less than teachers increased to $8 000-$19 000 and $9 000-$20 000.

He added: Government salaries are determined by qualifications, years of experience, responsibility and promotion. It is puzzling that the qualifications, responsibility, promotions and years of experience of teachers have suddenly been rendered useless by the new dispensation. Newsday
New Delhi: Accusing the Centre of fudging data, the Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Derek OBrien hit out at the government on Saturday over 97 deaths on board Shramik Special trains and asked why it took so much time to come up with the data. At a press briefing, OBrien who had sought to know from the Railway Ministry in Rajya Sabha about the number of deaths on board migrant special trains operated during the coronavirus-forced lockdown, alleged till the reply by minister Piyush Goyal, there was no clear mention of death of migrant workers, despite opposition parties demanding answers. Up till now, the minister has been saying seven to eight deaths, and there was no clear mention of the actual numbers. These are the questions that the government does not want the opposition to ask which is why Question Hour was cancelled. Every time you ask them questions, they will say no data is available," said OBrien, who is also the national spokesperson of the TMC.

The only data that they have is of their opponents who they want to harass and intimidate," he alleged. Railway Minister Goyal informed Rajya Sabha on Friday that based on data provided by state police, 97 people have been reported dead till September 9 while travelling onboard Shramik Special Trains during the COVID-19 pandemic. He said out of the 97 deaths, state police sent bodies for post mortem in 87 cases. Reports of 51 post mortems have been obtained from state police forces so far, in which the reasons for deaths have been shown as cardiac arrest, heart disease, brain hemorrhage, pre-existing chronic disease, chronic lung disease, chronic liver disease and others, the Union minister said.

Shramik Special trains began operation on May 1 to ferry migrant labourers back to their home states during the lockdown period. In all, 4,621 Shramik Special trains were operated between May 1 and August 31, carrying 6,319,000 passengers to their home states, the ministry said. The statement of the railway minister comes after the government came under criticism when the labour ministry earlier this week informed parliament that no data is available on the number of migrant workers who lost their lives during the 68-day lockdown enforced to curb the spread of COVID-19.

OBrien on Saturday further said while the government was trying to evade questions from the opposition, this time, they were caught". One has to understand that the government cannot decide which questions are taken up because they are decided through a lottery system. So, they had no control over this question, they had to answer. They were caught. It is unfortunate that I couldnt ask him supplementary questions in response to the answer he gave me," said OBrien, adding that such data on death of migrant workers on board Shramik Special trains was an example of information that the government is unwilling to provide to the public. He also said by cancelling question hour, the government has done away with around 400 questions that could have been raised by MPs, holding the government accountable.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
Texas long-term care facilities  even those with active COVID-19 cases  can allow visitors beginning next week, Gov. Greg Abbott announced last week.

Eligible facilities include nursing homes and intermediate care centers that serve residents without COVID-19, but that also have an isolation wing reserved for those who test positive for the virus. Visitation will also be allowed at state supported living centers, which house residents with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Visitors previously were allowed only into long-term care facilities where there were no active cases of the virus among residents and no confirmed cases among staff members in the past two weeks, based on state guidelines released Aug. 6. And before that, all visitation was strictly banned beginning March 15.

It is critical to the health of residents that we provide opportunities wherever possible for families to reunite, while continuing to take all necessary precautions to prevent the spread of disease, said Cecile Erwin Young, head of the state Health and Human Services Commission. Safely visiting with family and friends is the best medicine and most reassuring act we can provide for our most fragile Texans during these challenging times.

Under the revised guidelines, residents of long-term care facilities can designate two essential family caregivers who will be allowed into a residents room. Caregivers are not required to maintain physical distancing, but only one person can visit at a time. Essential family caregivers will be trained on the proper use of protective gear and other infection control practices, according to state rules. They must also test negative for the virus within the previous two weeks.

Visitors not named as essential will still be allowed inside facilities, but will not be allowed to touch residents and must remain behind plexiglass barriers in an area of the home free from the coronavirus.

Long-term care facilities, including nursing homes and assisted-living facilities, have been among the hardest hit by the deadly novel coronavirus. In Texas, more than 4,200 people in those facilities have died since March, and more than 800 facilities reported at least one active case as of Wednesday.

Families and advocates have repeatedly urged state officials to ease limitations for visitors. Only a handful of facilities were able to reopen under the previous guidelines.

But nursing home reform advocates worry that relaxing visitation restrictions could lead to another spike in cases among an already vulnerable population. Nursing homes are chronically understaffed and have struggled to maintain an adequate supply of protective equipment and testing supplies during the pandemic.

Brian Lee, executive director of the nonprofit Families for Better Care, voiced particular concern with the requirement that visitors be tested within the past 14 days, which he called the Grand Canyon of time. He worried asymptomatic family members could unknowingly transmit the virus to residents. Instead, Lee said visitors should receive rapid COVID-19 tests at the facilities doors.

Theyre going to allow folks to potentially [flood] these facilities with the virus, Lee told The Texas Tribune. Theres a real possibility that the virus could invade these facilities and see outbreaks.

The Texas Tribune is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.
Duggar sister Jill Dillard admits she drinks alcohol socially despite her strict upbringing

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Jill Duggar Dillard responded after making headlines last week for drinking an alcoholic pina colada. The reality star revealed that she drinks socially.

We have boundaries, Dillard told PEOPLE in a new interview. In our faith, we believe like we're not supposed to get drunk. So, with drinking, it's not like we're just like going crazy.

Its more socially here and there, or at home, for a date or something, the Duggar daughter continued. Our kids are pretty young right now, but I think it's good for them to see a healthy balance.

The 29-year-old was raised by her devout Baptist parents Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. Their family life was on full display on the TLC series 19 Kids and Counting, which documented the strict conservative upbringing of Dillard and her 18 siblings. The family became popular for their "modest" dress code and strict rules about dating.

Growing up, the whole idea of drinking was not encouraged, Dillard explained. I know my parents would not be happy with it, and I know that my siblings, some more than others, would probably have an issue with it. Other ones would probably be like, 'Whatever's good for yall, that's fine. Live your life.' So far, nobody's said anything to us about it.

Dillard and her husband Derek Dillard first disclosed their social drinking during a Q&A series on their blog, DillardFamily.com, which runs on their YouTube channel, Dillard Family Official.

We believe Scripture is clear that alcohol is sinful, Derek shared in the Q&A. Neither one of us have ever drank to drunkenness but that doesnt mean that Jill wont have a pina colada at dinner.

Fans of the couple are encouraged to submit questions on the blog in the comments section and after an Instagram post showing an alcoholic beverage on their dinner table, fans wanted to know if they drink. The Dillards said they know other people struggle with alcohol so they are sensitive to that.

However, the parents of two, Israel, 5, and Samuel, 3, chose to address it publicly because they want to live transparently.

Dillard told PEOPLE she and her husband have changed in more ways than one recently.

I think we've grown a lot as a couple, and Im OK with people not being OK with it," she said. "Sometimes it's a good thing. I'm very much a people pleaser, so not doing something because I was afraid of what other people would think or keeping my opinion quiet because I don't want to have to worry about conflict.

"The journey that we've been on as a couple, were being better about having boundaries and our own family life.

The Christian couple maintained that letting people see more of their life and journey has been healthy for them.
Japan's outgoing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe speaks to the media as he arrives at the prime minister's office for a Cabinet meeting in Tokyo, in this Sept. 16, file photo. Abe tweeted Saturday that he had visited a shrine viewed by China and both Koreas as a symbol of wartime aggression. AP





Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe tweeted Saturday that he had visited a shrine viewed by China and both Koreas as a symbol of wartime aggression



Abe's visit comes days after his resignation, and was his first in nearly seven years.






Every investor in Euroz Limited (ASX:EZL) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. Insiders often own a large chunk of younger, smaller, companies while huge companies tend to have institutions as shareholders. I generally like to see some degree of insider ownership, even if only a little. As Nassim Nicholas Taleb said, 'Dont tell me what you think, tell me what you have in your portfolio.

With a market capitalization of AU$173m, Euroz is a small cap stock, so it might not be well known by many institutional investors. Taking a look at our data on the ownership groups (below), it seems that institutional investors have not yet purchased much of the company. Let's delve deeper into each type of owner, to discover more about Euroz.

View our latest analysis for Euroz

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Euroz?

Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing.

Less than 5% of Euroz is held by institutional investors. This suggests that some funds have the company in their sights, but many have not yet bought shares in it. So if the company itself can improve over time, we may well see more institutional buyers in the future. It is not uncommon to see a big share price rise if multiple institutional investors are trying to buy into a stock at the same time. So check out the historic earnings trajectory, below, but keep in mind it's the future that counts most.

Hedge funds don't have many shares in Euroz. Because actions speak louder than words, we consider it a good sign when insiders own a significant stake in a company. In Euroz's case, its Senior Key Executive, Jay Hughes, is the largest shareholder, holding 8.5% of shares outstanding. Andrew McKenzie is the second largest shareholder owning 8.5% of common stock, and Ice Cold Investments Pty Ltd holds about 6.9% of the company stock. Interestingly, the second-largest shareholder, Andrew McKenzie is also Chief Executive Officer, again, pointing towards strong insider ownership amongst the company's top shareholders.

Story continues

Our studies suggest that the top 18 shareholders collectively control less than half of the company's shares, meaning that the company's shares are widely disseminated and there is no dominant shareholder.

While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. As far I can tell there isn't analyst coverage of the company, so it is probably flying under the radar.

Insider Ownership Of Euroz

The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO.

Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Euroz Limited. Insiders own AU$57m worth of shares in the AU$173m company. I would say this shows alignment with shareholders, but it is worth noting that the company is still quite small; some insiders may have founded the business. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling.

General Public Ownership

The general public -- mostly retail investors -- own 51% of Euroz. This size of ownership gives retail investors collective power. They can and probably do influence decisions on executive compensation, dividend policies and proposed business acquisitions.

Private Company Ownership

It seems that Private Companies own 12%, of the Euroz stock. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research.

Next Steps:

While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. For instance, we've identified 2 warning signs for Euroz that you should be aware of.

If you would prefer check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, backed by strong financial data.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.



Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com.
China in Focus (Sept. 18): Dissident Poet, Wife Arrested, Leaving 4 Children Behind

The Trump administration is set to ban TikTok and WeChat over the weekend. And if other Chinese-based apps raise the same national security concerns, they will face the same fate.

U.S. sanctions not only hit Huaweis mobile phone production hard, but are likely affecting Chinese passenger plane manufacturers, due to a lack of key components.

A Chinese pro-democracy poet and his wife were arrested and their four young children are now under house arrest with their grandma. Nobody is allowed to visit them.

The father of a Chinese American was denied entry to the United States, possibly due to his membership of the Chinese Communist Party.

And concerns that China could start using hybrid warfare are rising. We sat down with the host of Crossroads Joshua Philipp to learn more about those risks.

Subscribe to our Youtube channel for more first-hand news from China.

For more news and videos, please visit our website and Twitter.
Famous Egyptian businessman Mohamed Farid Khamis died on Saturday at the age of 80.

The Egyptian Investors Federation mourned the business tycoon in a statement on Saturday, saying, "Egypt has lost a great patriotic figure, who spent his life serving this nation, loving every bit of its pure soilthe pioneer of Egyptian industry Mohamed Farid Khamis died after a struggle with disease."

Khamis was serving as the head of the Egyptian Investors Federation and the chairman of Oriental Weavers.

Khamis established Oriental Weavers in 1980 and it grew under his leadership to become the largest machine-made rug and carpet manufacturer in the world.

In March, Khamis donated EGP 5 million to the Long Live Egypt Fund to help confront the coronavirus.

Earlier in the same month, on behalf of the Egyptian Investors Federation, Khamis handed over a check worth EGP 20 million to then-Prime Minister Sherif Ismail as an initial payment of EGP 100 million for the development and reconstruction of Sinai.

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US President Donald Trumps son Eric has alleged that Senator Kamala Harris, who is the Democratic Partys vice-presidential candidate, has totally run away from the Indian-American community.

Harris, 55, is the first-ever black, African-American and Indian-origin person to have been nominated by a major political party as its vice-presidential candidate.

Eric Trump, the second son of the president, charged Harris of not associating herself with the community at an event in Atlanta early this week at the formal launch of Indian Voices for Trump, wherein he accused the opposition Democratic Party of coming under the influence of the radical left.

Also read: Trumps son Eric agrees to sit for questioning in New York probe, after the election

You just look at Kamala Harris. Kamala Harris is of Indian descent and shes totally run away from the community, Eric said in his address to the Indian Voices for Trump.

I think the Indian community knows that. And you know, shes not going around saying that shes of Indian descent. In fact, shes going around saying the exact opposite, Eric said, urging the Indian-American community to support and re-elect his father as against the Opposition Democratic Partys presidential candidate Joe Biden and his running mate Harris.

You look at what this party stands for. You look at what the radical left stands for the lack of organised religion. They want to go after businesses. They want to increase taxes in ways that have never been thought possible. And you have so many business owners in this room right now.

Look at this latest plan to increase taxes by USD 4 trillion 82 per cent of people, which is pretty much every taxpayer... mean, all things that would absolutely tank the economy, he said.

Indian-Americans have traditionally been supporters of the Democratic Party. However, Trump, with his intensive outreach, has made a big dent into this traditional vote bank, according to a recent survey.

According to the survey released by Indiaspora and Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders (AAPI) Data early this week, 66 per cent Indian-Americans currently favour Biden and 28 per cent favour Trump while six per cent were undecided. Notably in the 2016 presidential election, 77 per cent voted for former US secretary Hillary Clinton, and 16 per cent for Trump. In 2012, as many as 84 per cent Indian-Americans voted for Barack Obama.

Also read: Indian-Americans represent best of America, says Donald Trumps son

Al Mason, co-chair of Trump Victory Indian-American Finance Committee, who was the first to report about this trend, said that the results of his survey in battleground states show that as many as 50 per cent of potential Indian-American voters, the vast majority of whom traditionally have voted for Democrats in the past presidential elections, will defect from the Democratic Party and vote for Trump in 2020.

The nomination of Harris as the Democratic Partys vice-presidential candidate has generated enthusiasm in the Indian-American community. However, many members of the community have expressed their apprehensions over several of her policies and that of the Biden campaign.

Harris in her speeches, including her historic address at the Democratic National Convention, rarely forgets to mention the deep influence that her Indian mother Shyamala Harris had on her life and how her upbringing prepared her for the role she is seeking today.

The vice presidential candidate in her social media posts has also talked about the deep influence on her of Indias freedom movement led by Mahatma Gandhi that was based on the philosophy of non-violence, peace and truth.
Actor Kangana Ranaut shared a beautiful no make-up selfie on Friday, saying that she has been sun kissed in the mountains. The actor, who made a brief visit to Mumbai last week, is back at her home town, Manali in Himachal Pradesh.

Sharing the picture, she wrote: Sun kissed in the mountains. The picture shows her lying on her back and taking a selfie. She is wearing a dark blue T-shirt and has no make-up on. The suns rays fall gently on her face as she takes a picture.

Kangana has been sharing throwbacks and intimate family portraits on social media. She also shared a picture of her parents from their younger days and wrote: One of my most favourite pictures of my parents, mom wants to click a little romantic pose but papa getting so awkward ha ha. The generation of love letters and romance through the eyes, Amazing! Earlier, she had shared another throwback picture of her nephew Prithvi Raj and her pet dog and had described them as my babies.

One of my most favourite pictures of my parents, mom wants to click a little romantic pose but papa getting so awkward ha ha. The generation of love letters and romance through the eyes, Amazing! pic.twitter.com/5XOe2EEf9e  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) September 19, 2020

Kangana has made controversial claims and counter claims over the last couple of months, calling out a host of Bollywood biggies including filmmakers Karan Johar, Mahesh Bhatt and Anurag Kashyap, actors Taapsee Pannu, Alia Bhatt and Swara Bhasker in the aftermath of the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput. Her comments on veteran actor and Member of Parliament Jaya Bachchans speech on targeting of Bollywood was panned extensively. She also called actor and former Congress party member Urmila Matondkar a soft porn star. She also mentioned Sunny Leone in her tweets on Urmila.

Despite so many controversial statements, Kangana has maintained that she never begins a fight. Taking to Twitter, she wrote: I may come across as a very ladaku person but its not true, I have a record of never starting a fight, I will quit twitter if anyone can prove otherwise, I never start a fight but I finish every fight. Lord Krishna said when someone aks you to fight you mustnt deny them.

Also read: Sunny Leone shares cryptic post after Kangana Ranaut drags her into spat with Urmila Matondkar: People who dont know you have the most to say

Kangana had a run-in with Shiv Sena too when she compared Mumbai to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Prominent leader of the party, Sanjay Raut, used a slur to hit back at the actor and told her not to return to Mumbai. Taking up the challenge and after receiving Y-plus security from the home ministry, she landed in Mumbai on September 9, only to find her office in Pali Hill area of the city partially broken down by Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for illegal constructions. Kangana later returned to her home town, after meeting the Governor of Maharashtra.

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Since March, working from home has provided new perspectives on where we live, the outdoors and, for me, the comings and goings of a busy West Side neighborhood.

From a dining room table turned workspace that faces five large windows, I watch as a familiar cast of characters emerge each day, both colorful and hardworking.

They walk with purpose, often drive like idiots and love their leaf blowers.

Theres the old guy on twice-daily walks, a medical mask around his neck as he sucks on a cigarette; a woman, makeup and hair in check, pulling a cart home from work.

Delivery trucks make their way around cyclists on cellphones and a young man so sure of his musical taste he shares it loudly for all to enjoy.

Its easy to guess what might be going wrong inside a neighbors home by the vehicles parked outside: a plumbers truck, the cable guy, an air-conditioning repair van.

Sometimes, EMS and firetrucks are summoned, and all you can do is pray. The sight of children walking by wearing masks always looks otherworldly.

The coronavirus pandemic sent the privileged among us home to work in safety. Those outside never had that option. They show up in uniforms and work clothes.

None has come to mean more to me than the postman wearing a white pith helmet.

I dont know his name, but hes the star of the daily show. He navigates my tricky wooden gate, walks up to my porch and drops mail in my turquoise-colored mailbox.

On ExpressNews.com: Garcia: Castros podcast a travelogue of an overlooked America

Sometimes, a card arrives along with a bill and a plea to extend a service contract, sell my house as is or divorce my cellphone service.

Ive felt this way about the U.S. Postal Services ethos for a long time. It promises to deliver mail in snow, rain, heat or gloom of night and that nothing will keep couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.

Other reasons account for my fandom. Consider the allure of commemorative postage stamps and postmarks from faraway places.

Then a friend, a Postal Service retiree, described how mail-in ballots were handled when he last clocked in at the San Antonio distribution plant.

Its holy grail mail, he said. Its segregated in a separate tub and sent on its way post haste, no matter the political persuasion of the carrier.

Such is the respect for democracy and the sacredness of each vote.

Though he never saw a lot of mailed ballots here, he said, they always received special care. November elections may change that. The coronavirus pandemic, too.

My friend was distressed about the removal of sorting machines and clustered mailboxes and other moves to slow delivery. Attempts to corrupt an election is vile, he said. That goes against everything thats American. Its Third World stuff.

It feels that way.

On Thursday, a federal judge said the changes made by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy this spring constituted a politically motivated attack on the service.

The judge zeroed in on Dejoys leave mail behind policy, requiring trucks to leave USPS stations at set times, whether mail was on board or not. The bottlenecks began.

USPS data has shown that policy change delayed nearly 350 million pieces of first-class mail.

The Trump White House has politicized the Postal Service before, demanding it charge Amazon, a vital client, higher rates.

Critics say USPS shouldnt be operated as a business but as a civic service. Historians have chimed in to say that Benjamin Franklin, the nations first postmaster general and a man interested in efficiencies and the bottom line, would have argued that mail delivery is a function of government, not a revenue generator.

My postman has a park and loop route. He parks at the end of my street and delivers mail on foot, going up on one side of the street and back on the other side.

On ExpressNews.com: Editorial: Doubt lingers surrounding Postal Service

His truck has no AC and is like an oven on more San Antonio days than not. My friend recalled occasions when a carrier was reported down because of the heat.

Long before they begin their routes, another group of workers on the graveyard shift get mail sorted and ready for delivery. They finish their workday just as most of us start ours. They dont get to see their families enough.

With enough seniority, a carrier might get weekends off. Mine works Saturdays.

Walk a mile in their shoes, my friend said. Lets see how you would do carrying a 25-pound bag on your shoulders in 110-degree heat.

Its a thankless job.

Apparently, thats especially true in the Trump administration.

Elaine Ayala is a columnist covering San Antonio and Bexar County. To read more from Elaine, become a subscriber. eayala@express-news.net | Twitter: @ElaineAyala
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 00:59:22|Editor: huaxia

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Video: United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sept. 18, 2020 calls for political will and bold action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). (Xinhua)

"But we will not be beaten. We, too, must look beyond the current crisis and set our sights high," says Guterres.



UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday called for political will and bold action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Public appetite for transformative change is growing, he said in his opening remarks at the SDG Moment 2020. "But one critical ingredient is still missing: political will. Without it, neither public appetite nor stakeholder action will be sufficient."

The SDG Moment, a high-level event to galvanize global efforts toward the SDGs, will be convened by the UN secretary-general annually till 2030 to match the Decade of Action for the SDGs.

"The science is clear. The people are clear. This is no time to procrastinate. The decisions taken over the next few months and years will have enormous impact on where we will be by 2030," Guterres said.

He called for action in three crucial areas: finance, COVID-19 recovery, and ambition.

Right now, developing countries face the dual challenges of funding the pandemic response and avoiding a major debt crisis, he said. "For the SDGs to stand a chance, we must address the immediate, medium- and longer-term financing challenges that developing countries face."

He encouraged world leaders, who will meet later this month on financing for development on the sidelines of the General Assembly General Debate, to consider policy options, including boosting the resources available to international financial institutions and extending the Debt Service Suspension Initiative to at least the end of 2021.

Inclusive and green COVID-19 recovery plans, done right, can help countries to transition to a more inclusive, equitable and sustainable economy, he said. "As we spend huge amounts of money to recover from the coronavirus, we must deliver new jobs and businesses through a clean, green transition."

"That means ensuring that taxpayers' money is used for a resilient, inclusive and sustainable recovery. It means ending fossil fuel subsidies, making polluters pay for their pollution and ensuring that no new coal-fired power plants are built. And it means reducing inequalities and placing women, who have been among the worst affected by job losses and increased care burdens, at the center of recovery plans," said Guterres.

He called for ambition and solidarity to provide the 35 billion extra U.S. dollars needed so that COVID-19 vaccines and treatments are available to everyone, fast; ambition to cut carbon emissions by half in the next decade, paving the way to carbon neutrality by 2050; and ambition to protect biodiversity, achieve gender equality, end poverty and hunger and fulfill the promise of the SDGs.

The SDG Moment aims to show that transformation is possible and is happening right now -- in so many places, with so many innovations, and with the engagement of so many people, said Guterres. "This annual SDG Moment is an opportunity to demonstrate that, as one united family of nations, we have what it takes to eradicate poverty and hunger, tackle climate change, deliver gender equality and achieve all 17 global goals."

The world can make tremendous progress over the coming decade, especially for the most vulnerable and the poorest of the poor, he said. "When the public appetite for change is matched with political will and smart policy choices, rapid progress is unstoppable."

He noted that the task is daunting as the foundations of the world have been shaken to the core by COVID-19.

The pandemic has pushed the world toward the worst recession in decades, with terrible consequences for the most vulnerable. Societies and citizens are reeling from widespread disruption. After many years of progress, poverty and hunger are on the rise. Children are suffering from a lack of schooling. Debt is skyrocketing. Fiscal resources are plunging, he said.

Even before the virus, inequalities were growing. The benefits of globalization and growth had failed to reach millions upon millions of destitute people, deepening their already profound despair. Biodiversity was also disappearing. Greenhouse gases were at record levels, he noted. "We need a path that brings health to all, revives economies, brings people in from the margins of society and builds long-term resilience, sustainability, opportunity and peace."

That path exists, he said. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is designed to address the very fragilities and shortcomings that the pandemic has exposed. At its heart is a simple promise: to end poverty and leave no one behind.

"In the midst of the greatest international crisis of their time, the founders of the United Nations raised their eyes above the horizon and planned a better, safer future. The COVID-19 pandemic, the greatest challenge faced by us since the founding of the United Nations has brought us low," he said.

"But we will not be beaten. We, too, must look beyond the current crisis and set our sights high, as we strike out for a world of dignity and opportunity for all on a healthy planet," Guterres said. "Together, let us make this a decade of action, a decade of ambition, a decade of transformation, a decade of hope and peace." 
When Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016, Senate Republicans came out of the gate insisting that his seat not be filled due to the presidential election about nine months away. The Democrats vehemently disagreed. But ultimately, President Barack Obama's last Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland  a judge who mainly agreed with now Chief Justice John Roberts, a conservative, when they served together on the appeals court  never received a hearing.

With the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Sept. 18, the debate over Supreme Court nominations during an election year is renewed.

At least one Republican  Sen. Lindsey Graham  had said a Supreme Court vacancy should not be filled until after the 2020 election. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, however, is saying the opposite of what he did in 2016.

Obama, in a statement out Friday, said:

A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment. The rule of law, the legitimacy of our courts, the fundamental workings of our democracy all depend on that basic principle. As votes are already being cast in this election, Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard.

Here's how the fight over filling high court vacancies has played out among Senate leaders in the last nearly five years, and what they're saying now:

McConnell when Obama was president

Feb. 16, 2016: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, write an opinion piece in the Washington Post, saying the nation has a "unique opportunity" to make an impact on the court by filling it along with the timeline of voting for a new president, "as they decide who they trust to both lead the country and nominate the next Supreme Court justice."

"(Democrats would) rather the Senate simply push through yet another lifetime appointment by a president on his way out the door," they write.

Story continues

"Given that we are in the midst of the presidential election process, we believe that the American people should seize the opportunity to weigh in on whom they trust to nominate the next person for a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court," they conclude. "It is today the American people, rather than a lame-duck president whose priorities and policies they just rejected in the most-recent national election, who should be afforded the opportunity to replace Justice Scalia."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., waits for his introduction during a visit to the Beaver Dam Ampitheater in Beaver Dam, Ky., Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley) ORG XMIT: KYTE107

Feb. 22, 2016: McConnell reaffirms his stance: "Of course its within the presidents authority to nominate a successor even in this very rare circumstance  remember that the Senate has not filled a vacancy arising in an election year when there was divided government since 1888, almost 130 years ago  but we also know that Article II, Section II of the Constitution grants the Senate the right to withhold its consent, as it deems necessary."

Feb. 23, 2016: The Senate will appropriately revisit the matter after the American people finish making in November the decision theyve already started making today."

March 16, 2016, with Obama's nomination of Merrick Garland, McConnell stood his ground: It is important for the Senate to "give the people a voice in the filling of this vacancy" by waiting until the next president takes office. "The American people may well elect a president who decides to nominate Judge Garland for Senate consideration," McConnell said. "The next president may also nominate someone very different. Either way, our view is this: Give the people a voice."

March 20, 2016: McConnell tells Fox News Sunday, "The Senate has a role to play here. The president nominates, we decide to confirm. We think the important principle in the middle of this presidential year is that the American people need to weigh in and decide who's going to make this decision. Not this lame duck president on the way out the door, but the next president."

And he tells "Meet the Press": "The American people are about to weigh in on who is going to be the president. And that's the person, whoever that may be, who ought to be making this appointment."

More: Ruth Bader Ginsburg's last wish: 'I will not be replaced until a new president is installed'

McConnell with Trump as president

Jan. 31 2017: A day before President Donald Trump nominates Neil Gorsuch for Scalia's seat, McConnell says, "the Supreme Court seat doesnt belong to any president or any political party."

May 28, 2019: McConnell is asked what he would do if a Supreme Court seat came open in 2020. "Oh, we'd fill it," he said, with a smile.

Feb. 11, 2020: "My motto for the year is leave no vacancy behind," McConnell told conservative radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt.

Sept. 18, 2020: With the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, McConnell said, "President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.

"Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary," he added. "Once again, we will keep our promise."

More: Conservatives, liberals mull next Supreme Court battle with memories of 2016

Chuck Schumer on vacancies

July 27, 2007: A year and a half before the end of George W. Bush's term, Schumer tells the American Constitution Society that the White House should not presume a nominee would be confirmed if a vacancy were to come up.

"For the rest of this President's term and if there is another Republican elected with the same selection criteria let me say this: We should reverse the presumption of confirmation. The Supreme Court is dangerously out of balance. We cannot afford to see Justice (John Paul) Stevens replaced by another (Chief Justice John) Roberts; or Justice (Ruth Bader) Ginsburg by another (Justice Samuel) Alito.

"Given the track record of this President and the experience of obfuscation at the hearings, with respect to the Supreme Court, at least: I will recommend to my colleagues that we should not confirm a Supreme Court nominee EXCEPT in extraordinary circumstances."

In 2018, as Justice Anthony Kennedy retired, Sen. Chuck Schumer suggested the Senate wait until after that fall's election to confirm a replacement for him.

Feb. 16, 2016: Schumer explains his 2007 statement on approving nominees was related to nominees who present themselves as in the mainstream and then pull the court in a partisan direction. "Its clear these justices have done exactly what they said they wouldnt do: create an activist court." He said the speech wasn't to a reason to not vote on a nominee in an election year.

June 27, 2018: With the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy, Schumer recalled McConnell's 2016 refrain.

"Our Republican colleagues in the Senate should follow the rule they set in 2016 not to consider a Supreme Court nominee in an election year. Senator McConnell would tell anyone who listened that the Senate had the right to advise and consent, and that was every bit as important as the presidents right to nominate."

Sept. 18, 2020: The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, the vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president," Schumer tweeted upon Ginsburg's death.

Lindsey Graham under Obama, under Trump

Feb. 13, 2016: At the 2016 presidential debate in Greenville, S.C., Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said of candidates at the time: Everybody up there I would have confidence would pick a reliable conservative except for Donald Trump because I don't think he's a conservative." He went on to say he would consider a qualified Supreme Court nominee from whoever the president elected in 2016 might be.

In 2018, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said the filling of a Supreme Court vacancy should wait until after the 2020 election.

Feb. 23, 2016: Graham joins Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee in telling McConnell in a letter, "Given the particular circumstances under which this vacancy arises, we wish to inform you of our intention to exercise our constitutional authority to withhold consent on any nominee to the Supreme Court submitted by this President to fill Justice Scalias vacancy."

It goes on, "the American people are presented with an exceedingly rare opportunity to decide, in a very real and concrete way, the direction the Court will take over the next generation. We believe The People should have this opportunity.

Oct. 3, 2018: Graham, at The Atlantic Festival, says, "In 2016, the primary process is ongoing. If you look back at 100 years, no one has been replaced under that circumstance. If you listen to what Joe Biden said, you should hold it over to the next election. Joe is right a lot. ...

"I will tell you this: If an opening comes in the last year of President Trump's term in the primary process is started, we will wait to the next election."

Sept. 19: Graham tweeted a change in this thinking, citing Democrats as the reason. "The two biggest changes regarding the Senate and judicial confirmations that have occurred in the last decade have come from Democrats," he said.

The two biggest changes regarding the Senate and judicial confirmations that have occurred in the last decade have come from Democrats.



#1  Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) September 19, 2020

"Harry Reid changed the rules to allow a simple majority vote for Circuit Court nominees dealing out the minority," Graham noted, and, "Chuck Schumer and his friends in the liberal media conspired to destroy the life of Brett Kavanaugh and hold that Supreme Court seat open."

Given that, Graham said he would now support Trump "in any effort to move forward regarding the recent vacancy created by the passing of Justice Ginsburg."

Other senators

Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, in 2016:

"During a very partisan year and a presidential election year, that both for the sake of the court and the integrity of the court and the legitimacy of the candidate, its better to have this occur after were passed this presidential election."

Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., in 2016:

Let the American people have a voice in the composition of the Supreme Court. Instead of a lame duck president and Senate nominating and confirming, a new president and Senate  elected by the people only a few months from now  should make that important decision. ... In the politicized atmosphere of an election year, you probably shouldn't even nominate someone. ... It's not fair to the nominee, it's not fair to the court."

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, member of Judiciary Committee, in 2016:

"In light of the contentious presidential election already well underway, my colleagues and I on the Judiciary Committee have already given our advice and consent on this issue: we will not have any hearings or votes on President Obamas pick. Any meeting with any nominee put forward by President Obama would only be a waste of the Senates time. The court has very ably dealt with temporary absences in the past and will do so again now."

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., member of the Judiciary Committee, in 2016:

Tillis said the day after Scalia died that, "the process of filling the Supreme Court vacancy would be best left to the next President. His spokesman at the time said Tillis "is following the Joe Biden rule," a term Republicans have used after it was discovered that then-Sen. Biden said in 1992 that if a Supreme Court justice were to resign that year, President George H.W. Bush should consider not naming a nominee until after the election. He was also one of 10 signatories on a letter supporting a delay.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What McConnell said about Merrick Garland vs. after Ginsburg's death
Representative image

The defence ministry has not taken any decision on selling only "Made in India" products in military canteens run by it across the country, the government said on Saturday. "No decision has been taken in this regard," Minister of State for Defence Shripad Naik said in Rajya Sabha.

He was replying to a question on whether the defence ministry will consider using and selling only "Made in India" products in its stores in light of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's focus on self-reliance and "vocal for local".

In an address to the nation in May, Modi spoke extensively on the need to focus on a self-reliant India and called for promoting products made in India with a larger aim of making Indian economy stronger.

In his reply, Naik also said that the total turnover of defence canteens in 2017-18 was Rs 17,190 crore and it went up to Rs 18,917 crore in 2018-19. The total turnover was reported at Rs 17,588 in 2019-20.

In the current fiscal, the figure has been recorded at Rs 3,692 crore till August, he said.

In reply to a separate question on whether government signed a contract with a private company to modernise 37 airfields, he replied in the affirmative.

"Modernisation of airfield infrastructure has enhanced the capability in terms of facilitating operation in poor weather conditions including night operations, enhanced enroute navigation infrastructure and enhanced traffic handling capabilities," he said.

To a separate question, Naik said 86 military airbases are functioning in the country.
NEP will make our education flexibile, says President Ram Nath Kovind

India

oi-Briti Roy Barman

New Delhi, Sep 19: President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday said that the New Education Policy (NEP) will bring flexibility in country's education system and will allow students to take courses as per their vocational, professional or intellectual requirements while addressing the Visitor's Conference on 'Implementation of National Education Policy 2020.

Lauding the new education policy the President said it aims to reorient our educational system towards meeting needs of 21st century. It sets vision of developing an equitable and vibrant knowledge society by providing quality education to all. It achieves twin objectives of inclusion and excellence.

NEP 2020: Students should be taught in mother tongue till class 5, says PM Modi

"NEP seeks to discourage rote learning and overemphasis on marks or grades. It seeks to encourage critical thinking and a spirit of enquiry."

Referring to the nation's academic history India's 14th president Kovind said that India was a globally respected education hub in ancient times. Universities at Takshashila and Nalanda had iconic status. But today, India's higher education institutions do not get high positions in global rankings.

Effective implementation of NEP is likely to restore India's glory as a great centre of learning. One of the targets of NEP 2020 is to increase Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education to 50 per cent by 2035. Technology can help in achieving this target, the President added.

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

Supporting including of Academic Bank of Credits (ABC), Kovind said, ABC is a major shift in policy which will be of great help to students. This will digitally store academic credits earned from various Higher Education Institutions so that degrees can be awarded, taking into account credits earned by students.

ABC will allow students to take courses as per their vocational, professional or intellectual requirements. It will also allow them suitable exit and re-entry points. This flexibility will be very useful for the students, president added.
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Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Copenhagen, Denmark  Sat, September 19, 2020 08:05 490 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45d63a7 2 Science & Tech Viking,study Free

In the popular imagination, the Viking warriors who plundered northern Europe from the 8th century were as tall, fair and Scandinavian as they were murderous. In fact, according to a new study, they were far more diverse than previously thought.

The study, published in the journal Nature this week, highlights the genetic diversity found in Scandinavia at the time of the Vikings who hailed from present-day Denmark, Sweden and Norway.

Ashot Margaryan, a lecturer at the University of Copenhagen, who co-authored the study, told AFP that they had also found that the seaborne raiders "were not all of them Scandinavian."

Owing to migration from mainly southern and eastern Europe, "Viking Scandinavia had more dark-haired people than present-day Scandinavia," he explained, while adding that Vikings were indeed blond in their majority.

The researchers analyzed 442 bone fragments from between the 8th and 12th century from all over Europe.

Read also: Norway starts digging up first Viking ship in a century

The data showed that there was a significant intermingling of bones in southern Scandinavia at that time, in part as a result of trade but, according Margaryan, also slavery, according to the researcher.

The study also confirmed previous research on where the Vikings and their ancestors settled overseas.

The ancestors of the Norwegians mainly went to Ireland, Iceland and Greenland, those of the Swedes to the current Baltic countries, while the Danes at the time showed up in Scotland and England.

Topics : Viking study
Gareth Bale is on the verge of re-joining Tottenham and the Spanish press couldn't be more happier with the exit of Real Madrid's 'villain'.

The Wales international, 31, agreed a season-long loan earlier this week, with Madrid subsidising at least half of his 500,000 per-week wages.

And he received a hero's welcome from jubilant supporters when he arrived at the club's training ground on Friday, seven years after leaving to join Real Madrid in a then world-record 86million transfer.

AS' headline read: 'from villain to hero' as Gareth Bale closes in on a move to Tottenham

The Real Madrid forward was given a hero's welcome at Spurs' training ground on Friday

The front page of Spanish publication AS displayed one such image of jubilation with a fan taking a picture with the Welshman in his car, and with relief in Madrid that he has been moved on for the next season at least captioned it with the phrase: 'from villain to hero'.

AS also makes reference to the 'superstar' welcome Bale received upon his arrival in London, and claim that Spurs are expected to present the player on Saturday.

However, they also support Marca's claim that he will have to wait for his second Tottenham debut because he is still suffering from a knee injury he picked up on international duty with Wales earlier this month.

Marca themselves went with the headline: 'All yours', showing a picture of Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho smiling with Bale.

Marca went with the headline: 'All yours' showing a smiling Jose Mourinho with Bale

Above the main headline, the publication adds: 'Bale arrives at Mourinho's Tottenham... and is injured for a month!'

Bale, who was routinely criticised over his questionable fitness record in Madrid, travelled to London on Friday to undergo his medical and Tottenham will be hoping his knee problem will not keep him sidelined for too long.

His Madrid team-mate Sergio Reguilon is also set to finalise his move to Spurs. The club have agreed a 27.5 m deal with a further 4.5 m due in add-ons.

He has signed a five-year deal, with Spurs agreeing to Madrid's demand for a 36.5m buyback clause  a demand Manchester United refused in their pursuit of the player  which can be activated in the next two years.

Bale was criticised for his fitness record in Madrid and has arrived at Tottenham with a knock

As revealed by Sportsmail, the deal for Bale will cost Spurs 13m in wages and does not include an option or obligation to buy him. However, they will have an option to extend the loan for a second year.

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is keen to retain an option to bring Bale back to the Bernabeu next summer, despite the player's fall-out with manager Zinedine Zidane.

Perez is wary of Bale rediscovering his best form in England so has left the door open for him to return next season.

Spurs' deals for Bale and Reguilon however were not completed in time for the pair to be involved in Sunday's trip to Southampton.
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Linkedin Marzuki Darusman (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 09:11 490 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45db2de 3 Opinion Indonesia,Myanmar,Rohingya-Muslims,human-rights-abuse,human-rights,diplomacy,refugee-crisis Free

The latest batch of Myanmars Rohingya minority refugees landed in Aceh recently, prompting ASEAN in its ministerial meeting last week to urge and express readiness to help Myanmar to work out its plan to repatriate the refugees.

Also last week, eight countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Germany urged Myanmar to immediately enable safe, voluntary, sustainable and dignified return of refugees, and to comply with the orders of the International Court of Justice, which in January had ordered Myanmar to prevent genocide against the Rohingya.

In fact, however, international pressure on the Rohingya issue has decreased, among other things, since the replacement of Yanghee Lee, the United Nations special rapporteur for Myanmar, whose term ended in early 2020. Without multilateral support, Bangladesh, which hosts around 1 million Rohingya refugees, feels alone, and has resorted to bilateral arrangements with Myanmar, including securitizing the issue to mitigate extremism and preventing the Rohingya refugees from interacting with local society in every way possible.

All this has caused weakened political leadership of the Rohingya to fight for themselves. They need to be empowered.

The four most urgent measures are first, involve the Rohingya in talks on their future, meaning recognizing them as a party; second, mobilize resources and funds to support Bangladesh and improve refugee shelters; third, start the discourse on third countries providing asylum to Rohingya who fear returning to Myanmar; fourth, resume multilateral mechanisms at the United Nations to enable all these measures, to more intensively shine the spotlight on Myanmars behavior.

And Indonesia is in a good position to drive all these initiatives given its underused nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council.

It doesnt matter if Indonesias term ends this December. All is not lost. Indonesia has world credibility. Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi would be the worlds foreign minister who has made the most visits to the Rohingya refugees. Through various engagements Indonesia has come to understand that Rohingya are very communal; they dont want to move individually or with just their own families, but with their entire villages.

So forget for now conventional international mechanisms with individual assessments for refugee placements. No need either to heed allegations of Indonesias Islamic agenda, as everyone knows our humanitarian motives for neighbors.

What we need is to be creative and active. Creativity without being active is no use and vice versa. We cannot be spectators of one another, but we must coordinate and support each other on the issue.

We need an open mindset, not unrealistic interventions like pushing for a change in Myanmars citizenship law, though certainly we follow nondiscrimination principles. And Myanmars ally China, even for its own economic interest, has provided funds and transportation for refugees safe return.

The demand for citizenship was not even absolute for all refugees as the independent fact-finding mission learned. Some just wanted to return and live safely as their first priority, likewise hundreds of thousands of Rohingya who are still in Myanmar. Now its difficult for refugees to return as their homes and villages have been bulldozed.

Making demands or appeals at Myanmar is no use. Whats needed is effective interaction between the UN secretary-general, the UN special rapporteur for Myanmar and the secretary generals special envoy for Myanmar. These are the forces that could effectively push the Security Council in Geneva and the General Assembly in New York to pressure Myanmar.

It is not possible either to expect ASEANs strong role as it safeguards its unity, and its also dependent on New York and Geneva. Efforts are really needed, mainly from Indonesia, for if persecution of the Rohingya continues it is very possible that minorities in any country particularly in Southeast Asia, who the rulers suddenly decide they do not like, could face discrimination and abuse.

Nonstop pressure against Myanmar is needed as during the term of Prof. Lee such pressure came among others from the European Union, Latin America, Africa and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

Any international economic sanction is unlikely to work as Myanmar has shown when it was in isolation for 50 years. And now Myanmar has Chinas support apart from other economic partners.

The international community needs to first accept that some of the refugees wish to return and others may want to resettle in Europe or Canada, for instance. Such discourse is still nonexistent as all parties are insisting on safe repatriation, with Indonesia jumping on the wagon too.

In the 1970s, Indonesia and France were involved in international cooperation in assisting refugees from Vietnam on Galang Island in Riau province. Why dont we continue such arrangements? Many look to Indonesias experience because that was extraordinary.

***

Former Indonesian attorney general, who chaired the United Nations-appointed Independent International Fact-finding Mission on Myanmar in 2018. The article is based on a recent interview by Ati Nurbaiti, formerly of The Jakarta Post.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
The government and opposition parties have arrived at a consensus to curtail the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament by late next week, sources present at a meeting of the Business Advisory Council (BAC) told CNN-News18 on Saturday. The urgent BAC meeting was called by the Lok Sabha Speaker to decide on whether the session can be curtailed given the rise in the number of coronavirus cases in Parliament.

The sources said that those present in the meeting said the session could be adjourned sine die by September 24.

While the government sought cooperation of the opposition on business that has been pending, opposition parties asked for a discussion on key issues such as management of the coronavirus pandemic, GST dues owed to states, environment policy, and the National Education Policy (NEP).

The opposition has reportedly been assured by Speaker OP Birla that a short duration discussion on GST will take place on one of the days next week during the Zero Hour. All other calling attention issues would be discussed on the last working day of the session.

The Lok Sabha has so far passed three Bills to replace agriculture sector-related ordinances. Also, both Houses have cleared a bill to replace an ordinance for cutting by 30% the salaries of MPs to ramp up funds in the fight against the pandemic.

Those parties present in the meeting  Shiv Sena, Congress, DMK, Trinamool Congress, YSR Congress and TDP  requested the Speaker to consider curtailing the session.

Despite the strictest of protocols in place, two Union ministers  Nitin Gadkari and Prahlad Singh Patel  tested positive while they were attending Parliament. Rajya Sabha MP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe also tested positive the day after he attended Parliament where he had even participated in a discussion.

More than 250 Secretariat employees and several media personnel who went to cover the session also tested positive. The government has even mandated daily tests for journalists entering the Parliament to cover the session from Saturday.

A minister aware of the developments told CNN-News18, It was a very difficult decision to hold a session in the midst of a pandemic, but we are bound by a constitutional duty. It is important for us to pass the ordinances, otherwise those will lapse. We will take a call after Sunday to see what can be done."

India, which recorded 93,337 new infections in the last 24 hours, has been posting the highest single-day caseload in the world since early August. India is the second-most badly affected country after the United States, with the total recorded cases at 5.3 million. The virus killed 1,247 people in last 24 hours, taking the total death toll to 85,619, government data showed on Saturday.
Vietnamese businesses on Wednesday announced the first batches of passion fruit and coffee exported to Europe following the Europe-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).

A farmer checks the quality of coffee in the Tay Nguyen (Central Highland) province of Gia Lai.  VNA/VNS Photo

Under the agreement, the EU has eliminated tariffs on all unroasted or roasted coffee products, down from 7 per cent-11 per cent to zero per cent, while processed coffee products decreased from 9 per cent-12 per cent to zero per cent after the agreement took effect on August 1, 2020.

Coffee has geographical indication of Vietnam with protection committed by the EU when the EVFTA is officially put into effect. This is a huge competitive advantage for Vietnams coffee industry with competitors in the EU market.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Quoc Doanh has built a project to develop coffee specialties and the coffee processing industry, and national brands for Vietnamese coffee products.

Doanh said Vietnams coffee export value to the EU market is estimated at nearly US$76 million in August, up 34.7 per cent compared to the previous month. This is an impressive figure after the EVFTA came into effect on August 1.

He said Vietnams coffee industry will ensure it meets the requirements of the EU market, especially standards for quality and sustainable development, making the country a reference point for global Robusta coffee.

Coffee is one of the 13 main agricultural products of Vietnam. The coffee industry contributes 3 per cent to the country's GDP, creating jobs and stable incomes for over 600,000 farming households, contributing to socio-economic development and poverty reduction in the Central Highlands, the coffee hub of Vietnam, and other coffee growing regions.

Vietnam has been the second largest coffee exporter in the world and the world leader in Robusta coffee exports for many years, achieving regular export turnover of over $3 billion per year (accounting for 17.4 per cent in volume and 9.5 per cent of world coffee export value).

Vietnamese coffee is present in more than 80 countries and territories. The EU is Vietnams largest coffee market, accounting for 40 per cent of the total volume and 38 per cent of total value of the country. In the past five years, the export value to the EU has reached between $1.2 billion - $1.4 billion per year. VNS

Vietnamese coffee industry seeking growth through EU trading pact Despite being one of the worlds leading coffee exporting countries, Vietnam has not delved deep into processing to raise the added value of the popular product.
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More than 30 people have been arrested after violent scuffles between protesters and police at a large anti-vax, anti-lockdown protest in central London.

Hundreds descended on Trafalgar Square on Saturday afternoon for a "Resist And Act For Freedom" rally, including some bearing 5G conspiracy placards and signs declaring Covid-19 a "hoax", with police repelled by human blockades as they tried to clear the area around Nelson's column.

Dozens of officers, including some on horseback and in riot gear, were pushed back by crowds who chanted and cheered, with some throwing missiles.

At least one protester was seen with a bloodied head while another was seen receiving medical attention on the ground, but the London Ambulance Service did not immediately have information on any injuries.

The London landmark was cleared of protesters after 5pm, and Scotland Yard said 32 people were arrested.

The force said the large crowds were "putting themselves and others at risk" just a day after Mayor of London Sadiq Khan warned it is "increasingly likely" restrictions will be needed to slow the spread of coronavirus in the capital, adding he was "extremely concerned" about the rate of transmission in London.

The number of cases per 100,000 people over seven days is reported to have increased in London from 18.8 to around 25.

Police said they had to take "enforcement action to disperse" the crowds after officers who had attempted to "explain, engage and encourage them to leave" were met with "hostility" and "violence" from some demonstrators.

Traffic around Trafalgar Square came to a halt during the demonstration, with one protester seen apparently spitting through the open window of a taxi whose driver had beeped the horn in frustration.

The protest was advertised with an image showing a vaccine bottle and urging people to "Come together, resist and act".

Protests are exempt from new legal restrictions introduced on Monday limiting groups to six, but only if it is "organised in compliance with Covid-19 Secure guidance", the Government said.

In other coronavirus developments today:

London Mayor Sadiq Khan held an emergency meeting about the 'accelerating speed' of Covid in the capital and said that extra coronavirus restrictions would be required;

A further 4,322 confirmed cases were recorded nationally - the highest total since May 8 - with public officials warning that Covid-19 was 'spreading widely' around the UK;

Official figures suggest the total has almost doubled in a week to around 6,000 a day in England alone;

Local lockdown restrictions were extended to cover around 13 million people, with 3.5 million more affected in the North West, West Yorkshire and the Midlands;

The Scottish and Welsh leaders, as well as the Labour leader, called for an emergency Cobra meeting;

Police warned coronavirus remained a 'deadly threat' and called for compliance with the Rule of Six

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with riot police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with riot police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

A man is detained during a demonstration in Trafalgar Square against the lockdown imposed by the government

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

A man is detained during a demonstration in Trafalgar Square against the lockdown imposed by the government

A man is detained during a demonstration in Trafalgar Square against the lockdown imposed by the government

One speaker at the rally, Professor Dolores Cahill of University College Dublin (UCD), expressed the view that the coronavirus vaccine will "make people sick", going against mainstream scientific opinion.

'Vaccines have not been safety-tested, they tell you when you take a vaccine you'll get a little bit of swelling, is that true? No. You can get multiple sclerosis and allergies, when I talk to parents, there are 12 known diseases you can get. If you're a parent, auntie, grandparent, cousin or neighbour, we're here to say the truth will come out.'

The UCD has previously disassociated itself from views on Covid-19 aired by Prof Cahill, who also chairs the Eurosceptic Irish Freedom Party, the Irish Times reported.

Vaccines are the most effective way to prevent infectious disease and have virtually eradicated smallpox, polio and tetanus in the UK, the NHS says.

But if people stop getting vaccinated then diseases can quickly spread again, it said, pointing to a spike in measles and mumps between 2016 and 2018.

There is no evidence that vaccines cause autism, allergies or other conditions, weaken the immune system in any way, or contain harmful ingredients, it adds.

The World Health Organisation says immunisation prevents two to three million deaths per year.

One protester held a banner calling for the Government's SAGE advisers to be sacked, while another's declared Covid-19 a 'hoax'. Addressing the crowd to huge cheers, organiser Ms Shemirani said: 'We are the resistance.'

In a statement today, the Metropolitan Police said: 'Police are aware of a number of people gathered to protest today in Trafalgar Square. As indicated previously, officers have been in attendance and adopted the four Es approach to explain, engage and encourage them to leave throughout today.

'Despite this, protesters have remained, putting themselves and others at risk. This, coupled with pockets of hostility and outbreaks of violence towards officers, means we will now be taking enforcement action to disperse those who remain in the area. Those who remain may get arrested.

'It is important to remember that we are still in the middle of a global pandemic, and the changes have been introduced to help control the spread of the virus, keep everybody safe and save lives.

'We encourage those in attendance to leave the area immediately.'

It follows the Metropolitan Police deploying officers across the capital city to enforce new coronavirus restrictions, which were introduced last Monday, limiting social gatherings from 30 people to six.

Yesterday the force warned: 'It is important to remember that we are still in the middle of a global pandemic, and the changes have been introduced to help control the spread of the virus, keep everybody safe and save lives.

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with riot police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with riot police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with riot police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

'Officers will patrol public spaces and will also respond to incidents where groups gather in numbers larger than six. We will continue to adopt the four Es approach - we will engage with our communities, explain the regulations and what they mean, and encourage people to adhere to them.

'Officers do have the power to report people for fixed penalty notices of 100, which doubles for further offences, up to a maximum of 3,200. Throughout this period the vast majority of Londoners have complied with the regulations. We all need to continue to do our part to prevent the spread of the virus.

'Please continue to act responsibly - maintain social distancing, respect the new restrictions, and help keep yourself, your friends and family safe. Exceptions to the new restrictions include gatherings organised by certain types of body (such as a business or a charity), having carried out a full risk assessment and taken all steps to limit the transmission of the virus. Other exemptions apply to gatherings that are necessary for the purposes of work, taking part in sports, to protest or to provide emergency assistance.'

Today's protest is the latest mass anti-lockdown gathering in recent weeks, after more than 10,000 protesters - including conspiracy theorists - assembled in Trafalgar Square.

Its organiser, Jeremy Corbyn's 73-year-old brother Piers, was handed a 10,000 fine for leading the Unite for Freedom rally. The meteorologist was seen being hauled off by officers after the event and his Twitter account has since confirmed he was slapped with the colossal fine and 'held for ten hours.'

He was among eight other offenders who were fined across the rest of England under new lockdown measures imposed which are designed to stop gatherings of more than 30 people.

It comes amid reports that Government scientists have encouraged Boris Johnson to impose a second national lockdown as the panicking Prime Minister attempts to regain control of the virus.

Mr Johnson is threatening to 'intensify' coronavirus restrictions as he blames the public for the rise in cases - despite his repeated pleas for people to return to their desks and eat out at pubs and restaurants.

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with riot police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

Hundreds of anti-lockdown protesters including conspiracy theorists have clashed with police at a mass rally in Trafalgar Square today organised by opponents of the Government's coronavirus restrictions

The Prime Minister is looking to ditch his Rule of Six and introduce fortnight-long 'circuit breakers' nationwide for six months, following claims that it was 'inevitable' that a second wave would hit the country last night.

How could the 'circuit breaker' work? The Government is mulling what has been described as a 'circuit breaker' in a bid to stem the spread of coronavirus. But it would not be quite as draconian as the lockdown that was imposed at the previous height of the crisis in March. Instead it would be similar to the lockdowns that have been introduced locally in areas with high infection levels. Restrictions would be imposed nationwide for perhaps a fortnight, in the hope that short sharp action can break the chain of transmission. LOCKED DOWN: People only allowed to socialise with their own household or support bubble.

Curfews and restrictions on activities in public spaces such as town centres and parks.

Face masks need to be worn in more public areas and venues.

Pubs and restaurants and other firms like hairdressers and beauty salons could either be ordered to close altogether, or have their opening hours severely restricted.

The edict to work from home where possible could be reinstated, after Boris Johnson spent months urging people to return to offices. UNLOCKED Non-essential shops and workplaces would stay open, to avoid further disastrous damage to the economy.

Schools would also probably be kept going, after ministers warned of the massive impact on the prospects of pupils.

There is speculation the curbs could be introduced over the half-term at the end of October - if the government can wait that long with cases doubling every eight days.

Healthcare and dentistry is likely to be kept going, rather than being reduced to urgent care as in the previous lockdown. Advertisement

A Government source has told The Sun that the UK could face short, sharp lockdowns for the next six months until a coronavirus vaccine is ready. A No10 spokesman would not deny the claim when MailOnline approached the Prime Minister's office for comment.

The new approach to get the UK through winter would see it alternate periods of stricter measures, including bans on all social contact between households and shutting down hospitality and leisure venues like bars and restaurants, with intervals of relaxation. Schools will be shut as a 'last resort', a Whitehall source claimed.

It is understood that the new 'circuit break' shutdown could be announced via television press conference on Tuesday, in a move reminiscent of the Government's behaviour during the peak of the pandemic.

Visiting the Vaccines Manufacturing Innovation Centre construction site near Oxford, Mr Johnson said: 'What I can certainly say about parents and schools is we want to keep the schools open, that is going to happen.

'We want to try and keep all parts of the economy open as far as we possibly can - I don't think anybody wants to go into a second lockdown but clearly when you look at what is happening, you have got to wonder whether we need to go further than the rule of six that we have brought in on Monday, so we will be looking at the local lockdowns we have got in large parts of the country now, looking at what we can do to intensify things that help bring the rate of infection down there, but also looking at other measures as well.'

Officials, including England's chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty and chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance, are thought to be arguing for tough restrictions as panic within official circles grows.

Today the Government's original lockdown architect, Professor Neil Ferguson of Imperial College London, recommended 'rolling back' freedoms 'sooner rather than later' by 'reducing contact rates between people'.

The epidemiologist, who was sacked from SAGE for flouting his own lockdown rules, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'Right now we're at about the levels of infections that we were seeing in late February, if we leave it at another two to four weeks we will be back at levels we were seeing more like mid March.

'That's going to clearly cause deaths... I think some additional measures are likely to be needed sooner rather than later, the timing of any more intensive policy, temporary policy, is open to question'.

But the measures are thought to have been met with protests from Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who has warned against introducing new blanket restrictions by pointing to huge damage already inflicted to the economy.

Government sources claim Mr Sunak gave 'sombre warnings' to the Prime Minister as he highlighted the severity of the damage caused to the UK economy as a result of the March lockdown - while Mr Johnson shrugged off the 'grim' economic forecasts.

Business leaders echoed the Chancellor's concerns and warned that a second lockdown would tank the economy, with the British Chambers of Commerce saying: 'Uncertainty and speculation around future national restrictions will sap business and consumer confidence at a delicate moment for the economy'.

The Government's handling of the crisis is understood to be playing on Mr Johnson's mind, with No 10 sources insisting he is already eyeing up the next General Election. But with Sir Keir Starmer's Labour Party now neck-and-neck with the Tories at the polls, backbenchers - who are angry with Mr Johnson's 'madman' threat to renege on his Brexit divorce deal - could be contemplating a revolt before then.

The dramatic move came as the UK's daily infections hit a four-month high of 4,322, with figures showing the outbreak has nearly doubled in size in a week and the R number being potentially as high as 1.4.

Parts of England are being forced back into lockdown, with curbs including a 10pm curfew on pubs and restaurants and a ban on socialising outside of households across the North West, Midlands and West Yorkshire from Tuesday. A total of around 13 million people are now under under local restrictions.
A vast swathe of Britain is now under local lockdowns, as Boris Johnsons government announced Friday that a 10pm curfew would come into operation over the entire North East of England. At least 10 million people are now under local lockdowns in northern England, the Midlands, Scotland and South Wales.

From next Tuesday, this will increase to around 13 million when further restrictions will be introduced across Lancashire, Merseyside, large parts of West Yorkshire and Cheshire. These will include curfews on pubs and restaurants, which will have to close by 10pm, and a ban on socialising outside of households.

The situation in Birmingham, the UKs second largest city, and neighbouring Sandwell and Solihull is under reviewwith further restrictions being considered as COVID infections increase in the area. Households were banned from mixing in Birmingham and the two other towns from September 15 after the seven-day infection rate rose to more than 70 cases per 100,000 people.

Large populations and conurbations are seeing even higher recorded daily increase of COVID-19 cases than at the height of the pandemic in the spring. On Thursday, Leeds, with a population of nearly 800,000, confirmed a further 117 infections. Its previous largest daily figure was recorded on April 22, when 109 cases were detected.

It is just 77 days since the Johnson government recklessly reopened the economy on July 1, in the middle of a pandemic, to restore the profits of the corporations. From August 11, the UKs 32,770 schools began to reopen, with these decisions resulting in a predictable resurgence of the deadly virus.

The R (reproduction) number of the virus rose above 1 last week to between 1.0 and 1.2. The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) announced yesterday it had gone up again to between 1.1 and 1.4. SAGE said this level equated to a widespread growth of the epidemic across the country.

In the last week alone, officially recognised cases of COVID-19 have more than doubledto a daily average over the last days of between 3,0004,000.

Friday saw 4,322 new lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19an infection every 20 seconds and a rise of nearly 1,000 in 24 hours. Another 27 deaths were announced.

Given that many thousands of people with symptoms, and millions in hotspots nationwide, are unable to get tests, even this is an enormous under reporting by the Conservative government.

Yesterday, the Office for National Statistics, reported that an estimated average of 6,000 people per day in England alone were infected between September 4 to 10. This was an increase from 3,200 people per day for the period from August 30 to September 5. The Covid Symptom Study app, developed by Kings College London and ZOE, a health care data science group, which tracks the health of four million people in the UK, estimates there were around 7,500 new cases of COVID every day over the last two weeks.

On Thursday, Professor Anthony Costello, a former director at the World Health Organisation, who set up, along with other scientists, the Independent SAGE committee to challenge the governments misuse of scientific evidence, tweeted, Im hearing from a well-connected person that government now thinks, in absence of testing, there are 38,000 infections per day.

Noting that evidence showed that the virus was spreading widely across all age groups, Yvonnne Doyle, the medical director at Public Health England, said yesterday it was a warning of far worse things to come.

As the number of infections surges, the growth in COVID-19 cases requiring hospital admissions nearly doubled from 100 in the week from September 8, to 194. The government refuses to close down the economy even as it is planning to reopen several Nightingale hospitals that were originally opened in the spring with National Health Service units massively under strain. One of the Nightingales based at Birminghams NEC arena is already on standby to begin treating patients within two to three days.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock admitted to Sky News yesterday that The virus is clearly accelerating across the country, before insisting, The last line of defence is full national action and I dont want to see that.

What is being proposed instead are half-hearted national circuit break measures that would be in operation for just two weeks. This would involve schools and most workplaces staying open, while some pubs and restaurants could have their opening hours restricted.

To ensure that the mass return of teachers and pupils to school over the last weeks is not reversed, the Financial Times reported Thursday, Experts on the governments Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) and the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Modelling (Spi-m) have suggested a national lockdown that could coincide with the October school half-term.

It added, The government is keen to avoid the reclosure of schools, having shut them during the national lockdown in March and only fully reopening them this autumn.

The article cited a scientist member of Sage saying, As schools will be closed for one week at half-term, adding an extra week to that will have limited impact on education. The half-term does not begin until October 22, by which time the spread of the virus will be catastrophically out of control as it was prior to Marchs national lockdown.

As of Friday afternoon, 1,230 schools had been hit with coronaviruswith most cases developing in schools in England (933) since September. There are at least 147 schools with multiple infections confirmed across their school population. The Guardian reported yesterday that more than four out of five schools in England have pupils stuck at home because they cannot get access to COVID-19 tests, according to a survey of headteachers.

Johnson said on a visit to Oxfordshire yesterday, We are now seeing a second wave coming in. Weve seen it in France, in Spain, across Europe. Its been absolutely inevitable, Im afraid, that we would see it in this country. But even as deaths mount in those countries154 died in France yesterday and 557 in Spain in the previous 72 hours, Johnson insisted his homicidal agenda would continue: We want to keep the schools openthats going to happen. And well try and keep all parts of the economy open, as far as we possibly can. I dont think anybody wants to go into a second lockdown.

Johnson speaking at the House of Commons Liaison committee

This horrific situation exposes the Tory governments lies, led by Johnson, who insisted that there was little chance of children being endangered by the virus and hardly any chance they could infect adults. Answering questions at the Commons liaison committee of MPs Wednesday, Johnson was forced to retreat on such lying claims, admitting that it is a fact of the disease that it is readily transmissible between children and adults. And what we are now seeing is unfortunately the progression of the disease from younger groups, who as everybody knows are much less prone to its worst effects, up into the older groups.

The response of Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer, who played a critical role in ensuring the reopening of the economy and schools, was to urge Friday that Johnson convene a meeting of the governments emergency committee Cobra. Fearing mounting public anger, he declared, I am deeply concerned about the sharp rise in coronavirus cases and the difficulties people across the country are facing getting a test The British public want to know what the situation is and what the government is going to do about it.

Yet again Starmer insisted that his party would continue to back Johnsons government and not oppose its herd immunity policy, stating, I want to make clear too that Labour will continue to act in the national interest.

The mass endangering of life underscores the necessity of workers and young people fighting for an alternative perspective. The Socialist Equality Party is providing the only viable opposition to this deadly agenda through the formation of independent rank-and-file safety committees to protect lives. Today the national Educators Rank-and-File Committee is holding its second meeting to oppose the unsafe reopening of UK schools and universities.

Please register here to attend and participate in this critical event.
Now, while everyone is looking towards science to put right all thats wrong with the world, it is time to call on the Humanities. To be conservative often consists in being a party pooper. It is not that we enjoy being naysayers, it is just that the world insists on conspiring against all that is good and beautiful. Without Greece there is no beauty. Without Rome there is no language. Humanists have been warning for years that a return to barbarism is in store for Western society if it continues to turn its back on the classical world. Without the Greco-Roman legacy, the whole world would be like Antifa: a collective incapable of connecting without the help of a brick.

It is possible that many schoolchildren intellectually kidnapped by progressive pedagogues believe pizza to be the greatest cultural inheritance from Rome. But believe it or not, even before the whole world spoke Shakespeares language, the great imperial language of the West was Latin. More than half of our modern English language comes from Latin. Some Latin words prove very useful in election campaigns. Fool, for example, is as old a term as human stupidity: It comes from Old French and ultimately from the Latin follis, which alludes to a bellows, a small swollen leather bag.

Beyond Latin, as Dave Barry wrote, The Romans spent the next 200 years using their great engineering skill to construct ruins all over Europe. Thanks to their efforts, we have inherited from them Roman law, the best architecture, the arts, the calendar, and the Christian religion. In the political arena, Rome left us institutions such as the Senate  something for which we are still waiting for an apology.

If we are able to admire our immense classical heritage nowadays, it is not because of the old empires charm, but because of the way it was built. Chesterton once shed light on this, saying: Men did not love Rome because she was great. She was great because they had loved her.

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As for Greece, without a doubt, their greatest contribution was the ideas. Yes, there were good ones and bad ones; but the Greeks imbued them with an important novelty: They made it fashionable to reflect upon which ideas were good and which were bad. Gender ideology would never have prospered in Greece. Greek philosophers tended to position themselves with opposing points of view and debate for as many hours as necessary with the aim of perfecting an idea. You would never find a Greek conservative cowering before a controversial issue and saying, Well, as long as I pay less in taxes, I dont mind if a transvestite visits my children in class to talk about sexual diversity. In the classical world, hesitant and complacent politically correct attitudes were not considered a sign of a good education but of a very deficient one.

Whatever the case may be, if today Humanities spark contempt from the Left, it is because they often refute their latest occurrences backed by immutable ideas that have matured for almost 30 centuries. That and because of what Hesiod wrote about the dignity of work, perhaps with future limousine liberals wearing Marxist masks in mind: Work is not a disgrace, idleness is a disgrace.

In Sophocles, when Antigone rebels against unjust laws, she does not do it because she wants to confront the king of Thebes, but because she recognizes the existence of a natural moral law, the same one that today we could turn to, even without religion, to reject the murder of babies in their mothers wombs. By and large, it was Greece that gave the philosopher Leo Strauss grounds to pass the most beautiful and savage judgment on liberal education ever written: Liberal education is liberation from vulgarity. The Greeks had a beautiful word for vulgarity; they called it apeirokalia, lack of experience in things beautiful.

Although, of all the classical world, I suppose that if anything really torments the apostles of modernity it is reading the works of Titus Livius  and in no way am I suggesting that they do. The old historian wrote that the greatness of Rome came about through virtue, and he spoke of the stereotype of the ancient Roman with the epic qualities with which we might speak today of someone such as John Wayne: hardworking, heroic, constant, and a lover of justice. Titus Livius compared this ideal with the customs of his time, becoming a prophet of Roman decadence. If he were our peer, with his ideas, it is likely that he would have had to seek refuge within the pages of National Review, while receiving daily attacks from CNN, the New York Times, and other mass media, raised in mass captivity.

I do not know if it is too bold a statement to claim that Roger Scruton was the Titus Livius of our day, but in any case, he was the most important defender of the Humanities in the worst conditions. Scrutons reasoning, always elegant, remains effective, as he exposes the limitations that the scientific and the material will always have: that world [material] can be understood completely in another way which also has its truths which are not translatable into the truths of science. In the 2017 presentation of On Human Nature, Scruton was even more explicit: Science does not know what man is. Therefore, science alone cannot make decisions about whether or not it would be right to remove the organs from 50 children if that helped manufacture a vaccine against the present pandemic. For science, obviously, the end always justifies the means. In fact, that is its only reason for being. It is philosophy, ethics, and morals, the immense legacy of classicism, that raise their voices against injustice or against an affront to human dignity.

This is why the Democrats have become suspicious of the Humanities. Philosophy is a very dangerous discipline because it could teach schoolchildren how to think for themselves. Again, it was Scruton who saw it coming, pointing out that hatred for the classical world is not to be sought in the laboratories, but in the universities and cultural institutions, where a kind of morose antipathy to the Western inheritance accompanies a deep suspicion of all those who wish to teach it and to build on it. From there, the ideological battleground has shifted. In the end, all those who fail to win in the field of ideas end up declaring war on grammar, but savagely, as if instead of a university it were a Democratic Congress.

After all, some people may argue that the Humanities discourse is beautiful but not very pragmatic if what you want is to reach the end of the month with food in the fridge. In the end, I am a writer; I cannot give any lessons on how to live comfortably by devoting oneself to bloody bohemianism. A friend of mine, the Spanish writer and director at the Instituto Cervantes in London, Ignacio Peyro, often says that writing is our most expensive vice. However, it could be that the times are changing. A British Academy report published this year will undoubtedly make contemporary philosophers very happy, after years of looking in the mirror and asking why?  I mean: Why on earth did I study this career?

This Qualified for the Future report claims that graduates in the arts, humanities, and social sciences find work with almost identical ease and conditions as those in technical fields: Of the ten fastest growing sectors, eight employ more AHSS graduates than other disciplines. But additionally, those working in humanities prove to be more versatile, making their jobs flexible and, in the event of losing them, find new jobs more easily in a variety of industries. The report compares this situation to the many technical profiles of those who can rarely escape their own professional field and do anything else if they lose their job. In this sense, in turbulent times such as these, the Humanities can be a lifesaver. Although I am not suggesting that the only destiny in store for technical engineers is serving drinks in a Mediterranean beach bar, fighting for tips from a bunch of tipsy German pensioners.

It is true that salaries tend to be a little lower in the Humanities, but this kind of calculation usually ignores that this is a long-distance race. Unlike technical disciplines, Humanities growth comes from experience and allows for, over the years, improvement in ones salary. This has been, on the other hand, a constant in the history of work: Without wanting to belittle anyones efforts, its the exception, not the rule, to be a millionaire programmer by your 18th birthday, managing a multinational corporation dressed like a junkie from the 80s. The normal course is to progress little by little, with much effort. In the professional realm, haste and the obsession with immediate triumph are tacky.

For decades we have bet everything on science, as if it were a god. Thanks to medicine, we began to feel almost immortal. In this area, Europe became even more radical. Philosophy, religion, and critical thinking were outlawed. Only science was valid. The ideal was health  universal health. But in the hour of truth, the coronavirus pandemic arrived, and we died just like everyone else, while science desperately searched for a solution, feeling the angry breath of converts to a harsh reality breathing down its neck, like a conned mob at the door of the con man, who is actually just another victim of the fraud.

No, perhaps the Humanities cannot find the vaccine against coronavirus, but it can find it against stupid rationality, moral sclerosis, nihilistic pride, or the Chinese totalitarianism that paved the way for the pandemic. And, in any case, whatever happens, it will always be better for the soul to read Homer or St. Augustine than that famous self-help author, Paulo Coelho, who wrote in 1988, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it. It does not work. Ive been wanting something hard since 1988, but Coelho is still publishing his books.

Translated by Joel Dalmau.

More from National Review
Kim Kardashian has previously credited her old friend and former boss Paris Hilton with launching her career.

And the two stars reunited on Friday for a girls night, that the Keeping Up With the Kardashians personality documented on her Instagram Story.

The stars enjoyed each other's company by taking plenty of glamorous selfies and videos.

Reunited: Kim Kardashian reunited with her old pal Paris Hilton on Friday for a girls night, that the Keeping Up With the Kardashians personality documented on her Instagram Story

While riding in the back of a car, Kim snapped selfies with the Simple Life star.

Kim and Paris' dark brown and blonde locks, respectively, were down in the same sleek, shiny and loose waves, parted in the middle.

The KKW Beauty founded opted for a mauve-toned eyeshadow, bold lashes and her signature flawless complexion and contoured cheeks.

She pursed her lips, in a rosy shade, to the camera, for one snap.

Glamorous moment: The stars enjoyed each other's company by taking plenty of glamorous selfies and videos, including riding in the back of a car

Matching: Kim and Paris' dark brown and blonde locks, respectively, were down in the same sleek, shiny and loose waves, parted in the middle, and large hoop earrings

The mother-of-four wore large silver hoop earrings, and a high-neck mauve top as she hung out with her old friend.

Meanwhile, Paris looked equally flawless and glamorous, as she opted for a much peachier and light look.

Her lips and cheeks appeared to be done in similar peach shades, as her eyes offered a bit of a glossy look.

She also matched Kim in oversized, thin hoop earrings, but switched up her look in a silk camel colored top, though at one point she added pink toned sunglasses.

Coordinated: The KKW Beauty founded opted for a mauve-toned eyeshadow, bold lashes and her signature flawless complexion and contoured cheeks. Meanwhile, Paris looked equally flawless and glamorous, as she opted for a much peachier and light look

Pretty in pink: Paris switched up her look in a silk camel colored top, though at one point she added pink toned sunglasses.

They went on to head back to, what appeared to be, someone's home, and Kim took the opportunity to change outfits.

She added a pair of large ombre orange shades and switched into a camel colored bralette tube top.

In a season 17 episode of Kim's reality show, she explained her decision to star in Paris' Best Friends A** music video.

'I really would want to do anything for her, she literally gave me a career. And I like totally acknowledge that,' she said.

Happy gals: They both beamed bright smiles in a video recorded by Kim

Quick stop: They went on to head back to, what appeared to be, someone's home, and Kim took the opportunity to change outfits. She added a pair of large ombre orange shades and switched into a camel colored bralette tube top

Kim began her career with cameo appearances in Paris reality show The Simple Life when she worked as the heiress assistant and stylist.

After Kim's humble moment Paris told Cosmopolitan UK: 'Shes sweet and kind and brilliant. Im so proud of her and impressed with her becoming a lawyer; its incredible that shes using her voice and her platform to help others.'

Paris continued: 'We have conversations about it. She traveled the world with me and we have so many amazing memories.'

Adding: 'What shes said is, "I really appreciate everything Ive learned from you," and we just always talk [about] how proud of each other we are because weve known each other since we were little girls.'

Thanks to Paris: In a season 17 episode of Kim's reality show, she explained her decision to star in Paris' Best Friends A** music video. 'I really would want to do anything for her, she literally gave me a career. And I like totally acknowledge that,' she said

Proud: After Kim's humble moment Paris told Cosmopolitan UK : 'Shes sweet and kind and brilliant. Im so proud of her and impressed with her becoming a lawyer; its incredible that shes using her voice and her platform to help others'

Twinning: Kim recorded their matching silver and gold Louis Vuitton handbags

Meanwhile the DJ credited Kim with encouraging her to freeze her eggs to start a family in the future.

Speaking to the Sunday Times in August, Paris said she'd love to have a set of twins and is already looking forward to 'dressing them up.'

Adding: 'I had a really amazing conversation with Kim [Kardashian] about it,' Paris said. 'She introduced me to her doctor, and I was so inspired by her to actually do it.'

Earlier this week, Paris released her new YouTube documentary This Is Paris.

The new documentary features shocking revelations about Paris' adolescence, including a stint in an allegedly abusive boarding school in which she was fed tranquilizers, verbally abused and endured 10-hour stretches in solitary confinement.

The film also generated buzz because Paris drops much of her recognizable vocal fry, unveiling a smoother, deeper voice that she claims is how she really talks.

Where it began: Kim began her career with cameo appearances in Paris reality show The Simple Life when she worked as the heiress assistant and stylist (pictured together in 2007)
Hundreds of people swept through the Magnificent Mile and other parts of downtown Chicago after Chicago police officers shot and injured Latrell Allen, 20, in Englewood hours earlier on Aug. 9. Police said Allen fired shots at officers chasing him on a block not far from Allens address.
The restrictions the US government plans to impose on popular Chinese apps TikTok and WeChat will be limited in scope, and it has effectively pushed the deadline for TikTok to strike a deal out to November.

The Commerce Department announced early on Friday that as of Sunday, new US downloads of TikTok, owned by ByteDance, will be prohibited. WeChat will be banned from using services in the US necessary for the app to function. TikTok users who have the apps can continue to use them, but no upgrades or updates will be available after Sunday.

"The scope of the orders is pretty narrow, focused on US operations of the firms [and] apps, and not extending to their use in key markets like China or Southeast Asia," said Paul Triolo, head of the geo-technology practice at Eurasia Group.

Get the latest insights and analysis from our Global Impact newsletter on the big stories originating in China.

"The bulk of the TikTok restrictions do not take effect until November 12, giving more time for the restructuring of TikTok's US operations and investments by US companies to take effect," said Triolo.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said on Friday morning on Fox Business that "the only real change as of Sunday night will be [TikTok users] won't have access to improved apps, updated apps, upgraded apps or maintenance".

The ban would go into effect on September 20 at the end of the 45-day period required by US President Donald Trump's executive order on August 6, in which required that ByteDance sell TikTok's US operations to an American company.

Trump said that TikTok needed an American owner to ensure that its users' personal data - TikTok already has more than 100 million US users - would not be turned over to the Chinese government.

Friday's order effectively gave TikTok until November 12 to clinch a deal that will satisfy Trump's request.

In a statement on Friday, a TikTok spokesperson said the company "disagree[d] with the decision" and was "disappointed".

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Many in US business community use WeChat as a tool to do business with their Chinese counterparts. Photo: Getty Images via TNS alt=Many in US business community use WeChat as a tool to do business with their Chinese counterparts. Photo: Getty Images via TNS

"We've already committed to unprecedented levels of additional transparency and accountability well beyond what other apps are willing to do, including third-party audits, verification of code security, and US government oversight of US data security," according to the statement.

"An American technology provider would be responsible for maintaining and operating the TikTok network in the US, which would include all services and data serving US consumers."

"We will continue to challenge the unjust executive order, which was enacted without due process," TikTok said.

TikTok's interim CEO Vanessa Pappas in a Friday tweet said "this type of ban would be bad for the industry".

Pappas said TikTok invites "Facebook and Instagram to publicly join our challenge and support our litigation," referring to the August lawsuit the company filed against the Trump administration, accusing the president, the Commerce Department and the commerce secretary of violating the constitutional right to due process.

"This is a moment to put aside our competition and focus on core principles like freedom of expression and due process of law," Pappas said.

"An American technology provider would be responsible for maintaining and operating the TikTok network in the US, which would include all services and data serving US consumers," TikTok said.

"We will continue to challenge the unjust executive order, which was enacted without due process."

Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, without commenting on TikTok's invitation to join forces, said in a tweet that "a US TikTok ban would be quite bad for Instagram, Facebook, and the internet more broadly."

A Facebook spokesperson declined to comment on the matter.

Meanwhile, Tencent on Friday called the announcement "unfortunate".

The company is "reviewing the latest announcement", the company said, while stressing that WeChat "has always incorporated the highest standards of user privacy and data security" outside China.

Tencent will continue to discuss with the US government and other stakeholders in the US ways to address the concerns, the company said.

The Trump administration has been reviewing a proposal submitted by TikTok's parent company over the past weekend to bring American tech giant Oracle in as its "trusted technology partner" in the US.

On Wednesday, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US (CFIUS), an inter-agency governmental body in charge of reviewing merger deals involving foreign companies, reportedly found the deal falls short of addressing the issue of data privacy.

Trump on Wednesday, commenting on the reported CFIUS conclusion when asked by a reporter, said that he was "not going to be happy with" the current deal structure.

When Trump insisted in August that ByteDance sell TikTok's US operations to an American company, he was aiming for a clear-cut deal that would hand him a win over China.

Since Wednesday, discussions followed between administration officials and the companies to find a way to address the national security concerns.

One sticking point is the nuance in how to calculate ownership. US investors including Oracle and existing backers including General Atlantic and Sequoia Capital will own 60 per cent of the stake in TikTok US operations if ByteDance's current funders, some of which are US investors, are counted in.

Oracle would have full access to TikTok's source code and updates to make sure there are no "back doors" that could allow the transfer of user data to the Chinese government, Bloomberg reported.

TikTok is also said to have committed to locate a global headquarters in the US that will create about 20,000 new jobs.

Meanwhile, the restrictions for WeChat are more extensive, but are still limited to the US markets.

It will ban American companies from transferring funds or processing payments through WeChat in the US, but Americans can still use the app for payments in China, Ross said.

Beginning Sunday, it will be illegal to host or transfer traffic to and from WeChat in the US, the Commerce Department said on Friday.

This means that the service provided by intermediary companies to help WeChat to deliver its content in the US will be banned, said Triolo.

"This will impact the ability of WeChat to route traffic within the US and could impact international traffic destined for China," he said.

The US business community, many of which use WeChat as a tool to do business with their Chinese counterparts, had objected to the initial order, saying the ban in China could cost US companies tens of billions in lost revenue.

"We continue to emphasise with the administration that we think around US$75 billion of sales would be disrupted if the executive order was to be implemented and to include restrictions on the China markets," said Jacob Parker at the US China Business Council last week.

Today's orders give the companies time to begin implementing them before the orders take effect, Eurasia's Triolo said.

"We expect the apps to be taken down from US app stores over the weekend," he said.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2020 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2020. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
BAGHDAD (AP)  An improvised explosive device blew up outside an English-language institute in southern Iraq early Friday without causing any casualties, Iraqi police said in a statement, amid a recent uptick in attacks targeting the American presence in Iraq.

The blast damaged the facade of the American Institute for English Learning in the holy city of Najaf, a statement from the province's police directorate said.

The school is not formally affiliated with any institutions in the U.S. It was believed to to have been targeted because it offered English-language lessons to Iraqis. No Americans were employed there.

Attacks targeting the U.S. presence have been on the rise since Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi traveled to Washington last month to conclude strategic talks. Rocket attacks routinely target the heavily fortified Green Zone, the seat of the Iraqi government, where the U.S. Embassy is located.

Roadside bombs also often hit convoys carrying materials destined for the U.S. military. Hours before Friday's attack on the English-language center, a roadside bomb targeted an Iraqi convoy transporting equipment headed for the U.S.-led coalition without causing any losses.

Last week, a roadside bomb targeted a British diplomatic convoy in Baghdad, without causing any casualties.

There are more than 5,000 American troops in Iraq now. Last month, the top U.S. general for the Middle East said he believed the U.S. will keep a smaller but enduring presence in the country.
Construction is underway for a solar and natural gas pipeline project in New Jersey that its developer says is the very first of its kind.

On track to be completed later this fall, the Lambertville Solar Project integrates solar power with the Texas Eastern Transmission Pipelines natural gas pipeline operations by powering the compressor station that keeps natural gas flowing within the pipeline for the use of homes and businesses.

The Texas Eastern Transmission Pipeline is 8,835 miles in length, transporting natural gas from the coast of the Gulf of Mexico in Texas and Louisiana up to the Northeastern region of the United States.

Enbridge Inc., a Canadian multinational energy transportation company based in Calgary, Alberta, is overseeing the solar projects implementation.

The solar facilities in West Amwell, which stretch across roughly 12 acres of land, cost approximately $7 million in private funds and will produce 2.25 megawatts of electricity to help power the compressor station. About 25% of this power is provided by the facilitys 7,046 solar panels, as the project is designed to offset a portion of the electricity supplied by the grid.

This use of solar energy to power the compressor station of a pipeline  and thus ostensibly help to power the pipeline itself  has not been done before, according to Caitlin Tessin, the director of market innovation for Enbridge.

In all of our searching, we have not found another example of an interstate pipeline company that has powered its compressor stations behind the meter using solar," Tessin said. This natural gas and renewable complement ... and the way that we were talking about this several years ago when we were envisioning this project, was to actually take our natural gas infrastructure thats obviously needed and serves a large subset of folks, and pair that with renewables to power this station.

There are 15 compressor systems in total along the Texas Eastern Transmission pipeline, the majority of which are driven by natural gas compression rather than electric compression. Considering these other facilities, Tessin said Enbridge will absolutely look to replicate the model that has been established in Lambertville.

I think that is a really compelling example of natural gas and renewables working together, and I think that its something that, as a company, as Enbridge, well be seeing more of across our systems, Tessin said. And I would anticipate our peers in this space would continue to look at ... delivering a very much-needed commodity and natural gas, and were doing it as efficiently and safely as possible.

Aerial view of the Lambertville Solar ProjectCourtesy  Enbridge

The Lambertville Solar Project is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 58,500 metric tons, a savings equivalent to removing 12,640 cars off the road over the projects lifetime. Nonetheless, Tom Gilbert, campaign director for the New Jersey Conservation Foundation and ReThink Energy NJ, questioned the environmental benefits yielded by the project.

While it is positive to see a small amount of solar energy being employed, this hardly negates the massive greenhouse gas emissions associated with Enbridges gas pipeline operations, Gilbert said. Enbridge and Spectra are now partners, and Spectra is an owner of the proposed PennEast pipeline that would result in significant greenhouse emissions and damage to pristine waterways and public open spaces.

In response to these concerns, Tessin said that between the years 2005 and 2016, Enbridge has reduced its emissions to 20% below its 1990 levels and continues to look and invest in new technology and new PILOT programs that we can replicate across our system to manage our emissions as much as possible.

Were trying to be very proactive to make sure that our operations are as efficient as possible from an emission-reduction perspective, recognizing that natural gas is absolutely needed into the future as renewables continue to grow, Tessin said. Natural gas is the cleanest (energy source), and an affordable option to ensure that that renewable buildout can happen.

This might be a first small bite of this apple, its not our only bite, she added.

Echoing Tessin, Max Bergeron, the manager of stakeholder relations for Enbridge, said the increased availability of natural gas has been responsible for a major decrease in emissions across the U.S.

About three out of four New Jersey homes use natural gas as their primary heating fuel, and interstate pipelines like Texas Eastern make the delivery possible to the gas utilities which then serve those homes, Enbridge said. I think that theres a positive environmental story to be told there as well in terms of what natural gas has meant from a broader, fuel-mix perspective across the country.

Moreover, Tessin added that Enbridges investment of close to $8 billion on renewable energy projects further demonstrates the companys mission to decrease greenhouse gas emissions.

Bottom line, we are offsetting a portion of our power to reduce emissions, Tessin said. And so it makes our system more competitive, and it makes the company even more at the forefront of helping to do our part from the climate change perspective.

The Lambertville Solar Project supports 45 construction jobs and is estimated to produce about $11 million in combined savings for its customers over the course of its 25-year life.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription.

Caroline Fassett may be reached at cfassett@njadvancemedia.com.
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Grace Community Church Pastor John MacArthur says 'bring it on' after LA threatens jail time

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Grace Community Church Pastor John MacArthur took an insouciant attitude toward threats of jail time over his churchs decision to hold indoor services amid ongoing COVID-19 lockdowns, saying hell simply open a jail ministry should he find himself behind bars.

In an interview with Fox News' Laura Ingraham on Tuesday, MacArthur revealed that he recently received a letter threatening up to six months in jail if he continues holding indoor worship services at his church in Sun Valley, California.

Of course, my biblical hero apart from the Lord Jesus Christ is the Apostle Paul, MacArthur said. And when he went into a town he didn't ask what the hotel was like. He asked what the jail was like because he knew that's where he was going to spend his time.

So I don't mind being a little apostolic  if they want to tuck me into jail, I'm open for a jail ministry, he continued. I've done a lot of other ministries and haven't had the opportunity to do that one. So bring it on.

On Sunday, Grace Community held an indoor service just days after Las Angeles Judge Mitchell L. Beckloff temporarily barred the church from holding indoor worship.

Speaking from the pulpit, MacArthur explained why Grace Church does not just comply with the orders that have been laid down for churches. He condemned the countys ongoing restrictions six months after the first lockdown as utterly impossible to follow, adding that doing so would completely shut the church down.

"Obviously, this is not constitutional, but more importantly, it goes against the will of the Lord of the church, who calls us together," the pastor said. So look at the person next to you and say, I don't know who you are but I'm so glad I'm sitting next to you.

MacArthur has led in-person services since late July in violation of Gov. Gavin Newsom's second round of lockdowns and repeatedly criticized California for restricting worship.

Were under the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, and He says to have church, and we will, he told CNN on Thursday.

Over the last few weeks, the county has repeatedly attempted to get a court order to close the church and used various methods to prevent the congregation from gathering.

Last month, the county told the church it would terminate a lease for a parking lot the congregation had used for 45 years. Earlier this week, the county fined Grace Community $1,000 for allegedly violating a COVID-19 sign ordinance due to the placement of the sign.

MacArthur called the countys approach harassment and argued that government officials are attempting to impede on his and his congregations free exercise of religion by criminalizing activity directly required by our faith.

As a church, we have a moral and religious obligation to continue allowing our congregants to gather in our sanctuary to worship the Lord, the pastor said, adding that the church is the core of life for thousands from nursery to seniors.

Other churches across California have faced opposition for holding services in defiance of state health mandates constraining worship services.

North Valley Baptist Church in Santa Clara was forced to stop hosting indoor services after accruing over $112,000 in county fines.

Last month, Ventura County, a suburb of Los Angeles, fined Rob McCoy, pastor of Godspeak Calvary Chapel, $3,000 for holding six services against local orders.
Calls have emerged for 'parental and Garda intervention' following an assault on a teenage girl in Blackrock Park last weekend.

A local woman is reported to have intervened to stop the assault on the young girl, which was circulated on social media over the last few days.

Louth Councillor Tomas Sharkey condemned the incident, saying: 'The community in Blackrock worked hard with the support of Louth County Council to establish a great park with amenities for everybody.' He added: 'Unfortunately there has been serious anti social activity in recent times. Fireworks are being used constantly. Park users are being intimidated by teenagers and young adults. There is alcohol consumption.'

He said the teenage girl was assaulted 'by at least three other teenage females. She was punched repeatedly to the head and kicked. She was pinned to a park bench with little chance of fleeing. Sickeningly, many teenage males and females stood by watching and recording on phones, but not trying to stop the assault.'

He paid tribute to the local woman who came on the scene and stopped the assault, and appealed to all parents to 'take responsibility for where their teenage children are and what they do.'

Meanwhile, Cllr. Maria Doyle said she received several calls from concerned Rathmount residents about an increase in the 'number of teens gathering in the park in the evenings and anti-social behaviour involving fireworks that has been happening as a result.' She said she had written to Garda Superintendent Gerard Curley 'to ask that there are sufficient Garda resources deployed in Blackrock to deal with these ongoing issues.'

A garda spokesman confirmed to the Argus: 'Gardai have received a formal complaint regarding an alleged assault which occurred in Blackrock, County Louth on Saturday 12th September 2020 at approximately 4.40pm. It is reported that a female youth received injuries when she was assaulted by a number of other youths.'

Cllr. Maria Doyle added: 'I have seen some footage online of the incident that occurred at the weekend, and I would appeal to anyone who witnessed it to contact the Gardai. The park is a wonderful place which was created and nurtured by volunteers in the community. It should be a safe and welcoming place for everyone in Blackrock.

'Residents of Rathmount should be able to live in peace and quiet and should be able to walk through and use the park without fear of injury or intimidation. I fear that is currently not the case, particularly in the evening. I hope the Gardai, with support from the community, will be able to stop this anti-social behaviour sooner rather than later.'
Nine al Qaeda operatives have been arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) after multiple raids in Keralas Ernakulam and West Bengals Murshidabad.

The module was actively indulging in fundraising and was planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition.

An NIA release said that the three arrested from Kerala as Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas and Mosaraf Hossen-- who were all residing in Ernakulam.

The six picked up from Murshidabad were identified as Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman.

According to the NIA reports, a large quantity of incriminating materials including body armour, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, notes on making explosive devices have been seized from their possession.
Bangkok: Protesters have rallied in Bangkok, in what organisers have billed as the biggest demonstration in years, to demand the removal of former junta leader and now military-backed Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, a new constitution and elections.

Some protest leaders have also demanded reforms to curb the power of King Maha Vajiralongkorn's monarchy and have vowed to keep up those calls in spite of threat of jail and official pressure to stop.

Pro-democracy activists raise a three-fingers salute, a symbol of resistance during a protest at Thammasat University in Bangkok, Thailand, on Saturday. Credit:AP

Hundreds of protesters gathered under light drizzle on Saturday around the campus of Thammasat University, long seen as a hotbed of opposition to the military and royalist establishment.

Protesters were allowed to gather despite the university having previously said they could be barred.
So Bob Woodward went out and found the "named source" Trumpists were clamoring for: Boss Trump himself.

Following a bitter dispute over an anonymously sourced article in The Atlantic that quoted their hero calling American war dead in a French cemetery "suckers" and "losers" for being fool enough to serve their country, nothing less would have convinced them.

What's more, Woodward had Trump on tape, in his own voice, confiding to the veteran Washington journalist that he understood exactly how infectious and deadly the COVID-19 virus was, and explaining his policy of lying to the public lest he provoke a panic.

A stock market panic, the context made clear; he spoke of protecting the cruise ship and airline industries. Human life, not so much.

Chinese President Xi Jinping had warned him all about the disease.

These talks happened last February and March, as Trump kept holding large indoor rallies, calling the rapidly spreading virus a "Democratic hoax," predicting that it would vanish with warm weather, and refusing to wear a face mask in public, painting doing so as somehow unmanly and unpatriotic.

He's always worried people will think he's soft, this big galoot in his corset and elevator shoes.

"I wanted to always play it down," Trump told Woodward on March 19. "I still like playing it down."

Weeks later, he confided: "Bob, it's so easily transmissible, you wouldn't even believe it ... I was in the White House a couple of days ago, meeting with 10 people in the Oval Office and a guy sneezed -- innocently. Not a horrible -- you know, just a sneeze. The entire room bailed out, OK? Including me, by the way."

I love the image of Trump waddling away.

And yet he continues to mock Joe Biden for wearing a mask. As do his deluded supporters even today. Maybe especially today. People who study these things say that evidence against a cult leader only strengthens his followers' need to believe. Frantic with delusion, people at Trump's indoor pep rallies -- "super-spreader events," epidemiologists call them -- assure reporters that they fear no evil, because COVID-19 remains in their minds a "hoax."

Close to 200,000 American dead, and counting; more than 20% of COVID-19 deaths worldwide occurring in the United States, which has 4.3% of the world's population. That's some hoax, ain't it?

Maybe that's why, as bombshell revelations go, Woodward's book "Rage" has provoked a relatively mild response. Indeed, some of the most vitriolic criticism has been directed against the author. More than a few journalists have questioned Woodward's keeping Trump's admissions to himself for months when exposing them could presumably have saved lives. "A crime against humanity," one hyperbolic critic called it.

Even Boss Trump joined in. "Bob Woodward had my quotes for many months. If he thought they were so bad or dangerous, why didn't he immediately report them in an effort to save lives? Didn't he have an obligation to do so? No, because he knew they were good and proper answers."

I think Woodward had no such obligation, and that what would have happened months ago is pretty much what's happened now: very damn little. What former Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats told Woodward, on the record, is no doubt right: Trump "doesn't know the difference between the truth and a lie," and simply cannot be shamed.

Indeed, writing in, yes, The Atlantic, former George W. Bush speechwriter David Frum points out that "two days before Trump's headline-grabbing quote to Woodward, on March 17, Trump said virtually the same thing at a televised press conference: 'I felt it was a pandemic long before it was called a pandemic.'"

He's forever boasting that experts are wowed by his superior understanding. In truth, he doesn't actually know anything as psychologically normal people do. Reality exists for him purely in relation to the needs of his diseased ego. Trump says whatever he imagines will impress his listeners at the moment: big him, little you.

The 19th-century term for malignant narcissists was "moral imbeciles."

He spoke to Woodward in the first place only because he saw him as a fellow celebrity, like Kim Jong Un. Doing so confirmed his self-importance. He also figured he could con him.

OK, so Woodward got famous for taking Richard Nixon down. To Trump, he was just another pigeon. Instead, the Forrest Gump of the Beltway took him to the cleaners. Dan Pfeiffer, an adviser to Barack Obama, describes it as "truly one of the most stupidly self-destructive communications decisions made by a politician in memory."

That said, so what? Back in the day, a committee of senior GOP senators went to the White House to inform President Nixon that he'd lost his party's support and would have to resign. No such independence or political courage is imaginable in today's Republican Party.

If the job's to be done, voters will have to do it themselves.

Arkansas Times columnist Gene Lyons is a National Magazine Award winner and co-author of "The Hunting of the President" (St. Martin's Press, 2000). You can email Lyons at eugenelyons2@yahoo.com

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 23:34:38|Editor: huaxia

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ADDIS ABABA, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- The total number of confirmed COVID-19 positive cases in Africa has reached 1,390,560 as of Saturday, the Africa CDC said.

The continental disease control and prevention agency said in a statement that the death toll due to illnesses related to COVID-19 in Africa has reached 33,626 as of Saturday.

The Africa CDC said the number of people who recovered from the virus across the continent reached 1,140,980 so far.

Noting the uneven impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on African countries, the Africa CDC also disclosed that the most COVID-19 affected African countries in terms of the number of positive cases include South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, Ethiopia and Nigeria.

During the past one week period, Morocco reported the highest number of COVID-19 cases with 14,603 new cases, followed by South Africa and Ethiopia with 11,013 and 4,742 new cases, respectively.

The war-torn nation of Libya and neighboring Tunisia round up the top five African countries reporting the highest number of COVID-19 cases in the past week. Enditem
Just after midnight on Thursday, a big fire broke out at 301-303 Grand St., a 3 story building at Allen Street. Three firefighters were treated for minor injuries.

As City Council member Margaret Chin noted later in the day on Thursday, Our office was on the scene today to offer support to those affected by last nights fire at 301 and 303 Grand St. This bakery and dollar store were beloved by so many members of our community. We must continue to look out for our small businesses.

One of the impacted businesses is Grand Tea and Imports. Heres what the owners had to say on their Instagram feed:

Sometimes when you take a big leap forward, you will hit a couple of snags. We felt this last night when a three-alarm fire hit our store and severely damaged inventory that we were going to move to our new location. We were one of three victims in the Grand Street fire and came out with extensive inventory loss. Initial estimates puts the amount at $60K. We incurred more than just financial losses though. We had teas and antiques dating more than 30 years old. And treasures that our family collected from all parts of China for years are no longer replaceable. We are incredibly grateful that in the aftermath of this event, we have been supported by friends and family from all corners. Though times have been tough, we are inspired by everyones support to keep rallying. We will survive this and we will be open again soon.

The newish organization, Send Chinatown Love, has set up a fundraising page for the business, and more than $16,000 has been donated so far. And you can visit the new location at 300 Grand St.
On 60 Minutes, an ex-friend of Melania Trump, Keith Urban and COVID-19 impact.

Lady & the Trumps

Just as the world has never experienced a United States President quite like Donald Trump, its not seen a First Lady like Melania Trump either. Despite being one of the most photographed women on the planet, she remains virtually unknown. But wealthy New York socialite Stephanie Winston Wolkoff is now controversially trying to change all that. She says she was besties with Melania for 15 years, and because of their friendship was not only appointed a senior adviser to the First Lady, she was also asked to organise Trumps presidential inauguration. But two years ago the friendship between the two women soured. Stephanie claims she was the victim of an orchestrated political hit and was bitterly disappointed when Melania abandoned her. Many are calling it a despicable act of revenge, but Stephanie has now written a tell-all book about the First Lady and her secrets, and as she explains to Liam Bartlett in an exclusive interview, there are plenty of secrets to tell about Melania and the Donald.

Reporter: Liam Bartlett

Producer: Thea Dikeos

The Long Haul

In the fight against COVID-19, working out why the disease attacks people differently is vital. Its so sneaky, because as often as it kills it can also be completely benign. But theres also another group of sufferers: an increasing number for whom recovering from the disease is not the end of their ordeal, its just the beginning. Theyre not regaining normal health, which means tasks as simple as walking up a flight of stairs continue to be a struggle. As Tom Steinfort reports, the great worry for scientists is that these so-called COVID long-haul victims might bear the scars of the pandemic for the rest of their lives.

Reporter: Tom Steinfort

Producers: Tracey Hannaford, Naomi Shivaraman

Urban Legend

For all of Keith Urbans phenomenal worldwide success, he remains delightfully unassuming and unaffected. Its a typically Australian trait that endears him to his millions of fans. On assignment for 60 Minutes, Peter Overton discovers that with Keith, what you see really is what you get. And thats a hardworking superstar who also loves being a husband and a dad.

Reporter: Peter Overton

Producer: Stefanie Sgroi

8:30pm (ish) Sunday on Nine.
They came in droves, young and old, all wanting to pay their respects to an icon.

Spontaneously, hundreds of people of all ages and races gathered on the steps of the historic Supreme Court building in Washington D.C. late Friday night. Wearing face-masks to protect them from the coronavirus, many wept silently about the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Outside Ginsburg's place of employment for 27 years, they placed flowers and signs in a make-shift memorial to the 87-year-old who died from complications to metastatic pancreatic cancer on Friday, as a candlelight vigil was held.

"I think it is important for us to recognize such a trailblazer," said one member of the crowd, Jennifer Berger, 37, who told the Associated Press she felt compelled to come out and pay tribute to Ginsburg.

"It is amazing to see how many people are feeling this loss tonight and saying goodbye."

At times the memorial fell silent, as people sobbed, then pockets of song burst out with hundreds singing "Amazing Grace", "Imagine" and "America the Beautiful." As more people joined, their chorus grew louder.

Image: (Alex Brandon / AP)

At one point, the crowd also broke into a thunderous applause, to cheer the feminist icon.

Ginsburg, who was Jewish, died on the eve of the Jewish New Year holiday "Rosh Hashanah" and some mourners recited the "Mourners' Kaddish"  a traditional prayer for the dead.

Parents carried sleepy children in pajamas, a testament to her broad appeal, her supporters said.

"It just feels so nice to be out here with other people who feel the same way," Dominik Radawski, 46, told Reuters, standing on the court's steps.

"There's no one here being angry. It's this sense of quiet contemplation, this sense of respect."

Download the NBC News app for breaking news and politics

While the political implications of her death were on the minds of many, chants stayed largely apolitical with crowds simply shouting her initials "RBG" and "Justice for All."

Story continues

Scores of memorial candles flickered in the wind along the front steps of the court, as people knelt to leave bouquets of flowers and handwritten condolence notes. One read: "Thank you for showing us how to be American."

Others sat peacefully on the steps, quietly reflecting on Ginsburgs legacy and taking in the scenes.

Image: A man kneels as he brings a megaphone to a vigil on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court following the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, in Washington (Al Drago / Reuters)

President Donald Trump issued a proclamation directing that flags at the White House and all public buildings and military facilities be flown at half-staff, until the late Ginsburg is interred.

The president also directed that flags be flown at half-staff at all U.S. embassies and other facilities abroad.

The proclamation calls Ginsburg "a trailblazer, not only in the field of law, but in the history of our country."

Elsewhere, in San Francisco crowds gathered downtown, some waving rainbow flags, others marching bearing a banner reading: "We won't let you down, RBG."

In New York City, an image of Ginsburg and the alternating messages "thank you" and "rest in power" were projected on the front of the New York State Civil Supreme Court building in Manhattan.

Online the hashtag #RBGRIP was trending on Twitter.

Ginsburg, an opera lover, spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the court's liberal wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers. Young women especially seemed to embrace her, transforming her into a pop culture icon affectionately dubbing the Brooklyn-born judge the "Notorious RBG."

A diminutive yet towering liberal champion, Ginsburg became the court's second female justice. She died at her home in Washington and is survived by two children, Jane and James, and several grandchildren.

A private internment service will be held at Arlington National Cemetery.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
A cluster of nearly three dozen coronavirus cases worrying Victorian authorities centres around five households where some family members breached restrictions.

The Department of Health and Human Services Jeroen Weimar told reporters on Friday several members of five households had visited each other, breaching the 5km radius and household visiting rules.

There are five households across Hallam, Clyde, Narre Warren South and Cranbourne North and across those five households, we currently have 34 positive cases, Mr Weimar said.

The cluster makes up more than a third of Casey's active cases. Source: Municipal Association of Victoria

They make up more than a third of the roughly 90 active cases for the Casey Local Government Area.

Deputy Chief Health Officer Allen Cheng said there were some essential workers among the group, however they had not been to those workplaces.

He said there was a range of people, both young and old, involved.

There has been more than 4000 tests performed in the area in the last week with Professor Cheng calling on people in the area to come forward to get tested.

He stressed it was an ongoing outbreak.

We clearly need to make sure that we get a ring around these cases to stop onward transmission, Prof Cheng said.

Anyone who has been in the area of Fountain Gate shopping centre in Narre Warren is urged to watch out for symptoms after multiple visits to the complex by those in the cluster.

Premier angered over outbreak

Premier Daniel Andrews said the development was disappointing.

The rules are there for a reason and if they are not followed, then it makes the job that we are all doing that much harder.

Mr Andrews warned such rule breaches will only extend the current lockdown.

Daniel Andrews said he was disappointed with the breach. Source: AAP

Hopefully, this is a really, really strong reminder, nobody gets passed from this, everybody has to follow the rules. You have to do it because if you don't, you will be spreading it, he said.

He said there was no known link between the cluster and recent anti-lockdown protests in Dandenong.

In response to suggestion from community leaders theyve become scapegoats for the cluster, Mr Andrews said the virus does not discriminate.

Story continues

Whether youre of a particular faith or no faith, whether you're born here all your parents were not born here or whatever part of the world you came from, what language you speak, much money you are in, what postcode you are in, your age, gender... none of this matters.

There were 45 new cases in Victoria announced on Friday.

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.
Smoke has cleared for much of Oregon, although air quality is still an issue in some parts of the state. As of Saturday morning, air quality in Portland is listed as good by IQAir for the first time in nearly two weeks. Additionally, no new growth is being reported in the nearby Riverside fire.

While lightning strikes were observed in the last 36 hours, precipitation and increased humidity across the region kept potential fire activity low, according to the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center Saturday morning brief.

Initial attack activity was light, growth on existing large fires was minimal, the brief said.

Unhealthy or hazardous air quality may persist for some southern Oregon areas, including Cave Junction, through the weekend, though it should improve significantly by early next week, according to IQAir.

As of Saturday morning, no debris flows or flash floods were reported by officials after rain moved through fire areas. The National Weather Service had cautioned Oregonians about possible flash flooding and debris flows in the areas of the Riverside, Beachie Creek, Lionshead and Holiday Farm fires.

The Oregonian/OregonLive has compiled fire information and evacuation resources for 11 of the states most prominent blazes, with information updated as of Friday morning.

View the list below to see which fires have recently grown the most  along with others whose sizes havent changed.

Fires that grew Sept. 18 to Sept. 19

Location: West of Warm Springs

Size: 198,231 acres

Growth: 5,512 acres

Containment: 10%

Cause: Lightning

Evacuation resources: Marion County; Warm Springs Police Department

Location: East of the Eugene-Springfield area

Size: 173,025 acres

Growth: 515 acres

Containment: 12%

Cause: Unknown

Evacuation resources: Lane County; Linn County

Location: Josephine County

Size: 146,698 acres

Growth: 3,606 acres

Containment: 13%

Cause: Under investigation

Evacuation resources: Josephine County

Location: Santiam Canyon east of Salem; southern Clackamas County

Size: 192,012 acres

Growth: 351 acres

Containment: 20%

Cause: Unknown

Evacuation resources: Marion County

Location: Lake County

Size: 47,243 acres

Growth: 2,443 acres

Containment: 44%

Cause: Human

Evacuation resources: InciWeb

View all currently active wildfires in the U.S. on The Oregonian/OregonLives interactive wildfire map.

Fires that did not grow Sept. 18 to Sept. 19

Location: Near Estacada

Size: 137,865 acres

Growth: N/A

Containment: 11%

Cause: Human

Evacuation resources: Clackamas County

Location: Northeast of Roseburg

Size: 130,429 acres

Growth: N/A

Containment: 32%

Cause: Under investigation

Evacuation resources: Douglas County

Location: Diamond Lake area

Size: 9,536 acres

Growth: -459 acres

Containment: 18%

Cause: Unknown

Evacuation resources: Douglas County

Location: Jackson County

Size: 32,833 acres

Growth: 19 acres

Containment: 35%

Cause: Under investigation

Evacuation resources: Jackson County

Location: Chiloquin area

Size: 14,473 acres

Growth: N/A

Containment: 49%

Cause: Unknown

Evacuation resources: InciWeb

Location: Lincoln County

Size: 2,552 acres

Growth: N/A

Containment: 65%

Cause: Unknown

Evacuation resources: Lincoln County

The figures above were reported by the National Interagency Coordination Center on Saturday morning.

Jim Ryan of The Oregonian/OregonLive contributed to this report.

-- K. Rambo

krambo@oregonian.com

@k_rambo_
BEIJING  China aims to set up a space program operating thousands of flights a year and carrying tens of thousands of tons of cargo and passengers by 2045, state news agency Xinhua quoted an official as saying on Friday.

China is trying to catch up with Russia and the United States to become a major space power by 2030.

Bao Weimin, a senior official at China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp., told a conference that the planned space flight system would be able to meet commercial demands, according to the Xinhua report.

He also said China is aiming for breakthroughs in the core technology needed and for the building of a testing system by 2025.

China has taken steps in recent years to make space flights more economical.

It is developing reusable rockets such as Long March 8 and 9, and it successfully launched and landed a reusable spacecraft this month.
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The things we do for love! 

I do a lot of things for love. I watch countless episodes of Love It Or List It, Bobs Burgers, and, until their recent sixth season, Schitts Creek.

I go to The Container Store and Michaels. I travel to many, many, many yarn stores, none of which I am interested in because I neither knit nor crochet. Yet. Its on my to-do list.

But, this was different. Joan basically told me she had to get out of the house before her head exploded. Ive seen Scanners. We dont want that!

Her idea was to take the bus to the ferry, walk around Battery Park and then come home.

I was terrified. I hadnt ridden the buses since February, and certainly not for free. Now, I might not feel as guilty. And the ferry.

Lets be clear.I love the ferry. Its where I proposed to Joan and Ezra and Sarah got married. BUT...

My father-in-law Lou used to say, You can be the best driver in the world. But, the other guy aint! I feel the same way about other people and the virus. I can be as careful as I possibly can. All I need is somebody else not to be, and Im in trouble.

But, I went. Because I love Joan and I dont want her to always travel alone. Turns out, the most nerve-wracking part of the journey got itself out of the way pretty fast. When we boarded the bus, a young man jumped up and offered us his seat. We declined. He said something. I motioned to my ear and said Cant hear you.

Thats when he pulled down his mask to ask me for two dollars.

I had several courses of action open to me and only one second to enact one of them. I shouted DUDE! PULL UP YOUR MASK!!! And, that ended that exchange. He got off the bus two stops later.

The ride in was uneventful, calming even. Theyre doing a great job keeping the ferry glistening and safe. I turned to Joan and said Too bad we cant visit the Museum of The American Indian.

And, thats when I started to cry. Thats when I realized why I hadnt wanted to go. Because all this reminded me so much of the days after that crystal blue day in September. Suddenly, everything was gone. And, I had no idea when, or even if any of it would return.

Its human nature to take certain things, events and people for granted. We dont do that as much now. Maybe thats good. Maybe well develop a profounder respect for the things that are important to us. Then again, we seem to be a nation with a very short memory. By 2002, things in New York had pretty much gone back to some kind of normal because, we were told time and again, they had to, otherwise the enemy would win. Sound familiar?

I couldnt help thinking about the families who had lost loved ones, the families who watched their businesses go under, who lost their unemployment benefits or their health care. Kamala Harris said: we are a nation grieving for our losses, of people, of places, of purpose.

Its all so familiar and yet so strange, so upside down. It is so hard to think of or imagine a day when we can walk the streets maskless, order food and sit down indoors, or go to the movies. All of that might return someday. Then again, it might not.

Battery Park was nearly deserted on one of the most beautiful August days Ive ever seen. I remembered when Joan and I had attended a blues show featuring Charlie Musselwhite, John Hammond Jr. and Keb ' Mo on a July 4th weekend. And, another event at Castle Clinton, where Mavis Staples took Joan by the hand and Joan nearly passed out. Wonderful memories in a venerable place. We sat and looked out at the ocean and Lady Liberty. Thank G-d she still reigns.

It was time to go home. A cat to feed. Work to get done. I was really glad we had gone. I hadnt contracted the disease. I hadnt died. I hadnt had a run in with a zombie. None of my worst fears materialized. Because many of our worst fears often do not.

We do a lot of things for love. The most important thing to do right now is to not be afraid. Not to be reckless or careless, but to pay attention and proceed cautiously.

There is a light beyond the dark clouds. There is a calm after the storm. And there is always a way home.

"We were very tired, we were very merry

We had gone back and forth all night on the ferry."

From Recuredo by Edna St. Vincent Millay

Hold those grey heads up!

Comment about this and all my columns can be submitted to Talk To The Old Guy on Facebook. I promise to read and respond to them all!
In this photo released by the Taiwan Ministry of National Defense, a Chinese People's Liberation Army H-6 bomber is seen flying near the Taiwan air defense identification zone, ADIZ, near Taiwan on Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. The second high-level U.S. envoy to visit Taiwan in two months began a day of closed-door meetings Friday as China conducted military drills near the Taiwan Strait after threatening retaliation. (Taiwan Ministry of National Defense via AP)

Taipei: Taiwan said on Saturday it scrambled jets in response to the approach of Chinese jets for the second day in a row, escalating tensions further as a senior U.S. official was on the island for talks.

Twelve J-16 fighters, two J-10 fighters, two J-11 fighters, two H-6 bombers and one Y-8 ASW crossed the midline of the #TaiwanStrait and entered #Taiwans southwest ADIZ, Taiwans defence ministry said in a statement, referring to its air defence identification zone.

It said Taiwans air force scrambled fighters, and deployed air defense missile system to monitor the activities.

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen pledged deeper ties with the United States at a dinner for a visiting senior State Department official, on the same day China sent 18 fighter jets to harry the island to express its anger at the trip.

China had earlier on Friday announced combat drills and denounced what it called collusion between the island, which it claims as part of its territory, and the United States. Taiwan scrambled its air force in response.

U.S. Undersecretary for Economic Affairs Keith Krach arrived in Taipei on Thursday for a three-day visit, the most senior State Department official to come to Taiwan in four decades.

Hosting a dinner for Krach and his team at her official residence, Tsai thanked him for coming to attend Saturdays memorial service for late President Lee Teng-hui, the father of Taiwans democracy, the presidential office said in a statement late Friday.

I hope that Taiwan and the United States continue to work together to promote peace, stability, prosperity, and development in the Indo-Pacific, positively impacting the region, it cited Tsai as saying.

Taiwan-U.S. relations have made substantive progress in recent years, with increasingly close interaction, she added.

I hope that we are able to engage on even more issues and expand our bilateral cooperation, enhancing our relationship as trusted partners and building a solid foundation for the future.

Taiwan is committed to deepening economic cooperation with the United States, Tsai said.

The statement made no mention of the Chinese drills.

Taiwan has been angling to sign a free trade deal with the United States, and has been keen to show Washington the economic benefits Taiwan can bring it.

In May, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd, the world's biggest contract chipmaker, said it plans to build a $12 billion factory in Arizona in an apparent win for the Trump administration's efforts to wrestle global tech supply chains back from China.

TSMCs retired founder Morris Chang attended Tsais dinner with Krach, and appeared prominently in pictures of the event put out by the presidential office.
A few days ago, a verbal battle over construction of one lakh two-bedroom houses for the poor in city ended in a duel of sorts in the Assembly, with both Yadav and Bhatti agreeing to go on a joint survey to see if the houses are ready as per government claims. (Twitter\@YadavTalasani)

Hyderabad: Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav failed to show the one lakh two-bedroom houses that were stated to be ready for distribution to beneficiaries to Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, leader of the Congress Legislature Party, as per a challenge during a heated debate in the recently concluded Assembly session.

Conceding defeat by default, Yadav said, He (Bhatti)... is only seeking publicity in the media. He says there are hundreds of acres of land available in Hyderabad city and GHMC limits, where two bedroom houses can be built. If he can show us the land, we will build the houses in future.

Bhatti, claiming victory, said, He (Yadav), unable to show one lakh two bedroom houses, left the joint tour after showing houses built in Nagaram in Medchal-Malkajgiri district. Totally, they have not even built 6,000 houses in the city. Even if those outside the GHMC limits are considered, the total does not touch 10,000. We will expose how the TRS is lying to the people of Hyderabad.

A few days ago, a verbal battle over construction of one lakh two-bedroom houses for the poor in city ended in a duel of sorts in the Assembly, with both Yadav and Bhatti agreeing to go on a joint survey to see if the houses are ready as per government claims.

Talasani said he will show me one lakh houses yesterday and showed 3,248. Today, he said he will show me the rest and brought me outside GHMC limits to Ranga Reddy and Medchal districts. With the lies of the government exposed, he said he had other things to do and left the tour midway, said Bhatti.

According to the Congress leader, Talasani had no answer to the point that Tukkuguda and Nagaram were not in GHMC limits. After failing to show houses as per the challenge, he gave up and said he will give us a list of one lakh houses. This exposes the hollow claims of the TRS government on distribution of houses for the poor in Hyderabad.

Yadav, the TRS MLA representing Sanathn-agar, dismissed the words of Bhatti, saying, Congress leaders are speaking irresponsibly. We can give 90 per cent of houses built outside GHMC limits to beneficiaries selected from the city limits. Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao told us one basic principle: never make tall claims.

The minister also instructed the media to not raise this issue, saying, there is no need for anxiety in the media on this issue. Is this a joke? Do you know how many hundreds of crores of rupees have been spent to build houses? Who do you think these are meant for?

Bhatti said, the truth has been exposed that both KCR and KTR made false claims in the Assembly. We will visit every basti and expose the lies of the TRS government. People should teach TRS a lesson by not voting for it in upcoming GHMC elections.
He encouraged young people to vote, noting its not enough for his generation to attend one or two events and put Black Lives Matter in your Instagram bio, and added that democracy cannot handle another four years of Trump. We are doing this for Ruth and we are doing this for American democracy.
Once thrown open, the tunnel will provide all-weather connectivity to remote border areas of Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh which otherwise remain cut-off from the rest of the country for about six months during winters. (Image: ANI)

The construction of the landmark Rohtang Tunnel or the 'Atal Tunnel', named after former Indian prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, is ready and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to inaugurate it at 10 am on October 3.

The world's highest highway tunnel, built at 3,000 metre above the sea level between Himachal Pradesh's Manali and Leh in Ladakh, was announced by Vajpayee on June 3, 2000, but has been in the making for a long time because it faced a number of challenges along the way.

But now that it is made and ready to be operated, here are some of the key reasons why the Atal Tunnel construction is important:

>> The 8.8-km-long tunnel will shorten the distance of 474 km between Manali and Leh by 46 km, reducing the journey by two and a half hours.

>> The tunnel has the capacity to ply 3,000 vehicles per day, at the speed of up to 80 km per hour, under any weather condition.

>> The tunnel will provide a road link to Lahaul and Spiti in the winters. It will also accelerate troop mobility to strategic frontiers in Jammu and Kashmir.

>> The completion of the tunnel also comes at a crucial time since India's tensions with China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) remain high. Atal Tunnel, according to reports, will provide almost all-weather connectivity to the Indian Army troops stationed in Ladakh. Reports, however, also suggest that for that to happen smoothly, other tunnels will have to be constructed.
Shannon Finney/Getty ImagesBy KIARA BRANTLEY-JONES, ABC News



(WASHINGTON) -- Current and former Supreme Court justices are offering their condolences in the wake of the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday. Her fellow justices released personal statements today honoring Justice Ginsburg's memory.



Statement of Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr.



Justice Roberts referred to Justice Ginsburg as a "champion of justice" who will be remembered by future generations.



"Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her -- a tireless and resolute champion of justice."



Statement of Justice Clarence Thomas



Justice Thomas described her as "a picture of grace and courage'.



"My wife, Virginia, and I are heartbroken to learn of the passing of our friend, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Ruth and I first met when I began my tenure on the D.C. Circuit in 1990. With the exception of the brief period between our respective appointments to the Supreme Court, we have since been judicial colleagues. Through the many challenges both professionally and personally, she was the essence of grace, civility and dignity. She was a superb judge who gave her best and exacted the best from each of us, whether in agreement or disagreement. And, as outstanding as she was as a judge, she was an even better colleague  unfailingly gracious, thoughtful, and civil. Through her loss of her wonderful husband, Marty, and her countless health challenges, she was a picture of grace and courage. Not once did the pace and quality of her work suffer even as she was obviously suffering grievously. Nor did her demeanor toward her colleagues diminish. The most difficult part of a long tenure is watching colleagues decline and pass away. And, the passing of my dear colleague, Ruth, is profoundly difficult and so very sad. I will dearly miss my friend. Virginia and I will keep her family in our thoughts and prayers."



Statement of Justice Stephen G. Breyer



Justice Breyer said in a statement that Ginsburg was "a woman of valor; a rock of righteousness".



"I heard of Ruths death while I was reciting the Mourners Kaddish at the Rosh Hashanah service. I thought: a great Justice; a woman of valor; a rock of righteousness; and my good, good friend. The world is a better place for her having lived in it. And so is her family; her friends; the legal community; and the nation."



Seated, from left to right: Justices Stephen G. Breyer and Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., and Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Samuel A. Alito. Standing, from left to right: Justices Neil M. Gorsuch, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Brett M. Kavanaugh.



Statement of Justice Samuel A. Alito



Justice Alito said in a statement that Ginsburg will be missed and she will be remembered as "a leading figure in the history of the Court".



"Martha-Ann and I were deeply saddened by the news that Justice Ginsburg has passed away. Ruth and Marty made us feel at home immediately when I joined the Court, and we will certainly miss her. Justice Ginsburg will go down as a leading figure in the history of the Court. She will be remembered for her intelligence, learning, and remarkable fortitude. She has been and will continue to be an inspiration for many."



Statement of Justice Sonia Sotomayor



Justice Sotomayor honored her "dear friend and colleague" in a statement, calling Ginsburg "an American hero" who spent her life fighting for equality.



"My dear friend and colleague Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an American hero. She spent her life fighting for the equality of all people, and she was a pathbreaking champion of womens rights. She served our Court and country with consummate dedication, tirelessness, and passion for justice. She has left a legacy few could rival. I will miss Ruth greatly. She welcomed me to the Court with a warmth I could not have expected, and I came to feel a special kinship with her. She was someone whose wisdom, kindness, and unwavering support I could always rely on. I will forever cherish the moments we shared. I send my deepest condolences to her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchild. I know how much she treasured and loved you. She often said that leading a meaningful life means living for ones family and ones community, not for oneself. Ruth lived a profoundly meaningful life, and the numerous ways in which she changed ours will never be forgotten."



Statement of Justice Elena Kagan



Justice Kagan said Ginsburg "led the fight to grant women equal rights under the law".



"To me, as to countless others, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a hero. As an attorney, she led the fight to grant women equal rights under the law. As a judge, she did justice every day--working to ensure that this country's legal system lives up to its ideals and extends its rights and protections to those once excluded. And in both roles, she held to--indeed, exceeded--the highest standards of legal craft. Her work was as careful as it was creative, as disciplined as it was visionary. It will endure for as long as Americans retain their commitment to law. Ruth reached out to encourage and assist me in my career, as she did for so many others, long before I came to the Supreme Court. And she guided and inspired me, on matters large and small, once I became her colleague. I will miss her--her intellect, her generosity, her sly wit, her manifest integrity, and her endless capacity for work--for the rest of my life. I give my deepest condolences to her beloved children and grandchildren. May her memory be a blessing."



Statement of Justice Neil M. Gorsuch



Justice Gorsuch shared fond memories of Ginsburg as a "colleague and friend" who "served the American people as one of our most distinguished judges".



"Louise and I have lost a cherished colleague and friend. For forty years, Ruth served the American people as one of our most distinguished judges. Her sacrifices for the country were many, but always performed with honor. We are blessed by the happy memories that will remain, like traveling with Ruth to London where (to her delight) an uninformed guide kept calling her "Ruthie," or all the opera she tried so valiantly to teach me, or her sweet tooth at lunch, or the touching stories of her remarkable life with Marty. We will miss Ruth and our hearts go out to her family. May she rest in peace."



Statement of Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh



Justice Kavanaugh said in a statement that Ginsburg "paved the way for women to become lawyers and judges".



"Ashley, Margaret, Liza, and I are profoundly saddened by the loss of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and we extend our prayers and deepest condolences to her family and to her four decades of law clerks. No American has ever done more than Justice Ginsburg to ensure equal justice under law for women. She was a cherished colleague, and she inspired me, and all of us, with her unparalleled work ethic and devotion to the law. A meticulous and pathmarking judge, she held herself to the highest standards of precision and accuracy in her beautifully crafted opinions. And she inspired all of us to try to meet those same exacting standards. I learned from her principled voice and marveled at her wonderful wit at our weekly conferences and daily lunches. Justice Ginsburg paved the way for women to become lawyers and judges. She made it possible for women and girls like my daughters to compete on equal footing as student-athletes. When Justice Ginsburg was last in my office earlier this year, I pointed out a photo I keep of her standing with four women who served as law clerks in my chambers in my first term. As long as I am fortunate enough to serve on the Supreme Court, I will keep that photo prominently in my office as a continuing tribute to Justice Ginsburg and as a daily reminder to work hard and pursue equal justice. May God bless Ruth Bader Ginsburg."



Statement of Justice Anthony M. Kennedy



Former Justice Kennedy said in a statement that Ginsburg was a "a close, dear friend" who members of the Court will always cherish as "a distinguished jurist and an inspiring, wonderful person".



"The members of the Court always will cherish all that Justice Ginsburg meant to us as a distinguished jurist and an inspiring, wonderful person. She will have an esteemed place in the history of our Court. Ruth was a close, dear friend. Mary joins me in sending our deepest sympathies to her family. In our court sessions and conferences Ruth was remarkably well prepared for every case, down to the smallest detail. If the two of us disagreed, it was always in a civil, principled, respectful way. By her learning she taught devotion to the law. By her dignity she taught respect for others and her love for America. By her reverence for the Constitution, she taught us to preserve it to secure our freedom."



Statement of Justice David H. Souter



Former Justice Souter praised Ginsburg for achieving "greatness."



"Ruth Ginsburg was one of the members of the Court who achieved greatness before she became a great justice. I loved her to pieces."



ABC News' Devin Dwyer contributed to this report.



Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., speaks during a news conference

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., speaks during a news conference after attending a Republican luncheon on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 21, 2020. Credit - Jacquelyn MartinAP

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell moved quickly Friday evening to say he would advance a nominee to succeed Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, just hours after her death.

In a statement released by his office, the Kentucky Republican vowed to move ahead with President Donald Trumps pick to fill the seat: President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the Senate. McConnells statement echoes comments he made in May of 2019 when asked about an election-year opening: Wed fill it.

McConnells declaration sets in motion a fast and fraught six weeks in the run up to Election Day on Nov. 3. It also may portend uncertainty between the vote and the Inauguration on Jan. 20 of next year.

McConnells gambit is a risky one, although the clever tactician seldom loses. In 2017, he changed the Senates rules to eliminate a 60-vote requirement for judicial nominees. In ditching the filibuster and subsequently reducing the time for debate on judicial nominations, McConnell has been able to steamroll more than 200 lifetime appointments onto federal benches.

But this one may be differentMcConnells math is tricky. He has a 53-vote majority, meaning he can lose just three votes if hes counting on Vice President Mike Pence to break the tie. Assuming Democrats stay united, they would have to peel away four Republicans from McConnells controla steep climb in a chamber where moderates are hard to come by.

Photograph by Sebastian KimAUGUST for TIME

Republican lawmakers have for months been facing questions about whether they would consider a Trump nominee, especially since Ginsburgs health issues have resurfaced. Most have been coy, but several have been at least tepid in their consideration. Just hours before Ginsburgs death was announced, Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska told her local N.P.R. affiliate that she would not vote to confirm someone in this Congress. I would not vote to confirm a Supreme Court nominee. We are 50-some days away from an election, she said.

Story continues

Similarly, Sen. Susan Collinsin a fight for re-election at home in Mainehas said a confirmation vote so close to an election is off-limits. I think thats too close, I really do, she told The New York Times. Its not far from where Sen. Chuck Grassley, the Iowan who has tremendous sway on the committee that would handle a nominees confirmation hearing, has landed in past comments. None on Friday addressed the prospect of a confirmation battle while votes are already being cast in seven states.

Sen. Mitt Romney, a Utah Republican and favorite foe of the Presidents, is a potential defection from the GOP caucus as well.

Democrats were quick to also point to comments from Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina in which he said there wouldnt be a confirmation during the last months of Trumps first term. If an opening comes in the last year of President Trumps term, and the primary process has started, well wait to the next election, Graham told The Atlantic in 2018. But theres a big gap between a hypothetical and the reality, especially with a politician who has become pals with this President and is now the chairman of Judiciary Committee.

On top of all of this, theres a quirk in Arizona election law that could give Democrats a pick-up opportunity immediately after Election Day. Should Sen. Martha McSally lose, Democrat Mark Kelly could be swapped immediately into the seat. That further narrows McConnells window for success.

Against this backdrop is a race for the White House. Confirmation hearings would be appointment television. And the Democrats best questioner on the Judiciary Committee also just happens to be the Democrats Vice Presidential pick, Sen. Kamala Harris. Theres a way the confirmation hearings become a stand-in for a wall-to-wall campaign.

In theory, all of this should stop a nomination in its tracks right now. But there are other considerations for Republican Senators. A nomination fight could mobilize the partys conservative base. That could help get some Senators facing voters this fallnamely, Colorados Cory Gardner, North Carolinas Thom Tillis and Iowas Joni Ernstacross the finish line. For McConnell to retain his control of the Senate, he needs to keep his majority in the Senate. A Supreme Court fight might just be a super-motivator. If sacrificing Collins is the price McConnell has to pay to keep the gavel, hell pay it.

Moreover, ceding the choice of the next Supreme Court Justice to a President Biden, who could pick someone just as liberal as Ginsburg, would be a stain on conservatives record on nominations. And as much as folks like Murkowski and Collins have suggested a split with Trump, they also have their own legacies to consider. During the impeachment of Trump, both voted against convicting the President, and Murkowski voted against even hearing from witnesses. They are willing to show distance, but not a chasm. A durable conservative majority at the Supreme Court isnt something to scoff at for them. And the Presidents supporters can be punitive.
WASHINGTON - In a year that has included impeachment, a global pandemic, economic turmoil and a reckoning on race, the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg crystallizes the choice in November as perhaps none of the other issues can.

Nothing quite captures the national disquiet over the future of the country as the passing of one of the most iconic and best-known jurists in history and the vacuum that her death has now created. If there was hope that the November election might result in an outcome that could begin to settle the country, the odds of that lengthened with the first reports on Friday night of her death after a long battle with cancer.

For those on the left, the passing of the revered justice is a potentially cataclysmic event, opening up the possibility that her seat on the court could be filled by someone who would cement a conservative majority for years. For those on the right, the vacancy to be filled presents the rarest of opportunities to fulfill a decades long drive to change the court for a generation or more.

The coming battle over Ginsburg's successor will have all the drama, procedural maneuvering and bare politics to match any of the most controversial of court nominations. But the impact of this particular vacancy could ripple far beyond what takes place on Capitol Hill. The issues that surround the vacancy encompass the broader culture war that divides red and blue America, from abortion to marriage equality to health care to the very structure of government.

Ginsburg's death changes the calculus for the campaign between President Donald Trump and former vice president Joe Biden. The court long has been a voting issue for some conservatives, particularly evangelical Christians and others who put opposition to abortion at the top of their issue list. Trump will be counting on the prospect of expanding a conservative majority on the Supreme Court to further energize that part of his base.

But the possibility of a conservative majority of long-standing on the high court is just as likely to have an impact on opponents of Trump. The history of the abortion debate suggests that when the right to an abortion is truly threatened, proponents of that right suddenly become hyperactive. Given Ginsburg's status and the role she played in empowering women and fighting for women's rights, her loss will add octane to the fuel on the left.

Depending on the outcome of the election and of the resolution of who fills the Ginsburg seat, the battle could easily expand to an even more charged debate over whether the high court speaks for and represents the views of a majority of Americans or even whether the democratic system of government more broadly has become undemocratic.

Twice in the past five elections, the popular vote winner has lost the presidential election. It could happen again in November, as Trump is likely to lose the popular vote as he did in 2016. Senate Republicans control the upper chamber, but their members represent fewer than half the nation's population. Republicans in the House have routinely won more seats than their share of the vote, thanks to the makeup of congressional districts.

3 1 of 3 Washington Post photo by Nikki Kahn. Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Washington Post photo by Bill O'Leary. Show More Show Less 3 of 3





This is not an issue that is suddenly upon the country. Two years ago, the Economist magazine ran a cover story with the headline, "American democracy's built-in bias," which highlighted the consequences of a nation with an expanding urban-rural split as wide as it is now in the United States layered on top of the constitutional system crafted upon compromise between big-state and small-state interests.

Noting that "a red vote counts more than a blue one" in America, the magazine's editorial argued, "This bias is a dangerous new twist in the tribalism and political dysfunction that is poisoning politics in Washington."

Former presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg said in August that if Trump were reelected a second time without winning the popular vote, it could force an examination "of what's become of our democratic system."

In recent years, ideas that have been put forth by those who believe it is time for such an examination. They include adding more justices to the high court (as Buttigieg recommended during his presidential campaign) and amending the Constitution to eliminate the electoral college and elect presidents by popular vote. More provocative have been suggestions that Democrats should push to bring the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico into the union to affect the balance of power in the Senate.

Up to now, this has been a discussion that animates many on the left, but it's not one that has gained a wider audience. Nor is it in the current capability of Democrats to effect such changes. But if Republicans exercise their power brazenly in an attempt to install a new justice in the face of a Biden victory in November, who can say where this fight could go?

Everyone is on high alert because of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. After the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February 2016, McConnell denied even a Senate hearing, let alone a vote, on the nomination of Judge Merrick Garland, who was then-president Barack Obama's choice to fill the vacancy. McConnell insisted that there should be no vote on a successor until after the election.

On Friday night, McConnell issued a statement declaring that Trump's nominee would receive a vote on the floor of the Senate, a flagrant provocation that served to remind everyone of the stakes in the election, though one that holds the potential to backfire depending on which side is now more motivated to turn out to vote.

Biden was quick to protest, arguing that the winner of the presidential election in November should be the person to select a successor to Ginsburg. "This was the position that the Republican Senate took in 2016, when there were nearly nine months before the election," he added. "That is the position the United States Senate must take now, when the election is less than two months away."

Biden will be under pressure to go farther on other questions, particularly those relating to changing the structure of government. On Friday night, he did not say whether he was prepared to change his position and now support adding justices to the court, but that will not be the last time he gets the question between now and Nov. 3.

McConnell is not yet guaranteed that he can engineer a floor vote in behalf of a Trump nominee. Enough Republican senators are in competitive races to make them squirm at the prospect of such a raw display of power. A Biden victory or a Democratic takeover of the Senate, or both, would put many Republicans in a lame duck session in an even more difficult position if Trump and McConnell were insistent on moving ahead with a confirmation fight.

More events will have to unfold before it's clear who has the power to do what in the near term. But the timing of Ginsburg's death raises the stakes dramatically for the November election and potentially enlarges the battle over her successor to include fundamental questions of democratic governance and representation.
A US-based team of private investigators have identified a suspect they believe is responsible for the murder of missing American woman Annie McCarrick.

Michael Griffith, a New York lawyer who was hired by Ms McCarrick's family in the 1990s to help with the missing person investigation, told the Herald that information provided by a member of the public has led to a significant breakthrough.

Ms McCarrick was last seen taking a bus to Enniskerry on March 26, 1993.

Mr Griffith arrived in Dublin earlier this week and met a detective from An Garda Siochana in relation to the probe.

"We spent almost two hours talking about the case and we have agreed to share information," Mr Griffith said.

Confident

"I am confident that the gardai are serious about solving the case and I think we can establish a relationship that will be mutually beneficial.

"There are serious efforts now being made to solve this case and we are hopeful that we can finally get justice for the McCarrick family."

Earlier this month, the Herald revealed that Mr Griffith and former FBI agent Kenneth Strange are planning to travel to Ireland later this year to try to find out what happened to the 26-year-old.

The team were contacted by a number of people following an appeal for information, culminating in contact from one individual who had what was described as significant information.

"I can't go into specifics, but this is credible, significant information pertaining to the day Annie went missing," Mr Griffith said.

"We had a lot of people come forward who were very well intentioned, but the information they had led us nowhere.

"In the case of this person, the details provided could lead to the breakthrough we need.

"They gave specifics relating to one individual that warrants careful investigation."

Mr Griffith also said a separate witness account, which was not formally given to gardai at the time, also fits with the new lead.

The information came from a woman named Margaret Wogan, who has since died.

She had been working in Poppies Cafe in Enniskerry and believes she saw Ms McCarrick come in with a man on the day she disappeared.

Ms Wogan told her daughter about the sighting, and the information has recently come to the attention of Mr Griffith and his team.

"The pieces of the puzzle are slowly coming together," Mr Griffith said.

"Sometimes it just takes an effort to refocus people's minds on a particular case to get information flowing.

"We are now focused on one individual and we are asking people to contact us with anything at all that might help. Contact us or contact the gardai."

Ms McCarrick's father John, who spent years trying to find out what happened to her, died in 2009 before getting answers about his daughter's disappearance.

Mr Griffith and Mr Strange have joined forces with Ms McCarrick's uncle, John Covell, to try to solve the mystery.

"We are relying on someone who knows something to come forward," Mr Griffith said.

"We have no body, no DNA and no witnesses, but it will only take one person to open up, in confidence, about what they know happened to Annie."

The US-based team is being helped by Brian McCarthy, an Irish private investigator who was initially hired by the McCarricks when their daughter went missing.

Mr McCarthy is leading the revived private probe in Ireland and has spent the last several months following up leads, including the sighting in Poppies.

Adamant

"From what she told her daughter, Margaret Wogan was adamant that Annie was in there in the afternoon with a man who fits the description of a suspect I have identified," he said.

"The female, if it was Annie, was hesitant about buying something and he said to her, 'Do you want a slice of cake?'

"He paid for whatever snack she got and they left.

"The woman has since passed away, but she gave an initial statement to police.

"She was not asked to help with an e-fit. We think this sighting is more crucial than initially thought."

Mr McCarthy will meet with detectives later this month to share details of his probe in the hope that further investigations can be made by the author- ities here.
The Bedford County Board of Supervisors recently discussed the possibility of bringing a utility-scale solar farm to Bedford County for the first time in more than a year.

Rob Propes, a project development manager for Urban Grid, a developer of utility-scale solar power plants in the Mid-Atlantic United States, presented new information about bringing solar energy projects to localities and pitched a conceptual plan for a Huddleston-based solar farm during a work session Monday.

Revenue share, an option brought by recent legislation meant to encourage renewable energy, allows a locality to assess up to $1,400 per megawatt of capacity from a solar farm, Propes said, opening a new revenue stream for the county.

Revenue share is not subject to a depreciation schedule as it was under previous tax structures. Urban Grid proposes a 75-megawatt facility with a 35-year lifespan, from which the county could glean up to $3.67 million from revenue share, about $105,000 per year, according to the developers estimates.

Bedford County has been contacted by numerous solar developers interested in establishing a solar farm in the county over the years, County Administrator Robert Hiss said.

In August last year, Bedford County supervisors discussed the possibility of bringing solar energy to the county. At that time, revenue share was not an option, and solar farms would offer little or no new revenue for the county. Supervisors and county staff did not feel pursuing solar development would be advantageous to the local economy at that time, and the idea was tabled.

Urban Grid currently is working on 11 solar projects throughout Virginia, according to Propes, with one site in operation and others in early development stages or under construction.

The solar development company controls 843 agricultural-zoned acres in Huddleston, leasing from two land owners. After completing surveys to identify biological constraints and sensitive areas, the company found about 421 acres of the land would be usable for a solar farm. The proposed project is called Cardinal Solar and would generate 75 to 100 megawatts of energy.

Establishing the proposed solar farm could have benefits for Bedford County, Propes said, including creation of local construction jobs, revenue increases and positive environmental impacts.

No new roads, sewer systems or other public infrastructure would be required with this project, Propes said. The project also could increase assessed real estate taxes on the solar farm property, up to 12 times greater than the propertys existing assessed value. Positive green publicity for the county and greenhouse gas reductions could accompany a solar energy initiative.

After its 35 years of operation, the solar farm would be decommissioned and the land returned back to agricultural use.

If supervisors decide to pursue installation of a solar farm and plans move forward with Urban Grid, construction could begin late in 2021 and be completed by the middle of 2022, Propes said.

Urban Grid has not applied for any permits with the county or submitted a formal proposal. Bedford County has not put forth a request for proposals from solar developers. Supervisors will discuss at future meetings whether they want county staff to further research solar energy and pursue installation of a solar farm in Bedford County, in light of this new information and legislation offering economic benefits.

Campbell and Appomattox counties already have established some solar energy farms, and one solar farm operates in the town of Bedford.

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Recently, Maneck Malhotra, the director of Choco Swiss, a designer chocolate giant in India, sat with NewsX for an exclusive interview. He shares with us his mantra of Dont compete but change the rules as he talks about how he beats the competition in the Chocolate sector in India.

Maneck spoke with us about the journey hes been on to get to this point, and the role his father, who founded the company had played. I think my father was very ahead of his time. He was a Chartered Accountant in the UK, but then we came back to India so that the kids could have an Indian upbringing. We were the first ones to import equipment to design soft-centred chocolate. In India, most people just relate chocolate to bars, but we went beyond that.

He also feels like the market has grown and matured a lot since his father founded the company, and that those changes will aid Choco Swiss success. You know, in my fathers day, you didnt have all these different airlines to transport chocolate in, there was just one, you didnt have refrigerated truck either. There have been a lot of changes since my fathers day, and you know I think weve waited 30 years to be in a place where the market is well-placed for us, and I think were there now.

Also read: AI and blockchain data will revolutionize the world, says Mayur Ramgir, an international award-winning innovator, founder of Zonopact, an incubator for young talent

Also read: Customer satisfaction is a priority, says Atul Gupta, Managing director of RX Infotech Pvt. ltd

We asked Maneck about the challenges he faced upon taking over the company from his father, and what competition is like, in Indias chocolate market. Look I think, for the longest time, India was completely dominated by Cadbury, Nestle, Amul, etc. People just associated chocolate with those brands, and with those types of chocolates, so one of the major challenged for us was to get people to accept that chocolate with a gifting sentiment, could also be chocolate with a daily consumption use. For the longest time, my father based his sales strategy on gift packs, which created a mindset that we tried to change in our customers.

Talking about the pandemic, and the challenges it created for Choco Swiss and the industry, Maneck was brutally honest. Ill be honest, it was quite difficult for us. Were a good that is not a daily consumable good were based on lifestyle aspects, which the pandemic shut down. Weve been increasing our digital presence because obviously customers cant go to physical stores to buy our products anymore. We really had to take a step back, introspect and think about our digital strategy, and I think now that weve done that, weve come out stronger on the other end of it.

He spoke about some of the new initiatives that Choco Swiss has been taking, with regards to their product line, but simultaneously, emphasized that value that they place on sticking to their roots. Over 70% of our sales come from our basic classics, those have not changed in 30 years. We believe in sticking to our roots, but obviously, we do understand, that we need to keep innovating and keep offering the customer something new. With that in mind, were trying to enter into energy bars, were also going to be releasing some very quirky and unique and progressive blends soon in the future.

Also read: Hiren Gada, CEO of Shemaroo Entertainment discusses the changing nature of streaming services, digital content due to pandemic
A Wetherspoon customer who sent a banana to a black man in the same pub has been convicted of a racist hate crime and ordered to pay over 1,200 in fines and court costs.

Louie Kincella, 20, from Mottingham, claimed he sent the banana to Mark Darcy-Smith, 25, as a joke while they were in The Richmal Crompton pub, Bromley, last November.

Mr Darcy-Smith previously told the BBC that the incident left him feeling upset, shocked and scared and reported it to the Metropolitan Police.

He also added that staff at the pub did not treat the incident seriously enough.

My friend went to talk to a staff member, but they didnt see what the issue was. He said: Do you know whats wrong here? said Mr Darcy.

They thought they had brought an incorrect order. We had to explain what was wrong with that. I was sat on my own at this point, I looked around to see if I could spot anyone.

I got anxious. I think someone sent it because it was anonymous.

On 17 January, Kincella was arrested at his home and charged with a racially aggravated offence under the Public Order Act.

He admitted to ordering the banana, but claimed it was done for a joke and he had meant for the fruit to go to his table.

Kincella appeared at Bexley Magistrates Court, where he was found guilty and fined 600. He was also ordered to pay court costs of 620 and a victim surcharge of 60 following the hearing, which took place on 8 September.

Mark D'arcy-Smith, 24, who had a banana sent to his table by an anonymous customer at a Wetherspoon's pub in Bromley, southeast London, on 8 November. (Mark D'arcy-Smith/SWNS)

Mr Darcy-Smith said it felt like a massive weight was lifted from my shoulders after the sentencing.

Detective Inspector Stuart Hart, head of the Safeguarding Team, said the case required a painstaking investigation.

He added in a statement: Hate crimes are a priority for the Met and we take all allegations very seriously.

Kincella has been barred from the pub, said a Wetherspoons spokesperson, who added that the manager had met with Mr Darcy-Smith to apologise to him and the company does so once again now.
The Delhi Police on Saturday said arrested freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma was passing sensitive information about India's border strategy and Army deployment to Chinese intelligence. At a press conference, Special Cell DCP Sanjeev Kumar Yadav said Sharma was writing on defence-related issues for some Indian media organisations, as well as China's Global Times.

Sharma had been arrested along with a Chinese national and a Nepalese national under the stringent Officials Secret Act (OSA), by the Special Cell of Delhi Police.

A Chinese woman identified as Qing Shi, and her Nepalese associate Sher Singh alias Raj Bhora, had been paying Sharma a hefty amount for sensitive information. Delhi Police had received a secret input about Sharma providing confidential documents to Chinese intelligence. During the search of his house a laptop, some confidential documents relating to the Indian Defence Department, among other incriminating documents were recovered and seized.

The money was being supplied to Sharma through a hawala channel. Police said the accused had links with a foreign intelligence officer and had been receiving funds via Western Union Money transfers and other illegal means in exchange of sensitive information concerning the countrys national security and foreign relations.

Sharma disclosed during interrogation his involvement in procuring sensitive information and passing it on to Chinese handlers called Michael and George through various digital channels. The two handlers are based in Kunming City in China, he said.

He said he had been about to send the sensitive documents police recovered, to his handlers, as well. He had previously sent several documents in the form of reports in exchange of handsome remuneration, police said.

According to Police, Sharma wrote a weekly column for Global Times from 2010 to 2014, widely known to be a mouthpiece of the China government".

These columns caught Michaels eye and he contacted Sharma through LinkedIn, and invited him to Kunming for an interview in a Chinese Media Company, said Yadav. The entire trip was funded by Michael.

During the meeting, Michael and his junior Xou asked Rajeev Sharma to provide inputs on various aspects of India-China relations. Sharma was in contact with Michael and Xou from 2016 to 2018," Yadav said.

Sharma was tasked with providing information on issues like the Indian deployment on the Bhutan-Sikkim-China tri-junction including Doklam; the pattern of India-Myanmar military co-operation and the India-China boundary issue. Subsequently, Sharma held meetings with Michael and Xou in Laos and Maldives and gave briefings, as well. He was also in contact with his handlers through e-mail and social media.

Sharma came in contact with George in January 2019. Later, he visited Kunming via Kathmandu and met George, who was introduced to Sharma as a General Manager of a Chinese Media Company.

During the meeting, George asked Sharma to write and inform him about issues related to Dalai Lama. He was offered $500 per article/piece of information," said Yadav.

George told Sharma that they would send him money through his companys sister firm based in Mahipal Pur, Delhi, which was being operated by a Chinese woman called Qing. Sharma received more than Rs 30 lakh from George in about 10 instalments between January 2019 to September 2020 for his information. He also held meetings with George in Malaysia and again in Kunming.

Yadav said it was revealed during investigation that shell companies were being operated by foreign intelligence to transfer funds to Sharma. Chinese nationals Jhang Chang and his wife Chang-li-lia were running the companies MZ Pharmacy and MZ Malls, under fake names Suraj and Usha, he said. He added that both were presently in China and on their behalf, another Qing Shi and Bhora, directors of MZ Pharmacy, were operating the business from Mahipal Pur.

Forensic analysis of the seized mobile phones and laptops is being conducted to unearth the entire network and conspiracy. The identities and roles of other foreign nationals involved are also being investigated.
New York, Sept. 18, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Acoustic Wave Sensor Market Research Report by Product Type, by Device, by Sensing Parameter, by Industry - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05953137/?utm_source=GNW



The Global Acoustic Wave Sensor Market is expected to grow from USD 332.41 Million in 2019 to USD 869.85 Million by the end of 2025 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 17.38%.



Market Segmentation & Coverage:

This research report categorizes the Acoustic Wave Sensor to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following sub-markets:



Based on Product Type , the Acoustic Wave Sensor Market studied across Baw Sensors and Saw Sensors. The Baw Sensors further studied across SH-APM Sensors and TSM Sensor. The Saw Sensors further studied across FPW Sensors, Rayleigh Surface Wave Sensors, and Sh-Saw Sensors.



Based on Device, the Acoustic Wave Sensor Market studied across Delay Lines and Resonators.



Based on Sensing Parameter, the Acoustic Wave Sensor Market studied across Chemical Vapor & Gas, Humidity, Mass, Pressure, Temperature, Torque, and Viscosity.



Based on Industry, the Acoustic Wave Sensor Market studied across Automotive, Environment, Food & Beverages, Healthcare, Industrial, and Military.



Based on Geography, the Acoustic Wave Sensor Market studied across Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe, Middle East & Africa. The Americas region surveyed across Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and United States. The Asia-Pacific region surveyed across Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand. The Europe, Middle East & Africa region surveyed across France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, United Arab Emirates, and United Kingdom.



Company Usability Profiles:

The report deeply explores the recent significant developments by the leading vendors and innovation profiles in the Global Acoustic Wave Sensor Market including Abracon, Althen Gmbh, BOSTON PIEZO-OPTICS INC., H. Heinz Mewiderstande Gmbh, NanoTemper Technologies GmbH, Precision Acoustics LTD, Pro-micron GmbH, Qualtre, Inc., SenSanna, Inc., SENSeOR SAS, Sensor Technology Ltd., STMicroelectronics, and TRANSENSE.



FPNV Positioning Matrix:

The FPNV Positioning Matrix evaluates and categorizes the vendors in the Acoustic Wave Sensor Market on the basis of Business Strategy (Business Growth, Industry Coverage, Financial Viability, and Channel Support) and Product Satisfaction (Value for Money, Ease of Use, Product Features, and Customer Support) that aids businesses in better decision making and understanding the competitive landscape.



Competitive Strategic Window:

The Competitive Strategic Window analyses the competitive landscape in terms of markets, applications, and geographies. The Competitive Strategic Window helps the vendor define an alignment or fit between their capabilities and opportunities for future growth prospects. During a forecast period, it defines the optimal or favorable fit for the vendors to adopt successive merger and acquisition strategies, geography expansion, research & development, and new product introduction strategies to execute further business expansion and growth.



Cumulative Impact of COVID-19:

COVID-19 is an incomparable global public health emergency that has affected almost every industry, so for and, the long-term effects projected to impact the industry growth during the forecast period. Our ongoing research amplifies our research framework to ensure the inclusion of underlaying COVID-19 issues and potential paths forward. The report is delivering insights on COVID-19 considering the changes in consumer behavior and demand, purchasing patterns, re-routing of the supply chain, dynamics of current market forces, and the significant interventions of governments. The updated study provides insights, analysis, estimations, and forecast, considering the COVID-19 impact on the market.



The report provides insights on the following pointers:

1. Market Penetration: Provides comprehensive information on the market offered by the key players

2. Market Development: Provides in-depth information about lucrative emerging markets and analyzes the markets

3. Market Diversification: Provides detailed information about new product launches, untapped geographies, recent developments, and investments

4. Competitive Assessment & Intelligence: Provides an exhaustive assessment of market shares, strategies, products, and manufacturing capabilities of the leading players

5. Product Development & Innovation: Provides intelligent insights on future technologies, R&D activities, and new product developments



The report answers questions such as:

1. What is the market size and forecast of the Global Acoustic Wave Sensor Market?

2. What are the inhibiting factors and impact of COVID-19 shaping the Global Acoustic Wave Sensor Market during the forecast period?

3. Which are the products/segments/applications/areas to invest in over the forecast period in the Global Acoustic Wave Sensor Market?

4. What is the competitive strategic window for opportunities in the Global Acoustic Wave Sensor Market?

5. What are the technology trends and regulatory frameworks in the Global Acoustic Wave Sensor Market?

6. What are the modes and strategic moves considered suitable for entering the Global Acoustic Wave Sensor Market?

Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05953137/?utm_source=GNW



About Reportlinker

ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place.



__________________________
Whether fleeing wildfire smoke or looking for a getaway during the coronavirus pandemic, Oregonians and travelers from around the region have sought refuge in Astoria. The persistent question has been what they might find once they arrive.

In many ways, the scenic city near the northern tip of the Oregon coast looks much like it has in recent years. Sea lions are barking, brew pubs are brewing and the ocean still laps the nearby ocean shores.

But a trip to Astoria is noticeably different, changed along with the rest of the world as the pandemic (as well as wildfires) reshaped virtually every aspect of tourism along with our day-to-day lives.

This is still a very good place to visit, there are still lots of things to do, said David Reid, executive director of the Astoria-Warrenton Chamber of Commerce. But if you come with expectations of having the same experience you did years ago, youll be disappointed.

Fans of Astorias brewpubs will find takeout dinners and limited outdoor seating. Hotel guests should expect to wear face masks in hallways and common areas. Large groups may need to downsize before entering small gift shops. And with many businesses now operating on limited hours, tourists might show up to favorite cafes or shops and find them closed for the day.

Fort George Brewery, a mainstay among craft beer fans and diners alike, has taken a cautious approach during the pandemic, offering a limited takeout menu and closing all but the upstairs seating at its main pub, which until recently has been available only by reservation.

I think weve been overly cautious, said Brian Bovenizer, marketing director for Fort George. Now that tourist season is ending a little bit, were loosening up.

The brewery has already started shipping beer to homes in Oregon and Washington, and is now bringing back special dining events, like an upcoming oyster and beer pairing that already sold out. New ideas bring inherent risk, but Fort George will need to continue getting creative if it hopes to make it through the winter, Bovenizer said

Customers wearing face masks line up for fish and chips at Bowpicker in Astoria. Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

A sign on a sidewalk in downtown Astoria encourages people to wear masks and maintain distance while they visit the town.Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

People fill the outdoor seating area at Buoy Brewing Co. in Astoria, while the indoor section of the restaurant remains closed during the pandemic. Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

While remarkably few businesses in Astoria have so far had to shut down because of the pandemic (restaurant Baked Alaska being a big exception), the chamber expects to see more business owners closing up seasonally or shutting their doors for good this fall. Reid said closures will likely result from a lost spring, a slow summer and an off-season thats expected to be particularly tough.

Astoria fares better than many other coastal towns in the off-season, buoyed by big events like the Great Columbia Crossing footrace in October, the Festival of Dark Arts and FisherPoets Gathering in February, and the Seafood & Wine Festival in April. But many of those events were forced to cancel or modify their plans for 2020 and 2021, some replacing them with virtual gatherings instead.

Virtual footraces and at-home crab fests are nice ideas, Reid said, but without tourists coming in, the off-season could be devastating for local businesses who werent able to save up money when the weather was nice.

Even over the summer, Astoria and Warrenton saw a strange dissonance when it came to tourism: While highways that run through town were full, sidewalks were light on foot traffic.

Many local business owners pegged that to the comfort level of travelers during the pandemic. People seemed to be perfectly comfortable driving to the beach, setting off on mountain bike trails and camping out, but less willing to stop off in town to visit indoor businesses.

The Oregon Parks and Recreation Department reported full and overflowing park sites on the north coast this summer, while many businesses reported a slower-than-usual season.

One place thats still seeing a steady stream of tourists is the Oregon Film Museum, built inside Astorias old jailhouse thats well known among fans of cult film The Goonies. After closing due to the pandemic from March to June, the museum cautiously reopened with plexiglass barriers at the ticket counter, a face mask requirement and a limit of three groups of up to 10 people allowed in at a time.

Mac Burns, executive director of the Clatsop County Historical Society, which manages the museum, said hes seen tourists not just from Oregon and Washington, but from around the country this summer. Those travelers have offered a semblance of normalcy, but they still havent added up to a normal season of business.

It feels like the town is full, Burns said. Then I look at my attendance and its 50%.

Between low attendance and those lost months this spring, money is tight for the museum. The historical society is a private nonprofit with an annual budget of about $700,000, Burns said, and those lost months cost them a little more than $200,000. The organization typically relies on tourists who come to Astoria on cruises, but all of those were canceled this year.

The biggest thing is the uncertainty, Burns said. Will we have cruise ships next year, or is that going to be two years away? Theres just so many uncertain things that could change very quickly one way or another.

The Oregon Film Museum in Astoria is dedicated to movies filmed around the state, in particular "The Goonies." In recent years, the museum has added small movie sets that allow visitors to film short scenes.Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

The sun sets behind the Astoria-Megler Bridge during the tail end of summer. Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

Taz Davis, owner of Table 360 Bakery and Bistro, holds up a loaf of bread at the outdoor pastry case in front of his business in downtown Astoria. Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

So far, state officials have allowed Clatsop County to operate under Phase 2 of its reopening plan. That means indoor businesses can operate with certain precautions in place, including crowd limits and face mask mandates, though businesses in Astoria, like those in Portland and elsewhere, have been forced to adapt to peoples comfort levels.

Taz Davis, baker and owner of Table 360 Bakery and Bistro, said hes seen some tense interactions between business owners and customers, particularly among those who dont believe the coronavirus pandemic is real, and who refuse to wear face masks.

Ill admit there have been some dicey weekends when there have been some not so nice tourists, he said.

Between people who dont want to comply with new public health precautions, and those who still dont feel safe enough to travel at all, its been a particularly difficult year for business owners.

Just as different people have different comfort levels about going out during the pandemic, different businesses in town have established different rules for customers, including face coverings, limiting the number of people allowed in at one time and eliminating some dining areas.

We need everybody to follow those rules, Davis said, wearing a face mask behind a portable pastry case on the sidewalk outside his bakery. Its not a case of not welcome, its a case of just making sure that everybodys being safe and following the right procedures, and thats important.

Astoria has not shied away from inviting visitors into town during the pandemic. Many locals may still feel trepidatious, but many local business owners recognize that a town that relies on tourism to survive cannot simply turn tourists away.

But with low summer foot traffic and the pandemic expected to continue through winter, many local businesses in Astoria appear to be in rough shape.

Reid said that while that may cause beloved businesses to close, it also opens opportunities for new businesses to step into the void. Baked Alaska no longer operates its iconic restaurant on the pier, but owners Chris and Jennifer Holen have already opened a new to-go breakfast spot in town, appropriately dubbed Nekst.

The Chamber of Commerce expects to see more creative innovations as businesses turn over, refreshing Astoria instead of turning it into a ghost town. That would guarantee tourists a place to return to, even if it doesnt look quite the same.

The good old days are going to come back, but theyll be different, Reid said. Well see some changes, but this is a wonderful place and that isnt changing.

--Jamie Hale; jhale@oregonian.com; 503-294-4077; @HaleJamesB
photographerfromUkraine/iStockBy EMILY SHAPIRO, ABC News



(NEW YORK) -- Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will be honored with a statue in Brooklyn, where she was born in 1933, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Saturday, one day after Ginsburg's death.



"As a lawyer, jurist, and professor, she redefined gender equity and civil rights and ensured America lived up to her founding ideals  she was a monumental figure of equality, and we can all agree that she deserves a monument in her honor," Cuomo said in a statement.



"She persevered despite several bouts of cancer and was present every single day to participate in the strengthening and safeguarding of our democracy," Cuomo continued.



"We remember proudly that she started her incredible journey right here in Brooklyn," Cuomo said. "Her legacy will live on in the progress she created for our society, and this statue will serve as a physical reminder of her many contributions to the America we know today and as an inspiration for those who will continue to build on her immense body of work for generations to come."



Cuomo said in the coming days he'll appoint a commission to select an artist.



The commission will also provide recommendations for a location, which hasn't yet been chosen.



Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
(Photo : Photo by Kim White/Getty Images) SAN FRANCISCO, CA - JUNE 10: Apple's Craig Federighi, Vice President of Software Engineering, introduces iOS7 at a keynote address during the 2013 Apple WWDC at the Moscone Center on June 10, 2013 in San Francisco, California. Apple's annual developer conference runs through June 14. (Photo : Photo by Kim White/Getty Images) SAN FRANCISCO, CA - JUNE 10: People walk under an iOS7 sign at the 2013 Apple WWDC at the Moscone Center on June 10, 2013 in San Francisco, California. Apple introduced a new mobile operatng system iOS 7, hardware upgrades and a new operating system OS X Mavericks during the keynote qaddress. The annual developer conference runs through June 14.



The latest iOS 14's now provides users with more privacy protection. Although it is good news for many customers, some publishers are not happy about it.

Also Read: iOS 14 Bug: Apple Finally Allows Users to Change Default Browser and Email Apps, But It Forgets the Change after Rebooting the iPhone

This is the first time iPhone's latest system version would require apps to get users' approval before collecting their personal information, allowing them to be involved with their data. However, the update caused a major backlash from companies that rely on users' data to make revenue, especially Facebook.

Also Read: Bill Gates on Elon Musk and Steve Jobs: One's 'Engineer,' Other's 'Genius'

The social media platform warned that iOS 14's enhanced-privacy protection could reduce half of the publishers' revenues on its advertising platform. Even United Kingdom news site, such as Mail Online, and DMG Media, are not happy with the update, saying that they'll delete their apps from the App Store.

Some publications, including The Times in the United Kingdom, are looking for ways to cope with the privacy feature. The news outlet managed to convert readers into online subscribers.

Online advertising revenues have become essential for most publishing companies, mainly targeted or behavioral advertising. These ads are based on viewers' locations, browsers, and websites they usually visit.

The ad trader, which is often Google, then decides which ads would effectively get the users' attention.

Some publishers accepted Apple's decision of improving privacy security

Although some companies are disappointed with the update, some publishers are still okay with it. Some of them accepted Apple's decision because it could allow them to control the advertising again.

Publishing companies could now develop other streams, such as branded content and subscriptions. For example, the New York Times' revenue increased when it left targeted ads and moved to a traditional online display.



NYT's decision helped it to get around the GDPR data protection restrictions. Although ads are essential to online publishers, they only receive around 30% of what advertisers pay, and the remaining revenue goes to Facebook and Google.

Also Read: Facebook Allegedly 'Accesses iPhone Cameras' Illegally Through Instagram Despite Users' Inactivity

This article is owned by TechTimes,

Written by: Giuliano de Leon.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
It is a great pleasure today to welcome the French Minister of State for European Affairs, Clement Beaune.

The French Minister is on a working visit to Athens, on his way from Cyprus. He already had the opportunity to meet with the Prime Minister and exchange views, to brief him on the latest developments, and we, too, had the opportunity  and we will continue our discussion at dinner  to exchange views.

In any case, what I think is now already clear is that Greece and France have earned the title of strategic partners and strategic allies. And beyond the ties that bind us within the European Union, it is very important that we share the same concerns about the wider region, the region of Southeast Europe, the region of the Eastern Mediterranean, and also about a number of other issues concerning international developments.

We are facing a critical decision in Europe. And this critical decision has to do with the way Europe sees itself. Whether, in the end, Europe decides to show that, within the peaceful means at its disposal, it has a deterrent force and the power to raise a protective shield against outside provocations, such as Turkeys aggressiveness and provocations, which are directed at Greece and Cyprus.

President Macron and the French government as a whole have become important supporters of the Greek effort to create a wider alliance within and beyond Europe to respond to Turkeys provocations and aggression.

And against the policy of using force as a means to achieve strategic goals, we advocate for the force of diplomacy, we advocate for the force of international law, we advocate for the force of close and good relations.

In this spirit, along with my dear Clement, we are launching a partnership that I believe will stand the test of time, and I want to thank him for this once again. And through him I want to thank the French Republic for its tireless efforts to support Greece efforts, so that next week, at the European Council meeting, there can be a clear message of support, not just for Greeces positions, but support Europes ideals.

Which means that international relations are handled through the medium of international law, disputes are resolved through constructive dialogue in which there is no room for blackmail or conduct reminiscent of previous centuries.

Dear Clement, it is a great pleasure to be here with you this evening. I would like to thank you for Frances support for Greeces positions.

And now, I give you the floor.
The Corbynites are in the descendant in the Labour Party now. The collapse of what I refuse to call the hard left machine has been as surprising as it has been complete. I refuse to call them the hard left because, in my humble opinion, they are neither hard nor left wing, but whatever you call them, they arent there any more. Keir Starmer is lord of all he surveys.

Momentums grip on the party was never as tight as it seemed. As with all so-called left-wing factions everywhere, they were split, with the only thing holding their project together being the person of Jeremy Corbyn himself. Im not good at predicting politics, and I didnt see him coming, but I certainly saw him going. I said that once he had ceased to be leader, that would be the end of it. Whatever came afterwards would be very different.

But I didnt think the leaders faction would be eclipsed so quickly. No one could have foreseen the way in which coronavirus has helped Starmer assert his authority. It helped, first, by changing the subject. Suddenly, all the questions about how radical Labours economic policy would be were swept aside by a Conservative government directly employing much of the private sector workforce.

As Labour gathers in cyberspace for its Connected event, replacing its annual conference that would be happening in Liverpool this weekend, other ways in which the pandemic has helped Starmer are becoming evident.

No conference means no votes. It means no fiery denunciations from the rostrum of the witch-hunt against Rebecca Long-Bailey. No singing of Oh, Jeremy Corbyn. No waving Palestinian flags. No fringe meetings condemning Starmer for selling out the workers.

Above all, there is no chance for the great battle among Starmers opponents between those, such as John McDonnell, the former shadow chancellor, who argue that they should be supportive of the leader because the most important thing for the left now is not to allow itself to be portrayed as oppositionists, shouting from the sidelines, and those, such as Howard Beckett, one of many candidates to succeed Len McCluskey as leader of Unite the union, who want to condemn Starmer for trying, with Boris Johnson, to dump the pandemic fallout on the working class. In a physical conference, this debate would dominate media coverage; online it has hardly been noticed.

The lockdown has had a remarkable effect in suppressing grassroots activism for most of this year. One veteran activist tells me that Momentum has been unable to organise, plot and gossip in local parties, because so much of that depends on meeting each other in person. Meanwhile, Labour people who had been driven away from meetings by the sectarians have been re-engaging in constructive online activism.

It helps that Labour people tend to take the rules on social distancing seriously, whereas libertarian Conservatives who are furious with their own leadership feel under no such constraint. That applies above all in parliament, the one place where (socially distanced) meeting, gossiping and plotting is still going on. But most Labour MPs are supportive of Starmer, and the Parliamentary Labour Party was one of the centres of power that the Corbynites never came close to taking over.

 Matt Hancock squirms as Keir Starmer demolishes his coronavirus strategy in PMQs

It is the Tory side that is split, and you can see why the prime minister was happy to have parliament in recess for six weeks over the summer. Now they are back, and the anti-lockdowners are agitating against him, as are the Brexit-worriers, even including the Leave-voting lords Howard and Lamont. No wonder Johnson was in the tea room this week, trying to jolly the troops.

With Labour conference reduced to a few speeches on Zoom  no one can heckle, or walk out, or hold up a placard  Starmers allies can concentrate on the postal ballot for seats on the partys national executive. For the first time this year, they are being allocated by proportional representation to the rival slates, and Labour to Win, the Starmer-loyalist slate, is likely to secure at least three of the nine seats representing grassroots party members.

It took Neil Kinnock seven years to take back control of the party from the Bennites in the 1980s. The pandemic has helped seal Starmers ascendancy over his party in just five months.
Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur speaks in Lok Sabha during the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament, amid the coronavirus pandemic, in New Delhi, Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. (LSTV/PTI)

New Delhi: There was high drama in the Lok Sabha as minister of state for finance Anurag Thakur made disparaging remarks about the Nehru-Gandhi family, which led to several adjournments, as Congress Lok Sabha leader Adhir Ranjan Choudhury called him a chhokra from Himachal Pradesh.

Later, the proceedings resumed only at 6 pm after four adjournments, when Thakur apologised to the House, saying he was pained if his words had hurt anyone, on the insistence of Speaker Om Birla.

Earlier, the trouble began when during the introduction of the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provision) Bill by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Opposition members criticised the PM-Cares funds validity.

Thakur counter-attacked immediately and accused the Gandhi family of cheating people by pooling public money through creation of various funds under different names.

While Opposition leaders  Shashi Tharoor, Manish Tewari and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury  were critical of the PM-Cares fund during the discussion on the legislation, Thakur said: From the High Court to the Supreme Court, all courts have validated the PM-Cares fund. Even children have contributed to it from their piggy banks. Nehru had set up a fund that has not been registered to date. You (Congress) only made a trust for the benefit of the Gandhi family. You made Sonia Gandhi its chairman. It should be probed.

Nehruji ordered the creation of Prime Ministers National Relief Fund in 1948 like a royal order, but its registration has not been done even till today. How did it get FCRA clearance? Mr Thakur sought to know.

This irked the Opposition and Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury lashed out at Mr Thakur, calling him a chhokra, demanding an apology for maligning the Nehru-Gandhi family.
The middle of a global pandemic does not seem like the optimum time to try to open a new restaurant, especially a unique concept with two separate restaurants in the same location.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 18/9/2020 (490 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The middle of a global pandemic does not seem like the optimum time to try to open a new restaurant, especially a unique concept with two separate restaurants in the same location.

But if anyone can pull it off its WOW Hospitality president Doug Stephen and chefs Michael Dacquisto and Kelly Cattani.

The three of them are each one-third partners in the double restaurant Charleswood offering at 3670 Roblin Blvd. with Cattani operating the breakfast and lunch bakery/cafe Bluestone Cottage on one side of the room and Dacquisto handling dinner duties with Alena Rustic Italian on the other side.

The venture was born out both chefs belief that their hometown Charleswood neighbourhood needed more food offerings and the opportunity to acquire the lease at the old Osteria del Piolo restaurant space.

MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS From left: Wow Hospitality president Doug Stephen with the co-owners and head chefs, Kelly Cattani and Michael Dacquisto.

In particular, Stephen and Cattani had been looking for a Charleswood location to do a breakfast spot for some time.

When Osteria closed in late January Stephen had the chance work out favourable conditions to take over the lease.

"I had been working with them and when they decided theyd had enough I said I would take over their obligations on the lease," said Stephen.

But the 5,200 square foot room was too big for Cattanis breakfast concept.

"When Michael heard about the space which has a new wood-fired pizza oven and a charcoal grill we started to workshop the two-in-one concept," he said.

The two sides of the room will be separated and feature distinct design ambiances but they will share the kitchen, staff will be cross-trained and they will each have the opportunity to share each others space if traffic requires.

MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The two sides of the room will be separated and feature distinct design ambiances but they will share the kitchen.

While it will be the first time that Cattani will be the co-owner of a storefront operation, shes had her own catering and consulting business for a few years while filling in as chef at other Wow locations.

"Its pretty exciting," he said. "Ive enjoyed working with Doug. Hes super smart and a great mentor. Im excited to see what we can do together."

Cattani grew up in Charleswood and moved back a decade ago with her husband just before they had a baby and thought the neighborhood really needed a great breakfast spot.

"It is just begging for it," she said. "The residents here are looking for ways to support each other and get together and we are hoping to be part of that community."

"Its pretty exciting. Ive enjoyed working with Doug. Hes super smart and a great mentor. Im excited to see what we can do together."  Chef Kelly Cattani

Bluestone Cottage will have a bakery/cafe vibe to it serving breakfast and lunch with lots of great beverage options.

"Weve got a beautiful espresso machine and well have juices and smoothies and a focus on fresh vibrant, seasonally influenced food," she said.

Dacquisto is a 25 year veteran with Wow. He was the groups original executive chef, the founding executive chef of the successful 529 Wellington restaurant and the partner in the ill-fated Dacquisto restaurant from a decade ago.

"We just could not get that one over the hump that we needed to," he said. "It was just too big of a space at the time. After we closed that place Doug and I always talked about doing something Italian down the road again, but in a much smaller space."

People can relate to the fresh simplicity of a lot of Italian food. Just using a few ingredients you can make a lot of delicious food.  Chef Michael Dacquisto

Alena will have a rustic feel to it as opposed to the white table cloth suburban offering of his eponymous previous effort. Dacquisto hopes Alena will become known as one of a handful of quality spots in Winnipeg where everything is made from scratch.

"People can relate to the fresh simplicity of a lot of Italian food," he said. "Just using a few ingredients you can make a lot of delicious food."

They all agreed the location was too big for one store and are keen to explore the concept of running two different restaurants essentially out of the same room. The hope is that splitting it into two 85-seat spots, and utilizing the room for the entire day it will create a busy destination all day and night.

Dacquisto said, "If were being smart we should be able to cross over our high quality ingredients between the two places and there will be an efficiency there as well."

MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The signs still need to be changed outside the new two-in-one restaurant concept Bluestone Cottage/Alena Rustic Italian at 3670 Roblin Blvd.

Social distancing will be exercised and they will deploy some Plexiglas shields like other Wow locations are doing, but with only 50 per cent capacity currently allowed there are obvious obstacles to success.

"How stupid am I, opening during a pandemic," said Stephen, one of the most successful restaurateurs in the city.

But Stephen said, "It is not fun out there. We are still having challenges. But to have this opportunity to do something as we are bringing other of our concepts back slowly is pretty exciting."

As for sharing the same space with another operator, both Cattani and Dacquisto have worked together before and are looking forward to this experiment.

Still, Cattani joked, "Were probably going to have to go to regular couples counselling."

martin.cash@freepress.mb.ca

Try our Dish The latest on food and drink in Winnipeg and beyond from arts writers Ben Sigurdson and Eva Wasney. Dish arrives in your inbox every other Friday. See sample. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.
The governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in the Edo State election, Mabel Oboh, has said she is sad not voting in the ongoing exercise due to ill-health.

Mrs Oboh, who is from the Edo Central Senatorial District of the state, left Benin for Lagos for medical care when her health deteriorated.

She, however, said she was confident that the Edo people would have made their choice at the end of todays exercise.

Mrs Oboh said, For me, it is very sad not to have participated in the election due to ill health. However, it is just only one vote that is lost and I have been getting briefings from all my party leaders that are on the ground in different parts of the state.

At this time, it is not about the individuals anymore, it is about Edo State and if the people decide how they want it. I will be happy with any decision they take, if it is me, I will invite them to work with me and on the other hand, I will work with them for the development of the state.

The former journalist/broadcaster said she got information from her field representatives that there was violence in some parts of the state.

I got a negative report that there was violence in one or two areas, but I think the security agencies are up to the task, she added.
In a call with McConnell, Trump mentioned two female appellate court judges  Amy Coney Barrett, 48, of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit and Barbara Lagoa, 52, of the 11th Circuit  as favorites, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations. Two other judges  McConnells favorite, Amul Thapar, 51, of Kentucky and the 6th Circuit and 38-year-old Allison Jones Rushing of the 4th Circuit  are in a small group that is being given a close look.
Lets face it, grocery shopping is the predominant social outing of the COVID-19 era.

You can keep your pubs and clubs, these days I get my kicks from roaming the supermarket aisles and chuckling at the vagaries of unit pricing.

By far the biggest choice any grocery shopper confronts is which store to walk into in the first place. Credit:Joe Benke

Did you know, for example, that the per unit price of cherry tomatoes is about $22.50 per kilogram, compared to just $5 per kilo for the normal sized ones? Ill never be able to look at those delicious little Rudolphs noses in the same way again. Popular with the kids, sure, but terrible for the household budget, as it turns out.

However, as fun as comparing unit prices is, by far the biggest choice anyone confronts as a grocery shopper is which store to walk into in the first place.
He was patient. At 50 years old, he finally made the rank of colonel; at 53, and three quick promotions later, Gen. Eisenhower was named supreme commander of Allied forces in Europe. Yet he remained an eager student, learning not from mentors now but from hard experience. He bore setbacks with equanimity and leaped at opportunities as he spotted them. He honed a gift for managing strong and competing personalities; his underlings included such egomaniacs as George S. Patton and Bernard Law Montgomery; his constituents included such larger-than-life characters as Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill and Charles de Gaulle. Yet, though he could efface his own ego when necessary, he never dodged responsibility. Indeed, when he launched the invasion of Europe on June 6, 1944, Eisenhowers preparations included a handwritten statement to be released if the mission failed. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt, it is mine alone, he wrote.
A bouquet of flowers is left outside of the U.S. Supreme Court following the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, in Washington, U.S., September 18, 2020.

Large crowds gathered in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday to pay tribute to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who passed away at the age of 87 after a long battle with cancer.

Photographs showed people leaving flowers and lighting candles on the courthouse steps, while some wrote messages thanking her. Mourners chanted "RBG" while some sang "Amazing Grace."

The American flag was flying at half staff outside the U.S. Supreme Court following Ginsburg's death. Ginsburg died surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, D.C., due to complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer, the court said.The Brooklyn-born daughter of a Jewish immigrant from Russia was the second woman to rise to the bench of the nation's highest court. She was appointed in 1993 by President Bill Clinton to fill the seat vacated by Justice Byron White.
Belfast-born MP Conor Burns has been slammed by his cousin on Twitter who claimed the Brexiteer was no better than Farage.

The Conservative MP, who was forced to resign as trade minister in May this year after being found guilty of breaching parliamentary privilege, attempted to downplay the Twitter spat.

It came after he responded to a tweet by US Presidential candidate Joe Biden in which the Democrat said the Good Friday Agreement must not become a casualty of Brexit.

Responding to former Vice-President Biden, Mr Burns wrote: Would you like to discuss the Good Friday agreement? It is also called the Belfast Agreement so it doesnt offend both traditions.

Did you actually know that? I was born in NI and Im a Catholic and a Unionist. Here if you need help.

Mr Burnss cousin Stevie responded saying the MP for Bournemouth West "no better than Farage".

The MP responded saying: 2020 clearly is not the year of cousin love before later tweeting: Being attacked by a cousin may be upsetting for some. When he is one of roughly 30 and not seen him for 30 years its cool.

Mr Burns, who was born in Belfast before his family moved to Hertfordshire, resigned as trade minister and was suspended from parliament earlier this year after he tried to intimidate a member of the public over a financial dispute with his father, a Commons investigation found.

He was found to have breached the code of conduct for MPs after the publication of a report that said he had used his position as an MP to attempt to intimidate a member of the public into doing as he wished over a financial dispute involving his father.

The dispute related to private family interests and he persisted in making veiled threats to use parliamentary privilege to further his familys interests during the course of the investigation, the Commons standard committee said.

Downing Street announced he had stood down from the Department of International Trade after the committee recommended he should be suspended from Parliament for seven days.

Speaking at the time, a Downing Street spokesman said: Conor Burns has resigned as minister of state for international trade following a report from the Parliamentary commissioner for standards. A replacement will be announced in due course.

Mr Burns was a campaigner for Brexit during the EU referendum in 2016 and was a close friend of former Conservative Prime Minister Lady Thatcher towards the end of her life.

Writing to Mr Burns after his resignation, Prime Minister Boris Johnson thanked him for his unstinting loyalty over recent years and said he would continue to add much from the backbenches.
Reaction to the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday at her home in Washington at the age of 87.

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Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her a tireless and resolute champion of justice. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts.

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Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for all of us. She fought for all of us.  It was my honor to preside over her confirmation hearings, and to strongly support her accession to the Supreme Court. In the decades since, she was consistently and reliably the voice that pierced to the heart of every issue, protected the constitutional rights of every American, and never failed in the fierce and unflinching defense of liberty and freedom. Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden.

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She was an amazing woman, whether you agreed or not. She was an amazing woman who led an amazing life. President Donald Trump.

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With the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, America has lost one of the most extraordinary Justices ever to serve on the Supreme Court. She was a magnificent judge and a wonderful person a brilliant lawyer with a caring heart, common sense, fierce devotion to fairness and equality, and boundless courage in the face of her own adversity. Her 27 years on the Court exceeded even my highest expectations when I appointed her. Former President Bill Clinton.

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A powerful legal mind and a staunch advocate for gender equality, she has been a beacon of justice during her long and remarkable career. I was proud to have appointed her to the U.S. Court of Appeals in 1980. We join countless Americans in mourning the loss of a truly great woman. Former President Jimmy Carter.

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Laura and I join our fellow Americans in mourning the loss of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She dedicated many of her 87 remarkable years to the pursuit of justice and equality, and she inspired more than one generation of women and girls. Former President George W. Bush.

Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer who possessed tremendous passion for her causes. She served with honor and distinction as a member of the Supreme Court. While I had many differences with her on legal philosophy, I appreciate her service to our nation. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

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It has been reported that Justice Ginsburgs wish was that the winner of the upcoming election nominate her successor. We should all honor that wish and wait until after the presidential inauguration to take action. Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.

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We must honor Justice Ginsburgs trailblazing career and safeguard her powerful legacy by ensuring that the next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court upholds her commitment to equality, opportunity and justice for all." House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

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Ruth Bader Ginsburg has left an indelible mark on this country, and her loss will be deeply felt. She will be remembered for her brilliant mind, her razor sharp wit, and her tenacious and lifelong fight to protect the rights of women in this country. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
HDFC Bank Ltd has again emerged as the most valuable brand in India in 2020, despite its ranking seeing an 11 per cent decline from 2019, a WPP Plc and Kantar report said. This is the seventh consecutive year when HDFC Bank remained the top-ranked brand in India.

HDFC Bank has been valued at $20.2 billion by WPP and Kantar list of most valued brands. It is followed by state-owned insurer LIC, valued at $18.2 billion, and TCS, which has been valued at $14.5 billion.

Also read: 25% in LIC up for grabs? The next big IPO to watch out for

Retail and telecom brands have outperformed most other categories and seen their brand value increase in the 2020 BrandZ Top 75 Most Valuable Indian Brands ranking, the WPP and Kantar report said.

At a time of unprecedented economic challenges followed by COVID-19 pandemic-led lockdowns, the total value of the top 75 brands fell by 6 per cent in 2020, resulting in total brand value of $216 billion.

Despite the overall decline, 26 brands increased in value and five were new entrants. India's top brands also performed well against other countries where declines in total brand value were much greater, said the report.

With a 102 per cent year-on-year increase in value, Reliance Retail has been ranked as the fast-expanding brand. Mukesh Ambani-led retail company stood at 25th spot in the list of most-valued brands.

Preeti Reddy, chief executive officer - South Asia, insights division, Kantar, said that brands that focus on sustainable consumption have gained brand value this year.

"The post-COVID world will also offer brands opportunities around sustainable consumption because it is at the top of mind of consumers. A sense of purpose, trust and responsibility have become crucial. The data shows that brands that deliver on these parameters have gained brand value and will continue to do so," she added, reported LiveMint.

After banks, the telecom sector remained the fourth-biggest in terms of brand value. Other companies in the top 10 list are Airtel with brand value worth $13.4 billion, Asian Paints $7.97 billion; Kotak Mahindra Bank $7.21 billion; Jio $6.88 billion, Flipkart $6.53 billion, Paytm $6.27 billion; and SBI $5.39 billion.

ALSO READ: Reliance Industries scales market cap of Rs 16 lakh crore for first time

ALSO READ: Lawsuits against HDFC Bank in US over misleading statements, improper lending practices
The Alaska Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday on an appeal from three Frog House members regarding the dispute over ownership of five Frog House artifacts stored at the Jilkaat Kwaan Heritage Center.

The Alaska State Museum in Juneau last...
The death of liberal Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg will immediately upend the presidential election and will amplify partisan tensions in the already contentious United States Senate as Republicans prepare to jam through her replacement before the end of this year.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked then-President Barack Obama from filling a high court seat during his final year in office following the death of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia. The Kentucky Republican has put up with Mr Trumps antics since he took office largely because the president has been more than willing to nominate McConnell-preferred conservative federal judges. Now, the duo have a chance to give the Supreme Court a 6-3 conservative lean for years to com

Mr McConnell made his intentions clear last May when he was asked about a vacant seat in the final year of Mr Trumps term.

Oh, wed fill it, he said during an appearance in his home state. He was even more clear in a Friday night statement: President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.

Mr Trump also has indicated he would be inclined to nominate a conservative this year, even as polls show him trailing former Vice President Joe Biden nationally and in key presidential battleground states.

Around the same time, Mr Trump told interviewers he would set off an election-year confirmation battle.

Would I do that? Of course, the president said, contending the Democrats would have pushed federal judge Merrick Garland onto the high court in Mr Obamas final year had they had a Senate majority.

They couldnt get him approved. Thats the other problem because they didnt have the Senate. If they had the Senate, they would have done it, Mr Trump said of the Democrats.

It depends. I mean, we have the Senate. We have a great Senate. We have great people. If we could get him approved, I would definitely do it, the president insisted. No, Id do it a lot sooner than that. Id do it. If there were three days left, Id put somebody up hoping that I could get em done in three days, OK?

White House officials signalled on Friday night they expect the president will select a nominee and do whatever he can to put his third conservative justice on the highest court in the land.

Democrats in the Senate immediately sounded alarm at a president possibly headed towards a defeat creating a very conservative Supreme Court when the Senate majority party is at risk of losing control of the chamber. Mr McConnell in recent weeks has made clear he is unsure Republicans will control the Senate come January.

The Senates top Democrat sounded off soon after Ms Ginsburg passed. But it is not yet clear if Democrats can block a simple-majority vote.

The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote on Twitter.

Sources and analysts on Friday night said they expect a vicious confirmation fight, and manoeuvring by Senate Democrats to try delaying a final vote on Ms Ginsburgs replacement until a new Senate is seated in early January. That new Senate could be controlled by Democrats.

That would mean Mr Schumer would be able to block any nominee Mr Trump, should he win re-election, send to Capitol Hill. If he could hold all of his Democrats in line, that is.

It took around 60 days for now-Justice Neil Gorsuch to move from his nomination to confirmation. There are just 45 days (as of Saturday) until Election Day. That would test the Washington systems ability to vet, pick and run through the typical confirmation process checklist. That includes meetings with each senator and weeks-long prep by all sides for public hearings with the nominee.

As all of that plays, the bitter partisanship and gamesmanship would play out as Mr Trump and Mr Biden fight it out on the campaign trail.

Ms Ginsburgs death now gives Mr Trump and Mr Biden a powerful new talking point to try firing up their respective bases. Analysts say Republicans typically think more about the high court than Democratic voters, meaning the vacancy could help the president.

While almost all of the political drama will be between Republicans and Democrats, Mr McConnell and the president might have some work to do with vulnerable GOP senators.

So the question is are there a few Republicans that will refuse to go along with confirming a new justice days before an election and or in a post election lame duck session, Democratic strategist Jim Manley tweeted.
NBCs Seinfeld created the perfect commentary for a 90s world. The sitcom touched on everyday situations and turned them into something funny and relatable. Some episodes caught more flak than others, and thats exactly what co-creators Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld intended. In fact, The Junior Mint episode got one man fired from his job.

The Junior Mint episode recap

Jerry Seinfeld as Jerry Seinfeld, Michael Richards as Cosmo Kramer | Spike Nannarello/NBCU Photo Bank

RELATED: Seinfeld: What Has Heidi Swedberg Been up To Following the Death of Susan Ross?

The Junior Mint episode revolves around Jerrys girlfriend. Namely, its that he cant remember her name. What he does remember is it rhymes with a female body part.

The star and part of his crew  George (Jason Alexander) and Kramer (Michael Richards)  take a stab at what her name might be. A couple of guesses include Mulva and Gipple. When his girlfriend realizes Jerry doesnt know her name, it comes to him as she storms off: Dolores.

One of Seinfelds many gifts is subtle insinuation. The sitcom lasted as long as it did with millions of viewers week after week because of its ability to utilize the power of suggestion as opposed to stating the obvious.

However, its this very episode that landed one Miller Brewing employee in hot water.

How the Seinfeld episode ended in job termination

RELATED: Seinfeld: The Iconic Puffy Shirt Sold for a Ridiculous Amount of Money

Miller Brewing executive Jerold Mackenzie lost his job in 1993, the Los Angeles Times reports. The termination came after Mackenzie discussed the Junior Mint episode co-worker Patricia Best, and she complained. Mackenzie testified that he didnt actually say the word that rhymes with Delores  but instead, he showed her a dictionary page with the word.

You should be able to talk to your co-workers. You should be able to talk to subordinates as you would talk to anybody else, Mackenzie said via the Los Angeles Times.

Miller Brewing attorney Mary Pat Ninneman said the Seinfeld conversation was just one of the reasons that led to Mackenzies firing.

He was on thin ice, Ninneman said, adding that Mackenzie faced previous reprimands in 1989 for alleged sexual misconduct.

Mackenzie filed a lawsuit against the company where he banked $95,000 per year, claiming multiple people interfered with his employment and that no one notified him about his termination. Mackenzie also added he was too old to find similar employment elsewhere.

Mackenzies lawyer Gerald Boyle alleged that Miller wanted to fire Mackenzie for years but used Seinfeld as the scapegoat.

Hes a goof who comes into work and talks about Seinfeld and finds himself for 1,573 days without a job, Boyle said.

The jury deliberated for six hours before deciding Mackenzies fate.

Heres how the case concluded

RELATED: Seinfeld Star Jason Alexander Says He Couldve Made a Lot of Money If He Agreed To This Diabolical Thing

The jury didnt find that the discussion of Seinfelds Junior Mint episode qualified as sexual misconduct. Mackenzie won $26.6 million in damages.

Miller Brewing appealed the case. In 2000, a Wisconsin appeals court reversed the previous judgment awarded to Mackenzie. The court said Mackenzie failed to prove that Miller intended to deceive him or that he was financially damaged as a result of any alleged misrepresentation, according to CBS News.

The moral of this story is dont talk about Seinfeld at work  especially if its a particularly questionable storyline.
George Poikayil By

Express News Service

KASARAGOD: With more than 150 cases and multiple deaths being reported on an average every day in Kasaragod, the health care infrastructure is bursting at the seams.

District health officials said the government has made it clear that it is not in a position to ramp up the infrastructure or send the much-needed reinforcement of human resources.

"We are forced to resort to jugglery," said a senior health official. To take on the immediate challenge of the rising number of COVID cases and deaths -- 2,718 cases in 17 days and 62 deaths -- officials are converting the District Hospital to an exclusive COVID Hospital. The first casualty of the move would be the various specialist services provided at the hospital -- ranging from cancer care and dialysis to orthopaedics and antenatal care.

To be sure, the District Hospital is the only government-run hospital providing secondary health care services in Kasaragod. "But we have no choice. If we have to curb the COVID deaths, our specialist doctors in District Hospital will have to take up the responsibility," said the top officials.

'COVID Hospital or COVID Monument'

But the bigger question is why is the government converting the District Hospital to COVID Hospital when Kasaragod has an 'advanced' COVID Hospital run from the Medical College building at Ukkinadka, asked a senior doctor. On top of it, the Tata Group built a 550-bed COVID Hospital at Thekkil on September 9. "Is it a COVID monument?" he said.

The answers to the questions expose the gap between the government's words and deeds. The Tata Group built the 81,000sq ft hospital in five months and handed over the key to the government at a much-celebrated function on September 9. Since then, the health department submitted two proposals to the government to launch the hospital. "Both the proposals were rejected by the government, perhaps for the lack of funds," said the official.

Now, the government has asked the District Health Service to start a COVID First-Line Treatment Centre (CFLTC) at the Tata Hospital, built at a cost of Rs 60 crore. Doctors said CFLTCs was just observation centres with minimal staff and no patients with serious conditions were admitted there. "Moreover, CFLTCs have become redundant with asymptomatic patients and those with mild symptoms opting to stay at home," said a doctor.

Since the district started the 'stay at home' option for patients on August 10, 5,360 persons tested positive for COVID. Among them, 2,207 patients, or 41% of the patients opted to stay at home. Till Friday, 1,367 patients have recovered and there are 837 active patients at home. "What we need is a facility for critical patients and not a building to accommodate asymptomatic patients," said the doctor cited above. Kasaragod MLA N A Nellikkunnu was livid at the gross waste of resources.

"The decision to run Tata's hospital as a CFLTC dashes all over hopes. If the government did not have the resources to establish the hospital, it could have asked the Tata Group to invest the money at Ukkinadka and made the COVID Hospital better," he said.

Ukkinadka hospital

The COVID Hospital set up at the Medical College Building at Ukkinadka was one of the highlights of the Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government's fight against COVID. It was set up in four days in April. But in six months, it has been reduced to another glorified CFLTC. The chief minister said 273 posts were created for the hospital, but the government has given standing instruction that only half of the posts should be filled. In that, only around 40% or around 50 staff have joined.

The newly appointed staff at Ukkinadka have not got their salaries for the past four months "because of technical reasons". Ironically, most of the doctors posted in the hospital are from non-clinical verticals such as microbiologist, pathology, blood bank, and community medicines. "These doctors come into play only when the medical college starts functioning. What we need now are clinical doctors such as physicians, pulmonologists (lung specialists), and anaesthetists for critical care," said a senior health official.

The hospital has just one physician and the ICU has not yet started functioning, said Mahin Kelot, an IUML leader from Badiadka, where the medical college is set up. "So whenever there is a patient who needs critical care, he will be referred to Pariyaram," he said. Now, Kozhikode Medical College has sent five senior medical residents. Though the hospital has 200 beds, only around 45 patients are admitted. The hospital was set up in the Academic Block with no ramp or lift.

So patients cannot be admitted on the third floor. Also, a lot of customisation was required to set up the ICU in the Biochemistry Lab. The work on the actual Hospital Block has restarted only this week, so Kasaragod Medical College will remain the long pipeline. "That's why we decided to convert the District Hospital to a COVID Hospital," said the senior health official.

DH services to be reduced to OP consultation

Kasaragod: District medical officer Dr A V Ramdas said all the important services of the District Hospital will be shifted to various other locations so that patients are not affected. The antenatal wing will be shifted to Surgicare Hospital in Kanhangad, he said. "Patients will have access to our doctors, nurses and medicines free of cost," he said. The cancer ward and paediatric ophthalmology would be shifted to the Nileshwar Taluk Hospital, he said. The out-patient (OP) wing of the orthopaedic department and ENT would be set up at Anandasharamam, he said. The OP wings of Surgery and Ophthalmology would be moved to the Community Health Centre at Periya. Several doctors said they were not happy with the decision to scale down the District Hospital's services to out-patient consultations. "It is as if non-COVID patients have no value," said a doctor.
Protest: Women take part in a rally against police brutality following protests to reject the presidential election results in Minsk. Photo: Tut.By/Handout via REUTERS

Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya demanded an international mission to document what she called "atrocities" during crackdowns on anti-government protests - but said she was ready to talk to end weeks of violence.

She addressed a charged debate on the Belarus crisis at the UN Human Rights Council, where envoys from Minsk and its backer Moscow faced off against EU delegations who are pushing for sanctions and investigations.

UN rights investigator Anais Marin told the session member states needed to act to prevent a major geopolitical rift.

"Let's not allow another iron curtain to descend on the European continent," she said.

Expand Close Unrest: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said he was putting the army on high alert. Photo: BelTA/AP / Facebook

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Whatsapp Unrest: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said he was putting the army on high alert. Photo: BelTA/AP

Ms Marin said more than 10,000 people had been "abusively arrested", with more than 500 reports of torture, since President Alexander Lukashenko retained power after a disputed presidential election on August 9.

Smear

Protesters say the vote was fraudulent. Mr Lukashenko says he won the vote fairly, and dismisses accusations of abuses, saying it's part of a Western smear campaign.

Belarus's borders with Poland and Lithuania remained open yesterday despite the president declaring they would be closed and accusing the neighbouring nations of instigating nearly six weeks of protests against his 26 years of leadership.

Mr Lukashenko said late on Thursday he was putting the army on high alert and closing the country's borders with Lithuania and Poland. Lukashenko has blamed the US and its allies for fomenting the unrest following his landslide re-election to a sixth term last month, an outcome that protesters in Belarus say resulted from vote-rigging.

"We are forced to withdraw troops from the streets, put the army on high alert and close the state border on the west, primarily with Lithuania and Poland," Mr Lukashenko said while addressing a women's forum, adding that Belarus' border with Ukraine also would be strengthened.

But the national Border Guard Service said all border checkpoints remained open, though it said inspections have been strengthened.

A spokeswoman for the Polish Border Guard said traffic at Poland's border with Belarus was as busy as usual. Lithuanian authorities also reported no changes.

Mr Lukashenko's main challenger in the election, former English teacher and political novice Ms Tsikhanouskaya, said: "Lukashenko already has tried to scare us with enemies that don't exist.

"He has accused peaceful people of being engaged in violence and tried to cast the true patriots as traitors.

"But his talk yesterday about closing the borders marks a new level of distancing from reality. It was talk by a weak person about his own imaginary world."

She urged Belarusians to ignore Mr Lukashenko's bluster, emphasising that "all our neighbours are our friends".

Seeking to cement ties with his main ally and sponsor, Moscow, Mr Lukashenko has tried to cast the protests as a Western plot to isolate Russia.

This week, Russia has sent 300 paratroopers for joint military drills with Belarusian soldiers near Brest on the border with Poland.
A carjacker who held a couple hostage, fatally shot a husband in front of his pregnant wife, before shooting himself dead.

The gunman, who went on a deadly rampage killed two people and injured three before turning the gun on himself.

Dangelo Dorsey had followed through a series of carjackings and shootings before fleeing from the police on September 13.

The horrific rampage ended with a high-speed car chase in Tennessee.

He ultimately shot himself in front of the pregnant wife of a man he had killed earlier after holding them hostage when he carjacked them as they went to church.

David Rausch, director of The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, said in a press release that the killing spree started at 9.30am when the 29-year-old opened fire inside a moving vehicle along Interstate 24 near Beechgrove.

Dorsey, from St. Louis, Missouri, got out of the vehicle as traffic came to a halt shooting a woman in her hand as he attempted to carjack her vehicle and he fatally shot a nearby truck driver in the face.

Aileen Stevens was teaching Sunday School that morning at her church in Rutherford County and was on her way there with husband Jordan in their Ford Mustang when they were rear-ended by Dorsey.

Mr Rausch said the couple were forced to drive back to their home at gunpoint by Dorsey who is claimed to have stolen two of their guns before he made them swap cars and go back out with him.

Police say at some point Mr Stevens was shot dead in front of his wife by Dorsey who dumped the body before driving off with the terrified mum-to-be.

Officers managed to pinpoint the SUV they were in and a 100mph police chase began before the car crashed and flipped.

Mr Rausch said Dorsey then shot himself dead in front of Mrs Stevens.

He added: The female hostage was safely recovered.

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The Tory MP Philip Davies has made the news twice this week, once for his confrontation with Jon Snow in the offices of Channel 4, after which he accused the veteran broadcaster of bullying him, and once when he suggested that sex education in schools is causing an increase in teenage pregnancies. On that subject, he challenged others to look at the evidence, something he had notably failed to do. The Office for National Statistics says that teenage pregnancies are at their lowest level since 1969.

During that same speech in the Commons, he made a proposal that there should be an anti-political correctness law, applying particularly to local councils. There was a famous piece of anti-PC legislation in the 1980s, known as Clause 28, which banned local councils from promoting homosexuality. It was repealed for being offensive, and David Cameron has apologised for it.

But homosexuality was not in Daviess sights. He had in mind politically correct attitudes to race, for which he blames Rotherham councils failure to tackle the sex abuse scandal. In 2009, when Davies was parliamentary spokesman for something called the Campaign Against Political Correctness, he wrote to the Equality Commission demanding to know why white police officers were excluded from the Metropolitan Black Police Association, why there was a Miss Black Britain contest but not a Miss White Britain one, and whether it was against the law for the Orange Prize for fiction to be for women only.

This perhaps is a pointer to the sort of thing that might be banned under a Philip Davies anti-political correctness law. In the same debate, Davies complained that the Labour Party is known for its intolerance of other peoples opinions.

Cat and Mouse Act

Anne McIntosh may be approaching the end of her career as an MP, after being deselected by her constituency party in Thirsk and Malton, but she has one political cause to fight before she goes. She has been campaigning for Parliament to adopt a pet cat, from the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.

Parliaments mouse population is spiralling out of control she claimed today, in the Commons. Actually, the last count showed that there were fewer mouse sightings on the parliamentary estate in 2013 than in 2012, but she would doubtless argue that even the reduced figure of 221 is way too high. There is also the issue of who would empty the parliamentary cats or cats litter trays, because  believe it or not  there are no cat flaps in the Palace of Westminster.

John Thurso MP, who speaks for the Commons authorities, added that the building is so large that they would need a herd of cats to remove the mice.

A betrayal of justice

It is a pity that the Justice Secretary Chris Grayling and other Conservatives pursuing their Little Englander campaign against the European Court of Human Rights were not in Committee Room 1 in Parliament today to hear the Russian politician and journalist Vladimir Kara-Murza, who has spent years campaigning for free speech in Russia.

He told a committee of peers that it was a very important judgment when the ECHR recently condemned the Russian government for arresting a peaceful demonstrator. The last resort we have to independent justice is the European Court of Human Rights, he said.

And yet, disgracefully, British ministers are out to destroy the authority of this court. To do so would be a betrayal of fellow Europeans for whom the ECHR is the final protection against tyranny.
While we are still grappling with the reality of the pandemic that has besieged us, Mouni Roy and the team of ZEE5 have already gone ahead and released a movie set in a post-pandemic world we can only dream of right now.

Starring the effervescent Mouni Roy as an undercover RAW Agent Uma and Purab Kohli as her co-worker, 'London Confidential' kicks off with a post-COVID-19 world where world leaders and scientists are all set to attend the Conference of New Viruses in London. But thats just the sub-plot.

ZEE5

This 70-minute spy thriller is based on an ambitious concept by conspiracy thriller churner S Hussain Zaidi. This intriguing plot only thickens with the introduction of new characters. The movie also stars Purab Kohli, Kulraj Randhawa, Pravessh Rana and Sagar Arya in pivotal roles. While there have been many movies based on an unexplained virus pandemic, London Confidential is definitely the first to explore this angle during an on-going global pandemic. The movie sure does pave the way for many more thrillers to work against this intriguing premise.



At the very start of the movie, we find out that RAWs London Station has discovered some incriminating evidence against the Chinese Government and the spread of a new virus. As the team gets closer to unearthing the truth, a series of Indian agents are brutally killed, leading the team to question the presence of a mole in their team.





The cinematographer did an effortless job to bring out the emotion that the cast is feeling on screen. We feel even moment of panic, shock and confusion that the characters experience during the movie. The entire cast has given stellar performances and the two lead actors balance each other out well.

Mouni Roy who is making her digital debut with this film with the lead role manages to showcase the anxiety that comes with being a RAW agent in a post-COVID world as well as the struggles that come with being pregnant and in a rocky marriage during such times. Purab Kohli provides the much needed moments of humour and the duo manage to carry the movie on their shoulders with ease.

London Confidential was shot by director Kanwal Sethi is the first OTT film made in London post-lockdown. The director made sure that the audience was able to relate to the world they have showcased in the movie. They not only bring out the stress and anxiety that comes with living after a pandemic but also how day-to-day lives have been drastically altered.

ZEE5

Even though the movie is set in the post-pandemic era, the opening montage of people stepping out in masks sets the tone of the modern-day London still reeling from the after-shocks of a global pandemic.

If you havent yet added this exhilarating spy thriller to your must-watch list, do it right away!


Tatler has cut huge swathes from its online profile of the Duchess of Cambridge after the society bible was accused of publishing a 'string of lies'.

The magazine has caved in and removed almost a quarter of the piece  in particular 'cruel' and 'snobby' barbs aimed at Kate's mother Carole Middleton and sister Pippa.

It comes after Kensington Palace instructed its lawyers to demand the 'inaccuracies and false representations' be removed.

July/August's edition of Tatler, which was published in May under the cover story 'Catherine the Great', detailed claims, now deleted, that Kate, 38, felt 'exhausted and trapped' following Harry and Meghan's decision to step back from royal life, was 'perilously thin' like Princess Diana and had even consulted psychics with William.

Tatler has cut huge swathes from its online profile of the Duchess of Cambridge (right) after the society bible was accused of publishing a 'string of lies'. It comes after Kensington Palace instructed its lawyers to demand the 'inaccuracies and false representations' be removed

But The Mail on Sunday understands it was the criticism of the Middleton family that caused the greatest upset.

Initially, Tatler refused to remove anything from the internet, despite Palace fury, with editor Richard Dennen insisting he stood 'behind the reporting of Anna Pasternak and her sources'. However, the Cambridges' lawyers pointed out that Kensington Palace had not been given the opportunity to comment on the specific content of Ms Pasternak's feature, much of which was disputed.

Eventually both sides agreed that chunks would be cut from the online profile, which was done this week  four months after its publication.

The erased paragraphs include claims that William was obsessed with his mother-in-law, that Carole, 65, is 'a terrible snob' and that Pippa, 37, is 'too regal and try-hard'.

The only reference Tatler has made to the climbdown is a sentence at the end of the piece, saying it has been edited.

The erased paragraphs include claims that William was obsessed with his mother-in-law, that Carole, 65, (pictured) is 'a terrible snob'

One of the claims that most angered the Cambridges was the comparison of 'perilously thin' Kate to Princess Diana, who famously struggled with eating disorders throughout her life.

At the time, a Royal source said: 'That is such an extremely cruel and wounding barb. It's disgusting. It's sexist and woman-shaming at its very worst.

'The piece is full of lies. There is no truth to their claim that the Duchess feels overwhelmed with work, nor that the Duke is obsessed with Carole Middleton. It's preposterous.

'The whole thing is class snobbery. Tatler may think it's immune from action as it's read by the Royals and on every coffee table in every smart home. But it makes no difference. It's ironic that the Royals' favourite magazine is now being trashed by them.

'The Duchess is a naturally shy woman who is doing her best.'

A source close to the magazine's publisher Conde Nast said: 'Tatler has a long-standing relationship with the Royal Family and wanted to end this amicably.' A spokesman for Kensington Palace declined to comment.

One of the paragraphs also claims that Kate's sister Pippa, 37, (pictured) is 'too regal and try-hard'

Paragraphs - and entire sections - deleted by Tatler

WHAT IT SAID: Yet, privately, said another friend, 'Kate is furious about the larger workload [caused by Harry and Meghan quitting]. Of course she's smiling and dressing appropriately but she doesn't want this. She feels exhausted and trapped. She's working as hard as a top CEO, who has to be wheeled out all the time, without the benefits of boundaries and plenty of holidays.

NOW: Paragraph erased

WHAT IT SAID: It's been a rapid ascent for a girl born into an upper-middle-class family in Reading. She and her siblings attended Marlborough, thanks to her parents' thriving mail-order business, and while there she had a poster of Prince William on her wall.

NOW: Reference to the Prince William poster, which Kate has previously denied, has been erased

A source close to the magazine's publisher Conde Nast said: 'Tatler has a long-standing relationship with the Royal Family and wanted to end this amicably'

WHAT IT SAID: Another country grandee says: 'I've heard that Prince William is obsessed with Carole. She's the mummy he always wanted.' Yet it's Carole, with what some call her Hyacinth Bucket aspirations of grandeur, who, rumour has it, puts people's backs up in a way Kate does not. Some people have apparently found her exacting. A skilled craftsman who worked on Anmer Hall, William and Kate's country home, and is used to a roster of prestigious and potentially tricky customers, said that he found Carole 'the most difficult client' he had ever worked with: 'She was exceedingly demanding, fussy and questioned everything.' Carole has put her stamp on Anmer decor-wise. Far from being a typical aristo abode, with threadbare rugs and dog hair everywhere, like, say, Windsor and Balmoral, it is, according to a visitor, 'like a gleaming five-star hotel, with cushions plumped and candles lit'. Another adds: 'It's very Buckinghamshire.'

NOW: Entire section erased

WHAT IT SAID: While Kate has praised her close family and happy childhood, there's no denying that Carole is a formidable matriarch. 'Carole is a terrible snob,' alleges a friend of Donna Air, ex-girlfriend of Kate's brother, James. 'Donna is really a lovely girl, but Carole got quite grand.' She adds: 'Carole is the masterminding force between those girls.'

NOW: Paragraph erased

WHAT IT SAID: Kate and her sister, Pippa, remain the closest of confidantes, presumably because it feels safe. 'Pippa now speaks like the Queen, too, and is absolutely paranoid about the paparazzi,' says one of her circle. 'She refers to her sister as Catherine or 'the duchess' in public, which feels too regal and try-hard. Pippa is a bit lost now and is struggling to find her place. She's always in the shadow as someone's sister or someone's wife. But they are all utterly loyal to each other. The Middleton family will always close ranks. None of them can quite believe that they have hit the jackpot, so between Kate, Pippa and Carole there is an unspoken bond. A sort of 'We have to bring it to fruition at all costs'.'

One of the claims that most angered the Cambridges was the comparison of 'perilously thin' Kate to Princess Diana, who famously struggled with eating disorders throughout her life

NOW: Paragraph erased

WHAT IT SAID: Then there's her 'Turnip Toff' crowd, the Norfolk Sloanes, including Sophie Carter and Robert Snuggs, who live near Anmer Hall. And the Cambridges' glamorous Houghton Hall neighbours, Rose Hanbury and her husband, the Marquess of Cholmondeley.

NOW: Paragraph erased

WHAT IT SAID: Outwardly, it seems that with years of scrutinising public pressure Kate has become perilously thin, just like some point out  Princess Diana. One could argue that Kate is naturally slim and indeed, like Pippa, a vigorous exerciser. Or perhaps her size is down to the stress of being a multitasking mother of three  one countenancing the additional worries of defending a Royal Family seemingly under siege. 'William is absolutely incandescent about Megxit,' a courtier confides. 'Every time the Sussexes issue a statement, it hits everyone like a fresh bombshell. The Cambridges are left reeling like everyone else. Everyone is terribly worried about how this is affecting the Queen.'

NOW: Paragraph erased

WHAT IT SAID: [Kate] is a royal ballast, William's most trusted adviser, and someone who puts duty above all else. Endearingly, following the spirit of Diana, both William and Kate consult psychics. A medium who went to Kensington Palace to 'channel' for them found William to be 'open-hearted and lovely'. Kate, while scrupulously polite, was more 'shut-down'. Maybe she was merely going through the motions to appease her husband?

NOW: [Kate] is a royal ballast, William's most trusted adviser, and someone who puts duty above all else. Whatever the truth, as the woman behind the man who will reign from what Winston Churchill called 'the greatest throne in history', Kate has emerged as the ultimate power player.
The Joint Terrorism Task Force in Washington is leading the investigation, with assistance from New York, according to multiple law enforcement officials. So far, investigators have found no links between the ricin letters and any international terrorist groups, but the investigation is in its early stages, and nothing has yet been ruled out, one senior official said.

Ricin, which is part of the waste produced when castor oil is made, has no known antidote.

The F.B.I. and our U.S. Secret Service and U.S. Postal Inspection Service partners are investigating a suspicious letter received at a U.S. government mail facility, the F.B.I. said in a statement. At this time, there is no known threat to public safety.

Officials declined to discuss what evidence they had that pointed them to the suspect. Gathering evidence will be a painstaking process. As part of the investigation, for example, agents may need to identify the sorting facility that handled the letters, identify public mailboxes assigned to that sorting facility and see if there is video of the suspect posting the letters in the hours before they were collected by postal workers.

This is not the first time that U.S. officials have been targeted in ricin attacks.

In 2018, William Clyde Allen, a Navy veteran, was charged in a seven-count federal indictment for trying to send envelopes with ricin to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis; the chief of naval operations, Adm. John M. Richardson; the F.B.I. director, Christopher A. Wray; the C.I.A. director, Gina Haspel; and the secretary of the Air Force, Heather Wilson.

Officials determined that Mr. Allen had sent castor beans, rather than ricin. His case is still pending.
Welcome to the 21st century.

The planet is on fire.

The pandemic is worsening.

Incidents of racial injustice are increasing.

And millions of people worldwide are being driven into poverty.

So, what is going on? Are these four crises largely separate and distinct  happening at the same time simply due to terribly bad luck?

No, that is too easy a dodge. They are actually all part of one global crisis  incorporating the related challenges of climate breakdown, deepening economic inequality and the surging appeal of racism and xenophobia.

And recognizing that fact is probably the first step we can take in responding to these unprecedented times.

Not surprisingly, these calamities  including most recently the horrendous wildfires in California and Oregon  have been most dramatically evident in Donald Trumps America.

Like a canary in a coal mine, the United States has shown us the worst of what may eventually happen to all of us if governments keep ignoring the impact of climate change.

But this is not unique to the American West. This year, many other parts of the world  such as the Arctic, Indonesia, Siberia, Brazil and Australia  are experiencing their worst wildfires in decades as hotter and drier weather, made worse by the burning of fossil fuels, triggers more intense blazes.

But it is also in the U.S. that there is some hope for positive steps towards a solution.

A motivating principle of Trumps presidency has been his contempt of science, and this has certainly been apparent in his disastrous handling of the pandemic. But it has also been at the heart of his governments dismissal of the climate crisis.

Last Monday, this was in full display as Trump reluctantly paid a two-hour visit to California, ostensibly to be briefed about the wildfires. When urged by state officials to accept the science of climate change, Trump replied: I dont think science knows, actually  It will start getting cooler, just you watch.

In contrast, Democratic challenger Joe Biden that same day described Trump as Americas arsonist-in-chief and outlined his approach to the climate crisis. It would involve a $2-trillion plan to boost investment in clean energy and stop all climate-damaging emissions from U.S. power plants by 2035.

What is striking is that Biden is now promoting the most aggressive plan to address climate change in U.S. presidential history. This is largely in response to pressure on him from the progressive wing of the Democratic party, led by Sen. Bernie Sanders and New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Polls indicate that most Democrats place the climate crisis right behind the pandemic as a key priority, and there is considerable support for the so-called Green New Deal promoted by progressives that links climate change and economic inequality as a way forward for a potential Biden administration.

In fact, the entire Democratic platform is widely regarded as a compromise between the Biden and Sanders camp to ensure party unity, and Sanders isnt forgetting that. Last weekend, he dismissed critics who describe the Green New Deal as too expensive, noting the amount of money being spent on responding to climate emergencies such as the wildfires and hurricanes.

Turn on the TV and you see the West Coast of the U.S., some of the most beautiful land in our country, burning, he said. The Green New Deal is not too expensive (when) the alternative is far, far more dreadful, more destructive and much more expensive.

There are signs that this message is getting through to voters, even though Americas political and media class is slow to respond.

A survey of American public opinion released last month by Stanford University  the latest in a 23-year series  indicated that the number of Americans who feel passionately about climate change is rising sharply.

Somewhat surprisingly, it also suggested that support for action to curb climate change has not diminished in spite of the ongoing pandemic crisis. (Canadian government: please take note.)

On all of these related issues, this makes the result of Novembers U.S. presidential election so important. For the first time ever, there is the prospect of a groundbreaking, even radical, approach to climate change and economic inequality being embraced by the governing party in Washington.

And it wont be a moment too soon.

It was just announced by the Trump administration that a Delaware academic who has long questioned the link between human activity and global warming has just been appointed to help run the agency that produces much of the climate research funded by the U.S. government.

Tony Burman, formerly head of CBC News and Al Jazeera English, is a freelance contributing foreign affairs columnist for the Star. He is based in Toronto. Follow him on Twitter: , formerly head of CBC News and Al Jazeera English, is a freelance contributing foreign affairs columnist for the Star. He is based in Toronto. Follow him on Twitter: @TonyBurman

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Trustees voted unanimously to rename Morgan Hall, named for U.S. Sen. John Tyler Morgan in 1910, to the English Building for the time being at the University of Alabama. Morgan was a Confederate general and white supremacist.

MONTGOMERY, Ala.  The University of Alabama Board of Trustees voted this week to rename a campus hall that honored a white supremacist.

Trustees voted unanimously to rename Morgan Hall, named for U.S. Sen. John Tyler Morgan in 1910, to the English Building for the time being. Trustee John England said Thursday he hopes the building will be renamed for an "appropriate individual" in the future.

A Confederate general, Morgan later served for three decades in the Senate. He was known for his expansionist policies, playing a large role in what would eventually become the Panama Canal, and England noted that Morgan successfully lobbied Congress for a large and profitable land grant that substantially contributed to the university.

But England said trustees who reviewed Morgan's history agreed he was an "ardent white supremacist."

While speaking on the floor of the U.S. Senate in 1890 against a bill designed to protect voting rights, Morgan said the "condition of the country would be better" without the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees voting rights to men regardless of race or color.

More: As calls to remove Confederate monuments grew louder, states passed new laws to protect them

"He referred to African Americans as 'rats' from the floor of the U.S. Senate and said slavery was the 'highest point the Negro race could achieve.' Of course, that means me," said England, who is Black. "As our research confirmed, Sen. Morgan laid the groundwork for the Jim Crow laws that would disenfranchise African Americans for decades."

England also noted Morgan's staunch advocacy for "mass immigration for African Americans" as an attempt to "send us out of this country we worked to help build."

Some campus members have long advocated for renaming myriad buildings and landmarks on the University of Alabama campus with direct ties to white supremacists and the Confederacy, a government specifically founded on the idea of white supremacy. Students have for years petitioned for the renaming of Morgan, while academics such as associate professor Hilary Green have devoted scholarship to researching the university's direct ties to slavery.

Story continues

In the wake of a massive civil rights movement this summer  sparked by the police killing of George Floyd and subsequent national discussions of systemic racism throughout the country  institutions such as UA have finally moved to officially address those concerns.

A summer petition circulated by UA students drew more than 17,000 signatures urging university leaders to rename buildings named for slave owners and white supremacists. The school's Student Government Association soon urged administrators to take action.

More: University of Alabama to remove plaques that honor Confederates, study renaming buildings

On June 8, President Pro Tempore Ronald Gray appointed a working group of trustees to study the history of campus landmarks and building names. A day later, the school removed plaques honoring Confederate soldiers on the campus quad.

In August, trustees voted to rename Nott Hall, a building housing UA's honors college. The hall honored Josiah Clark Nott, a physician and fervent defender of slavery who had tenuous connection to the university.

Opinion: While Auburn hides behind law, Troy University takes racist name off building

But some on campus are calling for additional transparency and input in the working group's process.

Following the renaming of Nott Hall, an employee union chapter released a statement that state workers were "disappointed" to not have a seat at the table during discussions. United Campus Workers also said they were "outraged" that the hall was renamed to the generic Honors Hall instead of commemorating a Black Alabamian who has contributed to the university and Alabama.

In a board resolution officially adopting the name change, trustees announced UA plans to display a plaque in the location where Morgan's portrait once hung inside the hall. The plaque will feature the following language:

"In 1910, at this buildings dedication, the University of Alabamas Board of Trustees named it Morgan Hall, for John Tyler Morgan of Selma. A longtime state political leader, Morgan had died three years earlier, but had served as one of Alabamas U.S. Senators for the last thirty years of his life. As a Senator, Morgan rendered the University a vital service in a time of need. In 1884, he successfully lobbied Congress for a federal land grant of 46,080 acres to compensate for University buildings burned by Union troops almost twenty years earlier, in the closing weeks of the Civil War. Until that grant, for almost two decades after the war, the University had struggled to survive financially. Revenue from leases and sales of this land funded the construction of at least five new buildings and other major campus improvements. It helped the University regain a more solid financial footing on which it would continue to build. Lease revenues still benefit the University today, and the University continues to be grateful for Senator Morgans efforts on its behalf. Senator Morgan was, however, also an ardent white supremacist. He led Alabama in suppressing the rights of African Americans and denying them full citizenship, and these efforts were a core element of his work for half a century. Senator Morgan defended slavery before the Civil War, advocated secession from the Union to protect slavery, led in restoring white control after the Civil War, and helped establish the system of racial segregation. His harsh actions and strident words contributed to decades of racial injustice in Alabama and the United States. Because these actions conflict so profoundly with the current values of the University of Alabama System, the Board of Trustees voted on September 17, 2020, to remove Senator Morgans name from the building. The Board also called for the placement of this plaque to explain the reasons both for the Universitys gratitude to Senator Morgan and for the decision to change the buildings name.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: University of Alabama renames hall that honored white supremacist
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 04:22:15|Editor: huaxia

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BERLIN, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- The Bundesrat, Germany's upper parliament, approved on Friday new legislation aimed to further restrict advertising for tobacco products in the country.

A ban on tobacco advertising which applied to movies and a ban on handing out free tobacco samples outside specialist stores would come into force at the beginning of 2021.

Bans on outdoor advertising, such as on billboards or bus stops, for conventional tobacco products would apply from 2022. A year later, the advertising ban would also affect tobacco heaters before finally including advertisement for electronic cigarettes in 2024.

The extensive ban would serve the health and youth protection as "smoking is proven to be harmful to health," the German government said. Around 121,000 deaths per year in Germany were directly related to smoking, according to last year's drug and addiction report of the federal government commissioner for drugs.

Germany is the only country in the European Union to allow tobacco advertising in public spaces.

"Many studies prove that tobacco advertising increases the attractiveness of tobacco products, in particular among children and young people," Klaus Reinhardt, president of the German Medical Association told the German Press Agency (dpa) on Friday.

"Advertisement sets constantly key stimuli which make an exit from the addiction more difficult," said Reinhardt.

In Germany, tobacco advertising in radio and television has already been banned since 1974. Further restrictions for tobacco advertising in print media, the internet and cinemas had been introduced subsequently. Enditem
News

Washington, DC - Proclamation on National POW/MIA Recognition Day, 2020:

Throughout our Nations history, Americas sons and daughters have heroically safeguarded our precious freedoms and defended the cause of liberty both at home and abroad. On National POW/MIA Recognition Day, we remember the more than 500,000 prisoners of war who have endured incredible suffering and brutality under conditions of extraordinary privation, and the tens of thousands of our patriots who are still missing in action. Although our Nation will never be able to fully repay our debt to those who have given so much on our behalf, we commemorate their bravery and recommit to working for their long-suffering families who deserve answers and solace for their missing loved ones.

Today, I join a grateful Nation in honoring those POWs who faithfully served through extreme hardship and unimaginable physical and emotional trauma. Their lives and resilience reflect the best of the American Spirit, and their immeasurable sacrifices have ensured the blessings of freedom for future generations. On this day, we also reaffirm our unceasing global efforts to obtain the fullest possible accounting of our MIA personnel. The search, recovery, and repatriation of MIA remains help bring closure to families bearing the burden of the unresolved fate of their loved ones. That is why in 2018, I worked to secure the historic repatriation of remains from North Korea, and why we are continually working to bring more home from around the world. My Administration will never waver in fulfilling our countrys obligation to leave no service member behind.

This year, as we commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II and reflect upon both the 70th anniversary of the start of the Korean War and the 45th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, we pause to recognize the men and women who were held as POWs or deemed MIA in these conflicts against repressive ideologies. These service members and civilians, many from the Greatest Generation, deserve a special place of honor in the hearts of all Americans because of their selfless devotion, unflinching courage, and unsurpassed dedication to our cherished American values.

On September 18, 2020, our Nations citizens will look to the iconic black and white flag as a powerful reminder of the service of Americas POWs and service members who have gone MIA. This flag, especially when flying high above our military installations abroad, conveys the powerful message of American devotion to the cause of human liberty and our commitment to never forget the brave Americans lost defending that liberty. On this National POW/MIA Recognition Day, our Nation takes a special moment to pay tribute to those who endured the horrors of enemy captivity and those lost in service to our country. Our Nation will continue to be resolute in our relentless pursuit of those remains of service members who have yet to return home from war and our steadfast promise to their families that their loved ones will never be forgotten.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 18, 2020, as National POW/MIA Recognition Day. Together with the people of the United States, I salute all American POWs who, in the presence of great dangers and uncertainties, valiantly honored their duty to this great country. Let this day also serve as a reminder for our Nation to strengthen our resolve to account for those who are still missing and provide their families long-sought answers. I call upon Federal, State, and local government officials and private organizations to observe this day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this seventeenth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.

DONALD J. TRUMP
The school board of the tiny Adrian school district near the Idaho border has filed a lawsuit against some Oregon leaders, demanding it be permitted to educate students in person during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The board filed the complaint Thursday against Colt Gill, director of the Oregon Department of Education, and Patrick Allen, director of the Oregon Health Authority.

Adrian is located in Malheur County, which has by far the highest rates of COVID-19 infections in Oregon. It shares a border with Idaho, which has higher case rates and fewer coronavirus restrictions than Oregon.

The state has told schools they cant operate in person, with some exceptions, unless the countys positive test rate stays at 5% or lower for three weeks in a row. In Malheur, the positive test rate has ranged from 36% to 41% in the three most recent weeks.

The school boards complaint claims if the children are not immediately returned to in-person instruction, immediate and irreparable harm will be caused to the school districts resources, and immediate and irreparable harm will be incurred by the students in the form of reduced quality of instruction.

In the suit, the board says it, not the state, should have control of the district.

Board members are all "elected, volunteer members who have been imbued with the responsibility of ensuring that the students of the Adrian School District receive a good and proper education.

Adrian School District educates just under 300 students, with a total of 17 to 30 students in each grade. The farming community of Adrian has fewer than 1,000 residents.

The state does not release case counts for communities with such small populations.

The Adrian school board is concerned about the lack of ability to use limited in-person instruction to meet the requirements of comprehensive distance learning.

Adrian district leaders have mapped out a method to get every student into the classroom at least once per week while following the states guidance, which the superintendent says limits students to spending no more than two hours at school per day.

During a school board meeting earlier this month, Board Chairman Ryan Martin asked Superintendent Kevin Purnell what is stopping the school from having students in the school more often.

Purnell answered that it was the states guidance. He said the state requires that students be provided a certain number of hours of distance learning each day, and he said those cant be replaced with in-person instruction. Teachers dont have enough hours in the day to teach multiple in-person classes while also teaching their required online classes, Purnell said.

If the school were able to count the in-person instruction towards the instructional hours, Purnell said the school would be able to get far more students into the classroom. In-person class with Adrians teachers is the most valuable and effective form of instruction, he said.

-- Nik Streng, Argus Observer
She's endured a year of ups, downs and breakups, and it seems like she may be airing some dirty laundry on her next album.

Miley Cyrus is hard at work on her seventh studio album, titled She Is Miley Cyrus, and The Sun reports that there are at least a few references to her failed marriage to ex-husband Liam Hemsworth therein.

The We Can't Stop songstress, 27, reportedly takes aim at Liam directly in a few tracks, including one called Win Some, Lose Some, in which she sings: 'Cant count all the times that I faked it, thank God for the thoughts in my head.'

She's a man eater: Miley Cyrus seems like she may be airing some dirty laundry on her next album, according to some newly leaked lyrics; seen this month on The Tonight Show

The complete lyrics read:

'Last night was the nail in the coffin, Lord knows we were already dead. Look back and the memorys haunted, cant believe we did it again, yeah. Cant count all the times that I faked it, thank God for the thoughts in my head.'

While it remains unconfirmed whether Win Some, Lose Some will in fact end up on the final cut of the new record, the references to her longtime on-off love are there, including in the chorus:

'You know me the best, but you hurt me the worst, my darling. I cant pretend any more.'

The We Can't Stop songstress reportedly takes aim at ex Liam Hemsworth directly in a few tracks, including one in which she sings: 'Cant count all the times that I faked it'; seen in 2019

Cyrus and her Last Song costar, who dated on and off since that film's shoot in 2009 and later wed in December 2018, subsequently split last August in a very public divorce.

In another potential song off the new album, WTF Do I Know, Miley reflects: 'Maybe getting married just to cause a distraction.'

Still other lyrics seem to be directed at the Australian actor, when she sings:

'You wanted an apology? Not from me. I had to leave you in your own misery. So tell me, baby, am I wrong that I moved on? And I dont even miss you.

While it remains unconfirmed whether Win Some, Lose Some will end up on the new record, the references to her longtime on-off love are there: 'You know me the best, but you hurt me the worst, my darling. I cant pretend any more'; Miley this week seen on Instagram

'Thought that it'd be you until I die, but I let go,' she croons.

She Is Miley Cyrus, which Cosmopolitan said earlier this month will have 'heavy rock and roll vibe,' is to be released at a still-unspecified date by RCA Records.

And while the Adore You hitmaker is said to have begun working on the new album shortly before the release of her last one, 2017's Younger Now, it seems pretty evident that the new record has been informed by her starry breakup from Hemsworth last summer, not to mention her more recent splits from rebound Kaitlynn Carter and Cody Simpson.

Over: Cyrus and her Last Song costar, who dated on and off since that film's shoot in 2009 and later wed in December 2018, subsequently split last August in a very public divorce

In another potential song off the new album, WTF Do I Know, Miley reflects: 'Maybe getting married just to cause a distraction'; seen on The Tonight Show

Miley's latest album was originally intended to be released over a trilogy of extended plays, one of which, entitled She Is Coming, came out last year.

But between her divorce, vocal cord surgery and the COVID-19 pandemic, Cyrus decided to scrap those plans and go the traditional route of releasing the record in one go.

And while current hit Midnight Sky is the lead single off She Is Miley Cyrus, Miley's Smilers fanbase have yet to receive final word on when the rest of the record will drop.

Ex files: It seems evident that Miley's new record has been informed by her starry breakup from Hemsworth last summer, not to mention her more recent split from Cody Simpson...
President Trump said Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg "led an amazing life," after he finished a campaign rally in Bemidji, Minnesota, and learned of her death.

What he's saying: "Im sad to hear, Trump told the press pool before boarding Air Force One. "She was an amazing woman, whether you agree or not, she was an amazing woman who led an amazing life."

Trump added in a statement: "Today our Nation mourns the loss of a titan of the law. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg served more than 27 years as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Statesnotably just the second woman to be appointed to the Court. She was a loving wife to her late husband, Martin, and a dedicated mother to her two children.

"Renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable toward one's colleagues or different points of view.

"Her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds.

"A fighter to the end, Justice Ginsburg battled cancer, and other very long odds, throughout her remarkable life. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Ginsburg family and their loved ones during this difficult time. May her memory of a great and magnificent blessing to the world."

Why it matters: Republican sources tell Axios that Trump will move within days to nominate his third justice, adding that the Republican base will revolt on Election Day if he does not.

The big picture: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement Friday that Trumps nominee "will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."
Almost Euro 2 billion in counterfeit goods and a direct impact on the sectors employment rate of 15,000 jobs. These are the effects of counterfeiting in the European goldjewellery sector, according to the latest figured from Indicam. The overall damage caused by counterfeiting in the gold-jewellery field is estimated at about 3.5 billion Euros, while damage due to tax evasion comes to about 600 million Euros.

In Italy, the damage is calculated as 400 million Euros on total sales (equal to 20.5%) and as a loss of 3,500 jobs  a record that our country claims in relation to the other members of the European Union.

These are just some of the data regarding the question of counterfeiting that will be discussed on the last day of VOICE, Vicenzaoro International Community Event, the show organized by Italian Exhibition Group and the jewellery industrys first event since the lockdown.

The COVID-19 crisis has caused an ongoing trend to accelerate in the gold and jewellery sector, as in the entire national economic system: the digitization process. And although a shift from physical to analogical leads to numerous opportunities, it is necessary to be just as aware of the challenges that this unprecedented reality involves. Challenges that are sometimes totally new while, in other cases, are merely the simple repositioning of already familiar phenomena such as counterfeiting  which is now occurring in the digital dimension just as it has up to now in the physical.

On September 14th, Mario Peserico, President of Assorologi and CEO of Eberhard, and Dody Giussani, Editor-in-Chief of LOrologio, analysed the theme of online counterfeiting  never more topical than now  during the conference entitled Online anticounterfeiting, tools and strategies. Peserico and Giussani were also able to count on valuable contributions from Brigadier General Renzo Nisi, Commander of the Financial Polices Special Assets and Services Squad; Laurence Morel-Chevillet, IP & Brand Protection Director; Luca Vespignani, Managing Director of DcP (Digital Content Protection) and Alessandro Nicolis, Brand Relations Manager for Amazon. The event, in line with one of the shows main objectives, that was, to promote secure and effective digitization among Small and Medium Enterprises in the Italian gold-jewellery sector, aimed to precisely outline the entity of the phenomenon and contextualize it downstream of the boom in online sales that the sector has been experiencing, particularly due to the recent lockdown.
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny said he's recovering at a German hospital from a suspected nerve agent poisoning and slowly regaining his verbal and physical capabilities, in an Instagram post on Saturday, according to AP.

The state of play: Navalny, an anti-corruption lawyer and an open critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, fell ill on a flight to Moscow in August and was transferred to Germany for treatment.

German specialist labs confirmed he was poisoned with Novichok, the same type of Soviet-era nerve agent that Britain said was used on a former Russian spy and his daughter in England in 2018.

Navalny was placed under a medically induced coma and treated with an antidote. Doctors took him out of the coma in early September.

What they're saying: Navalny said after being brought out of the coma, he was confused and couldnt respond to a doctors questions.

Although I understood in general what the doctor wanted, I did not understand where to get the words. In what part of the head do they appear in? Navalny wrote in the post, according to AP. I also did not know how to express my despair and, therefore, simply kept silent.

Now Im a guy whose legs are shaking when he walks up the stairs, but he thinks: Oh, this is a staircase! They go up it. Perhaps we should look for an elevator, Navalny said. "And before, I would have just stood there and stared.

The big picture: Russia has denied that any crime took place, though Novichok is a chemical typically associated with Russian security services. Germany has called on the Russian government to explain its role in the poisoning.

The United States joined other world governments earlier in September in condemning Navalny's apparent poisoning, calling on the Russian government to conduct an investigation into the matter.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov accused Navalnys colleagues of hindering a Russian investigation by removing items from Navalnys hotel room in the Siberian city of Tomsk, including a water bottle they claim held traces of the nerve agent, according to AP.
Following President Muhammadu Buharis request, Presidents of West African countries have repeated their commitment to the victory of Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the only candidate supported by the sub-region for the position of Director-General of the World Trade Organisation.

They also urged Africa to unite behind her candidacy as the continents best option in the hotly contested race.

The leaders expressed the strong show of support during the 57th Ordinary Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) which took place recently hold in Niamey, Republic of Niger.

The event which held at the Mahatma Gandhi International Conference Centre Niamey considered reports form the 44th Ordinary Session of the Mediation and Security Council at the Ministerial Level and the 84th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Council of Ministers, which preceded the Summit, among others.

According to the Presidents who spoke at the event, the focus of the sub-region is to persuade other African countries to support Nigerias highly respected pick for the position, one of five candidates who recently scaled the first stage of the WTO leadership hurdle.

READ ALSO:

The expression of support follows the endorsement of Mrs Okonjo-Iweala by the sub-regional body in June anchored on the former World Bank Managing Directors track record of high performance and leadership in top positions.

According to the ECOWAS Presidents, Okonjo-Iweala is eminently qualified to head the WTO based on her long years of managerial experience at the top echelon of multilateral institutions, her reputation as a fearless reformer, her excellent negotiating and political skills, her experience of over 30 years as a developmental economist with a long-standing interest in trade, her excellent academic qualification, her position as Managing Director World Bank, and currently as Board Chair, Gavi, and AU Special Envoy to mobilize financial resources for the fight against COVID-19.
American Bradley Fighting Vehicles have deployed to northeast Syria, the US-led international coalition against the Islamic State (IS) announced this evening.

The deployment of mechanized infantry and the armored vehicles is intended to ensure the protection of Coalition forces and preserve their freedom of movement so they may continue Defeat Daesh [IS] operations safely, coalition spokesman US Army Col. Wayne Morotto said.

Last month, a Russian troop carrier rammed a US up-armored vehicle in a heated off-road encounter that left four US soldiers with mild concussion-like symptoms.

The two sides have engaged in a number of tense standoffs on contested roads in Syrias Kurdish-controlled northeast, despite US attempts to safely pre-arrange patrolling areas with their Russian rivals.

Gen. Kenneth Frank McKenzie, the head of US forces in the Middle East, told NBC this week that the Russians behavior has been better since Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley phoned his counterpart, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, over the latest incident.

The United States previously deployed armored vehicles to eastern Syria in October 2019, after the coalition hastily pulled back across Syrias northeast to consolidate around prized oilfields in a truncated area of operations.

The move also saw some 1,400 US troops eventually leave Syria, according to official numbers.

The retreat was precipitated by a phone call between President Donald Trump and Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, after which US forces were ordered to stand aside as Ankaras military and its Syrian proxy forces attacked the Kurdish-led militias that had borne the brunt of the US-led coalitions war to defeat the Islamic State.

Russian and Syrian government forces rapidly moved into the area, on the east side of the Euphrates River, to fill the void left by the Americans last year.

Since then, US military officials have remained to guard the oil, in Trumps words.

Long coveted by the Bashar al-Assad regime and Russia, the oilfields in Deir ez-Zor and Syrias northeast are a valuable revenue source for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, and a major bargaining chip in store for potential future negotiations over their reintegration into a unified Syria.

Since the coalitions consolidation, deconflicting with the Russians has become far more complex, US officials have said.

In June, Russian forces reportedly attempted to set up an outpost in Derik, not far from a main US supply line into the autonomous Syrian region.

Last month, a Syrian fighter was reportedly killed when a firefight broke out between a Syrian pro-regime checkpoint and a US patrol.

The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have cautiously courted Russia, seeking assurances of their survival in case the Americans leave Syria.

Likely seeking to appease Turkey  which accuses the SDF of being led by Kurdistan Workers Party terrorists  the United States has not overtly pushed to include northeast Syrias autonomous administration in the Geneva talks to resolve Syrias conflict.

Meanwhile, US-led coalition soldiers are left guarding oilfields as the State Department leads Washingtons long-haul Syria policy with corrosive economic sanctions targeting the Assad regime and its affiliates.
Foreign Minister of the Republic of Korea (RoK) Kang Kyung-wha shakes hands with Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh on Friday during their meeting in Hanoi. - VNA/VNS Photo Lam Khanh

Kang Kyung-wha, the first foreign minister to visit Vietnam since the COVID-19 pandemic began, proposed the two countries increase the frequency of those flights and hoped that Vietnam would continue to create favourable conditions for the RoKs businesspeople to enter following COVID-19 prevention protocols with an aim of fostering the bilateral economic, trade and investment co-operation.

Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh appreciated Kang Kyung-whas visit to Vietnam, saying it played an important role in strengthening the partnership between the two sides.

Vietnam attaches importance to relations with the RoK and is willing to consolidate the Vietnam-RoK strategic partnership, especially at the time the two countries are looking towards the 30th anniversary of diplomatic ties in 2022, Minh said.

The guest congratulated Vietnam for its COVID-19 containment and chairmanship of ASEAN in the context of challenges posed by the pandemic.

She expressed her belief that Vietnam would continue to obtain more socio-economic and external affair achievements in the future based on its 75-year foundation since gaining independence.

As Vietnam is a key partner in the RoKs New Southern Policy, the RoKs government is willing to deepen relations with Vietnam and continue to support Vietnam in taking over the role of a non-permanent member of UN Security Council in the 2020-21 term and rotating chair of ASEAN in 2020, she said.

The RoK will closely work with Vietnam to accelerate the practical and effective implementation of high-level agreements, developing the bilateral relations, she said.

The host spoke highly of maintaining exchanges between the two countries at all levels in spite of COVID-19, proposing the resumption of high-level officials visits and maintaining flexible channels of dialogue mechanism.

Deputy PM Minh asked the RoKs government to shorten the procedures for risk assessment and analysis to create conditions for Vietnam's agricultural and aquatic products to be exported to the RoK, in the short term, prioritising pomelo and dragon fruit.

Vietnam also asked for support to improve competitiveness and bring Vietnamese products into the value chain of Korean businesses in the RoK and abroad, contributing to soon reaching the goal of US$100 billion of two-way trade turnover.

The two sides agreed to encourage Korean enterprises to invest and expand the scale of investment in Vietnam as well as increase non-refundable aids to Vietnam.

Vietnam and the RoK will also strengthen collaboration in pharmaceuticals and medical equipment, labour, climate change, science and technology.

On international and regional issues, an agreement was reached to continue mutual support for each other for the candidacy of multilateral mechanisms and pledged effective co-operation at multilateral mechanisms such as the United Nations, ASEAN, APEC, ASEM, WTO, Mekong.

The RoK will continue to support Vietnam to successfully organise the ASEAN Summit, the 10th Mekong-RoK Ministerial Meeting, the 2nd Mekong-RoK Summit and the Mekong-RoK Business Forum this year.

Vietnam and the RoK welcome efforts to promote dialogue, peaceful settlement of the North Koreas nuclear issue, and support the maintenance of peace, stability, security, and resolving disputes in the South China Sea (called East Sea by Vietnam) by peaceful means in accordance with international laws, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
ALBANY  The legacy and inspiration of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who died Friday at 87 was recalled by more than 100 people who gathered for a vigil on Eagle Street in her memory, one of many across the country.

"Tonight, we are here to honor a shero. We are here to honor a giant who walked among us. We are here to honor an iconic woman," said Chief City Auditor Dorcey Applyrs.

The crowd stood in a fitting location between the Albany County Court House and the New York State Court of Appeals on Eagle Street to salute Ginsburg who was a legal force in the nation during her distinguished career that took her to a seat on the country's highest bench.

"She is someone who fought for all of us," said Mayor Kathy Sheehan, who credited Ginsburg's actions for ensuring that when Sheehan took her job as an associate out of law school that she was paid the same as the men who were hired for the same post.

Sheehan described Ginsburg as leaving behind an important legacy and for teaching succeeding generations to fight for what is right.

Ginsburg is "an exemplar for all of us, female and male," said Albany County Legislator Carolyn McLaughlin.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo also announced that Saturday night state landmarks would be lit in blue  Ginsburg's favorite color and the color of justice, according to Cuomo  as part of the recognition of Ginsburg.

In Albany, these landmarks included the New York State Education Department Building, the Alfred E. Smith State Office Building, the H. Carl McCall SUNY Building and the Albany International Airport Gateway.

"As we mourn the loss of one of America's most prominent and inspiring jurists, New York State will take a moment to celebrate the extraordinary legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her precedent-shattering contributions to gender equity, civil rights and jurisprudence," Cuomo said in announcing Saturday night's tribute. "In honor of Justice Ginsburg, I am directing landmarks throughout our state to be lit blue, the color of justice. New Yorkers from all walks of life should reflect on the life of Justice Ginsburg and remember all that she did for our nation as we view these beautifully lit monuments tonight."
Voting booths

Voting booths in polling place Getty Images/Hill Street Studios

This article was produced by Economy for All, a project of the Independent Media Institute.

The anxiety over changes and irregularities with the United States Postal Service (USPS) in August finally spilled over. A functioning postal service undergirds many of our society's most basic functions, so there was no shortage of reasons to be alarmed. However, one concernthe threat to November's electionoverwhelmingly rose to the top. And the public outcry over that threat pushed a normally lethargic House majority into action, winning some mild but incomplete reversals from USPS.

USPS is not, however, the only agency where the potent combination of maladministration and outright sabotage may be disenfranchising people, swaying election results, and imposing other hardships. At U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a complete failure, or perhaps unwillingness, to adapt to changing conditions during the pandemic slowed new naturalizations such that hundreds of thousands who may have otherwise been able to vote this year will not be able to exercise that long-awaited right. The relative lack of attention to this crisis is a troubling sign that while House Democrats may be willing to ride waves of public anger to modest action, they are still not willing to whip up rage over under-scrutinized but salient abuses of power.

The onset of the global pandemic in March understandably led to upheaval and delays as people and organizations adjusted to a new, tenuous normal. USCIS, however, simply shut down its services for a period of over two months. For more than 70 days, it did not offer naturalization ceremonies or visa and asylum interviews. Despite being pressed by many advocates who were alarmed at these delays, USCIS refused to transition to virtual platforms to continue operations, citing vague supposed legal limitations. The immigration-services company Boundless estimated that each day without naturalization ceremonies translated into "2,100 potential new voters" being disenfranchised.

Story continues

Since restarting naturalization ceremonies in June, USCIS has cleared the backlog of soon-to-be-citizens who had their ceremonies delayed this spring, but at the expense of hundreds of thousands more who are waiting for theirs to be scheduled. Meanwhile, backlogs in other areas, including new naturalization applications, background checks, and interviews, all remain. As Sarah Pierce of the Migration Policy Institute told FiveThirtyEight, there's "no way" USCIS could naturalize as many people as it normally would ahead of the election unless it also expedites the processing of other applications. But thanks to budget shortfalls stemming from reduced fee collection, the agency is having to reduce rather than expedite service offerings.

Unfortunately, time to even marginally rectify this widespread disenfranchisement is running out. There is less than two months remaining before the election, leaving scant time for applications to be processed, ceremonies to be held, and voter registrations to be submitted.

It should not be overlooked that this outcomethe disenfranchisement of hundreds of thousands of new immigrantsfits pretty neatly into Trump's anti-immigrant agenda. These extreme delays due to the pandemic are also coming on the tail end of several years of rising wait times at Trump's USCIS. So while it's possible that this unfortunate series of events is the result of incompetence, it hardly seems probable.

You might think that Democratic lawmakers would take note of these opportunistic attacksespecially in light of immense outpourings of energy over the last several years in response to anti-immigrant assaults like the Muslim ban and family separation. Yet, House Democrats' response can only be described as muted. Yes, the House Judiciary Committee held some hearings with USCIS leadership (which is more than what can be said for many committees), but at no point was it clear that this was a top priority around which they were organizing a serious opposition effort. And it is likely that it is Speaker Nancy Pelosi, with whom House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler has been fightingunsuccessfully in pursuit of an oversight mandate, who is restraining the Judiciary Committee.

What might a more energetic effort have entailed? First and foremost, lawmakers needed to raise the profile of this issue outside of the hearing room. This is not to suggest that congressional hearings do not have valuewe have regularly argued exactly the oppositebut to say that they are but one of many potential tools. By, for example, leaning on celebrities, lawmakers could have increased national attention to the delays and generated more interest in their efforts to combat them. Similarly, by reaching out to community, religious, and labor leaders, Democrats might have been able to offer assurances that grassroots opposition would be met with encouragement and action from those in power.

Additionally, by signaling a willingness to open impeachment proceedings for those willfully blocking new naturalizations, lawmakers could have simultaneously underlined their seriousness to recalcitrant government officials and the public. By ratcheting up the stakes, lawmakers could have captured public attention in this period of information overload.

Of course, some will argue that impeachment is too severe a response for this manner of transgression. And to those people I say, why stop with the scandal at USCIS? Whether it's Trump or his army of loyal appointees, there is no shortage of solid ground from which to launch impeachment proceedings. Congress could threaten to impeach Trump and his appointees for undermining independent journalism at Voice of America and other government-funded media.

Or they could impeach him for denying congressional leaders access to intelligence on Trump's illegal electioneering support from international authoritarians. Or for the glittery, firework-heavy Hatch Act violation that took place when the Republican National Convention event was held on the White House lawn in August.

Following the Trump administration's attacks on the postal service, public pressure roused Democratic lawmakers into action. Their tentative first steps on USPS oversight have been encouraging, but the relative lack of resistance to the problems at USCIS points to where they can still improve. People's attention at the moment is understandably scattered between public health crises, natural disasters, police brutality and the protests against it, and the administration's horrific response to it all. But lawmakers are not helpless in the face of this overload. It is the job of our leaders to connect disparate, ephemeral scandals into a single, interconnected narrative: Trump is severely mismanaging the components of government needed to keep ordinary people safe while focusing his efforts on seizing control of components that can help him hold onto power.

Pursuing these inquiries is not just a matter of good messaging; understanding the extent of damage to these institutions will be a prerequisite to fixing them under a Biden administration. By carefully assessing the deficits in resources and personnel that have stemmed from Trumpian mismanagement and meticulously cataloging the policies and changes that will need to be reversed, Congress can ease a transition process and make way for effective executive branch governance from day one. In order to do so, however, Congress can't merely wait for the public to take interest in the infrastructural minutiae of executive branch governance; it must proactively lead the way.

It is long past time that the House majority recognizes that it has a tremendous platform from which it can not only respond to people's demands but guide attention and opposition to problems that are otherwise being subsumed amid the chaos.

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Studley Grange is a family friendly, agricultural organization that exists in 36 States and 2,100 communities. The members of Midlands Studley Grange work hard to help others in our community.

Here are just some of the things they have accomplished this year. Member Helen Mudd made more than 60 masks this spring, which were donated and shared with the Midland County Humane Society, the Aleda E. Lutz Veterans Affairs Hospital in Saginaw, and the Minden, Nevada Emergent Care Services.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Saturday asserted that he intended to carry out a Cabinet expansion before the Assembly session on Monday, but was awaiting a nod from the BJP high command.

Speaking to reporters at the Karnataka Bhavan here, Yediyurappa said: "I discussed this issue with both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP national President JP Nadda last night. Nadda assured me that he will discuss it with Modi and let me know. Therefore, I am eagerly waiting for their call. I am very hopeful that I may get a call by this evening," he said.

He added that once he got a call, Cabinet expansion would be a mere formality to be effected on Sunday.

Yediyurappa is under tremendous pressure from various quarters within the party to carry out this exercise. There are more than a dozen aspirants lobbying for six vacant berths in the Council of Ministers.

Answering a question, he said his three-day New Delhi visit was a "success", adding that his meeting with Modi lasted more than 45 minutes instead of the scheduled 15 minutes. "He heard me patiently and even gave in-principle approval to most of the projects I requested him to clear," Yediyurappa claimed.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Move by the National Oil Corporation comes after eastern-based forces announced lifting of eight-month blockade.

Libyas National Oil Corporation (NOC) has lifted a force majeure on what it deemed secure oil ports and facilities, but said the measure would remain in place for facilities where fighters remain.

On Friday, eastern-based Libyan commander Khalifa Haftar said his forces would lift their eight-month blockade of oil exports, but did not say if they would leave the facilities they control.

Haftars self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA) and allied forces, including mercenaries from Russias Wagner Group, hold some of Libyas largest oil fields and export ports, and the NOC had already rejected any return to operations until they left the facilities, citing the safety of its staff.

Force majeure continues in oil fields and ports where the presence of fighters from Wagner and other armed groups that obstruct the activities and operations of NOC is confirmed, the oil company said in a statement posted on its Facebook page on Saturday.

Force majeure refers to unexpected external circumstances that prevent a party to a contract, in this case the NOC, from meeting its obligations.

Libya and its institutions are divided between the internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli and Haftars LNA.

The countrys oil revenues are managed by the NOC and the central bank, both based in Tripoli.

Lost revenue

The eastern forces blockade of oil exports has cost $9bn in lost revenue for Libya so far this year, the central bank said this week, and has exacerbated electricity and fuel shortages in the country.

On Friday, Haftar said the command of his forces had put aside all military and political considerations to respond to the deterioration of living conditions in Libya, which has Africas largest oil reserves.

The announcement comes after hundreds of Libyans protested last week in the eastern city of Benghazi, one of Haftars strongholds, and other cities over corruption, power cuts and shortages in petrol and cash.

Haftars statement lifting the blockade was made in coordination with the GNAs Deputy Prime Minister Ahmed Maetig.

According to an official at his office, Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj opposed the final deal. The prime minister did not give his approval to the final version of the deal, the official told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Haftar  who has the backing of Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Russia  launched an offensive against Tripoli in April of last year.

After 14 months of fierce fighting, pro-GNA forces backed by Turkey expelled his troops from much of western Libya and pushed them to Sirte, the gateway to Libyas rich oilfields and export terminals.
A spokesman for Kerry Group has maintained the company's customary policy of refusing to be drawn on speculation, mounting in recent weeks, that a deal may be in the offing concerning the international food producer and Kerry Co-op.

There have been reports in national media suggesting a 660m deal - whereby Kerry Co-op, which owns 12.7 per cent of Kerry Group shares, would purchase the local dairy business, including plants in north Cork, of the multi-billion Euro global giant.

"Kerry Group, as a matter of policy, does not comment on speculation regarding any such matter," the spokesperson told The Corkman.

As an international group with global business interests, Kerry Group does not want to speak about one particular discussion with one particular party lest it be called on to speak on all possible talks with other parties.

The spokesman did, however, confirm that there are ongoing discussions stretching back to last year between Kerry Group and Kerry Co-op about the future relationship between the two entities.

One of the potential difficulties around such a deal, were it to take place, would be the necessity to have an EGM of Kerry Co-op to ratify the move. Due to COVID-19, this would be fraught with difficulties.

However, dairy-industry sources have said that the manner in which the deal might be structured, should it come to fruition, could mean that the Co-op might not need the vote of approval of an EGM to proceed.

The speculation centres on the possibility that Kerry Group would be left with a 40-per-cent stake in the local dairy business but that this would be bought out, in time, by Kerry Co-op.

Kerry Group's milk-processing business is worth approximately 1.2billion and delivers profits of somewhere in the region of 80million to 100million annually.

The deal would see Kerry Co-op, founded in 1974, return to the front-line of milk processors.

At present, Kerry Group are managing all aspects of the dairy business, from dealing with farmers to marketing produce.

It is generally thought that Kerry Group would see as advantageous the prospect of acquiring the Kerry Co-op shares, and these could be in play in the dealings between the two parties.
But, why? How is it, that a character that graced our screens 25 years ago, and who was originally written into existence more than 200 years ago, is still considered some paragon of partnership, and an object of lust? And why do so many people, across generations, respond to Mr Darcy  an arrogant, enigmatic and wealthy bachelor who first asks Elizabeth Bennet, the books witty and nearly-destitute heroine, to marry him, after telling her that every rational thought tells him to run  like a collective 12-year-old girl, doodling in her diary, Me + Darcy Forever? Ever since nearly half of England (about 10-11 million viewers per episode) tuned in to the first episode of the BBC's 1995 broadcast, on September 24  along with countless others around the world  we've been enthralled by "Darcymania". It has manifested itself, in the years following the TV series airing, in a variety of forms: felt Christmas ornaments in his likeness, erotic fiction (like Spank Me, Darcy), a 2016 retelling of the novel, Eligible (set in modern-day Cincinnati), and a travelling exhibit of the blouse Firth wore in the infamous lake scene, which landed at, among other destinations, The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington. In 2010, British researchers who found a sex pheromone in male mice  that stimulates female memory and sexual attraction to an individual males odour  named it after him: Darcin. Darcys still seen as hot, says Murphy, of how her students feel about him. Its the same in our nations capital. Ive always thought that Wentworth from Persuasion [the hero in another Austen novel] who loves [the heroine] Anne for seven years after she rejects him would be more appealing, but for students, its all about Mr Darcy, says Australian National University Austen associate professor of literature Kate Mitchell, even though, as one of her students once pointed out, Hes kind of a douche to her. (She adds that the 1995 TV series plays a big role in their desire for Mr Darcy.)

Jane Austen's hero, Mr Darcy, has been reincarnated countless times over the years, including in Colin Firth's portrayal of Mark Darcy in the film versions of Helen Fielding's novel, Bridget Jones's Diary. Seen here, with co-star Renee Zellweger, in the 2004 film, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason. Credit:Credit: Laurie Sparham Forgetting, for a moment, this massive red flag, why has the allure of Mr Darcy remained undimmed? Other fictitious heartthrobs from 1995 have not fared as well. (Nobodys making felt Christmas ornaments in the likeness of Ross from Friends, Kevin Costner from Waterworld, or Peter Phelps firefighter Nick Connor in Fire.) But Mr Darcy has something they dont: three key personality dimensions  warmth/loyalty, vitality/attractiveness, and status/resources  that a group of psychologists identified in 1999, as making up the ideal partner, says University of Sydney psychology lecturer Dr Rebecca Pinkus. Called The Ideal Standards model of intimate relationships, the theory proposes that we select these particular categories, in a mate, for evolutionary survival  as a way of ensuring that our genes are passed down. (The model studied heterosexual ideals only.)

Oh yeah, he ticks the boxes for these three domains although perhaps not the warmth/trustworthiness/kindness initially, says Pinkus of Mr Darcy, referring to the first half of Pride and Prejudice, when he looks down his nose at Elizabeth Bennets family, which includes an often-drunk social gadfly of a mother, and a vain, gossipy sister who runs off with the books hot and shady military rake. But its Mr Darcys drastic change, from the first half of the book, to the second, when he recognises the offensiveness of his previous self-superiority By you, I was properly humbled, he says to Elizabeth, at the end of the book  that is precisely what Mitchells students find particularly alluring about him. In 1940, viewers pined for the Laurence Olivier version of Mr Darcy, seen here in that year's film adaptation with co-star Greer Garson, which was radically different from both Austen's book, and later versions, chiefly because he was far friendlier, and open. They do often comment on the fact that he does change and is willing to change and recognise that he, for example, couldve behaved in a more gentlemanly like manner, as Elizabeth tells him, says Mitchell. Even more alluring to many people today  who were not yet born, when the BBC series aired  is the fact that Mr Darcy loves Elizabeth specifically, a radical cheerleader for gender equality, says Ailwood, whose book Jane Austens Men: Rewriting Masculinity in the Romantic Era came out last year.

She is so in control of her herself, so intelligent she talks truth to power, shes not intimidated by anyone, least of all him [Mr Darcy], she speaks her mind, she has her own sense of agency and self, and he loves it, says Ailwood. So thats why so many modern women identify with her, and then she finds this man who loves that about her, thats why Mr Darcy is so popular. There is, she adds, a certain universalism to his appeal, explaining why both mothers and their daughters lust after him  often at the same time. What he represents in terms of his attitude towards [women] women have been wanting people, men who will treat them with respect for generations, she says, adding that the #MeToo movement and current debates around gender equality have made Mr Darcy seem, now, more than 200 years after he was created, like an ideal partner. We need  and want  him now more than ever, says Ailwood. We need men who want this sort of [gender] equality as our political leaders. We need more men who want women to be like that [Elizabeth], and enable that to happen and he is that man I dont like the phrase toxic masculinity, [but] he is the opposite of toxic masculinity. But then, Mr Darcy has been tasked with being the miraculous solution to huge social problems since his creation in 1813.

A major social problem in Austens time, as in our own, was increasing economic inequality, [and] this (again as today) tended to hit women harder than men, says Murphy, noting that women generally had less money in the 1800s than they did in the 1700s, when they inherited money more equally from their parents, alongside their brothers, and were much more likely to have businesses and jobs. I dont like the phrase toxic masculinity, [but] he is the opposite of toxic masculinity. Dr Ailwood, author of Jane Austens Men: Rewriting Masculinity in the Romantic Era The major way that the English novel tried to solve this problem was to make the representative of inequality  a rich, powerful, able-bodied tall, most likely white man from a family that had been wealthy and powerful for generations  into an object of affection, admiration and lust, with Mr Darcy as one prime embodiment of this tactic. Its a lot for one, fictional, man. But, perhaps, in the end, his appeal to people  across age brackets and genders, as his character has also been fawned over in a number of book adaptations viewed through a queer lens  comes down to one of the less-publicised parts of his personality: he doesnt say much. Ever.

Jane Austen really lets him say very little in the course of the book, hes sort of there, but doesnt say a lot, says Susannah Fullerton, president of the Jane Austen Society of Australia, and the owner of a car number plate frame that reads, Id rather live at Pemberley. A lot of other characters do a huge amount of talking, but not Darcy He comes across as the strong and silent type, says Fullerton, whose lecture, Men, Glorious Men Mr Darcy, was packed to capacity, at a Sydney auditorium, over two days in October. Loading Could this, in the end, be the mark of our ultimate fantasy partner? A person who lets us live according to the renowned insight by New York social commentator Fran Lebowitz that: the opposite of talking isnt listening. The opposite of talking is waiting? Absolutely, says Fullerton, before adding that she cant envision Mr Darcy losing his fantasy status anytime soon.
Karnataka schools colleges set to reopen from September 21

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Bengaluru, Sep 19: Schools and pre-university colleges in Karnataka will re-open from September 21 as per the Unlock 4.0 guidelines. While the state education department has decided not to conduct regular classes, students of classes 9 to 12 will be allowed to visit their institutes to clear doubts and take guidance from the teachers.

From September 21, teachers of Class-9, Class-10, Class-11 and Class 12, will be present in the school to clear the doubts of the students related to their studies. It will not be like regular classes," Karnataka's education minister, S Suresh Kumar said.

Coronavirus: Schools in Delhi to remain closed for all students till Oct 5

He also said that more regular classes would not resume under any circumstance and the state government is waiting for a green signal from the Centre.

Schools will have to follow social distancing measures. Mandatory use of face covers/ masks, frequent hand washing and self-monitoring of health, and reporting of any illness to the authority. The conduct of classes in open spaces within the school campuses will be encouraged if the weather permits, the SOP released by the Centre said. Mandatory hand hygiene (sanitizer dispenser) and thermal screening provisions to be made at the entrance. Strict regulation of visitors to the school has to be maintained and followed, the SOP also said.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka government has decided to let degree colleges reopen from October 1. The Karnataka government said offline classes in colleges will be conducted from October 1. The state education department is awaiting guidelines from the central government on conducting offline classes as well as the few degree exams to be conducted in September.

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

"All colleges will start in October and students are expected to attend classes in person," Deputy Chief Minister Dr. Ashwathnarayan CN said, adding that preparations are underway for this as per the protocols and safety guidelines.

"Final Year Examinations will be scheduled for all the undergraduate, diploma and engineering students once academic year starts," he said.
The Netherlands is laying the groundwork for a case against Syria at the United Nations' highest court, announcing today it will be holding the Syrian government responsible for the widely documented human rights violations carried out inside its torture chambers.

The Assad regime has committed horrific crimes time after time. The evidence is overwhelming. There must be consequences, Dutch Foreign Minister Stef Blok said in a statement.

The Dutch government sent a diplomatic note to the Syrian government today reminding Damascus of its obligations under the United Nations Convention against Torture and requesting negotiations over its violations.

By invoking the torture convention, of which both countries are signatories, the Netherlands can propose to submit the case to arbitration should negotiations with Syria fail. If that doesnt work, the Dutch can then refer the dispute to the International Court of Justice in the Hague.

Its important to manage expectations, said Roger Lu Phillips, legal director at the Washington-based Syria Justice and Accountability Centre. The International Court of Justice, which only hears disputes among states, doesnt have the authority to impose criminal sentences and victims testimonies are unlikely to be heard by the court.

Though Syrian President Bashar al-Assad wont be the named defendant, the case could succeed in further isolating him on the world stage.

It could find that theres a state policy of torture, which is the practice of authoritarian regimes, not those that should be accepted into the international community, said Phillips.

There could be a symbolic recognition of wrongdoing, much like the way Serbia's government was held responsible by the court in 2007 for failing to prevent the genocide at Srebrenica. A judgment on Syria could also further embolden foreign governments to impose sanctions, as well as help establish a basis for extradition of Assad and Cabinet officials once they are no longer in power, Phillips said.

Mai El-Sadany, the managing director and the legal and judicial director at the Washington-based Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy, acknowledges there are challenges in enforcing a potential International Court of Justice judgment but said, "The very process of signaling an intent to bring this case achieves a form of accountability."

This is the Netherlands reminding the international community that we cant normalize torture, she said. That even though Syria is no longer in the headlines as it was years ago, this is something we cant accept.

More traditional avenues for accountability arent available in the case of Syria. Finding justice in Syrian government-run courts is out of the question, and Assads veto-wielding patrons on the UN Security Council, Russia and China, have blocked referrals to the International Criminal Court.

The Netherlands is the latest European government to provide some hope of justice for Syria's victims. A landmark torture trial against two suspected members of Assads intelligence services is ongoing in Koblenz, Germany. Federal prosecutors brought the case under the countrys universal jurisdiction law, which allows for the prosecution of grave crimes committed in another country, regardless of whether the suspects or victims are German nationals.

In June, Germany arrested a doctor accused of carrying out torture in one of the Syrian regimes notorious detention centers. Both Germany and France have also issued an international arrest warrant for Jamil Hassan, the chief of Syria's air force intelligence directorate. He and eight other high-ranking officials are the subject of a criminal complaint filed by a group of former Syrian prisoners in Germany.

Human rights monitors and former detainees have compiled an overwhelming body of evidence to be used in these cases. Since the uprising began in 2011, the Syrian government is believed to have extrajudicially executed thousands of people considered disloyal to the regime and tortured countless more.

The Syrian Network for Human Rights, which briefs the UN on potential rights abuses, has documented 72 different methods of torture used against detainees in government-run prisons, including the use of scalding hot water, electric shocks and burning detainees with chemical acids and insecticides. Sexual violence, including forced nudity and rape, is also rampant in regime prisons.

After more than nine years of war, some 130,000 Syrians detained or forcibly disappeared by regime forces are still unaccounted for, the group says.
KYODO NEWS - Sep 19, 2020 - 07:50 | Feature, All, Japan, Coronavirus

National parks across Japan have improved internet access and taken other steps to attract teleworkers as the coronavirus pandemic has increased interest in "workation" -- a vacation that combines business and leisure in which people work remotely at their destinations.

Lodging facilities and camping grounds at national parks have upgraded Wi-Fi access points with financial support from the Environment Ministry, but it is unclear how soon remote workers will be welcomed with open arms amid the ongoing virus spread.

Related coverage:

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FEATURE: Hotels put safety first in bid to lure back domestic travelers

"We would like people to start visiting national parks in their vicinity first," said Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, as many people remain hesitant about making long-distance trips.

A ministry official also said lodging facilities at national parks are being encouraged to decide for themselves on when and how to accept teleworkers.

The government has been promoting the "workation" concept in the hope it will revitalize local economies hit hard by the coronavirus.

Chuzenji Kanaya Hotel, located inside Nikko National Park in Tochigi Prefecture, north of Tokyo, has prepared a working space for up to three people separate from regular guest rooms.

"We would like to offer a plan in which guests can work in the morning and enjoy activities such as trekking and canoeing with their families in the afternoon," said a hotel official in charge of the workation plan. The hotel is situated near Lake Chuzenji.

The operator of the Kyukamura Kishu Kada resort hotel in Wakayama Prefecture, part of Setonaikai National Park in western Japan, offers a service allowing day trippers to use guestrooms for work.

Since the service drew favorable reactions from guests when it was offered between April and July, the operator reintroduced it from September.

"We want people to engage in remote work while relaxing in an environment away from their usual daily life," an official at the hotel said.

The National Park Resorts of Japan, the operator of Kyukamura hotels across the country, plans to rent out large tents, portable power stations, and Wi-Fi devices at camping grounds in four national parks, including Setonaikai and Aso-Kuju.

It will also put up and take down the tents, as well as supply guests with food, so they can use more time for work, according to the operator based in Tokyo.

In early September, Koizumi himself set an example of a workation by taking part in online meetings with corporate representatives and officials from his ministry at a hotel in Bandai-Asahi National Park in northeastern Japan.

He exchanged opinions with personnel of Japan Airlines Co. and Unilever Japan K.K., both known for promoting workation, while staying at the hotel in the village of Kitashiobara, Fukushima Prefecture.

"It is important to trust employees rather than worrying about whether they are really working," a company official told Koizumi when asked about the difficulties and keys to success for implementing workation at each company.
Kolkata, Sep 19 : West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar said on Saturday that the state has become "home to illegal bomb making" with a potential to unsettle democracy.

Taking a dig at the Mamata Banerjee-led government, he said that the state administration cannot escape its accountability for the "alarming decline" in law and order situation in the state.

In a major breakthrough on Saturday, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) conducted raids at multiple locations in West Bengal's Murshidabad district, arresting six people in connection with terrorist activities linked with the Pakistan-sponsored module of Al-Qaeda. Najmus Sakid, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman were arrested from various places in Murshidabad district.

"Those at the helm of West Bengal police cannot escape their accountability for this alarming decline in law and order... How far distanced is state Director General of Police from reality is cause of worry. His 'Ostrich Stance' is very disturbing," the Governor tweeted.

However, Dhankhar appreciated the role of the policemen in general as they are working under difficult situations.

"The problem is with those at the helm who are unmindful of conduct and are politically guided. West Bengal police firmly adheres to the path laid down by law. There is no discrimination for or against anyone in an extra legal sense," he added.

An NIA source said that all the accused were either daily wage labourers or low wage earners, barring two. One of the accused is a computer science graduate while another is pursuing graduation in arts.

All the six members were picked up from their respective residences in the early hours of Saturday with their family members failing to believe their connection with any international terror module.

BJP state unit President Dilip Ghosh said: "It is a security threat to our nation. I believe the state government provides them safe custody, eventually making Bengal a safe haven for them. Why the West Bengal government is providing shelter to the terror modules of Al-Qaida, ISIS and SIMI?" State Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury criticised the role of the state intelligence. He said that impoverished youth in Bengal, especially in the remote districts, are getting targeted by these terror operatives.

According to a press communique released by the NIA, the investigating agency had come to know about an inter-state module of Al-Qaeda operatives at various locations in India, including West-Bengal and Kerala.

The group was planning terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people. Accordingly, NIA registered a case and initiated investigation.
US President Donald Trump and the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this week disagreed about when a Covid-19 vaccine would become widely available. Trump said on Friday that enough vaccine would be available for every American by April, while the CDC director said vaccines were likely to reach the general public around mid-2021, an assessment more in line with most experts.

What does it mean for a vaccine to be generally available?

General availability is when every American who wants the vaccine can get it. There are currently no Covid-19 vaccines approved by US regulators, although a handful are in late-stage trials to prove they are safe and effective.

Experts estimate that at least 70% of roughly 330 million Americans would need to be immune through a vaccine or prior infection to achieve what is known as herd immunity, which occurs when enough people are immune to prevent the spread of the virus to those unable to get a vaccine.

How long before vaccine production is fully ramped up?

Most vaccines in development will require two doses per person.

The CDC anticipates that 35 million to 45 million doses of vaccines from the first two companies to receive authorization will be available in the United States by the end of this year. The current front runners are Pfizer Inc .

Drugmakers have been more ambitious with their calculations. AstraZeneca Plc has said it could deliver as many as 300 million doses of its experimental vaccine in the United States by as early as October. Pfizer and German partner BioNTech SE have said they expect to have 100 million doses available worldwide by the end of 2020, but did not specify how much of that was earmarked for the United States. Moderna on Friday said it is on track to make around 20 million doses by the end of the year and between 500 million and 1 billion doses a year beginning in 2021.

Obtaining enough doses to inoculate everyone in the United States will likely take until later in 2021. CDC Director Robert Redfield told a congressional hearing on Wednesday that vaccines may not be widely available to everyone in the United States until the second or third quarter of next year.

Who would get an approved vaccine first?

The CDC decision will likely broadly follow recommendations from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine.

The CDC has said the earliest inoculations may go to healthcare workers, people at increased risk for severe Covid-19, and essential workers.

It is unclear when a vaccine will be available for children as major drugmakers have yet to include them in late-stage trials. Pfizer and BioNTech have filed with regulators seeking to start recruiting volunteers as young as 16 for vaccine studies.

Which companies will likely roll out a vaccine quickly?

Pfizer has said it could have compelling evidence that its vaccine works by the end of October. Moderna says it could have similar evidence in November. The vaccines would first need to be approved or authorized for emergency use by US regulators.

Drugmakers have already started manufacturing supplies of their vaccine candidates to be ready as soon as they get the go ahead. The US Department of Defense and the CDC plan to start distribution of vaccines within 24 hours of regulatory authorization.

Several drugmakers including Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Novavax Inc have all said they expect to produce at least 1 billion doses of their vaccines next year if they get regulatory authorization.

Sanofi SA and GlaxoSmithKline Plc are also working on developing a vaccine they say could be authorized next year.
The decision came after the party's senior leaders unanimously approved joining the National Unified List led by the pro-government Mostaqbal Watan Party

The Wafd Party  Egypt's longest-standing party  said on Saturday that it will run in Egypt's parliamentary elections as part of the National Unified List coalition led by the pro-government Mostaqbal Watan Party.

Wafd said in a statement that the decision was made in a democratic way and only after members of the party's Higher Council voted in favour of joining the National Unified List coalition.

The Wafd Party's statement said the National Unified List coalition will contest 284 seats reserved for party lists.

"The party should have 40 Wafdist candidates on the list," said the statement, adding that "the Wafd Party will also field candidates for another 284 seats allocated to individual seats."

The Wafd Party has recently been passing through hard times. The party's 24 individual candidates in the Senate election, held in August and September, failed to win a single seat.

The Wafd Party got only six seats in the Senate, largely thanks to joining the Mostaqbal Watan-led National List, which won the Senate's 100 party list seats unopposed.

A number of Wafd members also threatened dissent from the party's ranks in protest to fielding only 20 Wafdist candidates on the National Unified List in the parliamentary elections.

Wafd's deputy chairman Fouad Badrawi said the party is still negotiating the number of its candidates on the National Unified List.

We want no less than 40," said Badrawi, adding that "the party will also field candidates for individual seats."

The Wafd Party is one of 15 political parties that decided to run in the parliamentary elections as part of the National Unified List coalition.

Reports said the list will include 120 Mostaqbal Watan (Future of Homeland) candidates, 60 People's Republican party candidates, 30 Wafd Party candidates, and 15 candidates affiliated with the Committee of Political Parties' Young People.

The list will include candidates from another 11 political parties.

Reports said the National Unified list will submit the nomination papers of its 284 party list candidates on Sunday.

Registration for Egypt's parliamentary elections opened on 17 September and will run until 26 September. Reports show that large number of hopefuls filed for nomination in the past two days.

Egypt's parliamentary elections will be held over two stages between 21 October and 8 December.

While 568 will have to be elected (284 of which via the individual candidacy system and 284 through the closed party lists), the president will be authorised to appoint 28 deputies (5 percent), thus bringing the number of MPs to a total 596.

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Jackie 'O' Henderson has revealed she forged a close friendship with Sophie Monk over a moment of insecurity.

The women met in 2000 when Sophie was a contestant on the reality singing competition Popstars, where Sophie became part of girl group Bardot, and Jackie was a judge.

Speaking to Stellar this week, Jackie, 45, says she came across Sophie, 40, weeping during a photo shoot when she could not fit into a pair of size 8 jeans.

Friends: Jackie 'O' Henderson (right) has revealed she forged a close friendship with Sophie Monk (left) over a moment of insecurity. Both women spoke to this week's Stellar Magazine

'I just couldn't believe that Sophie could be insecure because she was so beautiful. There was a photo shoot and there was something about jeans,' Jackie said.

Sophie recalled the moment also, explaining: 'They brought racks of clothing for everyone and all of the jeans were a size 8, and they had to get in different clothes because I couldn't fit into them.'

She added: 'I went into the bathroom crying and Jackie came in going, "Don't worry, you look beautiful," so that made me feel better. I was about 19 and was so insecure at that age'.

Upset: The women met in 2000 when Sophie was a contestant on reality singing competition Popstars, where Sophie became part of girl group Bardot, and Jackie was a judge

Pop star: Sophie (pictured centre with the group Bardot in 2000) says she was hiding in the bathroom in tears because she could not fit into the size 8 jeans, and Jackie comforted her

Sophie says that she was 'in awe' of Jackie from the moment they first met, and the feeling was clearly mutual.

'I'll never forget seeing Jackie and thinking, "Who is this girl?" because she was so gorgeous and I was in awe of her.

'She really took me under her wing, because I was quite an insecure girl, getting into the industry, and we just kind of hit it off,' the Love Island Australia host added.

In awe: 'I just couldn't believe that Sophie could be insecure because she was so beautiful,' Jackie said

Holiday mode! The pair have been close friends ever since. Last year, Sophie joined Jackie for a girls' weekend in Port Stephens after the radio host split with husband Lee Henderson

The pair have been close friends ever since, every holidaying together on multiple occasions.

Last year, Sophie joined Jackie for a girls' weekend in Port Stephens after the radio host split with husband Lee Henderson.

They treated themselves to Oysters and champagne at the Bannisters Port Stephens resort.
Church sparks outrage for depicting Jesus as trans with beard and breasts in a dress

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In an ad purportedly meant to encourage children to attend Sunday school, the National Church of Iceland featured a bearded Jesus with breasts, makeup and a dress dancing under a rainbow.

After receiving backlash, the church removed the ad from social media  but not busses  and released an apology. However, the church also argued that it believes its okay to depict Jesus as a woman, transgender or anything else.

The animated ad, which depicts Jesus as having breasts and jumping around as he points to a church, was posted on the churchs website and Facebook page on Sept. 11, according to the Daily Mail, which reported that the post was deleted after it sparked outrage.

However, Iceland Monitor reports that the ad continues to appear on some buses.

The ad campaign cost the church about $14,800, which was contributed mostly by the bishops office.

Facebook users objected to the ad, according to the Mail.

One comment read, There was a reason I left the National Church and found another Christian congregation. Another read, Shame on the bishop! Some called it tasteless and particularly stupid. Another user wrote, The church should be ashamed for humiliating Jesus like this.

The church, known as the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Iceland and considered the official Christian church in the country, apologized, saying: The 2020 Assembly of the National Church regrets that the picture of Jesus in a Sunday school advertisement has hurt people. The goal was to emphasize diversity, neither to hurt people nor shock them."

Further, Petur Georg Markan, media representative for the church, sought to explain why the ad was used.

Its just as important for us to bring attention to diversity as it is to respect the opinions of those who dont like this representation of Christ, he told the Monitor.

In this one, we see a Jesus who has breasts and a beard. Were trying to embrace society as it is. We have all sorts of people and we need to train ourselves to talk about Jesus as being all sorts in this context, Markan said. Especially because its really important that each and every person see themselves in Jesus and that we dont stagnate too much. Thats the essential message. So this is okay. Its okay that Jesus has a beard and breasts.

Gurun Karls- og Helgudottir, a minister of Grafarvogskirkja church, was quoted as saying: Each person interprets something in this picture. Some people interpret it as a trans-Jesus, others as a woman. Some see Mary with a beard, and others see a genderqueer person. Views within the church are just as diverse as elsewhere.
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump on Saturday urged the Republican-run Senate to consider without delay his upcoming nomination to fill the Supreme Court seat vacated by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg just six weeks before the election.

We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, Trump tweeted, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., vowed on Friday night, hours after Ginsburgs death, to call a vote for whomever Trump nominated. Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said any vote should come after the Nov. 3 election. Voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice to consider, Biden said.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. APs earlier story follows below.

WASHINGTON: The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg just six weeks before the election cast an immediate spotlight on the crucial high court vacancy, with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell quickly vowing to bring to a vote whoever President Donald Trump nominates.

Democratic nominee Joe Biden vigorously disagreed, declaring that voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice to consider.

McConnell, who sets the calendar in the Senate and has made judicial appointments his priority, declared unequivocally in a statement not long after Ginsburgs death was announced that Trumps nominee would receive a confirmation vote in the chamber. In 2016, McConnell refused to consider President Barack Obamas choice for the high court months ahead of the election, eventually preventing a vote.

The impending clash over the vacant seat when to fill it and with whom is sure to significantly affect the stretch run of the presidential race, further stirring passions in a nation already reeling from the pandemic that has killed nearly 200,000 people, left millions unemployed and heightened partisan tensions and anger.

Trump, in brief remarks to reporters after learning of Ginsburgs death, called her an amazing woman who led an amazing life. He had continued with a campaign speech in Minnesota for about an hour and a half after the nation as well as aides and many in his audience with cell phones had learned of her death. He seemed surprised when he spoke with reporters afterward, saying he did not know she had died.

Trump had noted in his rally speech that the next presidential term could offer him as many as four appointments to the nine-member court, whose members are confirmed for life. This is going to be the most important election in the history of our country and we have to get it right, he added.

Biden said it must be up to the next president, whether himself or Trump, to choose a successor to be submitted for Senate confirmation.

This was the position that the Republican Senate took in 2016, when there were nearly nine months before the election, he said. That is the position the United States Senate must take now, when the election is less than two months away. We are talking about the Constitution and the Supreme Court. That institution should not be subject to politics.

A confirmation vote in the Senate is not guaranteed, even with a Republican majority.

Typically it takes several months to vet and hold hearings on a Supreme Court nominee, and time is short ahead of the election. Key senators may be reluctant to cast votes so close to the election. With a slim GOP majority, 53 seats in the 100-member chamber, Trumps choice could afford to lose only a few.

McConnell did not specify the timing, but trying for confirmation in a post-election lame-duck session if Trump had lost to Biden or Republicans had lost the Senate would carry further political complications.

Democrats immediate denounced McConnells move as hypocritical, pointing out that he refused to call hearings for Merrick Garland, Obamas pick, 237 days before the 2016 election. The 2020 election is 46 days away.

Senate Democratic leader Charles Schumer, in a tweet, echoed word for word what McConnell said in 2016 about the Garland nomination: The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president."

Both Trump and McConnell have pointed to appointments to the federal judiciary, including two Supreme Court justices, part of their legacy. Trump said last month that he would absolutely try to fill a vacancy if one came up before the end of his first term.

I would move quickly, Trump said in an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt. Why not? I mean, they would. The Democrats would if they were in this position.

While plans were still being formalized, Trump was expected to announce a choice sooner rather than later and may meet with members of his short list in coming days, according to a White House official not authorized to publicly discuss private conversations and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Trump last week added 20 names to his list of candidates hes pledged to choose from if he has future vacancies to fill. He contrasted his list with unnamed radical justices he claimed Biden would nominate who would fundamentally transform America without a single vote of Congress."

Trump released a similar list in 2016 in a bid to win over conservative and evangelical voters who had doubts about his conservative credentials. Among those on his current list: Sens. Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton, former Solicitor General Noel Francisco and Judge Amy Coney Barrett of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in Chicago, long a favorite of conservatives.

The average number of days to confirm a justice, according to the Congressional Research Service, is 69, which would be after the election. But some Republicans quickly noted that Ginsburg was confirmed in just 42 days.

Four GOP defections could defeat a nomination, while a tie vote could be broken by Vice President Mike Pence.

Among the senators to watch are Republicans Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah and others.

Collins is in a tight race for her own reelection, as are several other GOP senators, including Cory Gardner in Colorado. Murkowski and Romney have been critical of Trump and protective of the institution of the Senate.

Some Republicans, including Collins and Murkowski, have suggested previously that hearings should wait if a seat were to open. And because the Arizona Senate race is a special election, that seat could be filled as early as November 30 which would narrow the window for McConnell if the Democratic candidate, Mark Kelly, hangs onto his lead.

In a note to his GOP colleagues Friday night, McConnell urged them to keep their powder dry and not rush to declare a position on whether a Trump nominee should get a vote this year.

Over the coming days, we are all going to come under tremendous pressure from the press to announce how we will handle the coming nomination. For those of you who are unsure how to answer, or for those inclined to oppose giving a nominee a vote, I urge you all to keep your powder dry, McConnell wrote. This is not the time to prematurely lock yourselves into a position you may later regret.

McConnell argued that there would be enough time to fill the vacancy and he restated his argument that the 2016 Senate precedent in which a GOP-held Senate blocked Obamas election-year nomination did not establish a rule that applies to the Ginsburg case.

A top aide to a GOP senator confirmed the authenticity of McConnells email to his fellow senators, which was first reported by The Washington Post.

Under McConnell, the Senate changed the confirmation rules to allow for a simple majority. The Senates No. 2 Republican, Sen. John Thune, supported McConnells plan Friday night, though the Judiciary Commtitee chairman, Lindsey Graham, did not weigh in.

Obama called for Republicans to wait, saying a basic principle of the law and of everyday fairness is that we apply rules with consistency and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment.

One difference from 2016 is that, despite the vacancy resulting from Ginsburgs death, conservatives have a working majority of five justices on a range of issues. When Antonin Scalia died four years ago, the court was divided between four liberals and four conservatives.

The next pick could shape important decisions, including on abortion rights, as well as any legal challenges that may stem from the 2020 election. The 2018 hearings on Trumps second pick, now-Justice Brett Kavanaugh, turned into a bitter partisan battle after sexual assault allegations were made.

Biden has promised to nominate a Black woman to the high court if given the chance. He has said hes also working on a list of potential nominees, but the campaign has given no indication that it will release names before the election.

Democrats believe doing so would unnecessarily distract from Bidens focus on Trumps handling of the pandemic and the economy, while also giving the president and his allies fresh targets to attack. In the hours before Ginsburgs death, Trump trailed Biden in national polling but the race was much tighter in battleground states.

__

Lemire reported from New York. Associated Press writers Alan Fram, Darlene Superville and Andrew Taylor in Washington, Aamer Madhani in Bemidji, Minnesota, and Will Weissert in Wilmington, Delaware, contributed to this report.

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The story has been corrected to change like to `lock in McConnells note to GOP senators.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
The mayoral elections will be held as part of local polls across the country on October 25.

The Kyiv City Territorial Election Commission on September 18 registered the first candidate running for the mayor's post, this is Andriy Palchevsky, 59.

The corresponding decision was taken by the commission on Friday evening, according to an UNIAN correspondent.

Read alsoLocal elections in Ukraine to be held even in COVID-19 red zone: CEC

The commission also considered documents filed by another citizen who decided to run for mayor in Kyiv, Borys Sakhno. He was denied registration as a candidate because he failed to submit a document confirming he had paid an election deposit as required by Article 225 of the Electoral Code of Ukraine.

What is more, the commission also registered official election observers from Ukrainian NGO Civil Network OPORA for polls during which members of Kyiv City Council and Kyiv's mayor are to be elected on October 25

Chairman of the territorial election commission Oleh Konopolsky told UNIAN that all the resolutions adopted at the September 18 meetings would be available to the public  they will be posted on the first floor of Kyiv City State Administration, as well as on the Kyiv City Territorial Election Commission's page on Kyiv City Council's website.

Ukraine 2020 local elections in brief

On September 5, preparations for the local polls, which are scheduled for October 25, began in Ukraine.

Under the calendar plan of measures to prepare and conduct of the local elections, September 24 inclusively is the deadline for candidates running to local councils and posts of village heads and mayors to submit documents to the relevant territorial election commissions for registration.

Territorial election commissions should register a candidate or deny registration no later than five days after the respective application is filed along with the requested documents.

Voting will take place from 08:00 a.m. to 08:00 p.m. on October 25, and the election commissions must declare its results by November 6 inclusively.

Palchevsky's short bio
It follows Boris Johnson saying it was 'inevitable' a second wave would hit the UK

Spain has recorded an average of over 10,000 new cases per day in the last week

Senior government source said Britain on 'same trajectory of Spain and France'

Downing Street warned by Biosecurity Centre that UK is six weeks behind Spain

Scientists have warned that Covid cases in the UK will soon mirror those in the EU nation now recording 239 deaths and more than 10,000 infections a day.

The government's Joint Biosecurity Centre, which tracks the spread of the virus, warned Downing Street that Britain is now six weeks behind Spain.

It follows Prime Minister Boris Johnson saying last night that it was 'inevitable' a second wave of coronavirus would hit the UK.

Meanwhile, green medical tents are returning to Madrid's military hospital, the Gomez Ulla, which is getting ready in case emergency wards get crammed again.

Covid-19 cases are stubbornly on the rise in the capital city despite curbs on nightlife, outdoor smoking and limiting all group interaction to a maximum of 10 people.

Spain has recorded 819 deaths in the past two weeks, while France has recorded 314 fatalities and the UK has recorded 170. Downing Street was warned the UK is six weeks behind Spain

Spain has seen 1.9 deaths per day per million residents while the UK has seen 0.2 deaths per day per million residents. Cases are stubbornly on the rise in Spain's capital city, Madrid

A senior government source told The Times: 'The Prime Minister has a very difficult challenge. At the moment we are on the same trajectory of Spain and France.

'Spain on Thursday clocked 240 deaths  they are six weeks ahead of us so it is now being translated from cases to deaths.'

A Whitehall source added: 'We see cases rising across the age groups and across the country, signs of hospitalisations and care home cases going up  it feels like were back where we were in February and March.'

The comments came as the UK's daily infections hit a four-month high of 4,322 yesterday, with figures showing the outbreak has nearly doubled in size in a week and the R number being potentially as high as 1.4.

Parts of England are being forced back into lockdown, with curbs including a 10pm curfew on pubs and restaurants and a ban on socialising outside of households across the North West, Midlands and West Yorkshire from Tuesday.

A total of around 13million people are now under under local restrictions.

Spain reported 239 deaths on Wednesday and an average of more than 10,000 new cases per day in the last week.

In Madrid, authorities hinted the 'drastic measures' against the outbreaks could include localised lockdowns and other 'restrictions on mobility' in the city's hardest-hit areas, which are also the poorest and more densely populated..

Madrid's R-rate stands at 1.15 - any figure over 1 is considered to be detrimental to public health because it means that the contagion is growing as it spreads

But experts are warning that these measures may not be enough

'There is so much community transmission in Madrid that is possible that very soon a full lockdown will be needed,' said Rafael Bengoa, a former WHO official.

'It seems like we are learning too slow - we haven't acted energetically enough,' he told Cadena SER radio.

The measures are 'tardy and insufficient,' said Daniel Lopez Acuna, who was director of emergencies at WHO. 'They are overthinking it. Action is needed.'

The centre-right coalition government in Madrid has been in turmoil, part internal infighting and part external criticism, as it struggled this week on what to do next.

The region's top coronavirus expert announced on Wednesday that stay-at-home orders should be expected by the weekend, but his bosses took a distance from his remarks.

The regional boss, Isabel Diaz Ayuso, has also been one of the biggest critics of the national left-wing coalition's handling of the pandemic.

Her government recovered control in late June, once the central government lifted a state of emergency that had reined in a devastating first wave of the virus. But since then, Ayuso had been complaining that central authorities weren't helping enough.

Spanish military tents are set out to be used by hospital patients during the coronavirus outbreak at the Gomez Ulla military hospital in Madrid, Spain, yesterday

A line of green tents have been installed at the gates of a Madrid military hospital four months after similar structures for triaging incoming patients were taken down

After weeks exchanging blame for inaction, Sanchez and Ayuso have agreed to meet Monday with the only goal of 'bending the curve,' both governments announced Friday.

Part of the concern is Madrid's capacity to spread infections to other parts of the country.

Home to 3.3million people in its urban area and as many more in its surrounding region, the city is also Spain's economic powerhouse. It's also centrally located at the heart of the Iberian Peninsula, bringing in workers from nearby provinces and visitors from elsewhere.

On Friday, the city reported more than 5,100 new infections, 200 more than the day before. The regional hospitals were treating 2,907 people, including nearly 400 in intensive care units, one third of the country's total.

But so far it's health centres that are shouldering the worst of the crisis. Famously underfunded for years, primary care doctors and nurses are now also performing thousands of virus tests per day, and have taken the burden of tracing contacts of those who come out as positive.

That's causing increasingly longer delays in providing test results, leaving people like Raquel Lopez, a 39-year-old sociologist on her 21st week of pregnancy, waiting at home in self-imposed isolation for five days as she waited to find out whether she had the virus.

Raquel, who took the test on Monday after finding out that a family she spent time with a week earlier had contracted the virus, on Friday was told that she's negative.

'But it could had been either way,' said Lopez, who works from home. 'My husband and I have been responsible and we haven't gone out while waiting for the results, but what happens with people who can't afford to miss work? Are they going to wait at home or go out there possibly infecting others?'

Lopez lives in Vallecas, one of the working class neighbourhoods that is expecting some of the restrictions. She's angry at officials who promote the idea that people in impoverished areas are to blame for not using masks, keeping social distancing or completing quarantines.

The national coronavirus tally for Spain has surged in recent weeks, with an average of 10,140 new cases per day over the last week

There were a total of 366 fatalities in Spain over the last seven days, which is double the previous week when there were 177 deaths

'That's not true. We are doing it the same way as the rest of Madrid,' she said. 'The truth is that citizens are behaving much better than politicians.'

Spain on Thursday added more than 11,000 new infections and registered 162 new confirmed deaths from the virus. The country has Europe's highest caseload since the beginning of the pandemic. More than 625,000 people have been infected and at least 30,400 have died, according to the Health Ministry's official data.

Doctors have warned that Madrid is walking 'in slow motion' towards a repeat of its 'nuclear bomb' Covid crisis in March.

Spain has recorded an average of more than 10,000 new cases per day over the last week, the worst figures in Europe and the fifth highest infection rate in the world.

Nearly a third of those falling sick are in Madrid which is striking fear into the capital's medics after it bore the brunt of Europe's spring outbreak - Spain has the highest per capita death rate on the continent.

On September 4, Madrid recorded 4,852 cases, its highest ever number of infections in a single day, and the city today has an R-rate of 1.08 - any number greater than one means that the contagion is multiplying.

EUROPE'S SURGING DAILY CORONAVIRUS CASES SPAIN: 10,140 FRANCE: 8,684 RUSSIA: 5,559 UNITED KINGDOM: 3,286 UKRAINE: 2,953 *All figures based on latest seven-day average reported Source: Reuters Advertisement

Although, the figures compared to the initial outbreak must be counterbalanced by Spain's increased testing capacity, the uptick is starting to be felt in hospitals.

On Friday, the country reported a total of 366 fatalities over the last seven days, which is double the previous week when there were 177 deaths.

'In a way, it's like the situation in March but in slow motion,' said Dr. Carlos Velayos, who works as an intensive care unit physician at the public hospital in suburban Fuenlabrada.

The hospital is expanding its ICU capacity from 12 to 24 beds by the end of September, as all of them are currently filling up with coronavirus patients.

With 1,281 patients in ICUs as of Wednesday, Spain has roughly as many beds devoted to treat grave patients of COVID-19 as France, the United Kingdom, Germany and Italy together.

And 359 of them are in the Madrid region, which for the past week has accounted for roughly one-third of a national average of 8,200 new infections per day.

Spain's virus caseload, above 600,000, is one of the world's highest and more than 30,000 have died in the country for the new virus.

Velayos said that prediction models were telling hospital administrators in Madrid that some ICU wards could reach peak capacity in the second half of September. But little or nothing has been done to avoid returning to extended shifts among many health professionals that are still recovering from the stress of the pandemic's first wave.

'In March, it was like a nuclear bomb that brought the health system as a whole to a collapse in a matter of weeks,' Velayos said. 'We might not be there yet, but thats not a reason not to be worried. We have allowed the outbreaks to reach a level of being uncontrollable.'

Medical workers are this time better prepared, with lessons learned on how to treat incoming patients more effectively and they have means to better protect themselves against contagion. But operating rooms in the Madrid region, which has a population of 6.6 million, are already being turned into ICUs and surgeries have been postponed, while hospitals compete to hire professionals for the expanded capacity.

Regional authorities say that the health system still has room to manage the incoming flow of patients, but following warnings by medical personnel like Velayos, officials are now reacting with stricter measures that could include selective lockdowns in parts of the city as early as next week.

The five countries with the highest average number of daily cases recorded in the last week in Europe. Spain is currently the highest, with France as the second highest

Current infection rates in Europe according to the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC), with Spain and France among the worst-affected countries in the recent rebound

The restrictions, if finally adopted, will centre on urban areas where the coronavirus is spreading faster, officials announced Wednesday. That's suburban towns like Fuenlabrada, but also working-class neighbourhoods in southern Madrid where contagion rates have been steadily soaring since August.

They also happen to be areas where less affluent residents and mostly migrant families cram into small apartments and commute on public transportation to manual work in other quarters of the Spanish capital.

COUNTRIES REPORTING MOST NEW CASES/DEATHS EACH DAY CASES INDIA: 93,199 US: 38,897 BRAZIL: 31,599 ARGENTINA: 10,960 SPAIN: 10,140 DEATHS INDIA: 1,162 US: 854 BRAZIL: 808 MEXICO: 456 ARGENTINA: 207 *All figures based on latest seven-day average reported Advertisement

Angela Cantos lives in the Vallecas neighborhood, one of the hot spots in the recent wave of outbreaks. She said that if her neighborhood is locked down, 'then Madrid will be paralyzed.'

'Who is going to cook and clean in other districts if they close down here?' she said.

The regional deputy health chief, Dr. Antonio Zapatero, said Wednesday that 'Madrid wants to flatten the curve before the arrival of autumn and the complications that cold weather could bring,' adding that the 'drastic measures' to be taken will be decided by the weekend.

Zapatero also said that people have relaxed protection measures by holding large gatherings, often forgetting about social distancing or masks. He also announced that police will monitor compliance of mandatory self-isolation since at least 90 people have been found to be skipping quarantines after testing positive for the new virus.

The country brought contagion under control earlier this year with a three-month lockdown, one of the strictest anywhere, but since it relaxed restrictions in mid-June, outbreaks have spread throughout the country.

The Spanish government says the country is now doing more tests and that more than half of the newly infected show no symptoms. But health centres are starting to struggle to cope with the number of virus tests required and responding to patients. In hospitals, 8.5 per cent of the countrys beds are now treating COVID-19 patients, but in Madrid that share jumps to one in five beds.

In terms of ICUs, official data shows that 38 per cent of the region's beds have coronavirus patients, although some hospitals are already at 90 per cent of their capacity before rolling out emergency plans for new beds, like they did in spring.

'Madrid is maintaining a steady level of infections, but we have to take into account the impact of the pandemic in primary care, in hospitals, which is totally sustainable at the moment.

'But we have to make that line of infections decrease,' said Zapatero, who back in March was tasked with Madrid's makeshift hospital of 1,500 temporary beds in an exhibition centre.

Europe's daily number of cases (shown on this chart) has reached record levels, according to WHO figures, although deaths have so far remained relatively stable

This time, officials are hoping they don't have to reach that point. The regional government is spending 50million (45.5million) to build by the end of October a massive permanent new 'epidemics hospital' with more than 1,000 beds.

It's also promising more resources for primary care, since health centres have now become the new bottleneck of citizens concerned that they may have contracted the virus.

EUROPE WARNED TO BRACE FOR HIGHER MORTALITY RATE The WHO warned Europe this week to brace for higher mortality rates over the autumn as cases soared on the continent. Spain, France, the Netherlands, Malta, Greece, Slovenia and Ukraine are all reporting more cases than ever. In the last seven days, Spain has reported an average of 10,140 cases each day, France 8,684, Russia 5,559, the United Kingdom 3,286, and Ukraine 2,953. The countries reporting the highest average deaths over the same period were Russia 114, Spain 59, Ukraine 54, Romania 38 and France 36. 'It's going to get tougher. In October, November, we are going to see more mortality,' WHO Europe director Hans Kluge said on Monday. 'It's a moment where countries don't want to hear this bad news, and I understand,' Kluge said, adding that he wanted to send the 'positive message' that the pandemic 'is going to finish, at one moment or another.' Advertisement

In addition to performing most of the testing, first-row doctors in Spanish health centres have now taken the burden of contact tracing.

'The problems in primary care are not from the past six months,' said Dr. Olaya Munoz, who works in a health centre in the heart of Madrid. 'COVID has just been more stress for a system that was malfunctioning for at least a decade.'

Munoz finds time to talk, while catching her breath, as she walks uphill to visit two elderly patients at home. After that, more than 40 appointments await her back at her community health centre. Although these days they do most of them by phone, she can't devote more than an average of six minutes per patient.

'The workload is just unbearable,' she said.

Dr. Maria Cruz Martin Delgado, spokeswoman for Spain's intensive care specialists' association known as Semicyuc, says that a collapse in primary care couldn't only lead to more asymptomatic cases to go undetected but also poorer or no treatment of other illnesses that eventually could lead to more patients downstream, in hospitals and ICUs.

What Martin wants is a clear protocol from authorities at the national and regional levels on how to proceed.

'We need to know what is the point when we need to turn down other patients, because we doctors can't take all responsibility again having to respond to an emergency when we are not given the resources to do so,' she said.

Velayos, the intensive care specialist from Fuenlabrada, said that the work overload in March and April was widely acknowledged among his colleagues 'as part of an exceptional situation that needed to be met with all the worlds generosity.'

'But right now we are talking about a situation becoming chronic, where stress is going to be the norm and routine,' he said.
Trump and Fox News, along with various right-wing websites, have nurtured a panic about the anti-fascists known as antifa, so now we have groundless rumors that forest fires are being set by antifa or Black Lives Matter protesters.

These conspiracy theories arent just coming from fringe figures. Michael Cross, the Republican nominee for attorney general of Oregon, alleged in a Facebook post: Ive heard of at least 14 people involved in starting these fires and this is just in the last 12 hours.  Sounds to me like domestic terrorism.

Likewise, a failed Republican Senate candidate in Oregon, Paul J. Romero Jr., falsely tweeted that six antifa activists had been arrested for arson.

Lets be clear that there is zero evidence that political extremists have set any fires. The F.B.I. called the reports untrue and pleaded with the public not to spread rumors that take valuable resources away [from] local fire and police agencies. Three sheriffs offices in Oregon issued similar statements.

STOP. SPREADING. RUMORS, begged the Douglas County Sheriffs Office, which added that our 9-1-1 dispatchers and professional staff are being overrun with calls based on false reports.

There should be no mystery about what actually caused the fires to become so dangerous: dry conditions exacerbated by climate change coupled with an unusual windstorm. (At least 13 Oregon fires were started when the windstorm downed power lines, Willamette Week reported.) The scientific consensus is overwhelming: Higher temperatures dry out forests, creating a risk that we are entering an age of megafire.

Back in 2000, the First National Climate Assessment warned that the Northwest faced increased risk of fire danger, and it is one of the most discussed consequences of climate change.
China has sent more warplanes toward Taiwan for the second day as the islands leader, senior government officials and a US envoy paid tribute to former president Lee Teng-hui.

Keith Krach, the US under-secretary for state, kept a low profile at the service honouring the man who led Taiwans transition to democracy.

Mr Krachs presence at the event and on the island has drawn a strong rebuke from China, which sent 18 warplanes across the mid-line of the Taiwan Strait on Friday in an unusually large display of force.

On Saturday, Beijing dispatched 19 more warplanes, two of which were bombers, according to Taiwans defence ministry.

Expand Close Taiwans president Tsai Ing-wen attends a memorial service for the late former president Lee Teng-hui in Taipei (AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp Taiwans president Tsai Ing-wen attends a memorial service for the late former president Lee Teng-hui in Taipei (AP)

The islands air force scrambled its own planes and deployed an air defence missile system to monitor Chinas activities, according to a statement.

The service was held at the Aletheia University in Taipei on Saturday morning, with President Tsai Ing-wen honouring Mr Lee for bringing a peaceful political transition to the island democracy.

Mr Lee had built a separate Taiwanese political identity, distinct from mainland China, which claims Taiwan as part of its own territory to be reunited by force if necessary.

His carving out of a non-Chinese identity and insistence that the island be treated as an equal country brought him into direct conflict with Beijing.

He died on July 30 at age 97.

Ms Tsai said: We have a responsibility to continue his endeavours, allowing the will of the people to reshape Taiwan, further defining Taiwans identity and deepening and bolstering democracy and freedom.

Former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe and the Dalai Lama also paid tribute from afar.

We Buddhists believe in life after life, so most probably he will be reborn in Taiwan, the Dalai Lama said in a video message. His rebirth will carry his spirit continuously.

The guests included another former Japanese prime minister, Yoshiro Mori.

Expand Close Former Japanese leader Yoshiro Mori, centre is seated next to US under-secretary of state Keith Krach (AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp Former Japanese leader Yoshiro Mori, centre is seated next to US under-secretary of state Keith Krach (AP)

Mr Lee, an agricultural economist and politician, devoted his career toward building democracy on the island through direct elections and other changes.

He was the first government official to speak out and formally apologise for the so-called 228 incident, named after an incident on February 28, 1947, when soldiers under the Kuomingtang, or the sole ruling Nationalist Party, shot and killed thousands of civilians in an anti-government uprising.

The bloodshed marked the beginning of a decades-long period known as the White Terror in which the island was ruled by martial law.

In 1990, Mr Lee signalled his support for student demands for direct elections of Taiwans president and vice president and the end of reserving legislative seats to represent districts on the Chinese mainland.

The following year he oversaw the dismantling of emergency laws put into effect by Chiang Kai-sheks government, effectively reversing the Nationalists long-standing goal of returning to the mainland and removing the Communists from power.

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China launched a series of threatening military manoeuvres off the coast of mainland Fujian province that included the firing of missiles just off Taiwans coast.

More missiles were fired immediately before the March 1996 presidential elections, and the US response was to send aircraft carrier battle groups to Taiwans east coast in a show of support.

The Trump administration has taken multiple steps in recent months to strengthen its engagement with Taiwan, angering China.

Mr Krach is the second high-level official to visit Taiwan in two months, following US health secretary Alex Azar in August.

An editorial in the Chinese Communist Party newspaper Global Times said on Friday: Every time a high-ranking US official visits Taiwan, the fighter jets of the PLA (Peoples Liberation Army) should be one step closer to the island.

The US and Taiwan must not misjudge the situation, or believe the exercise is a bluff. Should they continue to make provocations, a war will inevitably break out.
Ms Kearns (pictured), who has been leading efforts in Parliament to end these draconian post-Covid rules, said she cried when she saw the message

Of all the messages about lone births that flooded her inbox this week, it was the one from a father that stopped the campaigning Tory MP Alicia Kearns in her tracks.

He sent the email sitting in a hospital car park while his wife was inside having surgery to remove a miscarriage.

Like many partners, he was banned from attending the scan that showed they had lost their baby and the devastating hours in hospital for his wife that followed. All in the name of social distancing.

Ms Kearns, who has been leading efforts in Parliament to end these draconian post-Covid rules, said she cried when she saw the message. He was so utterly, utterly heartbroken and lost, she said.

Im fighting for partners, not just the mums, because all they care about in the world at that time is in one room, and they are not allowed through the door.

This was on Tuesday, a day before the Prime Minister backed The Mail on Sundays campaign and said no woman should be forced to give birth alone. Still, too many NHS Trusts are failing to adhere to official guidance and continue to ban partners from maternity wards. A number of women have told the MP these draconian policies are a sign the NHS is run by misogynistic men, Ms Kearns told The Mail on Sunday in her first newspaper interview.

People write to me to say, women dont matter, women are always forgotten because the worlds run by men. Like with any organisation, the ones at the top tend to be male, particularly on the bureaucratic side. Women just feel forgotten, and also desperately sad and scared.

A woman who was finally pregnant after four rounds of IVF and multiple miscarriages told her that every scan is terrifying, a fear made worse by having to face them alone.

Ms Kearns inbox would be emotive for anyone to read, never mind someone who is expecting her second child in January. She said: I have found it incredibly emotionally hard, and anything brings me to tears at the moment.

The Tory MP for Rutland and Melton said the messages from men in response to the campaign were particularly difficult. There are few things in the world worse than feeling that lack of power, when you cant help the person you love, she said.

A woman who was finally pregnant after four rounds of IVF and multiple miscarriages told her that every scan is terrifying, a fear made worse by having to face them alone (stock image)

We meet in a cafe by Lambeth Bridge. Despite making waves in Parliament last week over the campaign, Ms Kearns jokes she isnt currently allowed in the building. She has been voting by proxy and speaking by video link while pregnant.

She is one of the 2019 intake of young Tories and the pandemic means she has spent more time out of Parliament than in. She and her husband John, an accountant, decided to have a second child during lockdown. I was so sick during my last pregnancy, my husband said, If youre going to be as unwell, you only have to go on camera for ten minutes at a time, then you can be off camera being sick. 

Ms Kearns describes the agony of her 36-hour long labour with her son two years ago. Her husband intervened when clinicians gave them opposing views on whether she should have an emergency caesarean, preventing her from being needlessly rushed into the operating theatre. He was also first to spot that their babys heart rate had halved, something the midwife missed. Partners are not just as an emotional support, theyre there to be your advocate, Ms Kearns said.

As a woman youre in such a vulnerable position. Youre tired, you have multiple needles shoved into you, she said. I walked for two hours in the middle of [the 36 hours] desperately trying to progress labour. Id had a chemical induction. I think I slept for about two hours.

Many hospitals only allow partners into the ward once the woman is dilated more than 1.5in (4cm), and Ms Kearns points out that, even in 36 hours, she never got that far  an indication that such one-size-fits-all rules do not work.

The MP is protective of her sons privacy, revealing she was heavily bullied at school because her mother was her headmistress  I had cigarettes put out on my face, she said. She described how bullies waited for her at the school gates at Impington Village College, the Cambridgeshire comprehensive, to torment her. There was always that angle of, Your mum this, your mum that, your mum told my mum they were going to expel me. 

She went on to read social and political sciences at Cambridge University, before graduating at the height of the financial crisis, struggling to find work and eventually joining the civil service.

Now 32, Ms Kearns worked as press secretary for the Victims Minister at the Ministry of Justice, before moving to the Ministry of Defence and finally the Foreign Office, where she was involved in the response to the Salisbury attacks and the communication campaigns on Syria and Iraq.

When Angela Rayner (pictured), the deputy leader of the Opposition, raised the injustice of lone births during Prime Ministers Questions, Ms Kearns criticised her for failing to credit her campaigning and turning the issue into a political barb

She grew up in a dyed-in-the-wool Labour family and voted Conservative for the first time in 2015  four years before being elected to Parliament. I had to essentially come out to my family as a Conservative, and I took all my friends out and told them individually, she said.

Her father grew up in Ireland in a very poor, very hard-working family. He left school at 13 and later met her mother, a teacher, before moving to Birmingham and then Cambridgeshire. She was the breadwinner throughout Ms Kearns childhood, and funded her father through university when he was in his 30s. Her father also became a teacher but was essentially a stay-at-home husband for 15 years of my life, Ms Kearns said. He died from a stroke when she was 19.

Her parents background and politics give context to her disappointment last week at Labours reaction to her campaign. She said just one Labour MP contacted her about the issue and asked to get involved.

When Angela Rayner, the deputy leader of the Opposition, raised the injustice of lone births during Prime Ministers Questions, Ms Kearns criticised her for failing to credit her campaigning and turning the issue into a political barb.

Politics aside, she said all that matters is getting all the trusts to change their policies to allow women to have partners at their side (stock image)

Days before, Ms Kearns had mobilised more than 60 Conservatives to write to the heads of NHS Trusts calling for immediate changes to their policies. Within Parliament, there is an element where you recognise others, she said. You normally give a nod to the other people who are working on things. It is a shame because I dont want this to be a party political issue.

Politics aside, she said all that matters is getting all the trusts to change their policies to allow women to have partners at their side. She criticises NHS bosses for failing to give a rational reason for why they continue with the stringent policies, in defiance of Government advice. Some trusts have even incorrectly blamed the guidelines.

They have all either said they are now reconsidering, or theyre just saying, this is our view. That is frustrating for the women, who have the right to an explanation for why they have restrictions while other hospitals dont.

Her own hospital has allowed partners to attend for more than two months, and Ms Kearns said there is no excuse for other trusts not to follow suit. She has seen progress over the past week, with trusts changing their minds and clinicians contacting her to express support.

She clearly relishes a fight, describing herself as a storm chaser. With the impact she is making while she cannot even go inside the Commons, it will be interesting to see what Ms Kearns achieves once back on its green benches.
Normal People star Paul Mescal has recalled a hilarious mishap that took place when he and Daisy Edgar Jones were filming the shows intimate scenes.

The BBC One adaptation of Sally Rooneys bestseller made headlines for its steamy intimate scenes, but Mescal has revealed that they were quite unsexy to film.

On the Friday of the first week, me and Daisy had to do a day of sex scenes and we were covered in this gel called Egyptian Magic, he told The Mirror.

It's basically fake sweat. We had to switch positions and our bodies were in close contact. When we separated it made a really loud fart noise. Me and Daisy started hysterically laughing, but the crew and director [Lenny Abrahamson] all thought that one of us had farted and really were trying to preserve our dignity.

Mescal added: Filming those scenes is probably the least sexy thing you'll ever do in your life, so it is amazing that they turned out so brilliantly, because at the time, they are quite unsexy.

Mescal and Edgar Jones in Normal People' (BBC)

Mescal was recently cast in Maggie Gyllenhaals directorial debut, The Lost Daughter.

He joins Oscar-winning actor Olivia Colman, Dakota Johnson, Peter Sarsgaard and Jessie Buckley in the cast.

The Lost Daughter will be an adaptation of Italian author Elena Ferrantes 2006 novel.

The story follows Colmans character, a college professor who becomes obsessed with a young mother and her daughter while on holiday, at the same time recalling her own, troubled memories of early motherhood.
File image

Coronavirus cases crossed the 3 crore-mark earlier this week. The death toll from the pandemic also moved closer to the 9.5 lakh-mark globally.

While the current rise in cases being reported on a daily basis is largely driven by infections in the United States, India and Brazil, concerns are growing in other parts of the world.

Argentina, which had reported a significantly lower number of cases in the first six months of the pandemic, is now tenth most-affected country. The cases continue to rise rapidly there. Other countries such as Peru and the Philippines have also seemingly not turned the corner.

Yet, while many countries continue to deal with the first wave of infections, others -- especially in Europe -- are already facing a second wave.

Belgium, Italy, France and the United Kingdom are witnessing a sudden rise in cases. These were among the worst-affected European countries during the March-May period.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

Follow our LIVE blog for the latest updates of the novel coronavirus pandemic

The United Kingdom registered 4,322 cases on September 18, the same day France reported 13,215 new confirmed COVID-19 cases.

Heres how countries are tackling the second wave:

France: The city of Nice on the French Riviera is banning gatherings of more than 10 people in public spaces and has forced bars to close early after Marseille and Bordeaux introduced similar measures.

Paris, where the virus has also been circulating more quickly than elsewhere, has not banned gatherings of more than 10 people. But the police prefecture has said that it has strongly advised against private gatherings of more than that number.

Spain: The region including the Spanish capital Madrid is limiting movement between and within areas badly affected by the new surge. Access to parks and public areas are being restricted, and gatherings will be limited to six people. However, people would not be stopped from going to work even in the hardest-hit region in Spain.

United Kingdom: The government is considering a short period of tighter rules that could be announced next week. As part of this plan, pubs and restaurants could be shut for a few weeks. However, schools and most workplaces would remain open. The plan may also involve re-introducing restrictions in public spaces.

Czech Republic: The government has announced all bars, restaurants and nightclubs to close between midnight and 6.00 am. Assembly of more than 10 people in indoor spaces has also been banned. More restrictions are expected as the cases continue to surge.

(With inputs from Reuters and the Associated Press)
New Delhi:

The Samajwadi Party and Congress alliance for Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections sealed on Sunday. Both Samajwadi Party and Congress jointly addressed press conference in Lucknow.

As per the sources, Congress has agreed on 105 seats whereas SP will fight elections on 298 seats.

For unity and intergrity of India and following secular ideology, we will continue our fight under SP National president Akhilesh Yadav, state Samajwadi Party chief Naresh Uttam told a press conference addressed jointly with UP PCC president Raj Babbar.

The countrys secular fabric will become stronger when Akhilesh Yadav becomes the chief minister again, Uttam said.

He said the idea was to uproot communal BJP and make UP a leading state by removing both BJP and Mayawatis BSP.

The PCC chief said Congress has accepted SPs offer of 105 seats keeping in mind the prevailing situation in the country and also the atmosophere in the state.

Keeping these factors in mind, Congress leadership agreed to strike an alliance to thwart BJPs divisive politics and at the same time to boost secularism and promote communal and social harmony.

Our ideologies are not different. We share many common ideologies, he said, adding both the parties believed in social justice and development, peace and good atmosphere.

He said the alliance between the two youth leaders Akhilesh and Rahul Gandhiwill ensure that politcs transcends narrow boundaries of caste and religion.

He also said BJP had created hardships for the people with its note ban decision. Now people have an opportunity to teach BJP a lesson, he said.

When asked to comment on Congress slogan 27 saal, UP behaal Raj Babbar said, Now UP will embark on the rapid path of progress and there will be no badhali (in a bad state).

Until Saturday, an alliance between the two parties seemed difficult as the Akhilesh Yadav-led SP was ready to offer only 99 seats to Rahul Gandhis party, which was unacceptable to Congress.

Here are the live updates from the press conference:

# Sure that this alliance (SP and Cong) will set an example; will strive hard for upliftment of poor and development of state

# The alliance is based on the good works of Akhilesh Yadav: Raj Babbar

# We have agreed to alliance in UP, says Raj Babbar

# We will contest election together and Akhilesh Yadav will again become Chief Minister, says Naresh Uttam

# SP and Congress will jointly contest election in Uttar Pradesh, says Naresh Uttam

# Congress is going to contest election from 105 seats

# Samajwadi Party is going to contest from 298 seats

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Toronto, Sep 19 : A Canadian cleantech company, CarbonCure Technologies, that develops carbon dioxide removal (CDR) solutions for the concrete industry has received investment from leading technology and property developers.

Amazon's Climate Pledge Fund and Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV) co-led the investment syndicate comprising Microsoft, BDC Capital, 2150, Thistledown Foundation, Taronga Group and GreenSoil Investments, CarbonCure said on Thursday.

The investment represents a commitment to tackling the carbon footprint of concrete, the most abundant human-made material in the world.

Cement -- the key ingredient that gives concrete its strength -- is also one of the largest emitters of carbon dioxide in the built environment.

"This collaborative investment by technology and property development firms is a great endorsement of CarbonCure as the go-to carbon dioxide removal solution for the growing tech construction space and the overall shift towards low embodied carbon construction materials," Robert Niven, CEO and Co-Founder of CarbonCure Technologies, said in a statement.

"We witnessed the tech industry setting climate change trends with their adoption of renewable energy sources like wind and solar. This investment in CDR signals a broader change for public and private infrastructure projects as industries and governments turn their focus toward the reduction of embodied carbon," said Niven.

In 2019, Amazon co-founded the Climate Pledge, a commitment to be net-zero carbon by 2040 -- 10 years ahead of the Paris Agreement date.

Amazon's investment in CarbonCure aligns with this commitment.

"We are excited to invest in CarbonCure, a company producing stronger, more sustainable concrete, which will help Amazon and other companies meet The Climate Pledge, a commitment to be net-zero carbon by 2040," said Kara Hurst, Vice President of Sustainability, Amazon.

"We are looking forward to lowering the carbon footprint of many of our buildings by using CarbonCure concrete, including in Amazon's HQ2 building in Virginia." CarbonCure said it intends to use the capital investment to accelerate its product roadmap and geographical expansion in order to meet its goal of removing 500 million metric tonnes or 500 Mt of carbon dioxide annually from the concrete industry by 2030.

CarbonCure is already used by nearly 300 concrete producers to supply low embodied carbon concrete to construction projects.

Microsoft, another prominent tech company in CarbonCure's investment syndicate, also has ambitious sustainability commitments.

"Achieving a net zero carbon future requires developing innovative new technologies to address carbon emissions across industries," said Brandon Middaugh, Director of Microsoft's Climate Innovation Fund.

"Solutions like CarbonCure help to reduce carbon emissions from the concrete industry, which is a large producer of carbon, and help us meet our goal to be carbon negative by 2030."
When Rice Universitys Moody Center for the Arts reopens today, it won't be holding back.

The Moody Center's fall exhibition, States of Mind: Art and American Democracy," is timed to coincide with the Nov. 3 presidential election and encourages dialogue around current social and political issues, according to a release from the university.

The exhibit will include paintings, sculptures, installations, videos and works on paper.

#StickTogetherHOU: Vibrant mural honoring local heroes opens at GreenStreet downtown

"As the political process unfolds, the exhibition will underscore the fundamental role art plays in fostering a dynamic dialogue in the community, especially during this divided time, Alison Weaver, the executive director of the Moody Center, said in the release.

Highlights includes a piece created by Los Angeles artist Rodney McMillian in response to the role the Supreme Court played in the 2000 presidential election, and another from late Boston-born artist Chris Burden, created in response to the 1991 brutal police beating of Rodney King and the riots that followed.

The El Brillo series from Mexican artist Teresa Margolles, which consists of hand-embroidered garments enhanced with glass shards from shootings at the Texas-Mexico border, will also be showcased.

Because of COVID-19, visitors to the Moody Center will be required to wear facial coverings and stand at least six feet a part.
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Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 16:10:14|Editor: huaxia

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XIAMEN, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- People from all walks of life across the Taiwan Strait, including nearly 2,000 Taiwan compatriots, will attend the 12th Straits Forum in east China's Fujian Province starting Saturday, according to the organizers.

The Straits Forum is the largest annual event across the Taiwan Strait, focusing on people-to-people exchanges.

This year's forum will feature 46 exchange activities on various topics, including the economy, culture and youth, as well as other relevant subjects such as COVID-19 prevention and control, public health, and resumption of work and production.

A total of 34 activities will be held both online and offline to enable the participation of more people on both sides of the Strait.

Zhong Zhigang, deputy head of the Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macao affairs office of Fujian and deputy director of the forum's organizing committee, said it is apposite to hold the forum as people on both sides of the Strait have been paying close attention to the event despite coronavirus concerns.

Ma Xiaoguang, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said at an earlier press conference that convening the forum smoothly amid regular epidemic containment measures demonstrates that closer cross-Strait cooperation and exchanges conform to the mainstream public opinion. Enditem
The death toll is 3,516 with 48 fatalities recorded in the past day.

Ukraine said 3,240 new active COVID-19 cases had been confirmed across the country in the past 24 hours as of September 19, 2020.

The total number of confirmed cases grew to 172,712, as seen on the interactive map compiled by the National Security and Defense Council.

As many as 76,754 patients, including 1,268 in the past day, have recovered.

The death toll is 3,516 with 48 fatalities recorded in the past day.

There were 92,442 active cases as of September 19. In total, there have been 237,045 reports on suspected COVID-19 since the beginning of 2020.

Read alsoNo need to be tested for COVID-19 after self-isolation period  health ministerThe highest number of new confirmed cases in the past 24 hours was registered in the city of Kyiv (400 cases), Ternopil region (311), Odesa region (281), Lviv region (260), and Kharkiv region (200).

Quarantine in Ukraine: background
Sharma, a resident of Pitampura, was arrested by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police on Friday under the National Security Act

The Delhi Police on Saturday said it has arrested a Chinese woman and her Nepalese associate, and claimed that they were paying huge amounts of money to freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma for allegedly passing sensitive information to "Chinese intelligence".

"Special Cell has arrested a freelance journalist, Rajeev Sharma, for passing sensitive information to Chinese intelligence. One Chinese lady and her Nepalese associate have also been arrested for paying him large amounts of money routed through shell companies. Chinese intelligence tasked the journalist for conveying sensitive information in lieu of large amounts of money," the police said.

"Huge number of mobile phones, laptops and other incriminating/sensitive material have been recovered," the police added.

Sharma, a resident of Pitampura, has been arrested by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police.

"He was found to be in possession of some classified defence-related documents. The investigation is in progress and further details will be shared in due course," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Sanjeev Kumar Yadav had said on Friday.
The Boston Red Sox have acquired Jacob Wallace from the Colorado Rockies as the player to be named later in the Kevin Pillar trade.

Boston dealt Pillar to Colorado at the Aug. 31 trade deadline.

Wallace, a 22-year-old right-hander, is a Lawrence, Mass. native who pitched at UConn. He grew up in Methuen and played at Methuen High. He was added to Bostons 60-player pool.

Colorado selected the 6-foot-1, 190-pounder in the third round of the 2019 MLB Draft. He posted a 1.29 ERA (three earned runs, 21 innings) and 0.86 WHIP in 22 relief outings at Short Season Boise in 2019 after signing. He struck out 29, walked nine and allowed only nine hits. He also converted 12 of 13 save opportunities.

The Red Sox have yet to announce the player to be named later from the Cubs for Josh Osich.

MLB Pipeline had Wallace ranked the Rockies' No. 20 prospect.

Per his MLB Pipeline scouting report, "Wallace goes after hitters aggressively with a power two-pitch mix. His fastball sits 96-97 mph and he couples it with an absolutely nasty slider thats a true out pitch. He creates good deception with the pitch, throwing his slider off the same plane as his fastballs with both sweep and depth to it, leading hitters to wave at it.

There is effort in Wallaces delivery, but that also adds to the deception and his arm works with good ease, so there isnt real concern about it being too violent. He didnt seem tired at the end of a long college season despite a fair amount of work during his pro debut, a good sign for the future. He has the right mentality for the back end of a bullpen, something that could keep happening assuming he continues to find the strike zone consistently enough.

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With a new EP to be released in the coming weeks, ground-breaking ensemble New Airs continues to take classical music in new directions with its blending of classic rock and pop with orchestral sounds.

It was while studying music at DIT, Dublin, that Portmarnock born Rachel Voloczi met arranger and prouder, Glen Austin, who formed the group.

After overnight YouTube success, Glen approached Rachel to see if she would be interested in joining as lead vocalist, her angelic tones perfectly complementing the classical arrangements.

Combining classical, folk, rock and pop music with an eclectic use of instruments, New Airs has a truly unique sound, with Rachel's distinctive voice acting as centrepiece.

Speaking of New Airs' sound and how the group became successful, Rachel says: 'It's a classical twist, I suppose, Glen is obviously very much into the classical end of things, and so the New Airs album is basically a classical crossover with rock/pop, or Irish based artists at the time.

'Glen thought it might be a great idea to have the original artist to join us for our chorus as well, so we performed in the Cead festival in London in 2016, Liam O Maonlai was there and we performed with him that night and John Spillane.

'Liam was quite impressed with what we were doing and we're so grateful to him to perform with us his song that night. He saw something in us, which was fantastic and after that it was easier for us to ask other artists to join in and they were happy to do that as well, so we owe a lot to Liam for that first video.'

She says: 'Music has always been something that I've always naturally gravitated towards, so I was always involved in school, in choirs and I trained classically as well. I knew pop singing was probably not an option and it was classical that came to mind, and that's why I went to DIT to that.

'I also run a school choir as well, so I've always had that kind of music thing going on, and with Glen also.

'So I've just been very lucky, very fortunate to have someone in my life who's involved in music, and then of course I always make sure to be involved in music in some way. So I have the choir and I've been with New Airs for four years and I love it and I'm very excited at what I'm doing at the moment.'

New Airs gives classical takes on rock and pop classics, covering artists such as Kings of Leon, U2, Thin Lizzy, Simple Minds and Tom Petty.

The classical angle was very important, Rachel says, but it was the blending of such diverse genres that gave them their unique sound.

New Airs has performed at a number of festivals, and for their YouTube channel have recorded in places such as Howth Castle with Brian Kennedy, the Oriel Gallery with Mundy, and at All Hallow's Church with Liam O Maonlai.

Speaking of how lockdown has affected performances, Rachel says: 'It's very difficult, but for us I think it's not as stressful because we started the YouTube channel, so thank God there's that avenue for artists.

'It does affect us in getting bookings in and things like that, but we're hopeful things will calm down.

'The virus is very stressful, of course, but we'll always have YouTube, it's been worrying but we're hopeful that things will get back to normal at some point.'

The 'New Airs' and 'Studio Sessions' albums are available on Spotify, and the group releases a new EP in the coming weeks.
Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 19 : The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday busted an inter-state module of Al Qaeda operatives as it conducted raids in West Bengal and Kerala on Saturday morning. Three of the nine Qaeda men were arrested from Ernakulam district.

Kerala Police chief Lokanath Behera confirmed the arrests from Ernakulam that has the highest migrant labourers population in the state. The three were picked from two places in Kochi. Those arrested are Murshid Hassan, Yakoob Bishwas and Morshraf Hussien.

Kerala Police has found out that Hussien was in Kerala for the past one decade and was working in a textile shop at Perumbavoor, near Aluva.

Speaking to the media, a person who was staying with Murshid Hassan said the police came around 2 a.m. and arrested Hassan and also recovered incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature.

"It was during the national lockdown, he started to stay with us. Generally he used to work only for two days a week and rest of the time, he was in the room. We do not know details of him or his family," said the person who was his roommate.

Police has now taken away the mobile of all those staying with Hassan and have asked them to report at the NIA office.

According to the anti-terror probe agency officials in Delhi, the arrests were made after raids in West Bengal's Murshidabad, from where six people have been arrested.

The NIA spokesperson said that the agency carried out simultaneous raids at several locations in Ernakulam and Murshidabad after learning about the inter-state terror module operational from various locations in India.

"The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds," the spokesperson said, adding that it has registered a case on September 11.

Sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession.

Those arrested in Kerala are presently under the custody of NIA officials and later in the day they would be produced before a special NIA court here and after that they would be moved to Delhi.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI/DEHRADUN: Nepal has introduced new school textbooks depicting a revised map of the country showing areas of Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limipyadhura as its territories. The new books Nepals territory and reading material for border issues are for Class IX and Class XII and have a preface written by Nepalese Education Minister Giriraj Mani Pokharel.

The move to introduce the textbooks was in line with Nepalese government spokesperson Yuvaraj Khatiwadas announcement after the Parliamentary approval that the government would incorporate the revised political map in the school curriculum.

Nepal is also resorting to the Chinese way of information warfare on social media, with multiple accounts demanding Nepal to take back Nepalese lands, including Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura, along with areas expanding up to Dehradun.
The makeover of Main Street in Downtown Worcester may include a nearly $55 million facelift for the commerce building at 340 Main St., according to City Manager Edward Augustus.

Paperwork to be filed by Augustus to the City Council outlines work on the 381,000-square-foot building that will include 312 market-rate rental properties along with commercial space on the first floor.

The price tag associated with the project is expected to be $54.5 million, according to city documents where Augustus recommends a 15-year Tax Increment Plan that would generate more than $1 million in new property taxes.

SilverBrick Group, LLC, a New York City developer, will run the project being branded as the SilverBrick SkyHouse. SliverBrick has reached a tentative agreement to purchase the property at 340 Main St. from Commerce Associates to pursue the project, city documents said.

The development firm has already completed two projects in Springfield, including the SilverBrick Lofts and SilverBrick Square.

In Worcester, the 312 units will be comprised of 80 studios, 183 one-bedroom units, 39 two-bedroom units and 10-three bedroom units. The project will also include 18,000 square feet of commercial use space on the first floor and basement levels and 260 off-street parking spaces.

The projected rent runs from $1,250 for a studio to $1,900 for a three-bedroom. Rent for a one-bedroom unit is expected to be $1,350 while a two-bedroom would be $1,575.

The studio and one-bedroom units will have one bathroom. The two-bedroom apartments will have 1.5 baths and the three-bedroom units will have two bathrooms.

While the units will be market-rate housing, the project will also aid Worcester in boosting its affordable housing stock. As part of the Tax Increment Exemption Plan with the city, SilverBrick Group has agreed to contribute $100,000 to the citys new Affordable Housing Trust Fund.

The trust fund is expected to help the city research and develop best practices for implementing affordable housing in the city.

More details including the establishment of an Affordable Housing Trust Fund Commission are expected in the fall, according to city documents.

The SilverBrick SkyHouse will be developed in two phases on the building that was constructed as Worcesters first skyscraper in 1897.

The 1897 building located at 340 Main St. in Downtown Worcester could be receiving a $54.5 million renovation that includes commercial space and 312 market rate residential units.

The first phase will include 204 residential units on floors five through nine. The phase will also include updates to the core and shell of the building, exterior restoration and the creation of storage units for residents in the basement.

The remaining 108 units will be completed in the second phase.

By the end of 2020, 340 Main St. will be more than 60% vacant, according to city documents. The current owner of the property also owns a 300,000-square-foot space at 18 Chestnut Street - one block away. The plan is to move the current tenants of 340 Main St. to Chestnut Street in the former Unum building to trigger another redevelopment project.

I see this as a win-win-win as you get more density, more housing, more investment and downtown, but were keeping the commercial folks in the downtown and buildings that are now empty wont be empty, Augustus told MassLive.

The project complements the 55-units of mixed-income housing that were completed last year at 332 Main St. by Commerce Associated.

Less than a half-mile north of 340 Main St., 177 affordable housing units are under construction at the former city courthouse.

The proposed Tax Increment Exemption Plan for the project 340 Main St. spans 15 years with an average exemption rate of 41%. It would start at 50% and scale down to 30%. The final five years would be 10%, according to city documents.

The estimated savings for the developer under the plan is $3.4 million over 15 years or $226,904 annually, city documents said.

Even with the exemptions, the city is expected to collect $6.9 million in real estate taxes over the 15-year period, which is $1.1 million more than if the project didnt happen.

SilverBrick also is applying for $2 million in tax credits for each of the two phases of construction through the state, according to city documents.

The project still must be presented to the full City Council. Upon approval from the council, it will be sent to the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development for final approval and designation.

The developer plans to meet with the Worcester Jobs Fund Committee next week to discuss pricing, selecting contractors and construction activity to the project, city documents said.

The project is aligned with the findings from a 2019 study from the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce that found the city has been under-producing housing at a rate of nearly 2,000 units annually.

The study showed that only 1% of employees downtown live in the area. By establishing housing downtown, the study estimated the city can tap into $1.5 billion of residential market potential.

An increase in residential density downtown could also spark an 18-hour downtown - long a goal of Augustus. More residents downtown leads to more kinetic energy in the area, including more restaurants, retail, gyms, grocery stores and more.

Within the last year alone, Maker to Main, a local grocery store, and Strawberries Early Learning Center, a daycare, both opened not far from the site of the potential $55 million project.

At 403 Main Street, the former Shacks building is under renovations to with a facade paying tribute to its original look. It is expected to house retail shops on Main Street and office space upstairs.

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Lala Kent and Randall Emmett pulled out all the stops on Saturday to reveal the sex of their upcoming child.

The 30-year-old Vanderpump Rules Star and the 49-year-old film producer learned the news after hiring a skydiver to soar down with a colored parachute.

Lala and some of her reality TV pals were present to catch the skydiver coasting down with a pink parachute, revealing that they were having a girl.

It's a girl! Lala Kent, 30, and her fiance Randall Emmett, 49, revealed they were expecting a baby girl after hiring a skydiver to land with a pink parachute on Saturday

Lala shared a short video of the diver's descent to her Instagram account, captioning it: 'We are having a baby Girl!'

'Oh my God!' she shouts and raises her hands as the pink parachute comes into view, just before the diver makes a smooth landing.

Randall rushes over from behind to give her a kiss before wrapping his arms around her in a loving hug.

The couple opted to skip the colored smoke and pyrotechnics that have become a popular part of sex reveal parties after one such event sparked the El Dorado wildfire near Los Angeles, which claimed the life of a firefighter on Thursday.

Surprise: Lala shared a short video of the diver's descent to her Instagram account, captioning it: 'We are having a baby Girl!'

Sweet: Randall rushes over from behind to give her a kiss before wrapping his arms around her in a loving hug

Guessing game: Her disgraced former costar Stassi Schroeder shared a photo of the bus that drove everyone, which had baskets for people to vote for a boy or a girl

Lala and Randall drove the party guests, including some of her Vanderpump Rules friends, out to the rural area to watch the skydiving.

Her disgraced former costar Stassi Schroeder shared a photo of the black bus that drove people to the site, which featured baskets attached to the side for guests to vote on whether they would be having a boy or a girl.

The former reality star, who was fired from Vanderpump Rules for racist statements and actions in the past, posted a short video of Lala as tears rolled down her cheeks.

'We have little baby girls!' Lala said to Stassi, who is also pregnant. 'I hope they do better in life than us,' she added.

Stassi's fiance Beau Clark was also present at the party, as was Tom Schwartz.

Correct guess: Lala's costar Jax Taylor commiserated with Randall before the landing and said it was going to be a girl. 'I just don't think it's in the cards for us to have boys,' he joked

Before the skydiver arrived, Randall chatted with Lala's costar Jax Taylor to find out what he was guessing.

'I think, you know, we're very similar kinds of guys, and I just don't think it's in the cards for us to have boys,' said Jax, referencing Randall's two daughters with his ex-wife Ambyr Childers.

'I'm with you. I'm betting a girl!' the Irishman producer concurred.

On Monday, Randall filmed Lala after she had gotten a call from her doctor informing her that the pregnancy was low risk and that she knew the baby's sex, which the reality star told her to forward to her assistant, though she worried she wouldn't be able to last five whole days without knowing.

Cat's out of the bag: Lala and Randall revealed they were expecting a child last month on their podcast with special guest Lisa Vanderpump; shown in April 2019

Lala and Randall revealed they were expecting their first child together last month on their podcast Give Them Lala  With Randall, featuring special guest Lisa Vanderpump.

'Today is my 30 birthday and I cant think of any other way to celebrate than with you guys coming through your headphones and speakers,' she said. 'I had the best gift given to me, my body also helped out too. I am pregnant!'

Lala said was hoping for a boy after living with Randall's two girls.

'We need more male energy in the house. There are a lot of girls wanting to play with Lalas weave, her makeup. I need a boy. I need some trucks around,' she joked.

The reality star and Randall announced their engagement back in September 2018.

The couple had to move back their wedding plans due to the coronavirus pandemic, but last month the film director revealed to Us Weekly that they had used the extra time to try to conceive a child.

Randall already shares 10-year-old London and six-year-old Rylee with his ex Ambyr Childers, who was most recently featured on the hit Netflix thriller series You.
While the coronavirus devastated the economy, Americans personal finances got in better shape than before the pandemic began due to government relief.

Seven in 10 Americans reported they could cover a $400 emergency expense using cash or its equivalent in July, a Federal Reserve survey found. This is the highest level since the survey started in 2013 and is a sharp increase since October 2019 when only 63% were able to cover it.

The relief worked, it was supporting families, said Claudia Sahm, a former principal economist at the Federal Reserve Board of Governors and now director of macroeconomic policy at the Washington Center for Equitable Growth. And we see this whether it's with the stimulus [checks], the unemployment [benefits] or the Payroll Protection Program.

The biggest improvement came from the lowest earners, 45% of those who make below $25,000 were able to pay $400 in July compared with just 34% in October. Source: Federal Reserve

The money works, and the money is gone

Overall, 77% of adults said they were doing at least okay financially in July, an increase from 72% in early April and 75 % in October, the survey found.

Read more: Heres what you need to know about unemployment benefits eligibility

The biggest improvement came from the lowest earners  45% of those who make below $25,000 were able to pay a $400 unexpected expense in July compared with just 34% in October. That occurred even though low-income workers were the most likely to lose their jobs in the pandemic.

This is a real signal that even low- and moderate-income households have been able to put some of that money away, Sahm said. The money works, and the money is gone.

Yahoo Money sister site Cashay has a weekly newsletter.

No reason to think that lasts

The survey results echo other measures showing the resiliency of Americans personal finances. For instance, personal income also rose while the overall economy shrunk  again largely driven by government support that has mostly expired.

This buffer won't last forever, especially if they still haven't gotten back to their jobs, Sahm said. There are still all these things looming for households and they've lost that infusion of extra support.

Story continues

A man wearing a protective mask uses an ATM while people wearing gloves and a mask can be seen getting off a bus in the reflection of the banks window amid the coronavirus pandemic on April 17, 2020 in New York City, United States. (Photo by Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images)

The CARES Act provided a one-time stimulus payment of around $1,200 plus an extra $500 per dependent child, which were mostly distributed in May. The act also provided an extra $600 in weekly unemployment benefits, which lasted through July.

That was followed by six weeks of $300 or $400 a week for jobless Americans provided by the Lost Wages Assistance program, which has now expired in at least 17 states.

More relief remains uncertain.

Extra Unemployment Benefits for States Beginning to Run Out

Stimulus negotiations in Congress have been in a stalemate for more than a month and experts said the chances of reaching a new deal before the November election are fading. That means the recent gains in Americans personal finances could also disappear.

In the absence of relief, Sahm said, there is no reason to expect that the extra financial security that people are telling us about in July  there's no reason to think that lasts.

Denitsa is a writer for Yahoo Finance and Cashay, a new personal finance website. Follow her on Twitter @denitsa_tsekova.

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The Covid-19 pandemic may have turned the world of several firms in the gig economy upside down, but it could not deter two graduates of business management in Odishas capital city of Bhubaneswar from starting their own food ordering platform amid an environment of overwhelming gloom.

In August, 20-year-olds Suryanshu Panda and Epari Pritam, graduates from Bhubaneswars Xaviers University of Business, started www.chefjunction.in, an online food ordering platform that fashions itself as the only platform that delivers food prepared at home.

Unlike Swiggy, Zomato or UberEats, our food ordering platform delivers food prepared by people at home. Due to the high amount of spices and poor quality of cooking oil used by restaurants, food quality in local restaurants have always been a matter of concern. During the pandemic, when immunity is the biggest issue, we realised a business opportunity exists as many people may not be ready to order such food from restaurants. After some brainstorming, we decided to start a food ordering platform that would connect customers to people cooking food in their homes, said Panda, who did his Bachelors in business administration this year with specialisation in human resources.

Pandas batch mate Pritam, who did his BBA in marketing and shared his love for food, was too enthused to join. Before the pandemic, both of us were planning to launch a start-up in advertising. But after some research, we realised that we may not get the clients we desired. As both of us were foodies and faced issues in getting quality food during college days, we agreed on a food start-up after 5 months of planning, said Pritam, who hails from a businessman family.

The two friends then pooled in Rs 1.5 lakh, rented an office space opposite a mall in the city and hired around half a dozen people. They then contacted several people in the city whose culinary skills were known in their small social circles and signed them up for the food platform.

Before we sign in a person for cooking food for our customers, the first thing we see is what kind of oils and spices they are using. If a home cook wants to join, they call us and we get to taste their food. If we like it we get them a licence under the food safety & standards authority of India (FSSAI) which is mandatory for any food business operator under the Foof Safety and Standards Act, 2006. The licence remains valid for 1 year, said Panda. For ensuring quality, we conduct surprise checks by ordering from the cooks without them recognising us.

Also Read: Odisha JEE 2020 Date: Exam to begin from October 12

The start-up has so far signed in 30 home cooks across the city and has hired a dozen delivery boys who bike around the city wearing gloves and masks to deliver the food at doorsteps. Till September 6, the platform has delivered more than 1200 orders.

At a time when most of the business is not seeing much uptick, we are doing pretty decently. In the last one month, we have managed Rs 1.7 lakh turnover. We keep 15-20 per cent margins on the food and fix costs of each item so that they are affordable. As the food is being cooked by our chefs at their homes, the customer is relieved about the hygiene and taste. For many of our home cooks the platform has brought in extra income at a difficult time, said Panda.

Also Read: Death of two sloth bears in Odishas Nandankanan zoo spreads panic

The duo aims to expand their food business to Cuttack in the next 2 months and then take it to southern cities in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. They also want to make it available on a mobile app like Zomato and Swiggy soon.

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Social studies and history education organizations, and many teachers, criticized the presidents statements yesterday after he condemned history classes that include lessons on systemic racism for teaching what he called lies and left-wing indoctrination.



President Donald Trumps remarks, at a Constitution Day event at the National Archives on Thursday, called for schools to teach our children the magnificent truth about our country, echoing rhetoric on history curriculum that he has used throughout his reelection bid, as his campaign has promoted the teaching of American exceptionalism.

Trump also announced at the event plans to create a 1776 Commission that would promote patriotic education. And he said that the National Endowment for the Humanities had awarded a grant to fund the creation of a pro-American curriculum.

In his speech, Trump also criticized two texts used in some history and social studies classes: A Peoples History of the United States, by socialist historian Howard Zinn, and the 1619 Project Curriculum, a set of classroom materials organized around the New York Times Magazine project of the same name, which investigates how slavery has shaped American society, economics, and politics.

In a statement released on Thursday , the National Council for the Social Studies, a professional organization for social studies educators, responded to the presidents critique of the 1619 Project, writing that the organization resoundingly rejects any effort by the federal government to silence social studies curriculum that explicitly addresses the centrality of slavery in the historical narrative of the United States. Federal education law prevents the president from officially endorsing or preventing schools from using specific curricula.

The Zinn Education Project, which offers lessons and professional development based on Zinns approach to history, also issued a statement saying that the Trump administration seek[s] to squash ... the power of a growing number of teachers who teach outside the textbook.

With a White House that on numerous occasions has defended white supremacy, it is more important than ever that educators of conscience uphold the right to teach a peoples historya history that looks honestly at social injustice and at the movements that have sought to make this a more equal society, the statement reads.

As EdWeeks Andrew Ujifusa and Evie Blad wrote yesterday , Trump has aimed to score political points with his conservative base by entering into the culture war about how American history is taught. But these comments also strike at the heart of an ongoing debate about the purpose of social studies educationwhat values and ways of understanding the world are we hoping young people come away with?

When there are moments of tension in the country, the teaching of history does come up. And our national story and how we tell that really does matter, said Grace Leatherman, the executive director of the National Council for History Education.

I hear a lot of people say, Well why cant the teachers just teach the facts? We know that there are facts in history. But what I didnt hear yesterday was a conversation about interpretation, she said. Its important that students understand there are multiple interpretations of history, as well as multiple perspectives.

We Dont Want to Tell Them How to Think

A key tenet of history education is teaching students to work with primary sources and make their own judgments.

We dont want to tell them how to think, said Kristen E. Duncan, an assistant professor of secondary social studies education at Clemson University. And even when these lessons do have civic aims, blind patriotism isnt the goal, she added.

The goal of social studies education is to help students learn how to be citizens in a pluralistic democracy, she said. We want our students to know how to engage with people who are like them and people who are different than them ... how to be cooperative, how to collaboratenot just coexist, but how to actually work together with different kinds of people.

Still, ideological debates over how history should be taught have raged for decades. And as my colleague Stephen Sawchuk wrote in 2018, they are deeply tied to ideas about what civic values schools should instill .

Take a recent controversy around the Advanced Placement U.S. History framework : The College Board, which administers AP tests, altered the outline for the course for the 2014-15 school year. Critics argued the new framework was too focused on the negative aspects of the countrys history, and not focused enough on democratic values. For instance, the new framework claimed that Manifest Destiny was built on a belief in white racial superiority and a sense of American cultural superiority.

Republican state legislators sought to block it from schools, and the Republican National Committee recommended that Congress withhold federal funding to the College Board until the group rewrote the document. After this pushback, framework was revised again, and historians called the updated framework evenhanded.

The United States doesnt have national history standards. The last time the country tried to put together a shared set was in the early 1990s. About 200 historians and educators from across the political spectrum worked for two years on that project , which was funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. They struggled to reach consensus on some of the same questions that remain front and center in debates about history education todayquestions like, how should the standards strike a balance between acknowledging the multiculturalism of the country and emphasizing shared ideals?

Once the group did produce a final draft, Lynne Cheney, who was the head of the NEH when the grant was awarded, attacked the proposed standards for what she saw as an overemphasis on Americas faults. The Senate eventually voted against the draft of the standards.

Today, the ideological bent of history standards, curricula, and textbooks varies from state to state , often in connection with the political bent of leadership. Often, these materials downplay violence and discrimination , and minimize the contributions of people of color.

If the president turned off Fox News long enough, and spent an hour with the textbooks that American children are reading, he would realize that theres no need for a commission, said Sam Wineburg, a professor of history and education at Stanford University. The materials often do everything they can to hide the blemishes of this country that we need to fix, he said.

Theres this notion that history teachers are indoctrinating students to hate the United States, and thats not whats happening at all, said Duncan. A lot of whats happening is the teaching of what we call the grand narrative. This narrative suggests that America is a place of opportunity for everyone, and it minimizes the struggles that many marginalized groups have long faced, she said.

But Leatherman says that teachers dont have to avoid discussions of oppression and resistance to be patriotic. Loving your country doesnt mean ignoring the parts of it that are hard, she said.

Photo: President Donald Trump speaks to the White House conference on American History at the National Archives museum, Thursday, Sept. 17 in Washington. (Alex Brandon/AP)
Yeas: U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, both R-N.C.

SECOND CALIFORNIA JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Stanley Blumenfeld to serve as a judge on the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. Blumenfeld began serving as a Los Angeles Superior Court judge in 2006; previously, he was a lawyer in Los Angeles and assistant U.S. attorney in the Central District. The vote on Tuesday, Sept. 15, was 92-4.

Yeas: Burr, Tillis

THIRD CALIFORNIA JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of John W. Holcomb to serve as a judge on the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. Holcomb has been a private practice lawyer in Southern California since 1994, focusing on intellectual property and bankruptcy law. The vote on Tuesday, Sept. 15, was 83-12.

Yeas: Burr, Tillis
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Linkedin Alya Nurbaiti (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19 2020

While it has taken a toll on students and their learning outcomes, the COVID-19 pandemic has presented opportunities for educational reform thanks to the acceleration of technology use, Education and Culture Minister Nadiem Makarim has said.

Speaking at the Yidan Prize Asia Pacific Conference held by Chinese education foundation Yidan Prize on Wednesday, the minister said the health crisis had caused some positive transformations, including parents increased participation in their childrens education.

We have never seen such a level of forced adaptation as when parents and teachers stumbled across learning how to use the technology. Weve also never seen the number of parents who realize what a curriculum is, what homework is or how difficult it is to teach your children, said Nadiem.

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The three-year-old boy who went missing in Spider-Man pyjamas south of Perth has been found in bushland alive.

A family member assisting with the land search found James late on Saturday, about 12 hours after he went missing.

A frantic search was underway for the three-year-old boy who went missing on Saturday morning while playing with his familys dogs.

James was last seen about 7.30am wearing white Spider-Man pyjamas and wellington boots outside an AirBnB the family arrived at on Friday night, according to The West Australian.

James was found on Saturday night. Source: WA Police

It is believed he wandered off the property with the dogs, but they returned without the toddler.

Local police used helicopters, the canine unit and SES volunteers to search the area around Karli Rise, Yallingup, south of Perth.

WA Police thanked the community and those who assisted with the search.

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.
SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal has also expressed regret over the BJP not taking into account its reservations against the bill

The Shiromani Akali Dal and the Bharatiya Janata Party have been in alliance for 23 years but today, the long-standing partnership appears to be coming apart from the edges.

Differences have erupted between the two parties over three farm sector Bills that the BJP is intent on passing in Parliament. The passage of these Bills could hurt the Akalis' interests on their home turf, where farmers' bodies have vehemently opposed the legislations.

SAD leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Thursday said her decision to resign from the Union Cabinet to protest three farm sector Bills "symbolises my party's vision, its glorious legacy and its commitment to go to any extent to safeguard the interests of farmers". "I am proud that today I am able in my humble way to take that legacy forward, she said.

In her four-page resignation letter addressed to the prime minister, she said, "In view of the decision of the government of India to go ahead with the Bill on the issue of marketing of agricultural produce without addressing and removing the apprehensions of farmers and decision of my party, Shiromani Akali Dal, not to be a part of anything that goes against the interest of farmers, I find it impossible to continue to perform my duties as a minister in the union council of ministers."

The Bills seek to deregulate the sale of agricultural produce to ensure better prices for the farmers. But many farm organisations and Opposition parties say they are a step towards dismantling the minimum support price (MSP) regime.

The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill. It has already passed Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill. They will replace ordinances promulgated by the Union government.

SAD's shifting views on farm bills

SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Friday expressed regret over the BJP not taking into account its reservations against the bill. He said that it was very unfortunate that the BJP-led government did not take farmers on board on the three agriculture-related bills, asserting that his party had brought their apprehensions to its notice.

Sukhbir also slammed the Congress for not voting against the bills in Parliament, a reference to the walkout from the House by the Opposition party before the voting took place in Lok Sabha.

But this has not been his party's stance all along.

Just a month ago, when the current day bills were introduced as Ordinances because the Lok Sabha was not in session, Sukhbir didn't find them so disagreeable.

Sharing his correspondence with Union Agriculture Minister Narender Singh Tomar with the media, Sukhbir claimed that the three ordinances were not a threat to the Minimum Support Price system. He had said he received categorical clarification from Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the MSP system will continue to be a priority.

"The state APMC (Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee) Act and institutions established under such statutes will continue to operate and are not affected in any way by these ordinances," Badal had said commenting on another key aspect which is now one of the primary grounds on which opposition is criticising the new legislation.

He had also slammed Congress for trying to 'mislead the farmers' about the ordinances.

Sukhbir was quoted as saying by The Indian Express that certain elements pretending to be champions of farmers had been busy misleading the farmers, claiming that these ordinances would put an end to the practice of government buying farmers crop at MSP.

"This written commitment by the Government of India is a slap on the faces of these conspirators and their masters in the Congress. These people have been active to become relevant at the cost of the farmers, and they had been engaged in vicious propaganda that procurement and MSP will stop," said Sukhbir.

Compare this to what Harsimrat had to say on Friday, a day after she quit the Cabinet over the issue.

"All this while, I was given the impression that since an Ordinance is only a temporary arrangement, my concerns and pleas would be addressed while legislating on the issue in the Parliament. But I write it with a very heavy heart that despite my persistent pleas as well as repeated efforts of my party, SAD, in this regard, the government has not taken the farmers on board," she said.

"The trust farmers place in us is sacred to us, she said," she said.

Kaur, who held the food processing industries portfolio, said, "I and my party are deeply pained that we were not able to persuade the government to refer the Bills governing the marketing of farmers produce to a select committee. She, however, expressed satisfaction that she was able to live up to the expectations of the people who have placed their complete trust in her."

Why are Badals so angry about farm sector Bills?

The issue hits too close to home for the Badals to ignore it any further. Agriculture is a dominant occupation in Punjab and the party had performed poorly in the last Assembly elections primarily because it lost the support of farmers. And Punjab is one of the states where the farmers' agitation against the Bills has gathered steam.

According to PTI, the state's agitating farmers had on Tuesday warned that any Punjab MP who supports the farm bills in Parliament will not be allowed to enter the villages as they blocked roads at many places as part of their state-wide protest.

Calling the bills "worse than coronavirus", Bhartiya Kisan Union (Lakhowal) general secretary Harinder Singh Lakhowal said they would negatively affect farmers, arthiyas (commission agents) and farm labourers, if implemented.

Lakhowal said his outfit, along with 11 other farmers' organisations will go to any extent to force the government to rollback the bills.
PATNA: A joint team of Jakkanpur Police and the Special Task Force (STF) arrested three arms smugglers and seized eight pistols and 16 magazines from their possession.

According to reports, the STF team received specific inputs about arms smuggling taking place at a bus stand in the Jakkanpur Police Station area. Acting on the info, the joint team of Jakkanpur Police and STF conducted raids and arrested three smugglers with arms and ammunition.

During the interrogation, the smugglers told the police that arms were to be delivered to a Ara district resident at Mithapur bus stand. He disclosed that Rs 10,000 were given for each consignment; and so far three consignments were delivered.

The Patna Police is considering the arrest of arms smugglers and weapon recovery as major success.

Meanwhile, the police is trying to find out the kingpin, suppliers and any other persons involvement in the racket.

With elections to the Bihar assembly due in a couple of months, the state police have stepped up their vigil to maintain law and order and are paying special attention to the crowded areas in the state.
(Newser)  Mitch McConnell wasted no time in making clear that the nominee President Trump selects to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg "will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate." In a Friday night statement that acknowledged Ginsburg's "extraordinary American life," McConnell laid out his justification for the moveand why this situation is in his view different than that of President Obama's March 2016 nomination of Merrick Garland to replace the late Antonin Scalia. The Senate under McConnell refused to vote on the nomination due to the looming election. McConnell expressed that the difference this time around is that the GOP controls both the White House and Senate, while in 2016 Democrats controlled only the White House. More:

story continues below

McConnell said in his statement, "Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year. By contrast, Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary.

The last time a Supreme Court justice was confirmed in an election year was 1940. The latest election year nomination and confirmation occurred in 1916 under President Woodrow Wilson, who nominated John Clarke on July 14. He was confirmed 10 days later.

Fox News notes there are 45 days until Election Day; 57 days elapsed between Justice Brett Kavanaugh's nomination and his confirmation hearing. ABC News reports the average nomination-to-Senate-vote time is 69.6 days.

The AP reports that in an interview just hours before news of Ginsburg's death broke, moderate Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said she "would not vote to confirm" prior to the inauguration. Other Republican senators, including Susan Collins, Lindsey Graham, and Charles Grassley, have previously said much the same, but "it was not certain whether they would hold to that stance," reports the New York Times.

The GOP holds 53 seats, and McConnell will need a simple majority to push through the nominee. The Times notes this: "Rules changes in the Senate since 2013 have left control of judicial nominees entirely in the hands of the majority if they can hold their forces together."

(Read more US Supreme Court stories.)
Check out the top news that made headlines this week across the Patch network in New Jersey:

These places have, quite possibly, the best pizza in New Jersey and are among the best in America, a well-respected survey says.>>>Read more here.

NJ Coronavirus, Reopen Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

New Jersey's confirmed death toll is now 14,273 as new cases and more confirmed deaths were announced on Saturday. Here are the areas with new cases, the town-by-town and county-by-county totals and the latest coronavirus, school and reopening developments in New Jersey.

NJ Removes Several States From Coronavirus Travel Quarantine List

New Jersey updated its coronavirus travel advisory list, removing a string of states and adding one territory. Here's where.

NJ Issues New Warning After Back-To-Back 'Big' COVID-19 Numbers

WATCH: Gov. Murphy said NJ had its highest coronavirus numbers in a while, and state officials issued a new warning. Here's why.

Coronavirus Has Hit NJ's Young People 'Substantially:' Here's Why

WATCH: Gov. Murphy criticized young people for allowing COVID-19 to spread "substantially," saying the spike will impact NJ's reopening.

Multiple Swimmers Pulled From Ocean Co. Rip Currents: Officials

"Don't swim where there are no lifeguards," the Ocean County Sheriff's Office said.

Melrose Place Actress Back In Jail After Fatal Somerset DWI Crash



Amy Locane was re-sentenced and sent back to jail for crashing into a Montgomery couple, killing a woman in 2010, authorities said.

Men Shot 6 Rounds At Officers' Camden Home While Baby Slept: Cops

Police are searching for two men who shot at the home of Camden County police officers while their infant slept Tuesday night.

8 Arrested As YouTube Stars' Fans Get Unruly In Seaside Heights

The Nelk Boys, who have 5.7 million YouTube followers, got kicked out of the famed "Jersey Shore' house as a crowd got unruly, police said.

Story continues

4 Charged In Fair Lawn 'Pantsing' Posted To Social Media

The community is outraged after a 14-year-old person with autism allegedly had his pants removed on video, which was posted to social media.

This article originally appeared on the Point Pleasant Patch
The translation industry is on the rise, thanks to the increasing demand for translation services. Whether you are looking forward to publishing your research paper in a foreign language or just pushing a marketing campaign outside the boundaries of your own country, you will need translation services. It is imperative to cultivate the text in the right way for staying relevant and passing on the information in the right manner. It wasn't very easy for firms to go international in the past. Now, because of an increase in globalization, the scope of certified translation services has increased as well.

It is an exciting time for the translation industry and there are many perks for people who are looking forward to making a career in translation. But, just like all the industries out there, even the translation industry has gone through many changes. This is what has given birth to new trends that have taken over the already used approaches. If you are looking forward to staying relevant in the translation industry or want to know whether your translation service provider is updated, here we have a list of top translation trends of 2020.

Post-editing and machine translation

Machine translation is no more a new kid on the block as it is being used in the translation industry for more than 60 years now. However, machine translation has been adopted as an integral part of the translation process as recent as a couple of years back. This is mainly because of the influx of neural machine translation. This is one of the few artificial intelligence applications that has its own pitfall but looking at the rising trend of such type of technologically advanced application means that it is here to stay.

The same reason can justify the proliferation of post-editing machine translation services that are being used for offering quick, accurate, and economical certified translation services. You should know that the global market for machine learning is going to grow to $980 billion dollars by the end of 2020 and that's why its application in the translation industry is no surprise.

Transcreation

Another trend that you will need to keep a tab on is transcreation in the translation industry. You can say that this trend is still not the largest part of the translation industry but the speed of its growth is phenomenal and shouldn't be overlooked. One of the main reasons behind the rise of transcreation is that more and more firms out there are understanding the value of reaching international clients in the right manner.

Transcreation involves both creative writing and localization. As a translator, you will need to adapt to the entire marketing campaign or document so that you can make the target audience feel that the marketing campaign or document has been written in the native language itself. The same approach can be used in legal translation services as well. The use of machine translation and transcreation will take the translation services to another level.

Mandarin translation

Translating documents to and from Mandarin is nothing new for the translation industry but nowadays, its importance has increased significantly. China opened its gate for foreign trade in the year 1979 and since then, the investment in the Chinese market has been increasing at breakneck speed. You will be surprised to know that currently, China is one of the fastest-growing economies of the world and there are positive chances that you might end up doing some kind of business with China in the future.

China is also the world's largest manufacturer and since partnering with China means getting things done in an economical manner, you will never have to agonize over your decision to do business with them. And, this is where the translation services come into perspective. Just like the Japanese language, the Chinese language is also considered difficult but if you are planning to do business with China then you will need English to Chinese or Chinese to English translation services.

The B-word

It doesn't matter which type of business you are doing or at which scale you are running your firm, if you are connected with the European countries for doing business then you can never get away from Brexit. You should know that Brexit is the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European countries and in addition to impacting the international business, it will also have a huge impact on the translation service industry. The exit of the United Kingdom will lead to many legal changes and this is when the demand for legal translation services will increase by many folds.

Since firms are very much concerned about the legal documents, they will always choose the best translation services for doing the job. Legal translation services don't only require the knowledge of the native language but it requires a good hold on the legal aspect of the businesses as well.

Video translation and subtitling

Video content is now one of the most enticing and used content on digital platforms and this will give rise to a new form of translation that is being called video translation. According to Cisco, around 80% of the traffic on the digital platform will come from videos and this simply means that the demand for translation videos will increase in the year 2020. You can take the example of Facebook where more than 85% of the videos are played without any sound and this is why subtitles for such videos are important for the users.

It will require a translator to master subtitle tools and they will also need to keep the tone and the voice of the original video in mind while providing video translation services.

As you can see, there are many trends that are going to become a new normal for the translation industry in the future. There are translation companies out there like The Spanish Group that are already making the most of these trends and streamlining their translation services. If you want to stay relevant in the translation industry then you will also need to do the same.

Author Bio:

Evie Mills is an Outreach Specialist at Anoodigital.com. She is also passionate about writing. Her key areas of interest are a lifestyle, business, technology and home decor. In her free time, she loves listening to music and play with her cute dog.
Cooperative Bank scam: ED attaches properties worth Rs 45.32 crore in Karnataka

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 19: The Enforcement Directorate has attached assets worth Rs 45.32 crore in connection with a cooperative bank fraud case.

The attachments were made under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2002.

The attached movable assets to the tune of Rs. 7.16 crores are in the form of bank balances and fixed Deposits belonging to President, Ex-Vice President, Ex CEO and present CEO of Sri Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank Niyamitha and Sri Guru Sarvabhouma Credit Co-Operative Ltd. and their associates.

The attached 29 immovable properties totalling to Rs. 38.16 crores are in the form of agricultural land, residential apartments, houses held in the name of K Ramakrishna, late T S Sathyanarayana, late M V Maiya, Santosh Kumar A and various other employees of Sri Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank Niyamitha and Sri Guru Sarvabhouma Credit Co-Operative Ltd., all residents of Bangalore and others.

K Ramakrishna and late T S Sathyanarayana were President and Vice President respectively of both Sri Guru RaghavendraSahakara Bank Niyamitha and Sri Guru Sarvabhouma Credit Co-Operative Ltd. Sri Guru Sarvabhouma Credit Co-Operative Ltd.

The ED said that these banks were established in 2015 with an intention of avoiding payment of TDS.

Co-operative banks are required to pay TDS under Income Tax Act. Between 2016 to 2019, crores of rupees were transferred from the society (Sri Guru Sarvabhouma Credit Co-operative Ltd.) to the bank.

President and M V Maiya were responsible for transferring the amounts from the said society to the NPA accounts of the bank to reduce the NPA parameter. The ED initiated the probe based on a complaint filed with the Bengaluru police. The ED found the accused persons had embezzled more than Rs 1,500 crore collected from a large number of depositors.

The accused persons withdrew money from the bank by creating fictitious loan accounts and did not repay the money and committed breach of trust and cheated public at large.

The proceeds of crime were found to be laundered in the name of many bank employees also. The President and his family members are absconding and Ex- CEO of the bank has committed suicide.

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

Investigation under PMLA also revealed that K Ramakrishna, President, along with his wife and son, who is one of the Directors of M/s Mukhyaprana Agro Farming & Research Info Pvt. Ltd., layered the proceeds of crime in the name of company and also in the name of Sri Guru Sarvabhouma Credit Co-Operative Ltd. by diverting funds from Sri Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank Niyamitha.

The former CEO late M V Maiya had also purchased immovable properties in his name by diverting funds from the bank and society. Employees of the bank and society were also involved in diverting funds by creating fictitious loan accounts and purchased properties in their name and in the name of their associates. Investigation conducted so far lead to identification of the proceeds of crime in the form of movable and immovable properties, which have been provisionally attached under PMLA.
This is the moment police catch an 'illegal migrant' stowed inside a roof box on a family's car at the M20 service station after their return from France.

Footage shows an officer wearing a face mask and purple gloves opening the compartment to find a man curled up inside.

The video was captured by Elliot Lloyd Brake, 27, at Maidstone Services in Kent on Monday last week.

The police officer, pictured wearing purple gloves and a face mask, opening the roof box before finding a man curled up inside at Maidstone services near the M20 in Kent

In the clip, the camera operator can be heard saying: 'There he is ladies and gentlemen.'

The man, wearing light blue jeans, trainers and a black jacket, is then seen climbing out of the tiny space.

He unloads his backpack while the officer nearby hands him a bottle of water.

The suspected migrant was detained and questioned by Home Office immigration officers, according to Kent Police.

Mr Lloyd Brake, from Essex, told The Sun Online: 'I was at the services getting breakfast when the driver came out of the service station with the police, who approached the vehicle.'

He added: 'He wasnt trying to fight or escape, he came out calmly with the help of the officers.

The man seen climbing out from the car's roof compartment before the officer hands him a bottle of water. The person who filmed the footage said he 'wasn't trying to fight or escape'

Migrants are even using empty lemonade bottles to cross the Channel A man was previously found with empty lemonade bottles strapped to his body in a highly-dangerous bid to swim to Britain as desperate migrants turn to increasingly risky methods to cross the Channel. He was found last month just four miles off the French coast as the number of people making the perilous crossing has increased recently. In another shocking case, a group tried to get to the other side of the channel in a children's paddling pool while some have tried wooden boats or kayaks. Some used shovels as oars to row across. Meanwhile, inflatable boats being used as tenders by French yacht owners in Calais have been stolen, reported a local newspaper, La Voix du Nord. Dozens of tenders and approximately 40 outboard motors have been stolen since the start of this year, according to the French police. Advertisement

'They put him in a squad car along with the driver.'

A spokesperson for the force told MailOnline: 'Kent Police was called at around 10.05am on Monday 7 September 2020, following reports of a suspected migrant inside the roof box of a car at the M20 services near Maidstone.

'Patrols attended the scene where the person was detained and enquiries commenced with Home Office immigration officers.'

It comes as the Home Office announces plans to fly at least 1,000 migrants who crossed the English Channel back to Italy, Germany and France in a series of weekly flights.

More than 6,000 refugees have crossed from France in crowded dinghies so far this year.

Officials have described the crossings as 'thoroughly unacceptable,' as Home Secretary Priti Patel plans to fly the arrivals back to Europe on a weekly basis, according to The Telegraph.

The Immigration Enforcement Secretariat said the Government and Ms Patel are 'equally frustrated by the severity of the situation'.

The Government office warned it cannot take simple measures such as returning migrants after intercepting them at sea, due to legal constraints.

Talks are ongoing to get more UK funded officers on French beaches to prevent people trying to make the dangerous crossing.

The 1,000 migrants who would be flown back to Europe would be returning to countries where they have already had asylum claims granted.

Only 29 arriving migrants were sent back to France in 2019.

The Immigration Enforcement Secretariat official said: 'There is considerable policy work underway to address where the UKs immigration and asylum system is being exploited and abused.

'As it currently stands, the system is inflexible and rigid, and is open to abuse by both migrants and activist lawyers to frustrate the returns of those who have no right to be here.'
To the Times:

It is never too late to change. Thats the message from Mike Moser, who spent six years as chief executive of the British Fur Trade Association, had a change of heart, and is now advocating to ban fur sales in the U.K.

Fur is on a downward spiral. Nearly every top designer has shed fur, California has banned it, Queen Elizabeth II has renounced it, and countries around the world are shutting down fur farms.

But its not just fur: Everywhere you look, fashion is becoming more ethical, and its happening quickly.

For example, no one was even talking about angora until a PETA Asia investigation showed rabbits on farms in China tied down and screaming as their fur was ripped out by the fistful. As PETA Asias video went viral, stunned retailers rapidly dropped angora wool from their clothing lines.

A PETA Asia investigation into goat farms in South Africa, where most of the worlds mohair is produced, found that fast shearing leaves goats cut up and bleeding. More than 300 retailers worldwide have dropped mohair.

From feathers to leather to wool, animal abuse is rampant in the fashion trade, and retailers and consumers alike are saying, Enough!

As the momentum against animal skins grows, so do consumers choices. Innovative and sustainable vegan options  like leather made from pineapple leaves, apples, and cork, and wool made from seaweed and hemp  are on the rise, and more are in the works. The future of fashion is here, and it doesnt hurt animals.

Paula Moore, The PETA Foundation, Norfolk, VA
Afghanistans Defense Ministry says more than 30 Taliban militants have been killed in air strikes in the countrys north, although provincial officials said civilians were also among the dead.

The ministry said two air strikes targeted a Taliban base in the Khan Abad district of the northern province of Kunduz, a stronghold of the militants, on September 19.

Provincial officials said at least 12 civilians were killed and more than 10 wounded in the air strikes.

The deadly strikes came as Afghan and Taliban representatives hold peace talks in the Gulf state of Qatar.

"The first strike hit the Taliban base, but the second one caused civilian casualties as they had gathered at the bombed site," said Fatima Aziz, a member of parliament who represents Kunduz.

The ministry did not confirm any civilian deaths but said an investigation was under way.

In a statement, the Taliban denied its fighters were hit and said 23 civilians had been killed.

The air strikes came after overnight clashes between Afghan forces and Taliban militants in Khan Abad district.

Esmatullah Moradi, the spokesman for the governor of Kunduz, said three Afghan soldiers were killed in the clashes.

Kunduz city, the provincial capital, briefly fell to the Taliban in 2015 and has come under attack several times since then.

While the government controls the city, many rural areas of Kunduz Province are controlled or contested by the Taliban.

Violence has surged across Afghanistan, despite the start of the talks on September 12 that are aimed at reaching a political settlement to end the nearly 19-year-old war.

Roland Kobia, the European Unions special envoy to Afghanistan, said on September 18 that UN figures show violence in Afghanistan in the last five weeks has been the highest in the last five years.

With reporting by Reuters and AFP
WASHINGTON: Republican senators weighing what to do about the vacancy on the Supreme Court are facing questions about their own past comments amid complaints by Democrats that their views have shifted with changing political reality.

President Donald Trump has urged the GOP-run Senate to consider without delay his upcoming nomination to fill the seat vacated by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday. The move comes just six weeks before the election.

A look at what key Republican senators were saying in the past and what they are saying now about filling a seat on the Supreme Court during an election year.

SENATE MAJORITY LEADER MITCH McCONNELL

McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, vowed in a statement Friday night, hours after Ginsburgs death, to call a floor vote on Trumps nominee, although he did not specify a date. McConnell, who sets the calendar in the Senate, has made judicial appointments a top priority.

McConnells statement on the latest vacancy stands in stark contrast to the position he took in 2016, when he refused to consider President Barack Obamas choice for the high court months ahead of the election. McConnell blocked hearings for Merrick Garland, a federal appeals court judge, saying the choice should be left to voters in an election year.

Democrats said Republicans should follow the precedent they set in 2016 by not considering a Supreme Court choice in the run-up to an election, but McConnells comments make it clear he has no intention of doing so.

Americans re-elected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise," McConnell said.

SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN LINDSEY GRAHAM

Graham, who will oversee the vetting of the nomination as chairman, tweeted Saturday that he will support Trump in any effort to move forward regarding the recent vacancy created by the passing of Justice Ginsburg.

Grahams comment contradicts his statements in 2018 and 2016 that a Supreme Court nominee should not be considered in an election year.

If an opening comes in the last year of President Trumps term, and the primary process has started, well wait to the next election," Graham said in 2018 at an event hosted by The Atlantic magazine. Reminded that he was speaking on the record, Graham said: Yeah. Hold the tape.

Two years earlier, in the midst of the Garland battle, Graham was even more emphatic, urging listeners at a Senate Judiciary meeting to use my words against me. If theres a Republican president (elected) in 2016 and a vacancy occurs in the last year of the first term, you can say Lindsey Graham said, Lets let the next president, whoever it might be, make that nomination.

Despite those comments, Graham said Saturday that he supports moving forward on a new nomination because Democrats had changed the Senate rules to confirm more circuit court judges during Obamas tenure, and because Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and his friends in the liberal media conspired to destroy the life of Brett Kavanaugh and hold that Supreme Court seat open.

Kavananugh was narrowly confirmed to the Supreme Court in 2018 after a bitter, partisan fight in which Graham played a key role to advance Kavanaugh.

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS

Collins, a Maine Republican who is considered a moderate, said Saturday that in fairness to the American people, the Senate should not vote on a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court until after the election and that the nomination should be made by the president who is elected on November 3rd.

Collins voted in favor of Kavanaugh in 2018 a vote that has played a key role in her reelection campaign. Liberal groups have targeted Collins over her support for Kavanaugh, and she trails her Democratic opponent in publicly released opinion polls. Her statement seems to leave open the possibility of supporting Trumps nominee in the lame duck session after the election if Trump wins a second term.

SEN. CHUCK GRASSLEY

Grassley, an Iowa Republican, drew condemnation from Democrats in 2016 when, as Judiciary chairman, he blocked confirmation hearings for Garland, who was nominated to the high court after Justice Antonin Scalia died unexpectedly in February 2016.

At the time, Grassley cited the Biden Rule in holding up the process. The informal rule never adopted by the Senate in any formal sense stemmed from a speech given by then-Sen. Joe Biden in 1992 that the Senate should not fill a Supreme Court vacancy until after the presidential election. Biden, who served as Obamas vice president, is now the Democratic nominee for president.

More recently, Grassley told reporters in July that if Trump nominates a replacement for Ginsburg or any other justice this year, he would not recommend holding a hearing on that nominee.

Grassley issued a statement Friday night praising Ginsburg but did not comment on whether Trump should move forward with a replacement.

SEN. JONI ERNST

Ernst, an Iowa Republican up for reelection this year, serves on the Judiciary panel. She said in July that in the event of a Supreme Court vacancy, the Senate should hold hearings on Trumps nominee, even if he loses the presidential election in November.

Ernsts campaign sent out a fundraising email Friday night saying: Our Conservative values and Constitutional rights are now on the line. The next Supreme Court nominee will shape major decisions for decades to come.

Ernst issued a statement later Friday saying the email never should have gone out.

Though I never saw it, it was sent out under my name and I take responsibility for it, Ernst said. Tonight, my prayers are with the family of Justice Ginsburg.

SEN. LISA MURKOWSKI

Murkowski, an Alaska Republican who opposed Kavanaughs confirmation, said in an interview hours before Ginsburgs death that she would not vote to confirm her replacement before the next president is inaugurated.

Her comments to Alaska Public Radio on Friday also occurred before McConnell said the Senate will vote on Trumps nominee to replace Ginsburg. Murkowskis comment appeared to put her at odds with McConnell, who will need at least 50 votes to push a Trump nominee through the Senate, plus a tie-breaking vote by Vice President Mike Pence.

Murkowski, like Collins, issued a statement after Ginsburgs death that praised her but did not mention whether shed favor voting on a Trump pick to replace her.

SEN. THOM TILLIS

Tillis, a North Carolina Republican who serves on the Judiciary panel, was among several GOP senators in tough reelection battles to join Trump in calling for a swift vote on a Supreme Court nominee. Arizona Sen. Martha McSally and Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler both were appointed to their seats also called for a quick vote.

There is a clear choice on the future of the Supreme Court between the well-qualified and conservative jurist President Trump will nominate and I will support, and the liberal activist Joe Biden will nominate and Cal Cunningham will support, who will legislate radical, left-wing policies from the bench, Tillis said on Twitter, referring to his Democratic opponent, former state Sen. Cal Cunningham.

In 2016, Tillis opposed giving Merrick Garland a hearing, saying the voice of the American people should be weighted heavily in filling a Supreme Court vacancy, adding that the nomination would be best left to the next president."

SEN. MITT ROMNEY

Romney, a Utah Republican who was the sole GOP senator to vote in favor of Trumps impeachment, issued a statement Friday praising Ginsburg, but did not comment on whether he would support a vote on Trumps nominee.

His spokeswoman called reports that Romney would insist on delaying the vote until after Inauguration Day grossly false. Romney has never faced a vote on a Supreme Court nominee as a senator.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor


MBABANE  In what will come as a knock on the face for government suppliers, government has cancelled negotiations for the E2 billion loan at African Export-Import Bank.

The loan was to close the financing gap as government announced that it needed about E3.3 billion (USD 207 million) to finance the current national budget, which includes clearing of arrears and COVID-19 response interventions.

Government currently owes suppliers close to E2 billion and a great percentage of the money would be used to clear these arrears, which have been hanging for the past two years.

Cancellation

The Ministry of Finance has been engaging the African EXIM Bank in the quest to secure the loan but those negotiations, which have been ongoing for the past few months, have been put on ice.

There are many contributing factors into the cancellation of the negotiations over the loan which has caused delay in securing the loan hence government allegedly coming to the conclusion of cancelling it.

It has been reliably gathered that Minister of Finance Neal Rijkenberg broke the news of the cancellation of the loan negotiations with Afrexim Bank to his colleagues in Cabinet last Tuesday.

The Minister yesterday confirmed the cancellation of the loan which was meant to settle outstanding arrears through a statement shared to this publication.

Outstanding

The Ministry of Finance would like to update the nation regarding the AFREXIM (African Export-Import) Bank loan which was meant to settle outstanding arrears. Due to the delay in meeting and finalising the conditions of the loan, government has taken the decision to cancel the loan, he said.

The minister said, however, government remained committed to settling all outstanding payments to suppliers and service providers. He shared that to date more than E1 billion of the outstanding arrears have been paid over the past year.

Commitments

He submitted that the repayment of arrears was an ongoing process and they were continuing to work on limiting all commitments to available cash and this process was guided by an arrears clearance strategy which has been approved by Cabinet.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan for budget support has been finalised which will assist in this current years budget commitments. The Ministry will continue to settle arrears using Government revenues and savings and we are confident that the accumulation of arrears will be minimised. We value the support we have received from Government suppliers and service providers and appreciate the level of patience and trust displayed by the business community of Eswatini even in these trying times, he said.

It is worth mentioning that Rijkenberg, on January 6, 2020, said government was computing data to ascertain the number of suppliers that it was indebted to.

He had projected that the compilation of the data would be completed by the second week of the month (mid-January). However, feedback from the business community was that not a single supplier had received a cent from government.

Verification

In the same spirit, government late last year initiated a verification process which was an invitation extended to all entrepreneurs that conducted business with government. It invited them to resubmit their documents and undergo a verification process before they get paid.

At the time, Rijkenberg said, the method required proper scheduling and comprehensive stock taking.

In the statement calling on the owed suppliers to submit proof of service to government, the Finance minister said all claims would be subjected to verification by the relevant line ministries and the Internal Audit Department before being passed on to treasury.

However, nothing came out of that exercise.


Passengers wait at Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi to board a flight to Japan's Tokyo, September 19, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Huy.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has green-lighted the Transport Ministrys recommendation to resume commercial flights to Thailand, Vietnam's fastest growing tourist market.

But he said anti-pandemic measures should be in place, including quick disposal of passengers at airports to reduce the risk of infection due to overcrowding and quarantine plans, the Vietnam News Agency reported quoting his directives at a government meeting on Friday.

This comes a few days after the government allowed the resumption of air services to China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan from September 15 and to Laos and Cambodia on September 22.

The number of tourists from Thailand rose by 46 percent last year and many Thai investors have been eyeing the Vietnamese market in recent years.

The PM also ordered the transport ministry to consider increasing the frequency of flights to bring in foreign experts and investors and Vietnamese nationals from abroad.

Those entering Vietnam for a period of less than 14 days are required to limit their time at bars, dance clubs, karaoke parlors, and other crowded places to avoid the risk of infection. The Health Ministry has ruled that they are exempt from centralized quarantine.

Hanoi and HCMC, the countrys two largest metros, have reopened bars and night clubs this month after they were closed for more than a month following a second outbreak of Covid-19.

The only foreigners allowed now are those with diplomatic and official passports, experts, managers, high-skilled workers, and investors, their family members, international students, and family members of Vietnamese citizens.

On landing, people must furnish a certificate confirming they tested negative for Covid-19 within three days before boarding the flight, but will be taken to quarantine camps first and tested further using the RT-PRC method. People who are tested negative for the coronavirus twice can leave the camp after five days and remain isolated at other facilities like home, workplace or hotels to finish the 14-day protocol.

Vietnamese carriers have yet to reveal plans for return flights from their six Asian destinations since authorities are working to finalize Covid-19 testing procedures and ensure there are sufficient quarantine facilities and medical staff to receive foreign arrivals.

The first resumed international flight, from Hanoi to Tokyo, left on Saturday morning with more than 100 passengers.

Vietnam suspended all international flights on March 25.

Many foreigners who have been locked out of the country due to travel bans have pleaded with the government to reopen the borders and resume international flights so that they could reunite with their families.

Vietnam has had 1,068 Covid-19 cases so far, 89 of them active. The country has recorded 35 deaths due to the pandemic.

There has been no community transmission for more than two weeks.
Belarusian police have detained dozens of protesters in Minsk, as hundreds of people marched through the capital demanding the resignation of President Alyaksandr Lukashenka.

Mass protests challenging the results of an August 9 presidential election that declared Lukashenka the winner have swept across Belarus over the past month.

Thousands of people have been detained and beaten by police, while nearly all the opposition's key leaders have been forced to leave the country or been arrested in a widening crackdown.

Hundreds of protesters, many of them women, marched in central Minsk on September 19, briefly scuffling with riot police who then blocked their path.
New Delhi: Anand Mahindra, the chairman of Mahindra Group, on Saturday (September 19, 2020) said that it would be an honour if the farmer who had carved out a 3-km-long canal in 3 decades in Bihar, uses the Mahindra tractor.

Anand who is known for his generosity was replying to a picture in which he was tagged and asked by a user, "I reckon Mahindra would feel proud to honour this man."

The 65-year old billionaire businessman who had already heard the story of the farmer replied with, "I had tweeted that I think his canal is as impressive a monument as the Taj or the Pyramids. We at Mahindra would consider it an honour to have him use our tractor."

      As you know, I had tweeted that I think his canal is as impressive a monument as the Taj or the Pyramids. We at @MahindraRise would consider it an honour to have him use our tractor. How can our team reach him @rohinverma2410 ? https://t.co/tnGC5c4j8b  anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) September 19, 2020

The another 'Manjhi' from Bihar came into the limelight when the ANI news agency had reported that he had carved out a three-kilometre-long canal to take rainwater coming down from nearby hills to fields of his village, Kothilawa in Lahthua area of Gaya in Bihar.

"It took me 30 years to dig this canal which takes the water to a pond in the village," said Laungi Bhuiyan who has dug out the canal single-handedly in Gaya. "For the last 30 years, I would go to the nearby jungle to tend my cattle and dig out the canal. No one joined me in this endeavour... Villagers are going to cities to earn a livelihood but I decided to stay back," he added.

The news went viral on social media platforms and came across Anand's timeline as well. He retweeted a news article on the same and said, "Many glorious monuments have been built which have involved sweat & toil over decades. But those were usually the visions of absolute monarchs using the labour of their subjects. To me, this humble canal is no less glorious than the pyramids or the Taj."

Many glorious monuments have been built which have involved sweat & toil over decades. But those were usually the visions of absolute monarchs using the labour of their subjects. To me, this humble canal is no less glorious than the pyramids or the Taj. https://t.co/in2cAVvnFv  anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) September 13, 2020

Earlier in the day after Anand's desire to gift the farmer a Mahindra tractor, a Twitterati asked him how could he contribute for such good gestures. Anand answered with, "Youre the 1st to make such an offer. I believe the real power of giving is harnessed when people take collective action. In fact, the numbers needing support post-Covid will surge. We can Rise as a nation if we crowdsource community welfare. Well explore setting up such a site."

Youre the 1st to make such an offer.I believe the real power of giving is harnessed when people take collective action. In fact, the numbers needing support post-Covid will surge. We can Rise as a nation if we crowdsource community welfare. Well explore setting up such a site https://t.co/nekCZQge77  anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) September 19, 2020

Anand's reply saw a positive response from the Twitter as people said that it would be a great initiative and they will be more comfortable contributing to his platform as they know that the money will be well utilized for helping right people in a right way.

Some users said that we all do this in our individual capacity but if we can come together then it can all be more effective and impactful.
Washington, Sep 19 (UNI) United States Department of Commerce has said that the Chinese video-sharing social networking app -- TikTok would be banned in the country from September 20 onward due to national security reason.

President Donald Trump issued the order abruptly after stating that TikTok didnt have any rights" and that he would ban the app if ByteDance did not pay the US to secure government approval of a sale of its US operations -- which the president later admitted would be unlawful, according to the complaint.

The Trump administration has repeatedly said the apps are a threat because of their collection of data.

Friday's statement from the commerce department said the governing Chinese Communist Party "has demonstrated the means and motives to use these apps to threaten the national security, foreign policy, and the economy of the US."

In response, TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance Ltd, has filed a complaint in Washington federal court challenging US President Donald Trumps executive order that would block US companies from doing business with the company.

TikTok claims that the planned ban would be a violation of its First Amendment free speech rights.

TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance Ltd, filed a complaint in Washington federal court late Friday night challenging President Donald Trumps executive order that would block US companies from doing business with them.

Trump exceeded his authority when he moved to ban the app and did so for political reasons rather than to stop an unusual and extraordinary threat" to the US, as the law requires, according to the complaint. TikTok also said the ban violates the companys First Amendment free speech rights.

Trumps actions would destroy an online community where millions of Americans have come together to express themselves," according to the complaint. The company also claims that the US Commerce Department ignored evidence" showing TikToks commitment to privacy and security of its American users.

TikTok said it offered alternatives to the presidents ban to address US concerns but that on Friday the Commerce Department mandated the destruction of TikTok in the United States." Any lawsuit challenging such executive orders will face an uphill fight, according to James Dempsey, executive director of the Berkeley Center for Law and Technology at the University of California at Berkeley. Courts generally do not review the presidents determinations on questions of national security," Dempsey said before the case was filed.

The company has also denied holding any user data in China, saying it is stored in the US and in Singapore. Tencent, which owns WeChat, has said that messages on its app are private.

The suit comes as Trump steps up his campaign against China, betting that a hard line against Beijing will help him win Novembers election despite upsetting millions of younger TikTok users. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo has urged American companies to bar Chinese applications from their app stores, part of his Clean Network" guidance designed to prevent authorities in China from accessing personal data of US citizens.

The order followed an investigation by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US, which reviews proposed acquisitions of domestic businesses by overseas investors for national security concerns.

On June 29, the Indian government too put a ban on the app used to create short entertaining videos along with 58 others having Chinese-link, citing national security. The move came two weeks after a violent clash between Indian and Chinese troop at Galwan Valley in Ladakh.

UNI XC-RHK SRJ1704
By Huw Jones, Valentina Za and Maya Nikolaeva

LONDON/MILAN/PARIS (Reuters) - London Stock Exchange entered exclusive talks to sell Borsa Italiana to Euronext on Friday, with the French operator seeing off Deutsche Boerse and Switzerland's Six as it bids to add another bourse to its pan-European network.

Dubbed "Project Botticelli", the LSE's sale of the Milan stock exchange is sensitive in Rome due to concerns about who takes control of its bond platform, which handles trading of Italy's 2.6 trillion euros (2.37 trillion pounds) of government debt.

The LSE <LSE.L> is selling Borsa as part of regulatory remedies to see through its $27 billion purchase of data provider Refinitiv, which is 45% owned by Thomson Reuters <TRI.TO><TRI.N>, parent company of Reuters News.

It was not immediately clear what Euronext <ENX.PA> had offered to gain exclusive talks, but investors welcomed the move and its shares were up 5% at 0946 GMT. LSE stock was up 0.7%.

Offers for Borsa valued it at up to 4 billion euros, sources said before the LSE board reviewed the bids on Thursday.

Chief Executive Stephane Boujnah declined to comment on the value of Euronext's bid, but told Reuters that price was one of several elements LSE had taken into consideration.

Boujnah said Euronext had always considered Borsa "a natural fit" and contacts had accelerated since July after years of informal discussions with all relevant stakeholders.

"It's a natural enlargement of Euronext within a framework that already existed, clearly with an unprecedented size. It's the first time we're welcoming within Euronext a G7 economy, the third economy of the European continent with everything that is related to that," Boujnah added.

Euronext had moved to win round both the LSE and Rome by teaming up with Italy's state investor Cassa Depositi e Prestiti and Italian bank Intesa Sanpaolo <ISP.MI> in order to gain Italy's buy-in.

Story continues

Both CDP and Intesa will become shareholders in the French exchange operator, if the bid for Borsa succeeds, by subscribing to a proposed capital increase.

'ITALIAN ECOSYSTEM'

Under the proposed deal, CDP would have a seat on Euronext's supervisory board, with a second Italian candidate proposed as an independent board member who would become chairman, in a nod to how Milan would be the largest contributor to Euronext revenue at roughly 35% of a combined group.

Borsa would join exchanges under the Euronext banner that span Dublin and Oslo to Brussels, Amsterdam and Paris, and add significant bond trading, clearing and settlement capacity.

"Key businesses and central functions of the new group would be based in Milan and Rome," Euronext said.

The deal would give Euronext much-needed scale, ownership of a clearing house with critical mass, and scope to scale the business internationally, analysts at Jefferies said.

It would also bring Milan under euro zone ownership after Britain left the EU, a move likely to please Brussels policymakers who want to buttress the bloc's capital market.

"The Italian government expressed a preference to have a solution, a project within the European Union, within the single market, the euro zone," Boujnah said.

Switzerland's Six had no comment, while Deutsche Boerse <DB1Gn.DE> said it had made an attractive offer that would have given Milan a high degree of autonomy.

LSE Chief Executive David Schwimmer appears keen to have a deal fleshed out before Dec. 16, when EU competition officials decide whether to approve the Refinitiv takeover.

Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley advised LSE on the sale, while Euronext was represented by JP Morgan and Mediobanca and Lazard worked with CDP.

(Reporting by Muvija M in Bengaluru, Pamela Barbaglia and Huw Jones in London, Mike Shields in Switzerland and Tom Sims in Frankfurt; Editing by Patrick Graham, Jason Neely and Alexander Smith)
Pakistan on Friday categorically rejected any possibility of allowing a Queen's Counsel by India to represent Kulbhushan Jadhav, who is currently on death-row in a Pakistan jail.

During a weekly press briefing, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said that allowing a Queen's Counsel to Jadhav was out of the question.

"Allowing a Queen's Counsel for Jadhav is out of the question as only a lawyer with licence to practice in Pakistan can appear before the court," he said.

Queen's Counsel is a barrister appointed as Counsel to the UK's crown on the recommendation of the Lord Chancellor.

Jadhav's case is currently being heard in the Islamabad High Court (IHC), which gave India another chance to appoint and represent Jadhav during the last hearing.

However, India's latest demand has been rejected by Islamabad, stating that it has already provided consular access to Jadhav besides giving an open call to India to appoint a lawyer to represent him in the court.

"Pakistan had already given uninterrupted and unimpeded consular access to Jadhav and is ready to extend the same in future as well," said Chaudri.

Pakistan maintained that it is abiding by the judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and blamed India for opting for delaying tactics in the case.

The IHC is hearing the review and reconsideration case of Jadhav following the verdict of the ICJ. India has called for the appointment of a Queen's Counsel or an Indian lawyer in the case of Jadhav. However, Pakistan has maintained that only practicing lawyers in Pakistan will be available.

Pakistan claims to have arrested Jadhav in Balochistan province in 2016. He was later handed a death sentence after going through trial in Pakistani military courts. The decision was later brushed aside by the ICJ after India took up the matter at the highest level.

Pakistan claims that Jadhav has confessed to his crimes and that he was involved in terror activities, espionage and spying with an aim to spread unrest and claim the lives of Pakistani people.

"India is consistently making efforts to evade the Jadhav case," the Pakistan foreign office spokesperson said.

After the ICJ verdict, Pakistan gave consular access to Jadhav. However, India has said that the consular meetings were interrupted and recorded with the presence of Pakistani security officials in the room.
High political drama is expected on Sunday as the Rajya Sabha is likely to take up three farm bills, with the Congress and many opposition parties trying to put a united front to oppose these proposed legislations terming them as anti-farmer and pro-corporate, even as the ruling BJP is also reaching out to several regional outfits for support.

The numbers, however, appear to be in favour of the ruling dispensation to get these bills passed from Rajya Sabha, while the lower house has already cleared them despite a key NDA member, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), opposing them.

A few key BJP leaders are said to be in touch with various non-Congress opposition parties to seek support from their Rajya Sabha members for these bills. While the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is yet to have a clear majority of its own in the 245-member Rajya Sabha, many regional parties have backed it for the last several sessions to ensure passage of various legislations proposed by the government.

BJP leaders expressed confidence that they will get the support of over 130 members, including nine of the AIADMK and six of the YSR Congress  both of whom are not part of the ruling alliance if a division of votes is sought on these bills. Another regional party, Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS), was also being wooed by the BJP, but its chief and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Saturday asked his party MPs to vote against these bills, alleging these would cause great injustice to farmers.

The BJP itself has the highest tally with 86 seats, followed by 40 of the Congress. The three members of the SAD are sure to vote against the bills, but Shiv Sena, a former BJP ally and now in opposition, has expressed its support. The Maharashtra party has three members in Rajya Sabha. Several other regional parties, including three-member Aam Aadmi Party, Samajwadi Party with eight seats, and BSP with four, have joined the oppositions ranks in protest against these bills but it may not prove enough to hinder their passage.

Prime Minister Narendra Modis forceful defence of the three bills and blistering criticism of the opposition for protesting against them on Thursday made it clear that he remains unfazed by the opposition and that his government will press on to get Parliaments nod for these measures aimed at opening private avenues for farmers to sell their produce. Modis assertion came even as the Congress and several other parties came out strongly against these bills, calling them anti-farmers".

Farmers in states like Punjab and Haryana have been protesting against these proposed laws which, their leaders allege, will end up dismantling the existing government-backed support system they have. A number of parties that have come out against these draft legislations suggests there are as of now nearly 100 MPs opposing them. There is no clarity about the stand of some small parties which have around a dozen members put together.

Since the Modi government assumed office for its second time in 2019, its rivals have not been able to scuttle any of its major bills due to a rise in the ranks of treasury benches and a corresponding fall in the opposition ranks. The Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill were passed by Lok Sabha on Thursday, while the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill was passed on Tuesday.

These bills seek to replace ordinances already promulgated by the government. With opposition parties dubbing the three bills as anti-farmers" and the SAD quitting his government to protest them, Modi refuted their criticism, describing these proposed laws as historic" and stating they will unshackle farmers by allowing them to sell their produce anywhere at a better price.

A day after resigning from the Union Cabinet, senior SAD leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal said she feels saddened" that her voice in support of farmers was not heard and demanded that the government should pause on these legislations by referring them to a parliamentary panel for wider consultations.

The government has presented these bills as pro-farmers, saying these will ensure they get better prices for their produce and do not get subjected to regulations of mandis". Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar had said in Lok Sabha that farmers will be free to sell their produce to anyone and these bills will increase competition and promote private investment, which will help in the development of farm infrastructure and generate employment.

However, opposition parties have slammed the bills as anti-farmers", claiming the agriculture sector will be left to the fate of corporate interests. Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal also appealed to all non-BJP parties to unite in Rajya Sabha and oppose the bills that he claimed would leave farmers in the hands of big companies for exploitation.

(With inputs from PTI)
With only two years remaining until the 2022 General Election are held, the political pool is getting crowded.

This offers a great opportunity for Kenyans to begin to evaluate their leaders, more so those who have been at the helm of government.

As Kenyans begin to reflect on the gains made in post-independent Kenya, we need to delve more on the quality of our leaders and Kenya's transformational value 60 years down the line.

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It is a time out for serious reflections and critical questions on the management of affairs of our great country.

Or rather should we hold our peace, and pass this responsibility to the next generation to ask the same questions we are asking today while still languishing in abject poverty, marooned in a baseless brand of politics as the rest of the world leaves us behind?

Opinion: With the political pool crowded, Kenya needs a fresh start

Source: Facebook

I wish to take note of one particular presidential bid that has ignited a conversation this past week on Kenya's succession politics.

READ ALSO: Uproar as Pumwani Maternity workers lockout woman giving birth from facility

Machakos Governor Alfred Mutua officially launched his 2022 presidential bid, promising a reboot moment and a fresh start for Kenyans, with a pledge of five million jobs in his first 3 years when elected.

But as Kenyans of goodwill, we need to ask ourselves what does his candidature really mean to the ordinary folk?

The two-term governor has vowed to pay great attention and priority to Kenyas infrastructure by building roads and highways in every constituency to spur economic growth.

In his televised presidential bid launch, Mutua said that he has the knowledge and expertise to turn around the country.

READ ALSO: Billionaire Bill Gates says COVID-19 in Africa could be worse

Presiding over recovery and a fresh beginning would likely be a necessity the centerpiece of his presidency, which will be accompanied by a refined economic plan.

The Maendeleo Chap Chap leader echoed a majority of Kenyans sentiments on politics of greed and tribalism, rampant and unchecked corruption and the need for a better Kenya and a new kind of leadership.

Mutua is regarded as a young, dynamic, and innovative leader who gets things done. He has served in public life and is emphasizing his government experience.

As the coronavirus crisis continues to unfold with deep-seated corruption schemes coming to light, he has looked for ways and works closely with the Senate Adhoc Committee on COVID-19 to help formulate recommendations rooted in advice from health care and economics experts.

READ ALSO: Uhuru visits KDF troops in Samburu training areas, praises their excellent work

This is a bold agenda that meets the moment when you've got both an immediate crisis that needs to be continually responded to and has deep structural challenges in the economy laid bare by COVID-19 with ambitious action can be remedied.

The values of bipartisanship are important in extending overtures to reflective Kenyans, thinkers and political leaders who have the interest of the country at heart.

As a former journalist with skills in Political and Foreign Relations, Mutua speaks passionately about asserting and defending Kenyas role as a leader on the continental and global stage.

It is time for Kenya to usher in a new dispensation, a new era, a new period of better leadership, and life. We need a new way of thinking, of doing things, and a new type of leaders.

The writer is Boniface Manyala, a commentator and political strategist

The views expressed here are his and do not in any way represent the position of TUKO.co.ke

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The police destroyed my son's life, left him halfway paralysed then my husband left -Maureen Razoa/TUKO TV.

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New Delhi:

Samajwadi Party and Congress have reportedly sealed their alliance for the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections after intensive negotiations.

As per sources, Congress has agreed on 105 seats whereas SP will fight elections on 298 seats.

Until Saturday, an alliance between the two parties seemed difficult as the Akhilesh Yadav-led SP was ready to offer only 99 seats to Rahul Gandhis party, which was unacceptable to Congress.

Samajwadi Party has already announced a list of 191 candidates for the UP polls, which included nominations for some of the traditional congress bastions, stirring up the conflict between the two parties.

Also read:

UP Elections 2017: Akhilesh Yadav launches Samajwadi Party election manifesto | Key highlights





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Donald Trump dropped his strongest hint yet that he could replace his own FBI director in their continued Antifa disagreement.

The president publicly criticised Christopher Wray this week for comments he made to Congress about Antifa and Russian interference in the upcoming elections.

Mr Wray angered Mr Trump when he told US lawmakers that he viewed Antifa as an ideology not a terrorist organisation, which put him at odds with the White House.

In the hearing before the House Homeland Security Committee, Mr Wray said that he regarded Antifa as a real thing but denied it was a terror group.

We look at Antifa as more of an ideology or a movement than an organisation, said Mr Wray.

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Friday, Mr Trump took the opportunity to go after Mr Wray, who he appointed in 2017, and refused to rule out firing him.

Antifas a bad group. And theyre criminals and theyre anarchists and theyre agitators and theyre looters and rioters, said Mr Trump.

And when a man doesnt say that, that bothers me. I wonder why hes not saying that.

The president was then asked directly if he planned on firing him as FBI director.

Were looking at a lot of different things. I did not like his answers yesterday, said Mr Trump.

Im not sure he liked them either,Im sure he would probably agree with me, Antifa is bad, really bad."

Mr Trump also jabbed at Mr Wray for testifying about Russias very active efforts to meddle in the upcoming election, but not Chinas.

The big problem is China, we can have others also and Im not excluding anybody, but the big problem is China and why he doesnt want to say that, that certainly bothers me.

The president has repeatedly sought to downplay Russian efforts to interfere in US elections in his favour, at one point even publicly backing Vladimir Putins denials over his own intelligence agencies conclusions.
While I dont worry much about adults being inconvenienced at work by a relatively innocuous time-waster, I do worry about programming young children to feel good or bad about their history. Ross tells his conferees to go home and talk to their children about race, which is fine to a point. The extent to which schools incorporate critical race theory into their curricula is bound to vary widely by state and district. Learning about the realities of slavery, Jim Crow, the ongoing fight for equality and other historical facts is justified and necessary, but the age-appropriateness of material should be scrupulously overseen by parents and pediatric psychologists, not agenda-driven ideologues.
The rising use of herbs and spices in food and beverages industry is one of the key factors estimated to encourage the growth of the global market throughout the forecast period. The increasing focus on Ayurveda and the increasing awareness regarding its combination and benefits are further estimated to accelerate the growth of the global herbs and spices extracts market in the next few years.

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The key drivers leading to the growth of the spice and herb extract markets are the increased availability of international cuisines in the major economies, shifting consumer focus towards natural products, increasing demand for convenience foods and rising preference for organic flavors among consumers. According to Trends market research predictions, the global herb and spice extracts market is estimated to be valued at US$ XX Bn by 2018 end and this is anticipated to increase to US$ XX Bn by the end of the forecast period in 2025, witnessing a CAGR of XX% in terms of value

Many companies like Doehler are focusing on natural herb & spice extracts as they are becoming popular in every segment of the food and beverage industry and offer plenty of scope for new and attractive taste creations. The inconsistencies in the prices and high cost of production are primary challenges hampering the growth of the market.

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By Form, the Liquid segment is expected to dominate the global market in terms of value share and is estimated to hold about 49% share of the global herb and spice extracts market by 2025 end. Powder is the most commonly used form as it has a wide application in home cooked foods and other food preparations. Spice Extracts is the largest segment by Product Type, with a market share of more than 50% recorded during the forecast period. A high demand for spices in food and beverages, seasonings, and condiments is expected to fuel segmental growth over the forecast period.In terms of Application, the Food segment will dominate the global herb and spice extracts market, with an estimated market share of more than 40% throughout the forecast period. The demand for herb and spice extracts in the food segment is likely to grow continuously during the forecast period owing to their wide application as flavouring enhancers in different types of foods and beverages.By Sales Channel, the Direct Sales segment is anticipated to be the most attractive during the forecast period, with estimated market revenue to the tune of about US$ XX Bn by the end of the forecast period in 2025.

Global Herb & Spice Extracts Market: Regional Analysis

The global herb and spice extracts market revenue has been estimated by taking into account revenue of the regional herb and spice extracts markets of North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, APEJ, Japan, and MEA. APEJ is slated to remain the largest and dominant market for herb and spice extracts throughout the forecast period, with a market value of about US$ XX Billion expected by the end of the assessment period in 2025. The APEJ regional market is anticipated to grow 1.7x over the forecast period and represent absolute $ opportunity of just under US$ X Billion between 2018 and 2025.

Key Players:As per the report some of the top companies operating in the global herb and spice extracts market such as Givaudan SA, Kerry Group Plc., Takasago International corporation, Dohler GmbH, Sensient Technologies Corporation, Archer Daniels Midland Company, Ajinomoto Co., Inc., Symrise AG, Firmenich S A, Naturex SA, Kalsec Inc., Olam International, Foodchem International Corporation, McCormick and Company, Inc, Frutarom Industries Ltd., Robertet SA, Synthite Industries Ltd., International Taste Solutions Ltd., Organic Herb Inc., British Pepper & spice Company.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept.19

By Nargiz Sadikhova - Trend:

The value of trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Ukraine amounted to $458.9 million over the first seven months of 2020, compared to $726.2 million during the same period of 2019, Trend reports with reference to Kazakhstans Statistics Committee.

The share of Ukraine in the total value of Kazakhstans trade turnover stood at 0.9 percent during the reporting period compared to 1.3 percent during the same period of 2019 indicating it was nearly flat year-on-year.

Kazakhstans export to Ukraine amounted to $254.2 million over the period from January through July 2020, compared to $521.3 million during the same period of 2019

Ukraines share in the total volume of Kazakhstans export amounted to 0.9 percent during the reporting period of 2020 compared to 1.6 percent during the same period of 2019.

In turn, Kazakhstans imports from Ukraine amounted to nearly $204.7 million over the reporting period, compared to $204.8 million during the same period of 2019.

Ukraines share in the total volume of Kazakhstans import amounted to 1.01 percent during the reporting period of 2020 compared to 0.95 percent during the same period of 2019.

The total volume of Kazakhstans trade turnover amounted to $48.7 billion over the period from Jan. through July 2020 which indicates a decrease from $54.5 billion during the same period of 2019.

Kazakhstans export amounted to $28.6 billion during the reporting period of 2020 ($33.03 billion in the same period of 2019), whereas imports amounted to $20.1 billion ($21.5 billion in 2019).

During the reporting period, main articles of Kazakhstan and Ukraine trade turnover were food products, agricultural products, as well as products of the chemical industry.

---

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A senior US official has accused Lebanons Hezbollah of stockpiling ammonium nitrate at sites in multiple European countries amid a push to get the European Union to designate the organizations political wing as a terrorist group.

The US State Departments top counterterrorism official, Nathan Sales, told the American Jewish Committee on Thursday that Hezbollah had transported ammonium nitrate caches via Belgium into France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland and Greece.

Since 2012, Hezbollah has established caches of ammonium nitrate throughout Europe, by transporting first-aid kits whose cold packs contain the substance, Sales told reporters on a conference call.

I can also reveal that significant ammonium nitrate caches have been discovered or destroyed in France, Greece and Italy, Sales said. We have reason to believe that this activity is still under way. Ammonium nitrate caches are still suspected throughout Europe, particularly in Greece, Italy and Spain, he said, providing no further details.

Ammonium nitrate is commonly used as a fertilizer but can be used as an explosive. A huge amount of ammonium nitrate being held at Beirut's port exploded last month, killing more than 200 and causing major damage to the Lebanese capital.

The EU designated Hezbollahs military wing as a terrorist organization in July 2013, after Hezbollah members blew up an Israeli tourist bus in Bulgaria.

In 2015, the effects of the ruling were demonstrated when a Lebanese national named Hussein Bassam Abdallah was sentenced in Cyprus to six years in prison for participating in a terrorist group and plotting violence after it was discovered he had assembled more than 8 tons of ammonium nitrate.

The United Kingdom and Germany already recognize Hezbollah's political wing as a terrorist group. But some European governments do not consider group's political wing a terrorist group, something Sales said the US government would like to see changed.

The Trump administration is engaged in what it calls a "maximum pressure" campaign against Iran and the militias and organizations it supports abroad. The Trump administration unilaterally withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran amid accusations Tehran had exploited the deal to expand its influence in the region via proxy militias and ballistic missile development.

The Trump administration has praised recent decisions by Lithuania, Kosovo and Serbia to designate Hezbollah as a whole as a terrorist group. Sales on Thursday also lauded moves by Argentina, Paraguay and Honduras to designate or ban the group over the last two years.

Earlier this week, the US Treasury rolled out sanctions on 47 individuals and entities that it said were likely associated with Hezbollah. The move followed sanctions on two former Lebanese officials accused of providing political favors to the group.

Hezbollah itself has been perfectly clear, that they do not themselves recognize the distinction between their terrorist operations and so-called political branch," Sales said, adding, Our sanctions against Hezbollah are and always have been directed at the entirety of the organization.

Sales said that US efforts to cut off Hezbollahs funding streams recently led the groups leader, Hassan Nasrallah, to solicit donations.

By starving these organizations of resources, you prevent them from committing acts of mass murder, he said.
FUZHOU, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- China plans to launch Taiji-2, a satellite to conduct in-orbit experiments on key technologies related to space-based gravitational wave detection, before 2024, Wu Yueliang, chief scientist of the Taiji program, said on Friday.

Taiji-1, China's first satellite in the program, was launched in August 2019 and has been performing well in orbit, said Wu, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), at the ongoing 2020 China Space Conference held in Fuzhou, capital of east China's Fujian Province.

"Taiji-1 has taken the fundamental step in China's gravitational wave detection. Its experimental results have verified the correctness and the feasibility of the whole Taiji program," Wu added.

CAS set out a three-step strategy to implement the Taiji program. It took a research team about one year to develop Taiji-1. Two satellites are expected to be launched in the second step, and three more in the third step.
The global data center UPS market size is expected to grow by USD 2.63 billion during 2020-2024. The report also provides the market impact and new opportunities created due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We expect the impact to be significant in the first quarter but gradually lessen in subsequent quarters with a limited impact on the full-year economic growth.

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Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Data Center UPS Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)

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The increase in the adoption of modular UPS systems is expected to drive the data center UPS market. The primary benefits of the modular approach are the ability to increase capacity as and when required (assuming an initial right-sizing) as well as diminished maintenance cost. Modular systems are of lower capacity, cost less and additional modules can be installed based on capacity requirements. It also cost lesser in terms of installation and maintenance when compared to large systems, meanwhile providing higher efficiency, which is commonly more than 90%. The growth of modular systems is also happening rapidly as it requires less space, which is around 40% of what is used by conventional systems. These modular systems will be an ideal choice for data center operators experiencing frequent growth in rack power density.

To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download a free sample: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR44892

As per Technavio, the rapid growth in the construction of data centers will have a positive impact on the market and contribute to its growth significantly over the forecast period. This research report also analyzes other significant trends and market drivers that will influence market growth over 2020-2024.

Data Center UPS Market: Rapid Growth in the Construction of Data Centers

The rising demand for cloud-based service offerings and the need to build the digital economy has facilitated the increased construction of data centers. CSPs such as Google, Microsoft, and AWS are expanding their data center footprint by establishing hyper-scale data center facilities. For instance, in August 2020, Stream Data Centers opened a new data center in Chicago. The company offers a 15-megawatt capability and 127,000 square feet of space, including 70,000 square feet of data hall space. Moreover, in most countries in Eastern Europe, Africa, and Southeast Asia, the increased establishment of data centers is encouraged by government agencies. UPS is one of the mandatory elements of the infrastructure that must be present in a data center. Most facilities are adopting UPS systems of N+1 and 2N redundancy, boosting the market revenue during the forecast period.

"Other factors such as the increasing use of lithium-ion UPS systems, and growing adoption of DCIM and automation tools will have a significant impact on the growth of the data center UPS market value during the forecast period," says a senior analyst at Technavio.

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Data Center UPS Market: Segmentation Analysis

This market research report segments the data center UPS market by product (centralized UPS, zone UPS, and rack-mount UPS) and geography (North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and MEA).

The North American region led the data center UPS market share in 2019, followed by Europe, APAC, South America, and MEA respectively. During the forecast period, the North American region is expected to register the highest incremental growth due to the increasing construction of data centers.

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Some of the key topics covered in the report include:

Market Drivers

Market Challenges

Market Trends

Vendor Landscape

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Competitive scenario

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4 | Chinese President Xi Jinping offers to cooperate with India, BRICS countries to develop COVID-19 vaccine: Chinese President Xi Jinping on November 17 offered to cooperate with India and other BRICS nations in the development of vaccines against the coronavirus and called for holding a symposium by the five-member bloc on traditional medicine to explore its role in the COVID-19 prevention and treatment.

The phase III human trials of Oxford University's COVID-19 vaccine, manufactured by the Serum Institute of India (SII), will begin at the Sassoon General Hospital in Pune next week.

"The phase III trial of Covishield vaccine will begin at Sassoon hospital from next week. It is likely to start on Monday (September 21). Some volunteers have already come forward for the trial. Around 150 to 200 volunteers will be administered the vaccine candidate dose," Muralidhar Tambe, the Dean of the state-run hospital, told news agency PTI.

"From Saturday (September 18), the hospital started enrolling volunteers for the trial. Those who are willing to volunteer for the vaccination should contact the hospital," he said.

Phase II trials were conducted at Bharti Vidyapeeth Medical College and also KEM Hospital in the city.

The SII has partnered with British-Swedish pharma company AstraZeneca for manufacturing the COVID-19 vaccine candidate, developed by the University of Oxford.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

The vaccine, called AZD1222 and under development by AstraZeneca and scientists at Britain's Oxford University, did not prompt any serious side effects and elicited antibody and T-cell immune responses, according to trial results published in The Lancet medical journal after early-stage clinical trials in healthy volunteers.

Earlier this month, the SII had paused the clinical trials of the vaccine candidate in the country.

The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) had on September 11 directed the SII to suspend any new recruitment in phase II and III clinical trial of the vaccine till further orders after AstraZeneca paused the trials in other countries because of "an unexplained illness" in a participant in the study.

However, on September 15, the DCGI gave permission to SII to resume clinical trial of the vaccine.
The wind whips embers from the Joshua trees burned by the Bobcat Fire in Juniper Hills, Calif., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP Photo)

Homes Destroyed After Winds Push California Fire Into Desert

JUNIPER HILLS, Calif.Homes were destroyed Friday by an unrelenting wildfire that reached a Mojave Desert community and was still growing on several fronts after burning for nearly 2 weeks in mountains northeast of Los Angeles.

Officials were investigating the death of a firefighter on the lines of another Southern California wildfire that erupted earlier this month from a smoke-generating pyrotechnic device used by a couple to reveal their babys gender.

The death occurred Thursday in San Bernardino National Forest as crews battled the El Dorado Fire about 75 miles (120 kilometers) east of Los Angeles, the U.S. Forest Service said in a statement.

Joshua trees are consumed by the Bobcat Fire in Juniper Hills, Calif., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP Photo)

In northern Los Angeles County, the Bobcat Fire burned semi-rural desert properties when it was pushed by gusts into the community of Juniper Hills after churning all the way across the San Gabriel Mountains.

A member of a Los Angeles County Fire crew hoses down flames while protecting a home from the advancing Bobcat Fire along Cima Mesa Rd. in Juniper Hills, Calif., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP Photo)

Crews protected homes and chased spot fires sparked by embers blown across neighborhoods by erratic winds. Surrounding areas were under evacuation orders and residents of ranches scrambled to get horses and other animals out.

Weve got a very active firefight on the north end of this fire and were bringing in more strike teams. Well be in this firefight for some time, LA County Fire Captain David Dantic said Friday evening. The blaze was also expanding on the eastern and western edges, officials said.

Wyatt Stephenson helped his friend evacuate his home at the top of Juniper Hills.

We were waiting for the fire to come over the ridge. When it finally came over, we got him out of there, Stephenson said. We found out later that his house burned. The fire just burned everything.

A home burns along Cima Mesa Rd. as the Bobcat Fire advances, in Juniper Hills, Calif., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP Photo)

It wasnt immediately clear how many homes were burned in the area about 50 miles (80 kilometers) northeast of downtown LA. No injuries were reported.

On the south side of the blaze, firefighters continued to protect Mount Wilson, which overlooks greater Los Angeles and has a historic observatory founded more than a century ago and numerous broadcast antennas serving Southern California.

The fire that started Sept. 6, has now churned through more than 112 square miles (290 square kilometers)  doubling in size over the last week. It was 15 percent contained.

The name of the firefighter killed in the nearby El Dorado Fire was being withheld until family members are notified.

Our deepest sympathies are with the family, friends, and fellow firefighters during this time, Forest Service spokesperson Zach Behrens said in the statement.

No other information was released about the firefighter, the agency the firefighter worked for, or the circumstances of the death. The body was escorted down the mountain in a procession of first-responder vehicles.

A statement from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, said it was the 26th death involving wildfires besieging the state.

A new blaze sparked by a vehicle that caught fire was growing in wilderness outside Palm Springs.

To the north, a fire burning for nearly a month in Sequoia National Forest roared to life again Friday and prompted evacuation orders for the central California mountain communities of Silver City and Mineral King.

More than 7,900 wildfires have burned more than 5,300 square miles (13,727 square kilometers) in California this year, including many since a mid-August barrage of dry lightning ignited parched vegetation.

A home burns along Cima Mesa Rd. as the Bobcat Fire advances in Juniper Hills, Calif., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP photo)

The El Dorado Fire has burned more than 33 square miles (85.4 square kilometers) and was 65 percent contained, with 10 buildings destroyed and six damaged.

Cal Fire said earlier this month that the El Dorado Fire was ignited Sept. 5 when a couple, their young children and someone there to record video staged the baby gender reveal at El Dorado Ranch Park at the foot of the San Bernardino Mountains.

The device was set off in a field and quickly ignited dry grass. The couple frantically tried to use bottled water to extinguish the flames and called 911.

Authorities have not released the identities of the couple, who could face criminal charges and be held liable for the cost of fighting the fire.

By Marcio Jose Sanchez and Christopher Weber
The Latest Polls

There was yet more movement in the FTs poll tracker over the last week, as the news wires delivered more coverage on campaigning.

According to the latest FTs interactive Calculator and polling data, Presidential hopeful Biden saw his lead widen, following a marked narrowing in the week prior.

The Challenger

In the last week, Biden saw his projected Electoral College vote count rise to 280 as at 17th September. As at 10th September, Biden had seen his projected haul slide to 263 Electoral College votes.

Significantly, the projection of more than the minimum 270 votes needed to win was a more positive outcome. In the week prior, Biden had seen his haul fall below the magic number of 270 required to take the Oval Office.

While the increase in projected Electoral College votes was positive, Bidens haul still sat below a 5th August haul of 308.

In fact, Biden saw a downward trend through early September until this weeks rise.

Looking at the breakdown of the votes, however, it has been less conclusive.

Of the 298 votes, Biden only has 203 solid votes and 95 leaning votes. Taking away the 95 votes leaves Biden well short of the 270.

While this may be negative in terms of optics, Biden has in fact seen leaning votes decline in recent weeks.

Back on 5th August, when the FT projected a haul of 308 Electoral College votes, leaning votes had stood at 114. Solid votes had stood at 194. So, Biden should take heart in the recent widening in the gap.

Incumbent Trump

For the U.S President, the FT projects a haul of 131 Electoral College votes. This was up from a haul of 122 back on 5th August and last weeks projection of 122 Electoral College votes.

While optically these figures can be considered positive, the reality is that Trump has seen his solid vote projection slip.

As at 5th August, Trump had 80 solid votes and 42 leaning votes. On 10th September, solid votes slipped to 77, while leaning votes increased by 3 to 45.

Story continues

The latest figures, as at 17th September, has Trump with 54 leaning votes. It is the leaning votes that have driven up Trumps total vote haul.

Taking away the leaning vote tally, Trump looks to have slim to no chance of winning the 2020 Election.

As we experienced back in 2016, however, it is not so simple.

Leaning votes in favor of Biden and Trump total 131 Electoral College votes. Then there are the fence-sitters, classified as Toss-ups. Toss-ups stood at 127 as at 17th September.

As at 10th September Toss-ups had stood at 153. Back on 5th August, the number was a measly 108

The upward trend in toss-ups suggests that voters are becoming less certain on which way to cast their ballot on Election Day.

The Toss-up States

At the time of writing, the FT had 127 states sitting on the fence. Classified as toss-up states, these are states where the difference in poll numbers between Biden and Trump is less than 5 percentage points.

6 states fell within the toss-up category, down from 8 states in the week prior.

The 6 states included Texas (38 E.C votes), Florida (29 E.C votes), Ohio (18 E.C votes), Georgia (16 E.C votes), N. Carolina (15 E.C votes), and Arizona (11 E.C votes).

Michigan (16 E.C votes) and Maine 2 (1 E.C vote) shifted in favor of Biden in the week, while Trump drew South Carolina (9 E.C votes).

For U.S President Trump to take the 2020 Presidential Election, he would need to take all of the 127 Electoral College votes sitting on the fence. Even with the 127, however, Trump would still come up short of the magic number of 270. This is assuming of course that all of the 54 leaning Electoral College votes go in his favor.

For Joe Biden, he could afford to give up 10 leaning Electoral College votes from his leans but it would set a dangerous precedent.

On face value, therefore, the odds remain heavily stacked in Bidens favor, supported by the latest widening in the poll tracker.

Key States

If we look at the key U.S states that tend to be election barometers:

Missouri continues to lean in favor of Trump and the Republicans, with Kansas also leaning in Trumps favor.

For Biden, Illinois, New Mexico, and Oregon remain solid blues, with New Hampshire and Pennsylvania leaning in favor of Biden. Biden will also be delighted to claw back Michigan in the week. Michigan had sat on the fence on 10th September.

The Road Ahead

We are expecting market sensitivity to the polls and projections to begin to rise in the coming weeks. In fact, we should see volatility pick up ahead of the debates that kick off next month,

As the polls begin to swing with a little more vigor, the markets will likely respond to the uncertainty.

For Biden, it remains an election to lose. For the U.S President, however, there is a lot of work to do.

Changing the narrative on COVID-19 and on the Black Lives Matter movement remain key. Projecting and deflecting may not be enough when considering labor market conditions.

This article was originally posted on FX Empire

More From FXEMPIRE:
The Irish government on Friday announced strict new COVID-19 restrictions for the capital Dublin, banning indoor restaurant dining and advising against all non-essential travel, after a surge in cases in recent days.

Ireland, which was one of the slowest countries in Europe to emerge from lockdown, has seen average daily case numbers roughly double in the past two weeks and significant increases in those being treated for the virus in hospitals.

Here in the capital, despite peoples best efforts over recent weeks, we are in a very dangerous place, prime minister Micheal Martin said in a televised address to the country, announcing the restrictions.

Without further urgent and decisive action, there is a very real threat that Dublin could return to the worst days of this crisis.

The measures, which include a ban on indoor events, will last for three weeks, he said.

Ireland had the 17th highest COVID-19 infection rate out of 31 European countries monitored by the European Centre for Disease Control on Friday, with 57.4 cases per 100,000 people in the past 14 days.

The government reported three deaths from the virus on Friday, bringing the total toll to 1,792.

Countries across Europe, including Britain, Greece and Denmark, on Friday announced new restrictions to curb surging coronavirus infections in some of their largest cities.

Ireland on Thursday tightened its COVID-19 travel restrictions by imposing quarantines on travellers from major holiday markets Italy and Greece.

(This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.)

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Fourteen years ago, Lisa Quiroz ran out her back door covered in blood and screamed for help.

Darrell Zemault Sr., killed Tuesday by San Antonio police serving two family violence warrants, heard her screams and gave chase to the man who had sliced her throat and stabbed her mother.

Zemault caught the man down the street and brought him back to the scene of the crimes, where he was arrested.

Quiroz, 49, and others who were there that day  Sept. 10, 2006  recalled the events this week in the wake of Zemault's death.

"Darrell, he didn't think twice to run after that guy," said Quiroz's daughter, Catherine. "He knew what that guy did was wrong and if it wasn't for him, I don't know what would have happened with the guy who stabbed my mom."

ON EXPRESSNEWS.COM: New details emerge about fatal shooting of West Side man by San Antonio police

Weeks before the double stabbing, Lisa let Andrew Gaede, a 20-year-old who needed a place to stay, move in with her family. They lived a block away from Zemault's bungalow on the West Side.

On that Sunday afternoon, Lisa had asked Gaede to trim some branches that were poking through her backyard fence. Gaede grabbed an axe and started chopping, but soon turned to face Lisa.

"I hate people looking at me that way," Lisa recalled him saying.

Confused, Lisa told him, "OK, well if you feel that way you can leave. Get your stuff and leave."

Gaede dropped the axe and walked inside the house. Lisa hid the axe behind the garage, then followed him inside. She asked him again to leave because he had a job and apartment lined up, then sat down on a kitchen stool to watch television.

A few minutes later, Gaede rushed into the kitchen and grabbed Lisa from behind. He stabbed her 22 times with a knife, leaving her with a long scar across the base of her throat and another she covers with a bracelet.

Lisa's mother, Esperanza, heard her screams and called out from her bedroom. Gaede left Lisa and went after Esperanza.

"Both women suffered several wounds to the upper torso," the Express-News story from the following day notes.

Lisa fled out the back door and screamed for help. Catherine, who had been in the backyard, rushed to her side. Gaede came out of the house and sprinted down the street. Esperanza soon stumbled out the back door with a towel pressed against her bleeding neck.

Zemault and his wife, Susie, heard the screams and ran over.

"He asked me what happened and I remember saying, 'He stabbed my mom. He went that way.' He didn't hesitate. He didn't hesitate to go after him," Catherine recalled.

Zemault caught up with Gaede. Along with another neighbor, he held Gaede down before leading him back to the scene.

"He caught him. That was the best part cause this guy could have been on the run. He could come back. Who knows? But no. They got him," Lisa said.

Gaede was arrested and charged with two counts of attempted capital murder, according to court records. He received a 40-year prison sentence in 2009. Both women, taken to University Hospital in critical condition, survived the attack.

Lisa said her mother, who has since died, "was never the same. She was scared. When we finally went to court, she was relieved because she knew when he got 40 years that he was going to be locked up."

The memory was one of many shared by Zemault's neighbors in recent days. A 55-year-old Black man, Zemault was shot in the back after a struggle with officers arresting him on warrants for violation of a bond and assault causing bodily injury.

"He was a really good guy," Catherine said. "He might have made mistakes, we all make mistakes, but for what happened to him, all the stories that I hear, it doesn't make sense. "
ANALYSIS: The problem with offering citizenship tests online and the problem of having none at all.

Online Canadian citizenship testing is no quick fix ANALYSIS: The problem with offering citizenship tests online and the problem of having none at all.

Online Canadian citizenship testing is no quick fix ANALYSIS: The problem with offering citizenship tests online and the problem of having none at all.

Online Canadian citizenship testing is no quick fix ANALYSIS: The problem with offering citizenship tests online and the problem of having none at all. Shelby Thevenot Aa Accessibility Font Style Serif

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With citizenship tests suspended as part of Canadas coronavirus response, tens of thousands of would-be Canadians are blocked from getting a passport and the right to vote.

About 85,000 people are waiting to take the citizenship test, according to the immigration departments data from September 7. Permanent residents need to take the test in order to get Canadian citizenship, which gives them the same privileges that Canadian-born citizens enjoy. Citizenship status is also a symbolic gesture for many immigrants that means they are now a part of the Canadian family.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) said they are looking into offering online citizenship tests and interviews, but they have to consider how they would verify the identities of people taking the test and uphold the integrity of the program. They did not provide CIC News with a timeline for when this will happen, but recently announced that certain applicants will be called to do in-person retests.

Find out if you are eligible for Canadian immigration

The challenge of integrity with online testing

The pandemic has elevated the need for online testing. Canadian post-secondary institutions are coming up with various solutions such as changing the curriculum to allow open-book tests. They may use testing software that implements different measures that make it harder to cheat, like imposing time limits on tests, or making it impossible to open another tab without locking down the test. Some have also opted for artificial intelligence such as ProctorU, which was created to address the issue of integrity in online testing.

Using artificial intelligence as proctors has been an idea in the making long before the pandemic. Duolingo, for example, has been developing their AI proctor for about five years to allow test-takers to complete their language tests from anywhere at any time.

The Duolingo English Test records students during the testing session. The video is then uploaded to artificial intelligence software that detects any suspicious behaviour or broken rules. The information collected from the AI then goes to in-house workers who review the videos to make sure the AI has not made any mistakes.

We have two humans who go through the entirety of the video to make sure that the artificial intelligence has not unduly hurt a student by saying, theres noise here that must mean somebody else is in the room, said Sam Fleischmann, Duolingos English test international engagement manager, The human proctors pick up that, [it] was actually just kids walking up the staircase.

The test results are acceptable for students to use for admission to certain Canadian universities. Fleischmann said it took years to develop the AI proctor and says Duolingo is still working to improve the technology.

Our mission is to make sure that testing is more accessible through assessment technology and thats why we spent so much time making sure that this proprietary work is solid and good, Fleischmann said. Thats a big investment for universities or governments to take on.

Numbers of new citizens significantly reduced from 2019

IRCC cancelled all citizenship tests, re-tests, interviews and ceremonies on March 14, in response to the COVID-19 situation. Virtual citizenship ceremonies have since resumed, however, the 2,500 to 3,000 citizenship oaths they are now per week is still down from 2019 when they were processing about 4,700 citizenship oaths per week.

Andrew Griffith, political commentator and former director general of Citizenship and Multiculturalism, calls the delay in testing understandable given the infrastructure required to make online testing available. But, he questions the low number of virtual ceremonies that IRCC has conducted since the pandemic hit.

I have less sympathy in terms of the number of virtual ceremonies because I think Australia proved it could be done on a larger scale, Griffith told CIC News.

Australia has conducted about 80,000 online ceremonies since March whereas Canada has only held about 7,000.

By the time [citizenship applicants] get to the ceremony its basically a rubber stamp exercise because all the security checks have been done, they do the test and then they can take the oath, Griffith said. Its a pretty streamlined process at that point in time.

IRCC will start offering some in-person services on September 21, including citizenship re-testing in Vancouver. They will monitor the results to see if more services can be offered in-person in the future.

Find out if you are eligible for Canadian immigration

 2020 CIC News All Rights Reserved
Retail and telecom brands have outperformed most other categories and seen their brand value increase in the 2020 BrandZ Top 75 Most Valuable Indian Brands ranking, released today by WPP and Kantar. In challenging economic and social conditions created by the global pandemic and a pre-COVID-19 slowdown in the Indian economy, brands have to adapt quickly, with innovation and agility helping to fuel growth.

This years ranking was worth $216 billion in brand value, a decline of 6% over last year, driven largely by a slowdown in the brand value of companies in the banking and automotive sectors. Despite the overall decline in brand value of the Top 75, 26 brands increased in value and five were new entrants. Indias top brands also performed well against other countries where declines in total brand value were much greater.

The retail sector in particular has adjusted to the needs of shoppers restricted by lockdown measures. Reliance Retail (+102%, no. 25, $2.3 billion) was the fastest riser this year, up 30 places, with telecom brand Jio (no. 7, $6.9 billion) contributing to the overall success of the parent company. The largest retailer in India, Reliance Retail has invested in its digital commerce capabilities, comprising JioMarts online B2C business and the kirana digitisation programme, with plans to digitise five million kirana stores by 2023.

Online retail brands, Flipkart (no. 8, +40%, $6.5 billion) and D-Mart (no. 16, +38%, $3.3 billion) also saw their brand value increase significantly, while instant food brand Maggi (no. 23, $2.5 billion) had one of the highest brand value growth figures (46%) this year.

For millions of Indians who stayed at home during the crisis, telecom providers have supplied a much-needed lifeline and fulfilled a growing demand for data-driven services like online gaming and media streaming. Airtel (no.4, +36%, $13.9 billion) was the top telecom brand, while Jio saw its value increase 26%. One of five new entrants, BSNL (no. 75, $583 million) also benefitted from the overall uplift in the telecom category, which contributed $25.5 billion to the ranking this year. As the sector continues to consolidate, local players will become more important and will need to continue to innovate for future growth.

HDFC Bank was Indias top brand worth $20.3 billion, claiming the no.1 spot for the seventh consecutive year, and contributing to banking being the leading category in this years ranking worth a total of $42.1 billion in brand value. Consistent in its financial performance and customer experience, the bank was also ranked no. 59 in the 2020 BrandZTM Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands report.

David Roth, CEO of The Store WPP, EMEA and Asia and Chairman of BrandZ, said: Brands globally are being tested by the pandemic, especially in countries such as India where the economy was slowing down prior to COVID-19. Many Indian brands have risen to the challenge and demonstrated their ability to innovate and adapt in ways that are world class. Our analysis proves convulsively once again that companies who invest in brand building are better placed to survive such challenges and come out stronger.

BrandZ Top 10 Most Valuable Indian Brands 2020

Rank 2020 Brand Category Brand Value 2020 ($M USD) Brand Value Change 1 HDFC Bank Banks 20,262 -11% 2 LIC Insurance 18,294 -9% 3 Tata Consultancy Services Technology 14,582 -20% 4 Airtel Telecom providers 13,942 36% 5 Asian Paints Paints 7,972 14% 6 Kotak Mahindra Bank Banks 7,215 -6% 7 Jio Telecom providers 6,876 26% 8 Flipkart Retail 6,529 40% 9 Paytm Payments 6,272 50% 10 State Bank of India Banks 5,387 -36%

Preeti Reddy, CEO - South Asia, Insights Division, Kantar, said: The performance of retail, telecom and FMCG brands has shown that being agile in times of crisis is critical for growth. Brands need to constantly innovate in order to survive and re-purpose themselves for the future, or risk being left behind. Those brands who continue to drive transformation, not just digitally, but in the total experience they deliver to meet consumer needs, will create opportunities to increase their value in the future.

BrandZs strong brand portfolio continues to out-perform the market, where recovery during the pandemic is faster for strong brands. Globally, the BrandZ strong brands portfolios have consistently outperformed the market, including the S&P 500 and MSCI World Index. This validates the role of marketing and brand-building investment to support business recovery.

Other key trends in the BrandZ Top 75 Most Valuable Indian Brands Ranking, include:

The lipstick effect : Newcomers included personal care brands, Dove (no. 61, $847 million) and Close Up (no. 69, $663 million), which benefitted as consumers, unable to spend on luxury items, such as holidays during an economic downturn, treated themselves to small luxury personal care items

: Newcomers included personal care brands, (no. 61, $847 million) and (no. 69, $663 million), which benefitted as consumers, unable to spend on luxury items, such as holidays during an economic downturn, treated themselves to small luxury personal care items Trusted brands have weathered the crisis better than brands with a low trust index. In a category where it is difficult to gain consumer trust, Airtel bet on its brand strategy of being open and transparent. It is now one of Indias most trusted brands and grew 36% in its brand value over the past year

have weathered the crisis better than brands with a low trust index. In a category where it is difficult to gain consumer trust, bet on its brand strategy of being open and transparent. It is now one of Indias most trusted brands and grew 36% in its brand value over the past year Innovation keeps it fresh : Despite the paints industry struggling in India, top 5 brand Asian Paints (no. 5, $8.0 billion), grew its brand value by 14%, by focusing on meaningful difference, communications and innovation. The market leader, it has successfully brought out new products, while building a strong distribution network and raising its profile among key influencers like architects and professional painters

: Despite the paints industry struggling in India, top 5 brand (no. 5, $8.0 billion), grew its brand value by 14%, by focusing on meaningful difference, communications and innovation. The market leader, it has successfully brought out new products, while building a strong distribution network and raising its profile among key influencers like architects and professional painters Brands with a strong purpose drive growth, particularly during challenging times. BrandZ analysis shows that consumer expectations of brands to act more responsibly have tripled in the last 10 years and this years ranking demonstrates that Indian companies are striving to deliver better products and services, which contribute positively to peoples lives, the environment and wider communities.

The BrandZ Top 75 Most Valuable Indian Brands report and ranking and extensive analysis are available online here and via BrandZ.com. The reports, rankings, charts, articles and more can also be accessed through the BrandZ app, which is free to download for Apple IOS and all Android devices from http://www.brandz.com/mobile or by searching for BrandZ in the iTunes or Google Play app stores.
Karnataka Chief Minister B S



Yediyurappa on Saturday said he expects directions from the BJP high command by "today or tomorrow" regarding the much awaited expansion of his cabinet.

Terming his Delhi trip as "successful", the Chief Minister reiterated that his desire was to complete the process before the monsoon session of the legislature from September 21, but everything will depend on what the high command decides.

"Regarding cabinet expansion I spoke to Nadda ji (BJP President J P Nadda) for about half-an-hour yesterday, he may speak to the Prime Minister and may give directions about the future course of action today itself," Yediyurappa said.

Speaking to reporters after meeting Vice President Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi, he said, based on the high command's directions he will decide on the cabinet expansion.

The Chief Minister who is in New Delhi since Thursday afternoon had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several Union Ministers regarding issues concerning the development of the state.

Last night, he had met Nadda to discuss the cabinet expansion.

Responding to a question on how many will be inducted into the cabinet, Yediyurappa said, "we will have to see, based on the suggestions given by the Prime Minister and the national president, I will have to take the decision."



He said, "my desire is to complete the process before the session. So I expect they (high command) will let me know by today or tomorrow, let's see what decision they will take."The monsoon session of the state legislature is scheduled from September 21 to 30.

Last night, Yediyurappa had even hinted at the possibility of a cabinet reshuffle, stating that it will depend on the directions from the Prime Minister and the national President.

Cabinet expansion or reshuffle is expected to be a tightrope for the 77-year old Yediyurappa, considering too many aspirants.

While several of the old guard are waiting for a chance to be inducted into the Ministry, those who defected from the Congress and JD(S) like A H Vishwanath, R Shankar and MTB Nagaraj, who are now BJP MLCs, are also aspiring for slots.

The cabinet currently has 28 members and six berths are still vacant.

Meanwhile, there are also strong speculations about the possible change in leadership in the future, considering Yediyurappa's age.

However, it has been rejected by senior party leaders like BJP state President Nalin Kumar Kateel and Minister R Ashoka among others.

As he returns to Bengaluru today, Yediyurappa also said that the Prime Minister and union ministers whom he met over the last two days have positively responded to the issues raised by him concerning the development of the state.

"I feel that this Delhi trip of mine has been very successful, from the Prime Minister to all the Ministers have positively responded to the requests that we had put forward for the development of Karnataka. I feel that they will take necessary steps in that direction soon," he said.

(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.)
US President Donald Trump on Friday (local time) said that his administration expects to have enough doses of coronavirus vaccines for every American citizen by April 2021.

As soon as the vaccine is approved, the administration will deliver it to the American people immediately...Hundreds of millions of doses will be available every month and we expect to have enough vaccines for every American by April (2021), Trump said at a press briefing.

He said brilliant doctors and scientists of the US have been working around the clock to produce a Covid-19 vaccine and informed that three vaccines are in the final stage of clinical trials.

Lot of work has been going on with respect to vaccines...The vaccine should be developed as soon as possible to end the pandemic and get life back to normal. A successful vaccine will not only save millions of lives, it will put an end to restrictions, the President said.

All vaccine candidates are going through the gold standard of clinical trials with a heavy emphasis on safety, he stressed.

As part of Operation Warp Speed, initiated by the Trump administration to facilitate and accelerate the development of Covid-19 vaccines, Trump said all of the most promising vaccine candidates are being manufactured in advance.

Vaccine development is our top priority and we are moving forward swiftly with great success. When a vaccine is approved, it will be distributed within 24 hours, he further said.

According to the latest data by Johns Hopkins University, the US remains the worst-affected country by the Covid-19 pandemic and has 6,705,114 cases and 198,197 deaths.
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Lotridge and his attorneys could not be certain where the breakdown in communication happened that prevented them from seeing this part of the officers personnel records. Under the landmark Supreme Court case Brady v. Maryland, prosecutors are legally obligated to hand over evidence favorable to the defense  including information that might call into question the integrity of an investigation. The past bias or behavior of an officer involved in that investigation falls under Brady, the public defenders office argued.
WASHINGTON  President Trump said on Saturday that he had approved a deal between the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok and major American companies, an agreement that will delay the U.S. governments threat to block the popular app in the United States over national security concerns.

The deal, which must still gain formal U.S. approval, would create a new U.S.-based company, TikTok Global, in which Oracle, an American software maker, and Walmart would own 20 percent, placing more equity in the service into the hands of American companies and investors.

While the structure falls short of an all-out sale of TikTok, it is still a concession by ByteDance, TikToks Chinese owner  one that has apparently satisfied the administrations concerns about Chinas ability to harness data from users of the app. The Commerce Department, which planned to bar TikTok from U.S. app stores as of midnight Sunday, said that it would delay that plan for one week.

The deal capped weeks of drama over the fate of TikTok that underscored how much relations between the United States and China have deteriorated, with their race for technological superiority and their mutual suspicions extending to a social media platform known for silly video clips and a trendsetting, mostly young user base of 100 million people in the United States.
I surely would not be in this room today without the determined efforts of men and women who kept dreams alive, dreams of equal citizenship. Ruth Bader Ginsburg was the Supreme Courts feminist icon. Small, soft-spoken, yet fiercely determined, she was an unstoppable force who transformed the law and defied social conventions. To her fans shes known as Notorious R.B.G. Singing: Supreme Courts a boys club. She holds it down, no cares given. Who else got six movies about em and still livin? Ginsburg was hailed as a crusader for womens rights. Chanting: D-I-S-S-E-N-T. Were Notorious R.B.G.! But her legal legacy was even more sweeping. The project she brought to the Supreme Court first as the leading womens rights lawyer of her day, and then as a justice for all those years, I actually think has been kind of misunderstood. She had a really radical project to erase the functional difference between men and women in society. She wanted to make it clear that there should be no such thing as womens work and mens work. Mr. Chief Justice, and may it please the court. In fact, in many of the landmark cases Ginsburg argued before the Supreme Court as a young lawyer for the A.C.L.U., her clients were often men. One key case involved a man from New Jersey, whose wife died during childbirth. Stephen Wiesenfelds case concerns the entitlement  He wanted to work less and stay home with his son, but found out only widows, not widowers, were eligible for Social Security payments. Ruth Ginsburg went to court on his behalf and said that law, that distinction between mothers and fathers incorporates a stereotyped assumption of what women do and what men do in the family, and is unconstitutional. Laws of this quality help to keep women not on a pedestal, but in a cage. She won. And that was the kind of case that she brought. And it was really very significant in the march toward the court establishing a jurisprudence of sex equality. What inspired Ginsburg to take on such a bold project, and there was little sign of anything radical in the beginning. Ruth Bader Ginsburg grew up in Brooklyn in a lower middle-class family. When she was in high school, she was a twirler. You know, a cheerleader with a baton. She was known as Kiki Bader. And she played a very traditional female role in her high school. Ginsburgs mother, whod been a star student until she was forced to drop out of school to put her brother through college, had big ambitions for her daughter. But the day before Ruths high school graduation, her mother died of cancer. It was that shattering loss, Ginsburg said many years later, that instilled in her the determination to live a life her mother could have only dreamed about. I pray that I may be all that she would have been had she lived in an age when women could aspire and achieve, and daughters are cherished as much as sons. The other pivotal turn in Ginsburgs path came during college. She earned a scholarship to Cornell, where she met a jovial sophomore who became the love of her life. He was the first boy I ever knew who cared that I had a brain. Theirs was not a typical 1950s marriage, but an equal partnership. Her husband, Marty, was a fabulous cook, and she was a terrible cook. And Marty did all the cooking. In the historic Harvard Yard, you will see your classmates, men from every section of the country. A year after Marty enrolled at Harvard Law School, Ruth followed, one of only nine women in a class of more than 550, with a new baby girl in tow. During their time in law school, Marty became very sick. He had cancer. And she basically took all the notes for him and made it possible for him to graduate on time, while in fact, raising their baby and being a law student herself. Marty recovered and their relationship was very central to her work and her understanding of how it was possible to organize society. This understanding turned into a mission after law school, when Ginsburg took on a legal study in Sweden where feminism was on the rise. Sweden, where everything and everyone works. Swedish women werent choosing between careers and family, and they inspired the young lawyer. When Ginsburg returned to the U.S., she launched what would become her radical project. As a law professor and leader of the A.C.L.U. Womens Rights Project, she took on groundbreaking cases to build constitutional protections against gender discrimination. There was a lot of speculation about why a lawyer hailed as a Thurgood Marshall of womens rights was representing so many men. People looking back on that had thought, well, she was kind of trying to sweet talk the court. She was trying to give the court cases and plaintiffs that wouldnt get those nine old guys very upset and kind of, you know, sneak in a doctrine of sex discrimination. And actually, thats not accurate. She happened to have male clients because they were making claims that were traditionally, were womens claims. And she wanted to just shake up the preconceived notions when it came to raising families and providing for them and working in the economy. Everybody should be on equal footing. The legal crusade quickly unleashed profound changes in the law and daily life, but Ginsburgs own rise to the federal bench took decades, and a lot of lobbying by her husband, a prominent tax attorney, with key old boys club connections. After getting passed over three times, President Carter nominated Ginsburg to be a federal judge in 1980. The framers had in mind as the way to protect individual rights and liberty. People were surprised that the A.C.L.U. activist turned out to be a very moderate judge, a centrist who often sided with conservatives, praised judicial restraint, and slammed Roe v. Wade for going too far, too fast. I am proud to nominate for associate justice of the Supreme Court, Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Some feminist leaders were concerned when President Clinton tapped Ginsburg for the High Court. She will be able to be a force for consensus building on the Supreme Court. But Justice Ginsburg quickly pleased supporters and skeptics alike with her opinions in landmark cases, like the Virginia Military Academy. May it please the court. V.M.I., the Virginia Military Institute, was established by the Commonwealth of Virginia in 1839. V.M.I. was age-old military academy run by the state of Virginia, was men only. Stand! Attention! It emphasizes competition. It emphasizes standing up to stress. It emphasizes the development of strong character in the face of adversity. The question was, did it violate the Constitution to bar women from this school that was entre into the political establishment of the state of Virginia. Justice Ginsburg believed that omitting women was a constitutional violation. And she ultimately convinced all but one justice, Scalia, to take her position. The opinion of the court in two cases, the United States against Virginia, will be announced by Justice Ginsburg. State actors may not close entrance gates based on fixed notions concerning the roles and abilities of males and females. Women will now be walking on the campus of the Virginia Military Institute. I think she would say it was the case she was happiest about in her tenure on the court. V.M.I. superintendent promises that female cadets will be treated the same as male cadets. She used an analysis that increased the level of scrutiny that courts in the future have to give to claims of sex discrimination. I think she found that an extremely satisfying outcome. Ginsburgs opinions helped solidify the constitutional protections shed fought so hard to establish decades earlier. And her grit helped keep her on the bench through colon cancer, pancreatic cancer and the death of her beloved partner. Justice Ginsburg, even though her husband died yesterday after a battle with cancer, was on the bench. Ginsburg battled on through it all, unrelentingly tough, but still a consensus builder. She famously forged friendships with right-leaning justices, including Justice Scalia. You know, whats not to like? Except her views of the law, of course. [laughter] Their shared love for opera actually inspired a composer to write a new one, about them. Singing: We are different, we are one. Do you like how you were portrayed in the opera? Oh, yes. Especially in the scene where I rescue Justice Scalia, who is locked in a dark room for excessive dissenting. [laughter] But in her later years, as the court moved to the right, Ginsburg grew bolder in her dissents. She was not in a position to control the outcome of events. But she was in a position to stake her claim for what the outcome should have been. And she was very strategic and very powerful in using that opportunity. The opportunity that made her into a rock star came in 2013, when the court struck down a key part of the Voting Rights Act. Ginsburg wrote a lengthy, scathing dissent. She was pretty candid in her displeasure with the courts decision. Hubris, pride, is a fit word for todays demolition of the Voting Rights Act. Ginsburgs fiery dissent inspired law students to lay her words to a beat and turn the 80-year-old justice into the Notorious R.B.G. Singing: Now Im in the limelight, because I decide right, court has moved right, but my dissents get cites. Suddenly, Ginsburg went viral. Childrens books to bumper stickers. Halloween costumes to a Hollywood biopic. What did you say your name was? Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Even her fitness trainer was a sensation. Justice is blind, but you know man meat when you see it. When asked about retirement plans, Ginsburg balked. There was a senator who announced with great glee that I was going to be dead within six months. That senator, whose name Ive forgotten, is now himself dead. [laughter] Ginsburgs stardom only grew after she criticized then-candidate Donald Trump during the 2016 presidential race. Ginsburg said, I cant imagine what the country would be with Donald Trump as our president. Ginsburg apologized for her remarks, but instead of retreating, she was emboldened. As a great man once said, that the true symbol of the United States is not the bald eagle, it is the pendulum. And when the pendulum swings too far in one direction, it will go back. Notorious R.G.B. became a badge of the Trump resistance, and keeping her on the bench became part of the cause. Health scare for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. News tonight about the health scare for Supreme Court Justice  Ruth Bader Ginsburg, she was hospitalized. And those ribs you busted? Almost repaired. After all the spills, surgeries and bouts with cancer, what was it that kept her going? Ginsburg said it was her job on the bench, which she still found exhilarating. But perhaps most of all, it was her radical project, which Ginsburg said was still far from complete. People ask me, When will you be satisfied with the number of women on the court? When they are nine.
The Navy this week released its full 1,897-page command investigation into the communication, decisions and actions that took place during a coronavirus outbreak on a deployed aircraft carrier.

The quickly spreading outbreak on the carrier Theodore Roosevelt ultimately left nearly 1,300 crew members testing positive for COVID-19, the illness caused by the new coronavirus that caused a global pandemic. The situation led Capt. Brett Crozier to send a blistering warning to other Navy leaders in March about the worsening situation.

Crozier was later removed from his position as the Roosevelt's commanding officer for his handling of the situation. Former acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly stepped down shortly after, having faced scrutiny over his decision to travel thousands of miles to address the ship's crew over a loudspeaker in a controversial speech following Crozier's relief.

Read Next: Inside Black Widow, the Navy's New Sub-Hunting Exercise to Challenge Russia

Top Navy leaders waffled in their handling of Crozier's firing, with Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday first recommending the captain be reinstated as the carrier's CO, only to backtrack following a broader probe.

"It is my belief that ... Capt. Crozier fell well short of what we expect of those in command," Gilday said in June.

The Navy has now released its full investigation into the matter, including several never-before-seen witness statements. Below are six major findings of that probe.

At least one leader regretted stopping in Vietnam.

Navy officials have said they've found no fault in the decision to allow the Theodore Roosevelt and one other ship to make a port call in Vietnam in the early days of the pandemic, when the illness was spreading in the region.

Adm. Phil Davidson, the head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command who approved the decision, defended doing so in a July call with reporters.

"The decision to go to Vietnam ... was done with the complete collaboration of U.S. Pacific Fleet, Seventh Fleet, the carrier strike group, the carrier, and certainly our embassy in Vietnam," Davidson said.

Several officers interviewed during the investigation agreed that the port call was handled as safely as possible with the information the Navy had on the virus at that point. Despite the steps they took onboard to prevent any possible COVID-19 spread, the executive officer said their understanding of the virus was "not sufficient," according to the report.

"Knowing everything I know now, I probably would not go into port," he told investigators.

The report is heavily redacted, so it's unclear if the person speaking was Capt. Daniel Keeler or Capt. Peter Riebe. Keeler, according to USNI News, took over for Riebe as XO on March 11.

Crozier explains the email that led to his firing.

In his own words, Crozier is cited in the report explaining his decision to email a warning about the situation on the ship, which was later leaked to a newspaper.

"My intent in sending the email on 30 March was to bring a sense of urgency to a rapidly deteriorating and potentially deadly situation onboard the TR and avoid a larger catastrophe and loss of life," Crozier said in a witness statement. "Although my method may have been imperfect, I reached out to those in my Chain of Command whom I believed were in the best position to provide immediate assistance to expedite the necessary decision and action.

"Despite possible long-term repercussions to my career," the captain added, "I acted in what I believed was in the best interest of the Sailors aboard TR."

No one higher in his chain of command asked for the email, Crozier added. But the "pace of action was troubling to us."

Crozier said the hope was to break the bureaucratic logjam and get the decisive action necessary to protect sailors.

"Even at a significantly lower mortality rate of 1% (compared with current 3-4% trends throughout the world at the time), we estimated that five to six Sailors could die if we didn't take immediate decisive action," Crozier said. "... I believe everyone involved was well intentioned, but some up the chain of command were proceeding more slowly than I would have liked."

Capt. Brett Crozier, then commanding officer of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), addresses the crew during an all-hands call on the ships flight deck on Nov. 14, 2019. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Nicholas Huynh)

It wasn't the captain's intent to have the letter make its way to the press, though he acknowledged that his decision to send the email on an unclassified network ultimately increased the likelihood that it would.

"From my perspective, even just one more week of routine planning would have resulted in another week of exponential growth in positive cases and greater risk to more Sailors," Crozier said. "We wanted to stop the administrative bureaucracy."

There was concern over sailors hiding symptoms.

Once the Teddy Roosevelt stopped in Guam to increase social distancing and quarantine measures by unloading crew members, rumors were spreading about the conditions ashore. According to the report, they included claims about bad meals, no internet or phone service and uncomfortable cots.

The executive officer said the carrier's leaders were worried some might even hide their symptoms to avoid leaving the ship.

"We did not want sailors hiding their conditions," the XO said. "... Initially, the food quality was poor (not from [ship's] galley) and the Sailors off-ship were not being fed properly. Many missed meals. Quality of life was initially tough off base. The Sailors certainly let people know they were unhappy via social media and family member inquiries."

'A failure.'

Gilday cited Crozier's decision to release sailors aboard the Roosevelt from a designated quarantine area, which the CNO said potentially put others at risk, when explaining why the captain's relief would be upheld. The investigation details a complex situation in the ship's aft quarantine space.

Multiple witness statements, including from Crozier and the XO, detail what the report refers to as "human suffering" in the aft quarantine area. The large number of sailors there was "unmanageable," one witness said.

"We had enough cases and enough close contacts that we were approaching half the ship being considered close contact," a senior medical officer said. "The disease process was affecting enough squadrons and departments so that it was impossible to delineate a part of the ship as a quarantine area because it was so widely spread across the ship. The decision was made that the quarantine area was to be opened up, then individuals could spread out on flight deck and hangar bay to permit some distancing."

Conditions were poor in the aft quarantine area, the XO said. The decision was made to cease onboard quarantine on March 29 when between 1,200 and 1,300 crew members -- about a quarter of the ship's population -- were being isolated.

Crozier's email warning went out the following day. They needed to find a place where they could properly quarantine the crew, he wrote.

The XO called the aft berthing plan "a failure."

"I regret attempting it and would not do it again," he said, according to the report.

There were alternate port options.

Before Navy leaders decided to have the Roosevelt stop in Guam, they were also considering sending the carrier to Japan, Hawaii or San Diego.

Hawaii and San Diego were ultimately ruled out "due to the limited medical evacuation coverage of responding aircraft," the report states.

Leaders were also eyeing Marine barracks in Okinawa, Japan, even arranging for Marines to vacate their living quarters at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Marine Corps Base Butler, and outlying camps to make room for Roosevelt crew members, according to the report.

Crozier said in the report that "there was a sense of concern due to the time it would take to execute any of these plans."

Chief Operations Specialist Travone Steele speaks to his division during evening quarters aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) June 27, 2020. (Zachary Wheeler/U.S. Navy)

The Roosevelt ultimately pulled into Guam, a decision that was met with some concern from local leaders. Guam Gov. Lourdes Leon Guerrero told The New York Times how she made a plea to the Navy that the ship's crew remain separate from the civilian population to prevent a widespread outbreak.

"I made it very adamant that sailors are not to go to the beaches, they are not to go outside," Leon Guerrero told the Times.

The carrier was in Guam for about two months.

Leaders prepared for casualties.

As COVID-19 cases first began spreading on the ship, Crozier said they began preparing for the worst early on.

"We were reminded by ... to review our command Casualty Assistance Calls Officer procedures to ensure we were prepared for a possible fatality," Crozier told investigators.

One Roosevelt sailor, Chief Petty Officer Charles Robert Thacker Jr., a 41-year-old aviation ordnanceman, died of COVID-19 in April. Thacker had tested positive for the illness in late March and was moved off the ship and into isolation with other crew members with the virus.

Thacker was found unresponsive during an April 9 medical check and was moved to Naval Base Guam's intensive care unit. He died there on April 13.

His spouse, a San Diego-based active-duty service member, was flown to Guam to be by Thacker's side at the time of his death, Navy officials said at the time.

-- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @ginaaharkins.

Related: Hundreds of Sailors Participated in a COVID-19 Antibodies Study. Here's What Was Learned
New South Wales has reported three new COVID-19 cases overnight.

Two cases are from returned travellers currently staying in hotel quarantine.

The other case is a staff member who worked while potentially infectious at Concord Hospital, in Sydney's inner west.

NSW Health said it was investigating how the staff member became infected.

'The case cared for patients with COVID-19 and further investigation is underway to identify how the infection was acquired.

'Contact tracing is underway.'

New South Wales has reported three new COVID-19 cases overnight (pictured, two women wear face masks in Circular Quay)

The other case is a staff member at Concord Hospital, in Sydney's inner west

Four people are currently being treated in intensive care units with two connected to respirators.

NSW had six new COVID-19 cases in the 24 hours to 8pm on Thursday, with just one acquired locally and linked to a known cluster.

Five of the cases were returned overseas travellers in hotel quarantine.

The locally acquired case is a household contact of another one who attended Liverpool Hospital and was in isolation while infectious.

There are now 21 cases linked to the Liverpool Hospital dialysis cluster.

As the state continues to record low numbers of COVID-19 cases, premier Gladys Berejiklian has made plans to welcome an extra 500 weekly returned travellers.

The increase will start from September 27, and takes the state's intake to about 3,000 a week.

It followed Ms Berejiklian's declaration she'd be happy to accept the extra travellers if Queensland and Western Australia doubled their intake.

Those states will scale up capacity by 500 returnees per week more slowly than NSW.

Ms Berejiklian has for months been urging the other states to lift their game and share the load.

NSW had six new COVID-19 cases in the 24 hours to 8pm on Thursday, with just one acquired locally and linked to a known cluster (pictured, nurses at a COVID-19 pop-up clinic at Rushcutters Bay)

NSW Health said it was investigating how the staff member at Concord Hospital became infected

The state premier continues to be at loggerheads with Queensland counterpart Annastacia Palaszczuk over the NSW and QLD border issue.

Queensland announced on Friday ACT residents will be able to fly into the Sunshine State from September 25, but those in NSW cannot as it's still considered a hotspot.

Ms Berejiklian said all border talks with Ms Palaszczuk had ceased again, but Queensland Deputy Premier Steven Miles denied any communication breakdown.

He said Queensland's chief health officer speaks with her NSW counterpart almost every day and he speaks with his counterpart most days too.

It came as NSW agreed to accept an additional 500 returned travellers each week into its hotel quarantine system.
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Linkedin Ivany Atina Arbi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 17:17 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45eefd4 1 National coronavirus,COVID-19,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,daily-record,#COVID19,Luhut-Binsar-Pandjaitan,Indonesia,virus-corona,virus-korona-indonesia Free

Indonesia registered a record high of 4,168 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, bringing the countrys total to 240,687 cases with 9,448 fatalities.

A number of provinces in Java, particularly Jakarta and East Java, have become the nations hotbeds of contagion.

Jakarta added 988 confirmed cases on Saturday, bringing the citys total to 60,828 cases, a quarter of the countrys cases, with 1,527 fatalities. East Java has reported a total of 40,372 cases and 2,942 deaths.

Central Java and West Java have seen nearly 20,000 COVID-19 cases each.

Indonesia now has the second-highest number of recorded COVID-19 cases in Southeast Asia. The Philippines has the highest, with 283,460 cases as of Saturday, according to worldometers.info.

Indonesia currently has the 23rd-highest number of cases of any country in the world.

Read also: Minister Luhut wants stricter health protocols in place during critical time

The government recently decided to implement stricter health protocols in an attempt to curb the transmission of the virus and has assigned the military and the police to enforce the protocols.

Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said on Friday that such measures would be in place for the coming months until the country was able to vaccinate residents en masse, which he expected to happen in December.

There is no proven vaccine for COVID-19.

The minister said he was confident that the country would be able to control the health crisis from December onward as he claimed it would start to vaccinate tens of millions of citizens at that time.

Indonesia has reportedly secured 300 million doses of COVID-19 candidate vaccines from foreign pharmaceutical companies, including Chinas Sinovac Biotech.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 15:50:54|Editor: huaxia

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LAGOS, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Five people were rescued and others were missing after a passenger bus fell into a river in the Ivo district of Ebonyi state, south Nigeria, a police officer told Xinhua on Saturday.

The accident involved a bus carrying members of a church returning from a burial on Friday evening, said Stella Uchegbu, state commander for the Federal Road Safety Corps, adding that so far the number of people on board cannot be identified as the bus is still trapped.

"That kind of bus normally carries up to 30 or more passengers. We do not know whether it was fully-laden," Uchegbu said.

Current reports show that the rescued victims remain unconscious and have been taken to a local hospital, Uchegbu added.

An eye witness told Xinhua on Saturday that the driver lost control of the bus while trying to overtake a truck. The vehicle then veered off into the river and got submerged immediately.

A police spokesperson of the state, Loveth Odah, also confirmed the accident on Saturday, describing it as a very unfortunate incident.

She told Xinhua that rescue efforts are still ongoing. Enditem
The Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) on Saturday decided to allot plots for information technology (IT) businesses, IT-enabled services (ITES), business process outsourcing (BPO) and call centres in the city with an aim to create jobs and boost growth in the region.

According to officials, if investment in any IT or BPO project is expected to be to the tune of 200 crore then the allotment will be done with special comfort to the investor.

The authority has come up with this scheme to encourage setting up of IT-enabled units in this industrial town as economic growth has become stagnant and several jobs have been lost due to the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

Uttar Pradesh secured the second position in ease of doing business across the country. Now, to further support investors, we have decided upon this scheme which can encourage entrepreneurs, who deal with IT businesses. We have multiple offerings for investors in different sectors, said Deep Chandar, additional chief executive officer of GNIDA.

The authority has 10,500 square metres of land at its disposal to be allotted for BPO units in sectors Knowledge Park-V and Techzone-7. For these, plots range between 500 and 1,000 square metres in size.

For IT and ITES units, there are 175 acres of land in sectors Techzone, Techzone 2 and Knowledge Park-V, while plot sizes are in the range of 40,470 to 1,03,049 lakh square metres.

If the project involves 200 crore of investment then as per the UP industrial policy-2017, the investor can approach the state additional chief secretary of ITES or IT or the Greater Noida chief executive officer. Projects under this category fall into mega, mega plus or super mega plus projects, said officials.

The authority will issue a comfort letter for such a big project so that the investor gets the allotment letter issued within 15 days without any hassle, provided the investor would put in 7 crore per acre for the project, said the Chandar.

For projects whose budget is less than 200 crore, allotment can be done via www.greaternoidaauthority.in without any problem, officials added.
NEWTOWN TOWNSHIP >> Newtown Township will be applying for federal funding to bolster its career firefighting force. And its crossing its fingers and hoping the third times a charm. At its Jan. 12 meeting, the board of supervisors voted unanimously to resubmit its SAFER (Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response) grant application to the Federal Emergency Management Agency to...
OSA: Delhi journalist arrested for holding classified defence papers

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 19: A Delhi based journalist has been arrested by the Special Cell under the Official Secrets Act on the allegation that he had classified defence related papers with him.

The journalist, Rajeev Sharma had earlier worked with United News of India, The Tribune, Sakaal Times. He had recently written a piece fo the Chinese newspaper Global Times.

"He is a resident of Pitampura, and was arrested by the southwestern range of Special Cell of the Delhi Police. He was produced before the magistrate the next day, following which he was taken into police custody for six days. He was found to be in possession of some defence-related classified documents. Investigation of the case is in progress," DCP(Special Cell) Sanjeev Kumar Yadav said.

Delhi riots: Police to file charge sheet in UAPA case by Thursday, HC informed

His piece in the Global Times titled, 'A rapprochement road map for Beijing and New Delhi benefits both countries,' he had said that the steady deterioration of bilateral relations since the night of May 5, when the latest standoff began, has practically evaporated all the diplomatic gains of the past years in one stroke. The current crisis is the biggest threat to normal ties between the two sides since 1962. It's a lose-lose situation for both.

Their common objective must be to build a better and peaceful future for their peoples and not a military buildup against one another.

Sharma runs a YouTube channel, Rajeev Kishkindha. On the day of his arrest, he had uploaded two videos. One of them was titled, 'China may still do mischief #IndiaChinaFaceOff.'

In this he had said that despite an agreement, reached between the two foreign ministers of India and China, the road to peace is still heavily mined. There is no guarantee that everything will play out as per the script reached between the two countries.

The other video in Hindi speaks about the state of the Indian media. It was meant to be a watchdog, but has become a lapdog of the government, he also said in the video.

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

On Friday night, Sharma's Twitter account which has 5,300 followers showed the message, 'caution account is temporarily restricted. You're seeing this warning because there has been some unusual activity from this account.'
Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) Market Sales Channel, Distributors, Traders and Dealers Analysis Report

The global Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) Market research report provides complete insights on industry scope, global trends, regional estimates, key application, competitive landscape and financial performance of prominent players. It also offers ready, data-driven answers to several industry-level questions. This study enables numerous opportunities for the market players to invest in research and development.

Market Overview:

The global Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) Market was valued at USD 741.7 million in 2013. Deep packet inspection is an advanced method that has applications in the Open System Interconnection (OSI) reference model. DPI is mainly used by the Internet Service Provider (ISP) that scans the data packets, passing by the network to prevent the attack of viruses.

Key Players:

Arbor Networks Inc

Allot Communication Ltd

Bivio Networks Inc

Cisco Systems Inc

cPacket Networks Inc

Huawei Technologies Co

Request free sample to get a complete analysis of top-performing companies @ https://www.millioninsights.com/industry-reports/deep-packet-inspection-dpi-market/request-sample

Growth Drivers:

Rising usage of mobile devices in connection with the growing demand for mobile broadband data is anticipated to drive the deep packet inspection market. Growing urbanization as well as increased in the purchasing power is predicted to trigger mobile devices usage over the forecasted period. Wireless data traffic along with the flat rate pricing and rising competition is anticipated to increase throughout the forecast period. Data packets inspection, anti-terrorism prevents against malicious viruses and other malware and is expected to drive the DPI industry throughout the forecast period.

Increasing use of mobiles and growing number of users for wireless and broadband connectivity as well as increasing competition among the network operators are predicted to drive the deep packet inspection market growth. Furthermore, concerns about the credible privacy violation are anticipated to challenge the growth of the market over the next seven years. Increasing networks of mobile data along with the advancement in the applications of new data-intensive are anticipated to offer good opportunities throughout the forecast period.

Application Outlook:

Government

ISP

Enterprises

Education

Regional Insights:

Due to the increasing number of subscribers in the region, Asia Pacific Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) market is projected to remain the largest segment over the next six years. The growth in mobile computing, rise in the cases of cyber crimes and the supportive government regulations are few reasons behind the rise in this region. It is broadly used in China, to censor and monitor the content across the network. For Instance, several high ranking websites have been blocked in China.

This technology has various applications in security, Internet censorship, data mining, eavesdropping among others. Due to the improvement in technologies and with the increasing population in the Asia Pacific region such as India, China and Japan had led to an enormous rise in the subscribers.

Browse Related Category Research Reports @ https://blog.naver.com/tomclark
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 20)  Over 200,000 Filipinos could lose their jobs if the government fails to meet the standards set by the European Union amid its calls to step up efforts in tackling human rights abuses in the country, Vice President Leni Robredo said Sunday.

Citing data from the European Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines, Robredo said that the Philippines' trade benefits under the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) program may lead to losses of up to 200,000 jobs related to exports to the 27 EU-member states.

She added that the Philippine government should focus its efforts on proving to the EU it did not commit any wrongdoing, instead of daring the international body to push through with its trade sanctions.

"Kapag tinanggal ito, ibig sabihin 200,000 jobs ang mawawala sa atin. Kapag tinanggal ito, about 108.9 billion in exports iyong mawawala sa atin kasi sisingilin na ng tax, na dati hindi naman sinisingil." Robredo said in her weekly radio show.

[Translation: If this privilege gets revoked, we will lose over 200,000 jobs. If this gets revoked, we will lose about 108.9 billion in exports because they will impose taxes which were not previously imposed.]

With the Philippines' GSP+ status, no tariff can be imposed on more than 6,200 Filipino products exported to Europe.

The Philippines previously said that it has been working with its United Nations Resident Coordinator for human rights cooperation, amid the threat of trade sanctions from the European Union over alleged killings and abuses in the country.

In a statement on Friday, the Philippine Mission to the United Nations in Geneva said consultations have been going on for months on a framework that will allow the UN to support national efforts to uphold the human rights-based approach in governance.

Among the agencies involved are the Department of Foreign Affairs and Department of Justice, which leads the inter-agency panel investigating the 5,655 anti-drug operations that resulted in deaths.

The UN Joint Program will support the Philippine Governments efforts to continue strengthening its domestic mechanisms and processes on accountability and rule of law, the DFA said in a separate statement.

The government expects discussions to reach a conclusion by year-end, Ambassador Evan Garcia, Permanent Representative to the UN told High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet in a briefing. The Philippine National Police and other agencies also sent proposals for the multi-year joint program.

Theres also an invitation for Bachelets office to support national programs on accountability mechanisms and the monitoring and implementation of the countrys human rights obligations.

Tough week for PH

Statements on the planned joint program on human rights came a day after the EU Parliament adopted a resolution seeking an end to drug-war killings and other human rights violations in the Philippines and pushing for immediate trade sanctions in the absence of any substantial improvement and willingness to cooperate on the part of local authorities.

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said they are now coordinating with the EU Commission, the main institution implementing the GSP+ program. Lopez believes there's no reason for the privilege to be withdrawn, saying officials are "able to explain objectively" the Philippines' side on several issues.

Last week, the UN Human Rights Councils 45th session opened with Bachelet expressing concern about the abuses across several countries, including the drug-related killings in the Philippines amid the COVID-19 pandemic. She called for an end to the policies and rhetoric that were said to have led to killings and human rights violations.

Bachelet said her office is seeking details from the Philippine government so we can advise and assess the scope, process, and efficacy of the panel reviewing these cases.

In response, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the country already has domestic institutions to promote accountability and assist those who claim to be victims of human rights violations.

Latest government data show 5,810 people were killed in anti-drug operations since the campaign began in July 2016. Local and international human rights groups say President Rodrigo Duterte's public pronouncements against drug suspects have resulted in thousands more extrajudicial killings, a claim Malacanang has repeatedly denied.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 19:39:56|Editor: huaxia

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GAZA, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- A senior Palestinian official on Saturday called on the international donors to increase their financial support to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

Ahmad Abu Holi, head of the department of refugees' affairs in Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), said in a press statement that he made the call in light of the challenges UNRWA faces to meet its humanitarian needs.

He said there is a need to cover the financial deficit in UNRWA's budget to prevent new crises that would influence its services provided to the Palestinian refugees.

Abu Holi said that the PLO is holding intensive contacts with the Arab countries that host Palestinian refugees and UNRWA "to face the current challenges."

"The contacts focus on how to work under a joint effort to boost the global agency's financial resources and urge the world's donors to provide additional funding to support UNRWA's budget," he added.

Meanwhile, Abu Holi called on UNRWA to speed up working with its emergency plan to combat the spread of coronavirus among Palestinian refugees in the Palestinian territories, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria.

UNRWA, one of the United Nations agencies, provides humanitarian services to over 5.6 million Palestinian refugees. The agency's officials have repeatedly announced that UNRWA is passing through a severe financial crisis. Enditem
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Twenty-nine countries including the United States and Germany issued a joint statement on Thursday condemning reported internet shutdowns by the government of Belarus after a "fraudulent" presidential election there last month.

"Shutdowns and blocking or filtering of services unjustifiably limit the rights of peaceful assembly and freedoms of association and expression, especially when they lack procedural fairness and transparency," said the statement released by the U.S. State Department.

(Reporting by Eric Beech; Editing by Mohammad Zargham)
Exclusive: Vale's mining dams are still a risk, company must do more, Brazil prosecutor says FILE PHOTO: A view of a collapsed tailings dam owned by Brazilian mining company Vale in Brumadinho

By Sabrina Valle and Luciano Costa

RIO DE JANEIRO/SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Despite two major deadly mining disasters since 2015, Brazilian iron ore miner Vale SA <VALE3.SA> has not complied with a number of commitments signed with authorities to prevent a third disaster, federal prosecutor Edison Vitorelli told Reuters.

Twenty-nine dams that Vale uses to store mining waste still present elevated safety risks, according to Vitorelli, who forms part of a task-force of about two dozen federal and state prosecutors who pressed charges against the company after the most recent disaster which killed 270 people in January 2019.

Some of the mines linked to the dams that Vitorelli's team regard as unsafe are vital to Vale's plans to recover lost iron ore production and grow capacity to 450 million tonnes per year, a level that would make it once again the world's largest producer of the steel-making raw material.

In two interviews with Reuters over the past week, Vitorelli said Vale, one of the world's largest mining companies, has repeatedly failed to deliver on commitments to improve on safety made following last year's collapse of a dam near the town of Brumadinho in the state of Minas Gerais.

Vale denied the allegations in a response to Reuters. The company said it has regular meetings with the prosecutors and auditors, it promptly addresses possible risks and is on schedule to fulfill all its commitments.

The task force requested earlier this month that Vale's top executives in charge of safety operations be removed and for an external expert to be brought in to revamp the company's strategy and culture around safety. A judge is expected to rule on the request in early October.

The prosecutor task force, Vitorelli said, still regards Vale's safety approach as flawed. Both state and federal prosecutors told Reuters that in their view the company fails to take preventative measures, does not proactively disclose safety issues, waiting instead to be pressed by external auditors and authorities before taking action.

Story continues

They listed, in their request to the judge, what they regarded as repeated failures on the part of Vale to improve safety at its tailings dams.

Their concerns come on top of a separate report by a United Nations' expert on Wednesday who said Vale's restoration projects following the dam disaster in 2015 are behind scheduled.

Vale said it has extensive documentation to prove its compliance with commitments made to prosecutors which it will present to the court.

Its not lack time or money to meet the requirements. It's five years since the first disaster. The problem is the companys culture, Vitorelli said.

"If only these events were isolated, but they are not. All the 29 dams are problematic and Vale has been disobeying the agreements to this date," he added.

On Tuesday, the Brazilian miner said it plans to grow production capacity to 400 million tons of iron ore per year by 2022, up from 318 million today.

Of that, Vale said it expects 54 million tons of annual capacity to come from the state of Minas Gerais where the two mining disasters happened. Future actions from prosecutors potentially put some of that output increase at risk.

The task force says Vale's response to six dams around its mines at Fabrica, Vargem Grande and Itabira are high risk and that the company's response to improve safety has been inadequate.

For example, during a routine inspection by prosecutors in July 2019 at Itabira, auditors noticed cracks at the Itabirucu dam. One of the cracks, they said in a written report, was 1.87-meter (6.1-ft) deep. The dam's stability, moreover, was being monitored with equipment that produced inaccurate data or had a delay.

The miner in response to this allegation, invested 34 million reais (4.9 million pounds) in new inspection equipment, according to prosecutors. Three months after the visit, it increased the security level of the dam and reduced production levels, according to a previous company statement.

More recently, the external auditors reprimanded the company over dams that store mining waste from the Fabrica complex.

The task force said the company failed to replace a video camera that monitors safety, which had been allegedly stolen from Forquilha III, leaving the dam without proper monitoring since July 27.

Vale disputes the allegation and says the dam was never left without monitoring.

"The company awaits external complaints before reacting, and this is systemic," the prosecutor said.

(Reporting by Sabrina Valle and Luciano Costa; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
A BUS driver who had an inappropriate relationship with a 16-year-old school girl, has been found not guilty of sexual assault after he was accused of lifting up her dress.

The bus driver and the complainant, now aged 17, appeared at Limerick District Court before Judge Brian OShea, and gave evidence in relation to the alleged incident which occurred outside a school in April 2019.

Though he dismissed the charge, Judge OShea said that the bus driver had fostered an inappropriate relationship with this female child.

Giving her statement to a specialist garda interviewer, the complainant said she had ran to the bus after practice for a school musical as she was afraid of missing the bus.

She was wearing a dress just above the knee, according to her statement which was played in court on a DVD.

When she got on the bus, the bus driver allegedly looked at me up and down and gave me the eyebrows. She claimed that the bus driver caught the hem of her dress, pulled it up and goes Oh look, whats that?.

She claimed that his finger glided along my leg as he lifted it up. She told the garda that she got frightened and ran.

After she sat down midway on the bus, the bus driver stood up and was looking down at me, she told the garda in April 2019.

She told the garda: My friend said to me: I wouldnt leave that go if I were you. I said: I dont think I will.

The court heard that the friend, a male witness, was behind her on the bus when the incident allegedly took place. She said, on previous occasions, the bus driver made comments such as Oh look, youre looking well and that he tried to grab my hand on a number of occasions.

In a statement to gardai and in court, the bus driver denied these allegations.

She said that she was bawling crying when she told her mother.

The complainant appeared in court after there were technical difficulties with the videolink. Judge OShea said that he didnt want the minor to be pressured, in any way, to give viva voce evidence.

In cross-examination, the defending barrister asked if she had discussed the issue with anyone else, to which she replied: No, I sat in silence.

She told the court that she changed from her skirt to her school uniform while she was on the bus.

Both accused and complainant agreed that there had been previously an element of banter between the two. The claimant agreed that she may have said How are your things? in conversation with the bus driver, when asked by the barrister.

The barrister said that the bus driver would have said in reply: Jesus, you cant be saying that to me. I might lose my job.

The barrister put it to the complainant that her client denied that there was anyone behind her on the bus. The complainant told the court that the bus driver allegedly reached for the right hand side of the skirt with his left hand.

I felt absolutely assaulted the minute it happened, she told the court.

The male witness, also aged 17, told the court he saw the accused flung up the girls skirt and that he could see her underwear.

She said to me: Did you see what happened? It wasnt right. I said yeah, he told the court.

He said that she put on her school uniform while on the bus and that she didnt feel comfortable.

When asked what part of the dress the bus driver allegedly caught, he said that it would have been on the left side with his right hand.

In cross-examination, the barrister questioned the complainant and the witness on when they discussed the case and the incident.

The alleged victim said the incident was never spoken of between her and the witness, to which the barrister said I find that hard to believe.

She said that its not something you would be discussing at school, to which the barrister said she found it incredible that it was not discussed. She said: We never had a full conversation.

The girl said there was some discussion via Snapchat. When asked what they discussed, she said when they were posting their statements, he said he couldnt remember the colour of her underwear, and that he was a bit nervous in case he was asked in court.

She told the court that they had sent each other a Snapchat on Tuesday night, but could not remember exactly what was said. After being questioned about this, she said that he said he was nervous.

The barrister asked the male witness when was the last time they spoke about the case, to which he said two days ago on Snapchat.

What was in the Snapchat? the barrister asked, to which the boy replied: I cant think what I said. Judge Brian OShea said: You must tell the truth, even if its a little bit awkward.

The barrister asked: Did she text you or did you text her? He said he didnt know, adding that he didnt know the detail of what was said. After further cross-examination, the boy said that they talked about his being nervous.

The barrister asked: Did you ask anything about the proposed evidence about what you were going to say today? He said no.

At any point, did you ask [the complainant] what she said to gardai? the barrister asked, to which he said no.

The investigating sergeant said the bus driver, who has no previous convictions, was fully cooperative when he gave a statement at the garda station, and that he was consistent in his denial.

Denying all allegations, the bus driver said that he could not have touched the girl as he demonstrated to the court, folding his arms: I sit like this. When asked about this, he replied: So I wont be accused of anything.

He said he had stood up and looked back to see if she was okay. The inspector put it to the accused that he touched the girls leg, to which he said: I definitely did not.

The barrister said that the State had not proven their case beyond reasonable doubt, and that there were inconsistencies between both accounts.

Theres huge issue about the credibility of both these witnesses, the barrister stated, adding that the inconsistencies were much too significant to gloss over. The prosecuting inspector said, with regards the inconsistencies, that the general story is the same.

Judge OShea said that he could not record a safe conviction and that he was dismissing the charge, and that there were inconsistencies between the accounts in relation to the alleged assault.

Speaking to the reporters after the case was dismissed, the accused said: I am delighted its over and done with.
However, unlike Claire Underwood, Melania Trump has few policy or political aspirations and does not covet power herself. "She was happy at Trump Tower. She loved Trump Tower. She was thrilled at her life," Wolkoff says. If her husband loses the presidency at the November 3 election, "she'll be in the south of France on a really big yacht with a really big brim hat doing what she's always wanted to do: nothing". In her view, the first lady's apparent aloofness and superficiality is a way of avoiding scrutiny. "By remaining mysterious, by keeping up that steel wall, she doesn't have to answer to anyone. To make her human, and to make her feel, would mean opening herself up for criticism," Wolkoff says. "Melania looks unapologetically, authentically skin-deep... The reality is she is not unhappy, she is complicit." Wolkoff became friends with Melania Trump in 2003, when Wolkoff was directing special events for Vogue magazine, including New York City's famed Met Gala. They were regular lunchers, but the friendship didn't canvass politics.

Wolkoff helped organise the Trump inauguration, which became infamous for its low turnout despite the President's claims to the contrary. She then joined the first lady's office as a special adviser, working on a children's wellbeing initiative called "Be Best". Wolkoff says she tried to explain to Mrs Trump that the name was "illiterate" and "doesn't make sense". Loading Their relationship deteriorated after The New York Times reported Wolkoff's company received $US26 million ($35 million) to plan the inauguration. In the story, an inauguration committee operative said Wolkoff was personally paid $US1.6 million, although she says her actual fee was $US480,000. Wolkoff left the first lady's office in early 2018, and her book Melania and Me relies heavily on quotes taken from conversations she secretly recorded with her boss after their friendship began to deteriorate. "I pressed record for my safety, my protection and my validation, because of course they were going to turn around and say none of it was true," Wolkoff tells 60 Minutes. "I do not regret pressing record at all."
Rank 6 | Kim Kardashian | Earnings per sponsored post: $1.41 million (Image: Reuters)

While India muddles through its own uniquely unique problems  the economy has fallen around the countrys ankles like pants without a belt; Modi wont see his barber; nobody will tell us how Sushant died; and, get me my glasses, whats written on Rheas T-shirt?  it hasnt been smooth sailing for the rest of the world either. As COVID continues to tap-dance on our heads and Christmas seems to be a couple of years away, here are some of the intrigues that kept the globe going since last Sunday.

So, the Kardashians have called it quits. Or theyve been shooed off the TV owing to low TRPs. Either way, they are going. How will they manage without the camera on them, how will we? Twenty seasons of their pouts, plastic surgery, psoriasis, photo-shop fails. Of weddings, divorces, surrogates and Scotts on-off affair with Sofia End of an era, even if it was a cant take my eye off this car crash era.

The Diary of an MPs Wife, the newly published memoir by politician Hugo Swires wife Sasha, has the British snoot circles go, oh oh oh into their porridge. Apart from her scent having once affected former PM David Camerons pheromones, she predicted that Markle will be 'eating the redhead for breakfast' as he is 'clearly not as clever as she is when Harry got engaged to Meghan. Boris Johnson is 'His Blondness', and a clergyman looked at her as if he is working out if Im shaggable.

Then actor Chris Evans chose to flash us on social media! An accidental nude that had him trending on twitter. Naturally, no one lodged a police complaint.

I Hate Men (Moi les hommes, je les deteste), the book by French activist Pauline Harmange, became a bestseller from the moment someone in their government tried to ban it. She argues that 'anger towards men is actually a joyful and emancipatory path, if it is allowed to be expressed'. She is right, we do allow men to walk alone and unmolested at night. And yes, misandry is a word, look it up. Its in an open marriage with misogyny.

After A Suitable Boy got what we politely call mixed reviews on British TV comes Des, a new mini-series about Scottish serial killer Dennis Nilsen. He was arrested in 1983 for killing a dozen gay men and trying to flush their remains down the toilet, then calling up plumbers to clear up the drains because, you know, something is stuck! He also, er, romanced his victims after offing them. Actor David Tennant is getting rave reviews in the wake of this casual-killer role.

And across in America, Al Gore says Trump is trying to gaslight the virus, ha ha.

So, put away those dull desi questions  who is baby penguin? what does weed look like? is Bollywood on ventilator?  and mull on matters more international. We all want to know when a vaccine will be available and wish medical scientists would work on this without lunch breaks... But let's take two minutes to think of Kim and Chris and their private assets, okay?

Shinie Antony is a writer and editor based in Bangalore. Her books include The Girl Who Couldn't Love, Barefoot and Pregnant, Planet Polygamous, and the anthologies Why We Dont Talk, An Unsuitable Woman, Boo. Winner of the Commonwealth Short Story Asia Prize for her story A Dogs Death in 2003, she is the co-founder of the Bangalore Literature Festival and director of the Bengaluru Poetry Festival.
In India, the campaign will be launched with a digital-first strategy on OTT platforms starting September 19 and will release on television on leading premium Hindi & English channels

In India, it will be launched with a digital first strategy on OTT platforms starting 19th September to target the affluent, informed luxury consumer and will release on television on leading premium Hindi & English channels.

Diamond Producers Association, an organization of worlds leading diamond producers, has ben re-launched as Natural Diamond Council (NDC). With the repositioning of the brand, NDC is also set to launch their first ever celebrity-led TVC, For Moments Like No Other, with Hollywood actress Ana de Armas.

This new campaign marks a number of firsts for the Natural Diamond Council, in addition to welcoming its first Hollywood headliner. It is the first celebrity-fronted campaign for a diamond group (brand agnostic), adding an important contribution to an industry that supports the livelihoods of roughly 10 million people worldwide. This is also the first campaign dedicated to NDCs Only Natural Diamonds platform, and the first marketing initiative to showcase such a diverse roster of jewellery designers that work with natural diamonds in exceptionally modern ways.

Ana De Armas is a rising Hollywood star. She recently received a Golden Globe nomination for her role in Knives Out and will soon appear in the latest James Bond film No Time to Die. She shines in the multi-part campaign, which was developed to celebrate the myriad connections that lead to natural diamonds being worn or exchanged.

"de Armas was approached for the project as she radiates with poise and modernity, and she epitomizes an ascendant, free-thinking generation. Her elegant, effervescent and easygoing demeanor reflects the next chapter in the history of natural diamonds; a mindset in which the traditional tenets of diamond-wearing and exchanging are dismantled, leaving an open playing field in their place. Ana is seen in laid-back outdoor settings with friends, with a parent, and with a partner. In this, a fresh, opened-up association continues to be emphasized: diamonds are not solely the purview of romantic interests or formal occasions. They are meant for every type of connection," according to NDC

The campaigns 30-second hero spot airing at IPL will be complemented by a series of shorter video segments, spotlighting the various relationships portrayed from the clip.

I love thinking of diamonds this way, as special emblems of even our small personal moments, said Ana de Armas. They represent joy, warmth and beauty.

Richa Singh, Managing Director, NDC, India, said: It was a challenge to put together the brand and campaign launch when the world is going through such tough times, but it has been a rewarding experience. The campaign fits perfectly as consumers have greater respect for everything natural and want to buy fewer but better things. They are looking for things that last and have a meaning and emotion attached to it. We wish to create desirability for diamonds in the mind of consumers when it comes to celebrating lifes every moment and our campaign featuring Ana De Armas portrays that beautifully. The TVC redefines special moments, celebrating a variety of personal connections with natural diamonds.

The campaign which was lensed in coastal Portugal, directed by Manu Cossu and photographed by Camilla Akrans will have a global presence, running in India, the United States of America, United Kingdom and China. In India, it will be launched with a digital first strategy on OTT platforms starting 19th September to target the affluent, informed luxury consumer and will release on television on leading premium Hindi & English channels. The Natural Diamond Council will also distribute campaign materials through its owned channels, including its website, which will feature behind-the-scenes footage and an interview element with Ms. de Armas, as well as comprehensive information about the brands and designers that are seen. For an enhanced connect with the local consumers & retail trade, there will be a section dedicated to similar jewellery designs that are available in India.

Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)
If recent reports are to be believed, Kanye Wests marriage is in serious trouble. Over the past few weeks, the Graduation rapper has made several statements on Twitter that have reportedly driven a wedge between him and Kim Kardashian West. Amid the alleged fallout, West took to Twitter to share a now-deleted tweet to their eldest daughter North, where he expressed concern that she might be taken away from him due to his behavior.

Kanye West at a party in February 2020 | Taylor Hill/FilmMagic

Kanye West has been making headlines for months

West has been attracting negativity publicly since mid-July, when he revealed personal information about his family at a campaign rally, including that he and Kardashan West almost aborted North, 7.

From there, he went off on another tangent on Twitter that saw him accusing his wife of trying to fly with doctors to his Wyoming ranch to lock [him] up and saying hed wanted a divorce since 2018. Amid the remarks, Kardashian West wrote on Instagram that her husband had been in the middle of a bipolar episode and that those who are close with Kanye know his heart and understand his words some times do not align with his intentions.

West later apologized for what hed said and eventually met up with his wife in Wyoming, where she was seen crying. They then jetted off for a vacation together in what reports said was an attempt to focus on and save their marriage.

When it was over, Kardashian West reportedly returned to their residence in Calabasas, California, while West went back to Wyoming, where he has continued to tweet.

RELATED: Kim Kardashian and Kanye West Are Living Apart For Now

Kanye Wests latest tweets are troubling

West shared several troubling messages to Twitter during the week of Sept. 13, including tweets taking aim at the music industry, one of which that appeared to show him urinating on a Grammy. At one point, he tweeted and deleted a message to North that said:

NORTHY I AM GOING TO WAR AND PUTTING MY LIFE ON THE LINE AND IF I AM MURDERED DONT EVER LET WHITE MEDIA TELL YOU I WASNT A GOOD MAN WHEN PEOPLE THREATEN TO TAKE YOU OUT OF MY LIFE JUST KNOW I LOVE YOU.

RELATED: Larsa Pippen Spars With Kanye West on Twitter Over a Controversial Tweet

The tweet came amid a report from People that said Kardashian West is at the end of her rope  again.

Hes off his meds, said a source. He promised hed stay on them. The last time, part of his negotiation with Kim was that hed get back on his medication and he would work very hard to control his impulses. He made a lot of promises. And now those promises are broken, less than a month later.

The source claimed shes been trying to stick it out for their kids  North, Saint, 4, Chicago, 2, and Psalm, 1  but that the whole thing is discouraging and difficult for her.

She wants to be a supportive partner, shes doing everything she can do to support him. But he has to support himself, the source continued. He has to take care of his own health. She cant force-feed him medication. She cant make him do anything he doesnt want to do.

Its hard to tell whatll happen with them from here. But lets hope they both find a solution that works best for them and their family.

RELATED: Kanye West Will Reportedly Go Public With Family Secrets If the Kardashian-Jenners Try to Stage an Intervention, Including Alleged Feuds, Secret Hookups, and More
The last of the extra $300 weekly unemployment payment is being paid out in a handful of US states, leaving millions of Americans waiting anxiously for news on further relief funds for the stalling US recovery.

The scheme referred to as Lost Wage Assistance (LWA), a program approved by President Donald Trump with FEMA funds, was created to help Americans who were left unemployed due to the covid-19 pandemic after funds from the CARES Act ($600 weekly) expired in July.

Negotiations for more stimulus money have been ongoing now between Democrats and Republicans since July. Drama ramped up in the weeks leading up to the election, as both parties vied to place blame and sow hope to gain last minute votes. Now that Joe Biden has won the election there appears to have been no progress on further pandemic relief, though talks have now resumed. At the time of writing Donald Trump is yet to accept his loss of the presidency.



Which states are still paying the $300 bonus?

The Trump-backed LWA benefits were approved to run for six weeks starting retroactively on 1 August. Arizona was the first state to send out the $300 bonus on 17 August but has now depleted its funds. A total of 49 states were approved for the LWA. South Dakota

The states that already received and sent out the funds to unemployment recipients have now reached their six weeks, meaning they will soon run out of funds.

The government also called on each state to provide an additional $100, for a total of $400 per week in enhanced unemployment pay, but most states rejected the option to pay the $100 top-up, only 3 states Kentucky, Montana and West Virginia paid out the extra funds.

Most states have stopped offering the $300 bonus. These are the ones that remain with links:



What's the latest on talks over a second stimulus bill?

Trump told reporters on 30 October, "we will have a tremendous stimulus package immediately after the election." He has yet to bring up the discussion of a stimulus bill since his loss was declare on Sunday. Joe Biden has now won the election by an overwhelming number of electoral college seats, and his stimulus plan does make provision for more unemployment support, but does not go into detail of how much.

Since July, both sides have struggled to agree on the cost of a new bill. Negotiations have dragged on over the past months. The White House increased their offer stimulus package to $1.9 trillion in October, still nowhere near the $2.2tn that Pelosi's Democrats are demanding, and almost $1tn more than many Republicans are willing to accept.

Whats not clear is what the road map is going forward, with Senate Republicans Yesterday Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said about offering a higher total amount, "that's not a place I think we're willing to go. But I do think there needs to be another package. Hopefully we can get past the impasse we've had now for four or five months and get serious."

"It has been our position all along to crush the virus, honor our heroes, put money in the pockets of the American people," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said during a press conference on Thursday, "this is what we put in the Heroes Act to crush the virus."

Since pharmaceutical giant Pfizer announced that its coronavirus vaccine has a 90% effectiveness rate, commentators are concerned that a large check will now be stalled until after January.

Who is eligible for the additional unemployment check?

Not every unemployed person in every approved state or territory will receive LWA funds. In order to get the extra $300:

- You must have been eligible for unemployment as of 1 August, 2020.

- Your regular weekly unemployment benefit must be at least $100.

- You must have become unemployed or had hours reduced due to covid-19 pandemic.

Beyond stated eligibility standards, it's up to each state or territory to decide what you need to do to receive the money. Best advice is to check with your state unemployment office.

Who is eligible for unemployment benefits?

Normally, unemployment benefits are reserved for full-time employees who lose their jobs. With the expanded coverage, part-time and self-employed workers may now qualify.

The Cares Act created the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program (PUA), which provides benefits to citizens who would not normally be eligible for unemployment benefits from the states, including gig workers, freelancers, independent contractors and small business owners whose income has been affected by covid-19. For now, PUA funding is set to run through 31 December.

You may also be eligible to collect unemployment benefits if:

- You or a family member have been infected by covid-19 and cannot work.

- You have been advised by a doctor to self-quarantine.

- Your workplace closed due to the coronavirus.

- You're not working because you have to care for children or other family members who would otherwise attend school or another facility.

- For college students who worked a job last year - even a part-time one.
It will be extremely ironic and hypocritical if Horgan and his NDP call for a snap election this fall. He knows his poll numbers for the handling of the Covid 19 Pandemic are high but should he decide to use that for political advantage it will have him sinking to the lows that we see with the current political leader of our neighbours to the south.

At a time when our provincial Covid infection numbers are going the wrong way and are at new highs our health minister along with Dr. Bonnie Henry have rolled back some of the business openings and recently announced new restrictions while they keep pounding the message to keep our circles small, wear masks and stay away from crowds it is unthinkable and irresponsible to call for an election.

Has Horgan not noticed that the vast majority of those who volunteer to work the election polling stations are seniors who are the most vulnerable to become infected and die from Covid? These volunteers have to be hired and trained in classrooms to prepare for election day crowds and all of this to happen as we enter the common flu season which most health professionals are concerned will make dealing with Covid more difficult and deadly.

Mr. Horgan up to now you have handled the Pandemic well so why do you now after 8 months contemplate deliberately having an event that will create crowds putting additional British Columbians lives at risk? If gambling with your constituents lives seems like an acceptable risk to you just so you can have a bit more power then you will call for a fall election. Large crowds associated with an election goes against everything you, your own health minister and head provincial doctor have been preaching daily to British Columbians for many months. Should you do so I hope that the voters treat you with the same disdain that your recklessly calling for an election now does for them.

Guy Bissonnette, Lake Country
JAMMU: Pakistan dropped weapons and some cash in Indian currency using a drone in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district, Director General of Police Dilbag Singh on Saturday (September 19) said, announcing the arrest of three LeT terrorists who had picked up the consignment near the Line of Control.

Singh said the major success was achieved on Friday evening, following a well-coordinated joint operation by police and 38 Rashtriya Rifles in Rajouri sector of Jammu region, frustrating Pakistan's design to step up violence and disturb the prevailing peace in the Union Territory.

"All the three Lashker-e-Taiba terrorists were residents of Kashmir and had come to pick up the consignment, which was dropped by Pakistan on this side using a drone," the DGP, who was flanked by Inspector General of Police (IGP), Jammu Division, Mukesh Singh, told reporters in Rajouri district.

The IGP informed this was the third successful operation in the twin districts of Rajouri and Poonch since September 11.

Earlier, a huge consignment of arms and ammunition was recovered from two people in Balakote sector of Poonch three days later 11 kg of heroin worth Rs 11 crore, meant to fund terrorism activities, was seized in Rajouri district.

"Pakistan and its agencies always remain active and are making every effort to disturb peace and law and order in J-K. It is using drones to drop weapons and narcotics and also push terrorists from both Rajouri and Poonch districts, which had witnessed a spurt in ceasefire violations - almost on a daily basis," the DGP said.

However, he said the police, Army and other forces are working together to scuttle Pakistan's design and to maintain peace and law and order in the Union Territory.

"We are enjoying good operational synergy and the latest arrest of three LeT terrorists and seizure of a huge cache of arms and ammunition was its result. We received information about movement of some suspicious people and accordingly launched the cordon and search operation," he said.

He said three people were seen moving with a bag and were challenged but they hurled a grenade, which luckily did not explode and the trio was overpowered.

The search of the bag led to the recovery of two AK-56 rifles, two pistols, four grenades and Rs 1 lakh in Indian currency, which had smuggled from Pakistan to escalate violence, Dilbag Singh said it came to light that the consignment was dropped on this side of the LoC by Pakistan using the drone and the trio, who hail from Kashmir, had come to pick up the consignment.

"Their interrogation is underway and further details will be shared later," he said.

In response to questions, he said Pakistan is doing its best to revive terrorism in the twin districts of Poonch and Rajouri, which falls in Jammu division and were cleared of militancy over a decade back.

"The people of Rajouri and Poonch are peace loving and they will not allow Pakistan to succeed in its design. There are some elements with whom we will deal sternly," he said.

He termed the dropping of weapons through drones as a "big challenge" and said this is the first such aerial drop in the district though a similar attempt was foiled by the Border Security Force (BSF) along the International Border in Kathua district sometime back.

"This is a hilly terrain and drones just bypass the deployment on the LoC," he said, adding that "we are vigilant to the threat and have taken necessary measures".

On the recovery of a large number of US-made rifles in the recent past, the DGP said that "we have recovered such types of rifles like M-4 and M-16 in large numbers in the past as well. These rifles are duplicate weapons manufactured in Pakistan and are being smuggled by LeT and Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists".

The IGP said on September 11, police and Army arrested two people and recovered a cache of arms and ammunition, including three pistols, 11 grenades, improvised explosive device (IED) material and a pen drive, frustrating terrorists plan to carry out target killings and blasts in Poonch district.

"The arrest and recovery was made from Balakote sector of Poonch. The pen drive contains details of assembling and planting the IED," he said.

In another operation on September 14, one person was arrested with 7 kg heroin in Rajouri and later at his disclosure one more arrest was made from Kulgam district of south Kashmir.

Three residents of Poonch were also arrested and their questioning led to the recovery of 4 kg of ?heroin from the same spot from where the earlier consignment of 7 kg was dumped after smuggling from across the border, he said.

The IGP said the money from the heroin was meant to support terrorism.
The Delhi police on Saturday said that journalist Rajeev Sharma,61, arrested on charges of spying five days ago, allegedly passed on sensitive and classified information to Chinese intelligence agencies since 2016 and has been paid nearly Rs 40 lakh through various channels including hawala transactions and shell companies. Police said a 30-year-old Chinese woman, Qing Shi, and a Nepalese man, Sher Singh alias Raj Bohra, 30, have been arrested and booked along with Sharma under the Official Secrets Act.

Sanjeev Yadav, the deputy commissioner of police (special cell), said Sharma was allegedly in contact with a Chinese intelligence official whom the police only identified as Michael, and, since 2019, with another Chinese person identified as George . He sent Michael classified information related to Indian army deployment in the China-Bhutan-India tri-junction, including Doklam.

DCP Yadav said that the 2017 Doklam standoff happened just a few weeks after Sharma shared some classified information regarding Indias position, procurement and strategies on the border. Police said Sharma had also passed on information related to Indias military cooperation with Myanmar and other details about the border between India and China. According to investigating officials, Sharma has a Press Information Bureau (PIB) identity card, which he used to visit different government offices and get information from his contacts. The PIB card was issued in the mid-80s, when he was working with United News Agency and was valid till December 31, 2020. The police said that Sharma has told them that he visited the defence and external Affairs ministries to gather information to write his columns, he also took help from other journalists in getting details, by claiming that he wanted the information for his columns.

Sharmas columns appeared in Mail Today, a newspaper from the India Today group, until June 7 this year, before it was shut down. The papers former editor, Dwaipayan Bose, said, Since the case is being investigated we feel that to comment now is inappropriate.

Specifics of the information collected and passed on by Sharma are not known. Nor is it clear how he came by classified information. The police said nothing about his contacts in the ministries.

HT learns that Sharma may have been caught on the basis of communication intercepts by intelligence agencies, but could not confirm this. Yadav admitted that Sharmas arrest came after police received inputs from a central intelligence agency.

Sharmas lawyer, senior advocate Adishi Aggarwala, denied the allegations. As per the statement of the wife of my client (Sharma), the police did not recover any classified and sensitive documents from their home. She has told me that the police seized his laptop, mobile phone, bank statement, passport, income tax-related files, insurance documents , and other such documents. He had been writing articles, columns as a freelance journalist and was being paid for them, which is the job and right of any journalist. The charges against my client are false and he is innocent, Aggarwala said.

Police said the investigation has revealed that the two other people arrested, Qing and Singh were the directors of two shells companies, MZ Pharmacy and MZ Malls , in Delhis Mahipalpur that were floated exclusively for the purpose of bringing money in from China and transferring it to Sharma in cash fin return for the information. The shell companies were set up in 2013 by Chinese nationals Jhang Chang and his wife Chang-li-lia, who, according to the police, identified themselves as Indian citizens Suraj and Usha.

Police said that at least three persons, including another freelance journalist, are being examined in the case . They did not identify these people.

DCP Yadav said that between 2010 and 2014 Sharma wrote columns for Global Times, a Chinese daily that is widely considered a mouthpiece for the Chinese government.

Observing his columns, he was first contacted by a Chinese Intelligence officer, Michael, from Kunming city of China in 2016 through LinkedIn. Michael invited Sharma to Kunming City for an interview in a Chinese media company. His entire trip was funded by Michael. In the interview, he was told to pass on information on various aspects of India-China relations and assured money in return, the officer said.

Sharma remained in contact with Michael and his junior Xou, since 2016 and passed on to them classified information related to Indian army deployments in the China-Bhutan-India tri-junction. DCP Yadav said Sharma met with Chinese intelligence officials in China, Laos and Maldives.

Yadav said that between 2016 and 2018, Sharma was in contact with Michael and Xou. The information were sent in pointer format through emails, and mobile applications such as Telegram and WhatsApp.

HT visited Sharmas residence in Pitampura on Saturday but his house was locked. Neighbours said that on the night of September 13, at around 11.00 pm, police raided his house. A security guard who was on duty that night said, At around 11 pm a group of men in a car ordered my colleague to open the society gates. As soon as the gate was opened, about seven-eight cars zoomed into the colony. Soon, about 30-35 men, all in plainclothes, surrounded Sharmas house (on the ground floor) They left at around 2.30 am.

Detailing Sharmas alleged role after 2018, the special cell officer said, In January 2019, Sharma came in contact with another Kunming-based Chinese person named George. He visited Kunming via Kathmandu and met George. George was introduced as a general manager of a Chinese Media Company. During the meeting, George asked Sharma to write and keep them informed about issues related to the Dalai Lama. For this, he was offered $500 per article. George told Sharma that they would send him money through a company operated by Qing.

Before returning to China in 2018, the Chinese couple (Jhang Chang and his wife Chang-li-lia) made Qing Shi and Nepalase citizen Sher Singh alias Raj Bohra the directors of the two shell companies. Singh used to work as the couples driver, Yadav said.

Police said Qing Shi came to India in 2013 on a student visa and completed a nursing course from Jamia Millia Islamia. She is in India on a business visa.

The have also found that around Rs 500000 was transferred into the account of Sharmas neighbour at Sharmas behest.

We questioned the neighbour, who is a prime witness in the case. The neighbour said that Sharma took his bank details for getting a money transfer. The money came into the account through multiple channels involving at least three different countries and some states in India, added DCP Yadav.

Neighbours, who did not wish to be identified, said Sharma lives with his wife, an associate professor in the department of physics at a Delhi university college. The couple has been living in the colony for the last 20 years. Their son, an MBA, works in the US, police said.

In his Linkedin bio, Sharma has identified himself as a strategic analyst, political commentator, and maker of short films. He mentions he is a Masters in English Literature from Delhi university in 1981 and has been a journalist since 1982. He claims to have worked in various capacities such as correspondent, diplomatic correspondent and diplomatic associate editor with Tribune, Sakal Times and Eenadu Newstime.

Press Club of India President Anand K Sahay issued a statement describing Sharma as an independent journalist of long-standing and describing his arrest by the police as high handed and inspired by obscure and questionable considerations.

Sharmas last post on Twitter (his account is currently suspended) on the day of his arrest read:  Despite the five point peace reached between India and China in Moscow last week, China can still do mischief and the only mantra for lndia in dealing with Chinese must be: distrust and verify

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2020 has been a forgettable year for most industries and particularly horrible for oil companies. This year started off with a fight between OPEC and Russia in February over oil prices before the lockdown paused an increase in demand. In fact, there was such a glut of oil across the world that U.S. crude oil prices actually went to below $0 for a couple of days.

As the world slowly eases lockdown restrictions and business tries to return to its pre-pandemic levels, two of oils largest stakeholders have given a rather bleak outlook for the sector.

BP says oil demand may have peaked

BP released a report called the BP Energy Outlook 2020 where it essentially said that oil demand may have already peaked last year (2019) and consumption might never return to pre-pandemic levels. It said, Demand for oil falls over the next 30 years The scale and pace of this decline is driven by the increasing efficiency and electrification of road transportation.

The report said the economic impact of the virus on emerging economies like India, Brazil, and Africa, whose economic structures are most exposed to the ramifications of COVID-19 was disproportionate.

The report sees a change in consumer patterns. According to BP, the COVID-19 pandemic might lead to several behavioural changes. For instance, people might choose to travel less or avoid using public transport or even work from home on a more frequent basis. These changes are expected to dissipate over time as the dreaded virus is brought under control.

However, it will take time for public confidence to be restored, while the shift to working from home may be a more permanent feature across several industries.

OPEC provides a downward outlook

In its monthly oil market report for September 2020, OPEC said, In 2020, the global oil demand contraction is revised down further by 0.4 mb/d [million barrels per day], now contracting by 9.5 mb/d, to average 90.2 mb/d.

India consumes 4.6% of the worlds oil, and the report says that India is seeing very weak demand. The Other Asia region had its outlook revised lower by around 0.5 mb/d due to weaker oil demand as well.

Story continues

OPEC expects the negative impact on oil demand in Other Asia is projected to spill over into 1H21. At the same time, a slower recovery in transportation fuel requirements in the OECD will limit oil demand growth potential in the region.

When the worlds largest oil stakeholders talk about dark days ahead, it makes sense to listen.

Renewables to the rescue

The world might not consume a lot of oil in the near future, but that doesnt mean you avoid energy stocks altogether. There are multiple options in the renewable energy space that can deliver solid capital appreciation.

Companies like Algonquin Power and Utilities and Transalta Renewables both have future dividend yields of over 4.4%. Northland Power is another good option in the renewable energy sector.

The renewables energy space is expected to be the future, as the world transitions towards clean energy. These companies already provide tasty dividend yields driven by a steady stream of cash flows, making them attractive to income and growth investors.

The post OPEC and BP Give Dire Forecasts: Is it Time to Get Out of Oil Stocks? appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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Fool contributor Aditya Raghunath has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.

The Motley Fools purpose is to help the world invest, better. Click here now for your free subscription to Take Stock, The Motley Fool Canadas free investing newsletter. Packed with stock ideas and investing advice, it is essential reading for anyone looking to build and grow their wealth in the years ahead. Motley Fool Canada 2020
The Padres have reinstated outfielder Tommy Pham from the injured list and optioned right-hander Jorge Ona to their alternate site, the team announced. Pham will be the Padres designated hitter Friday.

Pham, who hasnt played since Aug. 27, missed a few weeks with a broken hamate bone. He posted a .207/.316/.293 line in 95 plate appearances before then, which isnt what the Padres envisioned when they acquired the 32-year-old in a high-profile trade with the Rays during the offseason. Infielder Jake Cronenworth was also part of the trade, though, and hes in the running for NL Rookie of the Year honors, so its doubtful the Padres regret making the move.

When he joined the Padres, Pham had the reputation as a high-OBP hitter capable of 20-20 numbers during a normal season. San Diego has gone 32-19 without many contributions from Pham, so if hes able to revisit his old Cardinals/Rays ways, he could serve as an important late-season reinforcement for the Padres in the coming weeks.
New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday filed a supplementary chargesheet against British national Christian Michel James, businessman Rajeev Saxena and 13 others accused in the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam case.

The chargesheet was filed before Special Judge Arvind Kumar in Delhi`s Rouse Avenue court, who listed the matter for consideration on September 21.

According to sources, former defence secretary Shashi Kant Sharma, who later became Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), has not been named as an accused in the chargesheet as CBI has not received sanction to prosecute Sharma till date.

Sources said that Sharma will be named in another chargesheet, which will be filed after the CBI receives the sanction to prosecute him.

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Michel, the alleged middleman and accused in the Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland VVIP choppers deal case, was extradited from the UAE in December 2018.

He is currently lodged in Tihar Jail in connection with alleged irregularities in the multi-crore chopper deal.

While the CBI is probing his alleged role as a `middleman` in the deal, the ED is investigating money laundering charges against him.

Rajeev Saxena, a Dubai-based businessman, was also extradited from the UAE in January last year.

The AgustaWestland VVIP helicopter deal was finalised during the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) regime under the leadership of then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh but got mired in the allegations of kickbacks.
SpaceX CEO, Elon Musk, is now considered to be one of the biggest fanboys in town because of the company's drone ship, the tech-controlled catcher and collector of the rockets returning to the surface, being a colossal nod and dedication to his favorite sci-fi novel series, Culture, by Iain Banks. Elon Musk's tweet is now going viral, and fans understand the message printed on the drone ship.

The eccentric CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, Elon Musk, is known to give cryptic messages and share interesting tweets that his followers immediately decode and discover. Elon Musk's tweets and public statements span from providing the most information about the latest tech in his companies or be pure nonsense or comical views in the form of memes.

Elon Musk's 'Of Course I Still Love You' Tweet: What does it mean?

Now, Elon Musk tweets a single-lined statement, "of course I still love you," which sounds like a tweet for his partner, the Canadian musician, Grimes, or even his bizarrely-named son, X  A-Xii Musk. However, fans were quick to decode and rushed to give a reasonable explanation, explaining the statement.

The prints embedded on the SpaceX Drone

of course I still love you  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 18, 2020

Ship is not for the people that the SpaceX CEO loves, rather a dedication for his admiration and love for the widely popular science fiction series, Culture by Iain Banks. Two of SpaceX's drone ships are printed with nods and easter eggs from the series.

The droneship names of SpaceX are from Iain Banks' Culture series. Of Course I Still Love You in the Atlantic and Just Read the Instructions on the Pacific & yet to be built A Shortfall of Gravitas. Must read the Culture it's really good!  Pranay Pathole (@PPathole) September 18, 2020



Elon Musk's admiration for Iain Banks led to honor the legendary sci-fi author with a befitting ship that somehow symbolizes space travel. 'Of Course I Still Love You' on the Atlantic waters and 'Just Read the Instructions' on the Pacific are two of the ships found on the Culture series.

The legendary Scottish author died of cancer last 2013 at the age of 52.

Culture Novels

The SpaceX's Atlantic and the Pacific drone ships are named after the two planet-sized and sentient vessels found on the second book, The Player of Games, of the Culture Series by Iain Banks. The series is about a symbiotic society of humans and machines led and dominated by "Great Players" on board games and strategy matches.

The Player of Games' sentient ships resembles planets and are places of life in the sci-fi series. SpaceX's 'Of Course I Still Love You' and 'Just Read the Instructions' are huge callbacks to the planetoid ships as both drone ships are placed in two of the world's most massive oceans.

OCISLY and JRTI Autonomous Drone Ships

Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY), and Just Read the Instructions (JRTI), the peculiarly-named drone ships serve a massive purpose for SpaceX to retrieve its reusable rockets that revolutionized the world's human and cargo flights up in the celestial bodies.

Both ships were created way back in 2015 that is solely dedicated to the SpaceX ships' welcoming party that successfully lands back to the Earth's surface.

A Shortfall of Gravitas  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 12, 2018

Now, the drone ships would find a new addition to its fleet with the "A Short Fall to Gravitas," that was teased by the SpaceX CEO way back in 2018, and will be located in the East Coast for the Falcon 9's high flight rates and the FH's dual ocean landings of the side boosters.

East, to support high flight rates for F9 and dual ocean landings for FH side boosters  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 12, 2018



ALSO READ: 'Space Hero' Reality Show: Here's Your Chance to Travel and Live in Space and ISS for 10 Days on 2023!





This article is owned by Tech Times





Written by Isaiah Alonzo

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Delhi scribe allegedly passed information to Chinese intel: Chinese lady, Nepalese associated arrest

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 19: Delhi journalist Rajeev Sharma who was arrested by the Delhi Police was allegedly passing on sensitive information to the Chinese intelligence. The Special Cell has also arrested one Chinese lady and her Nepalese associate for paying large amounts of money. The money was routed through shell companies, the police have also learned.

Sharma is said to have been in possession of classified national documents. He has been sent to six days police custody. It is also alleged that he was tasked with conveying sensitive information in exchange for large amounts of money. The police have recovered sensitive material and also taken into their possession, his laptop, mobile and other incriminating material.

OSA: Delhi journalist arrested for holding classified defence papers

The journalist, Rajeev Sharma had earlier worked with United News of India, The Tribune, Sakaal Times. He had recently written a piece fo the Chinese newspaper Global Times.

"He is a resident of Pitampura, and was arrested by the southwestern range of Special Cell of the Delhi Police. He was produced before the magistrate the next day, following which he was taken into police custody for six days. He was found to be in possession of some defence-related classified documents. Investigation of the case is in progress," DCP(Special Cell) Sanjeev Kumar Yadav said.

His piece in the Global Times titled, 'A rapprochement road map for Beijing and New Delhi benefits both countries,' he had said that the steady deterioration of bilateral relations since the night of May 5, when the latest standoff began, has practically evaporated all the diplomatic gains of the past years in one stroke. The current crisis is the biggest threat to normal ties between the two sides since 1962. It's a lose-lose situation for both. Their common objective must be to build a better and peaceful future for their peoples and not a military buildup against one another.

Sharma runs a YouTube channel, Rajeev Kishkindha. On the day of his arrest, he had uploaded two videos. One of them was titled, 'China may still do mischief #IndiaChinaFaceOff.' In this he had said that despite an agreement, reached between the two foreign ministers of India and China, the road to peace is still heavily mined. There is no guarantee that everything will play out as per the script reached between the two countries.

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

The other video in Hindi speaks about the state of the Indian media. It was meant to be a watchdog, but has become a lapdog of the government, he also said in the video. On Friday night, Sharma's Twitter account which has 5,300 followers showed the message, 'caution account is temporarily restricted. You're seeing this warning because there has been some unusual activity from this account.'
Kansas City Supreme Tribute



Local politicians react to the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg FAIRWAY, KS (KCTV) -- On Friday, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away at the age of 87 due to complications of metastatic pancreas cancer. Soon after the announcement was made, politicians with ties to Kansas and Missouri began posting statements on Twitter or sending them out.

Cowtown Health Concern Amid High Court Debate

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death brings awareness to pancreatic cancer KANSAS CITY, Mo. - U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died Friday at the age of 87 from pancreatic cancer, a highly metastatic form of the disease that spreads easily to other organs. It can make for a tricky and deadly opponent for many cancer patients.

Kansas City Legal Eagle Blogger Pens EPIC Tribute



The Incredible RBG If Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg was just another female lawyer, I would still have an affinity for her, but she was so much more. RBG WAS A BRILLIANT PIONEER WHO PROMOTED GENDER EQUALITY BEFORE HER TIME. She was amazing person, an amazing jurist, and had a brilliant legal mind.

Red State Agenda Revealed



Kansas and Missouri Republicans Vow To Fill RBG's Supreme Court Seat During Trump's Term Even as they offered condolences to the family of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Missouri and Kansas Republicans vowed Saturday to push forward on filling the high court vacancy. Just a day after her death, President Trump on Saturday urged Senate Republicans to move "without delay" to replace Ginsberg and it appeared that he could nominate a successor as early as next week.

Prez Trump Promise



Trump to GOP: We are obligated to fill Ginsburg's vacant Supreme Court seat 'without delay' President Donald Trump on Saturday said that Republicans have an "obligation" to fill Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's vacant seat on the Supreme Court "without delay," as Democrats argue the Senate should refrain from confirming a replacement until after the next president is sworn in.

GOP Unity Displayed



Lindsey Graham sides with Trump on filling Supreme Court vacancy: 'I fully understand' Sen. Lindsey Graham, who once said he wouldn't confirm a President Trump Supreme Court nominee in an election year, announced Saturday that he's changed his mind on filling the high court vacancy. Trump on Saturday said Republicans have an "obligation" to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court left by the death Friday of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg "without delay."

Show-Me Bold Statement



Josh Hawley on Ginsburg vacancy: I pledge to vote for SCOTUS nominees who acknowledge Roe was wrongly decided A few hours before the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was announced, Sen Josh Hawley, R-MO, repeated to KOLR his earlier statement that he was not interested in an appointment to the nation's highest court, despite being placed on a list of candidates by President Donald Trump.

Veep Nominee Pays Respects



Harris honors Ginsburg, visits Supreme Court Sen. (D-Calif.), the Democratic Party's vice presidential nominee, visited the Supreme Court Saturday following the death of Justice . "Justice Ginsburg was a titan-a relentless defender of justice and a legal mind for the ages," she tweeted with a picture of her and her husband, Doug Emhoff, standing in front of the court.

Progressive Payout



Democratic donations skyrocket after death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg The donations came in as Mitch McConnell made clear that he would attempt to replace Ginsburg with a Supreme Court Justice who was vetted and approved by President Donald Trump.

GOP Equal Time



Susan Collins: No Supreme Court vote before Election Day Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) has become the first Republican senator to call for the Senate to delay voting on a new Supreme Court justice until after voters choose the winner of the 2020 election. "In fairness to the American people ...

New Justice?!?!



Amy Coney Barrett emerging as a front-runner to fill Ginsburg's Supreme Court seat WASHINGTON - Amy Coney Barrett, a federal appellate court judge, has emerged as one of the front-runners to fill the Supreme Court seat left vacant by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, three sources tell NBC News. Barrett, 48, was on the shortlist in 2018 to replace retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy when President Donald Trump ultimately selected Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

Pack It Up, America!!!



How Democrats Could Pack the Supreme Court in 2021 It's an approach Democrats are already raising. Simple, right? Time for a reality check. It's true that Congress can shape the size of the Court to its political desires. In 1866, with a Congress at permanent war with President Andrew Johnson, it passed the Judicial Circuits Act, which cut the size of the court from nine to seven, and barred Johnson from appointing any new Justices.

In Kansas City and across the nation there was really only one relevant discussion today: The fate of the republic following the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.Again, our only relevant contribution to this debate is that the overwhelming majority of opinion on this issue has neither influence nor insight into the decision.Still, it has been fascinating to watch the discourse consider the future of the high court via memes, thinly veiled social media threats along with a great many impassioned local arguments.Accordingly, we share some of our favorite news links on the topic and invite our blog community to join in on the discussion.You decide . . .
ANN ARBOR, MI  The Michigan Ambassador Program at the University of Michigan has been discontinued as the UM refocuses its culture of care for the fall 2020 semester, the university announced Friday.

The program  which featured groups of students, faculty, staff, community members and unarmed members of UMs Division of Public Safety and Security  was created to promote public health-informed practices and guidelines related to the coronavirus pandemic.

At an Ann Arbor City Council meeting in August, UM Dean of Students Laura Jones said education  not law enforcement  would be the first response to violations of public health guidelines, and the program would help remind students and community members to follow the rules.

Ann Arbor City Council members question University of Michigans effort to prevent spread of coronavirus

Maren Spolum, a graduate student in UMs Population Studies Center, spoke at a press conference held by UMs Graduate Employees' Organization (GEO), saying the program makes campus unwelcome for students of color and other marginalized community members.

Black students at UM have been advocating against racism within this institution for decades, yet over a summer in which egregious examples of police violence were all over the news, UM chose to strengthen its ties with the (Ann Arbor Police Department) and DPSS through the ambassador program to address the COVID-19 pandemic, Spolum said.

University of Michigan is no longer able to hide inadequacy of pandemic response, grad students say

GEO had been on strike until Sept. 16 as they demanded a safe and just response to the coronavirus pandemic by UM administrators, which included access to a disarmed and demilitarized workplace, defunding DPSS and cutting ties with AAPD and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The responsibilities of DPSS and AAPD are related to keeping all citizens safe during the pandemic, but the university has redefined its collaboration with the agencies as it relates to COVID-19, a news release said.

DPSS and AAPD are long-standing partners and will continue to be, Jones said in the release.

UM established a COVID Concerns hotline for people to call to report concerns so law enforcement is not needed as a first response. Since going live, 322 calls have been placed with a majority coming from students to hold their peers more accountable, the release said.

More than 3,000 students have also voluntarily shared their off-campus address and phone number with the university to limit the involvement of law enforcement related to student gatherings.

The universitys COVID-19 dashboard shows that 28 people have tested positive for COVID-19 since Sept. 13. In the last two weeks, there have been 78 positive tests our of 4,422 tests administered, the dashboard says.

READ MORE:

University of Michigan regents support Schlissels handling of the pandemic

University of Michigan eliminates spring break in modified calendar

Cold eggs, no microwaves: University of Michigan students in quarantine housing needed help
Speaking at his rally in Bemidji last night, President Trump paid tribute to the journalism of David Steinberg on Ilhan Omar (video below). In July 2019 we published one of Davids most important investigative pieces under the heading Tying up loose threads in the curious case. Trump got it right: David deserves a Pulitzer Prize for his work exposing Omar.

When I met briefly with President Trump about my own work on Omar just before he took the stage at his Minneapolis rally last October, he expressed puzzlement over Omars apparent immunity from prosecution. The same thought was clearly on Trumps mind last night.

In the course of my work last year I discovered that Omar was in fact under investigation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in August 2016 following the publication of my post Ilhan Omar: Her back pages  precisely as FOX 9s Tom Lyden reported later that month. At the behest of a criminal defense lawyer working for Omar, however, United States Attorney Andrew Luger wrote a letter denying the accuracy of Lydens report and FOX 9 scrubbed the story.

I posted a copy of Lugers letter to Omar lawyer Jean Brandl here. The MinnPost story Feds: No investigation into Ilhan Omar marriages is now just about all that remains.

Andrew Luger is now in private practice in Minneapolis. When the Omar frauds emerged into public view again last year, I contacted him by email to ask about the 2016 letter he wrote to Omars lawyer denying Lydens story. He promptly responded: I will pass on this.

Lyden nevertheless had it right. The ICE investigation was killed but the file survives somewhere in the bowels of the bureaucracy. With a little digging on his behalf, President Trump might even be able to find it.
The news of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's passing has driven much of the left bonkers. They know that President Trump may nominate a constitutionalist replacement and, rather than a robust opposition, are vowing death and destruction in response.

Here's Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and note the innuendo in her tone:

If Mitch McConnell isnt going to honor RBGs final wish, we will. We will. And we have to. Thank you, @AOC. For your voice. For your fight. Tonight. And always. pic.twitter.com/2P5ttuvJsx  Eliza Orlins (@elizaorlins) September 19, 2020

Doesn't sound like a democratic response she has in mind. No smiles, no sexy red lipstick, no pricey designer clothes  she's got a dirty t-shirt with something written on it, a blazer thrown over it, and her hair in a rarin' for revolution mess. Among socialists, this is what is meant by meaning business.

Others are much more explicit  such as this blue-check:

If they even TRY to replace RBG we burn the entire fucking thing down.  Reza Aslan (@rezaaslan) September 19, 2020 He's talking about dead bodies.

So much for Twitter's terms of service policy. His tweet remains up, and it sounds as if maybe the cops should be called. He's kind of a crazy, whose signature means of expressing himself is with the phrase " piece of s--- ," which he says a lot, according to this Vanity Fair piece. He was last seen dining on human flesh with a cannibal, according to this item dug up by GatewayPundit . No, really.

There are others on the left who make their intentions entirely clear, too: We arent going to let Mitch McConnell pack the courts. Join us for a direct action and street smarts training to get ready to #DefendDemocracy https://t.co/SPBtruGQpI  ShutDownDC (@ShutDown_DC) September 19, 2020

McConnell says the Senate will vote on Trumps SCOTUS nominee, after preventing Obama from putting Garland on the court. Were up against people with no regard for the law. And its time to stop letting them get away with it. Anyone Trump nominates must be blocked, by the people.  Joshua Potash (@JoshuaPotash) September 19, 2020

If they attempt to fill this SCOTUS seat we must take to the streets like never before and disrupt all life as we know it. In 2016 they denied a vote to seat Garland for nearly a year. This can not be allowed!  James Woods (@RuckSacWoods) September 19, 2020

RIP Ruth Ginsburg. Over my dead body that the racist fucking orange Hitler gets to appoint another arch conservative judge. Over my dead body. People, VOTE and SPEAK UP. Put your money where your mouth is. #NoNoNo#RIPRuthBaderGinsburg#SupremeCourt pic.twitter.com/SES2NU5Oj1  Max Lifer (@lifetothemax1) September 19, 2020

Were shutting this country down if Trump and McConnell try to ram through an appointment before the election.  Beau Willimon (@BeauWillimon) September 18, 2020
Jhumpa Lahiris point of arrival Cut off from her adopted home in Rome due to the pandemic, Jhumpa Lahiri writes a letter to Italy filled with love and longing as she spends her days in the US

Dear Italy, yesterday I should have landed in Rome to reunite with my son, who goes to school there. I should have returned home and headed out to the piazza to shop for food. I would have undoubtedly run into a few neighbors and friends on the streets. Id have said hello, and theyd have said, welcome back.

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Its just that my son, along with millions of kids throughout Italy and elsewhere, doesnt go to school anymore. A few days ago he unexpectedly and urgently returned to America, and shortly thereafter Trump banned travel from Europe, a scornful and already pointless gesture. On the one hand Im truly relieved my son is back, and that both my children are under the same roof during this time of deep uncertainty. And yet not returning to Rome this morning, not setting out for the market, even at the height of this crisis, pains me. Its the same distress a daughter would feel at not being able to run to her gravely ill parent and lend a hand, because she feels compelled to, because she can do no less.

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For a week now Ive done nothing but follow the news in Italy and reach out to Italian friends, both in Italy and in the United States. My friends in Italy tell me things arent looking too good. They send me photos of empty streets all shuttered up. They tell me that the market stalls in Piazza San Cosimato have thinned out, and that supermarkets have signs asking people to stay a meter away from one another. I can picture all of this, more or less. They tell me theyre afraid, that theyre stunned, that the situation is brutally serious. And up until a few days ago, when I was still planning to board that plane, many told me, Jhumpa, dont come.

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I absorb their fear and feel equally stunned. At the same time, I absorb their courage, their patience, and their determination to battle and defeat this invisible enemy. Amid it all I laugh like mad, right along with them, when they share the hilarious memes spreading on social media. This is why Italy alonewhich has already taught me so muchis now showing me how to face the coronavirus: with chin up, discipline, a touch of irony, and a healthy dose of optimism. And Im gladly infected by their attitude. Here in America alarmism is on the rise and friends are telling me: thank god your son got out! They have a point, sureits better the family can be together in times like this, otherwise things would have been even harder. And yet Im nettled by such remarks.

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Italy remains my point of arrival. For me, Italy is still a balm. A week ago, when I advised my son to come back, I told him Italy needs fewer people out and about right now, that we need to stand back and give the country the time and space it needs to recover. What I dont understand is the attitude some people are displaying toward Italy now that its on lockdown, struck by an unprecedented crisis. It fills many with fear, even dread. Incomprehensibly, compassion is scarcethe US president expresses none whatsoever. Im ashamed of it.

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I still feel protected by Italyeven an Italy on its knees, bowed by such utter isolation. Its precisely now that I feel Italy standing by my side, sharingdespite the ocean between us, despite Trumps travel banits strength and dignity. It continues sharing its affection and advice, guiding and protecting me and my family. Yesterday, for example, my publisher, a gentleman from Milan who loves to stroll his citys streets but is now cooped up at home, wrote me a serene email reassuring me that my next book would be released there in a few months. I had dropped him a line just to say, Im thinking of you all, hoping to offer some solace. And yet he was the one who, with remarkable elegance and composure, replied this, too, shall pass.

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And so, in my own world, and in its own way, the coronavirus has already healed a woundor rather, cured a condition that has afflicted me for five years now: the condition of feeling sadly separated, exiled from Italy when Im away, always eager to return. Even a few days ago when, at the very last minute, I gave up on the idea of returning to Rome for the time being, I cried for some time. But today, here in Princeton, where Im following live news reports as if I were in my living room in Rome, I finally realize that there is no distance between me and Italy. And Im astonished by the fact that Italyeven in such a critical, compromised stateis nevertheless right here with me, lending a hand. The closure of Italys borders makes those outside of them feel somehow protected, but they arent. Over the last few days weve all inevitably become Italian, and what is happening there is starting to happen everywhere. The coronavirus temporarily separating us has demolished all borders, destroyed all distance. Today will be the last day of class for my daughter, who goes to school in America. Im relieved; according to my friends in Italy, they should have canceled in-person classes even earlier. Every morning I call friends in Italy so we can face the new day together. I follow their advice, and listen to them. When they say dont come, I understand, and consciously keep my distance. Soon, I hope, Ill return to Rome and find a city back on its feet, a country transformed, forever marked.

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Dear Italians, although Im not on my way there today to lend a hand, please know that its not because I want to protect myself from you, but to protect you from me. Ill never be afraid to stand by your sideonly to fall out of touch with you.

I send, from afar, my deepest solidarity and affection. With these words, in the language we now share, I send you my heartfelt thanks for the gift of perspective you continue giving: an example of what to do, how to be, and how to get through this.

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Together.

P R I N C E T O N , N J

M A R C H 1 7 , 2 0 2 0

This essay, originally written in Italian by Lahiri and translated by Alta L. Price into English, is excerpted from And We Came Outside And Saw The Stars Again, edited by Ilan Stavans and published by Penguin Random House. The book is available from 21 September.

Since her turn to Italian, the Pulitzer Prize-winning Jhumpa Lahiri has written three books, including In Altre Parole (2015) and the novel Dove Mi Trovo (2018). Editor of The Penguin Book Of Italian Short Stories (2019), she divides her time between Rome and Princeton. Il Quaderno Di Nerina, her first collection of poems in Italian, will be published in 2021, as will Whereabouts, the English version of Dove Mi Trovo, translated by the author.

Also read: How Writers Worldwide Are Making Sense of the Pandemic
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in October 2019. Erin Clark for The Boston Globe via Getty

Chief Justice John Roberts

Chief Justice John Roberts in 2016. Andrew Harnik / AP

"Our nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her  a tireless and resolute champion of justice," Roberts said in a statement, according to CNN's Jake Tapper.

President Donald Trump

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"She led an amazing life, what else can you say? She was an amazing woman  whether you agreed or not," Trump said during a press conference Friday where reporters first informed him of the news.

In a later statement, Trump said:

"Today, our Nation mourns the loss of a titan of the law. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg served more than 27 years as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States  notably just the second woman to be appointed to the Court. She was a loving wife to her late husband, Martin, and a dedicated mother to her two children.

Renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable toward one's colleagues or different points of view. Her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds.

A fighter to the end, Justice Ginsburg battled cancer, and other very long odds, throughout her remarkable life. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Ginsburg family and their loved ones during this difficult time. May her memory be a great and magnificent blessing to the world."

Story continues

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden

Drew Angerer/Getty Images

"Ruth Bader Ginsburg was not only a giant in the legal profession but a beloved figure, and my heart goes out to all those who cared for her and care about her. She practiced the highest American ideals as a Justice: equality and justice under the law, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for all of us," Biden said during a press conference Friday.

"She has been absolutely consistent, reliable and a voice for freedom and opportunity for everyone," he said.

"Tonight and in the coming days, we should focus on the loss of the Justice and her enduring legacy, but there is no doubt, let me be clear  that the voters should pick the president, and the president should pick the Justice for the Senate to consider.

This was the position the Republican Senate took in 2016 when there were almost 10 months to go before the election. That's the position the United States Senate must take today and the election's only 46 days off."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell

US Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell talks to reporters after the Senate voted to acquit U.S. President Trump of both charges in his Senate impeachment trial in Washington, U.S., February 5, 2020. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

"The Senate and the nation mourn the sudden passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the conclusion of her extraordinary American life.

Justice Ginsburg overcame one personal challenge and professional barrier after another. She climbed from a modest Brooklyn upbringing to a seat on our nation's highest court and into the pages of American history. Justice Ginsburg was thoroughly dedicated to the legal profession and to her 27 years of service on the Supreme Court. Her intelligence and determination earned her respect and admiration throughout the legal world, and indeed throughout the entire nation, which now grieves alongside her family, friends, and colleagues.

In the last midterm election before Justice Scalia's death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck president's second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party president's Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year.

By contrast, Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise.

President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate," McConnell said in a press release.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer addresses news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington Reuters

"The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president," Schumer tweeted.

Schumer's tweeted copied word-for-word a statement made by Sen. McConnell in 2016 as he pledged not to confirm President Barack Obama's nominee to fill a vacancy left by Justice Antonin Scalia's death.

Former President Bill Clinton

"[Ginsburg exceeded even my highest expectations when I appointed her. Her landmark opinions advancing gender equality, marriage equality, the rights of people with disabilities, the rights of immigrants, and so many more moved us closer to 'a more perfect union," Clinton said, according to The Atlantic's Edward-Isaac Dovere.

Clinton nominated Ginsburg to the Supreme Court in 1993.

Former President George W. Bush

President George W. Bush speaking during a cancer roundtable at the National Institutes of Health on January 17, 2007. JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

"Laura and I join our fellow Americans in mourning the loss of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She dedicated many of her 87 remarkable years to the pursuit of justice and equality, and she inspired more than one generation of women and girls. Justice Ginsburg loved our country and the law. Laura and I are fortunate to have known this smart and humorous trailblazer, and we send our condolences to the Ginsburg family," Bush said in a statement to ABC News.

Former President Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter joined all of the other living former presidents in speaking out about the death of George Floyd and subsequent protests. AP Photo/John Amis

"She has been a beacon of justice during her long and remarkable career. I was proud to have appointed her to the U.S. Court of Appeals in 1980," Carter told ABC News in a statement.

Hillary Clinton

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"Justice Ginsburg paved the way for so many women, including me. There will never be another like her. Thank you RBG," Clinton tweeted.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer are negotiating the terms of the next coronavirus stimulus with Republicans and the White House. Drew Angerer/Getty Images

"The loss of Ruth Bader Ginsburg is devastating. Justice Ginsburg embodied justice, brilliance and goodness, and her passing is an incalculable loss for our democracy and for all who sacrifice and strive to build a better future for our children.

Every family in America benefited from her brilliant legacy and courage. Over the course of her quarter century as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, Ruth Bader Ginsburg became an icon, inspiring people around the world with her tenacity, towering intellect and devotion to the American promise of equality and opportunity for all. Her tireless advocacy in the fight for gender equality, whether working at the ACLU, arguing cases before the Supreme Court or authoring thoughtful and historic opinions and dissents as an Associate Justice, leaves an enduring legacy of progress for all women. Her opinions have unequivocally cemented the precedent that all men and women are created equal.

We must honor Justice Ginsburg's trailblazing career and safeguard her powerful legacy by ensuring that the next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court upholds her commitment to equality, opportunity and justice for all. May it be a source of comfort to her children, Jane and James, her grandchildren Paul, Clara, Miranda and Abigail, and loved ones that so many people around the world mourn their loss and are praying for them at this sad time," Pelosi said in press release.

Sen. Bernie Sanders

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

"The passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a tremendous loss to our country. She was an extraordinary champion of justice and equal rights, and will be remembered as one of the great justices in modern American history," Sanders tweeted.

Sen. Ted Cruz

Tom Williams-Pool/Getty Images

"I believe that the president should next week nominee a successor to the court, and I think it is critical that the Senate takes up and confirms that successor before Election Day ... this nomination is why Donald Trump was elected, this confirmation is why the voters voted for a Republican majority in the Senate," Cruz said in an interview with Fox News.

Sen. Cory Booker

FILE PHOTO: Democratic presidential candidate Senator Cory Booker speaks during the Teamsters Vote 2020 Presidential Forum in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Reuters

"Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a true giant, an American hero and a warrior for justice. Our country mourns her loss deeplywe must honor her by carrying on her legacy of fairness and equality," Booker tweeted.

Sen. Patrick Leahy

Alex Wong/Getty Images)

"Marcelle and I are overcome with sadness. Almost exactly a year ago Marcelle introduced Justice Ginsburg during an Action For Cancer Awareness event, a memory that Marcelle will always treasure. Justice Ginsburg was brilliant and was a legend of the law. She has become a heroine and even an icon to millions of Americans. She was also unmistakably kind and funny, and a fundamentally decent human being.

Difficult days are ahead. And Senators McConnell and Graham must not treat this President's Supreme Court nominees differently than President Obama's Supreme Court nominees. They must exhibit a shred of integrity and recognize that abandoning their word now, and breaking all precedents by ramming a nominee through  most likely after the election  would cause the nation tremendous pain.

But tonight I will simply reflect on Justice Ginsburg's life and legacy. I am so thankful for every day she spent here with us, serving the American people with unparalleled grace, integrity, and an unyielding sense of equality and justice.

May she rest in peace and power," Leahy said in a statement to Business Insider.

Sen. Dick Durbin

Carolyn Kaster-Pool/Getty Images

"The Supreme Court's most valiant lady is gone. Rest in peace, Ruth," Durbin tweeted.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal

Sen. Richard Blumenthal speaks before a Senate Transportation subcommittee hearing on commercial airline safety on March 27, 2019. AP Photo/Andrew Harnik

"Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a giant. The world is a different place because of her. More than the laws she forged are the lives she touched. She was soft-spoken and slight in stature, but packed a mighty punch. She will always be a uniquely American icon  breaking barriers with courage and conviction, and letting nothing stop her from the classroom to the courtroom.

As to the appointment of Justice Ginsberg's successor, I couldn't improve on what Mitch McConnell said after Justice Scalia's death: The American people must have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

This close to the election, there is no way that the United States Senate can or should act before the voters decide," Blumenthal said in a statement to Business Insider.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand

Paul Morigi/Getty Images

"Ruth Bader Ginsburg lived an extraordinary life. She fought to ensure equal protection in our laws, fearlessly dissented and defended, and was a powerful role model for us all. I'm devastated to hear of her passing. Thank you, Justice Ginsburg. Rest in power," Gillibrand tweeted.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse

FILE PHOTO: Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) questions judicial nominees during a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington Reuters

"For one night, let us just focus on the career of this remarkable woman; her courage, her grace, her tenacity, her dignity, and her contribution to the law. Ruth Bader Ginsburg represented the best in our country," Whitehouse said in a statement to Business Insider.

Sen. Mike Lee

Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

"Justice Ginsburg devoted her entire life to reading, interpreting, and understanding the law. To describe her as a gifted lawyer and jurist who had a profound influence on our country is an understatement. My thoughts and prayers are with her and her family," Lee tweeted.

Sen. Patty Murray

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

"Ruth Bader Ginsburg was the first Justice I voted for. Tonight, my heart is breaking for a million reasonsfor her family, for our country, for my North Star.

"I'll remember her as a friend, a role model, and a woman who opened doors for all the rest of us with her genius and her relentless pursuit of justice, freedom, and equality for each and every one of us, no matter who we are.

"That fight for justice, which she led so passionately for so long, is now ours to take up in her memory. Ruth Bader Ginsburg gave her all to us, and I will give mine to making sure the American people have their next President before her seat is filled."

Senator Patty Murray (@PattyMurray) September 19, 2020

Rep. Jerrold Nadler

Aurora Samperio/NurPhoto via Getty Images

"Justice Ginsburg has left an indelible mark on this country, and her loss will be deeply felt. In a year of incalculable loss, may we pause for a moment to honor this remarkable woman who was never afraid to stand up and fight for what she believed. May her memory be a blessing," Nalder, a Democrat from New York and the House Judiciary Committee, tweeted Friday.

Graeme Jennings-Pool/Getty Images

"God Bless Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her family," Jordan, a Republican from Ohio and ranking member of the House Judiciary Commitee, tweeted.

White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows

Doug Mills/Getty Images

"Joining the whole nation tonight in mourning the loss of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburga trailblazer, a dedicated public servant, and an inspiration to so many. My prayers are with her family and friends," Meadows tweeted.

Sen. Cory Gardner

Alex Wong/Getty Images

"It is with a solemn heart that I pray for the family of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Thank you for your service to our country and our nation's highest court. Our nation mourns the loss of a trailblazing leader," Garner tweeted.

Sen. Tom Cotton

Sen. Tom Cotton speaks during a Senate Intelligence Committee nomination hearing for Rep. John Ratcliffe on Capitol Hill in Washington,DC on May 5, 2020. ANDREW HARNIK/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

"I extend my condolences to the family of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg for their loss. She dedicated her life to public service, and now she is at peace," Cotton tweeted.

Sen. Bill Cassidy

Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post/AFP via Getty Images

"Justice Ginsburg's death adds to the tragedies of 2020. While Americans mourn, we can also celebrate her pursuit of justice, her service to country and the gracious resilience with which she lived," Cassidy tweeted.

Read the original article on Business Insider
WASHINGTON  Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is expected to lie in repose at the Supreme Court for two days, according to two people familiar with the preliminary plans, a public ceremony that is expected to draw large crowds of admirers who have come to view her as a feminist icon and liberal hero.

A ceremony inside the court is expected as early as Tuesday, according to someone familiar with the plan, followed by an outdoor viewing that would adhere to social distancing guidelines.

A small funeral service is also expected to be held for Justice Ginsburg, who died on Friday at 87, as well as a burial at Arlington National Cemetery later in the week. Her husband, Martin D. Ginsburg, was buried at Arlington in 2010.

On Saturday, however, those plans were still not made final and were subject to change. A spokeswoman for the Supreme Court did not respond to emails about the arrangements.
In only a few years, China has been able to research, produce and refine its armed unmanned aerial vehicles.

The White Houses recent decision to allow the sale of advanced weapons systems to the United Arab Emirates highlights the deliberate shift in US policy towards the UAE after it signed normalisation accords with Israel.

Why would the UAE want American drones as it already has dozens of Chinese armed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in its inventory? And why has the United States now agreed to these sales, overcoming its traditional reticence to sell sophisticated weapons to other countries?

Chinese armed drones have made a significant effect on the battlefields across the Middle East and North Africa. They have been used to assassinate Houthi rebel leaders in Yemen, kill ISIL-affiliated fighters in the Sinai, and for a time help Khalifa Haftar dominate the battlespace in Libya. While the US has traditionally refused to sell its latest advanced weapons systems, China is not bound by such constraints and has had no problem exporting its drones right across the Middle East and Africa.

Factories under licence to build Chinese armed drones have been set up in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Myanmar. Exports of Chinese drones are so extensive the sales have made China the second-largest arms exporter in the world.

Why are Chinese drones so popular and why has the US held back till now from selling its own combat UAVs?





China steps up

In only a few years, China has been able to research, produce and refine its armed drones, complicated pieces of military hardware, enough to help tip the balance of military power in a conflict.

Two main types of combat drone have been put up for export, both having achieved significant operational success. The first is the Cai Hong Rainbow series, made by the Chinese Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), the most popular version being the CH-4 which has been sold to Egypt, Iraq and Jordan. Earlier versions have seen action in Nigeria as the government battles Boko Haram in the north of the country.

The other main contender is the Wing Loong series of combat drones. Made by the Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (CAIG), they for a time dominated the battlefields of Libya as they have successfully operated out of airbases in the east of the country, giving Haftars self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA) a significant advantage over the embattled Government of National Accord (GNA).

Both types of drones have several desirable features in common. They have significant range, far greater than other combat drones such as Turkeys Bayraktar TB2, giving them an enhanced strike capability. They can operate from high up making them more survivable than their competitors and they can carry more bombs and missiles meaning they can pack a heavy punch should they need to. Last but not least they are significantly cheaper. A CH-4 Chinese combat drone at $4m is a quarter of the price of a US-made Reaper MQ-9, which goes for $16m.

So why do countries still seek American weapons systems and why is the US reversing its traditional stance of not selling advanced weapons systems to anyone other than close allies?

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US reticence

While Chinese drones have been successful, they have a far from the perfect operational record. There have been significant issues with their satellite command and control. While they fly fairly high, it is still not high enough that they are invulnerable from ground fire, resulting in several combat drones being shot down. Despite being relatively cheap, they still cost several million dollars and procurement of replacements takes time. This can result in reverses on the battlefield for the forces they are backing.

The MQ-9 Reaper is combat-proven with an excellent operational record, albeit over non-contested skies. The drones can literally be flown from halfway round the world and the Reaper is the worlds first dedicated Hunter-killer drone, able to carry larger, heavier precision-guided bombs as well as missiles.

The US has been reticent to sell these premier combat drone systems fearing they will either be misused or the technology would fall into the hands of its rivals, such as China, which has been accused of industrial espionage in helping it advance its high-tech military programmes.

To the USs regional allies, this hesitance to share weapons and technology has seemed hypocritical as it was the US that conducted an extensive assassination programme over Pakistan, with few ethical qualms hindering the campaign.

China has no such problems in selling its technology and has seen its influence grow across the Middle East as a result. Chinese armed drones need Chinese advisers to train foreign personnel and orders for Chinese bombs and missiles are needed as they get used in conflicts and need replacing. It is far easier for new Chinese systems to be integrated into armed forces that already use them. It is this kind of influence that has the US worried.

An unmanned US Predator drone flies over Kandahar airfield in southern Afghanistan [File: Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP]

China has been astute in tying exports of military technology to countries that are an integral part of its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the sprawling network of ports, highways and rail lines that serve as arteries for the vast amount of vital resources China needs to maintain and guarantee its industrial output in the near future.

Under President Xi Jinping, China has been more than willing to nurture long-term defence cooperation with its partners along the BRI. A recent report (PDF) published by the London School of Economics foreign policy think-tank directly links sales of Chinese armed drones to countries who are part of the initiative such as the UAE.





The US did allow the export version of its Predator UAV, which is unarmed, to be exported to the UAE. This did not satisfy Abu Dhabi which long wanted the Reaper as part of its arsenal. The UAE felt they have been fighting the enemies of the US and should therefore have access to those advanced systems. It turned instead to China, which was more than happy to help.

The recent American turnaround, facilitated by the signing of the normalisation accords with Israel earlier this month, has seen significant arms deals being pushed through Congress to the UAE. Sales of F-35 stealth fighters and of the much sought-after Reapers have been allowed to go through, despite initial Israeli protests that they would lose their qualitative military edge in the region.

While the F-35 sales would give the UAE a significant boost to its capabilities, the Reaper less so. The US is already looking for a replacement for the system that has been operational since 2007. Useful for counterinsurgent warfare in uncontested skies, the US is moving away from the counterinsurgency operations that largely defined its military posture for more than 10 years, the focus now being on industrial warfare with a near-peer rival like China.

Combat drones will now need to be more survivable, better armed, fly faster and higher, with a much more enhanced layer of autonomy. They will need to start thinking for themselves. This is already possible in high-end reconnaissance UAVs such as Global Hawk which, once given orders, can fly its mission without human guidance, should it be needed.

Drones will also need to be cheap, networked and able to fly in swarms, overwhelming their enemies despite several being shot down. It is this kind of technology that the US and China are working on. If China develops these models, given its current way of doing business, it will not be long before they are being sold to Chinas emerging network of allies.

Now the UAE is being sold Reaper UAVs, it is only a matter of time before they are flying combat missions over the skies of Libya and Yemen, in the latest battle for influence between the US and China over the Middle East and Africa.
Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny was seen walking down the stairs in a photo posted on his Instagram feed on Saturday (September 19).

It comes five days after a Berlin hospital said he had been taken off a ventilator and could breathe independently.

Navalny is the leading opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

He fell ill in Siberia last month and was airlifted to Berlin.

Germany says laboratory tests in three countries determined he was poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent.

Western governments have demanded an explanation from Russia.

In the post Navalny said he still could not use his phone and had difficulties trying to pour water into a glass.

But he praised his doctors, writing:

"They have turned me from a 'technically alive human being' into someone who has high chances to become... a man who can quickly scroll Instagram and understands without thinking where to put his likes."
A four-alarm blaze tore through a Passaic County duplex Saturday morning and displaced 29 people, authorities said.

At 3:47 a.m. Saturday, Paterson police and firefighters responded to the four-alarm fire at a Redwood Avenue duplex in Paterson, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia Valdes said in a statement. Two neighboring homes on Redwood Avenue suffered water and smoke damage from the fire and the attempts to douse the flames, the statement said.

No injuries were reported, but the fire displaced 29 people from their homes.

The fire is still under investigation and a cause is yet unknown.

Anyone with information is asked to call the prosecutors office tips line at 1-877-370-PCPO or email tips@passaiccountynj.org. People can also call the Paterson Police Department at (973) 321-1111.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.

Rodrigo Torrejon may be reached at rtorrejon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rodrigotorrejon.
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President Donald Trump is expected to ignore the dying wish of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and nominate her replacement in the coming days in a rush to hurry through a conservative judge before the election.

Ginsburg had hoped that the selection of the next Justice was held after November's election, stating her 'most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed'

But Republican Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell has already pledged a vote on a Trump nominee.

Trump's attempts to hurry through his own pick, the third Supreme Court Justice he would have nominated, has already been met with backlash from his rival, Democratic nominee Joe Biden.

Biden demanded that Trump waits until after the election so the winner can put forward the nomination.

It comes as insiders suggest that some Republican Senators led by Utah's Mitt Romney will lead a rebellion to scupper Trump's chances of a rushed process.

It was the the dying wish of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg that Trump not nominate her replacement but he is set to it and nominate in the coming days. Ginsburg is pictured at one of her last public appearances, in February

President Donald Trump speaks about the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Friday. It is rumored he will nominate her replacement in the coming days

Trump's attempts to hurry through his own pick has already been met with backlash from his rival, Democratic nominee Joe Biden who wishes to wait until after the election

Trump is expected to whittle down his nomination list from the 20 names he announced last week to one nominee that will then go through the Senate vetting process.

Among the current front runners is U.S. Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett, 48, a devout Catholic who holds a strong pro-life stance.

Liberals fear her appointment would result in the removal of the Roe v Wade judgement that legalizes abortion nationwide.

Once a nominee is named and vetted by the Senate, lengthy confirmation hearings in the Senate Judiciary normally follow, culminating with a recommendation on whether the nominee should be confirmed and placed onto the court.

The decision on the nomination lies solely with the Senate although the Vice President breaks a tie in the event of a 50/50 split.

Who will Trump pick to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg? The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg aged 87 on Friday has potentially presented President Donald Trump with the opportunity to appoint a further conservative judge to the court, pushing it further to the right. Earlier in September, after it was revealed that Bader Ginsburg was undergoing treatment for cancer, Trump added 20 names to a shortlist of candidates he pledged to choose from if he had future vacancies to fill. The list includes a variety of conservative judges who have ruled in Trump's favor, as well as three sitting GOP senators who have backed Trump's agenda while defending him during impeachment. According to ABC, the current frontrunner is U.S. Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett, 48, a devout Catholic and pro-lifer. She was already a finalist for the nomination in 2018 which eventually went to Brett Kavanaugh. Among the others on Trump's list are Senator Ted Cruz, Trump's closest competition for the Republican nomination in 2016; Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas, who immediately tweeted he would get rid of Roe v Wade if confirmed; and Department of Justice official Stephen Engel, who drafted memo justifying denying cooperation with House investigations. And also in the running are Christopher Landau, the current ambassador to Mexico; Republican Senator and Trump loyalist Josh Hawley; and Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, among others. Advertisement

Generally the process from nomination to appointment takes about 70 days although some, such as Brett Kavanaugh, take longer and Ginsburg's appointment only took 50 days.

Even this, however, was longer than the 46 days currently remaining before the election meaning the vetting and review for a Trump nominee would have to take place at breakneck speed.

The long-term direction of the nation's highest court is at stake as the closely divided court had five justices with conservative bents and four liberals, before Ginsburg's death.

If Trump were to choose a conservative judge to replace the liberal Ginsburg, as expected, the court's conservatives would have more heft with a 6-3 majority.

The president repeatedly touts his success in already nominating two conservative Supreme Court Justices as one of the biggest achievements of his term but wishes to extend his influence further.

If he loses in November without having secured a third Justice, Trump could still attempt to push a nomination through the Republican-controlled Senate before Biden's inauguration in January, although this would likely be met with fury by Democrats.

If there was still a vacancy by January, a victorious Biden could appoint a liberal nominee, leaving the conservative-liberal balance at 5-4.

With other current Justices on the court in their 70s and 80s, without the Trump nominee, a Biden presidency could have further vacancies that could swing the balance of the court completely.

The Senate is currently controlled by 53 Republicans, while Democrats hold 45 seats. Two independents align with Democrats on most votes.

Among the 53 Republicans are some moderates, including Senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, who may side with Democrats or oppose a vote before the election.

Earlier on Friday shortly before Ginsburg's death was announced, Senator Murkowski said that if she was presented with a vacancy on the court, she would not vote to confirm a nominee before the election.

'I would not vote to confirm a Supreme Court nominee. We are 50 some days away from an election,' she said, according to Alaska Public.

She said she made the decision based on the same reasoning given by Republican senators to halt the confirmation of former President Barack Obama's final nominee to the Supreme Court ahead of the 2016 election.

This comment could place Murkowski among a group of rebel GOP senators, potentially led by Mitt Romney, that will abstain from voting or vote with Democrats if a nominee is presented.

Romney has previously shown his ability to resist Trump and will likely be targeted by Democrats who will remind him of the 18-month delay caused by Republicans in 2016 when they refused to appoint Obama's nomination ahead of that election.

Another Utah senator could also play a prominent role over the next few days although for a different reason.

Sen. Mike Lee is among Trump's shortlist for the Supreme Court role, as is his brother, Thomas Lee, who is on the Utah Supreme Court.

Maine's Collins is another GOP senator who may oppose a Trump nominee due to pressure from voters in her own state.

She is in a tough race for re-election this year in her home state, which has been trending Democratic.

Ginsburg's death could have an impact on Collins' re-election effort and her posture on whether filling the high-court seat should await the outcome of the 2020 presidential race.

Senator Mitt Romney will allegedly lead a pack of GOP rebels

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) has said she will not vote on a nominee before the election

What happens with the Supreme Court vacancy? CAN THE SENATE FILL THE SEAT BEFORE THE ELECTION? Yes, but it would require a breakneck pace. Supreme Court nominations have taken around 70 days to move through the Senate, and the last, for Brett Kavanaugh, took longer. The election is 46 days away. Yet there are no set rules for how long the process should take once President Donald Trump announces his pick, and some nominations have moved more quickly. It will come down to politics and votes. WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO CONFIRM A NOMINEE? Only a majority. Republicans control the Senate by a 53-47 margin, meaning they could lose up to three votes and still confirm a justice, if Vice President Mike Pence were to break a 50-50 tie. Supreme Court nominations used to need 60 votes for confirmation if any senator objected, but McConnell changed Senate rules in 2017 to allow the confirmation of justices with 51 votes. He did so as Democrats threatened to filibuster Trumps first nominee, Justice Neil Gorsuch. WHO ARE THE SENATORS TO WATCH? With the slim 53-seat majority in the Senate, the Republicans have few votes to spare. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah and others will be among those senators to watch. Advertisement

Late on Friday, Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell issued a letter to GOP senators asking them not to reveal whether they will choose to vote before the election.

'For those inclined to oppose giving a nominee a vote, I urge you all to keep your powder dry. This is not the time to prematurely lock yourselves into a position you may regret later,' he wrote in a letter, seen by the Washington Post.

McConnell has said that he still hopes to complete the nomination process before November.

It can take several weeks to months between the president's nomination of a Supreme Court justice and a Senate confirmation vote as the nominee must go through a thorough vetting by the Senate and often make visits with individual senators to build support for the nomination.

Yet there are no set rules for how long the process should take once President Donald Trump announces his pick, and some nominations have moved more quickly. It will come down to politics and votes.

The last Supreme Court opening was filled in October 2018 by Justice Kavanaugh.

His confirmation faced strong opposition from Senate Democrats and included bitter hearings amid allegations, which he denied, of sexual misconduct decades earlier.

Having being nominated by Trump on July 6, the Senate voted in favor of Kavanaugh joining the court on October 6.

Trump has already remade the federal bench for a generation and the new vacancy in the highest court gives the president the ability to shape its future for decades to come if he is re-elected in November.

The likely bitter fight ahead was reflected in early statements by Republican and Democratic senators taking partisan sides on whether a Ginsburg replacement should await the election results.

Even though Republicans caused a 14-month Supreme Court vacancy by their refusal to consider an Obama replacement for Scalia in 2016, Republican Senator Rick Scott said on Friday: 'It would be irresponsible to allow an extended vacancy on the Supreme Court' this time, as he voiced support of Trump filling Ginsburg's seat.

Democrats reminded Republicans of that 2016 delay. And Democratic Senator Chris Coons said, 'Given all the challenges facing our country, this is a moment when we should come together rather than having a rushed confirmation process further divide us.

Since becoming Senate majority leader in 2015, McConnell has focused much of his attention and wielded his power to fill the federal courts with conservative judges nominated by Trump. More than 200 have been installed.

One senior Senate Republican aide said of McConnell, 'No way he lets a (Supreme Court) seat slip away.' The aide added that a major question will be whether McConnell, in tandem with Trump, attempts to fill the vacancy before the Nov. 3 election or sometime before Jan. 20, when the next president will be sworn-in.

Trump's two nominees to the court, Justice Neil Gorsuch, 53, and Justice Brett Kavanaugh, 55, are young appointments meaning that their potential tenure could last for decades.

If possible, the president is expected to pick a third young nominee, increasing the length of his influence on the court.

Mitch McConnell has said he wants the nomination process to happen before the election

The current front runner is U.S. Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett, 48, a devout Catholic and pro-lifer, who will cause major concerns for liberals that her anti-abortion stance will lead to the removal of the Roe v Wade ruling that legalized abortion across the nation.

Other members of the current court are also in their 70s and 80s, potentially meaning the next president could have the chance to fill yet another vacancy.

Regardless of party, presidents tend to look for the same characteristics in potential Supreme Court picks.

Stellar legal credentials are a must. And they tend to be old enough to have a distinguished legal career but young enough to serve for decades. That generally means nominees are in their late 40s or 50s.

More recently, nominees have also previously clerked for a Supreme Court justice, an early mark of legal smarts. Five of the current justices previously clerked at the Supreme Court.

WHO'S WHO ON TRUMP'S SUPREME COURT SHORTLIST REPUBLICAN SENATORS Ted Cruz, Texas. 49 Josh Hawley, Missouri. 40 Tom Cotton, Arkansas. 43 JUDGES Bridget Bade, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. 54 Stuart Kyle Duncan, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. 48 James Ho, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, 47 Gregory Katsas, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. 56 Barbara Lagoa, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. 52 Carlos Muniz, Supreme Court of Florida. 51 Martha Pacold, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. 41 Peter Phipps, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. 47 Sarah Pitlyk, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. 43 Allison Jones Rushing, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. 38 Lawrence VanDyke, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. 47 CURRENT AND FORMER REPUBLICAN OFFICIALS Daniel Cameron, Kentucky Attorney General. 34 Paul Clement, partner with Kirkland & Ellis, former solicitor general. 54 Steven Engel, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel. 46 Noel Francisco, former U.S. solicitor general. 51 Christopher Landau, U.S. ambassador to Mexico. 56 Kate Todd, deputy White House counsel. 45 Advertisement

Incredible life of the woman who became the Notorious RBG: How Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the Brooklyn-born daughter of Russian Jewish migrants became a trailblazer, the second woman to serve as Supreme Court Justice and a feminist pop culture icon

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice, a legal pioneer who broke barriers for women in law, a feminist icon to many, and the recent pop culture phenomenon known as the 'Notorious RBG' has died.

She passed away from complications of pancreatic cancer at the age of 87.

She served for 27 years on the highest court of the land and was the second woman to be appointed to the Supreme Court.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, pictured above in 2009, served for 27 years on the highest court of the land and was the second woman to be appointed to the Supreme Court

The collar-wearing octogenarian captured the public's imagination  especially for those on the left who offered everything from kale to protective bubbles to later on wearing masks on social media to safeguard her continued tenure on the highest court in the land. The list of things that Ginsburg inspired is long: two films, memes that range from the ribald to inspirational, mountains of memorabilia from t-shirts to totes, cocktails, a book on her workout, and even tattoos.

But beyond the persona of the 'Notorious RBG' and her groundbreaking law career, Ginsburg was a mother of two, had two grandchildren, and was married to her husband Martin D. Ginsburg for 56 years until his death in 2010. She blazed a path for women in the legal profession, and at five-foot-one had become a towering figure in Washington, D.C.

Ginsburg battled several bouts of cancer after being first diagnosed in 2009.

Born on March 15, 1933 in Brooklyn, Joan Ruth Bader was the second daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants, Celia and Nathan Bader. Her older sister, who would later die at aged six from meningitis, nicknamed her 'Kiki' for apparently being 'a kicky baby.' Her mother, Celia, a garment factory worker, would encourage Ruth  she went by her middle name to distinguish herself from the other Joans in her Brooklyn class  to attain a higher level of education than she did.

'My mother told me two things constantly. One was to be a lady, and the other was to be independent. The study of law was unusual for women of my generation. For most girls growing up in the '40s, the most important degree was not your BA, but your MRS,' she recalled to the ACLU, referring to the idea that women went to college to land a man, get married and become a missus - not to get a bachelor's degree.

Her mother died from cancer right before Ginsburg graduated from high school.

Above, Martin D. Ginsburg (left) and Ruth Bader Ginsburg (right) at Fort Sill, Oklahoma in 1954. They were married for 56 years and met while they both attended Cornell University. After graduating, the couple moved to Fort Sill so Martin could do his military service

It was love at first Charles Dickens. Ruth Bader Ginsburg, (left), pictured here with her husband of 56 years, Martin D. Ginsburg (right). They met while college students at Cornell University during the 1950s. Ruth was impressed by Martin's answer to a quiz question during a literature class taught by famous novelist Vladimir Nabokov, according to the biography called 'Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A Life' by Jane Sherron De Hart

The Ginsburg family, above, in a photo taken in 1958. Martin D. Ginsburg (left) and Ruth Bader Ginsburg (right) with their daughter Jane C. Ginsburg (center). Jane C. Ginsburg followed in her mother's steps and became a lawyer after graduating from Harvard Law School, and currently teaches at Columbia Law School

In 1950, Ginsburg started attending Cornell University where she would meet her husband, Martin D. Ginsburg, during a literature class taught by famous novelist Vladimir Nabokov, according to the biography called 'Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A Life' by Jane Sherron De Hart.

Martin was able to answer Nabokov's quiz question about Charles Dickens, and Ginsburg was smitten, later saying that Martin was the 'the only young man I dated who cared that I had a brain.'

'Meeting Marty was by far the most fortunate thing that ever happened to me,' Ginsburg said in one of the films about her, the documentary 'RBG.' 'Marty was a man blessed with a wonderful sense of humor. I tend to be rather sober.'

At aged 21, Ginsburg, who majored in government, graduated at the top of her class in 1954 at Cornell and married Martin soon after. Their first child, Jane C. Ginsburg, was born on July 21, 1955. Due to Martin's military service, they moved to Fort Sill, Oklahoma.

'After dinner, the newlyweds often spent their evenings reading aloud to each other from Pepys, Tolstoy, Dickens and even Spinoza, although the philosopher was tougher fare,' De Hart wrote, according to a Washington Post article about the biography.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg (center) and Martin D. Ginsburg (standing behind her) married in 1954 after she graduated at the top of her class at Cornell. Their first child, Jane C. Ginsburg, was born in 1955, and their second child, James S. Ginsburg, in 1965. Shown here on Oct. 21, 1993 at the Supreme Court, are from left, son-in-law George T. Spera Jr and her daughter Jane C. Ginsburg, her husband Martin, and her son James S. Ginsburg. The judge's grandchildren Clara Spera (left) and Paul Spera (right) are in front

A 2018 biography emphasized Marty's 'proto-feminism' in the 1950s during a time where some women went to college to get their 'MRS degree,' meaning that it was a means to an end to find a spouse. Ginsburg said Martin was the 'the only young man I dated who cared that I had a brain,' and they had a long-lasting marriage until Martin died in 2010 from cancer at the age of 78. They are pictured here at a gala opening night dinner after a Washington Opera performance on October 21, 2000

De Hart emphasized Marty's 'proto-feminism' in the 1950s, and the couple decided they both would pursue careers. After two years in Oklahoma, Ginsburg and Martin went to Harvard Law School in 1956. Women had only started being admitted to the law school six years earlier, and Ginsburg was one of nine women in a class of about 500.

Martin graduated from Harvard in 1958 and practiced tax law in New York. Ginsburg switched schools, attending Columbia Law School to be close to her husband. In 1959, she graduated with her law degree, a Juris Doctor, from Columbia, and was tied for first in her class.

Despite the credentials, Ginsburg, now 26, was still a woman and she had a hard time finding a place at a law firm after graduation.

'You think about what would have happened... Suppose I had gotten a job as a permanent associate. Probably I would have climbed up the ladder and today I would be a retired partner. So often in life, things that you regard as an impediment turn out to be great good fortune,' Ginsburg said during the documentary series, 'Makers: Women Who Make America.'

A young Ruth Bader Ginsburg, pictured here in 1977, who broke barriers in the legal profession to become the second woman to serve as a Supreme Court justice

Ginsburg was also rejected for a Supreme Court clerkship due to being a woman. But there were successes as well: she was the first female member of the Harvard Law Review and was elected to the Columbia Law Review as well. Eventually, Ginsburg landed a clerkship for a judge of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York.

After two years with the Southern District, Ginsburg was a research associate and associate director for the Project of International Procedure at Columbia Law School. She also learned Swedish, and conducted research in Sweden for a book that she co-authored on civil procedure in the country.

In 1963, she started teaching at Rutgers University School of Law when there were few female law professors. Also during this time, she and Martin had their second child, James S. Ginsburg, on September 8, 1965. She taught at Rutgers until 1972 and then moved to Columbia Law School, where, at aged 39, she was the first woman put on a tenure track.

She taught at Columbia for eight years, co-authored a law school book, and also worked as general counsel for the ACLU, where she argued several hundred gender discrimination cases, six of which were before the Supreme Court.

By 1980, Ginsburg, then 47, was selected to be a judge of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which is often a springboard to the Supreme Court. After thirteen years as a judge on that court, President Bill Clinton nominated the 60-year-old Ginsburg for the Supreme Court after Justice Byron White said he was retiring.

'The announcement of this vacancy,' Clinton said on June 14, 1993, according to a YouTube video courtesy of the William J. Clinton Presidential Library, 'brought forth a unique outpouring of support for distinguished Americans on Judge Ginsburg's behalf. What caused that outpouring is the essential quality of the judge herself: her deep respect for others and her willingness to subvert self-interest to the interest of our people and their institutions.'

After serving as a judge of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit for 13 years, Ginsburg was nominated by President Bill Clinton to Supreme Court after Justice Byron White announced he was retiring. Clinton (left) is shaking Ginsburg's hand during the announcement in the Rose Garden at the White House on June 14, 1993

On August 10, 1993, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was sworn in as a Supreme Court Justice - the second woman appointed to the court. Pictured above is Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist (right) swearing Ginsburg (with arm raised) in while her husband Martin D. Ginsburg (second from right) and President Bill Clinton (left) look on

Ruth Bader Ginsburg (left) with her husband Martin D. Ginsburg (right). At the announcement for her nomination to the Supreme Court on on June 14, 1993, Ginsburg said: 'Most closely, I have been aided by my life's partner, Martin D. Ginsburg, who has been, since our teenage years, my best friend and biggest booster'

At the announcement, Ginsburg said: 'Most closely, I have been aided by my life's partner, Martin D. Ginsburg, who has been, since our teenage years, my best friend and biggest booster.'

On August 4, 1993, the US Senate confirmed her by a vote of 96 to 3, the New York Times reported. She was sworn in as a justice on August 10, 1993.

Later in October 1993, a photo shows Ginsburg and her family at the court. Her daughter, Jane C. Ginsburg, followed in her footsteps, graduating from Harvard Law School, and currently teaches at Columbia Law School. She married George T. Spera Jr and they have two children together: Paul Spera, who is an actor, and Clara Spera, who is also a lawyer and clerked for the US District of the Southern District of New York

Ginsburg told the New Republic that her grandchildren loved the fact that she had become an Internet sensation.

'At my advanced age - I'm now an octogenarian - I'm constantly amazed by the number of people who want to take my picture,' she said in 2014.

Not only did people want their photo taken, an interest in her workout also took hold. In her eighties, Ginsburg would do exercises such as a wall squat with a yoga ball. So much so that her trainer of many years, Bryant Johnson, wrote the book 'The RBG Workout.'

Ruth Bader Ginsburg in her engagement photo taken in December 1953

When Ginsburg joined the court in 1993, Sandra Day O'Connor had already been on it since 1981. Sandra Day O'Connor became the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court, nominated by President Ronald Reagan. Ginsburg called O'Connor a mentor, and Ginsburg told The Washington Post that they 'thought it would be appropriate if we included as part of our robe something typical of a woman.

'So I have many, many collars.'

Fans of Ginsburg have parsed her collars, which were sometimes lace, gold embellished and beaded. One was dubbed 'the dissenter.'

A feminist icon to many, Ginsburg told 'Makers,' the documentary series, that feminism is 'that notion that we should each be free to develop our own talents, whatever they may be, and not be held back by artificial barriers - manmade barriers, certainly not heaven sent.'

After O'Connor retired in early 2006, Ginsburg was the only woman on the court until Sonia Sotomayor was confirmed on August 8, 2009. Ginsburg was also close to conservative justice Antonin Scalia until his death in February 2016.

'We care about this institution more than our individual egos and we are all devoted to keeping the Supreme Court in the place that it is, as a co-equal third branch of government and I think a model for the world in the collegiality and independence of judges,' Ginsburg said on C-SPAN.

In 2015, Ginsburg told MSNBC how she would liked to be remembered.

'Someone who used whatever talent she had to do her work to the very best of her ability. And to help repair tears in her society, to make things a little better through the use of whatever ability she has. To do something, as my colleague David Souter would say, outside myself. 'Cause I've gotten much more satisfaction for the things that I've done for which I was not paid.'

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dies with her family around her at home after succumbing to pancreatic cancer at 87 after saying: 'My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed'

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died aged 87 after a battle with metastatic pancreas cancer, the Supreme Court has announced.

The Democrat judge, only the second woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice, passed away Friday evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington D.C. following complications with her illness.

Ginsburg, who served for 27 years on the highest court of the land, had battled several bouts of cancer after first being diagnosed back in 2009.

President Donald Trump led the tributes, describing Ginsburg as a 'titan of the law' whose legal expertise and historic decisions inspired generations of Americans.

'Today, our nation mourns the loss of a titan of the law' who was 'renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court,' Trump said in a statement, after a rally in Minnesota.

'Her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds,' he added.

'May her memory be a great and magnificent blessing to the world.'

Chief Justice John Roberts paid tribute to his colleague Friday describing her as a 'champion of justice'.

'Our nation has lost a justice of historic stature,' Roberts said in a statement.

'We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her, a tired and resolute champion of justice.'

The judge, only the second woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice, passed away Friday evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington D.C. following complications with her illness, the court said in a statement

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden called Ginsburg 'not only a giant in the legal profession but a beloved figure' who 'stood for all of us' in an interview on CNN.

He tweeted: 'Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for all of us. She was an American hero, a giant of legal doctrine, and a relentless voice in the pursuit of that highest American ideal: Equal Justice Under Law. May her memory be a blessing to all people who cherish our Constitution and its promise.'

And he insisted a new justice should not be chosen until after the election in November and said this was the process followed in 2016.

'There is no doubt - let me be clear - that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider,' he said to CNN

'This was the position that the Republican Senate took in 2016 when there were almost 10 months to go.'

Tributes poured in from both sides of the political line for Ginsburg, a legal pioneer dubbed the Notorious RBG.

Tributes poured in from Democrats including Hillary Clinton, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and Washington Governor Jay Inslee

Former presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, George Bush and Jimmy Carter, as well as politicians including Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo all paid their respects to the New York great.

The White House lowered its flags to half staff and social media users pointed out that in Jewish tradition, a person who dies on Rosh Hashanah - which started tonight - is regarded as a person of great righteousness.

Hillary Clinton tweeted that Ginsburg, a staunch advocate for women's rights, paved the way for other women to succeed.

'Justice Ginsburg paved the way for so many women, including me. There will never be another like her. Thank you RBG,' Clinton wrote.

Bill Clinton, who appointed Ginsburg to the Supreme Court during his White house tenure, also tweeted calling her 'one of the most extraordinary Justices'.

'We have lost one of the most extraordinary Justices ever to serve on the Supreme Court,' he wrote.

Former presidents George Bush, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter also paid tribute to the legal pioneer Friday

'Ruth Bader Ginsburg's life and landmark opinions moved us closer to a more perfect union. And her powerful dissents reminded us that we walk away from our Constitution's promise at our peril.'

Barack Obama penned a Medium blog commemorating the strides Ginsburg made for gender equality and saying he 'admired her greatly'.

'Sixty years ago, Ruth Bader Ginsburg applied to be a Supreme Court clerk. She'd studied at two of our finest law schools and had ringing recommendations,' he wrote.

'But because she was a woman, she was rejected. Ten years later, she sent her first brief to the Supreme Court  which led it to strike down a state law based on gender discrimination for the first time.

'And then, for nearly three decades, as the second woman ever to sit on the highest court in the land, she was a warrior for gender equality  someone who believed that equal justice under law only had meaning if it applied to every single American.'
TS Tirumurti, the permanent representative of India at UN said that this year, during the high-level segments of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session, Prime Minister Modi would participate in 2 debates.

Indias Permanent Representative to the United Nations TS Tirumurti on Friday (local time) said the highlight of the historic UN General Assembly session this year will be the participation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in two debates in the high-level segments beginning from September 21.

Tirumuti told ANI in an exclusive interview that this time, the UN General Assembly would be historic and in more than one way, as far as India was concerned, the highlight would be the participation of PM Modi in two debates in the high-level segments starting on Monday.

He said the first event is a general debate where the Prime Minister will represent India at the UN and deliver the national statement while the other is the high-level plenary meeting to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the UN. His address will certainly be the highlight of our participation in UNGA, Tirumurti remarked.

Also read: Trump trusted less than Russias Putin, Chinas Xi because of Covid-19, says Joe Biden

Also read: US: Five Chinese nationals charged for global hacking operations

The diplomat informed that a biodiversity summit will be organised virtually on September 30 with the theme  Urgent action on biodiversity for sustainable development. This will be the first summit on biodiversity in the UN. Our Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar will be participating in this summit, he said.

Tirumurti stressed that India is one of 10 mega biodiverse countries in the world and the country has taken a leading role in the field of biodiversity.

He said that India recently held the Conference of Parties of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals in February this year, they had also organised the Conference of Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification in September last year in Delhi, which saw the adoption of the ambitious Delhi Declaration.

He also informed that an important event to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the World Conference on Women will be held on October 1 and the adoption of the Beijing Platform for action, which is widely acknowledged as the most comprehensive plan for advancing rights of women and girls.

The event will be attended by Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani, underlining Indias strong commitment to women empowerment and gender sensitivity. Furthermore, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be participating in some of the ministerial meetings which will be held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, said Tirumurti.

He further informed that on October 2, the UN would be holding International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla would be delivering Indias remarks at this event. Tirumurti said the theme of the current UN General Assembly session is  The Future We Want, The UN We Need, reaffirming our collective commitment to multilateralism, confronting COVID-19 through effective multilateral actions.

He also said the UN General Assembly session will be different this year from all previous seasons as the world is still in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope that member states take COVID-19 as an opportunity to opt for reforms and change in order to have the future we want.

The diplomat stated that in view of the COVID-19 travel restrictions, most leaders will not travel to New York and the high-level debate will be conducted virtually.

Tirumurti said that the world leaders would be delivering their national statements through pre-recorded videos, the hall of the General Assembly would not be empty. He added that one representative per delegation would be allowed in the General Assembly hall, if they wish, they could introduce the video of their respective heads of state or government.

Also read: 173 world leaders to virtually address UN General Assembly next week
Much ink has been spilled about the downfall and dubious recovery of the United States shale oil sector. The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude benchmarks dramatic rock bottom in April, which saw oil prices plunge to nearly $40 dollars below zero in a jaw-dropping first, a flurry of think pieces about the sectors future poured forth and has never fully stopped. While the Brent international crude benchmark never went negative, it also suffered, and there have been no shortage of headlines about OPEC and their ill-planned actions that sent prices tumbling in the first place or their redoubled efforts to recover after the crash. But there are plenty of other oil producing countries in the world who have also seen massive market failures due to COVID-19s destruction of oil demand and which have not received even a fraction of the attention. One such country is Argentina, home to one of the largest oil and gas fields in the world, the Vaca Muerta shale basin, which contains approximately 927 million barrels of proven reserves.

Way back in April, even before the historic WTI crash, Bloomberg (via World Oil) published one of relatively few reports of the shale play. More than a report, it was an obituary. Oil crash kills Vaca Muertas potential as the next shale hotspot, the headline read.

The April 2 article read: Just a bit more than 3 weeks ago, the head of Argentinas state-run driller outlined an aggressive $1.8 billion spending plan for 2020 in the countrys Vaca Muerta shale region, based on $60-a-barrel crude. With global prices starting the year above $68, it wasnt unrealistic. Now, all bets are off.

Now, nearly half a year later, is Vaca Muerta fully dead? The short answer is no. The full answer, of course, is a lot more complicated. According to the Argentinian energy minister of Neuquen province, where the vast Vaca Muerta field is located, resurrecting the shale play will take more than a year. Achieving pre-COVID-19 production levels, he said, will take an estimated 12-18 months due to a lack of market demand, which may not be bouncing back any time soon. We believe it will take a while for fuel demand to fully recover, Monteiro told listeners on Monday in an industry webinar.

Before COCID-19, Vaca Muerta had been in a state of rapid expansion, as Bloomberg's next potential shale hotspot description would indicate. The novel coronavirus, however, stopped this expansion in its tracks, leaving many projects half-completed. Many wells have been drilled but not connected, but even when demand fully recovers it will take even longer for drilling activity to return to pre-pandemic levels because of storage constraints, MercoPress reported this week, summing up the energy ministers announcement. This is exemplified by YPF, Argentinas largest shale producer, which is controlled by the state. YPF has said it has 71 shale oil wells and 10 shale gas wells in Neuquen that have been drilled but not completed.

In recent years investors have poured huge sums of money into developing the next potential shale hotspot in what seemed like a sure bet at the time. But hindsight is always 20-20. In mid-2019, companies had said they would invest a total of more than US$ 6bn in upstream projects in Neuquen in 2020, MercoPress reports. Now the number is closer to US$ 3bn, the lowest since 2016, according to provincial data.

Related: Oil Prices Regain Lost Ground As Stock Markets Recover

The drop in investment was not only fueled by market forces due to the pandemic, but actually started well before the world had heard of the novel coronavirus. Companies put the brakes on investment following a fuel and crude price freeze implemented in August 2019 by the administration of then-president Mauricio Macri shortly before he lost reelection to Alberto Fernandez, MercoPress explains. The price freeze, coupled with policy uncertainty under the new government and weaker market conditions this year, eroded Argentina's climate for upstream investment.

While Neuquen did register an increase in oil production in July, the numbers pale in comparison to what they could have been in a business-as-usual scenario. Vaca Muerta registered just 44 fractures in July, compared with 398 a year earlier, US-based services firm NCS Multistage told MercoPress.

The Argentinian government does have strategies in place to revive the domestic shale industry and get Vaca Muertas development back on track, including a new gas subsidy plan, but Monteiro says that more and stronger policy measures, including tax incentives and lowered crude export taxes, will be necessary to bring the nations shale sector back to pre-COVID levels of activity.

Taking a step back, however, putting more investment dollars and more taxpayer funding into the shale sector may be a shortsighted endeavor. The world, of course, will not wean itself off of oil overnight, but a worldwide energy transition is already underway. Many experts contend that the most potential for economic growth and post-pandemic economic recovery does not lie in trying to reinstitute pre-COVID economic strategies, but instead requires planning for a future in which fossil fuels no longer pay. Already weve seen that, in Europe at least, Big Oils Most Profitable Business Is No Longer Oil, and that oil exploration in general may no longer be profitable. If Argentina is able to get Vaca Muerta back on track in 12-18 months, that will certainly be a boon to the countrys economy, theres no doubt about it--but for how long?

By Haley Zaremba for Oilprice.com

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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 09:33 490 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45dd3cb 4 City death,dead-body,ship,Thousand-Islands-regency,Kepulauan-seribu,Jakarta-Bay,Jakarta-police,Muara-Baru,fishing-boat,fishing-vessel Free

The Thousand Islands Police have discovered five bodies inside a cold storage chamber aboard KM Starindo Jaya Maju VI, a fishing vessel.

The dead crew members were between the ages of 19 and 27. Their bodies have been taken to the Kramat Jati Police Hospital for autopsies.

Thousand Islands Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Morry Edmond said the police found the bodies at about 2:15 p.m. on Thursday. They had stopped the fishing vessel for carrying an excess of crew members.

The police warned the ships captain to refrain from carrying too many crew members because of COVID-19 concerns.

Read also: Body of man found mutilated in South Jakarta apartment

The police then noted a mismatch between the number of crew members present and the number listed in the ships manifest.

The manifest stated that there were 43 crew members on board. However, the number of crew members present was less than what the manifest stated. Then the captain confessed that some of the crew members had died, Morry said as quoted by kompas.com.

The captain had kept their bodies inside a cold storage chamber, he said, adding that according to the captain, the bodies had been there for about a week.

The police did not disclose the causes of death.

Morry said the captain had planned to take the bodies to land. The vessel had been sailing for two months and was heading to port in Muara Baru. (dpk)
Dragon Amateur Radio Club activate GB2VK

On Saturday 19th September, Dragon Amateur Radio Club will once again be activating the callsign GB2VK from the old Marconi transmitter site at Waunfawr, North Wales to commemorate the first wireless contact between the UK and Australia on the 22nd September 1918.

On 22nd September 1918 direct wireless messages from Wales were received in Australia, creating considerable public interest and causing a political controversy. The messages were transmitted from the big Marconi station at Caernarfon in Wales and were received at the home of Ernest Fisk, the Managing Director of Amalgamated Wireless (Australasia) Limited (A.W.A.).

Two communications were sent, one from the Prime Minister of Australia, Mr. W.M. "Billy" Hughes, who was in England trying to raise enthusiasm for the Australian war effort in Europe because public support was waning and the disastrous English military leadership of the Australian forces was under serious question. The second message was from the Minister for the Navy, Mr. Joseph Cook, who accompanied Hughes. Australia's efforts to sell its farm produce to England were being frustrated by the English farmers and unions, which explains the jingoistic tone of Hughes and Cook's wireless messages. As it happened, Germany capitulated soon after this event and both men then took part in the Peace Conference and negotiations in November 1918.

The two messages were as follows:

1 1.15pm Sydney time.

"I have just returned from a visit to the battlefields where the glorious valour and dash of the Australian troops saved Amiens and forced back the legions of the enemy, filled with greater admiration than ever for these glorious men and more convinced than ever that it is the duty of their fellow-citizens to keep these magnificent battalions up to their full strength. W.M. Hughes, Prime Minister."

2 1.25pm Sydney time.

"Royal Australian Navy is magnificently bearing its part in the great struggle. Spirit of sailors and soldiers alike is beyond praise. Recent hard fighting brilliantly successful but makes reinforcements imperative. Australia hardly realises the wonderful reputation which our men have won. Every effort being constantly made here to dispose of Australia's surplus products. Joseph Cook, Minister for Navy."

We shall be operating HF and VHF ssb and fm. We usually operate for the whole weekend, but due to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions we shall be operating for daytime hours only on the 19/09.

We hope to work a few of you around the UK, Europe and perhaps further afield!

All details on qrz.com

Vy 73

Simon Taylor MW0NWM

Secretary, Dragon Amateur Radio Club
We all know that its whats on the inside that counts, right? But what about whats on the outside? Well, that matters too  especially when it comes to wine. The average Briton consumes roughly 108 bottles of a wine a year, according to a 2019 report.

Were a nation that bloody loves the stuff. But how many times have you found yourself overwhelmed in front of a wine shelf only to end up opting for the bottle with the snazziest label? If youre somewhere between the ages of 20 and 40 then the answer is probably: lots.

In fact, research shows that millennial consumers rely on a bottle of wines front package label as their primary purchase factor when determining its worth. Forget about the grape varietal, the producer, or even the country that the wine comes from  more people are buying with their eyes than ever before.

Nic Rizzi is the owner of Modal Wines, an importer of distinctive, often small-batch wines supplying restaurants and customers all across the UK. As a former music marketing mogul, Rizzi knows a thing or two about the power of branding and is all too aware of the importance of a wines aesthetic.

Customers buy with their eyes first and foremost, and a wine buyer or sommelier will always have an initial perception of a wine based on its aesthetic prior to tasting, he says. It's sad to say but an incredible wine with a terrible label will typically be a slower mover.

A lot of really cheap, crappy, industrially made wine is bottled, its made to look like bordeaux or burgundy because people associate those labels with quality

Hell, Im living proof of that aesthetics-driven mindset having recently bought two bottles of an Asterix-themed natural wine shipped all the way from France to my flat in London just because I really, really liked the label designed by Anatole Zangs.

One of the things with wine labels is that people will associate certain styles of wine label with quality, agrees Warwick Smith, founder of Renegade  a London-based urban winery thats working to change the face of English wine. If you look at how a lot of really cheap, crappy, industrially made wine is bottled, it's made to look like bordeaux or burgundy because people associate those labels with quality. The thing that Ive realised since I started making wine is that  whether I like it or not  the label is so important.

Every bottle comes wrapped in a label showing the eyes and face of a customer (Renegade)

Every bottle that the winery produces comes wrapped in a photographic label that shows the eyes and face of a different Renegade customer. The sauvignon blanc, Kyra, lives in Hackney and works for a record label; the pet-nat, Jamie, is a moustachioed barber. Renegades bottles are pretty hard to miss  theyre striking, modern and totally individual. However, possessing more than just a captivating bit of design, its the tangible personality of these labels that separates them from the crowd of cabernet-soaked castles.

Forget wine critics, forget sommeliers, forget big buyers, says Smith. The most important people to us are those who actually spend their hard-earned money on the bottles, so thats why we started putting customers on there. A neat feature of Renegades labels is that new photographs are taken every year so that the faces on the bottles can age along with each subsequent vintage of the wine, an idea inspired by Chateau Mouton Rothschild, which has its label designed each year by a different famous artist.

Whether its a bottle of Gut Oggau  featuring a minimalist label designed by advertising agency Jung von Matt  or a special edition bottle of Bordeaux Grand Cru Classe, created in collaboration with Karl Lagerfeld, the visual aesthetics of wine and wine labels have always been an integral part of the winemaking (and wine-selling) process. In France, the first country many think of when it comes to wine, there are strict laws regarding the labelling of wine, which are under the control of the Institut National des Appellations dOrigine. That being said, even traditional bordeaux wines have been experimenting with atypical designs in recent years.

But what is it that makes a certain wine label more appealing than another? If youre me, its a flashy illustration or something I think will look good on my Instagram feed. And Im not alone in that preference for colourful labels. One study conducted at the California Polytechnic State University in 2012 suggests millennials (like myself) are more attracted to brightly coloured wine logos and sans serif fonts than traditionally made wine labels.

Other studies have shown that millennial wine consumers rate the importance of wine-label appearance for home or party consumption higher than both baby boomers and generation X. The type of wine you drink says a lot about who you are as a person. And with the proliferation of social media in the wine world, its impossible to ignore the impact that a specific cuvees label can have in marketing it to consumers.

Simply put: slap a cute graphic label on a bottle and youve (likely) got a viral sensation on your hands. Scroll through the Instagram feed of any food-obsessive today and youre likely to stumble on a bottle of Chin Chin Vinho Verde  a wine from Quinta do Ermizio, Portugal, made in collaboration with wine bar and restaurant Noble Rot in London. Chin Chins splashy cartoon label was designed in about five days by Jose Mendez, a Spanish illustrator and artist based in London.

A splashy cartoon label designed to get attention (Chin Chin Vinho Verde)

The collaboration for this wine came through a long-time working relationship with Dan and Mark [the owners of Noble Rot], explains Mendez. I feel that they really trust my work and, because of this, they always give me quite a bit of freedom of creation. For the briefing of the Chin Chin label, they just shared a couple of references of some of my work that I did before and they let me come up with my own vision. I just wanted to make something interesting, a bit different, and with character.Judging by the positive response Chin Chin has received on social media, its safe to say that Mendez succeeded in doing just that.

Have a glance around London Fields on a sunny day and its plain to see just how easily our drinking choices are influenced by what we see on the gram. Theres so much choice now that I think easily more than 50 per cent of the decision comes from the label when buying a wine, says Jan Matthias Klein, who is a seventh generation winemaker at Staffelter Hof winery. The German vineyard has been operating in the Moselle wine region for nearly 1,200 years and is renowned for its classic rieslings, yet its the estates recent forays into natural wine thats resulted in some of their most exciting creations. Whether its a skin contact Little Bastard, a bone-dry Madcap Magnus, or a bright and bold Orange Utan, all of Kleins wines are exciting on the palate with an eye-catching label to match.

The natural wine scene is pretty wild and experimental and gives you all this freedom. So, I thought, why not just do whatever we wanted?

When I started making natural wines, I wanted them to look very different to what we usually do and to reflect the personality of each product, says Klein. Keeping things local, he enlisted the help of his friend and illustrator, Aaron Scheuer, to come up with the designs for each of the labels. Its a real collaborative process: Klein visits Scheuers home, the two split a bottle of wine and, by the end of the night, Scheuer will have come up with a sketch thats pretty much what youll see on the final product.

As Klein is quick to confirm: Theres always a story behind the label. The Orang Utan (of which one euro of every bottle sold goes to an orangutan conservation) stemmed from an inside joke about the monkey business involved in making orange wine. The Little Bastard got its name thanks to it being a mongrel blend of riesling, sauvignon blanc, muller-thurgau and skin-fermented muscat. While natural wine has been made for thousands of years, this playful preference for graphic labels has become a visual hallmark of the scene perpetuated by listicles.

Natural wine is a completely different target group and you can pretty much do what you want, says Klein. I worked for more than 15 years with all the classic wines and you could never go all out with your ideas or do what you really want to do. The natural wine scene is pretty wild and experimental and gives you all this freedom. So, I thought, why not just do whatever we wanted?

That freewheeling sense of fun and inventiveness is infectious, and its played a huge part in the growth of Staffelter Hofs online presence. Social media, especially Instagram, is a huge part of our success, says Klein. Everybody knows about these wines through the platform, and I've even got importers contacting me because of the labels. As Modal Wines will attest, Kleins wines sell well.

Yet as well as a shift towards displaying more personality in their labelling, the natural wine movement has also brought about a demand for wine labels to be more transparent about the various chemicals and sweeteners involved in the wine-making process. A range of publications, including The Washington Post, has called for there to be greater transparency on wine labels in relation to what ingredients and additives the bottles contain. According to a study from 2019 year by Wine Vine Analytics, 36 per cent of drinkers say they are confused by wine labels and 81 per cent want labels to be clearer and easier to understand.

The issue lies in that wine doesnt have anywhere near the same level of regulatory detail required as other food and drink products. If you look at a bottle, all it has to tell you  legally speaking  is its alcohol level, the presence of any allergens and thats pretty much it.

It's predominantly left to us, to the producers, to say what we want to say on the bottle, admits Warwick Smith, and this smoke and mirrors tends to benefit larger producers who can get away with adding a range of additives and sugars to mask the quality of their product. Now there is an effort currently being made by European lawmakers to make nutrition and ingredient information on alcohol products in the EU mandatory by 2022, with studies suggesting that more detailed ingredient lists like this can enlighten consumers and prevent them from mistaking commercial wines for a natural product.

What a producer chooses to say on a bottle, as well as how they say it, can have a huge influence on how their wine is perceived

Nic Rizzi is one of many in the natural scene who believes that an increased transparency from producers would be a massive step forward and help consumers to make a proper distinction between low-intervention wines and those that are the product of more heavy-handed processes and additions. Because while its easy to poke fun at glouglou-loving Instagram naturalistas, its important to remember that the natural wine movement is about more than kitsch labels.

The larger majority [of producers] still do what they do for their strong belief in respectful farming, care for our planet, care for the purity and integrity of the product itself, and for its ability to raise awareness of issues that extend far beyond the world of wine, says Rizzi. Wine is a luxury product, sure, but one with a strong platform of influence. Beyond the image-conscious aspect, the natural wine world is a far more significant movement with a powerful drive.

What a producer chooses to say on a bottle, as well as how they say it, can have a huge influence on how their wine is perceived. A 2017 study by the University of Adelaide found that the descriptions of wine on labels influence consumers far more than originally thought. More emotive descriptions were capable of not only convincing consumers to pay more for a bottle of wine, but also capable of increasing their subsequent appreciation of it. The story behind a wine is vitally important and, sommeliers and wine merchants aside, its often up to the label to do that heavy narrative lifting.

Wine labels dont get much more narrative than those that come out of La Villana  an Italian wine producer started by expatriate American, Joy Kull. The La Villana name stems from an Italian slang term that shepherds use for farmers and, taking into account how Kull married an Italian shepherd after moving to Gradoli, it should come as no surprise that that wooly connection can be seen in every one of the sheep-laden labels hand-drawn by childrens book author and illustrator, Jamison Odone.

I thought using the sheep as a sort of mascot for her wines just worked too perfect, so I began to do sketches of them in winemaking situations and it seemed to work out well, Odone tells The Independent. Joy gives me lots of input, though, and we have a very good back and forth. If she doesn't like something, she tells me. If I think her idea is bad, I tell her. It's a very honest working process. La Villanas labels are as bright and playful as the wine it produces, and that synergy between the internal and external characteristics of the bottle is critical when getting a wine to market.

I don't look for cool labels or colourful eye-catching labels, says Rizzi on what he seeks when scouting potential producers to partner with. In fact, some can be so overly cliche. For me, the most important thing is that the label matches the wine inside the bottle, and that it also matches the personality and the ethos of the grower.

Ensuring that a label is doing what its supposed to be doing  whether thats emphasising a bottles biodynamic origins or peacocking about its grand cru classification  is vital. A study published in July 2020 about wine sold online (conducted pre-Covid) found that labels which perceived authenticity had a positive effect on both pleasure and purchase intent of the customers. Basically, any wine labels showing heraldic colours (eg silver and gold) with low visual complexity led to a stronger effect of authenticity on pleasure in comparison to labels with vivid colours and high visual complexity.

While this might seem to go against the vivid trend seen on bottles like Chin Chin and Little Bastard, it still accentuates how a label (be it heraldic or playful) can heavily impact a customers decision. Take a bottle of Australian Spunk Nat from Andrew Hoadleys La Violetta winery, for example. This fizzy riesling-shiraz hybrid has a label that simply reads: spunk. Gimmicky? Sure, but just try and get your hands on a bottle and youll quickly realise the power of a punchy label. Spunk is sold out practically everywhere.

The easier way to get up the rankings is to be controversial or to be showy or Instagrammable, but I do worry that [wines like Spunk] are an example of style over substance, says Smith. Creating a good label is, after all, a hell of a lot easier than creating a good bottle of wine. As labels become cheaper to print, gimmicky labels are becoming increasingly commonplace. And increasingly bizarre. 19 Crimes is an Australian brand thats created a range of bottles with living wine labels that spring to life and tell you a story if you scan them with an app. Why? Your guess is as good as mine. The results are smack bang in the uncanny valley with the latest Snoop Cali Red cuvee being a particularly horrifying collaboration with Snoop Dogg.

So, what can you do to ensure youre not just buying with your eyes? Well, the answer isnt sexy but: do your homework. Apps like Delectable and Vivino, which let you scan a wines label to find out everything from the grapes used to the wines tannin levels, are especially useful in getting some instant background information about an individual bottle or producer. And even if youre standing in the aisle, stumped at which wine will best impress your socially distanced dinner party guests, things like the bottle weight, the cork type and the closure type can all be decent indicators of a wines quality.

I know that the next time I personally find myself being suckered in by a sexy label, Ill try to bear in mind Jan Kleins caution that some wines can still be pretty terrible, even if the label is pretty  right before I end up buying the pinot with the Nickelodeon-inspired label anyway.
The NIA spokesperson said that the anti-terror probe agency carried out the simultaneous raids at several locations in Kerala's Ernakulam and West Bengal's Murshidabad after learning about an inter-state module of Al Qaeda operatives at various locations in India.

New Delhi: Following raids in West Bengal and Kerala, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday arrested nine militants linked with the Al Qaeda terror group, who were planning attacks at several key installations in Delhi-NCR, a spokesperson said.

"The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds," the spokesperson said, adding that it has registered a case on September 11.

The official said that NIA has arrested six terrorists from West-Bengal and three from Kerala in the early morning raids.

During the raids, large quantity of incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession.

"As per preliminary investigation, these individuals were radicalised by the Pakistan-based Al Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the National Capital Region," the official said.

The official said that the module was actively indulging in fund raising and a few members of gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition.

However, these arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country.

Arrested terrorists have been identified as Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas and Mosaraf Hossen, all three residents of Ernakulam.

Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman, all residents of Murshidabad.

The official said that they will be produced before the concerned Courts in Kerala and West Bengal for police custody and further investigation.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : A study conducted by the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute and Research Centre here has highlighted the high rate of COVID-19 infection in cancer patients and also revealed that the fatality rate in such patients is 7.6 times more than the national average fatality rate for COVID-19.

Public health experts postulate that the severity and resulting mortality in cancer patients with COVID-19 is amplified due to their elderly and immunocompromised state which is further worsened by cancer treatment.

"Our study highlights the incredibly high rates of COVID-19 in cancer patients. More distressingly, the CFR is 7.6 times more than the national average CFR for COVID-19," six researchers from the Delhi-based cancer hospital noted, after conducting a study on 186 active cancer patients with confirmed infection between June 8 and August 20.

Dr Vineet Talwar, Director of Medical Oncology at Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute and Research Centre, said that this is the first study to show the case fatality rate and its clinical association in Covid-19 infected cancer patients.

A total of 3,101 cancer patients were treated at the indoor facility of the centre. 1,088 patients had developed signs and symptoms suspicious of Covid-19. Of these, 186 tested positive for COVID-19 and formed the study cohort. The infection rate among all cancer patients treated at the centre was 6 per cent.

Besides this, the Covid-associated fatality rate in the cohort was 14.5 per cent as against the national average of 1.96 per cent, i.e. 27 out of 186 patients succumbed to the disease.

"Although the incidence and CFR was 14.5 per cent against the national average in this study, this can be ascribed to patient factors, visitations and admission in health care facilities with high risk of contracting infection. This was also seen in the New York hospital system with CFR of 28 per cent," Dr Talwar told IANS.

Cardiovascular diseases and diabetes posed a higher risk of death in this cohort. Co-morbid conditions like diabetes frequently co-occur with hypertension or coronary artery disease in cancer patients and can further weaken the immune response escalating the risk of death due to Covid-19.

Most cancer patients with coronavirus disease had solid malignancies (82.3 per cent); gastrointestinal cancer (21.5 per cent) was the common cancer type in such patients. About 17.7 per cent of cases presented with hematological malignancies, cancers that affect the blood, bone marrow, and lymph nodes.

More than a quarter of cases (26.9 per cent) were metastatic. Eighty-six patients (46.2 per cent) presented at least a single co-morbidity -- hypertension (24.2 per cent) and diabetes (18.3 per cent) were most common.

About 60 per cent of cases were on active cancer treatment and had received cancer-directed treatment within a month before the onset of COVID-19 symptoms. Thirty-seven per cent of patients were on chemotherapy. No significant effect on mortality was noted in the patients who had received anti-cancer therapy in the past month.

The doctors of the tertiary cancer care centre managed Covid-infected cancer cases by treatments including corticosteroids, hydroxychloroquine, remdesivir, tocilizumab and convalescent plasma therapy.

According to the study, assisted ventilation had to be given to 12 patients (6.4 per cent), however, all of them eventually developed COVID-related complications like pneumonitis and associated respiratory failure, septic shock or sudden cardiac arrest and succumbed to the disease.

Two recent studies from the European continent have shown a far greater case fatality rate in cancer patients with Covid-19. In the United Kingdom's Coronavirus Cancer Monitoring Project, a case fatality rate of 30.6 per cent was observed. Similarly, high rates were noticed in the New York hospital system where a rate of 28 per cent was observed.

"Relatively, lower case fatality rate in the present study when contextualised to CFR in the general population shows the similar proportion to those observed elsewhere. This study once again establishes the far higher CFR in cancer patients with COVID-19," the researchers said.

(Aakanksha Khajuria can be contacted at aakanksha.k@ians.in)

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
A 26-year-old woman has died and two other people have been injured following a crash in Boxford on Saturday, according to Massachusetts State Police.

Just before 1 a.m., a 2009 Toyota Avalon crashed on Interstate 95 north near Exit 53A. The car was moving at a high speed in the left lane when, for reasons still under investigation, it crossed all lanes and struck the guardrail and trees, state police said in a statement.

There were three people in the car: the driver, a 25-year-old woman from Derry, New Hampshire; a passenger, Shana Fusco-Russell, 26, of Melrose; and a second passenger, a 27-year-old man from Winthrop.

Fusco-Russell and the driver were ejected from the car during the crash and suffered life-threatening injuries, state police said. The male passenger suffered minor injuries.

The car was empty and fully engulfed in flames when authorities arrived, state police said.

Fusco-Russell was taken by ambulance to Beverly Hospital and then flown by medical helicopter to Lahey Hospital & Medical Center in Burlington where she was pronounced dead, state police said.

The driver was taken by ambulance to Massachusetts General Hospital and the second passenger was taken by ambulance to Beverly Hospital.

No further information was immediately available.
Eight in 10 parents say the child maintenance system has enabled their ex-partner to financially control or abuse them since their separation, a new study has found.

Leading single parent charity, Gingerbread, and Mumsnet, which polled 1,357 parents in England, discovered a third of those who are eligible for child maintenance payments received no money whatsoever.

Parents who do not live with their child are required to pay child maintenance to support their upbringing and fund essentials such as food, clothing and housing costs  with the sum paid determined by their income.

Only 16 per cent of those who use the child maintenance service said they get the full amount of maintenance due each month. While nine out of 10 of those polled think those who routinely dodge paying child maintenance should face the punishment of having their passports or driving licenses confiscated or be forced to make a payment.

Eight in 10 said they thought it was likely they would never get the money they are owed from their ex-partner  and seven in 10 said that using the maintenance service has worsened their mental health.

Campaigners warned the coronavirus crisis has exacerbated the existing problem of partners not paying child maintenance. Some 90 per cent of single parents are women.

Victoria Benson, chief executive at Gingerbread, said the findings back up what single parents have been voicing frustrations about for decades.

She said: Child maintenance payments need to be taken more seriously. Child maintenance is not a nice to have luxury, in many cases it makes the difference between a family keeping their heads above water or plunging into poverty.

The service is failing the children it is supposed to protect. Research has shown that for those who are owed maintenance and are living in poverty, being paid the child maintenance they are due would lift around 60 per cent of them out of the poverty trap.

The most bitter injustice is the fact that the child maintenance service has the powers to rectify this but simply refuses to use them. In 2019, over 100,000 children went without any payments while the child maintenance service confiscated just three passports and zero driving licenses. This kind of negligence which allows children across the country to live in poverty must be brought to an end.

Some 96 per cent of parents polled said the government needs to take parents not paying child maintenance more seriously  while 94 per cent think it would be treated with more gravity if the money was owed to the government instead of being owed to children.

Jolyon Maugham, director of Good Law Project, which is working with Gingerbread and Mumsnet to campaign for the child maintenance service to impose payments more effectively, said: The underlying legislation takes from single parents  typically mothers  the ability to pursue fathers for unpaid child maintenance and reposes it in government instead.

For government then routinely to fail to exercise that right, leaving families in poverty and children unfed, is the most abysmal of moral failures  and its on government. For the sake of these children, the child maintenance service must be made fit for purpose.

The latest figures show some 354m is owed by absent parents across the UK and less than 10 per cent of that has been recouped by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

Four single mothers launched legal action against the government in June over its persistent failure to collect child maintenance payments from absent parents  saying unpaid money had forced them to resort to food banks and accumulate debt on credit cards to ensure their children had food to eat.

The four women, who are supported by the campaigners, brought a judicial review against the DWP over alleged failings.

The Independent reported on an increase in fathers not paying child maintenance during the coronavirus pandemic. The DWP halted investigations into missing child maintenance payments during the lockdown.

A spokesperson for the DWP said: The child maintenance service (CMS) is a strong advocate for the rights that single parents have to fair childcare costs from an absent parent. This survey only reflects 0.25 per cent of the 515,600 customer CMS arrangements currently in place.

Official figures show that nearly eight out of ten CMS customers stated that they are happy with the service they receive. In cases where the CMS directly manage payments 70 per cent of money due to be paid in the quarter ending March 2020 was collected, amounting to more than 45 million.

We are clear that it is never acceptable for parents to evade their responsibilities to their children and the CMS will continue to clamp down on people who think they can abuse or dodge the system, including prosecution through the courts.
Prime minister Ludovic Orban, chairman of the PNL (National Liberal Party) on Saturday has presented in a press conference in eastern Bacau, the government's projects in the road and railway infrastructure in the counties of Moldavia.

According to Orban, the ring road of Bacau will be ready ahead of schedule, saying that in the past 10 months of his government, the works have advanced from 36 pct to almost 70 pct. and added that the ring road of Bacau must be part of the expressway or motorway that is connecting the North with the South of Romania.

Also, said the Prime minister, the motorway Bacau - Brasov is going to be completed.

As for the railway infrastructure, Ludovic Orban said that one of his gov't's objectives is to upgrade the Pan-European Corridor IX, that is to link southeastern Constanta with northwestern Curtici.
Ms ONeill and other senior Sinn Fein members were among crowds who attended the funeral of Bobby Storey in west Belfast in June despite restrictions on public gatherings.

The scenes at the height of the pandemic sparked outrage and calls for the Deputy First Minister to resign.

A row with the DUP over the matter prompted the suspension of joint briefings with Sinn Fein during the health emergency.

It emerged on Friday that 14 people have been sent letters asking them to attend voluntary interviews at a local PSNI station.

A Sinn Fein spokesman confirmed on Saturday: Michelle ONeill and a number of the partys elected representatives received letters from the police yesterday asking them to present for voluntary interview.

They will contact the police and co-operate with the investigation.

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The police probe is being led by Cumbria Constabulary Deputy Chief Constable Mark Webster.

Earlier this month, Ms ONeill acknowledged that Stormonts public health messaging capacity had been undermined by the row over the funeral.

It wasnt my intention this would happen, but it did, I accept this and I regret this is the case, she told RTE.

I accept that we have not been able to deliver clear messaging in the format that was the practice before this controversy.

Meanwhile a separate independent probe over access to the Roselawn Cemetery on the day of the funeral when eight other families were denied access due to pandemic measures is ongoing.
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Malibu, CA, Sep 19, 2020 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Join Ellis Martin for a discussion with Grant Ewing , President and CEO of Rockridge Resources ( CVE:ROCK )( OTCMKTS:RRRLF ) as the company commences its 3,000 Meter Diamond Drill Program at its Raney High-Grade Gold Project Southwest of Timmins, Ontario, Canada.To listen to the Interview, please visit:About Rockridge Resources Ltd

Rockridge Resources (CVE:ROCK) is a publicly traded mineral exploration company focused on the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral resource properties in Canada and other mining-friendly jurisdictions. The Company's Raney Gold Project is a high-grade gold exploration project located in the same greenstone belt that hosts the world-class Timmins and Kirkland Lake lode gold mining camps. The Company's Knife Lake Project is in Saskatchewan, which is ranked as the #3 mining jurisdiction in the world by the Fraser Institute. The project hosts the Knife Lake deposit, which is a VMS, near-surface copper-cobalt-gold-silver-zinc deposit open along strike and at depth. Rockridge's goal is to maximize shareholder value through new mineral discoveries, committed long-term partnerships, and the advancement of exploration projects in geopolitically favourable jurisdictions.

About The Ellis Martin Report

The Ellis Martin Report (TEMR) is an internet based radio program showcasing potentially undervalued companies to an audience of potential retail investors and fund managers that comprise our listening audience. TEMR is broadcasted on the VoiceAmerica Business Channel and The Opportunity Radio Network. CEO and company interviews are paid for by those represented on the program.
By PTI

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's deposed premier Nawaz Sharif is set to make a comeback in active politics following a year-long absence after PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari invited him to virtually attend the Opposition-led multiparty conference aimed at launching a protest movement against the Imran Khan-led government on Sunday.

Sharif, 70, the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) supremo, has been living in London since November last year after the Lahore High Court granted him permission to go abroad for four weeks for treatment.

The three-time premier, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Muhammad Safdar were convicted in the Avenfield properties case on July 6, 2018.

Sharif, who was deposed in 2017, was also sentenced to seven years in the Al-Azizia Steel Mills case in December 2018.

But, he was bailed out in both cases and also allowed to go to London for medical treatment. He was given eight weeks to return but failed to come back due to health complications, according to his lawyer.

On Friday, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Zardari talked to Sharif over phone and invited him to virtually attend the Opposition-led All Parties Conference (APC) scheduled to be held on Sunday.

The APC will evolve a strategy to counter the government led by Prime Minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) which, they said, has failed to address issues like price hike and poverty.

Quoting sources, The Express Tribune reported that the meeting will decide to go for a street movement.

He said that every party wanted to send the government led by Prime Minister Khan packing, adding that approaches might be different but this is exactly what all parties are attending the APC for -- to agree on a unified approach.

"Just spoke to Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif. Enquired about his health. Also invited him to virtually attend opposition APC, hosted by PPP, on 20th September," Bilawal said in a tweet.

Maryam, who is Sharif's political heir, tweeted back to thank the PPP leader. However, the PML-N has not officially confirmed his participation but party Senator Musadik Malik told Samaa TV that Sharif would attend virtually and also address the APC.

Maryam Nawaz will also attend, he said. Dawn newspaper also reported that the former prime minister would attend the conference.

Sharif's participation in the high-profile political conference, to be attended by all the top leaders of the opposition parties, would help to reinvigorate his party as well as fuel up anti-government struggle by the Opposition.

Sharif's decision to become active in politics coincided with the issuance of a non-bailable arrest warrant by the Islamabad High Court (IHC).

Foreign Office spokesman has said that the warrant was sent to Pakistan's High Commission in London for compliance.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : The BJP has issued a 3-line whip to all its Rajya Sabha members to be present on Sunday when the 3 contentious farm Bills are slated to be introduced in the Upper House.

The farms Bills already passed by the Lok Sabha have become a bone of contention between the government and the opposition.

Apart from the Congress, long-time NDA ally Shiromani Akali Dal too objected to the Bills, calling these "anti-farmers", with SAD leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal resigning from the Union Cabinet.

However, the government pushed them aggressively, calling them pro-farmer and labelling those opposing them as batting for the middlemen.

Now, the three farm Bills are set to face opposition in the Rajya Sabha and the government wants full attendance on the treasury benches.

The three Bills are the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020, Farmers Produce and Trade (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020 and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020.

"Farmers are now given new independence in agriculture. Now, they will have more options and opportunities to sell their produce. It was necessary to bring these Bills to protect them from middlemen. These are farmers' shields," said Prime Minister Narendra Modi after inaugurating the Kosi mega bridge on Friday.

BJP National President JP Nadda also said that the Bills give farmers the freedom to choose whether they wish to sell farm produce in the mandi or any other corner of the country.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
New York, Sep 19 : US President Donald Trump's son Eric has questioned Democratic vice-presidential nominee Kamala Harris's ties to Indian Americans claiming that "she has totally run away from the community." The attack comes as the election battle intensifies ahead of the November 3 election and the two parties are courting the Indian community with an eye on the swing states where a small margin of votes can determine the national outcome.

Speaking at the launch of Indian Voices for Trump in Atlanta on Tuesday, he attacked the Democratic Party as a "radical left" organisation that he said is against the values of Indian Americans and tried to link Harris to it, but the context of his assertion was muddled.

He said, "Much of this radical left is intolerant towards other people. In fact, sometimes I say that they are the least tolerant people in the entire world. You just look at Kamala Harris. Kamala Harris is of Indian descent and she has totally run away from the community ... The Indian community knows that. She is not going around saying that she is of Indian descent, in fact she is going around saying the exact opposite." Harris is multi-ethnic of African descent on her father's side and Indian on her mother's.

She is variously described as African American, Indian American and Asian American and is the first non-White person to run for vice president on a major party ticket.

The dominant public ethnic identity of Harris has been African American, a powerful segment in the Democratic Party, but she has acknowledged her Indian identity.

In her speech at the Democratic Party Convention last month accepting the vice-presidential nomination, she spoke of her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, who she said came to the US from India and "raised us to know and be proud of our Indian heritage." She also used the Tamil word for younger maternal aunts, "chithi", to refer to her mother's sisters.

Eric Trump tailored his speech to the hot-button issues for Indian Americans.

He said that the Democratic Party had become the party of Ilhan Omar, the member of the House of Representatives and a leader of the party's leftist flank who is a vehement critic of India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Speaking about what he characterised his father's affinity for India, Eric Trump said, "One of the moments he talks most about is that moment down in Houston, Texas, with Modi at last year's "Howdy, Modi" event.

Bringing up Pakistan and China, he said, "I can tell you, my father will never, never ever let you down." He said, "I think that is different from past presidents to tell you the truth. When you see how past presidents were involved with China, and you can see the problems India is having with China and will likely have with China, and, in fact, world will probably have with China at some point." "You know the problems with Pakistan better than I ever will and my father has always been there for your great country and I promise he will always be there," he added.

He heaped praise on India, calling it "incredible" and "spectacular" and said, "Some of the nicest, greatest hard-working people in the world that reside in India. They are loyal to the core, they are peaceful, they have wonderful families, they have a work ethic that just about everybody else should admire." On domestic issues, appealing to an audience of several businesspeople, he said a Biden-Harris administration will raise taxes by $4 trillion.

Law and order were breaking down across the country because the Democratic Party embraced chaos and was anti-police, he said.

Indian-owned businesses have been burnt down by rioters during the current protests against police brutality towards African Americans.

Eric Trump talked up family values, religious devotion and the commitment to education, hard work and entrepreneurship that he said his family shared with the Indian American community.

Ritesh Desai, an organiser of the Indian Voices for Trump meeting, thanked the "president for recognising our contribution to this country." He echoed Eric Trump, asserting that the differences between the Democrats and Republicans made this election a choice between "socialism or democracy, law and order or chaos, shutdown or economic progress." Eric Trump had visited a Hindu temple before the 2016 elections to campaign.

A poll of Indian American voters released this week found that Trump's support had increased by 12 per cent since the 2016 election to 28 per cent now, but is still dwarfed by the 66 per cent backing for Democratic Party candidate Joe Biden.

US presidential elections are not determined by the popular votes, but by the electors elected from each state. Because of this Hillary Clinton lost the 2016 election even though she polled more than 2.8 millions over Trump, who won with a 77 vote lead in the electoral college.

Indian Americans in some of the swing states can help contribute to the slim lead margins making them important to both parties.

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in and followed on Twitter at @arulouis)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Throughout her career, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg would sum up the impact of her Jewish heritage in three words: Zedek, zedek, tirdof.

In English, the command translates to, Justice, justice shall you pursue. Ginsburg uttered the phrase in 2004 when delivering a speech at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum for the National Commemoration of Days of Remembrance.

She referenced it again in October when she spoke at Amherst College, discussing her career, Roe v. Wade and current events. Elected officials mourning the loss of Ginsburg, who died Friday at age 87, say that lifelong commitment to justice made her a trailblazer and a visionary.

51' in stature, she stood as a giant for justice and equality," U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, a Massachusetts Democrat, tweeted Friday night. In her name we press on. We must turn our collective grief into action.

Ruth Bader Ginsberg, deliberate and dedicated in her craft, created a more just world.



51 in stature, she stood as a giant for justice & equality.



In her name we press on. We must turn our collective grief into action. Do not let up for a moment. Our democracy is at stake.  Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) September 19, 2020

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a visionary and legal leader whose influence on our country transcended the judiciary, House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo, a Winthrop Democrat, said in a statement. As a litigator, she pioneered legal principles on human rights and gender equality that are part of the fabric of American society today. As a jurist, she worked to reinforce and protect those rights. Her passing represents a colossal loss for the United States Supreme Court and our country.

Ginsburg, the second of only four female justices to be confirmed to the high court, died of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, NPR reported. She announced in July that she was undergoing chemotherapy for lesions on her liver.

The Brooklyn-born daughter of Jewish immigrants struggled to find work after graduating from Columbia Law School because of her gender. She went on to secure a clerkship for Judge Edmund L. Palmieri of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and eventually founded the American Civil Liberties Unions Womens Rights Project.

She was a justice on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit for more than a decade before being nominated to the Supreme Court in 1993 by then-President Bill Clinton, a Democrat.

As a Supreme Court justice, Ginsburg became known as a leader of the liberal wing. Fans who admired her defense of women and people of color affectionately called her the Notorious RBG."

Ginsburg suffered from a series of health crises beginning around 1999, including five bouts of cancer, falls, surgery for a blocked artery and other hospitalizations after she turned 75.

Ginsburgs granddaughter, Clara Spencer, told NPR the justice, just days before her death, said, My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

Tributes to Ginsburg came pouring in over Twitter Friday evening.

Rep. Mindy Domb, an Amherst Democrat, called the news heartbreaking and noted her death coincides with the start of Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year.

It has been said that when a person dies on Rosh Hashana, its an indication of how reluctant God was to follow thru on a decision that was made a year ago, by waiting until the very last minute, Domb tweeted. Her loss is too huge to describe. Our gratitude for her commitment to justice is immense.

Rosh Hashana is the start of the Jewish new year, and between Rosh Hashana & Yom Kippour is a time of reflection and judgment, when tradition says God decides who will be "written in the book of life" for the coming year. It has been said that ... /2  Mindy Domb (@MindyForMA) September 19, 2020

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican, highlighted her friendship with the late justice Antonin Scalia, known as an advocate for originalism in constitutional interpretation.

I am very sorry to hear of the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. RBG was a force of nature and a role model for so many women and all Americans.



Her friendship with the late Antonin Scalia spoke volumes about her ability to separate the person from the politics.  Charlie Baker (@MassGovernor) September 19, 2020

U.S. Rep. Bill Keating, a Democrat, in a statement said, This diminutive woman in height was truly a giant, a justice for the ages. She bridged the gap between young and old. She bridged the gap within the Court from discord to civility. For equality for women, equality for LGBTQ Americans, equality for us all  she set a standard for fairness and equal rights under the law.

Others weighed in on the question of whether Ginsburgs seat should be replaced ahead of the November election. Sen. Eric Lesser, a Longmeadow Democrat, urged that Gov. Charlie Baker call on U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, whos up for re-election in Maine, to follow the Merrick Garland rule in waiting until the election to fill the vacancy. Baker has been appearing in a series of political ads backing Collins.

.@CharlieBakerMA, since you decided to involve yourself in a U.S. Senate race outside Massachusetts, will you now call on Susan Collins to follow the Merrick Garland rule and hold on replacing RBG until after the election? https://t.co/2VvUjA2cI3  Eric Lesser (@EricLesser) September 19, 2020

Collins broke with her party and supported holding a confirmation hearing and a vote on Judge Merrick Garland in 2016, and said she would take the same position in 2020, the New York Times reported.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement Friday night any nominee from President Donald Trump will receive a vote on the floor from the Senate.

The Senate and the nation mourn the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the conclusion of her extraordinary American life.



My full statement: pic.twitter.com/NOwYLhDxIk  Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) September 19, 2020

Others took to Twitter Friday night to mourn Ginsburgs death.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was many things to the American people. A brilliant jurist. A fearless trailblazer. A tireless champion of justice & equality who exemplified grace & strength. She made this country a better place for all.



May she rest in eternal peace. God bless RBG.  Mayor Marty Walsh (@marty_walsh) September 19, 2020

May #RBG rest in power. She gave us, especially women, so much.



There is no rest for us, just preparation for the fight of our lives.  Maria Robinson (@mariarobinsonMA) September 19, 2020

Im heartsick to learn of the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. So much of the promise of this nation has been realized through her jurisprudence. And now so very much is at stake with her loss. Rest in power #RBG  Julian Cyr (@JulianCyr) September 19, 2020

- Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.

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Border closures and flight cancellations have wreaked havoc with travel plans but they won't stop runners from around the world from getting involved in this year's Sun-Herald City2Surf.

COVID-19 will prevent the City2Surf taking place on its usual route from the CBD to Bondi Beach, but the first ever "virtual" version of the world's largest fun run means you can do it anywhere.

Richard Davies makes an annual pilgrimage to Sydney for the City2Surf - this year he will run the race "virtually", at home. Credit:Christel Yardley

Participants will set their own 14 kilometre course in their town or suburb. For Richard Davies, 63, that means running around mount Maunganui near Tauranga on New Zealand's north island.

"Like Sydney, it's quite a picturesque area here," he says. "I've got a favourite run that I do which is about 9 kilometres, but I can extend that along the water front to get to 14."
BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 19

By Jeila Aliyeva - Trend:

Turkmenistan and Ukraine discussed issues of trade and economic cooperation, Trend reports with reference to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.

The discussions were held during a meeting between the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, Rashid Meredov, and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, in a video conference format.

During the meeting, the effective activities of Ukrainian companies in Turkmenistan, in particular in the construction and supply of railway equipment, were noted. The important role of the Joint intergovernmental Turkmen-Ukrainian Intergovernmental Commission on Economic, Cultural, and Humanitarian Cooperation was also noted.

The ministers noted the high level of interaction within international structures, primarily within the UN.

The need to activate cultural and humanitarian cooperation was noted.

As earlier the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine told Trend, there is significant potential to increase Ukraine's investments in Turkmenistan.

In particular, such spheres include oil, gas, oil refining, chemical industries, as well as infrastructure projects.

Ukrainian MFA pointed out that economic cooperation between the two countries has great potential and prospects.

This includes a possible increase of Ukraine's engineering products, electric industry products to Turkmenistan," said the MFA. "Also, large-scale infrastructure projects in Turkmenistan: construction of bridges, regional airports, underpasses, subways, etc."

The following Ukrainian companies are currently supplying various equipment to Turkmenistan: AvtoKrAZ, Zaporizha Mechanical Plant, Kryukov Railway Car Building Works, DEG, Interpipe, InterCargoTruck, Universal Drilling Technique, LLC, Motor Sich, Altcom, A Interbudmontazh.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @JeilaAliyeva
Mary Lou McDonald says she will "absolutely" co-operate with the PSNI investigation of breaches of social distancing rules at Bobby Storey's funeral.

But she has also said she doesn't anticipate being able to travel to meet them if travel outside Dublin is locked down from tonight.

"If the police want to talk to anyone, obviously people will go and talk to them," she told the Irish Independent. "They are carrying out a review. They need to crack on with it.

Read More

"I would absolutely talk to them if they wanted it. By the looks of things I am not going to be going anywhere, because the special situation in the city now is that we can't go anywhere. I won't be travelling anywhere."

She added: "But I have no issue at all in assisting the PSNI with their review. All of us have to assist them in their work."

A number of Sinn Fein politicians have been contacted by the PSNI over their attendance of the controversial Bobby Storey funeral while Northern Ireland was under strict Covid-19 restrictions.

The party confirmed a number of their elected representatives "have received letters from the police this morning asking them to present for voluntary interview".

"They will contact the police and co-operate with the investigation," the spokesperson added.

Asked about Michelle O'Neill's expression of regret about the funeral, Mrs McDonald said: "The worst experience of all was families who lost loved ones and had to bury them in the most extraordinarily difficult circumstances.

"I am not going to judge or criticise any family for the decisions they make in laying their loved ones to rest.

Read More

"I am conscious, and I was at the time, that there were big numbers lining the streets for Bobby Storey's funeral. It fuelled comment and criticism. Of course I regret that.

"The last thing you want is for people to be upset, and particularly surrounding the whole heartbreak. I don't want to see controversy around a funeral and a bereaved family."

It is understood around 12 members of the party received letters from the PSNI.

Police said they contacted a number of people, inviting them to attend voluntary interviews with officers at a local police station.

Those who have received the letters have 14 days to respond.

The statement was issued yesterday on behalf of DCC Mark Webster, Cumbria Constabulary in relation to the investigation into the funeral of Bobby Storey.

He said that an "initial" number of letters have been issued to those who have been identified as being present at the funeral.

Expand Close Deputy Chief Constable Mark Webster / Facebook

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"The letters are inviting these individuals to participate in a voluntary interview with investigating officers at a local police station," he said.

Hundreds of people lined the streets of west Belfast for the funeral in June and it was also attended by senior Sinn Fein representatives, including the deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill and the Finance Minister Conor Murphy.

Their attendance sparked a row at Stormont, with other parties accusing Sinn Fein of breaching the coronavirus restrictions.

Both Ms O'Neill and Mr Murphy have denied breaching social distancing measures while at the funeral.

It is not yet known if they are among the individuals who have been contacted by police.
LOS ANGELES (AP)  That 70s Show actor Danny Masterson, charged with raping three women, made his first appearance Friday in a Los Angeles courtroom, where his attorney declared his innocence and denounced the charges against him as politicized.

Masterson, 44, who has been free on bail since his June arrest, stood in court in a blue suit and face mask next to attorneys Tom Mesereau and Sharon Appelbaum, as the three women sat in the gallery.

Masterson did not enter a plea, but Mesereau said the charges, based on events nearly 20 years old, were the result of unfair hype from media outlets and pressure to prosecute his client as Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey faces an election.

There have been repeated attempts to politicize this case, said Mesereau, who also represented Bill Cosby and Michael Jackson in their sexual misconduct cases. He is absolutely not guilty and were going to prove it.

Deputy District Attorney Reinhold Mueller called the statements pure speculation, with no basis in fact.

Actor Danny Masterson, left, stands with his attorney, Thomas Mesereau as he is arraigned on rape charges at Los Angeles Superior Court, in Los Angeles, Calif. on Friday, Sept. 18, 2020. (Lucy Nicholson/Pool Photo via AP)AP

Mesereau spoke as the judge was considering media requests to allow media cameras in court, which he approved.

Mesereau argued that the media presence would be unfairly prejudicial to Masterson and taint potential jurors. We want to do anything we can to tone down the cameras and the circus-like atmosphere that have pervaded this case, the attorney said. Were just trying to protect his rights.

Superior Court Judge Miguel T. Espinoza also denied a request from the defense for a protective order sealing case files and preventing police, prosecutors and potential witnesses from revealing case information to the media, but said he would reconsider similar request later.

The defense has filed documents asking the criminal complaint against Masterson be thrown out as insufficient. A hearing on the issue will be held before Masterson is asked to enter a plea.

Mastersons arrest came after a three-year investigation that resulted in the rare prosecution of a famous Hollywood figure in the #MeToo era. Despite dozens of investigations, most have led to no charges based on lack of evidence or too much time passing.

About 20 friends and supporters accompanied Masterson to court, standing in the courthouse hall with him as he awaited the hearing, but only a few were allowed inside the courtroom because of coronavirus distancing requirements.

He spoke only to answer yes to the judges questions.

Masterson is charged with three counts of rape by force or fear. Prosecutors allege that he raped a 23-year-old woman sometime in 2001, a 28-year-old woman in April of 2003, and a 23-year-old woman between October and December of 2003. Prosecutors said all of the alleged attacks happened in his home.

He could face up to 45 years in prison if convicted.

Neither Masterson and his attorneys nor the three women spoke to reporters outside of court.

The women, who are not named in the charging documents said in a statement through their attorneys when Masterson was arrested that they had suffered harassment, embarrassment and re-victimization since they began cooperating with authorities and that they are thankful that the Los Angeles County District Attorneys office is finally seeking criminal justice.

The alleged rapes came at the height of Mastersons fame as he starred as Steven Hyde on the ensemble retro sitcom That 70s Show alongside Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis and Topher Grace. The series ran on Fox TV from 1998 to 2006 and has had a long afterlife in reruns.

He was removed from the Netflix show The Ranch in 2017 over the allegations that would eventually lead to the charges.

By ANDREW DALTON, AP Entertainment Writer

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Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Friday that he will hold a vote on President Donald Trump's nominee to fill the vacancy left by the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court.

In a statement issued just over an hour after the Supreme Court said that Ginsburg had passed, McConnell said the nominee, who has not been named, "will receive a vote on the floor."

McConnell's pledge puts in motion what is likely to be a historic battle over the court in the heat of an already intense election year. The Supreme Court had a 5-4 majority of Republican appointed justices. A 6-3 majority could have a dramatic impact on the shape of the law on business and social issues for a generation to come.

Trump, battling against former Vice President Joe Biden ahead of November's presidential election, is expected to move quickly to name a conservative replacement. The president didn't comment much Friday night beyond telling reporters that Ginsburg "led an amazing life. She was an amazing woman."

Biden, for his part, said that the focus in the coming days should be on Ginsburg's legacy, but added that "the voters should pick a president."

"This was the position of Republican Senate took in 2016. When they were almost 10 months to go before the election. That's the position the United States Senate must take today, and election is only 46 days off," Biden said.

Read more: Thank you, RBG: Leaders react with sadness, shock to Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death

McConnell's statement marks a contrast to his position last election cycle, in which he refused to hold hearings for former President Barack Obama's nominee, but is consistent with statements he has made since Trump was elected.

It came despite reports that Ginsburg told her family before she died that it was her "fervent wish" that she not be replaced until a new election is held.

The timing of Ginsburg's death ensured that mourning in Washington would be combined with political calculations. The justice, who sat on the bench for 27 years and was the second woman confirmed to the top court, passed after suffering from pancreatic cancer just 46 days before Election Day.

Even before Ginsburg's passing, Trump was seeking to win over conservatives with the promise of new justices who would be sympathetic on issues like gun rights and abortion. Earlier in September, Trump added 20 new names to his Supreme Court shortlist, including three GOP senators.

If Trump nominates a replacement for Ginsburg by Tuesday, and that nominee is confirmed before Election Day, it will mark the quickest period between nomination and confirmation since Ginsburg herself was appointed by former President Bill Clinton in 1993. On average, it takes about 70 days from the date of nomination to the confirmation vote, according to the Congressional Research Service.
The schools in the country are set to open their gates for students from Monday, after a gap of over five months. Under Unlock 4 , the central government has permitted the states to reopen schools from September 21. However, the states have the authority to decide whether they want to resume schools from September 21 or not. Citing the high number of coronavirus cases, many states including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal have announced not to resume classes from Monday.

Few states like Assam, Karnataka are opening schools from next week. According to the Unlock 4 guidelines issued by the ministry of home and family affairs, the schools are allowed to open with 50% teaching and non-teaching stuff. Students of class 9 to 12 are permitted to go to school  strictly on voluntary basis. Students will have to get a consent slip from their parents to visit the schools from Monday. However, the students and teachers who live in the containment zones, are not allowed to attend schools from next week. All the coronavirus preventive measures such as maintaining social distancing, covering face with a mask or cover, washing or santising hands need to be strictly followed. Thermal scanners for screening the body temperature of students and teachers are mandatory at the school entrance. Schools have been advised to arrange different entry and exit gates if feasible. The ministry has stated that schools must ensure the virtual classes continue through the period.

Here are the states that are opening schools

The Assam government earlier said that classes will resume for students between class 9 and 12 from Monday, The government will review the situation after 15 days. The Haryana government said that students can visit their schools if they need guidance but schools will remain closed. Schools will reopen from Monday in Himachal Pradesh. The Karnataka government also agreed to reopen schools partially from next week. Only senior students can come to schools if they need guidance. In Chandigarh, the schools will partially resume from Monday. Only 15 students are allowed to sit in a classroom. The students will be allowed to come in batches of two hours each, with a gap of one and a half hour in between to sanitise the classes.

The Delhi government earlier announced that the schools in the capital will remain closed till October 5. Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Uttarakhand, West Bengal earlier announced that will not resume classes from next week.

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Tiffany Trump praised Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg for being a 'trailblazer for women in the legal field' and recalled her close relationship with Justice Antonin Scalia in a tribute on Friday.

The Supreme Court confirmed that Ginsburg died surrounded by her family at her home in Washington D.C. following complications with metastatic pancreatic cancer. She was 87.

Ginsburg, who served for 27 years on the highest court of the land, had battled several bouts of cancer after first being diagnosed in 2009.

Social media quickly flooded with tributes and condolences for Ginsburg, including a series of tweets from President Trump's youngest daughter.

Tiffany, a recent graduate from Georgetown Law School, first shared photos of Ginsburg on Twitter and said she watched her speak during a 2017 lecture at the university.

Tiffany Trump (pictured), a recent graduate of Georgetown Law School, shared a tribute to Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday

Ruth Bader Ginsburg (pictured) died Friday evening in Washington D.C. after a long battle with metastatic pancreatic cancer

'In 2017, I was honored to attend a lecture by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at Georgetown Law,' Tiffany, 26, wrote.

'#RBG was a pioneer for women and gender equality graduating law school when there were only 9 female students and then becoming the 2nd woman Supreme Court Justice.'

In a Twitter thread later Friday evening, Tiffany recalled Ginsburg's 'surprising' friendship with former Justice Antonin Scalia and noted their commitment to justice despite their warring ideologies.

Scalia, who was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1986, was known for his conservative rulings and opinions. Ginsburg often advocated for more liberal and progressive rulings

Tiffany Trump said on Twitter that she 'was honored to attend a lecture by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg' in 2017 at Georgetown Law

In a series of tweets, Tiffany highlighted the 'surprising' friendship between Ginsburg and former Justice Antonin Scalia

'Thank you, Justice Ginsburg for being a trailblazer for women in the legal field, a pioneer for women and gender equality, and for showing that patriotism hinges not on agreement, but on the unwavering commitment to persevere, to listen, to learn, and to develop together.' Tiffany wrote.

'Justice Ginsburg, an icon of the left, and Justice Scalia, an icon of the right, were great friends- regardless of their different ideologies. Ginsburg admired Scalia for his love of the constitution and his fierce devotion to defend it how he believed was intended.

'Ginsburg often disagreed with his jurisprudence, but she too sought to defend the Constitution how she believed it was intended to by the founders. Scalia once even gave Ginsburg an advance notice of his dissent so Ginsburg could make her majority opinion better...'

Tiffany added that Ginsburg and Scalia's difference in opinion was dwarfed by their patriotism for their fellow Americans. Scalia served on the Supreme Court for 34 yeas before he died in 2016.

'What both understood about each other was that, despite their vast differences of opinion, they shared a truly unique bond - that of dedicating their life to advancing this country,' wrote Tiffany.

'May we learn from your devout commitment to justice so that we, too, may find extraordinary (and perhaps surprising) friendships among our fellow Americans, and continue your work to build a better and more just nation.'

Ruth Bader Ginsburg (pictured) was considered by many to be a legal pioneer who broke down barriers for women pursuing law practices. Pictured: U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg poses during a group portrait session for the new full court at the Supreme Court in Washington in 2018

Both President Trump and his second son, Eric, have shared public condolences regarding Ginsburg's death.

'Justice Ginsburg was a remarkable woman with an astonishing work ethic. She was a warrior with true conviction and she has my absolute respect!' wrote Eric.

President Trump, who was informed of Ginsburg's death following a campaign rally in Minnesota, released a formal statement on Twitter.

'Renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable toward one's colleagues or different points of view,' the statement read.

'Her opinions, including well-known decision regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds.'

President Trump shared a formal statement regarding Ginsburg's death after attending a campaign rally in Minnesota

Eric Trump: 'Justice Ginsburg was a remarkable woman with an astonishing work ethic. She was a warrior with true conviction and she has my absolute respect!'

Ginsburg announced she was undergoing chemotherapy to treat lesions on her liver shortly after the Supreme Court finished its work for the summer,

It was the fifth time she's dealt with cancer in the past 20 years. At the same time, she said she would continue to serve on the court.

Her death paves the way for Donald Trump to expand his conservative majority on the Supreme Court ahead of November's election.

Ginsburg, the leader of the courts four-member liberal wing, voiced concerns about the political impact of her passing in the days leading up to her death.

The US Supreme Court (front left to right) Associate Justice Stephen Breyer, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John Roberts, Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Associate Justice Samuel Alito, Jr., (back left to right) Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch, Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Associate Justice Elena Kagan and Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh pose for their official portrait at the Supreme Court building November 2018

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (center) hugs tenor Placido Domingo after Domingo sang a portion of Ginsburg's citation for her honorary Doctor of Laws degree, during the 360th Commencement Exercises at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 2011

'My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed,' the legal pioneer said in a statement dictated to her granddaughter Clara Spera days before her death.

Chief Justice John Roberts led tributes to his colleague Friday describing her as a 'champion of justice'.

'Our nation has lost a justice of historic stature,' Roberts said in a statement.

'We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her, a tired and resolute champion of justice.'

Former President Bill Clinton (left) poses with then-nominee for the Supreme Court Ruth Bader Ginsburg (right) during a news conference in Washington in 1993

Tributes poured in from political leaders including former president George Bush, Hillary Clinton, and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

Hillary Clinton tweeted that Ginsburg, a staunch advocate for women's rights, paved the way for other women.

'Justice Ginsburg paved the way for so many women, including me. There will never be another like her. Thank you RBG,' Clinton wrote.

Former president George Bush also paid tribute to Ginsburg in a statement Friday.

'Laura and I join our fellow Americans in mourning the loss of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She dedicated many of her 87 remarkable years to the pursuit of justice and equality, and she inspired more than one generation of women and girls,' he said.

The judge, only the second woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice, passed away Friday evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington D.C. following complications with her illness, the court said in a statement

'Justice Ginsburg loved our country and the law. Laura and I are fortunate to have known this smart and humorous trailblazr, and we send our condolences to the Ginsburg family'.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo spoke of the state's heartbreak over the loss over one of its own.

'NYs heart breaks with the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg,' the Democrat tweeted.

'During her extraordinary career, this Brooklyn native broke barriers & the letters RBG took on new meaningas battle cry & inspiration. Her legal mind & dedication to justice leave an indelible mark on America.'

Washington Governor Jay Inslee, also a Democrat, described her as an 'American hero' and demanded that her 'dying wish' to not be replaced on the bench until after the election be respected.

He tweeted: 'We have lost an American hero and a giant of justice.

'May we honor Justice Ginsburgs legacy by fighting for the civil rights of all Americans and respect her dying wish that she will not be replaced until a new president is installed.'

Tributes poured in from political leaders including former president George Bush, Hillary Clinton, and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo

His words were echoed by Senator Cory Booker who urged the nation to carry on 'her legacy of fairness and equality'.

'Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a true giant, an American hero and a warrior for justice,' Booker tweeted.

'Our country mourns her loss deeplywe must honor her by carrying on her legacy of fairness and equality.'

Tributes also poured in from those on the other side of the political spectrum.

Senator Lindsey Graham tweeted that he was filled with 'great sadness' at the news and that despite their 'many differences' he 'appreciate[d] her service to our nation'.

'It was with great sadness that I learned of the passing of Justice Ginsburg. Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer who possessed tremendous passion for her causes. She served with honor and distinction as a member of the Supreme Court,' he wrote.

Tributes also poured in from those on the other side of the political spectrum

'While I had many differences with her on legal philosophy, I appreciate her service to our nation. My thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends. May she Rest In Peace.'

President Trump is yet to tweet about her passing however estranged niece Mary Trump urged Americans to continue her 'fight for our country'.

'Take a moment. Breathe. And then we fight for our country the way she always did for us. Or we will lose everything,' she wrote on Twitter.

Ginsburg's death gives Trump the opportunity to name her successor at a critical time just six weeks before the nation heads to the polls.

The president has already appointed two members of the Supreme Court, Justices Neil M. Gorsuch and Brett M. Kavanaugh, in a move that pushes the court increasingly right wing.

The replacement of Ginsburg, a Democrat and women's rights champion, by another Republican will leave the court Democrats outnumbered, with six Republicans to their three.

A debate is expected to ensue over whether Trump should nominate her successor or leave the seat vacant until after the outcome of the election.

Senator Chuck Schumer tweeted Friday after the news broke of Ginsburg's death that the position should not be filled until the White House race was over.

'The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice,' he tweeted.

'Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.'

Ginsburg was appointed to the Supreme Court by President Clinton in 1993 and has served more than 27 years.

She leaves behind her two children Jane Carol Ginsburg and James Steven Ginsburg, four grandchildren Paul Spera, Clara Spera, Miranda Ginsburg and Abigail Ginsburg, two step-grandchildren Harjinder Bedi and Satinder Bedi, and one great-grandchild Lucrezia Spera.

Her husband Martin David Ginsburg died in 2010.

Ginsburg was born in Brooklyn, New York, on March 15 1933.
A police pursuit on the Massachusetts Turnpike Friday ended with troopers rescuing kittens from a burning vehicle.

Shortly after 4 p.m. Friday, Massachusetts State Police on patrol on the Mass. Pike spotted a vehicle traveling east in Framingham with no inspection sticker and whose owner had a suspended license.

The driver initially refused to stop the vehicle before pulling into the Natick Service Plaza. As troopers approached, she sped away and troopers pursued.

Shortly after, the vehicle was pulled over in the breakdown lane of the Mass. Pike. While in the breakdown lane, the vehicle began smoking from the undercarriage before catching fire.

The driver, a 26-year-old woman from Westford, was pulled from the vehicle by officers. As they did so she flailed and kicked at them. Once she was subdued she told troopers that her kittens were still in the burning car, which by this point was fully engulfed, State police spokesman David Procopio said.

Unable to access the cars doors due to the flames, troopers smashed the cars rear window and found the two kittens in a transport carrier and pulled them from the vehicle.

The woman was transported to a nearby hospital after she kicked at the windows of the cruiser and complained of pain. Charges are pending against the women which are expected to include license and inspection sticker violations, failure to stop for police, and assault and battery on a police officer.

The kittens were brought to a nearby animal shelter where a family member of the woman made arraignments to pick them up.
The smoke from dozens of brush fires in the western United States is stretching clear across the countryand even pushing into Mexico, Canada, and Europe. While the dangerous plumes are forcing people inside along the West Coast, residents thousands of miles away in the East are seeing unusually hazy skies and remarkable sunsets.

The fires racing across tinder-dry landscapes in California, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington are extraordinary, but the long reach of their smoke isnt unprecedented. While there are only small pockets in the southeastern United States that are haze free, experts say the smoke poses less of a health concern for those who are farther away.

This photo taken at sunrise from Surf City on Long Beach Island in New Jersey shows the sun shrouded in smoke and brown haze Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020. (Elizabeth Laird via AP)

The sun was transformed into a perfect orange orb as it set over New York City on Tuesday. Photographs of it sinking behind the skyline and glinting through tree leaves flooded social media. On Wednesday, New Jersey residents described a yellow tinge to the overcast skies, and weather forecasters were kept busy explaining the phenomenon and making predictions as to how long the conditions would last.

On the opposite coast, air quality conditions were among some of the worst ever recorded. Smoke cloaked the Golden Gate Bridge and left Portland and Seattle in an ashy fog, as crews have exhausted themselves trying to keep the flames from consuming more homes and even wider swaths of forest.

A hazy sun sets over Richmond, Va., Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020. (Bob Brown/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP)

Satellite images showed that smoke from the wildfires has traveled almost 5,000 miles (8,000 kilometers) to Britain and other parts of northern Europe, scientists said Wednesday.

The current weather system, which favors a westerly wind across the higher levels of the atmosphere, is to blame for the reach of the smoke, experts explained.

We always seem, at times, to get the right combination of enough smoke and the upper level jet stream to line up to bring that across the country, so were just seeing this again, said Matt Solum with the National Weather Services regional operations center in Salt Lake City, Utah. Its definitely not the first time this has happened.

There could be some easing of the haze this weekend as a storm system is expected to move into the Pacific Northwest and could affect the conditions that helped the smoke travel across the country. But Solum said theres always a chance for more smoke and haze to shift around.

A worker waters grass at Alamo Square Park as smoke from wildfires and fog obscures the skyline above the Painted Ladies, a row of historical Victorian homes, in San Francisco, Monday, Sept. 14, 2020. (Jeff Chiu/AP Photo)

Just due to all the wildfires that are going on, this is likely going to continue for a while, he said. You might have ebbs and flows of that smoke just depending on how the upper level winds set up.

Kim Knowlton, a senior scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Council in New York City, said she woke up Wednesday to a red sunrise and more haze.

She said millions of people who live beyond the flames can end up dealing with diminished air quality as its not uncommon for wildfire smoke to travel hundreds of miles.

Although the health impacts are reduced the farther and higher into the atmosphere the smoke travels, Knowlton and her colleagues said the resulting haze can exacerbate existing problems like asthma and add to ozone pollution.
Prosecutors to indict Boss on cocaine, reckless driving charges

BANGKOK: Prosecutors have decided to indict Red Bull scion Vorayuth Boss Yoovidhya on charges of cocaine use and reckless driving causing death, stemming from his fatal hit-and-run case in Bangkok in 2012.



By Bangkok Post

Saturday 19 September 2020, 07:30AM

Vorayuth

A working group at the Office of the Attorney-General (OAG) announced the prosecutors decision on Friday, reports the Bangkok Post.

It comes two months after authorities unexpectedly dropped the case, sparking public outrage and a series of investigations that point to widespread flaws in a justice system that seems tilted in favour of the rich and connected.

Itthiphon Kaewthip, deputy director-general of the Department of Criminal Ligitation, said the working group, headed by deputy attorney-general Somsak Tiyavanich, had made its recommendations to the attorney-general, and they were accepted.

Although the charge of reckless driving causing death against Vorayuth was earlier dropped, a new investigation of the case found that the suspect had taken cocaine. No legal action had been taken against him previously on the drug charge.

Earlier a deputy attorney-general and an acting police chief decided not to arraign him on the charge of reckless driving causing death.

Mr Ittiporn said there was also fresh evidence and key witnesses who could prove the reckless driving charge to the court.

Sathon Wicharnwannarak, a physics lecturer at Chulalongkorn University, had calculated the speed of the accuseds Ferrari at the time of the crash at 110-145 kilometres per hour, and public transport expert Samart Ratchapolsitte calculated the speed at 160-190kph.

The two witnesses were not in the previous investigation report and this was considered new evidence, Mr Itthiporn said.

The statute of limitations on the reckless driving causing death charge is 15 years and will expire on Sept 3, 2027. The cocaine use charge will expire on Sept 3, 2022.

OAG spokesman Prayut Petcharakhun said the prosecutors latest decision was not a revesal of the widely criticised decision made by Nate Naksuk, a deputy attorney-general, who decided not to prosecute Mr Vorayuth.

Mr Nates decision was lawful as he made the decision based on evidence in the investigation report at the time, the spokesman said.

The decision by the working group was based on fresh evidence, particularly the speed, he said.

"The OAG will ask police investigators to bring Mr Vorayuth in for arraignment. If evidence shows that Vorayuth is not in Thailand, or he is staying abroad, there must be clear details about this," Mr Prayut said.

"Police must inform the prosecutors so they can seek his extradition, as well as coordinate with Interpol to arrest him.

"The previous arrest warrant cannot be used. The investigators must resubmit a request to the prosecution," Mr Prayut said.

"The latest information, last year, showed a person who looked like Mr Vorayuth was spotted in Montreal, Canada. Thai authorities contacted Canadian police, but were told there was no travel record of Mr Vorayuth entering there."

Mr Vorayuth, 35, also known as Boss, drove the Ferrari that killed Pol Snr Sgt Maj Wichian Klanprasert, 47, in the early morning of Sept 3, 2012.

He crashed into the rear of the police motorcycle on Sukhumvit Road. He then fled the scene to his home nearby.

He delayed hearing the charges against him seven times. It was not until April 27, 2017, that prosecutors finally charged him with reckless driving causing death and failing to help a crash victim.

He fled on a private plane two days before he was due to face the charges.

Mr Vorayuth is the son of Chalerm Yoovidhya, whose family co-owns the energy drink megabrand Red Bull and ranks second on Thailands richest list, with a net worth estimated at US$20 billion.






Political expression comes in many guises. For Indigenous communities, there has always been a deep connection to the arts to give voice to our shared experience. Art can describe the trauma, humour and oppression that comes with living in modern Australia as a First Nations person.

In the not-too-distant past, music was used as a form of escapism from the toll daily oppression took on people. Those growing up on missions or one generation removed from mission life would listen to the dulcet tones of Charley Pride, Slim Dusty or Tammy Wynette. The dreamy lament of country music reflected the ache of rural life and also engendered a yearning for times past and the promise of times to come.

Musician and broadcaster Neil Morris.

Cut to 2020 and not only have Indigenous listening habits changed, but so has the culture of musical expression. Artists such as Briggs, JK-47 and Baker Boy dominate the Indigenous music scene and have themselves become crossover artists into the mainstream. The music and lyricism of Indigenous hip-hop fights oppression, celebrates identity and calls for recognition of sovereignty.

With the culture wars as a backdrop, hip-hop has given a voice to dozens of Indigenous artists, from Australia's most remote communities to its most densely populated cities. On the surface, the shared connection between the songlines of decaying American urbanity and those of the world's oldest living culture aren't necessarily obvious. So what is it about this form of music that resonates so deeply with so many in First Nations communities?
The Railways on Saturday said select 10 per cent employees of co-operative and private banks will be allowed to travel on Mumbais suburban trains. Suburban train travel is currently restricted for the general public in view of the coronavirus pandemic.

Employees of nationalised banks are already allowed to travel by trains. On the Maharashtra governments request, 10 per cent of the total staff strength of co-operative and private banks will be permitted to travel by local trains, a joint release issued by the Central and Western Railways stated.

The railways have been operating special suburban services for people engaged in essential and emergency services since mid-June. The selected 10 per cent staff will need to obtain QRID codes from the state government. Until then, those with valid identity cards can buy tickets and travel.

Recently, the railway authorities allowed aircraft maintenance and repair staff to travel on local trains. The railways also said that additional booking counters will be opened at important stations, and appealed passengers to follow social distancing.
Opposition leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury criticised the government on Saturday in the Lower House regarding the setting up of the Prime Ministers Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM CARES) Fund questioning the government over the need of it when there was an existing Prime Minister National Relief Fund (PMNRF).

The Congress lawmaker, while debating the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020 in Parliament, said, I want to ask our finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman what is the need for creating a parallel fund when we already have PMNRF?

Chowdhury further questioned the government asking if they had taken loans from Chinese banks amid the standoff at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh. The Congress MP from Bengal said, I also want to ask our FM if its true that you took a loan from Chinese banks even after our Indian Army personnel were fighting in the Galwan valley. How much loan has been taken from China since April?

A day after his comment and the uproar over it led to several adjournments in the Lok Sabha, Union minister Anurag Thakur lashed out at the opposition and said unlike the PMNRF, the PM CARES is a registered trust. He targeted the Congress and said that one family manages the trusts.

Thakur said, The first Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru constituted PMNRF in 1948. PMNRF is still not registered. The members of the trust were Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and the President of Indian National Congress and a nominee of Tata Trust.

Drawing comparisons between the PMNRF and PM CARES, he said, The PM-CARES fund was registered on March 27, 2020, under the 1908 Act. An independent auditor was appointed. Nobody is forced to donate to this fund. The members of the trust are all ex officio members such as Prime Minister, minister of defence, minister of home affairs and minister of finance

Congress has targeted the government on the issue of PM CARES even before the Monsoon Session began. On September 13, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh cited the lack of transparency in the PM CARES fund in a virtual press conference.

N K Premachandran, a lawmaker from Keralas Revolutionary Socialist Party, said he does not understand the necessity of the PM CARES fund. I cant understand the logic to have a separate fund. What is the difference between the Prime Ministers National Relief Fund and the PM CARES Fund, he said.

Congress Manickam Tagore said that the PM CARES lacks transparency. The Tamil Nadu lawmaker questioned why the trust was outside the ambit of the Comptroller Auditor General of India and Parliament.

Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra also highlighted that since 38 public sector companies donated Rs 2,100 crore to the fund, which makes 70% of the corpus, the government should be answerable to the people of the nation. She also questioned the government why they had not returned the money donated by Chinese firms like TikTok to the PM CARES.

(with inputs from Agencies)
The First Step Act, Chuck Colson, and the Churchs work of restoration

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Im old enough to remember that time, way back in 2018, when Democrats and Republicans worked together. Really, it did happen and resulted in a major, bi-partisan criminal justice reform bill called The First Step Act, which sought to reduce the number of people in overcrowded federal prisons and improve conditions for those behind bars.

When he endorsed the bill, President Trump said, Were all better off when former inmates can receive and re-enter society as law-abiding, productive citizens. At last months Republican National Convention, Ivanka Trump called the First Step Act the most significant criminal justice reform of our generation. Thats not an overstatement.

A major feature of the bill is that it reduces mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenders, especially low-level, nonviolent offenders. For those already serving time for crack cocaine-related offenses, the reductions were retroactive.

In its first year, the First Step Act has literally changed thousands of lives. According to a recent report from the United States Sentencing Commission, the sentences of more than 7,000 federal prisoners, deemed able to safely return to their communities, were reduced.

As the libertarian publication Reason rightly noted, the First Step Act is a modest, but very real, first step towards comprehensive criminal justice reform. Id add that, as part of the legacy of Chuck Colson and the very good work of Prison Fellowship, the bill is an example of the Churchs work of restoration.

God used Chuck Colson to transform the way many of our political leaders, in particular conservatives, think about criminal justice. While in prison, Chuck learned how empty and even counterproductive the lock em up and throw away the key rhetoric that he once espoused really was. The call God placed on Chucks life to bring the Gospel to prisoners and their families through Prison Fellowship quickly expanded to include prison and criminal justice reform. He quickly realized that being tough on crime was pointless unless we were first smart on crime.

Being smart on crime led Chuck to campaign against the three strikes and youre out laws that swept the U.S. during the 1990s. He knew that such laws would only lead to overcrowded prisons, unaffordable system building and maintenance, and eventually the court-ordered releases of thousands of prisoners from political pressures rather than prudential wisdom.

God used Chucks solid conservative, Christian, and law-and-order credentials to advance this message. People who may not have given other activists the time of day respectfully listened. Many hearts and minds were changed, not only by Chuck Colsons passion or ability to articulate, but because he took people back into the prison with him to see for themselves what he saw. To borrow a modern phrase, Chuck moved the Overton Window, i.e. the acceptable range of policies politically acceptable to the mainstream population.

And so, decades later, years after Chuck Colsons death, at a time of deep and painful political divisions, the First Step Act garnered bipartisan support.

Chucks legacy of giving people the moral permission and intellectual justifications to do the right thing is something Christians should seek to emulate in every aspect of culture.

Of course, in order to do this, we must first know what the right thing is. And, we must learn to talk about issues in ways that can be heard. About a year ago, this vision drove us to launch What Would You Say?, a video resource designed to help Christians converse on our cultures most challenging questions.

Our stories may not be as dramatic and consequential as Chuck Colsons, but we can strive for the same humility, credibility, preparation, and willingness to be used by God, if not in prison then in whatever sphere of influence He gives us.

To learn more about the First Step Act and Prison Fellowships excellent work to bring the Gospel and restoration prisoners and their families, come to BreakPoint.org.

Originally published at Break Point
President Trump on Saturday said he approved "in concept" a deal whereby TikTok will be allowed to continue operating in the U.S., with Oracle as its "trusted technology partner."

Why it matters: TikTok has nearly 100 million U.S. users, and is still growing fast. Trump has threatened to ban it, due to data privacy concerns related to TikTok's ownership by Chinese tech company.

Of note: The U.S. Commerce Department has announced a one-week delay to the EO taking effect.

What he's saying: "I have given the deal my blessing  if they get it done that's great, if they don't, that's okay too," Trump told reporters at the White House before departing for an evening rally in North Carolina. "I approved the deal in concept."

The president noted the new company would be headquartered "most likely in Texas," and could see "at least," 25,000 people hired."

Trump also said that TikTok "will be making a $5 billion contribution toward education." Axios has learned that contribution would come from proceeds of a TikTok IPO, if and when that were to happen.

Finally, Trump noted that "it'll be totally controlled by Oracle and Walmart."

Yes, but: It won't be. TikTok will be controlled by its board of directors, all of whom will be U.S.-based and approved by the U.S. government. But Oracle and Walmart each will be minority shareholders, with no single entity or no two entities representing a control position on the board.

What TikTok's saying: "We are pleased that the proposal by TikTok, Oracle, and Walmart will resolve the security concerns of the U.S. Administration and settle questions around TikTok's future in the U.S."

What Oracle CEO Safra Catz is saying: "As a part of this agreement, TikTok will run on the Oracle Cloud and Oracle will become a minority investor in TikTok Global... We are 100% confident in our ability to deliver a highly secure environment to TikTok and ensure data privacy to TikToks American users, and users throughout the world.

"This greatly improved security and guaranteed privacy will enable the continued rapid growth of the TikTok user community to benefit all stakeholders.

Flashback: ByteDance originally formed TikTok via its acquisition of Musical.ly in 2018, but that deal received renewed U.S. national security attention beginning last November.

One major concern was a Chinese government rule whereby China-based companies are required to turn over user data to the government upon request.

TikTok maintained that it stored U.S. data locally, with a backup in Singapore, and that its data is not subject to Chinese law.

U.S. political criticism of ByteDance, from a data privacy perspective, has been bipartisan. Several lawmakers also expressed doubts about the proposed deal with Oracle.

Context: Trump in early August threatened to ban TikTok were it not sold by Sept. 20. Shortly after, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. (CFIUS) ruled the Musical.ly deal must be unwound by mid-November.

ByteDance originally was in talks to sell TikTok's U.S. operations to either Microsoft or Oracle.

Those talks broke down after the Chinese government implemented new tech export rules that would have prevented TikTok's recommendation engine (i.e., its algorithm) from being included.

The state of play: ByteDance informed Microsoft last weekend that it opted for a workaround arrangement with Oracle, whereby Oracle would be TikTok's "trusted technology provider in the U.S."

Oracle also was working with Walmart, which previously worked with Microsoft. The goal would be to add e-commerce functionality to TikTok, which currently generates relatively little U.S. revenue.

ByteDance subsequently submitted its proposal to CFIUS, and received redlined revisions last Wednesday. ByteDance agreed to most of the revisions, presumably with Beijing's blessing.

Axios scooped what was in the ultimate deal.

What happens next: Expectations are that Trump will rescind his executive order, which would have prevented U.S. downloads of TikTok beginning Sunday. The formal CFIUS process will take longer, possibly weeks.

The bottom line: TikTok lives.

Go deeper on TikTok with the Axios Re:Cap podcast:

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.
News

Washington, DC - On the 73rd birthday of the United States Air Force, I join our grateful Nation in celebrating the worlds most powerful flying force. As Commander in Chief, I salute all of the Airmen who defend our country and promote peace with unparalleled service and excellence.

The United States Air Force is instrumental in protecting the American people, advancing our Nations interests around the world, and ensuring that our country is a global leader in innovation and aviation. Airmen have spearheaded previously unthinkable advancements, including breaking the sound barrier, activating the Global Positioning System, and launching the first remotely piloted aircraft. True to its mission, our Air Force continues to fearlessly break new horizons in defense of our cherished American freedoms.

Since it was officially established in 1947, the Air Force has been a force for good at home and abroad. Overseas, our Airmen provide our Armed Forces in all domains with combat airpower, mobility, and superior intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance. Each day, they dutifully carry out their mission to serve and defend the American people with unwavering conviction. Whether deployed for combat operations, natural disasters, or safeguarding the homeland from threats, the Air Force protects our freedoms and secures the skies. Today, our Airmen are fighting abroad and playing a critical role at home in our fight against the coronavirus, delivering assistance to those in need from coast to coast.

The Air Force has ensured that the United States retained air superiority in all of our conflicts and missions since its founding 73 years ago. Today, we recognize all the men and women who serve as Airmen and who Fly, Fight, and Win. We thank all of our Nations service members and their families for their immeasurable service and sacrifice.
BEIJING  As the United States and China trade blows over technology, Beijing on Saturday moved to create a blacklist of foreign companies seen as threatening its national security or acting against Chinese business interests.

The plan for a blacklist, which was short on details and included no companies names, appeared to be retaliation for the Trump administrations decision to ban the Chinese-owned apps TikTok and WeChat from American app stores starting at midnight on Sunday.

Tensions between Beijing and Washington have intensified in recent months, accelerating a downward spiral in economic and diplomatic relations. The confrontation now encompasses the two countries policies on trade and technology, as well as on Taiwan, Hong Kong, human rights and other issues.

Many recent actions by the United States have prompted countermoves by China. The Peoples Liberation Army sent 19 fighter jets and bombers into the Taiwan Strait on Saturday and 18 the previous day to protest a visit to the island democracy, which China claims as its territory, by a senior State Department official.
Ahead of the 2021 centenary, Michael Kelly told us on this page last Saturday that most nationalists regard the creation of Northern Ireland as a catastrophe and went on to explain why. Unionists should try to understand his thinking. For many northern Catholics, partition turned the north of Ireland into an oxbow lake, unrefreshed by the cultural headwaters in the south.

Written more in sorrow than in anger, the stories of Michael McLaverty, for example, depict that post-partition demoralised northern Catholic world. Clearly, redress has been in the cards for some decades.

Michael tells us that many unionists, on the other hand, regard the creation of Northern Ireland as a cause for celebration. But he chooses not to say why.

So, in the interests of balance and history, let me remind myself why unionists see cause for the commemoration of an event in 1921.

Some years ago, the wife of the president of a southern university told me she was astonished on reflection that she and her fellow southerners accepted for so long the predominance of the Catholic Church in almost every aspect of their lives.

Politeness prevented me from savouring the irony by reminding her that my forebears had warned that Home Rule would be Rome Rule. And so it proved.

Partition also allowed northern Protestants to escape the fate of the southern Anglo-Irish, who in the Free State, for one reason or another, shrank in numbers from 10% of the population to 3%.

Would the fate of northern Protestants have been different had they joined a united Ireland severed from Great Britain? Who knew, or wanted to take the risk? It was, after all, payback time in parts of the south.

Was partition, indeed, necessary in order to head off the greater catastrophe of a full-blown civil war in Ireland? Ireland in 1919-21 was at a very dangerous crossroads.

The partition that kept unionists British meant for me - and thousands of other northerners from both sides - liberation from the urban industrial working class (in my own case), or agricultural labouring classes, through the 1947 Education Act brought in by the unionist government, making higher education in principle available to all.

Kept back, and keeping back, for decades, McLaverty's people, through the Education Act, quickened into life from the late 1960s.

Within a generation there was a Queen's-educated Nobel prizewinner, Seamus Heaney (above), from down the country, who greatly benefited from McLaverty's wise counsel.

Now, their grandchildren are the dominant social and ethnic formation in the two northern universities, gateways to professional standing on either island.

Finally, partition allowed unionists unfettered participation in their British heritage. That heritage included a rich national narrative, constitutional monarchy instead of republicanism, secular democracy instead of, effectively, theocracy. What was at stake was no small beer - and only the latter threat has receded.

And it mustn't escape our attention that those on both sides of the border who deplore partition have nevertheless since the 1950s freely availed themselves of British culture and society to enrich and advance their lives; many thousands, indeed, living, working and flourishing across the water. The cultural headwaters for nationalists are now as much in London as in Dublin.

What the political acknowledgment of that enormous human and daily fact should be is a question that ought to be discussed when the centenary of the Irish Free State (later Eire and Ireland) is observed.

How culturally realistic now is that other border, the one between Ireland and the rest of our two-island archipelago?

Northern Ireland has not proven a resounding success, to put it mildly. But unionists are justified in recalling the likelihood that, from the perspective of a century ago - in the days of a rampant Church, physical-force republicanism and the severe Irish nationalism of Eamon de Valera - the alternative would have been very much worse for them than partition.

In any case, it is the guarantee of their Britishness a century ago (and today) that most unionists wish to celebrate inoffensively, not partition itself, which many of them actually opposed.

And with reason, since the creation of Northern Ireland served through devolution to partition unionists off from Great Britain rather more than they wanted, as Brexit is now teaching them.

So, redress in this respect should oblige unionists to encourage the closest of ties between Ireland and Great Britain. Following the English novelist EM Forster, "Only connect" should be our watchword.

Meanwhile, we need to find by next year a collective modus vivendi between catastrophe and celebration, to borrow Michael Kelly.

Stealing again from my near-namesake Forster, let us all in 2021 agree to raise two cheers for Northern Ireland.

At the close of the intervening century, many countries and regions of the world have it much worse than the two soft-bordered Irelands with Great Britain at their cultural disposal.

John Wilson Foster is Professor Emeritus at the University of British Columbia. His most recent book is The Space-Blue Chalcedony: Earth's Crises and the Tyler Bounty (2020)
OTTAWA, ON, Sept. 18, 2020 /CNW/ -

Summary

Product: Unauthorized health products sold by SteroidHubCanada.com

Unauthorized health products sold by SteroidHubCanada.com Issue: These products are not authorized by Health Canada and may pose serious health risks.

These products are not authorized by Health Canada and may pose serious health risks. What to do: Stop using products from this site and consult a healthcare professional if you have any concerns. Report any health product side effects or complaints to Health Canada.

Issue

Health Canada is warning Canadians about the online retailer Steroid Hub Canada because it is selling unauthorized health products that may pose serious health risks.

The unauthorized products on the website are promoted for bodybuilding and include anabolic steroids, growth hormones and Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARMs). Other products are promoted for uses such as weight loss and sexual enhancement. Some products are in an injectable format. Many are labelled to contain prescription drugs or controlled substances. One of the products is an unauthorized version of "Saizen," which is a prescription growth hormone drug (somatropin) authorized by Health Canada and administered by injection.

Selling unauthorized health products in Canada is illegal. Health products that have not been authorized by Health Canada have not been assessed for safety, effectiveness and quality, and could pose serious health risks. For example, unauthorized health products could contain ingredients not listed on the label, including prescription drugs, possibly at doses exceeding maximum recommended amounts.

Prescription drugs should only be used under the advice and supervision of a healthcare professional, because they are used to treat specific conditions and may cause serious side effects.

Specific drug ingredients may be subject to additional restrictions as outlined in the Food and Drugs Act and the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. This may include the need for a prescription from a health care practitioner, the application of specific controls to allow for professional direction and supervision in their use, or the application of additional controls on the sale and storage of the product.

What Health Canada is doing

Health Canada has directed the company to stop advertising and selling unauthorized health products immediately. Health Canada will not hesitate to take additional enforcement actions as necessary to protect the health and safety of Canadians.

Health Canada will continue to take action against any companies found to be selling unauthorized health products either online or in stores in Canada. The Department works with the Canada Border Services Agency to help prevent the import of any unauthorized health products and will continue to warn Canadians about these products when they are found in the marketplace. Health Canada works closely with law enforcement agencies and may refer suspected illegal activity to them for further action.

What you should do

Stop using health products purchased from Steroid Hub Canada. Consult with your health care professional if you have used a health product from this site and have health concerns.

Read product labels to verify that health products have been authorized for sale by Health Canada. Authorized health products have an eight-digit Drug Identification Number (DIN), Natural Product Number (NPN) or Homeopathic Drug Number (DIN-HM). You can also check if products have been authorized for sale by searching Health Canada's Drug Product Database and Licensed Natural Health Product Database.

Read the information Health Canada has posted on the risks of buying drugs, natural health products or medical devices online if you are considering buying health products over the Internet.

Report any health product side effects or complaints to Health Canada.

Background

This is not a complete list of the unauthorized drugs advertised and sold on the website. This list is being provided to help inform consumers of the risks they are exposing themselves to when taking unauthorized drugs purchased from this site.

Anabolic steroids: There are serious health risks associated with the use of anabolic steroids including heart attacks, strokes, reduced fertility, hardening of the arteries, liver damage, the development of male characteristics in women (e.g., increased facial hair), and enlargement or tenderness of male breasts or nipples.

Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARMs): These drugs are not authorized in Canada for any use and have not been reviewed by Health Canada for safety, effectiveness and quality. The use of bodybuilding products that contain SARMs can pose serious health risks such as heart attack, stroke and liver damage. The long-term effects on the body are unknown. Examples include andarine, ostarine (MK 2866), ligandrol (LDG-4033) myostine (YK-11), and testolone (RAD-140).

Somatropin: This is a prescription drug that contains human growth hormone. It is used to treat children or adults with stunted growth caused by their body's inability to produce sufficient amounts of natural growth hormones. It is also used to treat children with Turner syndrome or chronic renal failure. Somatropin can alter blood sugar levels and its use may require patients to monitor their blood sugar regularly. It can affect patients' thyroid hormones resulting in the need for thryoid hormone replacement. It can cause an allergic reaction that may be life threatening. In certain patients, it can cause brain swelling requiring immediate medical attention. In children, it may increase the risk of developing hip problems and childhood leukemia. Somatropin should only be used under the direct supervision of physicians experienced in the diagnosis and management of patients with these disorders.

SOURCE Health Canada

For further information: Media enquiries: Health Canada, (613) 957-2983, [email protected]; Public enquiries: (613) 957-2991, 1-866 225-0709, [email protected]
T wo people have died and 14 others were injured following a shooting at a backyard party in New York, police said.

Witnesses reported hearing gunfire in the early hours of Saturday morning in Rochester.

Interim Police Chief Mark Simmons told reporters a man and woman had died, both between the ages of 18 and 22.

As many as 100 people were at the gathering when the shooting started just before 12.30am, said Mr Simmons.

Police respond to the shooting in Rochester / AP

He added that it was too early to say whether more than one person was shooting or who the intended targets may have been.

The wounded were taken to two different hospitals and none of them are believed have life-threatening injuries, said police.

"This is truly a tragedy of epic proportions," Mr Simmons said near scene of the shooting, which appeared to stretch at least a block.

He added: "I mean 16 victims is unheard of, and for our community, who's right now going through so much, to have to be dealt with this tragedy, needlessly, for people who decide to act in a violent manner is unfortunate and shameful, and we're going to do everything that we can as a department to bring those people involved to justice."

Witnesses told Wham the bullets sounded "like the Vietnam War."

A reporter at the scene said he could hear family members "crying and consoling each other". He added: "Its really painful to hear."

Lovely Warren, Mayor of Rochester, called for people to remain calm and exercise "deep restraint" as police carry out their investigation.

"Our Pathways to Peace Team is on the ground and working with the victims and their families," said Mayor Warren.

"This tragic act of violence has impacted many people's lives and families.

"I'm begging everyone to remain calm and exercise deep restraint as RPD investigates what happened here and seeks those responsible.

"Please keep our city in your continual prayers."

Mr Simmons expressed frustration that someone had held a large, late-night party in defiance of a state ban on large gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic.

"This is yet another tragedy where individuals are having these illegal, unsanctioned house parties taking place in these properties, which  number one  is not safe because of Covid, because of the conditions," he said.

"And then you add in alcohol and violence and it just becomes a recipe for disaster."

Pastor Marlowe Washington told WROC-TV: "Whoever was the host of this party needs to be held accountable for this."

The shooting comes after the citys police department was rocked by the suffocation death of Daniel Prude.

Video taken in March and made public by Mr Prudes family on September 4 shows him handcuffed and naked with a spit hood over his head as an officer pushes his face against the street while another officer presses a knee to his back.

The officers held him down for about two minutes until he stopped breathing. He was taken off life support a week later.

On Monday, Mayor Warren sacked police chief LaRon Singletary, who she said initially misled her about the circumstances of Mr Prudes death.

Additional reporting by Associated Press.
RTHK: Protesters take to the streets of Bangkok

Around 20,000 people protested in Thailand's capital on Saturday against the government of former coup leader and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, with many demonstrators also calling for reforms to the monarchy.

"Down with feudalism, long live the people," was one of the chants at the biggest demonstration in Bangkok since Prayuth took power in a 2014 coup.

Protests have been building in the southeast Asian country since mid July, demanding the removal of the government, a new constitution and elections. They have also broken a long-standing taboo by criticising the monarchy of King Maha Vajiralongkorn.

Saturday's protests moved from the campus of Thammasat University, a traditional hotbed of opposition to the military and royalist establishment, on to Sanam Luang - translated as Royal Field - outside the Grand Palace.

"I hope the people in power will see the importance of the people," student leader Panupong "Mike" Jadnok, told the crowd. "We are fighting to put the monarchy in the right place, not to abolish it."

Organisers said there were 50,000 people present in the latest demonstration. Police said there were at least 18,000, still enough to make it bigger than a protest last month. Protesters have said they plan to stay overnight and march to Government House on Sunday morning.

The king was not in Thailand and has spent much of his time in Europe since taking the throne from his late father in 2016. The Royal Palace was not available for comment on the protests.

People can protest but they should do that peacefully and within the law, said government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri.

September 19 is the anniversary of the coup against the populist then-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 2006. Among the protesters were many of his red shirt followers, veterans of clashes a decade ago with pro-establishment yellow shirts.

Im here to fight for the future of my children and grandchildren. I hope that by the time I die, they will become free, said 68-year-old Tasawan Suebthai, a redshirt with amulets round her neck which she hoped would ward off bullets.

So far the latest protests have been peaceful.

The military, which proclaims itself the defender of the monarchy and national stability, has carried out several bloody crackdowns on protesters since the end of absolute monarchy in 1932 as well as 13 successful coups.

Prayuth has said the government would allow protests but that demands for reform of the monarchy were not acceptable.

A 20-year-old student, who gave her name only as Waan for fear of reprisals, said it was time to reform the monarchy. "Its a problem thats been swept under the rug for so long. This must end right here.

Protesters demand the scrapping of a lese majeste law against criticism of the monarchy. They also seek to reduce the king's constitutional powers and his control over the palace fortune and units of the army.

The last time such a large crowd assembled at Sanam Luang was in mourning for the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who was widely revered in the country of 70 million.

There were also sympathy protests in Taipei and Tokyo while others were planned in Europe and North America. (Reuters)

This story has been published on: 2020-09-19. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
WASHINGTON  Hours after the Supreme Court announced the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the majority leader, vowed that the Senate would vote on a replacement named by President Trump, setting up what is all but guaranteed to be a heated fight over the nations highest court that carries heavy political consequences.

That statement answered the question of whether Mr. McConnell, who in 2016 blocked President Barack Obamas Supreme Court nominee because it was an election year, would dare try to confirm one named by Mr. Trump so close to an election. He would. Now the question is, can Mr. McConnell pull it off?

The process is likely to be ugly, but it can be done. Heres how it works.

Can Democrats block Trumps nominee through a filibuster?

No.

Democrats eliminated the 60-vote threshold for most judicial nominees in 2013, frustrated by Republicans use of the filibuster to slow and impede Mr. Obamas agenda. In turn, angered by resistance to the nomination of Justice Neil M. Gorsuch in 2017, Republicans abolished the limitation on Supreme Court nominees, further whittling down the scope of the filibuster.

As a result, Mr. McConnell could bring the nomination to the Senate floor and approve it with a simple majority vote. Mr. Trump signaled on Saturday that he would formally name someone to fill the vacancy in the near future.
Gwyneth Paltrows lifestyle regimens either delight her fans or put people off. The actor/entrepreneurs Goop site sells plenty of pricey goods in the clothing, beauty, home, and wellness categories, and Paltrow sometimes catches flak.

Recently, Netflix renewed Paltrows series, The Goop Lab, for a second season and she continues to recommend certain products and treatments on her site. But not everything she swears by is on the expensive side. Theres one beauty item she uses that doesnt break the bank.

Gwyneth Paltrow | Gary Gershoff/Getty Images

Gwyneth Paltrow is a clean beauty advocate

Even before founding Goop, Paltrow was a proponent of beauty items that avoid harsh chemicals. When she launched her own brand, she created her own line of Goop skincare and cosmetics products.

The site also sells brands from other companies such as C & The Moon and The Organic Pharmacy. In 2019, Paltrow did an interview with Byrdie and highlighted some of the Goop skincare products she uses in her routine.

She pinpointed the instant facial and night cream as two of her favorites. Im literally obsessed with [the line], Paltrow said. I was able to make my dream products. Its heaven; it totally changed my skin. And Im not just saying that because I made it.

To drive home her point that the ingredients used in her line are organic and free of chemicals, she and Jimmy Fallon ate some of them.

However, not everything Paltrow touts is part of her own brand. Theres another product she loves for her skin.

RELATED: Gwyneth Paltrow is Bringing Her Goop to Netflix. Whos Ready?

Paltrow keeps Weleda in her personal stash

Paltrow recently spoke to W Magazine about her wellness regimen and skincare habits. In addition to infrared sauna sessions and vitamins, theres one drugstore item that she keeps on hand. Its Weleda Skin Food, a moisturizer composed of clean ingredients. Paltrow told the outlet shes used it for years.

You can typically find the tubes in travel size ($3), 1 oz. ($10), or the larger 2.5 oz, which has highest price point at roughly $19. The cream comes in original (which is fairly thick) or light and tends to last long. A little bit goes a long way.

The brand is well-known in the natural beauty category and has its roots in Switzerland. Weleda uses plants such as chamomile and calendula in their line, which are either grow in-house or outsourced through fair trade suppliers.

Other celebrities use Weleda Skin Food too

Paltrow isnt the only famous person who loves this particular product. Julia Roberts once told InStyle she uses it on her hands, especially after washing dishes. Its also a favorite of Rihanna, Victoria Beckham, Ashley Graham (who once joked its like crack), and Adele.

Beckham told IntoTheGloss that Skin Food is one of her beauty secrets. What I love about it is that its not particularly expensive and you can find it anywhere, she said. The formula is so thick and buttery. When I have a tan, Ill mix it with coconut oilthe same you use to cook withand cover my entire body with it.
AstraZeneca revealed details of its large coronavirus vaccine trials on Saturday, the third in a wave of rare disclosures by drug companies under pressure to be more transparent about how they are testing products that are the worlds best hope for ending the pandemic.

Polls are finding Americans increasingly wary of accepting a coronavirus vaccine. And scientists inside and outside the government are worried that regulators, pressured by the president for results before Election Day on Nov. 3, might release an unproven or unsafe vaccine.

The release of these protocols seems to reflect some public pressure to do so, said Natalie Dean, a biostatistician and expert in clinical trial design for vaccines at the University of Florida. This is an unprecedented situation, and public confidence is such a huge part of the success of this endeavor.

Experts have been particularly concerned about AstraZenecas vaccine trials, which began in April in Britain, because of the companys refusal to provide details about serious neurological illnesses in two participants, both women, who received its experimental vaccine in Britain. Those cases spurred the company to halt its trials twice, the second time earlier this month. The studies have resumed in Britain, Brazil, India and South Africa, but are still on pause in the U.S. About 18,000 people worldwide have received AstraZenecas vaccine so far.
Tributes have poured in from actors, celebrities and other public figures following the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the age of 87.

The US Supreme Court Justice had battled a number of health problems before dying on Friday (18 September), from complications stemming from metastatic pancreatic cancer.

The widely revered jurists granddaughter released a statement revealing that her dying wish was that she not be replaced until after the US presidential election, which is due to be held this Novemeber.

People gather to mourn the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg in front of the Supreme Court (Getty Images)

My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed, she said.

Among those paying tribute to Ginsburg - who was often referred to as RBG (or, humorously, as The Notorious RBG) - was bestselling music artist Mariah Carey.

Thank you for a lifetime of service. Thank you for changing history. We will never let it be undone. RIP RBG, wrote Carey on Twitter.

Alongside a picture of Ginsburg and a blue heart emoji, Avengers star Chris Evans wrote: One of one.

His Marvel co-star Mark Ruffalo wrote: Okay, today we mourn a Lioness Of Light and Righteousness, tomorrow we fight like RBG did for us every single day.

She would have it no other way. Rest In Power Justice RGB! We will prevail on your behalf.

Mark Hamill, best known as Luke Skywalker in Star Wars, described Ginsburgs death as a gut-wrenching loss

Could 2020 be any more brutal and cruel? he added. #RIPRuthBaderGinsburg.

Comedian and actor Sarah Silverman wrote: RIP RBG. Gutted. Sad. Grateful for all she did. And very very scared.

Access unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows with Amazon Prime Video Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up

Little Fires Everywhere star Kerry Washington wrote: Her rest is earned. It is our turn to fight.

Stand By Me filmmaker Rob Reiner wrote: Today couldnt be sadder. A brilliant Jurist, Ruth Bader Ginsburg is gone. We must fight not to allow an Impeached Criminal to take her seat.

Former Star Trek actor George Takai wrote: Let's fight for RBG like she fought for us.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was the kind of scholar and patriot you get excited about explaining to your kids, wrote actor and writer Mindy Kaling.

The kind of person who you say who knows, one day you could be HER. I hope you rest well, RBG, you must have been tired from changing the world.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has urged the Republican-controlled body to delay filling the US Supreme Court seat left by Ruth Bader Ginsburg, invoking Mitch McConnells statement defending the Senates efforts to block a new justice in the wake of Antonin Scalias death.

His word-for-word response: The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

The Senator Majority Leader led efforts to block confirmation hearings for Merrick Garland, appointed by Democratic president Barack Obama, following conservative Justice Scalias death in February 2016, months before that years presidential election.

Justice Ginsburg, a mighty figure on the nations high court and one of only four women to have served on it, died on 18 September following a battle with pancreatic cancer. She was 87.

Just six weeks before Election Day, Senator McConnell announced that Donald Trumps nominee to succeed her will receive a vote on the Senate floor.

"Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary, he said in a statement. President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."

After 293 days, Mr Garlands appointment had expired on 3 January 2017.

Weeks later, following Mr Trumps inauguration, he selected Neil Gorsuch to fill the vacancy left by Justice Scalia.

The Senate confirmed Justice Gorsuch in April of that year.
Health chiefs constantly tell us to slash our salt intake, but new research suggests that having too little also carries health risks.

Doctors at the Royal Free Hospital in London found that too little salt in the body, over a long period of time, weakens the immune system, increasing the risk of infections.

Patients with Gitelman syndrome and Bartter syndrome, which cause an excessive loss of salt through the kidneys, were more likely than others to suffer from recurrent fungal and urinary infections.

The authors of the study, published in the medical journal Nature Communications, explain that a lack of salt halts the production of a type of white blood cell called interleukin 17, which detects and destroys infections.

Health chiefs constantly tell us to slash our salt intake, but new research suggests that having too little also carries health risks. Pictured: Stock image

Holding hands soon after a row could help couples bring a swift end to any disagreement, research suggests.

Partners who held hands and gazed at one another for three minutes after a heated discussion became less stressed, and saw their heart rates return to normal more quickly, the study found.

One theory is that touching hands raises levels of oxytocin, the so-called cuddle hormone, which is linked to happy feelings.

The researchers, from the University of Amsterdam, suggest the technique could prove useful in couples therapy.

Leukaemia warnings we ignore

Half of British adults wouldnt seek help for telltale signs of blood cancer, according to a survey.

Research by charity Leukaemia Care found that half of participants surveyed would not visit the GP with unusual bruising or bleeding  the most common signs of leukaemia.

The survey of 2,000 people also found three-quarters wouldnt seek help for other symptoms, such as fevers or night sweats, and two in five wouldnt speak to a doctor about feeling weak and breathless.

Zack Pemberton-Whiteley, patient advocacy director at Leukaemia Care, said: If anybody is experiencing one or more of these symptoms, its always worth contacting a GP and requesting a blood test.
Mr Martin was speaking as Dublin enters three weeks of tighter restrictions designed to combat a surge in cases.

Earlier this week, acting chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn warned that the coronavirus situation had deteriorated nationally.

He said 50 per cent of Thursdays cases were in Dublin.

On Saturday, 274 new cases of the virus were confirmed in the previous 24-hour reporting period by the National Public Health Emergency Team, of which 166 were in Dublin.

From midnight on Friday non-essential travel is being discouraged to and from the capital, visits to private homes have been capped at six people from one household and indoor dining at eateries has been stopped.

Mr Martin revealed he is worried about the situation in Dublin, describing numbers as rising exponentially.

He has urged the public to abide by the new rules, adding that recent regional lockdowns in counties Kildare, Laois and Offaly worked.

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Dublin has been placed at risk Level 3 of the Governments blueprint plan to deal with the virus, while the rest of the country remains at Level 2.

The Taoiseach said Level 3 is not a lockdown and is nowhere near the lockdown we had, with retail, education and construction still open and people not restricted to a five kilometre limit.

There is one sector that is taking a terrible hit and that is hospitality, tourism, travel and aviation, he told RTE.

That whole area is the one most impacted, not just here but across the world.

No government is going to stop the virus on its own, its a collective effort, and it is a very dangerous virus.

Its a one in a 100 year event. Its affecting how we do things, its upending all our lives, how we behave. We dont shake hands any more. Who would have thought a year ago we would be doing this?

Mr Martin said Ireland was in a better place than most.

Scotland were on to Ireland last week, we helped them out with lab capacity, he said.

There is deep trouble in the United Kingdom, theres huge pressure globally on the testing kits. Were up to 15,000 capacity a day, we have done a lot of testing in nursing homes and in meat plants, and so far the positivity rate is very low.

Meanwhile Mr Martin conceded the coalition government had taken too long to be formed earlier this year following the inconclusive general election result.

I think that period went on too long  it was difficult and challenging, he said.

The whole policy formulation, negotiating a programme for government, Covid itself in terms of social distancing and how long you could meet for, and then the interim government had to deal with Covid.

He described his relationship with tripartite coalition partners, Fine Gael leader Leo Varadkar and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan, positively.

We get on very well on a personal level, and with Eamon Ryan the three of us, we have a great facility to pick up the phone if we think there is something wrong, he said.

Leo interrogates issues and will give different perspectives on issues and hell weigh it up in his own mind and speak this out  which I think is a healthy thing.

In politics there is a lot of noise going on around the bubble, I tend to focus on the substance of the policy and I want to get things done.
The nervous system comprises neurons and glial cells (glia signifies "glue"). Astrocytes are the most abundant among the glial cells. Among many other functions they undertake to capture glucose from the blood stream to provide energy and allow the necessary neuronal activity to take place, and thus ensure that cognitive functions are performed correctly.

Neurons for their part control astrocyte activity by means of molecules present in the astrocytes, which include type 1 (CB1) cannabinoid receptors. However, these receptors, which also modulate communication between the astrocytes and the neurons, constitute the main target of the psychoactive component of cannabis, known as THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol).

What happens when THC acts on the astrocytes? The research, in which Dr Pedro Grandes' group participated, concludes that the activation of CB1 cannabinoid receptors in the mitochondria (cell organelles responsible for producing energy) of mice astrocytes hampers the metabolism of glucose and the production of lactate in the brain; this alters neuronal function and leads to a deterioration in social interaction behaviours.

The activation of these receptors causes the astrocytes to generate fewer reactive oxygen species, which has a negative effect on glucose production from lactate leading to neuronal stress and a lack of social interaction. What makes this research significant is not only the identification of this deficiency, which can be reversed through genetic and pharmacological manipulation of these molecular and biochemical changes brought about by cannabinoid treatment, but also its contribution to knowledge relating to the changes caused by cannabis in the brain". Dr Pedro Grandes

The following people have participated in this study: Nagore Puente and Itziar Bonilla, Svein Achicallende and Pedro Grandes of the Department of Neurosciences of the Faculty of Medicine and Nursing at the UPV/EHU-University of the Basque Country and from the Achucarro Basque Center for Neuroscience; they worked alongside an international multidisciplinary team led by the researchers Juan P. Bolanos (University of Salamanca) and Giovanni Marsicano (NeuroCentre Magendie de Bordeaux, University of Bordeaux) with researchers from the Complutense University of Madrid, University of Poitiers and University Paris-Saclay (France), Universite de Moncton and University of Victoria (Canada), University of Lausanne (Switzerland) and the University Medical Center, Mainz (Germany), among other centres and hospitals.

The collaboration between Dr Pedro Grandes' research group and the team led by Dr Giovanni Marsicano of the University of Bordeaux turned out to be crucial in demonstrating, for the first time, the presence of CB1 receptors in neuron mitochondria, whose activation reduces mitochondrial activity leading to memory loss.

The results of these studies were published in 2012 in Nature Neuroscience and in 2016 in Nature. However, "what remains to be done is to find out the function of the CB1 receptors located in the astrocyte mitochondria, and therein lies the significance of this new finding, which also constitutes continuity in the cross-border line of research and co-operation", explained Dr Grandes.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs passing means the ideological balance of the Supreme Court is now at stake. Should the Republican-controlled Senate replace Ginsburg with a justice chosen by Donald Trumpas Sen. Mitch McConnell has said hell do, contradicting his own reasoning for why he refused to hold hearings for Merrick Garlandconservatives would gain a sixth seat. One of the most certain consequences would be the likely destruction of abortion rights and access in America as we know them.

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Since Trumps election, the conservatives on the court have already begun to erode judicial precedent protecting abortion rights. In the most recent abortion access case to appear before the court, June Medical Services v. Russo, reproductive rights advocates barely squeaked by with a win: Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the liberals, but only narrowly, in a concurrence that chipped away at the heightened standard for abortion restrictions set by the courts previous decision in Whole Womans Health v. Hellerstedt. Trumps likely choice for Ginsburgs replacement, federal Judge Amy Coney Barrett, appears to be even more overtly hostile to abortion rights than Trumps previous Supreme Court picks.

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A 63 majority on the Supreme Court would likely repeal or dramatically undercut Roe v. Wade, allowing the government to consign millions of women to pregnancy and childbirth against their will. Whats even more despicable than that? Americans dont even want this.

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Abortion rights in the U.S. are as popular now as theyve ever been. Last year, nearly every major poll on abortion rights found support for Roe v. Wade at record highs. A June CBS poll found that nearly two-thirds of Americans want to keep Roe v. Wades protections in place, while less than one-third want to overturn them. It wasnt just Democrats: A strong majority of independents and a plurality of Republicans said they wanted to keep Roe v. Wade around, too. As NBC News has tracked views on abortion over the past decade, support for legal abortion has risen among most measurable demographics: Women, men, Democrats, and Republicans have all grown more supportive of abortion rights, a unified trend in opinion rarely seen on such a purportedly controversial topic.

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At the same time, according to an ABC/Washington Post poll, the proportion of Americans who want to make abortion illegal in all or most cases has fallen nearly 10 points in the past decade. Voters are clear on where they stand: In 2019, the Pew Research Center found that, by a margin of 10 points, Americans prefer the Democratic Partys stance on abortion to the GOPs. Independents support Democrats over Republicans on abortion by a similar margin, according to a PBS NewsHour/NPR/Marist poll. And far more Americans are worried about states making it harder to get an abortion than are worried about states making it easier.

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In a better society, a persons right to decide whether and when to bear children would be wholly safeguarded on human rights grounds. She would be able to make her own decisions about her health care and her body, no matter who was president, where in the country she lived, or what the majority of her neighbors thought. In this country, though, the matter of whether a woman can be forced by the government to bear unwanted children is decided by the nine people on the Supreme Court, and the nine people seated on the Supreme Court are determined by the Senate, an institution that structurally favors the will of the minority.

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Several Supreme Court justices have been openly itching to roll back womens rights since they gained an ideological majority. The fact that they may do so at a time when support for abortion rights is at an all-time high does not just add insult to injury. It is a reminder that women will suffer due to the choices of a man elected by a minority of voters, a Senate that represents a minority of voters, and a Supreme Court that is not beholden to voters at all. The courts dismantling of Roe v. Wade would simply be another catastrophic failure of democracy.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: India on Thursday said both New Delhi and Beijing must focus on easing tensions in friction areas along the LAC even as China said it was imperative for India to correct its mistakes.

Both sides should focus on easing tensions in the friction areas by refraining from any actions that may lead to an escalation in the situation. This requires strict adherence to the bilateral agreements and protocols and not making unilateral attempts to change the status quo, MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said.

He also urged the Chinese side to work sincerely with India for complete disengagement at the earliest from areas including the Pangong Tso as well as for de-escalation in border areas in accordance with the bilateral agreements and protocols.

We hope the Chinese side will strictly respect and observe the LAC and not make further attempts to unilaterally change status quo, Srivastava said.

A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said Chinas frontline troops had been observing the agreements between the two sides.

The troops are committed to safeguarding Chinas sovereignty and territorial integrity and also maintaining peace and tranquility in border areas. It is imperative for India to correct its mistakes, realise disengagement on the ground and take concrete action to ease up tensions in the relevant areas.

On the issue of snooping by a Chinese company, India said it had taken up the issue with Beijing which claimed that the company was a private entity and had no connections with the government.

"The government has constituted an expert committee under the National Cyber Security Coordinator to study these reports, evaluate their implications, assess any violations of law and submit its recommendations within 30 days, Srivastava said.

Snooping in India

Zhenhua Data Information Technology has been allegedly monitoring over 10K prominent citizens including President, PM.
Staff at the Lang Co epidemic checkpoint have a busy day as they strive to quickly solve issues, avoid large gatherings, and implement COVID-19 prevention and control measures. A policeman is on duty for the entire day to reduce traffic congestion around the Lang Co epidemic checkpoint.
SL seeks more budgetary support from China By Bandula Sirimanna View(s): View(s):

Loaded with massive debt of billions of rupees, and in order to overcome the financial crisis triggered by COVID-19, Sri Lanka is seeking more budgetary support from China using its strategic ties, highly placed official sources said.

Beijing is now in a better position to help the island, as it has already brought the COVID-19 issue under control, and the borrowing might be quicker and under favourable conditions, an eminent economist who wished to remain anonymous told the Business Times.

To resurrect the economy and prevent the recurrence of COVID-19, Sri Lanka urgently needs to seek China for technical assistance to contain the spread of the virus and necessary funds to tackle the economic recession forecasted in the coming months, he said.

In the remaining months of this year, the government will have to pay around U$2.8 billion (balance of $3.2 billion) for loans and interest, followed by $13.8 billion for debt service from 2021 to 2023, latest available official data showed.

The government has sought $1.5 billion from China in a currency swap, as an IMF loan of about $800 million under a new Rapid Credit Facility still hangs in the balance, a senior official connected to financial negotiations told the Business Times.

It expects a balance of $1 billion in this lending, of which already $500 million was disbursed in March this year for budget support and to repay installments of loans falling due.

Another $800 million is expected soon, the official said adding that the government seeks the additional Chinese credit to bridge the budget deficit.

The ministry is currently negotiating with Industrial and Commerce Bank of China (London) PLC and three other foreign banks to raise at least $500 million under Foreign Currency Term Financing Facility (FTFF).

The Government reserves the right to select or reject any of their proposals without giving reasons, he said.

The FTFF is expected to be raised at a fixed rate or a floating rate, linked to the $ 6 Month LIBOR or its successor with a maturity period of one year or more.

The proceeds of the FTFF will be used for the purposes of financing the expenditure as approved in the Vote on Account (VoA) for the fiscal year 2020.

So far, China has provided an urgent loan of $500 million to help Sri Lanka fight the coronavirus.

It will borrow another $80 million (Rs. 15 billion) from the China Development Bank soon, to improve 105 km of roads.

The government signed a loan agreement seeking $500 million from the same bank early this year.
TUs, employers in deadlock By Sunimalee Dias View(s): View(s):

Trade unions have asked employers to release information regarding issues in factories in order to agree to the revised salary scheme for those at home without work.

FTZ Trade Union General Secretary Anton Marcus speaking with the Business Times said that they had asked the employers to provide information that they could then assess if workers need to be given half salaries. The agreement to pay reduced wages to workers at home is to conclude by the end of this month.

He noted that they wanted information like the number of workers dismissed, those in employment, the order situation and the plans for the future.

We can see that now most of the factories have called back to work most of the employees and most are engaged in overtime as well while some are recruiting new employees as well, he said.

Labour Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva had stated that once he receives this information all parties will be called for another discussion.

However some companies complain that there is a dearth of orders and that it is impossible to continue and that they need to continue under the current wage scheme for another three months.

Still the market has not picked up, Sri Lanka Apparel Exporters Association President Rehan Lakhany told the Business Times on Monday.

He noted that all companies in their membership are currently looking at new ways of receiving orders but sales continued to be low.

We are hoping that the concession the government announced with regard to the payment of salaries will be extended for a further three months, Mr. Lakhany said.

Under the tripartite agreement entered into between the trade unions, the Employers Federation and the Labour Ministry there is an understanding that workers asked to remain at home will be paid Rs.14, 500 or half of their salaries whichever is higher due to lack of adequate work at the factories.
(Newser)  Mitch McConnell vowed late Friday that a vote will be held on President Trump's nominee to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court, who died Friday at 87. But prominent Democrats, including Barack Obama, are pushing back, digging up the remarks of McConnell and other GOP senators from 2016, when they refused to hold a vote on Merrick Garland, then-President Obama's pick to replace Antonin Scalia on the bench. McConnell's argument then: that filling an empty Supreme Court seat during an election year should wait until after the election. The New York Times notes Sen. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer got the ball rolling by tweeting McConnell's exact words from four years ago: "The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president."

story continues below

CNN International correspondent Michael Holmes also tweeted out a series of 2016 quotes from GOP senators who echoed McConnell's thoughts at the time and refused to consider Obama's selection for the court. "Why would we squelch the voice of the populace? Why would we deny the voters a chance to weigh in?" Sen. Tom Cotton said then. Meanwhile, Barack Obama is also offering his own thoughts. In a late-night Medium post, the former president praised Ginsburg's esteemed career, and then noted: "She also left instructions for how she wanted her legacy to be honored." In short, Obama said, the GOP should, in "everyday fairness ... apply rules with consistency, and not based on what's convenient or advantageous in the moment." As Americans have already started early voting, "Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard." More here. (Read more Ruth Bader Ginsburg stories.)
Filmmaker Michael Moore has warned that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is running a worse ground game in Michigan than Hillary Clinton, who ultimately lost the state by half a percentage point in the 2016 presidential election.

Moore made the comments during an appearance on The Hills Rising to discuss the Biden campaign. The documentarian cited a poll from the Detroit Free Press, showing that Mr Bidens lead over Mr Trump in Michigan has dropped 50 percent since June.

The fact that Trump has narrowed the lead by 50 percent since June should have everybody screaming bloody murder, Moore said. "We dont have a minute to lose on this.

Asked by the hosts what Mr Biden should do to reverse this trend, Moore said his campaign needs to start with a ground game and spend more time engaging Black voters in Michigan rather than disaffected Republicans.

Its actually worse than Hillary, Moore said. At least there was a ground game, even though she didnt show up. There were Hillary offices in many towns, there were door-to-door campaigns.

Moore noted that Ms Clintons 2016 campaign deliberately avoid using yard signs out of fear that they would remind Trump voters to get out and vote against her.

So, theyre afraid. They start with the fear of the Trump voter, and thats whats going on now, Moore said.

He later referenced a Time magazine article detailing Mr Bidens invisible digital campaign in Michigan, where in many areas, not a single sign can be found.

The Biden campaign headquarters has somehow decided to ghost Michigan. His campaign manager says in the article, Well, were just doing it different this time. Yes, we need to do it differently than 2016, but we need to go the other direction. We need more, we dont need less, Moore said.




We're a family of seven living in Georgia where Andrew's working as a professor at GSU. You can read more about us here
"My boss promised hed make sure the guy got it but since the two of us had never exchanged numbers or contact information, to this day I dont know if he liked the car or not. Crazy, eh?"

"I said something like, That sucks; I have this Hot Wheels car I need to give to somebody and hes not here today," Walker says, seated on the patio of a Main Street coffee shop.

Unfortunately, the intended recipient was away the morning Walker brought the newly minted Hot Wheels car to work. Worse, as he was preparing to start his shift a supervisor pulled him aside to inform him he was being laid off, effective immediately.

Noticing the Chevelle, he decided to repaint his scale-model version so that it perfectly matched its larger cousin, with the purpose of presenting it to his co-worker as a keepsake.

Walker, 31, belongs to a Manitoba-based group called 204 Hot Wheels. What sets him apart from the majority of the clubs 600 or so other members is that in addition to collecting and displaying die-cast cars, he also spends hour after hour painstakingly customizing ones on his shelves by swapping out parts such as tires, engine assemblies and steering racks in a bid to fashion something entirely new and unique.

Walker, a resident of St. Andrews, was headed home from his job at a Selkirk manufacturing plant four years back when he spotted a co-workers car, the aforementioned Chevelle, in the staff parking lot. Studying its two-door hardtop design, he murmured to himself, "Hey, I have one of those." More specifically, he had "one of those" in the form of a Hot Wheels toy automobile.

Walker also makes small dioramas turning Hot Wheel cars into old rusted cars that look like they have been abandoned in a field.

Like most kids, Walker grew up playing with Hot Wheels, first introduced by American toy company Mattel in 1968. His family lived near Petersfield and he has fond memories of accompanying his mother to Gaynors Foods in nearby Selkirk where she almost always let him pick out a new car from a display close to the cash register, while they waited in line to pay for groceries.

Walker eventually moved on from the playthings before getting back into them again about five years ago, this time from a collectible standpoint. He didnt know customizing Hot Wheels was a "thing," he admits, until he came across a website explaining how to do just that. A self-described "car guy" who studied auto body repair for three years at Lord Selkirk Regional Comprehensive Secondary School and drives a perfectly maintained 94 Cavalier, he thought the hobby sounded "super-interesting." After acquiring a few recommended tools  most importantly, a jewelry saw and corded drill  he got busy tailor-making his toys.

"In the beginning there was a lot of trial and error so I mainly worked on junkers, cars that werent worth more than a buck, til I got the hang of things," he says, recalling his first successful custom was an orange, 32 Ford coupe he repainted speckled red. "Originally I figured working on toy cars would be a piece of cake compared to what we did at school, except when youre cutting holes into tiny hoods or snipping mini axles, its pretty easy to mess up. On the bright side, its a much cheaper fix if you ruin a Hot Wheels car versus the real deal."

"In the beginning there was a lot of trial and error so I mainly worked on junkers, cars that werent worth more than a buck, til I got the hang of things."  Daniel Walker

In time, word spread through the local Hot Wheels community about what he was up to. One fellow got in touch asking if he could design an 84 Mustang Hot Wheels car to match what was parked in his driveway. Another club member reached out, hoping he might build a scale-model Honda Civic based on a design hed personally come up with, but didnt have the wherewithal to complete.

For the Civic he cut the hood open and dropped a new motor inside. Next he added rear drag racing tires then did a fade paint job, changing the colour from yellow to burnt orange. Finally he super-glued "these little tubings" hed created to mimic dual exit exhaust pipes. He adds that while hes aware some people rely on 3D printers for parts  the website mycustomhotwheels.com offers a plethora of tips and tricks in that regard  for the time being hes content salvaging pieces such as axles and roll bars from a stash of cars he keeps around for that purpose.

"Some of my friends and family members used to kind of laugh at me for what I was doing, thinking I was wasting my time, but when I told them people from as far as Newfoundland have paid me to customize (Hot Wheels) cars for them, they kinda stopped laughing," he says, noting hes currently working on a few projects  dioramas of rusted-out, mini pickups and such  that he will be auctioning off through 204 Hot Wheels in November, with all proceeds going towards the Salvation Armys 2020 Toy Mountain Christmas campaign.

MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS After acquiring a few recommended tools  most importantly, a jewelry saw and corded drill  Walker got busy tailor-making his toys.

"I did the same thing last year and managed to raise a couple hundred bucks, so lets hope that repeats itself this year," he says.

Ted Saunders is one of the administrators for the 204 Hot Wheels Facebook page. Guessing he has in the neighbourhood of 5,000 Hot Wheels cars on display in the rec room he shares with his "very understanding" wife, Saunders, a Ferrari fan, says Hot Wheels enthusiasts are divided when it comes to customizing: some love the idea while others cant even fathom removing their cars from the original packaging, never mind slicing them into bits.

"I personally like the cars in their original form but after seeing some of the amazing customs that are out there, I can definitely see the attraction to that side of things, too," he says. "I have a few I won from a charity raffle but thats about it. (Customizing) can be a lot of work, for sure. Probably one of the main reasons more people dont do it is they simply dont have the time or patience."

"Some of my friends and family members used to kind of laugh at me for what I was doing, thinking I was wasting my time, but when I told them people from as far as Newfoundland have paid me to customize (Hot Wheels) cars for them, they kinda stopped laughing."  Daniel Walker

One person who does have both the time and patience for the pastime is Sheri Abbey. The Michigan resident started collecting Hot Wheels in 1995 just after her son was born. In the early 2000s, by which point her cache numbered close to 10,000, she attended a toy show in St. Louis, where she spotted a customized Hot Wheels car for the first time. Raised by a father who was constantly building race cars and street rods, she suddenly saw her collection in a whole new light, she says.

"With custom Hot Wheels you drill the rivets out, chop up the body with a dremel tool and add or remove other parts to make it your own with J.B. Weld (epoxy) and Bondo (putty)," she goes on. "You can build anything you want. You are only limited by your imagination."

MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Walker customizes a truck by adding rubber wheels.

How accomplished is she? Well, in 2004 Abbey was contacted by a representative from Mattel who informed her shed been chosen, along with three others, to compete for the United States in an international Hot Wheels customizing competition set to take place in Japan. Once there, each team would have six months to build four custom cars: two mild  "basically repaint and wheels swap," she explains  and two wild, or anything goes, editions. She returned home with two medals, the only two medals Team USA received, she says.

Abbey received another Hot Wheels-related phone call in 2009. This time the person at the other end of the line congratulated her for being one of that years inductees into the Model Car Hall of Fame  yes, there is one  for her custom work. She still doesnt know who nominated her, she says with a chuckle.

"I have a Hall of Fame ring made by the same people who make Super Bowl rings," she says, listing comedian Jay Leno, ZZ Top guitarist and lead vocalist Billy Gibbons and legendary racing drivers Mario Andretti and Richard Petty as some of her fellow inductees. "My Hall of Fame classmates and I spent the entire weekend in Las Vegas. Just incredible and still hard to believe where these little toy cars have taken me."

david.sanderson@freepress.mb.ca

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United Nations, Sep 19 : Ahead of a high-level meeting to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the UN, a group of prominent former government leaders are calling for strengthening the world In an open letter, titled 'A Time for Renewal: Calling for a Strengthened Multilateral System' released on Friday, 48 former UN and government officials from around the world expect the 75th anniversary of the 193-nation body to lead to "a stronger, more accountable, inclusive multilateral system", reports Xinhua news agency.

In the letter, the leaders said "the institutional framework of global governance, with the UN at its core, must do more to provide the guidance, leadership and decisions required to ensure human safety, security and sustainable development in our interdependent world".

"From climate change to human rights, gender and racial equality, and from sustainable development to international peace and security - the international community should honour its commitments to the UN's founding Charter, Agenda 2030 and the Paris Agreement.

"There is an urgent need for an explicit recognition by global leaders that we are at a turning point and must act decisively to defend and rejuvenate multi-lateralism," they said, stressing that recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic needs national leadership and effective global cooperation.

Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said: "Multi-lateralism is not an option: it is the only path that can deliver a green, sustainable and equitable recovery." Maria Fernanda Espinosa, President of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly and former Foreign Minister of Ecuador, said that "the UN is an irreplaceable organization. It has a critical role in leading a concerted, coordinated response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and its recovery process which should allow us to build back better".

"This year's commemoration of the UN 75th anniversary is a golden opportunity to rejuvenate and retool the organization to build a more effective and inclusive multilateral system," Espinosa said.

The signatories also include Ban Ki-moon, former UN Secretary-General; Kevin Rudd, former Prime Minister of Australia; Helen Clark, former Prime Minister of New Zealand; Gordon Brown, former UK Prime Mminister; and Tarja Halonen, former President of Finland.

The letter will remain open for additional signatures until October 24.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Briefing about the Delhi journalist who was arrested for allegedly spying for China, Delhi police's special cell on Saturday, revealed that freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma had been in contact with Chinese intelligence officers since 2016. Police revealed that Sharma was arrested on September 14 based on inputs with central agencies and he was found in possession of sensitive defence documents when his houses were raided. Police is currently interrogating the Sharma and his two accomplices - a Chinese national and a Nepalese national after being given 6-day remand by a Delhi court.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates: India's tally crosses 53 lakh; 42,08,432 cured so far

Delhi police: Sharma in contact with Chinese officials since 2016

"Rajeev Sharma has been in journalism for 40 years and has worked for several media houses like - United News of India (UNI), Tribune, Free Press Journal, Sakaal, Hindustan Times, Times of India and Chinese mouthpiece Global Times. In 2016, he came into contact with a Chinese officer named Michael via Linkedin, and was invited to a Chinese city where he was given lucrative offers to share information," said Special Cell DCP Sanjeev Yadav.

Talking about the shell company dealing allegedly with medicine sale, set up by the Chinese and Nepalese individual for the alleged spying, Yadav stated that Sharma received huge amounts via Hawala transactions. He added that Sharma was contacted by another Chinese intelligence official - George, in 2019 where sensitive information regarding Army deployment, procurement and India- China relations was allegedly passed on. Several meetings were allegedly held in various places like Laos, Maldives.

Delhi journalist arrested under OSA for possessing classified defence documents

Detailing the Hawala transactions, Yadav stated that Sharma received Rs 40-45 lakh via different channels. Several mobiles, Chinese atm cards, laptops, tabs were seized from them. When asked what information was compromised due to Sharma's alleged spying, police said that Sharma was a regular in Delhi's media circles, had a PIB card, and access to ministries. The police are checking Sharma's e-mail IDs and social media accounts to ascertain what information has been leaked and with whom he has shared information with,

One of Sharma's accomplices - the Nepalese individual was a director of a cell pharma company in Delhi and allegedly provided the front for Sharama's operations. Meanwhile, the Chinese individual has been a resident of Delhi since 2013 when she enrolled for a course at Jamia University. Sharma has been arrested under the Official Secrets Act.

Journalist Rajeev Sharma was involved in passing sensitive defence & strategic information to Chinese intelligence officers from 2016 to 2018. He used to meet them at several locations in different countries: Sanjeev Kumar Yadav, DCP, Special Cell Delhi Police. https://t.co/Sxjp4ngVpj pic.twitter.com/QJivOL8xBF  ANI (@ANI) September 19, 2020

Delhi riots: Court summons all 15 accused booked for 'conspiracy' case on Sep 21

Delhi journalist arrested

Earlier on Friday, Delhi police revealed that journalist Rajeev Sharma had been was picked up from his Pitampura residence on September 14 after he was allegedly found to be in possession of classified defence documents. After being produced in the court on September 15, Sharma was remanded to 6-day police custody. Sharma - who is a columnist for Global times - had a Youtube channel under 'Rajeev Kishkinda', where he last posted a video on the India-China border issue. It has about 12,000 subscribers. His family members are also being quizzed by the Special Cell, Janakpuri, which is probing the matter headed by DCP Sanjeev Yadav.

Delhi Police denies Yechury, Yogendra Yadav chargesheeted in Delhi riots; CPI(M) jumps gun
Pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong distributes leaflets encouraging people to send postcards to twelve Hong Kong residents being held in the Chinese mainland after attempting to flee to Taiwan, in Hong Kong, China, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Tyrone Siu/Reuters)

Dozens of Hong Kong People Write Postcards to Fugitives Arrested by China

HONG KONGDozens of people in Hong Kong braved heavy rain on Friday evening to write postcards to 12 fugitives arrested by the Chinese regime at sea last month to offer comfort during the upcoming mid-Autumn festival.

The 12 were arrested on Aug. 23 accused of illegal entry into mainland Chinese waters after setting off from Hong Kong in a boat bound for Taiwan.

All were accused of committing crimes in Hong Kong related to the anti-government protests that erupted last year. Ten had been charged, released on bail and not allowed to leave Hong Kong, and all are now being detained in neighboring Shenzhen.

On Friday, activists set up booths in two districts to collect postcards, with several dozen passing through to leave their messages.

The security agency will see this postcard, but I dont care, wrote recent university graduate Zol Chan, 22, on her card. Please take care of yourselves.

Seeing their mothers crying in their press conference, I feel heartbroken and sad, she said later. Relatives of some of the detainees held a news conference on Saturday to demand their urgent return and plead for them to be allowed to call home and consult lawyers appointed by the families and not the Chinese regime.

As he wrote his message, university student Raymond Cho, 19, said he felt a responsibility to tell them that there are still a lot of us who care about them.

Ten of the detainees had been charged with offenses such as manufacturing explosives, arson, rioting, or assaulting police.

One other was accused of colluding with foreign forces under a national security law that Beijing imposed on Hong Kong in June.

It is unclear whether authorities will allow the postcards to reach the detainees. This year, the mid-Autumn festival, a full moon harvest celebration across Asia, falls on Oct. 1.

The United States has said that the national security law has led to heightened authoritarian control over the city, and in early August, the Trump administration sanctioned Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam and 10 other Hong Kong and Chinese officials for undermining the Hong Kongs autonomy and freedoms.

By Carol Mang and Yanni Chow

Epoch Times staff contributed to this report.
Sisters in Film (SIF), known in Arabic as rawiyat (the feminine term for storytellers), is a collective of nine emerging filmmakers from across the Arab world. Having struggled to make their debuts, these artists all found it even harder to make a second film, and decided to join forces to pool knowhow, facilitate their own artistic journeys and extend solidarity to other woman filmmakers. The Paris-based initiative will be launched during the upcoming, fourth round of El Gouna Film Festival (GFF, 23-31 October).



Naziha Arebi (Libya/UK), Yasmina Chouikh (Algeria), Danielle Davie (Lebanon), Myriam El Hage (Lebanon), Dorothee Myriam Kellou (Algeria/France), Dina Naser (Jordan), Erige Sehiri (Tunisia), Lina Soualem (Palestine/Algeria/France) and Kawthar Younis (Egypt) are proposing a kind of syndicate or union in which all Arab countries and diaspora Arabs can be represented. Enabling women to function in a safe environment that shields them from the fiercely competitive environment of the film industry, SIF is the first of its kind.

The story began in 2019 when the nine women met in Tunis and again in Rabat-Sale, Morocco for a workshop designed by the artistic director of Sale Film Festival Hicham Falah, part of the Med Films regional programme. As the SIF concept presentation puts it, this was when they realised how many struggles we had in common: isolation, legal and financial challenges, social safety net, moral and sexual harassment, lack of psychological support, difficulty to access information. All of us felt a lack of a network and solidarity not only in the region but globally.

Dina Naser is the Palestinian-Jordanian director of the award-winning Tiny Souls (2019), which follows the daily life of a little girl named Marwa at the refugee camp to which she flees Syria with her family, screened at the IDFA and GFF as well as many other prestigious festivals. For Naser the collective is a response to the first-film trauma suffered by Arab woman filmmakers, which resulted in many giving up their careers altogether.

We work in a cruel, aggressive environment controlled by men and closed circles, she says. At least the nine of us can make nine films happen, and we can support others who are making their first or second film. But she does not feel that the way to do this is to keep men out. There will be collaboration with male filmmakers too. We want to break out of the stereotype imposed on us and the assumption that a female initiative is exclusive to women. Our aim is to create an alternative but inclusive atmosphere where there is room for everyone.



SIFs working plan is still being drafted but Naser stresses the censorial challenges specific to woman directors. For example, as a Jordanian woman filmmaker I have to make all kinds of calculations before I can approach certain subjects. There are many taboo subjects in the Arab world and they are perceived differently when tackled by a woman. In the end we have to have what it takes not to lose our passion and this is just not easy. That is not to mention the lack of specialist skills and financial support since art is seldom prioritised. All of which impacts the industry. Filmmaking is a lifetimes journey and we want to make it more pleasant by building an alternative space governed by solidarity and creativity, and making it available not only directors, producers, writers, but also to technicians in every field of filmmaking.



The Egyptian Kawthar Younis made her debut, the feature-length documentary A Present from the Past (2016), during her third year at Cairos Higher Cinema Institute. But when it came to her second film it turned out the lack of a creative producer was her greatest challenge. A filmmaker cannot make a film based solely on the way she conceives it. There has to be a producer to take ideas further through discussion. One reason our films are not appealing worldwide is that their creative potential isnt explored. The collective could play this role, however: as woman filmmakers they could bounce ideas off each other, aware of the challenges they face in terms of opportunities, space and the ability not just to reach a point but to maintain and build on achievements.



The Lebanese Myriam El Hages A time to Rest (2015) is a personal journey into the horrors of the civil war through the minds of her uncle Riad and his friends. I personally joined SIF because it was so difficult to make my second film, she says, that I felt needed help. I needed people. I needed solidarity. When a female filmmaker makes her second film in her thirties, she faces all the social pressures of starting a family, having kids, and embracing her passion at the same time. It is very important to push women to continue, to make a second film. Because this is where we lose women in the film industry. We should stand by each other and not be part of the industrys competitive game. If we lose our selfish spirit and start taking a helpful and supportive attitude instead, that is what its all about.



In our region, says Danielle Davie, another Lebanese filmmaker, co-directed Embodied Chorus, which won GFFs best project in development two years ago, a female filmmakers biggest challenge is to be taken seriously. The film industry is dominated by men. Here in Lebanon, because we dont have an industry, lots of women work in the media production field but not in filmmaking. There is a different attitude to women even in film schools, and it is not obvious but you can feel it. My challenge is to achieve equality and equity, and help make society ready to listen to womens stories. Our stories dont look at the world in the same way as mens, and this is another challenge. Joining SIF will help to overcome this through solidarity, networking and sharing experience. Maybe one consequence will be changing the way films are funded and produced. For me it is a kind of movement.



For her part Lina Soualem does not believe the initiative is there to change the industry but to empower female filmmakers within it. She is currently developing her second feature documentary after her debut, Their Algeria (2019), which won best doc-in-progress at Canness Doc Corner and was selected to premiere at the Visions du Reel International Film Festival 2020.



I dont think were going to change the industry which is full of difficulties and competition, Soualem says, but we want to bring more solidarity and less competition to relations between filmmakers. Filmmaking is lonely business and if youre a woman you face the obstacle of having to justify yourself, to prove yourself, because people will not trust you as easily with grants or backing. It is important to build a network where the more privileged female filmmakers whose films have already been made and screened at international film festivals can connect with more isolated filmmakers who dont have the same opportunities in terms of travelling and connections.



In the Arab world filmmaking presents psychological challenges, she says: The topics tend to be heavy: political unrest, the trauma of war and colonisation. It is psychologically difficult to make a piece of art tackling social-political issues and to defend your vision and to find money in the West and in the Arab world and to present your project to people all at the same time, and the kind of solidarity SIF provides allows those who have more power and knowhow to share it with the others, she explains.



The Algerian Dorothee Myriam Kellou, SIF president, made In Mansourah, you separated us (2019), which follows her journey with her father Malek back to Mansourah, the village where he was born, for the first time since the Algerian War of Independence (1954-1962). Experiencing both worlds she understands Arab woman filmmakers difficulties. We tackle issues that are not very well received in society. In my film I work on colonialism in France and it is still very much a silent topic for which it is hard to find funding and emotional support. When I started my project I was very lonely and felt extremely emotionally isolated. There is also a double pressure on female filmmakers as they should not be free to do what they want, where the balance between your family life, your personal life, and your work life becomes a major concern.



As a woman travelling and working alone you may face sexual harassment too. You may be punished for not allowing yourself to be manipulated as a professional, or you may not be taken seriously. When I was shooting in Algeria, they used to call me by the word tofla, which means young woman. I was also separated from my male crew during mealtimes. That had its positive side, allowing me to connect with the women who let me show their poetry and songs in the film, but it was still segregation that, having no power as a woman director, I had to give in to. That is the importance of SIF: empowering women. We have so much energy to put into the collective. It will grow through the initiatives of its members. Once it is open to other female filmmakers it will also be the initiative of new sisters in film. That is how it will grow.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 17 September, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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A joint operation led to the arrest of two men accused of attempting to smuggle 23,000 rounds of ammo, 14 long rifles and 15 magazines into Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, according to an arrest affidavit filed on Wednesday.

Juan Antonio Cepeda and Abraham Joaquin Canela were arrested and charged with export and attempt to export ammunition and firearms.

On Sept. 14, Homeland Security Investigations received information from the Laredo Police Department regarding a possible weapons shipment heading to Mexico from Houston. HSI, LPD and the Texas Department of Public Safety set up surveillance along Interstate 35 in Laredo and observed a tan Chevrolet Tahoe and a tan Lincoln Navigator driving in tandem.

DPS troopers pulled over the Navigator for a traffic violation and identified the driver as Canela. He stated he was traveling from Houston to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, to purchase some hammocks and candy. He added that he was not traveling with anyone, according to court documents.

Troopers obtained a consent to search the vehicle and found a ledger with notations about ammunition, states the affidavit. Meanwhile, LPD officers pulled over the Tahoe for a traffic violation and identified the driver as Cepeda.

During a consent search of Cepedas vehicle, officers discovered approximately 23,000 rounds of 7.62x39 and .223 caliber ammunition, fourteen firearms (long rifles), and fifteen magazines, states the affidavit.

In a post-arrest interview, Cepeda stated that someone in Mexico told him to travel to Houston to pick up the ammunition. He stayed at a hotel on Sept. 13. The following day, some individuals picked up the vehicle from the hotel, loaded the ammo and returned the vehicle to the hotel, records state. Cepeda would then drive to Laredo until he was stopped by law enforcement.

Cepeda stated he believed he was transporting ammunition but was unaware of the weapons. Cepeda stated he believed he was being followed by someone but was unsure by whom. Cepeda stated he was going to be paid $2,000 for driving the ammunition to Laredo, Texas. Cepeda stated he was aware the ammunition was bound for Mexico and that it was illegal for him to engage in such activity, states the affidavit.

Cepeda further stated that he had previously transported a load of ammunition for the same people last week and was paid $2,000. A man paid him the $2,000 near Plaza San Agustin, according to court documents.

Cepeda further stated that on Sept. 14, he received multiple calls from a man identified only as Abran who was checking on Cepedas location and asking for updates while he was transporting the ammunition.

Cepeda stated he never met Abran in person and only communicated with him on the phone. During a consent search of Cepedas phone, agents observed recent calls with Abran and further noted the contact number saved as Abran was later learned to be Canelas cellphone number, states the affidavit.

In a post-arrest interview, Canela maintained that he was traveling from Houston to Nuevo Laredo to buy hammocks and candy. Canela added he intended on staying in a hotel but had not made reservations yet. He further claimed that he was not following anyone to Laredo, states the affidavit.

Canela admitted to purchasing and selling weapons and ammunition but said he never did so for persons in Laredo, Texas or Mexico, the affidavit states.
Tobias Ellwood, the Foreign Office minister, has  as I wrote this week  refused to answer questions in the Commons about the fate of the Saudi blogger Raif Badawi, on the grounds that his case is still being considered by the Saudi Supreme Court and the UK could not interfere in another countrys judicial process. Everyone else who has followed the case thinks that his right of appeal is exhausted, and his public flogging could resume at any time. I asked the Foreign Office either to confirm or correct what Ellwood told MPs, and, after several attempts, received a brief reply from a spokeswoman: We understand that Badawis case is still with the Supreme Court.

This came as a surprise to Amnesty Internationals Karla McLaren, who said: If the Foreign Office have reason to believe that Raifs case is still being considered by the Supreme Court, then they know something we dont. Everyone else is under the impression that Raifs cruel sentence has already been confirmed by the Supreme Court.

Another possibility, of course, is that in his anxiety to avoid awkward questions, the minister misled the House of Commons, and the Foreign Office is now too embarrassed to admit it. If so, I am sure they will want to correct the mistake soon to avoid raising cruel hopes. Badawi, who has a young family, has suffered 50 lashes already, with 950 more hanging over him. If he survives that, there is a 10-year prison sentence to be served and a hefty fine to be paid  and all simply for expressing opinions of which the Saudi regime does not approve.

Corbyn dating

Here a piece of hypothetical trivia: if Jeremy Corbyn won the Labour leadership and led his party to victory in 2020, he would be the oldest person in British history to assume the office of Prime Minister, and the oldest holder of that office since Winston Churchills return in the 1950s. No, I am not suggesting that is the number one reason not to vote Corbyn.

An act of self-defence?

Martial Arts Guardian is a niche, online publication run by a karate instructor from Manchester, a jujutsu instructor from Wigan, and a Krav Maga instructor from the Isle of Man. The fifth monthly issue is in preparation. But an obstacle has arisen in the way of the founders attempt to register their publications name as a trademark. An ominous lawyers letter has arrived, complaining that they are trampling on the rights of another publication with a similar name, a national newspaper called The Guardian, and hinting at unpleasant consequences unless they back off.

This roused the curiousity of the UK Press Gazette, who counted at least 50 other publications with similar names, such as the Farmers Guardian and the Crewe Guardian, none of which appear to see the arrival of an online martial arts magazine as a threat to their identity.

Nuclear fission

Richard Benyon, who was an environment minister in the Coalition, has written a vitriolic attack on the policies of Australias Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, whose government was the first in the world to abolish the carbon tax. True Conservative values include ... a belief in protecting the natural world, Benyon argued in an article in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Meanwhile, in other news, Benyons parliamentary colleague, the new Energy Secretary Amber Rudd, has abolished subsidies for wind farms, and has now begun a consultation on whether to cut subsidies for solar panels. She is, however, fiercely defending subsidised nuclear power.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday said it has unearthed a Pakistan-sponsored Al Qaeda terror module in the country and arrested nine people planning to undertake attacks at vital installations at multiple locations including in the National Capital Region (NCR) and also targeted killings.

IMAGE: Suspected Al Qaeda terrorists being produced at a Kolkata court for transit remand, on Saturday. NIA arrested nine Al Qaeda terrorists after conducting simultaneous raids at several locations in Kerala and West Bengal. Photograph: Swapan Mahapatra/PTI Photo

Foiling an attempt by the Al Qaeda to establish base in India and unleash terror, the NIA sleuths swooped on recruits 'radicalised' by the Pakistan-based operatives of the internationally banned terror group and arrested six men in West Bengal and another three in Kerala, the agency spokesperson said.

Those arrested from Kerala, who are migrant workers, are originally residents of West Bengal.

Acting on a tip-off provided by central intelligence agencies, the NIA, with the help of the respective state police force, carried out raids early on Friday at Ernakulam in Kerala and Murshidabad in West Bengal.

Murshid Hasan, Iyakub Biswas, Mosaraf Hossen were picked up from Ernakulam while Najmus Sakib, Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Leu Yean Ahmed, Al Mamun Kamal and Atitur Rehman were held in Murshidabad, the spokesperson said. Hasan was leading the gang, he said.

'NIA conducted simultaneous raids at several locations at Ernakulam (Kerala) and Murshidabad (West Bengal) and arrested nine terrorists associated with Pakistan sponsored module of Al Qaeda.

'NIA had learnt about an inter-state module of Al-Qaeda operatives at various locations in India including West Bengal and Kerala. The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds,' the investigation agency said in a statement.

The arrests set off a political slugfest in West Bengal and Kerala with the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party targeting the ruling parties -- Trinamool Congress and the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) -- in the respective states.

West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar took a dig at the Mamata Banerjee government, saying the state has become 'home to illegal bomb-making' and the TMC administration cannot escape its accountability for the 'alarming decline' in law and order.

A preliminary probe showed that the arrested men led by Murshid Hasan were motivated, highly radicalised by Pakistan-based Al Qaeda terrorists on social media platforms, and also getting instructions to launch attacks at multiple locations, including in the NCR, a NIA official said.

IMAGE: Switches, batteries and other items used to assemble an IED by alleged Al Qaeda terrorist Abu Sufiyans house recovered by the NIA, in Murshidabad district, on Saturday. Photograph: PTI Photo

The module was also planning to carry out targeted killings in India and was in the advanced stage of procuring arms, including automatic rifles and pistols, ammunition and explosives to carry out the attacks, he said.

Some of its members were trying to develop expertise in making of the Improvised Explosive Device (IED) too and planning to convert crackers into an IED, the official said, adding the NIA recovered switches and batteries from Abu Sufiyan's house during the raids in Murshidabad.

Besides, the module was trying to establish a well organised Al Qaeda network in different parts of the country, including in the northeast and Jammu and Kashmir, on the instructions of their Pakistan-based handlers, the official said.

A closely-monitored operation of the NIA and central intelligence agencies began on September 11 when the premier investigating agency registered a case to probe the Al Qaeda module.

The group was also planning to go to Kashmir for weapons delivery, the official said.

The module was actively involved in fund-raising and some of its members were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition, the official said, adding the arrests helped prevent possible terror attacks in various parts of the country.

Incriminating materials, including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally-fabricated body armour, articles and literature for making home-made explosive devices, have been seized from the possession of the arrested terrorists, the official said.

They will be produced before courts concerned in Kerala and West Bengal for custody and further investigation, the official added.

Governor Dhankar alleged that the West Bengal Director General of Police is distanced far from reality and his 'ostrich stance' is 'very disturbing'.

'How far distanced is DGP @WBPolice from reality is cause of worry. His 'Ostrich Stance' is very disturbing,' he tweeted.

'The state has become home to illegal bomb making that has the potential to unsettle democracy. Police @MamataOfficial busy in carrying out political errands and taking on the opposition. Those at helm @WBPolice cannot escape their accountability for this alarming decline in law and order.'

The opposition BJP and the Congress alleged that intelligence failure and appeasement politics of the Mamata Banerjee government have led to such a situation.

The ruling TMC on the other hand said the arrests cannot be construed as failure on the part of the state administration which is committed to flush out terrorists.

The Opposition is politicising an issue involving national security, it said.

Leader of Congress party in Lok Sabha, Adhir Choudhury said the arrest of six alleged Al Qaeda operatives from Murshidabad district shows 'total intelligence failure on the part of state police who are only busy running errands for Trinamool Congress leaders'.

In Kerala, the Congress and the BJP alleged that the state has become a hub of terrorists under CPI (M)-led LDF rule.

The Ernakulam police said the three Al Qaeda operatives who were arrested from three different locations in the district were migrant workers.
The All Assam Students' Union (AASU) Chief Adviser Samujjal Bhattacharya, President Dipanka Kumar Nath and General Secretary Lurinjyoti Gogoi watch live analysis of final National Register of Citizens (NRC) list declared on August 31, in Guwahati. (Image: PTI)

The influential All Assam Students Union (AASU) is taking a second shot at politics, 35 years after it installed Indias first ever youth-led government breaking the Congress hegemony in the state. The student body was at the forefront of the six-year anti-foreigner agitation in the state, leading to the signing of the 1985 Assam Accord that set March 24, 1971 as the cut-off date to identify undocumented immigrants from Bangladesh.

The AASU and the slightly radical Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chatra Parishad (AJYCP), have jointly launched the Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP) to take on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the 2021 assembly polls. The two student outfits were instrumental in mobilising protests against the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) last December, and since then the civil society had been urging them to float a regional alternative to the BJP and the Congress.

The anti-CAA protests in Assam were triggered mainly by fears that the law granting Indian citizenship to persecuted minorities from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan would encourage more migration, thereby posing a threat to the states ethnic demography. The AASU, AJYCP and a host of ethnic organisations oppose CAA as it tends to violate the Assam Accord, seen as a safeguard for the identity and rights of the indigenous people.

This is the second chance for the AASU to prove its legitimacy after its offshoot, Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) was accused of betraying the people on the citizenship issue. AGPs lone MP in Rajya Sabha, Biren Bashya, had voted in favour of the citizenship bill last year, drawing massive criticism not only from the Opposition but also from its own leaders .

The AGP is currently a junior partner in the BJP-led coalition government in the state. The party that was born out of the Assam Agitation of the 1980s ruled the state twice -- from 1985 to 1989 and from 1996 to 2001. With its dwindling support base and internal rift, the AGP is now staring at an uncertain future.

According to political observers, the AJP could be a potent regional force replacing AGP provided it joins hands with the different ethnic outfits and maintains safe distance from centrist and communal forces.



AJP= AGP 2.0 ?

I hope not !!!

 Manoranjan Pegu (@manoranjanpegu) September 15, 2020

Within hours of its launch on September 14, the AJP caused a flutter on social media with some Twitterati asking whether it was the second avatar of AGP. One user posted, AJP=AGP 2.0? I hope not!

Another post said, Second child of #AASU is born today. Named like elder sibling, AGP, one would hope, against hope, that the new kid in town #AJP has a new offer.



Second child of #AASU is born today. Named like elder sibling, AGP, one would hope, against hope, that the new kid in town #AJP has a new offer. Remember the post agitation borns are looking fr jobs, development & growth. Are they ready to align with contemporary realities?  Tituraj (@tituraj) September 14, 2020





They could have been more creative with the name!

 Tinat (@SIANG16) September 15, 2020

They could have been more creative with the name, wondered one netizen.

A minister of the BJP-led government also made a sarcastic comment, saying that AJP lacked originality and that it was a copy-paste party. Assam Jatiya Parishad wont be able to have an impact on Assam politics, said junior health minster Pijush Hazarika .

Advisers of the party, however, maintained that the name was coined following detailed consultations with all stakeholders.

The new outfit is being guided by a panel led by noted educationists Basanta Deka and Krishna Gopal Bhattacharya. For their part, the AASU and the AJYCP claim they will retain their apolitical characters, allowing some of its senior leaders take the plunge into politics. In order to avoid past mistakes of the AGP, provisions will be made in the constitution of AJP to prevent it from going adrift from the path of regionalism,in Guwahati.

In addition, a permanent committee will be formed under its constitution to keep a strict vigil on AJPs working and suggest remedies. The move is significant given that the AASU had no control over the AGP after the latter formed a government and could not fulfil key promises, including the implementation of the Assam Accord.

The AJP is expected to stress on the full implementation of the 1985 Accord, most importantly Clause 6 of the agreement. Last month, the AASU made public a confidential report by a home ministry-constituted committee on Clause 6. The AASU that was part of the panel had then accused the Sarbananda Sonowal government of sitting on it for the past five months. Union minister of state for home G Kishan Reddy also said in Parliament the Assam government is yet to forward the report to the Centre.

Clause 6 of the Assam Accord, which was signed by the Centre, the Assam government, the AASU and the now-defunct All Assam Gana Sangram Parishad (AAGSP) in 1985, states, Constitutional, legislative and administrative safeguardsshall be provided to protect, preserve and promote the cultural, social, linguistic identity and heritage of the Assamese people.

Meanwhile, a controversy has erupted over the non-inclusion of jailed activist Akhil Gogois Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) in the new party. This, despite Gogois repeated appeal to all indigenous outfits and anti-CAA forces to put up a united fight against the ruling BJP.

The peasant leader is currently facing charges under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act, 2019 for allegedly instigating violence during the anti-CAA protests in coordination with Maoists, last December.

For its part, the KMSS said it would go ahead with its plans of launching a political party if the newly-floated AJP does not respond to its appeal to form a united front by September 20.

Some analysts argue that keeping Gogoi away from the AASU-led party could end up helping BJP. Populism certainly has a strong emotional appeal, but it may not be enough to confront the cadre-based well-oiled election machine of the BJP, Udayon Misra, retired professor of Dibrugarh University and author of several books on Northeast, wrote in The Assam Tribune.

If the exigencies of the electoral politics throw up an inclusive anti-BJP front of the regional groups plus the Congress-led combine of AIUDF and Left parties, the outcome of the coming polls could very well be different, he added.
Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has urged that Covid-19 is not underestimated (Brian Lawless/PA)

The Catholic Archbishop in Ireland has expressed concern at the underestimation of Covid-19 in Dublin.

The capital city came under tighter restrictions on Saturday following a surge in the number of cases.

Archbishop Diarmuid Martin said the spread of the virus has reached serious levels and constitutes a real risk of radically increased infection within the community.

In many cases, the increase in numbers is due to gatherings within households and communities, he said.

That is the reason why the public health authorities are stressing the urgent need to reduce the number of contacts that each one of us has in this period.

Reducing contacts requires a specific effort on the part of each of us to deliberately change the number of people with whom we would normally come into contact.

This is as important in the current situation as the need for face masks, social distancing and hand-washing.

Restrictions in Dublin city and country includes a limit on public worship.

Archbishop Martin paid tribute to the extraordinary effort of parishes in adapting church buildings and reducing attendance.

Thank God, there has been no indication of the virus being spread in worshipping communities, he said.

However, the situation today has changed and the measures introduced, no matter how they may sadden us, are appropriate at this time.

He also cautioned against the rushing of First Communions and Confirmations.

I understand the disappointment of families who had been ready for the celebration of First Communion and Confirmation and find them postponed, he said.

Unfortunately, they cannot take place during the current period. Places of worship must remain closed except for private prayer as well as for limited attendance at funerals and weddings.

I am also worried about parishes taking initiatives to get First Communions and Confirmations done.

The idea that sacramental acts have to be done quickly and can be done outside the normal liturgical situation is false. There is no urgent need to celebrate these sacraments just because they fit into the school calendar.

This would reduce the Eucharist to a commodity. First Communion and Confirmation ought to be celebrated through personal participation in a liturgical act.
For more than 70 years, it has been a crucial training ground for some of Britain's most accomplished journalists, including BBC broadcasters Jeremy Vine and George Alagiah and legendary newspaper editor Sir Harold Evans.

But now the plug has been pulled on the student newspaper at Durham University amid an astonishing freedom of speech row.

The students union claims it is shutting down the presses on the Palatinate newspaper to save money.

But many at the prestigious university believe the decision is politically motivated because the publication has reported challenges to the Left-wing and politically correct cabal that runs the union.

Jeremy Vine, pictured said he 'can't believe they have [closed the newspaper] to save just four grand'

'It's a convenient way to remove a thorn in their side,' said Jack Pearce, 20, a third-year archaeology student. 'The students' union is completely unaccountable and anti-democratic.'

The new president of the union, Seun Twins, has hailed Jeremy Corbyn as 'the white king' and called for Tories to be dealt with by 'roadmen'  a statement suggesting they should be beaten up by street youths.

She came to her post in controversial elections in which more than half the students who voted demanded that nominations be reopened  effectively a vote of no confidence in all those standing.

Despite the protest vote, which was covered in detail in Palatinate , Miss Twins was appointed president and took up her role last month. Christopher Page, a 21-year-old third-year politics student and a former president of Durham Union Conservative Association, said the decision to shut down Palatinate's print edition followed a series of damaging articles over the votes fiasco.

He said: 'The union has been acting more like a dictatorship than a student democracy.'

However, the students' union has insisted that axeing the free print edition is a money-saving decision as it grapples with a 200,000 funding cut. The move will save the union 4,000 a term.

Imogen Usherwood, one of the newspaper's joint editors, said: 'We were told there is no budget allocated by the students' union to print it for this term and the next few terms remain uncertain.'

And in a rallying cry to muster the support of fellow students, they pledged: 'We will scrutinise and hold those in power to account. Please help us to continue to do so.'

Vine backed their campaign, saying: 'I can't believe they have done this to save just four grand. It seems amazing. It's a fantastic newspaper and they are making a very false economy.'

Miss Twins, a former head girl at Camden School for Girls, a comprehensive in North London, became student union president after taking senior roles in the Durham People Of Colour Association and the Intersectional Feminism Society.

Many at the prestigious university, pictured, believe the decision is politically motivated because the publication has reported challenges to the Left-wing and politically correct cabal that runs the union

She became mired in controversy in April when one of her private Instagram post was leaked.

It said: 'I don't condone violence in the slightest, but sometimes when you are in the presence of such grotesque entitlement do you ever just want to say 'We need to take these Tories to South London and let roadmen deal with them.' '

She later insisted the post was in response to a specific incident of bullying and was an expression of the way she felt she had to present herself 'because of racism and sexism'.

Even by the febrile standards of student politics, Durham has been beset by controversy. Last week the students' union banned the Conservative Association amid claims that there was a 'culture of hate' within the group.

Union bosses said some of its members were involved in circulating 'abhorrent' and 'horrific' comments on social media that referred to Nazi genocide, sought to justify rape, and used the language of white supremacy.

The Conservative Association says it has not been presented with any evidence and has been treated unfairly.

Gareth Hughes, chief executive of the students' union, said there were 'no political influences' on the decision to 'temporarily' halt the print production of Palatinate, which was established in 1948.

'Palatinate has spent the past six months doing some amazing journalism, but the finances in the current term are just very difficult,' he said.

Hughes said the union was investing in the newspapers website and other resources.

Durham University did not respond to a request for comment.
The Government leader has agreed with the proposal from the Ministry of Finance on collecting concentrated quarantine fees from those entering Vietnam.

Accordingly, the arrivals will pay a cost of VND120,000 (US$5.2) per day including VND80,000 for food and VND40,000 for daily necessities at concentrated quarantine facilities.

If people entering Vietnam wish to perform quarantine at hotels or resorts they will have to pay for the quarantine costs according to the policy of such hotels and resorts.

The PM also ordered all arrivals to Vietnam to conduct SARS-CoV-2 tests and pay for the testing costs by themselves.

The costs for COVID-19 examination and treatment for Vietnamese people will be paid by the State budget while the cases of foreigners will be submitted to the National Assembly for consideration.

The collection of fees will be applied to arrivals to Vietnam from September 1.
The blazes, described as unprecedented in scope and ferocity, have largely incinerated several small towns, along with thousands of homes

Cal Fire Battalion Chief Craig Newell carries a hose while battling the North Complex Fire in Plumas National Forest, Calif., on Monday, Sept. 14, 2020. Firefighters trying to contain the massive wildfires in Oregon, California and Washington state are constantly on the verge of exhaustion as they try to save suburban houses, including some in their own neighborhoods. (AP)

Oregon: Intermittently heavy showers brought some relief to flame-stricken western Oregon on Friday, helping firefighters to further subdue deadly blazes that have ravaged much of the state and choked its air with smoke for the better part of two weeks.

Oregon was especially hard hit by scores of wind-driven wildfires that erupted all at once across the western United States earlier this month in the midst of catastrophic lightning storms, record-breaking heat and howling winds.

We lost everything, but we will start all over again, said Bill Kesselring, 73, pointing to the spot where the log cabin he shared with his wife had stood on the outskirts of Gates, Oregon, a Cascade Mountain village 80 miles south of Portland.

The cabin and a garage housing a beloved antique car Kesselring had just finished restoring were both reduced to charred rubble. Only the fireplace and chimney remained of the home.

It breaks my heart. You work hard all your life and then get hit with a disaster like this, he told Reuters.

Unaccustomed to the sheer scope and magnitude of the conflagrations, Oregons ill-equipped firefighters initially struggled for days to even keep pace with the blazes, before cooler, moister and less windy weather settled over the region, and reinforcements could arrive.

ANOTHER LIFE LOST IN CALIFORNIA

By Thursday, officials in Oregon, Washington state and California said they were making steady progress suppressing the fires. Brightening the outlook further, much-welcomed rains doused Oregon on Friday, even as the tri-state death toll from the fires rose to 35.

The U.S. Forest Service in California reported that a firefighter had perished on Thursday in a blaze still burning nearly two weeks after it was ignited by pyrotechnics at an outdoor gender-reveal party east of Los Angeles.

Authorities withheld the identify of the fallen firefighter pending notification of family members, and no details of the circumstances were released.

The death in the San Bernardino National Forest became the 26th fire-related fatality in California over the past month. That tally includes two other firefighters - a Forest Service contractor killed in a lightning-sparked fire in the Mendocino National Forest, and a private helicopter pilot whose chopper crashed on a water-dropping mission in Fresno County last month.

Wildfires have claimed at least eight other lives in Oregon and one in Washington state, all civilians.

Flames have blackened a record 3.2 million acres (1.3 million hectares) in California alone since mid-August. Another 1.7 million acres (650,000 hectares) have burned in Oregon and Washington state since Labor Day.

The blazes, described by scientists and officials as unprecedented in scope and ferocity, have largely incinerated several small towns, along with thousands of dwellings.

BEAUTY SCAR

Thousands of evacuees, particularly in Oregon, remained huddled in emergency shelters, mobile trailers and hotel rooms. And Oregon emergency management officials have warned the death toll there could climb as search teams scour the ruins of homes engulfed in flames during chaotic evacuations early in the disaster.

Justin Gaskill, 28, a U.S. Army veteran leading a community watch organization that was also organizing food relief efforts, said residents in the fire-ravaged town of Estacada, Oregon, where he was born and raised, were still in a state of shock but resolved to rebuild.

I like to say that this event is going to leave our community with a beauty scar, he said. Weve been wounded but so many beautiful opportunities to share and show our strength as a town are coming out of this.

Thundershowers brought drenching rains to the western slopes of the Cascade Mountains late Thursday and through Friday, helping a force of more than 6,000 firefighters make further headway against 10 major blazes still burning in Oregon.

The heavy rains also prompted flood and landslide warnings in areas where fire has stripped hillsides and canyons of vegetation.

Cooler, more favorable weather in the region since last week has already dispelled some of the smoky, polluted air and tempered the flames, enabling ground teams with axes and bulldozers to take the offensive while also allowing greater use of water-dropping helicopters and airplane tankers.

Higher humidity levels were likewise bolstering hopes for subduing blazes in the greater San Francisco Bay area.

Milder weather is helping the fire fight as crews continue to gain ground on many of the major incidents, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said on Friday.
The proposed alliance of left parties with the RJD-led grand alliance (GA) in Bihar ahead of state assembly polls has run into rough weather, with the states major left party, the CPI- ML(Liberation), now preparing to contest alone.

Reliable sources said the CPI-ML leadership was peeved after the RJD offered it only seven to eight seats as against 53 seats it had sought.

The party currently has three MLAs, having got 1.5% of the total votes polled in the 2015 assembly polls.

The number of seats offered to us is minuscule and not at all acceptable. We have asked the RJD for a rethink on its offer. But we are now geared up to fight alone in over 53 seats. In case RJD responds positively in coming few days, we will think of adjustment. The ball is in RJDs court, CPI- ML(Liberation) general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya said on Saturday.

He said his party had initiated talks with RJD for a broader left unity to defeat the BJP-JD(U) combine.

One reason for talks between the two parties falling is that RJD rejected MLs claim on seats like Ara and Phulwari which the former had won in 2015.

In 2015 polls, RJD was in alliance with JD(U). In 2020, it is contesting with different partners. The 2015 formula of seat adjustment cannot be the criteria for 2020, Bhattarcharya said.

The ML general secretary said his party has a strong cadre base in central Bihar, Mithilanchal, Siwan-Gopalganj and Seemanchal, but RJD was ignoring ground realities.

Also read: EC looks at NEET, JEE to prepare for Bihar polls

In the 2019 parliamentary polls, ML had extended support to GA candidates, including RJD candidate, in four places where they polled more than 4 lakh votes. But in rest of the seats, GA candidates fared poorly. Wasnt it the votes of ML that counted, he asked.

The other two main left parties in Bihar, CPI and CPI-M, are still hopeful of a tie-up with the RJD-led GA but rued the talks were stretching too long.

The two parties together are angling for over 50 seats.

We won 26 out of 52 seats we got in 1995 in alliance with RJD . We have given our list of seats to RJD. Our talks with RJD so far is positive, said Ram Naresh Pandey, CPI state secretary.

CPM state secretary Awadesh Kumar said his party would take decision after holding further talks with RJD in coming days.

Social scientist Rakesh Tiwary said the GA would suffer a big blow in its attempt to form a larger rainbow coalition against the NDA if ML doesnt join. ML is a cadre based party and its support is crucial in many pockets to consolidate secular votes. But it looks an ML-RJD alliance is hard to come by as both have remained opposed to each other for long, he said.

In Siwan, for instance, ML relentlessly fought against incarcerated Siwan strongman and former MP Mohammed Shahabuddin for years.

State president of RJD Jagdanand Singh could not be reached for comment.

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The funeral of nine-time champion jockey and Offaly man Pat Smullen has taken place in St. Peter's Church in Rhode. The small funeral mass heard about Pat's glittering career in the saddle as well as his quiet family life with his wife Frances and their children Hannah, Paddy and Sarah.

Pat's coffin, draped in the silks from his 2016 Epsom Derby win and both his Irish Derby victories, was brought to the altar as a stunning rendition of Amazing Grace filled the small church.

The funeral was attended by the aide-de-camp of both President Michael D Higgins and Taoiseach Micheal Martin.

Fr Greg Corcoran said: "We gather on this sad day to bid farewell to Pat. It is a very sad occasion for his family, friends, our parish and the wider racing community in Ireland."

A racing helmet, a saddle, a model tractor and a coffee mug were presented as gifts in honour of the things Pat loved most, a representation of his life in sport and at home on his farm in Rhode.

Fr Corcoran spoke glowingly about Pat: "In the tributes I've seen in recent days, you read about his career and many achievements, but you also get a sense of him being a very nice person as well.

READ ALSO: 'I interviewed Pat Smullen once' - He was a fierce competitor right to the end

"He was always courteous and gracious; he always thanked people. I've seen words written from starting stall teams, carpark attendants and tea ladies and they all reflect just how gracious and humble he was to everyone. He always helped young jockeys as well. All of their lives were richer for having known him. He had time for everyone."

In her eulogy for her late husband, Frances Crowley said: "My heart is broken; broken for myself as I've lost my best friend, my soulmate."

"My heart is broken too for our children, Paddy, Hannah and Sarah." She said they should know just how proud their father was of the people they have become.

She said her heart was also broken for Pat's mother Mary, who is going through the "unbearable pain of losing her son 15 years after losing her husband."

"They are reunited now," she added, "they both loved the farm and I know they are both there now and will be always with us."

Speaking about the many messages of support Pat has received in the last few weeks and months, Frances said people should know "he saw them all, even if he didn't reply."

"I can tell you he saw them all. Sometimes he didn't have the energy to reply; sometimes he didn't have the words."

Frances revealed her heartbreak for the entire community of Rhode, "a village that has lost its hero."

"Strong. Brave. Tough. Fighter. Winner. These were all words used to describe Pat, and here are a few more," Frances said.

"Insecure. Scared. Vulnerable. Sad - He was only human and a human body can only take so much. But his spirit never gave up; in the end, it was his body that gave in," his wife told those gathered.

She also spoke to the many cancer sufferers around the world who had been following Pat's battle from the altar. For them, she had a message of resilience.

"Keep going, don't lose heart," she said.

Frances thanked the medical team in St. Vincent's Hospital for the great care they gave him in the final six weeks of his life. "As I left Pat in the hospital to go home every night, I knew he would be treated with dignity. I can't thank them enough for the care they gave."

She spoke too of how she saw that medical team become visibly disheartened as Pat's condition deteriorated in his final weeks. "Pat noticed too," she said.

"'I'm doing my best,' he would say to them."

"You always did your best, Pat. Always," Frances concluded to applause in the church.
The art of controlling daughters Controlling your daughters has always been an admired art form like ikebana or Kathak

When reading Bangladeshi British writer Leesa Gazis Hellfire this week, I was a few pages in when I realized that this faux-charming scene of a young woman feeling thrilled to be allowed to go out by herself was not quite what it seemed. A few pages in, the protagonist, Lovely, talks about her skin not being what it was. Soon enough, you realize that it is Lovelys 40th birthday and this is the first time she has been allowed to go anywhere on her own. She and her younger sister have been imprisoned in their own home by their mother, who manages every waking moment of the two womens lives with demonic energy levels. Manages it so finely that only their unmarried status stands out to the critical gaze of society, not their imprisonment. Gazis book, which takes many unexpected turns, would be chilling ordinarily but particularly now when so many households are turned inward, with no outside gaze to even notionally keep them civilized.

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Not that the outside gaze really helps.

The reason it doesnt work can be seen so clearly in The Mother-in-Law, Veena Venugopals 2014 book. In the book, Venugopal tells the story of 11 real-life marriages and 11 are-they-for-real mothers-in-law. What struck me when reading them is how each household had completely normalized the frankly insane ways of functioning or not functioning. Even in the family in which the mother-in-law essentially kidnapped each grandchild and tookthem away from their parents, everyone else was making benign, so-normal faces. The traditional desi acceptance of diversity was let me do my thing and I will ignore your thing, even if I roll my eyes a lot. This acceptance also comes with families attributing every minor quirk five years or older as the grand family tradition worthy of a museum. Humare yahan its done this way. Fine for chicken curry or dal, not so fine for human functioning.

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Hellfire is so terrifying to read because on every page Lovelys mother balances indulgence with violence in ways that are utterly familiar. Her entire being is engaged in controlling the most minor activities in her family, but mostly in controlling her daughters. And everybody is on board with this, as we all know. Which is why I know (and I am sure you know) a teenager whose father allows her to wear only cream, white and brown coloured clothes. No one is hauling him off for therapy and medication. No one is intervening in the case of a 40-something woman friend whose mother verbally abuses her for leaving her house once in a few weeks for an hour or so. No one I know intervened when my 30-year-old friends father told her he would ensure through his connections that she would never be able to rent a house on her own in the city of Bengaluru.

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When a long-married friend told me about the immense drama her husbands extended family has recently brought into her life, she seemed surprised. At the heart of the great circus seemed to be their unspoken desire for her to quit her job. I would have expected this level of drama from my family, not from his. Why, because your in-laws speak English at home? I asked and she laughed. Controlling your daughters has always been an admired art form like ikebana or Kathak. A few years ago, I was at a family gathering where one elderly and distant male relative insisted that I serve him lunch from the buffet. Which was strange because I was meeting him for the first time. It was doubly strange because he told his cousin to not help me by telling her what I like to eat. Is this mans life a Japanese game show, I wondered, where we are all competing to serve him a nice plate of dahi vada?

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In the next few minutes, when I had got him a plate of whatever, I heard the cousin tell him, I wish you would come to my house and teach my daughters-in-law a lesson too. As you can imagine, that was the end of service and the last time I have spoken to either senior citizen. And yes, these kind of families play year-round Takeshis Castle episodes, full of humiliation and mud. It is why BDSM is not a popular porn genre in Indiawe dont need leather to get off. It is why I am deeply suspicious of people who use the phrase close-knit family to describe their own frequently anti-social behaviour.

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The greatest service actor Anupam Kher did for all of us was 29 years ago, when he told his daughter in the film Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahi, bhaag ja Pooja beti (run away). Sometimes the gate is open only a crack. Sometimes we have to get a ladder and jump that wall. Sometimes we need to read stories like that of Sanju Rani Verma in Meerut, who chose to leave home in 2013 rather than cave under the pressure of relatives who insisted she abandon her studies and get married. Verma left home, rented a room, gave tuitions to children and continued studying for the civil services. She was 28 then. This month she cleared the UPPSC exam and will soon be a commercial tax officerlike a Fawad Khan-less but thrilling Zindagi Gulzar Hai. I told my friend this story and she was only half impressed. She knows of a girl who faked her own deathwith elaborate props like a dupatta on the riversideto leave home. Now that is an art form for every decent girl to learn.

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Nisha Susan is the editor of the webzine The Ladies Finger. Her first book of fiction, The Women Who Forgot to Invent Facebook And Other Stories, released last month.
Kollywood actor Suriya recently released a statement after Madras High Court rejected the request of initiating contempt of court proceedings against him. Yesterday (September 18), a bench of Chief Justice AP Sahi rejected Justice SM Subramaniam's request to initiate court proceedings against Suriya. For the unversed, the actor's controversial comment about NEET (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test) exams was considered as criminal contempt by Justice SM Subramaniam.

The Madras High Court called Suriya's comment 'unnecessary and unwarranted'. The court revealed that the actor will not be facing a contempt case over his comment on the decision of conducting NEET exams amid the COVID-19 scare. "The utterances by the cine actor are unnecessary and unwarranted for being ignorant of the manner in which the entire judiciary of this state has served the interest of its citizens during this pandemic," the Madras High Court said.

Welcoming the court's decision, Suriya shared his statement on Twitter handle. The actor is 'humbled and inspired by the fairness' by the Madras High Court. The statement reads, "I'm deeply moved by the institutional magnanimity of the Indian Judiciary. I have always held out judiciary in the highest esteem, which is the only hope for upholding the constitutional rights of our people. I'm humbled and inspired by the fairness and justice demonstrated by the Hon'ble High Court of Madras."

Read statement here

Well, Suriya's fans are very happy with the court's decision, as they were supporting the actor. For the unversed, Suriya had released a statement last week after 4 students, who were to appear for the year's NEET exam died by suicide in Tamil Nadu. In the statement, Suriya had said, "With the fear of life due to COVID-19 scare, the court which dispenses justice via video-conferencing orders students to fearlessly go and take exams."

Also Read : Suriya Gets Netizens' Support After SM Subramaniam Calls Actor's NEET Remark As Contempt Of Court

Also Read : Suriya & Jyotika's Wedding Anniversary: Fans Trend #14YearsOfAdorableSuJo On Twitter
As IT Sligo prepares for the return of students from September 28th, all at the college are cautiously getting ready to face the new semester, while doing their utmost to ensure provisions are in place to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

In less than two weeks, students will return to the IT Sligo campus, but this year will most certainly be different.

The first round of CAO offers were released last Friday for those looking to start third level, and IT Sligo increased the number of places on offer to potential students, although they will have to wait and see what the uptake will be.

For returning students, college will look a lot different to what they are used to. Each class is different, and some will have very few hours on campus throughout the semester while others may spend half their week on campus.

The bulk of learning will be done remotely, to ensure that students and staff are protected as much as possible.

IT Sligo President, Dr. Brendan McCormack, told The Sligo Champion: "We are very much encouraging our students to come back to college and to come on campus in as far as possible. We're designing our courses so that they are safe to attend, if you have to come on campus to do a lab or workshop. Equally, there will be an online element so they're not required to be on campus all the time every day."

He continued: "Every group of staff teaching a course have looked at their course and the big question is how can we make sure that students learn. In some cases you might see that they are only needed very little, so maybe half a day a week. In other cases they might be needed in two and a half days a week because there are areas here you need face to face contact like laboratories or workshops. We've worked very closely with the students union and they've been very helpful and engaging."

Acquiring accommodation for the academic year has been one of the biggest dilemmas for those returning to college, do they pay for a full year's worth of accommodation when they may only be in college one day a week? Or do they stay home and travel to college for the one or two days a week that they are required on campus?

Dr. McCormack added: "The Students Union tell us that a lot of the student accommodation or housing around the college is booked up. They would be returning students coming back. They've made the commitment in their own minds about coming back. And that's good for Sligo town as well because they will be spending their money.

"There's two sides to that. I would encourage students not to defer. As a parent, what else is a young person going to do? There are very few jobs out there at the minute, particularly in the hospitality industry, they can't go on the tour of the world because of travel restrictions. I would argue on the mental health side that it's better for someone to say 'look I'm going to engage in this course, plug myself into the learning and do something with the year, keeping the mind active and stimulated. From that point of view we'd encourage everyone to come back.

"I'd be worried about the practicality of that (deferring a college place), what are they going to do with their time? And also their mental health. If you're kicking your heels around at home, you're going to get down. There's evidence of that happening.

"We've gone through the Leaving Cert calculated grades process and people are worried enough about the outcome of that but at least we have an outcome and they have a choice to go on with their lives and careers. I'm not just speaking on behalf of higher education."

The IT Sligo President is encouraging students to obtain full-time accommodation, despite the uncertainty surrounding the amount of time they will actually be on campus.

He feels that it will be healthier for students to stay in one place for the year, rather than booking different accommodation every week.

"They are healthier booking accommodation full-time. We don't provide accommodation so it's not in our interest. But if you're popping up to Sligo in an Airbnb for labs two nights a week, who's been in the bed yesterday? Where do you put all your stuff? Throwing the bags in the back of the car, driving to Sligo, staying the night, coming home and then next week you're in a different B&B.

"This was arising from conversations with the Students Union. They're thinking the same thing, they're advising students to bite the bullet and come to full-time accommodation. The whole question about the wider student experience, dare I mention the pubs. The whole social side of it that students would have normally, the Students Union are quite exercised about that, about what's the practicality of managing that."

There will be slight changes to the college for the return, but it will be nothing drastic. It is hoped that all attending IT Sligo will wear masks in public spaces, as is required.

Dr. McCormack described the changes: "We have the two metre spacing and there's also an increased number of hand washing facilities which are available on all the corridors. Everybody is required to wear a mask in the public areas like walking down the corridor, or coming in and out the door.

"For everybody, how do you enforce that? We're relying on that peer pressure that people will feel awkward not wearing a mask. It's not as if we're going to have the mask police but we do recognise that some people have breathing difficulties and can't actually wear a mask."

He says he is proud of how the college's students adjusted to the changes. Exam results were up this summer, while he also feels that students have conducted themselves well over the summer.

Now, he is hopeful that all will continue to behave responsibly with college returning.

"Since Covid hit, within three days our students were online. They knuckled down, they finished out their courses and took their exams. Their results were actually slightly better than normal, maybe that's because there was more time to study.

"You hear on the radio about house parties but maybe I can say it proudly that none of our students were involved in that. By and large young people have behaved responsibly. We're very confident that these people are sensible and mature.

"We are confident that they will behave responsibly. That's not to say, there won't be a group meeting sometime when they shouldn't. We're giving them that message when they come back about good etiquette."

A number of schools across the country have had to send classes home due to positive Covid cases since schools reopened, meaning there is a slight sense of apprehension ahead of the return of colleges.

"Nervous is probably not the right word but we would be concerned and planning for it. We're providing every student with two face coverings and a visor and every member of staff. You've no excuse not to wear one now," added McCormack.

It is anticipated that about 200 international students will be coming to IT Sligo ahead of the coming semester.

Students coming from abroad will quarantine ahead of the college start, and IT Sligo arranged for that to happen in a safe way.

Meanwhile, conferring ceremonies will have to take place online, but they will try and make sure it is as special as it should be.

McCormack added: "In the coming semester, normally we have conferring at the end of October. We won't be doing that physically, it will all be online for obvious reasons. We don't like doing that but we have to do that. We're planning to try and make that as exciting as possible."
The Brotherhood is looking at the 'straw,' or the negative effects of the harsh construction procedures taking place in Egypt, but unable to see the strong and blinding sticks in the eyes of their sponsors in Turkey and Qatar

Demonstrations have allegedly flooded Ramses Square and several others erupted in many governorates both in the southern and northern parts of Egypt. Photos accompanying this news have dominating the screens, and as part of my work, I have to determine the facts, or rather differentiate between illusion and reality.

So, I called for an emergency meeting with most department heads at the newspaper. The reporters and photographers were assigned to go down and dig deep for facts. Moreover, I called several security and administrative officials in Cairo and several other governorates.

I received a stream of calls denying the existence of small groups in the streets. The more valuable calls came from our reporters on the streets  be it in Cairo or other governorates  where the Muslim Brotherhood claimed the existence of huge demonstrations. All the reporters simply reported back: there is nothing.

The truth was simple. Earlier, the government had launched a campaign against those who constructed on agricultural lands. The procedure was difficult and harsh, especially for those who built their homes and mosques on some of our most fertile areas. They usually start by levelling the agricultural land to make bricks. Workshops all along the borders and on agricultural land were obvious because of the chimneys making bricks out of fertilised soil.

The Nile Delta is known as one of the most fertile lands worldwide due to the accumulation of Nile slit for thousands of years. However, people started to level the land, make bricks and then built houses for them and their children. Later, they would go as far as building a mosque, which would make it harder for any official to change the de-facto situation. The mere presence of a mosque practically means that the government has to supply the area with pipelines of water and electricity, and no one would ever think of demolishing the holy building.

Unfortunately, local authorities contributed to the ongoing destruction of the limited fertile lands around the Nile with their silence, and the fertile land turned into a heath. When the 2011 revolution erupted, this mafia seized this rare opportunity and doubled their efforts on an unprecedented level. The area of land that had been turned upside down and used for making bricks and buildings reached a dangerous stage, and this practice has to stop.

Kemet, or the fertile land, which later became known as Egypt, has been threatened in so many ways to become the uncultivated land of the Nile. Despite the fact that demolishing all the big and violating buildings was difficult, the government struck a deal for the violators to pay a fine to compensate the country for its lost lands. Such procedures would secure enough revenue for the government to reclaim lands in the desert and at the same time draw a red line for those intending to exercise the same practice in the future.

However, this would never have gone unnoticed by the Brotherhood. Putting an end to a malicious practice and securing the rights of future generations to Kemet was dubbed by the Muslim Brother as illegal taxing. What they are looking for is not construction, but destruction.

Therefore, the videos on the screens that showed demonstrations were meant to instigate disturbance, chaos, and panic. One of our journalists assigned to find out the truth behind these demonstrations found that these were old videos showing the demolition of buildings and houses that took place years ago, and in some cases were in the West bank, not even in Egypt. The scenes were professionally interconnected to enhance the impact.

The demolition of illegal structures should have taken place long ago, and the current government should be praised for tackling the issue now. However, if there are some cases where demolition has negative human consequences, the government should be looking for different solutions.

It is true that violators should bear the consequences, but the government should also not rush into executing the order without first searching for solutions. All parties involved in this dilemma should bear the consequences, starting with officials at the local administrations, to the constructors, the owners and the residents. Our fertile land should be as sacred as the Nile, whose water we are now fighting to preserve.

The demolition process was a good opportunity for the Muslim Brothers to create what they are best at, victimisation issues. However, this issue was not enough, they have to launch a campaign against the army, which has been involved in the construction process all over the country, targeting the strong bond between the people and the army.

One should look around and consider the difficult environment this government has been through. COVID-19 disrupted the economies of most countries around the world. Turkeys economy has been a pain and its currency is set to crash. The United States, which has single-handedly ruled the world for decades, has to borrow $6 trillion to cope with the negative impact of the virus, which has infected almost 7 million Americans and led to the death of 200,000.

In Egypt, we have 100,000 infections, which is almost 1.5 percent of the US. The unprecedented unemployment rate has disrupted the most powerful economies. But, in Egypt, with the peoples support and the governments efforts, this country has been through the difficult time of the virus with minimal negative impact.

The Muslim Brotherhood is looking at the straw, or the negative effects of the harsh construction procedures taking place in Egypt, but unable to see the strong and blinding sticks in the eyes of their sponsors in Turkey and Qatar. They have never uttered a word about Turkeys malicious and colonial plans in the region, nothing was said about Ankaras failing economy and its international isolation. They evaded the talk about Turkeys ailing membership in NATO and its close ties with Israel. Nothing was also said about Qatars alliance with terrorist groups around the world, but the Brothers media machine, funded by Qatar and Turkey, played old records of the past.

The problem in Egypt is not with the helpless, divided and divisive Brotherhood. The issue lies with those who fund the group, especially Turkey, which has had an eye on Egypts unlimited natural resources, which will make this country one of the leading economies worldwide.

We recognise the intentions of the two sides and therefore we are making our army ready. But, is it not better to spend the money on the poor instead of purchasing weapons to avoid demolitions and taxing? We believe that they want this country to be weak, unable to confront the Ottomans malicious plans, because when Turkey spends a lot on its military stockpiles despite its economic hardships, the Brotherhoods media machine hails such efforts, which would make their sponsor able to destroy their own country.

The fact is that the colonial policies have never changed they have always been putting limitations on the size, type of weapons and the training of the armed forces. But this time, they cover up their policies in the context of the poor economic situation. They have been looking forward to breaking up this country, which is an unattainable goal.

*Alaa Thabet is the editor-in-chief of Al-Ahram daily

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Thats how you judge a person: who comes out when youre gone, said Heather Woods, who had traveled from D.C.s Navy Yard neighborhood to the steps of the Supreme Court late Friday night. You see the people out here. You see every color, every race, every gender. This is reflective. She stood for America. She stood for our values.

Shortly after the announcement of the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg Friday, an impromptu vigil of hundreds of people gathered on the steps of the Supreme Court to pay tribute to the Supreme Court justice and feminist icon.

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Mourners lit candles and laid flowers on the steps of the court, waved gay pride flags, and held signs reading Notorious, Thank you, RBG, and Honor her wish, referring to her admonishment, shortly before her death, that her replacement not be named until after the presidential election. Songs including Lean on Me, Amazing Grace, and Let It Be were sung by the mask-wearing crowd. In a nod to Ginsburgs Jewish heritage, and the fact that it was the first night of Rosh Hashanah, a woman recited the mourners kaddish and at one point, a shofar was blown. The vigil was briefly interrupted by a right-wing demonstrator chanting Roe v. Wade is dead! into a megaphone until he was drowned out by chants of R-B-G.* But for the most part, it was a calm and, at times, even celebratory gathering.

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Rikki Grosskopf, 25, said arriving at the event made her feel weirdly a little bit happy. Its good to know that people care. I hope that she knew how well loved she was.

Heidi Parsont, who came into D.C. from Alexandria, Virginia, with her husband and teenage daughter, said, RBG has done amazing things for women. It was really important to show [my daughter] that a lot of people see the same way, and that its an important part of our history. And hopefully her generation can take it and do more with it.

Richard Cerros, 30, noted, This is not organized, its not coordinated. Its a testament to the work that she did. He continued: As a Hispanic, LGBTQIA person, this is something that goes down to our core. She really represented our folks and represented the spirit of public service.

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Grayson Alexander, a 34-year-old congressional intern, said, Im getting ready to leave D.C. in a week, and I cant think of a place Id rather be. We need a moment to mourn before we jump into whatever the next thing is. As much as you dont want to bring up the big fight ahead, you cant help but think of it.

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Most of those at the gathering expressed anxiety about the coming weeks, in which a bruising confirmation battle could unfold. Tori Collins, a neighbor of Woods who came with her from Navy Yard, said, Thats her legacy: blazing a trail, speaking truth to power. We need to make sure that her seat is not disgraced.

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Maya Rodriguez, a 23-year-old who works for a political nonprofit, noted, Brett Kavanaugh is in his 50s. We could be dealing with the repercussions of this for 30 or 40 years or so, and thats really scary.

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Many of those in attendance noted that they had been at the 2016 Womens March or the recent Black Lives Matter protests, and expressed general fears about the state of the country that went beyond just the next Supreme Court pick.

Not only am I mourning the loss of a great feminist icon and a great Supreme Court justice, but the potential loss of my rights as a woman and a person of color, said Shonali Bose, a 22-year-old who works for the Biden campaign.

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Im a white, educated woman, and Im terrified. I cant imagine how people of color feel. This is wrong. Its scary, said Kelly Shand, who came with Woods and Collins.

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It just feels like were taking giant leaps backward as a country, said Sara Sullivan, 74. Weve been at this a long time. I say, like lots of old ladies, I thought we did this already. 

The emotions at the event reflected not just Ginsburgs long career, but her emergence in recent years as an icon for the American left and feminism.

Shes been described as a warrior, and I think thats absolutely what she was, said Sullivan.

She changed laws that were written by white, landowning men, said Woods. People whitewash the womens movement, they demonize feminism. Some women dont understand that theyd be washing somebodys laundry if it wasnt for people like Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Chad Caldwell, 28, put it more simply: Shes notorious. What else can you say?
Video blogging or Vlogging is becoming a popular industry in the last few years. However, as easy as it may sound, you need the perfect equipment to fulfil this task. This has given birth to another industry in itself, that of specialised vlogging cameras. The specialised vlogging cameras are a bit different from your professional cameras for photography as they have superior microphones as well as quality to capture better videos. We take a look at these option in cameras best suited for vlogging.

1. Sony A6400

The Sony A6400s front-facing screen sets it apart from its rivals and makes it desirable for single-handed video shooters or vloggers who want to talk directly to the camera. The A6400 is also a great camera for stills. It has a 4K video shooting ability combined with state of the art autofocus system, and especially its Eye-AF performance. The Sony A6400 is priced at Rs. 70,990.

2. Panasonic Lumix G100

Panasonics Lumix G100 makes it easy to capture high-quality video and stills with its easily approachable button layout. Even people not familiar with operating a camera will be able to get results with this camera. It also has a decent viewfinder and proper camera ergonomics. It is a great camera to start with if youre more interested in vlogging than regular photography. This model comes with a price of Rs. 43,990.

3. Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III

The mirrorless Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III is a great option for vlogging. The E-M5 Mark III delivers crisp, clean 4K video with rock-solid image stabilisation. The phase-detect AF doesnt let you down and its stills photography performance is top-notch as well. It has rock-solid in-body image stabilization as well. This camera comes at a price of Rs 1,01,550.

4. Panasonic Lumix GH5S

This one is more video-centric camera, which is a superior performer in low light, thanks to dual native ISO. It, however, does not have the best image quality as compared to some other options on the list. It offers vast control over video recording settings, including the ability to capture 4K at up to 60/50fps for a smooth 2x slow-motion effect. It also comes with an in-body sensor-based image stabilisation system. This Panasonic model is priced at Rs 1,03,849.

5. Canon EOS M6 Mark II

The Canon EOS M6 Mark II is an excellent choice as it can shoot impressive uncropped 4K video while making use of its Dual Pixel autofocus. Its lightly built and easy to carry, making use of the EF-M lenses. It also comes packed with other useful features like a microphone socket, an articulating touchscreen and video stabilisation to keep things smooth. This model is priced at Rs 75,000.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told congressional Democrats on a conference call Saturday that "nothing is off the table next year" if Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his Republican allies move to fill Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Supreme Court seat in the coming weeks.

Why it matters: Schumer's comments come amid calls from fellow Democrats to expand the number of judges on the Supreme Court if President Trump and Senate Republicans move to fill the newly empty seat next time the party holds a majority in the Senate.

What he's saying: Our number one goal must be to communicate the stakes of this Supreme Court fight to the American people," Schumer said, according to a source on the call.

Let me be clear: if Leader McConnell and Senate Republicans move forward with this, then nothing is off the table for next year. Nothing is off the table.

Context: Trump said Saturday morning he believes Republicans have an "obligation" to fill the seat "without delay," tweeting: "We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices."

McConnell noted Friday that Trump's nominee will receive a confirmation vote before the election, despite precedent set by Senate Republicans in 2016 not to consider nominees during an election year.

noted Friday that Trump's nominee will receive a confirmation vote before the election, despite precedent set by Senate Republicans in 2016 not to consider nominees during an election year. Republicans stonewalled President Obama's nomination of Merrick Garland after Justice Antonin Scalia's death, claiming voters should decide in the election who is appointed to the court.

The big picture: "Mitch McConnell set the precedent," Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) wrote in a tweet Friday. "No Supreme Court vacancies filled in an election year. If he violates it, when Democrats control the Senate in the next Congress, we must abolish the filibuster and expand the Supreme Court."
The pundit and publisher Iain Dale has finally come up with a lame excuse for not keeping the most famous promise he ever made. On election night in 2010, Dale poured scorn on a BBC exit poll that predicted the Liberal Democrats would win as few as 59 seats. If that proved true, Dale promised, he would run naked down Whitehall. Actually, the poll overestimated rather than underestimated Nick Cleggs appeal. They won 57 seats.

After all these years, Dale has now confirmed what we suspected: he is not going to run naked down Whitehall, ever. The fact that they won two fewer was my, ahem, get-out clause, he pleads, feebly.

Someone else in urgent need of a get-out clause is The Daily Telegraph pundit Dan Hodges, On 15 December 2012, Hodges tweeted: If Ukip break six per cent at the next election Ill streak naked down Whitehall in a Nigel Farage mask whilst singing Land of Hope and Glory.

Without vouchsafing to run naked down anywhere I will make two firm predictions: 1) Ukip, currently at 15 per cent or more in the polls, will break six per cent in May. 2) Dan Hodges will break his word.

A taxing conflict of interest

Lord Mandelsons opposition to Labours proposed mansion tax, which will hit anyone whose home is worth over 2m, is wholly unconnected, I am sure, to the valuation that Zoopla now puts on his home near Regents Park. Bought in 2011 for a reputed 8m, it is now reckoned to be worth 11.5m.

Taking the Michael

Given where the Lib Dems are in the polls, their chances of holding Portsmouth South in May are vanishingly small. But just to make it that bit worse, the disgraced incumbent, Mike Hancock, who is no longer a party member, is threatening to run as an independent. Given that Hancock has been the MP on and off for 30 years, and was a Portsmouth councillor for even longer, there must be one or two Portsmouth citizens who will vote for him for old times sake.

Talking turkey

The final item on todays agenda in the House of Commons was a debate on the poultry industry. MPs talking about headless chickens: how very self-referential.

MPs have feelings too

If you are an MP and want love, youre in the wrong game, the political scientist Philip Cowley told a packed room in the Speakers House. He was delivering a lecture on attitudes to politicians, in which he argued that politicians have never been trusted in this country, and are no more unpopular now than they were centuries ago.

I dare say he is right. However, the Lib Dem peer Lord Wallace was in the village of Saltaire at the weekend, where the residents are angry about a plan by Bradford Council to cut down some trees to improve the pavements. In the window of a hairdressers he saw a notice saying, Kill politicians, not trees.

The furious peer stormed in and demanded to know whether the hairdresser would write the same about policemen or Muslims, setting off a row that ended only when Lady Wallace dragged her husband away. He says he will not be going back there to get his hair cut.

A fruitful development

For those who have been wondering what British government policy is on mangoes, the Foreign Secretary Phil Hammond elucidated today. I am absolutely clear that there should be full transparency on all issues concerning mangoes, he told MPs.

No prevarication there.
Empty streets of the city are seen in Melbourne, Australia, on July 27, 2020. (Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

21 New Cases, Virus Cluster Under Control

Victoria has reported its lowest number of daily COVID-19 cases in almost three months as the states health chief declares a suburban Melbourne virus cluster is under control.

There were 21 new coronavirus cases in the 24 hours up to Saturday morning which is the lowest since June 24.

A further seven COVID deaths were reported, taking the states death toll to 757 and the national count to 844.

Premier Daniel Andrews says Victorians should be hopeful and optimistic about the future based on the latest figures.

Metropolitan Melbourne has a 14-day new case average of 39.3, well below the states target of 50.

The 14-day average  at that level, under 40, is something that every Victorian should be positive about, proud about, and very hopeful and optimistic about for the weeks ahead, Andrews said.

Despite the good news, the premier said there would be no easing of restrictions ahead of the September 28 timeline.

Public health authorities have raced to stop infections growing in the Casey and Dandenong council areas on the Melbournes southeast rim, which now has 90 active cases.

Five households in Clyde, Cranbourne North, Hallam and Narre Warren South are linked to 34 active cases.

Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said management of the Casey cluster was proving effective.

I would say it is under control, he told reporters on Saturday.

What we do know is people are isolating appropriately and that close contacts are in quarantine, but people have obviously been exposed to the virus and they can develop illness any time up to 14 days after having been exposed.

A Monash Health spokesman confirmed it was caring for three people in hospital connected to the Casey cluster on Saturday.

Contact tracers discovered members of each house had been breaching the 5km travel limit for visits.

A special team has been created to target the cluster, with the government saying it is in conversation with local community members and leaders.

Other cases in the area are linked to workplaces, including nine connected to a truck manufacturer and six to Dandenong Police Station.

Andrews also confirmed retired police officers will be recalled to help conduct household checks in what the state opposition has deemed a recipe for disaster.

The Department of Health and Human Services is recruiting more authorised officers to conduct patrols and compliance inspections and will look to former police to fill the ranks.

State opposition police spokesman David Southwick accused the premier of repeating the mistakes of the botched hotel quarantine program.

Daniel Andrews has doubled down on shortcut solutions and now seeks to empower Victoria Police veterans to lock people up in their homes, Southwick said.

In response to reports of possible anti-lockdown protests on Saturday, Andrews sent a simple message.

Go home and follow the rules.

Sophie Moore, Andi Yu in Melbourne
Imperial Valley News Center

Presidential Message on Rosh Hashanah, 2020

Washington, DC - The First Lady and I wish our Jewish brothers and sisters Shana Tova and hope the millions observing this sacred day in America and around the world have a blessed start to the High Holy Days.

As this 10-day period of celebration, devout prayer, reflection, and repentance commences, we are reminded of how important faith, family, and fellowship are to each of us. Particularly during these challenging times, the sense of peace and reassurance that comes with these observances has never been more important in helping us seek His wisdom and understanding as we continue to grow in our faith.

This years High Holy Days come with a sense of optimism for the people of Israel, as my Administration continues to make great strides in securing a more stable, prosperous, and peaceful Middle East region. Last month, we secured a historic agreement between the United Arab Emirates and Israelthe first between Israel and a major Arab country since 1994that normalizes relations between the two countries, including the exchange of embassies and ambassadors, as well as enhanced cooperation in a broad range of fields including education, healthcare, trade, and security. And, just days after Bahrain reached a similar deal with Israel, we were proud to host the leaders of Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain at the White House earlier this week for the signing of these agreements and the Abraham Accords as a whole. As the High Holy Days begin, this momentous milestone in geopolitical relations is a reminder that we can create a coalition of nations that have shared goals of eliminating extremism and promoting security and prosperity, while also respecting religious freedom and building a more hopeful tomorrow for future generations.

Melania and I pray that He blesses all Jewish people throughout these High Holy Days. We hope that these 10 days provide those observing this special time a respite to build their faith and better experience the many blessings of the Almightys love and mercy.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : Hollywood actress Ana de Armas is the face of the first ever TVC campaign by industry authority Natural Diamond Council's (NDC). 'For Moments Like No Other' highlights the versatile beauty of natural diamonds.

"I love thinking of diamonds this way, as special emblems of even our small personal moments. They represent joy, warmth and beauty," Armas said, expressing her love for diamonds.

Earlier known as Diamond Producers Association, NDC aims to become the go-to digital publisher for innovative content covering all that's new and exciting in the industry.

Richa Singh, Managing Director, NDC, India, said: "It was a challenge to put together the brand and campaign launch when the world is going through such tough times, but it has been a rewarding experience. The campaign fits perfectly as consumers have greater respect for everything natural and want to buy fewer but better things. They are looking for things that last and have a meaning and emotion attached to it. We wish to create desirability for diamonds in the mind of consumers when it comes to celebrating life's every moment and our campaign featuring Ana De Armas portrays that beautifully. The TVC redefines special moments, celebrating a variety of personal connections with natural diamonds." The campaign which was lensed in coastal Portugal, directed by Manu Cossu and photographed by Camilla Akrans will have a global presence, running in India, the USA, UK and China.

In India, it will be launched with a digital first strategy on OTT platforms starting September 19 to target the affluent, informed luxury consumer and will release on television on leading premium Hindi and English channels.

The Natural Diamond Council will also distribute campaign materials through its owned channels, including its website, which will feature behind-the-scenes footage as well as comprehensive information about the brands and designers that are seen. For an enhanced connect with the local consumers and retail trade, there will be a section dedicated to similar jewellery designs that are available in India.

The new digital platform will focus on inspiring and educating consumers globally about the values and heritage of natural diamonds as well as promoting their desirability. It has a mix of Indian and international content, and dedicates significant coverage as a trusted educational hub providing all the facts needed when considering diamond jewellery purchase.

Areas of focus will include access to the sustainability and ethical practices of the producers as well as buying guides, all presented in a dynamic and engaging tone.

(IANSlife can be contacted at ianslife@ians.in)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
More Information

Recommendations for public

 Socially distance at least 6 feet from non-household members.

 Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth.

 Wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating and after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing.

 If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol based sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.

 Always wash hands with soap and water if hands are visibly dirty.

 Wear face coverings in public.

 Stay home when sick.

 Covering coughs and sneezes.

 Throw used tissues in the trash right after use.

 Routinely clean frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning wipe or spray.

Where to get help

If you think you've been exposed to COVID-19 and develop a fever and symptoms such as cough or difficulty breathing, call your health care provider for medical advice. If he/she isn't available, call MidMichigan Urgent Care in Midland at 989-633-1350 or MidMichigan Medical Center's Emergency Department in Midland at 989-839-3100.

MidMichigan Health has a COVID-19 informational hotline with a reminder of CDC guidelines and recommendations. The hotline can be reached toll-free at 800-445-7356 or 989-794-7600. Michigan Department of Health and Human Services also has a hotline number for Michigan residents for questions about COVID-19. The number is 1-888-535-6136 and is available seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Residents can also e-mail COVID19@michigan.gov. E-mails will be answered seven days a week between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

If you are feeling anxious, stressed, depressed and feel you need to talk to someone, reach out to Community Mental Health for Central Michigan by calling 800-317-0708.
SAULNIERVILLE, N.S.  Fishermen from Nova Scotias Sipeknekatik First Nation prepared to retrieve lobster traps Saturday as RCMP continued to patrol waters off the western part of the province.

Rhonda Knockwood, the First Nations director of operations, said fishermen planned to leave the wharf in Saulnierville, N.S., to pick up traps that were set on Thursday. Boats were still being prepared for the task as of late Saturday afternoon.

RCMP are here and are maintaining the peace, said Knockwood. They (fishermen) are going to go out to check whats out there.

Earlier in the week, some Indigenous fishermen had alleged that ropes securing some of their lobster traps had been cut. Knockwood said no traps were set on Friday.

She said Indigenous fishermen had set up a blockade of rope and lobster traps at each end of the wharf on Saturday.

Security is really what we are trying to do. Were just making sure we are containing ourselves within our little bubble here, she said.

RCMP spokesman Sgt. Andrew Joyce said there were no incidents reported overnight Friday, and Mounties continued to patrol on the water and in the air.

Police arrested two people on assault charges at the wharf in Weymouth, N.S., on Friday, following reports of ugly confrontations over the First Nations lobster fishing operation.

Some non-Indigenous fishermen say they believe the Indigenous fishery is illegal because the regular fishing season is now closed. But the Sipeknekatik First Nation says its people have a treaty right to fish at any time.

Two Mikmaq Senators added their voice in support of the fishery on Saturday.

Senators Dan Christmas from Nova Scotia and Brian Francis from P.E.I. called on the federal government to respect the Supreme Court of Canada-affirmed treaty right of the Mikmaq to a moderate livelihood fishery.

As Canadas Mikmaw senators, we stand in solidarity with the Mikmaw chiefs and the Mikmaq negotiations team that the federal government will undertake meaningful consultation on this process to avoid harvesters treaty rights from being further infringed upon, they said.

Christmas and Francis said a permanent solution is needed that moves beyond conditional access to the existing commercial fishery.

It is time for the federal government to work with our communities, to uphold constitutionally entrenched and enshrined rights, they said.

National chief of the Assembly of First Nations, Perry Bellegarde, also voiced his support in a Facebook post on Friday.

Indigenous fishermen set their traps Thursday, 21 years after the Supreme Court of Canada decided Donald Marshall Jr. had a treaty right to fish for eels when and where he wanted  without a licence.

A clarification was issued two months later by the court, which said the treaty right was subject to federal regulation.

Non-Indigenous fishermen in western Nova Scotia say the courts clarification is key to understanding why they oppose a self-regulated Indigenous lobster fishery that is not subject to federal regulations.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2020.

by Keith Doucette in Halifax

Read more about:
It was top marks at Skerries Community College last week when Leaving Certificate results arrived, but a clear message from principal Kevin McLoughlin that all was not lost for those left disappointed.

Like all other secondary schools in Fingal, school yards remained empty as students viewed their results at home online, but there was still a sense of celebration in the air nonetheless.

Mr McLoughlin said: 'What happened here was, like every other school, the students got their results online, so we didn't have any photographs or celebrations like we would normally have.

'The students didn't call into the school for COVID reasons and analysis of the results is still ongoing.

'The results were very very good, we had two students who achieved the top result of 625 points and a number of students above 600.

'We're still going through them because even the way we received the information is not like as it was a year ago, it's a bit slower to work out everybody's results now.'

Mr McLoughlin said he didn't believe this year's system of calculated grades held too much sway over results, as grades were in line with what students would have achieved anyway.

The main thing, he said, was that the majority of students were pleased and now had their eyes set on the future.

Offering some reassuring words for those who who hadn't achieved what they had hoped, he said: 'I suppose I'd say it's not a time to panic.

'The CAO offers are not out yet, and even at that there'll be a second round, and for those not happy with their results, they will have a chance to re-sit their exams this year.

'All is not lost if the results are not what they want, they have the option to re-sit their exam.'

Mr McLoughlin said he was not sure how the school's students would choose to celebrate their results, in this unusual year, but he hoped they would do so 'in a responsible way.'
NEW DELHI: The Drugs Controller General of India has approved the commercial launch of 'Feluda', the Tata CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) COVID-19 test, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) said on Saturday.

This test uses an indigenously developed, cutting-edge CRISPR technology for detection of the genomic sequence of SARS-CoV-2 virus, CSIR said in a statement.

The Tata CRISPR test achieves accuracy levels of traditional RT-PCR tests with quicker turnaround time, less expensive equipment and better ease of use. CRISPR is a genome editing technology to diagnose diseases. The technology has been developed by CSIR-IGIB (Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology).

"The Tata CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) test, powered by CSIR-IGIB (Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology) FELUDA, received regulatory approvals today from DCGI for commercial launch, as per ICMR guidelines, meeting high quality benchmarks with 96 per cent sensitivity and 98 per cent specificity for detecting novel coronavirus," the statement said.

The Tata CRISPR test is the world's first diagnostic test to deploy a specially adapted Cas9 protein to successfully detect the virus causing COVID-19, it said.

Moreover, CRISPR is a futuristic technology that can also be configured for detection of multiple other pathogens in the future.

"The Tata Group has worked closely with CSIR-IGIB and ICMR to create a high-quality test that will help the nation ramp up COVID-19 testing quickly and economically, with a 'Made in India' product that is safe, reliable, affordable and accessible," the statement added.

Commenting on the development, Girish Krishnamurthy, CEO, TATA Medical and Diagnostics Ltd said, "The approval for the Tata CRISPR test for COVID-19 will give a boost to the country's efforts in fighting the global pandemic.

"The commercialisation of Tata CRISPR test reflects the tremendous R&D talent in the country which can collaborate to transform India's contributions to the global healthcare and scientific research world," he said.

Anurag Agrawal, director, CSIR-IGIB, said the work started by CSIR under the sickle cell mission for genome diagnostics and therapeutics led to new knowledge that could be harnessed to quickly develop new diagnostic test for SARS-CoV-2.

He emphasised that this shows the interconnectedness of scientific knowledge and technology and the innovation of the young research team led by Debojyoti Chakraborty and Souvik Maiti.
Why this Seven Springs clip grabbed the attention of 1 million people

The tweet has been seen by more than 1 million people so far. Many commenters asked if the clip was planned or fake.
It was not immediately clear whether Trump would push ahead with the gamble of a Senate showdown before the election that would cement his legacy or wait to confirm a choice in a lame-duck session that could follow the election. Some Republican strategists said it would make more sense for the president to name a choice right away and proceed with hearings but wait for a Senate vote until after Nov. 3 to give Republicans who have soured on Trump because of the coronavirus pandemic or other reasons an incentive to turn out to vote.
A man wearing a protective face mask walks under surveillance cameras as China is hit by an outbreak of the novel coronavirus, in Shanghai, on March 4, 2020. (Aly Song/Reuters)

Over 1 Million Chinese Were Monitored by Regime via COVID-19 Database in May

During the month of May, more than a million people were being closely monitored by Chinese authorities for their risk of contracting the CCP virus, an internal Chinese government document obtained by The Epoch Times shows.

The public security (police) bureau of Wuhai city, Inner Mongolia, issued a notice about fully advancing the construction of police big data apps, which highlighted that the Chinese regime maintained a national COVID-19 database for high-risk populations.

The notice, issued in May, stated that there were more than 1,170,000 people in the database. It would be updated daily with information, such as the body temperatures of people entering the city, who are screened at the citys checkpoints; and the number of passengers entering local railway stations and airports. They would be rated into four categories, based on the severity of the outbreak in their place of residence.

An internal document from the public security bureau of Wuhai city, Inner Mongolia, from May 2020. (Provided to The Epoch Times)

In addition, data would be collected on peoples whereabouts: where theyve eaten, stayed at, traveled around, went shopping, or entertained themselves, according to the notice.

The police bureau said they would collaborate with internet companies, tech firms, and three telecommunications giantsChina Mobile, China Unicom, and China Telecomto maximize their surveillance.

The document did not mention how many citizens total have been monitored under the database since the pandemic broke out.

The Chinese regimes use of high tech to monitor its citizens has previously raised concerns among human rights and cyber experts, who note that the data is often collected without users consent.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, popular Chinese messaging app WeChat developed a health code feature that allowed authorities to scan a barcode on peoples phones and check if an individual is virus-free, has had contact with virus patients, is COVID-19 positive, or exhibits symptoms of the virus. Some experts, such as Human Rights Watch, warned that the personal data collected and analyzed by police authorities could be exploited to track down and target dissidents.

State media recently reported that Guizhou Province has become a super big data hub, with police utilizing technology for prevention and control purposes.

Nanjing Daily used the example of a local resident surnamed Yang to illustrate the power of the database. Yang, who made a business trip to Wuhan on Jan. 22, was taken by surprise when officials showed up at his home a week later for physical checkups. The officers drawing on big data not only found out all of his close contacts during the trip, but also their whereabouts.

In another case, a person wrote on social media that a disease control official, through surveillance cameras, located the rider sitting next to him while he was on a bus to alert him about a missed phone call from the official. The two had no prior contact before the bus trip.

In February, deputy director of the command center of Nanjings police bureau Dai Xiulin said in an interview with state-run Nanjing Daily that the bureau has created files for each key COVID-19 target. According to Dai, with big data comparative analysis, police could detail the whereabouts of key targets and send orders to police stations for accurate home visits.

Gu Qinger and Eva Fu contributed to this report.
Senator Mitch McConnell implored fellow Republican senators on Friday night to keep your powder dry in an effort to stave off defections, as he weighed whether to force a vote on a possible replacement for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg before the Nov. 3 presidential election.

In a Dear Colleagues letter, Mr. McConnell, the majority leader, who is from Kentucky, said that senators should not take firm positions until he has a chance to meet with them when they return to Washington. With at least two members of his caucus already indicating in recent days that they would not support confirming a nominee so soon before the election, Mr. McConnell cannot afford to lose more than one other senator.

Over the coming days, we are all going to come under tremendous pressure from the press to announce how we will handle the coming nomination, Mr. McConnell wrote. For those of you who are unsure how to answer, or for those inclined to oppose giving a nominee a vote, I urge you all to keep your powder dry. He urged them not to lock yourselves into a position you may later regret.

Senators Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska have already said they did not favor voting on a nomination by President Trump so soon before the election. Several other senators, including Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, indicated in recent years that they would not support filling a Supreme Court vacancy during a presidential election, but they did not reiterate that position on Friday after Justice Ginsburgs death.
CALIFORNIA SCREAMIN

I am voting for Donald Trump in 2020 because I dont want my state to turn into a state like California. We will stay Pennsylvania, not California.

HERES YOUR PROOF

I keep hearing about the rich Republicans. If it is true, that just proves the Republicans must be smarter and work harder than the Democrats.

ALAN, WALLINGFORD

BLAME CHINA

As usual President Trump, not Biden, has the facts on the major cause of the intense forest fires in California. For four years Trump has promoted the need to thin California forest. The project was thwarted by environmentalist because they felt the thinning would eliminate the habitats of endangered species. Higher temperatures from climate change are also involved. However, the prestigious agencies studying climate change admit that they lack evidence to conclude that human activity has caused global warning. If it is human activity, is it activity from the U.S./California? Most likely the main environmental culprits are China and India. The countries threatening our environment are not covered by the Paris Peace Accord until 2030.

JR

SAVE YOUR BREATH

I know its completely futile, but even so, I will address the morons yet again who continue to come here on Sound Off thinking that they are going to turn potential voters away from voting for Biden because he is supposedly senile, losing it, cant complete a sentence, and on and on. Perhaps these morons will feel better when I lump Biden together with Ronald MacDonald and Chuck E. Cheese. Biden  a mascot  and a clown  all in the same box. But heres the thing. Biden, Ronald, and Chuck have one endearing and vitally important trait in common. They are not Donald Trump. If they are stupid, senile, ridiculous  a whole lot of voters like myself just do not care. We will vote for anyone and anything before ever voting for that slime stain currently occupying the White House. Do these morons truly believe that their flaccid attacks on Biden are going to convince anyone who has committed to getting this criminal in the White House out of office in November to suddenly decide to vote for Trump?

JB

FORGET THE COMPUTERS

I wish I could buy a car without computers in it. I remember having cars without computers in it. They were easy to work on, they were common sense. Now, they got all this high-tech computers in cars, which wound them in my book. I wish they would bring back the good old classic car. God Bless America.

A BLAST FROM THE PAST

GOP LOVES TAXES

At a rally in Wisconsin, Donald Trump said that the Democrats and Biden are going to raise taxes on the middle class. Well, the fact is that the tax bill Republicans passed keeps the tax cuts for billionaires and corporations permanent, but taxes are going to go up for the middle class and I believe these tax hikes are going to kick in next year. Of course his moronic idiotic brainless supporters in Wisconsin were cheering every word he said because they are brain dead.

SMH

THOSE WERE THE DAYS

When I was young, which was seven decades ago, you always thought that the children would do a notch or two better wage their parents. That was just a given. Now today no, its not the case. Institutions that we all revered like the FBI, the CIA and the police force are being whittled down, held up to scorn. I just worry about the world that my grandchildren are going to have.

LION OF LLANERCH

HERE IS THE OUTRAGE

I just read where to Camden County, N.J., police officers homes were shot up this week. Where is the outrage? When is this going to end ? They are police officers doing their job, trying to protect people and this is what happens. This needs to stop now. Its disgusting, absolutely disgusting. I personally am outraged.

OUTRAGED, OUTRAGED
In January this year, veteran actress Shabana Azmi met with a fatal accident and suffered head injuries when her car collided with a truck on Mumbai-Pune expressway. Recently, in an interview with Times of India, the senior actress opened up about her accident and said that it was a 'close shave'.

Shabana Azmi told the leading tabloid, "I had fainted. I was told it was a very close shave." The actress joked that because of the injury to the brain, she can say that she has a brain.

She further continued, "But 40 days later, I resumed work for Halo in Budapest and now I am shooting for Nikhil Advani's Moghuls. Work keeps you going and you need carry on. I received so much respect and concern from all parts of the world during that accident period and I think that's one of the main reasons I recovered."

Earlier, in an interview with Film Companion, Shabana's husband and lyricist Javed Akhtar had shared what went through his mind when his wife met with the accident.

He was quoted as saying, "Who could think we would have such a calamity. The accident that Shabana went through was really deadly. We were in the other car, she was sleeping in the car behind us and when this accident occurred and we went back, the first thought was 'Is she alive?' Because the whole car was crushed, had become a heap of junk. Somehow we took her out, she was unconscious with blood all over her face and it was only from the nose. There were no wounds but the whole body has taken such a whiplash, that it will take a little time to be totally normal."

Speaking about work, Shabana Azmi recently turned producer with ZEE5 original Mee Raqsam.

ALSO READ: Shabana Azmi On The Idea Of Masculinity: 'Why Can't It Be About Empathy And Tenderness?'

ALSO READ: Shabana Azmi Talks About Her Late Father Kaifi Azmi, Says Her Film 'Mee Raqsam' Is A Tribute To Him



ALSO READ:
Its symbolic where we cast our sins into the sea, and its a tradition that children throw the bread in the water, he said.

Once the pandemic hit, the synagogue shut down for eight weeks in the spring and then held services outside when it reopened. Rapoport has also held services virtually through Zoom and Facebook Live.

The numbers have definitely been lower, but we ramped up our online presence, he said. In some ways, we have more people engaged with the synagogue (during) COVID, but just not in person.

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Before COVID-19, 150 to 200 people would come to regular services in the summer, according to the rabbi. This past summer, only 40 people came for services regularly.

One of those loyal members is part-time Ventnor resident Phyllis Beresin. To continue practicing her faith, she attended outdoor services at the synagogue.

It wasnt hard at all, she said of adjusting to outside services. Its a beautiful space, and I feel like Im in Israel when Im here. To me, its wonderful.

She commended Rapoport for doing as much as he can with what he was dealt.
Appointments available for blood donations sessions in Wrexham

This article is old - Published: Saturday, Sep 19th, 2020

The Welsh Blood Service will be hosting four donation sessions in Wrexham next week.

In August the service received 6,000 blood donations.

Appointments are still available at sessions in Wrexham Glyndwr University on 21 and 22nd September and Wrexham Memorial Hall on 23 and 24th.

Each blood donation can help to save three lives or six babies.

If you are fit and healthy please consider making an appointment.

Further information of appointment times available can be found here.
Trend's exclusive interview with UN Resident Coordinator for Kazakhstan Norimasa Shimomura.

BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept. 19

By Nargiz Sadikhova - Trend:

United Nations (UN) and Kazakhstan intend to make a substantial contribution to environmental resilience, UN Resident Coordinator for Kazakhstan Norimasa Shimomura told Trend.

In Aug. 2020 First Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Alikhan Smailov and UN Resident Coordinator in Kazakhstan Norimasa Shimomura signed an Agreement between Kazakhstan and the UN on Cooperation for Sustainable Development for 2021-2025.

Shimomura explained that Cooperation Framework is seen as a mechanism to further advance the achievement of the 2030 Agenda in Kazakhstan, by consolidating key resources of strategic partners, including the Government, civil society, academia, private sector, media, international community and the UN itself.

"The priorities of the Cooperation Framework have been defined based on the national priorities of Kazakhstan, and through the process of multi-stakeholder consultations, led by the idea that the 2030 Agenda must be achieved with a broad participation of people in Kazakhstan, including women, youth, persons with special needs  all to ensure that we 'Leave No One Behind'. The Theory of Change for the Cooperation Framework emphasis that achieving inclusive economic growth and environmental sustainability requires participation of all people in Kazakhstan  women, men, youth, elderly, disabled and others, including those from vulnerable groups, in economic, political and social modernization of the society," he said.

Shimomura added that under the Cooperation Framework, United Nations and Kazakhstan intend to make a substantial contribution to improvement of policy coherence for reduction of inequalities, achievement of gender equality and womens empowerment, building effective, inclusive and transparent governance, strengthening the rule of law and protection of human rights and environmental resilience that should help build a more cohesive society.

"The Cooperation Frameworks strategic priorities and intended outcomes are placed within the broader Central Asia context and closely linked to common development challenges identified in the countries of the region. The Cooperation Framework is most sensitive to the long-term development priorities of Kazakhstan that target a gradual transition from an overreliance on extractive industries toward more diversified economy that is characterized by a robust small and medium-sized enterprise sector, integration of research and innovation, use of renewable energy and increase of regional trade and transit that allows the country becoming a hub of regional economic corridors," Shimomura said.

He added that within three thematic areas - Human Development and Equal Participation, Effective Institutions, Human Rights and Gender Equality, and Inclusive Economic Growth and Environmental Sustainability, joint interventions of strategic partners will be implemented under six outcomes that focus on social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development.

"The Cooperation Framework and UNs COVID-19 Response Plan reflect the UN Systems pledge to the Government and to the people of Kazakhstan to always pursue the most sustainable, integrated, effective and efficient development pathways to achieve the 2030 Agenda. The UN is deepening its support to Kazakhstan to implement the ambitious vision of the countrys forward-looking development agenda and the Governments commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals," Shimomura said.

He also emphasized that the UN system in Kazakhstan will remain a valued, rights-based and trusted partner, focused on providing to its partners in the Government and society the most relevant policy advice, technical assistance and access to global networks.

Talking situation with COVID-19 he noted that the COVID-19 pandemic is more than a health crisis and it has not spared anyone in the country from being affected by this pandemic.

"As in the rest of the world, the economic slowdown in Kazakhstan caused by the pandemic may pose risks to achieving the SDGs and may affect implementation of the Cooperation Framework. The UN system in Kazakhstans consolidated response to these evolving demands will be pursued through the UNs COVID-19 Socio-Economic Response and Recovery Support Plan. This plan is based on the UNs global framework for post COVID-19 socio-economic response. It also is fully compatible with the Cooperation Framework, as both aim to put people at the center of development," Shimomura said.

Talking long-term affects of COVID-related situation for Kazakhstan, Shimomura said that the COVID-19 pandemic is a challenging test for society.

"This is a test that we can only pass if we are all united. And if we manage the recovery process right, we can better achieve the sustainable development goals and that creates a more resilient country that is more resilient against future challenges. The UN system stands in solidarity with the people of Kazakhstan and we will do our best to overcome this difficult moment," Shimomura said.

Shimomura added that putting people at the center of political and economic reforms means a human rights-based approach to development is needed.

"By respecting human rights in this time of crisis, we will build more effective and inclusive solutions for the emergency of today and the recovery for tomorrow. We believe that the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs present the best game plan to "build back better", with their inter-connected nature and focus on the principle of leaving no one behind. No one can achieve these goals alone unless we elevate our partnerships to another level," Shimomura said.

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Follow the author on twitter: @nargiz_sadikh
Fly-by-night justice minister Cho Kuk's wife collapsed in court on Thursday and was taken to hospital.

Around 35 minutes after the session began, Chung Kyung-shim's lawyer said, "The defendant complained about her health this morning and says she feels nauseous."

The judge ordered a 15-minute recess, but her condition did not improve, so proceedings continued without her.

Chung collapsed as she stood up to leave the courtroom. Her lawyer and court officials were unable to raise her and had to call an ambulance.

It was the second theatrical moment during the family's trials on charges of shady financial dealings, influence peddling and document forgery after her husband refused to answer even a single question in court last week.
ST. LOUIS  A St. Louis mother is asking for help burying her 15-year-old daughter, who loved goofy social media dances, lip gloss, Air Force One sneakers and her big St. Louis family before her life was ended in a shooting Monday.

Deosha Purnell was shot in a drive-by shooting at a gas station in far north St. Louis Riverview neighborhood, and later died at a hospital.

Her death marked the 194th homicide and 16th killing of a child younger than 17 so far this year in St. Louis. But Deoshas family doesnt want her to be remembered as a number.

Her life was so much bigger than a statistic, and she had so much of it in front of her. She wanted to do so many things, said her aunt, Dana Stegall, who was comforting Deoshas mother, Khalilah January, on Friday. It robbed so many people, all her siblings, her aunts, her mother, who loved her so much. She was all our little baby. Call her by her name.

And Deosha had a lot of names. She was called Hug-a-bunch by her mother because as a baby Deosha reminded January of a doll by that name because of her curly hair. When she got older, Deosha asked her family to call her Princess.

Deosha had just started her freshman year at Northwest High School and was the third oldest of nine children, ages 1, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 15, 19 and 21.

Out of all of them she was always the one who would be right up under me wherever I went, her mother said. Even as a 15-year-old, Deosha wanted to accompany her mom to the grocery store and snuggle with her before going to sleep.

Deosha also loved to learn dances shed post on the social media app TikTok and was known to freestyle rap from the age of 5.

Shed rap about anything, Stegall said, laughing. A ketchup bottle. Her little sister. Whatever was around.

Deosha decided just before her death to get her workers permit so she could get a job and afford her own Air Force Ones and Adidas outfits she would beg her mom to buy.

She loved re-applying lip gloss before posing for photos with all the people close to her.

On Friday, those photos were on commemorative T-shirts, face masks and necklaces worn by family surrounding her mother, who was still overcome with grief.

January was at her job at Procter & Gamble on Monday evening when her phone filled with messages and voicemails.

I heard Deosha had been shot and I just left, January said.

She went to the gas station where her daughter was lying injured. A bystander had provided first aid before ambulances arrived. Police told January someone sticking out of a sunroof in another vehicle shot at the car Deosha was riding in before driving off, January said.

She followed the ambulance to a hospital where doctors told her the teen had a weak pulse. They told her they would put a team of 20 of the best doctors in surgery to try to save her.

I said to him, Please get my baby right. Please, please, please because I cant lose my baby, January said.

A while later, the doctor returned with tears in his eyes to report that Deosha was gone.

I said, Gone where? January recalled. You mean my baby is gone forever?

Police had not made an arrest in the shooting by Friday.

In the days since the shooting, January has been comforted by family members who have had to contend with this kind of violence before.

January was in an apartment building in 1996 where her brother Larroll Cotton, 23, and cousin Quincy Cotton, 19, were shot and killed in the 4400 block of Swan Avenue in St. Louis. No one was ever arrested.

You have to face the loss of a child for the rest of your life, said Quincy Cottons mother, Yvonne Cotton, who was helping her niece, January, Friday. This just keeps happening and then more mothers and grandmothers have to have this hurt and no one ever faces the consequences.

Deoshas cousin, Alona Cotton, was also with January while she mourned Friday and was reminded of when she was caught in the crossfire of a shooting when she was about 15 in St. Louis. A bullet grazed her head but she survived.

This was almost me, she said, wearing a commemorative shirt displaying a picture of Deosha. It keeps happening and I know theres people that know something about who did this and theyre not saying anything.

For now, the family is focusing on raising enough to bury Deosha and hold a funeral and are asking the public for help.

They need to raise at least $6,000 for a plot and service for the teen. The family set up an online GoFundMe fundraiser under the title Resting Place for 15yr old Deosha. By Friday afternoon, the fund had raised $1,700 in donations.

If they raise more than $6,000 it will be enough to buy Deosha a new pair of clean, white Air Force Ones and a red Adidas outfit she will be buried in.

Hopefully well have enough for flowers, too, January said. She would have liked that.

To donate, visit gofundme.com/f/resting-place-for-14yr-old-deosha.

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New Delhi: The Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Dr PK Mishra on September 18, 2020, chaired a meeting of the High-Level Taskforce constituted to improve the air quality in the National Capital Region of Delhi and emphasized that the meeting was called well in advance before the onset of harvesting and winter season to ensure proper precautionary and preventive measures to combat the causes of air pollution are taken well in time.

A review of the main sources of air pollution measures taken and the progress made by the State Governments and various Ministries was carried out. It was noted that the incidence of stubble burning has reduced by more than 50% in the last two years and the number of Good AQI days have gone up.

The efforts and plan made by the State of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh for control of crop residue burning were examined in detail, including ground-level deployment and availability of machinery for in-situ management of crop residue.

It was observed that after recent inclusion of residue-based power /fuel plants under priority sector lending by Reserve Bank of India, both State and Central Governments should jointly work out action plans for rapid deployment of such units. Measures related to the diversification of crop and strengthening of supply chains were also discussed.

Principal Secretary highlighted the importance of effective implementation of the existing in-situ management of crop residue scheme of Ministry of Agriculture by the States and emphasized that State Governments should ensure that the new machinery to be deployed in the current year should reach the farmers before the start of the harvesting season. Ministry of Agriculture was directed to provide all necessary support in this regard.

To control stubble burning, it was stressed that an adequate number of teams should be deployed at ground level and they should ensure that no stubble burning takes place especially in the State of Punjab, Haryana and UP. These States need to put extra efforts and appropriate incentives, especially in the relevant districts.

Government of GNCT-Delhi was requested to ensure measures to control local sources of pollution. Principal Secretary mentioned that special emphasis should be laid on the deployment of teams for control of open burning of waste, IT-enabled monitoring of mechanical road sweepers, improvement in utilization of construction & demolition waste and site-specific implementation of an action plan for identified hot spots. It was decided that Haryana and Uttar Pradesh would prepare and implement similar site-specific action plans in their area falling under NCR.

Principal Secretary emphasized that the envisaged measures should be implemented well before the onset of severe conditions, and focus should also be laid on compliance of emission norms by industry in the satellite industrial area.

Chief Secretaries of Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, Secretaries of different department/ministries of the central government including M/o of Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Agriculture, Road, Petroleum and central Pollution Control Board were present in the meeting.
Who dung it: One researcher investigated the story that a man in the frozen north had made a knife from human waste.

An anthropologist who tested an urban legend by fashioning a knife out of frozen human faeces, and a man who found that spiders oddly give scientists who study insects the heebie-jeebies, are among this year's winners of the Ig Nobel prize.

Because of the coronavirus pandemic, Thursday's 30th annual Ig Nobel ceremony was a 75-minute prerecorded virtual affair instead of the usual live event at Harvard University.

Even so, it managed to maintain some of the event's traditions, including real Nobel Prize laureates handing out the amusing alternatives.

"It was a nightmare, and it took us months, but we got it done," said Marc Abrahams, editor of the Annals of Improbable Research magazine, the event's primary sponsor.

This year's winners also included a collection of world leaders who think they are smarter than doctors and scientists, and a team of Dutch and Belgian researchers who looked at why chewing and other sounds people make drive us crazy.

Metin Eren has been fascinated since high school by the story of an Inuit man in Canada who made a knife out of his own excrement. The story has been told and retold, but is it true?

Mr Eren and his colleagues decided to find out.

Mr Eren, an assistant professor of anthropology at Kent State University in Ohio and co-director of the university's Experimental Archaeology Lab, used real human faeces frozen to -50C and filed to a sharp edge.

He then tried to cut meat with it.

"The poo knives failed miserably," he said in a telephone interview. "There's not a lot of basis empirically for this fantastic story."

The study makes an important point about stories based on unproven science.

"The point of this was to show that evidence and fact checking are vital," he said.

Richard Vetter won an Ig Nobel for his paper looking at why people who spend their lives studying insects are unnerved by spiders.

His paper, "Arachnophobic Entomologists: Why Two Legs Make all the Difference", appeared in the journal American Entomologist in 2013.

Mr Vetter, a retired research associate and spider specialist who worked in the entomology department at the University of California Riverside for 32 years, found during the course of his work that many insect lovers hate spiders.

"It always struck me as funny that when I talked to entomologists about spiders, they would say something along the lines of, 'Oh, I hate spiders!"' he said in a telephone interview.

He found that many bug lovers had had a negative experience with a spider, including bites and nightmares. The fact that spiders are often hairy, fast, silent and have all those creepy eyes can unsettle entomologists, he said.

This year's Ig Nobel for Medical Education was shared by a group of world leaders including Donald Trump, Boris Johnson and Vladimir Putin for their attitude around the pandemic.

Mr Abrahams made efforts to reach out to the world leaders to accept their awards, with no luck. "It would have been fun for them to take part," he said.

Damiaan Denys and his colleagues earned the Ig Nobel in medicine for pioneering a new psychiatric diagnosis - misophonia - getting annoyed by noises others make.

Mr Denys, a professor at the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands and a psychiatrist who specialises in patients with anxiety, compulsive and impulsive disorders, was inspired by a former patient who became so enraged by people who sneezed that she felt like killing them.

In order to keep the tradition of real Nobel Prize winners handing out the Ig Nobels, organisers used video tricks. Each winner was posted a document to be printed out. It included instructions on how to assemble their own cube-shaped prize. To make it look as if real Nobel laureates were handing them out, they handed their prizes off screen, and the winner reached off screen to pull in the one they had assembled.
The Houston Independent School District released 12 locations with presumed positive COVID-19 cases from the past week.

Most of the schools and facilities remain open for in-person instruction and other functions, according to a news release. The release states people who may have been exposed are notified by the district and are recommended to self-quarantine for 14 days and get tested for COVID-19 if they have symptoms.

Each location is sanitized and deep cleaned, per the HISD Communicable Disease Plan.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Houston-area school districts report pretty positive results, no big outbreaks after reopening

"Out of an abundance of caution, it is recommended that any individual who may have been exposed get tested for COVID-19 if they begin to exhibit symptoms," the release states. "We are taking this situation seriously and continue to work closely with the Houston Health Department to identify any student or staff member who should be tested for COVID-19."

The Texas Education Agency and Department of State Health Services are tracking and publicly reporting confirmed cases of COVID-19 tied to public schools. The two agencies developed a reporting system for school districts to allow DSHS to publish information on cases and outbreaks.

Data on the number of cases in schools is of paramount interest to parents, students, teachers, staff, public health experts, policymakers and the larger community, the agencies said in a statement. This information will be submitted to DSHS any time there is a positive case in a campus community.

The following HISD schools and facilities have reports of presumed positive cases:

Burnet Elementary School, 5403 Canal Street

Hilliard Elementary School, 8115 East Houston Road

Osborne Elementary School, 800 Ringold Street

Patterson Elementary School, 5302 Allendale Road

Rucker Elementary School, 5201 Vinett Street

Stevens Elementary School, 1910 Lamonte Road

Navarro Middle School, 5100 Polk Street

Chavez High School, 8501 Howard Drive

Heights High School, 413 East 13th Street

Sterling Aviation Early College High School, 11625 Martindale Road

Westbury High School, 11911 Chimney Rock Road

Construction Services Support Facility

Reporter Jacob Carpenter contributed to this story.

julie.garcia@chron.com

Twitter.com/reporterjulie
Jacquelyn Martin

As a boy, I learned that Nero fiddled (some say played the flute) while Rome burned. Today, we have a rampant pandemic that, when coupled with the flu, threatens to overwhelm our healthcare system. We also face the threat of Russia and other countries corrupting our national elections. Further, primarily peaceful protesters are marching for civic reforms that will protect their civil rights.

Yes, Nero showed staggering indifference to his city in flames. He did not, however, call the fire a hoax. He did not welcome the Barbarians to infiltrate Rome when it was vulnerable. Further, he did not send out the Roman army to intimidate the citizens who were trying to put out the flames.
QUEENSBURY  More than a 1,000 SUNY Adirondack students have applied for coronavirus-related financial assistance made available through the federal CARES Act since March, a sign that students at the community college are facing increased financial hardships due to the pandemic.

A total of 1,059 students have received a portion of the $1.2 million in federal funds made available to students at the college through the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund. A total of $859,872 of the funding has been disbursed as of Sept. 11, said Robert Palmieri, the colleges vice president for enrollment and student affairs.

The intention of the legislation was to help students with COVID-related issues that came up only because of the virus, he said.

In March, the college received just over $2.5 million in federal funding through the CARES Act, a $2.2 trillion relief package designed to assist those facing financial hardships because of the coronavirus pandemic.

A portion of CARES Act funding  $14 billion  went directly to colleges and universities throughout the country, which allowed the institutions to provide grants to students facing increased hardships due to the pandemic.

At SUNY Adirondack, half the funding was made available to students. The remaining funds went to balancing the colleges budget, which has taken a hit in recent months because of the pandemic.

The grants were made available to two groups of students: Those considered economically disadvantaged and receive money from the federal Pell Grant, and students facing COVID-related emergencies, Palmieri said.

A total of 2,414 students were eligible to receive funding. Students must be matriculated in either a degree or certificate program in order to qualify. The program was not extended to international or DACA students, only U.S. citizens.

Students receiving the Pell Grant are eligible to receive as much as $800, depending on the number of credits they are taking. Everyone else can receive up to $1,500.

We tried to give the most amount of people money, Palmieri said.

Palmieri said the money can be used for personal reasons like paying rent, securing transportation and purchasing food, so long as the need can be traced back to hardships brought on by the pandemic.

Many students, he said, have either lost a job because of the pandemic or have been left unemployed. Students have also used the funds to purchase laptops and internet hotspots when the college switched to remote learning in the spring.

Some of the needs have been technology, transportation, or they lost their job, Palmieri said. Some of this money is for rent or living situations.

A three-person committee is tasked with reviewing each application before any funds are released. During the application process, students must certify they are applying for funds for a COVID-related reason.

They have to actually explain what the reasoning for it is, he said.

The college is facing its own financial hardships this year due to the pandemic.

Enrollment numbers are off by an estimated 9%, which has created a revenue shortfall. Around 200 students would need to enroll in the coming weeks in order to fill the budget gap.

SUNY Adirondack enrollment falls short, budget not sustainable SUNY Adirondack's enrollment will be down by 8 to 9% from expectations and officials worry its austerity budget isn't sustainable.

The college has yet to release its enrollment numbers for the semester.

Palmieri said students are still adding and dropping classes as the semester gets underway. He said hell have a better understanding on where the colleges enrollment number stands in the weeks ahead. Classes began on Sept. 9.

Its likely the pandemic has had an impact on the numbers, Palmieri said.

A majority of our classes are remote and some people dont want to do that, he said.

Financial difficulties brought on by the pandemic may also be playing a role, Palmieri said.

About $400,000 in CARES Act funding is still available to students, but Palmieri is hoping additional funding is made available to students in the next coronavirus-relief bill.

Students are hurting; their families are hurting, he said. Any funding that can help out our students is welcome.

Chad Arnold is a reporter for The Post-Star covering the city of Glens Falls and the town and village of Lake George. Follow him on Twitter @ChadGArnold.

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Hamilton public health has advised between eight and nine elementary students to self-isolate following the first positive test of COVID-19 in the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) this week.

Templemead Elementary School, which hosts students ranging from junior kindergarten to Grade 8 in the Templemead and Eleanor Park area of the east Mountain, became the site of the first case of COVID-19 in the HWDSB after a staff member working in the schools child-care program tested positive on Thursday.

The staff member was last in the building on Monday, the school said, and they received the diagnosis three days later.

Families received an email from Hamilton public health late Thursday evening notifying them that the staff member worked at the Umbrella Family and Child Centre, a before- and after-school program that operates within Templemead school.

Now, Hamilton public health has located students and staff who may have been exposed to the staff member while they were sick and has instructed some of them to self-isolate.

Sharon Stephanian, director of equity and well-being at the HWDSB, said the board will be in contact with the families of the students during their 14-day isolation period.

Were reaching out to them and those families to share information on how their children can continue to maintain their education during the quarantine period, Stephanian told The Spec on Friday afternoon.

Well be providing services and answering any questions we can for them.

People deemed to have had prolonged contact with a person carrying COVID-19 are told to isolate, said Dr. Ninh Tran, one of Hamiltons associate medical officers of health.

No staff or teachers were instructed to isolate.

Templemead is one of four schools in the Hamilton area that has recently reported a positive case of COVID-19.

Less than 24 hours after Templemead announced its case on Thursday, Russell Reid Public School in Brantford announced that someone attending the elementary school had tested positive for COVID-19 as well. It is not clear whether the person is a staff member or student.

Late Friday afternoon, Hamiltons Catholic school board reported that a student who last attended Bishop Tonnos Catholic Secondary School on Monday tested positive for COVID-19.

Last week, a private school on the west Mountain, Hillfield Strathallan College, reported that one of their students had tested positive for COVID-19, though the student hadnt attended campus.

None of the schools have shut any programs down due to the positive cases.

Tran says theres no evidence of transmission within Templemead or its child-care program.

The staff member was exposed to COVID-19 outside the school setting. Theres no need to close the program when its one isolated case without any evidence of transmission within the facility.

Jeff Sorensen, president of Hamiltons elementary teachers union, says the union is watching closely to monitor health protocols at Templemead and is in touch with elementary teachers who work there.

We hope the issue is small. We hope its contained, and were making sure our teachers feel safe in the school, Sorensen said.
WASHINGTON - The grounds of the Supreme Court bloomed into a memorial to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, drawing thousands who came to honor and remember the trailblazing icon.

Mourners began arriving at the high court soon after news of her death came Friday evening, growing to a crowd of more than 1,000 who cried, sang and occasionally applauded. On Saturday, as the sun rose, dozens of people stood in silence as a flag flew at half-staff.

And they kept coming by the hundreds. Bouquets, signs and chalk messages honoring Ginsburg multiplied by the minute. Joggers stopped mid-run, bikers paused and rested on their handlebars, and mothers from across the District of Columbia region brought their daughters to pay tribute to the pioneering liberal lawyer and advocate for equality. Even as lawmakers began to clash over when she would be replaced, the space outside the court was mostly one of quiet reflection.

"I wanted to be a lawyer but wasn't sure I could do it," said Blake Rogers, 13, who let a single tear fall down her face after positioning flowers Saturday morning. "And then I heard Justice Ginsburg speak, and she showed me that I could do it, that women and girls can do anything."

Beth Feliciano, 39, squatted next to her 2-year-old daughter, Ellie, holding a book titled "I Look Up To . . . Ruth Bader Ginsburg." She pointed to the court building and told Ellie, whom she had once dressed as Ginsburg for Halloween, that the late justice had worked there.

"We have been talking about Ruth ever since Ellie was born," the graduate student said. "She's someone good for Ellie to look up to as a superhero."

Children gathered around a paper bag - labeled "Leave a Note for Ruth" - holding colored paper and markers inside. Shiloh Newton, an 11-year-old from McLean, began to draw a rainbow, meticulously tracing a red arc before pausing and looking at the flowers spread out in front of her. "The rainbow is for LGBTQ rights," said her mom, Annie Couture, 42. "I knew it was essential to come here and show our kids the right thing, that they have to fight for the little guy."

3 1 of 3 photo for The Washington Post by Evelyn Hockstein. Show More Show Less 2 of 3 photo for The Washington Post by Evelyn Hockstein. Show More Show Less 3 of 3





Sen. Kamala Harris of California, the Democratic nominee for vice president, was among the mourners, showing up in a hoodie to offer quiet respects with her husband.

A few conservatives who fervently opposed Ginsburg's support for reproductive rights, gun restrictions and affirmative action also paid their respects.

"I disagree with everything she stood for, but she was a strong, stable, very professional justice," said Paul Joseph, a 60-year-old pastor wearing a Trump 2020 mask. "That's a big loss."

The passing of the 87-year-old judge immediately upended a fraught election season. Republicans offered condolences with calls to immediately fill her seat and solidify the court's conservative majority for at least a generation. Democrats raged at the prospect of a president with a history of demeaning women replacing a trailblazing feminist icon.

President Donald Trump signaled he would quickly nominate a successor, and senators mobilized for the coming nomination battle.

But at the plaza outside the Supreme Court, there was a focus on grief and the impact Ginsburg had as a justice and a role model for so many.

Shortly before 11 a.m., two dozen people gathered in front of the court to say the Mourner's Kaddish, a Jewish prayer of bereavement. After a 27-year tenure, Ginsburg died at the start of Rosh Hashanah as the longest-serving Jewish justice.

Those in the group put brown and tan stones, traditionally placed on graves, alongside the flowers and candles. They sang and prayed.

A few minutes later, Micah Blay, 11, puckered his lips and blew the shofar, a musical horn used to ring in Jewish new year, before the pillars of the Supreme Court.

"The timing of it, it's a loud wake-up call for so many people. There was a hope she would continue to lead the way in the new year," said Jessica Brodey, 47. "She broke down barriers, as a woman, a mother and a Jew."

Sang Lee, a 46-year-old self-identified centrist, teared up as he mourned Ginsburg and fretted about the months ahead.

"It's the passing of a generation and the upcoming political strife that could tear this country apart if the Republicans don't do the right thing and wait to confirm a nominee," said Lee, who, along with his wife, brought his two young children.

Others feared for the future of abortion rights championed by Ginsburg if Republicans succeed at cementing a conservative majority.

"They've threatened to undo Roe v. Wade for a long time, but I'm not giving up hope yet," said Deborah Bombard, a 68-year-old retired health-care professional who lives in Alexandria, Va. "I believe in the power of women in this country who stand up for their rights, including their right of choosing what to do with their bodies."

The mourners began arriving at the court Friday evening, minutes after learning of Ginsburg's death. As the night wore on, every bollard protecting the courthouse supported a mourner slumped to the ground.

Those who came were of all ages, including baby boomers and millennials, and some faces were even younger.

Elizabeth LaBerge wrapped her arms around her fiance, Will Sullivan, put her head on his shoulder and quietly sobbed.

The Capitol Hill lawyer arrived at the court plaza filled with fear for the future of the nation as Ginsburg's death represents another loss from the ranks of people who have made "serious law and order a mission of their lives."

"I was telling my fiance, the question that keeps popping up in my head is: 'Who is going to take care of us?' " said LaBerge, 36. "It just feels like such a deep loss at this particular time. It's a lot to put on a woman of her age to keep us safe and functioning as a constitutional democracy.

"I'm very grateful, and sad for the loss and worried for my country," she said.

At one point, with a crowd singing "This Land is Our Land," Adrienne Jacobs clutched a friend, who sobbed into Jacobs's shoulder so hard that her glasses fogged up.

When Jacobs, 30, heard that Ginsburg had died, she raced over to the Supreme Court, a Revel scooter helmet in her arms.

"I live alone," she said. "And I didn't want to be alone."

From behind a floral-print mask, Jacobs said Ginsburg had been an inspiration to many women.

As she spoke, a commotion began near the sidewalk, where conservative provocateurs Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman were arguing with a small crowd.

"Roe v. Wade is getting abolished," Wohl said into a microphone as a man waved a cardboard "RIP RBG" sign in Wohl's face and television cameras gathered. "RBG is dead. We're going to have a new justice next week."

"Have some respect," several mourners shouted. Others called Wohl a "fascist" or a "Nazi" and told him to leave.

After five tense minutes, he did.

The scene was once again solemn.

Elsewhere outside the court building, Regina Burch and her 19-year-old daughter, Micaela, sat on the edge of one of two white marble fountains, staring up at the illuminated columns. They had been at home when Burch received a text message about Ginsburg's death. They'd flipped on the television, heard Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., promise to fill her seat and decided to drive over.

Regina Burch said that as a law professor and attorney, she had long looked up to Ginsburg.

She, her daughter and their family were worried about what would happen if the president appointed his choice to the court.

"It's not just her passing," Burch said. "Our family is very anxious and fearful about what's going to happen, with the election and filling her seat."

Howard University first-year law student Quenessa Long, 24, arrived with classmates to pay respects and to be in the same space that Ginsburg once occupied. The justice was among the leaders who inspired Long to pursue law studies because of her dedication to the LGBTQ community and to women and civil rights. Long, a native of Tacoma, Wash., said she deeply admired the strength Ginsburg showed in the courtroom and beyond.

Long said that being in the crowd motivated her and that she hoped she could work at the court in some capacity during her legal career.

"I'm just really thankful to have been alive while she was," she said.

- - -

The Washington Post's Petula Dvorak contributed to this report.
Britain's top economist has called on the Government to spearhead a tech revolution for millions of firms, creating a 'faster and smarter' economy as the country fights its way back from the Covid-19 crisis.

Bank of England chief economist Andy Haldane  writing in his capacity as chairman of the Industrial Strategy Council  said a new blueprint must be drawn up with a raft of measures, including tax incentives and access to finance to feed an 'appetite' among firms to adopt new technology.

The surprise intervention  in a joint document prepared for The Mail on Sunday by Haldane and former John Lewis Partnership chairman Sir Charlie Mayfield  comes just weeks ahead of an expected Spending Review by Chancellor Rishi Sunak.

Plea: Andy Haldane is calling on Rishi Sunak to draft a new blueprint for the economy

It is unusual for a senior official who also holds a high-ranking position at the Bank of England to make such broad-reaching policy recommendations.

Haldane, who sits on the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee, and Mayfield want small and medium-sized companies to urgently adopt or update software across key areas such as accounting, HR, customer relationship management and marketing.

The paper says the economic recovery in July was 'further and faster than anyone expected' after the collapse in the second quarter.

But the writers say it is vital to seize 'the opportunities, as well as the obvious challenges, of Covid' and 'technologically upgrade our businesses and our economy'.

UK business has been a 'laggard' in adopting new technology despite playing 'a leading role' in developing it, the paper says. 'That is particularly true among the smaller and mid-sized businesses which employ nearly two thirds of people working in the UK. This explains why, despite rapid innovation, aggregate productivity among UK companies has flat lined for more than a decade.' Haldane and Mayfield add: 'Technology adoption needs to be at the heart of industrial policy. Levelling up the UK's companies, through improved tech adoption, is an essential element of levelling up our regions.'

The paper  which the MoS has made available in full at thisismoney.co.uk  calls for 'incentives for companies to make the right investment choices' and to make it easier for them 'to access finance to fund this investment'.

It also calls for support through advice shared by large corporations with smaller firms, through local 'tech hubs' and online. A survey of 500 small and medium firms released alongside the paper reveals one in eight are using systems more than a decade old and another third using systems six to ten years old. A third said they have acquired technology that has barely been used.

But the paper says the Covid crisis has presented a major opportunity because 'rapid and radical technological adoption has been essential to the survival of many firms'.

Mayfield chairs Be The Business, a Government-backed organisation set up to solve Britain's sluggish productivity largely by encouraging wider use of technology.

Its research has revealed adoption of new technology among businesses rose four times faster during the crisis than it did for the entirety of 2019. In many cases, firms were forced to act as they switched to working from home. Mayfield said last night: 'Business technology has not kept pace with consumer technology. It's not just about Zoom and it's not about AI and advanced technology.

'It's about wider adoption of pretty well-established tools that have been proven to improve growth of businesses that use them  accounting and HR software, CRM [customer relationship management] systems, online trading, export tools and really getting to grips with social media and marketing.'

But there had been resistance in the past from firms fearful of the disruption that implementing new technology can cause. 'It's hard work and it's difficult,' he said.

Referring to John Lewis's experiences implementing new IT systems since 2014, Mayfield said: 'I have the scars on my back from a well-resourced business that has found tech adoption difficult. It costs a lot, took longer than planned and at the end of it all the benefits weren't quite as clear as they were at the beginning.'

'But I've no doubt we did the right thing. If we hadn't, the business would be in a far worse position than if it hadn't,' added Mayfield, who left John Lewis earlier this year.

He said Be The Business was piloting 'tech adoption labs' across the country and large companies had offered 'chief technology officers on demand' to help firms cope.

'We've got the template, we've got the playbook, we've got Britain's best businesses and access to expertise  Cisco, Openreach, Amazon, Google. We are asking the Government to make this a priority for rebuilding the UK.'

He added: 'Eat Out to Help Out has had a pretty dramatic impact on restaurants. What we need is a similar message for business leaders, something along the lines of 'Tech Up to Grow Out'. It should become a fundamental part of the recovery.'
From Harper's BAZAAR

Ruth Bader Ginsburg spent her life fighting for good, consistently giving a voice to those who didnt have one. Her death, aged 87, is a tragedy, but the more we learn about her work and achievements, the more her legacy will live on. Below, which is by no means exhaustive, is a round-up of some of her most impressive feats.

I would like to be remembered as someone who used whatever talent she had to do her work to the very best of her ability, Ginsburg once said. Few could argue that she did anything less.

1/ She changed the way America thinks about gender discrimination

In 1975, Ginsburg, as director of the ACLUs Womens Rights Project, convinced the Supreme Court that the 14th Amendments guarantee of equal protection applied not only to racial discrimination but to sex discrimination as well. She proved to the bench that men could also be victim of an unjust gender system, not just women, and her clients were often men. In the Weinberger vs Wiesenfeld case, she argued for a young widower who was denied benefits after his wife died in childbirth, demonstrating that gender discrimination was an issue for men, not just women.

2/ She fought against male-only admission policies in Virginia which set a precedent for other institutions

In 1996, she won a case against the Virginia Military Institute after it failed to show "exceedingly persuasive justification" for its sex-based admissions policy. At the time, she said that no law or policy should deny women "full citizenship stature - equal opportunity to aspire, achieve, participate in and contribute to society based on their individual talents and capacities". The case, which was found to have violated the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause, set the precedent for other institutions that banned or discriminated against women.

3/ She helped legalise gay marriage in 50 states

Ginsburgs work in the Obergefell v. Hodges was a landmark victory for the LGBTQ+ community. A number of same-sex couples sued their respective states over the ban of gay marriage and for not recognising the legitimacy of their marriages. Ginsburg voted that same sex marriage was entirely constitutional and eviscerated any opponents. Marriage today is not what it was under the common law tradition, under the civil law tradition, said Ginsburg when the opposition argued that gay marriage went against the tradition of marriage. Marriage was a relationship of a dominant male to a subordinate female. That ended as a result of this courts decision in 1982 when Louisianas Head and Master Rule was struck down Would that be a choice that state should [still] be allowed to have? To cling to marriage the way it once was?

Story continues

4/ She battled cancer five times

Ginsburg was diagnosed with cancer five times, scheduling chemotherapy on Fridays so as to recover in time for oral arguments on Mondays. She only missed oral arguments twice because of her illnesses. I found each time that when I'm active, I'm much better than if I'm just lying about and feeling sorry for myself," she said in 2019 at an event hosted by Moment magazine.

She lost her final fight with the disease on 19 September 2020, after complications from metastatic pancreas cancer.

5/ She helped make US healthcare affordable

Ginsburg voted in favour of the Affordable Care Act of 2010, giving millions of Americans access to healthcare that they wouldnt have had otherwise. In May 2020, she challenged Trumps attempts to modify the Affordable Care Acts contraceptive access, from her hospital bed, where she was undergoing treatment on a benign gallbladder condition. The president wanted to change the law forcing women to have to pay for contraceptive care themselves. This leaves the women to hunt for other government programmes that might cover them, she said. And for those who are not covered by Medicaid or one of the other government programmes, they can get contraceptive coverage only from paying out of their own pocket, which is exactly what Congress didnt want to happen.

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"Sixty years ago, Ruth Bader Ginsburg applied to be a Supreme Court clerk. She'd studied at two of our finest law schools and had ringing recommendations. But because she was a woman, she was rejected. Ten years later, she sent her first brief to the Supreme Court  which led it to strike down a state law based on gender discrimination for the first time. And then, for nearly three decades, as the second woman ever to sit on the highest court in the land, she was a warrior for gender equality  someone who believed that equal justice under law only had meaning if it applied to every single American.

Over a long career on both sides of the bench  as a relentless litigator and an incisive jurist  Justice Ginsburg helped us see that discrimination on the basis of sex isn't about an abstract ideal of equality; that it doesn't only harm women; that it has real consequences for all of us. It's about who we are  and who we can be.

Justice Ginsburg inspired the generations who followed her, from the tiniest trick-or-treaters to law students burning the midnight oil to the most powerful leaders in the land. Michelle and I admired her greatly, we're profoundly thankful for the legacy she left this country, and we offer our gratitude and our condolences to her children and grandchildren tonight.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg fought to the end, through her cancer, with unwavering faith in our democracy and its ideals. That's how we remember her. But she also left instructions for how she wanted her legacy to be honored.

Four and a half years ago, when Republicans refused to hold a hearing or an up-or-down vote on Merrick Garland, they invented the principle that the Senate shouldn't fill an open seat on the Supreme Court before a new president was sworn in.

A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on what's convenient or advantageous in the moment. The rule of law, the legitimacy of our courts, the fundamental workings of our democracy all depend on that basic principle. As votes are already being cast in this election, Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard. The questions before the Court now and in the coming years  with decisions that will determine whether or not our economy is fair, our society is just, women are treated equally, our planet survives, and our democracy endures  are too consequential to future generations for courts to be filled through anything less than an unimpeachable process."
Minister of State for Community Development and Charities and Green Party T.D for Fingal, Joe O'Brien has welcomed the new Waste Reduction Plan and stated that it will have a 'visible and positive impact on the environment in Fingal'.

The plan gives effect to many of the commitments in the Programme for Government, including the introduction of a deposit and return scheme for plastic bottles and aluminium cans.

According to Minister O'Brien, this scheme is a tried and tested method of collecting plastic bottles in public places, in states across America and countries across Europe people can return their used drinks containers in exchange for money at reverse vending machines.

Minister O'Brien stated that: 'I think when people see the extent of the waste in Ireland and especially when it impacts visually in their own community, we are genuinely horrified and want to see real action.

'This is the first time that a government plan has really matched that level of dissatisfaction with how we produce and deal with waste by taking very concrete measures at every step of the process.

'This will have positive, visible and tangible impacts in our daily lives, in our communities and for the environment.

'The increased incidence of fly-tipping is one of the starkest examples of this, but it's the habits and limited options in our everyday lives that are causing the damage over time.'

The Minister of State added: 'I know Tidy Towns groups across Fingal are in a constant battle against littering with plastic of various kinds being the main culprit.

'I think as a county with a long coastline we have a better understanding than many about the impacts of waste on our environment. This plan sees targeted measures for the phasing out of single use plastics.

'The level of food waste in Ireland is something that very much needs to change. Our aim is to half food waste by 2030. I'm delighted that my Department supports organisations like Foodcloud to direct unwanted food away from the whole waste process to people who need it. As consumers as well we need to look at our purchasing habits.'

He said: 'We are producing about 3.2 tonnes of waste for every man, woman and child in the State while food waste alone is costing households an average of 700 per year.

'The implementation of this plan will facilitate a better understanding of the finite resources we have on the planet and replace our current throw away culture with an appreciation of the need for a circular economy.

'The fact is over recent years grassroots and entrepreneurial spirit has been pushing alternatives to how we produce and manage waste.

'The plan now gives a more supportive policy context for such ideas to grow into real solutions.'
Research reveals unfavourability in non-concessional foreign debt By Bandula Sirimanna View(s): View(s):

Sri Lankas non-concessional debts in recent years obtained from foreign lending agencies and donor countries have not been much favourable for the country as it was lacking expected concessions, a research report revealed.

Successive governments access to concessional funding became restricted with the rise of the countrys per capita income.

The funding necessary for infrastructure investment came largely from external sources due to Sri Lankas under-developed capital markets. In addition, a structural decrease in government receipts over the past two decades or so added to the financing needs of the government, official sources said.

A study published by Verite Research sheds light on this financial discrepancy in a comprehensive report released recently.

Multilateral and bilateral borrowing is often favoured by governments such as Sri Lanka because such financing tends to have concessional elements, relative to the international financial markets.

However, the study done by Verite Research reveals that the extent of concessionality is being overestimated, and that in some cases loans that are deemed concessional can be less favourable than borrowing in international financial markets.

The findings of the study were presented by Dr. Nishan de Mel (Executive Director) and Ms. Subhashini Abeysinghe (Research Director) at a webinar hosted by Verite Research recently.

The study showed that the erosion of concessionality arises from the widely accepted practice of tying loans to sources of procurement preferred by the lender.

A loan is tied when a certain portion of the loan is restricted to the procurement of goods and services from contractors connected to the lender.

This limits the recipient countrys ability to secure the best value for money through a process of competitive bidding. Therefore, projects funded by tied loans can have significant escalations in costs.

The cost escalation on the tied component has the consequence of reversing the concessionality or grant element of the loan.

The study by Verite Research provides a measurement of the initial concessionality of major infrastructure loans taken by Sri Lanka between 2005-2018 by source of the loan.

28 out of 35 evaluated bilateral loans to Sri Lanka between 2005  2018 were tied loans worth US$ 9.2 billion.

All evaluated loans from China (18) and India (3) were tied, and 6 of the 13 evaluated loans from Japan were also tied.

The study also measured and evaluated the extent to which each loan is vulnerable to being non-concessional due to the tied component of the loan.

The study concluded that 18 of the tied loans would be non-concessional with a cost escalation of 50 per cent on the tied element.

4 of these loans were vulnerable to becoming non-concessional with a cost-escalation of 15 per cent on the tied element.

The vulnerability of loans to being non-concessional can vary significantly and can depend on the country from which the loan is secured, research report revealed.

The study suggested that for Sri Lanka, the risk of cost escalation is likely to be higher for projects funded by tied loans that originated as unsolicited proposals.

In Sri Lankas case, 13 of the 28 projects funded by tied loans originated as unsolicited proposals, the report highlighted.
President Trump said Saturday that Senate Republicans have an obligation to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court left by Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death without delay.

.@GOP We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 19, 2020

Trumps statement comes after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell vowed to hold a floor vote on the presidents nominee just hours after Ginsburgs death was announced Friday night.

The Senate and the nation mourn the sudden passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the conclusion of her extraordinary American life, McConnell said in a statement.

In the last midterm election before Justice Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term. We kept our promise, McConnell continued. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year.

McConell added that by contrast, Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary.

Once again, we will keep our promise, he said. President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.

Notably, McConnell did not specify whether the vote would take place ahead of the November presidential election, which is just 44 days away, or after the election during what may be the final months of a lame-duck administration.

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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Friday night that the vacancy should not be filled until after the election, arguing that the American people should be given the opportunity to affect the direction of the court.

The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court justice, Schumer tweeted Friday. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden echoed Schumer in a statement released Friday night, in which he cited the precedent set by McConnell in 2016 when he refused to allow a floor vote on President Obamas Supreme Court nominee following the death of conservative justice Antonin Scalia.

There is no doubt, let me be clear, that the voters should pick the president, and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider, Biden told reporters Friday night.

This was the position the Republican Senate took in 2016, when there were nearly 9 months before the election. That is the position the United States Senate must take now, when the election is less than two months away, Biden added in a statement released later in the evening. We are talking about the Constitution and the Supreme Court. That institution should not be subject to politics.

McConnell has said that the precedent of refusing to vote on a nominee during a presidential election year does not apply when one party has unified control of the White House and the Senate.

In order to block Trumps nominee, Democrats must rely on four Senate Republicans to defect.

Senator Susan Collins of Maine, who is locked in a tough reelection battle, has said recently that she would not be inclined to suuport the confirmation of a Supreme Court nominee so close to the election.

I think thats too close  I really do, Collins said earlier this month when asked if she would support the confirmation of a nominee.

Republican senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina  the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee  and Charles Grassley of Iowa have also said they wouldnt support filling a vacancy so close to the election, but it is unclear whether they will stick to that position now that a vacancy has opened.

More from National Review
The Minister for Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht, Catherine Martin TD, has said a meeting that took place with the Minister for Health, the Acting Chief Medical Officer, the National Campaign for the Arts, and the Arts Council was 'very positive and productive'.

Concerns relating to the arts sector were raised at the meeting which provided an opportunity for arts stakeholders to hear the concerns of the Acting CMO in relation to the spread of COVID-19.

It was agreed that the NCFA and the Arts Council could provide input to health authorities in charting the way forward for a return to safe performances and activities.

The importance of the arts as a 'salve for society in very difficult times' was recognised by those in attendance.

Minister Martin also said that 'as a musician' herself she understands the difficulties faced by the sector.

'I am eager to get our musicians, our performers, and all their behind-the-scenes technical support people back to earning a living and doing what they do so well,' she said.

'Irish society needs live performance and events,' she added.

Like every industry the arts sector has been hit very badly by the pandemic with live performances and visual art exhibitions, in particular, being negatively affected.

While the sector was one of the first to be adversely impacted by the pandemic it's also the sector that will likely be the last to see people return to full time activity and work.

In County Wexford, just like other areas of the country those working within the arts have been very badly hit and it's important that any roadmap for recovery relating to the sector will have a positive impact here.

The Visual Arts Manager at Wexford Arts Centre and the Presentation Centre in Enniscorthy, Lisa Byrne, said it's been a very difficult period for artists and performers, especially those who are trying to make a fulltime living from their art.

'In the Presentation Centre we are reduced in capacity to around 30 to 35 people and to ask someone to come and perform is obviously not viable for them,' she said.

'I definitely think extra funding support would be good,' she added.

Ms Byrne said such support could effectively supplement the payment to artists and thus make it a bit more viable for practitioners and venues to host performances.

She said an increase in the percentage of primary funding would definitely help.

Highlighting how the pandemic has affected the visual art sector she said it has prevented artists and venues from holding exhibitions and it also prevented potential buyers from viewing art first-hand.

However, Ms Byrne said the Covid-19 restrictions has forced people to embrace new ways of doing things and that it's not all negative.

The Presentation Centre has been facilitating online workshops including an initiative titled Keep Sketch Wexford which has proved very popular.

A weekly virtual sketching group it encourages participants to explore and draw various locations around County Wexford but from the comfort of their own home.

Every Sunday the Presentation Centre shares a link to a street view from Google maps and the artists can then choose something they find interesting to sketch.

'It's proven very popular and we'd have 15 artists or so every week involved,' said Ms Byrne.

However, she said not being able to have people come in through the doors has obviously caused problems.

For artists to facilitate workshops it has meant a lot of extra work and extra costs because of the fact that increased amounts of materials have to be used.

'If your output is more than your input well that's not viable,' said Ms Byrne.

'A lot of artists do not have part-time work to help them through either because this is their job,' she added.

She said support measures should be in place to supplement funding to the point that it becomes financially viable for practitioners and venues to keep going.

While there are few positives to the pandemic Ms Byrne said that one upside of it is that it has broadened the reach of some artists as a result of things being done online.

'It has broadened the reach of some people through online but art cannot be viewed in the same way [as live],' she said.

She commented that artists by their nature are creative and some have found innovative ways to make the best of a difficult situation.

'We hosted workshops online that we might not have otherwise thought of doing and that's been something positive,' she said.

'Some artists have also really taken to doing things online so that is good and positive,' she added.

She also commented that now that because workshops in the centre have now taken place online it's something that can always be done going forward when the need arises.

In addition to arts practitioners the sector provides work to a multitude of other people including back-stage crew members and support workers like sound engineers, lighting technicians and venue staff.

Following the national meeting Minister Martin said: 'We understand the importance of the arts community getting back to earning a living and doing what they love, for the benefit of all society.'

It's expected the NCFA and the Arts Council will meet with the Department of Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht to look at how the arts sector can input into the Roadmap for Resilience and Recovery.

Minister Martin also said she plans to set up a dedicated Task Force for the Arts and Culture sector.
By Eva Hill

hilleva@grinnell.edu

Grinnell resident Michael Williams, 44, has been identified as the man whose body was discovered charred in a Kellogg ditch on Wednesday afternoon after Jasper County authorities responded to reports of a fire in the area. Police are investigating Williams death as a homicide, but have not released further details on the case.

According to Williams Facebook page, he was originally from Syracuse, New York, where many of his family members still live. He turned 44 on Sept. 10, 2020, nine days ago. His mother wrote in the introduction to a GoFundMe for funeral expenses (linked below), Mike was a big man! He was a loving man, that loved his children and extended family. Michael was the life of the party and loved to dance. He did not deserve to be treated like this! He was our Gentle Giant!

College President Anne Harris sent an all-campus email Saturday morning informing students that Campus Safety would be providing rides around Grinnell to students in the wake of the news. As of yet, the College has made no further comment on Williams death.

People wishing to support the Williams family during this time can donate towards his funeral expenses here and here.

The death of Williams, a Black man from Grinnell  a city reported as 2 percent Black and 91.9 percent white in the 2010 census  comes at the close of a summer of highly publicized violence against Black Americans. Local police have not released any information regarding whether Williams killing is being investigated as a hate crime.

The S&B has reached out to the Grinnell Police Department for comment on this article, but has not yet received a response.

Update, September 20, 10:46 a.m.: Harris sent out a second email to the College community on Saturday evening saying that she and Grinnell Police Chief Dennis Reilly, Mayor Dan Agnew, and Rev. Wendy Abrahamson of St. Pauls Episcopal Church had met with the mother of Williams children. Attached to the email was a statement from Reilly, in which the police chief stated that the GPD believes there is no continuing threat to the Grinnell community based on the ongoing investigation.

This is a developing story; further coverage is forthcoming.
But it could also further energize Democratic activists bent on ousting her. Sara Gideon, her Democratic opponent, has already received millions of dollars raised based on Ms. Collinss support for Justice Kavanaugh, and after Justice Ginsburgs death, progressive groups were gearing up to pour more money into targeting voters there.

Lisa Murkowski of Alaska

Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska was the lone Republican to oppose the confirmation of Justice Kavanaugh in 2018. Like Ms. Collins, she is one of the few remaining Republicans on Capitol Hill who supports abortion rights and has shown a willingness to break with her party in the past.

In a statement on Sunday, she joined Ms. Collins in saying that she would not support a confirmation vote before the Nov. 3 election. She made no mention of how she felt the Senate should handle such a vote in the weeks after the election, or whether she would support Mr. Trump naming a person to fill the vacancy.

For weeks, I have stated that I would not support taking up a potential Supreme Court vacancy this close to the election, Ms. Murkowski said in a statement. Sadly, what was then a hypothetical is now our reality, but my position has not changed.

Ms. Murkowski noted that she had also objected to filling the vacancy left by Justice Antonin Scalias death early in the final year of President Barack Obamas second term. Now, less than two months before the November election, she said, I believe the same standard must apply.

Ms. Murkowski is not up for re-election until 2022, so she will not face the immediate electoral judgment of voters as other senators, including Ms. Collins, will.
A persistent eye in the sky may be coming to a City near you

By Medea Benjamin - Barry Summers

September 19, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - Gorgon Stare will be looking at a whole city, so there will be no way for the adversary to know what were looking at, and we can see everything. That same persistent eye in the sky may soon be deployed over U.S. cities.

At the time he made that comment about surveillance drones over Afghanistan, Maj. General James Poss was the Air Forces top intelligence officer. He was preparing to leave the Pentagon, and move over to the Federal Aviation Administration. His job was to begin executing the plan to allow those same surveillance drones to fly over American cities.

This plan was ordered by Congress in the 2010 National Defense Authorization Act. It directed the Departments of Defense and Transportation to develop a plan for providing expanded access to the national airspace for unmanned aircraft systems of the Department of Defense. Gen. Poss was one of nearly two dozen ex-military officers who, starting in 2010, were put into positions at the FAA to oversee drone integration research. With little public scrutiny, the plan has been moving forward ever since.

If youre thinking that this is a partisan issue, think again. This plan has been enacted and expanded under Presidents and Congresses of both parties. If youre uncomfortable with a President Biden having the ability to track the movements of every Tea Party or Q-Anon supporter, you should be. Just as we should all be concerned about a President Trump trackingwell, everybody else.

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Along with civil liberties, a major concern must be safety. The military and the drone manufacturers, principally General Atomics, are arguing that the technology has advanced far enough that flying 79-ft. wingspan, six-ton drones over populated areas and alongside commercial air traffic is safe. We have one response: self-driving cars. Self-driving cars present a technological problem that is an order of magnitude simpler than aircraft flying hundreds of miles per hour in three dimensions. Yet they still cant keep these cars from plowing into stationary objects like firetrucks (or people) at 60 mph in two dimensions. Are we really comfortable with pilotless aircraft operating in the same airspace as the 747 at 30,000 feet that is bringing your children home for Christmas? These drones have a troubled history of crashing and unfortunately, the process for determining whether these drones are now truly safe has been compromised by having the military, which wants this approval, largely in charge of the testing.

Which brings us to San Diego. Last October, General Atomics announced that they would be flying their biggest, most advanced surveillance drone yet, the SkyGuardian, over the City of San Diego sometime this summer. The stated purpose was to demonstrate potential commercial applications of large drones over American cities. In this case, the drone would be used to survey the citys infrastructure.

But when General Atomics first began preparing for the flight, the goal was a very different one: Back in 2017, military technology analysts were predicting that by 2025, drones similar to those used in Afghanistan and Iraq would be hovering above U.S. cities, relaying high-resolution video of the movement of every citizen to police departments (and who knows who else). When there was public pushback to this police department drone useeven a pro-industry reporter called the idea dystopianGeneral Atomics changed the purpose of the flight from providing data to the police to mapping critical infrastructure in the San Diego region.

The FAA, which is responsible for granting permission to General Atomics, has kept the process secret. When the Voice of San Diego asked for more information, the FAA refused on the grounds that this supposed commercial demonstration was actually military. The Voice of San Diego is now suing to get answers and the ACLU has also expressed concern about the flight. Amid the scrutiny, General Atomics quietly announced that the flight was cancelled, but this is certain to be a small hiccup in their long-term plan.

In fact, General Atomics drones are already being used domestically. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) flies Predators over parts of the U.S.- Mexico and U.S.-Canadian borders. Recently, CBP has expanded their reach, using these drones to assist police in Minneapolis, San Antonio and Detroit in the wake of protests against police brutality. Deeply concerned, members of Congress wrote to federal agencies denouncing the chilling effect of government surveillance on law-abiding Americans and demanding an immediate end to surveilling peaceful protests.

The concerns of these members of Congress should be echoed by the general public. What are the possible effects on our civil liberties from having high-tech surveillance platforms circling over millions of Americans, gathering information about our every move? We know from past experience that every government surveillance technology that can be abused has been abused. Allowing this powerful technology to be taken from overseas wars and turned inward on American citizens isnt something that should happen without a robust public debate. The implications for civil liberties are too profound.
Residents of the Far Eastern city of Khabarovsk got an unexpected soundtrack for their weekly protest march against the arrest and trial of their former governor as authorities broadcast loud classical music over public loudspeakers. September 19 marked the 71st day of mass protests against the arrest of regional Governor Sergei Furgal on almost two-decade-old murder charges on July 9 and against Russian President Vladimir Putin's appointment of Mikhail Degtyaryov as acting governor. As demonstrators reached the citys central square and the offices of the regional authorities, they were greeted with recordings of works by Ludwig van Beethoven played at thunderous volume. Municipal authorities said the music was meant to mark the 250th birthday of the German composer, born in December 1770. Loud symphonic music could be heard in the background as several hundred protesters, under drizzling rain, chanted slogans in support of Furgal, who is being tried in Moscow, and against the Kremlin-backed acting governor. (Footage via @teamnavalnykhv)
China warns of necessary measures to safeguard interests of its companies after US bans downloads of TikTok and WeChat.

China has accused the United States of bullying and threatened to take necessary countermeasures after Washington banned downloads of the Chinese video-sharing app, TikTok, and effectively blocked the use of the messaging super-app, WeChat.

Separately, Beijing also launched on Saturday a mechanism enabling it to restrict foreign entities that it deems a threat to its sovereignty and security, in a development seen as retaliation to US penalties against other Chinese companies such as telecom giant Huawei.

The latest Chinese moves come as tensions with the US escalate on a range of issues from trade and human rights to the battle for tech supremacy.

In a statement on Saturday, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce condemned Washingtons decision on Friday to ban TikTok and WeChat from US app stores, saying: China urges the US to abandon bullying, cease its wrongful actions and earnestly maintain fair and transparent international rules and order.

It then warned: If the US insists on going its own way, China will take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies.

The US Department of Commerce announced the bans in response to a pair of executive orders signed in August by US President Donald Trump, in which he said the two Chinese-owned apps presented a threat to the countrys national security.

China and the companies, however, have denied US user data is collected for spying.





Under Fridays order, the Tencent-owned WeChat app would lose functionality in the US from Sunday onwards, while TikTok users will be banned from installing updates but could keep accessing the service through November 12.

WeChat developer Tencent Holdings called the order unfortunate and said it will continue to discuss with the government and other stakeholders in the US ways to achieve a long-term solution.

The owners of TikTok, which has 100 million users in the US, said it will challenge the unjust executive order.

Very, very popular

Fridays order follows weeks of deal-making over TikTok, with Trump pressuring ByteDance to sell TikToks US operations to a domestic company to satisfy Washingtons concerns over TikToks data collection and related issues.

California tech giant Oracle recently struck a deal with TikTok along those lines, although details remain foggy.

Trump said on Friday said he was open to a deal, noting that we have some great options and maybe we can keep a lot of people happy, suggesting that even Microsoft, which said its TikTok bid had been rejected, might continue to be involved, as well as Oracle and Walmart.

Trump noted that TikTok was very, very popular, said we have to have the total security from China, and added that we can do a combination of both.





ByteDance has now asked a US judge to block the action against it, according to Bloomberg News.

Amid the escalating row, the Chinese commerce ministry issued on Saturday regulations for its unreliable entity list aimed at foreign companies it says endangers its sovereignty, security or development interests.

Companies that end up on the list could be banned from importing or exporting from China, and may be barred from investing in the country. Other measures include imposing fines, entry restrictions on employees into China, and revoking their work or residence permits.

The launch of the unreliable entities list ups the ante in the escalating commercial fight with the Trump administration, which has used its own entity list to bar Huawei from the US market on national security grounds.

The Chinese announcement did not mention any specific foreign entities, but in May, state-run tabloid Global Times reported the measures would target such US companies as Apple Inc, Cisco Systems Inc, Qualcomm Inc, while suspending purchases of Boeing Co aeroplanes.

Authorities will set up a working mechanism and an office to help implement work related to the list, the ministry added.

Foreign firms could be removed from the list if they correct their behaviours and take steps to eliminate the consequences of their actions, it said.
Origins of the WNP

The idea for the Western Neighborhoods Project actually came to me in 1998. My family (me, lovely wife Nancy and one-year-old daughter Miranda) were in the middle of a regrettable nine-month stint of living in Durham, North Carolina. Back in San Francisco for a visit---so wonderful and heart-breaking to smell the fog, see the familiar vistas of stucco homes, walk through my hometown atmosphere---I started planning a way to get back.

Chatting with my friend David Gallagher, I was awash in nostalgia for the Richmond District and I asked him why a small town like Belvedere in Marin County had its own historical society, but the Richmond District, full of thousands more people, small businesses, schools and synagogues, scandals and Halloween parades, did not.

I knew from visits to the library that historical information on anything in the Richmond District that wasn't the Cliff House or Golden Gate Park couldn't be found. Yet, young guy that I was (33 at the time), I knew tons of stories from my neighbors about the area: drownings in Mountain Lake, Russian princesses living on Anza Street, long-gone streetcars and steam trains, cemeteries where Sears was, bankrupt furriers on Clement Street. Geary Boulevard was pronounced "Gary," and Arguello was "Ar-Gwell-O," and gosh darn it, shouldn't this all be documented somewhere?

I thought a Richmond District Historical Society should be created. David thought an Overlooked Neighborhood Historical Society should be formed, embracing and celebrating other great neighborhoods like the Excelsior, Bernal Heights, Dogpatch and Hunter's Point. I guess we compromised and split the city in two, taking jurisdiction of the west side. That made sense to me, because while the Excelsior might as well have been Arabia to the Richmonders I grew up with, we shopped at Stonestown, ate at the Red Roof on Ocean Avenue, toured the Christmas lights in St. Francis Wood, and bought LPs at the Record Factory on Irving Street.

I came home from the East Coast in September of 1998 and the paperwork to form the nonprofit was signed on May 15, 1999. David and I recruited a few other directors: Arnold Woods, an attorney and Richmond District resident; David's girlfriend (later wife), and my good friend, Brady Lea; and Felicity O'Meara, an Outer Richmond community member who believed in the whole idea immediately. We didn't know what to call the new organization, so settled on the pedestrian "Western Neighborhoods Project." About six months after incorporation it dawned on me that obviously "Outside Lands" was the correct name! Too late for the IRS, but our new Web site's URL changed from the very uninspiring "www.wnp-sf.net" to the Web address we all know and love.

We quickly diluted our board's Richmond District slant by welcoming historian Lorri Ungaretti, who grew up in the Sunset District, and Richard Brandi, a West Portal historian and resident. For the past three years, community activist and good friend Al Harris has given our board an OMI perspective. (If you're interested in the action-packed life of being a WNP board member, let me know!)

Over the past decade, the project has become more than a historical society, if it ever was such a thing. (I perhaps mistakenly imagine historical societies having more tea parties.) Some people think of us as a preservation organization, because we saved some earthquake refugee shacks; some think of us as a community improvement group because we attend neighborhood meetings, rallies, and festivals; and many just know this Web site, and have little idea we do more than post some old photos now and then.

I have always wanted WNP to be (pardon the New Age term here) transformative. History is broad, personal, and relevant. History enlightens and inspires, engages and grounds, elevates and informs. I have made the case to many people over the past decade that local history is everyone's history and should be a part of art projects, community improvement plans, and city planning. WNP tries to do that. We also get out the word that San Francisco is more than North Beach and the Mission, the Gold Rush and Chinatown, Fishermans' Wharf and Alcatraz. There are San Francisco neighborhoods---full of both newcomers and oldtimers---that reporters and guidebooks and song writers usually don't notice, but they should.

Click about a little on this site. Read the message boards. You'll see what we mean.

Contribute your own stories about western neighborhoods places!
 Close Joe Biden reacts to the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

US supreme court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a diminutive yet towering women's rights champion who became known as the Notorious RBG, has died aged 87.

The court's second female justice died from complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, though she made few concessions to age and recurrent health problems in her latter years.

In her final years on the court, Ms Ginsburg was the unquestioned leader of the liberal justices, as outspoken in dissent as she was cautious in earlier years.

Following news of her death, political leaders in the US and across the world paid tribute to the iconic judge.
Actor Sushant Singh Rajputs sister Meetu Singh took to Twitter to express her heartbreak at losing her brother and her mother at early stages of their lives. She shared an artwork of the her mother and brother.

Sharing it, she wrote: My mother was my source of energy.My bhai was my pride. Lost both of them too early. Unable to cope up with this heart-wrenching loss. Meetu has relatively been reticent about her feelings at the death of her brother. But every once in a while, she has spoken on the subject. In mid-August, she had applauded fans of Sushant who had kept the pressure on for a fair investigation into the death of the late actor.

My mother was my source of energy.

My bhai was my pride.

Lost both of them too early.

Unable to cope up with this heart-wrenching loss. pic.twitter.com/bhHqiogr3m  Meetu Singh (@divinemitz) September 18, 2020

She had written: Hats of to your persistent support #SSRwarriors. Your resilient efforts have made this possible, thank you for being a part of a mass awakening. The fight for Justice has begun! This will mark the beginning of a new era.

Sushants other sister, Shweta Singh Kirti, has been passionate in her advocacy for a fair probe into the matter. She has actively followed every development in the case, right from the time of their father KK Singh filing FIR in Patna against Sushants girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty to her arrest in September over charges of drugs procurement for Sushant. Shweta has been running various campaigns online-- plants for SSR, flags for SSR, global prayers for SSR-- in an effort to keep the quest for justice alive.

Also read: Sunny Leone shares cryptic post after Kangana Ranaut drags her into spat with Urmila Matondkar: People who dont know you have the most to say

Sushant died on June 14 in his Mumbai home. The Mumbai Police was investigating the case. The family, backed by scores of fans of the actor, called for Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry. A Supreme Court verdict in August ordered CBI to take up the matter. Subsequently, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Narcotics Control Bureau also began investigating the case. In September, Rhea, her brother Showik and Sushants former house help, Samuel Miranda, and others were arrested for alleged links with drug peddlers.

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MANILA (Reuters) - Residents of the Philippines' capital on Saturday flocked to an artificial white sand beach that the government has transformed from a polluted stretch of shoreline to mark International Coastal Cleanup day.

Despite opposition from environmental campaigners, President Rodrigo Duterte's government has filled a 500-meter stretch of coastline beside the U.S. embassy in Manila with sand made from tonnes of crushed dolomite boulders from central Philippines.

Manila Bay is a 60-km (37-mile) semi-enclosed estuary facing the South China Sea. Its waters are heavily polluted by oil, grease and trash from nearby residential areas and ports.

The use of artificial sand has been met with criticism, with environmental groups saying the facelift focuses only on aesthetics and has little to do with rehabilitation.

Fernando Hicap, president of fisherfolk group Pamalakaya, told Reuters that the pollution was killing fish stocks in the bay. "There is still so much garbage," he said.

Despite fears that dolomite could be a health hazard, Manila Mayor Francisco Domagoso assured the public that the cleanup and beautification project is not a threat to residents' well-being.

"When we see something nice being done to our city and if we feel it is for the betterment of our city, we should always be supportive of that," Domagoso said in a speech to mark the opening of the beach to the public.

(Reporting by Neil Jerome Morales; Editing by Ros Russell)
The Seattle police watchdog decided Friday that an officer who pepper-sprayed a seven-year-old child during an anti-racism protest did not violate the department's policy.

The Office of Police Accountability received 13,000 complaints after a video of the boy screaming 'I can't see' while being doused in milk by other protesters went viral following a May 30 demonstration.

OPA Director Andrew Myerberg deemed that the officer had not intended to hit the child and did not realize the boy was in his line of fire when he started to pepper-spray a woman standing immediately in front on him.

Myerberg described body-cam and social media footage of the incident as 'heartbreaking' but claimed that it did not mean the the officer was guilty of excessive use of force.

The Seattle police watchdog decided Friday that an officer who pepper-sprayed a seven-year-old child during an anti-racism protest did not violate the department's policy. The video went viral on May 30 showing the young boy screaming that he couldn't see

'Contrary to the popular narrative surrounding this case, the Child was not individually targeted with pepper spray by an SPD officer,' he wrote.

He added that the officer was also full of regret over the incident.

'The picture of the Child standing in the middle of the street, crying, with milk running down his face is an unforgettable image from these demonstrations,' Myerberg wrote.

'That the Child suffered this trauma is something that OPA is extremely sorry for and that no decision in an administrative investigation can ever remedy.'

The highly publicized incident took place outside Westlake Plaza in Seattle during one of the first Black Lives Matter protests in the city following the killing of George Floyd during arrest in Minneapolis on May 25.

The seven-year-old had been at a protest with his father which was largely peaceful.

However, a woman shown in video masked in a white t-shirt and bike helmet grabbed the baton of an officer and began shoving.

The cop, a sergeant who has not been identified, was among those who rushed to aid riot-armor-clad officers stretched across Third Avenue after police pulled a man behind the police lines to arrest him for an earlier incident, the investigation said.

OPA Director Andrew Myerberg said he is willing to take the flak for the decision

When some of the protesters began jostling, he unleashed a cannister of pepper spray at the woman with a blast ball in the other hand. The spray hit the child when the woman ducked out of the way and he received a hit of powerful irritant in his eyes.

From the moment of the arrest of the protester to the officer deploying the pepper-spray only took 25 seconds.

After the boy was hit, his father takes him aside and can be seen shouting at officers.

Myerberg said that he understood the upset about the video but that he was willing to shoulder the flak for his decision.

After his review of social media video and a number of body-cam videos, he deemed the officer wouldn't have been able to see the child among the crowd of adults, meaning the boy was not the intended target.

'I understand that this decision will be unpalatable to a lot of people. I accept that,' Myerberg told the Seattle Times. 'In some respects, it is unpalatable to me as well.'

'I really struggled with this one,' he added. 'Because there is a victim here: the child. It's heartbreaking to watch it.'

The boy's family have said they are unhappy with the decision.

The incident happened on May 30, the first day of protests in Seattle, pictured

While the May 30 protests were mostly peaceful, some vehicles were set on fire, pictured

David Owen, a Seattle civil-rights attorney representing the child and his father, Mando Avery, told the Seattle Times that they were 'deeply disappointed, but not surprised, by the result reached by the OPA'.

'Today, they have confirmed that it is the Seattle Police Department's position that the use of pepper spray in an intentional and reckless manner that it would strike an innocent child exercising their First Amendment rights is 'within policy',' he said.

'We understand the OPA has said it is "sorry" for these actions. But "sorry" and "regret" is not sufficient. We demand change.'

Owen added that no cop tried to help the child after he was sprayed and claimed the refusal to identify the officer responsible 'undermined the claims of objectivity and transparency that the City purports to value'.

Other protesters who filed complaints have also greeted the result with skepticism and called the OPA process 'hostile and retraumatizing'.

A fellow protester poured a carton of milk over the young boy's face after he was allegedly pepper-sprayed during a protest in Seattle, Washington, on May 30

The child shouts and screams as if in pain as people in the crowds try to help soothe him

The child's father tried to restrain him as he screams out 'I can't see'. The family has said they are unhappy with the conclusion of the investigation into police misconduct

Protesters confront police officers, who are blocking the street, after they allegedly pepper-sprayed the youngster. The OPA decided the young boy was not the officer's target

Protester Aisling Cooney told the Times that the lack of accountability in the pepper-spraying incident 'could erode faith in an accountability process of which protesters are already skeptical.

'The fact that they can't sustain a complaint when a child gets sprayedwhat's going to happen for the rest of us?' Cooney said.

She was also pepper-sprayed at close range at a protest in June which caused her to have a severe allergic reaction and be taken to the emergency room.

She also says officers dragged her and hit her with a baton at a later protest on July 25.

In his investigation, Myberberg wrote that that OPA is 'required to make decisions based on applicable policy and training  not just reach a finding that may be the most politically expedient or that which we think will be most acceptable to demonstrators, officers, or some other group.'

'In our current environment, where nuance is rare, facts do not always seem to matter, and people often make up their minds before having complete information, this is a difficult place to be. But this is where OPA will always find itself  trying to make sense out of split-second decisions in incredibly complex and human situations,' he wrote.

OPA Director Andrew Myerberg deemed that the officer had not intended to hit the child and did not realize the boy was in his line of fire when he started to pepper-spray a woman

May 30 was the first day of protests in Seattle, pictured. There have been 19,000 complaints of police misconduct against protesters since then, 13,000 of them regarding the boy

The pepper-spraying of the child was among the first five investigations completed and released by the Police Department's civilian-run OPA on Friday.

The office has received 19,000 complaints about police conduct since the Seattle protest began on May 30, the majority about the child being pepper-sprayed.

Mark Grba, the OPA's civilian deputy director of investigations, said he received calls from all around the world as the clip of the screaming child spread.

An investigation into another high-profile incident during the early days of the Seattle protests found that an officer violated the policy of the police department after they placed a knee on a man's neck.

Video of this incident was particularly concerning so soon after Floyd's death in which white officer Derek Chauvin placed a knee on the black man's neck for close to nine minutes.

The officer has been cited with professional misconduct. The case has now been sent to the Interim Police Chief Adrian Diaz for consideration.

It happened just hours after the pepper-spraying incident, outside of a downtown T-Mobile store that was being looted.

Video shows officers on bikes arriving and beginning to arrest those looting.

Two officers are seen holding a man on his stomach as they handcuff him. One of the officers places his knee on the man's neck but protesters react immediately.

'Get your knee off his neck!' one shouts.

Stunning video captured the moment a Seattle cop removed a fellow officer's knee from the neck of an alleged looter as they arrested him amid George Floyd riots. The looter (above in orange) repeatedly tried to escape from the grips of two officers

Several people were arrested for looting the T-Mobile store in downtown Seattle (pictured)

The officer's knee remained on the man's neck for 13 seconds before another officer removed it and the detainee was arrested, according to Q13Fox.

Further investigation found that the same officer was captured on body-cam footage cursing at a protester, telling a person he was arresting to 'shut the (expletive) up', and asking another officer if they should rough up a certain protester, according to the Associated Press.

There are currently 118 ongoing OPA investigations into allegations of misconduct by the city's police department during the Black Lives Matter protests.

Some of them involve 'large, and complex' investigations into the use of less-lethal weapons during the CHOP occupation in early June.

Myerberg told the Times that the conclusion of the first of those investigations will be released in the coming weeks.

Brba added that some of the people who reported the complaint are not cooperating with the investigation, while in other cases, there is too little information available.

Others involve the review of hundreds of hours of body-camera video and other data.

'It's a monumental effort,' he said.

The other three results released Friday saw an officer agree to being disciplined after he was recorded telling protesters 'I have a hard-on for this (expletive) and, if they cross the line, I will hit them,' quoting the movie Top Gun.

'Prior to this complaint being filed, (the officer) self-disclosed to his supervisor and explained that he was quoting a movie,' the misconduct report states. '(The officer) also conveyed that he recognized that his statements could have been perceived as unprofessional by demonstrators.'

Another investigation found inconclusive evidence to suggest an officer had pushed an elderly man to the ground on May 30. No video evidence of the alleged incident could be found.

The fifth case found that officers acted lawfully after a couple complained they were 'treated aggressively because of his sexual orientation'.

Seattle was a major center of unrest over the summer months following the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

In June, protesters claimed the area around Seattle's Third Precinct naming it the Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP) zone.

It was reclaimed in early July and protesters were cleared following several violent incidents and the death of a 16-year-old boy.
Former San Francisco Dist. Atty. George Gascon's history as a police officer has come under increased scrutiny as he seeks to unseat Jackie Lacey as Los Angeles County's top prosecutor. (Michael Macor / San Francisco Chronicle)

Less than two years into his career as a Los Angeles police officer, George Gascon said, he saw a suspect reach for his partner's gun as they struggled to arrest him.

At the time, most LAPD officers carried their weapons in what is known as a pancake holster. Gascon said he knew the suspect wouldn't be able to pry the gun loose if he squeezed the holster tight, so he grabbed for the soft leather casing instead of drawing his own weapon. Deadly force would have been justified, but Gascon said he didn't want to take a life if he could avoid it.

The LAPD disagreed, according to Gascon, who said he received a disciplinary letter questioning his tactics.

The incident would come to shape his thinking on the culture of policing, as an officer and later as district attorney in San Francisco.

That really had an impact on me over the years," Gascon said. "A police officer should use force when they should, not just because they can.

At a time when police violence is under scrutiny and many are calling for an overhaul of the criminal justice system, Gascon's image as a reform-minded law enforcement veteran has given life to his bid to unseat Jackie Lacey as Los Angeles County's district attorney this November.

But the attention also has led some to spotlight decisions Gascon made as a police officer that critics contend belie his progressive rhetoric.

Gascon's policing career spans three decades. After joining the Los Angeles Police Department in 1978, he rose through the ranks and became an assistant chief in 2003 before leaving to serve as chief of police in Mesa, Ariz., in 2006. He was hired as San Francisco's top cop in 2009 before being appointed as district attorney.

Public records and interviews with those who worked closest with Gascon in each city suggest that while he was able to achieve his progressive agenda and make public safety gains as a police chief in Arizona and the Bay Area, instances from his LAPD days have lent ammunition to those who question his vow to hold police accountable.

Story continues

"The tragic death of George Floyd has rightly shifted the debate to a debate about police accountability and misconduct," said Walter Koch, who came on as Lacey's campaign coordinator after the March primary. "I think the voters have the right to know the record of a candidate in this race who is presenting himself as a reformer."

Recent attacks by the Lacey campaign have focused on disciplinary decisions Gascon made as an LAPD commander, including in the 1999 shooting death of Gus Woods.

An LAPD officer was responding to a disturbance call when he encountered Woods, 56, who he believed was advancing toward him with a knife. Woods was standing about 22 feet away when the officer fatally shot him. Investigators later determined Woods was armed with a metal rod, not a knife.

Both the city's civilian Police Commission and then-Chief Bernard Parks found the shooting "out of policy," but a disciplinary board led by Gascon ruled the officer had not violated LAPD use-of-force rules. Prosecutors declined to charge the officer.

At the time, Gascon said he based part of his decision on the fact that the officer had been shown an unauthorized training video focused on the "21-foot rule," which instructs that deadly force is reasonable against a suspect armed with an edge weapon less than 21 feet away.

In a recent interview, Gascon said that he did not believe the shooting was justified but felt it was unfair to punish an officer influenced by a video "widely spread through the LAPD. More broadly, Gascon said it was unreasonable to judge his stances in 2020 based on decades-old decisions.

"It's like saying that a human being is incapable of growing and learning, which I find a very narrow way of thinking," he said.

Picking apart Gascon's record on police discipline is difficult because California law limits access to such records except in cases of serious uses of force, lying and sexual assault. Gascon had not been disciplined for any such conduct, according to the LAPD and San Francisco police.

A document the LAPD turned over in response to a public records request shows Gascon sat on 11 LAPD disciplinary boards between 1996 and 2006. Officers were punished for misconduct in four of those cases, but the document does not reveal how Gascon voted.

Parks, who supports Lacey, told The Times that Gascon did not have a significant "disciplinary history" from his time in the LAPD. A review of Gascon's personnel file in Mesa, where police disciplinary records are public, found no allegations of misconduct.

Parks said he believes Gascon was lenient when he sat on disciplinary boards and dismissed his progressive stances as "inauthentic" and mostly designed to benefit his political aspirations.

It would not be past him to go to a community meeting and ingratiate himself. But the community doesnt necessarily follow his day-to-day steps," Parks said. "So when he was confronted with the very situations he said he would do something about, he didnt.

Connie Rice, a civil rights attorney who co-founded the LAPD's Community Safety Partnership program, said Gascon was an ally to community leaders and did not fit the "insular, true blue LAPD straitjacket."

I was representing minority officers who were suffering race discrimination inside of LAPD, and we would talk about what it would take to change how LAPD operates," she said, adding that Gascon was one of a few "inside mavericks" who used his position "to challenge the culture rather than perpetuate it.

Gascon said his refusal to accept the status quo in policing was borne out of his upbringing in Cuba, where he says he saw firsthand what "oppressive policing and government can do to a country, to a people." He said he learned to speak out from his father, who was a vocal critic of Fulgencio Batista and Fidel Castro before the family fled to the U.S. in 1967.

Former LAPD Chief Charlie Beck, who has endorsed Gascon, praised him for pushing community-oriented approaches to stopping gang violence. He dismissed suggestions that Gascon was lenient on discipline on the Board of Rights review panels.

"The Board of Rights for George was always about the truth," Beck said. "If you were guilty, he is the worst person for an officer  but if evidence favored you, he'd listen."

Gascon's leadership was criticized in a report detailing the LAPD's disastrous response to the 2007 May Day protests that left hundreds of people injured as police indiscriminately swung batons and fired projectiles into crowds. Though Gascon had left the LAPD in 2006, the report noted he had cut back on crowd-control training in the years leading up to the fiasco.

Gascon disagreed with the report, noting he had ordered officers to stop responding to protests in riot gear after the LAPD was criticized for its handling of antiwar demonstrations in the early 2000s. Gascon also said he had personally been on the front lines in response to past May Day protests that ended peacefully.

After leaving Los Angeles, Gascon was given his first chance to institute a reform agenda as chief in Mesa. Throughout his four-year tenure, Gascon repeatedly locked horns with Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the anti-immigrant lawman who was later convicted of contempt of court for illegally detaining undocumented immigrants.

Despite the political loggerheads, activists and former colleagues spoke highly of Gascon's tenure. Records show homicides fell by half from 2006 to 2009, while aggravated assaults dropped by 21%. In a 2008 performance review, Mesa City Manager Chris Brady said the police force had been "demoralized" and "poorly structured" before Gascon "created systems to enhance employee accountability and internal communication."

Gascon revised the department's use-of-force policy, while instituting the LAPD's high-tech CompStat model to improve the agency's ability to track crime data.

Andre Miller, a longtime criminal justice activist and pastor at New Beginnings Christian Church in Mesa, said Gascon helped heal a rift between the department and the community.

The community engagement piece, that was something that was very lacking. Mesa has a history of being heavy-handed in terms of force, but he came in and he really brought the community to the table and had hard conversations that were necessary," Miller said. "I also think he set a different standard for his police officers than had been set before.

Though Gascon's time in San Francisco is more often associated with his role as district attorney, his 18-month stint as the city's police chief also radically changed the historically insular agency, current and retired officers in the Bay Area said.

Capt. Yulanda Williams, president of San Francisco's Officers for Justice, an association of Black police officers, said Gascon came in with a reform mandate and immediately targeted longtime structural problems with the agency's disciplinary system.

"He took police misconduct seriously and he made some changes in the Internal Affairs Division and tried to make it be far more professional," she said. "Those who were in command staff, he started to hold them far more accountable because he wasnt part of the legacy eras of SFPD.

Gascon's term from mid-2009 to January 2011 was also marked by a sharp drop in homicides. San Francisco reported nearly 100 murders in 2008 but 48 in 2010. Gascon says he inherited a department that solved only 25% of its slayings, with a homicide bureau that lacked structure and supervision.

As chief, Gascon said, he broke up the city's centralized homicide bureau and placed investigators in districts, which allowed detectives to focus on repeat offenders.

"There were people committing multiple murders who were not being held accountable, and solving those cases had a tremendous impact overnight," Gascon said.

Though he has championed diversion and leniency for low-level drug offenders and homeless defendants as a prosecutor, Gascon also oversaw large-scale sweeps in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood as police chief. The move drew fierce criticism from progressives, including former Public Defender Jeff Adachi, who claimed Gascon was unnecessarily clogging San Francisco's courts and jails with people accused of minor drug crimes.

Chris Breen, who served as sergeant-at-arms for the union representing San Francisco police officers in 2010, said that although Gascon oversaw a marked decline in crime as chief, he also employed a "dictatorial" style and rarely took advice from Police Department veterans before making major changes.

Though Breen applauded some of Gascon's reforms  including providing treatment for officers arrested on suspicion of DUI rather than just suspending them  he said the chief at times took his reform mandate too far.

Gascon furthered the use of what Breen believed was an overzealous system that placed officers under scrutiny if they received multiple citizen complaints, even if the complaints were not sustained. Breen, who retired in 2015, said the policy counted involvement in police pursuits and instances in which suspects resisted arrest as negatives against officers.

"He was the great reformer. 'Im from LAPD. I know better. My departments bigger than yours; we are very successful. We are very militaristic, and thats what I want SFPD to be like,' " Breen said.

In 2010, Gascon's only full year in charge of the department, San Francisco police upheld about 8% of all citizen complaints, in line with the average for police agencies across California, records show. The department had upheld 5% of those complaints the year before.

Gascon believes accounts from the allies and enemies he made during the decades he spent wearing a badge make clear his progressive tendencies manifested long before he decided to run in L.A.

"There is no question that I am a different person today than I was 20 years ago, and that evolution will continue  but this evolution just didnt happen yesterday," he said. "The reality is Ive put a lot of blood on the altar.

Times staff writer Richard Winton contributed to this report.
The latest contrived issue to bedevil the left is President Trumps statement to Bob Woodward in March that he was downplaying the virus to avert panic. Leftists have interpreted this attempt to avert panic as a lie, even though they have never shown any ability to discern truth from lies in the past. So this week, the leftists are betting their chips on the Woodward book.

Missing from this discussion is any description of the events of March 2020. We all had good reason to want to stop the panic at that time. As news of the virus began to dominate public discussion, the left did its best to create panic and oppose solutions each step of the way.

Beginning in March, consumers hoarded many grocery items that had nothing to do with the virus. Toilet paper, soup, pasta, bread, and even meat products often disappeared from the shelves. One could visit supermarkets for weeks without finding toilet paper, while the other items disappeared more sporadically. There was no good reason for these items to disappear, as the virus had nothing to do with them and hoarding them would not prevent infection. Yet they disappeared anyway. Social media was filled with images of empty supermarket shelves all over the country.

We were told that the virus somehow threatened the food supply. But despite the dire warnings, staple items gradually began to remain on the shelves long enough for most of us actually to see and buy them.

On television, we were treated daily to images of hospitals that reporters described as war zones. We would learn that at least one network passed off film showing foreign hospitals to represent chaos at American hospitals. Additional temporary hospitals were rushed into service. We would not learn until later from eyewitness accounts that most hospitals were nearly empty. The temporary hospitals would soon be disassembled and removed without ever having seen a patient.

We were told that ventilators were in short supply and were desperately needed to prevent catastrophe. We then discovered that the state of New York was storing many ventilators in a warehouse -- much the same way that Puerto Rico had hoarded relief supplies after a hurricane while decrying the lack of supplies.

We were told that a mask shortage was cause for alarm until Trump supporter Mike Lindell agreed to donate many, many masks. The left then made Lindell the villain of the week.

President Trump mentioned hydroxychloroquine as a possible solution. The media immediately informed us that a drug that had been safely used for over six decades was deadly. The media also twisted Trumps hopeful speculations about treatment into an instruction for people to drink Clorox. Doctors that use and endorse hydroxychloroquine have been censored and removed from social media. We are not supposed to believe the science if it interferes with the panic.

Shutdowns in many states forced millions out of work in mid-March. When the shutdowns began to lift a couple of months later, leftist mobs flew into action. They began rioting across the country, killing policemen, burning businesses, dragging drivers out of their cars and declaring autonomy in portions of Democrat cities. The left was not going to let the country enjoy even a partial return to normalcy without a new crisis to fear. At the DNC convention, the Democrats became more specific in telling us that the chaos will continue until we elect Joe Biden.

Most recently, we have learned that the bureaucracy  namely the CDC  has included among the COVID death count all cases where the victim suffered from multiple additional  even primary -- causes. The true death count may be lower than 10,000. Leftist (mainstream) media sources ignore this revelation and continue to assert that almost 200,000 have died from COVID  especially as they double down on Woodwards book, searching for a pretext to blame Trump. The left thus equates rejecting their candidate with actual death.

Worse than death, the Democrat commercials repeat the usual election-year accusation that Trump has proposed to end Social Security by 2023.

There is a pattern here. Panic is a weapon. It is the weapon of choice for the left. They have used it for many decades. Ronald Reagan was going to launch a nuclear war that would destroy the planet. Reagan and all other GOP presidents were going to end Social Security. Bob Dole was going to end Medicare. Mitt Romney was going to bring back slavery. Only a few elections ago, the Democrats were content to induce one panic at a time. But this election, we know that Trump must be something special because the Democrats want us to panic from every possible situation all at the same time.

Democrats seek control and power. They seek power beyond the usual perks of office typical for our times. They seek control over individual lives in ways that history has condemned at other times and in other places.

But a country with a tradition of liberty does not surrender that liberty easily. Free people must be made to panic before they grant unlimited power to the government. One must convince them that a plague is about to kill them or that the government income that they depend on will soon go away.

They must be told that climate change will soon destroy the earth unless the Democrats are elected to stop the rise of the oceans. If the people remain skeptical, arsonists must set fires in multiple locations while leftist networks fill our screens with the flaming images, and leftist politicians declare that the debate is over. It is much easier to convince your victims to stop debating when their homes are about to burn down.

Big government makes its largest advances during a crisis. The New Deal, Obamacare, and the Great Society were all enacted immediately following elections that resulted from market panics or a presidents assassination. The panics stop, but the power remains. There are wartime controls that have never been rescinded more than 75 years after World War II. It is no coincidence that California chose 2020 to weaken severely the laws against pedophilia. If the Green New Deal, illegal alien amnesty, and defund the police become law nationwide after this election, those changes will be the result of panic and chaos that the left now creates and exacerbates.

The American people are under siege. We are placed under siege every election cycle, but this year the blockade is more concrete. Our health, our food, our hygiene, our basic comfort, our homes, our jobs and more are under attack. The left has tried to starve us into surrender. But only if we panic will it work. The ultimate power rests with the victims. If we refuse to panic while ignoring leftist lies, we can retain and recover a semblance of freedom. Donald Trump deserves praise for having fought that panic and remaining steadfast as the left began to capitalize on the virus.
A new principal of disease prevention

The second social distancing period was humorously called an early summer holiday by Hoi An people, while the first was named a prolonged Tet holiday.

In the evening, birds sang over small rivers which run along the wards of Cam Thanh and Cam Chau, reminding of busy days when the ancient city was full of visitors. While people avoid direct contact and gatherings, nature found its ideal time to boast its beauty, which can be seen in the endless green lines of coconut trees along Hoai River.

Being aware that there would be no guests visiting her shop on the coming days, Vo Thi Lien closed her clothes shop in Phan Chau Trinh Street. She explained that as the COVID-19 situation become more complicated in Da Nang, it would soon impact on its neighbouring city of Hoi An.

Other clothes shops and stores in the downtown of Hoi An had shut down even before the social distancing policy was announced.

After closing his Mun cafeteria in Nguyen Duy Hieu Street, Ha Van Cong saw empty streets without laughter and footsteps of people. The old streets have been familiar to Cong for more than 20 years, and over 40 years for Lien. Both of them were born, grew up, and run their businesses there. They can even remember every alley and street by heart.

Lien said that during the first time experiencing social distancing, she felt fear as if she was walking in another city which was not her dear hometown but a strange place.

The first day of the second social distancing period was a sad day as Vietnam recorded the first COVID-19 death, who was a 70-year-old resident of Hoi An! His residential area was then put under strict social distancing discipline.

Hoang Thi Phuong, owner of a groceries in Cua Dai Street, Cam Chau District, said the although the closure of her shop badly affected her familys living, she was willing to do it for the health of herself and that of her family and community.

Bearing in mind that health is everything, she remains optimistic that everything will be OK and difficult days will be over.

A new principal of self-consciousness for disease prevention has been established and practiced among every Hoi An citizen.

After storm, the sun will shine again



Spraying chemical to disinfect Hoi An streets (Photo: NDO/Ninh Nguyen)



A resident in Cam Chau Ward decided to head to the concentrated quarantine area after returning from Da Nang rather than going home to mourn his fathers death. Although each Hoi An citizen had his own story, plan and thought before and during the COVID-19 hit the city, they now share a common goal of protecting health for people and uniting in the surpassing the pandemic.

So are foreigners in Hoi An. They avoided gatherings and parties at weekends while strictly observed social distancing regulations.

Mark, a Canadian man who is living in Hoi An, recalled his trip to his friends family in the rural district of Tien Phuoc, Quang Nam Province, at the beginning of this year. He wondered why his friend didnt hug their parents, and questioned about the bond among the family members.

However, when COVID-19 hit his hometown in Ottawa, people there also avoided hugs. He then realised that Vietnamese people had been one step ahead. They don't hug each other and are very serious in dealing with the pandemic.

After Hoi An City and districts throughout Quang Nam Province relaxed from its first social distancing period and entered the new normal state, Mark breathed a sigh of relief and changed his description on Facebook to "Soldier, Vietnam".

During its second social distancing, Hoi An people have arranged their life and have a calmer attitude in the COVID-19 fight.

It was not until the second social distancing that Hoi An people became worried about the upcoming situation of the pandemic. They had concerns since the first period of social distancing was lift and the city entered the new normal state, because Hoi An is a favourite destination of travellers worldwide. Reopening door for international tourists hides considerable risks to the locality.

Life in Hoi An became quiet and calm those days. There have been deaths, patients and quarantined people due to COVID-19. However, even after the worst storm, the sun will shine again. And Hoi An, true to its meaning in Vietnamese, will be a peaceful rendezvous again.
Two officers involved in the arrest of Javier Ordonez charged with torture and aggravated homicide.

Authorities in Colombia have arrested two police officers accused of killing an unarmed man, in a case that triggered deadly protests in the capital, Bogota, and other cities.

The two officers involved in the arrest of Javier Ordonez, who was repeatedly tasered before dying later in custody, were charged on Friday with torture and aggravated homicide, according to Attorney General Francisco Barbosa.

Five other police officers are being investigated in the case.

Thirteen people were killed in two days of protests earlier this week against police brutality. Most of the victims were young people allegedly shot by police.

Bogota Mayor Claudia Lopez called for reconciliation during a televised commemorative event following the unrest but also reiterated the need for police reform, insisting there was clear evidence of indiscriminate use of firearms.





Public outrage was fuelled by a video of Ordonez pleading with police as he lay on the ground being repeatedly shocked by the taser.

Riots, which also hit the cities of Medellin and Cali, wounded more than 500 people, including 285 civilians and 315 police.

Authorities said 95 police stations were vandalised.

The government was forced to apologise for the killing of Ordonez but fell short of condemning the actions allegedly committed by the police during the protests.
On the new 90 Day Fiance spinoff series called Darcey & Stacey, Darcey Silva is finally dating a new man named Georgi Rusev. Georgi is from Bulgaria, and he currently lives in Washington, D.C. They became acquainted on social media, and theyve met previously one other time in Miami during the Super Bowl. They finally meet up for a second time, this time in New York City, where Darcey gets wined and dined.

Darcey Silva meets up with Georgi Rusev in New York City

Darcey Silva | Raymond Hall/GC Images

Darcey finally gets together with Georgi in the Big Apple, and things are immediately eventful. They head off to a nice Italian restaurant, and they toast with some wine.

Im in New York City with an amazing man I feel a connection with. You know, being open with me and trusting in me and trusting in each other, Darcey explains to the cameras.

The couple eats some delicious food, and Darcey even gets a gift. Georgi produces some Bulgarian rose oil, and he says its pure. I would slather it on all over, Darcey replies.

The couple heads for the hotel room, where they continue the evening. I know I should be taking it slow, but I believe were definitely both looking for some sexy time in the hotel room, Darcey says.

Darcey admits she could be falling in love with Georgi

RELATED: Darcey & Stacey: Darcey and Stacey Silvas Father Convinces Them to Cancel Their Plans to Visit Los Angeles

The next morning, Darcey and Georgi are still laying in bed relaxing. They wish each other good morning, and take in the light of a new day.

Last night, I went to New York City to meet Georgi, Darcey explains. This was the second time weve been together in person. Theres a deep attraction there. I feel like, this is what its supposed to feel like.

Darcey and her sister, Stacey, have been considering moving back to Los Angeles to focus on their fashion line, House of Eleven. Its important to her, and she broaches the subject with Georgi with a positive outcome. She asks him if he sees himself moving to LA, and he says that at one point, he was considering moving to LA or Miami.

Theyre still options I guess, Georgi confides. I care about you.

Things seem close to perfect for Darcey at this point, and she says its so different. He tells her to enjoy the time they have before leaving. Georgi and I only met twice, but I feel like I could be falling in love, Darcey admits to the cameras.

Despite the relationship thats developing between her and Georgi, Darceys still set on following her dream to go to LA and focus on her work. The fact that Georgis being very supportive is really nice to hear, Darcey says.

It looks like the relationship is blossoming into something meaningful between Darcey and Georgi. Well have to wait to see how things play out for the two of them as time goes on.
Taoiseach Micheal Martin said he was concerned about the situation in Dublin (Tom Honan/PA)

Irish premier Micheal Martin has reassured the nation that coronavirus case numbers were forced down before  and can be again.

The Taoiseach was speaking as Dublin entered three weeks of tighter restrictions designed to combat a surge in cases.

Earlier this week, acting chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn warned that the coronavirus situation had deteriorated nationally.

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He said 50% of Thursdays cases were in Dublin.

On Saturday, 274 new cases of the virus were confirmed in the previous 24-hour reporting period by the National Public Health Emergency Team, of which 166 were in Dublin.

From midnight on Friday non-essential travel is being discouraged to and from the capital, visits to private homes have been capped at six people from one household and indoor dining at eateries has been stopped.

Mr Martin revealed he is worried about the situation in Dublin, describing numbers as rising exponentially.

He has urged the public to abide by the new rules, adding that recent regional lockdowns in counties Kildare, Laois and Offaly worked.

Dublin has been placed at risk level three of the Governments blueprint plan to deal with the virus, while the rest of the country remains at two.

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The Taoiseach said level three is not a lockdown and is nowhere near the lockdown we had, with retail, education and construction still open and people not restricted to a five kilometre limit.

There is one sector that is taking a terrible hit and that is hospitality, tourism, travel and aviation, he told RTE.

That whole area is the one most impacted, not just here but across the world.

No government is going to stop the virus on its own, its a collective effort, and it is a very dangerous virus.

Its a one in a 100 year event. Its affecting how we do things, its upending all our lives, how we behave. We dont shake hands any more. Who would have thought a year ago we would be doing this?

Mr Martin said Ireland was in a better place than most.

Scotland were on to Ireland last week, we helped them out with lab capacity, he said.

There is deep trouble in the United Kingdom, theres huge pressure globally on the testing kits. Were up to 15,000 capacity a day, we have done a lot of testing in nursing homes and in meat plants, and so far the positivity rate is very low.

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Meanwhile Mr Martin conceded the coalition government had taken too long to be formed earlier this year following the inconclusive general election result.

I think that period went on too long  it was difficult and challenging, he said.

The whole policy formulation, negotiating a programme for government, Covid itself in terms of social distancing and how long you could meet for, and then the interim government had to deal with Covid.

He described his relationship with tripartite coalition partners, Fine Gael leader Leo Varadkar and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan, positively.

We get on very well on a personal level, and with Eamon Ryan the three of us, we have a great facility to pick up the phone if we think there is something wrong, he said.

Leo interrogates issues and will give different perspectives on issues and hell weigh it up in his own mind and speak this out  which I think is a healthy thing.

In politics there is a lot of noise going on around the bubble, I tend to focus on the substance of the policy and I want to get things done.
New customs rules that kick in from Monday put the onus on importers to prove that goods enjoying concessional duty must have 35% value addition in the country with which India has a free trade agreement (FTA) failing which the importer will be denied FTA benefits for future consignments of identical goods, finance ministry officials said.

The new rules have been implemented particularly to check the unprecedented surge in almost duty-free import of Chinese goods through some of the 10 countries with which India has liberal trade arrangements under the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) FTA, two officials said requesting anonymity.

India signed the Asean FTA in 2009 with Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) on August 21 notifiedthe Customs (Administration of Rules of Origin under Trade Agreements) Rules, 2020 or CAROTAR, 2020 requiring detailed disclosures by importers to claim concessional duty benefits under trade agreements like FTAs. The CAROTAR 2020 will be enforced from September 21, 2020.

The officials said the Asean FTA allows imports of most of the items at nil or concessional basic customs duty rate from the 10 Asean countries and most of the imports are from five membersIndonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam. The benefit of concessional customs duty rate applies only if an Asean member country is the country of origin of goods. This means that goods originating from China and routed through these countries will not be eligible for customs duty concessions under the FTA, one of the officials said.

The country of origin is determined by applying a certain set of conditions with respect to goods other than natural products native to these countries. The required condition is that a value addition of at least 35% of the export value of goods must have been contributed by the Asean member country, he said.

In addition, the goods should undergo some appreciable transformation. But rules are blatantly violated, he said. Currently, a country of origin certificate, issued by a notified agency in the country of export, is produced by the importer and there is no additional obligation on them to prove the origin of goods.

Probes have revealed that the rules of origin, under respective FTAs, were not being followed in the true spirit, a second official said. In a number of cases, it was discovered that items from Non-Asean countries were being diverted into India through Asean countries with mere packing or repacking, assembly or some minor processes and declaring 35% value addition, he said.

This malpractice is rampant in electronic items such as mobile phones, television sets, set-top boxes, air conditioners, electronic parts and telecom equipment, he said.

The FTA partner countries have been exporting these goods without having the necessary technological capacity to achieve required value addition. Moreover, rules of origin were flouted even in products like aggarbatti, arecanut, black pepper, etc, he added.

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Lady Yvonne Sursock Cochrane, whose family owns Woodbrook and Corke Lodge in Bray, has died in Lebanon at the age of 98.

A prominent Lebanese philanthropist, Lady Cochrane died from injuries she sustained in the explosion which occurred in Beirut on August 4.

The Lebanese heiress Yvonne Sursock met Irishman Sir Desmond Cochrane in Beirut and they married in 1946.

Desmond's grandfather Henry had made his fortune from ginger ale and mineral water with the company Cantrell & Cochrane (C&C) and was appointed a baronet in 1903.

Desmond became honorary consul general for Syria and Lebanon and was involved in promoting Irish business in the Middle East.

Lady Cochrane was at her family's Sursock Palace in Beirut, having tea with friends, when the explosion occurred. At least 190 people were killed in the explosion at the port, and 6,000 injured.

The palace took 20 years to restore following Lebanon's civil war of 1975 to 1990.

The place was badly damaged in the blast.

Lady Cochrane was born in Beirut on May 18 1922.

She is a member of the wealthy Sursock Greek Orthodox family, which was originally from the Byzantine capital, Constantinople, and settled in Beirut in the 18th century.

Her family built a number of residential buildings, schools and hospitals in Beirut's eastern neighbourhood of Achrafieh, where an area is named after the Sursocks.

One of Beirut's best art museums owned by her family was also damaged in the blast.

In 1960, she set up the Association for Protecting Natural Sites and Old Buildings in Lebanon to preserve the country's cultural heritage and past.

The association campaigned to preserve historic buildings, the National Museum, and turned restored sites into cultural sites in Beirut and other cities.

Lady Cochrane was concerned about the demise of Beirut's architectural wealth and its mismanagement by the state.

She fought against the destruction of old houses and property developers who sought to change the character of Beirut.

'Beirut lives by the wind that comes from the sea,' she said in a 2008 interview with Monocle, criticising the reconstruction of central Beirut, including building skyscrapers at the seafront, after the end of the civil war.

She lamented what she described as Beirut failing to be the jewel of the Middle East because of bad administration, deteriorating environment, and the region's recurrent bouts of violence.

Government officials would list houses as heritage sites, then new ones would be appointed and de-list them, she said, criticising chaotic policies.
Despite predictions from President Donald Trump that it may take months to determine the results of the November presidential election, local clerks in charge of elections in Wisconsin say the delivery of unofficial results shouldnt look too different from any other presidential year.

Several municipal clerks from some of Wisconsins largest cities say that despite the COVID-19 pandemic, which has significantly increased the share of Wisconsinites voting absentee by mail, they generally feel confident in their ability to compile unofficial election results either the night of Nov. 3 or the early morning hours after midnight, just like usual.

Still, the risk is still there of having a delayed election result in Wisconsin.

The state is one of a handful of key swing states this year, along with Michigan and Pennsylvania, that are expecting surges in the use of absentee ballots but are not allowed to begin processing mailed-in ballots until Election Day. Unlike Wisconsin, a number of states give their election officials advance time to do so.

Wisconsins election laws could also be upended by a slate of lawsuits seeking to extend voting and registration deadlines because of the pandemic. The Wisconsin Supreme Court could order last-minute changes to laws being challenged that deal with the maintenance of Wisconsins voter registration list, and exempting indefinitely confined voters from needing a witness to sign their absentee ballot.

Even if Wisconsin reports its election results on time, delays in other states could still mean the country wont know the outcome for days or weeks. For example, a judge ruled Friday that clerks in Michigan must accept late ballots so long as they are postmarked no later than Nov. 2 and received within 14 days of the election.

A judge may issue a similar ruling in Wisconsin. Whatever happens, elections officials are reminding voters that election-night results are never official, and it often takes up to a month to officially certify the results.

Clerks confident

Municipal clerks and other elections officials in the states largest cities said they expect to have unofficial results compiled on Nov. 3 or by the early morning hours of Nov. 4.

Some clerks reported purchasing new, high-capacity voting machines to handle the expected influx of absentee ballots, and others are fine-tuning their absentee ballot counting process.

In Madison, a city that sent out about 80,000 absentee ballots this past week and will likely end up sending far more before Election Day, City Clerk Maribeth Witzel-Behl said she expects unofficial results to be compiled by a reasonable time.

What were doing is staffing each polling place to try to make it possible that theyll be able to process all the absentees during Election Day and not have a late night, Witzel-Behl said.

Witzel-Behl said the city uses Massachusetts Institute of Technology software to help predict how many poll workers are needed. The city plans to have poll workers call in at 11 a.m. on Nov. 3 to report the percentage of absentee ballots it has processed, a method the city employed in August.

That way, the city can send additional help to process absentee ballots at locations that are the furthest behind. Witzel-Behl said the city already has 3,000 poll workers able to work, the number it typically deploys for a presidential election, although the city invites more to apply.

Very realistic

In Milwaukee, which dealt with long voter lines and struggled this week to send out all its requested absentee ballots on time, election officials want people to temper their expectations for speedy results on election night.

We are being very realistic and hoping to really set expectations for voters that you should not be expecting to have results when you go to sleep, (but) that by the time you wake up you should have results, said Claire Woodall-Vogg, executive director of the Milwaukee Election Commission.

Milwaukee is keeping its absentee ballot drop boxes open until 8 p.m. on Election Day, making for the possibility of an influx of last-minute ballots being dropped off, something the city is discouraging. The city expects 60% to 70% of voters to cast their ballot absentee.

While the city witnessed long voter lines in the spring election after limiting the citys polling places to just five, the city expects at least 172 of its normal 180 polling locations to be up and running on Nov. 3.

Woodall-Vogg said last-minute absentee drop-offs may be the difference between a relatively early result from the city and not finding out until the next morning. She said if between 2% and 5% of voters return their absentee ballots on Election Day, shed expect a faster result, but if that figure swells to between 10% and 20% or more, it wont be until the wee hours of the morning that Wisconsin will have unofficial results from its largest municipality.

Woodall-Vogg said people shouldnt be surprised if media report 100% of precincts reporting on election night, only to see the results from 100,000 to 150,000 absentee ballots reported hours later.

Those late-night ballots could be game-changing. In 2016, Trump won the presidential election in Wisconsin by fewer than 23,000 votes.

The city is planning to use three times the number of tabulators that it did in April, and plans to have hundreds more poll workers assisting at the citys central count facility for absentee ballots.

Other changes

Clerks from a number of Wisconsins largest cities say theyve implemented changes to efficiently count ballots. In Waukesha, City Clerk Gina Kozlik said shes abandoning the central count system the city has used for the past several years for a system where absentee ballots get counted at the polling place.

Thats the system most municipalities use, including Madison. Kozlik said she had concerns about a large central count operation during the pandemic, and thinks it will help make more efficient use of staff and voting machines. Kozlik said she likely wouldnt have had enough machines to accommodate both the number of in-person Election Day voting locations as well as a separate, central count facility used exclusively for absentee ballots.

It makes more sense for Kozlik, given that shell have more polling locations up and running in November than for Aprils election, when she consolidated many polling sites due to the pandemic, freeing up ballot counting machines for counting absentee votes. She said she had trouble this year purchasing as many new voting machines as she would have liked, but ended up purchasing two and renting two, in addition to those she already has.

Like previous elections, Kozlik said shes also training some poll workers to exclusively process absentee ballots.

Im fairly confident we will be able to get everything in on Election Day, she said, adding that she expects the counting process to take about as much time as it did in 2016, barring any problems with equipment.

The city of Kenosha anticipates it will be able to count all its absentee ballots on Election Day, although the city plans to consolidate its polling places and could see lines at polling places. Other cities are switching to or considering central count systems for counting absentee ballots.

Oshkosh City Clerk Pamela Ubrig is considering a central count in the future, although not for Nov. 3. Janesville has secured a high-speed tabulator and has used a central count for absentee ballots since 2016 because it helps eliminate lines on Election Day.

Lawsuits pending

But all of the best-laid plans could be upended if a court orders any changes to voting deadlines due to the pandemic.

In April, for instance, U.S. District Judge William Conley ordered the deadline for local clerks to receive absentee ballots be extended from Election Day, on April 7, to nearly a week later, as long as those ballots were postmarked by 8 p.m. on Election Day.

Conley is expected to rule soon on a slate of cases brought by Democrats and other groups seeking to extend voting and registration deadlines due to COVID-19. Conley may extend the deadline for clerks to receive absentee ballots and prevent clerks from reporting results until the receiving deadline, making it a distinct possibility Wisconsinites may not know the states election result until days later.

Postal Service ready

Wisconsin Elections Commission administrator Meagan Wolfe said elections officials are far more prepared than in April, when clerks around the state recorded numerous problems with the U.S. Postal Service delivering absentee ballots to voters.

In one of the worst examples from that election, a Republican state senator reported a postal worker had discovered three large tubs of undelivered absentee ballots from voters in Oshkosh and Appleton. Nearly 2,700 absentee ballots in Milwaukee were not sent and about 1,600 in the Fox Valley were not processed because of computer glitches and mailing problems.

In April, Wolfe said the Elections Commission didnt really have a formal relationship with USPS. Now, state elections officials meet weekly with the federal agency. Wolfe said the newly incorporated intelligent mail bar code system will allow clerks to determine where a ballot is in the mail stream, and if not, make a decision to still issue the voter a ballot.

USPS spokesman Robert Sheehan said the organization is prepared for a potential spike in volume due to increased absentee voting, and plans to engage standby resources to deal with any unforeseen demand closer to Election Day.

Still, he said USPS advises voters to request absentee ballots as early as possible, but no later than 15 days before Election Day. USPS also recommends domestic, non-military voters mail their absentee ballots at least one week prior to Election Day to allow for timely processing.
Loading "If you break the rules, particularly if you are breaking the rules in your home or somebody else's home, where there is no infection control, there is no formality, it is by its very nature, close contact for potentially prolonged periods, all you will do is spread this virus." He reiterated the importance of testing for avoiding a rapid increase in cases, as happened in the north-west of the city during the second peak of the pandemic. "I cannot rule out, and none of us would rule out, that there may be additional cases beyond the 34. That's why it is so, so important if you have any symptoms at all ... come forward and get tested. That is how you keep it at 34 and not see the things spread out to 340." However, the government would not fine members of the households involved in the cluster who were found to have breached restrictions, according to Jeroen Weimar, a former departmental secretary now responsible for the state's testing strategy.

Loading "People who come forward for contact tracing, who say they are infectious ... that information is far more important than a fine," Mr Weimar told 3AW. He said visits between homes had enabled rapid and widespread transmission of the virus. "When we see households communicating with each other, the bubble spread out much more quickly and rapidly and in this case over a very large area," Mr Weimar said. The Victorian government has set up an extra four testing facilities in the Casey and Dandenong local government areas, bringing the total number of sites to 11.

In a shift from its current model, the Health Department has been working with Monash Health, refugee services, local councils and community leaders to track and trace close contacts of the confirmed coronavirus cases. There were no new cases associated with the Casey and Dandenong cluster on Friday, but authorities are still urging anyone in the area with symptoms to be tested, including those who had visited Fountain Gate shopping centre, which has been identified as a high-risk exposure site. A number of doctors working in the area are concerned social distancing rules have not always being adhered to, particularly by young people. Dr Amena Azizi, a GP in Narre Warren South, said she was surprised to visit a shop in Dandenong in July where she found 16 people within a very small space. "I was shocked," she said.

Loading Community leaders this week told The Age they believed families in the area's Afghan community were among those infected, and Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said he had made an offer to personally speak to that community. Dr Abhi Verma, a spokesman for the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, said some people in the fast-growing multicultural area could be sceptical of health messaging and that language barriers made it even harder to explain to people "what's real and what's not". "I'm sure youve heard numerous conspiracy theories ... that it's a manufactured virus  or it's a government control thing. "Theres no getting away from the fact that these attitudes definitely exist in the community."

The GP, who practises in the multicultural communities of Narre Warren and Fountain Gate, said while some of his patients had understood public health messages, some older people in particular had low "health literacy". "They really do struggle. They dont understand the concept of flattening the curve and what the restrictions are for and why we need to cover our face with a mask," he said. Dr Verma said some also had lower-paid jobs or were in casual work, leading them to put health concerns on the "backburner". "They may be doing things like Uber driving  there is a financial imperative for them to keep going to work, or they don't get paid," Dr Verma said.

Mr Andrews said efforts had been made to provide coronavirus information "in as many languages as possible" and said he did not believe there were "large groups of people out there who don't know there's a pandemic and who don't know there are rules". Monash Healths manager of refugee services, Jacquie McBride, said her department had been working with the families at the centre of the outbreak to make sure they had sufficient food and support. Monash Healths Jacquie McBride has been working with the families at the centre of the outbreak. Credit:Justin McManus "We have a lot of experience working with people who come from different environments, different countries and speak different languages," Ms McBride said. "Our role is to really connect with the families identified, make sure they're well, have conversations with them, make sure theyve got the support at home, food supplies they need to eat, and any of their other needs that can be addressed  but also that they understand the message that is being delivered."

Victoria reported 45 new coronavirus cases on Friday, 17 more than Thursday. There were five deaths, bringing the state's toll to 750. The 14-day case average for metropolitan Melbourne is 42.7. That number must stay between 30 and 50 cases for the city to ease restrictions on September 28. There were 32 linked to known outbreaks and complex cases, while 13 remain under investigation. New regional checkpoints created traffic chaos on Friday, as motorists attempted to pass the city's new "ring of steel". Queues up to 10 kilometres were seen at some locations.
Nigerian rulers are indeed very special. When other leaders and countries are giving out palliatives to their citizens and bailouts to their production and service sectors to cushion the effects of the current pandemic, our rulers (not leaders) are here inventing more harsh policies to perpetually enslave and over-burden us. The government has just increased the pump price of fuel and electricity tariffs. I mean in the midst of this overwhelming struggle by the citizens caused by their poor economic performance and complicated by the Chinese virus crisis. Yes, things were really difficult here even before the pandemic. Today, businesses are rapidly folding up and millions of jobs slipping away. The prices of food and goods have skyrocketed. People are just desperate and hungry. Most Nigerians are stranded and the best our government could do is to inflict more pain on them. But I dont blame them. Do they and their children pay house rent? Do they buy fuel? Everything they need is provided for them and if they need more they can afford it through what they shamelessly grab and stash away for their next generations. But we hear the increases are for them to be able to finance the budget. So its only through taxing the already traumatized citizens to death that this government can finance its operations? Tell me. Which budget? I hear you say budget of the rich by the rich and for the rich. They will pad the budgets, award the contracts to themselves and also pay themselves even if the jobs are not done.

What immediately came to my mind as this confusion was unfolding was what Pharaoh did in the bible. When the Moses went to ask him to release the Israelites, the king got angry and instead of granting the request, he immediate increased their task and suffering, to permanently break their spirit and silence them forever. This is exactly what I see here. If this government wants to get more money they know what to do. They can get it from cutting various excessive salaries, estacodes, allowances, expenses, etc of the elected, selected and appointed officials of the various organs of the government. They can get it from properly taxing the supper rich that own and flaunt their billions of investments and properties without paying any tax. They can come from abolishing the wasteful security votes that have become a gift to our elected officials. What of all the money in different currencies and properties recovered from corrupt past leaders and officials? Where are they? Has it been re-looted as usual? We will come to that later. Why should we not retrieve the national assets, oil wells, companies and corporations that were criminally undervalued and sold to cronies, partners and relations in the name of privatization, etc? We sold everything and yet, we are not getting half of the value for it. Look at the power sector. It is confusion everywhere. The distributor companies treat Nigerians like conquered slaves. They bill you whatever they like and also force you to pay it or have your light removed. Its like there is no law, no regulations, no supervision anywhere. No consumer protection. I was at the EEDC office at Abakpa-Enugu the other day and the marketers were insulting and harassing the customers that questioned the slavish bills. Those that were paying 7,000 are now paying 16,000 monthly and must not complain otherwise they keep you in darkness. They refuse to read your meter. They force you to be on estimated billing. We dont have any choice or alternative. Do we? But why cant we borrow from other countries like China where the state provides the basic amenities and still strongly, adequately supports the private sector. Yes, we can try mixed economy since total capitalism that is working for other people has failed to work here.

Dishonesty is the problem in Nigeria. People dont practice what they preach. They tell you not to steal but they loot with their biros and by proxy. They talk about democracy but they go ahead and rig the elections and rule you by force. You ask them to catch the thieves they loot back what is recovered from the thieves. Now, the suspended head of the nations Anti-corruption agency is currently being probed. He is accused of not accounting for hundreds of houses and billions in different currencies seized from corrupt officials and groups. That is re-looting the loot. And as the probe was going on, the office of the agency keeping the records of such transactions was burgled overnight and the computers containing the information for most of these transactions were carted away. My God! Was that a James Bond film or what? What is the title, please? And you still quarrel with the man that said that we are fantastically corrupt? In fact, I want to add that we are genetically and generously corrupt. We talk against stealing but we loot and re-loot. We preach against importation but everything we and our family use are imported. We mouth patriotism and nationalism but we hate and murder other people every day. We harp on security but we secretly support, fund and arm criminals. Now they are shouting proper elections, one man one vote like I said but watch what will happen in todays elections. Just watch. They will sure scientifically rig it again and tell you to go to the courts. Even some of the people sermonizing today did the worse. They laid the foundation for this political and economic corruption. Why didnt they do better when they were there? I have since stopped believing any of them. Yes, we are not just fantastically corrupt but also fantastically, endemically, genetically wicked, crooked and shameless! As I write, I plugged in my phone to charge it and just few minutes the charger stopped working. I cant count how many chargers I have bought this year. Some will just work for three day or less. And nobody is taking responsibly for choking us with all these fake products, materials, drugs, etc, that have not just drained our pockets but caused thousands of deaths, fire outbreaks, building collapses, accidents, etc. It is indeed suffocating. We just cant breathe here! And that was political, economic and then enters the religious corruption.

Now, the pastors that should bring consolation to us are also adding to the pain. Pastor David Ibiyeomie committed a spiritual and legal blunder when he cursed and threatened somebody for disagreeing on scriptures with Bishop David Oyedepo, whom he claimed is his father in the Lord. He called him a bastard, deride the Somalians, the broadcasters and boasted of his power and money. O my God! Imagine how I felt as a journalist and a minister. And also imagine how his members, listeners and crew membesr who are journalists will feel. But why should a man of God stand on the pulpit and call people bastards and threaten to kill and deal with them just because they dont believe what you believe? And the ignorant and gullible congregation was clapping? Enslavement! Please, enough of this rascality in the name preaching and ministry. God is not going to kill anybody because they criticized you. Who are you? Criticism is part of it. They criticized Jesus. So you are now telling us that you are greater than him? What I saw after watching that clip was the spirit of pride, materialism and arrogance and it comes from false feeling of attainment and achievement. Very unfortunate! This gospel was just entrusted into our hands by his grace. We are not by any means the most handsome, most educated or most intelligent. It was not given to us by merit. It is just grace. The greatest achievement and legacy you will leave here is that Christ is manifested and glorified in your life and in what you do. Thats why we were told not to boast of anything. These fathers and sons must go back to God and deal with their pride, boasting, arrogance and excessive materialism. We came with nothing and will definitely go back to him with nothing. Cant we learn? I expect this pastor to immediately apologise to the offended, to Nigerians and the church for this blunder. He must do it if he is indeed a Christian and a true minister. Now, I want to tell our dear fathers and their sons and grandsons and daughters to calm down. Please, brother Ibiyeomie just calm down. Yes, I am telling you to calm down. Let those who think that they have live as if they have nothing and those who have not believe they have everything in Christ. Now, you have seen how this weeks write-up is. Yes, it is because it is choking here and it is really difficult to breathe. God help us!

Rev Gabriel Agbo is the author of the books / audiobooks: Power of Midnight Prayer, Never Again!, Uncommon Success and others. E-mail: [email protected] Website www.authorsden.com/pastorgabrielnagbo Tel: 08037113283
Aiming to identify measures to rejuvenate and foster the two countries tourism sectors in the new normal period following the pandemic, the event was co-held by the Embassy of Vietnam in India, the Policy Times newspaper, and the Millennial India International Chamber of Commerce - Industry and Agriculture (MIICCIA).

It is the second programme in the 2020 Vietnam-India Business Forum, which it is hoped will connect enterprises in various fields from the two countries.

Vietnam-India tourism cooperation has thrived in recent years, especially since the launch of direct air routes. Like so many things, though, it has been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Delegates at the webinar affirmed that Vietnam and India have huge potential for mutual tourism cooperation.

Though now is still not a suitable time to resume tourism cooperation fully, the webinar offered the chance for the two sides to discuss obstacles and challenges facing their tourism sectors and the preparation of stimulus programmes to be implemented once the pandemic is brought under control.

It also helped travel companies and hotels introduce products and bolster their cooperation, thereby enhancing relations between the two countries in general.

Addressing the webinar, Deputy Director General of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism Ha Van Sieu called on authorities, organisations, and businesses in both countries to bolster their engagement to overcome the challenges presented by the pandemic.

In addition to the support of the Governments, he proposed introducing flexible booking policies for tourists and urged airlines, travel companies, and service providers to join hands and share information to overcome this time of hardship, as well as devise plans on setting up travel corridors to promote safe travel following COVID-19.

He added that in the post-pandemic era, tourism management agencies, tourism associations and businesses in Vietnam and India need to foster their cooperation to address the consequences of restrictions imposed to curb the spread of COVID-19 and to explore opportunities to re-open, attract investment, and arrange exchanges and air links.

Thanks to tourism promotions, the number of Indian holidaymakers coming to Vietnam increased 25% year on year from 2016 to 2019, while Vietnamese visitors to India rose by 17%.

In 2019 alone, close to 30,000 Vietnamese people travelled to India, while about 170,000 Indians visited Vietnam.
Response materials due no later than 4:00 p.m. ( Vancouver time) on Monday, September 21, 2020

Hearing scheduled for 10:00 a.m. ( Vancouver time) on Friday, September 25, 2020

NEW YORK and TORONTO, Sept. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - iAnthus Capital Holdings, Inc. ("iAnthus" or the "Company") (CSE: IAN), (OTCQX: ITHUF), which owns, operates and partners with regulated cannabis operations across the United States, reminds Secured Noteholders, Unsecured Debentureholders, Equityholders (each as defined below) and any other interested party, that the Company and ICM (as defined below) will attend a hearing (the "Hearing") before the Supreme Court of British Columbia (the "Court") scheduled for 10:00 a.m. (Vancouver time) on September 25, 2020. At the Hearing, the Company and ICM will seek final Court approval (the "Final Court Order") for the Company's previously announced recapitalization transaction (the "Recapitalization Transaction") to be implemented by way of a court-approved plan of arrangement under the British Columbia Business Corporations Act (the "Plan of Arrangement").

Court Approval

As required by the interim Court order for the Recapitalization Transaction (the "Interim Court Order"), any Secured Noteholder, Unsecured Debentureholder or Equityholder, or other interested party has the right to appear (either in person or by counsel) and make submissions at the hearing of the petition (the "Petition") for the Final Court Order provided that, other than in the case of the Secured Noteholders and the initial consenting Unsecured Debentureholders, such party files a response (a "Response") by no later than 4:00 p.m. (Vancouver time) on September 21, 2020 , in the form prescribed by the British Columbia Supreme Court Civil Rules, with the Court and deliver a copy of the filed Response together with a copy of all materials on which such Secured Noteholder, Unsecured Debentureholder, Equityholder or interested party intends to rely at the hearing of the Petition, including an outline of such Secured Noteholder, Unsecured Debentureholder, Equityholder or interested party's proposed submissions to: (i) iAnthus and ICM, c/o counsel for iAnthus: McMillan LLP, Barristers and Solicitors, Suite 1500, 1055 West Georgia Street, P.O. Box 11117, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, V6E 4N7, Attention: Vicki Tickle; (ii) the Secured Noteholders, c/o counsel for the Secured Noteholders: Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP, Barristers and Solicitors, 40th Floor, 155 Wellington Street West, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5V 3J7, Attention: Robin Schwill; and (iii) the initial consenting Unsecured Debentureholders, c/o Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP, Barristers & Solicitors, Suite 2100, Scotia Plaza, 40 King Street West, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5H 3C2, Attention: Ryan Jacobs and Lance Williams, and Stikeman Elliott LLP, Barristers and Solicitors, 5300 Commerce Court West, 199 Bay Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5L 1B9, Attention: Brian Pukier and Ashley Taylor, subject to the direction of the Court.

For additional details on the Interim Court Order, see the Company's management information circular dated August 14, 2020, (a copy of which is available under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com).

Securityholder Approval

Further to the Company's news release dated September 14, 2020 (a copy of which is available under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com):

at the meeting of holders (the "Secured Noteholders") of the 13% senior secured convertible debentures (the "Secured Notes") issued by iAnthus Capital Management, LLC ("ICM"), the Company's wholly-owned US subsidiary, 100% of the votes cast by Secured Noteholders (representing all of the outstanding Secured Notes) were voted in favour of the Plan of Arrangement. Accordingly, the Secured Noteholders approved the Recapitalization Transaction by Plan of Arrangement;

at the meeting of holders (the "Unsecured Debentureholders") of the 8% convertible unsecured debentures (the "Unsecured Debentures") issued by the Company, 100% of the votes cast by Unsecured Debentureholders (representing all of the outstanding Unsecured Debentures) were voted in favour of the Plan of Arrangement. Accordingly, the Unsecured Noteholders approved the Recapitalization Transaction by Plan of Arrangement; and

at the meeting (the "Equityholders' Meeting") of holders of the Company's common shares (the "Common Shares"), options (the "Options") and warrants (the "Warrants") (collectively, the "Equityholders"), 79.0% of the votes cast by Equityholders, present in person or by proxy at the Equityholders' Meeting, voting together as a single class, were voted in favour of the Plan of Arrangement. In addition, 66.3% of the votes cast by holders of Common Shares, present virtually or by proxy at the Equityholders' Meeting, excluding votes of Common Shares beneficially owned or over which control or direction is exercised by Related Shareholders (as defined below), were voted in favour of the Plan of Arrangement, which significantly exceeds the minority approval requirements (50% + 1) of Multilateral Instrument 61-101 Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101") of the Canadian Securities Administrators. When Related Shareholders are included, a total of 68.3% of the votes cast by holders of Common Shares, present virtually or by proxy at the Equityholders' Meeting, were voted in favour of the Plan of Arrangement. Accordingly, the Equityholders approved the Recapitalization Transaction by Plan of Arrangement.

For further details on the voting results for the above meetings, see the report of voting results posted to the Company's SEDAR profile (available at www.sedar.com) on September 15, 2020.

The term "Related Shareholders" means, in respect of the Company, "interested parties", "related parties" of any interested parties (unless the related party meets that description solely in its capacity as a director or senior officer of one or more persons that are neither interested parties nor issuer insiders of the Company) and "joint actors" of the foregoing (as such terms are defined in MI 61-101). To the knowledge of the Company after reasonable inquiry, the only Related Shareholders who beneficially owned or exercised control or direction over Common Shares at the time of the Equityholders' Meeting were funds affiliated with Gotham Green Partners, LLC.

Implementation

Certain of the transactions contemplated by the Recapitalization Transaction may trigger a review and approval requirement by state-level regulators in certain U.S. states with jurisdiction over the licensed cannabis operations of entities owned in whole or in part or controlled directly or indirectly by iAnthus, including potentially: Arizona, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, and Vermont. Where required, iAnthus intends to promptly commence the review and approval process and to expedite the process to the greatest extent possible.

About iAnthus

iAnthus owns and operates licensed cannabis cultivation, processing and dispensary facilities throughout the United States, providing investors diversified exposure to the U.S. regulated cannabis industry. Founded by entrepreneurs with decades of experience in operations, investment banking, corporate finance, law and healthcare services, iAnthus provides a unique combination of capital and hands-on operating and management expertise. iAnthus currently has a presence in 11 states and operates 36 dispensaries (AZ-4, MA-1, MD-3, FL-16, NY-3, CO-1, VT-1 and NM-7 where iAnthus has minority ownership). For more information, visit www.iAnthus.com.

COVID-19 Risk Factor

The Company may be impacted by business interruptions resulting from pandemics and public health emergencies, including those related to COVID-19. An outbreak of infectious disease, a pandemic, or a similar public health threat, such as the recent outbreak of COVID-19, or a fear of any of the foregoing could adversely impact the Company by causing operating, manufacturing, supply chain, and project development delays and disruptions, labor shortages, travel, and shipping disruption and shutdowns (including as a result of government regulation and prevention measures). It is unknown whether and how the Company may be affected if such a pandemic persists for an extended period of time, including as a result of the waiver of regulatory requirements or the implementation of emergency regulations to which the Company is subject. Although the Company has been deemed essential and/or has been permitted to continue operating its facilities in the states in which it cultivates, processes, manufactures, and sells cannabis during the pendency of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is no assurance that the Company's operations will continue to be deemed essential and/or will continue to be permitted to operate. The Company may incur expenses or delays relating to such events outside of its control, which could have a material adverse impact on its business, operating results, financial condition, and the trading price of the Common Shares.

Forward Looking Statements

Statements in this news release that are forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including concerning COVID-19 and the specific factors disclosed here and elsewhere in iAnthus' periodic filings with Canadian securities regulators. When used in this news release, words such as "will", "hope", "could", "plan", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "potential", "believe", "should", "our vision" and similar expressions, are forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, the timing and outcome of Court approval of the Plan of Arrangement, the timing and outcome of required U.S. state regulatory approvals and the implementation and completion of the Recapitalization Transaction.

Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this news release are made as of the date of this release. iAnthus disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise such information, except as required by applicable law, and iAnthus does not assume any liability for disclosure relating to any other company mentioned herein.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed, approved or disapproved the content of this news release.

The securities to be issued pursuant to the Restructuring Transaction have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws, or an exemption from such registration is available. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities. "United States" and "U.S. person" are as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act.

SOURCE iAnthus Capital Holdings, Inc.

Related Links

https://www.ianthuscapital.com/


The Covid-19 tally in Ludhiana surpassed the 16,000 mark with 347 residents testing positive for the virus on Saturday.

The district also recorded 12 more deaths due to the virus  for the third consecutive day  taking the total count to 658.

While the cases were 14,184 on September 14, these climbed to 15,372 within three days on September 17, and thereon, it took merely two days for the case count to cross the 16,000 mark.

Of the 16,051 confirmed cases in Ludhiana now, 13,558 people have been discharged, leaving 1,832 active cases.

The positive cases reported on Saturday include 139 patients with symptoms of influenza-like illness, 72 were referred by the out-patient departments and 36 are contacts of positive patients. These include 16 healthcare workers, two cops and a pregnant woman.

Among the 12 fatalities reported on Saturday, seven are females.

The deceased include an 82-year-old woman from Aggar Nagar, a 70-year-old woman from Islam Gunj, four 65-year-old women from Sandhu Nagar, Ambedkar Nagar, Ayali Kalan and Haibowal Kalan, a 62-year-old man from Guru Nanak Nagar, a 55-year-old woman from Nandpur village, a 55-year-old man from Model Gram, a 50-year-old man from Arjan Nagar, a 49-year-old man from Ispura and a 32-year-old man from Guru Arjan Dev Nagar.
New Delhi: In a recent tweet actress Kangana Ranaut lauded Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for his announcement of setting up the country's 'biggest and most beautiful' film city in Gautam Buddh Nagar.

Kangana mentioned, "I applaud this announcement by @myogiadityanath ji.We need many reforms in the film industry first of all we need one big film industry called Indian film industry we are divided based on many factors, Hollywood films get advantage of this. One industry but many Film Cities."

She further mentioned, "Peoples perception that top film industry in India is Hindi film Industry is wrong. Telugu film industry has ascended itself to the top position and now catering films to pan India in multiple languages, many Hindi films being shot in Ramoji Hyderabad."

The Chief Minister made the announcement on Friday during a meeting to review development projects of the Meerut Division, comprising Meerut, Ghaziabad, Bulandshahr, Hapur, Baghpat and Gautam Buddh Nagar districts.

"The CM, while addressing a review meeting, announced to set up the biggest and most beautiful film city of the country in Gautam Buddh Nagar. He instructed officials to search for a suitable land in or around Noida, Greater Noida or Yamuna Expressway and prepare an action plan," an official statement said.
A celebrity chef has been quizzed by detectives 20 years after he worked for Jeffrey Epstein - prompting renewed calls for Prince Andrew to speak to the FBI.

Adam Perry Lang, 51, opened the Barbecoa restaurant with Jamie Oliver in London in 2010 - and worked for Jeffrey Epstein between 1999 and 2003.

He is now 'fully cooperating' with the FBI investigation into allegations of sexual abuse by depraved billionaire Epstein, according to a new podcast Broken: Seeking Justice.

Attorney Arick Fudali, representing the victims, heaped pressure on Prince Andrew - who has been accused of stonewalling detectives.

Pressure has been piled on to Prince Andrew (pictured at Windsor Castle today) to speak to the FBI after a celebrity chef stepped forward to help with the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein

Adam Perry Lang (pictured in 2015), 51, opened the Barbecoa restaurant with Jamie Oliver in London in 2010 - and worked for Jeffrey Epstein between 1999 and 2003

Prince Andrew is pictured checking his rear view mirror as he drives from Windsor Castle on Saturday

Mr Fudali said: 'We certainly hope that this may inspire other witnesses to come forward and help shed some light on Epstein's dark scheme.'

American Mr Perry Lang catered for the Duke of York, 60, and flew with him in a private jet on two occasions - once in February 1999 and in May 2000.

Sources told the Mirror: 'Perry Lang holds information on what took place. They will get as much detail as possible that will shape any interview they may one day have with the duke.'

Mr Perry Lang (pictured in 2016) is now 'fully cooperating' with the FBI investigation into allegations of sexual abuse by depraved billionaire Epstein

Andrew at the wheel of his Range Rover as he drives from Windsor on Saturday

Attorney Arick Fudali, representing the victims, heaped pressure on Prince Andrew (pictured last year) - who has been accused of stonewalling detectives

Mr Perry Lang, who has been described as a decent man by victims, came forward after Virginia Giuffre, 37, wrote to ask him to be the 'hero'.

His lawyer Lawrence Lustberg confirmed the chef was helping the FBI. Mr Perry Lang himself added: 'We have absolutely always been available to the attorneys representing the victims.'

Epstein, 66, killed himself while awaiting trial in a cell for underage sex trafficking last year

He previously denied being aware of any 'depraved behaviour' during his four-year term as Epstein's chef.

Epstein, 66, killed himself while awaiting trial in a cell for underage sex trafficking last year.

Last month, Virginia Giuffre claimed Prince Andrew played a 'guessing game,' with British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell about her age before comparing her to his daughters.

The accuser spoke out in a documentary series, Surviving Jeffrey Epstein, claiming she met the royal in London, describing him as an 'abuser,' and 'not the prince from the fairy tale stories you read'.

Ms Giuffre, who says she was trafficked by paedophile financier Epstein, alleges the duke had sex with her on three separate occasions, including when she was 17, still a minor under US law.

Andrew has categorically denied he has had any form of sexual contact or relationship with Ms Giuffre.

Maxwell is awaiting trial in the US after being charged with procuring teenage girls for Epstein to abuse. She denies this.

Earlier this year Prince Andrew said he was 'angry and bewildered' as he denied reports he was contacted about the Jeffrey Epstein investigation.

He said he would be 'more than happy to talk'.

MailOnline has contacted Prince Andrew for comment.
The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg -- 46 days ahead of the presidential election -- has prompted new scrutiny of the process of approving nominees to sit on the nations highest court.

President Trump is expected to put forth a nominee to fill her seat today, multiple sources close to the president and with direct knowledge of the situation told ABC News.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said last week that Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the Senate.

MORE: Ruth Bader Ginsburg, powerhouse Supreme Court Justice, dies at 87

How a position opens up

The ever-evolving makeup of the country's highest court stems from the lifetime nature of the position.

Once a justice dies, retires, or resigns, the sitting president has the constitutional power to nominate a replacement.

MORE: Trump to put forth nominee to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg in coming days: Sources

Voluntary retirement has been the most common way justices leave the Supreme Court, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS). Thats been the case for the vast majority of departures since 1954.

Until now, only two of the remaining vacancies during that same time period, since 1954, were a result of a justice dying while in office, the Congressional Research Service reports.

MORE: Politicians, celebrities react to death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

It was more common for justices to die while in office in the half century before, however, as 14 of the 34 vacancies that came between 1900 and 1950 fell in that category. And there was a stretch from 1946 to 1954 where the five justices who left the bench all died while in office, the CRS reports.

One other, very rare departure method, is impeachment. Congress can remove a Supreme Court justice through impeachment, and much like a presidential impeachment, a justice would both have to be impeached and then be convicted in a Senate trial before being removed. In the history of the court, there has only been one justice, Samuel Chase, who was impeached, back in 1804, but the Senate acquitted him so he didn't leave the court, according to the CRS.

Story continues

The first steps

When Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement from the court in June 2018, Trump was able to make his second Supreme Court nomination, nominating Brett Kavanaugh in July 2018.

(Trump first picked Neil Gorsuch, who was approved in 2017, to fill the seat of Justice Antonin Scalia after his unexpected death in 2016.)

PHOTO: In this March 22, 2017 file photo, Supreme Court Justice nominee Neil Gorsuch listens as he is asked a question by Sen. Mazie Hirono, on Capitol Hill in Washington, during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. (Susan Walsh/AP, FILE)

When Kavanaugh, the most recent pick, was nominated, he spent much of the next nearly two months meeting with senators and collecting documents and records in preparation for the upcoming hearings.

The Senate is constitutionally empowered to "advise and consent" on Supreme Court picks. That starts with the Senate Judiciary Committee holding hearings on the nominees.

PHOTO: Supreme Court Nomination Process (ABC News)

When the hearings are done, the committee holds a vote to recommend to the full Senate whether the nominee should be confirmed, rejected, or, in some cases, to make no recommendation.

In the case of Kavanaugh, the committee vote was in Kavanaughs favor but with the caveat that additional FBI investigation be done over one week into an allegation he committed sexual assault in high school, which he denied.

PHOTO: Supreme court nominee Brett Kavanaugh testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 27, 2018. (Andrew Harnik/Pool via AFP/Getty Images)

The full Senate debate, cloture and the final vote

In normal scenarios after the committee vote, the full Senate holds its own debate on the nominee before voting.

Senate debate is unlimited unless ended by cloture, which calls for the end of discussion on a certain topic. The motion has to be put forward by a group of 16 senators and then must be passed by the full Senate before going into effect.

The vote on a cloture motion doesn't happen immediately. The operating rules dictate the vote on the cloture motion happens "on the following calendar day but one," which means not the day after the cloture motion is proposed but the second day after.

PHOTO: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, walk to his office at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., April 7, 2017. (Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Going 'nuclear'

Traditionally, three-fifths of the Senate -- or 60 senators -- had to vote for a cloture motion in order to move to a final vote on a Supreme Court nominee.

That said, the Senate changed the rule in April 2017 by lowering the threshold to 51 votes to move forward and for final approval. Republicans triggered the new lower threshold, known as the "nuclear option," to eventually get Gorsuch confirmed.

The reason why McConnell did so then was that Republicans would not have had enough votes to secure his nomination if the 60-vote requirement were in place. So, instead, he got Gorsuch confirmed 54 - 45 on April 7, 2017.

Because of the 2017 rule change, the minority has little power in the Senate unless members of the majority power join them -- which could be the case with Trump's pick to replace Ginsburg.

The vice president can break any tie vote given his role as the president of the Senate.

Breaking down the Supreme Court nomination, confirmation process originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
The head of the pseudo-Christian sect Sarang Jeil promoted mass gatherings for thousands of people. After the rallies, Covid positive cases grew from less than 10 to 150 per day. The "Korea model" is very effective. To date, there have been 22783 cases and 377 deaths across the country.

Seoul (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Today at 4 pm the Seoul city government will present a complaint and a request for damages against Pastor Jun Kwang-hoon, who with his mass rallies in the city center (see photo), reignited the pandemic. The government is asking for at least 4.6 billion won (about 3.34 million euros).

Despite warnings against mass rallies, in mid-August the pastor of the pseudo-Christian sect Sarang Jeil Church planned anti-government demonstrations, which gathered thousands of people in central Seoul, contributing to the spread of the virus. Jun himself then tested positive.

In a press release, the city government explains that "even if we limit the damage to the cases reported in Seoul", we must add the difficulties produced "to the city government, transport, hospitals, the nation and health insurance". Which puts the costs incurred by around 13.1 billion won. The sum also includes 330 million won to treat 641 patients and 663 million to support people left in quarantine, due to possible contacts with the church.

The city government accuses Jun of hindering efforts to trace the cases by presenting false documents of Church members. Lawyers for the religious community reject the accusations and in turn accuse the government of being incompetent and not doing enough to contain the virus. They are also pushing for a claim for damages from China, where the virus arose.

According to the Kdca (Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the state agency for the control and prevention of diseases), the number of positive cases per day in Seoul was under 10 in early August; after the demonstrations of 15 August, they grew to 150; 154 on August 26.

The KCDA states that there are at least 1168 cases related to the Sarang Jeil Church; 587 relating to the 15 August rally.

At present, Seoul has 46 new cases, bringing the total to 4904. Across the country - with a population of nearly 52 million - there have so far been 22783 cases and 377 deaths.

South Korea is one of the countries where the coronavirus has hit the least, thanks to the efficiency and promptness of prevention and testing measures implemented by the government. Many think that the "Korea model" is better than the "China model" based on total lockdowns.
TROY  The Illinois Small Business Development Center (SBDC) for the Metro East at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is celebrating the one-year anniversary and growth of its client Arch Equipment Group (AEG) LLC in Troy.

Owner and President Lisa McQuade has worked with the SBDC and Director Jo Ann DiMaggio May since December 2019 to build a fleet sales and service company. The woman-owned business provides professional, comprehensive management solutions for the entire lifecycle of a customers fleet equipment. Their work involves consulting, administration assistance and various fleet services, including selling and servicing heavy-duty trucks, and providing customization to install accessories such as safety items, light kits, required graphics and other mounted equipment.

McQuade is no stranger to this business. Her father was a heavy-duty diesel mechanic with his own shop. She recalls getting a commercial drivers license at a young age, as well as taking a high school mechanics class to be able to help her father. After pursuing a different career path, she found herself supervising the fleet department for another company. At that point, she knew this was something she wanted to do on her own.

Her passion continued to evolve, and Arch Equipment Group officially opened in September 2019.

Like many businesses during this time, Arch Equipment Group has faced its share of challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Having only been open for a few short months, the state of Illinois Stay-at-Home order last spring made it difficult to get the business going. It affected marketing and networking opportunities, such as canceled truck shows and business events, and halted the employee hiring process.

Despite the difficulties, McQuade is grateful to be on the upswing now.

DiMaggio May provided McQuade assistance with a business plan, Small Business Association loan preparation, Women Business Enterprise (WBE) certification, marketing research and networking.

Jo Ann has been a great sounding board, especially regarding our challenges with COVID, McQuade shared. She has always been available to talk me through any difficulties and provide a multitude of assistance along the way.

Lisa is always willing to learn and ask questions, DiMaggio May says. She is a strong business woman with a sound business plan. I am happy to have offered help when needed and look forward to Arch Equipment Groups future success.

McQuade is especially proud to be a WBE certified business. This has provided a wide variety of educational and networking opportunities, business information, and financial assistance she has found extremely beneficial.

WBE Certification is important to my customers, and having it has given us an edge over the competition, McQuade said. It has presented numerous opportunities that we otherwise may not have had.

McQuade is grateful for the relationships AEG has built with its customers and is proud that their customers are highly satisfied with their work.

Building trust with customers is a huge plus for us, as we strive to be a trusted partner for the industries that never sleep, and where days off are not an option, McQuade shared.

McQuade strives to maintain a workplace where her mechanics receive the credit and respect they deserve, know they are appreciated and feel as if they are making a difference. She plans on growing AEG by adding implement sales and affiliating with additional heavy duty/medium duty/light duty truck up-fitters.

For more information, contact AEG at 618-972-1224 or lisam@archequipmentgroup.com, find AEG on Facebook at Arch Equipment or visit archequipmentgroup.com.

The Illinois SBDC for the Metro East assists start-up ventures like Arch Equipment Group as well as existing businesses headquartered in the nine-county region of Calhoun, Jersey, Madison, Bond, Clinton, St. Clair, Washington, Monroe and Randolph. It is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration, Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and SIUE as a service to Illinois small businesses.
UPDATE: The Trump administration has delayed the download ban on TikTok in the U.S. by one week, pushing it to Sept. 27.

Earlier: President Trump said he approved in principle the deal under which Oracle and Walmart would receive ownership stakes in Chinese-owned app TikTok. His remarks come a day before his administrations ban on TikTok app downloads in the U.S. is set to go into effect  which TikTok filed a last-minute suit seeking to stop.

I have given the deal my blessing, Trump told reporters Saturday at the White House. If they get it done thats great. If they dont, thats fine too. He added, I approved the deal in concept.

Trump said the new U.S.-based TikTok entity  to be called TikTok Global  will be located most likely in Texas and will hire at least 25,000 new workers. TikTok says it has about 1,500 U.S. employees currently.

TikTok Global, according to Trump, has agreed to set up a $5 billion education fund. Trump had previously asserted that the U.S. government deserved to be paid some kind of substantial fee for enabling TikToks transfer to American interests. But he said earlier this week his advisers had told him that it was illegal to demand a payment from transaction, which his administration is forcing ByteDance to conclude by Nov. 12 or face the total disabling of TikTok. About the supposed $5 billion TikTok education fund, Trump said, Thats their contribution that Ive been asking for.

We are pleased that the proposal by TikTok, Oracle and Walmart will resolve the security concerns of the U.S. administration and settle questions around TikToks future in the U.S., TIkTok said in a statement.

Oracle said it would take a 12.5% stake in TokTok Global. According to TikTok both Oracle and Walmart will take part in a TikTok Global pre-IPO financing round in which they can take up to a 20% cumulative stake in the company.

At this point, the deal would still need approval from the Treasury Department-led Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, as well as Chinese authorities.

Story continues

Meanwhile, TikTok late Friday filed an 11th-hour lawsuit seeking an injunction stopping the Commerce Departments decree that TikTok (and another Chinese-owned app, WeChat) would no longer be allowed to be downloaded from app stores after 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, the Wall Street Journal reported.

In the lawsuit, TikTok alleged that the Trump administration has denied the apps owners due process of law, and again asserted that the president took the actions for political reasons rather than because of any unusual and extraordinary threat to the United States. The lawsuit Friday, filed in federal district court in Washington, D.C., makes similar arguments to TikToks Aug. 24 lawsuit seeking to block the Trump ban.

As a separate entity, TikTok would file for an IPO on a U.S. stock exchange within a year after majority control is transferred from ByteDance to U.S.-based interests, according to media reports. In addition, TikTok would be required to appoint a board of directors entirely comprised of U.S. citizens.

On Monday, Oracle confirmed it reached a deal to be the trusted technology provider in the U.S. for TikTok. Oracle is headed by chairman Larry Ellison, who is an open Trump backer. Under the partnership, Oracle would reportedly receive a 20% equity stake in the company. Its not known what kind of stake Walmart might receive.

Under the new U.S. ownership structure, ByteDance would retain control over the artificial-intelligence technology that powers TikToks video recommendations. Last month, Chinas government adopted new trade regulations on companies based in the Middle Kingdom restricting the export of AI technology, adding another complication to the potential TikTok deal.

Free-speech advocates have criticized the Trump administrations ban on TikTok and WeChat, saying it violated the First Amendment rights of U.S. users of those apps. The U.S. government has invoked national security concerns for the action, saying the Chinese government could potentially force the app companies to turn over data on Americans. But industry experts (and the companies themselves) have noted theres no evidence that this has ever happened.
Following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker on Saturday morning said that the nomination or confirmation of a new justice should happen after the November election.

Ginsburg, 87, died Friday evening from complications of metastatic pancreas cancer, according to the Supreme Court. Serving for more than 27 years, Ginsburg was appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1993 and was the second woman to serve the court.

As the country began to mourn Ginsburg, who spent her career fighting for justice and equality, many began to question whether Ginsburgs seat should be replaced ahead of the November election.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement Friday night any nominee from President Donald Trump will receive a vote on the floor from the U.S. Senate.

Baker weighed in on Twitter on Saturday morning, urging Trump and the Senate to wait.

The passing of Justice Ginsburg is not only a loss for the court but for the entire nation, and I urge President Trump and the U.S. Senate to allow the American people to cast their ballots for President before a new justice is nominated or confirmed, Baker tweeted.

The Republican Governed added in another tweet, The Supreme Court is too important to rush and must be removed from partisan political infighting.

The passing of Justice Ginsburg is not only a loss for the court but for the entire nation, and I urge President Trump and the U.S. Senate to allow the American people to cast their ballots for President before a new justice is nominated or confirmed.  Charlie Baker (@MassGovernor) September 19, 2020

Ginsburgs granddaughter, Clara Spencer, told NPR that just days before her death, Ginsburg said, My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

On Friday night, several Massachusetts politicians took to social media to mourn the loss of Ginsburg.

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" " Celebrating your quinceanera or "Sweet 15" is a milestone for many Latin American girls and American girls of Latina heritage. Adam Hester/Getty Images

For Hispanic girls in Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, the United States and elsewhere, the 15th birthday marks the most lavish celebration of their lives. Designating a girls transition from childhood to adulthood, the quinceanera is a two-part festivity that traces back to both indigenous and European cultural traditions and has become an increasingly opulent affair in recent years. Parents may even spend more on their daughters' "Sweet 15" quinceaneras than their weddings, in fact, which is why some refer them as mini bodas, or miniature weddings. Not counting the birthday presents a young girl might receive, a quinceanera in the United States can cost on average $15,000 [source: Gonzalez].

One look at a quince girl (a nickname for the quinceanera honoree) on her special day, and the high price tag makes sense. First off, there's the outfit: Often made of satin with lace overlays and rhinestone accents, quinceanera dresses, the visible centerpieces of these celebrations, mirror what Cinderella mightve worn to her fairytale ball. The floor-length gowns are traditionally white or pale pink, but the revived quinceanera culture accepts dresses in a rainbow of hues. Perched on the quince girls head is a delicate tiara or crown, the symbolism of which well discuss later in the article, and in her hands -- at least at the beginning of the ceremony -- she might hold a Bible or book of prayer.

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Although its emphasis is more on the party than the prayer, the quinceanera starts at the local Catholic church. Before any birthday cake is cut, the quince girl attends a special Mass in which she reaffirms her dedication to God and receives a blessing from the priest. Afterward, the Sweet 15 reception gets underway, typically involving some combination of choreographed dance sequences, limousine arrivals, sumptuous spreads of food and desserts, and an official presentation of the quince girl to fiesta attendees. Similar to cotillion and debutante traditions, quinceaneras serve as young Hispanics official entrance into society and womanhood and incorporate a host of unique elements and rituals that celebrate girls birthdays, as well as their heritage.
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Mumbai/New Delhi, Sep 19 : The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has seized 670 gm cocaine worth around Rs 4 crore from New Delhi, sourced from Ethiopia, and managed to nab a person from Palghar by employing a 'controlled delivery operation', a top official said on Saturday.

The contraband, concealed in a parcel containing tailoring thread rolls, came from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on September 1, and was detected at the Import Custom Examination Area in New Delhi, NCB Deputy Director K.P.S. Malhotra said.

In order to unearth the drug syndicate, NCB Director-General Rakesh Asthana ordered a 'controlled delivery operation' of the contraband parcel to the intended addressee in Vasai town of Palghar, adjacent to Mumbai.

Under a 'controlled delivery', the NCB can keep the "parcel alive" even after seizing the contraband and replacing it with a dummy parcel.

After verifying the antecedents of the consignee, an NCB team reached Mumbai and successfully arrested him from Vasai, said Malhotra.

"The name of the accused is S. Ghangale, who is associated with several high-profile users and drug traffickers in Mumbai, many of whom are engaged as property dealers or construction contractors and also working as drug peddlers," said Malhotra.

Their network is also involved with several DJs and party organisers who in turn are linked to high-end party circuits of Mumbai.

Ghangale has been granted a transit remand and will be produced in a Delhi Court shortly.
As COVID-19 case counts tick upwards in Manitoba schools, public health officials continue to downplay the importance of systematic testing in one of the province's most widely dispersed at-risk populations.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 18/9/2020 (490 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As COVID-19 case counts tick upwards in Manitoba schools, public health officials continue to downplay the importance of systematic testing in one of the province's most widely dispersed at-risk populations.

Manitoba's testing protocol and its associated costs remain the biggest barriers to implementing widespread screening in schools.

Processing one COVID-19 test through Cadham Provincial Laboratory is estimated to cost approximately $30, not including the cost of swab collection at the test site.

With approximately 224,000 students, teachers and school staff, a full round of "census sampling" would require exclusive use of testing capacity for up to 100 days and cost an estimated $6.6 million.

But an epidemiologst at McGill University told the Free Press Friday there is a far less-expensive and more effective alternative.

To avoid the spectre of rolling school closures, Dr. Dick Menzies, director of McGill's respiratory epidemiology unit, is calling for a seismic shift in testing, proposing the use of mobile teams and in order to detect asymptomatic carriers to isolate them before infections spread.

Children and school staff are  along with contacts of positive cases, hospital employees, community health-care workers and essential business employees  among the highest-priority at-risk groups Menzies has identified.

Other than contacts of positive cases, the other groups regularly congregate, a factor allowing mobile teams to conduct screening of large random samples.

Called "surveillance sampling," where 10 per cent of a population is tested, the approach allows for earlier case identification and public health response.

At the moment, if an outbreak occurs, entire cohorts of students are rapidly transitioned to online learning. That's what happened this week at Winnipeg's John Pritchard School. An outbreak of seven cases, and suspected transmission within the school, sent 250 students home for at least one 14-day incubation period that started Wednesday.

While high school students are permitted to learn online from home without parental supervision, the same isn't true for children under age 12; John Pritchard's classes range from kindergarten to Grade 8.

The situation creates significant challenges for some households with working parents, many of whom were suddenly scrambling to make arrangements with employers after being advised of the situation Tuesday evening.

In some cases, employers are able to make accommodations, but others might have to replace staff. Small businesses unable to turn on a dime could face temporary or permanent closure.

In short, Manitoba families and educators are looking at a situation with an uncomfortably high degree of uncertainty, and if the John Pritchard School outbreak is a sign of things to come, there could be significant economic repercussions.

Menzies said the current test protocols aren't designed for COVID.

"The rate of testing based on respiratory illnesses is based on people with symptoms presenting to testing centres. That works for influenza. For COVID-19, a fairly substantial proportion of people who get the infection and are contagious are asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic to the point that they don't go for testing," he said.

Children, in particular, tend to have milder COVID-19 infections and some never show symptoms, which means the number of cases in children and their spread is likely underestimated, he said.

Current modelling studies estimate asymptomatic cases account for more than 50 per cent of community transmission. In Manitoba, individuals are considered infectious two days prior to the onset of symptoms.

The resumption of in-class teaching this month provides an opportunity for the province to identify and contain infections, Menzies said.

"Schools, especially, are relatively easy because they have large gymnasiums and spaces that could be temporarily converted. Teachers and students are used to being regimented and can march to a room on schedule," he said.

With approximately 224,000 students and staff, a surveillance sample would see more than 22,000 people tested at an estimated cost of $3.4 million. Menzies estimated it could be completed over 14 days.

Systematic testing, including implementing mobile teams for at-risk populations, requires a massive upgrade in lab testing capacity and, until saliva sampling is more widely accepted, swabbing staff and resources.

Manitoba's current testing capacity is about 2,500 samples a day, health officials say. At that rate, a surveillance sample of the school population would require roughly nine days of exclusive use of lab resources.

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"You need to think differently to control COVID-19," Menzies said. "You... shut everything down, which is effective because there's no contact between people and the infections die down (but) the consequences of shutdown are too enormous to contemplate doing that again."

michael.pereira@freepress.mb.ca
An Aboriginal teenager who was thought to have taken her own life died in 'suspicious' circumstances after she was allegedly raped and her family home bleached clean on the day of her death, an inquest has heard.

Keturah Cheralyn Mamarika, 16, was found hanging from a ceiling fan at her Groote Eyland island home, in Northern Territory, in November 2016.

A coronial inquest was launched on Wednesday to look into the death of Keturah as well as Aboriginal teenagers Layla 'Gulum' Leering, 15, and Fionica James, 17.

Each girl was believed to have died by apparent 'suicides' when their bodies were discovered between 2016 and 2017.

The inquest concluded on Friday and was told police should resume the cases and investigate either murder, rape or assault charges, NT News reported.

The body of 'Gulum' Leering, 15, (pictured) was found under a tree in December 2017, after she got drunk and a 15-year-old boy admitted to taking advantage of her

Deputy Coroner Kelvin Currie told the inquiry police had assumed Keturah had taken her own life despite the circumstances surrounding her death being 'suspicious'.

He said evidence indicated Keturah had been raped between 6.30am and 7am before her body was found two hours later in a locked room on November 22, 2016.

The inquiry heard police visited the property and were told by Keturah's sister the key to the door had been missing for a year and officers failed to investigate the claim further.

'The lock on the door was not examined to see if a key had been utilised in it in recent times,' Deputy Coroner Currie said.

'There was little investigation as to whether the key was in fact missing. In fact, a key sitting on the floor in the room was not examined.'

Mr Currie claimed Keturah's extended family later cleaned the house with bleach and a high-pressure hose, and burned several items of furniture.

Post-mortem examinations found Keturah had once been gang raped by three boys and the court heard she became sexually active at 12.

Layla died next, her body found under a tree in Bulla, near the Western Australian border, in December 2017.

She had vaginal injuries and 'plant material and debris was on her back, beneath her bra and T-shirt, between her buttocks and protruding from her anus'.

The inquest heard Layla was drunk the night she died and argued with her relative Jeremiah Laurie over a bottle of Jim Beam.

After initially lying to police, Adrian Davey, 15, admitted he took advantage of the 'drunk, maybe too drunk' teenager, but denied forcing her to have sex with him.

Her mother Justine Jingles (pictured) showed up to the inquest at Darwin Local Court, saying she wouldn't rest until she knew what happened in the girl's last hours

Layla had a long history of petty crimes and her family refused to take her back when she was found wandering the streets of Katherine in 2014, and she was put in care.

However, her mother Justine Jingles showed up to the inquest at Darwin Local Court with her other daughters Jasmine and Keely Jingles.

'I really wanted to know how she spent her last hours alive. It was so much for me to handle, it's starting to process in my mind now and I'm waking up to reality,' she said.

'Me and my girls now we just would like to know about the truth  what really happened, because I won't rest until I find out.'

Fionica had a turbulent upbringing as her parents struggled with drug and alcohol abuse, and was regularly treated for STDs from age 13.

Her boyfriend Alvester Gurruwiwi told the inquest their relationship was marred by family feuds, threats of violence and jealousy.

He claimed she was so badly beaten by her aunt in 2016 when her family discovered that she was pregnant that she lost the baby.

The stress of this episode led to Alvester unsuccessfully attempting suicide by hanging himself from a tree.

Fionica was treated for numerous injuries in the months before her death and it was suspected she was a victim of domestic violence - though it wasn't clear by whom.

On Christmas Day 2017, she found text's on Alvester's phone from another woman, causing an argument that led to her moving back with her father.

Alvester came to her home carrying a makeshift spear and vowed there would be 'war' if she didn't come back with him, so she did.

Layla's sister Jasmine Jingles was also at the inquest alongside her mother on Wednesday

Fionica was the next morning found dead, hanging from the same tree her boyfriend tried to kill himself on a year earlier.

Detective Superintendent Lauren Hill reviewed each of the investigations and found major shortcomings.

'The superintendent, in her thorough and explicit report, has pulled no punches in her several criticisms of the level of the standard of these investigations, which has precluded, in my view, me from being able to get to the full truth of any of these three deaths,' Mr Cavanagh told the inquest.

The inquest heard the Darwin major crimes unit had heavy turnover at the time, leading to the investigations changing hands many times.

Superintendent Hill's report said detectives failed to adequately collect evidence and contaminated at least one DNA sample.

Families of the deceased teenagers aired their grievances outside of the inquest on Friday.

Layla's mother Justine Jingles condemned the police for failing to properly investigate the circumstances surrounding her daughter's death.

'They had to hold a Coroner's inquest to find out the truth for my daughter and now my mind can rest.

'I feel like she's here with us and she's going to come home with me tonight.'
Former Malian dictator Moussa Traore is laid to rest with members of the ruling military junta among those present at his state funeral. Traore died earlier this week at the age of 83. In Cameroon, an appeals court upholds life sentences for 10 anglophone separatists, including Ayuk Tabe, leader of the self-declared state of Ambazonia. They had been sentenced last August on charges that included secession and terrorism. Also, our correspondent in South Africa tells us about 'routine' xenophobia against African and Asian foreigners in the country, following a Human Rights Watch report.
The Boris Johnson government is considering imposing another nationwide lockdown after the UK reported a fresh surge of Covid-19 cases - 4,322 coronavirus infections were recorded on Friday - with experts and ministers huddled in meetings over the weekend amid growing ire over steps taken to stop the spread of the virus.

Johnson admitted major challenges in providing tests and saw a second wave coming after similar spikes in cases were reported in other European countries as well. Experts want more stringent measures in place sooner than later.

Epidemiologist Neil Ferguson, whose modelling had influenced the decision to impose the first lockdown earlier this year, said on Saturday the UK is now facing a perfect storm due to the easing of some of the curbs in recent months, and called for quick action.

Day-rise figures have been in the thousands in September after similar figures in the hundreds in July and August. There are local restrictions in north England and the Midlands, where the increase in infections is alarmingly prominent. From Monday, gatherings on more than six people have been banned.

Also Read: UK to launch new Covid curbs, not ruling out national lockdown

Speaking during a visit to Oxfordshire, Prime Minister Johnson said, We are now seeing a second wave coming in. Weve seen it in France, in Spain, across Europe. Its been absolutely inevitable, Im afraid, that we would see it in this country.

We want to keep the schools open - thats going to happen. And well try and keep all parts of the economy open, as far as we possibly can. I dont think anybody wants to go into a second lockdown.

The UK PM said, Clearly, when you look at what is happening, youve got to wonder whether we need to go further than the rule of six that we brought in on Monday. Well be looking at the local lockdowns weve got in large parts of the country now and see what we can do to intensify things.

New measures that could mean another lockdown are due to be announced on Monday or Tuesday, after the opposition Labour joined experts to call for swift action to stop the spread of coronavirus.

Labour leader Keir Starmer said, I am deeply concerned about the sharp rise in coronavirus cases and the difficulties people across the country are facing in getting a test This is the time for swift, decisive national action. We cannot afford to be too slow.

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At Wesleyan in 2017, I called for (and then put into practice) an affirmative action program for thinkers and courses rooted in traditionally conservative ideas. Not a few students, alumni and faculty objected to my approach (as well as my use of the term affirmative action), and we have had intense arguments about it. Such arguments themselves, Id like to think, further intellectual diversity.

These days when I make a plea for greater intellectual diversity, Im asked not about teaching Aristotle, but whether I want to invite fascists and racists to campus. My answer, of course, is no: As I have argued before, universities should be safe enough places for all students. But when hearing the call for teaching a broad range of ideas, many students and professors immediately worry about providing a platform for notions parroted by Trumpians meant only to protect the privileges of white supremacy and wealth.

Is it any wonder? The administration in Washington has appropriated the conservative moniker even as it means to break down the remaining norms of civil society and political culture. But there is little that is conservative about the current kakistocracy.

When I talk about the tradition of conservative thinkers, I have in mind those who were skeptical of the powers of a central government, those who felt that a well-ordered society depended on a notion of transcendence, and those who were concerned that even well-intentioned policies to improve peoples lives could have unintended consequences that are ruinous. I have in mind traditions of natural law and of religious belief. I have in mind thinkers who point out that theories of how people should organize society often depend on frightening powers of organized violence.

These streams of thought offer powerful, alternative perspectives on enduring questions. Given the current makeup of the academy, we cant just hope for them to get a hearing. We have to proactively bring them into the mix, when they are not already there.

Classic liberals and some conservatives often claim that only a commitment to a totally open platform for speech will enable the kinds of debate that will eventually lead to better ideas, even to truth. These folks dont believe that speech causes harm, or they believe the harm it might cause is less dangerous than the harm caused by regulating the presentation of ideas.

It should go without saying that educators must resist calls for ideological conformity: Learning requires that students (and faculty) be exposed to ideas they might find offensive but from which they can learn, and that students (and faculty) be protected from the expression of ideas that aim at intimidation or harassment. Sometimes the lines of protection wont be clear, and there will be contentious discussions. The pragmatist approach I recommend works against indoctrination and against prejudice, but it doesnt appeal to a foundational or procedural answer to the questions of how much intellectual diversity or how much free speech one should cultivate in an educational institution. There isnt a single answer that always works. These questions require open-ended conversation in which people can practice intellectual humility as they realize the fragility of their own preconceived notions and knee-jerk responses.
David Daleiden sues Planned Parenthood, seeks $75K for defamation

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Pro-life activist David Daleiden, whose undercover videos exposing Planned Parenthood's practices led to a congressional investigation, filed a federal defamation complaint against Planned Parenthood on Tuesday, arguing that the abortion giant lied to the media about his videos.

Daleiden, the founder of the Center for Medical Progress, filed the complaint in a New York federal court. He alleges that Planned Parenthood told the media that he and CMP manufacture[d] and created a false smear campaign when they released a series of undercover videos and transcripts showing Planned Parenthood officials discussing their willingness to engage in the illegal sale and harvesting of aborted babies' organs, tissue and limbs.

In his new complaint against the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Daleiden, represented by the Thomas More Society, says CMPs videos show evidence of high-level Planned Parenthood officials discussing their questionable practices in their abortion and fetal tissue harvesting programs.

The complaint calls out PPFA Senior Vice President of Communication and Culture Melanie Newman and accuses her of issuing a statement to media on Sept. 18, 2019, that was published by Rewire News, an outlet that advocates for abortion. Newman was quoted accusing CMPs investigation as a multiyear illegal effort to manufacture a fake smear campaign against Planned Parenthood.

On Nov. 15, 2019, the complaint adds, PPFA posted on its official Twitter account that Daleiden and others created a false smear campaign against Planned Parenthood.

The comments were made after Daleiden, CMP and other defendants were ordered by a California federal judge earlier to pay $2.3 million in damages to Planned Parenthood after a jury had found Daleiden and an associate guilty of crimes including creating fake government-issued identification cards, illegal recording and trespassing.

In reality, as PPFA and its representatives recorded on the videos readily admit in other fora, Plaintiffs videos accurately record Planned Parenthood officials own shocking words spoken in real life, the complaint contends.

According to the new complaint, PPFA has caused substantial reputational, emotional, financial, and other damages as a result of objectively false assertions made about Daleiden and CMP.

The complaint asks for PPFA to pay actual and punitive damages of $75,000 to make Plaintiffs whole for the presumptive impairment to their reputation, personal humiliation, mental anguish and suffering. The complaint also requests punitive and exemplary damages, in an amount necessary to punish PPFA for its malicious conduct toward Plaintiffs.

Daleiden is also asking the court for an injunction requiring PPFA to retract and remove all false statements about CMP and Daleiden on its Twitter page and made to Rewire News.

The legal complaint also seeks to force PPFA to issue a publicly accessible correction of these statements.

Planned Parenthood is not content to make obscene financial profit by killing off Americas next generation and endangering pregnant women. Additionally, they feel that they must obliterate the reputation of anyone who dares to challenge them and suggest that what they are doing is not the great philanthropic work that they pretend it is, Tom Brejcha, president and chief counsel of the Thomas More Society, said in a statement.

Planned Parenthoods very existence is an anathema to Americas pursuit of the most basic of human rights and they know it. We have not been surprised over their campaign to smear the reputation of Mr. Daleiden, but they are not allowed to falsely besmirch his reputation for exposing the truth.

Newman told The Christian Post in a statement responding to the complaint that Daleidens claims are still baseless.

They are just another desperate attempt by a discredited source to get publicity, she argued.

Last fall, a jury  with all of the facts fully presented to it  decided that David Daleiden and the Center for Medical Progress intentionally broke the law in a multi-year, malicious campaign to advance their goals of banning safe, legal abortion in this country, and preventing Planned Parenthood from serving the patients who depend on us. The result: Daleiden was ordered to pay millions of dollars in damages. And, he still faces criminal charges.

Since 2015, Daleiden and CMP have released several full-length investigative videos that have shocked many in the pro-life community and angered abortion-rights supporters. Many of the videos show the abortion giants employees discussing how clinics received payments priced per fetal specimen and the ways surgical abortions are altered to obtain intact organs, limbs and tissue for research. Altering an abortion procedure for this purpose is illegal.

As a result of the undercover investigation, Republican-led congressional committees launched investigations into the practices of the nations largest abortion provider. The Trump Justice Department has also looked into the matter. The videos also reenergized calls to strip Planned Parenthood of federal funding.

One of CMP's undercover videos from 2014 filmed at a Planned Parenthood workshop in Michigan showed an abortion provider arguing against helping children who are victims of rape and sexual assault. The speaker said that because clinic workers are not state employees, they should not be required to report known cases of child abuse to authorities.

In a report released in 2016, the House Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives found evidence that several tissue procurement companies and abortion clinics might have violated federal felony laws barring the sale of human tissue. The report included information on criminal and regulatory referrals filed by Republican members of the panel.

The House Oversight and Reform Committee, now chaired by Democrat Carolyn Maloney of New York, issued a statement refuting many of CMPs findings, arguing that CMP's videos "include no credible evidence that Planned Parenthood profits from its fetal tissue donation program."

In October 2015, PPFA announced that it will no longer accept reimbursements to cover the costs of fetal tissue donations.
Kolkata, Sep 19: Calcutta University has decided to provide three hours to its undergraduate and postgraduate students to answer papers for online final semester examinations from home, instead of giving 24 hours announced earlier, an official said on Saturday. The university will conduct final semester examinations online from October 1 to 18.

It has been decided that students in both UG and PG levels will write their papers in three hours. To address any possible network glitches, half an hour to one hour time will be allotted," the official said. The CU will issue a notification in this regard soon, he said.

After the UGC expressed its reservation to give candidates 24 hours for writing papers, which was tantamount to open book consultation, the faculty council held an emergency meeting on Saturday.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
The communication, which was emailed to parents and posted on the districts website, was quickly followed by a second message, with Stange apologizing and acknowledging that he was hearing from concerned families, and hoping to provide perspective on the recommendation.
Chinese authorities have ordered mandatory background checks on candidates in teacher recruitments in kindergartens and primary and middle schools, and those who have sex-related crime records will be blacklisted.

Such people are also banned from obtaining a teaching qualification, according to a circular published on Friday, which was jointly issued by the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP), the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Public Security.

Shi Weizhong, a senior prosecutor with the SPP, said at a press conference that the new measures are meant to take precautions to prevent sexual violations against children from the root, considering the mental profiles and the high recidivism rate among relevant convicts.

Such regulations also apply to the recruitment of other faculties, including administrative staff, and odd-job and security personnel in such institutions.

Universities, and after-school education institutions, should also take relevant measures accordingly, the circular said.

The circular required education authorities to enhance checks on current school staff.

The SPP said relevant regulations have been piloted by local authorities in regions such as Zhejiang, Shanghai, and Chongqing, and turned out to be effective.

With the establishment of a nationwide mechanism, the information sharing of relevant criminal records will also be available across the country, fixing previous loopholes in this regard, the SPP noted.

The SPP said the three departments are also planning to work on similar regulations in some other sectors that have close contacts with juveniles to build an all-round protection network for minors.
- Shatta Wale has shown that he truly has Ghana at heart

- The Dancehall King says he is ready to brand Ghana

- He added that once he is done with branding Ghana, people will understand that he is made in Ghana

Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

Ghanaian Dancehall King, Charles Nii Armah Mensah, popularly known as Shatta Wale, has hinted to his fans about the next big project he plans to embark on.

A few months ago, Shatta Wale deleted all his photos and videos on his social media page, leaving his fans wondering what he was up to.

Shatta Wale Photo credit: Instagram/Shatta Wale

Source: Instagram

In the photo sighted YEN.com.gh, Shatta Wale seen in an all-yellow Kaftan, looking dapper as he posed for the camera.

READ ALSO: Fameye will preach the gospel someday - Legendary Gospel Musician Amy Newman reveals

According to him, he is on a quest to rebrand Ghana and people will only understand him after he is done.

He added that he is made in Ghana and wants to put Ghana on the map.

READ ALSO: Gifty Anti's all-grown-up daughter appears taller like mom (photo)

Captioning the photo, Shatta Wale wrote:

"After I finish Branding Ghana People will understand why I AM MADE IN GHANA

Perhaps the 'Mahama Paper' hitmaker working on another major collaboration after he made Ghana and Africa proud with his international collabo with Beyonce.

READ ALSO: 7 Photos of Hajia Bintu that shows she is the real queen of curves

See the photo below:

YEN.com.gh earlier reported that Shatta Wale had been involved in what would have been a disaster.

READ ALSO: Fella Makafui opens Baby Island's beautiful room for all to see in new video

The Melissa hitmaker nearly ran over a boy on the streets while moving out of a compound with his entourage.

In a video of the indecent sighted YEN.com.gh, Shatta Wale who was part of a two-car convoy was driving in his new BMW car.

After the BMW which is the first car came out of the compound, the people around attempted to get him to stop but he continued to move.

Suddenly, one of the boys in the crowd which wanted to mob Shatta Wale even in his car fell right in the lane of the car.

There were few metres between him and Shatta Wale's car and but for the timely intervention of one of Shatta Wale's bodyguards, it would have bad news.

Ghanaian trader gives reasons why she will never vote for the NDC party | #Yencomgh

Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page.

Enjoyed reading our story? Download YEN's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Ghana news!

Source: YEN.com.gh
You may have to wait a while if you want to use iOS 14s picture-in-picture support to watch YouTube videos. MacRumors (via 9to5Mac) has noticed that YouTubes mobile website stopped supporting iOS 14s PIP mode, at least for free users. Try it and a video will only briefly pop out before it returns to the web page.

YouTube Premium subscribers have had success in using PIP, but its not clear if YouTube is deliberately restricting the feature. iPad users, who typically visit the desktop version of the website, havent had issues. The native YouTube app doesnt currently support PIP on iPhone regardless of your Premium status.

Weve asked YouTube for comment.

It wouldnt be surprising if the move was intentional. YouTube Premium offers background playback as one of its major perks, and it wouldnt be difficult to use PIP on the web to negate that perk. Still, that could easily be frustrating  it would amount to YouTube taking away functionality that was already present, however briefly.

This also comes as promised YouTube 4K support on Apple TV has yet to materialize. The video giant promised that its still coming soon through an updated app, but it wasnt ready alongside tvOS 14 like some had hoped. Youll have to make do with 1080p for a little while longer.

Update 9/20 2PM ET: YouTube told Engadget that background playback is a Premium feature. In other words, dont expect the functionality to return for free users on the mobile web or elsewhere.
Mauritius has announced the phased easing of travel restrictions. As from 01 October 2020, borders will be open to Mauritian nationals, residents and tourists travelling to Mauritius for long stays.

Passengers will have to undergo a PCR test 5 days prior to travel. Upon arrival in Mauritius, a 14-day quarantine will be mandatory at an establishment approved by the authorities.

A travel package will be made available online for passengers and will include:

Accommodation, on a full-board basis, for the 14-day quarantine.

Transfer from the airport to the hotel.

Health costs including mandatory PCR tests.

To facilitate the process, a centralised booking platform, linking to airline and hotel sites, is being set up on the MTPA website at https://booking.mymauritius.travel and will be operational as from 20 September 2020.

Air Mauritius and Emirates Airlines are scheduling regular flights connecting Mauritius to designated destinations. Flights may also be booked at the retail outlets, call centres and the websites of the airlines.

The sanitary safety of travellers and of the Mauritian public is a topmost priority. Protocols following international best practice will be in force on board the aircraft, at the airport, for airport transfers, at quarantine locations and thereafter at hotels and all other public places.

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WASHINGTON - The House Foreign Affairs Committee has dropped a threat of contempt against Secretary of State Mike Pompeo after the State Department turned over 16,000 pages of records related to a Senate investigation of Democrat Joe Bidens son.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., had subpoenaed Pompeo and threatened to hold him in contempt of Congress after months of requesting the records, which had already been turned over to the Republican-led Senate.

The GOP probe by the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee is looking at Hunter Bidens work in Ukraine, an investigation that Democrats say is an effort to boost President Donald Trumps reelection bid. The chairman of that committee, Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson, has said he will issue a final report in the coming weeks.

It shouldnt have taken a subpoena, let alone the threat of contempt, for Secretary Pompeo to comply with the Committees oversight request, Engel said in a statement. Nevertheless, Im gratified that weve received these materials and can review them before Senate Republicans issue their report.

The State Departments decision to turn over the records is a rare win for House Democrats who have been repeatedly frustrated by Trump administration officials who have defied or outright ignored their requests. While congressional subpoenas are legally binding, officials who have rebuffed Congress have faced little consequence for defying them, while Trump has fired or demoted federal employees who have complied with requests individually.

Contempt itself is largely a symbolic gesture that has generally been used to embarrass officials who refuse congressional requests, and Democratic attempts to legally fight the administrations refusals have been drawn out in lengthy court battles.

The committee did not make the State Department documents available and it was unclear if or when they would release them. Engel said in his statement that the committee is going to make sure the American people see the whole picture.

There is no evidence of wrongdoing by the Bidens, and Hunter Biden has denied using his influence as a board member for a gas company in Ukraine with his father, who was vice-president at the time.

Pompeo and his aides have had previously said that the committee had not shown that its demand on the Ukraine documents was for a legitimate legislative purpose and suggested that it was entirely partisan. The department had said it would turn over the documents if the House panel was investigating, like the Senate, identical or very similar corruption issues involving Ukraine and corrupt influence related to U.S. foreign policy.

The committee had said it was preparing a contempt resolution that would have also included Pompeos refusal to comply with a subpoena issued during the House impeachment inquiry last year.

The House impeached Trump in December  and the Senate acquitted him in February  for his pressure on Ukraine to investigate Hunter Biden as Joe Biden was running for the Democratic nomination to challenge Trump. The president and his associates asked Ukraine for the probes as he was withholding military aid to the country.

Engel said that subpoena is still in effect.
Tributes to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg are pouring in after the feminist luminary died at age 87 on Sept. 18 after battling metastatic pancreatic cancer. A pioneer in the fight for women's rights and gender equality, Ruth served on the Supreme Court for 27 years since she was appointed by former president Bill Clinton in 1993. She was only the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court.

"Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature," Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., said in a statement released by the Court. "We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her - a tireless and resolute champion of justice." Celebrities and political figures, including Barack Obama, Elizabeth Warren, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Yara Shahidi, Kerry Washington, and Patricia Arquette have also taken to social media to honor Ruth's impactful legacy. Look ahead to read the heartfelt eulogies dedicated to the iconic justice.

Related:

All the Celebrities We've Said Farewell to in 2020
By ANI

NEW DELHI: The Rajya Sabha passed the Epidemic Diseases Amendment Bill, 2020 on Saturday.

Speaking in the Upper House, Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan said that the bill was required to prevent offences against healthcare professionals.

"Many healthcare workers including doctors, paramedics were insulted in some form or the other, due to stigma attached to COVID-19. Centre government acted on this situation found that there was a need for a law, a prohibitory mechanism against such incidents," Dr Harsh Vardhan said.

READ| Epidemic Diseases Bill attempt to encroach states' constitutionally assigned functioning: TMC

He said that the Centre had passed the Ordinance to make hurt of any nature or insulting the medical professionals a cognizable offence.

However, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Derek O'Brien termed the Bill an attempt to encroach states' constitutionally assigned functioning.

Speaking at the Rajya Sabha while the discussions on the bill were underway, the TMC MP said that Bengal already had laws to deal with prevention of violence against doctors and healthcare workers.

"You thought of healthcare workers now? Bengal has Medicare Service Prevention of Violence and Damage to Property Act 2009. What happens to it? Bill is an attempt to encroach states' constitutionally assigned functioning," O'Brien said.

The TMC leader said that his state had passed the bill for healthcare workers' safety as far back as in 2009.

"You cannot cross the Constitutional bar, you do your work, and let the Chief Ministers do their work. There are sinister provisions also present in this bill," he further added.

The Upper House had earlier passed the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (Second Amendment) Bill.

The Monsoon Session of the Parliament commenced on Monday and is slated to end on October 1.
In one article, in 1914, she wrote that giving women the right to vote was nothing more than a wider application of our ideas of justice and equality, and that suffrage was extending democracy to women.

Lee is believed to have been born around 1895 in Guangzhou, China. She moved to the United States around 1905 to join her father, the Rev. Lee To, a Christian missionary who had been assigned to a church in Chinatown. She lived with her parents there on Bayard Street. The Lees were among the rare Chinese immigrants who were allowed into the United States at the time under federal legislation that had sharply restricted their entry since 1882, when Congress passed the Exclusion Act, banning Chinese laborers to appease white nativists who had resented an influx of Chinese-immigrant prospectors and railroad workers in the West.

Chinese teachers, diplomats, merchants and missionaries were still allowed to enter the country, but only in small numbers and only with proper certification. Naturalization was banned. Later, in 1924, nearly all Asian immigration was cut off when the United States imposed ethnic quotas to keep the country largely white and Protestant.

The Chinatown of Lees childhood was an unusual place for a Chinese girl to grow up in. A dense area of roughly eight city blocks, the neighborhood was largely closed to an outside world that viewed Chinese immigrants as exotic and strange, save for the occasional tourist who ventured in to gawk. Lees mother seldom left their home in New York because her feet, bound as a young girl according to tradition, were only a few inches long.

For the residents, the community offered protection from racism. Most of Lees neighbors were men who had come to Chinatown seeking work either as bachelors or after leaving their families behind in China; in 1910, historians have said, the gender ratio of Chinese men to Chinese women in America was more than 14 to 1.
By Lambert Strether of Corrente

Most of you will be familiar with the concept of crew change; thats what happens, for example, when your flight gets delayed because the pilots or cabin attendants have worked more hours than the FAA allows them to, and the airline needs to swap in a new crew. This happens rarely, but imagine crew change failures happened simultaneously for many, many aircraft across the entire network: Youd have the airline equivalent of a traffic jam, or even gridlock, and no flights would move. A similar process is happening in real life, now, but for ships, not aircraft. Because the Covid pandemic has made crew changes very difficult, many ships and crew (about 300,000) are stuck in port, stranded, unable to move. The New York Times headline, Trapped by Pandemic, Ships Crews Fight Exhaustion and Despair, captures the humanitarian issues very well; the body cuts to the economic chase: supply chain risk.

But the Covid-19 pandemic led countries to start closing borders and refusing to let sailors come ashore. For cargo ships around the world, the process known as crew change This floating population, many of which have been at sea for over a year, are reaching the end of their tether, Guy Platten, secretary general of the International Chamber of Shipping, which represents shipowners, said on Friday. If governments do not act quickly and decisively to facilitate the transfer of crews and ease restrictions around air travel, we face the very real situation of a slowdown in global trade.

But crew change is not as easy as it might seem. Again from the Times:

Leaving a ship, and getting home, requires more than just disembarking. It usually involves multiple border crossings, flights with at least one connection, and a slew of certificates, specialized visas and immigration stamps. A crew members replacement has to go through the same steps. Every step in that procedure is broken because of the pandemic, with flights limited, border controls tightened and many consulates closed, according to [Frederick Kenney, director of legal and external affairs at the International Maritime Organization, a U.N. agency that oversees global shipping]. While some countries have found ways around the problem, the rate of progress is not keeping up with the growing backlog of seafarers, he said last week.

In this post, Ill look first at the supply chain risk. Then Ill look at the institutional issues that have hitherto prevented this risk from being addressed, and the crew changes from being made. (These issues, besides the pandemic itself, involved government, but even more the complex business structure of international shipping. Finally, Ill look at proposed solutions, which must be international and intergovernmental in nature, and must also  quelle horreur  involve the owners of the assets, the ships. (Im going to skip the humanitarian aspects, but imagine a powerless worker from Sri Lanka or the Phillipines, trapped on board the same hulking metal ship for many months with nothing to do, with an expired contract, money owing, perhaps in debt, with no access to anything onshore including health care, and a family at home. Seafaring has always been a brutal trade, but the workers situation during the pandemic is really beyond the pale.[1])

Supply Chain Risks

Shipping investors, led by Fidelity, have cleared their throats and let it be known that the crew change situation must be addressed. From the Financial Times, Fidelity warns of supply chain risks due to stranded seafarers:

Fidelity International, the $566bn asset manager, has called on companies and governments to urgently address an unfolding crisis in global supply chains as hundreds of thousands of ship workers remain stranded at sea because of the pandemic. Jenn-Hui Tan, global head of stewardship and sustainable investing at Fidelity, said an estimated 90 per cent of world trade relies on shipping, providing a vital service for businesses and consumers. He said seafarers should be classified as essential workers and allowed to disembark.

Matters are not so simple as Tan suggests, but the scope of the problem is real. Bloomberg, in a deeply reported article, Worst Shipping Crisis in Decades Puts Lives and Trade at Risk[2], concurs:

The crisis has begun to reach shipping investors including global asset manager Fidelity International Ltd., American insurance giant Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co., asset manager Oaktree Capital Group LLC and finance titan JPMorgan Chase & Co. If it isnt resolved soon, analysts say, it threatens to ripple up the supply chain, affecting commodities companies like Cargill Inc. and Glencore Plc. and retailers like Dicks Sporting Goods Inc., just in time for the holiday shopping season.

Note, however, that Fidelity et al. have not actually proposed doing anything themselves. What will it take for force action? From an interview this month with Bjrn Hjgaard, Chief Executive Officer of Anglo-Eastern Univan Group in Hong Kong, in BIMCOs house organ, Governments will act when supermarket shelves are empty:

[HJGAARD:] We are at a breaking point . If sentiments swing, which I fear is starting to happen, and the seafarers start saying no to signing yet another extension, it only takes a few days, maybe a couple of weeks before you have large parts of the world fleet unable to move I can see the dominos starting to fall and the global supply chain being severely affected, the seafarers are not striking; they are simply at a breaking point. Suddenly, the ships are not going anywhere. They are taking up places at berths, preventing other ships from arriving to discharge and load, and, in a very short period of time, I can see the dominos starting to fall and the global supply chain being severely affected. But we must understand that the seafarers are not striking; they are simply at a breaking point because their legal entitlements to leave are being denied them.

Parenthetically, here again we see the enormous power that, er, essential workers in the supply chain have.) As we shall see, a few seafarers are striking. And its not all up to government, or at least shouldnt be. With that, lets turn to institutional issues.

Institutional Issues

Issues seem to fall into three buckets: national governments, the business structure of international shipping, and unions. (There are also international agencies involved, as we shall see in the Proposed Solutions section, but they seem to be driven by the previous three institutions, and are not the drivers.) Lets look at each in turn.

National governments.

Requirements imposed by national governments  to be fair, for the perceived safety of their own citizens  have made crew change extremely difficult. From Bloomberg:

Of the commercial ports in 123 countries and territories, 45 have stopped allowing crew changes, according to Wilhelmsen Ships Service AS, part of the border closings and quarantine requirements that have come to define coronavirus containment policy. Seventy-six allow seafarer swaps with restrictions and two permit the changes with appropriate documentation. Until the worlds ports reopen, shipping companies say, it will be hard to relieve large numbers of workers.

Even if all the ports were to reopen tomorrow, crew change would be difficult, because the regulations are insanely complex, and differ from country to country. There are various sites that purport to aggregate all the rules; here is one, and here is another. Here is what requirements for a crew change look like for Albania (first one the list):

Yikes. (The insane complexity of the rules has also led to an insanely complex network of brokers and service providers, as we shall shortly see.[3]) But there are further obstacles. In a pandemic, rule changes can be arbitary and verbal. From Seatrade Maritime News, Crew change crisis: a global perspective:

The regulations are changing by the day. As theres limited written information, the predominantly verbal communications present a challenge for us in guiding customers, commented Johan Thuresson, GAC Dubais General Manager  Shipping Services.

Nor is it necessarily possible to get seafarers on their way, even if the paperwork is complete, due to governments having imposed international flight restrictions:

In some areas, crew changes had become almost impossible in practical terms due to the closure of many airports, including those in Jordan, Lebanon, Guyana and Panama, for varying periods. Throughout the pandemic, the chaos that followed widespread international flight restrictions has been widely discussed. The limiting factor is the amount of flights available for seafarers to get home in a timely manner and visa expiration for non-EU crew, said Tom Hanoy, Operational Manager at GAC Norway. In Hanoys experience, Filipino seafarers been particularly badly affected.

And then, of course, there is corruption. Again from Seatrade Maritime News, Crew changes at Indias Vizhinjam port stalled by local agent:

Crew changes on ships at Vizhinjam port, on the southernmost tip of the Indian peninsula, have been stalled by the muscle power displayed by a local steamer agent, which has set up its own association to carve out a monopoly on the activity.

(Of course, corruption might well be made to work in favor of crew changes, but that would require money from the asset owners.)

Business structure of international shipping

Bloomberg describes the nature of the industry:

Modernity has made shipping safer, but seafarers are still at the mercy of an industry that is opaque, deeply fragmented and bound by a patchwork of national and maritime laws. Every ship is connected with a handful of separate entities. Typically, theres the ships owner, its operator, a staffing agency which recruits seafarers, and the chartererthe company that hires the boat to get its goods from point A to point B. There are a few dominant players in the shipping industry, but much of the trade is made up of middle men upon middle men, connecting companies that have goods to ship with a vast network of owners, operators, staffing agencies and so on. Those layers make it hard to hold anyone accountable for on-board working conditions, says Richard Meade, managing editor of U.K. shipping researcher firm Lloyds List, or to solve problems when they arise. At the furthest remove, investors and money managers have built lucrative portfolios out of shipping assets they almost never have to touch.

They provide a handy diagram:

So to whom, exactly, does the seafarer go to seek redress for their crew change issues? One would think, it hope, that it would be their union, so lets turn to them.

Seafarers unions

As Bloomberg shows, there is in fact a body of law meant to protect seafarers:

Ratified by more than 80 countries, the Maritime Labour Convention isnt mere guidancethe agreement sets minimum working conditions for seafarers that underpin the insurance policies and global contracts that govern the transport of basically everything. But the ongoing pandemic has shattered the norms of this highly fragmented industry, and with countries wary of relaxing port and border restrictions, violations of worker protections have become common. Nearly 20% of the worlds 1.6 million seafarers are stranded at sea andat the mercy of employers and shifting quarantine requirements to get them home.

The fragmentation of the business makes it very hard for unions to take advantage of the legal rights their workers have. Here is what it wook for one staffer of the International Transport Workers Federation to free seven workers from Myanmar.From the International Transport Workers Federation, Companies must take crew change opportunities in the UK and elsewhere (Ive helpfully underlined the institutional players):

The repatriation of seven Myanmar crew members from a Korean-owned vessel via the United Kingdom shows that crew change is still possible during the crew change crisis, but it requires the determination of the seafarers employers, says Liverpool-based ITF Inspector Tommy Molloy. In addition to working with the ships owner and management company , securing repatriation for seafarers often involves contacting government agencies in the port state (where the ship is docking) [the UKs Maritime and Coastguard Authority] and in the flag state (where the ship is registered) [Marshall Islands]. In addition, [Molloy] contacted Embassy of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar in London, to flag the plight of the seafarers. Molloy went on, The Embassy advised that whilst there were no commercial flights into Myanmar, there were relief flights with limited seat availability It took a lot of communication between the various parties to finally get the seats confirmed. I was able to call contacts in UK Border Force  with whom I have been able to develop an excellent working relationship  and the crew members were given clearance to remain in the UK until they could board their flight.

Again, for seven seafarers. Do the math for 300,000. With the best will in the world, I dont see how the unions can help very much[4]. Now let us turn to solutions, which involve two institutions not yet mentioned: International agencies, and the asset owners.

Proposed Solutions

Once again, whats the hangup? Returning to Bjrn Hjgaard:

Hjgaard believes the only reason this scenario has not played out yet is that, despite the seafarers being overdue for crew change, shipping has continued to deliver. With 90% of global trade transported by ships, however, the situation is fragile. We still have energy and food being delivered, and because there are no consequences for us all, it is easier for politicians to prevent crew change from happening in their country, in their ports. They dont think it matters. But at one point, it matters.

There seem to be at least two organizations acting in advance of the crisis. The first is a combination of union, employer, and trade groups. From Splash 24/7, First global tripartite initiative to support countries for crew change gathers momentum:

The International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) and the International Maritime Employers Council (IMEC) have jointly contributed $500,000 to the Singapore Shipping Tripartite Alliance Resilience (SG-STAR) Fund to support countries that adopt best practices for crew change. This adds to the S$1m ($737,000) SG-STAR Fund established by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), Singapore Shipping Association (SSA), Singapore Maritime Officers Union (SMOU), and Singapore Organisation of Seamen (SOS). Progress is needed on ways crew can show their negative Covid-19 test results

First Ive seen Covid testing addressed, so I assume its the elephant in the room. More:

Besides ITF and IMEC, the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) will also lend support to the SG-STAR Fund including technical expertise in shipping. With the contribution and support by ITF, IMEC and ICS, the SG-STAR Fund is the first global tripartite initiative bringing together like-minded international partners from the industry, unions and government to facilitate safe crew changes. The fund, based in Singapore, will be disbursed for use upstream in countries where seafarers come from. Like-minded partners are being sought to join this new global alliance. Since its founding three weeks ago, the SG-STAR Fund has been working with seafarer supplying countries such as the Philippines and India on key initiatives, which include the accreditation of quarantine and isolation facilities, Covid-19 PCR testing certification, white-listing of clinics for PCR testing, digital solutions for tracking crew change, and interactive training sessions for crew to help them understand crew change procedures and guidelines.

All very well, but $1,237,000 doesnt seem like very much money, does it?

Next, there is the International Maritime Organization. Their Joint Statement on the contribution of international trade and supply chains to a sustainable socio-economic recovery in COVID-19 times should get the attention of asset owners:

[T]he delivery and availability of essential products such as food or medicines became a common challenge undermining countries capacity to respond to COVID-19 and begin to sustainably recover. Preliminary data and forecasts indicate severe impacts on economies worldwide, for example: Inland transport volumes may fall by up to 40 per cent in 2020 in the panEuropean region, Freight transport volumes may reduce by up to a half by the end of 2020 in most parts of Asia, Value of regional exports and import is expected to contract respectively by 23 and 25 per cent in Latin America and the Caribbean, Total losses in the revenues of airline companies from the Arab region are estimated in 2020 at about US dollars 38 billion (some 53 per cent of 2019 revenues), African airlines may lose over US dollars 6 billion of revenue and the contribution of the industry to the GDP of countries on the continent may drop by US dollars 28 billion. Moreover, 3.1 million jobs linked to the industry are at risk on the continent. In view of the preliminary data and the lessons learned from the pandemic so far and in order to drive socio-economic recovery and to become more resilient and sustainable, supply chains require a more effective coordination, cooperation between the transport modes, and across borders.

Ill say. And they propose the following:
Little gaggles of schoolchildren, unnaturally hushed, walk past the solemn wood and slate of Yasukuni shrine in Tokyo, solemnly honouring their nations war dead. Inside, they learn lies. The 1937 massacre at Nanjing, where 200,000 civilians were massacred and 20,000 women raped  part of a long chain of mass killings to punish cities which aided their national armies  is described in the shrine museum as an incident. The use of 200,000 Korean women as sex-slaves is erased from the story; there is mention of the Homfrey Ganj massacre in the Andamans.

This weekend, former Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe quietly visited the Yasukuni shrine, bowing his head before the souls of Japans Second World War dead, including over 1,600 convicted war-criminals, held guilty of everything from beginning the war of annihilation to crimes against humanity. In many parts of Asia, his gesture caused quiet concern.

For Abe, building a compact of Asian states with Japan at its core offered the sole prospect of containing the new superpower the new superpower that has arisen in their midst  and threatens them all. To many strategists in India, his idea held powerful appeal. The story of the shrine in Tokyo, helps understand why such an alliance is critical  and why actually building it is much more difficult than it might seem.

Yoshida Suga, Japans new Prime Minister, has come to power at arguably the most fraught phase in Asian geopolitics since the Second World War. Through Prime Minister Abes years in office  he ruled from 2006-2007 and 2012 to and then 2020  he crafted a subtle foreign policy that balanced Japans relationship with the China and the United States. But he also invested in Japans relationship with key Asian partners like India and the Philippines, hoping to build strategic partnerships which could secure his country.

In some parts of Asia, though, raw memories of the Second World War  which, in Asia, began with Japans invasion of China in 1937  made Abes nationalism deeply disturbing.

The case of South Korea is instructive. South Korea and Japan share similar strategic challenges: North Koreas nuclear arsenal and Chinas aggressive behaviour. They also have similar worries about the credibility of United States historic security guarantees. President Donald Trump has, for example, more than once complained about the costs of the 80,000 troops his country has stationed in South Korea and Japan. Few in either country believe Trumps possible successor, Joseph Biden, will prove willing to enhance spending on the United States military commitments overseas.

Last year, though, South Koreas Supreme Court issued a series of rulings allowing individuals to sue for reparations for forced labour during the Second World War. Two companies  Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corporation and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries  refused to pay compensation the South Korean courts granted war victims. Following this, the courts ordered seizure of their corporate assets.

In an ill-advised move, Abes government ordered restrictions on the export of certain products, like semiconductors and chemicals, used to manufacture smartphones. In addition, Tokyo removed South Korea from a white list of trading partners. Seoul responded with its own sanctions of its own, and South Korean consumers began boycotting Japanese brands like Uniqlo, Toyota and Honda.

Put simply, the ghosts of the past ended up almost levelling the Japan-South Korea relationship. In some Asian states, it is clear, the idea of Japan-led Asia isnt all that much more comforting than a China-led Asia.

Abes foreign policy was driven by one core dilemma: the needed to balance the concerns of its principal strategic partner, and second-largest trading partner, with its largest trading partner, and principal threat. President Donald Trumps rise to power made these choices ever-harder to manage. Trump complained that Japans trade policies were not open and fair. He also demanded a quadrupling of payments for United States troops on Japanese soil  critical to deterring Chinese aggression.

Last year, a Japanese aircraft carrier joined United States-led naval drills in waters claimed by China  a message not lost on Beijing. The former Prime Minister also sought to appease Trump with trade concessions, and by banning Huawei from a role in building in Japans 5G networks.

The Peoples Liberation Army Navy responded by mounting relentless pressure in disputed waters all this summer  a strategy not dissimilar to that used in Ladakh. Narushige Michishita, Director of the Security and International Studies Programme at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo, recently told The Japan Times that a new reality in which Chinese vessels maintain a fairly significant presence in the area so that maybe 10, 20 years later, China can claim its been controlling this area.

Even as he faced this provocation, though, Abe simultaneously cultivated closer ties with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who was scheduled to make a high-profile state visit to Japan in April. The visit  deferred due to COVID-19  is seen critical to helping Xi assert his legitimacy after the crisis sparked by the imposition of harsh national security laws in Hong Kong, and the stand-off with India on the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh.

The outreach to China underlined the lack of appetite in Japan for a decisive break with Beijing. Japan has moved after COVID-19 to address its supply-chain dependencies on China  notably, paying 87 companies to either bring production home, or expand it in Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries. But with $38 billion invested directly in China and nearly 14,000 firms operating there, for many in Japan a confrontation would be ruinous.

Abes China dilemma was compounded by the failure of his efforts to kick-start Japans economy. Japanese income growth under Abe remained similar to trends prior to his second and third term, averaging less than a percent per year. There were only small increases in labour force participation and almost no improvement in productivity. This failure limited Japans room for manoeuvre, and its strategic choices.

In an effort to buy Japan some strategic insurance, Abe invested heavily in his relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He saw India as a critical partner in pushing back against the China, and thus mitigating the threat to Japan should the United States withdraw from Asia.

Abe was to discover, though, that not all his new partners were equally enthusiastic. The Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, for example, flatly refused to act against China after it landed combat aircraft on bases built on territory claimed by his country. I cannot afford at this time to go to war. I cannot go into a battle which I cannot win. In the next 120 years, we can establish a naval force, Duterte said.

How long Prime Minister Suga can maintain the delicate balancing act Abe crafted remains to be seen. There are any number of issues which could bring about a decisive break with Beijing, ranging from the Pentagons plans to station a new generation of medium-range missiles on Japanese soil, to a military confrontation erupting over the Senkaku islands. In addition, United States pressure could force Japan to restrict flows of key technologies to China  sparking retaliation.

The Yasukuni shrine isnt important just as a repository of Japans troubled history. To every nation-state in Asia, it is a reminder of what can happen when uncontrolled nationalism coupled with massive economic power power a drive for regional hegemony. Abes dogged search for new Asian alliances was driven by the common need to contain this common threat.

Yet, the many cul-de-sacs Abes project confronted remind us of another important truth. Even as they fear Chinese power, most Asian states have no choice but to make their peace with Chinese wealth. Taiwan, Vietnam and Australia might be investing ever-more in military resources aimed at China, but their leaders are willing to give a great deal to avoid having to avoid using their arsenals. Like in 1937, they fear, imperialist aggression in Asia will be condemned by the United States  but that it wont risk their own lives and wealth to enforce a principle.

As Asias second most powerful economic actor, Japan will be a critical actor in shaping the regions response to China. But Suga  who, after all, served as Abes Cabinet Secretary  will likely be just as keen as his predecessor to avoid actions that could lead towards crisis. For now, then, theres little prospect Japan will prove willing to lead the charge against China.
George Galloway  never one to understate his own achievements  was heard on BBC Radios Today news programme talking up his victory in the Bradford West by-election. We successfully won the biggest swing of the 20th century on mainland Britain, he proclaimed.

The swing from Labour to the Respect party in Bradford West was indeed impressive. It was 36.6 per cent. But it was not as big as the 37.9 per cent swing against Labour scored by the SNP in Hamilton in 1967, or the 44.2 per cent swing from Labour to the Liberal Party in Bermondsey in 1983, or the 49 per cent swing from Labour to the independent, Peter Law, in Blaenau Gwent at the 2005 general election, or the 44 per cent swing from Conservative to Ukip scored by Douglas Carswell last October, so it would not have been the biggest swing in the 20th century, even if it had taken place in the 20th century, as Galloway seemed to think.

Nor is it the biggest swing of the 21st century.

Ukip Clacton needs EU aid

The people of Clacton will be pleased to know that the Government is going to be forced to take action to prevent inadequately treated sewage being pumped into the sea along its coastline.

There are European Union rules about this, and Clacton is one of four locations where the rules are allegedly being broken, so the European Commission is taking the UK government to the EU Court of Justice.

Ironic that Clacton should be protected in this way, only six months after they basically told the EU to get off their backs by making Douglas Carswell Britains first elected Ukip MP.

Bercows way with Tories

If anyone is wondering why the Conservatives loathe the Speaker, John Bercow, the language he used when telling the Tory MP Gregory Barker to calm down is an illustration.

It is better to remain silent and look a fool than to speak and remove any lingering doubt, he said.

Not long afterwards, Bercow heard himself being praised by Gordon Brown for his unfailing courtesy to all sides.

Courting media intrusion?

Aidan Burley, who arrived in the Commons as MP for Cannock Chase in 2010 with the promise of a brilliant political career, bowed out today on a sour note.

He complained that unwanted and often unwarranted media intrusion into his own and his familys life had made him decide that it was no longer worth carrying on. If only he had not helped organise a Nazi-themed stag party and acquired a Nazi uniform for the groom to wear, perhaps he would have avoided that distressing intrusion.

Harmans secret file

Politicians do not always like what is written about them, but it must be particularly frustrating when they know something has been written, but they do not know what it is.

Harriet Harman has been trying for decades to read the file that Special Branch compiled on her when she was involved in the National Council for Civil Liberties in the 1970s.

Today in the Commons she demanded an assurance that she will be allowed to see the full file. The Home Office Minister, Mike Penning, was jeered as he replied: I would love to give you that assurance but I cant.

Succession for girls

Some good news for the unborn child of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, should she be a girl: the 2013 Succession to the Crown Act finally became law, on Parliaments last day.

It means that she will not lose her place in the line of succession to any younger brother she may have, as Princess Anne did, and she can marry a Roman Catholic.

This law now applies everywhere where the Queen is head of state. That is Antigua, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Grenada, Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu.
The global average corporate tax rate is just under 24%. Since 1980, corporate tax rates have been declining internationally. Globalization means capital can easily flow to lower-cost and lower-tax countries, so a lower corporate rate in the U.S. makes sense.

Regardless of the actual rate, some huge companies pay a much lower effective rate. They may not show much of a profit because they spend what would have been taxable profits on growth initiatives, thus reducing their tax bill. If the untaxed profit which is plowed back into the business produces more revenue and income in future years, investors benefit without shaving off too much for Uncle Sams take.

Equality amongst corporate taxpayers thus represents more of an issue than what the actual corporate rate is. Large companies with international operations can find ways to pay less in taxes than small business owners, who make their money here at home and cant play the international tax game.
19.09.2020 LISTEN

The Minority Leader of Parliament, Mr Haruna Iddrisu, has said there are some anomalies in the new voter roll which is being exhibited across the country.

The Tamale South MP, who has been monitoring the exhibition exercise in his constituency, told journalists that at the Banvim Presby area, for example, only 555 out of the 769 voters captured during the registration exercise, have their names on the roll.

There are major discrepancies in the register and in what has been made available to registered voters, Mr Iddrisu said.

He said he has requested a national compilation of these discrepancies in order to guide what will be the next possible action.

Mr Iddrisu also said: My significant disappointment is that the BVDs are conspicuously absent, yet, we have provided adequate budgetary allocation for the procurement of BVDs in quantities not less than 7,500.

The Minority Leader said he expected the exhibition exercise to have been done with the availability, presence, use and testing of biometric verification devices.

Ideally, every polling station must have a BVD, he said.

Meanwhile, EC Chair Jean Mensa told journalists at a press conference on Thursday, 17 September 2020 that: During this period of exhibition, the physical copies of the 2020 provisional voter register will be placed on all 33,367 exhibition centres to enable prospective voters verify their details as captured during the registration exercise and will request amendments or insertions where necessary.

It is important to note that all persons who registered at the various district offices must go to the assigned polling stations during the exhibition exercise and not the district offices.

The Commission will also display an exceptions list, comprising the names of registered voters, who have flouted the regulations of the registration exercise.

The persons on the exceptions list cannot vote in the upcoming election.

The Commission will also display the multiples list, she added.

She explained that: This contains names of persons who have engaged in multiple registration and, therefore, cannot vote in the upcoming elections.

She noted that voters who have already lost their ID cards can still verify their details.

You can still check their voter registration details if you cannot find your ID card. Once youre registered voter, your photograph and details are captured and will be displayed in the register. Note, however, that being in possession of the card, makes it much easier for you to check your details on the register, she added.

---classfmonline
A fact-finding committee released a report on the violence in DJ Halli and KG Halli areas of last month and recommended an immediate socio-economic survey in the areas to assess the loss of livelihoods, nutrition, health, and shelter.

Violence broke out in parts of on August 11 over an alleged "derogatory" social media post. At least three people lost their lives and nearly 60 police personnel were injured during the incident. The police have arrested around 415 accused in connection with the violence.

An FIR was registered on the complaint of Congress MLA Akhanda Srinivas Murthy at DJ Halli Police station three days after the violence broke out in parts of over an alleged "derogatory" social media post by his nephew, the police said.

The accused who were arrested in the case include Naveen, the nephew of MLA Srinivas Murthy, and Kaleem Pasha, the husband of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike corporator from Nagwara ward Irshad Begum.

(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.)
London: Queen Elizabeth has formally stripped Harvey Weinstein of an honorary award recognising his contribution to the British film industry.

Weinstein, 68, was given the honour in 2004. The 68-year-old former Hollywood producer was convicted earlier this year of rape and sexual assault against two women and sentenced to 23 years in prison.

Harvey Weinstein departs a Manhattan courthouse during his rape trial in New York in February. He is serving a 23-year prison sentence. Credit:AP

Accusations by dozens of women in 2017 led to the end of his career and helped spur #MeToo  a global movement demanding that powerful men be held accountable for their sexual misconduct.

"The Queen has directed that the appointment of Harvey Weinstein to be an Honorary Commander of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, dated January 19 2004, shall be cancelled and annulled and that his name shall be erased from the Register of the said Order," according to a notice in The Gazette, the UKs official public record.
Reverend Charles L. Oaks, 80, of South Pittsburg, Tennessee, passed away on September 19, 2020.

He was born May 11, 1940, in Chattanooga. He was a member of the Oak Grove Baptist Church for 18 years, and he graduated from Central High School in 1958. He later joined the Fourth Avenue Church of God in 1960, and served in numerous positions-pianist, youth work, S.S. teacher, and choir director.

Reverend Oaks served as a corpsman in the U.S. Navy from 1961-1962. He then returned to Fourth Avenue and served until he went into pastoral ministry.



Reverend Oaks received a call from God when he was 15 years of age for the ministry. He started preaching when he was 20 years old and did evangelistic work for approximately six years. He then entered into pastoral work and pastored for 54 years. He served as pastor starting at Lewisburg, Manchester, Jellico, Pulaski, Humboldt, South Pittsburg, Cookeville, Newport, and Orme Mountain. He served the Church of God as District Pastor over Pulaski, Humboldt, South Pittsburg, Cookeville, and Newport Districts.



Reverend Oaks received his exhorters license in 1966. He was ordained on July 18, 1972. He received his ordained bishop license on July 29, 2000. He served on the State Evangelism and Home Missions Board, and State Music Board. He also served on the examining board for exhorter, licensing, and ordained ministers.



In almost every church he pastored, there was growth numerically and financially. He had a way of getting people to give-not for him, but for the work of God. He was able to purchase property in Manchester, Jellico, Pulaski, South Pittsburg, Cookeville, and Newport. He made sure the church was debt free when he left to go somewhere else.



Reverend Oaks retired from pastoring in December 2006. However, in August 2007, he went to the Orme Mountain Church as interim pastor. While he was there. Something great happened. He did something there that he had never done before-he was able to build a new sanctuary, and when the building was complete-it was debt free. There was a small number of people that attended the church, but God did a miracle for them and gave them a brand new building-debt free. It was a miracle on the mountain.



Reverend Oaks had a heart for the ministry. He was a mentor to numerous young men in the ministry. He was a supporter for missions, and he led the churches he pastored to support the work of God in many countries. He never went to a foreign country on a mission trip, because he felt his money would be better spent if he sent his money to them rather than spending the money for his trip.



Reverend Oaks was preceded in death by his parents, Oscar and Mable (Hiatt) Oaks; his loving wife, Glenda Roberts; six brothers, Robert, Dee, Virgil, Albert, Fred, and Homer; four sisters, Anise Daniel, Ada Proctor, Dorothy Queen, and Charlotte Skillington.



He is survived by two sons, Chris (Tracy), Greg (Heather); daughter, Lea Ann (Rodger) Whitehead; one sister, Mary Jo (John) Bain; nine grandchildren, three great-grandchildren; numerous nieces and nephews, great-nieces and nephews; and a host of friends throughout the State of Tennessee.



Funeral services will be held at noon on Wednesday, Sept. 23, at Spring Creek Church of God, 1005 Spring Creek Road, East Ridge, Tn. 37412 with Reverend David Swanner and Reverend Doug Graham officiating. A visitation will be held one hour prior to the service on Wednesday prior to the funeral service. Burial will follow at Chattanooga National Cemetery where military honors will be performed by the U.S. Navy.



Per the current health situation and the mandate of the Hamilton County Mayor, visitors must adhere to all CDC guidelines, including social distancing and the wearing of facial coverings for visitation and services.



Memorial contributions may be made to The Gideons International (www.gideons.org).



You may visit www.heritagechattanooga.com to share condolences to the family.



The family will receive friends from 4-8 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 22, at Heritage Funeral Home, 7454 E. Brainerd Road, Chattanooga, Tn. 37421.


The family of a 23-year-old mentally ill man who was shot dead by two Walnut Creek police officers has settled a federal civil rights lawsuit with the city for $4 million, the familys attorney said Friday.

Separately, the city devoted $600,000 to train employees on diversity and implicit bias and to fund non-law enforcement responses to people suffering mental health crises.

These measures stem from an incident that occurred on June 2, 2019, when the mother and grandmother of Miles Hall called 911 to report that he had broken a window and threatened family members with a metal pole. Police had previously placed Hall under psychiatric observation twice and he had been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, but refused to take his medication, his parents said in a claim they filed on June 13.

When police arrived, Hall was standing in the middle of the road on Arlene Drive. Officers said he ignored their commands and ran toward them brandishing a 13 pound iron pry bar with a sharpened edge. He kept running after an officer struck him three times with beanbag rounds, which led to two officers firing their guns and fatally wounding Hall, according to the familys attorneys.

Halls parents, Taun and Scott Hall, and their attorney, Benjamin Nisenbaum, alleged that the police were negligent, that they used lethal force unreasonably, and that despite being aware of Halls psychiatric disability, they didnt try to defuse the situation. Of the four officers named in the claim, one  Tammy Keagy  knew the family members and had previously worked with them to manage Hall.

The system is so broken that our son Miles is dead at the hands of police, Taun Hall said at a news conference Monday. We want to make sure that people know Miles name, to make sure people know Miles wasnt a criminal. He was a loving child who had goals and aspirations, but he was in a mental health crisis and a mental health crisis should not be a death sentence.

Oakland civil rights attorney John Burris, who oversees Nisenbaum, noted the significance of the case, seen through the prism of a racial justice movement that ignited last spring.

It reminds me of George Floyd, Burris said in an interview Friday afternoon. While that case opened the door to relitigate chokeholds, this one was about how you treat the mentally impaired ... Particularly when you have notice that they are mentally impaired.

He marveled at how quickly the community rallied after the shooting, demanding the types of reforms that many cities are now contemplating.

Various segments of the community came in and supported the family because they were outraged by what had happened to Miles, Burris said Monday. The communitys continued presence at city council meetings and voicing their concerns about not only what happened here, but what could happen to other mentally impaired people, had a dramatic impact on how this case was able to move through the judicial system in a rapid manner.

Although both parties agreed that the settlement is not an admission of culpability by any city employee  the Halls dropped all current and future claims in exchange for the payment  city officials expresed sympathy for the family in a statement.

The events of that day were tragic and difficult for all involved - the Hall family, the Walnut Creek community, and the police officers called to the scene, it read. While the City recognizes the continuing loss for the Hall family, it is the Citys sincere hope that settlement of this civil lawsuit will provide a step towards healing. The City of Walnut Creek continues to express heartfelt condolences to Scott, Taun, and Alexis Hall.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

It went on to describe the citys progress in beefing up mental health services, an effort that began shortly after the shooting, when officials began meeting with friends of the Hall family. Walnut Creek Police Chief Tom Chaplin is now collaborating with his counterparts in Pleasant Hill, Martinez and Concord to extend crisis intervention services. He also created a community advisory board to strengthen relationships between the police and the public.

Additionally, the city formed a Diversity and Inclusion Task Force to propose more reforms amid a changing of the guard: Chaplin is set to retire in October.

The family announced the creation of the Miles Hall Foundation Monday. The foundation aims to educate communities about mental illness and to protect those with mental health conditions from excessive use of force by police. The family is also advocating for citywide, and eventually countywide, round-the-clock non-police response efforts for mental health crises and noncriminal situations.

We want this case to stand for more than just what happened to Miles. We want it to stand for other people, to prevent other folks from being treated as criminals during a mental health episode, Burris said Monday.

Chronicle staff write Vanessa Arredondo contributed to this report.

Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rachelswan
What might the image of treachery look like? Consider a painting of two men, one whispering into the others ear. The speaker, his face in profile, has his mouth slightly open, enough for us to see his teeth. His eyes fall like a ball under gravity toward the other mans face. The second person, half his face out of view, listens almost expressionless, except for the dodgy expression in his left eye in the upper-right corner. The frame is tight on their faces. Many parts of the image are dark. Treachery oozes from their eyes, from their teeth.

The moment itself is real. The work is a representation of Benedict Arnold, the American Revolutionary officer turned traitor, informing Sir Henry Clinton, the British commander in chief, in 1780 of Gen. George Washingtons secret plan to cross the Hudson. This painting, Panel 11, 1955, is one of the 30 depicting the artist Jacob Lawrences re-examination of American historical moments from 1775 to 1817 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Organized by and first exhibited at the Peabody Essex Museum in Massachusetts before arriving at the Met, Jacob Lawrence: The American Struggle brings together recently reunited panels of a series painted during the civil rights era. One of its great strengths is showing the way this African-American artist expanded the confines of how the American Revolution and the early decades of the republic are considered, reinterpreting the roles of all parties involved. It also succeeds in making visible, and even visceral, Americas history with the struggle for racial and political equality.
A plane carrying the second batch of Indian deportees from Saudi Arabia will leave for Chennai on September 24, the Indian Embassy said on Saturday.

In a statement, the Embassy said that it has been trying to resolve the issue of Indians in Saudi deportation centers in consultation with the Ministry of External Affairs for quite some time now.

"Currently, the Mission in Riyadh, Consulate in Jeddah, and MEA are arranging flights and quarantine facilities for the second batch of deportees. The first flight from Riyadh-Chennai is scheduled to depart on September 24, the statement said.

It said that further flights from Riyadh and Jeddah are currently being worked out. The Mission and Consulate officials are in regular touch with deportation authorities, it added.

The first batch of around 500 deportees was sent to Hyderabad in May. Several agencies were involved at both ends and several clearances were needed, besides strictly following health protocols to avoid the spread of COVID-19 in India, it added.

There are over 2.6 million Indians working in Saudi Arabia, the largest expatriate community in the Gulf country.
If you're expecting to settle in for a winter without the commute, you're not alone. Despite Boris Johnson's appeal for the nation to get back to the office, figures show that only six in ten workers travelled to work at some point last week  spending the rest of the time slogging away at the kitchen table.

What's more, rising cases of coronavirus, problems with testing and fears of a second wave of infections look set to keep many of us off the trains and out of the office for the near future at least. While many high-rise offices, such as the towers at London's Canary Wharf, make it almost impossible to get everyone to their desks in a socially distant way.

So after a staycation summer, how can you profit from a work-from-home winter?

Staying put: If you're expecting to settle in for a winter without the commute, you're not alone

SELL PRET...BUT BUY GREGGS

We're not going to the office and buying lunch there, but we are still heading out to the local high street and manufacturing businesses are still working out of industrial estates.

Keith Bowman, equity analyst at Interactive Investor, says that means fewer morning coffees and lunchtime sushis and more sausage rolls and cheaper bites: bad news for Pret a Manger but good news for Greggs.

'A diverse location of stores, some near to industrial estates and less impacted than offices, work to its advantage,' he says of the baker. Greggs shares are still languishing at 12.63, having started the year at 23.76.

Jean Roche, manager of the Schroder UK Mid Cap Fund, agrees  and adds that she favours shares in companies such as Next, whose stores you'll find in retail park shopping centres.

Once winter comes, we won't want to queue on high streets, she explains. Last Thursday, Next said trading had held up better than expected and its share price rose 4 per cent to 64.26.

Roche's other retail tips include homeware business Dunelm  'because we've all sat in our homes for long enough to notice they are in dire need of a makeover'  and Pets At Home, which may benefit as we spend more time, energy and money on our animals. Dunelm's share price more than halved in March from a February high, but has since regained almost all the lost ground to stand at 13.40.

GET GAMING  AND GO BOWLING

Once you've binged on Netflix, you might well crave something more interactive, and Roche, at Schroders, recommends Games Workshop, whose orc-slaying tabletop games were 'previously associated with pre-teen boys'.

With little to do at home, and plenty of disposable income, there's evidence that adults are turning back to the hobby, as well as buying more video games. Shares in Games Workshop have risen faster than the rest of the market over the past three months, up 27 per cent at 100.40.

Darius McDermott, managing director at Chelsea Financial, says it's wise to splurge on stocks that will make a stay-at-home winter more appealing, or the technology to get those products to us.

'We have more free time at home, as we're not commuting. This has been great for gaming, reading and TV streaming,' he says.

He recommends both AXA Framlington Global Technology and Smith & Williamson Artificial Intelligence as funds for those who want to benefit from this.

On the gaming side, Amanda Yeaman, investment manager on the Standard Life UK Smaller Companies Investment Trust, likes the company Team 17, which older gamers might remember for the popular Worms game, but which also makes Overcooked and The Survivalist. Sumo Digital, the Sheffield-based developer of Team Sonic Racing, is also a hit. The shares are trading at 7.28, up from 4.70 when lockdown began in March.

Curiously, Yeaman also recommends Hollywood Bowl  despite the impact of lockdown.

'After a long period of entertaining children at home through lockdown, Hollywood Bowl is well positioned as a family leisure activity now people are mobile. It's a good value offering, and an indoor activity which is popular during chilly winter days and nights.'

The Hollywood Bowl share price is down at 1.45, having briefly gone above 3 in January.

LOOK TO OFFICES CLOSER TO HOME

While Canary Wharf might not be an appealing prospect right now, there are companies set to benefit from new ways of working.

Roche recommends Computacenter. It provides support online to technologically clueless office workers. Its shares are up 78.3 per cent this year. Richard Williams, property analyst at Quoted Data, says that Standard Life Investments Property Income is well-placed to capture an uptick in demand in the commuter belt for 'hub and spoke offices'.

This is where a company retains a presence in the city but has smaller working space  perhaps shared with other employers  closer to where staff live.

Many of us will crave some kind of office life as winter drags on, while businesses will want to meet faceto-face in a flexible manner. Both Williams, at QuotedData, and equity analyst Keith Bowman, at Interactive Investor, mention IWG as a potential beneficiary of this trend.

IWG operates a global portfolio of more than 3,300 workplace centres across a series of countries and a diverse selection of towns and cities, and is the owner of the Regus brand. The stock is 2.80, down from almost 5 at the start of the year.
Routine, routine and more routine, that's what our family kitchen has been missing the last couple of weeks as we find our way back into a new form of back-to-school and back-to-life. As we settle in for the last couple of months of one hell of a year, I imagine I'm not alone in feeling a little disjointed. The home kitchen is often a good place to anchor the mind and body in stormy seas and finding solace in recipes you can rely on to deliver quick but delicious dinners is key. This week I've got three winner, winner, chicken dinners that should do the trick.

Really good Japanese ramen is an art form that any visit behind the curtains of a ramen joint in Tokyo will prove. A fairly good homemade version can be created in minutes and my charred chicken ramen bowls are a testament to that. Deep smoky flavour is achieved by griddling chicken thighs that have been bathed in soy sauce, mirin and sesame oil. A store-bought broth is made rich with a steady simmer of garlic, chilli and ginger. The toppings here, like broccolini, shiitake mushrooms, carrot and soft boiled eggs, are interchangeable. A warm and comforting bowl for when the weather turns but you still need to spice up the midweek offering.

One pot, one pan, one tray... these types of recipes always speak to me. A handful of key ingredients like chicken, potatoes, perhaps some more vegetables and a powerhouse of deep, earthy heat like harissa paste and you are well on the way to an easy meal that completely delivers on seriously tasty supper. My one-tray harissa chicken with potatoes and tomatoes that turn sweet and jammy in the oven ticks all the boxes.

Lastly in this chicken trio of light midweek meals is a simple sriracha chicken salad that makes for a tasty healthy dinner. A sticky, salty and spicy marinade becomes the sauce for the addictive little nuggets that top a rainbow platter of shredded red cabbage, shaved peppers and edamame beans for a light but satisfying meal in minutes.

Spicy Sriracha Chicken Salad

Cook time: 30 mins

Serves: 4

The rise in popularity of sriracha sauce, a spicy hot sauce from Southeast Asia, is universal. Add it to noodles and stir-fries for a fiery kick or, as in this sticky chicken dish, to a crunchy salad.

Ingredients

1 tbsp sunflower oil

4-8 skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces

5 tbsps sriracha sauce

Thumb-size piece of fresh ginger, peeled and very finely chopped

Zest and juice of 1 lime

1 tbsp honey

2 tsps light soy sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

For the salad:

 head red cabbage, finely sliced

5 oz kale (about  bunch), leaves torn from stem and finely sliced

2 carrots, julienned

1 tsp sesame oil

1 red bell pepper, deseeded and cut into thin slices

1 yellow bell pepper, deseeded and cut into thin slices

1 cup frozen edamame beans, thawed

Handful of cashews, toasted

1 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted

Large handful of coriander leaves

Method

1. Heat the oil in a wok or a large frying pan over medium-high heat and fry the chicken pieces until just browned on all sides.

2. Add the sriracha sauce, ginger, lime zest, half the lime juice, honey, soy sauce, and sesame oil, and toss to coat. Simmer for 8 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened slightly and the chicken is completely cooked through.

3. Meanwhile, prepare the salad. Place the red cabbage, kale, and carrots in a large mixing bowl with the remaining lime juice and sesame oil. Massage the kale until it becomes tender, and then mix in the remaining salad ingredients.

4. Serve the sriracha chicken with the salad, and garnish with the sesame seeds and coriander leaves.





Harissa Chicken with Potatoes, Tomatoes & Thyme

Cook time 50 mins

Serves: 4

This one-tray wonder is just what you need after a busy day. I'm all about something you can bring to the table in under an hour, with minimal effort and that packs a punch! Harissa is a North-African spice paste which can be found in most supermarkets now.

Ingredients

8 chicken thighs

500g baby potatoes, sliced in half lengthways

500g plum cherry tomatoes

3 sprigs thyme

1 tbsp olive oil

6 tbsp harissa paste

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/ 400F/Gas Mark 6.

2. Place the chicken and baby potatoes in a large roasting tray along with the tomatoes and thyme, drizzle all over with olive oil and harissa paste and toss it all together so everything is evenly coated.

3. Place in the oven to bake for 35-40 minutes. Season and then serve the tray direct to the table or onto individual plates.





Charred Chicken Ramen Bowls

Cook time 30 minutes

Serves: 4

By no means a traditional ramen but close enough and, if anything, a chicken noodle soup to soothe the soul.

For the chicken:

4 chicken thighs, skinless & boneless

50ml low-sodium soy sauce

50ml mirin

1 tbsp sesame oil

For the ramen broth:

1 red chilli, thinly sliced

1 garlic clove, thinly sliced

1 thumb-sized piece ginger, thinly sliced

1.5 litres best-quality chicken stock

2 large carrots, julienned

100g shiitake mushrooms, halved if large

1 tsp sesame oil

150g tenderstem broccoli, sliced into bite-sized pieces

For the soup:

300g pack ramen noodles, cooked and drained

100g bean sprouts

6 spring onions, finely sliced

4 eggs, soft-boiled, halved

Handful coriander leaves

Small handful mint leaves

Method

1. For the chicken, place all the ingredients in a bowl and allow to marinade while you prepare the broth.

2. To prepare the broth, place the chilli, garlic, ginger and stock into a large saucepan. Bring to a steady simmer over a medium heat. Cook for 15 minutes until the broth has infused with flavour, strain and return the liquid to the pan. Add the carrots and mushrooms and cook for another 5 minutes until softened. Season to taste with salt and sesame oil.

3. Before the end of the cooking time, blanch the broccoli in the broth for 2-3 minutes until tender, remove using a slotted spoon and set aside.

4. To cook the chicken, heat a griddle pan over a high heat. Remove the chicken from the marinade and cook for 4 minutes either side or until cooked all the way through and the chicken has deep char marks. Remove from the heat and slice thinly.

5. Arrange the noodles in bowls with broccoli, chicken pieces, bean sprouts, spring onions and soft-boiled eggs. Ladle over the hot broth with the carrots and mushrooms and serve straight away with fresh coriander and mint, to garnish.





Bite sized

Blackberry Jam

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It's blackberry season and if you're in jam-making mode, try this recipe. Place 1kg of sugar, 1kg of blackberries and juice and zest of one lemon in a large pot. Bring the mixture to the boil, stirring until all the sugar dissolves. Cook for 15 minutes or until it reaches 105C on a sugar thermometer. Remove from the heat and transfer to sterilised jars, cover each with a disc of wax paper and seal tightly with a lid.

Flahavan's Oat Milk

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Flahavan's have just added oat milk to its line-up of products. Vitamin-rich, barista and organic versions are part of the new range and it's great to see an Irish family-run business tapping into this growing plant-based market. Try two shots of espresso, 100ml of oat milk, with a tablespoon of maple syrup over ice for a iced oat latte at home!

MudPie beauty Cottage

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I popped in to MudPie Beauty Cottage in Dundrum recently for some R&R and it's a great little spot to wind down. While Dundrom Town Centre is always busy, the two little restored stone cottages, which offer a full range of treatments for men and women, make it a perfect spot to relax and unwind.

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Camillus, N.Y.  A popular diner that hasnt even been open for two years is moving to a larger building to accommodate its constant flow of customers.

Second Chance Diner is leaving its original location at 103 Bennett Road in Camillus and heading 2 miles up the road to West Genesee Street. It will move into the spot that last housed the Rio Grande Mexican restaurant at 5407 W. Genesee St. That restaurant closed last year and has been vacant since.

Owner Eddie DePalma signed the lease on Sept. 3 and began work on the new place immediately, starting with coating the red exterior with grayish blue paint. He said he will work 20-hour days just so he can meet his self-imposed opening date of Nov. 15.

If we didnt expand, we probably wouldve had to go out of business, DePalma said Friday afternoon in his future dining room. We outgrew our current location after six months. We lose customers because were so small. People come in and have to leave because they dont want to wait two hours to eat. I dont blame them. Breakfast is supposed to be fast. They come in and want to eat. This will allow that to happen."

The new location will have a much larger dining room, a full-service bar and an enclosed outdoor patio with a bar and TVs.

Second Chance opened Nov. 1, 2018, with a 400-square-foot dining room that once was home to Mos Pit BBQ restaurant. DePalma and his wife, Gabby Sakran, gutted the building, rebuilt the kitchen and dressed up the dining room.

They got even more creative with their menu. In addition to traditional breakfast food such as omelets and frittas, they created entrees that immediately grabbed the communitys attention: Fruity Pebble Waffles, Cinnamon Toast Crunch Pancakes, Bananas Foster French Toast and the Garbage Burrito. The menu continues to evolve.

Second Chance Diner in Camillus is moving just around the corner.Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com

Within a week of its opening, Second Chance had a constant line of folks waiting to get in. But even at full capacity before Covid-19 struck, Second Chance could only hold 46 people inside, including staff. The seven tables outside provided some relief, but that still wasnt enough.

Since the state allowed restaurants to reopen in March, the diner now can have no more than 18 people inside.

The rent doesnt go down during a pandemic, the price of food doesnt go down. Power, salaries; nothing else goes down, DePalma said. We need the people, and the people want us, and the community supports us. So once we heard about this place being available, we jumped on it.

The new location, which was a Friendlys restaurant for years until it closed in 2017, has 157 parking spots, about 140 more than the current building. The full capacity of this 1,200-square-foot dining room is 103, including the bar. The outdoor area is about 1,400 square feet and will be big enough to host live music and perhaps a cornhole league (once the state says thats OK). The patio will likely open in March or April.

DePalma and Sakran have already ordered tables, chairs, booths and appliances. Theyre designing it so they can accommodate larger parties at a moments notice. Theyre covering the walls with barn wood, and the bar area will be lined with shiplap. Theyll also be laying new floors.

The future home of Second Chance Diner in Camillus.Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com

As for the food, theyll still offer an outside-the-box menu that will change frequently, but it will expand to incorporate more brunch food and alcohol. Along with mimosas or a bloody Marys, theyll create fun boozy milkshakes.

Second Chance is moving onto a well-traveled street that has two dinersStellas and Nesticos Too! and a Dennys Restaurant within 2 miles. All are very successful, and all are very different.

Ive alway been a go-big-or-go-home kind of guy, and Im a risk-taker, DePalma said. Were taking our little diner and kicking it up 10 notches. Its going to be fun.

The current location will become Second Chances catering kitchen and a banquet facility. DePalma and Sakran had to stop catering because they didnt have the room to cook the extra food while tending to the dine-in customers.

Charlie Miller finds the best in food, drink and fun across Central New York. Contact him at 315-382-1984, or by email at cmiller@syracuse.com.
President Donald Trump ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff in honor of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Today, our nation mourns the loss of titan of the law, Trump said in a statement Friday. Renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsberg demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable towards ones colleagues or different points of view. Her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds.

Ginsburg died Friday of complications from cancer. She was 87.

She announced in July she was undergoing chemotherapy treatments for liver lesions.

Flags will be flown at half-staff at the White House and all federal public buildings and grounds, as well as overseas diplomatic embassies.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also ordered flags at the U.S. Capitol lowered to half-staff.

Over the course of her quarter century as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, Ruth Bader Ginsberg became an icon, inspiring people around the world with her tenacity, towering intellect and devotion to the American promise of equality and opportunity for all, Pelosi said in a statement after her passing.

Her tireless advocacy in the fight for gender equality, whether working at the ACLU, arguing cases before the Supreme Court or authoring thoughtful and historic opinions and dissents as an Associate Justice, leaves an enduring legacy of progress for all women. Her opinions have unequivocally cemented the precedent that all men and women are created equal.
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Linkedin Dian Septiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19 2020

The normalization of diplomatic relations between Israel and some Gulf Arab countries will not change Indonesias support for the Palestinians in the longstanding Middle East conflict, a government spokesman has said.

As a staunch supporter of the Palestinian struggle for independence, predominantly Muslim Indonesia has paid close attention to the latest developments in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

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Chinese authorities in Tibets regional capital Lhasa will conduct an air-raid drill on Saturday as China calls for combat readiness amid rising tensions along its undefined Himalayan border with India in the mountainous region of Ladakh.



The drill, running from 12:00 noon to 12:15, follows Indias deployment on the border this week of five French-made Rafale jet fighters, and will be held in order to improve the general publics national defense concept and civil air defense awareness, Chinese state media said on Tuesday.



Citizens, government agencies, enterprises, institutions, and social organization personnel are being urged to pay close attention to alarms, Chinas Peoples Daily newspaper said on Tuesday, adding that the scheduled drill is not expected to disrupt the citys normal life and activities.



A clash between Indian and Chinese security forces in the Galwan Valley in northwestern Indias region of Ladakh in June left dozens of soldiers dead on both sides, with both India and China saying that troops from the other side had crossed into their territory.



The governments of both countries meanwhile continue to accuse each others militaries of making provocative maneuvers along the Line of Actual Control, their de-facto Himalayan border.



India had ordered and received the French-made jet fighters at the end of July as it moves to upgrade its air force amid a spike in tensions with China, Tsewang Dorjeea researcher at the Dharamsala, India-based Tibet Policy Institutetold RFAs Tibetan Service.



The air drill in Lhasa is aimed at strengthening combat readiness for [Chinas] Peoples Liberation Army in the event of an air strike in Lhasa or other Tibetan areas. This is a worrying and frightening situation for everyone, not only for Tibetans living in Tibet, Dorjee said.



China had already been holding air raid drills in other major cities in September to mark Chinas annual National Defense Education Day, retired Indian Army colonel and satellite imagery analyst Vinayak Bhat said in a written response to questions from RFA.



But the timing of this drill has raised many eyebrows, as the last time such an exercise was carried out in Lhasa was in 2009, he said.



In the current situation of the ongoing border standoff between China and India, this looks like a tactic of psychological warfare by Beijing to create a climate of fear among Tibetans, he added.



Dual-purpose airports



Five airports are now in operation in the Tibet Autonomous Region: the Lhasa Gonggar Airport, Nyingchi Mainling Airport, Shigatse Peace Airport, Chamdo Bangda Airport, and Ngari Gunsa Airport. Three othersLhuntze in Lhokha; Tingri in Shigatse county; and Burang in Ngari near the border with Indiaare being built.



Tsewang Dorjee noted that the airport at Burang will pose a particular threat to Indias security due to its proximity to the border. The Burang airport will play a key role in the speedy deployment of weapons and military reinforcements in the wake of any military confrontation with India, Dorjee said.



Chinas airports in Tibet are dual-purpose and can quickly be deployed for military use, with civilian air control staff trained to work with Chinas air force in cases of emergency, Vinayak Bhat said. There are also a number of radar sites, and they have integrated air defense which is quite good.



As many as 16 air-defense sites using surface-to-air (SAM) missiles have recently been established along the border with Tibet, with one set up in the politically sensitive area of Lake Manasarovar near Mount Kailash in Burang, Bhat said.



They are well aware that Manasarovar is a holy place for India, and yet they are trying to make a battlefield out of it. That is just not acceptable.



But the Indian air force is a very mature air force, Bhat said. I am sure they will be monitoring these things very closely, and they will take care of these sites very well.



Reported by Urgen Tenzin and Lobe Socktsang for RFAs Tibetan Service. Translated by Tenzin Phakdon and Dorjee Damdul. Written in English by Richard Finney.
The annual Good Relations Week began on Monday past and ends this Monday coming, which is International Day of Peace. There is a dedicated website (www.goodrelationsweek.com) containing, as it says, "a virtual showcase of over 150 online events and digital content that celebrates 30 years of peace-building and cultural diversity."

I believe Good Relations Week and International Day of Peace is a good time to consider our commitment to peace and reconciliation.

"Peace Day", as Monday coming is also known, is an ideal day, especially for us here with our recent violent past, to consider the importance of peace-making and politics and their contribution to the new road on which we have embarked.

Indeed, our story of journeying from violence fits well with the theme of this year's Peace Day: "Shaping peace together". We here have something to share about peace-making to a global audience.

On International Day of Peace, it makes sense that we take the opportunity to celebrate the work of peace-making.

In thinking about our past here and recalling the immense suffering that was caused during the Troubles, it is important to acknowledge the sometimes forgotten role of Church leaders, supported by their congregations. Indeed, there are stories still needing to be told.

I would encourage retired clergy, who have contributed to peace-making, to follow the example of Rev Ken Newell and write their stories for the benefit of us all.

With regards to this year's Peace Day event in Belfast, this will be online, as it was not possible to organise an event bringing people together physically in the one place.

I would encourage readers of this column to consider signing up to be part of it; the link to register can be found at: https://ndevents.co.uk/belfastdayofpeaceevent/.

This column gives me the opportunity to pay tribute to the good relations unit of Belfast City Council for the time and effort they have devoted to ensure the event will be an appropriate one for the city and beyond.

The event will have contributions from the 4 Corners Festival and from the Northern Ireland Inter-Faith Forum and will be chaired by former chairperson of the Community Relations Council, Peter Osborne.

During the week, I took part in a rehearsal for Monday's online event with others who are also contributing.

A number of the participants will read poems, including St Mary's Grammar School student Joe Hinchcliffe and Rev Cheryl Meban, who has written a very poignant poem for the day itself.

Malaina Yoder and Jim Deeds from the 4 Corners Festival, a cross-community Christian arts festival promoting reconciliation and healing (www.4cornersfestival.com), will also be taking part.

The Belfast City Council event for this year's International Day of Peace will begin with a message from the Lord Mayor, Alderman Frank McCoubrey, and will include contributions from other religions and from Norman Richardson, a key member of the inter-faith forum.

As our society continues to change, it is important we find ways of getting to know and relate well to people from different religions.

The purpose of the Northern Ireland Inter-Faith Forum, which was established in the early 1990s, is to provide opportunities for members of different faith communities to get to know one another and explore issues together in an atmosphere of mutual respect. Its members come from the Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Baha'i, humanist and other faith and belief groups, as well as various Christian traditions.

In conclusion, at the moment, I'm exploring the contribution of Rev Ray Davey, the founder of Corrymeela, to reconciliation here. Davey used to say: "If we Christians cannot speak the message of reconciliation, we have nothing to say."

Apt Bible readings

Some Scripture suggestions for the week ahead:

Monday - John 14:27

Tuesday - John 16:33

Wednesday - 1 Thessalonians 5:23

Thursday - Colossians 3:15

Friday - Galatians 5:22

Fr Martin Magill is parish priest of St John's, Belfast
TEHRAN, Iran - A leading Iranian human rights lawyer has been hospitalized a month after launching a hunger strike seeking better prison conditions and the release of political prisoners amid the pandemic, her husband said Saturday.

Reza Khandan said that healthcare professionals decided to hospitalize his wife, Nasrin Sotoudeh, because of heart and respiratory problems as well as low blood pressure.

Khandan said Sotoudeh was transferred to a hospital in north Tehran from the notorious Evin Prison earlier on Saturday.

Sotoudeh began her hunger strike in mid-August from her prison cell. She was arrested in 2018 on charges of collusion and propaganda against Irans rulers and eventually was sentenced to 38 years in prison and 148 lashes. Under the law she must serve at least 12 years.

During her prison term, Sotoudeh occasionally visited clinics as she suffered chronic gastrointestinal and foot problems.

Earlier this year, the 57-year-old Sotoudeh  known for defending activists, opposition politicians and women prosecuted for removing their headscarves, held a five-day hunger strike demanding prisoners be released to protect them from the coronavirus.

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In his words: "I am just a professional writer, which means I don't do blogs and try and get money for whatever I write."

The Black Lives Matter upheaval has resulted in this reappraisal of history

Do all plagues pass?

Manu: Yes, life has its span.

Do Gods decree ones fate?

Manu: No, your Karma affects the plan.

Can we take our wealth to heaven?

Manu: No, only to hell!

Does love indeed last forever?

Manu: Only time can tell.

 From Parabolic Parables by Bachchoo

A prep (junior) school in Oxford, known improbably as the Dragon, had since the 1920s named one of its boarding houses Gunga Din after the character in Rudyard Kiplings famous poem. Last month the governors of the Dragon decided to change the name to Dragon House.

The reason for the decision was conveyed to Old Dragonians, of which glorious fraternity, gentle reader, I am not one. I got my information about the change and the reason for it from an article by one Alexander Felling-Bruce, who is. He wrote about his objection to the change.

The name was instituted by a headmaster of the 1920s who chose the name because he felt that the character Gunga Din embodied the qualities of equality, fairness and human dignity which aligned with the core values of Kindness, Courage and Respect which the school endeavoured to impart.

The reason for removing the name, the letter from the governors said, was because the word Gunga has become a racial slur.

While apologising for my insular unworldliness, I can swear that I am aware of all the racial slurs in contemporary British and American usage (this is not counting the choice ones about a persons origins and circumstances of birth that we Indians throw at each other) but have never come across Gunga as one of them. The commonest anti-Asian term is Paki and the one that racially-minded West Indians use is coolie  and, yes, there are others more colourful or hurtful.

I am, gentle reader, an enthusiastic reader of Rudyard Kiplings work and have frequently stooped to defending him against the charge of unflagging racism, while recognising that his works are unabashedly imperialist.

I can recite bits of Gunga Din by heart. As you too perhaps know, Gunga Din is a bhisti in the service of a Raj regiment. He is abused and cuffed by the white soldiers of the regiment and, in the narrative which Kipling places in the words of one of these troopers, Gunga while bringing water to the thirsty fighters on the frontline of battle and saving the wounded narrator by carrying him away from flying bullets, is hit by one and dies. The narrator concludes the poem with:

Though Ive belted you and flayed you,

By the livin Gawd that made you,

Youre a better man than I am, Gunga Din!

The poem is rife with illusions to race and colour. The narrator uses the phrase whiter than white as a mark of ultimate virtue. He uses the word black-faced crew for the Indians and characterises Gunga Din as a heathen.

Since my first reading of the poem I have thought that Kipling misspelt the name Ganga which, far from being the alleged racial slur, is the name of the river goddess of India. And apart from the racial assumptions of the narrator of the poem and apart from his conclusion that this black-faced heathen is the finest man I knew and a better man than I am, one may consider what poor Gunga Din is employed as.

He is killed by an enemy bullet. Who is this enemy? Gunga Din is in the employ of a Raj regiment and they are presumably in a battle against some native Indian forces. Does this make poor Gunga, a willing servant of the colonial power, a traitor to his own kind?

A similar question hangs over what has been called the Indian Mutiny and the First War of Independence. The troops who began that historical episode were employees of the East India Company, which was, throughout the previous century, fighting the armies of Indian rulers and virtually annexing their territories. The Indian regiments recruited by them were mercenaries hired to fight and kill fellow Indians and subdue Indian kingdoms, which the British would then take over. So, cant they justifiably be called mercenaries who mutinied? Perhaps historians are accurate in calling the episode the First War of Independence when and only after the Indian kingdoms joined the mutiny to attempt the expulsion of the colonising power. Even so, some Indian regiments and sections remained loyal to the East India Company and fought with them.

To call it the first war of independence might assume that there was a second. There wasnt. The Independence movement led by Gandhi was a non-violent one and can, by no stretch of vocabulary, be called a war. Perhaps the word first should be deleted from the historical record. And wasnt Tipu Sultans effort before 1857 dedicated to expelling the Brits?

So, back to the decision of the Dragon Schools governors. Would it have taken place if there were not today a mood in the country, after the manifestation of support for the Black Lives Matter movement and the subsequent toppling of statues, renaming of streets and promises from the BBC and other national institutions to rectify any racial or anti-minority bias? Were the Dragoneers just being careful, acting before someone castigated them for retaining a name clearly from a work of colonial literature?

The Black Lives Matter upheaval has resulted in this reappraisal of history. Its not really a discovery of new facts but a reorientation of the point of view from which historical truth is assessed. In the USA, in rough terms, there exist two nations, the descendants of slaves and the rest  among them, a tiny percentage, the descendants of slave-owners. The practical, political demands that could emerge from the BLM upheaval is a reform of every institution of state to purge it of racism. The intellectual advance could be a progress toward the one nation the American constitution declares the US to be.
Clearview Local Schools Superintendent Jerome Davis wanted sent a message last month that racism is a colossal issue and he was right to use a newsletter to parents and students as a sounding board for them to join the fight against racial injustice close to home, and nationally.

However, some members of the Clearview Schools Board of Education apparently believed the method Davis use to deliver his message the week of Aug. 31  the districts back-to-school superintendents 13-page newsletter  was inappropriate and actually called him out on it.

During the Sept. 14 Clearview Schools Board of Education meeting, the first since Davis back-to-school newsletter went out, he spoke about instances of racism in the Clearview community and Sheffield Township.

In 2019, Davis said an employee referred to someone as a lazy (n-word), and the board was made aware of it, although it was not made public.

Also, Davis said it was important, and still is, for Black and brown students in the district to know he supports them amid the racial tensions in America.

Davis said examples of racism show up daily on social media, and the newsletter has never been a function of the Board of Education.

He acknowledged that because of the content of the newsletter a few people were offended because they refuse to acknowledge that racism exists.

Unfortunately, Davis said, it is from some of the very same people who tend to have racist tendencies.

And thats his opinion.

But, Clearview Schools Board of Education President Heidi Adkins expressed concerns over Davis letter during the meeting.

Adkins said the board didnt approve of some of the language in Davis message, and that many complaints the board received from taxpayers were in regard to his statements.

She said the board mailed postcards to families to accommodate students the board felt were left out.

The district has nearly 1,700 students.

Adkins took issue with the essay where Davis wrote, I will stay strong for all of our students but especially for our Black and brown students.

She wondered if this were a white superintendent stating this about being especially strong for white students, would it be OK?

Davis, however, had support from board member Michael Kokinda, who agreed with Davis in the newsletter he sent out.

Kokinda felt bad that the board didnt do this along with Davis and that he had the right to make the statements in his newsletter due to his position in the community.

Kokinda also pointed out the only complaints he received were regarding the postcard sent out by the board.

In his superintendents message, Davis discussed ending the 2019-2020 school year as the novel coronavirus pandemic grew and the new normal of COVID-19.

He continued by describing the protests and violence that erupted this summer in communities around the nation in response to racial injustice and police violence against African Americans.

The feelings of sadness, anger, disappointment, and frustration hit close to home, said Davis, who described his own experience as a Black man in America.

He wrote, There is too much hatred and unrest. Trust me when I say, it happens right here in Lorain County. Yes, some of the haters, who happen to be cruel and evil people, are right here amongst us in this very community. Please do not be naive enough to believe that this hatred and unrest is not in our backyards because it absolutely, positively is here.

Davis included the names of victims of police violence, including George Floyd in Minneapolis, Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Ky., this year; and Tamir Rice, the 12-year-old boy shot and killed in Cleveland in 2014.

He called for adults to set an example to teach our children compassion, respect, inclusiveness, acceptance, and gratitude for others.

But, a few days later after the newsletter went out, Adkins and school board members Kokinda, Darlene Baker, Mike Post and Michael Mielcarek mailed a postcard to residents stating they were surprised at Davis message.

Adkins said then that Davis has a right to his opinions, but traditionally the back-to-school newsletter reports information families should know about the upcoming school year, not anyones personal message about what is going on in the world.

She said previous back-to-school newsletters included information about the end of the last school year.

The newsletter did include messages from the building principals who wrote about successes from spring, or preparations and pep talks for the upcoming school year.

Davis added a two-page list of health precautions needed to slow the spread of COVID-19.

But, Davis deserves credit for speaking out against racism and racist behavior.

Battling racism will take educating everyone about the injustices people of color have endured in this country.
NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro speaks to the media during a NRL media opportunity at Rugby League Central on August 10, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. (Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

NSW Deputy Premier on Mental Health Leave Amid Koala Policy Fallout

NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro is on mental health leave after a torrid fortnight dealing with the political fallout of his koala protection policy threat.

The outspoken NSW Nationals leader will miss next weeks parliamentary sittings and wont return to his role for up to four weeks.

Barilaros office confirmed he was temporarily stepping down to take time off for his wellbeing and mental health.

In a statement, Premier Gladys Berejiklian said Barilaro had told her of his decision on the afternoon of Sept 18.

I have offered him any support he may need, she said.

I wish John and his family all the best during this time.

His deputy Paul Toole has been installed Acting Deputy Premier and state party leader.

Toole praised his Nationals colleague for putting his hand up to take a break, and said he looked forward to his return.

People need to know its ok to say when you are having a tough time  and thats exactly what John has done, he said in a statement.

The NSW Nationals support each other and stick together.

It means hell likely miss an October 6 cabinet meeting in which the states vexed koala protection policy was expected to be debated.

Barilaro put himself in the firing line last week after threatening to implode the coalition government if concessions were not made over the policy.

He backed down when the premier gave him an ultimatum that Nationals MPs support the government or its ministers be sacked from cabinet.

Barilaro was unrepentant for his actions after he survived a no-confidence motion in parliament on Wednesday, angering Liberal colleagues when he refused to rule out threatening the coalition again.

He later committed to honouring the coalition until the 2023 state election.

The Nationals are concerned changes to the Koala Habitat Protection State Environmental Planning Policy limit land use on farms and the ability to rezone areas for development.

1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)

Lifeline 13 11 14

Callum Godde in Sydney
The Mobile County Emergency Management has filed a preliminary damage estimate of $19 million with the state EMA for governmental expenses related to Hurricane Sally.

Mike Evans, deputy director of the Mobile County EMA, said the county organization submitted the figure to the state agency Friday evening. The estimate was based on a survey sent to the county government and municipal governments.

The total is by no means an over-arching account of the damage done by the storm. It doesnt account for damage to private property such as homes. Its an estimate of the amount that county and local governments expect to spend on debris removal, road and bridge repair, damage to publicly owned utilities and similar expenses.

Evans said the total is preliminary and the final amount will be higher. The important thing, he said, is that its well above the threshold needed to justify federal aid from FEMA.

Weve got to get that to the state so the wheels can begin to turn on the rest of it, Evans said. The intent is, we want to get this stuff going as fast as we can.

Two teams from Alabama EMA will tour the county starting Monday. When theyve verified the basis of the estimate, the state agency will forward the request to FEMA. Assuming its approved by FEMA, that means governments can be reimbursed for 75% of their expenses.

Thats huge for the jurisdictions, Evans said. Most of the time none of them are going to have a rainy day fund big enough to cover tropical events and hurricanes.

Evans said hes confident the estimate will hold up, because local officials have plenty of experience at the task. [Dauphin Island Mayor] Jeff Collier and his team on the island, theyve done it enough that theyre pretty close on their estimates, Evans said.

Federal aid for individuals is a separate process, Evans said. Generally speaking, private business and individuals should seek relief first from their insurers. Those needing help with things such as tarps for roofs should call 211 to report their needs.

Alabama Power reported that as of 10 a.m. Saturday, it was down to 23,400 outages and expected to have service restored to 95% of its Mobile-area customers by 10 p.m.

Baldwin County is served by several electrical utilities. The largest of these, Baldwin EMC, said that as of 9 a.m. Saturday it had 57,939 members experiencing power outages and that crews had restored power to nearly 20,000 meters since beginning storm recovery work.

On Friday, the Mobile County Commission announced plans for storm debris removal. The county will manage debris recovery on Dauphin Island and unincorporated areas of the county.

Pickup guidelines:

 Only Hurricane Sally-related vegetative and construction and demolition (C&D) debris will be collected. That excludes removal of normal household trash, appliances, electronics and household hazardous waste.

 Debris must be placed curbside or in right-of-way areas that do not block roadways or storm drains. Do not place material in drainage ditches.

 Vegetative debris should be piled separately from C&D debris material. Vegetative debris includes tree branches, limbs, and non-bagged leaves. C&D debris includes building materials, fencing and bagged materials.

 If you notice any downed tree issues within a public right-of-way in the unincorporated areas, please notify the Public Works Department at 251-574-4030.

The debris pick-up schedule will be released early next week.
Portland Press Herald | Getty Images

I'm neither acutely devout nor broadly spiritual, but as someone proud of their Jewish heritage, I always look forward to Rosh Hashanah, which commences at sundown tonight, ushering in the Hebrew Year 5781. I and Jews across America and the world will spend this weekend celebrating best they can amid continued quarantines. But there is one Rosh Hashanah tradition that can endure no matter how difficult (or impossible) it is for folks to congregate. And I think it has broad appeal to people of all backgrounds.

Tashlich, meaning "to cast," is a simple ritual that typically takes place during the first full day of the holiday, which in this case would be tomorrow. In essence, an individual or group approach a body of water (be it river, stream, lake, creek et al) and literally cast off an object  e.g. a leaf, rock, acorn, what have you  meant to symbolize anything or any actions they regret from the past year or might have done differently. (Some adherents hew to stricter interpretations involving shaking out corners of clothing or religious vestments after prayer recitation.)
A teenager has been found not guilty of murder but guilty of the manslaughter of another youth during a row in a Dublin park.

The 17-year-old, who cannot be identified because he is a minor, pleaded guilty to manslaughter at the start of the trial, but his plea was rejected by the Director of Public Prosecutions.

The victim, Azzam Raguragui (18), died after suffering five stab wounds in Finsbury Park, Dundrum, on May 10 last year.

One of the wounds severed an artery and caused massive blood loss, leading to his death.

The boy's defence argued that he believed he was acting in self-defence during a "terrifying brawl", having seen his friend punched, knocked to the ground and kicked repeatedly.

Wept

The jury was told that if the boy honestly believed he was acting in self-defence but used more force than was reasonably necessary, he should be found guilty of the lesser charge.

The jury found by a majority verdict of 10 to two, after more than 13 hours of deliberations, that the accused was not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter.

Mr Raguragui's mother stormed from the court and repeatedly shouted "It's not fair" after the verdict was read out.

The defendant wept as he was hugged by members of his family before being taken to Oberstown Detention Centre, where he will remain until a sentence hearing on October 12.

Mr Justice Paul McDermott thanked the jury and invited the victim's family to make a statement to the court at the sentence hearing.

The trial had heard that earlier on the day of the fight there had been a confrontation between Mr Raguragui and friends of the accused.

It was alleged that someone in the accused's group had stolen a bike, and some of the accused's friends said Mr Raguragui threatened one of them.

The accused's friends then met at a house in what the prosecution said was preparation for the later confrontation.

In a statement to gardai, one of the boys present at the house said the accused had the knife on him at that point.

He said the boy showed the knife around and asked him to look after it and give it back later.

The same boy told gardai that as they entered Finsbury Park and saw members of the other group, the accused asked for the knife back.

In his evidence before the court, the witness changed his story, saying the accused did not know anything about the knife until they were entering Finsbury Park.

He said the accused took the knife from him so that they would not get into trouble.

The trial heard from members of both groups.

There was general agreement that the two groups met at Finsbury Park coming up to 8pm and there was a discussion that went on for 10 to 15 minutes without incident.

There was talk about the stolen bike but no violence, aggression or threats.

When another member of the accused's group, who was the subject of the alleged earlier threat by Mr Raguragui, arrived, the atmosphere changed.

Each side had a different story about what happened next.

Mr Raguragui's friends insisted that violence broke out after the newcomer punched Mr Raguragui in the forehead.

The accused's defence denied this and pointed to a patholo- gist's report that showed no sign of blunt force trauma to Mr Raguragui's forehead.

Ringleader

The accused, in a statement to gardai, said Mr Raguragui "started the whole thing" and was the "ringleader", while the accused's friends said the fight broke out after a member of Mr Raguragui's group punched one of their group and kicked him when he fell.

Mr Raguragui's friends said that during the fight they saw Mr Raguragui run up a slope and fall.

At about that moment, they heard a shout of "knife" and said they saw the accused run after the deceased and stab him while he lay on the ground.

The defence questioned the credibility of these accounts, suggesting that Mr Raguragui's friends made up this part of the story in a bid to get justice for their friend.

The defence said the pathologist had agreed that the injuries suffered by Mr Raguragui could have been caused while he was standing up, and pointed out that three independent witnesses who were walking through the park did not see anyone being stabbed on the ground.

In his charge to the jury, Mr Justice McDermott said that if they found the accused believed he was defencing himself but used more force than a reasonable person would consider necessary, he should be found guilty of manslaughter.

He further told them that if the force used in inflicting the wounds was the result of a planned attack, or due to anger or retaliation, then the defence of self-defence was not open to him.

Acting State Pathologist Dr Linda Mulligan told the trial she found four stab wounds on the victim and a superficial wound also caused by the knife.

The fatal wound to the chest severed the subclavian artery, causing massive blood loss, collapse and death within a short period. The other injuries, she said, contributed to his death through blood loss.
New Jersey-based artist loves to draw buildings with silver

Ukrainian artist Anzhelika Doliba distills the evocative beauty of historic places in her architectural silverpoint drawings. The atmosphere and the mood of any work are the most important elements for me, she said. In each drawing, she tries to convey a certain mystery of the place, and the feeling of that moment.

For as far back as she can remember, Doliba has loved to draw. Her love for architecture arose during her time attending Taras Shevchenko State Art High School, in Kyiv. Part of her art training was to practice the discipline of plein air painting, creating complete works of art on-site in the open air.

Doliba explained that Kyivs cityscape is unique and diverse: The buildings and streets of the Ukrainian capital combine more than 30 different architectural styles, [including] gothic, baroque, Moorish revival, Russian classicism style, and art nouveau. The best European, Russian, and Ukrainian architects and artists worked on the buildings.

Doliba went on to graduate from Kyivs National Academy of Fine Arts and Architecture in 1994, from the architecture department, where she learned to draft everything in the traditional way, by hand, for which she is immensely grateful. In recent years, she returned to see her old teachers in the Ukraine and learned that since the advent of computer-aided design, many architectural students no longer draw by hand.

Although she draws in pencil, pastels, and charcoal and paints in acrylics and oils, three years ago the now New Jersey-based artist began to draw in silverpoint. It is now her specialty.

Her work is held in private collections in America, Europe, and Egypt (where she lived for over 16 years).

The Louvre Museum is depicted in Bonjour Paris, 2020, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint drawing over thin casein paint layer on prepared paper; 19 inches by 24 inches. (Anzhelika Doliba)

About Metalpoint

Silverpoint first emerged in medieval Italy, where it became a popular drawing medium, used with magnificent effect by the likes of Leonardo da Vinci. In northern Europe, German artists Albrecht Durer and Hans Holbein the Elder rendered splendid silverpoint drawings.

A metalpoint artist uses a fine metal rod of gold, copper, lead, or silver, shaped to a point at the end in order to draw, leaving a metallic mark that shimmers in response to light. An artist needs to be a skilled draftsman to use metalpoint, as any errors are almost impossible to erase or correct because the metalpoint is used over a previously applied ground, which is a layer of opaque paint that sometimes has added pigment.

Lily of the Valley, 2019, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint on prepared paper; 9 inches by 12 inches. (Anzhelika Doliba)

The ground, in simple terms, allows the metalpoint to make a mark, as drawing without itwith silver, for example, on unprepared paperdoesnt leave a visible mark. In Renaissance times, bone ash and pigment were ground down and made into a paste with water, which was then mixed with animal glue and applied as a ground to the metalpoint drawing support (a panel or paper, for instance).

A self-confessed perfectionist, Doliba loves silverpoint because it allows her to render exquisite details in her architectural drawings. Silverpoint is a slow medium, she said, and it takes time to render the amount of detail involved in her architectural drawings. For instance, a drawing such as Bethesda Terrace Central Park, NYC, takes around four to five weeks to complete, although she doesnt work on pieces continually, and she doesnt measure the time each piece takes because its such an enjoyable process for her.

The Top of Broom Street or New York City Police Department, 2019, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint with casein paint on Plike paper; 19 inches by 37 inches. (Anzhelika Doliba)

Grayscale

Doliba drew a lot with pencil before she decided to specialize in silverpoint. Drawing with silverpoint can be similar to drawing with pencil, she said. When you draw with silverpoint, the first marks made are like gray pencil, although they have a metallic shimmer, and the darkest of tones that are easily achieved with pencil cannot be made by silverpoint.

Dolibas daughter, commenting on her mothers pencil drawings and early silverpoint drawings, once said to her, Everything you do is gray. Her early silverpoint drawings certainly were monotone in color, but they were rich in atmosphere.

In a traditional atelier, using grays would be the first step in how artists would learn. Masters would make sure their artists could competently render tones and forms in grayscale drawings before they moved on to paint.

Ionic Capital of Wall Street, NYC, 2017, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint on prepared paper; 8 inches by 9.5 inches. (Anzhelika Doliba)

Dolibas first silverpoint drawing was of an Ionic capital on Wall Street in New York. And among her early silverpoint endeavors is a drawing of the exterior arches of the New York Public Library. For that drawing, she prepared her own ground.

New York Public Library, 2017, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint on prepared paper; 10 inches by 20 inches. (Anzhelika Doliba)

Another stunning example of her early silverpoint work is a radiant portrait of one of her two daughters in the drawing Angelica. Doliba seems to have captured her daughters personality wonderfully as she looks out to her mother, full of joy and the confidence of youth.

Angelica, 2019, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint on paper. (Anzhelika Doliba)

A Touch of Color

While the application of silverpoint is precise and controlled, after the drawing is complete the color of the silverpoint can change over time to brown and sepia tones due to the silvers oxidizing. Copperpoint also changes color over time, from copper to green. I like these tones because you cant get this hue with another medium, Doliba said.

When she initially learned about silverpoint drawing, Doliba looked at how established silverpoint artists worked and saw that they used casein paint, a paint derived from mixing pigment with the milk-protein casein, to add color.

Now, Doliba applies casein paint much like light watercolors. The light wash helps her bring color to the drawing while still being able to shade the forms in silverpoint. She paints a casein wash and then draws over the paint with silverpoint to achieve the tonal range.

Bethesda Terrace, Central Park, New York City, 2020, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint drawing over thin casein paint layer on wood panel; 18 inches by 24 inches. (Anzhelika Doliba)

Her silverpoint drawing of Central Parks Bethesda Terrace is a great example of where the light casein underpainting brings warmth and diffused sunlight to the picture. Its the type of drawing she loves to do, just for her own pleasure. Doliba gets a lot of requests to make this drawing available as a print because the terrace is a popular place for weddings or for couples to be photographed. The day Doliba arrived at the terrace it was full of birds. A few of them made it into the picture along with their nests.

In another silverpoint piece, Doliba drew the Angel of the Waters, the 8-foot bronze statue in the Bethesda Fountain, which stands in the center of the terrace. The angel represents a Bible story in which a paralytic was healed in the waters at Bethesda.

Angel of the Waters, 2020, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint on paper over thin casein paint layer. (Anzhelika Doliba)

Color features more strongly in the silverpoint drawings Doliba made after a trip to Spain, where she visited Madrid, Barcelona, and Toledo. In her silverpoint drawings of the Cathedral of Saint Mary of Toledo, she painted the frescoes with casein paint directly over the silverpoint, rather than using casein as an underpaint as she normally does.

Cathedral of Saint Mary of Toledo, Spain, 2019, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint on prepared board over casein paint; 24 inches by 24 inches. (Anzhelika Doliba)

Experimenting with different ideas to get the best possible atmosphere for her silverpoint drawings is high on Dolibas priorities. On the same trip, she traveled to the mountains overlooking Barcelona and used a technique similar to the Toledo frescoes. The resulting silverpoint drawing is a Barcelona city view that glows in a delicate blue hue of casein overpaint with a touch of golden light in one of the towers.

Barcelona, 2020, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint over casein underpainting on watercolor block; 14 inches by 11 inches. (Anzhelika Doliba)

Mastering Silverpoint

Having worked with silverpoint for only a relatively short time, Doliba has come to understand how to competently use the medium and observe how it interacts with the different grounds, paper, and paint. Three years on, she still enjoys the process of preparing for her silverpoint drawings and putting metal to paper. Every time you do art, you learn something, she said.

Each time she draws, shes looking and thinking how best to portray whats in front of her. She asks herself, How can I draw this? She observes the different tonal ranges and the color possibilities, and then thinks to herself how she can combine the silver to make the best possible picture.

Maclntyre Building, NYC, 2017, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint on prepared paper; 9.5 inches by 15.5 inches. (Anzhelika Doliba)

Sometimes, when traveling to a location doesnt allow enough time to sketch or draw on-site, Doliba takes photographs to devise the composition at home. She then prepares a detailed pencil drawing prior to any silverpoint drawing. Its not easy to get what you want from the beginning with silver.

Every time, I do something new, she said. Her silverpoint First Light is a good example. Living in New Jersey, Doliba is close to the water. I really love the sunrise and how the light comes up, she said. Having already captured how the sun hits the water in an oil painting, she wanted to see how the picture would work as a silverpoint drawing. The result is an incredibly luminous picture, in which the golden sunlight shimmers on the sea and sand as the frothy sea foam reaches the shore.

First Light, 2020, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint over thin casein paint layer on gesso panel; 14 inches by 11 inches. (Anzhelika Doliba)

A Love for Architectural Drawing

Doliba feels that architectural drawings are her vocation. Of course, Im always thinking about drawing figurative art because its most popular, but always, every time, Im still drawn to architectural drawings. I love it! I love to do it.

Currently, Doliba is creating a body of architectural drawings as an exhibition to submit to galleries. For artists like Doliba, whose work is quite niche, this can be a challenge. Theres not a lot of artists doing her style or type of work; this, she believes, can be problematic for gallery submissions. Galleries want their art exhibitions to reflect or match the idea of what they sell in their gallery, she said.

Of her architectural drawings, Doliba says, I want to show the beauty of the place. In the same sentiment, she also hopes viewers of her art enjoy each place as much as she does.

To find out more about Anzhelika Dolibas art visit, AngelaDoliba.com

Cathedral of Saint Mary of Toledo, 2018, by Anzhelika Doliba. Silverpoint on prepared board; 16 inches by 20 inches. (Anzhelika Doliba)
The revelation that a small Chinese company called Shenzhen Zhenhua Data Technology collected online and social media data of 10,000 influential Indians, including political leaders, was greeted with a great deal of shock. A few days later, there is a growing narrative that since this data is from open sources, it has limited utility, and the leak is, therefore, not very worrying.

Both these reactions somehow miss the big picture. It should come as no shock that there is a concerted effort by various countries to collect personal and other critical data about countries (both hostile and friendly). It must also be clearly understood that this data has enormous national security implications.

Attempts to classify individuals by their emotions and use them to influence choices were turned into a sophisticated art by technology companies like Google, Facebook, and Twitter. To drive up revenues, depending on what you were viewing, Facebook fed you more and more of similar content. It then auctioned your viewing habits to various advertising companies who used this to sway your commercial decision.

As social media proliferated explosively and became the main source of news, the algorithms crafted by the technology companies created a parallel world of sorts. Facebook investor Roger McNamees observed that the platforms algorithm exists to maximize attention, and the best way to do that is to make people angry and afraid.

Social media created a filter bubble that constantly reinforced individual beliefs and shut out any alternative viewpoint. Reasoned arguments are difficult if two people are reading from entirely different scripts, and these are the only scripts that they have read.

Social media has now been weaponised. Its use to affect the emotions and beliefs of the target audience has become a subject of deep study as a part of Information Warfare. It has come to be increasingly accepted that the centre of gravity in any future conflict is the human mind and that it is not difficult to create divisions by exacerbating differences that exist in all societies.

We could say that the arguments about influencing people are valid for the masses and not for sensible political leaders and others in positions of influence and authority. We wish that this were true, but leaders today thrive on social media approbation. Some deliberately cultivate an image of a harsh and uncompromising stance on ideological issues to garner greater social media presence. Others acquiesce to the majority because of the fear of public backlash and trolling if they buck the trend.

We must also be conscious that while Zhenhua may only be collecting data from open sources, this would only be one part of the data that would be flowing into Beijing from other sources like our mobile phones, the hardware in our communication networks, and the numerous Chinese apps that we routinely use. All this will provide a more comprehensive picture of how leaders think. And as is commonly known in the military, battles are won or lost in the minds of commanders.

There is now talk in the media about creating a global coalition against Chinese snooping. I see this as a highly unlikely outcome. Let me quote an incident to illustrate this. A summit was planned between President Barack Obama and Xi Jinping on June 7 and 8, 2013, in which the Americans had planned to raise the issue of Chinese cyber thefts strongly. One day before the summit, The Washington Post and The Guardian broke the news about the PRISM program in which the US National Security Agency was mining massive amounts of personal data from internet companies.

The meeting between Obama and Xi is described in Fred Kaplans book, Dark Territory: The Secret History of Cyber War:

Obama brought up Chinese cyber theft; Xi took out a copy of The Guardian. From that point on, the Chinese retort to all American accusations on the subject shifted from We dont do hacking to You do it a lot more than we do.

The US runs the most extensive and sophisticated surveillance network globally, and India was the fifth most targeted country by PRISM. The Five Eyes intelligence alliance comprising Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the US is monitoring private communications worldwide. Under these realities, hoping for some form of an international agreement is a mirage.

We should be clear that in the domain of cybersecurity, India must stand on its own feet. Two areas must be immediately addressed.

The first is the protection of personal data. Today, an individual in India has no control over his personal data that is being freely bought, sold, and traded. As has been brought out earlier, the mining and analysis of personal data enable hostile actors to influence sections of society to adopt a more extremist view and sow dissension. The Russian attempts to influence the 2016 US elections were centered not on the positives of the candidates, but, as brought out in the Mueller investigation, on promoting discord and undermining public confidence.

Indias Personal Data Protection Bill continues to languish in Parliament. It is sometimes felt that the political class is content with this state as it permits them to leverage this data for electoral purposes with a fair amount of impunity. However, weaknesses in data protection and data localization leaves the country vulnerable to external actors.

The second area is our continuing reliance on foreign hardware and software. Despite many years of Make in India policies, we are yet to make substantive progress in adopting Indian technologies, even in areas where they are available. One example of this is the Indian Armys initiative to adopt an indigenous Operating System in 2015 that was strongly resisted and finally rolled back due to internal resistance.

Now that a start has been made by banning Chinese apps, the government must undertake an audit of all hardware and software in our Information Technology networks. Obviously, we cannot run a sword through the whole system, but there are definite areas where indigenous technology can be applied. Some ruthlessness would also have to be displayed to break down long-standing practices and linkages.

The Zhenhua revelations are not an imminent threat, but a clear and present danger. Launching investigations and adopting an injured stance will have only limited value. A legal framework to protect and secure data and a concerted indigenization push is the only way forward.
As more Tucson-area schools begin allowing students back onto campuses, whether education officials alert families of coronavirus cases that may pop up is not always clear.

Local school districts are making different decisions on how broadly to inform their school community when someone tests positive for COVID-19.

Tucsons largest district, Tucson Unified School District, with about 45,000 students, says it does not inform its school communities of all individual cases.

TUSD does not publicly share singular cases that dont result in a school closure because we believe in safeguarding the privacy of our employees and are sensitive to the disturbing trend of individuals and schools possibly being publicly stigmatized, said spokeswoman Leslie Lenhart.

Some school districts are only informing people who spent 15 minutes or more within 6 feet of a person who tested positive, a threshold for contact tracing. Other Tucson school districts, such as Sunnyside, Amphitheater, Flowing Wells, Tanque Verde and Vail, inform everyone whos been on a campus where someone tested positive.

When schools inform public-health officials of cases also varies.

Schools are only required to report to the health department when they have an outbreak. The Arizona Department of Health Services says an outbreak is defined as two or more laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 within a 14-day period among individuals who are epidemiologically linked, do not share a household and are not close contacts of each other in another setting.
The railways ministry has said that 97 people died while travelling on the Shramik special trains that were operated to repatriate domestic migrant workers, the first official confirmation of a string of fatalities that prompted questions over how the lockdown for Covid-19 was planned and on the measures made to help vulnerable, urban workers who were left without pay and jobs return to their homes in the Indian hinterland.

The disclosure was made on Friday as a response to a question by Trinamool Congress MP Derek OBrien in the Rajya Sabha. At the start of the monsoon session, a separate government department  the labour ministry  said it did not have data on how many migrant workers had died when the country locked down to stem the spread of Covid-19.

Out of these 97 cases of death, state police sent dead bodies for post mortem in 87 cases. 51 post-mortem reports have been obtained from respective state police so far, in which the reasons for deaths have been shown as cardiac arrest/heart disease/brain hemorrhage/pre-existing chronic disease/chronic lung disease/chronic liver disease etc, said the reply by Union railways minister Piyush Goyal.

Also read: Parliament monsoon session: No data available on migrant deaths during lockdown, says Centre

The data accounted for deaths till September 9.

On May 30, Hindustan Times first reported that between May 9 and 27, almost 80 deaths took place on board Shramik special trains, according to data accessed from the Railway Protection Force.

Shramik special trains began operation on May 1 to ferry migrant labourers back home after hundreds were seen setting out on foot for their towns and villages hundreds of kilometres away in the middle of peak summer conditions. In all, 4,621 Shramik special trains were run between May 1 and August 31, 2020, carrying 6.3 million passengers to their home states, the ministry said in Parliament.

In an interview to HT on June 1, after the report on the deaths, Goyal said that the Indian Railways has been transparent about the deaths, and insisted on compiling a list of them, and finding out causes even as news reports suggested that eight or nine migrants died on trains. The real number has emerged only because of this, he suggested. We are very concerned... My heart goes out to the families (of those who have died), the minister said.

Separately on Saturday, the labour minister said the government is collecting information on suicide of migrant workers from states.
Speaking in Parliament for the first time since his release from detention, the National Conference president and MP Farooq Abdullah on Saturday advocated talks with Pakistan, saying if India can talk to China to defuse their border row, it can also speak to its other neighbour to deal with the situation at Jammu and Kashmir borders.

"Border skirmishes have been rising and people are dying... A way has to be found to deal with this. Except for talks... As you are talking to China to attempt that it withdraws (from Ladakh border), we should also talk to our (other) neighbour to find a way to get out of this situation," he said in Lok Sabha during the Zero Hour amid protests from treasury benches.

The Srinagar MP also expressed his happiness at the findings of an Army inquiry into the killings of three men in Shopian in an encounter.

"I am happy that the Army has admitted that three Shopian men were killed mistakenly. I hope the government gives a hefty compensation," he said.

Officials had said on Friday the Army has found "prima facie" evidence that its troops "exceeded" powers under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act during the encounter in July and has initiated disciplinary proceedings.

Abdullah said Jammu and Kashmir has not seen any progress and spoke about authorities blocking 4G facilities in the Union Territory which, he added, goes against the interest of students and traders.

He also conveyed his gratitude to parliamentarians for speaking for him when he was under detention.

Abdullah and many other leaders were put under detention by authorities last year after the Union government abrogated Article 370, which had given special powers to the erstwhile state, and split Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories. He was released in March this year.
The Smith family is in the news cycle more than ever thanks to Red Table Talk. And Jaden Smith is getting quite a lot of attention as well. Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smiths middle child is making a name for himself thanks to his creativity and outspoken nature. And hes caused quite a stir amongst the public before.

Now, were taking a look back at the time he took his shoe and waved it at the paparazzi. Heres why he made such an unusual move.

Jaden Smith lives an ultra-privileged life thanks to famous parents Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith

Jaden Smith, Will Smith, Jada Pinkett-Smith, and Trey Smith | Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images

RELATED: Jaden Smith Has His Own House  and He Allegedly Causes Trouble for the Neighbors

The Smiths are worth millions of dollars, and Jaden certainly has privileges many others his age dont have. Jadas talked about the affluence her family has as well  and shes noted she still tries to instill a strong work ethic in her kids despite the money they have.

People notes Jada spoke at a Sundance film panel about her decision to have her kids get jobs at a young age. As much as people got on me in regards to having them work early, I did not want them to grow up thinking that because they were in the midst of affluence that they did not have to grind or work hard on their own, she explained.

Not only do the Smith kids work, but Jada notes they were also taught to give back. I think also they had to start their charity lifestyle very early, [at] 5 years old they were in the orphanages at homeless shelters, she added. Jada noted that as privileged children, Jaden and Willow needed to learn how to be in service to the world.

Jaden collaborated with New Balance to create his own shoe

Jada and Will may have done a great job of instilling wholesome values in their kids. But Jadens affluence is still helping him get ahead. According to Complex, he has his own collaboration with New Balance thats truly unique.

The publication notes Jaden said he has art in my house thats made out of trash, and thats how he approached his New Balance Vision Racer signature model. The sneakers use recycled materials and feature a chunky bottom.

Jadens been collaborating with New Balance since 2017, and he even learned how to build shoes by hand while visiting a factory in Maine. I was not expecting how hard it is just to stitch a shoe together, he noted. And he added that he wanted his footwear to be accessible to all instead of just for celebrities.

We need to give away the shoe free to, not influencers, but people that are real people, he noted. People that actually need shoes.

Heres why he waved his shoes at the paparazzi

Jaden Smith at the premiere of Bad Boys for Life | Leon Bennett/WireImage

It looks like Jaden is willing to put attention on his shoe collection anyway he knows how. Vanity Fair notes the celebrity was outside of a restaurant in California in August 2020 when paparazzi were taking photos  and he suddenly removed one of his shoes and showed it to the cameras. The friend Jaden was with did the same.

So, why the big (and odd) show for the photographers? It seems Jaden was looking for a free way to advertise his Vision Racer sneakers. His friend wore a sold-out style while Jaden appeared to wear a pair that featured a colorway not yet released. And it seemed like the perfect opportunity to show fans whats to come in the collection via the paparazzi who wanted his photo.

Considering how successful Jadens sneaker line is proving to be, perhaps his photography stunt really worked. Were interested to see what he pulls off in the future.

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Of the three Guinness sisters, Oonagh, Aileen and Maureen, director John Huston famously remarked: "The sisters are all witches, lovely ones to be sure, but witches nonetheless." With their angelic looks and a lupine appetite for fun, the three sisters were figures of intrigue and aspiration, both in their native Ireland and the UK, during the early 20th century.

Yet, scratch the surface and the heiresses' lives were a tart and noxious cocktail of tragedy, addiction, glamour and social circles that became the stuff of legend.

Little wonder, then, that writer Emily Hourican became enchanted by their story over a decade ago, when she first encountered them through her work as a journalist.

"I'm a sucker for glamour - I love reading about parties more than I love going to them," Hourican laughs. "I just love that idea - that your social life could be your primary purpose in life. I mean, it's anachronistic, but it was like this mad, protracted adolescence."

The daughters of Ernest Guinness (great-grandson of Arthur), Maureen, Aileen and Oonagh were raised in Ireland amid great political unrest, before being launched on the glittering London scene in the 1920s. Hourican's book, told from the vantage point of Fliss, a girl sent to live with them as a child, relays their lives through this time (a follow-up book will tell their story through the 1930s).

Each eventually inherited splendid Irish castles when they married well: Clandeboye (Maureen), Luttrellstown Castle (Aileen) and Luggala (Oonagh).

Aileen had her own nightclub at Luttrellstown and had flowers regularly shipped in from Paris. Oonagh was the gentle, maternal one who raised her own children at the storied Luggala estate in Wicklow. Maureen was hilarious, fond of playing outrageous practical jokes on everyone, and she had a vicious wit.

Needless to say, Hourican calls the women, and Maureen in particular, 'a gift' to write as characters.

"Maureen had so many sides to her character - she was hilariously, magnificently snobbish," Hourican says, fondly. "Oonagh seems the sweetest by far, and perhaps a bit more subdued in her own life. She had many personal tragedies concerning her children. Maureen had more energy and fire to her. Aileen was part of the horse, film-starry, jet set, and the least knowable of the three - she was more of an aloof person, and perhaps the more difficult to get a feel for."

Ever the journalist, Hourican did a 'ferocious' amount of research for The Glorious Guinness Girls; partly out of fascination for the story, but also as a means of procrastination.

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For her first four novels, all set in the current day, she more or less stuck with a 'write what you know' maxim. As Hourican's first historical novel, The Glorious Guinness Girls marks a stylistic departure. Despite her first four novels being warmly received, it took her some time to strike up the confidence to get going with the Guinnesses.

"I was using the research as a comfort blanket - I was scared to start," she admits. "You really could research this stuff forever anyway."

That said, writing historical fiction can be a comfort in itself; the story, facts and relationships are largely there, and it's up to the writer how faithfully they want to write characters within those parameters.

"I like a good strong boundary, and the thing with this type of fiction is that you can't mess with what happened," Hourican says. "You can't pretend they didn't marry who they married. The facts could be less constraining if you wanted them to be. At the same time, these characters are the Guinnesses. They are my versions of these people. They are characters based on what I know of them."

Granted varying degrees of access, Hourican visited the former Guinness homes, among them 17 Grosvenor Place in London, now the Irish embassy. She also met Thomas Pakenham, whose father Frank was best man at Maureen's wedding; a trove of colourful anecdotes.

"He has the most incredible memory - he's twice my age and his memory is three times as good," says Hourican. "He produced these great impressions of Maureen in particular."

Using Fliss as the book's narrator offered a unique narrative lens: "I wanted someone who was outside of their world to an extent, but had a vantage point and knew a lot of their world but had the distance required to analyse them," Hourican says. "Fliss is a sweet, non-judgmental person who is kindly disposed towards them, but she can see the moments where they behaved badly or disappeared into unhappiness."

Where Fliss eventually gets out into the world and enjoys a career, the Guinness sisters remain in the roles of muse, patron or wife, even during a point of history where there was, as Hourican notes, "a rush of power for women's lib".

"They occupied this incredibly interesting social point - Fliss is the 'new way' of doing things and then there is the 'old way'."

The Glorious Guinness Girls is Hourican's fifth novel in as many years: a staggering output, by anyone's yardstick.

"I went to lunch with an older journalist some years ago, about two years before I published my first book, and he said, 'what's your plan?' When I told him I would keep being a journalist, he said, 'you can't keep being a journalist all your life'," Hourican smiles. "It was the sort of thing where you think, 'alright, this [idea] has been knocking around in the back of my mind, I'd better just do it'."

Hourican was diagnosed with, and overcame, mouth cancer four years ago, and she admits that the diagnosis provided an impetus of sorts for her considerable output.

"Every time I stop writing a book or slow down, there is another side of me that realises that no-one has forever," she admits. "We just don't know how long we have - your plans can upend in a second. Sometimes I think, 'maybe I'll spend three years writing the next book', then I think, 'maybe I'd get sick again'.

"I'm so attuned to the idea that we know not the day or the hour, but it's a great way to get yourself to do anything in the moment."

'The Glorious Guinness Girls' by Emily Hourican, published by Hachette, is out now
Governor Phil Murphy, a former executive at Goldman Sachs, has called on the state's richest residents to 'sacrifice' in these 'unprecedented times' - Noah K. Murray /AP

New Jersey officials are set to bring in a new millionaires tax on the wealthiest residents to help support the states finances after an economically crippling lockdown.

Governor Philip D. Murphy, a Democrat, announced he has struck a deal with the state legislature to increase the income tax rate on those earning more than $1m (770,000) per year from 8.97 per cent to 10.75 per cent. The deal would also give a $500 rebate to households which earn less than $150,000 per year.

America's second richest state is the first to introduce such a rise tax in the wake of the pandemic.

We do not hold any grudge at all against those who have been successful in life, said Mr. Murphy, a former executive at the investment bank Goldman Sachs. But in this unprecedented time, when so many middle-class families and others have sacrificed so much, now is the time to ensure that the wealthiest among us are also called to sacrifice. Literally, by the way, pennies on their top dollar earned is a modest ask.

While New Jersey is one of the first American states to introduce a millionaires tax, there is a wider trend of states who are considering the option. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, at least eight other states, including New York, California and Massachusetts, are thought to be mulling similar proposals.

This mirrors a pattern seen following the 2008 financial crisis, when ten states raised taxes between 2010 and 2012.

The tax is expected to raise $390m for the fiscal year, with 16,491 residents and 19,128 non-resident taxpayers being affected, according to state officials.

The $500 rebate will be available to 800,000 households in the state and is expected to cost $340m per year. It applies to families with at least one child where the combined income of a couple is less than $150,000. In a single-parent home, the threshold is $75,000.

1.5m New Jersey residents have filed for unemployment since the lockdown measures were introduced, crippling the economy - Noam Galai /Getty Images North America

Brandon McKoy, president of New Jersey Policy Perspective, a liberal-leaning research group, praised the proposal in a statement. He said it was fair and just to raise taxes on the rich, rather than to cut funding for services vital for low and middle income families.

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Calling on the states wealthiest residents to help fund New Jerseys pandemic recovery is both smart and just policy, especially now during an economic downturn that has disproportionately harmed low-paid workers and communities of colour, he said.

The pandemic has disproportionately affected communities of colour in New Jersey. The death rate among the African-American community stands at 249.7 per 100,000, 74 points higher than among white people.

A total of 16,057 New Jersey residents have died of Covid-19 to date, while more than 1.5m have filed for unemployment benefits.

The deal has been roundly and swiftly criticised by Republicans, who believe an increase in taxes will drive the wealthiest residents and businesses to move out of state.

A total of eight states have a 'millionaire's tax', including California, New York and Massachusetts.

Michael Testa, a Republican state senator, tweeted: Gov. Murphy is looking to play Santa Claus with taxpayer money as he heads into his reelection next year. Thats why none of the benefits he's promising will be paid out until hes in campaign mode next summer."

The tax is part of a $32.4bn spending plan which must be passed by October 1. New Jersey law states that the legislature must pass a balanced budget, not spending more than it receives.

Federal assistance does not look forthcoming, with Democrats in Congress insisting $2.2tn of aid is made available to local and state governments. Republicans and President Trump have dismissed this figure as too generous.
A 46-year-old woman has died during Brazilian butt lift surgery in Miami, making her at least the 20th fatality in Florida linked to the risky procedure in the last decade.

Gia Romualdo-Rodriguez died this week from an embolism caused by the fat injected into her buttocks at the Xiluet clinic in Miami.

Romualdo-Rodriguez's death was ruled accidental by the Miami-Dade Medical Examiner's Office Thursday.

This marks the latest in a string of deaths connected to the dangerous surgery as people risk their lives on the operating table to get their idea of the perfect butt.

Gia Romualdo-Rodriguez, 46, died during Brazilian butt lift surgery in Miami this week, making her at least the 20th fatality in Florida linked to the risky procedure in the last decad

Romualdo-Rodriguez, a Mexican who was living in College Point, New York, traveled to Miami for the surgery at the clinic that is known for breast enhancements, tummy tucks and Brazilian butt lifts.

The 46-year-old, who is transitioning to be a woman and was also undergoing breast-enhancement surgery, was being operated on by Dr. Stephanie Stover.

Stover is certified with the American Board of Plastic Surgery and does not have any history of disciplinary action.

During the surgery, Romualdo-Rodriguez's oxygen levels and heart rate plummeted and Stover dialled 911, reported The Miami Herald.

She was rushed to Kendall Regional Hospital where she was pronounced dead, police said.

Romualdo-Rodriguez died this week from an embolism caused by the fat injected into her buttocks at the Xiluet clinic in Miami

Romualdo-Rodriguez's friend Liz Chavez, 37, told the Herald Romualdo-Rodriguez had struggled in Mexico because she was transgender but, after two decades living in the US, had been 'living her best life'.

Dr. Stephanie Stover was operating on Romualdo-Rodriguez

'She had always felt like a girl, from an early age. She struggled a lot with discrimination from her family that didn't want to accept it,' Chavez said.

'For people in Mexico, it's really hard to be transgender.'

Chavez said her friend was prominent in the transgender community in New York City and worked with outreach groups including Make the Road New York and Colectivo Intercultural Transgrediendo.

She paid tribute to her 'confident' and 'beautiful' friend.

At least 20 deaths have been linked to complications from butt lift surgery in Florida in the last decade, reported the Herald. Most of these deaths took place in Miami.

The Xiluet clinic in Miami (above) Romualdo-Rodriguez's death is the latest in a string of deaths connected to the risky surgery in Florida

In 2019, the Florida Board of Medicine issued new rules about the surgery in the wake of a string of deaths.

The procedure involves fat being removed from the patient's stomach and then injected into the buttocks.

The new rules ban surgeons from injecting fat into or below a patients gluteal muscles, or glutes, because this poses a high risk of piercing the gluteal vein.

Hitting the vein can cause fat clots to travel to the heart and lungs, causing organ failure.

Instead, surgeons must now inject the fat above the muscle and below the skin.

However, three deaths from fat clots have happened since the new rules went into place.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Cyber Crime police on Friday arrested two Kollam natives for abusing two journalists on social media. The arrested persons V U Vineeth, a contract employee with the Deshabhimani daily, and T J Jayajith, who works at a private firm, were later let off on bail. Another accused Kannan Lal is still at large. A probe has been launched to trace him.

According to the police, the accused had used Facebook to unleash a cyber attack on K G Kamalesh, Bureau Chief, Asianet News, and Nisha Purushothaman, Chief News Producer, Manorama News. They circulated sexually explicit and vulgar messages regarding the scribes, allegedly for their stand against the government in connection with the gold smuggling case. The police have also seized the accuseds mobile phones.

Earlier, DIG Sanjay Kumar Gurudin had submitted a report on the case to the DGP, stating that the Facebook posts made by the accused were nothing but personal attacks on the journalists. The investigation was conducted with the help of the Cyberdome.
The ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament is likely to be curtailed as several parties on Saturday reached a consensus on wrapping up the session by next Wednesday. However, the government is intent on passing the rest of the legislations scheduled for this session. There is a consensus on curtailing the Parliament session. We left it to the discretion of the Speaker while adjusting business of the house, a participant of Parliaments Business Advisory Committee meeting said. The Speaker will announce the last working day of the House.

The session started on September 14 and was supposed to end on October 1.

So far, around 30 MPs, including Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Prahlad Patel, have tested positive for Covid-19 after the Monsoon Session began amid strict protocols.

After Prahlad Patel, Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, Nitin Gadkari tested positive, the Covid-19 testing protocol in Parliament was tweaked. Repeat RT-PCR tests for MPs, mandatory tests for government officials visiting parliament, and daily antigen tests for reporters and Parliament officials were introduced as it was found that none of the three MPs tested positive when they took the test earlier  during the weekend.

On Saturday  the sixth day of the session  the Rajya Sabha passed the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill 2020 and the Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Bill, 2020

The pending Bills of this session include The Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020, The Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2020, The Bilateral Netting of Qualified Financial Contracts Bill, 2020 and The Factoring Regulation (Amendment) Bill, 2020, The National Forensic Sciences University Bill, 2020 and The Rashtriya Raksha University Bill, 2020.

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French cinema organization UniFrance, which is backed by the French government and represents hundreds of local producers, sales agents, directors and talent agents, has sent out a memo to industry expressing its support for filmmaker Maimouna Doucoure and her film Cuties after the social media frenzy sparked by a Netflix poster for the film. Scroll down for the message in full.

UniFrance said today that it offers its full support to the director and the films French producers and noted the exceptionally violent reaction to the film in the United States, during a presidential election campaign in full swingIn this context, UniFrance and all of its members wish to pledge their full support to Maimouna Doucoure and to reaffirm their commitment to supporting the freedom of artistic creation and expression.

The passionate defence continues: Furthermore, we consider that the call to boycott the film and to have it removed from the Netflix catalogue, in addition to the hate messages, insults, and unfounded speculations about the intent of the director and her producers, pose a serious threat to the very space that cinema seeks to open up: a space of discussion, reflection, and of helping us to see beyond our own preconceived ideas.

In a detailed talk with us earlier this month, filmmaker Doucoure revealed that she had received death threats following the backlash against Netflixs poster design for her acclaimed Sundance film, a coming-of-age story about a girl who joins a group of dancers in rebellion against her conservative upbringing.

The streamer quickly changed the artwork, which it acknowledged to be a marketing blunder, but not before outrage spread like wildfire online with many conflating the artwork and the film.

In recent days, the drama has been caught up in apparent pre-election culture war skirmishes with several members of Congress weighing in on the French-language film, calling for its removal from Netflix or for a Justice Department investigation.

Story continues

You can read UniFrances statement below:

UniFrance, the association whose mission is to promote French cinema around the world, wishes to express on behalf of all of its members its full support for Maimouna Doucoure, director of the film Cuties, as well as her producer Zangro and the distribution team at Bac Films.

Since the launch of Cuties at the Sundance Film Festival, where it received an enthusiastic response from audiences, the media, and American industry professionals alike, and where Doucoure won the World Cinema Dramatic Directing Award, UniFrance has supported and closely monitored the films impressive international career. Also honored at the Berlinale with a Special Mention from the Generation Kplus jury and selected at the Rendez-Vous with French Cinema in New York, Maimouna Doucoure was named as one of the 10 French Talents to Watch in 2020, a group of rising talents chosen for UniFrance by four international journalists, announced on September 11, 2020. In addition, Maimouna Doucoure was granted the 2019 Academy Gold Fellowship for Women by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as part of a partnership established between France and the AMPAS some years ago. For the films release in France, it was authorized as suitable for all audiences.

Cuties offers a subtle and sophisticated denunciation of the hyper-sexualization of a young generation who translate and reproduce the images that inundate them in their daily lives, particularly via social media. Whether we are spectators, parents, teenagers, producers, or distributors, this film invites us to reflect on the power of these images and the complexity of the constant dialogue between young people and the generation of their parents. This film appeals to our sense of discernment, be that on an individual or a collective level, and calls on us to assume our responsibilities.

Over the past several weeks, we have been closely following the exceptionally violent reaction to the film in the United States, during a presidential election campaign in full swing. In this context, UniFrance and all of its members wish to pledge their full support to Maimouna Doucoure and to reaffirm their commitment to supporting the freedom of artistic creation and expression. This is because one of the great strengths of cinema is its capacity to reach beyond borders and boundaries, and to offer a critical and constructive viewpoint on the world and the excesses of todays societies.

UniFrances purpose is to promote French artists and their films to international audiences. When Maimouna Doucoure invites and encourages us to reflect on social issues, it is therefore of essential importance to UniFrance that her work is able to travel the globe and to speak freely without the risk of receiving threats in all of the countries and regions in which her film is shown. It is crucial that this space of artistic creation and distribution is preserved, not only for this young filmmaker but also for all artists around the world. This is a battle to defend freedom and diversity.

Furthermore, we consider that the call to boycott the film and to have it removed from the Netflix catalogue, in addition to the hate messages, insults, and unfounded speculations about the intent of the director and her producers, pose a serious threat to the very space that cinema seeks to open up: a space of discussion, reflection, and of helping us to see beyond our own preconceived ideas.

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U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to a news conference in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Tuesday, July 14, 2020.

A letter to President Donald Trump that tested positive for the deadly poison ricin was detected at an off-site facility that screens mail addressed to the White House, law enforcement officials told NBC News Saturday.

The letter tested positive in both a field test and a laboratory test, one official said, according to NBC News. It's unclear when the letter was intercepted.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation said in a statement that the Secret Service, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating the origins of the letter. The letter was intercepted at the screening facility and was not sent to the White House.

Investigators believe the letter was sent from Canada, The New York Times reported. A person suspected of sending the ricin letter has been detained trying to enter the U.S. from Canada, a federal law enforcement official told NBC News.

Other letters that also tested positive for ricin were discovered elsewhere, but only one was apparently addressed to a political figure. The others were addressed to prisons, a law enforcement official said. The official did not say how many letters were found.



The detained person is also suspected of sending the ricin letters to prisons.

Representatives of the White House and the Secret Service did not immediately return CNBC's request for comment. Representatives of the Postal Inspection Service also could not be immediately reached for comment.

"The FBI and our U.S. Secret Service and U.S. Postal Inspection Service partners are investigating a suspicious letter received at a U.S. government mail facility," the FBI said in a statement on Twitter. "At this time, there is no known threat to public safety."
(Natural News) Attorney General William Barr called lockdown measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus the greatest intrusion on civil liberties in American history, comparing it to slavery. He also likened stay-at-home orders to being put under house arrest and warned that a medical pandemic doesnt give a blank check to executive rules that infringe on civil liberties.

The attorney general made these comments Sep. 16, during a Constitution Day event hosted by the conservative Hillsdale College. He gave a speech focusing on the role of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights and criticizing the selective application of the law by some district attorneys. Attorney General Barr then answered questions from the audience after delivering his remarks.

Attorney General Barr also disagreed with letting medical professionals decide on business openings and closures during the event. The person in the white coat is not the grand seer who can come up with the right decision for society, he said, adding that a free people makes its decisions through its elected representatives. His statement elicited applause from audience members.

Barr: A staunch opponent of liberty-infringing lockdowns

The head of the Department of Justice has been a vocal critic of coronavirus lockdowns for some time now, as such measures infringe on civil liberties.

In April, he released a memorandum exhorting Justice Department prosecutors to watch out for state and local regulations that possibly violate the constitutional rights and civil liberties of individual citizens. The document added that despite the implementation of policies unthinkable in regular times, no crisis or pandemic will nullify protections enshrined in the U.S. Constitution.

During a May question and answer session on Twitter, the attorney general said that state and local governments had the right to impose reasonable and temporary restrictions during times of emergency, but they must justify why these restrictions are truly necessary. Furthermore, he mentioned that the Justice Department will be on the lookout for restrictions that are too widespread, too generalized or unduly discriminatory towards liberty and will undertake appropriate action once a rule infringes civil liberties.

Now that the curve has been flattened and the hospital system has not been overwhelmed, it is time to start rolling back some of those restrictions, Barr emphasized.

Coronavirus lockdowns violate peoples fundamental rights

Some federal judges are of the same opinion as Barr: Lockdown orders issued by state and local governments violate the fundamental rights of citizens guaranteed by the Constitution.

A Sep. 14 ruling by District Judge William Stickman IV found that coronavirus lockdown orders by Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf and Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine were unconstitutional. The order limiting mass gatherings violated the right of assembly guaranteed in the First Amendment while orders instructing non-essential businesses to remain closed and people to stay home violated clauses in the Fourteenth Amendment, according to Stickman.

He also added that restrictions put in place during periods of emergency may remain long after they have passed, and any liberties relinquished during such times may be hard to regain.

Meanwhile, District Judge Gary Sharpe found that coronavirus restrictions implemented by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, New York Attorney General Letitia James and New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio in July were unconstitutional. In his decision, Sharpe ruled that the restrictions limiting indoor religious gatherings violated the First and Fourteenth Amendments and discriminated against religious individuals by limiting their opportunities to gather and worship.

As a result of Sharpes ruling, the state of New York has permitted indoor religious services up to 50 percent capacity  but with other public health protocols such as social distancing in place.

The Constitution guarantees freedom for all U.S. citizens, whether or not a pandemic is in place, and no state or local order in the name of public health will supersede it.

Sources include:

TheEpochTimes.com

NBCWashington.com

Justice.gov 1

NZ.News.Yahoo.com

Justice.gov 2 [PDF]

FoxNews.com
Houston marathon sees two record-breaking moms redefine... Keira DAmato and Sara Hall are still processing what happened Sunday. On the same course in...
By Asif Shahzad

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan International Airlines, the Islamic nation's flag carrier, will not appeal against a six-month ban imposed on its lucrative flights to European locations, three officials said, in a blow to the ailing airline's pre-pandemic turnaround plans.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) banned PIA from flying to the bloc in June over safety concerns, days after the country grounded dozens of its pilots over allegedly dubious qualifications.

"We've decided that filing an appeal at this stage will be counter-productive," PIA spokesman Abdullah Khan told Reuters.

The deadline to appeal expired on Aug 31.

Two civil aviation officials told Reuters that all the stakeholders agreed that an appeal would be a futile exercise until reforms in the regulatory framework and a full probe into the pilots' scandal were completed.

The civil aviation officials declined to be named. The government and the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority did not respond to requests for comment.

Opting not to appeal means the ban will remain in force until the end of 2020 - a year in which PIA was to implement a new business plan aimed at making the company profitable by 2023 - via a route rationalization, increasing flights and adding new sectors like Amsterdam.

With more than $4 billion in accumulated losses, PIA was already struggling financially when flights were grounded in March because of the pandemic. Just as it resumed operations in May, a domestic PIA flight crash in Karachi killed 97 of 99 people on board.

An initial inquiry pointed to a number of safety failures, and sparked a disclosure from authorities that nearly a third of PIA's pilots may have falsified their qualifications, prompting EASA, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and other regulators to ban PIA flights.

PIA had halted commercial flights to the United States before the ban, but was flying charter flights and had planned to restart operations there soon.

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The European ban hurt its revenues from overseas sectors such as London, Manchester and Birmingham that were to be a cornerstone of PIA's turnaround strategy.

BREAK-EVEN

The business plan put together by the PIA management last year saw those UK routes and new European destinations as key to its turnaround strategy, which also involved inducting at least seven new aircraft to its fleet by 2022.

The year "2020 would be a break-even year followed by return to profitability in 2023," said the turnaround plan, reviewed by Reuters. It has not been made public.

The expansion plans are now on hold, and the airline plans to revise its turnaround strategy in consultation with the International Air Transport Association (IATA), said PIA's Khan.

IATA, which is to begin an operational safety audit of PIA this week, said the audit process was standard practice after aircrafts of registered airlines met with accidents.

In an emailed response to Reuters, Albert Tjoeng, IATA's Assistant Director of Corporate Communications for Asia Pacific, said IATA could not confirm or discuss the body's consulting projects keeping in view commercial confidentiality.

"It's a routine audit consequent to which each airline gets an operational clearance certificate. PIA teams are all geared up for the audit," said PIA's Khan.

As stated in its turnaround strategy, PIA's plans to divest non-core businesses such as food catering and ground handling remain on track and it is also set to hire an international consultant to advise on legacy debt, said Khan.

The business plan noted that PIA's share of international flight traffic into Pakistan had fallen to 27% in 2019 down from 42% a few years prior.

Aside from operational issues, the report cited competition from Middle Eastern airlines as one of the main reasons behind the market share decline, and it proposed that Pakistan revisit its open skies strategy to allow PIA to be more competitive.

The recent bans however, risk further denting PIA's market share with carriers such as Virgin Atlantic recently announcing direct flights into Pakistan to fill the PIA void.

The new projections of PIA's market share are being calculated, its spokesman said, adding the airline's management believes the decline on an annual basis will not be "as brutal as predicted," due to the pandemic slowing down global traffic.

(Reporting by Asif Shahzad; Editing by Euan Rocha and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
The 2020 version of the book puts emphasis on how the Left and environmentalists use concern for the environment to paint their movement green to cover a red socialist core

Author William L. Kovacs provides a 2020 update on his former work with The Lefts Little Red Book on Forming a New Green Republic ($9.99, paperback, 9781632214416; $4.99, e-book, 9781632114423).

Kovacs was recently reminded of a small book he wrote for the U.S. Chamber entitled, The Environmentalists Little Green Book. He wrote it in response to the radical leftist protests of 2000, claiming that humans were a cancer to the earth and that the world would soon come to an end. Seeing the current conditions of society, he decided to update the book, now focusing on the strategies of the radical left to hide their socialist regime under an environmentalist cloak.

The 2020 version of the book puts emphasis on how the Left and environmentalists use concern for the environment to paint their movement green to cover a red socialist core, said Kovacs.

William L. Kovacs served as the senior vice president for environment, technology & regulatory affairs at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce; chief-counsel for the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Transportation and Commerce; chairman of the Virginia Hazardous Waste Facilities Siting Board and a partner in DC law firms. He retired from the U.S. Chamber in 2017, but continues to write, including his recent book, Reform the Kakistocracy: Rule by the Least Able or Least Principled Citizens.

Liberty Hill Publishing, a division of Salem Media Group, is a leader in the print-on-demand, self-publishing industry. The Lefts Little Red Book on Forming a New Green Republic is available online through amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.
More than 100 million Americans will not be able to download two of the worlds most popular apps from Sunday.

The administration of United States President Donald Trump has banned two Chinese apps  TikTok and WeChat  from app stores.

Trump is accusing them of collecting data from users that can be retrieved by Beijing. TikTok is used to download videos and is hugely popular in the US while WeChat is widely used as a chat app, payment portal and news source.

Does the presidents decision rob Americans of their freedoms?

And will lead to an east-west divide of the internet?

Presenter: Halla Mohieddeen

Guests:

Mitch Stoltz  a San Franciso-based attorney focusing on copyright and free speech

Manya Koetse  a China social trend and online media watcher based in Amsterdam

Dipayan Ghosh  leads the Digital Platforms & Democracy Project at Harvard University
WASHINGTON : The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has thrust the Senate into uncharted political terrain, with no recent precedent for a vacancy on the high court so close to a presidential election.

President Donald Trump on Saturday urged the Republican-run Senate to consider without delay" his upcoming nomination, even with the Nov. 3 election nearing.

We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us," Trump tweeted, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!"

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said in a statement Friday night that Trumps nominee "will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate." But he did not say when or how that would happen, and there's significant uncertainty about what comes next.

A look at the confirmation process and what we know and don't know about what's to come:

CAN THE SENATE FILL THE SEAT BEFORE THE ELECTION?

Yes, but it would require a breakneck pace. Supreme Court nominations have taken around 70 days to move through the Senate, and the last, for Brett Kavanaugh, took longer. The election is 45 days away. Yet there are no set rules for how long the process should take once President Donald Trump announces his pick, and some nominations have moved more quickly. It will come down to politics and votes.

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO CONFIRM A NOMINEE?

Only a majority. Republicans control the Senate by a 53-47 margin, meaning they could lose up to three votes and still confirm a justice, if Vice President Mike Pence were to break a 50-50 tie.

Supreme Court nominations used to need 60 votes for confirmation if any senator objected, but McConnell changed Senate rules in 2017 to allow the confirmation of justices with 51 votes. He did so as Democrats threatened to filibuster Trumps first nominee, Justice Neil Gorsuch.

HOW DOES THE CAMPAIGN FACTOR IN?

Republicans are defending 25 of the 38 seats that are on the ballot this year, and many of their vulnerable members have been eager to end the fall session and return home to the campaign trail. The Senate is scheduled to recess in mid-October, though that schedule could change.

Still, many of the most vulnerable senators may be hesitant to vote on a nominee before facing voters in November, and their views could ultimately determine the timeline for action. Others may want to campaign on their eventual vote. McConnell himself is among those up for reelection this year.

CAN THE SENATE FILL THE VACANCY AFTER THE ELECTION?

Yes. Republicans could vote on Trump's nominee in what's known as the lame duck" session that takes place after the November election and before the next Congress takes office on Jan. 3. No matter what happens in this year's election, Republicans are still expected be in charge of the Senate during that period.

The Senate would have until Jan. 20, the date of the presidential inauguration, to act on Trumps nominee. If Trump were reelected and his pick had not been confirmed by the inauguration, he could renominate his pick as soon as his second term began.

HOW DOES THE PROCESS WORK?

When a vacancy occurs on the Supreme Court, the president is given authority under the Constitution to nominate someone to fill it. It is up to the Senate Judiciary Committee to vet the nominee and hold confirmation hearings. Once the committee approves the nomination, it goes to the Senate floor for a final confirmation vote. This process passes through several time-consuming steps. Traditionally senators want to meet and assess the nominee themselves, which requires weeks of meetings around the Capitol.

And thats all assuming the process goes smoothly. In 2018, Kavanaughs confirmation fight took weeks longer than expected after Christine Blasey Ford accused him of sexually assaulting her when they were teens. Kavanaugh denied the accusation and was confirmed by the Senate in a 51-49 vote.

Reached by phone late Friday, the Judiciary chairman, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., declined to comment on the plans. Graham is another Republican up for reelection.

DIDNT MCCONNELL SAY IN 2016 THAT THE SENATE SHOULDNT HOLD SUPREME COURT VOTES IN AN ELECTION YEAR?

He did. McConnell stunned Washington in the hours after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February 2016 when he announced the Senate would not vote on then-President Barack Obamas potential nominee because the voters should have their say by electing the next president.

McConnells strategy paid off, royally, for his party. Obama nominated Judge Merrick Garland to fill the seat, but he never received a hearing or a vote. Soon after his inauguration, Trump nominated Gorsuch to fill Scalias seat.

On Friday, four years later, McConnell said the Senate will vote on Trumps nominee, even though its weeks, not months before an election.

SO WHAT CHANGED SINCE 2016?

McConnell says its different because the Senate and the presidency are held by the same party, which was not the case when a vacancy opened under Obama in 2016. Democrats say this reasoning is laughable and say the vacancy should be kept open until after the inauguration.

Certainly politics are different now, with the country in the grips of a deadly pandemic. The U.S. Congress has not been operating at full speed since the spring, with much of the usual work  including on committees  being done remotely to avoid spreading the virus.

Absent a robust legislative agenda, the court battles have become a focal point for McConnell, fulfilling a longstanding conservative priority. He is building his legacy on confirming conservative judicial nominees. On his watch, the Senate has confirmed more than 200 judges for federal appellate and district courts.

WHO ARE THE SENATORS TO WATCH?

With the slim 53-seat majority in the Senate, the Republicans have few votes to spare. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah and others will be among those senators to watch.

Its not just the qualifications of Trumps nominee but the political calculation of a vote so linked to an election that could shape their position. Collins is in a tight race for her own reelection in Maine, and she and Murkowski have long been watched for their support of a womans right to an abortion under Roe vs. Wade.

Murkowski and Romney have been critical of Trump and protective of the institution of the Senate.

Others facing close reelection contests in their states, including Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado, could face pressure not to vote ahead of the election or in its immediate aftermath, especially if they were to lose their seats.

WHAT DID TRUMP SAY FRIDAY? BIDEN?

Trump has not yet said how he will move forward. He called Ginsburg an amazing woman" and did not mention filling her vacant Supreme Court seat when he spoke to reporters following a rally in Bemidji, Minnesota.

Democratic nominee Joe Biden said the winner of the November election should choose Ginsburgs replacement. There is no doubt  let me be clear  that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider," Biden said Friday.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.

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Hannibal, N.Y.  A drunken driver killed a 16-year-old girl early Saturday morning in a hit-and-run crash in Oswego County, troopers said.

Kaydence E. Nichols, of Hannibal, died after she was hit by a pickup truck while walking on the side of State Route 176 in Hannibal, said the New York State Police.

A second teenager, Riley P. Trumble, was also hit by the truck. Trumble, 17, of Hannibal, is in critical condition at a Syracuse hospital, troopers said.

The teenagers both went to Hannibal High School. The district wrote on Facebook about the unfathomable loss" to the districts Warrior family.

We ask you to please keep the families in your thoughts and prayers during this unthinkable tragedy, officials wrote.

The accident happened just after 12:30 a.m. on Route 176, a two-lane rural highway.

Christopher J. Rogers II was driving a 2015 Dodge Ram pickup truck west State Route 176 when he struck the two teenagers as they walked on the shoulder of the road, troopers said. A third person who was with Nichols and Trumble was not injured.

Rogers immediately drove away, troopers said, and did not stop his truck.

Nichols was pronounced dead at the scene.

Trumble, severely injured, was rushed by Menter Ambulance to Upstate University Hospital. Hes in critical but stable condition, troopers said.

Rogers and his pickup truck were found shortly after the crash. Rogers, 29, of 217 Germandale Drive, Fulton, was arrested by troopers and charged with:

Second-degree vehicular manslaughter, a felony

Second-degree vehicular assault, a felony

Leaving the scene of a fatal motor vehicle accident, a felony

Driving while intoxicated, a misdemeanor

The state police are looking to speak with the driver and/or passengers of a car that was driving closely behind Rogers' pickup truck at the time of the crash, troopers said. The sedan was spotted driving southwest behind the white Dodge Ram truck.

Troopers have asked anyone with information about the deadly crash to call (315) 366-6000.

The state police were assisted by the Fulton Police Department, the Oswego County Sheriffs Office, the Oswego County District Attorneys Office, the Hannibal Fire Company and the Granby Center Fire Department.

Did you know Kaydence Nichols? We would like to tell readers about her and share her story. Please reach us at citynews@syracuse.com.

Staff writer Samantha House covers breaking news, crime and public safety. Have a tip, a story idea, a question or a comment? Reach her at shouse@syracuse.com,.
European Commission estimates that the labor shortage within the ICT sector in Poland accounts for 50,000. And within the whole EU, this gap is as broad as a few hundred thousand IT professionals. No wonder competition over programmers is very tight, in almost every market. And companies who need them do their best to keep them. But to make it happen, HR specialists have to attract them first. How to draw programmers' attention, the right way?

Let's have a look at some of the job offers developers see in various sources. These are, for example, hiring agencies' websites, general recruitment portals, employers' "career" sections, and specialist IT platforms. And more and more professionals limit their searches to well-established employment-oriented social services, such as LinkedIn. But modern IT recruitment is certainly not limited to such standardized actions as publishing job ads. Some recruiters also tempt passive candidates, taking more resourceful steps. This may be a part of the Executive/Direct Search when specialized headhunters convince valuable employees to change their positions. Even though they have great jobs already. To do so, first, recruiters need to use their extensive contact network, enlarged and enhanced for years. As well as profound knowledge of various industries. They must also know precisely what actions are effective in taking over IT professionals, even those with unique skills. And this is exactly what Sowelo's experts are masters of.

IT recruitment: money, money, money

In many cases, what draws the attention of people reading IT job ads, is the information on remuneration offered. It may sound weird but in Poland, it's not common to reveal the salary when posting a job offer. This policy of hiding has many disadvantages but there are some signs that it's giving way to bigger openness. At least we may think so looking at many IT job ads, disclosing the amounts.

One of the reasons is probably the fact that these offers are very attractive in terms of financial conditions. For senior positions, they climb to as much as 26,000-28,000 PLN + VAT within a B2B contract. These are the cases of Java Developer in Warsaw or Technical Solution Architect in Wroclaw positions, available in 2020. But jobs with earnings of about 20,000 PLN a month are available for various IT positions. Even with a lower level of expertise or skills required. Some of them include Test Automation Developer, Test Automation Engineer, Cloud DevOps Engineer, and Lead Frontend Developer. PHP Technical Lead, Mobile Developer, IT Administrator, Android Engineer, Atlassian Administrator System, Senior Network Architect, Fullstack Developer are others.

Within IT recruitment, issuers of job offers often give candidates the freedom to choose the form of cooperation. In the B2B, contract, the amount the employee receives is usually significantly higher than within the employment contract. All this is clearly stated within the ad. Sometimes, the amount is placed next to the job title, and visible right away, in the search results. This way, the probability an IT specialist will click on the offer to find out more is higher. And what do we see within the body of the job ad? How do recruiters tempt IT candidates apart from money?

IT recruitment: benefits beyond salary

Emphasizing remuneration is a good idea since money is the most important factor for the majority of tech workers. A study by Hired showed that for as much as 53% of them, salary comes first. Only about half of that percentage (26%) said that "benefits beyond salary" are crucial. In between these two factors, there were the "company culture" (42%), and the "opportunity to learn new skills" (39%).

For many, the proper company culture simply means being open. For example, the freedom to chose working hours, remote or on-site work, and work-life balance, in general. No dress-code, comfort modern office with playroom, gym, shower, canteen, free snacks, bike parking, and even massages also matter. On the other hand, IT people are eager to broaden their skills, take part in in-house, and external training. And the possibility to learn new programming languages may tip the scales. IT people also appreciate good-quality equipment, and the ability to choose working tools on their own.

More company-wise, flat structure and small teams are attractive, as is taking part in interesting, innovative projects, preferably international. The feeling of doing something meaningful, and knowing the direction the company is heading to may also be important. As well as the belief that being a part of this team, we are truly changing the world. For example, when we're working on applications that will enhance the lives of millions.

Some companies even offer the ability to develop employees' ideas within 10 or more percent of working time! That truly matters as it reflects the employer's interest in the candidates' needs, important for many of them. And many IT people want to express their creativity to feel emotional fulfillment and be able to fully engage.

IT recruitment: going places

Knowing what is truly important for IT workers gives recruiters the competitive advantage they cannot miss. This is the case of Sowelo consultants, aware of global IT trends, and able to adapt to them. Also within the various recruitment materials they prepare. This IT recruitment company creates eye-catching and very effective job advertisements and compelling videos. They may be placed in many services, e.g. on social media and recruitment platforms.

This may be a part of the Sowelo's extensive Recruitment Process Outsourcing package based on cooperation with world-class recruiters. Choosing this exquisite offer, clients may also take advantage of 20-40% savings and reducing recruitment time to 3 weeks! Even though its experts plan the recruitment process from scratch, starting with crafting candidates' competency profiles.

But Sowelo's clients may also use the IT recruitment materials to promote their brands within professional Employer Branding activities. They aim to show the client's organization as one it's worth joining and be a part of. Stressing the brand's outstanding points is crucial and we'd better communicate it at the early stages of IT careers.

Some IT companies look for their new employees at technical universities or colleges, offering students internships or full-time employment. This way, they "reserve" the talents to hit the job market with them. Another way is organizing internal courses for people who want to start within the industry but need training first.

Hackathons and other competitions, hack days, fairs, conferences, and workshops are other methods to attract ambitious IT people. But also to mingle and establish new contacts. And Sowelo company's consultants who work on their positions for years, have huge IT employees databases. Thanks to that, they can find the right person even for the niche job opening lightning fast.
By Barani Krishnan

Investing.com - Make my day, Saudi Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman told oil bears Thursday, daring them to bet against higher crude prices. Renegade Libyan general Khalifa Haftar may have just given oils short sellers a reason, striking a deal with the government in Tripoli on Friday that could bring another million barrels to the market.

Haftar said he will lift a blockade on Libyan crude production after an agreement with the countrys deputy premier, Bloomberg reported, adding that there was no clarity on when exports will restart and whether the government-run National Oil Co. would be included in the deal. Libya was pumping as much 1.1 million barrels a day before a blockade imposed by forces loyal to Haftar.

News of the peace deal was enough to bring crude prices off their highs for the day and to a mixed close.

New York-traded West Texas Intermediate, the key indicator for U.S. crude price, settled up 14 cents at $41.11 per barrel, after a session high of $41.49. For the week, WTI rose $3.78, or 10.1%.

London-traded Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, closed the New York trading session down 15 cents at $43.15 per barrel. For the week, Brent gained $3.32, or 8.3%.

The oil rally was heightened by this weeks OPEC+ meeting, where Abdulaziz threatened to make life "hell" for oil bears who bet against the cartel.

I will make this market jumpy. I'm going to make sure whoever gambles on this market will be ouching like hell," the Saudi Energy Minister said, before adding the "Make my day" quip made famous by Hollywood star Clint Eastwood in the Dirty Harry detective movies of the 1970s and 80s.

Crude prices fell a combined 13% in two previous weeks as the end of the summer driving season in the United States cast doubts about gasoline demand.

Prices were also weakened by signs that OPEC members such as Iraq, Nigeria and the UAE  as well as the cartels key ally Russia  were producing beyond levels pledged under their pact.

Story continues

In its monthly report published Monday, OPEC revised down its outlook for global oil demand to an average of 90.2 million barrels per day in 2020. Thats down 400,000 bpd from the previous months estimate and reflects a contraction of 9.5 million bpd year-on-year.

But in Thursdays live streamed virtual meeting, Abdulaziz along with Alexander Novak and Suhail Mohamed Mazrouei, his counterparts from Russia and UAE, respectively, sought to assure that all the cheaters within OPEC will make up for production quotas they had flouted.

The alliance also committed to continue the April agreement into December, despite some like the Saudis deciding to raise output.

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Joe Biden has been relatively quiet. Unlike most challengers, who trail the incumbent and have to attack, Biden has steadily led President Donald Trump in polls. So Trump has been doing the attacking, while Bidenaware that Trumps attacks are largely impotent and self-destructivehas rarely felt the need to fight back. But Biden is well equipped to counterattack, and at a CNN town hall on Thursday night, he showed how hed do it. Its a preview of how their debates might go. Here are some of the topics Biden covered.

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1. Violence vs. virus. In the coronavirus pandemic, Trump has dumped responsibility for testing and protective equipment on governors. He has accused Biden of violating freedom and local control by suggesting a federal mandate to wear masks. But on a different topic, violent unrest in cities, Trump takes the opposite approach: He threatens to send in federal forces (in some cases, he has actually done it), and he boasts that he has used that threat to force governors to call in the National Guard. That raises a question: If Trump thinks a few deaths in protest-related violence justify a forceful federal response, why does he shrink from responding that way to a disease that has killed nearly 200,000 Americans?

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At the town hall, Biden targeted that paradox. He noted that universal use of masks would save around 100,000 lives, according to projections. I would call every governor in the country into the White House [and] say, You should be putting mandates out,  he said. And if they dont, Id call the mayors in their towns and their cities and say, Put out mandates.  Biden said he would impose his own mask mandate on federal land and in federal buildings. He left it to Trump to explain why the federal government, while invading cities, should let hundreds of thousands of Americans die of the plague.

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2. Freedom to live a normal life. The town hall moderator, Anderson Cooper, asked Biden about Attorney General William Barrs complaint that stay-at-home orders violated civil liberties. Cooper noted that Barr had compared such orders to slavery, and he asked Biden about similar objections to mask mandates. Biden explained that he didnt advocate a nationwide lockdown and that coronavirus restrictions should vary according to local prevalence of the disease. But then he went on the attack.

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Biden savaged Barrs tasteless comparison of temporary stay-at-home orders to slaves who were put in chains. He also argued for masks as a civic obligation: Its not to protect you so much as to make sure you dont infect someone else. I call that a patriotic requirement. But Biden moved on to a larger point. The pandemic, he explained, has taken away the freedom of your kid to go to school, the freedom to see your mom or dad in the hospital, the freedom just to walk around your neighborhood. By wearing masks, we can get those freedoms back. By resisting masks, Trump is imprisoning us in our homes.

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3. Politics vs. science. Lately, Trump has accused Democrats of opposing science and progress because they worry about his pressure to rush out a vaccine. At the town hall, Biden deflected that attack by distinguishing between Trump and his health advisers, led by Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases. I dont trust the president on vaccines, said Biden. I trust Dr. Fauci. If Fauci says the vaccine is safe, I take the vaccine.  We should listen to the scientists, not to the president. Biden also praised Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for advocating masks in spite of Trumps complaints about them. And Biden scolded Barr, along with Trump, for sniping at recommendations of the scientific community.

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4. Right-wing militias. Responding to questions about unrest and crime, Biden defended the integrity of police, distinguished protests from looting and burning, and pointed out that violent crime had declined in the Obama-Biden years. Violence of any kind, no matter who it is coming from, is wrong, he said. People should be held accountable [for] burning down automobile lots, smashing windows, setting buildings on fire.

Then he turned the question on Trump. This is Donald Trumps America, he said. He noted that Trumps adviser, Kellyanne Conway, had said on TV that chaos and violence were good for Trump because they elevated the presidents campaign issuelaw and orderin voters minds. Biden also noted that Trump was inciting violence, and he challenged the president to speak out against it. The president is yet to condemn  the far-right and the white supremacists and those guys walking around with the AK-47s, said Biden.

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5. Wall Street. Trump talks a lot about the stock market soaring under his presidency. But Biden noted that many people dont own stocks. He called attention to underpaid health care workers, demanded a $15 minimum wage, and said the presidential election was between Scranton and Park Avenue. All that Trump could see from Park Avenue is Wall Street, said Biden. He noted that hed be the first person without an Ivy League degree to be elected president. He bristled at guys like Trump, who inherited everything and squandered what they inherited, and who look down their nose at us.

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6. Respecting the military. Trump associates himself with veterans, the flag, and defense spending. But hes vulnerable on this topic: He used deception to avoid the Vietnam draft, criticized then-Sen. John McCain for having been captured, and, according to multiple sources quoted in the Atlantic, has called Americans who fought and died in wars losers and suckers. At the town hall, Biden blasted Trump for using those terms to disparage guys like my son, who won the Bronze Star in Iraq. He also noted that several generals, including some who served under Trump, had denounced Trump for abusing the military to tear-gas American protesters.

Biden didnt face any stiff rebuttals on Thursday night. The attendees posed questions and then listened politely, while Cooper asked follow-ups but didnt press hard. In the debates, Trump will be much more aggressive. Biden might let many of these attacks go unanswered because Trump talks fast, lies a lot, and alienates viewers with gratuitous venom. But the town hall showed that if Biden needs to throw a counterpunch, hes got plenty he can deliver.
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on Friday at the age of 87 due to complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer. In the hours after the court announced her death, conservative media began discussing the prospect of President Donald Trump filling her seat.

Ned Ryun, the CEO of the conservative organization American Majority, said in an interview with Fox News Tucker Carlson that he expects and hopes that Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will move to confirm a replacement prior to the upcoming election. With Trump and McConnell together, and obviously the [Republican] majority in the Senate, this is an opportunity and I say they seize the moment, Ryun told Carlson. Carlson himself foreshadowed the upcoming conflict over Ginsburgs seat and called into question NPRs reporting that Ginsburg had told her granddaughter in the days before her death, My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed. Carlson seems to have misunderstood the reporting, suggesting that NPR claimed Ginsburg said this literally on her deathbed; he asserted that he will choose not to believe that she said that, because I dont think that people on their deathbeds are thinking about whos president. He went on to predict, This will be used as a cudgel by the left.

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this is an opportunity and I say they seize the moment pic.twitter.com/jDigKqcaLO  Angelo Carusone (@GoAngelo) September 19, 2020

Conservative journalists worked to rebut arguments that the Senate should wait until after the election to name a justice. Democrats have pointed to a statement that McConnell made in 2016 when he torpedoed Obamas Supreme Court nomination of Judge Merrick Garland: The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new President. RealClearInvestigations writer Mark Hemingway claimed in a tweet that The McConnell rule was always no SCOTUS noms in an election year but only if WH and Senate are controlled by different parties. Daily Wire reporter Ryan Saavedra retweeted the post and added that the media is already intentionally lying about Mitch McConnell said in the past. Federalist senior editor Mollie Hemingway echoed the sentiment during an appearance on Fox News. Fact checkers at the New York Times have previously disputed similar claims made by McConnell himself, who since 2016 has tried to shift his justification for blocking Garland with the different-parties argument. McConnell released a statement on Friday night noting that he intends to hold a vote for Trumps nominee in the Senate. On Fox News, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz offered one argument for installing a new justice before the election, which Washington Post columnist Marc Thiessen praised on Twitter:

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Ted Cruz with an excellent point. If election is litigated can't risk having just 8 justices and the possibility of a deadlocked court. Could cause a constitutional crisis.  Marc Thiessen (@marcthiessen) September 19, 2020

The Washington Examiner published an op-ed by Eddie Scarry titled, McConnell and Trump Need to Fill Ruth Bader Ginsburgs Seat, which seemed to allow that the Senate majority leader wasnt hewing to any rule in 2016, nor would he be in 2020:

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True, McConnells justification in 2016 for blocking then-President Barack Obamas nominee to the court was that we were in the heat of an election and that the choice should be left up to voters. It was a naked power grab. Theres no way around it. And it would be this time, too. But lets not kid ourselves.

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However, Scarry wrote that Democrats would be just as power-hungry if the shoe were on the other foot.

Rod Dreher, writing in his blog at the American Conservative, seemed somewhat conflicted at the prospect of an immediate Supreme Court confirmation, noting in a post titled OMG RBG! that he supports filling the seat before the election but worries that it could hurt the country:

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As a conservative and a Christian, I am all in for what McConnell proposes. I have said in this space before that as the country moves left, I believe the federal courts are going to be the last line of defense for religious liberty and the things for which social conservatives care most. The radicalization of the Democratic Party has deepened my conviction on this point. Thinking about the country, though, I cannot see how doing this before the election serves the common good. But: do we really have a common good anymore?

So replacing RBG would be a naked power grab that wouldnt serve the common good, and the GOP should do it anyway. OMG, indeed.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  A West Brighton resident has been returned to Staten Island to face murder charges in the fatal shooting of another man two months ago in their community.

Anthony McCorkle, 52, of Caroline Street, was extradited to New York from Philadelphia on Friday in connection with Barry Moultries death, said police.

Authorities allege McCorkle gunned down Moultrie, 35, near the intersection of Castleton Avenue and Barker Street in West Brighton on July 22 at around 11:25 a.m.

The victim was outside a cell-phone store.

Moultrie, a devoted father of five and West Brighton resident, suffered a gunshot wound to the torso.

He was taken to Richmond University Medical Center in West Brighton where he succumbed to his wounds, said police.

Law enforcement sources said Moultrie was killed as part of a dispute over a woman.

After shooting Moultrie, the gunman fled in an unknown direction in a green, four-door Acura with Pennsylvania license plates, an NYPD spokesman previously told the Advance/SILive.com.

A police spokesman said Saturday that McCorkle was nabbed in Philadelphia on July 31, nine days after the shooting.

Several task forces orchestrated the bust, including the New York-New Jersey Regional Task Force and the Eastern Pennsylvania Regional Task Force, said police.

McCorkle remained in custody in Pennsylvania for seven weeks after refusing extradition to New York, police said.

Authorities ultimately succeeded in bringing him to Staten Island on Friday.

McCorkle is being held without bail after being arraigned Saturday in Criminal Court.

He was charged with second-degree murder and two counts of second-degree criminal weapon possession.

His next court date is Thursday.

McCorkles lawyer did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment on Saturday.

Family members said Moultrie was born and raised in Brooklyn before moving to Staten Island. He was one of five siblings.

The father of five children himself, Moultrie made sure, no matter what, his kids were taken care of, his sister, Jasmin Lawton, said.

All five youngsters  four boys and a girl - lived with him. The boys are three, five, six and eight years old, and the girl is 12, said Lawton.

Earlier this month, detectives contacted Lawton.

They said her brothers suspected killer was in custody in Pennsylvania. However, investigators said they could not identify to her the suspect due to his pending extradition.

Im relieved and were all relieved, Lawton told the Advance/SILive then. All of us (his siblings) and the rest of the family will do whatever it takes to make sure that the killer gets the maximum time locked up.

Its something we dont have to worry about anymore; that his killer is out there, but then he shouldnt have even been killed, she said. I think Barry would be happy knowing that they got the guy who killed him.
Senator Susan Collins (R., Maine) said Saturday she believes Republicans should hold off on voting to replace Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg until after the 2020 elections.

In order for the American people to have faith in their elected officials, we must act fairly and consistently  no matter which political party is in power, Collins said in a statement posted to Twitter. President Trump has the constitutional authority to make a nomination to fill the Supreme Court vacancy, and I would have no objection to the Senate Judiciary Committees beginning the process of reviewing his nominees credentials.

My statement on the Supreme Court vacancy: pic.twitter.com/jvYyDN5gG4  Sen. Susan Collins (@SenatorCollins) September 19, 2020

Given the proximity of the presidential election  I do not believe that the Senate should vote on the nominee prior to the election. In fairness to the American people, who will either be re-electing the President or selecting a new one, the decision on a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court should be made by the President who is elected in November 3.

More from National Review
Thousands of skilled migrants with valid visas to come to Australia are stranded overseas, needing government permission to travel back and reunite with their families and jobs.

Under measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic since March 20, foreign nationals have required a travel exemption to enter Australia even if they already have a visa, though the Department of Home Affairs has refused to disclose the legal basis for this requirement. This includes both short-term visitors and long-term residents on visas.

A spokesperson for the Australian Border Force said the agency had received 109,743 requests for a travel exemption to enter Australia as of August 31. Of those, ABF granted permission for 16,860 people to enter Australia, including 5142 cases associated with critical skills or industry sectors and 3419 on compassionate grounds.

Soren and Ingri Madsen with their children, Philip and William, in their Sydney home. Their eldest son, Victor, has a visa to join them but has been refused a travel exemption to enter the country. Credit:Janie Barrett

A request can cover more than one person and there can be multiple requests from the same person; resubmitted applications counted as new requests until the system changed in mid-July.
Painesville Township is getting a new plow truck.

Trustees voted to use funding from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act to purchase a new plow truck. The decision was made at the Sept. 15 meeting.

The decision stemmed from concern regarding the safety of workers in the township service department.

Administrator Mike Manary said the township did not have enough trucks to match the number of employees, therefore, the employees would share trucks. Manary said this led to concerns about spreading the virus.

We had to separate the service department into two shifts, Manary said. Some of the guys are sharing a truck. It would be for the public safety and our employee safety to have separate trucks and prevent any type of exposure to someone else.

The new truck will limit exposure, Manary said.

We dont have to worry about people being cross-contaminated or being exposed to someone else in a truck, Manary said. If one, two or three of them went out sick, we would really struggle to be able to plow the roads throughout the township and keep them salted.

Trustee Josh Pennock said if the employees contracted the virus, then multiple workers could potentially get sick. He said this could cause safety concerns throughout the township because roads may not get plowed.

[This provides] a safer working environment for our employees, while at the same time ensuring that we had an adequate number of trucks to keep our roads clear and passable in a snowstorm for our residents, Pennock said.

Pennock said the decision to use the money provided by the CARES Act to purchase the truck puts the township in a position to be prepared for the worst.

Were using the COVID relief money to prepare for what could be the worst or make sure were prepared if this continues through the winter, Pennock said. Were using this like suggested, to prepare for what you need in case this continues.
Most judges, lawyers, probation staff, prison officers, victims, court staff and people denied access to justice believe that you have been the worst Lord Chancellor since Lord Shaftesbury in 1673, Chris Grayling was told by his Labour shadow Sadiq Khan, as they faced each other in the Commons for the last time before the election.

There is an obvious reason for mentioning Lord Shaftesbury: he was the last person without any legal qualifications to be appointed Lord Chancellor until, for some reason, Grayling got the job 430 years later. Shaftesbury was responsible for whipping up anti-Catholic hysteria and had to flee the country under suspicion of treason. That was because he wanted to prevent Charles IIs brother, James, from being crowned King, which showed sound judgement. He was an intelligent politician.

Lord Chancellor Grayling, on the other hand, in the words of one QC, Lord Pannick, is notable only for his attempts to restrict judicial review and human rights, his failure to protect the judiciary against criticism from his colleagues; and the reduction of legal aid to a bare minimum.

Khan should apologise to Lord Shaftesbury forthwith.

Stop messing about, Ted

Ken Clarke has been around for so long that he was a government whip in February 1974, when Edward Heath tried to ward off defeat by forming a coalition. Clarke was delegated to sound out Tory MPs about getting into bed with the Liberals.

He got a short answer from the MP for Rutland, Sir Kenneth Lewis. He just told me to tell my boss that he has just lost an election, to stop messing about and leave Downing Street, and put the phone down, Clarke told the Radio 4 programme When The People Say Not Sure. Its an anecdote David Cameron may find deeply unhelpful two months from now.

Kitchen war hots up

Austin Mitchell, who is quitting the Commons after 38 years as Labour MP for Grimsby, is baiting Ed Miliband loyalists. He has posted a picture of himself in his well-stocked kitchen  which he called a real Labour kitchen as opposed to the kitchenette in which Ed and Justine Miliband were photographed  for which he was rebuked in an email from the Labour MP for East Hull, Karl Turner. Instead of showing contrition, Mitchell posted Turners email on his blog, identifying him as a Twitter censor.

Turner wrote: Youre a joke Austin. Its very sad to see it but its becoming increasingly apparent. You think it clever to attack us. Its not clever and youve had plenty out of the Party We need to retain Grimsby. Youve done little to help And I doubt youve ever had a kitchen in Grimsby. Mili has one in Donny and mines massive

Drawn-out wrongdoing

Neville Thurlbeck, former chief reporter of the News of the World, has written a memoir. It comes with a potted biography, which has the look of having been written by the man himself. After listing his journalism awards, it adds: He was drawn into the phone-hacking scandal and served thirty-seven days of a six-month prison sentence. I like that drawn into. A useful phrase for anyone caught doing wrong.

From Ney to yea

The bicentenary of the Battle of Waterloo draws near. One of my favourite vignettes occurred 200 years ago tomorrow, when Marshal Ney met Napoleon. The marshal had promised Louis XVIII that he would recapture Napoleon and bring him to Paris in an iron cage but was so overwhelmed in the presence of his former commander that he changed sides.

The next night, King Louis legged it to Belgium, leaving France to Napoleon, who ruled for 100 days.
The Prominent Civil Rights Advocacy group -:HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has lambasted President Muhammadu Buhari for rejecting the announcement of travel bans imposed on some notorious election manipulators and riggers for destroying the electoral tenets in the last Kogi and Bayelsa states governorship polls but the Rights group said the President Muhammadu Buhari who is the appointing authority of the Independent National Electoral commission (INEC) and the heavily ethically challenged elections management team(INEC) should by right be also involved in the VISA BANS by those foreign jurisdictions.

HURIWA recalled that the Federal Government of Nigeria had reportedly told the United States and the United Kingdom that the country has enough provisions in its laws to punish violators and orchestrators of electoral violence and fraud in the country just as the government said it acknowledged the issues some of its partners, more especially, the United States and the United Kingdom governments raised regarding the elections in Edo and Ondo States.

HURIWA which backs the decision of the two nations of United States of America and United Kingdom said it was gratifying that both countries expressed their intention to take decisive actions against those involved in what they termed as undermining democracy' but the Rights group said the two nations did not go far enough in punishing election manipulators in Nigeria who are still actively calling the shots in the Edo state governor's election and are actually holding top positions in the Federal Government of Nigeria. HURIWA debunked the claims by the Nigerian Government that Nigeria has enough laws agaibst election riggers, said there is no record to show that any of the officials who manipulated elections in Nigeria since 1999 has ever been sanctioned just as the Rights group said what is happening in Nigeria is that those who rig elections are rewarded with federal or state government's appointments just as judges who manipulate judicial system to win election related litigation in courts are elevated to higher bench in the Judiciary.

"PRESIDENCY'S rejection of the decisions of both the USA and UK followed the visa ban by the United States Government on election offenders during the November, 2019 elections in Bayelsa and Kogi States, its threat on the Edo and Ondo elections and the decision of the Government of the United Kingdom to apply same sanctions, is preposterous and laughable. HURIWA believes that it is dangerous for democratic nation's to allow those who sabotage constitutional democracy to move freely in their own Countries just the same way that the USA and the UK are worried about the Russians using the Cyber facilities to undermine their elections. USA and UK have done well to ban these election manipulators who are actually made to hold top rated political offices in Nigeria which is the reason for the collapse of both democratic practices and the economy".

HURIWA said: "For the Federal Government in a statement issued by the Spokesperson of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ferdinand Nwonye, to have stated that it would be considered disrespectful of the sovereignty of Nigeria for any outside authority to sit in judgment over the conduct of its citizens and apply punitive measures such as visa restriction, unilaterally, this shows actually that election manipulators are the people calling the shots in the different layers of governments in Nigeria because only a criminal will reject well grounded sanctions imposed on criminals. HURIWA is shocked that President Muhammadu Buhari expressed the hypocritical sentiments that it is important to highlight that the responsibility for the conduct of elections in Nigeria solely resides with the Independent National Electoral Commission and State Independent Electoral Commissions. The Federal Government, and especially the President, is committed to providing all necessary logistic, financial and security support to the electoral body. These are lies from the pits of hell because all institutions that manage elections in Nigeria are manipulated by the Federal government to reach a predetermined results especially if the electorate do not carry out civil unrest in protests against such manipulation".

In a statement by the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National Media Affairs Director Miss Zainab Yusuf, HURIWA said that there are credible body of evidence to show that President Muhammadu Buhari who won a seemingly manipulated 2015 Presidential election conducted by the gravely compromised INEC's chairman as he then was Mr. Attahiru Jega, and the then incumbent President Dr Goodluck Jonathan accepted the outcome of the controversial election to prevent post election violence threatened by the then opposition All Progressives Congress, however the current President Muhammadu Buhari is seriously partisan and has been known to have supervised an electoral body that has become notorious for conducting inconclusive elections for good five years just as the 2019 Presidential election was the most criminally hijacked electoral process in Africa. So it is completely untrue that President Muhammadu Buhari promotes free and fair elections. President Muhammadu Buhari is the father of election manipulations. The USA and UK should place a travel ban on President Muhammadu Buhari, the INEC's chairman Mahmood Yakubu and his Commissioners."
Scores of prospective voters who chose the Short Message Service (SMS) platform by the Electoral Commission (EC) to verify their details in the voters register, have commended the Commission for the innovation and expressed satisfaction with the service.



To access the service, prospective voters are required to send their identification card numbers to the short-code 1422 and the details would pop-up.



The SMS is one of the platforms deployed by the Commission to aid voters verify and authenticate details on their identity cards during the Voters Register Exhibition Exercise ahead of the December polls, as mandated by Constitutional Instrument 91.



Mr Morkporkpor Anku, a Chief Reporter at the Ghana News Agency, who accessed the service, said the electronic means of verifying ones information on the register was simple and fast.



It is very convenient and has helped me to save time. I commend the EC for introducing this initiative. As we are battling to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, this is one of the ways to go, he added.



Naa Korkor, a trader at Tema Station, said she opted to use the SMS service due to her busy work schedule, adding: The nature of my work is such that by the time I get home it will be late and Sundays are busy for me so this works well for me.



She said the 30-pesewa charge was more reasonable than the about GH15 she would pay as the cost of transportation to and from her centre.



Mrs Jean Mensa, the Chairperson of the EC, speaking at the Let the Citizen Know media briefing in Accra, said the SMS platform was part of the Commissions innovations to ensure the safety and security of our stakeholders and to make life easier for all prospective voters.



She said the exhibition exercise, which started on Friday, September 18, would end on September 25, and urged prospective voters to participate fully in the exercise as it was an important aspect of the election process.



It has been observed that over the years, turnout for the exercise had always been low. Prospective voters are, hereby, encouraged to check their details to ensure that all information captured are accurate in the register, she said.



Mrs Mensa said the Commission was, under Constitutional Instrument 91, mandated to compile a voters register and display it for public inspection and correction.

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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Nothing quite captures the national disquiet over the future of the country as the passing of one of the most iconic and best-known jurists in history and the vacuum that her death has now created. If there was hope that the November election might result in an outcome that could begin to settle the country, the odds of that lengthened with the first reports on Friday night of her death after a long battle with cancer.
Amid gloomy jobs data and warnings of a prolonged jobs lockdown, on Tuesday, Britains chancellor declared the furlough scheme, which is due to end on 31 October, has done what it was designed to. Photo: Getty

As coronavirus uncertainty continues to roil the economy, news of turmoil in the jobs market shows that employment is following suit.

New data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) published on Tuesday showed that UK employers have slashed 695,000 jobs since March when COVID-19 first sent Britain into national lockdown.

Britains official unemployment rate also increased as expected by analysts to 4.1% between May and July, from 3.9% a month earlier.

The claimant count, which includes unemployed and low-paid workers receiving work-related benefits, stood at 2.7 million last month, up 120.8% since March.

New estimates also show the total number of jobs in Britain has fallen by 354,000 to 35.4 million between March and June, the steepest fall in almost three decades.

Further worrying data were released later in the week as the Confederation of British Industry and recruiter Pertemps found 46% of businesses plan to either reduce or halt recruitment over the next year.

Britains COVID-19 jobs slowdown looks set to continue for at least another year, with almost half of all businesses planning to either reduce hiring or stop recruitment altogether over the next 12 months.

51% of companies said they planned to continue or increase hiring activity, according to the 23rd annual Employment Trends Survey.

On balance, hiring activity across the economy was +5%. However, that marked a sharp slowdown compared with last year when the same survey returned a balance of +56%.

The findings suggest Britains jobs drought is unlikely to improve much in the next 12 months. Job vacancies have collapsed since the COVID-19 pandemic struck and remain around 50% below where they were a year ago, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Two studies released on Monday also laid bare how the coronavirus is likely to continue to wreak further economic havoc in the short-term.

Around 450,000 redundancies are predicted in the autumn alone by the Institute of Employment Studies (IES).

Story continues

Employers are required to notify government of large-scale redundancies, and analysis of official figures shows almost 380,000 were formally put at risk of redundancy between May and July.

The IES says the numbers are more than twice as high as at the peak of the global financial crisis in 2009, and would be the highest since records began in 1995.

It expects actual redundancies in the autumn to be even higher, as employers only have to notify of job cuts affecting 20 or more staff.

Amid gloomy jobs data and warnings of a prolonged jobs lockdown, on Tuesday, Britains chancellor declared the furlough scheme, which is due to end on 31 October, has done what it was designed to.

Rishi Sunak resisted mounting pressure to extend support for hard-hit sectors, pointing to recent official figures showing more than half of furloughed workers had returned to their jobs by mid-August.

Sunak also highlighted the governments plans to hand employers bonuses for keeping staff and fund youth work placements as the furlough scheme winds down.

But the chancellor faced a flurry of warnings from economists, business chiefs and Labour on Tuesday that a wave of job losses will only continue this autumn without more support for employers.

MPs have also called for targeted extensions to the scheme, warning that viable businesses could go under if they go without further support.

READ MORE: Should you go to work when you have a cold?
(Newser)  A Chinese pharmaceutical factory has apparently leaked an illness into the air and infected thousands of people, Global News reports. Chinese officials say the factory was producing vaccines for animals with brucellosisalso known as Malta fever or Mediterranean feverwhen bacteria vented out and infected at least 3,245 people in Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu province. CNN reports that another 1,401 residents have come back "preliminarily positive" among 21,847 tests in the city of 2.9 million. State-run media reported the problem late last year, but with low numbers, and the factory said eight workers had been "severely punished." Now officials say it's far worse than they realized.

story continues below

Authorities blame expired disinfectants and sanitizers for the leak of Brucella, a bacteria that causes brucellosis. The disease is usually found in dogs, sheep, goats, pigs, and cattle, per the World Health Organization, but can infect people via the air or contaminated food. Initial symptoms include fatigue, fever, muscle pain, and headaches, but the CDC warns that certain effectslike depression, arthritis, and swelling of the heart, liver, or spleenmay never go away. Brucellosis has mostly been tamed by vaccines and prevention techniques, but occasional outbreaks are known to afflict livestock around the world. (Bison have been slaughtered at Yellowstone in an effort to curb the disease.)
Washington: The Trump administration will ban WeChat and video-sharing app TikTok from US app stores starting on Sunday night, a move that will block Americans from downloading the Chinese-owned platforms over concerns they pose a national security threat.

The bans, announced on Friday local time (Saturday AEST), affect only new downloads and updates and are less sweeping than expected, particularly for TikTok, giving its parent group ByteDance some breathing space to clinch an agreement over the fate of its US operations.

President Donald Trump has security concerns about China-based TikTok and WeChat. Credit:AP

WeChat, an all-in-one messaging, social media and electronic payment app, faces more severe restrictions from Sunday. Existing TikTok users, on the other hand, will see little change until November 12 when a ban on some technical transactions will kick in, which TikTok said would amount to an effective ban.

"We disagree with the decision from the Commerce Department, and are disappointed that it stands to block new app downloads from Sunday and ban use of the TikTok app in the US from November 12," the company said in a statement. "We will continue to challenge the unjust executive order, which was enacted without due process and threatens to deprive the American people and small businesses across the US of a significant platform for both a voice and livelihoods."
BOGOTA, Colombia: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Saturday wrapped up a tour of four South American countries three of them neighbors of Venezuela, whose socialist government is under intense U.S. pressure.

After a meeting with Colombian President Ivn Duque on Saturday, the two vowed to deepen ties including U.S. investment in the countrys struggling economy and Pompeo praised Colombias tough stance against Venezuelan leader Nicols Maduro.

Pompeo said Colombias backing of opposition leader Juan Guaido and the democratic transition for a sovereign Venezuela free of malign influence from Cuba, from Russia, from Iran, is incredibly valued.

You are a true leader for the region and the dignity of all of its people, he said at a news conference.

Pompeos three-day trip to the region comes as the U.S. presidential election nears, with Florida which has hosted an expanding Venezuelan diaspora a key battleground.

Duque highlighted a report by the U.N.s top human rights body accusing Maduros government of crimes against humanity, including torture and killings carried by security forces.

The situation there is unsustainable, he said.

Shoring up support for the Trump administrations Venezuela policy was a key focus of the trip, which including stops in Guyana and Brazil, where he emphasized U.S. calls for a presidential election to replace Maduro. He also stopped in Suriname, like Guyana a budding oil exporter.

Colombia has been flooded with migrants fleeing Venezuelas increasing economic crisis while accusing its neighbor of backing armed groups on Colombian soil.

The COVID-19 pandemic, meanwhile, has left millions in Colombia out of work, with unemployment recently soaring to 20% during the nations long lockdown. Though virus cases were initially slow to rise, Colombia now has the worlds sixth highest total number caseload.

Duque said he is hoping to attract more U.S. investment to Colombia and he hailed a U.S. government initiative aimed at enhanging private sector investment in infrastructure.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
NCB seized 490 gm of ganja from four persons about whom another person arrested by the NCB had provided some leads.

The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), probing drugs angle in the actor Sushant Singh Rajput death case, arrested five persons in separate cases and seized over 1.4 kg of contraband on Friday, an official said.

Rahil Vishram (42) was apprehended from his residence in suburban Versova and arrested after questioning in the drugs case related to Rajput's death, the NCB official said.

A team of the NCB Mumbai unit raided Vishram's house following the questioning of Ankush Arenja (28), arrested by the agency earlier, about drug peddlers, he said.

The team seized 928 gm of charas and Rs 4,36,000 in cash during the raid on Vishram's house, he said.

In a separate case, 490 gm of ganja was seized from four persons about whom Arenja had provided some leads.

Vishal Salve (25) and Jaichetan Raichera (29) were arrested from Badlapur in Thane district, while Rohan Talwar (29) and Nongthung Lotha (30) were arrested from suburban Powai.

The NCB has so far arrested more than a dozen persons, including actor Rhea Chakraborty and her brother Showik, in the drugs case lodged in connection with the Sushant death probe.

*

A collection of Suicide prevention helpline numbers are available here. Please reach out if you or anyone you know is in need of support. The All-India helpline number is: 022 2754 6669
Lugano, Switzerland, 19 September 2020 - The results of the phase 3 CheckMate 9ER trial have provided a new first-line treatment option for patients with metastatic kidney cancer. The late breaking results are presented at ESMO 2020. (1)

The trial took two drugs used as monotherapies in the second line, nivolumab and cabozantinib, and combined them for use as a first-line treatment against standard of care, sunitinib. The combination was superior to sunitinib for progression-free survival, overall survival, and response rate. There was a consistent benefit of the combination over sunitinib in numerous subgroups including age, sex, PD-L1 expression, bone metastases, International Metastatic RCC Database Consortium (IMDC) risk group, and region of the world.

More than 50% of patients in the combination arm needed a dose reduction of cabozantinib due to adverse events. But only 3% had to stop both drugs because of toxicity compared to 9% of patients in the sunitinib arm. The overall rate of serious adverse events was similar between arms, but liver toxicity was more common in the combination arm. As for immune-related side-effects, 19% of patients in the experimental arm needed corticosteroids; just 4% needed corticosteroids for 30 days or longer.

The findings add to mounting evidence showing the advantages of combination therapy over single drugs. Similar to the CheckMate 9ER trial, the KEYNOTE-426 and JAVELIN Renal 101 trials (2,3) combined an immune checkpoint inhibitor with an anti-angiogenic drug, whereas CheckMate 214 combined two immune checkpoint inhibitors. (4)

Study author Dr Toni K. Choueiri, Director, The Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and The Jerome and Nancy Kohlberg Chair and Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, US said: "The results with combination therapy were statistically significant and clinically meaningful. The risk of progression or death was cut by almost 50%, death was cut by 40%, and the response rate doubled. This will become an important treatment option to choose from. The various combination treatments will unlikely be compared head-to-head, but I think quality of life could differentiate this new therapy, as there was a statistical significance favouring the combination arm with both questionnaires we used. (5) Another factor to consider is that clinicians are familiar with both of these drugs."

Commenting on the findings, Dr Dominik Berthold, Head, Specialised Consultation for Urological Cancers Medical Oncology Service, Department of Oncology, Lausanne University Hospital, Switzerland said: "CheckMate 9ER met its efficacy endpoints and the combination can be considered a new first-line treatment option. However, the medical community is divided about whether two immunotherapies or immunotherapy plus an anti-angiogenic drug is the better choice, since the different combinations appear to have similar effectiveness."

He said longer-term data are needed for CheckMate 9ER: "The 18 months of follow-up is still quite short. The question is whether the responses to treatment are durable or patients progress at some point."

"It would also be useful to learn whether the combination of cabozantinib and nivolumab is effective in non-clear cell carcinoma," added Berthold. "This is a minority of patients with advanced kidney cancer which are not well studied and were excluded from this trial."

Berthold noted that when using drugs with specific mechanisms of action, the first-line treatment choice will also determine the selection of second-line therapy. He explained: "If you start with a combination of immune therapy only, it becomes an automatic choice to use an anti-angiogenic drug in the second line. But if you begin with a combination of two mechanisms of action, such as immune therapy and an anti-angiogenic drug, then the second-line choice is less clear. More data are needed on the most suitable order of therapy for the entire population as well as specific groups such as high tumour burden versus slow-growing disease."

###

Notes to Editors

Please make sure to use the official name of the meeting in your reports: ESMO Virtual Congress 2020

Official Congress Hashtag: #ESMO20

Disclaimer

This press release contains information provided by the author of the highlighted abstract and reflects the content of this abstract. It does not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of ESMO who cannot be held responsible for the accuracy of the data. Commentators quoted in the press release are required to comply with the ESMO Declaration of Interests policy and the ESMO Code of Conduct.

References

(1) Abstract 696O_PR 'Nivolumab + cabozantinib vs sunitinib in first-line treatment for advanced renal cell carcinoma: first results from the randomized phase 3 CheckMate 9ER trial' will be presented by Toni K. Choueiri during the Presidential Symposium I on Saturday, 19 September, 18:30 - 20:10 CEST. Annals of Oncology, Volume 31 Supplement 4, September 2020

(2) Rini BI, Plimack ER, Stus V, et al. Pembrolizumab plus Axitinib versus Sunitinib for Advanced Renal-Cell Carcinoma. N Engl J Med. 2019;380:1116-1127.

(3) Motzer RJ, Penkov K, Haanen J, et al. Avelumab plus Axitinib versus Sunitinib for Advanced Renal-Cell Carcinoma. N Engl J Med. 2019;380:1103-1115.

(4) Motzer RJ, Tannir NM, McDermott DF, et al. Nivolumab plus Ipilimumab versus Sunitinib in Advanced Renal-Cell Carcinoma. N Engl J Med. 2018;378:1277-1290.

(5) Quality of life was assessed using the Functional Assessment for Cancer Therapy - Kidney Symptom Index (FKSI) and the revised FKSI scale (FKSI-19).

About the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO)

ESMO is the leading professional organisation for medical oncology. With more than 25,000 members representing oncology professionals from over 160 countries worldwide, ESMO is the society of reference for oncology education and information. ESMO is committed to offer the best care to people with cancer, through fostering integrated cancer care, supporting oncologists in their professional development, and advocating for sustainable cancer care worldwide. http://www.esmo.org

696O_PR- Nivolumab + cabozantinib vs sunitinib in first-line treatment for advanced renal cell carcinoma: first results from the randomized phase 3 CheckMate 9ER trial

T.K. Choueiri1, T. Powles2, M. Burotto3, M.T. Bourlon4, B. Zurawski5, V.M. Oyervides Juarez6, J.J. Hsieh7, U. Basso8, A.Y. Shah9, C. Suarez10, A. Hamzaj11, C.H. Barrios12, M. Richardet13, D. Pook14, Y. Tomita15, B. Escudier16, J. Zhang17, B. Simsek18, A.B. Apolo19, R.J. Motzer20

1Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, The Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology, Boston, MA, USA, 2Department of Genitourinary Oncology, Barts Cancer Institute, Cancer Research UK Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre, Queen Mary University of London, Royal Free National Health Service Trust, London, UK, 3Department of Medical Oncology, Bradford Hill Clinical Research Center, Santiago, Chile, 4Department of Hemato-Oncology, Urologic Oncology Clinic, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Medicas y Nutricion Salvador Zubiran, Mexico City, Mexico, 5Department of Outpatient Chemotherapy, Professor Franciszek Lukaszczyk Oncology Centre, Bydgoszcz, Poland, 6Department of Medical Oncology, Centro Universitario contra el Cancer Hospital Universitario "Dr. Jose Eleuterio Gonzalez" Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, 7Molecular Oncology, Department of Medicine, Siteman Cancer Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA, 8Department of Oncology, Istituto Oncologico Veneto IOV IRCCS, Padova, Italy, 9Department of Genitourinary Medical Oncology, M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA, 10Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology, Vall d'Hebron University Hospital, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain, 11Department of Medical Oncology, Ospedale San Donato, Istituto Toscano Tumori, Arezzo, Italy, 12Oncology Research Center, Hospital Sao Lucas, PUCRS, Porto Alegre, Brazil, 13Fundacion Richardet Longo, Instituto Oncologico de Cordoba, Cordoba, Argentina, 14Cabrini Monash University Department of Medical Oncology, Cabrini Health, Malvern, VIC, Australia, 15Departments of Urology and Molecular Oncology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan, 16Department of Medical Oncology, Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, France, 17Department of Clinical Research, Bristol Myers Squibb, Princeton, USA, 18Department of Biostatistics, Bristol Myers Squibb, Princeton, NJ, USA, 19Genitourinary Malignancies Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA, 20Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA

Background: Results from the phase 3 CheckMate 9ER trial evaluating the checkpoint inhibitor (CPI) nivolumab (N) plus the tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) cabozantinib (C) v sunitinib (S) for first-line (1L) treatment of advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma (aRCC) are reported. As monotherapies, N and C have demonstrated efficacy and a manageable safety profile in aRCC. C has immunomodulatory properties that may counteract tumor-induced immunosuppression, providing a rationale for combining N+C.

Methods: Patients (pts) were randomized 1:1 (stratified by IMDC risk score, tumor PD-L1 expression, region) to N 240 mg flat dose IV Q2W + C 40 mg PO QD v S 50 mg PO for 4 wk (6-wk cycles) until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity (max N treatment, 2 y). Primary endpoint: progression-free survival (PFS; alpha = 0.05 final) by blinded independent central review (BICR). Secondary endpoints (hierarchical testing): overall survival (OS; alpha = 0.011 first interim analysis), objective response rate (ORR; alpha = 0.05 final) by BICR, and safety.

Results: A total of 651 pts (22.6% favorable risk, 57.6% intermediate risk, 19.7% poor risk; 24.9% PD-L1 greater-than or equal to 1%) were randomized to N+C (n = 323) v S (n = 328). With 18.1 mo median (10.6 mo minimum) study follow-up, all 3 efficacy endpoints were met. N+C significantly improved PFS (HR 0.51 [95% CI 0.41-0.64], P < 0.0001; median, 16.6 v 8.3 mo) and OS (HR 0.60 [98.89% CI 0.40-0.89]; P = 0.0010; medians not reached) v S, and results were consistent across prespecified IMDC risk and PD-L1 subgroups. ORR (95% CI) was significantly higher with N+C v S (55.7% [50.1-61.2] v 27.1% [22.4-32.3]; P < 0.0001), and 8.0% v 4.6% of pts achieved complete response. Median duration of response was 20.2 v 11.5 mo for N+C v S. Any-grade TRAEs occurred in 96.6% v 93.1% of pts treated with N+C v S (60.6% v 50.9% grade greater-than or equal to 3). One treatment-related death occurred with N+C v 2 with S. TRAEs led to discontinuation of S in 8.8%, N or C in 15.3%, N+C in 3.1%, N only in 5.6%, and C only in 6.6% of pts.

Conclusions: N+C demonstrated superior PFS, OS, and ORR v S in 1L aRCC. The safety profile of this combination was manageable and consistent with the known single-agent AE profiles of N and C. These results support N+C as a new CPI+TKI option for aRCC pts.

Clinical trial identification: NCT03141177

Editorial acknowledgement: Professional medical writing assistance was provided by Jen Tyson, PhD, of Parexel, funded by Bristol-Myers Squibb Company

Legal entity responsible for the study: Bristol-Myers Squibb Company

Funding: Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (Princeton, NJ), ONO Pharmaceutical Company Ltd. (Osaka, Japan), and Exelixis Inc. (Alameda, CA)

Disclosure:T.K. Choueiri: Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses, manuscript preparation, clinical trials grants: BMS; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses, manuscript preparation, clinical trials grants: Exelixis; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (self), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses, manuscript preparation, clinical trials grants: Pfizer; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses, manuscript preparation, clinical trials grants: Merck; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses, manuscript preparation, clinical trials grants: Astrazeneca; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses, manuscript preparation, clinical trials grants: Lilly; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses, manuscript preparation, clinical trials grants: Eisai; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses, manuscript preparation, clinical trials grants: Novartis; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses, manuscript preparation, clinical trials grants: GSK; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses, manuscript preparation, clinical trials grants: EMD Serono; Shareholder/Stockholder/Stock options: Pionyr; Shareholder/Stockholder/Stock options: Tempest. T. Powles: Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: AstraZeneca ; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: BMS; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Exelixis; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Incyte ; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Ipsen; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Merck/MSD; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Novartis ; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Pfizer; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Seattle Genetics ; Research grant/Funding (institution): AstraZeneca ; Research grant/Funding (institution): Roche. M.T. Bourlon: Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (self), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses, slide reviews: BMS; Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (self), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Ipsen; Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (self), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: MSD; Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (self), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Pfizer; Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (self), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Bayer; Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (self), Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Janssen .

J.J. Hsieh: Research grant/Funding (self), sponsered clinical trial: BMS; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (self), sponsored clinical trial: Eisai; Research grant/Funding (self), sponsored clinical trial: Calithera; Research grant/Funding (self), Investigator initiated trial and correlate studies: AstraZenika.

U. Basso: Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (self), carry out activities of the study: BMS. C. Suarez: Honoraria (institution), Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: BMS; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Pfizer; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Roche; Honoraria (institution), Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony: Astellas; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Atrazeneca; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Bayer; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Eusa; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Speaker Bureau/Expert testimony, Research grant/Funding (self): Ipsen; Honoraria (institution), Advisory/Consultancy: Novartis; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Sanofi-Aventis; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp..

C.H. Barrios: Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Boehringer-Ingelheim; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: GSK; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Novartis; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Pfizer; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Lilly; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Roche/Genetech; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Eisai; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: MSD; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: AstraZeneca; Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Bayer; Research grant/Funding (institution): Abbvie; Research grant/Funding (institution): Amgen; Research grant/Funding (institution): AstellasPharma; Research grant/Funding (institution): Celgene; Research grant/Funding (institution): Covance; Research grant/Funding (institution): Medivation; Research grant/Funding (institution): Merck Serono; Research grant/Funding (institution): PharmMar. D. Pook: Advisory/Consultancy, Commercial Study Finding: BMS; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (self): Pfizer; Research grant/Funding (self): Ipsen. Y. Tomita: Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution): Ono pharmacetical; Honoraria (self): BMS; Honoraria (self), Research grant/Funding (self): Pfizer; Research grant/Funding (institution): Takeda. B. Escudier: Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Novartis ; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Pfizer; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy, Travel/Accommodation/Expenses: Bristol-Myers Squibb ; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: Ipsen; Honoraria (self), Advisory/Consultancy: EUSA Pharma ; Honoraria (self): Roche/Genentech. J. Zhang: Shareholder/Stockholder/Stock options, Full/Part-time employment: BMS. B. Simsek: Shareholder/Stockholder/Stock options, Full/Part-time employment: BMS. R.J. Motzer: Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution): Bristol-Myers Squibb; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution): Pfizer; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution): Novartis; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution): Eisai; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution): Exelixis; Advisory/Consultancy, Research grant/Funding (institution): Genentech/Roche; Advisory/Consultancy: Merck; Advisory/Consultancy: Incyte; Advisory/Consultancy: Lilly. All other authors have declared no conflicts of interest.
WILKES-BARRE  City police on Friday identified the victim in an early morning shooting inside a residence on South Franklin Street as Mauric Antowne Dillon, of 499 South Franklin St.

An autopsy performed by the Luzerne County Coroners Office revealed the manner of death as homicide, a post on the departments Facebook page added.

No other injuries were reported in that case, nor in a late Friday report of shots fired in the same block.

According to the Facebook post:

Police responded to South Franklin Street at 2:20 a.m. Friday for a report of multiple gunshots.

Upon arrival, officers encountered one male victim suffering from multiple wounds to the torso. The victim was treated by Wilkes-Barre paramedics and transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Initial investigation revealed that the victim was meeting with one or more unknown males at his residence, police said. During that meeting one or more of the unknown males engaged in shooting a firearm striking the victim multiple times. The unknown males fled the residence prior to police arrival. Two other males in the residence were unharmed.

The case is under investigation by the Wilkes-Barre Detective Division along with the assistance of the State Police FSU Unit in Wyoming and the Luzerne County District Attorneys Office.

Officers responded back to the same block of South Franklin Street just before 10 p.m. on Friday for additional reports of shots being fired. Officers appeared to be searching the area for shell casings, but left shortly after the initial report came in.

An emergency alert text sent to Wilkes University students Friday night said suspects fled the scene in a vehicle with no description available.

Anyone with any information concerning this incident is asked to please contact the Wilkes-Barre Police Detective Division Detective Dave Sobocinski or Detective Chris Maciejczyk.
Toronto police have released a new photo and video of an 83-year-old man last seen Tuesday in Rexdale as fears grow for his safety.

Chandulal Gandhi was last seen on Tuesday at about 5 p.m. in the Kipling Avenue and Steeles Avenue West area.

The latest photo and video show what he looked like when leaving the house, said police. Concerns grow as the temperatures have been much cooler this week, especially overnight.

Toronto police have brought in resources from across the city and are using drones to assist in their search.

We need the community to help us by keeping a vigilant eye while out shopping or walking, Insp. Darla Tannahill tweeted. Please check your properties, sheds, decks, park areas etc.

Gandhis grandson, Vishal Gandhi, told reporters this week that his grandfather walked out of the familys backyard. He said his grandfather is partly blind, sometimes goes for walks to the local park and suffers from hallucinations.

Please come home, Vishal Gandhi pleaded. Were waiting to see you and we love you.

Police are urging nearby residents to look out for Gandhi, including people in Peel and York regions. They ask that anyone with information to call 416-808-2300.

Toronto police said they have brought in resources from across the city, and are using drones to assist in their search.

A 98-year-old man from Rexdale was also reported missing nearby on Monday, but was found by a drone three days later.

On Saturday afternoon, Peel Region police issued a statement saying that a dead man was found near a creek around Dixie Road and Dundas Street East in Mississauga, but added that they do not believe he is the missing man from Toronto.

Police responded to a call that someone made at 1:26 p.m about what appeared to be a dead body, said Const. Heather Cannon.

Manuela Vega is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Stars radio room in Toronto. Reach her via email: mvega@thestar.ca

Read more about:
WASHINGTON - The Latest on the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (all times local):

1:15 a.m. Saturday

President Donald Trump has issued a proclamation directing that flags at the White House and all public buildings and grounds and military facilities be flown at half-staff until the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is interred.

The president has also directed that flags be flown at half-staff at all U.S. embassies and other facilities abroad. The proclamation calls Ginsburg a trailblazer, not only in the field of law, but in the history of our country.

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12:05 a.m. Saturday

Former President Barack Obama is calling Ruth Bader Ginsburg a relentless litigator and an incisive jurist who inspired generations, from the tiniest trick-or-treaters to law students burning the midnight oil to the most powerful leaders in the land.

Obama issued a statement Friday after Ginsburgs death from cancer complications at age 87. He says Ginsburg should be remembered for fighting to the end of her life, through her cancer with unwavering faith in our democracy and its ideals.

The former president says Republicans, who in 2016 refused to consider his nominee for a court vacancy eight months before an election, must follow the same principle now. The 2020 election is a month and a half away.

He says a basic principle of the law and everyday fairness is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment.

Obama noted that early voting in the presidential contest has already begun in some states and said questions pending before the court and expected to reach it in the coming years are too consequential to to be filled through anything less than an unimpeachable process.

___

11:40 p.m. Friday

At least three Republican senators suggested before Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death that theyd be opposed to voting late this election year on replacing her with a nominee by President Donald Trump.

But one of them, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, has already reversed himself.

Graham told The Atlantic magazine in 2018: If an opening comes in the last year of President Trumps term and the primary process is started, well wait for the next election.

But this past May, he expressed a different opinion. He told reporters there was a distinction between 2020 and 2016, when Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocked President Barack Obamas pick for the Supreme Court, Merrick Garland. He said the difference is that now the presidency and Senate are held by the same party.

GOP Sen. Susan Collins of Maine told The New York Times earlier this month that she wouldnt favour voting on a new justice in October, saying, I think thats too close. I really do.

Hours before Ginsburgs death was announced Friday, Alaska Public Radio asked GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski if shed vote to confirm a high court nominee before Inauguration Day. She told them, I would not vote to confirm a Supreme Court nominee. We are 50 some days away from an election.

Graham, Collins and Murkowski all issued statements Friday after Ginsburgs death that praised her but did not mention whether theyd favour voting on a Trump pick to replace her.

___

10:55 p.m.

President Donald Trump says in a statement that the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a titan of the law.

Ginsburg died Friday at her home in Washington of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer. Trump was speaking at campaign event for more than an hour after the nation learned of her death and later said he had been unaware of the news during his speech.

In a statement posted on Twitter, Trump said Ginsburg was renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court and she demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable toward ones colleagues or different points of view.

Trump did not mention whether hed nominate a new justice, though he had boasted in the speech that the next presidential term could offer him as many as four appointments to the nine-member court.

The presidential election is 46 days away.

___

10:45 p.m.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is using Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnells own words to make the point that the Senate shouldnt vote on a nominee by President Donald Trump to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Schumer, a Democrat, tweeted Friday, The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

That is precisely what the Republican McConnell said in February 2016 the night conservative Justice Antonin Scalia died.

That year the presidential election was nearly nine months off, but the Kentucky Republican refused to allow a vote on then-President Barack Obamas choice to replace Scalia, Merrick Garland. Trump ended up replacing Scalia with Neil Gorsuch, a conservative.

This years election day is less than seven weeks away.

___

10:40 p.m.

Former President Bill Clinton, who nominated Ruth Bader Ginsburg for the Supreme Court in 1993, is calling her one of the most extraordinary justices ever to serve.

In a statement late Friday after her death was announced, Clinton said she was a brilliant lawyer with a caring heart, common sense, fierce devotion to fairness and equality, and boundless courage in the face of her own adversity.

Ginsburgs appointment was the first high court pick by a Democrat in 26 years, and Clinton said her years on the court exceeded even my highest expectations when I appointed her.

He said her landmark opinions advanced gender equality, marriage equality, the rights of people with disabilities, the rights of immigrants, and so many more.

Just as notable, he said, were her dissents, especially her ringing defence of voting rights and other equal protection claims that he said reminded us that we walk away from our Constitutions promise at our peril.

The 87-year-old Ginsburg died Friday from complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer.

___

10:35 p.m.

Endangered Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler of Georgia says President Donald Trump has every right to pick a new justice before the election.

Loeffler tweeted Friday hours after the death of liberal Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was announced.

Loeffler says that Our countrys future is at stake and that she looks forward to supporting a strict constructionist who will protect the right to life & safeguard our conservative values.

Loeffler was tapped by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp to fill the Senate seat of Johnny Isakson, who resigned at the end of 2019 over health problems. She is running in a special election in November to serve the remaining two years of Isaksons term.

The Republican-led Senate in 2016 refused to hold a hearing on President Barack Obamas nomination to replace Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court after he died that February. Leader Mitch McConnell said then that it wasnt fair because it was an election year but said Friday that he would vote on Trumps pick to replace Ginsburg.

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10:25 p.m.

Moderate Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said in an interview hours before the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was announced that she would not vote to confirm her replacement before the next president is inaugurated.

Her comments to Alaska Public Radio on Friday also occurred before Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, commenting after Ginsburgs death, said his chamber will vote on whomever President Donald Trump nominates to replace Ginsburg.

Murkowskis comment appeared to put her at odds with McConnell, who will need at least 50 votes to push a Trump nominee through the Senate, plus a tie-breaking vote by Vice-President Mike Pence.

Republicans have a 53-47 majority. The presidential and congressional elections are Nov. 3, and Inauguration Day is Jan. 20.

In her interview, Murkowski noted that when Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016, McConnell refused to hold a vote on then-President Barack Obamas choice to replace him, Merrick Garland.

Murkowski added that Scalias death occurred too close to an election, and that the people needed to decide. The closer you get to an election, that argument becomes even more important.

___

10:10 p.m.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden says the winner of the November election should pick a successor to the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Calling Ginsburg a beloved figure, Biden told reporters in Wilmington, Delaware: There is no doubt -- let me be clear -- that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider.

Biden noted that the Republican-led Senate in 2016 refused to consider President Barack Obamas Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, to fill the vacancy created when Justice Antonin Scalia died in February of that year. Biden said that Scalia died about with almost 10 months to go before the election and that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell cited it being an election year as the reason a hearing shouldnt take place.

President Donald Trump ended up replacing Scalia with Neil Gorsuch.

Biden says he hopes the coming days are about the loss of the justice and her enduring legacy. Biden chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee in 1993 when Ginsburg was confirmed to the high court.

Ginsburg died Friday of cancer complications at age 87.

___

10:05 p.m.

Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein says the Senate should not consider a replacement for the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg until after Inauguration Day.

The veteran California lawmaker on Friday called Ginsburg a trailblazer for women, a once-in-a-generation legal mind and a passionate champion for the rights of all Americans.

Feinstein, the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, says Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made his position clear in 2016 when he refused to hold a confirmation hearing for President Barack Obamas Supreme Court pick during an election year.

Feinstein says, To jam through a lifetime appointment to the countrys highest court  particularly to replace an icon like Justice Ginsburg  would be the height of hypocrisy.

When a president nominates someone to the Supreme Court, the nomination is referred to the Senate, where the Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing in which the nominee will provide testimony and respond to questions from members of the panel. The committee then votes on whether to refer the nomination to the full Senate for consideration.

___

10 p.m.

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz says President Donald Trump should nominate a successor to the late liberal Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg next week.

Cruz said Friday shortly after Ginsburgs death was announced that Trump needs to move quickly. He says a Supreme Court that is split 4-4 cannot decide anything and under that scenario, I think we risk a constitutional crisis.

The Texas senator is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which will vote on Ginsburgs successor.

He called on Trump to nominate a principled constitutionalist with a proven record.

Cruz is also among 20 individuals Trump recently added to his list of potential Supreme Court nominees.

The Republican-led Senate in 2016 refused to hold a hearing on President Barack Obamas nomination to replace Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court after he died that February. Leader Mitch McConnell said then it wasnt fair because it was an election year.

The 2020 election is 46 days away.

___

9:45 p.m.

Endangered GOP Sen. Martha McSally of Arizona says the Senate should vote on whomever President Donald Trump nominates to replace the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Some other GOP senators in competitive reelections initially did not address whether the Senate should vote on Trumps pick. Ginsburg died Friday of complications from cancer at age 87.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says the GOP-run Senate will vote on Trumps selection, whomever it is, even though its an election year  the reason he gave for not voting on President Barack Obamas court pick in 2016.

But four other Republican senators facing tough reelection fights skirted the question of whether the Senate should vote on a Trump pick.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins called Ginsburg a trailblazer for womens rights, a fierce champion for equality, and an extremely accomplished American who broke countless barriers in the field of law.

Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner called Ginsburg a trailblazing leader.

North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis noted the liberal Ginsburgs friendship with the late conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, saying their relationship showed we can disagree on fundamental issues but remain civil.

Iowa GOP Sen. Joni Ernst called Ginsburg an iconic figure who blazed a trail for working moms.

___

9:30 p.m.

President Donald Trump says the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an amazing woman who led an amazing life.

Ginsburg died Friday of complications from cancer at the age of 87. The news of her death broke shortly after Trump began to address a campaign rally in Minnesota.

Trump spoke obliquely about future Supreme Court vacancies but did not mention the late justice during nearly two hours of remarks.

Trump told reporters after the rally as he headed back to Air Force One that he didnt know Ginsburg had died.

Ginsburg was a key liberal vote on the court, and her death leaves a vacancy that will spur a fight over her replacement with less than seven weeks before the election.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell declined to hold confirmation hearings for President Barack Obamas court pick to replace Antonin Scalia when the justice died in February 2016. He cited the reason as it being an election year. But McConnell said Friday that the Senate will vote on whomever Trump picks to replace Ginsburg.

___

9:20 p.m.

Former President Jimmy Carter says he and his wife, Rosalynn, are saddened by the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, praising her as a beacon of justice over a long and remarkable career.

Ginsburg, the courts second female justice, died Friday at her Washington home of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer. She was 87.

Carter said in a statement that he was proud to have appointed Ginsburg to the U.S. Court of Appeals in 1980  a step taken long before her 1993 selection for the nations highest court by another Democratic president, Bill Clinton.

Carter called Ginsburg a powerful legal mind and a staunch advocate for gender equality.

___

9:15 p.m.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death is an incalculable loss for our democracy and for all who sacrifice and strive to build a better future for our children.

The Democratic leader said Friday that Congress must ensure that the person who replaces Ginsburg on the court upholds her commitment to equality, opportunity and justice for all.

The liberal justice died Friday of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer at age 87.

Pelosi said Ginsburgs tireless advocacy in the fight for gender equality leaves an enduring legacy of progress for all women, and her legal opinions have unequivocally cemented the precedent that all men and women are created equal.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says the Senate will vote on whomever President Donald Trump picks to replace Ginsburg on the Supreme Court, even though its an election year  the reason he gave for not voting on President Barack Obamas court pick in 2016.

___

9:10 p.m.

Hundreds of people have gathered outside the U.S. Supreme Court to mourn the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Dozens in the crowd were lighting candles on Friday night and sat somberly on the high courts steps. Ginsburg died Friday of metastatic pancreatic cancer at age 87 after 27 years on the court.

The crowd left candles, flowers, small American flags and handwritten condolence messages. Some wept as they placed the bouquets of flowers on the steps. RBG was also drawn inside a pink chalk heart in the sidewalk. Flags outside the court were also flying at half staff.

Jennifer Berger was among those who had gathered outside the courthouse. The 37-year-old said she wanted to show her support and pay tribute to Ginsburg.

Ginsburg spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the courts liberal wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers. Young women especially seemed to embrace the courts Jewish grandmother, affectionately calling her the Notorious RBG, for her defence of the rights of women and minorities.

___

9 p.m.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says the Senate will vote on President Donald Trumps pick to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court, even though its an election year.

The Republican Senate leader issued a statement Friday night, about an hour and a half after the Supreme Court announced the liberal justices death from complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer.

When conservative Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016, also an election year, McConnell refused to act on President Barack Obamas nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to fill the opening. The seat remained vacant until after Trumps surprising presidential victory.

Trump ended up nominating Neil Gorsuch, who was confirmed to the court.

The 2020 election is 46 days away.

McConnell had earlier said he would move to confirm a Trump nominee if there were a vacancy this year.

___

7:40 p.m.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a diminutive yet towering womens rights champion who became the courts second female justice, has died at her home in Washington. She was 87.

The court says Ginsburg died Friday of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer.

Ginsburg announced in July that she was undergoing chemotherapy treatment for lesions on her liver, the latest of her several battles with cancer.

Ginsburg spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the courts liberal wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers. Young women especially seemed to embrace the courts Jewish grandmother, affectionately calling her the Notorious RBG, for her defence of the rights of women and minorities, and the strength and resilience she displayed in the face of personal loss and health crises.

Those health issues included five bouts with cancer beginning in 1999, falls that resulted in broken ribs, insertion of a stent to clear a blocked artery and assorted other hospitalizations after she turned 75.
By Kevin Gosztola

September 19, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - Opponents of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange often hold up Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg as an example of someone who was responsible for a good leak. They insist WikiLeaks is not like the Pentagon Papers because supposedly Assange was reckless with sensitive documents.



On the seventh day of an extradition trial against Assange, Ellsberg dismantled this false narrative and outlined for a British magistrate court why Assange would not receive a fair trial in the United States.



Assange is accused of 17 counts of violating the Espionage Act and one count of conspiracy to commit a computer crime that, as alleged in the indictment, is written like an Espionage Act offense.

The charges criminalize the act of merely receiving classified information, as well as the publication of state secrets from the United States government. It targets common practices in news gathering, which is why the case is widely opposed by press freedom organizations throughout the world.



James Lewis, a prosecutor from the Crown Prosecution Service who represents the U.S. government, told Ellsberg, When you published the Pentagon Papers, you were very careful in what you provided to the media.



The lead prosecutor highlighted the fact that Ellsberg withheld four volumes of the Pentagon Papers that he did not want published because they may have impacted diplomatic efforts to end the Vietnam War. However, Ellsbergs decision to withhold those volumes had nothing to do with protecting the names of U.S. intelligence sources.



As Ellsberg described for the court, the 4,000 pages of documents he disclosed to the media contained thousands of names of Americans, Vietnamese, and North Vietnamese. There was even a clandestine CIA officer, who was named.

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Nowhere in the Pentagon Papers was an adequate justification for the killing that we were doing, Ellsberg said. I was afraid if I redacted or withheld anything at all it would be inferred I left out the good reasons why the U.S. was pursuing the Vietnam War.



Ellsberg was concerned about revealing the name of a clandestine CIA officer, though he mentioned the individual was well-known in South Vietnam. Had he published the name of the officer today, the Intelligence Identities Protection Act could have easily been used to prosecute him. But he left it in the documents so no one could make inferences about redacted sections that may undermine what he exposed.

Like Assange, Ellsberg wanted the public to have a complete record.



This did not exactly distinguish Ellsberg from Assange so Lewis explicitly highlighted an article, Why WikiLeaks Is Unlike The Pentagon Papers, by attorney Floyd Abrams, which he wrote for the Wall Street Journal.



Abrams was one of the attorneys who represented the New York Times in the civil case that argued the government should not be able to block the media organization from publishing the Pentagon Papers. And like Lewis, Abrams fixated on the four volumes that were kept confidential.



Ellsberg insisted Abrams was mistaken. He never had any discussion with Ellsberg while defending the right to publish before the Supreme Court so Ellsberg said Abrams could not possibly understand his motives very well.



In the decades since the Pentagon Papers were disclosed, Ellsberg shared how he faced a great deal of defamation and then neglect to someone who was mentioned as a clear patriot. He was used as a foil against new revelations from WikiLeaks, which were supposedly very different. Such a distinction is misleading in terms of motive and effect.



Ellsberg noted Assange withheld 15,000 files from the release of the Afghanistan War Logs. He also requested assistance from the State Department and the Defense Department on redacting names, but they refused to help WikiLeaks redact a single document, even though it is a standard journalistic practice to consult officials to minimize harm.



I have no doubt that Julian would have removed those names, Ellsberg declared. Both the State and Defense Departments could have helped WikiLeaks remove the names of individuals, who prosecutors insist were negatively impacted.



Yet, rather than take steps to protect individuals, Ellsberg suggested these government agencies chose to preserve the possibility of charging Mr Assange with precisely the charges he faces now.



Not a single person has been identified by the U.S. government when they talk about deaths, physical harm, or incarceration that were linked to the WikiLeaks publications.



The lead prosecutor asked Ellsberg if it was his view that any harm to individuals was the fault of the American government for letting Assange publish material without redactions.



Ellsberg indicated they bear heavy responsibility.

Lewis attempted to trap Ellsberg into conceding Assange had engaged in conduct that resulted in grave harm to vulnerable individuals. He read multiple sections of an affidavit from Assistant U.S. Attorney Gordon Kromberg, who is in the Eastern District of Virginia where Assange was indicted.



It covered a laundry list of allegations: they named local Afghans and Iraqis that were providing information to coalition forces, forced journalists and religious leaders to flee, led to harassment of Chinese academics labeled as rats, fueled violent threats against people who met with U.S. embassy staff, resulted in Iranians being identified and outed, and spurred violence by the Taliban.



How can you say honestly and in an unbiased way that there is no evidence that WikiLeaks put anyone in danger? Lewis asked.



Ellsberg told Lewis he found the governments assertions to be highly cynical. He invited Lewis to correct him if he was wrong, but it is his understanding that no one actually suffered harm as a result of these threats. Did one of them suffer the carrying out of these threats?

Lewis replied the rules are you dont get to ask the questions. He tried to move on as Ellsberg insisted he be allowed to provide the rest of his answer, but Judge Vanessa Baraitser would not let Ellsberg complete his response.



It deeply upset Assange, who spoke from inside the glass box where he sits each day. Baraitser reminded him not to interrupt proceedings as Edward Fitzgerald, a defense attorney, attempted to convince the court that Ellsberg should be able to finish his answer.



Lewis continued, Is it your position there was absolutely no danger caused by publishing the unredacted names of these informants?



In response, Ellsberg said the U.S. government is extremely cynical in pretending its concerned for these people. It has displayed contempt for Middle Easterners throughout the last 19 years.



As Lewis insisted one had to conclude Iraqis, Afghans, or Syrians named in the WikiLeaks publications were murdered or forced to flee, Ellsberg refused to accept this presumption.



Im sorry, sir, but it doesnt seem to be at all obvious that this small fraction of people that have been murdered in the course of both sides of conflicts can be attributed to WikiLeaks disclosures, Ellsberg stated.



If the Taliban had disappeared someone, Ellsberg said that would be a seriously harmful consequence. I am not aware of one single instance in the last 10 years.



At no point did the lead prosecutor offer any specific example of a death, and so the record remains as it has been since Chelsea Manning was put on trial. The government has no evidence that anyone was ever killed as a result of transparency forced by WikiLeaks.



Ellsberg informed the court his motive was no different from Assanges motive. The Espionage Act charges that Assange faces are not meaningfully different either. And, in fact, he faced efforts by the government to wiretap and incapacitate him just like Assange did while in the Ecuador embassy in London.



Ellsberg recalled that he did not tell the public what led him to disclose the Pentagon Papers because he expected to be able to testify about his motive during his trial.



When his lawyer asked him why he copied the Pentagon Papers, the prosecution immediately objected. Each time his lawyer tried to rephrase the question, the court refused to permit him to tell the jury why he had done what hed done.



Federal courts continue to handle Espionage Act cases in the same manner. The notion of motive or extenuating circumstances is irrelevant, Ellsberg added.
According to the French investigative newspaper Mediapart, the French ambassador to Cote d'Ivoire, Gilles Huberson, is the target of an investigation by the foreign affairs ministry into allegations of sexual violence and sexual harassment spanning a number of countries.

Five women have given statements attesting to degrading remarks and sexual gestures.

Although the foreign ministry has not officially given any more information besides the "administrative" recall, some are questioning why he would be sent back to Paris less than 50 days before a tense presidential election in Cote d'Ivoire, a former French colony.

Huberson was ambassador to Mali between 2013 and 2016, and then appointed to Cote d'Ivoire in 2017, an important position in the Francophone diplomatic world.

Mediapart had access to a number of eyewitness statements of women directly involved, and interviewed both men and women who had worked for or indirectly with the ambassador.

A number had spoken of a 'locker room' atmosphere within the French diplomatic mission, as the ambassador had an authoritarian air, preferred whiskey and cigars, and cracked 'humiliating' and infantile jokes.

Others recalled when the ambassador 'threw' himself against a woman in an attempt to kiss her, among other allegations.

According to information received by RFI's Service Afrique, who spoke to the Quai d'Orsay, Huberson's recall to Paris is not of a political nature and has no connection with a possible misunderstanding between Presidents Macron and Ouattara.

RFI has been told that the ministry of foreign affairs is looking to replace Huberson as soon as possible before the Ivorian presidential election on 31 October.
Battle lines are are being drawn following the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a liberal icon and mischievous celebrity, whose passing opened a new political war just weeks before the election.

Barely an hour after Chief Justice John Roberts announced the 87-year-old had died at home on Friday evening, surrounded by friends, from the complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer, Republicans began pushing for her replacement to be made before voters went to the polls.

Donald Trump himself has not yet weighed in on the matter. Speaking to reporters after a two-hour campaign speech in Minnesota, he appeared genuinely caught off guard by the news of her death.

She just died? Wow. I didn't know that. She led an amazing life, he said, preparing to board Air Force One. Shortly afterwards, he paid her an even more complimentary tribute, calling her a fighter to the end.

He added: Renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable toward ones colleagues or different points of view.

 2016 video shows Mitch McConnell justifying decision to block supreme court nominee in election year

Yet, plenty of others picked up the standard to demand Mr Trump step forward and select a successor, even though there are less than 50 days until election day.

In the spring of 2016, Barack Obamas efforts to appoint Merick Garland as successor to the late Antonin Scalia were undermined by Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell, who said because there was less than six months of his term left, he should wait until voters had weighed in.

Mr McConnell appeared to have no such concerns about waiting for voters to speak in the case of Ms Ginsburg. Even as crowds gathered outside the Supreme Court building in Washington DC to celebrate her life and work, Mr McConnell said he was ready to call a vote whenever Congress was presented with a nominee.

President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, Mr McConnell said.

Texas senator Ted Cruz, who was named on a list of potential Supreme Court justices released by Mr Trump earlier this month, said it was critical that the Republican-controlled Senate moved quickly to replace her.

I believe that the president should next week nominate a successor to the court, and I think it is critical that the Senate takes up and confirms that successor before Election day, said Mr Cruz.

In contrast, Democratic nominee Joe Biden, leading Mr Trump by as many as seven points in national polls, said the decision about a replacement should be made by whoever wins in November.

There is no doubt  let me be clear  that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider, Mr Biden told reporters at an airport in New Castle, Delaware, after learning of her death.

His comments underscored the partisan fight all but certain over the future of the judiciary that could dominate the fewer than seven weeks remaining until the presidential election.

Reports suggest Ms Ginsburg would have approved of the fight being made to delay the appointment of her successor until after the election. NPR said that just days before her death, she said her most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

It said she made the her wishes known to her granddaughter, Clara Spera.

Mr Trump will be under intense pressure to act quickly.

Speaking on Friday before he was informed of her death, he talked of the power invested in a president by being able to select a justice to the court.

That's why the Supreme Court is so important  the next president will get one, two, three, or four Supreme Court Justices. I had two, he said.

There will be two factors driving Mr Trumps thinking on making an appointment. One will be an an attempt to reach out to, and secure the support of, social conservatives ahead of November.

The other calculation will be that if he loses to Mr Biden, he will have already scuppered any hopes the Democrat may have to hit the ground running, by having to contend with three Trump appointees to the Supreme Court  the president has already secured Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh  all of whom are appointed for life.

Agencies contributed to this report
Scientists say vast areas of Siberia are thawing with "devastating consequences"

Scientists are warning that across Siberia, vast areas normally frozen all year round, are now thawing, with potentially devastating consequences for the global climate.
As a parent with two children in public school, Im angered to read S.F. private schools close to bringing students back (Sept. 18). I dont know too many families who can afford the $34,250 in tuition charged by the San Francisco School, which can use its funds to ensure proper coronavirus safety protocols, supplies and testing for its teachers and students. Meanwhile, our underfunded public schools continue to struggle with buildings lacking sufficient ventilation or the ability to provide personal protective equipment for all staff members. Its shameful that this two-tiered elitist system of education exists in California and many other states across our country, especially during a major health pandemic.

Eleanor Fischbein, Alameda

Art imitates life

Its interesting hearing this administration disparaging the Hollywood elite, as its been Hollywood that has been trying to warn us about the danger of right-wing, fascist governments: This includes the evil government of Panem in The Hunger Games and the totalitarian society of The Handmaids Tale. Theres also the danger of unregulated capitalism: the greedy corporate takeover of Pandora in the movie Avatar and the destruction of the native population in the corporate quest for wealth. The danger of global warming: the dramatic climate changes in The Day After Tomorrow, which will make human life on Earth almost impossible. We see growing almost exponentially with each passing year a greater number of deaths from heat waves, bigger hurricanes and storms, more and larger wildfires, etc. Although the greenhouse gases we continue to emit will inevitably impact the critical Atlantic meridional overturning circulation currents, our self-inflicted apocalypse may take many decades rather than many hours. Do we simply walk out of the theater unaware that art often imitates life?

Larry Lack, Novato

Protect outdoor spaces

As Californians are anxious to safely return to our typical work and school schedules, many of us are just as eager to visit the amazing recreational and outdoor spaces we enjoy. And there is good news to share. Thanks to the leadership of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, the Great American Outdoors Act was passed by the House of Representatives and signed by the president. Working with Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield, the Great American Outdoors Act garnered strong bipartisan support by a vote of 310-107. The act will provide $9.5 billion in dedicated funding to address deferred maintenance in Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon, Golden Gate National Recreational Area and more. It is estimated that more than 16,000 jobs in California alone will be generated through the Great American Outdoors Act. This is an amazing accomplishment that will protect these recreational assets for future generations of locals and visitors and create jobs in California now.

Joe DAlessandro, San Francisco

Climate change measure

Regarding Warming, forest growth converge in fires (Front Page, Sept. 14): As someone previously unfamiliar with prescribed burns, it was interesting to learn about an old technique that could save us so much pain in the future. It is concerning to hear, however, that the window of time to perform these burns is decreasing. If we want to rely on controlled burns as a strategy for mitigating wildfires, it is important to ensure we continue to have the time to safely perform them. By supporting climate change measures, were not only making a global impact but also making sure that we have time to solve the problems were facing locally. Techniques like the carbon pricing solution proposed by the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act are concrete ways that we ensure the length of fire season doesnt grow out of control. Call your senators or representatives and tell them to support carbon pricing legislation.

Alex Roberts, San Francisco

Salvation in unity

The raging and deadly wildfires here in California and the deteriorating relations with the nuclear-armed superpowers Russia and China are perilous reminders that the future of humanity is in great danger. We humans seem almost blind to the foolishness of our fierce and arrogant rivalries that pit the U.S. against many of the worlds other nuclear nations. And while world peace and the total abolition of all nuclear weapons would lessen our fears and the outbreaks of violence in all parts of the world, we in the U.S. go on repeating our nations long history of global competition and a fanatic quest for exceptionalism and world dominance. Nations everywhere must face the naked truth that preventing further global warming and halting preparations for a final nuclear war must become our highest priorities. And our feelings of excessive national pride and patriotism have become deadly poisons that must be transformed into the experience of our common and shared humaneness. Because only by uniting as one undivided human race can we move away from our present drift to our self-destruction.

Rama Kumar, Fairfax

Federal management

President Trump rakes over the fact that a fair percentage of forest lands in California are under the management of federal agencies: national parks, monuments and recreational areas, national forests and acreage overseen by the Bureau of Land Management. His policies are responsible for those lands. We have gotten derisive words from him but no examples of better management, no policies that address the dry, warmer terrain that fuels the current fire disasters.
KITCHENER  A woman charged in a Cambridge homicide made a brief court appearance by audio on Friday.

Melissa Duff-Shore, 41, was charged with second-degree murder on Sept. 11. Kayla Duff, 22, died of multiple stab wounds, an autopsy determined.

The homicide happened in a townhouse near Queen Street West and Winston Boulevard.

Duff-Shore, held at Vanier jail in Milton, returns to court on Sept. 28.
"That '70s Show" actor Danny Masterson, charged with raping three women, made his first appearance Friday in a Los Angeles courtroom, where his attorney declared his innocence and denounced the charges against him as "politicized."

Masterson, 44, who has been free on bail since his June arrest, stood in court in a blue suit and face mask next to attorneys Tom Mesereau and Sharon Appelbaum, as the three women sat in the gallery.

Masterson did not enter a plea, but Mesereau said the charges, based on events nearly 20 years old, were the result of unfair hype from media outlets and pressure to prosecute his client as Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey faces an election.

"There have been repeated attempts to politicize this case," said Mesereau, who also represented Bill Cosby and Michael Jackson in their sexual misconduct cases. "He is absolutely not guilty and we're going to prove it."

Deputy District Attorney Reinhold Mueller called the statements "pure speculation, with no basis in fact."

Mesereau spoke as the judge was considering media requests to allow media cameras in court, which he approved. Mesereau argued that the media presence would be unfairly prejudicial to Masterson and taint potential jurors.

"We want to do anything we can to tone down the cameras and the circus-like atmosphere that have pervaded this case," the attorney said. "We're just trying to protect his rights."

Superior Court Judge Miguel T. Espinoza also denied a request from the defense for a protective order sealing case files and preventing police, prosecutors and potential witnesses from revealing case information to the media, but said he would reconsider similar request later.

The defense has filed documents asking the criminal complaint against Masterson be thrown out as insufficient. A hearing on the issue will be held before Masterson is asked to enter a plea.

Masterson's arrest came after a three-year investigation that resulted in the rare prosecution of a famous Hollywood figure in the #MeToo era. Despite dozens of investigations, most have led to no charges based on lack of evidence or too much time passing.

 Associated Press

Warner addresses working allegations

Warner Bros. executives on Thursday finally addressing allegations of toxic working conditions on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" after former staffers made explosive claims this summer.

WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar broached the viral allegations in an email to staffers, obtained by BuzzFeed News.

"I am both concerned and disappointed by public reports regarding patterns of unacceptable behavior that have been raised in recent weeks," said the honcho.

Warner Bros. CEO Ann Sarnoff said in a memo reviewed by the outlet that she had "empowered, and will hold accountable, the Studios and Networks HR and Legal teams to act on any issues that are brought to them."

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Sarnoff dubbed said groups "a safe harbor where you can register any concerns."

The execs' communications were sent out over a week after the outlet reported on a multitude of allegations dozens of current and former employees made against the workplace culture of "The Ellen Show" and the TMZ newsroom.

At the former employees claimed there was widespread sexual harassment and misconduct. Allegations against the TMZ newsroom included those of verbal abuse, racism, and misogyny.

Warner Bros. has enlisted a third party to do "an objective, proactive review across our production business" to uncover "any pattern of behavior that is at odds with our need to treat each other with dignity," according to Kilar's letter.

He also noted that the company will require all existing and prospective partners treat people with dignity and that ties will be severed with any partners who don't do so.

Last month, Ed Glavin and Kevin Leman, both executive producers on "Ellen," and their co-executive producer Jonathan Norman, were axed after former employees alleged that managers had taken part in obvious sexual harassment. Managers, they claimed, also used fear and intimidation to run the day time hit.

Leman previously told the outlet he categorically denied "any kind of sexual impropriety." Norman said he too was "100 percent categorically denying" the claims. Glavin did not not respond to BuzzFeed News.

DeGeneres, who prior to the workplace allegations was a widely beloved public figure, remained silent on the allegations at first, subsequently issuing an apology to employees.

"Anyone who knows me knows it's the opposite of what I believe in and what i hoped for our show," she wrote, noting she was "disappointed to learn" about the claims, which will be addressed in her opening monologue when the show returns Monday.

 Tribune News Service
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 02:26:20|Editor: huaxia

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BRUSSELS, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- China and the European Union (EU) should foster an open, fair, just and non-discriminatory environment for market players from both sides, Zhang Ming, head of the Chinese Mission to the EU, has said.

According to the updates of the mission's website on Friday, Zhang made the remarks while delivering a keynote speech at a webinar organized by the European Policy Center on Thursday.

He said that China's efforts to expand opening-up and improve the business environment are widely recognized, "yet it seems that the EU is moving in the opposite direction."

The recent steps taken by the EU in such areas as 5G, FDI screening, government procurement and competition policy have got the Chinese government, businesses and media very much concerned, the envoy noted. "We hope that the EU takes Chinese concerns seriously and keeps its trade and investment markets open."

Despite the impact of COVID-19, he said, China-EU trade in the first half of this year grew by 2.2 percent year on year, amounting to 275.6 billion euros (326.9 billion U.S. dollars). The share of China in the EU's foreign trade rose to 15.6 percent.

Most EU companies in China continue to make profits, 30 percent of which have a profitability rate of 20 percent, according to the report of the EU Chamber of Commerce. Nearly 90 percent of EU companies operating in China choose to stay, Zhang said.

"For China and the EU, cooperation is not an expediency, but a strategic choice aiming for mutual benefit," the envoy said.

Expecting China and the EU will play a more prominent role in each other's external cooperation, he called on both sides to explore new areas of cooperation more proactively.

"In the coming decade, China's service imports will reach 10 trillion U.S. dollars. China and the EU need to seize this opportunity to expand trade in services to bring our economic and trade cooperation to a higher level," he said.

The two sides could, under the framework of the high-level environment and climate dialogue and the high-level digital cooperation dialogue, further unleash the potential in these frontier areas and step up cooperation on technology, standards and rules-setting, the envoy noted. Enditem
Leaders of the two main opposition parties in Canada have gone into self-isolation less than a week before parliament reconvenes as the country witnessed a marked resurgence in coronavirus cases that may signal the possible arrival of a second wave of the deadly respiratory disease.

Canada recorded 1,037 new Covid-19 cases on Friday, an increase of 58% compared to the situation two weeks earlier. According to the US-based Johns Hopkins University coronavirus tally, the total number of Covid-19 cases in Canada has surpassed 144,000, while the disease has claimed at least 9,250 lives.

Erin OToole, leader of Canadas principal opposition Conservative Party, has gone into self-isolation along with family members after a member his staff tested positive for Covid-19.

Also in quarantine was Yves-Francois Blanchet, leader of the Bloc Quebecois, the second largest opposition group in the House of Commons, after he tested positive along with his wife. Several MPs from his party have gone into self-isolation as a precautionary measure.

The Canadian parliament is scheduled to meet on September 23. The upcoming sitting is set to feature a Throne Speech from the countrys governor general that is expected to outline an ambitious agenda for Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus government.

Trudeau has already sought virtual voting in the House so that legislative business can continue even as many MPs are unable to attend sessions in Ottawa in person.

As cases surged, Tina Namiesniowski, the president of the Public Health Agency of Canada, has announced her resignation even as authorities responsible for dealing with the pandemic have increasingly come under criticism for their failure to control the spread of the disease.

While not yet declaring a second wave, Theresa Tam, Canadas chief public health officer, has warned that the ongoing increase in the national daily case count is an indicator of accelerated epidemic growth.

She said in a statement, This situation increases the likelihood that we could lose the ability to keep Covid-19 cases at manageable levels.

Several provinces have been reporting a spike in cases, including Ontario, where over 400 new infections - the highest since June - have been recorded after the daily case count had dropped to under 100 last month.

British Columbia reported an all-time high of 179 Covid-19 cases on Friday, forcing the authorities to bring back some of the restrictions in Toronto, including limiting indoor gatherings to 10 and outdoor gatherings to 25.

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The San Antonio areas unemployment rate continued its downward trend in August despite the summers explosion of COVID cases, hospitalizations and deaths that dampened the regions economic recovery.

The unemployment rate dipped to 6.4 percent in August, down from 7.1 percent in July, according to the Federal Reserve Bank in Dallas.

While thats better than Aprils high of 13.2 percent, its more than double the rate in August 2019.

As long as COVID cases and hospitalizations continue to drop as we go through the remainder of the year, we should see positive job growth, but certainly at a more moderate pace than we saw early on in May and June, said Keith Phillips, Dallas Fed assistant vice president and senior economist. But if we see another resurgence, were going to expect the economy to come to a halt like it kind of did in July. So its all going to depend on the virus.

The region gained 6,900 jobs in August after shedding 4,800 jobs in July, according to the Dallas Fed. The San Antonio area saw slightly more job growth than the state average.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonios employment rate decreased in July

But the pandemic has decimated San Antonios leisure and hospitality industry, killing 24,500 jobs this year.

Thats 40.5 percent of the 60,480 local jobs lost, and more than three times the job losses of the next hardest hit industry, according to Phillips.

Leisure and hospitality is by far the largest source of weakness in the San Antonio area, Phillips said.

Administration and waste management  work related to maintaining office buildings  is down 8,000 jobs, and health care is down about 6,000 jobs.

Most of the big bounce-back has already occurred, and now it looks like were settling down to more of a more normal kind of pace of growth, he said. We expect about 3 percent for the state for the remainder of the year.

But the local economy could take another hit if COVID cases start rising again. Another risk to economic recovery, especially in the retail industry, is the expiration of federal pandemic unemployment assistance combined with state unemployment benefits running out for an increasing number of the jobless.

Thats a source of concern, because overall retail sales have held up pretty well for the kind of job losses weve seen, Phillips said, and thats because of all this assistance that is going to individuals and firms.

SA Inc.: Get the best of business news sent directly to your inbox

The Dallas Feds numbers are seasonally adjusted, which minimizes the impact of seasonal employment patterns, and differ slightly from the Texas Workforce Commission numbers produced in cooperation with the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The TWC pegged the San Antonio regions unemployment rate at 6.6 percent in August, down from 8 percent in July.

Weekly unemployment claims in Bexar County climbed to 4,035 in the first week of September after dipping below 3,000 in August, which was the lowest since mid-March, according to the TWC.

The number of weekly claims is significantly lower than the weekly high of nearly 21,000 recorded at the end of March, but its still more than six times the amount of claims filed this time last year.

One thing that gives me a little more confidence in the numbers for San Antonio is (if you) look at the overall Texas numbers, said David Macpherson, chairman of Trinity Universitys economics department. Theyre looking pretty good, too.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonios unemployed lose $300 in FEMAs Lost Wages Assistance payments

The TWC reported a 6.8 percent seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for Texas in August, below the national rate of 8.4 percent.

Its clear Texas is doing better than the rest of the country, he said.

Nearly 21,300 people in the San Antonio area are claiming unemployment, the third-highest total in the state, according to the TWC. Most of the jobless came from limited and full-service restaurants, temporary help services, elementary and secondary schools and home health care services.

Gov. Greg Abbotts loosening of COVID restrictions on businesses, announced Thursday, could help the economy  if theres no spike in cases, Macpherson said.

Its up to people, he said. If everybody wore a mask and behaved appropriately, it wouldnt be such a big issue.

Brandon Lingle writes for the Express-News through Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms. To read more from Brandon, become a subscriber. brandon.lingle@express-news.net | Twitter: @Brandlingle
IFA Pig Committee Chairman Tom Hogan says the confirmation of African Swine Fever (ASF) in Germany brings the total number of European countries with positive cases to 12.



Mr Hogan is calling on all pig farmers, on both sides of the Irish border, to heighten the already robust levels of biosecurity on their pig farms.



The IFA has worked closely with Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine (DAFM) over the past two years to increases surveillance at points of entry into Ireland and to increase awareness among the general public of the risks of bringing potential ASF infected material into the country.



Mr Hogan is also calling on the Department to increase their efforts in light of this wake-up call in Germany.



A case of ASF was identified in Germany, for the first time, on September 10.

Everyone is preoccupied with the risks and impact of Covid-19 on our daily lives, but it is vital that Ireland remains ASF free.

With lower levels of international travel due to Covid-19 and prudent protocols in place, I am confident that Ireland will remain ASF free.



While this is a terrible blow for the pig farmers of Germany, it should be remembered that ASF has no health implications for humans.

ASF virus, which is highly fatal for pigs and wild boar, does not affect humans and poses no food safety risk.



Reports to date indicate that the infection involves a single wild boar which was found dead and there have been no reports of the disease in domestic pigs in Germany. This occurred near the border with Poland, where the disease is spreading in wild boar.



Ireland does not have a sustainable wild boar population, but the virus can also be spread through other ways including contact with infected live pigs, contaminated clothing, footwear, vehicles and equipment and the consumption of infected food waste by pigs.



The Department has confirmed that there has been no importation of live pigs from Germany into Ireland this year to date.

The EU regionalisation protocols should minimise any possible negative impact on the commercial pig sector in Germany. Regardless of this, Mr Hogan said that the Irish pig processing sector must not take advantage of Germanys misfortune by pulling prices.

Rather, he said there is scope for pig prices to increase from todays levels of 1.60c/kg.



A number of important factors should be to Irelands advantage in the fight to keep the country ASF free:

There is no notable wild boar population in Ireland.

Ireland is an island and our nearest neighbours Britain are also ASF free.

Irish pig farmers operate to a very strict and stringent level of biosecurity.

There has been no importation of live pigs from Germany or any ASF affected country.

Reduced international travel lowers the risk of the general public bringing ASF infected material into Ireland and will increase the effectiveness of DAFM airport and port checks.
The Rajya Sabha on Saturday passed the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill, 2020, whereby fresh insolvency proceedings will not be initiated for at least six months starting from March 25 amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Replying to a debate on the Bill in the House, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the intention of the IBC is to keep companies a "going concern" and not liquidate them.

The Bill mandates that a default on repayments from March 25, the day when a nationwide lockdown began to curb the spread of coronavirus, would not be considered for initiating insolvency proceedings for at least six months.

The bill seeks to replace an ordinance promulgated in this regard in June.

Also read: Parliament Session: India engaging with ASEAN to review FTA, says Piyush Goyal
Hyderabad, Sep 19 : The Telangana government has written to the Centre to urge for immediately release Rs 1,433.95 crore dues for urban development under the 15th Finance Commission.

The dues includes Rs 468 crore towards the first instalment of grant to million-plus cities, Rs 315.75 crore towards balance second instalment of grant to non-million-plus cities, and Rs 650.20 crore pending statutory grants recommended by the 14th Finance Commission.

In a letter to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister KT Rama Rao said that "the non-release of statutorily mandated Finance Commission grants and COVID-induced shortfall in the state's own revenues, have handicapped the state no end".

Rama Rao brought to her notice that the 15th Finance Commission recommended grants amounting to Rs 468 crore to million-plus city (Hyderabad population) and Rs 421 crore to non-million-plus cities in the state, which were to be released in two equal instalments in June and October 2020.

"While the grant to million-plus cities is yet to be released, the grant to non-million-plus cities has been split into four instalments in contravention of the recommendation of the Finance Commission, and the first instalment amounting to Rs 105.25 crore has been released on May 19, 2020," he wrote.

Rama Rao said Telangana was also denied its rightful entitlement in grants to urban local bodies, as recommended by the 14th Finance Commission (2015-20).

"While the Commission recommended unconditional basic grant of Rs 2,711.12 crore, the amount released by the Centre was Rs 2,502.90 crore (a shortfall of Rs 208.22 crore). Though the state had fulfilled all the conditions attached to the performance grant of Rs 677.79 crore, the amount released was only Rs 235.81 crore (shortfall of Rs 441.98 crore). Thus, Telangana was denied Rs 650.20 crore from statutory grant to local bodies, though the full amount was released to some other states," read the letter.

Rama Rao pointed out to Sitharaman that states are in the forefront of fighting the COVID pandemic and reviving economic activity.

"Telangana is in the forefront of improving civic and social infrastructure and sanitation facilities in urban areas. Additional budget provisions matching the central Finance Commission grants made in the state Budget 2020-21, pending report of the first State Finance Commission, clearly demonstrates the commitment of the state," he said.
Jim Glaser

Nyack, N.Y.

To the Editor:

If the Democrats take control of the White House and both houses of Congress in November, they will have the power to do the one thing that will prevent the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg from becoming a national tragedy: pack the Supreme Court.

Article III of the Constitution establishes the court, but leaves it to Congress to determine the number of justices who sit on it. Congress could increase that number from nine to 11 or any number it chooses with a simple majority vote in both the House and the Senate (after it abolishes the antiquated and undemocratic filibuster rule) and the presidents signature.

The Senate could then confirm two or more progressive liberal appointees to balance what will surely by then be three ultra-right-wing justices appointed by the current president. And if the Republicans cry foul, the Democrats should respond with two words: Merrick Garland.

Elliott B. Jacobson

Yonkers, N.Y.

The writer is an attorney.

To the Editor:

Most reporting about the possibility that President Trump and the Republican-controlled Senate will confirm a Supreme Court justice before the November election is understandably focused on Republican hypocrisy. After all, in 2016 Mitch McConnell took the exact opposite stance regarding President Barack Obamas nomination of Merrick Garland after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia.

Lost in this story line, however, is just how supportive much of the media were for Mr. Obamas constitutional duty to replace Justice Scalia before Election Day in 2016 (Merrick Garland for the Supreme Court, editorial, March 17, 2016). Why would that principle hold in 2016, but not 2020?

If the issue is hypocrisy, lets not forget it was the Democratic-controlled Senate that blew up the filibuster for most judicial nominees in 2013, sidelining any Republican opposition to Mr. Obamas judgeships for most of his second term  a favor Republicans returned by blocking Judge Garland in 2016, and ending the filibuster for Supreme Court picks in 2017.

When it comes to judicial appointments, the sad fact is both parties have been positioning themselves more on politics than principle for many years.
(Photo : The Han Show Theatre ) The Han Show Theatre's deadly seats (Photo : REUTERS/Aly Song) Workers wear face masks during a government organised media tour at Tongji Hospital following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Wuhan, Hubei province, China September 3, 2020. (Photo : REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins) Chinese President Xi Jinping poses with respiratory disease expert Zhong Nanshan, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) expert Zhang Boli, vaccine researcher and People's Liberation Army (PLA) major general Chen Wei, and head of Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital Zhang Dingyu during a meeting to commend role models in China's fight against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China September 8, 2020. (Photo : The Han Show Theatre ) The Han Show Theatre

A great irony when a Wuhan nurse and her husband ended in a tragic death after watching a show that commended coronavirus health workers at the Han Show Theatre on September 6.

According to reports, the victims were trapped between rotating chairs at a local theatre after trying to rescue their son who slipped under his seat. Fortunately, the boy survived the fall, but he has become an orphan because his parents were crushed to death by the moving seats.

However, the couple's deaths were not confirmed by Wuhan officials until September 17, although the incident occurred 12 days ago. Details of the incident were not specified, although authorities claimed they "properly handled the aftermath of the incident" after carrying out an emergency rescue.

A Weibo user who claimed to be the victims' family friend shared the incident in a post on the Twitter-like platform, which triggered an outrage from other social media users. "Today is the national honouring assembly, but this incident has yet to be seen on the news," stated in the post, which was published on September 8 while President Xi honored the "heroes" of China's war against COVID-19 in a special event.

The post said that the nurse worked on the frontline against the coronavirus outbreak at Wuhan Tongji Hospital in Wuhan, China. With her husband and four-year-old son, she went to the Han Show Theatre in Wuhan to watch a performance that gave honor to coronavirus health workers.

The theatre is run by the Wuhan Wanda Dragone Performing Arts Company. It can accommodate up to 2,000 guests and showcases some advanced features to give the audience a great watching experience. There is a huge 225 square meters-LED screen that can be combined or separated into three through mechanical equipment backstage. Its website also claims to be the world's first theatre to feature a water show with moving seats.

A staff member told The Beijing News, the seats move like a fan that opens and closes giving the audience the best view of the show and onstage effects.

The Weibo user posted that the boy fell under the rotating seat as he stood up before the end of the show. His parents tried to catch him before they were both caught between the moving chairs that crushed them their bodies. The couple were pronounced dead on arrival after they were rushed to a nearby hospital while the boy suffered some injuries.

Weibo users angered by official's delayed statement about the incident

Despite a delay in reporting about the incident, Wuhan officials said they were still investigating the cause of the couple's tragic death while the theatre owner, the Wanda Group, said it already fired two of the managers after the accident. the company also had a compensation agreement with the family.

The Wanda Group posted on its website that Wuhan Wanda Dragone general manager Deng Wei and operations manager Deng Wulin were sacked after the tragedy.

Meanwhile, netizens called for a thorough investigation by the authorities while some are angered by the government's late announcement.

One web user seeks to know how the seats were produced, the risks they entail, and whether they passed through safety inspection. "These are the key points so to avoiding similar accidents in the future," the commenter said.

Another user found the irony of the event and the tragedy. "It's ironic that our soldiers came back victoriously from the front lines and died at the seat of the celebrations," the Weibo user said. Meanwhile, another commenter questioned why it took 12 days before for the investigation was made public while others urge the government to release more information about the incident.

The couple's relatives who were still dealing with the aftermath declined to speak about the incident, according The Beijing News said.

Read also: Chinese Whistleblower, Dr. Li-Meng Yan to Release Scientific Proof that Coronavirus Came from Wuhan Lab, Not at a Wet Market

This is owned by Tech Times

Written by CJ Robles

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Apple Inc. was sued for allegedly copying an innovation credited with helping bring racial diversity to the world of emojis, those ubiquitous characters used as shortcuts to express emotions in digital communications.

Katrina Parrott, an African-American businesswoman, debuted her copyrighted method for letting users choose from five skin tones to color a line of emojis -- known as iDiversicons -- on Apples App Store in 2013 and on iTunes in 2014.

Parrott claims Apple stiff-armed her pursuit of a partnership deal after a series of 2014 meetings and communications between herself and two senior Apple software engineers, who got a close look at her technology. Apple released its own five-skin tone keyboard modifier pallet in April 2015, and downloads of Parrotts iDiversicons dropped.

In a lawsuit filed Friday in federal court in Waco, Texas, Parrott accuses Apple of infringing her copyright and trade dress, misappropriating her ideas and technology, unfair competition and unjust enrichment. She seeks a court order blocking Apple from using her work and unspecified money damages based on Apples profits and her own lost business opportunities from the alleged copying.

Apple didnt immediately respond to a request for comment.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.

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Google search has come up with a new in-app browser as part of an update. As reported by Android Police, this looks like an attempt to bring yet another visual change to the design as Google tries some more innovation.

A new in-app browser is not the only update that has come to Google Search in recent weeks. Firstly, the company started testing new background headers for specific search results. Then the service began delivering more high-quality information.

This looks like the company has aims to further innovate and update the search service. Whether the service actually needs all these changes and new updates is another matter. However, for some these refreshes will certainly be welcome additions.

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New in-app browser comes to Google Search

Google started testing this in-app browser a short while ago. Generally, it looked fairly similar to the experience in the iOS app. It has a similar loading animation when you open websites for example.

However, there could be some issues with the implementation of this new update. Unlike Chrome custom tabs, the new browser is completely separate. This means no shared history, bookmarks, or logins.

In spite of all these problems Google will continue to keep pushing its new in-app browser. It has now gained its own Safe Browsing toggle and site settings options revolving around cookies and permissions.

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In previous times, Googles app browser settings would only allow you to clear your browsing data. This would include all saved cookies and any cached data.

However, a new design of the settings site has begun surfacing. It has only come up for a few people and it adds two more entries.

It has added the Safe Browsing feature. Most people probably know this from Chrome that filters out dangerous, potentially malware-ridden sites. It also now includes a site settings option.

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What this all means, in short, is that Google is almost recreating Chrome inside the Search app. However, it will not have the benefit of the shared logins, cookies, and other browsing preferences.

Below is a series of screenshots that illustrates the changes Google has implemented. On the right, we have the previous browser settings and on the left the new ones.

Users can check if they still have the old Chrome custom tab implementation. They can do this by opening a website through the Google app and tapping the three-dot overflow menu. If it says Powered by Chrome at the bottom, your logins and browsing history should be synced across.

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However, if you are part of the in-app browser test and would like to keep using Chrome you can turn off the in-app browser in the Google app settings. This is accessible through the More bottom tab on the search results page. Many will hope that that Google will scrap the custom browser, as the Chrome custom tab implementation seems to make a lot more sense.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 17:24:14|Editor: huaxia

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ROME, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Italian winemakers say they are making a major push to improve their foothold in China even as most of the world's economy is struggling to emerge from the worst impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

Italy has jockeyed with France for the title of the world's top wine producer in terms of volume, but in the fast-growing Chinese market, Italy ranks a distant fourth, not only trailing France but also Australia and Chile, according to 2019 data from the IWSR, a global beverage market analysis group. Five years ago, Italy ranked seventh.

Italian wine sector officials told Xinhua they want to continue climbing the rankings. Vinitaly, Italy's main wine fair, took its show to China this year, participating in fairs in three Chinese cities: Xiamen, Chengdu, and Shanghai. Shanghai hosted the last and largest of the three events, which will draw to a close on Saturday. Italy was represented at the fairs by 65 producers and distributors, a record number.

Back home, industry groups are holding strategy sessions to chart the best course for growth in the Chinese market.

Despite the difficulties of a hot and dry summer in most of Italy and a shortage of workers due to coronavirus travel restrictions, 2020 is shaping up to be a good year for Italian wine in terms of quality. Liv-ex, a wine sector monitoring group, reported in late August that the Italian wine trade this year had by that point already passed its value for all of 2019.

A major challenge, analysts and observers said, is to translate that demand to the Chinese market.

"The Chinese market has so much potential that it can't be ignored," Simone Incontro, director of the Shanghai office for Verona Fiere (the parent organization for Vinitaly) in Shanghai, told Xinhua. "Wine consumption in China has increased from 0.9 liters per person to 1.1 liters per person over the last two years."

Incontro said he believed that China would become a far more important destination for Italy's wine exports over the next five to ten years.

Francesco Zaganelli, export manager for Lungarotti, a major wine producer in the central Italian region of Umbria, agreed with Incontro that despite its economic difficulties that this period could be a key point for Italian winemakers.

Among Italian producers, Lungarotti has been a pioneer in the Chinese wine market, exporting directly to China for 15 years. Zaganelli said that a combination of factors, including greater recognition of Italian wines in China and the switch to a niche distributor that specializes in the Chinese market, have made a difference. He said that China is now the seventh-largest of Lungarotti's 47 export markets. Enditem
NATA 2020 | The NATA second test result will have details of the candidates, the section-wise marks and qualifying marks

NATA 2020 | The Council of Architecture (CoA) has declared the result, response sheet and scorecard for the second test of National Aptitude Test in Architecture (NATA) 2020. Candidates who took the exam can check their scores online at the official website nata.in. The test was conducted on 12 September. The NATA first test was held on 29 August and the result was declared on 5 September.

Here is the direct link to check the NATA Result 2020 scorecard: https://nataregistration.in/index.php?p=login

Steps to check the test result:

Candidates need to first visit the official website at nata.in. Once there, they need to go to the Registration link given on the top of homepage and key in their login credentials. The result will be displayed on the screen. Candidates need to download them and take a print.

The NATA second test result will have details of the candidates, the section-wise marks and qualifying marks. The best scores of the two tests will be considered while preparing the final merit list for admission to the undergraduate programme.

As per a report in Careers 360, a total of 30,999 candidates enrolled for the NATA second test. Out of that 22,289 candidates appeared for the examination. Among these 14,087 candidates appeared for online examination in 158 designated centres in different parts of India and from one in Dubai and 8,202 candidates appeared for the test from their homes.

NATA is conducted by Council of Architecture (COA) since 2006 and measures the aptitude of the applicant in the field.
| By Alex Likowski

It was a dream that was a long time coming. On April 16, 2016, the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) cut the ribbon on its first Community Engagement Center (CEC). Standing before a crowd of West Baltimore residents, and civic and University leaders, then-President Jay A. Perman, MD, spoke from the heart. This day, he said, is a celebration of deep love and affection that we have for one another and this very special community we share.

Among those gathered, the late Congressman Elijah E. Cummings, JD 76, may have had the longest connection to the community, having served as a member of the Poppleton community board more than 35 years earlier. Since that time, the relationship between the University and its neighbors to the west, he said, was not very good. Many felt the University turned its back on West Baltimore and feared any expansion across Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

The New CEC at 16 S. Poppleton Street

But Cummings went on to talk about how much had changed recently, and how great an impact he hoped the CEC and its programs and resources would have on residents striving to achieve their dreams. There will be children for whom the trajectory of their destinies have been already changed by what youre doing here today, he said.

Since that day, the modest, 3,000-square-foot Community Engagement Center has been jam-packed with programs, services, and people of all ages, hosting after-school activities for kids, mentoring for young scholars, health screenings, career development and legal services, a computer lab, fresh food market, monthly community meals, and exercise programs.

Right from the beginning, community leaders saw the need to expand the center. In his comments at the 2016 ribbon cutting, Southwest Partnership chair Michael Seipp talked of working with UMB to find space to quadruple the size of the CEC.

Four years and more than 40,000 community visits later, the University has achieved much more than that. At 20,000 square feet, the new CEC is seven times the size of the original. With a $4 million grant from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development and support from the governor and legislature, the University was able to purchase the historic building at 16 S. Poppleton  a community fixture since 1917  and transform it into something wonderful. Its bright, open, airy, and welcoming. The building has been lovingly restored, with an exercise and dance studio, large multi-purpose room for community meals and events, a play area for kids, a wellness suite, computer lab, and the list goes on.

But perhaps the most important aspect of the new CEC is that it represents the fulfillment of a shared vision with the community its intended to serve. Everybody seems to be really involved in this project. Thats whats so exciting about it, Poppleton resident Cassandra Fair said at the groundbreaking.

Joining UMB President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS, to discuss the new CEC on his weekly web program Virtual Face to Face with Dr. Bruce Jarrell were Ashley Valis, MSW, executive director of strategic initiatives and community engagement; Tyrone Roper, MSW, director of the Community Engagement Center; and Ulysses Archie Jr., co-founder of Baltimore Gift Economy, a community nonprofit that  among other things  operates a discount fresh food market at the CEC.

Watch the entire program at the link above.
The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC), which detected its first Covid-19 case on March 13, has spent Rs 137 cr so far to tackle the pandemic. It has sought an additional Rs 251 cr from the state government to increase the facilities.

From having just one single hospital, the Vashi General Hospital, for tackling Covid patients to having 10 Covid care facilities and reserved hospital beds for Covid, NMMC has come a long way.

NMMC has 35,364 positive cases till date. Around 3,565 are active while 790 deaths have been reported. Till now 1,70,575 people have undergone Covid-19 test, of which 67,071 people are RTPCR test and 103,504, rapid antigen test.

Abhijit Bangar, NMMC commissioner, said, With the increasing number of cases, we have faced scarcity of Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds, with over 40 per cent ICU beds occupied by patients from cities like Thane, Kalyan and Raigad.

Our focus is to increase the ICU beds and also beds with ventilators. Till now, the state government has provided us Rs 10 cr during the pandemic. We have requested for Rs 251 cr more. Currently, the NMMC is using funds from its own coffers. If needed, we will also procure the budget of other heads for health because right now the priority is to handle the Covid situation.

Navi Mumbai has increased contact tracing and testing that has helped bring the doubling rate of the positive COVID cases to 42 days. Isolation of positive patients and timely treatment has brought down the mortality rate from 3.3% to 2.19% while the recovery rate has gone up from 50 per cent to 87 per cent. Attempts are on to bring down the mortality rate further. Management of containment area enforcement is very crucial as many people have now started taking the pandemic very lightly. Hence, we have planned Nuisance Detection Squad (NDS) for which we will hire around 100 ex-army men to keep a check on people flouting norms and penalise them, Bangar said.

Additional Commissioner of NMMC, Sujata Dhole, said, We have been increasing the facilities as per the rise in cases and need of the hour. By March end, the total number of cases was still in two digits and the facilities we had were the Vashi General Hospital and Swami Vivekananda Multipurpose Hall at Sector 14 in Vashi. In April, we had acquired India Bulls flats in Panvel and by May, we started using them.

By April end, the doubling rate of the positive cases changed from 11 days to six days. Keeping the chances of spread in mind, NMMC had increased the capacity of isolation centres.

After acquiring 3,000 flats at India Bulls, the civic body kept increasing the smaller facilities in Koparkhairane, Airoli, Belapur, Nerul and Vashi. On August 3, we entered a MOU with DY Patil hospital for ICU beds. On September 10, we started three more facilities in Turbhe, Airoli and Turbhe, AMC Dhole added.

From July end, the average daily cases reported crossed 300 and by August end, it crossed 400.

Navi Mumbai activist Anarjit Chauhan said that NMMC has failed in providing adequate beds to the patients. He said, As far as RT-PCR testing is concerned, NMMC is doing a good job but I am against the rapid antigen test. It is a test that even US government doesnt recommend. It is nothing but wastage of tax payers money. Now, NMMC has started door to door rapid tests and it is a huge waste of time, resources and money. The staff involved in the antigen test could be very well assigned to do something productive.

He claimed to get quite frequent calls from people to help them arrange the beds. Private hospitals do not want patients via government quota and are waiting for a direct patient who will pay their hefty bill. There have been so many violations by private hospitals in terms of overcharging and denying beds but not many has been penalised yet. The private hospitals are not even implementing the government schemes for the Covid treatment that they should be. NMMC should look into the black marketing of private hospitals more stringently, Chauhan said.
Colombias President Ivan Duque called Saturday for Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to be prosecuted as a war criminal in a joint news conference with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Duque spoke as Pompeo rounded off a three-day tour of Venezuelas neighbors designed to increase pressure on the socialist leader to leave power.

Duque, a key US ally in the region, said a UN report this week showed that this is a regime behind violations of human rights that are systematic, and that the head of this dictatorship is a war criminal and the international community must put an end to the situation.

Nicolas Maduro is responsible for crimes against humanity as is his inner circle, the Colombian leader said, flanked by Pompeo at Casa de Narino presidential palace in Bogota.

The 411-page UN Human Rights Council report accused Maduro and his inner circle of being responsible for probable crimes against humanity. Caracas dismissed the report as riddled with falsehoods.

Pompeo described his right-wing host as a true leader for the region and the dignity of its people.

He said Duques support of Interim President Juan Guaido and a sovereign Venezuela free of the malign influences of Cuba and Russia and Iran is incredibly valuable.

He said violence on the part of guerrilla groups like FARC dissidents, the ELN or any other terrorist or criminal group is unacceptable.

It cannot be tolerated nor can the actions of regimes like Maduros which provides safe haven and a deep comfort to those terrorists.

The US official also announced new technical assistance to help develop Colombias energy minerals sector.

Pompeo arrived in Bogota late Friday after visiting a center for Venezuelan refugees in the Brazilian border town of Boa Vista, emphasizing the plight of nearly five million Venezuelans who had fled the countrys economic meltdown under Maduro.

The US top diplomat said on Friday that Maduro has to leave power, drawing a furious accusation of war-mongering from the Venezuelan leader.

Pompeo began his three-day South American trip on Thursday in Suriname and Guyana, and will conclude it this weekend with a stop at an Evangelical mega-church in Dallas, Texas.
New York: As the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) will mark its 75th anniversary on Monday (September 21), Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take part in two debates in the high-level segments this year, said India`s Permanent Representative to the United Nations TS Tirumurti on Friday.

''This time the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) will be historic & in more than one way. As far as India is concerned, the highlight will be the participation of PM Modi in two debates in the high-level segments starting on Monday,'' Titumurti was quoted as saying by ANI.

Trimurti further informed that the first is a general debate where PM Modi will deliver India's national statement and the other is the high-level plenary meeting to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the United Nations on Monday. Tirumurti added that PM Modi's address will one of the major highlights of India's participation in UNGA.

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External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar will also be participating in some of the ministerial meetings which will be held on the sidelines of United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), TS Tirumurti told ANI.

Speaking more about India's participation in the United Nations General Assembly Tirumurti said, ''I have no doubt that we are entering United Nations Security Council at a very interesting if not critical juncture. Both 75th anniversary of UN & COVID crisis present us with an opportunity to see whether we can do things differently.''

India's priority areas as UNSC elected member are - new opportunities for progress, effective response to international terrorism, reforming the multilateral system, comprehensive approach to international peace and security and promoting technology with a human touch as a driver of solutions.

The diplomat said, ''We'll be entering the security council during the 75th year of the UN, the world is vastly different from the world that was when we were last in the council. We have set forth our priorities which includes peace & security related issues.''

Ahead of the 75th session of UNGA Ttimurti informed that in view of the COVID-19 travel restrictions, most leaders will not travel to New York and the high-level debate will be conducted virtually.

(With ANI inputs)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 16:20:44|Editor: huaxia

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KUNDUZ, Afghanistan, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- A total of eight militants, three police officers and two soldiers were killed during clashes in two of Afghanistan's northern provinces Friday night, local authorities confirmed Saturday.

In the restive Kunduz province, three police and three militants were killed after policemen manning security checkpoint along a main road in Khan Abad district were attacked, deputy district chief Qudratullah Safi told Xinhua.

Four policemen, who went missing, were presumably captured by the militants after the clashes, the official added.

Two army soldiers and five militants were killed and two soldiers wounded when the soldiers fought back assailants attacking an army checkpoint in Nawabad, Dasht-e-Qala district in neighboring Takhar province, army official Abdul Qadir told Xinhua.

The region has been the scene of heavy clashes in recent years.

Violence still lingers in the war-torn country as peace talks between an Afghan government delegation and Taliban representatives are underway in the Qatari capital of Doha. Enditem
The Home Office is planning to fly at least 1,000 migrants who crossed the English Channel back to Italy, Germany and France in a series of weekly flights.

More than 6,000 refugees have crossed from France in crowded dinghies so far this year.

Officials have described the crossings as 'thoroughly unacceptable,' as Home Secretary Priti Patel plans to fly the arrivals back to Europe on a weekly basis, according to The Telegraph.

The Immigration Enforcement Secretariat said the Government and Ms Patel are 'equally frustrated by the severity of the situation'.

Home Secretary Priti Patel is looking to send 1,000 migrants back to Europe having crossed The Channel

More than 6,000 refugees have crossed the English Channel so far this year, mostly in overcrowded dinghies

The Government office warned it cannot take simple measures such as returning migrants after intercepting them at sea, due to legal constraints.

Talks are ongoing to get more UK funded officers on French beaches to prevent people trying to make the dangerous crossing.

The 1,000 migrants who would be flown back to Europe would be returning to countries where they have already had asylum claims granted.

Around 400 people including families, believed to have crossed the Channel in small boats, are to be housed in temporary accommodation at Napier Barracks in Folkestone, Kent, from next week

Only 29 arriving migrants were sent back to France in 2019.

The Immigration Enforcement Secretariat official told The Telegraph: 'There is considerable policy work underway to address where the UKs immigration and asylum system is being exploited and abused... As it currently stands, the system is inflexible and rigid, and is open to abuse by both migrants and activist lawyers to frustrate the returns of those who have no right to be here.'

Earlier this week it was revealed the Home Office was eyeing up two former army bases as temporary sites to house refugees while their asylum claims are processed.

Around 400 refugees, including families, will be kept at the Napier Barracks in Folkestone, Kent, after the site was also offered to the Home Office by the Ministry of Defence.

The MoD has also offered Penally Training Camp in Wales, more than 300 miles away from the English Channel.

Penally Training Camp in Wales could be used to house 250 refugees, who have crossed the English Channel, while their asylum claims are processed

It could house 250 asylum seekers.

A Home Office spokesperson said: 'During these unprecedented times, the government is working with a range of partners and across departments to secure further accommodation and the MoD has offered use of some of its sites.

'When using contingency accommodation we work closely with organisations, including local authorities and law enforcement, throughout the process to ensure value for money and that vulnerable asylum seekers, who would otherwise be destitute, have suitable accommodation while their claims are processed.'
If the advanced clinical trials of Covid-19 vaccine succeed, then an effective vaccination is likely to be available by the end of first quarter of 2021, Minister of State for Health Ashwini Choubey informed Lok Sabha on Friday.

He was responding to a question about the time by which an effective Covid-19 vaccine is likely to be commercially launched.

The minister further said that no advance purchase agreement with any vaccine manufacturers has been entered into.

Responding to another question, Choubey said that the phase-I of clinical trials have revealed excellent safety of the two candidate vaccines indigenously developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and Cadila Healthcare Ltd, and now their immunogenicity testing is in progress. Their phase II clinical trials are ongoing. The government of India has formed a National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for Covid-19 chaired by the Member (Health) of Niti Aayog, which is creating a strategy on the procurement mechanisms for vaccine, including both indigenous and international manufacturing, along with guiding principles for prioritisation of population groups for vaccination, Choubey said.

The Expert Group has deliberated on broad parameters guiding the selection of Covid-19 vaccine candidates for the country and working in close coordination with Standing Technical Sub-Committee of National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization (NTAGI), he said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.

The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has granted test license permission for manufacture of Covid-19 vaccine for preclinical test, examination and analysis to the seven manufacturers in India.

These are Serum Institute of India in Pune, Cadila Healthcare Ltd. in Ahmedabad, Bharat Biotech International Ltd in Hyderabad, Biological E Ltd. in Hyderabad, Reliance Life Sciences Pvt Ltd in Mumbai, Aurbindo Pharma Limited in Hyderabad, and Gennova Biopharmaceuticals Limited, Pune.

The ICMR is facilitating studies related to Covid-19 vaccines.

An inactivated whole virion candidate vaccine (BBV152) for SARS-CoV-2 has been developed by Bharat Biotech International Ltd using the virus isolate provided by ICMR-National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune. Phase I clinical trials along with parallel studies in hamsters and rhesus macaques have been completed and have revealed excellent safety of the candidate vaccine. Immunogenicity testing is in progress. Phase II of clinical trials are ongoing, Choubey said. A DNA vaccine has been developed by Cadila Healthcare Ltd. Pre-clinical toxicity studies were conducted in small animals: mice, rats, rabbits and guinea pigs.

The vaccine has been found to be safe and immunogenic. Cadila has partnered with ICMR for conduct of parallel pre-clinical studies in rhesus macaques. Phase I clinical trials have been completed. The trial has revealed excellent safety of the candidate vaccine. Immunogenicity testing is in progress. Phase II clinical trials are ongoing, he said.

Serum Institute of India (SII) and ICMR have partnered for clinical development of two global vaccine candidates, including ChAdOx1-S, which is a non- replicating viral vector vaccine developed by University of Oxford/AstraZeneca.

This vaccine is undergoing phase III of clinical trials in Brazil. Phase II and III bridging studies have been initiated by ICMR at 14 clinical trial sites, the minister said.

The ICMR and SII have also partnered for clinical development of a glycoprotein subunit nanoparticle adjuvanted vaccine developed by Novavax from the US. The trial will be initiated in the second half of October after the vaccine is manufactured by SII. The trial is led by ICMR-National AIDS Research Institute (NARI), Pune. The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST) are also supporting more than 30 vaccine candidates which are in different stages of development. The government of India conveyed its intent to be part of the Vaccine Pillar of the Access to Covid-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, which may be beneficial in providing access to the global vaccine candidates in advanced stages, for their further utilization in the country.

Under this pillar, COVAX facility has been created, which is led by GAVI and the World Health Organization (WHO), for fair and equitable distribution of Covid-19 vaccine across the world, Choubey informed.

The DBT through the IND-CEPI Mission is involved in key partnerships with Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) for supporting Indian researchers for development of clinical immune assays to advance vaccine research. No advance purchase agreement with any vaccine manufacturers have been entered into, the minister said. ICMR has so far spent more than 25.00 crore from its intramural budget for undertaking work related to development of vaccine candidate and pre-clinical studies, Choubey said.

The Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), a statutory body under the DST, has supported three projects under Covid-19 on vaccine research under Intensified Research in high priority areas (IRHPA).

The sanctioned expenditure is 22,27,579 and the committed expenditure is 3,20,78,161. The Department of Biotechnology is also supporting 08 proposals by Industry and academia for candidate vaccine development and associated research resources at a total cost of 75 crore.
Pope Francis met with the members of the organisation that is celebrating its 20 years. the foundation is present in several countries like Afghanistan, Lebanon, Niger, Libya, Kosovo, Djibouti, Somalia, Venezuela, South Sudan and Syria, supporting medical aid projects. Pope calls for action against pharmaceutical marginality.

Vatican City (AsiaNews)  Pope Francis this morning spoke to a delegation from Italys Fondazione Banco Farmaceutico, an organisation that works with volunteers, pharmacies and pharmaceutical companies to provide medicinal drugs to the poor.

Medicine Collection Day is an important example of how generosity and the sharing of goods can improve our society and bear witness to the love in proximity that is required of us by the Gospel (cf. Jh 13:34).

The audience was held to mark 20 years since the foundations creation. Every year, the Banco Farmaceutico holds a Medicine Collection Day, usually in February, when individuals and pharmacies are invited to buy or provide medicines for the poorest.

Over the past two decades, the organisation has worked in various countries around the world, supporting medical aid projects in Afghanistan, Lebanon, Niger, Libya, Kosovo, Djibouti, Somalia, Venezuela, South Sudan and Syria.

Those who live in poverty, Francis said, are poor in everything, including medicines, and therefore their health is more vulnerable. Sometimes there is a risk of not being able to be treated for lack of money, or because some populations of the world do not have access to certain drugs.

"There is also a 'pharmaceutical marginality'. This creates a further gap between countries and peoples. At the ethical level, if there is the possibility of treating a disease with a drug, this should be available to everyone, otherwise an injustice is created.

Too many people, too many children still die in the world because they cannot have a drug that is available in other places. We know the danger of the globalisation of indifference; I propose instead to globalise treatment, that is, the possibility of providing access to those drugs that can save many lives for all peoples. To do this, a common effort is needed, a convergence that involves everyone.

With respect to the current situation, marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, the pontiff noted that "it would be sad if in providing the vaccine, priority was given to the richest, or if this vaccine became the property of this or that country, and it was not for all.

Lastly, the Holy Father called on pharmaceutical companies to "contribute to a more equitable distribution of drugs and on rulers to "build a fairer world, in which the poor are not abandoned.
In late April, Amy Smilovic began streaming live from the Instagram account of her fashion label, Tibi. About once a week, she and Dione Davis, her styling director, would put on Tibi outfits and talk  easily, authoritatively  about how the clothes made them feel.

When you feel good about the outfit that youve put on, your confidence just can go through the roof, Ms. Smilovic said in one early episode, after Ms. Davis modeled a pair of tailored bloomers. In the same session she wryly compared her pandemic state to a walking pharmaceutical commercial whose list of symptoms included crying in the shower and sending emails at 4 a.m. Ms. Smilovic believed a good outfit could help with that too.

Tibi designs clothing for creative pragmatists, a term Ms. Smilovic, 52, coined late last year to describe a style she had long struggled to describe. The look is about balance  being modern but not edgy, she says, and chill but not bohemian. As she once advised on Instagram, where she also occasionally ribs Lululemon moms, Bravo stars and yogurt-straining yogis: when u dress interesting u will feel interesting.

From a design perspective, this usually means adding unusual twists to familiar closet staples: an oversize blazer with slits at the elbows; jeans that look as if theyre being worn backward; a crew-neck sweater with rounded shoulder pads. Ms. Davis called the weird accents Tibi Easter eggs.
Inspired Iribaren kicks 'two more to go' Racing into Saracens semi-final Scrum-half Teddy Iribaren inspired Racing 92 to a convincing win over Clermont and a place in the semi-fionals of the European Champions Cup

Scrum-half Teddy Iribaren slotted 20 points to send Racing 92 into the European Champions Cup semi-finals with a 36-27 victory at Clermont on Saturday.

The Parisians will host title holders Saracens in seven days' time after the relegated English champions stunned four-time winners Leinster 25-17 in Dublin.

"We know we had three matches to climb, we've climbed one, there are two more to go," Racing coach Laurent Travers said.

"We're not going to fall into euphoria because we know what's waiting for us next weekend. We will welcome a very good team, capable of winning at Leinster," he added.

Japan's Kotaro Matsushima started at full-back for the hosts after missing last weekend's late defeat at Bayonne with a thigh issue.

Racing's Australia full-back Kurtley Beale missed out, though, after being suspended for a dangerous tackle in last Friday's thumping domestic win over Montpellier, his place taken by Ireland's Simon Zebo who was returning from injury.

The visitors raced into an 11-0 lead after 12 minutes as winger Louis Dupichot crossed and 29-year-old Iribaren slotted a pair of penalty goals.

Dupichot was then stretchered off with a leg injury and replaced by French international fly-half Francois Trinh-Duc. Clermont hooker Etienne Falgoux finally got the home side on the board with a try in the 23rd minute.

- Matsushima maiden try -

Iribaren and Clermont's Camille Lopez then traded penalties as the away team led 17-8 with five minutes of the half remaining.

Trinh-Duc, who has struggled with an arm problem since his last Test in 2018, set-up his own effort with tidy chip kick and Iribaren's extras made it 24-8 at the break.

Racing's dominance and Iribaren's solid form with the boot continued into the second half as the uncapped scrum-half added two further penalties to stretch the lead to 30-8 with 22 minutes to play.

Wesley Fofana and Japan's Kotaro Matsushima, with his first try in Clermont colours, cut the deficit before Iribaren's replacement Maxime Machenaud edged his side further ahead to 36-22 with seven minutes to go.

Story continues

France winger Damian Penaud made Racing sweat by crossing with three minutes left but the Parisians held out to set up a re-run of the 2016 final against Sarries.

On Sunday four-time winners Toulouse host Ulster and Exter Chiefs welcome Northampton Saints for places in the other last four tie.

iwd/bsp
Trump: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Led an Amazing Life

President Donald Trump responded to the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday.

She just died? Wow. I didnt know that, the Republican told reporters on an airport tarmac in Bemidji, Minnesota, where hed just held a rally.

I just  youre telling me now for the first time. She led an amazing life, what else can you say? She was an amazing woman, whether you agree or not, she was an amazing woman who led an amazing life, the president added. Im actually sad to hear that. Im sad to hear that.

Trump was speaking at the rally when the Supreme Court announced Ginsburgs passing. During the speech, he twice brought up the importance of appointments to the Supreme Court.

Later in the evening, Trump said in a written statement that our nation mourns the loss of a titan of the law.

Renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable toward ones colleagues or different points of view, he said. Her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds.

People gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Trump said his thoughts and prayers were with Ginsburgs family and other loved ones.

Ginsburg passed away on Friday night surrounded by her family in her home in Washington, the Supreme Court said in a statement. She died of complications from cancer, which she had battled for years.

Justice Ginsburg led one of the great lives in the history of American law, Attorney General William Barr said in a statement. She was a brilliant and successful litigator, an admired court of appeals judge, and a profoundly influential Supreme Court Justice. For all her achievements in those roles, she will perhaps be remembered most for inspiring women in the legal profession and beyond.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg participates in a discussion hosted by the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington on Sept. 12, 2019. (Sarah Silbiger/Reuters)

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on Friday that whoever Trump nominates to fill the seat left vacant will get a vote on the Senate floor.

President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, McConnell said in a statement.

Days before her death, Ginsburg dictated a wish to her granddaughter that she will not be replaced until a new president is installed, according to NPR. Her wish will figure in the debate thats sure to ensue if Trump goes forward with appointing a new Supreme Court justice before the election on Nov. 3.

Trump, apparently unaware of the news of Ginsburgs death, twice brought up Supreme Court appointments as he spoke at the rally. Some people in the crowd shouted that Ginsburg had passed but the president didnt appear to have caught what was said.

President Donald Trump speaks to supporters during a rally at the Bemidji Regional Airport in Bemidji, Minnesota, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

We will nominate judges and justices who will interpret the Constitution as written. Thats why the Supreme Court is so important. The next president will get one, two, three, or four Supreme Court justices, Trump said.

Think of that. That will totally change when you talk about life, when you talk about Second Amendment, when you talk about things that are so important to you.
Whenever people are talking about Priyanka Chopra, they end up using the words second-hand embarrassment more often than not. A lot of people agree that she crosses over to the cringe territory with a lot of what she does and it has been amplified so much more since she is one of the biggest Indian representation on an international level.

From making statements that make no sense to doing stuff that makes us shake our heads in disappointment, she has made almost every desi person say that 'we don't claim her'.

The desi girl has had so many cringe-inducing moments, but nothing can beat these five. Let's get some second-hand embarrassment together, shall we?

1. Photoshopping herself in a picture

Nick Jonas awkwardly standing alone in the middle was hilarious and yes, Priyanka was just trying to be funny and a good wife by photoshopping herself in there. The intention was good but how are you going to photoshop yourself in such a way that you're whiter than actual white people?

Like always, this was followed by a lot of trolling, and rightfully so.

2. The truly eerie vibe of this video

Priyanka Chopra shows her appreciation for first responders by clapping from her balcony during coronavirus lockdown. pic.twitter.com/f6wViUmlAw  Pop Crave (@PopCrave) March 24, 2020

She tried to celebrate Janta Curfew back in March, something that was happening in India, on the balcony of her mansion that is clearly not in India and also seems to be miles away from any civilization.

The entire video is so bizarre and has such haunted vibes that it was mocked even in the USA. I kind of feel bad for Nick who was probably recording this video.

3. "Shexy shexy shaari"

Happy 5-Month Anniversary to this embarrassment from Priyanka Chopra pic.twitter.com/H90sLSANui  Laraib (@ThandiLaash) November 15, 2019

Now this is something that haunts not just me, but so many other people. We really need a support group to deal with Priyanka saying "shexy shexy shaari". Why would you subject us to this atrocity, PeeCee? What have we ever done to you?

As soon as I think Ive found peace of mind I remember priyanka chopra saying shexy shexy Shari and then I get secondhand embarrassment & wanna scream at the top of my lungs all over again  sukhi (@mairanotmaria2) July 2, 2019

4. Her take on India rock

Dostana is Rock Music.

DDLJ is a Superhero movie.

Fashion is Horror. pic.twitter.com/vtcc18StNK  Old School Mausa (@AdvancedMaushi) September 18, 2015

What do you suggest to Bono when he asks about Indian Rock music? She has the answer.

"The two men I found amazing were Bono and Bruce Springsteen. Bono asked me if there was rock in India. I consider myself a good brand ambassador and immediately sent him Rockstar, Rock On and Dostana as he wanted one of my films too."

Just everything about this is too much to handle.

5. "Girl, dont yell. Were all here for love"

The best for last, this started a revolution online of sorts. Remember the little phrase "girl, dont yell. Were all here for love" and how it was all over Twitter last year?

The entire incident was too embarrassing on Priyanka's part as she just dismissed someone asking a question, and told them to not yell.

3. You claim you're "here for love" but elsewhere, you're NOT for love. That's the whole point. You're only HERE for love. Positivity culture is such bullshit and nearly always reeks of privilege and dismissal.



4. Patriotism and warmongering are two completely different things.  Imaan Sheikh (@sheikhimaan) August 11, 2019




Chennai, Sep 19 : The principal opposition party in Tamil Nadu, the DMK has called a meeting of its alliance partners on Monday to discuss the three agriculture sector Bills passed by the Lok Sabha.

In a statement issued here, the DMK said an all-party meeting is being called on Monday at 10.30 a.m. to discuss the "anti-farmer Bills" passed by the Lok Sabha.

The meeting will be held at the DMK headquarters here, the statement said.

The three Bills - The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill 2020, the Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill 2020 - were passed in the Lok Sabha recently.
The beginning of the school year when you got to show off your new duds, new cars, new looks!

Sports! Playing, cheering, watching high school athletics.

The arts: Dramatic arts, musical groups and shows, graphic arts groups, debate, etc.

The prom! No dancing the night away or punch bowl antics.

The daily interactions. Just being with the group, hanging with friends and classmates.

Access to college recruiters and advisors  its harder to line up higher education.

Walking onstage to get a diploma while all the family is watching with everyone elses family.

Vote

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Four US-made F-16 fighter jets cross the sky during a drill near the Suao navy harbour in Yilan, eastern Taiwan, on April 13, 2018.

Taiwan's air force scrambled jets for a second consecutive day on Saturday as multiple Chinese aircraft approached the island and crossed the sensitive midline of the Taiwan Strait, with the island's government urging Beijing to "pull back from the edge."

Taiwan's Defence Ministry said 19 Chinese aircraft were involved, one more than in the previous day, with some crossing the Taiwan Strait midline and others flying into Taiwan's air defence identification zone off its southwest coast.

It said China, which claims democratic Taiwan as its own territory, sent 12 J-16 fighters, two J-10 fighters, two J-11 fighters, two H-6 bombers and one Y-8 anti-submarine aircraft.

According to a map the ministry provided, none got close to mainland Taiwan itself or flew over it.

"ROCAF scrambled fighters, and deployed air defence missile system to monitor the activities," the ministry said in a tweet, referring to the Republic of China Air Force, the formal name of Taiwan's air force.

Taiwan has complained of repeated incidents of Chinese aircraft near the island this year, and has regularly had to scramble its F-16s and other jets to intercept them.

China had on Friday announced, at a news conference in Beijing about China's U.N. peacekeeping efforts, combat drills near the Taiwan Strait and denounced what it called collusion between the island and the United States.

U.S. Undersecretary for Economic Affairs Keith Krach arrived in Taipei on Thursday for a three-day visit, the most senior State Department official to come to Taiwan in four decades, angering China. He left Saturday afternoon, according to Taiwan's foreign ministry.
Minister of Patriots and Veterans Affairs Park Sam-duck, second from right, together with Philippine Embassy Charge de Affairs Christian L. De Jesus, right, United National Command Deputy Commander Vice Adm. Stuart Campbell Mayer, third from right, and Republic of Korea Army 1 Corps Deputy Commander Jang Gwang-seon, left, pay tribute to the war dead in front of the Korean War Monument to the Philippine Armed Forces in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province during a ceremony held Friday, to mark the 70th anniversary of the Philippines troops' arrival in Busan, Sept. 19. Courtesy of Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs



By Jung Da-min



GOYANG  South Korea honored the heroic efforts of members of the Philippines Armed Forces who participated in the 1950-53 Korean War, the start of which has its 70th anniversary this year.



On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Philippines troops' arrival in Busan, Sept. 19, the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs held a ceremony at the Korean War Monument to the Philippine Armed Forces in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province.



The ceremony was attended by Minister Park Sam-duck, Philippine Embassy Charge de Affairs Christian L. De Jesus, United National Command Deputy Commander Vice Adm. Stuart Campbell Mayer, Goyang Mayor Lee Jae-joon and Republic of Korea Army 1 Corps Deputy Commander Jang Gwang-seon.





Participants attend a ceremony held Friday at the Korean War Monument to the Philippine Armed Forces in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, to mark the 70th anniversary of the Philippines troops' arrival in Busan, Sept. 19. Korea Times photo by Jung Da-min





The Korean War Monument to the Philippine Armed Forces in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, seen in this photo, Friday. Korea Times photo by Jung Da-min
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 12:44:26|Editor: huaxia

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People mourn the passing of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., the United States, Sept. 18, 2020. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died, the Supreme Court said Friday. The second female justice on the U.S. highest court, Ginsburg, 87, was a legal pioneer advocating for gender equality. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua)

WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died, the Supreme Court said Friday.

"Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died this evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, D.C., due to complications of metastatic pancreas cancer. She was 87 years old," the Supreme Court said in a press release.

"A private interment service will be held at Arlington National Cemetery," it added.

The second female justice on the U.S. highest court, Ginsburg was a legal pioneer advocating gender equality. She was appointed in 1993 by then President Bill Clinton and has over the years become the most senior member of the court's liberal wing.

"Our nation has lost a jurist of historic stature," said Chief Justice John Roberts. "We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her -- a tireless and resolute champion of justice."

Ginsburg has a long history of health problems, having been battling various cancers since 1999, when she was diagnosed with colon cancer.

The late justice underwent a surgery for pancreatic cancer in 2009, had two cancerous nodules removed from her left lung in December 2018, and received additional treatment for a pancreatic tumor in August 2019.

Ginsburg told U.S. media in early January that she was "cancer free," but in July she was treated for liver cancer.

"I have often said I would remain a member of the Court as long as I can do the job full steam," she said in a statement in July 2020. "I remain fully able to do that."

The vacancy Ginsburg left enables President Donald Trump to tap a replacement -- the third Supreme Court justice nominee during his presidency -- that may swing the bench further to the conservative side.

Axios news website cited a top Republican as saying that Trump will move within days to nominate a new Supreme Court Justice. He unveiled a list of 20 candidates on Sept. 9, among them Republican Senators Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Ted Cruz of Texas.

However, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, said shortly after the announcement of Ginsburg's death that the Senate should wait until the next president assumes office to fill the seat left by the late justice. The presidential election will be held on Nov. 3.

"The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president," Schumer said in a tweet.

Schumer's words echoed those of Ginsberg days before she died. "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed," she said in a statement dictated to her granddaughter, Clara Spera, according to a report by National Public Radio on Friday.

While offering his condolences for Ginsburg by highlighting "her extraordinary American life", Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell vowed that Trump's nominee to replace Ginsburg "will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."

"In the last midterm election before Justice (Antonin) Scalia's death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck president's second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party president's Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year," McConnell said.

"By contrast, Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise," the Kentucky Republican continued.

McConnell's decision will set up a fierce election-year battle in the Senate just 46 days away from Election Day. Although Republicans in the Senate, where they hold the majority, changed the rules so that the confirmation of a Supreme Court justice now needs 51 votes rather than a supermajority, there are some vulnerable GOP members facing re-election fights who might not unite with the caucus.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ordered flags on Capitol Hill to fly at half-mast until Ginsburg is laid to rest, according to a tweet by California Democrat's spokesman Drew Hammill.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom is not a member of the United States Senate, but still found time to tweet a series of attacks on multiple Republican senators following news of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death and Republican intentions to not wait for the November election before filling the seat.

Newsom began his Twitter spree Friday night by recirculating Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's, "This vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president" quote from February 2016 following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia.

McConnell has stated that the standard he set in 2016 does not apply to Ginsburg's vacancy because in 2016, Democrats controlled the White House and Republicans controlled the Senate, but since Republicans control both in 2020, they will be reflecting the will of the people by filling the seat. The Kentucky Republican did not make this Senate control distinction in his 2016 statements.

OBITUARY: Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dies at 87

Other Republican Senators also did not make this distinction at any point in their prior remarks, and Newsom ripped into both Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham by sharing some of their 2016 quotes.

"The only time in my life I have ever recommend that we do what Lindsey Graham says: USE HIS WORDS AGAINST HIM," Newsom tweeted of Graham. In the tweet, he shared a video of Graham stating in 2016, "I want you to use my words against me: If theres a Republican president in 2016 and a vacancy occurs in the last year of the first term, you can say Lindsey Graham said lets let the next president, whoever it might be, make that nomination."

Newsom also targeted Arizona Sen. Martha McSally by promoting her opponent Capt. Mark Kelly after McSally tweeted, "This U.S. Senate should vote on President Trump's next nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court."

For reference, neither of Californias elected senators  Dianne Feinstein or Kamala Harris  have spent as much time tweeting about their GOP colleagues following Ginsburgs death. A scan through the feeds of Democratic Govs. Andrew Cuomo, Gretchen Whitmer, Jay Inslee and JB Pritzker also reveals Newsom as the outlier as it relates to Twitter activity.

Eric Ting is an SFGATE reporter. Email: eric.ting@sfgate.com | Twitter:@_ericting
Mr Johnson Asiedu Nketia, General Secretary, National Democratic Congress (NDC), has called on members and supporters of the Party to actively take part in the voters register exhibition exercise.



A statement issued by Mr James Agyenim-Boateng, Campaign Spokesman of the NDC and copied to the Ghana News Agency, said Mr Asiedu Nketia made the call when he addressed separate NDC rallies at Bassa, Okyeamekrom, Kwame Danso and Atebubu, as part of a three-day tour of the Bono East Region by NDCs Presidential Candidate Mr John Dramani Mahama.



Mr Asiedu Nketiah claimed the provisional voters register was fraught with problems; adding that it was important that those who registered took steps to ensure that their names were on the register to enable them vote on Election Day.



...I will implore every NDC supporter to go and check your name at your polling station to make sure that your name is there and correctly spelt, he said.

Source: GNA









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German authorities say there are 'many pieces' of the Madeleine McCann 'puzzle' pointing towards suspect Christian Brueckner (pictured)

German authorities say there are 'many pieces' of the Madeleine McCann 'puzzle' pointing towards suspect Christian Brueckner.

Prosecutor Hans Christian Wolters admitted there still was no 'smoking gun' evidence enabling charges to be brought against the 43-year-old paedophile over the British youngster's disappearance.

But he insisted in an interview on Portuguese state broadcaster RTP, referring to Brueckner only by his first name and initial of his surname: 'All I can say is this is like a puzzle and there are many pieces that lead us to believe Christian B is responsible.

'One of the pieces is the signal from the mobile phone he was using at the time Madeleine McCann disappeared and has been shown to have been in the area of the Ocean Club resort where she was staying.'

Making his strongest assertion yet to justify the German decision to treat her disappearance as a murder case and not a missing persons' inquiry, Mr Wolters added: 'The result of our investigation does not point in any way to the possibility the suspect might have kept Madeleine alive.

'We have nothing to indicate she could be alive.

'Everything we have points to her being dead. We have no margin of manoeuvre.'

He also rubbished reports earlier this week that German police believed the chief Madeleine McCann suspect had an accomplice, and addressed earlier accusations made on Portuguese TV Brueckner's 'ex' girlfriend Nicole Fehlinger was involved in an Algarve burglary he was linked to.

The Braunschweig-based prosecutor said: 'Naturally we investigate everyone known to us to see if they had something to do with Madeleine's disappearance.

'This woman was the suspect's ex-girlfriend and she is classed as a witness but we don't have any reason to believe she is linked to this crime.

Prosecutor investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann (pictured) say there is 'nothing' suggesting she is still alive

'She is not a suspect for us. We are only investigating Christian B, nobody else.

'At this stage we believe he acted alone in this case.'

He also rebutted claims made by disgraced former police officer Goncalo Amaral, who met with Brueckner's defence lawyer Friedrich Fulscher last week in Portugal, that the German was being 'scapegoated.'

The controversial ex-cop, who was removed from the initial Madeleine McCann investigation for criticising British police, is involved in an ongoing legal battle with her parents Kate and Gerry over his insistence she died by accident in their apartment and they covered it up.

He told the RTP channel's Sexta as 9 show: 'I know this former inspector speaks a lot and comments on our work.

'We're not going to get into a war of words. All I will say is that we have carried out a very serious investigation and there is no indication whatsoever Madeleine McCann's parents are linked to her disappearance.

'On the other hand we have a lot of evidence pointing to Christian B killing her.

'Goncalo Amaral knows how he reaches his conclusions and that's not up to us to judge.'

His comments came as Brueckner's lawyer dramatically declined an opportunity to rule out his client's involvement in Madeleine McCann's disappearance, and appeared to accept he had funded his nomadic Algarve lifestyle through house break-ins.

Mr Fulscher has always insisted Brueckner was not involved in Madeleine McCann's disappearance and claimed prosecutors are basing their case on information from dubious witnesses.

But asked on Friday night by investigative reporter and Sexta as 9 presenter Sandra Felgueiras if Brueckner had told him he had 'nothing' to do with the May 3 2007 disappearance, he paused for several seconds before responding: 'Everything that's said between a client and his lawyer is protected by confidentiality and therefore I cannot say what he tells me.

'But you can be sure that doesn't mean he has something to hide.'

Quizzed about reports Breuckner used to live off the proceeds of burglaries he committed on the Algarve, he admitted: 'It's not something that surprises me.

'As his lawyer it wouldn't surprise me if he was convicted for these burglaries.'

Mr Wolters revealed earlier this month German authorities had asked Portuguese police to investigate 'more sexual abuse and rapes' they believe Brueckner could have carried out on the Algarve.

He has already been linked to a sex offence on a beach near Praia da Luz a month before Madeleine vanished and has been confirmed as an 'official suspect' in the 2004 rape of Irish tour rep Hazel Behan.

Ms Behan waived her right to anonymity in June to say she believed the masked man who targeted her in her Algarve apartment could have been Brueckner.

His lawyer has insisted he has nothing to do with the horrific sex attack.

Brueckner is currently in Germany's Kiel Prison for drugs offences and is due to start a seven-year sentence for the 2005 rape in Praia da Luz of an American OAP.

He was convicted of the horrific sex crime late last year in Germany.

A former girlfriend spoke out last month to reveal he had sexually assaulted her five-year-old daughter and would also launch violent attacks against her during their nine-month relationship in the northern Germany city of Braunschweig.

The crimes, which sparked a European Arrest Warrant and his 2017 extradition to Portugal, ended up with him receiving a 15-month prison sentence.
Nvidia's boss Jensen Huang has promised to give 'legally binding' guarantees on jobs

Nvidia's boss has promised to give 'legally binding' guarantees on jobs if his company's takeover of British rival Arm is approved.

MPs, unions and Arm's co-founders have raised concerns about the takeover by the American chip giant, amid fears that jobs and the British firm's Cambridge headquarters could be moved to the US.

Nvidia has vowed to protect UK jobs and keep Arm based here but critics have dismissed the commitments as 'meaningless' unless they are formalised.

Jensen Huang, 57, has now promised to sign 'legally binding documents' agreeing to preserve jobs.

But he did not provide detail on what would be included in the agreement.

It is understood that such guarantees would likely be proposed by the Government after ministers complete an ongoing review of the deal.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 22:01:36|Editor: huaxia

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DHAKA, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Indian Border Security Force (BSF) has announced a renewed pledge to bring down the killings in India-Bangladesh border areas to zero.

BSF Director General (DG) Rakesh Asthana reiterated his force's stance during a joint press conference here on Saturday after a four-day border conference between the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and the BSF.

The two sides discussed issues like smuggling and other cross-border crimes at the BGB-BSF DG-level talks, which were held in BGB headquarters in Dhaka.

A 13-member Bangladesh delegation, led by BGB DG Major General Md Shafeenul Islam, and a six-member Indian delegation, headed by the BSF DG, joined the conference.

BSF DG Rakesh Asthana said in the press conference that "We're committed to bringing the border killing down to zero by increasing coordinated patrols."

Following more and more deaths due to shooting by the Indian BSF, Bangladeshi Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen said earlier this year that India repeatedly promised Bangladesh not to use any lethal weapon along frontier as well as to bring down border killing death at zero, "but it's happening."

A report of local human rights body, Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), showed that 29 people had been killed along the border in the first seven months of this year.

A total of 15 people were killed along the border in 2018, and the number rose to 43 last year, according to ASK data.

In response to the concerns expressed by BGB chief on border deaths on Saturday, Rakesh said BSF personnel have been instructed to fire as the last resort.

A large portion of the Bangladeshi victims are reportedly cattle traders and farmers with land near the border. Enditem
Irish stock exchange owner Euronext is set to secure a pre-eminent position in the sector within the European Union after entering exclusive talks to buy Borsa Italiana in Milan.

Euronext and bid partners Cassa Depositi e Prestiti and Italian bank Intesa Sanpaolo are in exclusive talks with London Stock Exchange Plc, which owns the Milan market.

Dubbed 'Project Botticelli', the LSE's sale of the Milan stock exchange is sensitive in Rome due to concerns about who takes control of its bond platform, which handles trading of Italy's 2.6trn of government debt.

The LSE is selling Borsa as part of regulatory remedies to see through its own $27bn (22.75bn) purchase of data provider Refinitiv, which is 45pc owned by Thomson Reuters.

Euronext saw off competing interest from Deutsche Boerse and Switzerland's Six to move to exclusive talks.

It was not immediately clear what Euronext had offered to gain exclusive talks, but investors welcomed the move and its shares were up 5pc in early trading.

Offers for Borsa Italiana valued it at up to 4bn, sources said before the LSE board reviewed the bids on Thursday.

CEO Stephane Boujnah declined to comment on the value of Euronext's bid, but told Reuters that price was one of several elements LSE had taken into consideration.

Mr Boujnah said Euronext had always considered Borsa "a natural fit" and contacts had accelerated since July after years of informal discussions with all relevant stakeholders.

"It's a natural enlargement of Euronext within a framework that already existed, clearly with an unprecedented size. It's the first time we're welcoming within Euronext a G7 economy, the third economy of the European continent with everything that is related to that," Mr Boujnah added.

Euronext had moved to win round both the LSE and Rome by teaming up with Italy's state investor Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) and Italian bank Intesa Sanpaolo in order to gain Italy's buy-in.

Both CDP and Intesa will become shareholders in the French exchange operator, if the bid succeeds, by subscribing to a proposed capital increase.

Under the proposed deal, CDP would have a seat on Euronext's supervisory board, with a second Italian candidate proposed as an independent board member who would become chairman, in a nod to how Milan would be the largest contributor to Euronext revenue at roughly 35pc of a combined group.
WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump signaled Saturday that he will move quickly to nominate a successor to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday night at age 87, as tributes continued to pour in for the liberal icon.

A fierce political battle is unfolding over her replacement. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Friday that a Trump nominee would get a vote in his chamber, while leading Democrats, including the party's presidential nominee, Joe Biden, said consideration of a successor should not take place until the next president takes office.

EDITORIAL: Politics can wait. Honor Ruth Bader Ginsburg as great dissenter  and equalizer.

"We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices," Trump said in a tweet. "We have this obligation, without delay!"

Leading Democrats, including Biden, have said the Senate should wait to consider Ginsburg's replacement until after the next president is sworn in.

McConnell has said the GOP-controlled Senate will vote on a Trump nominee, but he has not specified whether that would take place before the election or in a lame-duck session afterward.

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., on Saturday announced that he would support a Trump nominee to replace Ginsburg before the election, becoming the latest GOP senator to speak on why the Senate should move forward with a confirmation this election year when it didn't in 2016.

"There is a clear choice on the future of the Supreme Court between the well-qualified and conservative jurist President Trump will nominate and I will support, and the liberal activist Joe Biden will nominate and Cal Cunningham will support, who will legislate radical, left-wing policies from the bench," Tillis said in a statement, referring to his Democratic opponent in the November election.

In early 2016, McConnell said he would not give President Barack Obama's court nominee, Merrick Garland, his confirmation proceedings because, he argued, voters should get to decide through the presidential election.

'WE SHOULD DO OUR JOB': Ted Cruz says Senate should confirm Justice Ginsburgs replacement before election

McConnell has more recently said standards were different in 2016 because the White House and the Senate were controlled by different parties, which is not the case this year.

Tillis, who is in a tough reelection fight in a state where he has angered some conservatives, echoed that reasoning in his statement.

"Four years ago, a Supreme Court vacancy arose under divided government and a lame-duck president as Americans were choosing his successor," he said. "Today, however, President Trump is again facing voters at the ballot box and North Carolinians will ultimately render their judgment on his presidency and how he chooses to fill the vacancy."

It is too soon to tell whether the Supreme Court vacancy left by Ginsburg will benefit Republicans or Democrats in the November elections, but recent polls show voters trust Biden more than Trump to nominate the next justice.

In New York Times/Siena polls in Maine and the battleground states of North Carolina and Arizona, voters said they thought Biden would do a better job than Trump choosing a justice for the high court.

TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox

The margin was widest in Maine, considered a safe state for Biden, with 59% of voters saying they preferred the Democratic presidential nominee and 37% saying they preferred Trump. In Arizona, Biden led Trump on the issue 53% to 43%, according to the polls. In North Carolina, 47% of voters said they favored Biden to pick the nominee, compared with 44% favoring Trump.

The polls, released Friday, involved 653 likely voters in each state.

Biden also had a strong advantage in a nationwide Fox News poll conducted in the second week of September. Fifty-two percent of likely voters said they trusted Biden to do a better job nominating the next justice, compared with 45% who said Trump would do a better job, according to the poll.

Biden led Trump by double digits in numerous categories, including women and likely voters under 45. Trump was favored by a four-point margin among veterans and a 16-point margin among White men. The candidates polled evenly among White women, with 48% each, and were nearly tied among men of all races, with Trump edging out Biden by a percentage point, according to the results.

Overall, voters have viewed the Supreme Court as a second-tier concern this election cycle, with the economy, health care and the coronavirus pandemic ranking higher. But that is likely to change as the fight over Ginsburg's successor heats up.
As Oregon wildfires devoured thousands of acres in the last two weeks, state authorities issued a dire warning: Mass casualties were expected.

That set into motion the difficult work of preparing to identify the remains of fire victims.

For the first time, the Oregon State Police set up a State Medical Examiner mobile morgue. Forensic scientists, death investigators, medical examiners and pathologists gathered in Linn County to staff it.

On Friday, the facility received the latest set of human remains from the fires, bringing the death toll to nine.

The victim was recovered from Marion County; identification is pending, Oregons chief medical examiner said.

The human toll of Oregons catastrophic wildfires has been far less than feared, though state officials say the work of searching for human remains in places like Jackson and Marion counties continues.

The wildfires scorched a large swath of the state  nearly 1 million acres in all. The major fires were at least 10 percent contained as of Friday.

That means there will be many places to search for human remains, which could mean that this is a more drawn out, prolonged process in terms of making sure that everybody is accounted for, said Dr. Sean Hurst, Oregons chief medical examiner.

The mobile morgue opened this week and so far has received four sets of human remains. Two have been identified as Cathy Cook, 71, and Justin Cook, 41, of Lyons. Identification is pending for the other two.

Eleven people remain unaccounted for.

The numbers are a lot lower than we expected and thats fine because if that means that we have had less loss of life than we anticipated, then thats a good thing, said Chrystal Bell, director of forensic services for Oregon State Police and commander of the mobile morgue.

At the nearby victim information center, about 25 people work to compile detailed information on those who have been reported as missing by loved ones.

Using information like dental and medical records, the staff hopes to be able to help match possible missing people with unidentified remains that are recovered by search and rescue workers. The team is comprised of two dozen medical examiners and other forensic science experts who have been dispatched to respond to a range of disasters, including 9/11, plane crashes and Hurricane Katrina.

Most have traveled from out of state to help Oregon respond to the wildfires. Someone helpfully wrote ory-gun on the bulletin board in large letters so the out-of-state staff in the room would know how to pronounce the states name properly.

At the mobile morgue, a member of the Oregon Air National Guards fatality search and recovery team is assigned to each set of remains and stays with them until they are processed.

A large banner hangs over the facility reminding the staff of their mission: To quickly, accurately and compassionately identify those lost in the fires and reunite them with their loved ones.

The remains of fire victims undergo a series of forensic examinations, from fingerprinting to DNA. Each specialty has its own bay separated by blue tarps.

As you can imagine the condition of these (remains) are pretty catastrophic, said Dr. Nici Vance, the states forensic anthropologist.

Vance said she receives a couple calls a day from searchers in the field to help determine if what theyve recovered is a human bone versus animal remains or other material.

Taking part in the states response to the disaster has brought its own challenges, Vance said.

We live here, we have families here, too, she said. When you see the devastation and the things that have happened to other families, its just unprecedented."

We are Oregonians too. We are just tasked with this very grave responsibility.

-- Noelle Crombie; ncrombie@oregonian.com; 503-276-7184; @noellecrombie

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Your tax-deductible gift today powers our reporters and keeps us independent. We rely on you, our reader, not paywalls to stay funded because we believe important news and information should be freely accessible to all.

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Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the demure firebrand who in her 80s became a legal, cultural and feminist icon, died Friday. The Supreme Court announced her death, saying the cause was complications from metastatic cancer of the pancreas.

The court, in a statement, said Ginsburg died at her home in Washington surrounded by family.

"Our nation has lost a justice of historic stature," Chief Justice John Roberts said. "We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her, a tired and resolute champion of justice."

Architect of the legal fight for women's rights in the 1970s, Ginsburg subsequently served 27 years on the nation's highest court, becoming its most prominent member. Her death will inevitably set in motion what promises to be a nasty and tumultuous political battle over who will succeed her, and it thrusts the Supreme Court vacancy into the spotlight of the presidential campaign.

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Just days before her death, as her strength waned, Ginsburg dictated this statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera: "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

She knew what was to come. Ginsburg's death will have profound consequences for the court and the country. Inside the court, not only is the leader of the liberal wing gone, but with the Court about to open a new term, Chief Justice John Roberts no longer holds the controlling vote in closely contested cases.

Though he has a consistently conservative record in most cases, he has split from fellow conservatives in a few important ones, this year casting his vote with liberals, for instance, to at least temporarily protect the so-called Dreamers from deportation by the Trump administration, to uphold a major abortion precedent, and to uphold bans on large church gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic. But with Ginsburg gone, there is no clear court majority for those outcomes.

UPCOMING POLITICAL BATTLE

Indeed, a week after the upcoming presidential election, the court is for the third time scheduled to hear a challenge brought by Republicans to the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare. In 2012 the high court upheld the law by a 5-to-4 vote, with Chief Justice Roberts casting the deciding vote and writing the opinion for the majority. But this time the outcome may well be different.

That's because Ginsburg's death gives Republicans the chance to tighten their grip on the court with another Trump appointment that would give conservatives a 6-to-3 majority. And that would mean that even a defection on the right would leave conservatives with enough votes to prevail in the Obamacare case and many others.

At the center of the battle to achieve that will be Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. In 2016 he took a step unprecedented in modern times: He refused for nearly a year to allow any consideration of President Obama's supreme court nominee.

Back then, McConnell's justification was the upcoming presidential election, which he said would allow voters a chance to weigh in on what kind of justice they wanted. But now, with the tables turned, McConnell has made clear he will not follow the same course. Instead he will try immediately push through a Trump nominee so as to ensure a conservative justice to fill Ginsburg's liberal shoes, even if President Trump were to lose his re-election bid. Asked what he would do in circumstances like these, McConnell said: "Oh, we'd fill it."

So what happens in the coming weeks will be bare-knuckle politics, writ large, on the stage of a presidential election. It will be a fight Ginsburg had hoped to avoid, telling Justice Stevens shortly before his death that she hoped to serve as long as he did--until age 90.

"My dream is that I will stay on the court as long as he did," she said in an interview in 2019.

'TOUGH AS NAILS'

She didn't quite make it. But Ruth Bader Ginsburg was nonetheless an historic figure. She changed the way the world is for American women. For more than a decade, until her first judicial appointment in 1980, she led the fight in the courts for gender equality. When she began her legal crusade, women were treated, by law, differently from men. Hundreds of state and federal laws restricted what women could do, barring them from jobs, rights and even from jury service. By the time she donned judicial robes, however, Ginsburg had worked a revolution.

That was never more evident than in 1996 when, as a relatively new Supreme Court justice, Ginsburg wrote the court's 7-to-1 opinion declaring that the Virginia Military Institute could no longer remain an all-male institution. True, said Ginsburg, most women -- indeed most men -- would not want to meet the rigorous demands of VMI. But the state, she said, could not exclude women who could meet those demands.

"Reliance on overbroad generalizations ... estimates about the way most men or most women are, will not suffice to deny opportunity to women whose talent and capacity place them outside the average description," Ginsburg wrote.

She was an unlikely pioneer, a diminutive and shy woman, whose soft voice and large glasses hid an intellect and attitude that, as one colleague put it, was "tough as nails."

By the time she was in her 80s, she had become something of a rock star to women of all ages. She was the subject of a hit documentary, a biopic, an operetta, merchandise galore featuring her "Notorious RBG" moniker, a Time magazine cover, and regular Saturday Night Live sketches.

On one occasion in 2016, Ginsburg got herself into trouble and later publicly apologized for disparaging remarks she made about then-presidential candidate Donald Trump.

But for the most part Ginsburg enjoyed her fame and maintained a sense of humor about herself.

Asked about the fact that she had apparently fallen asleep during the 2015 State of the Union address, Ginsburg did not take the Fifth, admitting that although she had vowed not to drink at dinner with the other justices before the speech, the wine had just been too good to resist. The result, she said, was that she was perhaps not an entirely "sober judge" and kept nodding off.

THE ROAD TO LAW

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., Ruth Bader went to public schools, where she excelled as a student -- and as a baton twirler. By all accounts, it was her mother who was the driving force in her young life, but Celia Bader died of cancer the day before the future Justice would graduate from high school.

Then 17, Ruth Bader went on to Cornell on full scholarship, where she met Martin (aka "Marty") Ginsburg. "What made Marty so overwhelmingly attractive to me was that he cared that I had a brain," she said.

After her graduation, they were married and went off to Fort Sill, Okla., for his military service. There Mrs. Ginsburg, despite scoring high on the civil service exam, could only get a job as a typist, and when she became pregnant, she lost even that job.

Two years later, the couple returned to the East Coast to attend Harvard Law School. She was one of only nine women in a class of over 500 and found the dean asking her why she was taking up a place that "should go to a man."

At Harvard, she was the academic star, not Marty. The couple was busy juggling schedules, and their toddler when Marty was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Surgeries and aggressive radiation followed.

"So that left Ruth with a 3-year-old child, a fairly sick husband, the law review, classes to attend and feeding me," said Marty Ginsburg in a 1993 interview with NPR.

The experience also taught the future justice that sleep was a luxury. During the year of Marty's illness, he was only able to eat late at night; after that he would dictate his senior class paper to Ruth. At about 2 a.m., he would go back to sleep, Ginsburg recalled in an NPR interview. "Then I'd take out the books and start reading what I needed to be prepared for classes the next day."

Marty Ginsburg survived, graduated, and got a job in New York; his wife, a year behind him in school, transferred to Columbia, where she graduated at the top of her law school class. Despite her academic achievements, the doors to law firms were closed to women, and though recommended for a Supreme Court clerkship, she wasn't even interviewed.

It was bad enough that she was a woman, she recalled later, but she was also a mother, and male judges worried that she would be diverted by her "familial obligations."

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is pictured in the justice's chambers in Washington, D.C., during an interview with NPR's Nina Totenberg in September 2016. (Ariel Zambelich/NPR)

A mentor, law professor Gerald Gunther, finally got her a clerkship in New York by promising Judge Edmund Palmieri that if she couldn't do the work, he would provide someone who could. That was "the carrot," Ginsburg would say later. "The stick" was that Gunther, who regularly fed his best students to Palmieri, told the judge that if he didn't take Ginsburg, Gunther would never send him a clerk again. The Ginsburg clerkship apparently was a success; Palmieri kept her not for the usual one year, but two, from 1959-61.

Ginsburg's next path is rarely talked about, mainly because it doesn't fit the narrative. She learned Swedish so she could work with Anders Berzelius, a Swedish civil procedure scholar. Through the Columbia Law School Project on International Procedure, Ginsburg and Berzelius co-authored a book.

In 1963, Ginsburg finally landed a teaching job at Rutgers law school, where she at one point hid her second pregnancy by wearing her mother-in-law's clothes. The ruse worked; her contract was renewed before her new baby was born.

While at Rutgers, she began her work fighting gender discrimination.

THE 'MOTHER BRIEF'

Her first big case was a challenge to a law that barred a Colorado man named Charles Moritz from taking a tax deduction for the care of his 89-year-old mother. The IRS said the deduction, by statute, could only be claimed by women, or widowed or divorced men. But Moritz had never married.

The tax court concluded that the internal revenue code was immune to constitutional challenge, a notion that tax lawyer Marty Ginsburg viewed as "preposterous." The two Ginsburgs took on the case, he from the tax perspective, she from the constitutional perspective.

According to Marty Ginsburg, for his wife, this was the "mother brief." She had to think through all the issues and how to fix the inequity. The solution was to ask the court not to invalidate the statute but to apply it equally to both sexes. She won in the lower courts.

"Amazingly," he recalled in a 1993 NPR interview, the government petitioned the United States Supreme Court, stating that the decision "cast a cloud of unconstitutionality" over literally hundreds of federal statutes, and it attached a list of those statutes, which it compiled with Defense Department computers.

Those laws, Marty Ginsburg added, "were the statutes that my wife then litigated ... to overturn over the next decade."

In 1971, she would write her first Supreme Court brief in the case of Reed v. Reed. Ginsburg represented Sally Reed, who thought she should be the executor of her son's estate instead of her ex-husband.

The constitutional issue was whether a state could automatically prefer men over women as executors of estates. The answer from the all-male supreme court: no.

It was the first time the court had ever struck down a state law because it discriminated based on gender.

And that was just the beginning.

File: United States Supreme Court justices pose for their official portrait at the in the East Conference Room at the Supreme Court building Nov. 30, 2018. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

By then Ginsburg was earning quite a reputation. She would become the first female tenured professor at Columbia Law School, and she would found the Women's Rights Project at the ACLU.

As the chief architect of the battle for women's legal rights, Ginsburg devised a strategy that was characteristically cautious, precise and single-mindedly aimed at one goal: winning.

Knowing that she had to persuade male, establishment-oriented judges, she often picked male plaintiffs, and she liked Social Security cases because they illustrated how discrimination against women can harm men. For example, in Weinberger v. Wiesenfeld, she represented a man whose wife, the principal breadwinner, died in childbirth. The husband sought survivor's benefits to care for his child, but under the then-existing Social Security law, only widows, not widowers, were entitled to such benefits.

"This absolute exclusion, based on gender per se, operates to the disadvantage of female workers, their surviving spouses, and their children," Ginsburg told the justices at oral argument. The Supreme Court would ultimately agree, as it did in five of the six cases she argued.

Over the ensuing years, Ginsburg would file dozens of briefs seeking to persuade the courts that the 14th Amendment guarantee of equal protection applies not just to racial and ethnic minorities, but to women as well.

In an interview with NPR, she explained the legal theory that she eventually sold to the Supreme Court.

"The words of the 14th Amendment's equal protection clause -- 'nor shall any state deny to any person the equal protection of the laws.' Well that word, 'any person,' covers women as well as men. And the Supreme Court woke up to that reality in 1971," Ginsburg said.

During these pioneering years, Ginsburg would often work through the night as she had during law school. But by this time, she had two children, and she later liked to tell a story about the lesson she learned when her son, in grade school, seemed to have a proclivity for getting into trouble.

The scrapes were hardly major, and Ginsburg grew exasperated by demands from school administrators that she come in to discuss her son's alleged misbehavior. Finally, there came a day when she had had enough. "I had stayed up all night the night before, and I said to the principal, 'This child has two parents. Please alternate calls.'"

After that, she found, the calls were few and far between. It seemed, she said, that most infractions were not worth calling a busy husband about.

THE SUPREME COURT'S SECOND WOMAN

In 1980 then-President Jimmy Carter named Ginsburg to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. Over the next 13 years, she would amass a record as something of a centrist liberal, and in 1993 then-President Bill Clinton nominated her to the Supreme Court, the second woman appointed to the position.

She was not first on his list. For months Clinton flirted with other potential nominees, and some women's rights activists withheld their active support because they were worried about Ginsburg's views on abortion. She had been publicly critical of the legal reasoning in Roe v. Wade.

But in the background, Marty Ginsburg was lobbying hard for his wife. And finally Ruth Ginsburg was invited for a meeting with the president. As one White House official put it afterward, Clinton "fell for her--hook, line and sinker." So did the Senate. She was confirmed by a vote of 96 to 3.

Once on the court, Ginsburg was an example of a woman who defied stereotypes. Though she looked tiny and frail, she rode horses well into her 70s and even went parasailing. At home, it was her husband who was the chef, indeed a master chef, while the justice cheerfully acknowledged that she was an awful cook.

Though a liberal, she and the court's conservative icon, Antonin Scalia, now deceased, were the closest of friends. Indeed, an opera called Scalia/Ginsburg is based on their legal disagreements, and their affection for each other.

Over the years, as Ginsburg's place on the court grew in seniority, so did her role. In 2006, as the court veered right after the retirement of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, Ginsburg dissented more often and more assertively, her most passionate dissents coming in women's rights cases.

Dissenting in Ledbetter v. Goodyear in 2007, she called on Congress to pass legislation that would override a court decision that drastically limited back-pay available for victims of employment discrimination. The resulting legislation was the first bill passed in 2009 after President Barack Obama took office.

In 2014, she dissented fiercely from the court's decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, a decision that allowed some for-profit companies to refuse, on religious grounds, to comply with a federal mandate to cover birth control in health care plans. Such an exemption, she said, would "deny legions of women who do not hold their employers' beliefs, access to contraceptive coverage."

Where, she asked, "is the stopping point?" Suppose it offends an employer's religious belief "to pay the minimum wage" or "to accord women equal pay?"

And in 2013, when the court struck down a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, contending that times had changed and the law was no longer needed, Ginsburg dissented. She said that throwing out the provision "when it has worked and is continuing to work ... is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet."

She viewed her dissents as a chance to persuade a future court.

"Some of my favorite opinions are dissenting opinions," Ginsburg told NPR. "I will not live to see what becomes of them, but I remain hopeful."

And yet, Ginsburg still managed some unexpected victories by winning over one or two of the conservative justices in important cases. In 2015, for example, she authored the court's decision upholding independent redistricting commissions established by voter referenda as a way of removing some of the partisanship in drawing legislative district lines.

Ginsburg always kept a backbreaking schedule of public appearances both at home and abroad, even after five bouts with cancer: colon cancer in 1999, pancreatic cancer 10 years later, lung cancer in 2018, and then pancreatic cancer again in 2019 and liver lesions in 2020. During that time, she endured chemotherapy, radiation, and in the last years of her life, terrible pain from shingles that never went away completely. All who knew her admired her grit. In 2009, three weeks after major cancer surgery, she surprised everyone when she showed up for the State of the Union address.

Shortly after that, she was back on the bench; it was her husband Marty who told her she could do it, even when she thought she could not, she told NPR.

A year later her psychological toughness was on full display when her beloved husband of 56 years was mortally ill. As she packed up his things at the hospital before taking him home to die, she found a note he had written to her. "My Dearest Ruth," it began, "You are the only person I have ever loved," setting aside children and family. "I have admired and loved you almost since the day we first met at Cornell....The time has come for me to ... take leave of life because the loss of quality simply overwhelms. I hope you will support where I come out, but I understand you may not. I will not love you a jot less."

Shortly after that, Marty Ginsburg died at home. The next day, his wife, the justice, was on the bench, reading an important opinion she had authored for the court. She was there, she said, because "Marty would have wanted it."

Years later, she would read the letter aloud in an NPR interview, and at the end, choke down the tears.

In the years after Marty's death, she would persevere without him, maintaining a jam-packed schedule when she was not on the bench or working on opinions.

Some liberals criticicized her for not retiring while Obama was president, but she was at the top of her game, enjoyed her work enormously, and feared that Republicans might not confirm a successor. She was an avid consumer of opera, literature, and modern art. But in the end, it was her work, she said, that sustained her.

"I do think that I was born under a very bright star," she said in an NPR interview. "Because if you think about my life, I get out of law school. I have top grades. No law firm in the city of New York will hire me. I end up teaching; it gave me time to devote to the movement for evening out the rights of women and men. "

And it was that legal crusade for women's rights that ultimately led to her appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court.

To the end of her tenure, she remained a special kind of feminist, both decorous and dogged.

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.


Russia will resume flights with Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan from Sept. 21 and with South Korea from Sept. 27, Russias coronavirus crisis centre, a government body, said in a statement on Friday.

The flights will operate in both directions and will be weekly, the centre said.

The centre also said that it was suspending the governments special evacuation flights, a program launched to return Russian citizens to Russia after international air travel links were suspended in spring due to the coronavirus pandemic.

(This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.)

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JPecha/iStockBy MEGHAN KENEALLY and EMILY SHAPIRO, ABC News



(WASHINGTON) -- The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg -- 46 days ahead of the presidential election -- has prompted new scrutiny of the process of approving nominees to sit on the nations highest court.



President Trump is expected to put forth a nominee to fill her seat in the coming days, multiple sources close to the president and with direct knowledge of the situation told ABC News.



Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Friday that Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the Senate.



How a position opens up



The ever-evolving makeup of the country's highest court stems from the lifetime nature of the position.



Once a justice dies, retires, or resigns, the sitting president has the constitutional power to nominate a replacement.



Voluntary retirement has been the most common way justices leave the Supreme Court, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS). Thats been the case for the vast majority of departures since 1954.



Until now, only two of the remaining vacancies during that same time period, since 1954, were a result of a justice dying while in office, the Congressional Research Service reports.



It was more common for justices to die while in office in the half century before, however, as 14 of the 34 vacancies that came between 1900 and 1950 fell in that category. And there was a stretch from 1946 to 1954 where the five justices who left the bench all died while in office, the CRS reports.



One other, very rare departure method, is impeachment. Congress can remove a Supreme Court justice through impeachment, and much like a presidential impeachment, a justice would both have to be impeached and then be convicted in a Senate trial before being removed. In the history of the court, there has only been one justice, Samuel Chase, who was impeached, back in 1804, but the Senate acquitted him so he didn't leave the court, according to the CRS.



The first steps



When Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement from the court in June 2018, Trump was able to make his second Supreme Court nomination, nominating Brett Kavanaugh in July 2018.



(Trump first picked Neil Gorsuch, who was approved in 2017, to fill the seat of Justice Antonin Scalia after his unexpected death in 2016.)



When Kavanaugh, the most recent pick, was nominated, he spent much of the next nearly two months meeting with senators and collecting documents and records in preparation for the upcoming hearings.



The Senate is constitutionally empowered to "advise and consent" on Supreme Court picks. That starts with the Senate Judiciary Committee holding hearings on the nominees.



When the hearings are done, the committee holds a vote to recommend to the full Senate whether the nominee should be confirmed, rejected, or, in some cases, to make no recommendation.



In the case of Kavanaugh, the committee vote was in Kavanaughs favor but with the caveat that additional FBI investigation be done over one week into an allegation he committed sexual assault in high school, which he denied.



The full Senate debate, cloture and the final vote



In normal scenarios after the committee vote, the full Senate holds its own debate on the nominee before voting.



Senate debate is unlimited unless ended by cloture, which calls for the end of discussion on a certain topic. The motion has to be put forward by a group of 16 senators and then must be passed by the full Senate before going into effect.



The vote on a cloture motion doesn't happen immediately. The operating rules dictate the vote on the cloture motion happens "on the following calendar day but one," which means not the day after the cloture motion is proposed but the second day after.



Going 'nuclear'



Traditionally, three-fifths of the Senate -- or 60 senators -- had to vote for a cloture motion in order to move to a final vote on a Supreme Court nominee.



That said, the Senate changed the rule in April 2017 by lowering the threshold to 51 votes to move forward and for final approval. Republicans triggered the new lower threshold, known as the "nuclear option," to eventually get Gorsuch confirmed.



The reason why McConnell did so then was that Republicans would not have had enough votes to secure his nomination if the 60-vote requirement were in place. So, instead, he got Gorsuch confirmed 54 - 45 on April 7, 2017.



Because of the 2017 rule change, the minority has little power in the Senate unless members of the majority power join them -- which could be the case with Trump's pick to replace Ginsburg.



The vice president can break any tie vote given his role as the president of the Senate.



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Email: Inquiry_For_Pamela@pameladwilson.com

Golden, Colorado  September 19, 2020

The Caring Generation Giving Up Your Life to Care for Elderly Parents

Golden CO- Caregiving expert Pamela D. Wilson hosts The Caring Generation family talk radio program for caregivers and aging adults this coming Wednesday, September 23, on the Bold Brave Media Network. The program airs live at 9 p.m. EST. The Caring Generation aired initially from 2009 to 2011 on 630 KHOW-AM in Denver, Colorado.

Giving Up Your Life to Care for Elderly Parents

Adult children caregivers quickly become consumed by caregiving responsibilities. On this caregiver radio program, Wilson shares insights for caregivers about shifts in family roles and responsibilities that include managing through change and uncertainty.

Caregiving is an unexpected role with immediate demands that rarely afford caregivers the time to think about balancing life, work, and caring for elderly parents. The availability of caregiver education programs and support groups are not well known.

Gaps in knowledge about caregiving services and support happen when adult children see themselves as "helpers" instead of "caregivers." The first task of helping elderly parents with grocery shopping and picking up prescriptions may not be thought of as caregiving responsibilities. The transition from helper to caregiver happens as the health of elderly parents declines, and adult children become more involvedoften providing hands-on care.

Juggling Working and Caring for Elderly Parents

Working and caring for elderly parents results in adult children experiencing a range of emotions that include joy, pain, and loss. The choice to care for an elderly parent eliminates other opportunities like pursuing career advancement. Resentment happens when adult children caregivers sacrifice future opportunities and current income.

Families are imperfect. The way to a better experience is having early discussions about care to create positive family relationships. Caregiving can be meaningful and rewarding when we work toward situations where the caregiver doesn't feel that they are sacrificing everything to care for elderly parents.

Dr. Vanessa Bohns How to Ask for Help Without Feeling Guilty

Dr. Vanessa Bohns joins us to share research about how to ask for help without feeling guilty. Not asking for help and feeling guilty about caregiving are topics that caregivers know well. Vanessa Bohns is a social psychologist and an Associate Professor at Cornell University's ILR School. She holds a Ph.D. in psychology from Columbia University and an AB in psychology from Brown University.

Her research on help-seeking, prosocial behavior, and social influence is published in top academic journals in psychology, management, and law. She has been featured by numerous media outlets, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, and NPR. Her forthcoming book, You Have More Influence Than You Think, will be published by W. W. Norton in the fall of 2021.

Join Pamela on The Caring Generation for intelligent conversations about aging, caregiving, and relationships. The Caring Generation radio program airs live at 6 p.m. Pacific, 7 p.m. Mountain, 8 p.m. Central, and 9 p.m. Eastern every Wednesday night. Replays of the weekly programs are available on all major podcast sites. Wilson's website features the podcast and radio program transcripts. Information about Wilson's commitment to online caregiver education, keynotes, video conferencing, caregiver support, and creating workplaces where people matter is on her website

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New Delhi, Sep 19 : French classical pianist Maxime Zecchini, who is among the handful of musicians all over the globe to practise the 'left hand repertoire' and play works with just five fingers, as opposed to both the hands, says that it is a delight to share this music with his audience.

"I had discovered this repertoire 20 years ago playing the most famous pieces for the left hand, the Concerto of Maurice Ravel. I did some research on the internet and I have seen that there are a lot of works for the left hand, about 600 pieces. And very few recordings.

"So, I have proposed a discographic label to record the first and unique Anthology in the world for the left hand with 10 CD's. I have already recorded 8 discs and the complete anthology will be available at the end of 2021. I have recorded a lot of musical styles inside this CD's: classical music, contemporary music, chamber's music, concertos with orchestra, film music, etc," Zecchini, born in 1979, told IANSlife in an email.

About his repertoire, he says, "the wonder of having the impression of hearing two hands when only five fingers were playing fascinated me. These pieces demonstrate the immense possibilities of the left hand. Thanks to the arrangement of left-hand fingers, its natural flexibility, and the powerful register in the bass of the keyboard, it can even make the piano sound like an orchestra! I am very happy to be able to discover the undeniable poetic richness of this original, virtuoso, and spectacular repertoire." Zecchini had completed his 15-day India tour in India in 2016, where he demonstrated the not just the unique repertoire but his masterful skill at it. He will be performing again for the Indian audience in a virtual concert by Alliance Francaise de Delhi (AFD) on September 19. The evening concert will be streamed on AFD's Facebook and YouTube pages, and will feature the most celebrated piano pieces for the left hand.

Asked how big of a community do left-handed pianists make, the musician says: "We are just three or four pianists in the world to play these works. It's a delight for me to share this music with the audience, who are always curious and enthusiastic." After spending a lot of time at my home without concerts and travels due to COVID-19, Zecchini will also play in front of an audience in Barcelona, Spain, in a concert. Here, he says he will be performing French compositions of Debussy, Ravel, Michel Legrand and other famous French songs.

What are his thoughts on cultural exchanges via music? "I love cultural exchanges via music. For example, when I played in India some years ago, I discovered the music of Bollywood with a lot of beautiful songs. It was totally new for me and this music is very beautiful and romantic! I have listened to these songs on YouTube and written an arrangement for my concert which made the audience very emotional. It's very enriching for me to discover new melodies and new ways of expressing artistically." He concludes by saying that he finds Indian music very romantic and melodious. "I don't know very well the Indian music for piano and keyboard but I hope with all my heart to discover and listen to a lot of beautiful pieces if I have the chance to play again in India." The award winning pianist is slated to make his debut at Carnegie Hall in New York in April 2021.

(Siddhi Jain can be contacted at siddhi.j@ians.in)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Earlier this week, we told you that Google Maps now supports dual-screen devices with hinges, such as the Microsoft Surface Duo, and version 10.50.3 was the one that introduced this new feature. Thanks to this update, Google Maps can now use the entire screen estate without losing any information that would normally be displayed in the place where the hinge is located.And now Google has published new updates for Google Maps for Android devices, and while a changelog is not available, it looks like the focus this time is on fixing bugs in the app.More specifically, there are two versions that are out now for Android and Android Auto. First, its the stable channel, which with this release has reached 10.50.4. And then, its the beta build, which has been updated to version 10.51.0 earlier today.As far as the changelog is concerned, theres no such information for these new updates, but the stable build appears to come with some important fixes for the experience after installing Android 11 As we reported not a long time ago, Google Maps sometimes no longer works correctly on devices updated to Android 11, simply because the app isnt able to determine users location and then track them on the map.This update could thus include GPS improvements and optimizations that would bring things back to normal on devices where Android 11 is already running. Needless to say, this is a welcome fix, especially as more smartphones receive the new OS update and Google Maps is one of the most popular navigation apps that users turn to when driving.At this point, the rollout of Google Maps version 10.50.4 is still in its early phases, so if you previously came across issues with GPS tracking on Android 11, you can download the latest APK manually using this link.
NEW CANAAN  There have been seven new COVID-19 cases associated with the town in the past week, First Selectman Kevin Moynihan said Friday.

Six of the cases are college students, who are residing out of state at the schools that they attend.

The seventh is a middle-aged person, who is living out of state and quarantining at a home there.

There are also 147 negative test results of the virus, according to information from the past week that Moynihan has received from the towns Health Department. The test results were also reported to the Connecticut Department of Public Health for the town.

All residents can find complete information about the cases of the new virus in it, from when the pandemic it caused, started in the middle of March, on the COVID-19 page of towns website, newcanaan.info.

Moynihan also reminded residents about what they need to do to keep protecting themselves from the virus, and limiting its spread among others.

We would like to remind all residents to please continue to practice social distancing when out in public, when social distancing cannot be maintained, and washing or sanitizing hands frequently especially after contact with public surfaces, Moynihan said.

RELATED: New Canaan First Selectman Kevin Moynihans update to the towns residents about the coronavirus in it for Friday, September 18, 2020

People wearing masks is also crucial in the main part of town.

It is also important to remind everyone that in our downtown business districty, mask wearing is required since social distancing is generally hard to achieve on busy sidewalks. We kindly ask parents to please remind your children to wear masks when downtown, and not to congregate in front of businesses. We all must continue to work together to keep our community transmission of the virus low, and our town safe, Moynihan said.

Gov. Ned Lamonts executive order calls for a $100 fine for anyone not wearing a mask. There is also a $500 fine for hosting, sponsoring or organizing an indoor, or outdoor event that violates gathering rules and a $250 fine for attending one of these events.

Residents of the town who travel to any of the states on Lamonts list of coronavirus hot states, (except if they are traveling to, and from a designated state for less than 24 hours), must quarantine for 14 days when they return back to Connecticut, or fulfill the testing requirements in Lamonts new executive order, and complete a travel form that can be found on the states website for the virus.
Seoul, Sep 19 : South Korean President Moon Jae-in said on Saturday that his Pyongyang summit accord with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un should be implemented despite restraints at home and abroad, marking the second anniversary of its signing.

In a message posted on Facebook, he stressed that Seoul's commitment to peace remains firm, while the agreement has not been fulfilled speedily due to "internal and external restraints", reports Yonhap News Agency.

The president recalled his historic speech in front of 150,000 Pyongyang citizens at May Day Stadium in the North's capital two years ago.

"Together with Chairman Kim Jong-un, I declared denuclearization and peace on the Korean Peninsula," he wrote.

A "concrete and practical" agreement was reached in the military field, which has led to the demilitarization of Panmunjom, a truce village and excavation of remains on Arrowhead Hill, a key battlefield during the 1950-53 Korean War, he added.

"There has since been not a single armed clash between South and North. It's very valuable progress, which would have been impossible without the wish of the people desiring peace and the international community's support," the President added But the "clock" of such a peace move has stopped, with the summit deal not being implemented fast due to a failure to move beyond "internal and external restraints", he wrote.

"Our commitment to peace is firm. The September 19 South-North agreement should be implemented without fail." Under the agreement, the two sides were supposed to resume operations of the Kaesong Industrial Complex and the Mount Kumgang tour program, "as conditions mature", and also to explore "substantial measures" to further advance exchanges and cooperation, Yonhap News Agency reported.

There has been little progress, however, with the Korea peace process stalled since Kim's no-deal Hanoi summit with US President Donald Trump last year.
After the detection of suspicious activity at a key base in North Korea, security officials and analysts have been watching for possible signs of the rogue nation unveiling new weapons or possibly testing a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) to celebrate and upcoming holiday.

According to several reports, troops have been seen in formation it what seemed to be a preparation for an upcoming military parade in honor of the 74th anniversary of the Worker's Party on October 10.

Moreover, many have also speculated that the North may use the holiday to reveal its latest and largest missiles for the first time.

According to Reuters, security officials and imagery analysts have not yet gathered enough evidence that the North is planning an impending launch.

However, it was noted that a flurry of activity was observed in several satellite images at the Sinpo South Shipyard. This included a secure area in the shipyard where a barge which was used in several underwater missile launches is being docked.

In a statement by South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff nominee for chairman, Won In-choul, he told lawmakers that they are currently monitoring the possibility of an SLBM test during the Worker's Party anniversary.

On top of this, other officials from South Korea have expressed skepticism on the possibility of an SLBM test. This included Gen. Suh Wook, the incoming defense minister of the South who stated that there is very little time for the North to prepare an SLBM test ahead of the anniversary, making it very unlikely.

Read also: 13-Year-Old Boy in Nigeria Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Blasphemy, Sparks Public Outrage

On the other hand, Seoul-based website, The Daily NK reported that people in the shipyard are busy preparing for a ballistic missile launch, citing an unnamed source. The news outlet also noted that researchers and officials have been arriving in the area since late August to prepare.

Meanwhile, some reports have also noted that while the images from satellites showed heavy activity in the area, there are no other indications that there are preparations for an SLBM launch.

Moreover, James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies' senior researcher, Dave Schmerler, noted that the activity in the docks may be related to several work being done to repair the area after typhoon ravaged the country.

In addition, the U.S.-based Center for Strategic and International Studies stated on September 4 that the images taken were simply suggestive but are, however, non-conclusive. It noted that there is no other proof that the Hermit Kingdom is preparing for a missile launch.

During last year's Worker's Party anniversary, the rogue nation also announced that it made a successful test-fire of a Pukguksong-3 from the shipyard. This, however, did not get any big reaction from US President Donald Trump, who has noted that the decrease in missile testing and launches from the North since 2017 is a diplomatic achievement.

Despite the fact that the North could unveil a news weapons system during the anniversary, the US Forces commander based in the South has noted that there have been no indications of military action in the North as of yet.



Related article: Kim Jong Un Will Reveal New Ballistic Missile in Parade as Warning to US

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Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a relentless defender of women's reproductive rights. (Brendan Smialowski / Getty Images)

There were two things about Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg I admired deeply. One was her relentless defense of abortion and reproductive rights, and the other was her excellent planking form in the gym. Balancing your body weight on your hands and feet for 30 to 60 seconds is a challenge at any age, let alone 80-plus years old.

But, then, fighting for abortion rights and holding a plank draw on some of the same skills  tenacity and a willingness to push through fatigue.

Reproductive rights have been constantly under attack in the nearly half century since the court ruled women had a right to a legal and safe abortion in Roe vs. Wade  and Ginsburg never gave up the fight.

In what would be her last vote on a reproductive rights case, she and Justice Sonia Sotomayor were the lonely holdouts from a Supreme Court ruling in July that would allow almost any company to get out of providing government mandated insurance for contraception if the employers had any kind of moral or religious objection to it.

Ginsburg wrote a meticulous and lengthy dissent, noting that tens of thousands of women would probably lose their contraception coverage. She also noted that exemptions provided by Congress were never intended to get companies out of government-required obligations based on any rarefied religious belief. She cited, among others, the court's 1986 ruling in Bowen vs. Roy, in which a Native American father asserted a sincere religious belief that his daughters spirit would be harmed by the government's use of her Social Security number. No shock, the court ruled against the father. And, as Ginsburg noted,  a religious adherent may be entitled to religious accommodation with regard to her own conduct, but she is not entitled to force others to conform to her conduct.

In a landmark 2016 decision overturning an onerous Texas law (HB 2) that required abortion clinics to be outfitted like ambulatory surgical centers and staffed by doctors with hospital admitting privileges (ostensibly to protect womens health), Ginsburg's concurring opinion noted the extraordinary safety record of abortions and the lack of similar requirements for far more dangerous procedures. She called out the Texas law for the sham it was, writing, it is beyond rational belief that HB 2 could genuinely protect the health of women, and certain that the law would simply make it more difficult for them to obtain abortions.

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Even in the last 13 years, Justice Ginsburg had to lay out again and again how pregnancy discrimination is sex discrimination, said Nancy Northup, chief executive of the Center for Reproductive Rights in a statement Friday night.

The power that Ginsburg wielded on the Supreme Court to make womens rights a legal reality  and the way she did it in a straightforward, steely way without bloviating  turned her into an 87-year-old age-defying cultural icon for women and girls, including little ones who donned her signature frilly white collar and robe and glasses as a Halloween costume. Probably some of that mystique came from the contrast between her diminutive stature as a woman and her stance as a judicial warrior. Her cult status was assured when she was crowned with the moniker, Notorious RBG, appropriated from the late Notorious B.I.G.  a massive, bass-voiced rapper who was in every way her physical opposite.

Between her work ethic on the court and her workouts in the gym, I truly, foolishly believed her to be nearly indestructible. Hearing earlier this summer of her trip to the hospital for a bile-duct stent cleaning and of the metastatic spread of one of the numerous cancers she had miraculously survived, I thought to myself, well ... shell be fine, right? Shell certainly survive beyond the administration of a president she made little secret of disliking.

Her dying wish was not to be replaced until a new president is installed. There are so many aspects of that wish I hope come to pass for Ginsburg and the rest of us.

It's not just that her death leaves the court with only three stalwart supporters of abortion rights, it's that it leaves the possibility that her seat will be filled by an abortion opponent who will disregard the Supreme Court's three landmark rulings on abortion rights and search for ways to dismantle the bedrock ruling of Roe vs. Wade, which would rob women of what the court has established as a constitutional right to a safe and legal abortion. I hope that day doesn't come to pass but if it does, it will be a dark day for civil rights.
IN REMEMBRANCE OF ANAGARIKA DHARMAPALA By Rohana R. Wasala (The 156th birth anniversary of the Anagarika fell on September 17, 2020. The following lines are in celebration of the event) The pioneer of true national thinking Was none other than the historical Hate-figure of anti-nationalists Great Anagarika Dharmapala Who engineered social reform through it To kindle hopes of freedom from foreign rule. History will recognize Dharmapala As perhaps the first ideological- Champion of the unarmed fight for freedom, And the first proponent of modernity Truly based on the Buddhist tradition. Though Brits and colonial parasites Projected him as a Don Quixote Tilting at windmills against an empire Through their vile malicious propaganda. Being a leader gifted with great foresight, He warned the majority Sinhalese Of a racially divided country Where they would be at the receiving end When the foreigner would leave them at last Unless they were united as a race. Today, as we can see, that prophecy Has come true, sad though it is to say this. Yet the Anagarikas life mission Was passing on the word of the Buddha Across the world for all peoples wellbeing. He was convinced that Sinhala Buddhists Had a unique responsibility To protect Buddhism for the whole world As Lanka is the repository Of the Dhamma in its first pristine form The hallowed Theravada tradition Committed to writing at Matale, Central Sri Lanka, one hundred plus- Years Before the Common Era began. Though religions are anachronistic In the human reason ruled world today Their ethical teachings are relevant To their politically organized Adherents, while not being so to others, A situation that causes friction Usually with unholy repercussions That endanger the very survival Of the future of civilization. The Buddha preached an ethical doctrine Whose essence is wisdom and compassion, Something that Albert Einstein chose to call A cosmic religion in the sense that All humans could embrace its moral code Based on kindness, reason, and mind culture, And work to create a safe peaceful world. Dharmapala knew this before Einstein As he showed in his great dedication For spreading the Dhamma across the globe Without any proselytizing aim. Being a true disciple of the Buddha He didnt seek to convert non-Buddhist people. But he believed that the Dhamma was The Sinhala Buddhists gift to the world As custodians of the pure Teaching. Meanwhile he was passionately concerned About their material wellbeing as well As any good Buddhist leader would be He advocated the education Of the young for acquiring good life skills And the study of science and technology In addition to cultural subjects. Lankas freedom movement and its leaders And all patriotic politicians That followed in the subsequent decades Were deeply influenced by this great man. All our prime ministers and presidents Have been inspired by his nationalism. Had the Anagarika been living- Today, he would have highly commended The current president Gotabhaya For his moral uprightness, gracefulness And his commitment to Buddhist values. All Members of Parliament on both sides, If they really want to serve the nation Ought to forget their self-centred concerns And serve the nation from opposite ends Through synergetic accommodation So that this fourth decisive surge that we- Are in the middle of making since the Year- The Buddha Jayanti was observed Towards independence from foreign sway In order to stand on our own two feet, Will not be suppressed like the previous three. May Peace and Progress Bloom in our Troubled Land Fresh and pure out of its muddy waters!
Doug Ford and his fellow premiers were singing the same tune Friday as they importuned Ottawa for more money.

But for all their private talks  and public talking points  the premiers are fighting yesterdays war instead of bracing for tomorrows battle to keep Canadians healthy.

COVID-19 is stressing health-care budgets  hence their distress call for the nearly doubling of federal funding. But the premiers single-minded rescue mission for medicare looks increasingly like a closed-minded search-and-destroy mission for pharmacare.

Ahead of next weeks federal throne speech, which could finally launch a truly national drug benefits plan, the provinces are telling Ottawa to mind its own business  even though pharmacare is the unfinished business of universal medicare coverage conceived more than half a century ago. Its a pre-emptive strike that could hurt us all.

All these years later, a pandemic is precisely the time to cure what ails medicare  not merely with more funding but a long overdue updating, through a companion pharmacare program that makes it truly comprehensive. Yes, the worst of times may be the best possible time for universal prescription drug coverage, because now is when so many millions of Canadians  who previously relied on their private workplace plans  are suddenly jobless, joining the ranks of millions before them who fell between the health-care cracks.

When my Toronto Star colleague Tonda MacCharles put Ford on the spot Friday, asking if hed be open to a federal foray into pharmacare, the premier reflexively deflected and pivoted. But his studied bonhomie  cheerfully joining his provincial counterparts in demanding more money for health care, while politely (but firmly) discouraging Ottawas efforts  cannot disguise how much of an obstacle the premier of Canadas biggest province remains to life-saving prescription drugs for all, all the time.

The political problem with pharmacare is that people dont see the need for it until they desperately need it. Thats why Fords first act as premier, in 2018, was to dilute and dismantle the embryonic pharmacare program put in place by his predecessor, Kathleen Wynne.

Within hours of his supposedly populist government taking power, the Progressive Conservatives downgraded Ontarios new OHIP+ from a universal program (for young and old) into a charity program for the most needy  only. Put another way, Ford opted for U.S.-style Medicaid targeting the poor and elderly, versus Canadian-style medicare for all.

Thats Canadas pharmacare paradox: We take pride in medicare and belittle Americans for mocking it as socialized medicine, yet we are little different from them in coasting on what we already have with workplace benefits.

Just as Americans cling to their Cadillac private health plans rather than embrace a truly national health insurance program, many Canadian voters are all too comfortable with their private (or elderly) drug benefits to bother demanding a universal pharmacare program. Now, Canadians are realizing how elusive workplace plans are proving to be  vapourized by the unemployment of a pandemic, the precarious employment that predated it, or the economic uncertainty that will surely follow it.

In the 1960s, politicians compromised on medicare by deferring a full prescription benefits plan until funding could be found, but in those days drugs tended to be administered in hospitals at no cost to patients. Todays more sophisticated prescription drugs are more likely to be taken at home, and are much more likely to be essential life-saving treatments than they were decades ago.

Yet Canadian politicians still defend the fiction of universal medicare without medicines for all.

This isnt merely a question of compassion or ideology, but economic efficiency. Todays fractured prescription plans  divided between private and public (the latter cover only the poor and the elderly), split among 13 provinces and territories  only guarantee that Canada pays among the highest prices in the Western world.

A national pharmacare program would give us the scale to save billions of dollars, by using our consolidated purchasing power to drive down inflated prices charged by multinational drug companies. Thats how Wal-Mart reduces costs  squeezing its suppliers  so why doesnt our business-loving premier see the advantage?

Yes, the initial bill looks daunting, so why do private sector economists and think tanks support the idea? The overall savings are compelling, especially if governments require employers to rebate money now being spent on superfluous private plans.

The premiers keep complaining about rising health-care costs, so why not embrace the one big idea that could control costs dramatically? COVID-19 is a time of crisis, but it also confers an economic opportunity for health care.

The minority Parliament in Ottawa also presents a political opportunity that should not be wasted. The governing Liberals are mindful of NDP pressure to fulfil their federal campaign promises on pharmacare (long a priority for New Democrats).

Money need not be an obstacle, because a well-designed plan will pay dividends  not just in lower drug costs but in better health outcomes. The biggest barrier, it turns out, is a lack of political will, an excess of ideology and an abundance of obstinacy.

Medicare has long been sacrosanct for Canadians. Its long past time, all these years later, to follow through with pharmacare.

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By PTI

LUCKNOW: The Lucknow police has told AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh to appear before it in a sedition case after the conclusion of the ongoing Parliament session.

Earlier, the AAP leader was told to appear before the Hazratganj police on Sunday at 11 am.

Investigation Officer A K Singh on Saturday issued another letter to him, stating that since Parliament is in session, he should present himself two days after its conclusion.

The Uttar Pradesh Police had lodged an FIR against the AAP leader under various sections of the IPC on September 2 for undertaking a "caste" survey.

A sedition charge under Section 124 (A) of the IPC was also included in the notice sent to Singh by the Lucknow police on Thursday, sources said.

On Saturday morning, AAP's state unit spokesman Vaibhav Maheshwari had said Sanjay Singh would appear before the Hazratganj police.

"This correction of mistake by the Lucknow police has safeguarded the dignity of the House. This kind of summon cannot be served to any member of Parliament or legislature when the House is in session," Sanjay Singh told PTI over the phone on Saturday.

"It seems the UP government was not aware of this. So, the notice was served on me on September 17," Sanjay Singh said.

The AAP leader said he had "raised a voice against casteism" through his survey.

He claimed that Brahmins are being "targeted" and "atrocities" are being committed against Dalits under the UP government led by Yogi Adityanath.

The sedition case against me was lodged out of frustration as I had raised these issues, the AAP leader claimed, saying he had merely brought out "facts" through his survey.

The BJP had done a similar survey during the 2017 Assembly elections against the Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi government, he said.

If the one done by me amounts to sedition, then the one done by the BJP also comes under the category, he stressed.

The AAP leader said he has requested Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu to conduct a probe into the cases registered against him in different districts of the state and claimed that he was getting the support of many opposition parties.

The notice sent to Singh on his New Delhi address mentioned charges under IPC Sections 124-A (sedition), 153-A (promoting enmity between classes), and 153-B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration).

"The charges against you are serious and non-bailable. You are requested to reach on September 20 at 11 am for presenting facts and evidence. If you fail to remain present, action will be taken against you," the notice sent by the investigation officer read.

Besides Singh, the company that conducted the survey has also been slapped with sedition and other charges, the investigation officer had said.
Upcoming tvN drama "Tale of The Nine-Tailed" has released new photos of Kim Bum as the mythical creature Yi Rang!

"Tale of the Nine-Tailed" is an urban legend drama that tells the story about a nine-tailed fox called a "Gumiho." Lee Dong Wook would portray the character of the said Gumiho named Yi Yeon who is living in a city blending in with normal people. He will encounter the fearless producing director portrayed by Jo Bo Ah, who will try her best to hunt the Gumiho down.

Another cast in the show is none other than handsome actor Kim Bum who will portray Yi Yeon's half-brother named Yi Rang. He was born from a human and a gumiho. Don't be deceived by his handsome face because Kim Bum will portray a dangerous gumiho in this drama. He is destined to bring about complications as well as conflict in the story. He's excellent in transitioning his form as a human and as a gumiho.

Talking about the script, Kim Bum expressed that he somehow finds the structure of the script fascinating. Kim Bun shared why he accepted the drama; it is because he fell in love with the character of Yi Rang. The actor explained that when you look at it in just one angle, you could judge that the character is a bad guy.

However, if you look at it at another different angle, you will discover that he is pitiful and has experienced many heartaches, so there is an aspect that needs understanding. His true self is somehow kind and innocent, but because of what he has gone through, he becomes scarred and hurt. He is somewhat wicked, but you can't blame him also.

Moving forward, the actor disclosed that he went as far as studying the origin and legends of gumihos and studies pictures of abandoned dogs and cats to paint the idea of an "abandoned gumiho," since he is trying to copy the sharp attitude of those abandoned animals that uses their self-defense mechanism. Kim Bum also shared that while he was making and copying the expressions of the animals, he was able to transform his vibe as not being a human.

RELATED: Lee Dong Wook and Kim Bum Have Fierce Face-to-Face Encounter in New Fantasy Drama "Tale of the Nine Tailed"

On the filming of his action scenes, Kim Bum revealed that he made an idea to use the actions of scratching like a fox rather than fist fighting like human beings. In the just-released photos, Yi Rang seems to be looking very extravagant with his style. It was also revealed that Kim Bum went through the greatest number of meetings with the stylists and hair and makeup team to create Yi Rang's look.

RELATED: WATCH: Lee Dong Wook, Jo Bo Ah, and Kim Bum in Action in New Teaser for "Tale of The Nine-Tailed"

The production team also expressed, working with Kim Bum, they realized that he is very passionate about what he does and also a very sincere actor. His extreme transformation and amazing acting in this drama will be the main reason to look forward to the "Tail of the Nine-Tailed."

The production teams is asking everyone to please anticipate 'Tale of the Nine-Tailed' in which Kim Bum's performance will stand out!
Church leader urges suspect who killed pastor in hit-and-run to 'turn yourself in'

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As an evangelical congregation in Florida grieves the loss of their pastor who was struck by a vehicle and killed this week, the churchs senior pastor is urging the driver, who drove away after hitting the pastor, to turn yourself in.

Lindsay Brown of New Life Evangelistic Center in Jacksonville was devoted to his family and to his church  a dedicated father, grandfather and son of God, the churchs Senior Pastor Bishop Antonio Richardson, told News4Jax.

Brown, who was a Christian minister for about three decades, was killed Wednesday morning as he was taking a walk, and police have no information about the vehicle that struck him. The pastor would go for a walk at about 6 a.m. daily for an hour and 15 minutes.

Im not a revengeful person, we dont preach that, we dont promote that. Im not angry with the person. I dont know the circumstances that caused this to happen, but I will say to them, Do the right thing. I want you to turn yourself in, allow the authorities to sort things out, Richardson said.

I dont know what happened, but turn yourself in, the senior pastor added. This family needs closure, and that closure will not come to full fruition until someone is brought to justice and they are able to make some sense of what happened.

It is with tremendous sorrow that we mourn the transition of Pastor Lindsay Brown, the church said, announcing his passing. Please keep his family in your prayers as they go through the bereavement process. Pastor Lindsay was a true servant of God! Job well done thy Good and Faithful Servant! You will be missed, the church wrote on its Facebook page.

Brown, who was going to have another grandchild, leaves behind a wife and children.

Dedicated, committed, faithful to the ministry, Richardson described him. First one to come, last one to leave. And hes going to be missed.  I dont know how Im going to react on Sunday morning when I get up to preach, look to my left, and dont see him.

Residents in the area have complained that its not unusual for vehicles to hit people and then speed off without rendering aid. Brown was the seventh person to die in a hit-and-run in Duval County this year, according to News4Jax, which reported that no arrests had been made in any of the six previous cases either.
Chandigarh: Thirty-one farmers bodies in Punjab on Saturday joined hands to make the September 25 bandh against the agriculture-related Bills introduced in Parliament by the Centre a success. Representatives of the farmers outfits held a meeting in this regard at Moga on Saturday.

A call for a rail roko agitation has already been given by the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee from September 24 to 26. Among the major farmers unions which supported the bandh call are the Bharti Kisan Union (Krantikari); Kirti Kisan Union; Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan); BKU (Lakhowal); BKU (Kadiyan); BKU (Sidhupur); BKU (Doaba) and BKU (Dakunda), said Krantikari Kisan Union president Darshan Pal.

Farmers have expressed apprehension that the three Bills will pave a way for dismantling the minimum support price system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporates. The three legislations-Farmers Produce Trade And Commerce (Promotion And Facilitation) Bill; The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill; and Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill-were passed by the Lok Sabha recently. These will now be tabled in the Rajya Sabha.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
VANCOUVER  A new weather system brought cleaner air and the promise of further improvements to parts of British Columbia on Saturday but conditions across the mountains were expected to worsen before getting better.

Smoke from wildfires burning in California, Oregon and Washington state has blanketed B.C., prompting respiratory health warnings that extended into southern Alberta and as Far East as Saskatchewan Saturday.

An air quality advisory for Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley was lifted on Saturday after 11 days as cleaner marine air flowed into the area, although the regional government warned of pockets of smoke that could vary with winds and temperature changes.

Environment Canada said smoke began clearing across the western half of Vancouver Island early Saturday, and there should be widespread improvements further east by Sunday.

In the central portions of the province, the agency said smoke will be visible at higher elevations with potential for light to moderate effects.

Further east, the weather agency forecast more smoke in southern Alberta on Saturday, and issued special air quality statements for Jasper and Banff national parks, as well as Calgary and into south-central Saskatchewan.

It said smoky conditions across those areas was expected to worsen throughout the day, causing the air quality to deteriorate in many locations. As a weather system moved through the area Saturday night, conditions were expected to improve by Sunday.

It said air quality could become very poor in some parts of southwestern Saskatchewan.

Environment Canada meteorologist Jesse Wagar said the smoke in the upper atmosphere would continue to push toward eastern Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

Rain was expected in southern Alberta  in some cases large amounts in the area of Medicine Hat, close to the Saskatchewan boundary  which Wagar said would help clear the air in the longer term.

But initially, she said rain could further worsen the air quality, because it brings down the smoke thats aloft to the surface.

The spike in air quality is usually short-lived in those scenarios, she continued.

If you can get enough rain, it will clear the smoke.

Environment Canada said people with chronic underlying medical conditions or acute infections such as COVID-19 should postpone or reduce outdoor physical activity until the advisories are lifted.

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New Diamond Captain to be indicted in Kalmunai High Court By Ranjith Padmasiri View(s): View(s):

The distressed oil tanker MT New Diamonds captain is to be indicted by the Attorney General for violating the Marine Pollution Prevention (MPP) Act.

The vessels Greek Captain, Steiros Ilias (60) faces a variety of charges under the Act. These include causing pollution to the territorial waters, maritime zone or coastal zone of Sri Lanka, allowing for the discharge or escape of oil, harmful substances or other pollutants and failure to report discharge of oil or other pollutants.

If found guilty of all offences, Captain Ilias could face more than Rs. 50 million in fines.

As per provisions of the Act, the AG has the option to file indictments against the captain either in a High Court exercising admiralty jurisdiction, or in a zonal High Court.

In relation to the incident involving the oil tanker, the High Court exercising admiralty jurisdiction is the Commercial High Court in Colombo, while the zonal High Court is the Kalmunai High Court, since the area where the incident took place falls within the courts jurisdiction.

The Sunday Times learns that the indictments will be filed in the Kalmunai High Court rather than in Colombo.

Meanwhile, the captain has also been noticed to appear before the Colombo Chief Magistrates Court on September 28. He and the supertankers other crew members are now in quarantine under the care of the Sri Lanka Navy in Galle. The captain is due to complete his quarantine period on September 24.

The AGs Department told the Magistrates Court on Thursday that the ships captain had failed to activate the fire suppression system onboard the vessel when the fire initially began and had also not taken prompt action to inform relevant authorities of the emergency.

The Panamanian flagged MT New Diamond was carrying 270,000 metric tonnes of crude oil for the Indian Oil Company from a port in Kuwait to the Indian Port of Paradip when a fire broke out onboard the vessel on September 3 following a boiler room explosion. At the time, the ship was 38 nautical miles off Sangamankanda Point. One Filipino crew member was killed in the incident while 22 others, comprising 17 Filipinos and five Greeks, were subsequently rescued.

(See related story on Page 10)
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Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) London, United Kingdom  Sat, September 19, 2020 14:02 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45e7c76 2 People Harvey-Weinstein,united-states,Sexual-assault,film,Britain,royals,Queen-Elizabeth-II Free

Queen Elizabeth II has stripped Harvey Weinstein of the royal honor he was awarded before his predatory sex crimes came to light, an official government statement said on Friday.

The disgraced Hollywood movie mogul, who is currently serving a 23-year jail term for rape, received the honor in 2004 in recognition of his contribution to the British film industry.

But an announcement in The Gazette, the UK official government record, said it had now been withdrawn.

"The Queen has directed that the appointment of Harvey Weinstein to be an Honorary Commander of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, dated 29 January 2004, shall be cancelled and annulled and that his name shall be erased from the Register of the said Order," it read.

Royal honors can be forfeited in circumstances where Buckingham Palace considers the system has been brought into disrepute. Decisions are approved by the monarch herself.

Previous recipients who have had their honors removed include Rolf Harris, the Australian-born entertainer and artist who was jailed in 2014 for a string of sexual assaults.

Read also: Weinstein trial: Key moments in the scandal that sparked #MeToo

He had been given a CBE in 2006 after painting Queen Elizabeth's portrait to mark her 80th birthday. He was also stripped of his Australian honors.

Zimbabwe's former president Robert Mugabe lost his honorary knighthood in 2008 because of what the UK government said were "human rights violations" and "disregard" for democracy.

Romania's Communist-era dictator Nicolae Ceausescu had his honorary knighthood withdrawn in 1989, the day before his execution.

In 1979, the art historian Anthony Blunt, who advised the queen, also lost his knighthood after he was exposed as a Soviet spy.

Most forfeitures follow criminal convictions and jail terms.

In 2012, Fred Goodwin lost his title of "sir" because of the "scale and severity of the impact of his actions as CEO of RBS" during the financial crash four years earlier.
T he Labour Party is neck-and-neck with the Conservatives in the opinion polls for the first time since Boris Johnson became Prime Minister, new results show.

The two parties are now tied at 40 per cent, according to the latest YouGov poll for The Times.

Labour has gone up three points since the last survey of its kind, while the Tories have dropped by two.

The figures come as a boost to Sir Keir Starmer and his Shadow Cabinet ahead of his first party conference as Labour leader.

Labour Connected  a four-day online event  will kick off on Sunday with a keynote speech from Deputy Leader Angela Rayner.

The surge in public opinion relates both to the party as a whole and to Sir Keirs performance at the helm.

His approval ratings are now ahead of Mr Johnsons, the YouGov poll reveals, with some 38 per cent of respondents suggesting he looks like a prime minister-in-waiting.

Asked who would make the best Prime Minister, 34 per cent said Sir Keir, 30 per cent backed Mr Johnson, and 31 per cent said they did not know, The Times reported.

The poll also found that 35 per cent of people believe Sir Keir has changed the party for the better since taking over from Jeremy Corbyn, with just four per cent thinking he had changed it for the worse. A third of voters were undecided.

However, when it comes to Brexit, the public appear less confident.

Asked whether they would trust Labour to handle the UKs departure from the European Union, 45 per cent of the poll's respondents said no, and only 29 per cent said yes.
The passion among liberals was underscored Friday night when Democratic donors shattered records on ActBlue, a donation-processing site, giving more than $6.2 million in the hour after Justice Ginsburg died. By noon Saturday, donations had topped $45 million.

Specific spending plans for Demand Justice had not yet been completed on Saturday, but a person familiar with them said the money would largely be spent targeting critical swing states, like Maine, North Carolina and Arizona, where Republican senators whose votes could decide the future of the seat are on the ballot this fall.

A lot of the focus right now is on the Republican hypocrisy, said Christopher Kang, chief counsel and a co-founder of the group. Really the stakes are so much bigger than that. The future of the Affordable Care Act is now on the line.

An umbrella of progressive groups announced a candlelight vigil for Saturday night outside the Supreme Court, and more in cities across the country, to honor Justice Ginsburg and kick-start what they hope will be a public show of force to trip up Republicans rush to fill the seat. Indivisible, whose national network sprang up in opposition to Mr. Trump, began rolling out scripts urging its members to flood Senate offices with phone calls.

Ms. Arons group, which scrubs possible conservative nominees and works closely with Senate Democrats to build coalitions of law experts and teachers, has already worked through each person on Mr. Trumps list of 20 possible nominees and concluded none would be acceptable.

The lobbying on both sides resembles past confrontations in which Republicans and Democrats jousted over the ideological direction of the court. In 2016, Democrats mounted a fierce campaign to persuade the Republican Senate to confirm President Barack Obamas choice of Judge Merrick B. Garland after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia.

That effort failed when Mr. McConnell successfully denied Judge Garland a hearing or a vote. The Senate eventually confirmed Mr. Trumps nominee, Justice Neil M. Gorsuch, to fill the seat, and Democrats rage over what they saw as an illegitimate power play still animates their views of Republicans and the court.
Senator Ted Cruz has led Republican calls for Donald Trump to fill Ruth Bader Ginsburgs Supreme Court seat before election day.

Sen Cruz told Fox News he believed that it was critical that the Republican-controlled Senate moved quickly to replace Ginsburg before the US votes on 3 November.

I believe that the president should next week nominate a successor to the court, and I think it is critical that the Senate takes up and confirms that successor before Election day, said Mr Cruz.

There is going to be enormous pressure form the media and enormous pressure from Democrats to delay filling this vacancy, but this nomination is why Donald Trump was elected.

This confirmation is why the voters voted for a Republican majority in the Senate.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has already vowed that whomever Mr Trump nominates will get a vote on the Senate floor.

Earlier this week Mr Cruz told supporters that he had no interest in serving on the Supreme Court, despite the president naming him to a list of potential nominees.

Mr Cruz, the former Solicitor General of Texas, and has been mentioned before for the position.

He has also written a book about the Supreme Court, which is due out on 6 October.
Dubai carrier Emirates has reaffirmed its commitment to enhancing its operations in Bahrain with the introduction of a second daily flight to the kingdom starting from tomorrow (September 20). It will be operated by a Boeing 777-300ER.

The Emirates flight EK837 will depart from Dubai at 9.45am and land in Bahrain at 10am. On return, EK838 will take off from Bahrain at 11.30am and arrive in Dubai at 1.55pm.

Customers can stop over or travel to Dubai as the city has re-opened for international business and leisure visitors, said the statement from Emirates.

Ensuring the safety of travellers, visitors, and the community, Covid-19 PCR tests are mandatory for all inbound and transit passengers arriving to Dubai (and the UAE), including UAE citizens, residents and tourists, irrespective of the country they are coming from, it stated.

The expanded schedule will offer enhanced connectivity for customers travelling to Dubai and beyond to Emirates' network of over 85 destinations, it added.-TradeArabia News Service
michael barbaro

From The New York Times, Im Michael Barbaro. This is The Daily.

[music]

Today: President Trump has now secured the support he needs from Senate Republicans to swiftly confirm a replacement for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court, all but assuring that he will cement its conservative majority. A conversation with the anti-abortion activist whose unlikely partnership with the president helped bring the court to this moment. Its Wednesday, September 23.

michael barbaro

Hey. How are you? Its Michael Barbaro.

marjorie dannenfelser

Hello, Michael. Its great to meet you.

michael barbaro

Very nice to meet you. And thank you for making time for us.

marjorie dannenfelser

Well, Im very grateful. Ive been looking forward to it.

michael barbaro

Really?

marjorie dannenfelser

I have. You think I havent?

michael barbaro

Not everybody looks forward to conversations with journalists.

marjorie dannenfelser

I do its actually one of the things I like the best. Im  Im not kidding. I really do.

michael barbaro

Well, were grateful for your time. And I want to start with the difficult but necessary question of asking you how to pronounce your last name.

marjorie dannenfelser

Its Dannenfelser.

michael barbaro

Dannenfelser. Is it OK if I call you Marjorie?

marjorie dannenfelser

Of course. Yes.

michael barbaro

OK. So Marjorie, the reason we wanted to talk to you, and talk to you right now, is because you lead an organization  the Susan B. Anthony list  that seeks to end abortion in the United States, in part by electing lawmakers who oppose abortion, and in part by confirming conservative justices to the federal bench and ultimately to the Supreme Court in order to eventually overturn Roe v. Wade. Does that summarize the groups mission accurately?

marjorie dannenfelser

Yeah. I think you got it. Yeah.

michael barbaro

So I have to imagine this is quite a day to be talking to you. Because it is now about 1:03 in the afternoon on Tuesday. And we have just watched as several Republican senators who seem to be on the fence about filling Justice Ginsburgs vacant seat said that they would seek to confirm a replacement for her in the coming weeks, the latest of those being Senator Mitt Romney.

marjorie dannenfelser

Yeah.

michael barbaro

And so it very much seems like you are on the cusp of a historic victory for social and religious conservatives and for the mission of your group.

marjorie dannenfelser

I think thats right. And I think, you know, no matter who you are, you feel the ground shaking underneath, wondering where the nation is going. For me. It is a surreal moment. It is actually very hard to put into words. Im feeling very optimistic for the mission that our organization launched on 25 years ago.

michael barbaro

I wonder if in 2015, when you were first facing the prospect of a Donald Trump presidency, if you could have ever imagined that just over four years later it would get you here to this point.

marjorie dannenfelser

Michael, I was deeply opposed to the candidacy of this president. He was the last on a very long list, and a distant last, of people that I thought should be among  I mean, I think there were 17 at the high point  candidates. And I put out letters in South Carolina and in Iowa saying not this guy. So I did get dragged kicking and screaming to the candidacy. And so the answer to your question is yeah, I would have been shocked to hear that this president would operate as the most pro-life president in history, and that he would be the one to be naming a self-described pro-life Supreme Court justice  three  that could turn the tide of events on abortion law after four decades since Roe v. Wade.

michael barbaro

Well, lets talk a little bit more about that journey that you and your organization went on  the kicking and screaming. I realize this is asking a lot of someone who now has a close relationship with the president. But if you could go back to your worst views and fears of him at the time, and describe for me what you were thinking about him and what he represented to you in that early period of 2015-2016.

marjorie dannenfelser

I dont mind talking about it. Because I actually, as a convert on this cause, I can say that its very much reflective of what people probably used to think of me, when I was very strongly pro-choice. You know my view changed pretty diametrically to the position I had. But whatever people felt about me at that point is exactly how I felt about this president. We cant possibly have somebody who just converted overnight be the candidate. And I didnt like the caustic comments to Carly Fiorina, who I adored at the time. So what I saw, I wasnt pleased with. And its the point, I would say, that in my entire life Ive never been so happy to be so incredibly wrong about the commitments that he would make and how he would actually govern.

michael barbaro

And when you say conversion, you mean his conversion from someone who supported abortion rights, supported candidates who supported abortion rights, to someone who was opposed to abortion, who was pro-life.

marjorie dannenfelser

Thats right.

michael barbaro

But before we get to those commitments, I want to slow down just a little bit and talk about the journey that you went on. And not linger too much on it. But I do think its important to understand. During the period when you had objections to him, you did not mince words. And I just want to put a pin in how strongly you doubted him during that period. Because you mentioned letters that you had issued against his candidacy. And there is a very pointed letter that I recall you addressed to Republican voters as the Iowa caucuses were about to get underway. And I was in Iowa during that time. So I remember this.

marjorie dannenfelser

Mhm. Mhm.

michael barbaro

And this is what you said, quote: As pro-life women leaders from Iowa and across the nation, we urge Republican caucus goers and voters to support anyone but Donald Trump. On the issue of defending unborn children and protecting women from the violence of abortion, Mr. Trump cannot be trusted. And there is thankfully an abundance of alternative candidates with proven records of pro-life leadership whom pro-life voters can support. And you went on to say, As women, we are disgusted by Mr. Trumps treatment of individuals, women in particular. So how were you able to get from there to the decision that you needed to build a relationship with the president and start talking about commitments and partnerships?

marjorie dannenfelser

Well, thats a double-edged question. One is: How could you form a relationship after saying that? From his perspective, right, thats one thing. And the other: How, from my end, right? So to me, there was no choice. It was a choice between someone who wanted to preserve abortion and expand it and have people pay for it  that was Hillary Clinton  and he, who made commitments to only pro-life judges and other things. So what do you do when youre given that choice? As imperfect as the choices looked, there was a better choice.

michael barbaro

So just to be clear, youre saying the journey was essentially Donald Trumps victory in the primaries. That once he started to win, you didnt feel you had a choice between his views on abortion and Hillary Clintons views on abortion. You had to make a compromise.

marjorie dannenfelser

Thats right. Thats what the world of politics is. But I would not have done it if he had not made those commitments. I mean, we had to have something to take door to door to over a million homes in battleground states to say, this is who this is. So yes, it was the primary. And it was those commitments. And then as we were moving into the general, he got stronger on the issue, not weaker. And the general direction of candidates is the opposite. That first they are all about you. They love you and youre the best person on the planet. And then they get into the general and they start to moderate. Well, that is not how he treated the issue. And he instead embraced it and communicated it and made sure that there was a contrast between his policies and his opponents  and Hillary Clintons. And thats what you hope and dream for, that there is that perfect clarity and the voters know the choice that theyre making. And hes the first person that did it like that.

michael barbaro

Well, lets talk about the commitments that youre referring to. What exactly were the commitments and how did they come to be?

marjorie dannenfelser

Well, we knew what our priorities were. So we wrote them down and said, these are the commitments we would like for you to make. And they were pro-life Supreme Court justices. Now Im very aware about how that term  pro-life Supreme Court justices  goes across to quite a number of people. One, they dont even know what that means, its not accurate. Does that mean Roe v. Wade? We wanted to be very clear that it means they take a position on abortion that is in alignment with our own. So that was the first commitment. And it was that it be very clear what type of Supreme Court justices youre going to have.

michael barbaro

And what else did he commit to. Because my sense is it wasnt just justices on the court?

marjorie dannenfelser

Thats right. The Supreme Court piece is the most important piece. But there was also a commitment to protect the Hyde Amendment, meaning no taxpayer funding of abortion, to sign a 20-week week Pain-Capable bill into law. That means no abortions on the national level after five months and also defunding and reallocating Planned Parenthoods funding to other qualified health centers.

michael barbaro

So pretty sweeping commitments  so were you surprised when he agreed to do all of this, when you got everything you wanted from him?

marjorie dannenfelser

I was a little bit surprised. Because we didnt have any leverage. He was already the candidate. Generally, candidates in that position arent going to put their name to anything because they dont have to anymore. But hes a different kind of candidate. And he had taken this position. And he wants the benefit of it. And all we needed was that letter. And we gave it to him. And then the rest is history. Our battleground state activity was incredibly helpful, and he knows it, in the win. Then it made everything worthwhile. Because every single thing he promised and beyond, he did.

michael barbaro

Well, lets talk a little bit about what you mean when you said, It made everything worthwhile. Because I have to say that the journey that you went on was a very long journey in a relatively short period of time. So 

marjorie dannenfelser

[LAUGHS] Yeah.

michael barbaro

 do you think that Donald Trump actually believed in what he was signing up for? Or in your mind, did it not really matter whether he, like, fundamentally in his heart believed it, because he was effectively signing up to be the vehicle through which you could try to achieve what you had always been working towards? In other words, did it not really matter if he maybe didnt believe what he was signing onto? It just mattered that he would do the things he signed up to do. And did it really matter if some of his actions were at odds with your faith in his personal life, especially.

marjorie dannenfelser

I think what really mattered is that hed take these positions. And yes, the constant question was: Does he really think this? Voters care if he really believes it. And I think its the unanswerable question whats deep in the chambers of your heart. You know, what are your intentions? You know, its very difficult to know. I know what 

michael barbaro

Do you care? Do you care?

marjorie dannenfelser

If youll notice, on this issue, people will say, well, hes always scripted on it. Well, hes scripted because he doesnt want to get it wrong. Its too important. This is one thing that I know. He knows how important it is. And it is important to him because hes done everything and beyond that he ever promised to do.

michael barbaro

I mean, what youre describing is  and tell me if you think this is uncharitable or too practical  but youre describing a very transactional understanding with a presidential candidate in this stage.

marjorie dannenfelser

Well, if it were only that, that would be fine. But I dont think it is only that. So thats how I look at it. You know, it does matter whats in the human heart. It also matters what the human does. So his actions, and our gambling with the idea that he was going to follow through on them, were far better than the gamble that we had with Hillary Clinton. There was no transaction possible with her. There was only one possible with him. And he grew into the commitment.

michael barbaro

But to the listener of faith who is hearing this conversation and is thinking, but how can you watch something like the Access Hollywood video, which came out at the end of the campaign  so after he had made this commitment to you  how could you watch that and support him, regardless of what you end up getting out of it? Im sure youve been asked this question before. But how do you answer it? Because here youre talking about someone boasting about sexually assaulting women. And soon after, women came forward and said, thats what he did to me. So Im just  how did you think about that?

marjorie dannenfelser

Well, I thought about it a couple of ways. One, it was painful. And were still left with the same choice: pain and two choices. There is a prudential choice that you have to make. And we knew what Hillary Clinton was going to do. And we knew the commitment that the president had. And so we had to make that choice and we did. And once were in, were all in. You know, I will never apologize for those actions or those comments. But I will, till the day I die, advance the policies that he committed to. And just around the corner, were seeing the fruits of having done that.

michael barbaro

You used the word prudential. And that caught me a little bit. Because youre not using a word that conveys morality or faith. Youre saying prudent, if Im hearing that word correctly.

marjorie dannenfelser

Yeah. I think actually religious people use that term quite a lot. Because it acknowledges a hierarchy of goods and evils involved in any decision. That decisions of great consequence often involved a blend of goods and bads.

michael barbaro

Mhm.

marjorie dannenfelser

And your job is to figure out where the highest good is found. Which choice leads to the highest good. And thats the choice we had to make in that moment.

michael barbaro

And in your mind, the highest good was a candidate who would fulfill your mission on the future of abortion in the United States.

marjorie dannenfelser

Thats right.

michael barbaro

When the president does go on to win the office, I wonder how much it felt like support from groups like yours mattered. I mean, my sense is that it was pretty meaningful. Ive spoken to a couple of my colleagues here at The Times who we really trust on this subject, and they said that the president likely would not have won several key states  like Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania  without support from Christian conservatives and groups like yours.

marjorie dannenfelser

Yeah. I think that he knows that. In fact, he called me right after the election to say that. And I, you know, take a little bit of exception sometimes. The pro-life people that are part of his election are sometimes Catholic, sometimes evangelical, and sometimes neither. Sometimes Democrats, sometimes Republicans, sometimes independents. Its one of those issues, especially in the Rust Belt states that you just mentioned, that transcends a lot of boundaries. And so I think he gets that. I know he gets that.

michael barbaro

And once in office, in part with your support, right away President Trump gets a chance to put a justice on the court, to kind of do what it is you care so much about. And he puts forward and gets confirmed a conservative jurist, Neil Gorsuch, who your group supported. He gets a second vacancy, he fills that with another conservative jurist, Brett Kavanaugh, who you again supported. So were you surprised by how quickly this promise was kept by President Trump? And did it start to feel that, in very short order, your work was more or less done?

marjorie dannenfelser

Thats a really good question. I think weve had so many disappointments over time, where you seem like were so close. You know, it looks just within reach. And then all of a sudden, something happens and its not. So the only way I know how to handle this is within the grace of daily obligation  doing the thing that has to be done today that is the best possible strategic and smart choice that you can make. And so therefore, even right now, I dont take anything for granted. So yes, Im very hopeful, very optimistic, but not wild-eyed.

michael barbaro

Well. I want to talk about where we are right now and what you have been fighting for over these past few days since Justice Ginsburgs passing. Another seat  the third seat  opening on the court during this presidency. And the question for most people was: Would a nomination to replace her happen before the election? Would it happen after the election, given the tactics and actions of the Republican leadership in the Senate in 2016? Or not until there was a new president or the re-election of President Trump? But I sense that for you, there was only one option, right?

marjorie dannenfelser

All right, you dont play roulette with that when the stakes are this high, in my opinion. And thats how were acting. So I think to be honest, to get wrapped up in what other presidents and Senates have done in other times historically, its not nearly as important as the result. They were elected to do a job. And they should be doing it now.

michael barbaro

So youre saying thats all beside the point to you, like, when people talk about the precedent of Merrick Garland or the promises that Lindsey Graham made very explicitly to the public. Im not trying to be cavalier about this. But it sounds like your approach is sort of, like, who cares? Thats process.

marjorie dannenfelser

Yeah. I mean, I think that nobody cares about process. But I also think that if you have a shot, you do it now. You dont wait.

michael barbaro

And so just to be clear, what did you made clear that you wanted to have happen when Justice Ginsburg died? That the president put forward a nominee, and that the Senate hold a hearing before November 3? I just want to understand what was conveyed to you.

marjorie dannenfelser

Yeah. That is what we are asking and hoping, what I talked to the president about, what I talked to the vice president about, what were talking to different senators that, yes  that it be from the list, which is not in question. And that it be quickly done. And thats what all of our conversations have been.

michael barbaro

And why exactly do you want it to be done so quickly and even before the election? Why not wait until post-November, even if Donald Trump loses, why cant he nominate the candidate or why cant the Senate hold hearings on the candidate between November and January? Why does it have to happen so quickly?

marjorie dannenfelser

Well, a couple of things. One is that you wait and you lose all the discipline, all the cats move in different directions. They behave differently in a lame duck. They just do. People arent under the gun of an election. You lose the pressure. You lose the leverage. Also, I think it will benefit the president to go in as a winner, and that being a compelling case at the ballot boxes. And also, if the Arizona election goes against Martha McSally, theyll seat immediately a Democrat there. And that changes the numbers. So its a very concrete and practical reason to go ahead and do it now.

michael barbaro

Right. You referred to roulette earlier. You just dont want to take any risk that might involve a changing dynamic or a changing electoral math in the Senate, which you believe right now favors getting this done before the election.

marjorie dannenfelser

Thats right. You dont play roulette when the consequences are that high.

michael barbaro

What do you think was the most important thing that happened over the last few days in convincing some of these senators to get on board with your desired path? Because there were, on paper, significant obstacles  including these public statements that had been made, these commitments that had been made by several of these senators, whether it was Chuck Grassley, whether it was Lindsey Graham.

marjorie dannenfelser

I think the weight of that decision and the consequence of delay is an argument in itself. It has to be made by several people. Its made by the president and the vice president. Its made from me and people like me directly. And also, look, I think about it this way too. Lamar Alexander, I think, said it better than anybody. And Lamar Alexander was somebody that was very much on the, oh, no, what is he going to do list. And he just made the most compelling statement that I think he really believes, and I think Romney believes the same, which is this is the constitutional duty that should be done now. And the consequences of not doing that will be felt for decades.

michael barbaro

I know I keep asking you if you were surprised. But were you surprised when Mitt Romney signed on? I think many people expected him to, as a frequent dissenter from the president, perhaps join with Senator Susan Collins, Senator Lisa Murkowski in being skeptical of this timeline?

marjorie dannenfelser

Yes. Im completely surprised when especially senators all line up and make the same decision. Im totally shocked when there is unity. Because Romney is a very independent person. Grassley is a very independent person. So yes, I am blown away with unity at a moment where it needs to happen. Im also very cognizant that it can be scattered. So thats why we remain very vigilant.

[music]

michael barbaro

Do you believe, Marjorie, that you are responsible in any way for what happened, whether thats a matter of having gotten President Trump where he is with your support in the first place, putting him in a position for this to happen, or the work youve done in the past few days? I mean, am I right in thinking that somewhere over the past 72, 96 hours, you and folks in your organization are on the phone with these senators, with their staff?

marjorie dannenfelser

I think  I think I and my team and our grassroots have a lot of influence. I think we can look at it and say were very much a part of it. I would never presume to say that were the reason. Because that just wouldnt be true and wouldnt acknowledge the efforts of other people. But yes, I think very much we are helping drive the center of this movement to a reclamation and a restoration of the court when it comes to Roe v. Wade.

michael barbaro

Well be right back. So Marjorie, the remaining questions now seem to only be some logistics, it feels like, around the vote and who the nominee for this vacancy will be from a pretty short list. Is there only one path forward in your mind on this issue? I mean, does it have to be  like when to hold the vote  when it comes to who should get this nod, does it have to be Amy Coney Barrett in your mind?

marjorie dannenfelser

No. It doesnt. Shes my favorite. Shes our favorite. Shes the movements favorite because the movement knows her. And shes been completely vetted. We know who she is, what shes about. And that is a real leg up when youre trying to move this fast. But the list I was very much a part of. So I feel like I own it in some ways. So Im very confident that no matter who he chooses, well continue in exactly the direction we are.

michael barbaro

So youre open to several possible judges on that list?

marjorie dannenfelser

Yes. Yeah.

michael barbaro

So I want to turn to public opinion on the question of abortion and the path that you seem to be setting for the president and for the Senate in this moment, which is a decision that may ultimately be at odds with where the majority of Americans are. And Im mindful of something that Justice Ginsburg said about Roe v. Wade. She had a critique of it, which is that she felt that in being so decisive and striking down so many state laws on abortion, that Roe had kind of raced ahead of where the country was. And she believes that the country was moving in the direction of Roe on its own, and that the ruling risked a backlash from Americans by doing this work from the bench. And it was a controversial critique. But Im curious if you worry about the same thing happening, but now in the other direction. Because your goal is to get Roe overturned. And I ask that because the statistics on how Americans view abortion are very consistent at this moment in the countrys history. And they show that a majority of Americans support legalized abortion and do not support overturning Roe v. Wade. And I could recite a bunch of polls. I dont think you need me to do that. So is this something you worry about doing and creating a backlash towards?

marjorie dannenfelser

I will acknowledge that the country is worried. But the country is worried largely because the contradictions in opinion. In other words, yes, I know that poll to be true, that the majority supports Roe v. Wade. But then, also, they support bans after the first trimester, which is completely inconsistent. And what will happen when Roe is overturned or eroded, to the extent that its not as applicable, will be that states will start to pass laws that reflect the laws of those states. Thats the immediate effect of Roe. And the only laws that will pass will be the laws that can be sustained by the majorities in those states. And I think that people will then see, OK, it wasnt this tsunami that we thought. Its actually just the bearing out of democracy on an issue of deep moral conviction, where peoples opinions get to make their way into the law rather than the Supreme Court telling them.

michael barbaro

I just want to summarize what you have been saying. Youre not worried, it sounds like, about a backlash or going against the will of the people. Because in your mind, if this issue returns to the state level, which is what would happen if Roe is overturned, and the people support abortion, then abortion will still be legal.

marjorie dannenfelser

Right.

michael barbaro

And that will be the will of the people. Is that what youre saying?

marjorie dannenfelser

That is. The only laws that will go into effect are laws that can be sustained by majorities of the people in the states in which they live.

michael barbaro

Some people will say that that may be a hard thing to measure. There are many states where legislatures may be solidly Republican and out of sync with the views of the majority of their residents. And so restrictions might emerge that would then be reducing the availability of abortion, that might be out of sync. I suppose you would argue that maybe an election would determine that then a few years later. But is there not a real risk that very suddenly state legislatures that have been gerrymandered, that have been made Republican in ways that dont reflect the views of the majority of voters in that state, would suddenly restrict abortion in ways that would not be in sync with the democratic principles youre talking about?

marjorie dannenfelser

Well. Look, I think democracy is the only institution that we have. There isnt a better one to gauge the will of the people and have that reflected in the law. I dont know a better one. So to get to some consensus in our nation, that stranglehold on our ability to pass laws that reflect our deeply held convictions about the life and death of human beings, has to let up. And if it doesnt let up, it will be exactly the way it is now, the never-ending battle that people are sick of. But its only occurring because its a matter of life and death. And were on the verge of getting to a place where we can say were victorious.

michael barbaro

To go back to the polling for just a minute, I think you agreed that those surveys show that the majority of Americans support Roe v. Wade, support access to legalized abortion. So I want to understand from your viewpoint how this process may play out and what the political repercussions may be, in some cases even for allies of yours, people who you have supported and who have supported you. And I assume thats something that youve been thinking a lot about.

marjorie dannenfelser

Yeah. I think what matters is what people really think. Were looking at the polls and were seeing contradictions. So what do we make of that. Theres only backlash if it really is going further than the consensus will allow. And if it goes further than consensus will allow, the democratic process picks up again and adjusts. So I think for people who are naturally afraid and risk averse, yeah, they wont like it that states are starting to enact laws that reflect the will of their states. Because theyll be afraid, perhaps. But that doesnt hold me up.

michael barbaro

So I wonder if you would just indulge me for a moment. And I want to ask you to imagine a future. Its November 4. A handful of Republican senators, perhaps, have lost their seats in part because of this process. And perhaps Republicans lose control of the Senate. Would it have been worth it?

marjorie dannenfelser

Im not going there. Because Im in those places. I mean, we are literally in those Senate battles right now. We have people going door to door in all of those Senate battles. Ive talked to Senator Daines, for instance, today, who says this confirmation, if its done before the election, he does not believe itll hurt his chances. I believe that they all think that. They dont think that thats going to be the case. And I think theyre absolutely right. So yes, there is a hierarchy of goals. But because of the way this is rolling out, thats a false choice that Im not willing to make. Were not just leaving things to fall where they will. I do not think that this hurts the presidents chances of winning. And I dont think it hurts senators chances of winning, the ones on the pro-life side.

michael barbaro

So it sounds like youre having these conversations. And I know you dont want to imagine that future. But if that were to happen, if you were to wake up and find that the Senate had been lost  and maybe a bunch of senators even candidly say, we got that third Trump conservative justice on the Supreme Court, but it cost us the Senate  I want to ask you to grapple with that for just a minute. Will it have been worth it?

marjorie dannenfelser

I dont think Im making that decision. And so Im not willing to make that call. I think that, look, changing the court for decades and saving millions and millions of lives is the most important thing that I do. And politics is the route to that. So in this particular case, I do not feel that its a choice that has to be made. I think were doing both at the same time. But you see the hierarchy of goods. The first most important thing is who sits on the Supreme Court.

michael barbaro

When you didnt want to engage the question of whether this confirmation battle might cost Republicans control of the Senate, it occurred to me that you would not want to imagine that future for the president either. But I have to ask what if, in the end, the president loses reelection, the autopsies and the retrospectives look back and say that it was, in part, because of an energized opposition? Because he rushed to get a third justice appointed to the Supreme Court, one who openly opposed abortion, and that was at odds with where the electorate was. If you end up losing this historic ally of yours in this battle, will that be OK? And will it have been worth it?

marjorie dannenfelser

Its not going to be OK to lose the presidency, and its not going to be OK to lose the Senate. The first priority is the Supreme Court, without question. And Im going to work for all three. Im not willing to cede any of it. Im not. But I am saying the most important thing is the Supreme Court. And I think all those people I just mentioned agree.

michael barbaro

Youre saying you think President Trump would agree that it would have been worth losing re-election 

marjorie dannenfelser

No.  to change the composition of the Supreme Court.? No. Im just saying the order of goods. In the order of goods, the lasting value of the Supreme Court is a legacy for the Senate and for the president. And I cant presume to speak for him or the senators. But Im just saying Im fighting for them all. Im not going to cede any of it.

michael barbaro

Right. This phrase that you used, when thinking about your partnership with President Trump, there was a practicality to it.

marjorie dannenfelser

Thats right. It will all have been worth it. Yeah. So I think this entire battle, all in sum, every single thing weve done for the last decade, everything weve done since 2016, everything we will do for this election, if we have one more Supreme Court justice that looks like Amy Barrett or one of the others, it will all have been worth it.

[music]

Were at a point of a major shift in this nation. And Im very happy to be in the place that I am.

michael barbaro

Well, I really appreciate your time.

marjorie dannenfelser

I appreciate yours too, Michael.

michael barbaro

Thank you, Marjorie.

marjorie dannenfelser

Thank you so much.

michael barbaro
Sources close to the Madrid regional premier, Isabel Diaz Ayuso, backtracked on Wednesday after her deputy health chief, Antonio Zapatero, announced that stricter coronavirus measures would be introduced in parts of the region this coming weekend in a bid to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

Speaking this morning, Zapatero told reporters that action is needed as soon as possible, adding that new decisions are being taken to restrict mobility and the concentration of people. The health chief added that more drastic measures were needed, in line with what people could understand as selective lockdowns according to basic healthcare areas or healthcare areas with higher infection rates, he said, referring both to the capital city and the Madrid region as a whole.

But the announcement reportedly caused widespread shock at a Cabinet meeting that Ayuso was presiding over, prompting members of her team to state that a decision had not yet been made, and will not be made until Friday. According to the premiers trusted sources, there are other scenarios on the table.

The premier always supports any measure that is aimed at protecting the health of citizens. This measure is decisively supported by the premier Madrid deputy health chief Antonio Zapatero

The communications disaster has left residents of the Madrid region in an environment of uncertainty, and is likely to prompt people to travel from the more affected areas of Madrid to other locations in a bid to avoid a potential new lockdown.

The internal controversy caused by Zapateros statements was such that the Cabinet meeting ran over by several hours, and the traditional press conference held afterward to explain agreements reached was canceled.

Sources close to Ayuso, from the conservative Popular Party (PP), stated that at the government Cabinet meeting today [which began at 10am] no lockdowns were being considered. Zapatero has a number of scenarios planned, among them the possible selective confinement of neighborhoods. They added that these were all possible scenarios, and that the final decision will be taken on Friday.

Among these possible scenarios, a government source added, is the announcement of a rise in the number of intensive care unit beds, the further reduction of the capacity of businesses and hostelry establishments and the number of people permitted at family gatherings.

Madrid regional premier Isabel Diaz Ayuso. UAT (GTRES)

Zapatero  who was hired by Diaz Ayuso after he ran the field hospital at the IFEMA convention center in Madrid that was set up to deal with coronavirus patients during the peak of the health crisis earlier this year  claimed this morning that he had told Ayuso about his plans earlier today via WhatsApp. The premier always supports any measure that is aimed at protecting the health of citizens, he added. This measure is decisively supported by the premier.

During his statements on Wednesday, however, Zapatero failed to offer much detail about the plans. He did not state which areas could be confined, nor how this would be put into practice. He also failed to clarify whether the measures would include the closure of recently reopened schools or bars and restaurants. If the situation in Madrid advances, Madrid will take the measures it has to, he said on Wednesday morning.

Vallecas and Humanes

According to the latest epidemiological monitoring report, published on Tuesday by the Spanish Health Ministry, the average incidence of the coronavirus in the last 14 days in the Madrid region came in at 651.50 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. The city district with the highest infection rate is Vallecas, with 1,240.76, while Humanes is the municipality with the highest rate, which is at 1,058.60 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.

Both Zapatero and Elena Andradas, the general director of the regions Public Health department, highlighted the need for people with active infections to respect quarantine guidelines, adding that there were currently high levels of non-compliance. In such cases, Andradas explained, the door is opened to fines for the breach of isolation measures.

Zapatero added that his government has called on the central Health Ministry to reduce the isolation period from 14 days to seven. The criteria for doing so, he explained, were healthcare related. In recent weeks the infectious period of the virus is in the first seven days; this is a fact that many specialists have observed. France and Germany are thinking about it and the ministry has accepted it as a possibility, he said, in reference to the reduction of the quarantine period.

A total of 26 classes in the Madrid school system have been isolated due to positive coronavirus cases

The health chief also explained that there are now 178 classes in quarantine among the regions education system. This is 0.5% of the total, given that we count on a total of 35,000 classrooms, he explained.

The first week of the regions schools' reopening, which was last week, saw a total of 26 classes isolated due to positive coronavirus cases. There has also been an outbreak at a nursery school in the capital city, with five cases between children aged from one to three. A sixth case has been detected in the same school, but it was unrelated, Andradas explained.

Since the end of the state of alarm implemented by the Spanish central government in March, the countrys regional governments have been in charge of the measures aimed at controlling the virus. The Madrid regional government  which is governed by the PP and center-right Ciudadanos (Citizens), with the support of far-right Vox  has been widely criticized for inaction both with regard to preparing the reopening of schools and for failure to prevent the region from once again becoming the epicenter of the ongoing coronavirus health crisis.

Current coronavirus restrictions in Madrid limit meetings in public and private to 10 people if they do not live together. Capacity at religious sites, cemeteries and funeral homes is at 60% of the usual level, as are weddings, baptisms and communions. Occupation of counters in bars is limited to 50% of capacity, while chairs in restaurants and other establishments must be 1.5 meters apart.

English version by Simon Hunter.
PALO ALTO, Calif., Sept. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- ThroughPut Inc., the Industrial AI Supply Chain pioneer, today announced the appointment of Luke Helms to its Advisory Board. Mr. Helms is the former Vice-Chairman at Bank of America, Vice-Chairman of KeyBank, Chairman and CEO of Seafirst Bank, and a Board Member of LifeLock, ABM Industries, and Manulife.

Mr. Helms brings with him five decades of deep domain expertise in the Banking, Insurance, Industrial Finance and Facilities Management sectors. He has also served as an Investor and Chairperson of several fast-scaling entrepreneurial private powerhouses, such as LifeLock, a pioneer in identity theft protection, with venture capital funding from Bessemer Ventures, Goldman Sachs, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Symantec Corporation and River Street Management, before its IPO on the NYSE in 2012 and acquisition by Norton and Broadcom in 2017. Throughout his illustrious business career, Mr. Helms has also served on educational, nonprofit and philanthropic Boards, including the University of San Francisco, the Washington State University Foundation, the University of Washington Foundation, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Oakland Children's Hospital, the Seattle Art Museum, the Pacific Northwest Ballet, and the University of Arizona School of Business.

As ThroughPut continues to grow its strength with seasoned executive leadership, a stellar team of proven entrepreneurs, an Advisory Board of global domain experts, and a premier cap-table of global angel investors and family offices, new investors and venture capitalists have also discovered its massive market potential and product lead. ThroughPut's team is backed by some of the best domain experts from Operations, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Artificial Intelligence and Finance, who have put that knowledge to work in over a dozen successful startups. Mr. Helms joining the Advisory Board further reinforces ThroughPut's mission to create the leading AI software platform connecting disparate data sets for Supply Chain, Operational and Financial Excellence.

"So much of what we do at ThroughPut ultimately helps businesses improve their Free Cash Flow, EBITDA and Earnings Per Share Performance," said Ali Raza, founding CEO of ThroughPut. "Where contemporary data systems fail to predict, we have always advocated for strong risk management, insurance fundamentals and a holistic view of operations across the end-to-end supply chain using all data sources. Perhaps no one in our network understands this approach better than Mr. Helms, with decades of leadership at some of the world's most reputable financial institutions helping other organizations to financially succeed. This is an area we have much to learn from Mr. Helms, and it is an honor to have him on the Advisory Board to help guide ThroughPut on maximizing its positive impact on the finances and operations of global industrial organizations."

"I am excited to join the ThroughPut team as a Senior Advisor," added Mr. Helms. "What appeals most to me is their approach of tying operational frontline data to financial bottom line impact, and thus ultimately profitability and a company's Earnings Per Share. This is the holy grail of the finance world where quality-of-earnings meets quality-of-operations. I am impressed by how ThroughPut's AI can analyze all the existing disparate data systems of any company to accelerate both cash flow improvements and profitability. The ability to have a dynamic dashboard at the C-Suite level to view supply chain performance and P&L performance in the same software provides a multi-dimensional view to operations management that is unprecedented and an aggregated single source of truth. The fact the operations management recommendations are built on leading operational excellence philosophies also brings digitized standardization to management at a facility level. I am eager to further contribute and remain actively involved where Industrial AI intersects with pioneering FinTech."

Seth Page, the COO and Head of Corporate Development & Partnerships at ThroughPut Inc., continued, "With the recent wave of accelerated enterprise transformation as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing economic fallout, Silicon Valley VCs have finally tuned-in to the fact that the largest operational gains actually lie across the end-to-end Supply Chain. Hence they are now looking towards B2B start-ups with unique domain expertise and proven Industrial AI solutions, versus the high-profile, growth-at-all-costs, negative-return B2C deals of yesteryear. Luke's addition to ThroughPut's distinguished Advisory Board is testimony to the fact that the greatest financial gains of AI on global industry output come from the Manufacturing, Logistics, and Wholesale sectors, where they contribute more than half of the $56 Trillion in output gains from AI by 2035. We look forward to a successful collaboration with Luke and the ThroughPut team in scaling the company to another startup juggernaut, providing a positive measurable impact on organizations worldwide, while delivering far superior investor returns long-term."

About ThroughPut Inc. :

ThroughPut Inc. is the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Operations pioneer that enables companies to leverage their existing data systems to increase output, quality, and profitability across their end-to-end Supply Chains. ThroughPut's Operations AI Product, ELI, includes the only Bottleneck Management System (BMS) that utilizes existing enterprise data systems, such as ERP, MES, IMS, TMS, WMS, PLC, EAM, POS, CRM, SCADA, Historian, and other data systems, to solve for the $25 Trillion of annual Waste across global supply chains already today. Such constraints to the $90 Trillion global GDP could otherwise be dedicated to more productive and useful purposes to the benefit of all stakeholders. ThroughPut.AI's software is designed by Fortune 500 Supply Chain & Logistics leaders, Silicon Valley analytics and AI experts, and top global Operations & Experts in the areas of Lean Manufacturing, the Theory of Constraints, Supply Chain Automation, Total Quality Management, and over 4 dozen leading best practices now digitized in the ELI product, with hundreds of years of combined experience in the space. ELI thinks like an operations manager and automatically provides domain expertise, executable insights, quantitative cost-benefit analysis, and recommendations in real-time, which current static Business Intelligence and Analytics tools do not effectively capture nor act upon. ThroughPut.AI's dynamic insights include real-time resource allocation recommendations, granular root cause identification, and operational process stability analysis. ELI enables Process Improvement Experts and Operations Managers to reduce cycle times and operational unpredictability across some of the most advanced process industries, including manufacturing, logistics, automotive & transportation, aerospace & aviation, chemical processing, energy & utilities, oil & gas, and others.

More information about ThroughPut.AI is available at: www.throughput.ai

Contact:

Tina Jacobs

[email protected]

Marketing Manager

SOURCE ThroughPut Inc

Related Links

www.throughput.world


They sound such an unlikely duo. Joe Biden's easy American drawl and Ursula von der Leyen's accented English are of different worlds. But they spoke in harmony this week - their words of comfort for Ireland a balm for troubled times.

Convulsions over Covid regularly knocked the latest Brexit battles from top billing in the news cycle. As a consequence, we may not fully realise these are historic days for Ireland's reputation in Britain, Europe, and the US.

This week a rubicon was crossed. It's as if this country has come of age by way of finding its place in the wider world. We can be especially consoled that beacon of middle-ground nationalism - the Good Friday Agreement - has moulded its own moral authority on the international stage.

Recent events signalled stunning successes for Irish diplomacy. What has been at play has been a huge battle of wills. Those fighting Ireland's corner in Brussels and Washington have been in diplomatic hand-to- hand combat, with emissaries from an unsavoury 'Little Englander' government.

The decision by Boris Johnson and his inner circle to break their word - which was underpinned by legal guarantee - is reckless in relation to the peace process. From their viewpoint, a written agreement to avoid a hard border on this island counts for nought. They are quite willing to use Northern Ireland as a pawn in a power play with the EU.

Thankfully, this ploy was adroitly called to account by EU Commission president Ms von der Leyen. It wasn't what she said - it was the way she said it. The UK will not have a trade deal with Brussels unless Mr Johnson ditches some dirty tricks. The net result of her speech is there is now a greater than ever awareness of the Irish Border issue - and the peace process - across the continent.

In tandem with developments in Europe, there was another diplomatic coup in the US. Presidential hopeful Joe Biden, plus heavy hitters in the Congress, also had a direct message for the Downing Street government. Don't mess with the Good Friday Agreement; any kind of physical divide between north and south cannot be allowed return.

The force of such singular messaging, coming almost in unison from Brussels and Washington, will have made Mr Johnson and his cohorts at least stop and think. It was a reminder that post-Brexit, Ireland's diplomatic power cannot be underestimated. It's also a wake-up call for Downing Street, suggesting xenophobia and time-warp nationalism will be a hard sell in a globalised world. The EU is the world's most powerful trading block. Membership carries obvious cachet. Whatever its detractors may argue, it has been unyielding in its support for Ireland, throughout this Brexit drama.

At no point has this been more critical than when confronting the double dealing of the Johnson/Dominic Cummings axis. Although the days of mass Irish emigration to the US are long gone, careful cultivation of Washington power brokers has paid huge dividends. There are even some in the Donald Trump camp who proclaim their support for the Belfast Agreement and what it represents.

It is significant moderate unionists seem to be losing faith in Johnson as a self-styled saviour of their cause. He has, of course, previously lied to them, barefaced, with assurances devoid of substance. They must wonder if hitching their hopes to his narrow strain of conservatism will do their cause more harm than good.

All the while one of the cheering realities of contemporary English life is the tolerant and exclusive world view of many public figures. In defiance of the current Downing Street culture, a range of politicians across all parties remain magnanimous and perceptive in their approach to the peace process.

The signs are Mr Johnson - his government battered by its inept approach to the challenges of Covid - will plump for at least a 'skinny' Brexit deal. But in return, he will have to stick with the agreement ensuring there will be no hard Border.

He indulged in blatant brinkmanship; we have stood our ground. Taoiseach Micheal Martin and Tanaiste Leo Varadkar, fighting fires on many fronts, can bask in some reflected glory. We have seen some sweet moments for Ireland out in the world.
The caretaker government handled the coronavirus outbreak relatively well until May, imposing a lockdown that kept the number of infections and deaths low. But after authorities eased restrictions and opened the borders, North Macedonia saw an increase in new cases and deaths that have placed it among the most badly affected European nations in terms of the number of deaths and confirmed cases per capita.
Guwahati:

An Assam Rifles vehicle escorting tourists was attacked by suspected militants on Sunday, killing two personnel and injuring several others near the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border. Militants lobbed several grenades targeting the vehicle at Jagun 12th Mile Barabasti on NH-53 bordering Assams Tinsukia district in the run up to Republic Day, a defence spokesman told PTI.

The security personnel retaliated and an encounter followed with sporadic firing and is still continuing. The Assam Rifles vehicle and three vehicles of tourists returning from the Pangsau festival have been damaged in grenade explosions, the spokesman said.

The entire area has been cordoned off with combing operations stepped up in the area and tourists are stranded along the highway.The Pangsau Festival is held along the Indo-Myanmar border in the area.

Also Read: UNLFW militants attack army convoy in Assam, three soldiers injured

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Its easy to assume international co-operation has ground to a halt because of COVID-19 travel restrictions and closed borders.

In a year mostly written off, Western Australia has carried on with its engagement with close neighbours like Vietnam, signing a Memorandum of Understanding with Ba Ria-Vung Tau province this week.

Vietnam is well-placed to be a major component of WAs diversification portfolio and a framework exists to help this process. Credit:Getty Images

Such a gesture might be easy to dismiss until you examine the characteristics of Ba Ria-Vung Tau province and the economic opportunities it could open up for WA.

Ba Ria-Vung Tau is part of the greater Ho Chi Minh City metropolitan area, a region populated by 22 million.
On September 16, a ceremony to launch Vietnam's first batch of coffee and passion fruit to the EU under EVFTA was held in Gia Lai Province. Following this, on September 17, a ceremony was held in Ben Tre to announce the export of fruit to the market. Earlier, a ceremony was held on September 11 in Ninh Thuan Province to announce the export of the first batch of Vietnamese frozen shrimp to the EU.

Immediately after the EVFTA took effect, many of our key agricultural products were welcomed by the European market, showing the value and advantages of Vietnamese agricultural products. It also shows that the agricultural sector is well prepared to turn opportunities into real results, contributing to raising the export value of agricultural products. Penetrating the European market is expected to open new opportunities for Vietnamese agricultural products in other demanding markets.

Over the past time, in addition to authorities efforts to facilitate legal procedures for exporters, localities, businesses and farmers have been very proactive in quickly adapting to the requirements of the EVFTA.

For seafood, the EU has been a key market, bringing high turnover for many years, thus the EVFTA is expected to continue to "open the door" for the product to dominate a larger market share in the total seafood import value of Europe. Meanwhile, for coffee, the EU is also the highest consumer of Vietnamese coffee, accounting for 40% of the total output and 38% of the country's total export turnover.

Statistics show that the average coffee export value to the EU has reached US$1.2 to 1.4 billion per year in the past five years. Immediately after the EVFTA took effect, in August 2020, the export value of the commodity to the EU was estimated at nearly US$ 76 million, up 34.7% compared to July 2020. The door into Europe has also opened wide for Vietnamese fruits and vegetables as the EU immediately eliminated 94% of the total 547 tax lines for fruits and vegetables, as well as products from fruits and vegetables.

The advantage was proven when in August 2020, Vietnam's fruit and vegetable export to the EU was estimated at US$ 14.7 million, up 25.2% over the previous month. Currently, the EU is the fourth export market for Vietnamese fruits and vegetables. With the available steps in addition to enjoying a 0% tax rate, Vietnam's fruit competitiveness has been strengthened compared to countries that do not have an FTA with the EU.

In addition to the above commodities, in general, the export value of agricultural, forestry and fishery products to the EU in August 2020 has reached US$ 350 million, up 17% compared to July 2020.

However, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, in the past ten years, Vietnam's agricultural, forestry and fishery exports to the EU have not grown very high, reaching an average of 6.7% per year. It is forecast that exports of some agricultural products will increase significantly until 2025 thanks to the EVFTA, such as rice (up 65%), sugar (8%), pork (4%), forest products (3%) and meat from cattle and poultry (4%) Thus, the potential of Vietnam's agricultural products to enter Europe is quite large.

In the coming time, in order to continue to promote the advantages in the market, the agricultural commodities still have efforts to improve, such as production and processing, consumption in a closed chain, ensuring food hygiene and safety, with the most stringent requirements from Europe. In addition, it is necessary to pay attention to the sustainable development of the environment and using labour because these are issues that European countries attach great importance to in agricultural production.
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By Trend

A new era began in Azerbaijan and in the region as a whole after signing the "Contract of the Century" 26 years ago, Azerbaijani Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov said.

Shahbazov made the remark during a videoconference of the secretariat of the ruling New Azerbaijan Party dedicated to The Contract of the Century" and the Modern Realities of Azerbaijan, Trend reports on Sept. 18.

The minister said that this, in its essence, was one of the most important events in the history of Azerbaijan's independence.

Azerbaijans today's place in the world differs from that which was 26 years ago, Shahbazov added. "Today, Azerbaijan from a country with the weak, unstable, socio-economic situation, which during that period was taking the first uncertain steps on the path to independence, has turned into the leader of the region, creator of global energy and communication projects, a steadily developing country with high prestige on international arena.

The achievements that have raised our country to this level are based on the "Contract of the Century", the minister added. If gaining independence in 1991 was the official confirmation that Azerbaijan is entitled to be master of its own destiny, then the "Contract of the Century" became the practical evidence.

The signing of the "Contract of the Century" thanks to determination, high authority and foresight of national leader Heydar Aliyev ensured Azerbaijan the long-term development of hydrocarbon resources of the Caspian Sea on the basis of international cooperation, the use of advanced experience, new technologies and investments of giant oil and gas companies," Shahbazov said.

The energy projects have made Azerbaijan an integral part of the global energy security system, a reliable partner, the minister added. Azerbaijan realized the idea of diversifying the energy routes in the region with the help of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan main export gas pipeline, which is the contribution of the "Contract of the Century".

"Then, the signing of an agreement on the Shah Deniz gas field, as well as the construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum export gas pipeline with further implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project continued this trend, the minister said. Foresight in forecasting of such goals in Azerbaijan as diversification of energy routes and energy security, today found confirmation in the realities of our modern world.

All these continuing achievements of the "Contract of the Century" are the results of the purposeful energy policy of President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, the selfless labor of the Azerbaijani oil workers within the implementation of this policy and our effective cooperation and reliable partnership with international oil companies, Shahbazov said.

Thus, with the extension of the agreement on the development of the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli fields until 2050 three years ago, thanks to the results of our joint work with foreign partners over the past 26 years and the political will of President Aliyev, this contract, in fact, received the status "A contract of two centuries"," the minister said.

Shahbazov stressed that the coronavirus pandemic set new challenges for humanity, has caused great changes in the existing geopolitical order and the energy situation of the world.

"Azerbaijan's entry to a new level in its development will also depend on bringing its energy policy in line with the modern requirements, maintaining the relevance of its position as an energy center in terms of new geopolitical realities, challenges in the economy, energy and environmental security, the minister said.

In this regard, the policy linking the national security of our country with the formulas of global security through the "Contract of the Century" and specific projects emanating from it is expected to play an important role, Shahbazov said.

From the moment of commissioning until September 2020, 516 million tons of oil were produced at the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli fields, Azerbaijan exported 305 million tons of oil produced from these fields to the world market, more than 48 billion cubic meters of associated gas were supplied to the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan SOCAR, and in general, the total revenues from the project reached $145.8 billion, the minister said.

The development of deposits until 2050, the launch of new projects will allow us to consolidate this success for 30 more years, Shahbazov said.

Given that the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli fields are the country's main source of income and that the oil and gas sector will continue to play an important role in Azerbaijan's economy in the coming years, the sustainability in upstream operations is of strategic importance, the minister said.

The presence of such a contract in terms of declining demand for oil, low prices, when many international energy companies in the period of energy transformation are abandoning oil and gas projects, adopting the strategies in which the preference is given to the renewable energy sources, is a fairly reliable guarantor," Shahbazov said.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap says he has a problem with actor and Member of Parliament Ravi Kishans recent statement about the drug abuse problem in the film industry. Anurag says that Ravi himself used to smoke weed but he doesnt judge him for it.

Earlier this week, Ravi praised the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) for its probe into Sushant Singh Rajput death case and arrest of multiple persons in the drugs case, including actor Rhea Chakraborty. We know the problem of drug trafficking and drug addiction is increasing. In this conspiracy, our neighbouring countries are involved... Drugs come to this country via China and Pakistan. Our film industry, too, is affected, Ravi Kishan had said. The Government should stop this conspiracy of neighbouring countries to destroy our youth, he had added.

Anurag spoke to journalist Faye DSouza about how Ravis stand irked him. Ravi Kishan acted in my last film Mukkabaaz. Ravi Kishan starts his day by saying Jai Shiv Shankar, Jai Bam Bhole. Jai shiv Shambhu For the longest period of his time, he has been somebody who has used weed. It is life. Everybody knows it. The whole world knows. Theres not a single person who doesnt know that Ravi Kishan does not smoke up. He might have quit now, that he has become a minister, he might have cleaned up.

ALSO WATCH | Ravi Kishan responds to Jaya Bachchans remarks: Expected her to

But do you include that in drugs? No. I am not judging Ravi, because I have never seen weed as a drug. Abuse is not the word. He used to smoke up. He has always been functional, he has always done his job well, it did not make him dysfunctional, did not make him a monster. It did not do anything that people associate with drugs, he added. So when he talks about it, when he takes a self righteous stand, I have a problem with that, he said.

Responding to Anurags statements, Ravi Kishan told ANI, I didnt expect such words from Anurag Kashyap. Its no secret I am a devotee of Shiva so I chant his name. Im saddened he would not support me on this issue of the war on drugs & say that I smoked up & am now clean just because Im a minister, which Im not: Ravi Kishan.

Ravis statement in the parliament was also criticised by Jaya Bachchan. Just because of a few people, you cannot tarnish the whole industry... I was really embarrassed and ashamed that yesterday one of our members in the Lok Sabha, who is from the industry, spoke against the film industry. They bite the hands that feed them, she had stated. Responding to her, Ravi said, I expected Jaya ji to support what I said. Not everyone in the industry consumes drugs but those who do are part of a plan to finish the worlds largest film industry. When Jaya ji joined, the situation was not like this but now we need to protect the industry, he added.

Also read: Sunny Leone shares cryptic post after Kangana Ranaut drags her into spat with Urmila Matondkar: People who dont know you have the most to say

In the interview, Anurag also talked about his own struggle with harder, chemical drugs between 2006-2008. Anurag said it was during a time when he was depressed after his film Black Friday got banned and his marriage with Aarti Bajaj had ended. He spoke about how he would source the drugs and the shame he felt when using them. He said that though he is called a charsi on social media, he has never smoked marijuana as he has allergic asthma to it. He rolls up his own cigarettes with tobacco which is why people assume he smokes weed.

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Dear Annie: I would like your input on how to handle a tricky situation. Many times, I am asked to write a letter of recommendation or make a recommendation for someone seeking a new job or promotion. What do I do if the person is qualified for the job/promotion but I do not feel comfortable writing the letter of recommendation as I have nothing of value or significance that I would like to share on behalf of this person?

Recently, I was asked by my supervisor to write a letter of recommendation for another person that I work with. We started at the company at the same time and I went up for promotion first. I did all the groundwork in getting my papers and reviewers in order. My co-worker did the same, however, one of the reviewers dropped out at the last minute (felt uncomfortable in evaluating), and this person had no backup plan for another reviewer. Although this person is fairly competent, I did not feel I could wholeheartedly write a letter of recommendation on their behalf. I felt cornered in doing so, as my supervisor asked me to do it. What is your recommendation in this situation? -- Stuck in the Corner

Dear Stuck: When you write someone a letter of recommendation, you are putting your own reputation on the line, at least a little bit. If you don't feel good about writing one for this co-worker, then don't. Politely let your supervisor know. They should leave it at that. It would be out of line for them to pressure you into vouching for someone whom you'd rather not. We're only as good as our word; don't devalue yours.

Dear Annie: The morning of my husband's birthday, I emailed almost all of his relatives and friends and requested that they contact him with birthday wishes. Because we're sitting out the pandemic in Hawaii, cards hadn't arrived yet from those who sent them from the mainland. It worked out really well: He had so much fun fielding calls and texts and emails all day! -- Hanakeaka

Dear Hanakeaka: That is wonderful. Over the past six months, I think that we've all come to better appreciate connecting with our friends and family.

I've enjoyed seeing people find new and creative ways to celebrate their loved ones on birthdays, anniversaries and other special occasions this year. Readers, please share any stories you have on this topic.

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Ginsburg earned her law degree at Columbia University in 1959, tying for first in her class, and as one of fewer than 20 female law professors in the country, she taught at Rutgers Law School, after no law firm would hire her  based on her gender. After discovering that her male colleagues at Rutgers were paid more, she joined an equal-pay campaign, the issue becoming one of the hallmarks of her career, along with reproductive control. In 1970 she cofounded the Womens Rights Law Reporter, the nations first law journal of its kind. Later, while teaching at Columbia (as the first woman to be hired with tenure at the law school) and working as general counsel for the ACLU, she cowrote a groundbreaking law-school casebook on discrimination based on gender.

That led President Jimmy Carter to nominate her in 1980 for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, where she was known as a moderate, often agreeing with conservatives such as Robert Bork and Antonin Scalia, the latter of whom also went on to the Supreme Court. With Scalia, she forged a nearly legendary friendship that lasted until his death, in 2016. The two attended the opera together and, along with their spouses (Martin, a tax attorney, died in 2010), dined with each other on New Years Eve. Despite their opposing viewpoints, Scalia conceded that she was his best buddy on the bench. She echoed that warmth with her nickname for him, Nino.

Call us the odd couple, Scalia said in 2015 at a George Washington University event, where he teased Ginsburg onstage about a minor flap that arose after they were pictured together riding an elephant in India, in 1994. Her feminist friends took umbrage, he said, that she rode behind me. Ginsburg got the best of him, quickly adding, to the roar of both the audience and Scalia, that the elephant driver had placed them that way as a matter of distribution of weight.

Ginsburg believed in writing dissents for a future age. At the same time, she argued that cultural change, such as same-sex marriage, doesnt come from the court, but, rather, social movements cause change, and the court catches up, according to Irin Carmon, coauthor of the book Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She thought her role in the 70s, Carmon says, was to help the court do just that.

If Ginsburg was ambivalent about gender-based affirmative action, personally always wanting to be considered on the basis of merit and not based on her sex, she nonetheless embraced the #MeToo movement of accountability for sexual assault and harassment. My hope, she said, is not just that it is here to stay but that it is as effective for the woman who works as a maid in a hotel as it is for Hollywood stars.

To the end, Ginsburg believed in always using whatever talent one has to work to the best of ones ability, and, with the help of two biographers, wrote a book, My Own Words, in 2016, at age 83.

As long as one lives, she insisted, one can learn.


The social media application logo, TikTok is displayed on the screen of an iPhone against the backdrop of a U.S. flag in Arlington, Virginia, in this file photo taken Aug. 03. U.S. officials ordered a ban on downloads of the popular Chinese-owned mobile applications WeChat and TikTok from Sept. 20, saying they threaten national security. AFP



The U.S. Commerce Department said Friday it will ban Chinese-owned TikTok and WeChat from U.S. app stores from Sunday and will bar the apps from accessing essential internet services in the U.S.  a move that could effectively wreck the operation of both services for U.S. users.



TikTok won't face the most drastic sanctions until after the Nov. 3 election, but WeChat users could feel the effects as early as Sunday.



The order, which cited national security and data privacy concerns, follows weeks of deal-making over the video-sharing service TikTok. President Donald Trump has pressured the app's Chinese owner to sell TikTok's U.S. operations to a domestic company to satisfy U.S. concerns over TikTok's data collection and related issues.



California tech giant Oracle recently struck a deal with TikTok along those lines, although details remain foggy and the administration is still reviewing it. Trump said Friday said he was open to a deal, noting that ''we have some great options and maybe we can keep a lot of people happy,'' suggesting that even Microsoft, which said its TikTok bid had been rejected, might continue to be involved, as well as Oracle and Walmart.



Trump noted that TikTok was ''very, very popular,'' said ''we have to have the total security from China,'' and added that ''we can do a combination of both.''



The new order puts pressure on TikTok's owner, ByteDance, to make further concessions, said James Lewis of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Trump had said this week that he does not like the idea of ByteDance keeping a majority control of TikTok.



TikTok expressed ''disappointment'' over the move and said it would continue to challenge President Donald Trump's ''unjust executive order.'' The Commerce Department is enacting an order announced by President Donald Trump in August. TikTok sued to stop that ban.



WeChat owner Tencent said in an emailed statement that it will continue to discuss ways to address concerns with the government and look for long-term solutions.



Google and Apple, the owners of the major mobile app stores, did not immediately reply to questions. Oracle also did not reply.






I do not know how this does not become a fight of epic proportions, Democratic strategist Megan Jones says after Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs passing

\NEW YORK (AP)  A presidential campaign that was already tugging at the nations most searing divides has been jolted by the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, potentially reshaping the election at a moment when some Americans were beginning to cast ballots.

For months, the contest has largely centered on President Donald Trumps handling of the coronavirus, the biggest public health crisis in a century that has badly damaged his prospects for reelection as the U.S. death toll nears 200,000 people.

But in a flash, Ginsburgs death on Friday added new weight to the election, with the potential that Trump or his Democratic challenger, Joe Biden, could pick a successor who could decide abortion access, environmental regulations and the power of the presidency for a generation.

In this April 6, 2018, file photo, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg applauds after a performance in her honor after she spoke about her life and work during a discussion at Georgetown Law School in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

With early voting underway in five states and Election Day just over six weeks away, Democrats and Republicans were largely unified late Friday in praising Ginsburg as a leading legal thinker and advocate for womens rights. But strategists in both parties also seized on the moment to find an advantage.

Facing the prospect of losing both the White House and the Senate, some Republicans viewed the Supreme Court vacancy as one of the few avenues remaining for Trump to galvanize supporters beyond his most loyal core of supporters, particularly suburban women who have abandoned the GOP in recent years.

Its hard to see how this doesnt help Trump politically, said veteran Republican strategist Alex Conant. Biden wants this election to be a referendum on Trump. Now its going to be a referendum on whoever he nominates to the Supreme Court.

READ MORE: Trump has leverage over Biden on one important issue in battleground states

Multiple Republicans close to the White House believe that Trump will likely nominate a woman, who could serve as a counterweight of sorts to Bidens choice of running mate Kamala Harris, who would be the first woman to serve as vice president.

Story continues

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., pledged to quickly bring to a vote whomever Trump nominates. But he faces potential division within his own ranks, including from Sens. Mitt Romney of Utah, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine and Cory Gardner of Colorado. Collins and Gardner are in particularly tight races for reelection this fall.

Thats fueling optimism among Democrats that the vacancy could drive home the significance of the election to their base.

The implications for Senate races could be profound, said Democratic strategist Bill Burton.

The flag at the White House flies at half-staff Friday, Sept. 18, 2020, in Washington, after the Supreme Court announced that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died of metastatic pancreatic cancer at age 87. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The presidential race will see some immediate churn as activists on both sides will be newly energized, he continued. The persistent question will be whether huge protests around the Capitol and the country will inflame such vigorous energy that it leads to awful clashes.

McConnell, in a note to his GOP colleagues Friday night, urged them to keep their powder dry and not rush to declare a position on whether a Trump nominee should get a vote this year. This is not the time to prematurely lock yourselves into a position you may later regret, he said.

Biden, who has already pledged to appoint the first Black woman to the Supreme Court, told reporters late Friday that voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice to consider.

Democrats are enraged by McConnells pledge to move forward, especially after he blocked President Barack Obama from appointing a justice to replace Antonin Scalia nine months before the 2016 election. That decision cast a long political shadow, prompting Pete Buttigieg, the former South Bend, Indiana, mayor who mounted a spirited bid for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, to make expansion of the Supreme Court a centerpiece of his campaign. Biden rejected the idea.

People gather under a mural of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in the U Street neighborhood in Washington, Friday, Sept. 18, 2020, after the announcement that Ginsburg died of metastatic pancreatic cancer at age 87. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Some Democrats privately concede that the Supreme Court vacancy could shift attention away from the virus, which has been a central element of Bidens campaign.

READ MORE: Majority Leader McConnell says a Trump Supreme Court nominee will receive vote by Senate

Trump took the unprecedented step in 2016 of releasing a list of Supreme Court picks before he was elected, a move that was credited with unifying skeptical conservative voters to unite behind him. Republicans also believe that the high-profile debate over Trumps last Supreme Court pick, Brett Kavanaugh, helped the GOP retain the Senate during the 2018 midterms, when the party lost control of the House.

The president, seeking to build the same type of energy that surrounded his 2016 bid, released another list of potential Supreme Court nominees last week.

But some Democrats said the political environment is already overheated, with partisan divides over everything from wearing a mask to curb the pandemic to addressing climate change. Ginsburgs death, they say, may not change that.

Its already pretty ugly out there, said Megan Jones, a Democratic strategist who worked for former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. I do not know how this does not become a fight of epic proportions.

___

Associated Press writers Andrew Taylor in Washington, Michelle Price in Las Vegas, Nicholas Riccardi in Denver and Bill Barrow in Atlanta contributed to this report.

___

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The post How Ginsburgs death could reshape the presidential campaign: a fight of epic proportions appeared first on TheGrio.
Some of the cast of In This House of Brede (from left) Helen Daly, Rosie Kelleher (RIP), Marian Hickey, Judi Bowker, Nora OKeeffe (RIP). Picture Courtesy of Picture Millstreet by Sean Radley

How The Corkman reported on the production of In The House of Brede. Picture: Courtesy of Marian Hughes (Nee Hickey)

Diana Rigg in the movie shot in Drishane, In This House of Brede

Retired teacher Marian Hughes remembers well how she was offered the role as a nun alongside Bond girl, the late Diana Rigg, in a TV movie shot in Drishane Convent near Millstreet.

Marian, who was Marian Hickey back in 1974 when 'In This House of Brede' was shot on location at the Duhallow convent, has fond memories of meeting Diana Rigg, who died at the age of 82 last week, on set at the school she herself attended.

"We spent a lot of time chatting as we were in the costume room getting prepared for going in front of the camera - she would smoke Silk Cut Red," said Marian. "She was very chatty and would ask me a lot about my teacher training and the like."

"At the time I was home from teacher training college and I saw an ad looking for people for auditions which were to be held in the Wallis Arms Hotel," Marian, then Marian Hickey from Millstreet, told The Corkman.

It was only when she went up to the auditions that she found out that they were for a part as one of the nuns who would be acting alongside Diana Rigg in a TV movie in which Rigg plays a business-woman from London who decides to give up her cosmopolitan lifestyle.

"There were lots of girls who had been in Drishane as pupils acting alongside actual nuns from Drishane who had taught us," said Marian.

She recalls spending a long day in front of the camera where she was supposedly feeding a sick nun, one of her teachers in the days she was a pupil, and eventually the scene was re-shot when they were gone.

"My scene ended up on the cutting room floor," said Marian, but she didn't really rue her chance at silverscreen glory as she went on to a fulfilling career as a teacher.

Sean Radley, who runs the local museum in Millstreet and also founded popular local news website millstreet.ie, said that his post about the passing of Diana Rigg had prompted a lot of people to share their memories of the time Rigg, who went on to star as a nun in a number of other productions, including her last role as Mother Dorothea in a forthcoming BBC drama, Black Narcissus, was in Drishane.

"People remember her fondly as a very polite lady who chatted with them but kept to herself generally," he said.

Her role as Philippa in 'In This House of Brede' saw Diana Rigg smoking her last cigarette in a pub, 'across the road' from Drishane, before walking with determination up the driveway to the grill to be admitted to the convent.

"That scene was filmed in the Old Thady Inn near Farnanes," said Marian.

There was plenty of more film magic during the time they were in Drishane but what is recalled most fondly is how well Marian and the other extras were looked after.

"There was a cafeteria set up on site and we got breakfast, a mid-morning cup of coffee, lunch and afternoon tea.

"We spent a lot of time sitting around waiting to be called into action," said Marian.

The money was good too - between 10 and 12 per day at a time during the mid 1970s when that was good money.

The reporter from The Corkman who visited the set reported it was hard to tell the real nuns from the actors in a piece titled 'It's Fun Being A Nun'.
With the help of the Tennessee Department of Human Services, more than $300,000 in Tennessee Community CARES Program funding is headed to the Cleveland State Community College Foundation. The gift will fund the colleges brand new Quick Job Recovery Bootcamp. This program will create free workforce training to lead to gainful employment of those within the colleges service area who lost their source of income and economic security due to COVID-19.Cleveland State has been looking for every advantage as we navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic, said Dr.Bill Seymour, Cleveland State Community College president. In cooperation with the Cleveland State Foundation, we found another way to support our community and regional workforce. Right now, nothing is more important than enabling individuals in our community to get good jobs.The Quick Job Recovery Bootcamp offers three different courses which will provide the student with nationally-recognized certification upon completion. The courses can be completed in six weeks or less. Scholarships will be awarded to qualified residents. Courses available will train students to earn a new skilled career as a welder, HVAC technician, or Microsoft Office specialist.This grant compliments our continuing effort to enhance the lives and lifestyles of the residents of our Southeast Tennessee communities by providing relevant workforce and career preparation for every student, said Gary Fuller, Cleveland State Community College Foundation chair. The CSCC Foundation is proud to support the advancement of the college by providing financial support through annual fundraising and grant award efforts like the Tennessee Community CARES Program.The courses being offered in the Quick Job Recovery Bootcamp are Entry-Level and Refresher MIG Welding, HVAC Technician, and Microsoft Office Specialist.Entry-Level and Refresher MIG Welding - Welding class using the Spray MIG process with the end goal of workplace proficiency in the flat and horizontal fillet (1F and 2F) positions. In addition to becoming proficient in the 1F and 2F welding techniques, students will receive training in welding safety, machine set-up and troubleshooting techniques. Students will receive American Welding Society and OSHA 10 certifications. Class includes all tools.Classes for Entry-Level and Refresher MIG Welding will take place:Oct. 5 - 21Mondays  7:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.Mondays  5-8:30 p.m.Wednesdays/Fridays  7:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.CSCC Main CampusHVAC Technician - This hands-on training provides an in-depth knowledge of the HVAC system so that participants can understand, diagnose, and repair the HVAC system. Training includes sessions on Sealed System & Air Movement, HVAC Electrical, Heat Pump, Preventive Maintenance, Gas Furnace, and Soldering. Successful completion of the course will earn the student EPA Section 608 Technician Certification. Students will leave class with quality technician tools valued at $600.Classes for HVAC Technician will take place:Sept. 28  Oct. 14Monday  Friday  9 a.m.-4 p.m.Monroe County Center, VonoreMicrosoft Office Specialist - Learn the skills needed to operate in an office administration position by mastering the components of Microsoft Office - Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint. This live online course will give individuals the knowledge needed to take the nationally recognized Microsoft Office Specialist exams. This will give students a commanding competitive edge in todays professional environment. Students successfully completing the course will earn a Microsoft Office Specialist Certification. Students will leave with a laptop valued over $1,000.Classes for Microsoft Office Specialist will take place:Oct. 19  Nov. 20Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays  9 a.m.-noonVirtual Online ClassThe Workforce Development Team is excited to offer these short term courses with nationally recognized certifications at no cost for qualified individuals, said Andrea Byerly, Cleveland State Community College Workforce and Economic Development Project coordinator. This is a life changing opportunity that will provide training for high demand jobs and help individuals start a new career in less than six weeks. We are committed to serving our region and offering training like these that meet the needs of our communities."The Tennessee Department of Human Services announced grant assistance has been awarded to 656 non-profit organizations across the state serving Tennessee communities. These grants are all provided through the new Tennessee Community CARES Program. TDHS, along with Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and the Financial Stimulus Accountability Group created the program to invest $150 million in Coronavirus Relief Funds to help with ongoing efforts to address health and economic needs created by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Financial Stimulus Accountability Group has worked tirelessly to identify the greatest areas of need for Tennesseans throughout this pandemic, said Governor Lee. Supporting non-profit partners strengthens communities and ensures recovery is swift and effective. We look forward to working with these organizations."For more information, you can call the Office of Workforce and Economic Development at Cleveland State Community College at 423-473-2270 or visit the college at ClevelandStateCC.edu. Students are currently enrolled online and on-campus through the CSCC main campus in Cleveland, as well as CSCCs Athens Center in Athens and Monroe County Center in Vonore.
BEIJING, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- China hopes U.S. Ambassador to China Terry Branstad will continue to play a positive role in the healthy development of bilateral relations after leaving his post, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Friday.

Wang made the remarks when asked to comment on Branstad's announcement of stepping down on Thursday.

The United States on Monday officially informed China of Branstad's leaving in early October, Wang told a daily press briefing.

"Branstad has done a lot to promote exchanges and cooperation between the two peoples, when he served as governor of Iowa and U.S. ambassador to China," Wang said.

Saying China has made remarkable development over the past decades, Branstad noted in his statement that "the Chinese people's work ethic, commitment to education and family, and entrepreneurial spirit have fueled this country's growth."

The Chinese side appreciates ambassador Branstad's remarks, Wang said.

Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, especially since the reform and opening up, China has made remarkable development achievements and grown into the world's second largest economy, the largest manufacturing power, and the largest trader in goods, he said.

"These achievements have been made by the Chinese people with their diligence, wisdom and innovative spirit," Wang stressed.

Over a period of time, certain U.S. politicians have asserted that China's development achievements were realized by "stealing other countries' technologies and taking advantage of others," Wang said, reiterating that this accusation, driven by ulterior motives, lacks common sense.

"The international community and people of insight in the United States have their fair judgment on this," said the spokesperson.
NIA arrests 9 Al-Qaeda terrorists from West Bengal and Kerala

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 19: The National Investigation (NIA) has arrested nine terrorists of the Al-Qaeda from West Bengal and Kerala.

Al Qaeda operatives arrested from #Kerala & #WestBengal | Oneindia News

Raids were conducted at several locations in Ernakulam (Kerala) and Murshidabad (West Bengal) following which the terrorists of the Pakistan sponsored module of the Al-Qaeda were arrested.

The NIA had information of an inter-state module of the terror group, whose operatives were active in various locations in India, including Kerala and West Bengal. The NIA said that the group was planning on carrying out attacks in various parts of the country. They had planned on killing people and also targeting vital installations.

Alarming rise of ISIS in South linked to seeds of radicalisation sown in Kerala 30 years ago

NIA has arrested 06 (six) terrorists from West-Bengal and 03 (three) terrorists from Kerala in the early morning raids conducted today. Large quantity of incriminating materials including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession.

As per preliminary investigation, these individuals were radicalised by Pakistan-based Al-Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the National Capital Region.

For this purpose, the module was actively indulging in fund raising and a few members of gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country, the NIA further said.

List of arrested persons:

Murshid Hasan, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala.

Iyakub Biswas, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala.

Mosaraf Hossen, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala.

Najmus Sakib, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal.

Abu Sufiyan, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal .

Mainul Mondal, a resident of Murshidabad West Bengal.

Leu Yean Ahmed, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal .

 Al Mamun Kamal, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal.

Atitur Rehman, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal.
RTHK: Indian police accuse journalist of being Chinese spy

Police in India's capital city on Saturday said they had arrested a local freelance journalist on allegations he was passing "sensitive information" to Chinese intelligence officers.

In a statement, the Delhi Police said 61-year-old Rajeev Sharma was arrested earlier this week and officers had seized some confidential documents related to the Indian defence department from the journalist's residence.

One Chinese woman and her Nepalese partner were also arrested for allegedly supplying Sharma with "huge amounts of money" for "conveying information to Chinese intelligence".

The Chinese foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours.

Reuters could not immediately reach any of the three individuals, who are under arrest, or their lawyers.

"On interrogation, Rajeev Sharma has disclosed his involvement in procurement of secret/sensitive information and further conveying the same to his Chinese handlers," Delhi's Deputy Commissioner of Police Sanjeev Kumar Yadav said in the statement.

The arrest comes amid heightened tensions between India and China at their border in the Himalayan region. The relationship between the neighbours has worsened since a clash in June that India says of 20 of its troops were killed.

China suffered "far fewer" than the 20 deaths incurred by India's military in the clash, according to a tweet this week by the editor-in-chief of the Global Times, which is published by the People's Daily, the official newspaper of China's ruling Communist Party.

The police said Sharma was tasked with providing information on India-China boundary issues and other matters in recent years.

It added that between January 2019 and September 2020, Sharma received more than 3 million Indian rupees (US$40,799.67) from one of his handlers.

India has in recent months banned several Chinese apps and made it tougher for Chinese companies to make investments. (Reuters)

This story has been published on: 2020-09-19. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Saturday, September 19, 2020 at 10:11AM

Source: WinFuture

Google plans to launch its new Chromecast at the end of the month, and recent leaks give us a better look at the new device and its remote. If the reports are correct, this will be the first time Google includes a remote with the Chromecast, suggesting an improved integration with Google/Android TV.

The remote features a D-Pad on top, with the volume rocker, Assistant, mute and home buttons below. There are also dedicated Netflix and Youtube buttons. This new Chromecast will supposedly signal the rebranding of Android TV to Google TV. We're going to learn more at Google's hardware event on September 30.

Source: Engadget
Billionaire mining magnate Clive Palmer has purchased a $8.3million super yacht and renamed it after his late mother.

Mr Palmer reportedly arrived at Hamilton Island, in Queensland's Whitsundays, last week to take possession of the 12-foot Sunseeker.

He purchased the boat, previously known as Vegas, from a businessman in July, the Sunday Telegraph reported.

Billionaire mining magnate Clive Palmer (pictured) has reportedly named a $8.3million yacht he bought in June after his mother

The boat was previously named Vegas. However, when it appeared last week, the superyacht had been repainted and renamed the Nancy-Jean

However, when it appeared last week in the resort playground, the superyacht had been repainted and renamed the Nancy-Jean.

The boat is named in honour of Mr Palmer's mother, who died in 2014.

She was in her 90s when she passed away 'peacefully'.

Residents said the arrival of Mr Palmer's yacht has 'turned a few heads' for many reasons - in an area where it isn't unusual to see a luxury boat.

One said it was 'very bad juju' that the boat had been renamed.

'Re-christening a boat is considered bad luck to boaties,' said one local.

The boat (interior pictured) is named in honour of Mr Palmer's mother, who passed away in 2014

'A boat's original name is recorded in what we call a "ledger of the deep" and changing it is considered very bad juju. It can be done but it's extremely uncommon.'

Renaming a boat involves destroying log books with the old name.

Others were simply captivated by the mere size of the three-storey vessel initially purchased in 2009.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Clive Palmer for comment.
Since January, a petition challenging the applicability of the Special Marriage Act, 1954, to heterosexuals has been pending in the Kerala High Court. The petitioners are two gay men  35-year-old Nikesh PP and 31-year-old Sonu MS who had a wedding ceremony in the parking lot of a temple in 2018, and then petitioned the court to have their marriage legally solemnised under the secular law that came into existence to facilitate marriages between inter-faith and inter-caste couples who didnt want to marry under religious personal laws.

On September 8, another petition was filed in the Delhi High Court seeking recognition of gay marriages within the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, by intersex rights activist Gopi Shankar, the founder of lesbian collective Sakhi, Giti Thadani, transgender rights activist G Oorvasi and writer Abhijit Iyer Mitra.

Their petition states that Section 5 of the Act did not specify that marriage must be between a Hindu man and a Hindu woman, but instead refers to marriage between two Hindus. The petition invoked Articles 14 (equality), 21 (life and personal liberty), and 25 (freedom of religion), arguing that the right to marry was thus part of the fundamental rights of Hindu LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) couples.

But there is much more to the issue of marriage equality than seeking it for only for Hindu LGBT persons.

How one chooses to demand change  and for whom  is crucial. For one, calling it same-sex marriage is trans-exclusionary, because not every trans person identifies within the binary gender formulation. Hence, same-sex points to gay or lesbian couples, but excludes transmen, transwomen and other gender queer identities. The exclusion is egregious because even the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, passed in December 2019, does not touch upon transgender persons right to marry. Marriage equality, at a bare minimum, must allow consenting adults to enter into this form of partnership, irrespective of their sexual orientation or gender identity, across castes and religions.

But thats just one part of it.

At the heart of the debate on granting marriage equality to LGBTI people (the I stands for inter-sex) people is a fundamental contradiction between the right to choose ones partner and the reality that in the social contract of marriage in India, individual choice is often insignificant, and individual autonomy non-existent. The right to individual autonomy with respect to choosing a partner has been read into constitutional articles by the Supreme Court in path-breaking judgments such as the Hadiya case. Here, the court protected the right of Hadiya, an adult woman who converted from Hinduism to Islam, and wished to remain married to Shafin Jahan, a choice that was opposed by her father, who moved the Kerala High Court to regain control over his child. Countless other inter-caste, inter-religious and intra-gotra couples have faced violence, and even been murdered. This has a stifling effect on the freedom to choose ones partner. In fact, the architect of the Indian Constitution, BR Ambedkar had pointed out decades ago, As long as caste in India exists, Hindus will hardly intermarry or have any social intercourse with outsiders...

The feminist movement has critiqued the unequal power structures within the institution of marriage, which the courts have tried to balance through judgments over decades. The inequality written into the institution is both a function of social norms as well as regressive legislation, such as the non-criminalisation of marital rape and the failure of the executive to right this wrong. That womens consent is considered unimportant in heterosexual marriages is our cue that marriage equality is more than a debate about making it legal for LGBTI people.

Perhaps a more radical solution needs to be imagined: A partnership of equals in a format that empowers individuals whether straight or queer, married or in live-in relationships, to form contracts that they choose, whether of property or insurance or to avail tax benefits, and where religion, caste and gender identity are irrelevant.

It also cannot continue to be left to the courts to do the duty of the executive. The State must step up to its responsibility in guaranteeing constitutional rights, ensuring that a free choice to enter egalitarian legal partnerships is granted, upheld and protected.

dhamini.ratnam@htlive.com

The views expressed are personal
American and Pennsylvania flags lowered to half-staff at sunrise Saturday on state government property to memorialize U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died yesterday of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer.

Justice Ginsburg was a truly remarkable figure in American history, as both a tireless defender of the Constitution, and as a pioneer for gender equality, Gov. Tom Wolf said in a news release. Justice Ginsburgs historic opinions from the bench broke down barriers for women and protected the vulnerable. Her contributions to our country cannot be overstated.

The U.S. flag will remain at half-staff on White House orders until interment, Wolf said. Pennsylvanians are invited to participate in the tribute.

Ginsburg  affectionately known as the Notorious RBG"  was 87 when she died Friday evening at her home in Washington, D.C. She was considered a womens rights champion over the more than 27 years she served on the Supreme Court.

The Pennsylvania flag has been at half-staff on government property since March 11 in recognition of coronavirus victims. It will remain at half-staff for the foreseeable future.

READ MORE:

With the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whats next for the U.S. Supreme Court? A fight for sure

How the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg could change the 2020 presidential campaign

After his Trump campaign signs are stolen, man puts an electric fence in his yard
Donald Trump has given his blessing for a deal between TikTok and a coalition of Oracle and Walmart - and revealed the agreement comes with a $5billion fund going to education programs on 'the real history of our country'

On Saturday, shortly before departing for a campaign rally in North Carolina, the president said 'I have given the deal my blessing', adding 'it will have nothing to do with China.'

He continued: 'It'll be totally secure, that's part of the deal.'

Trump told supporters at his rally that the $5billion education fund would teach 'real history, not the fake history' - in an apparent dig at the New York Times' 1619 project.

The deal will see TikTok become a new Texas-based company, potentially bringing in 25,000 jobs, Trump said.

Oracle will take a 12.5 per cent share in the new company, TikTok Global, while Walmart will take 7.5%. Chinese firm ByteDance will retain roughly 80% of the new company, according to the Wall Street Journal.

But because ByteDance is 40% owned by US investors, the new TikTok Global will technically have a majority American ownership.

Any deal would still need to be signed off by Beijing. Chinese authorities have said they would not allow ByteDance to sell the algorithms used by TikTok, which are believed to hold much of the value for the app.

After the deal was announced, the Commerce Department said it would delay a ban on downloads of the app which was set to come in on Sunday night.

The ban will now take effect on September 27, but could be delayed or removed if the deal is finalized.

Donald Trump on Saturday announced that he had approved a deal for Oracle to buy TikTok

Trump said that Oracle and Walmart are planning to set up a $5 billion fund 'for the education of American youth'.

New York Times' '1619 Project' vs Trump's '1776 Commission' The New York Times' 1619 Project is a Pulitzer-Prize winning collection of essays, photo essays, poems, and short fiction pieces published last year that seeks to reframe American history as starting on 1619, when the first slaves from Africa arrived to Virginia, rather than 1776, when the founding fathers declared independence from Britain. The title of the project refers to the year a ship arrived on American soil carrying the first enslaved Africans. Donald Trump has branded the project 'toxic propaganda' and threatened to defund California schools that used the project in the public school curriculum. During his speech marking the 233rd anniversary of the signing of the Constitution, Trump announced he will soon sign an order to promote patriotic education through an initiative dubbed the '1776 Commission'. The panel, he said, would be tasked with encouraging educators to teach students 'about the miracle of American history' and plan for the commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. He argued that America's founding 'set in motion the unstoppable chain of events that abolished slavery', but he did not mention how it went on for 246 years, including the 89 years after the 13 colonies declared independence from England. Advertisement

At his rally he said he had told company leaders: 'do me a favor, could you put up $5 billion into a fund for education, so we can educate people as to real history of our country - the real history, not the fake history.'

Sources told Bloomberg that the grant money would come from a public offering in about a years time.

ByteDance first heard about the $5 billion education fund from news reports, a company spokeswoman said

Trump has previously railed against the The New York Times Magazine's '1619 project' which seeks to reframe US history around the consequences of slavery, and announced he will sign an order to promote patriotic education through an initiative dubbed the '1776 Commission'.

The panel, he said, would be tasked with encouraging educators to teach students 'about the miracle of American history' and plan for the commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

It is unclear if the TikTok billions will be allocated to that order.

In a joint statement Saturday, Oracle and Walmart said that they and other companies involved in the deal plan to create an educational initiative to provide an online video curriculum teaching a range of subjects.

Four of the new company's five board members will be American, according to Oracle and Walmart.

Walmart's CEO Doug McMillon will be one of the American board members, the retail chain said, but the other members have not been announced.

The company will push for more American ownership with a public shares offering next year.

'In addition, we would work toward an initial public offering of the company in the United States within the next year to bring even more ownership to American citizens,' Walmart said.

In their statement, Oracle and Walmart said TikTok Global would 'pay more than $5billion in new tax dollars to the US Treasury'.

Larry Ellison, chief technology officer for Oracle, said that TikTok was won over partly by the fact that Zoom had recently moved a large portion of its video conferencing infrastructure to Oracle.

He described Oracle's technology as 'much faster, more reliable, and more secure' than its rivals.

TikTok said in a statement: 'We are pleased that the proposal by TikTok, Oracle, and Walmart will resolve the security concerns of the U.S. Administration and settle questions around TikTok's future in the U.S.'

TikTok said both Oracle and Walmart will take part in a financing round before an initial public offering of stock, where they can take up to a 20 per cent cumulative stake in the company.

The deal will make Oracle responsible for hosting all TikTok's U.S. user data and securing computer systems to ensure U.S. national security requirements are satisfied.

TikTok said it's also working with Walmart on a 'commercial partnership' but gave no other details.

TikTok confirmed on Monday that it submitted Oracle's proposal to the U.S. government for approval.

ByteDance had been racing to clinch a deal with the White House that would stave off a U.S. ban on TikTok that Trump has threatened could happen as early as next week.

Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Thursday that 'key core technology' must be retained

Concern had been mounting that a deal might see China retain some control of the company.

On Thursday sources said the deal would involve TikTok becoming a global company headquartered in America, with Oracle taking responsibility for U.S. operations and user data and ByteDance retaining majority ownership.

An outright sale of TikTok's operations or technologies was not included in ByteDance's proposal to the United States, Chinese state media reported on Thursday, citing a separate statement from the company.

While a deal is being negotiated, Chinese President Xi Jinping said Thursday that 'innovation is the most important quality of business management, and it is also what we must overcome obstacles to do in the future.'

'Key core technology must be firmly kept in our own hands,' he added, according to China's official Xinhua news agency.
Rising unemployment is a slowly unfolding crisis in Bihar. The state is expected to have assembly elections in October-November, even as it has been battered by floods and rising novel coronavirus cases. However, the youth unemployment and reverse migration from other parts of India and the Gulf have turned into an underlying crisis that has largely been ignored by the state government.

As the Centre imposed a lockdown throughout the country, the migrants who once were part of the daily economy in mega cities, headed for home as economic activities came to a standstill.

Bihar was the state that received the largest number of reverse migrants. According to government data, around 15,00,000 people have returned to the state in Shramik trains from across the country in the lockdown months. Another 2 lakh people came by buses.

However, reports indicate that the number of migrants returning could be much higher. As of May, more than 29 lakh migrants had registered for the  1,000 aid promised by the state government after the lockdown.

Why Bihar Has One Of The Highest Unemployment Numbers

According to the Census 2011, 7.5 million migrants reported Bihar as their origin state. The maximum number of migrants cited search for work/employment as their reason for migration, followed by moved with household.

While there has been a relative decline in unemployment over the decades throughout India, the unemployment figures have risen in Bihar," says Avinash Kumar, who teaches at Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi. Data will say that industry is growing. But somehow employment is not generating."

According to Kumars study, the increasing number of factories hardly made any significant contribution to employment generation. In the period between 201112 and 201617, the number of workers per factory declined from 34 to 28.

In 201718, as the country was witnessing a massive rise in unemployment, Bihar underwent the same. However, the unemployment rate in Bihar (7.2%) was higher than the average for the country (6.1%), according to the Periodic Labour Force Survey, 2019.

CMIEs monthly data for August shows unemployment at 13.1%, almost double the national average.

Flood Economy And Casual Labour

This year almost 16 out of 38 districts in Bihar have been hit by floods, affecting over 63 lakh people. The flood-affected areas are the ones witnessing the maximum unemployment. According to the union skill development ministry, the maximum migrants have returned to East Champaran, Katihar, Madhubani, Gaya, West Champaran, Darbhanga, Araria and Muzaffarpur.

In 2017-18, the share of casual labour in Bihar was 32.1%, higher than the national average (24.3%). The flood-affected areas leave a narrow scope for development and of setting up of industries. Also, the Seemanchal area of Bihar with four districts- Purnea, Katihar, Kishanganj and Araria- also lags in development and literacy.

Reverse Migration

As 2 million people came back from different states, another sizeable number has returned from abroad. According to the emigration data from the ministry of external affairs, 9 out of the 50 districts in India receiving the highest immigration were in Bihar. The nine districts, including Darbhanga, East Champaran, Gopalganj and Madhubani, received the highest returnees from Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Oman and Kuwait. However, the total number of migrant labour is not known.

Reverse migration from the Gulf started as early as 2012-13. When we studied returning migrants, we found that only 11% were able to find jobs based on their experience; the remaining 89% was in casual employment or unemployed, Avinash Kumar says.

Experts say that the exodus from the Gulf could hurt the remittances from overseas workers, especially in West Asia. Districts including Gopalganj and Siwan receive the highest remittances from the Gulf.

Opposition Gears Up

As the state gets ready for polls, the rising unemployment especially among youths is a major concern. A report in The Wire indicated that youth unemployment is as high as 40 per cent.

Due to the neglect of the flood-ravaged parts and migration, the Seemanchal area has witnessed the rise of alternate parties trying to gain a foothold. Pappu Yadavs Jan Adhikar Party is trying to make its presence felt in the flood-hit areas and is campaigning in Seemanchal. Asaduddin Owaisis AIMIM won the Kishanganj seat in the 2019 bypolls and the party is eyeing constituencies with Muslim predominance, including Kishanganj, Purnia, Araria and Katihar.

The major opposition party, the RJD, has already launched a digital portal for employment, to garner support. The party has claimed that over 5 lakh people have already registered and another 10 lakh have dialled their toll-free number in the last 11 days since the launch.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 20:37:48|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Beijing's Haidian district plans to build a hundred-billion-yuan (about 14.8 billion U.S. dollars) aerospace industry cluster in the northern region of the city's Zhongguancun Science City.

The project was released on Saturday at a press conference during the ongoing 2020 Zhongguancun Forum held in Beijing.

With a total construction area of nearly 1 million square meters, the project will include three functional zones that focus on satellite internet innovation, Beidou satellite navigation, and space information services, as well as scenario applications.

Lin Jianhua, deputy director of the Zhongguancun Science City management committee, said Haidian will provide policy support for enterprises settled in the cluster, including investment funds, rental assistance, R&D subsidies, household registration for skills, and public rental housing.

As one of the cradles of China's aerospace industry, the Zhongguancun Science City gathers more than half of the country's academics and experts, leading enterprises, and scientific research institutions in the field.

The region has formed a whole industrial chain, covering satellite development and manufacturing, ground stations and terminal equipment, satellite telemetry, tracking and control, as well as satellite operations. Enditem
A manhunt is underway in Melbourne after a man was stabbed to death on a street corner.

Homicide detectives believe two men were fighting on the corner of Essex and Malvern roads at South Yarra about 11pm on Friday, when one was stabbed repeatedly in the upper body.

The man, aged in his 40s, was rushed to hospital but later died.

Homicide detectives believe two men were fighting on the corner of Essex and Malvern roads (pictured) at South Yarra about 11pm on Friday

His attacker fled the scene.

A nearby housing complex has been cordoned off with specialist officers at the scene.

Meanwhile, a man is in custody following an earlier alleged stabbing in the city's southeast, at Frankston.

Emergency services were called to Petrie Street about 12.05am where they found a 35-year-old man with a laceration to his neck.

He was taken to hospital in a serious but stable condition.

Police attended a nearby address and arrested a 38-year-old man who was assisting officers with their inquiries.

Investigators believe the two men are known to each other.
A 2019 rally held by local residents who wanted the footpath to be re-instated

A recent funding allocation will allow further work to take place on the new footpath linking Collooney and Ballisodare.

The 200,000 of funding will provide 2,500 metres of two metre wide footpath and will see the reinstatement of the majority of the footpath along the R290.

Sinn Fein Councillor Thomas Healy said: "This is fantastic news for local people who have campaigned hard for reinstatement of the old footpath under the railway bridge connecting the villages of Collooney and Ballisodare.

"It is especially gratifying for the landowner who voluntarily gave up ground to facilitate the project. We previously got funding from the Low Cost Accident Scheme which partly reinstated the footpath.

"I lobbied for funding under the new Climate Change Adaptation Works and Active Travel scheme and am delighted to have gotten the largest funding allocation of 200,000.

""I have asked the Council to carry out works on both sides of the railway bridge," continued Cllr Healy. "On the Collooney side to restore the Carricknagat section and then around Knoxspark on the Ballisodare side.

"Planning for these works will be prioritised and I will be pushing for as early a start date as possible. When finished this new footpath will provide a safe and healthy amenity for the residents of both villages and will enhance the lifestyle choices available.

"I hope to see the provision of a footpath the whole way from Collooney into Sligo town giving hundreds of people walking facilities and green options for transport."
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: With political heat and opposition rising over the three farm sector Bills, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday appealed all non-BJP parties to come together to oppose them. The Aam Aadmi Party leader claimed the proposed laws would leave farmers in the hands of big companies for exploitation.

He also asked these parties to ensure that all of their members are present in the House and that they do not stage a walkout drama. I request all non-BJP parties to unite in the Rajya Sabha and oppose these Bills, make sure all your MPs are present and do not stage a walkout drama. Farmers all over the country are watching you, Kejriwal said in a tweet in Hindi.

The Centre introduced the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill in Parliament on Monday to replace ordinances promulgated earlier. The first two Bills were passed by Lok Sabha on Thursday, while the third one was passed on Tuesday.

Farmers in states like Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh have been protesting against these proposed laws claiming that they will end up dismantling the existing government-backed support system. While Delhi has very few farmers, the issue becomes politically relevant for the Aam Aadmi Party in the important state of Punjab where its eyeing the seat of power in 2022. After Delhi, Punjab is the only state where AAP has a good presence and base of supporters. In the 2017 Assembly Elections, AAP has emerged as the second-largest party with 20 MLAs.

AAPs Punjab unit has been opposing the changes. September 17 will be considered as a black day for the farmers of India. On his birthday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi presented a bunch of anti-farmer bills to the farmers of India. This amendment bill is completely against the farmers and will only benefit the industrialists.

At the end of the day, the farmers will become beggars, said AAP Lok Sabha MP from Punjab Bhagwant Mann. Mann, president of the partys Punjab unit, also hit out at the Congress, which is the ruling party in Punjab, and the Shiromani Akali Dal. The Congress and the SAD are equally responsible for these bills. CM Amarinder Singh and Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal supported these Bills, said Mann.

All three Bills already cleared by Lok Sabha

The Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill were passed by Lok Sabha on Thursday while the the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill was passed by Lok Sabha on Tuesday


Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden speaks to reporters about the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg upon arrival at New Castle County Airport in New Castle, Del., on Sept. 18, 2020. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Biden Says Ginsburgs Successor Should Be Chosen by Election Winner

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said that the next U.S. Supreme Court justice should be chosen by the winner of the November presidential election.

There is no doubtlet me be clearthat the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider, the former vice president told reporters on Friday at an airport in New Castle, Delaware, after learning of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death.

The Supreme Court late Friday announced that Ginsburg, 87, died due to complications of metastatic pancreas cancer. She was surrounded by family at her home in Washington.

She is survived by two children, four grandchildren, two step-grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.

Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague, Chief Justice John Roberts said of Ginsburg. Today, we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew hera tireless and resolute champion of justice.

The Supreme Court announced that a private interment service for Ginsburg will be held at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

People gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

The national flag flies at half staff as people gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

President Donald Trump late Friday said he was sad to hear of Ginsburgs death.

She just died? Wow. I didnt know that. I just  youre telling me now for the first time, he told a reporter on the tarmac of Bemidji Regional Airport in Minnesota.

She led an amazing life, what else can you say? She was an amazing woman, whether you agree or not, she was an amazing woman who led an amazing life. Im actually sad to hear that. Im sad to hear that.

Ginsburg joined the Supreme Court in 1993 as an appointee of Democratic President Bill Clinton. Her appointment was the second female appointment to the court.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said late Friday that he would allow a vote on the Senate floor for Trumps nominee for a justice to replace the vacancy left by Ginsburg.

President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, he said in a statement.

The Senate and the nation mourn the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the conclusion of her extraordinary American life. My full statement: pic.twitter.com/NOwYLhDxIk  Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) September 19, 2020

McConnell has previously said that if there were to be a vacancy on the court during this years election cycle, the Republican-controlled Senate would likely confirm a nominee selected by Trump.

NPR reported that just days prior to her death, Ginsburg told her granddaughter that her most fervent wish is that she will not be replaced until a new president is installed.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 15:40:30|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- India's anti-terror National Investigation Agency (NIA) said on Saturday that it has carried out raids in India's southern and eastern states of Kerala and West Bengal respectively.

The agency claimed arrest of nine men which it said were affiliated with al-Qaida.

"Today early morning, NIA conducted simultaneous raids at several locations at Ernakulam (Kerala) and Murshidabad (West Bengal) and arrested nine people associated with module of al-Qaida," a statement issued by NIA said.

The agency said it had learnt about an inter-state module of al-Qaida operatives at various locations in India including West Bengal and Kerala.

"The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds," the agency said.

Of the nine men, six were arrested from West-Bengal and three from Kerala.

The agency claimed it has seized large quantity of incriminating materials during the raids.

"The module was actively indulging in fundraising and a few members of the gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition," NIA said.

The arrested men, according to NIA, will be produced before the concerned courts in Kerala and West Bengal for police custody and further investigation. Enditem
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death leaves a vacancy on the nations highest court, and U.S. Sen. Bob Casey Jr. wants the Senate to wait until after the election to vote on her replacement.

Casey, D-Pa., called on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to follow the precedent he set four years ago. In 2016, McConnell and Senate Republicans refused a vote on President Barack Obamas Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland.

Consistent with the precedent set by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in 2016, Justice Ginsburgs seat should not be filled until the presidential election concludes and the candidate chosen by voters is sworn into office," Casey said in a statement late Friday night.

Ginsburg died Friday night at the age of 87. Hours after her death was announced, McConnell said the Senate will indeed vote on a nominee put forward by President Donald Trump.

On Saturday, Trump said on Twitter he would soon be submitting a nominee to replace Ginsburg.

We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices, Trump said. We have this obligation, without delay!

Democrats have said putting forth a nominee less than two months before the election is hypocritical, in light of what happened four years ago when Obama tried to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court.

Obama named Garland as his nominee following the death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, a powerful conservative figure on the court. McConnell said in 2016, the Republican Senate was working with a Democratic president in the final year of his administration. Now, a Republican Senate works with a Republican president. McConnell argues the circumstances are different.

President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, McConnell said in a statement issued Friday night.

Now, the timing is different related to the election. Obama submitted Garlands nomination in March 2016, eight months before the election. This year, a vacancy on the Supreme Court has emerged less than seven weeks before the presidential election.

If Trump submits a nominee, U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., looms as a critical vote. Toomey issued a statement of condolences Saturday but didnt indicate whether or not he would vote for a nominee to replace her.

Toomey noted he usually disagreed with Ginsburgs legal views but admired her civility and said she left an indelible mark that will resonate for generations.

Renowned for her legal intellect and sharp opinions, Justice Ginsburg served on our nations highest court for nearly three decades with distinction and honor," Toomey said in a statement. "As just the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer in the legal profession.

In 2016, Toomey said the Senate shouldnt vote on Garlands nomination. He said at the time, the vote on Garland could change the ideological balance of the Supreme Court. Months before the election, Toomey said in an opinion piece Americans should decide on the next president first.

"First, the balance of the Supreme Court is at stake, and we have an election right around the corner. With lifetime tenure, the next justice will determine the Courts balance for a generation.

In that light, I believe it is sensible to allow the American people to participate in the choice of Justice Scalias successor less than seven months from now.

Toomey also said he was troubled by aspects of Garlands record, consistently backing federal environmental regulations in court challenges.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, the former vice president, said the Senate shouldnt act on a nominee until after the election.

Tonight, and in the coming days, we should be focused on the loss of Justice Ginsburg and her enduring legacy," Biden said in a statement. But just so there is no doubt, let me be clear: The voters should pick a President, and that President should select a successor to Justice Ginsburg."

This was the position that the Republican Senate took in 2016, when there were nearly nine months before the election," Biden said. "That is the position the United States Senate must take now, when the election is less than two months away. We are talking about the Constitution and the Supreme Court. That institution should not be subject to politics.

In a statement late Friday, Trump praised Ginsburg.

Renowned for her brilliant mind and powerful dissents at the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg demonstrated that one can disagree without being disagreeable toward ones colleagues or different points of view, Trump said. Her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds.

Note: This story was updated to reflect President Trumps statement that he would soon submit a nominee and a statement from U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey.

More from PennLive

Pioneer and trailblazer: Pa. leaders honor Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dead at 87
According to reports from ABC News, Bloomberg and several other news outlets, Judge Amy Coney Barrett of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is seen as "a leading contender" to replace the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the United States Supreme Court.

These new reports track with an Axios story from March 2019 that reported President Donald Trump was "saving" Barrett  a former professor at Notre Dame Law School and a runner-up for Justice Anthony Kennedy's seat that eventually went to Brett Kavanaugh  for Ginsburg's seat should it become available.

Barrett was confirmed to the Seventh Circuit in October 2017, and experienced a contentious confirmation process after California Sen. Dianne Feinstein was one of may Democrats who questioned whether Barrett's religious beliefs (Barrett is a Roman Catholic) make her unqualified to adjudicate specific cases, specifically ones related to abortion.

"Dogma and law are two different things, Feinstein told Barrett during the hearings. And I think whatever a religion is, it has its own dogma. The law is totally different. And I think in your case, professor, when you read your speeches, the conclusion one draws is that the dogma lives loudly within you, and thats of concern."

Feinstein's line of questioning drew outrage from conservatives, with many noting that religious tests for justices are patently unconstitutional. Article VI, Clause 3 of the United States Constitution reads, "no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States."

"The notion that Catholics are so beholden to Rome as to be incapable of rendering independent judgment in public office has a long, sordid history," conservative commentator Sohrab Ahmari wrote in a New York Times op-ed. "Senator Feinstein later denied exhibiting anti-Catholic bias. But as with other forms of racial or religious animus, one neednt always use an explicit epithet to arouse ugly emotions."

Feinstein denied she was displaying a hostility towards religion, with her office writing in a statement, "Professor Barrett has argued that a judges faith should affect how they approach certain cases. Based on this, Senator Feinstein questioned her about whether she could separate her personal views from the law, particularly regarding womens reproductive rights.

This characterization of Barrett's writings on a judge's faith is misleading at best.

In the 1998 article in question, Barrett and a co-author explored the challenges a Catholic judge may face in death penalty cases since the religion finds the practice abhorrent. The article concludes that Catholic judges may need to recuse themselves if necessary because judges cannot  nor should they try to  align our legal system with the Churchs moral teaching whenever the two diverge.

Barrett reiterated this line during her confirmation hearings, stating, "My personal church affiliation or my religious belief would not bear on the discharge of my duties as a judge.

Beyond the death penalty article, Feinstein has raised alarms over other public statements of Barrett, including a speech to the 2006 Notre Dame Law School graduating class.

"Our legal career is but a means to an end, and ... that end is building the kingdom of God," Barrett said at the time. "If you can keep in mind that your fundamental purpose in life is not to be a lawyer, but to know, love, and serve God, you truly will be a different kind of lawyer.

Others have defended Feinstein for questioning Barrett over her religious views and the 1998 death penalty article.

"The questions should be about how an orthodox Catholic judges religious commitments interact with his or her legal ones  which are exactly the questions the article itself raises," Harvard Law School professor Mark Tushnet wrote in a July 2018 article for Vox. "If its not anti-Catholic to have written the article, which it surely is not, it cant be anti-Catholic to explore the implications of its arguments for other matters."

Eric Ting is an SFGATE reporter. Email: eric.ting@sfgate.com | Twitter:@_ericting
Nursing home doctors contracted to care for residents in Scarboroughs Extendicare Guildwood did not enter the home during the devastating COVID-19 outbreak that killed 48 residents, even though managers repeatedly asked for their help.

At Camilla Care Community in Mississauga, where 68 residents infected with COVID died, physicians under contract with the home offered phone calls but were not coming on site to support residents and staff. It was a similar story in Scarboroughs Altamont Care Community, where 53 people died.

And at Woodbridge Vista Care Community, in Vaughan, where the virus killed 31 residents, the two doctors who remained on-site suffered from overwork and burnout.

These four struggling long-term care homes are among the 11 that were placed under the temporary management of eight hospitals during the first wave of COVID.

Three of the hospitals  Scarborough Health Network (managing Extendicare Guildwood and Altamont Care Community), Trillium Health Partners (Camilla Care) and William Osler Health System (Woodbridge Vista Care)  have between June and this week released reports on four homes that detailed physician absences. Sienna Senior Living operates three of the homes.

There are many reasons why some doctors stayed away, including personal health issues, recommendations for virtual visits from professional organizations or the decision to work safely in one location. But their absence, at least in the most troubled homes, did not go unnoticed.

The Ministry of Long-Term Care told the Star it is looking into new guidance that would help nursing home doctors prepare for and manage future waves of COVID-19 outbreaks.

The ministry said it is also talking with industry leaders about the most relevant areas in need of guidance at this time, such as infection prevention and control and in-person support in long-term care homes.

Dr. Fred Mather, president of Ontario Long-Term Care Clinicians, said the government must provide doctors with clearer, quicker guidance that avoids confusion. Hes also seeking the appointment of a chief medical officer for long-term care who can quickly stickhandle pressing issues for physicians.

When the Ontario government pulled hospitals into nursing homes, their doctors, nurse practitioners, infection control experts and other medical staff went inside and worked through the outbreak.

A Scarborough Health Network spokesperson told the Star, SHN physicians were willing and wanted to help.

These individuals are comfortable working in outbreak situations, as they regularly care for patients with infectious diseases, including many with COVID.

Donna Duncan, CEO of the Ontario Long-Term Care Association, which represents 70 per cent of the provinces nursing homes, said she started hearing about absent doctors as COVID surged in the spring.

Those details were verified in the blunt writing of hospital reports.

Now, with at least 22 Ontario homes in lockdown with fresh COVID outbreaks, Duncan said her association wants government support for a short-term plan to incent physicians to work in homes during another surge of infections.

How do we make sure that we do have doctors on site? Duncan said. That is going to be key to stabilizing homes.

Nursing homes typically have several doctors on contract, including a leader called the medical director, whose role is mandated by legislation, although it provides few details on job duties. Many physicians have contracts with multiple long-term care locations. Some also run family practices or work in community clinics.

Long-term care physicians are paid by OHIP. Some visit homes on a scheduled day but are also on call between visits. Nursing home residents are increasingly frail, with conditions similar to acute-care hospital patients. The wait list for nursing homes is so long that most are admitted well into their 80s with serious health issues such as advanced dementia or congestive heart failure.

Since homes are dealing with significant health care needs, Duncan wants the ministry to enshrine a specific mandate for nursing home physicians in the Ontario Long-Term Care Act.

We are advocating for a more robust role for the medical director of the home  with clear accountabilities and oversight, she said.

New legislation could require that nursing home physicians and nurse practitioners submit to an annual review that would hold them accountable for their performance in the home, according to a Ontario Long-Term Care Association proposal to government. It could also require ongoing professional development in palliative care, infection control, privacy and confidentiality.

The association is also seeking funding changes to incentivize physician attendance, engagement, communication, and positive health outcomes for residents, its proposal said.

Other groups, like the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario, are calling for regulations requiring a full-time nurse practitioner for every 120 residents. Nurse practitioners, who have advanced training, would work in the home every day, helping to fill the gap left by physicians who are not on-site, said Doris Grinspun, CEO of the registered nurses association.

Nurse practitioners can diagnose, order tests, prescribe medication, admit people to hospital or set fractured bones.

You needed to really be there to see what was going on so you could alleviate the suffering, let alone prevent it from getting into a bad situation in the first place, said Grinspun.

On weekends or when doctors are not immediately available, a nurse practitioner could prescribe antibiotics, without delay, for urinary tract infections, a common nursing home problem that can cause delirium, severe confusion and often lead to falls and emergency department visits, she said.

In its 17-page interim report published in mid-June, the Scarborough Health Network (SHN) said, Physicians had not been on-site at Extendicare Guildwood since April 13, 2020. The outbreak began on April 23 and ended on July 6. During that period, 57 workers were infected with COVID.

At the time the home was declared in outbreak, the Medical Director and the attending physicians contacted the home and indicated that they would not be physically on-site again until the outbreak was cleared, the report said.

Although Extendicare Guildwood leadership repeatedly requested they attend in person, the physicians offered only virtual visits, the report said.

Extendicare Canada said it could not comment on the absence of the contracted doctors. We cannot speak on their behalf to the individual circumstances that led to their decision not to attend in person at the home during the outbreak, said regional director Niklas Chandrabalan.

Extendicare said it has worked closely with the SHN infectious disease specialists and acted immediately on all hospital recommendations. The hospitals final report was released Friday. It detailed 38 recommendations and its report shows the home has met all but nine, which are in progress.

In its recommendations, SHN said the home should amend its contract with its Medical Director to ensure that all residents have access to timely, regular, in-person assessments by a physician. That recommendation had been completed, the report said.

Given the extraordinary review undertaken over the past three months of the Voluntary Management Contract (with the hospital), SHN can state without reservation that this LTC home once again provides high quality resident care, the hospital report said.

Extendicare Guildwoods voluntary management contract with SHN ended Sept. 10. Scarborough Health Network said the hospital and Extendicare Guildwood have a firm commitment to work together in the interests of residents, not just in the near future, but in the foreseeable future.

During the outbreak, the homes managed by hospitals had other troubles.

They struggled with staffing levels after front-line workers and managers got sick; a lack of personal protective equipment; and staff who didnt know how to properly use PPE and didnt separate COVID-positive residents from those who were not. Many homes lost workers after the government issued a directive saying staff could work in one home only.

Three hospitals had a voluntary management contract with Sienna Senior Living homes:

The contract between Scarborough Health Network and Altamont Care Community has ended. The hospitals final report released Friday, listed 32 recommendations and all but six were completed.

The final report said, SHN identified that physicians were delivering care remotely, and the medical oversight model was unclear. It recommended revamping the homes medical model to ensure there are on-site primary care practitioners, even in outbreak, if necessary.

The report also recommended that doctors get training in infection control and prevention. Physicians were not on site during the outbreak. Knowledgeable health care practitioners are essential to quality and safe resident care. Those recommendations are listed as in progress. Still, SHN said the home is now giving good quality care.

The contract between William Osler Health System and Woodbridge Vista Care Community has ended.

Trillium Health Partners is still working with Camilla Care Community, which is the focus of an ongoing Peel Regional police investigation related to the care of residents.

A Sienna spokesperson said the interim reports have guided the work we are already undertaking to improve operations at their homes.

Among the changes Trillium Health Partners have arranged for Camilla Care Community is an on-site medical director and attending physicians, the Sienna spokesperson said.

At Woodbridge Vista Care, Sienna said it has four physicians who conduct regular visits. According to the William Osler report on Woodbridge Vista, during the outbreak there was, No onsite attendance of one of the MRPs (Most Responsible Physicians) to address acute resident needs. The report also noted that the two doctors who worked in the home during the outbreak experienced overwork and burnout.

Sienna said its staff are undergoing a comprehensive learning program to help address the understandable challenges and stresses they have faced during a time of sector-wide uncertainty.

Mather, of the Ontario Long-Term Care Clinicians, a volunteer organization for nursing home doctors, said there are many reasons why some contracted physicians didnt visit residents during the outbreak.

He said some followed recommendations that doctors conduct virtual visits where possible. That means telephone calls or video, as long as privacy can be secured, he said. Others had personal or family health issues.

He said some nursing homes would not allow the doctors inside and many physicians followed the one location-only directives issued by the government to limit COVID infections. The Ontario Ministry of Long-Term Care said the directive that restricts long-term care homes direct employees to a single nursing home has no application to the physician because doctors are under contract and not considered direct employees.

Mather said many doctors spent the outbreak working in nursing homes, citing his colleague, Dr. Ross Kennel.

Dr. Kennel was in (Kitcheners) Forest Heights (Long Term Care Home) every day, practically seeing every resident, so that other physicians  were able to work elsewhere, Mather said.

Owned by Revera, Forest Heights was placed under a mandatory management order by the ministry, which appointed St. Marys General Hospital to oversee the home. That order has since ended, the ministry said.

Revera spokesperson Larry Roberts said Dr. Kennel worked exclusively at Forest Heights throughout the pandemic....In a very difficult time, he was there, on site, managing residents cases, speaking to families, working with public health and providing comfort and support for everyone from residents to family to staff.

Roberts said the pandemic has underscored the importance of partnership in health care.
5G IoT Market Research Report by Radio Technology ( (5G New Radio Non-Standalone Architecture and 5G New Radio Standalone Architecture), by Range (Short-Range IoT Device and Wide-Range IoT Device), by Industry - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19

New York, Sept. 18, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "5G IoT Market Research Report by Radio Technology (, by Range, by Industry - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05953145/?utm_source=GNW



The Global 5G IoT Market is expected to grow from USD 621.85 Million in 2019 to USD 3,985.34 Million by the end of 2025 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 36.28%.



Market Segmentation & Coverage:

This research report categorizes the 5G IoT to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following sub-markets:



Based on Radio Technology (, the 5G IoT Market studied across 5G New Radio Non-Standalone Architecture and 5G New Radio Standalone Architecture.



Based on Range, the 5G IoT Market studied across Short-Range IoT Device and Wide-Range IoT Device.



Based on Industry, the 5G IoT Market studied across Energy & Utilities, Government, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Mining, and Transportation & Logistics.



Based on Geography, the 5G IoT Market studied across Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe, Middle East & Africa. The Americas region surveyed across Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and United States. The Asia-Pacific region surveyed across Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand. The Europe, Middle East & Africa region surveyed across France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, United Arab Emirates, and United Kingdom.



Company Usability Profiles:

The report deeply explores the recent significant developments by the leading vendors and innovation profiles in the Global 5G IoT Market including AT&T Inc., Bell Canada, BT Group plc, Etisalat, Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., Nokia, Rogers Communications, Singtel, Sprint.com, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, Telefonica S.A., Telstra Corporation Limited, Telus, Verizon, and Vodafone Idea Limited.



FPNV Positioning Matrix:

The FPNV Positioning Matrix evaluates and categorizes the vendors in the 5G IoT Market on the basis of Business Strategy (Business Growth, Industry Coverage, Financial Viability, and Channel Support) and Product Satisfaction (Value for Money, Ease of Use, Product Features, and Customer Support) that aids businesses in better decision making and understanding the competitive landscape.



Competitive Strategic Window:

The Competitive Strategic Window analyses the competitive landscape in terms of markets, applications, and geographies. The Competitive Strategic Window helps the vendor define an alignment or fit between their capabilities and opportunities for future growth prospects. During a forecast period, it defines the optimal or favorable fit for the vendors to adopt successive merger and acquisition strategies, geography expansion, research & development, and new product introduction strategies to execute further business expansion and growth.



Cumulative Impact of COVID-19:

COVID-19 is an incomparable global public health emergency that has affected almost every industry, so for and, the long-term effects projected to impact the industry growth during the forecast period. Our ongoing research amplifies our research framework to ensure the inclusion of underlaying COVID-19 issues and potential paths forward. The report is delivering insights on COVID-19 considering the changes in consumer behavior and demand, purchasing patterns, re-routing of the supply chain, dynamics of current market forces, and the significant interventions of governments. The updated study provides insights, analysis, estimations, and forecast, considering the COVID-19 impact on the market.



The report provides insights on the following pointers:

1. Market Penetration: Provides comprehensive information on the market offered by the key players

2. Market Development: Provides in-depth information about lucrative emerging markets and analyzes the markets

3. Market Diversification: Provides detailed information about new product launches, untapped geographies, recent developments, and investments

4. Competitive Assessment & Intelligence: Provides an exhaustive assessment of market shares, strategies, products, and manufacturing capabilities of the leading players

5. Product Development & Innovation: Provides intelligent insights on future technologies, R&D activities, and new product developments



The report answers questions such as:

1. What is the market size and forecast of the Global 5G IoT Market?

2. What are the inhibiting factors and impact of COVID-19 shaping the Global 5G IoT Market during the forecast period?

3. Which are the products/segments/applications/areas to invest in over the forecast period in the Global 5G IoT Market?

4. What is the competitive strategic window for opportunities in the Global 5G IoT Market?

5. What are the technology trends and regulatory frameworks in the Global 5G IoT Market?

6. What are the modes and strategic moves considered suitable for entering the Global 5G IoT Market?

Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05953145/?utm_source=GNW



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19.09.2020 LISTEN

The Alliance for Social Equity and Accountability (ASEPA) is unhappy with the police for obtaining a court order to have its planned demonstration against the controversial Agyapa Royalties deal halted.

ASEPAs concerns come after the police secured an interlocutory injunction against the group from embarking on the protest.

Earlier, the police had written to the group saying it cannot grant ASEPAs request to have over 20,000 people gather for the demonstration on Monday, September 21, 2020 citing a possible breach of COVID-19 safety protocols.

But reacting to this development, Executive Director of ASEPAs, Mensah Thompson says the police are acting in bad faith given the formal and orderly procedures the group had had to follow thus far.

I think it is a bit surprising because we had written to the police in accordance with the Public Order Act, and we had stated clearly what we intended to do on the 21st of September. The police wrote back to us citing a number of issues which we disagreed with. So were through with some processes for the demonstration only to be hit with this court order. Its actually novel, we didnt know the police will go to this extent to prevent us from demonstrating, he said on Eyewitness News last Friday.

Meanwhile, the civil society group has expressed its readiness to engage its legal team to decide on the way forward.

We will refer the matter to our lawyers, and we are hoping that our lawyers will advise accordingly. But we are disappointed with the police for going to this extent to stop the demonstration.

The Ghana Police Service through the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) secured a restraining order from the court against the ASEPA and its Executive Director.

According to the Court, its decision to prevent the group from embarking on the protest was arrived at after scrutinising the affidavit presented by the police and the response submitted by the counsel of the plaintiff on the ex-parte motion filed on the matter.

The Agyapa Royalties deal which seeks to monetise Ghanas mineral resources has for the past few weeks sparked controversy among different groups in the country following concerns from members of the opposition.

Civil Society groups in Mines and Energy have also described the Special Purpose Vehicle as one which is not transparent and must be suspended.

---citinewsroom
A record number of terrorists are being held in British prisons, new figures show amid warnings over radicalisation inside chaotic jails.

Statistics released by the Home Office on Thursday indicate there were 243 people in custody for terror-related offences, up 24 on the previous year.

It comes as the government pushes for a raft of changes aiming to jail terror offenders for longer and make serious criminals serve more of their sentences in prison.

Four alleged terror attacks have been launched by serving or released prisoners in the past year, in Fishmongers Hall, HMP Whitemoor, Streatham and Reading.

A prison officer working in the high-security estate told The Independent the current situation was a nightmare.

I dont see any end to the attacks whatsoever, those ones that come in with an extremist view leave with a stronger one, he added.

Youre releasing people onto the streets and you dread to think whats going to happen.

No matter what ministers say everything is not great in UK prisons, its appalling.

The man, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said there was no control over radicalised inmates and raised concern over longer jail terms.

They cannot cope with the extremist population they have at the minute so how do they think theyll cope with adding to that with more extremists on longer jail terms? he asked.

The officer said radicalised inmates had attacked and threatened staff and that newly-recruited prison officers were seen as easy prey.

Ive seen people do one shift and leave, he added. Most of the prisons are being run on chaos, a lot of things pass that shouldnt pass because they havent got the time to deal with incidents.

 Usman Khan: What we know about the London Bridge attacker

The Ministry of Justice said it has improved monitoring and intelligence-sharing inside prisons and trained officers on how to spot the signs of extremism.

But the officer said the training was awful and that staff were run ragged and powerless to monitor conversations in other languages.

Recent research warned that some extremists see their time in prison as an opportunity to become more extreme and prepare for attacks.

A separate report published by the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation said terror offenders were not being prosecuted for further crimes committed in prison, including making weapons and glorifying terrorism.

Jonathan Hall QC told The Independent: People can move from being ordinary prisoners to terrorist prisoners at any stage in their journey.

I saw examples of people equally dangerous [as terrorists] who are not convicted of terror offences.

Research released by the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation (ICSR) found that at least five terror attacks have been plotted or carried out by serving and released prisoners in Britain since 2016.

They include the stabbings at Fishmongers Hall and Streatham, as well as a plot by a cell who met inside prison.

Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Show all 22 1 /22 Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Armed police officers on Streatham High Road. The Metropolitan Police warned people to stay away from the Streatham area boguta37/PA Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings The man was shot dead by police after two stabbed in 'Islamist-related' terror attack in London boguta37/PA Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Sudesh Amman, the attacker, has been named as a convicted terror offender who was released from prison days ago Metropolitan Police/PA Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Items left on the pavement at the scene in Streatham High Road Isis supporter Amman was just 18 when he was jailed in December 2018 after police found a stash of bomb-making manuals and other propaganda. Now 20, he had declared his own wish to carry out a terror attack and stockpiled a combat knife, air gun and black flag at his family home in London PA Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings He was being monitored by undercover police and being followed as part of a proactive counterterrorism operation when he started the rampage in Streatham AP Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Amman was able to stab two people before being shot dead by armed officers outside a busy row of shops Gabriel Video/PA Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings A woman reacts as police officers interview people near to the scene Getty Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings An armed police officer on Streatham High Road Deputy Assistant Commissioner Lucy DOrsi said Amman was wearing a fake suicide ves Gully/PA Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Police forensic officers work outside of a Boots store AFP via Getty Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Police officers at the scene Getty Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings A police forensic officer works at the scene in Streatham High Road PA Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Items left on the pavement at the scene in Streatham High Road PA Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings A police officer on the scene Dave Chawner/SWNS Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Police forensic officers are seen near the site Reuters Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Police officers on the scene outside an Iceland supermarket Andy Bullemor/SWNS Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Police are seen near a site where a man was shot Reuters Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings A policeman secures the site of the incident EPA Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings A view of the scene Megan Tobeck Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Armed police at the scene in Streatham High Road PA Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings A view of the scene Michael Owens Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings Police forensic officers at the scene PA Streatham attack: Man shot dead by police after stabbings A Police officer is seen near a site where a man was shot Reuters

The report, which covered 10 European countries including the UK, warned there is an emerging view among extremists that prison is an opportunity, not necessarily just to recruit or network, but to also work on themselves.

Around three quarters of terrorist prisoners in Britain are categorised as Islamist extremists, 19 per cent as far right and 6 per cent other.

The vast majority have been convicted but 11 per cent are being held on remand as court hearings are delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.

In the year to June, 54 terrorist prisoners were released, including two people serving life sentences.

Of those freed, 16 had been sentenced to less than four years imprisonment.

Sudesh Amman, who was released days before being shot dead after launching the Streatham terror attack in February, was among the cohort.

A further 26 freed prisoners had been given sentences of four years or more.

Shortly after the Streatham attack, the government enacted new laws to end the automatic early release of terror offenders and ensure they are risk-assessed by the Parole Board.

The Counter-Terrorism and Sentencing Bill, which is currently being considered by parliament, would increase the maximum penalties for several terror offences and force terrorists given extended determinate sentences to serve the entire term in prison.

Usman Khan, who was previously jailed over a terror plot, murdered two people at a rehabilitation event in November

Several MPs called for improved deradicalisation efforts in prisons and raised concern about the potential impact of the proposals.

During a debate in July, David Lammy, the shadow justice secretary, said: It is simply not good enough to lock terrorists away for longer, put them out of our minds and hope for the best. As weve seen from the devastating attacks at Streatham and Fishmongers Hall, this approach does not work.

The governments new sentencing white paper contains powers to halt the automatic release of offenders who have become a terror threat while in prison.

A Ministry of Justice impact assessment said the change could increase the risk that other prisoners could become radicalised or more dangerous due to the greater time in custody for the affected individual, affording more time for further proselytising in the prison population.
TORRINGTON  The annual meeting of the Northwest CT Chamber of Commerce will be held Sept. 25. The meeting will be in a virtual format.

Cost is $20 per person for members, $30 for guests.

To register, go to http://nwctchamberofcommerce.org/events-programs/annual-meeting-hall-of-fame-luncheon/

WOW! Forum

The chambers WOW! FOrum is also going virtual for the first time in its 16 year history, and will be held Oct. 2.

In a statement, the Chambers Trailblazers said, Please join the Northwest Connecticut's Chamber of Commerce for this professional development conference aimed at motivating and educating hundreds of women. Together, we are advancing women's leadership across careers and cultures to share knowledge and ideas, to enrich each other's lives, to provide a network of support and to promote opportunities for women in leadership. The event is not only educational, it is fun and exciting too.

Register and gain access to network with other attendees at wowforum.org.

Upcoming meetings:

Sept. 23, 8-9 a.m., Leads Group 2. If you would like information on participating in Leads, email JoAnn Ryan at joann@nwctchamberofcommerce.org

Sept. 24, 8-9 a.m., Board of Directors meeting, for information, email JoAnn Ryan at joann@nwctchamberofcommerce.org

Sept. 24, noon-1 p.m., Leads Group 3

Sept. 28, noon-1 p.m, Leads Group 1

Sept. 29, 8-9 a.m., Business with Breakfast. Register at http://nwctchamberofcommerce.org/events/business-with-breakfast-6/; a Zoom link will be emailed.

For registration information, go to nwctchamberofcommerce.org
Opposition slams Centre on COVID-19, ordinances, migrants issues in Rajya Sabha

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

New Delhi, Sep 19: Opposition parties on Saturday attacked the government in the Rajya Sabha, accusing it of crossing "constitutional bars", interfering in the affairs of states, failing to control private hospitals during the coronavirus crisis, and being unable to protect the migrant labourers and the poor.

Participating in a debate on The Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Bill, 2020, they also charged the government with entering into the "league of three democracies" in the world that promote what they called 'ordinance raj'. Derek O'Brien (Trinamool Congress) accused the Centre of interfering in the functioning of states through the Bill.

Monsoon Session: Rajya Sabha passes Bill to punish those attacking healthcare workers

The Bill provides for jail terms up to five years and hefty fines for attack on healthcare workers fighting the coronavirus outbreak or during any situation akin to the current pandemic.

The BJP, instead of preaching others to abstain from politics, should not indulge in politics, he said, adding the ruling party wants to take all the credit for schemes despite states contributing to them. Terming the Centre's 'Ayushman Bharat' Yojana an imitation scheme, he claimed West Bengal was way ahead in health schemes and it implemented insurance cover for even allied workers and included mental wellness of healthcare workers in it.

6 COVID-19 positive Bhopal gas tragedy survivors die due to alleged hospital negligence

"The Centre is paying 60 per cent for the scheme and the state 40 per cent. But when it comes to credit, the Centre wants to take all credit," he charged. He also attacked the government using the term "ordinance raj".

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

"There are only three parliamentary democracies in the world in which this ordinance raj is still possible - India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The emergency ordinance route is dangerous. Root of all ordinances is a 1935 Act. The Viceroy era is gone but the attitude of arrogance still remains with the BJP government," he said.

He also demanded to know what action the government was taking against those who claimed cures for coronavirus and fooled people selling drugs. "Moreover, if the sole bread winner of a family has died due to COVID-19, he should be compensated and protected by the government," he said.
Motorola unveiled the Moto E7 Plus exactly one week ago, in Brazil. Today, the company has unveiled that, aside from Europe, the E7 Plus is also headed to India.

Specifically, the phone will launch in the subcontinent on September 23. You'll find it at Flipkart starting at 12 PM local time. Pricing hasn't been revealed yet, although this should be an affordable device, considering the specs on offer.

Get ready for the #UltimateCamera experience. With all-new #motoe7plus you can take your smartphone photography to the next level, even in low light. Launching 23rd September, 12 pm on @Flipkart! https://t.co/OYb654M9N2 pic.twitter.com/GVHnOTC9D1  Motorola India (@motorolaindia) September 18, 2020

Let's see: it has a 6.5-inch 720x1600 20:9 IPS touchscreen, the Snapdragon 460 chipset, 4GB of RAM, 64GB of expandable storage, a 48 MP rear camera with f/1.7 aperture aided by a 2 MP depth sensor, an 8 MP f/2.2 selfie cam hidden inside that waterdrop notch up front, and a 5,000 mAh battery which charges only at 10W. The Moto E7 Plus runs Android 10.
BEIJING, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese military spokesperson on Friday announced a real-combat military exercise of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) near the Taiwan Strait.

Ren Guoqiang, spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, said it is a necessary move aimed at the current situation in the Taiwan Strait to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Reiterating that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China, Ren said the Taiwan question is purely China's internal affairs and allows no outside interference.

The United States and the Democratic Progressive Party authority in Taiwan have recently intensified their collusion, often creating troubles, Ren said.

"Those who play with fire will get burnt," Ren said.

The PLA has the firm will, abundant confidence, and enough capabilities to thwart any interference by foreign forces or "Taiwan independence" activities, Ren added.
Months ago, I predicted that we would all come to hate the narrow, bossed-about new life the Government wants to force us to live. I was wrong.

Most people have far too readily accepted limits to their lives which the worlds tyrannies would once have hesitated to impose on their citizens.

Well, have you had enough yet? Because the Johnson Junta has only one tool in its box. That tool is restriction.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is pictured during a visit to the Jenner Institute in Oxford. Most people have far too readily accepted limits to their lives which the worlds tyrannies would once have hesitated to impose on their citizens

And it has only one aim, one that has never been achieved by any state in the history of the world  the total suppression of a coronavirus. Who would have thought that the rule of clowns would be so unfunny?

But it now looks as if this will go on for ever, unless we can somehow lead these people away to secluded rest homes where kindly nurses can indulge their wild power-fantasies with soothing repetitions of Yes, dear, cold compresses and cups of Ovaltine. It is certainly increasingly dangerous for them to be out and about.

Take the Health Secretary, Mr Matthew Hancock. I know I have laughed at him in the past as a sort of crazy prep-school headmaster raging at his tiny pupils. But for goodness sake, the man is a Cabinet Minister, and he has real power over us.

He can smash up your business, make you stay at home, part you from your nearest and dearest at the ends of their lives, destroy your wedding plans, wreck your education, ruin your holiday, take away your job, set the police on you for refusing to wear a pro-Government badge across half your face. He can and he does.

Take the Health Secretary, Mr Matthew Hancock. I know I have laughed at him in the past as a sort of crazy prep-school headmaster raging at his tiny pupils. But for goodness sake, the man is a Cabinet Minister, and he has real power over us

And he has taken leave of the truth. On Friday morning, Mr Hancock said that the number of hospitalisations for Covid is doubling every seven to eight days.

Now, hospitalisations for Covid is a slightly tricky figure. It may well be affected by the Governments endless futile, frantic hunt for signs of a disease which has largely vanished from among us, and whose main symptom is that you feel just fine, thank you.

Deaths, a figure very hard to massage, are low and remain low after a long fall from their peak on April 8. People must at all costs be distracted from this fact.

I have to wonder about the hospital admission figures, given the slipperiness of the Government throughout this episode. Could it be that people who have tested positive for Covid in one of Mr Hancocks vast trawls, but who go into hospital mainly for other reasons, get added to this total?

I wouldnt be a bit surprised. Could it be that our hospitals are being encouraged to admit mild cases for observation, which they would previously have sent home? Who knows? Just guessing.

But then we come to the hospitalisation figures. Yes, they have edged up a bit since mid-August. But bear in mind that in March they were regularly more than 2,500 a day.

On August 1, the total of Covid hospital admissions in England was 50. On August 8 it was 78. On August 15 it was 38. On August 22 it was 25. On August 29 it was 52. On September 5 it was 94. On September 12 it was 143. This is hardly an established pattern.

Now, I know, because the Health Department told me, that if you took a different and much shorter date range (August 24, 41; August 31, 52; September 7, 84; September 14, 172) you could  sort of  back up their claim. Id have thought every seven or eight days meant over a far longer period than that. Every is a powerful word.

But, as I said to the Ministry spokesperson who manfully tried to persuade me that his bosss claim of hospitalisations doubling every week had been honest, it seems to me to be unscrupulous panic-mongering, which would shame a banana republic.

Sensible Coventry, refusing to let itself be browbeaten or cajoled by the slick, nasty lobby for e-scooters.

These things are dangerous, especially to pedestrians, and it is absurd to pretend that they are healthy (no exercise) or green (battery power comes from power stations).

Always remember the case of Isabelle Albertin, pianist at the Paris Opera for 30 years, left unable to play after one of these jolly horrors smashed into her, breaking two bones in her arm. Ban the nasty things.

The new ITV production of The Singapore Grip, starring Georgia Blizzard, above, is  like so many of these dramas  a moving museum

Glamorous Georgia... and another costume drama to sneer at

If we can have Shakespeare in modern dress, then it is time we had the British imperial era in modern dress.

The new ITV production of The Singapore Grip, starring Georgia Blizzard, is  like so many of these dramas  a moving museum.

It is a procession of double-breasted suits, double-breasted cars and flying boats. Its production must have used up about a ton of bright red lipstick and enough cigarettes to give cancer to a small town.

And of course there are swing bands, playing away as the Japanese approach. So we can all sneer at the bigoted attitudes of the distant, alien people who float through this remote world.

Actually they were pretty much like us, following the political fashions of the times as we follow the fashions of our own. And one day others will portray us with the same disdain.

Businessman Simon Dolans badly needed court case against the Governments unlawful rule by decree has been postponed yet again, because one of the Governments lawyers has gone on holiday.

Yes, really. All I can say is, it wouldnt have happened to Gina Millers case.

Axe looms for a dusty little attic of Empire

Like most sensible residents of Oxford, I have kept quiet about what was until recently the most wonderful museum in the world, the Pitt Rivers.Half its crazy charm came from the fact that hardly anyone could find it during its brief opening hours. On a silent winter afternoon it was a dimly-lit feast for the imagination and an unbeatable evocation of the era of exploration and wonder. Is it racist? Only to racists.

A man-trap from a 19th Century English estate hardly proclaims the benefits of Western civilisation. It is really just an attic of Empire.The wonderful James Fenton wrote a witty poem about it, saying it was where myths go when they die.

We feared that publicity which has lately come to it in books and TV dramas  would doom it. And now this has happened. A new boss has got rid of the Shrunken Heads. Who knows how long the totem pole, the man-trap and the spring-gun will now survive?

2-metre farce gives us the measure of Boris

The quackery of the regulations imposed on us knows no bounds.

The British Weights and Measures Association, a fine body which defends our familiar, human yards and pounds against the chilly, bureaucratic imposition of metres and kilos, has uncovered a fascinating detail of how the two-metre rule was arrived at. Official guidance was that one metre (just over 3ft 3in) would be enough.

Expert Professor Robert Dingwall has revealed in a little-publicised interview that a senior public health specialist explained to him: We knew it was one metre but we doubled it to two because we did not think the British population would understand what one metre was and we could not trust them to observe it so we doubled it to be on the safe side.

I should stress that Prof Dingwall is quoting someone else here and is not the author of these contemptuous words. I asked Prof Dingwall to identify the speaker, but he wouldnt, though it is plain it is someone pretty well-known.

You also see here the Johnson Governments crabby reluctance to use traditional British measures  which Mr Johnson claims to like.

Expert Professor Robert Dingwall has revealed in a little-publicised interview that a senior public health specialist explained to him: We knew it was one metre but we doubled it to two because we did not think the British population would understand what one metre was and we could not trust them to observe it so we doubled it to be on the safe side'

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Lizaa Malik Recalls Her Last Meeting With Late Sushant Singh Rajput

Lizaa told IANS, "The last time I met Sushant was some two and a half years back when he was with Kriti. It was during Kriti's birthday celebrations in a Bandra club. He was always a very charming, full-of-life guy, who would walk into a party and get a smile on people's face. We had a lot of common friends, like Mahesh Shetty."

Lizaa Remembers Sushant As A Fun-Loving Guy

"He was a fun-loving guy, who had his sense of humour in the right place, always joking and keeping the energy level up," the actress told the news agency.

Lizaa Reveals Why She Felt Sushant And Kriti Were In A Relationship Back Then

Talking about why she felt something was brewing between Sushant and Kriti during that time, Lizaa explained, "When it is a public gathering and a birthday party, the host is always busy. So, Kriti was busy attending guests as it was a big party. I saw Sushant all charged up, dancing, getting a drink at the bar, and socialising. They looked pretty happy and they were trying to be good hosts. Even if you're not going out loud, telling the world that oh, we are dating', one can see the spark. If somebody was playing the host with the actual host, there has to be something. We all knew that they were seeing each other, as much as they kept denying it."
Maria Garcia knows exactly how many days have passed since her daughter disappeared. Shes kept count. Sunday marks 854 days without Nancy Troche Garcia, and her mother said she has suffered tremendously through each and every one of them.

Nancy was last seen on May 20, 2018, in Asheboro, North Carolina. She was 28 years old at the time. Captain Richard Thompson with the Asheboro Police Department told Dateline that a welfare check was performed at Nancys apartment in Asheboro on May 23 after a co-worker reported she had not shown up to work in a few days.

Detectives learned that the last sighting of Nancy was on May 20 when she left her 5-month-old daughter, Natalia, in the care of the childs father, Nancys ex-boyfriend.

Captain Thompson told Dateline that according to both the ex-boyfriend and his sister, Nancy had left the baby with him and asked the sister to help with the child. They said she told them she was traveling to Mexico because her mother was very sick.

But when detectives contacted Nancys mother, Maria Garcia, she informed them that she was not sick and that Nancy had not been planning to visit.

Dateline attempted to reach Nancys ex-boyfriend for comment, but was unsuccessful.

Nancy Troche Garcia

Maria last spoke to her daughter a week before she disappeared. She said Nancy always called on Saturdays to catch up with family in Mexico. She added that Nancy seemed her normal happy, upbeat self. But there were no plans for her to travel to Mexico.

Olin Doss, a retired deputy sheriff and member of a Hispanic Outreach Committee based in Columbus, Georgia, has traveled to Asheboro to help Nancys family as well as reach out to the Hispanic population in the area.

Many in the Hispanic community are afraid to report crimes and missing people, because they may be undocumented, Olin Doss explained. So their stories are left untold. Crimes are not reported. Were here to help.

Olins daughter, Christine Harrod, who is a member of the Facebook page Missing Nancy Troche Garcia helped translate an interview between Dateline and Nancys mother, Maria, who lives in Mexico and doesnt speak English.

Story continues

I am suffering every day since Nancy went missing, Maria said, crying. I just want to know where she is. I just want answers.

Maria told Dateline that she has traveled to Asheboro four times since Nancy disappeared. During her visits, she meets with the detectives at the Asheboro Police Department, hoping for new information.

Captain Thompson told Dateline that an investigation was launched in May 2018 when Nancy was reported missing. Interviews were conducted with Nancys ex-boyfriend, his family, and Nancys friends and family.

Some of Nancys friends told police they last saw her at a childs birthday party the day before she disappeared. They said everything seemed normal and that both Nancy and her daughter seemed to be having a good time at the party.

Nancys phone records were reviewed and her apartment was searched, but Capt. Thompson said there wasnt anything that brought them closer to finding Nancy.

He added that there was no record of Nancy boarding a flight to Mexico, or anywhere else. Her burgundy 2001 Chevrolet Impala has also been missing since May 20.

Captain Thompson said the license plate number has been searched and that both Nancy and the vehicle have been entered into the NCIC system (National Crime Information Center). There is no record of the Chevy Impala crossing the border into Mexico and no trace of Nancy.

Nearly two years after Nancy vanished, in January 2020, detectives revealed new clues about her disappearance. They had gained access to her Google account.

The search confirmed that the day before Nancy went missing, she had mapped her way to a birthday party, which was consistent with what her friends had previously told police.

The records also showed that Nancy had used Google Maps to get to a car dealership in Madison, North Carolina.

Sergeant Jeremy Suddeth, one of the lead detectives on the case, immediately went to the dealership to gather information for their investigation.

Unfortunately, thats where it ended, Capt. Thompson said. We didnt find anything that aided in our investigation and we hit a dead end.

He said the account went quiet after that.

Frustrated by the lack of answers in her daughters disappearance, Nancys mother, Maria, had planned on returning to Asheboro in May, but the COVID-19 pandemic put a hold on those plans.

She told Dateline she hopes to get back to Asheboro before the end of the year. Her granddaughter, Natalia, who currently lives with Nancys ex-boyfriend and his family, will be three years old in December.

I feel helpless, Maria told Dateline through a translator. I need answers. Nancy is good and loving. I miss her.

Nancy, who grew up in Mexico, one of five children, has always been a hard worker and was determined to make a good life for herself and her family, her mother said. Nancy moved to the United States in 2011 with a man to whom she was engaged. Maria said their marriage was not a good one, but Nancy was able to branch out on her own and become a U.S. citizen.

She worked hard to be there, Maria told Dateline. She deserved a better life.

Nancy began dating the man with whom she had Natalia.

She loves her daughter so much, Maria said. She would not have left her baby behind. She was dedicated to Natalia. She was dedicated to giving her a good life.

Captain Thompson and lead detectives Jeremy Suddeth and Andy Rippey, assured Dateline that they are still actively working the case and encourage anyone with information to come forward. The police have not named a suspect in Nancys disappearance.

Capt. Thompson added that they have contacted the FBI, but said they have not received assistance.

Nancys mother hopes a $7,000 reward for information leading to her whereabouts will help encourage people to come forward.

Its all I have, Maria said. I hope its enough. Please, just help bring my daughter home.

Anyone with any information is asked to call 336-626-1316 or to contact Crime Stoppers at 336-672-7463 (67-CRIME).
Loreto College in Swords celebrated the achievement of all its Leaving Cert students this week.

The college is very proud of the results and the hard work that the class of 2020 put into achieving these results.

School Principal, Peter McNamara said: 'Students worked extremely hard and reached their potential.

'Students with additional educational needs also excelled and were rewarded with outstanding grades.'

The college invited twenty students who received over 500 points back to the school on Thursday.

They gathered outside and socially distanced and for the majority this was the first time back to the school since the lockdown began in March.

The students thanked their teachers, their Year Head Mr Patrick Mulvihill, their Guidance Counsellor Ms Patricia Kennedy, the school Chaplain Ms Elizabeth Cronin and the Deputy Head Ms Sharon Gunn.

The students really appreciated the support and help that they received from all school staff.

Of the students pictured here, seven of them scored over 90% in at least three subject with one students achieving 613 points.

The girls pictured hope to pursue careers in teaching, engineering, medicine, business and law to name but a few paths.

Loreto College wishes them all every success with CAO offers and with all that is in store for them over the next few weeks and months.

The College would also like to offer a Cead Mile Failte to all of its class of 2020 in the future when it becomes possible for them to visit the school.
<! A Nigerian Air Force fighter jet >

The Defence Headquarters said the air component of Operation Thunder Strike on Thursday, bombed bandits meeting venue in Kwaimbana Forest area of Kaduna State, killing many bandits.

The Coordinator, Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. John Enenche, disclosed this on Friday in Abuja.

Enenche said that the air raid was conducted after series of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions revealed the hideout, along with a building in the centre of the forest.

He said the Air Component dispatched Nigerian Air Force (NAF) jets and helicopter gunships to attack the location accordingly.

He said the attack aircraft took turns in engaging the target area, scoring accurate hits which resulted in the damage of the building as well as neutralisation of several bandits.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 06:44:21|Editor: huaxia

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BUDAPEST, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- The first Cargolux freighter from Shenzhen Airport in southern China arrived in the Hungarian capital, Budapest Airport said in a statement on Friday.

Cargolux, one of the largest cargo airlines in the world, has launched a direct cargo flight on the Shenzhen-Budapest route. The Boeing 747-400F aircraft landed on Friday afternoon, and was greeted with a water cannon salute on the apron of BUD Cargo City, the airport's new logistics center, according to the statement.

"The new aerial connection is an important milestone, as a significant proportion of the e-commerce goods originating from China arrive in central and eastern Europe from the catchment area of Shenzhen," the statement said, adding that the new route would see planes commute once a week.

Budapest Airport also noted that "The launch of the new flight could help create new economic and business relations between the central and eastern European region and China."

"We are delighted about the launch of this new Cargolux Shenzhen-Budapest flight, as it is a direct aerial connection that not only provides a huge advantage for companies in Hungary and central and eastern Europe, but also an opportunity for Budapest Airport to play a leading role in the logistics supply of the region -- in e-commerce as well, amongst other things. The launch of this new route clearly shows that BUD Cargo City is performing well in these challenging times," commented Rolf Schnitzler, CEO of Budapest Airport. Enditem
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said he plans to hold a vote on a Trump nominee to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. (Andrew Harnik / Associated Press)

The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg sets the stage for a monumental political fight in the Senate over whether President Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell can confirm a conservative jurist to replace her even as voters in some states are already casting ballots.

Here's a look at what to expect in the coming months.

Can President Trump and Senate Republicans nominate and confirm another Supreme Court justice so close before the election?

Legally they can, and McConnell (R-Ky.) has already said he intends to have a vote although he did not say when it would be held. There isn't much time to do so before election day, but it wouldn't be the shortest confirmation process in recent history. Only 19 days elapsed between the announcement of Justice John Paul Stevens' nomination and a Senate vote in 1975. Ginsburg's confirmation took 42 days and Sandra Day O'Connor's 33. On average, a confirmation takes nearly 70 days.

But Democrats say rushing the process for such an important position would be unfair. In the end, all McConnell will need is 50 votes in the Senate, and there are 53 Republicans.

Wait, didn't McConnell refuse to hold a hearing for Obama's Supreme Court nominee because it was an election year?

Yes, as Senate leader, he had the power to deny a confirmation hearing for Judge Merrick Garland. After conservative Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016, McConnell said the "American people should have a voice" in deciding on the new justice. That seat was ultimately filled by Trump, who selected Neil M. Gorsuch.

More recently, McConnell has said he would move to fill a Supreme Court vacancy prior to the 2020 election because, he argues, it is a different situation today because the president and the Senate majority party are in agreement, which was not the case in 2016.

What if they can't do it by Nov. 3. Can they do it during the lame-duck session?

Story continues

Yes, though that would be exceedingly rare in modern times.

But McConnell could have reason to hold off on the vote until after election day. A contentious Supreme Court vote could significantly hurt Sen. Susan Collins' reelection battle in Maine. Democrats are frustrated that she supported Trump's last nominee, Brett M. Kavanaugh. Although there are risks: If Democrats win the White House or control of the Senate, McConnell would face even more pressure to not confirm a nominee.





So is it settled? They'll fill the seat?

Not necessarily. First of all, time is short and Democrats are likely to delay as much as possible. Also it remains unclear whether McConnell will have the support of all 53 GOP senators.

Assuming all Democrats vote against confirmation, McConnell would need at least 50 Republicans since Vice President Mike Pence, as president of the Senate, could break any tie.

But already Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) has said she would not vote to confirm a hypothetical nominee. I would not vote to confirm a Supreme Court nominee. We are 50-some days away from an election, she told Alaska Public Radio Friday  before Ginsburg's death was announced.

Sen. Collins may also have concerns. Even Sen. Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.), chairman of the Judiciary Committee  who is also facing a tight reelection  said flatly in 2018 that if a vacancy occurred during the 2020 election year, he would not hold a confirmation hearing, though it's possible he will change that position now.





How important is this seat?

Critical. The bench comprised five conservative-leaning jurists and four liberal-leaning jurists.

Replacing Ginsburg, an icon of the liberal left, with a conservative would mean the court is more likely to overturn Roe vs. Wade, which guarantees the right to abortion, and the Affordable Care Act, the Obama-era healthcare law Republicans have vowed to kill. It could cement the benchs rightward tilt for generations.

And there are potential consequences in the very short term as the country barrels toward an expected contested election. The Supreme Court is the final arbiter in an undecided presidential election.





Whom is Trump considering?

The leading candidate to replace Ginsburg is Judge Amy Coney Barrett, a former law clerk for Scalia and a longtime law professor at Notre Dame University. Trump nominated her to a seat on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago and interviewed her when he was in the process of selecting jurists to replace Scalia and Justice Anthony M. Kennedy. White House lawyers said then they expected Judge Barrett would be nominated if Justice Ginsburg died in office.

Times staff writer David Savage in Washington contributed to this report.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 18) - Fans of the EnRich loveteam have something to look forward to despite the pandemic as the two stars reunited for a 10-part online series.

Actor Enchong Dee shared to CNN Philippines he will star in the online series 'EnRich Originals,' also his reunion project with former on-screen partner Erich Gonzales.

Dee said the online series challenged him as an artist.

"I feel like you have so much responsibility all of a sudden. You're not only the person in front of the camera, you're also the one doing the works behind it," Dee told CNN Philippines' Rico Hizon on Friday.

The 31-year old actor bared he and Gonzales crafted the creative aspects of the episodes, where he shared his own ideas and she inserted his fanaticism on South Korean drama series.

"We did everything on our own houses, our own rooms, and on our personal offices," said Dee.

Dee also thanked their fans, who are the inspiration in the EnRich Originals series because of their clamor for the loveteam to reunite in a project.

"If we get enough funds and we get our investment back, we can start the second season. We may hire other actors in the future to be the lead of their own episode under EnRich Originals," he revealed.

The first episode entitled "You. Me. Maybe." will air on Saturday at 8 p.m. at the EnRich Originals YouTube channel.
Pakistan on Friday rejected Indias demand that an Indian lawyer or a Queens counsel should be appointed for death-row prisoner Kulbhushan Jadhav to ensure a free and fair trial in this country.

Foreign Office spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri, replying to a question during a media briefing, said India has been consistently making the unrealistic demand of allowing a lawyer from outside Pakistan to represent Jadhav, sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court for alleged spying.

Also read: Pak parliament extends ordinance enabling Kulbhushan Jadhav to appeal conviction

We have informed India that only those lawyers are allowed to appear in Pakistani courts who have a license to practice law in Pakistan. This is in line with international legal practice. There can be no change in this position, he said.

Queens Counsel is a barrister or advocate, appointed Counsel to the UK Crown on the recommendation of the Lord Chancellor.

Earlier this month, the Islamabad High Court in Pakistan directed the federal government to give India another chance to appoint a lawyer to represent Jadhav and adjourned hearing for a month.

Pakistans Parliament on Tuesday extended for four months an ordinance that allowed Jadhav to file an appeal against his conviction in a high court as required by the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the government of Pakistan has not been able to fulfil its obligations on implementation of the ICJ judgment in letter and spirit.

Also read: Kulbhushan Jadhav should get an Indian lawyer: Govt

It has not yet addressed the core issues, which include provision of all documents related to the case, providing unconditional and unimpeded consular access to Kulbhusan Jadhav and appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queens counsel to ensure a free and fair trial, he said at an online media briefing on Thursday.

In 2017, India approached the ICJ against Pakistan for denial of consular access to Jadhav and challenging the death sentence handed to him by a military court.

The Hague-based ICJ ruled in July 2019 that Pakistan must undertake an effective review and reconsideration of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav and also to grant consular access to India without further delay.

India has slammed Pakistan for adopting a farcical approach in denying available legal remedies to Jadhav against his death sentence in contravention of the ICJ order.

Fifty-year-old retired Indian Navy officer Jadhav was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism in April 2017.

To a question about elevating Gilgit-Baltistans status to that of a full-fledged province, the Foreign Office spokesperson said that reforms in GB were an ongoing process that include political, administrative and economic reforms.

It (granting status of a province) has been a long-standing demand of the people of Giligit Baltistan.

These reforms will continue in line with the needs of the people of Gilgit Baltistan, he said.

India has clearly conveyed to Pakistan that the entire union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, including the areas of Gilgit and Baltistan, are an integral part of the country by virtue of its fully legal and irrevocable accession.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : As several countries announced nationwide lockdowns in an effort to flatten the curve and break the chain, the coronavirus jolted the entire world into confinement overnight. However, slowly yet steadily countries are opening up with precautions. Local markets are thriving once again, professionals are returning back to their offices, people are excited to step out for morning walks and exercise, amongst a lot of other movements.

Most of all, with air travel taking a backseat, travel-seekers are itching to explore new and exciting domestic destinations, spend time outdoors with their families and friends, or even just kickback and relax into the woods, away from the city and indeed close to nature. After spending months in lockdown, travel aspirations are at an all-time high.

People are opening up to the idea of stepping out of their homes and travel again, however, owing to safety concerns, people are looking for destinations closer to home, a drive away from the city. As per OYO's recent consumer survey highlights that 56 percent of Indians are inclined towards taking roadtrips as lockdowns ease, with a majority of them opting to travel within a motorable distance of 200 kms to neighbouring towns/states.

Given the realities of this ever-evolving normal, states like Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand are opening up for inter-state and inter-district tourists. Here are five must-visit destinations which are a road trip away from Delhi.

Jaipur, Rajasthan

For those who need a much-needed break from city life and never-ending WFH duties, Jaipur is the most ideal destination, just a 4-5 hour drive away. It's scenic atmosphere and old-world charm makes it a perfect location to step out and soak in the sunset, or just stay indoors and obviously, shop for antiques and traditional trinkets. The city's delectable, authentic Marwari food is the cherry on the cake. In Jaipur, you can opt for quality and safe accommodation at 5 by OYO - Metropolitan.

Trip essentials: COVID-19 Negative Certificate

Pre-booked Hotel

E-pass

Downloaded Aarogya Setu App

For more information, visit - http://www.tourism.rajasthan.gov.in/

Dehradun, Uttarakhand

Turn up your engine and hit the hills. At a distance of 245 Kms, driving away from Delhi to Doon is a blissful experience. The roughly six-hour journey is full of scenic mountain views. Plan your trip in advance and hit the roads early, this way you can enjoy a humble cup of chai and some piping hot pakoras at a roadside hotel along the way. For an outdoorsy experience, opt for a unique stay at Riverstone Cottages, perched in the lap of the Dehradun valley at the foothills of Mussoorie.

Trip essentials: COVID-19 Negative Certificate

Pre-booked Hotel

E-pass

Downloaded Aarogya Setu App

For more information, visit - https://uttarakhandtourism.gov.in/document/type/advisory/

Shimla, Himachal Pradesh

Shimla, an all-time favourite for nature lovers is just 341 Kms away from the capital city. One of India's most beautiful hill stations, Shimla's quaint cafes, museums, and nature trails, has a lot to offer tourists looking for a short getaway from the hustle and bustle of city life. Across the town, restaurants and cafes are open at 60 percent capacity for all tourists, thereby ensuring that one does not miss out on their nature-sque dining experience amidst the hills. Set to enjoy a warm cup of hot chocolate on a cold morning while admiring Shimla's historical Victorian architecture? Pack your woolens, scarves and boots and start planning for your next long weekend. For a truly local and relaxing experience, we recommend opting for an authentic, humble, and sanitized homestay for this trip.

Trip essentials: COVID-19 Negative Certificate

Pre-booked Hotel

E-pass

Downloaded Aarogya Setu App

Minimum stay of 2 nights

For more information, visit - https://himachaltourism.gov.in/safety-guidelines-for-tourists-in-himachal-pradesh/

Landsdowne, Uttarakhand

Landsdowne is a quaint little hill located at 258 Kms from Delhi. The best part about this little treasure trove of nature is its weather - just about perfect throughout the year! Covered in a canopy of Oak and Pine forests, and architecture from the colonial era, this town is a dream getaway for anyone looking to break free from their lockdown lives. You can visit Landsdowne for a casual hiking trip, just to soak in the crisp mountain air, or even relax. The hill station boasts of many premier resorts to ensure a comfortable and rejuvenating stay, all while being close to nature.

Trip essentials: COVID-19 Negative Certificate

Pre-booked Hotel

E-pass

Downloaded Aarogya Setu App

For more information, visit - https://uttarakhandtourism.gov.in/document/type/advisory/

McLeodGanj, Himachal Pradesh

For travellers who believe that 'the journey itself is more important than the destination', planning a road trip to McleodGanj is a must. Located almost 474 Kms away from Delhi, it will take around 10-12 hours to reach this lovely hill town. This place is best known for its Tibetan influence, so much so that it is also known as 'Little Lhasa'. McLeodGanj is a vacation that is safe and relaxing.

Be it treks, camping, exploring monasteries, shopping at local markets, or gobbling down a steaming plate of momos at a quaint little cafe on a hilltop, or simply indulging in rejuvenating experiences through yoga and spas, this place is a traveller's paradise.

Trip essentials: COVID-19 Negative Certificate

Pre-booked Hotel

E-pass

Downloaded Aarogya Setu App

Minimum stay of 2 nights

For more information, visit - https://himachaltourism.gov.in/safety-guidelines-for-tourists-in-himachal-pradesh/

As we step outdoors and embrace travelling again, we also need to follow responsible and safe tourism practices. So get packing and hit the roads, but of course with your masks and gloves on and with gallons of hand sanitisers by your side.

(Siddhi Jain can be contacted at siddhi.j@ians.in)

-- Syndicated from IANS
The United States has announced $4 million contribution to the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) and $9.3 million to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), UNICEF, and non-governmental organizations to address the impact of the pandemic on refugees and host communities in Uganda.

This is part of the $46 million total US government assistance in support of Ugandas #Covid-19 response. With these latest contributions, the U S government in 2020 has provided nearly $162 million in refugee humanitarian assistance in Uganda.

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The United States is a longstanding donor assisting refugees and refugee hosting communities in Uganda. We have boosted our assistance during the #Covid-19 pandemic to address the additional needs of vulnerable refugees and the Ugandan communities that so generously host them, US Embassy Kampalas Charge dAffaires Christopher Krafft said. We appreciate the Government of Uganda providing safe haven to those fleeing fighting and persecution in the region, even during these difficult times of the #Covid-19 pandemic.

This emergency humanitarian assistance responded to the joint United Nations appeal to address #Covid-19 needs in Uganda. It includes nearly $6.6 million in funding from the U S Department of State to UNHCRs overall multi-sectoral support for refugees and refugee hosting communities during the pandemic; $590,000 to UNICEF for youth and their care providers $1 million to the International Refugee Committee to assist urban refugees in Kampala whose ability to support themselves has been undermined by necessary pandemic-related lock-down measures; and nearly $700,000 to Alight for protection and Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) assistance related to #Covid-19 in seven refugee settlements in Uganda.
India's demand for appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queen counsel in Kulbhushan Jadhav case rejected by Pakistan. Earlier this month, the Islamabad High Court had directed the federal government to give India another chance to appoint a lawyer to represent Jadhav and adjourned hearing for a month.

Pakistan on Friday rejected Indias demand that an Indian lawyer or a Queen counsel should be appointed in Kulbhushan Jadhav case to ensure a free and fair trial. Allowing a Queens Counsel for Jadhav is out of the question as only a lawyer with a license to practice in Pakistan can appear before the court, Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudri said at a press briefing here.

A Queens Counsel is a barrister or advocate, appointed as counsel to the United Kingdoms Crown on the recommendation of the Lord Chancellor, Geo News reported. Earlier this month, the Islamabad High Court in Pakistan directed the federal government to give India another chance to appoint a lawyer to represent Jadhav and adjourned hearing for a month.

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava on Thursday said that Pakistan has not been able to fulfil its obligations on implementation of ICJ judgment in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case and has not yet addressed core issues including provision of all documents and unimpeded access. Srivastava said at the regular media briefing that Pakistan has also not addressed the appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queens counsel to ensure a free and fair trial for Jadhav.

Also Read: NIA arrests 9 terrorists with links to Al-Qaeda in multiple raids from Kerala, West Bengal

Also Read: Army finds that three killed in Shopian encounter were labourers, promises to take action

The Government of Pakistan has not been able to fulfil its obligations on implementation of the ICJ judgment in letter and spirit. It has not yet addressed the core issues, which includes the provision of all documents related to the case, providing unconditional and unimpeded consular access to Kulbhusan Jadhav and appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queens counsel to ensure a free and fair trial, he said.

Geo News had last week cited Pakistan Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri as saying that there was no other option for India but to cooperate with Pakistani courts, which only permit the appearance of locally registered lawyers before the bench.

India has said Pakistan should provide for an unimpeded, unhindered and unconditional consular access and that the meeting of Indian officials with Jadhav should take place in an atmosphere free from fear of retribution. India has also said that any conversation between Jadhav and High Commission officials must necessarily take place in privacy and without the presence of any Pakistani official or recording by Pakistan.

Pakistan claims that Jadhav was arrested from Balochistan in 2016 on charges of espionage. India has rejected Pakistans allegations and said he was kidnapped from the Iranian port of Chabahar. In early 2017, a Pakistani military court sentenced him to death. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) had upheld Indias claim that Pakistan has committed an egregious violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations on several counts. (ANI)

Also Read: PM Modi to attend two debates in this years historic UNGA session: TS Tirumurti
The NSW Nationals have been accused of branch-stacking and then dissolving a rural branch after members raised questions about the preselection process of a state MP.

The MP, Gurmesh Singh, was selected at a November 2018 meeting for the seat of Coffs Harbour. But office holders of one of the seat's two branches raised doubts about the voting process and his eligibility.

Barry Lee, the former chairman of the Orara Valley Nationals branch, who says he is 'dumbfounded' by the actions of his party in the Coffs Harbour area. Credit:Kate Geraghty

Members of the Orara Valley branch, who had raised the questions, say they turned up to their annual general meeting in July 2019 only to find their numbers had suddenly swelled by almost double.

The newcomers included Andrew Fraser, Mr Singh's predecessor as MP for Coffs Harbour and currently chairman of NSW Nationals. They intervened to spill existing office holders before the meeting ended in chaos.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg's dying wish was not to be replaced until a new president is installed. Read more

The country has experienced a seismic loss in the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

On Friday night, the eve of the Jewish new year, Rosh Hashanah, the 87-year-old known as RBG  and in recent years, Notorious RBG  lost her yearslong battle with pancreatic cancer. Only the second woman appointed to the highest court, RBG became a liberal and feminist icon. She started her legal career as an advocate for gender equality and womens rights. She was nominated by President Jimmy Carter to the D.C. Circuit Court in 1980 and by President Bill Clinton to the Supreme Court in 1993.

 READ MORE: How Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death could reshape the presidential campaign

In her nearly 30 years on the court, Ginsburg wrote landmark majority opinions and dissents on a range of issues, particularly centered on gender equality, reproductive rights, and civil rights. She was especially known for her memorable dissenting opinions. These fierce, persuasive and brilliantly reasoned defenses of the rights of others reflected her belief that dissent speaks to a future age" and that the greatest dissents do become court opinions.

Recently, she dissented in Little Sisters of the Poor v. Pennsylvania, in which the Court upheld a Trump regulation that gave employers the right to deny employees no-cost coverage of birth control due to moral or religious objections. Ginsburg, one of the two justices in the minority, wrote: Today, for the first time, the Court casts totally aside countervailing rights and interests in its zeal to secure religious rights to the nth degree.

 READ MORE: Ruth Bader Ginsburg lauded in Philly as a legal and feminist icon whose voice soared above the rest

Also notable was her dissent in a decision that cast down parts of the Voting Rights Act, where she wrote, Throwing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet.

Generations of Americans live in a more equitable society, albeit still imperfect, thanks to Ruth Bader Ginsburgs work as a litigant in front of the Supreme Court and a justice on the bench  including generations of women who have more access to safe and legal abortion, more likelihood of equal pay, and an enduring role model for fairness and justice.

 READ MORE: Sen. Pat Toomey took a stance on Obamas last Supreme Court nominee. Hell face pressure to stick to it now.

Ginsburgs loss is monumental  and in the coming weeks the battle over filling her seat will also be massive. Though there are just over 40 days before the election, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has vowed that Trumps nominee will get a vote on the Senate floor despite a refusal to grant even a hearing to Merrick Garland, whom President Barack Obama nominated in March 2016, on the grounds it was too soon before an election. Then McConnell said on election year nominations: The American people are perfectly capable of having their say on this issue, so lets give them a voice.

Pennsylvania Republican Senator Pat Toomey agreed: This is a decision that should be made with the maximum input of the American people, and thats achieved by allowing the next president to make this decision.

RBGs dying wish was not to be replaced until a new president is installed. Trump and Senate Republicans should honor both her wishes and her legacy and not even think about filling her seat.
Protesters were gathering Saturday in Bangkok for the most ambitious rally so far in a pro-democracy campaign that has shaken up the government and Thailand's conservative establishment.

Organisers are predicting as many as 50,000 will show up and march over two days in an area of the capital historically associated with political

An estimated 10,000 people turned out for the last major rally on August 16, and this time, opposition political parties are expected to join and mobilize supporters from other provinces.

Demonstrators ignored a Thursday night plea from Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha to cancel the event, which he said risked spreading the coronavirius and derailing recovery of the battered economy.

The core demands declared by the protesters in July were the dissolution of parliament with fresh elections, a new constitution and an end to intimidation of political activists.

They believe Prayuth, who as then-army commander led a 2014 coup toppling an elected government, was returned to power unfairly in last year's general election because the laws had been changed to favor a pro-military party.

A constitution promulgated under military rule is likewise undemocratic, they charge.

The mostly student activists raised the stakes dramatically during the August 10 rally by issuing a 10-point manifesto calling for reforming the monarchy.

Their demands seek to limit the king's powers, establish tighter controls on palace finances and allow open discussion of the monarchy.

Their boldness was virtually unprecedented, as the monarchy is considered sacrosanct in Thailand, and any criticism is normally kept private.

A lese majeste law calls for a prison sentence of three to 15 years for anyone found guilty of defaming the royal institution.

Too young to have been caught up in the sometimes violent partisan political battles that roiled a decade ago, the students have been doing it mostly by themselves, producing some radical demands and refreshingly different protests, Kevin Hewison, a professor emeritus of the University of North Carolina and veteran Thai studies scholar, said in an email interview.

This is why they look and act differently and why they are so confounding for the regime, he said.

What the regime and its supporters see is relatively well-off kids turned against them and this confounds them.

At least 8,000 police are reportedly being deployed for the weekend protest, and prospects for confrontations appear high.

Protest organisers have been said they will use Thammasat University and the adjacent field known as Sanam Luang as the rally venue, but so far they have been denied permission to do so.

Arrests on charges including sedition for earlier actions have failed to faze the young activists.

They appear fed up with the regime, its tactics of threat and charging, and it is clear that even among the young, they have thought about this and prepared for some of their leaders to be taken away, said Hewison.

Students launched the protest movement in February, with rallies at universities around the country in reaction to a court ruling dissolving the popular Future Forward Party, and banning its leaders from political activity for 10 years.

The party won the third-highest number of seats in last year's general election with an anti-establishment stance that attracted younger voters, and it is widely seen as being targeted for its popularity and for being critical of the government and the military.

But public were suspended in March when had its first major outbreaks of the coronavirus and the government declared a state of emergency to cope with it.

The emergency decree is still in effect, and critics allege it is used to curb dissent.

Royalists have expressed shock at the students' talk about the monarchy.

Army commander Gen. Apirat Kongsompong indirectly but harshly criticised the protesters, declaring in a speech to military cadets that COVID-19 can be cured ... but the disease that cannot be cured is the hatred of the nation.

But actual blowback so far has been minor, with only half-hearted organising efforts by largely aging royalists.

(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.)
(Newser)  It's being called "the largest Rochester shooting in memory." Police in the upstate New York city responded to a 911 call early Saturday after reports of a shooting, and what they found was tragic: two young adults killed and 14 wounded at a backyard house party, per the Democrat & Chronicle. Acting Police Chief Mark Simmons says police found a "very chaotic scene" when they arrived at the Marketview Heights residence, with people scattering and multiple people shot. The two deceased victims haven't yet been identified until next of kin can be notified; WROC puts their ages as being between 18 and 22, per Simmons. "This is truly a tragedy of epic proportions, if you ask me," Simmons said at the scene early Saturday, per the Democrat & Chronicle. "I mean, 16 victims is unheard of."

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Simmons also decried what he says have been "illegal and unsanctioned house parties" under a still-in-effect ban on nighttime public gatherings of more than five people, issued by Mayor Lovely Warren in July. Police are staying mum about a possible motive or weapons used, though officials did say in a statement that "several dozen rounds were fired," per WROC. Simmons adds that it's too soon to determine if the shooting was targeted or random, 13WHAM reports. There were no suspects in custody as of later Saturday morning. The 14 wounded are all said to be in stable condition at area hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries, per police. (Tensions between the Rochester Police Department and the Black community in Rochester have been running high.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 12:33:54|Editor: huaxia

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PRETORIA, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- South Africa should emulate China on how to expand its industrial base by using the special economic zones, a South African business leader said on Friday.

South Africa needed urgent aggressive infrastructure investment, re-industrialization, export promotion and enabling conditions and a supportive policy environment, said Sipho Pityana, president of the Business Unity South Africa (BUSA), at the organization's 2020 annual meeting.

"China created a low-cost manufacturing base through special economic zones following its admission into the World Trade Organization, with spectacular success," said Pityana.

He warned that if the country failed to prioritize the urgent needs, they will forever be indebted to the International Monetary Fund with all the conditionalities.

"An educated and skilled workforce was key ... the nut to crack is to identify the comparative advantage of our country and ensure that our potential is matched with the requisite education and training and projected labour market demands," Pityana said.

BUSA is a non-profit organization, representing organized business in South Africa. It consists of 36 organizational members. Enditem
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 10:31 490 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45e0d49 1 Art & Culture Made-in-Cirebon,Korean-Arts-and-Culture-Education-Services,Arcolabs,Cirebon,Education Free

One hundred students from SMPN 1 state junior high school in Cirebon, West Java, have joined an exchange program initiated by the Korea Arts and Culture Education Services (KACES).

Held from May to September, the Made in Cirebon program features several online and offline art workshops and involves not only students as participants but also teachers and local artists.

Communications agency PT Ki Kunci Komunikasi, the Center for Art and Community Management (ARCOLABS), the Cirebon administration and the city's art education institution Sinau Art are among the groups working with KACES for the program.

SMPN 1 principal Lilik Agus Darmawan said in a statement that he hoped the workshops would inspire teachers to improve their skills and knowledge, particularly in teaching and learning models. The purpose of education is to cultivate a creative mindset, meaning that we cant use the same methods over and over again. These workshops are just starting points to produce a more integrated learning module that combines art, culture and history, along with current issues that were all facing," Lilik added.

Sinau Art coordinator Nico Broer was hopeful that the program would make art more accessible. With these workshops, we learn how to explore artistic approaches to different methods, which can be fun and enjoyable for school children to learn, said Nico.

Cirebon was selected for the program because of its rich cultural heritage.

Its very interesting to see the opportunities for arts and culture educational content that can be developed from a city that is so multicultural and has strong traditional roots, said KACES director of international affairs Serin Kim Hong.

All the participants will present their learning outcomes at the programs final presentation and closing ceremony, which will be livestreamed on ARCOLABS YouTube channel and on Instagram Live on Sept. 25.

Established in 2005, KACES aims to promote cultural enrichment and enhance national capacities for culture by providing access to arts and culture education. (wir/kes)
President Trumps plan to severely restrict the popular WeChat and TikTok apps could be viewed as a tit-for-tat for Chinas yearslong prohibition of American services like Facebook and Google. But Id like to think were better than that.

The president has cited security concerns in his quest to force the sale of the U.S. operations of TikTok to an American firm, setting off a bidding war that reached its nadir when he called for a fee to be paid to the Treasury Department for consummating a deal.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, in a statement, said the decision was in the course of promoting our national values, democratic rules-based norms, and aggressive enforcement of U.S. laws and regulations.

But President Trumps effort to force the issue seems oddly personal, particularly given the scant public evidence so far that the Chinese government has infiltrated the apps to spy on Americans. And it flies in the face of a deeply held American value: freedom of speech. Perhaps the president is still sore that TikTok users claimed that they helped spoil his June rally in Tulsa, Okla., for which he had boasted that almost one million people requested tickets.
The announcement marks a sharp reversal from the presidents past approach toward disaster aid for the U.S. territory, assistance that Trump and his administration had held up even as the island struggled to recover from hurricane Maria, which ravaged it in September 2017. Since that storm ripped across the island, Trump has repeatedly said he didnt want more aid sent to Puerto Rico, publicly questioned the hurricane death toll and called the territorys leaders corrupt while trading insults with some of them as they pushed Washington for more assistance.
The birds  like the Sandhill Cranes above  are heading south. Say hello to them for Kris and me when you see some. Most wont greet you back, but dont take it as ingratitude. Theyre busy.

My favorite bookstore in the USA:

We are only about two weeks away from the September 29 publication date of my book Live Not By Lies  a book who subject matter (how to resist the coming soft totalitarianism) is becoming ever more relevant. I want to encourage readers to pre-order it from Eighth Day Books, the worlds greatest bookstore. The New York Times once profiled Eighth Day here. Excerpts: Eighth Day Books lives in an old three-story house on Douglas Avenue, just east of C&R Comics and Superior Rubber Stamp. It is not exactly a Christian bookstore  while sitting at the communal table, I can pull off the shelf works like Greil Marcuss The History of Rock n Roll in Ten Songs or scoot my chair a couple of feet and grab, Laura Hillenbrands Unbroken. Still, the stores name, Eighth Day, serves as a secret handshake among Christian book lovers, and its following reaches far beyond the heartland city it serves. Popular Christian writers like Lauren F. Winner and Rod Dreher are fans and erstwhile visitors. On one wall hangs a picture of Kallistos Ware, an Eastern Orthodox bishop and theologian, taken during his visit in 2002. Warren Farha, 59, gray-haired and laconic, is the stores founder, custodian, clerk and sole book buyer, a job that is more complex than it would be at a typical independent bookstore. The stores shelves are divided into sections like Monastic Writings & Studies, Patristic Writings & Studies and C. S. Lewis & Friends, and filled only with books Mr. Farha would read. So no cooking or travel. Yes, Hillenbrand is on the shelves. But it is Mr. Farhas more eccentric tastes that mark his store. We order a lot of university press stuff, and Christian presses, of course, but since we try to carry a deep selection of Catholic and Orthodox literature, sometimes were ordering from monasteries, Mr. Farha, said. Monasteries that publish books. Quite a few of our books are English translations, but published by some monasteries in Greece  books by abbots living in monasteries on Mount Athos.

Visit my friend Graham Hills site.

What? No peeps?

BETHLEHEM, Pa. (AP)  Peeps treats are going on hiatus for several months  another consequence of the coronavirus pandemic. Just Born Quality Confections said it wont be producing the popular marshmallow sweets for Halloween, Christmas or Valentines Day as the Bethlehem, Pennsylvania-based company prepares for next Easter, PennLive.com reports. Production of the holiday-shaped candies was suspended in the spring as the coronavirus spread across the state. Limited production resumed in mid-May with protocols in place to protect employees, Just Born said. This situation resulted in us having to make the difficult decision to forego production of our seasonal candies for Halloween, Christmas and Valentines Day in order to focus on meeting the expected overwhelming demand for Peeps for next Easter season, as well as our everyday candies, the company said.

What parts of the Bible pass the Bechdel Test? [An excellent example of what is called presentism but still interesting.]

Sometimes a friends tweet can send you down the internet rabbit hole in the best way possible. This is one of those times. A few weeks ago, my friend Amy Peterson (please read her fantastic books) asked a question on Twitter about whether there are any scenes in the Bible which meet the Bechdel-Wallace test. Amy offered a preliminary answer and so did some other friends, including Jessica Hooten Wilson. This intrigued me and made me want to fire up a code editor to look into the question more deeply. In case youre not familiar with it, the Bechdel-Wallace test is a measure of the representation of women in movies and books. It is based on a comic by Alison Bechdel that suggests a work must contain a scene with (1) at least two women, (2) who talk to each other, (3) about something other than a man. Though it wasnt in the original comic, many also agree that both characters must have names. The films in the Star Wars can serve as an example of the tests usefulness. The first Star Wars movie was praised for presenting a strong female character in Princess Leia. However, the only other named character in the movie is Aunt Beru, but she and Leia never meet or talk, so the film fails the Bechdel test. In contrast, The Force Awakens (episode VII) includes a scene in which Rey and Maz Kanata discuss Reys destiny and the Force, which passes all three elements of the Bechdel test (see below for some disputes about this). It has been pointed out that the Bechdel test has its limitationsa bad piece of art can can pass it (some argue that the Sir Mix-a-Lot song Baby Got Back could pass) and a good film could fail it (Gravity has a female protagonist but very few characters)but it remains a helpful shorthand for evaluating representation and bias.

What is Covid-19 doing to public school teacher resignations and subs?

INDIANAPOLIS (AP)  With many teachers opting out of returning to the classroom because of the coronavirus, schools around the U.S. are scrambling to find replacements and in some places lowering certification requirements to help get substitutes in the door. Several states have seen surges in educators filing for retirement or taking leaves of absence. The departures are straining staff in places that were dealing with shortages of teachers and substitutes even before the pandemic created an education crisis. Among those leaving is Kay Orzechowicz, an English teacher at northwest Indianas Griffith High School, who at 57 had hoped to teach for a few more years. But she felt her schools leadership was not fully committed to ensuring proper social distancing and worried that not enough safety equipment would be provided for students and teachers. Add the technology requirements and the pressure to record classes on video, and Orzechowicz said it just wasnt what I signed up for when I became a teacher. Overall, there was just this utter disrespect for teachers and their lives, she said. Were expected to be going back with so little. When school leaders said teachers would be going back in-person, full throttle, thats when I said, Im not doing it. No. Teachers in at least three states have died after bouts with the coronavirus since the start of the new school year. Its unclear how many teachers in the U.S. have become ill with COVID-19, but Mississippi alone reported 604 cases among teachers and staff. In cases where teachers are exposed to the virus, they could face pressure to return to the classroom. The Trump administration has declared teachers to be critical infrastructure workers in guidance that could give the green light to exempting them from quarantine requirements. Throughout Indiana, more than 600 teacher retirements have been submitted since July, according to state data. Although the state gets most of its teacher retirements during the summer, surveys suggest more retirements than usual could happen as the calendar year progresses, said Trish Whitcomb, executive director of the Indiana Retired Teachers Association. Ive gotten more (teachers) calling me back saying, Well, Im going to go ahead and retire, Whitcomb said. Some still wanted to go back in the classroom, but they didnt think the risk was worth it. They looked at their grandkids and the life they have, and I think theyre saying, Im just not going to do it. In Salt Lake County, Utah, the states most populated metropolitan area, more than 80 teachers have either resigned or retired early because of concerns about COVID-19 in schools. More than half of those happened in one of the countys five school districts, Granite School District. All of the districts teachers who left were fined $1,000 for failing to give 30 days notice.

What happened to Karen King?

(CNN)In 2012 Karen King, a prestigious scholar at Harvard Divinity School, announced the academic discovery of a lifetime: a scrap of papyrus, purportedly from the early days of Christianity, in which Jesus refers to a woman as "my wife." The text also includes the words "Mary" and "she is able to be my disciple." It seemed, at first, like a blockbuster finding for feminist scholars and an existential threat to the Catholic Church's all-male priesthood. King, who unveiled her find just steps from the Vatican, thought the fragment could validate her life's work: claiming a place for women in the early days of Christianity. But instead of overturning years of religious scholarship, King's "discovery" capsized her career. The "Gospel of Jesus' Wife," as King called it, was exposed by scholars as fake, and the prestigious professor's name has become a watchword for academics hoodwinked by con men. In 2016, after journalist Ariel Sabar published an article in The Atlantic uncovering the ownership history of the "Jesus' Wife" fragment, King herself publicly acknowledged the papyrus is likely a forgery. Four years later Sabar is back with the fascinating full story in his new book, "Veritas: A Harvard Professor, a Con Man and the Gospel of Jesus' Wife." Sabar painstakingly unspools the threads that lead to King's demise, seeking to explain why she would stake her reputation on promises from a mysterious Florida man. You can see evidence of the fragment's fakeness on Sabar's website.

Frisky Orcas:

Scientists have been left baffled by incidents of orcas ramming sailing boats along the Spanish and Portuguese coasts. In the last two months, from southern to northern Spain, sailors have sent distress calls after worrying encounters. Two boats lost part of their rudders, at least one crew member suffered bruising from the impact of the ramming, and several boats sustained serious damage. The latest incident occurred on Friday afternoon just off A Coruna, on the northern coast of Spain. Halcyon Yachts was taking a 36ft boat to the UK when an orca rammed its stern at least 15 times, according to Pete Green, the companys managing director. The boat lost steering and was towed into port to assess damage. Around the same time there were radio warnings of orca sightings 70 miles south, at Vigo, near the site of at least two recent collisions. On 30 August, a French-flagged vessel radioed the coastguard to say it was under attack from killer whales. Later that day, a Spanish naval yacht, Mirfak, lost part of its rudder after an encounter with orcas under the stern.

Sad to read this about birds:

(CNN)Biologists at New Mexico State University are trying to find out why hundreds of thousands of migratory birds have been found dead across the state. The mystery started August 20 with the discovery of a large number of dead birds at the US Army White Sands Missile Range and White Sands National Monument, according to Martha Desmond, a professor at the university's department of fish, wildlife and conservation ecology. What was first believed to be an isolated incident turned out to be a much more serious problem when hundreds more dead birds were found in regions across the state. including Dona Ana County, Jemez Pueblo, Roswell and Socorro. "It's just terrible," Desmond told CNN. "The number is in the six figures. Just by looking at the scope of what we're seeing, we know this is a very large event, hundreds of thousands and maybe even millions of dead birds, and we're looking at the higher end of that." Dead migratory birds -- which include species such as warblers, bluebirds, sparrows, blackbirds, the western wood pewee and flycatchers -- are also being found in Colorado, Texas and Mexico.

Adult children working from parents home:

Nearly 30 million Americans are spending their 20s in the same place they spent their grade school years: at home with their parents. The big picture: For the first time since the Great Depression, the majority of 18- to 29-year-olds have moved back home. Those living arrangements can come with a great deal of awkwardness and pain, but families across America are making the most of it. "Im worried about it," says Jeffrey Arnett, a psychologist at Clark University, who coined the term "emerging adults" for 18- to 29-year olds. "I think we all should be. The rates of being depressed and anxious have really gone up among emerging adults." Reasons for moving home vary. The coronavirus recession has hit young people especially hard, and many are living with family because they've lost their jobs or haven't been able to find work after college or grad school. Others wanted some company during lockdowns. "You cant imagine how great it is to hear that Im in the majority of my generation," says Elsa Anschuetz, a 24-year-old working in public relations out of her childhood bedroom. "It is definitely not where I thought Id be at this stage in my life, but, at least to me, it is definitely better than living in an apartment alone during this crazy pandemic." "My friends who are at home or with friends in large roommate groups seem to be faring better than people on their own," says Alex Jang, a consultant in his early 20s who's living with his parents, grandparents, girlfriend and dogs in Orinda, California.

Socially distanced Halloween, why not?!
Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu By

The Goods and Services Tax subsumed 47% of gross tax revenues of states but only 31% of the Centres. To make up for this loss of revenue, the mechanism of compensation to states was devised. This was enshrined in the Constitution (One Hundred and First) Amendment Act, 2016, and later in the GST (Compensation to States) Act, 2017. States were assured a 14% annual increment in their tax revenues over the base year, FY 2016.

If revenue growth did not keep pace, states were to be compensated out of the GST Compensation Fund. This Fund draws its resources from a cess levied on sin and luxury goods like cigarettes and SUVs.

While this compensation is important for all states, it has even more salience for Andhra Pradesh. The bifurcation crippled our finances with the dual strikes of public debt of Rs 97,000 crore and revenue deficit of Rs 13,776 crore. The final nail in the coffin was the betrayal of the former chief minister on securing the promise of Special Category Status. In this context, GST compensation is an important tool to maintain revenue growth. However, payments were delayed last year and have stopped this year.

Today, the state is facing historic pressures on the revenue and expenditure side. While the State GST Collections were down 42% YOY in Q1, expenditure has been front-loaded to fight the pandemic. These pressures, coupled with unpaid bills to the tune of Rs 60,000 crore from the previous TDP government led by Chandrababu Naidu, have put state finances under immense strain. The Centres insistence that states borrow the GST Compensation shortfall is simply untenable for Andhra Pradesh. The state has a budgeted fiscal deficit of 4.78% in FY 2021, which is in touching distance of the revised FRBM borrowing limit of 5%.

Existing fiscal resources have already been committed to ensuring peoples welfare in these hard times. A two-pronged strategy of cash transfers and infrastructure investments financed by higher borrowing under revised FRBM limits has been undertaken to drive the state out of the Covid crisis. First, cash transfers are being undertaken with schemes like YSR Cheyutha, Aasara, Jagananna Vidya Deevana, Vahana Mitra, Amma Vodi, YSR Navodayam, Nethanna Nestham and Rythu Bharosa. This has created a safety net for poor and backward families by targeting sectors like education, child healthcare, agriculture and industry. Targeted cash transfer is a proven welfare policy and is being employed by advanced economies like the US and Australia. The state has also secured the livelihoods of the poor by generating more than 20 crore person-days of work this year under the MGNREGS.

Second, infrastructure investments in education, power and irrigation are establishing the foundation for sustained economic growth. Water resources are being developed at a cost of Rs 11,805 crore through drought mitigation projects like the Palnadu and Rayalaseema Scheme. The Polavaram project is being completed in mission mode at a total cost of Rs 55,000 crore. Our hard-working farmers shall bear the fruits of this irrigation infrastructure for years to come. Be it upgrading 15,715 schools at a cost of Rs 3,000 crore under the Nadu Nedu scheme or building a 10 GW solar plant at an investment of Rs 35,000 crore, higher capital expenditure is going to improve growth.

This is in line with the prescriptions of experts, who have advocated for greater investments in infrastructure acting as the Keynesian multiplier. The state has also gone beyond conventional revenue sources to raise resources. Land parcels are being e-auctioned transparently at a premium over the market rate under Mission Build AP. Power and construction contracts finalised at exorbitant rates by the former TDP government are being renegotiated. After exhausting all options, the state is raising the FRBM borrowing limits from 3% to 5% by undertaking reforms in power distribution, urban local body revenue, ease of doing business and One Nation One Ration Card.

While the opposition has raised questions, they ignore the fact that in a time of crisis, even the Centre is looking to mop up Rs 2.1 lakh crore by disinvesting in PSUs like the LIC .The current economic slowdown coupled with higher expenditure shall widen the deficits for many states and the Centre. Unfortunately, this is a reality that Andhra Pradesh has been living with since it was bifurcated against its wishes. The Centre must take cognisance of the historical injustice dealt out to the people of Andhra and reconsider its proposal to make states borrow the GST Compensation shortfall.

Additional borrowings will worsen Andhras already worrisome finances and levy a burdensome cost on the future. Finally, the Centre must also move decisively and bestow Special Category Status on the state. Yet, even among these dark clouds, there continue to be silver linings. A predominantly agrarian economy boosted by bountiful rains will mitigate the impact of a national recession.

Cash transfers and infrastructure investments undertaken by the state government will further secure the people. Underlying all the steps taken by the Andhra Pradesh government is a recognition of the responsibilities bestowed on it by the people. The historic mandate of 2019 carried with it the hopes of a people who had been ignored for years by the TDP government. As a credible leader, Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy has recognised these expectations and taken measures that will secure peoples well-being in these turbulent times.

Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu

YSRCP MP from Narasaraopet, Andhra Pradesh

(krishna.lavu@yahoo.in)
BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 19

By Elnur Baghishov  Trend:

As many as 2,845 people have been infected with the coronavirus (COVID-19) in the past 24 hours in Iran, said Sima Sadat Lari, spokesperson for Iran's Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Trend reports citing the ministry.

According to Sadat Lari, 166 more people have died from the coronavirus over the past day.

Sadat Lari added that the condition of 3,893 people is critical.

The official said that Iran's Tehran, Mazandaran, Gilan, Qom, Isfahan, Razavi Khorasan, East Azerbaijan, Kerman, North Khorasan, Semnan, Yazd, Zanjan, and Qazvin provinces are considered 'red' zones.

So far, more than 3.71 million tests have been conducted in Iran for the diagnosis of coronavirus.

Iran continues to monitor the coronavirus situation in the country. According to recent reports from the Iranian officials, over 419,000 people have been infected, and 24,118 people have already died. Meanwhile, over 357,600 have reportedly recovered from the disease.

The country continues to apply strict measures to contain further spread. Reportedly, the disease was brought to Iran by a businessman from Iran's Qom city, who went on a business trip to China, despite official warnings. The man died later from the disease.

The Islamic Republic only announced its first infections and deaths from the coronavirus on Feb. 19.

The outbreak in the Chinese city of Wuhan - which is an international transport hub - began at a fish market in late December 2019.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11 declared COVID-19 a pandemic. Some sources claim the coronavirus outbreak started as early as November 2019.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 15:37:03|Editor: huaxia

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China's Spring Airlines received the delivery of its first Airbus A321neo aircraft on Friday. The 240-seat aircraft was assembled in Hamburg, Germany. It will serve domestic flights of Spring Airlines. The Airbus A321neo aircraft is the largest member of the A320 family of aircraft, which has the widest cabin in a single-aisle aircraft.
The Fairfield at the centre of Knocknagree Village has for generations set the scene for a whole kaleidoscope of events, such as the famous Knocknagree Races and Fairs in olden times, and in the modern era has been the perfect location for various concerts and community get togethers.

However, on last Sunday, echoing a newly emerging trend countrywide due to Covid, the Fairfield was the backdrop for the first ever drive-in bingo in the village.

Knocknagree Community Development Group hosted the event as a fundraiser for a proposed Community Hub, which is currently awaiting planning permission.

"We are trying to market our Community Hub that we are hoping to build, the terms and conditions for securing funding is that we need to raise just 10% of the proposed cost," committee member Yvonne Brosnan said.

"This Building, which will incorporate an indoor gymnasium, a shop and a cafe, will complement our Village which looks really well at present thanks to our Fairfield and Tidy Towns Groups. We need our community to understand this, and also to realise that grant approvals have never been more favourable due to the times we are in," Yvonne added.

Bingo fans from surrounding areas, and some travelling from further afield, tuned their radios to hear the velvety tones of Lord Mayor Laurence Hickey calling bingo numbers across the airwaves. Laurence was ably assisted by his sound engineer, John Prendiville and supervisor Mairead Murphy.

A large number of volunteers from the Knocknagree Community Development Group were present to assist bingo players. People were adhering to social distancing at all times and were more than co-operative in this regard.

Altogether 1,250 was given out in cash prices, including a jackpot prize of 400. The raffle draw also proved very popular.

The feel good atmosphere was enhanced by the good weather and an enthusiastic bingo following, who were more than happy to honk their horns at the right times.

Knocknagree Community Development Group thank all bingo players, sponsors, supporters and volunteers and look forward to hosting Drive-In Bingo again on Sunday, October 11th at1pm - on that day they are promising even bigger and better prizes!
Augustawestland: CBI chargesheets Michel, Rajeev Saxena

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 19: The Central Bureau of Investigation has filed a supplementary chargesheet against key middlemen, Christian Michel James, Rajeev Saxena and 13 others in connection with the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper case.

In its April Chargesheet filed last year, the Enforcement Directorate had named Michel in its chargesheet. The ED has been probing the flow of money in the AgustaWestland deal and how Michel was paid huge sums of cash to be paid as kickbacks in India.

During the course of the investigation, the ED had identified the various companies that were set up by Michel. The ED says that these companies had become fronts only to move money into India.

AugstaWestland: Michel a flight risk says Delhi court

Several companies such as Global Services FZE were set up. This company was in fact initially set up to keep tabs on the media and report the narrative regarding the VVIP chopper deal. Michel had also been identified by the Italian investigators.

It was found that he had received a total of Rs 330 crore from AgustaWestland which were to be paid as kickbacks in India to swing the deal in their favour. One of the main reasons for the money being paid was to influence a decision on the altitude ceiling height for the choppers. This was eventually done following which the deal was cracked.

The ED has not been able to question Michel a British national believed to be residing in Dubai. Although he had offered to depose, the ED states that no such offer was made to them.

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

During the probe the ED also identified several benami properties that were purchased by Michel while he was in India. Among them was a flat in Safdarjung Enclave, New Delhi, a fixed deposit of Rs 54 lakh and also a luxury car.
US Senator Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) speaks at a hearing on prevention and response to sexual assault in the military, in Washington, on March 6, 2019. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)

Cruz, McSally Back Senate Vote to Confirm Replacement for Ginsburg, Democrats Push Back

Republican senators late Friday urged President Donald Trump to nominate a Supreme Court justice to fill the seat vacated by the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

This U.S. Senate should vote on President Trumps next nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, Sen. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) wrote on Twitter.

I believe the president should next week nominate a successor to the court and I think it is critical the Senate takes up and confirms that successor before election day, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) told Foxs Sean Hannity. This nomination is why Donald Trump was elected.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) speaks to media in the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 28, 2020. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

Ginsburg passed away on Friday evening surrounded by her family in her home in Washington, D.C., according to a statement from the Supreme Court. She died of complications from cancer, which she has battled for years.

Related Coverage Trump Unveils Expanded List of Potential Future Supreme Court Nominees

President Donald Trump, who recently announced a list of additional potential Supreme Court nominees, responded to the passing of Ginsburgs after learning of the news from reporters on a tarmac in Minnesota.

She just died? Wow. I didnt know that. I justYoure telling me now for the first time. She led an amazing life, what else can you say? She was an amazing woman, whether you agree or not, she was an amazing woman who led an amazing life, the president said. Im actually sad to hear that. Im sad to hear that.

Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.), the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, wrote on Twitter that the Senate should not vote on a nominee until the winner of the election on Nov. 3 is inaugurated.

Under no circumstances should the Senate consider a replacement for Justice Ginsburg until after the presidential inauguration, Feinstein wrote. Senator [Mitch] McConnell made his position clear in 2016 when he held Justice Scalias seat vacant for 10 months to deny President Obama an appointment.

The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) wrote on Twitter.

Related Coverage Biden Says Ginsburgs Successor Should Be Chosen by Election Winner

McConnell, after offering his condolences, said in a statement that Trumps nominee will get a vote on the Senate floor. In addressing expected criticism based on GOP blocking Obamas nominee for the seat vacated by Scalia, he pointed out that no Senate since the 1880s has confirmed an opposite partys Supreme Court nominee in an election year.

If Republicans go forward and reverse the precedent they set in 2016, the Senate will never, ever be the same. It will be changed forever, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) wrote on Twitter. I pray tonight that at least a few of my Republican colleagues understand this.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in Washington, on Feb. 19, 2020. (Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for DVF)

Days before her death, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dictated a wish about her potential replacement to her granddaughter.

My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed, Ginsburg said, according to NPR.

Senators Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) did not address the potential of a Supreme Court nomination and a Senate vote in their statements on Ginsburgs passing.

The most difficult months in a generation are now upon us. Pray that God protect our country and provide wisdom to our people, Rubio wrote on Twitter.

At least a dozen Democrat senators, including Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Sen. Pat Leahy (D-Vt.) and Sen. Chris Coons. (D-De.), took to Twitter and echoed the opposition voiced my Feinstein and Schumer.
Dublin came under tighter restrictions on Saturday following a surge in the number of cases.

Archbishop Diarmuid Martin said the spread of the virus has reached serious levels and constitutes a real risk of radically increased infection within the community.

In many cases, the increase in numbers is due to gatherings within households and communities, he said.

That is the reason why the public health authorities are stressing the urgent need to reduce the number of contacts that each one of us has in this period.

Reducing contacts requires a specific effort on the part of each of us to deliberately change the number of people with whom we would normally come into contact.

This is as important in the current situation as the need for face masks, social distancing and hand-washing.

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Restrictions in Dublin city and county include a limit on public worship.

Archbishop Martin paid tribute to the extraordinary effort of parishes in adapting church buildings and reducing attendance.

Thank God, there has been no indication of the virus being spread in worshipping communities, he said.

However, the situation today has changed and the measures introduced, no matter how they may sadden us, are appropriate at this time.

He also cautioned against the rushing of First Communions and Confirmations.

I understand the disappointment of families who had been ready for the celebration of First Communion and Confirmation and find them postponed, he said.

Unfortunately, they cannot take place during the current period. Places of worship must remain closed except for private prayer as well as for limited attendance at funerals and weddings.

I am also worried about parishes taking initiatives to get First Communions and Confirmations done.

The idea that sacramental acts have to be done quickly and can be done outside the normal liturgical situation is false. There is no urgent need to celebrate these sacraments just because they fit into the school calendar.

This would reduce the Eucharist to a commodity. First Communion and Confirmation ought to be celebrated through personal participation in a liturgical act.
The right-wing extremist networks in the German police are even more extensive than was previously known. On Wednesday, September 16, 34 stations and private homes in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) were searched by police officers at around 6 a.m. Over 200 investigators searched buildings in Essen, Duisburg, Moers, Mulheim an der Ruhr, Selm and Oberhausen.

Two weeks earlier, on September 3, investigators had accidentally come across racist and right-wing extremist material on the private mobile phone of a 32-year-old police officer from Essen. They were originally investigating his colleague on suspicion of betraying official secrets to journalists.

According to the police, the racist and right-wing extremist material found meets the offence of using symbols of anti-constitutional organisations and of hate speech. At least 126 criminally relevant pictures were seized, the content of which is inadequately described as agitating against refugees, fascist filth, and the trivialisation of the Nazis.

As Zeit Online reports, one photo montage shows a grinning SS soldier pressing a button marked Gas. In the background, refugees are screaming in fear in a gas chamber. Another racist montage also promotes the systematic extermination of people of other skin colours or ethnicities. A man on a bicycle aims a pistol at a black child who is trying to escape from him. Below the picture is written: When the charcoal runs away while barbecuing.

Another depiction shows an American policeman. I like to shoot cans. Pepsi cans, Coke cans, Africans, he says. Here, Africans are dehumanised with a cheap pun, declared to be objects, and shooting at them equated with target practice using beverage cans. In addition to this racist agitation, numerous other pictures were found showing Hitler, the Hitler salute, swastikas, and Reich war flags, among other things.

The right-wing extremist material comes from at least five chat groups. All 29 members of these chat groups are police officers from NRW and are aged between their mid-20s and mid-50s. According to the police, investigations have been launched against 11 members of the chat groups, as they are said to be solely responsible for spreading the agitation. All other members have merely been suspended and 14 of them are to be removed from active duty. Twenty-five of the officers are under the authority of the Essen police headquarters and performed their duties in a service group for the Mulheim an der Ruhr protection police, whose leader is also a member of the chat groups.

However, the network does not only extend to the constabulary in Mulheim an der Ruhr or the area controlled by the Essen police headquarters. One member works at the NRW State Office for Criminal Investigation, another member at the State Office for Training, Further Training and Personnel Affairs (LAFP), and two officers are employed at the State Office for Central Police Services (LZPD) in Duisburg.

The fact that members of the chat groups belong to all three higher state authorities of the police in North Rhine-Westphalia very clearly shows the extent of the networking of right-wing extremists within the police. The LAFP is, among other things, responsible for the initial and further training of special police units in NRW as well as in other federal states, and the LZPD supports the coordination of forces and operations in special situations and with the necessary special equipment. Thus, the network had access to central bodies of the police in NRW.

The first chat group was established in 2012; the group with the most pictures has been active since March 2015, and the last documented message was sent on August 27, 2020. As the investigations and findings so far are based solely on the analysis of a mobile phone found by chance, the network uncovered is only the tip of the iceberg. Many more mobile phones were confiscated during the raids last Wednesday.

The lie about isolated cases

At a press conference hastily convened after the searches, North Rhine-Westphalias Interior Minister Herbert Reul (Christian Democratic Union, CDU) was busy trying to distract attention from the comprehensive right-wing extremist structures of the police authority under his jurisdiction. He spoke of a disgrace for the NRW police force and regretted that the accusations hit the police to the core. He was shocked and appalled.

This is the height of hypocrisy. Reul is well informed about the extreme right-wing structures in the police and is working systematically to cover up their true extent. In response to recent revelations, he has installed a special representative for right-wing extremist tendencies in the NRW police force. Uwe Reichel-Offermann, previously deputy head of the State Office for the Protection of the Constitution (as the secret service is called), which is subordinate to Reul, now reports personally to him, giving him full control over the results of the investigation.

At the beginning of the year, Reul had already ordered the appointment of decentralised ombudsmen in all police headquarters as contact persons for reporting anti-constitutional suspicious activity following the disclosure of several right-wing extremist incidents in the NRW police force. Significantly, Silvia Richter, wife of the police commissioner, took over the post in Essen. Reul had also spoken out against conducting comprehensive studies regarding right-wing tendencies within the police force.

At that time, as reported in Der Spiegel, racist pictures and images of imperial eagles and swastikas were being spread in chat groups by officers of the Aachen-West police station, among others. At a demonstration in Duisburg, a police car with a sticker of the right-wing extremist Identity Movement attracted attention. Fight back! Its your country! could be seen written on the police car. Also, Thorsten W., a suspected collaborator of the Gruppe S. terrorist cell, worked for the traffic commissioners office in Hamm, where his right-wing extremist sentiments were well known among colleagues.

The right-wing extremist activities in NRW are part of a comprehensive neo-Nazi network that has formed within the security apparatus and the army and is behaving increasingly aggressively. According to the Tagesspiegel, there have been over 170 incidents of a racist or right-wing extremist nature in the police force in the last five years, according to official figures. In Berlin, more than 80 cases have been initiated against police officers since 2017. This year alone, numerous new cases have come to light.

In Baden-Wurttemberg, seven police students were suspended because it became known they had made nationalist, anti-Semitic and misogynist statements, as reported by the magazine Der Spiegel. More than 40 active and former Munich police officers exchanged anti-Semitic messages in a chat group.

In the Frankfurt Itiotentreff, a chat group which included five officers and a colleague from the 1st precinct, numerous right-wing extremist messages and more than 100 pictures were shared. The members of the group made fun of disabled people, concentration camp prisoners, dark-skinned people, refugees and Jews. Particularly inhumane posts were news items showing the Syrian refugee boy Alan Kurdi, whose picture became sadly famous in 2015. Whoever finds him, may keep him, was written under the picture of his lifeless body, washed up on a beach in Turkey.

On July 23, Die Zeit published an article online, under the headline Soldiers planning a coup, revealing excerpts from the nationwide radical right-wing Telegram group #WIR. Among the more than 240 members, at times, of the chat group were several soldiers, reservists and veterans of the Bundeswehr (armed forces), including numerous right-wing extremists and neo-Nazis, writes author and right-wing extremism expert Christian Fuchs.

The right-wing extremists are networked nationwide and planned the assassination of left-wingers and the establishment of a fascist regime in Germany on a Day X. In the case of Group S., they had been hoarding weapons and ammunition for a concerted commando action against mosques and Muslims.

In several German states, data were retrieved from police computers and the personal information subsequently used in right-wing extremist, threatening emails. In the best-known case, the private address of Seda Basay-Yildiz was retrieved via a Hesse police computer in the 1st precinct in Frankfurt. A few days later, the lawyer, who had defended relatives of victims of the neo-Nazi National Socialist Underground (NSU), among others, received a threatening letter signed NSU 2.0.

The promotion of right-wing extremist structures in the state apparatus

The reason why neo-Nazis can act so provocatively is that no one in the entire political establishmentamong the parties, the investigating authorities and the judiciaryseriously opposes them. On the contrary, the spread of right-wing extremist terrorist networks in the army, police and secret services is part of the sharp rightward turn of the ruling class as a whole.

This is evident not only at federal level, where the grand coalition of the Christian Democrats and Social Democrats adopts the policies and programme of the fascist Alternative for Germany (AfD) on all central issues, but also at state level. In NRW, Reul and the Christian Democrat-Free Democrat state government stand for a strict law-and-order policy and systematically strengthen the extreme right-wing structures in the state apparatus to take action against the growing left-wing opposition.

Under Reuls leadership, a regime of zero tolerance was established in the Essen police force. As reported by Zeit Online, he had issued the slogan in the Ruhr metropolis, to take tough action against the criminal machinations of some Lebanese extended families. Since then, shisha bars, for example, have been under constant surveillance. This policy deliberately promotes racist and right-wing extremist tendencies within and outside the police. In February, an extreme right-wing terrorist committed a massacre at two shisha bars in Hanau and shot nine people.

While the ruling class protects the extreme right-wing networks and allows them to operate despite their bloody terror, it is waging a war against the left. In November 2018, Reul presented a strategy paper titled Secret Service of the Future. According to the Suddeutsche Zeitung, he demands that instead of narrowing its gaze to violent extremist actors, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution must once again monitor nonviolent groups more closely.

He justifies this by saying organisations that are not violent themselves form the environment of political violence, the political breeding ground, the so-called sympathiser scene. He refers to the protests in the Hambach Forest, where environmentalists are opposing large-scale deforestation to enable opencast lignite mining. Reul had the protest camp cleared in September 2018 using a massive police intervention. The accusation that political opposition endangers the state and creates a breeding ground for political violence is part of the standard repertoire of every totalitarian dictatorship.

Like the entire ruling class, Reul fears that the growing outrage over social inequality, militarism and the increasing of state powers will come together with an anti-capitalist, socialist programme. That is why he wants the Secret Service not to narrow its view to violent actors (who are often infiltrated by the secret services), but to monitor, intimidate and suppress legal political organisations. The radical right-wing terrorist networks play a central role in this strategy.
An MSNBC panelist has been caught on camera drinking red wine while mourning the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Columnist Rebecca Traister was seen sipping the alcohol during a Zoom chat with network star Chris Hayes late on Friday night.

Traister appeared to be drowning her sorrows as Hayes revealed that President's Trump's next Supreme Court nominee would have a hearing on Senate floor.

The moment quickly went viral on social media, with many anxious liberals saying they identified with Traister.

'Did @rtraister just chug a goblet of emotional support wine live on @MSNBC while talking about the consequences for the country of RBG's passing? Was I the only one who saw it?' one Twitter user asked.

However, many others responded, saying that they had also witnessed the wine drinking.

'We are all Rebecca Traiser chugging wine on @MSNBC with Chris Hayes tonight,' journalist Matt Wilstein tweeted.

Senate Majority Leader McConnell says President Trump's Supreme Court nominee will receive a vote on the Senate floor following the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. pic.twitter.com/vC9TKgJWRO  MSNBC (@MSNBC) September 19, 2020

Columnist Rebecca Traister was seen sipping wine during a Zoom chat with MSNBC's Chris Hayes late on Friday night

Traister was discussing the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday evening at the age of 87

'True respect to the panelist who's just anxiously drinking wine right now on MSNBC. I'm right there with you,' another wrote.

'This b***h on MSNBC being interview about RBG is crying and drinking wine on screen and literally same,' a fourth user chimed in.

Traister confirmed to The New York Post on Saturday morning that she was indeed drinking alcohol on the air, stating: 'Yes, it was wine. I got the news while [about Ginsburg's death] at dinner with my family, got the call to be on Chris's show soon after, and without thinking about it, brought my beverage with me.'

The notable columnist appeared to enjoy the attention that stemmed from her accidentally viral moment.

She retweeted the clip and wrote above: 'L'shana tova. May her memory be a blessing. And may this year bring the drive and determination to fight like fury because everything depends on our willingness to do so.'

The moment quickly went viral on Twitter. Traister chimed in, telling her followers to 'fight' following news of Ginsburg's death

Before Ginsburg's death, the Supreme Court had a 5-4 conservative majority.

Ginsburg - who was nominated to the Court by President Bill Clinton back in 1993 - was known as the most liberal Justice on the bench.

Democrats now fear Trump will be able to nominate another conservative Justice to the bench, effectively installing a 6-3 conservative majority that could be in place for decades and will push the country to the far right.

Ginsburg died Friday evening at the age of 87 following a long battle with cancer.
Celebrity Juice began filming on a farm on Friday, as new captains Emily Atack and Laura Whitmore teased a first look at the show via Instagram.

The Love Island host, 35, and actress, 30, took to their social media to share snaps from a picturesque farm where they were shooting scenes with Keith Lemon for the programme's next season.

Holly Willoughby, who the pair replaced on the show, also gave her stamp of approval as she shared a snap of the trio and wrote 'Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit! (sic)'

Celebrity Juice starts filming! New captains Laura Whitmore and Emily Atack put on an animated display as they began shooting on a farm with Keith Lemon on Friday

The trio kept a tight lip on exactly what they were filming, but appeared to be having a great time as the trio smiled for photos together.

One snap saw Emily, Laura and Keith pose for a fun selfie on the farmland, as Laura put on an animated display by flexing her muscles.

She put on a stylish display in an array of different outfits, as she teamed a white t-shirt with green dungarees in one photo, and in another she rocked white overalls.

But that wasn't all as Laura also looked chic in a yellow plaid dress that she wore with a white top for an effortlessly chic look.

Exciting: The Love Island host, 35, and actress, 30, took to their social media to share snaps from a picturesque farm where they were shooting scenes

Delighted: Holly Willoughby, who the pair replaced on the show, also gave her stamp of approval as she shared a snap of the trio and wrote 'Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit! (sic)'

Chic: Laura put on a stylish display in an array of different outfits, as she teamed a white t-shirt with green dungarees in one photo, and in another she rocked white overalls

Soaking up the sun: Emily looked radiant as she posed for a photo on the farm

Emily also looked sensational in a grey plaid playsuit that she offset with a pair of brown knee-high boots for the day of farming.

Laura shared a video of herself walking along the green pastures, as she admitted she wasn't allowed to show anything to her fans from filming except herself.

Meanwhile, Keith joked that he had recorded one of his videos earlier in the day but had no internet connection to post it, in case fans were confused because of how sunny it was at 7.30PM.

Enjoying themselves: They kept a tight lip on exactly what they were filming, but appeared to be having a great time as the trio smiled for photos together

Dressed to impress: Emily also looked sensational in a grey plaid playsuit that she offset with a pair of brown knee-high boots for the day of farming

Having fun: Keith could be seen joking around with his fellow team captains and crew

Keep it secret: Laura shared a video of herself walking along the green pastures, as she admitted she wasn't allowed to show anything to her fans from filming except herself

Amusing: Meanwhile, Keith joked that he had recorded one of his videos earlier in the day but had no internet connection to post it, in case fans were confused because of how sunny it was

Earlier this month, Laura and Emily announced they'd be replacing Holly as team captains on Celebrity Juice, four months after she left her 12-year stint.

ITV2's comedy panel series will see comedian Keith return to host eight episodes this autumn, followed by two 60-minute specials.

In a cheery, socially-distanced snap, the funnyman joined his latest sidekicks as they toasted to their new jobs with glasses of champagne.

Changes: Earlier this month, Laura and Emily announced they'd be replacing Holly as team captains on Celebrity Juice, four months after she left her 12-year stint

Close: Laura, Keith and Emily didn't socially distance from each other during the shoot, presumably because they are in each other's bubble

Looking forward to it: ITV2's comedy panel series will see comedian Keith return to host eight episodes this autumn, followed by two 60-minute specials

The image was shared on their respective platforms, with Love Island's Laura writing: 'So excited to be the new team captain with my gal @emilyatackofficial All new @celebjuiceofficial coming this autumn. Dream job! Bring it on @keithlemon.' (sic)

'IT'S HAPPENING KIDS!!! New Celeb Juice coming soon. Cannot believe I'm team captain along side my wonderful pal @thewhitmore .. DREAM JOB OR WHAT EH!? Bring on the lols' (sic), an excited Emily penned.

Writer Keith, real name Leigh Francis, added: 'All new @celebjuiceofficial on t' telly Autumn on @itv2 with new team captains my pals @thewhitmore and @emilyatackofficial can't wait!' (sic)

End of the road: The last edition of Celebrity Juice, which aired from April until May, was fronted by both broadcaster Holly, 39, and Spice Girls' Mel B, 45

Centre stage: Laura and Emily have starred as guests on the much-loved show, but the series will mark the first time they will lead their star-studded teams (Emily pictured earlier this year)

The ladies have both starred as guests on the much-loved show, but the upcoming series will mark the first time they will battle it out with their star-studded teams, which are yet to be announced.

Insisting she's not going down without a fight, TV star Emily said in a press release: 'Every time I've been on Juice in the past I've had such a good time, and now I'm doing it with two of my best mates and I'm a ruddy team captain!!! Can't believe it.

'I dread to think what we're going to be faced with, but Whitmore should know that I won't be backing down and she is going to have some tough competition. But more importantly a wonderfully hilarious time. Bring it on!'

Her new opponent jokingly hit back: 'I can't wait to see what Keith has got lined up for Emily and I this series From past experiences, nothing would surprise me. I cannot wait to get stuck in and lead my team to victory each week I love you Emily, but watch out! I'm so excited to start!

'I've been the biggest fan for years, I used to go and sit in the audience when I first moved to London and can't believe I'm a team captain now!'

The last edition, which aired from April until May, was fronted by both broadcaster Holly, 39, and Spice Girls' Mel B, 45.

Kelly Brook, Gino D'Acampo and Paddy McGuinness have also served as team captains in the past.

The This Morning star launched the show with Keith and her BFF Fearne Cotton in 2008.
"The argument wasnt a difficult one, considering that at the time [our leaving age was] so low compared to other jurisdictions. We also had the lowest school retention rate," Firth says. When a 2008 COAG meeting placed the issue on the state's agenda, about 68 per cent of NSW students were finishing year 12, compared to a national average of 71 per cent. Amid rising youth unemployment in 2009, the government aimed for 90 per cent year 12 completion by 2015. But many affluent schools were already attaining 90 per cent retention rates. Those most swept up in the change were government schools, particularly in areas of low socio-economic advantage where 30 to 40 per cent of students tended to leave early. Within a year, NSW's retention rate rose to about 73 per cent and has stayed around that mark in the decade since. "I would absolutely do the same again," Firth says. "Where I always think we need to do better  how do you support those students in learning who arent as engaged in the traditional curriculum? That is still a pertinent question."

A union-led inquiry into teacher conditions, held this month by the NSW Teachers' Federation, heard the raised school-leaving age has been one of the most profound factors in increasing teacher workloads over the decade. "Our systems were actually built to allow for about 30 per cent of kids to get to the end of year 12, not 100 per cent," former chair of the NSW Education Standards Authority, Tom Alegounarias, said in his evidence. Principal of Fairvale High School, Kathleen Seto, says the impact was felt most by schools from lower-socioeconomic bands, like hers. They had low resources but faced high costs in setting up alternative structures and non-academic subjects for students forced to stay. Principals reported ramifications such as behavioural issues, non-attendance and disengagement. She says low-socioeconomic status (SES) schools were "condemned to innovate". Loading The biggest system-wide change the policy spurred was a reshaping of the NSW curriculum. Teaching academic English to students who weren't interested in university was no longer an option. Vocational (VET) offerings were turbocharged, and a suite of non-academic courses introduced: English studies, Maths in Practice, Science for Life. But the VET curriculum required investments - from industrial kitchens to partnerships with local businesses - which were made at the discretion of local schools. The roll-out has received mixed reviews.

Seto says her school was supported by new funding arrangements, such as the low-SES National Partnership and needs-based funding that later came with the Gonksi reforms. Former union president Denis Fitzgerald, however, told the inquiry that the education department did not support schools in "any meaningful ways". A 2012 auditor-general's report acknowledged that while options were created, there was great variation in schools' ability to deliver them. Petersen says curriculum delivery became much more complex. "That created a bit of tension for teachers. The whole training and maintenance requirements our VET teachers had to keep up to date with [is] a significant increase in workload. They dont get a decrease in their teaching allocation to do that." It also raised expectations of what teachers would deliver. Alegounarias points out that teaching qualifications were designed for a world where few students remained until the end of schooling. "Literacy or numeracy stuff didnt have to hit the mark with 100 per cent of [students], because they were going to go anyway," he says. "Teacher training was about that world, and it hasnt changed much." But now all students are expected to reasonably succeed. "You have to engage kids; youre not relying on your disciplinary authority to keep them in the classroom... That teacher education capacity isnt there," he says. Catering to disengaged students was the main concern for teachers when the policy was first floated, and they had some difficulty adjusting. Reluctant learners can be disruptive, distract other students, and require more disciplinary attention. "Students who werent highly motivated to be in school were in the same classes as students who were highly motivated," Petersen says. "In some cases there was certainly a challenge in keeping those students engaged, and managing their behaviour so they weren't distributing other students."

That issue hasn't been made easier by the passage of time. "Its fairly consistently been there," he says. In 2010 there was an instant uptick in year 11 and 12 students receiving suspensions of between four and 20 days. Before that, between 600 and 700 senior students received long suspensions each year, less than 1 per cent of the cohort. These days it hovers around 1200, or 1.5 per cent of senior students. Schools have also observed record-low attendance rates. Senior attendance dropped by 0.7 per cent in 2011, and has not recovered to pre-2010 levels in the decade since. The department attributes this to the raised leaving age, and notes that some year 10, 11 and 12 students forced to stay on would have low attendance. It has created new issues for schools following up truancy. "There is no additional resource to chase up those students who dont return at the beginning of year 11," Petersen says. "We dont have the mechanisms or the people to knock on doors and contact families to get you to school. And the more school you miss, the harder it is to catch up and be motivated."

But it has also led those schools to innovate. Some have moved to four-day timetables, so students can attend TAFE courses on the fifth day. Period lengths tend to be longer, to accommodate the greater expectation of teachers to cater to a broad cohort of students. Acting executive of the Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta, Christine Howe, regards the change as a "really great thing". "However it is really important that learning is relevant to their lives. Unfortunately, too often its not," she says. The Parramatta diocese started offering more vocational and creative arts courses in its schools when the policy changed, and has since built trade training centres specifically for years 10 to 12. "The curriculum has emerged over time to be quite different to [what it was] 10 years ago. It was very important for us to recognise the cost of doing nothing, or more of the same, would have been huge," Howe says. The CathWest Innovation College, which opened this year, offers work placements as well as an on-site cafe, hair salon and daycare centre for students to practice their skills. Hours are flexible, uniform is not required, and students receive formal one-on-one mentoring. "Thats the advantage of being within the school while commencing other training experiences," Howe says. "It starts to give them credentials that will help future employment, and they leave school with a level of confidence in that area of interest." Jessica Libreri is studying to be a childcare worker at CathWest Innovation college. Credit:Janie Barrett

Lifting my mindset If this wasnt an option I think Id go crazy, says Jessica Libreri, who is studying childcare at CathWest. I was not excited for the HSC, lets just say that. Having the trade school just lifted my mindset. I would have dropped out and just done childcare if there wasnt that option there. She will finish this year with her HSC and a Certificate III in business. Being in the workplace early is going to prepare me better than other students, so I still get that, she says. Im hoping to get a diploma and keep working. Some still leave at 17. "But theyre leaving with a career ahead of them and I think thats an amazingly positive outcome for them," Howe says. Seto also stresses the message, that "not all early leaving is bad". "Moving [into] a job, apprenticeship or traineeship can be a positive outcome for the student, their family and the school," she says. But she has nonetheless observed staying at school become the norm over the decade. Increasing her school's retention rate required a dedicated strategy: Fairvale introduced tailored student intervention programs; a transition adviser; and extra support in the form of student mentoring and counselling. Where 40 students left at the end of year 10 before 2009, now only a handful depart early each year. "Students have discussed the value of staying on and completing their HSC credential. For a large number of students at Fairvale High, they are the first member of their family to realise the dream of attaining the HSC credential and thereafter a university place," Seto says.
An internet user browses through a Vietnamese government's Facebook page in Hanoi, Vietnam in a file photo.

Authorities in Vietnam have arrested a Facebook user for sharing his grievances about how the local government has handled a dispute over his familys land, RFA has learned.

Le Van Hai, from Binh Dinh province in the countrys South Central Coast region was charged with abusing freedom and democratic rights to infringe upon the interests of the state under Article 33 of Vietnams 2015 Penal Code.

Local media outlet Youth Online reported the arrest Friday and it was confirmed by police in Binh Dinh.

According to the report, Le was detained over a period of two months, and police conducted a search of his residence in the coastal city of Qui Nhon.

The police investigation into Les case states that he often used his Facebook account to share or post many stories that slandered or offended the prestige of Vietnamese government leaders, including communist party members and provincial officials.

Le had also sent many complaints to Binh Dinh authorities asking for compensation payments because his familys house and land had been confiscated to build a wastewater treatment plant in Qui Nhon.

When authorities denied the request, he shared his frustration on Facebook.

While all land in Vietnam is ultimately held by the state, land confiscations have become a flashpoint as residents accuse the government of pushing small landholders aside in favor of lucrative real estate projects, and of paying too little in compensation to farming families displaced by development.

Les case came to light after a court in Hanoi sentenced two vilagers to death, and gave several others long sentences, in the trial of 29 villagers over a deadly land-rights clash in January at the Dong Tam commune near Vietnams capital.

Three police officers were killed in the Jan. 9 clash when they were attacked by petrol bombs and fell into a concrete shaft while running between two houses. The village elder and father of the two condemned convicts also died in the raid.

Vietnam, with a population of 92 million people, of which 55 million are estimated to be users of Facebook, has been consistently rated not free in the areas of internet and press freedom by Freedom House, a U.S.-based watchdog group.

Dissent is not tolerated in the communist nation, and authorities routinely use a set of vague provisions in the penal code to detain dozens of writers and bloggers.

Reported by RFAs Vietnamese Service. Translated by Huy Le. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
TDT | Manama

Tamkeen is seeking proposals for launching a campaign for MADE IN BAHRAIN products. The campaign for Tamkeens exporting arm Export Bahrain calls for developing a communication strategy, creative strategy, and the implementation of it. Successful bidders should be capable of running the campaign for one year, according to a Tender board document.

The campaign is for supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in exporting their Bahraini products. The closing date of the tender published last Wednesday is 21 October 2020. The board will open the tenders on 22 October 2020. But, if this is not your cup of tea, then there are other opportunities too. One amongst them is that by Gulf Air.

PPE kits for Gulf Air Gulf Airs tender, which has a closing date of 23 September 2020 is for supplying Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Cabin Crew and Passengers. The tender, Gulf Air says, will not be financially evaluated if they did not pass 50 percent of the Quality evaluation or meet Gulf Air standards as per the shared specifications.

Gulf Air will also reject all proposals without samples and would not return them. The initial bond for the tender is BD5,000 and should have a 6-month validity. Decorate streets for F1 Southern Area Municipality is inviting bids for decorating it main streets on the occasion of Formula 1.

The tender, which has a closing date of 4 October 2020, is for Rental and installation of decorative and lighting tools, including lights net and wires. Lights and chains of light in the form of ropes are to be placed on palm trees and other trees planted at the specific sites. The initial bond value of the bid is BD500 and should have a valid of 6 months.

Shades for 462 car-parks Bahrain Ministry of Health is inviting bids for the design, supply, and installation of car park shades for apartments at 462 locations. Successful bids will have to provide a 10 -year guarantee on their works. Carparks are located in Central Muharraq, Lawzi, Tubli, and Salmabad. Tenderers not having a minimum of 3 years' experience will be disqualified.

The closing date of the tender, which should have an initial bond of BD1,000, is 7 October 2020. Fleet vehicles for BIC Bahrain International Circuit are looking for bidders who could provide rental vehicles for its fleet engineering department to be used inside and outside of the premises. The tender will be closed on 30 September 2020.

UoB building Maryam Abdullah Amin, the Director of the Construction Projects Department at the Ministry of Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning, said the board awarded for it a tender worth of 188,738 dinars for refurbishing Building 31 on the campus of the University of Bahrain in Isa Town. The project which would commence this month is expecting completing in a year.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept. 19

Trend:

As reported earlier, on September 19, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the Absheron field offshore operations at the Heydar Aliyev Baku Deep Water Jackets Plant.

After the ceremony, the president gave an interview to Azerbaijan Television, Public Television and Real Television.

Trend is publishing some excerpts from the interview of President Aliyev:

"This is a very important event indeed because a new stage is actually beginning for the Absheron gas condensate field," the president said. "I am confident that this stage will be successful too, and thus Azerbaijan will make an important step in its oil and gas strategy."

"The history of the Absheron field is somewhat different because the first contract on the Absheron gas field was signed with foreign partners in the late 1990s," the president added. "I remember those days quite vividly because we had high hopes for the Absheron field. Our geologists, especially Khoshbakht Yusifzade, were convinced that there were fairly large gas reserves in this field... Unfortunately, after some time the first contract was terminated. The reason was that the exploration well came out dry."

"I remember our prominent geologist Khoshbakht Yusifzade saying at the time that the location of the well was not chosen correctly and trying to persuade foreign partners to make some adjustments to their work program," President Aliyev said. "Unfortunately, they did not listen to him."

"But let me say again that we had full confidence that there are huge gas reserves here," the Azerbaijani said. "I am glad that "Total" came to the same conclusion and relevant documents were signed with SOCAR. Then specific work was done and a large gas condensate field was discovered. I can say that the news about the discovery of the field, about this important event was shared with me Khoshbakht Yusifzade. So a great resource has been obtained for the development of our oil and gas potential."

"This field has gas reserves of 350-360 billion cubic meters," President Aliyev said. "But I believe there will be even more. Our experience already shows that there are more resources than expected and 100 million tons of condensate."

"This is a product equal to crude oil, and thus Azerbaijan will continue to be a reliable supplier of gas," the president said. "I must also say that the gas produced from "Absheron" at the first stage will be directed to domestic needs because there is a need for that. The growing population and the growing industry require that. The gas to be extracted at the second stage will be exported to world markets. The full-field development of this field will be solved in stages."
Croatia Airlines will maintain flights to fifteen international destinations during the month of October, twelve of which will run from Zagreb, ten from Split, two from Dubrovnik and one from Rijeka. Domestic flights will operate from the Croatian capital to five destinations, two from Osijek, and one each from Split and Dubrovnik. The national carrier has proven itself to be an important factor in the countrys transport infrastructure during these extraordinary circumstances, given that it never stopped flying and was the only airline to have continuously enabled Croatias connectivity to the world during this epidemiological crisis. During the peak summer season, the companys aircraft linked Zagreb directly with fourteen destinations, Split with eleven and Dubrovnik with seven international destinations, Croatia Airlines said in a statement.





Unlike in September, the carrier will no longer maintain operations from Zagreb to Athens and Dublin and will run fewer frequencies on a number of routes. Last year, the airline maintained 24 international destinations from the Croatian capital. As part of its international network, during October the carrier will fly to Amsterdam, Brussels, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, London Heathrow, Munich, Paris, Rome, Sarajevo, Skopje, Vienna and Zurich from Zagreb, to Berlin, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, London Heathrow, Lyon, Munich, Paris, Rome, Vienna and Zurich from Split, to Frankfurt and Rome from Dubrovnik, as well as to Munich from Rijeka. Due to a number of travel restrictions and declining demand, Croatia Airlines cancelled 80% of its planned flights during September.





The Croatian government will unveil plans to financially assist its national carrier in the coming weeks. On Thursday, it approved a deadline extension for the repayment of an 8.5 million euro loan the company took from one state-owned and one private bank in 2018 in order to finance the overhaul of its engines. Initially, the loan was to be repaid by December 31, 2022, but an extension has been granted until June 30, 2023. The Croatian Ministry for Sea, Transport and Infrastructure noted the carrier had requested for the deferral in payments of certain obligations due to difficulties arising from the Covid-19 pandemic. The changes primarily relate to the maturity and repayment of the loan, the repayment method, calculation of interest and the interest period.
By ANI

NEW DELHI: Hours after Alankrita Shrivastava's 'Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare' premiered on Netflix on Friday, actor Ishaan Khattar lauded his mother and veteran actor Neelima Azeem's performance in the film.

Khatter took to Instagram to share a snippet of a cinematically strong scene from the film featuring his mother with actor Konkana Sen Sharma and said that he "cried like a baby" after watching the scene.

"I saw my mother on screen today in #dollykittyaurwohchamaktesitare. You are beautiful as ever mom. Such intricacy and delicateness. Such humaneness. I can't explain what watching this single scene did to me," he wrote.

"I cried like a baby after watching it. It's always lovely to see wonderful people coming together for a film but this time it's personal. My mother made an appearance for one scene and moved me to tears," the 'Dhadak' actor added.

Khatter went on to wish "best of luck," to director Alankrita for the film and congratulated the cast - Konkana, Bhumi Pednekar, Vikrant Massey, and Aamir Bashir - for its release.

"Best of luck and congratulations on the release to the entire team of the film @alankrita601 @bhumipednekar @konkona @vikrantmassey87 @aamirbashir and all others! @neliimaazeem on @netflix_in," he wrote in the caption.

The film which released on Netflix yesterday has Konkana and Bhumi portraying the role of two sisters coming from a small town in Bihar and setting up in Greater Noida.

'Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare' revolves around sisterhood and deals with sensitive issues like female sexuality and pleasure.
Netflix cancellations skyrocket over 'Cuties' controversy: report

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Netflix has experienced a spike in cancellations that's about eight times the normal rate, due to outrage over the controversial film Cuties, according to a report by a data analytics group.

Netflix has garnered criticism for its decision to stream the French film Cuties, which features sexualized 11-year-old girls dancing provocatively and has been compared to child porn.

Variety magazine reported on how YipitData found that by Sept. 12, the cancellation rate for Netflix was eight times higher than the average daily levels recorded last month.

While noting that the spike in cancellations was a multiyear high, Variety cautioned that this might be a short-term blip for a service that regularly has people cancel and sign up.

As of June, Netflix had approximately 193 million paid customers globally, according to Variety, with nearly 26 million new subscribers in the first half of the year.

Written and directed by Maimouna Doucoure, the film centers on an 11-year-old Senegalese Muslim girl who defies her family and joins an all-girl pre-teen dance team where she twerks, grinds, and simulates sex in dance routines.

Recently, Republican lawmakers, including Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, called on the Department of Justice to investigate Netflix for allegedly distributing child porn.

"I urge the Department of Justice to investigate the production and distribution of this film to determine whether Netflix, its executives, or the individuals involved in the filming and production of 'Cuties' violated any federal laws against the production and distribution of child pornography," wrote Cruz in a letter to Attorney General William Barr.

" And it is likely that the filming of this movie created even more explicit and abusive

scenes, and that pedophiles across the world in the future will manipulate and imitate this film in abusive ways."

Netflix first garnered outrage over the film for its promotional artwork that showed the young girls, including the main character, in scantily clad outfits and posing suggestively.

While Netflix eventually apologized for the artwork and changed its promotional advertising for the film, many still called for users to cancel their accounts with the streaming service for carrying the film, which was far worse than the artwork Netflix created.

In advance of the release of the film on Sept. 9, a petition calling for Netflix to drop Cuties was posted online and as of Thursday, has more than 715,000 signatures.

The Twitter hashtag #CancelNetflix went viral and was promoted by notable figures, including Democratic Representative Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii.

[Netflixs] child porn Cuties will certainly whet the appetite of pedophiles & help fuel the child sex trafficking trade. 1 in 4 victims of trafficking are children. It happened to my friend's 13 year old daughter. Netflix, you are now complicit. #CancelNetflix, tweeted Gabbard.

Others, including both Netflix and Doucoure, have defended the film as an effort to spread awareness about the dangers of sexualizing children rather than glorifying the practice.

Cuties is a social commentary against the sexualization of young children, a Netflix spokesperson told The Daily Caller.

Its an award winning film and a powerful story about the pressure young girls face on social media and from society more generally growing up  and wed encourage anyone who cares about these important issues to watch the movie.

Doucoure told Medium that they "auditioned 700 girls" for the film. Questions have since been raised about the audition tapes and what the filmmakers asked each girl to do during the audition.
A trade delegation from Maldives here Friday visited Trade Development Authority of Pakistan and discussed many bilateral trade related matters with TDAP's Chief Executive Officer and its Secretary

KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Sep, 2020 ) :A trade delegation from Maldives here Friday visited Trade Development Authority of Pakistan and discussed many bilateral trade related matters with TDAP's Chief Executive Officer and its Secretary.

TDAP's CEO informed the delegates that Pakistan was exporting high quality products to many countries and it could export to Maldives all required products including textile, fruit and vegetable, cements, pharmaceutical, iron and steel, surgical instruments and construction material.

He said that the bilateral trade volume was quite low and both countries need to explore avenues to enhance bilateral trade.

Pakistan was ready to fulfill import needs of Maldives by supplying quality products at competitive rates.

The leader of the Maldives delegation said this visit would provide them opportunity to meet exporters of relevant sectors and explore business prospects.

He also expressed hope that this visit would go a long way in strengthening the trade relations between the two countries.

During their stay, the delegation would visit several manufacturing units and leading business houses as well as financial institutions.
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Melbourne Storm prop Christian Welch has been fined $20,000 with half of it suspended for breaching the NRLs biosecurity protocols.

Welch brought an unregistered guest into the Storms residences at a Sunshine Coast resort on Thursday night which is not allowed under the NRLs COVID-19 protocols designed to avoid any chance of a player contracting the virus.

Welch will not play against Wests Tigers on the Sunshine Coast on Saturday but after passing two COVID-19 tests will be allowed back into the Storms bubble.

This will allow him to keep training with the side and stake his claim to earn a recall to the side for next weeks final round or the subsequent NRL finals series.
19.09.2020 LISTEN

If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up. (Daniel 3:17-18 NIV).

Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, was a stubborn king. He thought he had a bright idea to make an image of gold for all his people to worship. The image of gold measured ninety feet high and nine feet wide (or 27 meters high and 2.7 meters wide) (Daniel 3:1). The king issued a decree that anytime the people heard the sound of a horn and other instruments, they were required to fall down and worship the image. Anyone who refused to fall down and worship the image was to be thrown into a blazing furnace.

Standing in the kings way of achieving total obedience of worshipping the image of gold were Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, three Jewish young men who were taken into captivity from Israel and brought to Babylon (Daniel Chapter 3). Under the recommendation of Daniel, another Jewish captive, the king had appointed the three men as administrators of the province of Babylon.

Nebuchadnezzar was stubborn because he was well aware of the power of the God of Israel whom Daniel and the three men worshipped. Earlier, the king had a dream and Daniel was the only person who could interpret it for him. At that time, the king said to Daniel: Surely your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you were able to reveal this mystery (Daniel 2:47 NIV). And he made Daniel ruler over Babylon, and Daniel recommended the three for positions in the kings administration. Despite this experience with the true God, the king still went ahead and made the image of gold and commanded all to fall down and worship it.

Some people reported to the king that the three young men had refused to fall down and worship the image of gold when the people were prompted by the sound to do so. The king was furious. He summoned the three young men and asked them whether it was true that they did not serve his gods or worship the image of gold. Without waiting for their answer, the king offered them another opportunity to fall down and worship when the signal was given. The three young men replied that they did not need to defend themselves. In other words, they pleaded guilty to the charges and were ready and willing to accept their punishment. They responded with the statement first quoted above, and were quickly thrown into the blazing furnace, but God protected and rescued them.

The three young men had abundant faith that God would rescue them from the blazing furnace. That was a profound statement of faith. It seems that even more profound was the second part of their statement. They said that even if God would not save them, they still would not serve the gods or worship the image of gold. That meant they were prepared to die for God even if God would not save them because they were convinced it was the right thing to do! Many Christians would be willing to dare the devil and his agents to do their worst if they were convinced that God would protect and rescue them. However, how many Christians would say the same if they were convinced that God would not protect or rescue them?

In a world where people are ready and willing to sell their souls to the devil for worldly pleasures and achievements, the words of the three men are very remarkable. Even if God would not save them, they knew it was wrong to serve the gods or worship the image of gold and were prepared to resist evil to the point of death.

The three young men could have had excuses to doubt God or rebel or bear grudges against the Almighty. They had been taken as captives from their homeland of Israel to Babylon. They could have asked where God was when they were taken from their homeland. Why didnt God protect them from the Babylonians? Why didnt God free them from captivity all those years they were in Babylon? Why should they continue to have faith and trust in God who seemed to have forsaken them, or who seemed incapable of protecting them? Moreover, they had incentive to obey Nebuchadnezzar, rather than God. The king had appointed them to high positions as administrators and they should have been worried about being fired or sacked from those positions. Despite all those seemingly legitimate concerns, they defied the king and continued to have faith in the Most High God, even if it meant they could have been burned alive in the blazing furnace.

Some may say what was the big deal about falling down to the gods and worshipping the image of gold? After all, they could have simply satisfied the crazy king and moved on instead of risking their lives. Well, it was, and still is, a big deal.

The three Jewish young men obeyed Gods laws in the Ten Commandments. The First Commandment states that: You shall have no other gods before me. The Second Commandment states that: You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them  (Exodus 20:1-6 NIV). Violation of any of these two commandments is a threat to the existence, sovereignty, and supremacy of the Almighty God. For example, God emphasized as part of the Second Commandment that He is a jealous God who punishes those who hate Him and rewards those who love and keep His commandments (Exodus 20:5-6). It is the only commandment with punishment directly attached to it.

Needless to say, God does not tolerate rivalry. As a further emphasis, after God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses, He told him to tell the people of Israel: Do not make any gods to be alongside me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods or gold (Exodus 20:22-23 NIV). That was why whenever God punished the Israelites severely, it was mostly because they had violated one or both commandments.

Consulting with, bowing to or worshiping idols, shrines, fetishes, deities or any spiritual powers or principalities in whatever form other than the one and only true God, is a violation of the First and Second Commandments. In their own minds, those who do such things believe they have good reasons for doing so. Some do so to find spouses, strengthen their marriages or bear children; harm their enemies; find progress and success in life; seek money and wealth; seek spiritual protection against witchcraft and other powers; or seek healing of diseases and illnesses that doctors cannot cure.

Even those who bow to or worship the devil because of life-and-death concerns should remember what Jesus said: For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? (Matthew 16:25-26 NIV). Self-preservation or life-preservation is a worthy goal, but it is not the ultimate goal of the Christian; soul preservation for God is. That was why many men and women of Christian faith chose death in God and Christ over life with the devil and his agents.

Today, most people living in the free world are less likely to be forced to bow to gods or worship images of gold, but we sell our own souls willingly to the devil gradually. Our brother James advises us to submit ourselves to God and resist the devil and the devil will flee from us (James 4:7). The three young men did that. They demonstrated obedience, faith, and courage. Those who reported them to the king intended for them to be killed, but in the end, the king promoted them (Daniel 3:30). Pray for all your enemies because some of those enemies may help to promote you.

The three young men knew and worshipped the God of Israel and would not deny Him just because they were captives in a foreign land. That should be a good lesson especially for those living in foreign lands. We should not throw away our good home training and Christian values when we leave the shores of our native countries. We must be prepared to uphold and defend our Christian faith and good upbringing wherever we find ourselves. At home or abroad, we should refuse to bow to or worship the devil in all his nature and form. It is not too late to turn back completely to the one true God. And we should do so whether or not God would protect or rescue us because eternal life with God and Christ in heaven is our goal.

Prayer is the key. May God grant us the grace to seek Him daily through our prayers.

Dr. Daniel Gyebi, Attorney-at-Law, Texas, U.S.A., and Founder, PrayerHouse Ministry, Kumasi, Ghana.

PrayerHouse Ministry is dedicated to providing a quiet facility for Christians to pray individually by themselves without any intermediary priest, pastor or any other person. This is a free service. No money is demanded or accepted. One facility is located at Kyerekrom / Fumesua, near Building and Road Research Institute Offices, one mile off the Kumasi-Accra Road and next to a house called Grace Castle. If you are interested, please contact Agnes at 054-7498653. Another is located at Kantinkyiren, at the junction of Kantinkyiren and Konkori, off the Kumasi-Obuasi Road, branching left at Trede junction. Contact Kwadwo at 020-8768461 / 0246-989413.
A leading university debating society which tried to cancel a conservative Catholic author was forced into a humiliating climbdown by its own student union.

Journalist and activist Caroline Farrow had been invited to a freshers week Zoom debate by the University of Exeter to oppose the motion of sex work is real work.

One of her opponents was Charlotte Rose, billed as a multi award-winning sex worker who once organised a mass face-sitting outside Parliament.

The day before Friday nights debate, Ms Farrow, 46, a vociferous opponent of gay marriage, was shocked to receive an email from the society abruptly disinviting her from the event.

Caroline Farrow had been invited to a freshers week Zoom debate by the University of Exeter to oppose the motion of sex work is real work but was 'disinvited' ahead of the event before then being asked back after the students' union said it was a 'mistake'

One of her opponents was Charlotte Rose, billed as a multi award-winning sex worker who once organised a mass face-sitting outside Parliament

A spokesman for Exeter University, pictured, said the matter had been one for the Guild, but they had been reminded of their obligation to protect freedom of speech within the law

Its chair, Robert Jones, wrote: A number of articles have been brought to our attention concerning your widely cited anti-LGBT activism. This is in direct contradiction to the inclusive culture we wish to promote.

Mother-of-five Ms Farrow, who has attended several previous events at Exeter, said she was taken aback by the rudeness and narrow-mindedness of the email.

She and the Free Speech Union, of which she is a member, complained to the university authorities, pointing out that the its event management policy was committed to the protection of freedom of speech and the societys own aims claimed to promote exposure to a diversity of thought for members.

Within hours she received a second email from Exeters Students Guild (union), describing the original disinvitation as a mistake, and reinviting her.

Ms Farrow told The Mail on Sunday: It was all rather farcical, really, if there hadnt been serious issues of free speech at stake.

I think what bugs me most is when they claim Im an anti-LGBT person, but in fact I have a very strong streak of libertarianism running through my veins. I do not support the criminalisation of homosexuality and would stand with anyone facing persecution because of their sex or sexuality.

A former president of the society, Benjamin Jones, said many alumni were angered by the societys action. The University of Exeter Debating Society should be a bastion of free speech in these censorious times and I am saddened that it has failed to meet this challenge. The Society should have shown a bit of backbone.

The debate went ahead, but just before it was streamed, the society posted on its Facebook page: We have taken the decision as a committee to run this event, hosting Farrow we apologise to any students and the LGBTQ+ community if this causes offence.

A university spokesman said the matter had been one for the Guild, but they had been reminded of their obligation to protect freedom of speech within the law.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 19:55:47|Editor: huaxia

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Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, presides over a meeting with grassroots representatives in Changsha, capital of central China's Hunan Province, Sept. 17, 2020. Xi has called for efforts to integrate enhancing top-level design and soliciting public opinion in formulating the 14th Five-Year plan. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

CHANGSHA, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for efforts to integrate enhancing top-level design and soliciting public opinion in formulating the 14th Five-Year plan.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks during a meeting with grassroots representatives in central China's Hunan Province on Thursday.

Stressing the goal of realizing people's aspirations to live a better life, Xi encouraged the public to offer advice and suggestions for compiling the plan through various channels to ensure that the plan will respond to the wishes and meet the expectations of the people.

During the meeting, 10 primary-level representatives offered their suggestions on rural education, poverty alleviation through industrial support, and the development of micro and small businesses, among other aspects.

Noting that their ideas better reflect primary-level realities, Xi urged relevant departments to carefully study and fully absorb the suggestions.

China is still in an important period of strategic opportunity for development, but is facing new opportunities and challenges, Xi said, noting that the people have been united as one in the face of hardships and difficulties and worked hard to make major contributions.

When making plans for the 14th five-year period (2021-2025), more efforts should be made to improve weak links concerning people's livelihood, while striving for high-quality development so that the people will always have a stronger sense of fulfillment, happiness, and security, according to Xi.

He also called for more targeted measures to perform relevant tasks.

Xi emphasized consolidating governance at the primary level and uniting and guiding the people to give full play to their enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity.

Xi urged Party members and officials to play an exemplary role, lawmakers to strengthen their ties with the people, political advisors to better communicate with and serve the people, and rural people who have become well-off to more actively help those who lag. Enditem
Although colds, flu and COVID-19 are caused by different viruses, some of the symptoms can be similar. Photo: Getty

Lockdown measures have eased across much of the UK and more people are heading back to their offices and workplaces after months of working from home. But with cases of coronavirus on the rise, were all wary of potential signs and symptoms of infection.

Last year, we might not have thought twice about heading to work with a runny nose, sore throat and aching limbs. Instead, its likely we would have dosed up on painkillers and Lemsip and forced ourselves to head to the office, rather than taking a sick day.

Since 1993, the number of sick days taken per worker per year has almost halved from 7.2 days a year to 4.1 in 2017.

But with the symptoms of many common respiratory illnesses similar to that of COVID-19, should we really be heading to work if were unwell?

The symptoms of COVID-19

Although colds, flu and COVID-19 are caused by different viruses, some of the symptoms can be similar. Most people who become infected with coronavirus will have at least one key symptom, such as a high temperature, a new and continuous cough and a loss or change to their sense of smell or taste. A high temperature is unlikely with a cold, but some people may experience chills, aching limbs or a sore throat.

READ MORE: What do you do if your employee isn't social distancing?

If you do experience any Covid-related symptoms, you should get yourself a coronavirus test and self-isolate while you wait for the result. However, there is a shortage of tests available in many areas in the UK  with many people having to travel much further, or simply being turned away.

If you cant get a test, ring your manager and explain the situation. Even if you are unsure whether you have coronavirus symptoms or not, it might be worth staying off work or working from home if you can. Your employer might already have a plan in place for employees who may have symptoms, in which you can work remotely.

Taking a sick day can be worth it

Unlike more serious illnesses which justify recovery time, a bad cold can be a grey area. On the one hand, you might feel rubbish and unable to concentrate on work. On the other, youre probably still able to turn up to the office, even if you know you wont get much work done.

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Not all businesses will pay their employees when they take sick days, so many people cant afford to take time off when they need to. Its also common for people to turn up to work when theyre unwell over fears they will be penalised or seen as lazy. A lack of job security due to the recession triggered by the pandemic may also led to sick employees heading to work.

But even if its unlikely that you have coronavirus, sometimes it can be worth taking a sick day if you need to.

READ MORE: Why forcing people to turn on their Zoom cameras isn't inclusive

Workers being on the job but not fully functioning because of illness, otherwise known as presenteeism, is a growing problem in the UK. According to a survey by CIPD and Simply Health, 86% of more than 1,000 respondents said they had observed presenteeism in their organisation in 2018, compared with 72% in 2016 and just 26% in 2010.

You may feel the need to power through and come into work when youre unwell. But if you get into the habit of it, research suggests this can have serious consequences for both you and your employer.

Its a situation many employees have found themselves in. Youve woken up feeling rotten, with a pounding head, aching arms and a stuffy nose. You drag yourself to work, but you know you arent going to be as productive as you normally are. Youre normally pretty diligent, but you find yourself making silly mistakes because youre tired.

Having a foggy head can lead us to make mistakes, spend more time on tasks and struggle to make decisions, all of which can be costly for employers. Research from Nottingham Business School in 2017 found that the average UK employee spends almost two weeks a year working while ill. In turn, this cost firms more than 4,000 ($5,058) per person due to low productivity.

Watch: How To Answer Difficult Interview Questions

READ MORE: Why being authentic at work is important  but so are boundaries

Presenteeism has also been linked to an increase in reported mental health conditions, including stress, anxiety and depression. Yet it is these conditions that are among the main causes of long-term sickness absence. Workers who rarely take time off to recover from an illness also risk developing burnout too.

And when you are ill  even with the common cold  your body needs time to recover before you can get back to life as normal. You need to rest, drink plenty of water and avoid stress, which can compromise your immune system further.

Of course, its not always practical to call in sick every time you have a stuffy nose. But considering the risks posed by COVID-19  and the impact of presenteeism  it might be worth going easy on yourself and taking time off if you need to.
The government on Friday carried out a comprehensive review of the overall situation in eastern Ladakh including Indias operational preparedness in view of the continued belligerence by the Chinese army and its fresh attempts to intimidate Indian troops in the region, government sources said.

At a nearly 90-minute meeting of the high-power China Study Group, defence minister Rajnath Singh, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Bipin Rawat and the three service chiefs also looked at further enhancing the vigil along the nearly 3,500-km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC), including in Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim sectors, they said.

Army Chief Gen. M M Naravane briefed the meeting about the fresh face-offs between Indian and Chinese troops at both the north and south bank of the Pangong lake and elaborated on steps taken to effectively deal with such attempts, the sources said.

The meeting of the China Study Group reviewed all aspects of the situation, said a source.

The meeting also deliberated on arrangements being made to maintain the current level of troops and weapons in all forward areas in eastern Ladakh and other sensitive high-altitude sectors in the harsh winter months when the temperature drops up to minus 25 degree Celsius.

The sources said the meeting also briefly touched upon the main talking points to be raised by the Indian side at the next Corps commander-level talks which is expected to focus on the implementation of an agreement reached between foreign ministers of India and China at a meeting in Moscow on September 10.

We will insist on early and complete disengagement of Chinese troops from all friction points. That is the first step for restoration of peace and tranquillity along the border, said a source.

The sources said the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army(PLA) is yet to respond to the Indian Armys communication to it on holding the next round of the Corps commander-level talks.

There is no date as of now as the Chinese military is yet to respond to it. The talks could take place sometime next week, a source said.

The two sides have so far held five rounds of talks at the level of Corps commanders.

The sources said the situation remained tense at both the north and south bank of the Pangong lake area as well as at other friction points in eastern Ladakh.

There have been at least three attempts by the PLA to intimidate Indian troops along the north and south bank of Pangong lake area in the last three weeks where even shots were fired in the air for the first time at the LAC in 45 years.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava on Thursday said China should take forward the process for complete disengagement of troops from all friction points including at the Pangong lake area, and asked it not to make unilateral attempts to change the status quo.

He said both sides should focus on easing tensions in the friction areas by refraining from any actions that may lead to an escalation in the situation.

The assertion by Srivastava came in the backdrop of remarks by Chinese foreign ministry on Wednesday that it was for India to initiate the process to disengage and restore peace along the LAC.

Both sides reached a five-point agreement to resolve the border standoff at a meeting between External affairs minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on September 10 on the sidelines of a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation(SCO) meet in Moscow.

The agreement included measures like quick disengagement of troops, avoiding action that could escalate tensions, adherence to all agreements and protocols on border management and steps to restore peace along the LAC.

The situation in eastern Ladakh deteriorated after China unsuccessfully attempted to occupy Indian territory in the southern bank of Pangong lake on the intervening night of August 29 and 30.

India occupied a number of strategic heights on the southern bank of Pangong lake and strengthened its presence in Finger 2 and Finger 3 areas in the region to thwart any Chinese actions. China has been occupying the areas between Finger 4 and Finger 8. The mountain spurs in the area is called Fingers.

China has strongly objected to Indias move. However, India has maintained that the heights are on its side of the LAC.

India has also rushed in additional troops and weapons to the sensitive region following Chinas transgression attempts.

Following Chinas fresh attempts to change the status quo in the southern bank of Pangong lake, India has further bolstered its military presence in the region.
A 31-year-old criminal suspected of running a major drugs network in Dundalk was the main target of dawn raids by the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB).

Armed gardai supported CAB officers on Friday as they searched four properties - the criminal's home, his partner's home, the house occupied by two of his close relatives and a property in which a gang member lives.

"This individual would not be big news on a national level, but he is suspected of running a significant cross-border drug dealing network," a source told Independent.ie.

Arson

Before yesterday's operation, gardai had already seized 30,000 in cash from the Dundalk-based gang.

The main target has a number of previous convictions for assault, burglary, public order offences and theft and has been known to local gardai, for whom he is said to have a "deep hatred", since he was a juvenile.

He is also a suspect in an arson case.

Announcing yesterday's raids, a garda spokesperson said: "Four residential addresses were searched during the course of the operation conducted by Criminal Assets Bureau personnel assisted by the Emergency Response Unit, the Regional Armed Response Unit, Louth Divisional personnel and the Customs Dog Unit.

"During the course of the search, 57,507 was frozen in two bank accounts and 4,770 in cash was seized.

"Around 30,000 in cash, believed to be the proceeds of crime, had already been seized as part of this ongoing investigation.

"The search operation is a significant development in the ongoing Criminal Assets Bureau investigation conducted in conjunction with local gardai in the Louth division, targeting persons suspected to be involved in the sale and supply of illegal drugs."

It was a busy week for CAB after the agency froze 58,000 across a number of Irish bank accounts following several searches in Co Limerick on Thursday.

Three homes and a business were searched as part of an operation targeting a group involved in the sale of illegal drugs in Limerick city.

Apart from the money frozen in accounts, 2,450 in cash and 550 in sterling was seized, along with 12 luxury watches including a Rolex, Hublot and Breitling.

Revenue

CAB officers were backed up by Limerick detectives for Thursday's raids.

In July, it emerged that CAB had returned more than 9.5m to public funds since the beginning of 2018.

More than 5m of this has come from Revenue legislation, under which the CAB can recover unpaid tax.
Jammu: In a major breakthrough, the security forces on Saturday arrested three suspected terrorists belonging to banned terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba from Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir.

A large cache of arms and ammunition was also seized from the arrested LeT terrorists. According to the J&K Police, the LeT operatives had received the arms and ammunition through drones from Pakistan, the officials said on Saturday.

Police said a joint team of the security forces made the arrests. All three belong to South Kashmir`s Pulwama district and have been identified as Rahil Bashir, Amir Jan and Hafiz Younis Wani.

Police said they had gone to Rajouri to receive the weapons sent by drones from Pakistan.

Live TV

IG Police Jammu Mukesh Singh said that the three belonged to the proscribed terror outfit LeT.

"The terrorists belong to Pulwama and Shopian districts of the Kashmir Valley. A huge cache of arms & ammunition have been recovered from their procession, IG Mukesh Singh said.

The weapons recovered include two AK-56 rifles, 6 AK-Magazines with 180 rounds, two Chinese pistols, three pistol magazines with 30 rounds, four grenades and Rs 1 lakh in cash.
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According to Stratistics MRC, the Global Halal Ingredients market is accounted for $40.17 billion in 2017 and is expected to reach $77.47 billion by 2026 growing at a CAGR of 7.6% during the forecast period. Healthy snacking and increasing awareness about functional food & beverage products are some of the factors boosting the growth of the market. However, the lack of consistency for Halal Standards is restraining the growth of the market.

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Halal ingredients are vegetable, plants, fish, halal animals meat when the animal is slaughtered according to sharia rules, and chemical origin without alcohol. Halal ingredients are being used in beauty products as there is a huge demand for cosmetic products that are made up of halal ingredients.

Based on the End User, the pharmaceutical segment is expected to be the top-growing segment in the halal ingredients market. The rising frequency of chronic diseases and lifestyle and age-related diseases have led to a rush in demand for ingredients used in the pharmaceutical sector. By Geography, the Middle East is a major region in the halal ingredients market, which is anticipated to be the fastest-growing regional market. Approving government regulations in the GCC countries for halal foods are endorsed to the growth in the halal ingredients market. The rapid economic growth, as a result of the stable political environment in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, and the UAE, is contributing to the growth of the food & beverage and consumer product industries.

Some of the key players profiled in the Halal Ingredients Market include Unilever, Tesco Store, Symrise (Germany), Solvay S.A. (Belgium), Shiseido Co., Ltd., Purecircle Limited (Malaysia), Nestle Pvt. Ltd, MAKE-UP ART COSMETICS, Lush Retail Ltd., LOreal , Koninklijke DSM N.V. (Netherlands), Kerry (Ireland) , Halagel (Malaysia), DowDupont (US), Del Monte Phils., Inc., Cargill (US), Burger King Corporation , Beiersdorf, BASF (Germany), and Barentz B.V. (Netherlands).

Ingredient Types Covered:

 Ingredients for the Pharmaceutical Industry

 Ingredients for the Cosmetic Industry

 Ingredients for the Food & Beverage Industry

End Users Covered:

 Beverage Industry

 Cosmetic industry

 Pharmaceutical industry

 Food industry

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Regions Covered:

 North America

o US

o Canada

o Mexico

 Europe

o Germany

o UK

o Italy

o France

o Spain

o Rest of Europe

 Asia Pacific

o Japan

o China

o India

o Australia

o New Zealand

o South Korea

o Rest of Asia Pacific

 South America

o Argentina

o Brazil

o Chile

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 Middle East & Africa

o Saudi Arabia

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o Qatar

o South Africa

o Rest of Middle East & Africa

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A week after Gov. John Bel Edwards moved the state to Phase 3, St. Tammany Parish school officials said they are not making any immediate changes to the current public school return plan.

Students in pre-K-5th grades currently attend school in person every day, and those in grades 6-12 follow a hybrid schedule that combines virtual and in-person learning.

School system spokeswoman Meredith Mendez said Hurricane Sally, which threatened Louisiana and forced schools to close Monday and Tuesday, put the system behind in assessing what comes next, including meeting with principals. That will happen next week, she said.

"We will provide updates in the coming weeks about the timing and details of the transition," the system said in a statement Friday on its website and Facebook page.

+2 As classrooms reopen, only 389 Louisiana schools are enrolled in state coronavirus warning system As thousands of students streamed back into Jefferson and St. Tammany Parish classrooms in recent days, state health and education officials w

The school system delayed the start of the fall semester, originally set for early August, until after Labor Day in the face of concerns from teachers about coronavirus. On Sept. 8, schools opened with a staggered start to allow students to learn new safety protocols required to minimize the spread of coronavirus.

STPPS employees, students, and families have worked hard to implement logistics and procedures for the beginning of the school year following the current plan," acting Superintendent Pete Jabbia said in a prepared statement. "The closures due to Hurricane Sally interrupted the first full week of school, so schools are just now able to establish routines and procedures and evaluate their efficacy before we can safely bring in more students. We have to take a careful and measured approach to bring all of our students back to school in person.

Protocols that remain in place include temperature checks, social distancing, face masks, washing and sanitizing hands, and the frequent cleaning of high-touch surfaces, the school system said. For the most up-to-date information, visit stpsb.org.

Friday's announcement triggered an outpouring of comments on the school system's Facebook post, many of them asking why St. Tammany isn't announcing a return to full in-person learning when others are doing so.

+10 St. Tammany Parish students arrive for the first day of school with new coronavirus rules In some respects, the first day of class for St. Tammany Parish public school students was like the start of any fall semester: students at La

Vaccine news in your inbox Once a week we'll update you on the progress of COVID-19 vaccinations. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

Jefferson Parish public schools announced that beginning Wednesday, students in grades 6-8 will join those in PreK-5 in going to school every day although high school students will still follow a hybrid schedule.

"If other parishes were able to make this happen, then there is NO reason ST Tammany can't as well," one parent posted.

But others urged patience. "Although I would love my kiddo to be back 5 days a week like his little sister, if the school system isn't ready, it isn't ready. I'd rather him go back to a functional school than a complete mess."

St. Tammany School Board member Rickey Hursey said parents he's spoken with have strong feelings about the type of school setting they want for their children during the pandemic, and they haven't changed their minds even as the state has eased restrictions on the how many students can be in a classroom or on a bus.

"People's opinions on what school should look like have been all over the place, but the ones I speak with pretty much believe the same things now they did in March," Hursey said. "If they wanted their kids at home, they still do. If they wanted their kids in school five days a week, they still do."

+7 Who will be the next St. Tammany superintendent? Five insiders are vying for the job All five veteran school administrators vying to become the next head of St. Tammany Parish's public school system will face questions from the

Whatever the school system ultimately does, though, he said the safety of students and employees is the top priority.

"I don't know how long it's going to take, but we're going to get it right," he said.

Staff writer Andrew Canulette contributed to this report.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 19)  The Philippine Military Academy (PMA) will be off limits as Baguio City reopens its doors to tourists from the north.

Commandant Brigadier General Romeo Brawner Jr. said during the visit of the National Task Force against COVID-19 Coordinated Operations to Defeat Epidemic (CODE) team in Baguio City that the PMA remains COVID-free.

In line with this, Baguio City Mayor and contact tracing czar Benjamin Magalong approved the request of Brawner to exempt the tourist spot from being visited as the citys tourism industry prepares to get back on its feet on September 22.

Mayroon sana kaming request, if we could exempt PMA from the tourist destinations that will be opened this September 22, he said.

[Translation: We have a request to exempt PMA from the tourist destinations that will be opened this September 22.]

Visitors from the Ilocos Region will be allowed to visit the Summer Capital of the country as long as the public follows the protocols accordingly.

Baguio City Tourism Officer Aleck Mapalo also clarified that the 200 daily tourists don't necessarily have to be a new set of visitors per day.

So if you are staying for more than a day, so naka block na yung other days mo (your other days are blocked) as part of your count. So that means our online system will be counting also the days you are here. Not only during the entry," he said.

Tourists will be asked to submit documents online such as medical certificate, result of COVID-19 antigen or RT-PCR test, and travel pass. They also have to present their QR code before they can enter the city to limit exposure to the virus.

CNN Philippines' correspondent David Santos contributed to this report.
A newly married couple have returned to Bray after an explosion in Beirut last month nearly cost them their lives.

Anthony Clery and his wife Maria had a miraculous escape from injury, with their apartment just 0.6 of a kilometre away from the blast site on August 4.

Speaking to the Bray People just days after the explosion Anthony said they were still in shock.

However the newly weds have since moved back to Anthony's native Bray as they try to put their lives back together.

Speaking on national radio the Anthony said the devastation in the aftermath of the explosion was very far reaching.

'Overall the devastation is huge. Some buildings will never be properly restored. The city is already in a huge economic crisis so the damage will take years to recover from.'

Maria said while she is liking life in Bray she is finding it cold!

She also said that cause of the explosion is not yet determined.

'You do think why us but not only why us - why the whole city. The magnitude of it is crazy. I had initially thought it was an act of terrorism and they still haven't ruled that out.'

Maria said that her cleaner was working in the apartment at the time of the explosion and 'took me to the corridor' saving her life.

Their apartment was severely damaged in the blast, which emanated from a building at the port.

Anthony suffered cuts and lacerations and said there are still fragments of glass embedded in his foot, more than five weeks later.

The couple's apartment was severely damaged in the blast, which emanated from a building at the port.

They had got married just days before the disaster in Beirut and were looking forward to their new life together.

However now they have returned to Bray to embark on a different path.

Anthony is still working remotely for the company he had been with as his location is immaterial to his workload and Maria remains upbeat.

'Hopefully it is the worst thing we will through together.'

Anthony said the couple are still experiencing effects from the blasts.

'We are both still jumpy if we hear loud noises. There was a thunderstorm recently and it brought back bad memories but hopefully it is something that we can move on from.'

Maria said that many of the people she knew in Beirut are now anxious to escape the city.

'It's like people have lost a bit of hope and that is sad for me.'
Man of many faces By Anoushka Jayasuriya Brindley Jayatungas passion for portraits has taken him places View(s): View(s):

There are 7 Billion people on Earth and every face is different, says portrait artist Brindley Jayatunga and in the little pocket book that he maintains, he has since the 1970s faithfully sketched over 18,000 of these faces in pencil, paint and pastels.

The current Vice President of the Ceylon Society of Arts and recipient of the Kalabooshana State Award in 2016, Brindleys passion for portraits began at the age of ten when he drew Montague Jayawickrama, the second Governor of the North Western Province. Brindleys father later gifted the sketch to the veteran politician. Honing his talent on his own, Brindley further expanded his skills at art schools in Germany and London. In Munich he attended Akthof where he learned life drawing. In London he learned portrait and figure drawing at Heatherley School of Fine Art and Camberwell College of Arts.

Brindley traces his beginnings of drawing portraits of the public back to 1974 when he was in the German town of Heidelberg boarded at the home of an elderly couple. One day during breakfast he had completed a quick sketch of the lady and recognising his skill, she had urged him to set up his easel in an area of the main street free of traffic and filled with pedestrians admiring the sights of the town.

With two stools set up next to a sign in German which read Ihr kunstlerisches Portrat, or your artistic portrait in English, Brindley didnt have to wait long as a crowd had begun to form around him almost instantly. I started in the morning and I went on non- stop till evening, as they kept lining up one after the other, he recalls.

This practice continued across geographical locations when his brother who was also an artist and studied art in London, encouraged Brindley to join him there. Brindley began doing portraits at a spot near the National Portrait Gallery and spent his free time visiting the many museums and galleries in London.

Returning to Sri Lanka 1978, he ventured into tourism, making use of his knowledge of German to work as a tour guide. He went on to become a National Tour Guide Lecturer and is the recipient of awards from the Sri Lanka Institute of National Tourist Guide Lecturers. Successfully balancing both art and tourism, Brindley continued to visit Germany every year to draw portraits.

Brindley is also a familiar face at Kala Pola, Sri Lankas annual open air art fair presented by the George Keyt Foundation in association with the John Keells Group.

Years of experience have helped him develop a keen eye for the finer details of each face right down to the eyelashes, where the light falls and which features should be highlighted in his sketch.

The finished product is a collection of minute details all unique and specific to each subject and how they frame the face and figure, he says.

Over the years, he has been teaching portrait drawing and sharing his knowledge on traditional art with his students while still adding to his portfolio of portraits.
Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer (L) speaks during a news conference at the OCDA's office in Santa Ana, Calif., on Feb. 20, 2019. (Paul Bersebach/The Orange County Register via AP)

Irvine Attorney Gets Life in Prison for Ex-Wifes Cruise Ship Murder

SANTA ANA, Calif. (CNS)A former Irvine attorney was sentenced Sept. 18 to life in prison without the possibility of parole for killing his ex-wife and throwing her body overboard while on a Mediterranean cruise to solve his financial disputes with the victim.

Lonnie Loren Kocontes, 62, was convicted June 15 of murder with a special-circumstance allegation of murder for financial gain in the killing of 52-year-old Micki Kanesaki, whose body was recovered by the crew of a research vessel on May 28, 2006, in the Mediterranean Sea near Italy.

The victims brother, Toshi Kanesaki, told the defendant, You, Lonnie, executed my younger sister on that Mediterranean cruise ship.  You strangled Micki  then you threw her body overboard like trash.  You are a vicious criminal, evil person, a cold-blooded killer, a sociopath.

Toshi Kanesaki said his little sister got the last revenge. Her body was found 36 hours later.  You deserve life in prison without the possibility of parole. You are rotten to the core. I never want to see you again.

When Kocontes attempted to accuse Toshi Kanesaki of abandoning his sister, Orange County Superior Court Judge Richard King cut him off, saying there was no relevancy to the comments. King admonished him to refrain from attacking the victims brother.

I stood by Micki Kanesaki through significant periods of depression, Kocontes said. I went to counseling with her.  I did everything I could to help Micki Kanesaki to overcome her depression. I did not murder Micki Kanesaki.

Kocontes almost got away with the perfect crime, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer told reporters after the verdict was handed down.

He said the defendant strangled the victim before throwing her overboard, so there was no way for her lungs to fill up with water and the body floated instead of sinking, allowing it to be found.

Kocontes is a very smart, very educated attorney, but he made a very critical mistake, Spitzer said, adding that the defendant picked the cruise ship because every room had a direct drop to the water.

In her opening statement of the trialwhich began in February and was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemicSenior Deputy District Attorney Susan Price said Kanesaki, at the time, was with a man who no longer loved her and had remained with her for financial reasons.

Had they not found her body, we would never know she was strangled and was dead before she ever hit the water, Price said.

Kocontes, most recently a resident of Safety Harbor, Florida, had met Kanesaki while working at a Los Angeles law firm, where he was an attorney and she was a paralegal, Price said.

They married in 1995 and divorced in 2002, but continued living together in Ladera Ranch and took steps to split up their assets to protect him from threatened litigation, she said.

Kanesaki suffered from severe arthritis and couldnt work as a paralegal any longer, so she turned to investing, according to the prosecutor.

Kocontes met a woman, Amy Nguyen, through a dating website in 2002 and they had an intimate relationship while the defendant continued living with Kanesaki, who initially had no idea this affair was happening, Price said.

Kocontes former best friend, Bill Price, told investigators that nothing mattered more to [Kocontes] than money and sex, the prosecutor said.

She said Kocontes married Nguyen in Las Vegas in 2005 and the two moved in together in Orange.

In September of that year, he filed a motion in court to have a judge force Kanesaki to sell their Ladera Ranch home, Price said.

There was a dispute between the two whose house this was, she said, adding Kanesaki did not want to sell the residence or move out.

Eventually, Kocontes dropped the issue, left Nguyen, and moved back in with Kanesaki, the prosecutor saidbut told Nguyen he loved her and did not want to leave her.

Kocontes then had new wills drawn up for himself and Kanesaki, according to Price, who said Kocontes was named as executor of his ex-wifes estate.

Soon after, the two made plans to go on a cruise, which was unusual because he seldom went on vacation and was known for his thriftiness, Price said.

Before the trip, Kocontes asked his best friend, a private investigator and retired cop, about security on cruise ships, such as surveillance cameras, she said.

Kocontes picked an unusual cruise vacation for Americans because it required a flight to Minnesota and then London before boarding the ship in Spain, Price said. The travel agent was concerned his client might not like it because it was a no-frills trip aboard a converted ferry, she said.

Kocontes specifically asked for a balcony room. It was very important to him, the prosecutor said.

On the first day of the cruise, the defendant and Kanesaki opted for a daylong Sicily excursion. They returned to the ship, where they had dinner and shared a bottle of wine before going to a casino and seeing a show, Price said.

Kocontes told investigators he woke up about 4:30 a.m. on May 26, 2006, and realized Kanesaki was missing. He told investigators that she may have gotten nauseous from the wine and fell overboard, Price said.

The defendant was put up in a hotel in Naples, but stayed just a day and returned home before his ex-wifes body was found, Price said.

Instead of going to his home in Ladera Ranch, he went to Nguyens house, where they resumed their intimate relationship, she said.

An autopsy showed Kanesakis lungs were completely free of water and she had severe hemorrhaging around her neck, which was consistent with strangulation, Price said.

The pathologist, Dr. Pietrantonio Ricci, told investigators that the victim also sustained a skull fracture or hemorrhaging in her brain, Price said.

Nguyen told investigators that at some point, Kocontes told her that he paid his friend Price to kill Kanesaki and hurl her overboard, according to the prosecutor, who said the friend did not go on the cruise.

Nguyen lied to a federal grand jury in 2006 that was investigating the killing, Price alleged.

Kanesakis niece, Julie Saranita, recorded phone conversations with Kocontes while she was cooperating with FBI agents, according to Price, who played some of the conversations for jurors during her opening statement.

Kocontes was angered when Saranita confronted him with the autopsy results and asked him if he had anything to do with her aunts death, Price said.

While federal agents were looking into the death, Kocontes at some point talked Nguyen into removing a hard drive from one of the computers in his Irvine office, Price said.

Nguyen lied to the federal grand jury because Kocontes threatened to kill her and make it look like an accident, Price alleged.

Kocontes attorney, Denise Gragg, told jurors there are very few things in this case that are not contested, but one of the main differences involves the relationship between the defendant and the victim.

Kanesaki had to stop working because of her arthritis and her only income was disability payments, Gragg said, adding that Kocontes was the breadwinner in the marriage.

They split up their assets due to the threatened litigation, but it never materialized, Gragg said.

Kocontes continued to support Kanesaki from 2002 to 2005 even though he had no legal obligation to do so, she said, telling jurors they would hear conflicting evidence about the cause of death.

Essentially, her neck was broken, which was consistent with someone who hits the water  consistent with a fall, Gragg said.

Gragg also told jurors that they would hear evidence that Amy Nguyen is a liar, and about her clients best friends role in the changing of her story.

Kocontes was also charged with attempting to solicit the murder of Nguyen while he was in jail, but prosecutors moved to dismiss that case since the defendant was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Photo by Susan Duran on Unsplash

When researchers in China were analyzing hospital data of patients with COVID-19, they noticed an odd trend: Very few of the sick patients regularly wore glasses.

In one hospital in Suizhou, China, 276 patients were admitted over a 47 day period, but only 16 patients  less than 6%  had myopia or nearsightedness that required them to wear glasses for more than eight hours a day. By comparison, more than 30% of similarly aged people in the region needed glasses for nearsightedness, earlier research had shown.

Given that the rate of nearsightedness appeared to be so much higher in the general population than in the COVID-19 ward, the scientists wondered: Could wearing glasses protect a person from becoming infected with coronavirus?

Wearing of eyeglasses is common among Chinese individuals of all ages, wrote the study authors. However, since the outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan in December 2019, we observed that few patients with eyeglasses were admitted in the hospital ward.

The observation could be preliminary evidence that daily wearers of eyeglasses are less susceptible to COVID-19, the authors speculated.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

Experts say its too soon to draw conclusions from the research  or recommend that people start wearing eye protection in addition to masks in hopes of lowering their risk for infection.

It may be that eyeglasses act as a partial barrier, protecting eyes from the splatter of a cough or sneeze. Another explanation for the finding could be that people who wear glasses are less likely to rub their eyes with contaminated hands. A 2015 report on face touching found that over the course of an hour, students watching a lecture touched their eyes, nose or mouth, on average, about 10 times, though the researchers did not look into whether wearing glasses made a difference.

The current study, published in JAMA Ophthalmology, was accompanied by a commentary from Dr. Lisa Maragakis, an infectious disease specialist and associate professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, who urged caution in interpreting the results.

The study was small, involving fewer than 300 cases of COVID-19, a tiny fraction of the nearly 30 million reported cases of coronavirus infection around the world. Another concern is that the data on nearsightedness in the comparison group were gleaned from a study that took place decades earlier.

And Maragakis noted that any number of factors could confound the data, and it may be that wearing glasses is simply associated with another variable that affects risk for COVID-19. For example, it could be that people who wear glasses tend to be older, and more careful and more likely to stay home during a viral outbreak, than those who do not wear glasses. Or perhaps people who can afford glasses are less likely to contract the virus for other reasons, like having the means to live in less crowded spaces.

Its one study, Maragakis said. It does have some biological plausibility, given that in health care facilities, we use eye protection, such as face shields or goggles. But what remains to be investigated is whether eye protection in a public setting would add any protection over and above masks and physical distancing. I think its still unclear.

Health care workers wear protective equipment over their eyes to protect them from droplets that can fly from coughs and sneezes, as well as aerosolized particles that form when patients undergo medical procedures, such as intubation. But for the vast majority of people, that extra level of protection probably isnt needed if a person is wearing a mask and keeping physical distance in public spaces. Theres also the possibility of introducing risk by wearing glasses  some people might touch their faces more when they put on glasses, rather than less, noted Maragakis.

That said, more study is needed to see if the trend holds up in other study populations, said Dr. Thomas Steinemann, a spokesman for the American Academy of Ophthalmology and professor of ophthalmology at MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland.

I think its provocative, and its extremely interesting, Steinemann said.

But Steinemann noted that the study shouldnt cause worry among people who dont wear glasses. It probably cant hurt to wear glasses, but does everybody need to do that? Probably not, he said. I think you have to consider the practicality of wearing eye protection or a face shield. People in certain occupations, first responders, caregivers for someone who is ill, those are people who should maybe take special notice.

The findings also raise interesting questions about how often the eyes might be the entry portal for the virus. Its long been established that viruses and other germs can enter the body through facial mucous membranes in the eyes, nose and mouth. But the nose seems to be a main entry point for coronavirus, because it has a high number of receptors that create a friendly environment in which the virus can replicate and move down the respiratory tract.

But doctors are seeing a small percentage of patients with eye symptoms, including conjunctivitis or pink eye, which suggests the virus may also be entering the body through the eyes. Although eye symptoms are less common than other symptoms like cough or fever, various studies have reported that eye complaints can be a sign of COVID-19 infection.

Last month, researchers reported a study of 216 children hospitalized with COVID-19 in Wuhan. Among those patients, 49 children, or nearly 23% of the cases, had eye symptoms, including conjunctival discharge, eye rubbing and conjunctival congestion. In addition to pink eye, itchy eyes, excessive tearing, blurred vision and feeling like something is in the eye have all been described by patients with COVID-19.

By Tara Parker-Pope

c.2020 The New York Times Company
Former Labour Minister Geoffrey Robinson (pictured) has handed back Commons expenses cash that he was paid in error

Former Labour Minister Geoffrey Robinson has handed back Commons expenses cash that he was paid in error.

The Mail on Sunday last year revealed how the millionaire grandee was facing questions over a 30,000-a-year taxpayer-funded salary paid to his long-term friend Brenda Price.

He had told Commons authorities that Ms Price, then 89, was working for him virtually full-time just two months before disclosing that she was so frail that she required round-the-clock nursing care.

Commons officials alerted the police because of suspicions they may have paid wages to Ms Price  on Mr Robinsons authority  after doctors concluded she was losing her mental faculties.

The former Paymaster General was also granted power of attorney over Ms Prices affairs while she was still receiving her salary, potentially giving him control over her finances, and charged the Commons nearly 1,000 a month for renting a room in her 600,000 home near his Coventry North West constituency, even after she needed 24-hour care.

Mr Robinson, who stood down at last years Election after 43 years as a Labour MP, has previously declined to comment but in a statement last night said expenses had been received in error during a period when he was ill.

He said the matter was now concluded with the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, the Commons watchdog.

I have no further case to answer with IPSA in connection with Mrs Brenda Price and expenses, having repaid all monies received in error during a time when I suffered serious ill health, and therefore all matters with IPSA are now concluded, he said.

Mr Robinson, who stood down at last years Election after 43 years as a Labour MP, has previously declined to comment but in a statement last night said expenses had been received in error during a period when he was ill

The police were promptly informed once parliamentary expenses questions were conclusively resolved with IPSA in March of this year. IPSA said the case is still being investigated by Scotland Yard.

As the Metropolitan Police investigation is ongoing, we will not be commenting on the details of the case, a spokesman said. However, we can confirm the former MP has made a payment to IPSA in relation to this matter.

Mrs Price died at her detached home in Balsall Common in November, aged 90.

Her will allowed Mr Robinson, if he wished, to stay in her property for the rest of his life. However, last night he said the house is being sold with the proceeds to go to her family.

The Mail on Sunday last year revealed claims in intelligence files that Mr Robinson was a spy who allegedly handed defence secrets to Communist Czechoslovakia during the Cold War. He described the claims as a complete fabrication.
19.09.2020 LISTEN

The National Democratic Congress Parliamentary Candidate for Jirapa Constituency, Hon Cletus Seidu Dapilaa has bemoaned the bad nature of roads in the constituency.

According to him, the terrible nature of the roads in the constituency has been affecting movement, trade and other forms of economic activities as some of the roads are not motorable especially in the raining season.

He particularly mentioned that the Jirapa-Nyene-Jirapa-Sigri road, Jirapa-Zenpenne road, Jefeere road, Jirapa town roads and many other important roads deserve critical and special attention.

"A good road network will open up the area for economic activities that will improve the living standards of the people," he intimated.

He made the comments while speaking to Tumpaani FM on a one on one interview with Barrister Enock, the hotnews program host of Tumpaani 88.5mhz, located in Nadowli, the district capital of the Nadowli/Kaleo district.

He emphasized that when given the mandate as the Member of Parliament for Jirapa Constituency, he would consider ensuring that there are good roads within the area.

He added that his track record as former Chief Executive of the Jirapa District, now Jirapa municipal, is well known to the people and hence people should consider experience and track record in the upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections.

He lamented the slow pace of development in the constituency after the NDC loss power and made a solemn promise to the people that if he has the opportunity to represent the people, he would use his experience to lobby and influence an aggressive road network project in the constituency.

Apparently, the politics of roads has been dominating this year's campaign, suggesting that many of the electorates need good roads in their constituencies. You would recall that the government of Ghana dubbed this year as a year of roads but with few months to elections, many citizens are still complaining of lack of good roads in their areas. The Jirapa constituency is therefore not an exception. It is predictably obvious that roads will have a major part to play in this year's election.

Hon Cletus Dapilaa is widely described as a "grassroot man" in the constituency who gained his popularity during his days as the District Chief Executive. He is admired by many youth across the constituency who are poised at voting for him.

The Jirapa constituency being a traditional seat of the National Democratic Congress, and the fact that he has a good track record, having occupied the position of the District Chief Executives, many believe that he is going to win the impending elections decisively.
Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, hasnt exactly said no to Democrat Paulette Jordans challenge to debate her in four townhall settings in Boise, Coeur dAlene, Idaho Falls and Twin Falls.

But he will.

Thats his track record. Usually, he avoids all but one debate with his opponents  such as the commitment hes made to appear on Boises KTVB on Oct. 13.

Thats his prerogative as the Republican incumbent in a Republican state who has a 10-to-1 fundraising edge. Why surrender those advantages by enhancing Jordans stature?

But its also his nature. Jordan barely laid a glove on Republican Gov. Brad Little during their debate in the 2018 gubernatorial campaign. But she may be more than a match for a veteran Republican who seems unwilling  or unable  to tolerate a pugnacious question.

For instance, when the late Sen. Frank Churchs granddaughter, Monica Church, on Sept. 16, 2019, asked him to explain the 12,000 misleading statements then attributed to President Donald Trump, Risch refused to answer: I am not going to stand and explain that. I will let you take that up with the president. If you are looking for someone to fight with the president, youve got the wrong guy.

A month later, Boise State Public Radio reporter Heath Druzin sparked the senators wrath by seeking the Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairmans reaction to Trump suggesting China investigate former Vice President Joe Biden during a National Womens Business Council forum in Nampa: Im not going there. If you want to have an interview with me about the business center, please do so, Risch said. Dont do that again.

The last thing Risch wants is anybody messing with his successful formula of nationalizing his re-election. God forbid he enables Jordan to fling some of these questions at him:

l As a member of the Senate intelligence committee, he was briefed on the COVID-19 pandemic early in the year. Like Trump, he downplayed the threat to the public. Why? And who does he trust on this issue  Trump or National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci?

l When Barack Obama was president, Risch could not draw a breath without bemoaning the status of the budget deficits. Between Republican tax cuts and the COVID-19 bailouts, that deficit will rise from $984 billion in 2019 to $3.3 trillion this year. When did deficits stop bothering him?

l Risch chose not to serve on the Senate Appropriations Committee, which is crucial to Idahos economy. How does serving on the Foreign Relations and Intelligence panels instead help the people who sent Risch to Washington, D.C.?

l Why is Risch not more interested in intelligence accounts that Russians placed bounties on American troops in Afghanistan? Does it not concern him that even Fox News has verified reports quoting Trump as calling fallen and wounded American soldiers losers and suckers? And how many Idaho military funerals has the Idaho senator attended?

l Why was Risch willing to blow up the federal budget in an attempt to block the naming of the Cecil D. Andrus-White Clouds Wilderness? By the way, how would he rate Andrus legacy?

l Risch has been in Idaho politics since the 1970s, beginning as Ada County prosecutor, state senator, lieutenant governor, governor and now U.S. senator. What does he say to those Idahoans who support term limits?

l By his own account, Risch is one of the Senates wealthiest members. Would he commit to releasing 10 years of his income tax returns?

l Would he vote to imprison Idaho women who have abortions?

l Does Risch believe human behavior is contributing to climate change and what would he do about it?

l Would the Idaho Republican commit to meeting with the leadership of Black Lives Matter?

l Risch was critical of Obamas foreign policy. Yet, under Trump, respect for America among its friends in the world has slipped to the lowest level since the Pew Research Center began collecting polling data on the topic nearly 20 years ago. What has the Idaho senator done to halt the decline of American prestige?

Political calculation, even arrogance, fails to explain why Risch would avoid sharing the debate stage with Jordan.

Fear, on the other hand, just might.  M.T.

Marty Trillhaase is the opinion page editor for the Lewiston Tribune.

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Her split from Sam Thompson has become the focus of much scrutiny in recent days, amid claims he recently discovered that she had cheated on him.

And Zara McDermott was spotted indulging in some retail therapy on Saturday, when she stepped out for a solo shopping trip in London.

The 23-year-old reality star was seen engaging in an intense phone chat as she strolled through the streets of the English capital.

Solo shop: Zara McDermott was spotted enjoying a solo shopping trip in London on Saturday

Carrying one of Selfridges' distinctive canary yellow shopping bags, the brunette beauty looked stony faced as she held her smartphone to her ear.

The Kent native stepped out in style for the excursion, donning a taupe checked shirt dress, which she teamed with knee-high black leather boots.

Wearing her chestnut brown tresses in a sleek blowout, the TV personality kept her makeup light and natural for her day of retail therapy.

Intense: The 23-year-old reality star was seen engaging in an intense phone chat as she strolled through the streets of the English capital

Conversation: Carrying one of Selfridges' distinctive canary yellow shopping bags, the brunette beauty looked stony faced as she held her smartphone to her ear

While Zara has yet to publicly confirm or deny claims she cheated on former beau Sam, she has been sharing cryptic quotes on social media.

On Thursday, the TV star shared a snap of herself lounging on a sun bed in a turquoise bikini, which was from her recent getaway to Rome.

She simply captioned the image: 'Throwback to Rome [sad face emoji] @ohpolly.'

Elsewhere on social media, Zara shared another cryptic post about love following her shock split from ex-boyfriend Sam.

Sharing a picture of a quote on her Instagram Stories, Zara wrote: 'Your heart knows the way, run in that direction.

Stepping out in style: The Kent native stepped out in style for the excursion, donning a taupe checked shirt dress, which she teamed with knee-high black leather boots

It comes after she posted quotes about 'hurting someone' and 'love winning' as rumours swirl following her split from her reality star beau.

On Wednesday, she took to Instagram Stories to post two emotive quotes after it was revealed the couple's relationship was hanging in the balance after Sam learned his girlfriend had cheated.

Her first said: 'Love always won in the end. No matter how it happened, no matter what it took, no matter what it meant. Fair or not, true or not. Love won.'

Adding a sad face emoji, Zara's second post then stated: 'We have all hurt someone tremendously, whether by intent or accident. We have all loved someone tremendously, whether by intent or accident.

Drama: Zara and Sam Thompson's relationship has been 'hanging in the balance' after he learned she'd allegedly cheated on him while competing on The X Factor: Celebrity last year

Throwback: On Thursday, Zara shared a sizzling bikini throwback amid her split from Sam

'It is an intrinsic human trait, and a deep responsibility, I think, to be an organ and a blade. But, learning to forgive ourselves and others because we have not chosen wisely is what makes us most human.

'We make horrible mistakes, it's how we learn. We breathe love, it's how we learn, and it is inevitable.'

Zara's posts come after a source revealed to MailOnline that a tryst took place between Zara and 'someone in the music industry' around the time she took part in X Factor: Celebrity.

The reality star appeared on the series last summer and autumn, as part of the Love Island pop group No Love Lost.

At this point, she had been in a relationship with Sam for several months  but it's said the Made In Chelsea star has only recently found out about the infidelity.

Struggles: Elsewhere on social media, Zara shared another cryptic post about love following her shock split from ex-boyfriend Sam

Drama: Zara previously shared cryptic posts about 'hurting someone' and 'love winning' as rumours swirl following her split from Made In Chelsea's Sam

A source told MailOnline: 'Zara cheated on Sam with someone in the music industry. Someone connected to the X Factor.

'Sam is obviously distraught about this. He only found out about it very recently and has escaped for a few days.

'Zara regrets it and feels terrible. She knows it was a huge mistake and is extremely upset.'

A source also told MailOnline on Thursday: 'Zara and Sam split towards the end of last month. They had been arguing a lot since moving in together as a result of lockdown and things just built up between them.

'Zara has moved back to her parents' house in Essex where she's taking some time for herself, she really loved Sam so this hasn't been easy for her.

What are you saying? The Love Island star took to Instagram Stories to share an emotive quote hinting that 'love won'

Who have you hurt? She then shared a second quote about 'hurting someone' and 'making horrible mistakes'

'Sam has gone away to have a break from it all and clear his head away from Zara and social media.'

It's also been reported that Sam and Zara's split will be played out in explosive scenes on an upcoming episode of Made In Chelsea.

MailOnline contacted representatives for Zara and Sam for comment at the time.

Their broken relationship is now thought to be 'hanging in the balance' as the pair have been unable to talk.

Sam has been filming The Circle with pal Pete Wicks, but Zara 'is fighting hard to get him back'.

Over: A source also told MailOnline the pair split after 'arguing a lot' during lockdown, but it's now come to light Zara cheated on him
While the worlds eyes were focused on the horror in Paris on Wednesday evening, MPs were engaged in a widely unreported debate on whether it is the Governments job to protect you from a bad hair-do.

The Labour MP Nia Griffiths proposed that barbers and hairdressers should be compelled by law to register with the British Hair Council, as a way of protecting women in particular from having their hair splattered with dangerous chemicals by fly-by-night hairdressers.

Registering with the Council is currently voluntary: only 6,000 out of about 250,000 people in the hair-cutting and dressing business have done so. The Councils chief executive is named Sally Styles. (Im not making that up.)

Mark Harper, the Department for Work and Pensions minister whose responsibilities seemingly include formulation of government policy on hair-dos, said that legislation would be unnecessary and expensive, because the Health and Safety Executive is there to watch your back.

In my nine years as an MP, I do not think I have ever had a single letter complaining about appalling treatment by a hairdresser, he said.

Actually, only three weeks ago, a judge finally dismissed the assault charges against Anthony Orplinger, who was so enraged by his bad haircut that he stormed back to the barbers shop, with a BB gun. He was offered a refund. But that was in Illinois.

Cable sidelined for Danny

When Nick Clegg announced this week which Liberal Democrat will speak on which aspects of policy in the coming general election, most of the coverage focused on the belittling of Vince Cable.

In 2010, Cable was at Cleggs side as Treasury spokesman. Now that role is to be filled by Danny Alexander, while Cable has slipped to fifth place in the pecking order, as spokesman on business and skills. In the Commons today, taunted about his demotion by the right-wing Tory MP Philip Davies, Cable asserted: I actually remain as our economics spokesman, but that is a minor internal matter.

When he said our economics spokesman, it sounded as if he were claiming to be the only one, which is not so. He could argue that he is one of two economic spokesmen, but he is not the main one: he is outranked by Danny Alexander, who is 29 years his junior. Something tells me hes not happy about that.

Crude bet with The Sun

Alex Salmond denies that he has lost a bet on whether the price of oil would drop below $50 (33) a barrel on any day in 2015. The bet was made over lunch with the associate editor of The Sun, Trevor Kavanagh.

Since the price of a barrel of Brent crude dipped to $49.66 during Tuesday, you would think that Kavanagh is owed a greenback. But Salmond is insisting that his bet is not lost yet because by the close of trade, the price of Brent crude was back up to $51.10.

Kavanagh says there was no mention of the closing price in the original bet, but he has offered to go double or quits on an even lower price of $40 a barrel.

Secret election list revealed

Two years ago this week, the Government published a Midterm Report on its progress on every policy front. I was puzzled at the time by a commitment to support 13 countries to hold free and fair elections, because no one seemed to know which 13 countries they were.

Now, with time almost up, the International Development department say they have got a list, and have fulfilled the promise. The 13 countries were Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Nepal, Pakistan, Yemen, Uganda and Malawi.
Mumbai, Sep 19 : Veteran Communist leader, women's activist and ex-MP Roza Deshpande passed away on Saturday due to old age-related ailments, according to a family source. She was 91.

She is survived by a son and a daughter. Her husband, the fiery Communist leader Bani Deshpande, passed away in 2015.

Ailing for some time, Deshpande was admitted to a Dadar hospital for age-related and breathing problems in April before she was discharged.

Daughter of one of the founders of the Communist movement in the country, the legendary Shripad Amrut Dange, she breathed her last around 1 p.m.

Born a month after her father Dange was arrested in the Meerut conspiracy case and later sentenced to life imprisonment, Deshpande plunged into politics through the All India Students Federation, various trade unions and took part in the Samyukta Maharashtra Movement and also the Goa Liberation Movement.

While working in the textile industry, Deshpande acquired a deep insight into the conditions of working women not only in the textile sector, but also railways, engineering, pharmaceutical and chemical industries.

On learning that women - who comprised 40 per cent in the chemical sector workforce - were forced to sign a bond that they would quit immediately after getting married, she organized in 1964 a massive movement for women's right to work, maternity benefits and other perks to ensure their equality in the workplaces.

It was the first-ever mass movement for women in Mumbai's labour history, in which she submitted a Charter of Demands to the government, forcing the companies to bow and withdraw the obnoxious clause.

With massive response from all over India to her campaigns, she set up the Bombay Pharmaceutical Employees Union, later the All India Pharmaceutical Employees Union affiliated to the World Federation of Trade Unions, and the Chemical and Oil International.

In 1974, she was elected to the Lok Sabha from Mumbai North-Central constituency and continued her fight for the rights of workers and women at the state and national levels.

When the Emergency was imposed in 1975, Deshpande supported then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, for which she and her supporters were expelled from the Communist Party of India.

Later, even her father Dange was ejected by the CPI, following which they set up the All India Communist Party, of which Deshpande became the General Secretary.

Prior to the 1980 elections, Indira Gandhi handpicked Deshpande and sent her to Moscow as her Special Emissary to meet then Russian leader Leonid Brezhnev to explain her political position in a special letter.

Besides her trade unionism and women's welfare activities, Deshpande was a poet with a published volume of poetry, 'Avyakt', besides a keen student of Marathi literature and history.

A few years ago, along with her husband, Roza initiated the task of publishing all the published and unpublished works of late Dange, along with his official biography which she penned.

Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari said he was deeply saddened to learn about the demise of Roza Deshpande, and paid rich tributes to her life and memories.

"She carried forward the legacy of social service inherited from SA Dange. She had taken active part in the Samyukta Maharashtra Movement and the Goa Liberation Movement," said Koshyari.

Maharashtra Minister Nitin Raut expressed grief over Roza Deshpande's passing while Tushar Gandhi, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, said her demise came just a day after US Supreme Court's Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg passed away in Washington.

"Two iconic women have passed away -- yesterday, Justice Ginsberg in the USA, and today, Comrade Roza Deshpande in Mumbai. Two true feminists and great icons," said Tushar Gandhi.
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Linkedin Ivany Atina Arbi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 13:32 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45e6340 1 National Bali-tourism,COVID-19,Luhut-Binsar-Pandjaitan,bali-island,Coordinating-Maritime-and-Investment-Ministry,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,coronavirus,virus-corona,virus-korona-indonesia,health-protocol,tourism Free

Authorities will impose stricter screening measures on visitors to Bali amid an increasing number of COVID-19 cases on the resort island.

Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Pandjaitan said the measures would be enforced for the next two weeks.

We dont want to just uncontrollably open Bali for tourism. People wanting to visit the island will be required to undergo strict testing, Luhut said during a teleconference on Friday.

The minister is among several officials tasked by President Joko Jokowi Widodo with handling COVID-19 in several provinces with high case numbers and fatalities, including Bali.

The resort island saw a significant increase in confirmed cases following the reopening of tourism for domestic visitors in late July.

Read also: Balis Ngurah Rai, Incheon collaborate to boost air travel confidence

According to data from the Bali administration, the province recorded more than 1,600 new cases in the past few weeks, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 7,543 as of Friday. The number of fatalities has almost doubled from 100 on Sept. 4 to 199 on Friday.

Nationwide, health authorities recorded 3,891 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on Friday, bringing the official tally to 236,519. More than 9,300 people have succumbed to the disease so far.

Since opening its doors to domestic travelers, Bali has seen an increase in tourist arrivals. Bali Tourism Agency acting head Cok Raka Darmawan revealed that 2,500 to 3,000 domestic tourists had arrived every day at Ngurah Rai International Airport in Denpasar in August.

The government has canceled a plan to reopen the resort island to international tourists on Sept. 11.

The pandemic has dealt a hard blow to Balis economy, which relies heavily on tourism. The provinces economy contracted by 10.98 percent year-on-year in the second quarter of 2020, and thousands of people in the tourism sector have lost their jobs.
PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa yesterday told a Zanu PF central committee meeting in Harare that he appointed Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga to head the Health portfolio to sort out striking doctors and nurses with a soldier mentality.

Chiwenga was appointed to the portfolio last month following the ouster of Obadiah Moyo, who is facing abuse of office charges that also involve associates of Mnangagwas Family.

The former Zimbabwe Defence Forces Commander, who traded the military fatigue for political office after a military coup that ousted the late former President Robert Mugabe in November 2017, came into the health portfolio amid a crippling job action by nurses demanding a living wage.

We realised that year after year, we would not go for four or five months without a strike in the health sector. I realised we needed a soldier there. We had to second a soldier there and now they are back at work, Mnangagwa said in apparent reference to Chiwenga.

In August, armed police were deployed to beat up striking nurses at Sally Mugabe Central Hospital in Harare, while others were also deployed in Bulawayo and other cities.

Nurses were also arrested for downing tools during that period.

Chiwenga, soon after his appointment, pleaded with the health workers to return to work and pledged to end the culture of looting by those politically connected.

He came in when the health workers had declared war on their employers, insisting they would not go back to work before their concerns were raised.

Their concerns included United States dollar-pegged salaries, personal protective equipment, among other essentials, and the government had failed to convince them to go back to work.

There were reports soon after his appointment that Chiwenga was targeting some members of Mnangagwas family who were fingered in the COVID-19 looting scandals that involved alleged abuse of millions of dollars.

Several people, including Moyo and one Delish Nguwaya, a close associate of the Mnangagwa family, have since been arrested over the scandals, while journalists who exposed the said rot have either been arrested or are in hiding. Newsday
The best that can be said of Alan Mellins, a Conservative councillor from Maidenhead, is that his behaviour was ignorant. Maidenhead includes a site where Travellers settled five years ago without planning permission, and on Monday a council panel was asked for any suggestion about how to speed up the process of evicting them. Execute them, Mellins suggested.

He has since told the Maidenhead Advertiser: The remark was an ill-judged remark, which I did not intend to be taken seriously. It doesnt reflect my views.

Adolf Hitler took the same view of Travellers  though unlike the councillor, he did intend it to be taken seriously. It is estimated that the Nazis and their allies murdered 220,000 or more of the one million Roma who were living in eastern Europe at the start of the war.

Joseph Jones of the Gypsy Council said, killing travellers is not something that should be taken as a joke and has suggested that the councillor should seriously consider his position. Labour has said that David Cameron should have him expelled from the party.

PMs leadership challenge

Part of todays unenlightening exchange between David Cameron and Ed Miliband consisted of a bit of nah-ni-nah about who was the worse leader. Simply not up to the job, said Cameron of Miliband. Not in a position to give a masterclass in leadership, said Miliband of Cameron.

The Labour leader could have scored an extra point if he had known how the Conservative MEPs voted when asked to approve the new list of European commissioners, including Camerons nominee, Jonathan Hill. Cameron had told his MEPs to vote in favour.

The problem was that MEPs cannot pick and choose which commissioners to support: they have to vote for the entire team or none, and the new team is headed by Jean-Claude Juncker, who was appointed President of the Commission against Camerons wishes. In the event, the MEPs split: six followed Camerons instructions by voting in favour, nine abstained and three voted against.

An earl with a tale to tell

Well done the Liberal Democrats. Although their support in the country has fallen far below Ukips, they have triumphed in a by-election to choose a new member of the House of Lords, under that weird new rule that lays down that there has to be a by-election whenever there is a vacancy in one of the 92 places in the Lords reserved for hereditary peers.

The winner was the Earl of Oxford and Asquith. It was not a close contest: he collected 155 votes out of 283 cast, when the runner-up, Lord Napier and Ettrick, had 35. The earl at least had a good story to tell. In his election statement he identified himself as a former diplomat, but did not mention that he was the MI6 station officer in Moscow who spirited the defector Oleg Gordievsky across the border into Finland.

The unknown Fabricant

Michael Fabricant is a Tory MP it is sometimes difficult to take seriously, but today he talked sense about an anomaly hanging over from the 1980s, when Aids was an incurable killer. People in high-risk categories were banned from donating blood, including all gay men.

Three years ago, the health minister amended the rules to allow a gay man to donate if he has been celibate for a year. Today, in the Commons, Fabricant put this question: If a monogamous, healthy, sexually active gay man has been tested and has neither HIV/Aids nor hepatitis B, and is not having sex with anyone with HIV/Aids or hepatitis B, why should he be prevented from donating blood? He is seeking a change in the law.
Democrats must use everything possible stop Mitch McConnells move to enact the greatest travesty, the monument of hypocrisy after Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death, Hillary Clinton says

As the country mourns the loss of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday, Hillary Clinton took the opportunity to reflect on her legacy and shine a light on the way Senate Republicans have abused their power to shape the highest court in the land in their fashion.

The former Secretary of State appeared on MSNBCs The Rachel Maddow Show that evening to comment on Ginsburgs passing, stating that she was devastated. As a former lawyer and law professor herself, Clinton expressed how much Ginsburg was an inspiration to her and how her death leaves a massive hole.

What Ruth Bader Ginsburg did was to make it abundantly clear that the Constitution had to explicitly, wherever possible, be interpreted as providing for the equal rights of men and women, Clinton stated. Ginsburg, 87, was the second female to sit on the top court in 1993. She was nominated by President Bill Clinton.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (Photo by Jeenah Moon/Getty Images)

I knew of her work, and so when the [Supreme Court] opening occurred and everyone was making their list, I said to my husband, someone you should definitely look at is Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg  I thought that she was a historic figure, said Clinton, who was the first lady at the time of Ginsburgs nomination. When she came to be interviewed by Bill Clinton, they just hit it off.

READ MORE: How Ginsburgs death could reshape the presidential campaign: a fight of epic proportions

Apart from her personal feelings about Ginsburg, Hillary Clinton went on to speak about the void that Ginsburgs death leaves in the U.S. government.

And now with her loss, its not only a personal loss, but its a real threat to the steady march toward progress that we need to continue, Clinton said. This is the hundredth year of the anniversary of women getting the right to vote. It took, you know, many more years before there were legislative protections for women of color, and were still fighting those battles.

Story continues

Clinton then turned to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, calling attention to the way McConnell politicized the Supreme Court after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in early 2016, an election year. McConnell blocked then-President Barack Obamas nominee, Judge Merrick Garland, from being considered for the court, taking a gamble on President Donald Trumps odds to defeat Clinton, the 2016 Democratic nominee, in the race to succeed Obama that fall.

In this April 6, 2018, file photo, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg applauds after a performance in her honor after she spoke about her life and work during a discussion at Georgetown Law School in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

With another presidential election less than two months away, Clinton feels that it would be a double standard if McConnell allows Trump to fill Ginsburgs seat.

People talk about justice Scalia being an originalist, he was someone who was always trying to figure out what the founders thought. I often wondered during that time, when Mitch McConnell was truly wreaking havoc on our Senate and on our norms and values, and I would argue on the underlying original intent of the Constitution and the founders that presidents have a right to appoint judges to fill vacancies, Clinton told Maddow.

Mitch McConnel denied Barack Obama that right, and that set in motion a series of events that I think did great damage to the Senate that can only be remedied by removing Mitch McConnel as the leader of the Senate.

The move left the ninth seat on the Supreme Court vacant for more than 400 days, the longest opening on the court since the 1860s, according to the New York Times, until Trump nominee Neil Gorsuch joined the bench in April 2017.

READ MORE: Majority Leader McConnell says a Trump Supreme Court nominee will receive vote by Senate

That has to happen in this election by getting a Democratic Senate majority, but in the meantime, the Democrats who are in the Senate will have to use every single possible maneuver that is available to them to make it clear that they are not going to permit Mitch McConnell to enact the greatest travesty, the monument of hypocrisy that would arise from him attempting to fill this position, Clinton said.

And thats one thing McConnell has already signaled that he intends to do.

President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, the Republican from Kentucky said in a statement after Ginsburgs passing.

In a Saturday morning tweet, Trump said his party was put in this position of power and importance to make decisions and that We have this obligation, without delay!

.@GOP We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 19, 2020

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The post Hillary Clinton reflects on Ginsburg, warns of GOPs attempt to enact the greatest travesty appeared first on TheGrio.
September 19 : Bollywood drug link that has once again opened up with the arrest of Rhea Chakraborty is currently under the Narcotics Control Bureaus (NCB) scanner. In the latest development in the drug investigation that is linked with Sushant Singh Rajput's death case, it is reported that an alleged drug peddler Rahil Vishram, who was arrested on Friday has connection with Bollywood.

According to a Times Now report, Rahil Vishram, who is referred as Sam Drug Uncle in Bollywood, was arrested from his residence in suburban Versova. His name surfaced during questioning of an alleged drug peddler who is in NCBs custody. NCB will soon seek Rahils custody in the court as the agency believes he can be a vital link with Bollywood. The report also suggests that Rahil used to operate under someone who is known as a boss in the film industry.

The Times Now report also suggests that this alleged handler was an insider in Bollywood, who has now given up this business, but is still a part of the film industry. It is also reported that the said person used to distribute drugs in the industry, and was the main supplier of the drug called Malana Cream to the A-listers of Bollywood. During interrogation, Rahil has given out some names who belong to Bollywood, it is reported.

NCB has arrested six more drug peddlers over the last couple of days after carrying out raids in Mumbai's posh areas like Powai and Andheri suburbs, and Thane. Following a statement by drug supplier Ankush Arneja, the NCB arrested Rahil, who had supplied charas to Arneja.

Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery
Mumbai, Sep 19 : Actress Kangana Ranaut says she wants film industries of different states to have a collective identity, and claims she wants to save the industry from from terrorists such as the nepotism brigade and the drug mafia.

"People's perception that top film industry in India is Hindi film Industry is wrong. Telugu film industry has ascended itself to the top position and now catering films to pan India in multiple languages, many hindi films being shot in Ramoji Hyderabad," she tweeted on Saturday.

This comes after Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath reportedly said he plans to build the "biggest film city" in Uttar Pradesh.

"I applaud this announcement by @myogiadityanath ji. We need many reforms in the film industry, first of all we need one big film industry called Indian film industry.. we are divided based on many factors, Hollywood films get advantage of this. One industry but many Film Cities," she wrote.

She went on to say that best of dubbed regional films don't get pan-India release but dubbed Hollywood films get mainstream release, adding that the trend was "alarming".

"Reason is the atrocious quality of most Hindi films and their monopoly over theatre screens, also media created aspirational imagine for Hollywood films," said the Bollywood actress.

Kangana added: "We need to save the industry from various terrorists -- Nepotism terrorism, Drug Mafia terrorism, Sexism terrorism, religious and regional terrorism, Foreign films terrorism, Piracy terrorism, Labourer's exploitation terrorism and Talent exploitation terrorism".

Tagging the Office of the Prime Minister of India, she tweeted: "Films have an ability to bring the entire nation together but @PMOIndia let's first please bring these many industries together who have individual identities but not a collective identity please join them together like Akhand Bharat and we will make it number one in the world."

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
Steps were the quintessential late-Nineties British pop group. Formed by manager Tim Byrne with songwriters Steve Crosby and Barry Upton, who posted an advert in The Stage newspaper and auditioned thousands of hopefuls, the smiling five-piece were enthusiastic, energetic and didnt care about looking cool. Steps gloriously unironic performing style seems quaintly innocent today: the whole point of their handography-packed dance routines was you could try to copy them at home. Play their chart-topping cover of the Bee Gees Tragedy to any millennial pop fan  or their parents  and theyll still raise both hands to their heads like Steps did in the video.

Because I grew up on Steps and remember buying their singles on cassette for 2.29 from my local Woolies (RIP), interviewing them in 2020 is a fun and unexpectedly comforting experience. Im offered the option to speak to the pop stalwarts over Zoom, which has become de rigueur this year, but am told I can meet them in person if I prefer. Pandemic or no pandemic, these seasoned showbiz troupers who came up in the era of Smash Hits and CD:UK have booked out a central London bar for a day of old-school, face-to-face promo. As a fan, I obviously shoot down the Zoom offer  its a day before the rule of six is announced so I have no qualms about being in the same room as the five group members and their PR reps. Lisa Scott-Lee has even flown in from her home in Dubai, where she now runs her own performing arts school.

Im given a Steps branded face mask when I arrive and find the group members  Scott-Lee, Lee Latchford-Evans, Claire Richards, Faye Tozer and Ian H Watkins  sitting safely spaced out in a large corner booth. Theres no hugging or handshaking, but otherwise its very much business as usual. When Watkins asks whether I like Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallions hot-button hit WAP, Scott-Lee politely reminds him hes not here to plug someone elses single.

Clearly no fools, Steps have never cheapened their brand by joining other Nineties acts on a naff nostalgia tour. But even so, their latest comeback must have exceeded the expectations of even staunch Steps fans. When they couldnt tempt a record label to sign them a few years ago, they released their 2017 album Tears on the Dancefloor independently and had the last laugh. Led by the fabulously catchy single Scared of the Dark, a song which made no attempt to chase contemporary pop trends and was all the better for it, the album entered the charts at No 2 and went gold. The subsequent arena tour sold 200,000 tickets  pretty impressive for a manufactured band whose supremely cheesy debut single 5,6,7,8 was written off as a novelty hit back in 1997.

Though they proved their mettle as an independent act, Steps are now signed to BMG, a major label which has enjoyed success in recent years with other legacy pop acts including Kylie Minogue and Rick Astley. Having that big machine behind us means we can reach out further, Tozer says, a point neatly underlined by their slick new single, What the Future Holds. Written by pop heavyweight Sia, its an unapologetic banger with a refrain that feels especially poignant in these uncertain times: One foot in the past, and one foot in the future. Their sixth album, also called What the Future Holds, will follow in November, and another arena tour is booked for late 2021.

All Saints and Five and S Club 7 would be all dripping in designer, whereas wed be there in our same little sad red-and-black top (Rex Features)

Richards points out that being signed again means less penny-pinching this time around, but it doesnt sound as though Steps were ever seduced by pop star excess. Watkins says that back in the late-Nineties, our peers never questioned what came in and out of their pockets, whereas Steps always realised theyd eventually foot the bill for every aspect of their marketing. We've always been very astute and business-savvy, which is why some of our videos back in the day cost about 10 grand when our peers were spending so much more, he says. We always recouped [the budget]: every single, every album, every video.

At the start of Steps career, this thriftiness was motivated by necessity. They were initially signed on a one-single deal and 5,6,7,8, which mixed country violin riffs with techno beats and had them line-dancing in the video, didnt exactly guarantee a long-term career. We had very, very little payment at the start, Watkins recalls. We were living in hotels and we would make sandwiches in the morning from the [complimentary] breakfast to eat throughout the day. I can also remember having 50 a week: 40 would go on rent and then Id have 10 to live on. Wed buy potatoes, ketchup and tuna flakes with that 10 and that would be it. I think that kind of s*** makes you appreciate everything.

Nor were they afforded lavish costume budgets. On the same promotional tour, wed maybe have two T-shirts to last us months, Watkins says. All Saints and Five and S Club 7 would be all dripping in designer, whereas wed be there in our same little sad red-and-black top. Richards adds with a laugh: My costume was red PVC trousers and a red mesh top, which really arent very good washable items!

Though 5,6,7,8 only climbed to No 14  disappointing at a time when the Spice Girls were regularly entering at No 1  it hung around long enough to become a gold-selling single. When I mention that its now their most-streamed song on Spotify  ahead of Tragedy  Steps arent remotely precious about it. If you play 5,6,7,8 to a little kid, they absolutely love it, Richards says matter-of-factly. And its used in a lot of dance schools, Tozer adds.

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After 5,6,7,8, Steps were picked up by Pete Waterman, who gave them a snappy slogan that doubled as a musical vision: Abba on speed. Scott-Lee recalls being told by the pop impresario in an early meeting, Hold on tight, kids  this is gonna fly! and in fairness, it really did. Before they disbanded in 2001, Steps had released four multi-platinum albums, including a Greatest Hits, and racked up 13 consecutive Top 5 singles. Like many groups of their era, their discography includes a few unnecessary cover versions, but superior Steps originals like One For Sorrow, Its the Way You Make Me Feel and Better Best Forgotten  the latter co-written by Waterman  offer a pure pop rush thats still potent today.

Steps performing at the Brit Awards in 1999 with B*Witched and Billie (Rex Features)

After the usual individual endeavours  solo singles, reality TV, musical theatre  Steps first reunited in 2011 for a fly-on-the-wall documentary series and arena tour. They released a pretty uninspired Christmas album the following year, but 2017s Tears on a Dancefloor gave them a genuine second wind: suddenly Steps were a viable pop group again, not just a nostalgia act. The five songs Ive heard from the new album pull off the same nifty trick: they sound exactly like Steps but are also a little fresher than you first realise. Its a bit like bumping into an old friend and thinking, how the hell do you look so good? Botox?

Watkins says he thinks fans have remained loyal because their classic hits were classier than they were given credit for at the time. Our songs werent targeted at children like all the other [pop] acts, he says. They were actually quite sophisticated, which is why parents didnt mind coming along to our concerts. And now we have the grandparents too  we saw three generations of fans on our last tour.

Steps tried co-writing their own songs on 2000s third album Buzz, but today theyre happy to gather bangers from experienced pros who know their sound. A decent Steps song needs a soaring chorus, a hint of melancholy and ideally a key change to seal the deal. And a Steps song has to be genderless because it needs to be open for everyone to interpret it however they want, Tozer says. Youll notice we never sing he or she, Richards points out, something which has endeared them to LGBT+ fans. She was touched on the last tour to see a fan wearing a T-shirt saying: Thank you for letting me be who I am.

At the Brits in 2001: A Steps song has to be genderless (Rex Features)

Any inter-group grievances were dealt with years ago. There was one notorious incident: when the group toured North America with Britney Spears in 1999, Watkins got to sleep on her private jet, while his bandmates had to slum it on a tour bus. But thats long forgotten, and now all five members seem relaxed and happy to be together again after coronavirus delayed their album launch by six months.

They were originally planning to announce What the Future Holds in March. The only slight prickle of tension comes when I bring up the special, non-competitive Brit Award they won for being the Biggest Selling Live Act of 1999. As Latchford-Evans points out, they genuinely did sell more concert tickets than anyone else that year, but Richards concedes that we did only get [that award] because of the whole Belle and Sebastian thing.

At the previous years Brits, Steps were widely expected to win the prize for Best British Breakthrough Act, but got surprisingly pipped by Belle and Sebastian. Many had doubts about the result, and Waterman even demanded a recount. We should have got Best Breakthrough the previous year  that was the one that was stolen from us, Richards says. It was all just politics, shrugs Scott-Lee.

Still, they laugh it off pretty quickly and Scott-Lee says it was more annoying to be asked to pay 500 for their own individual Brit Award trophies a year later. Im not paying for an award they gave us, so I told them to stick it, Watkins adds defiantly. As I get up to leave, Scott-Lee asks if Id like a (socially distanced) photo with the group. The answer is of course yes. I wear my new Steps face mask on the Tube ride home; no one can see, but behind it Im beaming.

What the Future Holds is out on 27 November
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 06:44:21|Editor: huaxia

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PARIS, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- French Economy and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Friday that he has tested positive for COVID-19.

"I tested positive for COVID-19 tonight. I immediately went into isolation at my home in accordance with government health regulations. I have no symptoms. I will remain in solitary confinement for 7 days. I continue to perform my duties," Le Maire wrote on Twitter.

On Friday, a further 13,215 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in France, making it the highest number of infections recorded in a single day since the coronavirus outbreak, the country's Public Health Agency said.

France's cumulative number of confirmed COVID-19 cases now totals 428,696. The total number of deaths surged to 31,249, an increase of 123 in the last 24 hours and the biggest daily toll since mid-May, when the country began a gradual de-confinement. Enditem
Facebook has announced it will soon update the policies on its internal employee discussion platform and impose restrictions on their ability to debate social and political issues, a move that comes amid growing questions about how the social media company tackles problematic content on its main service for the public.

The move comes days after employees have spoken up on Facebooks internal discussion boards against the companys policies, especially since charges of political bias emerged against Facebook India executives who are accused of favouring the ruling political party.

A company spokesman said CEO Mark Zuckerberg outlined his plans for the curbs to employees on Thursday, with details of the new rules to be announced next week, according to Reuters. What weve heard from our employees is that they want the option to join debates on social and political issues rather than see them unexpectedly in their work feed, spokesman Joe Osborne said. Osborne said the rules will apply to employee discussions of how executives handle politically sensitive content on FBs platforms.

Conversation flows freely on Workplace, an internal social network that resembles Facebooks namesake platform. As staffers have become vocal about their disagreements with Zuckerberg, statements posted on Workplace have leaked to the press.

At least three employees HT spoke to said they were worried that Facebook was monitoring their devices and scrutinising their comments on the internal messaging system. Instead of setting standards by focusing on problematic content, we are being monitored, a US-based employee told HT.

Two Facebook India employees said the company is monitoring gadgets and apps used by employees. We all sign a confidentiality clause when we join, but we are now under increased surveillance, one employee said. Another said, All official emails are under the scanner, as are our official mobile phones. It is not safe to even send text messages using WhatsApp because that too is owned by FB.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept.19

Trend:

On September 19, the Azerbaijani Minister of Defense, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov held an official meeting with the command staff of the Azerbaijan Army, Trend reports referring to the ministrys press service.

First, the memory of the national leader of the Azerbaijani people Heydar Aliyev, and the Shahids (martyrs) who died for the territorial integrity of the country was honored with observing a minute of silence.

The Minister of Defense stressed that the latest information received and messages spread in the mass-media, as well as the military rhetoric in the speeches of the military-political leadership of Armenia, the conduct of mobilization activity and the involvement of external forces in the region indicates that the enemy intends to commit large-scale provocations and aggravate the situation.

"Considering this, the forces and means available in our use must be fully ready not only to suppress any provocations but also to take strict preventive measures. For this, special attention should be paid to reconnaissance activities and combat support, as well as to take organized actions in all areas," he said.

"It is necessary to strengthen control over the quality of exercises and training aimed at constantly increasing the combat capability and professionalism of the Azerbaijan Army, in particular its foremost units, as well as increasing the level of combat readiness of military personnel and the liberation of the occupied territories."

The Minister of Defense instructed the officials to pay special attention to the transfer of weapons, military and specialized equipment of the Azerbaijan Army into the winter operation mode, the effectiveness and timely completion of the preparation process for the winter period, the full logistic support of units, the health of military personnel, as well as measures to fight the COVID-19 pandemic

In the end, Colonel General Hasanov gave instructions in regards to clarification of combat analysis and mobilization resources with the relevant structures, following the action plan, as well as preparations to conduct training sessions in various specialties, field activities, and combat training classes with reservists.
Windhoek (Namibia), Sept 16, 2020 (SPS) - The Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Namibia, Jenelly Matundu, has reaffirmed the unwavering position of her country in support to the just issue of the Saharawi people for their self-determination and total independence.

During her speech at the online conference organized by the Geneva Group of Countries to Support Western Sahara, Jenelly Matundu stressed the need to promote practical measures to accelerate the decolonization of Western Sahara, forcing the international community to comply with its obligations and strict compliance with UN resolutions.

She also recalled that the UN clearly recognizes the right of the Saharawi people to self-determination, and even defines Morocco as an occupying power.

Coinciding with the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of Resolution 1514 of the United Nations General Assembly, Namibian diplomacy reaffirms the testimony of solidarity with the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, noting in the same context that its country led a liberation struggle for 30 years and you know very well the meaning of colonialism and the suffering of the colonized peoples.

In the presence of diplomats, representatives of different countries and international organizations, the Vice Minister has called for more pressure to enforce Resolution 1514 of the United Nations General Assembly in the last colony of Africa.

Jenelly Matundu concluded her statement by praising this international symposium organized by the Geneva Group for Western Sahara, highlighting that this call constitutes a kind of solidarity with the Saharawi people and support for their liberation struggle.SPS

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Pinal County Jail

Arizona police are investigating a tragic, perplexing attack that detectives say was unprovoked: 68-year-old Joan Sirhan was leaving her daughters house after a visit with her grandchildren when she was fatally attacked on Thursday. The suspect, Jay Henderson, appears to have posted threats of violence against Sirhan on Facebook that same night.

In a statement, Apache Junction police told The Arizona Republic that Sirhan was attacked around 5:30 p.m. at an apartment complex. That same evening, a Facebook account that appears to belong to Henderson posted cryptic but alarming messages, including Got the bitch.

Short skinny red head witch burn her alive, another post from the page adds. A final message includes an address close to the area police listed as the scene of the crime before adding, Ill be out side whos ready.

The Arizona Republic reports that Sirhan was unconscious when police arrived, with extensive injuries to her face and head. She was pronounced dead at Banner Desert Hospital.

Two accounts appearing to belong to Hungerfordthe account that posted the threats and another he appears to have used before creating that accountinclude memes about conspiracy theories, and an image post about Free Masons, along with other random memes. The cover image of what appears to be Hungerfords current Facebook account includes a woman in a Confederate flag bikini top.

Hungerford also shared an image of Trump-loving former Milwaukee sheriff David Clarke, which includes the quote The phrase Black Lives Matter suggests racial superiority. It excludes the importance of anybody elses life. Another post he shared calls to support Native American firefighters.

Court records indicate that in 2012 Hungerford was found guilty of aggravated assault. Following Sirhans death, he was arrested and jailed with a $750,000 bond on suspicion of second-degree murder. His court date is set for Sept. 25.

An initial statement from police said Hungerford and Sirhan apparently had no contact before the attack. Apache Junction police didnt responded to The Daily Beasts request for further comment.

Story continues

It appears the Sirhan family has faced tragedy before. In 2014, Joan Sirhans son, Jordan Sirhan, was killed in a road rage incident.

Jordan Sirhan was 23 when police said Kenneth Kammes shot him several times. A $200 debt dating back to 2013 had created problems between the two, and police said Sirhan and Kammes each threw cups of iced tea at one anothers windshields before Sirhans vehicle ran into Kammes. Kammes responded by firing up to seven rounds, hitting Sirhan three times, per the Associated Press at the time. Kammes was ultimately found not guilty of second degree murder.

Two of Joan Sirhans relatives mentioned her late son as they mourned her.

On Friday, Sirhans sister-in-law Evelyn Sirhan wrote on Facebook, This morning we got the most horrific news. We lost My sister in law tragically in a [senseless] act. Jordan, she added, was also lost tragically.

I cant express the loss, she continued in her post. There are no words.. All I know is that she will be with her son again and her parents and i know that my dad are all waiting for her to come through gods gate. She endured much pain when we lost Jordan. Now we all suffer with this loss.

Joanie, you were always the life of the party, Sirhan wrote. Though [you] endured so much heartbreak [you] carried the brightest smile. I dont know why this happened to you, and unfortunately we may never know. you didn't deserve what happened to you. I know you are finally with Jordan and your heart is full. I will miss you dearly.

Jessica Easterday, who called Sirhan her second mamma, wrote on Facebook, This woman was the most positive and uplifting spirit Ive ever met. She loved and lived with all she had, she was kind and giving. Though she endured so much heartbreak she carried the brightest smile.

I dont know why this happened to you, and unfortunately we may never know, Easterday concluded. Im sorry, over and over again Im sorry... you didn't deserve what happened to you. I know you are finally with Jordan and your heart is full ! ... We love you so much, thank you for being a mom, a friend, a grandma to our babies.

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A shooting at a backyard party packed with more than 100 people in Rochester, N.Y., killed two people and wounded 14 others in the early hours of Saturday, a police official said.

At least one gunman opened fire shortly before 12:30 a.m., the interim police chief, Mark Simmons, told reporters near the residence where the shooting occurred.

The two people killed both graduated from high school in 2019, Capt. Frank Umbrino of the Rochester Police Department said at news conference on Saturday. He said it was unlikely they were the intended targets.

These were two great members of our community that were beloved by the people that they went to school with and their teachers, and its a tragedy, he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 20:06:27|Editor: huaxia

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TEHRAN, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- The novel coronavirus pandemic has claimed 24,118 lives in Iran as of Saturday, up by 166 new death cases overnight, Iran's health ministry said.

Iran's confirmed cases of the disease rose to 419,043 on Saturday, with registered 2,845 new patients in the past 24 hours, Sima Sadat Lari, spokeswoman for Iran's Ministry of Health and Medical Education, during her daily briefing.

Since Friday, 1,149 Iranians were hospitalized for complications from the novel coronavirus, said Lari.

So far, 357,632 people have recovered and been discharged from hospitals while 3,893 remain in intensive care units.

She said 28 Iranian provinces, out of 31, are still in high-risk or on alert condition.

Iran announced its first cases of COVID-19 on Feb. 19.

Iran and China have offered mutual help in combating the COVID-19 pandemic.

In mid-February, at the early stage of the coronavirus outbreak in China, Iran lit up the Tehran Azadi (Liberty) Tower to show its solidarity with China, and donated 3 million masks to China.

In return, China delivered several shipments of medical supplies to Iran. On Feb. 29, a five-member Chinese medical team visited Iran for a month-long mission to help Iran fight the pandemic. Enditem
Donald Trump

President Donald Trump greets supporters following a Fox News Town Hall event with moderators Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum on March 05, 2020 in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Among other topics, President Trump discussed his administration's response to the Coronavirus and the economy. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Fox News on Friday examined why it would be a "big mistake" for Republicans to attempt to force through a nominee to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court.

Following Ginsburg's death, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) vowed that Trump's nominee would receive a vote, but did not specify whether it would occur before the election or during the "lame duck" session of Congress that occurs before the 2020 election victors are sworn in.

But conservative pollster Scott Rasmussen warned Republicans it would be a bad idea during an appearance with Fox News personality Laura Ingraham.

"I hear all this talk that Republicans are ready to go and vote right away, I think that's a big mistake," Rasmussen said.

"I think the president should come out and say, 'I want the American people to decide this, I'm going to nominate someone after I'm re-elected, here's who I'm thinking of nominating and by the way, I want to specifically hear from Joe Biden who he's going to nominate.' And the reason I think he should do that is that's puts the focus on the choice for the court, not on this side argument of whether or not the confirmation battle should go ahead right now," he explained.

https://twitter.com/Acyn/status/1307148427361361920

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Agra, Sep 19 : Private nursing homes and hospitals in Agra have virtually withdrawn from the battle against COVID-19, which is now spreading its tentacles in the hinterland.

Only three private nursing homes are offering their services in a big district like Agra with a population of around 50 lakh.

The private medical facilities are reluctant to carry on as they do not find the treatment rates fixed by the government for coronavirus cases as rational or justifiable and also due to shortage of trained doctors and paramedical staff.

Some nursing homes do not have adequate space to isolate corona patients and thus find it hard to follow the Indian Council of Medical Research guidelines.

Even government testing facilities have come under acute pressure, with only the district hospital and the SN Medical College authorised to collect samples for testing.

The private laboratories earlier granted permission to test samples have been asked to hold on till fresh guidelines are framed by the Health Department.

Shortage of oxygen, trained manpower, ICU beds are proving to be a huge challenge to the COVID-19 Task Force in the district. Complaints against insurance agencies have also multiplied.

In the past 24 hours, 106 new coronavirus cases have been reported in Agra, including a doctor posted at a medical college and another posted at the Chief Medical Officer's office. Mathura district reported 82 new cases, Mainpuri 52, Firozabad 40, and Etah 26.

COVID-19 hospitals have been asked to submit their demands and inventory of requirements two weeks in advance.

A sense of complacency among the people towards COVID-19 precautions is a matter of concern for the district administration which finds itself in a bind over unlock or lockdown options.

"Obviously the demands of the economy necessitate early resumption of economic activities, but the guidelines have to be strictly followed. People are being sensitised and the Agra Nagar Nigam the cleanliness drive continues vigorously," BJP corporator Anurag Chaturvedi from Belanganj area said.

Meanwhile, government offices in Agra are not functioning to their capacity, resulting in delays and piling up of work, complain local citizens.

"Every day, some one or the other official is testing positive in government offices, forcing their closure for sanitation for a couple of days. Naturally, the public work suffers, though all efforts are made to keep the momentum high," an official maintained.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Businesses around northwest Houston can begin to allow more people in as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott loosened COVID-19 restrictions this week for the state.

Abbott said during a press conference Thursday some businesses would be allowed to increase their capacity to 75 percent  including restaurants, office buildings, retail stores, gyms, museums and factories. He said the decision was made by state leaders based on hospitalization rates below 15 percent in almost all the states hospital regions.

Texas reopening: Abbott announces new reopening rules for Texas businesses

The number of people recovering from COVID continues to skyrocket, Abbott said. Doctors have explained the biggest reason for these improvements is because Texans are taking COVID seriously.

Additionally, Abbott said hospitals could resume elective procedures and nursing homes with no COVID-19 outbreaks could resume visitations again while continuing to observe health protocols.

However, bars will remain closed, he said, as they are recognized nationally as places where the virus spreads.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Harris County keeps its 'stay home' threat level, even as state of Texas, schools reopen

We are focused on finding ways to get them open, Abbott said.

Bobby Lieb, president of the Houston Northwest Chamber of Commerce, said he thought the timing for expanding the capacity was probably appropriate, and that the statistic to gauge how much COVID-19 is an issue in the state is the hospitalization rate.

The hospitalization rate is just continuing to come down where if you look at daily cases, it just jumps all over the place, Lieb said. That being said, I believe strongly its the right move and Im happy for our businesses.

Lieb said he hopes bars can reopen soon without seeing a spike in cases.

At one Spring nursing home, Bellaire Lodge, Patrick Boyd, the manager, said they would allow visitations that are socially distanced in the living quarters of the building  requiring masks and checking everyone for symptoms of the virus. He said they also restrict visitors to family members, only allowing two or three at a time.

Id rather be overcautious than not overcautious, Boyd said. So far, no one here has had the virus, no symptoms, and wed like to keep it that way.

For Cindy Vincent, owner of the Whistle Stop Tea Room in Tomball, she said the expanded capacity doesnt really affect her small restaurant.

We seat 80 and were such a small restaurant I cant even do 75 percent, Vincent said. Were holding our own with our little 50 percent and doing great with our additional 1,000 square feet next door.

Greg Martancik, an assistant manager of Darios Steakhouse and Seafood in Cypress, echoed similar comments to Vincent.

The capacity guidelines kind of just allow us to not have to work about how many people are at each table, Martancik said. It is helpful, and we are certainly grateful, but until we can open all the way to 100 percent, its not going to necessarily change the floorplan.

paul.wedding@hcnonline.com
The Centre on Saturday withdrew three Bills moved by the Labour Ministry in the Lok Sabha and reintroduced them with fresh labour code provisions as part of the labour reforms initiative.

The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2019; Industrial Relations Code, 2019; and Code on Social Security, 2019 were withdrawn from the Lower House when it assembled for the day at 3 p.m.

Minister of State (independent charge) in the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Santosh Kumar Gangwar, moved the proposal for the withdrawal of these Bills and later reintroduced them with fresh provisions.

In his speech, Gangwar said various changes have been made in the provisions related to the labour Codes as well as their Preamble, necessitating their withdrawal and introduction of new ones.

"Because of various changes in the Bills, it is necessary to withdraw earlier ones and introduce Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020; Industrial Relations Code, 2020; and Code on Social Security, 2020 in their place."

The original Codes were introduced in the Lok Sabha in 2019 but later referred to the Parliament's Standing Committee on Labour, which discussed all the three.

"Standing Committee led by Chairman Bhartruhari Mahtab, a Biju Janata Dal MP from Cuttack, made 233 recommendations and we accepted 174 of them."

The Minister said all these changes in the new Bills are part of the labour reforms initiative. "When the country got independence, there were 44 As some of them were later repealed, we are now working to change 29 into four Codes. This House passed the first Code with full support; we have come with three more Codes."

Later, the Minister said that his ministry held nine tripartite consultations, four sub-committee meetings, 10 regional conferences, discussed labour court provisions at various places in the country, 10 inter-ministerial consultations and also took suggestions from various departments and Ministries as well as the public.

The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2019 aimed to consolidate and amend the laws regulating the occupational safety, health and working conditions of the persons employed in an establishment. The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on July 23 last year.

The Industrial Relations Code, 2019 consolidated and amended the laws relating to trade unions, conditions of employment in industrial establishment or undertaking, investigation and settlement of industrial disputes and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on November 28 last year.

The Code on Social Security, 2019 sought amendment and consolidated the laws relating to social security of the employees. The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on December 11 last year.

--IANS

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(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The coronavirus from Wuhan has had a massive impact on the world economy. The government-mandated shutdowns have caused economies to crash anywhere from 25 to 40 percent, depending on the country. While car maintenance and repairs were considered an essential service, the automotive industry has seen a significant decline. Let's look at the impact of the coronavirus on the car market as whole.

The New Car Market

The government-mandated shutdowns in an attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus from China threw millions out of work. Millions more were afraid they'd lose their jobs. This caused many to put new car purchases on hold. New car purchases fell by half. It was hard if not impossible to get out of the house to see cars in the showroom, and people are still reluctant to buy a car they saw online.

In the United States, it took weeks for automotive manufacturing and sales to be classified as an essential business. However, manufacturing of new cars remains crippled. One reason is because manufacturers shifted to essential manufacturing such as making ventilators. Another is the supply chain disruptions. When you can't get needed parts from suppliers in Mexico and China, you can't finish building cars that are on order.

Public health concerns might keep employees away, too, as Tesla found out at its California facility. This has caused the supply of new cars to fall along with demand for them. For example, there is a delay in the delivery of 2021 model cars because of the two month spring shutdown.

The Used Car Market

Economic uncertainty hasn't prevented everyone from replacing a car that's falling apart. Instead, buying a used car is seen as the better choice. You're replacing a car you can't drive anymore, but you're spending much less than a new car. This has increased demand for used cars. On the other hand, the combination of unemployment, underemployment and fear of unemployment has caused many people to hold onto their current cars longer. This had decreased the supply of used cars being traded in by new car buyers. That has reduced the supply of used cars. And then there's the interruption in the production of new cars, forcing many who want to buy a new car to shop the used car market instead. The end result is a spike in used car prices.

The price increases for used cars are greatest for large vehicles. For large trucks, prices are up 7 to 10 percent. For midsized trucks and large SUVs, prices are up around 5 percent. Large and subcompact cars are up an average of one thousand dollars. And this is contrary to historic trends, where a depression causes used and new car prices to fall together though used cars don't fall as much due to new car buyers shifting to the used market.

The Work Vehicle Market

The only sector almost unchanged is the heavy duty pickup market. The economic slowdown has caused businesses to put off buying work vehicles unless they absolutely have to. This is why heavy duty pickups capable of working on construction sites and hauling heavy trailers have not changed in price. Production is down, supply is down, and while businesses that must buy are opting for used vehicles, business bankruptcies are putting enough work vehicles on the market to meet demand.
The Srinagar MP and Natioanl Conference president advocated talks with Pakistan, saying that 'border skirmishes have been rising and people are dying'

New Delhi: Speaking in Parliament for the first time since his release from detention, the National Conference president and MP Farooq Abdullah on Saturday advocated talks with Pakistan, saying if India can talk to China to defuse their border row, it can also speak to its other neighbour to deal with the situation at Jammu and Kashmir borders.

"Border skirmishes have been rising and people are dying... A way has to be found to deal with this. Except for talks... As you are talking to China to attempt that it withdraws (from Ladakh border), we should also talk to our (other) neighbour to find a way to get out of this situation," he said in Lok Sabha during the Zero Hour amid protests from treasury benches.

The Srinagar MP also expressed his happiness at the findings of an Army inquiry into the killings of three men in Shopian in an encounter.

"I am happy that the Army has admitted that three Shopian men were killed mistakenly. I hope the government gives a hefty compensation," he said.

Officials had said on Friday the Army has found "prima facie" evidence that its troops "exceeded" powers under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act during the encounter in July and has initiated disciplinary proceedings.

Abdullah said Jammu and Kashmir has not seen any progress and spoke about authorities blocking 4G facilities in the Union Territory which, he added, goes against the interest of students and traders.

He also conveyed his gratitude to parliamentarians for speaking for him when he was under detention.

Abdullah and many other leaders were put under detention by authorities last year after the Union government abrogated Article 370, which had given special powers to the erstwhile state, and split Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories. He was released in March this year.
The meeting was joint online by representatives from Ecuador's Quito, Guaranda, Shandong's capital city of Jinan and Weifang, including Chinese Ambassador to Ecuador Chen Guoyou, Li Rong, executive vice director with Shandong People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, Weifang Mayor Tian Qingying and Guaranda Mayor Luis Medardo Chimbolema.

Weifang experts answered the questions raised by experts on epidemic prevention and control in Guaranda with real-life experiences. Medical experts from both sides also discussed the epidemic situation, preventive measures and therapeutic solutions in depth, and fully shared the experience and practices of epidemic prevention and control.

"After the outbreak of the epidemic in Ecuador, China responded to Ecuador's request with timely assistance," said Chen. "As China and Ecuador mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, Weifang City and Guaranda City shared their anti-epidemic experience and established friendly and cooperative ties. This stood witness to the establishment of friendly relations between the two cities, and was also a new starting point for the two cities to deepen friendship and expand cooperation," Chen added. The City of Kites and the City of Seven Hills joined hands and the two sides have strong complementarity in practical cooperation and great potential for people-to-people and cultural exchanges.

Luis Medardo Chimbolema expressed his gratitude to Weifang for sharing its anti-epidemic experience. He said that they firmly believe that the establishment of friendly and cooperative relations with Weifang will help Guaranda better achieve epidemic prevention and control goals and set an example for international cooperation in fighting the epidemic.

Tian Qingying said that Weifang would donate 30,000 medical masks to support epidemic prevention and control in Guaranda and wish the city an early victory over the outbreak. The two cities mayors then signed a Letter of Intent for Twinning and Friendly Cooperation during the videoconference.

Image Attachments Links:

Link: http://asianetnews.net/view-attachment?attach-id=371575

Caption: China's Weifang, Ecuador's Guaranda ink ties and join hands in COVID-19 fight

Link: http://asianetnews.net/view-attachment?attach-id=371581

Caption: China's Weifang, Ecuador's Guaranda ink ties and join hands in COVID-19 fight

SOURCE The Foreign Affairs Office of Weifang Municipal Government
The Hamilton Chamber of Commerce is launching a research project to uncover the impacts of COVID-19 on female-dominated sectors, such as the service industry, in the city.

We wish to assess the impact the pandemic has caused ... and provide recommendations for recovery to address the labour market repercussions of COVID-19, Marie Nash, the Chambers chief operating officer, said in a media release. Without measuring the impact, we cant hope to effectively fight it.

Employment across Canada has plummeted amid the COVID-19 pandemic. In March, Hamilton saw the highest spike in unemployment rates in at least a decade. Research shows that women, as well as younger and part-time workers, in Hamilton have been among the hardest hit.

Women are more likely to work service industry jobs, like retail, restaurant and hotel, and in child care  all of which have been particularly vulnerable to shutdown, according to the release.

The significant impacts of the pandemic on women has led some to dub the global economic crisis in Canada a she-cession  the first of its kind.

The goal is to propose recommendations for the citys economic recovery.

An economic recovery that fails to account for over half the population is hardly a recovery, said Bianca Caramento, the Chambers manager of policy and government relations.

The research will be conducted through a partnership with the provincial government, as well as the YMCA Hamilton, Workforce Planning Hamilton, Goodwill The Amity Group and McMaster University.

This work will help ensure steps are taken to address the economic impact this pandemic has had on all Hamiltonians, she said.

Research will begin within the next few weeks. Results and recommendations from the study are expected in 2021.
REUTERS

Donald Trumps attorney general has a novel perspective on the Department of Justice: That political influence in prosecution is a feature, not a bug.

William Barr reportedly asked prosecutors to explore criminal charges against Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan for allowing a police-free zone during civil unrest in her city. If true, this conduct would be an astonishing abuse of power against a local Democratic official who has been at odds with Trump over strategies for handling COVID-19 and civil unrest. Barr has also reportedly suggested to prosecutors that they consider charging protesters with sedition, a crime that is rarely charged because of free speech concerns.

The attorney generals embrace of politicsjarring to those of us who have worked for a department that prides itself on its independence from politicswas on display during an interview Monday, when he said that our country could become irrevocably committed to the socialist path if President Trump were not re-elected. And in the scathing and disingenuous speech he gave Wednesday to mark Constitution Day by denouncing states coronavirus restrictions as the "greatest intrusion on civil liberties" in American history "other than slavery" and pronouncing that the Attorney General, senior DOJ officials, and U.S. Attorneys are indeed political. But they are political in a good and necessary sense. Those are words no honest prosecutor will ever hang on their wall.

Barr Says Coronavirus Lockdowns Are the Greatest Intrusion on Civil Liberties Since Slavery

Barr explained that politics serve as an important check on prosecutorial overreach. By being accountable to the electorate, the executive branch must exercise its discretion in a responsible way. True enough. If all he were doing as attorney general was assuring even-handed application of the laws, no one would take issue. But Barr conflates political accountability with partisan political favoritism. He noted that prosecutors may not base a prosecution on a defendants race or religion, but ignored the same Justice Manual provision that forbids decisions to be made on the basis of a persons political associations, activities and beliefs.

Story continues

The only public cases in which Barr has intervened have been the prosecutions of Michael Flynn, Trumps former national security adviser, and Roger Stone, Trumps former campaign adviser. Both Trump allies were convicted of crimes arising from the governments investigation into Russian election interference. In the Flynn case, Barr directed the dismissal of the charges after Flynn had already pleaded guilty, using a legal theory of materiality that is contrary to the arguments DOJ makes in all other cases. In the Stone case, Barr insisted that prosecutors file an amended sentencing memorandum, reducing the sentencing recommendation from that provided for in the sentencing guidelines, contrary to DOJ policy and practice. Career prosecutors in both cases walked off the cases in protest.

And just last weekend, a career prosecutor resigned from the team of John Durham, the U.S. Attorney who is reportedly investigating the origins of the Russia election interference probe. Reports say that she left because of political pressure from Barr to produce results before the November election.

In defense of these resignations, Barr used one of his favorite tacticscreating a strawman argument, and then knocking it down.

In words that are likely to haunt him in DOJ infamy, Barr said Thursday, Letting the most junior members set the agenda might be a good philosophy for a Montessori preschool, but its no way to run a federal agency. There is nothing junior about the career prosecutors who are making case decisions in the Flynn, Stone, and Durham investigations. Prosecutors handling cases of this magnitude are seasoned veterans, who have worked across Republican and Democratic administrations, participated in countless training programs, and are subject to DOJ ethics rules and state bar discipline. Their supervisors are also career professionals.

But here is where Barrs argument is a strawmanhe inaccurately suggests that his critics say he should defer completely to career prosecutors. In fact, no one is making that argument. Career prosecutors understand the chain of command, and understand that while vigorous debate helps reach the best decision, differences of opinion will ultimately be decided by the person highest on the organizational chart. They bristle not at Barrs overruling them per se, but at Barrs overruling them based on the appearance of political favoritism. When Barr intervened to the benefit of allies of Trump, deviating from normal DOJ practice, this was not simply the evenhanded administration of justice. It was partisan political favoritism. And when the AG pressures a prosecutor to produce results before the election, in violation of DOJ policy that prohibits taking action to influence an election, he is abusing his power as our nations chief law enforcement officer. It is this gross misconduct that has prompted career prosecutors to resign.

While Barrs arrogant and demeaning comments will be demoralizing to some career prosecutors, most have thick skins and will continue to go about their jobs with great professionalism. The real danger is that Barr is undermining the credibility of prosecutors to take on politically fraught crimes. By excoriating prosecutors against the criminalization of politics, he is giving Trump and his associates the green light to violate the law with impunity.

Barrs message seems to be that politics in prosecution is good as long as it advances his side.

Barr Says Coronavirus Lockdowns Are the Greatest Intrusion on Civil Liberties Since Slavery

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Rules a mockery in Ramsar wetlands, report finds By Tharushi Weerasinghe View(s): View(s):

Prawn farming was rampant in Sri Lankas globally-recognised Ramsar wetlands despite local authorities claiming no permits had been issued after 2018, an expert committee investigating the destruction of a section of the Anawilundawa sanctuary said.

These wetlands are designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention, an intergovernmental environmental treaty established by UNESCO in the Seventies. By 2018, Sri Lanka had six out of 2,331 Ramsar wetlands worldwide, including Anawilundawa.

The committee, appointed by Wildlife and Forest Conservation Minister C.B. Ratanayake, said due attention had not been paid to illegal activities in a sanctuary like Anawilundawa. It was problematic that area inhabitants had insufficient knowledge about wetlands.

Alarmingly, there were only three officials from the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC) and two from the Civil Defence Force to monitor an area as large as Anawilundawa, the committee said. The DWC has said it had insufficient resources to allocate more personnel.

There have been three wildfires within Ramsar wetlands this year alone, the committee observed.

Fertiliser and pesticide chemicals from agriculture were also problems, along with severe plastic and polythene pollution.

It was possible to regulate the actions of people living inside the sanctuary under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance, the committee admonishes.

The destruction of the sanctuary had occurred because government agencies had not acted in time, the report says. This was because the new prawn farm had gone unnoticed as there were around 50 others previously built in the area.

The committee does not explain how a backhoe could have been used to clear mangroves for the new prawn farm without the authorities noticing it. Action was spurred only after news of the clearing broke on social media.

The committee noted that the images circulated on social media gave the public an exaggerated picture of the extent of damage.

The backhoe clearing began at 5.30 pm on August 25 and continued into the next day with breaks. The driver was also the machine owner.

The National Aquaculture Development Authority (NAQDA) says new prawn farm permits have not been issued for Anawilundawa since 2018. While farms had been active from time to time NAQDA claimed it had no authority to regulate.

Information from the Divisional Secretariat shows 135 acres of land in Anawilundawa were given out in 1986 on a 30-year lease to a company called C. C. Carson, which later abandoned the property but had paid its dues until the contract ended in 2016.

In 1997, 1,400 hectares was declared by the government to be a sanctuary. It included seven villages and the plot leased out to Carson. Nevertheless, human and business activity continued as usual. Once Carson abandoned its prawn farms, others ran them continuously until 2016.

A total of 51 prawn farms were allegedly run in the sanctuary within the period by 15 different parties. Among them was Jagath Samantha Perera, who allegedly contracted the backhoe last month to clear a section of the sanctuary. He had bred prawns in the disputed land with permits.

Between 2016 and 2020, the relevant Divisional Secretariat received applications to build more houses and start new prawn farms in the sanctuary. These were turned down as it was a Ramsar wetland.

The committee strongly recommends putting an end to prawn farming in wetlands and Ramsar areas. At a recent meeting with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, however, officials were reported to be suggesting there was potential to farm prawns among mangroves.

The report calls for: alternative livelihoods for the poor of the area; quicker scientific restoration of mangroves; increase of manpower for security; awareness programmes; use of Air Force as overseers.

There must be a team of officials from relevant government agencies for every protected area which will maintain a dialogue with local communities, the experts urge.

A mechanism to distribute information to the public in order to prevent exaggerations circulating on social media is another proposed task.

There must be an assessment of the environmental impact of economic activities and recommendations to sustainably continue them, and satellite images of these locations must be safely recorded and saved.

Alleged kingpin goes missing, minions charged The two men arrested in relation to the destruction of mangroves in Anawilundawa  a backhoe driver and a businessman  were on Friday released on bail of Rs. 10 million each following three weeks in remand. The case will be taken up again in March next year. The committee inquiring into the incident found that Kurugamage Jagath Samantha Perera, the brother of State Minister for Rural and Divisional Drinking Water Supply Projects Development Sanath Nishantha, had given orders to clear the land for the prawn farm. Mr. Perera, who is the former chair and current member of the Arachchikattuwa Pradeshiya Sabha, did not appear in court. He has been evading police who are seeking to record his statement. Chilaw Magistrate Manjula Ratnayake instructed police to obtain an arrest warrant if the ongoing investigation connects Mr. Perera to the incident. The backhoe driver and businessman have both said they were following Mr. Pereras orders. The backhoe drivers statement says that, in 2015, Mr. Perera had an annual permit from NAQDA for eight prawn farms spanning five acres.
Kildare EuroMillions players are being asked to check their tickets today after a top prize was won in the county last night.

A winning ticket of the 500,000 EuroMillions Plus top prize was bought in Kilcock.

The winning Quick Pick EuroMillions Plus ticket, which is now worth 500,000, was sold at the LHorizon convenience store in the centre of Kilcock town.

This is the 21st EuroMillions Plus top prize of 500,000 won in Ireland so far this year, with all 21 winners sharing a whopping 10.5 million in prizes.

Meanwhile, another EuroMillions player in Kilkenny is also be celebrating today after they won the Match 5 + Lucky Star prize of 166,116 in last nights draw. The winning Advance Play, Quick Pick ticket was sold at Eivers Spar store in Irishtown in the centre of Kilkenny city on Friday, September 4.

The winning numbers of the main EuroMillions draw were: 02, 10, 19, 25, 45 and the Lucky Stars were 01 and 07.

The winning numbers from last nights EuroMillions Plus draw are: 03, 09, 17, 22 and 46.

A spokesperson for the National Lottery said: With so many prize winners in last nights EuroMillions draw, we are asking all of our players to check their tickets very carefully. If you are the winner of any of the big prizes, please contact our prize claims team on 1800 666 222 or email claims@lottery.ie and we will make arrangements for you to collect your prize.
Rebecca John, the lawyer for journalist Priya Ramani, concluded her arguments on Saturday in an online hearing of the criminal defamation suit filed against her client by former Union minister MJ Akbar.

Akbar filed the case under Section 499 of the Indian Penal Code in November 2018 after Ramani made an allegation of sexual misconduct against him on Twitter in October 2018 during the Me Too movement.

Ramani exercised due care and attention in her tweets which were made in good faith and for public good John said.

Freedom of speech and expression as given under article 19 of the Constitution of India is critical and intrinsic to a democratic society. Priya Ramani has been able to show the truth and the public good of her statements made in the public domain. She was a small part of a large nationwide and global movement that uncovered the pervasive nature of sexual harassment at the workplace. The Me Too movement revealed the prevalence and normalisation of sexual harassment at the workplace with hundreds of thousands of women across the world participating in it, John told the court of Additional Metropolitan Magistrate Vishal Pahuja.

Ramanis allegation pertained to the time when Akbar purportedly interviewed her in 1993 for a reporters position while he was the editor of Asian Age newspaper. Akbar denied the allegation and said the meeting, as described by Ramani, did not take place.

Refuting the charge that Ramanis tweets and an article which she wrote on sexual harassment at the workplace were per se defamatory and harmed the reputation of Akbar, John said that it was not defamation if what was imputed is the truth and was stated in good faith for the public good.

In February, Akbars lawyer Geeta Luthra had said during her closing arguments that Ramanis statements against Akbar were per se defamatory and were made with the intention to harm the reputation of her client.

Citing other cases, Luthra had said, It is sufficient to show that the accused has reason to believe that [what they said] will harm the reputation of the person.

I have examined people who said that they held [Akbar] in high regard, and the respect they held for him was lowered in our eyes In this case, no reasonable person can say that it was not defamatory, Luthra said.

John pointed out that Akbars lawyers had opened the door to the issue of Akbars reputation, which put the onus upon her to contest their claim. There was an avalanche of disclosures against the complainant. [Ramanis] was one of them, John said.

Fourteen women made allegations of sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour at the workplace. One of them, journalist Ghazala Wahab, was Ramanis witness.

Akbar, who was the minister of state for external affairs at the time the allegation was made, resigned shortly after they surfaced. There are some people who, when their reputation is hurt, it shatters their whole existence. It destroys them, Luthra said during her closing arguments.

My case has always been that before I met him I admired him as a journalist and as a writer. But his conduct with me on that night in December 1993, and the experiences of other women, does not justify this complaint, John said on behalf of her client, on Saturday.

John quoted deceased United States Supreme Court judge Ruth Bader Ginsberg, who in a 2015 interview spoke of the arbitrary barriers put in womens way, which is the experience of everyone who grows up female.

The Me Too movement and the challenge to sexual harassment at the workplace was an attempt to correct the historical wrong, and an attempt to remove the arbitrary barriers that have been put in womens way, John said.

Luthra will respond to Johns final arguments on October 13 and 15.
Threats to songbirds prevail and it will take ongoing, concerted, collaborative efforts to mitigate them.

"We have witnessed the emergence of an unsustainable market for songbirds, and felt growing fear over the reach and focus of these operations," says Simon Bruslund, Head of Conservation at Vogelpark Marlow and a member of the EAZA Silent Forest Group that continues to work following the campaign.

The Silent Forest Group continues to advocate for species at risk, and must choose carefully how, and where, to apply pressure. Scientists suspect that many populations found in Southeast Asia likely face greater threats than we know, and may be gone before conservationists can intervene.

"If a species peaks commercially, Silent Forest researchers need to know. If a species becomes increasingly threatened, the sooner we know and can intervene, the better the chance that species will prevail," says David Jeggo, Chair of the Silent Forest Group and retired curator.

While conservation efforts prioritize those species assessed by IUCN Red List as near extinction, the Silent Forest Group seeks to identify critical populations not yet on the radar. With 6,600 plus species of passerines (songbirds), and a myriad of threats ranging from trade to deforestation, experts worry some will be lost from view.

"Part of the challenge is the sheer number of species and complexity of the problem. We have scientists working in regions around the world, yet it is much too easy to lose sight of not just one but even hundreds of species in decline," says Bruslund.

It's exactly the kind of challenge that wildlife researchers at Species360 Conservation Science Alliance tackle every day, and lead Dalia Conde quickly saw an opportunity to help.

"There is a vast wealth of data on songbirds, some of the most authoritative from scientists working on behalf of focused efforts like Silent Forest and the IUCN Asian Songbird Trade Specialist Group. By combining field data from these experts, and joining efforts with global sources, we knew there was a strong possibility that we could help," said Conde, Director of Science for Species360 and Associate Professor at Southern Denmark University's (SDU) Interdisciplinary Centre for Population Dynamics.

Coordinating with the CITES Secretariat and Silent Forest, Conde set the wheels in motion. Discussions confirmed that a comprehensive approach would deliver the greatest impact, with a the project scope encompassing the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and its World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC), CITES Trade Database, the IUCN Red List and IUCN Global, TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, and others involved in monitoring and advocating to manage and protect songbird populations.

The Species360 Conservation Science Alliance formed a multidisciplinary project team comprised of data analysts, population dynamics, and songbird experts to conduct the research and develop a solution. Bruslund Conde recruited ERASMUS scholar Jacqueline Jurgens, University of Hamburg, to help with data entry and analysis.

To accommodate the scope and complexity of information on songbirds, the team envisioned a tool modeled after the Demographic Species Knowledge Index. Developed with an international team of researchers led by Conde and published last year in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the index demonstrates how various data sources can be combined to increase knowledge of species. ( Read the published research and see all those involved, at PNAS .)

See original story at Species360 Blog

CONTACT: Mary Ellen Amodeo, (612) 963-5797

SOURCE Species360

Related Links

species360.org


A report on a tragic boat fire at Scottsboro says a family that died appeared to have gotten away from the flaming dock, but then were struck by a burning boat.

The report from the National Transportation Safety Board also says that Jackson County contributed to the loss of life by not having adequate fire safety measures in place.

The fire occurred Jan. 27 in the early morning hours at Lake Guntersville. Eight people were killed and one was seriously injured, including five siblings and their mother. The fire began on one boat and quickly spread to other boats, destroying the dock and 35 boats.

Here is the full report:

On January 27, 2020, about 0035 local time, fire broke out aboard the Dixie Delight, a 43-foot liveaboard houseboat, tied to Dock B at Jackson County Park Marina in Scottsboro, Alabama. The owner of the vessel attempted to extinguish the fire and push the burning vessel away from the dock, but the blaze engulfed the Dixie Delight and then spread to neighboring vessels and the wood-framed covered dock. The fire trapped seventeen people on the dock. In the process of attempting to escape, eight people died. An estimated 4,000 gallons of fuel and lube oil were released, with the majority consumed during the fire. The value of Dock B and the 35 vessels destroyed was estimated at more than $500,000.

Background

Jackson County Park is located in Scottsboro, Alabama, in an area on the western shore of Lake Guntersville known as Dry Creek. Lake Guntersville was created in the late 1930s when the Tennessee River was dammed at mile 349. The lake stretches 75 miles between the cities of Guntersville and Bridgeport, Alabama. The park consisted of rental cabins, recreational vehicle hook ups, camp sites, a playground, and a marina. The marina had a number of waterfront structures and docks. Two of the docks were covered and catered to recreational boats, both runabouts and houseboats, by providing electrical power, fresh water, and waste disposal services. Dock B was made up of 2 uncovered and 36 covered slips. The dock extended into the lake about 420 feet, and, except for the metal roof, was entirely constructed of wood. The covered section of the dock began about 90 feet from shore, and was approximately 330 feet long by 100 feet wide. Jackson County municipality owned the park, including the marina, and employed staff to maintain and manage its daily operations.

The Dixie Delight was a fiberglass, 43-foot recreational liveaboard houseboat built in 1974. The owner had never owned a houseboat before and had bought the vessel in October 2019. The

previous owner purchased the boat in January 2019 from Jackson County Park, which had taken

possession of the vessel due to unpaid slip fees. The vessel interior was accessed via a single

starboard-side door that led into the helm station. The station consisted of the vessels helm, throttle controls, navigational equipment, and a small seating area. A short set of removable stairs led aft from the helm down to a small kitchenette. The vessels electrical panel was mounted to the forward bulkhead of a small closet accessed by removing the stairs. The owners stateroom, one of two bedrooms, was directly aft of the kitchenette. When operational, the twin screw vessel was powered by two 225 horsepower inboard Mercruiser engines. An onboard Onan electric generator

supplied the vessel with electrical power while underway. The vessel also had a shore power connection to supply electrical power at the dock.

Following the fire, the owner told investigators that the Dixie Delight was connected to shore power and that the electrical load consisted of a small refrigerator, an electric blanket, an operating television, a charging cell phone, and a small portable electric heater. He also said that he had been operating this equipment onboard his vessel in the months prior to the fire, and he never had a problem with tripping electrical breakers or other electrical troubles.

Accident Events

About 0035 on January 27, the owner of the Dixie Delight, sleeping onboard the vessel, was awakened by a popping sound, and discovered the interior of his vessel filled with smoke. Unable to locate the source of the smoke, he opened the entry door to allow some smoke to clear and exited the vessel onto the dock. He notified a resident of a boat across the dock that his boat was on fire and then returned inside and attempted to locate the fire. The owner later told investigators that upon returning to his boat, he opened the closet located on the starboard side of the stairwell leading to the kitchenette, and saw flames coming from the forward bulkhead, in the same area as the vessels electrical panel. He discharged the contents of his vessels dry chemical fire extinguisher into the flames. He then exited the vessel and requested a fire extinguisher from the same neighbor he had spoken to moments before. The neighbor gave him an extinguisher and then evacuated the dock to shore with his dog. The Dixie Delight owner returned to his vessel, only to see the fire had grown. He discharged the contents of the second fire extinguisher into the same area with little effect.

At 0038, the fire aboard the Dixie Delight was still growing, and the owner called 911 from his mobile phone for assistance. The operator dispatched the fire department and police personnel to the scene. About this time, the Dixie Delight owner woke the owner of another houseboat several slips away from his. The two men began untying mooring ropes and disconnecting the potable water hose and electrical cables from the Dixie Delight in an effort to push the burning boat away from the dock. However, the owner struggled with disconnecting the potable water hose, and the fire quickly grew, preventing them from completing the task.

The fire continued to rapidly grow, first engulfing the Dixie Delight, then jumping to surrounding vessels. The Dixie Delight was docked in the first covered slip on Dock B, so when the fire spread to the wooden-frame dock, it blocked the exit from Dock B to the shore. The remaining 17 occupants of the boats at Dock B gathered at the end of the dock away from the fire. (Not all of the approximately 35 boats were occupied at the time of the fire.) As the fire continued to spread along the dock and its vessels, the people on the dock attempted to find an alternate means of escape. Several people considered attempting to fight the fire with portable fire extinguishers located on the dock, but were quickly deterred. One individual stated that the fire was so hot, so massive that I knew the fire extinguisher wouldnt do a thing. One individual launched a kayak and paddled safely to shore.

The 16 remaining people untied two boats located toward the outer end of the dock. Twelve individuals boarded an unoccupied cabin cruiser-style boat and pushed it away from the dock. The last four individuals boarded a similar unoccupied vessel and also pushed it away. The evacuees were unable to get either boats engine running to safely navigate away from the fire and resorted to paddling the boats with folding chairs and wash brushes.

Scottsboro police officers arrived on scene at 0045 and notified dispatch that the whole dock was on fire. A fire engine from Scottsboro Fire Station 2 arrived 4 minutes later and began setting up to fight the fire. County Sheriffs officers arrived and searched the other docks at the marina for a boat that could be used for rescue; they found none. Eyewitness photographs taken at this time show Dock B fully engulfed in fire and many boats burning in their slips. The evacuees aboard the two vessels had been unable to reach shore or any of the other docks at the marina. As the fire fully

engulfed the dock, the two boats were drawn back toward the end of Dock B, in what some survivors referred to as a fire-induced draft or vortex.

At 0109, an eyewitness photograph captured the two vessels drifting just feet from the end of the Dock B. A few moments later, vacant boats fully consumed in flames, whose mooring lines were burned through, drifted freely from Dock B. One of these boats collided with the vessel containing four evacuees and quickly caught the boat on fire. The four occupants abandoned the boat into the 41F water. One individual from the cabin cruiser with 12 people jumped into the water and attempted to fend off the burning vessels as they approached. Many of the remaining 11 people on the boat, some small children, retreated to the cabin of the vessel. Shortly after, a burning vessel collided with the cabin cruiser and, according to one survivor, immediately caught the vessel on fire. Four of the 11 occupants abandoned the vessel into the water. The seven occupants who remained in the cabin of the vesselfive children, their mother, and another womanbecame trapped by the flames and perished in the fire. Of the total nine occupants who abandoned the two vessels, none wore life jackets. One individual drowned, and the eight others either swam to shore or were assisted to shore by the Jackson County Rescue Squad, who had responded to the fire. First responders treated the survivors for exposure and burns on scene, and seven survivors with more serious injuries were transported to a local hospital for treatment.

The metal roof on Dock B collapsed once the fire had consumed the support structure. Some boats did not drift away from the dock, but instead burned to the waterline and sank within their slips. The fire eventually burned itself out with the help of firefighting efforts. An estimated 4,000 gallons of fuel and lube oil was released and consumed during the fire, and approximately 4,000 feet of absorbent boom and 7,700 feet of deflection boom were used. All victims were recovered once daylight broke, followed by salvage efforts and pollution mitigation.

Additional Information

Some houseboats at Jackson County Park Marina were occupied year-round as primary residences by individuals and families, while others were used as second homes or vacation destinations. Much of the dock space at each slip and external deck space aboard the vessels housed plastic chair and table sets, rugs, propane grills, and other potentially combustible material. A number of the vessels had inoperable or laid-up engines, and many of the boats had been tied to the dock for long periods of time. Park management told investigators that the Dixie Delight had been at the marina for 10 years. Both the owner of the vessel at the time of the accident and the previous owner told investigators that they had never operated the vessels engines and that the vessel had not left slip #36 during their ownership.

Several survivors interviewed after the fire said that although personal flotation devices (PFDs) were available aboard their own vessels, they did not think to take them before having to evacuate. After leaving the burning dock by boarding two unoccupied vessels, evacuees located only a single life ring; it was thrown to one of the first individuals to abandon one of the vessels. Park management told investigators that there were no marina-provided PFDs or life rings located on Dock B.

The Jackson County Park and Marina had been inspected by the Scottsboro Fire Department twice, once in April 2012 and once in 2016. The 2012 inspection had no violations; the 2016 inspection cited a presence of a charcoal grill and a gasoline container on the docks. State code did not require these inspections, and they were completed by the local fire department as a courtesy.

Alabamas current state fire code is comprised of the International Fire Code (IFC) and additions from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) codes, including NFPA 303, a section on fire safety standards for marinas and boatyards. NFPA 303 includes guidance on Fire at Jackson County Park Marina 7 NTSB/MAB-20/32 electrical equipment, berthing and storage, and standpipes for marinas and boatyards. The standard also includes requirements for annual electrical inspections, marina employee fire response training, biannual fire drills, and the designation of a fire department liaison who would be responsible for submitting a pre-fire plan to the local fire department and the authority responsible for enforcing the code. When Dock B was built in 2003, Alabama had not yet adopted these standards into state fire code. Therefore, these safety measures were not required.

The National Water Safety Congress (NWSC) is an organization composed of safety professionals and organizations whose mission is to further water safety. It developed Guidelines for the Safe Operation and Maintenance of Marinas, revised in 2001, which include many similar requirements to NFPA 303 such as employee fire training, annual electrical inspections, and engagement with the local fire department. In addition, the Guidelines suggest a safety skiff to be available and ready for use. Specifically, this skiff should be used to tow a vessel that may be on fire to open water away from other craft or structures. The wreckage of the Dixie Delight was located submerged in its original slip. What remained of the vessel was salvaged two days after the fire and examined by state and federal fire investigators. After a thorough and systematic examination of the wreckage, the State fire investigator was unable to determine an area of origin due to all combustible material being consumed by the fire. The States report also concluded that the fire appeared to be accidental.

Analysis

The ignition source of the fire aboard the Dixie Delight could not be determined because of the scale of fire damage. Considering the owners firsthand account and where he first saw flames, it is likely that the fire originated in the bulkhead between the vessels electrical panel and storage closet. The fire spread due to the neighboring vessels of similar fiberglass construction, an abundance of combustible lawn furniture on the vessel decks and open dock areas, and the presence of portable liquid propane cylinders used for barbecue grills, which all increased the docks fire load.

At the time of the fire, Alabamas fire codes for covered docks and marinas were not applicable to Dock B, which had been constructed prior to their adoption. Nonetheless, marinas should have measures and guidelines in place to prevent and mitigate accidents for all moored boats and their occupants. The Jackson County Park Marina did not observe several existing safety best practices and guidelines created for and used by the marina industry. Safety practices such as annual electrical inspections, employee fire training, biannual fire drills, and the development of a pre-fire plan with the fire department can better prepare marina staff and boat owners for a vessel or dock fire. In addition, a safety skiff, as recommended by guidelines, can be used by marina staff or first responders to assist in an emergency.

Probable Cause



The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the fire aboard the Dixie Delight and subsequent fire at Dock B was a fire of unknown source, originating aboard the Dixie Delight in the vicinity of the vessels electrical panel. Contributing to the severity of the fire and loss of life were the County and marinas limited fire safety practices.

Marina Fire Safety The close proximity of vessels in marinas can cause fires to spread quickly, preventing evacuation. Marina owners should assess their own operations, consult relevant fire safety guidance, and review fire plans in concert with local fire departments. Marina boat owners

should familiarize themselves with their marinas fire plan and review their vessels potential fire hazards and firefighting equipment.
President Ilham Aliyev has said that gas produced from new offshore Absheron field will be directed to meet the countrys domestic needs.

The president made the remarks during the groundbreaking ceremony for the Absheron field offshore operations at the Heydar Aliyev Baku Deep Water Jackets Plant on September 19.

"Gas produced from "Absheron" at the first stage will be directed to domestic needs because there is a need for that. The growing population and the growing industry require that. The gas to be extracted at the second stage will be exported to world markets. The full-field development of this field will be solved in stages."

The president described the inauguration of Absheron fied - with gas reserves of 350-360 billion cubic meters - an important event. "I am confident that this stage will be successful too, and thus Azerbaijan will make an important step in its oil and gas strategy."

"The history of the Absheron field is somewhat different because the first contract on the Absheron gas field was signed with foreign partners in the late 1990s," the president added. "I remember those days quite vividly because we had high hopes for the Absheron field. Our geologists, especially Khoshbakht Yusifzade, were convinced that there were fairly large gas reserves in this field... Unfortunately, after some time the first contract was terminated. The reason was that the exploration well came out dry."

"I remember our prominent geologist Khoshbakht Yusifzade saying at the time that the location of the well was not chosen correctly and trying to persuade foreign partners to make some adjustments to their work program," President Aliyev said. "Unfortunately, they did not listen to him."

"But let me say again that we had full confidence that there are huge gas reserves here," the Azerbaijani said. "I am glad that "Total" came to the same conclusion and relevant documents were signed with SOCAR. Then specific work was done and a large gas condensate field was discovered. I can say that the news about the discovery of the field, about this important event was shared with me Khoshbakht Yusifzade. So a great resource has been obtained for the development of our oil and gas potential."

"This field has gas reserves of 350-360 billion cubic meters," President Aliyev said. "But I believe there will be even more. Our experience already shows that there are more resources than expected and 100 million tons of condensate."

"This is a product equal to crude oil, and thus Azerbaijan will continue to be a reliable supplier of gas," the president said. "I must also say that the gas produced from "Absheron" at the first stage will be directed to domestic needs because there is a need for that. The growing population and the growing industry require that. The gas to be extracted at the second stage will be exported to world markets. The full-field development of this field will be solved in stages."

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The central government informed the Lok Sabha on Friday that India is in touch with Russia for advancing the trials of COVID-19 vaccine  Sputnik V  in the country, according to news agency PTI. India is "exploring the possibility of cooperation between the two countries for advancing the COVID-19 vaccine in the country," the news agency reported.

The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) informed that it had received information about one COVID-19 vaccine developed and approved in Russia, minister of state for health Ashwini Choubey informed the Lok Sabha.

Russia was the first country in the world to register a COVID-19 vaccine after less than two months of human testing. Developed by Gamaleya Research Institute and the Russian defence ministry, the vaccine is currently under the phase III trial of the vaccine, which involved more than 40,000 people at more than 45 medical centres around Russia, the TASS news agency reported

Earlier this week, Russian Direct Investment Fund inked a deal with Dr. Reddy's Laboratories to conduct a clinical trial and distribution of Sputnik V in India. Under the agreement, Russia's sovereign wealth fund will supply 100 million doses of Russia's COVID-19 vaccine to Indian drug maker. Both the trials and supply deal depend on central drug regulator's approval. If the trials are successful, the vaccine will be available in India as by the end of this year.

The government plans to use the universal immunisation programme mechanism for distribution of COVID-19 vaccines after they receive approval from the drug regulator, union health minister Harsh Vardhan said in a statement to the Lok Sabha on Friday.

Once available, the coronavirus vaccine distribution follows the same route as for the current practice of vaccines distribution under Universal Immunization Program (UIP)," Vardhan said in a written statement.

Currently, there are three COVID-19 vaccine candidates that are in human trials in India. "Nationally, nearly 30 vaccine candidates are under development, by both industry and academia. These vaccines are in different stages of pre-clinical and clinical development of which three candidates are in advanced stage of Phase I/II/III trials and four are in advanced pre-clinical development stage," Vardhan said.

How safe is Sputnik V?

Russia health ministry claimed that the coronavirus vaccine offers lasting immunity from the virus. The vaccine is expected to provide immunity from the coronavirus for up to two years, according to health ministry.

Early results from trials of Russias potential coronavirus vaccine show no major negative side effects, a study published in the peer-reviewed medical journal The Lancet revealed.

The two 42-day trials  including 38 healthy adults each  did not find any serious adverse effects among participants, and confirmed that the vaccine candidates elicit an antibody response," the studys authors wrote.

"The platform of human adenoviral vectors, which is the core of the Russian vaccine, has been tested in more than 250 clinical studies over decades, and it has been found safe with no potential negative long-term consequences." official said.

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In recent years, brown anything in a living space was considered by some arbiters of decor as drab and outdated. But this fall the hue is back in favor, in part because of the unsettled, anxious state of the world.

Brown traditionally makes people feel comfortable and safe, and those are feelings that many of us are looking to our homes to provide, says interior designer Dawn Hamilton of Oakland Park, Florida.

Its just one of the trends in decor this season, when the pandemic has made home an even more essential space for living, working, studying and more. Also on the watch list: flexible rooms, indoor and out.

Hamilton says todays brown palette is being used in new ways, as a neutral in all kinds of materials, and as an accent color.

Brown feels very earthy and rich. Its warm and inviting, and has the same grounding properties as black, although its not quite as harsh, she says.

New York designer Becky Shea also cites browns organic versatility: Its a tone that works cohesively with neutrals as well as dark, bold tones like navy, graphite and black.

Eilyn Jimenez of Sire Design in Miami is adding a mocha brown vanity to the guest bathroom of a minimalist, French chateau-style home shes designing. It adds a layer of depth with a vintage feel, she says.

Dont overdo brown, she warns, but blend it with modern materials like marble for beautiful juxtapositions.

Bringing it in with light woods, leathers and other natural materials can help make a space feel timeless, Jimenez says.

Melissa Morgan of M Interiors in San Antonio, Texas, thinks browns rebirth is a reaction to years of very light, tonal interiors. Clients are looking for warmth and sanctuary in their homes more than ever.

Lighter, yellowish browns, like caramel, often works well in leather.

In upholstery, we consider saddle leather to be a form of brown thats like a trusty pair of blue jeans  it goes with everything, says Chicago designer Brynn Olson.

Soft browns and caramels are also appearing in pillows, lamps and drapes. Caning is on trend too, says Amy Leferink of Interior Impressions in Woodbury, Minnesota.

As for furniture, Olson likes the effect of brown stains on walnut and white oak, and says a beautifully stained built-in is timeless. Natural walnut will always feel fresh, and we love to pair it with bright white decor such as plaster vases, for a sophisticated pairing of textures, she says.

That brown-and-white combo has been a favorite of decorating icons including Billy Baldwin, says New York City designer Glenn Gissler. Baldwins apartment in Manhattan featured a mix of glossy brown walls, white and chartreuse furniture, and brass accents. Inspired, Gissler recently painted a New York loft in a deep, rich brown, with columns and ceilings in crisp white. A long, tuxedo-style sofa in milk-chocolatey velvet anchors the space, along with tonal modern art.

Colors like purples and blues, of any intensity, also complement brown.

Home has always been a refuge for recharging and relaxing; its going to become even more so, says architect Jeffrey Dungan of Birmingham, Alabama.

The ideal room now, he says, converts easily from family room to office, studio, guest room or self-quarantine space.

Outdoor spaces, too, must be flexible.

Can we design outdoor spaces that still have privacy, which become oases to enjoy fresh air and sunlight without being in public? says Dungan.

Some designers say that because of quarantining and the variety of uses expected from rooms, theyre getting requests for more self-contained rooms.

Well be saying goodbye to one of the main trends of recent years: open-plan spaces, with the entrance, living room, dining space and kitchen united, Ukrainian architect Sergey Makhno wrote recently in Dezeen magazine.

He says some clients want a separate entrance area, where shoes, clothing and belongings can be sequestered from the main living areas.
A police officer in the ongoing 2020 Edo governorship election demanded bribe from a Premium Times Centre for Investigative Journalism (PTCIJ) observer on Saturday.

The officer, posted to the Okada junction along Sagamu-Ibadan expressway stopped the journalist from going forth even after he showed his identity.

I was stopped at Okada Junction (along Sagamu-Ibadan expressway) and was refused a pass to move to Ofunmwegbe & Okada East wards.

I showed the police officer-in-charge my card, but he insisted that I should be stationed at one polling unit and can only move across with an official car.

After more than five minutes of discussion, he told me that I wont be able to return to base. I took some minutes to think it over and called my superiors for instructions. I was advised to return to Okada West.

I dropped out of the car to explain the situation to the officer-in-charge.

According to the observer, the police officer asked him where he got the car from.

I replied, I hired it. He asked, how much? and I replied, N15,000. Then he asked for his share (bribe) and ordered one of his boys to go collect it from my driver.

I called my superiors again to apprise them of the situation while my driver conversed with the officer that was ordered to collect the bribe. On getting to the car, the officer, who was ordered to collect the bribe said we could go. As we drove past the officer-in-charge, he asked, you don see am and I replied yes knowing that we would be delayed if I said no.

I asked my driver if he gave out any money and he said, no.

A total number 14 political parties presented candidates for the Edo election, including the two front-runners, the All Progressive Congress(APC) Candidate, Osagie Ize-Iyamu, and the incumbent governor, Godwin Obaseki, contesting under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
As many as 59.7 per cent of students in India walk to school with the number being much higher in rural areas, according to the National Statistical Organisations (NSO) latest report on education. The percentage of girls travelling to school on foot is higher than the average at 62 per cent, while it is 57.9 per cent for boys.

The same trend is observed when data for rural and urban areas is looked at separately. While 61.4 per cent of boys walk to school in rural areas, the percentage of girls stands at 66.5 and it is 57.9 per cent and 62 per cent respectively in urban areas.

Also read: 10 million children may never return to school after Covid-19 pandemic: Charity

The second most preferred mode of travel is public transport, with 12.4 per cent of the students using it in the country. In rural areas, 11.3 per cent of students use public transport to travel to school while a significantly higher percentage, 15.3, use it in urban areas.

Information was also collected on how regularly students availed the concessional fare in public transport for attending educational institutions. As many as 48.3 per cent students who received concession used public transport, this number being higher in rural areas (51.3 per cent) than in urban areas (42.7 per cent).

Also read: Govt should provide free smartphones to all school children: NGO

To give context to the data, the distance between students households and schools was also studied and it was found that in rural areas 92.7 per cent of households reported availability of primary school within 1 km from the house and in urban areas the number stood at 87.2 per cent.

Nearly 68 per cent of rural households and 80 per cent of urban households reported upper primary schools within 1 km from the house while only around 38 per cent of rural households compared to around 70 per cent of urban households reported secondary schools within such a distance.

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Beijing conducted military training of its warplanes near Taiwan's territory when an American diplomat was in the country to meet its president. The event is part of a series of actions by the United States government in forging a better relationship with the island nation.

Political meeting

The diplomat was Keith Krach, the Undersecretary of State, and is the highest-ranking official from the State Department to visit Taiwan since Washington ended its ties with the country nearly 40 years ago.

On Friday, Krach expressed his support for better relations between the U.S. and Taiwan during a dinner hosted by President Tsai Ing-wen, as reported by the Wall Street Journal.

Trump's administration has recently increased its efforts to foster relationships with Taiwan amid growing tensions with China over several issues, including trade and territorial claims. The island nation is a sensitive topic between Beijing and Washington because China considers it part of its territory.

Earlier this week, the State Department announced Krach's plans to travel to Taiwan and attend the memorial service of the country's former President Lee Teng-hui, who passed away in July. Lee had the legacy of bringing Taiwan to a state of multiparty democracy, which ultimately paved the way for the United States and the island nation to share a similar democratic view.

Before the meeting, Taiwan's Defense Ministry said it deployed jet fighters when it observed at least 18 Chinese aircraft flying across the median line in the Taiwan Strait. The area marks the middle point between the island nation and China.

Beijing stated that the military exercises it conducted near the Taiwan Strait on Friday were needed to protect its national sovereignty, arguing the recent international interactions between the U.S. and Taiwan.

Also Read: US to Sell Taiwan $7 Billion Worth of Weaponry Including Powerful Cruise Missiles and Reaper Drones

A part of Chinese territory

According to the Times of India, Senior Colonel Ren Guoqiang, the Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman, said that the U.S. is misguided in its plans to control China through Taiwan. He added that what the American government is doing is playing risky.

Taiwan's government told China to exercise moderation in its actions and have reassured its citizens that it had everything under control with the military monitoring the situation carefully.

The editor of China's Global Times tabloid, Hu Xijin, wrote in a microblog that the military drills were Beijing's preparation for an assault on Taiwan if it finds the need to push forward. He added that People's Liberation Army fighters should fly over the island nation if the U.S. secretary of state or defense visits the region.

When the U.S. Health Secretary, Alex Azar, visited Taipei last month, several Chinese fighter jets flew beyond the Taiwan Strait's mid-line for a short time. Beijing also conducted two days of large-scale military drills near Taiwan's southwestern coast last week.

Despite the United States having international ties with China and not Taiwan, the American nation is the island country's leading supplier for weapons and is considered its most significant international supporter.

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations had a lunch meeting with Taiwan's top envoy in New York City this week. However, China's U.N. mission expressed its criticisms of the meeting.

Related Article: Deadly Himalayan Border Dispute Prompts China and India to Agree on Ceasefire, Disengagement of Troops

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France, Germany, and the United Kingdom have come together to issue a joint note verbale to the United Nations in order to challenge Chinas claims in the East Sea.

China has conducted extensive land reclamation work at Fiery Cross Reef in the Spratly Islands chain in the East Sea. (Photo: AP)





In the joint note verbale dated September 17, the three European countries outline that they are state parties to the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and that Chinas continued exercise of their historic rights over the East Sea fails to comply with international law and the 1982 UNCLOS.

They therefore underline the importance of unhampered exercise of the freedom of the high seas, in particular the freedom of navigation and overflight, and of the right of innocent passage enshrined in UNCLOS, including in the East Sea.

The three nations maintain their position of supporting a peaceful resolution of the maritime claims in the East Sea that are in accordance with the UNCLOS principles and relevant dispute settlement procedures.

This position is reaffirmed without prejudice to competing claims of coastal states over disputed territorial sovereignty to naturally formed land features and to areas of the continental shelf in the East Sea on which France, Germany, and the United Kingdom take no position, the note verbale reads.

As state parties to the 1982 UNCLOS, the European countries have vowed to continue to uphold and assert their rights and freedoms as enshrined in UNCLOS and to contribute to promoting co-operation in the region as set out under the Convention.

In an interview granted to Tien Phong daily September 17, Dr. Hoang Viet, a lecturer at Ho Chi Minh City Law School, said the move shows that the European powers have been closely monitoring the situation in the East Sea and therefore view events there as important.

As a result, this rejection signals a fresh development in the East Sea moving forward, Dr. Viet noted.

Upon analysing the joint move, the Vietnamese lecturer said the three countries hold the same view that the UNCLOS is a legally binding legal document which should be fully observed globally.

Furthermore, the joint action of the European countries to make a stand indicates that Chinas exercise of their historic rights over the East Sea can be viewed as a violation of international law, in addition to the 1982 UNCLOS, which had already been affirmed by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in its 2016 ruling.

In 2016 the court supported the Philippines in its lawsuit against China, stating that Beijing had no legal basis to claim historic rights over the majority of the East Sea through their nine-dash line claim, although the northern neighbour has repeatedly refused to honour the ruling.

Alongside France, Germany, and the UK, both the United States and Australia have also voiced their strong opposition to Chinas East Sea claims last July. VOV
CALGARY, Alberta, Sept. 18, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Canacol Energy Ltd. ("Canacol" or the "Corporation") (TSX:CNE) (OTCQX:CNNEF) (BVC:CNEC) is pleased to announce the details of its quarterly dividend as well as to provide a brief corporate update.



Quarterly Dividend

The Corporation has declared a dividend of CAD$.052 per share, payable on October 15, 2020, to shareholders of record at the close of business on September 30, 2020. The ex-dividend date for all shareholders is September 29, 2020. This dividend qualifies as an 'eligible dividend' for Canadian income tax purposes. The declaration, timing, amount and payment of future dividends remain at the discretion of the Board of Directors.

Dividends on shares traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) will be paid in Canadian Dollars (CAD) on October 15, 2020.

For shareholders trading on the Colombia Stock Exchange (BVC), the Colombian peso equivalency shall be calculated based on the exchange rate as certified by the Banco de la Republica (Central Bank) on the date of monetization and will be published accordingly on the SIMEV website www.superfinanciera.gov.co .

Shares traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange

Form NR301 will be mailed to Registered non-resident shareholders as at the dividend record date, by Olympia Trust Company, Canacols transfer agent. In order to receive the preferred treaty rate, you must complete and mail back the form as soon as possible. Failure to supply a completed NR301 form will result in Olympia withholding the statutory 25% withholding tax rate on any payments to Registered non-resident shareholders. If you have previously completed Form NR301, you do not need to complete a new form.

Instructions on how to correctly complete the NR301 are on the back of the form. Shareholders who hold their shares through a broker should contact their broker directly. They do not need to return a form to Olympia.

Shares traded on the Colombia Stock Exchange

Story continues

Dividend payments will be subject to withholding at the Canadian statutory rate of 25%. Shareholders who are entitled to a reduced withholding tax rate under a tax treaty should contact their broker or nominee to submit Form NR301 (English version). Brokers should submit Form NR301 on behalf of their shareholders to Deposito Centralizado de Valores (Deceval) as soon as possible. If you have previously completed Form NR301, you do not need to complete a new form.

Form NR301 can be downloaded at:

https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/cra-arc/formspubs/pbg/nr301/nr301-13e.pdf

For information purposes, a Spanish version of Form NR301 can be downloaded at:

www.canacolenergy.co/esp/dividend.asp

The content contained herein is not tax advice. Do not use or otherwise rely upon any of the content without first seeking independent tax advice.

Uninterrupted Access to Transportation Capacity in Colombia

The Corporation wishes to provide the following clarification concerning the availability of transportation capacity from its operated fields to Cartagena and Barranquilla. The Corporation is currently delivering gas to its clients without any interruption or issue with respect to transportation. As such the Corporation reconfirms its 2020 sales guidance of between 170 and 197 million standard cubic feet per day. Under Colombian regulations, transportation services are considered a public utility and as a result are heavily regulated. In particular the regulation (Resolution No. 071 of 1999  Gas and Energy Regulatory Commission) prohibits transport companies from denying access to the national transport system to any agent or producer wishing to make use of the same, as long as the capacity is available and not being used by another agent or producer.

Update on Medellin Pipeline

With respect to the Corporations plans to build and operate a new gas pipeline from Jobo to Medellin, the Corporation continues its advanced negotiations with multiple international pipeline construction and operation companies, one or several of whom will build the pipeline. The Corporation is also in the final stages of completing the financial structuring of the project with its banking and equity partners. The pipeline has a targeted completion date of 2024.

Canacol Energy is a gas exploration and production company with operations focused in Colombia. The Corporation's common stock trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange, the OTCQX in the United States of America, and the Colombia Stock Exchange under ticker symbol CNE, CNNEF, and CNE.C, respectively.

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur, including without limitation statements relating to estimated production rates from the Corporation's properties and intended work programs and associated timelines. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. The Corporation cannot assure that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. They are made as of the date hereof and are subject to change and the Corporation assumes no obligation to revise or update them to reflect new circumstances, except as required by law. Prospective investors should not place undue reliance on forward looking statements. These factors include the inherent risks involved in the exploration for and development of crude oil and natural gas properties, the uncertainties involved in interpreting drilling results and other geological and geophysical data, fluctuating energy prices, the possibility of cost overruns or unanticipated costs or delays and other uncertainties associated with the oil and gas industry. Other risk factors could include risks associated with negotiating with foreign governments as well as country risk associated with conducting international activities, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Corporation.

Realized contractual gas sales is defined as gas produced and sold plus gas revenues received from nominated take or pay contracts.

CONTACT: Contact Investor Relations: IR@canacolenergy.com Ph: +57 (1) 621 1747 Ph: +(1) 403-561-1648 Website: canacolenergy.com




(Newser)  Democrats have a slight edge at the moment in their effort to take control of the Senate from Republicans, but many outcomesincluding a tieremain possible. That's the upshot from FiveThirtyEight, which kicked off its Senate forecast Friday. The most likely result from the November elections is a Senate pretty closely divided, possibly 50-50, the forecast shows. An even split would make control of the Senate dependent on who's elected vice president and owns the tie-breaking vote: Kamala Harris or Mike Pence. FiveThirtyEight's model is based on the one it used for the 2018 congressional elections, which it says was on the money, and plugs in such factors as polls, fundraising, incumbency and forecasts from other experts.

story continues below

At least a dozen races around the country are competitive. Although the Democrats are in good shape, none of those races is a sure thing for them. Still, there's a chance Democrats emerge from the November elections holding at least 54 Senate seats. There are challenges for them. Doug Jones trails in polls in Alabama. If he loses, Democrats would need to flip at least four seats now held by Republicans, and some of those victories would have to be in states Republicans usually win. Arizona is the surest bet for Democrats, per FiveThirtyEight. Sen. Martha McSally, who was appointed to her seat, is well behind Democrat Mark Kelly in polls there. In states such as North Carolina, Maine and Montana, there's data and logic enough to support thinking either party could win. (Read more fivethirtyeight.com stories.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 10:57:03|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi had a phone conversation with his Brazilian counterpart Ernesto Araujo on Friday, agreeing that China and Brazil will further enhance their practical cooperation.

Wang said that Chinese President Xi Jinping and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro successfully exchanged visits last year, and have held many phone conversations and sent letters to each other since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, pointing out the direction for the development of bilateral relations.

In the next stage, the two sides should further implement the important consensus reached by the heads of state of the two countries, adapt to a new situation for long-term prevention and control of the epidemic on a regular basis, focus on the "post-epidemic era," firmly grasp the main tone of friendly cooperation between China and Brazil, and steadily push forward bilateral relations, Wang said.

China and Brazil are both important emerging markets, and there is no fundamental conflict of interests between them, with cooperation far outweighing competition and consensus far outweighing differences, Wang said.

As major countries, China and Brazil both adhere to the path of independence and peaceful development, and respect each other's national sovereignty and territorial integrity, which lay the political basis for the relations between the two countries, he said.

China is willing to continue to strengthen coordination and cooperation with Brazil in international and regional affairs, safeguard the common interests of the two countries, safeguard the authority of international law, hold high the banner of multilateralism, promote the democratization of international relations, and promote the development of the international order in a more just and reasonable direction, he noted.

Despite the severe impact of the pandemic, Wang said, the pragmatic cooperation between the two countries is still growing, which has fully demonstrated that China-Brazil relations enjoy a profound foundation, strong resilience as well as mutual benefit, and that the two economies have distinct complementary advantages and huge potential for development.

China will continue to open its market for Brazil's high-quality agricultural products and welcome Brazil to participate in the third China International Import Expo, Wang said.

Noting China is willing to expand investment cooperation with Brazil in various fields including oil and gas, electricity, mining and infrastructure construction, Wang said the two sides will create a "new highland" of scientific and innovation cooperation and foster new cooperation platforms such as digital economy, clean energy, smart agriculture, telemedicine, smart cities, 5G communications and big data, so as to promote the two countries' industrial upgrading and digital transformation.

While doing a good job in pandemic prevention and control, China and Brazil should also establish "fast channels" for personnel exchanges and green channels for goods circulation, Wang said.

Araujo thanked China for providing anti-pandemic material assistance to Brazil, saying that his country is willing to further strengthen its cooperation with China in vaccine research, development and production.

As the two fastest growing emerging economies in the world, Araujo said, China and Brazil have established mature, mutually beneficial and stable bilateral relations.

Noting Brazil attaches great importance to its relations with China, Araujo said Brazil is ready to work with China to implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, give full play to the existing cooperation mechanisms, deepen practical cooperation in such areas as agriculture, trade and investment, environmental protection, clean energy and digital economy, restart personnel exchanges in various fields as soon as possible and strengthen coordination in international and regional affairs, so as to push China-Brazil comprehensive strategic partnership to a new level. Enditem
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Students in middle and high schools in Vietnam will be allowed to use their mobile phones in class for educational purposes, according to a new charter.

On Tuesday, the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training adopted a circular which sets out a new charter for middle schools and high schools across the Southeast Asian nation.

The circular, which is slated to take effect in early November this year, lifts an earlier outright ban on the use of mobile phones in class.

In this regard, Sai Cong Hong, deputy director of the ministrys Secondary Education Department, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that the change aims to be aligned with the application of information technology in teaching.

Students are allowed to use phones during class time, but only to serve learning purposes with their teachers permission, said Hong, who added that the use of smartphones in the teaching and learning process is necessary.

In some practical situations, he said students need to use several features of their devices in order to fulfill their learning needs, such as to look up information and browse reference materials.

Second thought needed

The new rule has raised public concern in Vietnam over its supposed detrimental effects on students.

Anh Hoa, a Tuoi Tre reader, commented that students should not be allowed to use mobile phones during lesson time no matter the reasons.

The reader said it would be impossible for teachers to supervise students use of their devices to make sure it is for the right purposes.

Worse still, Hoa said, students will become reliant on online knowledge and information whose accuracy has yet to be verified.

Nguyen Bich Trang, the mother of a sixth grader at Tran Van On Middle School in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, told Tuoi Tre that the school has banned students from using mobile phones within its campus since the beginning of the 2020-21 academic year.

The new rule by the Ministry of Education and Training gives parents like me a shock, said Trang.

Allowing students to use modern devices, including computers, tablets, or smartphones, is an inevitable need of todays education, but I dont think it is necessary for students to bring their phones into class to apply modern forms of teaching, she explained.

The principal of a high school in the citys Tan Phu District said, We have banned students from using their mobile phones at school because they bring much more harm than benefits.

The head teacher feared students would use their phones to set up gaming sessions with their peers after school, chat online in class, or arrange fist fights when there is conflict among them.

Students will also sneakily visit their Facebook accounts or play games in class. It would be tough for teachers to supervise their students, due to overcrowded class sizes, said the principal.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 09:52:43|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Ahead of the high-level meeting to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the United Nations, a group of prominent former government and UN leaders are calling for strengthening the UN system.

In an open letter - A Time for Renewal: Calling for a Strengthened Multilateral System - released Friday, 48 former UN and government officials from around the world expect the 75th anniversary of the 193-nation body to lead to "a stronger, more accountable, inclusive multilateral system."

According to the letter obtained by Xinhua, the leaders said "the institutional framework of global governance, with the United Nations at its core, must do more to provide the guidance, leadership and decisions required to ensure human safety, security and sustainable development in our interdependent world."

"From climate change to human rights, gender and racial equality, and from sustainable development to international peace and security - the international community should honor its commitments to the UN's founding Charter, Agenda 2030 and the Paris Agreement," they said.

"There is an urgent need for an explicit recognition by global leaders that we are at a turning point and must act decisively to defend and rejuvenate multilateralism," they added, stressing that recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic needs national leadership and effective global cooperation.

According to Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, "Multilateralism is not an option: it is the only path that can deliver a green, sustainable and equitable recovery."

Maria Fernanda Espinosa, president of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly and former foreign minister of Ecuador, said that "the United Nations is an irreplaceable organization. It has a critical role in leading a concerted, coordinated response to the COVID pandemic, and its recovery process which should allow us to build back better."

"This year's commemoration of the UN 75th anniversary is a golden opportunity to rejuvenate and retool the organization to build a more effective and inclusive multilateral system," Espinosa said.

The signatories also include Ban Ki-moon, former UN secretary-general; Kevin Rudd, former prime minister of Australia; Helen Clark, former prime minister of New Zealand; Gordon Brown, former British prime minister; and Tarja Halonen, former president of Finland. The letter will remain open for additional signatures until Oct. 24, United Nations Day. Enditem
Exhibition highlighting Vietnamese land and people opens in Rumania

The Vietnamese Embassy in Romania opened a photo exhibition on the Vietnamese land and people in the capital city Bucharest on September 18 on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of Vietnam National Day (September 2, 1945-2020).









The more than 60 photos on display feature the history of Vietnams development, socio-economic achievements and integration as well as the Vietnamese people, their cultural heritages, landscapes, typical festivals and cuisine.



On the occasion, Vietnamese Ambassador Dang Tran Phong highlighted the great achievements of Vietnam over the past 75 years in the struggles for national independence and the causes of national defence and construction.



He also thanked the Government and people of Romania as well as other international friends for supporting Vietnam.



The exhibition is a meaningful event in 2020 as Vietnam and Romania are celebrating their 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties (1950-2020) whilst Vietnam is assuming the ASEAN 2020 Chairmanship as well as being a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council in the 2020-2021 tenure.



The exhibition will continue to be held in other locations in Bucharest and other localities in Romania by year-end with the aim of promoting diplomatic relations, solidarity, friendship and mutual understanding between the two countries.
On March 6, 2017, at 6.45 pm, the Indian Flag was lowered. Five minutes later, the commissioning pendant of the longest-serving aircraft carrier in the world was lowered onboard INS Viraat marking the end of a glorious tenure for the naval vessel that served for 56 years both the Royal Navy and the Indian Navy since it was commissioned in 1959. During its tenure, its commanding officers including admirals Madhvendra Singh, Arun Prakash, NK Verma and DK Joshi went on to head the navy.

On Saturday, after numerous pleas and offers to convert the iconic vessel into a naval museum went unheard, the ship was towed to the breaking yard at Alang in Bhavnagar in Gujarat. The ship was brought by Shree Ram Group for Rs 38.54 crore in an auction conducted by the Metal Scrap Trade Corporation Limited last month.

Watch: INS Viraats final journey, served Indian Navy for 29 years

Also read: Old jet lands in Bandra; on display soon

Andy Trish, who joined the Royal Navy as a Naval airman in 1981 and served on INS Viraat, which was then HMS Hermes, termed the vessels journey memorable, and quipped in a lighter vein: I would like to take her with me.

Mark Shepherd, another British national who was posted on the ship as a 16-years-old during the Falkland War, wanted the ship to be turned into a museum for future generations.

David Campbell Bannerman, a former Member of the European Parliament, wrote to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson asking his intervention to postpone the auction till March. Our plan would be to turn the ship back into INS Viraat form for key weeks in the UK so that the large Indian diaspora in the UK can attend events on board. This includes Republic Day in January and Diwali in autumn, and possibly Independence Day on 15th August, Bannerman then told HT.

Bannerman, who was prepared to pay 5 million pounds, had said that he had been writing to Indian authorities since June 2019 but there been no response.

INS Viraat could not be handed over to any state government because of non-receipt of a self-sustaining financially complete proposal. Thus, in view of considerations of safety, security etc, a decision to scrap INS Viraat has been taken in due consultation with the Indian Navy, minister of state for defence Shripad Naik said in a written reply in Rajya Sabha in July 2019.

Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh had shown interest in turning the ship into a museum.

Many in the Indian Navy still want the ship to be turned into a museum.

I want to try one last attempt to save #INSViraat Flag of India. Wud Reliance, TATA, Adani, Wipro, HCL, Mahindra, Uday Kotak, Poonawalla, Tech companies like Infosys consider contributing to a trust to preserve our history? I rqst my media friends to amplify this appeal, Bharatiya Janata Party MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar tweeted.

Commissioned into the Royal Navy in November 1959, the vessel served the British for 27 years before being decommissioned in 1984. India then bought the vessel and named it INS Viraat. It was commissioned into the Indian Navy on May 12, 1987, and became its flagship.

Four Naval Air Squadrons operated out of the aircraft carrier to undertake anti-submarine, search and rescue operations, etc.

The vessel became a part of Operation Jupiter in July 1989 as part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka. It was last deployed for operational duty for the International Fleet Review in Vishakapatnam in February 2016.
Kim Kardashian and Kanye West's relationship is on the rocks yet again.

It came after the award-winning rapper unleashed a series of bizarre posts that prompted Twitter to temporarily ban his account for violating its platform rules. This includes sharing the phone number of a Forbes magazine editor while urging his 30.9 million followers to call it.

The "All of the Lights" hitmaker did not stop there. He also posted a video of himself urinating on a Grammy award while saying "all musicians will be free." He did the bizarre act amid his rift with major music labels like Sony and Universal Records.

Kim Kardashian "At the End of Her Rope"

Now, People is claiming that the West matriarch has reached her limit as she feels "like she can only take so much" when it comes to her husband's unusual behavior.

Moreover, an insider told the publication that the SKIMS founder has no clue that Ye was going to post such odd things -- which is the same scenario "over and over again."

"He's on very thin ice with her right now, and she's truly trying to decide what to do to protect the kids, but also her own sanity. The whole thing is discouraging and difficult for her."

In addition, the "Keeping Up With The Kardashian" star is said to be trying to be a supportive partner to Ye, but she pointed out that he has to support and take care of himself first.

For context, the power couple has been in a tumultuous relationship since Kanye West announced his desire to run for presidency in the upcoming national election.

During his first presidential campaign rally in South Carolina, the father of four revealed that he and his wife considered aborting their firstborn child.

After the said drama, rumors sparked that Ye and the 39-year-old reality star had been privately considering to get a divorce for a "long time" now.

"There has been enough communication, both in the past few days and in the weeks prior, to establish that both sides feel the marriage is over," a source revealed to People last July.

Interestingly, the couple reportedly tried to patch things up and gave their marriage another shot after being spotted on a family getaway.

However, a source revealed to People recently that the "Follow God" rapper is not keeping his promise to his wife, most especially with his medication and working hard "to control his impulses."

Following Kanye's abortion rant during his first presidential campaign in South Carolina, Kim Kardashian spoke about his husband's bipolar disorder. This is also one of the few reasons why she does not agree with Ye running for a seat in the White House.

Kanye West for President? Kim Kardashian Says No!

The People source added that the KKW Beauty founder "doesn't care one bit about the presidential run" and only wants her four children "to be happy and to have a stable father."

Moreover, amid her unstable marriage, Kim Kardashian is said to feel "very powerless" as she could not do anything to change things. She is also in so much pain due to her love for Kanye West.

READ MORE: Bombshell Secrets: Why Mariah Carey Can't Stop Worrying About Explosive Memoir
Right now, the pandemic has us as a society holding our collective breath, waiting for the medical community to produce a vaccine for the novel coronavirus that will allow us to return to the lives we knew just months ago. For many of us, its the first time weve had to think about the people behind those scientific efforts. Its the first time weve had to feel the weight of the wait for results.
Indian Army unfurls national flag in Galwan valley on New Year, images go viral

Words cannot do justice: PM Modi's heartfelt message to soldiers on Indian Army Day

Watch: Indian Army displays new combat uniform for the first time

No decision on selling only 'Made in India' products in military canteens: Govt

India

oi-Deepika S

New Delhi, Sep 19: The defence ministry has not taken any decision on selling only "Made in India" products in military canteens run by it across the country, the government said on Saturday.

"No decision has been taken in this regard," Minister of State for Defence Shripad Naik said in Rajya Sabha.

He was replying to a question on whether the defence ministry will consider using and selling only "Made in India" products in its stores in light of Prime Minister Narendra Modi''s focus on self-reliance and "vocal for local".

In an address to the nation in May, Modi spoke extensively on the need to focus on a "self-reliant India" and called for promoting products made in India with a larger aim of making Indian economy stronger.

In his reply, Naik also said that the total turnover of defence canteens in 2017-18 was Rs 17,190 crore and it went up to Rs 18,917 crore in 2018-19. The total turnover was reported at Rs 17,588 in 2019-20.

97 people died onboard Shramik special trains: Govt admits in Parliament

In the current fiscal, the figure has been recorded at Rs 3,692 crore till August, he said.

In reply to a separate question on whether government signed a contract with a private company to modernise 37 airfields, he replied in the affirmative.

"Modernisation of airfield infrastructure has enhanced the capability in terms of facilitating operation in poor weather conditions including night operations, enhanced enroute navigation infrastructure and enhanced traffic handling capabilities," he said.

To a separate question, Naik said 86 military airbases are functioning in the country.

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Story first published: Saturday, September 19, 2020, 17:34 [IST]
New Delhi: Hours after Delhi Police arrested a freelance journalist along with a Chinese woman Qing Shi and her Nepali associate Sher Singh (aka Raj Bohra) on Saturday (September 19, 2020) in connection with sharing sensitive data to China, the Delhi Police said that the journalist provided secret information to the Chinese intelligence officers for two years from 2016 to 2018.

Delhi Police said that freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma has disclosed his involvement in the procurement of secret information and further conveying the same to his Chinese handlers namely Michael and George, based in Kunming, China, through different digital channels.

As per Delhi Police, Sharma was tasked to provide the inputs on issues like Indian deployment on Bhutan-Sikkim-Chinatri-junction including Doklam, the pattern of India-Myanmar military co-operation, India-China boundary issue etc.

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According to reports, the investigation revealed that shell companies are being operated by foreign intelligence to transfer funds to Sharma and Chinese nationals Jhang Chang along with his wife Chang-li-lia were running the companies MZ Pharmacy and MZ Malls, under fake names Suraj and Usha.

They both are currently in China and on their behalf, arrested Chinese lady Qing (30) and Nepali national Raj Bhora (30) (both directors of MZ Pharmacy) were operating the business from Mahipalpur.

Delhi Police said, "A few days back, a secret input was received from an Intelligence Agency that Sharma is having links with Foreign Intelligence Officer and he has been receiving funds from his handler through illegal means and Western Union money transfers platform for conveying sensitive information, which concerns National Security and Foreign relations. Sharma was arrested on September 14, 2020 and a Search Warrant was obtained for searching his residential premises."

"During the search of the house of Sharma in Pitampura (New Delhi), one laptop, some confidential documents related to Indian Defence department and some other incriminating documents were recovered and seized," said Delhi Police in an official statement.

Delhi Police informed that during the period of 2010-2014, Sharma wrote a weekly column for Global Times which is a mouthpiece of the Chinese government.

"Observing those columns, one Chinese intelligence agent named Michael from Kunming city of China contacted Sharma through his Linkedin account and invited him to Kunming China for an interview in a Chinese Media Company. The entire trip was funded by Michael."

"During, the meeting, Michael and his junior Xou asked Sharma to provide inputs on various aspects of India-China relations. Between, 2016 to 2018, Sharma was in contact with Michael and Xou. . Subsequently, Sharma had meetings with Michael and Xou in Laos and Maldives once each and gave briefings on such topics. Besides these visits, Sharma was also in contact with Michael and Xou through e-mail and social media," stated Delhi Police.

Delhi Police added, "Forensic analysis of seized mobile phones and laptops is being conducted to unearth the entire network and conspiracy in this case. Identities and roles of other foreign nationals involved in the conspiracy are also being ascertained."

Delhi Police said that further investigation in the case and with respect to the Chinese shell companies based in Mahipalpur is in progress.
MINNEAPOLIS - Jason Miller, a house painter in Minneapolis, had been itching to vote. So on the first day of early voting, the sun barely up on a chilly Friday morning, he became one of the first people in the country to cast his vote in person for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

"I've always said that I wanted to be the first person to vote against Donald Trump," said Miller, 33. "I just couldn't wait. I just couldn't. . . . And for four years I have waited to do this, so here I am."

Early voting for the November election kicked off Friday in four states as voters showed up in person to cast their ballots, driven by a sense of urgency about the divisive presidential election, growing unease over the timely delivery of mail ballots, and fear of exposure to the novel coronavirus at the polls on Election Day.

By this weekend, as many as 20 states will have begun some form of general election voting by mailing out absentee ballots or allowing people to cast them in person, giving Americans an opportunity to make their selections for president and other offices long before Nov. 3.

In Minnesota and Virginia, election officials described long lines in some places as people queued up even before voting sites opened, standing on stickers glued six feet apart for social distancing.

At Minneapolis's elections office, 44 people had cast ballots in the first half-hour of voting, said Grace Wachlarowicz, the city's director of elections and voting. Inside the elections office, workers wore masks and face shields, and they sat spaced out between Plexiglass shields.

Voting booths were stocked with hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes, and "I voted early" stickers - usually distributed by workers from a roll - had been cut into individual labels and placed on a table away from workers.

Voters also had the option of turning in their ballots from their cars curbside. Minneapolis's convention center - largely unused because of the pandemic - was transformed into a temporary office for workers mailing and processing absentee ballots.

"With the whole covid-19 environment, voters have multiple opportunities to vote safely, whether it's in person or through the mail, and ensure that they have that confidence that they know their ballot is received by us and it is processed," Wachlarowicz said.

The safety measures and long lines come as the country embarks on a presidential election like no other. Even as election officials have sought to make voting safer by offering more mail-in options amid the pandemic, President Trump and many of his Republican allies have falsely cast doubt on the security of mail-in voting. The fears have been exacerbated by mail delays caused by changes enacted by a new postmaster general who is a major donor to the president.

As a result, election officials have dealt not only with a surge in mail-in ballot requests, but an expected surge in voters seeking to avoid the crowds on Nov. 3 by showing up for early voting or personally turning in absentee ballots. They have also had to make extra efforts to reassure jittery voters that their ballots are safe, including those that are mailed in, and that their votes will be counted.

At least 800,000 ballots have been sent out by mail across the country so far, including in the swing states of Florida, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and North Carolina, according to The Washington Post's analysis of elections data. That number is set to balloon over the next few weeks as election officials respond to a surge in requests for absentee ballots.

About 6 in 10 registered voters nationally said they wanted to vote before Election Day, a significant departure from previous years, according to a Washington Post-University of Maryland poll conducted by Ipsos.

A larger percentage of Democrats prefer to vote by mail this year compared to Republicans, but there is a racial divide among Democrats, with Black Democrats much more likely to prefer voting in person than White Democrats.

As a result, Biden is expected to gain an early edge through ballots cast before Nov. 3, while Trump supporters will surge on Election Day.

In North Carolina, the first state to mail out ballots starting this month, 55 percent of the roughly 101,000 ballots that have been cast came from registered Democrats, state records show. About 16 percent were from registered Republicans and 29 percent had no party affiliation.

Many of those Democrats, who had cemented their views about Trump years ago, took advantage Friday of a first chance to take a tangible strike against the president, their votes bringing a sigh of relief that they had done their civic duty six weeks ahead of Election Day.

"It's not like my mind is going to change before Election Day," said Steve O'Rourke, 65, who was second in line to vote with his son in Minneapolis on Friday. "We've got to get Trump out. I can't take another four years of this."

O'Rourke, who works in construction, had considered voting with an absentee ballot but said he wanted to "make absolutely sure" that his vote was counted.

Among those who cast ballots Friday were also Trump supporters. In Anoka County, which has long been a faithfully red county bordering the traditionally blue Twin Cities, Michael and Cecilia Erko of Blaine, Minn., dropped off their absentee ballots in support of the president.

The Erkos, who work in insurance, said they dropped off their ballots early because of worries they might be working on Election Day and also because of concerns about the safety of mail-in ballots.

"We just decided to step it up and bring it in person," Cecilia Erko said.

Trump wasn't perfect, they said, but what made them back Trump for another for years were "actions." The economy had been good before the coronavirus, Trump had made progress on peace in the Middle East, and manufacturing had been strengthened because of his work on trade, the couple said.

In-person early voting also began Friday in Virginia, where some voters in Democratic-leaning Fairfax County waited as long as four hours to cast their ballots.

As videos emerged of long lines of voters in Fairfax County, Trump sought to project confidence and energize his supporters. "Voting starts in Virginia TODAY, and we are going to WIN," he tweeted. "For all the Federal Employees in Virginia, remember, it was me that got you the Federal Pay Raises, not Sleepy Joe Biden. I'll be having a Big Rally in Virginia, to be announced soon!"

Biden also urged voters in Virginia to cast their ballot early, saying their "voice is absolutely critical to deciding who we are as a nation. This is our moment."

Wyoming and South Dakota, more Republican-leaning states, also began early voting on Friday. Several other states are scheduled to follow suit next week, with some states allowing voters to register and vote in person on the same day.

With Trump's repeated attacks on the integrity of mail voting and the mail delays prompted by changes at the U.S. Postal Service, many voters said Friday they were eager to take advantage of early voting options in person to make sure their vote is counted.

"It just felt safer to come and do it in person," said Kurt Schenk, 56, who cast his ballot Friday morning in Minneapolis to avoid possible mail issues.

Schenk and his wife, Amy Bear, 60, both wearing face masks, were in and out of the Minneapolis Elections and Voter Services office within 10 minutes and said the process seemed to run even more smoothly than in previous elections. While they had voted early in the past, they felt more urgency to do so this year because they are worried about legal challenges to mail ballots.

"They saw me, they saw my signature. There was less potential for [my ballot] to be disqualified or subject to question if there's some kind of litigation," Schenk said.

On Friday, Minneapolis election officials began mailing out nearly 115,000 ballots, which account for approximately 44% of registered voters in the city, officials said - a dramatic increase over previous years. The city normally has a staff of about 60, but now has up to 200 people processing mail applications, sending out ballots and accepting and preparing ballots for tabulation, Wachlarowicz said.

Virginia's state legislation expanded access to early voting this year to combat the spread of the coronavirus. Now any voter can cast an absentee ballot at a registrar's office or early voting center without listing a specific reason.

Virginia voters who waited for an hour or more on Friday morning said they were eager to have their say in the bitter presidential contest, and wary of both Election Day crowds and the ability of the U.S. Postal Service to deliver mailed ballots on time.

"I'm very skeptical about how that process is going to work," said Phyllis Appel, 78, who voted for Biden at the Loudoun County Office of Elections in Leesburg, Va. "I want every vote to count."

Like in many other states, South Dakota's state election officials provided personal protective equipment for local election officials in advance of early voting beginning on Friday, including masks, hand sanitizers, plexiglass shields, one-time-use pens, masking tape for social distancing and disinfectant wipes, said Steve Barnett, S.D.'s secretary of state.

Bob Litz, the county auditor of Minnehaha County, S.D., where Sioux Falls is located, said the flow of in-person voting today has been "brisk and steady." The voters who were in line before the office opened were anxious and eager to vote, and the mood of the crowd became more mellow as the day progressed, he said.

"There's a lot of enthusiasm, let's just say, on both sides," Litz said.

On Friday, 322 voters in Minnehaha County cast their ballot in person, including 91 who were set up to receive a ballot by mail but opted to vote in person instead.

South Dakota began sending out mail ballots to about 110,000 voters who had requested them so far, and state officials are anticipating an increase in absentee voting this fall compared to previous years.

And in Wyoming, all 23 counties began in-person voting and the mail-in voting process Friday. Registered voters can visit their county clerk's office, request an absentee ballot that they can fill out and return there, or use one of the voting machines to cast their vote.

State officials have ramped up their "Let's Vote Wyo" voter education efforts this fall to remind voters of their options and deadlines, and detailing the precautions election officials are taking due to the pandemic, said Will Dinneen, communications and policy director for the office of Wyoming's Secretary of State. State officials sent out a mailer and absentee ballot request to every registered voter for both the primary and general elections this year, he said.

Among the other states providing alternative options for voting this year is Michigan, where the first round of ballots is set to mail out on Sept. 28.

In Troy, Mich., a Detroit suburb, election officials are preparing for the logistics of setting up a drive-through ballot pickup option for voters who want to get their ballots the Saturday and Sunday before they are mailed out.

Mail delay issues during the primaries prompted city officials to set up the drive-through option for the general election, and officials now expect to have 26,000 absentee ballots ready for pickup that weekend. Voters can drive up to the clerk's office and provide their identification to the staff, who will then retrieve the ballot and hand it to the voter.

In addition, city officials signed a contract with a private mail tracking service that works with the Post Office, allowing staff to see where each ballot is in the mailing process. Aileen Dixon, clerk for the city of Troy, said these new measures are intended to bring certainty to both her staff and to voters.

"I don't like flying blind," Dixon said. "I don't like being like, 'I don't know it must be lost in the mail,' I hated that answer. . . . Our lifeline is taking control of whatever we can, instead of kind of waiting for someone else to fix it for us."

- - -

The Washington Post's Elise Viebeck, Scott Clement, Lenny Bronner, Antonio Olivo, Kayla Ruble and Matt Viser contributed to this report.
Biden paid tribute to Ginsburg on Friday - GETTY IMAGES

Joe Biden warned on Friday that the nomination of a successor to the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg should wait until after the November presidential election as a row erupted in Washington only moments after her death was made public.

Ginsburg died at her home in Washington on Friday at the age of 87. Because Supreme Court judges sit for life, Ginsburg's death leaves a vacancy on the court that the president is entitled by the US Constitution to fill. Donald Trump can now nominate a successor and the nomination can be ratified by the Senate in a process that usually takes about a month.

But Mr Biden, who is challenging Mr Trump in the presidential election on November 3, said the appointment should wait until after the election.

"The voters should pick the president, and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider," Mr Biden said.

People gathered outside the Supreme Court on Friday night after her death was announced - AP

It comes as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the chamber would vote on a potential nominee for the key court position, despite the looming election. He announced this about an hour after the news broke of Ginsburg's passing.

It provoked fury from Democrats who accused Mr McConnell of hypocrisy. In 2017, he decided not to hold a vote for President Obamas final Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland. Mr Obama had nominated Mr Garland after Justice Antonin Scalias death in 2016, but Republicans held the nomination open until after Mr Trump took office in 2017, when they confirmed Neil Gorsuch, Mr Trump's pick.

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, a Democrat, tweeted Mr McConnells exact words from 2016: "The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president."

President Trump led the tributes to Ginsburg, calling the judge who defied him on a number of occasions a "titan of the law" and he said her memory is a "great and magnificent blessing to the world".

Story continues

Mr Biden called Ginsburg a "giant in the legal profession":

Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for all of us. She was an American hero, a giant of legal doctrine, and a relentless voice in the pursuit of that highest American ideal: Equal Justice Under Law. May her memory be a blessing to all people who cherish our Constitution and its promise.  Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) September 19, 2020

Supreme Court judges can have a significant impact on US law and policy. Ginsburg had led the court in preventing a reversal of abortion rights, and blocking stronger executive powers for the president.

The court has a 5-4 conservative majority but Ginsburg's death gives the Republicans the chance to have a 6-3 advantage that could shape American law for decades.
The Central Board of School Education (CBSE) has set up seven centres for conducting its upcoming compartment examination in the city amid full precautions and strict adherence to Covid-related guidelines.

The exams will begin from September 22 for both the board classes. No student will be allowed to enter the exam centres after 10am.

As per the boards instructions, the exam centre authorities will accommodate 12 students per room while maintaining social distancing among the students.

The candidates have been asked to carry their own hand sanitisers and water bottles. They must wear face masks. Also, the parents will have to guide their wards about Covid-19 precautions and will ensure that their ward is not sick.

CBSEs city coordinator and principal of BCM Arya Model Senior Secondary School, Shastri Nagar, Paramjit Kaur said, The instructions received from the board have been issued to the examination centres for strict adherence to social distancing norms.

The three-hour exam will be conducted between 10.30am and 1.30am.

The seven examination centres are BCM Arya Model Senior Secondary School, Shastri Nagar; BCM School, Sector 32; Kundan Vidya Mandir School, Civil Lines; Green Land Senior Secondary School, Jalandhar Bypass; St Thomas Senior Secondary School, Brown Road; Bhartiya Vidya Mandir School, Kitchlu Nagar; and DAV Public School, BRS Nagar.

Private candidates should contact the principal of their respective examination centres for date and time of practical examination before their theory examination is over. The practical exams should be completed before September 28. For regular candidates, the practical examination for all the subjects will be held at their own schools.
Paula Bradshaw, who represents South Belfast in the Assembly, said 10 years ago she dressed up as the black American actor.

Mr T is best known for playing the character BA Baracus in the 1980s television series The A-Team.

Ms Bradshaw posted an apology on Twitter on Saturday, describing it as a serious lapse of judgement.

It has come to my attention that there are photos of me on social media from a decade ago dressed as Mr. T.



For some time I have been deeply embarrassed I ever thought such an inappropriate costume was a good idea and I apologise for any offence caused.



1/4  Paula Bradshaw MLA (@PaulaJaneB) September 19, 2020

For some time I have been deeply embarrassed I ever thought such an inappropriate costume was a good idea and I apologise for any offence caused, she tweeted.

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It was a serious lapse of judgement. It did not reflect my views then and does not reflect them now.

I am proud to stand on my record of tackling the very real issues of racial discrimination and prejudice faced by minority ethnic communities here and abroad every day.

I will not be diverted from continuing to take concrete action to support minority communities, assist refugees and oppose racial injustice in all its forms.
Citing statements by President Trump, Attorney General Maura Healey on Thursday issued a formal advisory to local officials and community organizations to highlight laws stating that intimidating or interfering with voters is illegal.

The advisory references an Aug. 20 TV interview in which the president was asked if he would send poll watchers to monitor elections for possible voters fraud. Were going to have everything. Were going to have sheriffs and law enforcement and were going to have, hopefully, U.S. attorneys, and were going to have everybody, and attorney generals, but its very hard, Trump said, according to Healeys advisory, which was issued in English and Spanish.

The advisory counters Trumps statements in a Q&A format, with the attorney general prefacing the advisory by stating: State and federal laws protect the rights of the citizens of Massachusetts to vote safely in elections, free from intimidation.

We wont sit idle in the face of President Trumps dangerous threats to undermine our electoral process and suppress votes, Healey said in a statement.

Added Beth Huang, director of the Massachusetts Voter Table: The Presidents threats to increase the presence of law enforcement at polling locations will lead to the intimidation of voters of color and immigrants, who have been targeted by the administrations racist and xenophobic policies and rhetoric in the past four years.
Troops parachuted into the country from 600ft from C-130 Hercules transport

More than 200 British paratroopers have jumped into Ukraine in a joint exercise with its army as a show of force against Vladimir Putin.

Some 250 soldiers from Colchester-based 16 Air Assault Brigade dropped into the Ternivsky training area where they teamed up with thousands of Ukrainian troops.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the exercise built on the strong relationship developed between the two nations' armed forces, which provides both countries with 'vital experience of deploying rapidly from air to land to counter threats'.

A member of the Pathfinders exits the back of a Hercules C130 aircraft to parachute into Ukraine. British Paratroopers have mounted a rapid airborne deployment into Ukraine

A handout photo issued by the MoD showing troops exiting a Hercules C130 aircraft to parachute into Ukraine in a joint exercise amid rising tensions between the country and Russia

Tensions continue between Russia and Ukraine following the annexation of Crimea in 2014. The conflict has killed more than 14,000 people.

Armed forces minister James Heappey said: 'Our participation is an important affirmation of our commitment to our defence relationship with Ukraine, our partners in the Black Sea, and our ability to project highly capable troops forward anywhere, and any time, they're needed.'

Captain Harjot Singh Gill, of 16 Air Assault Brigade, said: 'We all bring something to this exercise - the Ukrainians bring their resolve and courage and we bring our constantly changing tactics and processes.

'Our shared values and the airborne nature of our units brings us closer together.'

The conflict continues in war-torn eastern Ukraine as large-scale protests continue to grip neighbouring Belarus, with Russia's President Vladimir Putin previously stating he stands ready to send Russian police into the country if the protests turn violent.

The MoD said British troops have trained more than 18,000 members of the armed forces of Ukraine in the five years since the start of the UK's training mission in the country, Operation Orbital.

Commander of 16 Air Assault Bridge, pictured right, is greeted by Lt Gen Yevhen Moysiuk, Commander of Air Assault Troops of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

Two Hercules C130 planes fly over the dropzone at Ternivskiy training area. Elements of 16 Air Assault Brigade began landing on 15 September as part of Exercise Joint Endeavour

A member of the 3rd Battalion, the Parachute Regiment, Anti-Tanks, in position on the drop zone while a Hercules C130 flies overheard dropping equipment

The operation, which was launched a year after the Russian annexation of Crimea, is a demonstration of the UK's 'unwavering commitment to Ukraine's independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty', the MoD said.

The parachute practice forms part of Exercise Joint Endeavour, the first multinational exercise in Ukraine since the country achieved Nato-enhanced opportunity partner status in June, which will see the country work closely with Nato militaries to share best practice.

Troops parachuted into the country from 600ft from C-130 Hercules transport aircraft which had flown directly from RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire.
A British mother who fought the Sharia courts in Dubai for access to her son faces having to sell her home - after a UK judge ordered her to pay nearly 100,000 towards her ex-husband's legal costs.

Afsana Lachaux, a former policy aide to Gordon Brown who now works for The Princes Trust, has spent eight years battling for custody of Louis, her youngest child, after the Emirate state granted a divorce and branded her an unfit mother.

She currently sees him for six hours a year in an approved contact centre.

But despite the Court of Appeal in France ruling that the divorce was invalid and 'manifestly discriminatory', the Dubai decision has been upheld by the British family courts.

In a ruling described as 'unconscionable' by a member of her legal team, devastated Ms Lachaux has now been ordered to pay her former partner Bruno's legal costs of 93,867.96  and may face bankruptcy if she does not pay it in full.

Afsana Lachaux, a former policy aide to Gordon Brown who now works for The Princes Trust, has spent eight years battling for custody of Louis, her youngest child, (pictured together) after the Emirate state granted a divorce and branded her an unfit mother

Speaking to The Mail on Sunday, Afsana, 52, said the decision made her feel like she was 'drowning every day' and the only option was to sell her house.

'I've lost my child, I've lost my career and now I could lose my home,' she said.

'I could lose my home and I am terrified.'

Ms Lachaux's ordeal began in 2012 when she was living in Dubai with her then-husband, French aerospace engineer Bruno Lachaux, and one-year-old Louis.

The couple had married in London but their relationship had broken down. Their subsequent divorce in Dubai was based on its sharia legal system.

Official translations from the proceedings stated she had not 'obeyed her husband' and was a negligent mother because Louis had eczema and she had struggled to breastfeed.

Ms Lachaux (pictured holding a sign reading Bring Louis Home) began her ordeal in 2012 when she was living in Dubai with her then-husband, French aerospace engineer Bruno Lachaux, and one-year-old Louis

Ms Lachaux's currently sees her youngest child (pictured together) for six hours a year in an approved contact centre

Despite French Courts' ruling, however the British family courts concluded that overall the Dubai proceedings had been fair and the decision to award Bruno sole custody would probably have been the same in the UK.

'I was in a very dark place at that time. It felt like my son had been ripped from my womb,' she recalls.

The divorce had to be ratified back in Bruno's home country of France and, last year, its Supreme Court ruled it was invalid and 'manifestly discriminatory' as it applied non-reciprocal grounds for divorce imposed by Emirati law on women only.

But Justice Nicholas Mostyn had backed the legal outcome in Dubai, and the Court of Appeal in London agreed.

Justice Mostyn made severe criticisms of both parties in the case but, in a highly unusual move in a case involving access to children, he also ruled that Afsana would have to pay her ex-husband's legal costs  with eight per cent interest added every day.

Ms Lachaux, who was awarded the Emma Humphreys Memorial Prize for her work campaigning for justice and the protection of women, is now on anti-depressants and sleeping pills to help her cope with the strain

She has launched a crowdfunding campaign to meet the court demand, and is determined to raise awareness of the way British courts treat people with mental health issues (pictured previously with her son)

It came even though Ms Lachaux's legal team argued that such an award was unreasonable given she then had no job and had been suffering from PTSD.

'The judge found I had a mental health illness, found I'd been traumatised and knew I had no money. How is that right?,' she said.

Human rights lawyer David Haigh, a campaigner for human rights in the UAE who has been helping her with her case, said: 'The costs imposed upon her by the Family Court  and remember, we're talking about the Family Court  are just extortionate.

'In upholding the Dubai judgement, the courts here weren't even required to conduct a full hearing.

'To expect her to pay fees totalling nearly 100,000 is unconscionable and the damage that it's done to her and her family is profound.'

Ms Lachaux, who was awarded the Emma Humphreys Memorial Prize for her work campaigning for justice and the protection of women, is now on anti-depressants and sleeping pills to help her cope with the strain.

She has launched a crowdfunding campaign to meet the court demand, and is determined to raise awareness of the way British courts treat people with mental health issues.

'I also want to shine a light on the judicial system and how they treat ordinary mums,' she said.

'The judges have to be held accountable. There's no understanding of the daily reality of women like myself.

'If payday loan sharks and finance companies and credit card companies aren't allowed to punish people with mental health in this way, why is the court allowed to do that?

'The law says ability to pay isn't an excuse and I'm still trying to challenge that.'
The two enduring stories of 2020 - the coronavirus crisis and protests for police reform - may not have replaced the economy as the top election issue in Connecticuts 5th District, but the stories have overshadowed voters views of the American dream.

U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes, a rising star in the Democratic party, and GOP challenger David X. Sullivan, a retired federal prosecutor from New Fairfield whos running on a law-and-order platform, each say families here are tired of being stifled by the COVID-19 crisis, and tired of police being scapegoated in the name of social justice.

As such, the candidates say, voters want the security they enjoyed before the coronavirus turned Connecticut upside down, and before protests over the public slaying of a Black man in police custody and calls for police reform turned into a zero-sum debate.

Obviously (the priority) is the safety and welfare of our citizens and reopening the economy along with our schools and bringing us back to a state of normality, Sullivan told Hearst Connecticut Media last week, when asked what he would do first about the coronavirus crisis if elected on Nov. 3.

Hayes agreed that there are multiple priorities, but one imperative.

We need to get people healthy, Hayes said. A lot of things have happened as a result of COVID that we need to attend to, but none of those things matter if we are not testing and tracing and getting a vaccine ready to distribute.

Hayes, who made the cover of Rolling Stone one month after she was sworn in as the first Black woman to represent Connecticut in Congress, is favored by leading forecasters to win a second two-year term in what is considered the states only competitive race for the U.S. House of Representatives.

Sullivan, who has raised one-fifth of Hayes contributions, and has 38,000 fewer registered Republicans in his district than Democrats, hopes to bridge the gap early next month, when the first of four virtual debates kicks off on Oct. 5 from Western Connecticut State University in Danbury.

A minor party candidate who is not raising money or campaigning conventionally, has been given a seat at three of the four debates. Newtowns Bruce Walczak, a relocation consultant who was elected to a term on Newtowns Police Commission, is running on the Independent Party line because two-party politics has polarized Washington, D.C., and divided America.

Youre not going to find me taking the traditional position, Here is my position on this issue and I have my feet dug in and I wont compromise, Walczak said. Rather, I believe we ought to be looking all the alternatives.

At stake for Republicans is a chance to break into Connecticuts all-Democratic congressional delegation and take back a seat the GOP lost in 2006 to now-Sen. Chris Murphy. Republicans thought they had that chance in the 2018 midterm elections, when a scandal over a botched harassment complaint forced three-term Democrat Elizabeth Esty to give up re-election.

But out of Waterbury came Hayes, the 2016 national Teacher of the Year, who increasingly got on donors radar after trouncing an establishment Democrat in the primary. Hayes went on to take 60 percent of the vote in November.

This is about working with people and saying, Help me understand what youre saying, and I will make sure that informs my decision-making, Hayes said last week. I have stepped out of my comfort zone and I have been intentional about doing that (because) you cant have a conversation with only a small group people and hope to serve a district as diverse Connecticut Five.

Sullivan, an assistant U.S. attorney in Connecticut for 30 years before his retirement last summer, said voters hes talked to in the 41 cities and towns of the 5th District still want the same things from lawmakers - a strong economy, a safe community and good schools. But they will vote for the candidate who can deliver them from the trials of 2020.

Theyre going to vote for the person who can lead us out of this pandemic and bring us an economy that is flourishing again, Sullivan said.

Coronavirus divide

Fifth District voters are fed up with the coronavirus crisis, in large part because the country is divided about how to fight it, the candidates agree.

Our first priority right now - not waiting until November - is aligning ourselves on the science, on the need to wear masks, and on practicing social distancing to contain the spread of virus until we are able to have a vaccine and return to normal, Hayes said. Relief for the economy, support for business, and everything else that we need has to start today (because) the economists tell us if we wait, it will be more catastrophic in the long run.

Sullivan agrees on the need for immediacy, but balks at the $3.4 trillion cost of Speaker Nancy Pelosis pandemic relief bill, which has stalled in the Senate.

We cant wait for programs to expire - we need to be sure we are sustaining people - but we have to be mindful also  that we cant throw money around without a method and a plan, Sullivan said. We need the right leadership so that Congress comes together and gets something done.

Across greater Danbury and the four-county region of west-central Connecticut, people in the 5th District are complying with COVID-19 guidelines but they are increasingly vexed by what doesnt make sense, candidates said.

Walczak, the Independent Party candidate, said the problem stems from a disjointed national response.

I would listen to the science and encourage the scientific community  to convey the proper procedures and policy on the virus, Walczak said. If ever there was a crisis for everyone coming together and being unified as to how to battle it and how to win, it would be this virus.

Police and justice

There is little debate between the candidates that Black lives matter, that police reform is required, or that school resource officers are essential and should remain in force in both suburban and urban schools.

With good reason, the candidates say.

Voters in the 5th District want to keep school resource officers, and voters support police reform as the right approach to end the disparate treatment of people of color by police.

Just about every one of the towns in my district held some type of demonstration or a rally or a protest, from towns that are majority white to towns that are majority minority. People are saying, Where can we do better? Where can we go from here? Hayes said. People are also saying We want police in our community. I have never supported the conversation about defunding police or limiting the capacity of police to do their job.

Hayes, whose husband is a police detective, co-sponsored with 130 other lawmakers, the Justice in Policing Act, which calls for new training standards, more scrutiny when police use force, and less choke holds, among other measures.

Sullivan supports President Trumps Executive Order on Safe Policing, which creates a database to track excessive use-of-force complaints, and gives incentives to police to dispatch social workers on nonviolent calls for people in crisis.

Sullivan also supports a bill by South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott to rebuild lost trust between communities of color and law enforcement by ending chokeholds, increasing body camera use, and giving police more money for training.

People want to feel safe and secure in their communities and in their home (and) they want their children to have a law enforcement presence in the schools, Sullivan said. We are fortunate in many cases to have good working relationships between local police and our communities.

The candidates differences come in how they characterize the protests, civil disobedience and criminal unrest on American streets. Confrontations between protesters and police in cities such as Portland, Ore., have made prime time news all summer.

We would have more clarity of what the concerns are if we could stop the violence, and we can do that, but law enforcement needs to be able to enforce the rule of law, said Sullivan, who released a political ad on Sept. 1 accusing Hayes of being soft on rioting. I have been a rule of law candidate since I joined this race in June of 2019.

Hayes agrees with her opponent in spirit.

My opponent and I both agree the goal should be law and order, but how that law and order is applied is the question, Hayes said. Police have a hard job to do and that has to be respected, but and black and brown people want to feel safe, and we have to understand that sometimes they dont trust most police. We have to first acknowledge that these disparities exist.

The Independent Party candidate agreed, saying he also supports both protesters and police.

On the Police Commission, I was involved in hiring police officers - and it is a very vigorous examination process that takes over six months before they serve, Walczak said. But I believe the fundamental philosophy of our criminal justice system is backward. We pour all our money and energy into catching someone doing something wrong  instead of investing more in funding activity that gets to the root causes of crime.

rryser@newstimes.com 203-731-3342
For the past four months, United Airlines and Boeing have been flying around jetliners loaded with mannequins, aerosol sprays, sensors and scientists in an effort to understand how contaminated air moves through passenger planes.

The research is just one small part of a sweeping global campaign to figure out the threats posed by the coronavirus. But for the airline industry, the results could help determine how quickly carriers bounce back from the edge of disaster after the pandemic made people afraid to get on a plane. U.S. demand for flights remains at less than a third of 2019 levels, based on airport security screening data.

The U.S. military initiated the $1 million study when the spread of covid-19 raised concerns about infection risks for troops transported on passenger jets. Companies including United, Boeing and Zeteo Tech LLC, a Maryland-based biodefense and medical device maker, are contributing equipment and expertise.If the findings can show how likely it is for a passenger to be infected by breathing the air on a plane, "it'll probably drive some policy decisions," said Mike McLoughlin, Zeteo's vice president of research.

Airlines have sought to reassure the public that flying is safe by implementing an array of onboard cleaning and disinfecting procedures, requiring face masks in the cabin and improving ventilation and filtration systems. But they haven't been able to show what, precisely, are the chances of infection if that person sitting next to you or across the aisle breaks out into a virus-laden cough.

To collect the data, researchers placed mannequins with human-like heads in various seats throughout seven models of Boeing and Airbus jets, then made them cough. Or rather, they simulated a human cough, and how aerosolized particles are expelled and disseminated through the air on the plane, McLoughlin said.

Aerosol particles will behave differently under different cabin scenarios, said Byron Jones, an engineering professor at Kansas State University who studies airline cabin air and was not involved in the project. Gas and particles in a cabin become "a witches' cauldron," he said, based on air flows, particulate sizes and other factors. "It just swirls and churns and twists. It's very chaotic," he said. But that churning isn't necessarily a bad thing: "That's what you want to see in a general ventilation (system)."

Researchers evaluated how factors such as circulation, the exchange rate of cabin air, filtration and forward-facing seats affected the flow of aerosolized particles through the cabin, and who would be most exposed in their proximity to a cougher. Particle sizes and various locations throughout the cabin were considered. Tests were repeated with the dummies wearing disposable surgical masks.

The tests were conducted during 30 hours in flight and 24 hours on the ground from May 5 through August. Analysis of the data and peer reviews are expected to be completed this month with a final report issued in October.

Boeing declined to comment on the results they've seen so far. In a statement, the company said it's approaching the question of virus spread "from an engineering perspective by conducting data-driven analysis studies, simulations, modeling and live testing, which will help us all better understand the transmission and risks of COVID-19."

The project is funded and led in part by the U.S. Transportation Command, based at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois, which buys airline seats and charter flights to transport U.S. troops and their families around the world. The Command sees the study as critical to safely mobilizing troops, said Lt. Col. Ellis Gales Jr., a spokesman. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency helped connect the Transportation Command with United and Boeing.

If the analysis shows infection risks through the air can be controlled on a plane, the industry might be able to use those results to help persuade the public to start flying again even before a vaccination for covid-19 might be widely available."Throughout the pandemic, our top priority has been the health and safety of our customers and crew," Toby Enqvist, United's chief customer officer, said in an email. Enqvist said he's encouraged by the early results he's seen, but did not provide specifics.

"Everybody is keen to get the results out as quickly as possible but we want to make sure that when we release those results we're painting an accurate picture," McLoughlin said.
Written by ACM



*Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- The Announcement that even Former Prime Minister of France, Eduard Balladur, of Armenian Origin, from a Family of Refugees of Smyrne, was Hit by the Virus, Together with his Wife and Son, at the Anniversary of the Horrible Massacre of Nowadays Izmir's OverMillenary Christian Population (Armenians, Greeks, etc) by the Turks (13-22 September), and at the Eve of a Crucial EU Summit on Turkey (24-25/9/2020), is the "Drop" which made OverFlow an Already Full Glass, with a Too Long List of Various Conservative Politicians, not only in Europe, but also Accross the World, who have been, Surprisingly, more or less Dangerously Affected personaly by the Virus, in one way or another, (While, on the Contrary, there isN't Anything Equivalent, at Such Level and Quantity, in Any Other Political Group) !

=> To the point that so Numerous Converging Facts, inevitably, raise the obvious Question Whether some Might, Eventually, be Abusively Exploiting this Deadly Virus' Pandemic, inter alia, also in order to Target and Slyly Harm their Political Adversaries, in a Covert but Life-Threatening way...

>>>> Indeed, some among their Declared Political Opponents, have Even Started to Openly and Shamelessly Boast, (f.ex. since mid-August 2020), that what they call "the Illusions of Populists", as "Trump, Bolsonaro, Johnson, Salvini", etc., (see Infra), "were Dissipated in 2020", Because "they were Confronted to the Shock of Covid's Pandemic" (sic !)... "The Year 2020 is Not Favorable" to (so-called) "Populist Leaders", since "the Worldwide Challenge of COVID-19 has clearly Put the Brakes Against the Advance of Forces of Contestation" (Dissidents' Forces), "and Took them by Surprize", Virus-related Issues "Largely Explaining (their) Fall in Polls", since, Suddenly, "They Bumped on a real Wall !", reportedly Boasted the CEO of former "Socialist" French Minister and EU Commission's Chair, "Jacques Delors", (withOut, however, Explaining, at all, How, Neither Why)...

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This is Not Necessarily Linked with the Different Controversy about a so-called "Natural" (i.e. From Animals, etc) or "Artificial" (i.e. "Lab-Made") Origin of this Deadly Virus, Because that's a Massive Social Issue, While Here, it's more about Individual Persons, and/or their entourage. And, at any case, Even in the Hypothesis of a so-called "Natural-Origin" Virus, it Could be, Theoretically, Exploited also in order to Attack Certain Key Persons too, and/or Their Surroundings, in a Sly Covert way.

Despite the normal Variety of Persons involved, at Different Countries and/or Situations, as well as the Non-Identical Way that They have been EnDangered by the Virus, (which Extends Widely from Being Personaly Threatened, Up to Being Infected, Gravely Sick, or Dead, Individually and/or Via their Family, close Entourage, and/or Their Country, etc), Nevertheless, it's an UnDeniable Fact that, Suddenly, so Many Conservatives, who have an Important Political Significance, have been Hit by the Virus, Allover the World, withOut Any Equivalent yet Elsewhere...

They Seem to have been More of Less Targeted, Mainly according to their Stronger or Milder Opposition to a Powerfull Establishment, (Not Always inside the State, Many Times in the Society), But Particularly Them, and Not Others !

The precise Term of "Conservative" needs a Precision : The Special Category concerned Here, does Not always mean "Fiscal" Conservatives, (i.e. from a Purely Economic/Financial point of view, etc), But, Mainly, rather "Socio-Cultural" Conservatives, (i.e. from the point of view of Social and/or Cultural, Moral Values, etc), that many Consider as being the "Real Conservatives", (Apparently Or also Effectively).

- So that, f.ex., it Might be Surprizing, But it's Not a Paradox, to Find Here, Even the Official Head of the ...Chinese "Communist Party", President XI Jiping, since His Country was, Notoriously, the 1st to be Viciously Attacked by an UnKnown, Then, Rapidly Spreading and soon Deadly Virus, already Since the End of December 2019, (the Situation becoming Critical From the Middle of January 2020)...

Indeed, Xi, Since his First Election at the Presidency, has Explicitly Focused on Tackling the Issue of a Risk for a kind of Socio-Economic "Appart-Heid", with Growing Contradictions between Poor and Rich in his Country, as well as to Fight Against Poverty, Eradicate Corruption (even among Higher-standing Circles), etc., while Also Preserving "Natural, Traditional Family" (Instead of Controversial and UnPopular "Same Sex" so-called "Marriages", too often with "Adoptions" and/or "Artificially" Fabricated Children, Made in Labos, Submited under the Power of Homosexuals, as, f.ex., in Former POTUS Barack Hussein Obama's USA, etc). Moreover, he Arrested and Punished (as well as Strongly Denounced, via Top Human/Social Sciences' Academicians, etc) a Maverick Youngster Chinese "Doctor", (Educated, Funded, Guided, and Pubicized by a USA Technocratic Lobby, Linked to Mr. Obama's circles), who Secretly made Heritable Genetic Manipulations on the Embryos of 3 Children Born on November 2018, in a way Affecting also the Future Generations, with Obvious Risks for Humankind : That would-be "Dr. Frankenstein" Junior had been Arrested, and was Just Condemned, by the Chinese Courts, in 5,5 Years of Jail at the End of December 2019 (See: ...), When, Suddenly, that Deadly Virus Emerged, Targetting China ! Shortly Afterwards, from the Beginning of February 2020 (at the "Peak" of Virus' Crisis there), President Xi was Viciously Attacked by a Group led by a former Professor of University, Calling for a Revolt Against him, Explicitly Based mainly on "Technocrats", and Obviously attempting to Exploit the Harm just Provoked by the Virus, (See Facts cited in : ..., etc).

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- Mutatis-Mutandis, in Europe, Center-Right ChristianDemocrat/EPP German Chancellor Angie MERKEL, was, Notoriousy, the First Political Leader to have, apparently, Narrowly Escaped from the Virus Personaly, after Meeting with Infected Persons, so that she was Obliged to make a Series of "Tests", During Many Days, Before her Spokesman could Officialy Announce, a Week Later, that, at last, she had been Definitively "Cleaned" as "Negative".

Merkel, while being herself an Evangelical (Protestant) Christian, nevertheless, Personaly Followed Both Official Visits of former Pope Benedict (nowadays "Emeritus") in Germany, Already on 2005 at Mainz, and on 2011 at Berlin, Leipzig, and Nearby Freiburg, (where He Met Also with Her "Mentor", the Historic former Long-Time Chancellor Helmut Kohl : Comp. "Eurofora" Co-Founder's NewsReports from Both these 2 Events, initially at "TCWeekly", and afterwards at "EF").

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- In the USA, Conservative President Don TRUMP, seems to have Also, Very Narrowly Escaped from the Virus, which had Infected even Persons from his Family, and, particularly, 2 Staffers inside the White House, (at least One of them Close to his Personal EveryDay Work).

He Notoriously received, Then, for "Prophylaxis"' purposes, a HCQ + AZ + Zinc Medical Cure, for which he Spoke Both Himself at a Press Conference, and his Personal Doctor, in a Published Statement, while Also Starting to Wear a Protective Mask selectively.

Atypical and Non-Establishment Conservative Trump, is Notoriously in Conflict against the "Deep State", Protects Citizens' Self-Defense with the Traditional US Right to have Arms, Urges for Freedom of Speach Against Censorship at the Internet by "Big Tech", has Challenged "Big Pharma" with "HCQ" Cure, (Even if he Invested Millions $ for Vaccines, etc), Opposes "Planned Parenhood" pro-Avortment and reportedly Selling Human Parts' Policies, has Spoken for "the UnBorn Child" in Christian Meetings, and some Fear that he Might Turn towards Evangelicals on Protecting Human Embryo from Genetic Manipulations for Electoral Gains, and is consistently Fighting Against Globalist Multinationals' trend towards Outsourcing Production Abroad, at Foreign Countries, Prefering National Production. After a Strong Development of USA's Economy and Drastic Reduction of UnEmployment during Trump's Presidency, Suddenly, on 2020, the Country was Hardly Hit by the Deadly Virus, Seriously Affecting also its Economy, (Despite a Big Potential, which Delays to materialize Now), Shortly Before the Crucial forthcoming Presidential Elections of November 3.

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- Russian President Vladimir PUTIN, reportedly had Both his Prime Minister, and Even his Personal Press Spokesman, Peskov, (with whom he Works Closely Since the 1990ies), seriously Infected and Sick by the Virus, (to the point that one of his Daughters risked to take Personaly a Not Yet fully Tested Vaccine, which, fortunately, appeared to work for her).

Putin, inter alia, is Also Known for his Close Relations with the Christian Church, as well as for his Support to the Natural, Traditional Family, between a Man and a Woman, for being Opposed to the Adoption of Children by Homosexuals, as well as for the Prohibition of Open Propaganda for Homosexuality in Public Areas, which may Affect also UnderAge Children. On July 2020, his Government put a Constitutional Amendment in favor of Natural Family at a Popular Vote, Succesfully (See : ..., etc). The Russian President has been Accused to Prefer Trump, compared to his Dem. Party Competitors.

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- The First Head of State to be Infected by the Virus was Monaco's Prince ALBERT, already on March 2020, Aged 63, who was Obliged to stay Away from his Family (Wife and 2 Children) During a Quarantine about 15 Days Long, until the Beginning of April. (Comp. 2 Replies of Prince Albert to various "Eurofora"s Questions at the CoE, in Strasbourg, and 1 in Paris, at: ... + ... + ...).

When Prince Albert had made an Official Visit at the CoE, during the rotating Presidency of Strasbourg's PanEuropean Organisation by Monaco, he had Impressed by Bringing and Installing a whole ...Boat (sic !) inside the Building's Reception Room, which, in fact, Symbolized the Historic Tragic Sacrifice, even of her own Life, by a Young Woman from Corsica, who became Martyr with her Dead Body Thrown in a Boat reaching Monaco, Back between 304-312 AC, When Christians were Still Persecuted there, (before Becoming Famous as "Sainte Devote" and Celebrated as "Patron" of Monaco until Nowadays). Prince Albert Reminded that Legend by paying Hommage to Sainte Devote in Public, Together with his Wife, when was celebrated their Christian Marriage. In Addition, among others, Monaco has Refused to Impose the Controversial and UnPopular "Same Sex Marriage" among Homosexuals, Neither the so-called "Adoption" of Children placed under the ("Parental") Power of Homosexuals, Nor the Artificial Fabrication of Children by Technocrats withOut Health Need, prefering to Protect Natural, Traditional Family and Births, as far as BioEthics are concerned.



Albert of Monaco had Participated, earlier, at the ...Same Meeting as Also UK's Future King, Prince CHARLES, Aged 71, who was Also Infected by the Virus, (See Infra), Organized by Clean Water International Charity "Water Aid", during which they Might have been Infected Both, by an UnKnown yet Cause... [UK HeadQuartered "Water Aid" curiously Claims that ...Turkey and India would be Similar in Human Rights' Violations as "illiberal Democracies (sic!), "Almost Autocratic", with "Patronage at State-level", accused by "Critics" to practice "Divisive Politics", where "Violence Increased", But, nevertheless, "in (its) Analysis", at least some "Civil Servants did Not Neglect their Public Duties, and seemed Driven by ... Development, at least around Sanitation", (sic !), as their Documents say, Citting just 1 Article at ..."Huffington Post", written by a Muslim Professor of College, steming from a "Muslim University" (formerly "Anglo-Oriental College"), at an Indian province near Pakistan. +"Water Aid", at its Latest 2019 Report, Believes that "Turkey" is "likely to face Extremely high Water Stress, by 2040" at the latest, Together with Countries such as "Pakistan, Afghanistan, most of Northern Africa (as Libya, etc), Spain" and some "Middle East" States. Already Since 2011, "Water Aid" found that, concerning "Water and Sanitation Projects" across the World, at the "Top 10", (according to the Money Paid for them), 2 were in Turkey, one fof them Scoring even at the 1st Place ! ++Indeed, Turkey often uses to Boast about some Economico-Political Projects related to "Water", (as also, f.ex., at the COE in Strasbourg, etc), while having Notoriously Usurpated a lot of Ephrates River's flows, provoking Tensions, to the Detriment of Syria and Irak, in Addition to having attempted to abuse of such "Water" Politics Even vis a vis ...EU Member Cyprus' Northern Occupied Territories still controled by Ankara's Military since the 1974 Invasion].

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- UK's new Conservative Prime Minister, Boris JOHNSON, was Notoriously Infected and Seriously ill by the Virus, reportedly owing ihis own personal Survival, after a Long Medical Struggle at the Hospital, to Certain Doctors' Idea to Spare him any Harsh Artificial InTubation, by Focusing on More Natural, Traditional Oxygen-providing methods.

Long-Time former Journalist, and Later Mayor of London, Pro-BREXIT Johnson, is an Atypical, Non-Establishment Conservative, initially used in order to Attract former Voters of Rightist Populist BREXIT Leader, and former EU Parliament Group's Chairman, Nigel Farage, as well as a Friend of US President Trump.

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- Brazil's Conservative President Jair BOLSONARO was Infected by the Virus (as well as his Wife and 2 Sons), Obliged to Withdraw in "Horrible" Quarantine (as he said) for about Ten Days, But Finaly Survived, Claiming that he took "HCQ" Cure, (that he Generaly Defends), while His Country has Become one of the Biggest Targets for Virus' Infections in the World.

Bolsonaro is a Notorious Ally of current US President Trump, has been Already Brutaly Attacked and Seriously Wounded by a Knife during the Electoral Campaign, has Vocaly Opposed Controversial "Same Sex Marriage" and Homosexuality in general, Continuing to be Particularly Against Propaganda or School Influence vis a vis Children for Homosexuality, Supports Traditional, Natural Family and Births' Values, has Restricted Abortions, and was Obliged to Change Health Minister 3 Times, Resulting into Naming a Trusted General.

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- Bolivian Right-Wing President Jeanine ANEZ, was Infected by the Virus, (Together with her Son, and Many of her Ministers), reportedly Recovering After more than 15 Days of Isolation in Quarantine.

Anez is Married with a Colombian "Conservative Party" Politician, has been Slandered by pro-"Socialist" Billionaire Bezos' ("Amazon") owned Newspaper "Washington Post" to be "Fiercely Anti-Socialist", She Fired a Health Minister afterwards Accused for "Corruption", and Dedicated Half (50%) of her Salary to Victims of the Virus (Urging her Government Members to Follow that example), while she Explicitly revendicates her Belief as a "Christian", (and reportedly Chose to Hold "a huge Bible" when she was sworn President).

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- Armenian, atypical Center-Right Prime Minister Nikol PASHINYAN, was Infected by the Virus (Together with All his Family : Wife and 3 Children), on June 2020, When his Country was Facing its Highest "Peak" of Infections, Shortly After he had Denounced that Some did Not Observe the Necessary Protection Measures, and Attributing this Incident to an alleged Error Committed by a Civil Servant. Soon, he was Also Explicitly Attacked Politically, by a Former Ally, closely Followed by a Blast of More Tension with Azerbaidjan over the Naborno Karabach Issue, Added to Turkish Negative Interferences, which led him to Slam Ankara's "Destabilizing" Role throughout the Wider Region, including Against Greece, Cyprus, Syria, Armenia, Irak, Egypt, etc.



Very Popular (according to Recent Polls) Pachinyan, holds an Original Geo-Political View on the possibility to Participate Both into EU's Common Market, and pf Russia's Euro-Asiatic Market, Resulting at a Giant PanEuropean Trade Area, from Lisbon to Vladivostok, with a Huge Potential, as Also Believes f.ex. Austrian Chancelor Kurz, and had Initially Eyed German Chancelor Merkel, Back on 2013, (See relevant Statements by the Armenian Prime Minister to "Eurofora" and at the CoE in Strasbourg, on 2019 : http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/armenianpresidentforeurussiaarea.html, etc). He, reportedly, is, also, in favor of Protecting Natural, Traditional Family and Births, by a Man and a Woman, Instead of Controversial and UnPopular "Same Sex Marriage" between Homosexuals, with "Adoptions" of Children submited to the ("parental") Power of Homosexuals, and/or Artificialy Fabricated by Technocrats. He has Congratulated Belarus President Lukachenko for his re-Election, and, Surprisingly, Phoned to him, to Speak Together, (inter alia, also for Current Developments concerning the Virus), immediately after he was Found Infected, on June 2020 (Followed by an apparently Similar Move towards Spain), this being almost the Only Known Public Activity in which he engaged During his (about 15 Days-Long) Quarantine period... But, this Same Year, he Started by Capitalizing a Landmark Official Recognition of the Armenian Genocide, by President Trump's USA's Senate and House of Representatives, Since the End of 2019, Followed by a Succesful Military Defense of Nagorno-Karaback (Artzak for Armenians) in front of an Azeri Offensive this Summer 2020, when he went on to Start Strongly Denouncing Turkey as a "Destabilizing and Destructive" Factor, Both Regionaly and Globaly.



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* Perhaps the Most Spectacular Case in which the Virus played a Role of "Game Changer" in EU Politics, (Except from Italy : See Infra), is that of Germany, where, After AKK's Announcement that she Quits the Governing Party CDU's Presidency, last February 2020, Frontrunner Candidate MERZ (Popular Values' Conservative Dissident, Former MEP and CDU/CSU's Head at the Bundestag) Confirmed his Participation, Followed by that of Laschet (NRW Region's Head, and Former MEP too, Mainstream Center-Right), to whom was Added also Roettgen (Bundestag's Foreign affairs Committee's Chair, former Environment Minister, an Outsider), in view of the Election scheduled for the Party's Annual Congress, at the End of April. Since Merkel had Notoriously Decided to Withdraw on 2021, that April 2020 CDU Congress had a Crucial Importance, Because it would Determine Who will be her Successor in order to Challenge the Cancelorship in the forthcoming 2021 Federal Election. Merz, with More than 48,5% of the Party's Votes Last Year, and a Crystal-Clear Plan to Get Back to the CDU the People's Votes it had Lost by "AfD"'s Rightists in the Recent Past, Obviously had a Lead.



- But, Suddenly, After Only 1 Speech in Public, Friedrich Merz is Infected by the Deadly Virus, at the Beginning of March 2020, Obliged to Stay in Quarantine, Away even from his Family, while, in Addition, the Declaration of a "Pandemic" by the WHO, (even with Europe as its "EpiCenter"), Provoked the Cancellation of that Annual CDU Congress of April, Postponed sine die ! (Curiously, these UnExpected and UnPrecedented Incidents occur ...Immediately Aftar Merz meets with Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis, and Declares in Public, inter alia, that the Problems provoked by Turkey at the Borders with EU Member State Greece, Must be addressed by "a European Solution")... Then, Merz Struggles against the Virus During More than 15 Days, Suffering by Symptoms which Become soon "Stronger", (Perhaps because it might have been Erronesously Diagnosticated, at the Beginning, as a simple "Flu", Before Realizing that it was Deadly Coronavirus)..., and UnCertainty up to the End of the Month, (while People's Attention has Turned Now on Other Urgent Matters, as the "Lock-Down", the Need to Survive, in front of Many Deaths, the on-going Search of a Cure and/or a Vaccin, Followed by a Hasty "DeConfinement" from May, Leading to a "2nd Wave" of the Virus, from August, etc. So that, when CDU Announced, Later-on, that the Vote for the Selection of CDU's Head would be made, Finaly, ...at the End of the Year, on December, Meanwhile, both the Images and the Debates of those Candidates had Faded Away in People's Minds... (To the point that, Apparently, Merz had Now to Struggle with Mainstream Medias of the Establishment in order to Try to Find any Prime Time and/or Headlne News, really Visible Press Coverage, so that Many People say that they haveN't even Heard Anything new about his Campaign for the Leadership of Germany's Governing Party)... => A Real "U-Turn" !



Merz is a "Wert-Konservative" (Socio-Moral Values' Conservative), and a Christian Catholic, who Believes to the "Christian Roots" of Germany and all Europe. In Addition to a Decade of a Succesful Experience in High-Level Financial-Economic Deals at International Level, is Interested also for the Creation of a "European Army", Able to Offer Independent Protection to EU People and Land. He also, reportedly, Focuses on "Family Policy", including a "Nativist" Agenda, in favor of Natural Births of More European Children, by "Strengthened Families", (almost as that which had been, Earler, Succesfully Used by Chancelor Angie Merkel herself, Since the Beginning of her very Succesful Campaign [at Ludwigshaffen, Near Historic Chancelor Helmut Kohl's Home] for the Federal Elections of 2013, where she Managed to Score Up to almost ...40% of the Votes, Reaching the Threshhold of ...Absolute Majority for CDU/CSU, closely Missed Only for 4 MPs, curiously vanished OverNight, during the Last Counting, After MidNight, which Obliged her to Lead anew a Coalition Government, But from a Much Stronger Position than before)... In Addition, he reportedly considers that the Too Hasty Introduction (Under alleged Threat of a "Red-Red-Green" Hostile Majority Deal from the Opposition) of the Controversial and UnPopular "Same Sex Marriage" between Homosexuals, Back on 2018, (which had been, nevertheless, vainly Rejected, then, by More than 75% of the CDU/CSU Party), Should, Normaly, have been Preceded, at least, by a Public Debate, as well as from a Constitutional Reform, (considering that, in fact, as things stand, it was Opposed to the German Constitution, as also Many Others thought). +Moreover, Merz is Well Known for a Strong Position on the Need to Protect EU's External Borders, including, particularly, vis a vis Massive Irregular Migrants who Present Themselves as Asylum Seekers, Insisting to Really Keep Chancelor Merkel's own ulterior Promise to Never Repeat Errors Committed Back on 2015/2016, when Ankara notoriously Threw an UnPrecedented "Tsunami" of More than 1,5 Millions of People from Various Continents, Suddenly Tresspassing into Europe through EU Member Greece's Borders Facing Turkey, Exploited mainly by Turkish Smugglers, and Blackmailed the EU in order to get Paid 3 Billions  per Year in full Grants... Nowadays, he Believes thet the Time for Past, so-called "Gro-Ko", i.e. Formerly "Big Coalitions" with the "Socialists", have passed and Gone, (Prefering, Nowadays, Other Majority Formulas)... Last, but not least, Merz also Defends the Key Idea of a "European Culture", which Deserves to be Protected and Developed.



=> In Such Conditions, inter alia, f.ex., at Merz's Personal Electoral Local Area, at HochSauerLandKreis, the Governing ChristianDemocrat/EPP Party has Just Got, on 13/9/2020 Regional Election, a Big Majority with 48,19% of the Votes, Followed by 6,10% for Center-Right Liberals, 2,97% for Various Right "Free Voters", and Just ... 3,68% for the Rightists of "AfD" (Who, Elsewhere in Germany, on the Contrary, they Notoriously Mark High Scores, allowing them to Revendicate a Key Place in Majority Coalitions), Opposed to Only 21,19% for the "Socialists", 13,59% for "Greens", and 2% for the "Left"...



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- In Italy, towards the End of 2019, Popular Rightist Leader of "LEGA" Party, former Deputy Prime Minister and Long-Time MEP, Matteo SALVINI, who had Just provoked the Fall of 2 Coalition Governments, Earlier mainly of "Socialists", and Afterwards, even of a Strange but Initially Interesting Magma between Leftist "5 Stars" and his "Lega", (See: ..., etc), was Notoriously Credited by All Polls with the Biggest Political Party of the Country, (his own), and Even with a Crystal-clear Absolute Majority for a Coalition of All the Right, (Including His "Lega", Berlusconi's ChristianDemocrats/EPP of "Forca Italia", and Beloni's "Frateli d'Italia"). His Movement, and Allies, Planned a Series of More and More Big Popular Demonstrations at Rome, until that Minority Government would, Finally, Fall down, Opening the Way to New Elections, that would Bring the Right, inevitably, into Power, (according to an obvious Democratic Logic)...

>>> But, Suddenly, at the Beginning of 2020, the Virus' Infections Target and Hit Salvini's HeadQuarters at North-Western Italy, around Milano, (by an UnClear yet Cause), which, Already, as Early as Since Mid-February 2020, are "Cut off" from the Capital of Rome, by a Sanitary Cord, (Hindering Any Popular Mass Movement towards there), ...While, Paradoxicaly, on the Contrary, Northern Italians Can Still Enter even at Foreign Neighbouring Countries, as France, Switzerland, and Germany, and eventualy Spread Infections there, withOut Any Protection for the Local Populations (including that of Strasbourg's Region : See, f.ex., ... + ..., etc) ! The Result is (Together with a "Lock-Down" Added Soon) to Practicaly "Freeze" Political Developments in Italy for several Months, (at the Price of an Awful Lot of Deaths, etc), During which, the Minority "Care-Taking" Government of, Normaly OutGoing, Controversial Prime Minister Conte, Finaly Ensures Hundreds of Billions  in EU Grants and/or Loans, thanks to the After Virus' Crisis "Recovery" EU Plan, Decided by an Exceptional EU Summit in Brussels on July (See: ..., etc), While, on the Contrary, Salvini is Slandered, Accused, and even Prosecuted at the Courts, on Pretext of an Old Issue concerning his Notorious and Popular Opposition, as former Minister, to the Arrival on Italian Ground, of 80 More African Mass Irregular Migrants, and Threatened with Sanctions, After a Tight Majority Vote in the Senate (still Controled, in fact, by Out-Going Representatives of a ...Minority of Citizens : Comp. Supra), Lifted his Parliamentary Immunity...

=> I.e., in Brief, ...Democracy Turned Upside-Down, Thanks to a Political Exploitation of that Deadly Virus' astonishingly Targeted and Synchronized Attacks !

Salvini, inter alia, clearly Opposes Turkey's Controversial and UnPopular EU bid, and had, Recently, Strongly Denounced a Brutal Bullying, with Threats by Turkish WarShips, Against a Peaceful and Rightful Oil/Gas Exploration, by an Italian "ENI"'s Drilling Ship, at EU Member Cyprus' EEZ, in Agreement with the Cypriot Government, while he has also Named an European Affairs Minister who Declared that the landmark 1571 Victory of Europeans against the Ottoman-Turkish Fleet at Lepante, was, in fact, "the Beginning of Europe's History". He Stands Against "Same Sex Marriage" Between Homosexuals, But Defends Natural Family and Births, having Restored the Traditional Mentions of "Father" and "Mother", Instead of "Parent 1" and "Parent 2" in Official ID documents, and Opposes Forced Mass Vaccination. He is Notoriously Against Mass Irregular Migration from Other Continents, Prefers to Boost Births of European Children, and Opposes imposed Islamisation, Is Favorable to Friendly Relations with Russia, withOut Sanctions, Neither Embargo, etc., he is considered by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu as "a Friend of Israel", while also being an Ally of Conservative US President Trump, (as well as Brazil's President Bolsonaro : Comp. Supra).

-------------------------------

* Meanwhile, Even Salvini's Long-Time Political Ally, for a Majority of All the Right according to the Polls, Center-Right Party "Forza Italia"'s Chief, former Many Times Prime Minister of Italy, Conservative Politician and Businesman Silvio BERLUSCONI, Aged 83 Years Old, gets Personaly Infected by the Virus... He Finaly Survives, After a Long Struggle with More than 12 Days in a Hospital, that he Described as ..."Hell", and "the Most Dangerous Challenge", (During which, he, obviously, was Hindered to do Anything to Help Salvini)...

The Experienced ChristianDemocrat/EPP Leader, currently a MEP, had Already Faced, in the Past, a lot of Systematic Harassment by Courts, Slandering by Medias, Hate, and even Brutal Violent Attacks, one of which had Left him Wounded with Blood spread around his Face, (See, f.ex.: ... + ..., etc), Having also repeatedly Protected Human Embryos from Genetic Manipulations, He Kept Good Relations Both with the USA and Russia, as well as with Israel, (supporting Better Links of Moscow with the EU), in addition to being the 1st Western Leader to Visit Belarus' President Lukachenko.

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* Controversial Belarus' President Alexander LUKACHENKO, Aged 66 Years Old, reportedly said that he had been Affected by the Virus, But Recovered.

He has Avoided Harsh Economic Measures affecting the People, Opposes Homosexuality, and has Visited Christian Catholic former Pope Benedict at the Vatican in 2009, (when he had Published his Encyclic Criticizing Abuses of Genetic Technologies on Humans, and apparently Disagreed with Former POTUS Barack Hussein Obama on "Same Sex Marriage", and Genetic Manipulation of Human Embryons). He has Recently stressed that "Real Science Must Serve the People", Kept Close, but sometimes critical, Relations with Russia, Criticized the Brutal Way that former Libyan President Kaddafi reportedly was killed by a Mob, Supported Syrian President Assad from 2014, Accuses Foreign Interferences in Pushing the Opposition to Mass UnRest inside Belarus, and, on 2020 he was the 1st Leader of a Country to Send Help to China when it was Hardly Hit by the Deadly Virus, (while Both WHO and Most Other Foreign States still Delayed Any Help, then).

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- The 1st Head of a Royal House to be Infected by the Deadly Virus, already at the Beginning of March 2020, was ArchDuc Karl von HABSBURG, Aged 60 y.o., Conservative former MEP, Based in Austria and Chief of "PanEuropa" there, as well as President of the International "Blue Shield" NGO for the Protection of Cultural Heritage from Crisis, (that "Eurofora" had Recently Met at EU Parliament in Strasbourg, in a relevant Conference, See: ..., etc), who was reportedly Obliged to Stay Alone in Quarantine during 3 Long Weeks.

Karl, as well as his Well Known Father, late ArchDuc Otto von Habsburg-Lothringen, also former Long-Time MEP, President of "PanEuropa International", and German Citizen, are naturally Conservatives (and, as mainly Austrians, apparently Opposed to Turkey's controversial and unpopular EU bid), as well as Often related to Bio-Ethics, (on the occasion of which, f.ex. "Eurofora"'s co-Founder first Met Otto von Habsburg in Strasbourg, at a relevant EU Parliament's Working Group of the ChristianDemocrat/PP Political Group). They have played a Key Role at the Start of former Central-Eastern European Countries' Re-Unification with the Rest of Europe, inter alia, Also by a Famous "Pic-Nic" Organized Near the East-West Borderline, Already Before the Fall of the Berlin's Wall, But Even through Various Chevalry, Humanitarian, Cultural, or Other International Networks. F.ex., Karl von Habsburg, via his International Blue Shield NGO, has Recently been Active in such Topical "HotSpots" as, inter alia, also ... Mali, in Africa, (notoriously Threatened by Armed Islamist Terrorists linked to ISIS, etc), and Beirut, in Lebanon, at the Aftermath of the Recent Deadly Explosion, (while, on this occasion, inevitably eyeing also the omni-present there Eastern Mediterranean's Oil/Gas rich Waters Facing Neighbouring Cyprus, Israel and Egypt, as a Press Article on his Visit observs, But notoriously Bullied by Turkey's WarShips and illegal Drillings : See, f.ex.: ..., etc).



+ By a strange Coincidence, almost at the Same Time, it's even the UK's would-be Future King, CHARLES, (Aged 71), who was Infected by the Virus, but Recovered after a Long Quarantine at a Castle in Scotland. He reportedly said, Afterwards, that this Experience was "Strange, Frustrating, and Painfull".

Charles had reportedly Participated, earlier, at the ...Same Meeting (sic !) as Also Monaco's Prince ALBERT (Comp. Supra), Organized by Clean Water International Charity "Water Aid", during which they Might have been Infected Both, by an UnKnown yet Cause... [UK HeadQuartered "Water Aid" curiously Claims that ...Turkey and India would be Similar in Human Rights' Violations as "illiberal Democracies (sic!), "Almost Autocratic", with "Patronage at State-level", accused by "Critics" to practice "Divisive Politics", where "Violence Increased", But, nevertheless, "in (its) Analysis", at least some "Civil Servants did Not Neglect their Public Duties, and seemed Driven by ... Development, at least around Sanitation", (sic !), as their Documents say, Citting just 1 Article at ..."Huffington Post", written by a Muslim Professor of College, steming from a "Muslim University" (formerly "Anglo-Oriental College"), at an Indian province near Pakistan. +"Water Aid", at its Latest 2019 Report, Believes that "Turkey" is "likely to face Extremely high Water Stress, by 2040" at the latest, Together with Countries such as "Pakistan, Afghanistan, most of Northern Africa (as Libya, etc), Spain" and some "Middle East" States. Already Since 2011, "Water Aid" found that, concerning "Water and Sanitation Projects" across the World, at the "Top 10", (according to the Money Paid for them), 2 were in Turkey, one fof them Scoring even at the 1st Place ! ++Indeed, Turkey often uses to Boast about some Economico-Political Projects related to "Water", (as also, f.ex., at the COE in Strasbourg, etc), while having Notoriously Usurpated a lot of Ephrates River's flows, provoking Tensions, to the Detriment of Syria and Irak, in Addition to having attempted to abuse of such "Water" Politics Even vis a vis ...EU Member Cyprus' Northern Occupied Territories still controled by Ankara's Military since the 1974 Invasion].

But Karl von believes that he had been, apparently, Infected (by a Coincidence, around the Same Days) in a Meeting at Nearby Switzerland, in "Geneva", where several "Italians", who had just arrived from abroad, had also Participated, (Comp. f.ex.: ..., etc), as he observed at an INTW in Austrian Media.

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- India's Conservative Prime Minister Narendra MODI, has seen his Country, After an Initialy Succesful Border Protection against the Virus, Suddenly Face a Unique in the World, Fast and Permanently Growing Number of Virus' Infections, Since April 2020, with the Number of Deaths also Steadily Advancing, Until Now. In Parallel, Despite an Earlier Bigger Economic Growth during Modi's tenure in office, than in the Past, Suddenly, the Economy Faced a Deeper than expected Slow Down. Even if the Death Rate still is among the Lowest Percentages in the World, and even if India's Low Cost Pharmaceutical Production Capacity Might play an Important Role in the Future for Massive Fabrication of eventual Vaccines and/or Anti-Virus Drugs, Nevertheless, the Risks for a 1,3 Billion Population, notoriously Deprived of Adequate Health Equipments yet, are Obviously very Serious.

Medias hace Documented, inter alia, also a Massive Concentration of Muslim Woshipers from a Traditionalist Islamist Sect, at a Delhi's Suburb, on April 2020, which reportedly Spread the Virus, Later-on, Accross more than 16 Different States of the Indian Federation, After the Return of Participants, Many among whom had Arrived in India from Neighbouring mainly Muslim Countries, such as Malesia, Indonesia, etc. Such Dates strikingly Coincide with WHO's Graphics which clearly Show that, indeed, the overall Steadily Growing Trend of Infections' Numbers until Now, has Started, precisely on April... (Mutatis-Mutandis, a Similar Incident had been, Notoriously, attributed to a Christian Religious Sect in South Korea in the Past, But, in India's case, the Volume of the Numbers is, obviously, Much More Great). In Addition, some have Also Denounced an Alleged "Islamist Virus' Jihad", in certain Other india-related Cases, rightfuly or wrongly, Provoking Accusations by International Islamic Organisations for so-called "IslamoPhobia"...

The very Popular, (according to several Polls), Indu Prime Minister Modi, has, moreover, been Accused for alleged "Right-Wing" Policies, and/or Criticized by some for Opposing Religious Islamization, as well as Keeping a Strong stance vis-a-vis Neighbouring Pakistan, (NDLR : Where even ...Bir Landen, "Al Quaida" Armed Islamist Terrorists' ring-Leader, had been, Notoriously, Found Hosted at a Big Ranch in an ...Islamabad's Rich Quarter on 2012). Modi, who is Both "Vegan" and a Budhist, is Also, reportedly, Trying to "Prevent Slaughters of Cows" in India, where they are, Notoriously, Protected "Sacred" Animals. In Addition, Modi has Good Personal Relations not only with Russian President Putin, but, Partcularly, with Conservative USA President Trump.

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- Experienced Many Times Minister, former Head of Governing Party, and in charge of a Succesfull Economic Recovery at the Crisis of 2008-2011, who cooperated wth French Presidents Chirac and particularly Sarkozy, currently Chief of "Upper Seine" Department (at Paris' outskirts), Armenian-origin Center-Right Top Politician Patrick DEVEDJIAN, aged 75 y.o., Suddenly Died by the Virus on March 2020, (being the 1st Top French Official to be Deprived of his Life by an Infection, provoked by an UnKnown Cause).

Curiously, this happened Just After Entering in Hospital, at "Stable" and relatively Good Shape yet, (to judge also by a Twitter Message he Published Only 1,5 Day Before he Dies, Praising Doctors and Nurses), and, particularly, very Shortly (16 Days : i.e. just the Time for an Infection to Affect Human Health) After Publishing his Last ever Press Article, on a "Hot" European Issue : An Exceptional, but Crystal-clear and Topical Call, explicitly Titled : "Oppose Turkey, in order to Support Europe" !...

Devedjian, who Stems from a Family of Armenian Refugees, (Like Balladur : Comp. Supra), had reportedly tried, in the Past, to Help Recognition and Justice for the 1st Genocide of the 20th Century, (that of about 1,5 Million of civilian Armenians Massacrated by the Turks, including Women and small Children, Elders, etc. while a lot More were DeRacinated, Robbed of their Belongings, and Massively Chassed out by Force). But, Later-on, he had Focused mainly on Helping to Develop France and Build a Strong Europe.

=> Now, among his concrete Proposals is, particularly, for the EU to Stop Wasting Money to Pay a troublesome Turkey, and, Instead, to Protect European People and Land, by Funding the Frontex European Service, i.e. the (InSufficient Yet) Guards of EU's External Borders, and Particularly its CoastGuards, Facing Turkey, Africa, etc., Nowadays Even vis a vis Notoriously Imported Deadly Virus, (See Infra). However, his overall Vision is much Larger and Higher, concerning Europe's Present and Future in the Modern World :

- He Starts by Refering to the Historic General De Gaulle, and stresses from the outset that "a Powerful Europe is, More than Ever, Necessary, in order to Defend and Promote Our Model of Civilisation".

- Particularly When Turkish President "Erdogan Shamefuly Blackmails Europe", as he Denounced, citting, inter alia, also the Turkish Military "Invasion of Syria", for which Ankara was "Allied with Jihadist Gangs".

- Nevertheless, some "Diplomats had argued for Turkey's Entry into the EU, Claiming, at the Public Opinion, that Erdogan would be equivalent to a Christian Democrat :" (sic)... But, on the Contrary, "General De Gaulle, who did Not Want UK's Entry into the EU, certainly did Not Wish that of Turkey". Simply Because "he thought, without any doubt, that either of them would have Killed Europe" !

- "Nowadays, Nobody dares, No More, to plead for Turkey's Entry into the EU, But, No State dares (yet) to Really Close the Door (to Ankara), and (moreover) Brussels Persists, Unfortunately, to Fund with Grants Turkey", (on pretext of "Pre-Accession" or due to the notorious Turkish Blackmail on Mass Asylum Seekers/Irregular Migrants), "while Erdogan Proclaims Himself Protector of All Muslims in Europe" (sic !).

- "The Europeans seem, also, to have been accustomed with the Military Occupation of a European Territory by the Turkish Army, in Cyprus, where, the Capital, Nicosia, is Divided by anOther "Wall of Shame" (NDRL : as at Berlin, Before 1989), in the Middle of which is located a French Embassy, Abandoned and in Ruins... However, the Island is a Major Strategic Issue for Europe, Facing the East". Meanwhile, "Turkish Settlers have been Installed in the Occupied Zone, from where the Greek Cypriots were Chassed Away".

+ In Addition, concerning "Migratory Flows", Turkey Violates the Commitments that it has taken, as it Violates the Cypriot Territorial Waters by its Navy in order to make there Oil Drillings. It attempts to Intimidate by Military means its Neighbours, Exploits Human Misery by Favoring Smugglers of Migrants, and Asks, Even Nowadays, to be Paid 6 Billions  in order to abstain from Organizing Migratory Flows towards Our (EU) Nations. Turkey Equips itself with Russian material and Asks from NATO to Support it, in its War against Kurds and Syria". But, "Europe, always, Does Nothing, anxious not to upset the Sultan"..

- French "President Macron had the Courage and the Dignity to Date Say, looking at Turkey, that he Will Not Allow "spread in the Land of the Republic, a Separatism, be it Religious, Political or of Identity", Adding that "it's Not Possible to have Turkey's Laws at France's Land". It's true that No Country would ever Allow for a Foreign State to Organize, inside its Territory, a Propaganda for Refusing Integration, and for Negationiste Hate, vis a vis a Part of its Citizens".

- Meanwhile, "FRONTEX, the European Agency of Border Guards and Coast-Guards, Created on 2004, has Not Yet reached 1.000 Persons, While it Proclaims a Target of 10.000 Agents", he critically observed. Therefore, he "Propose(d) that EU Commission attributes to It the Funds still earmarked for Turkey, and to Give it a Federal Status, Not Merely of an Aide. It's more than Time that EU takes control of its Migratory Policy"...

++ Concerning "Protection", "France canNot ensure alone the protection of African Democracies, it Needs the Effective Participation of All Europe. Africa is an Issue of Major Concern for Europe, and Decisive for its Fate. Its Population is largely Growing, its Economy just asks to be Developed, Misery is very Big there, (while) the History and 2 World Wars gave us Responsibilities, (and even) the French Language is widespread there. Finaly, it has a Vocation to Play a Strategic Role for Europe's Future vis a vis Globalisation".

- "Europe Has the Means of a Power Policy : The uro is Succesful, since it's the 2nd International Currency, and We (EU) Must Impose it More as Transactions' Currency in Our Exchanges. It represents a Market of 500 Millions of Consumers. It has the Biggest Stock of Private Savings in the World".

- At the same time, "the European Ambition has Become a Vital Issue for Our Nations. The Major Conflict Emerging between USA and China Will Determine the Future of the World. Europe, its Culture, its Values, its Model of Civilisation, Deserve to be More than a mere Spectator".

=> "Let's Start by putting in Order at Our Doorstep !", Patrick Devedjian Concluded, in his Last Publication, shortly Before he was Killed by an Undetermined Infection with the Deadly Virus (Comp. Supra).

---------------------

>>> Naturaly, the Best Hommage and Justice that we can do to this Real European, who Tragicaly Disappeared, is, at least, to Hear and Think Actively about the Substance of his Last Appeal,

which, in Fact, has Become Even More Topical Nowadays, particularly at the Eve of an Exceptional and Crucial EU Summit on 24-25 September 2020, (Comp. Supra).



+ Moreover, for All good-willing People, certainly in Europe, but Also Worldwide, it's of Elementary Importance to realy Ensure that Nothing and Nobody Might, Eventually, Risk to Brutaly and UnDemocraticaly Deprive them from Human and Political Personalities of Key Importance and/or Exceptional Value for Our Society, by Killing them with that Deadly Virus, (independently of whether it might be due to Pure Hasard, Negligence, Eventual Dolus, or Crime).

(../..)

("Draft-News")
In August, voters in deep-red Missouri voted to provide more people with health insurance and save taxpayer dollars by accepting federal Medicaid expansion. Missouri is the latest state to take this no-brainer of a deal. Wisconsin hasnt, and its costing us money and jeopardizing peoples health.

For years, Wisconsin Republicans have played politics, resisting any attempt to accept the federal Medicaid expansion offered through the Affordable Care Act. Under Scott Walker, they refused a vote on any Democratic legislation on the issue. When Gov. Tony Evers included Medicaid expansion in his first budget proposal, Republicans on the Joint Finance Committee were finally forced to vote, and they killed the proposal. No facts or public opinion could sway them.

Wisconsin taxpayers are paying the price. According to the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau, accepting Medicaid funding would save $324.5 million in state taxpayer money and bring in $1.6 billion in federal funds in the current budget cycle alone. That would have been put to good use here, providing coverage for an additional 82,000 Wisconsinites, including 2,600 in Kenosha County and 3,300 in Racine County.

Instead, were subsidizing other states. When put this way, its easy to see why Marquette Law polls, considered the gold standard in Wisconsin, have consistently found 62-70% of Wisconsin voters favor Medicaid expansion.

The Covid-19 pandemic and resulting workplace shutdowns have cost thousands of jobs, and for many, a lost job means lost healthcare coverage. Think of the good that could be done by agreeing to federal Medicaid expansion. Instead, Republican legislators continue their partisan games.

Sen. Bob Wirch, D-Kenosha

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Dr. Thoma found that Mr. McGlothen was not a candidate for incarceration given his medical status, prosecutors said. They said the officers actions had been substantial factors in Mr. McGlothens death from excited delirium.

The American Medical Association has defined the condition as the sudden death of people who are combative and in a highly agitated state and who have exhibited agitation, excitability, paranoia, aggression and apparent immunity to pain, often associated with stimulant use and certain psychiatric disorders, the district attorneys office said.

The officers face up to 10 years in prison if convicted on both counts, prosecutors said.

All four turned themselves in on Friday and were released on $20,000 bonds, according to the Caddo Parish Sheriffs Office. The Shreveport Police Department declined to comment on the charges or to say if the officers were still on the force.

Dhu Thompson, a lawyer for Officer LeClare, said he was extremely disappointed in the indictment.

I am confident based on what we know about the case that my client will be fully exonerated, he said. We look forward to this trial.

It was not immediately clear if the three other officers had lawyers.

Sgt. Michael Carter, president of the Shreveport police officers union, said the union was extremely regretful that Mr. McGlothen died. But he said the officers should not have been charged because they were engaged in a nasty street fight.

They had no choice but to engage with this man who would not stop resisting a lawful arrest, Sergeant Carter said. This incident could not be de-escalated.

The charges came amid intense scrutiny of police brutality after the killing in May of George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, who was pinned to the ground by a white police officers knee in an encounter captured on video.
The Australian towns worst-hit by the coronavirus pandemic have been laid bare by new data, with Mandurah in Western Australia and Sydney's inner west leading the pack.

Mandurah in WA's southwest is the worst affected area, with unemployment rising from to 18 per cent, according to labour force data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The coastal city - about an hour's drive from Perth - has seen the joblessness rate rise by 11.6 per cent in the last year to July.

Mandurah in Western Australia's southwest (pictured) and Sydney's Inner West have been listed as the worst affected areas, according to labour force data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics

It was closely followed by Sydney's inner west which had an unemployment rate of 9.4 per cent.

Its figure was eight percentage points higher than in 2019, The Australian reported.

Other badly affected areas include Coffs Harbour and Grafton in New South Wales, Wide Bay in Queensland and north-west Melbourne.

Other greatly affected statistical areas include Coffs Harbour (coastal area above) and Grafton (below) in New South Wales, Wide Bay in Queensland and North West Melbourne

Hardest hit areas: Early 2020 v July 2020 Mandurah - 11.6 per cent to 18 per cent Sydney Inner West - 8 to 9.4 per cent Coffs Harbour-Grafton, NSW - 7.9 per cent to 11.6 per cent Melbourne North West - 7.3 per cent to 12.6 per cent Wide Bay - 7 per cent to 17 per cent Darling Downs-Maranoa, QLD - 6.8 per cent to 8.7 per cent Brisbane East, QLD - 6.7 per cent to 9.3 per cent Ballarat - 5.6 per cent to 6.7 per cent Sydney city and inner south - 5.5 per cent to 9.2 per cent Moreton Bay-South, QLD - 5.1 per cent to 10.5 per cent Australia 2.2 per cent to 7.4 per cent Source: ABS via The Australian Advertisement

National unemployment actually fell to 6.8 per cent in August after 111,000 new jobs were created.

The surprise figures came after Australia's total unemployment figure hit 7.5 per cent in July - a 22-year high.

But there are fears the rate of unemployment could rise again when the JobKeeper subsidy ends, which is likely to force businesses to let staff go.

National Australia Bank chief economist Alan Oster said the 111,000 new jobs created last month simply reflected a surge in the number of people identifying as self-employed.

'There was a big spike in those that were basically self employed and not employing anybody,' he told Daily Mail Australia on Friday.

The Reserve Bank of Australia said on Thursday that recessions had 'enduring effects on unemployment rates.'

'Regions that experienced larger-than-average downturns had significantly higher unemployment rates for around a decade afterwards,' it stated on its website.

RBA added 'early 1990s recession led to an even wider range of outcomes, with regional unemployment rates changing by between -5 and 13 percentage points.'

'These differences in the "initial exposure" of regions to national recessions can reflect differences in industry composition, demographics and average skill levels, among other factor.'

Wide Bay MP Llew O'Brien told The Australian towns within his electorate had 'really serious high unemployment and really serious youth unemployment'.
The UFC is reportedly heading back to Abu Dhabi.

The promotion is planning to stage five events at the citys Yas Island, better known as Fight Island, in the coming months, according to ESPN. That will reportedly include UFC 253 on Sept. 26 and UFC 254 on Oct. 24.

A middleweight title fight between champion Israel Adesanya and Paulo Costa will be the main event of UFC 253, while lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and interim lightweight champ Justin Gaethje will fight at UFC 254.

Fight Island was a success for UFC

Some big fights are coming to Abu Dhabi. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

UFC had previously used Fight Island for four events in July, and its not hard to see why its going back. With global travel still limited, Fight Island served as a hub for bouts between international fighters in a relatively safe environment. Fighters and trainers were all tested and quarantined as they entered the bubble.

Dana White has spoken glowingly of the facilities, and his move to secure a private island for fights also captured widespread headlines for UFC at the time (as well some mockery and disbelief). There arent so many snickers now, as UFC moves ahead with Fight Island as a signature part of its plans in the near future.

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Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died Friday night after 27 years on the United States Supreme Court. I'm ignoring the Romans warning de mortuis nil nisi bonum (of the dead, say nothing but good). Ginsburg used her seat on the Supreme Court as a political office, and, reputedly, her dying wish was political. The politicization of her Supreme Court seat and the political fallout from her death are, therefore, appropriate topics.

Unlike me, the usual leftists who loved her too much (as well as a few Republicans who ought to know better) think the best encomium for Ginsburg is that she "fought" for "justice and equality":

A shock. A sadness. A great loss. The passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg leaves a hole in a nation already reeling. She is an American hero, in every sense. We can honor her by joining to carry forth her legacy of equality, empathy, and justice. May she Rest in Peace.  Dan Rather (@DanRather) September 18, 2020

Throughout her life and career, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg fought on the right side of history and actively worked to deliver the promise of full equality for all people. She was an icon, a trailblazer and a hero to so many. https://t.co/35b3SbTr6U pic.twitter.com/d7KpQOf73o  Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) September 19, 2020

Justice Ginsburg fought tirelessly for gr8er justice, equality &opportunity for all ppl. She was a trailblazer in so many ways &for so many ppl Her sharp legal mind, tenacity &resilience leaves a remarkable imprint on our nation Barbara + I join our nation in mourning her passing  ChuckGrassley (@ChuckGrassley) September 19, 2020

That praise  that she "fought" for "justice and equality"  sums up everything that was wrong with Ginsburg, for it describes a political activist, not a judge. The Supreme Court is supposed to consist of nine people who try, apolitically, to ensure that the United States is run along constitutional lines.

Ginsburg had little love for the Constitution. She was quite open about that in 2012, when she offered some "helpful" advice to the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt as it was contemplating the Egyptian Constitution of 2012:

"I would not look to the U.S. Constitution, if I were drafting a constitution in the year 2012," Ginsburg said in an interview on Al Hayat television last Wednesday. "I might look at the constitution of South Africa. That was a deliberate attempt to have a fundamental instrument of government that embraced basic human rights, have an independent judiciary. It really is, I think, a great piece of work that was done."

The South African Constitution does not promote a small government for free people who possess inherent rights that must be free from political interference. Instead, it's a micromanaging monstrosity that identifies "rights" (some copied from us) that are, in fact, privileges subject to the political winds.

Ginsburg was also a covert eugenicist. In 2009, she confessed that she had imagined abortion as a way to get rid of undesirables:

Frankly I had thought that at the time Roe was decided, there was concern about population growth and particularly growth in populations that we don't want to have too many of. (Emphasis added.)

Since the late 19th century, when progressives have spoken about getting rid of undesirable populations, they've meant blacks. Of the 61 million babies aborted since Roe v. Wade, 32% have been black. Blacks make up less than 14% of the population.

Ginsburg was also an awful judge. A good Supreme Court opinion, like a solid house, is built on a constitutional foundation, with the materials coming from clear and strong precedent and law. Ginsburg's opinions, especially when she was pushing political ends, were composed of random bits and pieces of law that could be cobbled together to make a rough shack. She and her clerks hid this shoddy construction in muddy and muddled writing surrounded by myriad case citations that were never entirely on point.

That Ginsburg saw her role as political was shown by the fact that, even on her deathbed, she tried to manipulate Trump's constitutional authority to nominate a new Supreme Court justice. In that vein, it's worth remembering that she abandoned judicial impartiality and interfered in the election by using her enormous popularity to speak against Trump.

President Trump was holding a rally in Wisconsin when Ginsburg died, and, before he knew of her death, he spoke about the importance of strict constructionist judges who will preserve American's inherent rights, especially those identified in the Second Amendment.

Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell has announced that, because the president and the Senate are from the same party, it is entirely appropriate to go forward with a judicial nomination. "President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."

I hope the President acts swiftly. An activist majority on the Supreme Court, which will happen if Democrats seize the White House, will destroy this country more swiftly than anything else could.

Image: Ruth Bader Ginsburg, public domain government photo.
India first to develop DNA vaccine, can be administered to 12 and above: PM

PM Modi to attend two debates in upcoming UNGA session

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

New Delhi, Sep 19: India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations TS Tirumurti has said that the highlight of the "historic" UN General Assembly session this year will be the participation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in two debates in the high-level segments beginning from September 21.

In an interview, Tirumati said, "This time, the UN General Assembly will be historic and in more than one way. As far as India is concerned, the highlight will be the participation of PM Modi in two debates in the high-level segments starting on Monday."

'No dilution of MSP regime, opposition misleading farmers: PM Modi allays concerns on farm bills

He said the first event is a general debate where PM Modi will represent India at the UN and deliver the national statement while the other is the high-level plenary meeting to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the UN. "His address will certainly be the highlight of our participation in UNGA," Tirumurti remarked.

The diplomat informed that a biodiversity summit will be organised virtually on September 30 with the theme -- 'Urgent action on biodiversity for sustainable development'. "This will be the first summit on biodiversity in the UN. Our Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar will be participating in this summit," he said.

COVID-19 vaccine: Govt in talks with Russia for possible advancement of Sputnik V in India

Tirumurti stressed that India is one of 10 mega biodiverse countries in the world and the country has taken a leading role in the field of biodiversity.

"India recently held the Conference of Parties of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals in February this year. We had also organised the Conference of Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification in September last year in Delhi, which saw the adoption of the ambitious Delhi Declaration," he said.

IPL 2020 begins today, bio bubbles secure players | Oneindia News

He also informed that an important event to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the World Conference on Women will be held on October 1 and the adoption of the Beijing Platform for action, which is "widely acknowledged as the most comprehensive plan for advancing rights of women and girls".

India-China tensions: Corps Commander-level talks to be held in next 2-3 days

The event will be attended by Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani, underlining India's strong commitment to women empowerment and gender sensitivity.
The Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) has launched the Review and remove malware nationwide in 2020 campaign to enhance the country's network security.

The malware infection rate in Viet Nam has decreased but still remained high compared to other countries in the world.  Photo quantrimang.com

The campaign aims to reduce the malicious code infection rate by 50 per cent. It also aims to cut the number of Vietnamese IP addresses in 10 popular botnets  a collection of internet-connected devices infected by malware that allow hackers to control them  in half.

It would also take Viet Nam out of reports on malware infection rates.

The National Digital Transformation Programme, approved by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in early June 2020, says ensuring network safety and security is key to digital transformation. All IT equipment, products, software, information systems and investment projects have mandatory components on network safety and security.

The ministry has clarified cyber safety and security a prerequisite for e-government development and digital transformation.

However, according to security firms, malware infection in Viet Nam has decreased but still remained high compared to other countries. Statistics showed that Viet Nam has about 16 million IPv4 addresses, of which about three million IP addresses are regularly blacklisted by many international organisations, while two million IP addresses are regularly found in botnets.

The campaign will allow people to use malware prevention software for free via https://khonggianmang.vn.

A representative from the ministrys Department of Information Security said the campaign is for businesses and home network systems and equipment. The group accounts for the majority of the IP addresses.

The campaign would also contribute to improving the country's reliability in e-transactions, thus promoting socio-economic development and contribute to ensuring national defence and security.

The department would co-operate with VNPT, Viettel, CMC, FPT, BKAV and Kaspersky to implement the campaign.

The campaign would assess 10 major botnets that need to be treated with priority, build and deploy tools on a large scale, whereby users get free downloads to inspect and remove malicious code from their computers.

After the campaign, we will evaluate results and plan to implement future campaigns, the department said.

The campaign has been implemented in all provinces and cities from the local to the central level, through specialised IT units of ministries, branches and localities, State groups and corporations, commercial banks and financial institutions.

In addition, it has also received support from organisations, corporations and major security firms such as Kaspersky, Group-IB, FireEye, F-Secure and ESET.

The campaign has been implemented gradually. The ministry hopes it will achieve positive results, contributing to clean malware from Viet Nams cyberspace. This will help ensure safety for transactions of agencies and enterprises, as Viet Nam is accelerating digital transformation towards the development of digital government, digital economy and digital society, it added.  VNS

In August this year, the Department of Information Security recorded 517 cyber attacks on information systems in Viet Nam (199 phishing cases, 160 deface attacks and 158 malware attacks), falling 0.77 per cent over the previous month. The number of Vietnamese IP addresses in botnet networks is over 2 million, a decrease of 0.03 per cent compared to July. The number of recorded cyber attacks, warnings and the number of botnet IP addresses showed a slight decrease in the last three months.

The decrease was due to the department continuing to strengthen the recording, warnings and instructions on information security.

However, cyber attackers have still taken advantage of concerns about the pandemic to increase the spread of malicious code. The number of IP botnets compared to the same period last year was still at a high level.

To ensure network security, the department would strengthen monitoring and active scanning on Viet Nams cyberspace. VNS
Egypt has controlled the first wave of the coronavirus, said Hossam Hosny, head of the health ministry's scientific committee to combat the coronavirus on Friday.

He stressed the danger of the pandemic hasn't receded, however, referring to a possible second wave.



"Controlling the first wave means infection rates are within reasonable limits that do not burden the health system and medicines and means of protection are available," Hosny explained on TV.



He urged people to remain adherent to preventative measures, maintain social distance, and wear face masks, mandatory since 30 May.

Egypt has maintained a rate of less than 200 coronavirus infections per day since August. In recent weeks, the figure dropped to around 150.



The government has repeatedly urged caution to avoid a second wave of the pandemic, particularly with the advent of autumn and the beginning of the new academic year.

However, Egypt is well prepared in case a second coronavirus wave strikes, Hosny added.

"In June and July, when infections were at their peak, the health ministry's isolation hospitals were operating at 90 percent of their capacity along with university and private hospitals. At present, only the ministry's hospitals are concerned with treating coronavirus cases and they are operating with five percent of their capacity," he said.



On Thursday, health minister Hala Zayed said the total number of home-isolating coronavirus patients in Egypt has reached 10,168 cases since the ministry launched its programme for non-hospitalised cases in July. The programme is implemented in coordination with the World Health Organisation.



"As is the case with the majority of countries, Egypt performs target screening rather than mass screening," Hosny replied about the low numbers of daily infections in Egypt and whether they are related to the reduced number of PCR tests performed.



"Target screening means performing swabs for patients exhibiting certain symptoms. The procedure follows CT scans and laboratory analyses to identify suspected cases," he said, adding that the state has no interest in hiding the real number of infections.



Nevertheless, a doctor at Al-Abbasiya Fever Hospitals Virus Lab told Ahram Online earlier that only the critical cases, which are the minority, are diagnosed through PCR tests, while the majority of cases are diagnosed through CT scans. However, the ministrys daily toll is calculated based on PCR positive tests regardless of the number of positive cases diagnosed through CT scans.



Hosny added that if there was an intention to hide coronavirus infection numbers, it would rather be to conceal the numbers of deaths.



According to a report published on 14 September by the Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and Statistics, the number of males that died in Egypt since the pandemic has started reached 2,911 people compared to 2,254 female deaths.



Egypt gradually reopened the economy in June, lifting a night-time curfew, reopening restaurants and places of worship, and resuming regular international flights as part of its plans to coexist with the virus. The cabinet has warned, however, that restrictions will be reimposed should infection rates increase.



Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced a further easing of restrictions. Starting 21 September open-air funerals, wedding ceremonies, film festivals and conferences will be allowed with strict precautionary measures.

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Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Supreme Court justice, trailblazing feminist, and the closest thing to a folk hero the high court has ever seen, has died at the age of 87. The Supreme Court announced that she died Friday due to complications from metastatic pancreas cancer.

In a statement dictated to her granddaughter just days before her death, Ginsburg said, My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed.

Tributes began pouring in instantly. The chief justice, John Roberts, said in a statement that the country had lost a jurist of historic stature.

We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew hera tireless and resolute champion of justice.

How Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Became a Rock Star

Already the subject of two recent films and countless memes, RBG the pop-cultural icon has perhaps obscured Ginsburgs nearly unparalleled impact on the Supreme Court. Well before her dissent collar, jabots, and other decorative apparel; before the fiery dissents that rivaled those of the late Justice Antonin Scalia; even before Ginsburg ascended to the court, her place in judicial history was already assured.

Among 20th-century justices, only Thurgood Marshall played such a powerful role as an advocateMarshall in cases involving racial equality, Ginsburg in those involving gender equality.

From 1972, when she co-founded the ACLUs Womens Rights Project, until 1980 when she became a judge on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, Ginsburg altered the course of constitutional interpretation. She persuaded the Warren Court to extend the 14th Amendments Equal Protection clause to women.

In this nearly decade-long campaign, Ginsburg was as much canny strategist as outspoken advocate. In one landmark case, for example, she represented a widower, Stephen Wiesenfeld, who had been denied child care benefits because he was male. She won that case, which advanced the cause of gender equalityin part because it showed how gender discrimination hurt everyone, not just women.

Story continues

Notably, Ginsburg was already in her forties during this line of cases, because she herself had borne the brunt of discrimination against women.

Born in 1933 to a moderately religious Jewish family in Brooklyn, Ruth Bader quickly distinguished herself, graduating Phi Beta Kappa from Cornell University, then attending Harvard Law School (famously, she was one of nine women in a class of about 500 students total), and transferring to Columbia Law School when her husband, Martin, took a job in New York City. She graduated first in her class.

And yet, she was rejected from a prestigious Supreme Court clerkship, despite glowing recommendations, because she was a woman (she clerked for a district court in New York instead) and spent the 60s as a law professor at Rutgers, specializing primarily in the dry area of civil procedure. Only in the 70s did she find her true calling as a lawyer and professor focused on gender equality.

In the 80s, Ginsburg earned a reputationperhaps surprisingly, given her subsequent notorietyas a meticulous, deliberate moderate. After being nominated to the Supreme Court in 1993, she was confirmed by the Senate 96-3, despite articulating clearly liberal positions on the constitutional right to privacythe foundation of Roe v. Wade and other controversial casesand gender equality. (The myth that Ginsburg was somehow evasive about these issues, as Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh were at their confirmation hearings, has no basis in reality.)

Arguably, Ginsburgs latter-day reputation only began to take hold in the mid-2000s, as she dissented from rulings by an increasingly conservative Supreme Court. Had Ginsburg found her voice, as New York Times Supreme Court reporter Linda Greenhouse put it? Or had the Court simply moved so far to the right that Ginsburgs views, once mainstream, were now the subject of angry dissents? History will have to judge.

There are ample materials on which to base such a judgment: dissents in cases on so-called partial-birth abortion (Gonzales v. Carhart, 2007), workplace discrimination against women (Ledbetter v. Goodyear, 2007), access to contraception (Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, 2014), and many others.

The ability of women to participate equally in the economic and social life of the Nation has been facilitated by their ability to control their reproductive lives, Ginsburg wrote in her Hobby Lobby dissent, sharply criticizing the Courts holding that a corporation could withhold insurance coverage for contraception if it (the corporation) had religious reasons for doing so.

This was a lesson Ginsburg had learned herself. In 1956, she was demoted from her job at the Social Security Administration when she became pregnant. (When she became pregnant with her second child in 1965, she reportedly concealed her pregnancy with loose-fitting clothes.)

And now the Supreme Court had decided that a corporations religious freedom took precedence over womens access to contraception. Ginsburg called it a decision of startling breadth.

There were many such decisions in the last years of Ginsburgs career, as the Supreme Court upheld Donald Trumps unconscionable Muslim Ban, taking Trump at his word that it was actually a ban against various insecure countries; allowed a religious baker to turn away gay customers; and sharply curtailed voting rights across the country.

In a 2018 interview, Justice Ginsburg said that her judicial philosophy had been shaped by her Jewish experience, in particular the sense of being an outsiderof being one of the people who had suffered oppression for no sensible reason. Its the sense of being part of a minority. It makes you more empathetic to other people who are not insiders, who are outsiders.

In an age of resurgent xenophobia, nationalism, and hate, such empathy is perhaps more crucial than ever. It is a value that ran through Ginsburgs articles, briefs, opinions, and dissents. More than any notorious pop-cultural ephemera, it will be sorely missed.

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- The ceremony attracted more than 65 guests both family and friends against the official limit of 50 allowed at a gathering

- The Center for Disease Control and Prevention said they had traced 175 contacts from 24 people who initially tested positive

- The 24 patients had attended the nuptial which was also followed by a reception at the Big Moose Inn

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Authorities in the US have linked seven COVID-19 related deaths to a village wedding that was held at Maine in August.

The wedding that went down on August 7, 2020, attracted more than 65 guests both family and friends against the official limit of 50 allowed at a gathering at one particular time.

READ ALSO: ODM officials warn William Ruto to watch his tongue during his Nyanza tour

The ceremony was followed by a reception at Big Moose Inn. Photo: Yahoo News.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Uproar as Pumwani Maternity workers lockout woman giving birth from facility

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Tuesday, September 15, that they had traced 175 contacts from 24 people who initially tested positive, Washington Post reported.

The 24 patients had attended the nuptial which was also followed by a reception at the Big Moose Inn.

The state health officials confirmed seven patients have died, some of whom had no association with the ceremony leading o declaration of an imminent health hazard.

Maine CDC Director Nirav Shah blamed the incident on the nature of American rural homes where people congregate without any social distancing because they know each other.

All the things that make rural America more vulnerable to any kind of disturbance of the equilibrium are magnified tenfold when youre thinking about COVID-19.

People tend to congregate in small groups in rural areas where they know each other, and thats one of the things that makes rural areas great. But when it comes to COVID-19, it means that it can rip through a rural area like wildfire," he said.

By Saturday, September 19, USA had recorded 203,171 deaths making it the worst-hit nation globally with 6,925,941 positive cases.

The country has so far registered 4,191,894 recoveries and 2,530,876 active cases.

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Weve been hearing rumors and seeing leaks about an upcoming smartphone called Nokia 3.4, and a device that looks suspiciously similar has popped up in the United States FCC certification database. The schematics confirm two variants of the upcoming phone, a circular camera setup on the back and what appears to be a single punch hole in the upper left corner on the front.



Nokia 3.4 front and back schematics

The two listings from HMD have the TA-1283 and TA-1285 model codes - one is for the single SIM Nokia 3.4, the other is for the dual SIM version. The certification points to the phone launching on September 22 at HMD's next event.

The Nokia 3.4 is going to be another affordable handset by HMD Global - it will arrive with a Snapdragon 460 chipset, 3GB RAM and a basic 13MP + 5MP + 2MP camera setup on the back. The front-facing shooter should be 8MP and this whole package is probably going to cost under $200.

Source 1  Source 2 | Via
Adam Schiff was in the audience at the 2018 Aspen Security Forum when a Microsoft executive mentioned an attempted hacking of three politicians up for reelection. It was the first that Schiff, then the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, had ever heard of it.

Schiff said he thought it was odd that Congress hadnt been briefed. He got in touch with high-ranking officials in the intelligence agencies, and they didn't know about it, either. It turned out that Russian hackers had unsuccessfully tried to infiltrate the Senate computer network of then-Sen. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., and other unidentified candidates.

Two years later, Schiff says that breakdown is still emblematic of the disjointed effort among government agencies, Congress and private companies as they try to identify and address foreign election interference. But this year, with President Donald Trump adamant that Russia is not interfering and his administration often trying to block what Congress learns about election threats, its those private companies that often are being called upon to fill the breach.

Lawmakers welcome the help from the private sector and say the companies have become increasingly forthcoming, but its a haphazard way to get information. It allows the companies to control much of what the public knows, and some are more cooperative than others.

If a company wants to publicize it, thats great, says Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee. But what happens when they dont want to bring it to the attention of the government?

Thats what happened in 2016, when Russia spread disinformation through social media, including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Those companies were slow to recognize the problem and they initially balked at government requests for more information. But after Congress pushed them publicly, they gradually became more cooperative.

Now, Facebook and Twitter give Congress regular briefings to the intelligence committees, issue frequent reports about malicious activity and are part of a group that regularly meets with law enforcement and intelligence officials in the administration.

Microsoft, which is part of that group, announced last week that Russian hackers had tried to breach computers at more than 200 organizations, including political campaigns and their consultants. Most of the hacking attempts by Russian, Chinese and Iranian agents were halted by Microsoft security software and the targets notified. But the company would not say which candidates or entities may have been breached.

Lawmakers say the private sector can only do so much.

Its certainly important that the social media companies participate and cooperate, which they have not always done in the past, but that does not in any way replace the analysis that is done by the intelligence community, and I believe that analysis should be shared with Congress, says Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

That relationship between intelligence agencies and Congress has grown strained since Trump took office. He has has doubted the agencies' conclusions about Russian interference in 2016 and he fired, demoted and criticized officials who shared information he didnt like.

The current director of national intelligence, John Ratcliffe, a close Trump ally, tried to end most in-person election security briefings  a decision he later reversed after criticism from lawmakers from both parties. But Ratcliffe maintains that his office will not provide all member briefings for all lawmakers, citing what he says were leaks from some of those meetings this year.

Lawmakers say that in restricting what's given to Congress, the administration is effectively restricting what it tells the public about election security and misinformation. That threatens to sow confusion, just as foreign adversaries such as Russia are hoping for.

Schiff, now chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, has pressured the companies to act more quickly, including taking down misinformation before it goes viral, not after. He has particular concerns about Google, which owns YouTube, and says it has been less transparent than others. Schiff and other lawmakers have stepped up concerns about doctored videos and foreign-owned news outlets spreading fake news on the video platform.

At a hearing with tech companies in June, Schiff pressed Google, saying that it has essentially adopted a strategy of keeping its head down and avoiding attention to its platform while others draw heat.

Richard Salgado, Googles director for law enforcement and information security, told Schiff: I certainly hope that is not the perception. If it is, it is a misperception, Mr. Chairman.

Google has made some disclosures, including recently revealing a Chinese effort to target Trump campaign staffers and an Iranian groups attempt to target the Biden campaign. But the company gave little detail on the attacks, including when they took place or how many were targeted.

Still, the companies have stepped up in many cases.

Facebook and Microsoft have been making disclosures to the public while also working behind the scenes with the federal government and the intelligence committees. Facebook issues a monthly release on foreign and domestic election activity, and Microsoft has publicly disclosed more than a dozen instances of threat activity since Schiff was caught unaware at the Aspen event in 2018.

The executive who revealed the Russian activity at that event, Microsofts Tom Burt, says the company has learned to be more proactive with the federal government. He says the attempted hackings were not something he had planned to announce at the security forum, but he answered honestly when asked a question by the moderator. Today, Burt says the company gives federal and congressional authorities a heads-up when they have announcements about election interference.

Foreign attackers are persistent, they are skilled, they are super well-resourced, and they are going to continue to try and interfere with the electoral process and try to sow distrust with the American people, Burt said.

As lawmakers pursue other channels of information, there are still places where the public sector cannot help. Florida Rep. Stephanie Murphy, a Democrat, has been fighting for more than a year to have the administration publicly identify the two Florida counties where Russian hackers gained access to voter databases before the 2016 election.

The only way you can fight that disinformation is with transparency, and the U.S. government has to be transparent about the attacks on our democracy by providing the information, Murphy said. I think maybe companies are accustomed to disclosing when they have had breaches, and that is why you are seeing corporate America leading.

___

Associated Press writer Frank Bajak in Boston contributed to this report.
Unfortunately, we have very little information, said Dr. Vasily V. Vlassov, a professor of epidemiology and vice president of the Russian Association for Evidence-Based Medicine. His organization had opposed approval of the vaccine before testing it.

We cannot understand how much is P.R. and how much is a violation of medical ethics, he said of the announcement that the vaccine had been approved for use outside a clinical trial. If few Russians are receiving the vaccine, the early approval appears less troubling, he said.

Maybe nothing scary is happening in reality and only the announcement was scary, he said.

Svetlana Zavidova, the director of a pharmaceutical trade group, the Association of Clinical Trial Organizations, which also opposed the hasty approval, said the limited use was encouraging news, even as its reasons are unclear.

Is it a question of limited production or more of a political decision? she said. Either way, of course from my point of view it is better they limit their activity to only clinical trials, as we said from the beginning.

The trial in Russia began on Sept. 9, and Russian officials have said they expect early results before the end of the year, though the Gamaleya Institute, the scientific body that developed the vaccine, has scheduled the trial to continue until May.

That timeline is similar to the testing schedules announced by the three pharmaceutical companies testing potential vaccines in the United States, AstraZeneca, Moderna and Pfizer.

AstraZeneca paused its trial this month after a test subject experienced symptoms of a neurological disease, transverse myelitis, as a possible side effect. The trial has since resumed in Britain but not the United States.
In the past six years, Plainview Police officers have become more visible and involved in the community, theyve been held to higher standards, have more resources and have attained recognitions for their generally more elevated profile. Longtime officers, Captains Manuel Balderas and Dion Guerra said those achievements are attributed to the leadership of Chief Ken Coughlin.

Chief Coughlin was hired in 2014 and will cap his six years with the department and his law enforcement career on Friday, Sept. 25. He sat down with The Herald this week to reflect on his career, including his time in Plainview, and on whats up next.

A career in law enforcement was never something he pictured for himself as a kid. He was a self-proclaimed troublemaker and that type of career just didnt seem likely.

Im a firm believer that God puts you where he wants you, Coughlin said.

He joined the United States Air Force at 17 years old, which led him down a law enforcement path. Given options, Coughlin chose to be trained as a cop  skills which he carried over later when he transitioned to life as a civilian.

More Information Public Retirement Reception for Chief Ken Coughlin Date: Tuesday, Sept. 22 Time: 4:30-6 p.m. Place: Plainview Country Club, 2902 W. 4th St. Additional information: Guests are asked to wear masks, practice social distancing and not linger to ensure everyone interested gets a chance to wish Chief Coughlin well. See More Collapse

I saw a lot of good that could be done, he said.

But he didnt approach law enforcement right away after the military. He was saved during his enlistment and chose to pursue Christian ministry at Southwestern Bible College in Waxahachie.

I like reaching out and helping people where theyre at, he said.

So he spent some time in the ministry before joining the police department in Wichita Falls.

He left law enforcement in 2004 and turned his talents to real estate and working with child protective services.

By then, hed made a promise to his family that he wouldnt relocate until his youngest graduated from high school.

Now he looks back with amusement at how the opportunity to work in Plainview unfolded.

He was in Las Vegas with his wife when he was notified that he got the job with the Plainview PD. Hed been approached by a head hunter after throwing his name into a database that helps find the best fit for candidates and the agencies that hire them.

This year, he said, he was in Vegas again after making it known to city officials that he would retire and the hunt for his replacement began.

Coughlin reflects fondly on his time in Plainview.

One of the highlights of his time here is the growth state recognition of the Cops & Kids program. Its a testament to the relationships hes tried to encourage Plainview PD officers to build with those they serve.

You cant serve someone you dont understand, Coughlin said.

From that aspect, Balderas and Guerra said Coughlin has led by example. Over the last six years, Coughlin has served the Plainview Area United Way, Plainview Lions Club, the South Plains Police Chiefs Association, High Plains Police Chief Association, to name a few.

As chief, part of his job is to be visible, Balderas added, but Coughlin goes above and beyond.

Hes also encouraged more training for officers and holds those who serve in the department to higher standards.

Balderas, who joined the department in 1990 and is the longest-serving officer with the department, said Coughlin always encourages him and his colleagues to work toward the extra certification or complete the extra training. Hes helped them make time and effort to better themselves.

Another aspect of the job Coughlin has shed light on and taken steps to address is mental health of those who serve. Most dont understand the trauma police officers are exposed to and the deep scars it creates. Hes faced his own traumas through his career, which has spanned a collective 32 years, so hes made it a priority to ensure those under his leadership get the help they need.

Coughlin has also done what he can to make sure the department has the resources it needs. Balderas noted that the department now has extra narcotics officers, more efficient vehicles and better equipment.

He fights for our department, Balderas said.

Coughlins experience in Wichita Falls proved valuable for the Plainview PD.

He brought ideas and got us more involved with the community, Guerra said.

Guerra, who joined the department in 1993 and is also among the longest-serving police officers in the department, said Coughlin has also raised the profile of the departments SWAT team.

The department added a special SWAT vehicle to its fleet under Coughlins leadership.

The captains both noted that Coughlins an overall hard worker. Balderas said hes usually among the first to arrive  adding that its not unusual to see him going through video, reviewing cases, wrapping paperwork in the early morning hours  and hes one of the last to leave each day.

Coughlin said his career has been rewarding but hes looking forward to spending more quality time watching his grandkids grow.

Its difficult for some to envision the big picture, he said. But hell be satisfied if when hes long gone, Ive earned the right to have he was a good cop on my grave, Coughlin said.
Fearing that her nine-year-old son would disclose her extra-marital affair to her husband, a migrant woman strangled the boy to death with her lovers help at Nalagarh in Solan district, police said on Saturday.

The woman, identified as Kamlesh, and her partner, Ashok, were arrested for the murder that was executed on September 14 when the boy saw the two together. Police said the woman panicked that her son would tell his father about her affair so they both strangled the boy, killing him on the spot. They disposed the body in a nearby field.

Unable to find his son, the boys father, Aasra Ram, lodged a complaint with the police.

On being questioned, Kamlesh said that the boy had gone to his aunts house but had not returned.

On September 16, the police found the body of the boy in the field after which they questioned the aunt, who said that he had not visited her.

The police checked the CCTV footage of a hospital near the boys house and found that after Kamlesh and Ashok arrived, the boy had also entered the house but did not come out.

The accused were interrogated again and they admitted to committing the crime. They were arrested on Friday evening.

Baddi superintendent of police Rohit Malpani said a case was registered under Section 302 of Indian Penal Code (IPC).
WASHINGTON - More than a 1,000 mourners gathered outside the U.S. Supreme Court late Friday to pay tribute to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died earlier in the day at the age of 87.

They gathered in small groups, some crying, others holding flowers or candles. A few clutched posters, including one woman whose hand drawn sign portrayed Ginsburg as a saint.

Sporadic songs and applause rang out over the murmur of the growing crowd and bubbling fountains.

Elizabeth LaBerge wrapped her arms around her fiance Will Sullivan, lay her head on his shoulder and quietly sobbed.

The Capitol Hill attorney arrived at the Court plaza filled with fear for the future of the nation as Ginsberg's death represents another loss from the ranks of people who have made "serious law and order a mission of their lives."

"I was telling my fiance, the question that keeps popping up in my head is who is going to take care of us?," LaBerge, 36, said in an interview. "It just feels like such a deep loss at this particular time. It's a lot to put on a woman of her age to keep us safe and functioning as a constitutional democracy."

"I'm very grateful and sad for the loss and worried for my country."

The crowds began arriving at the steps of the Court plaza minutes after the news of Ginsburg's death hit social media. Each of the bollards protecting the courthouse supported a mourner slumped to the ground. It was quiet, and an occasional breeze brushed the listless flag.

By 9:30 p.m., the crowd had swelled to at least 1,000 people.

As people sang "This Land is Our Land," Adrienne Jacobs clutched a friend, who sobbed into Jacobs's shoulder so hard that her glasses fogged up.

When Jacobs, 30, had heard that Ginsburg had died, she raced over to the Supreme Court, a Revel scooter helmet in her arms.

"I live alone," she said. "And I didn't want to be alone."

From behind a floral print mask, Jacobs said Ginsburg had been an inspiration to many women.

As she spoke, a commotion began near the sidewalk, where conservative provocateurs Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman were arguing with a small crowd.

"Roe v Wade is getting abolished," Wohl said into a microphone as a man waved a cardboard "RIP RBG" sign in Wohl's face and television cameras gathered. "RBG is dead. We're going to have a new Justice next week."

"Have some respect" several mourners shouted. Others called Wohl a "fascist" or a "Nazi" and told him to leave.

After five tense minutes he did.

The scene was once again solemn.

- - -

The Washington Post's Petula Dvorak contributed to this report.
National eyewear chain Oscar Wylee has been hit with a $3.5 million penalty over a misleading advertising campaign that claimed the company would donate a pair of frames to "someone in need" for every pair sold.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission launched Federal Court action against the chain in December last year over marketing claims made between January 2014 and December 2018 about the company's philanthropic work and charitable affiliations.

The ACCC took Oscar Wylee to court over its 'Buy 1 Pair, Give 1 Pair' campaign.

The court heard Oscar Wylee had sold 328,010 pairs of glasses in that period and donated 3181 pairs  falling 324,829 frames short of its "buy a pair, give a pair" marketing slogan. It donated no frames between 2015 and 2017.

In 2019, after the ACCC investigation began, the company donated 333,404 frames to charities, foundations, hospitals or prisons, and $80,000 to charitable causes.
Amare NFP and the Metro-East Recovery Council (MERC) are partnering on a new Family Support Network to assist family members and friends in need of support or resources due to a loved ones alcohol or drug use. The network, launched on September 15th, will provide a phone line manned by volunteers with lived experience.

The Partnership to End Addiction estimates that 23.5 million Americans are addicted to at least one substance, equaling one in every ten people over the age of 12. The families and friends of these individuals often experience serious emotional, physical, and financial stress as a result of their focus on trying to help their loved one recover.
In May this year, the government announced important reforms in agricultural markets. These included deregulation of farm foods from the Essential Commodities Act (ECA). Farmers were also allowed to sell their produce outside government-regulated markets, or Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs). Another set of changes allowed farmers to enter contract farming. While the government claims that these reforms will help farmers in getting a better price for their products, farmers groups have been agitating against these changes. Why are farmers opposing policies which are designed to help them? There are three factors which could explain these protests.

Farmers do not trust big capital, and for good reason

The entire logic of abolishing the monopoly of APMCs is that they artificially depress prices for farmers; allowing corporate players will guarantee better returns to farmers, the argument goes. Whether or not this happens cannot be said today. But farmers have a good reason to be circumspect about claims of growing presence of corporates being unambiguously good for them. Agricultural input markets , such as seeds, pesticides etc. have seen a large-scale corporatisation in the past decade, but this has been accompanied by a sharp rise in prices of intermediate inputs in agriculture. Data from the ministry of agriculture shows that a rising cost of intermediate goods has been the biggest reason for stagnation and eventual decline in terms of trade for farmers. Given this experience, the suspicion towards growing footprint of big capital leading to a squeeze in earnings cannot be dismissed just as dogma. It is not very difficult to understand why this happens. Farmers are often hard-pressed for resources against traders and end up selling their output when prices are lower. Replacing local traders with big capital will only increase this gap in bargaining power.

Farmers were never very anti-APMC to begin with

The claim that agricultural markets were completely shackled before these reforms is factually incorrect. A National Statistical Office (NSO) report based on a 2012-13 survey found that farmers have been selling large part of their produce to private traders outside APMCs even earlier. For 31 crops sold between July 2012 and June 2013, local private traders were the single biggest buyers in the case of 29 crops. Mandis, not all of which were under APMCs, were the biggest buyers in just two crops; arhar in the kharif season and gram in the rabi season. Except in soybean, the share of farmers selling their crops to mandis did not even exceed 25% for any crop. In fact, farmers want more rather than less government intervention. A Reserve Bank of Indiastudy based on a survey of farmers and traders in 2018 found that more than 50% farmers found Minimum Support Price for crops to be the most beneficial scheme for farmers. This number was just around one-fifth for e-NAM, a pan-India trading portal introduced by the Modi government. Even on the priority list of measures that may help in right cropping decisions/better price realisation and abolition of intermediaries (which is what doing away with monopoly of APMC would achieve) was ranked way below facilities such as reliable weather forecasts and storage facilities.

The political economy of big-farmer protests

There is merit in the criticism that the prevailing APMC model perpetuates some form of rent-seeking behaviour, both public and private, especially in the so-called green revolution areas. APMCs levy commission on the produce which is sold on their premises. This is a source of income for both governments and licensed traders. States such as Punjab and Haryana charge a higher commission than others. For example, the Shanta Kumar committee on restructuring the Food Corporation of India noted that Punjab and Haryana were charging a commission of 14.5% and 11.5% on wheat while this was just 3.6% in Rajasthan. This commission is a valuable source of revenue for these governments. The local elite, which have diversified interests in both farming and trading also benefit from the process. Any move to suddenly do away with these benefits, irrespective of its merits or demerits, is bound to trigger a political backlash.

The resignation of Harsimrat Kaur Badal of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) from the union cabinet is a case in point. According to the CSDS-Lokniti National Election Study, in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the SAD-BJP alliance had a lead of 25 percentage points over the Congress among Jat-Sikhs in Punjab. The SAD-BJP had the biggest support among this community, which represents the landed elite in Punjab, and which has also been the traditional supporter of SADs politics. By 2019, this massive lead had turned into a four percentage point deficit vis-a-vis the Congress. Also, in the 2019 elections, the SAD-BJP alliance polled the most votes among Hindu upper castes, who are more of an urban demography in the state. With the Congress government in Punjab attacking these reforms, the SAD clearly fears losing its support among its traditional loyalists, the Jat Sikhs.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Roshan Kishore Roshan Kishore is a journalist with Hindustan Times in New Delhi. He focuses on political economy issues with a data-driven approach. ...view detail
In this article, we present the 10 countries with the highest suicide rates in the world. Click to skip ahead and see the 5 countries with the highest suicide rates in the world.

In the midst of the worst pandemic in a century, depression, isolation and suicides have all increased dramatically. Billions of people across the world have had to go into lockdowns to avoid the spread of Covid-19, which at the time of this article had already resulted in nearly 30 million cases and over 940,000 deaths. People weren't allowed to go out for anything except for absolute necessities and this continued for several months (and still is in place for some countries).

Humans are social animals, and most people are not suited to long periods of isolation. It's why solitary confinement in jails is now considered a cruel and unusual punishment, and even likened to torture. As we have been forced to isolate, and been unable to interact with people in person, it has led to significantly higher depression rates, self harm and eventually suicide, including in the US, and you can learn more if you visit the 25 states with the highest suicide rates in America.

Pixabay/Public Domain

Suicide is already one of the biggest contributors to global deaths. The rates vary significantly from country to country, though there is a caveat to official statistics. In some countries, suicide is seen as the coward's way out, which is completely incorrect and offensive to those who commit suicide, though some cultures are yet to see the right side of things. Hence, families and loved ones of those who have committed suicide try to hide the fact and come up with other reasons, thus leading to incorrect statistics.

The statistics for suicides are enlightening, albeit depressing as well. Over 800,000 people die from suicide every single year, which means a death every 40 seconds. Again, due to the aforementioned stigma, this number is likely to be much higher and maybe even be in excess of a million annual deaths. Globally, 1.4% of total deaths were from suicide, though of course this varies from country to country. In South Korea, suicides contribute to a depressing 5% share of total deaths while in Indonesia, this number is 0.5%. Males are nearly twice as likely to commit suicide than females as well, which is an interesting point.

Story continues

To rank the countries with the highest suicides, we headed on over to the Global Health Data Exchange, and calculated the age standardized suicide rates for both 2016 and 2017, the latest years for which the information was available, at a country level. We then took the average from both rankings to calculate our very own rankings. Sadly, little has changed in the rankings year from year and these countries may be host to 17 cities with the highest suicide rate per capita. And if you want, you can compare this list to our previously published 30 countries with the highest suicide rates in the world and see what has changed over the years. So let's take a look at the countries which need to do a lot better in their approach to mental illnesses, starting with number 10:

10. Papua New Guinea

Around 23 people per every 100,000 people commit suicide in Papa New Guinea. Shame, depression and other mental health issues are said to contribute to the exceptionally high rate.

papua, new, port, guinea, shine, town, moresby, flag, anthem, steel, national, travel, guinean, cloth, glowing, yellow, urban,

Natanael Ginting/Shutterstock.com

9. Suriname

With a rate of nearly 25 deaths per 100,000 people Suriname has a major suicide problem and is evidence of a serious mental health problem in the country.

Pixabay/Public Domain

8. Russia

Communism may not be the best solution after all, or else there wouldn't be more than 25 suicides per 100,000 people in Russia.

Pixabay/Public Domain

7. Kiribati

Over 2% of the total deaths in the small country are from suicide. Since its a very small country with a population of just 115,000, even a single suicide affects the rate significantly.

Pixabay/Public Domain

6. Guyana

While it has registered a slight decrease from 2016, more than 26 people per 100,000 still commit suicide in the country. High poverty rates, economic insecurity and high rates of HIV and AIDs are said to be causes behind this high rate.

Click to continue reading and see the 5 countries with the highest suicide rates in the world. Disclosure: 10 countries with the highest suicide rates in the world is originally published at Insider Monkey.
The officer had been travelling with Mr Raab on a visit to the US when he left his gun on a plane at Londons Heathrow Airport on Friday.

The gun was reportedly found by a cleaner.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: We are aware of the incident on a flight into the UK on Friday, 18 September and we are taking this matter extremely seriously.

The officer involved has since been removed from operational duties whilst an internal investigation into the circumstances is taking place.

In a similar incident in February this year, former prime minister David Camerons bodyguard left his gun in a plane toilet.

Passports belonging to Mr Cameron and the officer were also found alongside the weapon, according to newspaper reports at the time.

The gun, believed to be a 9mm Glock 17 pistol, was found by a passenger, who handed it to flight attendants on a transatlantic flight.

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Mr Raab visited Washington this week to speak with senior figures including US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on issues of Brexit and Northern Ireland.
BERRIEN COUNTY, MI  No one was injured after a car caught on railroad tracks was struck by an Amtrak train in southwest Michigan late Friday, authorities said.

Police responded to the car vs. train crash at 9:29 p.m. Friday, Sept. 18, at a railroad crossing in the 3400 block of Pier Road near Lynch Road in Hager Township, according to a news release issued by the Berrien County Sheriffs Office.

The driver of the car reportedly had driven off the road at the railroad crossing and got stuck on the tracks, police said. Witnesses at the scene told police the driver had gotten out of the vehicle before it was struck by the oncoming Amtrak train.

Witnesses reportedly saw the driver flee from the area after the vehicle was struck by the train, according to the news release.

Police said there was considerable damage to both the vehicle and the Amtrak train as a result of the crash. There were no injuries in the collision.

Railroad crossing lights were flashing and the crossing arms were down at the time of the crash, according to the release. The train had been blowing its horn before it crashed into the vehicle, police said.

The crash remains under investigation by the sheriffs department.

Sheriffs deputies were assisted at the scene by Michigan State Police, Amtrak Police Department and CSX Maintenance Personnel.

More on MLive:

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Grand Rapids police promise high visibility presence in areas battling violence

Kalamazoo police chief heard calls to resign, Proud Boys chaos last straw, activists say
Sports Mole previews Sunday's Premier League fixture between Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur, including team news and injury news.

Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur square off at St Mary's on Sunday afternoon having both suffered defeat on the opening weekend of the new Premier League season.

A day after the Saints succumbed by a 1-0 scoreline at Crystal Palace, Spurs suffered the same fate at home to Everton.

Match preview

 Reuters

While much of the talk this week has been regarding the return of Gareth Bale, Jose Mourinho and his players have been focused on trying to negotiate their first test in the Europa League qualifying rounds against Lokomotiv Plovdiv.

Despite naming a stronger side than expected, Mourinho watched his side have to overcome a one-goal deficit in Bulgaria to move closer to the group stages.

Their victory has added yet another fixture to a punishing schedule which sees Spurs face away games at the Saints, Leyton Orient and Macedonian side Shkendija in the space of five days.

On paper, the North Londoners are favourites for each contest, but Mourinho needs a reaction from his squad after two disappointing performances since the beginning of the campaign.

Although the Portuguese was critical of his team's fitness after the 1-0 defeat against Everton, their upcoming list of matches should give each member of the group a chance to get up to speed.

As far as Southampton are concerned, Ralph Hasenhuttl has been left perplexed by his team's less-than-inspiring displays during defeats to Crystal Palace and Brentford.

Having ended the last campaign on a high, most people expected the South Coast side to continue their momentum as they bid to break into the top half of the standings.

Despite it being early days, Hasenhuttl quickly needs to witness his side show a greater threat in all areas, not just from last season's top goalscorer Danny Ings.

To add to his frustration, the Austrian has revealed that big-money arrival Mohammed Salisu will not slot into the centre of the backline until the back end of October.

Southampton Premier League form: L

Southampton form (all competitions): LL

Tottenham Hotspur Premier League form: L

Tottenham Hotspur form (all competitions): LW



Team News

 Reuters

Having picked up a knock against Brentford, it is unclear whether Nathan Redmond will retain his place on the flank.

Shane Long and Michael Obafemi are pushing to replace Che Adams in attack, while Jannik Vestergaard is an option for a recall in defence.

Bale and Sergio Reguilon have not been signed in time to make their debuts for Spurs this weekend.

Mourinho is likely to make several changes, however, with Tanguy Ndombele and Erik Lamela both in contention for a start in midfield.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg will hope to feature against his former side.

Southampton possible starting lineup:

McCarthy; Walker-Peters, Stephens, Vestergaard, Bertrand; Smallbone, Ward-Prowse, Romeu, Djenepo; Ings, Long

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Lloris; Doherty, Alderweireld, Dier, Davies; Ndombele, Hojbjerg; Moura, Lamela, Son; Kane

We say: Southampton 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur

Given the short turnaround, most Spurs supporters will not necessarily expect much from their side when they take to the pitch this weekend. However, they have the quality within their ranks to claim a share of the spoils against opposition who are not firing on all cylinders.

Video prediction

Watch the Sports Mole Football Shorts prediction for this game below:

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Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Friday adjourned the hearing on bail pleas of late actor Sushant Singh Rajputs aide Samuel Miranda and two others, arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in a drugs case related to the actors death. Justice Sarang Kotwal said drug trafficking was a serious issue and the NCB can probe a person even if no drugs have been recovered from him.

He asked Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, who appeared for the NCB, and the applicants lawyers to address the court particularly on sections 27 (A) and 37 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. Section 27(A) deals with the quantity of drugs seized while section 37 imposes a bar on grant of bail.

Miranda, Rajputs domestic aide Dipesh Sawant and alleged drug peddler Abdul Basit Parihar have moved the high court for bail. Last week, a special court had rejected the bail pleas of Rajputs girlfriend and actor Rhea Chakraborty, her brother Showik, Sawant, Miranda, Parihar, and Zaid Vilatra, another accused.

The NCB opposed their bail pleas before the special court saying they had been arrested for their roles in financing and procuring drugs. Rhea and her brother have not moved the HC for bail.

Others have contended before the HC that no drugs were recovered from them, and whatever contraband the NCB has recovered in the case is very small in quantity. Parihars lawyer Taraq Sayed argued on Friday that the NCB had recovered a total of 59 grams of ganja" from two other accused persons, which was less than commercial quantity" (commercial quantity attracts higher punishment).

Parihar, Miranda and Sawant had been booked for bailable offences, he pointed out. Sayed also argued that while section 27A, which provides for punishment for financing illicit traffic of drugs, attracts a bar on grant of bail, his client was not even charged under 27A.

Justice Kotwal said that at the next date, all the parties will have to elaborate on whether financing a small quantity of drugs will also attract the bar on bail. He also noted that even if the NCB did not recover anything from an accused, it was free to conduct probe.

You might be a dealer and therefore, not having anything in your possession," the judge said. The idea is that you have to break down the chain of illicit trafficking of drugs. This is a serious issue and trafficking has to be stopped. So the agency is free to go after an accused irrespective of recoveries," he said.

The applicants also argued that the NCB was trying to show as if Rajput, a person worth crores, was so broke that his girlfriend and staff were financing his drugs". The court said it will examine the facts of the case on September 29, the next date.

This issue (drug trafficking) covers all cases of the past, present, and future. I am in no hurry to pass any orders. The ASG will have to respond to all issues because, whatever I say, is going to affect many cases," the judge said. .
Mayor Byron W. Brown on Friday named 12 members of an advisory panel to examine the city's police practices and make recommendations within 60 days.

In a statement released Friday, Brown said the group will be tasked with recommending new police policies, as well as developing a strategy to improve the social and economic prospects for Buffalo's minority residents.

He has asked the group to create a report within 60 days.

Brown first pledged to create the commission in June as part of a package of policing changes aimed at shifting the city's policing to a "restorative model."

In the statement, Brown shared a written endorsement of the commission by Buffalo Common Council President Darius Pridgen, who said the creation of such a commission was requested by city lawmakers.

My hope is that they will thoughtfully and deliberately conduct a thorough review of the Buffalo Police Departments policies and then propose such revisions that will create a radical shift in policing throughout the City of Buffalo, Pridgen said.
Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/Getty

If Donald Trump is not criminally prosecuted for his intentional misleading of Americans about the deadly risks of COVID-19, plus now holding rallies where he intentionally violates state mandates designed to protect people from contracting a virus that has taken more than 195,000 lives, then America is truly lawless. Theres no other way to look at. Why even have laws on the books if Trump can openly violate them with zero consequences?!

The undisputed facts are that Trump knew how deadly and easily transmittable the virus was on Feb. 7as we learned from the recently released audio recording of his discussion with Bob Woodward. In this conversation, Trump shared how the virus could be spread through the air and was five times more deadly than even your strenuous flus.

Yet just three weeks later, on Feb. 26with the American public hungry for facts to keep themselves and their familys safe from this virus which was then ravaging parts of Europe and Chinahe stood up in the White House and lied, stating: I mean, view this the same as the flu. Trump repeated that lie various times over the next few months.

Trump has defended his lie by claiming he was trying to keep America calm. In reality, Trump deprived Americans of the facts needed to keep themselves safe, thus, leading thousands of Americans to their death like lambs to the slaughter.

And now, Trump's apparent new idea of keeping people "calm" during the pandemic is to hold massive rallies with neither masks nor social distancing in violation of state mandates. For example, last Tuesday, Trump held a rally in North Carolina that violated the states mandate that outdoor gatherings be limited to 50 people and that all people wear a mask.

And over the weekend, Trump held two rallies in Nevada, one indoors, again violating the states rules on social distancing and mask wearing. Trump ironically speaks of law and order while encouraging his supporters to break the law and potentially infect people with a life-threatening virus.

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After Sunday nights rally in Henderson, Nevada, that packed thousands into an indoor venue, Nevadas Governor Steve Sisolak slammed Trump for violating the state emergency directives with his reckless and selfish actions that are putting countless lives in danger here in Nevada. The governor added, As usual, he doesnt believe the rules apply to him.

Keep in mind that Nevada is struggling with a 11.5 percent COVID positivity ratethats well above the 5 percent the World Health Organization recommends as the maximum for when states should re-open. But Trump doesnt care. First, as he told The Las Vegas Review-Journal before Sunday nights rally, hes not concerned with getting the virus since, Im on a stage, and its very far away. Second, Trump has no problem sacrificing his supporters health and even lives if it helps get the optics of large crowds he believes helps him in this election.

Even before Trumps admission in the Woodward tape and recent rallies, a case couldve been made for manslaughter against Trump, according to former 24-year federal prosecutor and current MSNBC legal analyst Glenn Kirschner. Kirschner summed up the crux of the crime in July as, Trump had a duty to act as President and violated that by knowingly failing to warn the public about the known threats of the virus.

But now Kirschner, who served as head of the homicide section of the U.S. Attorneys Office in Washington, D.C., sees Trumps conduct as even worse: What Donald Trump has just done by virtue of the tapes that Bob Woodward released, is he has upped his own criminal ante to second-degree murder. Pointing to the fact Trump knew the virus was five times more lethal than the flu in early February but lied about it, Kirschner told me this fulfills the intent element required for second-degree murder in that Trump consciously disregarded the extreme risk he was creating to other human beings and was aware by doing so Americans would suffer death or serious bodily injury.

Kirschner added that Trumps lies together with his failure to provide Americans with personal protective equipment, including masks, to hospitals and those in need despite knowing in early February it was an airborne virus, further bolsters the potential criminal charges against Trump.

The exact number of people killed by Trumps misconduct is difficult to fix. An often-cited study from Columbia University epidemiologists released in May found that if the lockdown in the United States occurred one week earlier than March 15, about 40 percent of the fatalities, or 36,000 deaths at that time, couldve been prevented. And if the lockdown in United States had begun on March 1, over 54,000 lives couldve been saved.

But what was Trump doing on Feb. 28 instead of planning for a lockdown? He was at a rally calling the risks posed by COVID-19 the Democrats new hoax. What were Democrats saying at the time that caused Trump to attack them? Democratic leaders from Chuck Schumer to Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), chair of the House Appropriations Committee, were slamming Trump for not being prepared for the threat posed by the virus and not having a plan to protect Americans from it.

Putting the nuances of criminal law aside, theres clearly a sense that Trump should and must be held responsible for his misleading Americans about COVID, and now for his rallies where hes encouraging his supporters to violate social distancing measures despite our country averaging 850 dead Americans a day since early September. CNN medical analyst Dr. Jonathan Reiner said Monday that Trump was guilty of negligent homicide for holding indoor rallies. While on MSNBCs Morning Joe, Dave Aronberg, the state attorney for Palm Beach County, made the case that Trump should be civilly liable for anyone contracting the virus at his rallies that violate social distancing mandates.

The bottom line is the same. Trump must be held accountable for intentionally misleading good Americans to their deaths and for now encouraging others to violate social distancing mandates. Anything less means Trump has succeeded at making himself the above-the-law king he dreams of being.

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By PTI

MUMBAI: The Shiv Sena on Saturday questioned the Modi government's policies on economy, trade and agriculture, and alleged that it was moving towards privatisation of airports, Air India and railways and giving the control of farmers' lives to traders and private players.

The party also alleged that the Centre introduced Bills on agriculture "without consulting" its allies, farmers' organisation's, opposition parties, and said the resignation of Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal has brought the issue to the fore.

In an editorial in its mouthpiece 'Saamana', the Sena said the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) during the time of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and senior BJP leader L K Advani was "different" as they used to "treat the NDA constituents with respect and consult with them".

"Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) member Harsimrat Kaur Badal has resigned from the Union Cabinet. The Modi government brought two anti-farmers bills (in Parliament) and she resigned in protest. Her resignation has been accepted. The Shiv Sena has already walked out of the NDA and now comes the SAD's move," it said.

"During the time of Vajpayee and Advani, the NDA allies used to be treated with respect, affection and trust. There used to be consultations on policy decisions and BJP leaders would hear out the views of the allies. In those times, spoken word had value," the Sena said.

"Like Maharashtra, Punjab is an agrarian economy. Hence, before introducing the farmers' Bills, the government should have held talks with the representatives of farmers' organisations and agriculture expertsin Maharashtra, Punjab and the rest of the country," it added.

The Bills propose to create a system wherein traders can purchase farmers' products even outside 'mandis'.

The Congress, DMK and Trinamool Congress opposed this proposal. They think it is anti-farmers, the Uddhav Thackeray-led party said.

"The Centre is pushing for privatisation of airports, Air India, ports, railways, insurance companies, and also giving control of farmers' lives to traders and private players.

The Modi government's policies regarding economy, trade, agriculture create doubts," it alleged.

"The government says that the new system would benefit farmers. Even if one believes it to be true, what was the harm in holding consultations with a few leading farmer leaders in the country? It should have at least held talks with NCP chief Sharad Pawar. But this government has nothing to do with the words 'dialogue' or 'consultation'," the Sena said.

The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill.

Harsimrat Kaur Badal said her decision to resign from the Union Cabinet to protest the farm sector bills symbolises her "party's vision, its glorious legacy and its commitment to go to any extent to safeguard the interests of farmers".
The Central Bureau of Investigation has filed a supplementary charge sheet in the 3,727 crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper case, naming nine Indian nationals including Rajiv Saxena; the former managing director of AgustaWestland, Giacomino Saponaro; and five companies that allegedly played a crucial role in facilitating the movement of kickbacks meant for politicians, bureaucrats and Indian Air Force officials, people familiar with the probe said.

The charge sheet, the second in the case  first was filed in September 2017 naming former IAF chief S P Tyagi and 10 others  doesnt name any politician or government official. It also doesnt name former defence secretary Shashi Kant Sharma, then Air Vice Marshal Jasbir Singh Panesar and three senior retired IAF officials, chief test pilot S A Kunte, Wing Commander Thomas Mathew and retired Group Captain N Santosh. The agency recently sought sanction from the defence ministry to prosecute former bureaucrats and IAF officials. The sanction is yet to be accorded.

Investigation against beneficiaries has been kept pending for now but a supplementary charge sheet will soon be filed against politicians and government officers, said one of the people familiar with the matter.

Among those arraigned as accused in the CBI charge sheet, filed on Friday, are Rajiv Saxena, a middleman who was deported to India from Dubai in January 2019 and was made an approver in the case by the Enforcement Directorate in April the same year. However, the anti-money laundering probe agency sought revocation of his approver status in November last year alleging that he has misled the investigators and is not reliable. The matter is still pending in courts. The Delhi high court had refused to revoke his approver status.

ED has accused Saxena of being a hawala operator who ran accommodation entry business in Dubai through shell companies. Accommodation entry is an aspect of money laundering where a sum of money is broken up and moved to several accounts over a period of time so as to make the transaction difficult to trace.

Apart from Saxena, the eight other Indians, who helped create shell companies, or assisted AgustaWestland in procuring documents related to the VVIP chopper contract, named by CBI are: SP Tyagis cousin Sandeep Tyagi, Praveen Bakshi, Pratap Krishan Aggarwal (ex-Managing Director of IDS Infotech Ltd), Narendra Kumar Jain, Rajesh Kumar Jain of Kolkata, Sunil Kothari, Deepak Goyal, KV Kunhikrishnan (former GM of Westland Support Services Ltd, New Delhi). Kunhikrishnan has been linked to British middleman Christian Michel, who helped him procure contract documents and and former managing director of AgustaWestland - Giacomino Saponaro.

CBIs latest charge sheet establishes how a cash payment of 5 crore given to SP Tyagis cousin Sandeep Tyagi was brought to India through small companies in Mauritius and India and also through banking channels. It mentions details of discussions between European middlemen Guido Haschke, Carlo Gerosa and Christian Michel related to bribes to be paid to different persons. The three were already named as accused in CBIs first chargesheet in September 2017.

The agency said that when Michel was procuring classified defence documents for the contract, he gave over 90 lakh to Kunhikrishnan for the same.

It is alleged that Anglo-Italian firm AgustaWestland allegedly paid Michel, who was extradited to India in December 2018 from Dubai, Euro 42 million (295 crore) to bribe politicians, bureaucrats and defence ministry personnel for swinging the deal for 12 VVIP choppers in favour of the company.

According to CBIs investigation documents, which have been reviewed by HT, at a meeting held in Cascina Costa (Italy) in July 2006, it was proposed that Michel would work with Haschke and Gerosa in monitoring activities with regard to the acquisition of helicopters in India, keeping in view his knowledge of Indian military deals. During this meeting, they negotiated a comprehensive fee equal to 7% of the supply contract amount to cover the expenses and fees of both of them, said the second officer.

Michel signed 12 contracts through two of his firms with Finmeccanica, AgustaWestland, Westland Helicopters UK etc to legitimise the illicit commission on procurement of helicopters.

Finmeccanica paid total Euro 42.27 million [295.00 crore approx] to the firms of Christian Michel as kickbacks/bribe without undertaking any work against the receipt of such amount, said the second officer. Michel had prepared a note in which alleged bribes worth Euro 30 million meant for politicians and bureaucrats were mentioned. CBI pinned hopes on his interrogation, particularly to identify individuals who were referred to as AP, Pol, Bur and AF in the note.

The note used abbreviations of designations like DCH, PDSR, DG Maintt and FTT under the head AF (air force). Under the head BUR, it had entries like DS, JS Air, AFA Air, DG Acq, VC and Auditor Gen and under POL, it had AP. The note had a separate entry Fam, believed to be S P Tyagis family  his three cousins Sanjeev, Rajiv and Sandeep Tyagi. It mentioned that Euro 6 million were for AF (Air Force), 8.4 million for BUR (bureaucrats), 3 million for AP and 15-16 million for Fam.

In its first charge-sheet, CBI said it had established the money trail of Euro 62 million (around 415 crore) out of suspected 67 million (Rs 452 crore) bribe paid to Indians through middlemen.

The irregularities in the award of the contract to AgustaWestland led to an estimated loss of Euro 398.21 million (around 2,666 crore) to the government in the Euro 556.262 million (3726.9 crore) contract according to CBI. The contract was cancelled in January 2014.

Michels lawyer Aljo Joseph said: There is no evidence against my client. The whole case is based on false allegations. Saxenas lawyer R K Handoo said the allegations are baseless. Legal representatives of others named in charge sheet could not immediately be reached by HT.
The latest, Tropical Storm Beta, formed in the Gulf of Mexico. Hundreds of thousands of Alabama and Florida residents still lack power this weekend following Hurricane Sally. See photos and read latest updates here.
When business evaporated at Gajendra Sharmas eyeglass shop a couple of miles from the Taj Mahal during Indias strict Covid-19 lockdown, he was relieved to hear about a pandemic debt moratorium that would give him breathing room on his home loan.

Now, however, the 53-year-old opticians $13,500 debt risks destabilising Indias banks, authorities warn.

That is because a complaint he brought challenging the loan relief plan, grouped with those of other borrowers and now before the Supreme Court, could mean a $27 billion hit to lenders - more than half their annual profits - that could shake the nations financial system, the industry and regulators fear.

The battle, launched from Sharmas small shop in the northern city of Agra and now involving more than 120 lawyers, has the central bank and government struggling to defend what was meant to be a helping hand.

The problem, as the other borrowers see it, is that they must pay additional interest on their skipped repayments during the moratorium, which they call interest-on-interest.

The borrowers - including a leading real estate industry group, power utilities, shopping malls and small businesses - says the scheme unfairly hits them even as many have been financially devastated by the pandemic, that the banks must forgive the interest and compound interest that accrued while their payments were suspended.

Sharma, a voluble man with a thick moustache and a crop of dark hair, says the six-month reprieve, which ended on Aug. 31, increased his debt load because of the extra interest. He is also paying monthly instalments on a $21,700 business loan, for which he did not seek a moratorium.

I realized this scheme was not to give us relief, but to give us more grief, he told Reuters in his shop, where idols of Hindu deities compete for space with Ray Ban and Prada sunglass displays.

BANKS CAUGHT IN THE MIDDLE

After Prime Minister Narendra Modis government imposed the worlds strictest Covid-19 lockdown in March, Sharma saw no customers for months, though he had to keep paying his $2,700 in monthly recurring costs.

Across this nation of 1.3 billion people, companies say they are struggling to keep up with their loans as the lockdown has choked business and consumer spending. The economy collapsed a record 23.9% in the April-June quarter from a year earlier.

Now, even with the moratorium, the interest-on-interest will result in winding up various real estate and other companies, said Utsav Trivedi, a lawyer representing one group of Sharmas fellow complainants.

In a typical case, a homeowner with 15 years remaining on a roughly $40,000 loan would pay an additional $6,000 in interest due to the moratorium, an extra 16 months worth, explains SBI, Indias top state-run bank.

Citing Sharmas case, the finance ministry last week ordered a panel to analyse the impact of withdrawing interest and the compounding levy.

The Supreme Court appears sympathetic to the borrowers on the extra interest. During the most recent hearing on Sept. 10, Justice Ashok Bhushan said the court was inclined to pass an order that banks forgive the additional levies.

Indias banks, too, are reeling from the pandemic, and the industry fears a major judicial setback, given that the court has previously overturned government decisions in ways that hit sectors from coal mining and telecommunications.

Banks already have bad loans of over $120 billion, much of it on the books of state-run lenders, which dominate Indias banking landscape, and the non-performing debt is set to surge in coming months. Any deterioration in their books would force the government, itself deeply indebted, to set aside billions of dollars to recapitalise the banks.

Combined annual profits at private banks and state-owned banks is some 3.2 trillion rupees ($43 billion), so a waiver of interest will be totally destabilising, said analyst Anil Gupta at credit rating agency ICRA.

The Reserve Bank of India told the court an interest-free moratorium would cut the sectors income by at least 2 trillion rupees ($27 billion), or 1% of Indias GDP. There would be huge consequences for the stability of the banking system, the central bank said.

The finance ministry told the court last month what waiving what it says is standard compound interest would be against the basic canons of finance, adding it was crucial to protect the more than 1.9 billion deposit accounts that earn interest income.

The central bank and ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

Sharma, while performing his daily Hindu prayers, said he remains hopeful he will get relief.

With faith in God Ive thought of ways to come out of this muddle, he said about his case, which will next be heard on Sept. 28.
Investigators continued their search this weekend for the suspects who fired 10 rounds Tuesday evening into the home of married Camden County police officers.

Heres what we know so far:

The house was hit in a barrage of bullets.

At least two men sprayed the Clinton Street home with gunfire shortly before midnight and seven of the shots hit it.

Six of the bullets penetrated the structure - two through the front door - as the two officers were upstairs with their newborn child, who was only 10 days old when the shooting happened.

Neither the officers nor their baby were injured.

Were the officers targeted?

Rick Kunkel, union president of FOP 218 that represents Camdens officers, said investigators believe the house was specifically targeted but the motive  whether they were targeted because they were officers  remains unclear.

Dan Keashen, a spokesman for the police department, said the investigation has not revealed any connection between the shooting and any specific cases the officers handled in the course of their work.

Its unbelievable, if they were targeting them as officers, Kunkel said. Its well-known that these two officers live here. Most neighbors here talk to each other and look out for each other. They come and go from the residence in uniform, take meal breaks here so its not uncommon for there to be a police car parked here.

The officers had a strong relationship with the community.

Police said the male officer has worked for the department for four years and his wife for two years.

Both are assigned to the Neighborhood Response Team, which Kunkel said is focused on community policing. Officers are often walking the beat on foot to chat with residents, meeting people at events and working to build a relationship and good will with the public, he said.

Authorities have not released the officers' names, but NJ Advance Media has identified them based on public records. One received a commendation in 2019 for apprehending two fleeing suspects engaged in a drug deal, safely arresting them and taking an illegal gun off the streets in the process.

Police located and towed a 1998 dark colored Honda Odyssey during the investigation into the shooting of a home of two Camden County Police officers.Camden County Police Department

Manhunt is underway for suspects.

Police have not identified any suspects.

Camden Police Chief Joseph Wysocki said there were three people in the vehicle during the shooting, a driver and two suspected gunmen.

Investigators also identified a 1998 dark-colored Honda Odyssey with a temporary paper tag in the area of the home during the shooting.

Early Thursday morning, police located and towed the minivan for further investigation.

Whats next, as reward for information doubles.

In the wake of the shooting, Keashen confirmed that all officers had been advised to work in pairs at all times in the wake of the shooting.

Although most officers often followed this practice, Keashen said the department wanted them to be extra careful.

The reward for information leading to an arrest of the suspects more than doubled Friday to $52,500 after two new organizations pitched in to aid in the effort.

The New Jersey Policemens Benevolent Association (PBA) offered $20,000, and First Colonial Bank of Collingswood offered an additional $2,500 to help bring the suspects to justice, according to a statement from the Camden County Police Department. Lawmen Supply Company has offered another $10,000.

These contributions are in addition to those already announced by the FBI ($10,000), the Fraternal Order of Police ($5,000), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives ($5,000), police said.

Violence is on the rise in Camden.

It has been a bloody couple of weeks in Camden, after two men were killed in the last week in the city and a third was murdered just over the city line in Pennsauken.

In the last month, five people have been killed. With a total of 13 homicides this year in all of Camden, nearly 40% of the citys homicides for the year happened in the last month.

Reporters Kevin Shea, Rebecca Everett and Anthony G. Attrino contributed to this report.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.

Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday at age 87. (Mike Groll / Associated Press)

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg spoke softly, so quietly in a crowded social gathering that I had to lean in to hear her.

But it was always a good idea to listen closely to what she said.

Shortly after Justice Elena Kagan joined the court in 2010, I saw Justice Ginsburg, who had been confirmed in 1993, at a holiday party at the court and asked her about her newest colleague.

Ginsburg brightened up and said they had started going to the theater together. They had just seen a revival of "Oklahoma!" with a Black cast, and she recommended it highly.

I admitted I had not seen it yet, and made a lame joke about wondering whether composer Richard Rodgers or lyricist Oscar Hammerstein, the most famous duo in American musical theater, had ever been to Oklahoma.

Ginsburg said she had lived in Oklahoma more than half a century ago and remembered it well  but not fondly.

Supreme Court, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her husband Martin Ginsburg, pose for a photo in Fort Sill, Okla., when Martin was serving in the U.S. army at Artillery Village. (Supreme Court of the United States via AP)

In 1954, she and Marty Ginsburg graduated from Cornell University, were married that summer and moved to Fort Sill, in southwest Oklahoma, where he was attending an Army officers' training program.

"I remember all the signs. 'Whites only' and worse. On stores. Along the road," she told me in that soft voice. The brutality of racism "was very open."

It was also at Fort Sill where she first encountered blatant sex discrimination.

She had qualified for a job as a claims adjuster for the Social Security Administration. But a male supervisor said she would be paid at a lower rate than what men received because she was pregnant and might not be able to travel.

This was two years before she enrolled at Harvard Law School, one of only nine women, and a dean asked why women were taking slots that could go to men.

And it was well before she graduated first in her class at Columbia Law School (she followed Marty to New York as well), but could not find a job at a New York law firm or in a judge's chambers.

And it was long before she co-founded the Women's Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union in 1972 and began taking sex bias cases to the Supreme Court.

Story continues

Ginsburg's legacy as a champion of women's rights has drawn the most attention and praise in her passing, but her clerks and the other justices remember her as an extraordinarily hard worker.

They recall her going to restaurants or the theater, and at slow moments, pulling a little flashlight from her purse to read briefs or memos .

She was a lawyer's lawyer  precise and careful with her words, whether speaking or writing. She worked everywhere and late into the night. Reading briefs and revising and editing draft opinions.

Even in her 80s, as she grew more frail and battled recurrent bouts of cancer, Ginsburg could be counted upon to always ask some of the most penetrating questions during oral arguments.

In conversations public and private, Ginsburg often spoke of bias and discrimination  of how it persisted, even if it was not as blatant as in times past.

She was attuned to unfairness, bias and inequality, and she was sometimes frustrated that her colleagues  graduates of elite private schools and Ivy League universities, as she was  seemed blind to it.

This difference of perception played out in a major battle over voting rights.

"Things have changed in the South," Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote in 2009, shortly after Barack Obama became the first Black man to win the White House, arguing the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965 was outdated and unnecessary.

In 2013, the Supreme Court's conservatives by a 5-4 vote struck down a key part of the law that blocked the Southern states from making changes in their election procedures and voting rules if doing so might discriminate against Black and Latino voters.

Ginsburg was not impressed with this Pollyanish thinking.

The "scourge of discrimination" has not gone away, she wrote in dissent, even if it had gone into hiding. Moreover, Congress had voted overwhelmingly to keep the law in place, she said.

Her dissent in the Lilly Ledbetter case sounded the same theme.

She was dismayed and irked that the court by a 5-4 vote tossed out a sex discrimination claim from an Alabama woman who had been paid far less than her male colleagues.

The majority said Ledbetter waited too long to sue. The "realities of the workplace" are that salaries were kept confidential, Ginsburg said. How does that justify throwing out her claim?

The day before her death Friday, she sent a letter of thanks to the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, which had awarded her the Liberty Medal.

It was her last public statement, and it captured her modesty, her intelligence and her generosity.

"It was my great good fortune to have the opportunity to participate in the long effort to place equal citizenship stature for women on the basic human rights agenda," she wrote.

"In that regard, I was scarcely an innovator. For generations, brave women and enlightened men in diverse nations pursued that goal, but they did so when society was not yet prepared to listen."

"I was alive and a lawyer in the late 1960s and the decade commencing in 1970. Conditions of life had so changed that audiences responded positively to pleas that society  men, women, and children  would be well served by removing artificial barriers blocking women's engagement in many fields of human endeavor  from Bar membership to bar tending, policing, firefighting, piloting planes, even serving on juries."

"Helping to explain what was wrong about the closed door era was enormously satisfying," she concluded.
The on Saturday passed Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020 amid counter allegations levelled by both the BJP and the Congress members on their top party leadership.

Linking the present government's PM CARES Fund and Prime Minister National Relief Fund (PMNRF) set up by India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in 1948, both the parties raised suspicion over transparency of both the funds.

The cross allegations created uproar for the second consecutive day in the lower House when Union Minister of State Anurag Thakur on Saturday again raised question on the transparency of PMNRF alleging Congress of utilising the money received in the fund for the benefit of Nehru-Gandhi family while participating in the debate over the Bill which was moved by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharamn on Saturday for consideration and passage.

The Minister made allegation against Congress' interim President Sonia Gandhi and her family of utilising the fund of PMNRF being members of the trust.

He also alleged that funds received in PMNRF were transferred in Rajiv Gandhi Foundation and from their it was transferred into various other trusts.

Thakur also alleged that fugitive controversial televangelist Zakir Naik donated Rs 50 lakh into Sonia Gandhi-led Rajiv Gandhi Foundation in 2011.

Though the amount was returned in 2014 it clarified links of the party with Naik, Thakur alleged.

However, the Congress raised questions on creation of PM CARES when PMNRF was already present and it was used to help states during various disasters from 2015 to till now.

Congress leaders Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Gaurav Gogoi alleged that there are many "loopholes" in Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM-CARES) fund.

The party also sought details of Vivekanand Foundation and some other trusts related to the BJP.

The Bill was later passed with voice vote during over four hour long counter allegations by both the parties on each other.

The Bill was introduced in the on Friday to replace the Taxation and other Laws (Relaxation of Certain Provisions) Ordinance, 2020 which was promulgated on March 31 this year.

Speaking on the Bill, Sitharaman said we are raising questions on Rajiv Gandhi Foundation because Congress gave money to the trust from PMNRF.

Countering Congress allegations, the Minister said what names the party has taken are not given money from PM-CARES fund on which the opposition has raised question on several occasions earlier after it was set up to undertake and support relief or assistance of any kind relating to a public health emergency during the Covid-19 pandemic.

"You are a responsible political party. Don't spread rumours. It's not good for your credibility."

Citing Rafale fight jet deal, the Minister said Congress indulged in "rumour mongering" and it got back replies. "You will again get answers."

The government came with the Bill which seeks to amend the Income-tax Act, 1961, the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017; the Finance Act, 2019; the Direct Tax Vivad se Vishwas Act, 2020 and the Finance Act, 2020 which are administered by the Department of Revenue through two boards, namely, the Central Board of Direct Taxes and the Central Board of Indirect Taxes. Thus, no additional expenditure is contemplated on the enactment of the Bill.

The Bill provides for extension of various time limits for completion or compliance of actions under the specified Acts and reduction in interest, waiver of penalty and prosecution for delay in payment of certain taxes or levies during the specified period.

The Finance Act, 2020 is also proposed to be amended to clarify regarding capping of surcharge at 15 per cent on dividend income of the Foreign Portfolio Investor.

The Bill also proposes to empower the Central government to remove any difficulty up to a period of two years and provide for repeal and savings of the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation of Certain Provisions) Ordinance, 2020.

--IANS

rak/sdr/

(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.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 00:45:06|Editor: huaxia

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KATHMANDU, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- With record high infection of over 2,000 cases in a single day, COVID-19 cases in Nepal surpassed 60,000 mark, Nepal's Ministry of Health and Population said.

"The coronavirus cases reached 61,593 on Friday with 2020 new cases confirmed in the last 24 hours," Jageshwor Gautam, spokesperson at the health ministry said at a regular press briefing on Friday.

It is for the first time that the daily infection rate crossed over 2,000. Last record high cases were reported on September 16 when the Himalayan country had confirmed 1,539 new cases.

This spike in cases has appeared in the wake of the reopening of the long-haul public transportation service, domestic flights and reopening of hotels and restaurants starting from September 17. The Nepali government has relaxed the provision of reopening the shops.

Although the COVID-19 cases were on decline after early July, the cases resurged after the Nepali government lifted the lockdown starting from July 22.

"The cases in thick settlements in major urban centres including in capital Kathmandu Valley, Pokhara in western Nepal and other thick settlements in the southern region of the country, are rising rapidly," said Gautam. "The situation is worsening day by day."

Amid rising cases, health ministry officials said that total cases could reach up to 90,000 in the worst case scenario.

Given this context, Gautam urged the people older than 60 years and people with existing health conditions such as those suffering from diabetes, cancer, kidney problem and respiratory problems not to go out of home for at least some days.

According to the health ministry, the death rate is also growing in Nepal in recent weeks due to penetration of the disease in communities where older people and people with existing conditions have become vulnerable.

As of Friday, the total death toll from the pandemic in Nepal has reached 390. On May 16, Nepal had reported the first death from the pandemic, a 29-year-old woman. Until July 21, total deaths from the pandemic were 40 but the number of deaths soared after the lockdown was lifted.

"This is due to the spread of coronavirus among all groups of people including young, elderly and people with existing conditions," Gautam told Xinhua in a recent interview. Enditem
New Delhi, Sep 19 : The Special Cell of the Delhi Police have arrested 61-year-old Indian freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma, allegedly found working for Chinese intelligence. During a search of his house in Pitampura, New Delhi, one laptop, some confidential documents related to Indian Defence and some other incriminating papers were reportedly seized.

"During his police remand, a Chinese woman Qing Shi and her Nepalese partner Sher Singh alias Raj Bohra have also been arrested. They were found supplying the arrested journo with huge amounts of money routed through hawala channels for conveying sensitive information to Chinese Intelligence," Sanjeev Yadav, DCP Special Cell, said.

A few days back, an input was received from an intelligence agency that Rajeev Sharma, a resident of St. Xavier Apartment, Pitampura, New Delhi, had links with a foreign intelligence officer and has been receiving funds from his handler through illegal means and Western Union money transfer for conveying sensitive information about national security and foreign relations.

A case under section 3/4/5 of the Official Secrets Act was registered on September 13. Thereafter, Rajeev Sharma was arrested on September 14 and a warrant was obtained for searching his residential premises by the Delhi Police.

"On interrogation, Rajeev Sharma disclosed his involvement in the procurement of secret and sensitive information and conveying the same to his Chinese handlers Michael and George, based in Kunming, China, through different digital channels. He further disclosed that he was about to send these recovered secret documents to his handlers," Sanjeev Yadav said.

Police said that in the past also, Sharma had sent several documents in the form of reports to his handlers and got a handsome amount of money from them.

According to the police, during 2010-2014 he wrote a weekly column for 'Global Times,' known to be a mouthpiece of the Chinese government. Reading these columns, a Chinese intelligence agent Michael from Kunming city of China contacted Rajeev Sharma through his LinkedIn account and invited him to Kunming for an interview with a Chinese media company. The trip was funded by Michael. During the meeting, Michael and his junior Xou asked Rajeev Sharma to provide inputs on various aspects of India-China relations.

Between 2016 and 2018 Rajeev Sharma was in contact with Michael and Xou. He was tasked to provide information on issues like Indian deployment at the Bhutan-Sikkim-China tri-junction including Doklam, the pattern of India-Myanmar military cooperation, India-China boundary issue etc.

Subsequently, Rajeev Sharma had meetings with Michael and Xou in Laos and Maldives once each and gave briefings on these topics. Besides these visits, Sharma was also in contact with Michael and Xou through e-mail and social media.

According to the Delhi Police, in January, 2019 Rajeev Sharma came in contact with another Kunming based Chinese man George. He visited Kunming via Kathmandu and met George, who was introduced as a General Manager of a Chinese media company. During the meeting, George asked Rajeev Sharma to write about Dalai Lama related issues.

For this Rajeev Sharma was offered 500 USD per article. George told Sharma that they will send him the money through his company's sister concern based in Mahipalpur, Delhi and being operated by a Chinese woman Qing.

Sharma received more than Rs 30 lakhs from George in about 10 installments from January 2019 to September 2020 for the information provided by him. He had further meetings with George in Malaysia and again in Kunming.

During investigation, it was revealed that shell companies were being operated by foreign intelligence agents to transfer funds to Sharma. It was revealed that Chinese nationals Jhang Chang and his wife Chang-li-lia were running the companies MZ Pharmacy and MZ Malls, under the fake names Suraj and Usha. They are both presently in China and on their behalf, another Chinese woman Qing Shi and one Raj Bohra, a Nepali national (both directors of MZ Pharmacy) were operating the business from Mahipalpur.

"Both, Qing Shi (age 30 years) and Sher Singh alias Raj Bohra (age 30 years) have also been arrested. Further investigation with respect to the Chinese shell companies based in Mahipalpur is in progress," said the officer.

A forensic analysis of the seized mobile phones and laptops is being conducted to unearth the entire network and conspiracy in this case. The identities and roles of other foreign nationals involved in the conspiracy are also being ascertained.
COVID-19 has forced much of Hollywood into lockdown, putting productions on hold back in March.

Awards shows have been some of the first events to carry on with new precautions in place, amid the global pandemic.

And in another sign of the times, this weekend's 72nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards will feature presenters in full hazmat gear, personally delivering awards to winners' homes Sunday night.

Safety first: This weekend's 72nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards will feature presenters in full hazmat gear, personally delivering awards to winners' homes Sunday night.

A first look at the special gear reveals a typical black hazmat suit with an oversized black bowtie over a triangular patch of white dress shirt with white sleeve cuffs.

Costume designer Katja Cahill and executive producer Guy Carrington worked with a hazmat manufacturer on the custom look.

ABC (which airs the awards show) announced that hazmat-clad presenters 'may be visiting some of the winners live.'

For the first time, this year's show will be telecast from the homes of presenters, nominees and winners around the world.

Home visit: ABC (which airs the awards show) announced that hazmat-clad presenters 'may be visiting some of the winners live'

Around the world: Working from home: For the first time, this year's show will be telecast from the homes of presenters, nominees and winners around the world

Host Jimmy Kimmel will record live from Downtown Los Angeles, while producers have sent more than 150 video kits to other talent, for them to record from home.

Executive producer Reggie Hudlin previously guaranteed an entertaining show, as the new format allows them to mix it up from previous years.

He told Variety: 'From category to category, its going to change throughout the broadcast. Some of them may not work, but we said, "Let's just experiment and have the audience a little more on the edge of their seats."'

Although Hudlin added that technical difficulties will likely arise, Kimmel is ready to keep us entertained: 'I think hes hoping things go wrong.'

Working from home: Host Jimmy Kimmel will record live from Downtown Los Angeles, while producers have sent more than 150 video kits to other talent, for them to record from home (pictured in September, 2016)

Mixing it up: Executive producer Reggie Hudlin previously guaranteed an entertaining show, as the new format allows them to mix it up from previous years: 'From category to category, its going to change throughout the broadcast' (Phoebe Waller-Bridge pictured in September, 2019)

Star-studded event: Some of the confirmed talent includes Laverne Cox, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ilana Glazer, Abbi Jacobson, Randall Park, RuPaul Charles, Anthony Anderson, America Ferrera, Issa Rae, Gabrielle Union, Lena Waithe and Oprah Winfrey

But it mostly sounds like a chaotic adventure in store for viewers: 'If were in someones house and something extraordinary happens, why would you want to cut it off?

'Were thankful ABC understands our problem. It could come way under, it could go over. It might be on time. I think thats unlikely.'

Some of the confirmed talent includes Laverne Cox, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ilana Glazer, Abbi Jacobson, Randall Park, RuPaul Charles, Anthony Anderson, America Ferrera, Issa Rae, Gabrielle Union, Lena Waithe and Oprah Winfrey.

Two-time Grammy-winning artist H.E.R. has also been confirmed to perform during this year's 'In Memoriam' segment.
Tuolumne County Public Health View Photo

Sonora, CA  One newly confirmed case of COVID-19 has been added to Tuolumne Countys tally, a total of 11,082 tests have been done.

Public health officials add that two previously isolated cases have recovered. The total number of cases in the county are 221 made up of 207 residents and 14 Sierra Conservation Center inmates. There are no individuals hospitalized and 197 that have since recovered. There have been four deaths related to COVID-19 in the county. The county remains in Tier 3/Orange Moderate Risk category of the states 4 Tier color-coded system for reopening businesses.

Health officials also announced that free flu shots will be available every Tuesday at the health department starting on September 22nd. The hours of operation are from 8:30-11:30 a.m. The shots are for those aged two years and older. COVID-19 protocols are in place requiring face coverings and all visitors will be screened for virus symptoms. Questions regarding the flu shots can be directed to the department at 209-533-7401.

If you are having COVID-like symptoms, self-isolate and contact your healthcare provider or the Adventist Health Triage Line at 209-536-5166 Mon-Fri, or 209-536-5000 after hours. If you need immediate medical attention, please call ahead and go to Rapid Care or the Emergency Department. You can also visit www.valleycovidhelp.com for more information.

The no-cost state testing site is open at the Calaveras County Fairgrounds Tuesday  Saturday 7am to 7pm. Appointments can be scheduled ahead of time at: https://lhi.care/covidtesting Appointments are recommended. The site offers to test children ages 3 and older (accompanied by a parent or guardian). Tuolumne County Public Health encourages anyone concerned about possible exposure to go get tested and essential workers are encouraged to get tested every two weeks.

It is important that people continue to follow prevention guidelines to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, including:

Practice physical distancing at all times. Keep 6 feet space between yourself and others who are not part of your household. Stay in your household bubble!

Wear a face covering in public.

Wash your hands thoroughly and frequently.

Avoid gatherings of any size with people who are not part of your household.

Stay home if you are sick.

Avoid unnecessary travel, and limit your outings to essential tasks.

Thank you for your support and efforts to protect the safety and health of our community
Baroness Joan Bakewell has revealed that she was sexually harassed early in her career by a junior government minister.

The Labour peer told Times Radio how she was the 'victim of unwelcome attention' during the 1950s and 1960s.

The broadcaster, whose career spans more than 50 years, also described sexism she experienced while working for the BBC.

In the interview, to be broadcast on Sunday at 12pm, the 87-year-old described how a junior minister, who has since died, had to be 'fended off' after he made a grab for her.

Baroness Joan Bakewell, 87, has revealed to Times Radio that a junior minister, who has since died, had to be 'fended off' after he made a grab for her early in her career

'I was assaulted by a member of the government in a taxi when I went to fetch him from the House of Commons to come on the programme,' she said.

'You know, this kind of thing happened, it happened all the time.'

Baroness Bakewell was asked whether she reported the minister to police, but she said that there would have been no point.

She added: 'They would've said, well, that's just to do with your private life, you're alright, he's not done anything that breaks the law.'

She said that there was no point in discussing harassment with senior figures at the BBC 'because they would be doing the same thing'.

Baroness Bakewell became known as the presenter of the factual BBC programme Late Night Line-Up and went on to present ethics documentary series, Heart Of The Matter, for 12 years.

The broadcaster (pictured on That Stuart Hall Show), whose career spans more than 50 years, said she was the 'victim of unwelcome attention' in the 1950s and 1960s

She told of how a group of women at the BBC tried to lodge a complaint against a male member of staff who later got promoted 'pretty near the top'.

'There was someone who was persistently harassing a whole department of women as it were, one by one,' she said.

'He would invite them home and behave badly and they began to tell each other.

'They began to share the secret with each other and found it hateful and so they decided that they would all get together and as a group make a protest about this person.

'And they went to the head of department and it eventually went up to, I think as far as the controller, and the person was reprimanded and then he was promoted.'

Although there were 'numbers of predators' within the BBC, Baroness Bakewell said no one knew about Jimmy Savile at the time, but added: 'We all thought he was extremely weird.'

Baroness Bakewell has spoken previously of her support for the Me Too movement, which campaigns against sexual violence, hailing its values and female solidarity.

Baroness Bakewell also told of how a group of women at the BBC tried to lodge a complaint against a male member of staff who later got promoted 'pretty near the top'

In the interview, she also described receiving a peerage from former Labour leader Ed Miliband.

She accepted the honour despite voting for the Green Party at the previous election due to her anger over the Iraq war.

'I marched against the Iraq war with about a million other people,' she said.

'So I wasn't going to vote Labour, didn't support the Labour Party at that time and I had to explain that to Ed Miliband.

'I said "I'd like you to go away and consider whether you want me to be a Labour peer and I have to consider whether I want to be", so we agreed to speak again at which point Ed said "yes I would like you to" and I said "I will accept".'

Baroness Bakewell has sat in the Lords under the title of Labour Life peer since her appointment on January 25, 2011.
CAIRO  Russian diplomats have been busy in Cairo, meeting with Egyptian officials and the local media to promote the so-called Sputnik V, a vaccine developed by Moscow's Gamaleya Institute  even though clinical trials have not been completed on the drug, and the Chinese seem to be spearheading the race for an agreement with Egypt.

Following only two months of testing, Russias President Vladimir Putin approved the drug in mid-August and the country began to market the medication as Sputnik V, the first registered vaccine against COVID-19.

In an Aug. 19 interview with Egypts state news agency MENA, Georgy Borisenko, the Russian ambassador in Cairo, said that Moscow is looking forward to establishing a partnership with Egypt to produce Sputnik V. Borisenko stated that he had informed the Egyptian ministries of foreign affairs and health about the possibility of holding bilateral discussions on producing the vaccine in Egypt and provided their ministers with all the necessary information.

The Russian diplomat said the vaccine could be a basis for further development of Egyptian-Russian relations. The trade exchange between the two countries reached $6.2 billion in 2019, making Moscow one of the top 10 trading partners of Egypt," he underlined.

On Sept. 3, Borisenko met with the head of the state-run Arab Organization for Industrialization, Abdelmonem Altrass, to discuss the possibility of manufacturing the vaccine in Egypt. In a statement, Altrass affirmed that the vaccine will be subjected to the clinical trials and medical tests required to ensure the safety of citizens' health.

The Russian ambassador also met with Minister of Trade and Industry Nevin Gamea on Sept. 13, expressing Moscow's intentions to cooperate with Egypt in fighting the pandemic by possibly producing Sputnik V with Egyptian pharmaceutical companies.

Since the outbreak began, COVID-19 has caused more than 5,600 deaths in Egypt and the total infection tally has surpassed 100,000 cases, making Egypt the second most affected country in Africa.

Hospitals in Egypt have been using blood plasma from people who have recovered from the virus to treat other patients. Cairo is also conducting clinical trials on a Chinese vaccine.

Russias promotion of the vaccine in Egypt has been spearheaded by Kirill A. Dmitriev, the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund and the man behind the financing of Sputnik V. He said in an exclusive interview on Sept. 1 with Egyptian Channel 10, The vaccine is good news for Russia, Egypt and the entire Arab world.

He went on, We are currently in negotiations with Egypt to prepare the production capacities for the vaccine. Within a year, Egypt will be ready to manufacture this drug on its soil. The official added that his country had asked Egypt to test Sputnik V and stated that the price of the Russian drug will be much lower than any competing vaccine, whether from the United States or from other countries.

Dmitriev noted, There are requests for a billion doses of the vaccine, most of them from the Arab world.

Amgad al-Haddad, head of the Department of Immunology and Allergies at Vacsera, the government-affiliated company that produces vaccines in Egypt, explained to Al-Monitor that vaccines must go through several stages before being approved. The first concerns safety and the second effectiveness, with testing on a small number of people. The third is prefabrication, in which the drug is tested on thousands of people of different races and ages in various countries. After the last phase, researchers measure the number of antibodies, the rate of effectiveness and side effects before beginning production of the vaccine.

According to Haddad, the Russian vaccine has passed only two phases combined in a single step, and was tested on a very small number of military personnel.

The pharmacologist added that the third stage, in which the vaccine is evaluated, is the most crucial.

Haddad said that testing of the vaccine developed by the University of Oxford was halted on Sept. 9 in the third stage after reports of serious side effects during clinical trials. We do not doubt the Russian vaccine, but we also cannot evaluate any vaccine after passing only two stages of the long testing process, he added.

Haddad stated that clinical trials are now being conducted on Chinas coronavirus vaccine inside Vacsera, "it will be tested on several thousand Egyptians and after passing this stage it will be produced in agreement with the Chinese side," he said, without giving a specific time frame for the completion of these experiments.

Vacsera is aware of the meetings between Russian diplomats and Egyptian politicians, Haddad pointed out, but it is still unclear whether the drug will actually be produced in Egypt.

Egypt has a great history in the pharmaceutical industry, a huge population and a distinguished location in the Middle East," Mostafa Kamel Elsayed, a professor of political science at Cairo University, told Al-Monitor. "These are all important factors for Russia to seek Egypt's participation in the distribution of the vaccine.

Once the success of the vaccine is proven, this will be a huge scientific and commercial victory for Moscow, he added. Hundreds of millions of doses of this drug will be distributed to the world, and it will surely be a benefit to any country that produces a vaccine for COVID-19, be it Russia, the United States, China or the United Kingdom, Elsayed concluded.
Dancer, dramaturge and Kyoto University of the Arts teacher Nanako Nakajima was one of the earliest artists to make the transition from traditional Japanese to contemporary dance theatre, extending her work outside Japan, notably to Germany. She presents a model of cultural and temporal as well as geographic border crossing. The former Valeska-Gert guest professor at the Free university of Berlin tells us it is time to ask what real means to us while facing the consequences of Covid-19 for the performing arts worldwide. Her project Dance Archive Box is as valid and global an example of how to extend or transform the life of a given performance while preserving its memory as any. Inspiring for the performing arts scene in the Arab region, this is an experiment in how a performance can change while holding onto the memory of its own transformations.



My professional background has taken two different directions, she told me: research, and dance dramaturgy. I do research during the creative process of performances. Those two fields create balance in my practice as I need each to complement the other, the creative ideas and dramaturgical input along with theory. So somehow theory and practice combine create my work. In 2004, exactly 16 years ago, I started working as a dramaturg in New York. But years before embarking on that experience, I was trained in the traditional Japanese dance of Odori, which is close to Kabuki and Geisha dancing. We use kimonos and music played on traditional instruments dating back to 1700. It has become a small community. We share the same repertoire with Kabuki. Odori is the dance part of those stage traditions.



I belong to the Fujima Dance School where I started dancing at the age of three, so its been 40 years now. This is quite an unusual background for a contemporary artists, but traditional dancers almost never work outside the country. Then again, I am interested in contemporary dance and European conceptual art. I have also studied theatrical performance and dance studies in the United States, Germany and Japan. As an academic researcher, I am now teaching dance studies at various universities in Japan, alongside my artistic career. I am very interested in linking my research topics to the dramaturgy and research of the production I am involved in as an artist.



As for Dance Archive Box, which she produced while a Valeska-Gert guest professor at the Free university of Berlin in 2019-2020, I had suggested a few possible projects to the university, so that one of them could function as a topic and vehicle for my guest professorship. We decided that it should be Dance Archive Box. Initially this project started in 2013. The first part was launched in 2014 in Tokyo. At the time I had two more people on the team as facilitators: the Japanese critic Daisuke Muto, and the Singaporean theatre director Ong Keng Sen. The people at the Saison Foundation (initially named after the department store) had established several artistic and cultural projects, such as museums and theatres, and they allocated funding to contemporary dance as well. The foundation wanted to make its own archive and to support dance artists producing ephemeral works. So it was decided to create the new archive project so that dance too could be archived, and so that the archives could also be used for future creations.



I worked with seven dance artists in Japan to create the archive boxes. We designed as a process including a week of seminars and two weeks of workshops. Each artist archived his or her own seminal works. The artists created seven boxes exploring how they could be used by other people. They made their own stye of archiving. Some launched websites, others created an archive on paper. In 2015 we shipped all the archive boxes to Singapore, where a workshop was held for Asian artists to create a performance. A few months later we got together and presented the response performance in connection to each of the archive boxes.



Ong Keng Sen, the Singaporean director on the team, was in charge of the 50th celebration of the independence of Singapore, a project presented at the Singapore International Festival of Arts in a postcolonial context. The project should continue to go to other places, within Japan as well. In the 2016 festival TPAM (the Tokyo Performing Arts Meeting in Yokohama), I presented some of the resulting performances and invited new traditional dancers to create responses to the archive boxes. In Berlin I brought the boxes outside the Asian context for the first time.



Speaking of colonialism and empire, Nanako says she experienced a context in which North and South seemed to cooperate as peers, but she also experienced how the original dance archive was absorbed into the German academic format. All the participants were students, not yet professional artists. The purpose was more for education, so the attitude tends to become more sincere and scholarly. Students in Germany are well informed about archiving and colonial/post-colonial contexts, and they know the dangers of using archive boxes that have come from other cultural contexts. But I noticed that the Japanese characteristics in dance are transformed into a German understanding of Japanese cuteness, like an infant playful element. Some Japanese critics say that this childish character is against modernisation as Westernisation in dance, or that it is anti-technique, because the dancers in Europe are mostly trained in ballet while the Japanese dancers are not, so they tend to be viewed as not ideal from the perspective of western dance. This is already a criticism of the ideal dancing body that was brought to the student archivists while making the archive boxes. Which brings us back to the Japanese context again while meeting each other across the world.



Traditional theatre and dance had already been introduced to Europe, like Kabuki and Noh, but not contemporary dance. Contemporary Japanese dance is somehow ignored by the European audience. In that sense, the archive box transmitted the knowledge of that dance community to Europe. The interesting thing is that contemporary dance in Japan  the way it is all the world  has no specific technique to rely on, which makes it the most difficult genre to archive. For instance, we only have new pieces, because we continuously produce new work, and we do not re-stage old pieces. We do not teach dance to students because there is no solid dance technique to teach, no dance school, nor families inheriting that type of dance. All of which makes that genre difficult to archive and to share. To preserve something or to historicise it, we need to create archives, although sometimes the archiving freezes the creations.



Nanako also edited an edition of the Performance Research Journal on ageing in dance, raising questions about the experimental potential of the ageing dancing body in Japan. We have many aged dancers in Japan, and the people do not criticise that, she says. They can still go on stage at the age of 90. They can still act on stage, maybe with a little support, but most theatres appreciate those performers because they are guardians of the theatrical tradition. They share the repertoire and keep repeating the same piece over and over again. You keep repeating till you get to a point when you can perform in an almost unconscious way, which is considered to be the perfect stage for actors and dancers. The settings provide that, they are fixed on stage. This applies to theatre and dance that are mostly traditional, not modernised. There is no director, no choreographer, only actors and dancers who make their own work, which they can also change because it is their own. The most difficult repertoires are those performed by the oldest performers, depicting the old beauty. Nonetheless, in contemporary dance theatres it is not common to see the ageing body on stage.



Returning to the present moment, Nanako comments on technologys potential: In post-Corona crisis times, maybe there is a greater possibility to talk about technology as a way to care for ageing bodies and to support them, because old people constitute a vulnerable group. Therefore the issue of the ageing body gets a new dimension after this pandemic, and requires technical support. Perhaps online performances can be more real than those based on live physical encounter. I am asking whether virtuality reduces the feeling of real or not. I feel weve already lived in a virtual space for some time, and weve already been experiencing the post-human lifestyle, yet we are still connected. Online performances offer freedom from physical restrictions. The style of communication has also totally transformed. I am thinking how to make contact with older people during a pandemic without physically meeting them. The Japanese state is also promoting a robot-inclusive society, in order to support old citizens. Now it seems as if this virtual care is more necessary than before. And so maybe it is also time to question what is reality? My own reality is no more actual than my dream. My reality is small compared to the virtual world where I can meet my old parents, or speak to anyone I wish to communicate with. It is a space for greater freedom.



Might it be possible to collaborate with Arab artists, though? Collaborations are determined primarily by individual artists, this is much more important than geographic origins. I am always curious about someone I want to work with. Afterwards comes the stage of producing the art project, and this is when we need to search for funding or residencies, or individual grants, or sponsorship. But first we need to decide we want to work together.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 17 September, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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Many ecologists dispute that. Western Oregons forests historically suffered large burn events once every few hundred years, even before the time of widespread logging. I dont think thats relevant at all to this fire, said Jessica Halofsky, a research ecologist at the U.S. Forest Service, who directs the Northwest Climate Hub and the Western Wildland Environmental Threat Assessment Center. The fire occurred under such extreme burning conditions that almost any level of forest would have burned.

Climate change, driven by the burning of fossil fuels around the globe, is also fueling the rising risks for large fire events in Oregon and across the West, scientists say, which means the likelihood of future losses to the timber industry. Ms. Halofsky is part of a team of researchers attempting to find changes in forest management, like what to replant and when, that might help improve the health of forests to shield them against rising fire risks.

Oregons governor, Kate Brown, has criticized Republicans like Mr. Girod who staged a walkout to block a state climate bill. Mr. Girod, the state senator from Mill City, bristled at the criticism as he rode in a car with Roger Nyquist, a Republican county commissioner in the region, after looking through what remained of his house and the truck he lost to the fire.

Carbon emissions could have a drying effect that could raise future risks of fires, Mr. Girod said, but he rejected the idea that such emissions were responsible for the deadly conflagrations now enveloping the West Coast. To blame them for whats happening here is just wrong.

Mr. Nyquist said that the combination of burned homes and trees would hurt the economy in Linn County, where he is a commissioner, but that the precise impacts were hard to predict. We have a housing shortage, timbers at a record price, and a bunch of people just lost their homes and land, he said. So its hard to make sense of.

Lesser fires in 2017 cost the states tourism industry an estimated $51 million. Experts are bracing for much more from these fires, which could close some trails and campgrounds for years. People are literally taking their R.V.s and dollars and leaving the state because its not fun right now, said Lee Davis, who runs the Outdoor Recreation Economy Initiative at Oregon State University.s
Queensland Deputy police Commissioner Steve Gollschewski speaks at a press conference at Police headquarters on March 25, 2020 in Brisbane, Australia. (Jono Searle/Getty Images)

Paperwork and Crime Crippling Qld Cops

Queensland police are getting bogged down in administration which is taking them off the crime-fighting frontline, a review of the force has found.

As officers deal with mounting paperwork, the number of reported crimes has climbed.

This is just one of the worrying findings in the unreleased independent review of the Queensland Police Service, completed in December 2019 and obtained by AAP.

There are a range of issues relating to existing policies and processes which are symptomatic of inefficiencies in the system and are impacting the ability of divisions, districts, and regions to best meet the needs of the community, the report reads.

There are concerns for the mental health of officers who are left feeling isolated in regional commands.

The review, conducted by GSA Management Consulting at the request of Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll, recommended sweeping changes to operational processes, and for a reduction in the number of police commands to cope with the significant challenges.

It also flagged a possible restructure of police districts to alleviate the pressure on frontline officers and ensure resources were spread more fairly.

The review highlighted that a cut of 500 civilian staff between 2011 and 2013 significantly contributed to the amount of administrative and support work being done by frontline officers.

Calls to police surged almost 50 percent in the four years to 2019, but the most frequent calls were not about crimes, the review found.

Many of those calls related to social issues including mental health welfare checks and early interventions in domestic situations that did not escalate to violence.

Between 2014/15 and 2018/19 there was a 10 percent rise in reported crime. That included a 24 percent jump in crimes against people and a 28 percent leap in property crime.

Over the same period, the number of resolved crimes fell seven percent.

In 2018/2019, 43 percent of calls to Policelink went without response, with the Wide Bay-Burnett police district including Bundaberg, Gympie and Cherbourg having the lowest response rate  about two in every three calls.

Policelink fielded 145,000 phone calls, emails and online requests per month in 2019.

The states regional commands in particular are dealing with a rising volume of calls, which are growing more complex, the review noted.

The move to a central function model appears to have exacerbated the feeling of isolation from the service overall from those based outside SEQ, the report noted.

Rising demands are putting strain on frontline officers which could impact their mental health, the report concluded.

It warned that the current situation is acute given police had higher rates of psychological distress, mental health conditions and suicidal thinking than the general population.

Review author Neil Greenfield made 22 recommendations, including reducing the number of police commands from nine to six or seven, and reassessing the efficiency of police districts in delivering services.

His suggestions include that Policelink and contact centres be redesigned to better cope with demand and optimise engagement.

These recommendations, if appropriately implemented, will drive a level of improvement across the organisation and critically, in service delivery efficiency and effectiveness, Greenfield wrote.

However, it is my professional opinion that these recommendations alone will not be sufficient to enable QPS to respond to all significant demand placed on the organisation.

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Lower taxation and floor price can help restore the financial health of debt-ridden telecom companies, industry experts said on September 18.

Speaking at the ET Telecom Digital Telco Virtual Summit, Vodafone Idea CEO Ravinder Takkar said in the wake of AGR verdict, it is important that the National Communications Digital Policy 2018 is speedily implemented. "Though this can only happen through a light-touch regulatory approach, along with lower taxation levels for the industry," Takkar said.

At present, the financially stressed industry pays more than Rs 30 of every Rs 100 earned toward telecom levies and taxes, as per an Economic Times report.

Bharti Infratel Chairman Akhil Gupta said setting a floor price as a temporary measure can help restore the financial health of the industry. "A floor price should be fixed at least for the next three to four years. Post that, as things settle down, it can be taken off," he said during the summit.

Gupta said either telcos have to self-regulate or the regulator will need to step in to ensure there is no predatory pricing in this industry.

"Even when we are down to three private operators, I still see that trend continuing. We all keep saying that the current tariffs and the current average revenue per user (ARPU) are completely unsustainable. But we do not end up increasing the tariffs or thereby increasing the ARPUs," Gupta said.

Bharti Airtels chief executive Gopal Vittal called on the government to expedite policy measures to bring in affordable and easy access to connectivity. "The most critical requirement for Digital India is easy and affordable access to the right of way (RoW) so that we can reach customers and give them services they deserve, Vittal said during the virtual event.

The government on September 17 said telecom companies owe more than Rs 1.4 lakh crore as outstanding adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues.

The companies owe a combined Rs 143,271.74 crore, the Ministry of Communications said in a reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha. While Vodafone Idea owes Rs 54,754 crore as AGR-related dues, Bharti Airtel has an outstanding payment of 25,976 crore.

The Supreme Court on September 1 allowed telecom companies to pay their balance AGR dues over the next 10 years. The top court also asked for an upfront payment of 10 percent of the dues by March 31, 2021.
According to the rules, a Summary of Evidence will now be initiated against the erring Army personnel after which Court Martial proceedings will begin

Srinagar: The Army has found "prima facie" evidence its troops "exceeded" powers under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act during an encounter in Kashmir's Shopian district in which three men were killed in July this year and has initiated disciplinary proceedings, officials said on Friday.

On 18 July, the Army claimed three militants were killed in Amshipura village in the higher reaches of south Kashmir's Shopian district.

Committed to ethical conduct during anti-militancy operations, the Army initiated an inquiry after social media reports indicated the three men were from Rajouri district in Jammu and had gone missing at Amshipura, said Colonel Rajesh Kalia, the defence spokesperson in Srinagar.

The probe was completed in a record four weeks.

The families of the three men from Rajouri who worked as labourers in Shopian had also filed a police complaint.

In a brief statement, the Army said the Shopian operation contravened the dos and don'ts of the Chief of Army Staff approved by the Supreme Court.

"The inquiry has brought out certain prima facie evidence indicating that during the operation, powers vested under the AFSPA 1990 were exceeded and the Do's and Don'ts of Chief of Army Staff as approved by the Supreme Court have been contravened.

"Consequently, the competent disciplinary authority has directed to initiate disciplinary proceedings under the Army Act against those found prima-facie answerable," the statement said.

It is not immediately clear how many Army men are being proceeded against.

The evidence collected indicates the three unidentified terrorists killed in Amshipura were Imtiyaz Ahmed, Abrar Ahmed and Mohammed Ibrar who hailed from Rajouri. Their DNA report is awaited.

"Their involvement with terrorism or related activities is under investigation by the police," the statement said.

General Officer Commanding Lt Gen BS Raju had taken note of social media reports and initiated a probe into the incident. A general advertisement was published in local newspapers, asking people with any "credible information" about the case to step forward and share it with the court of inquiry instituted by the Army.

Relatives of the three youths, belonging to Dhar Sakri village in Kotranka of Rajouri area in Poonch, had lodged a written missing persons report in the local police station after they lost contact with them on 17 July. The three were working as labourers in apple and walnut orchards in Amshipura.

The relatives said in their complaint that they had last spoken to the three on 16 July when they informed their families they had got a room in Amshipura.

The room was the site of the encounter two days later, the complaint stated.

Police is also probing the three youths' call details and why they jumped out of a window when an operation was launched at their rented accommodation, a police official said.

He added that their presence in around strategic places in Shopian since their arrival was also being investigated.

According to the rules, a Summary of Evidence will now be initiated against the erring Army personnel after which Court Martial proceedings will begin. The Army has been maintaining high standards of transparency and punishing officials whenever rules are violated, officials said.
Former President Barack Obama hailed late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg as an inspiration to generations of Americans as he called on Senate Republicans to hold off on trying to replace her before the election.

Her death, just 46 days before the presidential vote, has left the Supreme Court at a historic moment as Ginsburg's replacement could alter the political leaning of the court for decades if Trump can push through his third conservative justice in one term.

'The questions before the Court now and in the coming years  with decisions that will determine whether or not our economy is fair, our society is just, women are treated equally, our planet survives, and our democracy endures  are too consequential to future generations for courts to be filled through anything less than an unimpeachable process,' Obama wrote in a post on Medium.

The former president cited the controversy over his nomination of Merrick Garland to the top court in 2016 in saying the Republicans 'invented the principle that the Senate shouldnt fill an open seat on the Supreme Court before a new president was sworn in' and called on them to respect the precedent they set.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and President Barack Obama embrace on Capitol Hill in Washington on Feb. 24, 2009. The former president paid tribute to the late justice on Saturday while warning Republicans against trying to replace her before the election

Obama wrote that Ginsburg 'inspired the generations who followed her, from the tiniest trick-or-treaters to law students burning the midnight oil to the most powerful leaders in the land'

The death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has left the Supreme Court at a historic moment that could see it with a conservative majority of 6 to 3 for many years to come

Barack Obama's statement on RBG Sixty years ago, Ruth Bader Ginsburg applied to be a Supreme Court clerk. Shed studied at two of our finest law schools and had ringing recommendations. But because she was a woman, she was rejected. Ten years later, she sent her first brief to the Supreme Court  which led it to strike down a state law based on gender discrimination for the first time. And then, for nearly three decades, as the second woman ever to sit on the highest court in the land, she was a warrior for gender equality  someone who believed that equal justice under law only had meaning if it applied to every single American. Over a long career on both sides of the bench  as a relentless litigator and an incisive jurist  Justice Ginsburg helped us see that discrimination on the basis of sex isnt about an abstract ideal of equality; that it doesnt only harm women; that it has real consequences for all of us. Its about who we are  and who we can be. Justice Ginsburg inspired the generations who followed her, from the tiniest trick-or-treaters to law students burning the midnight oil to the most powerful leaders in the land. Michelle and I admired her greatly, were profoundly thankful for the legacy she left this country, and we offer our gratitude and our condolences to her children and grandchildren tonight. Ruth Bader Ginsburg fought to the end, through her cancer, with unwavering faith in our democracy and its ideals. Thats how we remember her. But she also left instructions for how she wanted her legacy to be honored. Four and a half years ago, when Republicans refused to hold a hearing or an up-or-down vote on Merrick Garland, they invented the principle that the Senate shouldnt fill an open seat on the Supreme Court before a new president was sworn in. A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment. The rule of law, the legitimacy of our courts, the fundamental workings of our democracy all depend on that basic principle. As votes are already being cast in this election, Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard. The questions before the Court now and in the coming years  with decisions that will determine whether or not our economy is fair, our society is just, women are treated equally, our planet survives, and our democracy endures  are too consequential to future generations for courts to be filled through anything less than an unimpeachable process. Advertisement

'A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment,' he wrote. 'Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard.'

Obama also lauded Ginsburg as a 'warrior for gender equality' who 'helped us see that discrimination on the basis of sex isnt about an abstract ideal of equality; that it doesnt only harm women; that it has real consequences for all of us. Its about who we are  and who we can be.'

The closely divided court had five justices with conservative bents and four liberals, before Ginsburg's death.

If Trump were to choose a conservative judge to replace the liberal Ginsburg, as expected, the court's conservatives would have more heft with a 6-3 majority.

The president repeatedly touts his success in already nominating two conservative Supreme Court Justices as one of the biggest achievements of his term but wishes to extend his influence further.

He has already remade the federal bench for a generation and the new vacancy in the highest court gives the president the ability to shape its future for decades to come if he is re-elected in November.

The current make-up of the US Supreme Court CONSERVATIVE John G. Roberts, Jr., Chief Justice of the United States, aged 65, appointed by George W Bush Neil M. Gorsuch, aged 53, appointed by Donald Trump Brett M. Kavanaugh, aged 55, appointed by Donald Trump Samuel A. Alito, Jr., aged 70, appointed by George W Bush Clarence Thomas, aged 72, appointed by George H W Bush LIBERAL Stephen G. Breyer, aged 82, appointed by Bill Clinton Sonia Sotomayor, aged 66, appointed by Barack Obama Elena Kagan, aged 60, appointed by Barack Obama Ruth Bader Ginsburg, died aged 87, appointed by Bill Clinton Advertisement

Trump's two nominees to the court, Justice Neil Gorsuch, 53, and Justice Brett Kavanaugh, 55, are young appointments meaning that their potential tenure could last for decades.

If possible, the president is expected to pick a third young nominee, increasing the length of his influence on the court.

If he loses in November without having secured a third Justice, Trump could still attempt to push a nomination through the Republican-controlled Senate before Biden's inauguration in January, although this would likely be met with fury by Democrats.

If there was still a vacancy by January, a victorious Biden could appoint a liberal nominee, leaving the conservative-liberal balance at 5-4.

With other current Justices on the court in their 70s and 80s, without the Trump nominee, a Biden presidency could have further vacancies that could swing the balance of the court completely.

If Trump wins the election and already has appointed his third Justice, further vacancies in a second term could allow him to push the conservative bias even further.

The Chief Justice of the United States John G. Roberts, Jr.; Neil M. Gorsuch, Brett M. Kavanaugh, Samuel A. Alito, Jr., and Clarence Thomas are the conservative leaning member of the court, although they haven't always sided with Trump.

Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan are the three remaining liberal Justices.

While conservatives are currently in the majority, the court has not always sided with Trump, including two major losses for the president this year.

In June, Trump erupted in fury after the Supreme Court dealt another blow to his efforts to undo Obama administration policies through regulation  comparing the rulings to 'shotgun blasts' at conservatives.

At that time, he made repeat references to his own reelection and demanded 'NEW JUSTICES' on the court, after Chief Justice John Roberts joined liberals to thwart the administration's action.

The court had rejected his effort to end legal protections for 650,000 young immigrants, a stunning rebuke to the president in the midst of his reelection campaign.

The justices rejected administration arguments that the 8-year-old Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program is illegal and that courts have no role to play in reviewing the decision to end DACA.

Trump immediately cast the defeat in personal terms.

'Do you get the impression that the Supreme Court doesn't like me?' the president asked his Twitter followers.

The closely divided court had five justices with conservative bents and four liberals, before Ginsburg's death. Pictured, Ginsburg with the other Justices

Supreme Court Justices Samuel Alito, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer

Trump also made a pitch for his reelection and trying to reshape the court.

'These horrible & politically charged decisions coming out of the Supreme Court are shotgun blasts into the face of people that are proud to call themselves Republicans or Conservatives. We need more Justices or we will lose our 2nd. Amendment & everything else. Vote Trump 2020!' he wrote.

It was second loss in a week coming after the 6-3 ruling written by Neil Gorsuch that gay and transgender people are protected from being fired by federal civil rights legislation.

In another setback for the president, the court decided not to take up a case a Trump Administration case challenging California's 'sanctuary city' law.

The president now sees the Ginsburg vacancy as the chance to avoid any future defeats. by appointing an even more conservative voice than those already there.

Believed to be among the front runners to be chosen as Trump's nominee is U.S. Circuit Judge Amy Coney Barrett, 48, a devout Catholic who holds a strong pro-life stance.

Liberals fear her appointment would result in the removal of the Roe v Wade judgement that legalizes abortion nationwide.
Source: fmprc.gov.cn| 2020-09-19 18:29:31|Editor: yhy

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I want to begin by thanking Vision China for inviting me to talk about this very important topic for both China and the United Nations: Poverty Eradication and Peaceful Development.

Seventy-five years ago, when the world finally emerged from the rubble of the World War II, nations came together to found the United Nations. In the years since, the UN has lived up to its role as the most representative, authoritative, and comprehensive platform of international cooperation, and has made tremendous contribution to world peace, stability, and common development.

Today, our world is facing unprecedented challenges. COVID-19 is still spreading. The world economy is in deep recession. Efforts to implement the 2030 Agenda is suffering major setbacks. An estimate of 70 to 100 million people could be pushed into extreme poverty. Yet, despite these challenges and the profound changes we face unseen in a century, peace and development remains the defining trend of our times, and the shared aspiration of the people across the world. So it has become ever more important that we stand firmly committed to multilateralism with the UN at its core, and combine our efforts towards a community of shared future for mankind. To be successful in that endeavor, we must do right four things. Let me take each in turn.

First, we must safeguard the international system with the UN at its core. The Charter of the United Nations is not only the constituent instrument of the United Nations as an organization. It is also a legal manifesto encompassing the basic principles and norms for its 193 member states. Faithfully observing the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and upholding the international order based on international law, is crucial for world peace and development. We must reject any act that undermines the norms governing international relations. And we must act together to defeat the attempt of certain country to start a new "Cold War".

Second, we must uphold multilateralism. Decisions on world affairs need to be made through consultation. No country should be allowed to dominate over others. Any attempt to bring back the law of the jungle and barbarism is a lost cause. While multilateralism gives us solutions and options, unilateralism will only lead us astray to a dead end. It is a choice between the right and wrong. When certain country goes full steam with its unilateralism, protectionism, and bullyism, breaking commitments and back-stepping from international cooperation, the whole world is paying a heavy price. We must say no to these acts of unilateralism and bullying, and jointly promote a new type of international relations based on mutual respect, fairness and justice, and win-win cooperation.

Third, we must prioritize development on the agenda. Development is the master key to all problems, and poverty eradication deserves our most strategic focus. We must leverage the Decade of Action for the Sustainable Development Goals, support the work of the United Nations' Alliance for Poverty Eradication, and jointly advance cooperation on poverty eradication and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The principle of common but differentiated responsibilities is crucial and must be upheld. We urge the developed countries to honor their ODA commitments on time and in full, and provide adequate and stable capital, technical and capacity building support to the developing countries. Economic growth is the fundamental driving force for poverty eradication and development. We must strive for a safe and orderly return to work and maintain stability and integrity of the global industrial and supply chains. To this end, during the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting earlier this month, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi put forward a Chinese initiative on Facilitating Cross-border Flow of People and Goods. We welcome all interested parties to join this initiative. It is also important that the international community implement the Paris Agreement to achieve a green recovery.

Continue on the point of development, I want to emphasize that every country in this world is entitled to development. It is an inherent right of all nations. Alarmingly, some country is now trying to monopolize that right, using threats, coercion, and sanction to deny the right to development of other countries. But make no mistake, such despicable acts are doomed to failure.

Fourth, we must continue to strive for a community of shared future for mankind. This pandemic has taught us a good lesson. We have come to realize more keenly than ever before that all countries' interests are closely interconnected, and the whole humanity share a common destiny. Only by standing together can we defeat the pandemic. We support the continued leading and coordinating role of the United Nations and the World Health Organization in this fight. And we call on everyone to reject politicization, stigma, blame game and scapegoating. Despite the strong headwinds, we must remain committed to win-win cooperation and continue to steer economic globalization in the right direction.

Ladies and Gentleman,

As the first country to sign the UN Charter, and as a responsible country and permanent member of the UN Security Council, China supports the important role of the United Nations, and upholds the UN's authority and core status in the international system. No matter how the world changes, China will always stand firmly committed to building peace, promoting development, maintaining international order, and providing global public goods. Our resolve to safeguard multilateralism, fairness and justice will never waver. Our resolve to push for just and reasonable solution to hot-spot issues, and to bring about a more fair, just, and reasonable international order will never waver. Our resolve to build a community of shared future for mankind will never waver. And our resolve to jointly promote the Belt and Road Initiative, and achieve the SDGs will never waver.

As the world's largest developing country, China takes poverty eradication as a central priority. From end of 2012 to end of 2019, impoverished population in China had reduced from 98.99 million to 5.51 million with poverty incidence rate dropping from 10.2 percent to 0.6 percent. For 7 years in a row, 10 million plus people were helped out of poverty annually. In total, China has successfully lifted more than 700 million people out of poverty during the 4-decade-and-more Reform and Opening Up, accounting for over 70 percent of poverty reduction worldwide in the same period. In the past 7 years, rural per capita disposable income in 832 poverty-striken counties has increased to 11,567 RMB Yuan from 6,079 Yuan, averaging a yearly growth rate of 9.7 percent. Tarmac and cement roads have been paved in all administrative villages where conditions allow. All villages have had clinics and medical practitioner. Over 99.9 percent of registered poor population have been covered by the basic medical care insurance. Reliability ratio of rural power grid has reached 99 percent. And the teaching conditions of 108,000 compulsory education schools have been improved.

Our poverty eradication endeavors have profoundly changed the lives of many. In the Ethnic Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, a woman artisan named Li Congmei not only lifted herself out of poverty by making embroidery pieces, but also motivated many others to follow. Together, they have successfully explored a path to better life through stay-at-home businesses, while at the same time helped preserving ethnic culture and traditional craftsmanship. In a poverty-striken village in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Dr. Li Yan, an agriculturalist, runs a vegetable farming service business. Dr. Li has spent 28 years traveling to all corners of the region, teaching science-based vegetable farming, empowering many peasants to end poverty for good.

There are numerous stories such as these. There are millions of Chinese people like Li Congmei and Li Yan. Through relentless efforts, they have shaken off poverty and achieved a life of affluence and happiness. This year, we are determined to overcome the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, win the battle against poverty, and achieve, 10 years ahead of schedule, the Sustainable Development Goal of ending extreme poverty, thus making historic contribution to the global fight against poverty and efforts for peace and development.

Going forward, we will continue to fully implement COVID-19 response and cooperation measures that President Xi Jinping outlined at the 73rd World Health Assembly. We will support economic and social development in affected countries, especially developing ones. We will take active steps to set up a global humanitarian response depot and hub in China. And we will continue to implement the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative for the poorest countries, and fulfill the promise of making the COVID-19 vaccine a global public good once it comes out. China stands ready to work with all international partners, and make further contribution to the global pandemic response and the world economic recovery.

That concludes my remarks today on poverty eradication and peaceful development. I would like to close by wishing the Vision China program a great success. Thank you all for listening.

(Source: fmprc.gov.cn)
The Oregon Health Authority on Friday would not commit to recommending that anyone exposed through close contact to COVID-19 should be tested, regardless of symptoms, leaving the state with weaker testing guidance than issued by the Trump administration.

The states reluctance to encourage testing for exposed but asymptomatic people came as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention adopted that guidance after facing weeks of pressure.

Federal and Oregon officials have long said people exposed and who have symptoms should be tested. But the CDC last month indicated testing for exposed people without symptoms could be optional, setting off a political firestorm.

Federal officials changed course Friday and made clear that anyone who is within close contact of COVID-19 should be screened, even if they lack symptoms.

You need a test, the CDC wrote on its website, under a section about what someone without symptoms should do if they had spent at least 15 minutes within six feet of a person with a confirmed case of COVID-19.

Oregon public health officials said Friday they arent ready to match that recommendation. It matters because medical professionals often rely on the states testing guidance when deciding who should be tested  and studies have found half of people with infections may not have, or may not yet have developed, symptoms. Oregons murky testing guidelines have previously caused confusion about testing for people without symptoms.

Dr. Tom Jeanne, the deputy state epidemiologist and deputy state health officer, said in a statement that officials will evaluate what impact CDCs guidance has for testing in Oregon.

But Jeanne defended the states approach, which allows for  but does not explicitly recommend  testing people without symptoms following COVID-19 exposure.

We believe that within the parameters of our current guidance there is ample room for health care providers to make individual choices about testing asymptomatic people based on exposure as well as other risk factors, Jeanne said.

Oregons desire to maintain ambiguous testing guidance is apparently tied to concerns over testing availability. If the state explicitly recommended testing for everyone who has been exposed through close contact, regardless of symptoms, officials seemingly are concerned about a run on tests.

Oregon has one of the lowest per capita testing rates in the country and has never surpassed 41,500 tests in a given week. Tests had topped 30,000 each week since mid-June but officials are expecting a dramatic drop off because of recent wildfires.

We continue to need to weigh expanding testing guidance to include more people against the current limitations on supplies and the need to test in particular communities or demographic groups at greater risk for COVID-19 and adverse health outcomes, Jeanne said.

Oregons screening guidance now recommends viral testing for all people with new symptoms consistent with COVID-19, regardless of severity.

But for people without symptoms, the state recommends that testing  be limited to only certain groups. Among those groups are close contacts of confirmed or presumptive cases, people exposed in congregate living settings and people of color.

But while that guidance may seem clear, it does not explicitly say that testing is recommended and the ambiguity has created confusion before.

As an example, a Latino couple in June attempted to seek testing but was repeatedly turned away by health care providers, prompting calls for clearer state guidance. In response to that incident, state officials provided contradictory statements about whether testing for people without symptoms should be available.

Nationally, when the CDC changed its testing recommendations in August, doctors and public health officials expressed concern. The agencys online guidance morphed from testing is recommended for all close contacts to close contacts do not necessarily need a test if they lack symptoms.

The Oregon Health Authority didnt balk at the revision.

We dont expect much of an impact because the CDCs new guidance about asymptomatic testing is consistent with our current guidance, a spokeswoman said at the time.

But the CDC change has been heavily scrutinized by the national media. This week The New York Times reported that the CDCs less aggressive testing language was not written by scientists and was posted to the agencys website despite their objections.

Given the weeks-long consternation over the federal advice, how do Oregon health officials feel to now have less aggressive guidance?

We are evaluating this new change and will adjust our guidance as appropriate, given the broader context of capacity and the situation in Oregon, Jeanne said. We always review CDC guidance to determine how to adopt or adapt it to ensure it meets the unique health needs of Oregonians.

-- Brad Schmidt; bschmidt@oregonian.com; 503-294-7628; @_brad_schmidt
Next week will be a big one for Tesla (TSLA). Alongside its annual shareholder meeting, on Tuesday (September 22) the EV maker will host its highly anticipated Battery Day. The event has been the source of much speculation as to what delights will be on offer from Musk and Co.

Deutsche Bank analyst Emmanuel Rosner has an idea of what to look out for.

We believe Tesla could unveil a new insourced manufacturing system to ramp up battery capacity, improved cell chemistry with greatly-enhanced performance, and fast-declining cost curve, the analyst said. While media and investors expectations for the event are high, we believe these announcements could meet many of them, and reinforce Teslas position as a technology leader.

Battery capacity has already been noted as a major impediment to future growth. As such, Rosner anticipates a formal unveiling of the Roadrunner, Teslas battery cell manufacturing system. Expected to utilize technology obtained from Hibar and boasting the dry battery electrode (DBE) technology developed by Maxwell, the Roadrunner should enable Tesla to scale up its battery volumes quickly while reducing cost and increasing density.

Rosner expects Tesla to boost its battery output significantly and battery costs to trend well below $100/kWh in the next few years.

Additionally, the event could also shine a light on the development of the fabled million mile battery, which is expected to incorporate some advanced chemistry research work done by Jeff Dahn.

So, with such a catalyst on the horizon, should investors pick up Tesla shares? Not quite.

Although Rosner believes investors ongoing enthusiasm for EV plays will probably continue to prop up Teslas lofty valuation, the analyst counts demand deterioration while Tesla sets about making improvements to production as the largest investment risk. Additionally, rising competition in an increasingly crowded EV space could eat away at Teslas lowest cost advantage longer term.

Story continues

Therefore, Rosner rates Tesla shares a Hold, although the price target gets a meaningful boost. The figure moves from $300 to $400, yet still implies a 9.5% downside from current levels. (To watch Rosners track record, click here)

Overall, Rosners colleagues are reading from the same EV manual. Tesla's Hold consensus rating is based on 5 Buys, 15 Holds and 10 Sells. However according to the Street, theres even more downside in the cards. Going by the $307.73 average price target, the analysts expects a 29% share price drop in the year ahead. (See Tesla stock analysis on TipRanks)

To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks equity insights.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analyst. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment
An Alliance MLA has issued a public apology after photographs emerged of her dressed up as a black American actor.

Paula Bradshaw said 10 years ago she dressed up as Mr T.

The Illinois star is best known for playing the character BA Baracus in the 1980s television series The A-Team.

She posted an apology on Twitter on Saturday, describing it as a serious lapse of judgement.

It has come to my attention that there are photos of me on social media from a decade ago dressed as Mr. T.



For some time I have been deeply embarrassed I ever thought such an inappropriate costume was a good idea and I apologise for any offence caused.



1/4  Paula Bradshaw MLA (@PaulaJaneB) September 19, 2020

For some time I have been deeply embarrassed I ever thought such an inappropriate costume was a good idea and I apologise for any offence caused, she tweeted.

It was a serious lapse of judgement. It did not reflect my views then and does not reflect them now.

I am proud to stand on my record of tackling the very real issues of racial discrimination and prejudice faced by minority ethnic communities here and abroad every day.

I will not be diverted from continuing to take concrete action to support minority communities, assist refugees and oppose racial injustice in all its forms.
WeChat users in the U.S. revived their request in court to block the Trump administrations restrictions on the Chinese-owned messaging app, ahead of a Sunday deadline to remove it from American stores.

The U.S. WeChat Users Alliance is trying again, as directed by a San Francisco judge, after the Commerce Department issued a detailed description Friday of what transactions will be prohibited. The judge is set to consider the groups arguments at a hearing Saturday at 1:30 p.m. California time.

WeChat will have to end payments through its service as of Sunday and will be prohibited from getting technical services from vendors, according to the Commerce Department. Downloads of the app will also be barred as of Sunday. But the government said users wont be penalized for personal and business communications.

This is nothing more than an unprecedented prior restraint on protected speech, on the press, on the right to assemble and petition the government and the free exercise of religion," the group said in its new request to halt the ban. It is anything but narrowly tailored; it is a sledge hammer."

U.S. Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler said the users groups earlier request to block the presidents Aug. 6 executive order was too vague and mooted by the governments announcement of the specific scope of the restrictions aimed at WeChat and its Chinese parent company, Tencent Holdings Ltd.

The users group said the Commerce Departments explanation of prohibited use doesnt address its concerns.

The prohibitions of the Executive Order, including the imposition of criminal and civil penalties, without additional notice, are effective on Sunday, but what acts are prohibited and by whom, remain vague and unclear," they said.

The administration has said the ban is driven by national security concerns about the Chinese governments ability to access data through the app. Trump has separately barred people in the U.S. from doing business with TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance Ltd.

In a Friday court filing, shortly before the judge ruled, U.S. lawyers cited an opinion piece published in The New York Times on Thursday which called Chinese plans for WeChat and other apps much more sinister" than even Trump believed.

The WeChat users group has said that Trumps order is driven by election-year politics.

What we have feared has happened," the group said in a statement. Despite the public assurances provided by the Department of Justice to the court on Wednesday that individual users will not be affected, the U.S. government is banning WeChat completely."

The case is U.S. WeChat Users Alliance v. Trump, 3:20-cv-5910, U.S. District Court, District of Northern California (San Francisco).

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.

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New Jersey on Saturday reported three more deaths attributed to the coronavirus and 489 new positive tests  the fifth straight day the state announced more than 400 new cases but the first time in three days the number has been below 500.

Meanwhile, the states rate of transmission ticked up for the third straight day, to 1.1, above the key benchmark of 1 that shows the outbreak is expanding.

Gov. Phil Murphy announced the new numbers on social media. He did not say when the newly reported deaths occurred.

#COVID19 UPDATE: New Jersey has 489 new positive cases, pushing our cumulative total to 199,309.



Sadly, we are reporting three new confirmed COVID-19 deaths for a total of 14,273 lives lost. All three of these deaths occurred in the past five days.



More: https://t.co/JW1q8awGh7 pic.twitter.com/LrKljShTHc  Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) September 19, 2020

The update came the same day some media outlets reported COVID-19 deaths in the United States  both unconfirmed and probable  surpassed 200,000. According to Johns Hopkins University, the number of confirmed deaths, has still not reached 200,000 but is approaching that number.

Since its first case was reported Feb. 29, the United States has registered the most positive COVID-19 tests (more than 6.73 million) and the most deaths in the world.

We cannot let up," Murphy wrote in a separate social media message Saturday afternoon. No one is expendable. We must do everything we can to save every life we can, and to defeat this virus.

May 28th: 100,000 American lives lost to #COVID19.



September 19th: 200,000 American lives lost to #COVID19.



We cannot let up. No one is expendable. We must do everything we can to save every life we can, and to defeat this virus.  Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) September 19, 2020

New Jersey, an early coronavirus hotspot, has reported 199,309 COVID-19 cases out of more than 3.29 million tests administered in the more than six months since the outbreak here started in early March. Thats the eighth most among U.S. states.

The state of 9 million people has reported 16,064 deaths related to the virus  14,273 lab-confirmed and 1,791 considered probable  in that time. Thats the second most in the U.S. after New York. New Jersey has the nations highest COVID-19 death rate per 100,000 residents.

More than 34,500 residents have recovered from the illness, according to Johns Hopkins University, though that number is likely much larger.

New Jersey has seen its daily numbers drop significantly since April, when officials were routinely announcing hundreds of new deaths and thousands of new cases a day.

New deaths have hovered below 10 and new cases have been between 300 and 600 in recent days.

Despite recent case upticks, coronavirus deaths and hospitalizations in the state have remained relatively stable in recent weeks.

Murphy said Friday the virus has been moving in ebbs and flows lately. He also suggested part of the reason for recent increased cases is an increase in testing. And he said the state has not seen major spikes because of gyms and indoor dining reopening two weeks ago.

Still, officials continue to warn about rising cases among younger residents. They said Friday 33% of the states new cases in recent days have come from residents aged 18 to 29.

State Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said Friday the states recent spike in cases is also because of gatherings  not just parties but solemn events like funerals.

Because younger residents are less likely to suffer severe cases, officials said the increase in cases among young adults and adolescents is a part of the reason deaths and hospitalizations are staying stable. But officials warn young residents could still pass the virus to more vulnerable people.

TRANSMISSION RATE

New Jerseys latest rate of transmission of 1.1 is up from 1.08 reported Friday. It has been above 1 since Sept. 4.

Any number above 1 means each newly infected person, on average, is spreading the virus to at least one other person. Any number below 1 means the virus is decreasing.

With the big number of positives (lately), that number is bound to go up a little bit, Murphy said Friday. We want to get that under 1.

HOSPITALIZATIONS

There were 412 patients with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 cases across New Jerseys 71 hospitals Friday night. Thats one fewer patient than the night before.

The state did not break down how many tested positive for the virus and how many were under investigation while awaiting test results. Many of of the people under investigation for the virus turn out to be negative, officials have said.

Fridays hospitalizations include 89 patients in critical or intensive care (14 more than the day before) with 27 on ventilators (nine fewer than the day before).

There were 29 coronavirus patients discharged Friday, according to the states coronavirus tracking website.

New Jerseys COVID-19 hospitalizations have dropped dramatically since the states peak in mid-April, when there were more than 8,000 patients.

AGE BREAKDOWN

Broken down by age, those 30 to 49 years old make up the largest percentage of New Jersey residents that have caught the virus (31.1%), followed by those 50-64 (26.7%), 18-29 (15.8%), 65-79 (13.4%), 80 and older (9.3%), 5-17 (2.9%), and 0-4 (0.6%).

On average, the virus has been more deadly for older residents, especially those with pre-existing conditions. Nearly half the states COVID-19 deaths have been of residents 80 and older (47.1%), followed by those 65-79 (32.3%), 50-64 (15.9%), 30-49 (4.3%), 18-25 (0.4%), 5-17 (0%), and 0-4 (0%).

At least 7,141 of the states COVID-19 deaths have been of residents and staff members at nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Newsletter | Homepage

Several school districts in New Jersey have been forced to change plans for in-person classes because students or staff have tested positive for COVID-19. But Murphy said this past week he does not foresee having to close all schools and implement universal remote learning like he did the last academic year.

State officials are calling for residents to get flu shots to help avoid a possible twin-demic in the fall.

In addition, New Jersey is still calling on travelers from 30 states and territories that qualify as hotspots to voluntarily self-quarantine for 14 days after arriving. That includes residents returning home from a trip.

The number of deaths in New Jersey related to COVID-19 could surpass the 16,200 annual deaths from cancer the state has averaged  which would make the virus the states No. 2 killer, after heart disease, according to mortality data from the state Department of Health.

New Jersey has begun allowing some of the businesses listed in Stage 3 of its recovery plan to reopen with restrictions  including gyms, movie theaters, and indoor dining. Murphy has said he could tighten guidelines if there are sustained increases or if businesses and patrons dont comply with the rules.

The virus has taken a major toll on the states economy. More than 1.56 million residents have filed for unemployment, businesses have lost untold revenue, and numerous businesses have closed permanently. In good news, weekly unemployment claims fell to a new low Thursday for the first time in five weeks.

GLOBAL NUMBERS

As of early Saturday afternoon, there have been 30.56 million positive COVID-19 tests across the world, according to a running tally by Johns Hopkins University. More than 953,00 people have died, while more than 20.82 million people have recovered.

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Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com.
Pakistan will establish 18 markets along its border with Iran and Afghanistan, according to a statement from Pakistan.

AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Pakistan will establish 18 markets along its border with Iran and Afghanistan, according to a statement from Pakistan.



The decision was announced during a high-level meeting chaired by the Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad, according to local media reports.



Twelve markets will be established along the Afghanistan border and six at border areas with Iran, according to a proposal plan, said a statement from the prime ministers office.



Khan, however, initially approved a pilot project to establish three markets.



"These three markets, two along with Iran and one at Afghan border areas, will be completed and activated by February 2021," Khan told officials at the meeting that included Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Chief of Army Staff Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa, Advisor to Prime Minister on finance Abdul Hafeez Sheikh and other senior officials.



The markets will provide better business and trade opportunities to the residents living along the border, Khan said.





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With a record surge in new Covid-19 cases, France is heading for a second wave of infections that seems more aggressive than the first one in March. Although stricter lockdown rules were announced in only parts of France, some landmark institutions were hit, and forced to close their doors.

On September 18 the prestigious political science university Sciences Po announced that it will close its doors from 21 September through 4 October, suspending all teaching activities and library services.

The institution's campus in Reims was already closed on September 11 and is, as for now, scheduled to re-open on September 27.

The closure took place "at the recommendation of the Regional Health Agency after a case of Covid-19 was detected among the students.

Last Tuesday, Education Minister Frederique Vidal said that some 12 institutions had to close their doors as a result of the epidemic.

New record

The announcement coincides with French health authorities posting a a new record of Covid-19 infected patients with 13,215 new cases within 24 hours.

France's official public health website also reported that 123 people died over the last day (against 50 on Thursday) and that 5,4 percent of people tested proved to be positive.
As Steve has noted, Ruth Ginsburg died today. Steve said that we would be back tomorrow with more thoughts, so I am jumping the gun. Here are some preliminary observations:

1) I think President Trump will nominate Amy Barrett to fill the vacancy, and will do so quickly.

2) I think Mitch McConnell will schedule hearings to take place soon.

3) The Supreme Court has always been a winning issue for conservatives. That will be true again. The Democrats will have a hard time attacking Barrett (or, I assume, anyone else Trump might nominate). The issue will be a net plus for the president, unless Republican senators betray him.

4) Republican senators may betray the president. Lisa Murkowski, for example:

NEW: Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) announces she will NOT vote to replace RBG on SCOTUS until after Election Day. "Fair is fair," she says.  Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) September 18, 2020

I inaccurately wrote "Election Day." Her comments today were for "INAUGURATION DAY." I apologize for the error. But that is obviously much better news.  Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) September 19, 2020



I have no idea where that comes out. But the idea that any Republican senator would hesitate to confirm a highly qualified and critically important Supreme Court justice is outrageous. Mitt Romney, who apparently nurses a personal grievance against the president, is another suspect.

5) To state the obvious, this is the one development that could make 2020 crazier than it already was. But I think it is just as well that all of the chips are being pushed into the center of the table. This years election will decide whether America will continue to be America. It is that stark. So lets put everything up for grabs.
Egan's Irish Whiskey Fortitude won Irish Whiskey of the Year at the recent New York International Spirits Competition at the end of August, the only Irish whiskey to receive a double gold, at 96 points.

This was only one of an impressive run of awards secured by Egan's Irish Whiskey in the past month.

The Egan family name is synonymous with some of the best Irish whiskeys in the world, as P.&H. Egan, Ltd was established in 1852 in Tullamore, becoming one of Irelands largest merchant houses, bonders and bottlers for 116 years. Reimagined in 2013 by the fifth and sixth generation Maurice and Jonathan Egan, today Egans Irish Whiskey is recognised for its exceptional single malt and single grain Irish whiskey, and dedicated to crafting ground-breaking, innovative expressions in the spirit of its forefathers.

Centenary, a blend of meticulously selected single malt and single grain finished in XO Cognac casks of French Limousin Oak, was awarded Double Gold at the 2020 Sip Awards in August, well as Gold Best in Class at the 2020 Whiskies of the World Awards the same month.

Egans has also just secured an exclusive distribution deal with Total Wine in the United States, meaning that it will increase its US market footprint significantly before the end of the year, bringing its award winning Irish whiskeys to a wider audience worldwide.

Egans Irish Whiskey continues to craft ground-breaking, innovative expressions with the latest release in its limited edition Legacy series, Legacy Reserve III. The third volume in this exceptional single malt series is hand-selected by the Egan family, aged for 17 years in American Bourbon casks and finished in French Cadillac AOC casks.

Limited to just 1000 bottles worldwide and less than 100 for the Irish market, the Cadillac cask finish adds a beautiful vanilla nose with hints of honey, acacia, honeysuckle, vanilla, citrus and apricot and a buttery mouthfeel, with baked peaches, pears, and honeyed apricots giving way to a nectar aftertaste. Cadillac is a French appellation dorigine controlee (AOC) for a sweet white wine made from Biturica vines on the hillsides of the Entre-Deux-Mers subregion of Bordeaux, taking its name from the town of Cadillac (not the car!)

Legacy Reserve III is non chill-filtered to retain its unique characteristics, and bottled at 46% ABV. RRP is 170 and it is available to pre-order now from Celtic Whiskey Shop (https://www.celticwhiskeyshop.com/Egans-17-Year-Old-Single-Malt-Legacy-Volume-3) and leading independent retailers at the end of September.

Egans Irish Whiskey is distributed by Intrepid Spirits through Celtic Whiskey Shop, Classic Drinks, Drinks Genius and MCM Spirits and is available at Celtic Whiskey Shop, James Fox, Deveneys Dundrum, and all leading independent retailers. For more information visit www.eganswhiskey.com or connect on Instagram @egansirishwhiskey.
How can our heroes be Mughals?, asked chief minister Yogi Adityanath last week. To make his meaning clear, he added, anything which smacks of subservient mentality is not acceptable to his government. Today, Id like to answer him.

First, however, I want to ask him a few questions myself. What gives a chief minister the right to question who our heroes are? He may have the authority to govern us but not to determine our values and shape our ideals. Its arrogance on his part to presume to tell us who to look up to and which rulers of our past to consider great.

Although I dont know Yogi, Ill go one step further. I suspect his question reveals either prejudice or ignorance, possibly both. If Im right, this not only is unfortunate and unbecoming in a chief minister, but compounds his arrogance.

And so to my answer. The greatest of our rulers is the Mughal emperor Akbar or, to use his full name, Abul Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar. I know many consider the Mauryan emperor Ashoka, who ruled 18 centuries earlier, Akbars equal or, possibly, heroically superior but I disagree. Akbar was not responsible for 100,000 deaths at Kalinga.

Now, let me tell Yogi a little about Akbar. As Ira Mukhoty, his latest and, arguably, best biographer has written, in the 16th century, his was the greatest empire on earth. With an annual income estimated at 100 million pounds, he was by far the richest ruler in the world. But its not his wealth or the size of his kingdom which makes him great. Its his amazing personality.

For a start, Akbars ecumenism was unique for his time. He believed all religions are either equally true or equally illusory. Mukhoty says he prayed to the sun, whispered mantras, worshipped fire and kept fasts. His young son Murad was entrusted to the Jesuits for an education, taught the sign of the cross and to take the names of Jesus and Mary at the beginning of lessons. Akbars Hindu wives were not required to convert. They enjoyed complete freedom to exercise their own religion. He abolished the jiziya, prohibited the slaughter of cows and the eating of their flesh and was a vegetarian on weekends.

Mukhotys account reveals an incredible individual, far greater than the pomp and circumstance that inevitably surrounded him. He often wore a dhoti and appeared in the diwan-e-aam with a tilak on the forehead and a rakhi on the wrist, tied by a Brahmin, as a blessing. The decor of the palace he built in Fatehpur Sikri reflects the same open-hearted liberalism.

There were frescoes painted of Christ, Mary and the Christian saints in the private chambers. In 1582, he had the Mahabharata translated from Sanskrit to Persian. In later years, he commissioned translations of the Ramayana, Rajatarangini and the story of Nala and Damyanti.

This becomes even more remarkable when you discover Akbar was effectively unschooled and practically illiterate. In fact, Mukhoty believes he may have suffered from attention-deficit disorder. Some historians have even claimed he was dyslexic.

Let me now ask Yogi another question: How can such a man not be one of our heroes? Is it because he was a Muslim that we cavil? Or because his grandfather conquered India? Is this what you were implying when you said regarding Mughals as heroes reflects the mentality of slavery?

I wonder if he realises such logic could encourage the people of Odisha to curse Ashoka. Or Indias Buddhists to consider Pushyamitra Shunga villanous for persecuting their ancestors?

I know Yogi spoke as a politician, not a man of the cloth. Yet, hes a revered priest of the faith we share.

Do these views represent Hindu thinking? Do they add lustre to our faith? Do they make Indians feel taller? Or more patriotic?

I doubt if Yogi will accept hes made a terrible mistake. I have no doubt he has.

Karan Thapar is the author of Devils Advocate: The Untold Story

The views expressed are personal

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WASHINGTON  A key senator who will be involved in confirmation hearings, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., promised Saturday to fight like hell against confirming President Donald Trumps nominee for the Supreme Court vacancy before the November election.

But no matter the timing of the vote, Blumenthal said he would not support the potential nominees that Trump announced last week.

There is no one on that list who I would support, he said in an interview Saturday afternoon.

Blumenthal and other Senate Democrats are now preparing for dogged confirmation fight as Republicans signal they will move quickly to replace the longtime, iconic Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday night at age 87. The Supreme Court battle infuses the 2020 election with another pivotal issue: the future of the nations highest court and an undoubtedly partisan pre-election struggle to shape it.

Trump suggested Saturday that he will move quickly to nominate a new justice and fill the vacant seat - possibly before the election. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Sunday night, President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, declaring his intention to confirm a Trumps pick for Supreme Court justice either prior to the election or in the weeks or months after - even if Trump loses in November.

If Republicans attempt to confirm a new justice in the next six weeks, it would controvert their insistence in 2016 that Supreme Court judges should not be confirmed close to a presidential election, when they blocked a nominee of President Barack Obamas for that reason.

We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices, Trump wrote Saturday. We have this obligation, without delay.

Timing of a confirmation vote is likely to hinge on the actions of a small group of Republicans, some of them facing re-election in 2020. In the past two years, a handful of Republican senators have said they would not support a confirmation vote within several months of an election, including Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, the chair of the Judiciary Committee, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska.

Graham, who will lead confirmation hearings for the nominee, changed his tune Saturday, saying on Twitter I will support President [Trump] in any effort to move forward regarding the recent vacancy created by the passing of Justice Ginsburg. Late Saturday, Collins said the winner of the presidential election should make the appointment.

A member of the Judiciary Committee, Blumenthal called Grahams comments the height of hypocrisy and said he has no idea what to expect from him in the coming weeks.

Senate Democrats held a call Saturday afternoon to discuss what to do. Blumenthal declined to share specifics about the call or Democrats strategy, but said Im certainly talking to my colleagues about how to stop a reckless and irresponsible effort to confirm a justice before the election when the American people can make their voice heard. We have been talking not only about our strategy, but also Justice Ginsburgs legacy.

Democrats are already warning their base that the addition of another conservative justice to the court - shifting its composition to six conservatives and three liberals - will threaten key decisions and legislation that Democrats support, including the landmark abortion decision Roe v. Wade and the survival of the Affordable Care Act.

If Republicans push through a Supreme Court nominee, within weeks the Affordable Care Act will be gone (a case is pending), U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., wrote on Twitter Saturday. 20 million Americans will lose their health insurance and rates will skyrocket for anyone with a pre-existing condition. In a pandemic.

Murphy said Friday night if Republican reverse their 2016 precedent and confirm a nominee now the Senate will be changed forever.

McConnell argued Friday night that Republicans have the mandate to confirm a new judge - despite his previous views on the matter - because there is a Republican president and Senate majority.

Since the 1880s no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year, McConnell said. By contrast Americans re-elected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise.

Bill Dunlap, law professor at Quinnipiac University, said in 2016, when McConnell blocked hearings on Obamas nominee, Merrick Garland, Republicans never mentioned the difference in party between the Senate majority and the presidency as a justification.

Thats irrelevant, he said. And also irrelevant is the time during the presidents term when the appointment is being made. The president has the authority to carry out his tasks from the moment he is inaugurated until another president is inaugurated, so the fact that the appointment comes late in the term should be irrelevant. I think it was irrelevant four years ago and I think on some level, I think it is irrelevant now. But it was the majority leader, it was the Republicans in the Senate, who appeared to institute this rule.

Senate Democrats mission to torpedo another Republican appointment to the Supreme Court will first fall to the Senate Judiciary, which hold hearings and the first vote on the confirmation of the nominee. Using procedural techniques and appeals to vulnerable Republicans, their strategy will undoubtedly be to delay, delay, delay - first to push a vote after Nov. 3, and then if former Vice President Joe Biden wins, to delay until after a new Senate is sworn in in January (if Democrats win a Senate majority), Dunlap said.

This Supreme Court confirmation fight will be the fourth participated in by Blumenthal, who has served in the Senate since 2011. It is likely to be the most bruising of them all.

In 2018, Blumenthal, Connecticuts former attorney general, helped lead the fierce Democratic opposition to the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh. On the Judiciary Committee, Blumenthal used procedural tactics like moving to adjourn the hearings and demands for more documents detailing Kavanaughs past at the White House to try to block or slow-roll the proceedings.

Blumenthal was fore in the push for additional FBI investigations into the conduct of Kavanaugh, after a woman named Christine Blasey Ford publicly alleged that Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were in high school. Kavanaugh has denied any wrongdoing.

In hearings, Blumenthal attacked Kavanaughs credibility, sparred with him over abortion rights and presidential powers. He vowed to oppose Kavanaughs nomination before the hearings began and followed through on that.

After a rancorous battle, the Senate voted 50 to 48 to confirm Kavanaugh in October 2018, one of the closest confirmation votes in American history.

Blumenthal also opposed the confirmation of Justice Neil Gorsuch, who Trump nominated to replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia in 2017 after Republicans blocked President Barack Obamas nomination of Merrick Garland for the post the year prior.

Democrats filibustered Gorsuchs nomination on the Senate floor under the previous 60-vote threshold. But Senate Republicans used a series of party line votes to change the standard a Supreme Court nomination, allowing them to approve Gorsuch with a simple majority.

That significant change was later critical to allowing Gorsuch to squeak through the Senate and will again be important in the upcoming confirmation fight to replace Ginsburg. It has created a new environment in which justices can be added to the Supreme Court for life without bipartisan approval.

In 2016, Senate Republicans opposed Garland who was nominated by Obama in March of 2016. They refused to hold Senate Judiciary hearings on the confirmation because it was too close to the presidential election, they said, and the people should get a chance to decide who the next justice would be with their vote for president.

emilie.munson@hearstdc.com; Twitter: @emiliemunson
The Uttar Pradesh police have summoned Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) lawmaker Sanjay Singh to record his statement after adding charges including sedition to a First Information Report (FIR) registered on September 1 against him and directors of an agency hired for conducting a survey based on the states alleged casteism through pre-recorded voice calls.

Singh, who is a Rajya Sabha member, reiterated his willingness to face the investigation and said he will visit Lucknow on Sunday to surrender. He added 63% of people surveyed called the government casteist and 29% did not. In UP [Uttar Pradesh], cases of rape, murder, loot are increasing every day. Arent the people who do all these are anti-national or am I anti-national for raising peoples voice against these issues?

Also read: Why western UP farmers are silent on Centres new farm bills

He slammed the Uttar Pradesh government for the politically motivated case and added it has been filed against him for raising his voice to oppose alleged atrocities against Brahmins and Dalits.

Every section and community is unhappy with the Yogi [Adityanath] government. In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party]-led government under Shri Yogi Adityanath is torturing the people of Brahmin community. Atrocities are going on against the people from Maurya community, Nishad, Bind, Kashyap, Jaat, Gujjar, Valmiki, Kurmi, Yadav and other communities.

He added he has also raised the issue of the governments massive corruption in buying Covid-19 kits. I have shown how the Yogi government is buying Rs 800 Oximeter for Rs 5,000 and looting the people. Similarly, thermometer which is locally available for Rs 1,600 was purchased at Rs 13,000 and I pointed out how in the time of Corona the Yogi government was doing corruption.

He said businessman Indrakant Tripathi in Mahoba produced a voice recording exposing how the district magistrate (DM) and police superintendent (SP) were allegedly trying to extort Rs 5 lakh from him. When the SP and DM found that Shri Tripathi was unable to pay then the SP himself met him and threatened him to kill if he does not pay the money. Shri Tripathi was so scared that he made a video a week before his death where he urged... Adityanath to give protection to him. Shri Tripathi requested the CMs [chief minister]s support and described how the SP and DM are threatening him. But no action was taken. Few days back, he died after suffering from a bullet injury in Uttar Pradesh for not paying extortion money.

Singh said he exposed the corruption of the government and unmasked it. First they registered a case under IT [Information Technology] Act but when in Rajya Sabha, I raised the corruption issue, the Yogi government filed the sedition case yesterday [Friday] evening against me.

The FIR was initially registered in Lucknow against unidentified people under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 501-A that pertains to printing or engraving matter known to be defamatory in this case to chief minister Yogi Adityanath and under the Information Technology Act for misuse of electronic communication.

Singh accepted his involvement in the survey through a tweet on September 2 and said he was willing to face investigation.

Anjani Pandey, the inspector in-charge of Lucknows Hazratganj police station, charges of sedition under IPC sections 124-A have been added during the course of investigation along with 153-A (promoting enmity between different castes), and 153-B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration). He said the names of Singh and the private agency directors involved in the survey have been included in the FIR after their role surfaced during the investigation. He said Singh has been sent a notice to appear before the police to record his statement.

BJP spokesman Harish Srivastava said those who have done nothing should not fear. But those who want to divide the society on caste lines or whip up communal passions for gaining foothold need to fear the law which will take its own course against such people.
Mortgage lenders will continue to offer mortgage payment holidays to some financially vulnerable customers after the government scheme ends, the City watchdog has confirmed.

While the scheme officially ends at the end of next month, the Financial Conduct Authority said that banks and building societies can continue to offer payment holidays for borrowers who need short-term support.

From November banks won't be under any obligation to do this however, and the FCA has now confirmed that taking a payment holiday will affect a borrower's credit report once the scheme ends.

This means that taking a mortgage holiday could affect the borrower's ability to secure any further finance in the future.

Customers yet to apply for a mortgage payment holiday have until 31 October to do so

The FCA said it will be 'monitoring firms to ensure borrowers are treated fairly' once the scheme ends in October.

Christopher Woolard, interim chief executive at the FCA, said: 'Some consumers will continue to be impacted by coronavirus in the coming months, or be impacted for the first time.

'Consumers in these situations will benefit from firms providing them with tailored support.

'However, it is very important that consumers who can afford to resume mortgage payments should do so for their own long-term interests and so that help can be targeted at those most in need.'

Eric Leenders, managing director of personal finance at banking trade body UK Finance, said: 'It is essential that customers go online or contact their lender to consider the best solution for them.

'Firms will be communicating with customers whose mortgage payment deferral is coming to an end to discuss the options available. Those who can afford to resume payments should do so, as it will always be in their best interests in the long run.'

Mortgage payment holidays will cost you more

Banks will rake in hundreds of millions of pounds in extra interest off the back of the payment holidays already granted, especially from those borrowers who opted for a six month rather than a three month holiday.

For example, if you took a three-month payment holiday for a mortgage that started in January this year of 100,000 with 20 years remaining at the average two-year fixed rate of 2.24 per cent, then after your mortgage holiday your monthly payments will go up from 505 to 515, and you'll pay an additional 955 in interest over the lifetime of the mortgage.

However, taking a six-month holiday on the same terms would see the total interest over the life of the mortgage rise to 1,945.

The financial watchdog has encouraged firms to continue offering support to borrowers

This is more than double the three month holiday, because the interest on the loan compounds while you're not paying it.

If you want to do the sums for yourself, broker Habito has a mortgage holiday calculator which you can find here.

Taking a mortgage holiday could also severely hamper your ability to refinance in future.

While doing so before 31 October shouldn't affect your credit score, industry insiders claim that some lenders are already starting to automatically decline applications for those who have taken a payment holiday.

Zane Groves of financial adviser firm Light Blue said: 'If you don't need a mortgage break, don't take one. It may be used against you in a future mortgage application, although this is yet to be proven on a large scale.'

How does a mortgage holiday work?

At the moment, lenders are offering borrowers three ways to defer their mortgage payments.

Some borrowers will be able to extend their loan, effectively adding the extra three months onto the end of their term.

Others are being offered the opportunity to increase the mortgage size but keep the same term length.

This means that the mortgage will be paid off over the same period, but the borrower will be paying slightly more each month once payments start again.

Remember though, with both these options you will be paying interest on the sum accrued, meaning you'll pay more interest overall.

Another option that some lenders are offering is a shorter term repayment plan, giving the borrower the opportunity to pay the debt back sooner over a period of, for example, six months.

Not all lenders will be offering all borrowers all of these options. Speak to your lender to find out which one you might be able to take.

Normally a payment holiday is granted on a case-by-case basis with financial hardship and general situational factors taken into account. From November, lenders will likely go back to using this approach.
DENVER  A majority of President Donald Trump's supporters plan to cast their ballot on Election Day, while about half of Joe Biden's backers plan to vote by mail, a sign of a growing partisan divide over how best to conduct elections in the United States.

Overall, 39 percent of registered voters say they will vote by mail, well above the 21 percent who say they normally do so, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. The rise is skewed toward backers of the former vice president, 53 percent of whom plan to vote by mail. Fifty-seven percent of Trump's supporters say they'll vote in person on Nov. 3.

Fifty-four percent of voters say they will vote before polls open on Election Day.

The poll finds ebbing enthusiasm for mail voting: Only 28 percent of Americans say they would favor their state holding elections exclusively by mail, down from the 40 percent who said so in April as the coronavirus pandemic was first spreading and before Trump launched his anti-mail campaign.

Support for states allowing voters to cast an absentee ballot without requiring a reason is higher, but also down since April, from 56 percent to 47 percent.

Traditionally, voting by mail has not been a partisan issue. Until recently, Republicans were more likely to do so than Democrats, because older voters have tended to vote by mail more often than younger voters.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended earlier this year voting by mail as an alternative to face-to-face interactions at polling places, which could pose a risk of coronavirus infection. States have scrambled to adjust to an expected surge in advance voting, with nearly three dozen changing their mail or absentee voting rules in response to the pandemic.

The president has since tried to fan skepticism of mail voting, baselessly claiming that its widespread use will lead to fraud. Trump warned that mail voting could lead to so many people voting that "you'd never have a Republican elected in this country again." He condemned on Thursday the plan in 10 states to proactively send mail-in ballots to registered voters, claiming without evidence it means the result of November's election would never be accurately determined.

Studies of past elections have shown voter fraud to be exceedingly rare. In the five states that regularly send ballots to all voters, there have been no major cases of fraud or difficulty counting the votes.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

The poll found that 33 percent of Democrats, but just 12 percent of Republicans, favor mail-only elections. That's a decline across the board from April, when 47 percent of Democrats and 29 percent of Republicans backed the idea. Seventy-two percent of Democrats, but just 25 percent of Republicans, favor no-excuse absentee voting.

In swing states like Florida, North Carolina and Pennsylvania, Democrats have far outpaced Republicans in requesting mail-in ballots so far this year.

The poll shows only 34 percent of Americans have great confidence in the U.S. Postal Service, following a summer of controversy over slowed service resulting from cuts made by Trump's appointee. Still, 49 percent say they have some confidence.

Democrats suspect the cuts are an effort to sabotage mail voting, and Trump himself said he'd be happy if the post office got less money to stop Democratic efforts to expand that method of voting.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 21:58:50|Editor: huaxia

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HAIKOU, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- A foreign tour group kicked off their journey on Saturday in Haikou, capital of south China's island province of Hainan, in a bid to promote the international image of the Hainan free trade port.

The tour group consists of more than 20 foreigners from 16 countries who live in China, including internet celebrities, consular officers, and representatives of foreign tourism bureaus.

During the three-day tour, they will introduce Hainan's tourism resources through livestreaming or short videos on social media like TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.

This has been the first international tourism promotion event since China released a master plan for the Hainan free trade port on June 1.

Li Yu, an official with the provincial department of tourism, culture, television, radio, and sports, said the event was expected to show an open image of Hainan to the world and attract more foreign tourists to the free trade port.

Li said the province will conduct more international tourism and cultural exchanges and invite global tourists to enjoy their travels in Hainan. Enditem
Be Sri Lankan, Buy Sri Lankan and also wear Sri Lankan View(s):

With the view of supporting Sri Lanka Batik industry, Worldlink Travel Group decided to go for Batik attire in their all office networks.

Our motto is Be Sri Lankan, Buy Sri Lankan and also wear Sri Lankan. This is an initiative by President Gothabaya Rajapakse to revive many of the Sri Lankan home industries and we all at Worldlink Travel Group geared up to support it in our own small way said Ahintha Amerasinghe, the Chairman and Managing Director of the Worldlink Travel Group. The Worldlink Travel Group started in 1991by the brothers Ahintha and Gerard has grown to be one of the leading travel companies, who have been in the industry for the past 29 years, since 1991.

Worldlink Travel is into, air ticketing, out bound holidays, inbound tourism, airlines GSA , cruise GSA and own and manage popular Amaara Forest Hotel in Sigiriya and the Amaara Sky Hotel in Kandy. Due to the current covid situation, the entire global tourism industry is hugely effected but we are confident that the industry will pick up, specially with Sri Lanka being one of the best Covid situation managed countries added Gerard Amerasinghe , who is a co-founder Director of Worldlink.

Years ago, the batik industry in Sri Lanka, was world famous. For every tourist visited Sri Lanka, never forget to buy something in batik and it was a must in their shopping list said Ahintha. Seeing our FB post, I got a message from my friend from Switzerland who visited Sri Lanka in 1977, he said that he still has the batik wall hangings that he bought during his visit 43 years ago. If other companies too start making one day of the week a batik day, the industry will see a huge growth he added.
Masks, social distancing and voting were the key themes at New York Fashion Week, as the five-day parade of shows in the COVID-19 era closed on Thursday with designer Christian Siriano presenting his Sarah Jessica Parker-inspired collection at his Connecticut home.

Rebecca Minkoff, who teamed up with U.S. hardware store Lowes to show her rock n roll line in a digital presentation, incorporated masks into her show after talking with her casting agent.

He was like, if one model wants to wear a mask for safety reasons, you better believe that all the others are going to want to, said Minkoff. It was beautiful. It showcased all the amazing masks were gonna be launching.

Minkoff will also be selling t-shirts encouraging U.S. citizens to vote, ahead of the Nov. 3 presidential election. Part of the proceeds will go to VoteRunLead, an organization which helps people register to vote and trains women to run for office.

Siriano, meanwhile, featured a dress in a bold vote print fabric and several accessories of hats, gloves and masks.

Minkoffs collection was done before the COVID-19 restrictions, but she decided a digital show was the only way to go.

The pandemic hit and right away I knew I had till about May to decide what we wanted to do, she said.

Minkoff said the brand has seen sales spike over the last few days and that business was up over 7% from last year. Customers still want fashion - even if theyre not going out as much, she said.

In place of the traditional runway show many designers, including Tom Ford and Brandon Maxwell, released look books in order to debut their new lines.

(This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.)

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Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan  Sat, September 19, 2020 13:11 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45e5781 1 National Medan,North-Sumatra,North-Sumatra-Police,red-and-white-flag,national-flag,insult,Jokowi,Joko-Widodo,Maruf-Amin,ITE-Law,ITE Free

The North Sumatra police have arrested a 28-year-old woman in Deli Serdang regency, North Sumatra, for allegedly defaming the flag of the Republic of Indonesia as well as the countrys president and vice president.

The woman allegedly posted a video on her Instagram account that shows her putting the flag on the floor, trampling on it, pouring soil onto it, burning and cooking it and using it to wipe glass. She also reportedly uploaded another video in which she sprinkled chili, cassava leaves and vegetable chunks on photos of President Joko Jokowi Widodo and Vice President Maruf Amin.

The cybercrime unit head of the North Sumatra Police, Comr. Bambang Rubiyanto, said the woman was detained at the police headquarters as investigators started the probe into the case.

Read also: Activists, lecturer raise concerns about criminalization of free speech in universities

The arrest on Friday was based on a report filed to police on the same day, according to North Sumatra Police spokesperson Adj. Sr. Comr. MP Nainggolan.

The preliminary investigation suggested that the womans motive for defaming the state symbol and state leaders was to seek global attention, he said.

Her action was a criminal act and [the suspect] will be charged with violating the Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) law, Nainggolan told The Jakarta Post. (aly)
Guatemala reopens it borders to Mexico businesses, travelers

Guatemala City, Guatemala  The Government of Guatemala has announced the reopening of its main airport in Guatemala City. The reopening of the countrys La Aurora International Airport began September 18, when they opened their border via air travel after being shut for nearly six months due to the Covid pandemic.

Having opened the border does not mean that we are completely free to do whatever we want, said Ruben Balcazar, head of Migration in Guatemala. We only ask that travelers bring the PCR test document that protects you to arrive in good health.

Ruben Balcazar added that the test must be dated no more than 72 hours before landing in Guatemala otherwise travelers will have to comply with a 14-day quarantine under the supervision of the Ministry of Public Health.

On March 15, the Guatemalan government made the decision to close its border with Mexico as a result of the increase in coronavirus cases, paralyzing the regional marketing of both countries.

Those of us who live in Tapachula know that the Guatemalan population is an important source of income for the local economy and that is why, in my point of view, I consider that with the pertinent sanitary measures, this reopening of the border represents a development for our municipality, said Viridiana Figueroa Garcia, president of the Security Commission in Tapachula, Chiapas.

The reopening of the Guatemalan border will favor commercialization in municipalities such as Ciudad Hidalgo, Tuxtla Chico, Union Juarez and Tapachula, one of the cities where 70 percent of trade is generated by Guatemalans.

However, given the current situation due to COVID-19, the Government of Guatemala has announced new measures to prevent the spread of the virus which includes the mandatory use of mouth masks or face masks in public places. Travelers found not wearing one will be considered as an offense against public health, which could lead to fines.

People entering Guatemala must either submit the negative result of a COVID-19 test, which must be performed within 72 hours prior to arrival or stay 14 days in isolation upon arrival in the country. It is also important to note that the extension of the state of calamity is until October 5, 2020.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a meeting with Chief Ministers of seven states including Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Delhi, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab on September 23 to discuss the coronavirus situation in their respective states. This will be the eighth round of consultations with CMs since the onset of the pandemic.

Modi has held several rounds of discussions with chief ministers on the Covid-19 response of states.

In August, the PM held a meeting with CMs of 10 states after Unlock 3 was put in effect. He had told them that containment, contact tracing and surveillance had proved effective against the spread of the virus.

During that meeting, Tamil Nadu CM E Palaniswami had asked the Centre to share 50 percent of the cost of RT-PCR tests and finance purchase of ventilators.

In June, he had held a similar meeting to discuss the economic ramifications of the nation-wide lockdown. He had reassured the CMs that green shoots" had become visible in the economy. He had also asked chief ministers to make full use of their states existing testing capacity and also work to augment health infrastructure.

In a similar meeting held in May, states had demanded an economic package from the Centre to help soften the blow of revenue loss during the lockdown and for autonomy in colour-coding districts according the extent of the spread of Covid-19.
Hanoi, Sep 19 : Vietnam on Saturday resumed international flights after a five-month suspension due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

On Saturday morning, a Vietnam Airlines carrying 60 passengers on board took off for Tokyo from the Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Most of the passengers are Vietnamese students and workers going back to Japan to continue studying and working.

The flight also carried a number of Japanese nationals, according to state-media.

Passengers exiting Vietnam must have a certificate of negative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) Covid-19 test result issued within 72 hours before departure.

In September, Vietnam Airlines is expected to carry out three more flights to Japan, while the reverse route from Tokyo to Hnaoi will be arranged later.

Vietnam suspended all international flights in late March.

The country has recorded 1,068 Covid-19 cases and 35 deaths as of Saturday morning.

No local transmission has been recorded nationwide in more than two weeks, according to the Ministry of Health.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Northern Ireland's First and Deputy First Ministers have called on the Prime Minister to initiate an aerospace taskforce to mitigate the damage to the sector during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Both Arlene Foster and Michelle O'Neill as well as Unite the Union, collectively called on Boris Johnson to urgently establish the recovery organisation, which could prevent the loss of up to 1,800 jobs here.

They put their names and signatures to a letter alongside the first ministers for Scotland and Wales.

First Minister Arlene Foster said: "The pandemic has understandably resulted in a drop in passenger numbers. This has had a devastating impact on the wider aerospace sector with grounded fleets leading to reduced demand for new aircraft, as well as maintenance and repair.

Read More

"The sector is crucial for Northern Ireland and everything possible must be done to ensure it receives maximum protection.

"Maintaining air connectivity is vital to our longer term economic recovery. We have written to the Prime Minister to underscore the importance of intervention and to urge him to establish an aerospace taskforce as a first step in addressing the impacts being felt by the sector at this time."

Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill said: "Our local aerospace sector is hugely important, not just to the economy but to people's lives and livelihoods. We have already seen job losses in this area and the immense pressure caused by the pandemic has the potential to have further devastating consequences.

"The Executive is committed to doing everything it can to protect the sector, but we need to see immediate intervention from the British Government. Boris Johnson has a responsibility to step up and provide the support that's desperately needed to safeguard the future of this sector and its workers. Ministers have joined with Unite the Union calling on him to take urgent action to preserve capability and prevent further losses."

A workers' union has said that up to 1800 jobs are at threat here in the sector.

In July Co Down-based Collins Aerospace announced 235 employees would not be returning to work at the end of their furlough period.

And in June, Bombardier in east Belfast announced it was seeking to make 400 voluntary redundancies among its core staff, as well as "releasing" 200 temporary workers.

Read More

At the beginning of September, Bombardier also said it would be moving to a four-day week for staff as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic.

In a letter to staff, seen by the Belfast Telegraph, the firm said that it would now close its Belfast plant on Fridays.

It read: "As an industry, we know that our recovery will take considerably longer than other areas of the economy, and while in some ways it may feel like things are 'getting back to normal' in our society, we must accept that the situation for aerospace will continue to be volatile in the months to come."

Regional secretary Jackie Pollock said: "In Northern Ireland, we have an unfolding crisis in the sector with already 1,800 job losses threatened and the prospect of more with the reduction in furlough supports."

"The Prime Minister must now respond positively to this initiative and ensure that every possible tool will be used alongside measures being enacted by the devolved administrations in order to preserve jobs and to sustain the aerospace sector throughout and beyond the Covid-19 crisis," he added.
It is not enough to have a combat-ready army to succeed in the war. The second President of Armenia and First President of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), Robert Kocharyan, said this at a meeting with analysts, on the settlement of the Karabakh conflictand posted on the ex-President's official YouTube channel

"It is important to have a combat-ready army only to start a large-scale war in the first month. In two weeks all the specialists will say: we must understand whether we have combat-ready reservists, whether we have enough weapons and ammunition to replenish, and depending on the intensity of the war, we must understand what the level of mobilization of the country from manageability stand point today. The war can last for a long time, it can last for months, it can last for years.

Now the fight against coronavirus has shown that there is no manageability of the mobilization resource. You can have a combat-ready army, and that combat-ready army exists, and it was created during many years and under the great attention and participation of all the authorities. And it is very good that the political figures have not yet entered the army and have not yet managed to harm with their activities. The army is still under the influence of professional circles. But I repeat, we must look at security in a slightly broader context. Then we have to correctly guess what processes are in front of us, where is our world going, are we doing our steps right or not? I might draw such a parallel. Little is said about it now.

The guarantee of our success in Karabakh was not only the struggle of the people, not only the readiness to fight, to die on the battlefield, but also three important circumstances: We realized earlier than Azerbaijan that the Soviet Union was collapsing. They do not talk about it now, maybe it has not even become a topic of discussion for political scientists, but we understood earlier. For example, at the end of [19]88, I was asking myself if the Soviet Union was going to collapse, what were we going to do, how was it going to happen? In mid-[19]89 we were already asking each other what would happen if the Soviet [Union] collapsed. A huge contingent of internal troops was stationed in Karabakh, they were working against us, but also did not allow large-scale conflicts. Our boys were caught and handed over to Azerbaijan. They worked against us, but did not allow a large-scale conflict. What did we start doing now? We started to put all our efforts directly, apart from rallies, strikes, on the creation of detachments. From the beginning, in the mid-[19]88, I spent more time on it than on my political activities.

At the same time, Azerbaijan hoped that they would destroy us with the help of internal troops, put pressure on us, impose the solutions they wanted on us. To some extent, they did it within the framework of the famous Ring operation north of Shahumyan, south of Hadrut. But when the Soviet [Union] collapsed, it turned out that we have quite combat-ready detachments, which have gained some experience, Azerbaijan does not have; this played a decisive role.

Second circumstance: We concentrated power in Karabakh a year earlier than Azerbaijan. Year [19]92, August, the State Defense Committee completed its power from one point, military, civilian, we had entered the mobilization management. Azerbaijan entered this situation in September [19]93, approximately, when [former Azerbaijan president Heydar] Aliyev returned with his persons standing, and it took several months before he was able to regain everything, during which all the liberated territories were under our control.

And the third: We were the first to move from the detachments to the formation of a single army. This large-scale activity also started in August [19]92, in a very dry way; Azerbaijan started it also a year later. We were faster in all these issues, they were lagging behind. And we, in fact, being much weaker in terms of resources, have solved an issue for which nations get a chance every 100 years, maybe every 1,000 years. It is the chance that you can lose everything, or you can make your dream come true. Now we did it, we did it because we were oriented at the right time.

Now is the time, the world is also entering a rather complicated process, and a proactive policy is needed here as well. Do you have that intellectual potential in Armenia today or not, what do you see? Do you see proactive steps now, with which we try to move forward, to orient ourselves correctly, not to fall into traps, maybe having some risk, but to advance our national interests within a reasonable framework? I do not see, if you see, say. That part that I told about Karabakh, as it was left out of scientific things, was left out of expert circles, to all this was added the will of the people. But if we did not make those decisions in time, if those orientations had not been, it is a big question how all this would have ended. And from that point of view, the Karabakh elite was oriented correctly, the leadership of the movement; it's not just about me, it's about a group of people," Kocharyan said.

According to him, if Armenia weakens as a state, if it does not become a factor as a state, the army also will not be able to maintain its combat-readiness for a long time.

"These two factors can only be strengthened by feeding each other. If emigration continues in your country, you will not be able to become a factor, becoming a conflict with Azerbaijan where the population is different because the long war eventually becomes a war of resources; we must realize that. A short war can be a battle of combat-readiness, of mobilization control, but a long war becomes a war of resources. You cannot have those resources if your resources are in a regress," Robert Kocharyan said.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept.19

By Zeyni Jafarov - Trend:

The Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) has provided liquidity to the banking sector for 1 billion manats ($588.2 million) since the beginning of 2020, the banks Board Chairman, Elman Rustamov said.

Rustamov made the statement at the meeting of the Council of Cooperation with Entrepreneurs of Azerbaijan under the Management Board of CBA held on September 16, 2020, Trend reports.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the National Confederation of Entrepreneurs Organizations, Azerbaijan Banks Association, entrepreneurs, and representatives of the banking sector, as well as other representatives who are not members of the Council.

Chairman of the Committee on Economic Policy, Industry and Entrepreneurship of Azerbaijans Parliament, Tahir Mirkishili, and Director of CBAs Training Center, Javanshir Abdullayev also took part in the meeting.

CBAs board chairman noted that as a result of the measures taken by the bank, the volume of business lending and mortgage lending increased, while consumer lending decreased.

So, in 2020, the regulatory requirements for loans to entrepreneurs engaged in export activities were softened, while the requirements for consumer loans tightened, he said.

Rustamov stressed that to minimize the negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, several prudential normative for banks were softened, as well as recommendations were given to raise capital reserves and restructure loans to economic entities affected by the pandemic. Moreover, loans to 49,000 borrowers for 886 million manats ($521.1 million) were restructured.

Reportedly, under the self-employment program, with the support of CBA, banks provided various assets to vulnerable groups. To expand access to financial resources in rural areas, CBA launched a joint project with the relevant institutions.

Speaking at the meeting, Nuriyev, in turn, pointed out the difficulties that have arisen in the activities of banks due to the current situation.

According to Nuriyev, it is difficult for banks to identify additional risks associated with business entities.

Another participant of the meeting, Abdullayev emphasized the importance of the Council of Cooperation with Entrepreneurs of Azerbaijan as a platform for cooperation between the financial and banking sector and entrepreneurs in terms of providing the necessary support to business, especially in a pandemic.

Abdullayev also stressed the importance of state funds for business support and noted the importance of considering the possibility of consolidating their activities in the current situation.

He also advised that banks operating in Azerbaijan, as well as throughout the world should give preference to the use of state guarantee mechanisms for business support.

Mirkishili highly appreciated the activities of the council to settle problems arising in the dialogue between the banking and private sectors.

He also brought to the attention of the meeting participants that the committee is ready to support the solution of emerging issues related to legislation.

(1USD = 1.7AZN on Sept.19).

Follow the author on Twitter: @jafarov_zeyni
While TikTok is going through a roller coaster ride for a couple of months now, it had to lose its CEO, Kevin Mayer just a while ago, and now, on the lookout for a new CEO, it seems that the companys choice may come down to Instagram billionaire Kevin Systrom.Kevin Systrom had sold Instagram to Facebook in 2012, and left Facebook in 2018. So, he has had an ample amount of working in a similar environment, and he is also a very strong candidate because of his past association with TikToks archrival, Facebook.Facebook has always considered TikTok as a major threat and Mark Zuckerberg is allegedly amongst those people who planted the seeds of suspicion that TikTok is a threat to the US national security. He has been quite vocal about his anti-TikTok statements generally also, so this is not the latest news. But interestingly, despite all its criticism, Facebook keeps introducing features that make its platform and Instagram quite similar to TikTok. Recently, a short-form video editing tool and several other features were also introduced on Instagram, and all of this just suggests that regardless of its criticism, Facebook understands the mega-popularity of TikTok and that makes them its rivals and competitors.Now, if a person who has previously served both Facebook and Instagram come to join TikTok as its CEO, wouldnt that be interesting? He will have all the inside knowledge about how things work on Facebook and how TikTok can benefit from all that knowledge!So far, the discussions between Systrom and TikTok are in the early stages and nothing is confirmed so far. TikTok has not issued any statements regarding this update too as yet, and nobody from Systroms side could be approached for a comment too.The previous CEO, Kevin Mayer was also a very strong choice and was considered as a star CEO because of his long previous association with Disney. He even launched its streaming service, Disney+ sometime back. However, within only a few months of his appointment as the CEO of TikTok, the app got embroiled in a series of political issues and feuds with the US government. Thigs got extremely tense for Mayer, who resigned from his post amidst all the chaos, just a little while ago. Vanessa Pappas, the General Manager of TikTok is currently serving as an interim CEO.TikToks eventual fate is yet undecided. Oracle and other American investors are currently in talks with ByteDance, TikToks parent company to buy majority stakes of the Chinese conglomerate. Let us see what happens to the popular app in the end and who turns out to be the next CEO of TikTok!Photo: Anjum Naveed/Associated PressRead next: TikToks New Milestone Signifies Apps Popularity in Europe
The 20A juggernaut View(s):

The 20th Amendment (20A) to the Constitution appears to have become a prestige issue more than anything and the Government, having lost face to some extent by trying to rush it through amidst major defects and blowbacks from all corners, has taken the path of least resistance; just go through with it and to hell with the criticism.

A ghost writer seems to have drafted 20A. Everyone directly or indirectly connected to it was wringing their hands disowning the draft saying not me. Having relentlessly plastered the previous government for what they called the ill-conceived, hastily and poorly drafted 19A, they are now hoist with their own petard.

Eventually, they decided to take collective responsibility for 20A and hung the draft on the poor Legal Draftsman who just couldnt say not me either. Any student of politics knows the LD drafts only what policy is given to him by the Government.

Volleys of fire have come for what is patently a cut and paste job by taking 18A and renaming it 20A Plus. Professional associations from retired judges, state auditors to media unions have rung alarm bells that 20A was paving the road to an elected dictatorship.

Some of the provisions in the draft are really regressive features for good governance. State auditors have pointed out that as many as 120 state controlled enterprises including the debt-ridden SriLankan Airlines, Sathosa, Sri Lanka Insurance, Litro Gas and Lanka Coal, are excluded from the scrutiny of the Auditor General. Retired judges have raised issue over senior judges being appointed by the President and the media have pointed out to the power of an Election Commission appointed by the President having overriding power over them at a time of election.

There is the question of dual citizenship. This could be referred to as the BR Amendment in line with laws that are introduced in the United States in honour of those who campaigned for such laws. Government spokesmen have found it embarrassingly difficult to justify this provision when it is clearly public knowledge that it is aimed at opening the door for one individual to enter Parliament by retaining his US citizenship.

The eligibility of dual citizens to perform public service in one country has been evolving in recent years. Dual citizenship in Sri Lanka was permitted only in 1987 but applications were few and far between until the process was accelerated in the last few years. Previously, a citizen of another country could not serve in a public capacity either at home or abroad. So much so that a Sri Lankan could not be an ambassador abroad even if their spouse was of another nationality.

Many of these laws have changed. Today, there are dual citizens appointed as Sri Lankas ambassadors abroad and holding high office in public institutions. There are even Cabinet Ministers with resident visas abroad, especially in the US.

But dual citizenship in the national legislature is in a different league. World governments havent yet embraced this groundbreaking concept. In South Asia only Afghanistan permits it but thats due to its political realities and the US running its affairs.

In the political realities of Sri Lanka, there is the real danger of the anti-national diaspora elements already armed with dual citizenship, dollars and euros to throw around entering the national legislature. Having their proxies in the House is bad enough but their direct entry can turn Sri Lankas Parliament into pandemonium  a Parliament in Hell.

It is even in the interest of the prospective dual citizen to renounce his or her citizenship of the other country, precisely what the President did, so that questions of loyalty do not arise at times of crisis however much a patriot one may be. But it seems, this Government cares tuppence for any critique of what it intends carrying out, come hell or high water. And turn its avowed declaration of one country; one law on its head.

Biodiversity to the fore

While the country, or at least a discerning section of it, is deeply engrossed in the nuances of 20A, a United Nations report The Global Biodiversity Outlook predicts a gloomy bigger picture  the future of the planet we live in.

It offers an authoritative overview of the state of nature. It calls upon governments to shift away from business as usual across a range of human activities, reduce the negative impacts of such activity and highlights the urgent need to restore ecosystems.

The UN environment report calls upon world governments to scale up national ambitions and ensure all necessary resources are mobilised requesting that countries need to bring biodiversity into the mainstream of decision making and factored into policies across all economic sectors.

The report comes at a time Sri Lanka is continuing to face nagging environmental issues. There is the human-elephant conflict; sand mining; deforestation, forcing the government to make a call on which side to take: people or environment; even an oil tanker blaze has threatened to ruin our coastline.

The world has lost more than 100 million hectares of forests in two decades according to a UN Food and Agriculture (FAO) report. The challenges of dealing with deforestation in Siberia, sub Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia, Latin and Central America face the same problem  cutting forests for human habitation, crops and farm animals. It is only in the larger economically developed nations that forest cover has marginally increased.

Recent months have seen a record amount of carbon dioxide emissions released into the environment. Forest fires in Siberia, Brazil, California, Africa and floods everywhere, tropical storms in the United States where the meteorologists are running out of names for each of them, and droughts are living proof that nature is in crisis.

In Sri Lanka, a series of incidents of felling of forests and clearing lands has been taking place in environmentally sensitive areas such as the Knuckles and Hantane around Kandy and Wanathawilluwa and Anawilunduwa in the Puttalam district. These are not small areas. Heavy machinery is pounding away there right now in what was once trees. The President himself recently visited the Sinharaja reserve where a jungle tract was being upgraded to a road and gave the go-ahead citing the peoples needs.

Environmentalists complain that most of these lands are being exploited by relatives of politicians. Forest cover in Sri Lanka has dropped from 80 percent in 1900 to 60 percent in 1960 to 30 percent today. These politicians say you cant eat oxygen. The Minister of Wildlife and Forest Conservation says new trees will be grown. Maybe you cant eat oxygen but you can die without it.

It is worth echoing the UN reports call to bring biodiversity into the mainstream of decision making. Sri Lankas contribution to greenhouse gases may seem negligible but when the lungs of the Earth are choking, its impact is intercontinental. In an inter-connected planet, the Coronavirus is a textbook example.
Imperial Valley News Center

Proclamation on Farm Safety and Health Week, 2020

Washington, DC - Since our Nations founding, agriculture has played an integral role in the American way of life. Americas farmers and agricultural workers are critical to our economy, and concern for their physical and mental safety must remain a top national priority. Together, we must continue to ensure our farmers, ranchers, and foresters have the ability to work safely and effectively as they provide food, fiber, and fuel for our country. During National Farm Safety and Health Week, we raise awareness of safety and health issues on farms, ranches, and in rural communities, and we commit to improving the well-being of those who live and work in rural settings for generations to come.

The theme of National Farm Safety and Health Week this year, Every Farmer Counts, reminds us that every American must prioritize the safety and health of those who provide us with essential goods. The fall harvest is one of the busiest and most dangerous seasons of the year for agricultural workers. In preparation, and to propel continued innovation in farm productivity and safety, my Administration is supporting 21stcentury artificial intelligence and greater precision in agricultural applications. Additionally, we have made significant investments in rural hospitals, rural broadband, and access to telemedicine. My Administration has also prioritized the expansion of prevention, treatment, and recovery programs for the misuse of opioids in rural America. This week, we rededicate ourselves to these efforts to maximize the safety and health of agricultural producers through best practices, innovative technologies, and production methods that reduce risk and create safer, more productive work environments.

Addressing farm safety and health concerns requires more than just protecting agricultural workers from routine farm injuries. Our efforts also include addressing disease outbreaks and health crises, such as the coronavirus pandemic. This past spring, I instructed our Federal agencies to publish coronavirus safety guidelines addressing the specific needs of agricultural workers and food processing workers, all of which work hard to ensure Americas critical food supply remains strong. To aid producers affected by the pandemic, my Administration is providing $34 billion to Americas farmers through a variety of programs, including $30 billion in direct payments through the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program and the innovative $4 billion Farmers to Families Food Box Program, which supports American food producers and communities in need.

This National Farm Safety and Health Week, we also commend our first-class medical professionals and brave first responders serving in rural communities throughout the country. When our agricultural workers experience illness, injury, or health crises, our rural emergency medical responders are their heroes. With the support of these committed Americans, and our continued support for programs enhancing farm safety, we will ensure every farmer  and every American life in rural and remote communities  counts.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 20 through September 26, 2020, as National Farm Safety and Health Week. Please join me in promoting safe and healthy practices on our farms and ranches as producers enter the harvest season across the United States. I also urge all Americans to express their appreciation and gratitude to our farmers, ranchers, and foresters for their important contributions and tireless service to our Nation. The United States was built on the foundation of agriculture, and agriculture was built on the foundation of family farmers and their enduring values.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.

DONALD J. TRUMP
BRIDGEPORT  A former judicial marshal accused of sexually assaulting a woman he had assisted in the Milford courthouse was granted an unconditional discharge Friday after pleading guilty to a reduced charge.

Ezekiel Zeke Carr Jr., who resigned as a marshal following his arrest in November 2018, pleaded guilty before Superior Court Judge Kevin Russo to one count of disorderly conduct, a misdemeanor.

Carr had been charged with first-degree sexual assault, third-degree sexual assault and first-degree unlawful restraint.

States Attorney Joseph Corradino told the judge that he decided to reduce the charges against Carr after reviewing the evidence and after notifying the victims lawyer.

Corradino said surveillance video outside the Milford courthouse only showed Carr and the victim walking together.

It would have been impossible for the state to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that there was a lack of consent by the complainant. The complainant had made similar allegations in the past and had been convicted of assaults on men, Corradino said.

The resolution gives Carr a criminal record while sparing the complainant of an expected vigorous cross examination, by Carrs lawyer, Hugh Keefe, Corradino said.

Carr and Keefe declined comment as they left the Fairfield County Courthouse after the hearing.

Police said the victim complained on Oct. 22, 2018, that she had been at the Milford courthouse for a legal matter and asked a marshal, whom she later identified as Carr, what courtroom she should be in. Police said the woman told then that later, during a court recess, Carr had approached her and told her to take a walk with him so that he could discuss her case with him.

While walking in the direction of the train station, police said, Carr allegedly grabbed the woman by the neck and roughly kissed her.

I told him I didnt brush my teeth, but he kissed me anyway. He shoved his whole tongue down my throat. While hes kissing me, he put his hands in my pants, police said the woman told them. I told him I had a disease, that I couldnt have sex. He was like, I dont care.

She said Carr then raped her, according to police. After the assault, she told police, Carr told her to go back into the courthouse and put her smile back on.

Police said that when the woman went back into the courthouse, she told a family relations counselor what she claimed Carr had done to her. The counselor then told police.

Police said that when they later confronted Carr with the womans allegations, he said he had sex with her, but that she had dared him to do it and that it had been consensual.
The Syrian government lambasted the Netherlands on Saturday for launching a new bid through international bodies to hold it responsible for alleged gross human rights violations.

A foreign ministry source quoted by state news agency SANA accused the Netherlands of abusing its position as host of a number of the bodies concerned.

The Dutch government is determined to use the International Court of Justice in The Hague to serve the political agendas of its American master, the ministry source said.

The source accused the Netherlands of doing so in a flagrant violation of its obligations and commitments as the headquarters state of this international organisation.

On Friday, the Dutch government announced that it was pursuing all legal avenues to ensure that the Syrian government was held to account for its human rights record.

An attempt to refer top Syrian government officials to the International Criminal Court in The Hague for prosecution was blocked by Chinese and Russian vetoes in May 2014.

But the Dutch government said that, if arbitration failed, it would pursue action through an international court, the most likely being the ICJ, also in The Hague.

Unlike the ICC, which deals with cases against individuals, the ICJ deals with disputes between UN member states and breaches of UN treaties, and is the world bodys top judicial organ.

Syria signed the UN Convention against Torture in 2004 and the Dutch government said its legal action would focus on alleged breaches of that treaty.

The United States and the European Union have targeted numerous figures linked to the Damascus government with economic sanctions since the civil war erupted in 2011.

But concerted international action has been blocked by deep divisions over the conflict.

The war has killed more than 380,000 people and driven millions from their homes since it started with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.
Written and directed by Amir Ramses, the film will have its world premiere during the 42nd edition of CIFF, scheduled to take place in November

The film The Curfew (Hazr Tagawol) by Amir Ramses has been chosen to participate in the international competition of the 42nd Cairo International Film Festival scheduled to take place between 19 and 28 November, the CIFF organisers revealed.

The festival's presidents Mohamed Hefzy revealed on the festival's website that "the audience of CIFF are always interested in any participation of an Egyptian movie in the international competition. It is a challenge that the jury undertakes every year to choose the right Egyptian film that will represent Egyptian cinema internationally and be able to compete amidst with the most important films of the year internationally. This was achieved at the 42nd edition of the world premiere of the feature film The Curfew."

The director said that the CIFF is the best start for the films journey, adding that he is very happy to be back with an official participation in Cairo's festival, 15 years after his first feature film End of the World was featured during the same event.

Produced by the Red Star Productions, the events of The Curfew take place on 14 August 2013 during the time of the curfew, unveiling the emotions of the film's characters resulting from unusual circumstances as they interact in one location.

In a previous interview with Ahram Online, Ramses explained that The film has a social, not a political, context."

The teaser for the film was released in mid-April during the general shutdown of cultural activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The general mood we find ourselves in now is similar to the one presented in the film, according to Ramses.

The Curfew stars Mahmoud El-Leithy, Amina Khalil, Elham Shahin, and Ahmed Magdy.

Apart from The Curfew, the international competition of the 42nd CIFF will also see another film by an Egyptian director, Mayye Zayed, titled Lift Like a Girl, marking the film's premiere in the MENA region.

For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture

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A breast-feeding councillor is at the centre of a discrimination row after she was banned from a meeting over fears her baby being there would break confidentiality, according to reports.

Louise Rea was allegedly told that she could not bring her eight-month-old daughter Alice to the meeting for the Ivybridge town council in Devon.

It is thought that the decision was made following confusion about the age of the child likely to attend amid fears the youngster may inadvertently hear confidential information.

Mrs Rea decided to stay away from the personnel committee which met in August.

But the mayor has now offered to meet the mother-of-two to find a solution about how she can attend meetings in the future.

Louise Rea (pictured with her children) was allegedly told that she could not bring her eight-month-old daughter Alice to the meeting for the Ivybridge town council in Devon

Council personnel committees are usually held without the inclusion of the press and public because they deal with confidential information about staff.

Mrs Rea reportedly emailed the committee chair the day before to explain that she would have needed to bring her child, who she is still breast-feeding, into the meeting.

But, following her absence from the hearing last month, a fellow councillor claimed that the privacy rules appeared to result in discrimination.

Tessa Lannin reportedly broached the subject at a full council meeting held virtually via Zoom and broadcast live on YouTube.

However, it is thought she met resistance from other councillors about Mrs Rea's absence.

The Equality Act 2010 protects breast-feeding mothers from being treated unfavourably.

The town council's equality policy says it aims to ensure its services are accessible to all and its policies and practices are 'fair and free from unlawful discrimination'.

Mrs Rea (pictured) decided to stay away from the personnel committee which met in August

Lisa Lines, director of Ivybridge Latch On, a group that supports breast-feeding mothers, said: 'Louise Rea has been a fantastic support to Ivybridge Latch On since becoming a councillor, providing us with a wealth of information and support that has enabled us to apply for vital funding to secure the future of our services.

'It is therefore all the more disappointing that she has faced discrimination of this sort from the body she has been tirelessly representing. We hope that Ivybridge Town Council will reconsider their position in the case of future meetings.

'Breastfeeding rates in the UK are among the lowest in the world despite over 80 per cent of mothers initiating breastfeeding at birth.

'UNICEF estimate that for just five illnesses, moderate increases in breastfeeding would translate into cost savings for the NHS of up to 40 million per year.

'The only way to tackle this issue is to ensure breastfeeding is supported in our communities and to normalise breastfeeding in all settings.'

A spokesperson for the council said there would never be any intention to discriminate against anyone, but councillors or staff might have contradictory requirements or availability when meetings were called.

The spokesperson said: 'There is no other personnel meeting planned as yet - they only happen up to four times per annum and have always been in the day.

'But I am sure that the chairman will take account of the availability of all those who wish to attend future meetings and as these are now likely to revert to remote or hybrid meetings in view of the recent Government advice, then hopefully all should be able to attend.'

Mrs Rea, a social care manager, was elected to the town council for Ivybridge East in May 2019.

The Labour Party candidate received the third highest number of votes of the eight councillors chosen.

Mr Rea declined to comment when approached by MailOnline due to town council policy preventing councillors speaking to the media.
President Donald Trump says he has given his blessing to a proposed deal between Oracle and Walmart for the US operations of TikTok, the Chinese-owned app he has targeted for national security and data privacy concerns.

President Trump said the proposed deal will result in a new company which is likely to be based in Texas and under the control of US-based Oracle and Walmart.

I have given the deal my blessing, he said. If they get it done, thats great. If they dont, thats OK too.

Expand Close The apps were said to be a security threat (Mark Schiefelbein) / Facebook

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Whatsapp The apps were said to be a security threat (Mark Schiefelbein)

President Trump has been demanding that TikTok, a video app popular with younger people, be sold to a US company or else its US operations shut down.

He has also been targeting WeChat, another Chinese-owned app. The dispute over the two apps is the latest flashpoint in the rising tensions between the worlds two largest economies.

Just a day earlier, the US Commerce Department said it would bar TikTok from US app stores as of late Sunday. Further restrictions that would prevent TikTok from accessing essential internet services in the country would go into effect on November 12.

The deal President Trump signed off on would allow TikToks US operations to keep functioning.

Commerce is imposing similar restrictions on WeChat, although all of those restrictions go into effect on Sunday night at 11:59 p.m.

Earlier on Saturday, WeChat users asked a US judge to block the moves targeting the app, saying they would restrict free speech.

WeChat is an all-in-one app with instant-messaging, social media and other communication tools.

The US government argued that it is not restricting free speech because WeChat users still are free to speak on alternative platforms that do not pose a national security threat.

The aggressive tactics are part of President Trumps latest attempt to counter the influence of China, a rising economic superpower.

Since taking office in 2017, President Trump has waged a trade war with China, blocked mergers involving Chinese companies and stifled the business of Chinese firms like Huawei, a maker of phones and telecom equipment.

China-backed hackers, meanwhile, have been blamed for data breaches of US federal databases and the credit agency Equifax, and the Chinese government strictly limits what US tech companies can do in China.

Chinas ministry of commerce condemned the US moves and urged it to stop what it called bullying behaviour. It also said China may take necessary measures to protect Chinese companies.
For most people, there is no scarier diagnosis than that of cancer. While treatments including chemotherapy and radiotherapy have been used since the 1940s and late 1800s, respectively, immunotherapy has more recently emerged as a viable and successful approach to cancer treatment. Indeed, evasion of the host immune system is an essential feature of tumorigenesis. Figuring out how cells do this, and disrupting it, to allow the patient's own immune system to eliminate the cancer cells, is the basis of immunotherapy.

In a study published in August 2020 in Nature Cell Biology, a team including researchers from Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) and Harvard Medical School (HMS) have identified the regulatory mechanisms through which the PD-L1 immune check-point protein dictates the efficacy of anti-PD-L1 immunotherapy.

We already knew that immunotherapies targeting immune-checkpoint inhibitors were somewhat successful in treating some cancer types. However, only a subset of patients achieved long-lasting results." Naoe Taira Nihira, Co-Author

PD-L1 expression is tightly controlled, and patients with increased PD-L1 expression in tumors are likely to respond well to PD-L1 blockade; however, the reasons why increased PD-L1 expression leads to increased PD-L1 blockade sensitivity have remained unclear. The research team examined a specific kind of PD-L1 modification, called acetylation, and found that removal of this modification allows PD-L1 to enter the nucleus and interact with DNA to regulate the immune response.

Using a variety of advanced molecular, biochemical, and bioinformatics approaches, the researchers examined PD-L1 acetylation, localization, function, and interactions. They found that plasma membrane localized PD-L1 translocates to the nucleus by interacting with transport pathway components. Specifically, by introducing a series of mutations into PD-L1 and expressing different acetyltransferases, they determined that PD-L1 is acetylated by p300 at a specific residue within the cytoplasm called Lys263. Using similar approaches, and protein depletion by short-interfering RNAs, they also discovered that histone deacetylase (HDAC) specifically interacts with and deacetylates PD-L1.

Protein modifications, including acetylation, can affect protein stability, dimerization, or localization. However, when the team reduced the amount of HDAC2 protein in the cells, consequently increasing the acetylation level, there were no observable changes in protein stability or dimerization. Co-author Akira Nakanishi explains: "These results mean that the acetylation and deacetylation of PD-L1 at this residue play a critical role in its nuclear translocation."

In the nucleus, PD-L1 regulates the expression of pro-inflammatory and immune-response-related genes, indicating that PD-L1 could function to regulate the local tumor immune environment to control its sensitivity to immune checkpoint-blockade therapy .

Given the health and economic burdens of cancer worldwide, new treatment approaches with increased efficacy are continually being sought. The results presented by this team indicate that targeting PD-L1 translocation can be used to enhance the efficacy of PD-1/PD-L1 blockade-based immunotherapy approaches.
Drive-in stump speeches, enforced chastity on a rapper's campaign trail, pesky critters and a Philly cheesesteak on Air Force One -- with fewer than 50 days before November 3, the run for the White House is in full swing.

- Driving the agenda -

After movies and concerts took a leap back to the 1950s with a return to drive-ins to avoid infection from Covid-19, Democratic hopeful Joe Biden adopted the model Thursday for a speech to voters in Pennsylvania.

Around 100 people drove in to the speech and set up camping chairs next to their cars so they could sit at a safe distance from each other and listen to the former vice president.

The format had its drawbacks though -- the audience was so small and spread out that a message was broadcast during a break asking the viewers if they could clap a little louder.

The small gathering did not escape the attention of President Donald Trump though who described it as "the strangest thing" he had ever seen.

- Say 'cheesesteak' -

Take a bread roll, some strips of beef and melted cheese, peppers and onions to taste and you have the flavor of Pennsylvania, or thereabouts.

Flying back from a campaign appearance in Philadelphia on Tuesday, Trump posted a photo of himself with two Philly cheesesteakds on a plate in front of him on Air Force One. The Twitter picture quickly racked up hundreds of thousands of likes, although natives of the city demanded to know which of the two most celebrated purveyors of the heavy delicacy he had ordered from.

Eating the city's eponymous sandwich has become a rite of passage for politicians passing through the key swing state on the campaign trail. Joe Biden, a native son, has been pictured diving into one while campaigning as former presdient Barack Obama's running mate and then as vice president.

- No 'fornication' -

Rapper Kanye West's bid for the White House may be stuck in court in various states, but that has not stopped the billionaire, whose recent erratic behavior has thrust his bipolar disorder front and center, from crisscrossing the country on a campaign inspired by his religious beliefs, pronouncing himself a "born again" Christian who recently found god.

Story continues

According to an article in the New York Times this week, the husband of Kim Kardashian wants to bring back school prayer, return religious groups to public life and has even banned his own campaign team from "fornication."

The rapper, who made his name singing about one-night stands, has become extremely reactionary on moral issues and made the same demand of the team working on his last album which came out in 2019.

- Critters -

While making a speech on climate change next to a field in his home state of Delaware, Biden was forced to swat a large insect that was crawling up his neck

"Sorry, that was a bug," he said, adding "speaking of the environment..." before carrying on with his speech.

bur-leo/sdu/jh/bfm
A group of MPs on Friday met senior officials of the National Human Rights Commission alleging various incidents of human rights violations in Maharashtra.

The group comprised Rajya Sabha members Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, Vikas Mahatme and Bhagwat Karad.

They visited the National Human Rights Commission and met with its member Jyotika Kalra, Secretary General Jaideep Govind and other officers, and submitting a representation, the NHRC said in a statement.

They have adverted to various incidents of human rights violations by state officials of Maharashtra, of different dates and at different places, the statement said.

It has also being submitted to the NHRC by them that considering the failure on the part of the state authorities to address the basic human rights of the citizens whereby the right to life, freedom of speech, freedom of peaceful assembly, right to equality and other such inalienable rights of the citizens purported to have been violated by the state of Maharashtra. The Commission gave a patient hearing to the delegation, the rights panel said. It has been apprised to the members of the Parliament that in many of the cases, the Commission has already initiated proceedings by taking cognizance, it added. Nevertheless, the Commission will examine each and every incident mentioned in the representation of the alleged violation of human rights in various forms and if required, adequate measures by way of an enquiry will be initiated under the provisions of the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, the statement said.

If the Commission deems it fit and proper in appropriate cases, it may initiate spot enquiry, subject however to requirement under the law, it added.
Like many of her peers at Stonewall Collegiate, Rogan Stoecklin likes to go to Tims for a snack after class.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 19/9/2020 (489 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

Like many of her peers at Stonewall Collegiate, Rogan Stoecklin likes to go to "Tims" for a snack after class.

And she often doesnt bring her wallet.

She doesnt have to.

Its not that her friends are incredibly generous, buying her a snack or drink.

Rather, the 14-year-old, who figure skates, excels at math and hopes to be a veterinarian one day, uses her mobile phone to pay.

"I rely almost solely on my phone and my card," Stoecklin says, adding she still gets some cash from babysitting. But since getting a part-time job with a paycheque deposited into her savings account, shed rather tap to pay.

"So I rarely have cash on me anymore."

Cash used to be king  so the saying goes. But the crown is slipping off the kings head more and more, by the year. Fewer Canadians use cash to pay, preferring debit and even more so credit cards  be it the actual plastic card or through an app on a mobile device.

Whats more, a recent Ipsos survey  part of its annual Canada Payments study  shows cash use steeply declined during the pandemic with credit card use rising significantly.

"We know that in the last five years weve seen credit cards increasing steadily," says Heidi Wilson, vice-president of marketing and strategy at Ipsos and in charge of the study.

Prior to 2020, credit card use rose from 44 per cent to 52 per cent of consumer purchases from 2014 to 2019. So far this year, however, credit card use has increased to 59 per cent  with most of that growth occurring since March.

In contrast, cash use fell from 23 per cent in 2014 to 19 per cent last year.

Today, however, cash is now used only 11 per cent of the time. (Debit card use, by the way, has held steady from last year at 19 per cent.)

Wilson says cash isnt dead just yet, but its prognosis isnt great.

And its declining use is changing how we spend  in particular how much we spend.

First, its important to note the pandemic reduced debt-loads among Canadians. Many people have stayed home more, and in turn saved money by not paying for lunches out, going to movies and other leisure activities. In turn, many consumers seem to have been using those savings to pay down debt.

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Sarah Stoecklin-Falk and her 14-year-old daughter, Rogan Stoecklin, often use tap (either on their phones or with cards) to pay for goods.

Recent Statistics Canada data show Canadians now owe $1.58 for every dollar of household income, down from the high of about $1.75 prior to COVID-19.

Yet its likely deferrals of mortgage, auto, credit card and other debt payments have also helped. The Canada Emergency Response Benefit has likely played its part too, particularly for lower income earners carrying credit card debt.

Thats possibly one reason why debt counselling agencies, like Community Financial Counselling Services in Winnipeg, have yet to see a recent influx of indebted individuals with unmanageable debt.

"Our clients have been telling us that they have been thankful for the COVID support programs which have allowed them to reduce debt and manage their finances while many were facing reduced income," says John Silver, CFCSs executive director.

But its counsellors expect "calls will increase as CERB and all of the credit card, mortgage and rent default supports are cut at the end of September."

Wilson adds the survey supports this premise. Some indebted consumers managed to pay off their credit card balances that had been building prior to the pandemic. Six per cent of the 28 per cent surveyed, who had indicated carrying a card balance in March, had paid off that debt by June.

But the remaining consumers with rolling credit card debt  22 per cent of all surveyed  actually saw their debt rise from about $3,000 to nearly $5,000 on average.

"Thats a frightening stat because it means those most at risk and in need of money are turning to a really high interest loan with credit cards," Wilson says.

Additionally, its easier to overspend using plastic, research has consistently shown, as revealed in a 2015 study published in the Journal of Consumer Research. Using cards, and even more so having the card on file when shopping online with click-and-buy, decrease the psychological pain we feel if we had used cash. In other words, paying with cash hurts more than paying with plastic because credit delays the pain. We dont see the bill until a few days or weeks later. As such, its much easier to overspend with credit.

These findings are not lost on policy-makers, like the Bank of Canada, which tracks Canadians methods of payments. It recently published an in-house discussion paper that showed the "rush to plastic" wasnt as dramatic as expected, the central bank stated in an email to the Free Press.

In its own survey, the Bank of Canada found 36 per cent of Canadians still used cash in a transaction the week prior to being polled while 52 per cent used debit, 62 per cent used credit cards and 38 per cent used e-transfer.

"About two-thirds of Canadians say they did not change their cash use during the pandemic, while 35 per cent reported a decrease," the email further stated.

That said, the central bank is concerned about rising debt in Canada and anything that plays a role in that trend  including growing credit use.

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Many Canadians are monitoring their spending too, aware the tally grows more easily when tapping at the till. That includes Rogans mother Sarah Stoecklin-Falk, the "accountant" of the household.

"I personally like tap. It is fast and convenient," she says. "The downside is you dont see how all the purchases add up."

Yet Stoecklin-Falk still considers the potential to overspend an opportunity to teach the kids about budgeting. And given her children often use their phones to pay, she also has them paying their mobile bills  another "stepping stone" to financial independence.

Those life lessons paired with the convenience of financial technology are all fine and good with Rogan.

Albeit there is one drawback, especially on those jaunts to Tim Hortons.

"I often dont take my wallet out when I go out with family, but my phone is always on me," Rogan says. "So if were going to Tims, I often have to pay."
After ten former IPS officers, including ex-Mumbai Police commissioner Julio Ribeiro, questioned Delhi Polices probe into Delhi riots cases,and accused them of implicating anti-CAA protesters while being lenient to others associated with the ruling party, another group of ex-IPS officers has come out in support of the city police.

In a statement issued on Friday, 26 retired IPS officers said that they were surprised at the conduct of a few fellow ex-police personnel who support such kind of anti-India expression and communal narrative. They referred to some controversial slogans allegedly raised by former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Umar Khalid, arrested under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and other serious charges. Khalids arrest last Sunday in the riots case has been criticised by many social activists, who have accused Delhi Police of targeting anti-government voices.

The 26 former police officers said, The Delhi Police has every right and duty to investigate the role of any such persons, and custodial investigation is a part of due process of law. The accused has his rights under the law to seek anticipatory bail or regular bail, as the cause may be, and the right to a fair trial where he can prove himself innocent

Former Delhi Police commissioner RS Gupta, former UP DGPs RN Singh and Bhanu Pratap Singh, ex-DGPs of Bihar SK Bhardwaj and Ramesh Chandra Sinha, former Maharashtra DGP Praveen Dixit, ex-DGP of Tripura BL Vohra and former Kerala DGP S Gopinath are among the 26 ex-IPS officers who have signed the statement.

A section of former police officers cannot usurp for themselves the office of Presiding Officers of the Courts to declare anyone innocent and try to put the police force in bad light. These officers have no right to suspect or question the integrity and professionalism of their successors in the Indian Police Service, and in turn demoralise them, they said in the statement.

They said that such posturing and adverse commentary may demotivate police officers and dilute their firm resolve to act against criminals, including those who incite communal divide in India by instigating riots.

We disapprove any statements or gestures by any motivated group of former police officers, which is aimed at defaming the police force and its serving officers, who are performing their duty day and night at great personal risk for the safety of general public, they added.

Last week, noted former IPS officer Ribeiro wrote a letter to Delhi Police chief SN Shrivastava, requesting him to look into the North-East Delhi riots probe and make sure it was impartial. Riberio told the Delhi Police chief that police have failed to act against those who made hate speeches that led to the riots.

Two days later, nine retired IPS officers, including AS Dulat, former OSD on Kashmir, Prime Ministers office; K Saleem Ali, former CBI special director; Amitabh Mathur, former special secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat and PGJ Nampoothiri, former director general of Gujarat Police, wrote an open letter to Shrivastava, saying they were pained at the police implicating those who spoke and joined protests against Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) but letting off the hook those who instigated violence and are associated with the ruling party.

On Tuesday, Shrivastava responded to questions raised over the riots probe by Riberio and wrote to him, saying the investigation was being carried out without any discrimination on caste or religion, and was backed by documentary and scientific evidence.
India on Thursday called for the appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queen's counsel for Indian death-row prisoner Kulbhushan Jadhav to ensure a free and fair trial in the review of his death sentence in Pakistan.

The assertion by India comes days after Pakistan's Parliament has extended for four months an ordinance that allowed Jadhav to file an appeal against his conviction in a high court as required by the International Court of Justice.

Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the government of Pakistan has not been able to fulfil its obligations on implementation of the ICJ judgment in letter and spirit.

"It has not yet addressed the core issues, which include the provision of all documents related to the case, providing unconditional and unimpeded consular access to Kulbhusan Jadhav and appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queen's counsel to ensure a free and fair trial," he said at an online media briefing.

Queen's Counsel is a barrister or advocate, appointed Counsel to the UK Crown on the recommendation of the Lord Chancellor.

Earlier this month, the Islamabad High Court in Pakistan directed the federal government to give India another chance to appoint a lawyer to represent Jadhav and adjourned hearing for a month.

In 2017, India approached the ICJ against Pakistan for denial of consular access to Jadhav and challenging the death sentence handed to him by a military court.

The Hague-based ICJ ruled in July 2019 that Pakistan must undertake an "effective review and reconsideration" of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav and also to grant consular access to India without further delay.

India has slammed Pakistan for adopting a "farcical" approach in denying available legal remedies to Jadhav against his death sentence in contravention of the ICJ order.

Fifty-year-old retired Indian Navy officer Jadhav was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism in April 2017.

In response to questions on India walking out of a meeting of the national security advisors of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in protest after the Pakistani representative used a "fictitious" map showing Indian territories as part of Pakistan, Srivastava said before, during and after this meeting, India had conveyed its strong objection to the chair as well as to the SCO member states.

"Our objection was noted by the chair. The use of this fictitious map by Pakistan is in complete disregard to the advisory by the chair as well as it is in violation of the norms of the meeting," he said.
Forest of evasions shields those who raze forests By Kasun Warakapitiya Replanting strategy wont replace priceless tall canopy View(s): View(s):

Lack of co-ordination among state agencies and their failure to monitor and act on problems has resulted in a surge of mass-scale destruction of forests and environmentally sensitive areas including the Knuckles Range, investigations revealed.

The destruction of forest in Eluwankulama, Wanathawilluwa and of wetlands in Anavilundawa  both in the Puttalam district  clearing of forest in Panwila in the Knuckles Range in the Central Province, land-clearing in the Hantana area in Kandy and razing of mangroves in Negombo are among more than 25 incidents reported in the past two months.

A host of state agencies responsible for protecting forests, mangroves, environment and state land conceded that lack of co-ordination and poor supervision enabled the destruction of this natural heritage.

These agencies, while vested with responsibility to protect the environment, continually seek to duck this responsibility on grounds they are legally not empowered to take action.

Investigations by the Sunday Times reveal that the agencies had more than one option to initiate action against culprits if they monitored the destructive activities.

The revelations came as the Government was making a desperate attempt to replant trees in despoiled areas, with some of the lost trees being more than 50-60 years old.

The Chairman of Central Environmental Authority (CEA), Siripala Amarasinghe, said the authority had complained to the police to take action against people who clear forests but the police had not acted.

He said the CEA would be more effective if it were given powers to directly arrest culprits.

Environmentalists and environmental lawyers say, however, that even existing laws were not being properly applied.

Environmental lawyer Jagath Gunawardena also said the culprits who direct illegal tree-felling get away while only those at lower levels are targeted.

Mr. Gunawardena said his research showed most forest clearing was being carried out by associates and family members of regional politicians.

The failure of police to satisfactorily investigate cases of environmental destruction was exposed on Friday when a court was informed that a key suspect sought over the destruction of two acres of mangroves in the Anawilundawa wetland could not be arrested.

The suspect, Jagath Samantha Perera of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), a former Pradeshiya Sabha Chairman for Arachchikattuwa and current council member of the same body, and brother of State Minister Sanath Nishantha, has been evading arrest for more than two weeks.

Two other suspects arrested in connection of the clearing of the mangroves were released on bail and the case fixed for March 26 next year by Chilaw District Judge and Magistrate Manjula Ratnayake (see tying stories).

Government authorities claim they cannot take action against illegal clearing of privately-owned land or even land belonging to government institutes and corporations.

Environmentalists say these authorities are undermining President Gotabaya Rajapaksas manifesto Subhagyaye Dakma, which includes sustainable environmental policies and formed part of the platform with which the current government won two-thirds of the vote in the last election.

The manifesto states that measures will be taken to increase national forest cover by establishing parks in urban and semi-urban areas, developing metropolitan vegetation by establishing tree lines along expressways, and implementing tree-planting programmes on industrial premises.

CEA Chairman Amarasinghe pointed out that factory owners are clearing unused land to expand production in line with government wishes to promote local production.

Other land is being cleared in line with government policies to expand an agriculture-based economy.

The National Environmental Act stipulates that anyone clearing more than four hectares of land needs approval granted after Environment Impact Assessments.

No recent forest land clearances had Environment Impact Assessments attached.

A few weeks ago, it was reported that 200 acres of forest had been cleared in the Kuratiyamotte area in Wanathawilluwa. No official notice had been taken of this even though machinery had been used to fell trees and burn-offs conducted to get rid of timber.

Environmentalists say investigations into the incident have not touched politicians and government officials involved in destroying this forest land although police have arrested people paid to carry out the clearing.

The land is part of a 6,000-acre site belonging to the Cement Corporation. Its chairman, Gamini Ekanayake, said the land was now in the hands of a private cement production company and that the corporation would take legal action against this company because it had not protected the property.

The private company, Siam City Cement (Lanka) Limited (SCCL), in a statement, said it had leased 4,450 acres of land owned by the Cement Corporation in order to extract limestone and other raw materials necessary for cement production.

Due to the lack of physical demarcations of the boundaries, the untouched and unmined land area located approximately 4km away from the quarry operational area has been encroached by surrounding village communities over the last two decades, the company said.

The most recent land encroachment that occurred in early September this year resulted in the illegal clearing of approximately 29 acres of forest land in an isolated area located to the south-eastern boundary of the land.

At a meeting presided over by Wildlife and Forest Conservation Minister C. B. Ratnayake, the company said it had commenced rehabilitation of the deforested land and aims to plant 19,000 trees and shrubs in the affected area.

The Conservator-General of Forests, W.A.C. Weragoda rejected claims that the land cleared at Wanathawilluwa amounted to 100-200 acres. He said only 29.06 acres had been cleared, by burning.

He said the Forests Department would acquire the land at Wanathawilluwa within a month if the Cement Corporation failed to comply with orders to replant the cleared area.

Environmentalists point out that forests cannot be merely restored by replanting trees. They said forests are created through natural selection and had been propagated naturally for thousands of years.

Supun Lahiru Prakash, who heads the Biodiversity Conservation and Research Circle, said forests have their own ecosystem and keep a balance of animals and plants.

When forests are bulldozed and burned, micro-organisms, small mammals, slow-moving reptiles and amphibians and plant life are killed, creating an unbalanced ecosystem, he said.

The government could never create tall canopies of forest cover within a few years as some trees in illegally-felled areas had been more than 400 years old.

Mr. Prakash rubbished government claims of inability to take action over illegal clearing on private property.

He said the government had a duty to protect forest on private land as well as land in semi-government hands, pointing out that there was residual forest on land belonging to at least 10 agencies including the Mahaweli Authority, Department of Wildlife, Forestry Department, state corporations and the Land Reform Commission.

The Convener of Rainforest Protectors, Jayantha Wijesinghe, pointed out that recent illegal clearances of land were on state property belonging to different regulatory bodies.

The authorities are now looking into illegal forest clearing in the Hantana mountain range in the central province where five acres of forest at 2500-3000 feet in elevation had been razed.

According to Gazette 1641/28, Declaration of the Hantana as an Environmental Protection Area under National Environmental Act, development in areas above 300 feet in elevation is forbidden (see side story).

The CAA said those responsible for the crime are being taken to court and the owner who cleared the land is being urged to replant the area.

Asked about the recent clearing of forest in the Knuckles Mountain Range, the Officer-in-Charge of Panwila Police, Chief Inspector Sampath Bandara, said by the time police heard about the affair around 2 acres of the 36-acre extent had been cleared and that even though further clearing had been blocked police were unable to take action as the persons involved stated they had deeds and would produce them before the Divisional Secretary.

The Conservator-General of Forests said the Forestry Department was in the process of acquiring land adjoining Forest Department land in the hill country, including the land at Panwila that was being cleared.

A senior official at the Panwila Divisional Secretariat said the Forest Department had taken too much time over this process at Panwila, including payment of compensation to the owner, and so the owner had sold the land to a businessman. Thus the government had not been able to stop illegal felling as the land remained privately owned.

The Wildlife and Forest Conservation Minister C.B. Ratnayake, denied reports that more than 200 acres of forest had been illegally cleared since the current government came into power earlier this year.

He said NGOs were wrongly posting reports of clearing of forests and lands belonging to the Department of wildlife Conservation and the Forestry Department in order to sabotage government economic policy.

Additional reporting: Hiran Priyankara Jayasinghe
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died due to complications to her pancreatic cancer on Friday, ending the legacy of the 87-year-old senior member of the court's liberal wing.

A brief history

Ginsburg was first appointed by former U.S. President Bill Clinton in 1993 and has since delivered progressive votes on some of the most divisive social issues the country faces today. The list of topics includes abortion rights, same-sex marriage, immigration, and several other sensitive matters.

According to CNN, Ginsburg allegedly told her granddaughter, Clara Spera, just a few days before her death, that she did not wish for her replacement to be chosen before the results of the November elections are revealed.

Former President Barack Obama released a statement that wrote about Ginsburg's long career on both sides of the spectrum and how the supreme court justice supported the people who were suffering through discrimination, whether it was because of their sexual preference or something else.

Ginsburg was able to carve a prominent position in American history, being dubbed as the "Notorious R.B.G." During her many speaking events throughout the years, she has consistently received standing ovations for sharing her views of the law, her routine, and frequent dissents.

In a statement in July, Ginsburg said that she would continue to serve as a member of the court for as long as she was physically able, which she successfully achieved.

Also Read: $1,200 Second Stimulus Check Possible Dates You Can Expect to Receive Potential Direct Payments

Before taking the bench, Ginsburg was famous for the time she was an advocate for the American Civil Liberties Union and later her appointment as the architect of a legal strategy in support of the 14th Amendment's equal protection applied to gender.

During a commencement speech in 2002, she expressed her pride in doing work as a lawyer in the late 1960s when history was made in the U.S. as gender equality was first accepted and that the women of the country were in the same stature as men.

The 'Notorious R.B.G.'

Ginsburg wrote in her first book titled "My Own Words" where she compiled her writings and speeches to as far back as when she was in eighth grade. The book focuses on her attempts in fighting for women's rights, as reported by USA Today.

During an interview with C.B.S., Ginsburg spoke about her belief that there were not enough women on the supreme court, which at the time, there were only three. She also recalled her mother, Celia Bader, who also died of cancer, only two days before she graduated valedictorian from James Madison High School.

The supreme court justice said her mother taught her how to act, to be a lady, and how to be independent. Ginsburg said she learned how to control her emotions and to be professional and calm.

Ginsburg met her husband, Martin Ginsburg, on a blind date at Cornell. They later married in 1954 and had their first child in 1955. She graduated from Columbia as the top of her class but did not get an offer from any U.S. law firm due to her status as a woman, being Jewish, and what she said was most important, being the mother to a four-year-old child.

The Notorious R.B.G. became the inspiration for a documentary and award-winning biopic along with several bestselling novels. Ginsburg's presence inspired countless individuals and even had her likeness plastered on items such as mugs and T-shirts.

According to B.B.C., when asked about possible regret about the challenges she experienced throughout her life, she simply responded with "I do think I was born under a very bright star."

Related Article: Democrats Urge Nancy Pelosi to Pass Coronavirus Stimulus Bill Amid Stalled Talks

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Washington, Sep 19 : The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated its guidelines for testing people who do not show symptoms of the novel coronavirus.

"Due to the significance of asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic transmission, this guidance further reinforces the need to test asymptomatic persons, including close contacts of a person with documented SARS-CoV-2 infection," Xinhua news agency quoted the CDC as saying on its website on Friday.

"Testing is recommended for all close contacts of persons with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Because of the potential for asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic transmission, it is important that contacts of individuals with SARS-CoV-2 infection be quickly identified and tested," it added.

It is a change from the CDC guidance released last month which said testing might not be necessary for people withoutsymptoms.

"Viral tests are recommended to diagnose acute infection of both symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals, to guide contact tracing, treatment options, and isolation requirements," according to the CDC website.

The guidance notes that even if people do not have symptoms, they still need a test if they have been in close contact -- such as within 6 feet -- of a person with coronavirus infection for at least 15 minutes.

"In areas where there are a small number of new cases and limited spread, your public health department may request a small number of asymptomatic 'healthy people' to be tested," said the updated guidance.

If there is significant spread of the virus in the community, public health department may request significant numbers of asymptomatic "healthy people" to be tested in order to help stop the spread of the virus, according to the guidance.

On August 24, the CDC changed Covid-19 testing guidelines on its website, no longer recommending testing for most people without symptoms.

The move has sparked controversy as experts warn it may hamper the timely identification of asymptomatic individuals.

According to a report of The New York Times earlier this week, the recommendation published in August was not written by CDC scientists and was posted to the agency's website despite their serious objections.

The US remains the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of cases and deaths at 6,722,699 and 198,509, respectively, according to the Johns Hopkins University.
Fifteen people, including the national president of a little-known outfit, were booked on the charges of rioting after they burnt an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his birthday while observing "Unemployment Day" in neighbouring Shamli district, police said on Saturday.

The case was registered against 11 unidentified people and four named accused on Friday based on a complaint filed by Shamli district BJP president Satendra Tomar, they said.

Prince Kori, national president of the Bharatiya Samaj Rakshak Yuva Morcha, and the 14 others were booked under Indian Penal Code sections 147 (rioting) and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), police said. The accused burnt the effigy on September 17, the birthday of Prime Minister Modi, which they observed as "Unemployment Day" to protest against joblessness, they said.

A video of the incident, that took place in Dargahpur village under Jhinjhana police station limits, has also gone viral on social media.
Did you just turn 18 and do you have your driver's license? And if you have saved up enough money you can buy your first car and tour around the Netherlands. Renting a car, however, is often a different story. Diks Autoverhuur (the car rental company) is happy to tell you more about it, so you know exactly what to expect when you want to rent a car in the Netherlands.

What is the minimum age to rent a car?

Did you already get your driving license at the age of 18 (or 17)? Congratulations, you're one of the early birds! With a driving license in your pocket, you can drive around safely and with enough confidence. However, renting a car is often a bit more complicated. Most rental companies in the Netherlands have a minimum age requirement, which is usually not 18 years old. For example, most car rental companies have a minimum age of 21 or 23 years. Taking your friends with you by rental car on holiday, a weekend away or to a festival, is therefore not always an option if you are under 21 (or in some cases 23).

On top of this age requirement, if you want to rent a car, you will need to have had your driving license for a while. For example, car rental companies often require that you have a valid driver's license for at least 1 to 2 years. So you should already have some driving experience on paper. Note: this may differ per country.

When can you rent a car at Diks Autoverhuur?

Do you want to rent a car at Diks? Then you should know that the minimum age at which you can rent a car with us is 21 years. In addition, you must have been in possession of a valid driving license for at least 1 year.

Are you going on vacation and aren't you the only one driving? Then you can register multiple drivers. Make sure that the other drivers also meet the minimum age of 21 years. In addition, they must also have been in possession of a valid driving license for at least 1 year. Otherwise they are not allowed to drive the car. When picking up the rental car, remember that we check every driver's license, including that of other drivers. This way you can drive out of the neighborhood completely safe! Whether it's a small rental car or a 9 person bus (dutch: 9 persoonsbus huren).

Rent a car at Diks if you are 21 or 22 years old

If you are 21 or 22 and you have had your driving license for more than 1 year, you can rent a car at Diks. No problem. Just note that reducing your deductible as a 21 or 22 year old is not possible. In addition, the deductible is automatically doubled. A reduction of the deductible is only possible from the age of 23.

Why rent a car at Diks?

Are you 21 or older and have you had a valid driver's license for at least 1 year? Then you can stop visit one of Diks' car rental locations in Almere, Amsterdam-Zuid, Amsterdam-West or Amstelveen. Diks always has a great car available for you. Of course, you can also check out their website and make a reservation online.

You can safely tour Europe with one of Diks' cars and with a rental of at least 7 days you drive mileage-free. Diks also has many great gadgets for your car, including navigation and a radio / CD player with AUX connection. Are you a student and do you want to rent a car? Then you also benefit from a 10% student discount. Questions? Then contact Diks through their website!
Ruth Bader Ginsburg. associate Supreme Court justice who died Friday, spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the courts liberal wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers.

Young women especially seemed to embrace the courts Jewish grandmother, affectionately calling her the Notorious RBG, for her defense of the rights of women and minorities, and the strength and resilience she displayed in the face of personal loss and health crises.

United States Court of Appeals Judge Diarmuid OScannlain, who sits on the Ninth Circuit in Portland, said in a statement that Ginsburg was a longtime friend and visited Portland often.

I am deeply saddened by the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg both as a consequential Supreme Court Justice whom I deeply respected and as a long time friend, OScannlain said. We met many times both here, when she visited the Pioneer Courthouse, and in judicial settings in Washington and abroad. It was a privilege to know her and I will miss her kindness and generosity very much. May she rest in peace.

Oregon politicians also mourned the news of her death.

Gov. Kate Brown ordered flags flown at half mast on public property statewide until Ginsburg is buried. Brown, herserlf an attorney, said:

Ruth Bader Ginsburg created a landscape and set the legal framework for womens equality in this country  case by case, brick by brick. She was ahead of her time, a true pioneer. Her story was remarkable. Throughout her career, she faced discrimination at every turn  for being a woman, for being Jewish, for being a mother  yet overcame it to sit on the highest court in our country.

Along the way, her work in the legal system led to landmark structural changes that reduced gender discrimination and created more equal protections for all Americans. Her efforts have helped create a more just and fair country  and ensured that even if she was the first one to make it through a certain door, she wouldnt be the last. Throughout my life and career, in the law and in government, I have walked through doors that she opened. From the time I was a young lawyer, I was inspired by her incredible intelligence, her tenacity, and her unfailing moral compass that guided her work toward creating a more perfect union, one with equal opportunities for all of us.

Fierce, persistent and filled with grit, she was our hope and our inspiration. Justice Ginsburg never, ever gave up and America is better for it. We can honor her legacy by continuing to work to dismantle all forms of inequality and discrimination, in our justice system and in our lives, with everything we have. Dan and I send our love to her entire family as they mourn the loss of an American icon and legend.

President Donald Trump will almost certainly try to push Ginsburgs successor through the Republican-controlled Senate.

Rev. E.D. Mondaine, president of the Portland chapter of the NAACP, called Ginsburg a champion for social change.

In ensuring that her lifes work is properly revered and her legacy honored, we must demand that the president, the Senate Majority Leader and his colleagues keep the commitments they have made and honor the precedents they have setthe American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice, Mondaine said in a statement.

Politics notwithstanding, the extraordinary contributions of Justice Ginsburg as a citizen, an advocate, an attorney and a jurist are beyond measure. Her memory will abide forever more, and her loved ones are in my prayers tonight, and in those of the entire NAACP family.

Ron Wyden, Oregons senior senator, noted Ginsburgs passing on Twitter. Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a once-in-a-generation role model and champion of equal rights, he said. This is such an extraordinary loss for our country.

Sen. Jeff Merkley also posted a statement.

Stunned, devastated, and crushed. Thank you, RBG, for a lifetime of service to building a better America. Its impossible to express how much we will miss you.  Senator Jeff Merkley (@SenJeffMerkley) September 18, 2020

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler described Ginsburg as a role model.

We owe immense gratitude to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She judged with clarity, conviction, and righteousness. She was, and will always be, a hallmark of what our judicial branch should represent in every decision.https://t.co/ioJTzlmbMW  Mayor Ted Wheeler (@tedwheeler) September 18, 2020

U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici shared a lengthy tribute in a series of tweets.

I am devastated by the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and send condolences to her family. Our country owes an enormous debt of gratitude to Justice Ginsburg for her lifelong commitment to public service and advancing and upholding the ideals of our Constitution.  Suzanne Bonamici (@RepBonamici) September 19, 2020

U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio called Ginsburg an icon.

Im devastated by the passing of Justice Ginsburgan absolute champion for women and equal rights, a brilliant jurist, and an American icon.  Rep Peter DeFazio (@RepPeterDeFazio) September 19, 2020

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum described Ginsburgs death as devastating.

Absolutely devastating loss of an incredible human being, fervent advocate, and staunch seeker of justice. pic.twitter.com/f5PhNgoECO  Ellen Rosenblum (@ORDOJ) September 19, 2020

U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer spoke about her impact on womens rights.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was not just a giant in American judicial history but helped define an era with her clarity of thought and moral purpose. Lets pause to reflect on her amazing life, tremendous accomplishments & inspiration, especially for several generations of women. pic.twitter.com/Urbe9ynFKs  Earl Blumenauer (@repblumenauer) September 19, 2020

This story will be updated.

-- The Oregonian/OregonLive
The New Patriotic Party governments dramatic decision to pay depositors of the various microfinance institution their deposits has not brought the intended result Akufo-Addo was obviously seeking. The applause from the affected beneficiary customers is rather going to John Mahama whose solemn pledge to pay them their monies pushed the NPP government to make a u-turn and begin paying them.

Strange as it may sound, the depositors have good reason for doing so.

We recall governments earlier decision to issue a five (5) year bond paper to depositors without any accrued interest on the monies of these customers or customers go for 50% of their total amount deposited in cash and that would be all. This, however,' met different reactions from the suffering customers many of whose spouses divorced them for losing their investments through government insensitive actions. Demonstrations at various regions were organized in protest against government's posture and show of no concern to the plight of these citizens. It was even reported that, several other depositors lost their lives whilst some went insane due to this unpopular exercise by a government who doesnt care for its citizens and refused to pay them their hard-earned investments.

It came as surprise to many when government finally got GHc3.2billion for the receiver to pay all monies owed these financial institutions after the flag bearer of the NDC, John Dramani, unveiled its Peoples Manifesto in which firm assurance went to all customers of full payment of their investment when NDC comes to power. This decision struck a panic button and has kept NPP running helter-skelter and panting all over. They finally saw the need to release this amount to pay depositors after subjecting them to this sweltering heat of injustice and trauma.

The question still lingering and needing answers are; why now? Where was the money? Was it a deliberate action to make the good citizens of this country go through this hardship? So, if the NDC manifesto had not captured the payment of these customers, would government had paid them of their investments?

In all social media and the mainstream media, John Mahamas name is on the lips of these customers, with all praises and glorifications about his bold initiative that has paid off, with some pledging their unflinching support and vote to make him the President of Ghana again.

The peoples manifesto of the NDC is a manifesto that was drafted as a result of broader consultation across the country from experts, business community, petty traders and all citizens about how they think this country should be government. This gave the NDC a leading role in terms of good policy document as a social contract between the citizens and the NDC party. The NDC manifesto is solicited ideas from the people of Ghana, that is why it has been easily accepted, and will surely put John Mahama in the helm of affairs by 7th January, 2021.

This understandably is the haemorrhage in NPP and Akufo-Addos hearts now. It is certain, irreversible, unchangeable! John Mahama is already the next President of Ghana.
NEW DELHI: The ongoing monsoon session of Parliament is likely to be curtailed as several parties on Saturday reached a consensus on wrapping up the session by next Wednesday. According to official sources, the session may end by the middle of next week in view of the threat of the COVID-19 spread among parliamentarians.

The Monsoon session started on September 14 and was scheduled to conclude on October 1.

At a meeting of the business advisory committee of Lok Sabha, which has floor leaders of all parties besides the government representatives and is chaired by the Speaker, most political parties favoured curtailment of the session. A final decision will be taken by the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs.

The Lok Sabha has so far passed three Bills to replace agriculture sector related ordinances. Also, both the Houses have cleared a bill to replace an ordinance for cutting by 30 per cent the salaries of MPs to ramp up funds in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

So far 30 MPs, including Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Prahlad Patel, have tested positive for COVID-19 during the session. PTI quoting sources stated that some opposition parties conveyed to the government that conducting the full 18-day session could be a risky affair. "The government has started thinking in that direction," sources said.

In order to prevent the spread of coronavirus within the parliament complex, reporters and parliamentary staff entering the premises now have to undergo the rapid antigen test mandatorily on a daily basis, according to a new protocol put in place. Besides, members of both Houses are undergoing RT-PCR tests on regular intervals on a voluntary basis, said a senior Parliament official.

A member of Parliament can undergo the RT-PCR test as many times he or she likes.

Journalists covering the monsoon session from press galleries of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha also have the option to undergo the RT-PCR test, which is valid for 72 hours. Since the result of the much reliable RT-PCR test takes time, the antigen test has been made mandatory on a daily basis.

The Budget Session was short-terminated in March after the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg takes the stage for a discussion at the Georgetown University Law Center on February 10, 2020 in Washington, DC. Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg's seat should not be filled until after the election.

Ginsburg died on Friday at the age of 87.

"The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president," Schumer said.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the same exact statement following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in 2016.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Senate Minority Chuck Schumer issued the same statement following the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday, that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in 2016.

Ginsburg died at the age of 87 due to complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer. The Supreme Court Justice battled multiple forms of cancer over the past two decades.

Following her death, Schumer said: "The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president."

Ginsburg's death comes just a few weeks before the November presidential election, and many are concerned about who President Donald Trump might select to replace her.

Her seat could be Trump's third opportunity to nominate a lifetime appointee. The appointee could give the court a conservative majority for decades.

Ginsburg herself dictated a statement to her granddaughter, Clara Spera, which said, "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

Following Scalia's death, McConnell said: "The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new President."

A battle between Republicans and Democrats erupted following Scalia's death in February 2016, because some felt it would be too late for then-President Barack Obama to push a nominee through a polarized Senate.

Read the original article on Business Insider
New Delhi :

The first-ever ATM machine on board aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, the countryas largest warship has been inaugurated on Saturday.

The ATM on the ship docked at the naval base at Karwar will be operated by the countryas largest lender SBI and will cater to over 1,500 personnel and officers deployed on the ship.

aThe facilities offered by the State Bank of India to the ship include cash withdrawals, generation of mini-statements, access to bank balance details and change of PIN numbers.

aIn the near future, the facility will be upgraded to a recycler machine with a cash deposit facility. Additionally, facilities like cash transfer, card-to-card transfer, credit card payment, mobile number registration and updation would also be available,a an official statement said.

#ATM machine inaugurated onboard #INSVikramaditya at Naval Base Karwar, largest warship & latest aircraft carrier of #IndianNavy (ANI) pic.twitter.com/IvrcdxzgRh a News Nation (@NewsNationTV) January 21, 2017

It added that a Point of Sale (PoS) system will also be installed in the future on the warship and this awould go a long way in supporting cashless transactions on the ship, in line with the governmentas policy of digitising the Indian economya.

The facility was inaugurated jointly by Flag Officer Commanding of the Karnataka Naval Area Rear Admiral K J Kumar and SBI MD and Group Executive Rajnish Kumar.

INS Vikramadityaas Commanding Officer Captain Krishna Swaminathan said that the ATM machine awill enable personnel of the ship to manage their domestic financial requirements better and assist them in conducting their money transactions at their own convenience.a

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
The Union environment ministry on Saturday told Parliament that the Char Dham road project to connect four Hindu pilgrimage sites in Uttarakhand has not been referred to it for appraisal as it did not need to be appraised even as it has involved the loss of trees and ecological damage to the fragile Himalayas.

It cited an August 2013 notification exempting all projects related to the expansion of national highways up to 100 km from the preview of the Environmental Impact Assessment Notification, 2006. The exemption was granted on the recommendation of a high-level committee constituted to review the provisions in the notification related to environmental clearance for roads, buildings, and special economic zone projects.

Also read: 97 people died on-board Shramik trains, govt tells Rajya Sabha

In view of the... thresholds applicable to roads in Char Dham projects, no project has been referred to the MoEFCC [Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change] for appraisal, the ministry told Rajya Sabha.

The ministry was responding to a question on whether mandatory Environment Impact Assessment was avoided to fast-track the project and the reason for fast-tracking it in hilly and mountainous terrain.

The 900-km Char Dham project will connect pilgrimage sites in Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri.

A Supreme Court-appointed high-powered committee has flagged environmental violations in the execution of the project, including felling of thousands of trees without approval and unsafe construction practices. The violations may have activated landslides in certain areas, it said.

The Supreme Court on September 9 ruled the width of the Char Dham highway shall not exceed the 5.5 metres the Union road transport ministry has specified in 2018 for the construction of roads in the mountainous terrain.

The ministry separately told Rajya Sabha that forest land larger than Delhi and slightly smaller than Goa has been approved for non-forestry purposes like mining, irrigation, and hydropower from 2008 and 2020.

It said 247843.49 ha of forest land has been approved for diversion under the Forest Conservation Act. The ministry added certificates of compliance with the Act for diversion of forest land are obtained from district collectors. It added the proposals for such diversions have been placed before concerned village councils and forest-dwellers. The ministry said they have certified all processes under the Act and given their consent for the diversion and compensation, etc.

We have to start moving away from hyper-legal and technocratic approach to protecting the environment. Environment regulation requires a much more reflexive approach and defensive one. The approval of the Char Dham project is yet another case in point when poorly thought out and hasty decisions have resulted in severe and irreversible damage. Acknowledging it will not just help taking project specific remedial action, but also allow us to bring back progressive legal measures that may have been undone through numerous exemptions introduced by successive governments, said Kanchi Kohli, legal researcher at Centre for Policy Research.
Anunt de selectare a participantilor si participantelor la cel de-al doilea curs de instruire din cadrul Programului educational pentru dezvoltarea competentelor lucratorilor de tineret
Actor Shabana Azmi, who celebrates her birthday on September 18, has said that her road accident in January was a close shave. The actor was involved in an accident on the Mumbai-Pune expressway.

The accident took place two kilometres before Khalapur toll booth, according to Maharashtra traffic police headquarters officials. Within 15 minutes of the accident, a police team reached the spot. However, by then, first responders had already rushed Shabana to the hospital.

In an interview to The Times of India, she said, I had fainted. I was told it was a very close shave. Because of the injury to the brain, I can say that I have a brain. She said that she was back at work just 40 days later. She said, Work keeps you going and you need to carry on. I received so much respect and concern from all parts of the world during that accident period and I think thats one of the main reasons I recovered.

Also read: Happy birthday Shabana Azmi: This is the life lesson Kaifi Azmi gave his talented daughter when she wanted to join films

Her husband, lyricist and writer Javed Akhtar, in an April interview to Film Companion, had spoken about his initial feelings after Shabanas accident. He was ahead of her in a separate car at the time of the mishap. He said, Who could think we would have such a calamity. The accident that Shabana went through was really deadly. We were in the other car, she was sleeping in the car behind us and when this accident occurred and we went back, the first thought was Is she alive? Because the whole car was crushed, had become a heap of junk.

Javed added, Somehow we took her out, she was unconscious with blood all over her face and it was only from the nose. There were no wounds but the whole body has taken such a whiplash, that it will take a little time to be totally normal.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 00:58:29|Editor: huaxia

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ADDIS ABABA, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- The African Union (AU) Commission on Friday emphasized the importance of African solidarity with South Sudan in face of "the paramount challenges it faces."

The urgent call was made by the AU Peace and Security Council on Friday, which followed the Council's recent meeting that dwelt upon the current situations in South Sudan.

"The Council highlights the importance of African solidarity with South Sudan in facing the paramount challenges it faces in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and recent devastating floods," an AU statement issued on Friday read.

Commending the sizeable assistance provided recently by Egypt to South Sudan in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Council also encouraged "all member states to contribute, within their resources and capabilities, to efforts aimed at supporting peace and resilience of South Sudan."

It also acknowledged the efforts being deployed by the government of South Sudan and all the parties, as well as the overall progress achieved to date in the implementation of the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS) and the positive impact thereof on the overall political, security and humanitarian situation, while bearing in mind the dire challenges including due to the COVID-19 pandemic, desert locust invasion, devastating floods and the difficult economic situation.

The Council also "requested the AU Commission, through the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa-CDC), and the AU Trust Fund on COVID-19 response to continue supporting South Sudan in the fight against COVID-19 pandemic."

It also commended South Sudan's President Salva Kiir for "the spirit of African solidarity demonstrated" in his decision to donate 1 million U.S. dollars to the AU COVID-19 pandemic response.

According to the latest figures from the Africa CDC, specialized healthcare agency of the AU Commission, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in South Sudan has reached 2,599 as of Friday, while the death toll from the pandemic rose to 49. Some 1,294 people who have been tested positive for the virus have also recovered so far. Enditem
Actor and MP Ravi Kishan had addressed the alleged drug abuse problem in the Hindi film industry during the ongoing monsoon session of the parliament. Praising the Narcotics Control Bureau for its probe of the drug case that emerged from Sushant Singh Rajput's death case, Kishan said that the government should tackle the problem of drugs head on.

Rhea drug case : Ravi Kishan   Anurag Kashyap    | FilmiBeat

Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap expressed that he has a problem with Ravi Kishan's apparent self righteous stand against the film industry because he himself used to smoke marijuana for the longest time.

Speaking to journalist Faye D'Souza, Anurag said, "Ravi Kishan acted in my last film Mukkabaaz. Ravi Kishan starts his day by saying Jai Shiv Shankar, Jai Bam Bhole. Jai shiv Shambhu For the longest period of his time, he has been somebody who has used weed. It is life. Everybody knows it. The whole world knows. There's not a single person who doesn't know that Ravi Kishan does not smoke up. He might have quit now, that he has become a minister, he might have cleaned up."

He continued, "But do you include that in drugs? No. I am not judging Ravi, because I have never seen weed as a drug. 'Abuse' is not the word. He used to smoke up. He has always been functional, he has always done his job well, it did not make him dysfunctional, did not make him a monster. It did not do anything that people associate with drugs. So when he talks about it, when he takes a self righteous stand, I have a problem with that."

Kishan was also criticized by fellow MP and actor Jaya Bachchan, who said that some people were tarnishing the image of the entire industry and that they were biting the very hands that feed them.

Kishan responded to this by saying that he expected Jaya Bachchan's support to his statement. While admitting that not everyone in the industry consumes drugs, those who do are on a path of 'finishing' the world's largest film industry.

According to ANI, Ravi Kishan responded to Anurag's claim: "I didn't expect such words from Anurag Kashyap. It's no secret I am a devotee of Shiva so I chant his name. I'm saddened he would not support me on this issue of the war on drugs & say that I smoked up & am now clean just because I'm a minister, which I'm not: Ravi Kishan."

ALSO READ: Ravi Kishan Says He Expected Jaya Bachchan To Support His Statements

ALSO READ: Jaya Bachchan Blasts Kangana Ranaut For Calling Film Industry A Gutter, Slams Ravi Kishan's Comments


New Delhi: The inter-state migrants got a special attention in the Code on Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions tabled by the government in Lok Sabha Saturday.

From fixing a salary threshold, allowing them to register themselves on an online database, from making provision for an annual journey allowance" to the offering of portability option on public distribution system and construction cess benefits, the migrants have a lot to cheer from the bill.

The bill says all such workers earning up to 18,000 per month will be covered under this act and it may change if the government wishes to change it. Under an agreement or other arrangement for such employment and draws wages not exceeding the amount of rupees eighteen thousand per month or such higher amount as may be notified by the Central Government from time to time," the bill says.

Under the present provisions, migrants were covered under labour laws only when they were hired through contractors. This means, it excludes millions who travel themselves to find work in cities and industrial clusters.

The OSH code, also seeks to make provision for offering options to migrants for availing themselves of benefits under Public Distribution System (PDS), either in their home or host state. The migrants in the building and construction sector will also be able to avail themselves of benefits out of the construction cess fund in the state where they are employed, if the bill is passed. Construction cess benefit portability is an enabling provision, but needs clarity, as it is a consolidated fund and not a unitized corpus.

The migrant workers took a big hit post the national lockdown imposed to curb the coronavirus in India, and government data shows over 10 million of them left for their villages after job loss, and income loss post the lockdown, which began on 25 March. Millions walked back home and several hundred died during that time. The government has been facing constant criticism from opposition parties and civil society members for the migrants' plight and how its unplanned lockdown impacted millions of poor.

The OSH code merges 13 existing labour laws including the Factories Act, the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, and shall be applicable to establishments hiring at least 10 workers.

On registration of migrants through a database, the OSH code says the Central government and the state government concerned shall collect, compile and analyse occupational safety and health statistics in such form and manner as may be prescribed. The Central government and the state governments shall maintain the database or record, for inter-state migrant workers, electronically or otherwise in such portal and in such form and manner as may be prescribed by the Centre.

This Code, once enacted, will provide an inter-state migrant to register himselfon such portal on the basis of self-declaration and Aadhaar".

The labour ministry, has, however, removed a compulsory requirement from employers to provide and maintain suitable residential accommodation" to migrants during the period of their employment. The OSH code has also removed a displacement allowance that the migrants workers were supposed to get from contractors.

The bill, however, introduces an annual journey allowance like travel allowance and the employer shall pay, to every inter-state migrant worker employed in his establishment, in a year a lump sum amount of fare for to and fro journey to his native place from the place of his employment, in the manner taking into account the minimum service for entitlement, periodicity and class of travel and such other matters as may be prescribed by the appropriate government".

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'Unfortunate': Akali Dal attacks BJP on farm bills

India

oi-Deepika S

Chandigarh, Sep 19: The Shiromani Akali Dal on Saturday said it is "unfortunate" that even after the party conveyed its concerns to the BJP leadership on the three agricultural reform bills, the issue wasn't addressed, and appealed to all political parties to join its "struggle" against the legislations. The SAD said it will "not sit quietly" and take this fight to its "logical conclusion".

It also castigated the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for allegedly betraying farmers by not opposing the passage of the bills in Lok Sabha. One of the oldest allies of the ruling BJP, the SAD has come out strongly against the three bills which are meant to deregulate the sale of farm produce.

Harsimrat Kaur Badal, the lone SAD member in the Modi government, resigned as Union minister on Thursday in protest against the bills.

Addressing a virtual press conference here, senior SAD leader and former MP Prem Singh Chandumajra said, "It is unfortunate that even after we expressed our concerns to the BJP and conveyed the sentiments of the farming community to its central leadership, it did not address the issue." "We, however, will not fail in our duty towards farmers and will continue to strive to ensure justice for them and Punjab," he said.

Chandumajra appealed to all political parties to form "ek soch aur ek manch" (one thinking and one forum) on the issue, saying Punjab could not afford any division on it. "All farmer organisations and political parties should support the SAD in its struggle against the bills," he said, adding that in the past, divisions have led to the loss of the state's river waters and its capital.

Chandumajra said the SAD will come out with a party programme against the farm bills and fight to the finish. "It is very clear that the party will not sit quietly after tendering (Harsimrat Kaur's) resignation. The Akali Dal will take this fight to its logical conclusion," he said.

Farm Bills face Rajya Sabha test tomorrow: How the numbers stack up

"We have always raised the voice of farmers and farm labourers, and will continue to do so as per the rich and glorious traditions of our party," he said, adding that the SAD will soon come up with a strategy.

The three bills - 'The Farmers' Produce Trade And Commerce (Promotion And Facilitation) Bill', 'The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill', and 'The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill' were introduced in Parliament by the government on Monday.

All these, which were earlier promulgated as ordinances, have been passed in Lok Sabha and will now be tabled in Rajya Sabha. The SAD voted against these bills. It has also issued a whip to its members in the Upper House asking them to oppose the bills.

Chandumajra accused the Congress and the AAP of trying to deceive farmers on the issue and playing a double game. "On the one hand these parties are opposing the agricultural bills in Punjab, but they colluded with each other and did not oppose them in Delhi on the other," he said.

"If the Congress and the AAP had insisted on a division of votes on the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, the BJP might have been forced to postpone tabling of the agricultural bills," he said. The SAD leader alleged that Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh is also guilty of not only becoming a member of the high-powered committee which approved the agricultural ordinances but also of giving suggestions which were in line with the suggested ordinances.

"This amounts to betraying the trust of the entire farming community," he claimed. Chandumajra said neither Congress president Sonia Gandhi nor AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal uttered a single word against the agricultural ordinances and both the parties are "only shedding crocodile tears now".

Farmers in Punjab and neighbouring Haryana have repeatedly taken to the streets against the farm bills, which they have dubbed as "anti-farmer". They have expressed apprehension that the passage of these bills would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price system and leave the farming community at the "mercy" of big corporates.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Saturday, September 19, 2020, 22:07 [IST]
Inside Jobs

The Trump administration figures prominently in three books debuting on our lists this week.

President Trumps former personal attorney Michael Cohen, currently serving a prison sentence for tax evasion and campaign finance violations, has the #1 book in the country with Disloyal. I bore witness to the real man, he writes of his onetime boss, in strip clubs, shady business meetings, and in the unguarded moments when he revealed who he really was: a cheat, a liar, a fraud, a bully, a racist, a predator, a con man.

Another insider, former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, lands at #8 in the country with Speaking for Myself. President Trumpthere are no words to describe how much you changed my life, she writes in the acknowledgments. I dont care what the critics sayyou will go down in history as a great president.

Compromised by Peter Strzok, #8 in hardcover nonfiction, takes a different tack, as described in our review: Former FBI agent Strzok offers an inside look at investigations into Hillary Clintons use of a private email server as secretary of state, and links between Donald Trumps campaign and Russian efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election.

Backman in Action

Fredrik Backmans 2014 debut, A Man Called Ove, had a modest start in hardcover and went on to sell 1.7 million copies in trade paper. Subsequent titles have followed similar trajectoriesrespectable hardcover sales, blockbuster trade paper salesbut with his latest, Anxious People, Backman appears to have broken part of that mold. It debuts at #4 in hardcover fiction, and in one week sold about half the number of print copies that each of his first three books have sold in hardcover since release.

Fruits of His Labor

Eat a Peach by David Chang, a self-effacing, heart-on-sleeve memoir, per our starred review, is #14 in hardcover nonfiction. Chang writes about the sweaty tension of his manic episodes and his dark depression, the review said. In the books most heartfelt section, [he] rhapsodizes about the egalitarian Asian dining ethos he wanted to import to the West and even allows himself a rare pat on the back for his influence. The James Beard Awardwinning Momofuku restaurateur and Lucky Peach magazine cofounder also stars in the culinary culture program Ugly Delicious on Netflix.

NEW & NOTABLE

THINK LIKE A MONK

Jay Shetty

#2 Hardcover Nonfiction, #4 overall

Shetty, host of the On Purpose podcast and a former Vedic monk, debuts with a peppy and persuasive work that guides readers through a process of personal growth, our review said. His take on Hindu spirituality delivers practical wisdom for anyone looking to create better daily habits.

EVERYTHING BEAUTIFUL IN ITS TIME

Jenna Bush Hager

#4 Hardcover Nonfiction, #6 overall

This endearing memoir brings readers deep into the heart of a family that many may feel they already know well, our review said of this book by a daughter of the 43rd U.S. president and granddaughter of the 41st, now a cohost of Today with Hoda and Jenna. Bushs fans will delight in these intimate, funny remembrances.
From the start of this program, pastor Daniel Ng introduced the role of religion in Hong Kong society during the British colonial period and the changes that have taken place since the handover. As the principal of the Christian school, Mr. Andy Fung introduced the development history of Hong Kong Christian school in detail, as well as relevant contributions of religious schools to Hong Kong's education in the terms of teaching lessons, educating students, and cultivating talents in history.

During this program, Mr. Kwok Yat Ming has talked about the relationship between education and the recent social movements that happened in Hong Kong Society. As what pastor Daniel Ng has suggested that, after the handover of Hong Kong to China, the Hong Kong Society is gradually becoming increasingly pan-political, reflected in the phenomenon that current education in secondary and primary school is lacking the cultivation of the student's historical consciousness, national consciousness, as well as the recognition of the national identity. Mr. Andy Fung has refereed that during the current internet period, the development of the internet has not only brought modern education with convenience but also deepened its challenge, as the dividing line between the actual world and the internet visual world has become increasingly blurred. pastor Daniel Ng also shared with this opinion, while Indicated that the network should be put to good use as an educational tool.

In the second half of this program, the three host and guests made a further discussion on the question that "Does religion affect society or does society affect religion?" Starting from the perspective of the mutual reflection between education and society, Mr. Andy Fung elaborated on the influence of the internet on both people and education respectively. Through returning the view to the perspective of religion, pastor Daniel Ng suggested that, there is an interactive relationship between the development of religion in China and that all around the world. Therefore, religion and society are in interaction with each other. Although inspired and influenced by western culture, the development of domestic religion on the ground of Hong Kong has always been rooted in its distinctive historical and cultural background, as well as the grassroots of Hong Kong's civilians. As for this reason, Hong Kong's religion has always conducted a series of benign activities caring for humane while proliferating our general love in line with the government's policies, to maintain the diverse and inclusive society in Hong Kong. In response to the "Hong Kong 2020 Evangelical Declaration" issued by the Hong Kong Pastors Network, Mr. Andy Fung Quoted Romans 12:18: "If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone." He suggested that Christians do have an important role as peacemakers. As for this reason, we must be careful about what we say and do so as not to affect others and undermine social stability. Pastor Daniel Ng, on the other hand, suggested that this declaration is a very shallow analysis from the perspective of religious beliefs, with only a narrow group of faith and a narrow realm of recognition.

At the end of this program, the host made a special online video connection with Pastor Kim Chang Shi from Korea. The development of religion in Korea is remaining a vigorous trend, during this connection, Pastor Kim Chang Shi introduced the development history of Christian in Korea and the positive significance of Christian to Korean People. In responding the question from Mr. Kwok Yat Ming about the relationship between religion and politics in Korean society, Pastor Kim Chang Shi has especially pointed out that Christianity in Korean Society has been committed to promoting the development of harmoniousness and stability in Korean society, as for this reason, religion will not and should not actively participate in political activities.

This discussion episode will air on September 19 in the episode of " Looking around the world" of the "Channel One" on Facebook and YouTube.

SOURCE Channel One
EDWARDSVILLE  Candidates for Madison County Chairman on Nov. 3 spent last week criticizing each other.

Democrat Bob Daiber on Wednesday alleged Chairman Kurt Prenzlers administration had rampant corruption. Prenzler responded Friday by saying his office has cooperated in an investigations by the Madison County States Attorneys office, adding he doubted Daiber could withstand similar scrutiny.

In a released statement, Daiber said that court documents released in April alleged Doug Hulme, Steven Adler and Rob Dorman  who had been appointed by Prenzler  used their positions to spy on elected officials via email accounts. Daiber said it was also alleged Dorman tried to gain unauthorized access to the Madison County Auditors financial program.

Kurt Prenzler has remained silent about the alleged corruption in his administration for too long, Daiber in a released statement. It is time for him to level with the public and provide answers to the questions still haunting his administration.

The public deserves to know what Kurt Prenzler knew and when he knew it as it relates to the unethical and corrupt behavior of his appointees, Daiber said.

Daiber said spying on other elected officials is true evidence of corruption and an embarrassment to Madison County, adding the three mens appointments by Prenzler indicated he lacked the judgment to lead the county.

Kurt Prenzler likes to claim hes fought corruption in Madison County, yet he cant even recognize it within his own administration, stated Daiber. He called the Prenzler administration incompetent, unethical and corrupt.

Two days later, Prenzler issued his own statement, saying Daiber missed or misstated facts related to the incident.

My opponent is entitled to his own opinion, Prenzler said. He is not entitled to his own facts.

In 2018, the Madison County States Attorney convened a task force to investigate certain allegations involving several of the countys employees, Prenzler said in his statement. From the very beginning and without hesitation, I cooperated fully with the investigation.

Prenzler said he waived any rights he had and spoke freely to detectives without an attorney, answering all of their questions fully and truthfully.

I then took the unprecedented step of also waiving my attorney-client privilege and instructed my attorney to answer all questions from the detectives, he said. My attorney also answered all questions fully and without reservation. He imposed no time or subject matter limitations on the questions.

Prenzler said the two-year investigation which involved more than eight detectives and thousands of pages of documents were reviewed by the an out-of-county judge and Attorney General Kwami Raoul, a Democrat. Prenzler said the reports and documents exonerated him completely.

Prenzler also said, if he is reelected, neither Dorman nor Hulme will be part of his administration.
Tragedy struck when a demented pedophile killed two young girls when their mother was away. The divorcee mother came home to find the bodies of her dead daughters, knifed and shredded by the killer.

Last Tuesday, a woman with two daughters found them cruelly slain by her boyfriend. She did not know that he is a criminal responsible for murdering and raping young girls until it was too late. His lie led to the murder of her beloved children, reported Meaww.

The unhinged molester and rapist, identified as Vitaly Molchanov, 41, fled after committing the heinous double killing. His victims were Yana and Elena Saprunova, aged 13 and 8. Russian authorities are setting out on nationwide search for the deranged fellow.

Vitaly Molchanov, 41, fled the scene after the killings of Yana and Elena. Russian authorities have since launched a nationwide manhunt for the suspect, the Daily Mail reported.

The bereave divorced mother is Valentina Saprunova, 40, who met Vitaly but moved in with him very ill-advisedly. She came to cohabit with him and moved about 1600 miles from her residence in Siberia to the man's flat. Not knowing a month later his flat will be where her daughters will die cruelly. She worked at a local medical hospital in the Rybinsk, Yaroslavl region.

At the flat after work on a Tuesday, she saw her daughter eviscerated by a knife. The corpses were in a pitiful condition as well. Molchanov was spotted by witnesses, escaping on a white bicycle from the scene of the crime.

Also read: Russian Ballerina Dismembered, Dissolved in Sulfuric Acid Amid Fears of Lewd Picture Leak

A criminal case is officially opened by the Russian Investigative Committee in the double homicide case that was done with inhuman cruelty. Reports mention that law enforcement operatives say that the nurse contacted the pedophile via a dating app about six months back, noted The Sun.

In one post, he wrote that he was sad that they lived far apart, and he loved her. He wanted to be closer to her. Shortly, the woman moved in with her daughters. Soon after, the happiness she felt in finding love would end tragically a month later in blood and murder.

She never knew that he was convicted of heinous crimes like child rape and murder in 2010. He intentionally kept it from Valentina and lied about his past.

Before the double murder of the Saprunova girls, Molchanov posted a meme that foresaw what lay ahead. It read like a Freudian slip saying that after a murder, police should look over to the spouse which is all that is there to marriage.

REN-TV said that such a tragedy would not have happened to Valentina. If she did not meet her partner on the internet. Meeting on the internet could lead to a predator or a cold killer. Apparently, no one will divulge that they've killed and raped anyone, cited The Mirror.

The Russian daily Komsomolskaya Pravda said that the killer kept his past a secret intentionally from Valentina. If she knew that, she would have never lived with him and her daughters will still be alive.

Since her job took most of her time, he was deranged with jealousy. Killing the girls is his expression of how he felt. One neighbor was enraged by his actions and said he should be destroyed.

Related article: Jealous Boyfriend Burned His Fiancee to Death Because She Exposed Her Body on the Beach

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Joe Bidens nomination is the Democrats crowning insult. Theyre making another go at playing voters for chumps. Democrats, the D.C. establishment, and the left started hoaxing Americans back in 2016. The Russia Hoax was about destroying candidate, and then President, Trump. The conspirators dragged the nation through nearly three years of divisive and costly investigations and hearings. Framing Trump and destroying his presidency was worth stoking enmity. The Russia Hoax morphed into the Impeachment Hoax, wherein vindictive congressional Democrats abused their powers to -- yes -- try to frame the president. The Democrats malice knows no bottom.

Bidens nomination is more than a go at sly stagecraft; its the most audacious gaslighting in American history. Everybody and his sister can see that Biden is suffering early onset dementia. If not, then lets see the neurological evals, because Bidens compass isnt pointing true north. Hes slow, often confused, irritable, and, increasingly vacant. He shuffles when he walks. Trotting ten feet to a podium -- once -- doesnt count. He takes days off, and his availability is strictly limited. Packing Biden off for a quick, canned event in Florida isnt close to Trumps indefatigable stumping. Most days, Biden lives out the campaign at his spacious Wilmington, Delaware house.

Not surprisingly, the MSM throws Biden softballs. Thats a given among Fourth Estate bulldogs. Democrats always get passes, even when their minds are intact. But youd expect so-called journalists to give enough of a damn about the nations welfare that Bidens fitness would merit a few questions.

Simple question: Does the Democrats nominee -- the man put forward to occupy the most powerful elective office on the planet -- have the mental acuity and stamina to meet the jobs 24/7 demands? China is increasingly an adversary. The nation faces stiff challenges domestically. The MSM are reckless in their disregard. Theyre so corroded by cynicism, so in the tank for the Democratic Party, that they maintain a monkish silence. Or glide over the obvious about Bidens decline.

Future generations will ridicule what passes for journalism today. An entire generation of journalists is, in fact, made up of shills -- propagandists -- eagerly participating in a con.

With Bidens self-awareness drifting away, maybe he doesnt grasp that hes been set up. Biden is the second coming of Chauncey Gardner. The Democratic establishment wants addled ol Joe to be the empty vessel that voters pour whatever they want into.

Orange Man bad? Joes un-orange. Hanker for an old-fashioned liberal Democrat? Find a Kennedy to backslap Joe. Need Joe to be a race healer? Forget about his earlier anti-busing stance and hood busting stands on crime. Need him to be a working mans friend? Slap a little grease on his chin. Hell play that role. Just skip over his support for the Green New Deal. Speaking of which, want Joe to be pro-environment? Why, pimp him as for the Green New Deal! Want him to be a straight talker? Deep-six his chronic lying and plagiarism.

The Democratic establishment, in cahoots with the partys ascendent left, has no illusions. For them, Biden isnt an empty vessel. Hes a prop. They want nothing more from him than to hit his marks and read the teleprompter without too many stumbles.

Democrats and the left have their agendas. Theyve cut a deal so that each can grab their pieces of the pie -- for the time being. In time, theyll be at each others throats. But for now, a deal.

The establishment wants something close to the status quo ante, whereby they can reclaim sinecures while growing fat off our tax dollars. The left wants power and loot, too, but it also wants to pick up where Obama left off: transforming America. Thats always been code for destroying America as founded to impose the lefts anti-liberty schemes -- schemes that cement their power and access to plunder.

Wavering voters need to wrap their minds around this fact: President Trump isnt squaring off against Joe Biden. Hes battling the cabal that Biden is fronting. If through some perversion, some warping of sensibilities -- or epic fraud -- Biden is elected president, it isnt just Kamala Harris who becomes de facto president. Its the entire depraved enterprise that comprises the Democratic Party and the left. Harris may well be the General Secretary in a Harris Administration, but you can bet that shed have a Politburo to answer to.

If Democrats steal the election, then for years ahead, a spiderweb of lies, fraud, and venality will stretch across America. America will be run by some amalgam of Sacramento, Portland, and Chicago -- or, in other words, some combo of Big Brother, lawlessness, and corruption. The country may not free itself for decades. Or the nation could break apart.

The convenient forgetting of Bidens corruption is another aspect of the hoax. If Biden is upright than crooked is straight. Caught on videotape, Biden bragged about strongarming the Ukrainians. Why? To pull Hunter Bidens, and Hunters business associates, nuts out of a legal fire in the Ukraine.

We know about Hunter and associates raking in millions of dollars from the Chinese. Merely coincidental, goes the party line. Joe confabbing with Xi Jingping and other Chinese oligarchs just days ahead of Hunter and company inking a deal with a state-owned bank there is pure chance. Where were the packs of reporters hounding the Bidens? No calls for congressional investigations from CNN or CNBC talking heads. Instead, shrugs and offhand dismissals of Joe Bidens highly suspect role. What would be the point of Joe influence-peddling? To make Hunter rich? Any curiosity about a Biden skim? Like the Clintons, Biden, now useful, is granted generous license.

Understand what were up against. Were up against a Democratic Party that began unraveling in the late 1960s. Its policies and governance failed then, and have failed ever since. Progressive (aka, liberal) economics needed bailouts from Reagan and Trump. Progressive social policies have created the dysfunctions that are causing the lawlessness and collapse in Democrat-run cities. Black generational poverty -- a root cause of urban derangement -- was spawned by LBJs Great Society. Cronyism and corruption -- always rife in the Democratic Party -- are historic today in terms of pervasiveness. Democrats are bankrupt. What do they have left but bolder subterfuge and criminality?

Then theres the left. Communism -- Marxism, in fashionable parlance -- started failing shortly after the Russian Revolution. Communisms ideas -- tried across the globe -- never worked. Human nature -- hundreds of thousands of years of human development -- make it so. Yet, those who are insatiably power-hungry love communism, because its a vehicle to unfettered power. In little more than a century, to make communism stick, some hundred million people were killed, from Russia to China to North Korea to the Killing Fields of Cambodia and elsewhere. Intimidation and violence are, finally, all the left has to gain the power it craves.

Are American leftists any different? In 2020, what have we witnessed unfold in blue cities from Seattle to New York? The street thugs and shock troops now present on Democrat turf are mere prelude to what American leftists intend to unleash in their quest for dominance.

The Biden Hoax is the crudest of the hoaxes yet perpetrated by Democrats and the left. Theyre playing, perhaps, the last card in their deck of hoaxes. What comes next will have less to do with deception. Whats next is the fully unleashed rage of a flailing party and ism.

J. Robert Smith can be found on Twitter @JRobertSmith1 and Parler @JRobertSmith. He also blogs at Flyover.

Image: Gage Skidmore
The thumbs up Like logo is shown on a sign at Facebook headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif. As President Donald Trump denies that Russia is interfering in the U.S. election and as he tries to block information to Congress, private companies such as Microsoft and Facebook are stepping into the breach. The private sector has become much more forthcoming about election interference since 2016, providing frequent briefings to key members of Congress. Read more

WASHINGTON  Adam Schiff was in the audience at the 2018 Aspen Security Forum when a Microsoft executive mentioned an attempted hacking of three politicians up for reelection. It was the first that Schiff, then the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, had ever heard of it.

Schiff said he thought it was odd that Congress hadnt been briefed. He got in touch with high-ranking officials in the intelligence agencies, and they didn't know about it, either. It turned out that Russian hackers had unsuccessfully tried to infiltrate the Senate computer network of then-Sen. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., and other unidentified candidates.

Two years later, Schiff says that breakdown is still emblematic of the disjointed effort among government agencies, Congress and private companies as they try to identify and address foreign election interference. But this year, with President Donald Trump adamant that Russia is not interfering and his administration often trying to block what Congress learns about election threats, its those private companies that often are being called upon to fill the breach.

Lawmakers welcome the help from the private sector and say the companies have become increasingly forthcoming, but its a haphazard way to get information. It allows the companies to control much of what the public knows, and some are more cooperative than others.

If a company wants to publicize it, thats great, says Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee. But what happens when they dont want to bring it to the attention of the government?

Thats what happened in 2016, when Russia spread disinformation through social media, including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Those companies were slow to recognize the problem and they initially balked at government requests for more information. But after Congress pushed them publicly, they gradually became more cooperative.

Now, Facebook and Twitter give Congress regular briefings to the intelligence committees, issue frequent reports about malicious activity and are part of a group that regularly meets with law enforcement and intelligence officials in the administration.

Microsoft, which is part of that group, announced last week that Russian hackers had tried to breach computers at more than 200 organizations, including political campaigns and their consultants. Most of the hacking attempts by Russian, Chinese and Iranian agents were halted by Microsoft security software and the targets notified. But the company would not say which candidates or entities may have been breached.

Lawmakers say the private sector can only do so much.

Its certainly important that the social media companies participate and cooperate, which they have not always done in the past, but that does not in any way replace the analysis that is done by the intelligence community, and I believe that analysis should be shared with Congress, says Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

That relationship between intelligence agencies and Congress has grown strained since Trump took office. He has has doubted the agencies' conclusions about Russian interference in 2016 and he fired, demoted and criticized officials who shared information he didnt like.

The current director of national intelligence, John Ratcliffe, a close Trump ally, tried to end most in-person election security briefings  a decision he later reversed after criticism from lawmakers from both parties. But Ratcliffe maintains that his office will not provide all member briefings for all lawmakers, citing what he says were leaks from some of those meetings this year.

Lawmakers say that in restricting what's given to Congress, the administration is effectively restricting what it tells the public about election security and misinformation. That threatens to sow confusion, just as foreign adversaries such as Russia are hoping for.

Schiff, now chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, has pressured the companies to act more quickly, including taking down misinformation before it goes viral, not after. He has particular concerns about Google, which owns YouTube, and says it has been less transparent than others. Schiff and other lawmakers have stepped up concerns about doctored videos and foreign-owned news outlets spreading fake news on the video platform.

At a hearing with tech companies in June, Schiff pressed Google, saying that it has essentially adopted a strategy of keeping its head down and avoiding attention to its platform while others draw heat.

Richard Salgado, Googles director for law enforcement and information security, told Schiff: I certainly hope that is not the perception. If it is, it is a misperception, Mr. Chairman.

Google has made some disclosures, including recently revealing a Chinese effort to target Trump campaign staffers and an Iranian groups attempt to target the Biden campaign. But the company gave little detail on the attacks, including when they took place or how many were targeted.

Still, the companies have stepped up in many cases.

Facebook and Microsoft have been making disclosures to the public while also working behind the scenes with the federal government and the intelligence committees. Facebook issues a monthly release on foreign and domestic election activity, and Microsoft has publicly disclosed more than a dozen instances of threat activity since Schiff was caught unaware at the Aspen event in 2018.

The executive who revealed the Russian activity at that event, Microsofts Tom Burt, says the company has learned to be more proactive with the federal government. He says the attempted hackings were not something he had planned to announce at the security forum, but he answered honestly when asked a question by the moderator. Today, Burt says the company gives federal and congressional authorities a heads-up when they have announcements about election interference.

Foreign attackers are persistent, they are skilled, they are super well-resourced, and they are going to continue to try and interfere with the electoral process and try to sow distrust with the American people, Burt said.

As lawmakers pursue other channels of information, there are still places where the private sector cannot help. Florida Rep. Stephanie Murphy, a Democrat, has been fighting for more than a year to have the administration publicly identify two Florida counties where Russian hackers gained access to voter databases before the 2016 election. People living in those counties are still unaware.

The only way you can fight that disinformation is with transparency, and the U.S. government has to be transparent about the attacks on our democracy by providing the public with the information they need to push back against this foreign interference, Murphy said. I think maybe companies are accustomed to disclosing when they have had data breaches, and that is why you are seeing corporate America lead in providing the American public with information about meddling in our election."

___

Associated Press writer Frank Bajak in Boston contributed to this report.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 18/9/2020 (490 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Meet the Milne-Karns, the Parenteaus and the Blum-Paynes.

Anna Milne-Karn and her moms Heather Milne and Luanne Karn live in Wolseley.

Mothers Heather Milne (left) and Luanne Karn with Grade 3 daughter, Anna Milne-Karn.

The Parenteaus  Anna, Jason and their sons Carter and Josiah  live in Silver Heights. The boys cousins can also be found inside, sharing meals, laughs and cultural teachings.

Across the city in Elmwood, Andy Blum, Krystal Payne and eight-year-old Emby Blum-Payne live in a house with a pink door. Embys grandfather Edward Payne lives in a suite downstairs.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected each city family in unique ways. Throughout the last six months, workloads  for parents and their children  have been altered, social circles drastically reduced in size, and travel, celebrations and ceremonies have had to be postponed.

Differences aside, all three households share in a single goal: keeping loved ones safe  and that means they have all had to evaluate their places in the public school system this year.

"Were generally feeling positive about our familys decisions," Milne says about Annas Grade 3 classroom attendance. "We recognize that every family is in a difficult situation and will have to make the best decision for their families."

MJ Patrick-Prieston (from left), Kenny Kennedy, Dawnis Kennedy, Carter Parenteau, Anna Parenteau, Josiah Parenteau and Jason Parenteau.

The options for families who dont feel comfortable sending their children to school with masks include home-schooling and remote learning. The latter is for students such as Emby, who have been advised by health-care providers to stay out of classrooms because of virus-related risks to themselves or to others.

There are approximately 210,000 kindergarten to Grade 12 students in Manitoba. A total of 186,372 of those pupils attended public schools in the provinces 37 school divisions, according to last years provincial enrolment report.

Since the data is collected on Sept. 30 annually, its too early to know exactly how COVID-19 has impacted public schools on a provincial scale, but Manitobas home-schooling office is reporting a spike in interest.

From left: Andy Blum, Edward Payne, Krystal Payne, and Emby Blum-Payne (sitting).

As for remote-learning figures, the Winnipeg School Division  the largest of its kind in the province, with nearly 33,000 students enrolled in schools in the provincial capital  has already approved 126 students, 99 of whom are in the English stream and 27 who are in French immersion.

COVID-19 has and continues to transform education in ways unimaginable before March 11, the day the World Health Organization declared a pandemic.

Within days in mid-March, teachers swapped whiteboards for webcams. School divisions paid for internet access and distributed devices to students who didnt own them. Others had to finish the school year using homework packages.

Now, teachers are scrambling to address the learning gaps and mental-health challenges that accompany being isolated for much of the last six months.

As the learning curves carry on into a new year, the Free Press will follow these three families to document their experiences in the classroom, with remote learning and home-schooling amid the uncertainty and anxiety of the pandemic. Much like the provinces ever-changing virus-response policies, their plans may require adjustments.

The Milne-Karn, Parenteau and the Blum-Payne families have graciously opened both their textbooks and homes for the 2020-21 school year.

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @macintoshmaggie

An uneasy return to school for the Milne-Karn family

Mothers Heather Milne (left) and Luanne Karn accompany Grade 3 daughter, Anna Milne-Karn, to Ecole Laura Secord.

A few days before the first day of school, the Milne-Karn family stopped by 7-Eleven for an end-of-summer treat. Wearing masks, they pulled the levers to fill up their cups with the variously coloured slush that is, in some circles, considered Winnipegs official beverage.

Eight-year-old Anna started to suck on her straw.

"Anna was drinking the Slurpee through the straw through the mask," recalls Luanne Karn, one of her two mothers. For the record, Anna says "it worked!"

Karn uses the anecdote as an example of the challenges teachers will face this year.

From students attempting to pick their noses under their masks to face-covering trades between friends, enforcing proper public health protocols among young students will be no easy feat. An experienced resource teacher, Karn knows first-hand what working with students is like on the best of days.

Karn (left) and Milne say goodbye to Anna at school drop-off.

That reality has made both Karn and her partner Heather Milne uneasy about sending their daughter back to school to attend the third grade at Ecole Laura Secord.

Even still, after considering Annas well-being, work schedules and the value of French-immersion education, they decided its whats best for them.

The family of three also lives in a different city from their relatives, so their bubble is limited to a select few friends and Annas school and daycare cohorts.

"There was a lot of screen time when everything was shut down  too much screen time," says Milne, an author and English professor at the University of Winnipeg.

The contrast between how her students will learn (fully online) and how her daughter will learn (in a crowded school) is not lost on her. She and Karn had hoped the province would cap class sizes and require K-12 schools to ensure students would be separated by at least two metres in classrooms.

We have great confidence in the teachers at her school. We think theyre going to do what they can to keep her safe but in general, the return to school has been very poorly executed by the government and by the school divisions.  Heather Milne

They both expressed their frustration throughout the Safe September Manitoba campaign leading up to the back-to-school season.

"We have great confidence in the teachers at her school. We think theyre going to do what they can to keep her safe but in general, the return to school has been very poorly executed by the government and by the school divisions," Milne says.

Karn adds the province has been "close-fisted about the money."

As of mid-September, there are 21 students in Annas class. As for chief provincial health officer Dr. Brent Roussins public health orders, teachers are to enforce physical distancing whenever possible and space desks out at least one metre apart.

Anna and her peers are now required to wash or sanitize their hands frequently, stick to their assigned playground areas during recess and borrow bathroom tags to hang outside the facilities while in use so others know the capacity level.

RUTH BONNEVILLE In addition to wearing masks, Anna and her peers are required to wash or sanitize their hands frequently.

Music, one of Annas favourite subjects, also looks different.

Instead of playing instruments, her class was tasked with listening to different songs and drawing pictures of how they made the students feel during the first week of school. Anna says she drew a castle when her teacher played classical music.

She wears a mask during the day even though the province has made them mandatory only for Grade 4-12 students. She has a variety of them in her wardrobe; her favourite is blue and has clouds on it.

"(Masks) are like socks," Karn says. "Were just going to have a lot of them."

As they walk down Wolseley Avenue on their way to Laura Secord, the trio pauses at a crosswalk to put on their masks before dropping Anna off.

Its a new routine theyve become familiar with in this most unusual school year.

Room for three cousins in one home-school bubble

MJ Patrick-Prieston (from left), Kenny Kennedy, Dawnis Kennedy, Carter Parenteau, Anna Parenteau, Josiah Parenteau and Jason Parenteau will focus on their studies in a home-school bubble organized by three families.

Carter Parenteau will spend the fourth grade studying core subjects and speaking Ojibwe with his cousins in the cosy living room of his familys Silver Heights home. The cooking and canning lessons will take place in the kitchen during the week. On Fridays, his father will organize fishing field trips.

Some might call the Parenteau familys plan for 2020-21 home-schooling.

A more accurate description of Carters upcoming year is, according to his parents, Anishinaabe-izhichigewin. Or, in English, "the way Anishinaabe do things."

The changing colours of the leaves typically mark the start of a new school year in the Ojibwe-immersion program at Isaac Brock School for the family. This year, Anna and Jason Parenteau have chosen to keep Carter home in order to limit their close contacts and protect the elders and high-risk relatives in their lives.

Carter trades schooling at Isaac Brock School for studies at home.

"Children do not know boundaries. You try to enforce these things, but the reality is adults dont even have those habits. Even in the grocery stores, people dont follow the arrows," Jason says on a recent school day.

For the time being, only teenage son Josiah will attend in-person classes part time. A Grade 12 student, he is enrolled in blended learning at the University of Winnipeg Collegiate.

"I was in denial for a while, like, Oh my God, are we really going to have to home-school?" Anna says.

She has high praise for the Ojibwe-immersion program and its teachers who are "almost like family," so her hope is they can remain connected to the school until the threat of COVID-19 subsides.

Children do not know boundaries. You try to enforce these things, but the reality is adults dont even have those habits. Even in the grocery stores, people dont follow the arrows.  Jason Parenteau

After much planning, Anna says she has come to terms with the home-school bubble organized by the Parenteaus, Kennedys and Patricks. Together, the families  all members of Roseau River Anishinabe First Nation  have planned a schedule that will see different adults take on academic and land-based teaching roles throughout the week.

Monday through Wednesday will be reserved for core subjects including math, English and Ojibwe, as well as strategy games and baking. Thursdays will be for outdoor education and socially distant meet-ups with other First Nation family bubbles. On the weekends, Carter and peers Kenny Kennedy and MJ Patrick-Prieston will attend ceremonies and take part in cultural outings.

"A long time ago, pre-Canada or Confederation, families did what were doing now. Were just looking after our children and teaching them as best as we can," says Jason, who is Lenape from the Delaware Nation at Moraviantown in southwestern Ontario. Anna is Ojibwe, from Roseau River.

He has already started to teach the boys about tanning hides. One hide from a recent deer hunt is currently soaking in a bin in their backyard. It will soon be stretched into a drum to be used for ceremonies.

Josiah Parenteau, a Grade 12 student at The Collegiate, works on physics in a Zoom classroom at the dining room table. His aunt, Dawnis Kennedy, helps her nephew, MJ Patrick-Prieston.

The Parenteaus have always taught their sons about the importance of embracing their Ojibwe and Lenape identities, but the pandemic has provided them with a flexible schedule to focus on cultural and land-based learning.

It has also required the adults to reorganize their shifts and for some, work fewer hours per week. Jason is taking Fridays off from his work at Dakota Ojibway Child and Family Services. Anna, who is employed at the Manitoba Indigenous Cultural Education Centre, is working remotely.

"Its a choice between having the kids in school and still continuing to access the elders and community and family," says mother Dawnis Kennedy.

The families have chosen the latter option.

Kennedy says it feels daunting, but she finds comfort in the knowledge they have a support network of friends and elders and she and Anna, who are cousins, learned traditional ways from their families when they were growing up.

Remote-learning option will keep grandfather safe

RUTH BONNEVILLE From left: Andy Blum, Emby Blum-Payne, Edward Payne and Krystal Payne.

Emby Blum-Payne is a chatterbox.

As the eight-year-old roller-skates down the sidewalk in her hot pink wheels  a mid-pandemic purchase  she talks about her two dogs, her friends and her friends dogs. Its hard to get a word in edgewise.

"Shes normally this chatty, but shes starved for attention. Shes an extrovert," her mother Krystal Payne says.

Ever since March 11, the day the World Health Organization declared the novel coronavirus pandemic, Emby and her family have been spending most of their time at home in their Elmwood neighbourhood. An only child, Embys interactions with other children have been limited to video calls and physically distant visits.

"We want to get a bubble so in the winter, we can go inside with Bryan, Kelly (and baby Forest), our friends," Emby says.

Emby chats with grandpa, Edward Payne, who is high-risk.

Payne says they have been extra-careful because Embys grandfather, who lives in a semi-independent suite in their basement, is immunocompromised; his lungs havent fully recovered from a months-long hospital stay and intubation several years ago.

Given their situation, the Blum-Paynes sought back-to-school advice from their family nurse practitioner.

"Emby will require to stay home and access a remote learning program/option for the Fall 2020 school year, in order to prevent transmission of COVID-19 onto her grandfather," states the subsequent medical note, which Payne submitted to the Winnipeg School Division one month ago.

The provinces back-to-school guidelines indicate division-level remote learning will be in place for students who are medically advised not to return to in-classroom learning because of COVID-19-related risk factors. There has been widespread confusion about the exact situations that qualify, but Emby has received approval.

If the pandemic had not disrupted their lives, she would be starting the third grade at Ecole Sacre-Coeur near Health Sciences Centre.

Unfortunately, because my dad is so highrisk, a return for us just might not be possible until theres a vaccine or a really good treatment.  Krystal Payne

On Wednesday, Payne received an update from the principal: WSD is hiring staff and finalizing details for its division-wide virtual school. She has yet to receive a definitive start date.

Until the school is up and running, Ecole Sacre-Coeur has offered to prepare learning packages for Emby and her remote-learning classmates.

A frustrated Payne says its "mind-boggling" how few details the division has provided to families while tens of thousands of students have already returned to classrooms across the province.

Emby is currently working through the home-school curriculum Payne purchased to supplement the remote program.

RUTH BONNEVILLE Emby swings on the play structure her parents built due to the pandemic.

"I like my project today for science. Ill go get it," Emby says, then vanishes, quickly reappearing with a large worksheet that has a drawing of a Fennec fox on it. She is studying an animal-classification unit.

"This is my project. Its a fox  the littlest fox on earth," she says.

Payne is aware that her family is privileged to be able to keep Emby home.

She took a leave from work to provide child care and plans to focus on completing her masters degree in archival studies at the University of Manitoba and part-time work as contract research assistant this year. Her partner Andy Blum continues to commute to his full-time job with the city.

Krystal helps Emby with schooling at home.

Outside, the Blum-Paynes have installed a rock-climbing wall and swings in their yard. Inside, they have set up a remote classroom for Emby.

"If the schools did all of the right things: distancing, more testing in the schools for asymptomatic students, better ventilation systems, I still dont know (if wed send Emby)," Payne says.

"Unfortunately, because my dad is so high-risk, a return for us just might not be possible until theres a vaccine or a really good treatment."

For now, through remote learning, she says the hope is Emby will be able to learn in French and stay connected to her school.

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Maggie Macintosh

Reporter Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Winnipeg Free Press. Funding for the Free Press education reporter comes from the Government of Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative. Read full biography
Diners have been scathing in their criticism about the small portions served up at Gordon Ramsays York & Albany restaurant  but the venue has been eating a giant hole in the fiery chefs bank balance.

For I can reveal that the ailing restaurant in trendy Camden, North London, has sunk even further into the red and has racked up losses totalling a staggering 15 million since opening in 2008.

The figure appears in the accumulated losses column of the latest financial statement.

The records also reveal that the establishment made losses of more than 550,000 in just one year, to the end of August 2019.

And things could be about to get even worse for the Kitchen Nightmare star, pictured right.

Diners have been scathing in their criticism about the small portions served up at Gordon Ramsays York & Albany restaurant. Pictured: Gordon Ramsay

The disastrous number was for a period months before lockdown in the UK, which had a devastating impact on the high street.

All of Ramsays restaurants closed in March and have only recently started to reopen.

In the new accounting figures filed to Companies House last week, the stars team warn that the full impact of Covid-19 is not yet known.

The books show that he has personally given guarantees of 5million to shore up the businesses.

York & Albany has proved a huge headache for Ramsay. Years ago it was revealed that he had signed a deal guaranteeing to pay a staggering 640,000-a-year rent on the premises for 25 years, meaning he will fork out 16 million over the course of the lease.

The ailing restaurant in trendy Camden, North London, has sunk even further into the red and has racked up losses totalling a staggering 15 million since opening in 2008. Pictured: A criticised meal

Last week, a scathing review appeared on Tripadvisor, criticising what it claimed was a small steak and over-salted chips for 23

And the restaurant has had its troubles on TripAdvisor. Last week, a scathing review appeared on the site, criticising what it claimed was a small steak and over-salted chips for 23.

The one-star review was titled, Gordon is not Heston, referring to rival Heston Blumenthal.

A spokesman for Ramsay declined to comment.

Princess who takes it all in her stride

You can stick on big sunglasses, a favourite summer dress and your slouchiest trainers  but when youre a Royal you cant just go out for a sunny stroll and not get noticed.

Heres Princess Eugenie, 30, looking like one of the crowd in a 78 Claudie Pierlot number as she pops out for a stroll in Notting Hill, West London.

She slung a Louis Vuitton handbag casually across her shoulder but there was a giveway on her ring finger  the 1.5-carat pear-shaped sparkler she was given by husband Jack Brooksbank at their wedding in 2018.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 16:37:36|Editor: huaxia

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JAKARTA, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- A joint search and rescue team on Saturday evacuated three crew members of a helicopter which has made an emergency landing in the hinterland of Indonesia's eastern Papua province.

The crew members of the ill-fated helicopter, which lost contact on its trip from Papua's district of Nabire to Bayu Biru area in the province's district of Paniai on Thursday, were rushed to a nearby hospital Saturday.

"For the time being, two crew members have been in the Nabire public hospital," Nabire District Police's Senior Commissioner Sonny Tampubolon was quoted by Antara news agency as saying on Saturday.

Those who have arrived in Nabire are Erik Kurniawan and Endy Nawalaga, he said, adding that Kurniawan was injured on his head, leg and chest, while Nawalaga has injuries on his head and leg.

Meanwhile, another crew member Aswar Jamal has also been evacuated but he is still in Sirio area, Nabire district, he said.

On Friday, the chopper was located in a forest at the height of 4,700 meters in Paniai district, Head of the Search and Rescue Office in the province's Biak district Gusti Anwar Mulyadi said.

Mulyadi said four helicopters were deployed to rescue the three crew members aboard the chopper which was carrying food from Nabire to Bayu Biru.

The Bell helicopter was operated by a utility helicopter company in Indonesia. Enditem
Even the most introverted among us must be craving some kind of late-night revelry after the long period of subdued social activity forced on Sydney by COVID-19. The outbreak has placed a cloud over daily life and mental health, making us value human interaction like never before.

If implemented, the state government's new 24-Hour Economy Strategy, announced last week, will ensure we are able to connect in a safer and more dynamic Sydney when it is safe to do so.

Strong night-time economy needed: Sweethearts Rooftop in Potts Point. Credit:SMH

The issues plaguing Sydneys nightlife are no secret, inspiring endless articles and much spirited pub banter over the years. When the lockout laws were first implemented, the desire for a vibrant nightlife was viewed by some as a concern only for youth (wayward youth at that), an indulgence rather than a serious economic and cultural issue.

However, the prevailing attitude now is different. Nightlife is for all ages. And a strong night-time economy benefits the wider economy. After all, a job is a job whether one clocks on at 9am or 9pm, and every person employed means one less JobKeeper or JobSeeker payment.
Vietnam's Science and Technology Minister Chu Ngoc Anh has been named deputy secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee by the Politburo.

The appointment was announced on Friday by the Party's Central Organizing Commission and the Standing Committee of Hanoi's Party organ.

Chu Ngoc Anh, 55, was born in Thai Hoa Commune, Ba Vi District, Hanoi.

He was a research fellow and lecturer at the School of Engineering Physics under the Hanoi University of Science and Technology between October 1988 and November 1995.

Between 1995 and 2010, he held several different positions in public agencies in the post and communications sectors.

He was deputy minister of the Ministry of Science and Technology from August 2010 until March 2013.

Anh was named deputy secretary of the Party Committee in the northern province of Phu Tho in March 2013. He was made chairman of the provincial People's Committee in May the same year.

He held both offices until September 2015, when Anh returned to the Ministry of Science and Technology as its deputy minister.

Anh has been Vietnam's Minister of Science and Technology since April 2016.

On August 11, the Politburo  the top decision-making body of the Communist Party of Vietnam  suspended Hanoi chairman Nguyen Duc Chung from his position as deputy secretary of the capital's Party organ.

Chung was also suspended from work as chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee for 90 days on the same day, according to a decision signed by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

Hanoi's permanent vice-chairman Nguyen Van Suu has stood in for Chung while he is suspended.

Chung's suspensions were to aid work to verify, investigate and clarify his responsibilities in relation to a number of cases in accordance with the law.

The security and investigation agency under Vietnam's Ministry of Public Security on August 28 initiated legal proceedings against and detained Chung for four months on suspicion of appropriating documents containing State secrets.

Chung's residence in Hanoi was also searched for the investigation.

A source told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Friday Chung's family has initiated procedures for the 53-year-old to be released on bail so he can receive treatment for cancer.

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In 1991 when the Madrid Peace Conference was launched to settle the Arab-Israeli conflict, two tracks were established for negotiations, a bilateral and a multilateral track. In the early nineties, Hesham Youssef, an Egyptian diplomat, was in charge of a number of working groups in the multilateral track that examined a range of possible Arab-Israeli economic cooperation that could be pursued once a peace settlement was reached.

A couple of years later, he served as the Official Spokesman of the Arab League during its Summit in Beirut, when the Arab Peace Initiative, presented by then Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, was adopted. For many subsequent years, as Chief of Staff of the Arab League Secretary General, Youssef attended and followed endless rounds of simply inconclusive and failed negotiations.

This week, Youssef, currently a Senior Fellow at the Washington-based US Institute of Peace, was carefully following the most eventful development of a twin-deal for normalization that Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu signed at the White House with both the foreign ministers of the UAE and Bahrain.

These agreements are a definite game changer for the region and for peace prospects in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Youssef said.

Speaking to Ahram Online on the phone from the US capital, hours after the White House signing that saw US President Donald Trump promising that another five or six Arab states would be soon joining the normalization path with Israel, Youssef offered that these agreements have upset a decades-long working paradigm for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. For decades, it was assumed that incentives and gestures from Arab countries toward Israel would move the Israeli public to call on its leadership to constructively address the conflict with the Palestinians, making room for a historic compromise to take place.

This paradigm, he added, was dealt a huge blow by Netanyahu this summer, as the Israeli Prime Minister has portrayed these agreements as achieved under a framework of peace for peace, requiring no concessions from Israel in return. This narrative, while perhaps accurate for Bahrain, so far, is not true in the case of the Emirates, but the key question today is whether the old paradigm can survive because it is not clear if it can be easily replaced.

Youssef believes that with these normalization steps the Arab states are significantly ceding leverage toward a long-articulated goal of resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and realizing the Palestinian right to self-determination. The current approach appears to set aside old paradigms in order to pursue a host of more pressing national interests. It also comes at a time when Israel has become much stronger in the region, the Palestinians are becoming much weaker, and the gap between their positions on all final status issues is becoming unbridgeable  making a negotiated agreement harder than ever to achieve. The erosion of these cornerstones for peacemaking is a precursor for an eventual new crisis, Youssef warned.

According to Youssef, the Palestinians have legitimate reasons for concern over the recent decisions of Abu Dhabi and Manama to normalize relations with Israel at a time when the prospects for a fair and just settlement for the Palestinian cause seem dim.

Palestinian concern over the recent normalization is justified, he stated.

Still, Youssef argued that given that one of the key obstacles to the establishment of a Palestinian state has been the progressive entrenchment of Israeli presence in Palestinian territories in the West Bank, through fast-growing illegal settlement activity and more recently via the annexation scheme that Netanyahu was planning to implement. Therefore, one should not underestimate the importance of the Emirates securing a halt to annexation momentum, particularly if it is off the table as President Trump indicated. Youssef recognized that while stopping annexation was due to many factors, the Emirati deal was also instrumental.

Obviously, crucial questions arise about the permanence of the annexation halt, and whether it could last long enough to allow a fresh start for negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis on the basis of the two-state solution. Youssef noted that even after the White House ceremony, David Friedman, the US Ambassador to Israel, stated his belief that annexation will still happen as proposed by the Trump Administrations Vision for Peace. Still, Youssef believes that given the popularity within Israel of the normalization steps with the Emiratis, combined with an American stop sign and the lack of strong Israeli public push for annexation as a priority, it would be difficult for Israel to proceed with annexation in the near future if it were seen to threaten the normalization process with the Emirates and the prospect for additional deals with other countries.

I am not saying that if the halt remains for a few years that this means that a deal between Palestinians and Israelis would be easy, obviously not, Youssef added. However, the question today is one of political will. There are two possibilities  these developments can either constitute a bridge to help achieve peace or a bypass around the Palestinian cause, he said.

Youssef indicated that the Emirates have taken a number of significant steps towards normalization already and that more steps are on the way. Bahrain is expected to take steps in the near future. Whether these steps will be confined to achieving mutually-beneficial bilateral gains, or whether the two Arab countries will seek to leverage these steps to secure Israeli concessions in favor of the Palestinian people remains to be seen. To help Palestinians in their quest, several options could be contemplated from freezing settlements, to ending collective punishment practices such as Palestinian home demolitions, among numerous other issues. An approach of that nature would make it more of a bridge, but if the focus remains limited to bilateral interests and agreements these agreements will ultimately be a bypass road around the conflict.

Both the Emirates and Bahrain have reiterated their traditional positions regarding the conflict as well as their support to the Palestinian people and their continued adherence to the Arab Peace Initiative and its principles, Youssef added.

At the same time, Youssef argued, there is a sea change of developments in the region. For the first time in recent history, the Arab League denied a Palestinian leadership request for support of its position. The Palestinians inability to mobilize Arab support to criticize the Emirati step is quite significant. The Palestinians have also witnessed explicit support for the Emirati and later the Bahraini steps from Egypt, Oman and others, and tacit acceptance and even gestures from Saudi Arabia, which opened its airspace for Israeli flights. A number of additional Arab countries, such as Jordan, took a more nuanced position more clearly aligned with the API framework. Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said that if Israel dealt with the UAE deal as an incentive to end occupation, it will move the region towards a just peace.

While the Palestinian question cannot be wished away, and hundreds of millions around the world would still voice support for their cause, the Palestinians need to recognize the significant nature of these fundamental developments, Youssef said. Denying the reality of these steps, withdrawing PLO ambassadors, and boycotting the Dubai Expo is not a strategy. The Palestinians badly need a unified and effective strategy to achieve their legitimate rights, he added.

Youssef recalled the controversial debate in Egypt and all over the Arab world when President Sadat went to Jerusalem in 1977. Youssef pointed out that while there was still strong opposition to the agreement when it was inked, many years later he believes a majority of Egyptians would think that Sadat was a visionary after all and that what he did ultimately served Egyptian interests.

Of course, Youssef agreed, there are major differences between that deal and the ones Israel, the UAE and Bahrain just struck; chief among them that Egypt had been in direct conflict with Israel, over the Israeli occupation of Egyptian territories, and sought through the deal to end Israeli occupation of Sinai.

However, it remains the case that people in the Arab world will likely debate the normalization steps taken by the Emirates and Bahrain for decades to come, he added.

Youssef agreed that with the Trump plan earlier this year, the API is challenged, but he does not believe it is no longer relevant. He noted that Donald Trumps chief advisor Jared Kushner admitted that all the Arab leaders with whom he met spoke about the API. Even in the wake of the UAE and Bahrain deals, almost all Arab countries, and the Palestinian leadership, reconfirmed their commitment to this peace initiative, Youssef added.

Having been in the negotiating rooms in which Palestinians and Israelis were brought together on many occasions over the years, Youssef knows well that it will take a long time before Israel makes the concessions necessary to bring about the independent and viable Palestinian state, as stipulated by the API 18 years ago.

According to Youssef, Palestinians argue that their significant concessions over the years remain unrecognized by Israel and by this US administration. They have accepted a future Palestinian state on only 22 percent of Mandatory Palestine. They agreed to land swaps around the 1967 borders, expressed willingness to allow Israelis to remain as residents in Palestine, and agreed to only a symbolic return of refugees. From the Palestinian perspective, there isnt a single comparable Israeli concession.

Youssef acknowledged that more challenges remain. There are major hurdles to overcome associated with the Palestinian divisions; Hamas unilateral control of Gaza away from the Palestinian Authority; the Israeli siege on Gaza; the desperate situation of the Palestinian Authority that is on the verge of collapse; and the volatile Israeli political context that witnessed three elections in one year, with a fourth possibly imminent. Beyond that of course, Europe is preoccupied, perhaps even overwhelmed, with its own challenges, and the world awaits the outcome of the US elections in a few weeks.

On the American side, the Trump administration is making the best use of the extent to which many Arab countries are unwilling to confront it, particularly at a time when these countries have several more urgent priorities than the Palestinian question and when, above all, they firmly believe that the Trump Plan has no chance of leading to a resolution of that conflict, Youssef said.

Should President Trump get re-elected, the dilemma posed by the plan will come into sharp focus. Palestinians, across the political spectrum, rejected the Trump Plan. And, the current Palestinian leadership will not go to negotiations on the basis of this plan. Meanwhile, an Israeli right-wing government will not go to negotiations except with the Trump plan on the table, a dilemma that will not be easily resolved, he said.

Moreover, he added that some Arab countries have real concerns with the Trump Plan also noting the Arab League resolution that rejected it. Jordan, a crucial partner to the US, Israel, and the Palestinians, is a country that sees real danger in this plan, particularly as some Israeli right-wing circles have recently revived the narrative that Jordan is an alternative homeland for the Palestinians  an argument that was virtually abandoned after the signing of the Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty in 1994. King Abdullah of Jordan has also fiercely rejected settling more Palestinian refugees in Jordan. But, with an empowered right-wing government in Israel, the Kingdom is increasingly concerned that Israel may try to resolve its demographic problem at Jordans expense.

Jerusalem is another key factor. Jordan, along with many Arab and Islamic countries, could not accept Israeli sovereignty over all of Jerusalem, to include the Al-Haram Al-Sharif, as stipulated in the Trump plan. He added that recent statements from the US administration indicating that Muslims from all over the world coming in peace can go through Abu Dhabi or Manama to pray at the holy site, under Israeli control, altogether miss the point of Arab and Islamic countries interest and concerns on this issue.

Where does this leave the key stakeholders and the pathway forward? The view from the US will be shaped by the election outcome, Youssef said. If president Trump wins, Youssef cautioned, there is a risk that the administration runs in persisting in an assumption that the plan has a realistic diplomatic path forward. This would not only lead to a dead end but can also undermine the prospects of peace and the possibility of the US playing a credible and effective role going forward, Youssef argued.

According to Youssef, if Joseph Biden is elected, there may be efforts to roll back some - though by no means all - of the decisions made by the Trump administration, unless a military confrontation or a crisis erupts. He however added that the growing consensus in Washington is that a Biden administration will be extremely preoccupied with numerous more pressing internal and international issues and unable to dedicate meaningful attention to the Israeli Palestinian conflict, at least not immediately.

As for the Palestinians, Youssef believes that they are facing one of the most difficult times since the signing of the Oslo Accords in September 1993. They can no longer rely on automatic dependable Arab support as they once did. Now they need to overcome their division and focus their effort, with the help of the international community, on conducting elections, agree on a strategy, and recognize that good governance is their only way to gain the support of donors and public opinion. The lack of progress on these fronts is the reason behind the steep declining popularity of the Palestinian leadership.

On the Israeli side, according to Youssef, the government is embracing a plan that cannot lead to a peaceful settlement of the conflict. Accordingly, Israeli society finds itself at a historic crossroads, facing a choice between its democratic and Jewish characters if it pursues an extreme right maximalist position toward control of the occupied territories and its Palestinian inhabitants. Israels decisions today will forever affect the states long-term trajectory.

Israel is also facing another daunting challenge: Netanyahu, the prime minister on trial, has presented his public with a narrative that achieving normalization with Arab countries requires no concessions; and, Benny Gantz, the prime minister in waiting who, even if he assumes that position, will be hard pressed to compete with this narrative as someone whose positions have long nodded toward the necessity of compromise to resolve the central existential conflict for Israel with the Palestinians. In the current climate, with the right wing in ascendancy, persuading public opinion with this proposition will require nothing short of a miracle.

The growing and warming Israel-Gulf embrace, and the eagerness to advance ties, to include people to people relations, will likely strengthen calls from the younger generation in Palestine to abandon the pursuit of statehood in favor of a rights-based approach that would seek a bi-national state in the whole of Mandatory Palestine. This is non-starter for both the Israeli government and the public.

The question today, therefore, is what next? According to Youssef, the new US administration, regardless of who resides in the White House, will need to rebalance the current policy if the goal is a just and sustainable peace between Palestinians and Israelis.

Arab countries who have more immediate and pressing concerns, whether confronting Iran, wars in Yemen, Libya and Syria, the pandemic and its devastating economic implications, not to mention a host of other national challenges of diverse nature and intensity, have to reconfirm that resolving this conflict is still a sine qua non for regional peace and stability.

According to Youssef, there was a recent ray of hope for effective diplomatic paths forward with the emergence of a new Middle East Quartet. In the first week of July, the foreign ministers of Egypt, Jordan, France and Germany held a videoconference to discuss Middle East developments and adopted a firm position that denounced annexation plans and warned Israel of the repercussions of such a step. Arguably this also contributed to those plans being put on hold, and a formalized version of this grouping could serve both as a balance and a bridge in the international and regional management of the Israeli-Palestinian and broader Arab-Israeli conflicts.

These four countries, in particular, have an important role to play, Youssef elaborated. Egypt and Jordan were the first two countries to have peace treaties with Israel, treaties that have endured for over 40 and 25 years, respectively. On the European side, both France and Germany are the most influential countries in Europe in relation to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and their good relations with the Palestinians, Israelis and the US suggest an ability to serve an important mediating role.

Youssef argued that this new quartet can work with the US on securing a constructive start for Palestinian-Israeli negotiations in order to allow for a settlement without which the Middle East could never really claim that it can live in peace, stability, security, or achieve prosperity.

The Emirates and Bahrain need to take a step towards the Palestinians. There are many prominent Palestinians who would be willing to work with them on trying to work out a modus operandi for the coming period to see how the normalization step can help advance peace and become a solid and sturdy bridge rather than a detrimental bypass to a conflict that will not go away. Perhaps Egypt can play a role in this regard.

Youssef stressed that the input of any group of countries is no guarantee at all that things would necessarily take the right course. No one step by any power, whoever this power is, would be enough to achieve a breakthrough in the current impasse. There is a need for a package of steps to be taken by all sides in an orchestrated manner for the conflict to move along the right path toward resolution.

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Lili Reinhart has urged fans to "leave Jennifer [Aniston] and Brad [Pitt] alone after the duo came together for a virtual table read of 1982 teen drama Fast Times at Ridgemont High for charity.

On Thursday (17 September), the pair took part in the live-streamed event hosted by Dane Cook and narrated by Morgan Freeman, sending fans of the couple into a frenzy.

However, Reinhart took the opportunity to voice her unpopular opinion that people stop obsessing over Aniston and Pitt, who divorced after seven years of marriage in 2005.

Unpopular opinion: can we just leave Jennifer and Brad alone? the Riverdale actor tweeted.

"Stop analyzing their every move and facial expression whenever theyre involved in something together.

Let them live their lives in peace.

Many people agreed with Reinhart, whose tweet received more than 41,000 likes and 2,400 retweets.

It is sad that people have time in the day to do this. It is hard seeing people in the spotlight constantly having their every move analysed, replied one person.

Another added: I think this goes for every celebrity or celebrity relationship people always look into things too much its very weird."

The virtual table read comes after Pitt and Aniston fans were tickled in January when the two actors reunited at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards.

They each won accolades during the awards ceremony and were pictured embracing backstage at The Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California, seemingly overjoyed to have run into one another.

During the Golden Globes, which took place earlier that month, Pitt told ET that he would welcome a reunion with his former spouse during awards season, stating: Ill run into Jen, shes a good friend.
Bamako, Mali (PANA) - Discussions between the National Committee for the Salvation of the People (CNSP), the military junta that took power since August 18 in Mali, and the June 5 Movement ''Rassemblement des forces patriotiques'' (M5-RFP), the brain behind the massive protest that sparked the coup against president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and his regime, continued on Saturday in Bamako, PANA noted
When you first gaze at Galveston artist Doug McLean's sculpture entitled "Hope," there's a chiseled, visceral strength that you see in the mother's haunting face as she holds her baby to her chest while her other child clings to her waist.

In this delicately nuanced sculpture, the mother's raw determination to save her children is palpably shown, as she marches forward through the debris of bricks and timber left from the Great Galveston Storm of 1900.

It's this indelible image of one woman's resilience that has captivated McLean to create "Hope," slated to be unveiled in Galveston's new city park in mid December. The haunting image originally comes from of a plaster study called Victims of Galveston Flood, created in 1904 by Pompeo Coppini, an Italian-born sculptor.

'RESILIENT': After surviving COVID-19, Houston artist wants heroes' names for new 'Resilient' mural

"The strength of the woman carrying her children really had a profound impact on me," McLean said. "I've lived on the island for 40 years, and I've known two of the female mayors. Lyda Ann Thomas was incredibly powerful. After the storm, the women were very influential in establishing the type of the government we would have and re-establishing the school system. They also had a great deal to do with philanthropy on the island. The island has been enormously impacted by strong females."

When McLean first spotted a photograph of Coppini's plaster study about four years ago, he knew he had to bring it back to life.

"When I saw this, I felt like I had to do it," McLean said. "It's a strange thing, because the more I put into it, the more obsessed I was with it. As soon as I saw the photo, I was really drawn to the face of the woman and the anguish of her face."

After McLean felt he had captured the emotion on her face, he was drawn to complete the entire sculpture.

"That drew me to begin this project of really working on a bust of her  to try and capture her emotion," McLean said. "I worked on that 100 hours or so. I just worked on her face until I felt I had the emotion. Once I got that done, I kept looking at the remaining images. It was a personal goal and challenge to bring this back to life again. So I set out to work on it."

Since 2016, this project has been McLean's labor of love. McLean began working on his version molded in plasticine, a clay-based material.

He expects to spend another 100 hours to perfect "Hope." When the sculpture is finished, it will be cast in bronze, with the help of donations, McLean says.

"I've worked on it for about 1,600 hours," McLean said. "When I am working on it, sometimes I'm overpowered by the message of it. This has everything to do with her, the mother taking the next step forward and saving her children in which way she can."

There's a riveting mystery behind the fate of Coppini's plaster study that has also fascinated McLean. Even though Coppini was commissioned by the city in 1904 to create an artwork commemorating the Great Hurricane of 1900, the city leaders rejected the piece. Then in 1906, the statue was actually sent to the St. Louis World's Fair where it was supposed to be featured as the main piece in the sculpture pavilion. After that, it was sent back to Texas and put into storage at the University of Texas. The statue then mysteriously disappeared after that.

"It has never been found since," McLean said. "There were several warehouses that had fires and had burned. There were also other warehouses that had major flood damage. It could have been destroyed in any of those events."

This year marks 120 years since the 1900 Storm devastated Galveston, so it's only fitting that this tribute to the resilient spirit of Galveston called "Hope" will stand strong in the new Galveston park. The mystery of the Coppini sculpture comes full circle, bringing new life to the island.
Sausalito had a brush with national history on a September day 75 years ago when a huge crowd came to an elaborate ceremony to celebrate the launching of an oil tanker named Mission San Francisco at the wartime Marinship shipyard. It was a great and happy day. World War II had ended only the week before, and the Mission San Francisco was the final big vessel built in Marinship, and the last of more than a thousand ships built in the Bay Area during the war.

That day, Sept. 8, 1945, seemed to mark the end of an era. Its work done, Marinship shut down within weeks. But the old shipyard never really went away and Marinship is back in the news.

Many of the buildings put up during the war are still there, including the administration building on the north end of town, the Industrial Center Building and the big old structure that houses a huge model of San Francisco Bay and a museum. Local historians believe Marinship is the most intact remnant of the dozens of wartime shipyards.

And now a proposal to build affordable and senior housing in the old shipyard has stirred up passions in the town. Sausalito people have always had strong opinions about the look and character of the place, but this time a new element has been added: Proponents of the housing idea say it would bring more racial and economic diversity to a wealthy city that is 92% white.

Affordable housing is the only way we can increase diversity in this town, Mayor Susan Cleveland-Knowles said at a July City Council meeting. She was one of the majority who voted 4-1 to take a look at changing zoning rules that prohibit housing in the 225-acre Marinship district. There is no other potential place for this, she told me this week.

To say that opponents disagree would be an understatement. They are passionate about Marinship as it is, many of them tenants in the Industrial Center Building, itself a survivor of the wartime shipyard.

The real question is whats the best use for Marinship, said Sandra Bushmaker, a former council member who is active in the Sausalito Working Waterfront Coalition. She sees the Marinship district as part of the culture of Sausalito, industrial and maritime and a place of freedom for artists. She thinks housing is not compatible to these uses. And besides, she and other opponents say, the housing idea is really the first stage of major development  the use of diversity as an argument for housing is really a kind of modern day Trojan horse. Racial justice is a much bigger issue than housing in Marinship, she said. But she thinks its the wrong place, Housing and residential would change the landscape of Marinship, she said.

When most San Franciscans think of Sausalito they think of a pretty little town just across the Golden Gate, noted for its restaurants and shops. It has a considerable international reputation, and before the pandemic it attracted well over a million tourists a year. Its so famous Pepperidge Farm even has a Sausalito cookie.

But Sausalito is also a residential and commuter town. The population is older than in most Bay Area cities  37% are over 65.

A mile or so north of the expensive homes and the yacht harbors full of sleek boats is another part of town. Not far from the big upscale Mollie Stone supermarket and trendy restaurants like Fish are boatyards and small industrial operations. Its a curious mix. Some places like the Spaulding Boatworks, where old wooden boats are restored and revered, are next to abandoned boat projects and tumbledown shacks.

In a sense, parts of Marinship reflect the older and more freewheeling Sausalito, where people were allowed to drop out of conventional life. All waterfront communities have people like this. The key to their lives is independence and life on the water. And change is their enemy.

On the other hand, there are also solid business enterprises in Marinship. Its the economic engine of Sausalito, said John DiRe, a member of the working waterfront coalition. Its booming. Its as busy as its ever been.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

But Marinship comes with a past, and that raises concern about its future. The shipyard was built in a hurry. Ground was broken in March 1942, and the first ship was launched in September. The shipyard was built atop an old saltwater marsh and to fill the land, a nearby hill was bulldozed. There were no environmental laws in wartime and now the site is sinking. Marinship was contracted to build 100 ships and they completed 93 before the war ended. Its possible the soil may be toxic and unsuitable for housing. We dont want another Hunters Point down here, Bushmaker said. Thats a reference to major toxic problems encountered in a former San Francisco shipyard.

But Mayor Cleveland-Knowles has thought about these and other concerns. She sees the goal of affordable and senior housing as important to the town. I want to make it possible for people who work in Sausalito to be able to afford to live here, she said. She also thinks housing could be built near existing office buildings in Marinship and dismisses the idea that housing and light industrial uses are incompatible. We can keep the maritime and light industrial character, she said. Thats the primary vision.

DiRe and others also want to overhaul Marinships industrial base and make it a center of innovation  but without housing.

But its clear that prime waterfront land is at a premium and no matter how the debate comes out Marinship faces a different future.

Carl Nolte is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: cnolte@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @CarlnolteSF
Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology (NIIFT) here has started the process for admission to its various undergraduate (UG) and postgraduate (PG) programmes.

The institute is offering courses such as BSc (fashion design knits), BSc (fashion design), BSc (textile design), MSc (garment manufacturing technology), MSc (fashion marketing and management), and two-year master of design (MDes) degree in fashion and textile.

The interested candidates can download the prospectus and apply online at the institutes official website www.niiftindia.com.

Upon successful completion of the course, the passouts can start their own enterprises in textile, fashion and apparel sectors, or get recruited as design consultants, fashion designers, merchandisers, sourcing and product managers, fashion photographers, and stylists, among others.

The states department of industries and commerce established the institute in 1995, comprehending and visualising the need of trained professionals in the arena of textile and garment industry. In 2013, NIIFT got affiliated to Punjab Technical University, Kapurthala, for providing degrees to students, steering and supporting in admission procedure, faculty recruitment and training as well as curriculum scheduling and upgrading.

Ludhiana, apart from being a significant textile cluster, is at its fruition in the production of hosiery, knitwear and readymade garments. NIIFT, in August 2008, achieved another milestone, by opening a new centre in Ludhiana, for providing the industry with trained professionals in the fashion business. Since then, NIIFT, Ludhiana has emerged as a premier institute and strives to impart knowledge comparable with international standards. The institute has grown with each passing year adding new courses and continuously evolving strong relations with the garment industry.
NEW HAVEN  For Arya Singh, a junior at Yale University, the weakness in her muscles is a challenge, not a barrier.

President of the Yale Undergraduate Legal Aid Association, an undergraduate teaching assistant in professor Howard Formans Health Economics and Public Policy class and a member of the New Haven Commission on Disabilities, she is making her mark on Yale and the city.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

She has even written a childrens book, Courageous Calla and the Clinical Trial, based on her experience helping to develop three drugs.

Singh, 20, has had spinal muscular atrophy her whole life. She has used a wheelchair since she was 5. She will tell you she requires extreme dependency on friends and family for tasks of daily living that most people would not think about. Just raising her hand in class takes effort.

Contributed Photo

Now that she is on Evrysdi, a drug recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration, she no longer will have to undergo a lumbar puncture, in the operating room under anesthesia, in order to receive medication that keeps her muscles from weakening further.

Im a full-time student but I also have three hours of physical therapy every day, she said. Ive been in the operating room over 20 times my entire life. Ive been in clinical research as long as I can remember.

Contributed Photo

Those clinical trials have kept Singhs condition somewhat stable for years, but they have not been without pain and risk. Spinraza, which must be injected into the spine, was one of the three clinical trials in which she has taken part. While it helped keep her somewhat stable, it was incredibly invasive to receive, she said.

A lumbar puncture is a really dangerous procedure in that you can have leakage of spinal fluid, she said. That happened to me and I was out of school for three weeks on and off for the rest of the year, because a side effect of that is you get these incredible headaches.  You have to lie down in order for that to stop.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

Evrysdi (Genentechs trade name for risdiplam) differs from Spinraza both in how its administered and in its effects.

Whats important about this drug is that it delivers this protein all over the body instead of just the central nervous system, and I think for most SMA patients they would say that what they notice is the fact their muscles are getting weaker. You dont really notice loss of nerve function, Singh said.

What I have said time and time again is that Im so grateful that I was part of that trial, Singh said of Spinraza. I think that drug is lifesaving. Evrysdi, though, achieves more than I think Spinraza did for me in a way that is less scary, less invasive and less dangerous.

Evrysdi doesnt disrupt my daily life and that is hugely beneficial to anyone, but especially someone whos a college student, Singh said. It improved my quality of life in an unparalleled way.

Targeting a backup gene

Spinal muscular atrophy is a genetic disorder, which in severe cases can be fatal. The SMN1 and SMN2 genes tell the body to create survival motor neuron (SMN) protein, which maintains the neurons that transmit signals from the brain to the muscles. SMA is caused by a mutation in the SMN1 gene, said Kelly Howell, associate director of the SMA Foundation, which was founded by Singhs parents.

Contributed Photo

The SMN2 gene is a backup to SMN1. It does not produce SMN protein as efficiently as SMN1, but people can have multiple copies. Theres a little bit of luck involved with SMA because it does have the backup gene that therapeutics can target, Howell said. The more copies of SMN2 a person has, the less severe the disease will be. Evrysdi targets SMN2 throughout the body to increase the amount of protein created.

Spinraza also targeted SMN2, but it only reaches the motor neurons in the spinal cord, Howell said.

Singh credits the clinical trials she has participated in with her being able to live a full life with a progressive disease.

I would argue that the most challenging part of SMA is not being able to keep up with the disease, she said. You acclimate to your life and then you lose function. For me the ability to stay at my baseline and stay stable is more than I could have ever asked for. Improved strength is only a huge bonus.

Peter Hvizdak / Hearst Connecticut Media

Evrysdi has helped a great deal in stopping the regression in her muscle strength in the three years Singh has been part of the clinical trial. But she said she knows she is coming from a place of extreme privilege and not what would be the normal path for someone with SMA at all.

Relying on friends

Its not only the medications that have helped Singh achieve what she has, though. She knows how dependent she is on friends, family and medical professionals.

Tiana Lopez, who has known Singh since their first year at Pauli Murray College, is one of those friends.

Shes always so positive and always willing to persevere, Lopez said. I really think that even though she has these extremely harmful health scares and health issues, you would never know it because of how positive she is, how she is able to put you first. That attitude allows Singh to experience things in the fullest way, Lopez said.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

Another friend at Yale, Solana Craig, said of Singh, I think shes the best friend anyone could ever have. Shes so genuinely interested in your life, which is a great quality. Singh and Craig often would leave campus to have dinner downtown. Shes possibly the most social person I know  but shes also the best student I know, Craig said. She always has her work done and on deadline.

For Singh, its just natural to care about those on whom she depends. Empathy has become really important to me, she said. My ability to live my life is entirely dependent on other people being there for me and other peoples goodwill. I feel that they do so much for me.

She knows that when she goes to Blue State Coffee, someone will open the door. A friend will help put her books in her backpack or open a water bottle. Because of SMA, my life has been one where I have to think 20 steps ahead, she said.

A family foundation

Singh was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy at 18 months old. Her parents, Loren Eng and Dinakar Singh, launched the SMA Foundation shortly thereafter. The foundation is a unifier of pharma and government and patient groups in essentially funding research that then went into the development of these drugs, Arya Singh said. So Ive collaborated with pharma companies for almost two decades now.

Contributed Photo

In that time, she has learned that medical research can be difficult on the patients who volunteer to take experimental drugs. She brings her experience to her studies. In one class, Communicating Pain, she wrote a paper about the pain that patients feel in clinical trials and how thats often minimized in advertising of drugs.

Her major is the history of science, medicine and public health. Its obviously very niche, she said. I love it. Ive loved every single class.

Her classes have included Global Health: Responses and Challenges, Bioethics and Law and Media and Medicine in Modern America. Other than last spring, when Yale did not issue grades because of the COVID-19 pandemic, she has received an A on each one.

She did so well in Formans Health Economics and Public Policy that this semester she is an undergraduate course assistant, creating lesson plans, acting as a go-between with students and running the online technology.

In the all-around picture, shes just astonishing, Forman said. I cant imagine anyone being better.  Shes just objectively one of the most extraordinary students you could ever know.

Forman said Singh has also helped raise awareness of SMA and disabilities. Shes advanced peoples understanding of her disease and people with challenges, he said. She has really helped people understand challenges in ways that other people have not.

Arnold Gold / Hearst Connecticut Media

A range of severity

Spinal muscular atrophy is a relatively rare disorder, affecting one in every 6,000 to 10,000 newborns, according to the SMA Foundation. About one in 50 people is a carrier, meaning they have mutations in the SMN1 gene. When both parents are carriers, their children may inherit two defective copies of the gene and have SMA.

There are several types of the disease. Babies born with the most severe type often die before they turn 2. With Evrysdi, 90 percent of infants reached 1 year old without needing permanent ventilation, said Dr. Dalia Moawad, head of neurological rare diseases and U.S. medical affairs at Genentech. Without it, most if not all would require permanent ventilation, she said. Another study measured motor function in patients between 2 and 25.

When we look at the SMA community and the status of available treatments just a decade ago  its a very hopeful time for the community, Moawad said.

An early diagnosis

Singh said her disease is about the middle of the spectrum, between types 2 and 3. We thought she was a perfectly healthy child at birth, said her mother. But by the age of 1, Arya was walking with a stiff-legged gait.

Contributed Photo

All of a sudden, she would be standing and just crumbling under the weight of just standing and get badly injured, Eng said. Singh was diagnosed with SMA two days before her brother Kiran was born. Neither he nor their sister, Tara, have the disease.

Shes been blessed by a really great community, generally, of students and parents who are incredibly supportive, Eng said. Singh attended the Friends Seminary in Manhattan, where she lives, a Quaker school that is the oldest coed school in New York City. When she graduated, she gave the commencement speech.

I think shes figured out a way to take things that might be impossible and turn them into the possible, Eng said. She really has that grit.  She really has the tenacity to make a happy day out of every day.

Contributed Photo

$150 million invested

Eng and her husband decided to do what they could and started the foundation. We didnt know if we can create a drug, but you might as well try, she said. The foundation has spent $150 million to sponsor research into treatments.

We have three federally approved drugs that we have helped get across the finish line and we have had lots of failures along the way, Eng said. In addition to Spinraza and Evrysdi, the FDA has approved Zolgensma, a gene therapy for patients under 2 years old. Evrysdi was developed under an agreement between the foundation, Roche and PTC Pharmaceuticals. Genentech is part of the Roche Group.

Howell said, Even though we have a lot of successes, the three approvals, we still see an unmet need. Future research needs to go toward regenerating motor neurons, increasing muscle strength, she said.

Helping children understand

Singhs childrens book, illustrated by Julia Yu, a family friend, is one more way she has taken the message to children who may be overwhelmed by the idea of taking part in a clinical trial. It wasnt easy for her.

Illustration by Julia Yu. Published by Kindle Direct Publishing.

Its essentially rooted in my experience in clinical research my whole life, often with mixed feelings, she said. Something that Ive struggled with a little bit is the immense gratitude that I have felt to be in clinical research.

She said when she was given a dose of Spinraza on her 10th birthday, she cried in the operating room and told her mother, I dont want to be here. And my mom turned to me and said, This is the greatest birthday gift you could have ever had. I was 10 but thats one of the moments I look back on and really think about and still remember.

Contributed Photo /

I think that what was always challenging for me was I knew that that was true and I knew there were countless and countless doctors and scientists and researchers fighting so hard for making my life better essentially, Singh said. Still, it was something no one else that I knew was going through. It was something that I didnt really understand was happening to me.

She said she hopes the book will offer adults as well as children this very digestible way to understand what clinical research is like  And my hope is that it ultimately offers children especially with a source of education, but also comfort and encouragement that theyre not alone in what theyre going through.

edward.stannard@hearstmediact.com; 203-680-9382
Actor Kangana Ranaut on Saturday lauded Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for announcing his governments decision to make a film city in the Noida, Greater Noida and Yamuna Expressway area.The Queen actor took to Twitter to applaud the Chief Minister and said that many reforms are needed in the film industry. I applaud this announcement by @myogiadityanath ji. We need many reforms in the film industry first of all we need one big film industry called Indian film industry we are divided based on many factors, Hollywood films get advantage of this. One industry but many Film Cities, she tweeted.



Adityanath, during a development review of the Meerut Mandal on Friday, said that the country needs a good film city for shooting purposes and Uttar Pradeshs Noida, Greater Noida and Yamuna Expressway will be good locations for the purpose.He also said that the Uttar Pradesh government will take the responsibility of making the film city.Kanganas ongoing tussle with the Shiv Sena has become the talk of the town.

Her arrival in Mumbai was met with protests by the Shiv Sena workers at the airport. Before she landed in the Maximum City, a Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) team demolished parts of her property in Pali Hills, citing illegal alterations.The Fashion actress had launched a scathing attack on Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray after the BMC demolition drive. She had moved the Bombay High Court on the same day.On the professional front, Kangana Ranaut will be next seen in Thalaivi. The National Award-winning actress also has Tejas and Dhaakad in pipeline.

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The moment the man stood up, grabbed a plastic stool and moved quickly to hit the woman, I also stood up and shouted.

Elisa Fernandez Saenz

I shouted "Stop" and "Khong" ("No" in Vietnamese), while I crossed my arms making the "No" sign.

That was on September 2, as I ventured with some friends for lunch at a little restaurant in Hanoi to eat some noodles and celebrate Vietnams National Day, a holiday commemorating freedom and independence in Vietnam, I witnessed a situation of intimate partner violence which happened in front of all our eyes.

The man, sitting next to us, first shouted very loudly to his wife or girlfriend in what was unmistakably verbal aggression, to the point that she left the table and sat in an empty table behind him.

Her face and body language showed that she was clearly affected by the situation as she kept looking down in sadness and silence. Her rather unresisting attitude made me think it was not the first time that she had been treated this way. They looked young, like in their late 20s, and appeared educated, wearing fashionable clothes. The man kept on talking loudly with apparent signs of being increasingly angry, while a couple seating with him remained silent.

By standing up and shouting at him, I probably reduced the intensity of the violence but unfortunately, he still hit her once. The violence happened in front of all of us, but no one in the restaurant except me acted. I evidently made the situation "uncomfortable"; thus, the man paid and quickly left the restaurant with his partner and the other couple.

The whole situation has left me deeply sadden and angry, wondering how we can bring a change so that violence against women stops once and for all. One woman battered is one too many!!!

I can still not take the image of this man hitting his partner with the blue stool out of my mind. In my head, there are too many questions unanswered: Why did that man feel so entitled that he could insult and hit the women in public without any fear of repercussion? Why did she feel so disempowered to act, to protect herself, to demand for help from all of us around her? Why did the people in the restaurant felt so removed from the situation that they did not feel compelled to help another human being in distress, like we would normally do?

What happened in that restaurant was not OK! The verbal and physical violence this woman experienced is unacceptable. It is not a private problem of that couple. It is a public matter. It touches all of us, and we should react! No matter the nature of the conflict, that women did not deserve the aggression she was receiving. Differences and conflicts happen within couples and families. They can be resolved with respectful, non-violent communication.

This woman could be me, or my colleague, or the female politician, the businesswoman, the street worker, or the student. The statistics of gender-based violence in Vietnam are just too high and not improving. Unless we recognized the damage this makes to the core fabric of our society, things will not change. And men need to be part of this realization.

In the past years, there has been a lot of efforts to improve legislation and services to prevent and protect women from gender-based violence in private and public spaces, but unless we change our mindsets it would just take too long before we see a significant difference in the way we related to each other. Too many women will get hurt in the process.

To the young woman in the restaurant and the thousands of women who suffer violence by a partner every day, I would like you to know that you do not deserve that violence and that help is available. If you constantly feel unhappy, undermined, in fear and unsafe around your partner, there is something wrong. Do not blame yourself. Instead, seek to protect yourself (and your children) by talking to a trusted friend or relative, and reach out for help at available hotlines and services (Center for women and development, Peace House, Center for studies and applied sciences in gender, family, women and adolescents (CSAGA). Leaving a situation of violence is possible. Violence is not your fate.

To the witnesses or bystanders of situations of gender-based violence, you (we) have a role to play. Do not remain silent. If you find yourself witnessing a person is being harassed, threatened or hit, you can distract the perpetrator to allow the targeted person to get out of the situation. Very importantly, do not risk your own safety. Try to not act alone. Call on others around you to help and interrupt the situation to send the message that the behavior is not acceptable in the community. You and others can talk to the perpetrator telling him in a respectful, direct and honest way that his words and actions are not okay, for example, by saying "you need to stop," "what you are doing is inappropriate," "we need to talk about what you just said/did." If you do not feel safe taking any action above, consider contacting the police.

It is the responsibility of all of us to react when violence happens - say something, stop the action, call the police, secure the safety of the victim and offer some help, and refer her to the hotlines and shelters available.

As we go back into our routines, lets reflect on the fact that a true free, peaceful and prosperous society is not possible until we end the violence within our homes and our hearts!

*Elisa Fernandez Saenz is the Country Representative of UN Women in Vietnam.
A Medicane, the rare, powerful hurricane in Meditteranean, made landfall in Greece and other parts of the country on Friday, bringing heavy rain, strong winds, and flooding.

The Hellenic National Meteorological Service called the medicane Ianos, which made landfall on Lefkada island on Friday morning, is also expected to seep over mainland Greece and the Peloponnese peninsula.

Ianos moves at sustained winds of 100 kph before making landfall, the same intensity for a strong tropical storm in the Atlantic.

Medicane is expected to move southeast, causing heavy rainfall and strong winds. Rainfall of 150-250 mm is expected in the next 48 hours. Some areas may even get rain as high as 500 mm; thus, residents must be vigilant.

READ: 2020 Brings More Tornado Warnings for Seattle Than Some Parts of Tornado Alley

Damage of Medicane Lanos

There are no reports of death or injuries so far. However, the medicane has caused damage to several properties, while some Greek islands were hit by flooding and power cuts.

The islands of Kefalonia, Zante, and Ithaca are greatly affected by Ianos, Nikos Miliotis Citizen protection Deputy Governor said.

Power outages, fallen trees, and sunken sailboats are so far reported in Ithaca. In Zante, power is also out.

Rare Mediterranean Hurricanes Called Medicanes

This particular medicane may be the stronger one recorded yet.

Medicanes have many features in common with hurricanes and typhoons. It does form over cool waters and moves from west to east. In contrast, hurricanes most often move from east to west.

In satellite images, the medicane resembles a hurricane that one would expect from the Caribbean.

Some models from European Storm Forecasters suggest sustained winds at 125 kph, with gusts of 180 kph. The strong winds are expected to case hazards and damage, the European Storm Forecasters said.

Greece's national meteorological service issued a high-level Red Alert for winds, rain, and storms due to medicane.

Authorities urged citizens, especially in the affected areas, to stay indoors and avoid basement areas to prevent them from being trapped from flooding. They further advised citizens to watch out and secure objects that may fly away.

READ NEXT: Hurricane Sally Landfalls in Alabama as Category 2

Medicanes are unheard of before the 1990s, but it had become a regular occurrence recently, and experts have linked it to rising sea temperatures.

A study published in 2011 revealed that medicanes occur only once or twice every year, usually during September and October. These are the period when sea surface temperatures are warm. Warm sea temperatures allow the storm to develop more tropical appearances and characteristics, causing the winds to become intense by increasing the wind speeds.

Although a rare occurrence in the Mediterranean region, studies show that global warming would likely cause more intense medicanes in the future, bringing with stronger winds and heavier rainfall.

In 2018, Greece was struck with a similar storm. A year after, Egypt also experienced medicane. Both weather events got several months worth of rain, causing deadly flooding.

READ NEXT: Arrival of La Nina: Stormier, Colder Winter and Drier, Warmer Weather for Various Regions Worldwide

Check out more news and information on Global warming on Nature World News.
The ministry of earth sciences in considering procurement of an instrumented research aircraft at the cost of 250 crore to study atmospheric processes, according to a Lok Sabha question answered by the union science minister Dr Harsh Vardhan.

The aircraft will be a part of the National Facility for Airborne Research that the ministry will set up. The aircraft, equipped with a suite of scientific instrumentation, will help in studying different atmospheric parameters from the sky, including loud physics, aerosol and air chemistry, which will strengthen the current weather and climate models.

(This) might be useful to validate cloud schemes for improving the model physics of monsoon or tropical clouds. It will be useful for addressing air pollution assessment and associated impacts over India (health, visibility, climate), the answer said.

The India Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) in Pune, an autonomous institute under the ministry of earth sciences, will function as the nodal body for the collection and dissemination of the information.

The setting up of National Facility for Airborne Research had been approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs in 2018 with a financial commitment of R 130 crore during 2020-21. The facility will come under the umbrella scheme Atmosphere and Climate Research-Modelling Observing System and Services (ACROSS). ACROSS encompasses the atmospheric science programmes of the earth science ministry addressing various aspects of weather and climate services, including warnings for cyclone, storm surges, heat waves, thunderstorm.
Friendly fire from mother-daughter duo By Anoushka Jayasuriya Nishanthi Kalapuge and daughter Dulanga shed light on their eco-friendly, scented candles View(s): View(s):

Among the growing wave of local online businesses, Nishanthi Kalapuge and her daughter Dulanga burn bright in the Sri Lankan candle market with their eco-friendly brand iti. Nishanthi, a working mother and Dulanga, a lawyer in the making launched their wood wick scented candle collection on Instagram and Facebook in March this year

It all started with a simple candle making kit which they had bought on a trip years ago. Nishanthi rediscovered it earlier this year and urged Dulanga to join her in finally trying it out. Reusing some of their old candles, they managed to make a few floating candles, and the self-taught duo have since become proficient in the skill, researching the process intensely and learning from candle makers around the world.

Candle-making is simply science! Initially we thought making a candle is just a matter of melting the candle wax and pouring it into a vessel, but no  there is so much of chemistry involved in candle making. Every step in the process has an impact on the end product.Most people may not realize just how precise the process is as everything from temperature to the size of the vessel can be the difference between a suitable and unsuitable candle, said Dulanga.

iti currently offers a range of fragrances and fragrance combinations including creamy coconut, lavender, jasmine, cinnamon, eucalyptus, bergamot and more in a diverse range of candle sizes, vessels and customizable gift boxes. With a focus on eco-friendly and sustainable materials, itis candles come in natural containers such as coconut shells, and reusable glass tumblers and enamel mugs.

Dulanga says that they use wood wicks instead of the more common braided cotton wicks as they are non toxic and do not emit a carbon soot build-up once lit.

Most recently, iti has begun to use vegan wax in addition to the regular paraffin wax. Vegan wax has a better impact environmentally as there is no soot emission, it is non-toxic and free of gluten and parabens. When placing orders, customers can now choose which type of wax theyd like.

The fragrances are chosen based on how well they think the scent will compliment the way they have decorated the candles vessel. First we colour the vessel which we want to use in our collection and then according to the colour we think  what sort of a fragrance would go with this colour? Nishanthi explains.

Working together is truly special. Its not so difficult because my thinking and how I visualize things are very similar to Dulangas, Nishanthi says.

As the business moves forward they have a specific goal; helping disadvantaged women in the community, Dulanga explains.

iti is preparing to launch two more collections this year  meanwhile their current collection is available online for orders through Instagram and Facebook and can be purchased at the Design Collective Store and Shirohana outlets. iti will also be open for customized orders for special events such as weddings, parties etc.

Orders can be placed via Instagram and Facebook  @iticandles Contact them directly on  0718197951.
MUMBAI: Bollywood actor Payal Ghosh, who has appeared in projects like 'Patel Ki Punjabi Shaadi' and another television daily soap 'Saath Nibhaana Saathiya', has accused filmmaker Anurag Kashyap sexual harassment.

Accusing the 'Dev.D' director of forcing himself on her and attempting to rape her, the actress tweeted about the incident and sought help from the PMO. "@anuragkashyap72 has forced himself on me and extremely badly. @PMOIndia @narendramodi ji, kindly take action and let the country see the demon behind this creative guy. I am aware that it can harm me and my security is at risk. Pls help!," Ghosh wrote on Twitter.

As soon as Ghosh made the allegations, netizens came out in her support asking that the filmmaker be arrested. Actress Kangana Ranaut, who has been at loggerheads with Kashyap over drug abuse, groupism and camp-ism culture, also came out in support of Ghosh while calling for the arrest of the filmmaker. "Every voice matters", tweeted Kangana, along with hashtag #MeToo and #ArrestAnuragKashyap.

Rekha Sharma, Chairperson of National Commission for Women, quote-tweeted Ghosh and asked for a detailed complaint in the matter. She wrote, "You may send me the detailed complaint at chairperson-ncw@nic.in and @NCWIndia will look into it."

Meanwhile, Anurag is yet to respond to sexual assault allegations against him.
A pro-choice group in Massachusetts is calling on the legislature to pass the ROE Act immediately, a move it says will honor the memory and legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Ginsburg, who dedicated her life to pursuing equality and justice, was the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court. She died Friday evening at age 87 from complications of metastatic pancreas cancer.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a fearless champion for equality and justice, including reproductive freedom. Ruth Bader Ginsburg didnt just fight for individual women, she fought to change the entire legal framework upon which gender-based discrimination rested. Her profound impact on our country is measured by her influence as a lawyer and a judge, and by the millions of people she inspired to fight to create a more just nation, Rebecca Hart Holder, the Executive Director of NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts, said in a statement.

With the ROE Act, which would expand access to abortion, pending in Massachusetts, Hart Holder said the Legislature must act now.

Faced with such grave uncertainty about the future of the High Court, Massachusetts must lead. We must not only reaffirm the right to safe, legal abortion care, but also ensure that all Bay Staters have access to the reproductive health care they need free from politically-motivated obstacles grounded in stigma and shame," Hart Holder said. After all, a right on paper is no right at all if you cannot exercise it. We are calling on the state legislature to honor the memory and legacy of Justice Ginsburg by passing the ROE Act immediately. The time for debate is over. Passing the ROE Act simply cannot wait any longer.

The act would remove a requirement that a minor get parental consent or a judges approval before getting an abortion and would allow abortion after 24 weeks in the case of a fatal birth defect, expanding current law that only allows abortion after 24 weeks to protect the health or life of the mother, among other measures.

In the hours after Ginsburgs death, many have started to question whether a new justice should be appointed ahead of the November election. U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement Friday night that any nominee from President Donald Trump will receive a vote on the floor from the U.S. Senate.

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker on Twitter Saturday morning urged Trump and the Senate to wait, saying any nomination or confirmation of a new justice should come after the election.

Hart Holder reiterated that Americans should cast ballots before the next justice is confirmed.

We are grieving, and we will be grieving, for months and years to come. Still, we must harness our grief and let it strengthen our resolve. If Mitch McConnell and Donald Trump get their way, they will nominate and confirm another radical anti-choice justice to the Supreme Court. We cannot let that happen," Hart Holder said. As Bay Staters, we are committed to helping stop a vote on any nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court before Inauguration Day, and to work to help elect a pro-choice majority to the U.S. Senate on November 3rd. Our work does not end there, when there is so much left to be done on the state level to protect and expand reproductive freedom.

The ROE Act is controversial among Massachusetts residents and politicians. Last year, Baker said he was concerned about provisions of the act. Baker generally has supported abortion rights, although the Republican governor has said that he opposes late-term abortion.

Massachusetts Citizens for Life is among those in opposition of the act. In a statement Saturday, the group noted that pro-choice supporters are concerned that the Supreme Court could overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 decision that legalized abortion nationwide. The group noted that even if Roe v. Wade were overturned, abortions would still be permitted in Massachusetts.

We are confident that whomever President Trump nominates as Justice Ginsburgs replacement will share our life-affirming values and align them with our countrys founding documents; that he or she will believe, as we do, that human rights begin in the womb; and that states' rights should weigh heavily in matters such as the legality of and limits on abortion, read the statement from Massachusetts Citizens for Life.

The group argued that the bill doesnt solve anything, but rather endangers women and girls.

For example, women had about 2,800 abortions at 20 hospitals around the state in 2018. Under this law, theyd seek less safe late-term procedures outside of what are arguably the best facilities in the world. Parents would still consent to a flu shot for their 12-year-old daughter but not an abortion, the statement said.

Proponents of this bill claim judicial review is too stressful. Our question: Its too stressful for a girl to have a conversation with a judge, but having an abortion alone is not stressful? Proponents have failed to show data points proving any egregious injustices under the current system. They are, therefore, advancing legislation to fix something that isnt broken. Perhaps most concerning though: if the ROE Act passes, infants born alive during failed abortions wont receive legal protection; physicians wont be liable for their deaths, the statement continued.

In Massachusetts in 2018, there were 18,256 abortions, according to the Boston Globe, citing data from the Massachusetts Registry of Vital Records and Statistics.

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The day after President Trump ordered a travel ban from the origin of COVID-19, ex-VP Biden tweeted, We need to lead the way with science-not Donald Trumps record of hysteria, fear-mongering and xenophobia." Now excuse makers split hairs about whether or not Joe opposed the ban and called Trump a racist. Going back, Joe seems to need someone to explain what he really meant.

So what about Joes accomplishment going back nearly 50 years on the public payroll? The National Re-investment and Recovery Act in 2009 was according to the Obama White House website, an unprecedented effort to jumpstart our economy and create millions of jobs. Joe Furman, deputy director of the National Economic Council, said, He (Joe Biden) was behind the scenes making sure it (the Recovery) actually worked (A. Khalid, NPR, April 12, 2020)."

Economists said that federal stimulus came up empty in every way (Steve Chapman, Chicago Tribune, June 11, 2011). Forbes called it the $787 billion mistake and reported Biden publicly stated economists agreed it was working when they didnt (Forbes, June 9, 2009). Someone was needed to tell us what Joe really meant.

Now Joe promises he would raise corporate taxes if elected. Who in their right mind would add further burdens to closed, burned and looted businesses struggling to reopen during a pandemic? That would build back to the Obama days of 2009-2014 when median income actually fell. How is that better?

On the campaign trail, Donald Trump is met by large enthusiastic crowds of supporters. If it werent for social distancing, Joes events could be held in a phone booth. In Kenosha, Wi., he avoided looted and burned businesses, instead rambling breathlessly about taxes and inequities. In Michigan, he said over 119,000 in the military contracted COVID while 6,000 died. Later in a zoom, it was revealed that his prepared questions and answers were on teleprompters.

Unlike the ABC town hall where the moderator debated Trump, Joes town hall on CNN was like a visit with great-grandpa. One question did trip Joe up when he was asked if he was against fracking. Joe said, Im not against fracking. Anderson Cooper reminded Joe he wanted to end fracking. Joe replied, Well I will! Later Biden went into a tirade blaming the President Trump for all the COVID deaths. All the COVID deaths? That really highlights Bidens issues.

With the passing of Justice Ginsburg, the stakes became even higher. Thats why a bewildered Biden dragging a teleprompter around just before the election is also disturbing. AOC recently let it slip that Joe could be pushed in a more progressive direction if hes elected. What kind of leader is that? The answer may have been revealed by his running mate when she referred to a Harris administration with Joe Biden as president. That must be what building back means.

Ralph Miller
Rep. Jahana Hayes is in quarantine after one of her staffers tested positive for COVID-19.

Hayes said in an announcement Saturday that she had been working in close contact with the staffer.

Hayes, however, did not say whether the infected staffer worked in her Capitol Hill office or in her district office in Waterbury. Hayes represents the 5th Congressional District, which covers a large area of northwestern Connecticut.

After a phased in reopening of my offices, I was notified today that one of my staffers has tested positive for COVID-19. I have been in close contact with the staffer and I have worked in both my CT and D.C. offices over the last week. said Hayes in a statement. All of my staff has been notified and directed to quarantine and get tested.

Hayes said she is asymptomatic and awaiting an appointment to get tested.

I will quarantine until I have the test and receive the results, she said.

She also said her offices in Washington D.C. and the district will work remotely until further notice.

This is the second time Hayes has announced she has quarantined herself because of the pandemic.

The first time was in April when her husband, Milford Hayes, a Waterbury police officer, tested positive for COVID-19 at his workplace.
We cannot choose the moment to be born  or indeed the year to graduate and try to find that first job.

This year is the worst for a decade for obvious reasons, and the danger is that its crop of university and school leavers will be disadvantaged for life.

Not only will so many young people struggle to get into a job; those who do may be taking one far below their qualifications, never getting back on the track they should have followed.

Getting a boost: We must do everything we can to help the young find a job for all of our futures

There have been a string of stories through the summer of companies cutting back on both internship and recruitment programmes.

Tomorrow marks the start of National Graduate Week and a worrying week it will be.

While many firms are committed to keep hiring, the harsh truth seems to be that placements are running a quarter to a third below the level of last year.

Most schemes start in October and we will know more then. Meanwhile, we know that while there is solid demand for graduates in some areas  high-tech, healthcare and so on  in others there is zero. The airlines are not hiring new staff and won't be for what may be a long while yet.

So what's to be done?

Well, governments can do something. The UK has launched the Kickstart Scheme, where employers get public money to create job placements for 16 to 24-year-olds. That is open now and jobs should start from November onwards.

But while not wanting in any way to downplay this sort of action, these are minimum wage posts and the scheme only works if it does indeed kick-start people's careers. Fingers crossed.

Employers can do imaginative things too. KPMG is helping pay for trainees to take a master's degree if they defer their arrival for a year.

Deloitte scrapped its summer internship programme but offered instead an online course and a 500 goodwill payment.

And this week, the Institute of the Motor Industry is combining with Bentley on a webinar to help steer graduates into careers in the motor trade.

So lots of things are happening. But  and this is a huge but  if employers are laying people off there will not be much space of mind, or much money, to help people starting into their careers.

All decent companies acknowledge that recruiting the best of the young is the lifeblood of their futures. But if you are trying to survive through the winter it is simply not possible to worry too much about the longer term. There may be no longer term.

There are two other things that may enable the country to scramble through in better shape than might otherwise be the case.

One is the career equivalent of the Bank of Mum and Dad. Just as parents now have to help their offspring into their first homes, now they may have to help them into their first jobs.

This is not so much a money issue as one of contacts, ideas and support.

Many parents will not have contacts in the areas their children want to work, but they will have knowledge and experience of how the job market operates. They will have friends, a network of contacts that can help guide people towards areas that are growing, giving them a vision of how they might construct a career.

This is inevitably unfair. Some people will have families and friends that can be of huge help. Others, I am afraid, will have to do it all themselves. It is in that sense rather like the housing market. It is tough to save enough for the deposit on that first home if you don't have someone who can help you. But somehow you have to get on to the ladder.

The other thing that can help is the education system. None of us can know what the jobs of the future will be, but we do know that education is the key that opens career opportunities.

So a year of a soft job market is an opportunity to build skills. For anyone with an entrepreneurial streak, a period of radical change such as this is probably a good time to launch a business.

But for most of us we need skills that employers want. This could be the year to get them. None of this is easy. But it is really important for individuals, of course, but also for the country.

If we can emerge from all this with a better educated, more resilient workforce, then this is good news for the future. Meanwhile, we have to get people into that first job.
Afghan officials say the deputy head of the provincial council in the southeastern province of Paktia has been assassinated by unknown gunmen.

The provincial media office said Ayub Gharwal was on his way to a university in the provincial capital of Gardez when he was attacked and killed by the gunmen on September 19.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, although similar attacks in the past have been blamed on the Taliban.

There has been fierce fighting in recent days between Afghan government troops and Taliban militants in the neighboring province of Nangarhar.

In a separate incident, Afghan officials said a member of the security forces was killed and eight others were wounded in a suicide bombing in the Dedadi district of the northern province of Balkh on September 19.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani expressed sympathy with Gharwal's family and said Taliban militants should accept the demand of Afghans for a cease-fire.

The Taliban has repeatedly rejected calls for a permanent truce.

Violence has spiked despite the launch of peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban in the Gulf state of Qatar last week.

The warring sides are attempting to reach a political settlement to end the 19-year war.

Roland Kobia, the European Unions special envoy to Afghanistan, said on September 18 that United Nations figures show violence in Afghanistan in the last five weeks has been the highest in the last five years.

With reporting by RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan and dpa


Akram Uddin, 27, is a violent drug dealer who absconded from prison and then tried to hand himself into police seven times

A violent drug dealer who absconded from an open prison tried to hand himself in seven times  but was repeatedly turned away, a court heard yesterday.

The case of Akram Uddin, 27, was described as a shambles that was indicative of a managed decay of the criminal justice system by his barrister, Liam Walker.

Uddin is said to have absconded from Standford Hill, an open prison on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent, on June 17 to see how his mother was coping during the coronavirus pandemic.

The court heard he contacted his solicitor 48 hours later and was advised to surrender to the authorities.

Between July 13 and August 13, Uddin tried to hand himself in at Lewisham police station in south-east London on seven occasions but was told there was no warrant out for his arrest, Maidstone Crown Court heard.

But Scotland Yard disputed the visits and said it was conducting a review to establish the facts.

Akram Uddin, 27, is said to have absconded from Standford Hill (pictured), an open prison on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent, on June 17 to see his mother

A police spokesman said after the hearing: If an individual attended a police station... their name would be put through the Police National Computer to confirm this.

Even if that person is not wanted, there would be a record of that name having been entered... From an initial review of our systems there is no record of an Akram Uddin having attended Lewisham police station.

Eventually, plans were put in place for Uddin to be seen by appointment at Lewisham on August 19  but he was arrested in a car at a service station in east London the day before, as a warrant had finally been issued.

Judge Charles Gratwicke sentenced Uddin to a further four months imprisonment, giving him credit for his guilty plea.

Uddin was convicted at the Old Bailey in October 2017 for trying to buy a pistol from an undercover police officer, and was sentenced to 93 months in prison. Pictured: The Old Bailey, London

He then ordered an immediate inquiry into how Uddin, who appeared in court via videolink from prison, first fled.

Uddin was convicted at the Old Bailey in October 2017 for trying to buy a pistol from an undercover police officer, and was sentenced to 93 months in prison.

While serving that term he was handed a further two years for violent disorder and drug offences in August last year.

Mr Walker told the court: In the two decades I have been involved in the legal system, this case perhaps shows the managed decay of the criminal justice system.

It is utterly astonishing that when he asked to be taken back into custody he was refused.

Mr Walker added: On one occasion during a visit to Lewisham police station he specifically asked to speak to a sergeant, but my client was told he was too busy to deal with him.

As well as answers about why Uddin was not taken back to jail, the authorities will be asked to explain why he was moved to an open prison in March 2020 despite having been given the further sentence in August 2019 while he was still behind bars.

A Prison Service source said all procedures had been followed when Uddin had absconded, and that all prisoners are risk-assessed before they can be moved to open jails.
The Telangana chief minister said the three farm bills 'should be opposed in the Rajya Sabha' since they would cause huge losses to the agriculture sector and are against the interests of farmers in the country

Hyderabad: Alleging that the agriculture bills brought in by the NDA government would cause great injustice to farmers in the country, TRS president and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Saturday asked his party MPs to vote against them in the Rajya Sabha.

Observing that the bills would hurt farmers and benefit corporates, Rao told the TRS parliamentary party leader K Keshav Rao to strongly oppose them in parliament.

"Chief Minister Sri K Chandrasekhar Rao said that the Farmers and farming related Bills introduced by the Centre in Parliament would do a lot of injustices to the farm sector in the country.

The chief minister has instructed TRSPP Leader Dr K Keshav Rao to oppose the Bills tooth and nail in the Parliament, as it would benefit the corporates and adversely impact the farmers, an official release said.

The bills, for public consumption, say that the farmers can sell their produce anywhere in the country, but, in reality, the bills would enable the traders to go anywhere in the country to buy the produce, Rao said.

Though the NDA government says that the farmers can sell their produce anywhere in the country, is it possible for farmers to take their small produce to other places, bearing heavy transport charges, he asked.

"These Bills are nothing but a sugar coated pill. This should be opposed at all costs," the chief minister said.

Rao further said, as on date, there is 50 percent import duty on corn and that the Centre has decided to reduce it by 15 percent.

The Centre wanted to import one crore tonnes of corn and about 70 lakh tonnes of corn had already been purchased, he claimed.

"For whose benefit 35 percent of import duty was reduced? When the country is going through economic crisis how did they take such a decision? corn is cultivated in a big way in the country. If we reduce the import duty on corn, what will happen to our own corn producers?" he asked.

Rao said the bills "should be opposed and voted against in the Rajya Sabha" since they would cause huge losses to the agriculture sector and are against the interests of farmers in the country.

The three agri bills were passed by Lok Sabha this week.

TRS has seven members in the Rajya Sabha.
Ginsburg was appointed to the Supreme Court by Bill Clinton in 1993 (his interview describing why he picked her is especially engaging), and one of the paradoxes RBG points out is that the justice is by nature a consensus builder. It was the courts steady move to the right, not her philosophy or nature, that turned her into the great dissenter.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk is the master of buzz. Aly Song/Reuters

As the electric-vehicle opportunity has evolved for startups and established automakers, it's become clear that an overall strategy is as important  if not more so  than getting cars to market.

Tesla, GM, and Ford have each made moves recently that showcase their distinctive EV strategies.

In a nutshell: GM is developing an operating system for EVs, Ford is leveraging its icons, and Tesla continues to turn buzz into billions.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The biggest mistake that auto-industry analysts and observers have made in the relatively short history of the modern electric car is to assume the consumer is all that matters. Demand, the flawed argument went, would bring buyers into the market and enable EV sales to explode. Competition would follow, and Tesla's first-mover advantage would erode.

That hasn't happened. EV sales remain a tiny percentage of annual, worldwide totals, a disappointment to electrification enthusiasts for the better part of a decade. Despite the arrival of compelling EVs from the likes of Chevy, Audi, and Jaguar, among others, Tesla continues to dominate.

However, the EV race has entered a new phase, with established automakers putting some serious money behind their ambitions. General Motors plans to spend $20 billion on its electric future, and CEO Mary Barra has repeatedly declared that the automaker wants to shift decisively away from the internal-combustion engine.

Last week, Ford announced a $700-million new factory dedicated to building the all-electric version of its best-selling F-150 pickup truck, scheduled to launch in 2022; interestingly, the plant will be part of Ford's legendary River Rouge complex in Michigan, possibly the most famous auto manufacturing site in the history of the American industry.

Tesla is keeping pace. On September 22, the company and CEO Elon Musk will hold a battery event in connection with the carmaker's annual shareholders meeting. It's possible that Tesla could reveal a new battery design, with the aim of vertically integrating its manufacturing, lessening a dependence on Panasonic to supply battery cells.

Story continues

There is also a range of startups entering the fray: Rivian, Nikola, Fisker, and Lucid.

GM, Ford, and Tesla all ultimately have the same goal for their EVs: for them to perform as well as possible on the burgeoning EV market. But each are attacking that goal in different ways, with one common feature: a focus on not the much-debated competition they'll eventually have, but instead the creation of distinctive strategies.

GM: Creating a pervasive operating system for EVs

GM CEO Mary Barra, presenting the carmaker's Ultium technology. GM

Earlier this year, GM unveiled its Ultium battery technology and, at an event near Detroit, executives and engineers outlined how Ultium might evolve  especially in terms of limiting dependence on so-called "rare earth" elements such as cobalt.

More recently, GM has: showcased the Ultium powertrains that will be paired with the battery tech for 22 electrified vehicles slated to arrive by 2023; revealed that it would be using wireless battery management to cut down on manufacturing complexity; and entered into a $2 billion deal to produce a pickup for zero-emissions startup Nikola, the Badger, in exchange for an 11% stake in the company.

With Ultium, GM is in effect creating an operating system for EVs, sort of like an Apple iOS or an Android in the smartphone world. Speaking about the Nikola partnership at a recent RBC conference, Barra said deal "validates our technology [and] it allows us to have more people using the technology, which gives us the advantage of scale, which will help us drive costs down."

GM's big bet here is that Ultium will power not just its EVs, but potentially many other non-GM EVs. In addition to Nikola, GM has also partnered with Honda.

So ultimately, if you'll pardon the pun, GM could have Ultium inside a wide range of electric vehicles, to extend the operating-system analogy into the computer chip realm and borrow Intel's famous slogan. The upshot is that GM will control a critical part of the EV ecosystem.

Ford: Building on the legacy of its icons

Ford is spending $700 million to expand it famous Rouge complex for EVs. Ford

The electric F-150 plant at River Rouge is just the latest instance of Ford leverage its numerous in-house brands to support its own EV efforts. In 2019, the company unveiled the Mustang Mach-E, a critically important all-electric vehicle that supposed to begin deliveries later this year.

It was the first expansion of the iconic Mustang brand since the car debuted in 1964 and a clear indication that Ford wanted to lead with its strengths as it joins the EV hootenanny. The electric F-150 is another shining example: That full-size pickup nameplate has been at the heart of the the top-selling lineup of vehicles in the US for nearly four decades, the F-Series.

GM is a collection of brands  Chevy, Buick, GMC, Cadillac  so it makes sense for Ultium to join that lineup. Ford, on the other hand, is a collection of icons, such as the Mustang, the F-150, and River Rouge. So the logical way to turbocharge its EVs, if you will, is to leverage those icons to capture attention and generate excitement.

Ford's best, then, is that it can transition the accumulated greatness of the F-150 and Mustang from the gas-burning era to the all-electric one.

Tesla: Riding wave after wave of buzz

Tesla Model 3. Tesla

Tesla has been on an epic stock rally since the beginning of 2020, minting a market cap that has made it worth more than GM and Ford combined. Critics have pointed out that GM and Ford have been pretty steadily profitable since the Great Recession ended, and that those automakers sell millions of cars and trucks annually, while Tesla still hasn't sold 500,000 in a year.

But Tesla has the buzz, and it isn't afraid to use it. At the beginning of September, the company said it would raise $5 billion by issuing new equity, not long after it announced a 5-for-1 stock split. The raise would take its cash-on-hand position to about $14 billion, a historic high for the company, which is less than two decades old.

That's just one case of Tesla turning buzz into billions. The carmaker's entire future hinges on the passionate loyalty of its customers and significant growth in the number of customers in whom it can engender new levels of passionate loyalty.

Note that it isn't simply consumers with money to buy EVs whom Tesla is looking for; rather, it wants its owners to have an experience that drives beneficial buzz and continues a virtuous process of people loving their Teslas begetting more people who love their Teslas.

That buzz, not incidentally, extends to Wall Street, where investor enthusiasm is a vital type of currency  as demonstrated by the stock rally, which enabled the big capital raise.

Different strokes

Ford Chairman Bill Ford is the great-grandson on Henry Ford. Ford

GM, Ford, and Tesla are proof that there are multiple strategies available to attack business opportunities. Why does this matter? Simple: If your strategic choice is successful, the strategy itself becomes valuable.

Classic examples would include Ford's creation of River Rouge from 1917 through 1928, developing a model of so-called "vertical integration" in manufacturing  a model that would endure until the 1980s, when it was displaced by "just in time" systems; and GM's ladder of brands, starting customers out with Chevy and sending them off to their final rewards in Cadillacs, with Pontiacs and Buicks in between.

In the 21st century, Tesla has become the first new US car brand to make it since Chrysler in the 20th century by assiduously and skillfully courting popular support. That game plan got it from making almost no vehicles in 2010 to selling more than 360,000 in 2019.

It's entirely possible that all three could succeed, in one form or another. But what's clear is that electric carmakers now need a lot more than a dream  they need a deeper think about how they can use what they've got to define a market whose potential could be enormous, but whose shape remains uncertain.

Read the original article on Business Insider
A general view shows the central court during the round 3 match between Serbia's Dusan Lajovic (L) and Spain's Rafael Nadal (R) on day five of the Men's Italian Open at Foro Italico on September 18, 2020 in Rome, Italy.(Angelo Carconi / POOL / AFP)

Italy's government have said that 1,000 spectators can be present at the Foro Italico from Sunday's semi-finals, with matches so far being played in empty courts.

"If it's safe enough, fantastic," said Nadal after sweeping past Serb Dusan Lajovic 6-1, 6-3 in his third round match.

Djokovic battled past fellow Serb Filip Krajinovic 7-6 (9/7), 6-3, to remain on a collision course for a final showdown with Nadal for a second conscutive year.

"A thousand people is better than no people, for sure, because we all miss the fans," said Djokovic.

Men's fourth seed Matteo Berrettini, the only Italian remaining in the tournament, regretted he could not benefit from spectators for his quarter-final against Norway's Casper Rudd on Saturday.

"A thousand people isn't insignificant, it's a thousand motivations," said Berrettini.

Nadal proved too strong for 25th-ranked Lajovic, who had valiantly but vainly launched a fightback after trailing 4-0 in the second set to the Spaniard.

But Krajinovic made long-time friend Djokovic work hard to reach the quarter-finals for the 14th time, just one fewer than Nadal.

Djokovic double faulted on the first of his three set points in the first-set tiebreak but a quick break in the second put him through in a tournament he has won four times.

"Never easy, I think, emotionally to play against someone that is one of my best friends for many years," said Djokovic.

The top seed is warming up for the French Open in 10 days time, having made the switch from the American hard court tour where he won the Cincinnati tournament played in Flushing Meadows before the US Open from which he was disqualified.

He next plays German qualifier Dominik Koepfer who ended the run of Italian teenager Lorenzo Musetti 6-4, 6-0.

World number two Nadal takes on Argentine eighth seed Diego Schwartzman, who dropped a set before recovering to see off Poland's Hubert Hurkacz 3-6, 6-2, 6-4.

Nadal, 34, won his first Rome title back in 2005, and is bidding for a third consecutive crown on clay in the Italian capital and 10th in total.

The 12-time French Open champion is returning to competition, having not played since winning in Acapulco in February.

- Halep, Pliskova advance -

Top women's seed Simona Halep and defending champion Karolina Pliskova also eased into the quarter-finals, along with two-time Rome winner Elina Svitolina.

Halep rallied from 0-3 down in the first set to see off Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska in a 7-5, 6-4 victory in one hour and 28 minutes.

The two-time Rome finalist next meets Yulia Putintseva, who came back from 6-4, 5-2 down to dispatch fellow Kazakh Elena Rybakina, the 10th seed, 4-6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-2.

"I expect a tough battle but I feel fit," said former French Open champion Halep, a runner-up in Rome in 2017 and 2018 to Svitolina, who got past two-time Grand Slam winner Svetlana Kuznetsova 7-6 (8/6), 6-4.

Halep said she was looking forward to the "good energy" generated by the crowd.

"It will interesting and nice to have some people in the stands."

Ninth seed Garbine Muguruza advanced to her sixth quarter-final this year with a straight-sets win over last year's Rome finalist Johanna Konta.

The former French Open winner will next face US Open finalist Victoria Azarenka.
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Linkedin Joelle Garrus (Agence France-Presse) Paris, France  Sat, September 19, 2020 17:32 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45ef24a 2 Entertainment ai-weiwei,film,lockdown,coronavirus,COVID-19,China,documentary,wuhan,Coronation Free

China's coronavirus response has been both hugely efficient and chillingly inhumane, says artist and activist Ai Weiwei after releasing a documentary about the world's first virus lockdown in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

Ai, a dissident who left China five years ago, directed and produced the film Coronation from Europe, where he now lives, using footage shot often in secret by dozens of volunteers in hospitals, homes and quarantine zones during the city's lockdown early this year.

"Undoubtedly, China has controlled this most devastating pandemic with unbelievable efficiency," he told AFP.

"Compared to what has happened in the US, France, Brazil, or India, we can see China has managed to control the situation," he said.

But, he said, "you must go deeper and also ask what kind of societies they are and what kind of sacrifices they have made to deal with a crisis like this".

The coronavirus first emerged in Wuhan in December and has since killed more than 946,000 people across the world, according to official statistics.

Ai said he doubted that virus data released by China, which has reported just over 4,600 deaths to date, was accurate.

Nor was it known how many people had been "jailed or detained for speaking out" against the official line in this "opaque, authoritarian, military-style society, under the control of one person's will," he said.

Read also: Wuhan film captures horror and humanity at coronavirus ground zero

'Urgency and necessity'

Ai chronicles the massive means deployed by China to fight the virus outbreak, its strict rules and resulting human tragedies in captivating scenes.

Citizens robbed of their humanity. Patients who can't leave hospital despite apparently being cured. A worker who was hired to help build a hospital and who is not allowed home, so he lives penniless in the street. Families deprived of last rites for their loved ones.

Ai said he felt both "the urgency and necessity of such a film."

"If I did not do it then it would be completely over," he said. "People would not care or would easily forget and state propaganda would dominate the situation."

Ai Weiwei also has some angry words for Europe, whose leaders, in their dealings with China, "have put short-term profit ahead of principles," he said.

"I have not seen any European states taking substantial action in dealing with situations such as the democratic uprising in Hong Kong or the re-education camps in Xinjiang," he said.

"The only thing they have expressed are their 'concerns,' but to use human rights as a bargaining chip for economic gain is so pitiful, the lowest act imaginable in the human struggle of our time," he said.

Ai said he submitted the documentary to film festivals in Venice, Toronto and New York but was turned down.

"If you have seen what the festivals promote, you can clearly see China's influence," he said.

Netflix and Amazon, he said, also rejected the film, which can be seen on on-demand streaming platforms including Alamo and Vimeo.
When you've fled your homeland at 17 due to religious persecution, it's hard to imagine that just five years later, you'd win a scholarship to a top university in your adopted country.

But that's exactly what has happened Drogheda student Altamash Shaikh, who through sheer grit and determination, has defied odds to win a place in UCD to study business and law. Now 21, his path to third level brought him through St Oliver's Community College and DIFE, and all from his home in Direct Provision in Mosney.

He's hoping his story will provide hope for those who find themselves in the same situation.

'I just had some clothes and my phone when I arrived in Ireland five years ago, with my father and my 14-year-old brother,' explains Altamash, who fled Mumbai in India, as a Muslim in a Catholic region. 'After a few weeks, we found ourselves in Mosney, and I knew I wanted to continue my education, so wrote to all the local schools and St Oliver's were the first to take me in straight away.'

All the subjects were new to him, but he settled in well and made lots of friends.

'Even after everything we'd been through, completing the Leaving Certificate was still the most stressful time of my life so far,' he says with a laugh. 'But I really wanted to succeed, and luckily I was able to complete a QQI Level 5 Business Studies course at Drogheda Institute of Further Education (DIFE) after the Leaving, as well as studying at UCD through open learning and lifelong learning programmes.'

Altamash had to walk 45 minutes to his bus in the morning and the evening, often returning home after midnight, as well as work in Keeling's as a fruit picker to pay for his transport. But after showing his determination in a letter, he was rewarded with not one, but two opportunities to study a degree at either Trinity College Dublin (TCD) or University College Dubiln (UCD)-- with a full scholarship.

'I must admit that I had given up hope at one stage, as the number of scholarships on offer was cut from 20 to five, but I feel blessed to be one of the lucky ones chosen,' he adds.'I had put everything I had into studying and applying for the scholarships, as I knew it was the only way I could ever attend university.

Explaining why he chose business and law, he said the course would provide him with many options and allow him pursue his interest in both corporate law and consulting.

'I didn't want to be a person graduating with just a business degree,' he commented. 'I wanted to be open towards my career. I wanted to have both skills and prove versatility to my employers, as this degree is 50-50 until third year.'

His former tutors in DIFE are delighted at his success. Altamash completed a QQI Level 5 Certificate in Pre-University Business with Accounting at DIFE in 2020 receiving distinctions in all nine modules. This then gave him the opportunity to apply for college courses around the country through the CAO.

'Altamash was a diligent and enthusiastic student who showed a flair for research, and this was evident in the high standard of work he produced,' said his class co-ordinator Regina Walker. 'All the staff at DIFE are very proud of Altamash's achievement and wish him every success for the future'.

He says he is really excited and nervous to be starting classes, and wants to say a big thank you to both schools for looking after him so well.
Nayanthara and Vignesh Shivan are quite vocal about their relationship, as is clearly seen from his posts on social media. While the actress does not have a verified Instagram account, Vignesh keeps fans updated with photos from every event and occasion in their lives.

The couple is in Goa currently on their first post-Covid holiday. The trip seems to be to celebrate the filmmakers birthday. Videos from his private birthday party at a exotic location have surfaced on social media. Vignesh shared some videos of Nayanthara preparing to celebrate his birthday. The videos show his birthday cake set up in a romantic ambience with live music playing in the background.

Earlier Vignesh had shared beautiful photos of Nayanthara in a pretty printed dress with her signature top-knot look, walking by the pool at a private place in Goa.

Read: Nayanthara Takes Off on Post Covid-19 Holiday in Goa, Boyfriend Vignesh Shivan Shares Pretty Pics

The two of them have been dating each other for a long time, and their pictures instantly go viral whenever posted on social media. The Annaatthe actress often accompanies Vignesh at various events and occasions. Recently, the two of them jetted off to Nayantharas hometown Kochi for Onam celebrations. Earlier, there were rumours the couple would be tying the knot soon. But they had said that marriage is not on the cards anytime soon.
Peace, development and win-win cooperation are still irreversible trends of todays world. By conforming to these trends, China has demonstrated its sense of responsibility as a major country.

Chinese President Xi Jinping will, at invitation, attend high-level meetings to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the United Nations (UN) via videoconference and deliver important remarks.

At the critical moment when the UN celebrates its 75th anniversary of founding and COVID-19 is accelerating the profound changes of the world, the international society shall focus on the "post-pandemic" era, and jointly figure out major issues such as what a world humans are going to face, and what kind of a UN the world will need.

Chinese foreign students from Nantong Vocational College of Science & Technology, east China's Jiangsu province showcase their works, Oct. 24, 2019. Photo by Xu Peiqin, People's Daily Online

The international society expects Chinese wisdom and hails China's firm support for the UN, as well as the country's efforts to safeguard multilateralism and the international order with the UN Charter and principles at the core.

Five years ago, Xi attended the 2015 summit meetings commemorating the organizations 70th anniversary at the UN headquarters. It was the first time for him to make remarks there, during which he profoundly explained Chinas policies for global order and the future of the world, and raised a series of initiatives and measures for pragmatic cooperation. He brought a new look to the development of international relations, injected new power to the protection of world peace, offered new schemes for global development, and left a deep mark in the history of international relations. The Chinese philosophy and schemes left a deep impression to the world and resonated with global countries.

Over the past 5 years, China has been unswervingly promoting the construction of a new type of international relations that features mutual respect, fairness, justice and win-win cooperation. It worked with global countries for the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), contributing important contribution to world peace and development.

The country has established diplomatic relations with 180 countries and partnerships of various forms with over 110 countries and international organizations. Besides, it has signed 200 BRI cooperation documents with 138 countries and 30 international organizations, implementing over 2,000 cooperation projects.

UK scholar Martin Jacques said that China has provided a new possibility by abandoning the law of the jungle, supremacy, and zero-sum games, and opening a new development path of win-win cooperation that features joint contribution and shared benefits. He called it an unprecedented practice, and a great creation to change the world.

Over the past 5 years, China has shown active support for the UN, and relevant major initiatives and measures announced by Xi at the 2015 summit meetings commemorating the organization's 70th anniversary have all been implemented. China has registered an 8,000-strong standby force and a 300-member permanent police squad for UN peacekeeping missions. The China-UN Peace and Development Fund has provided a total of $67.7 million for over 80 projects. The country over-fulfilled its "Six 100s" initiative -making available to other developing countries in the next five years 100 poverty reduction programs, 100 agricultural cooperation projects, 100 trade promotion and aid programs, 100 environmental protection and climate change programs, 100 hospitals and clinics, and 100 schools and vocational training centers. The South-South Cooperation Assistance Fund implemented more than 80 projects in 30 developing countries.

These concrete measures fully indicate that China is always a constructor of world peace, a contributor to global development, and a protector of international order. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres remarked that Chinas support was critical to the future of multilateralism, and he expected China to exercise strong leadership in international affairs.

The second batch of 205 Chinese peacekeepers from China's 19th group of peacekeepers sent to Lebanon depart for their destination from Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province, Aug. 18. Photo by Zhang Zhengju, People's Daily Online

At present, the COVID-19 pandemic is accelerating changes unseen in a century. The world economy is slipping into a great depression with rising protectionism, unilateralism and hegemonism. Certain countries and political forces are undermining international cooperation and trying to provoke confrontation between different ideologies and social systems.

Facing these challenges, the world must find cures to development. The theme of the high-level meetings to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the UN - The future we want, the United Nations we need: reaffirming our collective commitment to multilateralism, is of great practical significance.

The more critical it is, the more the world needs to recognize the trend of time, enhance and improve global governance, and go all out to cope with global challenges. It should be seen that peace and development are still major trend of todays world. The revitalization of emerging markets and developing countries remains unchanged, and so do the polarization of the world and globalization.

The UN, with peace as its mission, development as its goal, and equity as its founding principle, has its appeal, cohesion and influence. When the Chinese people commemorate the 75th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese Peoples War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the world anti-Fascist war, China sincerely hopes to join global countries to jointly support the UN.

As a founding member of the UN and the first country to sign the UN Charter, China will never be afraid of storms and dangers and barriers, and will actively practice the lofty ideals of the organization, so as to promote the great cause of peace and development, and build a community with a shared future for mankind with concrete actions.
In this photo illustration, a person files an application for unemployment benefits in Arlington, Va., on April 16, 2020. (Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images)

Thousands in Louisiana Received Notices They Were Overpaid Unemployment Benefits

A programming error caused more than 4,000 jobless in Louisiana to receive notices saying they had been overpaid thousands of dollars in unemployment compensation and had to return the money, according to reports.

Louisiana Workforce Commission (LWC) Secretary Ava Dejoie told The Advocate that incorrectly programmed computers miscalculated jobless benefits and automatically sent the notices to people who applied on March 29 and 30.

Katherine Stephens, a legislative worker laid off in April, told WBRZ-TV that after her benefits stopped last week, she received letters saying shed been overpaid.

I have no idea whats going on and its really terrifying, said Stephens, who added that she was unable to reach the LWC by phone to clarify the matter.

Many people received two letters, according to WBRZ-TV, one for unemployment insurance, the other for Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation. Stephens received two letters, saying she owed the state $4,278 and the federal government $9,600.

Theyre essentially asking me for $14,000, and I have 15 days to either pay it or appeal, she said.

The error was discovered after people began to contact the agency about the overpayment letters, prompting the commission to begin sending out notifications about the mistake.

The LWC will send a Notice of Adjustment to these individuals within the next week that will indicate their overpayment balance is $0. Currently, no action is required by any of those impacted, the commission stated in a news release.

Commission media office staffer Frededreia Dunham told The Associated Press in an email Sept. 18 that the LWC has sent nearly 8,500 cancellation adjustment notices to more than 4,300 people.

There are around 20 overpayment cases that have not been canceled yet. There are variations within these cases which require further steps to be taken before canceling, she wrote.

LWC is working with the vendor to correct this technical issue. We apologize for any confusion, the commission stated in the release, adding that the vast majority of individuals will not owe anything related to this issue.

The erroneous notices were sent on Sept. 9 and 10. The commission, which administers unemployment compensation and tax funds in Louisiana, said it had set up a dedicated email account for people dealing with the problem.

I apologize, Dejoie told The Advocate.

Dejoie told the publication that the week in March when the people who were affected by the computer error applied for benefits was an unusually busy week for the commission, which received some 97,000 jobless benefit applications. She added that, before the pandemic delivered its colossal hit to the economy, 2,000 new jobless claims would be considered a very busy week.

Nationwide, the week of March 28 saw a record 6.87 million Americans apply for unemployment benefits.
Hyundai of Mankato pledges to donate to Hyundai Hope On Wheels with each new vehicle sale.

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness month and Hyundai of Mankato has taken the Hyundai Hope On Wheels pledge. Hyundai Hope On Wheels is a nonprofit organization that builds awareness for childhood cancer and helps fund research for treatments and cures. This organization has been working to support childhood cancer research and provide donations and grants for the last 22 years. During the month of September Hyundai Hope On Wheels is awarding nearly 50 grants to help assist with research across the country.

Hyundai Hope On Wheels is awarding 10 Hyundai Young Investigators Grants, 16 Hyundai Scholar Hope Grants and 23 COVID-19 Grants. Given the dangers of COVID-19 on child cancer patients and their families, Hyundai Hope On Wheels has added these 23 additional grants to help fund and create more COVID-19 testing centers throughout the U.S.

In allegiance with Hyundai Hope On Wheels and their continued efforts, Hyundai of Mankato has pledged to make a monetary donation to the organization with every new Hyundai vehicle the dealership sells. Any new Hyundai vehicle sold from the Hyundai of Mankato inventory this month will provide Hyundai Hope On Wheels with a donation.

Hyundai of Mankato currently has nearly 100 new Hyundai vehicles in stock. Anyone can view the available models by visiting the dealership online, https://www.hyundaiofmankato.com. Individuals interested in learning more about Hyundai Hope On Wheels or Hyundai of Mankatos involvement with the organization are encouraged to visit the dealerships informational page for more details. Hyundai of Mankato is located at 1281 Raintree Rd, Mankato, MN 56001 and is open six days a week. A member of the dealership's team can answer customer questions anytime during normal business hours at 507-550-1175.
Gigabyte has released a blow and dual-slot version of the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090. The GeForce RTX 3090 TURBO 24G also has a 350 W TDP, to add to the fun of owning a blower RTX 3090.

Working For Notebookcheck Are you a techie who knows how to write? Then join our Team! English native speakers welcome! News Writer (AUS/NZL based) - Details here

The GeForce RTX 3080 may have a 320 W TDP, but Gigabyte has decided to release a blower version of the RTX 3090, which has an even higher power limit. Specifically, the GeForce RTX 3090 TURBO 24G has a 350 W TDP. According to Gigabyte, the fan design is optimised ' greater airflow and efficient heat dissipation' thanks to its closely stacked intake fan.

The GeForce RTX 3090 TURBO 24G measures 266.7 x 111.16 x 39.8 mm, making it a dual-slot card. Naturally, Gigabyte markets its size as a being 'ideal for multi-graphic cards with a space-restricted chassis', which is true for most dual-slot cards. However, the TURBO 24G will probably be one of the few dual-slot examples of the RTX 3090, given the scale of the Founders Edition. The TURBO 24G also supports NVIDIA NVLink, which is exclusive to the RTX 3090.
File image

Pakistan has rejected India's demand that an Indian lawyer or a Queen's counsel should be appointed for death-row prisoner Kulbhushan Jadhav to ensure a free and fair trial. Foreign Office spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri, replying to a question during a media briefing on September 18, said India has been consistently making the "unrealistic demand" of allowing a lawyer from outside Pakistan to represent Jadhav.

Jadhav was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court for alleged spying.

We have informed India that only those lawyers are allowed to appear in Pakistani courts who have a license to practice law in Pakistan. This is in line with international legal practice. There can be no change in this position, he said.

Queen's Counsel is a barrister or advocate, appointed Counsel to the UK Crown on the recommendation of the Lord Chancellor.

Earlier this month, the Islamabad High Court in Pakistan directed the federal government to give India another chance to appoint a lawyer to represent Jadhav and adjourned hearing for a month.

Pakistan's Parliament on Tuesday extended for four months an ordinance that allowed Jadhav to file an appeal against his conviction in a high court as required by the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the government of Pakistan has not been able to fulfil its obligations on implementation of the ICJ judgment in letter and spirit.

"It has not yet addressed the core issues, which include the provision of all documents related to the case, providing unconditional and unimpeded consular access to Kulbhusan Jadhav and appointment of an Indian lawyer or a Queen's counsel to ensure a free and fair trial," he said at an online media briefing.

In 2017, India approached the ICJ against Pakistan for denial of consular access to Jadhav and challenging the death sentence handed to him by a military court.

The Hague-based ICJ ruled in July 2019 that Pakistan must undertake an "effective review and reconsideration" of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav and also to grant consular access to India without further delay.

India has slammed Pakistan for adopting a "farcical" approach in denying available legal remedies to Jadhav against his death sentence in contravention of the ICJ order.

Fifty-year-old retired Indian Navy officer Jadhav was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism in April 2017.

To a question about elevating Gilgit-Baltistan's status to that of a full-fledged province, the Foreign Office spokesperson said that reforms in GB were an ongoing process that includes political, administrative and economic reforms.

It (granting status of a province) has been a long-standing demand of the people of Giligit Baltistan.

These reforms will continue in line with the needs of the people of Gilgit Baltistan," he said.

India has clearly conveyed to Pakistan that the entire union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, including the areas of Gilgit and Baltistan, are an integral part of the country by virtue of its fully legal and irrevocable accession.
Guwahati, Sep 19 : The Assam government will provide 100 per cent free medical support for liver, kidney, and bone marrow transplantation to children below 12 years of age, Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced on Saturday.

Sarma, who also holds the Finance Department, handed over air tickets to the guardians of 70 children who will travel to Bengaluru and Kolkata for cardiac surgery and bone marrow transplant.

The Health Department would bear all expenses including travel and surgeries of these 70 children.

"The 70 childen were chosen as part of the "Seva Saptah" to celebrate the 70th birthday of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The "Seva Saptah" was observed across the country from September 14 to 20," the Minister told the media.
'Bus Eireann has been strongly encouraging customers to use Leap Cards' but says 'cash is accepted.' Stock image

A spokesperson for Bus Eireann insisted this week that cash was being accepted by bus drivers travelling between Cork and Mallow.

The statement by Bus Eireann follows last week's story in The Corkman, in which a passenger expressed frustration that he couldn't use cash to buy tickets on Bus Eireann services between Mallow, Kanturk and Cork due to drivers insisting upon LEAP cards from passengers due to fears concerning the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

"To minimise the use of cash, Bus Eireann has been strongly encouraging customers to use Leap Cards, which can be purchased from many outlets in County Cork as well as automatic ticket machines or can be purchased online https://www.leapcard.ie/en/NavigationPages/CardPurchase.aspx

"Leap Cards can also be topped up online or via the Leap app, which is available on Android devices."

Cash is still accepted by Bus Eireann from customers with no alternative payment option.

"Details of any issues arising around the acceptance of cash should be provided to Bus Eireann Customer Care for investigation and follow up."

According to Seamus Kearney from Lismire, who raised the issue with this newspaper, LEAP cards, which confer significant discounts on users, aren't available in local shops despite this being advertised on the National Transport Authority website.

An NTA spokesman told The Corkman this week that the cards were available in both Centra and SuperValu in Mallow.

A visit to Centra by this reporter found that they weren't in fact for sale in the shop, and this newspaper was told that the cards were only available in Cork.

The cards are available, however, in the SuperValu branch in the town.

In stations on the outskirts of Dublin, a similar distance from the capital as Mallow is from Cork, Leap cards can be bought and topped up.

This is not the case in Mallow as yet, a fact which means passengers to Cork from Mallow have to pay almost 8 more for the journey than they would have to pay to travel a similar distance from an outlying station to Dublin City Centre. This is because 4.90 is the maximum fare on a LEAP card but, at present, the NTA is treating the Mallow station purely as an intercity station, which means it's not eligible for LEAP fares.

According to the NTA spokesman, the issue of LEAP cards was addressed in the Cork Area Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy, which was finalised in February.

"The Strategy includes proposals for the development of suburban rail in Cork including to Mallow, and to include Mallow within the Leap Card discount zone.

"The NTA has commenced implementing various aspects of the Strategy, and as part of that, subject to the availability of PSO funding, will look to amend commuter rail fares in Cork along the lines of the Dublin short hop zone."

North Cork passengers await the implementation keenly.
An Garda Siochana will tonight recommence Operation Fanacht to ensure the people of Dublin City and County adhere to increased public health measures that were announced by An Taoiseach Micheal Martin this evening.

There will be targeted checkpoints erected by gardai as they ask people not to travel outside Dublin unless it is essential.

Gardai will also be drafted in from other counties to ensure compliance with public health regulations. This will consist of targeted patrols and checkpoints.

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"Operation Fanacht will see a high level of visible gardai in Dublin City and County on foot, in car and on bike, to support the public health guidelines, particularly in relation to social distancing and gathering in large groups at amenities and open spaces," a statement said.

"As some of the regulations are not enshrined in law, gardai will use the approach of the three Es which will see gardai engage, educate and encourage, only, compliance with travel regulations."

Deputy Commissioner, Policing and Security, John Twomey said: "As a community we all need to come together to once again protect ourselves and our most vulnerable. It is vital that every person plays their part and adheres to the public health regulations and guidelines to reduce the increasing spread of Covid-19.

"An Garda Siochana will do its part in Keeping people Safe. Operation Fanacht is intended to work with communities to support Government and Public Health Guidelines."

The Deputy Commissioner added: "Local gardai are here to support individuals and local communities, in particular the most vulnerable in our society during this time. If you are feeling isolated or need help with shopping, collecting your prescription or anything else similar, please contact your local Garda station."

Mr Twomey went on to say: "An Garda Siochana is fully aware of the impact increased restrictions may have on those who are subject to Domestic abuse and do not feel safe in their homes. An Garda Siochana takes domestic abuse very seriously. If you are in danger call 999 at any time.

"If you feel you are not in immediate danger and you require advice and assistance, you can visit or call your local garda station and ask to speak with a garda in private. If you know of someone who cannot speak for themselves please contact your local garda station."
Graham and Tillis Signal Support for Trumps Call to Fill Supreme Court Vacancy

Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) on Saturday signaled support for President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) in their calls to fill the Supreme Court vacancy that has arisen due to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death.

Graham on Saturday shared a tweet from Trump, in which the president said Republicans have the obligation to fill the vacant seat without delay, with the South Carolina senator adding his own message, I fully understand where President @realDonaldTrump is coming from. Graham said earlier, in remarks in an interview cited by The Hill, that the Senate would work to confirm a nominee this year if a vacancy arises, arguing that the circumstances are now different from 2016, when Republicans blocked then-President Barack Obamas nomination of Merrick Garland.

Well, Merrick Garland was a different situation. You had the president of one party nominating, and you had the Senate in the hands of the other party. A situation where youve got them both would be different. I dont want to speculate, but I think appointing judges is a high priority for me in 2020, Graham said in an interview on Full Court Press with Greta Van Susteren, scheduled to air Sunday.

Tillis, in expressing his support to proceed with the nomination, elaborated on the difference in circumstances between 2016 and the present day in a statement on Saturday.

Four years ago, a Supreme Court vacancy arose under divided government and a lame-duck president as Americans were choosing his successor. Today, however, President Trump is again facing voters at the ballot box and North Carolinians will ultimately render their judgment on his presidency and how he chooses to fill the vacancy, he wrote.

There is a clear choice on the future of the Supreme Court between the well-qualified and conservative jurist President Trump will nominate and I will support, and the liberal activist Joe Biden will nominate and Cal Cunningham will support, who will legislate radical, left-wing policies from the bench, he added, referring to former state Sen. Cal Cunningham (D), his opponent in a contest for a Senate seat in November.

Tillis reference to radical, left-wing policies from the bench echo remarks Trump made when announcing his list of potential Supreme Court nominee picks. Trump said on Sept. 9 that there is a growing radical-left movement in America, warning that if judges sympathetic with its objectives sit on the highest court, this would fundamentally transform the face of the nation.

Unfortunately, there is a growing radical-left movement that rejects the principle of equal treatment under law. If this extreme movement is granted a majority on the Supreme Court, it will fundamentally transform America without a single vote of Congress, the president said.

The reasoning outlined by Graham and Tillis in their drawing a distinction between Republican actions in 2016 to block Garlands nomination reinforced remarks McConnell made in a letter to members of the GOP caucus, in which the Kentucky senator urged Republican colleagues who may be hesitant about voting on a replacement in an election year to avoid prematurely committing to a position, telling them to be cautious and keep your powder dry until we return to Washington.

In a letter obtained by CBS reporter Alan He and several other outlets, McConnell challenged the notion that Senate Republicans set a rule in 2016 that the Senate would not fill a vacant seat in a presidential election year.

That is not true, McConnell said, explaining that, in 2016, Senate Republicans followed a rule that said Supreme Court vacancies that arise in presidential election years should not be filled when the presidency and the Senate majority are held by parties on the opposite side of the aisle.

Democrats have argued that because McConnell blocked Obamas nominee in 2016, the GOP should not move to replace Ginsburg before the Nov. 3 election.

McConnell at the time said he was adhering to the so-called Biden rule, referring to former Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.), who is now the Democratic presidential nominee. Biden in 1992 argued that President George H. W. Bush shouldnt nominate someone to fill a Supreme Court vacancy if one arose because of the upcoming presidential election. McConnell said Friday that this situation is different, because Republicans hold both the Senate and the presidency, while each party held one in 2016.

In the last midterm election before Justice [Antonin] Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year, he said. In his message to GOP colleagues, McConnell reinforced this position.

In a statement Friday, McConnell said, Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise, adding, President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.

Ginsburg died at age 87 on Friday at her home in Washington.

Zachary Stieber contributed to this report.
Farmers indefinite dharna on Delhi-Meerut expressway entered its second day on Saturday. Farmers of 24 villages of Ghaziabad and Meerut have continued to protest over their compensation, forcing the construction company to stop further work.

Land of farmers of 19 villages of Ghaziabad and five villages of Meerut district was acquired for the 4th phase of the expressway between Meerut and Dasna of Ghaziabad. The protesters have been demanding an equal compensation for all the farmers whose land was acquired for the expressway and service roads.

Also read: Ghaziabads SC/ST hostel to stay; UPs first detention centre to come up in another location

Earlier in the week, agitated farmers had taken out a three-day march from a Meerut-Ghaziabad boarder village which ended at the Ghaziabad district magistrates office on Thursday but the talks between officials and farmers eventually failed.

Dr Babli Gurjar, convener of Kisan Sangharsh Samiti, said, We are demanding equal compensation for farmers whose land was acquired for the expressway and service roads. The talks concluded without any outcome and officials demanded 10 days to resolve the issue.

 We have given them 10 days but wont allow them to continue work on the expressway until they come out with a solution, said Gurjar.

While Ghaziabad farmers have sat on dharna at village Moradabad, another group of Meerut farmers have begun their protest at Achraunda village where construction of a toll plaza on the expressway is proposed.

Families of farmers have also joined them, cooking their meals on the expressway and singing bhajans at the protest site.

 We had been raising the issue for over a year. We took out marches, met divisional commissioner Anita C Meshram... but received only hollow assurances, said Gurjar.

Later in the day, sub divisional magistrate, tehseeldar and circle officer of Modinagar (Ghaziabad) held a meeting with protesting farmers at the venue. After assurances from additional district magistrate (land acquisition) on telephone, farmers allowed authorities to restart construction but decided to continue their dharna. They also warned they will stop the work again if their demands were not met in eight days.

At Achraunda in Meerut, farmers have come together under the leadership of Mahmud Ali and SP leader Oawan Gurjar.  We have divided the protest at two places to mount pressure on officials of Ghaziabad and Meerut, said Ali, explaining that they are also seeking equal compensation and construction of service roads.

Meanwhile, jawans of Rapid Action Force and police have been deployed and officials have tried to convince the farmers to end their protest.

Mudit Garg, project manager of expressway in Ghaziabad region, refuted the charges of unequal compensation and said, It was given as per rule. He alleged that the farmers were mounting pressure now because the construction work was in its last lap and the agitators hoped the authorities would buckle under the pressure and approve additional compensation.

The deadline for the expressway has already been extended many times. As of now, 34% of the 4th phase is yet to be completed by December.
By PTI

JAIPUR: Concerned over the rising number of coronavirus cases, the Rajasthan government on Saturday decided to impose Section 144 of the CrPC in 11 districts of the state.

The state has 33 districts and the provision prohibits an assembly of more than five persons at a place.

According to a release, the government also decided to continue the ban on social or religious functions till October 31.

However, the permission for 20 people at funerals and 50 in marriage functions will continue.

The decisions were taken in a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, the release said.

In view of alarming situation regarding coronavirus, it was decided to impose Section 144 of the CrPC in Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kota, Ajmer, Alwar, Bhilwara, Bikaner, Udaipur, Sikar, Pali and Nagaur, the release said.

People will have to wear masks and follow social distancing norms.

Health Minister Raghu Shrma, Chief Secretary Rajeeva Swarup, Principal Secretary (Home) Abhay Kumar, Principal Secretary (Medical and Health) Akhil Arora and other officials were present in the meeting.

Fourteen more people died from coronavirus in Rajasthan on Saturday as 1,834 fresh infections surfaced, pushing the total number of cases to 1,13,124, according to an official report.

So far, 1,322 people have succumbed to the infection in the state.

Two deaths were reported from Hanumangarh while Ajmer, Banswara, Baran, Jaipur, Jaisalmer, Jhalawar, Jodhpur, Kota, Rajsamand, Sikar, Tonk and Udaipur reported one fatality each.

The maximum fresh cases were detected in Jaipur where 386 people tested positive for coronavirus, followed by Jodhpur, which reported 296 cases.

Kota reported 142 cases, followed by Ajmer (115), Alwar (102); Bhilwara (88); Udaipur (87); Bikaner (60); Pali (59); Sikar (45); Nagaur (43); Dungarpur (32); Ganganagar (29); Tonk (27) and Jhalawar (26).

Jalore, Sirohi and Baran reported 25 cases each, followed by Pratapgarh (22); Churu, Dholpur and Rajsamand (21 each); Bundi (20); Chittorgarh (18); Banswara (17); Dausa (16); Sawaimadhopur (13); Jhunjhunu (12); Jaisalmer (10); Hanumangarh (9); Karauli (9); Bharatpur (7) and Barmer (6).

A total of 93,805 patients have recovered so far and the number of active cases in the state is 17,997, the report said.

Health Minister Raghu Sharma has directed officials to set up a 32-bedded ICU at Jaipur's Sawai Man Singh Government Hospital for patients who have recovered from the infection but suffering from other critical diseases.
On June 30, as the coronavirus was cresting toward its summer peak, Dr. Paul Alexander, a new science adviser at the Department of Health and Human Services, composed a scathing two-page critique of an interview given by a revered scientist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Dr. Anne Schuchat, a 32-year veteran of the C.D.C. and its principal deputy director, had appealed to Americans to wear masks and warned, We have way too much virus across the country. But Dr. Alexander, a part-time assistant professor of health research methods, appeared sure he understood the coronavirus better.

Her aim is to embarrass the president, he wrote, commenting on Dr. Schuchats appeal for face masks in an interview with the Journal of the American Medical Association.

She is duplicitous, he also wrote in an email to his boss, Michael R. Caputo, the Health and Human Services Departments top spokesman who went on medical leave this week.
A Saigon Vietnam Beer can (L), produced by Saigon Vietnam Beer Group Jsc, is placed next to a Saigon Beer can produced by Sabeco. Photo by VnExpress/Thi Ha.

Police in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province are investigating a copyright infringement involving Saigon Beer by a former employee of its brewer, Sabeco.

They found over 9,000 boxes of the Saigon Vietnam Beer with the brand name and packaging similar to that of the 43-year old Saigon Beer brand produced by Sabeco, the largest brewer in Vietnam.

The beer is distributed by the Saigon Vietnam Beer Group Jsc., not a subsidiary of Sabeco. Its CEO, Le Dinh Trung, held several positions in Sabeco for years, including assistant to the deputy CEO and head of its legal department.

Another person involved in the copyright infringement is Tran Thi Ai Loan, a distributor of Sabeco beer for the last four years.

The original headquarter address of Saigon Vietnam Beer Group Jsc was registered at Floor 9, Vincom Building, 72 Le Thanh Ton, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, the same as Sabeco.

Although the Saigon Vietnam Beer Group Jsc. later changed its headquarters to a different location in Binh Thanh District, its beer packaging carried the old address, confusing customers.

Authorities said Loan, as a legal representative, had signed a contract with BiVa Beer Brewer in southern Ba RiaVung Tau Province to produce the Saigon Vietnam Beer and started distributing the product in May.

The same month, Sabeco requested the Vietnam Intellectual Property Research Institute to inspect the similarities between the packaging and brand name of the two beers.

The institute concluded in June that there were signs of copyright infringement, following which Sabeco requested market authorities to intervene.

Authorities later found thousands of Saigon Vietnam Beer boxes in the southern localities of Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Binh Phuoc, Soc Trang and Can Tho as well as the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak.

Each box was being sold at VND159,300 ($6.91), nearly 12 percent lower than that of Sabecos Saigon Beer.

Boxes of Saigon Vietnam Beer are placed in a factory in southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province. Photo courtesy of Ba Ria-Vung Tau Department of Market Surveillance.

Vu Tuan Chau, owner of BiVa Beer Brewer, told authorities that they had distributed a total of 4,400 boxes so far.

Chau said they only produced the beer to the requirements of Saigon Beer Vietnam and was not aware of any copyright infringement.

A lawyer representing Sabeco said that the infringement has damaged their brands reputation and misled customers into purchasing the wrong product.

Sabeco is working with authorities to continue the investigation, the lawyer said.

No comments were available from the representatives of Saigon Beer Vietnam at the time of going to print.
SHANGHAI, Sept, 19, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The 15th Asia Brand Ceremony was held at the Hainan Free Trade Port on Sep 9, 2020. At the ceremony, Sun Telecom was awarded "Asia Famous Brand Award 2020". For Sun Telecom, it is another recognition and encouragement after gaining "Leading Brands (Industry) 2017", "Trustworthy Brand (Industry) 2017", "China Quality Trustworthy Demonstration Enterprise 2019", "China (Fiber Optic Communication Industry) Top Ten Quality Demonstration Brands 2019", "China's Most Influential Independent Innovation Brand" and "AAA Enterprise Credit Grade Certificate".

This Asia Brand Ceremony was held at a time when the entire world economy is facing severe challenges. Under the spread of COVID-19 globally, helping Asian companies fight against the pandemic and revive after the pandemic has become one of the important themes of the forum. Sun Telecom is providing products and services to customers from more than 100 countries and regions and Sun Telecom hopes to make contributions to the global recovery of work and production.

Sun Telecom is a Fiber Optic Solutions Provider, adhering to the tenet of "dedication to meeting customers' needs", serves worldwide customers with "Systematic, End-to-end, One-stop" fiber optic total solutions and products which can be applied to many fields such as Telecom, Cable Television and Broadcast, Surveillance and Monitoring, Computing Network, Data Center, Industrial Control, Intelligent Manufacturing, Fiber Optic Sensing, etc.

To the best ability, the fiber optic solutions provider seeks to satisfy client needs, serve clients according to their requirements by offering customized solutions. Honesty is a virtue which the company upholds in all interactions and business with clients and everyone. Innovation and development are key aspects of Sun Telecom's company culture. Growth is aimed for by Sun Telecom, while cooperating among teams and members to fully realize the capability and potential of each other.

With over 30 years in the fiber optics industry, Sun Telecom aims to meet any fiber optic needs by providing one-stop integrated fiber optic solutions and customized products. Sun Telecom's offerings include but aren't limited to: FTTA (Fiber to the Antenna) Solutions, FTTH (Fiber to the Home) Solutions, Fiber Optic Cabling Solutions, CCTV Surveillance Solutions, IDC (Internet Data Center) Fiber Optic Solutions, CATV (Community Antenna Television) Solutions, Fiber Optic Patch Cord Production Solutions, Industrial Control Fiber Optic Solutions, 5G Fiber Optic Transmission Solutions, etc.

SOURCE Sun Telecom
PRO Defence said that during the Shopian Operation, powers vested under the AFSPA 1990 were exceeded. This comes after the inquiry ordered by the Army authorites into Operation Amshipora had concluded.

The investigations into the Shopian case, where three Rajouri locals were killed, in an encounter, will be conducted with utmost fairness and will be taken to their logical conclusion, Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane said on Friday.

Army chief Naravane told ANI that Amshipora case investigations would be conducted with utmost fairness and would be taken to their logical conclusion, Indian Army was committed to the professional conduct of operations. He added that Indian Army has zero-tolerance for violation of established guidelines while operating in disturbed areas.

Meanwhile, the Army said earlier in the day that the inquiry ordered by the Army authorities into Operation Amshipora has concluded adding that during the operation, powers vested under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) 1990 were exceeded.

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According to an official release, the inquiry has brought out certain prima facie evidence indicating that during the operation, powers vested under the AFSPA 1990 were exceeded and the Dos and Donts of Chief of Army Staff (COAS) as approved by the Supreme Court have been contravened.

Consequently, the competent disciplinary authority has directed to initiate disciplinary proceedings under the Army Act against those found prima-facie answerable.

The evidence collected by the inquiry has prima-facie indicated that the three unidentified terrorists killed in Op Amshipora were Imtiyaz Ahmed, Abrar Ahmed and Mohd Ibrar, who hailed from Rajouri.

Their DNA report is awaited. Their involvement with terrorism or related activities is under investigation by the police.

Indian Army is committed to the ethical conduct of operations. Further updates on the case will be given periodically without affecting the due process of the law of the land.

Also read: PM Modi to attend two debates in this years historic UNGA session: TS Tirumurti
Jerusalem:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that he planned to discuss soon with US President Donald Trump how to counter the threat from Iran.

I plan to speak soon with President Trump about how to counter the threat of Iranian regime which calls for Israels destruction, Netanyahu said in a video message posted on his Facebook page.

Before his inauguration on Friday, Trump had repeatedly denounced the nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers, including the United States, which Israel has also staunchly criticised.

On January 16, Trump said in an interview with the Times of London and Bild newspaper of Germany: Im not happy with the Iran deal, I think its one of the worst deals ever made. I think its one of the dumbest deals Ive ever seen, one of the dumbest.

But he declined to say whether he intended to renegotiate the deal, as he asserted regularly during the presidential campaign.

Netanyahu has been an ardent opponent of the 2015 pact signed by Iran, the United States, China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany.

The deal placed curbs on Tehrans nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions.

In December, Netanyahu said there were many ways of undoing the Iran nuclear deal and that he would discuss that with Trump. I have about five things in mind, he said.

But before he left office, former president Barack Obama warned against rowing back the pact, emphasising its significant and concrete results.

EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini has also said that the bloc would stand by the accordwhich she helped negotiatebecause it showed that diplomacy worked and served Europes security needs.

And on Monday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that the nuclear deal was approved by the UN Security Council and therefore is not a bilateral deal with the US that Trump can renegotiate.

In the video message posted online, Netanyahu also addressed the Iranian people saying we are your friend, not your enemy.

Meanwhile, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin, whose role is largely ceremonial, said in a statement that he had invited Trump to visit Israel.

For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Charlotte-Mecklenberg Police officers at Marshall Park in uptown Charlotte, N.C., on Aug. 24, 2020. (Octavio Jones/Getty Images)

63 Percent of Rust Belt Voters Oppose Defunding Police, in Epoch Times Poll

Most Rust Belt voters oppose slashing funding to police departments, according to a new Big Data/Epoch Times poll.

Asked whether they support or oppose calls to defund the police in the community where they live, 63 percent of respondents said they oppose the calls.

Just over 24 percent said they support the calls, while the rest were undecided.

The poll follows a nationwide survey that found 61 percent of voters voicing opposition to efforts to cut police funding, versus 24 percent in support.

In the Rust Belt poll, a plurality of respondents aged 18 to 29 said they support defunding the police. Majorities in the other three age groups oppose cutting police funding.

A plurality Hispanics support defunding the police. A majority of white respondents, a plurality of black respondents, and a plurality of other races oppose the efforts.

Four out of five Republicans said they oppose defunding the police. They were joined by 62 percent of independents and 46.6 percent of Democrats.

Fifteen percent of Republicans, 20 percent of independents, and 34.5 percent of Democrats support cutting police funding, according to the poll.

In this still image from video, a Black Lives Matter sign is seen in Portland, Ore., on Sept. 3, 2020. (The Epoch Times)

Defunding the police is a top goal of the Black Lives Matter movement. More poll respondents view that movement favorably, by a narrow margin.

Cities that have opted to slash funding to the police include Austin, which cut about a third of the budget, and Seattle, where lawmakers this month approved reducing police funding by nearly $4 million.

Other cities, including Omaha, Nebraska, and Fort Worth, Texas, have rejected efforts to defund the police.

Policing and crime figures to play a key role in the upcoming election.

Asked whats most important to their vote, 8.5 percent of respondents chose that option, making it the fourth-most chosen, behind COVID-19, health care, and the economy and jobs.

Asked who they trust to do a better job of handling policing and crime, more respondents45.5 percent versus 41 percentchose Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden over President Donald Trump.

Eight percent chose neither, while the rest were undecided.

More voters 44 or younger chose Biden, while older voters were essentially split.

The Epoch Times Rust Belt Poll was conducted by Big Data Poll from Sept. 11 to Sept. 15, interviewing 2,191 registered voters and 1,440 likely voters in the Midwest via online panel targeting Iowa (7 percent), Michigan (20 percent), Minnesota (12 percent), Ohio (23 percent), Pennsylvania (26 percent), and Wisconsin (12 percent).

The sampling error is plus or minus 2.1 percent for registered voters and plus or minus 2.6 percent for likely voters at a 95 percent confidence interval. For more information on the methodology and survey design, please refer to the AAPOR Transparency Initiative Checklist, for an overview of survey results click here.
One Senate race might unexpectedly determine the future of the Supreme Court for a generation.

Were Democrat Mark Kelly to unseat Republican Senator Martha McSally in Arizona, he could be sworn into office as early as 30 November  perhaps in time to vote on a Supreme Court nominee to fill the vacancy on the bench left after the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The Arizona race is a special election as Ms McSally was appointed to her seat by Republican governor Doug Ducey, following the death of Senator John McCain in 2018.

State election law says that the final result of the election must be confirmed by the end of November, assuming there are no legal challenges.

Mr Kelly, an astronaut and husband of former representative Gabby Giffords, has held a lead over Senator McSally for much of the campaign. The latest New York Times-Siena poll, released on Friday, has him ahead by eight points.

A win for Mr Kelly would narrow the Republican Senate majority to 52-48 in the post-election lame-duck session, which is potentially when a vote could be held on the replacement justice were it to be held up ahead of the election.

Other factors are also at play, as several Republican senators have said they would hold off on voting for a new justice until after the next inauguration.

Senators Susan Collins of Maine, Chuck Grassley of Iowa, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Mitt Romney of Utah, have all made statements to that effect on the record  but it is unclear whether they will stick to them.

Senator Lindsey Graham said on the record in 2018 that once the primary process has started in an election year, votes on nominations to the court should cease. He specifically cited the last year of the current administration as an example.

However, the South Carolina senator tweeted on Saturday that he would now support the president in any effort to move forward regarding the recent vacancy created by the passing of Justice Ginsburg.

 2018 video shows Lindsey Graham committing not to confirm supreme court nominee in election year

After paying her respects to Justice Ginsburg, Senator McSally tweeted on Friday night that the Senate should go ahead and vote on a nominee selected by president Donald Trump.

Mr Kelly did not share his thoughts on when the vacancy should be filled, but did pay tribute to Justice Ginsburg.

Ms McSally previously lost a race for the other Arizona Senate seat to Democrat Kyrsten Sinema. A win by Mr Kelly would mean the state would send two Democrat senators to Washington.

The same poll that has Mr Kelly ahead in his race also has Joe Biden leading president Donald Trump by nine points, 49 to 40 per cent.

Arizona hasnt voted Democrat since 1996 when Bill Clinton won the states 11 Electoral College votes.
Pilloried internationally and given a lukewarm debut by Chinese cinemagoers, Disney on Friday discovered its $200 million live-action epic "Mulan" has at least one ardent fan -- China's firebrand foreign ministry.

The retelling of the legendary female Chinese warrior tale drew a backlash even before its official release when star Liu Yifei voiced her support for Hong Kong's police as they cracked down on democracy protests last year.

This week it faced boycott calls globally for filming in Xinjiang -- where rights abuses against the region's Muslim population have been widely documented -- and for thanking authorities from the northwestern region in the end credits.

But Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian on Friday dismissed the controversy, saying it was "very normal" to thank the Xinjiang government for their help and shrugging off criticism by "some so-called human rights organisations."

He went onto applaud Chinese-American star Liu as "the contemporary Mulan" and "a true child of China".

Mulan opened in China on Friday and sold around 41 million yuan ($5.99 million) worth of tickets by the afternoon, according to ticketing platform Maoyan.

But the movie, which many have seen online, has already attracted a torrent of poor reviews and a 4.7 out of 10 rating on popular user review site Douban.

Some disliked its deviation from the original tale and new storyline, while others blasted the action scenes.

"In my mind, Mulan was originally ladylike and not a martial artist as a child," one user wrote.

Another reviewer added: "The storyline is very poor and Mulan's hero complex was highlighted without logic. The martial arts sequences were also weak."

Others questioned why there were not more Chinese staff working on the film.

Amid the furore, the hashtag "Mulan" appeared to have been disabled on China's Twitter-like platform Weibo, with the tag turning up no search results on Friday.

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AFP understands that some state media have also been told to avoid covering the movie.

At cinemas in Beijing, however, several moviegoers were oblivious to the international outcry.

"Mulan is a household name. Different people may have different ways of understanding this story," said Hu Xia, 46, who saw the movie with her son. "This time, I think they were successful."

Another moviegoer, 30-year-old Alvin Ye, praised the movie for its portrayal of an extraordinary woman.

Nationalistic tabloid Global Times offered another defence against overseas critics, in typically unvarnished language, describing attacks on the film as "depravity".
The House has voted to condemn racism against Asian Americans tied to the coronavirus outbreak, approving a Democratic resolution on a mostly party-line vote. Republicans called the legislation an election-year effort to criticise President Donald Trump and woke culture on steroids.

The resolution, approved 243-164, on Thursday calls on all public officials to condemn anti-Asia sentiment and to investigate hate crimes after a rise in aggression and violence from those blaming people of Asian descent for the pandemic.

The measure does not name Trump but notes inflammatory terms used by him and other Republicans  including Chinese Virus, Wuhan Virus, and Kung flu  and says they have perpetuated an anti-Asian stigma.

Also read: Trump downplaying Covid-19 is historic national tragedy, says Nancy Pelosi

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that at the same time that the coronavirus pandemic is broken out, so too has a disturbing epidemic of hate and discrimination against Asian Americans and Asian immigrants, including physical and verbal attacks and vandalised businesses. She blamed Trump for trying to divert attention from Russias meddling in elections to demonise China.

Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif., called Republican opposition to the resolution disgraceful. The president is fueling racism and inspiring violent attacks on Asian Americans and Asian immigrants, Takano said. Trump has often used the term kung flu on the campaign trail as he has tried to turn focus to the viruss origins in China amid criticism of his response to the pandemic.

Republicans said Trump was turning his ire toward Chinas government and not Asian Americans. Trump in March insisted that Asian Americans were amazing people and not at fault for spreading the virus.

Several House Republicans spoke against the resolution. Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan said it was just another opportunity to attack the president. Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs called it woke culture on steroids. Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said it was ridiculous and a waste of time as the House was about to adjourn for the week and Democrats and the White House have so far failed to agree on additional coronavirus relief.

Also read: Former Pence aide who helped organise White House Covid-19 response backs Biden

At the heart of this resolution is the absurd notion that referring to the virus as a Wuhan virus or the China virus is the same as contributing to violence against Asian Americans, which I will tell you no one on this side of the aisle supports, McCarthy said.

Still, 14 Republicans voted with Democrats in favor of the resolution, many of whom are retiring or in competitive races in November: Indiana Rep. Susan Brooks, Pennsylvania Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, Ohio Rep. Anthony Gonzalez, Washington Rep. Jamie Herrera Butler, Texas Rep. Will Hurd, New York Rep. John Katko, Texas Rep. Michael McCaul, New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith, Ohio Rep. Steve Stivers, Michigan Rep. Fred Upton, Missouri Rep. Ann Wagner, Oregon Rep. Greg Walden, Florida Rep. Daniel Webster and Georgia Rep. Robert Woodall.

Anti-discrimination groups have reported hundreds of actions against Asian Americans, especially in the early days of the outbreak. Even before cities began shutting down all restaurants to stop the spread of the virus, Chinese restaurant owners were experiencing steep declines in business because of racial stigma.

Asked in March why he called the coronavirus the Chinese virus, Trump told reporters at the White House that he doesnt consider it a racist remark. Its not racist at all, Trump said, adding that he calls it the Chinese virus because he wants to be accurate.
Philadelphia courtrooms, where a growing number of jurors will weigh evidence during criminal trials this fall, could become super-spreader sites for the coronavirus, according to a coalition of defense lawyers who have asked officials to slow down plans to fully reopen the main courthouse.

Now that the Stout Center for Criminal Justice is operating at lim i ted capacity with few people in the hallways things are fine. But the ventilation system in the building, notorious for crowded corridors and elevators, will not be able to handle the virus load when it opens at capacity, the lawyers said in two letters sent to court officials.

The ventilation issue is a significant one. The system is not adequate to filter out the virus that is causing COVID-19. Its the bare minimum, and it is essentially pushing around stale air, said lawyer James A. Funt, a member and former chair of the executive committee of the Philadelphia Bar Associations criminal justice section.

Funt is one of eight lawyers who sent an Aug. 28 letter to leaders of the First Judicial District outlining their concerns with the 26-year-old Center City buildings heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning, among other issues.

The Stout Center shut down in mid-March like most city government buildings due to the spread of the coronavirus. Earlier this month, a small number of in-person hearings began, as did the first jury trial.

Marc Flood, the districts court administrator, responded Sept. 4, noting that court personnel will ensure safe distancing and jurors will receive temperature scans and have the use of a dedicated elevator. He also said acrylic glass barriers are being installed in courtrooms.

However, even as we begin to increase the number of cases we hear in-person, no one will be asked to go into any courtroom that is not yet equipped with a physical partition, Flood wrote.

But he did not address concerns related to the buildings air flow, the lawyers charged in a follow-up letter Monday.

An HVAC system that only forces stale air through the building makes the problem worse, not better, because it merely circulates a speakers viral load across an entire courtroom.  We are not asking the [buildings] HVAC technicians to do the impossible. We are merely urging the leadership to acknowledge that without adequate ventilation and filtration, the risk represented by in-person jury trials is too high at this time, the lawyers wrote.

The lawyers said in addition to holding off on jury trials, more court proceedings should be done by video or even held outside. They noted that during the 1918 influenza pandemic, New York City schoolchildren were taught outside in the winter.

Masks, sanitizers, and barriers are important, but they alone will not protect us from aerosolized coronavirus. These remedies must be implemented in conjunction with a real plan for the air. Without such a plan, the building remains unsafe, the lawyers said.

Defense attorney Michael Coard, a member of the Stout Reopening Committee and signer of both letters, said he applauds the efforts that judges and court officials have made, while he remains vigilant about the danger.

Coard said he signed the letters because I fully support those proposals primarily because, due to systemic racism, Black people are disproportionately affected by COVID and by stop and frisk, arrests, prosecutions, convictions, and mass incarceration."

Gabriel B. Roberts, the courts' director of communications, said documentation was provided to the lawyers indicating the HVAC system at the Stout Center performs the recommended number of air exchanges.

He noted that while cases are now being heard in person, the courthouse is still generally closed to the public.

Court leadership continues to require that masks be worn while in the building," Roberts said. The judicial district enforces the state mask mandate.

The court will continue to evaluate efforts to expand operations on a moment-by-moment basis and remains ready to adjust operations as [and] when needed, Roberts said.

In addition to Funt and Coard, signers of the letters were: Kathryn Cacciamani, on behalf of court appointed attorneys; Lauren Fine, cochair of the executive committee of the Philadelphia Bar Associations criminal justice section; Alexandre Turner, chair of the Philadelphia chapter of the Pennsylvania Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers; Ronald Greenblatt, a member of the defense lawyers group; and Susan Lin and Troy Wilson of the Bar Association.
The final clinical trial of coronavirus vaccine by Oxford University and being manufactured by the Serum Institute of India (SII) will begin at the Sassoon General Hospital in Pune from Monday.

"The phase-III trial of ''Covishield'' vaccine will begin at Sassoon hospital from next week. It is likely to start on Monday. Some volunteers have already come forward for the trial. Around 150 to 200 volunteers will be administered the vaccine candidate dose," Dean of the state-run Sassoon General Hospital Dr Muralidhar Tambe told PTI.

"From Saturday, the hospital started enrolling volunteers for the trial. Those who are willing to volunteer for the vaccination should contact the hospital," he added.

Under phase-II, trials were conducted at Bharti Vidyapeeth Medical College and also KEM Hospital in the city.

The SII has partnered with British-Swedish pharma company AstraZeneca for manufacturing the COVID-19 vaccine candidate, developed by the University of Oxford.

Earlier this month, the SII had paused the clinical trials of the vaccine candidate in the country.

The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) had on September 11 directed the SII to suspend any new recruitment in the phase-II and III clinical trial of the vaccine till further orders after AstraZeneca paused the trials in other countries because of "an unexplained illness" in a participant in the study.

However, on September 15, the DCGI gave permission to the SII to resume clinical trial of the vaccine.

Also read: Coronavirus update: 93,336 new cases, 1,247 deaths in 24 hours; India overtakes US in recoveries
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp revealed he only recently considered the prospect of signing Thiago Alcantara after previously believing he would be "out of reach".

The Premier League champions confirmed on Friday that they had captured the 29-year-old from Bayern Munich in a deal worth up to 25million (27.5m).

Thiago has arrived at Anfield on a four-year contract, with the Reds paying an initial 20m (22m), plus an additional 5m (5.5m) in potential bonuses.

Klopp: a big Thiago fan

Klopp has been a long-time admirer of the midfielder, but did not think the Spain international would be prepared to leave Champions League holders Bayern anytime soon.

"Thiago  settled that much at Bayern  is usually out of reach for pretty much everybody," Klopp told Liverpool's official website. "If the player doesn't want [to move] massively then you have no chance.

"You see that Bayern have long, long, long-term contracts with their main players and Thiago was a main player for Bayern over the years.

"I know all the people at Bayern wanted to keep him desperately; that's normal and understandable because he played an important role last season as well.

"He just was ready for a new challenge and he decided it was with us. But did I think about him earlier? I thought a lot about him but never as a potential transfer, to be honest."

Thiago heads to Anfield



Thiago arrives at Anfield as a Champions League and Bundesliga winner but Klopp says his squad will not be in awe of him given their own European and Premier League success over the past two seasons.

"The players are happy," he added. "Since they knew about it they are really excited about it as well. And when they meet him, they will know he is a guy who doesn't need any special treatment.

"He won the Champions League this year but all the other guys won it last year. Yes, he became German champion this year; our guys became English champions.

"It's not that somebody is coming in and now we have to roll red carpets out or whatever; not at all. He wants to be part of the team, work hard and be as successful as possible."

Klopp confirmed that Thiago will not be part of the squad for their top-flight clash with Chelsea on Sunday, meaning he could make his debut in the EFL Cup meeting with Lincoln City on Thursday.
Large parts of Australia are set for a wet and windy weekend - with a weather system bringing torrential rain, hail and destructive winds making its way across the country.

Severe thunderstorms will develop over central areas of the country on Saturday - including South Australia and western New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland.

Showers and cool temperatures are forecast in mainland capital cities, while supercells are possible in southwest Queensland where severe winds and even tornadoes could form.

Large parts of Australia are set for a wet and windy weekend - with a weather system bringing torrential rain, hail and destructive winds making its way across the country (pictured)

Severe weather warnings are in place for South Australia, southeast parts of the Northern Territory, southwestern Queensland and northwest parts of Victoria (pictured: students stand in the rain in Melbourne in June)

The red areas on the map above indicate areas of high wind with tornadoes possible in southeast Queensland on the weekend

North-eastern parts of South Australia are forecast receive the heaviest rainfalls courtesy of a low pressure system on Saturday afternoon.

Severe weather warnings are in place for South Australia, southeast parts of the Northern Territory, southwest Queensland and northwest parts of Victoria.

Western areas of New South Wales are also urged to stay alert for severe thunderstorms.

The east coast of the country will also experience rain throughout the weekend directed by a high pressure system further north.

Some areas of the country are forecast to receive a drenching and could see more than their average Spring rainfall in two days.

'There is a large low pressure system that is dragging a lot of pressure from the north to the south,' Bureau of Meteorology meteorologist Grace Legge told Daily Mail Australia.

'We will see steady rainfall over the next 24 to 48 hours. But embedded in that, we will also seeing thunderstorms which will bring quite significant rainfall in a very short period of time which could lead to flash flooding.'

Over 50mm of rain is expected in parts of inland Australia, where the average annual rainfall is normally about 200mm.

Sydney is in for a wet weekend with showers expected on Saturday (pictured) and Sunday

This could cause roads to be cut off making some communities inaccessible.

In Queensland most of the wild weather will be in the west, however, the east coast is set to see some rain.

'We have a warning for parts of southwest Queensland in place on Friday and there is a chance we might get thunderstorms that bring large to giant hail,' Ms Legge said.

Temperatures will hover around average with a highs of 25C in Brisbane.

South Australia and the Northern Territory will see strong winds with some gusts over 100km/h and thunderstorms.

Temperatures will be in the low 20s in South Australia and rising towards the low 30s further north.

Regional Victorians in the northeast of the state are being warned to stay indoors on Saturday with 10-20mm of rain expected fall.

The State Emergency Service is advising residents who may travel or camp over the weekend to monitor conditions.

'We encourage people to avoid setting up camp under trees or on low-lying areas alongside creeks or rivers,' Commander David Tucek said.

There are severe thunderstorm warnings in place for the southwest of Queensland

There are is also a thunderstorm warnings in place for the northwest of Victoria

He said residents should clean their gutters, downpipes and drains to prevent blockages and clear loose items from backyards.

Temperatures will remain moderate throughout the state.

The build up of moisture is also set to wreak havoc on the western half of NSW tomorrow with severe thunderstorms.

The rest of the state is also set for a wet weekend with cooler temperatures especially in Sydney which will see highs of 21C.

Overnight temperatures are also set to be chilly in Canberra, Sydney Perth and Hobart which are expected to approach 10C.

Perth will also see some rain and a cooler weekend with high of just 19C.

On Saturday, regional Victorians in the northeast of the state are being warned to stay indoors with 10-20mm of rain expected fall (pictured: rain disrupts commuters in Geelong)

The east coasts capital cities are likely to avoid the worst of the wild weather.

'The more significant rainfall probably won't make it to the east coast capitals like Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne,' Ms Legge said.

'But on Sunday we will see that rainfall heads to the coast, but it will have lost a lot of its power by then.

'However, Canberra could see about 10mm of rain.'

Although low pressure systems usually mean a cold snap, on this occasion, it might actually get warmer.

'It will actually increase the temperature, It's a very warm air mass and a lot of the areas will probably experience quite muggy, humid temperatures,' Ms Legge said.

The system is expected to ease late on Sunday before it then moves offshore.

Grey skies over Sydney on Saturday morning with the Sydney expected to see temps in the low 20s
Farooq Sahab suggested me to speak with Pakistan but I will speak to the youth: Amit Shah in Srinagar

If normalcy to be brought in Kashmir, Article 370 has to be reinstated: Farooq Abdullah

If talks can happen with China, why not with other neighbour: Farooq Abdullah in LS

India

oi-Deepika S

New Delhi, Sep 19: Speaking in Parliament for the first time since his release from detention, the National Conference president and MP Farooq Abdullah on Saturday advocated talks with Pakistan, saying if India can talk to China to defuse their border row, it can also speak to its other neighbour to deal with the situation at Jammu and Kashmir borders.

"Border skirmishes have been rising and people are dying... A way has to be found to deal with this. Except for talks... As you are talking to China to attempt that it withdraws (from Ladakh border), we should also talk to our (other) neighbour to find a way to get out of this situation," he said in Lok Sabha during the Zero Hour amid protests from treasury benches.

The Srinagar MP also expressed his happiness at the findings of an Army inquiry into the killings of three men in Shopian in an encounter.

"I am happy that the Army has admitted that three Shopian men were killed mistakenly. I hope the government gives a hefty compensation," he said.

Hindi, Kashmiri and Dogri to become official languages of Jammu and Kashmir

Officials had said on Friday the Army has found "prima facie" evidence that its troops "exceeded" powers under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act during the encounter in July and has initiated disciplinary proceedings.

Abdullah said Jammu and Kashmir has not seen any progress and spoke about authorities blocking 4G facilities in the Union Territory which, he added, goes against the interest of students and traders.

He also conveyed his gratitude to parliamentarians for speaking for him when he was under detention.

Abdullah and many other leaders were put under detention by authorities last year after the Union government abrogated Article 370, which had given special powers to the erstwhile state, and split Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories. He was released in March this year.

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Story first published: Saturday, September 19, 2020, 18:07 [IST]
San Francisco, Sep 19 : American airplane giant Boeing has announced $700,000 in grants to help communities affected by the raging wildfires along the US West Coast.

In an announcement on Friday, Boeing said that it was providing $500,000 to the American Red Cross to support its fire relief efforts in Washington, Oregon and California, Xinhua news agency.

The remaining $200,000 will go towards providing food assistance in these states where a significant amount of the company's employees live and work.

"Thousands of our families, friends and neighbours have been displaced around the west," said Stan Deal, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes and the company's senior executive in the region.

"We are committed to helping them through this exceptionally challenging time." Don Herring, chief development officer at the American Red Cross, expressed his gratitude for Boeing's support, adding that they have taken extra safety precautions due to the pandemic to ensure people impacted by the wildfires feel safe.

The raging wildfires have so far killed more than 30 people and forced tens of thousands from their homes, the BBC reported.

The US National Interagency Fire Centre has said that firefighters are battling 106 large wildfires in the region.

California and Oregon have seen some of the worst of the blazes.

According to the National Interagency Fire Center, 6.7 million acres have been burned this year, so far.

Scientists have said that the wildfires were the worst in 18 years and plumes of smoke from the fires are so large, they have crossed the US and the Atlantic Ocean, carried by the jet stream, and have reached the skies of Europe.
Attorney General William Barr

Attorney General William Barr HIP SOMODEVILLA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Are you kidding me? Sedition? From 1798?

Just in case someone is not persuaded that this Trump Administration is falling off its rocker, the advice from Atty. Gen. William P. Barr to federal prosecutors to use a two-century-old law to stop people  no, specifically "violent" leftist protests outside federal courthouses  from seeking to overthrow the government should make us stop and scratch our collective heads.

For openers, protesting disproportionate police brutality against Black citizens is not calling for the overthrow of the government.

Secondly, there is actual evidence that groups other than Black Lives Matter or the oft-cited, if unorganized "antifa" are not the only ones in street. You heard nothing from Barr about using sedition laws against actual, organized, gun-toting, right-wing, white supremacist nationals who seem actually to want to overthrow the government  as well as to mix it up with lefties in the streets.

Thirdly, sedition laws have not been used over two centuries for good reason: Their Constitutionality runs very close to the edge of First Amendment rights to free speech and assembly that have protected leftists, neo-Nazis, right-wingers, flag-burners and vocal bayers-at-the-moon.

Looking for a definitive reason to deny the Trump team four more years? How about using the law to declare a virtual shutdown of civil liberties and free speech. Barr's remarks this week were so outrageous that comparing state orders mandating masks and shutdowns for public health to slavery were not even the top line head-slap.

Aggressive tactics

This has nothing to do with people who break rules about trespass or fire-setting or bottle-throwing,

No, this is the baring of raw power to shut down dissent. And it is a blatant attempt to use the Justice Department to underscore a Donald Trump campaign promise for Law & Order prompted by several localized protests that turn violent only in the middle of the night  a continuation of absolute reinterpretations of law and procedure to promote Trump's politics.

Story continues

The wording of the federal sedition statute says it is a crime for two or more people to conspire to use force to oppose federal authority, hinder the government's ability to enforce any federal law or unlawfully seize any federal property  elements that might conceivably be made to fit a plot to, say, break into and set fire to a federal courthouse, despite evidence that more than 93% of nearly 8,000 Black Lives Matter protests between May and August this year have been peaceful.

Maybe Barr should be looking at those organized Western ranchers, right-wingers all, when they held off enforcement of federal water law enforcement at gunpoint. Or at organized, armed Trump supporters who entered statehouses to threaten the lives of legislators considering laws to require coronavirus masks.

Or he could be looking at Trump administration officials and Republican supporters calling on people to arm themselves for insurrection in the event that Joe Biden wins the election. Or maybe even at the continued use of federal law enforcement and the Justice Department itself as political instruments to advance the partisan cause of a single sitting president seeking reelection, clearly throwing out any separations of power as constitutionally required to get his way in a wide variety of cases ranging from the misuse of U.S. intelligence to the matters of impeachment.

Just who here is seeking the overthrow of government as we have known it for 200 years? FBI Director Christopher Wray told a House committee it is right-wing white militias. Where's Barr?

I get that Barr wants prosecutors to be aggressive in the case of Portland's protests, which have involved the setting of small fires at the federal courthouse. Pursue shooters who have emerged aggressively, please. But moving to sedition and its 20-year sentences in the name of liberty and Law & Order? Are we Belarus or Hong Kong?

Overkill

Actually, coincidental to the disclosures about using sedition laws, came news that federal officials had been stockpiling ammunition and devices that could emit deafening sounds or singe anyone within range feel like their skin is on fire to clear Lafayette Square in Washington for that Donald Trump Bible photo op. The disclosures came in The Washington Postfrom D.C. National Guard Maj. Adam D. DeMarco, who led the brigade there, and filed them as a whistleblower.

Are we nuts all of a sudden as a nation or can we see this as the excess of a bad political campaign? Does Barr think we are idiots? He actually compared his own prosecutors to pre-schoolers and asserted that he and Trump are in charge, not those career prosecutors who make daily decisions in individual cases.

Barr was wrong in citing "a dozen cases" each year in which Black citizens are mistreated; there are 250 deaths at the hands of police this last year. He and Trump are wrong to deny that there are systemic elements to racism in this country and to our policing practices.

The federal sedition law is rarely invoked, and something that does not seem to fit the circumstances of the unrest in places like Portland in response to police killings of Black men. So, too, would be ordering the arrest of the Seattle mayor for allowing a protest to cool itself in that city.

Promoting sedition laws to stop protests is an extremist Justice Department policy. Barr has no business being attorney general.

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In a bid to draw peoples attention towards the dearth of coconuts in the country, a Sri Lankan lawmaker climbed a coconut tree to address the public. Arundika Fernando, who held a press conference mid-air, asserted that country was facing a shortage of 700 million coconuts due to high demand for local industries and domestic consumption. The coconut industry occupies an important position in the economy of Sri Lanka. In addition to being a staple food item, it is the biggest land user, the third-highest foreign exchange earner and an important source of government tax revenue.

'Boost the industry'

Fernando, who is the state minister of coconut, said that he wished that the country utilized every available plot of land for the cultivation of coconuts and boost the industry to one which would generate foreign exchange to the country", News First reported. Giving a solution to the problem of the rising price of coconut, he said that the government currently aimed to reduce prices of the fruit on accounts of its shortage in the nation.

Read: Sri Lanka Court Summons Captain Of Oil Tanker That Caught Fire

Read: Sri Lankan PM Mahinda & President Gotabaya Rajapaksa Wish PM Modi On His 70th Birthday

Meanwhile, videos and photographs of him on the tree have surfaced. As per News First, it took a great effort for the State Minister's supporters to get him on the tree as well as out of the coconut tree climbing contraption.

(VIDEO) Sri Lankas State Minister of Coconuts goes up tree to address coconut shortage https://t.co/CAvkfILyUo pic.twitter.com/oVboMT6FHD  Sri Lanka Equity (@SriLankaEquity) September 18, 2020

Read: Sri Lankan PM Mahinda & President Gotabaya Rajapaksa Wish PM Modi On His 70th Birthday

Read: Sri Lanka Names Captain Of Oil Tanker A Suspect In Fire

Separately, a Sri Lankan lawmaker on September 8 was escorted out of prison to be sworn in as a member of Parliament. Premalal Jayasekara, from the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Party (SLPP) in August was convicted of murdering an opposition activist by opening fire at an election rally in 2015. Following which, he was sentenced to death for murder.

However, both his trial and conviction came after he was nominated for the poll conducted on August 5. It meant that he was still eligible to contest the election, which he later won. This has made Jayashankara the first convict in the countrys history to serve as a member of parliament.

(Image credits: SriLankaEuity/ Twitter)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 15:33 489 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45ed2a0 4 National COVID-19,coronavirus,Wisma-Atlet-Kemayoran,doni-monardo,health-protocol,covid-19-task-force,virus-korona-indonesia,virus-corona Free

Health authorities suspect that several patients currently in treatment at the Wisma Atlet COVID-19 hospital in Jakarta contracted the coronavirus from family members, because they had mostly remained at home since the outbreak began.

National COVID-19 Task Force head Doni Monardo said around 7 percent of patients told medical personnel that they had rarely or never left home prior to their treatment at the provisional hospital.

He added that medical workers suspected they had caught the virus from family members going about activities outside of their home without properly protecting themselves.

They then became carriers [of the SARS-CoV-2 virus] that eventually infected the other family members, Doni said during a webinar on Saturday, as quoted by kompas.com.

Read also: Asymptomatic coronavirus carriers have high viral loads: Study

The retired army general urged people to strictly adhere to health protocols, such as by wearing face masks and keeping a safe distance from others, to prevent contracting COVID-19.

On Friday, at least 1,929 COVID-19 patients were receiving treatment at the Wisma Atlet hospital, according to data from the task force. Around 1,000 others were in self-isolation at Tower 5 of the complex, which served as the athletes village for the Asian Games.

Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Pandjaitan said he had ordered joint forces of military and police personnel to monitor the enforcement of health protocol across the country.

Luhut had been tasked by President Joko Jokowi Widodo with suppressing COVID-19 transmission nationwide amid the recent increase in the number of confirmed cases. (vny)
DALLAS, Sept. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Since 2014, Beauty Lovers Day has been celebrated as Natura Bisse's International Beauty Day. On the occasion of this holiday, most of the brand's exclusive spas and retailers around the world dress in red and share festive surprises.

Natura Bisse

This International Day of Beauty is a way to express gratitude to clients, partners and friends for all their trust and support. It is also a time to focus on the brand's true commitment to care through skincare. A commitment that is present throughout the vast array of moments and phases in a person's life, including the most vulnerable circumstances like experiencing oncology treatment.

This year, Natura Bisse is taking this moment to celebrate the Beauty of Caring by announcing that it is teaming up with The Ricardo Fisas Natura Bisse Foundation, which just launched in the U.S., and Susan G. Komen, the world's leading nonprofit breast cancer organization, in the fight against breast cancer.

The partnership will raise funds in support of Komen's mission to save lives by meeting the most critical needs in communities and investing in breakthrough research to prevent and cure breast cancer. The organizations will partner on an integrated program and ensure the skincare needs of cancer survivors, and those living with the disease, are understood and met in a compassionate and supportive environment. To further celebrate the Beauty of Caring, Natura Bisse has created a limited edition of one of its most iconic collections, especially for Beauty Lovers Day. The set will be accompanied by a gift to give that includes a natural, ultra-repairing butterNB CEUTICAL NOURISHING NATURAL BALMand a skincare guide designed by the Ricardo Fisas NB Foundation for those undergoing oncology therapies.

A LIMITED EDITION FOR THE OCCASION

To commemorate this inaugural Charity Edition of Beauty Lovers Day, we have designed an exclusive limited-edition set with The Ricardo Fisas Natura Bisse Foundation to benefit Susan G. Komen, including the moisturizer DIAMOND COCOON ULTRA RICH CREAM, designed to repair and strengthen the skin against external aggressions and DIAMOND COCOON SHEER EYE, a lightweight eye contour cream with nourishing ingredients, the perfect ally to strengthen the skin against modern pollution and provide a natural touch of color adaptable to different skin tones.

With the purchase of each limited-edition set from Sept. 1, 2020, to Oct. 31, 2020, a $25 donation will be made to Susan G. Komen.

A GIFT TO GIVE

With the purchase of each limited-edition set, you will also receive this complimentary gift, specifically designed to pamper and comfort skin undergoing oncology therapies: a natural ultra-nourishing butter, NBCeutical Nourishing Natural Balm, and a skincare guide created by the Ricardo Fisas Natura Bisse Foundation to best care for the skin at home. *While supplies last.

PRESS CONTACT:

Press office: 469.515.5691  Phone: 972.791.2276

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- President Uhuru Kenyatta joined he joined forces on Friday, September 18 at their training Area in Samburu

- The head of state was accompanied by Defence CS Monica Juma and Chief of the Defence Forces General Robert Kibochi

- They watched as the KDf detonated a bomb as the soldiers trained to together and demonstrated their ability to support each other on a mission

- Uhuruu lauded the troops for their mission readiness to defend Kenyas territorial integrity

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Days after the US announced it was pressing for permission to carry out armed drone attacks in Kenya, President Uhuru Kenyatta paid a courtesy visit to KDF's Military Training Area in Samburu.

The president who had a front-row seat during the KDF's training exercise on Friday, September 18, is said to have praised the excellent work they were doing in protecting the country.

READ ALSO: Joy as lawmaker's 5 children are set to wed on the same day

President Uhuru Kenyatta in the company of Defence CS Monica Juma when he visited KDF troops in Samburu. Photo: KDF.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: William Ruto, Uhuru join hands to help family that lost 5 relatives on accident

A Facebook post shared on KDF's official page showed the head of state was accompanied by Defence CS Monica Juma and Chief of the Defence Forces General Robert Kibochi.

"President of the Republic of Kenya and the Commander-in-Chief (CinC) of the KDF has lauded the troops for their mission readiness to defend Kenyas territorial integrity," said KDF.

Service commanders, senior military officers, officers and service members were also present at the event where Uhuru watched as the soldiers detonated a bomb.

READ ALSO: Lawyer Donald Kipkorir sees off daughter as she goes back to school in London

President Uhuru Kenyatta watched as the joined forces detonated a bomb in joint training. Photo: KDF

Source: Facebook

"The CinC was adressing troops from the three KDF services who demonstrted their firepower capability and manoeuvre in a joint opertaion training excersie," read the post.

The exercise by the three armed forces including the Kenya Army, Kenya Navy and the Kenya Air Force was to demonstrate their ability to support each other on a mission to neutralise an enemy.

Uhuru's visit to the training area came barely two days after AMISON Sector II Comandeer Brigadier Paul Njema held talks with Somali Security Forces commmanders anfd locla admins.

READ ALSO: Uproar as Pumwani Maternity workers lockout woman giving birth from facility

He acknowledged the continued partnership in fostering peace and security in the region and further urged the team not to tire in ensuring the area achieves lasting stability.

"AMISOM is currently focused on the Somali Transition Plan which will soon see all security responsibilities transferred to you," Njema said

"We are committed to providing mentorship and assure you that we shall continue to work together to clear any remaining elements of Al-Shabaab," added Njema.

READ ALSO: Billionaire Bill Gates says COVID-19 in Africa could be worse

The develoments follows rior reports that the US militarys Africa Command was pressing for the armed drone strikes targeting Qaeda-linked Shabab fighters in parts of eastern Kenya.

Four American officials reportedly said the militia group was potentially expanding the war zone across the border from its sanctuaries in Somalia.

This did not necessarily mean the US will start carrying out drone attacks in Kenya but will give Africa Command permission under certain circumstances to expand the counterterrorism drone war in another country.

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The Delhi police on Saturday said that journalist Rajeev Sharma, who was arrested on charges of spying two days ago, was allegedly passing on sensitive information to Chinese intelligence agencies. They added a Chinese woman, Qing Shi, and a Nepalese man, Sher Singh alias Raj Bohra, have been booked along with Sharma under the Official Secrets Act after classified documents were recovered from their possession.

Also read: NIA arrests key accused in Naval spy ring case

Sanjeev Yadav, the deputy commissioner of police (special cell), said Sharma was allegedly in contact with a Chinese intelligence official named Michael and passed on to him classified information related to Indian army deployments in the China-Bhutan-India tri-junction including Doklam. Yadav said Sharma had also allegedly given him information related to India-Myanmar military cooperation and other details about the border between India and China.

Police said Sharma was allegedly paid around $500 for each assignment and claimed that he had received around 3 million since 2019. They did not specify how much he was allegedly paid before 2019. The payments, police said, were made through hawala, shell companies, and Western Union money transfers.

ALSO WATCH | Amid border tension, China spy gang busted in Delhi, scribe held, say police

Police said that between 2010-2014, Sharma wrote for the Global Times (China). Observing his columns, one Chinese intelligence agent named Michael from Kunming city of China contacted Sharma through his LinkedIn account and invited him to Kunming, China, for an interview in a Chinese Media Company. The entire trip was funded by Michael. During the meeting, Michael and his junior Xou asked Rajeev Sharma to provide inputs on various aspects of India-China relations. Between 2016 to 2018, Rajeev Sharma was in contact with Michael and Xou, Yadav said.

The officer said Sharma had meetings with Michael and Xou in Laos and the Maldives once and briefed them. Besides these visits, Sharma was also allegedly in contact with Michael and Xou through e-mail and social media, police said.

Detailing Sharmas alleged role after 2018, the special cell officer said, In January 2019, Sharma came in contact with another Kunming-based Chinese entity named George. He visited Kunming via Kathmandu and met George. George was introduced as a general manager of a Chinese Media Company. During the meeting, George asked Rajeev Sharma to write and inform about issues related to the Dalai Lama. For this, he was offered $500 per article. George told Sharma that they would send him money through his companys sister concern based in Mahipalpur, South Delhi, being operated by Qing.

Yadav said Sharma was paid through shell companies. Shell companies were operated by foreign intelligence to transfer funds to him. Two Chinese nationals -- Jhang Chang and his wife Chang-li-lia -- were running the companies MZ Pharmacy and MZ Malls, under fake names Suraj and Usha. They are both presently in China and on their behalf, Qing Shi and Bhora, a Nepali National (both directors of MZ Pharmacy) are presently operating the business from Mahipalpur.

WATCH | Amid border tension, China spy gang busted in Delhi, say police

Sharma was arrested on September 14. Police said he was found in possession of confidential defence documents. He was produced before a court on September 15 and sent in police custody for six days. Sharma has filed a bail application, which will be heard on September 22.
Lok Sabha MP Farooq Abdullah [File Photo]

New Delhi [India], September 19 (ANI): National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah on Saturday said in Lok Sabha that there has been an increase in border skirmishes in Jammu and Kashmir and talks should be held with Pakistan.

Abdullah, who spoke during zero hour, thanked the members who had demanded his release when he was detained along with other political leaders after the government scrapped Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir was also bifurcated into two union territories last year.

The former Chief Minister said "there is no progress" in Jammu and Kashmir and said people were facing difficulties due to absence of 4G network. Abdullah said that children were also facing difficulties in their studies as "everything was on the internet".

He said border skirmishes are on the rise and people are dying and there is no solution except for talks.

"There is no alternative to talks with the neighbour for restoring peace in the region," he said, without naming Pakistan.

Abdullah, who is MP from Srinagar, said India was also talking to China over the border situation in Ladakh.

He also referred to reports that an inquiry by Army had found "prima face evidence" that the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act was exceeded during an anti-terror operation in Shopian earlier this year.

"The Army has agreed that the three persons who were killed in Shopian were killed by mistake and the government should provide a huge compensation in this case," Abdullah said. (ANI)


Warner Music NashvilleCountry crooner Brett Eldredge knows that a song by Billie Eilish is far from the first thing fans expect him to cover, but hes a big fan of the pop phenomenons catalogue. Thats why he was inspired to deliver his own live take on When the Partys Over, which is out today.

Brett had dropped When the Partys Over into his set during his most recent European tour. The released version was recorded during his show in Glasgow, Scotland, which was actually the first time he and his band performed it.

I heard this song a year or two ago and I just love how unique of an artist she is and the complex nature of the songs she writes, Brett gushes. I love how emotional and intense they are and could tell she had to grow up fast and really puts her life out there in her music.

As someone who took a break from technology and shut out the outside world while he made his most recent album Sunday Drive, Brett knows first-hand how difficult it can be for songwriters to figure out what they want to say. Thats another reason why hes so impressed by 18-year-old Billie.

I think its a powerful thing to be that young and to have found your voice, and it speaks to people of all ages, he points out.

For whatever reason, when people hear my cover of this song, I think theyd say to themselves, I didnt see that coming at all," but thats exactly what I wanted because when I heard it I thought, Man, I could do something special with this, Brett adds.

Im so grateful for the song that shes written and grateful to be able to sing it.

By Carena Liptak

Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.




NEW YORK (AP)  A presidential campaign that was already tugging at the nations most searing divides has been jolted by the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, potentially reshaping the election at a moment when some Americans were beginning to cast ballots.

For months, the contest has largely centered on President Donald Trumps handling of the coronavirus, the biggest public health crisis in a century that has badly damaged his prospects for reelection as the U.S. death toll nears 200,000 people.

But in a flash, Ginsburgs death on Friday added new weight to the election, with the potential that Trump or his Democratic challenger, Joe Biden, could pick a successor who could decide abortion access, environmental regulations and the power of the presidency for a generation.

With early voting underway in five states and Election Day just over six weeks away, Democrats and Republicans were largely unified late Friday in praising Ginsburg as a leading legal thinker and advocate for womens rights. But strategists in both parties also seized on the moment to find an advantage.

Facing the prospect of losing both the White House and the Senate, some Republicans viewed the Supreme Court vacancy as one of the few avenues remaining for Trump to galvanize supporters beyond his most loyal core of supporters, particularly suburban women who have abandoned the GOP in recent years.

Its hard to see how this doesnt help Trump politically, said veteran Republican strategist Alex Conant. Biden wants this election to be a referendum on Trump. Now its going to be a referendum on whoever he nominates to the Supreme Court.

Multiple Republicans close to the White House believe that Trump will likely nominate a woman, who could serve as a counterweight of sorts to Bidens choice of running mate Kamala Harris, who would be the first woman to serve as vice president.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., pledged to quickly bring to a vote whomever Trump nominates. But he faces potential division within his own ranks, including from Sens. Mitt Romney of Utah, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine and Cory Gardner of Colorado. Collins and Gardner are in particularly tight races for reelection this fall.

More: Casey: Senate should wait until after election before vote to replace Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Thats fueling optimism among Democrats that the vacancy could drive home the significance of the election to their base.

The implications for Senate races could be profound, said Democratic strategist Bill Burton.

The presidential race will see some immediate churn as activists on both sides will be newly energized, he continued. The persistent question will be whether huge protests around the Capitol and the country will inflame such vigorous energy that it leads to awful clashes.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., walks back to his office on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, Aug. 3, 2020. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)AP

McConnell, in a note to his GOP colleagues Friday night, urged them to keep their powder dry and not rush to declare a position on whether a Trump nominee should get a vote this year. This is not the time to prematurely like yourselves into a position you may later regret, he said.

Biden, who has already pledged to appoint the first Black woman to the Supreme Court, told reporters late Friday that voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice to consider.

Democrats are enraged by McConnells pledge to move forward, especially after he blocked President Barack Obama from appointing a justice to replace Antonin Scalia nine months before the 2016 election. That decision cast a long political shadow, prompting Pete Buttigieg, the former South Bend, Indiana, mayor who mounted a spirited bid for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, to make expansion of the Supreme Court a centerpiece of his campaign. Biden rejected the idea.

Some Democrats privately concede that the Supreme Court vacancy could shift attention away from the virus, which has been a central element of Bidens campaign.

Trump took the unprecedented step in 2016 of releasing a list of Supreme Court picks before he was elected, a move that was credited with unifying skeptical conservative voters to unite behind him. Republicans also believe that the high-profile debate over Trumps last Supreme Court pick, Brett Kavanaugh, helped the GOP retain the Senate during the 2018 midterms, when the party lost control of the House.

The president, seeking to build the same type of energy that surrounded his 2016 bid, released another list of potential Supreme Court nominees last week.

But some Democrats said the political environment is already overheated, with partisan divides over everything from wearing a mask to curb the pandemic to addressing climate change. Ginsburgs death, they say, may not change that.

Its already pretty ugly out there, said Megan Jones, a Democratic strategist who worked for former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. I do not know how this does not become a fight of epic proportions.

By STEVE PEOPLES, The Associated Press
How do you like them apples?

The aforementioned fruits season is here, and theres an abundance of picking possibilities, with a range of varieties at your fingertips.

Whether you are a picking pro  plucking only prime produce  or just want to spend some time in glorious fall apple groves, there is a farm for you in the Hamilton area.

But picking which place to pluck comes with its own culinary conundrum. The variety of apples on offer differs from farm to farm and week to week.

So dont go for a Gala when Zestar is your apple of choice. And make sure Red Delicious is on offer (by checking the orchard website) before arriving to find only Russets and Crispins.

Also, this years apple picking priorities will be different under COVID, so make sure you have your mask handy, and check if gloves and other coronavirus precautions are required.

Here are five places to pick in the area:

The Apple Orchard

Head up Highway 6 toward Freelton for this apple orchard with an appropriate name.

The orchard features over 10,000 apple and pear trees and also offers sunflowers, pumpkins, squash and more.

An admission fee  $7 for adults on the weekend  lets you access the farms amenities, including wagon rides, a corn maze and animals.

Orchard Home Farm

Out St. George way (halfway between Cambridge and Brantford) is this 80-acre apple and pear orchard.

Drive or walk right up to your favourite apple varieties at this farm.

Stop in to their store for a fresh apple pie.

Myers Apple Farm

Head down Governors Road for Myers apples.

Take in the sights and sounds of the country at this orchard and pumpkin patch and take home a taste of fall.

Carluke Orchards

Head south on Fiddlers Green Road for this family run orchard.

The Inksetter Family prides themselves for having one of the best pick-your-own orchards.

Find 13 varieties of apples  and a pumpkin patch, too.

Puddicombe Farms

Out Stoney Creek way is this pick-your-own orchard and winery.

Call to reserve a train ride through the scenic orchard to your apple-picking spot.
On Friday, the Illinois Nurses Association ended a limited week-long strike of 800 nurses at the University of Illinois Hospital, isolating 4,000 staffers on the picket line. The limited strike ended without a new contract agreement, after the INA and the UIH hospital administration met for negotiations on Thursday.

The university staffers, including cashiers, custodians, parking attendants, laboratory animal caretakers, emergency medical technicians and physical therapists in the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 73, joined the striking nurses on Monday after overwhelming sentiment for a combined struggle forced the SEIU's hand.

The reason were on strike is because we want more money, were understaffed, were not treated with respect, we dont have any [personal protective equipment] gearno masks, gowns, or gloves,' Andre, a hospital worker, said. 'Management puts more work on us. We are overworked. We dont get vacation time as wanted because we are short-staffed on workers. We are denied vacation requests, we are denied our furlough days because we are understaffed. They want you to work your shift, and then they want you to turn around and work another shift because the person that was supposed to come in called off work. Now they get mad at you because you dont want to stay and work because you still have a life outside of the hospital, and they try to retaliate by denying your vacation requests when they do have enough workers.

UIH Nurses picketing

UIC staff are striking at locations in Chicago, Peoria, Rockford and Urbana. Workers have been without a contract for over a year. The staff, some of whom are paid less than $9 an hour due to a loophole which allows UIC to not pay staff Chicagos minimum wage of $14 per hour, are demanding increased pay and personal protective equipment (PPE) and expanded COVID-19 testing.

SEIU has stated that the UIC staff strike will continue indefinitely until an agreement is reached. This likely may be very soon. The union reported that UIC management is bringing in strikebreakers from Mississippi, Nevada, Tennessee and Texas.

The conditions which nurses and staffers face are the outcome of decades of attacks on jobs and living standards, overseen not only by UIC management but by the Democratic Party, which has controlled politics in Illinois and Chicago for a century.

Surgery unit nurses' picket

The ruling class is relying on the unions nationwide to rein in a growing strike wave in response to the pandemic. Last week, University of Michigan graduate student workers struck for over a week against their universitys reckless and dangerous drive to have in-person classes only to end with a sellout agreement after the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) union intervened to end the strike.

Almost one year ago, the leadership of SEIU Local 73 worked closely with the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) and its parent union AFT to smother the Chicago teachers strike.

Today, SEIU 73 is seeking to isolate the strike by UIC staff by keeping 25,000 of their members on the job. During its one-week strike, the INA kept healthcare workers at different hospitals on the job in spite of similar conditions.

A striking UIH nurse

UIC workers are on strike without a penny in strike pay. Meanwhile, according to illinoissunshine.org, the SEIU nationally had $430 million in assets as of 2019, $150 million of which was in cash. SEIU donated more $3 millions to Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle in her failed mayoral bid against current Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot. In other words: millions for Democrats and union bureaucrats, and nothing for workers.

Workers must move fast. The only way for workers to combat poverty wages and unsafe working conditions is to take the struggle out of the hands of the INA and SEIU by forming rank-and-file strike committees. They should break the union-imposed isolation of their struggle and issue an appeal to workers in Chicago and throughout the region to expand the strike.

The stranglehold of the financial aristocracy over education, healthcare and the political system is responsible for the conditions workers face, and it must be smashed. A mass political movement of the working class, which the Socialist Equality Party is fighting to build, must place the hospitals and universities under public, democratic control, ensuring theyre run to meet the needs of workers.

Contact the WSWS to discuss organizing a rank-and-file committee or to share your story.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) settles in for a House Judiciary Committee hearing to receive counsel presentations of evidence on the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump on Capitol Hill in Washington, on Dec. 9, 2019. (Jonathan Ernst-Pool/Getty Images)

Democrat Threatens to Pack Supreme Court If Ginsburgs Replacement Nominated

One top House Democrat proposed that the next Senate after the November election should pack the U.S. Supreme Court if Republicans nominate a replacement of the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

If Sen. McConnell and @SenateGOP were to force through a nominee during the lame duck sessionbefore a new Senate and President can take officethen the incoming Senate should immediately move to expand the Supreme Court, Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) wrote in a Twitter post.

The House Judiciary Committee chairman said that filling the vacancy left by Ginsburg during a lame-duck session is undemocratic and a clear violation of the public trust in elected officials.

Congress would have to act and expanding the court would be the right place to start, he added.

If Sen. McConnell and @SenateGOP were to force through a nominee during the lame duck sessionbefore a new Senate and President can take officethen the incoming Senate should immediately move to expand the Supreme Court. 1/2 https://t.co/BDYQ0KVmJe  Rep. Nadler (@RepJerryNadler) September 19, 2020

The Republicans and Democrats fall into a fierce battle over Ginsburgs vacancy following her death.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) announce right after the death of Ginsburg that Trumps nominee will get a Senate vote. A day later, President Donald Trump urged Republicans to confirm Ginsbergs replacement without delay.

Meanwhile, Democrats including presidential candidate Joe Biden, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) insisted the process should be postponed to some time after the November election and leave the nomination to the one who wins the presidency.

.@GOP We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 19, 2020

The Democrats tried to assure the Republicans to follow the principle set during the nomination of Merrick Garland in 2016.

Garland was nominated by former President Barack Obama to replace Justice Antonin Scalia after he died. The nomination was blocked by McConnell who said that the Republicans wouldnt consider Obamas nominee because they felt the vacancy should be filled by whoever won the 2016 election.

However, McConnell said Friday the situation was different then because the Senate and the presidency were held by different parties. Republicans currently control both.

In the last midterm election before Justice Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party presidents Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year, he wrote in a statement right after Ginsburgs death.

President [Donald] Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, he said.

McConnell also rebutted the myth that theres not enough time to finish the nomination process.

Justice Ginsburgs confirmation took only 50 days from the announcement of her nomination until her floor vote, he wrote in a letter to his Republican colleagues citing Heritage Foundation analysis which says Supreme Court nomination takes 71 days on average.

Court packing indicates expanding the number of justices in the Supreme Court, which is nine currently. The term has been commonly used after former President Franklin Roosevelt proposed to increase justices of the Supreme Court from nine to fifteen.

After he won the presidency in 2016, Trump and Senate Republican Majority nominated and confirmed two conservative justices to Americas highest court. The Supreme Court leaned to the conservative side with a 5:4 majority after the new appointments.

Some progressive organizations floated the idea of packing the Supreme Court afterward.

In an open letter back in June 2020, several progressive groups including Progressive Change Institute, Demand Progress, and Friends of the Earth suggested Congress eliminate the conservative majority in the Supreme Court by packing.

The fastest, most effective way  is to enact legislation increasing the size of the Court by at least two seats, and to quickly fill those seats with justices who will safeguard our democracy, the groups wrote in the letter (pdf).
The forfeiture committee removed the honour, with the approval of the queen.

Britain on Friday stripped disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein of an honour recognising his contribution to the UK film industry.

Weinstein, 68, was given the honour in 2004. The 68-year-old former Hollywood producer was convicted earlier this year of rape and sexual assault against two women and sentenced to 23 years in prison.

Accusations by dozens of women in 2017 led to the end of his career and helped spur #MeToo  a global movement demanding that powerful men be held accountable for their sexual misconduct.

The Queen has directed that the appointment of Harvey Weinstein to be an Honorary Commander of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, dated 19 January 2004, shall be cancelled and annulled and that his name shall be erased from the Register of the said Order, according to a notice in The Gazette, the UKs official public record.

The forfeiture committee can remove an honour, with the approval of the queen.

Once one of the most powerful people in Hollywood, Weinsteins credits include The English Patient, Good Will Hunting, and Shakespeare In Love.
ISTANBUL: Turkey rejected on Friday the human rights violations claims in northern Syria laid out in a report by the United Nations Commission of Inquiry and following criticism.

We categorically reject the baseless allegations of human rights violations claimed against the Syrian opposition and concerning our country in relation to them," the Turkish foreign ministry said on Friday.

On Tuesday, U.N. war crimes investigators said Turkey must rein in Syrian rebels it supports in northern Syria who may have carried out kidnappings, torture and looting of civilian property following a report covering the first half of 2020.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said the human rights situation in parts of northern Syria is grim and called on Turkey to ensure that violations committed by armed groups under their control cease.

I urge Turkey to immediately launch an impartial, transparent and independent investigation into the incidents we have verified," Bachelet also said.

Ankara also rejected the criticism and called it groundless.

Ankara backs rebels trying to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad backed by Russia and Iran. Turkey seized control of some northern border towns in recent years with cross border incursions to push back Syrian Kurdish YPG fighters, which Ankara views as a terrorist group.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Rajya Sabha is likely to take up the contentious farm bills on Sunday with the Congress and many opposition parties trying to put a united front to oppose these proposed legislations terming them as anti-farmer and pro-corporate, even as the ruling BJP is also reaching out to several regional outfits for support.

The numbers, however, appear to be in favour of the ruling dispensation to get these bills passed from Rajya Sabha, while the lower house has already cleared them despite a key NDA member Shiromani Akali Dal vehemently opposing them.

Some key BJP leaders are said to be in touch with various non-Congress opposition parties to seek support from their Rajya Sabha members for these bills.

While the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance is yet to have a clear majority of its own in the 245-member Rajya Sabha, many regional parties have backed it for the last several sessions to ensure passage of various legislations proposed by the government.

BJP leaders expressed confidence that they will get the support of over 130 members, including nine of the AIADMK and six of the YSR Congress -- both of whom are not part of the ruling alliance if a division of votes is sought on these bills.

ALSO READ | EPS supports farm legislations, says they will benefit Tamil Nadu farmers

Another regional party, Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) was also being wooed by the BJP, but its chief and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Saturday asked his party MPs to vote against these bills, alleging these would cause great injustice to farmers in the country.

The BJP itself has the highest tally with 86 seats, followed by 40 of the Congress.

The three members of the SAD are sure to vote against the bills, but Shiv Sena, a former BJP ally and now in opposition, has expressed it support for these bills.

The Maharashtra party has three members in Rajya Sabha.

Several other regional parties, including three-member Aam Aadmi Party, Samajwadi Party with eight seats, and BSP with four, have joined the opposition's ranks in protest against these bills but it may not prove enough to hinder their passage.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's forceful defence of the three bills and blistering criticism of the Opposition for protesting against them on Thursday made it clear that he remains unfazed by the opposition and that his government will press on to get Parliament's nod for these measures aimed at opening private avenues for farmers to sell their produce.

His assertion came amid Congress and several other parties besides the SAD coming out strongly against these bills, calling them "anti-farmers".

Farmers in states like Punjab and Haryana have been protesting against these proposed laws which, their leaders allege, will end up dismantling the existing government-backed support system they have.

A number count of parties that have come out against these draft legislations suggests that there are as of now nearly 100 MPs opposing them.

ALSO READ | Dotasra writes to Rajasthan Governor over farmers resentment against Centre's farm bills

There is no clarity about the stand of some small parties which have around a dozen members put together.

Since the Modi government assumed office for its second time in 2019, its rivals have not been able to scuttle any of its major bills due to a rise in the ranks of treasury benches and a corresponding fall in the opposition ranks.

The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill were passed by Lok Sabha on Thursday, while the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill was passed on Tuesday.

These bills seek to replace ordinances already promulgated by the government.

With opposition parties dubbing the three bills as "anti-farmers" and the SAD quitting his government to protest them, Modi refuted their criticism, describing these proposed laws as "historic" and stating that they will unshackle farmers by allowing them to sell their produce anywhere at a better price.

A day after resigning from Union Cabinet, senior SAD leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal said she feels "saddened" that her voice in support of farmers was not heard and demanded that the government should pause on these legislations by referring them to a parliamentary panel for wider consultations.

ALSO READ | Farm bills: SAD keeps up attack against BJP; Amarinder dares Badals to quit NDA

The government has presented these bills as pro-farmers, saying these will ensure that farmers get better prices for their produce and do not get subjected to regulations of 'mandis'.

Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar had said on Thursday in Lok Sabha that farmers will be free to sell their produce to anyone and these bills will increase competition and promote private investment, which will help in the development of farm infrastructure and generate employment.

However, opposition parties have slammed the bills as "anti-farmers", claiming that the agriculture sector will be left to the fate of corporate interests.

Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal also appealed to all non-BJP parties to unite in Rajya Sabha and oppose the three bills that he claimed would leave farmers in the hands of big companies for exploitation.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday appealed to gym owners and people coming for workouts at these establishments to follow preventive measures against COVID-19. Representatives of the gym associations met the chief minister and thanked him for allowing these establishments to reopen in the city.

"I appeal to all gym operators of Delhi and people coming for workouts at these centres to follow safety rules. We also have to stop the spread of coronavirus and stay healthy as well," Kejriwal said in a tweet in Hindi. According to the Chief Minister's Office, during the meeting, the CM also assured support to the gym operators in future.

Earlier this week, the Delhi government had allowed gyms and yoga institutes to reopen after being closed for over five months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On Thursday, Delhi recorded 4,432 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the tally to over 2.34 lakh while the death toll reached 4,877 with 38 fresh fatalities.

On Wednesday, the national capital had registered a record single-day spike of 4,473 COVID-19 cases.

Also read: COVID-19 in Delhi: High RT-PCR costs an obstacle in upscaling tests

Also read: 33% Delhiites exposed to coronavirus, have Covid antibodies, reveals latest sero survey
Princeton University. John Greim / Getty Images

Princeton University ordered an emergency evacuation Saturday after a reported bomb threat, according to a release from the school's communications department.

Students were ordered to vacate multiple buildings, including the school's art museum, library, Nassau Hall, and the Chapel.

About two hours after the reported bomb threat, Princeton's public safety department said in a tweet that the campus had been cleared.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Princeton University ordered an emergency evacuation Saturday after a reported bomb threat, according to a release from the school's communications office.

About two hours after the reported bomb threat, Princeton's public safety department said in a tweet that the campus has been cleared.

"Public Safety has confirmed there is no threat and has issued an ALL CLEAR related to the bomb threat," the tweet read. "Normal activities can resume."

In a release posted at 11:21 a.m., students were ordered to vacate multiple buildings, including the school's art museum, library, Nassau Hall, and the Chapel.

"This is NOT a test. Follow the instructions in this message for your safety. A bomb threat was received for the Art Museum, Firestone Library, Nassau Hall, and the Chapel," the release says.

"The Department of Public Safety has issued an evacuation order for these buildings. Please collect your personal items including your car keys. Leave your door unlocked and open to allow the area to be inspected. Calmly leave the building and go to your building's designated evacuation assembly area."

Public safety officers are responding to the threat, according to the release. Visitors are asked to stay away from campus and avoid traveling to the area.

The release also asks students to avoid using cellphones on campus unless necessary and to check their email for updates as well as the university website.

Story continues

Twitter user Asad Hussein, whose bio on the platform indicates he's a writer for the university, described students looking "distressed" on campus.

"Following a bomb threat at Princeton today, distressed students are standing outside the dorms all over campus, checking updates from the Department of Public Safety," Hussein said.

The university announced last month that all undergraduate learning would be conducted online due to the coronavirus.

The Princeton Police Department referred Insider to the university's own police department. The university did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

University spokesperson Ben Chang said in a statement to campus newspaper the Daily Princetonian that, "As with any threat, university officials are taking this seriously and taking all the necessary steps to ensure the safety of our community."

Read the original article on Insider
U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo hosts third annual U.S.-Qatar Strategic Dialogue is held at the State Department in Washington

PARAMARIBO, Suriname/GEORGETOWN, Guyana (Reuters) - China's embassies to Suriname and Guyana on Friday accused U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo of "spreading rumors" and "smearing" Beijing, after Washington's top diplomat criticized Chinese companies during a four-stop South America tour.

In a joint appearance with newly elected Surinamese President Chan Santokhi on Thursday, Pompeo said Chinese companies often do not compete on a "fair and equitable basis."

"We've watched the Chinese Communist Party invest in countries, and it all seems great at the front end and then it all comes falling down when the political costs connected to that becomes clear," Pompeo said.

His comments came after a string of oil discoveries off the coast of Suriname, whose trade ties with China grew under the small South American country's former President Desi Bouterse, a military strongman who oversaw an economic collapse and lost a re-election bid to Santokhi earlier this year.

China lent and invested heavily in resource-rich Latin America during the decade-long commodities boom that largely ended in 2014. The Trump administration has sought to highlight the heavy debts and economic deterioration those ties have left for close Chinese trade partners like Venezuela and Ecuador.

The Chinese embassy to Paramaribo said in a statement that "any attempt to sow discord between China and Suriname is doomed to fail."

"We advise Mr. Pompeo to respect facts and truth, abandon arrogance and prejudice, stop smearing and spreading rumors about China," it added.

China's embassy to neighboring Guyana issued a similar statement later on Friday after Pompeo visited Georgetown, arguing Beijing "attaches no political strings in bilateral pragmatic cooperations."

Santokhi had told reporters on Thursday that Suriname's relationship with China was not a topic of conversation in his meeting with Pompeo.

"It is not a question of making choices," he said.

(Reporting by Ank Kuipers in Paramaribo, Suriname and Neil Marks in Georgetown, Guyana; Writing by Luc Cohen; Editing by Dan Grebler and Richard Chang)
When Seinfeld began in 1989, no one knew the cult following the show would have over 30 years later. Stars from the show still enjoy the successes syndication has brought  especially one who worked with bail bonds before landing a role that became one of the most iconic in TV history.

This Seinfeld character was inspired by a real person  but the actor didnt know that

John OHurley as J. Peterman, Steve Hytner as Kenny Bania, Grace Zabriskie as Mrs. Ross, Wayne Knight as Newman, Danny Woodburn as Mickey Abbott, Larry Thomas as Soup Nazi | Joey Delvalle/NBCU Photo Bank

RELATED: Seinfeld: The Iconic Puffy Shirt Sold for a Ridiculous Amount of Money

Years after Seinfeld premiered, a guest actor stepped in to play the role of a chef working in his soup restaurant. Due to his militant style and no-nonsense order and get out rules, Jerry Seinfeld and friends deemed him The Soup Nazi.

The first episode actor Larry Thomas appeared as the chef aired in 1995 as he worked as a bail bondsman in Los Angeles between auditions. Hed just met with a second bail bonds company, but that wasnt where his heart was.

The only people who had seen my work were the four people who had sat in the audience of the plays I was doing, Thomas told The Hollywood Reporter.

A turn of events came by way of actor Jeffrey Tambor who sometimes taught at Thomas acting class. Thomas asked Tambor to connect him with the Larry Sanders Show casting director, where Tambor worked at the time. That casting director also worked on Seinfeld.

Thomas landed an audition through Tambors connection at Seinfeld. He prepared to read for The Soup Nazi role by dressing up in the most literal way.

I had a pair of green pants. I had this old army shirt from back the 70s when my friends older brothers were in Vietnam, Thomas said.

My wife went, Oh my god. Ive got an idea. She went into her part of the closet and took out a beret. We both stood there staring at the mirror. I looked like Saddam Hussein, who was not a very popular guy in 1995. Im going, Do I have the guts to walk in there like that?'

Thomas said he didnt know the character was based on real-life New York chef, Ali Yeganeh but he did get a callback after the audition.

Thomas thought he blew the audition

RELATED: A Deleted Seinfeld Scene Reveals a Much Darker Storyline For Newman

By the second audition, co-creator Larry David, producers, and others were present. He recalled waiting while overhearing another actor audition before him.

Jerry was laughing his head off. I would have thought he was just trying to mess with me, he was laughing so hard, he said, adding Seinfeld then asked him to play the character nicer.

I called my wife and said, I had Seinfeld going for a minute, but then I blew it because he wanted something different. But I tell you, it was the audition of my life. 

He obviously got the part and started work soon after.

Jerry walked up to me and first thing says, Hey, forget about the direction I gave you. Just do what you did when you came in. For some reason, the meaner, the funnier,' Thomas said.

Thats Jerry. One of the most powerful men in the industry tells some nobody actor that your idea was better than mine. When something is funny to him, his ego is not involved.

The star added that during taping, the cast stayed to film after the audience left to add new pieces into the scenes. One of which, he said, is the classic moments between Thomas and Julia Louis-Dreyfus in which she does an Al Pacino impression.

Larry said, I want you to go very good, very good. You know what? No soup for you' Thomas added.

The rest is history.

The Soup Nazi lives in infamy

RELATED: Seinfeld Star Jason Alexander Says He Couldve Made a Lot of Money If He Agreed To This Diabolical Thing

Though Yeganeh famously disassociated himself from the portrayal, Thomas was solidified as The Soup Nazi forever. However, when fame first struck, he didnt love saying the famous lines for fans.

The big thing I remember distinctly about that period was I refused to say No soup for you for anybody because I thought Id sound like a bad watercooler impression of something I did in a specific moment, he said.

He later got over the sentiment and is now the face for Yeganehs re-branded soup franchise  thanks to a little kudos from David.

They didnt realize what an anathema would be for me at that moment, he said. First take, No soup for you! That was it. Out and done, moving on. I was walking away and Larry David says, You know, you say it the exact same way that you said three years ago? So from now on I say it 20 times a day.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 22:10:55|Editor: huaxia

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by Xinhua writers Lyu Qiuping, Ai Fumei

YINCHUAN, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Bai Juan used to throw herself entirely taking care of her first child after giving birth to the baby girl 11 years ago. But, this time when she became a mother to her second child, she decided to spare some time for herself.

Bai, 39, is a teacher at a vocational school in Yinchuan, capital of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.

After delivering her second daughter this year, she hired a maternity nanny to take care of her and the baby. Besides, she visited the Yinchuan Women and Children Healthcare Hospital (YWCHH) twice a week for post-partum rehabilitation, including the pelvic floor therapy.

"Your body doesn't lie. It feels really good after the rehabilitation," she said.

China relaxed its one-child policy in 2016, allowing each family to have two children. With the increasing awareness of their health and body shapes, more and more new mothers, many of whom are old and find themselves harder to recover, are turning to professional institutions for post-partum recovery.

The YWCHH is the largest healthcare institution for women and children in Ningxia. In 2019, it treated nearly half of the 7,000 new mothers in the hospital, offering pelvic floor therapy and other rehabilitation.

Wang Jie, who has worked in the hospital for 18 years, has witnessed people's changing attitudes toward post-partum recovery.

According to the head nurse of the maternity department, when the hospital initiated post-partum recovery therapies in 2008, they had only 200 mothers a year for the rehabilitation.

"Most new mothers back then spent almost all their time nursing their children, neglecting their own health," Wang recalled.

Wang attributed the rising public awareness to the efforts of hospitals through lectures and post-partum visits, as well as the information shared via popular nursery accounts online and books offline.

Zhang Yanqin, a senior doctor with the YWCHH, said pregnancy and delivery are major factors behind women's pelvic floor dysfunction -- disorders that occur when pelvic floor muscles and ligaments are impaired.

"The pressure generated by the fetus during the process of pregnancy and delivery damages the resilience of pelvic floor muscles, leading to symptoms like urinary incontinence while sneezing or coughing," Zhang said, adding that such symptoms may deteriorate when women grow older.

According to a survey published in 2006 by Peking Union Medical College Hospital, among the 5,221 female respondents aged between 22 and 99 in Beijing, 38.5 percent were found to have urinary incontinence.

The rising awareness of post-partum health has also greatly spurred the post-partum care market in China.

According to a health report on Chinese women released earlier this year, the number of maternal care centers providing post-partum recovery and maternal and child health services skyrocketed from 550 in 2013 to 4,400 in 2019 across the country. The number is expected to further expand to 4,800 this year, said the report jointly released by Meiyou, an online platform engaged in women services, and the intelligent information platform of MobTech.

"A wise mother should treat herself better. I'm delighted to find that more friends around me are taking better care of themselves while taking care of their babies," Bai said. Enditem
Guwahati, Sep 20 : As part of its humanitarian act, the Indian Army has released a one time grant of Rs 5 lakh from the Army Central Welfare Fund (ACWF) to the family of one of its bravehearts Subedar Gandhi Ram Rajbongshi, who lost his life while serving the nation along the northern borders 20 years ago.

Defence sources said that Rajbongshi, Subedar of Assam Regiment, a resident of Mangaldoi in Darrang district of western Assam, lost his life while performing duties along the northern borders on December 18, 2000.

Subedar Gandhi Ram Rajbongshi left behind his wife Pabitri Rajbongshi, a 15-year-old daughter and a-year old son.

Defence spokesman Lt Col Harsh Wardhan Pande said that after the death of Subedar Gandhi Ram Rajbongshi, his wife Pabitri Rajbongshi struggled to educate her two kids.

"The complete responsibility of upbringing of the family was now onto the shoulders of "Veer Nari" Pabitri Rajbongshi who took on this responsibility as a challenge and acted as an iron lady upholding the tag of a "Veer Nari".

She single handedly nourished both her children and helped them pursue their education in the best schools and colleges possible," he added.

"In 2011, her elder daughter Geetanjali got married while her son was still undergoing schooling. In 2018, again a tragedy struck this heroic lady when her son met with a bike accident in June.

The injuries sustained by her son Gagan Rajbongshi were severe and he was hospitalised for over a month for undergoing various minor surgeries and also facial re-constructive surgery.

"The total cost of his treatment was around 12 lakh.

The "Veer Nari" as strong as ever again took over the responsibility of the family and helped her son by providing him the best medical treatment possible. The family wanted to claim the medical expenditure from the government but were unable to receive any financial help as they were not registered and availing the ECHS (Ex-servicemen Contributory Health Scheme) facility.

Lt Col Pande said at this time of need, the Indian Army rose to the occasion, in accordance with its commitment to ensuring welfare and social security of Veterans and Veernaris, the local Indian Army unit ensured release of one time grant of Rs 5 lakh from ACWF to help and support the "Veer Nari".

"This reflects the bond which still exists within the organisation, always looking after the ones who have made the ultimate sacrifice for this nation and never ever forgets their sacrifice,a the Army official observed.
Actorly couple Eric Christian Olsen and Sarah Wright Olsen are proud parents for the third time around.

As seen on People, the NCIS: Los Angeles star, 43, and his Marry Me actress wife, 36, welcomed baby daughter Winter Story in Los Angeles, California on Tuesday.

Sarah took to Instagram over the weekend to share the happy news, with a beautiful photo of mom nursing the new arrival while dad, shirtless, stood over them with a mask on.

Eric gazed proudly at the camera in the snap.

Sarah also included a timely and inspirational message along with the post.

'She's here!!!' the American Made star began.

'As we collectively navigate the chaos and existential crisis that is 2020 we anchor ourselves with the things that matter most. Family, friends and human connection.

Gorgeous couple: Eric and Sarah costarred on the series The Loop back in 2006 and 2007, and were married near Jackson Hole, Wyoming, in June 2012; seen here in 2018

'Winter Story Olsen came to us sept 15th,' Sarah continued. 'She's 10lbs 4 ounces of newborn bliss. Mama and baby are doing great, home safe surrounded by a cuddle puddle of kids and giant dogs.

'Life is equal parts spectacular and fleeting; Love fearlessly ,' she concluded, tagging her husband and including several other emojis.

One of the emojis was a rainbow, surely referring to Sarah's miscarriage last year.

Proud parents: Eric, who is also the co-founder of Baeo, already shares two children with Sarah  daughter Esme Olivia, four, and son Wyatt Oliver, seven

The news of Sarah and Eric expecting their new child in May was joyful, but also mixed with sadness, as that was when it was revealed that they had suffered a miscarriage, late last year.

In a blog post about the loss of her baby, Sarah reflected that it was 'a big disappointment, and then also it's just really something that's not in your control, so it just felt sad.

'And I felt a little bit lonely,' she continued.

The news of Sarah and Eric expecting their new child in May was joyful, but also mixed with sadness: It was revealed that they had suffered a miscarriage, late last year

Eric, who is also the co-founder of Baeo, already shares two children with Sarah  daughter Esme Olivia, four, and son Wyatt Oliver, seven.

Just last week, Sarah posted another lovely snap to her Instagram feed, showing daughter Esme with mom on an outdoor path.

The little girl has her face to her mother's very pregnant belly, giving it a kiss.

Just last week: Sarah posted a lovely snap to her Instagram feed, showing daughter Esme on an outdoor path kissing her pregnant belly

Sarah's blond hair is in her face blowing in the wind as she looks down, wearing a denim maternity dress.

Eric and Sarah costarred on the series The Loop back in 2006 and 2007.

They became engaged in October 2011, and were married near Jackson Hole, Wyoming, in June of the following year.
WASHINGTON, D. C. - Ohio members of Congress from both political parties reacted with sorrow to Fridays news that U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died of metastatic cancer of the pancreas.

Rest in peace, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, said a Twitter statement from U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, Cleveland Democrat. I pray that the same force of principles to which Justice Ginsburg held herself will help guide the leaders of this country.

Brown also said the American people deserve a voice in the selection of her replacement, and we must wait for their choice to lead us to take office in January to confirm a new justice.

A statement from U.S. Sen. Rob Portman, a Republican from Cincinnati, called her "a brilliant lawyer and a pioneer in the legal profession as only the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court.

His statement did not address whether the Senate should await results of the upcoming presidential election before confirming Ginsburgs successor. When conservative U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016, Portman advocated awaiting the result of a democratic election, rather than having a nomination fight in this contentious election-year environment. President Donald Trump subsequently picked Neil Gorsuch to fill that vacancy.

She was respected by all who knew her and admired by so many as a trail blazer and a champion for equal rights, Portman said of Ginsburg. "Her personal friendship and respect for colleagues across the ideological spectrum, including conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, serves as an example for all of us.

Warrensville Heights Democratic Rep. Marcia Fudge declared on Twitter that America has lost another giant.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a lifelong champion of equal rights, a steadfast protector of our most vulnerable, and an unparalleled role model for women and girls in America, she continued. My prayers are with her family and our country.

America has lost another giant. Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a lifelong champion of equal rights, a steadfast protector of our most vulnerable, and an unparalleled role model for women and girls in America. My prayers are with her family and our country.  Rep. Marcia L. Fudge (@RepMarciaFudge) September 18, 2020

Niles-area Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan also called the petite Ginsburg a giant.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg represented the best of this country, said Ryan. She broke down barriers and dedicated her life to ensuring the American Dream could be accessed by every citizen of our nation. As a lawyer, she led the charge for womens rights and gender equality and secured the legal victory that extended the 14th Amendment to cover gender. She became the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court, and over her 27 years on the court she always stood for what was right and what was just. Her lifetime of work helped our nation live up to the ideals that it was founded upon. The United States of America is a more just and verdant place because she was in it."

Champaign County Republican Rep. Jim Jordan posted a statement on Twitter that said God Bless Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her family. Holmes County Republican Rep. Bob Gibbs applauded Ginsburgs distinguished career, and said his thoughts and prayers are with her family.

In the coming days and weeks, at a crucial time for our nation, the monumental process to choose a replacement will begin, said Gibbs. In the meantime, I hope we take a moment to reflect on Justice Ginsburgs legacy and the unprecedented choices we face.

God Bless Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and her family.  Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) September 19, 2020

Toledo Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur described Ginsburg as intrepid and beloved.

Justice Ginsburg carved her lasting legend in the laws of the land as one of four women to have ever served on the Supreme Court," said a statement from Kaptur. "As a champion of gender equality and civil rights, she leaves behind a legacy that is rarely seen but once in a generation. Because of her service as a wise, gifted legal intellect and incisive justice, she lived to witness social progress across generations once thought unimaginable. She tirelessly fought for marginalized people every day of her life to include her dying breath. She is a national treasure and a blessing who will be remembered and celebrated for as long as this nation stands. My prayers are with her and her family.

Bainbridge Township Republican Rep. Dave Joyce called Ginsburg a force to be reckoned with, and said he and his wife, Kelly, are keeping her family and loved ones in our prayers.

For decades she served our nation with distinction and honor, Joyce said of Ginsburg.

Rocky River Republican Rep. Anthony Gonzalez said he has a profound respect for her service even though he did not often agree with her.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg will forever be remembered as a woman who made a historic impact on our nation, said a statement from Gonzalez.

Marietta Republican Rep. Bill Johnson issued a statement that applauded Ginsburg for living a life full of accomplishments and inspiring many Americans as the second women appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

More often than not, I disagreed with her rulings, but she was courageous and stood strong for what she believed in, Johnson said. Justice Ginsburg also moved and inspired many with her hard-fought, courageous battles against cancer. I offer my deepest, heartfelt sympathies to her family at this difficult time.

In a statement posted on Twitter, Columbus Republican Rep. Steve Stivers said Ginsburg inspired a generation of young women to break through the glass ceiling.

Her work on pay equity and gender equality cemented a truly lasting legacy and her friendships with those with whom she disagreed, including the late Justice Scalia, is an outstanding example of civility that we all should take to heart, Stivers continued. My prayers are with her family.

Dayton-area Republican congressman Mike Turner said he met Ginsburg several times.

As a Member of Congress, I was able to meet Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg several times. She was a warm and kind spirit who had a deep interest in people and love for this country. Her legacy on this Court will be long remembered.  US Rep. Mike Turner (@RepMikeTurner) September 19, 2020

She was a warm and kind spirit who had a deep interest in people and love for this country, he stated on Twitter. Her legacy on this Court will be long remembered.

Zanesville GOP Rep. Troy Balderson said on Twitter he was saddened to learn of Ginsburgs death.

My thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones. said Balderson. She served our nation honorably.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine issued a statement that extended his deepest condolences to Ginsburgs family.

Her work ethic, her devotion to the court, her own fight to break down barriers, her long friendship with Justice Antonin Scalia even though they were opposites philosophically, and her courageous fight against cancer stand as examples to all of us," said DeWine "She served with a strength and dignity that inspires us all. May her memory be a blessing.

Rest in peace, Ruth Bader Ginsburg.



I pray that the same force of principles to which Justice Ginsburg held herself will help guide the leaders of this country. pic.twitter.com/zmsxKV3Fse  Sherrod Brown (@SenSherrodBrown) September 19, 2020

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A union representing Ontarios hospital workers says it has concerns about the safety of the provinces plan to expand COVID-19 testing to pharmacies, as Premier Doug Ford pushed Friday to start the program later next week.

Ontario is expected in the coming days to unveil a plan to grant community pharmacies the ability to test for COVID-19 as it grapples with hours-long waits at some of the provinces 148 assessment centres.

Ford said last week he has been in discussions with groups that represent pharmacists and the major retailers that own Shoppers Drug Mart and Rexall.

But the president of the Council of Hospital Unions, a branch of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, said the plan could bring people with the virus in contact with vulnerable seniors or other medically compromised people.

Sending the public to a pharmacy and mingling with people who fear that they have COVID-19, and may be symptomatic ... seems to me to be unwise and potentially not very safe, Michael Hurley said.

Ford has said the plan would involve sending asymptomatic people to pharmacies for testing, while individuals with symptoms would continue to be referred to assessment centres.

The premier said the plan would help relieve the pressure on assessment centres as the return to schools fuels the desire for more testing.

We have the pharmacies coming on-board, Ford said Friday. Hopefully by this time next week well have numerous pharmacies out there helping out the system.

Hurley said expanding current assessment centres, which follow strict protocols and are staffed by doctors and nurses, would be a safer plan.

There is a level of staff skill which I would argue is not available in a pharmacy, Hurley said.

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said Friday that she too has concerns about the strategy, saying the government should have predicted the surge in demand for testing with schools reopening.

People are going to be afraid to go into those pharmacies for fear of being exposed to COVID-19, Horwath said. Asymptomatic people can still spread COVID-19.

The chair of the Ontario Pharmacists Association said members of that group are ready to help expand safe access to testing of asymptomatic individuals.

Jen Baker, a pharmacist from a community near Kingston, Ont., said pharmacies will complete advance screenings by phone to ensure symptomatic people are referred to assessment centres run by hospitals.

They will also follow strict infection control and cleaning procedures to ensure safety.

Ultimately, well be using the best practices to screen and there will be infection control protocols that are in place at pharmacies in the instance that someone does come back as a positive test, she said, adding that the protocols will be developed in co-operation with the Ministry of Health.

Baker said pharmacies across Ontario have already implemented new infection control measures to reopen during the pandemic, and further training and clear standards will be set for staff.

While COVID-19 testing might be new for pharmacies, they are accustomed to providing vaccinations, including 1.4 million last year during flu season, she noted.

Were looking to work with the government to offer more access and increase the capacity of the system to ramp up testing, she said.

Baker points to Albertas program of asymptomatic pharmacy testing, which started earlier this summer, as an example of how it can be done safely.

She said pharmacies would need funding to hire staff to provide the testing, and purchase personal protective equipment and testing supplies. The association is in active talks with the government on that front, she said.

The program would likely launch with a small pilot and be strictly opt-in for pharmacies, she said.
Iranian officials sensed a trap, the allied officials said. Iranian officials believe that such attacks are aimed at luring them to retaliate so that the United States or Israel could respond with a military strike.

Despite Irans overall restraint, the increase in Iranian hacking attempts has been notable. Microsoft warned last week that a hacking group called Phosphorous that it has linked to the Iranian government has unsuccessfully attempted to log into the accounts of administration officials and Donald J. Trump for President campaign staff, an acceleration of attacks underway for months.

Microsoft, with the approval of a federal court, has seized 155 internet domains that it has proved are under the control of the Iranian group, and are used for attacks. But compared with past Iranian activity, the attacks have left American intelligence officials unimpressed.

Beyond the sanctions, the Trump administration has looked for other ways to intensify both its criticism and pressure on Tehran. The Justice Department announced four indictments in three days of Iranian hacking groups, though none were related to election interference. And the State and Treasury Departments also announced sanctions on Thursday related to Iranian hackers backed by Tehrans intelligence agency who have targeted dissidents, journalists and others in the country.

The Navy announced the aircraft carrier Nimitz, and its accompanying support ships, had entered the Persian Gulf on Friday. Navy officials said the action was a long-scheduled training deployment but acknowledged that it also signaled to Iran to avoid any provocative actions as the new American sanctions take effect.

Administration officials have also emphasized Irans efforts at election interference. In addition to trying to infiltrate the Trump campaign, Iran has also used social media to criticize the White Houses handling of the coronavirus pandemic and highlight social unrest in the United States.

But Iran is unable to combine its overt criticism with more hidden efforts to sow divisiveness in America with the effectiveness of Russian intelligence operatives, said Ariane M. Tabatabai, an analyst with the Alliance for Securing Democracy and the author of a paper released Thursday on Tehrans efforts.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept. 19

Trend:

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov held a meeting with the Head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Delegation in Azerbaijan Elena Aymone Sessera on September 18, 2020, the ministry told Trend.

During the meeting, it has been noted that Sessera completed her tenure in Azerbaijan and the new Head of Delegation Ariane Bauer was introduced to Bayramov.

The minister expressed appreciation for the activities of Elena Aymone and noted with satisfaction the humanitarian projects implemented in cooperation with the ICRC. He also wished the new Head of the ICRC Delegation in Azerbaijan success in her future endeavors.

The minister touched upon the grave consequences of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, including the violation of the fundamental rights of hundreds of thousands of people, systematic violation of the basic norms and principles of international humanitarian law, and the targeting of the civilians and infrastructure by the aggressor state Armenia.

Speaking about the consequences, Bayramov paid special attention to the condition of Dilgam Asgarov and Shahbaz Guliyev, which is under the direct mandate of the ICRC.

He stressed that Armenia did not accept the position of Azerbaijan on the exchange of captives and hostages on the basis of the principle of "all for all" based on the norms of humanitarian law. The importance of increasing the efforts of ICRC to solve this issue has been noted.

In their turn, the ICRC representatives noted that they are constantly interested in the condition of Dilgam Asgarov and Shahbaz Guliyev within their mandates and inform their families accordingly.

During the meeting, the minister also informed the ICRC representatives about the latest tensions in the region and the purposeful provocative activities of the Armenian leadership, and the serious damage caused to the settlement of the conflict through negotiations.
WASHINGTON  The line to succeed the late Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court likely starts with these federal appeals court judges:

Amy Coney Barrett

A finalist for Trump's second high court nomination, which ultimately went to Brett Kavanaugh in 2018, Barrett, 48, is a favorite of religious conservatives.

Barrett rocketed to the top of Trump's list of potential nominees after her 2017 confirmation hearing for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, when Democrats cited her deep Catholic faith not as an advantage but an obstacle. She was confirmed, 55-43.

"If you're asking whether I take my faith seriously and I'm a faithful Catholic, I am," Barrett responded during that hearing, "although I would stress that my personal church affiliation or my religious belief would not bear in the discharge of my duties as a judge."

She has written that Supreme Court precedents are not sacrosanct, which liberals have interpreted as a threat to the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide.

RBG's opinions and dissents: From VMI to Voting Rights Act

In a 2013 Texas Law Review article exploring when the Supreme Court should overturn past decisions, Barrett wrote that she agrees "with those who say that a justices duty is to the Constitution, and that it is thus more legitimate for her to enforce her best understanding of the Constitution rather than a precedent she thinks clearly in conflict with it.

She also wrote that the publics response to controversial cases like Roe v. Wade reflects public rejection of the idea that legal precedent can declare a permanent victor in a divisive constitutional struggle.

A former member of the University of Notre Dames Faculty for Life, Barrett signed a 2015 letter to Catholic bishops that affirmed the teachings of the Church as truth. Among those teachings: the value of human life from conception to natural death and marriage-family values founded on the indissoluble commitment of a man and a woman.

Story continues

Barrett wrote in 2017 that Chief Justice John Roberts pushed the Affordable Care Act beyond its plausible meaning in order to save it. Roberts creatively interpreted as a tax the laws penalty on those who dont buy insurance, allowing the court to uphold the constitutionality of the law, she said.

The Indiana resident is the mother of seven children, including two from Haiti and one with special needs. She spent two decades as a law professor at the University of Notre Dame, from which she holds her law degree. She also clerked for Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia.

Barbara Lagoa

Then-Florida Supreme Court Justice Barbara Lagoa pictured along with by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Trump ally.

Federal appeals court Judge Barbara Lagoa, 52, was confirmed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit last year. A Cuban American from the swing state of Florida, she could help Trump in two ways politically.

The president nominated her for the Atlanta-based court last September, and she was confirmed by an unusually lopsided 80-15 Senate vote in November. Most of Trump's nominees win confirmation narrowly.

Before that, Lagoa served briefly on the Florida Supreme Court. She served for a dozen years on the state's 3rd District Court of Appeals after being appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush. There she took part in more than 11,000 cases and wrote more than 470 opinions.

Lagoa is considered a protege of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a close Trump ally. In 2019, DeSantis appointed Lagoa to the Florida Supreme Court, making her the first Cuban American woman to serve there.

Lagoa was in the majority last week whenthe 11th Circuit ruled 6-4 that hundreds of thousands of Florida felons who have served their time cannot vote this fall or in the future unless they pay fees and fines owed to the state.

More: Federal appeals court blocks Florida's felons from voting until fees and fines are paid

The decision along strict ideological lines, with all five judges appointed by Trump in the majority, could have a major impact on the presidential race because of Florida's history of razor-thin margins. In 2000, George W. Bush won the White House with a 537-vote victory margin there.

"Floridas felon re-enfranchisement scheme is constitutional," Lagoa wrote in a 20-page concurrence. "It falls to the citizens of the state of Florida and their elected state legislators, not to federal judges, to make any additional changes to it."

Perhaps more striking was a one-page concurrence penned by Chief Judge William Pryor, who also wrote the majority opinion. Signed only by himself and Lagoa, it said that "in the end, as our judicial oath acknowledges, we will answer for our work to the Judge who sits outside of human history."

A graduate of Florida International University and Columbia University Law School, Lagoa was raised in Hialeah, Florida, the daughter of parents who fled Fidel Castro's Cuba.

Joan Larsen

Federal appeals court Judge Joan Larsen

Like Barrett, Larsen, 51, spent much of her career as a professor, at the University of Michigan Law School.

She was appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court in 2015, elected to that court the following year, and nominated by Trump to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in 2017. She was confirmed by a 60-38 vote that November.

Larsen graduated from the University of Northern Iowa and Northwestern University School of Law, where she was first in her class. She clerked for the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.

"We have differing views on law, politics and religion," she wrote in The New York Times about Scalia's former law clerks three days after his death in 2016. "But I have yet to meet a Scalia clerk who was not grateful to the man who taught us, shaped us, and launched us into our lives in the law."

More: Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dies, setting up nomination fight

Larsen was a deputy assistant U.S. attorney general in the Office of Legal Counsel under President George W. Bush from 2002-2003.

Defending the doctrine of originalism, or strict adherence to the Constitution, Larsen wrote in a 2010 law review article that originalists do not oppose change. "Originalism typically is quite comfortable with change; its only enemy is change imposed by judges," she wrote. "An originalists Constitution can thus easily keep up with the times. Judges are just not licensed to be the engines of change."

Britt Grant

Federal appeals court Judge Britt Grant, at her swearing-in with now-Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

The youngest frontrunner for Ginsburg's seat, Grant, 42, shares a close friendship with Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh, for whom she clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Grant, a former Georgia Supreme Court justice and solicitor general, was nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in 2018 and confirmed 52-46.

While waiting for his own confirmation hearing, Kavanaugh conducted her swearing-in, lauding her as a "fair and even-handed" judge. Grant returned the favor, vowing that she would "strive to live up to Judge Kavanaughs example of integrity, stability and commitment to the rule of law."

A graduate of Wake Forest University and Stanford Law School, where she was president of the conservative Federalist Society chapter, Grant previously worked briefly in George W. Bush's administration and for former Georgia governor Nathan Deal.

Allison Eid

Federal appeals court Judge Allison Eid

Trump's choice of Neil Gorsuch as his first Supreme Court nominee in 2017 opened the door for Eid, 55, who succeeded him on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.

A former law clerk for Justice Clarence Thomas, Eid, a Coloradan like Gorsuch, graduated from Stanford University and the University of Chicago Law School. She later taught at the University of Colorado Law School.

After serving briefly as Colorado's solicitor general and for a decade on the state Supreme Court, Eid made Trump's original list of potential high court nominees in 2016. She was nominated the following year to the Tenth Circuit and confirmed, 56-41, in November.

Amul Thapar

Federal appeals court Judge Amul Thapar

When Trump embarked in 2017 on what would become the nomination and confirmation of more than 200 federal judges, Gorsuch came first. Then came Thapar.

A Kentucky protege of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Thapar (pronounced uh-MALL Thuh-PAR), 51, would be the first Indian American to reach the nation's highest court. He was confirmed to his current post on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit by a 52-44 vote in May 2017.

A former Kentucky judge and U.S. attorney with vast trial court experience  a rarity on the Supreme Court  Thapar was born in Detroit to Indian immigrants and grew up in Toledo, Ohio with his maternal grandfather, who fought with Mahatma Ghandi for Indias independence.

Thapars father, Raj, has said the family urged Amul to become a physician but he had only one dream  to become a justice on the Supreme Court.

He studied economics and philosophy at Boston College before earning his law degree at the University of California-Berkeley. He converted to Catholicism upon getting married and has three children.

On the appeals court, Thapar has voted to uphold Ohio's method of lethal injection for executions, as well as a Michigan county's practice of opening government meetings with Christian prayers.

More: Year of surprise Supreme Court rulings shows influence of Chief Justice John Roberts

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Replacing Ruth Bader Ginsburg: The list starts with Amy Coney Barrett
By PTI

MUMBAI: Veteran communist leader and former Lok Sabha member Roza Deshpande died at her residence here on Saturday afternoon due to old age, sources said.

Deshpande, 91, was the daughter of Shripad Amrit Dange, one of the founders of the Communist Party of India.

She is survived by a son and a daughter.

Deshpande had taken part in the Sanyukta Maharashtra movement (the movement for the creation of the state of Maharashtra) and the Goa liberation struggle as a member of the All India Students Federation.

In 1974, she was elected to the Lok Sabha from the Bombay South Central constituency.

She had also led a campaign to get maternity leave benefits for working women, and served on various central and state government committees on labour problems, particularly those of women workers.

Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari expressed condolences over her demise.
What is it?

The Montanaro UK Smaller Companies Trust invests in small firms listed on the London Stock Exchange and the junior market AIM.

Managed by Charles Montanaro, who founded and owns the parent investment firm, it aims to grow investors' money rather than focus on giving them an income.

What does it invest in?

Its biggest exposure is to the industrials sector. Top ten holdings include investment software firm Integrafin, components manufacturer Discoverie Group and vets supplier Dechra Pharmaceuticals.

What do the experts like?

Dewi John, head of Lipper Research at Refinitiv, points out that while smaller companies tend to be under-researched by analysts, the trust has a well-resourced team to do its own research.

Any downsides?

John adds: 'Given the UK economy's relative weakness through Covid, and the renewed uncertainties of Brexit, smaller companies face a challenging time.

Montanaro's more concentrated portfolio than most of its UK Small Companies peers could mean less diversification, and so greater risk.'
Not long ago, young great whites were seldom found in the colder waters north of Point Conception. Now there's a sizable population in Monterey Bay, where water temperatures have risen. (Randy Wilder / Monterey Bay Aquarium)

In California, weve come to see drought, extreme heat and deadly fire as the most alarming, obvious evidence of climate change. But life as we know it is being altered in multiple ways, often just out of view.

There was a time not long ago when young great white sharks were seldom found north of Point Conception on the Santa Barbara County coast, because the water was too cold for them. But now theres a sizable population in Monterey Bay, where water has warmed in recent years, and much of the ecosystem has been affected.

Were seeing a whole host of things happening that are unprecedented, said Kyle Van Houtan, chief scientist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Farther south, warming trends off the coast of Baja California are part of a dynamic in which tropical air is pushing north and making Southern California hotter and more humid, creating better conditions for giving harbor to mosquitoes and other insects. Meanwhile, marine creatures from tropical climates are taking up residence off our coast.

And decreases in fog and precipitation over the last several decades are wreaking havoc not just on Californias $40-billion wine industry, which I wrote about recently, but also on other crops and even our redwood forests.

None of this is guesswork. Its the result of years of research by dedicated scholars, and their discoveries serve as dire warnings only a fool would dismiss.

This leads me to the short visit to California, several days ago, by President Trump. He insisted better forest management is needed to prevent wildfires, and theres some truth to that. But he shrugged off the reality of climate change, as he has for years.

It will start getting cooler again, he said. Just watch.

I wish science agreed with you, California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot retorted.

I dont think science knows, actually, said Trump.

Its not news that the president lacks basic intellectual curiosity about complex matters. But ignorance is particularly dangerous at the moment, because with the twin threats of the coronavirus and global warming, we need to pay attention to science and act accordingly rather than debunk it and make matters worse.

Story continues

I really wonder about the younger generations and what theyre going to have to live through. They are going to be living in a very different place, said UC Berkeley professor Todd Dawson.

Dawson has studied, among other things, changes in Californias coastal fog.

Over the last 60 years, fog has declined by about 30%, said Dawson, explaining that fog is generated by the differential between air and ocean water temperatures. Warmer water means less fog and more sunlight, which means among other things that coastal vegetation such as chaparral is drier and more fire-prone.

Dawsons study of the narrow band of redwoods that extends from the Oregon border to Big Sur found that in the north, which is cooler and wetter, the trees are fine. But hes made disturbing observations about some of the redwoods at the southern end of the band, where a drier and warmer climate appears to be taking a toll.

Were seeing some trees dying in the very driest end of the habitat, and growth is slowing, both in height and annual radial growth, Dawson said.

Its not just coastal fog thats in decline, as one Davis resident tells it.

It used to be that every December and January there was so much fog you could hardly drive in it, and it hasnt been that way for the last 10 years, said Richard Snyder, retired UC Davis professor of biometeorology.

But while less fog could become a concern for growers of various crops in the state, Snyder said the bigger problem is that less rain and a lower snowpack mean less water for agricultural and urban use. We think of record-setting summer daytime temperatures as markers of change, but Snyder said winter temperatures in California are rising faster than summer temperatures, and nighttime temperatures are rising faster than daytime temperatures.

In much of California, the 1,100-mile coast is a moderating influence on our weather. And the Pacific, like all the oceans of the world, is warming.

But there are certain bull's-eyes of warming, where the water is warming faster. And one of those is off the coast of Baja California, said Scripps Oceanography researcher Sasha Gershunov. This impacts our terrestrial heat waves, making them more humid.

As ocean temperatures warm, Gershunov said, clouds dissipate, allowing solar radiation to warm the ocean and dissipate cloud cover even more. In extreme heat waves, air is often pulled up and into Southern California from that region, said Gershunov, one of the researchers in a study that found a connection between warmer, more humid air and cases of West Nile virus.

In Los Angeles, youre seeing more humid conditions and warmer nights, and that actually helps the mosquitoes proliferate and bite you more often, Gershunov said.

One feature of climate change is aberrant patterns. Scripps researcher Natalya Gallo is part of a team studying changes in the California Current over the last 71 years, and while theres been a general warming along with the arrival of fish from more southerly climates, occasional temperature fluctuations have surprised scientists.

In the last month or two, temperature variability  is unprecedented, with really warm periods and then theres a strong upwelling event. The water is 70 degrees and then all of a sudden its in the 50s, said Gallo, adding that such changes stress habitats and lead to migration of fish, including anchovies and sardines.

Chris Lowe, director of the Shark Lab at Cal State Long Beach, said the biggest change hes seen in recent years involves the movement of sharks north.

Prior to the last big El Nino, it was unheard of for white shark nurseries to be north of Point Conception, and now a new nursery has formed off Santa Cruz, Lowe said.

Until they grow older and move offshore, young great whites prefer a temperature niche between 60 and 82 degrees, Lowe said, and the warming of Monterey Bay has made those waters more hospitable. Spiny lobster and garibaldi, more common off Southern California, have also taken up residence in Monterey Bay in greater numbers, said Van Houtan, the aquarium researcher.

The spiny lobster is a Long Beach animal, not a Monterey animal, he said.

Van Houtan said a sea otter population that extends from Santa Barbara to Santa Cruz has been under attack, with shark bites as the leading cause of death over the last 10 years. It appears the sharks mistake the fur of otters for the blubber of elephant seals.

So everyone comes away disappointed from that interaction, especially the otters, said Van Houtan.

These attacks are more common in areas of dramatic kelp decline. Ocean warming is suspected as a cause of that decline, as well as the decline of starfish. And Van Houtan neatly explained the interconnections.

Because starfish eat sea urchins, this sort of took the lid off of what was regulating urchins, and one of sea urchins fave meals is kelp, Van Houtan said. So due to warming, sea star disease, and the rise of urchins, this spells bad news for kelp. This is also bad news for otters as kelp provides a sheltering refuge, a habitat cover that otters can find safe harbor from sharks.

All life forms, all natural forces, are connected.

The sea, the land, the atmosphere  we live on this remarkable floating sphere, and its our moral duty to understand and protect it, and to stand for nothing less than a large-scale conversion to clean energy and a radical reduction in our production of greenhouse gas.

Well-meaning individuals and states cant alone reverse the advance of climate change, nor can any one nation. Which is all the more reason for the U.S. to embrace rather than dismiss science and to lead the global conversation rather than walk away from it.

Even though we are perhaps the most sophisticated animal on this planet, Van Houtan said, we seem to be the last species to find consensus on climate change. White sharks, otters, kelp, lobsters, corals, redwoods, monarch butterflies  they all get it and have for years. Its time for us to listen to this chorus from nature. We need to act on climate change.

steve.lopez@latimes.com

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Juliette Morrison from Blackrock was a prize winner in the Texaco Children's Art Exhibition in 2007 and again in 2011. She won awards when she was a student a St Vincent's Secondary School and is one of a number of previous Louth winners whose artwork in on display in a special exhibition showcasing work from the past fifteen years in the Highlanes Gallery, Drogheda.

Juliette has followed up on her early talent and is currently in the final year of her studies at the National College of Art and Design, Dublin.

'Winning the competition really gave me a big confidence about what I could do,' she says.

Juliette was only nine when she first won for her colourful drawing of flowers and won again with a self-portrait when she was thirteen, before going on to win another prize when she was sixteen.

A past-pupil of St Oliver's NS, Blackrock and St Vincent's Secondary School, she is set to return to the Seatown Place school on work experience as part of her course in NCAD.

'I had Declan Honan and Leanne Mullen as teachers and they were great,' she recalls.

She is hoping to pursue a career teaching, as she is doing a combined paint/education degree. It's a demanding course with a lot of assignments and deadlines but she is clearly enjoying it.

Juliette says she was always interested in art - something which was encouraged by her family. 'Dad would always bring us to visit galleries when we went on holidays.'

Once life gets back to normal, she hopes to do some travelling. 'I'd like to do a Masters in painting somewhere abroad,' she says.

Also featured in the exhibition are paintings by Jessica McCartney, St. Bridget's School in 2012; Deaghlan McGovern from St. Malachy's Boys' National School (2016); and Bella Reynolds from Scoil Dairbhre (2018); Marie-Christina McManus from St. Peter's National School (2008)

The exhibition is open to the public each day from Wednesday to Saturday from 11am to 4pm (closed 1pm-1.30pm) until the end of October. Admission is free.
I knew him very well. In the party, he was invariably non-controversial, low-profile, well-mannered and always very guarded and measured in his utterances.

A perfect description of the late George Michael Chambers, the countrys second prime minister and political leader of the Peoples National Movement (PNM), from Ferdie Ferreira, a foundation member, in his book Political Encounters 1946 -2016.
19 Chinese aircraft approached the island with some crossing the Taiwan Strait midline and others flying into Taiwan's air defence identification zone off its southwest coast

Taiwan's air force scrambled jets for a second consecutive day on Saturday as multiple Chinese aircraft approached the island and crossed the sensitive midline of the Taiwan Strait, with the island's government urging Beijing to "pull back from the edge."

Taiwan's Defence Ministry said 19 Chinese aircraft were involved, one more than in the previous day, with some crossing the Taiwan Strait midline and others flying into Taiwan's air defence identification zone off its southwest coast.

It said China, which claims democratic Taiwan as its own territory, sent 12 J-16 fighters, two J-10 fighters, two J-11 fighters, two H-6 bombers and one Y-8 anti-submarine aircraft. According to a map the ministry provided, none got close to mainland Taiwan itself or flew over it.

"ROCAF scrambled fighters, and deployed air defence missile system to monitor the activities," the ministry said in a tweet, referring to the Republic of China Air Force, the formal name of Taiwan's air force.

Taiwan has complained of repeated incidents of Chinese aircraft near the island this year, and has regularly had to scramble its F-16s and other jets to intercept them.

China had on Friday announced, at a news conference in Beijing about China's U.N. peacekeeping efforts, combat drills near the Taiwan Strait and denounced what it called collusion between the island and the United States.

U.S. Undersecretary for Economic Affairs Keith Krach arrived in Taipei on Thursday for a three-day visit, the most senior State Department official to come to Taiwan in four decades, angering China. He left Saturday afternoon, according to Taiwan's foreign ministry.

'PULL BACK FROM THE EDGE'

Taiwan's Defence Ministry, in a separate statement, said China was carrying out provocative activities, seriously damaging peace and stability.

"The Defence Ministry sternly condemns this, and calls on the mainland authorities to control themselves and pull back from the edge."

China's widely read state-backed tabloid the Global Times, published by the ruling Communist Party's official People's Daily, said in a Saturday editorial that Friday's drills were a rehearsal to take over Taiwan.

"The U.S. and Taiwan must not misjudge the situation, or believe the exercise is a bluff. Should they continue to make provocations, a war will inevitably break out," it said.

Both sides need to resume dialogue to reduce the risk of war, Johnny Chiang, leader of Taiwan's main opposition party the Kuomintang, wrote on his Facebook page.

"People who are willing to play a communication role are stigmatised and people who clamour for war are regarded as heroes. Such an atmosphere is definitely not conducive to the peaceful and stable development of the Taiwan Strait," said Chiang, whose party traditional favours close ties with China.

Life has continued as normal in Taiwan with no sign of panic. The island has long been accustomed to living with Chinese threats.

Taiwan's people have shown no interest in being ruled by autocratic China, re-electing President Tsai Ing-wen in a landslide last year on what was largely a platform of standing up to Beijing.

The latest Chinese flights came the same day Taiwan held a memorial service for former president Lee Teng-hui, dubbed "Mr. Democracy" for ending autocratic rule in favour of free elections and championing Taiwan's separate identity from China.

Lee, who died in July, became Taiwan's first democratically elected president in March 1996 after eight months of intimidating war games and missile tests by China in waters around the island.

Those events brought China and Taiwan to the verge of conflict, prompting the United States to send an aircraft carrier task force to the area in a warning to Beijing's government.

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Senate Bill 757, Permit early counting of absentee ballots: Passed 34 to 2 in the Senate

To allow election clerks in larger communities (above 25,000) to begin opening and processing absentee ballots the day before an election under rules prescribed by the bill.

31 Sen. Kevin Daley, R - Attica, Y

32 Sen. Kenneth Horn, R - Frankenmuth, Y

36 Sen. Jim Stamas, R - Midland, Y

House Bill 5248, Require more public info on child abuse and neglect investigations: Passed 36 to 0 in the Senate

To require a state children's ombudsman's office to release redacted reports of investigations into alleged child abuse or neglect. This office is tasked with monitoring agencies that serve children including private child placement and child care institutions along with foster care and adoptive homes; and also with improving the care of children subject to the authority of any of these entities.

31 Sen. Kevin Daley, R - Attica, Y

32 Sen. Kenneth Horn, R - Frankenmuth, Y

36 Sen. Jim Stamas, R - Midland, Y

House Bill 5494, Require better state information technology contracting: Passed 37 to 0 in the Senate

To require the Michigan Department of Technology, Management, and Budget to develop processes and procedures for tracking state information technology vendor contracts that exceed $250,000. This includes identifying cost overruns and change orders, accounting for projects that exceed one fiscal year, communicating processes and defined roles to involved parties, tracking spending, keeping the legislature informed and more. There have a number of major state information technology contract debacles over the past 30 years. The Senate also passed House Bill 5495, to require the state auditor general to validate state departments' compliance in these matters.

31 Sen. Kevin Daley, R - Attica, Y

32 Sen. Kenneth Horn, R - Frankenmuth, Y

36 Sen. Jim Stamas, R - Midland, Y

House Bill 5053, Authorize 'clawbacks' from state vendors: Passed 37 to 0 in the Senate

To authorize repayment from state vendors who breach their contract with the state, and require agencies to use this method to enforce contracts.

31 Sen. Kevin Daley, R - Attica, Y

32 Sen. Kenneth Horn, R - Frankenmuth, Y

36 Sen. Jim Stamas, R - Midland, Y

House Bill 4954, Define valid vs. invalid grounds for protesting losing state contracts: Passed 109 to 0 in the House

To modify the unsuccessful bidder protest policies and procedures in the state law that prescribes practices for government contracting. The bill specifies which actions do or do not constitute a valid reason for a protest, but would also permit officials to deny a contract protest for reasons of "policy" that are not specified in law.

95 Rep. Vanessa Guerra, D - Bridgeport Township, Y

96 Rep. Brian Elder, D - Bay City, Y

97 Rep. Jason Wentworth, R - Clare, Y

98 Rep. Annette Glenn, R - Midland, Y

99 Rep. Roger Hauck, R - Isabella County, Y

Source: MichiganVotes.org, a free, non-partisan website created by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, providing concise, non-partisan, plain-English descriptions of every bill and vote in the Michigan House and Senate. Visit www.MichiganVotes.org.
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Riot police arrested hundreds of women today in the Belarusian capital of Minsk during a 'Sparkly March' protest calling for an end to President Alexander Lukashenko's rule.

Around two thousand women took part in the demonstration, wearing shiny accessories and carrying red-and-white flags of the protest movement.

Officers blocked the women and began dragging them into police vans as they stood with linked hands, swiftly detaining several hundred.

Belarus, a former Soviet republic closely allied with Russia, has been rocked by mass street protests since Lukashenko claimed a landslide victory in an August 9 presidential election that his opponents say was rigged. He denies their accusation.

Law enforcement officers scuffle with women and one demonstrator is seen being dragged away while others cling onto her during a rally to protest against the presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus, today

Police officers detain a woman during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus, on Saturday. Around two thousand women took part in the 'Sparkly March'

Police officers detain a woman wearing a face mask during an opposition rally in Minsk, Belarus, today. Officers blocked the women and began dragging them into police vans as they stood with linked hands

Saturday's protesters, most of them women, earlier briefly scuffled with police who then blocked their path and started picking people one by one out of the crowd, the witness said.

In one location, dozens of female protesters could be seen encircled by men in green uniforms and black balaclavas outside a shopping mall as they shouted: 'Only cowards beat women!'

Among the detained was 73-year-old opposition activist Nina Baginskaya, who has become an icon of the protest movement after scuffling with armed policemen last month.

One female protester was taken away in an ambulance after lying on the ground, apparently unconscious.

Lukashenko's crackdown on the protests has prompted the European Union to weigh fresh sanctions against his government.

The president, who has ruled Belarus for 26 years, says the protesters are being backed by foreign powers. Earlier this month he secured a $1.5billion lifeline from Moscow.

Lukashenko has blamed the United States and its allies for fomenting the weeks of unrest following his landslide re-election to a sixth term last month.

'We are forced to withdraw troops from the streets, put the army on high alert and close the state border on the west, primarily with Lithuania and Poland,' Lukashenko said while addressing a women's forum, adding that Belarus' border with Ukraine also would be strengthened.

Belarusian law enforcement officers detain Nina Bahinskaya, 73, who has become an icon of the movement, during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus, today

Women react as they stand in front of anti-riot police during a rally in Minsk today. Daily protests calling for the president's resignation are now in their second month and determination appears strong despite the detention of protest leaders

Women with old Belarusian national flags stand in front of a police officer while linking their arms during the opposition rally in Minsk. Belarus has been rocked by mass street protests since Lukashenko claimed a landslide victory in an election

A woman breaks down into tears after being encircled by police and watching mass arrests during a women's march in Minsk

Belarusian policemen line up in a row and prepare to detain participants of a women's march in Minsk, Belarus, on Saturday

An elderly women reacts as police officers detain women during an opposition rally to protest presidential election results

But the national Border Guard Service said all border checkpoints remained open, though it said controls and inspections have been strengthened.

A spokeswoman for the Polish Border Guard, Agnieszka Golias, said traffic at Poland's border with Belarus was as busy as usual. Lithuanian authorities also reported no changes.

Mr Lukashenko's main challenger in the election, former English teacher and political novice Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, dismissed Lukashenko's claims as part of his efforts to denigrate protesters and to blame foreign influences for the outpouring of anger toward him and calls for his resignation on the streets of Belarus.

'Lukashenko already has tried to scare us with enemies that don't exist. He has accused peaceful people of being engaged in violence and tried to cast the true patriots as traitors,' Ms Tsikhanouskaya said in a statement.

Belarusian policemen detain participants of a women's peaceful solidarity march in Minsk, Belarus, on Saturday

Women with old Belarusian national flags march during an opposition rally to protest the election results in Minsk, Belarus

Belarusian policemen drag and detain a participant of the women's march in Minsk, Belarus, today

Women surrounded by Belarusian law enforcement officers react during an opposition rally in Minsk, Belarus, on Saturday

Women stand in front of a riot police officer during a rally to protest the presidential election results in Minsk today

Belarusian policemen detain a participant of the march as opposition activists continue their every day protest actions

'But his talk yesterday about closing the borders marks a new level of distancing from the reality. It was a talk by a weak person about his own imaginary world.'

She urged Belarusians to ignore Mr Lukashenko's bluster, emphasising that 'all our neighbours are our friends'.

Lithuanian foreign minister Linas Linkevicius voiced concern over Mr Lukashenko's statement about beefing up troops on the border.

'This is an inadequate response of an inadequate person to the situation,' he told public broadcaster LRT Radio.

The United States and the European Union have criticised the presidential election as neither free nor fair and urged Lukashenko to start talks with the opposition - a call he has rejected.

Washington and Brussels have been pondering sanctions against Belarusian officials for alleged vote-rigging and the violent response to protests.
WASHINGTON  President Donald Trump slammed FBI Director Christopher Wray after Wray told Congress Russia remains active in its efforts to influence the presidential election by disparaging Joe Biden.

I did not like his answers yesterday," Trump told reporters.

In congressional testimony on Thursday, Wray said, as in 2016, Russia remains "very active" in efforts to "influence our election," in this case by denigrating Biden, Trump's Democratic opponent.

Trump has frequently tried to discredit evidence that Russia inserted itself into the 2016 election in order to help him defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton  efforts that were later the subject of indictments produced by the office of former special counsel Robert Mueller.

In recent weeks, Trump has focused on the intelligence community's claim that China would prefer to see Biden win the election, given Beijing's long-running trade disputes with the Trump administration.

President Donald Trump, then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions, center and FBI Director Christopher Wray in 2017.

"Obviously, China is at the top of the list," Trump told reporters as he left the White House for a campaign trip to Minnesota. "And I think Russia and North Korea and many other countries can be talked about. But China would be at the top of that list, so I don't know why that's not mentioned."

The FBI declined to comment Friday.

As for Wray, Trump later said "the big problem is China and why he doesnt want to say that...that certainly bothers me.

Most every public assessment of the threat to election security has emphasized Russia over any other foreign actor, including China. Wrays testimony about Russias very active efforts add to the Kremlins 2016 work to sway the election to then-candidate Trump.

The subject of Russia election interference in 2016 triggered ongoing tensions between Trump and the FBI, including the president's decision to fire Comey in 2017. That dismissal became the subject of an obstruction of justice investigation by Mueller, though the special counsel's office did not specifically accuse the president of a crime.

Story continues

Wray told lawmakers that Russia remains "very active" in its effort to disrupt the vote in this election season, primarily by denigrating Democratic nominee Joe Biden.

"The intelligence community's consensus is that Russia continues to try to influence our election," Wray told the House Homeland Security Committee, adding that the Kremlin's effort includes sowing discord among Americans.

Wray's assessment tracked an earlier analysis published in August by the National Counter-Intelligence and Security Center, which called out pro-Russia Ukrainian parliamentarian Andriy Derkach for spreading false corruption claims to undermine Biden's bid and the Democratic Party.

"Some Kremlin-linked actors are also seeking to boost President Donald Trumps candidacy on social media and Russian television," the counter-intelligence analysis concluded.

The earlier report also concluded that China viewed Trump as "unpredictable" and prefers that he not win re-election, while noting that Iran was working to foment division and undermine Trump in advance of the November election.

"We will not tolerate foreign interference in our election," the FBI director said Thursday.

When a lawmaker asked about a recent intelligence assessment that said Russia, China, and Iran are seeking to influence the 2020 election, Wray did not single out the Chinese in his response. The FBI director criticized Chinese espionage throughout the hearing, but not in terms of the 2020 election and Biden.

Right after his testimony, Trump mocked Wray on Twitter: "But Chris, you dont see any activity from China, even though it is a FAR greater threat than Russia, Russia, Russia. They will both, plus others, be able to interfere in our 2020 Election with our totally vulnerable Unsolicited (Counterfeit?) Ballot Scam. Check it out!"

On Friday, Biden defended Wray, telling reporters during a campaign stop in Minnesota that Wray "told the exact truth." The Democratic nominee declined to discuss Wray's testimony at length because "I'm not gonna put him in the crosshairs of the president."

Trump also criticized Wray over the FBI director's testimony that antifa is an ideology and not an organization, contradicting Trump's claim that it should be declared a "terrorist organization" engaged in attacks on cities.

"These are thugs, these are bad people," Trump said Friday, adding "they are anarchists and they are agitators and they are looters and rioters and everything else."

In his congressional testimony, Wray said that individuals are responsible for that kind of violence, not antifa: Its not a group or an organization. Its a movement or an ideology.

More: Russia 'very active' in 2020 election; antifa not a terror group, FBI director testifies

More: FactChecking the Mueller hearings on Trump and Russian election interference

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump attacks FBI Director Wray over Russia election testimony
Ryan McAweeney is in the business of making sure that your business is a success. How does he do this? Well, it is the strategy of Ryan McAweeney to focus on marketing/advertising. Your business may have a great product but who will purchase it if they don't know about it. Consumers pay attention to what grabs their attention that meets their needs. Compared to the analogy that a car goes nowhere without fuel, great products don't become known without advertising, no matter how extraordinary they are. That requires a great marketing plan.

Key Points for a Great Marketing Plan

As an authority on the relevance and importance of advertising for your business, Ryan McAweeney lists several reasons for this need.

Advertising can make or break your company.

Effective marketing is a necessity.

Investment funds for advertising is a business necessity.

Advertising is a vital part of any truly successful business.

A key marketing plan helps direct the future of your business.

Returning to the heart of the matter, McAweeney desires to return to working with small businesses to help them develop initial marketing campaigns that will build a strong foundation. Keep in mind that a really great marketing plan is needed for the small business. Help is here for your marketing needs.

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Of course, there have been marketing failures for many businesses. However, if you are looking for the consummate advertising executive, Ryan McAweeney is the one. In his efforts to make advertising transparent for the consumer and the advertisers, his efforts do not go unnoticed in speaking on the subject in public forums. Heavily funded product development may be necessary, but without an exceptional marketing plan and strategic advertising, the investment in product development may sincerely be wasted. A business may have a superior product, one that is needed and has been anticipated. However, without a truly genius marketing plan and strategic advertising, the wait may continue.

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Sometimes it felt like she was Americas last hope. Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Supreme Court judge since 1993, achieved celebrity status during Trumps four years. Affectionately given the nickname Notorious R.B.G by a slew of online followers, she was the subject of superhero memes and the inspiration for much light-hearted merchandise (Urban Outfitters stocks T-shirts emblazoned with her face and her famously blunt quotes, and I gifted a friend in Brooklyn a cuddly Ginsburg doll for her newborn last year.)

Beneath the jokes, the quotes and the well-designed tote bags, however, ran an undercurrent of anxiety and fear. The fact that Supreme Court judges have lifetime appointments meant that many were morbidly obsessed with Ginsburg  who battled cancer on numerous occasions, and died of its complications today  staying alive long enough to get to the election. She herself clearly felt the same way, if NPRs reports about her dying wishes are to be believed: My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed, she apparently said not long before passing away aged 87. She was only the second woman appointed to the Supreme Court.

And theres no getting round it: Ginsburgs death is a terrible opportunity for Donald Trump. With a new seat on the court vacant so close to the election, he can make a song and dance about his legacy and his future promises by installing an extreme conservative. At the Republican Convention a few weeks ago, the President dedicated an entire night to the pro-life cause, bringing in speakers who waxed lyrical about his concern for the unborn and making allusions toward overturning Roe v Wade once and for all. Ginsburgs death puts womens rights in grave danger  not to mention the rights of many others who are historically overlooked or targeted by the ultra-right wing.

This is because Trumps supporters are now, quite frankly, fringe conservatives who are happy to do away with established legal interpretation in the United States. Many have spoken about reinterpreting or kicking out the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution, which gives everyone born on US soil automatic citizenship. Its true that lifelong Republican politicians are walking away from Trumps presidency and distancing themselves as polls point toward a possible Biden win  the Lincoln Project and a slew of disgruntled former staffers are testament enough to this  but the president has responded by digging his heels in and attempting to galvanize enough extreme conservatives to make up the numbers. Replacing Ginsburg while working to this playbook will be damaging for America in the long term, far beyond any presidential term Trump might legally hold; it will mean that the 45th President leaves a damaging legacy behind him for generations to come.

Back in August, Republicans were asked what they would do if a Supreme Court seat became vacant this year, before Trumps election. Oh, wed fill it, said Mitch McConnell, reportedly with a smile. McConnell is close to Trump and was highly praised for his loyalty during the impeachment, but not every member of his party felt the same way as him. Notably, Lisa Murkowski, the Republican senator from Alaska, has said publicly that her party would need to let the people decide on election day if a seat became vacant months away from November. When then-President Obama tried to replace Supreme Court Judge Antonin Scalia after Scalias death in the February before the 2016 election, the move was blocked by Republicans specifically because, they argued, it was undemocratic to make a lifetime appointment so close to an election. If we now say that months prior to the election is OK when nine months was not, that is a double standard and I dont believe we should do it. So I would not support it, Murkowski said. She has not yet commented now that Ginsburg has passed away. McConnell, however, just made a statement saying that he fully intends on keeping his own promise: President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, he said tonight, in a speech which also briefly honored Ginsburgs contribution to the court.

 2016 video shows Mitch McConnell justifying decision to block supreme court nominee in election year

Trump has never been humbled by the office or cowed by a memento mori. He didnt come to my inauguration, he said, of celebrated civil rights activist John Lewis. I was never a fan and I never will be, he said, of Vietnam War veteran and across-the-aisle friend of Joe Bidens, John McCain. About Ginsburg, in comparison, he was positively kind: She just died? Wow. I didn't know that. She led an amazing life. What else can you say? he said, ever erudite, when informed of her death by a reporter on-air, moments after emerging from a two-hour rally.

Presented with Ginsburgs death  and comments on her amazing life aside  few of us believe that the President and his ardent supporters in Congress will make the decent move, the sportsmanlike move, or the move for which there is precedent. This is a delicious opportunity handed to that side of the party on a golden platter, weeks before Americans go to the polls. But will all Republicans so easily follow McConnells lead? Is there scope for a risky mutiny in the ranks, wherein four GOP senators vote with the Democrats and force a block or delay to the nomination? No doubt well find out soon enough. And whichever way it goes, it promises to be messy.
WASHINGTON  Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died Friday at the age of 87, surrounded by her family.

Only the second woman to serve on the nation's highest court, she dressed for decisions and dissents. She had a special collar, or jabot, for announcing majority opinions from the bench and another for her frequent, and more celebrated, dissents.

Throughout her career, Ginsburgs diminutive presence belied her titanic influence on the law, first as the nations preeminent litigator for womens rights, and more recently as the leader of the high courts liberal bloc, where she served as a bulwark against an increasingly conservative majority.

Here's a look at some of her memorable opinions:

Decisions

United States v. Virginia (1996): Struck down Virginia Military Institute's male-only admissions policy as a violation of the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection Clause. The vote was 7-1, with Associate Justice Antonin Scalia dissenting.

Ginsburg described as "presumptively invalid ... a law or official policy that denies to women, simply because they are women, equal opportunity to aspire, achieve, participate in, and contribute to society, based upon what they can do."

One of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most famous Supreme Court opinions opened the doors of Virginia Military Institute to students such as Chih-Yuan Ho and Melissa Kay Graham, the first two women to graduate in 1999.

Olmstead v. L.C. (1999): Ruled 6-3 that individuals with mental disabilities have the right to community-based housing under the Americans with Disabilities Act, provided that states have sufficient resources and treatment professionals say it's appropriate.

"Institutional placement of persons who can handle and benefit from community settings perpetuates unwarranted assumptions that persons so isolated are incapable or unworthy of participating in community life."

Friends of the Earth v. Laidlaw Environmental Services (2000): By a 7-2 vote, gave South Carolina residents standing to seek penalties for industrial pollution without having to prove injury, and even though the factory in question had closed.

"A would-be polluter may or may not be dissuaded by the existence of a remedy on the books, but a defendant once hit in its pocketbook will surely think twice before polluting again."

Story continues

Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (2015): Ruled 5-4 that states can try to remove partisan politics from the process of drawing political maps by creating commissions that take power away from elected legislators.

"Arizona voters sought to restore the core principle that voters should choose their representatives, not the other way around. The elections clause, we affirm, does not hinder that endeavor."

Timbs v. Indiana (2019): Ruled unanimously that states cannot impose excessive fees, fines and forfeitures as criminal penalties. The decision made clear that the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against excessive fines applies to states and localities as well as the federal government.

The protection against excessive fines guards against abuses of governments punitive or criminal law-enforcement authority. This safeguard, we hold, is fundamental to our scheme of ordered liberty.

Dissents

Bush v. Gore (2000): Ginsburg and her three liberal colleagues each dissented from the court's 5-4 decision halting the presidential recount ordered by Florida's Supreme Court. The majority ruled that no better method of counting votes could be established within the necessary timetable.

"The courts conclusion that a constitutionally adequate recount is impractical is a prophecy the courts own judgment will not allow to be tested. Such an untested prophecy should not decide the presidency of the United States."

Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (2007): Ginsburg wrote the dissent in the 5-4 case, which denied Lilly Ledbetter the right to sue her employer for gender-based pay discrimination because of the length of time that had passed since the violation.

Lilly Ledbetter receives a pen from President Barack Obama after he signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act in 2009, two years after Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg urged Congress to fix what she said was the Supreme Court's mistake.

"Our precedent suggests, and lower courts have overwhelmingly held, that the unlawful practice is the current payment of salaries infected by gender-based (or race-based) discrimination  a practice that occurs whenever a paycheck delivers less to a woman than to a similarly situated man."

Gonzales v. Carhart (2007): Ginsburg wrote the dissent in the 5-4 case, which upheld a 2003 law passed by Congress outlawing a form of late-term abortion. The majority ruled that it was not an undue burden on abortion rights.

"The act, and the courts defense of it, cannot be understood as anything other than an effort to chip away at a right declared again and again by this court  and with increasing comprehension of its centrality to womens lives."

Shelby County v. Holder (2013): Perhaps Ginsburg's most famous dissent criticized Chief Justice John Roberts' 5-4 ruling that struck down a key section of the Voting Rights Act, freeing mostly Southern states from having to clear voting changes with the federal government.

"Throwing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet."

Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores (2014): Ginsburg wrote the dissent in the 5-4 case, which determined that family-owned and other closely held companies cannot be forced to offer insurance coverage for certain birth control methods they equate with abortion.

"Approving some religious claims while deeming others unworthy of accommodation could be perceived as favoring one religion over another, the very risk the Establishment Clause was designed to preclude. The court, I fear, has ventured into a minefield."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'I dissent:' Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's most memorable opinions
The rumors were swirling in early February that the Department of Defense had tapped the Colorado Army National Guard's facility on Fort Carson to potentially quarantine Americans fleeing Huebi province in China, the center of an outbreak of a wild new virus.

Globally, more than 30,000 had been infected. The bulk of cases had occurred in China, but several hundred additional cases had been reported in two dozen other countries.

A timeline of COVID-19 in Colorado A timeline of COVID-19 in Colorado. Since the pandemic began, Gov. Jared Polis has issued 190 D executive orders, with all but a handful rel

The virus, believed to be in the same family of diseases as the Middle East respiratory syndrome, or MERS, and severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS  was spreading.

Colorado's U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner reassured residents that those possibly exposed to the sometimes deadly pathogen wreaking havoc overseas would likely not be housed on Fort Carson.

"That could change, but (Fort Carson officials) feel they are a very low-potential site at this point," Gardner told The Gazette on Feb. 7 after touring the facility, which had been tapped to house as many as 250 evacuees.

The evacuees never came to Colorado, routed instead to military installations in Texas, Nebraska and California.

But no bullet was dodged: The virus was almost certainly lurking in Colorado, according to top officials involved with the state's pandemic response.

While the state's first positive COVID-19 tests wouldn't be reported to the state until March 5, an individual in Colorado became symptomatic Feb. 1 and later tested positive, meaning that the virus was "quite likely" circulating the state in January, according to Rachel Herlihy, an epidemiologist with the state health department.

The virus was first reported in China in December, and the first U.S. case was identified Jan. 21. The virus was likely spreading in the U.S. by late January, but incidences were too low to be detected for weeks, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"We knew it was simply a matter of time before it hit," Colorado Gov. Jared Polis told The Gazette on Thursday. "We knew that with an enormous amount of visitation to the ski areas, it would very likely be in ski country."

While Herlihy didn't know the location of the patient who fell ill with the virus Feb. 1, the virus likely made its entry  or entries  to Colorado in the Denver metro and/or ski areas, she said.

"Once we began to understand what was happening globally, the inevitable happened in Colorado  this highly infectious virus arrived," echoed Jon Samet, dean of the School of Public Health at the University of Colorado. He called the virus "tricky" because it spreads before its victims fall ill, if they even do.

"We did what we had to do, but people had not experienced this sort of infection in the U.S."

September is a month full of six-month coronavirus anniversaries in Colorado, from the first reported cases March 5, to the temporary shuttering of bars, restaurants, theaters, gyms, and casinos March 16, to the closure of schools for the year March 23, to the stay-at-home order March 26.

What have Coloradans on the front line of the biggest public health crisis in a generation learned about fighting this invisible, sometimes deadly foe that spares so many, but has dealt lonely, agonizing deaths to nearly 2,000 of the state's residents? How well has the state performed when compared to others? And what might the next six months look like here? Is there an end in sight to this bizarre "new normal"?

In a bid for answers, The Gazette spoke to some of the top players in the state's fight against COVID-19. Their collective message, spoken by Polis this week at a news conference announcing a "very substantial" uptick in the virus among college-age individuals: "We are all tired of the virus, but the virus is not tired of us."

'It could have been worse'

When it comes to the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases, Colorado ranks 30th among U.S. states, with 61,667 diagnoses, according to Kaiser Family Foundation data. It ranks closer to the bottom  42nd  when it comes to cases per 1 million residents, with 10,708.

There are multiple ways to look at the data, but, "in general, Colorado has fared well and we've done a fantastic job suppressing the virus in the last two weeks in the state," Herlihy said Thursday, pointing out that this summer's "second wave" of the virus was relatively small, especially when compared to that of other states like Texas, Arizona and Florida.

Polis called the state's relative success the sum of "responsible decisions" made by Coloradans throughout the state.

"It's the decision not to have a large barbecue, not to have a big birthday for your kid," he said. "My daughter just turned 6 and would have loved a traditional big birthday. She had two friends over, instead.

"Families across Colorado are making those decisions that lead to the state's success."

Colorado's performance isn't as favorable, however, when it comes to fatalities. With a death rate of 3% of those infected, Colorado ranks 10th in the nation  near the top.

The state is among 14 states that also have 3% fatality rates, including Indiana, Illinois, New Mexico, Maine, Arizona and Washington. (Connecticut tops the list, at 8%; Alaska, at 1%, is at the bottom .) Nationally, the U.S. has an average 3% fatality rate.

"The virus does have a fatality rate of about 3%," Polis said. "If it's in younger people, it's about 1%. If it's in older people, you see a higher fatality rate. We're no exception. It's going to be pretty close to 3% wherever you are  that's just the nature of the virus."

When looking at the state's cumulative fatality data, "I think we were probably close to the middle of the pack" among states, Herlihy said, adding that the "early wave of illness" hit hard the elderly and long-term care facilities, boosting what otherwise might have been a lower fatality rate.

However, more recent data that spans anywhere from seven to 30 days shows that Colorado is among states with the lowest fatality rates in the U.S.. Said Herlihy: "We've been quite successful in protecting our seniors, older adults and vulnerable populations this summer, since the spring wave of the illness."

Colorado's experience of a large number of outbreaks at residential health care facilities  which comprised the vast majority of outbreaks during April and May and represent the largest category of outbreaks in the state to date  was not unique, according to Samet.

"We had the same sort of experience so many other places did: deaths among older persons and at long-term care facilities," he said. "Certainly our older population was far more seriously hit here, as with everywhere," he said.

Though results appear to be a mixed bag, overall, "I think we've done well," he added.

"When you're nearing 2,000 deaths and you use the world 'well,' it seems like a bit of a mixed message," he said. "But it could have been worse."

In Colorado, deaths among those 80 and older comprise a whopping 53% of fatalities, with deaths among those ages 70-79 coming in second, at 23%, and deaths among those 60-69 coming in third, at 13%.

Colorado ranks among the bottom of U.S. states when it comes to percent of population 65 and older, with around 14% of its population classified as elderly, according to 2018 census data. Utah ranks the lowest, at 11%; Florida ranks the highest, at 20%.

But states' fatality rates vary based on the demographics of outbreaks, Polis pointed out.

"When it tears through a nursing home or long-term care facility," there's likely to be a "much higher fatality rate," he said, adding that current outbreaks at colleges throughout the state will likely result in a much lower fatality rate.

Herlihy attributes the state's accomplishment of "flattening the curve" this spring  and from so far experiencing another equal or greater curve  to "Coloradans practicing social-distancing, wearing masks and following public health recommendations."

She also credits a state response that has used data "to drive and inform decision-making and policy."

"The governor talks frequently about the use of data to guide decision-making  and not just case count, but looking at who was being impacted and targeting interventions to specific populations," she said, citing the state's response to outbreaks at long-term care facilities, which involved "aggressively implementing infection-prevention and testing strategies," as well as the governor's "last call" public health order in July that bumped up last call to 10 p.m., then 11 p.m.  a response to a spike in transmission among those in their 20s.

Polis credits the state's innovative response for accomplishments like securing personal protective equipment from international supply chains  enough that the state has been able to issue 1 million medical-grade masks to Colorado teachers, one per teacher per week  as well as for pioneering new testing protocols, allowing for free access to coronavirus tests with a relatively quick turnaround time to anyone in the state, no doctor's order necessary.

"We hear in some states of huge lines, people can't get tested," he said. "That was the case here, of course, in the early days, in the entire country. But now, you can just go to The Citadel mall in Colorado Springs, the Pepsi Center or Water World in Denver, and you're in and out in 15 minutes."

A return to 'some degree of normalcy'

Looking toward the winter, when flu season is expected to collide with a virus that's been relentless for months, there's a potential piece of good news, according to Samet: In the Southern Hemisphere, the flu hasn't posed a major problem.

A bad flu year, combined with COVID, could strain hospital capacity, Samet said. But so far, looking at models, the flu shouldn't be so severe that the flu, combined with the pandemic, would be catastrophic.

Longer term, Samet wishes he had a crystal ball to forecast the future  better yet, one that could make a vaccine appear, he said.

"The course to having a vaccine  to go through licensing, production, scale-up, delivery  means I think most of us won't have received one at the one-year anniversary" of the virus' entry into Colorado, he said.

"That's a guess. Hopefully we're well on our way to planning to deliver one."

As for how often one might have to get the vaccine  recent reports say immunity to the virus may only last a handful of months  "we'll have to wait and see," he said.

"The immunity to the common coronavirus that causes colds is not long-lasting, so that tells us something, perhaps."

Polis said it's likely that at least one vaccine will be demonstrated safe and effective by November or December, and that some quantities will be available in the state  most likely for hospital workers and front-line employees  with greater public availability early next year.

When asked if he would ever lock down the state again, and under what conditions, Polis touted a "sophisticated local approach" to virus control, advocating for empowering local authorities to act quickly and quarantine those involved "rather than the whole community or county."

This week the state unveiled a virus "dial dashboard" that tracks the progress of counties by color, similar to a fire-danger sign. Counties can move "up" in color if they achieve certain benchmarks for two weeks, and will have two weeks to regain compliance if they fall out before being demoted. The framework will replace variances in most cases, Polis said.

So far, four counties  Moffat, Rio Blanco, Mesa and Gunnison, all in western Colorado  have qualified for the state's Protect Our Neighbors, or green, status, which involves the most light-handed restrictions in pandemic-era Colorado.

The state has achieved much in half a year, from flattening the curve to juggling the resumption of out-of-state tourism and the risks it entails, Samet said: "The bars are still closed, and the restaurants are still not fully opened indoors, but we've returned to some degree of normalcy."

Until there's a cure, wearing masks, social distancing and handwashing are the way forward, Samet, Polis and Herlihy contend.

"One of the big lessons we've learned is that we have measures that work," Samet said. "If we're on that steep epidemic curve again, we're not adhering to what we need to do. If there's an uptick, we should give careful consideration to what the policies are that might start to flatten the curve. But the costs of shutdown again are huge in so many ways. We should be able to hopefully avoid it by carefully watching and acting soon enough."

While interventions might seem simple, the riddle of the novel coronavirus is far from solved, Polis contends. There's still much left to learn about the nature of the enemy.

"It's just mind-boggling how easily this spreads," he said. "It just shows the importance of mask-wearing, of being outdoors when you can, but it's still an extremely contagious virus. It continues to surprise us just how contagious it is and continues to show us why we need people to stay cautious."
People across Northern Ireland have been basking in the September sun this week  and the good weather is set to continue.

Mondays brilliant weather saw Katesbridge in Co Down reach 21.1C  the highest temperature across Northern Ireland.

Temperatures reached highs of 23 degrees in Belfast on Wednesday, while the average temperature in September is usually 16 degrees.

Yesterday saw highs of 18C as the sun shone.

Looking ahead to todays forecast, Met Office meteorologist John Griffiths said that despite the cloudy start in southern parts of Northern Ireland, the weather will improve as the day progresses.

Any cloud will generally clear away to the west, he said.

There will be plenty of widespread sunshine into the afternoon.

Temperature-wise were looking at highs of 19 degrees but it might be a bit cooler at 17 or 18 degrees in Belfast.

Tomorrow will be a similar story but the temperature may increase slightly.

You are looking at a more widespread 18 to 19 degrees on Sunday, continued Mr Griffiths.

Again, its a very similar story really with early cloud on Sunday morning but that should eventually clear through the course of the morning.

Into the afternoon its going to be another summer afternoon with plenty of sunshine and pleasantly warm temperatures for the time of year.

Unfortunately, the sunny weather will come to an end next week as temperatures drop to below 15C with widespread cloud on Monday.
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Lisa Curry and Grant Kenny have farewelled their eldest daughter after her tragic death following a years-long battle with an eating disorder and alcoholism.

Jaimi Kenny died at Sunshine Coast University Hospital in Queensland on Monday morning surrounded by her family, including both her Olympian mother and Ironman father.

Dozens of devastated family and friends gathered for the funeral on the Sunshine Coast on Saturday afternoon, after the tight-knit clan spent almost a week grieving the loss of the 'bright, bubbly' Jaimi.

After almost two hours, guests began filling out of the Sunshine Coast Chapel. Lisa could be seen bursting into tears as her husband Mark Tabone, family members and friends, all tried to comfort her.

Those in attendance congregated out the front of the church, tearfully exchanging hugs before Jaimi's immediate family followed them out of the service.

Brother Jett, sister Morgan and their devastated parents embraced as Jaimi's white coffin, covered in pink and orange dahlias and baby's breath, was placed in the back of the hearse and carried away.

The heart-wrenching final goodbye was made all the more difficult with only 100 family and friends allowed to attend under Queensland coronavirus restrictions.

Former Olympian Lisa Curry (pictured second from the right) is pictured with tears in her eyes as she emerges after from the emotional church service with her husband Mark Tabone (pictured right)

Family and friends of Jaimi Kenny are seen embracing each other at the conclusion of the heartbreaking funeral service

The heart-wrenching picture captures the emotion of Jaimi's family in the wake of her shocking and tragic death

Jaimi Kenny's brother Jett (pictured front left) and father Grant Kenny (pictured front right) can be seen leading the pallbearers as they carrying her coffin out of the church

Tribute: A bagpiper played a stirring tune as Jaimi's white coffin, covered in pink and orange dahlias and baby's breath, was placed in the back of the hearse

Jaimi's casket is placed in the back of a hearse as those in attendance at the memorial service fight back tears

Dozens of mourners at Jaimi Kenny's funeral a pictured giving their final farewell to the beloved young woman

Lisa Curry is pictured in tears next to her son Jett, as Jaimi's body is being prepared to be driven away in a hearse

Earlier on Saturday, as the service got underway, swathes of brightly dressed mourners arrived at the Maroochydore funeral home wearing floral patterns.

They gathered out the front of the venue from about 3.30pm, chatting quietly among themselves until the Curry-Kenny clan arrived.

Jett donned a slick, grey suit and dark tinted sunglasses when he stepped out of a car alongside his Ironman father about 4pm.

The pair supported one another as they made their way through the crowd of friends and family.

A lone man playing a somber melody on the bagpipes eventually greeted guests, instructing them to make their way into the church for the service to begin.

Lisa Curry and Grant Kenny have farewelled their eldest daughter Jaimi Kenny (pictured left) on Saturday at a funeral service on the Sunshine Coast

Dozens of devastated family and friends spent almost a week grieving the loss of the 'bright, bubbly' Jaimi (pictured)

Jaimi Kenny, 33, had long battled an eating disorder, with her family supporting her through years of treatment at a private clinic (Jaimi, left, is pictured with her family at her sister Morgan's 2016 wedding)

Devastated: Lisa Curry (right) has released a heartbreaking statement about the death of her daughter Jaimi (left) on Monday 14 September

Lisa Curry and Grant Kenny farewelled Jaimi on Saturday September 19 in a moving service on the Sunshine Coast

Jaimi had also been battling alcoholism and had struggled to cope with the loss of her then-boyfriend Lachy Crossley in July 2017

Jaimi's immediate family had gathered at Grant's waterfront home in the morning before the service. They spent the morning preparing for the funeral together and tidying up the house, before friends eventually came to help them transport bouquets of flowers which have been arriving since news of Jaimi's tragic death spread.

Jaimi's younger sister Morgan, who is pregnant, arrived with her husband Ryan and their two-year-old son Flynn before other members of the family after they left the Kenny home earlier on Saturday to head to the church.

Jaimi was particularly close with Flynn, and constantly doted on him.

The proud aunt often commented on how much she adored the two-year-old - who shares an incredible likeness to her when she was a child, with her famous golden blonde tresses and big blue eyes.

Just three weeks ago, Morgan shared a photograph of her and Flynn to Instagram, and Jaimi was quick to comment: 'Just divine, both of you', alongside several heart emojis.

Four weeks before that, she again commented on a photograph of Flynn, and commented that Morgan's growing family was 'just the cutest'.

'Darling Flynn, oh you are beautiful,' another comment left by Jaimi read.

Family ties: Lisa is pictured with her son Jett (left), surviving daughter Morgan (right) and her grandson Flynn

Her model brother Jett (left) paid tribute to his sister on Tuesday 14 September admitting that while he 'may not have been the best brother' to Jaimi (right) they 'loved one another unconditionally'

Gone too soon: Jaimi is the daughter of Lisa and her ex-husband, Australian ironman champion Grant Kenny (who is pictured with his daughter as a baby)

Prior to her death, Jaimi had expressed her desire to one day have a family of her own, and absolutely doted on the children in her family.

After her parents' marriage deteriorated, Ironman Grant Kenny went on to have a daughter Trixie Belle with radio star Fifi Box.

'Trixie' was the centre of Jaimi's universe, and the nanny even moved down to Melbourne to live with the duo.

'Jaimi absolutely adored children and was especially close to Trixie,' a family friend told Sunshine Coast Daily. The children gave her 'a whole new lease on life'.

But her struggles with her mental health brought her back to the Sunshine Coast and her parents shortly after making the move.

She worked closely with the End ED clinic which specialises in eating disorder treatment and recovery.

Jaimi met and fell in love with local business owner Lachy Crossley on the Sunshine Coast.

His mother Gail said 'they had plans to be together forever... They were certainly in love'.

'You could just see the love in their eyes that they had for each other. People described them as a modern-day Romeo and Juliet,' Dr Crossley added.

Condolences: Lisa's husband, Elvis Presley impersonator Mark Tabone (left), also addressed the tragedy in an Instagram post on Tuesday September 16. Pictured with Lisa and Jaimi

Sad: 'Our hearts are broken and the pain is unbearable but we cherish every wonderful moment we got to share with our treasured and so loved first child,' Lisa said

New chapter: In 2013, Grant, 57, welcomed a daughter named Trixie Belle with radio presenter Fifi Box (right). Fifi - who had a close friendship with her ex's adult children, including Jaimi (left) - did not acknowledge Grant was the father of her daughter until 2016. Pictured in 2017

But in 2017, Lachy died in circumstances 'too heartbreaking' for the family to discuss.

The happy couple had recently moved in together and had began discussing their future together. They both loved each other and loved children even more.

The tragedy plunged Jaimi further into a depression and she spent the years to follow in and out of hospital and the eating disorder clinic.

Her medical team tried everything, including blood transfusions, to extend her life.

The Curry-Kenny clan have repeatedly expressed their fondness of her medical team, and thanked them for their hard work in maintaining Jaimi's quality of life.

On Friday night, Morgan's husband Ryan thanked the local community for their support and outpouring of love in the days since Jaimi's death.

'Thank you to everyone who has reached out and offered kind words, gifts, support and love to Jaimi's family and I. The condolences are so welcome and helpful,' he wrote alongside a photo with bouquets of flowers.

'We have been sharing the messages with each other and although we may not have been able to offer a response we have received the love from all of it and are very appreciative.

'Jaimi was so very loved and will be so very missed but the love we all share for her will keep her memory alive.'

Co-parents: Lisa and Grant separated in 2009 after 23 years of marriage, before finalising their divorce in 2017. They are pictured with Jaimi on the Sunshine Coast on April 3, 2008

Tragedy: Lisa's ex-husband Grant Kenny announced their 'caring and loving' daughter had died at Sunshine Coast University Hospital on Monday September 14

Jaimi was extremely tough on herself, growing up in a family surrounded by Olympians, Ironmen, models and professional dancers.

Grant and her brother Jett are both Ironmen and revered within the local surf life saving community.

Jett still works as a life guard with Alexandra Headlands Surf Club, and is also a successful model.

Meanwhile her younger sister Morgan flourished when she moved to France for her dance career, scoring a prestigious role with the Moulin Rouge.

'She was incredibly hard on herself and her own harshest critic, but completely non-judgmental of others,' a Curry-Kenny family friend told Sunshine Coast Daily.

'Growing up on the beach on the Sunny Coast, she was - apart from being incredibly gorgeous - a genuinely kind soul, bubbly, loveable and outgoing. No-one knew until many years later about her silent struggles with depression and chronic eating disorders. She managed to keep on smiling despite so many very dark days.'

Despite her ongoing struggles, friends of Jaimi told how she always brought 'light and laughter' to the lives of those she around her.

Even retail assistants at her local shopping centre in Kawana told Daily Mail Australia she was always a 'friendly face' when she popped in.

Her model brother Jett paid tribute to his sister on Tuesday, admitting that while he 'may not have been the best brother' they 'loved one another unconditionally'.

'I may not have been the best brother to you all the time, I know you thought you weren't being the big sister I needed all the time, but I do know we loved one another unconditionally all the time,' he wrote.

'I will love you forever. Rest In Peace my beautiful big sister, the world lost one of its treasures yesterday but heaven gained one. You will be dearly missed by all whose lives you touched.'

The tight-knit family have been congregating at Kenny's luxury home in the days since Jaimi's passing.

They've kept a relatively low profile, instead opting to mourn privately.

But Jett has been spotted several times around town, turning to his closest friends during the difficult time.

Friends of Jaimi told how she always brought 'light and laughter' to the lives of those she around her

Grieving: Jaimi (centre) is survived by her Ironman father, former pro swimmer mother (right), brother Jett (left) and sister Morgan

RIP: Jaimi is pictured as a child with her mother, a three-time Olympian and former swimmer

He has shared several photographs taken at the gym, enjoying cocktails and pizza at a Brisbane bar and at the surf club where he works in the days since Jaimi's passing.

Jaimi had been struggling for some time in the lead up to her tragic death, both with her eating disorder and a dependency on alcohol.

She first sought help for mental health 'troubles', including anxiety, when she was 14.

But in 2014, she was charged with high range drink driving after she was caught swerving between lanes on the Sunshine Coast Motorway.

Police pulled her over, and she was required to appear in Maroochydore Magistrates Court, where the court heard she had consumed up to 16 bottles of Strongbow cider.

She recorded a blood-alcohol reading of 0.23 per cent at the scene - almost five times the legal limit.

Her lawyer at the time told the court she was getting help for her problems, and admitted that alcohol had become 'a bit of a feature' in her life since the deterioration of a romantic relationship in 2012.

Jaimi had been supported by her parents and siblings through many years of treatment at private clinic End ED, on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland.

Shattered staff at the clinic said they could not discuss Jaimi's struggle, but told how she became part of the 'family' over the years.

She was an avid swimmer at the time and hoped to follow in her Olympian mother's footsteps.

The family confirmed Jaimi's death on Monday September 14 with a moving statement.

'It is with a very heavy heart that Lisa and I confirm that our beautiful daughter Jaimi has lost her battle with a long-term illness and passed away peacefully in hospital this morning in the company of loving family,' Grant first said on Monday.

'Jaimi will forever be remembered as a caring, bright and loving soul who always put others before herself,' he continued.

'Our hearts are broken and the pain is immense but we must move forward cherishing every wonderful moment we got to share with our treasured first child.'

For free and confidential support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or the Butterfly Foundation for eating disorder concerns on 1800 ED HOPE
Imperial Valley News Center

Governor Newsom Statement on the Passing of Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Sacramento, California - Governor Gavin Newsom issued the following statement today regarding the passing of Supreme Court of the United States Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg:

Justice Ginsburg devoted her extraordinary life and intellect to making the words of our nations founding documents more true. Throughout her historic legal career, her contributions as a jurist to the cause of equality for women and men were unmatched. Justice Ginsburg fought tirelessly for the rights of women at work, at school and in the life of our nation. She proved over and over again that sex-based discrimination harmed not just women, but men and families, and that reckoning with this inequality was required for our nation to live out its promise.

In moving our nation forward, she inspired millions among us, including so many women and girls, to reach higher, dream bigger and dissent more passionately. Though this loss is incalculable, her legacy will live on in the fairer, more just society that she bravely ushered in and that we must, to honor her, safeguard. Our thoughts and prayers are with her colleagues, her family and all Americans in mourning.
As much as half of the world's population may have some immunty to coronavirus, a small but growing body of research suggests.

Tests done on donated blood in the US found that about 50 percent of the samples had immune T cells that reacted to coronavirus, suggesting that the donors' bodies might have the natural ability to fight of the deadly virus.

Similar results have been found in the UK and Sweden.

COVID-19 is thought to be so deadly in part because it's an entirely new virus to which humans have no natural immunity.

And while that is clearly the case for many people, British Medical Journal associate editor Dr Peter Dosh wrote on Thursday that the evidence is beginning to suggest that some people may possess some protection against the virus.

Some people may have immune T cells to other coronaviruses that could fight SARS-CoV-2, recent research suggests

In March, a member of a Skagit County, Washington choir went to their usual practice, feeling a bit ill, but unaware that they had coronavirus.

Within a week, that person and another had tested positive for the virus that causes COVID-19. Another 25 members of the 122-person choir had symptoms of coronavirus.

In the weeks that followed, 52 of the other 60 people who attended the practice would develop COVID-19.

The choir practice was dubbed a superspreader event, and became an early indicator that certain activities - like singing - might facilitate transmission of coronavirus.

Scientists saw the practice as a unique opportunity to study how infectious coronavirus can be.

But less talked-about were the eight attendees who did not get sick, or why.

Research has shown that people are more likely to catch coronavirus and become severely ill from it if they are exposed repeatedly, but this group shared a clear common exposure.

One unexplored explanation might be that some people have pre-existing immunity to coronavirus.

Most research on coronavirus immunity has focused on antibodies, immune cells that develop after the body has been exposed to a new pathogen. They're tailor-made to fight that particular virus or bacteria.

In hard-hit cities, like New York, the proportion of people who have antibodies that might protect them from re-infection is still fairly low. In New York City, about 23 percent of people tested for antibodies have them.

Now, scientists are starting to look more carefully at T cells, which, like antibodies, are part of the adaptive immune system and learn to identify and combat specific pathogens.

In addition to the US study, two of 10 people's blood had T cells that reacted to SARS-CoV-2 in the Netherlands, as did about a third of samples tested in Germany and most of those tested in Singapore.

They're all small studies but point in the same direction.

Although SARS-CoV-2 itself is new, it belongs a family of many related coronaviruses.

Scientists think that some people may have developed T cells for other coronaviruses that are 'cross-reactive' with SARS-CoV-2 because they are sufficiently similar.

If that's the case, the world may be closer to herd immunity to the deadly infection than we think - but much research remains to be done before we can know if that is the case.
Wiluna Mining Corporation Ltd (ASX:WMX)

Wiluna Mining Corporation Ltd (WMX.AX) Notification of Upcoming Annual General Meeting

Perth, Australia, Sep 18, 2020 - (ABN Newswire) - Wiluna Mining Corporation Limited (ASX:WMX) advises that, in accordance with ASX Listing Rules 3.13.1 and 14.3, and clause 12.2 of its Constitution, its next Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held on 19 November 2020.



In addition, the closing date for the receipt of nominations from persons wishing to be considered for election as a director is 1 October 2020. Any nominations must be received in writing no later than 5.00pm (WST) on 1 October 2020 at the Company's registered office.



Shareholders will be advised of further details regarding the AGM in a separate Notice of Meeting, which is anticipated to be provided to shareholders during October 2020. The Notice of Meeting will also be available on the ASX Company Announcements Platform and the Company's website at www.wilunamining.com.au







About Wiluna Mining Corporation Ltd:



Wiluna Mining Corporation (ASX:WMX) is a Perth based, ASX listed gold mining company that controls over 1,600 square kilometres of the Yilgarn Craton in the Northern Goldfields of WA. The Yilgarn Craton has a historic and current gold endowment of over 380 million ounces, making it one of most prolific gold regions in the world. The Company owns 100% of the Wiluna Gold Operation which has a defined resource of 6.4 Moz at a grade of 2.1 g/t Au. In May 2019, a new highly skilled management team took control of the Company with a clear plan to leverage the Wiluna Gold Operation's multi-million-ounce potential.



Contact:



Milan Jerkovic

Executive Chair

+61 8 9322 6418



Jim Malone

General Manager

Investor Relations

+61 419 537 714



Dannika Warburton

Media & Communications

+61 401 094 261



Source:

Wiluna Mining Corporation Ltd



Copyright (C) 2020 ABN Newswire. All rights reserved.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Saturday wrapped up a tour of four South American countries  three of them neighbors of Venezuela, whose socialist government is under intense U.S. pressure.

After a meeting with Colombian President Ivan Duque on Saturday, the two vowed to deepen ties  including U.S. investment in the countrys struggling economy  and Pompeo praised Colombia's tough stance against Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

Pompeo said Colombia's backing of opposition leader Juan Guaido "and the democratic transition for a sovereign Venezuela free of malign influence from Cuba, from Russia, from Iran, is incredibly valued.

You are a true leader for the region and the dignity of all of its people, he said at a news conference.

Pompeos three-day trip to the region comes as the U.S. presidential election nears, with Florida  which has hosted an expanding Venezuelan diaspora  a key battleground.

Duque highlighted a report by the U.N.s top human rights body accusing Maduros government of crimes against humanity, including torture and killings carried by security forces.

The situation there is unsustainable, he said.

Shoring up support for the Trump administrations Venezuela policy was a key focus of the trip, which including stops in Guyana and Brazil, where he emphasized U.S. calls for a presidential election to replace Maduro. He also stopped in Suriname, like Guyana a budding oil exporter.

Colombia has been flooded with migrants fleeing Venezuela's increasing economic crisis while accusing its neighbor of backing armed groups on Colombian soil.

The COVID-19 pandemic, meanwhile, has left millions in Colombia out of work, with unemployment recently soaring to 20% during the nations long lockdown. Though virus cases were initially slow to rise, Colombia now has the worlds sixth highest total number caseload.

Duque said he is hoping to attract more U.S. investment to Colombia and he hailed a U.S. government initiative aimed at enhanging private sector investment in infrastructure.
Patna, Sep 19 : Reacting to Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Bachchan's remarks about ungrateful people in Bollywood, a BJP leader in Bihar said that his party was concerned about those who were harming the whole country from within.

Jaya, while defending Bollywood after BJP MP Ravi Kishan pointed out drug links within the movie industry, had made the 'Jis thaali mein khate ho, usi mein ched karte ho (You make a hole in the plate in which you eat) remark during Zero Hour in the Rajya Sabha.

Bachchan allegedly targeted the Bhojpuri film industry for getting name, fame and good money through Bollywood but not respecting it.

Nikhil Anand, chief spokesperson of the BJP Bihar unit, said that they are concerned big time about those who are "making holes in the plate of the country".

"Big names in Bollywood want to get away with allegations on the basis of their public images. As far as the law of the land is concerned, everyone is equal. If anyone is found indulging in any wrongdoing, he or she will face legal action, whether it is Karan Johar or anyone else," Anand said.

"Popular actor Sushant Singh Rajput died under mysterious circumstances, and hence a CBI inquiry was initiated. The Narcotics Control Bureau and the Enforcement Directorate probe are yielding results. The case is opening up and suspects are getting detected," the BJP leader said.

"The people of Bollywood live in a dream world and their reality is different. The babas and babies, movie and drug mafia, and the underworld are connected. All these threats to society and the country need to be investigated," he said.

He accused the Maharashtra government of not wanting to let the reasons behind the deaths of Sushant and Disa Saliyan come out into the public domain. "That's why it has diverted the investigation," Anand claimed.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - Kenyan newspapers highlighted the dilemma facing the ministry of education officials as they plot to reopen schools, issuing guidelines which would technically ban pupils from playing during the learning process
Senate Democrats: Supreme Court Vacancy Shouldnt Be Filled Until After Election

The Senate shouldnt consider a replacement for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg until after Americans vote to re-elect President Donald Trump or elect Democratic nominee Joe Biden, top Democrats in the body said Friday.

Ginsburg, 87, died from pancreas cancer complications earlier in the day.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), the ranking member on the Senate Judiciary Committee, was among the Democrats quickly calling on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and other colleagues not to try to fill the new vacancy until after the election.

Under no circumstances should the Senate consider a replacement for Justice Ginsburg until after the presidential inauguration. Senator McConnell made his position clear in 2016 when he held Justice Scalias seat vacant for 10 months so he could deny President [Barack] Obama an appointmenta goal he himself admitted, Feinstein said in a statement

The committee vets and approves of judicial nominees before the full Senate votes on them.

McConnell blocked the nomination of Merrick Garland to the vacancy left by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in early 2016.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg participates in a discussion hosted by the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington on Sept. 12, 2019. (Sarah Silbiger/Reuters)

The longtime lawmaker wrote Friday that he believes the situation then was different because Americans decided to flip the Senate to a GOP majority in the 2014 midterms because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term.

Voters opted to bolster the Republican majority in the Senate in the 2018 midterms because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise, McConnell added, saying whomever Trump nominates to fill Ginsburgs seat would be allowed a vote on the floor of the Senate.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said during an appearance on Fox News late Friday that Trump should nominate a successor next week and the Senate should confirm the nominee before the Nov. 3 election.

But other Democrats joined Feinstein in pushing for a delay in even considering the next justice for the nations highest court, previewing their strategy of how to prevent Trump from getting his third pick in one term.

If four Republican Senators commit not to vote to fill this Supreme Court vacancy until after the presidential inauguration, then the voices of the American people will have a chance to be heard, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said in a statement.

Republicans currently hold a 53-47 majority in the upper congressional chamber. The minority count includes two independents who virtually always caucus with Democrats, Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Angus King (I-Maine). A simple majority is needed to confirm judicial nominees.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) in the Senate subway area of the Capitol before President Donald Trumps State of the Union address in Washington on Feb. 4, 2020. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

A bruising battle erupted in 2018 when Trump nominated Brett Kavanaugh to replace retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy, leading to a weeks-long stalemate as the parties vied for the votes of a select few moderates.

Kavanaugh was narrowly confirmed 50-48 after tense hearings that included the relay of unsubstantiated sexual assault allegations, several of which were later retracted or revised.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), one of the deciding votes, took to the Senate floor to denounce what had transpired.

Today we have come to the conclusion of a confirmation process that has become so dysfunctional it looks more like a caricature of a gutter-level political campaign than a solemn occasion, she told fellow senators from the Senate floor.

A spokeswoman for Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), another potential swing vote, called a report that Romney committed to not confirming a nominee until after inauguration day grossly false.

Democrats fear a more uneven tilt on the court, which now has five justices nominated by Republican presidents and just three by Democratic ones.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) added: The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.

Feinstein pointed to the reported deathbed wish of Ginsburg, who was said to have told her granddaughter that she preferred to have her replacement nominated by the winner of the upcoming election.

We should all honor that wish and wait until after the presidential inauguration to take action, Feinstein said.
Deepika Padukone recently took to her Instagram account and teased a surprise to her fans. The actor posted a beautiful scenery with rich blue sky and white clouds as well as several palm trees. Even though she did not reveal what was going to happen in 3 days she did, however, tag some people in the picture hinting what her surprise might be about.

Deepika Padukone teases a surprise to fans

Deepika Padukone has a lot of films in her kitty including Shakun Batra's film which was supposed to go on floors earlier this year. The actor captioned her beautiful picture as, "3 days to go" and did not reveal anything more than that. But going by the tags on that picture it can be assumed that the surprise might be related to one of her upcoming films.

Read Also | Ronit Roy Reveals He Was Once Told Junior Artists Are A Better Choice As An Actor Than Him

Padukone had tagged Sharma movies Shakun Batra and actors Sidhant Chaturvedi, Uri actor Dhairya and Ananya Pandey in the picture. It is already known that Deepika Padukone had signed up for a movie with Shakun Batra. The movie would cast Sidhant Chaturvedi and Ananya Pandey along with Deepika Padukone in the film. So the picture could also mean that there is a new update coming related to the Shakun Batra's film. Check out the picture below.

Read Also | Nia Sharma's Birthday: Actor Reacts To People Criticising Her For 'vulgar' Cake

Shagun Batra's film was supposed to go on floors earlier this year. However, it got postponed due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Moreover, the film was supposed to be shot in Sri Lanka which at the moment would not be possible due to limited travelling during the pandemic.

The scenery shown in Deepika Padukone's Instagram story is very similar to the scenery in Sri Lanka. A report in Mumbai Mirror suggests that an insider told the portal that the movie makers founder a similar scenery in Goa like the one they wanted to shoot at. Hence the plans of going to Sri Lanka are likely to be changed and the film is likely to get shot in Goa.

Shakun Batra is the Indian film director who is credited for films like Kapoor and Sons, Ek Mein aur Ek Tu and Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na. Although not much is known about the upcoming film of Shakun Batra and Deepika Padukone, the actor in an interview with the Hindustan Times had revealed the genre of the film. She had told the portal that the film would be a domestic noir.

Read Also | 'Open Water 2' Ending Explained: Were Dan And Amy Alive In The End?

Read Also | Carole Baskin Is Gearing Up For A Brand New Show; Details Inside

Image credits: Deepika Padukone Instagram

Get the latest entertainment news from India & around the world. Now follow your favourite television celebs and telly updates. Republic World is your one-stop destination for trending Bollywood news. Tune in today to stay updated with all the latest news and headlines from the world of entertainment.
(Photo : Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) (Photo : (Photo by Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/Getty Images)) CARACAS, VENEZUELA - MARCH 14: A nurse prepares a vaccine during a national campaign of vaccination implemented by the government after having decreed a state of health emergency at CDI Dr. Alcides Rodriguez on March 14, 2020 in Caracas, Venezuela. Delcy Rodriguez, Vice President of Venezuela, confirmed on Friday 13th the first two cases of COVID-19. President Nicolas Maduro had decreed a state of emergency in the health sector, suspended all flights from Europe and Colombia and mass public gatherings are banned. There is international concern about the management of the COVID-19 epidemic in Venezuela due to its collapsed health system.

The Cambridge, Massachusetts- based Biotechnology company, Moderna, is nearly completing its race in procuring a vaccine against the global pandemic that pestered the whole world's lives, the Novel Coronavirus or COVID-19. Moderna is confident to deliver its promise of 20 million vaccine dosages but is facing a glooming possibility of being shy from November's US National Elections.

The biotech company, Moderna will soon invalidate President Donald J. Trump's optimism and belief that a vaccine would be readily available just-in-time for the November election. The biotech company admits that it will be short by a month or two after the November deadline.

According to Daily Mail, the company confirmed on Friday that the country would receive its massive shares of the 20 million vaccine dosages by the end of 2020. That is the earliest possible timeline that Moderna has set for the vaccine's readiness and supply. The company also aims to produce a whopping 500-million vaccine dosages for the whole world by 2021.

Moderna's vaccine trials have reached its third and final stage, the human trials, which enrolled 25,296 people in its 30,000 participant goal as of last Wednesday, September 16. The trial's sample size would be sufficient to know and determine the data needed by its scientists and researchers for the vaccine's effectivity.

The biotech company's COVID-19 vaccine would be available by October's end. However, that timeline would not be sufficient enough to release the vaccine for mass, public use.

ALSO READ: COVID-19 Whistleblower Dr. Li-Meng Yan Credibility Check: Background, Other Coronavirus Papers She Co-Authored, and MORE!

Moderna's COVID-19 Vaccine

The biotech company's efforts in procuring a vaccine are nearing its fruits of labor as it boasts of a promising vaccine that can be made available for 20 million dosages. The coronavirus (COVID-19) has already claimed more than 900,000 lives worldwide and a massive number of people in the country alone.

Moderna's CEO, Stephane Bancel, told CNBC in an interview last Thursday that the infection rates in the US would be a massive factor in the vaccine trials. In case the US infection rate drops, Moderna's vaccine would face hardship in determining and studying its human trials. Moderna's 53 participants are needed to catch and test positive for COVID-19 to determine the vaccine's effectivity.

The company's sample included placebo-vaccinated individuals who will confirm whether those who got the real COVID vaccine are less likely to get sick and be affected by the SARS-CoV2 virus.

Moderna's race to procure a vaccine goes neck and neck with AstraZeneca and Pfizer, completing the trinity of the world's leading vaccine developers. All three companies are in the third and final stage of testing, with Pfizer and Moderna being the forefront in vaccine innovation.

Moderna's Vaccine Supply

The biotech company would be able to produce 20 million of its target 500 million vaccine dosages and made available by 2020, according to Moderna itself. Moderna is known to have a deal with the United States to produce 100 million dosages for the country alone.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that as much as 45 million dosages would be ready for approval from the agency, and would receive authorization as it delivers by the end of the year.

ALSO READ: Gennaris 'Bionic Eye' Surpasses Neuralink in World's First Brain Implant Human Trials That Can Restore Vision









This article is owned by Tech Times





Written by Isaiah Alonzo

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
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By William Schwartz | Published on 2020/09/18

Recently the final social media post of departed actress Oh In-hye has started spreading online. The exact source of the post is unknown, but it appears to have come from someone on her social network. Oh In-hye made the post at one in the morning on September 14th but deleted it sometime later, which is why it had not been widely seen in the immediate aftermath of her death.

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The post features text alongside a picture of a flower. The text reads, it's all my fault. I hate the idea that this could be someone else's fault. So it must be mine. Yes. Everyone should be happy. We have so little time and money, right? My style is to show everyone what I can do all at once. Such a contradiction. Giving out more of your heart than your money is so miserable. I'm not drunk. My phone tastes good.

Oh In-hye also wrote further discouraging replies to this comment. She makes reference to her body being used as one, and wording of being able to do something to the end as being inaccurate. Oh In-hye states that she understands why loving words were said, describing the act as a crime. Though vague the references appear to be in regard to a date Oh In-hye had recently gone on. She wrote that she had no other way to deal with prideful people, and that she too was sad.

Oh In-hye was discovered unconscious at her home in Incheon by police at around five in the morning on September 14th following contact from a friend who was concerned for her safety. The friend in question may have been alerted to Oh In-hye's disturbed mental state having read this social media post. Oh In-hye died later on Saturday night after medical personnel were unable to revive her.

Written by William Schwartz
PRESS RELEASE

September 18, 2020

Amid a darkening cloud of questions gathering around the Delhi Police investigations into the Delhi riots

Karwan-e-Mohabbat, Anhad and Muslim Womenas Forum

release a review of Delhi Riots 2020: The Untold Story

titled a Sifting Evidence: The Untold Story of aThe Delhi Riots Booka

This review is based on a PDF of the abooka (Delhi Riots 2020: The Untold Story) which went viral after the publishers withdrew, because the PDF was widely circulated on social media - presumably by the bookas supporters, who believed its message must be spread far and wide. The review (Sifting Evidence) is largely in tabular form, which makes for a quick read.

This Delhi riots book was originally a fact-finding report by a group called GIA (Group of Intellectuals and Academicians), that was submitted to the Home Ministry on March 11, 2020. Later, a version of it was accepted for publication by Bloomsbury India. BJP leader Kapil Mishra, whose hate speeches allegedly triggered the riots in February 2020, was a guest of honour at the book launch event held on August 22, 2020. On the day of the launch, Bloomsbury India decided to withdraw publication.

The authors claimed their freedom of expression was violated. But the facts are clear - there was no call to ban the Delhi Riots 2020 book. Established and reputable publishers get their reputation because they fact-check, and stay away from publishing material that may amount to libel. Other publishers may not care, and therefore do not achieve that reputation.

What the review found is false claims, factual inaccuracies, and distorted/selective presentations. The reviewers have simply used the yardstick of evidence and fact, or lack thereof. There are many statements in this book that amount to libel.

A reputed publisher like Bloomsbury must answer how this material, including defamatory content, made it through their fact-checks from manuscript stage to final proofs.

The review also examines parallels between the book and some charge-sheets filed by the Delhi Police in the riots cases, and reveals evidence of a conspiracy a because a book like this seems to be providing the template that Delhi Police is following.

This is by no means an exhaustive review, but perhaps enough to allow a reader to judge the bookas relationship to fact, and its deeply worrying relationship to the narrative being created by the Delhi Police.

Sifting Evidence can be accessed here:
A three-year-old boy has been found safe and sound after a desperate seven-hour search through dense bushland in Western Australia.

James O'Reilly vanished from a house at about 7.30am on Saturday at Karli Rise in Yallingup, south of Perth.

A frantic police search continued throughout the day for the blonde haired, blue-eyed toddler who was last seen wearing white Spider-Man pyjamas.

Eventually it was his grandfather who found the boy asleep in dense bushland kilometres from the house.

His first words to his grandfather were that he was hungry.

James O'Reilly, 3, (pictured) has been found safe and sound after a desperate search in Western Australia

James O'Reilly vanished from his house at about 7.30am on Saturday at Karli Rise in Yallingup, south of Perth

WA Police said little James had been exposed to the rough terrain and poor weather conditions, and that arrangements have been made for him to have a medical check-up.

James' family on Friday arrived at the Airbnb that he went missing from, according to the West Australian.

It's believed James wandered away from the rental property while following the family's two dogs.

Wadandi elder Billy Webb, who was involved in the search, said the boy's father was 'distraught' when he spoke to him on Saturday.

'The father came wandering through the bush shouting out the name and I was wondering, "Who's walking across our property shouting around", sort of thing,' he told WA Today.

A frantic search for the child was launched earlier in the morning (pictured: SES teams search bushland looking for James)

WA Police said little James had been exposed to the rough terrain and poor weather conditions. (pictured: SES teams search bushland looking for James)

'Then I found out that his boy was gone. He was distraught, he was really worried and just sort of wandering around, trying to do a little bit of a grid with his dog.

'Apparently he [the boy] just wandered out of the little play area. This is pretty dangerous sort of country and it's really thick bush, this is one of the most dangerous precincts in the whole Capes region.'

In addition to his Spider-Man pyjamas, James was wearing thick wellington boots, which would have helped immensely in the 'appalling' weather.

Inspector Martin Voyez said the area had been battered by strong winds, heavy rain, and even hail.

'The terrain around the holiday home is very thick, dense bush and very difficult for people to walk through ... however we will continue to search for little Jimmy until he is found,' Inspector Voyez promised earlier in the day.

The exhaustive search included a police helicopter, search dogs, mounted units were State Emergency Services volunteers and locals residents who wanted to help.

In a statement posted to Twitter, the state's police force said: 'WA Police Force thanks all the emergency service volunteers and community members who assisted with the search. '
In normal times, persistent pressure and the combined use of carrots and sticks generally softens most political leaders. But when dealing with a decades-long conflict like the Palestinian-Israeli one and with a stubborn leader like President Mahmoud Abbas, pressure often produces the opposite results.

The Palestinian leaders position appears to have surprised the US president and his inner circle. Speaking to reporters Sept. 16, President Donald Trump revealed his financial pressure tactics toward the Palestinians. He bragged about his cutting off $750 million of annual support to Palestinians while pressuring Arab countries to follow suit.

I stopped funding the Palestinians fairly early on, because they were saying bad things about our country. So, I stopped funding them very early on. I think, ultimately, the Palestinians are going to come in, Trump said in a White House briefing.

Trump claimed that the two Gulf countries that have normalized relations with Israel will stop funding the Palestinians. However, UAE Minister of Economy Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri hinted that instead of cutting off aid, the United Arab Emirates is considering investing in both Israel and the Palestinian territories, saying that the UAE and Israel are planning to include some Palestinian areas in their bilateral economic engagements.

So far, the Palestnians have dug in in opposition to the accords, a position that gained further strength when David Friedman, ambassador to Israel, stepped into hot water when he publicly called for Abbas' replacement by UAE-based former Fatah leader Mahmoud Dahlan.

In an interview with Israel Hayom, Friedman was asked if the Trump administration was seeking to appoint Dahlan as the new Palestinian leader. According to the Israel Hayom text, Friedman replied, "We're thinking about it, and added, We have had no desire to engineer the Palestinian leadership." Friedman later said he had meant to say We are not thinking about it.

But regardless of his intent, the damage was done. Jerusalem-based Palestinian activist Dimitri Diliani, a spokesman of the so-called reform wing of Fatah, denounced Friedman's statements, insisting that the Palestinians will continute to choose their own leaders.

The Friedman statement even compelled Dahlan to denounce it himself. Dahlan tweeted, Whoever is not elected by his people can't lead and accomplish national independence.  I fully believe that Palestine desperately needs to renew the legitimacy of all Palestinian leaderships and institutions, and this will only be achieved through and transparent national elections and no one has yet been born who can impose his will on us.

Instead of forcing Abbas to soften his position, the combined US and UAE pressure seems to have given him a new lease on political life.

It may be argued that the popular support that has emerged for Abbas will be short lived, but the reality is that Palestinians are enjoying a rare atmosphere of national unity. Both Palestine Liberation Organization and Islamic leaders are burying the hatchet to consolidate peace, willing to put aside their differences in the face of an existential threat.

While Abbas' political rivals are at a disadvantage, the public is still skeptical about his leadership and strategy. The current efforts to redouble popular resistance have failed to take hold. While Palestinian leaders are still driving fancy cars and living in comfort, the Palestinian population is suffering and government employees are going unpaid.

The ultimate impact of the accords on the Palestinian leadership will ultimately come down to long overdue elections. A comprehensive popular review of the goals, means and leadership for a new liberation strategy can only be done within the context of both legislative and presidential elections as well as the reconvening of representative members of the Palestine National Council. The national unity effort will be taken seriously only when an election date is announced and the PLO is reformed.
The long-time manager of John Farnham has come out against the use of You're The Voice by anti-lockdown protesters, who sang the tune during a small flash mob at Chadstone Shopping Centre on Sunday.

Around 50 protesters came together outside the Coles supermarket only long enough to sing a rendition of the Australia classic at 1pm, before dispersing.

But Farnham's manager Glenn Wheatley, a giant of Australia's music scene, said the song had been co-opted by demonstrators against the wishes of the legendary singer-songwriter.

"Im personally concerned people will hear the song, and think John Farnham is personally endorsing these protests, and in this case its not right," Mr Wheatley said.

"Its something that John and I do not condone, the use of that song, particularly in a time in Melbourne where we are in Stage Four lockdown.

"Really the last thing we should be doing is protesting, no one should be hitting the streets en masse, endangering peoples lives and livelihoods."

Mr Wheatley said he had already heard the song used at far-right demonstrations within Australia, which was "not what we want to see the song used for".

"It was not meant to be a protest song, it was meant to be used as an inspirational song for nations and for people, not in a situation of what was an illegal protest.

"I want to reiterate we support peoples right to protest, but theres circumstances where the protest can be done, and taking to the streets of Melbourne today is not it."

Read the full story here.
ANN ARBOR, MI  After nearly two days of review, the University of Michigan faculty senate has passed a vote of no confidence in UM President Mark Schlissel.

Faculty senate members voted on the motion Wednesday with 957 in favor, 953 against and 184 abstentions, and it was originally announced that the vote did not pass because the number of votes in favor was not a majority of total votes cast.

However, according to the senates voting rules, unless otherwise specifically provided for in these rules or in the regental bylaws, all questions put to the university senate shall be decided by a majority vote of those voting.

The senates rules on voting say that in all cases not covered by rules adopted by the senate, the procedure in Roberts Rules of Order shall be followed. According to the Roberts Rules, there can be no such thing as an abstention vote, and in situations where the rules require a majority or two-thirds vote, abstentions have absolutely no effect on the outcome of the vote since what is required is either a majority or two-thirds of the vote cast.

Confusion over vote of no confidence in University of Michigan President Mark Schlissel leads to review

After reviewing the votes, senate chair Colleen Conway emailed members Friday and said that abstentions should not have counted as votes and the motion passed.

Conway attributed the error to technological lapses, saying it was a matter of transferring rules to electronic meetings. She also said there were accessibility issues after a software update that caused some issues.

Some faculty senate members were unable to participate in Wednesdays meetings due to teaching and other scheduling conflicts, Conway said, and the senate developed a sentiment ballot that included all seven motions from the meeting. The ballot was open for 24 hours and more than 2,100 members participated, Conway said.

We ask for your patience and understanding while we not only discussed how abstentions should be handled, but we also discussed in depth our concerns about the lack of accessibility to voting experienced by some of our colleagues," Conways email said. ... We are committed to working with the University Information Technology team to identify how we can address such lapses in technology in quick order, while also identifying alternatives when such issues arise to preserve the ability of all participants in our meetings to exercise their right to vote,

The vote of no confidence faults Schlissel for not using scientific data predicting the risk levels for fall 2020 reopening plans and that he failed in his handling of the sexual misconduct allegations against former provost Martin Philbert, who was dismissed for sexual misconduct that was known to members of the university for decades.

The resolution also says Schlissel has refused to accept any personal responsibility for the consequences of his administrations actions.

While the vote is only symbolic, it can still apply pressure to the Board of Regents. However, at a Thursday meeting, regent Denise Illitch read a statement on behalf of the board in support of Schlissel and the administration as they lead our university through these tremendous challenges.

University of Michigan regents support Schlissels handling of the pandemic

Faculty senate passed a number of other motions at the meeting, including a call for administration to release details that have guided the universitys planning for the fall 2020 semester, and for the university to resolve a strike with the Graduate Employees' Organization.

The strike ended Thursday as members of GEO and the university reached a deal, but only after UM filed an injunction against the organization claiming they were in violation of the Michigan Public Employment Relations act and that GEO members were in violation of their collective bargaining agreement.

Graduate employees reach deal with University of Michigan to end strike

Two resolutions at the meeting failed  one for a vote of no confidence in the universitys reopening plan, and another for all members of the university community to engage constructively together to overcome challenges and meet the educational mission of the university.

Conway said she and her colleagues in the Senate Advisory Committee for University Affairs (SACUA) will begin pursuing requests approved in the motions.

READ MORE:

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Remember charter school reform?

Before March and the public education turmoil caused by the coronavirus, the call for charter school funding reform was being echoed loudly in local school board meetings throughout the region at the start of 2020.

Several local boards considered and adopted a resolution circulated by the Pennsylvania School Boards Association supporting a charter reform proposal put forth by Gov. Tom Wolf. In January, more than 30 superintendents from districts in five counties formed a coalition, the Leaders for Educational Accountability and Reform Network, targeting legislative action on reform.

LEARN is comprised of school leaders who are standing up for public education and fighting for charter school reform, said Frank Gallagher, superintendent of Souderton Area School District, during a January press conference in Montgomery County.

The superintendents initiative included visits to Harrisburg to lobby for the reform package. Even in early spring at the same time boards were grappling with closing schools as the pandemic took hold, charter funding reform was being discussed and supported at board meetings.

The Pottstown School Board adopted the resolution in April. We want to remind the legislators that this is still very much on our minds, said Pottstown Schools Superintendent Stephen Rodriguez, at the time.

Before the pandemic hit, there was some supposition that charter funding reform was gaining support in Harrisburg. A study had just been released by Temple University Center on Regional Politics titled A Tale of Haves and Have-Nots, that said more than half of Pennsylvania school districts are on a path to fiscal distress. The study cited the states current charter school tuition formulas as a major factor making public schools go broke.

And then the pandemic took over most practical efforts in public education, and the focus of administrators and school boards shifted to learning how to safely and adequately educate students.

No one was thinking about charter school reform. Until now. Budget season is getting underway and school districts are discovering that the pandemic and the resulting uncertainty about if, when and how schools reopen is causing more families to try cyber charters. More are disenrolling from public schools, and the budget impact is growing.

The North Penn School District in Lansdale, Montgomery County, at a meeting this month took a concentrated look at both the financial effect of charters and at educational performance. Director of Business Administration Steve Skrocki presented the board with a cost analysis and performance analysis for the 14 charters that operate within North Penn.

Over the past month, Skrocki told the board, roughly 40 district students have disenrolled and entered into charter or cyber schools, which under current state funding formulas adds $700,000 in state-mandated, and unbudgeted, costs to the district budget. Typically, five to seven students leave per year.

The cyber school funding reform proposal currently on the back burner in Harrisburg would save the district roughly $800,000 if enacted. Skrocki said the 2020-21 budget has about $3 million already budgeted for cyber and charter school expenses, not counting the additional $700,000.

Skrocki provided data derived from the Future Ready PA Index that measures student performance statewide. Using charts and color-coded graphs, the presentation showed that in every category North Penn outperforms every charter, all of which operate as cyber schools. The three largest schools among the 14  PA Leadership Charter School, PA Virtual Charter School, and Commonwealth Charter Academy  contain roughly two-thirds of the total charter enrollment of the district, Skrocki said.

In every analysis, school officials note they are not anti-charter. The issues they want to see addressed are outdated funding formulas, lack of accountability that is required of public schools, and a level playing field.

Wolfs most recent proposal seeks to establish performance standards for charter schools to hold them accountable for educational outcomes, to cap enrollment at low performing cyber charter schools until they demonstrate improvement, require charter management companies to be subject to the state Right to Know Act and State Ethics Act, and create fair and equitable funding practices.

In the area of special education, making funding more equitable would save districts hundreds of thousands of dollars, according to an analysis on the state Department of Education website. Reading School District would save $1.2M; West Chester, $806,000; William Penn in Delaware County, $1.3M; Norristown, $1M; and Pottstown, $176,000, according to the PDE analysis.

Charter schools are seen as a choice every parent has the right to make. But the current system puts an undue financial burden on every taxpayer, who does not have a choice.

The urgency is even more pressing in these uncertain times than it was pre-pandemic. We urge lawmakers to do the right thing and give this common-sense financial relief to schools and taxpayers. Thats a choice that benefits everyone.
How do you solve a problem like friendlyjordies? It was the question on the lips of Nationals MPs last week when the YouTube political commentator dropped his latest video set inside the holiday home of Deputy Premier and party leader John Barilaro.

Friendlyjordies  real name Jordan Shanks  has been a YouTube personality for almost 10 years, oft-described as a Labor-aligned comedian, interviewing Kristina Keneally, Tanya Plibersek and former prime minister Kevin Rudd among others. This year he has interviewed NSW Opposition Leader Jodi McKay and Port Stephens MP Kate Washington.

The video Jordan Shanks filmed at the holiday home of Deputy Premier John Barilaro has been watched 350,000 times. Credit:@friendlyjordies

Shanks, 31, is known for his sardonic style and pushing the bounds of good taste. He is tacitly endorsed by the Labor Party, which considers his videos a way to reach Gen Y voters. But questions have been raised about his tactics after recent stunts, as well as comments about allegations of sexual harassment against former NSW opposition leader Luke Foley. Police are also investigating a complaint against Shanks.

One Labor campaign strategist, who asked not to be named, said Shanks' "nasty" style was starting to cause concern inside the party in NSW. "The stuff he has done with John Barilaro is racist," the person said. "My recommendation to people is to stay away."
The following list includes recent reports from the Midland County Sheriffs Office and the Midland Police Department. Compiled by reporter Mitchell Kukulka.

Tuesday, Sept. 15

8:19 p.m.  Officers responded to a vehicle crash in the area of South Waldo and Gordonville roads.

8:12 p.m.  Officers responded to a vehicle crash in the area of Eastman Avenue and North Saginaw Road.

6:20 p.m.  Deputies were dispatched to an Edenville Township location for a two-vehicle traffic crash.

2:48 p.m.  Officers responded to a vehicle crash in the area of North Saginaw Road and Christie Court.

2:44 p.m.  Officers responded to a vehicle crash causing injuries in the area of Eastlawn Drive and Swede Avenue.

2:23 p.m.  Deputies responded to a car-deer crash in Hope Township.

11:37 a.m.  A deputy was dispatched to a City of Midland residence in reference to a car-deer crash that occurred in Homer Township.

11:21 a.m.  Officers responded to a vehicle crash in the 1800 block of South Saginaw Road.

9 a.m.  Officers responded to a case of fraud in the 3900 block of Dow Court.

8:53 a.m.  Deputies responded to a car-deer crash in Lee Township.

8:07 a.m.  Deputies responded to a car-deer crash in Lincoln Township.

8:06 a.m.  A Hope Township man witnessed a car-deer crash near his house. The unknown driver did not want the animal, and has not requested an accident report.

4:15 a.m.  Deputies responded to a car-deer crash in Warren Township.

Monday, Sept. 14

10:06 p.m.  Deputies were dispatched to a Lincoln Township residence in regard to what was believed to be gunshots. Upon further investigation, it was determined the loud noise was an electrical transformer that had blown.

9:29 p.m.  Deputies responded to a report of a reckless driver on M-20 near Homer Road. The caller reported a vehicle was speeding and almost ran several other vehicles off the roadway. Deputies located the vehicle at M-20 and M-30. Contact was made with the driver, who was confrontational and argumentative with deputies and refused to produce his identification and any paperwork for the vehicle. Eventually, the driver calmed down and was more cooperative and allowed deputies to obtain his ID and speak to the vehicle owner. The driver was cited and sent on their way.

9:19 p.m.  Deputies were dispatched to an Edenville Township residence at the request of the Arkansas State Police. Deputies notified a 67-year-old woman that her 67-year-old husband was involved in a fatal crash in Arkansas.

8:48 p.m.  A deputy was dispatched to a Greendale Township residence in reference to an off-road vehicle crash causing injuries. Victims were transported to the MidMichigan Medical Center ER for treatment of non-life threatening injuries.

8:37 p.m.  Deputies responded to a car-deer crash in Larkin Township.

8:18 p.m.  Officers responded to a car-deer crash in the area of Poseyville Road and St. Charles Road.

9:12 a.m.  A deputy was dispatched to the City of Coleman for a death investigation outside of medical care of a 99-year-old woman. While en route, a Coleman police officer came on duty and volunteered to handle the case.

8:55 a.m.  A 45-year-old Larkin Township woman contacted the sheriff's office in reference to a fraud complaint. An unknown suspect opened an unemployment benefits claim with the State of Michigan. The caller was requested to file a local police report during the State of Michigan's investigation process. The claims began in March 2020 and the State paid out $7,458 before the fraud was identified.

8:49 a.m.  A 27-year-old Homer Township man reported his motorcycle was stolen from his residence. There are no suspects, and this investigation is ongoing.

2:50 a.m.  A 62-year-old Jerome Township man overdosed on medication intentionally. He was transported to the ER for a medical evaluation.

1:45 a.m.  A deputy was dispatched to a Jerome Township residence in reference to a 14-year-old female who overdosed on medication. She was transported with her mother by EMS to the ER before the deputy arrived.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is planning to hold his first China dialogue with his European Union counterpart this month, a senior EU diplomat said on Friday, a move that will unsettle Beijing as it tries to prevent the build-up of a transatlantic united front against it.

Pompeo is also expected to visit Italy and the Vatican, according to Italian media reports, in a bid to discourage Italy from accepting Chinese investment in port facilities and to put pressure on the Holy See, which has seen warming ties with Beijing.

Top diplomats from the US and China have accelerated their push to engage the EU at a time when the continent is seen as crucial by both parties to a worsening rivalry over economic, technological and geopolitical influence.

Get the latest insights and analysis from our Global Impact newsletter on the big stories originating in China.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a senior EU diplomat confirmed that the bloc's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, would formally propose the dialogue when he meets the foreign ministers of the 27 EU countries on Monday.

The EU-US dialogue on China will take place regularly, the diplomat said, adding that it is expected to start as early as this month.

The EU's agreement to hold talks with Washington on China, if confirmed on Monday, will come just a week after President Xi Jinping chaired his first summit with EU's two top leaders, European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

"This sends a strong signal to Beijing that the EU is happy to discuss with the US over the increasing concerns we share about China, even with the Donald Trump administration, which is not known to be friendly to the EU," a European diplomat said on condition of anonymity.

The US State Department did not respond to a request for comment.

The idea of a joint dialogue was proposed by Borrell in June when Pompeo joined a virtual meeting with him and the 27 foreign ministers.

Story continues

"There are issues that we face together in the relationship with China, and where our close cooperation is very important to address them jointly," Borrell said at that time. "This includes for sure the situation in Hong Kong."

An EU spokesman would not say if Borrell's talks with Pompeo would take place in person or remotely.

Meanwhile, Italian media reported that Pompeo would visit Italy and the Vatican towards the end of this month - just weeks after Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi travelled to Italy and four other European countries.

Josep Borrell is the EU's top representative for foreign affairs and security policy. Photo: Reuters alt=Josep Borrell is the EU's top representative for foreign affairs and security policy. Photo: Reuters

The talks would take place as the Vatican is expected to renew a controversial deal with China to extend an agreement on the appointment of bishops.

Under the deal, first put in place in 2018, the Holy See enjoys a decisive role in the appointment of all bishops in a country whose 12 million Catholics have been split between an underground church swearing loyalty to the Vatican and the state-supervised Catholic Patriotic Association.

Pompeo is expected to discuss with the Italian government China's plan to use the Belt and Road Initiative - of which Italy is the only Group of Seven nation to be part - to expand ownership of Italian ports.

The port of Trieste is under intense attention, as some pilot projects in the northern Italian port are managed by China Communications Construction Company. Five of its subsidiaries were sanctioned by the US last month over the company's involvement in South China Sea militarisation.

Wang's trip was widely seen as a "damage control" tour given China's worsening image amid the coronavirus pandemic and the imposition of a national security law in Hong Kong.

Politburo member Yang Jiechi, China's top diplomat, visited Spain and Greece shortly afterwards. While in Athens, he emphasised China's interest in continued development of the Piraeus port, currently run by China's state-owned Cosco Shipping.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2020 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2020. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Throughout her legal career, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg shattered glass ceilings and opened doors through the relentless pursuit of equality and womens rights.

The second woman to ever serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, an attorney who pioneered womens rights in a series of legal challenges throughout the 1970s, an icon to a younger generation, Ginsburg made the United States a more just and equal place. She reflected the best of our nation through a life in which she overcame the ugliness of sexism.

She died Friday at the age of 87.

There will be intense debate and speculation about her replacement, echoes of 2016 following the death of her dear friend, conservative Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. According to National Public Radio, Ginsburg said in a dictated statement days before her death, My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new President is installed.

There will be a time for such a discussion, but this prolonged moment of national mourning is not it. At a moment of stark partisan division, one of the many lessons of Ginsburgs life was her enduring friendships with ideological opposites. Fiercely liberal, supportive of abortion rights and womens rights, Ginsburg was extremely close with Scalia and Robert Bork, staunch conservatives whom she befriended on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

However complex the law might be, Ginsburg framed equality for women in the simplest of terms.

It has always been that girls should have the same opportunity to dream, to aspire and achieve  to do whatever their God-given talents enable them to do  as boys, she said in a 2015 conversation with the American Constitution Society. There should be no place where there isnt a welcome mat for women. ... Thats what its all about: Women and men, working together, should help make the society a better place than it is now.

In her life there were many times when the welcome mat was not extended.

Her mother, the former Celia Amster, graduated from high school at the age of 15 but never had the chance to attend college. Amster would die days before Ginsburg graduated high school, and when Ginsberg was nominated to the Supreme Court, she offered a moving tribute to her mother.

For a time, Ginsburg and her husband, Martin Ginsburg, lived in Lawton, Okla., while he served as an Army officer at Fort Sill. Ginsburg was offered a job as a claims examiner with Social Security, only to have it withdrawn because she was pregnant. She took a job as a typist.

At Harvard Law, she was one of nine women in a class of more than 500 students  nine women who were asked by the law schools dean what it was like to occupy slots that could have gone to men.

She ultimately graduated from Columbia Law School at the top of her class, but she could not land a job at leading New York firms.

I struck out on three grounds  I was Jewish, a woman and a mother, she would later say.

Throughout the 1970s working with the American Civil Liberties Union, Ginsburg chipped away at many of the legal barriers, and the sexist assumptions implicit in those barriers, that denied women equal opportunities.

When President Bill Clinton nominated Ginsburg to the Supreme Court in 1993, he likened her to former Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.

Like Marshall, she used the law to expand rights and open opportunities. This can be seen in the majority opinion she authored in 1996 ordering the Virginia Military Institute to admit women, which she called the culmination of the 1970s endeavor to open doors so that women could aspire and achieve without artificial constraints.

Ginsburgs passing is our nations loss. But Ginsburgs legacy will be defined by the doors that were opened and the aspirations achieved.
China on Saturday said it was resolutely opposed to the United States' move of blocking downloads of WeChat and TikTok apps and warned counter measures to protect the interest of Chinese companies.

Illustration: Florence Lo/Reuters

The US on Friday issued orders to ban popular Chinese social media apps TikTok and WeChat from Sunday to safeguard national security, weeks after India banned them, saying they were prejudicial to sovereignty, integrity and security of the country.

Last month, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order to ban TikTok and WeChat by September 15 unless the ownership of the two Chinese companies changed to American.

Reacting to orders issued by the Trump administration to ban TikTok and WeChat from Sunday, China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said it was resolutely opposed to the US' move to block downloads of these apps.

In the absence of any evidence, the US has repeatedly used state power to suppress the two enterprises for unwarranted reasons, which seriously disrupted their normal business activities, undermined the confidence of international investors in the US investment environment and damaged the normal global economic and trade order, the MOC said in a statement.

It said Washington should immediately stop bullying and safeguard international rules and order.

"If the US is bent on having its own way, China will take necessary measures to resolutely protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies," the ministry said, without giving details.

Though the ministry did not specify any retaliatory action, it issued rules for a widely anticipated unreliable entity list mechanism on Saturday that could severely punish foreign entities and individuals who undermine China's national interests.

The move is believed to counter the US' relentless crackdown campaign against Chinese businesses, state-run Global Times said.

The list would include foreign entities or individuals who undermine China's sovereignty, security and development interests and those who violate market principles by cutting off normal transactions with Chinese firms, organizations or individuals, the MOC said.

The Ministry did not release specific foreign entities or individuals that will be put on the list.

TikTok and WeChat were first banned by India on June 29 along with 59 Chinese apps, saying they were prejudicial to sovereignty, integrity and security of the country.

The ban was expanded to 224 Chinese apps later. The ban was imposed in the backdrop of a tense stand-off along the Line of Actual control in eastern Ladakh with Chinese troops.

President Trump had also cited India's action against the Chinese apps while announcing his plan to ban them last month.

The latest US move followed intensified moves by Trump administration to crack down on high tech Chinese firms starting with telecom giant Huawei whose products are banned in the US

Chinese analysts say US actions point to the intensifying US-Chine battle for technological supremacy.

On September 15, 'China's telecom giant Huawei was cut off from essential supplies of semiconductors, without which it cannot make its smartphones or 5G equipment', Wang Xiangwei, a Beijing-based columnist wrote in South China Morning Post on Saturday.

The US move made Huawei's future uncertain as it expects to run out of chips kept in reserve before the end of next year, he said.

"Adding to the woes of Huawei and other Chinese tech companies was the announcement last Sunday that Nvidia, a US technology company known for specialised graphics chips for gamers and servers, would pay USD 40 billion for the British chip designer Arm," he said.

"If Arm becomes a US company, it will give the US government further leverage to restrict the access of Huawei and other Chinese companies to mobile computing. Arm's chips, which are installed in most of the world's mobile phones, are independent of American chip-making technology," he said.

Huawei is already battling hard to get the release of Meng Wanzhou, its high-profile CFO and daughter of the company's founder, Ren Zhengfei, who was detained in Vancouver in Canada in December 2018 on US charges of bank fraud.

The Huawei executive is also accused of misleading HSBC Holdings about her company's dealings with Iran, which the US has sanctioned. She is fighting possible extradition to the United States.

"Announcing the ban ahead of September 20, the US government wants to impose extreme pressure on TikTok again, and leaves the Chinese company less space in negotiating a deal with the US company," Ma Jihua, an industry analyst, told the Global Times.

Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the China Foreign Affairs University, said, "Tencent and TikTok will not be the Trump administration's last targets, as China's high-tech growth is irresistible."
As COVID-19 cases rise in Winnipeg, Manitoba now lags behind Saskatchewan in accessing the app that notifies people when they've been exposed to the novel coronavirus.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 18/9/2020 (490 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As COVID-19 cases rise in Winnipeg, Manitoba now lags behind Saskatchewan in accessing the app that notifies people when they've been exposed to the novel coronavirus.

On Friday, Saskatchewan announced its residents can now use COVID Alert, Canadas exposure notification app that alerts those whove been exposed to someone who has tested positive. On the same day, Manitoba public health officials  who until recently balked at the app  announced 40 new cases in the province, 29 of them in Winnipeg.

The province called the number of city cases a "concerning increase."

The technology, designed by the federal government to limit the spread of the virus, is already being used in Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador. On Friday, the app was rolled out by both New Brunswick and Saskatchewan. Users who test positive for COVID-19 receive a one-time code or key from their health authority that they can enter into the app. When the key is entered, COVID Alert will notify other users who may have come in close contact with that person for at least 15 minutes, and direct them on next steps based on their province's public health advice.

THE CANADIAN PRESS/RYAN REMIORZ The smartphone app, meant to warn users if they've been in close contact with someone who tests positive for COVID-19, was released in Canada in July.

During a conference call with reporters Friday, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister said from Ottawa the province is pursuing the free, voluntary app "ambitiously." The province's chief provincial public health officer, Dr. Brent Roussin, and Health Minister Cameron Friesen said earlier in the week they're working on it but couldn't say if the app will be available this fall or winter.

Winnipeg's 239 active COVID-19 cases by health district: Click to Expand Assiniboine South 6 Downtown 56 Fort Garry 14 Inkster 4 Point Douglas 17 River East 50 River Heights 14 Seven Oaks 42 St. Boniface 8 St. James-Assiniboia 6 St. Vital 9 Transcona 9 "Unknown" 4  Source: Manitoba's COVID-19 Sept. 18 dashboard

On Friday, when asked why Saskatchewan has been able to adopt the app and Manitoba hasn't, a spokeswoman for the provincial government didn't answer the question but issued a statement. "We are in discussions and engaging with Canadian Digital Services, Health Canada and other jurisdictions regarding the COVID Alert app."

In late August, after a midsummer slowdown in new virus cases, neither Friesen nor Roussin expressed enthusiasm for the app. The health minister told reporters he's been told at least 50 to 60 per cent of the population would need to download the app for it to be helpful.

"Its not the big answer that were all looking for," Roussin said at the time. "That apps going to require a significant percentage of the population to use it, because its not going to be mandatory and its not going to replace what we do with contact tracing."

So far, there have been more than 2.5 million downloads of the COVID Alert app, the federal government said in a press release Friday. Since it first launched, an estimated 260 people have voluntarily input their one-time key after testing positive for COVID-19, it said.

THE CANADIAN PRESS/SEAN KILPATRICK Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the launch of the app in July which has 2.5 million downloads and is being used in Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador and, as of Friday, both New Brunswick and Saskatchewan as well.

A virologist with the University of Manitoba applauded the app and its adoption by more provinces on Friday.

"I 100 per cent applaud this initiative," said Jason Kindrachuk, who is doing research work in Saskatoon.

"It is a testament to Canadian ingenuity to develop something like this so quickly so we can have some form of warning system that doesn't identify the individual," the scientist with the U of M's department of medical microbiology said.

"Having concerns about this app, relying on getting a lot of people to use the app as a limitation shouldn't draw us away from promoting and using it. There are going to be limitations like any new things developed for COVID. This is not going to be perfect," Kindrachuk said.

"Having any warning is better than nothing, especially when the personal cost is so limited  we don't have to provide any identifying information."  Jason Kindrachuk, virologist with the University of Manitoba

"Having any warning is better than nothing, especially when the personal cost is so limited  we don't have to provide any identifying information."

COVID Alert was developed in consultation with the Privacy Commissioner of Canada and does not track a user's location or collect personally identifiable information. The app was developed by Health Canada, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, the Canadian Digital Service and the Ontario Digital Service, the federal government said.

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca

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Members of opposition parties like the Congress, DMK and the TMC on Saturday opposed in Lok Sabha the setting up of the PM CARES Fund, alleging that it lacked transparency.

They were participating in a debate on the bill for giving effect to various compliance relief measures for taxpayers, including extending time limits for filing returns, in the wake of the coronavirus crisis and tax benefits for donations to PM CARES Fund.

"I can't understand the logic to have a separate fund. What is the difference between the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund and the PM CARES Fund," said N K Premachandran (RSP), who initiated the debate on The Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020.

"Eight different Acts are being modified means substantial changes took place in eight Acts and one of the major Acts is the Income Tax Act of 1961," he said.

He alleged the PM CARES Fund "lacks transparency as it is not audited by Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG). FurtherI is also not applicable".

"The question of transparency and accountability is the main issue I want to highlight," he said.

Opposing the Bill, Manickam Tagore (Congress) also raised the issue of transparency in the PM CARES Fund.

He wondered if a chief minister of any state can say that he will not disclose the spending under the Chief Minister's Relief Fund.

But PM CARES Fund is outside the ambit of Parliament and CAG, he said.

"What was the need of a private trust with the Council of Ministers as trustee indicating a conflict of interest," Tagore said.

He alleged that just like demonetisation, the Modi government is providing another opportunity "to convert blackmoney into white".

Without naming anyone, he said "AA battery" is running the Modi government which is why "most of the government contracts are going to some particular companies".

Echoing similar views, Gautham Sigamani Pon (DMK) alleged that the PM CARES Fund is "clearly a private trust".

Considering the trying times, Sigamani said, the government should consider reducing tax rather than cutting TDS.

Mahua Moitra (TMC) too opposed the Bill. She said the PM CARES Fund is against public interest as it is not answerable to Parliament even though it collects funds from the public.

She said that 38 public sector companies contributed Rs 2,100 crore to the Fund.

This is 70 percent of the total corpus, she said, adding it should therefore be answerable to Parliament.

She also alleged that the Fund got money from Chinese firms like Tik tok banned by India and wondered why the government did not return the donations from such companies.

Moitra questioned the need to institute a new fund (PM Cares Fund) when one already exists?

"Prime Ministers will come and go, but the existence of a fund is not up for discussion? What is this need to name everything after one individual.

"First, you are raising a fund on the basis of a public office. By saying it is not open toI, you are running away from transparency," Moitra said.

The Bill amends the provisions of the Income Tax Act to provide the same tax treatment to PM-CARES Fund as available to the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund.

"The donation made to the PM CARES Fund shall be eligible for 100 per cent deduction under section 80G of the IT Act. Further, the limit on deduction of 10 per cent of gross income shall also not be applicable for donation made to PM CARES Fund," an official statement had said.

Shriniwas Patil (NCP) also said there should be more transparency in the PM Cares Fund.

Backing the fund, Bhartuhari Mahtab (BJD) said he hoped the PM CARES Fund is not only created to tackle COVID-19 but also for different calamities.

"Such type of calamity relief funds are nothing new in our country. I doubt in any other country such a clamour has been made to target a philanthropic trust, the manner in which it is being done in the country," Mahtab said.

Arvind Sawant (Shiv Sena) said the way tax relief has been given to those who donate money to the PM CARES Fund, similar relief should be extended to the fund created by the Maharashtra government. Supporting the bill, Subhash Chandra Baheria (BJP) said it proposes faceless assessment which is a big step in the interest of taxpayers.

The Bill, introduced in Lok Sabha on Friday, proposes to extend the faceless assessment scheme to at least eight processes in income tax law.

It proposed faceless assessment of income escaping assessment, rectification, amendments and issuance of notice or intimation.

Besides, collection and recovery of tax, revision and effect of orders and approval or registration.

Baheria further said that the government should take steps to bring down difficulties faced by GST taxpayers.

Citing a specific example of GST law being overtaken by Rules with regard to Input Tax Credit, he said the government should take steps to correct this anomaly.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Laurel Beelers ruling on Friday comes after the Commerce Department barred some transactions over Tencent Holdings Ltd.s WeChat and prohibited new downloads and updates of the app.

A federal judge said a request by WeChat users to block President Donald Trumps ban on the Chinese-owned messaging app is now moot and will no longer be considered.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Laurel Beelers ruling on Friday comes after the Commerce Department barred some transactions over Tencent Holdings Ltd.s WeChat and prohibited new downloads and updates of the app. The judge said she is available to hear new requests from users, who have complained that Trumps executive order would remove a vital channel for communicating with family and friends in China and the U.S.

The U.S. restrictions take effect on Sunday.

The administration has said the ban is driven by national security concerns about the Chinese governments ability to access data through the app. In a Friday court filing, coming shortly before the judge ruled, U.S. lawyers cited an opinion piece published in The New York Times on Thursday which called Chinese plans for WeChat and other apps much more sinister than even Trump believed.

The case is U.S. WeChat Users Alliance v. Trump, 3:20-cv-5910, U.S. District Court, District of Northern California (San Francisco).

Written by Edvard Pettersson.
In her new role at the library, Casanova will be responsible for helping parents and children find the right books as well as planning events for the younger library visitors.

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An event schedule for October has already been created and it includes new and old events. One of the events, LEGO Club, will be held more often now.

LEGO Club will be split up into two ages groups, 5-7 and 8-10, and they will now meet once a week. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, sessions are limited to five participants. Registration and the wearing of a face mask will be required.

The 8-10 age group will meet each Tuesday from 5-6 p.m. the 5-7 group will meet each Friday, from 4-5 p.m.

Casanova said the library is about more than just reading, but learning and acquiring new skills.

A new event is a music and reading event which will be held over Zoom every other Thursday in October, from 10:30 to 11:15 a.m., starting Oct. 1. The event will feature a musician playing a variety of different instruments, followed by the reading of a childrens book.
The Cousteau name is a formidable one in the realm of nature documentary, and for junior members of the family, its a brand that comes with a heavy burden of expectation.

Celine Cousteau, whose new film Tribes on the Edge is a highlight of this years online Philadelphia Environmental Film Festival (and helps kick it off Sept. 23), has had to wrestle with this auspicious lineage.

Her grandfather is legendary documentarian Jacques, whose films and books taught a love of the natural world to generations of people the world over. Her father is nature filmmaker Jean-Michel Cousteau, her mother nature photographer Anne Marie Cousteau.

I asked Celine: Given that imposing legacy, is there any chance you could walk up to the dinner table as a teen and say, I think Ill be an auto mechanic?

When I was a teenager, what I said when I walked up to the dinner table was that I didnt know what I wanted to do, she said with a laugh, speaking online from France.

Though raised in several countries (including the United States) and fluent in several languages, she said France is the taproot she returns to when getting her life back in order. This time, its followed the completion of the eight-year labor of love that is Tribes on the Edge, a harrowing profile of Indigenous tribes working to preserve whats left of their corner of the Amazon wilderness in Brazil.

Adventures with Jacques

Celine Cousteau, now 49, spent nearly two years in the Amazon as a child, traversing the watershed with her explorer/filmmaker grandfather. The immersive life of a globe-trotting filmmaker was so familiar to her that when she came of age, she always figured shed make her mark in a different way.

I knew I wanted to study psychology," she said. I was keenly interested in why people behave the way they do. Why do some people succumb to stress, for instance, why do some people manage it and thrive? So thats what I ended up studying, and I must say it has helped me enormously. She completed her undergraduate work at Skidmore College, and later earned an advanced degree in international relations.

When she finally did turn to writing and film as an adult  she accompanied father Jean-Michel to the Peruvian Amazon a decade ago for the short film Amazon Promise  she brought her training in psychology and culture with her, combining the Cousteau legacy with a perspective that gives her film work its own distinct stamp.

You see it immediately in Tribes on the Edge, with its compassionate interest in the people she introduces us to in the Javari Valley of northwest Brazil, deep in the Amazon, where an encroaching modern world (and an unfriendly Bolsonaro government) threatens the forest they inhabit and the lives they lead.

Its a complicated and compelling portrait  the modern world beckons and threatens in equal measure, creating a constant push and pull between the desire to adapt and a deeply cultural inclination to preserve the world they inherited. Many of the Javari tribesmen see themselves as warriors fighting to save the wilderness, rapidly shrinking as palm oil cultivation, ranching, and mining claim more of the forest, often illegally.

The movies clear implication is that more folks should learn to see themselves as the Javari do  the word tribes in the title is a double entendre, taking note of increasing tribalization of societies everywhere.

Coming back to my family legacy, with me it means putting humans at the center of the environmental story, Cousteau said. "Yes, we should save the dolphins and the whales, but we need to think about the danger facing our own species.

That danger is extinction, she continued. Twenty percent of the fresh air we breathe comes from the forests the Javari are trying to protect. So we are completely connected to them. Not just theoretically, but actually. They are the guardians of this critical ecosystem. And their fight is our fight.

We can choose to do something

Setting her work next to the films of her grandfather illuminates a telling difference in point of view. Jacques showed us a vast, often trackless natural world of ceaseless wonder and possibility. Celine shows us something else  an increasingly finite natural world that is each day more diminished, scarce, fragile.

I think where we have things in common is that the films are inspirational, in their own way. I think this film is tough, but it is not hopeless. We can choose do something, she said.

Celine Cousteau also has a third-generation documentarians sophisticated and, to some degree, cautious view of what it means to present a view of a people like the Javari. When she was in the Peruvian Amazon helping her father for Amazon Promise, she remembers vividly an exchange with a tribal elder, a man candidly jaded about the parade of earnest, well-meaning filmmakers whod been in and out of his village.

He looks at me and says, So you come into my village and take our stories, you leave with our images, you talk to our shamans, and take our knowledge and make your little pills. But for us, things do not change,  she recalls

And I said, Hopefully people will see this film and see what happened with Indigenous people. "

"And he looks at me and says, Thats nice, but in the end, we see nothing. 

This prompted a sea change (pardon the pun) in the way Cousteau looked at her work. So much so that she was reluctant to take up an invitation 10 years ago by a Javari representative to tell their story. She agreed only after Beto Marubo, a Javari elder and organizer for the Union of Indigenous Peoples of the Javari Valley (affiliated tribes representing 7,000 people), made repeated attempts to recruit her.

From the time she took the job, she did so with the idea that shed create more than a film. In tandem, there would be a funding stream to help the Javari people as they wish to be helped. (The films website, tribesontheedge.com, has a donations portal, which right now is providing drones to monitor and record incursions into Javari land, as well as education/activist programs.)

In some ways, I think this film chose me," she said. And believe me, Id rather have been making a movie about dolphins in the Bahamas.

But the time is right for this, I feel, Cousteau said. "The pandemic has made us realize how connected we all are to each other, all over the world, how what we do affects other people. So in a strange way I think the movie came together at exactly the right time.

Philadelphia Environmental Film Festival

Online Sept. 23-27 at philaenvirofilmfest.org.

Individual program tickets, $12. (A program is typically a feature or features paired with a bundle of short films.) Unlimited pass for 13 programs, $30.

Tribes on the Edge is part of the Indigenous Perspectives program available starting Sept. 23. Another highlight, the Oscar-nominated Honeyland, about a Macedonian beekeeper, is available starting Sept. 25 and is winner of the festivals 2020 Best Feature Award.
A spokeswoman for JB Hi-Fi said its team and its safety was its number one priority. We are committed to ensuring everyone in our team is respected, and our business is safe, inclusive and welcoming for everyone, she said. The spokeswoman did not directly respond to questions on whether there was staff training on how to deal with sexual harassment from customers but said they were committed to investigating and addressing concerns. We have processes in place for any team member to raise concerns of gender discrimination or sexual harassment, including internal reporting channels, and an independent external reporting hotline. A Sydney JB Hi-Fi worker who has worked for more than 10 years at the company on and off said she is hit on regularly by customers. Probably it happens every couple of months.

She started working at the chain at 18 and said sometimes shed even be groped and inappropriately touched by customers. Theres obviously training for the job but not training for what to do when customers are sleazy and hitting on you, she said. If I was in the pub, Id have no issues with basically saying f--- off, but when youre in the workplace theres just that power imbalance. You are there to provide help and advice (to customers) and that person is obviously being inappropriate. A woman who currently works at a JB Hi-Fi store in Melbourne said the retailer was a boys club and the first encounter she had with the store manager was him saying he wanted to hire Brazilian girls because theyre hot. She said she was regularly hit on by customers, even asked out on dates. I tell them Im sorry I have a boyfriend or sometimes I tell them I am gay. Women working at JB Hi-Fi have described it as a "boys club". Credit:Fairfax Media

A friend of hers was objectified by wearing shorts to work and now she doesnt. When she complained to her manager, he laughed. Another worker at a Melbourne store said she had experienced groping and unwanted touching from when she started work as a teenager. Customers would also demand only to be served by men. I have friends and colleagues subject to sexual harassment in store. They feel very afraid to do anything and speak out about it. The women said when they did complain to managers they either got little or no support. Often they did not feel comfortable or see any point making complaints as the attitude was the customer is always right. The women are members of RAFFWU, a newish rival to the more employer friendly shop assistants union.

RAFFWU secretary Josh Cullinan said issues of harassment and discrimination were treated far more seriously at other retailers such as Coles, Woolworths, Officeworks or Bunnings. Loading Every woman I speak to (at JB Hi-Fi) has a story, or theyve seen it happen to someone else, he said. Mr Cullinan said JB Hi-Fis approach on these issues appeared to be 20 to 30 years behind other big retailers. That gender pay gap is not just offensive, we consider it to be unlawful. Figures lodged with the Workplace Gender Equality Agency show that women make up 41 per cent of the workforce at JB Hi-Fi. Thats far less than the Australian average where 54 per cent of the retail workforce is women.

About 70 per cent of managers at JB Hi-Fi were men, the figures showed. Mr Cullinan said this was well above the industry average. In response to claims its a boys club, the company spokeswoman said diversity, including gender diversity, is a high priority for JB Hi-Fi. While representation of women in our business compares favourably to industry comparison groups, we are committed to continuing to improve the diversity of our workforce. We have a diversity strategy, objectives and initiatives in place to improve the representation of women in leadership roles over time. Do you know more? Send us a confidential and encrypted message on Journotips or to benschneiders@protonmail.com
US congresswoman Ilhan Omar, a prominent and outspoken critic of Donald Trumps presidency, will address activists at a Momentum-backed event held alongside Labours virtual party conference next week.

The Democratic representative for Minnesotas 5th congressional district is due to appear in conversation with former shadow home secretary Diane Abbott at The World Transformed festival, which has shifted its programme online due to the pandemic.

In the US, Ms Omar is widely known as part of the squad  a group of four progressive Democratic women elected to Congress in 2018. Fellow members include the influential New York representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan.

The 37-year-old politician, who is seeking her second term at the US election in November, was one of the first two Muslim American women to serve in Congress, and has recently called for rent and mortgage payments for citizens struggling with the economic fallout of the pandemic.

Speaking to The Independent, Ms Abbott said: The squad have revitalised progressive politics in he US, led the charge on policies like the Green New Deal and taken on Donald Trump with his racist and anti-immigrant policies.

On both sides of the Atlantic, with both Trump and his friend Boris Johnson, this is a moment of utmost peril for the poor, black people and immigrants. Look forward to working with her on the fight back.

Ms Abbott and Ms Omar are expected to share their thoughts on the future of the transatlantic left in the wake of Labours crushing defeat at the 2019 general election and Bernie Sanders defeat in the US Democratic primaries.

The event will take place on 25 September and forms part of The World Transformed festival, which has been held every year, unofficially, on the fringes of the Labour conference since Jeremy Corbyns second leadership victory in 2016. It is typically attended by thousands of left-wing activists and Labour Party members, but due to the coronavirus pandemic events will be held online.

Labours official conference has also been replaced with a series of virtual events between 19 and 22 September, including keynote speeches from Sir Keir Starmer, deputy leader Angela Rayner and shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds.

Gaya Sriskanthan, co-chair of Momentum, said: Having been part of the organised left in both the UK and the US, I know our movements have a lot to learn from one another. It is vital for progressive movements across the Atlantic to be able to exchange experiences and reflections on the past five years, and forge a path forward together.

"In the US, when we didnt get Bernie elected, we kept organising to build power in communities and to get Ilhan and other Squad members elected, who are transforming US politics and shifting the national debate. Now, after Jeremys leadership, we need to organise in our communities across the UK and find more of our own Ilhans and AOCs to become future leaders of the left.

Senior Labour MP Diane Abbott (AFP via Getty Images)

Hope Worsdale, the lead organiser of The World Transformed, added: Both IIhan Omar and Diane Abbott are inspirational figures who have for years fought relentlessly against racism and nationalist populism, and for a transformative political agenda that puts power into the hands of working people.

In the context of the current crises, from Covid-19 to the climate emergency and the global rise of the far-right over the past decade, we need radical solutions that reach beyond national boundaries. At The World Transformed, we want to build links between progressive movements on both sides of the Atlantic and facilitate a dialogue about our strategies going forward.
Sen. Cory Gardner, a Republican running in a tight race for reelection in Colorado, says he wants to protect people with medical conditions.

In a mid-September tweet released by his campaign, he promoted legislation he introduced in August that he says will do just that.

"People like my mother who battle chronic diseases are heroes," read the tweet. "I authored the bill to guarantee coverage to people with pre-existing conditions  no matter what happens to Obamacare  because some things matter more than politics."

Gardner has voted repeatedly to repeal the Affordable Care Act, the first federal law to guarantee people with health problems that they could buy insurance when shopping for their own coverage  at the same cost as for healthier consumers.

Polls show broad public support for keeping the ACA's preexisting condition protections, while also indicating a consistent, if narrow, majority favoring the overall law.

The popularity of those protections has led Gardner, as well as other GOP candidates facing tough challengers, to swear their allegiance to protecting people with medical conditions, despite their records. In previous fact checks, we found Sen. Martha McSally's promise always to protect preexisting conditions to be False. President Donald Trump also has made related statements, which have ranged from False to Pants on Fire.

That got us thinking: Would Gardner's legislation, dubbed "The Pre-Existing Conditions Protection Act," actually guarantee these protections if the ACA didn't exist? We decided to investigate.

The bill, which was introduced in August, and has no co-sponsors. It's very short, only 117 words in total.

The main section is a single very long sentence: "A group health plan and a health insurance issuer offering group or individual health insurance coverage may not impose any pre-existing condition exclusion with respect to such plan or coverage, factor health status into premiums or charges, exclude benefits relating to pre-existing conditions from coverage, or otherwise exclude benefits, set limits, or increase charges based on any pre-existing condition or health status."

We reached out to the Gardner campaign to ask for more information.

A campaign spokesperson reiterated in an email that Gardner's goal is "to guarantee coverage for individuals with preexisting conditions and ensure they cannot be charged more as a result of their underlying medical conditions."

Thomas Miller, a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a think tank in Washington, D.C., quipped that the main goal might be something else entirely.

"It's probably about 100 words too long," Miller said. "It could have said, 'I'm running for election. I'll do whatever is necessary.'"

Past votes, present messages

Proponents of the ACA emphasized that the law would help people with medical conditions as they worked to get it passed by Congress, which happened in 2010 following a yearlong failed effort by Democrats to win Republican support. Among a host of other provisions, the law bars insurers from rejecting applicants with medical conditions, as they routinely did when considering individual applicants before the law passed. Nor can insurers charge the sick more than the healthy.

Since the law went into effect in 2014, it has faced many efforts by Republicans in Congress, including Gardner, to repeal it.

It has also faced three Supreme Court challenges. It survived the first two, although one ruling allowed states to opt out of its expansion of Medicaid programs for the poor. The still-pending case was first brought in 2018 by 20 states and is supported by the Trump administration. That case could overturn the entire law, although the court won't hear arguments on the issue before the election. And that brings us back to Gardner's bill. An obvious difference between that proposal and the ACA is length. Gardner's bill is one page, while the ACA runs to several hundred.

And Gardner's claim seems pegged to the legislative language that says insurers can't impose a "pre-existing condition exclusion," which sounds fairly straightforward.

But it's not, experts say.

"It's an adorable little bill but does not address any of the main issues," said Linda Blumberg, a fellow at the nonprofit Urban Institute's Health Policy Center. "You need a package of policies working together in order to create real protections for people to have coverage to meet their health care needs."

For instance, the bill does not explicitly bar insurers from outright rejecting applicants with medical conditions, something known as "guaranteed issue."

"'Guaranteed issue' is not in the language of the bill," said Miller at AEI.

Instead, the language may simply prohibit insurers from restricting services related to a medical condition only if they choose to sell an individual insurance in the first place, he said.

Compare that with the ACA, which says every insurer selling individual or group coverage "must accept every employer and individual in the State that applies."

Also needed in legislation aiming to protect people with medical problems, said Blumberg, are provisions for subsidies to help people of low and moderate income afford their premiums. The ACA has those, along with specific enrollment periods, so that people don't wait until they are sick to sign up. Without them, mainly those with medical conditions might sign up, driving up costs and premiums. That, in turn, can price people, especially the sick, out of future coverage.

Another way Gardner's bill differs from the ACA is that it does not list benefits that must be included in a health insurance policy. The ACA requires insurers to cover 10 broad categories of care, including hospitalization, prescription drugs, childbirth, substance abuse treatment and mental health care.

"Without that, insurers could sell products that don't cover very much, which is what we had prior to 2014," Blumberg added, which is one way to discourage those who are sick from even applying. "It was difficult to find a product that covered prescription drugs, and we even saw policies that didn't cover chemotherapy."

So, what about costs?

Gardner's legislation says insurers can't "factor health status into premiums or charges."

So insurers could not charge people more simply because they have diabetes, say, or cancer. Still, that leaves open a whole lot of other things that insurers could consider when setting premiums for individuals, such as such as gender or occupation, which could stand in as a proxy for health. Unlike the ACA, it does not bar insurers from setting annual or lifetime dollar limits on coverage, which could disproportionately affect people with costly medical conditions.

The ACA allows insurers to vary premiums for only three reasons: where people live, their age and whether they use tobacco. It sets upper limits, such as charging older folks no more than three times what younger enrollees pay.

Douglas Holtz-Eakin, president of the American Action Forum, who wrote a blog post cited by the Gardner campaign, said the proposed legislation is a starting point  a place holder, if you will. His piece mentioned it near the end of a broader look at the Trump administration's health platform going into the election.

Responding to questions about Gardner's legislation, Holtz-Eakin said that if the ACA were to be struck down, Gardner would likely add provisions to it.

"I don't think it's intended to be a replacement bill but a provision to make sure people can get coverage," said Holtz-Eakin. "It's quite clear on the aim to ensure that people with pre-existing conditions can get insurance, but it doesn't address every single policy issue that's out there."

Health law professor Mark Hall at Wake Forest University said Gardner's legislation could survive if the ACA were struck down by the Supreme Court, but he noted that Congress would be unlikely to adopt the Gardner bill as written.

"A freestanding protection of pre-existing conditions without any supporting provisions to keep insurance affordable or encourage people to purchase it before they become sick, is almost certain to cause serious harms to the market," Hall wrote in an email. "Therefore, a lot more is needed to overcome legitimate objections that almost certainly will be made from both sides of the political aisle."

Our ruling

Because protecting people with medical conditions requires many moving parts, the brevity of Gardner's proposal makes it appear to be a fig leaf for a political problem rather than a means to guarantee protections for people with preexisting conditions.

The legislation is unclear on whether it guarantees that people with health problems will be able to buy insurance in the first place. And, even if they can, they may well find it priced out of reach because the legislation does not bar insurers from varying premiums widely on the basis of age, gender or occupation.

Viewed in its most favorable light, Gardner's 117-word proposal would only serve as a place holder for larger legislation, upon which more protections would have to be layered to bolster the effectiveness of its guarantee.

We rate this statement False.
WASHINGTON - Federal officials intercepted an envelope addressed to the White House that contained the poison ricin, a U.S. law enforcement official told The Associated Press on Saturday.

The letter appeared to have originated in Canada, according to a statement from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, which said it was assisting the FBI

The letter was intercepted at a government facility that screens mail addressed to the White House and President Donald Trump, the U.S. official said. A preliminary investigation indicated it tested positive for ricin, a poison found naturally in castor beans, the U.S. official said.

The U.S. official was not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Federal investigators were working to determine where the enveloped originated and who mailed it. The FBI, the Secret Service and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service were leading the investigation.

In a statement, the FBI said agents were working to investigate a suspicious letter received at a U.S. government mail facility and that there is no known threat to public safety.

A Navy veteran was arrested in 2018 and confessed to sending envelopes to Trump and members of his administration that contained the substance from which ricin is derived.

Authorities said the man, William Clyde Allen III, sent the envelopes with ground castor beans to the president, FBI Director Christopher Wray, along with then-Defence Secretary Jim Mattis, then-CIA Director Gina Haspel, Adm. John Richardson, who at the time was the Navys top officer, and then-Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson. The letters were intercepted, and no one was hurt.

In 2014, a Mississippi man was sentenced to 25 years in prison after sending letters dusted with ricin to President Barack Obama and other officials.

___

Associated Press writer Rob Gillies in Toronto contributed to this report.
In the hours after Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died, Democrats opened up their pocketbooks. Money came in so fast and furiously that at one point in the evening ActBlue, the nonprofit organization that helps Democrats and left-leaning groups raise money online, was receiving more than $100,000 in donations per minute. Donors shattered the sites records, donating $6.3 million in the 10 p.m. hour, which was the most the site has ever raised in any single hour. The previous record had been set an hour earlier, when donors gave $6.2 million. Before that, the previous one-hour record had been set on Aug. 20, when donors gave $4.3 million on the final night of the Democratic National Convention.

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One of the big beneficiaries of the outpouring of cash was the group Get Mitch or Die Trying, which was created by Crooked Media to donate to 13 races that are seen as having the best chance of flipping the Senate. In the hour after Ginsburgs death, the group reported more than $1.5 million in donations. Within three hours it had raised more than $3 million, and by early Saturday morning the number had shot up to almost $6 million.

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Our Get Mitch Senate fund is now at $9.454 million raised. This money gets split between 13 senate candidates. At 5:30PM today the fund was at $3.5 million. https://t.co/KGWmpEtGEb  Tommy Vietor (@TVietor08) September 19, 2020

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The donations poured in as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Friday night that the Senate will be holding a vote to confirm President Donald Trumps nominee to replace Ginsburg on the Supreme Court. President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, he said in a statement Friday night. The move suddenly places a huge spotlight on the Senate less than two months before the November election and assures that an unprecedented battle will play out in the chamber of Congress for control of the Supreme Court as voters get ready to head to the polls. Sen. Ted Cruz said Friday that Trump should name his nominee as soon as next week. We cannot have Election Day come and go with a 44 court  and I think we risk a constitutional crisis if we do not have a nine-justice Supreme Court, particularly when there is such a risk of a contested litigation and a contested election, Cruz said on Fox News.
The United States has accused Hezbollah of stockpiling ammonium nitrate in several European countries, suggesting a possible link between the Lebanese Shiite movement and the recent massive explosion in Beirut.

"Since 2012, Hezbollah has established caches of ammonium nitrate throughout Europe by transporting first aid kits whose cold packs contain the substance," US counterterrorism coordinator Nathan Sales said.

"Those sorts of caches have been found in a number of countries, including the UK, Greece, France, Italy, and a number of others," he said in a conference transcript sent to AFP on Friday.

"I can also reveal that significant ammonium nitrate caches have been discovered or destroyed in France, Greece, and Italy... And as we all saw in the Port of Beirut explosion, ammonium nitrate is a truly dangerous substance."

The August 4 blast in Beirut killed more than 190 people, wounded thousands and ripped through large parts of the Lebanese capital.

The Hezbollah movement, which is designated by the US as a terrorist group, exerts influence over the port, multiple sources have confirmed to AFP.

The blast was caused by the explosion of tonnes of ammonium nitrate -- a chemical compound commonly used as a fertilizer. It was stored for years in a port warehouse.

"We know that Hezbollah has stored massive amounts of ammonium nitrate across Europe. We also know from what we saw in Beirut the truly destructive power of ammonium nitrate," Sales said.

"It's capable of inflicting mass destruction when used as an explosive. That is why the United States has called for a full, open, and transparent and thorough investigation of the explosion in Beirut."

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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sat, September 19, 2020 12:00 490 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45e304b 1 News citilink,Sulawesi,Baubau,Selayar-Islands,travel Free

Low-cost carrier Citilink opened four new routes connecting Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport in Makassar, South Sulawesi, to several areas in South Sulawesi and Southeast Sulawesi on Thursday.

Travelers can now fly straight from Makassar to Baubau and Pomala in Southeast Sulawesi as well as to Palopo and the island of Selayar in South Sulawesi with a twin-engine turboprop short-haul regional airliner ATR 72-600.

The new routes are expected to improve the regional economy, smoothen logistics distribution, as well as make contributions to the other sectors, such as tourism, Citilink CEO Juliandra said in a statement as quoted by kompas.com.

As the largest city in eastern Indonesia, Makassar serves as an important hub for passengers traveling to cities in Sulawesi, Maluku and Papua.

Read also: Amanwana on Moyo Island reopens to guests

An isolated island located at the most southern end of South Sulawesi, Selayar boasts white sand beaches and pristine tropical waters. It is a paradise in eastern Indonesia where travelers can see turtles laying eggs or visit the historical remains of the Selayar kingdom from the 16th century.

The town of Baubau is located on the small island of Buton, Southeast Sulawesi. With breathtaking beachfront views, Baubau offers great seafood cuisines and the quiet life of a small town.

Meanwhile, Pomala district in Kolaka regency, Southeast Sulawesi and Palopo municipality in South Sulawesi offer natural baths in pristine rivers, lakes and waterfalls, as well as hidden beaches facing the Gulf of Boni. (gis/wng)
Ruth Bader Ginsburg died Friday after complications of metastatic cancer

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on Saturday a statue honoring the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The statue dedicated to the second woman to ever serve on the U.S. Supreme Court will be erected in Brooklyn, where Ginsburg was born.

New York state Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks at a news conference on September 08, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

In a statement, Cuomo said the statue would be a physical reminder of Justice Ginsburgs monumental contributions to the America we know today and as an inspiration for all.

The New York Governor went on to say Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg selflessly pursued truth and justice in a world of division, giving voice to the voiceless and uplifting those who were pushed aside by forces of hate and indifference. As a lawyer, jurist, and professor, she redefined gender equity and civil rights and ensured that America lived up to her founding ideals  she was a monumental figure of equality, and we can all agree that she deserves a monument in her honor.

Read More: Ruth Bader Ginsburgs dying wish: I will not be replaced until a new president is installed

Ginsburg died on Friday after complications from metastatic cancer.

The 87-year-old was known throughout her judicial career as a champion for justice across party lines, especially for womens rights and social justice.

#BREAKING: New York will honor the life and legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg with a statue in Brooklyn, her birthplace.



This statue will serve as a physical reminder of Justice Ginsburg's monumental contributions to the America we know today and as an inspiration for all. pic.twitter.com/iwvo7c3JOw  Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) September 19, 2020

Her 27 years on the court reshaped our understanding of the basic tenants of equality and justice. While the family of New York mourns Justice Ginsburgs death, we remember proudly that she started her incredible journey right here in Brooklyn, Cuomo said.

Story continues

Ginsburg lived in Brooklyn until she left to attend Cornell University for her undergraduate studies. She later attended Columbia Law School where she finished her final year tied for first in her class.

The Governor will appoint a commission in the coming days to oversee the project. He says the commission will give recommendations on the design, location and installation of the new memorial.

Read More: New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is leading the vanguard on police reform

The White House is already looking at filling Ginsburgs supreme court seat.

According to CNN, the move could happen before the first presidential debate, which is scheduled for September 29.

.@GOP We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 19, 2020

Trump took to Twitter on Saturday saying that there no time to waste on this matter that it should be done without delay.

The Supreme Court said a private interment service for Ginsburg will be held at Arlington National Cemetery.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg speaks onstage at the Fourth Annual Berggruen Prize Gala celebrating 2019 Laureate Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg In New York City on December 16, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Eugene Gologursky/Getty Images for Berggruen Institute )

Have you subscribed to theGrios podcast Dear Culture? Download our newest episodes now!

The post Cuomo announces Brooklyn statue to honor Ruth Bader Ginsburg appeared first on TheGrio.
A neo-Nazi network inside the German police force has been sending messages threatening violence to public figures for more than two years. The network, with the abbreviation NSU 2.0, has access to intimate personal data stored in official police databases. Among the list of predominantly female victims are lawyers, politicians, journalists, students and artistsa total of at least 71 threatening notes to 27 persons and institutions in eight different German states.

The series of terroristic intimidations began with attacks on the lawyer Seda Basay-Yldz, a defender of victims of the National Socialist Underground (NSU), the neo-Nazi terror group that murdered nine migrants and one policewoman. The first of more than a dozen messages sent to Basay-Yldz declared that her then two-year-old daughter would be slaughtered. One-and-a-half hours before the message was sent the personal data of the lawyer and her family had been accessed by a computer of the Frankfurt police.

The owner of the computer was the Hesse policewoman Miriam D., who together with her partner and four other right-wing extremist police officers maintained a chat group which circulated, among other things, illegal Nazi propaganda. The members of the group ridiculed disabled people, concentration camp prisoners, black skinned persons, refugees and Jews. The chat group also posted material mocking the young refugee Alan Kurdi. The boys body had been washed ashore in Turkey in 2015 and a photo of his corpse became a symbol for the European Unions inhumane refugee policy.

In the past five years at least 38 internal proceedings have been initiated against far-right police officers in Hesse. Bearing in mind the fact that German police authorities are themselves investigating the cases, the number of fascist officials is likely to be many times higher. As the World Socialist Web Site has repeatedly pointed out, politicians, the secret services and investigators have systematically covered up the extent of the extreme right-wing conspiracy within the German state apparatus.

Now, official sources demonstrate that it is not only the Hesse police who are involved in drafting and spreading the NSU 2.0 threatening letters. Last Monday, the Suddeutsche Zeitung and WDR radio reported that four police officers from Hamburg and Berlin have also been questioned recently as suspects.

According to the report, a man and a woman in Hamburg allegedly used their access to police computers to retrieve without authorisation the personal data of journalist Hengameh Yaghoobifarah. In June, Yaghoobifarah, who works for the taz newspaper, wrote a satirical article about the German police and subsequently received threatening letters from NSU 2.0 which included intimate personal information.

Meanwhile in Berlin, two officers from the Spandau and Neukolln districts are said to have spied on the cabaret artist Idil Baydar and called up her private data. According to media reports, this happened on the same day an identical computer inquiry was made in Wiesbaden. Ten days later Baydar received a threatening SMS mentioning her mothers first name. To date, none of the officers involved have been relieved from official duty.

The Suddeutsche notes that as early as 2017 there had been anonymous threatening letters in Berlin, among others, to members of the left-wing milieu and journalists, based on data from police databases. Der Spiegel also reported that a chief commissioner in the Berlin police force provided members of a far-right chat group with confidential information, including information about a suspect in the investigation of racist arson attacks in Neukolln.

The weekly news magazine also names police officer Roland G., who is a suspect in the case of the bombing of the Fatih Mosque in the city of Dresden. The chief of police, who supervised the shooting range of the municipal police headquarters, had close relations with the far-right Reichburger movement, which denies the Holocaust and seeks to establish a vigilante group of German knights. After being sentenced to a 4,000 fine for incitement, he remains in the service of the police where he has access to official vehicles, among other privileges.

In Landshut, Bavaria, former police officer Hermann S. and his wife were temporarily arrested in late July by Bavarian and Hessen criminal police officials after he was suspected of being one of the authors of the NSU 2.0 threatening letters. During a house search of the well-connected New-Right activist, investigators found an illegal stock of weapons, including two pistols, batons, pepper spray and a pump gun. A computer server was confiscated and is currently being evaluated.

Group S.connecting right-wing terrorists and the police

There is also new evidence in the case of suspected right-wing extremist terrorists from Group S. which indicates the involvement of the police authorities. As the World Socialist Web Site has reported, 12 men had hoarded weapons and ammunition and planned to raid mosques throughout Germany in a concerted commando action, aimed at killing people at prayer. The intention was to provoke a counter-reaction and civil war in order to rock and overcome the state and social order of Germany, according to a statement by the Federal Prosecutors Office.

An informer from the investigating authorities was the only member of the group not to be arrested, although, according to investigators, he belonged to the innermost circle of conspirators.

According to the Tagesschau newspaper, the group regarded 2020 as the year when there would be no more excuses and action was necessary. One of the groups supporters was the neo-Nazi Thorsten W., an officer in the police headquarters of Hamm in North Rhine-Westphalia. According to a report in the Suddeutsche Zeitung the officer had for years openly indicated his extreme right-wing views. He had promised the group 5,000, if necessary even more, for weapons and is alleged to have ordered a pistol at a meeting of the group.

The police officer, who has been in custody since February, wanted to take action against riffraff with his service weapon, the Suddeutsche reported. In a WhatsApp group, W., together with a police superintendent and another officer, had for years exchanged racist slogans and Nazi propaganda and joked that they wanted to shoot foreigners. The three men are under investigation by the Dortmund public prosecutors office for using license plates bearing the initials of illegal organisations. W. is also alleged to have accessed a confidential police report on the Reichsburger movement.

Although W.s right-wing extremist views were evident for years, no disciplinary measures were taken. His office in the Bockum-Hovel police station was only searched when W. was suspected of terrorism. In his office, investigators found Nazi merchandise and stacks of issues of a right-wing extremist monthly paper, together with other evidence.

As the news portal t-online wrote in August, the assault plans of Group S. ... were further advanced than previously known. According to the report, a Kalashnikov and ammunition had already been ordered. The money was being held by one of the groups suspected supporters, but shortly before his arrest the deal was suddenly cancelled.

Then, in July, another suspected supporter of Group S. was found dead in Dortmund Prison. He allegedly promised the group 50,000 to buy weapons. According to media reports, the man was active in the Reichburger milieu and possessed a cache of weapons and homemade hand grenades. Spiegel magazine quoted a prison spokesman who said that the circumstances of the terror suspects death had not yet been conclusively determined.

A Spiegel survey of German state institutions revealed at least 18 cases of Reichburgers in uniform in Bavaria, and 12 in the federal police force. In total, there have been at least 340 suspected cases of right-wing extremism in the federal states since 2014. This is clearly a complete underestimation, in part due to the fact that forces such as the Verfassungsschutz, the domestic secret service (Office for the Protection of the Constitution), is constantly moving the political spectrum further to the right with its definition of right-wing extremism.

In its most recent report, the Verfassungsschutz stated that among the vast majority of members of the milieu [Reichburger], right-wing extremist ideological elements are ... only slight or indiscernible. The report was released just weeks before hundreds of far-right extremists led by Reichburger members attempted to storm the Bundestag. The pictures of far-right Reich war flags in front of the German parliament were published in papers all over the world.

Nordkreuz and the Hannibal network

Marko G., a leader of the prepper group Nordkreuz, had recently attracted similar international attention. Along with accomplices from the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania criminal police, Marko G., a trained sniper, ex-elite soldier and long-time member of the police Special Commando Force (SEK), had accumulated an extensive stock of weapons on his private property, including an Uzi submachine gun with silencer and 40,000 rounds of ammunition.

Members of the group were temporarily arrested at the end of last year when extensive lists of political foes and lists for orders of caustic lime and body bags were uncovered. Marko G., a member of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, was suspended from duty but is now at large. The Schwerin Regional Court described his preparations for civil war as a one-timethough in terms of time and content very extensivebreach of conduct and awarded him a suspended sentence.

According to Der Spiegel, the state criminal investigation department had identified Marko G. as a right-wing extremist back in 2009. In a note to his superiors, the news magazine reported that G. was conspicuously interested in National Socialism and especially in the SS, without showing the necessary distance. Members of the Nordkreuz group, including a lawyer and a senior police officer, discussed plans to use Day X to gather and kill leftist refugee supporters, one witness reported. Marko G. himself told Der Spiegel that Nordkreuz remains active today.

Nordkreuz is part of the so-called Hannibal network, which, according to insiders, is preparing for an armed coup. The network apparently has over 2,000 supporters throughout Europe as well as links to German army special forces and the neo-fascist NPD. It recruits its members from all sections of the state apparatus.

Nordkreuz, in turn, relies on the Uniter group, which networks arms dealers, the security services and elite soldiers, instructs private individuals in domestic combat and trains its own nongovernmental combat unit. Uniter was founded by a former member of the Verfassungsshutz and Andre S., aka Hannibal, a former instructor of the German army Special Forces Command (KSK) and an informant for the Military Counterintelligence Service (MAD).

At the end of May, disciplinary proceedings were initiated against two officers of the Brandenburg police force who were members of Uniter, following an investigation by Stern magazine. The two officers are accused of illegal data retrieval. According to Heise magazine, one of the suspects did research in the operational documentation system, while the second officer accessed police information about himself and his family as well as information about another former member of Uniter. The two policemen have since left the group and remain in service.

At the end of last year, the Uniter membership of a lecturer at the police academy in Brandenburg was revealed. According to the taz newspaper, the lecturer was District Manager East, i.e., part of the leadership team of Hannibal. He was also suspected of illegally accessing police database systems, but the German Interior Ministry rejected this suspicion in June.

Far-right networks In Germany are able to energetically continue their work because their activities are being systematically covered up by the highest authorities in the state apparatus and political circles.
He played legendary memorable character Russ Owen until 2018.

And now Stuart Manning, 41, is set for global fame after landing a part in new Hollywood TV series Glow and Darkness.

The medieval period drama, which is being filmed in Spain, is also set to feature megastars Denise Richards and former Bond girl Jane Seymour.

On location: Ex-Hollyoaks actor Stuart Manning is set for global fame after landing a part in Hollywood TV series Glow and Darkness

Stuart has been sharing snaps of his time on set as the big-budget production has ploughed on in spite of the coronavirus pandemic.

In one snap, cast members in Medieval garb take a break from the fierce Spanish heat as they sit on chairs in the shade.

Crew wearing face masks stand around the background, as the production takes place in an around the town of Caceres, in the Southern Spanish region of Extremadura.

Taking a break: Stuart has shared several snaps from the production on his Instagram, including this shot of cast members taking a break from the fierce Spanish heat

Career highlight: The former Hollyoaks actor captioned the above snap, 'Working with these guys on #glowanddarkness has been a dream'

Stuart also posted several selfies from on set, while he also showed footage of stuntmen riding horses along past a small lake.

In his captions for these posts, Stuart revealed that these snaps are from his time on set by including the hashtag #glowanddarkness.

On one particular selfie featuring Stuart and three other actors, he wrote: 'Working with these guys on #glowanddarkness has been a dream. I cant wait to share it with you all soon'.

Writer Alejandro Gillermo Roemmers created the series, while Denise Richards, 49, and Jane Seymour, 69, are both set to star.

No expense spared: Stuart shared glimpses of real-live horses galloping around the Spanish countryside

Being cast in the series will be a welcome change for Stuart, after it was revealed in 2018 that he was working as a delivery driver in between acting gigs.

Stuart first hinted to his fans that he would be taking part in the programme back in March, when he shared a snap of himself with a massive bushy beard and longer hair.

The look is a striking change from his days on Hollyoaks, when he sported a clean-shaven look with short back and sides.
On 90 Day Fiance: Happily Ever After, Syngin Colchester and Tania Maduro are getting ready to head back to the United States after spending some much-needed time in South Africa. After Syngins brother, Dylan, lands in the hospital with a blood clot, Syngin returns home to see him. He brings his wife Tania along, but there has been quite a bit of drama on the trip.

Syngin and Tania have fought in front of both Syngins family and his friends on separate occasions, and its clearly been a stressful time for everyone. In a sneak peek of the upcoming episode, Syngin talks to his family about returning to America with his wife, and he gets real about things.

Syngin Colchester talks with his family before leaving for America

Syngin Colchester and Tania Maduro | syngin_colchester via Instagram

In the light of a new day, Syngin talks with his family outside, and they discuss his return back to the United States. Dylan thanks Syngin for coming to see him, and they discuss where things stand.

He speaks to the cameras about the drama thats been going on, and he says that he and his wife are returning to the United States today. Its a little tough for me to even think about going back right now, while things arent really going good in our relationship, Syngin explains.

Syngins mother, Charmain, asks him if he wants to go back to America, and he says, I would love to stay out here longer. I would prefer to stretch my time. Because I know its going to be tough. He admits that a lot has changed since he was last home, and it isnt the same over the phone.

Syngin admits that if things dont get better its not going to work

RELATED: 90 Day Fiance: Fans React to Syngin and Tanias Revealing Fight

Next, Syngin gets real about matters, and says that if things dont get better, Its not going to work.

Its going to be a big change going back again, Syngin continues. Theres a whole different complication this time around. With me and Tania are in a tough spot. If stuff doesnt get better, its not gonna work.

Dylan asks if Syngin is tempted to stay in South Africa, and Syngin admits its where hes the happiest. But, he says if he doesnt go back, its almost like going back to the same old habits.

His mother tells him that hell have to make a decision to be with Tania or not. If things dont work out, then hell then just have to come back, while wasting both his time and Tanias.

Syngin tells the cameras that hes confused about things. I dont kind of wanna go, man, Syngin says. I want to stay out for as long as I can, but this whole commitment thing has got me. But am I committing to something that, you know, not going to work in the end, or am I committing to something that I shouldnt be right now? Im still a little confused to that, to be honest.

What is going to happen with Syngin and Tania? Well have to wait and see where the last episode before the Tell All leaves things for the couple.
When Ruth Bader Ginsburg moved into a more spacious office, one of her first decorating projects was hanging up a copy of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 signed by President Obama.

As admired as Ginsburg, who died Friday at age 87, was, it was that legislations namesake -- Lilly Ledbetter -- who held a special place in Ginsburgs heart.

Ledbetter, an Alabama resident and area manager for Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.'s Gadsden plant, became the face of the equal pay for equal work movement when she filed a sex discrimination lawsuit against Goodyear in 1998 following her retirement and months before an anonymous colleague slipped her a note indicating that she was being paid less than her male colleagues.

The case made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, where in 2006 the court ruled in a 5-4 decision that Ledbetter had no recourse because she did not file her suit within 180 days of her first paycheck. Ginsburg, in a rare move, read aloud her forceful dissenting opinion in the case, saying the majority ordered a cramped interpretation of the 180-day rule by deciding that each paycheck Ledbetter received wiped the slate clean for the discriminatory conduct.

I wasnt in the courtroom when it happened, but I was told by a reporter with the Washington Post that [Ginsburgs dissent] was loud and clear, you could hear a pin drop in that courtroom, Ledbetter recalled in an interview with AL.com Friday night. And she hit the nail on the head because she said these people dont know what its like in the real world."

In her dissent, Ginsburg also told Congress, the ball is in your court" to change the law and prevent other Lilly Ledbetters. Within 18 months, a bipartisan Congress passed the Lilly Ledbetter Act -- the first piece of legislation signed by President Obama.

Ledbetter said Ginsburgs support for her was critical in getting the law passed.

Once that verdict came out, it was no longer about Lilly Ledbetter and my family, but it was all about all families all across this nation," she said. Its an American right that people are paid according to what we should be paid under the law.

In 2010, Ledbetter said she met the Supreme Court justice for the first time in Ginsburgs chambers.

She showed me a copy of the bill signed by President Obama on her wall, she said. She just moved into a big corner office."

The two corresponded frequently after Ledbetters case. She said Ginsburg sent her a copy of her husbands cookbook, Chef Supreme, and would mail her copies of brochures that featured photos of her and the justice.

Ledbetter said she was awed by Ginsburgs perseverance, remaining on the bench despite pancreatic cancer until her death Friday night.

I cant imagine going through the medical treatments and going to work like she did, she said. But she loved the law and loved her job and continued to do her job.

Ginsburg "has changed lives that will always be changed simply because of her and her reputation and her fight for the law and equal justice, Ledbetter said. Im just so sad because I lost a dear dear friend and a champion.
There is a trick savvy shoppers have known for some time. To enjoy the best groceries without breaking the bank, do the bulk of your shop at a budget supermarket  and top up with a few luxuries at a premium one.

Pair Aldi basics with Waitrose treats, for example, or buy cupboard staples from Lidl and then treat yourself to meat from the local butcher.

But investors could learn a thing or two from shoppers about the art of the 'Aldi-Waitrose' approach. It can pay to keep costs low when there is no need to spend more  and then pay a little extra where expertise can add value.

Savvy shopper: Investors could learn a thing or two from shoppers about the art of the 'Aldi-Waitrose' approach

Investment funds fall broadly into two categories. So-called active funds are sometimes viewed as the premium products. You pay a bit more for them, but your money buys you the expertise of a fund manager who spends his or her days trawling through financial reports and meeting with chief executives to seek out the best companies to invest in.

They can easily cost a chunky one per cent of your investment  sometimes considerably more  but the idea is that you're paying for quality.

The second category is cheap and cheerful passive funds. Here, there is no one trying to find the companies that could shine. Instead, algorithms are used to buy a bit of everything. For example, a UK passive fund may buy shares in every company listed on the London stock market.

A global fund may buy shares in thousands of companies listed around the world. There is no fund manager to pay for and as a result these funds can cost as little as 0.05 per cent.

Some investors prefer to keep costs down with passive funds, others are happy to pay more for a fund manager's expertise in the hope of getting higher returns.

But many investing experts think you can adopt the 'Aldi-Waitrose' approach to get the best of both worlds.

'It's quite a common-sense approach,' says Adrian Lowcock, a chartered wealth manager with investment fund analyst Willis Owen. 'You can have one core, passive fund that gives you exposure to all global markets. Then you can add a few active funds if you want to increase your exposure to certain markets.'

Passive funds can be a good way to buy a little bit of everything as a starting point for a portfolio. Some global passive funds hold thousands of companies around the world at very low cost.

However, because they are so large, they are a bit of a blunt tool. If you want something more refined to give you exposure to a particular region or sector, an active fund can sometimes help.

Richard Pearson, director at EQi, believes it can make sense to pay a fund manager in markets where it is harder to spot the hidden treasures. For example, the US market is so trawled over by investors looking for winners that it's hard to find something that is undervalued. In this case, experts are going to struggle to spot the winners and a cheap, passive fund will do just as well.

However, in emerging markets where there is less scrutiny, there may be greater opportunity to find companies that have been overlooked. Here, an expert could help add value. ASI Emerging Markets Equity is a popular active fund among EQi customers. It has returned 9.5 per cent over three years and has an ongoing charge of 1.19 per cent.

iShares UK Equity Index is a hit among customers looking for a UK passive fund. It costs just 0.06 per cent, but due to recent stock market turbulence it has fallen 3.6 per cent over three years.

Lowcock adds that technology and robotics are another case where you may want a skilled fund manager who knows the industry well to pick the winners for you.

'In tech there are a lot of companies with great ideas. But a good, experienced fund manager will be able to filter through these to find those with good management teams to execute them,' he says.

T. Rowe Price Global Technology Equity has a team of 22 technology analysts who conduct detailed research into companies. It has returned 89.1 per cent over three years and costs 0.96 per cent.

Meanwhile, Pictet Robotics invests in companies working in areas such as automation, 3D printing and autonomous systems. Investors pay 1.08 per cent, but have benefited from a return of 69.4 per cent over three years.

Lisa Conway-Hughes, chartered adviser and founder of financial education platform She's On The Money, believes that in the same way you might pick a premium supermarket if you like to know the provenance of your food, you may want to pay a bit extra to a fund manager if you like to invest ethically.

'For ethical investing, you may want to pick an active fund so that you can see exactly what you are investing in. You want to be able to make sure your fund manager has the same interpretation of 'ethical' as you.'

Ethical passive funds are available, but as they tend to have hundreds of holdings, they can be harder to scrutinise.

DON'T BUY TOO MANY ACTIVE FUNDS Don't go overboard when adding exciting funds to spice up the basic core of your investment portfolio. Adrian Lowcock, a chartered wealth manager at Willis Owen, suggests you might start with a global tracker fund as a core holding, and then add active funds carefully as your knowledge grows over time. 'Anything over 20 funds could be considered too many,' he warns. 'You can build a portfolio with ten or 15. 'But if you buy too many active funds, you can find they are simply doing the job of a passive fund because you are over diversified.' Chartered adviser Lisa Conway-Hughes also warns about getting carried away. She says: 'Some of my clients like to have an element of fun in their portfolio and section off a certain amount to try out their investing ideas. 'However, in general they don't tend to outperform the market  even if a hunch really pays off, it won't have an impact on their investments overall because it's such a small element of their portfolio. 'If you enjoy trading that much, there are fantasy fund platforms you could consider where you do not trade with real money.'

Active funds can also add value if you want to invest in smaller companies as passive funds tend to exclude them. In general, the bigger the company the bigger the weighting it will have in a passive fund.

Lowcock explains: 'In the UK, the biggest 250 companies make up 95 per cent of the market. If you invest in a passive UK fund, you will not have exposure to small UK companies. If you want to invest in smaller companies, you could look at active funds.'

Lowcock likes Merian UK Smaller Companies, which costs 1.03 per cent and has returned 7.4 per cent over three years.

A global passive fund can be a great starting point for new investors or those who want to make money but have little interest in following companies and stock markets. Picking one requires no hunches or expertise  you simply find one low-cost fund that holds shares in companies listed all around the world.

For example, the Vanguard Global All Cap Index gives you exposure to 6,826 holdings around the world for 0.23 per cent.

At the moment, the US is the biggest global stock market. As a result, around 63 per cent of a passive global fund is likely to be made up of US companies. The UK is the third biggest market  as a result around 4 per cent of a global passive fund will be UK companies.

Then, if you think, for example, the UK market may grow faster than others, you may want to invest in a UK fund on top to increase the proportion of UK companies in your portfolio.

Or, if you want to invest more cautiously, you may want to add a fund that invests more in bonds, which tend to be less volatile than shares.

Active funds can help you do this, but it makes sense to use them only in cases where they stand a chance of outperforming a passive fund to justify the extra expense.

With both groceries and investments, more expensive does not necessarily mean better quality. Aldi and Lidl both offer premium products and regularly win awards for the quality of their goods. Similarly, passive funds are not necessarily worse than active ones.

James Norton, senior investment planner for Vanguard UK, which offers both active and passive funds, says: 'We believe the right starting point for investors is a globally diversified portfolio, made up of index [passive] funds. If it is globally weighted, you don't need to make any decisions yourself at all.

'For many investors that is all they need to do. However, if you are happy to take additional risk, adding an active element to your portfolio can be a sensible thing to do.

'However, most active managers underperform. To succeed with active funds, you need to be able to identify talented managers, be able to access them at low cost and to have the patience to hold on to them through different markets.'
WASHINGTON: The House Foreign Affairs Committee has dropped a threat of contempt against Secretary of State Mike Pompeo after the State Department turned over 16,000 pages of records related to a Senate investigation of Democrat Joe Bidens son.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., had subpoenaed Pompeo and threatened to hold him in contempt of Congress after months of requesting the records, which had already been turned over to the Republican-led Senate.

The GOP probe by the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee is looking at Hunter Bidens work in Ukraine, an investigation that Democrats say is an effort to boost President Donald Trumps reelection bid. The chairman of that committee, Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson, has said he will issue a final report in the coming weeks.

It shouldnt have taken a subpoena, let alone the threat of contempt, for Secretary Pompeo to comply with the Committees oversight request, Engel said in a statement. Nevertheless, Im gratified that weve received these materials and can review them before Senate Republicans issue their report.

The State Departments decision to turn over the records is a rare win for House Democrats who have been repeatedly frustrated by Trump administration officials who have defied or outright ignored their requests. While congressional subpoenas are legally binding, officials who have rebuffed Congress have faced little consequence for defying them, while Trump has fired or demoted federal employees who have complied with requests individually.

Contempt itself is largely a symbolic gesture that has generally been used to embarrass officials who refuse congressional requests, and Democratic attempts to legally fight the administrations refusals have been drawn out in lengthy court battles.

The committee did not make the State Department documents available and it was unclear if or when they would release them. Engel said in his statement that the committee is going to make sure the American people see the whole picture.

There is no evidence of wrongdoing by the Bidens, and Hunter Biden has denied using his influence as a board member for a gas company in Ukraine with his father, who was vice president at the time.

Pompeo and his aides have had previously said that the committee had not shown that its demand on the Ukraine documents was for a legitimate legislative purpose and suggested that it was entirely partisan. The department had said it would turn over the documents if the House panel was investigating, like the Senate, identical or very similar corruption issues involving Ukraine and corrupt influence related to U.S. foreign policy.

The committee had said it was preparing a contempt resolution that would have also included Pompeos refusal to comply with a subpoena issued during the House impeachment inquiry last year.

The House impeached Trump in December and the Senate acquitted him in February for his pressure on Ukraine to investigate Hunter Biden as Joe Biden was running for the Democratic nomination to challenge Trump. The president and his associates asked Ukraine for the probes as he was withholding military aid to the country.

Engel said that subpoena is still in effect.

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Bay of Plenty designer Chelsey Mathieson has won the NKBA Excellence in Design SUPREME Kitchen Design Award recognising her Tauranga kitchen design as the best in the country.

It won the coveted title ahead of more than one hundred projects entered from across New Zealand.

The owners brief for the space was for a calm, luxurious and relaxed vibe with natural materials and texture.

The kitchen is for a small family that have a love of entertaining, a strong passion for interior design and a vision for the overall outcome. The coastal inspiration was pulled from the Tauranga surroundings of warmth and texture, looking out across the beach with a view of Toi Toi, grasses, wood and water.

The clients have lived in Sydney and so a strong influence came from interiors and themes often seen in Australian homes, says Chelsea, of Vekart.

The kitchen, located in an architectural new home with a prime beach front location, was praised by the judging panel for its restricted pallet, coastal vernacular and structured elegance.

A clever, aesthetically beautiful and complex kitchen that has been completed to the absolute highest of standards. The marble shelf and marble detailing running through the cabinetry is both subtle and thoughtful and a lovely addition.

The project is refined simplicity at its best. The space is open and welcoming and the lighting responds beautifully to its environment, the judges commented.

The incredible kitchen received five awards at the awards ceremony held on Friday September 18.

It won the 2020 NKBA Excellence in Design Supreme Kitchen Design Award, the 2020 NKBA Excellence in Design Kitchen Distinction Award $60k - $80k Award, the 2020 NKBA Excellence in Design Lighting Design Award and the 2020 NKBA Excellence in Design Bay of Plenty Chapter Kitchen Recognition Award.

The 2020 NKBA Excellence in Design Supreme Kitchen Manufacturer Award went to Vekart.

Matarazzo Marble was selected as the centrepiece of the project, fulfilling the vision of the kitchen being a piece of art in the home.

With heavy sunlight streaming into the space, a decision was made to use planked urban oak Melteca by Laminex Melamine instead of veneer for the wood look cabinetry.

For the worksurface, Caesar Stone Cloudburst Concrete was selected for durability and texture which was in keeping with the overall vision for the space. To ensure Matarazzo was still the star of the show, Chelsea decided to clad the entire face of the island in the marble, showcasing the beautiful vein.

In addition to Chelseas kitchen design taking out top honours, her bathroom design in the same home received the 2020 NKBA Excellence in Design Bay of Plenty Chapter Bathroom Recognition Award.

Judges commented the bathroom is spacious, user-friendly and functional.

The coastal vernacular had been applied to this stunning bathroom with great storage and a fabulous cosmetics application zone.

NKBA president, Nick Thompson of Fisher & Paykel, says that Chelseys Supreme award was recognition of her commitment to detail, quality and to exceeding client expectations.

There is so much beauty in this incredible kitchen space. The way it reflects its serene beachside environment and the wonderful attention to detail has helped Chelsey take out this highly desirable award. We are very proud of the extremely high calibre of our 2020 award entries.

Kitchen design is a growing career path for many and the desires and needs of homeowners only continues to intensify. Well done Chelsey for your outstanding kitchen and bathroom designs.

The 2020 NKBA Excellence in Design SUPREME Bathroom Design Award went to Christchurch designer Angelique Armstrong of Armstrong Interiors for a dark and masculine bathroom located in Auckland.
WASHINGTON - Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death has left the Supreme Court shorthanded during a polarizing presidential campaign in which President Donald Trump has already suggested he may not accept the outcome and the court could be called on to step in and decide the fate of the nation.

Its the second time in four years that a justice has died during an election year, though that eight-justice court was not asked to referee any election disputes in 2016. Today, both sides have armies of lawyers ready to take the outcome to court.

The Supreme Courts role, then, could be vital in deciding a contested election, as it was in 2000 when its 5-4 ruling effectively handed the presidential election to Republican George W. Bush.

Just moments after Ginsburgs death the prospect of a disputed election and the role of the court in deciding it was already causing anxiety across the political spectrum.

But the makeup of the court is significantly different today from what it was after Justice Antonin Scalia died suddenly in February 2016.

Conservative, Republican-appointed justices hold five of the eight seats, including Chief Justice John Roberts, who is closest to the centre of the court on many issues. Liberals appointed by Democrats have the other three.

In 2016, Scalias death left the court evenly divided between four conservatives and four liberals, and it took at least one justice to cross over, in essence, to form a majority on the court.

Any time the justices divide 4-4 in a case, the lower court ruling remains in place. If say, the court were to split that way in a case involving the election, the tie would ratify whatever the lower court decided.

Trump said Saturday he has an obligation to fill the seat without delay, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is promising to give Trumps nominee a prompt vote in the GOP-controlled chamber. Last time, the court was down one justice for more than a year, when McConnell and the Republicans refused to act on President Barack Obamas nomination of Judge Merrick Garland.

University of Kentucky law professor Joshua Douglas, who worried in 2016 about what he called a nightmare 4-4 election case outcome at the Supreme Court, said it would be worse in 2020 if Trump and McConnell move quickly to fill the seat and the election results wind up in court.

To me, the scarier prospect is having a 5-4 decision on a presidential election where the swing vote comes from a new justice, appointed by the candidate who would get another four years in the White House as a result, Douglas said. He said the majority in such a case also likely would include two other justices appointed by Trump, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh.

In 2016, the court actually did a pretty good job when the court had eight justices for a while. It didnt have the kind of nightmare 4-4 decision on an issue that affects the country, he said.

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, one of more than 40 people identified by Trump as potential high court nominees, backed the delay four years ago. But Cruz said in an interview with Fox News Sean Hannity on Friday that Trump and the Senate should get the vacancy filled by Election Day, Nov. 3.

We cannot have Election Day come and go with a four-four court. A four-four court that is equally divided cannot decide anything. And I think we risk a constitutional crisis if we do not have a nine-justice Supreme Court, particularly when there is such a risk of a contested election, Cruz said.

The justices are supposed to meet by telephone on Sept. 28 to consider hundreds of appeals that piled up over the summer; Some will be set for arguments; most will be rejected. A week later, on Oct. 5, the court will begin its new term, hearing arguments remotely because of the coronavirus pandemic.

After past deaths of justices, the entrance to the courtroom and the dead justices place on the bench have been draped in black. Thats one of many court practices that have been altered by the pandemic.

The court didnt schedule any politically explosive cases before the election. But it will turn quickly to two such disputes in the elections aftermath.

One case, set for argument a week after the election, could bring down the entire health care law popularly known as Obamacare, which is facing its third major Supreme Court challenge since 2012.

Until Ginsburgs death, a five-justice majority that included Roberts and the four liberals remained on the bench.

The other major case, which will be argued on Nov. 4, involves a dispute between Philadelphia and a Catholic agency that finds foster homes for children. At issue is the agencys refusal to place children with same-sex couples.

Any case that divides the court 4-4 after arguments could be held and set for a new round of arguments when the court is back at full strength.

The Supreme Court has managed at less than its full nine-member strength at three points in the past 50 years, in 1970, 1987-88 and 2016.

Fifty years ago, the Democratic-controlled Senate rejected President Richard Nixons first two choices before Justice Harry Blackmun joined the court in May 1970. The most notable issue the justices put off deciding may have been challenges to the death penalty, according to Bob Woodward and Scott Armstrongs book The Brethren. It was another two years, after the retirements of two more justices, before the court took up the issue and struck down every state death penalty statute.

The Supreme Court heard about 150 cases in those years  twice as many as today  and Blackmun had to deal with hundreds of appeals in which his vote would determine whether or the not the case was heard. In the end, he voted to hear only a handful, according to The Brethren.

In the 1987-88 term, President Ronald Reagans first two high court picks failed before Justice Anthony Kennedy was confirmed in February 1988. Kennedy came on board and the justices ordered new arguments in four cases in which they had been split 4-4, Jan Crawford wrote in her book, Supreme Conflict. Four hundred appeals also awaited Kennedys review, Crawford said.
September 19 : Aditya Roy Kapur, who was recently seen in Sadak 2, has bagged a new film. The actor has been roped in by Zee Studios for a big-scale action movie. The Malang actor had walked out of Mohit Suri's Ek Villain 2 after he found out that his co-star John Abraham had a meatier role.

The new film will be tentatively titled Om, and will mark the directorial debut of action director Tinu Verma's son Kapil, and bankrolled by Ahmed Khan. Aditya has landed the titular role in the action thriller, which will see Tara Sutaria opposite him. While Tara has liked the story, she is yet to sign on the dotted line, it is reported.

Before the film goes on the floor later this year, Aditya has to reportedly work on his physicality as it will be a hardcore action film. While the makers are in the process of finalising the primary cast for the film, an official announcement will be made soon. The film will be shot in India as well as in international locations, and the makers have started short-listing the international locations, it is reported.

If reports are to be believed, Aditya is unhappy with the Bhatts as he felt that he was sidelined from Sadak 2, featuring him along with Sanjay Dutt, Pooja Bhatt and Alia Bhatt. He was not happy with the final outcome of his role in the film.

The actor is currently awaiting the release of his film Ludo, to be streamed on Netflix soon.
A state panel will begin documenting Maryland's 42 known racial terror lynchings, the first such government-backed commission created to confront a jurisdiction's brutal history of lynchings and increase the public's understanding of the practice.

TheMaryland Lynching Truth and Reconciliation Commission is expected to begin taking oral histories and collecting documents in the coming months as part of an intensive, three-year study of the killings, often by hanging and committed by perpetrators who were never held accountable.

The panel released an interim report to Gov. Larry Hogan, R, and the presiding officers of the General Assembly on Friday that provides a timeline for its work over the next two years and protocols it has put in place for its monumental task.

"The dark history of racial terror lynching in America and in Maryland was largely ignored or denied" before grass-roots and community-led organizations began documenting the history, the report says. "An important goal of the [commission] is to advocate for the public acknowledgment of these crimes to help Marylanders know and confront the truth about this shameful history."

Outside of the South, where lynchings were most active, Maryland is one of eight states where the torture was common, according to a 2015 report by the Equal Justice Initiative, a nonprofit legal and civil rights group that has documented thousands of lynchings and created the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Ala., to memorialize the victims.

Documented lynchings took place between 1854 and 1933, in 18 of Maryland's 24 jurisdictions. Anne Arundel and Prince George's counties recorded the highest numbers in the state.

"We feel there is a direct through line that can be drawn from the racial terror lynchings of old to the current anti-Black violence that we're witnessing today, and so that's one of the reasons our work is so important and timely," said Charles Chavis, the commission's vice chairman and an assistant professor of conflict resolution and history at George Mason University. "In addition to truth telling, our goal is to salvage the humanity of these individuals. At the end of the day, they were someone's loved one."

The commission, which has been assigned counsel from the state attorney general's office, can authorize the issuance of subpoenas for testimony. Last week, it sent letters to the state's attorney offices asking for documents related to any investigations. Any state, county and local government entities or news organizations that had any involvement in cases of racially motivated lynchings also will be identified.

Town hall meetings will be held next year in communities where lynchings took place.

The panel's work grows out of research done by the EJI and the Maryland Lynching Memorial Project. Del. Joseline A. Pena-Melnyk, a Democrat from Prince George's County, sponsored legislation in 2019 to form the state-backed commission.

"Given what is happening in this country with the level of divisiveness, the racism . . . it's important to know your history because if you don't know you're history, like the famous quote says, you are bound to repeat the mistakes," Pena-Melnyk said.

The delegate, who also represents Anne Arundel County, pointed to the county's high number of hate and bias incidents - the highest in the state - and its high number of lynchings.

"This is real," she said. "It's a real issue."

Sherrilyn Ifill, who wrote "On the Courthouse Lawn: Confronting the Legacy of Lynching in the Twenty-First Century"and has consulted with the commission on its work, said the panel will tackle "the unconfronted truth of our [country's] history" and will play an important role in helping Maryland recognize the impact the killings continue to have on society - and redress it.

"You can't address a sickness until you properly diagnose it," said Ifill, the president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.

Kirkland Hall Sr., a member of the commission and a retired professor at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, said he recently attended a rally in Somerset County following the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd. Hall said he spoke about the 1933 lynching of George Armwood, who was beaten, stabbed and set on fire. Armwood, a 21-year-old mentally ill Black man, was accused of attacking an elderly White woman. He was never tried and instead was taken by a mob of thousands from a county jail and hung from a tree.

"The skin of George Armwood was scorched and blackened while his face had suffered many blows from sharp and heavy instruments," according to an article in the Baltimore Afro-American newspaper at the time. "A cursory glance revealed that one ear was missing and his tongue, between clenched teeth, gave evidence of his great agony before death."

Hall said most of those who attended the rally, a diverse group of Black and White residents, young and old, said they had never heard of Armwood.

"Women brought their children by to see the burned body," Hall said. "That's the part that I don't understand."

David Fakunle, the commission chair, said the panel is expecting to hear testimony from descendants of both victims and perpetrators, as well as the community members that continue to feel the impact of the killings.

"It's about telling the whole story," Fakunle said. "It's not to mitigate. It's to understand the impact. . . . We are trying to bridge the narrative of racial terror in the past with racial terror of today."
India has allowed the export of onions lying on ports in transit to all countries including Bangladesh, government sources said on Friday.

In the Kolkata zone, there are 20,089 metric tonnes of onion lying on the port while in Mumbai-II zone, 4,576 metric tonnes of the commodity are kept, sources said.

In other places like Trichy and Nagpur, 933 and around 258 metric tonnes of onion are lying on these ports respectively, they added.

The development comes after Bangladesh had expressed "deep concern" over India's decision to ban onion exports, according to media reports.

The central government on Monday banned the export of all varieties of onions except those cut, sliced or broken in powder form, with immediate effect, in an apparent move aimed at increasing domestic supply and reducing the prices.

Last October, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had jokingly said she asked her cook to not add onion while preparing food and lamented that her country has been inconvenienced by India's decision to ban exports of onion in September. The ban was subsequently lifted in March this year.

"We have been inconvenienced with the ban on onion exports. If you had given a notice to us, we could have got it from somewhere else. I have instructed my cook not to put onion while preparing food. If you want to do such a thing, then do let us know at the earliest, Hasina had said at an event in the national capital while she was on an official visit to India.

India's move to ban exports of onions earlier this week has shot up prices of the kitchen staple in Bangladesh. Apart from this, hundreds of Bangladesh-bound onion trucks were stranded at various ports and land borders in West Bengal. (

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In a historic first, President Trump and Joe Biden both visited Minnesota today. Biden went to Hermantown, a suburb of Duluth, and spoke at a carpenters union training center. This in itself is anachronistic. Biden is trying to rebuild the labor component of the Democrat-Farmer-Labor party, but it is much too late for that. Union members in northern Minnesota will vote heavily for Trump.

Bidens appearance verged on the bizarre. The training center was nearly empty, with no real crowd as such.

Biden arrives at carpenters union training center in Hermantown. pic.twitter.com/GtiF8bvMSW  Brady Slater (@bradydslater) September 18, 2020



He read his speech, which apparently was a rage-filled diatribe against the president, off a teleprompter.

Bidens campaign allowed no local press into the event. So the only witnesses were the same national reporters who have been following Biden, all of whom, I believe, are committed Democrats. But even those reporters were not permitted to ask questions. Biden stumbled through his speech and left. From there, he did a brief photo op at a fire station.

Given that no questions were permitted, why were local reporters barred from todays event? I suppose because they couldnt be trusted not to comment on the absence of a crowd, Bidens reliance on a teleprompter, his frail physical presence, and so on.

Just spoke with a rep of union hosting @JoeBiden today. They just received a timeline. Was surprised by the apparent Minnesota media blackout. Asked what the point of coming is if only national coverage.  Jerry Burnes (@JerryBurnes_MT) September 18, 2020

The broader question is, why did Biden bother to come to Minnesota at all? What he did in Hermantown, he could just as well have done from his own basement. Why his campaign thinks todays appearance will stimulate enthusiasm for his campaign is anyones guess.

Trump, on the other hand, is in Bemidji, in northwestern Minnesota, this evening to hold a rally. His airplane landed a few minutes ago. Unlike Biden, he will address an actual crowd. Thousands have been lined up for hours in hopes of being able to see him.

Trump supporters wait for security screening prior to this evenings rally in Bemidji  in a congressional district Trump won by 30 percentage points 4 years ago. Red kingdom. Trumps going to win. Its gonna be a Landslide, Trump supporter Darryl Mudz said. pic.twitter.com/fxLZJGBJtG  Boyd Huppert (@BoydHuppert) September 18, 2020



A convoy of tractors and trucks made its way to Bemidji today, flying Trump flags. Here are some of them after they arrived:

I just pulled into downtown Bemidji to cover the Trump Rally today for @MPRnews. Have already seen this convoy circling downtown twice pic.twitter.com/bLRcOIwbTN  Evan Frost (@efrostee) September 18, 2020



Obviously, President Trumps supporters are infinitely more enthusiastic than Joe Bidens. The question is whether they are more numerous. Greater Minnesota, including the Northern regions where both candidates appeared today, will go overwhelmingly for Trump. Can the votes of those who work in mines (or want to), who drive tractors, who work in factories, and who are still patriotic outnumber the Ilhan Omar urban voters and the deluded suburban women who support the Black Lives Matter organization?

I dont know. No Republican has won a statewide race in Minnesota since 2006, and no GOP presidential candidate has won here since Richard Nixon. But both parties polling obviously tells them that Minnesota is in play this year.

UPDATE: A local reporter comments rather bitterly:
The health experts in Iran have warned that the country is witnessing a "third wave" of the COVID-19 outbreak. According to the Iranian health ministry tally, the country is reporting more than 3,000 positive cases per day which is believed to be the highest since the virus first hit Iran in February. Iran had put efforts to successfully curb the spread of the virus by early May but witnessed a resurgence at the beginning of June recording around 1,600 new cases a day.

READ: US Prepares To Announce Re-imposition Of All International Sanctions Against Iran

#Irans Health Ministry Spokesperson, Lari announced on Friday:



Total number of #COVID19 patients recovered: 355,505

Total number of infected cases: 416,198

Total number of death toll: 23,952



In the past 24 hours:

New cases tested positive: 3,041

New death toll: 141 pic.twitter.com/3CTi6iwuwb  IranGov.ir (@Iran_GOV) September 18, 2020

3,041 new positive cases

Health Ministry spokesperson of Iran, Sima Sadat Lari announced on Friday, September 18 that the total number of COVID-19 patients recovered stands at 355,505 and the total number of infected cases has risen to 416,198. She added that the total fatalities stands at 23,952. In addition, within the last 24 hours Iran has witnessed 3,041 new positive cases and 141 deaths.

READ: UN Nuclear Watchdog To Inspect Iran's Second Site Following IAEA Chief Grossi's Last Visit

In addition, the Iranian health experts have cautioned that the country is still in the grip of a coronavirus pandemic. They warned the residents to follow health safety protocols like social distancing and wearing face masks. They added that the virus is more likely to affect the capital city of Tehran as compared to other provinces. Earlier in September, Iran opened the new school year after nearly seven months of closure. While addressing a video conference, President Hassan Rouhani reportedly said that the education of 15 million students is as important as the health system.

He reportedly urged the authorities to implement health measures in schools and educational institutions to the level of those in military garrisons. In the wake of the reopening of schools, many parents and medical experts expressed their concerns over the possibility of a surge in cases. Abbas Aghazadeh, a member of the board of the medical council said, "The national COVID-19 task force should defend lives of millions of students". "Prevent physical reopening of all schools across the country", he added.

Abbas Ali Dorsti, vice-chancellor for health at Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, warned that despite of following every safety precaution, there has been an increase in travel and violations of health protocols by some people which resulted in rise of infection. According to the reports, businesses, schools, and colleges have reopened to shape up the economy and mark new normal. Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani was reported to have said the health department are trying their best to arrange a sufficient amount of beds to cater to the needs of the patients.

READ: Iran Warns US Against Making A 'strategic Mistake' After Trump's Threat

READ: Trump Says US Will Retaliate With Attacks '1000 Times Greater' If Iran Planned Vengeance
Their findings were further supported in July by a study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing that 35 percent of covid-19 patients had not returned to their usual state of health when interviewed two to three weeks after testing. Those with chronic conditions were affected the most. But even among young adults ages 18 to 34 with no chronic medical conditions, nearly 1 in 5 reported they had not returned to their usual state of health 14 to 21 days after testing. This is particularly concerning as outbreaks are now emerging at college campuses.
BANGKOK: Thousands of protesters in Thailands capital demonstrated against the government of former coup leader and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha on Saturday, with many also demanding reforms to the powerful monarchy.

Down with feudalism, long live the people," was one of the chants.

Protests have been building since mid-July to call for the removal of the government, a new constitution and elections. They have also broken a long-standing taboo by criticising the monarchy of King Maha Vajiralongkorn.

Police said at least 5,000 people had gathered at the campus of Thammasat University, long seen as a hotbed of opposition to the military and royalist establishment, and scene of a massacre of protesters in 1976.

Under light rain, protesters spilled onto Sanam Luang, a public space opposite the Grand Palace where state ceremonies are traditionally held.

Today the people will demand back their power, Arnon Nampa, a human rights lawyer who has emerged as a leading figure in the protest movement, said on Twitter.

Sept. 19 is the anniversary of the coup against the populist then-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in 2006. Among the protesters were many of his red shirt followers, veterans of clashes a decade ago with pro-establishment yellow shirts.

Im here to fight for the future of my children and grandchildren. I hope that by the time I die, they will become free, said 68-year-old Tasawan Suebthai, a redshirt with amulets round her neck to ward off bullets.

So far the protests have been peaceful. The biggest to date drew more than 10,000 people last month, but organisers expect more this time.

ESTABLISHMENT UNDER FIRE

Thai politics has for years been marked by challenges to the royalist and military establishment by politicians backed by poor urban and rural voters, and more recently by the student protesters.

The military, which proclaims itself the defender of the countrys core institutions, in particular the monarchy, has stepped in to overthrow civilian governments numerous times, most recently in 2014, citing the need to maintain stability.

Prayuth has said the government would allow protests as a form of free speech but that demands for reform of the monarchy were not acceptable.

We are fighting to put the monarchy in the right place, not to abolish it," one protest leader, Panupong Mike" Jadnok, told the crowd.

A 20-year-old student, who gave her name only as Waan for fear of reprisals, said it was time to reform the monarchy. Its a problem thats been swept under the rug for so long. This must end right here.

Protesters demand the scrapping of a lese majeste law against criticism of the monarchy. They also seek to reduce the kings constitutional powers and his control over the palace fortune and units of the army.

On Thursday, Prayuth warned the protesters against raising the risks of spreading the novel coronavirus and urged them to put the health crisis before politics.

Protesters jeered when a police officer told a group of them that they could only stay for an hour because of the risk of transmitting the virus. Police said they were deploying 10,000 officers on Saturday.

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California-based Connixt, a provider of breakthrough cloud-mobile digital transformation solutions for the last mile, has appointed Aljoaib International as a distributor in the Middle East region.

Aljoaib and Connixt also announced that GTC, an expert in geotechnical engineering services to government and commercial markets (lab tests, NDT, geotechnical, projects inspection and evaluation, oil drilling services, environmental studies), as the first business in the region to go live with the Connixt iMarq solution.

We are excited to partner with Aljoaib International, a group that has been a leader in innovative engineering services and solutions in the Middle East, said G Satish, CEO and co-founder of Connixt. This is a win-win for businesses in the region that are looking to digitise their operations in the field, especially in industries with distributed assets and a heavily reliance on a field work force.

Aljoaib is reselling iMarq, the award-winning Digital Transformation solution from Connixt, in the Middle East region. Connixts iMarq, in use at some of the largest transit, utility and construction businesses, digitises and automates asset maintenance, condition assessments, inspections, scheduling and crew management.

Aljoaib sees great potential in for Connixts offerings in the Middle East, given the substantial efficiency gains and ROI that their customers testify to, said Dr Abdulla Aljoaib, CEO of Aljoaib International. A number of businesses require work done outside the four walls of offices, and with the renewed focus in the region in areas like public transit, we see great potential for Connixt solutions.

GTC, based out of Dammam, Saudi Arabia, is one of the first customers to go live with the Connixt iMarq product. A leader in the geotechnical engineering services to government and commercial markets, GTC was looking for a means to automate its field testing and other activities and picked the iMarq suite after they tested its functionality and ease of deployment.

Beyond the excellent configurability and flexibility of the iMarq product to meet our needs, one of the most important factors in our decision was the extensive localization including Arabic language, said David Bahrani, Inspection Service Manager of GTC. We are seeing immediate benefits from the deployment and are especially satisfied with the extent of support and responsiveness of the Aljoaib-Connixt team.

Connixts award-winning cloud-mobile enterprise suite powers digital transformation for the last mile for some of the worlds largest businesses. Connixt digitises and automates asset maintenance, workforce management and compliance, saving millions of dollars in asset uptime, labour-hours and reduced paperwork, while enhancing safety and compliance. Connixts patent-pending self-learning cloud-framework further maximises gains from deployment of IoT technologies. Connixt serves customers in the Transit, Utilities, Construction and Manufacturing & Distribution industries.

AIC is the trading arm of Aljoaib Holdings and includes Aljoaib Agriculture and Aljoaib Electromechanical companies and provides products for the oil and gas, power, petrochemical and agriculture industries. - TradeArabia News Service
A proud mum says her disabled son was thrilled to receive a doll that had disabilities just like him.

Emma Evert, from Brisbane, said her vision-impaired son Harlen was delighted after getting a Kmart diversity doll with thick glasses and a cane.

Harlen has septo-optic dysplasia, which means he is legally blind and is developmentally delayed. He also uses a cane to help him walk.

Emma Evert from Brisbane said her vision-impaired son Harlen was thrilled when he was gifted a toy that had a 'disability' just like him

Harlen, five, plays with the new Fashion Doll from Kmart which promotes diversity

Kmart Australia has released a range of dolls with disabilities, including ones that are blind, deaf, on crutches, in a wheelchair or have a bionic leg

'She has fluffy hair and a cane and glasses like me!' an excited Harlen told A Current Affair.

'I was a little bit emotional, it's something different that I haven't seen before,' Ms Evert said.

'He did a big squeal, he was super excited and he said 'it's got a cane like me mum, how does it even have a cane like me'. I think it's great for all visually impaired or kids with disabilities to see themselves represented on a shelf.'

Kmart released the progressive new range of Fashion Dolls which promote diversity for children and people of all ages with disabilities.

The range includes dolls that are blind, deaf, have bionic legs or use a wheelchair.

Ms Evert commended the retail giant for introducing the new toys to the market.

'Kmart absolutely killing it with the new range of inclusive dolls,' she wrote on Facebook.

'It is so important that kids with disabilities are represented in TV, books and toys. It's equally important their typical developing peers have exposure to these things.

'It empowers kid's to celebrate ability!'

Harlen has septo-optic dysplasia, which means he is legally blind and is developmentally delayed. He also uses a cane to help him walk (pictured with his mum Emma)

John Gualtieri, Kmart Retail Director Australia & New Zealand, said they wanted their young customers to have something they could relate to

John Gualtieri, Kmart Retail Director Australia & New Zealand, echoed Ms Evert's sentiments saying they wanted all their customers to relate to their products.

'We want all of our customers, especially our littlest ones, to be able to find products that they can truly relate to; and we're committed to championing inclusion and diversity to make sure this happens,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

'That's why we're so excited to introduce our newest assortment of Fashion Dolls, which reflect people living with disabilities.

'We want children to see themselves represented in these dolls and we want to help them learn more about people who are different to themselves.

'Its so important for kids to see toys and dolls with disabilities; to have them play in their imaginary world and then normalise it for real life.

'We hope these dolls help children celebrate all of the wonderful things that make us different and unique; and that they can help remove some of the stigma around disability.'

Each doll is $6 and comes in its own outfit, which can be mixed and matched between them.
Namibia has ended its Covid-19 state of emergency, six months after it was imposed to curb the spread of the virus.



It means international travel can resume, a ban on domestic travel between the capital and nearby towns has been lifted, sporting events can resume with spectators up to 50% maximum capacity, and social gatherings of up to 50 people are permitted.



"We are not out of the woods yet, and not by a long shot. Now is the time to exercise maximum personal responsibility and vigilance," President Hage Geingob said.



He added that the authorities will monitor infections over the next 14 days and introduce new measures if necessary.



Namibia has confirmed more than 10,000 coronavirus cases, and 108 deaths.

Source: BBC









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 corporation officials on Saturday launched a massive encroachment on land earmarked for UPs first political training institute in Nandgram. People who had built houses there opposed the move saying that they had documents to prove their legal nature, but official said they managed to remove around 20 of the 100 structures.

The proposed institute is meant to train politicians and activists in public policy and other advanced political subjects, and is planned to come up on land owned by the Ghaziabad municipal corporation. Located near the Hindon Elevated Road, it measures a little over 3 hectares, but about 1.37 hectares was encroached with people constructing houses and boundary walls.

We have been able to remove a number of encroachers during the past year. Of the 101 houses constructed on the site, 11 are directly over the land meant for the institute, while the rest of the houses, their boundary walls etc are on its periphery. We have been meetings the encroachers and also served them notices, said MS Tanwar, municipal commissioner. The land belongs to the municipal corporation and will be freed up in graded manner. The project depends on it.

On Saturday, the officials said that they demolished about 20 different structures, including boundary walls and three houses. Encroachers opposed it, relying in claims of being legal and that they had been on the plot for over two decades.

The Uttar Pradesh Cabinet had cleared the proposal in 2018 and the project is estimated to cost about 168 crore.

Maya Devi, local councillor from ward number six opposed the move by the corporation, but the effort landed her in a private hospital.

My mother is in ICU with high blood pressure and high sugar levels after opposing the move, said Tushar Kumar, the councillors son. Those having houses on the land have proper registries and documents of ownership, and purchased the land 20 years ago. Locals told us that the eviction notices were pasted at the house on Friday night.

He said the councillor had pressed the municipal corporation for at least 15 days time for the residents.

Municipal commissioner Tanwar, however, reiterated that the land belonged to the government.

The encroachers were probably duped by some people who claimed that the land belonged to them and issued fake documents, Tanwar said.

Abhishek Verma, superintendent of police (city), said that police were deployed for the drive on demand from the corporation. We have not received any complaint so far from the corporation with regard to the protest, he said.

The institute is proposed to be constructed by Construction & Design Services, a unit of UP Jal Nigam, and part of the project approved by the UP housing department.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 12:19:46|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said Saturday it is resolutely opposed to the U.S. move to block downloads of WeChat and TikTok apps.

In the absence of any evidence, the U.S. has repeatedly used state power to suppress the two enterprises for unwarranted reasons, which seriously disrupted their normal business activities, undermined the confidence of international investors in the U.S. investment environment and damaged the normal global economic and trade order, the MOC said in an online statement.

It urged the U.S. to immediately stop bullying and safeguard international rules and order. "If the U.S. is bent on having its own way, China will take necessary measures to resolutely protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies," the ministry added. Enditem
NEW DELHI: In a major breakthrough, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday morning busted a terror module linked to global terror group Al-Qaeda. The terror module was busted following coordinated raids by the NIA in West Bengals Murshidabad and Ernakulam in Kerala.

The NIA this morning carried out searches following specific inputs about the presence of some members of the Al Qaeda linked terror module at multiple location across West Bengal and Kerala. The central agency arrested nine suspected terrorists of the banned terror organisation Al-Qaeda.

Live TV

The anti-terror probe agency officials said that the arrests were made after raids in West Bengal`s Murshidabad and Kerala`s Ernakulam based on some intelligence input about the presence of the terrorists there.

As per the preliminary investigation, these individuals were radicalised by Pakistan-based al-Qaeda terrorists on the social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the National Capital Region, the NIA said in a statement.

Furthermore, the terror module actively raised funds and was planning to travel to Delhi procure arms and ammunition. The module was actively indulging in fundraising and a few members of the gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country, the NIA said.

The anti-terror probe agency has recovered several incriminating materials from the terrorists, including firearms, body armours and explosive devices.

A large number of incriminating materials, including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession, the statement further said.

The details of the arrested accused are as under: - (i)Murshid Hasan, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala; (ii)Iyakub Biswas, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala;

(iii)Mosaraf Hossen, currently a resident of Ernakulam, Kerala; (iv)Najmus Sakib, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal; (v) Abu Sufiyan, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal; (vi)Mainul Mondal, a resident of Murshidabad West Bengal; (Vii)Leu Yean Ahmed, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal; (Viii) Al Mamun Kamal, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal;

(Ix) Atitur Rehman, a resident of Murshidabad, West Bengal.

The arrested terrorists will be produced before the concerned Courts in Kerala and West Bengal for police custody and further investigation.
Leaflets have started dropping through letter boxes in Doncaster North, urging people to vote for their local Labour candidate, Ed Miliband. They feature endorsements from local electors. Community activist Tony Sockett says I am supporting Ed Miliband on 7 May because I know he is committed to backing the next generation. This is not wholly surprising, because Tony Sockett used to be a Labour councillor. Retired midwife Cynthia Bunting declares on the same leaflet that she is confident that Ed Miliband will tackle the problems facing the NHS. Again, no surprise. She is a party member whose photograph appeared in the local paper alongside John Prescott after a fundraising dinner in Doncaster.

The endorsement by working Dad Adam Davey is less predictable. His Linkedin profile says that he works for Serco. Not many weeks ago, Ed Miliband warned against big companies that dominate the energy market. Too often large public-sector bureaucracies have been replaced with a large private-sector bureaucracy, he said. A Serco-G4S state can be just as flawed as the centralised state.

Quote of the Day

Losing your seat is dreadful. Its a terrible experience. Its like being fired in front of millions of people, many of whom go on to remind you about it for years. And, whatever the reasons one loses, it hurts and it hurts for years.

Lembit Opik has not got over losing his seat in Montgomeryshire in 2010.

Interesting that the BBC gave the job of interviewing David Cameron on the Today programme to Sarah Montague. It is not being suggested that she gave the Prime Minister an unnecessarily easy ride, but there is a family link which may have helped put Cameron at his ease. Montague is married to Sir Christoph Brooke, the 12th baronet Brooke, who was at Eton with Cameron  they are just three months apart in age. The couple were among the guests at the party the Camerons Christmas party at Chequers three months ago.

Wally of the Day

Scott Wood, Conservative candidate in Sedgefield, County Durham, has contacted the Northern Echo with a message headed (NAME MP/candidate) welcomes increased funding for school buildings in (constituency). When using a template supplied by party headquarters, you are supposed to insert your details in place of the words in brackets.

Jeremy Zeid, UKIP candidate in Hendon, north London, is furious that sentiments which he thought he was confiding to Facebook friends have turned up on a website run by the anti-racist group, Hope Not Hate. He had written a tirade against Barack Obama, suggesting that when the President leaves office, Israel should kidnap him and lock the bastard up, as they once kidnapped the Nazi mass murderer, Adolf Eichmann. When these sentiments met the light of day, Zeid resigned. Then he wrote another polemic, also leaked to the same website, denouncing the sneak, the squealer, the informer, the parasitic tapeworm infesting the bowel of society who leaked his initial post.

The Hendon UKIP branch must have had an inkling that their candidate was about to combust, because they had a replacement at the ready and no sooner had Zeid quit than they were welcoming their new candidate, Dr Raymond Shamash, a local dentist.

Phobia of the Day

For all their mutual antipathy, it emerges that David Cameron and Ed Balls have a common fear of rats. Cameron admitted his antipathy to the rodents during an interview with Heat magazine, and Balls has since told the Evening Standard that he cant even look at them.

To me, it is a peculiar thing for a married couple to do, to use the social media to congratulate each other on their wedding anniversary. But, each to his own. George Galloway, Respect candidate in Bradford West, married his fourth wife, Gayatri Pertiwi, on 31 March 2012, two days after his sensational win in the Bradford West by-election. This greatly upset the father of his third wife, who thought Galloways third marriage was till operative. Galloway was then 58, Pertiwi was 27. They are still together. Happy Anniversary to my brilliant beautiful wife. Many more God-willing, he tweeted yesterday. Happy Anniversary to my husband, father of my son, my soulmate, she replied.
CANNES, FRANCE - APRIL 06: Dame Diana Rigg attends her masterclass during the 2nd Canneseries International Series Festival : day two on April 06, 2019 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Arnold Jerocki/Getty Images)

Edgar Wright has penned a beautiful and heartfelt tribute to legendary actress Diana Rigg, who died at the age of 82 on the 10th September.

Wright recently worked with Rigg on his upcoming psychological horror film Last Night In Soho. Around a month ago, Riggs daughter Rachael Stirling called up the writer and director to say that she wanted to do her final ADR for the movie, but theyd need to come to her and do it soon.

Read More: British actress Diana Rigg, who portrayed spy Emma Peel and murderer Medea, dies aged 82

I didnt want to admit it, but I knew what that meant, wrote Wright. This led to a quickly-arranged trip to her bedside the following week where myself and my dialogue editor Dan were to record her final lines.

Watch: 'Game of Thrones' castmates lead tributes to Dame Diana Rigg

Wright says he was very anxious about going to see Rigg, particularly because of Covid, while they didnt want to tire her out, too. But it turns out that Rigg immediately put Wrights concerns to bed as he walked up to see her.

I heard her cry out I know that voice! and was already glad I came.

When I saw her, infirm in bed, I said: Dame D, Ive been so bold as to bring some Campari. She replied, sippy cup in hand, Darling, Im having one right now. Will you have one? I said: It would be rude not to. She shouted to her daughter, Rachie, could you make two Campari and sodas for Edgar and his friend?'

What made Wright and Riggs consumption of this drink all the more sentimental was that she had originally agreed to star in Last Night In Soho after meeting him at Londons Berners Tavern, where they drank Campari and discussed the project.

LONDON, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 18: Edgar Wright attends the European Premiere of "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" at Cineworld Leicester Square on December 18, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/WireImage)

Read More: Remembering the versatile Diana Rigg: The first lady of Bond, Broadway and The Muppets

Unfortunately, Rigg was too ill to take part in the recent pick-up shots for Last Night In Soho, which is why the recording of additional dialogue was required. After his visit to her house, Wright called Rigg one final time, where they said their goodbyes. When the line went dead, Wright admits that he started crying.

When I stepped back into the office, my colleagues asked Whats wrong? I replied: I think Diana just said goodbye. It was indeed the last time we spoke. Just two weeks ago. I miss her so much already.

You can read Wrights full tribute to Rigg at The Guardian.
ITHACA, N.Y., Sept. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the 20 finalists for year two of Grow-NY, a food innovation and agriculture technology business challenge focused on enhancing the emerging food, beverage and agriculture innovation cluster in Central New York, the Finger Lakes, and the Southern Tier.



"New York State is committed to supporting our world-renowned food and agricultural industry," Governor Cuomo said. "Once again, the Grow-NY competition has attracted a group of diverse, innovative entrepreneurs who are ready to focus on finding new, innovative ways to further transform this critical industry. It is through targeted efforts like Grow-NY that we will continue to bolster these regional economies, fostering statewide growth as we work to build back better."

In all, 264 startups applied from 27 countries including Israel, Germany, and Argentina. In the U.S., 26 states were represented, including 98 entries from New York. 29% of applicants included a female founder and 32% included a founder from an underrepresented minority group. A panel of 30 independent judges comprising the spectrum of food, beverage and agriculture businesses and academics reviewed all the applications to determine the top 20 finalists that will pitch their business plans at the Grow-NY Food and Ag Summit this November. Grow-NY will award a total of $3 million in prize money to seven winners. This includes a $1 million top prize, two $500,000 prizes and four $250,000 prizes.

The 20 selected finalists include:

AgTrace , Florianopolis, Brazil  Provides a traceability solution that incorporates farming information and captures, stores and processes data while connecting stakeholders

, Florianopolis,  Provides a traceability solution that incorporates farming information and captures, stores and processes data while connecting stakeholders ARPAC , Porto Alegro, Brazil  Creates and integrates heavy-lifting drones that apply pesticides in a fast and localized manner, with uniformity and precision

, Porto Alegro,  Creates and integrates heavy-lifting drones that apply pesticides in a fast and localized manner, with uniformity and precision Asarasi , Katonah, NY  Recovers the wasted 97% maple water by-products of the maple industry, providing a sustainable alternative to traditional bottled water

,  Recovers the wasted 97% maple water by-products of the maple industry, providing a sustainable alternative to traditional bottled water brytlife foods , Kerhonkson, NY  Crafts sustainably sourced vegan artisanal cheese and yogurt with next level nutrition from 100% plants

,  Crafts sustainably sourced vegan artisanal cheese and yogurt with next level nutrition from 100% plants Candidus , Hull, GA  Develops cost-effective supplemental lighting strategies and control systems for commercial greenhouse operations

,  Develops cost-effective supplemental lighting strategies and control systems for commercial greenhouse operations Crystal Creek Organics , Rochester NY  Converts soluble phosphorous in liquid manure into a non-soluble, revenue-generating, solid by-product

,  Converts soluble phosphorous in liquid manure into a non-soluble, revenue-generating, solid by-product FreshSource , Giza, Egypt  Empowers smallholder farmers by connecting them to fair, modern and transparent markets

, Giza,  Empowers smallholder farmers by connecting them to fair, modern and transparent markets Halomine , Ithaca, NY  Develops anti-microbial products to ensure the safety of our food supply

,  Develops anti-microbial products to ensure the safety of our food supply InnerPlant , Davis, CA  Genetically transforms plants into living sensors to increase yield and reduce agrochemical waste

,  Genetically transforms plants into living sensors to increase yield and reduce agrochemical waste Leep Foods , Rochester, NY  Grows premium organic mushrooms using regenerative soil methods on nutrient-enriched American hardwoods for consumers and restaurants

,  Grows premium organic mushrooms using regenerative soil methods on nutrient-enriched American hardwoods for consumers and restaurants Nordetect , Copenhagen, Denmark  Provides rapid chemical analysis for nutrients in the AgriFood industry

,  Provides rapid chemical analysis for nutrients in the AgriFood industry Norwhey , Ithaca, NY  Transforms New York state's yogurt whey into delicious and sustainable alcoholic beverages

,  Transforms New York state's yogurt whey into delicious and sustainable alcoholic beverages PittMoss , Ambridge, PA  Produces a next generation growing media that is proven to grow bigger, stronger plants than most peat-based mixes

,  Produces a next generation growing media that is proven to grow bigger, stronger plants than most peat-based mixes PureSpace , Busan, South Korea  Extends shelf-life and improves food safety by decomposing ethylene gas, airborne mold, and viruses effectively and efficiently

,  Extends shelf-life and improves food safety by decomposing ethylene gas, airborne mold, and viruses effectively and efficiently Re-Nuble , New York, NY  Transforms food waste into industrial-grade, water soluble, organic hydroponic nutrients for soilless farming

,  Transforms food waste into industrial-grade, water soluble, organic hydroponic nutrients for soilless farming Ripe.io , New York, NY  Provides a platform to access transparent and reliable information on the origin, journey, and quality of one's food

,  Provides a platform to access transparent and reliable information on the origin, journey, and quality of one's food Simply Good Jars , Philadelphia, PA  Expands access to sustainable, restaurant quality meals in a convenient, pre-packaged format

,  Expands access to sustainable, restaurant quality meals in a convenient, pre-packaged format SoFresh , Pleasant Prairie, WI  Manufactures a unique packaging material with an organic vapor to extend the shelf life of fresh bread

,  Manufactures a unique packaging material with an organic vapor to extend the shelf life of fresh bread Soos Technology , Kidron, Israel  Mitigates male-chick culling by transforming male chickens into egg-laying females

, Kidron,  Mitigates male-chick culling by transforming male chickens into egg-laying females Zetifi , New South Wales, Australia  Enables farmers to access fast and reliable connectivity across the entirety of their property

"We decided to double down on the relationships that we have with incubators, accelerators, university programs, and food and ag organizations across the globe to cast a wide net of awareness around the competition. As a result, we've seen a strong turnout, including many international entrepreneurs," said Jenn Smith, program director for Grow-NY. "We're grateful that, through the program, we can provide a much-needed ladder to help startups climb high, creating new, high-quality jobs at a time when they are urgently needed. We're eager to see which companies will win the prize money this year and hit the ground running."

All finalists will receive:

Dedicated mentorship from a hand-selected business advisor;

Additional pitch training to hone their live pitches for the judges;

Business development support and workshops to connect them to potential partners and opportunities;

Networking introductions, business tours, and valuable appointments for finalist team representatives.

The Grow-NY Food and Ag Summit attracted more than 900 attendees last year and, to align with safety guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the event will be held virtually this year on Nov. 17 and 18. Finalists will still have the opportunity to pitch their business plans and answer questions from a live panel of judges. Attendees can also experience a symposium featuring a series of panels discussing the biggest issues facing the food and agriculture industry. Registration is now available, and the event is free and open to the public.

"In transforming this year's Grow-NY Food and Ag Summit into a virtual, we have intentionally created multiple networking opportunities where growers, start-ups, established businesses and influencers can connect," said Smith. "Food, beverage and agriculture innovation in the Grow-NY region is thriving and we are excited to draw new companies into the ecosystem by creating a welcoming environment for strong partnerships."

Judges will base final award decisions on the following five criteria:

Viability of Commercialization and Business Model  the potential for the entrant to generate revenue and maintain a cost structure that allows for a competitive and sustainable business, demonstrate technological readiness, or innovate to fulfill its value proposition;

 the potential for the entrant to generate revenue and maintain a cost structure that allows for a competitive and sustainable business, demonstrate technological readiness, or innovate to fulfill its value proposition; Customer Value  the degree to which the entrant is providing something for which customers are willing to pay, and addressing a substantial market;

 the degree to which the entrant is providing something for which customers are willing to pay, and addressing a substantial market; Food and Agriculture Innovation  the extent to which the entrant is pushing what's considered state-of-the-art in the food and agriculture industries, and contributing to Upstate NY's status as a global leader in innovation in these markets;

 the extent to which the entrant is pushing what's considered state-of-the-art in the food and agriculture industries, and contributing to Upstate NY's status as a global leader in innovation in these markets; Regional Job Creation  the potential for creating high-quality jobs in the Grow-NY footprint; and

 the potential for creating high-quality jobs in the Grow-NY footprint; and Team  the quality and completeness of the team and its readiness to deliver.

Cornell University's Center for Regional Economic Advancement is administering the competition and Empire State Development is providing funding for the Grow-NY competition through its Upstate Revitalization Initiative connected with the three regions - CNY Rising, Finger Lakes Forward and Southern Tier Soaring.

The winner will be required to make a positive economic impact in the Grow-NY region which features counties within Central NY, the Finger Lakes and the Southern Tier of New York State where there are vibrant farmlands as well as several major urban centers, including Rochester, Syracuse, Ithaca, Geneva and Binghamton. The winning business will help contribute to job growth, connect with local industry partners and contribute to a thriving economy.

To learn more about the finalists and mentors, and to learn more and register for the Summit, visit grow-ny.com.

About Empire State Development

Empire State Development (ESD) promotes a vigorous and growing state economy, encourages business investment and job creation, and supports diverse, prosperous local economies across New York State through the efficient use of loans, grants, tax credits, real estate development, marketing and other forms of assistance. To learn more about ESD visit https://esd.ny.gov.

About the Cornell Center for Regional Economic Advancement

The Cornell Center for Regional Economic Advancement (CREA) supports economic impact in Upstate New York through entrepreneurship and innovation. We help people advance ideas that will create jobs in all fields in our region, to enrich the area's economic diversity. To learn more, visit https://crea.cornell.edu.

Contact: Jenny LePore, [email protected]

SOURCE Center for Regional Economic Advancement, Cornell University

Related Links

https://crea.cornell.edu


Joe Biden said Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg "never failed, she was fierce and unflinching in her pursuit of civil and legal right and civil rights of everyone," after learning of her death Friday night.

What he's saying: Ginsburg was "not only a giant in her own profession, but a beloved figure, and my heart goes out to all those who cared for her and cared about her," Biden said in a statement after traveling to Delaware from Minnesota, where he had been campaigning in a suburb of Duluth.

"And she practiced the highest American ideals as a justice  equality and justice under the law. Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for the law.

"As a young attorney, she persisted, overcoming a lot of obstacles for a woman practicing law in those days ... she continued until she moved herself into a position where she could end up changing the law of the land."

"It's hard to believe that it was my honor to preside over her confirmation hearing ... She never failed, she was fierce and unflinching in her pursuit of civil and legal right and civil rights of everyone."

"Tonight and in the coming days we should focus on the loss of the justice and her enduring legacy.

"This was the position the Republican Senate took in 2016 when there were almost 10 months to go before the election. That's the position the United States Senate must take today, and the election's only 46 days off.

"I think the fastest justice ever confirmed was 47 days, and the average is closer to 70 days, and so we should do this with full consideration, and that is my hope and expectation of what will happen."

Why it matters: Republican sources tell Axios that President Trump plans to move within days to nominate his third justice, adding that the Republican base will revolt on Election Day if he does not.
Just days after a nurse at an ICE detention center came forward with allegations of mass hysterectomies performed on immigrants detained at the Irwin County Detention Center (ICDC) in Georgia, new details have emerged about the whistleblower. Several people who were detained at Irwin while Dawn Wooten, the whistleblower, was employed there as a licensed practical nurse have come forward with allegations that she was complicit in the abuses they experienced at the detention center.

A spokesperson for an organization that represents migrants held at the detention center told Prism that multiple clients remembered Wooten making jokes at their expense. At least one other person said Wooten knew what the facility was doing to migrant women and did nothing to stop it. She added that Wooten made fun of the people detained at Irwin.

These allegations were brought to light after Wooten came forward on Monday with her own allegations of medical malpractices against migrants detained at ICDC, claiming that the facility has ignored COVID-19 safety protocols and is performing mass hysterectomies on people detained there. A failure to test symptomatic detained immigrants, and to quarantine those who had been in close contact with confirmed or suspected COVID cases, were among the complaints.

In an official complaint, Wooten went on to state that ICDC was performing hysterectomies on people without their informed consent, referring to the doctor who allegedly performed them, a Georgia gynecologist, Dr. Mahendra Amin, as the uterus collector.

For years, advocates in Georgia have raised red flags about the human rights violations occurring inside the Irwin County Detention Center, Project South Staff Attorney Priyanka Bhatt, said in an emailed press statement. Ms. Wootens whistleblowing disclosures confirm what detained immigrants have been reporting for years: gross disregard for health and safety standards, lack of medical care, and unsanitary living conditions at Irwin.

Story continues

Immigrants who were detained at the facility during the time Wooten worked there said the nurse participated in their mistreatment and trauma. In response to the allegations, Dana Gold, Wootens legal representative at the Government Accountability Project, told Prism, Dawn witnessed systemic abuses at ICDC. When she raised concerns about the operating procedures to her superiors, they demoted her. Gold continued, She came forward to expose and validate grave mistreatment of detained immigrants at Irwin because she believes in the need for systematic change and accountability from the top down.

People are now demanding further answers and justice for detained migrants facing gross medical malpractice. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is asking for the allegations to be investigated by the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General.

Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?

A Nurse Reveals ICE Is Performing Hysterectomies

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ICE Plans To Oust International Students In Fall
Five more countries are seriously considering peace deals with Israel, the White House has said, as a close confidant to the king of Bahrain claimed that the Gulf states now see Israel as their most important ally in the region.

Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff, told reporters on Air Force One that the five countries were poised to follow the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in normalising their relations with Israel, but did not say who they were.

He was likely referring to Oman and Saudi Arabia in the Gulf region, while there is intense speculation that Sudan in North Africa is close to taking the major step.

It came as a special adviser to the king of Bahrain said in an interview with the Telegraph that the Gulf states believe Israel could be better suited than Washington to help them achieve their regional goals.

"I think perhaps there is the beginning of a reduction in the dependency on the US, and a shift over to Israel now," said Marc Schneier, who was appointed to the role in 2018.

"It's so much more accessible, to turn to an ally, a regional partner, if there are any concerns - whether it's from a military point of view or an economic point of view. And I think you're now going to see that shift."

Mr Schneier, an American rabbi, added that it was a question of "if, not when" Saudi Arabia would join Bahrain and the UAE in embracing Israel.

Although Saudi Arabia is a key ally of the US, and in recent years has grown closer to Israel, the kingdom's leadership has said it is not yet ready to normalise relations.

But earlier this week, Donald Trump, the US president, spoke optimistically about Saudi Arabia changing its mind, along with many other countries.

"We're going to have a lot of other countries joining us, including the big ones," he said.

Israeli media reports have pointed to Oman as the next country likely to embrace Israel. However, many other countries in the Middle East have condemned the emerging US-led alliance.

Turkey has warned that "history and the people of the region will never forget and will never forgive the hypocritical behaviour of the United Arab Emirates", while Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's president, initially threatened to cut diplomatic ties with the Gulf state.

Iran has condemned the peace deals as an "act of strategic stupidity", though analysts point out that both the UAE and Bahrain share security concerns about the regime's growing influence in the region.

Under the terms of the so-called Abraham Accords signed on Tuesday, the UAE and Bahrain have agreed to establish embassies, introduce direct flights and increase cooperation on security and trade.

Speaking at the ceremony, Mr Trump hailed a "new dawn" for the Middle East, while Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, said: "The blessings of the peace we make today will be enormous."

The timing of the agreements was auspicious for Mr Netanyahu, who is grappling with mass protests against his leadership, a corruption trial and a second wave of coronavirus which forced ministers to place Israel under a second lockdown yesterday.

Israel became the first country in the world to return to a total lockdown in a desperate effort to try to contain a coronavirus outbreak that has steadily worsened for months as its government has been plagued by indecision and infighting.

The three-week lockdown will require the closure of many businesses and set strict limits on movement and public gatherings. The closures coincide with the Jewish High Holidays.

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021]
Many of us who support the president wish sometimes he didnt say the things he did, wish he had a character more in line with scriptural teachings, said Laszlo Pasztor, a retired military officer from Carlisle who organizes evangelicals poltically. Many of us say hes a work in progress. However, his policies, nevertheless, have probably been more Christian than the policies of any president in my lifetime.
UPDATED: 1.25pm

Over 50,000 restaurant staff in Dublin are set to lose their jobs this weekend after the new Level Three restrictions came into effect last night, according to the Restaurants Association of Ireland (RAI).

It says members are worried that looming bank repayments could force business owners to close forever.

The RAI also believe the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) should be increased back to the level it was at in March.

Chief executive, Adrian Cummins is calling on the Government to extend the moratorium on bank repayments.

"The banks will start to look for their mortgage repayments. The moratorium finishes in September, after six months and we are looking for the Government to intervene immediately and extend it for another six months so that these businesses won't have the pressure of paying loans, or landlords looking for rent while we are closed."

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Under the new restrictions in Dublin, all bars and restaurants must close unless the have outdoor seating areas or are serving takeaway food.

The restrictions have been imposed for the next three weeks.

Donal O'Keeffe, CEO of the Licensed Vintners Association, says the hospitality sector is now facing a lockdown in all but name.

"Over 52,000 people were laid off over night, an incredible amount of people now face a hugely uncertain future and the wider hospitality sector was on its knees anyway.

"[The sector] was closed for three and a half months. We were just building a very slow recovery in a difficult trading environment and now we are facing another three weeks of closure," said Mr O'Keeffe.

In the wider tourism and hospitality industry, there are also fears of more job losses according to the Irish Hotels Federation.

It says the industry has become "the economic frontline" of the Covid-19 crisis, adding that 100,000 jobs have been lost in the sector since March and a further 100,000 are now at risk.

The Federation's president, Elaina Fitzgerald Kane says the industry has been disproportionately affected by restrictions.

"68 per cent of clusters came from private homes, but in the context of restaurants it was 0.0002 per cent and it's for that reason that we feel it's a real disproportionate impact.

"But at the end of the day, public health is number one. We all want to support the measures."

Following the announcement of further restrictions for Dublin businesses, Dublin City Council has announced increased supports for restaurants, cafes and pubs that serve food.

The new measures will allow businesses to utilise public footpaths, designated car parking spaces and other public areas controlled by the council to allow for outdoor dining.

In order to qualify, businesses must have public liability insurance in the amount of 6.4 million for the use of street furniture, take full responsibility for health and safety, maintain 2 meter social distancing guidelines and gas heaters will not be permitted.
Can Americans still have a sensible and friendly political discussion across the partisan divide? The answer is yes, and we intend to prove it. Julie Roginsky, a Democrat, and Mike DuHaime, a Republican, are consultants who have worked on opposite teams for their entire careers yet have remained friends throughout. Here, they discuss the weeks events with Tom Moran, editorial page editor of The Star-Ledger.

Q. Gov. Phil Murphy finally won his long fight to raise the millionaires' tax in a deal that would use the money to grant $500 tax credits to middle-class and low-income families. First, the politics: With Democrats in control of everything and polls showing 70 percent support, why did this take so long?

Mike: Trenton Democrats will never let a good crisis go to waste. They are using COVID to raise income taxes, raise business taxes, raise taxes on healthcare and borrow billions. I am surprised Sweeney and Coughlin are supporting an income tax increase. The top 1% of earners in New Jersey are paying 40% of New Jerseys income taxes. The top 10% pay 70% of the taxes. Wealthy people are leaving New Jersey, and as they leave, it is the middle class who keep getting more and more of the tax burden.

Julie: This deal fell into place because Speaker Coughlin was committed to provide real relief to working middle-class families and was finally able to spearhead an agreement that does just that by providing families with children with the money to pay for back-to-school expenses and other bills next year.

Mike: This is less than one-half of 1% of a tax credit for the average New Jersey household. Taxpayers deserve structural reforms that lower the cost of government and lower our heavy tax burden.

Julie: I agree, Mike. But in all the years a Republican governor was at the helm, he never lowered the income tax rate for the middle class. This is the first real tax break middle class workers are getting in a generation.

Mike: Because Democrats blocked Christies attempt at an income tax cut, of course.

Julie: Funny. He couldnt get it done. Democrats just did.

Mike: By raising other taxes. Way to go.

Q. Next, the merits: I hate to be a party pooper, but why is New Jersey planning to hand out money when were so broke we need to borrow billions to stay afloat?

Mike: It is a Trenton shell game to justify increasing taxes overall, and of course using class warfare to do it. Middle class taxpayers are smart and not falling for it. New Jersey has among the highest income, business, sales and gas taxes in the country, but congrats, you get a temporary tax credit in return. Instead of a one-time tax credit, cut taxes for the middle class permanently.

Julie: Go out in the streets and talk to middle-class families, some of whom have lost their jobs because of COVID, others who simply cannot afford to pay one penny more to live in New Jersey because it has gotten so expensive, between toll hikes and gas tax increases and rising property taxes. Then tell me that they dont deserve to get real relief from their government.

Mike: Great, lets do an across the board income tax cut then.

Q. The nation beset by apocalyptic floods and fires, but a recent Pew poll said Americans dont care much about climate, that it did not even reach the list of top-10 issues. Why is that?

Mike: Because while there is broad agreement on climate change, there is tremendous disagreement as to what to do about it. Just because I believe in climate change doesnt mean I want the far left environmental movement turning off all natural gas supplies, which is what they want to do. It will make energy more expensive and less reliable. As a country, we continue to move in the right direction by lowering emissions with cleaner forms of energy like nuclear, natural gas and renewables, but the far left will endanger that progress in the name of climate change.

Julie: People tend to focus on what is happening to them immediately, not on what is happening to them long-term. Climate change has strangely also become a partisan proxy battle -- or maybe not so strangely, when you recognize that the oil and coal industry has teamed up with right-wing media to discredit the indisputable scientific merits of climate change. But at long last, some governments are fighting back. Hoboken, for example, recently filed a lawsuit against major oil companies to hold them accountable for the damage from climate change that they helped perpetuate. If that lawsuit, and others like it, are successful, the industry will be forced to change its behavior at long last.

Climate Change is here, and the wildfires are clear evidence that the problem is getting worse. Thats why I put forward the #CLEANFuture Act to put America on a path to net-zero carbon pollution. https://t.co/0PJbrFaPZp  Rep. Frank Pallone (@FrankPallone) September 13, 2020

Q. Rep. Josh Gottheimer was on national TV this week offering a compromise plan to break the stalemate on the next stimulus bill from the Problem Solvers Caucus, a bipartisan group of 50 members he co-chairs. He and his GOP counterpart used words like respect, trust and even friendship across party lines. Didnt Gottheimer get the memo explaining that were supposed to hate each other these days?

Mike: Maybe Josh has been reading our column. This is proof that we can disagree respectfully but also often find consensus when we treat each other with empathy and respect. I applaud his efforts and those of his Republican counterparts.

Julie: I agree wholeheartedly. Rep. Gottheimer represents a swing district where his biggest threat to re-election is a Republican challenger, not a Democratic primary challenger. If more districts were like his, we would actually have Members of Congress who knew how to compromise and talk across party lines. Unfortunately, gerrymandering and a Balkanized media ecosystem have made this kind of tactic almost impossible.

Q. By contrast, Sen. Tom Keans campaign for Congress went low as Republicans began running ads that suggested Rep. Tom Malinowski is dangerously radical and worked to protect child sex predators when he was a senior official at Human Rights Watch, citing the groups opposition to a Megans Law provision in the 2006 crime bill. Malinowski didnt personally lobby on the bill, and HRW is a respected group that won a Nobel prize in 1997 for its work to eliminate land mines. Is this attack below the belt?

Mike: Malinowskis campaign just attacked Tom Kean two weeks ago using guilt by association as well. I dont recall the question in this column absolving Kean and condemning Malinowski for the tactic. Did the organization Malinowski lobby for oppose Megans Law provisions or not? Perhaps they did and he personally disagreed. Malinowski can clarify it. And what does HRWs laudable work to remove landmines 10 years prior have to do with their mistake to oppose Megans Law provisions? Good organizations and good people can make mistakes regardless of other good works. If the ad was untrue, I think it would have been removed from the air.

Julie: I feel sorry for Tom Kean. Hes running in a district where the president is toxic, on the same line as Donald Trump and some obscure Republican running against a popular Senator Cory Booker. If Republicans were smart, they would focus on issues that really matter to voters, whether its taxes or health care. But since the Republican Party nationally has hiked taxes on New Jersey voters by getting rid of the SALT deduction and has voted to repeatedly cut funding for healthcare, I guess the only place Keans campaign can focus is on some obscure provision from fifteen years ago that no one cares about.

Three GOP mayors among group of six Republicans asking @NRCC to pull a controversial TV ad in NJ-7. https://t.co/dxyvT13969  David Wildstein (@wildstein) September 18, 2020

Q. Finally, Matt Platkin, the governors counsel, announced that hes leaving the administration for a job at one of the states premier law firms, Lowenstein Sandler. Did he serve the governor well? What will he be remembered for?

Mike: The governor believes Matt served him well, and thats what matters most. Matt appeared to be a loyal and indispensable inner circle confidante of the governor helping steer him through rocky relations with the legislature, policy wins and losses, some staffing controversies, and the COVID crisis, which has been the defining moment for Gov. Murphy. The governor needs smart, loyal people by his side, and clearly thats what the governor felt he had in Matt.

Julie: Matt showed a lot of initiative when he first cold-called me years ago to ask for work with Team Murphy. He was just a year or two out of law school but he offered to work for free initially and, since the price was right, I fought to bring him on board, which proved to be the right decision because he later did a good job as the director of research on the campaign. But volunteering on a campaign until you earn your stripes is different from having the experience to give sound political advice to the chief executive of a state and the thing Matt will be most remembered for is his role in the Katie Brennan matter, as well as his conflicts with legislative leaders and even the chairman of the Port Authority, whom he unsuccessfully tried to oust. His failure to take Brennans complaints seriously created a massive political headache for the governor and put Matt in the news for all the wrong reasons. Hopefully, he will learn a lot from working for an experienced attorney like Chris Porrino at Lowenstein Sandler.

Serving as Chief Counsel to @GovMurphy has been the honor of my life. Weve fought for a stronger & fairer NJ  tackling COVID, $15 min wage, gun safety, crim justice reform, & so much more. Ill always be a proud member of Team Murphy. https://t.co/T5WIxUoEmZ  Matt Platkin (@mattplatkin) September 16, 2020

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On Friday, United States President Donald Trump said that a nationwide distribution of the coronavirus vaccine would be possible as early as April of next year. The announcement is the latest remark by the U.S. president that shows his optimistic view of the pandemic.

Nationwide coronavirus vaccine

However, several health experts, including critics of the Republican leader, expressed their concern for the timeline. The prediction comes amid ongoing coronavirus vaccine candidates' trials. The Food and Drug Association (FDA) has not approved a safe and efficient treatment.

According to USA Today, Trump has been forced by the approach of the November elections to make rash and often inaccurate predictions and claims about the fight against the coronavirus. In March, he announced that he wanted to see people going out and filling churches and that businesses would be opened by Easter.

But the Friday statement about the coronavirus vaccine imposes a hard deadline for pharmaceuticals companies developing the treatment to follow. White House aides said that to meet the timeline, the government would have to produce 100 million doses ready to be distributed before the end of the year.

During a press briefing at the White House on Friday, President Trump told reporters that after the approval of a coronavirus vaccine, the government would have hundreds of millions of doses available every month. He added that the vaccines' distribution would be much quicker than what most people expect.

However, critics have expressed their doubts about the timeline, citing scientific delays and arguing that Trump will promise anything to garner support from the people to get re-elected. Experts say that while several vaccines are being developed, none have been approved by the FDA and that the process would take several months.

Also Read: Donald Trump Touts Coronavirus Vaccine Coming As Soon As October

Health experts on the timeline

Dr. Scott Atlas, Trump's newest adviser who is part of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, supported the president's prediction. He added that Americans who want to be injected with the treatment would have the opportunity to do so by April, as reported by CNN.

The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Dr. Robert Redfield, said earlier this week that a coronavirus vaccine would be widely available by the second or third quarter of next year.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director, expressed his support for the timeline.

President Trump told reporters that he was very optimistic that his administration can beat the number by a substantial amount and bring the vaccine to the American people at a much earlier date.

According to Politico, experts are still unsure which of the leading coronavirus vaccine candidates will be the first to be approved by the FDA. The list includes AstraZeneca, which recently hit a bump in the trial process and had to pause research.

Pharmaceutical company Moderna said it would be able to provide 20 million doses before the year ends. Pfizer, on the other hand, announced it would give 100 million shots worldwide within the year. Executives of both companies revealed they expect to process emergency use authorization by October.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the CDC said in August that it predicts the United States would have about 40 to 45 million doses by the end of December.

Related Article: Trump Widens Accessibility for Drugs With Reduced Cost Executive Order

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President Donald Trump, nearing a decision on whether to approve an alliance between Oracle Corp. and the Chinese-owned video app TikTok, spoke by phone Friday with Oracles chairman, Larry Ellison, according to people familiar with the matter.

Trump set a deadline of Sunday to approve or decline a deal in which Oracle and a Chinese company, Bytedance Ltd., would create a new company, TikTok Global, in order to satisfy US national security concerns about the popular app.

The chief executive of Walmart Inc., Doug McMillon, was also on the call, the people said. Walmart, which had previously partnered with Microsoft Corp. to make an outright bid for TikToks US business, remains interested in investing as well, and could end up with a seat on the board of the new company, according to one of the people.

The people asked not to be identified because the conversations were private.

Separately, Democratic nominee Joe Biden assailed Trump for the timing of his interest in the app.

Its a matter of genuine concern that TikTok, a Chinese operation, has access to over 100 million young people, particularly in the United States of America, Biden told reporters in Duluth, Minnesota on Friday.

What I always worry about though, is what Trump does and the way he does it on the eve of an election, he said. All of a sudden hes decided hes going to deal with TikTok, and hes talking about how we have to make money off of it. I mean what the hell is he talking about. Either it is a security risk or isnt a security risk.

Earlier Friday, the Trump administration announced that it was banning TikTok, as well another Chinese platform, WeChat, from US mobile app stores. Trump has said the companies threaten national security because China could use them to mine user data or broadcast propaganda.
Catanzara countered later: Im not running in a personality contest here, so I really dont care if she likes me or not. Im here to represent the members of this Police Department and thats what Im going to continue to do," Catanzara said. She has an obligation to work with me just like I have an obligation to work with her, personality interests aside. And she doesnt want to negotiate in the press but yet she certainly takes every opportunity she could over this summer to throw jabs at the Police Department trying to talk about everything from discipline to obviously funding, now the possibility of not replacing officers as they retire, which is absolutely ridiculous.
Nearly canceled due to the novel Coronavirus pandemic, then postponed due to weather, the second annual Doggin It for Jeff hot dog eating contest was held Saturday outside the White Buffalo in New Canaan.

Part of The Hot Dog Challenge, an effort among friends started five years ago to see who could eat the most hot dogs between Memorial Day and Independence Day, the overall challenge and the New Canaan contest raise money in the name of Jeff Cortese of Stamford, who lost his sight when he was in his 20s.
By Allison Lampert and David Ljunggren

MONTREAL/OTTAWA (Reuters) - The Canadian province of Quebec on Friday said police would target more than 1,000 bars and restaurants to enforce rules curbing the spread of coronavirus, as authorities raised the alarm over a possible second wave.

Quebec and Ontario, the two most populous of the 10 provinces, blame a recent spike in cases on people ignoring limits on parties and regulations on social distancing.

Public health officials reiterated warnings that they might lose the ability to manage the pandemic.

Canada reported an additional 1,120 coronavirus cases and seven deaths on Sept. 17, the second time this week that positive diagnoses have risen by more than 1,000 in 24 hours.

"We have to use every tool and every gesture at our disposal to avoid a second wave in Quebec," Public Security Minister Genevieve Guilbault told reporters.

Police would issue tickets to offenders and alert public health authorities if there are multiple infractions at an establishment, she said.

Quebec requires masks to be worn inside public places, prohibits the sale of alcohol after midnight in bars and restaurants, and has banned dancing and karaoke in clubs.

The federal government has already announced more than C$200 billion ($151.5 billion) in spending to help tackle the pandemic. But the provinces and three northern territories on Friday demanded more money for healthcare spending, citing the cost of fighting the virus and lower revenues.

"We are in desperate need of your support," Ontario premier Doug Ford told a news conference, noting that overall spending on healthcare is C$188 billion a year. Ottawa's contribution is C$42 billion and this needs to rise to C$70 billion, he said.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is due to unveil plans in parliament next week to combat the crisis. One absentee will be Yves-Francois Blanchet, leader of the separatist Bloc Quebecois, who has contracted COVID-19 and is in isolation.

(Additional reporting by Steve Scherer in Ottawa; Editing by David Gregorio, Kirsten Donovan)
Home Search ICH Why Bob Woodwards Rage is a lie built on a lie, and what Trump vs Military Messiah Syndrome really is about By Scott Ritter September 19, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - Bob Woodwards new insider account of the Trump administration, Rage, details the multi-faceted controversies surrounding President Trumps approach to governance  none more so than his relationship with the military. Bob Woodward is a legendary reporter whose talent for getting insiders to speak about the most sensitive matters in government dates back to Watergate and the Nixon presidency. His most recent presidential expose, Rage, touches on a wide range of controversies, from the coronavirus pandemic to issues relating to war, and the promise of war. It is Trumps tortured relationship with the military that stands out the most, especially as told through the eyes of former Secretary of Defense Jim Mad Dog Mattis, a retired marine general. It is clear that Bob Woodward spent hours speaking with Mattis  the insights, emotions and internal voice captured in the book show a level of intimacy that could only be reached through in-depth interviews, and Woodward has a well-earned reputation for getting people to speak to him. The book makes it clear that Mattis viewed Trump as a threat to the US standing as the defender of a rules-based order  built on the back of decades-old alliances  that had been in place since the end of the Second World War. It also makes it clear that Mattis and the military officers he oversaw placed defending this order above implementing the will of the American people, as expressed through the free and fair election that elevated Donald Trump to the position of commander-in-chief. In short, Mattis and his coterie of generals knew best, and when the president dared issue an order or instruction that conflicted with their vision of how the world should work, they would do their best to undermine this order, all the while confirming to the president that it was being followed. No Advertising - No Government Grants - This Is Independent Media Get Our Free Newsletter The military is trapped in an inherited reality divorced from the present This trend was on display in Woodwards telling of Trumps efforts to forge better relations with North Korea. At every turn, Mattis and his military commanders sought to isolate the president from the reality on the ground, briefing him only on what they thought he needed to know, and keeping him in the dark about what was really going on. In a telling passage, Woodward takes us into the mind of Jim Mattis as he contemplates the horrors of a nuclear war with North Korea, and the responsibility he believed he shouldered when it came to making the hard decision as to whether nuclear weapons should be used or not. Constitutionally, the decision was the presidents alone to make, something Mattis begrudgingly acknowledges. But in Mattis world, he, as secretary of defense, would be the one who influenced that decision. Mattis, along with the other general officers described by Woodward, is clearly gripped with what can only be described as the Military Messiah Syndrome. What defines this syndrome is perhaps best captured in the words of Emma Sky, the female peace activist-turned adviser to General Ray Odierno, the one-time commander of US forces in Iraq. In a frank give-and-take captured by Ms. Sky in her book The Unravelling, Odierno spoke of the value he placed on the militarys willingness to defend freedom anywhere in the world. There is, he said, no one who understands more the importance of liberty and freedom in all its forms than those who travel the world to defend it. Ms. Sky responded in typically direct fashion: One day, I will have you admit that the [Iraq] war was a bad idea, that the administration was led by a radical neocon program, that the USs standing in the world has gone down greatly, and that we are far less safe than we were before 9/11. Odierno would have nothing of it. It will never happen while Im the commander of soldiers in Iraq. To lead soldiers in battle, Ms. Sky noted, a commander had to believe in the cause. Left unsaid was the obvious: even if the cause was morally and intellectually unsound. This, more than anything, is the most dangerous thing about the Military Messiah Syndrome as captured by Bob Woodward  the fact that the military is trapped in an inherited reality divorced from the present, driven by precepts which have nothing to with what is, but rather by what the military commanders believe should be. The unyielding notion that the US military is a force for good becomes little more than meaningless drivel when juxtaposed with the reality that the mission being executed is inherently wrong. The Military Messiah Syndrome lends itself to dishonesty and, worse, to self-delusion. It is one thing to lie; it is another altogether to believe the lie as truth. No single general had the courage to tell Trump allegations against Syria were a hoax The cruise missile attack on Syria in early April 2017 stands out as a case in point. The attack was ordered in response to allegations that Syria had dropped a bomb containing the sarin nerve agent on a town  Khan Shaykhun  that was controlled by Al-Qaeda-affiliated Islamic militants. Trump was led to believe that the 59 cruise missiles launched against Shayrat Airbase  where the Su-22 aircraft alleged to have dropped the bombs were based  destroyed Syrias capability to carry out a similar attack in the future. When shown post-strike imagery in which the runways were clearly untouched, Trump was outraged, lashing out at Secretary of Defense Mattis in a conference call. I cant believe you didnt destroy the runway!, Woodward reports the president shouting. Mr. President, Mattis responds in the text, they would rebuild the runway in 24 hours, and it would have little effect on their ability to deploy weapons. We destroyed the capability to deploy weapons for months, Mattis said. That was the mission the president had approved, Woodward writes, clearly channeling Mattis, and they had succeeded. The problem with this passage is that it is a lie. There is no doubt that Bob Woodward has the audio tape of Jim Mattis saying these things. But none of it is true. Mattis knew it when he spoke to Woodward, and Woodward knew it when he wrote the book. There was no confirmed use of chemical weapons by Syria at Khan Shaykhun. Indeed, the forensic evidence available about the attack points to the incident being a false flag effort  a successful one, it turns out  on the part of the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Islamists to provoke a US military strike against Syria. No targets related to either the production, storage or handling of chemical weapons were hit by the US cruise missiles, if for no other reason than no such targets could exist if Syria did not possess and/or use a chemical weapon against Khan Shaykhun. Moreover, the US failed to produce a narrative of causality which provided some underlying logic to the targets that were struck at Khan Shaykhun  Here is where the chemical weapons were stored, here is where the chemical weapons were filled, here is where the chemical weapons were loaded onto the aircraft. Instead, 59 cruise missiles struck empty aircraft hangars, destroying derelict aircraft, and killing at least four Syrian soldiers and up to nine civilians. The next morning, the same Su-22 aircraft that were alleged to have bombed Khan Shaykhun were once again taking off from Shayrat Air Base  less than 24 hours after the US cruise missiles struck that facility. President Trump had every reason to be outraged by the results. But the President should have been outraged by the processes behind the attack, where military commanders, fully afflicted by Military Messiah Syndrome, offered up solutions that solved nothing for problems that did not exist. Not a single general (or admiral) had the courage to tell the president that the allegations against Syria were a hoax, and that a military response was not only not needed, but would be singularly counterproductive. But thats not how generals and admirals  or colonels and lieutenant colonels  are wired. That kind of introspective honesty cannot happen while they are in command. Misleading the American public Bob Woodward knows this truth, but he chose not to give it a voice in his book, because to do so would disrupt the pre-scripted narrative that he had constructed, around which he bent and twisted the words of those he interviewed  including the president and Jim Mattis. As such, Rage is, in effect, a lie built on a lie. It is one thing for politicians and those in power to manipulate the truth to their advantage. Its something altogether different for journalists to report something as true that they know to be a lie. On the back cover of Rage, the Pulitzer prize-winning historian Robert Caro is quoted from a speech he gave about Bob Woodward. Bob Woodward, Caro notes, a great reporter. What is a great reporter? Someone who never stops trying to get as close to the truth as possible. After reading Rage, one cannot help but conclude the opposite  that Bob Woodward has written a volume which pointedly ignores the truth. Instead, he gives voice to a lie of his own construct, predicated on the flawed accounts of sources inflicted with Military Messiah Syndrome, whose words embrace a fantasy world populated by military members fulfilling missions far removed from the common good of their fellow citizens  and often at conflict with the stated intent and instruction of the civilian leadership they ostensibly serve. In doing so, Woodward is as complicit as the generals and former generals he quotes in misleading the American public about issues of fundamental importance. Scott Ritter is a former US Marine Corps intelligence officer and author of ' SCORPION KING : America's Suicidal Embrace of Nuclear Weapons from FDR to Trump.' He served in the Soviet Union as an inspector implementing the INF Treaty, in General Schwarzkopfs staff during the Gulf War, and from 1991-1998 as a UN weapons inspector. Follow him on Twitter @RealScottRitter - " Source " - Post your comment below See also When It Comes to Trump, Mattis Is No Hero The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House. Search Information Clearing House === The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House. Click Here To Support Information Clearing House Your support has kept ICH free on the Web since 2002. Click for Spanish , German , Dutch , Danish , French , translation- Note- Translation may take a moment to load.
JACKSONVILLE  A MacMurray College art collection comprising the work of renowned painter and former art professor Nellie A. Knopf (1875-1962) will be offered to museums, collectors and the general public in separate online auctions Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 by Hindman Chicago.

Knopf, a Chicago native and 1900 graduate of the School of the Art Institute, worked at MacMurray College as an art professor and later as director of its art program, retiring in 1943. She navigated a male-dominated art world as a deaf woman, painting widely and exhibiting regularly, and left a body of 750 works in oil and watercolor upon her death, at the age of 86, in 1962.

Knopfs landscapes rank her as one of the early female painters of the great American West and as an early female Modernist.  said Joseph Stanfield, director of the Fine Art Department at Hindman and curator of the upcoming American and European Art auction. Its rare to be able to offer such a representative output of an artist at one time.

Sixteen of Knopfs most significant, larger-scale work will be sold during a Sept. 30 live auction beginning at 10 a.m. CDT, available online. The paintings, Lots 65-80, can be viewed at https://hindmanauctions.com/auctions/788-american-and-european-art?page=1&layout=grid&per=50.

On Oct. 1, more than 40 paintings and drawings will be sold in an online auction that will begin at 2 p.m. CDT. These works can be viewed at https://hindmanauctions.com/auctions/825-american-european-art-online?page=1&layout=grid&per=50.

A contemporary of Georgia OKeeffe, Knopf began painting in New Mexico in the 1920s, years before OKeeffe made the state her home and an inspiration for her work. Knopf went on to paint rugged landscapes in the mountains of Colorado, along the California coast, and in Glacier National Park in Montana, during sabbaticals and summer breaks from MacMurray.

To participate in the bidding, prospective buyers need to visit https://hindmanauctions.com/how-to/buy and register and create an account. All proceeds will go toward settling the outstanding debt of the 174-year-old institution, which closed permanently following spring semester 2020. The closure was announced in March on a unanimous vote of the colleges Board of Trustees in the wake of declining student enrollments and unsustainable competitive costs.

We reached the decision to sell the Knopf collection with a great deal of regret, said John M. Nicolay, president of the MacMurray College Board of Trustees. MacMurray took great pride in hosting retrospectives of her work through the decades. Sadly, it is our fiduciary responsibility to properly secure and monetize the colleges assets.

MacMurray College was an independent, four-year college with a strong liberal arts tradition. Founded in 1846 by Methodist clergy as the Illinois Conference Female Academy, MacMurray College was one of the oldest institutions of higher education originally for women in the United States and one of the oldest private liberal arts colleges in Illinois.
MINSK -- Belarusian police have detained hundreds of female protesters in Minsk, as several thousand women marched through the capital demanding the resignation of President Alyaksandr Lukashenka.

Mass protests challenging the results of an August 9 presidential election that declared Lukashenka the landslide winner have swept across Belarus over the past month.

Thousands of people have been detained and beaten by police, while nearly all the opposition's key leaders have been forced to leave the country or been arrested in a widening crackdown.

Several thousand women marched in central Minsk on September 19, briefly scuffling with riot police, who then blocked their path.

Black uniformed riot police swiftly forced hundreds of women, who had stood with linked hands, into police vans.

Vyasna, a human rights organization in Belarus, said more than 300 people were arrested during the march.

The demonstration was the latest womens march calling for Lukashenka, who has been in power for 26 years, to resign after what the opposition and the West have called a rigged election.

"We won't forget! We won't forgive!" shouted the women, who were carrying red-and-white flags and banners, a symbol of the opposition that has been banned by the authorities.

Others chanted, "Long live Belarus!" and, "Shame!"

Drivers passing by sounded their horns in solidarity with the protesters.

Many of Belaruss most prominent opposition leaders are women, including exiled presidential candidate Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya and detained members of the Coordination Council like Maryya Kalesnikava and Lilia Vlasova.

In a video statement released ahead of the march, Tsikhanouskaya, who has taken refuge in neighboring Lithuania, praised the "brave women of Belarus."

They have frightened and put pressure on women for the second month, but despite this, Belarusians are continuing their peaceful protest and showing their amazing fortitude, Tsikhanouskaya said.

Among those arrested on September 19 was Nina Bahinskaya, a 73-year-old great-grandmother and prominent opposition activist.

Despite unprecedented police brutality against protesters, Bahinskaya has cut a frail but resolute figure amid the crowds protesting against Lukashenka.

On September 12, hundreds of women marched through Minsk, confronting masked riot police and security agents.

The Interior Ministry said 114 people had been detained around the country, 99 of them in the capital, in connection with those demonstrations.

With reporting by AFP and dpa
Democratic donors smashed records on Friday night following the news of the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Online donation processing site ActBlue reports that in the 9pm hour after the news broke, donors gave $6.2m  more than in any single hour since the launch of the site in 2004.

That record was toppled in the 10pm hour when donors gave another $6.3m.

For two hours, more than $100,000 per minute was being donated to Democratic causes.

The previous record for donations in an hour was on 20 August when former vice president and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden addressed the party convention. That night, $4.3m was raised in an hour.

A confirmation fight for a Supreme Court seat, coupled with an election that could determine the direction of the country for a generation, have proved powerful motivators for supporters to open their wallets.

August 2020 was ActBlues biggest month ever  more than 4 million unique donors gave 10,654,586 contributions on the site, for a total of $485,400,545. By 31 August $3bn had been raised in the 2019-2020 election cycle.

Tommy Vietor, a founder of Crooked Media group and an Obama administration alum, told The New York Times: The conventional wisdom is that the Supreme Court only motivates Republicans, but these fund-raising totals demonstrate that that has changed.

A sizeable portion of Friday nights donations will be directed towards Senate races in which Democrats may be able to unseat Republican incumbents, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Senator McConnell has announced his intention to push ahead with hearings once a nominee is chosen by president Donald Trump.

A page created by Crooked Media, called Get Mitch or Die Trying, attracted more than $3m in three hours. Proceeds will be split between 13 Democrat candidates running for the Senate.
Local American Red Cross volunteers are deploying physically to support Red Cross relief efforts in response to the Oregon wildfires and Hurricane Laura. The Red Cross has a need for new volunteers to help.

According to a statement, American Red Cross volunteer Ezequiel Alejandro is deploying to Louisiana to support the Red Cross response to Hurricane Laura. American Red Cross volunteers Nicole Mercado and Karen Sears are physically deploying to Portland, Oregon to support Red Cross relief efforts in response to devastating wildfires. These local volunteers are three of more than 2,000 Red volunteers for the Red Cross in Connecticut and Rhode Island and hail from Manchester, Bristol and Niantic.

In just the last month, a series of deadly hurricanes and wildfires have uprooted lives even as people have struggled with the ongoing impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the statement. The Red Cross is on the ground working tirelessly to provide food, shelter, comfort and support to people in need. The Red Cross is coordinating closely with partners and local officials in the affected areas. Even as the Red Cross is responding to Hurricane Laura and the deadly western wildfires, the Red Cross is mobilizing supplies and volunteers in anticipation of Tropical Storm Sally. Our work is just beginning, as we will be providing support for weeks to come.

In addition to deploying current volunteers, the Red Cross also has a need for new volunteers to help support the Red Cross mission locally and by deploying out of state. If you have the time, you can make a significant impact as a Red Cross volunteer. Review our most urgently needed volunteer positions at redcross.org/volunteertoday. There is a special need for volunteers to deploy out of state to support sheltering efforts, according to the statement. We need volunteers to help staff shelter reception, registration, feeding, dormitory, information collection and other vital tasks to help those we serve. We have both associate and supervisory level opportunities available.

Those who are interested in helping a community should a disaster occur can go to redcross.org/volunteertoday or contact Sarah Scheel: sarah.scheel@redcross.org, 860-426-5795. Be sure to review the CDC guidance for people who are at higher risk for severe illness, consult your health care provider and follow local guidance. Our number one priority is the health and safety of our employees, volunteers and the people we serve.

To make a donation, visit redcross.org, call 800-RED-CROSS, or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

Torrington bans open burning

TORRINGTON  The following is a statement from Torrington Fire Chief Peter Towey.

Due to the extremely dry conditions and consistently high forest fire danger levels, open burning within the City of Torrington is suspended until further notice. This includes any and all open burning within the City, even with a valid burning permit. Towey will advise the community when these restrictions are able to be lifted. For information, contact the Torrington Fire Department at peter_towey@torringtonct.org

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer events scheduled

This October, residents can join the American Cancer Society at the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer drive-through experiences and pink celebrations in communities across the state. Interested participants are encouraged to register for their local movement and raise funds prior to the events, members said in a statement.

Because of the pandemic, this fall may look different, but the communitys passion to end breast cancer must stay the same. The impact of COVID-19 will reduce the ability to fund cancer research by 50% in 2020 - the Societys lowest investment this century if current trends continue. Communities, survivors, and caregivers are encouraged to rally around the fight and help raise crucial funds. Events include:

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer of Greater Hartford, 9-11 a.m., Oct. 4, 111 Founders Plaza, East Hartford. www.MakingStridesWalk.org/GreaterHartfordCT

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer of Litchfield County, 10:30-11:30 a.m., Oct. 4, White Memorial Conservation Center, Litchfield. www.MakingStridesWalk.org/LitchfieldCT

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer of New London County, 10:30-11:30 a.m., Oct. 18, Rocky Neck State Park, Niantic, www.MakingStridesWalk.org/NewLondonCT

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer of Greater New Haven, 10:30;11:30 a.m., Oct. 18, Lighthouse Point Park, New Haven. www.MakingStridesWalk.org/NewHavenCT

Homeschool history series offered

LITCHFIELD  The Litchfield Historical Society is offering a Homeschool History Series from 10-11 a.m. or 3:30-4:30 p.m., Sept. 23, Oct. 21, Nov. 8 and Dec. 16 on Zoom. The cost is $30 for the entire series; register by calling 860-567-4501.

The Litchfield Historical Society uses local history and itscollection of objects and artifacts to explore U.S. History. This semester we will be exploring life in colonial and early America for homeschooling and at home students, members said in a statement.

The course will include four virtual monthly classes with morning and afternoon sessions. Optional days for students to come to the museum to observe the objects and archival materials used in the class will be offered. The program is best suited for students in grades three through six.

Classes will be held virtually on Zoom. Each class will be accompanied by an optional day for students to stop by the Litchfield History Museum to see the objects and archival materials used in the class. Topics: Sept. 23, Settlement Patterns: The Making of Litchfield; Oct. 21, Heroes of the Revolution; Nov. 18, Washington's Spies: Benjamin Tallmadge and the Culper Spy Ring; Dec. 16, Harvest and Hearths: Food and Farming in the Past.
Photo: Colin Dacre

Richmond RCMP is asking for the publics help after an apparent exchange of gunfire between two vehicles at a gas station on Thursday night.

At around 11:35 p.m., police were called to a report of shots fired at one of the two gas stations at the intersection of No. 3 and Blundell roads.

According to police, the occupants of two vehicles, one black and one white, reportedly exchanged gunfire before departing the area at high speed.

Police believe, at this time, the incident appears to be targeted and, fortunately, no bystanders were injured.

One vehicle was last seen eastbound on Westminster Highway, while the other was last seen northbound on No. 2 Road.

Police are asking drivers who may have been in the area at this time to review their dashcam video to see if they may have captured the vehicles involved.
The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) is urging the media to assist in educating the public to honour their tax obligation to help the country mobilise revenue to continue with the ongoing development.

It is no secret lack of compliance is one of the main challenges that face the GRA in its efforts to mobilize funds for the development of the country.

In the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic, the problem has even worsened with the GRA having to deal with the inability to chase defaulting taxpayers at a point when restrictions on movement which was put in place to help curb the spread of the disease.

During a media engagement at the Coconut Groove Hotel in Accra On September 11 under the theme, Tax Compliance and the COVID-19 Pandemic," the acting Commissioner-General, Rev. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah revealed that the Authority had envisaged a massive tax education initiative for this year.

As a result of the GRAs inability to carry on with the initiative due to the Covid-19 crisis, the authority is now turning to the media for assistance.

We have had to re-strategize by adopting other relevant modes of reaching both taxpayers and the general public with our messages. We, therefore, need the support of our media stakeholders to assist us carry our tax messages so that we can achieve a high level of voluntary compliance among our taxpayers, Rev. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah told editors of some selected media houses.

According to the GRA Ag. Commissioner-General, it is the vision of the authority to combine vigorous enforcement of the tax laws with voluntary compliance and one of the key ways of achieving this is through education and engagement.

Revenue Target, Performance

He stressed that already, the GRA is on its target of mobilizing GHS42.7 billion at the end of the year. He indicated that data at the end of the first half the year reveals a total revenue of GHS19, 955.31million was collected as against a target of GHS21, 423.14M, resulting in a negative deviation of 6.9%.

Mr Owusu-Amoah said despite the shortfall, the Authority is even challenged to meet a revenue target of GHS55million with the implementation of prudent policies.

"As an Authority, we cannot continue to do business as usual, thus, we have put in place a number of measures to ensure that we attain our 2020 revenue target. We are determined as an organization to collectively put our shoulders to the wheel as we roll out some of the policies in these not normal times," he emphasised.

Revenue performance, he noted, for the period reveals that Domestic tax collected GHC15, 397.05M out of a budgeted target of GHC 14,773.76, while Customs collected GHC4, 558.26M out of the GHC 6,649.38 target.

According to him, the sectors that saw significant growth over the period were the mining, telecommunications and financial sectors.

Transformation

On the transformation agenda, Mr Owusu-Amoah stressed that the Domestic Tax Revenue Division (DTRD) commenced the first phase of a nationwide restructuring exercise in Accra and Kumasi in August.

He indicated that the aim of this exercise was to implement some of the feedback they have received from taxpayers on improving service delivery to them.

"Now taxpayers will be able to file returns at the nearest Taxpayer Service Centre (TSCs) irrespective of turnover. This will create convenience for taxpayers and free them to use their time for other productive ventures. The aim is to establish offices not on the basis of turnovers as it was previously but rather with respect to jurisdiction," he intimated.

Technology

Rev. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah added that a number of initiatives have been rolled out whiles others at various stages of development.

He mentioned the introduction of the Integrated Customs Management System (ICUMS) at the ports with the objective of ensuring more efficient management and collection of customs duties and taxes.

He added that the modules in the second phase of the Integrated Tax Application and Processing System (ITaPS), have been deployed on the Ghana.gov platform making it possible for taxpayers to file some returns and make payments online. "Now, over fifteen banks have been signed on to receive payment of taxes via the Ghana.gov platform and we are confident that by the end of the year more banks will join us. We will therefore be on our way to making payment of taxes more convenient for our taxpayers."

In addition to making payment of Vehicle Income Tax more convenient, Mr Owusu-Amoah indicated that the Authority is piloting the payment of tax via a USSD code *222#.

Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN)

The Acting Commissioner - General announced that 1,630,900 persons have acquired the Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TINs).

He said the figure which increased significantly between May and June 2020 is as a result of the requirement of a TIN to register to access Governments COVID19 stimulus package from the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI).

Mr Owusu-Amoah added that the Authority together with the Ministry of Finance in June 2020 inaugurated the Tax Audit and Quality Assurance Department which was set up to ensure improved quality of audits and revenue assurance.

According to him, the Department will manage the centralized audit planning process, serve as the audit centre of excellence, monitor and ensure quality audit across the operational Divisions and investigate significant tax gaps including cases of suspected tax evasion, avoidance and fraud. "In this regard, we encourage you to report cases of tax fraud and tax evasion to us for investigation and rewards."
China has a stronghold on the lithium-ion battery supply chain, according to a new market report.

Along with 72GWh of electricity storage demand, China also retains an estimated 80 per cent of the world's raw material refining, 77 per cent of cell capacity and 60 per cent of component manufacturing.

The study claimed the US and Europe are both well positioned to close the gap in the next five years, but warned that Britain could slip behind by 2025.

Countries are desperate to increase their position in the sector - sales of electric vehicles have begun to surge and are likely to rocket in the coming years as governments introduce bans on the availability of petrol and diesel cars from 2030.

Stronghold: An employee works at a production line of lithium ion batteries inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province. China has been ranked the top global market for electric-car batteries by a new industry study

China's dominance of the lithium-ion battery market is a clear indicator for why Tesla set up shop with a 210-acre Gigafactory in Shanghai where it's been producing Model 3s since last year and will also build Model Ys for the fastest-developing economy.

Analyst BloombergNEF has ranked it as the driving force in the sector, having overtaken former leaders Japan and South Korea - however, they remain in the top three ranking highest for battery and component manufacturing but lag behind China when it comes to the availability of raw materials, refining and mining.

James Frith, BNEF's head of energy storage, said: 'China's dominance of the industry is to be expected given its huge investments and the policies the country has implemented over the past decade.

'Chinese manufacturers, like CATL, have come from nothing to being world-leading in less than 10 years.'

But Frith said China's stronghold could be challenged in the coming years from western markets.

'The next decade will be particularly interesting as Europe and the US try to create their own battery champions to challenge Asian incumbents who are already building capacity in both places,' he added.

'While Europe is launching initiatives to capture more of the raw material value chain, the US is slower to react on this.'

Note: Environ. is environmental. RII is regulations, infrastructure and innovation. Red represents countries in the Asia-Pacific region, teal countries in Europe and Africa, and blue countries in the Americas. The symbol represents if country has moved up or down the rankings in comparison to its 2020 score, green represents up and red represents down. The number shows the number of places the country has moved

Countries are desperate to increase their position in the sector with sales of electric vehicles already starting to boom and will sky rocket in the coming years as governments introduce bans on the availability of petrol and diesel cars from a decade's time

BNEF's ranking provides a snapshot of a country's position in the lithium-ion battery supply chain in 2020 and where it will place in 2025, based on its current development trajectory.

While the US today languishes in sixth place, the upcoming presidential election could change things.

If America were to increase its investment in raw materials and promote electric vehicle adoption, it could overtake both Japan and China to be number one in 2025.

In contrast, the UK - currently one place behind the US - could see its position in the rankings fall if it becomes unable to access the large demand in continental Europe, which, at 152GWh, will be around five times the size of its domestic market.

Europe is improving its position on the supply chain, with a boom in cell plants across the continent. Tesla is currently building its Gigafactory 4 vehicle plant in Berlin

A street sign reading 'Tesla Street 1' stands in front of the construction site of the electric car Tesla Gigafactory in Gruenheide

According to the Global EV Outlook 2020, the sales of electric cars reached 2.1 million globally in 2019, surpassing 2018s record to boost the stock to 7.2 million electric vehicles

As electric car demand grows in the next decade, there is an increasing need for cell manufacturing facilities close to automotive production.

This has led to a boom in European cell plants, and the rest of the supply chain is also slowly making its way to Europe as nations look set to ban the sale of passenger cars with internal combustion petrol and diesel engines from as early as 2025 in Norway.

Polestar: 'We want to be the most transparent electric car maker' Polestar - the electric-car sister brand to Volvo, itself owned by Chinese firm Geely - will publish full details of the climate impact of its electric vehicles as part of efforts to become the 'most transparent' EV maker in the automotive industry'. It criticised the wider industry for a 'disturbing lack of transparency', stating that it is 'impossible for a consumer to compare the climate impact of different cars'. As a result, the Swedish company will, with immediate effect, reveal a headline number that shows the climate impact of its EVs as they leave the production line. It will also show the total climate impact of the car over its life cycle. 'Car manufacturers have not been clear in the past with consumers on the environmental impact of their products,' said Thomas Ingenlath, Polestar CEO. 'That's not good enough. We need to be honest, even if it makes for uncomfortable reading.' Using its own analysis, Polestar found its new 50,000 '2' leaves the factory with a 26-tonne carbon footprint. Compared to a Volvo XC40 with a petrol engine, Polestar 2 has a larger footprint in the manufacturing phase, mainly due to the energy-intensive battery production process. But once the EV reaches the customer, if charged with green energy, further CO2 emissions are 'negligible'. And after 31,000 miles (50,000km) of driving, the fossil fuel car surpasses the EV in total CO2 emissions.

Pressure is mounting on UK Government decision makers to bring forward the current ban from 2040 to an earlier deadline of 2030, which would be in-line with countries including Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands and Sweden.

This includes Tesla's Gigafactory 4 that's being built in Berlin, Germany, which the US maker says will be 'the most advanced high-volume electric vehicle production plant in the world'.

In the UK, start-up Britishvolt is due to open the country's first gigafactory rival in South Wales , which will be penned by legendary vehicle design house, Pininfarina, and open in 2023.

Sophie Lu, head of metals and mining at BloombergNEF, said that while nations with a monopoly of critical metals are in a good position, it is equally fundamental for other countries to leverage the availability of clear and cheap electricity and develop large-scale manufacturing sites with a 'technically skilled labour force'.

According to the Global EV Outlook 2020, the sales of electric cars reached 2.1 million globally in 2019, surpassing 2018s record to boost the stock to 7.2 million electric vehicles.

China remained the world's largest EV market, with 2.3million electric vehicles in active use, accounting for nearly half (45 per cent) of the global stock of zero-emission cars.

Europe and the US are relatively far behind with 1.2 and 1.1million EVs respectively in 2019 - but the latter is performing far better in relative terms,

While only 5.2 per cent of China's vehicles are electric, over half (56 per cent) of cars in Norway were powered by electricity last year.

EVs also make up 26 per cent and 15 per cent of all motors in Iceland and Netherlands respectively in 2019, though in the UK represented less than 2 per cent of new registrations.

However, by the end of August 2020, one in 20 new models bought in the UK were battery electric cars, according to the latest sales figures published by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.
Lusk poet Damien Donnelly, who releases his first poetry collection on September 17, leads us on a journey of hope and acceptance in his new work, 'Eat the Storms.'

Recently returned from France, where he lived for 23 years, the Lusk writer put pen to paper to delve into his soul and try to make sense of his identity as 'an adopted child, a gay child and an only child.'

Speaking to The Fingal Independent, Damien shares the inspiration for his work, and how darkness ultimately gives way to light.

He says: 'I wrote the collection not being able to find work and trying to figure out what to do, but thankfully last year I won a competition from Hedgehog Poetry Press, and I won the opportunity to have my first collection published.

'In order to try and find new ways to share that, because normally you'd have a book launch but that's not really possible at the moment, I'm trying to find different ways to get my voice out there while still being indoors.

'Last week, I started a podcast, 'Eat the Storms', the same name as the collection, so I set it up as a platform not just for myself, but also for other poets to come along and share their work.'

The Lusk poet says: 'The point of this collection was basically to be able to go into the darkness and find the light inside it, to accept the balance of life. So each poem is about a certain colour and trying to find that colour so that we can easily walk through life's difficulties and hold onto hope.'

Damien says his poems are 'deeply personal' in nature, an 'inspection of who I am.' They are also, he says, a way of learning from the journeys he has taken, and as such act as a catharsis.

Despite this, he says, the poems are also universal in their appeal, reflecting many of the struggles people may be facing in their lives.

Speaking of the inspiration behind 'Eat the Storms', Damien says: 'I also paint and draw and sketch, so anything visual is something that sparks me. And also listening to people's stories. I came back to live in Lusk where my great grandparents built this house in 1904, so listening to my family and when my grandparents were here, listening to their stories so that I could capture a bit of their history before it goes.

'I like doing photography, so a lot of my poems are trying to notice small moments.

'The first poem in the collection is called 'Meditation on the Yellow Sun', and that's about trying to capture tiny moments that are fleeting, so that you kind of have a photographic memory of it so that later on maybe when it's a bit more difficult.

'You kind of hold that moment and look back on it and say 'It was good before, and it will be good again.'

'Eat the Storms' is published by Hedgehog Press and is available from Amazon or deuxiemepeaupoetry.com.
D octors are calling for an urgent tightening up of coronavirus restrictions in England to avoid another fully-blown national lockdown.

Unless current Covid-19 infection rates are swiftly reduced, the NHS will once again be crippled, the British Medical Association (BMA) warned on Saturday.

The intervention comes just hours after Boris Johnson admitted that a second wave of the pandemic had reached the UK.

The BMA said that while it did not want to see the country shut down again, the inadequacy of recent measures suggested stricter measures were needed.

On Saturday, the UK recorded another 4,422 cases of the virus  topping 4,000 for two consecutive days for the first time since early May.

The BMA is calling on the Government to reconsider the rule of six, which was introduced in England on Monday, banning social gatherings of more than six people.

It wants the number of households people can visit to be reduced, arguing that the rule  under its current format  makes it possible for members of six households to meet indoors potentially many times over the course of one day.

The association is also urging ministers to reverse their stance on getting workers back to the office. It says the public should be encouraged to work from home in order to reduce contact between people including on public transport.

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The BMA said unnecessary travel and social gatherings should be discouraged.

It suggested a take out to help out approach  similar to the Chancellors Eat Out to Help Out scheme  could be introduced to reduce the number of people in restaurants.

The association also called for entrances to indoor public settings to provide inexpensive disposable surgical masks, and for people over 60 and who have underlying conditions to wear medical grade masks.

Dr Chaand Nagpaul, chairman of the BMA, said: It is vital to reduce avoidable mixing of people at a time when the infection is spreading without the testing capacity to identify those with the infection.

This requires revisiting the rule of six which allows members of six different household to meet indoors compared to a maximum of two previously, and reversing the encouragement to travel and return to work for those able to work remotely.

"We need to know the criteria for when different restrictions will be introduced, and local public health specialists need to have the autonomy to act in the best interests of their own towns and cities.

Describing the countrys testing programme as woeful, Dr Nagpaul stressed that it has nowhere near the capacity and agility we need to test at scale.

He continued: Testing is now effectively rationed and so we must prioritise testing for those who need it  such as people with symptoms and key workers including healthcare staff and teachers, along with suspected cases who are contacts of key workers.

Coronavirus in numbers: UK records 4,422 new confirmed cases

Cases of the virus and hospital admissions for Covid-19 are doubling every seven to eight days in the UK, according to data from the Office for National Statistics.

Meanwhile, the Governments Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) said the R number  representing the number of people an infected person will pass the virus to  has risen to between 1.1 and 1.4, meaning cases could rise very quickly.

Although deaths are currently low, experts expect them to rise, with Sage saying the R number shows that we are moving to wider spread growth in transmission at a faster rate.

Last week, the R number was said to be between 1.0 and 1.2.

Overall, an average of 6,000 people in England per day were estimated to be newly infected with Covid-19 between September 4 and 10, almost double the 3,200 people per day from August 30 to September 5.

The figures do not include people staying in hospitals or care homes.
The U.S. Commerce Department said it will issue an order Friday that will bar people in the United States from downloading Chinese-owned messaging app WeChat and video-sharing app TikTok starting on Sept. 20.

Commerce officials said the ban on new U.S. downloads of TikTok could be still rescinded by President Donald Trump before it takes effect late Sunday as TikTok owner ByteDance races to clinch an agreement over the fate of its U.S. operations.

ByteDance has been talks with Oracle Corp and others to create a new company, TikTok Global, that aims to address U.S. concerns about the security of its users' data. ByteDance still needs Trump's approval to stave off a U.S. ban.

Commerce officials said they will not bar additional technical transactions for TikTok until Nov. 12, which gives the company additional time to see if ByteDance can reach a deal for its U.S. operations. "The basic TikTok will stay intact until Nov. 12," Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross told Fox Business Network.

The department said the actions will "protect users in the U.S. by eliminating access to these applications and significantly reducing their functionality." Oracle shares fell 1.6 percent after the news in pre-market trading.

The Commerce Department order will "deplatform" the two apps in the United States and bar Apple Inc's app store, Alphabet Inc's Google Play and others from offering the apps on any platform "that can be reached from within the United States," a senior Commerce official told Reuters.

The order will not ban U.S. companies from doing businesses on WeChat outside the United States, which will be welcome news to U.S. firms like Walmart and Starbucks that use WeChat's embedded 'mini-app' programs to facilitate transactions and engage consumers in China, officials said.

The order will not bar transactions with WeChat-owner Tencent Holdings' other businesses, including its online gaming operations, and will not prohibit Apple, Google or others from offering TikTok or WeChat apps anywhere outside the United States.

The bans are in response to a pair of executive orders issued by Trump on Aug. 6 that gave the Commerce Department 45 days to determine what transactions to block from the apps he deemed pose a national security threat. That deadline expires on Sunday. Commerce Department officials said they were taking the extraordinary step because of the risks the apps' data collection poses. China and the companies have denied U.S. user data is collected for spying.

Ross said in a written statement "we have taken significant action to combat China's malicious collection of American citizens' personal data, while promoting our national values, democratic rules-based norms, and aggressive enforcement of U.S. laws and regulations."


By PTI

NEW DELHI: A Congress member in Lok Sabha on Saturday demanded a fair and transparent investigation into the gold smuggling case in Kerala, saying agencies should inquire into the "conspiracy" angle.

Raising the matter during the Zero Hour, Hibi Eden, who is an MP from Ernakulam constituency, also alleged that the Kerala government has been brutally attacking youths and women who were leading a peaceful protest on the issue.

READ| Kerala gold smuggling case: Minister KT Jaleel questioned by NIA for entire day

"As we all know the gold smuggling case in Kerala, where gold was smuggled in diplomatic baggage in which the Chief Minister's Office is directly involved. Agencies are investigating the case, a fair and transparent inquiry is needed," he said.

He added that all those who are involved in this case should be brought to light.

"The conspiracy factor should be inquired. I urge upon the central government to direct the Kerala Governor to furnish a detailed report on the law and order situation and to have a joint investigation in this matter," he said.

Raising the matter of Gorkhaland, Darjeeling MP Raju Bista (BJP) requested the government to resolve the issue as early as possible.

"We are sure that the government will soon resolve issues pertaining to Gorkhaland. It is a legitimate demand. A stable political solution will help in promoting growth in the area. I request the government to resolve the issue as early as possible," Bista said.

Uttam Kumar Reddy (INC) raised the matter of corporatisation of 40 ordnance factories.

He said that this was an "ill-advised" move and "I urge the ministry of defence to reconsider" this.

P Ramulu (TRS) demanded allowance for SC/ST youths who have lost their jobs due to the CIVID-19 pandemic.

He claimed that many SC/ST students are working under MNREGA and also selling fruits and vegetables.

"There is a need to provide unemployment allowances of Rs 5,000 per month to them," he added.

Sumalatha Ambareesh, an independent member from Karnataka, said there is a fear that if Hindi is pushed as the sole medium of communication, then it might lead to the eventual decline of regional languages.

She mentioned about the government's proposed three-language formula during the Zero Hour.

"The proposed three language formula. I think I speak for millions of South Indians when I say that we fear if Hindi is being pushed as the sole medium of communication, it might lead to the eventual decline of regional languages.

This is not acceptable," she said.

A three-language formula has been proposed in the new National Education Policy.

"We love and respect Hindi. I think any national policy has to be approached keeping the regional, linguistic identities and sentiments in mind," she said.

The member also urged the central government to look into these issues and ensure that the country's past is preserved for a beautiful future.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 15:07:44|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- No new locally-transmitted COVID-19 cases were reported Friday across the Chinese mainland, the National Health Commission said Saturday.

Meanwhile, 14 confirmed COVID-19 cases arriving from outside the mainland were reported -- six in Guangdong, two each in Shanghai, Sichuan and Shaanxi and one each in Liaoning and Fujian, the commission said in its daily report.

One new suspected COVID-19 case from outside the mainland was reported in Shanghai and no new deaths related to the disease were reported, the commission said.

On Friday, eight COVID-19 patients were discharged from hospitals after recovery, the commission said.

By the end of Friday, a total of 2,720 imported cases had been reported on the mainland. Of them, 2,549 had been discharged from hospitals after recovery, and 171 remained hospitalized, with two in severe condition. No deaths from the imported cases had been reported.

As of Friday, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases on the mainland had reached 85,269, including 171 patients still being treated.

Altogether 80,464 people had been discharged after recovery, and 4,634 had died of the disease on the mainland, the commission said.

There was one suspected COVID-19 case on the mainland, while 6,514 close contacts were still under medical observation after 796 were discharged Friday, according to the commission.

Also on Friday, 24 new asymptomatic cases, all from outside the mainland, were reported.

The commission said 374 asymptomatic cases, including 373 from outside the mainland, were still under medical observation.

By the end of Friday, 4,996 confirmed cases including 103 deaths had been reported in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), together with 46 confirmed cases in the Macao SAR and 503 cases including seven deaths in Taiwan.

A total of 4,696 COVID-19 patients in the Hong Kong SAR, 46 in the Macao SAR, and 478 in Taiwan had been discharged from hospitals after recovery. Enditem
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg lived an extraordinary American life and leaves it with glowing admiration from even those who disagreed with her. Thats all any of us can hope for.

It is an unseemly but by now commonplace sign of our times that, even though she passed away just as Rosh Hashanah had begun, the politics of a now-vacant Supreme Court seat could not be put on hold for a day, or even a few hours. On the other hand, Justice Ginsburg herself fanned the political flames. In her last days, she dictated a statement, made public after her death, expressing fervent desire that she not be replaced until a new president is installed.

Since Supreme Court justices usually choose their words with care, we have to assume this is a wish not only that the seat remain unfilled until after January 20, but that a new president be elected in the interim. It is understandable that Democrats are already exploiting the emotional power of a liberal giants dying wish. Yet, while we honor Justice Ginsburgs remarkable life, we owe her no more deference on the timing of her replacement than on the outcome of the November election.

The timing of her replacement, instead, is strictly a matter of political calculation.

On this, I will say what I always find myself saying when a vacancy on the High Court opens: It is ridiculous for leading senators, administration officials, influential partisans, and pundits to enunciate the high-minded principles and precedents that supposedly control the propriety and timing of a nomination.

In reality, there are only two rules, both set forth in the Constitution: A president, for as long as he or she is president, has the power to nominate a person to fill a Supreme Court seat; and that nominee can fill the seat only with the advice and consent of the Senate. Thats it. Everything else is posturing. Everything else is politics.

There are no rules about what happens in the last year of a presidents term, nor codicils that hinge on whether the Senate is controlled by the presidents party or the opposition. For example, there was nothing inappropriate about President Obamas nominating D.C. Circuit judge Merrick Garland after Justice Antonin Scalia died months before the 2016 presidential election; nor was there anything wrong with Senator Mitch McConnells holding his Senate majority together to block the nomination  against the caterwauling of the media-Democrat complex.

Story continues

Everything about that episode was political. If the vacancy had opened earlier in his presidency, or when the Democrats controlled the Senate, Obama would have nominated someone younger and more left-wing than Garland  someone like Justice Sonia Sotomayor (whom Obama did pick years earlier). He chose Garland, a well-regarded, then-62-year-old moderate, only because Senate Republicans held the whip hand: Nothing in the law required them to consider the nomination, so the presidents only hope was to turn up the heat politically. Republicans would have felt no pressure if the president had nominated a radical, so he chose someone who seemed to be as palatable as possible for Republicans (while still being a reliable liberal on important cases).

For their part, Senate Republicans understood that Justice Scalia was a conservative icon, that the base would have mutinied if theyd rolled over for an Obama pick, and  most significantly  that the alarming prospect of a President Hillary Clinton choosing Scalias replacement dramatically improved Donald Trumps chances to win the presidency . . . and thus for Republicans to control judicial nominations for four years.

Of course there was risk: Clinton was heavily favored to win, and had she done so, shed likely have withdrawn Garlands nomination in favor of someone younger and more left-leaning. But thats politics. The calculations on both sides made sense, and none of the maneuvering was dictated by a legal or precedential rule.

President Trump has the power to make nominations until at least noon on January 20, and maybe for another four years after that. For the time being (at least until the beginning of January), Republicans control the Senate by a fairly thin margin, 5347. The president has the power to make a nomination, and the Senate has the power to confirm the appointment. Period.

It doesnt matter who said what when. It doesnt matter that McConnell in 2016 rationalized blocking Garland by claiming that the issue of replacing Scalia should be settled by the imminent presidential election. It doesnt matter that Democrats demanded that Garland get a vote. It doesnt matter that Joe Biden, when he was Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, said he would not consider any Supreme Court nomination made by President George H. W. Bush in the presidential-election year of 1992 but then in 2016, as Obamas vice president, inveighed against the Senate for refusing to consider Garlands nomination. It doesnt matter that Obama nominated Garland before the last election but now says Trump must not try to replace Ginsburg before the coming election.

These politicians are all over the mat because the vaunted precedents they were purporting to rely on were embarrassingly thin camouflage for power politics. That is what dictated their behavior  then as now.

That said, the fact that the president has the power to name a replacement for Justice Ginsburg and that Republicans have a majority to get the nomination approved does not necessarily mean that thats the smart play.

Of course, Trump could lose in November and the Republicans could lose their majority. That would militate in favor of the presidents naming a strong judicial conservative and McConnells trying to move it across the goal line. Personally, I was hoping for Judge Amy Coney Barrett the last time, and I still am. As a conservative Republican, I hope the Democrats do not sweep the November election, but I also have to recognize that it may be a long time before Republicans have another opportunity to shape the Supreme Court. And if the shoe were on the other foot, there is no doubt that the Democrats would ram a nomination through in nothing flat.

So . . . carpe diem, right? Not necessarily.

I am far from convinced that Senator McConnell will have the 50 votes he needs (with Vice President Pence as the tie-breaker). He can only stand three defectors, and if it gets to four there will be more  bank on it.

Moreover, there will be great outrage on the left if Republicans push a Trump nominee through while Democrats are screaming bloody murder (and if you thought the streets were already aflame, you aint seen nuthin yet). It is always possible that Republicans will be energized by a Supreme Court nomination battle, but the lift they seemed to get during the hellacious fight to confirm Justice Brett Kavanaugh evaporated before the 2018 midterms.

Id thus wager that a determined Republican effort to replace Ginsburg in the coming weeks would increase the chance that Biden defeats Trump, and that Democrats take the Senate while holding the House. If that happens, Democrats will repeal the filibuster, add four to six seats to the Supreme Court, and pack it with liberal ideologues. Whatever benefit will have been achieved by confirming a Trump nominee will be overwhelmed. And that may be the least of our problems.

The best play, particularly if Republicans lack the Senate votes they need anyway, would be to use the vacancy as a core issue in the 2020 campaign. This worked for Trump in 2016  indeed, it got him elected, ever so narrowly.

To be sure, Democrats are going to be more galvanized this time because the shoe is on the other foot: The prospect of a Republican replacing the Courts leading liberal will alarm them as much as the prospect of Clinton choosing Scalias replacement alarmed Republicans. Nevertheless, as a political issue, the Court cuts in favor of Republicans. That is why Trump is already touting a list of potential nominees.

For all the Democrats hysteria about the purportedly imminent reversal of Roe v. Wade (that never happens), every time a conservative is appointed, the fact is that Republican judicial nominees are forces of stability who favor judicial restraint, enabling Americans to determine democratically how they wish to live. By contrast, the public rightly sees Democratic judicial nominees as forces of radical change, imposed by judicial fiat at the expense of democratic self-determination. That is why Biden does not want to release his list of potential Supreme Court nominees. Democrats prudently fear that it would frighten voters and hurt his chances.

For now, President Trump is signaling (by tweet) that he intends in short order to announce a nominee to fill the vacancy left by Justice Ginsburgs passing, and that he will push for Senate consideration. There is a good chance that he wont get Senate consideration before the election . . . but that the nomination of a solid prospective justice, and the inevitable comparison of the kinds of jurists a Biden administration would appoint, will help the presidents reelection bid.

Editors note: This essay has been emended since its original publication.

More from National Review
- The Fokker 50 cargo plane was taking off at Aden Adde International Airport when it suddenly skidded off the runway

- The pilot circled the airport and then made attempted to make an emergency landing before it hit a concrete perimeter wall just steps from the sea

- It was heading to deliver supplies to African Union Mission in forces in Beledwyene on the morning of Saturday, September 19

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Kenyan pilots attached to Silverstone Air Services have suffered serious injuries after a cargo plane they were flying crashed in Mogadishu, capital city of Somalia.

The Fokker 50 cargo plane was taking off at Aden Adde International Airport when it suddenly skidded off the runway and hit a concrete perimeter wall just steps from the sea.

READ ALSO: Raila, Atwoli join Sossion in celebrating daughter who became first female lawyer in their village

Emergency team at the crash site. Photo: Jacdec.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Coronavirus: Wedding leaves 7 people dead, 175 get infected after attending event

According to Flight Global, the aircraft's body parts such as nose, cockpit, right-hand wing, main landing-gear and propellers were extensively damaged.

The aircraft had just taken off and was heading to deliver supplies to African Union Mission in forces in Beledwyene on the morning of Saturday, September 19.

Witnesses said it circled the airport then it made an emergency landing before crashing down in what could be a mechanical hitch.

READ ALSO: Ruth Matete denounces Christianity, says religious people abandoned her

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The country's minister for transport confirmed the plane had four occupants at the time of the incident, a position that was corroborated by Kenya's ambassador to Somalia Lucas Tumbo.

There were four occupants including the pilot, co-pilot, an engineer and a load master. The pilot and co-pilot were seriously injured and the airline has arranged for their evacuation to Nairobi for further treatment and management, he told Daily Nation.

On October 11, 2019, another plane belonging to the same flight company crashed in the same manner while taking off at Wilson Airport, Nairobi.

The plane was headed to Lamu via Mombasa when the incident occurred injuring several passengers.

According to one of the passengers who was aboard the ill-fated aircraft, the plane was actually in the process of taking off the ground before they experienced the crash.

"It was just taking off the ground when we experienced the scaring crash. We are now in the office where they are taking account in bid to confirm if everyone is okay, said James Maina Macharia.

Barely two weeks after the Nairobi incident, another Silverstone aircraft made an emergency landing after one of its tires fell off during takeoff on October 28.

The plane was on its way to Nairobi from Lodwar.

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Maynooth University is to move lectures online and limit on-site teaching, it announced in a statement this evening in response to the lockdown measures imposed on Dublin earlier today.

Dublin has moved to Level 3 restrictions due to the number of Covid-19 cases in the capital. All Dublin-based universities have agreed to restrict access to their campuses in response to the lockdown announcement, and Maynooth University is following suit, given its proximity to Dublin, it said.

A statement released by MU this evening said: "The University is limiting on-site teaching to laboratory, practical and skills instruction, and will limit classes and tutorials to up to 30 persons. Larger lectures will be taught online.

"The key aim of the University is to protect our students, staff and in the wider community, from the spread of Covid-19.

"We look forward to holding Welcome Week for First Years on 21 September, with the bulk of the weeks activities held online. The University will re-open for all students on 28 September, in accordance with our new protective measures."
Actor Gaurav Chopra, who recently welcomed his child, a son, has shared the first picture of his newborn and written a long, emotional note with it. Gaurav also said that he is yet to finalise on when the family will return to Mumbai. One of the images shows Gaurav gazing at the newborn lovingly as he holds him in his hands, with a mask on his face.

Gaurav shared pictures of the little munchkin and wrote, Mere ghar aaya ek nanha kunwar...chandni ke haseen rath par savaar ...: I remember singing this for a sequence in #Uttaran as #Rpr gets a baby home ..I wish I knew the actual feeling then .. As we welcome this angel , whos come into my life as precious rain falls on parched ground..I thought I should share the moment with all of you .. Its overwhelming to lose both parents and then get this miraculous blessing bundled in cuteness and innocence..all of it within a month...it all starts to make sense .. somewhat.. Exactly a month ago my mother left us and I know that she would have been beyond ecstatic to hold our #princeChopra .. I can feel her blessings and see her smile ..Sending you all love and wishes and asking for blessings for our family and this angel..#baby #boy #blessing #triptachopra #choprafamily.

Elaborating on why hed rather wait before going back to Mumbai, Gaurav told Times of India, Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I feel extremely vulnerable to even take my baby out in the open. I am taking extra precautions. Before we come to Mumbai, I will have to figure out several things given the delicate situation there. My building has started allowing maids and it will be important to see how to get domestic help when we come back. In Bengaluru, the entire family is looking after our baby, so we feel safe.

He also shared his happiness and told the daily, I am so happy that we have got the baby home now. Hitisha, her parents, grandmother and I take turns to look after him. Hitishas friends, and my brother and bhabhi decorated the entire house when we brought him home from the hospital. It was an emotional moment and I missed my mother the most. She would have been ecstatic if she were here to see her grandson.

Gaurav welcomed his son last week and it was just a month after he lost both parents to Covid-19. Taking to Instagram to share pictures of a door sign revealing that theyd become parents to a baby boy, Gaurav wrote in his caption, 19-08-2020, 29-08-2020, 14-09-2020. Enlightenment in three dates. . The meaning of life , explained in this short span of time .. a roller coaster ride , a cycle ... never ending...an emotional and physical test .. and then divine intervention and a bountiful blessing today ... Between the morning and the afternoon, between two placards on the door .. everything changed ! thank you for your love and blessings..its been my strength...

Also read: Abhishek Bachchan reminds Harsh Goenka of Aishwarya Rai after he claims smart men dont love worlds most beautiful women

Gauravs parents died within 10 days of each other and he had recently likened the experience to being stabbed in the heart. My mother died while my father was on the ventilator. So, he didnt hear the news. Their last conversations were about each other. For the last three-and-a-half years, my father was taking care of my mother and thats how they left, together. My mother was doing fine till she learnt about dad. The day she stopped speaking to him, her condition deteriorated, day by day, he had said.

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The woman runs from Tanaiste Leo Varadkar after throwing her smoothie over him

Tanaiste Leo Varadkar has revealed he got on with his work after a smoothie was thrown over him yesterday.

A video circulated online of a woman throwing a smoothie at him in Dublin's Merrion Square. The woman, who was wearing a mask, approached a camera crew Mr Varadkar was talking to, before walking up to the Tanaiste and throwing the smoothie over him.

Mr Varadkar looked shocked while the woman, who was carrying a skateboard, ran off. Gardai are investigating the incident which happened at around 3pm yesterday.

No arrests have yet been made and gardai are attempting to identify the woman involved.

A spokesman confirmed gardai were investigating an incident that occurred in Merrion Square. Sources said the incident is being treated as an assault and is under investigation by officers based at Pearse Street Garda Station.

Mr Varadkar commented on the it at yesterday's press conference on the latest Covid-19 restrictions.

"I was in Merrion Square earlier on just filming a video to explain to people about some of the decisions that were made today," he said. "I saw someone coming towards me, I thought she was Avril Lavigne because of the skateboard and everything but unfortunately it wasn't.

"She also had a smoothie with ended up all the way down my face and halfway down my suit but look, I had a spare suit and just got on with the day's work.

"I haven't spoken with gardai but I think they will want to speak to me this week."
New Delhi, Sep 19 : The Union government may consider the closure of central public sector units (PSUs) even if they have been approved for strategic disinvestment on a case-to-case basis.

In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur said that the government follows a policy of closure of centre public sector enterprises (CPSEs) in terms of the approved revised guidelines dated June 14, 2018 issued by the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE).

"The government may consider the closure of the CPSEs even in cases earlier approved for strategic disinvestment on a case to case basis," Thakur said, adding that the guidelines issued by the DPE on the closure of CPSEs addresses the concerns regarding the employees and assets.

Thakur noted that the government has given 'in-principle' approval for strategic disinvestment of 34 CPSEs, including subsidiaries and units of CPSEs.

Several of these CPSEs are loss making and sick entities where the government in the past had also faced difficulties in strategic disinvestment. Such companies which have lost value could be the ones that may be recommended for closure.

In certain other CPSEs, policy of minority stake sale without transfer of management control through various SEBI approved methods is being followed in order to unlock the value, promote public ownership and higher degree of accountability, he said.

The various modes of disinvestment commonly used for minority stake sale includes Initial Public Offer (IPO), Follow on Public Offer (FPO), Offer for Sale (OFS), buyback of shares and Exchange Traded Funds (ETF).

"Transaction receipts on conclusion of disinvestment transactions depend on the prevailing market conditions and investors' interest," the minister said.

The budget estimate (BE) of disinvestment receipts for 2020-21 from disinvestment of CPSEs was fixed at Rs 1.20 lakh crore.

The already lagging disinvestment plans, have been severely impacted by the ongoing pandemic and deadlines for submission of bids major PSUs on the block, such as oil major BPCL and national carrier Air India have been postponed.

The government is also coming up with a new strategic disinvestment policy as announced by the Finance Minister in May. According to sources, the Cabinet may soon take up and approve the new strategic disinvestment policy, which would include the banking and insurance sector.
Leigh Uhlir, associate dean at Kendall College in Chicago, serves as the Kendall College program director of culinary arts and hospitality management at National Louis University, the same place where she earned an associate of applied science in culinary arts and a bachelor of arts in hospitality and culinary management. During the course of her professional career, she has also worked for the nations leading hospitality companies and restaurants ranging from the Four Seasons Hotel in Chicago and Lettuce Entertain Yous Las Vegas division. She shared with me what she believes is the key to making the perfect pancake.
By Pepe Escobar

September 19, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - The concept of History in the making has been pushed to extremes when it comes to the extraordinary public service being performed by historian, former UK diplomat and human rights activist Craig Murray.

Murray  literally, and on a global level  is now positioned as our man in the public gallery, as he painstakingly documents in vivid detail what could be defined as the trial of the century as far as the practice of journalism is concerned: the kangaroo court judging Julian Assange in Old Bailey, London.

Lets focus on three of Murrays reports this week  with an emphasis on two intertwined themes: what the US is really prosecuting, and how Western corporate media is ignoring the court proceedings.

Here, Murray reports the exact moment when the mask of Empire fell, not with a bang, but a whimper:

The gloves were off on Tuesday as the US Government explicitly argued that all journalists are liable to prosecution under the Espionage Act (1917) for publishing classified information. (italics mine).

All journalists means every legitimate journalist, from every nationality, operating in any jurisdiction.

Interpreting the argument, Murray added, the US government is now saying, completely explicitly, in court, those reporters could and should have gone to jail and that is how we will act in future. The Washington Post, the New York Times, and all the great liberal media of the US are not in court to hear it and do not report it (italics mine), because of their active complicity in the othering of Julian Assange as something sub-human whose fate can be ignored. Are they really so stupid as not to understand that they are next?

Err, yes.

The point is not that self-described paladins of great liberal media are stupid. They are not covering the charade in Old Bailey because they are cowards. They must keep their fabled access to the bowels of Empire  the kind of access that allowed Judith Miller to sell the illegal war on Iraq in countless front pages, and allows CIA asset and uber-opportunist Bob Woodward to write his insider books.

Nothing to see here

Previously, Murray had already detailed how the mainstream media are turning a blind eye. There were three reporters in the press gallery, one of them an intern and one representing the NUJ. Public access continues to be restricted and major NGOs, including Amnesty, PEN and Reporters Without Borders, continue to be excluded both physically and from watching online.

Murray also detailed how the six of us allowed in the public gallery, incidentally, have to climb 132 steps to get there, several times a day. As you know, I have a very dodgy ticker; I am with Julians dad John who is 78; and another of us has a pacemaker.

So why is he the man in the public gallery?

I do not in the least discount the gallant efforts of others when I explain that I feel obliged to write this up, and in this detail, because otherwise the vital basic facts of the most important trial this century, and how it is being conducted, would pass almost completely unknown to the public. If it were a genuine process, they would want people to see it, not completely minimize attendance both physically and online.

Unless people around the world are reading Murrays reports  and very few others with much less detail  they will ignore immensely important aspects plus the overall appalling context of whats really happening in the heart of London. The main fact, as far as journalism is concerned, is that Western corporate media is completely ignoring it.

Lets check the UK coverage on Day 9, for instance.

There was no article in The Guardian  which cannot possibly cover the trial because the paper, for years, was deep into no holds barred smearing and total demonization of Julian Assange.

There was nothing on The Telegraph  very close to MI6  and only a brief AP story on the Daily Mail.

There was a brief article in The Independent only because one of the witnesses, Eric Lewis, is one of the directors of the Independent Digital News and Media Ltd which publishes the paper.

For years, the process of degrading Julian Assange to sub-human level was based on repeating a bunch of lies so often they become truth. Now, the conspiracy of silence about the trial does wonders to expose the true face of Western liberal values and liberal democracy.

Daniel Ellsberg speaks

Murray provided absolutely essential context for what Daniel Pentagon Papers Ellsberg made it very clear in the witness stand.

The Afghan War logs published by WikiLeaks were quite similar to low-level reports Ellsberg himself had written about Vietnam. The geopolitical framework is the same: invasion and occupation, against the interests of the absolute majority of the invaded and occupied.

Murray, illustrating Ellsberg, writes that the war logs had exposed a pattern of war crimes: torture, assassination and death squads. The one thing that had changed since Vietnam was that these things were now so normalized they were classified below Top Secret.

This is a very important point. All the Pentagon Papers were in fact Top Secret. But crucially, the WikiLeaks papers were not Top Secret: in fact they were below Top Secret, not subject to restricted distribution. So they were not really sensitive  as the United States government now alleges.

On the by now legendary Collateral Murder video, Murray details Ellsbergs argument:

Ellsberg stated that it definitely showed murder, including the deliberate machine gunning of a wounded and unarmed civilian. That it was murder was undoubted. The dubious word was collateral, which implies accidental. What was truly shocking about it was the Pentagon reaction that these war crimes were within the Rules of Engagement. Which permitted murder.

The prosecution cannot explain why Julian Assange withheld no less than 15,000 files; how he took a lot of time to redact the ones that were published; and why both the Pentagon and the State Dept. refused to collaborate with WikiLeaks. Murray:

Ten years later, the US Government has still not been able to name one single individual who was actually harmed by the WikiLeaks releases.

Prometheus Bound 2.0

President Trump has made two notorious references to WikiLeaks on the record: I love WikiLeaks and I know nothing about WikiLeaks. That may reveal nothing on how a hypothetical Trump 2.0 administration would act if Julian Assange was extradited to the US. What we do now is that the most powerful Deep State factions want him neutralized. Forever.

I felt compelled to portray Julian Assanges plight as Prometheus Bound 2.0. In this poignant post-modern tragedy, the key subplot centers on a deadly blow to true journalism, in the sense of speaking truth to power.

Julian Assange continues to be treated as an extremely dangerous criminal, as his partner Stella Moris describes it in a tweet.

Craig Murray will arguably enter History as the central character in a very small chorus warning us all about the tragedys ramifications.

Its also quite fitting that the tragedy is also a commentary on a previous era that featured, unlike Blakes poem, a Marriage of Hell and Hell: GWOT and OCO (Global War on Terror, under George W. Bush, and Overseas Contingency Operations under Barack Obama).

Julian Assange is being condemned for revealing imperial war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan. Yet in the end all that post-9/11 sound and fury signified nothing.

It actually metastasized into the worst imperial nightmare: the emergence of a prime, compounded peer competitor, the Russia-China strategic partnership.

Not here the darkness, in this twittering world (T.S. Eliot, Burnt Norton).

An army of future Assanges awaits.

Pepe Escobar is correspondent-at-large at Asia Times. His latest book is 2030. Follow him on Facebook.-
A third of the people recorded to have died from Covid-19 in July and August may have actually passed away due to other causes, such as cancer or being hit by a car, Oxford University research has suggested

Experts at Oxford University have found that around 30 per cent of those included in the Office for National Statistics' (ONS) coronavirus deaths toll over the summer actually died primarily from other conditions.

The data comes as the Government introduces its new Rule of Six measures to combat the further spread of the disease.

The real Covid deaths: How 238 of the 796 Covid victims recorded in July actually died from other causes, including cancer or being killed by cars, while 93 of the 312 Covid victims recorded in August are now believed to have not been killed by the virus, analysis by the Office for National Statistics has shown.

Figures suggest one in 13 people who were said to have died from coronavirus during the whole pandemic did not die primarily from the disease

The study shows that people who may have died from cancer or who were run over and killed, but who had tested positive for coronavirus, were included among the virus deaths even though it did not kill them.

Figures revealed in The Telegraph state that approximately one in 13 people who were said to have died from coronavirus during the whole pandemic did not die primarily from the disease.

This means that 7.8 per cent (3,877) of those listed as Covid-19 deaths by the Government did not die due to the virus being the primary cause.

Dr Jason Oke, of the Centre of Evidence Based Medicine at the university, told The Telegraph: 'The true death rate is important to know as it gives us an idea of impact.

'Clearly Covid was having a massive impact in March and April, but we need to now know if the disease is taking the same toll as before. The impact now seems to be lessening and, if true, which it certainly looks like at the moment as there is not the same fatality rate, then that will guide decisions on managing risk, so it's important to get this number right.'

Guidance on meeting up during the pandemic England Six people from multiple households can meet up outdoors and indoors They must be one metre apart Scotland Up to six people aged 12-years and above from two households can meet outdoors and indoors People must be two metres apart Wales Up to 30 people can meet outdoors Up to six people aged over 11-years from an extended household can meet indoors People must be two metres apart Northern Ireland Up to 15 people can meet outdoors Six people from two houses can meet indoors They too must be six metres apart Advertisement

During the period of July to August this percentage rose to 28.8 per cent of all deaths.

This figure would mean that Covid-19 was not the main cause of death for 465 of the Government's recorded cases out of 1,617 victims.

The Government has added those who did not die primarily from Covid-19 to its official lists even though the World Health Organisation has said that even if coronavirus appears on a death certificate as a significant factor in the death it should not be included.

Officially during the pandemic 263,826 deaths were recorded in England and Wales with 218,143 from other causes. Using the university's data this suggest that 45,683 died from coronavirus than the Government's figure of 49,560.

The team from Oxford University is concerned that the over counting will get worse as the pandemic continues and that it will give a false representation of the true figure.

The information has led Matt Hancock to order an urgent review of the data and this led the Government to reduce its covid-19 death figure by 5,377 to 43,329. From now on only deaths of people who tested positive for coronavirus within 28 days of death will be listed as having died from the virus.

Paul Hunter, a professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia, said it was difficult to say how much impact the virus may have had on someone's death.

He said: 'It's a difficult judgement call to make. Say for example you have a patient with leukaemia and they get Covid-19 and a couple of weeks later they die. There is evidence that they had got some degree of pneumonia but what do you put as the primary cause of death? The primary cause is leukaemia but they might not have died if they had not got covid-19.'
It is said that art transcends borders, languages, cultures, and this saying became more true when a Hyderabadi schoolgirls paintings were bought to put up in a restaurant in London.

Syeda Ashna Turabi, a 14-year-old from Hyderabad, left a British businessman impressed with her art so much that he bought six of his paintings to decorate his upcoming restaurant in South London.

Her paintings were spotted by the British man on Facebook where Turabis father frequently uploads her artworks. Speaking to The News Minute, Ashna said, My father has always supported me. It is only because of his encouragement that today I am able to create these paintings.

RELATED NEWS Samosa Sent to Space by British Restaurant in Bath Crash Lands into Field in France

Ashnas father Urooj Turabi told news agency ANI that he is proud of his daughters achievement. He says that he will continue his support and encouragement and wishes to see his daughters work recognised on an international level.

The upcoming restaurant in South London named Adeenas Kitchen will serve Hyderabadi food and each of Ashnas paintings selected for the decor are five to six feet tall.

A student of class 10 Ashna explains that art is her hobby and she uses acrylic colours, coffee, and ink for the paintings. She also does a fair amount of pencil sketches.

Ashna now wishes to do a series of paintings on Indian culture and heritage, I am planning to do a series of paintings on various subjects. Through these series, I will try to explore Indian culture and will conduct an exhibition of my artworks in the future, she added.

Ashna has created 25 canvas paintings till now and she wishes to hold an exhibition of her artwork after she finishes school. The paintings bought by the British restaurant owner have already been sent off to the UK and soon will display Ashnas works to an international audience.
New Delhi, Sep 19 : Amid the ongoing Monsoon Session of the Parliament, Congress general secretaries and state in-charges will meet on Monday to discuss important organisational issues in the absence of party interim chief Sonia Gandhi and former party President Rahul Gandhi.

Congress General Secretary K.C. Venugopal in a letter urged all the general secretaries, members of the Special Committee and state in-charges to assist the Congress President in organisational operational matters. The meeting will be held at 4 p.m. on Monday at the party headquarters here.

Sonia Gandhi has gone abroad for her annual medical check-up along with her son Rahul Gandhi.

This is the first meeting of the party general secretaries and state in-charges after the stormy Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting.

After the CWC meeting, the Congress carried out a major reshuffle in the organisation, replacing several leaders, including Ghulam Nabi Azad, who wrote a letter to Sonia Gandhi on party matters.
Zhao Jun, Liu Lixu and Zhang Bo stand trial for murder in Khanh Hoa Province, September 18, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Xuan Ngoc.

Three Chinese men in south-central Khanh Hoa Province were sentenced to jail Friday for murdering a compatriot and storing drugs.

Zhao Jun, 34, was sentenced to 15 years for murder, and 20 years for illegal storage of narcotic substances, Khanh Hoa People's Court heard. His combined sentences result in a 30-year term, the maximum jail time stipulated for a person receiving multiple jail terms in Vietnam, except for life imprisonment.

Liu Lixu, 23, and Zhang Bo, 32, received 14 years jail term for murder.

Another Chinese suspect in the case, Tian YouLina, had committed suicide while in detainment last year.

On July 5 last year, 25-year-old Chinese Tan Xueke accompanied two friends to a karaoke parlor in Nha Trang City. Zhao, Tian, and two others arrived later, entering into conflict with Tan, which escalated into a physical confrontation.

Tan then told his opponents to later return to the same karaoke parlor for another fight. In that fight, Tian stabbed Tan multiple times, causing him to be hospitalized before dying from his wounds.

The Chinese perpetrators then tried to evade authorities by driving to several locations, but were caught on July 8.

Police found drugs of several types, including marijuana, on Zhao's body and at his place of residence. The drugs were brought by Zhao from an unidentified compatriot, he confessed.
Photograph: David J Phillip/AP

Cynthia Riley realized some voters might not wear face masks when she staffed Texass primary runoff elections in July. But she hadnt predicted that her fellow election clerks and one of the judges in Plano, Texas, would refuse to don basic protective gear at the start of a 14-hour shift sitting shoulder-to-shoulder.

I dont have to wear a mask, and Im not going to, she remembers the Republican judge snapping at her.

Riley, who has a chronic breathing problem, abandoned her post after maybe 30 minutes at the polls, though she didnt do so thoughtlessly. She has worked elections since 2016, and she understands the difference the staff makes. I just feel like it matters a lot whos there, she said. Things can happen, she said, if there arent clerks onsite who are willing to open their mouth.

Across the United States, the coronavirus pandemic has threatened the democratic process ahead of the presidential election. But the situation is even more acute in Texas, where Republicans have long devised a tortuous system that actively disadvantages minority communities who would generally lean Democratic. Long lines, voter intimidation, voting machine malfunctions and other issues afflicted almost 278,000 Texans during the midterm election in 2018, according to the Texas Civil Rights Project.

Most recently, Harris county  by far Texass most populous county, which includes Houston and has the most Covid-19 cases and fatalities in the state  became embroiled in a court battle with the Texas attorney general over whether the county clerk can even send mail-in ballot applications to all voters (a state district judges recent decision says he can, but the Texas supreme court blocked him from doing so until further order as the state appeals).

From antiquated voter registration practices to a controversial voter ID law, Republicans have spent the better part of the last two decades finding ways to challenge Texas voters, said Rose Clouston, voter protection director for the Texas Democratic party. Now, the myriad ways in which they neglected to bring Texass election into the 21st century are only exacerbated and more problematic in a pandemic.

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Just getting on the electoral rolls in Texas can be arduous, with restrictions on where and when voters can register and who can help them through the process. Unlike in 21 states and Washington DC, there is no same-day voter registration; to participate in the presidential election this November, voters must register roughly a month in advance.

Texas also doesnt provide online voter registration  a critical difference from the vast majority of states  which means residents either have to risk an in-person interaction or rely on the beleaguered US Postal Service to deliver their applications.

Voter suppression is encapsulated in every part of voting in the state, said Louis Bedford IV, an election protection legal fellow with the Texas Civil Rights Project. And this symphony of restrictions has contributed to low voter turnout in the state for years.

Judge Orlando Garcia of the US district court ruled last month that Texas was violating federal law by not allowing people to simultaneously apply to vote when they renew a drivers license or submit a change-of-address application online. He mandated the state to devise an online system for voter registration no later than 23 September.

Amid that bottleneck, voter registration drives have faced serious roadblocks, as only Texans who are US citizens and undergo training can be appointed as volunteer deputy registrars and register others to vote, a burden some organizers were already struggling to overcome pre-Covid-19. Texas is the only state that requires people to be deputized in order to conduct a drive, a 2012 report by the Brennan Center for Justice indicates. There is no statewide certification, so volunteers cannot sign up voters from counties where they are not already sanctioned, out of 254 counties across the state.

Thousands of volunteer deputy registrars would have flocked to parades, block parties and other crowded events over the summer to register their neighbors under normal circumstances. But, because we believe in the science and dont wanna ask our people to put themselves at risk, those things are not happening during the health emergency, Clouston said.

Nevertheless, after a slow start, new Texas voter registrations in June and July actually outpaced the same months in 2016, a recent report from the Center for Election Innovation and Research shows. Democrats mounted the single largest weeklong effort around voter registration in state party history this summer, reaching out to 1.3 million unregistered voters.

Don Caple shows a stack of voter registration forms at his roadside Trump-themed trailer in Amarillo. Photograph: Bryan R Smith/AFP/Getty Images

Amid the public health crisis that has killed nearly 200,000 people in the US, some states have opened up mail-in voting to residents with concerns over Covid-19. Not Texas.

Theyre trying to scare us by not easing vote-by-mail restrictions, hoping that when we have to choose between our health and our constitutional duty to vote, that well stay home, said MJ Hegar, the Democrat running to unseat the Republican incumbent US senator John Cornyn. But frankly, they dont know Texans very well. When you try to intimidate us out of doing something, we just want to do it more.

The Democratic partys Clouston described heartbreaking conversations during the primary runoff as voters made impossible calculations around either breaking lockdown to cast a ballot or protecting an immunocompromised child at home. Low-income, minority voters  many of whom are essential workers  have borne the brunt of the virus. They may also work hours that make a trip to the polls difficult, said Brittany Perry, an instructional associate professor at Texas A&M University.

The number of institutional and personal hurdles is kinda stacking on top of these communities that tend to, of course, vote Democratic, she said.

Democrats have jockeyed for the state to expand its limited vote-by-mail eligibility, so far to no avail.

A more inclusive version of vote-by mail would benefit voters, Clouston said. It would benefit voters health. It would benefit voters confidence. And it would benefit their safety.

Related: Texas upholds sentence for woman who didnt know she was ineligible to vote

Young people in Texas fueled Beto ORourkes 2018 senatorial bid, and college students overwhelmingly lean middle of the road, liberal or far left. But while Texass voter ID law allows residents to use their handgun license to confirm their identity, student IDs have been left off the approved list.

When Brian Rowland attended Prairie View A&M University  a historically Black institution near Houston  in the early-2000s, the students there received a letter from their district attorney singling them out and detailing the potential penalties associated with voting in the county.

The letter embodied the front, in-your-face of how emboldened people were at that moment in time, said Rowland, who is now a Prairie View city council member.

Students at the university have faced obstacles to voting for decades, from fighting their way to the US supreme court in 1979 to secure the right to vote based on their college address, to 19 students being indicted in 1992 over voting, though the cases were later dismissed for insufficient evidence. During the last midterm election, the school continued to field issues, from a voter registration dispute to allegations of voter suppression.

Its continued to be that: this cloud of, what is it about Waller county not wanting Prairie View students to have the right to vote? Rowland said.

At Texas A&M University, one of the states gargantuan public schools, the early voting location is hard to find, there has been a change of venue for the polls on election day this year and the pandemic presents even more challenges to disseminating information about where to vote, said Raven Atkinson, a senior studying political science.

She expects long lines that will especially affect student workers, who dont have time to be waiting hours to vote. But advocates attempts to add a second polling place on or near campus have fallen on deaf ears.

Voting booths are spaced out for social distancing. Photograph: David J Phillip/AP

Alleged voter intimidation pervades much of Texas. Officials have been quick to threaten prosecution  or actually prosecute  voters, so the specter of criminalization acts as yet another deterrent against participating in the democratic process.

In 2018, the Harris county GOPs ballot security chairman, Alan Vera, challenged about 4,000 voter registrations in one fell swoop, supposedly because voters had listed post offices or parcel stores under their addresses. Any registered voter in Texas can challenge the legality of other voters registrations within the same county, and Veras challenges resulted in more than 1,700 wrongful voter suspensions because of a software glitch, according to the Houston Chronicle.

Then, last year, state officials caught Donald Trumps attention with the insinuation that almost 100,000 voters had been illegally registered. But they later dropped their review after many of those people turned out to be naturalized citizens flagged through flawed methodology.

Permitted voter IDs are generally harder for minorities to access, Perry said, while widespread poll closures have also disproportionately affected areas with burgeoning Black and brown populations.

Related: Texas Democrats plan to create a voter registration army  via Zoom

You have a general environment of neglect. And then you have these episodes of aggressive suppression intent, said Clarissa Martinez, deputy vice-president of the Latino civil rights and advocacy organization UnidosUS.

Despite the pandemic, the historically high stakes this election cycle have given voters plenty of reasons to cast a ballot, Perry suggested. The people see such a huge gulf between the two candidates, and for supporters of the Democratic nominee, Joe Biden, one of his greatest draws is that he isnt Trump.

After a series of polls that signal a competitive race in Texas, Trump is now only slightly favored to win the famously red state, according to the political forecaster FiveThirtyEight. In recent years, Texass historically low voter participation has been surging, and Clouston anticipates the election will see record-breaking turnout.

I know that Texans are incredibly motivated and excited to vote in this election, Clouston said. And to have a change in leadership.

Erum Salam contributed reporting from Texas.
When Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on Friday, she left behind a remarkable legacy of jurisprudence and advocacy, particularly for women. But her death also raised a slew of urgent political questions about the future of progressivism in the court and the countryquestions that might not be an issue had she retired during the administration of Barack Obama, as some urged. In a special episode of The Gist, New York Times staff writer and Slate Political Gabfest co-host Emily Bazelon joined Mike Pesca to discuss the justices legacy and whether she made the right choice in refusing to give up her seat. A portion of the discussion is transcribed below. It has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

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Mike Pesca: When it was the sunset of Obamas term, there was some talk that maybe Ginsburg should step down. She was an octogenarian, though still very alert and feisty and full of life. And people were reluctant to say to do so, because how dare you take away the agency from such an important and vital figure? But that was one discussion when it very much looked like she would survive until another Democratic president. Now that she hasnt, should we reconsider that question?

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Emily Bazelon: Yes. If you think about Justice Ginsburgs own life work and what she cared about, in particular gender equality, this was what animated her from the time she was in law school and maybe earlier. She wanted women to have the same opportunities as men. She wanted men to have an expanded scope of possibilities in front of them, too. She wanted the kind of strictures of traditional gender roles to be loosened in America.

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So when you think about all of that, and also that she was a huge champion for voting rights, for the Voting Rights Act, for the notion that making sure that people of color have equal political power and chance to vote in this countrythat was a huge motivating force for her in the Shelby County decision in 2013. All of that is at risk now. So in hindsight, I think its clear that it was a mistake that she didnt leave the court earlier.

I wrote a piece years ago making the argument that everyone yelling at her to get off the court was not going to work. She was an indomitable spirit, right? An incredibly strong, determined woman. And thats how she got to where she was. It also meant, I think, that she made this real mistake of judgment in refusing to leave. And I think youre right that she bet on Hillary Clinton winning the election.

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Of course that didnt happen. And so theres always going to be this kind of unintended aspect of her legacy thats just going to depend what happens next. In terms of whether the gains that she cared so much about, whether were going to get to keep them or not.

Yeah, you wrote that piece in December 2013. Heres the last graph: The justices could give us the gift of regular turnover themselves, by agreeing to adopt voluntary term limits. No Constitutional amendment necessary. But that would take unanimous collective action from a fractured group of nine on perhaps the most personal issue of alltheir own work lives. Its another dream that wont come true. But at least it makes for better holiday conversation than liberal complaints about Ginsburgs determination to stay put.

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I want to end on a more humane note. Do you think her greatest legacy is in the decisions she wrote, what she represented, who she was to other female lawyers and justices? Where will we and how will we remember her?

Her greatest legacy is just the tremendous strides that women have made toward equality since she was a little girl growing up in Brooklyn. We just live in a different world where everything isnt perfect, but women have so many more opportunities. We believe in ourselves so much more, I think, collectively than we did then. And thats what she wanted for us.

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Her legacy is her granddaughters. Its all the people who dress up as her at Halloween. Its the way she became a feminist icon because she cared so much about that kind of dream and opening those doors for people. One of the things she loved to say about the Supreme Court when Justice [Sonia] Sotomayor and Justice [Elena] Kagan were nominatedpeople said: Arent you so glad that theres going to be another woman on the court? First you got to serve with Justice [Sandra Day] OConnor, but shes gone, and now therell be two or three.

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And she said: Sure, but I want there to be six. I want there to be seven. She didnt see any ceiling there. It wasnt to her such a victory to have two or three people. She thought that women should be represented on the court in majority, just like men had been for so long. That was her sense of where she wanted the world to go. And I think that for so many women, she was an inspiration because she just had such a deep-seated conviction that we could do all those things, and that it was fair to ask.

Listen to this full conversation between Mike Pesca and Emily Bazelon below, and subscribe to the Gist on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Join Slate Plus, and enjoy ad-free episodes of the show.
Former president Barack Obama has called on the Senate not to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

In a statement, he urged Republican senators to abide by the principle that they invented in 2016 when they refused to hold a hearing for the nomination of Merrick Garland before a new president was sworn in, and warned that democracy was at risk should they push ahead.

A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment. The rule of law, the legitimacy of our courts, the fundamental workings of our democracy all depend on that basic principle, the former president wrote.

He added: As votes are already being cast in this election, Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard.

Obama also acknowledged that Justice Ginsburg had left instructions as to how she wanted her legacy to be honoured. Her most fervent wish was that her replacement be named by the next president.

Justice Ginsburg passed away on Friday at the age of 87. With the election in just 45 days, the political impact of her death is enormous.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell stated on Friday night that he would move forward with a hearing for a nominee from president Donald Trump. It is expected that the president will select one next week.

Democrats have called for Mr McConnell to follow his own standard and hold over hearings for a new Supreme Court Justice until after the election.

After the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February 2016, the Republican dominated Senate held the seat open until 2017 when Trump nominated Neil Gorsuch to the court.

Senator McConnells words are coming back to haunt him. In 2016 he said: The American people are perfectly capable of having their say on this issue, so let's give them a voice. Let's let the American people decide.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer echoed McConnells words back at him in a tweet on Friday night.

President Obama closes his statement by underlining what is at stake in the appointment of the next justice to the court.

He writes: The questions before the Court now and in the coming years  with decisions that will determine whether or not our economy is fair, our society is just, women are treated equally, our planet survives, and our democracy endures  are too consequential to future generations for courts to be filled through anything less than an unimpeachable process.
High cost of procuring RT-PCR machines might prove to be a hurdle in implementing the Delhi High Court's suggestion to ramp up RT-PCR testing in the national capital amid a surge in the cases, officials said on Thursday. The Delhi High Court on Wednesday suggested that the AAP government increase the RT-PCR test capacity to the maximum possible to detect COVID-19 infection, as Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) were only 60 per cent accurate.

The high court asked an expert committee, set by the Lieutenant Governor (LG), to convene a meeting on priority basis to consider the extent to which capacity of testing by RT-PCR should be ramped up. The bench also noted that in the week from September 8-15, the testing done through RT-PCR was less than one-fourth of the total number of tests and rest was done by the RAT process.

The RAT process is considered less accurate as compared to RT-PCR due to its high false negative rate. An RT-PCR machines costs Rs 15-20 lakh, officials said. A senior Delhi government official told PTI, "We will need more RT-PCR machines to ramp up testing. These machines are quite expensive. It is not possible to make this kind of investments at this stage. The government can try, but it is already reeling under shortage of funds."

Another official from the city's north district said they have already issued directions to the staff to conduct more RT-PCR tests. The official said they are following all the guidelines with respect to conducting tests by testing all symptomatic patients, who test negative on rapid antigen, by retesting them using the RT-PCR method.

"We will ask the staffers to follow all the norms and we might start testing mildly symptomatic patients using the RT-PCR method," the official added. At present, the sanctioned strength of conducting RT-PCR is 14,000 per day in Delhi.

The high court had also expressed concern over continuous rise in COVID-19 cases, with nearly 4,500 new infections reported on Tuesday. Nutan Mundeja, the head of the Directorate General of Health Services, said, "The court has ordered to do it. We will abide by its directions. We could ramp up the testing with the help of rapid antigen tests, as it is a point of care testing and the logistics is simpler."

"We have been following the ICMR guidelines. RT-PCR tests are being conducted on those having symptoms. These tests are not prescribed for asymptomatic cases," she said. Also, Delhi has started on-demand testing, wherein symptomatic patients do not need a doctor's prescription to get themselves tested for coronavirus, Mundeja said.

Asked if RT-PCR machines being used for conducting other molecular tests can be diverted for COVID-19 testing, Mundeja said, "We have already diverted CB-NAAT machines meant for detecting tuberculosis. Every disease is equally important. And, other diseases are curable compared to COVID-19."

"If CB-NAAT is being used for tuberculosis diagnosis, ethically and professionally it should be used for TB rather than COVID-19, because TB is curable," she said. "We will examine it (ramping up RT-PCR testing) and see what best we can do," she said.

While CBNAAT and TrueNat machines test fewer samples in a cycle, the tests are faster than a traditional RT-PCR test and can be used by hospitals' emergency departments. Dr Alpana Razdaan, Lab Head, Genestrings Lab, said, "The RT-PCR tests are not happening in full capacity. Despite there being a limit of 14,000 tests daily, the number of RT-PCR tests being conducted is less.

"The government has to push for more tests. We have not received any guidelines from the government on increasing the RT-PCR tests. The testing has to be more efficient. "Last month, 10-20 per cent of the samples were testing positive but now 30 to 40 per cent of the samples tested are positive on a daily basis. We do not know whether it due to the positivity rate going up or due to more testing being conducted.

Also read: 33% Delhiites exposed to coronavirus, have Covid antibodies, reveals latest sero survey

Also read: COVID-19 testing results in 5 minutes! IIT Madras develops a prototype
India is engaging with the 10-member ASEAN to review the free trade agreement, Parliament was informed on Friday. In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said in the India-ASEAN Economic Ministers Consultations held on August 29, both sides instructed the senior officials to engage to determine the scope of the review.

Free trade agreements (FTAs) essentially involve mutual concessions between the parties. "Provisions are envisaged to periodically address any gaps, shortcomings and imbalance. India proposes to suitably use these provisions," he said.

In a free trade agreement, two trading partners either significantly reduce or eliminate customs duties on maximum number of goods traded between them. "Government of India is engaging with ASEAN to review the FTA in accordance with related provisions of the agreement," he said.

The ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement was signed on August 13, 2009. It came into force on January 1, 2010. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members are -- Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Brunei and Laos.

Also read: Parliament Monsoon Session: No force can stop Indian troops from patrolling LAC: Rajnath Singh

Also read: Bulk of additional spending to go towards people-centric schemes: FM Sitharaman
Priyanka Chopra- Nick Jonas welcome their first child through surrogacy, fans feel she'd already dropped hints
Ruth Bader Ginsburg spent 27 years on the Supreme Court bench. In her life and in her work, she was a pioneer for equal rights for women and civil liberties.

Throughout that long career, Ginsburg blazed a trail for women in a profession that has long been dominated by men. She was deeply involved in rulings on voting rights and immigration.

She also wrote crucial dissents on some of the key legal fights of the last few decades.

"Some of my favorite opinions are dissenting opinions," Ginsburg once told NPR. "I will not live to see what becomes of them, but I remain hopeful."

Here are some of her most important opinions:

United States v. Virginia, 1996

Ginsburg wrote the majority opinion in this landmark ruling, which struck down Virginia Military Institutes male-only admission policy. The court ruled 7-1 that the institute violated the Fourteenth Amendments Equal Protection Clause.

In her opinion, Ginsburg wrote: Virginia maintains that methodological differences are justified by the important differences between men and women in learning and developmental needs, but generalizations about the way women are, estimates of what is appropriate for most women, no longer justify denying opportunity to women whose talent and capacity place them outside the average description, she wrote.

Women seeking and fit for a VMI quality education cannot be offered anything less, under the States obligation to afford them genuinely equal protection, she wrote.

Steve Vladeck, a professor of law at the University of Texas School of Law, described the opinion years later to CNN as perhaps the best-known and most important majority opinion Justice Ginsburg has penned in her 24 years on the Supreme Court."

"That case, more than any other, epitomized the justices' effort to establish true sex equality as a fundamental constitutional norm, and its effects are continuing to reverberate today."

Olmstead v. L.C, 1999

In this, another landmark case, Ginsburg again wrote the majority opinion which ruled that Georgia had violated the rights of two women with mental disabilities by holding them in isolation at a hospital.

Lois Curtis and Elaine Wilson were voluntarily admitted to the psychiatric unit of a hospital but held for years despite being cleared for release into a community setting.

In the 6-3 ruling, the court decided that Georgia had violated the Americans for Disabilities Act.

She wrote that the continued isolation of the women perpetuates assumptions that persons so isolated are incapable or unworthy of participating in community life".

She added that states are required to place persons with mental disabilities in community settings rather than in institutions when the States treatment professionals have determined that community placement is appropriate, the transfer from institutional care to a less restrictive setting is not opposed by the affected individual, and the placement can be reasonably accommodated, taking into account the resources available to the State and the needs of others with mental disabilities.

Sessions v. Dimaya, 2018

Though she did not write the opinion in this case, it was nonetheless a key moment in Ginsburgs career.

After 25 years on the court, it was the first time she assigned a majority opinion  a right given to the most senior justice on the majority.

The case struck down a provision of a statue that virtually guaranteed the expulsion of noncitizens convicted of an aggravated felony because it was unconstitutionally vague.

It was just the sixth time that a female justice has been able to assign a majority opinion, and Ginsburg assigned it to Justice Elena Kagan.

Justice Kagan wrote in her opinion for the court that deportation is "a virtual certainty" for people convicted of aggravated felonies, and that the language was too vague. .

Does car burglary qualify as a violent felony? Some courts say yes, another says no.
Demonstrators returned to downtown streets Friday to call for police reforms to protect people of color. Federal and local officers repeatedly advanced on the crowd to force people to leave. Portland police said people had been throwing things at federal officers.

The protests continued for more than 101 days before smoke from wildfires stalled the nightly demonstrations earlier this month. Friday was the first late-night protest in more than a week. It was also the first since Mayor Ted Wheeler barred Portland police from unleashing tear gas on demonstrators and people who live nearby.

Yet social media was still filled with reports of tear gas Friday night. Multiple independent reporters said federal officers deployed gas as they forced the crowd away from a South Portland Immigrations and Customs Enforcement building.

Federal officials have not yet confirmed the reports. Live videos from the scene showed officers releasing irritants into the air that dispersed large green, orange or white plumes. Federal officers also shot impact munitions toward the crowd and appeared to detain at least one person.

Portland police said local officers arrested 11 people, mostly on charges of disorderly conduct and interfering with a police officer.

Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt has said his office will not pursue criminal cases against protesters charged on non-violent offenses such as interfering. That has drawn scorn from federal officials, who have aggressively pursued charges in federal court.

Protesters often chant a four-point list of demands at the late-night gatherings, which started in late May after the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man.

The four demands in Portland: Cut at least 50% from the police budget, move that money to community causes, grant protesters amnesty from criminal prosecution and  in a demand specific to Wheeler  resign.

After protesters chant the demand, a leader shouts, Cuz whose lives matter?

Black lives matter! the crowd responds.

Fridays demonstration started like many before it, with a march from a city park to the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement building. Marchers arrived around 9 p.m., according to multiple live videos shared on social media.

The videos showed Department of Homeland Security officers awaiting the crowd behind a locked gate. Some protesters wandered close to the gate, but most stood at the edge of the driveway or in Bancroft Street. Federal officials used a loudspeaker to warn people not to damage the building.

It appeared that one person in the crowd had damaged a parking badge reader, the videos showed.

Federal officers emerged just before 9:30 p.m. to clear protesters out of the driveway. Officers forced people to move by shooting impact munitions and setting off some type of irritant into the air. Federal officers blocked the path back to the building for several minutes and the two sides faced off.

Residents of the high-rise buildings that line the waterfront neighborhood looked down at the scene below.

Portland police used a nearby loudspeaker to declare the gathering an unlawful assembly and to order people to leave around 9:40 p.m. Federal officers eventually retreated, and protesters returned to the federal building.

Federal police soon advanced again, shooting impact munitions and making another defensive stand a block away from the building. Demonstrators staged a half-block away, chanting Black lives matter! Officers intermittently shot impact munitions and irritants toward the crowd. The back-and-forth pattern repeated itself throughout the night.

Around 10:30 p.m., Portland police arrived on the ground and stayed on the scene as federal officers retreated. A Portland police used a loudspeaker to warn people they could be arrested or subjected to crowd control agents."

Many officers left around 11 p.m. and boarded vehicles that circled the neighborhood.

Many protesters made their way back to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement building by 11:20 p.m. Federal officers eventually emerged once more to clear out protesters. Multiple live videos showed federal officers detaining at least one person as they forced the crowd away just before midnight. Officers had mostly left by 12:45 a.m.

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U.S. President Donald Trump listens to a question before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020.

Allison Rushing, 38, of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals based in Virginia is also being considered for the nomination, NBC News reported . Two other judges are under serious consideration as well, according to NBC News, including Barbara Lagoa, 52, of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Georgia, and Amul Thapar, 51, of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati.

There are several leading contenders on Trump's short list, all of whom are young and would likely have a decades-long career on the Supreme Court, potentially tipping the balance of power on the judicial body decisively in a conservative direction for a generation. Judge Amy Coney Barrett, 48, of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago has emerged as a front-runner to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Ginsburg, three sources told NBC News on Saturday.

"If someone were to ask me now, I would say that a woman would be in first place, yes," Trump said. "The choice of a woman I would say would certainly be appropriate."

"I think the process could go very, very fast," Trump said before departing for a rally in North Carolina. "I'll be making my choice soon and when my choice is made I'll be sending it over to Mitch in the Senate and they will do what they have to do. I think we'll have a very popular choice whoever it may be but we'll be sending over to the Senate."

President Donald Trump on Saturday said he would pick his nominee in the coming week to fill the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Supreme Court seat and the candidate would probably be a woman, making good on his promise to move "without delay" to appoint a conservative to the nation's highest court. Trump, speaking to reporters on the White House South Lawn, said he would like to see a vote before the November presidential election, though no firm decision has been made yet on the timing.

Barrett who was appointed by Trump and has served on the federal appeals court in Chicago since 2017, was on a list of potential nominees Trump updated earlier this month. She was also among those considered to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy when he retired in 2018.

To fill Kennedy's spot, Trump ultimately picked Brett Kavanaugh instead, an establishment Republican figure who angered some on the religious right for not being conservative enough even as he set off storms of panic on the left. Axios' Jonathan Swan reported in 2019 that Trump said he was "saving [Barrett] for Ginsburg."

Though any confirmation fight in the midst of a presidential election will be hard fought, the battle is expected to be amplified if Barrett is picked because of her track record. In particular, critics of Barrett have zeroed in on her prolific academic writings, in which she raised questions about the importance of respecting precedent and referred to "unborn victims" of abortion.

In a 2013 article in Notre Dame's quarterly alumni magazine, Barrett is paraphrased as saying the landmark abortion ruling Roe v. Wade, the decision which legalized abortion nationwide, created "through judicial fiat a framework of abortion on demand."

Barrett said in a 2013 speech at Notre Dame, however, that it is "very unlikely at this point that the court is going to overturn Roe [v. Wade]."

"The controversy right now is about funding," she said, according to Notre Dame's student newspaper. "It's a question of whether abortions will be publicly or privately funded."

During the 2016 hearings for her nomination to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, Democrats, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, pressed Barrett on whether her Catholic faith would cloud her legal judgment. Feinstein's line of questioning raised controversy about whether she was implying that Barrett was too religious for the bench.

"The dogma lives loudly within you, and that's a concern," Feinstein said during the hearing.

Barrett responded: "It's never appropriate for a judge to impose that judge's personal convictions, whether they arise from faith or anywhere else, on the law."

Barrett was ultimately confirmed in a 55-43 vote by the Senate in 2017. The fact that she was already vetted and previously confirmed by the Senate could help her case in the Republicans' effort to quickly confirm a nominee.

At the time of her 2017 confirmation, three Democratic senators supported her nomination: Joe Donnelly, who was voted out in 2018, Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Joe Manchin, D-W.Va.

Every Republican in the Senate at the time voted to confirm Barrett in 2017.

Barrett's views on abortion, in particular, stand in stark contrast to the late Ginsburg, who died on Friday surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, D.C., due to complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer, the court said.

The vacancy allows Trump to nominate his third justice to the court, allowing him to swing the bench further to the right. He previously nominated Justices Neil Gorsuch and Kavanaugh.

Only an hour after the Supreme Court announced Ginsburg's death, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Friday pledged he will hold a vote on Trump's eventual nominee to fill the vacancy. McConnell said last year he would seek to confirm a Trump nominee if a vacancy opened, despite vowing during President Barack Obama's presidency to refuse any appointments during an election year.

The Supreme Court had a 5-4 majority of Republican appointed justices, and a 6-3 GOP majority could transform the shape of the law and maintain a conservative majority for years.

Ginsburg, a feminist icon who championed women's rights, was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1993 and vowed to remain as long as her health allowed. Ginsburg told her granddaughter before she died that her "most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, who has served as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said on Friday night that the vacancy should not be filled until after the November election and noted that Senate Republicans didn't consider the nomination of Judge Merrick Garland during the Obama presidency.

"There is no doubt  let me be clear  that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider," Biden told reporters in Wilmington, Delaware. "This was the position the Republican Senate took in 2016 when there were almost 10 months to go before the election. That's the position the United States Senate must take today."

CNBC's Brian Schwartz, Tucker Higgins and Emma Newburger contributed to this report.
Nine men held by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday were planning to travel to New Delhi and Kashmir to receive a cache of weapons promised to them by an al-Qaeda commander in Pakistan, sources familiar with the investigation have told News18. The sources said that the men had already gathered aluminium powder and potassium perchlorate, used in commercial fireworks, to fabricate an improvised explosive device.

The men had been told to turn off their mobile phones before they left their homes in West Bengal and Kerala," a senior official said. We would have been in the dark and had to arrest them to preempt any chance of a tragic outcome."

The NIA investigators said they had found pipes, wires, switches, and bolts meant to be used as shrapnel in searches, along with jihadist literature, in searches targeting the homes of the nine arrested men.

News18 was unable to locate lawyers for the nine men and efforts to seek a response from their families were unsuccessful.

In a statement released on Saturday, the NIA alleged that the al-Qaeda cell was planning to conduct multiple terrorist bombings and assassinations in the coming weeks. The arrests are one of dozens made in recent weeks as the NIA has cracked down on jihadist groups mobilising on platforms like WhatsApp.

The NIA last month had made several more arrests on jihadism-related charges, targeting individuals alleged to be linked to the Islamic State in Afghanistan. Former Kerala resident Muhammad Muhsin, who staged a suicide bombing targeting a gurdwara in Kabul, is believed to one of several Indian nationals involved in the terrorist organisations operations in that country.

NIA sources say the cell held on Friday was led by West Bengal-origin Kerala resident Murshid Hasan, who is alleged to have both organised and raised funds for the group. Hasan was known in West Bengal Islamist circles for inflammatory social media posts calling for the killing of people he described as infidels".

An official familiar with the investigation said Hasan made contact with a still-unidentified individual on WhatsApp, who described himself as a Pakistan-based al-Qaeda operative. The commander first said he would arrange delivery of the weapons in Kashmir, but later shifted the rendezvous to Delhi, citing problems caused by Covid-19 travel restrictions.

Mosaref Hoseen, alleged by the NIA to be Hasans key aide, made separate plans to purchase a 9-millimetre pistol and ammunition in Bangladesh, the source said. The NIA believes that a third member of the group, Mainul Mondal, contributed Rs 10,000 for this enterprise.

The NIA has also held Leu Yean Ansari, a West Bengal-based member of the group, who investigators claim had procured a locally-made weapon and also fabricated a crude armoured jacket for his own protection.

The NIA on Saturday said it has also arrested Najmus Saqib, Yakub Biswas, Atitur Rehman, Abu Sufiyan and Al-Mamum Kamal on charges ranging from assisting in purchasing bomb fabrication equipment to raising funds for the group.

Sakib, an active member of the group, is highly radicalised and involved in further radicalising youth in jihadi ideology of the group. He is in communication with other group members regarding the procurement of arms and ammunition.

Lawyers for some suspects held in recent counter-jihadist investigations have raised fears that intelligence personnel posing as jihadists have lured ideologically-committed Islamists into jihadisim  a tactic widely used by western law-enforcement organisations like the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), but one for which there is no express legal sanction in India.
The Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has said that pre-primary classes in public and private schools across the state are to remain closed until further announcements are made.

Mr Sanwo-Olu said this during a press briefing on Saturday, where he gave an update on COVID-19 in the state and gradual resumption of activities.

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported the announced reopening of schools in the state in which private secondary schools are allowed to open from September 21, while public schools will adopt a phased reopening on the date.

Speaking on school resumption, the governor said it is necessary to provide clarifications regarding the resumption of schools, to clear any confusion that may have arisen since the original announcement was made.

Mr Sanwo-Olu said while students in JS 3 and SS 2 in public schools are to resume physical classes from Monday, all other public-school classes should await announcements for their resumption date.

All private primary and secondary schools are permitted to resume from Monday, while school managers are urged to put the safety of students, staff and parents first by adopting a phased reopening, according to the governor.

All private primary and secondary schools are also expected to comply with safety protocols and hygiene guidelines as instructed by the State Government through the Office of Education Quality Assurance (OEQA). The Office of Education Quality Assurance will continue to monitor and evaluate Schools preparedness. If, however, any teacher or school head notices any pupil is ill, he or she should isolate such a pupil in a safe and secured room pending when the appropriate health authorities are contacted, the governor said.

At this point it is very important to clarify that ALL Pre-Primary  Nursery, Daycare Centers and Kindergarten  Classes and Schools in both Public and Private schools will remain closed until further announcements are made by the Lagos State Government.

All pupils of Pre-Primary Schools in Lagos State must therefore remain at home until further notice, and continue to receive their lessons by virtual means, he added.

Worship Centres

Worship centres in the state are allowed to resume normal midweek services while complying with COVID-19 protocols, Mr Sanwo-Olu said.

As regards our places of worship, we are also now permitting the mosques to resume their five times a day prayers; and in the case of churches, they are now also permitted to resume their mid-week services.

All of these resumption guidelines and protocols must be strictly adhered to by the various stakeholders, he said.

Cinemas and Gyms

The governor further said cinemas and gyms are permitted to reopen as soon as possible, with a maximum of 33 per cent occupancy.

There must be a minimum of two empty seats between occupied seats; and in the case of gyms, there must be constant disinfection of machines and equipment throughout the course of the day, he said.

Decisions regarding the reopening of night-clubs, bars, event centres, spas, public parks and others are yet to be made and they are to remain closed, until fixed plans for reopening are announced in October 2020.

As of Friday, Lagos State had conducted close to 100,000 tests; and recorded a total of 18,854 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the governor said.

Of this number,15,598 have recovered in community, 592 are currently active in community, and 207 deaths have sadly occurred.

Mr Sanwo-Olu said while the state is witnessing a dramatic decline in the number of Covid-19 related deaths at its facilities, the management strategy is a combination of admission to COVID-19 Care Centres for some cases, and Home-Based care and support for asymptomatic, mild or moderate cases.

The governor emphasised that the gradual resumption of social, educational and economic activity must never be taken as an excuse to let down guard against the pandemic.

Let me make it clear that if we do not continue to maintain our guard, and sustain the adherence to all required protocols and guidelines, we will find ourselves in a situation where fresh lockdowns are inevitable.

The only way to avoid this is to continue to act responsibly: maintain the required levels of hygiene, through regular handwashing and use of sanitizers, wear masks in all public places, avoid non-essential public gatherings, and maintain the prescribed levels of physical distancing at all times, he said.
Ex-BJP MLA from Sagar in Madhya Pradeshs Bundelkhand region, Parul Sahu (39), joined the Congress on Friday, giving it a shot in the arm ahead of crucial by polls to 28 assembly seats slated to be held with Bihar state assembly polls by November end, as announced by the Election Commission of India (ECI) recently.

Sahu, daughter of a business magnate in Sagar district, announced joining the Congress in presence of state Congress president Kamal Nath and a horde of other party leaders and workers at the state Congress headquarters.

People of Surkhi assembly constituency (in Sagar district) want me to become their voice and fight against (an atmosphere of) arrogance and fear in the constituency, said Parul Sahu in her brief address.

State Congress president Kamal Nath said, The by polls are not meant for only certain assembly constituencies but the entire state is looking at these bypolls as it will show how people give a befitting reply to the politics of manipulation as practised by the BJP.

Also Read: MP govt to rechristen Ladli Laxmi scheme, aims to make girls self-reliant

Parul Sahu represented Surkhi assembly constituency as a BJP MLA from 2013 to 2018. She had won the seat against the Congress candidate and now the minister for transport and revenue, Govind Singh Rajput (59), by a narrow margin of 141 votes in 2013 assembly elections. She was denied a ticket by the BJP in the 2018 assembly elections.

Also Read: Covid-19: With 2,552 fresh cases, MP crosses 100,000-mark

Rajput, fighting on Congress ticket, had defeated BJP candidate Sudhir Yadav by 21,518 votes in 2018 assembly elections and became the minister for transport and revenue in the then Kamal Nath cabinet. He was one of the 22 Congress MLAs who resigned from the state assembly in March this year in an act of rebellion against the then chief minister Kamal Nath. They later joined the BJP.

State BJP spokesperson Rajneesh Agrawal said, Decision of Parul Sahu to join the Congress is not surprising. She was in touch with Congress for a long time. However, it will not affect the BJPs prospects in the by polls.
SPRINGFIELD  The Illinois Board of Higher Education is preparing a strategic plan to make higher education more equitable in the state, and they focused on gender disparities in higher learning at their regular meeting this week.

While the plan will be released for public scrutiny between December and March of next year, since August, the board has shared presentations on different forms of equity at its monthly meetings.

In a news release the day of their meeting Tuesday, IBHE noted that African American men are far less likely to be enrolled in an undergraduate education compared to women of the same race. The same holds true for Latino men, although undergraduate enrollment for Latino men and women has increased since 2013. Enrollment trends for Latinos, while not at the same level as white Illinoisans, have generally increased over the past decade and continue to improve.

In 2018  the most recent data available  27,262 Black men were enrolled in community colleges or public or private universities compared to 48,397 Black women that same year. This is despite Black men outnumbering Black women in the state, 309,204 to 297,676.

Undergraduate enrollment among Black Illinoisans of either gender has fallen sharply in the last decade. For both groups, the change in enrollment from 2013 to 2018 was a decrease of around 30 percent. It was slightly higher for men (30.6 percent) than women (28.4 percent).

This data is hard to look at, but we need to see it to know where higher education in Illinois needs to improve, IBHE Executive Director Ginger Ostro said at Tuesdays meeting. This new data, disaggregated by gender, surprised us and gives us more information as we focus on how to pursue equity.

Even though Black women were more likely to earn a degree than Black men, they typically earn less money than a Black man with the same level of education.

The board also shared data from 2013 to 2015 which showed that an African American female could expect to earn $36,332 one year after completing her degree, compared to $39,970 for an African American male. Three years after receiving a degree, the gap was even larger, with African American females earning $42,793 on average compared to $49,119 for African American males with the same level of education.

Per the same data, a larger gap existed between white males and white females with the same level of education, although both groups made significantly more than their Black counterparts. White women could expect to earn $39,541 one year out of college and $46,859 after three years, while a white man with the same level of education averaged $43,821 after one year and $55,623 after three years.

When Gov. J.B. Pritzker appointed this board with a clear focus on closing equity gaps in Illinois higher education, we knew that we needed to start with an honest and sober look at all the data so that we could begin our strategic planning process with a clear understanding of where the system is falling short, John Atkinson, IBHE chair, said. These data, along with our report last month, tell that difficult story. It remains clear that we have a lot of work to do.

The strategic plan for increased equity will be released for public comment sometime next year before it is formally submitted to Pritzkers office for approval.

After discussing racial disparities last month and gender-related disparities this month, IBHE will also discuss income and geographic disparities in future board meetings.
The cause of voter enfranchisement scored two big victories over the past week.

On Thursday, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that mail ballots, which had previously been rejected in that state if they arrived after Election Day, must count if they are postmarked by Election Day and arrive no later than three days after the election.

On Friday, a Michigan Court of Claims judge determined that mail ballots can be received within 14 days of Election Day as long as they are postmarked by Nov. 2 (election eve).

Both of these decisions were justified and welcome, because voters shouldnt be penalized for late-arriving ballots that were sent before Election Day.

Believing that voters have the right to mail off a ballot right up until the day of an election, however, is not the same thing as considering it a good idea.

In this strange and chaotic election year, when were socially paralyzed by a global pandemic, overwhelmed by deceptive warnings about rampant voter fraud, and unsure how much we can trust the United States Postal Service to deliver our ballots in a timely fashion, one thought is paramount:

Whatever method of voting you choose, vote as early as possible.

If you plan to vote in person, its best to show up for early voting (which starts in Texas on Oct. 13). That way, youre more likely to avoid the kind of long lines that we always see on Election Day during presidential cycles; a crucial factor, given our ongoing concerns over the spread of COVID-19.

If youre hoping to vote by mail, and havent yet applied for a mail-in ballot, do so right away. (If youre 65 or over, and registered to vote, the county will automatically send you a mail-ballot application.) As soon as you receive your ballot, fill it out and mail it in.

Getting your mail ballot in early this year is important for two reasons:

For one thing, it helps protect you against mail-delivery delays or mishaps.

In the Michigan mail-vote case, the judge cited the example of a recent primary ballot destined for Wyandotte, Mich., which was mistakenly routed to Illinois and delivered late to the proper address. It was one of more than 6,400 valid Michigan primary ballots rejected because they arrived too late.

For another thing, it will reduce the amount of election night (and post-election) craziness we all have to endure.

In the 2016 general election, 33 million people (24 percent of the total turnout) voted by mail. This year, with COVID-19 prompting fears about voting in person, that number will be higher.

Its likely that millions of mail votes will still be outstanding on election night, meaning that we could get a very distorted picture from the national results that are provided that night.

A widely anticipated scenario is that President Donald Trump will look like the election winner on election night, then see the results swing over the next few days to former Vice President Joe Biden, as more mail ballots get counted. Given Trumps repeated fear-mongering about mail-ballot fraud, its easy to see him challenging the results and throwing the entire process into disarray.

States have varying timetables for counting mail ballots, but in Texas, counties with populations of 100,000 or more can start counting mail-in ballots as soon as in-person early voting ends.

For Bexar County, that mail-ballot tabulation probably will happen on the Sunday and Monday before Election Day.

Inevitably, there will be some late-arriving mail ballots still uncounted in Bexar County on the night of the election. But we should all try to keep that number as low as possible, so that well have fuller results on election night and a reduced risk of chaos and uncertainty.

Also, the earlier your ballot arrives, the more time the Early Voting Ballot Board will have to process it and determine if there are any problems (such as a perceived signature mismatch). And that leaves you more time to correct the problem.

The bottom line is that there will be tremendous stress on the election system this year. The best way to reduce that stress is to vote as soon as you can.

Greens back on the ballot

The Bexar County general-election ballot just got slightly lengthier.

On September 15, the Texas Supreme Court issued an order advising the Secretary of State to immediately take all necessary actions to reinstate three Green Party nominees who were removed from the ballot last month.

The decision vacated a Third Court of Appeals ruling that booted the three candidates  Tom Wakely (U.S. District 21), David Collins (U.S. Senate) and Katija Kat Gruene (Railroad Commission)  for failing to comply with a 2019 state law requiring candidates nominated by their parties at conventions (rather than in primaries) to submit either a filing fee or a petition.

The Democratic candidates in each of those races had filed suit to get the Green nominees removed, to ensure that progressive voters wouldnt have another option on the ballot.

Gilbert Garcia is a columnist covering the San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Gilbert, become a subscriber. ggarcia@express-news.net | Twitter: @gilgamesh470
The mismanagement of the antigen testing centres set up at the Thane Railway Station to test every arriving passenger has led to a complete chaos at the premises over the last ten days.

Migrants arriving in long-distance trains have to wait in long queues with no social distancing norms followed to get tested. The Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) has set up four antigen testing counters at the railway station, which are insufficient to test the large crowd gathering at the station.

A TMC officer requesting anonymity said, On an average, there are two to three long-distance trains that arrive daily at Thane station. The total number of passengers in these trains are anywhere between 12,000 and 15,000 daily. We test each of these passengers. Although it is time consuming, we ensure they get their reports and those tested positive are taken to the Covid Care Centres at Kharegaon or Bhayanderpada.

Dinesh Chauhan, migrant worker from Patna who arrived at Thane Railway Station on Tuesday, expressed that there were so many people waiting for the test at the same time that it becomes difficult to maintain social distancing.

Chauhan, who works in a construction company, added, Even after taking down all personal details including contact address and numbers, they do not let us go until the reports have arrived. It is very tiring after travelling for more than 24 hours to wait for almost two hours to get tested, and again wait for half-an-hour to 45 minutes till the reports arrived.

Shankar Kumar, 42, a resident of Murshidabad in West Bengal who returned to Thane on Friday, said, We had to wait for more than an hour in a queue to get tested, after which we were asked to wait till the reports came. There was hardly enough space to maintain social distancing. Even in the train we were made to sit at a distance between each other, but over a period of time people started moving around and there was hardly any social distancing. Although I was tested negative, I came to know that one of the co-passengers whom I had spotted in the same compartment has tested positive. I am worried now and will have to strictly follow isolation for a few days even if it means no income.

Medical workers at the railway station are also overworked. We have to ensure that those who have tested do not flee, some even end up giving wrong addresses, making it difficult to trace them. In order to ensure that social distancing was maintained, we have to indulge in crowd management as well. While testing, we have to ensure we put the samples in the right vials and proper details of the passengers are also noted, said a medical volunteer who is at the antigen testing counter at Thane railway station.

Dr Vipin Sharma, commissioner, TMC, said, We expect people to cooperate and follow social distancing rules. We have already started levying a fine for those who are not following these rules. We do not have adequate manpower to manage the crowd. People need to follow the mandatory wearing masks, social distancing and hand sanitisation, and learn to live with Covid.

Most of our medical staff are focused on the My Family, My Responsibility survey as every team requires someone from a medical background. Moreover, we have to ensure that our current practices of having fever clinics and other testing centres are not disturbed. With more screening, we need an additional number of fever clinics as well, added Sharma.

Meanwhile, twelve officers working at the station to test the migrants, although asymptomatic, have tested positive. Twelve of my staff working near the station area are positive despite taking various measures. They are under isolation and we have to manage alternative staff for Covid duty. This is added pressure. We are short-staffed yet trying our best to control the pandemic, added Sharma.

Sources claim that 150 to 200 migrants at the station test positive on a daily basis and this was the main reason for increase in the number of cases in Thane.

A senior TMC official claimed, Overall positivity of Thane city on a daily basis is hovering between 6 per cent and 7 per cent. However, the positivity rate of those coming from the station is more than 10 per cent. We do not wish to create an insider-outsider divide within the city as all those who come from other states are essential labourers who contribute to the progress of the city. Moreover, this is a small number when compared to the many that travel by road into the city.
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of nine highway projects in Bihar through video conference on Monday (September 19) and also inaugurate optical fibre internet services through which the state's all 45,945 villages will be connected: Prime Minister's Office. These nine highway projects involve a road length of about 350 kilometres at a cost of Rs 14,258 crore.

Modi has recently inaugurated or laid the foundation of a number of development projects, including those related to railways, infrastructure, bridges, drinking water and sanitation, in the state which is set to go to the assembly polls in October-November.

The Prime Minister's Office said in a statement that the proposed highways will pave the way for the state's development as they will enhance better connectivity, convenience and economic growth in and around it. Movement of people and goods will also improve substantially, especially with the neighbouring states of Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand, it added.

Modi had declared a special package for significant infrastructure development of Bihar in the year 2015. The package included 75 projects worth Rs 54,700 crore, of which 13 projects have been completed, and work is undergoing at 38 and others are in the process to be launched, the PMO said.

With the completion of these projects, all rivers in Bihar will have bridges conforming to 21st-century specifications and all major national highways will stand widened and strengthened.

Giving details of the optical fibre internet services programme, the PMO described it as a prestigious project covering all 45,945 villages of Bihar which will enable a "digital revolution" to reach the state's remotest corner.

This project will be executed by the combined efforts of the Department of Telecom, Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology and Common Service Centres (CSC).

The PMO said the CSC has 34,821 centres throughout the length and breadth of Bihar, and it will utilise this workforce to not only implement this project but also make it professionally run to provide optical fibre internet services for common citizens at every village.

The project would also entail implementation of one Wi-Fi and five free of cost connections to government institutions like primary schools and Anganwadi centres among others, it said.

This will lead to digital services like e-education, e-agriculture, tele-medicine, tele-law and other social security schemes to be easily available to all citizens of Bihar at the click of the button, the PMO said.
This has been a difficult summer in a devasting year. The hurricane season has already wreaked havoc. Hurricane Isaias, a category one storm, recently knocked out power to more than 2 million residents in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut.

In response, Gov. Andrew Cuomo directed the Department of Public Safety to investigate utilities' storm response and a full report is expected in six months. The findings will be critical as the governor is also proposing a law that would allow the state to rapidly municipalize publicly owned utilities.

An interesting idea. But would it mean the state could just transfer ownership of the utility's assets to the state government without going to court or getting approval from the regulators? That's far-fetched and an extreme departure from current laws.

It's difficult to imagine that a company like Consolidated Edison, a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange with $60 billion in assets, could just be reassigned to a new operator.

The owners and investors would still need to be compensated to the tune of tens of billions of dollars.

To spend billions to transfer ownership of a utility is to invest in its current model of power production and delivery, a model that is being seriously challenged by disruptive technologies like improved solar and battery systems.

Cuomo is aware climate scientists have warned we only have the next decade to dramatically decrease carbon emissions to avoid disastrous global warming. That means we must prioritize investing in new and cleaner technologies to make and store power.

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter.

If New York is to achieve its clean energy goals of 70 percent renewable energy by 2030 and greenhouse gas emission reductions of 85 percent by 2050, it mustn't divert resources to taking over electric companies.

New York needs a more stringent regulatory system to ensure statewide investments in clean energy and grid hardening to achieve Cuomo's goal of being less susceptible to long stretches of power outages.

Casey DeMoss is the former executive director of the Alliance for Affordable Energy and is authoring a book on our nation's energy needs. She lives in New Orleans.
A queue for coronavirus tests in Bolton, as new data showed the 49 areas in England with the highest infection rates are all in the north. (Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

New data shows massive imbalance between COVID-19 prevalence in north of England compared to south

Top 49 areas with highest infection rates are all in north

Expert says one reason may be prioritisation of testing in north... leading to risk of infections not being picked up in south

Visit the Yahoo homepage for more stories

New data has shown the 49 places where the coronavirus is spreading fastest are all in the north of England.

A list showing the latest infection rates by council area (see the top 50 at the bottom of this page) demonstrates a clear north/south divide.

The first time a southern area appears on the list is Redbridge at number 50, which had 41.0 new cases per 100,000 people in the seven days up to Tuesday (15 September).

All the 49 areas above Redbridge are in the north. The list is topped by Bolton, which had an infection rate of 189.9 per 100,000.

Watch: Can the coronavirus affect the brain?

It follows on from the governments policy of imposing local lockdowns and restrictions on specific areas  with the south of England so far unaffected.

Parts of the north-west, west Yorkshire and the Midlands were the latest to be given tough measures on Friday, with restrictions announced for the north-east on Thursday.

The stark contrast is further demonstrated by a map, below, produced by Imperial College London.

Researchers have modelled where in the country the virus is likely to be increasing, with the darker shades showing a greater probability, and the lighter shades showing a lower probability.

(Imperial College London)

As the map shows, there are no red areas  those with a 75% to 100% chance of infections increasing  in the entire south of England for Friday.

All red areas are in the north, while the south is mainly made of light green areas, where the probability of infections increasing is just 0% to 5%.

So, why is the coronavirus hitting the north so badly while the south remains largely unaffected?

Dr Duncan Robertson, a lecturer in management sciences at Loughborough University who has been analysing the coronavirus testing regime through the pandemic, thinks the reason is possibly nuanced.

Story continues

Speaking to Yahoo News UK, he suggested it could be that the governments limited testing capacity is being focused on northern areas which have suffered higher infection rates since the summer  meaning infections in the south may not be picked up.

Test and Trace chief Dido Harding admitted on Thursday that up to 75% of people who want a test are unable to get one, with the government currently struggling with high demand.

What could be happening is prioritisation of testing in the areas where they know is the highest incidence, Dr Robertson said.

The problem with that is if youre taking testing capacity away from areas where you think there isnt high incidence, there is a risk youre not picking up new infections.

The prime minister described this as a whack-a-mole strategy, but if you dont know where the moles are, you cant whack them.

Baroness Harding told MPs the governments latest testing capacity is 242,817 a day. Boris Johnson has promised this will more than double to 500,000 by the end of October.

Dr Robertson added: Its essential we have a fully functioning testing system. At the moment there is obviously capacity restrictions with NHS Test and Trace. Its essential that is resolved so we get an accurate picture of incidence across the country.

Here are the 50 areas with the highest coronavirus infection rates in England in the seven days up to 15 September

Bolton 189.9 cases per 100,000 people

Hyndburn 144.4

Preston 139.0

Rossendale 131.5

South Tyneside 121.9

Liverpool 119.3

Knowsley 117.3

Oldham 113.4

Burnley 109.1

Bury 105.2

Oadby and Wigston

Blackburn with Darwen 102.9

Salford 100.5

St. Helens 99.7

Halton 98.9

Wirral 97.8

Bradford 96.7

Warrington 94.8

Tameside 90.5

Rochdale 89.9

Manchester 89.5

Pendle 89.0

Leicester 85.8

Gateshead 83.6

Birmingham 77.3

Leeds 76.9

Sunderland 70.9

Newcastle upon Tyne 70.7

Blaby 69.9

Kirklees 69.4

Solihull 69.3

Sefton 61.5

Wigan 59.6

Rugby 56.9

Sandwell 55.4

Wyre 54.4

Selby 53.0

Barrow-in-Furness 49.2

Stockport 48.4

Blackpool 48.0

Wolverhampton 47.8

North Tyneside 47.6

South Ribble 46.0

Trafford 45.9

Calderdale 45.4

Chorley 44.0

Hartlepool 42.7

West Lancashire 42.0

Charnwood 41.4

Redbridge 41.0

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National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Saturday stepped inside the Parliament to attend the monsoon session after more than a year since the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 was abrogated on August 5, 2019.

After the special status was lifted in Jammu and Kashmir on August 5, 2019, the local leaders were put into pre-emptive detention.

During his address in Lok Sabha on Saturday, Farooq Abdullah urged India to hold talks with other neighbour country, just like it has been holding talks with China to resolve issues.

Like we are talking to China to resolve issues, we need to hold talks with the other neighbour country as well. People are dying every day, border skirmishes are on a rise. We need to find some solution, ANI quoted Farooq Abdullah, National Conference MP, as saying in Lok Sabha.

On Internet network restrictions in Jammu and Kashmir, Farooq Abdullah questioned how was J&K supposed to grow if people did not have access to 4G facility while rest of the country did.

No progress is taking place in Jammu & Kashmir. People there do not have access to 4G facility, how are they going to grow in the present time when the rest of the country has access to every facility on the internet, he said, as quoted by ANI.
The novel coronavirus' existence resurfaces and is questioned by health experts and researchers after Dr. Li-Meng Yan, a Hong Kong-based academic researcher of the virus' origins and COVID-19 Whistleblower, unearths and publicizes a massive controversy that shocked the world. The Chinese doctor dropped bombs on China when claiming that SARS-CoV2 (COVID-19) is a Wuhan Lab-made virus and bioweapon.

Dr. Li-Meng Yan faces multiple controversies and discredits from various health experts and critics that disproves her soundly written and evidence-grounded findings against China and its military, who allegedly manipulated the virus. Dr. Yan's claims even went as far as to state that COVID-19 is a Chinese bioweapon.

The Chinese government, Military, Wuhan, Dr. Yan's colleagues from Hong Kong, and even Twitter disapprove and go against the scientist who 'blew the whistle' on one of 2020's biggest scandals. Dr. Li-Meng Yan is known to face a Twitter ban and account suspension less than 48 hours after publishing her research and work against the Asian country.

Currently, several personalities and experts with the likes of Steve Bannon, a former White House Strategist, are supporting Dr. Li-Meng Yan's claim and research paper findings of the Chinese bioweapon aimed at the United States that is COVID-19.

Another addition to that is Dan Sirotkin, a Harvard graduate with a bachelor's degree in Political Science, published a paper that supported the claims of Dr. Li-Meng Yan. Despite the strong credibility and "scientifically sound" piece of Sirotkin, critics question him and his work as a GOF or misinformation about COVID-19.

ALSO READ: Whistleblower Li-Meng Yan is Publishing a Second Report with "More Scientific" Evidence on How Coronavirus was Manufactured

Dan SirotkinIs he Credible to Make a Claim?

A month-old paper published in August by Sirotkin is now making noise and buzz in several social media platforms, including Reddit, Twitter, and LinkedIn, stand firm together with Dr. Li-Meng Yan's claim.

The paper is peer-reviewed by Karl Sirotkin, a medical researcher and author for the National Center for Biotechnology Information, who also happens to be Dan Sirotkin's father. The paper was written and edited by the duo entitled "Might SARSCoV2 Have Arisen via Serial Passage through an Animal Host or Cell Culture?" can be seen on Wiley Library's Online Database.

Im the coauthor of this peer reviewed paper, the lead author designed dbSNP and finds that preprint scientifically sound - what are you specific issues with it? https://t.co/4strBzhpW7  Harvard2TheBigHouse (@Harvard2H) September 15, 2020

This paper establishes a ground that supports the claims of Dr. Li-Meng Yan, who previously authored her very own research that proves COVID-19 as a manmade virus engineered by Mainland China's authorities.

Dan Sirotkin: Harvard Graduate, Former Janitor and Waiter, and now-Writer

Dan Sirotkin's LinkedIn profile shows all of the established person's achievement, education, and work experiences. Sirotkin previously attended Harvard University and completed a Bachelor's in Political Science, but the year completed was not posted on LinkedIn.

Sirotkin's claim of attending Harvard is also unverified by anyone else, the university, and even his colleagues, and people still question this claim of the author. According to his LinkedIn job descriptions, Dan Sirotkin did a stint in prison but is unclear whether he is a convicted felon.

The first job listing on Sirotkin's profile shows that he was a former correctional janitor for the Montgomery County Government for three years from 2015-2017. Sirotkin's next two jobs are for Season 52 and Cafe Mozart as a Food Server or waiter before facing termination after his criminal records are discovered.

Currently, Dan Sirotkin is a Writer for the website, Harvard To The Big House, an opinion and columns blog site that he leads and authors.

ALSO READ: Chinese Whistleblower Li-Meng Yan Gets Twitter Ban After Publishing 'Man-Made COVID-19' Report -Finds Support from US Army Doctor







This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Isaiah Alonzo

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough was continuing to recover at a Woodlands-area hospital Friday after he was injured in a car accident Sept. 10.

The judge left the ICU on Tuesday, Keough staffers posted to Facebook Thursday. Making progress with physical therapy every day. His progress is great and doctors now believe it will not take as long for him to get up and going again as first thought. He remains in good spirits with a good attitude. He asked that we extend many thanks for all the well wishes and prayers hes received over the last week.

Keoughs Chief of Staff Jason Millsaps said the accident happened along Grogans Mill Road in The Woodlands where Keough, 66, and a Montgomery County Precinct 5 deputy collided. The deputy, who was not identified, suffered minor injuries and was treated at an area hospital.

I want to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for all the thoughts and prayers you have given over this last week for me and my family and the deputy constable and his family, Keough stated on social media. I know personally they have help lift our spirits and have encouraged me every step of the way to get back to work as quickly as I can.

This is second accident Keough has been in and suffered injuries from during his time as an elected official.

In March 2017, while serving as the District 15 state representative, Keough was injured when his Lexus SUV collided with the truck at the intersection of South First and West Mary in Austin.

Keough was driving to the state Capitol building at the time of the crash. Its not clear what caused the collision, but either his vehicle or a cement truck apparently passed over the center line of the undivided roadway.

Keough was eventually released from the hospital March 30, 2017.

Keough, who took the bench in January 2018 for his first term, defeated one-term former county judge Craig Doyal with 57 percent of the votes in March 2017 Republican primary, avoiding a runoff, and beat Democrat Jay Stittleburg in the November 2017 general election with almost three-quarters of the vote.

cdominguez@hcnonline.com
Pakistan dropped weapons and some cash in Indian currency using a drone in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district, Director General of Police Dilbag Singh on Saturday said, announcing the arrest of three Lashkar-e-Tayiba terrorists who had picked up the consignment near the Line of Control.

IMAGE: DGP J-K Police Dilbagh Singh at a press conference after three terrorists were arrested during an counter-insurgency operation, in Rajouri district, on Saturday. Photograph: PTI Photo

Singh said the major success was achieved on Friday evening, following a well-coordinated joint operation by police and 38 Rashtriya Rifles in Rajouri sector of Jammu region, frustrating Pakistan's design to step up violence and disturb the prevailing peace in the Union Territory.

"All the three Lashker-e-Tayiba terrorists were residents of Kashmir and had come to pick up the consignment, which was dropped by Pakistan on this side using a drone," the DGP, who was flanked by Inspector General of Police (IGP), Jammu Division, Mukesh Singh, told reporters in Rajouri district.

The IGP informed this was the third successful operation in the twin districts of Rajouri and Poonch since September 11.

Earlier, a huge consignment of arms and ammunition was recovered from two people in Balakote sector of Poonch three days later 11 kg of heroin worth Rs 11 crore, meant to fund terrorism activities, was seized in Rajouri district.

"Pakistan and its agencies always remain active and are making every effort to disturb peace and law and order in J-K. It is using drones to drop weapons and narcotics and also push terrorists from both Rajouri and Poonch districts, which had witnessed a spurt in ceasefire violations -- almost on a daily basis," the DGP said.

However, he said the police, Army and other forces are working together to scuttle Pakistan's design and to maintain peace and law and order in the Union Territory.

"We are enjoying good operational synergy and the latest arrest of three LeT terrorists and seizure of a huge cache of arms and ammunition was its result.

"We received information about movement of some suspicious people and accordingly launched the cordon and search operation," he said.

He said three people were seen moving with a bag and were challenged but they hurled a grenade, which luckily did not explode and the trio was overpowered.

The search of the bag led to the recovery of two AK-56 rifles, two pistols, four grenades and Rs 1 lakh in Indian currency, which had smuggled from Pakistan to escalate violence, Dilbag Singh said it came to light that the consignment was dropped on this side of the LoC by Pakistan using the drone and the trio, who hail from Kashmir, had come to pick up the consignment.

IMAGE: Three terrorists arrested during an counter-insurgency operation at a press conference by J-K Police, in Rajouri district, Saturday. Photograph: PTI Photo

"Their interrogation is underway and further details will be shared later," he said.

In response to questions, he said Pakistan is doing its best to revive terrorism in the twin districts of Poonch and Rajouri, which falls in Jammu division and were cleared of militancy over a decade back.

"The people of Rajouri and Poonch are peace loving and they will not allow Pakistan to succeed in its design. There are some elements with whom we will deal sternly," he said.

He termed the dropping of weapons through drones as a 'big challenge' and said this is the first such aerial drop in the district though a similar attempt was foiled by the Border Security Force (BSF) along the International Border in Kathua district sometime back.

"This is a hilly terrain and drones just bypass the deployment on the LoC," he said, adding that 'we are vigilant to the threat and have taken necessary measures'.

On the recovery of a large number of United States-made rifles in the recent past, the DGP said that 'we have recovered such types of rifles like M-4 and M-16 in large numbers in the past as well. These rifles are duplicate weapons manufactured in Pakistan and are being smuggled by LeT and Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists'.

The IGP said on September 11, police and Army arrested two people and recovered a cache of arms and ammunition, including three pistols, 11 grenades, improvised explosive device (IED) material and a pen drive, frustrating terrorists plan to carry out target killings and blasts in Poonch district.

"The arrest and recovery was made from Balakote sector of Poonch. The pen drive contains details of assembling and planting the IED," he said.

In another operation on September 14, one person was arrested with 7 kg heroin in Rajouri and later at his disclosure one more arrest was made from Kulgam district of south Kashmir.

Three residents of Poonch were also arrested and their questioning led to the recovery of 4 kg of heroin from the same spot from where the earlier consignment of 7 kg was dumped after smuggling from across the border, he said.

The IGP said the money from the heroin was meant to support terrorism.
The Bobcat fire burning through the Angeles National Forest reached Cruthers Creek as viewed from Juniper Hills and Longview roads. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

Highway 1 reopened at 6 p.m. Monday, transportation officials said, after a closure that lasted more than a month as firefighters battled flames near Big Sur in Monterey County.

But millions of acres of public lands remain closed because of fire threats or air befouled by smoke. Along the Sierra in the center of the state, Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks are closed. In Southern California, all of the region's national forests are closed, including Angeles, Cleveland, Los Padres and San Bernardino national forests.

The Forest Service has a regional order in place that closes those forests through Thursday. It's still "a day to day decision" on when to reopen, said U.S. Forest Service spokesman Jonathan Groveman.

As of Tuesday morning, the Bobcat fire in Angeles national forest had claimed more than 109,000 acres and was 17% contained.

Joshua Tree and Death Valley national parks remain open.

Farther north, these national forests are open to varying degrees: Eldorado, Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Plumas, Shasta-Trinity, Stanislaus, and Tahoe. These forests are closed through at least Thursday: Inyo, Sequoia, Sierra, Klamath and Six Rivers.

Over the last month, since the Dolan fire was sparked in Monterey County (Aug. 18) and Caltrans first closed Highway 1 (Aug. 19), the roadblocks have moved with the fire lines. For its last several days, the closure covered the 13 miles between Gorda and Lucia, just south of Big Sur.

Meanwhile, though the road is open, several of Monterey County's state parks remain closed, including Julia Pfeiffer Burns, John Little State Natural Reserve, Limekiln, Pfeiffer Big Sur and Point Sur State Historic Park. And the fire still burns.

As of Tuesday morning, the Dolan fire had blackened more than 128,000 acres and was 46% contained. About 535 firefighters are currently working on the blaze, whose origins are unknown.





Authorities urged would-be visitors to check individual forest web pages (for specific restrictions), the Cal Fire website (for updates on the blazes in progress) and AirNow or a comparable source (for air-quality readings).





This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
A vehicle pursuit involving a suspected human smuggler ended in the parking lot of KBNL Radio Manantial in the 1900 block of East Plum Street, authorities said.

The chase with a 2016 Lincoln MKZ ensued at about 6:24 p.m. Thursday in the area of North Arkansas Avenue and East Frost Street. It ended shortly after in the parking lot of the radio station.
Egypt has been on high alert due to floods in Sudan, expecting a higher-than-average annual Nile flood

The Nile water levels in most of areas in Sudan continue to decline, but the Khartoum-Shendi sector still records its highest level, said floods committee of the Ministry of Water Resources on Friday, as Sudan had been hit by deadly floods, but water started to recede.

Sudan floods, due to heavy rains especially in neighbouring Ethiopia, caused the Nile level to rise to an unprecedented level since 1912, according to Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok. Dozens of people were killed and hundreds of thousands others were displaced.

Authorities have declared a three-month emergency state and have designated the country a natural disaster zone.

Blue Nile water flow at Deim water station, which borders Ethiopia, will be around 590 million cubic metres on Saturday, the committee said, down from 595 million on Thursday, 600 million on Wednesday and 985million on September 2.

For the Nile state of Atbara, water flow will be around 155 million cubic metres, up from 125 million on Thursday, 150 million on Wednesday. The peak in Atbara River reached a peak of 450 million cubic metres, states news agency SUNA reported, citing Executive Director or Dams Rehabilitation, Mutasim Al-Awad as saying.

On Friday, water levels recorded 17.37 metres and is expected to remain the same on Saturday. Water levels are expected to drop in northern water stations on Saturday, to record 15.55 metres in Atbara down from 15.74 metres on Friday and 14.91 in Dongola down from 14.98.

The floods committee called on citizens and relevant authorities to remain cautious.

Sudans usual rain season takes place annually between June and October. Water levels in the White Nile rise from spring to May and in the Blue Nile from July to September. This year, the equatorial sources of the River Nile, prime among which is Lake Victoria, shared by Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, witnessed torrential rains that contributed to the increased water level in the White Nile.

Less than two months later, Ethiopias Lake Tana, source of the Blue Nile, saw heavy rains, especially in August, increasing the water levels of the Blue Nile to a record 17.67 metres on 7 September.

Egypt has been on high alert due to floods in Sudan, expecting a higher-than-average annual Nile flood. The Egyptian Ministry of Water Resources have continued to remove building violations on Nile waterways to allow water networks to contain excess water, but has reassured citizens that the Aswan Dam in Upper Egypt, as well as barrages on the northern branches of the Nile River, will help contain water.

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Kerala's new Covid cases crossed 4,000 for the second consecutive day on Friday, officials said.

On Friday, the state recorded 4,167, while the number of infections on Thursday was 4,351.

In a statement issued here on Friday by the State Health Minister K.K.Shailaja, "2744 people were cured of the disease."

"At present there are 35,724 active Covid cases, while 90,089 people have so far been cured. In the past 24 hours 47,723 samples was tested," said Shailaja.

Thiruvananthapuram district continue to record the maximum number of cases with 926 new cases.

In the state there are 2,16,262 people under observation at various places which includes 24,634 people in hospitals.

The state presently has 614 hotspots.

With Covid cases spiking, the High Court on Friday came down heavily on the numerous protests going on across the state, with no Covid protocols being followed, despite the court giving strict orders to the police to see that there should be no violation of Covid guidelines.

The court directed the police to see that violators to their orders should be strictly dealt with according to the provisions of the Disaster Management Act.

has been witnessing massive protests all across the state with the leading opposition parties demanding the resignation of State Higher Education Minister K.T Jaleel after he was questioned in the controversial gold smuggling case by the Enforcement Directorate and the NIA.

--IANS

sg/sdr/

(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 frantic search is underway after a three-year-old boy vanished from outside of a house on Saturday morning.

Police are searching in the area around Karli Rise in Yallingup, south of Perth, in Western Australia after the boy was last seen about 7:30am on Saturday.

The boy is described as fair skinned with blonde hair and blue eyes and he is wearing white 'Spiderman' pyjamas.

Police are searching in the area around Karli Rise, Yallingup, in Western Australia after the boy (pictured) was last seen about 7:30am on Saturday

The boy, named James, wandered away from the rental property with the family's two dogs on Saturday morning and the dogs later return without the child.

The family arrived at the Airbnb on Friday, according to the West Australian.

Wadandi elder Billy Webb said the father was 'distraught' when he spoke to him on Saturday.

'If he walked through the sand somewhere you'll see it quite clearly.' he told the publication.

'Everybody's getting a bit worried about him. We need to start grid-working [a search area] really fast. If he's a mobile little fella, he'll travel a fair way.'

Anyone who sees the boy is asked to remain with him and call police immediately on 000.

In addition to his 'Spiderman' pyjamas it is believed he is wearing wellington boots.

Resources deployed at this time include local police, police helicopter, dog squad, SES Volunteers, police mounted section enroute from Perth.

Officers have asked said the response from the public has been significant but warned people not venture into the bushland areas as they may inadvertently compromise evidence of where the child has walked.

This could impact on the ability of trained searchers to track his movements.

Anyone who is in the area already is asked to stick to the main tracks and roads.

For those people who are already on site it is important they register their attendance at the Incident Command Post which is located at the DFES SES building on Caves Road.
WASHINGTON - A possible deal on a stopgap spending bill to avert a pre-election government shutdown looked uncertain late Friday, after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., failed to come to terms with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

Two Republican aides familiar with the situation said Pelosi had essentially backed out of a deal with Mnuchin that would have traded farm bailout money the White House wants for $2 billion in child nutrition spending Democrats want.

A Democratic aide denied there was any deal in the first place, but said Pelosi was pushing Mnuchin for higher spending on child nutrition in exchange for the farm bailout funds. All the aides spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing negotiations.

Next steps were unclear. All sides had agreed that the deal would extend government funding through Dec. 11. House Democrats had hoped to file the legislation on Friday, but it appeared that Monday would be the earliest that could happen.

It was also uncertain if a bipartisan agreement would be reached at all - or if House Democrats would file a bill without Republican support, and move forward from there.

Failure to pass the stopgap spending bill by the end of the month would lead to a shutdown on Oct. 1, just weeks before the election.

The finger-pointing and confusion around what was supposed to be a straightforward short-term funding extension underscored the intense partisanship on Capitol Hill and at the White House as the election approaches. It also demonstrated the pressures Pelosi faces from fellow Democrats who have pushed her to give ground to make a separate deal on coronavirus relief legislation - something she's refused to do.

The short-term legislation, presuming it is finalized, was expected to be voted on the House next week, followed by the Senate.

The developments came a day after Trump announced at a rally Thursday night in the battleground state of Wisconsin that farmers would get an additional $13 billion, money from the same fund that the administration is trying to replenish via $30 billion in the short-term spending bill.

President Donald Trump has spent several years directing tens of billions of dollars in bailout funds to farmers by using a Depression-era program in a way that even some Agriculture Department officials believed was possibly improper. To continue sending the funds, Trump needs congressional approval, and Democrats have opposed sending more bailout money to farmers, alleging Trump is using the taxpayer money to try to offset the political backlash to his trade policies.

Throughout the day Friday Democratic aides said Pelosi was strongly opposed to including the $30 billion in the stopgap spending bill.

At a certain point late in the afternoon, however, it appeared she had agreed to do so, on a phone call with Mnuchin, in exchange for $2 billion in child nutrition spending -something that was confirmed by aides in both parties at the time. But she subsequently called Mnuchin back and said she could not make such a deal, aides on both sides said. A Democratic aide said there never was a deal in the first place, only a proffer of sorts.

Trump weighed in on the issue on Twitter earlier in the day, writing: "Pelosi wants to take 30 Billion Dollars away from our great Farmers. Can't let that happen!"

"We have serious concerns about giving President Trump a blank check to spread political favors," a senior House Democratic aide involved in the talks said in explaining the Democrats' opposition to the money. "It is an abuse of taxpayer dollars to give this administration more money so the president can grab headlines with announcements at campaign rallies." The aide spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

Pelosi and Mnuchin agreed some time ago on the need for a stopgap spending bill to keep the lights on at government agencies such as the Pentagon and Department of Health and Human Services. Some government programs, including Medicare and Social Security, keep running on their own, but many federal agencies and programs require annual spending bills to stay open from one fiscal year to the next.

Congress has frequently neglected to complete the 12 annual must-pass spending bills on time in recent years, instead resorting to stopgap measures known as "continuing resolutions" that extend agency funding at existing levels for short periods of time. There have also been a number of government shutdowns of varying lengths over the past decade.

Democrats had hoped to get some additional provisions in the bill, including $3.6 billion for election security and a time extension for the census, but Republicans objected and those items were excluded. Instead noncontroversial provisions related to flood insurance and highway funding were expected to be allowed in.

Additionally, despite some speculation among rank-and-file lawmakers that the continuing resolution could be a vehicle for coronavirus relief provisions, that was never anticipated by leadership and did not occur.

Instead, the talks on the short-term spending bill proceeded separately from the stalemate over a new coronavirus bill. That standoff showed no signs of movement Friday, as Pelosi continued to hold out for a $2.2 trillion bill that Republicans have rejected - despite pressure from moderates in her caucus to give ground.

Pelosi dismissed a reporter's question about whether she was letting the perfect be the enemy of the good regarding the broader coronavirus relief bill. She reiterated that she has already compromised from a $3.4 trillion bill that House Democrats passed in May but the White House and Senate Republicans dismissed.

"It's not perfect. . . . Perfect is $3.4 trillion," Pelosi said. "This is not about perfect being the enemy of the good."

Trump has recently signaled he would be comfortable with a stimulus bill in the area of $1.5 trillion. The president and House Democrats have said they support legislation that would send another round of stimulus checks to Americans, as well as more unemployment assistance. But many other parts of the package remain unresolved.

The plight of airlines is a growing area of concern for members of both parties. A provision from the Cares Act that required airlines to keep workers on payroll in exchange for aid expires Sept. 30, and major airlines have warned of mass layoffs.

In a letter to congressional leaders and Mnuchin on Friday, the head of United Airlines and the leaders of several major airline unions urged Congress to renew negotiations on a new coronavirus relief bill that would include an extension of the airline Payroll Support Program. The alternative, the letter warned, is "involuntary furloughs" of 16,000 workers.

Pelosi spoke by phone Friday with airline executives and separately with union leaders, pledging support for preserving the at-risk jobs, according to a readout from her office.

- - -

The Washington Post's Jeff Stein and Lori Aratani contributed to this report.
American TikTok users reacted with a collective shrug Friday to the US move to ban new downloads of the video-sharing app -- but many are already planning an exit to other platforms should the clampdown lead to an outright ban.

"Oh my God! Ok! It's happening! Everybody stay calm!" TikToker Nick Foster told his 577,000 followers, dubbing a video of himself with audio of actor Steve Carell's character on the series "The Office" panicking during a fire alarm.

Although young users on the platform, who make up its primary base, don't seem to have paid much attention to the government's announcement, the older ones have reacted.

"Thank you for the fun times," posted The Buyin King, a 22-year-old investor with 438,000 followers.

Some users were pragmatic, pointing out that for those who already had the app little would change between Sunday, when the government ban on downloads will go into effect, and November 12, the cutoff date set by President Donald Trump's administration.

The administration has targeted TikTok, owned by Chinese tech giant Bytedance, over national security, escalating a fight with Beijing over the digital technology. The November 12 deadline potentially allows for a tie-up between TikTok and a US company to safeguard data to allay Washington's security concerns.

"This is posturing," said Jeff Couret, a consultant with 376,000 TikTok followers. "For Trump it's a way of showing TikTok that he means business but without hurting them too much."

However, most of those who have built a following on TikTok are getting ready to pack their bags, regardless of the ultimate outcome.

For people who make a living off of their presence on the social network -- such as star Addison Rae, who boasts 60.9 million followers and earned $5 million between June 2019 and June 2020, according to Forbes magazine -- the financial stakes are high.

For weeks now, many TikTok users have been sharing their Instagram and YouTube accounts on their profiles, preparing their fans for a jump to greener pastures.

Story continues

- Competitors lying in wait -

Even TikTok's gold standard, Charli D'Amelio -- who, with 87.5 million followers at just 16 years old, is the platform's most popular creator -- announced Tuesday a non-exclusive partnership with Triller, a similar platform, where she already has 1.1 million subscribers.

Bryce Hall, Nessa Barrett and Chase Hudson -- largely unknown among the over-20-year-olds but with more than 10 million TikTok followers each -- have also started Triller accounts.

In a sign of the times, Trump himself, who never dipped his toe into TikTok's waters, has made his debut on Triller, where he already has 953,000 followers.

In August, Triller announced it had been downloaded 250 million times since it was created, a figure that was disputed by analytics firm Apptopia, which put the number of downloads closer to 52 million.

The app is not the only one positioning itself to rise from the ashes of titan TikTok, which has been downloaded two billion times worldwide and has 100 million users in the US alone.

Also lying in wait are Byte (no relation to TikTok's parent company ByteDance), which was launched in January, as well as Likee -- which Apptopia says was downloaded 7.2 million times in the US between February and August -- and Dubsmash.

Not to mention Instagram and YouTube, which have extended their tentacles with Reels and YouTube Shorts, respectively, the test versions of which launched opportunely in the past few months.

The winner "will be the one that the loyal TikTok users perceive as being the 'cool' place to be," said James Mourey, a marketing professor at DePaul University.

In its time, TikTok itself had benefited from the January 2017 disappearance of Vine, a video-sharing app that had 200 million active users at its peak.

In the current context, "startups like Byte may have the edge, as we know established brands in tech lose their 'cool factor' the older they get," said Mourey, pointing to younger generations' migration from Facebook to Instagram.

But even weakened and suspended, TikTok isn't dead yet, Mourey warned.

A lot can still happen before November 12, "and don't forget: TikTok is not banned outside of the US, so as long as TikTok continues to be the dominant player globally, it will continue to innovate and maintain a strong customer base," he said.

tu/to/st
Shainu Mohan By

Express News Service

KOCHI: The state is slowly inching towards the peak of pandemic infection. However, making ventilators and ICUs available to curb fatalities is going to be difficult. Health Minister K K Shailaja recently expressed concern regarding the shortage of ventilators and possibility of more deaths. Currently, the state has around 717 Covid-19 ICU beds and 373 Covid ventilators.

The occupancy of the ICUs and ventilators are fluctuating. Recently, it crossed the 50 per cent mark and on Thursday, the occupancy rate came down again. As on Thursday, 39.5 per cent of Covid-19 ICU beds and 3.2 per cent ventilators are occupied. In Kochi, 33 out of the 50 total Covid ICU beds are occupied while in Thiruvananthapuram, 44 out of the total 104 are occupied.

The Covid-19 death toll is nearing 500 and Kerala is anticipating an average of 5,000-8,000 fresh cases per day in the coming weeks. It is learnt that 40 per cent of the total count came from the state capital. With the demand for emergency medical infrastructure likely to go up, the government has asked district authorities to mobilise funds locally to buy more facilities. The districts can channelise money for medical infrastructure from the MLA funds. Also, if the utilisation exceeds 60 per cent, we will have to make use of facilities at private hospitals, said an official.

However, reports say that the state should first resolve the human resource crisis, as scaling up the medical infrastructure would imply the need for more trained ICU staff. Deputy Superintendent of Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital, who is leading the training sessions, said that the state plans to share facilities with districts that lack them. He said that Pathanamthitta, Wayanad, Idukki and Kasargod are among the districts facing a dearth of emergency medical facilities.

Currently, Thiruvananthapuram is taking emergency cases from Kollam, Pathanamthitta and even Tamil Nadu. That is one reason why the number of deaths is high in the district compared to the rest of Kerala. ICU training sessions are under way in every district. However, staff strength keeps fluctuating as each batch has to go on mandatory quarantine for a week after 10 days of duty, said Santhosh Kumar S S.

He said that 90 per cent of the patients fall under 10-60 age group in the state. This is why we are able to keep the mortality rate under check. But we have to be prepared for for when the vulnerable population contracts the virus.
We began this process in 2012, and it took until 2018 for ComEd to give us the relevant data, six years later, Noak said. Now it is 2020, and (ComEd and Romeoville) agree to the amount of unpaid taxes, and they still have not paid. After eight years, this issue is still not resolved.
With insomnia a feature of this pandemic for many of us, a company that makes mattresses ought to be an investment dream.

But Aim-listed Eve Sleep has been more of a nightmare in recent years, after a failed merger with rival mattress maker Simba and an association with disgraced fund manager Neil Woodford, whose former fund offloaded Eve stock at a penny per share.

Woodford had initially pegged Eve as a market disruptor; it's one of a raft of companies that offer you a 'bed in a box' squashed flat for delivery, as well as a 100-night satisfaction guarantee.

Sweet dreams: Eve Sleep is a bet on a miserable winter, when families may want to upgrade their mattresses without trawling round John Lewis first

But there are only so many disruptors that the bedtime market can bear, and with Simba, Casper, Leesa and Emma also available, there was significant downward pricing pressure.

This week's interim figures, though, indicate that Eve investors might be able to rest more easily.

Sales picked up hugely in the second quarter, so although they were down five per cent for the six months as a whole, they were up 25 per cent year on year in the second quarter and the company has trimmed costs and moved away from chasing low margin sales.

As a result, Eve has been profitable for the past four months when currency fluctuations are stripped out  and on a lower sales number than before. The company also has a strong cash position.

Eve has been helped by rivals such as Leesa and Casper pulling out of the European market, so there's slightly less competition, while we've all become more accustomed to buying everything online, which augurs well for a cosy autumn for the brand.

As well as mattresses, Eve sells beds and pillows, and if the stamp duty holiday results in more people moving house, this should drive revenue too.

Eve's share price graph is the stuff of nightmares, slumping from over 1.30 a share in 2017, to 4.85p this week. But there's the possibility of a real turnaround story here if Eve can leverage the TV marketing campaign it is planning for this autumn to bring in new orders.

Midas Verdict: Eve Sleep is a bet on a miserable winter, when families may want to upgrade their mattresses without trawling round John Lewis first. The company is loss-making, but Eve's management now has a better handle on costs, which should hopefully lead to profitability.

As a company with a market capitalisation of under 18million but 9million cash, it's also worth noting that there's not much value attributed to its business model. Worth a punt, unless you think the risk will stop you sleeping at night.

Listed on: AIM Ticker: EVE Contact: evesleep.co.uk or 020 8036 5535
Mischa Barton flaunted her curves in a sheer top while making a quick trip to a grocery store in Los Angeles on Saturday morning.

The 34-year-old star of The O.C. only needed a few items and emerged shortly afterward with a single back.

The actress left little to the imagination with her flowing see-through beige top, which featured short black sleeves.

In and out: Mischa Barton, 34, was spotted in Los Angeles on Saturday as she made a quick stop at a grocery store for some essential items

Mischa spiced up her ensemble with a lacy black bra underneath her top, which matched her knee-length black skirt.

She also had on a set of backless black loafers, and she contrasted the dark colors with a brilliant white Pinko handbag with delicate gold birds on the clasp.

The 5ft9in beauty wore her long blonde tresses tied back in a ponytail, and she blocked out the sun with a large set of square sunglasses.

She carried a blue surgical-style mask with her to enter the grocery store in compliance with an order from the governor of California requiring all people in public places to wear masks.

Sheer style: Mischa left little to the imagination with her flowing see-through beige top, which featured short black sleeves. It revealed her lacy black bra underneath

Mischa was on her own Saturday after being seen out earlier this month with actor Gian Marco Flamini.

The couple were glimpsed arm-in-arm as they strolled around Echo Park Lake in LA, before they shared a sweet kiss.

The BritishAmerican star had previously been in a relationship with James Abercrombie, which ended in July 2019, though they were spotted together again in October of last year.

Back in black: The O.C. actress also wore a black satin skirt and black backless loafers

Following early roles in Lawn Dogs (1997) and The Sixth Sense (1999), Mischa burst into the spotlight with her starring role on the teen drama The O.C., which premiered on Fox in 2003.

She played Marissa Cooper, a neighbor to Ryan Atwood (Ben McKenzie) and Seth Cohen (Adam Brody) in Orange County's Newport Beach who struggled with drug abuse issues.

Barton departed the series following its third season, at which point The O.C.'s ratings began a precipitous decline.

Classic: Following early roles in Lawn Dogs (1997) and The Sixth Sense (1999), Mischa burst into the spotlight with her starring role on the teen drama The O.C., which premiered in 2003

Mischa's connection to Orange County made her a logical choice to join The Hills: New Beginnings, an update on the original MTV reality series.

She was featured in the first season, which began airing in June 2019, but her future on the series is currently uncertain.

Us Weekly reported in March that the actress wouldn't be returning for a second season of the revival and would be replaced by Caroline D'Amore.

Mischa denied the report on Instagram shortly after, writing, ''Lol. Where do people get their reporting from?'

Short stint: Mischa's fictional connection to Orange County made her a logical choice to join the new reboot of The Hills, but she has reportedly been dropped for the second season; shown in June 2019

She also took shots at Caroline: 'As if anyone would watch @Carolinedamore try to hoc her boring a** pasta bowls and greasy pizza on tv. Tried that it was like watching paint dry. Get the story straight first @usweekly.'

Despite the report, MTV has yet to confirm that Mischa will not be returning when the series begins filming its second season.

Some cast members, including Heidi Montag and Frankie Delgado, had previously complained that the actress was too reserved while filming scenes for the show.

The O.C. is available to stream on Stan in Australia
San Francisco, Sep 19 : Google has given its users easier access to Search, Chrome and Gmail on the new Apple iOS 14.

The users can now add a Google Search Widget to their Home Screen to let them find information even faster.

"You can also set Chrome as your default browser app on your iPhone or iPad, and in the coming days, you'll be able to set Gmail as your default email app," Luke Wroblewski, Director, iOS at Google, said in a statement on Friday.

In iOS 14, Google users can add Widgets to their Home Screen to access apps more quickly or get information at a glance.

The tech giant said it is giving users lightning-fast access to Search with a Widget in two sizes: one with just Search, and one with shortcuts to three additional ways to search, depending on their preference.

"With the Quick Search Widget, you can search for anything, right from your Home Screen. The Shortcuts Widget includes a quick Search bar and additional search modes: Lens, which lets you search what you see through your camera; Voice Search if you don't feel like typing; and Incognito mode for an extra layer of privacy," Google explained.

If you set Chrome as your default browser in iOS 14, when you open a link from another app, it will open in Chrome.

Similarly, if you set Gmail as your default email app, any time you tap on an email icon on the web, it will open the Gmail app.

Apple users can sync Chrome on their computers or tablets to automatically access their bookmarks, saved passwords and payment methods, settings, and recently opened tabs.
Kremlin critic says he is regaining verbal and physical abilities after treatment for suspected nerve agent poisoning.

Russian opposition politician Alexey Navalny has been seen walking down stairs in a photo posted on his Instagram feed, five days after a Berlin hospital said he had been taken off a ventilator and could breathe independently.

Let me tell how my recovery is going. It is already a clear path although a long one, Navalny wrote on Instagram on Saturday.

He said he still could not use his phone and had difficulties trying to pour water into his glass or climbing stairs because his legs trembled.

There are many problems yet to be solved but amazing doctors from the Charite hospital have solved the main one, the post said, referring to the Berlin hospital where he is being treated.

They turned me from a technically alive human being into someone who has high chances to become  a man who can quickly scroll Instagram and understands without thinking where to put his likes.





Navalny, the leading opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin, fell ill on a domestic flight to Moscow on August 20 and was airlifted to Berlin two days later.

Germany says laboratory tests in three countries have determined he was poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent, and Western governments have demanded an explanation from Russia.

The Kremlin has claimed that before Navalnys transfer to Berlin, Russian labs and a hospital in the Siberian city of Omsk found no sign of poisoning.

Russia has called for Germany to provide evidence and bristled at the urging of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other Western leaders to answer questions about what happened to the politician.

There is too much absurdity in this case to take anyone at their word, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday.

Peskov also accused Navalnys colleagues of hampering a Russian investigation by taking items from his hotel room, including a water bottle they claimed had traces of the nerve agent, out of the country.

Navalnys colleagues said they removed the bottle and other items from the hotel room in the Siberian city of Tomsk and brought them to Germany as potential evidence because they did not trust the Russian authorities to conduct a proper probe.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 01:37:12|Editor: huaxia

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RABAT, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Morocco on Friday reported 2,760 new COVID-19 cases, the biggest single-day increase so far, taking the number of infections in the country since March 2 to 97,264.

The total number of recoveries from COVID-19 in Morocco increased to 76,690 after 1,760 new ones were added, the ministry of health said in a statement.

The death toll rose to 1,755 with 41 new fatalities, while 264 people are in intensive care units.

Meanwhile, the Moroccan government decided on Friday to extend the implementation of the restrictive measures in Casablanca, the worst hit city.

It also urged citizens to strictly respect social distancing, hygiene rules and the obligation to wear a mask.

The epidemiological situation linked to the coronavirus has undergone a huge surge in the North African country since August with daily cases exceeding 1,500 on average.

China has helped Morocco in its fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

A batch of medical supplies donated by the government of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region was transported on June 8 to Casablanca-Settat in Morocco.

On May 14, China Development Bank sent a batch of donation, including respirators and medical protective masks, to help Morocco fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

China's Guizhou Province also donated 15,000 surgical gloves, 20,000 medical masks and 2,000 protective suits to help protect Moroccan medical workers fighting the pandemic. Enditem
On Wednesday, Mayor Quinton Lucas told FOX4 about a secret meeting between him, KCPD Police Chief Rick Smith and Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker. The three discussed new ways to combat violent crime plaguing the city. On Friday, the mayor revealed more about that meeting.



Weve been working for some time on looking at a long-term public safety partnership with our partners and friends and the Department of Justice, whove worked very collaboratively, including on the prevention and intervention side. It is not just an enforcement game, Lucas said.

Top KC leaders working on new plan to fight violent crime focused on prevention, intervention KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Kansas City's homicide rate continues to climb. As of Friday evening, there were 143 murders in the city. While trying to chase down the people terrorizing the streets, city leaders are also crafting a new plan to reduce violent crime. People in Kansas City are tired of being scared, worn out [...]

A glimpse at the increasingly desperate struggle to confront a record breaking wave of deadly Kansas City violence . . .Read more:
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Friday filed two supplementary charge sheets in two separate chit fund scam cases.

A CBI official said that in the first case, a supplementary charge sheet has been filed against 25 accused including the promoter and director of Golden Land Developers Group in Delhi and others, including officials of sister companies, on the allegations of misappropriation of the amount collected from the public.

The official said that the agency registered the case on June 5, 2014 on the orders of the Supreme Court and took up the investigation of the case, earlier registered at Kaniha Police Station in Odishas Angul district against a private group of companies based at Delhi.

It was alleged that officials of said group of companies based at Delhi allured depositors with false promise of paying high rate of interest against their deposits but had cheated the public by running money circulation scheme without authorisation.

The total amount collected from the public was Rs 862 crore," the official said adding that a charge sheet was filed on June 11, 2019 before the Special CBI court in Bhubaneswar and further investigation was continuing.

In the second case, a supplementary charge sheet has been filed against Abcindya Networks Private Ltd, based in Delhi, and two others including its Director.

The agency had registered the case on June 5, 2014 on the order of the apex court.

The case was earlier registered at EOW Bhubaneswar (Odisha) where it was alleged that a private company based at Paschim Vihar in Delhi was a money circulation networking company having its website abcindya.com" and information website info@abcindya.com" and the said company allured depositors by offering lucrative returns and collected huge money from the public without having authorisation and cheated them.

It was further alleged that the accused during the period 2006-10, in conspiracy with each other, had unauthorisedly collected deposits from investors to the tune of Rs 63.72 crore from different places in India," the official said.

He said that it was also alleged that these deposits were collected in the schemes of the company in the garb of providing online games with false promises of high returns and without having any authority from Reserve Bank of India or from SEBI to collect deposits from the public.

Out of this, an amount of Rs 13.49 crore was collected from investors of Odisha," the official said.

He further said that in pursuance to the conspiracy, the accused did not return the said amount and thereby cheated the investors and misappropriated huge amounts.

The CBI had filed a charge sheet in April last year and further investigation was continuing.
This is truly a tragedy of epic proportions, Simmons said in a news conference held near the home. I mean 16 victims is unheard of, and for our community, whos right now going through so much, to have to be dealt with this tragedy, needlessly, for people who decide to act in a violent manner is unfortunate and shameful.
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Vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris joined hundreds of mourners outside the Supreme Court as she paid tribute to 'titan' and 'legal mind of the ages' Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

The U.S. Senator and her husband Douglas Emhoff on Saturday stopped by a makeshift memorial outside the steps of the high court in Washington D.C. where the veteran judge served for 27 years before her death on Friday.

The site is now blanketed with a collection of flowers, homemade cardboard signs and prayer candles left by hundreds of mourners who visited the steps of the court to pay their respects in the wake of her passing.

Harris shared a photo of her visit on Twitter, calling the Supreme Court justice 'a titana relentless defender of justice and a legal mind for the ages.'

'The stakes of this election couldn't be higher. Millions of Americans are counting on us to win and protect the Supreme Courtfor their health, for their families, and for their rights,' Harris said.

It comes after President Trump announced he will nominate a replacement for Ginsburg 'without delay', setting up an extraordinary confirmation battle in the Senate just weeks before the election.

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Kamala Harris and her husband Douglas Emhoff on Saturday stopped by a makeshift memorial outside the steps of the Supreme Court to pay tribute to late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

The Democratic vice presidential nominee dressed comfortably and wore a mask during her visit to the high court

Harris shared a photo of her visit on Twitter remembering Ginsburg as a 'relentless defender of justice.'

Mourners stopped by the Supreme Court early Saturday to pay their respects to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died after a battle with pancreatic cancer on Friday

Scores of people laid flowers, prayer candles and condolence messages to the late justice outside of the high court

The Supreme Court Justice passed away in her home in Washington, D.C. on Friday, after a battle with metastatic pancreas cancer

Flowers and tribute signs lined the sidewalk outside of the Supreme Court, where Ginsburg served for 27 years

Ginsburg, who had battled several bouts of cancer after first being diagnosed in 2009, finally succumbed to metastatic pancreas cancer Friday evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington D.C.

Hundreds of people packed the steps of the Supreme Court on Friday night and the street across from the U.S. Capitol as they sang and wept together during a candlelight vigil.

The impromptu nighttime memorial was held shortly after news of her passing broke, which triggered an outpouring of tributes from both sides of the political spectrum.

President Donald Trump issued a proclamation directing that flags at the White House and all public buildings and grounds and military facilities be flown at half-staff until the late Justice Ginsburg is interred.

During the memorial, dozens of people wearing protective masks sat on the steps quietly reflecting on Ginsburg's legacy, while others knelt to leave bouquets of flowers, small American flags and photos of the justice.

Several times, dozens in the crowd broke out into song, singing 'Amazing Grace' and 'This Land is Your Land' as others embraced one another and wiped tears from their eyes.

At one point, the crowd broke into a thunderous applause - lasting for about a minute - for Ginsburg.

'Thank you RBG,' one sign read. On the sidewalk, 'RBG' was drawn inside a pink chalk heart.

Jennifer Berger, 37, said she felt compelled to join the large crowd that gathered to pay tribute to Ginsburg's life.

'I think it is important for us to recognize such a trailblazer,' she said. 'It is amazing to see how many people are feeling this loss tonight and saying goodbye.'

Visitors were seen breaking down in tears as they mourned the loss of the veteran justice

Mourners left hundreds of handwritten messages as well as 'RBG' merch that had become popular among young people in recent years

On Friday, hundreds packed the steps of the Supreme Court as they held an impromptu candlelight vigil for Ginsburg

Many were seen singing and weeping as they reflected on Ginsburg's legacy. She spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the court's liberal wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers

People gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court on September 18

Ginsburg spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the court's liberal wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers.

Young women especially seemed to embrace the court's Jewish grandmother, affectionately calling her the 'Notorious RBG', for her defense of the rights of women and minorities.

The memorial service remained mostly peaceful and somber, but turned tense for several minutes after a man with a megaphone approached people in the crowd and began to chant that 'Roe v. Wade is dead,' a reference to the landmark Supreme Court ruling establishing abortion rights nationwide.

A large group confronted the man, leading to a brief shouting match.

Many in the crowd began yelling 'RBG' to try to drown out the man's voice as he continued to say Republicans would push to quickly appoint a conservative justice to the court.

Supreme Court police officers stood alongside the crowd and the man eventually left the area.

Ginsburg had notably won over the country's younger generation, as the unquestioned leader of the court's liberal wing

A woman was overcome with emotion during the memorial service on Friday night

Several times, dozens in the crowd broke out into song, singing 'Amazing Grace' and 'This Land is Your Land' as others embraced one another and wiped tears from their eyes

The memorial service remained mostly peaceful and somber

Ginsburg's death paves the way for Donald Trump to expand his conservative majority on the Supreme Court ahead of November's election.

The leader of the court's four-member liberal wing had voiced concerns about the political impact of her passing in the days leading up to her death.

'My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed,' the legal pioneer said in a statement dictated to her granddaughter Clara Spera days before her death.

President Trump was on stage in Minnesota when the Justice's death was announced and had carried on with his campaign rally apparently unaware of the news.

He was later asked about her death by reporters, Trump said: 'She just died? Wow. I didn't know that, you're telling me now for the first time.'

He then paused and held his hands in the air before paying tribute to Ginsburg - who he had a fraught relationship with since he moved in to the White House.

'She led an amazing life. What else can you say? She was an amazing woman whether you agreed [with her] or not. She was an amazing who led an amazing life.

'I'm actually sad to hear that. I'm sad to hear that,' he said, before he turned and walked toward his jet.

A man kneels as he brings a megaphone to a vigil on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court following the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, in Washington

On the sidewalk, 'RBG' was drawn inside a pink chalk heart. Other messages thanked the Supreme Court Justice for her service to the country

Young women especially seemed to embrace the court's Jewish grandmother, affectionately calling her the 'Notorious RBG', for her defense of the rights of women and minorities

A man plays the violin as people gather outside of the U.S. Supreme Court for a nighttime memorial for RBG

Meanwhile the White House flag was lowered to half staff and his Chief of Staff Mark Meadows tweeted a tribute to the 'trailblazer' and 'dedicated public servant'.

Trump later tweeted a longer statement, describing Ginsburg as a 'titan of the law' whose legal expertise and historic decisions inspired generations of Americans.

'Today, our nation mourns the loss of a titan of the law' who was 'renowned for her brilliant mind and her powerful dissents at the Supreme Court,' Trump said, after the rally in Minnesota.

'Her opinions, including well-known decisions regarding the legal equality of women and the disabled, have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds,' he added.

'May her memory be a great and magnificent blessing to the world.'

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died aged 87 after a battle with metastatic pancreas cancer. She is pictured at one of her last public appearances in February.

He did not mention plans for nominating a replacement.

Chief Justice John Roberts paid tribute to his colleague Friday describing her as a 'champion of justice'.

'Our nation has lost a justice of historic stature,' Roberts said in a statement.

'We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her, a tired and resolute champion of justice.'

Former presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, George Bush and Jimmy Carter all voiced their tributes, along with politicians including Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo voiced their tributes.

The White House lowered its flags to half staff and social media users pointed out that in Jewish tradition, a person who dies on Rosh Hashanah - which started tonight - is regarded as a person of great righteousness.
James Durbin / The Oilfield Phot/The Oilfield Photographer, Inc.

The nations rig count continues to inch its way back from historic lows reached last month as the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out crude oil demand and idled hundreds of rigs.

Baker Hughes reported Friday that the national rig count rose one to 255 for the week, higher than the record low of 244 set in mid-August. A year earlier, there were 842 rigs at work nationwide, 602 more than at present.
HADERA, Israel, Sept. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- VAA Philippines, a virtual assistant agency, specializes in matching trained Amazon virtual assistants with Amazon sellers looking to scale up their businesses. The company advises sellers that hiring an Amazon virtual assistant is a smart choice because it allows them to delegate day-to-day tasks so that they can concentrate on feeding their bottom line.

Learn more about assistant for Amazon business at https://www.vaaphilippines.com.

VAA Philippines Founder

Whether just starting a new journey as an Amazon seller or as an established presence on the platform, navigating the way to success can be challenging without expert advice. For Amazon sellers unsure of when the right time is for hiring an Amazon expert, VAA Philippines CEO, Gilad Freimann, offers this advice, "There is no such thing as a 'level' from which you need a VA, nor can you say that you don't need a VA before a specific level. For each individual, the phase of taking external assistance will come at a different time. Instead, ask yourself the following question: Am I enough to handle all the things I want to deal with in my business? Or are there things that are slowly getting neglected?"

As an Amazon seller himself, Freimann found that he was consciously postponing tasks due to a lack of time and realizing that some tasks just weren't being completed properly. He explains, "Today I can say that I did the whole process of finding products in a much less professional and effective way. Why? Because I wouldn't be sitting systematically for a few hours each day and finding quality products with less competition and more demand. And even when I found an optional product, I didn't spend enough time finding the right supplier to manufacture it. I settled for three-to-four suppliers that I worked with, and I would choose one of them." Freimann decided to enlist a virtual assistant's help, which resulted in significant savings, as she took on the task of sourcing and dealing with more suitable and less expensive suppliers.

Many Amazon sellers just starting are tied up in other jobs and responsibilities and often face the challenge of finding the time to grow and manage their Amazon business. Advanced sellers have more extensive everyday task lists to deal with, including inventory, customer service, refunds, PPC, etc. Finding the right VA can require a large investment in time from reading reviews, filtering resumes, interviewing and training. VAA Philippines eliminates the hard work and provides specialized Amazon VAs, PPC Specialists, Social Media Experts, and Graphic Design Experts to meet sellers' needs at every Amazon business level.

VAA will work with sellers to match them with high-quality Amazon VA support services to meet seller needs and budget. Getting started takes just a few simple steps:

Contact VAA Philippines for a consultation with CEO Gilad Freimann .

for a consultation with CEO . After a thorough assessment of the business and needs, VAA will select the ideal Amazon virtual assistant.

VAA supports sellers, providing the best tips and guidance about getting the most from virtual assistants, starting from the introductory phone call to creating a weekly work schedule and briefing the VA about the business.

VAA is dedicated to ensuring clients are matched with the ideal Amazon VA. The company guarantees to reassign a new candidate at no extra cost and with no time limit, at the seller's request.

For those interested in additional information about the full range of Amazon VA services offered by VAA Philippines, please visit the company's official website at https://www.vaaphilippines.com/va-services/amazon-expert/.

About VAA Philippines

VAA specializes in locating, screening, training and supporting high quality Amazon VAs in the Philippines, and matching them after with Amazon sellers all over the world. VAA has Amazon trained VA's, PPC Specialists VA's, Social Media and Graphic Designers.

Contact Name: Gilad Freimann

Contact Email: [email protected]

Contact Phone: (213) 423-0676

SOURCE VAA Philippines

Related Links

https://www.vaaphilippines.com


It worked for New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs. If rampant speculation is right, British Columbia Premier John Horgan is on the brink of gambling it will work for him.

Under those circumstances it is not surprising that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is unwilling to entirely shut the door on a snap election. But Trudeau, and opposition parties, too, should do everything in their power to avoid sending Canadians to the polls. Especially now that were on the verge of a second wave of COVID-19 that may be even worse than the first, an election campaign is the last thing this country needs at this dangerous time.

For New Brunswicks Higgs, the election this week was a fairly blatant power grab. He wanted a majority government, he says, in order to be able to fully engage in fighting the pandemic. He was experiencing pushback from opposition parties in the legislature, so he called a snap election. There was criticism of his political opportunism, but in the end it didnt cost him too much as his Progressive Conservative party secured 27 legislative seats compared to 22 opposition seats.

It wasnt the overpowering mandate he hoped for. Don Wright, a professor of political science at the University of New Brunswick, put it this way: Its not a resounding majority; moreover, six out of 10 New Brunswickers voted against the Progressive Conservative party. But Higgs got a majority even with less than 40 per cent of the popular vote. Arguably, its another case of first-past-the-post not delivering a truly representative result, but thats another story for another day. Higgs gambled and won.

Horgan is in a similar situation. His province has an election scheduled for October 2021. But his coalition with the Green party has been fraying for some time. Recent polling by the Angus Reid Institute, a non-profit polling operation, showed Horgan has the highest approval rating (69 per cent) of any premier in Canada, ahead of Doug Ford (66 per cent) and Quebecs Francois Legault (65 per cent). Before the pandemic, Horgans approval rating stood at 46 per cent. Like Ford, COVID-19 has been very good to Horgan, at least from a political perspective.

That has led many to speculate he will force an early election, even in the face of criticism that doing so is putting cynical opportunism ahead of public welfare, at a time when the pandemic in B.C. is sharply worse, with record numbers of new cases.

The situation for Trudeau and his Liberal government is different in that they arent alone in the drivers seat. If either the Conservatives or the NDP vote against next weeks throne speech, it will trigger an election. Or the Liberals could engineer their own defeat by presenting an agenda that one or both of the main opposition parties could not support. It seems increasingly unlikely that opposition parties will trigger an election. For one thing they know better than most that the Liberals continue to enjoy a 6-8 per cent lead in most opinion polls. They also remain very strong in Atlantic Canada, Ontario and they lead Conservatives in B.C. Forcing an election would not be smart for either the NDP or the CPC.

Instead, the government and opposition should make fighting COVID-19 their top priority. Return to the Team Canada approach that served them all well during the first wave. Pundits are already speculating that the government will scale back its dramatic plans for the throne speech to put more focus and attention on the pandemic, and based on what we are seeing this week, across most of the country with the exception of the Maritimes, that is entirely appropriate. This is not the time to waste weeks campaigning, putting more people at risk in the process. Put public safety ahead of politics.

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Times of upheaval always cause people to retreat or turn inwards. So it is with COVID-19. As the pandemic continues to upend day-to-day life, there is increasing chatter about Canadas need to be self-sufficient  to be able to, say, supply personal protective equipment or an eventual vaccine without foreign help. Newly crowned Conservative Leader Erin OToole, for example, has gone so far as to mimic the American presidents rhetoric, insisting that we need a Canada First policy to defend our independence.

Whether that is a smart strategy or not is worthy of serious debate. But in these discussions of national sovereignty, there remains one glaring omission: the internet. Our online lives are almost exclusively dominated by foreign companies and infrastructure. And as the digital realm becomes more and more central to life, it is time for Canada to develop a plan for national digital sovereignty.

Its an issue that is top of mind recently with a bombshell report from BuzzFeed this week about how Facebook repeatedly ignored misinformation and fake accounts across the world. The article lists details from a leaked memo by former employee Sophie Zhang. Part of a team meant to weed out inauthentic behaviours, Zhang states that in numerous countries around the world  Honduras, Azerbaijan, India, Brazil and more  Facebook was slow to react to co-ordinated influence campaigns, often designed to interfere with elections. Zhangs conclusion: I have blood on my hands.

There are layers to the story. First, Facebook continues to struggle to deal with bad actors on its platforms. Second, away from the glare of western media, Facebook has less incentive to tackle its role in misinformation. As Sri Lankan presidential adviser Harindra Dissanayake put it 2018 following violence in the country, We dont completely blame Facebook. The germs are ours, but Facebook is the wind, you know?

But perhaps most prominent is the profound strangeness of the situation: for many countries around the world, a constitutive part of their social and political life is outsourced to an American company that has no real loyalty to anything but its own bottom line and shareholders.

Social networking is often thought of as idle distraction, or at best a sort of information distribution system. But it is actually a new form of infrastructure  the intermediary between people and reality. Its how billions of people connect with others, get news, form community, and plan their lives.

Does that not sound like the sort of thing we as Canadians should have some measure of control over?

It is quite true that part of the benefit of the digital era is the way it can both ignore and transcend boundaries. Community can be found across national lines and the internet has, perhaps more than any other historical phenomenon, helped to shrink the world. Its possible, too, that in the long term this may have effects on the idea of the nation-state  of how and where communities are formed.

But for now, if social networks are increasingly essential to our lives, Canada needs to think about how it is going to safeguard elections, news and the spread of reliable, true information.

The first step would most obviously be regulation: for the Facebooks or the Googles to conduct major digital operations in Canada, they would have to significantly ramp up efforts to tackle misinformation campaigns, election interference, or their impact on the information economy more broadly.

But perhaps it also time to begin thinking about what Canada can do to become digitally independent in the long term; obviously, millions of Canadians arent going to simply give up Twitter or Facebook next week. But if a means of communication and gathering online is a fundamental part of life now, over the coming years and decades, it will become necessary to think about how Canada-made solutions might form part of addressing that new need.

Perhaps that comes in the form of the state starting to offer basic digital services as part of the normal way of responding to citizens needs. That approach would be less a state-run version of Facebook, which sounds both Orwellian and unappealing, than an attempt to address basic digital functions in ways that are open, interoperable and not reliant on an ad-based company.

Conversely, in order to avoid linking digital networks and the government, there may be a need for an independent body that is neither the government directly, nor a company, to offer up basic services like a digital calendar, email, messaging or community groups.

Of course, there may be solutions to the problem we havent even thought of yet. But the problem needs to be addressed. Social networks and digital networks are too important to simply outsource to a foreign company. And while Canada First may be a controversial assertion in most fields, when it comes to the internet and our digital lives, its just common sense.

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An outpouring of tributes to the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg began Friday evening shortly after news broke of her death.

Hundreds of people of all ages, genders, and backgrounds were gathered outside the US Supreme Court building to mourn the death of the legendary progressive stalwart.

In emotional scenes, mourners lit flowers, sand songs, and chanted her name outside of the imposing building.

Some said the ancient Jewish prayer sequence of kaddish, while others laid flowers down outside, placed Americans flags, and wrote condolence messages on the steps to pay their respects.

Some people could be seen together in a somber embrace to commemorate the justice many regarded as a feminist icon.

Crowds gather outside the Supreme Court following news of the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg (AP)

RBG was also drawn inside a pink chalk heart in sidewalk, and flags outside the court flew at half staff.

Others in the crowd could be seen waving LGBTQ flags in an evident nod to Ginsburgs championing of equality and civil rights.

Supreme Court Obit Ginsburg (Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

One of the signs left on the steps of the Supreme Court quoted Ginsburg, saying: I would like to be remembered as someone who used whatever talent she had to do her work to the very best of her ability. The sign was punctuated with a Thank You and RIP.

Another sign, lit by a wax candle simply read: Thank You RBG.

At one point, the gatherers broke out into an applause for a full minute to pay tribute.

Ginsburg died on Friday at the age of 87 following a long bout with metastatic pancreatic cancer.
- Abel said they were given millions after they were commissioned to produce the show Sue Na Jonnie and Hulabaloo Estate for Maisha Magic East

- However, they blew the money on paying actors and crew hefty salaries

- Abel's production company ended up counting losses since they ended up with a KSh 5 million debt and unfinished projects

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Former Tahidi High actor Abel Mutua has revealed that he did not really enjoy his first ever millions.

The actor who is currently a co-director at Phyl-it Productions said he made a lot of money together with his friend in a single deal that saw them enjoy the millionaires status, albeit for a while.

READ ALSO: Ruth Matete denounces Christianity, says religious people abandoned her

Abel Mutua was sharing on fans on how they started Phyl-it Production. Photo: UGC

Source: Instagram

READ ALSO: Exclusive: Young Reverend Victor Githu vows to keep praising God despite people's criticism

Speaking on the new episode of Stories of My Life on his YouTube channel, Abel said while they were able to secure a production deal that made them millions, they blew the same on paying actors and production crews hefty salaries.

According to the actor, their lives changed when they were commissioned to produce the show Sue Na Jonnie and Hulabaloo Estate for DSTV's Maisha Magic East.

Abel revealed that DSTV sent them 40 percent of the total production cost for a number of episodes, something that blew their minds and made them believe they had kissed poverty goodbye.

The actor said the offer was so sweet because they were supposed to produce over 100 episodes with each going for about KSh 400,000.

''We were commissioned to produce Sue Na Jonnie and Hulabaloo Estate. That meant we were to produce over 100 episodes, which they paid over KSh 400,000 per episode. The amount as crazy, we knew that is it, we had become millionaires. We went home excited, talked to our wives and told them to prepare for an opulence lifestyle.'' Abel said.

READ ALSO: Serge Aurier: Brother of Spurs star Christopher shot dead in France

TUKO.co.ke understands Abel and his friend Phil's company made over KSh 40 million for the same.

This, he said gave them the opportunity to try and change the film industry in the country by doing things a bit differently, including paying actors reasonable dues.

Well, that was the beginning of their end because they ended up overpaying actors and crew who had asked for less money.

Abel added him and his two friends heading the production company decided not to pay themselves salaries but instead pay everyone and will finally pay themselves upon the completion of the two projects.

Thing went smoothly until when it hit them production of the two shows involved the use of high technology equipment which also chewed into their budget.

READ ALSO: Pretty Mutave, muigizaji maarufu wa kipindi cha Maza na Aziza aaga dunia

The actor attributes the ''squandering'' of their millions to high paychecks to actors and production, which even left them with a KSh 5 million debt.

''We knew we would work, pay everyone and when it is all done, then we would pay ourselves and everyone would walk home with not less than KSh 5 million each. Things went south, we had paid people lots of money, not finished production and with a debt of KSh 5 million. We suffered a major loss with the projects and we did not really make much money as we expected. We had to look for help from friends and family who would loan us to complete the productions.'' Mutua disclosed.

The actor wrapped up by advising Kenyans to support film makers because most of them suffer losses like they did.

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Both the Chinese and Russian governments have vested interests in meddling in American affairs.

As Americas principal adversaries on the international stage, both governments have been antagonists of the United States for generations, from key differences at the close of Russia and the United States uneasy alliance during World War II to the Cuban Missile Crisis all the way to the 2016 election, when Russia attempted to affect voter behavior online and influence the result, intelligence agencies have concluded.

While the presidents collegial and deferential tone toward the actions of Russian leader Vladimir Putin continue to elicit speculation in the national press, representatives from both the Republican and Democratic parties have regularly raised concerns about Russias role on the international stage, from the countrys development of a pipeline into Germany to the assassination of those who rise to challenge Putins grip on the country. Earlier this week, FBI director Christopher Wray even warned a congressional panel that Russian operatives were, once again, actively working to denigrate a Democratic presidential candidate to support Trumps reelection campaign.

Meanwhile China  which has emerged as a chief competitor to the United States for industrial and financial dominance over the past several decades  has fallen under increasing scrutiny from government officials in the years since, particularly as the nations role in the spread of the COVID-19 virus and its persecution of the Uighur ethnic group have attracted global attention.

For all of the concerns representatives from both major parties have raised about these countries, Rep. Liz Cheney argues the two could be behind another plot to undermine the United States: potentially helping spur a green revolution in the United States to undermine American energy production and bolster both countries standing in world energy markets.

In a letter to William Barrs Department of Justice last week, Cheney revived concerns that various environmental nongovernmental organizations like the Sierra Club and Natural Resources Defense Council were ripe targets for foreign interference, arguing that both organizations use of political influence and judicial activism to advance conservation-based causes were actually intended for a different purpose: advancing the goals of Americas adversaries.

In Wyoming and across the nation, the policies advocated by radical environmental groups result in devastating policy and economic consequences for millions of Americans while frequently advancing our adversaries interests, Cheney wrote in a statement to the Star-Tribune. These groups are ripe targets for adversaries such as Russia, which has already made a concerted effort to spread its anti-fracking agenda in Europe and the U.S. It is critical that the Department of Justice has full knowledge about any efforts by our adversaries to influence or infiltrate U.S. environmental groups.

Cheneys concerns did not arise in a vacuum. Concerns about these NGOs susceptibility to foreign influence have been a longstanding concern among Republicans in Washington. In 2018, Republican leaders of the House Natural Resources Committee launched a probe into what was described as potential undue influence by the Chinese government, spurred by the Natural Resources Defense Councils work in the nation. Critics panned the move as a McCarthyesque attack on organizations with views contrary to their own.

Its a claim the Natural Resources Defense Council vociferously denied at the time, and a denial a council spokesperson referred the Star-Tribune to when questioned about the validity of Cheneys letter after characterizing the allegations as a false narrative.

As the most populous country on Earth, China has much to do with the kind of world the next generation will inherit, in our country and around the world, Bob Deans, the councils director of strategic engagement, wrote in a statement at the time. Were proud of our work, in China and elsewhere, helping to create a more sustainable future for everyone.

A spokesperson for the Sierra Clubs Wyoming Chapter declined to comment on the letter.

So where did the narrative come from? The Natural Resources Defense Council has maintained a presence in Beijing since 2006 and has established itself as a favored NGO by the Chinese government in their efforts to bolster the nations carbon reduction benchmarks.

Meanwhile, conservative news outlets like the right-leaning Heritage Foundations news arm, the Daily Signal, have alleged that millions of dollars in Russian dollars were funneled to both the Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council as a sort of long-term investment into their missions. The alleged intermediary, the San Francisco-based Sea Change Foundation, called the claims factually incorrect and with no basis.

And what is the end game? Financially, the fossil fuel sectors woes are already well-documented as popular opinion shifts toward renewable energy, while public opinion has gradually shifted away from support for hydrofracking. Yet, in this years presidential race, Democratic candidate Joe Biden has already elicited criticism for coming out in favor of fracking as necessary for Americas transition to renewable energy, a stance that flies directly in the face of the Democrats progressive base and a sign fossil fuels could remain safe in the short term.

Are major environmental organizations actively working to undermine the United States by working with the worlds worst-polluting country to fight climate change? Are both organizations professed opposition to hydrofracking  a practice of oil and gas extraction banned in states like New York after reports said it posed health risks and small-town, grassroots efforts arose to stall it  more a reflection of mainstream environmentalism than of foreign coercion?

So far, there is little evidence beyond the circumstantial suggesting otherwise.

The Week Ahead

Monday: Legislatures Joint Transportation Committee meets remotely.

Tuesday: Joint Transportation Committee meeting continues.

Wednesday: Gov. Mark Gordon to testify before the U.S. Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works. Joint Committee on Blockchain and Technology meets remotely. Air Transportation task force meets remotely.

Thursday: Joint Committee on Blockchain and Technology meeting continues. Joint Committee on Travel meets remotely.

Friday: Joint Committee on Travel meeting continues.

Weekend: None.

Have an event youd like highlighted here? Email me with the date, time, and place!

Wyoming Politics

A rally for the good cops: Group gathers on Jackson Town Square for pro-police rally: A black-and-white American flag with a centered blue stripe rose above the gathered crowd Sunday to show support for local police funding. A few dozen people stood on the corner of Town Square, backdropped with Trump 2020 banners, waving signs to energize passing pedestrians and drivers. (via The Jackson Hole News & Guide)

Sparks fly at tribal relations committee session: While contemplating tribal and non-tribal law enforcement jurisdiction legislation on Tuesday, state Rep. Andi Clifford, D-Ethete, sparked warnings on decorum when she criticized the countys top prosecutor for his handling of an officer-involved shooting death last year. (via The Riverton Ranger)

A cautious governor confronts an unprecedented time: An in-depth profile on Gov. Mark Gordon and his response to the COVID-19 pandemic. (via WyoFile)

Around Wyoming

Wyoming oil rig boom a matter of perspective: Wyomings rig count skyrocketed by the end of last week, with four operating  a significant turnaround from not so long ago when the rig count hit zero, but still a far cry from the height of the most recent boom last year. (via The Douglas Budget)

Big Horn County School District staff say policy on use of personal devices violates civil rights: Big Horn County School District No. 3 staff members say a proposed policy that would make any personal electronic devices that they use to conduct school business subject to a search is a violation of their civil rights. (via The Greybull Standard)

Wyoming refineries stung by decision; Barrasso rebukes administration after EPA denies relief: The Trump administration delivered another blow to Wyomings oil refineries when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency denied relief to several small operators struggling to meet biofuel standards this month. (via Trib.com)

Eye On Washington

Sen. Mike Enzis bill to reform the budget process was included in an annual list of No Brainer bills that deserve passage compiled by the National Taxpayers Union.

Sen. John Barrasso criticized a decision by the Environmental Protection Agency that  while aiding ethanol industries  would likely hurt small refineries in Wyoming, like Sinclair.

Have any tips or suggestions to make this newsletter better? Let me know! Call me at 307-266-0634, email me at nick.reynolds@trib.com or follow me on Twitter, <&underline>@IAmNickReynolds</&underline>

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New Delhi, Sep 19 : In what seems to be sheer negligence on the part of Mumbai Police or the medical board which conducted autopsy on late Bollywood star Sushant Singh Rajput, the all important viscera extracted from the body was not preserved properly.

The viscera received by the Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) is "of very less quantity and degenerated", highly placed sources in AIIMS revealed to IANS.

Till late Friday evening, the viscera, which holds the key in ascertaining the cause of death of Sushant Singh Rajput, was being tested at the forensic department of AIIMS in New Delhi.

"The viscera has degenerated. It makes chemical and toxicological analysis really difficult," sources added.

While several media outlets have questioned the Mumbai Police's stand that the actor had died by suicide, the viscera analysis can now unravel the mystery shrouding the actor's death.

To confirm if Sushant died of suspected poisoning or drug overdose, the viscera analysis has become the most crucial test for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in its medico-legal investigation into the death of the Bollywood star.

After conducting the autopsy on June 15, the medical board comprising five doctors of the Cooper Hospital in Mumbai cited "hanging" as the probable cause of death of Sushant.

However, they still preserved the viscera for further investigation. The board included three medical officers of Cooper Postmortem Centre -- Sandeep Ingale, Pravin Khandare and Ganesh Patil -- and two associate professors of forensic medicine in Mumbai.

The viscera, which usually contains internal parts of the body including liver, pancreas and intestine, was preserved in a bottle and handed over to the police. Later the viscera sample was sent for testing to the forensic science laboratories to rule out poisoning or intoxication in the event of death.

Following instructions from the Supreme Court, the investigation of the case was handed over to the CBI.

The Mumbai Police had questioned several witnesses, conducted forensic probes but did not test the crucial viscera sample. Subsequently, on the request of the CBI, leading forensic experts of AIIMS were asked to examine the lapses in the initial investigations, primarily the forensic aspects. The experts were also given the viscera sample.

The AIIMS team led by one of the top forensic experts of India, Sudhir Gupta, was asked to find out any tampering of evidence on the scene of crime or omission of any forensic sign by the Mumbai Police or the panel of doctors which conducted the post-mortem.

The AIIMS experts were flown from Delhi to Mumbai to make on the spot assessment of the sequence of events and scrutinise the documents related to forensics.

By early next week, AIIMS forensic experts and CBI officials will hold conclusive discussion on the cause of death of Sushant Singh Rajput, who was reportedly found hanging in the bedroom of his duplex flat in Bandra on June 14.

Meanwhile, a senior IPS officer in Mumbai Police said that all possible efforts were made to preserve all forensic samples, documentary evidence and other materials related to the case.

"We have been investigating several sensitive and high profile cases. Mumbai Police are thoroughly professional as far as quality of investigation is concerned," the officer said.

Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery
Noida: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath held a review meeting on the proposed Noida International Airport Limited (NIAL) at Jewar with all the police administrative officers and public representatives of Meerut Division on Friday.

During the review meeting, Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority and Chief Executive Officer of Nile, Dr. Arun Vir Singh told Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath that a concessionaire agreement with Zurich International Airport AG for Noida International Airport will be signed on October 10.

The development was confirmed by Jewar MLA Thakur Dhirendra Singh, who was part of the review meeting.

The authorities are in talks with the officials of Zurich International Airport and they will coming to India soon. Notably, air traffic between India and Switzerland has been closed for nearly 6 months due to the coronavirus crisis.

In such a situation, the officials of the contractor company could not come to India and the Yamuna Authority had to postpone the date of the concessionaire agreement twice.

The project, which has been stuck for almost 6 months due to coronavirus pandemic is going to gain momentum soon.
(Updates with British prime minister, Dublin, French infections)

* Britain reported to be considering new national lockdown

* Coronavirus cases soar around Europe

* Intensive care admissions up

* https://graphics.reuters.com/world-coronavirus-tracker-and-maps/.

By Guy Faulconbridge and Ingrid Melander

LONDON/MADRID, Sept 18 (Reuters) - European countries from Denmark to Greece announced new restrictions on Friday to curb surging coronavirus infections in some of their largest cities, while Britain was reported to be considering a new national lockdown.

Cases in the United Kingdom almost doubled to 6,000 per day in the latest reporting week, hospital admissions rose and infection rates soared across parts of northern England and London.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said it was inevitable that the country would see a second wave of the coronavirus, and while he did not want another national lockdown, the government may need to introduce new restrictions.

"We are now seeing a second wave coming in ... It is absolutely, I'm afraid, inevitable, that we will see it in this country," he said.

The sharp rise in the number of cases meant the government had to keep everything under review.

"I don't want to get into a second national lockdown at all," he said, but added: "When you look at what is happening, you've got to wonder whether we need to go further."

Britain has already imposed new COVID regulations on the North West, Midlands and West Yorkshire from Tuesday.

Infections have climbed steadily across most of Europe over the last two months. Intensive care admissions and deaths have also begun to tick up, especially in Spain and France.

In Spain, which has seen more cases than any other European country, the region including the Spanish capital Madrid will limit movement between and within areas badly affected by a new surge in infections, affecting more than 850,000 people.

Regional leader Isabel Diaz Ayuso said on Friday that access to parks and public areas would be restricted, and gatherings will be limited to six, but people would not be stopped from going to work in the country's hardest-hit region.

"We need to avoid lockdown, we need to avoid economic disaster," Ayuso told a news conference.

Story continues

Authorities in the southern French city of Nice banned gatherings of more than 10 people in public spaces and restricted bar opening hours, following fresh curbs introduced earlier this week in Marseille and Bordeaux.

France on Friday registered more than 13,200 new infections, its highest daily count since the start of the pandemic.

In Denmark, where the 454 new infections on Friday was close to a record of 473 in April, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said the limit on public gatherings would be lowered to 50 people from 100 and ordered bars and restaurants to close early.

Iceland ordered entertainment venues and pubs in the capital area to close for four days between September 18-21, while in Ireland indoor restaurant dining and indoor events were banned in Dublin after a surge in cases in recent days.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said his government was preparing "regional" measures to combat the coronavirus outbreak after the Netherlands registered a record 1,972 cases in the past 24 hours.

The measures will be detailed later on Friday and are expected to include tighter restrictions on public gatherings and earlier closing times for bars and restaurants. Hotspots include major cities Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague.

In Greece, which emerged largely unscathed from the first wave of COVID-19 which hit Europe in March and April, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said the government was ready to tighten restrictions in the greater Athens area as cases accelerated.

Mitsotakis said Greece's committee of health experts had recommended extra curbs on public gatherings, the suspension of cultural events for 14 days and other measures which "could be decided today ... and go into force on Monday."

Europe is still hoping not to follow the example of Israel, which entered a second nationwide lockdown on Friday at the onset of the Jewish high-holiday season, following a jump in new coronavirus cases. (Additional reporting by Silvio Castellanos and Guillermo Martinez in Madrid, Dominique Vidalon in Paris, Kate Holton in London, Lefteris Papadimas in Athens, Nikolaj Skydsgaard in Copenhagen, Anthony Deutsch in Amsterdam and Rami Ayyub in Tel Aviv; Writing by Gavin Jones; Editing by Janet Lawrence and Mike Collett-White)
By Carl Golden

The dog overtook the car  Ahab slew the white whale  Wile E Coyote devoured the roadrunner  Tom cornered Jerry ...

And New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy got the millionaires tax.

It took nearly three years and the onslaught of an unprecedented public health crisis that shredded the states economy and drove the budget into the red, but Murphy persevered.

Within the next two weeks, hell sign into law increases in the tax on incomes in excess of $1 million.

Senate President Steve Sweeney, D-Gloucester, and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, D-Middlesex, who joined forces to block the tax proposal increase in 2018 and 2019, dropped their objections and struck a compromise with the governor  a tax increase on the wealthy in return for a tax break for the middle class.

Compromise  give something to get something  is the adhesive that binds together the lawmaking process and enables it to move forward, albeit creakily in many cases.

The hackneyed metaphor about sausage making and lawmaking still applies. But its important to understand that sausage is comprised of different ingredients which by themselves arent very mouthwatering, but blended together become a palatable dish.

Murphy, Sweeney and Coughlin cooked up their palatable dish with an increase from 8.97 percent to 10.7 percent on incomes between $1 million and $5 million and a $500 rebate for families with incomes below $150,000.

Neither legislator was struck by a bolt-of-lightning epiphany that opened their eyes to a millionaires tax. The reversal of their opposition was clear-eyed political acknowledgment of a budgetary train wreck caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Refusing to ask the wealthy for more while unemployment hit record levels, businesses closed and property taxes fell under upward pressures was no longer tenable.

All that remained was an agreement with Murphy recognizing that millions of middle class taxpayers deserved attention from government, modeled on the federal governments' stimulus check program.

For Murphy, it was an easy call. He won his millionaires tax and avoided inflicting harm on his base of support among public employee unions, who feared a deal with Sweeney would involve layoffs or changes in the public pension and benefits system.

A $500 check to middle class taxpayers was a small price to pay. It is, moreover, of no small moment that the check will show up in taxpayers' mailboxes in 2021, a reminder the governor and 120-member Legislature will appear on the ballot later in November.

Has anyone forgotten the homestead rebate check signed by Brendan Byrne arriving two weeks before his re-election in 1977?

With the agreement, other potential obstacles to delivering a balanced budget by Oct. 1 collapsed.

There will be changes in the governors overall budget recommendations, most notably rejecting his baby bonds proposal. But with the millionaires tax issue resolved, the remaining issues will fall neatly into place. To the relief of all involved, there will be no brinksmanship involving a government shutdown, a politically disastrous turn of events at a time of public anxiety over a lethal virus.

Republicans, already unhappy over the administration plan to issue some $4 billion in bonded debt to cover lost tax revenue, are unanimous in opposition to the tax increase, but the Democratic majorities are lined up solidly in support of the leadership deal.

Whatever residual support existed for a primary challenge to Murphy next year has vanished. He has emerged as the chief executive who led the state through a horrific public health emergency, acted decisively (not without controversy) to upend everyday life in the interest of public safety, and managed a fiscal upheaval unlike any before.

For someone who endured months of criticism and a barrage of questions about his seeming inability to deal with the political crosscurrents in the Legislature, he has attained a position of enhanced strength, sufficient to strike a deal to raise taxes heading into an election year.

Hes already made it clear he intends to remain for a second term, ending for the moment speculation about his joining a potential Joe Biden administration.

Hes already accomplished more than the dog, Ahab, the coyote and Tom.

Carl Golden, born and raised in Easton, is a senior contributing analyst with the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton University. He lives in Burlington, N.J.
Concerns are growing after three patients at Daisy Hill Hospital and a further two patients in Craigavon Area Hospital died after testing positive for Covid-19.

It brings the grim total of Covid-19 deaths across the two hospitals to nine since the virus outbreak took hold.

The news comes as fears grow over a spiralling number of Covid-19 cases - and the prospect of more intense lockdowns and restrictions being imposed over the coming weeks.

Two more people have died with Covid-19 in Northern Ireland.

There were 163 new positive tests for Covid-19.

Four people are in intensive care with Covid-19.

Health Minister Robin Swann has warned of 'on/off lockdowns'.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said a 'second wave' of the virus had arrived in the UK.

The three people who died at Daisy Hill over the past week were on a male medical ward, and were among the 11 people who had tested positive there.

The two patients who died at Craigavon over the past week were on a Haematology ward.

Four patients connected with the ward have already died with the virus.

Read More

More than 150 staff across the two hospitals are now self-isolating as a consequence of these two outbreaks alone.

Newry SDLP MLA Justin McNulty called for the situation at Daisy Hill to be investigated by the Department of Health.

Health Minister Robin Swann has already announced a probe into the outbreak at Craigavon Area Hospital - the highest level NHS probe possible.

Mr McNulty told the Belfast Telegraph: "There has to be a level 3 serious adverse incident declared, as at Craigavon."

He said the patients' families were devastated by what had happened to their loved ones, who he said had only gone into hospital for routine procedures - and hit out at the Trust's management of the infection outbreak. "There are lessons that need to be learned to keep staff and patients safe.

"It's not acceptable that the practices that are in place are not protecting them."

On Friday night, the Southern Trust rejected the MLA's criticisms, and said a level 3 investigation would take place at Daisy Hill.

A spokesperson said: "The Trust has been following public health infection prevention and control guidance since the outset of the Covid-19 pandemic and would strongly refute any suggestion otherwise.

"The outbreak in Daisy Hill Hospital will be subject to a level 3 Serious Adverse Incident review."

Read More

Meanwhile, Health Minister Robin Swann said Northern Ireland was "on a knife-edge" and appealed to the public to follow health advice to curb the spread of the virus to prevent further harsh restrictions.

Mr Swann said two week periods of intense localised lockdowns could be enacted if advised by public health officers.

"I don't think anything is off the table," he told BBC Radio Ulster's Nolan Show.

The fortnightly lockdowns would be used when deemed necessary and could be regularly lifted and reimposed.

Read More

The Health Minister acknowledged the public would not welcome another lockdown.

"I don't want to be the one who takes away any freedoms," Mr Swann said.

Expand Close View: Robin Swann acknowledged the public will not want another lockdown / Facebook

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Whatsapp View: Robin Swann acknowledged the public will not want another lockdown

Mr Swann said Northern Ireland would not have to endure a harsh lockdown if people stuck to the public health advice.

"That's what prevents Northern Ireland-wide restrictions being put in place," he said.

However, Mr Swann warned that if people continued to ignore advice, a lockdown would be inevitable.

Business group the Federation of Small Business (FSB) said new lockdowns should be "the last resort".

"The closure of businesses is something which should be the last resort, and an outcome which we should all be doing our utmost to avoid," spokesman Roger Pollen said.

Meanwhile, in London, Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that a second wave of coronavirus has arrived in the UK, as scientists reported the "widespread growth" of the virus across the country.

The Government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) said the R number has risen to between 1.1 and 1.4, meaning that the number of cases could rise very quickly.
BRUSSELS: The European Union is likely to miss its own Monday deadline for imposing sanctions on Belarus, three diplomatic sources told Reuters, stalled by a lack of unanimity among member states after Cyprus dug in its heels in a separate row.

Cyprus has said it will not agree to penalise Belarus unless the EU also puts sanctions on its neighbour, Turkey, in an unrelated dispute that has raised tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The sources, speaking after a Friday afternoon session of the blocs 27 national envoys to EU hub Brussels, said Nicosia insisted on its veto on introducing the already-promised sanctions on Belarus. Any such decision requires EU unanimity.

The EU vowed weeks ago to impose sanctions on Belarus for alleged election fraud and human rights abuses, and had been planning to finalise the decision when the blocs foreign ministers meet on Monday.

Now it seems its going to the summit," one of the sources said of a top-level meeting of the blocs national leaders in Brussels due on Thursday and Friday.

The Brussels diplomatic mission of Cyprus, which has said it needs time to study imposing sanctions on Belarus, did not replied to a request for comment on Friday evening.

In the latest sign of paralysis in EU foreign policy that threatens its credibility, the blocs plans on Belarus have fallen into disarray over the Turkey spat related to hydrocarbons drilling in the eastern Mediterranean.

With as many as 40 Belarus senior officials identified for possible sanctions and the former Soviet republic a month into mass demonstrations against the outcome of the election, many in the EU are furious that the bloc has been unable to respond.

The United Nations agreed on Friday to step up monitoring of reported rights abuses during Belaruss crackdown on protests, angering Minsk and its ally Moscow and raising the diplomatic stakes in the crisis.

Belarus long-time President Alexander Lukashenko claimed victory in the Aug.9 vote, which the opposition and thousands of protesters have denounced as rigged.

While Cyprus demands new EU sanctions on Turkey over its dispute with Ankara, the blocs powerhouses Germany and France are at odds over how hard to go on President Tayyip Erdogan, the sources said, further muddying the prospects for the blocs swift reaction to the crisis in Belarus.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor
Christine Baranski already had an impressive career in theatre, film and television when she was cast as lawyer Diane Lockhart in the hit legal drama The Good Wife.

Boy, am I glad I got that role then, because now everybody wants a role like Diane, says the 68-year-old actor, who has just finished her 11th season in the role, first in The Good Wife, which started in 2009, and then its spin-off, The Good Fight. At that time, movie stars were still looking down their noses at doing TV or I wouldnt have even been offered the role!

Christine Baranski: "It has given me the greatest pleasure to play a woman of such high intelligence and impeccable professionalism but also a woman like myself."

The Tony- and Emmy-winning actor was originally cast in a supporting role in The Good Wife, mentoring title character Alicia Florrick (Juliana Margulies). After that show ended its seven-season run in 2016, Christine was offered the chance to return in her own spin-off which launched in 2017. Set 18 months later, the show opened with Diane discovering shed been embezzled, forcing her to postpone retirement and return to work.

Calling via Zoom from her home in Connecticut, Christine looks casually elegant in a crisp white shirt, coiffed hair and full make-up. Shes sharing her home during the pandemic with her daughter, Isabel, son-in-law and three grandsons who are being nice and quiet in the other room while I do this interview, she says with a chuckle.
Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market Research Report by Type (Automatic, Manual, and Semi-automatic), by Application (Hospital Pharmacy and Industrial Pharmacy) - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19

New York, Sept. 18, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market Research Report by Type, by Application - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05968830/?utm_source=GNW



The Global Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market is expected to grow from USD 210.94 Million in 2019 to USD 319.64 Million by the end of 2025 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 7.17%.



Market Segmentation & Coverage:

This research report categorizes the Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following sub-markets:



Based on Type, the Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market studied across Automatic, Manual, and Semi-automatic.



Based on Application, the Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market studied across Hospital Pharmacy and Industrial Pharmacy.



Based on Geography, the Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market studied across Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe, Middle East & Africa. The Americas region surveyed across Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and United States. The Asia-Pacific region surveyed across Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand. The Europe, Middle East & Africa region surveyed across France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, United Arab Emirates, and United Kingdom.



Company Usability Profiles:

The report deeply explores the recent significant developments by the leading vendors and innovation profiles in the Global Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market including Akums Drugs & Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Ashby Cross Co., Inc., Catalent, Inc, Changzhou Powerrig Machinery Technology Co., Ltd, Dymax Corporation, HM Pharmaceutical Engineering & Project (Zhejiang) Co., Ltd., Inno4Life BV, M&O Perry Industries, Inc., MAQUINARIA INDUSTRIAL DARA, SL, Medefil, Inc., Medical Expo by VirtualExpo Group, OPTIMA packaging group GmbH, Orofino Pharmaceuticals Group, Reagent Chemical & Research, Inc., SC Rompharm Company SRL., Syntegon Technology GmbH, TurboFil Packaging Machines, LLC, Vetter Pharma International GmbH, and Wenzhou Zhonghuan Packaging Machinery Co., Ltd..



FPNV Positioning Matrix:

The FPNV Positioning Matrix evaluates and categorizes the vendors in the Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market on the basis of Business Strategy (Business Growth, Industry Coverage, Financial Viability, and Channel Support) and Product Satisfaction (Value for Money, Ease of Use, Product Features, and Customer Support) that aids businesses in better decision making and understanding the competitive landscape.



Competitive Strategic Window:

The Competitive Strategic Window analyses the competitive landscape in terms of markets, applications, and geographies. The Competitive Strategic Window helps the vendor define an alignment or fit between their capabilities and opportunities for future growth prospects. During a forecast period, it defines the optimal or favorable fit for the vendors to adopt successive merger and acquisition strategies, geography expansion, research & development, and new product introduction strategies to execute further business expansion and growth.



Cumulative Impact of COVID-19:

COVID-19 is an incomparable global public health emergency that has affected almost every industry, so for and, the long-term effects projected to impact the industry growth during the forecast period. Our ongoing research amplifies our research framework to ensure the inclusion of underlaying COVID-19 issues and potential paths forward. The report is delivering insights on COVID-19 considering the changes in consumer behavior and demand, purchasing patterns, re-routing of the supply chain, dynamics of current market forces, and the significant interventions of governments. The updated study provides insights, analysis, estimations, and forecast, considering the COVID-19 impact on the market.



The report provides insights on the following pointers:

1. Market Penetration: Provides comprehensive information on the market offered by the key players

2. Market Development: Provides in-depth information about lucrative emerging markets and analyzes the markets

3. Market Diversification: Provides detailed information about new product launches, untapped geographies, recent developments, and investments

4. Competitive Assessment & Intelligence: Provides an exhaustive assessment of market shares, strategies, products, and manufacturing capabilities of the leading players

5. Product Development & Innovation: Provides intelligent insights on future technologies, R&D activities, and new product developments



The report answers questions such as:

1. What is the market size and forecast of the Global Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market?

2. What are the inhibiting factors and impact of COVID-19 shaping the Global Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market during the forecast period?

3. Which are the products/segments/applications/areas to invest in over the forecast period in the Global Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market?

4. What is the competitive strategic window for opportunities in the Global Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market?

5. What are the technology trends and regulatory frameworks in the Global Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market?

6. What are the modes and strategic moves considered suitable for entering the Global Dual Chamber Syringe Filling Machine Market?

Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05968830/?utm_source=GNW



About Reportlinker

ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place.



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Both Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and President Donald Trump want a vote on his nominee to replace Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg -- but they're not expected to find that easy going.

The GOP effort could be thwarted by as few as four Republicans siding with Democrats.

One of them, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, said Saturday that any confirmation vote should wait until after the presidential election and that the man elected Nov. 3 should select the nominee.

PHOTO: Susan Collins speaks on the Senate floor, Feb. 4, 2020, in Washington, DC. (Pool/Senate TV)

"I do not believe that the Senate should vote on the nominee prior to the election," Collins, who is in a fierce re-election battle, said in a statement Saturday. "In fairness to the American people, who will either be re-electing the President or selecting a new one, the decision on a lifetime appointment to the Supreme Court should be made by the President who is elected on November 3rd."

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, is expected to join Collins in opposition. Both women support abortion rights, and both have stated that they believe how the GOP-controlled Senate handled President Barack Obama's nominee, Judge Merrick Garland, in 2016 sets a precedent that ought to be followed in 2020.

"When Republicans held off Merrick Garland it was because nine months prior to the election was too close, we needed to let people decide. And I agreed to do that," Murkowski told The Hill this summer. "If we now say that months prior to the election is OK when nine months was not, that is a double standard and I dont believe we should do it."

PHOTO: Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski looks on during the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing to examine COVID-19 'focusing on lessons learned to prepare for the next pandemic' on Capitol Hill,on June 23, 2020, in Washington. (Pool/Getty Images)

Other Republicans who will be watched closely in the coming weeks have not yet made their positions known, seemingly, unlike Collins, following the advice of McConnell who Friday advised his members to keep the powder dry in a letter obtained by the Washington Post and confirmed by ABC News.

MORE: Trump calls on Senate Republicans to act 'without delay' on SCOTUS pick

Eyes will be on Sen. Mitt Romney, who was the lone Republican to vote in favor of Trumps impeachment at the beginning of the year.

Story continues

Senate institutionalists, like Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, as well as those up for reelection and especially vulnerable, like Cory Gardner, R-Colo., could also voice opposition.

A GOP source with knowledge of the matter tells ABC News that conservatives are pushing President Trump to name a replacement soon in order to "put a face and a personal story" behind their push to replace Justice Ginsburg. The source said that could make it harder for some to oppose the nominee.

PHOTO: Sen. Lindsey Graham listens during a hearing with the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies on Capitol Hill, in Washington, Sept. 16, 2020. (Pool/Reuters)

Trump said Saturday afternoon he "totally disagrees" with Collins.

"Well, I totally disagree with her. We have an obligation. We won. And we have an obligation as the winners to pick who we want. That's not the next president. Hopefully, I will be the next president," he told reporters as he left the White House for a campaign rally in North Carolina.

When a reporter asked, "What about Obama?" Trump responded, "But we're here now, right now we're here, and we have an obligation to the voters, all of the people, the millions of people that put us here, in the form of a victory. We have an obligation to them, to all of those voters, and it's a very simple thing. So, I would disagree. If that's what she said, that's not the way I read it. I read it differently, but, but if that's what she said, I totally disagree."

Once Trump has named his pick, which he said would come "next week," it will be up to Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham to shepherd the nominee through his committee.

Graham announced Saturday that he will take up a Trump nomination just 45 days to the presidential election, reversing his past position on the matter, doing so in an election year when control of the Senate hangs in the balance.

I will support President @realDonaldTrump in any effort to move forward regarding the recent vacancy created by the passing of Justice Ginsburg," Graham, of South Carolina, tweeted Saturday.

That about-face also puts Graham in line with McConnell, who announced in a statement Friday evening that Trumps nominee will get a vote on the floor of the U.S. Senate shortly after the news broke of Ginsburgs death.

Both men famously blocked Obama's nomination of Garland, his pick to fill the vacancy left by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia almost 11 months before the 2016 presidential election.

In 2016 Graham argued that he believed the vacancy came too close to a presidential election at a time when the Senate and the White House were controlled by different parties.

If there is a Republican President in 2016 and a vacancy occurs in the last year of the first term, you can say Lindsey Graham said let us let the next President, whoever it might be, make that nomination and you could use my words against me, and you would be absolutely right, Graham said at the time.

MORE: Donald Trump to put forth nominee to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in coming days: Sources

PHOTO: Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell speaks during a news conference at the US Capitol, in Washington, June 17, 2020. (Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images, File)

McConnell also said in 2016 that Garlands nomination came too close to a presidential election. Later, the Kentucky senator went on to say that he opposed pushing a nomination through because the Senate was controlled by Republicans at the time, while the White House was held by a Democrat.

In a speech in his home state, McConnell said that telling Obama that his nomination would not clear the Senate was one of the proudest moments of his Senate career.

Senate Democrats and their outside allied groups have blasted the shift by McConnell and are expected to fight to keep a third Trump nominee from the highest court in the land.

PHOTO:Sen. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer speaks at a news conference with reporters at the Capitol, in Washington, July 23, 2020. (Erin Scott/Reuters)

Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told Senate Democrats in a conference call Saturday afternoon that their "number one goal" must be to communicate what is at stake in the upcoming battle to fill the seat, according to a source familiar with the call.

Still, because of a rules change engineered by Republicans in 2017, Democrats have no real procedural tools at their disposal to stop the GOP majority from pushing through a nomination.

In 2017, Republicans altered the rules of the Senate to allow a simple majority of the chamber to approve a Supreme Court nomination -- at the time, conservative jurist Neil Gorsuch -- down from the 60-vote threshold previously needed for high court appointees and legislative measures to move forward to a final vote.

Conservatives are pushing for the eventual nominee to be confirmed by Election Day, something several GOP leadership aides and former officials responsible for the Senate nomination process said would be nearly impossible.

On average, a nomination takes 70 days from nomination to final Senate confirmation, according to a 2018 Congressional Research Service Report. That said, John Paul Stevens waited just 19 days, followed by Sandra Day OConnor whose nomination lasted just over a month, the report noted.

ABC News' Elizabeth Thomas contributed to this report.

As Senate Republicans push for vote on Supreme Court nominee, Collins objects originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) said on Saturday nine al Qaeda terrorists planning attacks in several places in the country, including the National Capital Region (NCR), were arrested after simultaneous raids in locations in Kerala and West Bengal, officials said on Saturday.

All the nine operatives arrested from Keralas Ernakulam and West Bengals Murshidabad are linked to a terror plot targeting Kochi, Delhi and Mumbai, according to NIA officials. Their targets included the Kochi naval base and shipyard, they said, adding that weapons and bomb-making material were also seized from the men.

Six of them were arrested from Murshidabad and three from Ernakulam were planning single wolf attacks as human bombs, officials said.

NIA had learnt about an inter-state module of Al-Qaeda operatives at various locations in India including West-Bengal and Kerala. The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds, the agency said in a statement.

The agency has registered a case and initiated an investigation.

As per the preliminary investigation, these individuals were radicalised by Pakistan-based Al-Qaeda terrorists on social media and were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places including the National Capital Region. For this purpose, the module was actively indulging in fundraising and a few members of the gang were planning to travel to New Delhi to procure arms and ammunition. These arrests have pre-empted possible terrorist attacks in various parts of the country, it added.

It added that a large quantity of incriminating material including digital devices, documents, jihadi literature, sharp weapons, country-made firearms, a locally fabricated body armour, articles and literature used for making home-made explosive devices have been seized from their possession.

NIA is looking into whether any locals supported these operatives and is collecting details from their encrypted Telegram service.

The three arrested in Kerala are also Bengalis but settled among migrant labourers. The raids by NIA are underway in Ernakulam and Murshidabad. More arrests are likely, said people who are part of the investigation.

Kerala police were put on high alert following the arrests and are keeping a close tab on migrant workers camps, officials said. In Kerala, there is an estimated 25 lakh workforce from other states mainly engaged in construction, small scale units and hotels.

The arrested men will be produced before courts in Kerala and West Bengal for police custody and further investigation, the agency said.

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Nigeria's Supreme Court in late August upheld the right of female children to inherit property from their fathers, a ruling that has shaken traditional, male-only inheritance in ethnic groups like the Igbo. Some critics say the Supreme Court ruling attacks traditions and customs.
Toby Antony By

Express News Service

KOCHI: The arrest of three members of an Al Qaeda-affiliated group is not the first incident in which members of international terror groups were traced from Kerala.

The state is turning out to be a haven for terrorist groups especially Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) which has roots in West Bengal and Assam  the states which contribute the largest migrant workforce to Kerala.

Earlier this year, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had prepared data about the number of JMB members caught from various states till January 2020. Of the 120 JMB members arrested, 59 were caught from Assam and 42 from West Bengal.

ALSO READ | Arrest of Al-Qaeda men shows Kerala is safe haven for terrorists: State BJP chief Surendran

After these two states, four JMB members each were caught from Kerala and Jharkhand.

Apart from that, it was found that some of the JMB operatives arrested from West Bengal and Assam had stayed in Kerala.

Last year, West Bengal police arrested Abdul Matin from Malappuram in the 2014 Burdwan blast case. Another JMB operative was arrested by NIA in 2018.

According to NIA sources, Maoists from other states, including West Bengal, used to travel to Kerala when agencies started a crackdown on their home turf. Now even other terrorist organisations like Al-Qaeda and JMB are coming to southern states.

ALSO READ | NIA Al-Qaeda operatives' arrests: Central agencies had eye on rackets bringing Bangladeshis to Kerala

It is the journey distance that ensures a safe haven for them in southern states, especially Kerala. Similarly, the migrant workforce is so high in Kerala that operatives can settle in places like Perumbavoor without being noticed by any agency.

"Though these persons submit various documents to prove their identity before the employers, a detailed check on the history of the person at the native place is not possible, an official said.

Other than JMB, Indian Mujahideen (IM) operatives Tehsin Akthar and Zia Ur Rehman alias Waqas Ahmed were found to have stayed secretly in Munnar for months in 2013.

Both Tehsin and Waqas were top leaders of IM, but the arrest of Yasin Bhatkal and the duo almost spelt doom for the terror group.

Waqas was a Pakistan national. However, it was after the arrest of the duo in 2014 that the state police came to know about their stay in Kerala.

Similarly, a top Maoist leader Malla Raja Reddy and wife Suguna were traced by Andhra Police at Angamaly in December 2007.

They were wanted in over a dozen Maoist cases. Alam Jeb Afridi who was involved in several terror strikes, including the 2015 arson at the Israeli Visa Centre in Bengaluru, had visited Kochi and did a recce of Jewish Synagogue in Fort Kochi.

He was part of 20 persons from other states who trained at Wagamon before the 2008 Ahmedabad blast.
Organizers for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden say the campaign is in every corner of Michigan, even if the largely online operation isnt as noticeable compared to a normal election year.

The presidential campaign is entering its final stretch, days before Michigan clerks begin mailing absentee ballots to voters and less than seven weeks until votes are counted Nov. 3. While Bidens campaign has mostly kept its Michigan field organization confined to computer screens, Michigan Republicans are opening field offices at a weekly pace and holding large in-person events to drive support for Trump.
Washington

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87, whose 27-year tenure as the second female justice on the U.S. Supreme Court culminated a legal career dedicated to advancing the rights of women, has died.

She died due to complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer and was surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, the court said in a statement Friday. Ginsburg battled with five bouts of cancer.

Her death comes less than two months before an election and gives President Donald Trump a chance to try to shift the conservative nine-member court further to the right by filling a third seat. Senate confirmation of his nominee would increase the chances of a decision overturning or severely curtailing the Roe v. Wade abortion-rights ruling.

Only days before her death, National Public Radio reported that Ginsburg dictated this statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera: "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has said the Senate would move to confirm any nominee this year, even though in 2016 McConnell blocked President Barack Obama from having a hearing on his nominee, Merrick Garland. That set the stage for Trump to nominate Neil Gorsuch instead.

"Our nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague," Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement. "Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her  a tireless and resolute champion of justice."

Long before President Bill Clinton appointed her to the Supreme Court in 1993, Ginsburg argued cases before the court as a scholar and advocate of the women's rights movement.

On the court, she built a record as one of the most liberal members, supporting gay and abortion rights, Obama's health-care law and restrictions on the death penalty.

Her strong dissents from rulings that cut back on voting rights and affirmative action won her the admiring nickname "Notorious R.B.G." Two films about her were released in 2018.

She drew criticism during the 2016 presidential campaign when she denounced Trump, the Republican nominee, as a "faker" in n interview. Ginsburg later said she regretted the comments.

Ginsburg said she experienced gender discrimination personally when she tried, without success, to join New York City's major law firms after being a star law student at Harvard and Columbia universities in the late 1950s.

Ginsburg made her clearest mark on the Supreme Court when she was fighting what she saw as gender discrimination.

When the court voted 5-4 in 2007 to uphold a federal ban on a late-term abortion procedure, Ginsburg took issue with the all-male majority's professed concern that women might regret having an abortion and thus suffer a loss of self-esteem.

Ginsburg wrote the court's 7-1 decision in 1996 that ended the men-only admission policy at the state-funded Virginia Military Institute. In 2003, she joined the majority in upholding an affirmative action plan at the University of Michigan Law School, while dissenting from a second decision that overturned a race-conscious undergraduate admissions policy at the University of Michigan.

In 2013, she was the first justice to officiate at a same-sex marriage, and two years later was part of the 5-4 majority that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. She voted in two cases to uphold key provisions of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, and dissented from the 5-4 Citizens United ruling in 2010 that struck down decades-old restrictions on corporate campaign spending.

Since 2010, Ginsburg was the senior member of the court's liberal wing, with the prerogative to write the main dissenting opinion.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

She did just that in 2013, when a 5-4 court threw out a core part of the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965, citing reduced incidents of discrimination as a reason. Ginsburg said the majority's approach was "like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet."

In 2015, Ginsburg joined Justice Stephen Breyer in calling for the court to consider whether the death penalty is constitutional.

In the bitterly fought case that decided the 2000 presidential election for George W. Bush, Ginsburg said in dissent that thousands of votes had not been counted.

Ginsburg was one of the most durable justices in history. Before a liver tumor, she had contracted colon, lung and on two occasions pancreatic cancer, and she was hospitalized on multiple occasions for less serious ailments. Until 2019, when she was recovering from surgery to remove masses from a lung, Ginsburg never missed an argument because of illness.

Ruth Joan Bader was born on March 15, 1933, in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn. At Cornell University in Ithaca, she had a blind date with a classmate, Martin Ginsburg, and found him to be, "the only young man I dated who cared that I had a brain." They married in 1954.

Ginsburg joined her husband as a student at Harvard Law School and finished legal studies at Columbia Law School. In 1972, she became the first director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Women's Rights Project. At the ACLU, Ginsburg became a leading practitioner before the Supreme Court, planning and arguing sex-discrimination cases that cumulatively established for the first time that discrimination against women was banned by the Constitution's equal-protection clause.

President Jimmy Carter appointed her to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in 1980. Justice Byron White's announcement in March 1993 that he would retire gave Democrats their first Supreme Court pick in more than 25 years.

The Senate confirmed her 96-3.

Ginsburg and her husband, who died in 2010, had two children, Jane, a Columbia Law School professor, and James, a producer of classical music recordings.
By PTI

CHANDIGARH: The Bharatiya Kisan Union's Haryana unit will hold a statewide protest against the Centre's farm bills on Sunday during which they will block roads for three hours, even as Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar appealed for deferring the stir and invited them for talks.

Haryana BKU chief Gurnam Singh said the Centre did not withdraw the three agriculture-related ordinances and presented them as bills during the ongoing session of Parliament, which have been passed in the Lok Sabha.

"We had warned the government not to go ahead with these 'anti-farmer' legislations. Tomorrow, we will be holding a protest across the state during which we will block roads for three hours. However, the GT road (national highway) will not be blocked," he said on Saturday, adding that they have support from other farmer outfits.

He also said that farmers from Haryana and Punjab will start a movement against the "anti-farmer" measures which will later intensify into pan-India protests.

On September 10, the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) along with some other farmer outfits had held a protest in Kurukshetra's Pipli against the farm ordinances.

The BKU leader also demanded that all cases registered against the protesting farmers on September 10 be withdrawn.

In an official statement, Khattar urged the farmers to defer the agitation and invited them for discussion.

Reiterating his government's commitment towards protection of farmers' interests, the CM said on one hand, everyone in a democracy has the right to express their views, on the other hand, maintaining peace in the state is also the utmost duty of any government.

He asserted that the farm reforms are in the interest of farmers.

"It is unfortunate to see that the opposition parties have blatantly politicised the issue to achieve their vested interests by misleading the farmers."

"Being the son of a farmer, I urge the farmers to remember the appeal made by Deenbandhu Chaudhary Chhotu Ram wherein he said that they should recognise their enemies," the statement quoted Khattar as saying.

The chief minister said those who are spreading confusion about the farm bills in such times "are the ones who are the real enemies of farmers and are just trying to serve their own political interests rather than having any concern about peasants".

"If the farmers' interest had been at all affected by these farm reforms, I would have been the first person to oppose them," he said.

He also reiterated that the 'mandi' system and minimum support price (MSP) mechanism were here to stay.

Meanwhile, the state government issued directions to ensure law and order and minimise inconvenience to the people of the state during the protest from 12 noon to 3 pm on Sunday.

An official spokesperson said deputy commissioners of police, inspector generals (IGs) and superintendents of police (SPs) have been directed to reach out to farmer leaders and ensure a peaceful protest.

He said all executive magistrates and police officers have been asked to remain present in the districts and not to proceed on leave.

"Executive magistrates have been directed to remain stationed along with their police counterparts at all such places where congregation of protestors is anticipated."

"Besides this, joint patrolling of the national and state highways or important roads should be conducted by the executive magistrates along with police officials from September 19 itself so as to instill a sense of confidence amongst citizens," the spokesperson said in a statement.

The chief minister said if the farmer associations still go ahead with the agitation, they should ensure that least inconvenience is caused to common citizens.

He urged that special care should be taken to ensure no obstruction in the way for any patient going to hospital, pregnant women and vehicles supplying essential commodities.

The CM also asked the protestors of being vigilant against "anti-social elements" who try to spread violence during such protests.

Reacting to the protest call, Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said all arrangements have been made to ensure that vehicular movement on highways is not disrupted during the agitation.

He also appealed to farmers not to block any highway.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 20:27:30|Editor: huaxia

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A crane works to lift the wreckage of the Dingyuan Battleship out of seawater near Liugong Island in the city of Weihai, east China's Shandong Province, Sept. 18, 2020. (national center of the underwater cultural heritage of the National Cultural Heritage Administration/Handout via Xinhua)

JINAN, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- An 18-tonne iron plate that was confirmed to be part of the wreckage of a renowned battleship of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) has been lifted out of the water in east China's Shandong Province, archaeologists said on Saturday.

The plate, 2.86 meters long, 2.6 meters wide, and 0.33 meters thick, was craned out of the seawater near Liugong Island in the city of Weihai, the former base of the Beiyang Fleet, on Thursday, which marked the 126th anniversary of the First Sino-Japanese War, commonly known in China as the Jiawu War.

The plate provided strong evidence that the shipwreck was part of Dingyuan, a flagship vessel of the Beiyang Fleet, as it echoed the written records in the shipbuilding contract of Dingyuan in terms of material and other details, said Zhou Chunshui, leader of the underwater archaeological survey team of the Dingyuan Battleship.

According to the national center of the underwater cultural heritage of the National Cultural Heritage Administration, which led the salvage, the iron plate is the only armor plate retrieved from the water, so far, that was used to protect the battleships of the Beiyang Fleet.

The plate has been moved to the former base of the Beiyang Fleet at Liugong Island and is being desalted for preservation.

With a displacement of 7,670 long tons, Dingyuan was built in Germany by the commission of the Qing Dynasty. It was damaged after being torpedoed by the invading Japanese fleet in February 1895, before its captain ordered it scuttled to prevent it from falling into enemy hands. Enditem
September 19, 2020 " Information Clearing House " Alices curiouser and curiouser remark in Lewis Carrolls Adventures in Wonderland applies to dubious twists in the Navalny novichok poisoning hoax.

No evidence or motive links Russia to what happened to him.

Was the August 20 Tomsk, Russia incident made-in-the-USA?

Was Germany pressured, bullied or bribed to go along  at the expense of its own self-interest?

Clearly Angela Merkel, other German officials, their Western counterparts, and establishment media know the claim about Navalnys novichok poisoning is a colossal hoax.

They know that anyone exposed to the toxin, the worlds deadliest, would be dead in minutes.

The same goes for others in close proximity to the exposed individual.

Navalny is very much alive and recovering nearly a month after falling ill.

No one he came in contact with developed novichok poisoning symptoms.

Russian doctors treating him with state-of-the-art equipment and tests found no toxins of any kind in his system.

They saved his life and stabilized his condition, enabling him to travel to Berlin for further treatment.

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If the Kremlin wanted him dead, hed have been left untreated in Russia to die.

Hes recovering because of heroic treatment by Russian doctors.

On Thursday, elements close to Navalny shifted the fake news novichok poisoning narrative from tea he drank in the Tomsk, Russia airline terminal to the deadly nerve agent in his hotel room water bottle.

Are other versions of what happened to him coming ahead?

Claiming novichok traces were found in a hotel water bottle he drank from doesnt pass the smell test.

The deadly substance in an opened hotel room bottle would likely contaminate and kill anyone near it.

If, in fact, Navalny was poisoned by novichok in his hotel room overnight, hed have died in minutes, clearly not what happened.

The novichok in a hotel room bottle scenario is implausible on its face.

Claiming members of his team entered his hotel room after learning of his illness, found it uncleaned, and examined everything potentially useful for an investigation  recording, describing, and packing everything would have exposed them to novichok if it existed by touching the alleged bottle with the toxin.

Whatever happened to Navalny wasnt from novichok poisoning in a bottle or from any other source.

On Thursday, Russias Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscows representative to the OPCW Alexander Shulgin requested copies of files the organization received from Germany on Navalnys condition, but got no response, adding:

According to our dataGermany and a whole number of (other Western) countries (are) cultivating the OPCW with regard to the Navalny incident.

Since he arrived in Berlin for treatment over three weeks ago, Merkels government stonewalled Russia by refusing to provide evidence it claims to have about novichok poisoning because there is none.

On Thursday, Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said (t)here is too much absurdity about this whole situation to take anyones word on trust, so we are not going to take anyones word, adding:

(T)he situation is as follows: the OPCW Technical Secretariat says we know nothing. Talk to the Germans, and the Germans say we know nothing. Talk to the OPCW.

Russian lower house State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin suggested foreign intelligence responsibility for what happened to Navalny.

On Thursday, majority Russophobic European Parliament (EP) MPs adopted a resolution that calls for an immediate launch of an impartial international investigation (sic) on the Navalny incident by the EU, its allies, the UN, Council of Europe, and OPCW  to frame Russia for what happened to Navalny.

The resolution also calls for (unjustifiably and unlawfully) sanctioning Russia and suspending Nord Stream 2 construction.

EP resolutions are non-binding. The EP, Council of the European Union, European Council, and European Commission operate separately from individual member states.

Time and again earlier, they irresponsibly bashed Russia in cahoots with the US, adopting non-binding resolutions.

According to Zakharova earlier, anti-Russia propaganda is based on paranoiaphobias, fictitious messages (and) myths.

Interviewed by Radio Sputnik in Moscow, Sergey Lavrov said Western governments want Russia punished both for what is happening in Belarus and for the incident with Navalny, adding:

They refuse to fulfill mandated obligations under the European Convention on Legal Aid by not responding to official requests by the Russian Prosecutor Generals Office for documented information on Navalnys condition.

Germany says that it cannot tell us anything. They say, go to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

We went there several times. They say go to Berlin.

They loudly declare that the fact of poisoning has been established. Except for Russia nobody could have done it. Admit it.

All this has already happened with the fake news Skripals novichok poisoning incident.

Russia is a valued ally of all world community countries.

Instead of fostering cooperative relations with Moscow, actions by Germany and other EU countries risk rupturing them.

Visit Stephen's website : stephenlendman.org (Home  Stephen Lendman). Contact at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.
Police officers in Minsk detained several protesters as women in Belarus' capital rallied for a third consecutive week against the recent re-election of the country's authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko.

Among those detained during Saturday's demonstration was prominent 74-year-old protester Nina Bahinskaya.

Local media reported that she was released from custody upon arriving at a police station.

It was also reported that at least one member of the media was detained.

During the weekend protest, police officers blocked demonstrators in several locations.

The demonstrations first began after the country's presidential election on 9 August that officials say handed Lukashenko a sixth term in office with an overwhelming 80% support.

Opponents of the longtime leader have claimed that the election results were rigged.

During a ferocious protest crackdown in the first few days after the election, nearly 7,000 people were arrested and hundreds were injured.

Belarusian authorities have since changed tactics and tried to squash protests with the selective detentions of demonstrators and the jailing of opposition leaders.

(Image Credit Pixabay)
Shinzo Abe, who stepped down this week as Japans prime minister, on Saturday visited a war shrine seen by neighbouring countries as a symbol of Tokyos past militarism.

Abe last visited the controversial shrine in December 2013, sparking fury from wartime foes Beijing and Seoul and earning a rare diplomatic rebuke from close ally the United States.

Abe posted a picture of himself in a dark suit walking along a wooden corridor at the shrine in central Tokyo on Saturday, escorted by a Shinto priest in a white robe.

Today, I paid my respects at the Yasukuni Shrine and reported to the spirits of the war dead my resignation as prime minister, the nationalist politician tweeted.

The former premier had refrained from paying tributes at the shrine in person since his 2013 visit despite other conservative politicians doing so, in particular on August 15 to mark Japans surrender in World War II.

Four ministers from Abes cabinet paid tributes at the shrine last month in the first such visit since 2016.

Yasukuni honours 2.5 million war dead, mostly Japanese, who perished in the countrys wars since the late 19th century.

But it also honours senior military and political figures convicted of war crimes by an international tribunal after the war.

Abe announced late last month that he was stepping down due to health problems and was replaced by Yoshihide Suga on Wednesday.
New Zealand investigative journalist Nicky Hager testified in Julian Assanges extradition hearing yesterday morning. Hager has extensive experience in reporting imperialist violence and intrigue. In 2017, he released the book Hit and Run with co-author Jon Stephenson exposing the killing of civilians by New Zealand and United States forces in Afghanistan. He worked with WikiLeaks in the release of US diplomatic cables from November 2010 and made use of other releases in his writing.

Hager explained that serious journalists routinely make use of classified materials when reporting on conflicts and potential state crimes. This, he said, was generally impossible  without access to sources that the authorities concerned regard as sensitive and out of bounds. Consequently, information marked as classified is essential to allow journalism to perform its role in informing people about war, enabling democratic decision making and deterring wrongdoing.

The Iraq and Afghanistan war logs and US embassy cables obtained by WikiLeaks, Hager said, were documents of the highest public interestsome of the most important material I have ever used in my life. Referring to the Collateral Murder video, which District Judge Vanessa Baraitser intervened to stop him describing in full, he said, After the shooting, the pilot and the co-pilot were heard saying Look at those dead bastards, with the other replying Nice  My belief is  the publication of that video and those words was the equivalent of the death of George Floyd and his words I cant breathe. They had a profound effect on public opinion in the world.

Collateral Murder [Credit: WikiLeaks]

Prosecution lawyer James Lewis QC began his cross-examination in the usual way by insisting that Assange was not being charged in connection with the Collateral Murder video. Hager responded, The way that information has an effect on the world through the news, media and public debate is not in a neat, segmented way like what might happen in a courtroom.  The war diaries and the embassy cables and the Guantanamo material and the Apache [helicopter gunship video] affect the world as a whole and not divisible parts.

When Lewis asked a series of questions about whether Hager would conspire with a source, he said the question was based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the work that someone like me does  we work with people who in most cases are breaking the law when they help us. We have to talk through with them how they can look after themselves.

Following Hagers testimony, defence lawyer Florence Iveson read a summary of a statement submitted by Assange lawyer Jennifer Robinson. She described being present at a meeting between Assange, Donald Trump associate Charles Johnson and Congressman Dana Rohrabacher in August 2017, arranged at the latters request. According to Robinson, they claimed to be acting on President Trumps authority and presented Assange with a win-win solution. If Assange would name his source for the 2016 US election leaks on the Democratic Party, Assange would be offered a pardon, assurance or agreement. Assange refused to give any information and Rohrabacher returned to the US promising to discuss the matter with the president.

The prosecution responded briefly that they accepted Robinsons report as true, but not the claims of Rohrabacher and Johnson to be representing Trump.

An exchange between the two legal teams and the judge then followed over whether the next witness, Khalid El-Masri, would have to be produced in court or simply have his written statement summarised by the defence.

El-Masri, a German citizen, was falsely identified as a terrorist while travelling in Macedonia in 2004, handed over to the CIA and taken to a black site in Afghanistan, where he was imprisoned and tortured for five months until being released without an apology. He brought a successful case in the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in 2012 and is now pursuing a case against the US through the International Criminal Court.

It was ultimately agreed that El-Masri would not be produced to testify. Assange interjected, "I refuse to allow the censorship of a victim of torture in this court." He was again talked over and silenced by Baraitser. The WikiLeaks founder called a halt when his lawyer Mark Summers QC began to summarise El-Masris statement and asked for time to instruct his representatives.

When court resumed, Summers described how El-Masri was, in his own words, beaten, shackled, hooded, sodomised  given anaesthetic and rendered unconscious by the CIA and then flown to Afghanistan, where he was held in a concrete cell, naked, humiliated, with a bucket for a toilet and interrogated. When he was finally released, he was flown to Albania, driven up a mountain road and told to get out.

Back in Germany, he sought justice for what had happened. Governments, both his own and those who he perceived as being responsible for what had happened to him, sought to discredit him and his account, to silence him. When an international arrest warrant was finally issued by the Munich state prosecutor for the CIA rendition team, that warrant was not executed. It became clear in 2010-2011 when WikiLeaks published the cables that pressures had been placed on Germany by the US not to give effect to that arrest warrant. The cables were relied on in his case in the ECHR in 2012, which he won.

In the afternoon, cross-examination of US constitutional law scholar Carey Shenkman continued on the Espionage Acts use against Assange. The previous day Shenkman had told the court, I never thought, based on history, wed see an indictment that looked like this, describing the charges as truly extraordinary.

However, Shenkmans written testimony sworn in the previous day had located the Assange precedent amid a ferocious assault on First Amendment rights to free speech and freedom of the press under both the Obama and Trump administrations. It explained, More Espionage Act prosecutions of media sources under the administration of President Barack Obama were initiated than under all previous administrations combined. These prosecutions included cases against Thomas Drake, Shamai Leibowitz, Stephen Kim, Chelsea Manning, Donald Sachtleben, Jeffrey Stirling, John Kiriakou and Edward Snowden. These defendants are prevented from arguing that their disclosures were made in the public interest or to expose corruption, fraud, or war crimes.

In court on Thursday, barrister Clair Dobbin for the US government had referred to statements by Assanges US lawyer, the late Michael Rattner, in 2013, that Obamas Department of Justice was going after WikiLeaks in spades.

The Old Bailey where Assange is being tried

What has changed? Dobbin asked Shenkman, challenging the defences case that Obama had decided not to prosecute.

Lawyers for the US government have repeatedly argued that Obamas Department of Justice made no decision to suspend prosecution, pointing to an ongoing grand jury investigation against Assange.

What is clear from Shenkmans own testimony, is that the Trump administration built on Obamas repressive political legacy, prosecuting disclosures of national security information more aggressively than any president in US history (Shenkman), having already exceeded the number of Obama-era prosecutions in the space of just one term.

Yesterdays cross-examination centred on the scope of the Espionage Act, with US prosecutors making clear that journalists and media outlets are now a legitimate targetespecially those which are deemed non-conventional.

Responding to Shenkmans brief review of Espionage Act threats against media organisations for publishing secretsunder the presidencies of Roosevelt, Truman, Nixon, Ford and George H.W. BushDobbin said, In the cases that you cite, they are almost all examples of publishers in the conventional sense. In other words, serious news outlets employing serious national defence journalists?

Shenkman replied, No, Beacon Press [investigated for publishing the Pentagon Papers] was the publishing arm of the Unitarian Universalist Association. These were often not mainstream news outlets at all. They were often outlets that had political views that were perceived to be contrary to the administration or that were exposing secrets or policies, that were deemed an opposition to prevailing policies.

The Truman administrations espionage case against Amerasia, a tiny, niche journal with a subscription of less than 2,000 individuals, was similarly politically motivated. It published documents leaked by China experts in the US State Department who were critical of US policy toward China after World War II. The high-ups in the State Department, as it came out later, were furious with this and for political reasons  they brought forward a conspiracy Espionage Act case.

Shenkman responded forthrightly to Dobbins suggestion that only serious news outlets should be exempt from prosecutions under the Espionage Act, insisting, The First Amendment doesnt make any such distinction.

Shenkman rejected Dobbins claims that WikiLeaks was being charged for conduct that was fundamentally different from those earlier publications he had cited. For example, Amerasias editors and journalists were alleged to have conspired to obtain and publish documents with insider sources and Beacon Press published the Pentagon Papers because they wanted a library of information to be available to the public, to scholars  which in my view is a precursor to the type of philosophy behind WikiLeaks.

Pointing to the targeting of WikiLeaks, Shenkman asked, Is there a legal principle to limit the application of this law  or is it a political limitation, because based on my reading of the indictment, its all political.

In the days final session, Edward Fitzgerald QC read into evidence key excerpts from a witness statement from journalist Dean Yates. As Reuters bureau chief in Baghdads red zone, Yates witnessed events surrounding the Collateral Murder airstrike, which left two Reuters journalists dead.

Yates recalled, Suddenly loud wailing broke out near the back of our office. I still remember the anguished face of the Iraqi colleague who burst through the door. Another colleague translated: Namir and Saeed have been killed.

Yates described how this unprovoked murder of civiliansNamir was a photographer and Saeed a respected driver/fixerwas described by the US military: There is no question that Coalition forces were engaged in combat operations against an insurgent force.

As Fitzgerald read from Yates statement, Baraitser interjected repeatedly, claiming his account was irrelevant to proceedings. Throughout the hearing, US prosecutors have claimed the Collateral Murder video is not part of their case against Assange. But as Fitzgerald argued, after taking instruction from his client, the Collateral Murder video is connected indivisibly from the Iraq Rules of Engagement published by WikiLeaks and named in the US indictment. It was on the basis of these Rules of Engagement that Apaches crew member Crazy Horse 1-8 fired on civilians, leaving 18 dead and horrifically injuring two children.

The hearing continues on Monday.
Global warming is dramatically increasing the risk of extreme hurricanes in the Caribbean, but meeting more ambitious climate change goals could up to halve the likelihood of such disasters in the region, according to new research.

The study, led by the University of Bristol, analysed future projections of hurricane rainfall in the Caribbean and found it to be particularly vulnerable to climate change, resulting in extreme hurricane rainfall events being as much as five times more likely in a warmer world.

Hurricane research has previously focused on the United States, so we wanted to look at the Caribbean region, which has fewer resources to recover. The findings are alarming and illustrate the urgent need to tackle global warming to reduce the likelihood of extreme rainfall events and their catastrophic consequences, particularly for poorer countries which take many years to recover, said lead author Emily Vosper, Research Student at the School of Computer Science, at the University of Bristol.

The researchers generated thousands of synthetic hurricanes under three climate scenarios: present day conditions compared to the Paris Agreement goals of 1.5 degrees Celsius and 2C warming above pre-industrial levels. The main objective of the Paris Agreement, a global framework to tackle climate change, is to hold the global average temperature increase to well below 2C above pre-industrial levels and endeavour to limit the temperature increase to 1.5C.

Focusing their analysis on the Caribbean region, the study generated rainfall statistics by applying a physics-based model to the synthetic hurricanes. The model takes into account several factors including the land features and large-scale winds, and has been shown to give realistic results compared to observations of real-life hurricanes.

The study, published in Environmental Research Letters, found that extreme hurricane rainfall events affecting the Caribbean, those which typically happen once every 100 years under the current climate, occur more often under the Paris Agreement scenarios. But a 1.5C warmer world would see significantly fewer intense Caribbean hurricanes, reducing occurrence by as much as half in the Eastern regions, compared to a 2C warmer world.

Hurricane Maria brought as much as a quarter of normal annual rainfall to some regions of Puerto Rico when it made landfall in 2017 and storms of this magnitude are roughly once in a 100-year events. The results show that in a 2C warmer world, an event of similar size to Maria would be more than twice (2.3 times) as likely, occurring once every 43 years. Similarly, a 100-year storm affecting the Bahamas would be 4.5 times as likely under the 2C Paris Agreement scenario compared to the present day. Under the more ambitious goal of 1.5C warming, such extreme hurricane rainfall events affecting the Dominican Republic would occur roughly once every 57 years, which is half as likely compared to the 2C warming scenario where they would occur once every 30 years.

Emily said: We expected extreme hurricanes to be more prevalent in the 2C global warming scenario, but the scale of the projected increases was surprising and should serve as a stark warning to countries across the globe underscoring the importance of keeping climate change under control.

The projections reinforce the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change special report, which concludes that restricting global warming to 1.5C would limit the risk of climate-related hazards, such as torrential rainfall, drought, and temperature extremes.

Emily said: Our findings show that the impacts of a 2C warming above pre-industrial levels are set to disproportionately affect the Caribbean. By focusing efforts to stabilise global warming to the more ambitious 1.5C goal, we could dramatically reduce the likelihood of extreme hurricane rainfall events in the area, particularly in the Eastern Caribbean region.

It takes at least six years for even the richest of the Caribbean countries to rebuild after a major hurricane hits, stalling economic growth. Building resilient infrastructure throughout the islands is not feasible due to financial and time constraints. The study recommends its findings could be used to inform a multi-hazard, multi-scale approach which identifies the most at-risk areas so resilience funding and strategies can be more effectively targeted.

Emily said: Resources to mitigate damage are limited, so our findings could help highlight the hotspots in greatest danger and need. An integrated climate risk approach is needed to fully understand the threat of future hurricanes to Caribbean populations.

Further studies could therefore incorporate factors that directly affect the health and well-being of local populations  such as storm surge, flood and landslide modelling  into the rainfall results to quantify such threats and feed into adaptation and resilience planning.

Reducing the likelihood of extreme hurricanes should be the overriding priority. Our research clearly illustrates how vital it is to keep striving to meet the lower global warming temperature target, and the collective responsibility all countries, cities, communities, governments and individuals share to make that happen.

Paper

'Extreme hurricane rainfall affecting Caribbean mitigated by the Paris Agreement goals' by Emily Vosper, Dann Mitchell, and Kerry Emanuel in Environmental Research Letters
President Donald Trump approved a deal Saturday that will allow TikTok to continue operating in the United States, a decision that comes after more than a month of geopolitical turmoil between Washington and Beijing over the future of the video-sharing app.

The deal will make Oracle, a California-based software and cloud company close to Trump's administration, a minority shareholder in TikTok and give it control over the companys U.S. data. Walmart and multiple U.S. venture capital firms will also own chunks of the company, which will locate its global headquarters in the United States and appoint new U.S. leadership.

TikTok's Chinese-based parent, ByteDance, will continue to own about 80 percent of the company, according to a person familiar with the deal. But the deal's architects will still be able to argue to U.S. regulators that they have reduced Chinese control: Because much of ByteDance is already held by American and international investors, a second person said, the addition of Oracle and Walmart will make the company majority American owned.

The agreement  pending final sign-off from Washington  caps off public pressure from Trump to address alleged security threats posed by the app, and his TikTok crusade has been framed as part of a toughening posture against China. Top White House officials and executives from TikToks parent company, ByteDance, have been huddled in negotiations all week trying to satisfy competing demands from Washington and Beijing.

I have given the deal my blessing," Trump told reporters Saturday. "If they get it done thats great, if they dont, thats fine, too.

The deal reached Saturday alleviates a major burden for TikTok, which had been slated to be banned from U.S. mobile app stores starting Sunday night. Those restrictions are now delayed until Sept. 27 "in light of recent positive developments," the Commerce Department said Saturday. The Treasury Department noted the deal is still subject to conditions of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., a federal body that reviews deals with possible national security implications.

Story continues

It's unclear how the Chinese government will respond to the decision, but officials there have been agitated by Trump interfering in the operations of one of their largest tech conglomerates.

Trump had previously given TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, the choice to either find an American buyer or shut down in the United States. The new arrangement falls short of that demand. Beijing-based ByteDance will remain a minority shareholder in TikTok, but see its power over its U.S. operations curtailed considerably.

The deal puts TikToks global headquarters in the U.S. Oracle and Walmart will own up to 20 percent of the newly registered company, TikTok said in a statement Saturday. Oracle put its ownership stake at 12.5 percent. Venture capital firms like General Atlantic and Sequoia will also own chunks of the company, according to a person close to the negotiations.

"We are here for you and we are here for the long run," TikTok's interim head, Vanessa Pappas, told users in a statement. "That's why we're thrilled to share that we are working with a U.S. tech partner to ensure that TikTok can continue to provide a home to each and every one of you just as it does today, with no change to our users here in the US or around the world. "

TikTok will also appoint a board of directors made up primarily of U.S. citizens, with the government having the authority to veto members, another person with direct knowledge of the terms told POLITICO. The board would include at least one former intelligence official or other national security expert who would lead a three-person committee overseeing security matters.

"The thinking is this is a structure no one can say has any loopholes," the person said. "Theres no room for shenanigans. Its far beyond anything any online, consumer-facing company has done."

Both people spoke anonymously before the terms were made final.

Administration officials have raised particular concern about the handling of data from U.S. users, and ByteDance's proposal would turn over data management to Oracle. Oracle would have complete control over the company's data, as well as the ability to review its source code for any security concerns.

"We are a hundred percent confident in our ability to deliver a highly secure environment to TikTok and ensure data privacy to TikToks American users, and users throughout the world," Oracle CEO Safra Catz said in a statement. "This greatly improved security and guaranteed privacy will enable the continued rapid growth of the TikTok user community to benefit all stakeholders.

The president also demanded last month that the U.S. government be compensated for making the deal happen, but acknowledged this week that government attorneys said there was no legal precedent for requiring such a payment. Trump told reporters Saturday that the company has pledged to put $5 billion into an education fund, though he did not elaborate on the details.

"Were going to be setting up a very large fund for the education of American youths and that will be great," Trump said. "Thats their contribution that Ive been asking for."

Trump also touted 25,000 jobs in the U.S. that the company has pledged to create, saying "billions of dollars of taxes will be paid every year." TikTok had earlier said it planned to create 10,000 jobs in the U.S. during the next three years.

Oracle and Walmart said in a statement that TikTok's investors will pay $5 billion in new tax dollars and develop a curriculum of online videos to teach children subjects like reading, math, history and computer engineering.

TikTok is also expected to go public in the next year, the companies said.

CFIUS, an interagency panel led by the Treasury Department, discussed the proposal at its meeting Tuesday and subsequently made a recommendation to Trump. The president is not obligated to follow CFIUS's decision.

Cracking down on China's global reach has been a cornerstone of Trump's reelection effort, and he has consistently portrayed his administration as tougher on Beijing than Democratic rival Joe Biden's would be. Trump took credit for forcing changes that he says address national security concerns, even if his insistence on a sale never fully materialized.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Monday that under the proposal, TikTok would create a global headquarters in the U.S. and would be expected to create thousands jobs  commitments that fit squarely with Trump's pledge to bring more companies and jobs to the U.S.

Trump signed an executive order Aug. 6 that prohibited ByteDance from doing business in the U.S. effective Sept. 20. A subsequent executive order gave ByteDance until Nov. 12 to orchestrate a sale of TikTok to a U.S. buyer, but those negotiations appeared to fall apart after Beijing imposed new regulations that gave political leaders there the authority to veto a deal.

The leading suitor, Microsoft, said Sunday that ByteDance turned down its acquisition offer. That left the Oracle arrangement as ByteDances main path forward in the U.S., though the company is simultaneously fighting Trumps executive order in court.

Trump expressed support for the bid involving Oracle in mid-August, telling reporters that Oracle is a "great company" that "would be certainly somebody that could handle it." He also voiced support for Microsoft's acquisition talks and said at the time that the administration had no preference between the two.

But Oracle executives have sought favor with Trump throughout his time in the Oval Office, opting to sit on economic and national security advisory bodies when other Silicon Valley leaders kept their distance. Catz, for instance, was appointed to the President's Intelligence Advisory Board, which guides Trump on national security matters.

They have also been among the big donors to his re-election campaign. Catz also contributed $125,000 to the effort in May and Oracle's billionaire chair, Larry Ellison, hosted a high-dollar fundraiser for Trump in February at his home in Rancho Mirage, Calif.
In another setback for China, Canada has walked away from the free trade talks with Beijing amid souring relations over a Huawei executives arrest and the detention of two Canadians in apparent retaliation.The announcement was made by Canadian foreign minister Francois Philippe Champagne during an interview, South China Morning Post reported. Talks had stalled more than a year ago. The relations between the two countries have deteriorated in the recent past mainly because of Huawei executive arrest.

I dont see the conditions being present now for these discussions to continue at this time, Champagne said in an interview with the Globe and Mail daily.The China of 2020 is not the China of 2016, he said. According to Champagne, Beijings arbitrary detention of former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig and businessman Michael Spavor on suspicions of espionage, in response to the December 2018 arrest of telecoms giant Huaweis chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou on the US warrant during a stopover in Vancouver are the reasons behind the shelving of the talks.

Meng is wanted for alleged bank fraud and violations of US sanctions against Iran and has been fighting extradition ever since.

Our first priority is to get the Michaels back home, Champagne said.All of the initiatives and policies that had been put in place at the time [in 2016 with China]  all that needs to be reviewed, he said, adding that Ottawa is looking at all of them with the lens of China of 2020.in June, China banned the import of all meat from Canada claiming that customs documents had been forged by Canadian exporters.

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Apart from the Oxford candidate, two more vaccine candidates in India are in advanced stages of clinical trials, while four are in pre-clinical development stage

India's single-day recovery exceeded the number of new infections as nearly 96,000 people recuperated from the novel coronavirus, even as the total caseload went past 53 lakh, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Saturday.

With this, the country also crossed United States to register the highest number of COVID-19 recoveries in the world.

The figures released at 8 am Saturday showed that while 95,880 people recovered from COVID-19 in a span of 24 hours, 93,337 new infections were recorded during the period. The death toll, meanwhile, climbed to 85,619 with the virus claiming 1,247 lives in a span of 24 hours, the updated data showed.

The 1,247 new deaths reported on Saturday include 440 from Maharashtra, 179 from Karnataka, 98 from Uttar Pradesh, 67 each from Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, 62 from Punjab, 59 from West Bengal, 31 from Puducherry and 30 from Delhi.

The COVID-19 case fatality rate has further dropped at 1.61 percent.

There are 10,13,964 active cases of COVID-19 in the country, which constitute 19.10 percent of the total caseload, the data stated.

The worst-hit states are Maharashtra (11,88,015) Andhra Pradesh (6,17,776), Tamil Nadu (5,36,000), Karnataka (5,11,000), and UP (3,48,517).

Phase III clinical trial of Oxford's vaccine candidate to begin from Monday

Serum Institute of India (SII), will begin the phase III human trials of Oxford University's COVID-19 vaccine at the Sassoon General Hospital in Pune next week. Furthermore, the Central Government said that two other vaccine candidates in India were at advanced stages of testing.

"The phase III trial of Covishield vaccine will begin at Sassoon hospital from next week. It is likely to start on Monday (21 September). Some volunteers have already come forward for the trial. Around 150 to 200 volunteers will be administered the vaccine candidate dose," Muralidhar Tambe, the Dean of the state-run hospital, told news agency PTI.

Phase II trials were conducted at Bharti Vidyapeeth Medical College and also KEM Hospital in the city.

The SII has partnered with British-Swedish pharma company AstraZeneca for manufacturing the COVID-19 vaccine candidate, developed by the University of Oxford.

Apart from the Oxford candidate, two more vaccine candidates in India are in advanced stages of clinical trials, while four are in pre-clinical development stage, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Friday in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha. There are a total of 30 vaccine candidates in India in various stages of development and testing.

Indias first CRISPR COVID-19 test developed by Tata, CSIR-IGIB approved for use

Indias first CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) COVID19 test, developed by the Tata Group and CSIR-IGIB, was approved for use in India, the Ministry of Science and Technology said on Saturday.

According to Hindustan Times, Tata CRISPR test is as accurate as the traditional RT-PCR tests but takes lesser time to process the results. The equipment are also less expensive.

"Tata CRISPR COVID-19 test uses an indigenously developed, cutting-edge CRISPR technology for detection of the genomic sequence of SARS-CoV-2 virus," the report said.

Over 190% rise in active Covid-19 cases in Delhi in a month

The number of active COVID-19 cases in Delhi increased by around 190 percent in a month with 84,087 people contracting the disease during the period, according to government data.

There were 11,068 active COVID-19 cases on 18 August. The number increased to a record 32,250 on Friday, an analysis of Delhi government's health bulletins showed.

A similar trend was witnessed in June, when the number of active COVID-19 cases rose from 11,555 on 1 June to 28,329 on 27 June. It, however, tapered off to 10,705 active cases by 31 July.

On 4 August, it dropped below the 10,000-mark for the first time since 30 May and stood at 9,897, owing to a good recovery rate and less new cases.

But just when it seemed the number might drop further, it started rising again with an increase in new cases.

Parliament Monsoon Session likely to be curtailed due to COVID-19 spread

The ongoing monsoon session of Parliament is likely to be curtailed and may end by the middle of next week in view of the threat of the COVID-19 spread among parliamentarians, official sources said on Saturday.

At a meeting of the business advisory committee of Lok Sabha, which has floor leaders of all parties besides the government representatives and is chaired by the Speaker, most political parties favoured curtailment of the session, which started on 14 September and was scheduled to conclude on 1 October.

After some Members of Parliament, including Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Prahlad Patel, tested positive for COVID-19 during the session, some opposition parties had conveyed to the government that conducting the full 18-day session could be a risky affair, sources told PTI.

A final decision will be taken by the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs.

Centre expresses concern over higher fatality rate in 12 states

Expressing concern over COVID-19 fatality rates in some states being higher than the national average, the Cabinet secretary on Saturday urged 12 states and UTs to analyse mortalities district and hospital-wise to identify critical areas of intervention.

At a high-level review meet, the secretary also exhorted them to ensure optimal utilisation of RT-PCR testing capacity, while underlining the need for ensuring that no symptomatic negative case tested in rapid antigen examination is missed, and all such cases mandatorily undergo RT-PCR test, the Union Health Ministry said.

During the meeting chaired by the cabinet secretary, the minister of commerce and industry addressed these states and UTs and reviewed the oxygen availability there.

The 12 states and Union Territories that participated in the virtual meet included Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Chandigarh, Telangana, Kerala, Delhi, Punjab and West Bengal, the health ministry said.

"About 80 percent of the COVID-19 caseload in the country is concentrated in these states and UTs," it said.

"The Minister of Commerce and Industry specifically requested them to focus on analysing district-level and health facility-level status and effectively plan and manage logistical issues related to oxygen availability," the health ministry said.

The country's COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20 lakh on 7 August, while it exceeded 30 lakh cses on 23 August, 40 lakh on 5 September, and it went past 50 lakh on 16 September.

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research, a cumulative 6,24,54,254 COVID-19 samples have been tested up to 18 September  8,81,911 of them on Friday.

The total 85,619 deaths reported so far in the country include 1,791 from Maharashtra followed by 8,685 from Tamil Nadu, 7,808 from Karnataka, 5,244 from Andhra Pradesh.

With inputs from PTI
Tamil Nadu CM E Palaniswamy

The DMK was opposing the farm bills for political reasons and these would benefit farmers from unexpected price fall, Chief Minister K Palaniswami asserted on September 19 backing the Centre's initiative.

DMK chief, M K Stalin, who is opposing the bills like the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services did not take a stand against a similar law in Tamil Nadu.

"I would like to clarify that when a similar law was implemented by Amma's government, the leader of opposition did not oppose it," he said.

In Tamil Nadu, while cocoa, sugarcane and poultry contract farming was already in vogue, the Centre's bill on empowerment would help streamline it, he said, adding, it shall also further strengthen the objectives of a 2019 Tamil Nadu law of a similar nature enacted to increase farmers income.

"There is no provision in the bill to force the farmers or aspects that would affect them," he said in a statement.

As per the provisions of the bill, wholesalers, farm firms and others could enter into agreements with farmers.

Through this, farmers will get an assured income, he said and stressed that while the agreement would prevent them from getting affected by price falls, it also shall, at the same time provide benefits if the market price increases over and above the agreed price.

Also, those procuring farm produce would be assured of the desired quality and supplies.

The interests of both farmers and buyers would be protected and quality farm produce stood assured for food processing ventures which shall also mean creation of employment opportunities in villages.

On the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, Palaniswami explained that in accordance with an existing law in Tamil Nadu, there is no question of middlemen in the regulated markets and 'market fee' of one percent alone is levied on traders who buy produce.

However, in Punjab the market fee for key produce like paddy and wheat was three percent in addition to three percent rural development cess and a 2.5 percent fee for middlemen.

"As per the new law, since such fee cannot be levied in notified trade area, other than the market premises, there will be a huge revenue loss for the Punjab government," he said indicating a likely reason for opposition from that State.

A key objective of the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce bill was to give farmers full freedom to sell their produce wherever they desired and there shall be no fee for farmers or traders.

Also, the Chief Minister went in detail into the other bills to counter the main opposition party's allegations against it.

Palaniswami said the new bills would in no way affect the paddy procurement based on Minimum Support Price and the new laws would rather facilitate MSP for farmers, aid the farmers market scheme and prevent hoarding of farm produce by firms.

Farmers would not be affected since procurement and storage of farm produce for the Public Distribution System as per the MSP would also continue in Tamil Nadu, he said.

Taking pride in being a farmer, Palaniswami, said he was not like the leader of opposition, Stalin, "who does not know either agriculture or the farmers welfare."

"I am proud to say for a thousand times that I am a farmer. I would like to reassure that Amma's government will continue to take resolute steps for protecting the welfare of farmers."

The Chief Minister accused Stalin of giving a false statement that farmers would be affected by the farm bills piloted by the union government.

"The (farms) bills adopted by the Lok Sabha will do good to the farmers in Tamil Nadu by ensuring them an assured income avoiding adverse impacts from unexpected price fall.

As a farmer, since I have realised it, I did not oppose it," he asserted adding the farm scenario in states like Punjab does not match with that of Tamil Nadu.

DMK president Stalin alleged the bills would lead to hoarding of farm produce by the corporates and adversely affect the support price.

Also, he claimed the agri bills would sound a death knell to farmers and they would be "enslaved" by business houses.

The main opposition party has called for a meeting of its allies to deliberate on the issue on Monday.

The Lok Sabha has passed the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, which seek to promote barrier-free inter- state and intra-state trade in agricultural produce.

These bills replace the ordinances issued already by the Centre.

The ruling BJP is confident of the passage of the bills in Rajya Sabha as well.
Trainer-driver Mary Clare MacDonald swept the pair of Nova Scotia Stakes contested at Truro Raceway on Friday (Sept. 18)one in a non-pari-mutuel event and the other on the evenings betting card.

Mr Finlay Ridge strolled to a four-and-three-quarter length victory in the $4,670 Nova Scotia Stake Two-Year-Old Trot. The Armbro Barrister gelding led under minimal pressure through fractions of :31, 1:02.2 and 1:33.2 in progress to a 2:03.1 victory for owners Mary Clare MacDonald, Arnold Rankin and Ian Tate.

Mabou Ridge later in the night delivered as the 1-5 favourite in the $4,205 Nova Scotia Stake Three-Year-Old Trot. Away second from post 2, Mabou Ridge stalked tempo-setter Tequila Tuesday through fractions of :30.1 and 1:02.2 before MacDonald mounted her attack. Up the backstretch Mabou Ridge rolled uncovered towards the lead and cleared command past three-quarters in 1:33.1 to then extend his lead to the finish of a 2:01.3 mile, besting Tequila Tuesday by two-and-three-quarter lengths. Terrible Ted finished seven lengths farther back in third.

A gelding by Armbro Barrister, Mabou Ridge won his fifth race from seven starts this season and his 12th from 17 overall, earning $72,472. The Arnold Rankin homebred paid $2.30 to win.

Distinctiv Rusty repeated in the winners-over class, this time pulling a 20-1 upset in 1:58.2. The George Rennison trainee grabbed the lead to a :29.4 opening quarter and held firm on the point as Toxicity challenge first over through middle fractions of 1:00.2 and 1:29.1. Into the stretch Toxicity stalled as Lady N Paradise dashed from the pocket and Well Did rallied from off cover late, but Distinctiv Rusty kept a neck in front to win in rein to Ryder Matthews Rennison.

Returning $40.10 to win, Distinctiv Rusty collected his sixth win from 16 starts this season and his 40th from 202 overall, earning $86,300. The nine-year-old Rambaran stallion competes for owners Andrea Rennison and Ryder Matthews Rennison.

To view Friday's special-card harness racing results, click on the following link: Friday Results - Truro Raceway (S).

To view Friday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Friday Results - Truro Raceway.
(Natural News) A Swedish study that found people who claim to be transgender can gain mental health benefits by getting so-called gender-affirming surgeries has now been corrected after questions arose about its methods.

The original study was published in the American Journal of Psychiatry in October 2019 under the title Reduction in mental health treatment utilization among transgender individuals after gender-affirming surgeries: a total population study.

The journal received letters to the editor from 12 authors, which led to a reanalysis of the data used and a corrected conclusion that there were actually no improvements after surgical treatment after all.

Some of the clinicians who questioned the studys legitimacy were Family Physician Andre Van Mol, Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist Miriam Grossman, Endocrinologist Michael Laidlaw, and Psychiatry Professor Paul McHugh.

One of the issues they cited were the three endpoints used in the study to determine the effectiveness of the interventions on mental health. They were healthcare visits for anxiety and mood disorders, post-suicide attempt hospitalizations, and prescriptions for anti-anxiety and antidepressant medications. It was these three points alone that the studys authors used to conclude that gender-affirming hormones did not provide an effect but surgery did. The studys authors even went so far as to say that their finding provided timely support for policies that ensure coverage of gender-affirming treatments. How convenient!

However, some experts criticized the unusual combination of data that they used to reach their conclusions. They overlooked other key data that was available, such as completed suicides, prescriptions, hospitalizations for medical or psychological diagnoses related to gender-affirming treatments and other information they could have easily obtained. This has led to accusations that they cherry-picked data to get the results they wanted.

More legitimate studies show the opposite effect

Moreover, a study considered one of the best of its kind, which was also from Sweden, reached a dramatically different conclusion. The 2011 Dhejne study looked at numerous Swedish registries pertaining to patients who underwent sex reassignment across 30 years. They matched population controls by birth sex, reassigned sex, and birth year.

When they followed them beyond ten years, they discovered that the group who had sex reassignment surgery had 19 times the completed suicide rate of the general population, as well as three times the rate of mortality from all causes and inpatient psychiatric care.

Ten months after receiving complaints about the study, the American Journal of Psychiatry printed the letters and a correction. The authors of the study were asked to reanalyze their data, and they found at that point there was no advantage to surgery for the three endpoints studied. In their response, they admitted their conclusion was too strong.

Dr. McHugh pointed out that he ended sex reassignment operations at Johns Hopkins Medical School after a study from his department found that patients mental and social health did not improve as a result. He says the study and even its correction can misdirect clinical thought, particularly in its presumption that these people will not have a problematic future despite evidence showing that many people will see their psychological state worsen over time. And some of the more devastating outcomes, like suicide, only emerged after ten years, which the paper did not consider at all.

In her expose on the transgender craze being fueled by social media, author Abigail Shrier reports that nearly all of the de-transtitioners she spoke to deeply regretted their actions. A 13-year-old girl is not emotionally mature enough to make a decision to have her breasts amputated and undergo testosterone treatments, and so much of this damage cannot be undone later. Those taking puberty blockers can experience permanent sterilization.

Dr. Van Mols team wrote in The Public Discourse: These experiments are beyond reproducibility problems: they are ethical failures by which doctors cause long-term harm to children and adolescents, all based on political activism supported by faulty science.

Unfortunately, the tricks used by the original authors are nothing new in the world of scientific studies. Researchers regularly skew data to ensure the outcome that they or their sponsors are seeking, and that is how we have ended up with rampant pesticide damage, dangerous medicines, and surgeries that cause the opposite of their stated outcomes.

Sources for this article include:

Breitbart.com

ThePublicDiscourse.com
After standing for more than 100 years on the corner on Observer Highway, Hobokens Lackawanna Records Storage Building is coming down.

A spokeswoman for NJ Transit, which owns the property, confirmed Friday that the agency is preparing for a full structure removal of the building after it was ordered by the state Department of Community Affairs, which had issued a notification of an unsafe structure.

Steve Zane, the chairman of Hobokens Historic Preservation Commission, said that the city has been in talks with the transit agency for months about the buildings fate. The current plan calls for NJ Transit to deconstruct the building, store the pieces, and then reconstruct it somewhere else in Hoboken at a later date, he said.

Though no formal agreement has been signed with the city, Zane said, the Commission believed that the building would be reconstructed partially, to represent what it was, he said.

HOBOKEN BUILDING ON MOST ENDANGERED LIST

While itd be great to reproduce the whole thing, thats just not practical because you could not recover all the materials to do that, he said. So were looking to incorporate that into another building that NJ Transit would probably utilize.

Constructed in 1904, the Lackawanna Records Building was designed in what Zane called a medieval revival style. According to NJ Transit, it is the oldest surviving building of the 20th Century Hoboken Rail Yard facilities.

But the three-story building has been vacant for decades. According to NJ Transit, the structure is plagued by extensive deterioration of the roof and ongoing water infiltration.

Asked for details on its plans, NJ Transit cited its website, which lists a plan to deconstruct the building in such a manner as to salvage significant historic materials and elements and safely store them for potential future reuse.

The records building should be completely deconstructed by mid-November, according to the website. But some preservation advocates in the Mile Square City arent thrilled with the decision.

Allen Kratz, a former New Jersey historic trust board member and former NJ Transit official, said the planned deconstruction saddens me and that he was skeptical of the possibility of a faithful reconstruction.

A better solution, he said, is for the city to take the building from NJ Transit and solicit requests for proposals for a refurbishment.

I believe that there was an opportunity for creative thinking rather than the easy solution, which was just, Get an old building out of the way, he said.

Terry Pranses, a member of Hobokens Responsible Development Task Force, also expressed concern about the 116-year-old buildings fate. Despite many public elements in the process, Pranses said, the actual decision has been made somewhat in the dark.

And Pranses expressed concern about the authenticity of a new building, even if it is constructed with the same materials. Does it look like the records building we have and know and love, or does it look like another? he said.

But ultimately, he said, a reconstruction would be better than the scenario of the inexpensive, pure demolition, and everything gets carted off to a dump site.
An FRA spokeswoman said the agency is directing additional resources and technical assistance, including on-site support, to the New Jersey and New Mexico systems, guiding them on the remaining actions they need to take to fully implement the PTC by the year-end deadline. Amtrak said it has completed PTC implementation on the 898 route miles it owns, and that all 550 locomotives and all radio towers are equipped with the system. PTC training is also completed, the company said.
No licence is needed for offroad scramblers (picture posed)

Gardai were searching last night for a scrambler bike involved in a crash that left a toddler in hospital with serious injuries.

The 18-month old boy was sitting on a stationary quad bike with his mother when the scrambler smashed into them.

The incident happened in Cherry Orchard Park, Ballyfermot, at around 7pm on Thursday.

Emergency services rushed the child to Crumlin Children's Hospital, where he remains in a serious but stable condition.

The 19-year-old scrambler rider was taken to St James's Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Gardai are expected to interview him once medics give them the go-ahead.

Investigators are searching for the scrambler, which was removed from the scene before emergency services arrived.

"The bike involved in this incident was removed and gardai are anxious to track it down as part of their inquiries," a source told the Herald.

"Its removal from the scene can only be seen as an effort to frustrate the investigation into this shocking incident."

The scene at Cherry Orchard Park was preserved for a technical examination.

Siege

Gardai are appealing for witnesses to the incident or people who are aware of the scrambler's whereabouts to come forward.

Local Fianna Fail councillor Daithi de Roiste said off-road vehicles have Dublin communities "under siege".

"This is an awful tragedy that has me sick to my stomach," he said. "My thoughts and prayers are with the child and the family at this time.

"Quad bikes and scramblers have communities under siege right across Dublin, and this is yet another horrible incident in the litany of terrible collisions we've seen in recent times.

TD Patrick Costello, the Green Party's spokesperson on justice, has called for stricter regulation of scramblers and quad bikes.

"We've been going back and forth on this issue for years now," he said.

"How many people need to be injured before we improve regulation around this area?

"It's time to get tough and crack down on the use of scramblers and quad bikes.

"Scramblers and quad bikes were designed for off-road use. They don't have a tax disc or a licence plate, and those who use them don't require a licence.

"These bikes are loud and intimidating and are destroying the quality of life in many estates throughout the country, particularly communities I represent in Dublin South-Central. It has to stop."
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept. 19

By Klavdiya Romakayeva - Trend:

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases for September 19 in Uzbekistan increased to 50,378, Trend reports with reference to the statistics of the Uzbek Ministry of Health.

To date, 46,645 patients have fully recovered in the country, while 421 have died.

At the moment, 3,312 patients are treated in medical institutions in Uzbekistan following the standards, 489 of them are in serious condition, and 254 patients are in critical condition.

From October 1, all border crossing points in Uzbekistan will be open for road, rail, and air transport.

Under the instructions of the President of Uzbekistan, unlimited movement of vehicles, as well as local air and rail travel in Uzbekistan, was resumed since August 15, 2020. Also, from August 17, 2020, Tashkent resumed public transportation.

Citizens are required to wear masks when entering public transport (buses).

The first case of coronavirus infection in Uzbekistan was detected on March 15 in the laboratory of the Research Institute of Virology; it was an Uzbek woman who returned from France. The Ministry of Health later announced that her son, daughter, husband, and grandson also tested positive for coronavirus.

The outbreak in the Chinese Wuhan city - which is an international transport hub - began at a fishing market in late December 2019.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11 declared COVID-19 a pandemic. Some sources claim the coronavirus outbreak started as early as November 2019.

Uzbekistan as an active member of the WHO European Regional Office has joined the Coronavirus vaccination program.

--

Follow the author on Twitter: @romakayeva
By Express News Service

THIRUPATHUR: A COVID care centre turned to be an exam hall for a 20-year-old undergraduate student in Tirupathur district.

Anees, a resident of Basheerabad in Vaniyambadi, tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday and was taken to the COVID care centre functioning at the Islamiya Womens College on Saturday.

When he told the Health department officials that it was his exam day, Dr S Pasupathi, block medical officer (BMO), Alangayam, promised the final year commerce student of Islamia Mens college of necessary steps to write the examination. Subsequently, arrangements were made.

When we learned about the examination, we motivated him to take it in the COVID care centre. Then we contacted the college administration to inform them, Pasupathi said.

A nurse, clad in personal protection equipment (PPE), stood beside him while writing industrial registration paper.

Medical staff and employees of Vaniyambadi municipality were also present at the hall when Anees took the online examination.
TUCSON, Ariz.  Democrats have almost no power to stop a pre-election vote on President Trumps nominee to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court, but they see a glimmer of hope in a bank-shot scenario if they capture a Senate seat in Arizona in the November election.

If Mark Kelly, the Democratic nominee, wins, he could be seated in the Senate as early as Nov. 30, six weeks before the other winners are sworn in, according to elections experts from both parties. Mr. Kelly currently leads Senator Martha McSally, a Republican, in the polls.

There are many ifs: If the Arizona results can be rapidly certified, and if Senate Republicans hold a confirmation vote in the postelection lame-duck session and if three Republicans defect, Mr. Kelly could cast the deciding vote to defeat Mr. Trumps as-yet unnamed pick to the high court.

Such a scenario is possible (if not probable) because Ms. McSally, who was sworn in in 2019, was appointed, not elected. The Arizona Senate race this year is a special election, and under state law the winner can be seated pending a final review of the election results, known as a canvass, completed at the end of November.
The Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) has called for online applications from qualified and interested candidates for filling Seven Thirty One (731) vacancies through 66Th Combined (Preliminary) Competitive Examination to be posted in Bihar, India on a fulltime basis. The online registration process towards the same starts from September 28, 2020 onwards, and closes on October 20, 2020 as specified in the BPSC Recruitment notification.

CRITERIA DETAILS Name Of The Posts 66Th Combined (Preliminary) Competitive Examination Organisation Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) Educational Qualification Bachelors Degree or equivalent Experience Freshers can apply Job Responsibilities null Skills Required Physical and Medical Fitness Job Location Bihar Salary Scale As per the BPSC norms Industry Civil Service Application Start Date September 28, 2020 Application End Date October 20, 2020

BPSC Recruitment 2020: Age Criteria And Fees

Candidates interested in applying for various posts through BPSC Recruitment 2020 must have completed 18 years of age and not be more than 37 years, with relaxation (upper age limit) for OBC/SC/ST/PWD categories as specified in the BPSC Recruitment notification.

Candidates must pay a prescribed amount of Rs. 600 (Gen/UR/OBC) and Rs. 150 (SC/ST//PWD and Ex-SM candidates) respectively as examination fee either through online mode or challan mode as specified in the BPSC Recruitment notification.

ECIL Recruitment 2020 For Technical Officer (TO) Posts, Apply Online Before September 30

BPSC Recruitment 2020: BPSC Vacancy

BPSC Recruitment 2020: Educational Eligibility

Desirous candidates applying for various posts through BPSC Recruitment 2020 must possess a Bachelor's Degree or equivalent from a recognised University/Institution.

BPSC Recruitment 2020: Selection And Pay Scale

The selection of candidates to various posts through BPSC Recruitment 2020 will be done through a Written Competitive Examination and Interview.

Candidates selected to various posts through BPSC Recruitment 2020 will be paid emolument as per the BPSC norms.

SBI SCO Recruitment 2020 For 22 Risk Specialist Posts, Register Online From Today

BPSC Recruitment 2020: How To Apply

Candidates applying for various posts through BPSC Recruitment 2020 must register online on the official BPSC portal from September 28, 2020 onwards, and submit their applications on or before October 20, 2020.

Download BPSC Recruitment 2020 PDF Notification for various posts
There is no place like home  at least right now. Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nick Coatsworth said this week that, even accounting for Victorias second wave of COVID-19 infections, Australia had been an exemplar for the rest of the world on how to manage the virus.

Our freedoms have been limited this year, much more so in Victoria. But Australia's extensive testing regime, one of the best in the world, and our contact tracing systems, which contained the virus in most other states, has meant we are less likely to have been infected here than in nearly any other nation on Earth.

Parisians enjoy the late summer weather in packed cafes and restaurants despite the recent surge in COVID-19 infections. Credit:Getty Images

Australia has recorded just 1.06 cases of COVID-19 for every 1000 people. That compares to a world average of 3.85 cases per 1000 people and an equivalent 20 cases in the United States.

Grim milestones are being regularly passed during the pandemic, with the world recording 30 million positive cases on Friday. The United States hovers close to 200,000 deaths, and is recording anywhere between 20,000 and 50,000 new cases a day. In some cities like New York, schools are yet to reopen after closing in March. Thats six months of home-schooling, and counting.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) speaks to reporters after the Senate Republican luncheon on Capitol Hill in Washington on Sept. 9 2020. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

McConnell: Trumps Supreme Court Nominee Will Get Senate Vote

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on Friday that President Donald Trumps nominee to fill the seat left vacant by late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will get a vote on the Senate floor.

President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, McConnell said in a statement.

The Supreme Court said in a statement on Sept. 18 that Ginsburg, 87, passed away in the evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington from complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer.

The Senate and the nation mourn the sudden passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the conclusion of her extraordinary American life, McConnell said.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in Long Beach, Calif., on Oct. 26, 2010. (Reuters/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo)

Days before her death, Ginsburg dictated a wish to her granddaughter that she will not be replaced until a new president is installed, according to NPR. Her wish will figure in the debate thats likely to ensue if President Donald Trump goes forward with appointing a new Supreme Court justice before the election on Nov. 3.

McConnell has previously said that he would move forward with approving a justice should an opening come up ahead of Election Day.

Trump, apparently unaware of the news of Ginsburgs death, twice brought up the importance of appointing a Supreme Court justice as he spoke at a rally in Minnesota. Some people shouted that Ginsburg has passed by the president didnt appear to have caught what was said.

President Donald Trump speaks to supporters during a rally at the Bemidji Regional Airport in Bemidji, Minnesota, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

We will nominate judges and justices who will interpret the constitution as written, Trump said. Thats why the Supreme Court is so important. The next president will get one, two, three, or four Supreme Court justices.

Think of that, that will totally change when you talk about life, when you talk about Second Amendment, when you talk about things that are so important to you.

Trump recently announced a list of potential Supreme Court picks, including Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.)

Apart from matters of war and peace, the nomination of a Supreme Court Justice is the most important decision an American president can make, Trump said at the White House in Washington.

The president has already appointed two Supreme Court Justices, Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch. Kavanaughs confirmation turned into a political spectacle after Senate Democrats late in the process unveiled a complaint from a woman who accused Kavanaugh of misconduct. The womans allegations proved unsubstantiated and Kavanaugh was confirmed, but not before a dramatic Senate hearing which captured the attention of the nation.

Trump has warned of a dismal future if the Supreme Court ever included a majority of Democrat-appointed justices, claiming they would erase the Second Amendment, silence political speech, require taxpayers to fund extreme late-term abortion.

In the recent past, many of our most treasured freedoms including religious liberty, free speech, and the right to keep and bear arms, have been saved by a single vote on the United States Supreme Court, he said.

A private service for Ginsburg will be held at Arlington National Ceremony in Virginia, the Supreme Court said in a statement.

People gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

The national flag flies at half staff as people gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague, Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew hera tireless and resolute champion of justice.

Ginsburg spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the courts left wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers. Young women especially seemed to embrace her, calling her the Notorious RBG on Twitter.

Her health issues included five bouts with cancer beginning in 1999, falls that resulted in broken ribs, insertion of a stent to clear a blocked artery, and assorted other hospitalizations after she turned 75.

She resisted calls by some liberals to retire during former President Barack Obamas presidency at a time when Democrats held the Senate and a replacement with similar views could have been confirmed.


(Photo: pixabay)

Train trips are a great way to see the countryside with a sense of nostalgia and romance. Whether you listen to the train's sound whizzing along the rails or are mesmerized by the beauty that passes outside your window, train trips can be some of the most memorable that you will ever take. You also do not have to worry about traffic or bad weather.

The following are a few train journeys that are full of adventure, romance, and history.

The seven-hour journey through the fjords in Norway

This train trip starts from Oslo to Bergen. You will crisscross upward for two hours, passing snow-shrouded mountains, gazing down into valleys, and ride past waterfalls. After the two-hour ride, you'll pass through the famous Sognefjord and afterward head to the enormous Fjaerland Glacier. You will also pass through the mountain range in Oslo and verdant valleys, taking you into Bergen city.

The Rocky Mountaineer

This is one of the most beautiful train trips in Canada. The journey commences in Vancouver and gives travelers amazing sights of magnificent mountains, rugged valleys, forests, and peaceful lakes as the train moves from Vancouver to Banff. The route from Whistler in British Columbia to Jasper National Park, Alberta, also offers great views of the mountains.

The Ghan

The Ghan is one of the longest train trips in the world. It is a 1,851-mile trip across Australia. The journey begins at the bottom of the Australian continent, heads north up to the center of Australia, then to Darwin city. Another route of the Ghan trip runs between Adelaide, Alice Springs in the Red Center to Darwin. There are no views like these anywhere else. You will go through an endless unfolding of red and umber. Look out for camels as well as kangaroos.

Niagara Falls to New York

Travelling by train from Niagara Falls to New York is sensational. En route, you'll see:

- The picturesque Hudson River Valley,

- New York's wine country,

- The canyons of the Finger Lakes region.

Once at Niagara Falls, go for a boat ride from the Hornblower to the waterfalls or take a tour of 'Behind the Falls,' which takes you 150 feet down to the tunnels and viewing spots at the foot of the Falls.

Williams, Arizona to Grand Canyon National Park

This trip offers a truly fantastic approach to encounter one of the natural wonders of the world. The 65-mile ride itself, which takes barely two hours, is brimming with history, from the over 100-year-old terminals on either end, to the land you'll go through, and the renovated rail vehicles you ride when you arrive at Grand Canyon National Park.

Napa Valley Wine train trip

If you are a wine and vintage lover, the Napa Valley Wine train trip is a must go. The trip transverses through a 150-year-old railroad, covering 36 miles. The railroad once transported visitors to a spa resort in Calistoga, and now leads to a peaceful scenery at St. Helena and back, stopping at the famous region's wineries. For a luxury experience, try the top-end cuisine served by the train companies offering this trip.

Taking these journeys provides unforgettable experiences. You will also experience the most luxurious train travel, as most train companies have accessorized carriages with linen napkins, gourmet meals, down pillows, and crisp bed linens. This kind of train travel is just what you need.

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
National Conference MP Farooq Abdullah on Saturday said that no progress is taking place in Jammu and Kashmir in the absence of high-speed internet.

Addressing the Lok Sabha for the first time since his release from detention, Abdullah said that the decision to suspend internet services in the region was against the interest of students and businessmen.

No progress is taking place in Jammu & Kashmir. People there do not have access to 4G facility, how are they going to grow in the present time when the rest of the country has access to every facility on the internet Today our children, shopkeepers dont have a 4G facility that is there in the rest of the country. How will they study, get education, when everything these days is on the internet, he asked during zero hour of the ongoing monsoon session.

Mobile phone, landline and internet services were suspended in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir hours before the Centre, on August 5 last year, effectively nullified Article 370 which accorded the region special status. The state was bifurcated into Union territories Jammu & Kashmir with a legislative assembly and Ladakh without one.

The government, on August 15 this year, restored high-speed mobile internet services in two districts of Jammu and Kashmir on a trial basis, a little over a year after the facility was snapped ahead of the revocation of the regions special status and its bifurcation.

Abdullah also called for talks with Pakistan, referring to the ongoing talks with China amid the border standoff at Ladakh.

Border skirmishes have been rising and people are dyingas you are talking to China to attempt that it withdraws (from LAC), we should also talk to our (other) neighbour to find a way to get out of this situation, he said.

Abdullah was among several leaders who were put under detention by the Centre last year ahead of the changes in the regions status, and was released in March this year.
Huawei Technologies Ghana has rewarded deserving members of the Huawei ICT Academy Ambassadors programme in Ghana for supporting and facilitating the training of over 2,000 University Students under the Huawei ICT Academy in Ghana this year.



The Global Leading ICT Company introduced the Huawei Ambassadors Programme to serve as a students wing of the Huawei ICT Academy initiative and the programme was launched in Ghana last year. Through the Campus Ambassador Programme, Huawei identifies and selects enthusiastic tertiary students who are passionate about ICT to undertake various activities to aid the grooming of ICT talents across the various Huawei Authorized ICT Academies.



This year, the ambassador with the help of Huawei certified instructors and student ambassadors, Huawei has successfully trained over 2,000 students in through its Study at Home online learning initiative and have recorded more than 1,000 passes despite the COVID-19 Pandemic which halted most academic activities.



Speaking at the Virtual National Campus Ambassadors Awards Ceremony, the Deputy Managing Director of Huawei Ghana, Mr. Kweku Essuman Quansah applauded the ambassadors for their hard work and dedication geared towards developing the ICT Talent pool in Ghana.



We hope you will not only be ambassadors for Huawei but also ICT ambassadors for Ghana who will work hard to ensure the continuous growth of Information Communication Technology Literacy in Ghana to help accelerate economic development, "he added.



Presenting awards to some beneficiaries, the Dean of Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering Department of KNUST, Ing. Dr. Abdul-Rahman Ahmed, thanked Huawei for their keen interest in training more talents in Ghana through ICT academy partnerships. The partnership with Huawei is a great one and as such KNUST looks forward to taking it to a higher level in the bid to strengthen the cooperation between both institutions for a win-win situation, he added.



Dr. Jamal Abdulai, the Head of Computer Science Department for the University of Ghana congratulated the award winners for their success stating that the University of Ghana will exceed their target next year as they intend to institutionalize the Huawei ICT Academy at their school.



This year Huawei rewarded over 30 ambassadors and 2 instructors across five universities in Ghana namely, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), University of Ghana, Ghana Communications Technology University, Koforidua Technical University (KTU), and the Regent University of Science and Technology for their enormous support. Some awards received include Huawei Nova 7i, Huawei Nova 5T, Huawei Y9 Prime, shopping vouchers worth GHC1, 000.00, and Huawei Y6P phones among others.

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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A company manager in Singapore has been fined for wrongfully confining three Indian workers for over 40 days amid the COVID-19 pandemic. A local news agency reported that Shaun Pang Tong Heng first confined the three Indian workers from May 12 to 15 and then over a five-week stretch from May 19 to June 26. The manager from Singapore has pleaded guilty for the wrongful confinement of workers during the pandemic.

READ | Shopian Encounter: Indian Army Finds Troops "exceeded" Powers Under AFSPA While Killing 3

Company manager confines 3 Indian workers

A fine of 9,000 Singapore dollars was paid by Shaun Pang Tong Heng for wrongfully confining his worker for more than a month. As per the report published by the agency, the three Indian workers who were confined are Ganesan Pandi, Pandiyan Jakakanthan, and Muthuraj Thangaraj. Lawyer Md Noor E Adenaam representing the 41-year-old company manager told District Judge prem Raj that he is regretful. Shaun saw the men as "troublemakers".

READ | COVID-19: Singapore To Offer Free Virus Tests To Taxi Drivers, Food Delivery Workers

The lawyer added that during the COVID-19 pandemic, Pandu and Jakakanthan left from their house in Tuas to buy alcohol despite being housed near a COVID-19 cluster. Kakakanthan also drove the company's lorry without having a driving license and Thangaraj was previously caught drunk driving, informed the lawyer. The court was informed that clean beds, a bathroom, Wi-Fi connection, proper meals, and ample water were given to the trio.

READ | Singapore Begins Distribution Of COVID-19 Bluetooth Contact Tracing Token

Responding to this Deputy Public Prosecutor, Eric Hu said that this is no excuse for the manager for the wrongful confinement of the three Indian nationals. Before handing out the sentence, the prosecutor said that the manager should have notified the police authorities about the workers immediately. For each wrongful confinement, an offender can be jailed for about 3-4 years.

READ | Singapore Reports 27 New COVID-19 Cases
Australia is notorious for its venomous spiders, snakes and sea creatures, but researchers have now identified scorpion-like" toxins secreted by a tree that can cause excruciating pain for weeks.

Split-second contact with the dendrocnide tree, a rainforest nettle known by its indigenous name gympie-gympie, delivers a sting far more potent than similar plants found in the US or Europe.

The tree, which has broad oval- or heart-shaped leaves, is primarily found in rainforest areas of northeast Queensland, where it is notorious among hikers.

A team of Australian scientists say they now better understand why the gympie-gympies sting haunts those unlucky enough to brush up against its leaves.

Victims report an initial sting that feels like fire at first, then subsides over hours to a pain reminiscent of having the affected body part caught in a slammed car door", the University of Queensland researchers said Thursday.

In the final, drawn-out stages, simply taking a shower can reignite the pain.

Though the gympie-gympie is covered in fine needle-like hairs similar to other nettles, previous testing for common irritants such as histamines came up empty.

AFP image

Irina Vetter, an associate professor at the University of Queenslands Institute for Molecular Bioscience, said the research team discovered a new class of neurotoxin miniproteins, which they christened gympietides.

Although they come from a plant, the gympietides are similar to spider and cone snail toxins in the way they fold into their 3D molecular structures and target the same pain receptors  this arguably makes the gympie-gympie tree a truly venomous plant," she said.

Australia is already infamous for its venomous fauna including snakes, box jellyfish, blue-ringed octopus and funnel-web spiders, although deaths in humans from bites or stings are rare.

Vetter said the long-lasting pain inflicted by the tree may be explained by the gympietides permanently altering the chemical makeup of the affected sensory neurons  not due to the fine hairs getting stuck in the skin.

The scientists hope their research, published in peer-reviewed journal Science Advances, will eventually help lead to better pain relief treatment for people who have been stung.
The people of Edo State will gather at the poll today to either elect a new governor or hand another term to the incumbent governor, Godwin Obaseki of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

In all, 14 political parties have presented candidates for Saturdays election in the South-South state but the real contest is believed to be between Mr Obaseki and Osagie Ize-Iyamu of the main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC).

Four years ago, Messrs. Obaseki and Ize-Iyamu were the leading contestants in the election. But both candidates have since switched sides with Mr Obaseki moving from the APC to the PDP  after he fell out with his political benefactor and former national chairman of the APC, Adams Oshiomhole  and Mr Ize-Iyamu moving from the PDP to the APC

Though the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced that there are 2,210,534 registered to vote in the state, only 1,726,738 of them who have collected their permanent voters cards (PVC) are eligible to vote in todays election.

PREMIUM TIMES in conjunction with the Premium Times Centre for Investigative Journalism will be bringing you updates on the election as it happens from the 18 Local Government Areas, 192 Wards, and 2,627 polling units in the state.




US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Saturday wrapped up a three-day tour of Venezuelas neighbors designed to heap pressure on President Nicolas Maduro, saying his malign influence in the region cannot be tolerated.

Pompeo held talks in Bogota with Colombias right-wing President Ivan Duque, calling the US ally a true leader for the region and lauding his stance against Maduro.

Duques support of Interim President Juan Guaido and a sovereign Venezuela free of the malign influences of Cuba and Russia and Iran is incredibly valuable, the US official said.

Flanked by Pompeo after their talks at Bogotas Casa de Narino presidential palace, Duque called on the international community to prosecute Maduro following a UN report that said the Venezuelan leader and his inner circle were responsible for probable crimes against humanity.

 Prosecute Maduro 

Duque said it showed that this is a regime behind violations of human rights that are systematic, and that the head of this dictatorship is a criminal against humanity and the international community must put an end to the situation.

Caracas has dismissed the 411-page UN Human Rights Council report as riddled with falsehoods.

The Colombian president spoke in Spanish, but the official English translation of his comments referred to Maduro as a war criminal.

Pompeo said the US would continue to support Colombia, adding that violence on the part of guerrilla groups like FARC dissidents, the ELN or any other terrorist or criminal group is unacceptable.

It cannot be tolerated nor can the actions of regimes like Maduros which provides safe haven and a deep comfort to those terrorists, he said.

 Desperate refugees 

Pompeo arrived in Bogota late Friday after visiting a center for Venezuelan refugees in the Brazilian border town of Boa Vista, emphasizing the plight of nearly five million Venezuelans who had fled their countrys economic meltdown under Maduro.

Those people I talked to today are desperate to return home, he said of the refugees being processed at the center  among the estimated 260,000 Venezuelans who have fled to Brazil.

Pompeo called Maduro a leader whos destroyed his own country, a man-made disaster of massive proportions, as well as a drug trafficker  referring to charges the US Justice Department filed against Maduro and his inner circle earlier this year.

The US top diplomat said on Friday that Maduro has to leave power.

That drew a furious accusation of war-mongering from the Venezuelan leader, who said Pompeo has failed in all his attempts to get the governments of the continent to organize themselves in a war against Venezuela.

The US and some 50 other countries view Maduros 2018 reelection as fraudulent and demand the restoration of democracy in the South American country.

However, Maduro has steadfastly refused to back down and retains the support of the armed forces, as well as key allies Russia and Iran.

Pompeo began his three-day South American trip on Thursday in Suriname and Guyana, small undeveloped countries on the northeastern shoulder of the continent where the discovery of oil has piqued sudden global interest.

He urged the fast-growing nations to pick US over Chinese firms to partner in their development.

Both countries are also being eagerly courted by China as they seek foreign investment to bring potentially massive oil wealth ashore.

Weve watched the Chinese Communist Party invest in countries, and it all seems great at the front end and then it all comes falling down when the political costs connected to that becomes clear, Pompeo said.

And we do our level best wherever I travel to make the case for just making sure everybody understands what theyre getting into.

Pompeo flew out of Bogota on Saturday for the five-hour flight to Dallas, Texas, where he will conclude his trip with a stop at an Evangelical mega-church.
Guwahati :

Militants on Sunday ambushed an Assam Rifles vehicle, killing two security personnel and injuring three others, while two of the ultras were also killed in the ensuing encounter in Tinsukia district of Assam, days ahead of the Republic Day.

A defence spokesman told that militants threw several grenades at an Assam Rifles vehicle at Jagun 12th Mile Barabasti on NH-53 killing two security personnel on the spot and injuring three others.

The security personnel retaliated and two militants were killed in the operation which is still underway in the area, the defence spokesman said, adding that the area borders Arunachal Pradesh.

Following the encounter, the nearby Indo-Myanmar border has been sealed and helicopters have been pressed into service to spot militants hiding in the nearby thick jungles.

The entire area has been cordoned off and combing operations stepped up in the area, the spokesman said, adding tourists returning from the three-day Pangsau Pass festival, which concluded today, were stranded along the highway.

The Pangsau Festival is held along the Indo-Myanmar border in the area and the historic Stillwell Road which was a major theater of the Second World War.

Banned ULFA(I) in a statement claimed that it had carried out the attack along with four other organisations and had killed three security personnel.

A joint statement issued by ULFA(I) Commander Paresh Asom (Baruah) and Coordination Committee Chairman M M Ngouba claimed that the joint attack also injured two or more security personnel and were able to recover two AK and one INSAS rifles.

A joint Coordination Committee (CorCom) of Peoples Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak, Peoples Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (Progressive), Revolutionary Peoples Front and United National Liberation Front and United Liberation Front Of Asom [ULFA-Independent] had undertaken the operation, it claimed.

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Its been a tough time for restaurants, as the coronavirus pandemic has brought restrictions affecting how dining establishments can try and prevent customers and staff from spreading the virus.

Portland, with its national reputation for a lively food scene, hasnt been immune from the challenges. But a documentary series coming later this fall promises to lavish a bit more attention on eating and drinking in the Rose City.

Eaters Guide to the World," which begins streaming Nov. 11 on Hulu, will take viewers to such locations as Casablanca, New York City, Costa Rica and the Pacific Northwest. One episode, Dining Alone in the Pacific Northwest, stops in at a number of eateries in the region, including a handful of Portland choices. Among the familiar faces on hand is veteran food critic Karen Brooks, who worked at The Oregonian/OregonLive before joining Portland Monthly.

In one portion of an episode titled Dining Alone in the Pacific Northwest," Brooks, a 2017 winner of the James Beard Craig Claiborne Distinguished Restaurant Review Award, visits some of her favorite food and drink destinations in Portland.

Maya Rudolph, the Saturday Night Live veteran who recently won an Emmy for her voice-over performance in Netflixs Big Mouth, narrates Eaters Guide to the World. The series is produced by Eater and Vox Media Studios.

Subscribe to our What to Watch newsletter. Email:



-- Kristi Turnquist

kturnquist@oregonian.com 503-221-8227 @Kristiturnquist
Vietnamese low-cost carrier Vietjet Air will resume operations of three international routes to Japan, South Korea and Taiwan in September, according to a proposal by the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV).

The Vietnamese government on Tuesday decided to reopen commercial air routes to six international destinations  Guangzhou (mainland China), Tokyo (Japan), Seoul (South Korea), Taipei (Taiwan), Phnom Penh (Cambodia), and Vientiane (Laos)  from September, after a nearly six-month suspension of commercial international flights.

In a proposal submitted to the Ministry of Transport, the CAAV sought to allow Vietjet to operate one flight weekly from Ho Chi Minh City to Tokyo in the initial period after reopening these routes.

The Ho Chi Minh City-Tokyo flights operated by Vietjet are planned to take off every Tuesday using Airbus A321neo ACF jets, which have the capacity for 240 passengers.

Those arriving in Tokyo on these flights must have a negative result from an RT-PCR (realtime polymerase chain reaction) coronavirus test taken within 72 hours before takeoff and are required to undergo a 14-day quarantine after entering Japan.

Vietjet is also proposed to operate flights from Ho Chi Minh City to Seoul at the frequency of one flight per week on Wednesdays using the A321neo ACF.

Passengers arriving in South Koreas capital must wear face masks, have a body temperature not exceeding 37.5 degrees Celsius, practice self-quarantine at home or an authority-designated facility, and install a tracking app on their mobile device for monitoring.

From September 29, the budget airline will resume its Hanoi-Taipei service at one flight weekly, according to the CAAV proposal.

Those arriving in Taipei on such flights are only required to self-quarantine for five days after landing.

All three destinations are held in high regard for their successful control of the local COVID-19 outbreaks to date, with documented daily new cases in recent weeks among the lowest globally.

Vietjet said the highest level of epidemic prevention procedures will be applied on the three routes, meeting the safety standards set by the World Health Organization (WHO) and International Air Transport Association (IATA) to ensure the health of passengers, crew members, and the community.

Aviation experts said the reopening of commercial international routes will be a launchpad for the post-pandemic recovery of Vietnamese airlines, including Vietjet.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit Vietnam in January, the Northeast Asian market made up the largest share of Vietjets total revenue from its international services.

The Vietnamese carrier said it has also made preparations to resume flying to other international destinations where the pandemic is under control such as Thailand, Singapore, and Hong Kong (China) as soon as it receives approval from the Vietnamese government and authorities.

Vietnam began barring entry to foreign nationals on March 22 and suspended commercial international flights from March 25 in a bid to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Since then, charter flights to the country have only been arranged to bring in experts, skilled workers, and diplomats, and to repatriate Vietnamese citizens stranded in other nations and territories due to the pandemic.

Vietnam has documented 1,068 COVID-19 cases, with 941 having recovered and 35 deaths as of Saturday morning, according to Ministry of Health statistics.

The country has gone for 16 days without recording a community-based transmission.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Thirty-eight more people died from in on Saturday as 4,071 fresh infections surfaced, pushing the number of cases to over 2.42 lakh in the city, according to a Health Department bulletin.

So far, the city has reported 4,945 deaths and 2,42,899 infections, the bulletin said, adding that the authorities conducted more than 61,000 tests the previous day.

The Saturday bulletin said the active cases tally on Saturday stood at 32,064.

The number of containment zones in jumped to 1,820 from 1,751 the previous day.

The number of tests conducted and corresponding fresh cases reported ranged from 24,198 (2312) on September 1 to 61,037 (4,071) on September 18.

The number of rapid antigen tests stood at 51,292 while the RT-PCR, CBNAAT and True NAAT tests figures were 10,681 in all, according to the Saturday bulletin.

The total number of tests stood at over 24.92 lakh.

The positivity rate stood at 6.57 per cent while the recovery rate was over 84 per cent, the bulletin said, adding that the fatality rate was 2.04 per cent.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Satyendar Jain took a meeting with medical directors and medical superintendents of all government hospitals to review the status of testing.

Delhi Chief Secretary Vijay Dev held a review meeting on public health response to COVID-19, the bulletin said.

Since August 18, cases again started coming in four figures in the city.

According to the bulletin, out of the total number of beds in COVID hospitals, 7,953 are vacant.

Also, 2,183 beds in COVID care centres are occupied by persons under quarantine, including travellers who have returned by Vande Bharat Mission and bubble flights, it said.

According to the bulletin, 2,05,890 patients have recovered, been discharged or migrated so far.

The number of people in home isolation stands at 18,648.

(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.)
Despite a successful campaign against a planning application for a wind farm development proposal with gigantic turbines overlooking Gugan Barra, the local community in Beal Atha'n Ghaorthaidh is to lodge an appeal against the decision by Cork County Council.

The appeal is due to the failure of the local planning authority to mention among its reasons for rejecting the application from Wingleaf Ltd any consideration about the second element of the proposal, a battery unit complex at the site near Ceim an Fhia.

A strong feature common to many of the 380-plus objections and submissions regarding the development was concern over the safety aspects of building a battery unit complex at the site which is close to Gugan Barra but approximately 5km from Beal Atha'n Ghaorthaidh and not too far either from Kealkill.

"Although the developer's application was refused, our concerns remain about several issues, the biggest being battery safety which is a very real worry." said Coiste Forbartha Bheal Atha'n Ghaorthaidh chairman, Tadhg O Duinnin.

"If we do not appeal this, the developer can appeal against the refusal without making any safety case whatsoever because the planners did not raise this issue when they refused the developer's first application."

The Coiste Forbartha have been mounting campaigns on a number of fronts against local windfarm developments which can be an expensive business.

The group is concerned that the village is being completely surrounded by wind farms with one development at Beal a'Ghleanna on the way in from Reidh na nDoiri, another at Cleanrath which is a ghost windfarm at present, the turbines are not operational, due to a decision by the Supreme Court forbidding any further work on the site subject to an application for substitute consent by the company developing the site, Cleanrath Windfarm Ltd. Both Cleanrath and Wingleaf are companies for which Michael Murnane, the Macroom businessman, is a named director.

More than 200 objectors from the locality sent submissions to An Bord Pleanala to object to the substitute consent being sought for the development. The Supreme Court ruled in December in favour of an application by local horticulturalists, Klaus Bals and Hanna Heubach who said no consideration had been given to the impact of the noise generated by the farm by the planning authority when granting permission. That decision set aside the planning permission granted by An Bord Pleanala which is the motive for substitute consent bid.

The group intend to get a solicitor on board to help with the latest campaign.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has warned her liberal supporters 'you're not going back to brunch' even if Joe Biden wins the presidency.

AOC said that the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader-Ginsburg should 'radicalize' Democrats, urging her supporters to vote for the former vice president whether they 'like him or not.'

'Let this moment radicalize you,' Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, said in a 40-minute Instagram Live video posted late on Friday, which was viewed by more than 1.5 million people within 12 hours.

Accompanying the video she tweeted: 'Our democracy is at a faint heartbeat; it was broken even before Trump...And after we work to command victory in November, I need folks to realize that theres no going back to brunch.'

Ocasio-Cortez, the freshman leader of the so-called 'Squad' of progressive House Democrats, said that Ginsburg's death represented a 'tipping point' and urged her followers to action, saying 'I need you to be ready.'

She added in her tweet: 'We have a whole new world to build. We cannot accept going back to the way things were, & that includes the Dem party. We must deliver transformative, material change.'

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has warned her liberal supporters 'you're not going back to brunch' even if Joe Biden wins the presidency

'Let this moment radicalize you,' Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, said in a 40-minute Instagram Live video posted late on Friday

'Let this moment really put everything into stark focus, because this election has always been about the fight of and for our lives. And if anything, tonight is making that more clear to more people than ever before,' she continued.

'It's earth-shattering, this kind of vacancy,' she said of the spot now open on the nation's highest court, which opens a path for President Donald Trump to nominate a replacement for the liberal justice with the presidential election just weeks away.

'This kind of vacancy and this kind of tipping point is the difference between people having reproductive rights, and the government controlling people's bodies for them,' she said, referring to the fight over abortion.

'It's the difference between us having a future and our climate or not, and the timing of this vacancy is extremely unsettling and scary to a lot of people,' she added.

'No president is the answer,' she said. 'You are the answer. Mass movements are the answer.'

She encouraged her supporters to take action by double-checking their voter registration, urging friends and family to vote, and volunteering their time and talent to organize for the election.

Ocasio-Cortez called the Supreme Court vacancy created by Ginsburg's death 'earth-shattering' and said it would be a 'tipping point'

'Voting for Joe Biden, it's not about whether you like him or not, it's a vote to let democracy live another day,' Ocasio-Cortez said

Ocasio-Cortez, who endorsed Democratic Socialist Senator Bernie Sanders in the Democratic presidential primary, also made reference to ideological splits in her party, urging her followers to now rally around the more moderate Biden.

'Voting for Joe Biden, it's not about whether you like him or not, it's a vote to let democracy live another day,' she said.

'We need to focus on voting for Joe Biden. I don't care if you like him or not,' she added.

Biden has called on Trump to hold off on nominating a replacement for Ginsburg until after the November election, but the president is widely expected to move forward with a nomination.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said on Friday that Trump's nominee would receive a vote on the Senate floor.

Ginsburg was considered the leader of the court's liberal bloc, and her replacement with a judicially conservative justice could have far-reaching implications.
DOHA, Qatar  Violence continued unabated across Afghanistan on Saturday, as negotiators from the warring sides remained bogged down by disagreements over a framework for talks a week after historic negotiations began in Doha.

More than a dozen civilians were feared dead in one airstrike by Afghan forces in the North. The deaths came as a week of discussions still had not finalized the rules for negotiations over contentious issues, like a cease-fire and the form of a future government. The slow pace highlighted how complicated the effort to end to the Afghan war will likely be.

Officials from both sides said that while they had resolved most issues on how the negotiations should be conducted, they were stuck on which school of Islamic thought should be used for resolving disputes in a way that respects minority sects in Afghanistan.

The civilian deaths were a stark reminder of the toll of each days delay in the talks.

Citing United Nations figures, Roland Kobia, the European Union special envoy for Afghanistan, said the violence levels over the past five weeks had been the highest in the last five years.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A letter sent to St. Joseph by-the-Sea High School students, staff, parents and guardians on Friday informed them that a member of their community has self-reported a positive COVID-19 test result.

According to the letter, the last day of exposure occurred Wednesday, and the school is following protocols from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the states Department of Health.

They will be informing all members of the community who came within six feet of the individual for 10 minutes or more that they require isolation, according to the letter.

The health and safety of students and staff of St. Joseph by-the-Sea High School is our primary concern, the letter reads. We are handling this situation with the utmost seriousness.

Multiple parents confirmed the veracity of the letter to the Advance/SILive.com. The school did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication. A voicemail was left with the school after its office hours.

A spokesman for the Archdiocese of New York said its schools would follow protocols and policies set forth by federal, state and local health authorities.

According to the letter from the Rev. Michael Reilly, the school principal, Sea has contracted with cleaners to disinfect affected areas in accordance with CDC guidelines, and will continue to deliver information to the community as it becomes available.

The school has taken a synchronous approach to in-person and remote learning for the start of the school year.

Students will be able to learn on site and remotely in real time, as classes will be streamed to student iPads or computers using a technology called Canvas.

During times like this, the safety and well-being of our Catholic high school families and staff, as well as those in the broader community around us, are our primary concern, the letter reads.
It was nearly impossible on Saturday to separate the tributes to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg from the immediate political jockeying over whether Republicans will force through a nomination with just 45 days until the election, after refusing to do so for months after Justice Antonin Scalia died in 2016.

With Republicans maintaining a 53-to-47 majority in the U.S. Senate, and using Vice President Mike Pence as a tiebreaker, President Trump has room to lose a few Republicans and still confirm a potential nominee.

Heres how the key players in the Senate have indicated they would move on the vacancy on the Supreme Court:
Joe Biden has said the replacement for Ruth Bader Ginsburg should be appointed by the winner of the presidential election.

There is no doubt  let me be clear  that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider, Mr Biden told reporters at an airport in New Castle, Delaware, after learning of the justices death.

His comments underscored the partisan fight all but certain over the future of the judiciary that could dominate the fewer than seven weeks remaining until the presidential election.

Ms Ginsburg, a stalwart liberal on the Supreme Court since 1993, died on Friday at age 87, giving Donald Trump a narrow window in which to expand the court's conservative majority with a third appointment during a tough re-election fight.

 Crowds gather outside Supreme Court after death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell said he intends to act on any nomination Trump makes. Biden's comments signal he and the party will fight such a move.

The Democratic former vice president learned of Ms Ginsburg's death while flying home from a campaign trip in Minnesota and he delivered brief remarks to reporters.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for all of us, Mr Biden said. She has been absolutely consistent and reliable and a voice for freedom and opportunity for everyone.

Additional reporting by Reuters
Pete Wicks has revealed that girls are flying into his DMs to get his pal Sam Thompson's number following his split from Zara McDermott.

The TOWIE star, 31, took to his Instagram stories on Saturday to share the news following the break up, amid claims Zara, 23, cheated on Made In Chelsea's Sam.

He wrote: 'The amount of women flying into my DMs...So that I can pass their number onto @samthompsonuk'.

Friends: Pete Wicks has revealed that girls are flying into his DMs to get his pal Sam Thompson's number following his split from Zara McDermott

The duo first met on Celebs Go Dating in 2018 and became fast friends, with Pete often teasing Sam, 27, with Instagram captions and funny videos.

While Zara has yet to publicly confirm or deny claims she cheated on former beau Sam, she has been sharing cryptic quotes on social media.

On Thursday, the TV star shared a snap of herself lounging on a sun bed in a turquoise bikini, which was from her recent getaway to Rome.

Attention: The TOWIE star, 31, took to his Instagram stories on Saturday to share the news following the break up, amid claims Zara, 23, cheated on Made In Chelsea's Sam

Bromance: The duo first met on Celebs Go Dating in 2018 and became fast friends, with Pete often teasing Sam, 27, with Instagram captions and funny videos

She simply captioned the image: 'Throwback to Rome [sad face emoji] @ohpolly.'

Elsewhere on social media, Zara shared another cryptic post about love following her shock split from ex-boyfriend Sam.

Sharing a picture of a quote on her Instagram Stories, Zara wrote: 'Your heart knows the way, run in that direction.

Drama: While Zara has yet to publicly confirm or deny claims she cheated on former beau Sam, she has been sharing cryptic quotes on social media

It comes after she posted quotes about 'hurting someone' and 'love winning' as rumours swirl following her split from her reality star beau.

On Wednesday, she took to Instagram Stories to post two emotive quotes after it was revealed the couple's relationship was hanging in the balance after Sam learned his girlfriend had cheated.

Her first said: 'Love always won in the end. No matter how it happened, no matter what it took, no matter what it meant. Fair or not, true or not. Love won.'

Adding a sad face emoji, Zara's second post then stated: 'We have all hurt someone tremendously, whether by intent or accident. We have all loved someone tremendously, whether by intent or accident.

Breakup: On Thursday, the TV star shared a snap of herself lounging on a sun bed in a turquoise bikini, which was from her recent getaway to Rome

'It is an intrinsic human trait, and a deep responsibility, I think, to be an organ and a blade. But, learning to forgive ourselves and others because we have not chosen wisely is what makes us most human.

'We make horrible mistakes, it's how we learn. We breathe love, it's how we learn, and it is inevitable.'

Zara's posts come after a source revealed to MailOnline that a tryst took place between Zara and 'someone in the music industry' around the time she took part in X Factor: Celebrity.

The reality star appeared on the series last summer and autumn, as part of the Love Island pop group No Love Lost.

Struggles: Elsewhere on social media, Zara shared another cryptic post about love following her shock split from ex-boyfriend Sam

Drama: Zara previously shared cryptic posts about 'hurting someone' and 'love winning' as rumours swirl following her split from Made In Chelsea's Sam

At this point, she had been in a relationship with Sam for several months  but it's said the Made In Chelsea star has only recently found out about the infidelity.

A source told MailOnline: 'Zara cheated on Sam with someone in the music industry. Someone connected to the X Factor.

'Sam is obviously distraught about this. He only found out about it very recently and has escaped for a few days.

What are you saying? The Love Island star took to Instagram Stories to share an emotive quote hinting that 'love won'

'Zara regrets it and feels terrible. She knows it was a huge mistake and is extremely upset.'

A source also told MailOnline on Thursday: 'Zara and Sam split towards the end of last month. They had been arguing a lot since moving in together as a result of lockdown and things just built up between them.

'Zara has moved back to her parents' house in Essex where she's taking some time for herself, she really loved Sam so this hasn't been easy for her.

Who have you hurt? She then shared a second quote about 'hurting someone' and 'making horrible mistakes'

'Sam has gone away to have a break from it all and clear his head away from Zara and social media.'

It's also been reported that Sam and Zara's split will be played out in explosive scenes on an upcoming episode of Made In Chelsea.

MailOnline contacted representatives for Zara and Sam for comment at the time.

Their broken relationship is now thought to be 'hanging in the balance' as the pair have been unable to talk.

Sam has been filming The Circle with pal Pete Wicks, but Zara 'is fighting hard to get him back'.
Scores of bait fish wash up in Atlantic City bay, DEP says its common: Similar situations, with large quantities of dead bait fish washing up, have occurred in the Delaware Bay in previous years, a department spokesman says.

Could California-style wildfires happen in New Jersey's Pinelands?: While conditions in New Jersey are much different, the state is looking down its own forested roads to plan for the role climate could play in future fires.
OTTAWACanadas environment minister says the COVID-19 pandemic has delayed the next phase of the countrys climate plan, but that the crisis has not affected how the Liberal government intends to fight global warming over the coming years.

In an interview with the Star on Friday, Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said he does not fully accept the argument that the global coronavirus crisis should spur Canada to increase climate action, even as a range of advocates from outside government urges Ottawa to spend heavily on a green recovery from the pandemic. Rather, Wilkinson said Canada needs to ramp up its efforts because time is running short to meet its promises to slash greenhouse gas emissions.

With that in mind, the government is proceeding with its intention to lay out an enhanced climate plan in the coming months  well before the next global summit on the climate crisis next fall, he said.

That vision would have been ready before this years summit, he said, but it was cancelled and pushed to next year because of the pandemic.

The work that we are doing internally, while a little bit delayed, is fundamentally the same, Wilkinson said by phone on Friday.

We intend to bring forward a plan that is credible, that is transparent, that Canadians will see how we will actually achieve the greenhouse gas emissions that we need to, he said.

For months, environmental advocates have argued the pandemic crisis presents a window of opportunity to supercharge climate action by spending large amounts of money to shift to a cleaner economy that relies less on fossil fuels.

Catherine Abreu, executive director of Climate Action Network Canada, said she believes there is a need for the government to act in the coming weeks and months to ensure the country gets on the path to achieving its climate goals. Last year, the Liberals pledged to surpass Canadas current target under the international Paris Agreement to slash emissions by 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030 and hit net-zero by 2050.

It is reassuring to hear that their climate policy commitments are still on track, and while theres perhaps been a delay, they have not been derailed by the pandemic, Abreu said. But the moment that we have right now, given this dramatic pause in the economy, it just offers so much greater potential.

On Wednesday, the Task Force for a Resilient Recovery  a panel of academics, finance experts and clean energy advocates that includes Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus former adviser Gerald Butts  published a report that called for the government to act now to spend $55.4 billion over five years to boost Canadas transition to a cleaner economy. The task force called for spending to retrofit buildings, encourage the adoption of zero-emission vehicles, boost clean energy and clean tech jobs and increase nature conservation.

Another initiative promoted an interactive $307.85 bill to argue  based on calculations from economists with Corporate Knights  that every $20 spent now on a green recovery effort would add more than $300 in economic activity over the next decade.

Last month, when Trudeau prorogued parliament, he said the government needed to reset its agenda with a speech from the throne on Sept. 23. The need to rebuild after the pandemic, he said, presents an unprecedented opportunity to transform the economy to make it fairer, greener and more prosperous.

But the tone shifted in recent days as COVID infections spiked across the country. Trudeau told Canadians this week the country needs to stay focused on fighting the pandemic and making sure businesses and individuals have the supports needed to get through the downturn.

In his interview with the Star, Wilkinson disagreed the governments message on a green recovery has shifted. While the throne speech will signal that a more ambitious plan is coming, spending measures on new programs wont come until the next fiscal update and budget, he said.

This will include initiatives the Liberals promised in the 2019 election, including legislation to create five-year targets for emissions reductions to chart a path to net-zero by 2050, he said. The government will also continue to implement elements of the 2016 climate change framework, including the Clean Fuel Standard set to come into force in 2022.

But the government admits those measures arent enough. According to the countrys latest report to the United Nations on its emissions, Canada is only projected to achieve about two thirds of its goal of slashing emissions to 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030. Moreover, annual emissions increased in 2018, the most recent year for which data is available, when they clocked in at roughly the same overall level as in 2005.

We will need to put in place new initiatives, Wilkinson said, adding that the recommendations of the recovery task force and actions being taken in Europe  where a continental recovery plan includes more than $860 billion for green projects over the next seven years  are helping Canada decide what to do next.

Possibilities include upgrading infrastructure to carry clean energy to provides that still use coal-fired electricity (Canada has already pledged to phase that energy source out by 2030), spurring the shift to zero-emission vehicles, and lowering emissions from buildings, he said.

So while the pandemic has occupied the government for months, Wilkinson said Ottawa is still mindful that climate change could be even more devastating in the world fails to adequately address it.

Climate remains a huge priority, and we do intend to move forward and to move forward in a very thoughtful but aggressive way, he said.

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Officers arrested more than 200 demonstrators including an elderly woman who has become a symbol of the six weeks of protest that have rocked the country.





More than 2,000 women took part in the march in Minsk.

Such anti-government marches have become a regular feature of the unprecedented wave of large protests that began after the August 9 presidential election.

Officials said President Alexander Lukashenko won a sixth term in office with 80% support in that vote but opponents and some poll workers say the results were rigged.

During Mr Lukashenkos 26 years in office, he has consistently repressed opposition and independent news media.

Large demonstrations have been held in cities throughout the country and some Sunday protests in Minsk have attracted crowds estimated at up to 200,000 people.

The human rights group Viasna said more than 200 people were arrested during Saturdays march.

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There were so many people detained that lines formed at the prisoner transports, Viasna member Valentin Stepanovich told The Associated Press.

Among those detained was Nina Bahinskaya, a 73-year-old former geologist whose defiance has made her a popular figure in the protests.

Many of the women in Saturdays march chanted Were walking! referring to when police told Ms Bahinskaya that she was taking part in an unauthorised protest and she snapped back Im taking a walk.

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Mr Lukashenkos main opponent in the election, praised the womens march in a video statement from Lithuania, where she took refuge after the election.

They have frightened and put pressure on women for the second month, but despite this, Belarusians are continuing their peaceful protest and showing their amazing fortitude, she said.

Several top members of the Coordination Council the opposition has created to push for a new election have been jailed and others have been forced to leave the country. Maxim Znak, a leading member of the council, declared a hunger strike in prison on Friday.

Last month thousands of protesters were detained and some displayed deep bruises from police beatings. Still, that did not stop the protests from growing to include strikes at major factories that had previously been a source of support for the embattled Mr Lukashenko.

In a new strategy to stem the huge Sunday rallies, the Belarusian Prosecutor Generals office said it has tracked down parents who took their children to opposition demonstrations.
Being involved in a car accident and unsure of what happened can result in feelings of confusion, especially if you are injured. While you may not be sure of what happened, the first thing that kicks in your mind is to get your rightful compensation.

You may choose to file your claims independently, but the process is not always easy as you may think. However, working with a knowledgeable car accident attorney is better, as they will protect your interests and help you gain the compensation you deserve.

However, with there being more than 65,000 California Bar-certified lawyers, and the number is growing each year, choosing the best attorney can be a daunting task.

If you are involved in a car accident in Los Angeles, it is crucial to talk to the top California car accident attorneys. Your attorney will review your claim as you recover from your injuries.

Here are the top 5 benefits you will gain after hiring a car accident attorney:

1. Deeper Knowledge of the Law



A competent car accident attorney has a deeper understanding of the law, and they will know what laws and policies apply for your case, and then advise on what to do.

Your car accident lawyer is well-versed in the traffic laws and can determine what laws the at-fault party violated, leading to the accident.

Without an attorney, you are at risk as the at-fault driver can also file claims to recover compensation for their injuries, and you end up losing. You also likely do not know the various laws related to your case or the deadlines for filing your claim.

2. Negotiate with the Insurance Company on Your Behalf



The insurance company is no longer your friend after you are involved in an accident. They focus on making profits, and they don't gain by honoring your claims. Thus, it can be challenging to deal with them to get proper reimbursement.

The insurance company will use what you say against you and try to blame your injuries on other pre-accident conditions to limit your payment.

Hiring an attorney is beneficial as they know all the tactics played by insurance companies. They will handle the insurance company for you and ensure that you get a reasonable settlement.

3. Evaluate the Accident to Determine the Value of Your Claim



When a car accident happens in California, various aspects are evaluated to determine a car accident claim's value. This, again, is not always easy unless you have an attorney.

A competent attorney can value your injury claim with precision to ensure that you get the needed funds to cater to all the costs associated with your injuries.

They will consider several facts, including your medical costs, lost wages and earnings, car repair or replacement cost, and the general accident's impacts on your life.

4. The Attorney Will Fight for You



Once you hire an attorney, you certainly make a legal ally who is ready to fight for your rights on whatever conditions.

Your car accident attorney will defend your best interests until your case is resolved. If you need representation in court, the attorney will file a personal injury case on your behalf.

5. Collect Evidence



A skilled attorney will gather significant evidence to prove negligence. They can interview witnesses, view surveillance footage, and accident reports to ensure that your claim is founded on enough evidence.

Keep in mind that to obtain any compensation for your injury and loss, the accident must have been caused by the other driver's neglect, and you have to prove that.

Bottom Line

Hiring a car accident attorney is very gainful as you will enjoy free consultations and legal advice on how to go about your case.

Besides, you don't stand to lose anything because you will pay your attorney only when you win!
BOSTON  The Red Soxs losing streak to the rival Yankees increased to 11 with a 6-5 loss in 12 innings at Fenway Park on Friday.

The losing streak dates back to 2019. Boston has lost all eight games it has played against New York this year.

Yankees Gary Sanchez blasted a 112.6-mph line drive home run off Red Sox closer Matt Barnes into the Green Monster seats with two outs in the ninth inning to tie it 4-4.

Luke Voit ripped an RBI single off Ryan Weber in the 11th inning to put New York ahead 5-4.

Christian Arroyos RBI single tied it 5-5 in the bottom of the 11th inning.

DJ LeMahieus RBI double with two outs in the 12th put the Yankees back ahead for good.

Barnes vs. Yankees

Barnes has a 9.53 ERA (27  innings, 30 earned runs) in 31 career outings vs. New York.

Martinezs average down to .199

J.D. Martinezs batting average is down to .199 after he went 0-for-6 with four strikeouts.

Arroyo homers, plays strong defense

Christian Arroyo belted a 418-foot home run with a 107.0 mph exit velocity over the Green Monster in the fourth inning. His three-run blast put the Red Sox ahead 3-0 in the third inning.

Arroyo, who has homered three times in his past six games, also made two strong defensive plays.

He stabbed a one-hopper to start a 4-6-3 double play in the second inning. He also made a terrific running catch on a 202-foot pop-up to shallow right field by DJ LeMahieu.

Perez hurls 6 scoreless innings

Red Sox starter Martin Perez hurled 6 shutout innings. He allowed just three hits and one walk while striking out seven, all looking.

Perez entered Friday having thrown his cutter 34.5%, changeup 26.9%, sinker 14.5%, four-seamer fastball 14.3% and curveball 9.8%.

But he threw more sinkers (32) and four-seam fastballs (20) than cutters (16) and changeups (14) vs. the powerful Yankees lineup.

Verdugo exits early

Alex Verdugo left Fridays game against the Yankees for precautionary reasons due to left hamstring tightness.

Verdugo appeared to injure his hamstring when he slid into second base during the third inning. He did not return for the top of the fourth inning. Tzu-Wei Lin replaced him in right field.

Verdugo has been Bostons top hitter this season. He went 1-for-2 with a single Friday. He is batting .328 with a .383 on-base percentage, .511 slugging percentage, .894 OPS, six home runs, 15 doubles, 14 RBIs, 33 runs and four stolen bases.

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The Indian government has granted a special permission to export 25,000 tonnes of onion to Bangladesh, which was blocked in five trucks in the countries' border area, according to local traders.

The decision, which was announced on Friday night, will come into force from Sunday.

"The Indian government has decided to export 25,000 tonnes of onion to Bangladesh on special consideration. It is a special gesture to its closest friend," a source said here on the condition of anonymity.

The Bangladesh onion market became unstable as prices of the essential cooking item soared after India banned its export on September 14.

Last September, a similar ban was imposed by India, which had a rapid ripple effect.

Onion prices in Bangladesh soared close to Tk 300 per kg from Tk 40.

In a letter to the Indian High Commission in Bangladesh on Tuesday, the Foreign Ministry in Dhaka said that sudden bans on onion exports was a matter of deep concern and it undermined the earlier discussions regarding restrictions over essential food items.

Meanwhile, retailers were selling each kg of onion at prices higher by Tk 10-20 than the prices of wholesalers in Dhaka and Chittagong.

Consumers said some unscrupulous traders have jacked up the prices due to poor monitoring of markets by the administration.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi has said that the government will take strict action against the price hike as soon as there was a huge stock of onion.
To the Editor:

I am writing in response to the recent letter published on Sept. 17, by Mr. Kevin Rust of Glen Carbon.

In his letter, Mr. Rust extols the virtues of Congressman Rodney Davis, praising him for his bipartisanship and his dedication to the constituents of IL-13, but in fact, Davis has voted the Trump line over 90% of the time. He definitely votes along party lines.

Rodney Davis has accepted huge campaign checks from large pharmaceutical companies. He voted against allowing the Federal Government to negotiate lower prescription prices. He voted for a plan to take away health insurance from millions of Americans and celebrated that vote with a beer at the Whitehouse. His healthcare stance does not include a solid plan and does not benefit the folks in IL-13.

When was the last time we saw Rodney Davis in our district? Rodney Davis does not meet with his constituents; he has only conducted virtual town halls with prescreened questions for years.

He promotes his traveling help desk staffed only by interns. However, Davis does use his constituents for a few photo opps, usually in an election year!

Because Rodney Davis is out of touch with the issues that affect I our district, like healthcare, environment and trade, I am supporting Betsy Dirksen Londrigan for Congress.

Deborah McNaughton

Staunton
In the predawn hours of March 30, Dr. Deborah Birx stepped in front of the camera on the White House lawn and made an alarming prediction about the coronavirus, which had, by then, killed fewer than 3,000 people in the United States.

"If we do things together, well, almost perfectly, we can get in the range of 100,000 to 200,000 fatalities," Birx, coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force, told Savannah Guthrie of NBC News' "Today" show.

Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

"We don't even want to see that," she added, before Guthrie cut her off.

"I know, but you kind of take my breath away with that," Guthrie said. "Because what I hear you saying is that's sort of the best-case scenario."

"The best-case scenario," Birx replied, "would be 100 percent of Americans doing precisely what is required."

On Saturday, Birx's prediction came true, as the number of lives lost to Covid-19 in the U.S. topped 200,000.

Experts like Dr. Tom Frieden, former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said it didn't have to be this way.

"Tens of thousands of people would not have died if the U.S. response had been more effective," said Frieden, now president of Resolve to Save Lives, a global public health initiative.

Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said Birx's prediction in late March was "very sobering." That was the time, he said, to develop and implement a plan to stop or at least slow the spread of the virus.

That didn't happen then, and it hasn't happened since. "Where is our national plan?" Osterholm asked. "How are we this far along and we don't have one?"

"We have a long way to go," he added.

East LA funeral home adjusts to demands of Covid-19 (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images file)

Indeed, the country still faces many challenges in overcoming the pandemic, including agreeing on even the most basic facts. Americans are still fighting over whether to wear masks, whether the virus is serious and to what extent it's safe to reopen certain businesses and to resume certain activities.

Story continues

In short, 100 percent of Americans  government officials included  still aren't doing precisely what is required.

Another ominous prediction

Now, many experts are making another ominous prediction: A surge in the number of new infections in the fall and winter, combined with growing fatigue over social distancing and other public health measures, could result in more than 415,000 deaths in the U.S. by January, according to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, or IHME, at the University of Washington.

The prediction comes even as doctors are growing more adept at treating patients and clinical trials are finding that treatments like remdesivir and dexamethasone can help. And as the pandemic has spread, it has moved into younger, healthier populations, who are less likely to die from Covid-19.

IMAGE: Memorial in New York (Mark Lennihan / AP file)

The IHME's projections are by no means set in stone. Changes in human behavior, such as increased adherence to wearing masks, can bring the number down considerably, said the director of the IHME, Dr. Christopher Murray, a professor of health metrics sciences at the University of Washington. But the experiences of other countries have shown that, as the pandemic wears on, public complacency is a real concern.

"We're seeing it in a very big way in parts of Europe, for example, where lack of vigilance is leading already to a big uptick," Murray said.

The IHME model is one of several that the CDC uses to track the evolution of the pandemic, but it has faced its share of skepticism. The model often includes high degrees of uncertainty, and it was criticized early on for underestimating the number of deaths nationwide. In April, for example, the IHME model projected that the death toll in the U.S. through August could be 60,415, although the prediction included a wide range to account for uncertainties early in the pandemic.

Murray said that the model is constantly being refined to provide more accurate scenarios but that most researchers in the modeling community had been warning for months that the pandemic could have a serious death toll. It's the type of insight, Murray said, that makes the 200,000-death milestone all the more frustrating.

"There is obviously something pretty depressing about the whole drama as it unfolds," he said. "It's sort of like a train wreck that we know is unfolding and people keep grasping for some idea that it's not that bad."

200,000 who didn't expect to die

For those whose loved ones have died, such complacency is "like a daily kick in the teeth."

Nicole Hutcherson, of Goodlettsville, Tennessee, lost her father, Frank M. Carter, 82, to Covid-19 in April. Hutcherson said that since then, people around her have questioned whether the pandemic is real (it is) or have suggested that her father was already frail or sick before he became infected with the virus (he wasn't).

"My dad could outwork most any 30-year-old," Hutcherson said. "People are just not grasping that this is a big deal."

Nicole Hutcherson with her father, Frank M. Carter. (Courtesy Nicole Hutcherson)

Dr. E. Wesley Ely, a professor of medicine and critical care at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, called the 200,000 deaths a "benchmark of sadness."

"This is 200,000 people who didn't think they were going to die this year," Ely said.

Covid-19 has killed people of all ages, all races and all political affiliations. They include a veteran emergency medical technician with the New York Fire Department. A pastor in Texas. A nurse in South Carolina. Children who have succumbed to a rare inflammatory complication of the disease called MIS-C.

States currently logging the biggest numbers of daily Covid-19 deaths are California, Florida and Texas. By far, the state with the most deaths total is New York, with just over 33,900 as of Saturday.

A Covid-19 'tsunami'

Dr. Hugh Cassiere felt he was facing a "tsunami" of gravely ill Covid-19 patients when New York was at its peak of cases in March and April. He led a Covid-19 intensive care unit at North Shore University Hospital, part of Northwell Health, on Long Island.

The coronavirus presented new challenges even for veteran ICU physicians.

"There were a multitude of deaths every single day no matter the best that you could possibly do," Cassiere said. "It was overwhelming professionally and emotionally."

But not all patients made it to the ICU.

Joyce Brown Wigfall, a labor and delivery nurse in Forest Hills, New York, started feeling sick on March 30  the day Birx mentioned 200,000 deaths.

Image: Joyce Brown Wigfall (Courtesy Erik Brown)

Wigfall, 67, felt weak and had trouble catching her breath walking up stairs  unusual symptoms for a woman who raised five sons, loved Zumba exercise classes and had just completed a master's degree in nursing with an emphasis in leadership, and had begun to pursue a doctorate.

"I was so proud of her," said Wigfall's son, Erik Brown, 33.

Within a week of falling ill, Wigfall was diagnosed with Covid-19, but she felt well enough to recover at home. Brown said his mother remained engaged with her co-workers from afar, and on April 12, said she was ready to go back to work.

On April 13, Wigfall's health deteriorated rapidly. She died within hours. Her passing left an immeasurable void.

"She was the center of the family. She was the rock," Brown said.

"I'm angry at the fact that we still don't have any sort of concrete plan to get the country back to 'normal,' whatever that is," Brown said. "There is still no way that we can go back to the life that I had prior to March 30."

IMAGE: Memorial service in Massachusetts (Brian Snyder / Reuters file)

An unpredictable path

Much remains unknown about how the virus could progress in the fall and winter, particularly with regard to whether the changing seasons will affect how it spreads within communities, as cold weather draws people indoors. But experts stressed that maintaining vigilance will be one of the most effective ways to contain it and prevent runaway outbreaks.

A team at Northeastern University in Boston created a model that provides state and nationwide projections for up to four weeks in the future  akin to a weather forecast. Beyond four weeks, too many unknown factors can dilute the model's accuracy, said Alessandro Vespignani, director of Northeastern's Network Science Institute.

Numbers aside, Vespignani was adamant that certain proven strategies, when followed, would reduce the number of future cases and deaths.

Download the NBC News app for full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

Image: Jorge Islas Lopez (Andrew Kelly / Reuters file)

"A storm will do what it's supposed to do. You can't do anything about it," Vespignani said. "With an epidemic, we can change the trajectory."

Many of the ways to do that aren't new, including wearing masks, practicing good hygiene by washing hands frequently and getting a flu shot, he said.

Managing the factors that can be controlled will be crucial in the months ahead, especially because most scientists are anticipating a new wave of infections in the fall and winter, coinciding with flu season.

East L.A. funeral home adjusts to demands of Covid-19 (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images file)

"There's winter coming, and there might be another wave of transmission ahead, so we still need to have a plan to deal with that," said Sen Pei, an associate research scientist at Columbia University, who has done extensive Covid-19 modeling work. "Otherwise, we will still see people dying."

The IHME model's prediction that the U.S. will double its number of Covid-19 deaths by January, to 415,000, is not unrealistic, experts said.

Cassiere, of Northwell Health, said, "I think we're going to easily hit 400,000."

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"[She] does very well at adapting her leadership style," Ferguson says. "She can go from standing at the podium acting very decisively and making very strong decisions, but equally might be sitting on her sofa leading her country in a tracksuit answering questions on a Facebook live segment." Kirstin Ferguson says some Australian leaders were reluctant to tell the hard truths at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Credit:Dan Peled I think the work ethic Millennials bring is equal to, if not greater than, the generations that have preceded them  including my own. While Australia has negotiated the pandemic very well compared to many other countries, Ferguson says our leaders have sometimes fallen down when it comes to one of their most important jobs  telling it straight and laying bare the brutal facts. "At the beginning of this crisis there was a reluctance from some leaders to really give it to us straight between the eyes; that this was really bad, that this was going to cause the deaths of a lot of people," she says.

Is she talking about Scott Morrison? "There were a number of examples. But yeah, we do remember at the beginning there was this real sense of 'everything will be fine, you can go to the sporting matches, you can do what you want'. Whereas people would see with their own eyes by going to the supermarket... that wasn't their experience." When the ABC was scandalised by the loss of its managing director and chairman in the same week in 2018, it was Ferguson whom Morrison picked to act as the broadcaster's chair. Ferguson had been on the board since 2015; her role expires in November. She is not yet prepared to reflect on those events, nor the high politics that always surround the ABC, other than to diplomatically suggest that even the broadcaster's most ardent critics could not imagine life without it. Lunch by the beach: Kirstin Ferguson's Mooloolaba prawns. She does, however, weigh in on a recent contribution by Ita Buttrose, whom Morrison picked to replace Milne as ABC chair. Buttrose, who worked hand-in-glove with the fearsome Kerry Packer, lamented that Millennial workers lack resilience and often "need hugging". The remarks from 78-year-old Buttrose were not exactly welcomed by younger ABC troops, especially those losing their jobs amid 250 redundancies announced the month prior. Gen-X Ferguson isn't having any of that. "Millennials are brilliant. I love Millennials," she says. "They teach me more than I could ever hope to pass on to them. I think the work ethic Millennials bring is equal to, if not greater than, the generations that have preceded them  including my own."

Her own generation tends to sit out the war between Millennials and Baby Boomers. "We like to pretend we're Switzerland. We just sit back and stay in the middle and make friends with everyone." Younger workers tend to agree that employers  whether they be broadcasters, banks or sporting codes  have a responsibility to bolster diversity in their ranks and promote equality in society. Corporations have also become hyper-vigilant, anxious to avoid scandal on social media and devoted to diversity and inclusion policies. The other public broadcaster, SBS, recently promised to improve diversity within its upper echelons after commentators on social media drew attention to its all-white leadership team. However, former managing director Michael Ebeid and former chairman Hass Dellal told The Sun-Herald it was more important to show diversity on the screen than in the back rooms. Ferguson strongly disagreed. "The debate about diversity is definitely not going too far. In fact, we've got a long way to go," she says. "Yes, you need role models on-screen because it's a very tangible, visible way of having people that look different or look similar. But equally  the people who want to have a career as a production assistant or an EP or they want to be a cameraman or work in the accounts team, they should be able to go into those offices and see a reflection of the community. And I think that's all that diversity asks for." So how do we achieve that? It's one thing to have policies and plans, and say the right things, but taking action always trumps all that. And sometimes leaders need to know when to sacrifice themselves for the greater good.
Tenants behind on their rent could find themselves out on the street from Monday after the housing secretary announced the end of a ban on evictions.

Robert Jenrick introduced a rule at the start of the Covid pandemic which halted all hearings of possession cases as he championed that 'no renter who lost income due to coronavirus will be forced out of their home'.

Originally running until mid-August, it was extended by another four weeks to protect tenants who may have lost jobs as a result of the crisis, bringing its total length to half a year.

But now, six months later, the government will allow evictions to resume in England from Monday.

Robert Jenrick (pictured) introduced a ban at the start of the Covid pandemic which halted all hearings of possession cases as he championed that 'no renter who lost income due to coronavirus will be forced out of their home'

Alicia Kennedy, who has directed the campaign Generation Rent, told The Times: 'Robert Jenrick has torn up his pledge to protect renters.

'There is now nothing stopping tenants who have been given a Section 21 [eviction] notice from being forced out of their home.

'Even renters in severe financial distress can only buy themselves an extra six weeks' grace.

'These new rules provide no comfort and do nothing to prevent hardship and homelessness.'

However, in announcing the extension of the ban last month, Mr Jenrick also said he wanted to give tenants greater protection from eviction over the winter by making landlords provide six months' notice.

That policy will run until at least the end of March and will apply to all cases except those raising serious issues such as anti-social behaviour and domestic abuse.

UK courts can usually grant automatic eviction notices if a tenant falls eight weeks into rent arrears.

The ban on evictions has already been extended twice since March as figures from YouGov and Shelter suggest that 322,000 renters have fallen behind on their monthly payments due to the impact of the pandemic.

The government has instructed that bailiffs are still forbidden from evicting those in areas of local lockdown or in the run up to Christmas - apart from in exceptional circumstances.

Labour is also calling for a further extension of the ban similar to that seen in Scotland and Northern Ireland where renters will not face eviction until March 31.

Defending the decision, Mr Jenrick said it was 'right that we strike a balance between protecting renters and ensuring landlords whose tenants have behaved in illegal or anti-social ways have access to justice'.

Last month, a tenant refused to move out of their Merseyside home and stopped paying rent, leaving the landlords homeless.

House owners Emma and Russell Burton, 41, are living with her parents in France after the tenant refused to leave, saying he will pay them back 'when this is all over'.

The ban on evictions has already been extended twice as figures from YouGov and Shelter suggest that 322,000 private renters have fallen behind on their monthly payments due to the impact of the pandemic (stock image)

The family left their home in Newton-le-Willows in early 2019 for Qatar where Emma and Russell found work, and started renting out their home through a letting agency.

Within a few months they decided to return to the UK, but in December 2019 they said their tenants stopped paying their 800 rent and refused to leave the house - meaning they could not return.

A Government spokesperson said: 'We've taken unprecedented action to support renters by banning evictions for six months, preventing people getting into financial hardship and helping businesses to pay salaries.

'To help keep people in their homes over the winter months, we've changed the law to increase notice periods to six months and introduced a 'winter truce' on the enforcement of evictions for the first time.

'In addition we have put in place a welfare safety net of nearly 9.3 billion and increased Local Housing Allowance rates to cover the lowest 30 per cent of market rents.'

Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, said: 'After a six month ban on repossessions it is important that landlords can start to take action to tackle the most serious cases.

'This includes those where tenants are committing anti-social behaviour or domestic violence and situations where rent arrears were building before lockdown and have nothing to do with COVID-19.

The framework put in place by the judiciary and the Government largely strikes the right balance between the needs of landlords in such situations and those of tenants affected by the pandemic.

'We continue to encourage landlords to work with their tenants to sustain tenancies wherever possible, making use of the guidance we have prepared. To support this the Government should follow the example of Scotland and Wales and develop a stronger financial package to help tenants to pay off rent arrears built since the lockdown started.

'Ministers also need to address the crisis faced by those landlords who have rented their homes out whilst working elsewhere. The six months' notice required in such circumstances freezes them out of accessing their own homes, effectively making them homeless.'
As mail ballots begin to go out in some states, the race for the White House remains very much a referendum on President Trump  with Joe Biden and Kamala Harris unable yet to generate much enthusiasm on their own.

The Democratic ticket is still floating on the bad feelings that many voters have for Trump. The problem is that voters can express their displeasure with Trump just by staying home. Democrats need to get those anti-Trumpers to take the further step to actually vote for them.

Otherwise the stay-at-homes will help Trump, because his people will vote no matter what.

I did a Zoom roundtable the other day with the Lincoln Project, which is made up of Republicans trying to defeat Trump. Their take was that Democrats are depending on the public remaining upset with his disastrous handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

People are definitely worried about staying healthy. But theyre also worried about keeping their jobs, or finding one if theyve already been laid off.

And if they think Trump can deliver on that front, the pandemic worries could fade, especially if there is legitimate word of a vaccine forthcoming.

Book it: Its amazing that a book filled with hours of recorded interviews with President Trump is now a best-seller. Even more amazing is that I paid $39.99 (just short of $45 with tax) for the audio version.

But that is just whats happening with Bob Woodwards new book, Rage.

Much of the interest in the book was generated by the revelation that Trump downplayed the deadly nature of the coronavirus from the start.

But as I listen to the audio, I have to say it wasnt worth the money: The big news it contains was out there for free already.

If you build it: The bulk of the building projects in San Francisco right now consist of conversions of parking spaces in front of restaurants into outdoor dining rooms.

The colorful and creative parklets often reflect the character of the sponsoring restaurant.

Check out any of the 20 or so structures that now line Chestnut Street between Divisadero and Fillmore, or in North Beach, where Washington Square has taken on the look of an Italian piazza.

The parklets do have their downside. The other day, someone made too sharp a turn onto Broadway outside Tomassos and took out half the structure.

TV time: Looking for something to watch? Check out The Social Dilemma on Netflix. Its a documentary about how social media platforms are destroying our everyday lives.

It speaks volumes of the need to regulate the media giants and how too much time on social media can lead to depression and even suicide among teens.

For something more entertaining, check out the reruns of ABCs Designated Survivor, also available on Netflix, or After Truth on HBO, a clever presentation of the fake news debate.

A real jewel: Ann Getty was one of the most brilliant and authentic women Ive ever met.

For years, the Sunday night dinners she personally cooked for those of us who had no place to go drew the likes of then-bachelor Gavin Newsom, the Symphonys Michael Tilson Thomas, Charlotte Shultz and a host of newspaper and radio types.

There were always great conversations.

Ann, who died Monday, was very close to Beach Blanket Babylons Jo Schuman Silver, and she was probably the No. 1 creator of scenes in the show.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

My favorite memory of Ann was when she and her husband, Gordon Getty, hosted a group of us on their private jet on a trip to my hometown of Mineola, Texas, to dedicate the towns first train stop.

Ann had to leave early, so she took a commercial flight back to San Francisco. When she landed, she called to say she had left the bag containing her jewelry at the bed and breakfast where she stayed.

Are you kidding? There must be half a million dollars worth of jewels in that bag, I said. What makes you think its still going to be there?

Dont worry. No one will believe theyre real. Just pick it up, she said.

So I went over to the B&B.

Yes, its right over there, the clerk said.

The costume jewelry is a bit much, but its a really beautiful bag.

And it was: Louis Vuitton.

Want to sound off? Email: wbrown@sfchronicle.com
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a stalwart liberal on the U.S. Supreme Court since 1993, died on Friday at age 87, giving President Donald Trump a chance to expand its conservative majority with a third appointment at a time of deep divisions in America with a presidential election looming.

Ginsburg, a champion of women's rights who became an icon for American liberals, died at her home in Washington of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer, the court said in a statement. She was surrounded by her family, it said.

Ginsburg's death could dramatically alter the ideological balance of the court, which already had a 5-4 conservative majority, by moving it further to the right.

"Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature," Chief Justice John Roberts said in a statement. "We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her - a tireless and resolute champion of justice."

Trump, seeking re-election on Nov. 3, already has appointed two conservatives to lifetime posts on the court, Neil Gorsuch in 2017 and Brett Kavanaugh in 2018. Supreme Court appointments require Senate confirmation, and Trump's fellow Republicans control the chamber, holding 53 seats of the 100 seats.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he intends to act on any nomination Trump makes.

Expand Close Ruth Bader Ginsburg takes the court oath from Chief Justice William Rehnquist, right, as President Bill Clinton (left) looks on, after her 1993 appointment (Marcy Nighswander/AP) / Facebook

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Whatsapp Ruth Bader Ginsburg takes the court oath from Chief Justice William Rehnquist, right, as President Bill Clinton (left) looks on, after her 1993 appointment (Marcy Nighswander/AP)

"President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate," McConnell said.

McConnell's stance is a dramatic reversal from the position he took in a similar situation four years ago, when he refused to act on Democratic President Barack Obama's election-year nomination of centrist appeals court judge Merrick Garland to replace conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, who died in February 2016. Some Democrats accused McConnell and his fellow Republicans of "stealing" a Supreme Court seat.

McConnell's explanation in a statement on Friday was that in 2016 the Senate and White House were controlled by different parties while now they are both controlled by Republicans. Democrats have called McConnell's about-face hypocrisy.

Trump is facing Democratic challenger Joe Biden in the election.

"Today, our nation mourns the loss of a titan of the law," Trump said in a statement, adding that Ginsburg's decisions "have inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds."

Biden was also among those who paid tribute to Ginsburg, writing on Twitter: "Ruth Bader Ginsburg stood for all of us. She was an American hero, a giant of legal doctrine, and a relentless voice in the pursuit of that highest American ideal: Equal Justice Under Law. May her memory be a blessing to all people who cherish our Constitution and its promise.

Expand Close The justice, pictured with Joe Biden, right, died of metastatic pancreatic cancer at age 87 (Marcy Nighswander/AP) / Facebook

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Whatsapp The justice, pictured with Joe Biden, right, died of metastatic pancreatic cancer at age 87 (Marcy Nighswander/AP)

"Let me be clear: The voters should pick a President, and that President should select a successor to Justice Ginsburg."

Trump, who as a presidential candidate in 2016 called on Ginsburg to resign and said "her mind is shot" after she criticised him in media interviews, did not mention any potential plans about nominating a replacement.

Biden voiced opposition to Trump sending a nominee to the Senate before the election, saying the winner of the election should get to select Ginsburg's replacement.

U.S. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer wrote on Twitter: "The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president."

Expand Close Ruth Bader Ginsburg, seen in her chambers in at the supreme court in Washington, has been remembered as a champion of womens rights (Cliff Owen/AP) / Facebook

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Whatsapp Ruth Bader Ginsburg, seen in her chambers in at the supreme court in Washington, has been remembered as a champion of womens rights (Cliff Owen/AP)

National Public Radio reported on Friday that Ginsburg before her death dictated a statement to her granddaughter Clara Spera, saying, "My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed."

Soon after her death was announced, a large nighttime crowd gathered outside the white marble neoclassical Supreme Court building to pay tribute to Ginsburg, with some lighting candles, leaving flowers and waving rainbow flags for LGBT rights.

Supreme Court justices play an enormous role in shaping U.S. policies on hot-button issues like abortion, LGBT rights, gun rights, religious liberty, the death penalty and presidential powers. For example, the court in 1973 legalized abortion nationwide - a decision that some conservatives are eager to overturn - and in 2015 allowed same-sex marriage across the United States.

Ginsburg, who rose from a working class upbringing in New York City's borough of Brooklyn and prevailed over systemic sexism in the legal ranks to become one of America's best-known jurists, was appointed to the Supreme Court by Democratic President Bill Clinton in 1993. She provided key votes in landmark rulings securing equal rights for women, expanding gay rights and safeguarding abortion rights.

Ginsburg had experienced a series of health issues including bouts with pancreatic cancer in 2019 and lung cancer in 2018, a previous bout with pancreatic cancer in 2009 and colon cancer in 1999. She disclosed on July 17 that she had a recurrence of cancer.

Ginsburg was the oldest member of the court and the second-longest serving among its current justices, behind Clarence Thomas. She was the second woman ever named to the court, after Justice Sandra Day O'Connor was appointed 12 years earlier.

The expected Senate confirmation battle over a Trump nominee to replace Ginsburg is likely to be fierce - at a time of social unrest in the United States during the coronavirus pandemic - though Democrats lack the votes to block a Trump nominee unless some Republican senators join them.

Republicans also risk the possibility of Democrats embracing more radical proposals should they win November's election, with some activists on the left suggesting even before Ginsburg's death that they should increase the number of justices on the court in order to counter Trump's appointees.

Trump on Sept. 9 unveiled a list of potential nominees to fill any future Supreme Court vacancies in a move aimed at bolstering support among conservative voters.

Many court-watchers expect Trump to attempt to replace Ginsburg with a woman. One possible contender on Trump's list is Amy Coney Barrett, a conservative judge on the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals who was under consideration in 2018 before Trump nominated Kavanaugh.

Numerous political luminaries paid tribute to Ginsburg including former presidents George W. Bush and Jimmy Carter.

Justice Ginsburg was a hero to many in Hollywood and following her death, celebrities were quick to pay tribute while voicing concerns about who could replace her in the Supreme Court.

Comedian Sarah Silverman said: "RIP RBG. Gutted. Sad. Grateful for all she did. And very very scared."

Oscar-winning actress Octavia Spencer wrote: "She tried to hang in there for us!! Soar on angels wings."

And Queer Eye star Jonathan Van Ness said: "Thank you for everything you stood for. Vote everyone, Vote."

In her tribute, writer and actress Mindy Kaling said: "Ruth Bader Ginsburg was the kind of scholar and patriot you get excited about explaining to your kids. The kind of person who you say who knows, one day you could be HER. I hope you rest well, RBG, you must have been tired from changing the world."

Julie Cohen co-directed the 2018 documentary RBG and shared her brief tribute on Twitter.

"WHAT A LOSS," she said.

Actress January Jones shared an old picture of Ms Ginsburg and said: "Rest in sweet peace to this beautiful champion of the people. Please vote."

British model Cara Delevingne posted a picture of Ms Ginsburg holding up her first in a show of solidarity and said: "Trailblazer. Icon. Legend. Role model. Fighter. The true definition of an empowered woman  this is a heartbreaking loss for us all. Please, please, please VOTE in her honour."

Trump will get a chance to reshape the court like no other president since Ronald Reagan, who made three appointments during his eight years in office in the 1980s, moving the court to the right.

Trump and McConnell have made moving the federal judiciary to the right a top priority. Another Trump appointment would give the Supreme Court a 6-3 conservative majority, meaning that for the liberal justices to prevail in any case they would need to have two of the conservatives join them.

Some liberal activists had urged Ginsburg to step down early in Obama's second term to allow him to appoint a younger liberal to replace her who could serve decades on the court.

Recent Supreme Court confirmations have taken at least two months from the day the nomination was announced.

A private interment service for Ginsburg will be held at Arlington National Cemetery, the court said, but did not specify a date.

With additional reporting by PA
(LR) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, U.S. President Donald Trump, Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif al-Zayani, and UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan on the Truman Balcony at the White House after they participated in the signing of the Abraham Accords where the countries of Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates recognize Israel, on Sept. 15, 2020. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

Why the Abraham Accords Happened

Commentary

The Abraham AccordsIsraels genuine, warm peace treaties with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain just signed on the White House lawnwerent supposed to happen. When Obama administration Secretary of State John Kerry articulated why they were impossible, he spoke for almost every credentialed expert, Democrat and Republican.

Of course, whenever the impossible happens, the experts who spent decades assuring us of its impossibility hustle to explain why theyve been right, even as events prove them wrong. Its an important part of being an expert in America today: Those unable to retain their arrogance and certainty when proven wrong quickly fall out of the expert game.

To hear them tell it, fundamental changes in the Middle East, entirely unforeseeable as recently as 2017, swept a new dynamic across the region. The best that could be said for President Donald Trump is that even his bumbling, belligerent, incoherent foreign policy couldnt derail these positive trends.

Nonsense. The Abraham Accords happened because the Trump team examined the data. What it showed was that the post-Cold War expert consensus on the Middle East had produced consistent, spectacular, and varied failure:

Experts helped President George H.W. Bush isolate Israel, leave Saddam in power, allow genocidal massacres against Kurds and Shiites, tie up a half-million U.S. troops with no clear mission, and set in place an interminable stalemate.

Experts helped President Bill Clinton recast the ArabIsraeli conflict as an IsraeliPalestinian conflict, resuscitate the moribund Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) to enact its Phased Plan for Israels destruction and launch a terror warwhile ignoring the rise of al-Qaida and Islamist terrorism.

Experts helped President George W. Bush shift his focus to Iraq from Afghanistan prematurely, then topple a dictator without a plan for dealing with the bloody, anarchic aftermath.

Experts helped President Barack Obama turn away from Israel, the Gulf Arabs, and Egypt, cozy up to Iran, the Muslim Brotherhood, and the PLO, downplay Islamist terrorism, and lead the U.N.s criminalization of Jewish existence in the historic Jewish heartland.

So when Trump chose to sideline the experts, reinvigorate Americas ties to the Gulf Arabs, steel the resolve of Muslim leaders fighting Islamism, move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, recognize Israels annexation of the Golan, and focus on refugee resettlement and development around the region, he had nowhere to go but up. The worst that could have emerged was a fifth consecutive failed American approach to the Middle East.

Instead, the Trump team has turned inby farthe most successful American approach to the region since at least the Truman administration. How? The secret is simple: By resting policy on actual facts rather than expert advice.

The stunning success of this approach teaches numerous critical lessons that transcend the specifics of Middle East politics.

First: When longstanding, widespread, conventional wisdom about a high-profile issue generates only failure, theres something deeply flawed with that wisdom. Invariably that flaw is buried deep within the fundamental assumption that all experts internalized early in their training and never reconsidered.

Here, that flaw was their insistent focus on an IsraeliPalestinian conflict between two national groups claiming the same territory. In factas the 1964 PLO charter, 1988 Hamas charter, 1915 Hussein/McMahon letters, and numerous other foundational Arab texts make clearthe Palestinian national identity was created for the sole purpose of negating Jewish self-determination in the Jewish homeland. The genuine ArabIsraeli conflict pitted a Sunni Arab imperial claim against a Jewish claim for self-determination.

Second: Most conflicts reach resolution when one side wins and the other loses. Here, an Arab victory meant the eradication of Israel and the establishment of a Sunni Arab empire. An Israeli victory meant the recognition of distinct nation-states throughout the region, an end of Arab imperial dreams, and the acceptance of the Jewish State as a fully legitimate part of the regional mosaic.

By focusing on the very real, historically grounded, ArabIsraeli conflictand by allowing Israel to winthe Trump administration opened the door to the next phase of Middle East development. With that done, it became clear that the regions next great internal challenge involves refugee resettlement and development; by some counts, fully one of four people living in the Levant qualifies as displaced, refugee, or stateless.

Third: Its neither the Arabs nor the Israelis who have rendered Middle East peace impossible. It is Western experts. Kerry and his fellow experts were thus right, in part: Positive developments were indeed impossible as long as the focus remained exclusively on the wrong problem and against resolution.

All three of these lessons have broad implications to problem-solving and culture. Where expertise generates excellence, it deserves to be lauded. Where expertise produces only failure, it deserves to be ignored. America would do far better to follow Trumps lead and ignore experts whose only strategy involves doubling down on a losing hand.

Bruce Abramson, Ph.D., J.D., is a principal at B2 Strategic, senior fellow and director at ACEK Fund, and the author of American Restoration: Winning Americas Second Civil War.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
London, Sep 20 : British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is spending the weekend considering whether to tighten Covid-19 measures in England, after saying the UK was "now seeing a second wave".

The government is understood to be looking at a ban on households mixing, and reducing opening hours for pubs, the BBC reported on Saturday.

At least 13.5 million people, roughly one in five of the UK population, are already facing local restrictions.

Former government adviser Prof Neil Ferguson said new measures were needed "sooner rather than later".

The scientist, whose advice was crucial to the decision to go into lockdown in March, said: "If we leave it another two to four weeks, we will be back at (infection) levels we were seeing more like mid-March.

"That's clearly going to cause deaths because people will be hospitalised," he told the BBC.

Johnson only has direct power over restrictions in England. The devolved governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can set their own rules.

Widespread growth of the virus has been recorded across the country, with cases doubling every seven to eight days.

There were a further 4,422 confirmed UK cases on Saturday and 27 deaths. Friday was the first time the daily total of positive tests had exceeded 4,000 since May 8.

A further 350 cases were reported on Saturday in Scotland, the highest daily increase since May, 212 new cases in Wales, and 222 in Northern Ireland.

In Bolton, one returning holidaymaker, who did not self-isolate and instead went on a pub crawl, is being partly blamed for the town's spike in cases.

Meanwhile, governments across Europe have announced new restrictions to tackle the surge in infections.

Speaking on Friday, Johnson said he did not "want to go into bigger lockdown measures" but that tighter social distancing rules might be necessary.

He added: "Clearly when you look at what is happening, you have got to wonder whether we need to go further than the rule of six that we brought in on Monday." The government is understood to be considering a short period of tighter rules across England - "a circuit break" - which could involve closing hospitality venues.

However, schools and workplaces would stay open.
There are two main reasons for this: the first is that these bikes have been made with customization in mind; the second, there are so many specialized garages out there that they dwarf any effort made by those who like for instance BMWs or Triumph machines more.Back in May, Harley held a mammoth build-off competition for its network of international dealers, called King of Kings . It showed, once again, the power the Americans have in the industry. But the competition is not taking things lying down.September is Triumphs month in this department, after the company announced the Bonneville Build-Off Challenge. The competition is dedicat to UK-based dealers only, and its already up and running, so you can vote your favorite here The bike in the gallery above is one of those competitors. It was designed by a West London garage that likes to call itself JL Customs. Its based on a Speed Twin , only modified to suit the need of the contest, and the taste of the builder.The major mecahnical changes are the fitting of Ohlins front forks and rear suspension, Brembo brakes, a new top yoke, and an equally new tail tidy.The motorcycle received a visual update as well, as it was gifted with gloss matte paint over the front and rear fenders, to be in tone with the tank, while the wheels were made with a touch of gold paint. Also standing out is the special exhaust system of the SC Project variety, chosen for just the right amount of noise.
Woodward says Trump has 'lost his way, not just as a president but as a human being'

By Dylan Stableford

https://youtu.be/SZMh9Bv7Aic?t=224

September 19, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - Journalist Bob Woodward said President Trumps false claim at a town hall this week that he never sought to downplay the threat of the coronavirus shows Trump has lost his way, not just as president but as a human being trying to assess whats real and whats unreal.

In a wide-ranging live interview with Yahoo News Editor in Chief Daniel Klaidman and Chief Investigative Correspondent Michael Isikoff for the Skullduggery podcast Thursday, Woodward said Trumps assertion during the ABC town hall that he up-played the threat of COVID-19 to Americans was so confusing, it makes you dizzy.

This idea of up-playing, I dont think thats even a word, Woodward said. Now it will be in one of those slang dictionaries.

In a Feb. 7 interview for Woodwards new book, Rage, Trump told him he knew that the virus  which has now killed over 190,000 Americans  was more deadly than even your strenuous flues.

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You just breathe the air and thats how its passed, Trump said, adding: This is deadly stuff.

But publicly, Trump sought to downplay the virus, which he acknowledged in another interview with Woodward on March 19.

I wanted to always play it down, he said. I still like playing it down, because I dont want to create a panic.

On Skullduggery, Woodward called Trumps efforts to conceal his knowledge of the virus from the public one of the most tragic, outrageous acts by a sitting president in, maybe in history.

Woodward has faced sharp criticism for not disclosing Trumps private recognition of the danger posed by the coronavirus months ago, when it might have affected the course of the pandemic.

He said that at the time of Trumps Feb. 7 comments, there were few cases in the U.S. of the virus, which originated in Wuhan, China.

It was a China story, Woodward said. And when Trump acknowledged he was downplaying the threat of COVID-19 in late March, Woodward said the public already knew how infectious it was.

Woodward, who conducted 19 on-the-record interviews with Trump for the book, said he asked Trump at one point what he considered to be the job of the president.

He said, To protect the people, that is job No. 1, Woodward recalled. Job No. 2 is to tell the truth.

Woodward said Trumps failure to do either of those saddens him.

And its also why the legendary author, who has written books on presidents dating back to Richard Nixon, said he felt a responsibility to conclude his latest with the assessment that Trump is the wrong man for the job.

You cant duck what is an obvious conclusion, Woodward said.
The Serum Institute of India is all set to begin the final stage of the clinical trial of University of Oxford and AstraZeneca Plc.s experimental vaccine, starting from next week. The late-stage trial will take place at the Sassoon General Hospital in Pune, according to news agency PTI.

"The phase III trial of Covishield vaccine will begin at Sassoon hospital from next week. It is likely to start on Monday." Dr Muralidhar Tambe, Dean of Sassoon General Hospital, told the news agency.

In the third phase of clinical trial, around 150-200 volunteers will administer a dose of Covishield, Tambe said. "Some volunteers have already come forward for the trial," Tamble further added. The Sassoon General Hospital in Pune has started enrolling volunteers from Saturday. "Those who are willing to volunteer for the vaccination should contact the hospital," Tambe encouraged.

The phase II trial of Covishield was conducted at Bharti Vidyapeeth Medical College and King Edward Memorial (KEM) Hospital in Pune.

Pune-based drug maker signed a deal with British-Swedish company AstraZeneca to manufacture COVID-19 vaccine candidate, developed by the University of Oxford. The vaccine maker earlier shortlisted 17 sites in India for the Phase II clinical trial of COVID-19 vaccine. At least 1,600 candidates aged between 18 to 55, participated in the Phase II clinical trial.

On September 10, the drug maker had paused the clinical trials of the Oxford COVID-19 vaccine candidate in India in the wake of AstraZeneca suspending the clinical trials in other countries. Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) Dr VG Somani on September 15 granted permission to Serum Institute of India to resume trial, while revoking its earlier order of suspending any new recruitment for phase II and III trial.

COVID-19 vaccine candidate developed by the Jenner Institute, a part of the Nuffield Department of Medicine at the University of Oxford, showed a positive result in its initial trial. According to a report published in the British medical journal, The Lancet, the COVID-19 vaccine produced a dual immune response in people aged 18 to 55.

The University of Oxford's possible COVID-19 vaccine could be rolled out by the end of the year but there is no certainty, the lead developer of the vaccine. "The end of the year target for getting vaccine roll-out, it's a possibility but there's absolutely no certainty about that because we need three things to happen," Sarah Gilbert earlier told.

Serum Institute of India will begin the trial of another COVID-19 vaccine candidate developed by Novavax in next month. US drug developer Novavax Inc said it was doubling its potential COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing capacity to two billion doses annually under an agreement with Indian drug maker. As part of the expanded agreement, Serum Institute will also manufacture the antigen component of the vaccine.

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A recent Indonesian seafood exporter has just been added to the list of companies that China has recently slapped with an import ban after discovering that their product packaging actually tested positive for the known coronavirus.

The country has then resulted into halting the imports of these known aquatic products from the PT Putri Indah for about a week after they have recently found certain coronavirus particles latched on the packaging of a particular frozen hairtail.

Coronavirus particles were found by customs

The report regarding the coronavirus particles was given by the customs office in a recent statement. The company is said to be based somewhere in North Sumatra and failed to give immediate response to certain requests for comment by either text or by phone.

The Chinese authorities have been directing their investigation towards imported seafood, meat, packaging, and even containers as they might be a potential source of COVID-19 ever since June after they were repeatedly able to find certain traces of the known pathogen.

The underlying risk

Still, there are only about six of the total 500,000 samples that came back with a positive result for the coronavirus according to customs some time earlier this month. The country has already previously banned certain imports of different products that include frozen meat, Brazilian chicken wing, and even Ecuadorian shrimps after they had following positive tests.

Although the US FDA or Food and Drug Administration has already claimed that there are actually no existing evidence that the COVID-19 can be transmitted through either food or on certain food packaging, the different Chinese researchers have still found the coronavirus on certain chilled salmon that might actually be infectious for over a week.

Previously guarded viruses

Caution has gone up all around the world and although it previously used to be ASF or African Swine Flu which is although not deadly to humans but could be deadly to other pigs, the tides have turned and everyone is on the lookout for signs of the coronavirus.

Aside from just ASF, customs also had to deal with Bird Flu which is transmitted through birds oftentimes chicken which could potentially be harmful but not necessarily fatal. Since it is the coronavirus that is being talked about, customs have increased their vigilance in trying to bar any possible health risk inside their country.

Read Also: Chinese Whistleblower Li-Meng Yan Interview Alleges COVID-19 was 'Released Intentionally' After 'Modifications' Made it More 'Harmful'

Indonesia's involvement in seafood

Indonesia is also very popular for their seafood and have been shipping worldwide long before the pandemic came around. The ties between the Chinese and Inonesian exports have not yet been defined but with the recent ban on seafoods from Indonesia, a huge chunk of their customers have been cut and they would have to find another place to supply to.

Although it was stated that it might be infectious for over a week, there are still no updates as to the definitive plans of the Chinese ban towards Indonesian seafood.

Read Also: Chinese Whistleblower Dr. Li-Meng Yan Blames Dr. Fauci for COVID-19 Outbreak Coverup

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Urian Buenconsejo

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
There are significant differences between 2016 and today. Then, Republicans held the Senate majority and had the power to refuse Mr. Obamas nominee. Democrats are in the minority now, and are virtually powerless to block Mr. Trump and Senate Republicans from moving ahead to fill a vacancy in the court if they decide they want to do so. Rules changes in the Senate since 2013 have left control of judicial nominees entirely in the hands of the majority if they can hold their forces together.

It is not at all clear whether they can. A small number of Republican senators  Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, and Charles E. Grassley of Iowa  have indicated they would not want to fill a Supreme Court vacancy so close to a presidential election. But it was not certain whether they would hold to that stance.

On Saturday, Mr. Graham, who is facing a more difficult than expected re-election fight, signaled that he had since changed his mind, pointing to comments he made this year in which he said that after the bruising battle over Brett M. Kavanaughs confirmation, the rules have changed, as far as Im concerned.

The question for Mr. McConnell and his fellow Republicans would be whether they could secure 50 votes to push through a nominee over what would undoubtedly be intense Democratic objections. Given their reliance on the rationale of the looming presidential election in 2016, some Republicans  particularly those like Ms. Collins who are up for election in a difficult environment this year  might be reluctant to move ahead, fearing a backlash from more moderate and independent voters they are counting on to prevail.

Certainly, any Republican who resists would come under tremendous pressure given the chance for Mr. Trump, who is battling for re-election, to get a third nominee for the court and lock in his conservative majority. Republicans, led by Mr. McConnell, have made their push to place more than 200 conservative judges on the federal bench a centerpiece of their agenda, and Mr. McConnell will no doubt want to put an exclamation point on that achievement.

Ms. Collins, already embattled in Maine partly because of her 2018 vote to confirm Justice Kavanaugh, said recently that she would not be inclined to move forward so close to the election.
Over 5 million acres have burned through the fire-ravaged states of the West Coast of the United States over the last month. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, 21 major fires are still burning in California, 12 in Oregon and 8 in Washington state.

Thousands of homes and other buildings have been burned to the ground, with estimates of the dead between 33 to 35, and many more missing as hundreds of thousands have been forced to evacuate their homes from Washington to California.

A firefighter lost his life on Thursday, battling the fires in Yucaipa, California, bringing the total deaths in the state to 26. An older couple was also found dead amid the remains of their home in Butte County. The couple decided not to evacuate after hearing that the fire blazing near their home was 51 percent contained. In total, over 3.4 million acres have burned, and over 6,200 structures have been destroyed in the state.

The Oregon wildfires have killed at least 10 people, and 22 remain missing. One million acres have burned and 1,145 homes and 579 other buildings are destroyed. One person has been confirmed dead in Washington state. Over 800,000 acres have burned, and 195 homes and 223 buildings have been destroyed.

A thick layer of toxic smoke and ash continues to blanket the Pacific Northwest in what is considered by IQAir as the worst air quality in the world, with the poisonous air now having made its way across the country to Washington D.C. and New York and even across the Atlantic Ocean, with smoke visible in Europe.

With the rise in noxious smoke particles infiltrating the air, hospitals on the West Coast are starting to see a significant increase in the number of conditions related to respiratory and heart conditions. A report by the Hill yesterday confirms that the Stanford Health Care system, based in northern California, has seen a 12 percent increase in hospital admissions. Forty-three percent of these hospitalizations were due to an increase in strokes, as well as other cerebrovascular incidents, triggered by the levels of toxins in the air, quite possibly increasing levels of inflammation in the body. There has been a 14 percent increase in the number of heart patients being seen for aggravated conditions, 18 percent increase for kidney conditions, and 17 percent increase in asthma conditions, according to the Guardian.

Oregons air quality is still one of the worst in the world, with the states Air Quality Index noting that several cities in the state have a level well above the 500 mark, with 301 to 500 considered hazardous to human health. The smoke emitted from the fires compromises the immune systems of those with preexisting health conditions, as well as healthy individuals, compounding their risk for contracting and succumbing to COVID-19.

In addition to having to inhale the noxious smoke-filled air while simultaneously attempting to dodge contracting the deadly coronavirus at every turn, residents will have another challenge to contend with long after the fires have been put out: the erosion of scorched land which, in turn, will have a dangerous impact on the quality of drinking water and threaten soil fertilityconditions which can create a second dust bowl.

Fires which burn close to the ground at high temperatures leave the ground in a nitrogen-depleted state and have the potential to destroy microorganisms vital to the chemical composition and bioavailability in the soil. These organisms, known as nitrogen-fixing bacteria, are responsible for capturing nitrogen in the atmosphere into a form of fixed nitrogen that is pulled into the ground and is easily utilized by plants.

Ecological scientists explain that it can take years for the soils microbiome to be restored after a major fire, with the full regeneration of lost trees and vegetation taking decades to centuries. However, the warmer temperatures associated with climate change and lack of shadeusually provided by trees and other vegetation, cooling the groundcan prevent vegetation from growing back without human intervention, drying out the land permanently, a process which is known among ecologists as desertification.

The destruction and erosion of forest lands and other ecosystems in the wake of wildfires also pose the threat to humans and the environment in the form of landslides and run-off, which also have the potential to pollute drinking water. Additionally, valuable infrastructure used to distribute water can be damaged or destroyed.

Water contamination due to run-off after wildfires can significantly slow down the production of treated water, impacting the rate at which drinking water can be made available. Stuart Khan, a professor at the University of New South Wales, whose background is in Environmental Engineering, told Inside Climate News (ICN), If we have a lot of sediment come through, then we spend lots of time backwashing and less time providing drinking water, which can lead to shortages.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reports that approximately 80 percent of the USs freshwater comes from forestland watersheds. In the US, at least 3,400 communities rely on public drinking water that is produced by these watersheds.

When these source water supplies become contaminated due to chemical run-off or damage sustained to the water delivery system, many water-supplying agencies are forced to turn to their stored water supplies, which is not only of lower quality, and requires pretreatment, but is also costly. The USGS points out, Unfortunately, the unpredictable nature of wildfire makes it challenging to develop treatment-plant-specific strategies for treating source water degraded by the effects of wildfire.

Dr. Monica Emelko, director of the Water Science, Technology and Policy group at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada, told ICN, Wildfire is going to affect water. And its going to cost, and its going to be bad, adding, We can make water safe to drink in the Space Station, so its possible to make safe drinking water. The question is: how much do you want to pay for it? As ICN indicates, its difficult and expensive for many communities whose water treatment systems were not built for such emergencies.

Capitalism, which plunders and pollutes the globe for immediate gains and the pursuit of profits, has created and exacerbated climate change which has set the Americas ablaze from the Pacific Northwest to Brazils Amazon rainforest.

Capitalist profit interests have undermined efforts to prepare for wildfire disasters which are only growing worse under the influence of human-induced climate change. Similarly, nothing has been done to implement the necessary water disaster preparedness plans to protect the sources which supply millions of people. The only way to stop the damaging effects of climate change and its catastrophic consequences is through an international struggle for socialism, and the expropriation of the worlds wealthy elite, to meet the needs of society and to restore the health of the global ecosystem.
The August 26 lecture First as Tragedy, Second as Farce; Marcos, Duterte and Communist Party of Philippines, by Dr. Joseph Scalice, comprehensively exposed the support given by the Stalinist Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) for the fascistic president Rodrigo Duterte. In response CPP founder Jose Maria Sison has unleashed a torrent of abuse, slanders and threats against Dr. Scalice and regurgitated Stalinist lies about Trotskyism.

Video exposing Sisons Big Lie

Sison claims that Dr. Scalice is grossly lying, and that no one in his right mind ever believed Duterte was progressive or socialist. In fact, it is Sison and his supporters who are attempting to rewrite history and cover up the reactionary maneuvers of the Stalinist-Maoist CPP, using the methods of the Big Lie pioneered by fascist and Stalinist regimes. As this video shows, in 2016 Sison was ecstatic about the election of Duterte, and the prospect of a coalition with the CPP. Sison hailed Dutertewho had already promised to kill thousands in a murderous war on drugsas a progressive, left-wing president with a socialist orientation.

We encourage readers to share this video widely on social media and listen to Dr. Scalices lecture. We also urge readers to send us letters of support for Dr. Scalices scholarship and defending him against the CPPs slander campaign.
On Earth, the molecule can be produced through the metabolic processes of life as we know it, and through industrial manufacturing. The scientists who reported the phosphine discovery on Venus said they could think of no natural explanation, other than the presence of life, for the abundance of the molecule. And they detected it in the part of the Venusian atmosphere assumed to be most congenial to life.
After months of mass death and sickness, what could possibly count as a success story against the pandemic?

President Donald Trump would have you believe Americans are already living that success story, even as the death toll approaches 200,000 and infections spread by the tens of thousands a day.

Trump's latest revisionism on the pandemic came during a week when he unleashed a torrent of misbegotten claims about mail-in voting, a monthslong preoccupation growing more intense with the approach of the Nov. 3 election.

While Democratic presidential rival Joe Biden laid out a broad and largely supported case that Trump has underplayed the severity of the pandemic, the devil was in the details: No, Trump did not call the coronavirus a hoax.

A review:

Trump on coronavirus

TRUMP: If you look at what weve done and all of the lives that weve saved ... this was our prediction, that if we do a really good job, well be at about a hundred and  100,000 to 240,000 deaths. And were below that substantially, and well see what comes out. But that would be if we did the good job. If the not-so-good job was done, youd be between 1.5 million  I remember these numbers so well  and 2.2 million.  news conference Wednesday.

THE FACTS: He's glossing over grim numbers and wrongly describing the scientific projections.

First and most notably, the U.S. is not running substantially below projections that 100,000 to 240,000 would die from COVID-19. The death toll is close to 200,000 and the pandemic is far from over. Tens of thousands of new infections are being reported each day.

The White House and federal public health authorities have often pointed to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington as a source for their pandemic projections. The institute now forecasts more than 415,000 U.S. deaths from COVID-19 by Jan. 1.

In early April, U.S. officials estimated at least 100,000 would die from the pandemic even if all conceivable steps were taken against it  a thorough and enduring lockdown, full use of masks and more. A death toll up to 240,000 assumed aggressive mitigation.

Trump has often cited a potential death toll of 2.2 million or so  a number that puts the reality of several hundred thousand deaths in a better light. He uses it to claim to have saved many lives. But such an extreme projection was merely a baseline if nothing at all were done to fight the pandemic. It was never, as he claimed, an expected death toll if the not-so-good job was done.

At an April 1 briefing, when Trump and his officials discussed the projection of 100,000 to 240,000 deaths, the president held out hope of keeping deaths under 100,000. I think were doing better than that.

Now he's trying to move the goal posts and have the public consider anything under 240,000 deaths a success.

___

TRUMP: Well have manufactured at least 100 million vaccine doses before the end of the year.  news conference Friday.

TRUMP: We expect to have enough vaccine for every American by April.  news conference Friday.

THE FACTS: Dont count on this.

Even if one or more vaccines is authorized for emergency use by the end of this year, those numbers stretch credulity.

Public authorities are so certain there will be only limited doses at first that theyre developing plans to triage them for people who need it the most, such as health workers. In a distribution plan released this past week, the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions best-case option was that 35 million to 45 million doses would be available by the end of December if two of the leading candidates both proved safe and effective. And those candidates require two doses, three weeks to four weeks apart.

Having enough vaccine for everyone - whenever that may be  is different from getting it into peoples arms. Plans for how to accomplish that are still being worked out.

Trump is pushing hard to have a vaccine announced before the election or at least to convince people that such an outcome is possible. But federal health officials and scientists have signaled or outright stated that that is unlikely.

___

BIDEN VIDEO: Trump in public: Hoax. Trump in private: Killer.  video tweeted by Biden on Tuesday.

BIDEN VIDEO, showing Trump saying at a Feb. 28 campaign rally in South Carolina: The coronavirus  and this is their new hoax.

THE FACTS: The accusation is misleading. So is the selective video editing that made it appear Trump was calling the coronavirus a new hoax.

At the rally featured in the video, Trump actually said the phrases the coronavirus and this is their new hoax at separate points. Although his meaning is difficult to discern, the broader context of his words shows he was railing against Democrats for their denunciations of his administrations coronavirus response.

Now the Democrats are politicizing the coronavirus, he said. You know that, right? Coronavirus. Theyre politicizing it. He meandered briefly to the subject of the messy Democratic primary in Iowa, then the Russia investigation before returning to the pandemic. They tried the impeachment hoax. ... And this is their new hoax.

Asked at a news conference the next day to clarify his remarks, Trump made clear he was not referring to the coronavirus itself as a hoax.

No, no, no. he said. Hoax referring to the action that they take to try and pin this on somebody, because weve done such a good job. The hoax is on them, not -- Im not talking about whats happening here. Im talking what theyre doing. Thats the hoax.

He continued: Certainly not referring to this. How could anybody refer to this? This is very serious stuff.

The videos reference to Trump in private calling the virus a killer comes from the presidents interview in April with author and journalist Bob Woodward, whose new book Rage contains Trumps acknowledgment that he was playing down the virus threat in public, so as to avoid panic.

But it is incorrect for Biden to suggest, as the video does, that Trump insisted the virus was a hoax before ultimately acknowledging to the author in April that it was deadly and serious.

Trump on several occasions before that did refer publicly to the virus as a plague and a killer, while also falsely dismissing it as something that would go away on its own, in hot weather or otherwise.

___

Trump on voting

TRUMP: There's going to be fraud. It's a disaster. This is going to be the scam of all time.  news conference Friday.

TRUMP: The big Unsolicited Ballot States should give it up NOW, before it is too late, and ask people to go to the Polling Booths and, like always before, VOTE. Otherwise, MAYHEM!!! Solicited Ballots (absentee) are OK.  tweet Thursday.

THE FACTS: Trump is overstating the potential for mayhem and fraud in big unsolicited ballot states.

There is no such thing as an unsolicited ballot. Five states routinely send ballots to all registered voters so they can choose to vote through the mail or in person. Four other states and the District of Columbia will be adopting that system in November, as will almost every county in Montana. Election officials note that, by registering to vote, people are effectively requesting a ballot, so it makes no sense to call the materials sent to them unsolicited.

More broadly speaking, voter fraud has proved exceedingly rare. The Brennan Center for Justice in 2017 ranked the risk of ballot fraud at 0.00004% to 0.0009%, based on studies of past elections.

In the five states that regularly send ballots to all voters who have registered, there have been no major cases of fraud or difficulty counting the votes.

___

TRUMP: Because of the new and unprecedented massive amount of unsolicited ballots which will be sent to voters, or wherever, this year, the Nov 3rd Election result may NEVER BE ACCURATELY DETERMINED, which is what some want.  tweet Thursday.

THE FACTS: Its highly unlikely that any chaos in states with universal mail-in voting will cause the election result to never be accurately determined.

The five states that already have such balloting have had time to strengthen their systems, while four new states adopting it  California, New Jersey, Nevada and Vermont  have not. Of those nine states, only Nevada is a battleground, worth six electoral votes and only likely to be pivotal in a national presidential deadlock. The others, including the District of Columbia, are overwhelmingly Democratic.

The main states that are being contested  Arizona, Florida, Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin  only send mail ballots to voters who request them. Trump said Thursday that such solicited ballots are absolutely OK.

Trump frequently blasts mail-in voting as flawed and fraudulent while insisting that mail ballots in certain states such as Florida, a must-win state for him, are fine. But mail-in ballots are cast in the same way as what Trump refers to as absentee mail ballots, with the same level of scrutiny such as signature verification in many states. In court filings, the Trump campaign has acknowledged that mail-in and absentee ballots are legally interchangeable terms.

States nationwide expect a surge in mail-in voting due to the coronavirus threat.

___

TRUMP: Unsolicited Ballots are uncontrollable, totally open to ELECTION INTERFERENCE by foreign countries, and will lead to massive chaos and confusion!  tweet Thursday.

THE FACTS: Mail-in ballots arent the biggest risk for foreign interference.

Trying to influence a federal election through mail-in ballots would probably mean paying thousands of U.S. citizens, carefully selected in pivotal states, who are willing to conspire with a foreign government and risk detection and prosecution.

Far easier and cheaper would be a social media campaign seeking to discourage certain groups of people from voting, which is something the FBI has warned about. Or a cyberattack on voter registration data that would eliminate certain voters from the rolls. That could cause havoc at polling places or election offices as officials attempt to count ballots from people who are missing from their voter databases.

Attorney General Bill Barr has raised the possibility that a foreign country could print up tens of thousands of counterfeit ballots. He argued they would be hard to detect, but thats been disputed by election experts.

Mail-in ballots are printed on special paper and must be formatted correctly in order to be processed and counted. Ballots are specific to each precinct, often with a long list of local races, and would be identified as fraudulent if everything didnt match precisely.

___

TRUMP: The Governor of Nevada worked very hard to cancel all of our venues. Despite the fact that he controls the state, he failed, but would have rather done rally outside. Can you imagine this man is in charge ... of the Ballots in Nevada!? Not fair, Rigged Election!  tweets Monday.

THE FACTS: You don't have to imagine that man being in charge of the election because he isn't.

Whatever his beef with Nevadas Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak, the governor isn't running the state's new all-mail election in November. That responsibility falls to Nevada's secretary of state, Barbara Cegavske. She is a Republican.

Trump on abortion

TRUMP, on Virginias governor: He is in favor of executing babies after birth - this isnt late-term abortion, this is a step way beyond!  tweet Friday, when advance voting opened in Virginia.

THE FACTS: This a gross distortion of Democratic Gov. Ralph Northams position on late-term abortion. Northam brought trouble on himself with ambiguous comments on the subject but he has certainly not called for executing babies, which is a crime.

It is not necessarily a crime to forgo sophisticated medical intervention in cases where severe fetal abnormalities leave a newborn with no chance of survival. This has happened on rare occasions in the course of a late-term abortion. The U.S. government recorded 143 deaths between 2003 and 2014 involving infants born alive during attempted abortions.

This is the subject Northam addressed more than a year ago in a radio interview when he expressed support for state legislation that would allow late-term abortions. He said if a woman were to want an abortion as shes going into labor, the baby would be delivered and resuscitated if thats what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between doctors and the mother. He did not elaborate on the circumstances or what the discussion would be.

Organizations representing obstetricians and gynecologists say laws already provide protections to every healthy newborn, whether born during a failed abortion or under other circumstances.

But when anomalies are so severe that a newborn would die soon after birth, a family may choose whats known as palliative care or comfort care. This might involve allowing the baby to die naturally without medical intervention.

Similar decisions about whether to extend life support in hopeless cases are faced by the families of patients of any age. When families decide not to continue medical intervention in such a case, they are not executing the patient.

Obamas Nobel Peace Prize

TRUMP: You know, Obama came into office, they gave him the Nobel Prize, like almost immediately, right? In fact, he didnt even know why he got it. He didnt even know. He had no idea why he got it and he was right about that because nobody else does either. They still dont know. -- rally in Minden, Nevada, Sept. 12.

TRUMP: But its true, Obama got it for no reason whatsoever. -- rally in Henderson, Nevada, Sept. 13.

Neither of Trumps oft-stated assertions about Obama and his Nobel Peace Prize is true. The Nobel committee announced Obama as recipient of the prize on Oct. 9, 2009, nearly nine months after his inauguration -- that's not almost immediately.

As far as the reason for awarding the prize to Obama, the committee was quite clear in its 258-word statement issued 11 years ago, which focused on his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples and noted in particular Obamas vision of and work for a world without nuclear weapons.

Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the worlds attention and given its people hope for a better future, the committee said in its statement.

To be sure, the prize reflected aspirations more than accomplishments. When Obama was asked later why he got the prize, he did say: To be honest, I dont know. He said they give those prizes to just about anybody these days. He was making self-deprecating jokes, which Trump turned against him at his rally.

But agree or disagree with the committees decision, it gave its reasons for honoring Obama.

___

Associated Press writers Nicholas Riccardi in Denver and Lauran Neergaard, Eric Tucker and Douglass K. Daniel in Washington contributed to this report.
After becoming Instagram official on September 5th, Jordana Brewster and her new man Mason Morfit have been inseparable.

And on Friday the Fast & Furious actress, 40, and Morfit were seen starting off their day grabbing coffee from go-to spot Caffe Luxxe at the Brentwood Country Mart before linking up later to take Jordana's sons out.

For their morning jaunt the two looked put together as they stepped out holding hands.

Look of love: Jordana Brewster, 40, and her new boyfriend CEO Mason Morfit grabbed coffee in Brentwood before the loved up pair took Jordana's kids to school as she introduced him to her sons

Jordana had on cuffed blue jeans and a striped red t-shirt which she paired under a black leather jacket.

She threw on a pair of nude and black ballet flats, a checkered yellow face mask and some beige framed sunglasses as she looked back to grab her boyfriend's hand.

The two have been spotted out on multiple occasions laying the PDA on very thick no matter where they are.

Attached at the hip: Just last week Jordana and Mason were seen putting on an intense kissing display while sitting outside of the same coffee shop

Coffee date: The pair have been linked since July after Jordana filed for divorce from her ex-husband producer Andrew Form with whom she shares her two sons

Mason walked lovingly behind his girlfriend as he wore black jeans and a checkered button down, throwing on a brown belt and a pair of sneakers for their morning caffeine fix.

Like his brunette bombshell, he too wore a face mask to comply with CDC guidelines as they grabbed their coffee and bounced.

Jordana who is a doting mom to Julian, six, and Rowan, four, made sure to bring her new man along as the couple were later seen on a family excursion.

The couple were spotted making out in front of the boys as her children played on mechanical rides.

Kid approved: Mason was seen grasping Julian's hand as Jordana walked behind with Rowan while the new family unit brought her children to school

Morfit could not get his hands off his leading lady as he copped a feel of her behind.

The loved-up pair though in parenting mode were not shy about continuing their passionate infatuation.

Despite the mushy behavior, it seems as if Mason was a hit with her sons, even engaging with them on the rides as the boys screamed for attention.

At one point the ValueAct CEO was seen grasping Julian's hand while Jordana walked behind with Rowan as the family unit strolled in Brentwood.

Family ties: No doubt things are getting serious between the two as the actress seemed to feel incredibly confident bringing her new beau around her youngins

No doubt things are getting serious between the two as the actress seemed to feel incredibly confident bringing her new beau around her boys.

The couple have moved increasingly fast in their relationship as Jordana only filed for divorce from A Quiet Place producer, Andrew, in July after 13 years of marriage.

Days later she was spotted putting on an affectionate display with Mason at the beach.

The San Francisco based hedge fund CEO was married in 2004 to his ex though details of when or how the pair split are not known.

Jordana is currently gearing up for the release of F9 - the ninth installation of Fast & Furious starring Vin Diesel. The film is set for release in April 2021.
This article was first published on by the Boston Business Journal.

A cannabis dispensary is suing state regulators over frustrations that the state has not acted on its application for over eight months.

In a complaint and preliminary injunction filed in Suffolk Superior Court on Sept. 14, Northeast Alternatives asked the court to compel the Cannabis Control Commission to act on its application for a cultivation facility in Lakeville, a location where it continues to pay $200,000 a month in rent, according to its complaint.

In a statement, a spokeswoman for the Cannabis Control Commission said they would not comment on pending litigation.

The agency continues to conduct all possible due diligence to ensure marijuana establishments maintain suitability for licensure and has enforcement tools at its disposal if a licensee is found to be in violation of Massachusetts law or regulations, the spokeswoman said.

Northeast Alternatives has cultivation, manufacturing and dispensary operations now open in Fall River, and said in its complaint that it submitted an application to the state for a second cultivation facility for Lakeville in June 2019.

In its complaint, the dispensary said it received five follow-ups from the commission requesting further information, and was told on Jan. 16 that the application was complete. The town of Lakeville sent the state certification on Feb. 20 saying the dispensary had signed the required contract with the municipality to operate in the town.

Under state statute, the commission must either issue or reject the application within 90 days.

The dispensary said it even reached out to the commission in late March for an update and was told its license would be reviewed during a commission meeting in May. When that didnt happen, the dispensary threatened litigation in June, and the commission requested more time to review the license.

In July, the commission made several more requests from the dispensary, and the dispensary responded.

With each day that passes without the statutorily required action from the commission, NEA incurs additional costs related to the application, including rent on the property intended for the proposed marijuana establishment, the complaint said. Specifically, NEA has paid over $1.2 million in rent on the Lakeville location since its application was deemed complete.

The dispensary added that its other three licenses have even been renewed by the commission in September without issue.

The commission has been criticized by applicants in the past for the long wait on reviewing applications. In December, applicant Leah Daniels interrupted a commission meeting to say she was protesting what she said was then a 610-day wait on her pending application.
A day after six sanitation workers were arrested for creating a ruckus while protesting outside the Noida authority office in Sector 6, Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad, along with scores of his supporters, reached the authority office on Saturday and extended support to striking workers. He demanded the immediate release of the arrested persons, and pressed for the regularisation of workers jobs, and also flats for all staffers under the jhuggi-jhopri (JJ) scheme.

Azad, clad in grey trousers, white shirt and blue scarf, reached Sector 6 in a Mahindra Scorpio around 1pm. He soon mounted the Scorpio to address the protesters. A number of police personnel were deployed at the spot, who had locked the main entrance gate to the authority office.

Azad, holding aloft a copy of the Indian Constitution in one hand and a broom in the another, demanded that sanitation worker be given their rights as per the Book (Constitution). He addressed the gathering of over 1,000 people and also sat in protest for some time with the sanitation workers.

The police crackdown on sanitation workers on Friday was not right. These sanitation workers are corona warriors. The government launches schemes like Swachh Bharat Mission with the support of sanitation workers. They have been working for over a decade and they still get a meagre salary. The workers have been cheated of their dues, he said.

He also said there was no unity among sanitation workers and, hence, their demands were being ignored.

On behalf of sanitation workers, Azad put forward five demands to the Noida authority -- all contractual workers should be directly employed by the authority; they should get flats under the JJ Scheme; Noida farmers land issues should be resolved; kin of Anil Balmiki, a contractual worker who killed himself on Monday, should get compensation and job;and the Noida authority should also ensure jobs to the local youth.

The Bhim Army chief also demanded the release of six arrested sanitation workers and said he would intensify the protest in the coming days if these demands are not met.

Saveer Makhwana, a sanitation worker, said on Friday, the police registered a case against 20 named, and 100 unnamed sanitation workers. They were booked under sections 147 (rioting), 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), and 353 (assault or criminal force on public servant) of the IPC and the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897.

The police arrested six of our workers for demanding regularisation of jobs, and sent them to jail. The protest will continue till the arrested persons are released, he said.

Indu Prakash Singh, officer on special duty (OSD), Noida authority, said contractual workers are engaged for various works across the state and not just Noida. We are not the only city which offers contractual jobs. We have informed higher authorities about the sanitation workers demands. We will also explore options to provide them flats under the JJ Scheme, Singh said.

Singh said Balmiki was a contractual worker and the contractor who employed him has given his family 1.10 lakh compensation and contractual jobs to two family members.

Kumar Ranvijay, additional DCP, Noida, said the protest was peaceful on Saturday. A police team was deployed at the spot to ensure that order was maintained. The six persons had created a ruckus and, hence, they were arrested. They will be released by the court following due process, he said.
An electrician, who attempted to prevent irate youths from attacking their colleague, had his arm chopped off, at Aboabo Akorem in the Asokore Mampong municipality of Ashanti, on Wednesday.



.Murtala Abdul Karim, who had the left hand chopped off from the wrist with a machete, also lost two teeth, when a young man hit his face with a metal.Abdul Rahman also suffered machete injuries on the head, and the two victims were taken to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH).



Eyewitness accounts said that Rahman allegedly seized horse whips belonging to one of the attackers, who mobilised the group to engage in the violence.



Karim, rushed in to stop the youth from the attack, but they turned against him as Rahman took to his heels.



However, luck eluded Rahman as he fell and the youth attacked and slashed his head with a cutlass. Umar Morrison, friend of Karim, who witnessed the bloody scene, demanded justice, claimed he earlier restrained the youth from attacking Rahman,but later, one of them returned with more attackers.He said, When we came out the hand of my friend had been cut off.



We want everything to be done to seek justice for him. Because he has lost his hand and cannot work again.



Meanwhile, police sources, indicated the arrest of the mother of the young man, who was behind the attack, and currently on the run.



Mukarama Ahmed, a sister of Karim, feared young men in her family might retaliate if the culprits were not brought to book.We could have taken this case into our own hands but so far as the law exists, what we need is justice. We have realised they want to make it a foolish case.



But government has to intervene to ensure that their mother remains in custody until the culprits are arrested and made to pay for what they did, she demanded.

Source: The Ghanaian Times









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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Zoox, the automated vehicle technology startup that was acquired by Amazon this year, has been issued a permit from California regulators that will allow it to test driverless vehicles on public roads.

The permit is not for all public roads in the state, but it's still notable, considering the company will be able to test its vehicles without a human safety operator behind the wheel. The California Department of Motor Vehicles, the agency that regulates automated vehicle testing in the state, has issued a permit for a designated part of Foster City in San Mateo County.

Mark Rosekind, the former director of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration who is now chief safety officer at Zoox, called it another important milestone in the company's "efforts to deliver safe, fully electric, and affordable autonomous mobility to riders in California."

Zoox has taken the "all of the above" approach to autonomous vehicles. The company is aiming to build a purpose-built electric vehicle, develop, test and validate the automated vehicle technology and operate a robotaxi fleet. That mission seems to be intact. Amazon has said that Zoox will remain a standalone company.

Zoox has had a permit to test autonomous vehicles with safety drivers since 2016. This new permit allows the company to test two autonomous vehicles without a driver behind the wheel on specified streets near its Foster City headquarters. The vehicles are approved to operate in fair weather conditions, including light rain or fog, on streets with a speed limit of no more than 45 mph, the agency said Friday.

While dozens of companies  60 in all  have active permits to test autonomous vehicles with a safety driver, it's far less common to receive permission for driverless vehicles. Only AutoX, Nuro and Waymo hold this driverless permit. Companies that receive these driverless permits have to provide evidence of insurance or a bond equal to $5 million and follow several other rules, such as training remote operators on the technology.

Zoox also has a permit, which it received in late 2018, to transport people in its automated vehicles on public roads. These ride-hailing permits fall under the jurisdiction of the California Public Utilities Commission and have a variety of other requirements and rules. This permit, which allows Zoox to participate in the states Autonomous Vehicle Passenger Service pilot, doesn't allow companies to charge for rides.

Zoox has also been testing its technology in Las Vegas, which is considered another target market. Zoox received permission from the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles in early 2019 to drive autonomously on state roads. The startup was mapping and test-driving new routes in the greater Las Vegas region last year.
Recommendations that people wear a face mask whenever out in public to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus have resulted in an unexpected issue for lots of bespectacled folks: Foggy lenses.

Whether someone wears a surgical mask or a homemade cloth face covering, the masks can have the unfortunate side effect of sending ones warm breath directly upward and behind a pair of eyeglasses or sunglasses.

While this problem is certainly a comparatively minor one and does not affect everyone, about 64 percent of Americans wear glasses, according to the Vision Council of America.

For those who do wear glasses, fogged-up lenses have become an issue over the past few months. If you are one of the many New Jerseyans who have been dealing with it, there are several potential fixes to combat this minor annoyance.

Perhaps the most obvious solution is to buy a spray designed specifically to reduce fogging on glasses. There are a number of sprays and cleaners available for purchase on Amazon.

If the prospect of sorting through thousands of product reviews and ratings seems like a daunting task, Environmental Design and Construction Magazine put together a list of the best anti-fog sprays, updated for 2020.

If you are looking for a fix using household items instead, there is another ultra-simple method that actually has been proved effective in a scientific study. While most of us are only now encountering this problem, doctors and surgeons who wear face masks have been dealing with foggy lenses for decades.

According to a 2011 study published by The Royal College of Surgeons of England, simply washing lenses with soap and water will prevent the buildup of moisture.

An excerpt from the study states that immediately before wearing a face mask, one should wash the spectacles with soapy water and shake off the excess. Then, let the spectacles air dry or gently dry off the lenses with a soft tissue before putting them back on.

If it is good enough for doctors and surgeons, it ought to be good enough for a trip to the grocery store.

Another method that may be effective, especially for DIY-ers using homemade cloth masks, is the use of self-adhesive fasteners that are normally used to bind hole-punched papers in a folder. By bending a fastener over the top of a cloth mask to the shape of the bridge of ones nose, it can mimic the metal piece that sits at the top of surgical masks, helping create a tight seal and keeping lenses clear.

It has also been suggested, by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, that folding the top portion of the mask down will create extra space for air to escape before reaching the lenses.

However, while it may keep lenses clear, this may not be the most effective technique in reducing the spread of the virus, as it could reduce the snugness of the masks fit  something the CDC maintains is one of the most important factors in wearing a mask properly.

Whichever method you decide on in your attempt to reduce fogged-up lenses, make sure it conforms to the CDCs guidelines on how to properly wear a face covering.

Safety tips from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.CDC

Note: This article was originally published in April 2020.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription.

Casey Roland may be reached at croland@njadvancemedia.com.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa gives the go ahead

Committee recommendations on changes to be dropped

Constitutional clause barring dual citizens contesting elections to be dropped as envisaged

Provisions to allow Urgent Bills in Parliament to be dropped President Gotabaya Rajapaksa wants to move in Parliament the 20th Amendment to the Constitution, already gazetted, without any amendments.

He feels that a new draft constitution, now in the making, could incorporate any changes or additions. He also wants to invite all concerned, including opposition parties and civil society groups, to have their say when the draft is ready. We will take the good and leave out the bad clauses, a government source said yesterday. The intended deletions are to be done during the Committee stage.

This has paved the way for 20A to be introduced in Parliament on Tuesday (September 22). Opposition political parties, civil society groups and even individuals are set to go to the Supreme Court to challenge the validity of some provisions. They will have to do so within one week from Tuesday. The SC, in turn, will have to make known its findings within three weeks. Thereafter, President Rajapaksa expects 20A to come before Parliament next month and become a part of the countrys Constitution. This is ahead of the first budget of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP)-led alliance in November.

The most significant political outcome for the ruling alliance making the 20A draft a part of the Constitution is the withdrawal of a clause that debarred dual citizens from contesting elections. Some were campaigning for the withdrawal of this provision. The idea behind the move by sections to retain the provision was to shut out Basil Rajapaksa, the pioneer of the SLPP and the main strategist for the birth and success of the SLPP-led Sri Lanka Podujana Nidahas Sandanaya (SLNPS) both at the last presidential and parliamentary elections.

Those in favour of dropping the clause argue that in granting dual citizenship, the government cannot be selective in deciding what rights they enjoy. If they are given all other privileges and perks as citizens, they argue, the same should be extended to dual citizens. Hence, there is an inequality in it, they claim.

This exercise to retain the debarring clause was matched by a fake news campaign which declared there would be no change in the existing number of cabinet ministers  a move that suggested Basil Rajapaksa will not be accommodated. This has turned out to be false and he will indeed join the Cabinet of Ministers to handle economy-related matters as he has done in the past. Even now, he is functioning as the head of a Presidential Task Force on Economic Recovery. Other additions are also in the pipeline. The 20th Amendment does not place a restriction on the number of ministers the President could appoint to the cabinet.

If 19A sought to reduce the powers of the President and vest it in the Prime Minister, there will be no change. The 19th Amendment required the President to consult the Prime Minister in naming Cabinet ministers. However, 20A does not refer to any such consultation. Similarly, under 19A, the President was not empowered to sack the Prime Minister; under 20A, a new addition enables him to do so. Premier Rajapaksa, who is sharp and politically astute, has gracefully accepted the position.

As he took his seat at the weekly meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers last Wednesday morning at the Presidential Secretariat, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who chaired it, made a statement. He said that in his pledge to the people during the presidential election campaign, he had vowed to bring constitutional changes. Without such changes, it was difficult to run a country. He said 19A was the handiwork of some NGOs (Non-Governmental Organisations). He, however, failed to mention that these NGOs were egged on by their financiers, some western embassies. Such embassies also miscalculated the outcome of last years presidential and this years parliamentary elections by believing SLPP would not win. That too after doling out funds for different groups, even one by young journalists, to monitor elections.

Whether journalists, young or old, should play that role remains an important ethical question. It does compromise their professional work and dilute their objectivity. Yet, none was able to come up with any serious irregularities raising questions over whether foreign observers were really necessary in the elections to come. In return for government hospitality, they would hand in a report and leave. A much better job was done by the Election Commission and the Police in ensuring there were no irregularities or large-scale violence.

President Rajapaksa told the ministers that there were some 19A provisions that were good. They have been included in 20A. As for the others, there was an opportunity for anyone, once the draft new Constitution is available, to seek amendments or changes. If you want to keep 19A, you can keep it, he noted in a tone that reflected his displeasure. Another factor to be emphasised, he declared, was the fact that 20A was not meant for Basil Rajapaksa. It was his own decision. He then allowed the ministers to air their views.

Four Ministers  Prasanna Ranatunga, Rohitha Abeygunawardena, S.M. Chandrasena and Pavithra Wanniaratchchi  expressed their strong opposition to the re-introduction of the clause that barred dual citizens from contesting elections. There was a heated exchange, at one point, between Prasanna Ranatunga and Vasudeva Nanayakkara. This is when Nanayakkara asked, Are we talking of 20A or Basil Rajapaksa? Ranatunga shot back You referred to Basil Rajapaksa at the last meeting. Not us. That prompted Nanayakkara to backtrack. He admitted and said he was now apologiaing for that. Ranatunga also alleged that some want to become popular with their remarks.

This was reported in these columns last week: At a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers two weeks ago, Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara struck a discordant note. He said that Basil Rajapaksa was an efficient person, but it was his opinion that the constitution should not be changed to accommodate dual citizens to contest elections. He came under a barrage of criticism. Minister S.M. Chandrasena said the SLPP would never have won the parliamentary election without Basil Rajapaksas strategies. It is he who had formed a party and taken pains to build grassroots level branches countrywide. Minister Pavithra Wanniaratchchi and Prasanna Ranatunga joined Chandrasena in protest, prompting Nanayakkara to turn to Premier Rajapaksa in exasperation. He politely pointed out it was Nanayakkara who had mentioned the name Basil thus triggering the exchange of words. It meant that Nanayakkara could have raised issues without naming anyone.

Minister Wimal Weerawansa, who was one of three ministers insisting on the retention of the clause barring dual citizens from contesting, responded to criticism that he had supported 19A in Parliament. The other two are Vasudeva Nanayakkara and Udaya Gammanpila. Though his party decided to vote for 19A he said, he had spoken against it in Parliament. He had said that pruning down Presidents powers would create power centres. He was also opposed to the Cabinet of Ministers being restricted to 30. He said 6.9 million voters had elected Gotabaya Rajapaksa as the President. Therefore, we would have to recognise this position even if our hands are tied. That meant he would go along with the new thinking that has emerged.

Minister Udaya Gammanpila, at this point, interrupted to point out that the National Audit Commission should be retained with all its powers. He said there had been huge corruption in some state concerns like the SriLankan Airlines. He referred to the Airbus deal where a former CEO had allegedly benefited to the tune of millions of US dollars in the purchase of Airbus aircraft. President Rajapaksa pointed out that such persons should be taken to courts. (In fact, court action is pending in this particular case).

When Weerawansa continued thereafter, he become locked in an argument with colleague Pavithra Wanniaratchchi. She had remarked that Weerawansa had supported 19A  a position which the Industries Minister denied. He also denied that he (Weerawansa) had a meeting over 19A with former President Maithripala Sirisena. This was at the time it was being formulated.

At this stage, President Rajapaksa intervened and said they should now get on with the agenda. When the list was over and the last item was Any other business, the discussion on 20A resumed. At this stage, Minister Wanniaratchchi said they would have to await the Cabinet Memorandum incorporating the changes to 20A. These changes, it was then expected, would be moved during the Committee Stage of the debate. It was pointed out that these were now being knocked into shape by the Legal Draftsman.

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, the trouble shooter for the government, declared such amendments were not necessary  a view endorsed immediately thereafter by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. He said there was no need for it. There ended the matter.

The Sunday Times learnt that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Basil Rajapaksa had a lengthy meeting days ahead of Wednesdays Cabinet meeting. Details of what they discussed remain a secret though one source said, perceived apprehensions were cleared and issues in doubt were clarified. The source added they talked on taking forward the development policies under President Rajapaksas leadership and to take measures to resuscitate the economy.

Several ministers remained silent during the cabinet meeting and did not express any views. They included Dullas Alahapperuma, Mahindananda Aluthgamage, Janaka Bandara Tennekoon and Bandula Gunawardena. SLFP Minister Mahinda Amaraweera told media outlets that the 20A draft (meaning changes) was not submitted to the Cabinet. Amaraweera is well known for wanting to have his name in print or broadcast over air made a misleading statement. There indeed was a formal, official discussion on 20A and the decision was to go ahead without amendments. Another fact  Amaraweera is not an official spokesperson of the Cabinet and has no role in speaking for it. It did create confusion. Only he would know why he chose to speak on behalf of the cabinet. More so when it drew a flat denial from cabinet spokesperson Minister Keheliya Rambukwella as pointed out below.

PMs committee observations

The 20th Amendment became the subject of too much speculation. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed a committee last week to examine 20A that has already been gazetted. Details in this regard were reported in these columns last week. Hard on the heels of that came an official announcement from the Premiers Office. It said: Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed a committee consisted with (sic) parliamentary representatives to study the 20th Amendment to the constitution.

The Committee consisted with (sic) Cabinet Ministers, State Ministers and Parliamentary Members is chaired by Cabinet Minister, Prof G.L Peiris.

The committee members are Prof G.L Peiris, Udaya Prabath Gammanpila, Mohamed Ali Sabry, Nimal Sripala de Silva, Wimal Weerawansa, State Minister Susil Premajayantha, State Minister S Viyalanderan, MP Dilan Perera and MP Ramanath C Dolawatta. The committee will submit the Committee report to the Prime Minister on September 15.

The Committee chaired by Prof. Peiris had its meeting last Monday evening. One of the main issues was the removal of the existing constitutional clause barring dual citizens from contesting elections. Moving strongly in favour of retaining it were Ministers Wimal Weerawansa and Udaya Gammanpila. However, State Minister Susil Premjayantha, Dilan Perera (MP) and Justice Minister Ali Sabry were in favour of removing the clause. The Peiris report noted that there was disagreement and presented both positions. Another similar situation arose with regard to reduction of the time limit from 14 days to seven days when Urgent Bills (now debarred) are allowed to be presented in Parliament. Both Weerawansa and Gammanpila urged that the National Audit Commission should function as an independent body. There were no objections raised and it was decided to retain the existing clause in the constitution over separatism when MPs are sworn-in.

The Committee members met Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa at Temple Trees last Wednesday morning. During the discussion, the Premier proposed a compromise over the dual citizenship clause that prevents holders from contesting elections. He said it could be confined only to the presidential election. It was agreed that the amendment would be made to the provision to allow dual citizens to contest all other elections. It was also agreed that the clause permitting the introduction of Urgent Bills in Parliament would be deleted at the Committee stage.

Justice Minister Sabry was to table a memorandum incorporating the changes. Questions over the response to the Supreme Court were to be met by the state explaining the provisions that were to be made during the Committee stage. He said the amendments were now with the Legal Draftsman. However, on Wednesday the cabinet had decided that 20A, now Gazetted, should be presented in Parliament and no amendments introduced. Such changes, the President has held, should come when a new draft constitution is introduced.

For the two cabinet spokespersons  Keheliya Rambukwella and Dr Ramesh Pathirana  briefing the media on the knotty events and 20A itself became an awkward task. The third co-spokesperson Udaya Gammanpila, who was a member of the G.L. Peiris Committee, was conspicuous by his absence. This is how the duo handled it:

Rambukwella: The 20th Amendment Gazette is out now. In addition, we are expecting a report from a Committee appointed by the Prime Minister. The amendment has been in the gazette for two weeks and will now be placed on the Order Paper of Parliament. Thereafter any person is entitled to go to the Supreme Court to challenge any clause on the basis it is not consistent with the Constitution. There have been different opinions about the proposed amendments. Views could be also expressed during the Committee stage in Parliament. Therefore, maximum transparency is being maintained regarding the 20th Amendment.

Q: Usually when a gazette notification issued by a cabinet minister, he is fully aware of the content. But in this case the Justice Minister says he is not fully aware of the contents of the gazette. Can a gazette be issued in that manner?

A: This is about the responsibility. The responsibility is being taken by the President.

Q: We were told that a Committee prepared a report. But the Committee did not submit its report and therefore no discussion took place on the subject. All went silent on it.

A: That is not correct. They were not silent on it. About 50 per cent of the time of the cabinet meeting was on this subject.

Q: Was the Committee report discussed. Can you give a brief introduction?

A: When the Committee report is out, we will have further discussions.

Q: The 19th Amendment was approved in Parliament. But why is it that something which was approved in cabinet is being debated by the same ministers?

A: As you know the Prime Minister has appointed a Committee. There can be political issues. If there are amendments, we can consider them. We want to act in a genuine manner.

Q: Didnt the cabinet discuss it earlier and reach a final decision?

A: The general framework was discussed, and agreement reached. But in a democratic manner further discussion can be held.

Q: Will the proposed amendment be held back?

A: No that will not be held back.

Q: Isnt the version being changed?

A: Who said so?

Q: According to your own version changes will be made.

A: Yes, further discussions will be held.

Minister Ramesh Pathirana: We have not reversed the proposed amendment. We are only in the process of collecting more ideas and at the Committee stage the changes can be made.

Q: Our question is why wasnt this discussed earlier?

A: We gave an opportunity to discuss

Q: But isnt all these issues because there is a difference and there are questions?

A: There has been an opinion that more discussions should be held. That was the reason the Prime Minister appointed a Committee. You are speaking that we deviated from the normal tradition. This is something the people gave us a mandate for. We have not taken a tough stance like a dictatorship. We have given an opportunity for changes.

Q: Who made the 20th Amendment?

A: It was made by the President with the collective responsibility from the Cabinet of ministers.

Q: At least who are the lawyers who drafted it?

A: Why, we have given out the names?

Q: Those names were given for those involved in drafting the new constitution. Who are the lawyers who drafted the 20th Amendment?

A: It is the Legal Draftsman who did it with the approval of the President and the consensus of the Cabinet.

Q: Some ministers say they do not know who drafted it?

A: The Legal Draftsman drafted it.

Q: When will this be presented to Parliament?

A: A decision will be taken at the party leaders meeting

Q: Will this be taken in Parliament next week?

A: Yes, it may be possible

Q: When the 19th Amendment was introduced, we were told that the powers are being reduced, but by the 20th Amendment the powers are being given to one person again?

A: While bringing a new constitution we are trying to introduce the 20th Amendment to address the urgent issues. During the elections this was explained to the people

Q: The new constitution may take two years. But what about the good features in the 19th Amendment?

A: The Presidents term was one issue raised in 2015. That has been preserved. The Right to Information is another feature retained. Therefore, the features needed have been included. The people gave us a two-thirds majority to make the necessary changes to the Constitution. We will be betraying the public if we do not make the necessary changes.

Q: Will you assure that the Independent Commissions will not be affected by the 20th Amendment?

A: We have given that guarantee. We want to go for a better system.

The sequence of events over 20A underscores a worrisome factor. That it was introduced without adequate study was illustrated by one fact. Expressions of concerns by those within the Government over some of the provisions became an issue. So much so, Premier Rajapaksa had to name a Committee to study the provisions and report to him is another. It would be wiser if the proposed changes over independent commissions are insulated with a fool proof mechanism to ensure that they function better and do not become political toys.

This is particularly in respect of the Police Commission. In the Police, the state of affairs has become unprecedentedly politicised. It has come to a point where gazetted officers in charge of divisions are openly defying their superiors something that never happened before. That discipline has deteriorated so low should be cause for concern for acting IGP Chandana Wickremeratne.

If the Government was pre-occupied with 20A, the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) is preparing to challenge 20A in the Supreme Court. The party is in consultation with its lawyers. Its onetime parent party, the United National Party (UNP), held its Working Committee meeting this week. It is still preoccupied with organisational matters.

Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe ticked off three members  Navin Dissanayake, Anoma Gamage and Lakshman Wijemanne  for urging that the leadership issue be resolved by him resigning. It is the trio who demanded a secret ballot instead of the party leader choosing a member. Their request was heeded. Ruwan Wijewardene was elected deputy leader. He won 28 votes while his rival (Assistant Leader) Ravi Karunanayake polled only ten.

UNP General Secretary Akila Viraj Kariyawasam said the Working Committee meeting was arranged specifically to elect a deputy leader. Very soon, the party will have a new set of office bearers and undergo other changes, he revealed.

Ruwan Wijewardene, who takes over the deputy leadership  once held by Sajith Premadasa  has many a challenge to face. He is already trying to re-unite the party by persuading Sajith Premadasa and his SJB to return. Other formidable challenges for him will include the re-organisation of the grassroots level branches of the party and raise the number of its youth members. For this, there is no doubt, he will need a robust team to re-establish communication channels from even the smallest branch to the biggest with Srikotha.

It is an especially important year for President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. One of the most praiseworthy achievements for him is his adept handling of the Covid-19 pandemic. The poison pen campaign by groups abroad together failed in their efforts to pooh-pooh the drive against Covid-19. The anonymous material was circulated among Colombo-based diplomatic missions and opposition political parties. In many countries those afflicted are on the rise when Sri Lanka has kept it to below 3,500 cases despite serious economic constraints.

The President now wants to go ahead with 20A in its present form. No doubt, it has generated some controversy. Some provisions do require a second look, particularly in the light of their international implications. However, with stronger powers, President Rajapaksa is determined to push ahead.
Alan Shatter defends the columnist and praises his memoir, which follows his career until his controversial sacking.

Kevin Myers' Burning Heresies is a tour de force. It is a fascinating journey narrated at warp speed, portraying events during the author's journalistic career from 1979 to now with intermissions and reflections on earlier parts of the last century. Over his many years writing the Irish Times' 'Irishman's Diary' and as a newspaper columnist and opinion writer, Myers has been variously informative, provocative, pioneering, infuriating, beguiling, courageous, contrary, cantankerous, passionate, funny, etymologically fastidious and linguistically reckless. When he gives it time and really cares, his writing can be both stunningly beautiful and truly evocative.

All of these traits and more are on display in this compelling book. To them can be added a self-deprecating sense of humour, a capacity for literary self-flagellation, occasional excessive drinking and acknowledgment of error. Accompanying that package is a series of trenchant opinions, sometimes unwisely and carelessly expressed to entertain in a world in which irony is no longer understood, grievance is king and intelligent debate and those who attempt to challenge so-called perceived wisdom are arbitrarily cancelled by the politically correct.

Myers rightly rails against the suffocating impact of political correctness and the distorted history-telling of Official Ireland that for too long gloried in IRA atrocities, ignored the bravery and fate of tens of thousands of Irish men and women who fought in two world wars, and helped to spawn the Provos and their political front-of-house, Sinn Fein. Not one to prevaricate, he writes of "the orgy of needless violence" that gave birth to the state and "ushered in a dysfunctional political order" that placed a curse on its existence thereafter. This curse, Myers charges, generated the stultifying politics of "isolationist Catholic nationalism" and a "society that flourished on lies and censorship". He also criticises the character and conduct of some leading politicians both past and present, not just from observation but also in recounting some personal engagements and experience.

Readers are taken on a fascinating journey inside the world of the Irish Times as he pictorially describes its various journalists and commentators and the personalities, biases, ideologies, assumptions and egos that affect their reporting and opinion columns. He portrays past "values" of the paper as having "enriched the Irish nation like no other force in history" but as doing so "no more". He confesses that his "infuriated love" affair with the paper is over.

The book more briefly references his days with the Irish Independent, his work with RTE and the Sunday Times. The events that followed publication by the latter of his personally disastrous, too hastily written, ill-considered opinion column at the end of July 2017 loom large in relation to all three, as well as the Irish Times.

As a reporter, Myers spent considerable time in Northern Ireland and the conflict and atrocities he witnessed clearly had an enduring impact. He carried those experiences with him when sent on assignment by the Irish Times twice as a war reporter to Lebanon and Bosnia. His hair-raising description of his time in both countries and of the death and tragedy he reported are sufficient cause to read this book. By way of contrast and light relief, his description of a flight on a small commuter plane in Panama, through storm-created turbulence, as "stinking chicken cadavers" leaking excrement fell on top of him and a hysterical women attempted to exit the plane at about 5,000ft is truly hilarious.

Myers' passionate interest in the too-long-ignored sacrifice of the many thousands of Irishmen who fought for Britain in the Great War, now known as World War I, shines through the pages. His pioneering presentations of their deaths and their lives during his many years with the Irish Times and his successful campaign to have them remembered and commemorated is central to a distinguished career. So too are his many articles about World War II, Nazi Germany and the Holocaust, which communicated historical fact that would have been otherwise unknown by many Irish people. These are discussed, as is his eureka moment when he deviated from the anti-Israeli prejudices and 'woke' perspective of the journalistic in-crowd and commenced writing articles that acknowledged the reality of the difficulties confronting the Israeli state and its vital importance not only to the Jewish people but also to the security of the western world.

Myers describes himself in his book as a utilitarian pragmatic rationalist. He also acknowledges that rational analysis did not always determine what he wrote. In confessional mode, he reveals that sometimes when reviewing past columns, he wonders "did I really write that"? He continues: "I have often been moved by the emotions of one day to pen thoughts that would be entirely alien to me on another. It is a boring soul, or a very sanctimonious one, who is consistently consistent."

Myers has, however, as he asserts, always been consistent and unwavering in the scores of columns he has written about the horrors of the Third Reich, the immorality and depravity of the Holocaust and the evil of antisemitism. It is that which made so egregious the frenzy of denunciation that erupted in late July 2017 and his sacking by the Sunday Times. The paper published what Myers acknowledges as "a hastily written and poorly thought out" column. A reference in the column which, upon reading, I understood to be a crass, poorly framed expression of admiration for the intelligence of two Jewish female BBC presenters instantly resulted in his being wrongly denounced as an antisemite and targeted by online keyboard warriors ignorant of his previous writings.

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The misleading headline to the piece, created within the paper, stimulated the additional charge of misogyny. Two weeks of falsehood, misrepresentation and hysteria followed, ludicrously also depicting him as a Holocaust denier - a charge repeated by RTE for which it later apologised and paid damages. Prominent journalists enthusiastically and viciously joined the lynching, including former Irish Times colleagues. The dignified factual statement supporting Myers from Maurice Cohen, chairman of the Jewish Representative Council of Ireland, was largely ignored.

Burning Heresies deserves a wide readership. It starkly illustrates that Kevin Myers has a voice that deserves to still be heard. He should be brought in out of the cold and his place in Irish journalism restored. His undeserved isolation and purgatory should end as should any need to regularly ask himself, referencing his July 2017 column, "did I really write that"?
The chief of Irans paramilitary Revolutionary Guard threatened Saturday to go after everyone who had a role in a top general's January killing during a U.S. drone strike in Iraq.

The guard's website quoted Gen. Hossein Salami as saying, Mr. Trump! Our revenge for martyrdom of our great general is obvious, serious and real.

U.S. President Donald Trump warned this week that Washington would harshly respond to any Iranian attempts to take revenge for the death of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, tweeting that if they hit us in any way, any form, written instructions already done were going to hit them 1000 times harder.

The president's warning came in response to a report that Iran was plotting to assassinate the U.S. ambassador to South Africa in retaliation for Soleimani's killing at Baghdad's airport at the beginning of the year.

We took out the worlds number one terrorist and the mass murderer of American troops and many, many troops and many people all over the world, Trump said. Qasem Soleimani is dead. Hes dead. Bad guy. Bad guy. Very bad guy.

Salami rejected the report of an Iranian plot to assassinate Ambassador Lana Marks, but made clear that Iran intends to avenge the general's death.

Do you think we hit a female ambassador in return to our martyred brother? the general said. We will hit those who had direct and indirect roles. You should know that everybody who had role in the event will be hit, and this is a serious message. We do prove everything in practice.

In January, Iran launched a ballistic missile attack targeting U.S. soldiers in Iraq in response to the fatal drone strike.

Trump has stepped up economic pressure on Iran with sanctions since he pulled the United States out of Iran's nuclear deal with world powers in 2018.

Tehran has continued to expand its stockpile of enriched uranium and pressured other nations to offset the harm of U.S. sanctions, while insisting it does not want to develop a nuclear weapon.
India supports multilateralism in the Security Council and it is high time that the status quo should be changed and the reforms are introduced at the earliest, India's Permanent Representative to the TS Tirumurti said on Friday (local time).

In an exclusive interview with ANI, Tirumurti said that the architecture of UNSC "remains frozen" in time and both the COVID-19 crisis and the 75th anniversary of the UN presents an opportunity to do things differently and that the challenges provided by the pandemic to bring in genuine reform and new changes.

"The architecture of UNSC remains frozen in time. Lack of progress for more than a decade on issues of its reform has been frustrating for a vast number of countries. Reforms are being held hostage by those who would prefer this status quo and that is why we are calling for strengthening multilateralism by shaking up the status quo and undertaking reform," Tirumurti said.

"We believe that time has already come to move towards a transparent and result-oriented process with provision for substantive negotiations based on one single comprehensive text in a formal setting," he added.

Speaking about India's last term as a non-permanent member of the UNSC, the diplomat said, "Last time, we were in the Council in 2011-12. We have set forth our priorities for the UN which include peace and security-related issues like peacekeeping, maritime security, combating terrorism, reforms, among "

In June, India was elected as a non-permanent member of the UNSC for a two-year term.

Stressing on multilateralism, Tirumurti said, "As a staunch supporter of multilateralism, India has been supportive of new ways of functioning and ensuring that work goes on in the UN. Member states and the UN Secretariat have ensured that critical work of the UN does not suffer because of the pandemic."

He said the world of today is not the same as 75 years back.

"There are increasingly complex and interconnected challenges. There are fissures, divisions among countries, which does not necessarily mean that multilateralism is under threat. It means that some countries feel that the status quo of multilateralism including the UN is not delivering the necessary results. So, the debate is not necessarily about unilateralism vs multilateralism," Tirumurti added.

He quoted Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying he articulated the need for a reformed multilateralism.

(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.)
Brazil is among Latin American countries asking for more time to participate in the World Health Organization's (WHO) global vaccine allocation plan for COVID-19, otherwise known as COVAX.

Countries wanting to participate in the program have until midnight of Friday, September 18, to formalize their commitment to the COVAX facility.

COVAX is a global initiative aimed at coordinating with vaccine manufacturers, so countries worldwide will have equitable access to safe and effective vaccines that have been approved and licensed already.

COVAX, which is the pillar of the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, comprises the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, Vaccine Alliance, WHO, and GAVI, which serves as the secretariat.

It is the only initiative on a global scale working in partnership with governments and vaccine manufacturers of developed and developing countries.

The COVAX will ensure that once COVID-19 vaccines are approved and licensed, they will be available to all countries whether they have a higher or lower income. It currently has the largest and most diverse COVID-19 portfolio globally, including nine candidate vaccines, with another nine being evaluated. COVAX is also in talks with other major producers, according to the WHO news page.

According to the United Nations web page, it aims to deliver two billion doses of COVID-19 vaccine by the end of 2021. The GAVI will handle all requests for extension, according to a report on Channel News Asia.

The secretariat has also said that countries confirmed to have joined the COVAX will be known after the deadline.

According to the Brazil government's statement, they, as well as other countries in Latin America, are currently in talks with GAVI for the deadline extension of their participation in COVAX.

Brazil has the third-highest number of COVID-19 positive cases next to the U.S. and India, with about four million and more than a hundred thousand deaths.

The Brazil government said they need more time to get information on regulatory, storage, legal, and logistic issues.

Mexico, which is also one of the Latin American countries to have a high number of COVID-19 confirmed cases at almost 700,000, had said that they would sign the commitment before the deadline.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted that more than 170 countries have confirmed joining the COVAX.

In a briefing on Wednesday, Pan-American Health Organization assistant director Jarbas Barbosa said that countries in Latin America wanted to join the global vaccine plan but are having difficulty meeting the deadline and have been asking for an extension.

According to Barbosa, all countries in the Americas except the United States are interested in the COVAX facility, including those that already have an agreement with vaccine manufacturers as it will ensure that they will have access to more vaccine doses.

Through COVAX, 10 Latin American countries, which are among the 90 poor countries in the world, will not have to pay for the vaccine, while the others in the region will pay at a convenient price.

Check these out:

WHO Releases COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Plan

Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine Trial Reports No Major Safety Problems

Air Pollution Contributes to Higher COVID-19 Deaths in Some States
he Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (www.AfDB.org) on Wednesday approved a $500,000 emergency assistance grant to support international recovery efforts after a significant oil spill earlier this year off the coast of Mauritius.

The funding, to be sourced from the Special Relief Fund, will complement ongoing activities by the government of Mauritius, development partners, and other actors to undertake salvaging and cleaning operations, conduct damage and loss assessments, along with other socio-economic evaluations. The United Nations has assumed a lead role in coordinating the response.

The $500,000 emergency assistance grant from the African Development Bank to Mauritius is an important contribution to the International Recovery effort towards restoring the pristine marine ecology, so important for livelihoods in the blue economy and tourism sectors, which is now threatened by the unfortunate oil spill, said Martin Fregene, Bank Director for Agriculture & Agro-industry.

More than 1,000 tons of oil have leaked into the Indian Ocean since a carrier vessel ran aground off the Mauritius coast on 25 July. Rescue teams successfully pumped out about 3,800 tons of oil and the government declared a state of emergency and has ordered fishermen and citizens to stay away from the beaches and lagoons around the communities of Blue Bay, Pointe dEsny and Mahebourg.

The oil spill has resulted in health, conservation and economic challenges. The country relies heavily on the blue economy, particularly food and tourism, and its coastline has some of the worlds most pristine coral reefs. The general population remains at ongoing risk of severe illness from petroleum and its associated pollutants.

The country had hoped to reopen its borders to tourists following a successful response to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the spill has delayed those plans.

In May 2020, the Bank approved 188 million euros in loans to bolster the countrys national budget as it mounted a response to the pandemic.

As of 1 August 2020, the Bank had four ongoing operations in its country portfolio with a valuation of $458.8 million.

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A 31-year-old criminal suspected of running a major drugs network in Dundalk was the main target of dawn raids by the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) yesterday.

Armed gardai supported CAB officers as they searched four properties - the criminal's home, his partner's home, the house occupied by two of his close relatives and a property in which a gang member lives.

"This individual would not be big news on a national level, but he is suspected of running a significant cross-border drug dealing network," a source told the Herald.

Arson

Before yesterday's operation, gardai had already seized 30,000 in cash from the Dundalk-based gang.

The main target has a number of previous convictions for assault, burglary, public order offences and theft and has been known to local gardai, for whom he is said to have a "deep hatred", since he was a juvenile.

He is also a suspect in an arson case.

Announcing yesterday's raids, a garda spokesperson said: "Four residential addresses were searched during the course of the operation conducted by Criminal Assets Bureau personnel assisted by the Emergency Response Unit, the Regional Armed Response Unit, Louth Divisional personnel and the Customs Dog Unit.

"During the course of the search, 57,507 was frozen in two bank accounts and 4,770 in cash was seized.

"Around 30,000 in cash, believed to be the proceeds of crime, had already been seized as part of this ongoing investigation.

"The search operation is a significant development in the ongoing Criminal Assets Bureau investigation conducted in conjunction with local gardai in the Louth division, targeting persons suspected to be involved in the sale and supply of illegal drugs."

It was a busy week for CAB after the agency froze 58,000 across a number of Irish bank accounts following several searches in Co Limerick on Thursday.

Three homes and a business were searched as part of an operation targeting a group involved in the sale of illegal drugs in Limerick city.

Apart from the money frozen in accounts, 2,450 in cash and 550 in sterling was seized, along with 12 luxury watches including a Rolex, Hublot and Breitling.

Revenue

CAB officers were backed up by Limerick detectives for Thursday's raids.

In July, it emerged that CAB had returned more than 9.5m to public funds since the beginning of 2018.

More than 5m of this has come from Revenue legislation, under which the CAB can recover unpaid tax.
In Yemen abandoned landmines have been a problem for decades. In early 2018 Saudi Arabia began another major effort to remove landmines and unexploded munitions. Since then over 183,000 mines and unexploded munitions have been removed. There is still a lot of work to do because the Shia rebels, whose 2014 rebellion triggered another civil war, have planted over half a million landmines since then and retrieved few of them when they retreat. The Shia rebels received Iranian technical advice and components to build their own anti-personnel and anti-vehicle mines. In addition, the rebels have put dozens of Iranian naval mines into the Red Sea in an effort to disrupt ship traffic to Saudi ports and the Suez Canal. Mine clearance will go on for years after the fighting stops and there is no end in sight for the fighting because Iran continues to get weapons and advisors through to the Shia rebels.

The outbreak of the Shia rebellion in 2014 put an end to a 15-year mine clearing effort. By the end of that effort in 2014 five of the 21 provinces were declared free of landmines and several more were nearly all clear. During the civil wars of the 1990s the landscape was littered with over 500,000 landmines and unexploded munitions. In 1999, a clearing effort was started and by the time another civil war began over 300,000 mines and other explosive items have been found and disposed of. Since 1999, mines and other explosive items killed nearly 4,000 people. There was still a lot of work to do in 2014 because in 2013 over 700 people have been killed or wounded by mines (mostly) and other explosive items.

Even before the 2014 war broke out, rebel Shia tribesmen in the north were planting new mines to keep security forces and rival tribesmen at bay, while in the south al Qaeda has used locally made mines to protect some of its rural hideouts. Since the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings had overthrown the Yemeni government the perpetually troublesome Shia tribes up north had become more violent demanding a return of the autonomy they had enjoyed (and abused) but lost in the 1960s. Al Qaeda became more active after expulsion from Saudi Arabia in 2004. All the violence after 2011 disrupted clearing operations, in addition to putting new mines and other nasty stuff into the ground. Even before the current civil war broke out in 2014 it was estimated that would take another decade of mine clearing effort before all the pre-2014 mines and explosives was found and cleared. Now the estimates are for two or three decades, depending on how much longer the current fighting continues.

Landmines were outlawed by an international treaty in 1999, but this mainly applied to nations that didn't have landmines or didn't have any reason to use them. Rebels and gangsters have not signed the international agreement and find the mines a cheap way to control civilian populations and slow down the movements of the security forces. It takes more time, money, and effort to remove these mines than to place them.

The most effective way to get the mine clearing done is by training local volunteers for part-time mine clearing teams. The government must provide training, pay (which should be good by local standards), and health and life insurance. When a new bunch of mines are found, usually by an animal coming across them, the team gets to work.

Despite efforts like this, it has not been a promising time for those seeking to enforce the ban on the use of landmines. Since 2010 Israel, Libya, Syria, North Korea, Iran, and Myanmar (Burma) planted new mines. In addition, there are three countries still manufacturing landmines (India, Myanmar, and Pakistan). Arms dealers will still provide large quantities of Russian and Chinese landmines, many of them Cold War surplus. China, Russia, and other communist nations were major producers of landmines during the Cold War. The mines were produced not just for use against potential enemies but to aid in keeping the borders closed and preventing citizens from leaving those unpleasant dictatorships.

A growing list of outlaw organizations have been ignoring the 1999 Ottawa Convention to ban landmines. The Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan are manufacturing landmines in primitive workshops and using them against Pakistani troops and Afghans in general, foreign soldiers and anyone who refuses to support the Islamic terrorist group. This curse spread to Yemen in the 1990s. After 2014 landmine casualties in Yemen nearly doubled, to about 1,200 a year. That decreased once the Saudi mine clearing effort began, if only because during the initial stage of the Saudi effort a lot of data was collected on areas known to have mines and unexploded munitions. After 2014 the Saudi-led Arab coalition, which entered Yemen in 2015, added more unexploded munitions, but no mines, to the older ones.

Despite the 1999 treaty, landmines were still causing over 5,000 casualties a year worldwide before 2014 and over 6,000 since then. About 20 percent of the victims are killed and 90 percent of them are males. This is largely because men are more likely to be out in the bush or working farmlands that still contain mines. A third of the casualties are security personnel (police and soldiers). This is because in many countries rebels and criminals are still using landmines, either factory -made ones from countries that did not sign the Ottawa Convention or locally made models.

Landmines are simple to make and workshops are easily set up to do it. There's no shortage of mines out there, despite the fact that in the first few years after the 1999 Ottawa Convention was signed over 25 million landmines, in the arsenals of over fifty nations, were destroyed. But most of these nations were not users and rarely sold them either. Those who want landmines find ways to obtain and use them. Yemeni Shia rebels are the latest group to demonstrate this. Leftist rebels in Colombia have been making their own mines for years now, as have Islamic and communist rebels in the Philippines. There are believed to be over 100 million mines still in the ground and at least as many in military warehouses for future use.

The 1999 Ottawa Convention was supposed to have reduced land mine casualties among civilians. It hasn't worked because the owners of the largest landmine stockpiles, Russia and China, refused to sign. Chinese land mines are still available on the international arms black market. China is believed to have the largest stockpile, mostly of anti-personnel mines. The old ones are often sold before they become worthless. But even these mines, which go for $5-10 each, are too expensive for many of the criminal organizations that buy them. Land mines, competitive with the factory-built ones from China, can be built for less than three dollars each. You can find all the technical data you need on the Internet.

Anti-vehicle mines are increasingly popular and are particularly common in poor countries where there are still a lot of dirt roads traveled by buses and trucks, carrying dozens of passengers each. While these mines are usually intended for military vehicles, mines can't tell the difference. As a result, in this year or next, Yemen may have the largest number of annual mine casualties in the world.
Senior US diplomat wraps up Taiwan visit as China flexes muscle US Undersecretary of State Keith Krach (C) attends the funeral of former Taiwan president Lee Teng-hui

A top US diplomat attended the funeral for former Taiwan president Lee Teng-hui Saturday which featured a eulogy by Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama before wrapping up a visit overshadowed by Chinese military exercises.

Keith Krach, undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment, was the highest-ranking State Department official to visit Taiwan since 1979 when Washington switched diplomatic recognition to Beijing.

The trip, the second high-ranking US visit in as many months, sparked an immediate rebuke from China, which baulks at any recognition of Taiwan and has mounted a decades-long policy of marginalising the democratic island.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused China of "military blustering" as Beijing conducted military exercises on Friday near the Taiwan Strait during Krach's visit.

Chinese fighters and bombers crossed the so-called median line dividing the Strait and entered Taiwan's southwest air defence identification zone (ADIZ) for a second straight day on Saturday, Taiwan's defence ministry said as it scrambled fighters in response.

China's "provocative actions have violated our sovereignty and seriously damaged the status quo of peace and stability in the strait and the region," it said.

Krach attended the memorial service for Lee, sitting next to former Japanese prime minister Yoshiro Mori, before he is due to leave Taiwan later Saturday after a three-day visit.

Krach did not make any remarks at the service while in a pre-recorded video the Dalai Lama praised Lee's commitment to democracy.

"I admire his commitment to democracy and freedom ... as his close friend I always remember him and as a Buddhist I always pray," he said.

Like Lee, the Dalai Lama is also branded a "splittist" by Beijing which accuses him of seeking Tibet's independence from China.

Lee, who died in July aged 97, was a towering figure in Taiwan's history, helping the once authoritarian island transition to a vibrant democracy and later angering China by pushing for it to be recognised as a sovereign country.

Story continues

China considers self-ruled Taiwan part of its territory, to be absorbed into the mainland -- by force if necessary.

Beijing has ramped up diplomatic, economic and military pressure on Taiwan since the 2016 election of President Tsai Ing-wen, who rejects its view that the island is part of "one China".

Washington's increased outreach to Taiwan under President Donald Trump has become yet another flashpoint with China as the countries clash over a range of issues of trade and security issues, as well as the coronavirus pandemic.

On Friday, Krach held closed-door meetings with Taiwan's premier and other top officials before joining President Tsai for dinner at her official residence.

"I'm sure the productive discussions we had today will bring Taiwan & the US even closer together & open the door to further collaboration," Tsai tweeted.

Trump has embraced Taiwan more closely as a way to hit back at Beijing, especially as he seeks re-election in November.

He has also approved some major arms sales, something his recent predecessors were more reluctant to do.

aw/mtp
Limerick musician Denise Chaila has urged that racist comments online should not be ignored.

The Zambian born talent, who appeared on last nights Late Late Show, opened up about the online abuse she received after performing at the National Gallery of Ireland, saying that it was polarised.

The reaction was very polarised. There were a lot of people who loved and embraced what I was doing, and there were a lot of people who saw it as a direct challenge to their Irishness.

We need to do better, she said.

My gut reaction was that I did not become a musician and sacrifice all of the things that I worked and sacrificed in order to stand here and read death threats to my parents, she said.

I felt like it was actually a moment for me to realise that I needed to be more responsible about how I navigated my blackness in this country.

She revealed that she did not leave her house for a month following the performance.

I spent like a month at home, I didnt want to leave.

I think we dismiss the power of those comments too quickly.

Ms Chaila said that negative comments online should not be ignored and that people should make more of an effort to call out abuse.

There's a tendency for people to dismiss the power of the far right in this country

A nasty comment online is barely the tip of the iceberg.

She said that racism continues when racist comments online are ignored.

I never want to see another friend of mine leave their groceries at Tesco because they're getting racist abuse from people in the queue. This is the dark side of what we chose to do when we chose to diminish what happens on the internet and what happens online.

We make ourselves by our complacency guilty of enabling things, she added.
The Rajya Sabha on Saturday passed the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill, 2020, (this is the full name) by the voice vote. Speaking in Parliament after moving the motion, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, the intention of the insolvency and bankruptcy code is to keep companies a going concern and not liquidate them.

The bill will replace an ordinance promulgated in this regard in June. It was supported by most opposition members as they expressed hope saying it would help achieve an early revival of the economy.

Here is what you need to know about the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill:

* The bill was moved with an aim to give immunity to stressed companies during the Covid-19 period as the businesses and livelihoods have been severely hit by the pandemic.

* The bill prohibits any insolvency proceedings for defaults arising during the six months from March 25, 2020. The central government may extend this period for one year.

* To prevent business being pushed into insolvency, the government suspended certain sections including the corporate insolvency resolution process, (CIRP) of the insolvency and bankruptcy code.

* Speaking in favour of the bill, Praful Patel of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), said there is nothing in the bill to object to. However, he also called for relief in the form of interest subvention for tourism, transport and airline sectors as they are also reeling under financial stress.

* The Janata Dal (United) leader Ram Chandra Prasad Singh called the bill progressive and said that it will help revive the economy.
If you really want to honour him, implement his inclusive ideology: SC Bose's grandnephew

Development trajectory: PM to interact with DMs of various districts today

PM Modi likely to discuss coronavirus situation with CMs of 7 states on Sep 23

India

oi-Deepika S

New Delhi, Sep 19: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to chair a meeting of the chief ministers of seven states next week to review the coronavirus situation. The meeting is likely to be held on September 23.

Chief ministers of Maharashtra, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh among others are expected to attend the meeting.

The prime minister has been regularly holding meetings to review the pandemic situation across the country with a focus on states/UTs where the situation is more serious.

His last COVID-19 review meeting was on August 11 with chief ministers and representatives of 10 most-affected states, namely, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Punjab, Bihar, Gujarat, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh.

On Saturday, India recorded 93,337 fresh infections in a day, which took the grand total past 53 lakh cases. 95,880 coronavirus patients recovered in the last 24 hours.

Parliament's monsoon session likely to be cut short as ministers, MPs test coronavirus positive

The health ministry data showed the country's recovery rate now stands at 79.28 per cent - the highest in the world.

India- the second worst coronavirus hit country in the world after the United States - also recorded 1,247 deaths in a day, taking its total count to 85,619.

About 60 per cent of the country's active coronavirus cases are concentrated across five worst-hit states of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh.

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Story first published: Saturday, September 19, 2020, 23:51 [IST]
The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has thrust the Senate into uncharted political terrain, with no recent precedent for a vacancy on the high court so close to a presidential election.

Ginsburg died aged 87 after a battle with metastatic pancreas cancer at her Washington D.C. home.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in a statement Friday night vowed that 'President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.'

But he did not say when or how that would happen, and there's significant uncertainty about what comes next.

Here is a look at the confirmation process and what we know and don't know about what's to come:

CAN THE SENATE FILL THE SEAT BEFORE THE ELECTION?

Yes, but it would require a breakneck pace. Supreme Court nominations have taken around 70 days to move through the Senate, and the last, for Brett Kavanaugh, took longer. The election is 46 days away. Yet there are no set rules for how long the process should take once President Donald Trump announces his pick, and some nominations have moved more quickly. It will come down to politics and votes.

Ginsburg died aged 87 after a battle with metastatic pancreas cancer at her Washington D.C. home

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO CONFIRM A NOMINEE?

Only a majority. Republicans control the Senate by a 53-47 margin, meaning they could lose up to three votes and still confirm a justice, if Vice President Mike Pence were to break a 50-50 tie.

Supreme Court nominations used to need 60 votes for confirmation if any senator objected, but McConnell changed Senate rules in 2017 to allow the confirmation of justices with 51 votes. He did so as Democrats threatened to filibuster Trumps first nominee, Justice Neil Gorsuch.

HOW DOES THE CAMPAIGN FACTOR IN?

Republicans are defending 25 of the 38 seats that are on the ballot this year, and many of their vulnerable members have been eager to end the fall session and return home to the campaign trail. The Senate is scheduled to recess in mid-October, though that schedule could change.

Still, many of the most vulnerable senators may be hesitant to vote on a nominee before facing voters in November, and their views could ultimately determine the timeline for action. Others may want to campaign on their eventual vote. McConnell himself is among those up for reelection this year.

Hundreds gathered outside the court to pay tribute to Ginsburg after her death

CAN THE SENATE FILL THE VACANCY AFTER THE ELECTION?

Yes. Republicans could vote on Trump's nominee in what's known as the 'lame duck' session that takes place after the November election and before the next Congress takes office on Jan. 3. No matter what happens in this year's election, Republicans are still expected be in charge of the Senate during that period.

The Senate would have until Jan. 20, the date of the presidential inauguration, to act on Trumps nominee. If Trump were reelected and his pick had not been confirmed by the inauguration, he could renominate his pick as soon as his second term began.

HOW DOES THE PROCESS WORK?

When a vacancy occurs on the Supreme Court, the president is given authority under the Constitution to nominate someone to fill it. It is up to the Senate Judiciary Committee to vet the nominee and hold confirmation hearings. Once the committee approves the nomination, it goes to the Senate floor for a final confirmation vote. This process passes through several time-consuming steps. Traditionally senators want to meet and assess the nominee themselves, which requires weeks of meetings around the Capitol.

And thats all assuming the process goes smoothly. In 2018, Kavanaughs confirmation fight took weeks longer than expected after Christine Blasey Ford accused him of sexually assaulting her when they were teens. Kavanaugh denied the accusation and was confirmed by the Senate in a 51-49 vote.

Reached by phone late Friday, the Judiciary chairman, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., declined to comment on the plans. Graham is another Republican up for reelection.

The president claimed he was unaware of her death after the rally finished, despite a supporter shouting out that Ginsburg had died during his rally

DIDNT MCCONNELL SAY IN 2016 THAT THE SENATE SHOULDNT HOLD SUPREME COURT VOTES IN AN ELECTION YEAR?

He did. McConnell stunned Washington in the hours after the death of Justice Antonin Scalia in February 2016 when he announced the Senate would not vote on then-President Barack Obamas potential nominee because the voters should have their say by electing the next president.

McConnells strategy paid off, royally, for his party. Obama nominated Judge Merrick Garland to fill the seat, but he never received a hearing or a vote. Soon after his inauguration, Trump nominated Gorsuch to fill Scalias seat.

On Friday, four years later, McConnell said the Senate will vote on Trumps nominee, even though its weeks, not months before an election.

SO WHAT CHANGED SINCE 2016?

McConnell says its different because the Senate and the presidency are held by the same party, which was not the case when a vacancy opened under Obama in 2016. Democrats say this reasoning is laughable and say the vacancy should be kept open until after the inauguration.

Certainly politics are different now, with the country in the grips of a deadly pandemic. The U.S. Congress has not been operating at full speed since the spring, with much of the usual work - including on committees - being done remotely to avoid spreading the virus.

Absent a robust legislative agenda, the court battles have become a focal point for McConnell, fulfilling a longstanding conservative priority. He is building his legacy on confirming conservative judicial nominees. On his watch, the Senate has confirmed more than 200 judges for federal appellate and district courts.

People gather at the Supreme Court on Friday after the Supreme Court announced that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died

WHO ARE THE SENATORS TO WATCH?

With the slim 53-seat majority in the Senate, the Republicans have few votes to spare. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah and others will be among those senators to watch.

Its not just the qualifications of Trumps nominee but the political calculation of a vote so linked to an election that could shape their position. Collins is in a tight race for her own reelection in Maine, and she and Murkowski have long been watched for their support of a womans right to an abortion under Roe vs. Wade.

Murkowski and Romney have been critical of Trump and protective of the institution of the Senate.

Others facing close reelection contests in their states, including Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado, could face pressure not to vote ahead of the election or in its immediate aftermath, especially if they were to lose their seats.

WHAT DID TRUMP SAY FRIDAY? BIDEN?

Trump has not yet said how he will move forward. He called Ginsburg an 'amazing woman' and did not mention filling her vacant Supreme Court seat when he spoke to reporters following a rally in Bemidji, Minnesota.

Democratic nominee Joe Biden said the winner of the November election should choose Ginsburgs replacement. 'There is no doubt - let me be clear - that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider,' Biden said Friday.
On September 19, Minsk police cracked down on a womens protest march in the capital as Belarus continues to roil with mass demonstrations for the sixth week. As per reports, the women protestors were demanding President Alexander Lukashenko' resignation when the police arrested more than 200 participants, included an elderly woman who has become a symbol of the Belarus protest.

Read: Belarus President Lukashenko Reiterates Russia's US Funding Theory To Disparage Protestors

Unrest in Belarus continues

The Belarusian leader has served 26 years in office and was declared to have won the recent elections with 80% votes but protestors believe that the ballot was rigged. Both the European Union and the United States have called the Belarus elections neither free nor fair.

Human rights group Viasna is reported to have said that more than 200 people were arrested during the September 19 march. Viasna member Valentin Stepanovich said, There were so many people detained that lines formed at the prisoner transports.

Lukashenkos main opponent in the election, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, applauded the women protestors in a video statement and said, They have frightened and put pressure on women for the second month, but despite this, Belarusians are continuing their peaceful protest and showing their amazing fortitude.

Read: Belarus Borders Remain Open Despite President Lukashenko's Closure Threat

Tsikhanouskaya has been forced to flee the country after several threats to her life. Over the weeks of mass protests, women in Belarus were also seen forming solidarity chains to condemn police brutality.

Nobel laureate Svetlana Alexievich has accused Belarusian authorities of terrorising their own people as she urged protestors to remain united in the face of adversity. Alexievich reportedly summoned her supporters to her home after another opposition figure, Maxim Znak, was detained by masked men in plain clothes in a round-up ordered by President Alexander Lukashenko.

Earlier on September 17, Lukashenko has announced that he was putting the army on high alert and closing the borders with Lithuania and Poland. According to the reports, Lukashenko said, We are forced to withdraw troops from the streets, put the army on high alert and close the state border on the west, primarily with Lithuania and Poland. However, the National Border Guard Service said all border checkpoints remained open even though controls and inspections were strengthened.

Read: Belarus President Lukashenko Brings Teenage Son To Frontline As Protests Intensify

Also Read: Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko Confirms Plan To Change Constitution: Kremlin

(Image Credits: AP)
MURRAYVILLE  Illinois State Police are on the scene of a multi-vehicle crash on U.S. 67 at Murrayville Road.

Both north- and southbound lanes are closed so first responders can clear the scene. Police are urging drivers to seek an alternate route.
There were many strange things about the party that David and Samantha Cameron threw at Chequers last week.

It is reputed to have been Sam Cams 40th birthday celebration  held rather late as she is now 44, but she and her husband have had a busy four years.

The 450-year-old manor house used to be a place of quiet retreat, which in Neville Chamberlains time had only one telephone, in the butlers pantry, but last Friday night the wood-panelled Great Hall, with its Old Masters hanging on the walls and its Elizabethan-style ceiling, reverberated to the noise of a disco.

Sarah HB, former host of BBC Radio 1s Breakfast Show, acted as DJ. She, by the way, has angrily denied a report in The Daily Mail that HB stands for hard bitch. She says it was a moniker given to her at school, and does not stand for anything. She also says that her comment that taking drugs can be quite fun was taken out of context.

One of the names on the guest list is a bit of a surprise. BBC Radio 4s Today programme, you will recall, was attacked earlier this month by George Osborne for its hyperbolic coverage of the Autumn Statement. The Camerons guests included Sir Christoph Brooke, who was at Eton with Cameron, who came accompanied by his wife, Sarah Montague, a presenter of the Today programme. They let the enemy in.

Misplaced Tory sensitivities

I am sorry I missed the recent fun in Devon over the meaning of the word cull. It centres on an independent councillor from Ottery St Mary named Claire Wright, who plans to run against the incumbent Tory MP for East Devon, Hugo Swire, next year.

Last month, a member of the public wrote a comment on her blog, saying: Cull all Tory councillors. It is pretty obvious to almost anyone that this was a call to throw the Tories out of office at the next election, but the secretary of the Tory group on East Devon council, Phil Twiss, interpreted it as a highly offensive and threatening incitement to mass murder.

He demanded Wright remove it from her blog, which she did  and then he complained to the police, who have, understandably, decided to take no action.

I wonder how Twiss would have reacted if he had been alive in the 1830s, and had been introduced to the MP for Pontefract, Sir Culling Smith. I imagine he would have run away screaming in terror.

One not to miss

I have just realised that 2014 was the year of the Second Global Summit on the Health Effects of Yogurt, which included a talk by Toon van Hooijdonk on Yogurt and sustainability: energy and protein conversion by dairy cows. And I missed it, dammit.

Euro defies Boriss forecast

The current political turmoil in Greece reminds me of a small anniversary. On 18 December 2011, Boris Johnson foretold the break-up of the eurozone. I would be amazed if we were all sitting here next year and the euro had not undergone some sort of change, he told The Andrew Marr Show. Three years have slipped by, and the euro is still as it was. How amazed Boris must be.

Death by turnip

Another anniversary. It was 133 years ago, on 19 December 1881, that the Tory MP Sir William Payne-Gallwey was out shooting in Bagby, North Yorkshire, when he fell over and landed on a turnip. The impact killed the poor man.

This is the last Diary for 2014. It will return when Parliament reconvenes, in the week beginning 5 January. A selection of the prime cuts from this years diaries are available as an e-book, The Diary 2014, available here
Its 2020, and were not yet flying around in hovercars. Yet the world is a fundamentally different place to what it was 20 years ago.

Back then, mobile phones were becoming increasingly common, but the smart device revolution was still several years away. Facebook wouldnt appear before 2005. Google existed, but was many years removed from the all-conquering behemoth we know now.

Nowadays, in a world of smartphone ubiquity and endless online information, the marketing of data has become commonplace. While such information is valuable, the whole oblique nature of the process renders it, for good or ill, of little everyday interest to most.

The health and wellbeing sphere has been far from immune to the encroachment of big data.

Google routinely monitors the exercise its users take, where they cycle to, where theyve walked.

Popular apps such as FitBit, acquired last year by Google, or Apple Health, collect data on individual users fitness and wellbeing statistics as a matter of course, though the volunteering of said information is voluntary.

Closer to home the recent launch of the Covid Tracker app was a poster-child for responsible data processing in the case of a civic-minded app, one which people who would ordinarily have little appetite for interacting with the data giants such as Google would be more inclined to download.

However, the app has not been without its problems, most of which have stemmed from the Google/Android side of things and have been fired by that companys need to acquire data to feed its behavioural marketing models.

Asked at the launch about the appropriateness or otherwise of relying so heavily on private entities Apple and Google for an application aimed at curing a societal ill, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly compared the tech giants' status to that of a national utility.

I think it is probably a facet of modern life. They are the technology platforms. Were largely dependent on the ESB to keep the country running, but thats ok. We are largely dependent on these private-sector companies to keep the internet running, to keep broadband running, to do an awful lot of things, he said.

It just is what it is.

However, there is other data relating to our collective health  physical information that is of huge value. And the sheer scope of what it means is something the Irish State, let alone its people, has yet to get a handle on.

Were talking about genetic data, and the market value of the individual human genome  the DNA files which double as the building blocks for humankind.

The focus of this market is not necessarily research. The value lies in what may seem a far more banal avenue, mainly the predictability of susceptibility to disease. But if you think that means the potential for enormous profit does not exist, you are very much mistaken.

Last month, Blackstone Group, a giant American private-equity multinational, acquired about 75% of Ancestry.com in a deal worth the guts of 4bn.

Ancestry is an American genealogy company set up in 1996, the largest for-profit entity of its kind on the planet, with its European headquarters in Dublin.

Its fundamental premise is the sale to consumers of DNA kits with which they can map their genetic ancestry. This basically translates to an estimate of ethnicity, together with the inference of family relationships between its 18m users. In practice, the service is used by customers to trace unknown biological relations. Analysis of its kit samples is performed by the American corporation Quest Diagnostics, one of the largest clinical laboratory companies in the world. Irish people will be familiar with it as one of the laboratories, used to process Cervical Check samples, which became household names after a number of Irish women took lawsuits over incorrect smear-test results.

Blackstones recent track record has been one of investment in growth industries and companies likely to benefit from dramatic shifts in consumer behaviour. It is far from inconceivable that the move towards marketable genomes is a classic example of such a shift.

What may come as a surprise is that a valuation can indeed be placed on an individuals genetic sequence.

For $99 theyll tell you what percent Viking you are, and how susceptible you are to cancer, says Simon McGarr, a privacy solicitor.

Read More Aine Kenny: PhD students call for urgent reform of the system

Its amazing that they get you to pay them. You dont get much of anything in return really. But theyve got the genome, and the genome is valuable.

How valuable?

A recent presentation by pharmaceutical research company Open Orphan put the price per sample at anything between $450 and $3,000. A compromise figure of $1,500 is often accepted as the current going rate.

Apply that rate to a full population and you begin to see that genomics is big business, with large-scale pharma multinationals on the lookout for areas where they can access swathes of genetic data, ostensibly for pharmaceutical research, most especially in the field of rare disease drugs.

Individual citizens owning the rights to their own genetic data is far from usual, but that cannot alter the fact that the acquisition of such data is big business in 2020.

So, what if there were a determined grab for the genetic data of the Irish people?

Thats an easy question to answer because it has to all intents and purposes already happened.

In late June of this year a private entity known as Genomics Medicine Ireland (GMI), established in 2015, quietly rebranded its American, Icelandic, and Irish operations as Genuity Science, while acquiring a new chief executive.

GMI had made any number of headlines in recent years, with its goal of sequencing the genomes of 450,000 people  a tenth of the Irish population, and a large enough cohort to enable the effective profiling of the entire citizenry, given the interrelated ancestry of Irelands people.

The company has been partnering with individual hospitals to acquire large tracts of genetic data.

Earlier this year it found itself embroiled in a controversy of sorts after a joint venture between itself and Beaumont Hospital in Dublin, aimed at harvesting the genetic data of 9,000 brain-tumour patients of the hospital, was broadcast publicly via a series of newspaper advertorials. The catch is that participation in the project is on an opt-out basis, rather than opt-in, and many of the participants are already dead.

The study itself had initially been blocked by the States Health Research Consent Declaration Committee, established under the Data Protection Act 2018, which gave effect to GDPR in Irish law. That decision was overturned on appeal, with a caveat that the study must be publicly advertised.

Eventually the company and Beaumont bowed to public pressure and extended the deadline for opting out of the study by three months until the middle of this month, to mitigate the effects the Covid-19 pandemic would have had on the visibility of the public information announcements. This week the deadline was extended once more until the end of this year, following a flurry of criticism from the likes of Social Democrats co-leader Roisin Shortall.

Why the name change?

Despite its name, Genomics Medicine Ireland was in fact a subsidiary of an international genetics company, WuXi NextCode, which acquired it in 2018.

Officially, Genuity has said the rebrand was necessitated by it having to overhaul its structure after China introduced new national security regulations which make it harder for foreign genetic research companies to share data. The move saw Wuxi NextCode split from its Chinese operations as part of the corporate restructuring.

However, the companys prior association with China, given the political climate in the Asian country, had led to criticism from some quarters, with Wuxi NextCode last year rebuffing accusations of ties to China, emanating from the American Senate, and reiterating its status as a multinational headquartered in the US.

Where does GMI stand? Theyve kept stating that theyre not Chinese, so that would suggest it was damaging the study, said one industry source, speaking on condition of anonymity.

This restructuring allows us to sharpen the short-term strategic focus of our business to better catalyse the biopharma industrys ability to effectively and efficiently integrate genomic data and insights into their drug development endeavors, said Rob Brainin, incoming CEO of the new entity. Our long-term vision and commitment to improving the lives of patients by accelerating the pace of precision health remains the same.

Where Genuity stands out is that in it the Government has opted for the genomic profiling of the Irish nation via a private entity, one backed by roughly 70m in taxpayers' money via the Irish Strategic Investment Fund.

Meanwhile, a Wuxi NextCode executive went on LinkedIn in August 2019 to announce that GMI had 12,000 whole genome sequenced MS patients and was actively looking for a pharma partner to explore the underlying genetic and biological drivers. The post was removed shortly thereafter. The executive no longer works for Wuxi.

This is not to say that Genuitys data-acquisition practices have escaped regulatory scrutiny. In November 2019, months prior to the Beaumont Hospital public announcement, the Data Protection Commission informed privacy advocacy grouping, Digital Rights Ireland, that it had commenced a widespread compliance and supervision investigation regarding how the company processes the genetic data of Irish citizens. No update on the matter has yet been released, although it is understood the possibility of a full inquiry into the companys data-acquisition practices has been mooted and may yet materialise.

The overriding question regarding Genuitys endeavours with the Irish publics genetic data is why the Government hasnt become involved in orchestrating a publicly-funded genomics project  one which would cost a fraction of the price of the private project, and which would see the collated data returned to the public domain.

What these private projects are doing is collating genome banks and then charging big pharmaceutical companies to access them, says McGarr. You could use that genetic information to profile who might be susceptible to the coronavirus, for example. The then-GMI had made just under $13m in revenue through making available certain genomic data to be used in extensive research per its most recently-filed accounts as at the end of 2018.

It comes down to this: What do people know and what do they expect? DNA is abstract; someone could consent to selling it, but would they want it sold on to the big pharma companies? says McGarr.

What if it were to affect my life insurance, for example, when a profile becomes available showing a predisposition towards cancer and then my family cant get cover? The consequences are so enormous its mind-boggling.

In theory, the sale of genetic data does not have to be a one-off either, but something that can be repeated, with the same windfall on each occasion. Taking the 450,000 cohort which Genuity has aimed for, at a price of $1,500 per sample, youre left with a databank with a value of $675m with the possibility of resales.

The fact that Ireland hasnt considered the ethical problems involved in the collation of this data is an abomination, says the industry source.

For 10m we could have a national genome project which benefits those taking part. Private industry, its responsibility is to make profits via therapeutic products. You have to presume that such concerns make decisions which will be beneficial to them, they say.

So why wouldnt the Government get involved in a publicly-funded genome project, of which there are multiple examples already in existence across Europe? Why instead sign on with private industry?

My feeling is that there has been a tendency to worship at the altar of foreign direct investment in Ireland at a cost of letting foreign companies dictate the terms of engagement, says the industry source.

These companies are not questioned in terms of risk-benefit ratios. That is fine in terms of reputational risk, but your genome is another ball game. Its like a naked picture of you. If you knew someone was taking one you wouldnt let them. In Ireland weve chosen the most exploitative model possible.

This private project should be countered by a public one. Look for diseases in the Irish population and benefit a huge amount of people for the least amount of investment possible.
Sean Lemass wanted to call the new organisation simply the "Republican Party" - but Eamon de Valera successfully argued that his baby be called "Fianna Fail". The wily Lemass, who did so much to get the organisation a presence in every half-parish in the nation, got his suggestion into the second line.

Fianna Fail was a title sometimes given to the Irish Volunteers after they split from John Redmond's National Volunteers in 1913. The Volunteers' "FF" insignia was kept by the Free State Army after 1922 and is on Irish Army cap badges to this day - it's also in the opening line of the national anthem, subliminally bearing in on thousands for generations before big GAA games. But that's a story unto itself for another day.

Irish scholars such as 'The O'Rahilly', who died in a hail of bullets in Moore Street, Dublin, in Easter week 1916, and An tAthair Peadar O Laoghaire, approved this title because of its connection to the mythical golden age of Fionn Mac Cumhail and the Fianna. The ever pragmatic Dev liked it as a party title because, as a Gaelic scholar himself, he knew it to be almost untranslatable and so evoked just the kind of ambiguity he wanted to start "a national movement - not a party".

Five weeks after de Valera, Lemass and his colleagues, had split from the rump anti-Treaty Sinn Fein in 1926, he laid out a number of aims which could have been rendered on the back of a cigarette box: ending partition, restoring the Irish language, creating a society of equal opportunity, land re-distribution, economic self-reliance with a balance between farming and essential industries.

Bar the odd detail, these were the aims set out by Jim O'Callaghan - he who long-windedly admitted to RTE's Claire Byrne just last Wednesday that he would eventually like to be the next Fianna Fail leader. It's a smidgeon of consistency amid all the change - and utter change - which has descended upon Fianna Fail since their tumultuous fall in the February 2011 general election.

For all of this writer's childhood, and a major chunk of adulthood, Fianna Fail was part of the environment, the very air we breathed in Ireland. Attacking Fianna Fail was about as useful as a farmer attacking the weather.

Fianna Fail kingpins loved public attacks, the more they were attacked - the more they flourished. They had grounds to style themselves the "natural party of government". Once they got their mitts on power first in 1932 they more usually were the government.

Over the years, they had an uncanny knack of reading the public mood, always favouring the "small man" who backed them far more than their more vocal advocates in the Irish Labour Party. But Fianna Fail also had a compelling attraction for the moneyed classes, especially builders, whose monetary backing showed more confidence in them than the more bourgeois-looking Fine Gael.

There were brief non-Fianna Fail power intermissions - 1947-1951; 1954-1957 and 1973-77 - when "ABFF" alternatives led by Fine Gael were in charge of government. In the 1980s, when the polarising Charlie Haughey faced the strangely charismatic Garret FitzGerald of Fine Gael, a more durable change to the "other crowd" looked a distinct possibility, as both were very close in voter backing.

But that moment passed. From 1989 onwards Fianna Fail, slowly at first, began to learn how to "do coalitions". Charlie Haughey managed to share a cabinet table with his foe, Des O'Malley, and the hated breakaway Progressive Democrats.

His successor, Albert Reynolds, a man of very fine qualities, was "a Dev throwback" when it came to coalitions and blew out two power-sharing administrations with the Progressive Democrats (PDs) and later Labour. But then enter the "coalition king" himself, Bertie Ahern, who successfully managed with the PDs, many Independents, and the Green Party, kick-starting an era which ran between 1997 and 2011.

In fact Fianna Fail's "coalitionability," a term coined by the late great political scientist, Peter Mair, appeared to put the kibosh on the future of Fine Gael. After the 2002 general election Fine Gael were busy trying to find their "black box" among the electoral ashes, after scoring just 20pc and returning 31 TDs, after they set out to oust Ahern.

Fine Gael were the only parliamentary opposition ever voted out of office. The wily political chameleon Ahern was for a time the most popular politician since a Fianna Fail predecessor, Jack Lynch, who in his heyday had been compared to Daniel O'Connell. We were back to pondering the future existence of Fine Gael in what we knew was a changing Irish political landscape.

Yet Fine Gael, led by an underestimated Enda Kenny, and with an astute tactician in Phil Hogan, somehow endured. After the 2008 economic crash, the IMF-ECB-EU "Troika" arrived in November 2010, effectively ending fiscal independence, everything ended in tears.

The once and long-time mighty Fianna Fail were trounced to the brink of political oblivion. Their February 2011 score was lower than of the old Irish Parliamentary Party in 1918, who were swept away by the Sinn Fein tide and consigned to history. Just hold that thought.

Micheal Martin had taken the party leadership from the talented but luckless Brian Cowen in January 2011. Cowen sat out the party's worst ever election as caretaker Taoiseach. After the calamity Martin, a TD since 1989 who recently celebrated his 60th birthday, began the slow and painful process of rebuilding his shattered party.

At times he got at best limited support from parliamentary colleagues. But he defied pundits and opinion polls to show improving results in local and European elections in 2014, a general election in 2016, and locals and Europeans again in 2019.

Observers, including this writer, expected a big Fianna Fail revival to lead the next government after the recent general election on February 8. It did not happen. In fact the party scored a disappointing 22pc and returned 38 TDs, and in terms of percentage vote and TD numbers were very close to both Sinn Fein and Fine Gael.

So, now there are three. And predictions by anti Fine Gael coalitionist, Eamon O Cuiv, a grandson of the party founder, that Fianna Fail would be squeezed in a world where things would become "Fine Gael versus Sinn Fein" appear to be uncannily accurate.

An opinion poll last weekend confirmed a continual downward slide, with Fianna Fail now on just 10pc nationally and 4pc in Dublin. The party is nominally leading the Government but it is scattered and luckless.

A succession of calamities since Micheal Martin became Taoiseach on June 27 have taken a big toll on the party's ranking. Since he personally helped the departure of two sitting Fianna Fail Taoisigh, with Bertie Ahern in 2008 and Brian Cowen in 2011, there is speculation that he may face the same fate sooner than his term at Government Buildings is due to end in December 2022.

But above all, Micheal Martin is an experienced politician of proven skill who has beaten predictions he would be the first Fianna Fail leader never to be Taoiseach. All he has to do now is restore his party to a point where he can beat predictions he will be the last Fianna Fail Taoiseach.

No pressure at all then. With such abysmal poll rakings, a rival Sinn Fein, who still only have to be right about what's wrong, and a strangely upstaging Leo Varadkar and Fine Gael, this is a very hard predicament from which to find a politically viable exit strategy.

Having devoted a lifetime to politics, and negotiated some tough corners, it would be premature to write him off just yet. But in the modern era - where voters are often seeking the next shiny thing - it is hard to battle back from such a low ebb while still in government.

Fianna Fail stalwarts, who voted 3:1 in favour of the current three-party coalition last June, may now be rueing their decision. At least Eamon O Cuiv had the courage of his convictions to warn of his view that they were giving "a political tow" to a beleaguered Fine Gael party which had gone from a high in 2011, to two significant popular reverses in the ensuing two general elections.

Mr O Cuiv has not added that Fine Gael "gratitude" has been scarce and curiously manifested more recently. After some considerable acrimony among Fianna Fail TDs and senators the previous week, there was a perfunctory circling of the wagons this past week.

But it will be tempting to see an early change of leader as a pathway to political redemption.

Tricky times loom ahead for an embattled Taoiseach. Hold on to your hats.
A man will face court on Sunday after he allegedly set fire to a cathedral, threatened police with a knife, carried out a carjacking, and threatened a woman at a shopping centre in a series of incidents this week across various regions of NSW.

Stephen Anthony Luke, 45, was arrested on Saturday morning in Lismore after he allegedly threatened police with a large knife at about 10.45am.

Dramatic footage of his arrest shows police deploying a Taser and officers grappling with Mr Luke on the ground before he is led away to a police car.

In vision of the incident, police can be heard shouting "drop it, drop it, drop the knife" and "give us your arm". One of the officers can then be seen walking away holding what appears to be a hunting knife.
UT-Chattanooga chancellor Dr. Steven Angle gave his annual State of the University address on Friday afternoon, albeit in a slightly different form than most years. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the chancellor gave his announcement via a YouTube livestream. He began by addressing the difficult circumstance of the 2020 school year and how the university has adjusted to those circumstances.

Chancellor Angle said, This is the most challenging issue facing UTC during my time as chancellor. We acted quickly, and within seven days, UTC and staff made changes to course delivery and scheduling that would have taken years under normal circumstances.

Two guiding principles underscored our commitment to existing for students. One is protecting the health and safety of our campus community. The second is maintaining a high-quality educational experience.

Chattanoogas economic and social future is connected with UTCs support of a comprehensive approach to student achievement, discovery, and innovation. In assessing 2020 and the state of the university, we are hybrid, flexible, and resilient."

In order to continue to provide classes in a safe way, the majority of course are now online, which is a huge adjustment for a university who normally had most of its classes in person. However, Dr. Angle also stressed the importance of preventing the development of a callous approach to education.

For Fall 2020, 63 percent of our courses are offered online. Even with the increase in online teaching, we continue to connect with our students through outside-the-classroom experiential learning opportunities like internship, research, and scholarships. During this global pandemic, were doing the best we possibly can.

Despite the pandemic affecting almost everything in Chattanooga, he cited some very positive statistics for the university. For example, enrollment has actually increased despite the prevalence of COVID-19.

"Our first to second year retention is 77 percent, and our four year graduation rate is 36 percent. And our six year graduation rate is 50 percent. A 13 percent increase over the last seven years. Enrollment is up 0.5 percent despite COVID-19.

Chancellor Angle also said that expanding general education will be a priority for the university in future semesters.

"We must focus on general education. We are a teaching institution, but research, scholarship, and creative opportunities is an integral part of the UTC experience. The revised UTC general education program will inspire students to develop skills, habits of the mind, and ways of being in the world that foster the intellectual dexterity and thoughtful action needed to address challenges and opportunities in their local and global communities.

Our GE committee is looking at general education as a program, not a menu of courses, but as an integrated and connected experience. We must spend as much time on structuring a general education curriculum as our academic majors.

Diversifying UTCs campus was also a topic during his address, speaking about both the student body and faculty. He alluded to several methods the university has in place to address this topic.



We must recruit and graduate more students of color. We must also build a more diverse faculty who will connect with students. Our faculty work on an individual level to challenge and encourage our students to mature as people.

UTC supports diversity, inclusion, and engagement in our strategic direction and in our campus actions. We are committed to investing in diversity and inclusion, both curricular and co-curricular programs, to enhance the knowledge and experiences of UTC students, staff, and the greater Chattanooga community.

Several months ago, the executive leadership at UTC committed to a series of actions including open forums, and equity scan across our campus, and assuring our instruction and curriculum mirror our words. As we develop a new strategic plan, there will be clear, measurable, and actionable steps. We will drive significant change and hold ourselves accountable.

The chancellor used the Walnut Street Bridge project as an example of UTCs emphasis on diversity and equality. The Walnut Street Bridge is infamous for being the place where Ed Johnson was lynched in 1906.

A monument is being constructed so we can never forget what happened and so we can never forget the past. The Walnut Street Bridge provides an opportunity for a teachable moment.

Mayor Andy Berke, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Urban League created the Styles-Hutchinson Fellowship, mobilizing UTC students of color that will develop ideas that will inspire diverse talent to live and work in Chattanooga. An unimaginable horror paves the way for education and opening the door of opportunity for those who have been excluded from the Chattanooga renaissance.

"We need to be part of advocating an independent thought process to make sure multiple points of view are being heard and given equal respect.

Chancellor Angle concluded his address by praising the construction that has persisted around campus for the last few years. He ended by insisting UTC will continue to thrive through the pandemic.

The investments in physical structures such as Lupton Hall, the Fine Arts Center, Fletcher Hall, Holt Hall, the Gary Center, and the recently upgraded outdoor spaces, stand as symbols of our solid foundation. These projects have transformed our campus.

We will emerge from the pandemic stronger, united in our goals and more connected to the community. Weve faced huge challenges and come through them stronger than ever. COVID-19 has not destroyed us, it has strengthened our resolve.


BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., Sept. 19, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Holistic Sanctuary is proud to announce its exciting plans to grow the number of cutting-edge luxury centers it has over the next four years, allowing it to help even more patients in need of its pioneering treatments.

After a decade of revolutionizing the holistic health field and saving lives, The Holistic Sanctuary, which currently has a state-of-the-art facility in Baja California (Mexico), plans to open another center in Tulum, Mexico, as well as an additional three centers in several other locations around the world.

Most Exclusive Healing Center In The World, The Holistic Sanctuary Healing Center Offers Holistic Stem Cells, Plant Medicine and Powerful Therapies for Lupus, Lyme, MS, ALS, Addiction, Depression, PTSD, Stem Cell Therapies to Heal Clients Naturally

Holistic Sanctuary Tulum is well on its way to opening its doors in 2021, which will be followed by plans to open other centers in Tulum (2021), Malibu (2022), London (2023) and Dubai (2024).

The Holistic Sanctuary is a world-class holistic medical spa that uses cutting-edge technology and advanced therapies from around the world to cure, heal, and reverse illnesses and diseases that Western medical professionals have said are incurable. By using a combination of natural therapies, they help people to recover from a variety of different conditions such as depression, addiction, PTSD, stress, anxiety, and more.

Johnny Tabaie, CEO and Founder of The Holistic Sanctuary, said: "We are incredibly excited that we will soon be able to help even more patients around the world. We've taken holistic healing to a whole different level, and our intention has always been to heal patients using natural, effective, holistic and other alternative therapies that give results in real-time, without having to medicate people with addictive drugs.

"We simply transform people's lives; we give them a fighting chance at a good quality of life. We get people off prescribed medications, heal the underlying cause of PTSD, depression, trauma and even addiction, then send them back home healthy, thriving, happy and whole again."

More information on The Holistic Sanctuary's luxury drug rehab centers can be found at https://www.theholisticsanctuary.com/luxury-rehab-centers/

In addition to its growth plans, the organization has also announced that by the end of 2020 it will have the first AIDS and cancer research center that will strive to cure diseases like this using revolutionary stem cell technology. It will also be able to treat other autoimmune conditions such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, Lyme disease, neuropathy, multiple sclerosis (MS) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

This kind of cutting technology has been around for the last 30 years, revolutionizing how illnesses like these are treated through the discovery of isolated stem cell genes that have been proven clinically to show it has cured two patients suffering from AIDS and cancer. One has been clear for 10 years now, with the other being cured last year. This is a new, paradigm-shifting approach that is pushing western medication treatment to the side.

To learn about how stem cell technology is used by the centers, more information can be found here: https://www.theholisticsanctuary.com/stem-cell-therapy/

Learn more about The Holistic Sanctuary's Mexico stem cell center here: https://www.theholisticsanctuary.com/stem-cell-therapy/mexico/

The Holistic Sanctuary has an 80% success rate at healing patients that are either on medications, alcohol, street drugs, or suffer from mental health disorders such as PTSD, depression, anxiety and trauma. See more information on what treatments are used for these:

"We've incorporated holistic medicine and methodically weaved it with sacred plant medicine to have a better synergistic never before seen outcome. In the last 10 years, we have therapeutically, safely and humanely given people sacred plant medicines like Ibogaine, DMT, Changa, 5-MEO, Kambo, Psilocybin, mushrooms, and much more," added Tabaie.

The organization is looking for investors and partners to help finance and push this revolutionary vision forward. For more information about The Holistic Sanctuary and investor relations, please send an email or call +1-310-601-7805 or visit their website at www.theholisticsanctuary.com.

About The Holistic Sanctuary

The Holistic Sanctuary is a world-class holistic medical spa that uses cutting-edge and advanced therapies from around the world. It uses powerful modalities to cure, heal, and reverse illnesses and diseases that Western medical professionals have said are incurable. It is not a drug rehab, more along the lines of a luxury treatment center that transforms lives. It helps people to recover from depression, any type of addiction, PTSD, stress, anxiety, as well as other mental health problems. The centers use a combination of natural therapies to help people recover mentally, physically and emotionally. Unlike mainstream doctors, rehabs, and treatment centers, The Holistic Sanctuary avoids the use of outdated theories, ineffective therapies and addiction to toxic medications and drugs. Instead, it addresses the root causes of these illnesses, improves physical and mental health and alleviates the illnesses.

Media Contact

Company Name: The Holistic Sanctuary

Contact Person: Investor Relations

Email: [email protected]

Phone: +1-310-601-7805

Address: 1212 Wilshire Blvd.

City: Beverly Hills

State: California

Website: www.theholisticsanctuary.com

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The Holistic Sanctuary

Most Exclusive Healing Center In The World, The Holistic Sanctuary Healing Center Offers Holistic Stem Cells, Plant Medicine and Powerful Therapies for Lupus, Lyme, MS, ALS, Addiction, Depression, PTSD, Stem Cell Therapies to Heal Clients Naturally

Related Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lm0Omg0cZak

SOURCE The Holistic Sanctuary
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala has alleged that CPM secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan is raking up communal sentiments as he is apprehensive of his son Bineesh Kodiyeri being arrested by the central agencies probing the Bengaluru drug case. Kodiyeri is also deliberately trying to divert attention from the gold smuggling case, added Chennithala.

Talking to reporters at his official residence at Cantonment House here on Saturday, Chennithala reiterated that the Opposition will not stop their statewide protest until higher education minister K T Jaleel resigns.

Even as the Youth Congress protests against Jaleel continued for the eighth consecutive day, Chennithala alleged that the CPM has evolved into a political party which comes out with blatant communal statements. He maintained that a stage has come where there is no other way before the LDF government but to step down as it has been infected with maggots and is stinking.

Chennithala emphasized that even though Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had warned that the Oppositions protests would be suppressed with an iron fist, they are not going to be cowed down by police pressure.

The LDF government is like a sinking ship. This is the worst government which has ever ruled the state. Why is Pinarayi showing aversion against the Oppositions protests where Sir CPs ghosts have caught him? When they were in Opposition, they laid siege to the Secretariat citing the solar scam, hurled stones against Oommen Chandy and now these same people have put on the garb of angels, said Chennithala.

The other day, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had condemned the youth organizations' protest and warned of taking legal action against the Youth Congress state leadership. Reacting to this, Chennithala claimed that Pinarayis warning to the protesters will only enable the UDF to bounce back. He demanded to know who had given permission to the police to bash up protesters on their heads causing serious injuries to the youth leaders.

A day after Muslim League national general secretary P K Kunhalikutty MP had insisted that the UDFs opponent is the LDF and not the BJP, Chennithala alleged that the CPM has been backing the BJP which is a dangerous move.

Pinarayi had won the elections from Dharmadam with the aid of the BJP. The Congress has never sought the help of the BJP which I can admit with my head held high. Our fight is against the CPM which we will continue until the LDF government and Jaleel resign. Pinarayis claim of the Opposition hatching Co-Le-B alliance has become so stale, added Chennithala.

The UDF will be holding a Secretariat and collectorate march on Tuesday demanding the resignation of the LDF government and the tainted Jaleel.

'Minimal' COVID-19 tests

Chennithala also alleged that the LDF government has been deliberately undertaking minimal COVID-19 tests. He said health authorities are doing 50,000 COVID-19 tests only on some days and it should be increased to one lakh tests per day. Chennithala demanded to know from Pinarayi why the number of tests was not being increased.
Boris Johnsons concession on legislation allowing him to override the Brexit withdrawal agreement has been dismissed as insufficient by Brussels and leading Tory critics of the plans.

Former Tory leader Michael Howard said the move - made in response to intense disquiet on Conservative benches over measures which the government admits breach International law - was not enough to stave off probable defeat of the UK Internal Market Bill in the House of Lords.

And the European Commission said that its ultimatum to withdraw the offending provisions by the end of the month or face legal action and the collapse of trade talks remained unchanged.

The prime minister last night agreed to give MPs a vote before the implementation of measures which would unilaterally waive tariffs, customs paperwork and state aid controls which he signed up to in last years divorce deal with Brussels.

Senior Tories believe the move, incorporating a rebel amendment from former minister Sir Bob Neill into the body of the bill, has taken a good deal of the heat out of the issue in the House of Commons, where two Conservatives voted against Mr Johnsons legislation and up to 30 abstained on Monday.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 17 January 2022 Bonhams Danny McIlwraith holds a Nigerian polycrome carved wood mask during a photocall for the sale of the Jim Lennon Collection at Bonhams in Edinburgh PA UK news in pictures 16 January 2022 The moon rises above the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth, Hampshire PA UK news in pictures 15 January 2022 Demonstrators outside Downing Street during a Kill The Bill protest against The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill in London PA UK news in pictures 14 January 2022 Ecologist Emma Smart (left) and retired GP Dr Diana Warner outside HMP Bronzefield, in Surrey, following their release from the prison where Emma undertook a 26-day hunger strike during her incarceration. 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Getty UK news in pictures 21 December 2021 People take part in a winter solstice swim at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh to mark the solstice and to witness the dawn after the longest night of the year PA UK news in pictures 20 December 2021 An auction employee displays poultry to buyers and sellers attending the Christmas Poultry Sale at York Auction Centre in Murton PA UK news in pictures 19 December 2021 Joao Moutinho of Wolverhampton Wanderers looks on during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Chelsea at Molineux Getty Images UK news in pictures 18 December 2021 Freight lorries queuing at the port of Dover in Kent PA UK news in pictures 17 December 2021 Newly elected Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan, bursts 'Boris' bubble' held by colleague Tim Farron, as she celebrates following her victory in the North Shropshire by-election PA UK news in pictures 16 December 2021 Brussels sprouts are harvested by workers as they prepare for the busy Christmas period near Boston in Lincolnshire PA UK news in pictures 15 December 2021 Lewis Hamilton is made a Knight Bachelor by the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 14 December 2021 The Royal Liver Buildings surrounded by early morning fog in Liverpool PA UK news in pictures 13 December 2021 People queue outside a walk-in Covid-19 vaccination centre at St Thomas's Hospital in Westminster Getty Images UK news in pictures 12 December 2021 People take part in the Big Leeds Santa Dash in Roundhay Park, Leeds PA UK news in pictures 11 December 2021 People arrive at a Covid-19 vaccination centre at Elland Road in Leeds, PA UK news in pictures 10 December 2021 Stella Moris speaks to the media after the US Government won its High Court bid to overturn a judges decision not to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange PA UK news in pictures 9 December 2021 Camels are lead around Salisbury Cathedral during a rehearsal for the Christmas Eve Service PA UK news in pictures 8 December 2021 Margaret Keenan and Nurse May Parsons, a year after Margaret was the first person in the UK to receive the Pfizer vaccine PA UK news in pictures 7 December 2021 Snowfall in Leadhills, South Lanarkshire as Storm Barra hits the UK with disruptive winds, heavy rain and snow PA UK news in pictures 6 December 2021 A person tries to avoid sea spray on New Brighton promenade in Wallasey as the UK readies for the arrival of Storm Barra Getty UK news in pictures 5 December 2021 People release balloons during a tribute to six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes outside Emma Tustin's former address in Solihull, West Midlands, where he was murdered by his stepmother PA UK news in pictures 4 December 2021 People walk through a Christmas market in Trafalgar Square Reuters UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 A pedestrian carries a dog as they dodge shoppers on Oxford Street in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 2 December 2021 Duchess of Cambridge inspects a Faberge egg at the Victoria and Albert Museum Getty UK news in pictures 1 December 2021 Meerkats at London Zoo with an advent calendar PA UK news in pictures 30 November 2021 Workers put the finishing touches to the Trafalgar Square Christmas Tree ahead of the lighting ceremony later in the week PA UK news in pictures 29 November 2021 Home Secretary Priti Patel is greeted by a police dog at a special memorial service for Met Police Sergeant Matiu Ratana Getty

But Lord Howard, a longstanding supporter of Brexit, said the PM had not gone far enough and the chances of the bill getting through the House of Lords were not great.

In an indication that peers may not regard themselves as bound by the Salisbury Convention, under which Upper House does not block measures from the ruling partys election manifesto, Lord Howard said that resistance to the bill may go beyond a simple stand-off with the Commons.

Meanwhile, a cross-party committee of peers urged Mr Johnson to reconsider his proposals, which they said were damaging to trust in negotiations on an EU trade deal and the UKs reputation overseas.

And EU trade commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said today that the UK government will have to correct its position before negotiations on political and economic relations can continue.

European Commission spokesman Eric Mamer said its deadline for the removal of the clauses from the bill has not changed.

And European Parliament Brexit negotiator Guy Verhofstadt said the parliament will not give its consent to any trade deal until the provisions are removed from the bill.

Details of the government-backed amendment released today said that the controversial measures would be implemented only if the UK felt the EU was engaged in a material breach of its duties of good faith or other obligations in a way which undermined the purpose of the Northern Ireland protocol included in the withdrawal agreement.

This could involve:

- Brussels requiring tariffs to be charged on goods exported from the British mainland to Northern Ireland that were at no real risk of moving on to the EU.

- The EU insisting on export declarations for Northern Irish goods destined for Great Britain.

- Demands for state aid controls to be applied on subsidies to British firms which have only a trivial link to Northern Ireland.

- Withholding the third country status required for the UK to export agricultural goods to the EU for manifestly unreasonable or poorly justified reasons.

Mr Johnson claims the measures are needed as a safety net to prevent the withdrawal agreement which he negotiated, signed and pushed through parliament being used by the EU to impose a food blockade on Northern Ireland. The concession brokered with Sir Bob last night is designed to reassure restive Tory MPs that the measures would not be deployed without the approval of the Commons.

But the European Commission has already made clear that the simple act of tabling the proposals has left the UK open to legal action for breaching provisions of the withdrawal agreement requiring it to act in good faith.

And Lord Howard said: It is not enough to make me change my mind.

My objection to this bill is that it invites parliament to use its sovereignty to break international law and I dont think parliament should be asked to do that.

The only thing that would satisfy me would be if the government were to withdraw from the bill those parts of it which breach international law.

In a further sign of troubles ahead for Mr Johnson when the bill reaches the Upper House in October, the House of Lords EU Environmental Sub-Committee wrote to environment secretary George Eustice to express deep concern over the PMs plans.

The committee, which has three Tory members, accused Mr Eustice of a lack of openness over the likelihood of additional checks and controls on goods passing between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK after the end of the Brexit transition on 31 December.

Chair Lord Teverson said: The governments internal market proposals have implications for trust and the UKs reputation for abiding by its international agreements.

We urge the government to reconsider its proposals and to engage with the EU constructively.

Asked by German newspaper Welt if it was possible for the EU to negotiate with an administration which had indicated it may not uphold its side of any deal, Mr Dombrovskis said: The behaviour of the British government is causing us concerns.

If the UK does not comply with the withdrawal agreement, then there is no longer any basis for a free trade treaty between the EU and the UK.

The British government must correct this before we continue negotiating on our political and economic relations.
New Delhi: The insurgents' groups active across India's northeast states and at the Indo-Myanmar border are taking advantage of the large scale of unemployment caused by the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic and are conspiring to recruit more youth into their outfits, as per the security agencies report.

A large number of NSCN (K) cadres congregate along the Indo-Myanmar Border across the Mon area (Nagaland) with a motive to carry out attacks on Security Forces.

The latest report prepared by the Central security agencies reveals that the People's Democratic Council of Karbi Longri (PDCK) had recruited fifteen fresh caders in Assam.

Another input indicated recruitment of ten caders by Karbi People's Liberation Tiger in the outfit while another input said that ULFA had recruited 15-20 youths in the outfit from Meghalaya.

In Tripura, the inputs indicated that the extremist Parimal Debbrama of National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) is trying to revive the group and some newly recruited members of the outfit had completed their basic training in a hideout of Khagrachari District of Bangladesh. These cadres are reportedly planning to infiltrate in India for operation activities.

The India-Myanmar border remained susceptible to threat due to the presence of insurgents groups and many insurgents groups are camping in Myanmar and are trying to infiltrate through Tirap, Longding and Changlang districts of Arunachal Pradesh, Mon District of Nagaland and Charaideo district of Assam.
He shed an impressive two stone during a two-week juice retreat last month.

And James Argent appeared to be in good spirits as he visited Stephen Bear's new tanning salon Bronzing Bear in Buckhurst Hill, Essex, on Saturday.

The TOWIE star, 32, showed off his slimmed-down physique as he put on a casual display in a long-sleeved black top and shorts.

Outing: James Argent showed off his two stone weight loss in a long-sleeved black top and shorts after visiting pal Stephen Bear's tanning salon in Essex on Saturday

James completed his look by stepping out in a pair of black slip-on shoes that he paired with white socks.

The reality star wore his cropped brunet locks in a tousled style, and he put on an animated display as he left the tanning salon to pose with the bear statue outside.

James was seen catching up with Ex On The Beach star Stephen, before he made his way to his moped that had a learner's sticker on the front.

Weight loss: The TOWIE star, 32, showed off his slimmed-down physique as he put on a casual display in a long-sleeved black top and shorts

Pals: James was seen catching up with Ex On The Beach star Stephen

Casual: James completed his look by stepping out in a pair of black slip-on shoes that he paired with white socks

Arg revealed he transformed his eating habits and lost two stone when he went on Jason Vale's retreat in Portugal in August after randomly bumping into the health and fitness guru, 51.

The TV star told The Sun on Sunday: 'I met Jason on the off chance and he called my bluff when I said I'd book in. So the next day I bought my flights and flew to his resort in Portugal. All I drank for a fortnight was juices.

'I feel incredible and I'm determined to lose even more weight. I saw pictures of myself on the beach when lockdown ended and I came to Spain. I was shocked by how I looked. Now I just never want to go back to feeling that way.'

'It was the best thing I've ever done. I've struggled with my weight for years but this has really changed my outlook. I'm free from drink and drugs still, which is a huge achievement. And making sure I lose weight and get healthier is an ongoing goal.'

Relaxed look: The reality star wore his cropped brunet locks in a tousled style

New ride: After seeing Stephen, James made his way to his moped that had a learner's sticker on the front

Beaming: James appeared to be in good spirits as he headed home after the tanning session

The media personality had previously insisted the secret behind his epic five-stone weight loss earlier this year was low-calorie curry.

Last year, James suffered two near-fatal overdoses at his home, with his then-girlfriend Gemma Collins calling emergency services after his family feared he was dead.

The Essex native turned his life around and is continuing his recovery after he flew to Thailand earlier this year to go to rehab for his drug and drink addiction.

Amusing: James put on an animated display as he left the tanning salon to pose with the bear statue outside

Making a change: Arg revealed he transformed his eating habits and lost two stone when he went on Jason Vale's retreat in Portugal in August

Things for James haven't been as promising in the romance department as he broke up with his partner Gemma, 39, earlier his summer after she revealed a string of abusive messages, purportedly sent to her by him prior to their split.

It's understood the Jump star had made derogatory remarks abut her weight after she suggested that he had bought another woman dinner.

The self-proclaimed diva decided to take some time off social media, citing that she was 'devastated' and 'heartbroken' by the exchange.

However after returning to the UK from her own Tenerife getaway, Gemma apologised to her former beau for releasing the messages.
Accountability and more such rot View(s):

It came to pass earlier this month that the 20th Amendment to our Constitution has run into some political road works. There it was, all signed, sealed and gazetted and ready to be dropped on the collective head of a bemused public who suddenly found many existing institutions were to lose the independence they have exercised.

That is not all. The legislature was also to lose some of the powers that had been bestowed on it since 2015 and even earlier. It was to be neutered instead of being strengthened, the public voice increasingly silenced.

Let it not be forgotten that right from the beginning the Rajapaksas saw the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe engineered the 19th Amendment as a constitutional instrument to constrict their political progress and even drive the family out of politics.

True enough there were valuable clauses in 19A that enhanced democratic governance, increased accountability and transparency and strengthened the powers of parliament. But to the Rajapaksas, 19A was intended to stultify the familys political journey.

So understandably 19A would have to go. But the SLPP erred by turning 20A into more than a means of eliminating the pernicious and personal aspects of 19A but even those that would serve society and strengthen democratic institutions.

It was not surprising then that civil society, the media and professional bodies reacted adversely to this attempt to throw the baby with the bath water. They wanted to know the grandmaster of 20A, the constitutional pundit who had turned 19A on its head and gone beyond what many believed was the mandate for constitutional change.

Shocked by what the gazetted 20A prescribed as the remedy for stable and firm governance, many of those surprised by the turn of events pointed the finger of accusation at Justice Minister Ali Sabry who burst into the political scene relatively recently.

But unlike the Sparrow in the English nursery rhyme Who killed Cock Robin? Justice Minister Sabry was quick to tell his detractors not I sir denying he had done the dirty by sweeping away most of the worthy provisions of 19A.

So then who wanted to earn the Ran Padakkama as the bearer of constitutional gifts that went beyond the expected, hoping that rewards would await him (or her) as creator of this initial constitutional shamble.

It seems even President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, the political duopoly that now governs the country, had decided to look at a possible rewrite of 20A and appointed two groups of experts to provide their input.

Some who have faith that the duo might, like Lenin, take two steps back after taking one forward, may be disappointed if it turns out to be the other way round. This is especially so since 20A as earlier gazetted is to enhance presidential power many fold and slash away at the powers of the prime minister, parliament and responsibilities of key officials whose task is not to provide ballast to gormless authoritarianism as it often happens in our increasingly politicised society.

One could expect some tinkering with the now gazetted amendment, a little bit of cutting here and a little bit of polishing there, to give the impression that official committees appointed by the president and the prime minister have looked at them with an experts eye. But it still does not tell us who the original drafter was. Nor is the government, especially Justice Minister Ali Sabry, likely to tell, now that the gazetted draft has taken flak from a wide circle of society and professional and official bodies.

One of the strongest critics has been the Sri Lanka Audit Service Association (SLASA) which protested to President Rajapaksa about the amendment shutting the doors in the face of the Audit Service and thereby allowing state owned companies to escape financial scrutiny.

Writing in the Sunday Times last week, Namini Wijedasa exposed the fact that a large number of state-owned entities will not come under close financial examination as they should. After all they exist on public funds and subject to parliamentary oversight.

Wijedasa said: Nearly 120 State-owned companies including the debt-ridden SriLankan Airlines will be exempt from Government audit under the proposed 20th Amendment to the Constitution. Among scores of other business entities to be excluded are Lanka Electricity Company (LECO), Sri Lanka Insurance, Lanka Hospitals PLC, Litro Gas Lanka Ltd, Lanka Sathosa, multiple plantation and electricity companies and Lanka Coal Company Ltd.

If 120 state-owned companies are involved one could imagine their total cost to the public which will have no voice how the money is spent and how transparent their activities would be.

The draft proposal this week drew strong protest from the Sri Lanka Audit Service Association (SLASA). When State-owned companies, in which the Government is majority shareholder, are audited by private entities, the reports are not required to be submitted to Parliament, the union said. This would undermine Parliamentary financial oversight, she wrote

It is to halt such entities with 50 percent or more state-owned shares from avoiding necessary parliamentary scrutiny and trying to diddle lawmakers and the public that Article 154 (1) was introduced. This provision says that the Auditor-General shall audit all departments of the Government, the Office of the Secretary to the President, the Office of the Secretary to the Prime Minister, the Offices of the Cabinet of Ministers, the independent Commissions, as well as public corporations and businesses registered under the Companies Act in which the Government, a public corporation or a local authority holds 50 percent or more of shares

But it appears that this is not what the amended constitution is going to give the public. As the public knows well enough even with such safeguards some of these majority state-owned companies and institutions have been found to have engaged in dubious activities that were hardly clean. Senior officials, some of them relatives of politicians, have conducted themselves in ways that were nothing but disgraceful. If laws did not apply to them, safeguards were flouted and accountability and transparency mattered little what would stop them now?

If high-ranking officials and senior bureaucrats behaved with impunity even when laws existed to prevent bribery and corruption how much easier it would be when the barriers to such moral degradation and depravity are lifted like the floodgates as the constitutional amendment intends to do.

To listen to the political rhetoric that fills the air at election time and later, Sri Lanka is promised clean governance, free of corruption and turpitude of one kind or the other. Yet the doors are thrown open even wider to chumocracy and kleptocracy

PS: I had finished writing this column when I read that Cabinet spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella told a news conference the cabinet had agreed to the basic framework of 20A and had added it was drafted by the cabinet and the Legal Draftsman. So now we know, dont we? Or do we, really? Anyway three cheers for collective responsibility!

(Neville de Silva is a veteran Sri Lankan journalist who was Assistant Editor, Diplomatic Editor and Political Columnist of the Hong Kong Standard before moving to London where he worked for Gemini News Service. Later he was Deputy Chief-of-Mission in Bangkok and Deputy High Commissioner in London before returning to journalism.)
Even if omicron peak nears, Long Beach cases and hospitalizations will still be up for weeks, official says
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 21:20:52|Editor: huaxia

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By Xinhua writers Naftali Mwaura and Ding Lei

NAIROBI, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Joseph Kaguai is among pioneer investors in the hospitality industry on the outskirts of central Kenya's industrial town of Thika whose passion for bamboo is unmatched thanks to multiple benefits offered by the grass.

The middle-aged ex-banker who incurred huge expenses to procure toothpicks for customers in his resort hotel located in central Kenya's Murang'a county, has found respite in bamboo whose sturdy bark is ideal for producing the critical accessories for hospitality industry.

Kaguai's Chinese friend facilitated his acquisition of made-in-China machines to manufacture toothpicks using bamboo and is convinced the new venture will open new revenue streams through exports to regional markets.

"The cost of toothpicks in my hotels was quite high and it prompted me to explore how I can produce them locally using bamboo," Kaguai told Xinhua. "The factory is doing well and we are working on capacity for smooth production", he added.

The entrepreneur's toothpick manufacturing start-up located at the heart of Thika town's industrial belt herald boom to bamboo farmers who are angling themselves for a steady market for their produce.

According to Kaguai, bamboo farmers scattered across central Kenyan highlands and beyond are excited about his toothpick manufacturing venture that he hopes will be a game changer in the country's industrialization agenda.

He said that Kenya's bamboo industry that is still at infancy has potential for growth if the government and industry forge partnership with China in diverse areas like research, training of manpower and technology transfer.

"We are getting machines from China but also require technology from the country to manufacture a range of products from bamboo," said Kaguai.

Keriako Tobiko, cabinet secretary of Kenya's Ministry of Environment and Forestry, said at an event to mark World Bamboo Day on Friday that the government will scale up growing of bamboo across the country towards actualization of bamboo commercialization.

Bamboo is a largely underutilized resource in Kenya and Africa as a whole. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, despite having 12 percent of the world's bamboo resources, Africa accounts for just 1 percent of the estimated 60 billion U.S. dollars global bamboo market.

Government statistics indicate that Kenya has a total bamboo growing area of some 133,273 hectares while a policy is being developed to enhance commercialization of its products.

Nellie Mugure Oduor, director of national forest products research program at Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI) told Xinhua in an interview that implementation of a national bamboo policy will boost its use in conservation of soils, water as well as production of furniture, tiles and roofing materials.

"We want bamboo to become an industrial crop and hope that once the policy is enacted, the country will attract investors to develop cottage industries using bamboo products," said Oduor.

She said that Kenya has benefitted from China's expertise and technology to develop household and industrial products from the grass sub-species.

An estimated five million hectares of land in Africa is under bamboo cultivation as the continent forge partnership with China to promote research, training and adoption of technologies required to commercialize the crop.

Fu Jinhe, director of East Africa Regional Office at International Bamboo and Rattan Organisation (INBAR) said that investments in capacity development and new technologies is key to revitalizing growth of Africa's bamboo industry.

"There is need for investment and technology transfer to boost development of bamboo resources in Africa," said Fu, adding that the INBAR has encouraged Chinese investors to venture into Africa's nascent bamboo industry. Enditem
In line with its mission to promote a democratic electoral process in Nigeria, Premium Times Centre for Investigative Journalism (PTCIJ) today, Saturday, deployed 54 observers to witness the process of the governorship elections in Edo State with the support of the European Union.

PTCIJs programme director, Tosin Alagbe, said three observers have been deployed to each of the local government areas in the state, and they will each be covering a minimum of ten polling units (PU) per LGA for the election day.

Ms Alagbe said observers who are fully trained will report on the political environment, the setup and opening of polling stations, the voter turnout, the number of assisted voters, and the ratio of redirected and those turned away.

She added that the presence of polling agents, presence of security agents, as well as well as the quality and size of women, youth and people with disability participating in the elections.

This is a huge test for democracy in Nigeria, said Ms Alagbe who urged citizens of the state to defeat the bleak predictions that Edo State will be a blood bath because, as most pre-election reports had suggested, the state is awash in arms with countless trouble makers who are signed to arson and destruction.

Ms Alagbe remarked that the Edo State election will also test the capacity of the media to help deepen democratic engagement in the country through accurate and truthful reporting, adding that in a modest attempt to make this possible, PTCIJ and four leading media partners have come together in an initiative tagged the media coalition for election reporting through which we are drawn by a high sense of our constitutional responsibility to help extend each others news coverage resources through collaborative reporting that deepens citizens capacity to make informed electoral choices.

She said the media coalition will also have access to the massive footprints of the Yiaga Africa group which is deploying about 300 volunteers in a carpet coverage of Edo state in the bid to help ensure the integrity of the polls.

The partnership is a loose coalition that includes the Premium Times Centre for Investigative Journalism (PTCIJ), the Premium Times newsroom, The Cable, Daily Trust, and the International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR).

The media coalition idea draws from the vision of the Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria of the European Union, (EU-SDGN), that the PTCIJ is implementing with the aim to contribute to the reinforcement of democracy in Nigeria.
France has arrested and indicted a former guard of deposed Central African Republic president Francois Bozize for complicity in crimes against humanity, anti-terrorist prosecutors said on Saturday.

Eric Danboy Bagale, 41, was arrested in eastern France on Tuesday and placed under judicial investigation in Paris late on Friday, prosecuting authority PNAT told AFP.

Bagale, who served in the presidential guard and then as head of the anti-Balaka militia, was also indicted for acts of torture and for criminal association for the preparation of a war crime for acts committed between 2007 and 2014, PNAT said in a statement.

Bagale was taken into custody in Besancon on Tuesday by the Central Office for the Fight against Crimes Against Humanity, Genocides and War Crimes (OCLCHGCG).

Bagale was one of the Liberators, the name given to the guards of Bozize who brought him to power in 2003 by overthrowing president Ange-Felix Patasse.

A member of the Gbaya ethnic group, like Bozize, Bagale then became a senior figure within the Christian anti-Balaka militia set up to fight the mainly Muslim rival armed group, the Seleka, that ousted Bozize from power in 2013.

The fighting between the two sides, and the numerous massacres perpetrated by them, plunged the CAR, one of the poorest countries in Africa, into the third civil war in its history.

According to the UN, which accused both sides of war crimes, between 3,000 and 6,000 people died, mostly civilians, between 2013 and 2015.
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Linkedin Miodrag Sovilj and Ismet Hajdari (Agence France-Presse) Belgrade, Serbia  Sat, September 19, 2020 11:45 490 e22cd4161040e111d73a5626c45e283b 2 World Donald-Trump,Serbia,Kosovo,Jared-Kushner,PeaceDeal,Nobel-Peace-Prize Free

'Truly historic', 'a real breakthrough' and 'very big' -- US President Donald Trump let the superlatives flow when he announced a deal between Serbia and Kosovo, earning himself a second Nobel Peace Prize nomination this year.

But those familiar with decades-old Balkan conflicts have a different take on the agreements, which they say are thin on substance, non-binding and already showing signs of unraveling.

"I don't see how it's going to help either Serbs or Kosovars," Olivera Radovanovic, a 88-year-old pensioner from Belgrade, told AFP, capturing the collective shrug among many ordinary people in the region.

"It looks political to me. Trump does not inspire peace, I don't see why he should get (the prize)," she added.

More than 20 years since they fought a war, the neighbours' relationship is tense and complicated -- particularly because Serbia refuses to accept the 2008 declaration of independence by Kosovo, a former province home mainly to ethnic Albanians.

While long-running EU-led negotiations have tried to untangle their many political feuds, Trump claimed that his administration's economic-focused deal led to "a major breakthrough -- something that nobody thought was going to be possible."

It later became clear that the documents signed by Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic were separate "letters of intent".

Trump, meanwhile, inked a cover letter "acknowledging that the two sides are going to work together", his advisor said.

That effectively leaves the agreements without any enforcement mechanism, former Serbian ambassador to the United Nations Pavle Jevremovic told AFP.

"It can't be seen as an internationally legally binding document", Jevremovic added, even though Washington's involvement lends it political weight as long as Trump is in office.

Middle East twist

The contents of the 16-point letters have also raised eyebrows.

While the agreement was billed as an economic normalization pact that would create jobs and make the region "safer", its most eye-catching part turned out to be about the Middle East.

In a surprise twist, Kosovo agreed to mutually recognize Israel, while Serbia was to follow Washington's controversial lead and move its embassy to Jerusalem.

Trump, who has recently touted new accords between Israel and its Arab neighbors, hailed "another great day for peace with Middle East", sparking cheeky reactions online about whether the president had his geography straight.

Fron Nahzi, senior director at McCain Institute for International Leadership, said it was clear the president was focused on his re-election campaign.

"The intended audience is a sub-section of voters in swing states; namely, Jewish communities in Florida and Pennsylvania and ethnic Albanians who live in Michigan", Nahzi wrote in an opinion piece for the local outlet Balkan Insight.

Analysts have also noted that many of the points that do relate to Kosovo and Serbia's relationship are hardly new.

Some were repeats of previous US-brokered agreements -- such as deals to increase air and rail links -- while others were promises and projects from the EU-led talks.

"The truth is that the agreement is very thin in terms of details and has no clear enforcement mechanisms in place," Pristina-based political commentator Blerim Vela told AFP.

"At most what you can say about it, in diplomatic terms, is that they have agreed to continue negotiating", said Eric Gordy, a Balkan expert and professor at University College London.

'Wish list'

The most notable new points that could seed further progress involve a study exploring joint ownership of a contested lake, and a commitment to join an economic union in the Balkans to free up the movement of people and goods in the region.

Even that idea is an old one that regional leaders have recently tried to revive.

A US investment institution has also vowed to develop a presence in Serbia.

But following the signing, it only took a few days for both sides to start interpreting various commitments differently, casting doubt on how much of the agreement will be honoured -- and whether it will hold any weight if Trump is ousted from office in November's presidential election.

Kosovo's Prime Minister Hoti has already softened a promise to halt seeking membership in international organisations, while Serbia's president has dodged confirmation on whether his country's embassy will be indeed be transferred to Jerusalem.

That has left many bemused by the Nobel nomination, put forth by Swedish MP Magnus Jacobsson, who once himself called Trump "a clown."

"I thought they handed the prize to those who did something great for the world," said Vera Dibrani, a 21-year-old literature student in Kosovo's capital Pristina.

"What did these three guys do? Did they do something important for the world? The agreement is just a wish list which Hoti and Vucic started to interpret differently even before they landed back home."
by Pierre Balanian

A ship with some 50 Lebanese migrants drifted in the Mediterranean waters for seven days without food, water or baggage. Since July, human traffickers have been exploiting a new sea route to reach Europe (Cyprus), charging a thousand dollars per person per trip. Due to the tragic state of Lebanons economy, almost everyone wants to emigrate, starting the countrys fourth mass exodus.

Beirut (AsiaNews)  Beginning in mid-July, Lebanese migrants have been taking an escape route, by sea, towards a better life. However, the odyssey of illegal migration has been marked by a new tragedy not far from the Lebanese coast.

Tripoli is Lebanons second largest city and one of its poorest and most forgotten places. Here smuggling and human trafficking was an open secret, and until recently small-scale.

On 7 September, about 50 people boarded a boat that left Al Miniyeh, a town about 10 km north of Tripoli. They happily dreamt of a better future in Europe, about 189 km away, in Cyprus. Each passenger paid a thousand US dollars, a small fortune for such a short trip for citizens of a country in crisis where the average wage, for those who have a job, is 100 dollars a month.

During the crossing, the smuggler lost his bearings and the boat found itself in the high seas somewhere between the Cypriot and Turkish coasts. They run out of fuel and the passengers who had planned a short journey begin to suffer from hunger, thirst and dehydration due to the scorching sun and the stifling heat of the eastern Mediterranean.

Out of the 50 who left, 14 died, including a child on 10 September. The mother, Zeinab Al Qak (pictured, left) held his body in her arms for two days. She then decided to do the impossible. In front of her 10-year-old daughter (pictured right), who survived, she gave her sons body to the sea. Her final words were "Let your last rest be here" before breaking down in fits of tears and hysteria.

After seven days of slow agony at sea, surrounded by the sky, sun, water and stars, thirsty and hungry, the escapees were rescued by a UNIFIL[*] naval vessel. Twelve children were on board, including the little sister - still in shock - of the child thrown into the sea.

Taken to the devastated port of Beirut, they were rushed to hospital. Survivors included residents from Bebnine, Akkar governorate, on Lebanons northern border with Syria.

On land, they began talking about the illegal human trafficking network in which they were involved, mentioning the names of two smugglers, both from Bebnine, Burhan Qatarib and his son-in-law Ahmad Safwan who had struck a deal with the migrants wanted to escape from hunger in Lebanon, only to find death from hunger and thirst at sea.

Leaving without luggage, the organisers had promised the migrants that they would join them in the high seas with their things as well as food, plus milk for the children. But with the boat lost in the waters of the Mediterranean, the migrants got nothing.

A warrant has been issued for the arrest of the two traffickers, who are now fugitives. A source, who wished to remain anonymous, told AsiaNews, that Turkey is behind this new illegal migration from Lebanon to Europe.

Yesterday morning the Lebanese coast guard recovered the body of one of the migrants, found near the coast of Saadiyat, south of Beirut, in Chouf district.

One of the survivors of this tragedy, Mohammad Sefian Mohammad, also lost a son who died of thirst and hunger despite his fathers attempt to save him by getting him to drink sea water.

Outgoing Lebanese Prime Minister Hassan Diab instructed his outgoing Foreign Minister Charbel Wehbe to liaise with Cypriot authorities to coordinate joint action to counter this nascent trend.

The outgoing government has decided to help the families of the victims. The concern is great because almost every Lebanese wants to emigrate, to flee Lebanon, where life has become impossible. For all intents and purposes, Lebanons fourth mass migration is underway.

The first one, that of the Maronites, began in the wake of the massacres of 1880 (Druze-Maronite war). The second wave took place in the early 20th century until 1920, when the country emptied itself, especially during the years of the famine caused by the Ottoman Turks, with many emigrating to Brazil and the United States. The third wave occurred during the civil war (1975-1990). Now the fourth has just begun.

Lebanon is one of the few countries in the world, together with Armenia, Israel, Italy and Spain, to have a diaspora that exceeds the number of people at home.

In Lebanon, carrying out a census is a taboo, to avoid jeopardising the subtle balance between the various ethno-religious communities.

Lebanons population is estimated to be around four million, but more than seven million Lebanese or people of Lebanese descent live scattered around the world.

In order to help the people of Beirut and Lebanon, as well as Caritas Lebanon, AsiaNews has launched a campaign to Help devastated Beirut. Those who want to contribute can make a donation to:

PIME Foundation:

- International Bank Account Number (IBAN): IT78C0306909606100000169898

- Bank Identifier Code (BIC): BCITITMM

- Reason for transfer: AN04  HELP DEVASTATED BEIRUT

[*] United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon.
This Lovely Cat Feels And Acts Like Hes Not Any Different From His Brothers (30 Pics) Bored Panda

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Stanley Crouch, Towering Jazz Critic, Dead At 74 NPR

Martin Amis, Christopher Hitchens and the long road to reaction New Statesman

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Class Warfare

How do Grubhub, DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Postmates work? What can policymakers do to stop their predatory practices that harm restaurants and franchises? @econliberties just put out a new @moetkacik report on these online delivery app middlemen. https://t.co/CbV8LHptit  Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) September 18, 2020

Julian Assange

The American press has remained in denial for 40 yearssince my casethat the Espionage Act has wording that could be aimed directly at them. Now theyre staring down the barrel of that Act, which could be used against American journalists and publishers for doing journalism. https://t.co/JoNvCO8iBK  Daniel Ellsberg (@DanielEllsberg) September 17, 2020

West Coast Wildfires

Oil Companies Are Profiting From Illegal Spills. And California Lets Them. ProPublica

Waste Watch

New Jersey governor signs landmark environmental justice bill with big permit implications Waste Dive

Refugee Watch

Merkel Losing Her Patience with Lack of EU Solidarity Der Spiegel

China?

India

Syraqistan

Another step towards Middle East peace which is anything but  at least for the Palestinians Independent Robert Fisk

Brexit

2020

Gunz

In Americas Blood London Review Of Books

Trump Transition

Antidote du jour (via):

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Is this any way to spend the peoples money?

At a hastily called special board meeting last Monday, trustees of the $57 billion pension fund for public school employees agreed to bet $100 million on a mysterious new investment with an I-Spy name  Project Newton  run by a manager whom PSERS refused to name. Not a public word was said about how precisely Project Newton will make money for retirees.

The approval wasnt a slam-dunk.

Among those voting no were Democratic state Treasurer Joe Torsella, acting banking secretary Richard Vague, and State Rep. Frank Ryan, R-Lebanon.

Torsella is the elected bean-counter who has pushed for simpler, low-fee investments. Vague is a venture capitalist and philanthropist who once ran the worlds largest credit-card bank. Ryan is a Marine officer turned CPA whose pension-management reform bill has been stalled by opposition from the teachers' union.

Those three have challenged the massive funds penchant for private investments, which they associate with high fees and low returns.

In short, the professional money people on the board did not see Project Newton as genius. But they were outnumbered by the teachers' union reps and retirees, led by a pair of high school history teachers and a pair of state senators  John P. Blake (D., Lackawanna) and Pat Browne (R., Lehigh)  who can usually be counted on to buy into the exotic investments the pension fund staff and consultants recommend.

What is Project Newton? Even the no voters said they cant talk about it, due to confidentiality rules of PSERS, the acronym for the pension plan.

So I made calls around Harrisburg, and then Pittsburgh, and confirmed that Newton is another project of billionaire Thomas Tull, a co-owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers and a former big-time Democratic Party contributor.

In 2018, PSERS gave Tulls investment firm $100 million in a likewise contested  but public  board meeting. That money went to a Tull business known as Tulco, which pumps cash and software into firms like Figs, which that markets hospital scrubs.

Now, my sources tell me, the pension plan has pumped in a second $100 million, only more quietly, directly into Figs.

(For its part, PSERS remains mum. Spokesperson Evelyn Williams replied no comment when I asked whether Tull had won a new round of pension money. Her agency normally posts investment applications endorsed by staff and advisers.)

According to PSERS documents, Tull chose Pittsburgh as his new base in 2017, after the $3.8 billion sale of his Hollywood production company, maker of the Batman: Dark Knight, Godzilla, and Jurassic World franchises,

His Tulco investment house, PSERS trustees were assured in 2018, is a holding company focused on acquiring early-stage companies that are focused on utilizing technology to disrupt industries. (Who isnt, in venture capital these days?)

Tull, through his publicist, declined to talk about what exactly will be done with their next $100 million from PSERS. Update: Sources later confirmed it went to Figs, alongside other investors funds in a private stock offering.

Tull, a New York State native who describes himself as a Republican, has been a major Democratic giver, giving committees that backed Hillary Clinton and congressional Democrats over $2 million in 2016. Hes not on lists of major contributors to the 2020 races, so far.

SEC rules have discouraged money managers who contribute to politicians from collecting fees from state and local pension funds. But theres no ban on donors to would-be presidents or members of Congress collecting fees from state pension funds for their investment shops.

Why were PSERS executive director Glen Grell and James F. Del Gaudio, the senior portfolio manager who pitched the trustees behind closed doors, so hot to back a new Figs project in secrecy?

The review was in executive session due to the highly confidential investment information that was presented, PSERSs Williams said. This information is protected from release under the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law, the Retirement Code, and also prohibited from release because it contains sensitive investment information that PSERS received under strict contractual confidentiality requirements.

Maybe Figs feared that making its grand plans public would tip off competitors.

The pension plan has gone dark like this before. In 2017, it invoked similar secrecy when it spent millions buying and leveling blocks of central Harrisburg, around the corner from its own headquarters tower, without disclosing its plan.

Figs has other investors besides Tulco  theres UnitedHealthcare, the life insurance giant, among others  so its not clear why PSERS was offered an early edge.

How has Tulco worked out for the state? It ought to have been a profitable time to be in the fancy end of the medical clothing business.

But when I asked if PSERS had collected a pandemic dividend, spokesperson Williams referred me to year-old PSERS records. They show Figs earned just a 2.6% return in 2019, a fraction of stock market returns for that year.

I hope for taxpayers and teachers sake its done better since, but neither PSERS nor Tull will talk about that.

Responding to my query, state treasurer Torsella noted that the pension fund had recently dumped some poorly performing speculative investments. He called for a simpler, more transparent and safer approach to investment.

And he added: We should not be committing retiree and taxpayer funds to investments so secretive in nature that even the identity and details are unable to be shared with the public.
CAIRO (AP)  Libyan officials said Saturday that the leader of the U.N.-supported government would not support a deal with his primary rival in the country's civil war to lift a monthslong blockade on its vital oil trade.

According to an official at his office, Prime Minister Fayez Sarraj opposed the final deal struck with commander Khalifa Hifter, whose east-based forces led a failed yearlong siege to take the capital, Tripoli, from the U.N.-backed government.

The prime minister did not give his approval to the final version of the deal, the official told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Hifter said in a televised address Friday that his forces would allow the Libyan oil facilities to start operating again for the first time since January with conditions that ensure a fair distribution of revenue.

The deal to start pumping Libyan oil again appeared to have been spearheaded by the deputy prime minister, Ahmed Matiq, and emerged days after Sarraj said he planned to hand over power by the end of October to a new administration in Tripoli.

Matiq struck an agreement to distribute the countrys petrodollars more equitably between its warring sides, according to Ahmed al-Mosmari, the spokesman of Hifters self-styled Libyan Arab Armed Forces.

Mosmari said Saturday in televised comments that Hifter's army opened communication links with the Tripoli-based government, accusing Sarraj and militias backing him of opposing the resumption of oil production.

The deal between Matiq and Hifter's representatives did not address the scores of Russian mercenaries from Wagner, a Kremlin-linked private security company, stationed across oil fields that the National Oil Corporation says remain a barrier to the resumption of exports.

Matiq surrendered very loose, very generous concessions to the LAAF, especially in the realm of banking and finance, said Jalel Harchaoui, a Libya expert at The Netherlands Institute of International Relations.

Story continues

Harchaoui said the oil deal was already helping to revitalize" Hifter after months of military setbacks that followed Turkey's military intervention supporting forces loyal to the Tripoli government.

Matiq largely negotiated the deal behind closed doors with Hifters son, Khalid, and its final shape took many Libyan leaders by surprise. Matiq and Hifters son met earlier this month in Russia, a key supporter of Hifter.

Osama al-Juwaili, a military leader with Tripoli-allied forces, called the agreement a farce" in televised comments. He urged Sarraj to announce his total position to the deal.

Gomaa al-Gamaty, Sarrajs envoy to the Maghreb countries, tweeted that the deal is likely to fail since the prime minister, national oil company and the Central Bank in Tripoli were not part of it.

Mustafa Sanallah, the NOCs chairman, on Friday rejected what he called secret and disorganized negotiations aiming to undercut an internationally-brokered political process to reopen the oil fields.

He said the NOC would not lift force majeure, a legal maneuver that lets a company get out of its contracts because of extraordinary circumstances, until Russian mercenaries fighting alongside Hifter's forces leave oil fields and terminals.

The NOC however took a step back on Saturday, saying in a statement that it would end the force majeure at secured oil fields and terminals, while the measure would be in place at oil facilities where there are Russian mercenaries from the Kremlin-linked Wagner Group and other armed groups.

The statement did not say which oil facilities, but the company had said in June that Wagner mercenaries entered the vast Sharara oilfield, Libya's largest.

Libyas highly prized, light crude has long been a factor in its civil war, as rival militias and foreign powers jostle for control of Africas largest oil reserves.

Powerful eastern tribes loyal to Hifter first seized control of the oil fields in January, cutting Libyas 1.2 million barrels a day to a trickle and starving the country of badly needed cash, to protest what they said were the inequitable distribution of revenues.

Libya was plunged into chaos when a NATO-backed uprising in 2011 toppled and killed longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi. The country has since split between rival east- and west-based administrations, each backed by armed groups and foreign governments.

The blockade has deprived the Tripoli-based National Oil Corporation of nearly $10 billion in revenue and led to nationwide fuel shortages.
Politicians, legal figures and celebrities have been paying tribute to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the widely respected Supreme Court Judge who died on Friday at age 87.

Justice Bader Ginsburgs family confirmed she died at her home in Washington DC from complications from metastatic cancer of the pancreas.

The Associate Justice had served on the court since 1993, when she was appointed by Bill Clinton.

"Our nation has lost a justice of historic stature," Chief Justice John Roberts said.

We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her, a tireless and resolute champion of justice.

Former Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg said: Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a titan of justice. Her jurisprudence expanded the rights of all Americans, shaping our lives for the better.

And her example now shines within the history of our country, there to inspire generations.

New York state Attorney General Letitia James added: "Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a true American hero, and her legacy will live on in our nation forever.

We are all heartbroken. May her memory be a blessing.

California Governor Gavin Newsom said: We have lost a giant among us. A trailblazer. And a champion of equality and justice.

Our hearts ache tonight. Let us honour her memory by preserving the very ideals she fought so tirelessly for.

Rest in power.

Justice Ginsburg paved the way for so many women, including me. There will never be another like her. Thank you RBG, said Hillary Clinton.

Actress Mindy Kaling also paid tribute. Breaking that ground so hard that the rest of us felt the cracks for years and years after,' said Ms Kaling.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said: NYs heart breaks with the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

During her extraordinary career, this Brooklyn native broke barriers and the letters RBG took on a new meaning  as battle cry and inspiration.

Her legal mind and dedication to justice leave an indelible mark on America.

A shock. A sadness. A great loss, said veteran news anchor Dan Rather.

The passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg leaves a hole in a nation already reeling. She is an American hero, in every sense.

We can honour her by joining to carry forth her legacy of equality, empathy, and justice. May she Rest in Peace.

Mariah Carey said: Thank you for a lifetime of service. Thank you for changing history. We will never let it be undone. RIP RBG.

Jamie Lee Curtis, added: Thank you for your leadership and service to us all. We are in your debt and we will continue to fight with all our power. Rest in your great power."

Former presidents George W Bush and Jimmy Carter also paid their respects.

Laura and I join our fellow Americans in mourning the loss of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, said Mr Bush.

She dedicated many of her 87 remarkable years to the pursuit of justice and equality, and she inspired more than one generation of women and girls.

Justice Ginsburg loved our country and the law. Laura and I are fortunate to have known this smart and humorous trailblazer, and we send our condolences to the Ginsburg family.

And Mr Carter added: A powerful legal mind and a staunch advocate for gender equality, she has been a beacon of justice. I was proud to have appointed her to the US Court of Appeals in 1980.

We join countless Americans in mourning the loss of a truly great woman.

Donald Trumps niece, Mary L Trump added: Take a moment. Breathe. And then we fight for our country the way she always did for us. Or we will lose everything.

Senator Bernie Sanders said: The passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a tremendous loss to our country.

She was an extraordinary champion of justice and equal rights, and will be remembered as one of the great justices in modern American history.

Georgia politician and voting rights advocate Stacey Abrams tweeted: May the Lord see Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to her well-earned rest.

May we continue to fight for Justice here with her passion, brilliance and extraordinary mischief. Until good is done.

Wonder Woman actress Gal Gadot took to Instagram and posted: Rest in Peace RBG. Thank you for everything you brought to this world.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued her own tribute in which she said: Tonight, the flags are flying at half staff over the Capitol to honour the patriotism of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Every woman and girl, and therefore every family, in America has benefitted from her brilliance.

She added: Her passing is an incalculable loss for our democracy and for all who sacrifice and strive to build a better future for our children."

In her tribute Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called for supporters to fight for democracy.

We have lost a giant in the history of our nation with the passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, she said.

It is heartbreaking that in her final moments she was, as are many others, preoccupied with what would happen after her passing.

I want to make one thing clear: we can, and we must, fight.

Now is not the time for cynicism or hopelessness. There is and continues to be political possibility to preserve our democracy and move forward.

It will require each and every one of us, from the streets to the Senate, to grow in courage, strength, and strategy. But it is possible.

Our first priority is to do everything possible to secure electoral college victory in November. This is the fight of and for our lives. That has always been true, and it becomes more true each day.

Opponents of democracy need your resignation to succeed. Dont give it to them.

Actress Kerry Washington tweeted: Her rest is earned. It is our turn to fight.

Veep star Julia Louis-Dreyfus added: "If there is a God, may She bless and keep RBG.

And filmmaker Rob Reiner tweeted: Today couldnt be sadder. A brilliant Jurist, Ruth Bader Ginsburg is gone. We must fight not to allow an Impeached Criminal to take her seat.

Donald Trump praised the late Supreme Court Justice as an amazing woman who led an amazing life.

Mr Trump made the comments after a rally in northern Minnesota, during which he had been unaware of her death.

She just died? Wow, I didnt know that. She led an amazing life. What else can you say? She was an amazing woman, whether you agree or not. She was an amazing woman who led an amazing life. Im actually saddened to hear that, the president said as he boarded Air Force One.

Donald Trumps daughter, Tiffany Trump, tweeted her own tribute.

In 2017, I was honoured to attend a lecture by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at @GeorgetownLaw.

RBG was a pioneer for women and gender equality  graduating law school when there were only 9 female students and then becoming the 2nd woman Supreme Court Justice.

On behalf of the Department of Justice, I extend my deepest sympathies on the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, said Attorney General William Barr.

"Justice Ginsburg led one of the greatest lives in the history of American law.

Bill Clinton, who nominated Ms Ginsburg, said: We have lost one of the most extraordinary Justices ever to serve on the Supreme Court.

Ruth Bader Ginsburgs life and landmark opinions moved us closer to a more perfect union.

And her powerful dissents reminded us that we walk away from our Constitutions promise at our peril.
BED-STUY, BROOKLYN  Eric Bullen has witnessed his fair share as a businessman over the past 44 years. Yet, no matter what has come about during that time, including this year's coronavirus pandemic that has forced so many small business owners to either close or contemplate their future, Bullen has carried on.

Bullen, the owner of Als Mens Shop at 1108 Fulton St. in Bed-Stuy, will celebrate his 45th anniversary next year. Bullen purchased the shop in 1976 after the previous owner decided to leave due to the drug epidemic that took over the neighborhood, local officials said. In the years since, Bullen and his shop have become a Bed-Stuy mainstay with customers who have depended on the stores impeccable fashion sense through the 1980s and 1990s, hip hop boom and everything in between.

On Saturday, Als will host a virtual fashion show at 1:30 p.m. as part of the ongoing celebration of local neighborhood businesses that are recognized at Brooklyn's Back Lives Matter mural. The fashion show which will pay homage to Bullens time running the shop as well as the heritage the mens store has established in the nearly 60 years it has been operating in the neighborhood.

Bullen insists there is no secret to his longevity in the neighborhood and acknowledges there were plenty of chances to leave. Yet, despite the break-ins, gentrification and and other negatives that could have led him to pack up over the years, Bullen points to the positives  including the collection of both loyal customers and first-time visitors  that have encouraged him to stay put.

Al's Men's Shop has been a Bed-Stuy business tradition for the past 60 years. (Eric Bullen photo)





(There is) the regular customer who needs that cap for the backyard barbecue the next day, the clergyman who needed that fedora to match his suit for church on Sunday or that new customer that never owned a hat and chose this store to purchase one, Bullen told Patch on Friday. They are just a few reasons of the reasons that make me come to work every day loving what I do.

Story continues

The hat shop was one Bullens first means of income after he moved to New York after he moved to Brooklyn from his native Grenada and came to New York after he served where on the defense force in Trinidad. The business endeavor became a popular spot soon after he purchased it and Bullen has managed to keep up with various headwear fashion trends over the years.

From the hats worn by celebrity musicians like LL Cool J and Run DMC to those that businessmen and others have worn as styles in hats have changed, Al's has remained at the forefront of delivering everything Bullen's customers could ask for.

Eric Bullen hopes to pass his shop onto daughter, Erica, who has carried on the family tradition of providing fashion perspective to customers. (Eric Bullen photo)





Among those have survived the tests of time include the Kangol 504s, Bermuda casuals and the Selentino Beavers that have been passed on from generation to generation. While certain styles have remained popular over time, Bullen said younger customers often come into his shop needing a timeless classic that will be worn to special events honoring the past. Providing customers, regardless of age, with hats that will complete the look regardless of the occasion brings Bullen joy and is what makes his shop such a staple in the Bed-Stuy community, he said.



A hat can describe you as a person, Bullen said. It shows whether you are casual, sophisticated, or conservative. When a customer walks in, you can basically tell what they are seeking sometimes just by their outfits. Usually once they choose that first hat, you can tell who they are. Yet, you will also get customers that will express their need for a change and seeks your assistance in providing a new look for them in hopes that they are accepting of it.

Bullen hopes to eventually pass the business onto his daughter, Erica, who he said shares her fathers passion for helping customers and who can provide a different fashion perspective to customers than that of her father. But she does so hoping to to carry on the tradition both Bullen has established while keeping the shop a neighborhood mainstay as new generations of shoppers pass through the doors.

While neighborhood Saturdays celebration isnt the reason why Bullen got into business so many years ago, he appreciates the support he has received during his time in Bed-Stuy  a community that has helped him endure everything, both good and bad, that the past 44 years have produced.

I never thought of giving up despite the many changes within the community over the years, Bullen said. I continued to come to work, at times seven days a week, because It gave me great joy providing the people in this community a sense of style. When a customer comes in the store and I am able to give him or her a hat or cap that puts a smile on their face, I have done my job.

This article originally appeared on the Bed-Stuy Patch
Source: Xinhua| 2020-09-19 05:18:13|Editor: huaxia

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CARACAS, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro informed the United Nations (UN) on Friday that his country would meet the goals of the 2030 Agenda despite U.S. aggressions.

"There will be no imperial aggression, blockade, sanction that will stop Venezuela's path towards social justice, towards sustainable development, and towards the happiness of all," Maduro said at a virtual meeting of the UN Sustainable Development Goals Moment (SDG Moment).

The president denounced the U.S. government for having "unsuccessfully tried to erode, through criminal, unilateral, coercive measures, our base of social security and to try to collapse the model of inclusion and justice that we have built."

He explained that the governments formed after the country's Bolivarian Revolution created a variety of social programs to improve the lives of Venezuelans, including Local Supply and Production Committees (CLAPs), which work to guarantee food security for more than 6 million families, and the Venezuela Housing Mission, which has built more than 3 million homes for citizens in recent years.

As to the fight against the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the president said that "thanks to the investments made in the last 20 years, we have managed to attend to 99 percent of the infected population."

Maduro also said that care for patients with COVID-19 is free of charge thanks to the public health system. Enditem
Agartala, Sep 19 : Opposition CPI-M and Congress on Saturday strongly criticised the BJP government in Tripura for its "total failure in Covid-19 management putting the state in a worst situation in the northeastern region".

The Congress has called for a 12-hour strike in Tripura on Monday to protest the governmentaAs negligence to check the deaths due to the coronavirus and spread of the infectious disease.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, however, rejected the opposition's accusation and blamed them for not following the government's Covid norms.

Communist Party of India-Marxist Tripura state secretary Gautam Das said that Tripura is the only state in India where there is no full-fledged health minister and the Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb has been holding as many as 28 departments, including Health and Family Welfare Department.

"Frustrated over the government's mismanagement, Additional Chief Secretary in-charge of Health and Family Welfare Department Sanjay Kumar Rakesh, Health Director Radha Debbarma and many other senior officials have either applied for voluntary retirement or have already left their jobs. Despite huge shortages of doctors and health staff, the BJP government did not recruit any health workers including nurses during the past two-and-a-half years," Das told the media.

Das, who is also the member of the CPI-M central committee, said that the state government did not even share the correct and updated Covid information with the High Court, which has recently, took a suo-moto case and raised 13 points to the government.

"After thousands of people returned to Tripura from different parts of the country in May and June, Tripura government tested their sample 5 : 1 ratio - one sample tested out of five returnees -- causing huge spread of the dreaded virus. With 1.12 per cent fatality, Tripura is in the worst position among the 8 northeastern states in Covid-19 death ratio while its recovery rate of 67.50 per cent also very low," the Left leader said.

Former Tripura state Congress chief and ex-minister Birajit Sinha alleged that the BJP government had not only totally failed in Covid management but the Chief Minister and the ruling party leaders were arrogant.

Congress leader Tapas Dey said that Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb himself attended religious, personal, governmental and party programmes violating the social distancing norms and other government guidelines.

BJP spokesman Nabendu Bhattacharjee said that the people rejected Left parties in Tripura in 2018 assembly polls and both the CPI-M and the Congress made false charges. "After the BJP government came to power, many new departments were set up in Tripura hospitals and many specialists were recruited on numerous diseases. When lakhs of people are dying due to Covid-19 in China and other developed countries, these two parties remain silent," he told the media.

Bhattacharjee said putting their lives at risk, BJP's Lok Sabha member Pratima Bhowmik and many of the party functionaries were providing services to needy people and many BJP workers had died after owing to coronavirus.
San Francisco State University (SFSU) has a history of overt leftism and anti-Semitism going back at least to the 1970s, so perhaps it's merely business as usual that the campus is hosting an online event featuring Leila Khaled. Still, even for S.F. State, Khaled is extreme. She is a violently anti-Semitic, anti-Israel member of the hard left Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a group more radical than the PLO. In 1969, she was part of a team that hijacked a TWA flight with 80 people on board, and in 1970, she attempted to hijack another flight while armed with two hand grenades.

Naturally, Khaled is feted on the left. Although she is still affiliated with the PFLP, which the U.S. and the European Union classify as a terrorist organization, in 2017, she spoke to the European Parliament. While there, she said that the Israelis are worse than the Nazis because they haven't been punished:

"You can't compare the actions of the Nazis to the actions of the Zionists in Gaza," she claimed, later adding, "The Nazis were judged in Nuremberg but not a single one of the Zionists has yet been brought to justice." SFSU, although a taxpayer-funded institution, is entirely on board with inviting a member of an anti-Semitic terrorist organization to give a speech: San Francisco State University's Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas Studies (AMED) is scheduled to host later this month a virtual conversation with a known Palestinian terrorist. [snip] The Sept. 23 event, "Whose Narratives? Gender, Justice, & Resistance: A conversation with Leila Khaled," will take place via Zoom. It will be hosted by SFSU professors Rabab Abdulhadi and Tomomi Kinukawa, the former of whom has a history of anti-Israel activism. [snip] "It's incredibly disturbing that two SFSU professors see fit to host a member of a U.S.-designated terror organization in a class devoted to 'teaching Palestine' and studying 'justice,' " Academic Engagement Network executive director Miriam Elman told JNS. "By planning to feature PFLP member Leila Khaled in their 'open classrooms,' Professors Abdulhadi and Kinukawa are showing incredibly poor judgment and fostering a toxic climate for their Jewish and Zionist students."

This isn't SFSU's first anti-Semitic rodeo. It boasts some famous and some infamous graduates, including Willie Brown, Kamala Harris's mentor, and Mohammed Javad Zarif, Iran's minister of foreign affairs. Zarif's attendance explains a lot about SFSU's mindset. During the Obama administration, Palestinian groups almost succeeded in having expelled Tatiana Menaker, a Russian immigrant who verbally challenged their violent anti-Semitic rhetoric.

Eventually, even the university administration, which supported the Palestinian efforts against her, was forced to concede that Menaker had done nothing wrong  she was just being persecuted for exposing the dominant anti-Jewish politics at SFSU. Still, by 2015, SFSU was ranked as one of the most anti-Semitic colleges in America.

In 2017, the anti-Semitism on the campus was so extreme that it condoned barring Hillel, a nationwide Jewish campus organization, from on-campus events. Eventually, seven people sued the California State University (CSU) system over this blatant anti-Semitism, and, in 2019, CSU and SFSU settled, with both explicitly promising to safeguard Jewish students and to allow them to voice pro-Israel sentiments.

Despite this, Lynn Mahoney, SFSU's president, wrote an opinion piece in The Jewish News of Northern California, claiming that academic freedom justified giving a platform to an outsider (that is, not even a professor) who is an unrepentant member of a terrorist organization. It would be interesting to see whether Mahoney advances those same principles should Ann Coulter or Ben Shapiro want to speak at SFSU. As best as I can tell, no prominent conservative speakers have ever even tried to appear at SFSU, at least in the last two to three decades.

Why is this story newsworthy? Because it tells you why Donald Trump's 1776 Commission matters. San Francisco State University, which invites a genocidal, anti-Semitic terrorist to be a speaker and thinks doing so is okay, is what you get when you passively allow leftists to control American education. They make a mockery of every American value while using those same values to defend their conduct  all at the taxpayers' expense.

Image: In 2016, SFSU students protest to defend the Ethnic Studies Program that has now invited Leila Khaled to speak. Photo by M. Minton, CC BY 2.0.
By Jake Johnson, staff writer at Common Dreams. Originally published at Common Dreams

Trump administration officials at the Department of Health and Human Services reportedly bypassed career government scientists and authored the significantly relaxed coronavirus testing guidelines that experts criticized as medically unsound and dangerous when they were first published on the CDC website last month.

The New York Times reported late Thursday that the revised guidancewhich says people who have been exposed to coronavirus dont necessarily need to get tested if they are asymptomaticwere posted online despite serious objections from CDC scientists. (Update: On Friday, the CDC reversed the testing guidance, saying in a new document that those who have been exposed to coronavirus need a test whether or not they have symptoms.)

The Department of Health and Human Services did the rewriting and then dropped it into the CDCs public website, flouting the agencys strict scientific review process, according to the Times, which cited anonymous officials familiar with the matter.

One unnamed federal official told the Times that the revisions came from the top down, from the HHS and the White House Coronavirus Task Force headed by Vice President Mike Pence.

That policy does not reflect what many people at the CDC feel should be the policy, the official said.

While recent reporting indicated that the significant alterations to CDC testing recommendations came at the behest of the White House, the extent to which Trump administration officials wrote the new guidelines themselves was not previously known. According to the Times, a new version of the testing guidance slated for publication on Friday has also not been cleared by the CDCs usual internal review for scientific documents and is being revised by officials at Health and Human Services.

An anonymous senior CDC scientist told the Times that the testing document published last month contains elementary errorssuch as referring to testing for Covid-19, as opposed to testing for the virus that causes itand recommendations inconsistent with the CDCs stance that mark it to anyone in the know as not having been written by agency scientists.

BLOODY bloody hellCDC Didnt Write Testing Guidance Published on Its Website. Bad guideline had said people without #Covid19 symptoms didnt need to get tested for the virus (DANGEROUS!)came from HHS officials & skipped CDCs scientific review process. https://t.co/WQBtEUQ16B  Eric RBG Forever Feigl-Ding (@DrEricDing) September 17, 2020

Adm. Brett Giroir, an assistant secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services, told the Times that he coordinated editing of the CDC guidelines and received input from the scientific and medical members of the task force. The draft of the latest guidance went through around 20 versions, Giroir said.

Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, an epidemiologist and former Michigan gubernatorial candidate, called the new revelations about HHS officials role in crafting the guidance astounding.

Trumps hacks just sidestepped the CDC entirely and shamelessly wrote their own politically-motivated testing guidelines and published them under the agencys imprimatur, wrote El-Sayed.

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said hes not at all surprised that the guidelines were not authored by CDC experts.

Of course this recommendation didnt come from doctors at the CDC, tweeted Murphy. No doctor in their right mind would tell someone who had been in close contact with someone with Covid to not get tested. The CDC is becoming an arm of the presidents reelection campaign.

Of course this recommendation didnt come from doctors at the CDC. No doctor in their right mind would tell someone who had been in close contact with someone w COVID to NOT get tested. The CDC is becoming an arm of the Presidents re-election campaign. https://t.co/N0cWayCPJ0  Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) September 18, 2020

The new details surrounding Trump officials interference with the CDCs work comes as HHS Secretary Alex Azar is facing calls to resign for allowing the political motivations of President Donald Trump to overtake the agencys public health imperatives amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

In June, as Common Dreams reported, Trump openly declared during a campaign rally in Oklahoma that he instructed officials to slow the testing down, falsely blaming an increase in coronavirus tests for the surge in positive cases across the U.S. at the time.

Internal administration emails obtained by Politico last Friday showed that HHS communications chief Michael Caputowho has since taken a 60-day medical leave of absence amid controversy over his unhinged attack on CDC scientistsand one of his top advisers altered weekly CDC reports to bring them into closer alignment with Trumps false optimism about the virus.

This is just beyond the pale, Yale epidemiologist Gregg Gonsalves tweeted in response to Politicos reporting. Its sick and disgusting.
Meghan Markle has paid tribute to late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, calling her 'a Justice of courage'.

'With an incomparable and indelible legacy, Ruth Bader Ginsburg will forever be known as a woman of brilliance, a Justice of courage, and a human of deep conviction,' Markle said in a statement to the media.

'She has been a true inspiration to me since I was a girl. Honor her, remember her, act for her,' she continued.

Markle, 39, is currently living in Los Angeles with Prince Harry and their son Archie, after the couple stepped down as senior royals in March and moved to North America.

Meghan Markle (seen in 2018) has paid tribute to late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, calling her 'a Justice of courage'

'With an incomparable and indelible legacy, Ruth Bader Ginsburg will forever be known as a woman of brilliance, a Justice of courage, and a human of deep conviction,' Markle said

Ginsburg, the second female justice ever appointed to the Supreme Court, is widely regarded as a feminist icon.

Prior to her appointment to the high court, Ginsburg argued six gender equality cases before the court.

Markle was just one of the many voices raised up to pay tribute to the late justice.

Democratic Party vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris and her husband, Douglas Emhoff, joined crowds outside the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on Saturday morning.

Ginsburg was 'a titan - a relentless defender of justice and a legal mind for the ages,' Harris wrote in a tweet with a photo of the visit.

Others on the Supreme Court steps clutched candles, flowers, signs, and young children. Some appeared in running and biking clothes, on a detour from their morning exercising.

Ginsburg, 87, died on Friday night after a battle with pancreatic cancer, giving President Donald Trump a chance to expand the U.S. top court's conservative majority at a time of deep divisions in America, as a presidential election looms.

Mourners heralded Ginsburg's groundbreaking legal career and expressed dark worries about the future of the country.

'I am heartbroken,' actor Jennifer Lopez wrote on Instagram. 'She was a true champion of gender equality and was a strong woman for me and all the little girls of the world to look up to.'
Dublin was already long past the point of no return seven days ago as Covid-19 gripped the city and county.

The warning in a letter to Government from acting chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn was of "grave concern" about the spiralling spread of the virus.

If no action was taken, there would be 300 cases a day in the capital at the end of this month.

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Now, a week later, more than 900 additional Dubliners have since tested positive for the virus and a semi-lockdown is being enforced for three weeks.

Has valuable time been lost? And why was there such faltering from the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet), which has the insider's access to what is really going with the virus?

Dublin's cases of the virus rose 10-fold in the last two months in a pattern that has been stealthy - slow and moderate with multiple small clusters. This is unlike Kildare where meat factory outbreaks were described as "explosive".

Questions must be asked of Nphet. Why did it not pick up the potential for Dublin to become such a disease "reservoir" sooner. And if it had, would the new measures have had to be so severe?

There is a strong possibility Dublin has become a bigger Covid-19 threat, with newly ordered severe penalties for business and livelihoods because it has been left to simmer for many weeks without remedial measures.

Direct appeals to people to reduce their contacts were made but were unheeded.

The reasons for the reluctance are obvious given the size of Dublin's economic heartbeat.

It took until Tuesday for the Government, at the launch of its Resilience and Recovery 2020-2021: Plan for Living with Covid-19, setting out various levels of response to rising rates of the virus, to announce the additional restrictions for Dublin which Nphet recommended last Friday.

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The top-up measures for Dublin - which included being asked not to travel outside the county for non-essential journeys and not having more than one more household to your home - were mired in confusion.

Were they guidelines or instructions? Taoiseach Micheal Martin clarified that anyone who booked a holiday outside Dublin should cancel it.

The Government waited until Tuesday to announce the Dublin restrictions to coincide with the new roadmap but the gravity of the Dublin crisis became lost in a wave of information and complexity about what the different levels meant.

Dublin probably should have been in a state of alert but for many of its citizens there was still a lack of urgency.

By Thursday, Prof Philip Nolan - who tracks the pattern of the virus for Nphet - said he was more worried than at any time "since late April" and said the incidence in the capital had increased between four- and five-fold in recent weeks. Outside Dublin, the rise has been three-fold, which is setting off quieter alarm bells.

Although the main flashpoint has been Dublin the virus is gaining ground in other counties.

Dr Glynn said earlier this week: "Along with Dublin, we have seen particularly concerning trends in Louth, Waterford and Donegal."

They remain with Level 2 restrictions for now but given the tough prescription for the capital handed down yesterday, that must have sent a shudder through businesses in those counties, particularly the hospitality industry.

The dilemma going forward is how soon should the constraints on a particular county be imposed? "Wet" pubs are reopening outside Dublin from Monday and the hope now is that it should not be shortlived.

Hindsight is great of course but it is likely there will be less "wait and see" in the months ahead.

This is due to the potential for escalation given the added dangers and risks that winter will bring with flu and more illnesses.

Looking back, the decision to impose very painful restrictions on Kildare, Offaly and Laois following the factory outbreaks relatively early meant the situation was controlled faster and ultimately that lives were saved. While much of the spread of the virus in Dublin was found to be in households, it took until yesterday for the public to be given a clearer picture of the role of pubs and restaurants and why they now face such indoor dining curbs.

It is one of the major faults of Nphet that it deals too much in figures and percentages.

There is too little grasp among the public about the real-life scenarios where people are catching the virus.

Prof Nolan yesterday took to Twitter to illustrate how someone can go to a restaurant or pub and bring home the virus with them.

"If I went out five days ago and caught the virus in a restaurant, it will have multiplied silently inside me for three days. Then I will have started shedding the virus and potentially infecting others for two days.

"Today I become symptomatic, self-isolate and get a test. Public health ask me about my contacts for the 48 hours before I developed symptoms.

"They don't need to know where I got the virus. It happened five days ago.

"They want to know where the virus is going, who I might have infected and prevent onward transmission.

"My contacts are tested and unfortunately two of my family are infected.

"It is now a household break and I am a case of community transmission, even though I got it in a restaurant and brought it home."

Community transmission accounts for around one-third of the cases in Dublin. The person who tests positive has no idea where they caught it.

If transmission was not stopped in bars, restaurants, gyms and gatherings in homes between different households, it would spiral out of control in Dublin, he said.

These are also ominous words for other counties that are experiencing unexplained cases of the disease.

What was also worrying were his comments about the constraints on HSE public health teams - the crack squads to step in when there is a confirmed case or outbreak.

They do not have the time or resources to do an investigation in the case of a household outbreak to track back the possible source of the virus.

This means that large pieces in a jigsaw of information are missing and must have implications for the overall control of the virus.

There are lessons for everyone from the last week and ultimately they come back to each individual, business owner, pub manager, restaurant boss and employer.

Try to stretch the rules, fail to physically distance, neglect to wash hands or wear a mask and not get a test for possible Covid-19 symptoms - then the virus will win.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on Friday, creating a vacancy on the Supreme Court that will require the president to nominate a replacement who will be confirmed for the role by the Senate. If Ginsburgs seat is filled by a right-wing judge who resembles recently appointed justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, there will be six conservatives on the nine-person Court, five of whom essentially function as Republican partisans. (Occasionally moderate establishment-upholder John Roberts would be the exception.)

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In recent decades, Republican voters have been more motivated by the goal of controlling judicial appointments than Democrats have been. White evangelicals and other pro-life voters, in particular, have long held the goal of getting enough conservatives on the Supreme Court to overturn the Roe v. Wade decision.

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Does this mean that the opening on the court will create a surge in support for Donald Trumps reelection, either so he can appoint someone to fill the vacancy in his second term or, if Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is able to smash through a Trump nominee before November, out of gratitude for McConnells role in creating an two-thirds majority that can be expected to invalidate every significant piece of progressive legislation for the next 20 years or so?

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With the caveat that American voters elected Donald Trump as president and can therefore not be rationally analyzed with total confidence, the answer is: probably not.

First: Will this motivate Republicans, in general, to vote for Trump in greater numbers than they would have otherwise? It seems unlikely, because, according to polls, they were already fully motivated. Trumps approval with Republicans has stayed extremely stable in the high 80s for the duration of his term. He is as popular now within his party as Obama was with Democrats in early 2009, and he is about as popular now within his party as he was when Gorsuch and Kavanaugh were confirmed. A late-August CNN survey found that only 4 percent of Republicans said they planned to vote for Joe Biden, a number that was inside the polls margin of error. More Republicans now say it really matters who wins the presidency than have said the same for any other election this century; the 2020 race was already expected to create record turnout for a presidential year in the same way 2018 saw record turnoutamong both Democrats and Republicansin a midterm year. (And in the 2018 House midterms, which took place one month after Kavanaugh was confirmed, Democratic candidates got 8.6 million more votes than Republican candidates.)

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In sum, for a Supreme Court vacancy to increase Republican turnout and support for Trump, it will have to push GOP voter interest past already-unprecedented levels and do so to an extent greater than this will motivate Democrats via the sudden possibility of, for example, seeing Roe overturned. To believe that Trump will add net votes because of the opening requires believing that it is an issue that will make him more popular in his party than he was in 2016 or 2018which were also election years in which control of the Supreme Court was a major topic of discussion. (Recall that in 2016, because of the Republican blockade of Merrick Garland, voters knew that whoever won the election would get to nominate a justice immediately.)

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What about pro-life evangelicals? Are there abortion-focused voters, including independents, who have been soft on Trump recently but might now be induced to swing back to him? The evidence there is mixed. Two recent polls found Biden winning 11 and 12 percent more of the white evangelical vote than Hillary Clinton did; a July Pew survey, however, found the same number of white evangelicals saying they would vote for Trump this year as had voted for him , according to exit polls, in 2016.

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Assuming the two recent polls are right and the one from July is wrong, and that there is in fact a slice of swing white evangelicals who have defected from Trump, the idea that they might suddenly swing back still runs up against the realities of this elections extremely stable polling. Trumps overall aggregate approval rating is currently at 43 percent, within a point of what it was when Kavanaugh was confirmed. Since May, hes never trailed Joe Biden by fewer than 6 points in FiveThirtyEights polling aggregate. There are fewer undecided voters or voters who plan to vote third-party than there were at this stage in 2016, when those groups eventually broke toward Trump. (Biden is at 49 percent support on Saturday in RealClearPolitics average; Clintons support on Sept. 19, 2016, though she was leading the race, was only 45 percent.) And according to recent New York Times Upshot polling, undecided voters in three swing statestwo of which, Arizona and North Carolina, are evangelical-heavytrust Biden more than Trump to appoint Supreme Court justices.

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Presidential-politics news has saturated the country to an unprecedented degree for the past four years, and almost everyone has made up their mind regarding what they think about the incumbent. On issue after issue, no position that Trump has taken has been more popular than he is; if he says hes for something, a slight majority of Americans say theyre against it. For this pattern to suddenly be upended by a new iteration of a conflict that was already litigated extensively in 2018 via the Kavanaugh hearing  well, itd be weird! Bookmark this prediction: When Trump announces his nominee to replace Ginsburg, the polls that come out a few days later will show that, lets say, 42 percent of Americans believe that person should be confirmed and 51 percent believe they should not be.

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Finally, theres the fact of what a six-conservative Supreme Court would likely do: overturn Roe and invalidate the Affordable Care Act. Both those possibilities are going to be major parts of upcoming news cycles, and both decisions would be very unpopular, including among independent voters. Joe Biden would love to spend the last six weeks before the election talking to the median resident of Pennsylvania about his support for a tangibly threatened ACA. Its an empirical rule of modern American politics: Republicans do worse when attention is drawn to the practical consequences of their policy agenda.

Donald Trumps party has gained a semipermanent structural edge in the U.S. because it realized faster than its opponents did that pure partisanship in the legislative and judicial branches is extremely effective, even if voters as a whole dont like it. Thats why Mitch McConnell would fill Ginsburgs seat this afternoon if he could. But voters as a whole almost certainly wont like whats about to happen, and the presidential election is where, God and the U.S. Postal Service willing, they will have their say.
Small toy figures are seen in front of a Tiktok logo in this illustration taken, Sept. 9, 2020. Reuters





China says it resolutely opposes the United States' ban on the Chinese-owned mobile apps Tiktok and WeChat and has vowed to take countermeasures.



America's actions had severely disturbed the companies' normal operations, hurt the confidence of global investors in US markets and undermined the global market order, the commerce ministry said in a statement issued on Saturday.



"China urges the US to abandon the hegemonic behaviour, to immediately stop the mistaken measures to maintain fair and transparent international rules and order," it said.



"If the US insists on going its own way, the Chinese side will take necessary measures to firmly safeguard the legitimate rights of Chinese companies."



The US commerce department on Friday announced the ban  effective from Sunday  on downloads of TikTok and WeChat from American app stores, citing national security concerns.






When Asura Khatun woke up and saw policemen entering her house to arrest her husband in the early hours of Saturday, it was a bolt from the blue for her.

I asked them what my husband Al Mamun Kamal had done. They didnt reply and instead told me to ask my husband what he had done. I asked my husband. Even he didnt reply. He just told me not to worry and that if he was innocent, he would return soon. Else he would be punished, Bibi said.

Kamal was picked up from his house at Jalangi in West Bengals Murshidabad district by the National Investigative Agency (NIA). He was one of the six men accused of being radicalised by a Pakistan-based al Qaeda module to carry out terror attacks in India.

I still dont know why he was picked up. He was earlier in Kerala for work. He returned home around two years back and since then has been working as a wage labourer here. I have a seven-month-old daughter, Bibi said.

The NIA also arrested three more accused from Keralas Ernakulam. Murshidabad is one the three Muslim-dominated districts in West Bengal and is located along the Indo-Bangla international border, one of the most porous international borders in India.

Even the family members of 22-year-old Najmus Shakib are still in the dark as to why he was nabbed by sleuths of the central agency.

First they questioned my elder son. My younger son (Najmus Shakib) was standing next to him. He had a beard. They asked him why he has kept beard. Then they took him upstairs and searched the room. They seized a few documents, arrested him and took him away. We still dont know why he was arrested. He was not earning anything. He only used to study and went to the mosque regularly, Toumana Bibi, the accuseds mother and a resident of Domkal said.

This is, however, not the first time that people with links to terrorist organizations have been picked up from the district. Earlier this year, a top Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) operative, allegedly involved in the January 2018 Bodh Gaya blast case, was arrested from a hideout in Murshidabad. Earlier in February 2018, another JMB operative was arrested from the district.

I dont know what he did. Police didnt tell us anything. They (cops) just came around 2 am and arrested him. He was a graduate and worked as an electrician. He was not into any criminal activities, said Sariful Islam, father of Leu Yean Ahmed, 34, a resident of Domkal area in Murshidabad.

According to data from the 2011 census, Bengal ranks fourth among the states from where people migrate. Between 2001 and 2011, 5.8 lakh people had migrated from Bengal. The number is now over 11 lakh, according to the state government. Murshidabad accounts for the most migration among all districts.

All six arrested men  Abu Sufiyan, Mainul Mondal, Atitur Rehman along with Shakib, Kamal and Ahmed - were produced in a special NIA court in Kolkata on Saturday.
Staff and service users of Inspire New Directions in Grange celebrating the centres third birthday. Pics: Donal Hackett

The Inspire New Directions centre in North Sligo has continued to grow since the doors were first opened on September 4th 2017.

The facility, located in Grange, initially supported five school leavers from County Sligo. That number has since doubled, its staff now comprising nine support workers, a team leader and an area manager. Open five days a week, New Directions is funded by the HSE, which, alongside the service users' families, also serves as a valued partner.

Inspire Wellbeing is a charity based in Belfast, which works across the island of Ireland. As well as the Grange scheme, Inspire operates a mix of supported housing and day services in Carrick -on-Shannon and Counties Cavan, Donegal, Louth and Kildare.

Since its inception, Inspire has responded to emerging needs, continually developing what were once known as Beacon support services in towns throughout Northern Ireland. Its day opportunities and recovery-focused services are currently provided to over 1,000 people each year.

While Inspire continues to deliver services that support those with experience of mental ill health, research underlines the importance of promoting positive wellbeing

Through listening attentively to the needs of service users, Inspire has also built a range of community-based programmes for people aged 60 and over years and over, whether they are leaving hospital or have become socially isolated.

In 2000, Inspire broadened its scope to include support for the whole population, through mental health promotion and research. Carecall (as it was previously known), with its focus on counselling and other therapeutic interventions, now offers timely and confidential assistance to well over 1,000,000 employee 'lives'.

Inspire New Directions has come a long way in the last three years. Service users enjoy a strong rapport with all staff, who promote a person-centred approach. Preferences and interests are incorporated into schedules for each user, a process that enables the achievement of many individual goals.

Major milestones include: attending a hair salon for the first time in years; baking; preparing meals; designing and following hygiene programmes; going bowling or to the cinema; improving health and wellbeing by incorporating exercise programmes and nutritional plans; and surfing and kayaking. These are just some of the activities helping service users integrate with the wider community.

From local playgrounds and green spaces to the stunning beaches at Streedagh and Mullaghmore, New Directions is lucky to have made its home in Sligo. It avails of a welcoming, encouraging community spirit on a daily basis.

The scheme remained open throughout the recent COVID-19 lockdown, accessible for seven days a week, instead of the normal five, and classified as an emergency out-of-home support for specific individuals during an especially trying time. Service users started their transition back to the centre on 17th August, in line with HSE guidelines.

They are currently attending on three days out of the week, making full use of all available assistance while also maintaining appropriate social distancing.

New Directions is made up of an amazing team: Gerard, Jonathan, Justin, Theresa, Pawel, John, Vanessa, David, Leanne, Brendan, Jackie and Sarah-Louise. They all feel as though they are more than a collection of colleagues; they feel more like family who look out for each other every day.

As a result of their compassion, professionalism and experience, each has helped service users to achieve goals that many of them never considered possible.
A glance at the Massachusetts data on higher education COVID-19 testing suggests close to 500 people have confirmed coronavirus cases at colleges and universities, but public health experts and transparency advocates say the report is far too incomplete to serve the public.

The report released this week does not specify whether students, staff or faculty members tested positive. Nor does it break down the testing volumes or results by college, meaning the public wont know by looking at the data whether an increase in daily positive tests after Labor Day weekend could be attributed to the over 100 cases reported at Boston College, for example, or another outbreak somewhere else that has yet to be reported.

I thought the report was unsatisfying, to tell you the truth  unnecessarily complicated, unnecessarily incomplete, said Rep. Mindy Domb, an Amherst Democrat who follows the state dashboard closely.

While Domb is often asked by constituents what the states data means, neither she nor the average resident can tell by looking at the aggregate higher education data whether any of the cases involve students or staff at UMass Amherst, which is part of her district. They would need to look on UMass' separate report to find those details, even though the information is reported to the state.

The Department of Public Health declined to officially comment on why a college-by-college breakdown wasnt in the report or whether one would become available in the future. A spokesperson said DPH does not have a publicly available breakdown of the data by college but did not elaborate on why its not public.

Several institutions have developed regular testing programs for their students and staff, making them available on their own websites, the spokesperson said.

Mary Connaughton, director of government transparency at the Pioneer Institute, said the public would benefit from having as much data broken down at the local level.

It would certainly be in the publics best interests for parents, local officials and residents of college towns to be clued in on the number of COVID cases on local college campuses," Connaughton said. "Why keep the public in the dark if the state has access to that information and can readily display it?

The data also fails to capture COVID-19 testing and results across all colleges and universities. The weekly report published Wednesday does not specify how many colleges or universities had data represented, but a DPH spokesperson said the numbers came from 59 institutions, roughly half of the ones operating statewide.

Maddie Ribble, director of public policy & campaign strategy at the Massachusetts Public Health Association, said he wasnt as familiar with the higher education numbers as he is with other COVID-19 data published by the state, such as testing volumes, positive test rates and breakdowns by occupation and language, to the extent that the data exists.

More information is better for the public in the middle of this outbreak, Ribble said. Except in those cases where its important to protect personal privacy, we would air on the side of giving the public more information, as well as giving our local leaders more information.

The states COVID-19 dashboard has grown exponentially large since the start of the pandemic. In early April, Massachusetts was not reporting positive cases or deaths by municipality. Nor did the state report the average daily number of cases per capita (number of cases per 100,000 people) or which communities were at highest risk, as the state does now.

According to Wednesdays report, the 59 colleges reporting COVID-19 data collectively reported 499 confirmed cases since Aug. 15 with 168 positive cases being reported in the past week alone. Most of those cases, about 147, were reported last week after Labor Day weekend.

Thats a positive test rate thats obviously well below the statewide averages, and it shows colleges and universities and students are doing their part to make sure that they open safely, Gov. Charlie Baker said this week during a news briefing at a CVS Pharmacy in Bostons Roslindale neighborhood.

The positive test rate, however, is based on data from roughly half of all colleges within the state.

Baker noted close to 60 higher education institutions have participated so far. He said the state would add other schools on a rolling basis if and when they begin their own testing protocols.

When Massachusetts colleges and universities geared up to bring students back on campus, most had to scramble to build their own testing sites and databases to collect, sort and publish COVID-19 numbers.

These institutions have largely made the systems work, though each one has a different way of sharing and presenting the data.

8/19/2020 - Amherst - UMass Amherst sets up a COVID-19 testing site at the universitys Mullins Center for the fall semester. (Hoang 'Leon' Nguyen / The Republican)

UMass Amherst and Assumption University in Worcester and Babson College, which has campuses in Wellesley, Boston and Miami, report how many tests theyve performed and how many COVID-19 cases they have among students, as well as among faculty and staff.

Boston Universitys COVID-19 dashboard shows the number of tests performed daily on students, faculty and staff, as well as the results. It also shows the average turnaround time for test results.

Monserrat College of Art in Beverly publishes the number of tests performed, as well as how many people tested positive, on a COVID-19 dashboard. The dashboard does not appear to include, or at least does not break down, numbers on faculty or staff.

Boston College, where more than 100 student have tested positive for COVID-19, shows the number of tests performed on undergraduate students, as well as the number of tests performed overall. According to BCs dashboard, 85 students are in isolation as of Friday with 34 in isolation housing and 51 recovering at home.

The dashboard shows how many people tested positive for COVID-19 and specifically how many undergraduates tested positive, but the website does not break down the positive cases for graduate students, faculty or staff members.

An email to a Boston College spokesman was not returned Friday.

Domb said she asked state officials a month ago whether they were going to report COVID-19 testing data from colleges and universities. She got an email back Thursday with a link to Wednesdays report.

I saw the data is in the report. Its not quite what I was asking for, she said.

What Domb wanted, she said, was a detailed report on how many cases each college and whether those cases afflict students, faculty or staff, similar to the level of detail in the data published by the Department of Correction.

The reason why thats important is that also shows us the extent college campuses are testing community members, she said.

They estimate 25% of testing is faculty and staff, which means theyre performing a community service. Its not just a campus service because those people live in the community, Domb said of UMass Amhersts dashboard. Thats what I ideally would like. The University of Massachusetts at Amherst, for example, has performed more than 41,000 tests with help from students in the School of Public Health and Health Sciences. The university publishes on-campus testing data on students, faculty and staff. Domb noted the public can access that on the universitys website, but people wouldnt know that by glancing at the states higher education data.

Weve been fortunate to date that the positivity rate has been low, but this is a matter of perpetual vigilance here, said university spokesman Ed Blaguszewski. Every day you have to be testing and sending the right messages out and working with your community partners to have everyone pursuing those best public health practices.

That data goes to the state. When asked whether the state should publish the data in as much detail as the university does, Blaguszewski demurred.

Were focused on being as successful as we can be here, he said. Whatever evolves at the state level well certainly be supporting whatever public health requirements [the state requires].

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The Edo State deputy governor, Philip Shaibu, has won his polling unit by 401 votes as against the All Progressives Congresss 148 votes, in Saturdays election.

The Peoples Democratic Partys deputy governorship candidate voted at Ward 11, polling unit 5 of Etsako West LGA.

In an adjoining polling unit of the same ward as his, the PDP also won by 131 to APCs 65.

Jubilant supporters were seen hailing and singing Mr Shaibus praises shortly after the units votes were counted.

Mr Shaibu later returned to the scene, waving at the elated voters as they said, you are a leader. You are a leader.

Mr Shaibu had earlier voted a while after some fans of the opposition APC were engaged in a squabble with those loyal to him.

PREMIUM TIMES observed a cluster of the loyalists raising their voices and threatening each other in their local dialect, Etsako, a variant of languages spoken by the Afemai people.

If you try that thing here, we will kill ourselves, one of the loyalists was heard saying. By thing, he meant trying to woo his partys potential voters to the other side.

We must deliver this unit, this time, one of PDPs loyalists chipped in.

Speaking to journalists afterwards, Mr Shaibu expressed optimism of winning a re-election and praised the Independent and National Electoral Commission, INEC.

If what Im seeing here is what is happening all over the state, it means INEC has fulfilled its promise to deliver a free, credible and safe election, he told reporters.

If you look (around), you will see that movement is highly restricted, he noted, adding that he is assured of victory.
- Safaricom said the timing of the maintenance activity had been planned in such a way to result in least inconvenience to its customers

- Some of the services that would be unavailable during the period are Safaricom cloud, mobile banking and international money transfers

- It was not the first time the telco announced maintenance of its systems leaving Kenyans worried

- Its last update affecting M-Pesa was done on Saturday, July 18, and Sunday, July 19, between 10pm and 1am

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Telecommunications company Safaricom is set to conduct its normal service upgrade from Saturday, September 19, night to Sunday, September 20, morning.

The company announced that during the period some its crucial services would be unavailable as it seeks to upgrade its network to boost capacity and resilience.

READ ALSO: Jeff Koinange shares emotional photos from elder brother David Waiganjo's burial

Safaricom Headquarters along Waiyaki Way in Westlands, Nairobi. Photo: Safaricom.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Fearless girl asks mum to start doing house chores, says she's tired

In a statement on its social media pages, the Kenyan led firm said the timing (2300hrs on Sep 19 to 0300hrs on Sep 20) of the maintenance activity had been planned in such a way to result in least inconvenience to its customers.

Here are some the services that would be affected during the exercise.

1. Safaricom cloud

2. Lipa na M-Pesa

3. M-Shwari

4. KCB M-Pesa

5. The Safaricom app

Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa (r). He became the first Kenyan to head the telecommunications firm in April. Photo: Safaricom.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Bintiye Kisiangani amsaliti, ajiunga na Raila Odinga

6. The M-Pesa daraja API

7. Mobile banking

8. International money transfers

9. VAS services

10. Safaricom online customer support on Twitter and Facebook

The company said it regretted the move and apologised to its clients.

"We apologise for any inconvenience that may be caused. The timing of this maintenance activity has been planned to result in least disruption for our customers," it said.

READ ALSO: Lawyer Donald Kipkorir sees off daughter as she goes back to school in London

It however, noted that all other M-Pesa services including sending of money, deposit withdrawal and other services including calls, data and short message service (SMS) would remain available as usual.

It was not the first time the telco announced maintenance of its systems leaving Kenyans worried.

Its last update affecting M-Pesa was done on Saturday, July 18, and Sunday, July 19, between 10pm and 1am. Safaricom said it was a normal exercise aimed at enhancing efficiency in service delivery.

"In this regard, our MPesa services shall be undergoing planned maintenance on the night of Saturday, July 18, and Sunday, July 19. During this time, all MPesa services including airtime purchase shall be unavailable," read the notice.

A similar announcement had been issued on June 24, 2020.

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The Qatari health ministry on Friday announced 224 new COVID-19 infections, raising the total number of confirmed cases in the Gulf state to 122,917, the official Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported, Trend reports citing Xinhua.

Meanwhile, 209 more recovered from the virus, bringing the total recoveries to 119,822, while the fatalities increased by one to 209, according to a ministry statement quoted by QNA.

The ministry reiterated the need to take preventive measures, including staying at home and observing social distancing.

A total of 714,183 persons in Qatar have taken lab tests for COVID-19 so far.
Conservative Leader OToole Tests Positive for COVID-19

OTTAWAConservative Party Leader Erin OToole has tested positive for COVID-19.

His positive result Friday evening came hours after Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet issued a statement that he too had tested positive.

Both men will now be unable to attend next weeks throne speech, with Blanchet required to isolate until at least Sept. 26 and OToole until at least Oct.1.

OToole, who has been the Opposition leader for less than four weeks, was tested in Gatineau, Que., Thursday after one of his staffers tested positive.

Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)

A statement from the Conservative Party says OToole, 47, is feeling well.

His wife, Rebecca, and their children Mollie and Jack, all tested negative.

The Bloc issued a statement about Blanchets positive test earlier Friday.

He will stay in isolation at his home in Shawinigan until Sept. 26, in conformance with the instructions of Quebec public health, the Bloc said in a statement.

He feels perfectly well.

Ontario Public Health requires an individual to isolate for at least 14 days after the day of their test if they have no symptoms, and or for 14 days after symptoms start.

Quebecs public health rules say a person who tests positive but doesnt have serious symptoms must stay isolated for 10 days.

Blanchets wife, Nancy Deziel, tested positive for the illness earlier this week, after losing her sense of smell, and Blanchet said then that he would be tested as a precaution.

The Bloc leader was already in self-isolation, along with much of his caucus and other aides, after a staff member contracted COVID-19.
With more than five million cases, India is now emerging as the epicentre of the covid-19 pandemic. India has already overtaken Brazil in terms of total confirmed cases, and at the current trajectory, will surpass the US within four weeks.

Given that the US and Brazil are closest to India in terms of total cases, there can be a temptation to view the three countries and their right-wing leaders as similar, and hence their responses as similar. Yet, Indias Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has been quite unlike US president Donald Trump and Brazils president Jair Bolsonaro in his response to the pandemic. While Trump and Bolsonaro have consistently pushed back against social distancing, mask wearing and lockdowns since the pandemic began, Modi was quick to adopt mask-wearing and announced a stringent nation-wide lockdown quite early when India had just over 500 confirmed cases. Yet, India has been unable to tame the pandemic despite the early start. Here are five reasons why.

1) Lockdowns are not a magic wand

Lockdowns do not make a countrys cases disappear - unless that country is New Zealand - but they should help flatten the curve of cases, said Giridhar Babu, epidemiologist at the Public Health Foundation of India, and a member of the Indian Council for Medical Researchs (ICMRs) Task Force on surveillance and research. The government initially claimed that the lockdown was necessary to stop cases. VK Paul who heads the governments covid task force memorably presented a slide that showed the number of cases in India hitting zero by 16 May at a press conference on 24 April. Later, the government came around to restricting its claim to say that the lockdown lowered cases compared to what they could have been. On Tuesday, the ICMRs Director General Balram Bhargava reiterated this at a press conference: We took learnings [from Europe] and we distributed the curve in such a way that we did not have those large numbers of deaths. And that was attributable, scientifically, because of the very effective lockdown that was held in the months of late March, April and May."

States that used the first national lockdown successfully were those that ensured there was no local transmission of cases during the lockdown, and those that prepared their healthcare systems for the coming surge, Babu said.

2) Dense housing

Researchers have begun to carry out sero-surveillance surveys in some Indian cities to test for the presence of antibodies to the SARS-CoV2 virus that can help determine the true exposure to the virus. In Mumbai, Pune, and in an early national-level sero-survey, the data shows that antibody prevalence is far higher in slums than in non-slums.

Household contact was the most common way of spreading the virus, an analysis of data on the source of transmission from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh [] showed. The lack of a personal toilet in particular is a strong predictor of sero-positivity. Higher prevalence in slums could be due to population density and shared common facilities like toilets, water points etc," said Ullas Kolthur, one of the principal investigators of the Mumbai sero-survey and a scientist at the Tata Institute for Fundamental Research.

3) Administrative incapacity

There is growing evidence that many states did not prepare their healthcare facilities for the looming pandemic during the lockdown, some because they simply could not.

Tamil Nadu and Karnataka put in central oxygen lines in government hospitals, which did not have them until then, which was a vital step to take, and could partly explain their low mortality," said Babu. In contrast, several cities in Maharashtra are currently experiencing acute shortages of oxygen, as are other cities that are currently facing a surge in cases.

Along with medical infrastructure, there is also a manpower crunch, as well as the challenge of managing supplies including ventilators, oximeters, and drugs, said Babu.

Additionally, India has struggled with non-medical tools of pandemic control. Contact tracing is supposed to be a key pillar of the governments containment strategy, but even cities with better administrative capacity have struggled with contact tracing when the surge hit. News reports from Mumbai reported in late May that the citys contact tracing staff was overwhelmed and the exercise was falling behind.

Bengaluru made tech-led contact tracing a key part of its lockdown preparedness, Munish Moudgil, the IAS officer in charge of Karnatakas covid war-room, said in an interview. Indeed, the city was tracing a large number of contacts per confirmed case in May, and Karnataka had the highest contact tracing of any state, according to ICMR data. However, when the surge hit the state in late June, primarily via Bengaluru, contact tracing faltered in the IT powerhouse as well.

When the ICMR released a study based on its testing data in late May, a majority of those tested did not have data about their symptoms, travel or contact history completed. Even now, this data is lacking. Every evening, we receive from the ICMR a list of people in the state who tested positive," a senior advisor to the Delhi government said, requesting anonymity. Some have names but no phone numbers, others have no addresses; in some cases even the name is just a first name. Vinay, full stop," he said in exasperation.

4) Testing troubles

For the first few months of the pandemic, the criticism about India was that it was testing too little, and India is still only 115th out of 193 countries in terms of tests per million population. The test positivity ratio (TPR) - the number of tests conducted that come out positive - is an indicator of whether a region is testing enough as compared to the size of its outbreak. High-burden states such as Maharashtra have an outsized TPR that has only grown over time.

Then, there is the question of which tests a state is using. Since an ICMR advisory in June asking states to ramp up testing using rapid antigen test kits, many states are now conducting more rapid antigen tests each day than RT-PCR tests. Antigen tests are quicker, cheaper and easier to conduct. But they are also much less sensitive than the gold standard RT-PCR test, meaning that they are much less likely to pick up positive cases. To combat this, the ICMR guidelines say that every symptomatic person who tests negative on an antigen test must be retested on an RT-PCR test. But in many states, the administrative capacity to follow-up with these symptomatic negatives simply does not exist. A large number of such people have been missed, health secretary Rajesh Bhushan said at a press conference last week, and could be responsible for spreading the virus. Even in Delhi, fewer than 1% of 7 lakh people who took antigen tests were retested, the Indian Express reported.

5) Limited state relief

Some medical authorities have begun to blame the spread of cases on indiscipline", especially as cities begin to unlock". But given the impact that the pandemic and lockdown have had on the lives of the countrys poor, shifting the burden to individual responsibility may be unfair. Close to 120 million people lost their jobs in April 2020, according to data from the Centre for Monitoring the Indian Economy, although a portion of these jobs might have returned. There was a nearly 40% year-on-year increase in the number of people seeking work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme between April and September, the government said in Parliament on Monday. State support has been limited in the country. In contrast, Brazil under Bolsonaro has extended its welfare schemes, and added emergency support, raising the incomes of the countrys poorest 40%.

Modi may have taken the virus seriously, but there was much else that India did not or could not do to stop it.

*Rukmini S. is a Chennai-based journalist.

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If Mark Kelly, the Democratic nominee for Senate in Arizona, unseats Senator Martha McSally, a Republican who was appointed to her seat and began serving last year, he could be sworn in as early as Nov. 30  possibly in time to vote on a new Supreme Court nominee, elections experts said.

Hypothetically, that would narrow the Republicans 53-to-47 majority in the upper chamber, which may become relevant if a vote on a replacement for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was delayed until a lame-duck session after the election.

The Arizona race is technically a special election. The states Republican governor appointed Ms. McSally to the seat after she was defeated by Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat, in a closely contested Senate race in 2018.

Mr. Kelly, a former astronaut and the husband of former Representative Gabrielle Giffords, has maintained a steady lead over Ms. McSally, a former military pilot. If Mr. Kelly wins, state election law stipulates a final canvass of the balloting be completed by the end of November, barring legal challenges.
Technavio has been monitoring the commercial aircraft avionic systems market and it is poised to grow by USD 11.97 bn during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of almost 5% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200918005323/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Commercial Aircraft Avionic Systems Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Although the COVID-19 pandemic continues to transform the growth of various industries, the immediate impact of the outbreak is varied. While a few industries will register a drop in demand, numerous others will continue to remain unscathed and show promising growth opportunities. Technavio's in-depth research has all your needs covered as our research reports include all foreseeable market scenarios, including pre- post-COVID-19 analysis. Download a Free Sample Report on COVID-19 Impacts

Frequently Asked Questions:

What are the major trends in the market?

The adoption of advanced next-generation aircraft components is a major trend driving the growth of the market.

The adoption of advanced next-generation aircraft components is a major trend driving the growth of the market. At what rate is the market projected to grow?

The year-over-year growth for 2020 is estimated at 4.78% and the incremental growth of the market is anticipated to be 11.97 bn.

The year-over-year growth for 2020 is estimated at 4.78% and the incremental growth of the market is anticipated to be 11.97 bn. Who are the top players in the market?

Cobham Plc, Curtiss-Wright Corp., Elbit Systems Ltd., General Electric Co., Honeywell International Inc., L3Harris Technologies Inc., Safran SA, Teledyne Technologies Inc., Thales Group, and United Technologies Corp, are some of the major market participants.

Cobham Plc, Curtiss-Wright Corp., Elbit Systems Ltd., General Electric Co., Honeywell International Inc., L3Harris Technologies Inc., Safran SA, Teledyne Technologies Inc., Thales Group, and United Technologies Corp, are some of the major market participants. What are the key market drivers and challenges?

The development of electric aircraft will offer immense is one of the major factors driving the market.

The development of electric aircraft will offer immense is one of the major factors driving the market. How big is the North America market?

The North America region will contribute 33% of the market share.

The market is concentrated, and the degree of concentration will accelerate during the forecast period. Cobham Plc, Curtiss-Wright Corp., Elbit Systems Ltd., General Electric Co., Honeywell International Inc., L3Harris Technologies Inc., Safran SA, Teledyne Technologies Inc., Thales Group, and United Technologies Corp. are some of the major market participants. The development of electric aircraft will offer immense growth opportunities. To make most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

Buy 1 Technavio report and get the second for 50% off. Buy 2 Technavio reports and get the third for free.

View market snapshot before purchasing

Technavio's custom research reports offer detailed insights on the impact of COVID-19 at an industry level, a regional level, and subsequent supply chain operations. This customized report will also help clients keep up with new product launches in direct indirect COVID-19 related markets, upcoming vaccines and pipeline analysis, and significant developments in vendor operations and government regulations.

Commercial Aircraft Avionic Systems Market 2020-2024: Segmentation

Commercial Aircraft Avionic Systems Market is segmented as below:

Application FCS CN&S FMS AHMS

Distribution channel Line Fit Aftermarket

Geographic Landscape APAC Europe MEA North America South America



To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download a free sample: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR40049

Commercial Aircraft Avionic Systems Market 2020-2024: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. The commercial aircraft avionic systems market report covers the following areas:

Commercial Aircraft Avionic Systems Market Size

Commercial Aircraft Avionic Systems Market Trends

Commercial Aircraft Avionic Systems Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies the adoption of advanced next-generation aircraft components as one of the prime reasons driving the commercial aircraft avionic systems market growth during the next few years.

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Technavio's in-depth research has direct and indirect COVID-19 impacted market research reports.

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Commercial Aircraft Avionic Systems Market 2020-2024: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2020-2024

Detailed information on factors that will assist commercial aircraft avionic systems market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the commercial aircraft avionic systems market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the commercial aircraft avionic systems market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of commercial aircraft avionic systems market vendors

Table of Contents:

PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT

Preface

Currency conversion rates for US$

PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Value Chain Analysis

Market segmentation analysis

PART 04: MARKET SIZING

Market definition

Market sizing 2019

Market size and forecast 2019-2024

PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY APPLICATION

Market segmentation by application

Comparison by application

FCS Market size and forecast 2019-2024

CN&S Market size and forecast 2019-2024

FMS Market size and forecast 2019-2024

AHMS Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by application

PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE

PART 08: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL

Market segmentation by distribution channel

Comparison by distribution channel

Line fit Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Aftermarket Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by distribution channel

PART 09: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024

APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity

PART 10: DECISION FRAMEWORK

PART 11: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES

Market drivers

Market challenges

PART 12: MARKET TRENDS

Preference for satellite-based cockpit connectivity

Development of electric aircraft

Emergence of blockchain in aviation

PART 13: VENDOR LANDSCAPE

Overview

Landscape disruption

Competitive scenario

PART 14: VENDOR ANALYSIS

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Cobham Plc

Curtiss-Wright Corp.

Elbit Systems Ltd.

General Electric Co.

Honeywell International Inc.

L3Harris Technologies Inc.

Safran SA

Teledyne Technologies Inc.

Thales Group

United Technologies Corp.

PART 15: APPENDIX

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

Definition of market positioning of vendors

PART 16: EXPLORE TECHNAVIO

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focuses on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200918005323/en/

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Jesse Maida

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Website: www.technavio.com/
By Lawrence Hurley

WASHINGTON, Sept 19 (Reuters) - The death of liberal U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has huge implications for the future of law and life in the United States, giving Republican President Donald Trump the chance to cement a 6-3 conservative majority on the court.

Here are several ways in which a rightward tilt would be felt if Trump gets to pick Ginsburg's successor:

ABORTION AND OTHER SOCIAL ISSUES

Ever since the Supreme Court legalized abortion in its 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, conservative activists have sought to overturn the decision and always fallen just short. If Trump replaces Ginsburg with a staunch conservative, the chances of the court drastically curbing abortion rights becomes ever more likely.

Similarly, the conservative wing of the court may be emboldened to make sweeping moves on other social issues, which could include expanding gun rights, bolstering individual religious rights and curbing voting rights. The court may also have the votes to strike down progressive legislation enacted by Congress in the event Democrats have the votes to pass major bills on issues like climate change.

The court would be even less likely to embrace liberal causes, such as ending the death penalty, although its recent 6-3 ruling in favor of LGBT worker rights suggests that issue could be an exception in certain circumstances.

OBAMACARE HANGS IN THE BALANCE

In the short term, Ginsburg's absence could be felt most keenly when the court hears oral arguments on Nov. 10 on the latest challenge by conservatives to the Obamacare health law, enacted in 2010 and previously upheld by the Supreme Court on a 5-4 vote in 2012. Ginsburg was one of the five justices in the majority then, which means that her replacement could tilt the balance.

Even if no Trump nominee is confirmed by then, the court would go into those arguments with a 5-3 conservative majority.

Other cases the court has taken up for its new term, which officially starts on Oct. 5, could also be affected. On Nov. 4 the justices consider a major legal fight over the scope of religious-rights exemptions to certain federal laws. The dispute concerns Philadelphia's decision to bar Catholic Social Services from participating in its foster-care program because the organization prohibited same-sex couples from serving as foster parents.

Story continues

In a politically sensitive case, the court on Dec. 2 weighs a bid by the Democratic-led House of Representatives to obtain material that the Trump administration withheld from former Special Counsel Robert Muellers report on Russian political meddling in the 2016 presidential election.

PIVOTAL ROLE OF CHIEF JUSTICE

For the last two years, following the retirement of conservative Justice Anthony Kennedy in 2018, Chief Justice John Roberts has been the pivotal figure on the court, but his position of influence would be weakened if Trump replaces Ginsburg.

At the ideological center of a nine-member court, Roberts had the option of siding with the four liberal justices to his left or four conservatives to his right to secure a majority opinion.

Roberts, known as a defender of the court as an institution and champion of the judiciary as an independent branch of government, sided with Ginsburg and the court's other three liberals in key cases.

In June, he helped strike down a restrictive Louisiana abortion law and thwarted Trump's bid to rescind protections for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants dubbed "Dreamers" who entered the United States as children.

Roberts has on occasion sought compromises in big cases, sometimes to the dismay of his more conservative colleagues.

In July, for example, he authored both decisions as the court ruled that a New York prosecutor could try to obtain Trump's financial records but prevented Democratic-led House of Representatives committees from immediately getting similar documents.

Without Ginsburg, Roberts loses the ability to shift the balance on his own.

WAR ON BUREAUCRACY

Conservatives and business interests have long sought to weaken the power of federal agencies and the Supreme Court has already been a willing ally.

That so-called war on the administrative state could expand with a sixth conservative justice on the bench. Most notably, a landmark ruling from 1984 that said courts should defer to federal bureaucrats when interpreting the scope of federal laws could be in danger.

If that ruling was overturned, it could potentially give the conservative court greater power to limit efforts by future Democratic administrations to issue regulations on such issues as the environment and consumer protection.

(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley in Washington Editing by Scott Malone and Matthew Lewis)
As wildfires continue to rage across the West and smoke travels thousands of miles from its point of origin, residents and firefighters alike are desperately waiting for Mother Nature to lend a helping hand. Fortunately for some, relief is on the way later this week, while for others, the danger will remain high.

Over 3.9 million acres of land has already been burned as a result of nearly 80 large fires currently burning across 12 states. The majority of these fires are located across California, Idaho and Oregon. So far in 2020, just over 7.0 million acres of land has been scorched by wildfires, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

Mother Nature brought a bit of relief to the Pacific Northwest from Friday to Saturday, with places from Portland, Oregon, to Seattle picking up 0.25-0.50 of an inch of rainfall. Portions of western Oregon received 0.50-1.00 inches of rain.

This storm system has since exited the region, allowing for a mainly dry beginning of the week.

Dry condition are forecast to persist through early week, but forecasters say there is the chance for a more significant rain event during the middle and latter part of the week.

"Much of the West will remain dry to start the week, but there will be another storm system that is expected to target the Northwest around midweek, further helping firefighting efforts in the region," AccuWeather Meteorologist Brandon Buckingham said.

CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP

This storm system is expected to bring rainfall to Washington and Oregon from Wednesday through at least Friday, with rainfall amounts past 1-inch possible.

Any amount of rain is beneficial for those across the Pacific Northwest. Many locations across the region are still in the midst of moderate to extreme drought conditions, according to the United States Drought Monitor.

The opposite will be the case for much of the rest of the West.

"Even farther south where winds turn gusty and dry weather persists, ongoing blazes may be fanned further. Some of the larger fires can even create their own locally strong winds due to the amount of heat generated by these infernos," AccuWeather Meteorologist Renee Duff said.

Story continues

"Unfortunately across the Southwest, a building ridge of high pressure is expected to strengthen and expand this week, resulting in well above-average temperatures and a continued high fire threat," Buckingham said.

Smoke is likely to be more widely dispersed out of California during this time. The amount of smoke being produced by these fires already led to extremely unhealthy air quality for portions of the West earlier in the week.

Smoke inhalation can make breathing difficult and can cause coughing, runny nose, bronchitis, wheezing and exacerbation of chronic diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), according to Plume Labs, a company that monitors air pollution around the globe.

Officials are warning people to avoid or limit spending time outdoors amid the hazardous smoky conditions.

Residents across the western United States can monitor the air quality levels in their neighborhood with AccuWeather's Air Quality page, which includes detailed air quality forecasts.

Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
A police protection officer travelling with Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has been stood down from duties after leaving his gun on a plane at Heathrow.

According to reports, the alarm was raised by a clearer after she found the unattended weapon on board the United Airlines flight from Washington DC.

Police officers then descended on the scene on Friday morning before realising the gun belong to an officer assigned to the Foreign Secretary.

He had been visiting the US to discuss with political leaders the issues of Brexit and Northern Ireland.

The Sun quoted a source as saying: "The protection officer began sorting out passports and preparing to escort Mr Raab off the flight.

"For whatever reason, he took off his holster with the loaded Glock pistol inside and laid it on the seat.

"The officer then went off with the Foreign Secretary, leaving the gun behind. The cleaners came on and one of them found the gun in its holster.

"She was understandably shocked and called for help and police were called."

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: We are aware of the incident on a flight into the UK on Friday, 18 September and we are taking this matter extremely seriously.

The officer involved has since been removed from operational duties whilst an internal investigation into the circumstances is taking place.
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And Emperor Norton I wasn't kidding around. In his royal decree, published in several papers, Norton I demanded "representatives of the different States of the Union to assemble in Musical Hall" in San Francisco. (They didn't). He then forbade Congress from assembling in Washington (they didn't) and ordered both political parties to disband (they didn't). What he did achieve was getting the city directory to register his profession as "Emperor" and to earn the local nickname of "Mad Monarch."

But Norton I wasn't a terrible emperor -- in fact, he was the best one America ever had. His Majesty advocated for much needed legal reforms and stood up against the rampant corruption in the post-Tammany Hall days. Among his many published proclamations, he also proposed the establishment of some sort of league of nations, decades before the rest of the world came around to the idea. And San Franciscans will always cherish him as the visionary who spoke up for gaslight in every street and building a suspension bridge on the spot where, in 1936, the iconic Bay Bridge would later rise.

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Of course, his real value to San Francisco was not as a benevolent lawgiver but as a delightful tourist attraction. Exciting rumors surrounded the imperial kook parading around the streets in a self-made regal Union uniform. Some claimed that Norton had to be the secret son of Napoleon III -- what with his genetic trait of compulsive self-coronation. As promised, Norton I was good for business, just not in the way he intended. Many San Franciscans sold souvenirs, including action figures, of his likeness. He had also gathered such a following that small business owners loved to be graced by his peacocking presence, so much so that venue owners would reserve balcony seats for him and his two dogs. Shopkeeps even let him pay in his own imperial money.
Representative image

The Karnataka government on September 19 issued orders to restrict students of class 9 to 12 from visiting schools and pre-university colleges to meet their teachers, citing a rise in COVID-19 cases in the state, news agency ANI reported.

The students were allowed earlier by the state Education Department, as per the guidelines issued by the Centre on August 29. This was after a fall in the cases of infectious disease in the state.

As of September 19 evening, cumulatively 5.11 lakh COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in the state, which includes 7,922 deaths and 4,04,841 discharges.

On August 29, Centre had allowed students between classes 9 and 12 to visit schools outside containment zones under Unlock 4.0.

The guidelines also allowed opening of higher education institutions for research scholars (PhD) and post-graduate students of technical and professional programmes requiring laboratory/experimental works.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) o n August 29 issued new guidelines under Unlock 4.0 for opening up of more activities in areas outside containment zones , as a part of Unlock 4.0, which will come into effect from September 1.
Actress Kangana Ranaut says she wants film industries of different states to have a collective identity, and claims she wants to save the industry from from terrorists such as the nepotism brigade and the drug mafia.

"People's perception that top film industry in India is Hindi film Industry is wrong. Telugu film industry has ascended itself to the top position and now catering films to pan India in multiple languages, many hindi films being shot in Ramoji Hyderabad," she tweeted on Saturday.

Peoples perception that top film industry in India is Hindi film Industry is wrong. Telugu film industry has ascended itself to the top position and now catering films to pan India in multiple languages, many hindi films being shot in Ramoji Hydrabad 1/2 https://t.co/zB6wkJg1zX  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) September 19, 2020



This comes after Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath reportedly said he plans to build the "biggest film city" in Uttar Pradesh.

"I applaud this announcement by @myogiadityanath ji. We need many reforms in the film industry, first of all we need one big film industry called Indian film industry.. we are divided based on many factors, Hollywood films get advantage of this. One industry but many Film Cities," she wrote.

She went on to say that best of dubbed regional films don't get pan-India release but dubbed Hollywood films get mainstream release, adding that the trend was "alarming".

"Reason is the atrocious quality of most Hindi films and their monopoly over theatre screens, also media created aspirational imagine for Hollywood films," said the Bollywood actress.

Kangana added: "We need to save the industry from various terrorists -- Nepotism terrorism, Drug Mafia terrorism, Sexism terrorism, religious andregional terrorism, Foreign films terrorism, Piracy terrorism, Labourer's exploitation terrorism and Talent exploitation terrorism".

We need to save the industry from various terrorists

1) Nepotism terrorism

2) Drug Mafia terrorism

3) Sexism terrorism

4) religious and regional terrorism

5) Foreign films terrorism

6) Piracy terrorism

7) Labourers exploitation terrorism

8) Talent exploitation terrorism  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) September 19, 2020



Tagging the Office of the Prime Minister of India, she tweeted: "Films have an ability to bring the entire nation together but

@PMOIndia let's first please bring these many industries together who have individual identities but not a collective identity please join them together like Akhand Bharat and we will make it number one in the world."
If an opening comes in the last year of President Trumps term, and the primary process has started, well wait to the next election, Graham said at an event hosted by the Atlantic magazine in October 2018. He made similar remarks in March 2016, when he said if a Republican was elected later that year and a vacancy occurred in the last year of their first term, you can say, Lindsey Graham said lets let the next president, whoever it might be, make that nomination. 
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 19)  The spokesman of the Bureau of Corrections said on Saturday that he tested positive for the coronavirus.

BuCor Public Information Office chief c is currently undergoing mandatory quarantine and is exhibiting mild symptoms of the infectious disease. He was tested on Tuesday and got his results on Saturday.

This disclosure intends to advise all personnel and staff who might have had interaction with him since last week to visit the Directorate for Health Sevices (DHS) for assessment and swab testing, the BuCor said in a statement.

This is also to inform other stakeholders, partners from the media and NGOs who might have been exposed to seek immediate medical advice, it added.

Meanwhile, BuCor Director General Gerald Bantag has taken a swab test after two of his staff contracted the virus. His test results are expected to be released on Monday.
Amid a debate over its name, the Plantation Field International Horse trials lost its lease to take place this week on a Chester County property. Read more

For two decades, the equestrian set has gathered in a quiet township in Chester County for the annual Plantation Field International Horse Trials, a display of cross-country jumping, show jumping, and the finely controlled riding known as dressage.

Now its future is in doubt. The prestigious, if obscure, event has been caught up in a debate over racial sensitivity. The issue: its name.

The owner of the property that has been home for the event canceled its lease this week after an online equestrian magazine suggested that because of its association with slavery, Plantation be removed from the events title.

In defense of the event, the U.S. Equestrian Association said the property in East Marlborough Township had no known connection to slavery and was merely named for plantings on its grounds.

That online unsigned editorial in Eventing Nation made clear that it didnt believe the organizers of the three-day trials, which it termed one of the most iconic and beloved events in North America, intended to offend anyone. But it said that in a sport striving for more diversity, the name was offensive and a barrier to change.

Silence on this topic would not be responsible in light of the issues that have surfaced this summer, the editorial stated.

Eventing Nation provides equestrian-related news and commentary from several reporters in the United States and abroad. In a subsequent post, its editors noted that the publication had hoped not to close the trials but to prompt discussion. We are deeply saddened that the property owner has chosen this path, it said.

The events organizers characterized the editorial as an attack.

I find it incredibly sad that the staff at a publication who do not understand the history of the area are directly causing the end of one of the best and most consistent events in the country, Denis Glaccum, a longtime Unionville resident who heads Plantation Field Equestrian Events Inc. (PFEE), said in a statement.

The U.S. Equestrian Association, in a statement of its own, said it was working to salvage the Chester County trials, though it provided few details. While saying it was deeply sensitive to the history of the word plantation and its connection to slavery, the association said shutting the event isnt the right solution.

The owner of the Plantation Field venue is Cuyler Walker, a lawyer, PFEE board member, and former member of the state Horse Racing Commission. A graduate of Yale, the Wharton School, and Penn Law, he served 17 years as a Republican township supervisor.

Walker, who owns more than 500 acres in the township, did not return telephone calls. Leslie Wylie, editor of the Eventing Nation, declined comment Friday. Glaccum could not be reached.

The Plantation Field trials, which had been scheduled to start Thursday, are recognized as one of the nations premier events in the eventing competitions, as the sport is called.
Senate majority leader, who blocked Obamas 2016 nominee, says there will be a vote on any candidate Trump puts forward.

Washington, DC  The death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, coming just weeks before a contested presidential election in November, will lead to a fierce political fight in the US Senate and could make the election a referendum on the future of the US Supreme Court.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement on Friday the Senate would move forward with a confirmation process for whomever President Donald Trump nominates.

The Senate and the nation mourn the sudden passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the conclusion of her extraordinary American life, McConnell said.

President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate, McConnell said.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell commands a 53-47 majority in the US Senate and cannot afford to lose support from more than three Republican senators in a Supreme Court confirmation fight with Democrats [File: Senate TV/Handout via Reuters]

Ginsburg, only the second woman to serve on the court, was a giant of American jurisprudence who was a champion of womens rights and voting rights. Her death opens a gap on the Supreme Court that in its most recent term was evenly divided between conservative and liberal justices with Chief Justice John Roberts acting as a swing vote.

Ginsburg was a tireless and resolute champion of justice, Roberts said in a statement.

A crowd of people convened at the Supreme Court building in Washington, DC, on Friday night, indicative of the significance the public attaches to the moment.

Quite simple, there was never a justice who embodied the inclusive ideas Americans believe in more than Justice Ginsburg, said Nan Aron, president of the Alliance for Justice, an advocacy group for reproductive rights and social justice.

Now is not the time to ram through a Supreme Court Justice, Aron said in a statement

Confirmation of a conservative to the court would threaten the 1973 landmark precedent in US law of Roe v Wade that established the right to abortion. Indeed, a new 6-3 conservative majority on the court would presage sweeping changes in US law.

.@GOP We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 19, 2020

President Trump has already named two conservative justices to the court, Neil Gorsuch in 2017 and Brett Kavanaugh in 2019. Ginsburgs death gives him an opportunity to name a third to the nine-member court and the president issued a list of 20 potential nominees a week ago.

She led an amazing life. What else can you say, Trump said, informed of Ginsburgs death by reporters travelling with him from a campaign event in Minnesota. She was an amazing woman  whether you agree or not  she was an amazing woman who led an amazing life.

On Saturday morning, the president tweeted that Republicans were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions  the most important of which is the selection of Supreme Court justices. We have this obligation, without delay! Trump wrote.

A move by Trump to replace Ginsburg will be controversial in the Senate and will prompt accusations of hypocrisy by the Democrats after the Republicans blocked a Supreme Court nominee by former President Barack Obama in the last year of his presidency.





Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden said in a statement on Friday that with just weeks to go until the November election, his hope and expectation of what should happen is that the voters should choose the president who will fill Ginsburgs seat.

In 2016, Senate Republicans refused to consider Obamas nominee Merrick Garland, waiting until after President Trump was elected to confirm Gorsuch.

With majority control of the Senate at stake in the election, it is unclear whether all Republicans will go along with a move by Trump and McConnell to replace Ginsburg.

Lindsey Graham, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, has signalled a willingness to fill a Supreme Court vacancy but said much would depend on input from his colleagues.

Republicans control the Senate 53-47 and would not be able to confirm a justice if more than three senators defect.

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, a conservative, has sought to prevent the court from becoming overly political in an era of highly polarised US politics [US Senate TV/Handout via Reuters]

Some Republican senators have said the Senate should refrain from acting on a Supreme Court nominee so close to an election.

Alaska Republican Lisa Murkowski said last month it would be a double standard for Republicans to fill the court vacancy so close to an election and she would not support it.

Iowa Republican Chuck Grassley, a former chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said in an Iowa press interview in July the Senate should not hold hearings a Trump nominee if he loses in November.

Maine Senator Susan Collins told a New York Times reporter recently that she would not be willing to seat a Supreme Court justice before the election. I think thats too close, I really do, Collins reportedly said.

Senate moderate Mitt Romney, who was the only Republican to break ranks and vote against Trump in the Senate impeachment trial, has declined to say how he would vote on a Supreme Court nominee now.

In a statement on Friday, Romney praised Ginsburgs distinguished service that leaves an indelible mark on our country that will endure for generations to come.

In his statement, McConnell sought to draw a difference between the will of American voters as expressed in 2016 and now in 2020, claiming a mandate to move forward with the confirmation of whoever Trump nominates.

Several Republicans, prior to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death, had said they do not support filling the court vacancy so close to the election [File: Stephan Savoia/The Associated Press]

In the last midterm election before Justice Scalias death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck presidents second term. We kept our promise, McConnell said.

By contrast, Americans re-elected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary.

There is time before the next Congress is seated, about 100 days away, for Trump and Republicans to ram through a justice confirmation. Kavanaughs highly controversial confirmation took 89 days, and Gorsuchs only 65 days.

Former senator and 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said in a television interview Democrats should block any Trump nominee before the election.

The Democrats in the Senate will have to use every single possible manoeuvre that is available to them to make it clear that they are not going to allow Mitch McConnell to enact the greatest travesty, the monumental hypocrisy that would arise from allowing him to replace Justice Ginsburg, Clinton said on MSNBC.
South Africa's Gov Debunks Fakenews Of Iranian Threats Against U.S. Ambassador By Moon Of Alabama September 19, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - On Monday we trashed a shady Politico report which falsely claimed that Iran had plans to assassinate the U.S. ambassador to South Africa: [A]s one fake news zombie finally dies others get resurrected. Politico's 'intelligence' stenographer Natasha Bertrand produced this nonsensical claim: The Iranian government is weighing an assassination attempt against the American ambassador to South Africa, U.S. intelligence reports say, according to a U.S. government official familiar with the issue and another official who has seen the intelligence. News of the plot comes as Iran continues to seek ways to retaliate for President Donald Trumps decision to kill a powerful Iranian general earlier this year, the officials said. ... Ambassador Lana Marks is known for selling overpriced handbags and for her donations to Trump's campaign. To Iran she has zero political or symbolic value. There is no way Iran would ever think about an attack on such a target. Accordingly the South African intelligence services do not believe that there is such a threat: ... No Advertising - No Government Grants - This Is Independent Media Get Our Free Newsletter U.S. President Donald Trump used the fake Politico story to threaten Iran: Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump - 3:04 UTC  Sep 15, 2020 According to press reports, Iran may be planning an assassination, or other attack, against the United States in retaliation for the killing of terrorist leader Soleimani, which was carried out for his planning a future attack, murdering U.S. Troops, and the death & suffering...

...caused over so many years. Any attack by Iran, in any form, against the United States will be met with an attack on Iran that will be 1,000 times greater in magnitude! Yesterday the government of South Africa officially debunked the obvious nonsense Politico's Natasha Bertrand was spreading: Senior South African Government officials have met with their counterparts from the United States of America (USA), and other relevant stakeholders. At present, the information provided is not sufficient to sustain the allegation that there is a credible threat against the United States Ambassador to South Africa. There never was and there will be no threat from Iran against some irrelevant U.S. ambassador in a completely unrelated country. Iran will take revenge for the U.S. assassination of its General Qasem Soleimani by doing what it has announced to do. It will expel all U.S. forces from the Middle East. That process is ongoing. That the U.S. now had to send armored fighting vehicles to protect its occupation forces which are 'guarding the oil' in Syria is a sign that the Iranian plan is proceeding well: The US military announced Friday that it is deploying armored vehicles and other military assets to Syria to protect US troops fighting ISIS amid tensions with Russia as President Donald Trump told a White House news conference that "we are out of Syria," saying the remaining US forces are there exclusively "guarding the oil." U.S. troops in Syria and Iraq are now coming under daily attacks. These will only intensify until all U.S. forces retreat from those countries. - " Source " - Post your comment below See also The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House.
Nicusor Dan, the candidate backed by the PNL (National Liberal Party) and the USR PLUS (Save Romania Union - Party of Liberty, Unity and Solidarity) Alliance for the Bucharest City Hall, says the current Mayor and candidate Gabriela Firea is leading a campaign of "lies and manipulation" against him, inviting the latter to two debates next week at two television stations.

"It is a campaign of lies and manipulation, based on phone calls, on not assumed online messages and sadly on the complicity of some press institutions," Nicusor Dan said in a press conference on Saturday.

Dan added that it is not true that he will cut the heat subsidy, nor the public transport subsidy, if elected Bucharest general mayor.

He said that Gabriela Firea uses such lies to cover her lack of achievements and failures of her 4-year long tenure.

Nicusor Dan requested the current Bucharest mayor to answer regarding the information he has brought in the public space on the 50 persons who lead the Bucharest City Hall having as sole "quality to be godfathers, godchildren, friends, business partners, neighbours, children of the godfathers, children of the godchildren, children of friends."

"These people, because they lack any competence for the positions they fill, are not capable to draw EU funds, are incapable to solve the traffic in Bucharest, the pollution in the city, but on the contrary they grant green areas for their friends build whatever on them. This is the real problem the acting mayor has to answer to," Nicusor Dan said.

Dan invited Gabriela Firea to participate in a debate on Tuesday at B1 TV station and to another on Wednesday at Realitatea TV.
The most seriously wounded include a 24-year-old man and a 30-year-old woman who were taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn and another male of an unknown age who was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center. Those three were shot and listed in serious to critical condition, Langford said.
The former Minister for Fisheries and Acqua Culture, Madam Sherry Ayittey has assured fishing communities of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) governments plans to halt illegal activities of Chinese Industrial Trawlers on the sea.



The move, she said, formed part of measures to abolish the illegal transhipment of fish, otherwise known as "Saiko".



Madam Ayittey was addressing artisanal fishermen, fishmongers and NDC party faithful and sympathizers at Axim as part of a four-day tour of NDC running mate, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang to the Western Region.



She said the Chinese Industrial Trawlers were frustrating the efforts of artisanal fishermen to catch fish.



"An NDC government will deal with any form of illegal, unreported, unregulated (IUU) fishing.



Madam Ayittey said the Fisheries sector under the NPP government had experienced unsustainable fishing, culminating in the depletion of the fish stock.



According to the former Minister, the current pre-mix committee would be reviewed to ensure equity in the supply of pre-mix fuel to all fishermen.



Madam Ayittey said the NDC would continue with the distribution of bigger head pans and buckets to fishmongers and outboard motors to fishermen and build more cold stores along the shores.



She said that the closed fishing season would be cancelled.



Prof. Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang said the NDC government would revive the fish stock by dealing with all forms of IUU.



She called on the NPP government to ensure equity in the supply of pre-mix fuel to all fishermen without any discrimination.



The NDC running mate used the occasion to introduce the NDC Parliamentary candidate for Evaloe-Adjomoro Gwira, Mr Kofi Arko Nokoe to the gathering.



The Western Regional Secretary of the NDC, Mr Joseph Nelson alleged that the Fisheries sector was collapsing as Saiko and other forms of IUU continue to dwindle the fish stock.



On education, Mr Nelson said the NDC government built the Dwiraman Community Day SHS to allow candidates to gain access to secondary education.



Mr Nelson indicated that the free SHS policy is a constitutional provision started by former President Mahama under the progressive senior high school policy and therefore dismissed rumours that Mr Mahama would cancel the free SHS, adding that he will rather make it more vibrant.



The 2015 National Best Fisherman, Mr.Ebenezer Afful appealed to the NDC running mate to invest in fishermen and fishmongers to improve their livelihoods.

Source: GNA









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LONDON  Turkish designer Bora Aksu said the coronavirus pandemic inspired his latest collection, which looks back over one hundred years to the Spanish flu pandemic and the end of World War One.

COVID-19 meant that Aksus fashion show on Friday was one of only four taking place at London Fashion Week, according to the British Fashion Council, compared with the 46 shows that took place at the event last September.

The designer said that after such an isolating period earlier in the year due to the pandemic, he felt that not having a traditional show would have been cutting off that human touch, I really couldnt do it.

He said of the pandemic: It has so kind of affected all our lives and the way we operate and work that I could not take myself out of it.

It made him think of the 1918 flu pandemic and the accompanying time of mourning at the end of the war, and the much more optimistic period that followed.

The floaty white dresses with long socks and white boots reflected the minimal dressing of the nurses who treated the war wounded and those suffering from flu, he said.

Parading in Londons autumn sunshine, models, wearing sheer face veils, also showed off tiered dresses in pastel shades of pink and blue, and dark purples, with prints and lace.

The collections and the fashion actually should reflect the times that we be going through, Aksu told Reuters.

He said he wanted to send a message of hope by reminding people that after World War One and the Spanish flu pandemic, good times followed for many in the early 1920s.
A boulder exploited in Luc Yen (Yen Bai province), measuring 2.6m in height and weighing over 1 tonne, was viewed as the worlds largest ruby root at the moment.

A jewellery store in Yen The township (Luc Yen district, Yen Bai) owns this spectacular ruby root.





Mai Hoang Anh, a representative of the store, confirmed that it is the largest ruby root in Vietnam and there is no other as gigantic as it in the world.





The owner said the gem was discovered in An Phu (Luc Yen) 10 years ago. It was covered by Luc Yen-origin white stone.





The ruby root is not the most valuable kind but super rare thanks to its enormous size, Anh said.

The owner added that there was once a person asking to buy the gemstone at the cost of 6 billion VND (260,345 USD) but he refused.





A Hanoi-based jewellery group owns a smaller ruby block which is 1.6m high and weighs 500kg, he said.




Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador looks to the skied, or the gods

Mexicos populist president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador was voted in on a pledge to stamp out corruption and largess that went all the way to the country's highest office.

So when he pledged to sell the presidential plane, with its marble bathrooms and king sized bed, it seemed like an easy win.

But the $218 million jet, purchased under a predecessor in 2012, lies on the tarmac after the latest failed bid to find a buyer in a saga that has exposed the socialist leader to ridicule and embarassment.

This week's attempt to raffle the plane during the countrys Independence holiday ended in predictable disaster.

For Lopez Obrador, also known by his initials as Amlo, the plane is a symbol of the opulence and waste of the country's political elite, and he vowed to sell it and return the money to Mexicans during his 2018 campaign. After his landslide victory, the president put it up for sale and has been flying on low-cost commercial flights.

But it wasnt that easy. The jet is a used and expensive luxury item with few potential buyers. After spending nearly two years parked for sale in California and spending almost the same amount of money for having it parked than he would have spent using it (about $1.5 million), Amlo decided in February he would just raffle it off during the September 15 Independence holiday. He even had to change the law in order to raffle an item instead of money through Mexicos National Lottery.

Only the plane wasnt his to raffle. It turned out the Mexican government hasnt finished paying for it. Amlo moved forward with the raffle but decided to give out the cash equivalent of the jets market value of about $95 million instead of the actual plane, split it into 100 winning tickets.

Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador holds a news conference at the presidential hangar

He printed out 6 million lottery tickets worth about $24 each, twisted the arms of Mexicos business elite into buying half of them for about $80 million, bought almost one million tickets with government money and handed them out to hospitals and schools one day before the raffle (only 3.8 million tickets had been sold).

Story continues

Since the plane wasnt sold on time, in order to pay for the prizes he took the $95 million from the Institute for the Return of Stolen Goods to the People (an institute that auctions seized assets from drug lords) and gave it to the national lottery. Many Mexicans were outraged, claiming the money should have been sent to hospitals directly, with clear spending tags and accountability amid the Covid-19 crisis.

A bathroom of the Mexican Air Force Presidential Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner

The plane wasnt a problem. It had been bought years ago and was it just...there, Carlos Bravo Regidor, a political analyst in Mexico City, told The Telegraph. This is self-inflicted drama at its best.

According to Mr Bravo, what Mexicans are paying for is the cost of a symbolic statement instead of actually solving the plane problem. The president painted himself into a corner and tried to save face.

Today, the plane is still parked at the Presidents hangar in Mexico Citys airport. Were back at square one, says Mr Bravo.
Before she was on the United States Supreme Court, Ruth Bader Ginsburg supported a U.S. government racial quota plan when she was on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The mainstream media did not tell the public about it. The Democrats and Republicans in Congress did not tell the public about it. Talk radio hosts did not tell the public about it. As a Supreme Court justice, Ginsburg continued her approval of racial preferences, AKA "affirmative action," as described here, here, and here.

When Ginsburg was nominated for the Supreme Court by former President Bill Clinton on June 22, 1993, before we had the Internet, I waited for the media to tell the public about her position on racial preferences. She had been a federal judge for over a decade, and it was possible she had ruled in such a case. There were news broadcasts and articles about how she had ruled on many other issues, but not racial preferences.

My curiosity led me to a law library, where I found a case after only fifteen minutes of researching. I wrote an opinion article about the case and submitted it to newspapers and magazines all over the country. I sent it to conservative talk radio hosts. I sent it to all of the Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and to a few Republican members of the House of Representatives. Nobody to whom I had sent the information shared it with the public.

As her confirmation hearing was about to begin, I sent my article to a smaller publication, the Los Angeles Daily Journal, which is a newspaper targeted at judges and lawyers in Los Angeles. On July 13, 1993, the L.A. Daily Journal published my opinion article. As far as I know, the media and our elected officials never publicly discussed the information in my article. Ginsburg was never asked about it at her confirmation hearing, where her testimony began on July 20, 1993. When Ginsburg was confirmed on August 3, 1993, the Senate was controlled by the Democrats, who had 58 seats. She was confirmed by a vote of 96-3.

The following is my opinion article that was published in the L.A. Daily Journal a week before her confirmation hearing testimony:

Supreme Court nominee Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg supported a racial quota plan that allowed for the possible promotion of less qualified individuals over more qualified individuals, when the less qualified individuals were black and the more qualified individuals were white. While sitting as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit, Ginsburg was one of three judges who decided the appeal in the case of McKenzie v. Sawyer, 684 F.2d 62 (1982). The appellate opinion sets forth the facts. The case arose when black employees of the Offset Press Section (OPS) of the U.S. Government Printing Office brought a class action under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 alleging they were victims of racial discrimination and that they had been denied promotion opportunities to which they were otherwise entitled. At the time of the lawsuit, OPS employed five categories of workers relevant to the suit. Supervisors included foremen, assistant foremen, and group chiefs. Journeymen included qualified craft workers in apprenticeable trades who were responsible for operating most of the machinery in OPS. Craft uprates operated some of the more complicated machines such as the two-color or the web press and sometimes performed supervisory duties. Offset press assistants were participants in a training program for journeyman positions, eligible for promotion to journeyman vacancies after successful completion of the training program. Finally, printing plant workers were unskilled helpers who performed such tasks as loading and cleaning. The district court granted the plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment and ordered relief. The relief ordered by the district court included the following promotion plan. For each uprate or supervisory vacancy, OPS was to create a five-member selection panel, with at least three members of each panel being black. For each vacancy, the panel was to select a group of "best qualified" employees, drawn from employees at the next lowest level. Selection was to be based on validated, job-related performance standards. From the "best qualified" group, the panel was then to select five applicants, based on an evaluation and selection guide. The names and records of the five were then to be forwarded to the superintendent of OPS, who was allowed to select any one of the five to fill the vacancy. There was no requirement that the superintendent choose the best qualified individual. Additionally, OPS also was required to promote black individuals so as to have a specific percentage of specified positions filled by blacks within four years. For uprate, group chief, and assistant foreman positions, 60% of the employees would have to be black. For foreman positions, 50% of the employees would have to be black. Ginsburg did not write the opinion, but she concurred with the appellate court's affirmation of this racial quota plan. Given the failure of the district court to require that the OPS superintendent choose the best qualified individual from among the five finalists for each vacancy, and the court's requirement that 50-60% of the positions be filled by blacks, it is clear that both the district and appellate courts condoned the possible promotion of less qualified individuals because they were black over more qualified individuals who happened to be white. Of course, we cannot assess the qualifications of those who were actually promoted. It is possible that each vacancy was filled by the best qualified candidate and the 50-60% racial quota was still met. It is also possible that the best qualified candidate for each vacancy was always black and that when the 50-60% quota was met, the superintendent unjustly and illegally discriminated against black individuals and chose less qualified individuals because they were white. Nevertheless, the important point is that the 50-60% quota put pressure on the superintendent to promote a black individual even if that person was less qualified than another person who happened to be white. If the best qualified candidate among the five competing for a promotion happened to be white, it was okay with the district and appellate courts if the superintendent promoted a less qualified individual who was black in order to meet the 50-60% quota. There should not have been any pressure to promote a less qualified individual who happened to be black or a less qualified individual who happened to be white. There only should have been pressure to promote the best qualified individuals without regard for their race. If the district and appellate court's primary goal was to have the best qualified person promoted to fill each vacancy, then the OPS superintendent would have been ordered to select the best qualified candidate from among the five finalists and there would not have been a requirement that 50-60% of the positions had to be filled by blacks within four years. The district court's order created the following situation. Given the Civil Rights Act's prohibition against racial discrimination, it would have been illegal for the OPS superintendent to select on the basis of race, a less qualified individual who was white over a more qualified individual who was black. However, the district court made it mandatory for the superintendent to select a less qualified individual who was black over a more qualified individual who was white if that's what it took to meet the quota. The intent of those who enacted the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was to encourage hiring and promotion of the best qualified individuals without regard to race. They shared Martin Luther King's belief that a person should be judged by the content of one's character, not by the color of one's skin. By her conduct, Ginsburg joined a long list of bureaucrats and judges who have continued to view people as members of racial groups first, and as individuals second. Ginsburg's perversion of the Civil Rights Act has helped keep King's dream from becoming reality.

Allan J. Favish is an attorney in Los Angeles. His website is allanfavish.com. James Fernald and Mr. Favish have co-authored a book about what might happen if the government ran Disneyland, entitled "Fireworks! If the Government Ran the Fairest Kingdom of Them All (A Very Unauthorized Fantasy).

Image credit: Caricature by DonkeyHotey via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.
Shares in Permanent TSB shot up 5pc yesterday after Ulster Bank owner NatWest confirmed that it is conducting a strategic review that could see the bank closed or sold.

News that Ulster Bank could be sold or wound down over six years - among the options for review - sent shockwaves through staff, customers and financial markets.

The Department of Finance was not aware closure could be on the cards, it is understood. The Central Bank declined to comment on whether it has been informed of any plans for Ulster Bank.

Reports that the bank's future could be in doubt kicked off a flurry of activity. The bank's own chief executive, Jane Howard, as well as the Financial Services Union (FSU) issued letters to staff, though with no detail beyond what the media had reported.

The union also wrote to Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe seeking an urgent meeting over the threat to 2,500 jobs and to markets served by Ulster Bank.

In a statement to the Irish Independent the minister's spokeswoman said any potential move by NatWest's was "a commercial decision for them", but also said the minister is of the view competition was needed in the bank sector to provide greater choice and lower cost services for customers.

The loss of Ulster Bank, if it happens, would cement the dominance of AIB and Bank of Ireland - the so-called pillar banks - which dwarf every other bank operating here.

On the markets, the immediate beneficiary of the news was Ulster's smaller rival, Permanent TSB. It has been majority State-owned since the last crisis and has long been tipped as a potential merger partner with Ulster Bank - which is majority owned by UK taxpayers via parent NatWest.

A spokeswoman for PTSB declined to say whether the bank will look at a possible deal for some or all of the bank's assets, if the UK bank does move to wind up the Irish bank. A spokeswoman for Belgian owned KBC, which competes with Ulster Bank and PTSB in the mortgage and consumer banking market also declined to comment.

Neither AIB nor Bank of Ireland is likely to be allowed much of Ulster Bank in the event its loan book is broken up and sold off.

Analysts at Davy Stockbrokers said the option of winding down Ulster Bank "does look an extreme option" and in a note to clients speculated that the controversy could be tactical on NatWest's part to "achieve other objectives". That could include drumming up bid interest.

NatWest insisted yesterday that no decision on the future of Ulster Bank had been made, but left open whether the bank has a future.
The Covid-19 pandemic is likely to alter the publishing landscape in the years ahead, but in the pre-virus age, the worlds 10 largest publishers in 2019 were largely the same as in 2018, according to Livres Hebdo/Publishers Weeklys annual ranking of global publishers.

A year after the RELX Group (formerly Reed Elsevier) wrestled away the crown of the worlds largest publisher from longtime leader Pearson, the STM, business, and legal publisher stayed #1 with revenue in 2019 of $5.64 billion, about a 7% increase from 2018. The only change in the top 10 between 2018 and 2019 was in the second and third spots, where Thomson Reuters, with a 3% increase in revenue to $5.28 billion, overtook Pearson and moved into second place on the ranking. Hampered by sluggish higher education sales, Pearson had another year of revenue decline but managed to hold onto third place on the global ranking with sales of $5.09 billion.

The other publishers on the top 10 list in 2019 are in the same positions they were in 2018. Publishers focused on the professional and educational markets took six of the top 10 spots on the global ranking, with the more trade-oriented publishers occupying the other four slots. Revenue for 2019 was basically flat in Bertelsmanns book publishing segments, which include both the worlds largest trade publisher, Penguin Random House, and the companys small but growing education division. Bertelsmann was the #4 publisher in 2019.

How the pandemic will shape publishing going forward is not yet clear, but a couple of events not related to Covid-19 will affect future global rankings. Simon & Schuster, the third-largest trade publisher in the U.S., was put up for sale by new parent company ViacomCBS at the beginning of 2020, and, while the pandemic slowed the sale process, it is expected to soon heat up again. Adding more interest in the fate of S&S was an interview Bertelsmann CEO Thomas Rabe gave the Financial Times in early September, in which he said the German giant would be prepared to make a bid for S&S whenever the sale process resumed. HarperCollins, the second-largest trade publisher in the U.S. and the ninth-largest publisher overall worldwide, is also eyeing S&S. CEO Brian Murray, sources confirmed, told employees at a town hall meeting that HC has an interest in acquiring the publisher.

A company that will not move into the top 10 in 2020 is a merged McGraw-Hill-Cengage. The two educational publishing giants called off their proposed merger in May after a yearlong investigation by the Department of Justice. The companies said the inability to agree with the government on what assets needed to be divested to gain approval for the deal was the reason behind the termination of the transaction. In 2019, McGraw-Hill was the worlds 11th-largest publisher and Cengage was 12th-largest.

The complete list of the worlds largest publishers will appear in an upcoming issue of PW.

Return to the main feature.
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The National Investigation Agency (NIA) said on Saturday it has arrested nine al Qaeda militants who were planning attacks in several locations including the capital New Delhi.

"The group was planning to undertake terrorist attacks at vital installations in India with an aim to kill innocent people and strike terror in their minds," the country's main counter-terrorism arm said in a statement.

Those arrested "were motivated to undertake attacks at multiple places" including the capital region.

Six of the militants were arrested in West Bengal and while three in Kerala, the NIA said, adding the individuals were "associated with Pakistan sponsored module of al Qaeda".

A spokesman for Pakistan's foreign office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Pakistan has often denied giving material support to militants.

India has stepped up an offensive against militants in the Muslim-majority region of Kashmir and elsewhere.

Last year, Indian forces killed the leader of an al Qaeda-affiliated militant group in Kashmir, triggering protests in parts of the disputed region.

In the latest raids, the NIA seized sharp weapons, domestically made firearms and locally fabricated body armour. The nine militants will be produced in court for police custody and further investigation, the agency said.

(Reporting by Aftab Ahmed; Additional reporting by Gibran Peshimam in Islamabad; Editing by Aditya Kalra and William Mallard)
The Nigerian government said it was disrespectful to the sovereignty of the country for any foreign government to apply punitive measures such as visa ban on its citizens.

The Nigerian government made this known in a statement issued by Mr Ferdinand Nwonye, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday in Abuja.

Nigeria was responding to the recent announcement of the U.S. and the United Kingdom to impose visa restrictions on those who undermine electoral processes.

The Nigerian Government said it was committed to providing all necessary logistic, financial and security support to the electoral process.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs wishes to state that the Nigerian government has taken note of the concerns of some of our partners, especially the U.S. and UK governments regarding the elections in Edo and Ondo States.

They have also expressed their intentions to take punitive measures against those who decide to, in what they termed as, undermine democracy.

It is important to highlight that the responsibility for the conduct of elections in Nigeria solely resides with the Independent National Electoral Commission and State Independent Electoral Commissions.

The Federal Government, and especially the President, is committed to providing all necessary logistic, financial and security support to the electoral process.

The President has continually urged all parties and contestants to peacefully conduct themselves before, during and after the elections, and supported patriotic non-governmental initiatives such as the Abdusalami Abubakar-led Peace Committee.

Furthermore, it should be noted that there are ample provisions in our laws to sanction violators and perpetrators of electoral violence and fraud.

It would be considered disrespectful of the sovereignty of Nigeria for any outside authority to sit in judgment over the conduct of our citizens and apply punitive measures such as visa restriction, unilaterally.

While we appreciate the support and encouragement of our international partners such as the EU, we urge our equally valued partners such as the UK and U.S. to cooperate with our relevant agencies, the government said.

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Kate Winslet and Saoirse Ronan in Ammonite. Photo: Neon

This review originally ran in September during the Toronto International Film Festival. We are republishing it ahead of the films U.S. release.

The first time Mary Anning (Kate Winslet) lays eyes on the woman wholl become her lover, the encounter barely even registers. Shes focused on the womans husband at the time  Roderick Murchison (James McArdle), whos stopped by her storefront on the Dorset coast before embarking on an archaeological tour of Europe. Mary is responsible for some major fossil finds, including an ichthyosaur skeleton on display in the British Museum, though as her conversation with Roderick makes clear, shes more of a curiosity in his circles than a colleague. Its aristocratic men like him who are welcomed into the Geological Society of London, not shopkeeping women  all boys together, she bitterly notes to her obliviously enthusiastic visitor, who only wants, and presumes hell be welcome, to accompany her for the day and absorb some of her expertise. Meanwhile, his spouse, Charlotte (Saoirse Ronan), trails behind him like a toy on a string, pallid and silent and unaware that shes on the verge of being left behind while he continues on his travels. Mary pays Charlotte no mind until shes hired to keep the younger woman busy, Roderick believing that walks in the sea air will help his wifes depression.

Love at first sight, its not. Nor is it at second, with Mary impatient with her charge and Charlotte used to softer treatment. It is love, eventually  just not the swooningly soul-deep connection some audiences might be hoping for. Ammonite is a period lesbian romance set by the sea, details which unavoidably bring to mind Portrait of a Lady on Fire, though its a flintier affair, its physicality more expressive than any of the emotions it endeavors to put on display. Its the second feature from Francis Lee, the filmmakers follow-up to Gods Own Country, which was about the relationship between the closeted son of a Yorkshire farm owner and the Romanian worker hired to help with lambing season. Historical setting aside, Ammonite has more in common with Lees 2017 debut than with Celine Sciammas film, especially when it comes to its brusque, emotionally constipated main character. Marys been hardened by her experiences with the scientific establishment and by having to sell her discoveries, like the extinct mollusks of the title, alongside the odd tourist tchotchke to get by. But shes also a prickly, demanding personality who prizes her own carefully carved-out freedom, no matter how lonely it might be. Like Gods Own Country, Ammonite is less about how two people coming together than about how one person reckons with their own intimacy issues.

A lot of that intimacy is forced on Mary when Charlotte falls ill after bathing in the choppy, chilly waters of the Channel in hopes of improving her health. (The rocky gray-on-gray landscapes, shot largely in cool tones by Stephane Fontaine, are an ode to inhospitable English beaches.) Marys not naturally inclined to act as nurturer, but the doctor, played by Gods Own Country star Alec Secareanu, corners her into it by musing that, It is a womans position to care for a fellow sister, is it not? The way that Mary applies a salve to Charlottes chest is decidedly not sisterly at all, and once bridged during that fevered interlude, the initial distance between the women disappears. They walk along the shore, and it seems to brighten to a slightly lighter shade of grim. They share the bed and some laughs over domestic mishaps. Together, they retrieve a heavy specimen from a muddy cliffside. Their first kiss, when it comes, is followed immediately by an impassioned clinch thats only somewhat impeded by all those floor-length layers and thats lightly improbable in its ease. Mary, we glean from her cautious interactions with neighbor Elizabeth Philpot (Fiona Shaw), has had a relationship with a woman before, but Charlotte requires remarkably little by way of a learning curve for someone whos spent much of her adult life being Yellow Wallpapered by her oppressively well-meaning husband.

Its an odd thing to protest, a dearth of awkwardness in the love scenes, but it speaks to how little Ammonite feels like it actually inhabits the world it tries to build. Its a fictionalized narrative about people  Anning, the Murchisons, Philipot  who really existed, but the figures on screen dont feel like ones that have lives that continue beyond the scope of the runtime. Lees use of natural light and sparing dialogue, along with the dirt-under-the-nails tactility of the settings and the frankness of the sex, gives his films an air of naturalistic authenticity that isnt actually supported by his writing. Ammonite leans heavily on those long stretches of silence, ones that are meant to be fraught with all the things that are going unsaid, but more often than not feel like blank spaces on which the audience can project, because theres nothing actually there. Ammonite is Winslets movie to shoulder, and she carries it as far as she can, allowing flashes of terrified longing and desperation to flicker in her interactions with Ronans character as the gruff Mary starts to melt and open up despite herself. But Marys in love with a narrative device, not a person  Charlotte turns out to mostly be a means for Mary to be confronted with everything she might have wanted after stewing in solitary resentment for so long. Ammonite isnt a lush love story, nor does it need to be. Thats not the reason it feels so hollow.
A new survey suggests that up to 10,200 jobs in Wicklow in the hospitality sector could be at risk. (stock photo)

A new survey has found that up to 10,200 jobs in Wicklow in the hospitality sector could be at risk.

Survey results published by the Irish Hotels Federation (IHF) highlight the challenges facing hotels and guesthouses in Wicklow and across the country as demand falls as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The industry body said that an estimated 100,000 jobs had been lost in the hospitality sector so far this year, with another 100,000 jobs nationwide at risk.

The industry survey conducted in the last week of August saw hotels and guesthouses reporting a 70 per cent drop in projected revenues for September compared to this time last year. Bookings for September/October have plunged, with average room occupancy levels at 22 per cent in the Mid-East which includes Wicklow, compared to a national room occupancy of 24 per cent.

Average national room occupancy stood at 49 per cent in July and August, down from the 90 per cent occupancy achieved during these summer months last year.

Gerard O'Brien, chair of the Wicklow branch the Irish Hotels Federation, said that the figures highlight the requirement for further sector specific measures to support Irish tourism.

'Our industry is operating in a quasi-lockdown. The existing supports are totally inadequate for our industry given the current restrictions. If appropriate measures are not put in place, more jobs will be lost. Prior to the Covid crisis, tourism supported 13,900 jobs in Wicklow, contributing 135 million to the local economy. With a predicted revenue loss of 100 million, 10,200 of these jobs are now under threat.

'A severely devastated tourism sector would be a major loss to the economy and society here in Wicklow for many years to come. This can and must be avoided. We are doing everything we can to protect public health whilst also helping to restore the economy and safeguard people's livelihoods, but we face extraordinary challenges. These have been greatly exacerbated by the additional restrictions introduced last month, including limiting indoor gatherings to no more than six people.

'Businesses are, in effect, operating under close to lockdown conditions. This flies in the face of the detailed operational guidelines that are in place, endorsed by the HSE, HSA, HPSC and the FSAI as well as hotels' proven track record in managing gatherings safely. It is our belief that the controlled environment provided by hotels can safely accommodate gatherings of significantly more than six people, which are an essential part of the fabric of Irish life.

'A major frustration for us continues to be the lack of meaningful consultation with our industry in advance of new restrictions being announced by Government. All areas of society negatively impacted by Covid-19 should be consulted, including businesses, when developing the Roadmap for Resilience and Recovery, which is due to be published on September 14. Public health goes hand in hand with ensuring a viable economy when this pandemic has passed.'

Commenting on the additional Government supports required for the tourism industry, Mr O'Brien said: 'The measures contained in the Government's stimulus package do not go far enough to address the unique and existential challenges facing our industry. In particular, they fail to deliver adequate supports around competitiveness and liquidity.'

The IHF has called on the Government to review the six-person limit and to consider reducing the tourism VAT rate to 9 per cent. The industry body also suggested measures to enhance Covid-19 testing.
By Kevin J. OToole

A generation of children has been born since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. What had begun as a picture-perfect morning ended in the thick, acrid smoke that rose from the destroyed World Trade Center. In Washington, D.C., a portion of the Pentagon burned, and in Shanksville, Pa., Flight 93 had crashed, reportedly after passengers aware of the attacks in New York and D.C., prevented the flight from reaching its target in D.C.

In those horrible days after 9/11, we collectively vowed to never forget. For those of us who lived through that day, and more important for those us who loved someone who did not live through that day, that vow to never forget has deep meaning.

Our challenge as the witnesses of 9/11 is to ensure new generations do not forget, either. Seeing the extraordinary display of the 2,977 flags at Cedar Grove High School, a poignant tribute to the souls lost on Sept. 11, 2001, reminded me of how vital it is that future generations understand what we lost.

For the past six years, students at Cedar Grove High School have created this tribute on the anniversary of 9/11. The display is the brainchild of Cedar Grove Board of Education Vice President David Schoner, who saw a similar display, Waves of Flags, at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California. The first year it was created in Cedar Grove, the display consisted solely of the 2,977 flags, one flag for each person killed on 9/11. In subsequent years, the name of each person is placed with each 30-inch flag. Instead of a field of flags  flags representing all the nations from where victims lived  there is a direct connection to each lost soul.

The power of the names is real. I see it, as chairman of the Port Authority, every time I pass by the two pools created in the voids of the Twin Towers, part of the National 9/11 Memorial on the World Trade Center Campus. The names of the dead are engraved around the perimeter of the voids. Saying the names keep the dead alive.

But this year, 9/11 ceremonies were significantly altered because of the coronavirus. Much of what usually was done in person had to occur virtually. In Cedar Grove, students will be taught remotely this fall, but they still volunteered over three days to set up the 2,977 flags with the names.

This past Monday, I was honored to speak at the 9/11 remembrance ceremony at the high school, joined by members of the Port Authority Police Department, its bagpipers and honor guard. Sept 11 is personal to the Port Authority and I am greatly humbled to be part of that agency knowing what many of the people I work with endured that day.

Often, we gather to mourn together. This year, the Port Authoritys annual service of remembrance was virtual, and I recorded my remarks in an empty church. To speak to an empty church was challenging, but also inspiring. It provided a stark reminder to me, staring out at the empty pews, of the people who are no longer with us. The same emotion rises from seeing a field of flags in Cedar Grove.

A new generation is keeping alive the memory of 9/11, reminding us of an incalculable loss  we did not lose just 2,977 people on 9/11, including Cedar Grove residents Norman Rossinow and Jack Eichler, whose memories were honored this year with the planting of two trees. We lost all the things those nearly 3,000 people could have done  the acts of kindness, courage, the couples and families never created or broken apart in a day of tragedy.

As years pass, new generations see our experiences through their own eyes. What we teach them about what we can never forget will define our legacy to generations, present and future.

I am struck by the universality of the Cedar Groves Waves. It was modeled after the display at Pepperdine that can be seen from the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, and here, across the country, a smaller, but equally powerful display flies. From sea to shining sea is more than a lyric in a patriotic song. It speaks of who we are, who were on 9/11, and who we hope to be in the future.

We never will forget.

Kevin J. OToole is the chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

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The royal family of Luxembourg have shared adorable images of their youngest member Prince Charles who was christened today at at the L'abbaye St Maurice.

Born on May 10, the Prince, who is the son of Prince Guillaume, 38, and Princess Stephanie of Luxembourg, 36, wore a traditional Christening gown in the sweet snaps shared by the grand ducal family.

In loving pictures, the proud parents look over-the-moon to be celebrating their four-month-old, who is second-in-line to the throne.

The royal family of Luxembourg have shared adorable images of their youngest member Prince Charles who was christened today at at the L'abbaye St Maurice. Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg and Hereditary Grand Duchess Stephanie of Luxembourg are pictured with their son Prince Charles

Born on May 10, the Prince, who is the son of Prince Guillaume, 38, and Princess Stephanie of Luxembourg, 36, wears a traditional Christening gown in the sweet snaps shared by the grand ducal family

New mother Stephanie donned an orange dress and white heels to the ceremony, while she tied her blonde hair back.

Meanwhile, Prince Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg and heir assumptive to the throne, opted for a navy blue suit and white shirt, with a powder blue tie and pocket square for his son's big day.

At the time of his birth in May, the young Prince could not meet his grandparents Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg, and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa because of social distancing measure put in place to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

But the intimate photos revealed the Grand Duke has finally been able to meet his grandson.

In loving pictures, the proud parents look over-the-moon to be celebrating their four-month-old, who is second-in-line to the throne. He is pictured with his mother

New mother Stephanie donned an orange dress and white heels to the ceremony, while she tied her blonde hair back. Meanwhile, Prince Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg and heir assumptive to the throne, opted for a navy blue suit and white shirt, with a powder blue tie and pocket square for his son's big day

In sweet pictures released in June, the royal baby can be seen enjoying a nap while resting on the side of a large white teddy bear, while others show him peacefully resting in his mother's arms at Fischbah castle.

'It is with great pleasure that Prince Guillaume and Princess Stephanie reveal new pictures of their son Charles,' the Instagram post read.

Dressed in an adorable pair of woolen dungarees with a matching sweater and beige woolen slippers, the second in line to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg looked relaxed and well as he enjoyed the snooze.

The royal family of Luxembourg shared pictures of the adorable Prince Charles on Instagram in June, he was born on May 10

In the sweet pictures, Princess Stephanie and Princess Guillaume exchange tender looks as she holds their son in her arms

New Uncle duty! Also in attendance was Prince Louis of Luxembourg, Princess Claire of Luxembourg and Prince Felix of Luxembourg with their children Princess Amalia and Prince Liam

Prince Sebastien of Luxembourg, Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg and Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg arrive for the baptism of Prince Charles of Luxembourg at the Benedictine Abbey of Saint-Maurice

Charles was photographed by himself, with his mother, with both his parents and with his grandfather Grand Duke Henri.

In one sweet picture, the young prince gazes into the eyes of his mother as she tenderly cradles him with her arms on a white sofa.

In a statement, the Luxembourg royals said they were 'delighted to announce the birth' of their son in May.

It read: 'The Hereditary couple is delighted to announce the birth of their son this Sunday, May 10, 2020 at 5:13 a.m. at the Maternity Grande-Duchesse Charlotte in Luxembourg.

Count Christian and Countess Luisa de Lannoy with their children arrive for the baptism today

Prince Felix of Luxembourg and his son Prince Liam arrive for the baptism of Prince Charles today

'The baby will bear the first names of Charles Jean Philippe Joseph Marie Guillaume. The child weighs 3.190 kg and is 50 cm tall.'

Shortly afterwards, Prince Guillaume spoke with the media about the birth from outside the hospital, with the new father bubbling with excitement over the news.

He said that the couple were 'delighted' to be 'living and sharing' the experience with Luxembourg, particularly because of the challenges of the current coronavirus pandemic.

He explained: 'We are delighted to [have this experience] at a time 'that is difficult for families that have been separated but in the next weeks will see each other again.

'A birth is a message of hope, it's a blessing. This is what we are so happy to share with Luxembourg and all the different countries.'

Shortly after the birth , Prince Guillaume spoke with the media about the birth from outside the hospital, with the new father bubbling with excitement over the news
Amy Coney Barrett, a federal appeals court judge who grew up in Metairie, has emerged as a front-runner in the high-stakes political battle to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court, according to a number of news reports published Saturday.

Barrett, who now lives in Indiana, appears to offer several advantages to President Donald Trump, who tweeted Saturday that he wants to nominate Ginsburgs replacement without delay.

.@GOP We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 19, 2020

One is that Trump is facing calls to name a woman after appointing men to the two Supreme Court vacancies he has filled thus far.

In addition, Barrett is a devout Catholic and a favorite of anti-abortion forces, which form a key pillar of Trumps political support as he seeks re-election on Nov. 3.

At 48, Barrett could serve on the court for decades if confirmed. And if she consistently voted the conservative line, over time she could essentially nullify Ginsburgs liberal record.

Another advantage for Barrett is that she already underwent a time-consuming background check in 2017, when Trump nominated her for a position on the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, based in Chicago. At the time, Barrett was a professor at the University of Notre Dame Law School.

She certainly has an excellent record, said Liz Murrill, who serves as Louisianas solicitor general under Attorney General Jeff Landry. It would be refreshing to have a woman take the next spot.

Ginsburg died on Friday at 87.

Our Views: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg made history, and inspired generations in the process U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was small in stature, but shell be remembered as a towering figure in the countrys long strug

Other potential nominees with Louisiana ties are James Ho and Kyle Duncan, both of whom were nominated by Trump to serve as judges on the New Orleans-based U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. Duncan is a Baton Rouge native and LSU Law School graduate. A third potential nominee, William Pryor, is a graduate of the University of Louisiana at Monroe who earned his law degree from Tulane University and now serves as Chief Judge of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta.

Only hours after Ginsburgs death, political insiders in Washington went into overdrive in analyzing the path for Trumps soon-to-be-named nominee to win Senate confirmation with at least 51 votes. Republicans hold a 53-47 advantage.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, sent a Dear Colleague letter to his Republican members Friday night imploring them to keep your powder dry and not say anything they would regret.

Will Donald Trump's pick to succeed Ruth Bader Ginsburg get Senate vote? Mitch McConnell says yes WASHINGTON (AP)  The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday cast an immediate spotlight on the vacancy on the high cour

Sen. John Kennedy, a Republican from Madisonville, will play an especially important role in the nomination because he is one of the 11 members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the first step for the nominee.

Kennedy has been a consistent supporter of Trump, but also helped sink three of the presidents federal judge nominees who he didnt believe were qualified.

Kennedy was not available for comment Saturday, said a spokesperson.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Republican from Baton Rouge, has not taken a high profile on judicial nominees but has voted consistently with Trump.

Cassidy is likely to face questions about his position if he supports voting this year. When McConnell blocked President Barack Obama from filling a Supreme Court vacancy that occurred in February 2016, nearly nine months before that years election, he argued that it was up to voters and the next president to make that selection. After winning the election, Trump filled that vacancy with Neil Gorsuch, who has been a reliable conservative vote.

In 2016, the Washington Post reported that Cassidy was open to meeting with Obamas nominee, Merrick Garland, but would not allow a vote on him.

In July 2018, Cassidy took a similar view when he wrote Daniel Brook, a New Orleans constituent, that as you may know, the precedent over the last nearly 80 years is that Supreme Court nominees are not jointly nominated and confirmed during a presidential election year.

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As a result, Cassidy, who is running for re-election, will face accusations of hypocrisy if he supports replacing Ginsburg this year.

He was not available to comment on Saturday, said a spokesperson.

Shreveport Mayor Adrian Perkins, Cassidys main Democratic opponent in the Senate race, said Republicans should not attempt to replace Ginsburg before the election.

I believe Senate Republicans should follow the precedent they established in 2016 and defer filling this vacancy to the next President and Senate elected by the people, Perkins said in a statement.

Louisiana senators Kennedy, Cassidy awaiting testimony from Kavanaugh accuser WASHINGTON  Both of Louisianas Republican U.S. senators, who endorsed Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh earlier this month, said a heari

If Barrett is nominated and wins confirmation, she would become just the second Louisiana native to serve on the nations top court.

Edward Douglass White Jr., a former U.S. senator from Thibodaux, served as an associate justice from 1894-1910 and as chief justice from 1910-21.

A statue of him stands in front of the Louisiana Supreme Court in the French Quarter. But the statue is fenced in now to protect it from protesters who believe that his votes to help disenfranchise Black voters for generations -- including his support for the infamous Plessy v. Ferguson case -- make him a symbol of oppression.

Barrett grew up in Old Metairie as the oldest of seven children, and graduated from St. Marys Dominican High School in New Orleans in 1990.

She received her undergraduate degree from Rhodes College in Tennessee and her law degree from Notre Dame. In a 1998 interview with the East Jefferson Picayune, she said she had planned to return to New Orleans to practice law and raise a family. But instead she took a teaching job at Notre Dame.

Her father, Mike, was a long-time attorney for Shell Oil, while her mother, Linda, focused on raising the children.

In April 2018, Dominican named Barrett as its alumna of the year, recognizing her as a woman who instills Christian moral values while urging the practice of ethical behaviors as demonstrated through her dedication to family, public service or career.

Barrett has seven children and proudly showed off several of them during her 2017 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. She noted that she and her husband adopted two of their children from Haiti, while another child has special needs and is the favorite of all the children.

During that hearing, Sen. Diane Feinstein, D-California, sharply questioned Barrett on whether her deep Catholic beliefs would allow her to issue judicial rulings faithful to the law.

Dogma and law are two different things, Feinstein told Barrett during the hearings. And I think whatever a religion is, it has its own dogma. The law is totally different. And I think in your case, professor, when you read your speeches, the conclusion one draws is that the dogma lives loudly within you, and thats of concern."

Feinsteins acidic comments ironically benefitted Barrett by making her a favorite of social conservatives, who saw Feinsteins line of questioning as anti-Catholic and more broadly anti-religious. Barrett made the short-list for the vacancy that Trump filled in 2018 with Brett Kavanaugh.

Looming in the background of the 2017 hearing -- and over Trumps eventual nominee to the court this time -- is the viability of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which legalized abortion across America. Pro-choice forces fear adding another conservative to the high court will spell the end of the right to an abortion nationwide.

One enthusiastic admirer of Barrett is Sharon Rodi, a retired New Orleans attorney who is the National Delegate to National Right to Life for Louisiana Right to Life, the states leading anti-abortion group.

At Rodis invitation, through Catholic Women in Action, Barrett was scheduled to speak to the public in March at her home church, St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Metairie. She had already planned to be in New Orleans to speak to students at Dominican High School. The coronavirus scrubbed both events, however.

I believe shes a strict constitutionalist, said Rodi. Shes definitely committed to the Constitution and doing what our forefathers wanted to be done.
Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg speaks during a discussion on the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment at Georgetown University Law Center in Washington on Feb. 10, 2020. (Patrick Semansky/AP Photo)

Ginsburgs Wish to Family: I Will Not Be Replaced Until a New President Is Installed

Days before her death, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dictated a wish to her granddaughter related to the 2020 presidential election.

My most fervent wish is that I will not be replaced until a new president is installed, Ginsburg told her granddaughter, Clara Spera, according to NPR.

The Supreme Court said in a statement on Sept. 18 that Ginsburg, 87, passed away in the evening surrounded by her family at her home in Washington from complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer.

Ginsburgs late wish will surely figure prominently in the debate thats likely to ensue if President Donald Trump goes forward with appointing a new Supreme Court justice before the election on Nov. 3. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has said that he would move forward with approving a justice should an opening come up ahead of Election Day.

President Bill Clinton appointed Ginsburg to the Supreme Court in 1993 and she has served for 27 years since.

Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague, Chief Justice John Roberts said of Ginsburg. Today, we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew hera tireless and resolute champion of justice.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg participates in a discussion hosted by the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington on Sept. 12, 2019. (Sarah Silbiger/Reuters)

Trump has recently announced a list of potential Supreme Court picks, including Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.)

Apart from matters of war and peace, the nomination of a Supreme Court Justice is the most important decision an American president can make, Trump said at the White House in Washington.

The president has already appointed two Supreme Court Justices, Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch. Kavanaughs confirmation turned into a political spectacle after Senate Democrats late in the process unveiled a complaint from a woman who accused Kavanaugh of misconduct. The womans allegations proved unsubstantiated and Kavanaugh was confirmed, but not before a dramatic Senate hearing which captured the attention of the nation.

A private service for Ginsburg will be held at Arlington National Ceremony in Virginia, the court wrote.

People gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

The national flag flies at half staff as people gather to mourn the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the steps in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, on Sept. 18, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Trump warned of a dismal future if the Supreme Court ever included a majority of Democrat-appointed justices, claiming they would erase the Second Amendment, silence political speech, require taxpayers to fund extreme late-term abortion.

In the recent past, many of our most treasured freedoms including religious liberty, free speech, and the right to keep and bear arms, have been saved by a single vote on the United States Supreme Court, he said.

Ginsburg spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the courts left wing and became something of a rock star to her admirers. Young women especially seemed to embrace her, calling her the Notorious RBG on Twitter.

Her health issues included five bouts with cancer beginning in 1999, falls that resulted in broken ribs, insertion of a stent to clear a blocked artery, and assorted other hospitalizations after she turned 75.

She resisted calls by some liberals to retire during former President Barack Obamas presidency at a time when Democrats held the Senate and a replacement with similar views could have been confirmed.

Jack Phillips contributed to this report.
While progress has been made over the years on these issues, you can tell from this survey we have a long way to go to educating all white people about our Black community challenges.

Those white people who have developed a better understanding of Black community challenges over the years should join forces in educating other white people, including those who live in rural communities. They have a much bigger responsibility for speaking out on behalf of our unheard Black voices. And this must go beyond simply posting views on social media.

Together, we must reach out to our elected officials of both political parties and make policy recommendations to eradicate implicit bias and racism from each of our local communities.

We also need to develop some educational and training programs for police that teach them how to protect the human rights of all people. This training should include some real-life success stories. The Department of Sociology at UW-La Crosse is developing such a program.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, WASHINGTON, USA

Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg, then a Supreme Court nominee, is greeted by her husband, Martin, as she introduced her family during her confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 20, 1993. Credit - John DurickaAP/REX/Shutterstock

In her years as a lawyer and then on the Supreme Court bench, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died of complications from metastatic pancreatic cancer on Sept. 18, 2020, earned a deserved reputation as a warrior for gender equality. As the Notorious RBG became a pop culture icon later in her life, that reputation only solidified, as evidenced by the release of two separate films in 2018 that centered on her long legal career: the documentary RBG and Mimi Leders biopic On the Basis of Sex. Both movies show Ginsburgs toughness and her grit, and extensively describe her lifelong work to end sex discrimination in the law.

Its definitely the case that as a result of the work that she led, [the discrimination that] was once really common in the law no longer is, Emily Martin, the vice president for education and workplace justice at the National Womens Law Center, told TIME in a previous interview.

In that work, fittingly, she had an important partner: her husband, Martin. Just as Ginsburg will be remembered professionally for her hard-earned legacy of breaking barriers for women in the courts, she also leaves behind an important lesson from her personal life, about how a modern marriage can be a partnership.

Martin D. Ginsburg and Ruth Bader Ginsburg in the fall of 1954 when Martin was serving in the Army. Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States

Ginsburg herself said, when the movie premiered in New York, that the depiction of Martin in On the Basis of Sex (written by Ginsburgs nephew, Daniel Stiepleman) did her husband justice  even as she joked that actor Armie Hammer was definitely much taller than the real Martin, a tax attorney who died in 2010.

The way Hammer effortlessly chopped vegetables at the kitchen counter as the primary chef in their home, a glass of wine within reach  That was Marty, she said.

Story continues

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg with her husband, Martin. The Washington Post/Getty Images

The couple first met as undergraduates at Cornell University. In an interview with NPRs Nina Totenberg in July of 2016, Ginsburg said that Martin, who was one year her senior, immediately made an impression. I many times said that Marty Ginsburg was the first boy I met who cared that I had a brain, she said.

They wed in 1954 and this first impression held true throughout 56 years of marriage, as Ginsburg expressed emphatically in various interviews, including at the On the Basis of Sex premiere in 2018.

The two were as much of a team as two people can be. Soon after Ruth began law school at Harvard in 1956  one of only nine women in a class of roughly 500 men  Martin, who was one year ahead at the school, fell ill. He had testicular cancer, a diagnosis that required a number of surgeries and radiation therapy. Ruth, raising their toddler daughter, Jane, continued shining academically at Harvard Law while caring for a sick husband. That care included helping Martin pass (and excel in) his classes, too.

Ginsburg has said that after a day of her own classes, receiving notes for Martins from his peers, preparing dinner for the family, caring for a sick Marty and typing his senior paper, per his dictation, she would return to her own coursework at around 2 a.m.

She remained at the top of her class at Harvard, rarely getting more than three hours of sleep per night.

Photograph by Sebastian KimAUGUST for TIME

Despite all of her hard work, the country wasnt quite ready for Ruth Bader Ginsburg. After graduating from Columbia Law School in 1959having transferred there from Harvard after the Dean wouldnt allow her to complete course work in New York, where Martin had to go for workshe still couldnt find a job at a law firm. Some judges wouldnt allow her to clerk for them, explicitly telling her it was because of her gender.

Only about one in three married women worked outside the home in 1960, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a rate which doubled by the end of the 20th century. Furthermore, between 1960 and 1983, the percentage of women lawyers increased from just 2 to 15, a 1984 New York Times Magazine article reported. So it was no surprise that when she sought to practice law at the start of the 1960s, she ran into trouble. Ginsburg eventually got a job, but it wasnt practicing law directly. She was hired as a law professor at Rutgers University, where she remained for nearly decade. Meanwhile, Martin soared in his own career, and he and Ruth had their second child, James, in 1965. All along, Martin made it clear that Ruths success, not just his own, mattered for their family.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, her husband, Martin, and their children, James and Jane, in a boat off the shore of St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, December 1980. Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States

There is a telling moment in On the Basis of Sex that highlights how the Ginsburgs relationship differed from what might have been expected at the time. The two are at a party with Martins colleagues during Ruths tenure as a law professor. The women at the party are chatting, and at the other side of the room, the men tell jokes about law. Ruth walks around looking uncomfortable until she concedes to casually join in on the mens conversation. The image of one woman in a party dress among the dark-suited men is stark.

Hammers Martin smiles, welcoming his wife to join the conversation.

Martin Ginsburgs vehement support of his wife held so strong that he presented her with one of his cases: a tax case concerning gender discrimination against a man. The Ginsburgs argued the case, Moritz v. Commissioner, together, in 1972, marking the first big win for Ruth and the start of a series of cases that began to break down the laws that allowed men and women to be treated differently.

Ruths ascension as a star lawyer paralleled her countrys growing acceptance of gender equality, as she founded the Womens Rights Project at the ACLU and began to pave the way for her own future on the Supreme Court.

Ruth Bader Ginsberg is sworn in as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, as President Bill Clinton stands behind her and her husband, Martin, holds the bible in 1993. Mark ReinsteinCorbis/Getty Images

Martins role in Ruths career didnt end with that 1972 case. Her husband made it his mission to secure her nomination on the Supreme Court. Well, he was my campaign manager, Ruth told Totenberg in 2018 at the On the Basis of Sex premiere. A well-known tax law professor at Georgetown University, Martin began lobbying womens rights organizations and sending letters to the press. Sure enough, President Bill Clinton nominated Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg to become a Supreme Court Justice in 1993.

I have had the great good fortune to share life with a partner truly extraordinary for his generation, a man who believed at age 18 when we met, and who believes today, that a womans work, whether at home or on the job, is as important as a mans, Ruth said in her Supreme Court confirmation hearing.

And, importantly, beyond this firm supportthere was always love.

Martin Ginsburg wrote one final letter to Ruth before he died in 2010. You, he wrote, are the only person I have loved in my life.
3D Printing Ceramics Market Research Report by Type (Fused Silica, Glass, and Quartz), by Form (Filament, Liquid, and Powder), by End User - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19

New York, Sept. 18, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "3D Printing Ceramics Market Research Report by Type, by Form, by End User - Global Forecast to 2025 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05951070/?utm_source=GNW



The Global 3D Printing Ceramics Market is expected to grow from USD 81.64 Million in 2019 to USD 272.97 Million by the end of 2025 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 22.28%.



Market Segmentation & Coverage:

This research report categorizes the 3D Printing Ceramics to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following sub-markets:



Based on Type , the 3D Printing Ceramics Market studied across Fused Silica, Glass, and Quartz.



Based on Form , the 3D Printing Ceramics Market studied across Filament, Liquid, and Powder.



Based on End User , the 3D Printing Ceramics Market studied across Aerospace & Defense, Automotive, Consumer Goods & Electronics, Healthcare, and Manufacturing & Construction.



Based on Geography, the 3D Printing Ceramics Market studied across Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe, Middle East & Africa. The Americas region surveyed across Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and United States. The Asia-Pacific region surveyed across Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand. The Europe, Middle East & Africa region surveyed across France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, United Arab Emirates, and United Kingdom.



Company Usability Profiles:

The report deeply explores the recent significant developments by the leading vendors and innovation profiles in the Global 3D Printing Ceramics Market including 3D Systems, Inc., 3DCeram, CRP Group, ENVISIONTEC, INC., EOS GmbH Electro Optical Systems, ExOne, Lithoz GmbH, Materialise NV, Renishaw plc., Stratasys, Ltd., and Tethon3D.



FPNV Positioning Matrix:

The FPNV Positioning Matrix evaluates and categorizes the vendors in the 3D Printing Ceramics Market on the basis of Business Strategy (Business Growth, Industry Coverage, Financial Viability, and Channel Support) and Product Satisfaction (Value for Money, Ease of Use, Product Features, and Customer Support) that aids businesses in better decision making and understanding the competitive landscape.



Competitive Strategic Window:

The Competitive Strategic Window analyses the competitive landscape in terms of markets, applications, and geographies. The Competitive Strategic Window helps the vendor define an alignment or fit between their capabilities and opportunities for future growth prospects. During a forecast period, it defines the optimal or favorable fit for the vendors to adopt successive merger and acquisition strategies, geography expansion, research & development, and new product introduction strategies to execute further business expansion and growth.



Cumulative Impact of COVID-19:

COVID-19 is an incomparable global public health emergency that has affected almost every industry, so for and, the long-term effects projected to impact the industry growth during the forecast period. Our ongoing research amplifies our research framework to ensure the inclusion of underlaying COVID-19 issues and potential paths forward. The report is delivering insights on COVID-19 considering the changes in consumer behavior and demand, purchasing patterns, re-routing of the supply chain, dynamics of current market forces, and the significant interventions of governments. The updated study provides insights, analysis, estimations, and forecast, considering the COVID-19 impact on the market.



The report provides insights on the following pointers:

1. Market Penetration: Provides comprehensive information on the market offered by the key players

2. Market Development: Provides in-depth information about lucrative emerging markets and analyzes the markets

3. Market Diversification: Provides detailed information about new product launches, untapped geographies, recent developments, and investments

4. Competitive Assessment & Intelligence: Provides an exhaustive assessment of market shares, strategies, products, and manufacturing capabilities of the leading players

5. Product Development & Innovation: Provides intelligent insights on future technologies, R&D activities, and new product developments



The report answers questions such as:

1. What is the market size and forecast of the Global 3D Printing Ceramics Market?

2. What are the inhibiting factors and impact of COVID-19 shaping the Global 3D Printing Ceramics Market during the forecast period?

3. Which are the products/segments/applications/areas to invest in over the forecast period in the Global 3D Printing Ceramics Market?

4. What is the competitive strategic window for opportunities in the Global 3D Printing Ceramics Market?

5. What are the technology trends and regulatory frameworks in the Global 3D Printing Ceramics Market?

6. What are the modes and strategic moves considered suitable for entering the Global 3D Printing Ceramics Market?

Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05951070/?utm_source=GNW



About Reportlinker

ReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place.



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CONTACT: Clare: clare@reportlinker.com US: (339)-368-6001 Intl: +1 339-368-6001




Ahoy! Good news View(s):

The three friends had gathered under the margosa tree and were discussing about returnees from West Asia amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Mata hari santhosai mage yaluwo dennek pita ratin Lankawata giya sumane apu nisa. Hariyata duk vindala thiyenawa padi nethuwa. (I am happy that two of my friends from West Asia returned to Sri Lanka last week. They had been suffering abroad without proper pay), said Kussi Amma Sera. Eh gollo den nirodayanaya wenawa athi ne (So they must be in quarantine), asked Serapina. Ow, sumana dekak, ita passe gedera thawa sumana dekak. Evunata prashnayak ne (Yes, two weeks in quarantine, then two more weeks in home quarantine, but they are ok), replied Kussi Amma Sera. Eka prashnayak thama pita ratin aapahu ena kattiya goda denekta vairasaya bo wela thiyena eka. Me arbudaya kavada evara weida danne ne (One of the problems is that many of the returnees are infected by COVID-19. I dont know when this crisis will end), said a worried Mabel Rasthiyadu. The three friends had gathered under the margosa tree and were discussing about returnees from West Asia amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Mata hari santhosai mage yaluwo dennek pita ratin Lankawata giya sumane apu nisa. Hariyata duk vindala thiyenawa padi nethuwa. (I am happy that two of my friends from West Asia returned to Sri Lanka last week. They had been suffering abroad without proper pay), said Kussi Amma Sera. Eh gollo den nirodayanaya wenawa athi ne (So they must be in quarantine), asked Serapina. Ow, sumana dekak, ita passe gedera thawa sumana dekak. Evunata prashnayak ne (Yes, two weeks in quarantine, then two more weeks in home quarantine, but they are ok), replied Kussi Amma Sera. Eka prashnayak thama pita ratin aapahu ena kattiya goda denekta vairasaya bo wela thiyena eka. Me arbudaya kavada evara weida danne ne (One of the problems is that many of the returnees are infected by COVID-19. I dont know when this crisis will end), said a worried Mabel Rasthiyadu.

The good news this week is that despite mounting problems faced by Sri Lankas migrant workers abroad, worker remittances rose in July, according to the latest data released by the Central Bank. Worker remittances rose by 12.2 per cent in July 2020, year-on-year, to US$702 million. However, on a cumulative basis, these remittances declined by 5.5 per cent to $3,682 million during JanuaryJuly 2020 compared to the corresponding period of 2019. With more workers returning, the level of remittances in 2020 is certain to be lower than in 2019.

The level of gross official reserves of the country increased to $7.1 billion by end July owing to the receipt of the SAARCFINANCE swap facility from the Reserve Bank of India. Net inflows to the domestic foreign exchange market eased the pressure on the exchange rate and enabled the Central Bank to absorb foreign exchange on a net basis to build up gross official reserves, the bank said when releasing its July data.

The other bit of good news (Sri Lanka is starved for good news these days with COVID-19 casting a shadow over the countrys economy), is that earnings from merchandise exports continued to increase to $1,085 million in July from $894 million recorded in June 2020, with the gradual recovery of both domestic and global supply and demand chains and efforts by the government to support the export industries. On a year-on-year basis, earnings from merchandise exports recorded a growth of 8.7 per cent in July, with the Central Bank saying that this positive growth observed for the first time since February 2020 came from increased earnings from all three major categories of exports  agricultural, industrial and mineral exports.

As I moved away from the office window, watching the trio in conversation, the phone rang. It was my jolly-mood economist friend, Sammiya (short for Samson) on the line, most probably wanting to discuss an economic issue. Hello Sammiya, whats happening, I asked in a welcoming tone. Oh, I was going through the Central Bank economic data for July 2020 and find that the economic situation may have improved, he said.

Agreed this is a silver lining in the misery of the previous months that Sri Lankans have had to endure amidst COVID-19, I said. I hope this trend will continue, he said and then we indulged in a long conversation on a variety of topics including the extended ban on imported vehicles and the 20th amendment to the Constitution, which is certain to be passed in Parliament with the ruling party having a steamroller majority.

However, not everything was hunky-dory this week. According to the Export Development Board (EDB) this week, Sri Lankas exports last month (August) recorded a downfall of 19.2 per cent to $947.7 million compared to $1,033.3 million recorded in the same month of last year. Despite the decline in exports, the EDB said some products like coconut-based products, electrical and electronic components, spices and essential oils and food and beverages recorded positive growth.

EDB Chairman Prabhash Subasinghe was quoted as saying that it was still remarkable for Sri Lanka to achieve another month of almost a billion dollars of exports. However, we are being watchful of the months ahead whilst understanding the impact of COVID-19 on our key markets of US and Europe. We also need to focus on export product and market diversification which is seriously lacking today, he said, in a statement.

While the positive news is that exports are picking up, some companies in the export sector like Hayleys are showing good results. In the first quarter (April-June) of the 2020-21 year, Hayleys recorded a pre-tax profit of Rs. 1.17 billion compared to a profit of Rs. 285.26 million in the corresponding quarter of 2019/20. The improvement in profitability reflects the strong performance of the groups export-oriented businesses and ongoing focus on driving cost efficiencies, the company said in a statement, adding that the groups purification and hand protection sectors have a strong pipeline of orders.

The two big issues are apparel and tourism, which are yet to recover. In the case of apparel, no orders are forthcoming for September and October, while winter orders are also uncertain.

Sri Lankas biggest problem is the impact COVID-19 has had on the tourism and leisure sector. Unlike other sectors, tourism has been shut off completely with the closure of the Bandaranaike International Airport and the Mattala International Airport to tourist arrivals. Only repatriation flights and some other emergency flights are operating through these airports, while the worrying news is that there is no date set for the reopening of the countrys borders to tourism.

In the absence of tourist arrivals, tourism authorities are working on preparing for health and safety certification by an auditor with 160 hotels seeking this certification. With the number of COVID-19 patients rising in India (Sri Lankas biggest tourism source market), the UK and other parts of Europe, health authorities are justifiably exercising extreme caution in giving the go-ahead to open the doors to tourism.

With no signs of the airport being opened in October or November, tourism industry officials say that there is no 2020 winter season for Sri Lanka and that the industry needs to prepare for the 2021 winter season, more than 12 months from now. Tourist arrivals generally peak during the European winter (November to March) period.

With the reduction to one repatriation flight a day and that too on a limited basis, since the quarantine centres are filling up fast and many returnees from West Asia are testing positive for COVID-19, the slow process of repatriating the 50,000-odd workers still seeking to return must cause a lot of anxiety and concern to those waiting to board a flight back to their homeland.

Mage yaluwo godak thaama balagena innawa pita ratin apahu enna (There are still many friends from West Asia who want to come back), said Kussi Amma Sera, bringing in a second mug of tea and breaking my trend of thought. Aanduwa uparima karanawa (The government is doing its best), I said in response. With exports picking up and savings on import costs due to curbs on imports, Sri Lanka may end up with an improved trade deficit in 2020.
Downing Street has insisted that its threat to override the Brexit withdrawal agreement will not undermine the peace process in Northern Ireland, after US presidential favourite Joe Biden warned that a future trade accord is off the table if Westminster does not respect the Good Friday Agreement.

In his first direct intervention in the row over Boris Johnsons spat with Brussels, the Democrat candidate to replace Donald Trump tweeted last night: We cant allow the Good Friday Agreement that brought peace to Northern Ireland to become a casualty of Brexit.

Any trade deal between the US and UK must be contingent upon respect for the Agreement and preventing the return of a hard border. Period.

His comments echoed warnings from House speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democrat members of Congress, who have been vocal in their opposition to a trade accord between the two countries if the UK acts in a way that it believes will undermine the peace in Northern Ireland.

The presidential hopefuls intervention sparked an angry reaction from Brexiteers, including former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith who said he would not take lectures on the peace process from Mr Biden and advised him to focus on the need for a peace deal in riot-hit US cities.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 18 January 2022 Surfers enter the sea as the sun rises over Tynemouth on the North East coast PA UK news in pictures 17 January 2022 Bonhams Danny McIlwraith holds a Nigerian polycrome carved wood mask during a photocall for the sale of the Jim Lennon Collection at Bonhams in Edinburgh PA UK news in pictures 16 January 2022 The moon rises above the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth, Hampshire PA UK news in pictures 15 January 2022 Demonstrators outside Downing Street during a Kill The Bill protest against The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill in London PA UK news in pictures 14 January 2022 Ecologist Emma Smart (left) and retired GP Dr Diana Warner outside HMP Bronzefield, in Surrey, following their release from the prison where Emma undertook a 26-day hunger strike during her incarceration. Ms Smart was sentenced in November, along with other members of Insulate Britain, to serve four months for breaking a High Court injunction by taking part in a blockade at junction 25 of the M25 motorway during the morning rush hour on 8 October last year PA UK news in pictures 13 January 2022 A TV presenter holds a copy of a newspaper outside 10 Downing Streetafter the Prime Minister apologised for attending a gathering of colleagues in the Number Ten garden in May 2020, while the UK was in strict lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic Getty UK news in pictures 12 January 2022 Fitness guru Derrick Evans after receiving an MBE during an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 11 January 2022 A couple walk underneath an umbrella during wet weather on Westminster Bridge in central London PA UK news in pictures 10 January 2022 A jogger passes the Covid Memorial Wall in London AP UK news in pictures 9 January 2021 The sun rises over horses at Seaton Sluice in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 8 January 2022 Riders compete during the Veterans Men's race at the UK Cyclo-Cross National Championships 2022 in Ardingly, south of London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 7 January 2022 A dog looks out of a car window at the wintry conditions in Killeshin, Co. Laois PA UK news in pictures 6 January 2022 People walk through frost and mist alongside a frozen lake during sunrise in Bushy Park, London REUTERS UK news in pictures 5 January 2022 A skier jumps on the slopes at Allenheads in the Pennines to the north of Weardale in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 4 January 2022 Freshly-fallen snow covers houses in Corbridge, near Hexham in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 3 January 2022 Dean Morrison, 13, receives his Covid-19 vaccine from student nurse Anthony McLaughlin during a vaccination clinic at the Glasgow Central Mosque PA UK news in pictures 2 January 2022 Konastantinos Tsimikas of Liverpool with Chelseas Mason Mount during the Premier League match at Stamfrod Bridge Liverpool FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 January 2022 New Years Eve Lasers, drones and fireworks illuminate the sky in front of the Royal Naval College in Greenwich shortly after midnight in London EPA UK news in pictures 31 December 2021 Competitors in fancy dress run across the Pennine tops near Haworth, West Yorkshire, in the annual Auld Lang Syne Fell race which attracts hundreds of runners every year PA UK news in pictures 30 December 2021 Sunrise at Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland PA UK news in pictures 29 December 2021 The Very Revd Dr Robert Willis, Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, looks at Becket, a six month old red-billed chough as he visits Wildwood Wildlife Park in Kent on the anniversary of the murder of Thomas Becket PA UK news in pictures 28 December 2021 Troops of the Household Cavalry are seen reflected in a puddle during the changing of the Queens Life Guard, on Horse Guards Parade, in central London PA UK news in pictures 27 December 2021 A pedestrian walks past a winter sale sign outside a John Lewis store on Oxford street in London Getty UK news in pictures 26 December 2021 Riders take their bikes through the snow near Castleside, County Durham PA UK news in pictures 25 December 2021 Patrick Corkery wears a santa hat and beard as waves crash over him at Forty Foot near Dublin during a Christmas Day dip PA UK news in pictures 24 December 2021 People stand inside Kings Cross Station on Christmas Eve in London Reuters UK news in pictures 23 December 2021 Christmas shoppers fill the car park at Fosse Shopping Park in Leicester PA UK news in pictures 22 December 2021 The sun rises behind the stones as people gather for the winter solstice at Stonehenge. Getty UK news in pictures 21 December 2021 People take part in a winter solstice swim at Portobello Beach in Edinburgh to mark the solstice and to witness the dawn after the longest night of the year PA UK news in pictures 20 December 2021 An auction employee displays poultry to buyers and sellers attending the Christmas Poultry Sale at York Auction Centre in Murton PA UK news in pictures 19 December 2021 Joao Moutinho of Wolverhampton Wanderers looks on during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Chelsea at Molineux Getty Images UK news in pictures 18 December 2021 Freight lorries queuing at the port of Dover in Kent PA UK news in pictures 17 December 2021 Newly elected Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan, bursts 'Boris' bubble' held by colleague Tim Farron, as she celebrates following her victory in the North Shropshire by-election PA UK news in pictures 16 December 2021 Brussels sprouts are harvested by workers as they prepare for the busy Christmas period near Boston in Lincolnshire PA UK news in pictures 15 December 2021 Lewis Hamilton is made a Knight Bachelor by the Prince of Wales at Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 14 December 2021 The Royal Liver Buildings surrounded by early morning fog in Liverpool PA UK news in pictures 13 December 2021 People queue outside a walk-in Covid-19 vaccination centre at St Thomas's Hospital in Westminster Getty Images UK news in pictures 12 December 2021 People take part in the Big Leeds Santa Dash in Roundhay Park, Leeds PA UK news in pictures 11 December 2021 People arrive at a Covid-19 vaccination centre at Elland Road in Leeds, PA UK news in pictures 10 December 2021 Stella Moris speaks to the media after the US Government won its High Court bid to overturn a judges decision not to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange PA UK news in pictures 9 December 2021 Camels are lead around Salisbury Cathedral during a rehearsal for the Christmas Eve Service PA UK news in pictures 8 December 2021 Margaret Keenan and Nurse May Parsons, a year after Margaret was the first person in the UK to receive the Pfizer vaccine PA UK news in pictures 7 December 2021 Snowfall in Leadhills, South Lanarkshire as Storm Barra hits the UK with disruptive winds, heavy rain and snow PA UK news in pictures 6 December 2021 A person tries to avoid sea spray on New Brighton promenade in Wallasey as the UK readies for the arrival of Storm Barra Getty UK news in pictures 5 December 2021 People release balloons during a tribute to six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes outside Emma Tustin's former address in Solihull, West Midlands, where he was murdered by his stepmother PA UK news in pictures 4 December 2021 People walk through a Christmas market in Trafalgar Square Reuters UK news in pictures 3 December 2021 A pedestrian carries a dog as they dodge shoppers on Oxford Street in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 2 December 2021 Duchess of Cambridge inspects a Faberge egg at the Victoria and Albert Museum Getty UK news in pictures 1 December 2021 Meerkats at London Zoo with an advent calendar PA UK news in pictures 30 November 2021 Workers put the finishing touches to the Trafalgar Square Christmas Tree ahead of the lighting ceremony later in the week PA

But Downing Street took a conciliatory tone, stressing that it would engage with US partners to ensure that its position is understood.

The prime minister has been clear throughout that we are taking these steps precisely to make sure that the Belfast Agreement is upheld in all circumstances and any harmful defaults (from the withdrawal agreement) do not inadvertently come into play, said a No 10 spokesman.

We continue to remain absolutely committed to no hard border and no border infrastructure between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

We will continue to engage with our US partners on a bipartisan basis to ensure that our positions are understood.

Foreign secretary Dominic Raab has gone to Washington to brief secretary of state Mike Pompeo and Ms Pelosi on the governments plans, but has not met with Mr Biden.

Brexit-backing Tories gave short shrift to Mr Bidens comments.

Mr Duncan Smith told The Times: We dont need lectures on the Northern Ireland peace deal from Mr Biden. If I were him I would worry more about the need for a peace deal in the USA to stop the killing and rioting before lecturing other sovereign nations.

And former Brexit secretary David Davis said: Perhaps Mr Biden should talk to the EU since the only threat of an invisible border in Ireland would be if they insisted on levying tariffs.

Conor Burns tweeted: Hey Joe Biden, would you like to discuss the Good Friday agreement? It is also called the Belfast Agreement so it doesnt offend both traditions. Did you actually know that? I was born in NI and Im a Catholic and a Unionist. Here if you need help.

But shadow foreign secretary Lisa Nandy said that Mr Bidens remark shows the scale of the damage the government have done to Britains standing in the world.

She added: Theyve lost trust and undermined co-operation at the moment we most need it  and all to tear up an agreement they negotiated. Reckless, incompetent and utterly self-defeating.

Any trade agreement between Washington and Westminster would require the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives approval before being passed.

On Tuesday, the Houses Foreign Affairs Committee said it was disturbed to hear reports of Mr Johnsons threat to take on unilateral powers to override elements of the withdrawal agreement relating to the Irish border in a way which the government admits would breach international law.

In a letter to the prime minister, the committee said: Many in the United States and in Congress consider the issues of the Good Friday Agreement and a potential US-UK Free Trade Agreement inextricably linked, adding that if the UK governments reported plans went ahead it would be difficult to see how its conditions for a future accord would be met.

They concluded: We therefore urge you to abandon any and all legally questionable and unfair efforts to flout the Northern Ireland protocol of the Withdrawal Agreement and look to ensure that Brexit negotiations do not undermine the decades of progress to bring peace to Northern Ireland and future options for the bilateral relationship between our two countries.
In paying tribute to the service and legacy of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, former President Barack Obama also called on Senate Republicans to wait to fill the seat until after inauguration day.

"Four and a half years ago, when Republicans refused to hold a hearing or an up-or-down vote on Merrick Garland, they invented the principle that the Senate shouldnt fill an open seat on the Supreme Court before a new president was sworn in," Obama wrote.

"A basic principle of the law  and of everyday fairness  is that we apply rules with consistency, and not based on whats convenient or advantageous in the moment.

"The rule of law, the legitimacy of our courts, the fundamental workings of our democracy all depend on that basic principle. As votes are already being cast in this election, Republican Senators are now called to apply that standard," Obama wrote.

President Obama Addresses The Nation During State Of The Union Address (Saul Loeb / Pool via Getty Images)

Obama called Ginsburg, who died Friday at the age of 87, an inspiration who "fought to the end, through her cancer, with unwavering faith in our democracy and its ideals."

"But she also left instructions for how she wanted her legacy to be honored," Obama wrote in a statement, an apparent reference to Ginsburg's comments, reported by NPR, to her granddaughter that she did not wish to be replaced until a new president is installed.

The questions before the high court, and the ones to come "are too consequential to future generations for courts to be filled through anything less than an unimpeachable process," the former president said.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, did not allow a hearing on Obama's nominee for the high court, Merrick Garland, in 2016.

On Friday, hours after news of Ginsburg's death, McConnell said in a statement that "President Trumps nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."

He argued that the situations in 2016 and 2020 are different.

Story continues

"In the last midterm election before Justice Antonin Scalia's death in 2016, Americans elected a Republican Senate majority because we pledged to check and balance the last days of a lame-duck president's second term. We kept our promise. Since the 1880s, no Senate has confirmed an opposite-party president's Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year," he said.

McConnell continued, "By contrast, Americans re-elected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise. President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate."

Former Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden on Friday called Ginsburg a hero, but in comments and a Tweet said the choice on her successor should be made by whoever wins the presidential election.

"Let me be clear: The voters should pick a President, and that President should select a successor to Justice Ginsburg," Biden tweeted.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., also tweeted Friday: "The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president."

The line was the exact same phrase McConnell used in 2016 to block Obama's nominee to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Scalia.
As many as 1,100 indigenous manufacturers of PPE kits have been developed by the government till date and most of them are from the MSME sector, Parliament was informed on Friday.

In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Textiles Minister Smriti Irani said the capacity and production of PPE coveralls for Covid-19 touched a peak of 5 lakh per day in mid-May 2020.

"From zero manufacturers in March 2020, 1,100 indigenous manufacturers of PPE kits have been developed by the government till date, most of them being from the MSME (micro, small and medium enterprise) sector," she said.

As on September 13, she said a total of 1.42 crore PPE kits have been supplied to HLL Lifecare Ltd, the procurement arm of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, for the use of health professionals in government hospitals.

Similarly, domestic manufacturers of N-95 masks were encouraged during the lockdown period and as a result, as on September 13, a total of 2.46 crore N-95 masks have been supplied to HLL Lifecare Ltd.

In a separate reply, she said that from July 28 to August 24, 2020, the exports of PPE coveralls were allowed under quantity restriction limited to 50 lakh per month.

"During this period, the export authorisations were given for the US, the UK, the United Arab Emirates, Senegal and Slovenia," she added.

Export authorisations to the US was 6 lakh, the UK (4 lakh), United Arab Emirates (3 lakh), Senegal (4,89,500) and Slovenia (5 lakh).

Replying to another question, she said as per the Cotton Crop report dated September 10 of Directorate of Cotton Development, cotton cultivation for the ensuing cotton season 2020-21 is expected to increase by around 3 per cent to around 130 lakh hectares. It had stood at 126 lakh hectares during cotton season 2019-20.

"Thus, there is no adverse impact on cotton cultivation due to Covid-19," she said.
President Akufo-Addo has pleaded with Ghanaians not to engage in skirt and blouse voting pattern in the 2020 elections.

According to him, as they continue to clamour for him to be retained to do more for Ghana, a similar gesture should be extended to the New Patriotic Party Members of Parliament and Vice Versa.

The President who was speaking to the people of the Bono Region in his recent visit to the area said: "I need people I can work with when I am elected for the second term. Since I cannot do it alone, there is the need for you to ensure that I have a strong majority to assist me in Parliament.

The President said it is glaring that he has been able to fulfill his 2016 promises to the people of Ghanaians and will need another four years to do more.

It is because of this that I now have the courage to appear before you to ask for another mandate, he said, adding that there is the need for you to vote in one way, it is the elephant for the presidency and an elephant majority in Parliament.

He asked for peace to reign supreme as the country goes to the polls.

--Mynewsgh
(Alliance News) - UK government ministers need to act "sooner rather than later" if they are to prevent a new surge in coronavirus cases leading to more deaths, a scientist has warned.

Neil Ferguson a whose modelling led the government to order the lockdown in March a said the UK is facing a "perfect storm" following the easing of controls over the summer.

His warning came as UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson spends the weekend in Downing Street considering new restrictions across England as the latest figures show new infections are doubling every week.

Ministers are thought to be looking at a temporary two-week "circuit break" in an attempt to break the chain of transmission.

The move could see pubs and restaurants ordered to close or face a 10pm curfew, while socialising between households could be banned.

Ferguson said the government needs to move swiftly rather than wait until the October half-term break, as some reports have suggested it is considering.

"Right now we are at about the levels of infection we were seeing in this country in late February," he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.

"If we leave it another two to four weeks we will be back at levels we were seeing more like mid-March. That's clearly going to cause deaths because people will be hospitalised.

"I think some additional measures are likely to be needed sooner rather than later.

"We have in some sense a perfect storm right now of people, as they have been told to, getting back to normal, schools reopening, a surge in cases, so therefore the testing system is under strain.

"So unfortunately we do have to roll the relaxation of measures back a little bit and get contacts down in the population."

Meanwhile, Labour has joined the Scottish and Welsh governments in calling on the prime minister to summon a meeting of the government's Cobra civil contingencies committee a which has not met since May a to consider the worsening situation.

Deputy leader Angela Rayner told the Today programme: "He has to look at the science and the evidence and he has to make sure the measures are in place and a clear communications strategy on that so people can do the right thing.

"It has been absolutely shocking to see how monumentally they have failed at the testing, tracing, tracking system that they put in place."

The prime minister remains desperate to avoid another full national lockdown which would hit the economy hard just as activity is beginning to pick up again.

It is just days since the new "rule of six" a banning social gatherings of more than six people a came into force.

The government has also imposed tough new restrictions in large parts of England's North West, West Yorkshire and the Midlands.

It means by Tuesday, when the measures come into force, around 13.5 million people in the UK will be living under some form of coronavirus controls.

Speaking to reporters during a visit to Oxford on Friday, Johnson said it is clear the long-feared second wave of the pandemic has reached the UK and some additional measures are likely to be necessary.

"We are now seeing a second wave coming in. We are seeing it in France, in Spain, across Europe a it has been absolutely, I'm afraid, inevitable we were going to see it in this country," he said.

His comments came as new confirmed daily cases of coronavirus hit 4,322 a the highest since May 8.

Cases of the virus and hospital admissions for Covid-19 are doubling every seven to eight days in the UK, according to data from the Office for National Statistics.

The government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies said the R number a representing the number of people an infected person will pass the virus to a has risen to between 1.1 and 1.4, meaning cases could rise very quickly.

Although deaths are currently low, experts expect them to rise, with Sage saying the R number "shows that we are moving to wider spread growth in transmission at a faster rate".

Last week, the R number was said to be between 1.0 and 1.2.

Overall, an average of 6,000 people in England per day were estimated to be newly infected with Covid-19 between September 4 and 10, almost double the 3,200 people per day from August 30 to September 5.

The figures do not include people staying in hospitals or care homes.

By Gavin Cordon, PA Whitehall Editor

source: PA

Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept. 19

Trend:

Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops 36 times, Trend reports referring to Azerbaijani Defense Ministry.

Armenian armed forces were using large-caliber machine guns and sniper rifles.

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, 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 the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Upko battles to shake off Warisan's migrant bogeyman in KDM heartland

SABAH POLLS | Warisan, since its founding in 2016, has made unprecedented electoral gains in Sabah, particularly in the Muslim bumiputera coastal areas.

In this Sabah election, Warisan is now also trying to make inroads into the non-Muslim bumiputera areas, but is finding itself struggling with a similar "bogeyman" problem as DAP in Peninsular Malaysia.

Warisan, demonised by opponents as an "undocumented migrant" party in the Kadazan Dusun Murut (KDM) community, is counting on its new KDM-based ally Upko to court the support from the non-Muslim bumiputera community.

But the fear of Warisan as an "undocumented migrant" bogeyman is having a spillover effect on Upko, which is struggling to shake off the association as it works the KDM ground.

Sabah BN chairperson Bung Moktar Radin also played on this fear, likening Warisan's "In God we trust, unite we must" tagline to a Filipino slogan, although "in God we trust", or "kepercayaan kepada tuhan" in Malay, is contained in the Rukun Negara.

The situation is not unlike DAP being demonised as an "anti-Malay and anti-Muslim" party in Peninsular Malaysia, so much so that allies who associate with it are painted as stooges serving DAP's agenda.

Warisan's meteoric rise in the 2018 general election was not reflected in the KDM heartland as it captured only four out of 10 KDM-majority seats it contested then.

Now, this task is being passed on to Upko in the hopes that it can deliver better results for the Warisan Plus alliance, which also includes Pakatan Harapan.

Read more: Sabah Decides 2020: Making sense of the players, parties and battles

Mindful of the challenges, Upko is contesting under its own logo instead of borrowing from Warisan, as DAP and Amanah did.

Upko, formerly known as the United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation, is well known in the KDM community.

It was only last year that Upko rebranded itself to the United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation, in line with the party's aim of becoming more inclusive instead of an exclusive KDM platform.

Story continues

PBS and Upko tussle for KDM dominance

Upko split from PBS in 1994, during the tail end of PBS' dominance in the Sabah government.

PBS' leadership in the 1980s and early 1990s was considered a golden age of sorts for KDM leadership in the state.

Despite the split, Upko and PBS remained part of BN and carved up the KDM seats among themselves. Both quit BN in 2018.

With Upko now aligned to Warisan and PBS going solo but working closely with Perikatan Nasional (PN) and BN, the two KDM-based parties are set to clash.

Upko is contesting 12 seats in this Sabah election, all of which are KDM-majority seats. PBS will be present in seven of them.

Upko president Madius Tangau acknowledged that his party is expected to deliver the KDM votes for Warisan Plus but even in his own KDM-majority seat of Kiulu, there were murmurs among some voters about his association with the "undocumented migrants" bogeyman.

In conversations with Malaysiakini, some raised the issue without being prompted.

Yawas Tagih (above), a 48-year-old rubber tapper from Kampung Raganan in Kiulu, said that he read about Warisans purported link to the increasing number of undocumented migrants in Sabah, which has turned him off Upko completely.

For me, Upkos situation is not as good as before, because I dont like that they are now in a coalition with Warisan.

I am not that interested (in Upko) because they joined forces with Warisan and there are a lot of PTIs (undocumented migrants) linked with Warisan, he said when met at Pekan Kiulu, a small settlement nestled amid a range of mountains about 40km from the Tuaran town.

He acknowledged that the Warisan administration had provided a lot of help to his village, such as a new water pipe, but to him, the undocumented migrant issue is far more pressing.

Migrant fears trump developmental politics

Similarly, 48-year-old Christiny Yangat (below) said her support is solidly behind PBS in this election even though she liked Madius as a candidate.

Madius is very popular too and (the Warisan government) has contributed here, but what I dont like is the undocumented migrant issue with Warisan, she said.

Madius is taking enormous risk contesting in Kiulu, a long-time PBS stronghold which is held by incumbent Joniston Lumai @ Bangkuai.

Earlier in the day, Warisan president Shafie Apdal and Madius had visited Kampung Pukak in the Kiulu seat where they spoke to a crowd of about 200 people, who mostly wore Upko shirts, in an open-air hall across from the local church.

Kampung Pukak is less than 4km away from where Madius was born and bred and the surrounding areas were covered in Upko flags and posters of Madius (below, centre).

Shortly after the end of the event, a man who declined to be identified approached reporters outside of the hall and furtively revealed a PBS badge from within his bag.

I am here to see what they had to say. I used to be a strong Upko supporter but now I support PBS.

I dont like Warisan because of the undocumented migrants, he said.

The fear is in part contributed by Sabah's history which saw an influx of Filipino refugees into the state during the Moro conflict in Southern Phillippines which started in 1969.

Tainted history fuels fear

This was also fuelled by an alleged covert operation dubbed "Project IC" by elements in the federal government in the 1990s that illegally granted citizenships to undocumented migrants in a bid to alter the demography of Sabah for electioneering purposes.

The Sabah population, which stood at 1.01 million in 1980, grew dramatically to 2.6 million by 2000.

This also altered the demography of the state, with the KDM community which was the largest group shrinking from 37 percent in the 1960s to 23 percent in 2006.

Many of the Filipino refugees who fled to Sabah in the 1970s and 1980s have remained in the state.

Without documentation, their descendants have become stateless people.

It is the elephant in the room which Sabah politicians have been reluctant to address for decades due to the sensitivity of the issue.

As their refugees' descendants were born in Sabah, there is no country of origin to send them back to but setting them on a path of citizenship is highly controversial, leaving these people in a state of limbo.

Shafie, after coming into power in 2016, had tried to tackle the problem by initiating a registration process of the stateless people by issuing a Sabah Temporary Pass (PSS).

But this was played up by Warisan's opponents as an attempt to give citizenship to undocumented migrants and the party suffered in the Kimanis by-election in January for it.

The damage Warisan suffered in that by-election lingers on. Warisan and Upko are now working hard to counter this sentiment on the campaign trail.

In his campaign speeches, the incumbent chief minister often made it a point to talk about how Warisan could not be responsible for bringing in undocumented migrants into Sabah as it is a long-standing issue and Warisan was only formed in 2016.

In one of his speeches, Shafie even had to invoke his Bajau ancestry and late grandmother to counter the "undocumented migrant" perception.

He has said that his ancestors graves are in Semporna and that Bajau is categorised as natives of the state under the Sabah constitution.

Madius previously also told Malaysiakini that they are trying to rebut this perception with the Upko machinery going deep into the KDM heartland to explain the same issue.

Race against time

There are some among the KDM community who seem to have accepted this explanation and have remained as Upko supporters.

Haslinda Joipin (above), 37, was one of those in attendance at the Kampung Pukak ceramah who said Shafies explanation made sense to her.

We have heard the explanation from Shafie and we already understand," she said.

But with only one week of campaigning left, Warisan and Upko will need to convince many more in the KDM community.

The KDM seats are critical for Warisan Plus to secure a supermajority as they have said this was necessary to thwart fresh attempts to bring down the new government through defections.

The snap election was triggered after Umno's Musa Aman tried to make a come back as the chief minister through defections.

However, he was stopped by Shafie who received consent from the state governor to dissolve the state assembly, paving the way to fresh elections.

Campaigning began on Sept 12 and polling day is on Sept 26. A total of 73 seats are up for grabs.

Follow Malaysiakini's coverage of the Sabah state election here.
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Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose 27-year tenure as the second female justice on the U. S. Supreme Court culminated a legal career dedicated to advancing the rights of women, has died.

She was 87. Her death less than two months before the election gives President Donald Trump a chance to try to shift the already conservative court further to the right. Ginsburg died due to complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer and was surrounded by her family at her home in Washington, the court said in a statement Friday. Her health had been a top-of-mind concern at the court and throughout ...
Laredo College and TAMIU, in partnership with the Institute of Mexicans in the Exterior, announced on Friday that students from Mexico are expected to benefit in the form of scholarship opportunities by the universities and community partners.

Juan Carlos Mendoza Sanchez, Consul General of Mexico in Laredo, and TAMIU president Dr. Pablo Arenaz signed a memorandum of understanding Friday regarding the commitment to the IME-BECAS program.

Between the consulate and the universitys matching funds, the IME-BECAS program has awarded a total of $174,000 in scholarship funds to TAMIU students.

Meanwhile, LC received a $10,250 donation by the Mexican Consulate, Instituto Cultural De Mexico en Laredo, International Bank of Commerce and the Association of Logistics and Forwarding Agents, which was matched by the college as the $20,500 will benefit approximately 20 students.

The LC scholarships will be available for the current year as a result of community partners and individual donors. LC credited the IME-BECAS program, which was created in 2005, as it focuses on expanding educational opportunities in higher education for DACA students, Mexicans living in the U.S. and U.S. citizens born to Mexican nationals.

It is important for our institution to encourage Laredoans to continue their education and find the necessary support to provide the same opportunities for our international student body, LC President Ricardo J. Solis said.

Laredo College, in a joint effort with the Government of Mexico through the Secretaria de Relaciones Exteriores de Mexico, has been providing financial assistance to students attending the college via the IME-BECAS program for approximately 15 years, according to the college.

The Consulate General of Mexico in Laredo is convinced that the best asset for Latino communities in the United States is a college education, which will pave the way for lifelong learning and a high quality of life, Mendoza Sanchez said.

TAMIU stated that each year the scholarship is made available to both undergraduate and graduate students enrolled at TAMIU. They are required to submit proof of Mexican citizenship, enroll full-time, maintain an overall GPA of 2.75 or greater, or submit a high school GPA of 3.0 or greater for any incoming freshman students.

cocampo@lmtonline.com
Maybe you can shed some light on this. A friend of mine whos 68 said she remembers meeting some girls at Girl Scout camp who lived at a girls home on Aganier Avenue near Fulton just east of the original Blanco Cafe. This would have been in the 1960s. She said she thought it was some kind of reform school or shelter for troubled girls, and it had Aganier in the name. Ive looked on Google Maps for any building that might have served as an institutional residence on Aganier and the only thing I can see is the current Agnes Cotton Elementary School building. Seems like there could be an interesting story there, especially if some of the girls come forward with experiences and anecdotes.

 Evelyn Cooper

Shes probably remembering Aganier Hall at 1023 Aganier Ave., a two-story, white-painted former mansion remodeled into a home for teenage girls, established by the Girls Council, a group of businesswomen (formerly the Soroptimists) and homemakers.

In its charter, the organization declared that the Purpose of this group is to give whatever service and financial aid they possibly can to the home. They will assist with planning and providing recreation for the young girls who are residents in the house. They will provide transportation, Scouting, self-improvement and special study courses.

Authorized by the Texas Public Welfare Department as a child-caring facility, Aganier Hall opened in December 1956 with two girls and grew to house around 10 residents. Some were orphans or had no family who could afford to take care of them. Some had come through the juvenile justice system, although the Girls Council often stressed that it was not a home for juvenile delinquents but intended to prevent at-risk girls from getting into trouble.

Some residents simply have awkward situations at home, reported the San Antonio Express, Aug. 20, 1967, such as a girl who was a top student at Edison High School but who had lived with her parents and 17 brothers and sisters in a small house on the West Side.

Girls were screened in an application process; residents were required to be in good health and not emotionally disturbed.

Aganier Hall was intended to provide a homelike atmosphere, with shared chores, household pet care, communal meals, shared bedrooms instead of dormitories and practice in homemaking skills. Residents attended public school (Agnes Cotton Elementary, Mark Twain Junior High School and Edison High School) and took part in community-service activities, often at childrens hospitals, orphanages or homes for the aged. They were encouraged to participate in extracurricular activities at school and to attend the church of their choice.

To raise funds for the private, nondenominational home, the council sponsored an annual carnival in La Villita for more than a decade; they also held rummage sales at the home, held a spring fashion show and luncheon, ran a thrift shop and sold greeting cards.

Residents of the home  girls ages 12-18  helped with the fundraisers and were on hand to meet the patrons of their home. An advisory board that included influential clergymen, businessmen and military leaders also helped find community support for the home, which was considered to fill a gap in area social services.

Members of the Girls Council reached out to other womens organizations to plan monthly parties and outings for the group. A wide variety of groups made Aganier Hall one of their projects, such as the Charity Ball Association, Bexar County Womens Medical Auxiliary, Clipped Bs (former Braniff Airlines flight attendants), church groups and sororities. The Stitch in Time Sewing Club collected, repaired and altered clothes for the girls, and the American Association of University Women collected books to donate to the house library.

Other groups held silver teas, dances and bake sales and donated the proceeds so that the home could buy big-ticket items such as mattresses and a washer and dryer. Some volunteers gave the girls holiday or monthly birthday parties at the home; others took them out to San Antonio Symphony performances. Those who had swimming pools invited the girls over for summer pool parties.

The extent of the partnership between the area Girl Scouts and Aganier Hall isnt immediately clear; staff members of the local Scouts headquarters are working from home due to the coronavirus pandemic and have limited access to their archives.

Genevieve Kerr, a Camp La Jita camper in 1966, remembers that there were three to five girls from Aganier in my unit that summer but isnt sure if there were others or whether they came in other summers.

Hosting them at Girl Scout camp might have been an experiment that wasnt continued. Patsy Pelton, a longtime Girl Scout leader and volunteer, researched the local Girl Scout archives for an 80th anniversary history of Girl Scouting in San Antonio in 2004 and doesnt remember seeing anything about Aganier Hall campers.

By the early 1970s, the need to provide a service for children with more serious behavioral problems became obvious (and) the Girls Council looked for a group to help them make some necessary changes, states a history on the website of Roy Maas Youth Alternatives Inc., rmya.org. The Optimist Club of San Antonio, which had been involved with Boysville (a residential home for boys) for many years, agreed to join with the Girls Council to start a new program called Girlsville.

The Girls Council turned over the deed to the former Aganier Hall in January 1976. Council members continued with their usual fundraising activities for a couple of years until Girlsville merged with other youth programs as part of a larger agency, Youth Alternatives. Its one of the ancestors of Meadowland, a childrens residence since 1986 in Boerne.

historycolumn@yahoo.com | Twitter: @sahistorycolumn | Facebook: SanAntoniohistorycolumn
Councils protection committee was urged Friday to give someone who undergoes a police background check the right to an appeal.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 18/9/2020 (490 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Councils protection committee was urged Friday to give someone who undergoes a police background check the right to an appeal.

"Having an appeal process from that is really important and Id say fundamental to an appropriate police check process," said Abby Deshman, director of the criminal justice program for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association.

Background checks have triggered attention in recent months, after Coun. Vivian Santos (Point Douglas) was denied a required Winnipeg Police Service security clearance to become a member of the Winnipeg Police Board.

Deshman said an appeal option would help to ensure candidates who undergo screening can explain their past experiences, especially if they believe that history shouldnt disqualify them from getting a security clearance.

She alleged current background checks tend to create barriers to those who live in lower-income areas, as well as members of racialized communities, whom she believes are more likely to interact with police.

Deshman argued that having the Winnipeg Police Service conduct background checks for the Winnipeg Police Board presents a conflict of interest that allows the service to "veto" members of the board created to oversee them.

On Friday, the protection committee voted to have city legal staff complete a best practices review of police board screening across Canada, which would include feedback on which agencies conduct the checks.

The motion requires council approval.

Santos said she would also like to see an appeal option added to the security clearance, though she noted thats not proposed in the review.

"You never have the opportunity to defend yourself (in this process) ... Just to have that appeal process, I think, is important," she said.

The councillor said shes not sure if she would have pursued such an option personally, since she hasnt received an official explanation as to why she didnt pass her security clearance.

Global News has reported the reason the security clearance was denied is linked to the councillors friend, who was accused of trafficking cocaine. On two occasions, Global reports that vehicles owned by Santos and her husband were lent to someone who was allegedly involved in the drug trade.

Santos said her husband loaned the vehicles to a friend, with whom the couple has since cut ties, and didnt know about any alleged illegal activity at the time.

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The allegations have not been proven in court.

Mayor Brian Bowman said some form of security screening must occur for all Winnipeg Police Board members, who receive sensitive information from police.

"Absolutely, members of the Winnipeg Police Board should have to undergo a police background check, full stop," said Bowman.

The mayor said he is open to discussion on which agency conducts the screening.

Joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga
The cost of rental properties is driving a surge in car purchases as students choose to commute to university instead, it's claimed. (stock photo)

A leading north Cork car dealer has said that he can't keep older vehicles in the yard as young students who don't want to pay rent for part time accommodation in college are snapping them up.

Speaking to The Corkman, Peter Cronin, who has a dealership at Clonbanin Cross near Millstreet, said the exorbitant rents being sought by landlords in Cork City and other student destinations, combined with insurance companies being more willing to offer cover for a reasonable premium to younger drivers, were among the factors behind the surge in second hand sales.

"We cannot keep the older cars in the yard, such is the demand," he said.

"I had a fellow on to me looking at an 06 Toyota Yaris - he said he was interested and within two minutes of putting the phone down I had a family in the yard who bought it for their child who was going to go College."

Another factor contributing to the increase in interest in older cars was the effort by insurance companies to target younger drivers driving older vehicles, as well as those drivers being more content with reasonably priced cars as opposed to newer and more expensive models which would require them to sign up to more burdensome finance packages.

Peter remarked that his own daughter had an accommodation bill of 10,000 in college in Dublin last year, without accounting for food, fees or other expenses.

"Due to COVID, some students may only be going back for eight hours a week of lectures and to have to pay a full week's accommodation for that would be madness."

The search for student accommodation moved into top gear this week following the first round of CAO offers on Friday. Now students know what they've been offered and the race is on to get lodgings or make other arrangements.

A report issued by rental website DAFT.ie this week has suggested that there has been no fall in student rents this year, despite the fall in demand for accommodation due to COVID.

In Dublin, the average cost of a room in a shared property is 680, up 0.3% on the same time last year, while in other parts of the country, room rents are 462, up 2.8% on average year-on-year. Nationally, rents for full properties rose by 1.2% in the year to July but were largely unchanged in Dublin city, rising by just 0.2%.

Cork East TD Sean Sherlock revealed further startling figures for rents being sought by landlords in Cork.

"Within two kilometres of both UCC and CIT, rent prices per bedroom are averaging at 1,066 (UCC) and 993 (CIT) for one bed to 1,851 (UCC) and 1,617 (CIT) for four bed accommodation," he noted.

"These prices do not reflect the worsening financial position of students who for the most part have not been able to avail of the usual part-time/summer work that would have been accessible to them prior to the ongoing pandemic.

"The Government needs to recognise the situation and take immediate measures to alleviate student fears as they face into into the uncertainty of a post COVID academic life."
UNITED STATES - FEBRUARY 06: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., talks with reporters after a news conference in the Capitol with Rep. Andy Levin, D-Mich., on the

After Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death on Sept. 18, many Americans were overwhelmed with feelings of sadness and confusion. My own Twitter feed and texts were suddenly flooded with one-word messages, summing up a vacant Supreme Court seat: "F*ck." The idea that such immeasurable pressure and expectation sat solely on the shoulders of an 87-year-old woman is undeniably an issue - a burden she so unfairly carried as she battled metastatic pancreatic cancer. And yet, whether by faults of a flawed system or faults of our own, Ginsburg's passing signaled a moment of panic for many who fear an uncertain future.

Enter: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The New York congresswoman started an Instagram Live on Friday night to address Ginsburg's death and to give hope to a scared public. "For those of you who don't know, this vacancy on the court is extremely, extremely significant. It's just earth-shattering," she said in the 40-minute video. "This kind of vacancy and this kind of tipping point is the difference between people having reproductive rights and the government controlling people's bodies for them. This kind of vacancy makes the difference between LGBT people having marriage equality and full rights and not."



"This moment is not the time for despair. It is not the time for cynicism. It is not the time to give up."

She added: "The timing of this vacancy is extremely unsettling and scary to a lot of people, and I want to hop on tonight to talk to you about this and to talk to you about why now, this moment, is not the time for despair. It is not the time for cynicism. It is not the time to give up. It is not the time for us to say, 'It's too late,' or 'It's too far gone,' or 'I don't know what to do.'"

Related: After Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Death, Crowds Gathered on the Supreme Court Steps to Mourn

Story continues

But how is Ocasio-Cortez so sure that there's still hope? Well, she has a plan, and it includes all of us. She laid out the "ABCs" of political engagement, in which registering to vote (or checking your voter-registration status) takes priority. She used her own election to emphasize the importance of young people under the age of 40 getting to the ballot box - this group can make or break a race.

Ocasio-Cortez wants to see the passionate involvement in protests and rallies continue, but she also encouraged people to give their personal relationships extra attention. If there are family members or friends who still seem undecided about whom to vote for, or whether they're voting at all, talk to them. "Get through to that person that only you can get through to," she requested, adding another box to our pre-election checklist.

Finally, Ocasio-Cortez reminded constituents and politicians alike of Ginsburg's last request: That her Supreme Court seat remain vacant until "a new president is installed." Conservative officials, like Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConell and President Donald Trump, have already made it clear that they're going to pursue a nomination. Ocasio-Cortez's words of reassurance should also serve as a warning for them, "If Mitch McConnell is not going to honor RBG's final wish, we will." Watch her full IG Live video below.
University of Moratuwa to benefit from medical faculty next year View(s):

70 students to be admitted to the medical faculty early next year; Faculty buildings to be constructed in Nagoda and Katubedda

The current Government has decided to establish a medical faculty for the University of Moratuwa next year, as part of its plans for the expansion of the countrys university education system.

Early next year, around 70 students will be admitted to the newly established medical faculty, Education Ministry Secretary Kapila Perera said.

The Vice Chancellors of the Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) and Ruhuna University had agreed to provide academic assistance.

Initially, the Kalutara Nagoda Teaching Hospital would accommodate the students for clinical training, Prof. Perera said. The Panadura and Horana base hospitals too would be used for training, he added.

Prof. Perera said negotiations were taking place to purchase one 15 acres land in Nagoda and another 15 acre land in Katubedda to construct buildings for the medical faculty.

The land owners in Nagoda and Katubedda agreed to donate two acres each from their respective land.

This means we only have to pay for 13 acres in each area, he said.

Prof. Perera also said discussions were being held to decide if the funding for the project should be obtained through a loan provided by the State of Kuwait or by financial arrangements made with local banks.

According to him, the Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA) had expressed their pleasure over the Governments decision to increase state medical faculty intakes.
State Military Scientific-Technical Center Delta has sent two units of DIDGORI MedEvacs special modification vehicle BISONI to the Republic of Indonesia, Trend reports citing 1tv.ge.

According to Delta, BISONI is a medical modification of Didgori armoured vehicle, aiming at removing wounded soldiers from the battlefield.

According to the agency, Delta continues to work actively to export Georgian-made military equipment to the international market.
The Electoral Commission (EC) has said it uncovered 6,080 multiple registrations in the just ended nationwide voters album compilation exercise.



According to the commission, it will publish details of persons who registered multiple times.



Addressing the press on Thursday, the EC explained that details of multiple registrants to be made public will include the number of times the culprits attempted to register and the polling stations where the incidents were perpetrated.



Chairperson of the Commission Jean Mensa made the revelation at a press conference organized by the commission to announce the commencement of the voters album exhibition exercise which starts on Friday, September 18, 2020.



Full statement below;

REMARKS BY MRS. JEAN MENSA, THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION OF GHANA DURING A PRESS BRIEFING ON THE 2020 EXHIBITION OF VOTERS REGISTER HELD ON THURSDAY, 17TH OF SEPTEMBER 2020, AT THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION HEADQUARTERS AT 3:00PM



Good afternoon dear citizens of Ghana and our friends from the media.



We welcome you to another edition of Let the Citizen Know, the Commissions platform for regular engagement with the citizens through our media partners.



We thank the Almighty God for His faithfulness and for seeing the Commission through a successful Voters Registration Exercise, an activity that is instrumental in the electoral processes as far as credible, fair and transparent elections are concerned.



The purpose for this engagement today is to inform our distinguished stakeholders of preparations we have put in place for the Exhibition of the Provisional Voters Register.



As the institution responsible for national elections, Regulations 22(1) and 23(1) of C.I. 91 enjoin the Commission to compile a provisional register of voters for each Polling Station indicating the particulars and photograph of each person whose application was received and accepted during the registration, and display it for public inspection.



As such, the Commission will display the Provisional Voters Register for public inspection and correction at designated Exhibition Centres throughout the country from Friday,the 18th Day of September, 2020 to Friday, the 25th Day of September, 2020 from 7.00am to 6.00 pm each day including Saturday and Sunday.



The Exhibition of the Provisional Voters Register will take place simultaneously at all 33,367 Exhibition Centres across the country.



I would like to emphasize that all Exhibition Centres will open from 7.00am to 6.00pm daily.



All registered voters are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity to verify their details.



Importance of the Exhibition Exercise



From our experience over the years, participation in the Voters Exhibition Exercise has been low. Citizens have not found it worth their while to visit the Exhibition Centres to check their details on the Provisional Voters Register.



We wish to emphasize that the Exhibition Exercise is an important aspect of the entire registration and election process. It is therefore important that voters take the time to check their details. As you may be aware, the Voters Register as it stands is provisional. This means that it is not final; that is why the law recognized the need for an exhibition process to enable all registered voters check and ensure that the necessary corrections and omissions are effected before the register is certified.



The Voters Register will only be deemed final after the Exhibition Exercise is completed and after authentication by the Magistrates who for the purpose of this Exercise serve as District Registration Review Officers (DRROs).



Ladies and Gentlemen, if for nothing at all, the verification of a persons details is important for this very reason, as it affords each voter the opportunity to check whether his or her details are on the register and to request for an inclusion of his or her name where this is missing. The Exhibition of the Provisional Voters Register also grants Prospective Voters an avenue for verifying the accuracy of their details captured on the register and affords them the opportunity to correct errors, such as the wrong spelling of names, etc.



The other reasons for the Exhibition Exercise include the following:



Objection to names of unqualified voters on the register: (Any person entitled to be registered as a voter may object to the inclusion of names or persons of the Provisional Voters Register is he/she believes that they are unqualified to be registered as voters).



Removal of names of deceased voters from the register: (Any person who qualifies to register as a voter may visit the Exhibition Centre with information on deceased persons to have them removed from the register. Persons volunteering such information will have to produce the voter ID card of the deceased person and a proof of death of that person e.g. death certificates or burial permit).



Replacement of poor quality or damaged voter ID cards:



(This is for persons whose photographs are of exceptionally bad quality e.g. too-dark, or too light or damaged such that the voters face cannot easily be identified on both the voters register and the voter ID card).Correction to wrong spelling of names and other registration detail



Change of Name(s): (Voters requesting for change of name must have published the said change in the gazette and are to provide documentary evidence to that effect, at the Exhibition Centre).



In the light of the importance of the Exercise we entreat all Registered Voters to take the time to verify their details in the Voters Register before its certification as final by the District Registration Review Officers (DRROs).



Mode of Exhibition



During this period of Exhibition, the physical copies of the 2020 Provisional Voters Register will be placed at all 33,367 Exhibition Centres to enable prospective voters verify their details as captured during the registration exercise and make requests for amendments or insertions where necessary.



It is important to note that all persons who registered at the various District Offices must go to their assigned Polling Stations during the Exhibition Exercise and not the District Offices.



In a bid to ensure the safety and security of our stakeholders and to make life easier for all prospective voters, the Commission will deploy a Mobile Telephoning System, also known the SMS to allow prospective voters to check their details using their mobile phones for a fee of 30 pesewas.



A prospective voter may access this system by simply texting his or her Voters ID Number to 1422 and immediately his or her details will pop up. With this simple process a Voter with the click of the button, can obtain the following details;



His/Her Name Voter ID Number Age Gender Polling Station Code Polling Station Name District Region



This facility will be available to all voters throughout the period, from Friday the 18th of September to Friday the 25th of September 2020. We are aware that a number of citizens have tried to access this platform before it was activated. We wish to assure you that your funds have not gone to waste. Our team has compiled your details. The system will forward your information to your phone once the platform goes live tomorrow. Therefore we urge you not to re-access the system.



It is important to highlight that a Prospective Voter will need to visit the Exhibition Centre if he or she notices an error in the details that pop up from the SMS service. This only means that there were errors in the details captured and recorded at the point of registration and this may be corrected if the Voter so wishes. In that case the Prospective Voter would have to visit the Exhibition Centre.



For the information of the General Public, the Commission will deploy 5,000 Biometric Verification Devices to selected Exhibition Centres throughout the country. The devices will be operated along-side the physical copies and the Provisional Voters Register.



These device will enable the Prospective Voter verify both biometric details, that is fingerprint and facial features as well as the biographic data, that is ones name, age, etc.



The deployment of Five Thousand (5000) devices will afford the Commission an opportunity to pilot the devices.



Recruitment and Training of Exhibition Officials



To ensure the efficiency of the Exhibition Exercise the Commission has recruited a total of seventy-three Thousand, one hundred and seven Exhibition Officials to manage and oversee the Exercise. They include;



Exhibition Supervisors Deputy Exhibition Officers Verification Officers Key Trainers Technicians COVID-19 Ambassadors Each category has been provided comprehensive training on their respective roles. We trust that they will be professional, efficient and pleasant to all who visit the Centres.



The Commission is desirous of ensuring the safety and security of our stakeholders. As a result, we have recruited one (1) COVID 19 Ambassador to each of the 33,367 Exhibition Centres, who have been tasked to enforce the COVID-19 protocols put in place by the Commission.



Logistics Management



All materials required for the successful conduct of the Exhibition Exercise have been procured and supplied to the Regions and Districts in adequate quantities. We are confident that the comprehensive plan put in place will ensure that there are no shortages of any materials at our Centres.



Settlement of Claims and Objections on The Provisional Register



As part of the process to ensure a credible Voters Register, District Registration Review Officers who are District Court Magistrates have been appointed and assigned the responsibility of deciding on all complaints and objections that are raised during the Exhibition Exercise. The DRROs will also authenticate the Provisional Voters Register by endorsing it.



The DRROs are required to communicate all decisions in writing to the Electoral Commission. The Commission shall, within fourteen days after parties to the case have been informed, comply with the decision of the District Registration Review Officer unless a certified notification on an appeal to the High Court is brought to its attention.



Observation of Commissions COVID-19 Protocols



As part of the Commissions commitment to safeguard its stakeholders at the Exhibition Centre, the following safety protocols will be observed at all our Centres.



All persons entering the Exhibition Centre or queuing to enter the centre must wear a face mask.



Upon entering the Exhibition Centre, a thermometer gun will be used to check the temperature of individuals.



A minimum distance of 1 meter between Registered Voters in the queue will be observed at all the Centres.



In Centres where the Biometric Verification Devices (BVDs) are used their surfaces will be cleaned with wipes, prior to verifying the fingerprints of Registered Voters.



The Commission will provide hand sanitizers for Registered Voters to sanitize their hands when leaving the centre.



Our temporary officials have been provided with the appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to ensure they are safe for the week-long exercise.



Other important details on the Exhibition



The Commission will display an Exceptions List comprising names of Registered Voters who have flouted the regulations on the Registration Exercise. The Commission will also deploy the multiples List. This contains names of persons who engaged in multiple registration and during the Registration Exercise.



Voters can still check their Voter Registration details in the event that theirID Cards are missing. Please note however, that being in possession of an ID Card makes it easier for you to check your details on the register. This current Exhibition Exercise is a display of persons who were captured during just ended Registration Exercise. Therefore, there will be no Voter Registration ongoing during this period except for corrections and updates on already existing data.



Ladies and Gentlemen, before we close the curtains to todays edition of Let the Citizen Know, I take this opportunity to encourage our distinguished stakeholders particularly our Registered Voters to participate in this Voters Exhibition Exercise.



Your participation in this process will contribute to ensuring the credibility and integrity of the Voters Register which is the foundation document for the 2020 Presidential and Parliamentary election.



We thank you for your kind attention and cooperation.



May God bless our homeland Ghana and make our nation great and strong.



Thank You.





Source: Peacefmonline.com









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